DECIMATED (The Nameless Invasion Book 1)

by Sean Shake

  Jess leaned in stared at it for what felt like too long.

  “Is everything okay?” I asked.

  “Well, she doesn’t have any fractures.” She pointed to a spot on the screen that looked the same to me as every other spot. “This area here… I’m not sure.” She leaned away and looked at me. “I’m not a radiologist, I’m just a normal general practitioner. I don’t have training in reading x-rays. I mean of course I have training, but it’s not my specialty, and it’s been eight years since medical school.”

  My eyebrows raised. “Eight years? How old are you?”

  She smiled. “That’s not a very polite question.”

  “I just— You look young.”

  “Why thank you.” She returned her attention to the screen, tapping her lip with one finger. “Well, there’s nothing I can see, other than that spot. I can try emailing it to someone, though I’m not sure I’ll get anything. The internet is spotty. They don’t seem to be going after internet specifically, only radio broadcasts. But there’s been a lot of damage, and I imagine people running the… whatever it takes to run the internet, are not around anymore. Just like this place.” She gestured at the factory around us.

  “Yeah, I’m surprised you guys got this ready so quickly.”

  “Necessity’s the mother of invention.” She headed back into the x-ray room.

  “Finally,” Abigail complained. “Can I move now? I’m getting cramps.”

  “You can move. Also take that vest off.”

  Abigail tossed the vest on the table with the others, and looked at the doctor. “So? Am I gonna die, Doc?” she asked with false melodrama.

  The doctor laughed. “Not anytime soon, at least not from head injuries. At least not from that injury.”

  “Yay,” Abigail said, now with false enthusiasm. “Is it okay if I sleep?”

  “That will be fine. As long as you don’t choke on your own vomit.”

  Abigail laughed, then gave me a hug and kiss on the cheek before grabbing her backpack from me and leaving the room.

  I stared at the door she left through, somewhat in shock. I guessed I shouldn’t be. She had been fondling me right before we crashed.

  Then I looked back to the doctor. “You didn’t tell her about whatever it was you saw.”

  The doctor shrugged. “No point in worrying her. If it is anything, I’m not sure what I could do about it. We don’t have a surgery set up here, not for something like that. And I’m no brain surgeon.”

  To my surprise, I felt a lurch in my stomach at this. “You think she needs surgery? You think it’s that serious?”

  “I don’t know what it could be. It might be an anomaly, an artifact. It might be nothing at all. Like I said, I’m not a radiologist. I’ll try emailing it out and seeing if I can get a response from anyone.” She shook her head. “But I wouldn’t get my hopes up. Maybe if you could find a military base, they could do some more tests to see if it’s anything to worry about. Now come on, let’s get you back with your group.”

  I looked at the large, looming x-ray machine one last time, feeling a sense of dread, of inevitability, then followed the doctor out.

  49

  I stood outside the door to our accommodations, Abigail already having arrived back and now talking with her grandparents.

  Emma was lying on one of the bunks—there were six set up in all, just the right number for our group—and Hunter sat on another of the bunks, watching Abigail and her grandparents.

  Jess was by my side, and when I glanced at her, I caught her looking at Hunter again.

  She caught me catching her looking, and gave a little smile. “Sorry, it’s just— I’ve never seen anything like that.”

  “I was wondering when someone was gonna bring that up.”

  “You think she’d let me examine her?”

  “Have to ask her that.”

  She nodded. “Sure, of course.” She glanced at my hands. “Maybe I should be asking to examine you.”

  Clearly my hands were odd, being this strange black that they were, but I couldn’t tell what percent of that statement was curiosity, and what percent was come-on.

  So I simply replied, “I’m not that interesting.”

  “I doubt that.” She touched my arm, just above the elbow. “Alrighty, you guys get some rest. Maybe I’ll examine you two then.”

  With that, she left, and I stared after her, incapable of looking anywhere but at her ass.

  “I didn’t see anything suspicious.” Hunter had come up to me without me noticing.

  I tore my attention from the doctor. “That’s good.”

  “I’m almost suspicious that I didn’t see anything suspicious.”

  I smiled. “Never be too careful.”

  “They invited us to dinner tonight as well.” She pointed at a small table in one corner of the room. A pack of water bottles sat atop it, along with what looked like energy bars. “Gave us those, too. Said to get some rest first if we wanted it. I’m not sure how much sleep I need, but I think I am starting to get tired.”

  I nodded. I wasn’t exactly getting tired, but I could feel myself winding down, my brain slowing—my willpower diminishing—and sleep might be just the thing to fix that.

  But I didn’t want to sleep just yet, because I didn’t want of all of us to be asleep at once. “You guys get some sleep, I’ll stay up.”

  Hunter nodded. “Wake me in a few hours, then I’ll keep watch while you get some rest.”

  “All right,” I said, though I had no intention of doing that.

  “And don’t you dare try to play tough guy and not wake me up.”

  I laughed. “All right, I’ll wake you up,” I said, and this time meant it.

  “Good.”

  Gabriel and Mary unpacked a bit, and even put a picture of what looked like the whole family—them, Abigail, and her parents—atop the case of water.

  It was the first I’d seen of her parents.

  I could see the resemblance to Abigail. Her mother was also a redhead, though her father had light brown hair.

  Everyone fell asleep rather quickly after that, and I sat in a chair by the door, watching my sleeping friends.

  Though Emma was more than a friend.

  And so was Hunter.

  Whatever connection we had shared when we’d fought those aliens together, it had bonded us, and now I felt as if I knew her, knew her deeply, more than you could ever normally know someone.

  I hadn’t an exactly read her thoughts, but I thought I had felt them, felt her history.

  It made me wonder if she’d felt mine.

  50

  Someone shook my shoulder.

  My eyes popped open, and I found Hunter standing in front of me. She was naked, and I realized I was dreaming.

  “How long were you out?” she asked.

  No, this wasn’t a dream.

  I blinked and rubbed my eyes, shaking my head slightly. “I don’t know,” I whispered, seeing the others were still sleeping.

  “It’s your turn. You should get some rest. Obviously you need it.”

  I stared at her body, my sleep-addled mind confused and aroused at the same time.

  Something about waking up after insufficient sleep; I was always hornier than normal.

  She either saw me looking, or perhaps read my mind. “I took them off to go to sleep.”

  I nodded and stood up.

  She pulled me to the bed she had slept in, sat me down, and pulled off my shoes and socks.

  I got under the covers and she knelt beside me, touching my forehead, running her fingers gently over my brow and then my cheek. “I’m glad we found each other. I never got a chance to thank you.”

  “Thank me?” I asked, already starting to fall back asleep.

  She took my hand and ran my fingers over the scar on her left shoulder.

  “Oh. I guess—”

  She put a finger to my lips. “Shh. Sleep now. I’ll stand guard. Don’t worry.”

  I
didn’t worry.

  And I slept.

  When next I woke, it was to the sound of laughter.

  I opened my eyes and found myself staring up at a bunk. Then I scanned my surroundings, determined it was safe, and sat up, swinging my feet to the floor.

  Abigail and her grandparents were talking with Mark, who was laughing at something one of them had said.

  Hunter was dressed again, if you could call a bra and underwear dressed, and Emma was nowhere to be seen.

  I stood up to look on the bunk above me, but it was empty.

  “Look who’s up,” Mark said. “You ready for some chow?”

  “I could eat,” I said.

  “Good. You guys get cleaned up. There’s showers just down the hall. Nice individual booths. They’re stocked with toiletries, so use what you need.” He looked at Hunter. “And if you need some clothes, we got plenty of em. They’re on a folding table just outside the showers.” To me, he said, “I’ve got some work to do, but I’ll be at dinner. It’s in an hour.”

  I nodded. “Thanks.”

  Mark returned his attention to Abigail and her grandparents. “This is to be continued. I need to hear the rest of that story.”

  “Where’s Emma?” I asked after Mark was gone.

  Abigail looked around, frowning. “I don’t know.”

  “She went outside to get some air, she said,” Hunter explained.

  “Right. You guys can get cleaned up, I’m going to go check on her.”

  Hunter grabbed my arm as I was about to pass through the open door. “Be careful.”

  “You too.”

  “No,” she shook her head. “Just be careful.”

  I frowned. “Okay, I will.”

  After several seconds she nodded and let my arm go.

  No one seemed bothered by the fact that I was wandering around unaccompanied, and I eventually found my way outside.

  The ‘Factory’ was surrounded by trees on all sides, and in the front was a very large parking lot.

  It was here that I found Emma, standing, staring up at the sky, which had now gone dark again.

  I’d slept for longer than I’d realized.

  I put my hand on Emma’s shoulder.

  She spun around quickly and grabbed it, then saw it was me and let go.

  “Good reflexes,” I said.

  She shrugged. “Judo.”

  “What are you doing?”

  She shrugged again. “Getting some air.”

  “No, I mean, what are you looking at?”

  She stared blankly at that me.

  “You’re looking up at the sky. We’re you thinking about them?”

  “Them?”

  “The aliens. The ones who’ve invaded us.”

  “Oh. I suppose. Just thinking about… I don’t know really. How small and inconsequential this place is. And yet how somehow it’s…”

  “Everything?”

  She met my eyes, and I felt like they bore into me. “Yes. Exactly.” Then she smiled. “Did you miss me?”

  I shrugged one shoulder. “I was doing okay without you.”

  “Jerk. You were supposed to sleep in my bed with me. We could’ve had some fun.”

  “Apparently I was too tired for any kind of fun. I hardly even remember falling asleep.” Except now that I thought about it, I didn’t like how easily I’d fallen asleep.

  I had been in dangerous situations before, exhausted and sleep-deprived, and even without uppers I had never passed out like I had in the chair.

  Everything had turned out okay, and I was pretty sure these people didn’t mean us any harm.

  I was surprised how tolerant they were of Hunter, though.

  It made me wonder if they had had their own encounter with… well I didn’t know. If I was the one who prevented Hunter from turning by stabbing her, then it seemed unlikely they had someone like her.

  “Dinner’s in an hour. We should go get cleaned up.”

  “You are starting to smell.”

  “Oh, I’m starting to smell? What about you?”

  She shook her head. “Nope. I smell wonderful as always. But,” she said with a mischievous grin. “I wouldn’t mind taking a shower together. Maybe you could wash my back.”

  51

  We went into one of the private shower stalls, and took a very long shower, making sure to clean each other’s bodies very thoroughly. Not missing an inch.

  After we’d finished, we dried off and dressed in the clean clothes left outside the shower for us. Unlike Gabriel’s offer, there were actually clothes that fit me here.

  “It seems weird to see you in something other than a ninja suit now,” Emma said, looking me up and down.

  I was wearing jeans and a long-sleeved shirt, along with a zip-up sweatshirt. “It feels weird. At least they’re all black. It also feels weird to see you out of your nurse’s outfit.”

  “Oh, tell me you still find me attractive.”

  In answer, I slapped her firm ass, getting a surprised squeak and a lip bite that made me want to take those clothes off of her and carry her right back into the showers.

  Instead, we went to find the others.

  Dinner was in a medium-sized auditorium with a stage at front, maybe once used for corporate presentations.

  In the middle of the auditorium was a very long table, made from more of those plastic folding ones I’d seen here and there.

  Perhaps this place had been a folding-table factory.

  “Took you two long enough,” Abigail said teasingly.

  Emma patted my arm. “This one was very dirty.”

  “Was?” Abigail asked.

  More people came into the room and within ten minutes nearly every seat was filled.

  Mark joined us and started talking with Abigail’s grandparents again. I couldn’t quite hear what they were talking about as I was four seats down from them with Emma, Hunter, and Abigail between us, but whatever it was he seemed to be enjoying himself, as did they.

  Food was brought out, and after it was set down, most of the remaining seats were filled by the ones who’d brought the food.

  Then dishes were passed around, plates filled, and I was reminded of a Harry Potter movie I’d seen when I was younger.

  A few minutes into the meal, Jess appeared and squeezed in beside me on my left, the person who had been sitting next to me smiling and obligingly relocating to one of the few remaining empty seats.

  “Hey,” Jess said, setting a plate down which she’d already filled.

  “Hi.”

  “So, how do you like the place?”

  “It’s nice. You’ve got a good thing set up here.”

  “That we do. Have you decided if you’re going to stay?”

  “Stay?”

  She picked up a piece of bread and took a bite. “Yes,” she said while chewing, and for some reason this made me smile. “You don’t seem like the type to stick around. Always moving on to the next big thing.”

  “Well, you’re right. We are leaving. Probably tonight, maybe tomorrow.” I hadn’t talked to anyone else about this, but I didn’t think they would object.

  “That’s up to you of course,” she said, swallowing her food. “But maybe you should reconsider.” I began to protest, but she held up a hand to stop me. “I know you’re not going to stay, but maybe some in your group can. At least—what was her name? The hurt one. Abby?—her grandparents. Maybe Abby herself. Oh, I sent off that email.”

  “Any response yet?”

  She shook her head sadly and took another bite of bread. This time she waited till she was done chewing to speak again. “I know I said not to get your hopes up, but don’t lose it either. Someone will respond eventually. If she’s here, we can do something for her when that eventuality arrives.”

  I glanced down the row of seats to my right. Abigail was talking with Mark and her grandparents, the four of them laughing. Emma was next to me picking at her food, seemingly stuck in her own head.

  Betwe
en Emma and Abigail, Hunter was slowly, methodically eating, staring at a fixed point in space. I couldn’t read her expression, and so I reached out and tried to read her mind.

  For some reason my mind filled with images of sex and penetration, and I pulled out.

  Hunter stopped chewing and looked at me, and the blank expression on her face sent a chill through me. Then she smiled slightly and the feeling dissipated.

  My eyes were drawn down to her breasts, and through her bra—which she had changed—I saw her nipples were hard.

  But I still felt uneasy, and looked away, looking around to see if anyone was eyeing her.

  None were, and I returned my attention to Jess, who was looking at me expectantly.

  “Um, what were we talking about?”

  “Are you sure you didn’t hit your head too?”

  “Huh?”

  “Are you okay? Seriously?”

  I shook my head. “I’m fine. What were we talking about?”

  “You were saying how you decided to stay here with us.”

  I cracked a grin. “Nice try.”

  She snapped her fingers. “Damn. Was worth a shot. But you should consider letting the others stay.”

  “Right,” I said, recalling our conversation. “I’ll talk to them. No guarantees.” Though it would be good to have her grandparents stay here. Maybe Abigail and Emma as well. They wouldn’t be safe exactly, but they’d be safer than with me on my quest to find the eyeless guard.

  I’d feel better if I wasn’t drawing them into danger.

  Then again, I may be the only one that could protect them, and we hadn’t yet found Abigail’s parents.

  Still, I’d talk to them about it.

  52

  “No way,” Emma said, back in our room after dinner. “I’m not staying here.”

  “Me either,” Abigail agreed. “I need to find my parents.”

  I sighed. “Your grandparents have a picture of them. The roads are practically empty. You can tell me what kind of car they drive and I can—”

  “No,” she interrupted firmly. “I’m coming with you. We’re finding my parents. Together. Besides, how would they know to trust you? You don’t exactly inspire warm fuzzies in people.”

  Abigail’s grandparents looked at each other, then at Abigail. “Are you sure you don’t want to stay, dear?” Abigail’s grandmother Mary asked. “I’m sure your friends can find them.”