Illness had rendered them blind. They had been told, after escaping their polity, the mediks here would make sure they could see again. But in the meantime.... "I wish I could still fight. That way, no one could hurt me again."
A soft voice nearby said. "That's not a problem, even unable to see, you can still learn to defend. Don't worry, I'll help you." -- The New Guy
I had learned how to use a stick to get around, in association with really listening to my surrounds. That had usually been enough, even against the kind of people who liked to pick on cripples. Not always great, mind, but enough to get through the day. It's enough to say that I learned some pretty toxic coping strategies.
Boiled down - I was mostly a shut-in until a local caseworker had me shipped out to the Alliance "for the greater good".
They just don't want to admit that endorsing vaccines could have saved me and a lot of others like me from blindness, deafness, or nerve damage caused by catching things like measles as an adult. Shipping people like me away lets them fudge the numbers and look great in the propaganda. And it saves the normal citizens from seeing disabled people like me. It's win-win for them. But, again, not so great for me. I don't matter, though. I've been casting a bad look on the empire.
Because they tell me I'm useless. A drain on society. A burden.
The Alliance doesn't agree with that. That's why I like them. That, and there's nobody in the Alliance willing to mess with somebody who's already having trouble. They all just... help.
Coming to grips with that was... a journey.
And then I met Sensei. Ze taught me how to really sense my surroundings. Taught me echolocation while the Mediks cloned me some new eyes. Taught me how to see without vision. By the time my eyes were ready, I didn't need the stick at all.
Then Sensei taught me how to hold my own in a fight.
Even if my new eyes don't work, I'm a lot more confident. I could plausibly go back to my origin point and fight all the people who used to be horrible to me.
I could, but I won't. Because if I did? All that growth and learning would be for nothing.
[Photo by engin akyurt on Unsplash]
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