The Marilians

by Beth Worsdell

  The sheer force of the blast knocked me off Qiu’s back, and there was nothing I could do to stop myself. I fell through the air with my arms and legs flailing wildly, and then instinct took charge. I tried to curl into a tight ball to protect my baby, and my whole body braced myself for the impact that was coming. When the impact didn’t come, and I couldn’t feel anything, I slowly raised my head, wondering what the hell was going on.

  I was glowing the bright blue, and I was inside a shimmering power bubble of my own. Straightening myself to an upright standing position; I let my feet touch the floor, and my hand went to my swollen baby bump, ‘You really are amazing, baby girl,’ I cooed to my daughter as I felt her move and kick, as if in answer. The crash of the Marilian ship hitting the buildings and the ground made the earth roll like an earthquake, and I swayed inside the bubble.

  I quickly looked around, watching everyone trying to keep their balance, and I was instantly relieved to see that so many people were unharmed from the blast. The angels had acted quickly by shielding as many of our friends as possible who had been closest to the blast, and the Marilians appeared to be in momentary shock themselves. Many of them stood back up, looking to where their main ship had just been destroyed, before turning back to us all with their red eyes blazing. Their anger was palpable in the air, and that only made them more dangerous.

  The Marilians attacked, all rushing at the same time to the nearest human with their teeth bared and their razor talons raised as they surged forward. The moment I tried to walk forward, the bubble began to absorb back into my body, allowing me to get back into the action. We were adrenaline-pumped already, and luckily, we were quick to react. Marilians and humans charged at each other as the angels tried to freeze the monsters. Our friends and I reached for the weapons that were still on our bodies or that were within reach. I charged at the nearest Marilian with handguns in both hands, grateful that I’d strapped so many weapons to my body.

  I didn’t wait until the Marilian reached me, aiming shots at its face as we ran towards each other, hoping that one of the bullets would hit a bright red eye. The slime ball rushed at me, swiping its talons at my chest as it neared, and as soon as it opened its mouth to roar, I took another shot, not realizing that I was aiming at its snarling mouth. As soon as the bullet passed between its bared teeth, hitting the back of its throat and exiting from the back of its head; its shocked eyes looked at me in disbelief before it fell backwards onto the ground. I didn’t stick around to watch its black blood pool on the floor.

  As I started to run towards the next Marilian monster, suddenly Tracey appeared in front of me with Akhenaten holding her hand. Both of them quickly let go of each other, Akhenaten’s hands instantly glowed with the bright white light of his power, and Tracey reached for her weapons that were strapped to her waist. They were quite the team. Akhenaten blasted his power at the Marilians to freeze them, and Tracey started shooting the monsters in any orifice that she could find. They were the definition of a power couple as Marilians dropped one after the other around them.

  “Did you like our missiles?” Tracey shouted as she shot dead yet another Marilian.

  “That was you two?” I shouted back as I aimed, shot, and missed another Marilian rushing at me.

  “Hell, yeah, it was us,” she shouted proudly.

  Suddenly, there was someone reaching over my right shoulder with a huge handgun in his large hand. The gun fired at the rushing Marilian, hitting it right in its left eye, the Marilian’s head flung back with the impact, before the monster dropped heavily with a thud. I knew the hand belonged to James instantly, without even seeing him.

  “Where are the kids?” I asked quickly before the next Marilian set its sights on us.

  “Don’t worry, they’re behind us kicking ass,” he said as he took a shot at another Marilian.

  I turned quickly, knowing that my husband literally had my back. I wanted to see with my own eyes that the rest of my kids were really ok. Not that I didn’t believe my husband, but I really needed to see them whole. My kids were ploughing through the Marilians like a force of nature. Abigail and April were back to back, shooting at any Marilians who dared to challenge them. Every time they ran out of bullets, they’d grab another magazine from their bodies as if they’d been trained by the world's best military. Harrison was just as fierce as he protected both of the girls. His face showed that he meant business, and he wasn’t interested in taking prisoners. Holly and Nalik were fighting not far from them, looking just as organized as Tracey and Akhenaten, although Nalik did seem to have a more concerned look on his angelic face than the older angel.

  “Ok, the kids do seem to be holding their own,” I admitted to James, as I aimed and shot at another one.

  Just as I was about to take another shot, the ground began to quake beneath our feet. James instinctively grabbed my arm as the quaking turned into violent shaking. Buildings and trees around us started to sway, windows began shattering in their frames as we all struggled to keep our balance.

  “What the hell! Earthquake?” I asked James as he desperately tried to hold on to me.

  “I don’t know, it sure feels like it,” he said, as he tried to look at our kids.

  We’d both felt many earthquakes in our lives, having both lived in California our whole lives, unlike my English parents, but something about this one felt different. As the ground began to settle again, a sense of dread washed over me from my head to my toes, as if I’d dived into an icy lake.

  “Something doesn’t feel right, James,” I said, as I wildly looked around for Christik and the elders. I spotted them, and they were standing in the middle of the road, looking at each other in confusion.

  The Marilians that were left looked just as worried as I felt inside, and they were no longer trying to fight. I could feel a panic rising among them, and I couldn’t understand why. I didn’t think it was because they thought they were losing. There was something else going on; I just didn’t know what. I touched my com, reaching out to Christik. ‘Was that an earthquake, Christik?’ I asked. ‘We are not on top of your planet’s fault lines, Mel; there should be no earthquakes here,’ she said, sounding just as confused as I was.

  One of the Marilians raised its muscular arms in the air, its talons catching the rays of the sun, and it roared a blood-curdling noise. ‘What the hell?’ The monsters all looked at the roaring Marilian in surprise, and I could see some of them were scowling at the sound. I didn’t have a clue what it meant, and I was completely stunned when one by one, the Marilians turned and started to sprint away. Something told me that it wasn’t a good sign.

  “What the hell is going on?” I asked no one in particular, as an icy chill ran down my back, making me shiver.

  The Marilians were all running in different directions, sprinting around the side’s old buildings and through the streets. They were so fast that there was no way any of us humans were quick enough to chase after them. We were all watching them in total confusion.

  “I don’t understand what the hell is going on here!” Tracey shouted over.

  Akhenaten had a worried look on his face too. Christik, the elders and all four of the dragons were stood watching the fleeing Marilians. After the last Marilian dashed out of sight, we all began to walk towards each other. Everyone who was still standing began to walk towards us and the fake holding structure, helping and carrying those who needed help. As we gathered together, we all had similar expressions of surprise and unease.

  “What is happening here?” I asked Christik as she approached with her parents and the four dragons following behind.

  Before she had a chance to reply, Lindaz took a knee, and she placed a hand on the ground, closing her peacock colored eyes. After a few moments, she looked up abruptly; her eyes were swirling like silver whirlpools. I watched her eyes gradually turn back to their normal colors, and the sense of dread washed over me again as Lindaz stood back up.

  “What is it, my own?” Christik asked.
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  “The Marilian ship has unleashed a terrible weapon into the heart of this planet,” Lindaz said, as she shook her head in sorrow. “It is something that we cannot heal, my own.”

  I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. After everything we’d already been through, our planet was going to fricking die anyway.

  “You can't do anything to save our planet?” I asked, desperately.

  “No, Mel,” she said, with so much sadness that I could feel my heart breaking.

  “What do we do now?” James asked as he looked from Lindaz to Evest to Christik.

  Everyone who was within earshot was looking helplessly at each other, and those who couldn’t hear were frantically asking what was happening.

  “We will all go back to our main craft to organize an evacuation,” Evest replied with confidence. “Christik, please tell the viziers what is happening.”

  We were all so stunned by Lindaz’ words to say anything more. None of it seemed real, and all I wanted to do was to get back on board the angels’ main craft and hug my husband, kids and check on Anthony. The angels moved quickly, taking the nearest humans by the hand or arm, flitting everyone back to the main craft. As soon as I saw the kids, James and Nalik leave; I walked back towards Qiu and climbed unto his back. The elders and Christik mounted the other three dragons, and after the last of our friends left, the four of us took to the sky.

  At this point, I didn’t care about the Marilians that were now running loose on our planet. I knew that by now, the other angels were taking everyone to the angels’ crafts, and the humans who didn’t fight were all still safe in the underwater cities. If our planet was truly dying, then the Marilians were going to die with it. Qiu flew us high in the darkening sky, and the stars were starting to appear. Everything was running through my mind as I sat on Qiu’s back, and I could feel a lump in my throat form as my heart broke. ‘I am sorry, young one,’ Qiu empathized, ‘the angels will do everything they can to save you all, and all of your creatures.’

  I knew what Qiu was saying was true, but I loved everything about our planet, from the oceans to the stars in the sky, and the thought of not seeing any of that again felt like too much to handle. Especially because I knew I wouldn’t be able to share any of it with our new daughter. Tears began to stream down my face as I started to sob, and I let them fall freely.

  Chapter 22

  Icried all the way back to the main craft with Qiu trying to comfort me, saying things like, ‘There is always hope, young one, all things happen for a reason, we don’t understand as yet.’ Did anything he said make me feel any better? Did it hell! Every time we flew over another healed area, my tears would fall harder. It was comforting to know that Qui understood the feeling of loss and grief.

  As we approached the large hanger on the main craft and Qiu began slow down; I wiped my eyes. I knew my face was probably blotchy and puffy, but I didn’t care. Qiu began to shrink in size, and he swooped gracefully into the hanger alongside Ying and the other dragons. I could see Christik and the elders waiting for me with somber faces. I slid off the dragon’s back with his help, and when my feet touched the ground, I nearly crumpled in a heap. My legs felt like jelly, and all of a sudden, my hands were shaking uncontrollably; I felt as if I was going to pass out.

  Christik rushed forward, catching me before I had time to hit the floor, and instantly, I could feel her power flowing through her touch on my arms.

  “What the hell?” I murmured.

  “Give yourself a moment, Mel,” Christik said, as I looked at her in utter confusion, “You have just been in battle, and you have used nearly all of your energy, trying to stop others from changing.”

  I let her hold me up, and I lowered my head, trying to take in long deep breaths to stop me from passing out. It took quite a few minutes of Christik sharing her power, for not only my energy to recharge but also for my emotions to be back on an even keel. I was grateful again to have such an amazing friend.

  “Where are my family and all the others?” I asked, feeling more like myself again.

  “They are in the large meeting room. Would you like to walk there or flit?” Christik asked with a soft smile.

  “I think I’d like to flit this time,” I told her with a smile of my own, “I don’t think we have time to waste, do we?”

  “No, we do not,” was her short reply.

  Christik looked at her parents, giving them both a nod before we both disappeared from the hanger.

  Within a split second, we were stood inside the large meeting room next to the angels’ control room. My family was there waiting, and so were our friends; angels and humans. The room was filled with a total mix of emotions. Relief that everyone was here, apart from Anthony, of course, and heartbreak because we had lost so many precious people, we had only recently got to know. I wanted desperately to be with my son and heal him, but at least I knew he was safe for the time being.

  James and the kids all rushed towards me as soon as they saw me, taking me in their arms. It was the best group hug that I’d had in a while, and I could have stayed there all day, even though at one point, I could barely breathe. The elders and Christik all took seats at the large wooden table, and everyone else followed suit. I sat myself next to James, the kids and Nalik, wanting to be close to them all. My eyes scanned my family as they took their seats, making sure that they were ok. I knew that the angels would have healed them straight away if they had been hurt, but I desperately needed the reassurance.

  Everyone was exhausted, and I could see from everyone’s postures that a lot of sleep was needed. Even Christik and the elders looked totally drained. Christik looked at her mother with a very sad look on her beautiful face.

  “What exactly did you feel when you touched the earth?” She asked Lindaz somberly.

  Lindaz’s eyes seemed to lose some of their sparkle as she held her daughter’s steady gaze.

  “I do not know or understand what the Marilians weapon was, but I do know it shot down to the Earth’s inner core,” she said with a sadness echoing in her words. “The dark energy is solidifying the outer molten core, and it has started a chain reaction that we cannot stop. If we had time to understand what the weapon was, we would have a chance of saving this planet, but time is not on our side.”

  Every word was like a stab to the heart, and I think we were all reeling from the reality of the situation.

  “I don’t freaking believe this!” Tracey almost shouted.

  Everyone turned to look at her.

  “First, our planet was dying because of us, and now it’s fricking dying because of the fricking Marilians!”

  We all felt as frustrated and upset as Tracey was, and most of us nodded in agreement.

  “How much time do you think we have, my own?” Akhenaten asked as he took Tracey’s hand, trying to comfort her.

  Lindaz and Evest both looked ashen as they looked at everyone at the table.

  “We have only hours before the planet becomes dangerously violent. So, we need to act fast, to get everyone on our crafts. It would take too long to go through the star passages,” she explained.

  “But where will we go once we’re away from here?” I asked, desperately.

  Everyone looked at the elders expectantly.

  “We will take you all to our planet until we can find you a new home,” Evest said calmly.

  What about all the animals?” Mimi asked with wide eyes.

  “We can take them all with us, Mimi. Do not worry,” Evest told her as he rose from his seat.

  Lindaz and Christik both stood from their seats too.

  “We need to evacuate the underwater cities and get everyone on board. My angels will meet us down there,” Christik said.

  Without another word, the angels all moved to the closest human friend, flitting us all to the hanger again. We boarded the small crafts in silence and exhaustion, and no sooner had the last butt made contact with the last seat, we were already on our way to the underwater city Cubana
z. Within minutes of leaving the main craft and with my head resting against James’ shoulder, I fell asleep out of total exhaustion, with the last bit of Christik’s shared energy depleted.

  I woke to James gently stroking my face. For a moment, I dared to hope that it had all been a terrible, terrible dream, but as I looked around at the angels and my family; my hope turned to dust, and my heart sank again. Their distraught faces made it clear that this was our living nightmare. There was nowhere to moor the crafts when we arrived at Cubanaz. Small crafts were already moored at every available entry. Christik stopped the craft with ease, so we were floating close to where we moored the last time we were there, and she disconnected herself. The moment the seats released us, the angels and elders flitted us all inside the underwater city.

  When we arrived in the big hall where Holly had recently got married all shivering like idiots, everyone seemed to be nervously talking, obviously worried about what was happening above them on land. As soon as everyone started to see us all standing there, a silence swept the room like a wave. Within a couple of minutes, the whole room was deathly quiet with all eyes on us. Christik glided forward to address everyone while the rest of us stayed where we were. It was as if everyone in the hall could sense that something bad had happened. Christik cut straight to the chase.

  “I am afraid we all have to leave Earth,” she said, with a voice that made it clear she was serious.