by Rob May
‘The horses?’ Jason said. ‘We’ve seen them too.’
‘No,’ Gem said. ‘The people! I know where they are!’
05—MARINA
Kat followed Gem to the window on the other side of the turret. While Kat and the boys had been watching the aliens out of the opposite window, Gem had been looking out to sea. Far out over the still, dark water, Kat could see a cluster of lights. She shoved up the sash window to get a clearer view, but as she leaned out, her head bounced back off an invisible wall.
Brandon’s barrier. Couldn’t he give it a texture or a colour or something? Like in one of his video games?
Kat rubbed her forehead and blinked. The lights in the English Channel came into focus and she realised what they were: a flotilla! There was what could only be an enormous transatlantic liner, almost half a kilometre long, surrounded by what looked like hundreds of smaller vessels. Just behind the liner was a dimly-lit cargo freighter that was almost as big, stacked up with thousands of blocky containers.
She felt a wave of relief wash over her. Finally, they knew they weren’t alone in the world anymore; there were people still out there; and safety and transport. Her Mum and Dad were down on the south coast, but hopefully they had got on a boat too. Kat imagined several fleets all joining up, creating a new floating world … a fresh start on the unspoiled ocean, away from the ruined, alien-haunted world.
‘So,’ Jason said, ‘all we have to do is run down to the sea and swim for our lives. If we can find some bikes on the way, we’ve got our own Iron Man competition. Oh, and hope that those aliens don’t like water. Yep, life is sure looking up!’
‘Don’t be so pessimistic!’ Gem snapped. ‘We can do this! Brandon can create a waterproof bubble or something—’
‘Well …’ her brother began.
‘Oh come on! We survived a UFO crash in one of your bionoid bubbles!’
‘That was just for a few seconds,’ Brandon tried to explain. ‘The shield I’ve got up now will stop large objects and creatures, but to keep out smaller stuff like water, heat and lasers or whatever … I can do it for maybe a few minutes, but it’s hard, Gem—it’s mentally draining!’
‘Alright,’ Gem said. ‘I get the picture.’ She paced the room, thinking hard. As the oldest, Kat could tell that she was trying to remain in control. Brandon didn’t seem interested in being a leader, but someone had to act decisively, or else they would all fall to arguing over every little thing. It was usually Gem who listened to everyone’s ideas, and then made the final call.
‘We could start a big fire on top of the castle,’ Jason suggested. ‘See how long we can fight off the aliens before those guys out there see us and come to the rescue.’
Kat shook her head. Thanks to the moon going AWOL, the world was being battered by earthquakes and meteor showers. No one was going to think there was anything unusual about a building on fire. She didn’t fancy putting Brandon’s barrier to a serious test either—how long did he think he could hold it if a whole pack of aliens were battering at it, while the castle burned around them?
‘We should sneak down to the coast and find a boat,’ Kat said. ‘We can’t stay here. No one’s gonna come and save us.’
Gem caught Kat’s eye and nodded. ‘Alright, let’s grab our stuff and get going. I saw a map of the town down in the lobby: we can plan our route.’
Jason sprang into action: he had always been in awe of Gem, and was happy to be ordered around. Brandon stayed on the bed, seemingly lost in thought.
‘You okay?’ Kat said, taking his hand to pull him up.
‘I’m fine,’ he said. ‘I just … I just wish it hadn’t come to this, Kat. This devastation, these aliens—it’s all come from my home planet, but there’s nothing I can do about it, even though I’ve got the bionoids. Earth has been destroyed, pretty much; it’s like a game we’ve already lost, but we’re fighting every minute of the day just to stay alive for no reason.’
Kat stuck her tongue out at him. ‘Oh come on, don’t be such a misery guts!’ she said. ‘In a hundred years, we’ll all be living under domes at the bottom of the sea! No one will care about all these ruined cities and towns then: they’ll just be ancient history, like Troy, Machu Pichu, or … Chan Chan!’
Brandon cracked a smile. ‘Chan Chan? I’ve not heard of that one.’
‘Exactly!’
———
They gathered in the lobby, all kitted out in their anti-dust gear. It was relatively clear outside right now, but the cloud could come down without any warning. Kat put Jason’s motorbike helmet on his head backwards, for a bit of fun, but he snapped at her moodily. ‘I just can’t wait to leave this town and this whole country,’ he said, flipping up his visor. ‘This is one holiday in France that I’ll be glad when it’s over.’
Gem took the town map down from the wall where it was pinned above the reception desk. She studied it briefly, the folded it up and stuck it in her back pocket. Brandon switched the lights off and, as they all stood around him in the dark, he closed his eyes and tried to concentrate.
‘I’m trying to use the bionoids to physically flip a light switch in a room on the opposite side of the castle,’ he explained. ‘Something to make the aliens concentrate on that side, so we can get to the Jeep. It’s tricky though.’
Kat wasn’t impressed. ‘Bran, I could just run down the hall and do that if you like. Give your brain a rest for now, so you’ll be strong enough to use your powers when we really need them.’
The light flicked on down the hall. Brandon gave Kat a grin, then visibly relaxed as he loosened his mind’s grip on the swarm of tiny robots. ‘All three alien horses are round the other side,’ he said. ‘So now would be a good time to go!’
They lifted the heavy bar that secured the castle’s ancient wooden doors, shoved them open and ran across the bridge that spanned the dry moat. The Jeep was parked right on the other side, but as soon as they got closer they could see that it wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon. All the windows had been smashed, and every tyre had been chewed to bits. The boot and bonnet had both been torn away, and parts of the engine had been ripped out and were strewn all over the road.
Kat could almost feel Jason’s fury radiating out through the blacked-out visor of his helmet. ‘Keep moving,’ Gem ordered. ‘There’s a marina only five blocks away—five hundred metres maybe—we’ll be there in minutes even on foot.’ She led the way down the lane that led from the castle to the town. ‘Okay, straight down the Grande Rue,’ she said when they paused at a junction. ‘Let’s hurry before the aliens break into the castle and realise we’re not there. There had better be some boats waiting for us.’
‘Wait a minute,’ Jason said. ‘Grande Rue? Is that like … the High Street?’
‘Yes,’ Kat hissed, pushing him along. ‘Get moving!’
They ran down the pedestrianised street. Dark shop windows passed by on either side. The orange glow from the few street lights that were working filtered through dust that hung in the air like snow caught in a freeze frame. The tops of the five-storey brick buildings were hidden in the grey cloud layer.
‘Because,’ Jason said as they moved, ‘the only thing I’ve had to eat at the castle hotel was ten of those sugar packets you’re supposed to pour in your coffee. There might be a MacBurger’s here. We can grab some frozen quarter pounders and then look for a boat with a kitchenette and a microwave!’
‘This is France,’ Brandon said. ‘They have the metric system here; there’s no such thing as a quarter pounder.’
They ran in silence for a while. Kat smiled; Brandon sure knew how to shut Jason up. But then her brother spoke again:
‘So … what do they have instead? A quarter of a pound is what, in kilograms?’
‘Guys,’ Gem cut in. ‘Stay alert.’
‘About a tenth of a kilogram,’ Brandon said. ‘A hundred grams.’
‘A hundred gram burger? That doesn’t sound very mouth-watering to me! How would you say it in Fren
ch?’
Kat couldn’t resist joining in. ‘Un cent gramme hamburger! Avec du fromage! That’s if you want it with cheese—’
A sheet glass window smashed in front of them; what jumped out into their path was not a horse-alien, or a cat-alien, but an alien that looked as if it had developed inside the body of a dog, or perhaps a fox. It had shed all of its host’s flesh and skin, and now moved gracefully on its hind legs; it was about a metre tall, and only slightly hunched over. Its skin was silver like fish scales, its teeth like razor blades, and its front claws like scissors. Its eyes were bright red and seems to glow.
‘Shields, Brandon’ Gem ordered calmly.
But Brandon must have been feeling experimental. ‘I’ve got this,’ he said. ‘You always hear people say attack is the best form of defence.’ He made a throwing action with both his hands; there was a loud smacking sound, and the alien flew backwards and rolled down the street. It made a clattering sound as it bounced off the cobbles, like it was wearing armour.
‘I didn’t focus the bionoids enough,’ Brandon berated himself, though. ‘It’s getting back up!’
Jason stepped in front of him. ‘My turn,’ he said. ‘But be ready with the shield, just in case …’
The alien ran straight at Jason, who swung his steel dumbbell bar like he was hitting in the World Series. The metal connected with the alien’s long animal-like skull with a thunk, dropping it to the floor in a shower of broken teeth and black blood.
‘Strike one up for the boys’ team!’ Jason said proudly.
The alien wasn’t finished yet though. It picked itself up off the ground for the second time, then stretched and shook out its limbs.
And then it ran off, back through the smashed window from where it had first appeared.
‘Well, it’s scared of me at least,’ Jason said.
A strange new noise filled the air: a chorus of rasping screeches that sounded like failing brakes on a vehicle.
‘No, I think it just went to tell all its friends about you,’ Kat said. ‘Let’s get the hell out of here! Now!’
They hurried on, down the tunnel formed by two walls of shops and a ceiling of dust. They passed abandoned gift shops, bistros, cafés and bars. Out of the corners of her eyes, Kat glimpsed shadows moving behind windows and down dark alleyways.
‘Is every animal in town turning alien now?’ she asked Brandon as they ran. ‘What is doing that to them?’
‘I’m not sure. Maybe there’s something out there that is—I dunno—laying its eggs under the other animals’ skin. Using them as a host!’
‘Something?’
‘Something we haven’t seen yet …’
They emerged at the marina: a large inland dock, with a channel leading out to sea, and surrounded on all sides by more shops, restaurants and hotels. The wide quayside was scattered with hundreds of tables and chairs, all set out for evening dining on warm late-summer evenings. Tonight they stood in empty rows like gravestones. Gem threaded her way through them, heading towards a sleek white yacht that was still afloat. The marina was otherwise emptied; the only boats remaining were either on their sides or had sunk to the bottom. The water was still and grey with a coating of dust.
‘We’re in luck,’ she gasped as she ran for the yacht, but she pulled up short just before the boarding ramp. She spread her arms and Brandon, Jason and Kat skidded to a halt behind her. The yacht wasn’t unoccupied: rising out of the hull was a three-metre tall alien with glittering claws, a thick neck and a sleek equine head. Its mouth was relatively small, but the teeth inside were like kitchen knives. It was one of the horse-aliens, now fully developed, having finally shed the awkward skin of its host.
It bellowed at them: a noise like slipping, squealing engine drive belts projected through a megaphone.
Kat looked back behind. Other creatures were entering the marina from the streets that fed into it: a whole pack of the dog-like aliens—maybe twenty, thirty of the things, coming from all directions.
‘Shields, Brandon,’ Gem said again. ‘No messing around this time.’
Brandon got the protective dome up just in time as one of the smaller aliens leaped forward. It bounced back off the invisible barrier. Kat noticed Brandon flinch as it did so. He was connected to the bionoids via his mind; the connection clearly went both ways now.
Jason was wielding his dumbbell bar nervously. ‘Can we move closer to the boat? Push that alien out of the way with the shield?’
Brandon started slowly towards the edge of the quay where the yacht was moored up. The giant alien didn’t wait for them to get there, though—it stepped out of the yacht, hopped off the gunwale and landed on the quay just short of Brandon’s shield. It reached out with its two horrendous claws and pressed them against the invisible barrier. Brandon sank to his knees in pain. The alien had found some kind of purchase, as if the tips of its claws had broken through the bionoids.
Kat looked around: their protective bubble was now surrounded by the smaller dog-like aliens. They were waiting. The second the barrier gave way, they would pounce.
‘I can’t … hold it … much longer …’ Brandon gasped. Gem knelt down with her brother to lend him some support, for all the good it would do. Jason just looked at Kat and shrugged, putting a brave face on top of his terror. Kat went over to be with him. ‘Looks like we’re going to have to fight our way out of this the old-fashioned way, Sis,’ he said grimly.
And then something happened.
One of the dog-aliens exploded in a colourful flash of sparks.
There was a revving, roaring sound getting louder and louder. Kat turned around and saw a girl on a big black motorcycle scream out of a side street and skid to a halt twenty metres away. Two more aliens disappeared in bright explosions as the girl rode in: she had been riding with one hand on the bike’s handlebars, the other toting a laser rifle.
Once stationary, she took aim through the rifle’s sights and picked off one, two, three more aliens with precise, unhurried blasts. The rest of the smaller creatures fled. She remained in position though, legs astride her bike with her rifle held high, the butt of the stock jammed into her shoulder, a mane of platinum-blonde hair tumbling down her back.
At Kat’s side, Brandon pitched forward onto his face. The giant alien stepped forward as the bionoid barrier fell away.
The girl on the bike squeezed her trigger, and took the alien’s head clean off its body in a shower of lights like a firework.
She lowered her gun and hopped off the bike. Kat’s eyes widened as the girl came closer: she looked maybe a couple of years older than Kat—sixteen, perhaps—but she carried herself with a gracefulness and style that Kat couldn’t even imagine in her own future. The girl was wearing a white jumpsuit and knee-high boots. And Kat could see that she had pointed ears—alien ears—poking out of her hair.
Her eyes were a fantastic violet colour.
‘Hi, guys,’ she said as she approached. ‘I found you just in time, by the look of it. I’m Saoirse.’
06—SAOIRSE
Saoirse. She pronounced it Sersha.
Brandon was still in a daze, and Gem was trying to help him to his knees. Jason was staring at the newcomer with eyes agog, so it fell to Kat to actually say something.
‘Hi,’ she said, holding out her hand. ‘I’m Kat. Welcome to Earth, I guess. You’ve picked the wrong time to see it at its best, though.’
The girl gave a cool smile and took Kat’s hand. She was wearing thin, soft leather gloves, but her grip was firm. ‘Don’t worry about it,’ she said. ‘I’ve had enough of idyllic paradises. I stopped off on Sonar, near Betelgeuse, on the way over. Tropical beaches, warm sea … boring as hell!’
Kat didn’t know what to say in response to that, but the new girl didn’t appear to want to stop and chat. She bent down in front of Brandon and picked something up off the pavement: a solid metal cylinder. ‘Don’t lose this, Brandon,’ she said, handing it back to him.
He lifted his head and l
ooked up at her: violet eyes met violet eyes. ‘Who are you?’ he asked.
Saoirse laughed, a carefree chuckle, as if her appearance was some kind of fun game. ‘I’ve already told you my name. But I’m guessing you want more than that. Well, I’ve hot-footed it halfway across the galaxy to find you, Brandon Walker. There’s some bad stuff going down back on Corroza. Something is rotten in the city of Perazim, and I need you to come back with me and help fix it!’
———
A faint earth tremor reminded Kat that they still had problems back here on Earth to worry about. She glanced around the marina. ‘Can we move this conversation into the boat?’ she said. While Saoirse had been staring at Brandon, and everyone else had been staring at Saoirse, Kat had noticed aliens creeping back onto the quay from the side streets.
‘Good spot, Kit,’ Saoirse said. ‘I’ll cover you. Get to the ship!’
Kit? Ship? Kat didn’t correct the new girl though. She helped Gem drag Brandon up the ramp by his armpits. ‘I’m alright!’ he complained, shrugging them off. He looked back to where Jason was still hovering behind Saoirse as she shot down two of the approaching aliens.
‘I’m out of juice!’ she shouted, slinging her rifle over her shoulder and bounding up the ramp. ‘Come on, let’s go!’
On board the yacht—a fifteen-metre-long Sunseeker Superhawk—Gem was trying to concentrate on the cockpit layout. The keys were in the ignition and there was blood splashed all over the console. ‘Alright. Keep cool. Give me a minute to figure this all out.’
Saoirse stopped dead. ‘Wait,’ she said. ‘This isn’t your spaceship?’
Gem snorted as she found the starter switch and fired up the yacht’s triple diesel engines. She looked at Kat and rolled her eyes. ‘No, it’s just some random boat. Why did you think it was our spaceship?’
Kat cut through the mooring lines with her Bowie knife while Jason pulled up the ramp. The engine buzzed as Gem ploughed through the dusty water and made for the centre of the marina. Kat sat down next to Brandon on the aft deck seating. Saoirse looked like she had had the wind taken out of her sails.
