by I Ogunbase
"The Terrans, though. They kept us fighting for..." I say as I show four of my bjartak to the Terran four times, "...four instances of four karins. I am unsure of the number in Terran tongue."
I don't think it understands me.
"They were the first to let us know. Know that our bio-shield is not forever. That our bio-shield can crack and break. Of all the enemies we've conquered, they are the only ones to capture our injured. And the next time we would fight, they would fight us better. And better."
The sounds from the creature begin to die down. The opening on its head begins to shrink as it's eyelids flutter. It's grip on my bjartak lessens.
"Their weapons of metal and fire began to changed to our weapons of light and heat. Their Terran warships became harder to eradicate. In an act unlike us, we began to take Terran injured too. As they understood how to fight us, we began to understand how to fight them.
"And soon, the Jargen empire would come to agree. That we must wipe the blue rock."
The sound has stopped now. Instead, the Terran's chest rises and falls gently. It's eyelids are closed and it has released my bjartak. I believe it has begun its hibernation cycle. It is one of the Terran activities we learnt. That they hibernate in short bursts. And when they awake from the cycle, they are more willing to fight. It's very unlike Jargen. We hibernate for long cycles.
Still, the Terran looks peaceful. The intent I feel in its mind is the warmest I have felt. I will stay and watch over it. There is more about Terran behaviour I plan to see and do.
"I will tell the rest later. When you have awakened from hibernation. I will feed you. And then, I will show you that your people are not as weak as we used to think," I say as gently as my body can allow.
I will watch over the Terran a little while longer.
~
Death Word
~
The elevator doors opened up to show me the empty space I was hoping to get. Work was finished and I couldn't wait to get home. My finger hovered over the ground button when a colleague of mine ran into the elevator. I could see him panting and I flashed a quick smile at him. Martin stared at me with a brow raised before hitting my hand away and pressing on the 'G' button.
I frowned at him and he shrugged, mouthing an apology. Some part of me felt like lashing out at him but I held it in and released a breath. It was not worth arguing about. I'd give him a piece of my mind tomorrow when I'm feeling up to it. The elevator began its descent down slowly and I stared ahead at the blank wall.
It had been a long day and I honestly couldn't wait to get back home. There was a 1967 bottle of wine that had my name on it and I have been prolonging my date with it for far too long. Plus, it would be nice to be away from the douches in the office. I am most definitely not working late for a long time. There was no value in it for me at the moment. And then, there's Jackie.
It's going to hurt when she decides to move in with her boyfriend and leave me all to myself. Not that I'd talk her down but the house would return to being empty and I guess I'll just miss Maria more. Perhaps, I could tell Jackie to promise to come home frequently to keep her old man company. I ran my hand through my hair and sighed. I miss my wife.
Martin jabbed another finger at the button, a bit more forcefully. His mouth moved in what I could only take to be a silent curse for the elevator to move faster. He glanced at me briefly before returning his eyes to the LED Display. I worked on the top most floor, which so happened to be 7th floor. We reached the 5th when the elevator stopped and dinged open.
I watched as Martin shook himself and moved to join me at the back of the elevator in one smooth motion. His eyes never left the door and I noticed an emotion on his face I wasn't expecting. Fear. Confusion filled me but before I could do anything, the doors opened to a worrying scene.
In the long corridor leading to the elevator, there was a mass of bodies on the floor. Unmoving. Martin, next to me, jumped and retreated to the corner of the elevator, his hands clasped over his ears desperately. At the end of the corridor, Sally was on her knees crying hysterically. The door began to close when her head jerked up towards us. She scrambled up to her feet and tried to run towards us without stepping on the bodies.
Martin moved first, his hand slamming on the 'close' button again. She shouted for us to wait but Martin continued to press it over and over. I tried to push him away and a punch connected with my face. Colours danced in my vision, bright and blinding before clearing out to re-focus on the elevator ground. Sally was just at the door when it closed, her mouth shaped to shout out something vile to Martin.
The temporary relief on Martin's face as the door closes wiped away and I saw him stare at the door in horror and then at me. Still groggy from the unexpected punch, I crawled away from my colleague towards a corner of the elevator. I turned to face him, ready to give him the piece of my mind I was saving for tomorrow. Just as I was about to begin, he started convulsing before falling to the floor.
I shirked away from him immediately. His eyes connected with mine and I saw a desperate plea in them. His sad eyes never left mine as his body thrashed all over the floor. And then, as soon as it had began, it stopped.
A scream left me, or I think it does, as I tried to push myself away from him as much as I could. The dead blank faces of my colleagues swam in my mind as I tried to wrap my head around what I had seen and what was happening before me. Martin's impatience suddenly made sense. There was something happening that I was missing. Something I was missing because of who I am.
The elevator jerked to a stop and I glanced to see the 'G' LED on the elevator screen. I pushed myself towards the door as it opened.
And then I stopped as horror washed over me.
Just like on the fifth floor, I saw the bodies of my work colleagues all on the floor. Froth at their mouths and their eyes glazed over. I started running towards the exit. My phone vibrated and I removed it as I left the building.
The scene outside was worse. Everyone was running about. There was a palpable tension in the air like nothing I have ever felt before. I watched as cars swerved wildly, crashing into telephone poles. I watched as a school bus sped past, narrowly missing me, and colliding into a stationary car. The exit doors of the school bus opened long enough for a kid to climb out before falling to the floor and convulsing.
My phone vibrated again and I tore my eyes away from the horror before me. Two message notifications from Jackie.
Jackie: Dad, please come and get me. Please...
Jackie: I loveendgnngn
Me: Where are you?
Me: Hun, where are you?!
Me: I'm on my way
My eyes took in the first message again, pausing at the second. It took a moment for the right kind of fear to hit me before I started running towards the direction of Jackie's office. Something horrid was happening around me and I was uncertain as to what was. And honestly, I didn't care. I know I should, but my mind was dominated by only one priority at the moment.
Another car crashed into a wall next to me while a van drove itself into a ravine. Explosions rocked the surrounding area as cars went up in flames. I saw fire trucks speeding past, trying to navigate around the drivers and the running populace. But I didn't stop to dawdle or look. I couldn't stop.
Not until I ensured my daughter is safe.
~
In The Void
~
All I see around me is darkness.
Darkness at all angles, at every rotation and even when I close my eyes, which is happening far too often and far too frequent. I understand what it means, and for some reason, I feel the it warm me to the core. It will mean an end to my life, as I know it, and honestly, it is far better than drifting in the endless expanse of space.
My oxygen level is dangerously low and everything is beginning to feel foggy.
As I said before, I am looking forward to the end. If there was no tear on my oxygen tank, I would be drifting for a while in space which is nothing short of
a depressing thought, especially if I can't call for transport on account of the walkie floating aimless somewhere in the midst of the wreckage.
I let my eyes drift over what used to be my ship.
I watch as the dead bodies of my crew mates float around the scene like debris. I can't see Sarah and Keziah anymore. Maybe, they are on the other side of the hull. Jared's body is still attached to his chair. The seatbelt securing him down still holds him tight. Not that it made a difference. He had no helmet on.
The rest are somewhere around. It's hard to make them out now.
To think that, a day ago, we were dreaming of returning home. Back to Earth.
And now, I guess we'll all be heading towards a different home.
There's a peace in that realisation but then again, perhaps this is the wrong time to be religious. Not sure God would want me in heaven given my penchant to remind everyone that there was no such thing.
I chuckle for a moment into my helmet before going quiet. The wave that had hit my ship still didn't have a source. And yet, it had pulled the ship apart at the seams like it was nothing. Tears form at the edges of my eyes and frustration set in. That was one question I needed answers to but I'll probably never get.
Blinking the tears free to float with me, I reflect on my life and my accomplishments. I think about my parents. About Jessie, my wife. Pain shoots through me as I remember the excitement we both got from me informing her on my eventual return. And now, I won't get to see her ever again. My breathing slows and I blink, my eyes closing for far longer than it should.
As it opens again to the blurry darkness on the other side of my glass helmet, something bright happens in the distance. Like a tear of blinding light, though it only seems to worsen the blurriness I'm already experiencing. A few seconds later and a shock wave of sorts hits me and I spin wildly.
And then I hear something. Something different. Something odd. Like a scratching in my ear that my gloved hand would be far too grubby to itch.
"\/|\////|||\/"
I feel a new kind of pain. Like a searing headache. It pulls me away from the blurriness of death and back into the stark reality of my condition. I gasp in pain as my head throbs in a manner I've never felt before. It feels like a hand is under my skull, probing and pressing. Still writhing in the pain, I hear the sound again.
"\e// a//|||m\/|/|i"
The pain is greater this time around and I lose control of my body. Memories of my life flash in succession, like a video reel playing backwards. I feel the explosion that ripped the ship apart rewind itself. I see my walk with Natalie as she briefed me on the ships' shortages. I see the mess deck. I see my bedroom. I see the captain's chair. I see and I see more.
A glimpse of a goodbye kiss from Jessie. A glimpse of a handshake from a superior. The last pancake I had. The last cup of tea I drank. More and more. They all blend into a concoction that makes me come close to unconsciousness, but just as sudden as it had began, it finishes.
Ragged breath leaves me and I struggle to breath. And then I struggle no more.
The warning in my suit has defaulted back to 100%. Confusion masks my face. And then I hear the sound once more. A bass heavy voice that surrounds me and reverbs all around me. I see the blackness in the distance move, like a rippling of the sky. Whatever it is moves towards me, or perhaps glide is better.
"Tell me, Earthling. Where am I?" the voice asks before adding, "Which universe am I in?"
I swallow and consider playing dead until I feel myself moving towards the ever shifting darkness. I shout a speedy answer in hopes it can hear me. My whole body is fighting against the moving but I am stuck in place, moving forward. Panic floods into me and I find myself praying to a deity I don't believe in. After a while, the movement stops and I get the intense feeling that whatever moved me is looking intently at me.
So, I answer once more.
"You're in the milky-way way galaxy! I don't know what universe," I say in fear.
Held in space by the entity, silence followed my words for a few seconds. And then, the darkness spoke once more.
"Good. It would seem I made it back in time..."
---
~
New Earth
~
"When our ancestors left the surface world, it was damn near ruined. Most countries were filled with ashes and their dead. Blood on the streets, radiation in the air, our fall from greatness is as great as the romantic poetries of old. We fucked up the world with the nukes. And instead of trying to fix it, we instead made better nukes."
I take the last drag on my cigarette before discarding the stub in the ashtray. The room is quiet, the ceiling lights dimmed as the machinery around us hummed in collective song. I survey the rest of my team as we remain semi-huddled around the table situated at the middle of the elevator deck.
We were going to be the first Surface Team in a thousand years and for fear of things going south, they reduced the team number to five. Like a fucking boy-band.
"...and that's not counting the environmental effects and global warming. I do have to say, I still find it hard to believe in global warming. I mean, I get the concept but the reality seems... unrealistic," a lady to my right speaks as she swivels in her chair, turning slightly to look at me. I guess she's half expecting me to counter her. I oblige.
"What's your specialisation again, Listae?" I ask.
"Entropy. 31st Grade. B-Class," she answers. 31st grade means she's a scholar through and through. My mouth almost opens to tell her that she's asking a stupid question but I stifle it. No point offending the team on day one.
"Then, it should be simple for you to understand, shouldn't it?" a short bearded man sitting across me answers.
Jean's a normally quiet person, unless he begins to feel either uncertain or irked. I feel its the latter. I catch his eye but he nods once at me before returning his attention to Listae.
"Anything not in balance will gradually fall into decline, yes?" he continues.
"Well yeah... that's the theory. But the planet is more or less a global wide system. Different lands, different species," she begins, adjusting her glasses, "To suggest that the actions of one of the thousands of species will have that much of an effect on the atmosphere titters on the edge of religious ideology in my eyes."
I sigh and stand up. The action draws the focus of everyone. I don't have anything to say but I know it has stopped Jean from insulting her naive outlook. The other members of the group don't say much but they look away after a while.
"Please brace. Elevator is now moving," the on-board AI's voice resounds through the speakers on the platform.
There's a set of mechanical sounds as levers began to turn underneath the platform.
"Let's brace back at our stations. Do it quick before it shoots upwards," I say as I sit back down and wheel myself back to my dashboard.
As the leader of the expedition, they ensured my station would be the dashboard, although I doubt its use. My specialisation is much more than just looking at holograms and giving motivational speeches and directions. My specialisation is much direct.
I clamp the chair in place and pull my belt around me. I glance around to see everyone doing the same thing and I let myself enjoy a brief smile before the realisation of what is about to happen returns.
"Surface sensors indicate oxygen is abundant. No movement around dome entrance. Activating heat warmers around surface platform. Activating wide range sensors. Activation platform shield. Elevation to occur in 3... 2... 1..."
The sudden uplift is enough to make me uncomfortable but I grab the edges of my seat and tighten my grip on it. The elevation is ten seconds in length, but the speed is far too uncomfortable.
Soon enough however, the elevation begins to slow as we reach the surface. I glance up a the new dome coming into view. Dark brown signs of rust greets my vision as the platform reduces its speed. The dome ceiling nears as the platform begins to screech to a halt. I grit my teeth and try
to psyche myself for what lay ahead of us but I couldn't muster the right courage.
I couldn't help but wander on the plan. Earth, as it used to be, would be vastly changed from the little records we managed to save from Zero day. And still, the council only saw fit to send five researchers with stun guns.
Whispering a curse as the platform jerks to a stop, the belts securing us to our chair automatically disengages as we unclasp the chairs from the platform. I stand and retrieve the suitcase underneath my station. Using the biometric scanner to unlock it, it opens to reveal a stun gun and some cartridges. I holster it and turn to face the group. Everyone seems to be attaching their devices to their suit's belt.
"Are we ready to be-"
"Warning. Sensor picking up movement. Warning..."
I sigh and unholster the stun gun.
I am not ready for this.
~
Bio-Etherealism 1
~
The chair I'm sitting on is cold but I'm sweating. Much more than I should, If I'm being honest. I can see and feel the sweat patches growing underneath my shirt but I ignore it. My attention is primarily directed to the panel of questioners sitting on a raised platform, all looking down on me. Raised heads, flared nostrils and contempt in their eyes. One would think I personally offended them. I dab my forehead to dry the sweat forming on it. My hands are shaking. I guess it is warranted. No one ever delivers devastating news without shaking.
The world government have chosen five questioners to interview me and see if I am jail-worthy. I hope not. I recognise the familiar faces of Questioner Judy, Sir Mark Bradford and Questioner Mara. I have watched them on the holodeck a few times during my breaks at the office when I was still there. There is someone who looks like Questioner Leyton but I can't be too sure. I don't recognise the last questioner, though they looked remarkably young to be sitting there.
Behind me, there are rows and rows of journalists and reporters, with their cameras trained on me. I can't help but think about their headlines tomorrow. Some of them will most likely mock me, with my profuse sweating and my damp clothes. Regardless, that is inconsequential. I glance at the glass of water in front of me, resting on the table along with some of the files I have been working on. I inhale and then exhale heavily.
