Silver Silhouette

by Rodzil LaBraun

  Option three would be to send Tish home and run off with his family. That was the safest of the choices. He knew it, and the coven reminded him of it constantly. Aaron just couldn't bring himself to accept this option. He had made this decision before at the hospital, but his heart prevented him from following through once he had the opportunity to be with Tish again. If he selected this course he would either live with the desire to return to her or have to block her completely from his mind in misery. Though it was the best choice for most involved he did not look forward to that life.

  The final option was one that perhaps only he had considered, and it tore him apart each time he did. He could send Tish home, turn in his own parents, and then join Tish for a long happy life on earth. His parents would be deported, but they would still have each other. Tish would be able to do whatever she wanted with her life. And he would be able to spend all his days with her. Perhaps he could reunite with his parents in a future life. Sometimes it seemed like the best choice. But he could not bring himself to such treachery. He considered revising the plan to have Tish turn them in, but that really didn't change anything. He would have to live with his actions the rest of his human life, at least.

  An hour later he found himself returning to the cave, determined that he needed to send Tish back. Even if she chose to stay with him, he would not feel right. He must sacrifice his love for her happiness. After that, he could run away or turn himself in for deportation. But this scenario of Tish, his parents, and himself all wanting something different had to change. The weight of it was entirely on him. Aaron had to do what was best for Tish most of all, then everyone else, leaving his own desires for last consideration.

  When Aaron broke from the tree line Tish ran up and gave him a hug. "I was worried about you. Where did you go?"

  "For a walk," he answered, emotionally drained. "I just needed to think. I didn't mean to worry you." As Tish pulled back from the embrace he realized she was wearing black sweatpants and hoodie. "Where did you get the clothes?"

  Tish spun around as if modeling, "You like? Your mom got them for me. My dress was a disaster. And, to be honest, I was a little uncomfortable when a couple of your vampire buddies were staring at me. In these clothes I blend in more. I just can't morph into one of you guys, though. Your dad told me 'morph' was the most commonly used term for changing from one species to another. I feel less and less like an outsider wearing your rogue garb. What were you thinking about?"

  "You," he replied softly. She smiled, then kissed him on the lips. Seeing and touching her made his decision so much harder. He never should have snatched her from the patio that day.

  "I was thinking about you, too," Tish whispered romantically as she laid her head on his chest.

  This time Aaron pulled back from the embrace. "It was incredibly selfish of me to bring you here. I'm sorry. I should take you back."

  Tish was surprised, but also relieved. Her heart begged for her to stay with Aaron, but her mind told her it would never work out. She was relieved that she would not have to make the decision herself. Her challenge now was to convince Aaron to return with her. The closeness he had with his family was obviously a strong bond. Then, harder yet, to convince the coven to let him go. That might be an impossible task.

  The tree line blurred as multiple vampires darted toward them, stopping unreasonably close. "Geez!" Tish yelped out. "Do you guys have to keep scaring the crap out of me like that?" No one responded to her complaint, the seriousness of the moment becoming evident.

  The vampire that Tish had come to recognize as Jose, the coven leader, spoke quickly to Aaron in Sanguillen tongue. There was no chance that she would understand a single word. But she was able to sense their fear. Aaron's body tensed as he heard what Jose said. He then turned to her and said, "They're coming for you."

  34 - Too Good to Last

  Charlie sat perched on a tall tree high on the hillside overlooking the Potomac River as it meandered through the woods separating Virginia and West Virginia from Maryland. So much Sanguillen activity in this area. The rogues were nearby. He knew it. In Magavi form he was able to see clearly for over a mile. It was a lot to process, though. The movement of every animal caught his attention. He could hear clearly as well, but that was almost a disadvantage. The river water dropping over rocks, the vehicle traffic on Rte. 340, and the wind through the trees made it impossible to hear anything important.

  Below him two Sanguillens and three Ursulan canvased the woods in search of the rogue coven. One of the Sanguillens was Thomas. He was leading the group. The other was a rookie that was only valuable in his ability sense the targets' presence. Both wore black sweat pants like their targets, but their hoodies were a special camo pattern that was half black. They would be tough to spot visually, but more important, the Ursulan would be able to tell them apart from the rogues at close range.

  The Ursulan were three brothers that worked incredibly well together. In their bear like form they were at least as strong as the vampires, but not nearly as fast. They needed to trap the vampires first, then let the bears attack. Sanguillens had no ability to sense the other alien forms. That would be to their advantage. Another dozen agents of Silver Silhouette patrolled the two lane road below in Hummers awaiting orders. They had enough fire power to wipe out the coven easily. The trick would be pulling the trigger before their targets could move out of the way.

  The Silver Silhouette human squad leader rode shotgun in a Hummer, constantly on the phone. Though he was not able to maintain steady contact with Charlie or the others when they were morphed, Pam Hawkins kept him busy with her requested updates. There was a power struggle between that couple, he thought. Pam was giving them orders that did not coincide with Charlie's. The primary difference was the shoot to kill order. Pam wanted no one to be killed, especially her daughter Tish. He briefed his squad on two scenarios and would hold off his orders until the fight began. If Charlie looked vulnerable they would follow Pam's orders. She would take over Silver Silhouette in the event of Charlie's death. Otherwise, they had some specific targets to eliminate.

  The search had been going on for hours, with no progress. They would be at a disadvantage come sunset, so they needed to find the rogues now or continue the search tomorrow. Unfortunately, communication with Thomas and the others was rare. The Hummer squad could not just abandon the search and leave them behind. The morphed agents would attack even though outnumbered because they were expecting support. The sun began to dip below the mountain peak, concerning him. He tried again to reach Charlie and Thomas to no avail.

  Charlie dove toward the river valley below, his wings barely missing the treetops. He had spotted the rogues on the hillside less than 2 miles west of his perch. He couldn't wait for Thomas to answer his cell. Charlie must contact him directly. The two Sanguillen agents were indistinguishable from the sky, and they were hundreds of feet apart relying on their vampire sense. Charlie dropped between some pines to land on a boulder near one of them. The vampire freaked out and ran directly into a tree. Rookie, Charlie muttered in bird song. It was not Thomas that he frightened. A few seconds later Thomas appeared nearby laughing at the young agent. The boy was not seriously hurt, but vampires did not appreciate being the target of humor. Despite his defensive instincts he would not physically attack the stronger Thomas.

  Charlie morphed back to human so they could understand his instructions. "They are west by southwest," he said. "I spotted a few of them, so hopefully they are all together. Remember, don't get close enough for attack. Just draw them back toward the Ursulan and that service road between the two hills. I'll have the Hummers join us there."

  "Understood," Thomas replied confidently. The other vampire just nodded. Thomas thought the boy would likely be killed in the fight. He had no battle experience on this planet. Sanguillen instinct alone would not be enough to save him in this conflict. Some losses were expected. Trying to protect the boy in the heat of the battle could cause him to get himself killed.
That was not going to happen.

  The two Sanguillens raced down the hill and started up the next, catching the attention of the rogues. Thomas grabbed the boy by the shoulder when he turned to escape. "We have to make it convincing. If they don't follow us this will be a huge embarrassment for the company. We'll spread out and proceed slowly like we're stalking them. Let them think we don't know they are all together."

  The boy followed his orders, but there was much fear in him. The rogues would likely sense it, too. Perhaps that would work in their favor. Eventually, it did. Like thunder on his brain Thomas felt at least eight rogue vampires take off in their direction. It was time to turn and run. The rookie did not need to be told.

  Aaron was scared. They tried to lead Thomas and Charlie in a different direction once they learned they were coming, but Thomas and his vampire buddy nearly stumbled across the cave entrance where Tish was hidden. Aaron panicked, turning to defend Tish. Vicki immediately joined him, then Stan. The rest of the coven followed knowing they would only survive this night if they all stayed together.

  Charlie spotted the first of five Hummers turn onto the service road. This plan was going perfectly. He morphed back into a Magavi and circled around behind the rogues. His job was to herd them all toward the kill point. The Ursulan were already there hiding in the brush. "Cucaw! Cuwa Cuwa!" he belted from his long beak. It was the signal that everything was in place. It was safe for Thomas to stop in the designated location. Charlie darted back and forth to keep all the rogues on target. He knew that individually they were scared to death of him, but as a group they could take him down if he didn't have enough support. He must be cautious.

  This was the first time that Charlie fully intended to capture the rogue coven. The rest of the tic-tac, chase and be chased escapades were for viewer benefit. He would never send a full force without the perfect scenario to win. This way the rogues would underestimate his strength. It had been several years since he last engaged in rogue combat. They usually caught the deserters when they were still alone or in a small group. There was normally no need for his physical involvement unless there was a large coven. This one was the largest since he had taken over as President.

  Tish was far back in the cave when the loud bird call came. She recognized the sound from her nightmares. It was a Magavi. It couldn't be far from the entrance, she thought. Maybe her dad had found her after all. The plan for the rogues to draw attention from her and the cave must have failed. She worried about Aaron. If what they told her was true it seemed possible that Thomas would try to kill Aaron. She could not allow that. If she was the priority she would have to turn the tables, become the distraction herself. By that she could help Aaron and his family get away. She needed to at least try. Tish would never be able to forgive herself if she stayed hidden and Aaron was killed.

  Tish had come to believe that the Sanguillen rogues were just misunderstood. Their fear of deportation was like any human weakness. You could not blame them for it. Concessions should be made. Tish believed that a special place on earth should be reserved for the vampire rogues, a community of their own where they would never have contact with humans. There would then be no risk of Kamilian exposure. She would push for this agenda when she returned home, if they still allowed her to work at Silver Silhouette. As a new employee she would not have much pull, but her mother would. She would have to persuade her to help. Aaron and his family should be permitted to remain on this planet.

  Tish ran from the cave into the woods, doing her best to not smack into anything. At one point she stumbled to the ground and nearly cracked her head into a rock. Cautiously, she stood up and gathered her balance before continuing. She could then see a blur of activity in the clearing ahead that could only be active vampires. But off to the side she saw a large bear watching the skirmish. It was an Ursulan, she remembered, just as it leaped from his hiding place to join the fight. As she approached the opening between the trees Tish saw her Magavi father darting back and forth in the sky, using his beak to knock down the rogues. Occasionally he would grab one with his talons and toss it into the trees before it could get a grip on his legs.

  It was difficult to tell the difference between her new vampire friends when they were standing still. In the blur of battle is was absolutely impossible. But she noticed that some of the vampires were wearing different sweatshirts than the rogue coven. Those must be her father's agents, probably including Thomas. The bears were easier to watch since they were much slower. Tish watched as Ursulan jaws snapped shut repeatedly on nothing but air, as the targeted vampire pulled its limb away in the nick of time.

  Bright headlights pierced the scene as one Hummer after another arrived. Soldiers jumped out and took aim on the rogues that were not currently engaged on hand to hand combat. The strategy of the Silver Silhouette fighters became more apparent then. Charlie would pick rogue vampires away from the pack so the soldiers could fire at them. The bears would avoid attacking vampires on their own, preferring to double up with a Sanguillen so they could land a crippling bite while the rogue was distracted. The rogue hunters knew what they were doing. In Tish's estimation it was going to work.

  The rogues were holding their own until the number of soldiers multiplied. Then Charlie's job was to prevent the vampires from taking out the soldiers. Two rogues went down as they raced into the gunfire dodging bullets only to be immobilized by the huge bird above them. But two more rogues took out at least a dozen soldiers before Charlie could get to them. He was wickedly efficient with his beak and claws, but he couldn't handle them all. A couple times a vampire would launch into the air and land on the bird's back while it was holding another vampire still for the shooting soldiers. Each time Charlie managed to shake the rider off.

  The gunfire was becoming erratic as soldiers went down and their guns continued to fire wildly. Tish shrugged off concern for her own well-being searching the battle to determine if Aaron was one of the shot vampires or not. She could not tell. Not knowing who was alive and who was already dead was unbearable. Finally, she screamed, "STOP!"

  Nearly everyone there froze in place, most turning to bow toward her. One vampire even took several steps in her direction before bowing at her feet. She could not place the coloring and general appearance as any of the vampires she had come to know while at the cave. She was certain that it was Aaron, instead. As she tried to take stock of the situation she came to realize that not all in the battle had frozen in place. The bears did. So did the humans. Charlie was bowed down so low his beak was on the ground. But one vampire in a camo hoodie came racing at her violently.

  It was Thomas, teeth exposed, claws forward. He was going to kill her. She had unknowingly immobilized everyone that would protect her. Thomas was obviously not affected, which freed him to take her life. It occurred to Tish, in that last second of life, that it was Charlie's command that killed her. Thomas was loyal to a fault. He would never attack her without her father's consent. Dad wanted her dead. Despite their differences in the past, that knowledge devastated Tish.

  35 - I Feel Violated

  Nick saw intense anger in his daughter’s eyes for the first time. Maybe he shouldn't have told her as much as he did. His fatherly instincts were getting stronger and stronger, causing more pain with each bit of information that caused Susan to react negatively. But he firmly believed it was not right to hide it from her any longer. He only hoped that all of the anger that his beautiful daughter held brewing inside her was reserved for the Hawkins girl, and not for him.

  "Are you sure about this?" Susan asked between gritted teeth, staring at the floor.

  "No," he replied, to her surprise. Susan looked up at her father's face waiting for reason to doubt what she just heard. "I am pretty sure," he said, "but I can't say that I'm 100% sure."

  "How sure?" she asked, not wanting false hope.

  "At least 95% sure, I'm afraid. There is a small chance that the wealth of evidence is inaccurate. It is consequential evidence, but I truly b
elieve it. The whole Hawkins family are aliens." Nick waited to see how his daughter would react. Would she punch him? Or need a hug? He hoped for the latter, of course.

  "Vampires?" Susan spit out the question.

  Nick shrugged. "Maybe. They have not been seen in vampire form. But there is evidence that Mr. Hawkins can move incredibly fast. So it is likely. But we also have reason to believe that these aliens can take other forms. We are not real sure how all that works yet. But the important thing now is to recognize them for what they actually are, aliens. The enemy of mankind."

  Tears streamed down Susan's face as her anger turned to sadness. "How can we be sure they all mean us harm? Is it possible that Tish is not a bad alien?"

  "For what other reason would you infiltrate human population in our form, without announcing your presence? They are not here on a friendly mission." Nick reached out to softly hold his daughter's hand. Her skin was so smooth compared to his, and he was not what you would call a laborer. "Besides, we have reason to believe that these aliens have been here on earth for hundreds of years. We have found records from other people in the past that discovered their existence."