••••
As the fireball streaks toward , ti slows in that strange way it does when you know you’re about to die.
Stephanie’s face flashes through my mind. The way she looked at earlier. The sound of her laugh. The absolute unfairness of leaving her with this mory of watching die.
I’m sorry Stephanie, I think.
I’m so sorry you have to watch die.
The fireball fills my vision.
And then.....
Oblivion takes ....
.....
Yellow light is the first thing I notice as I co to. It washes over everything, soft and warm, like sunlight filtered through honeyed glass.
Good, apparently I made it to heaven, I think.
I’ve never been very religious myself, but at least I know I was good enough to co here. The thought is faintly amusing, drifting lazily through my head as awareness slowly returns.
Flexing my fingers and moving my arms confirms that all my pain is gone. Every ache, every sharp reminder of failure has vanished. Silently I weep, knowing that Earth is now left to the demons. Maybe the countries will co together and put up a good enough defense. It’s a nice thought, comforting in its simplicity, but I know it’s not really possible. Humans are too cantankerous, too divided, and too eager to fight one another instead of the real enemy.
Oh, God. Stephanie...!
The mory of her face snaps fully awake. Pulling my legs underneath , I suddenly realize that sothing doesn’t feel quite right.
My movent is easy, too easy. Opening my eyes, I find myself staring at the burned remains of my right pant leg, it was blackened and stiff, the fabric brittle where fla once licked it.
"What the..." I gasped.
"Oh, good, you’re awake!" a familiar voice shouts, startling , and a strong arms grip in a fierce hug before pulling back, then I saw Loveth searching my eyes with frantic intensity.
"Good to see you too, sis," I try to greet her cheerfully, but I don’t have it in right now.
I’d LOST, and to Team Rocket no less.
"Thanks for coming to get , but why are you here?" I asked, confused.
Apparently, she either doesn’t like my words or what she sees on my face. I soon find out it’s the latter.
"You look like shit," she tells bluntly.
"Why don’t you try to rest in the healing light a bit more?" Loveth said.
I almost laugh as I see how tired she looks, dark circles shadowing her eyes, and her posture strained.
For a mont, I wonder if she’d watched my battle with the twins. I know that it’s possible, as Vage is always watching . I notice how upset Loveth seems and can feel her hands shaking slightly where they grip my arms.
"I’m sorry," I apologize, "I’ll be fine. The nanites is already healing ," I offer by way of explanation.
The nanites should be strong enough, and my body recovered enough, to completely fix all of . If only they could do the sa for my pride.
"Relax, will you? We still have so ti before we face the demons." I try to get her to calm down, but my soothing tone seems to have the opposite effect.
"You were nearly killed down there, Nick!" Loveth said through sob.
"But that’s... it’s not that... sothing... um..." Loveth bites her lower lip as she struggles to form the words. "Vage’s been incapacitated," she finally blurts out, and I feel like my whole world gets rocked violently off its axis.
"Vage? How—?" I demand to know, gripping my sister’s arms now and completely forgetting about the twins.
A knot forms in my stomach as worry floods in, but my logical mind forces itself forward. If Vage is down, it’s not a complete loss. There are still six other ships, even if they can’t fight and I have no experience leading them. Maybe if another alien piloted.
"Where’s Harana?" I ask.
The fear deepens in Loveth’s blue eyes. "She’s taking care of Vage," she whispers. "She’s also piloting the ship."
"What happened to Vage?" I demand again, dread coiling tighter. Then it hits . "The eggs?"
She nods, tears spilling freely down her cheeks now. Fear clamps around my heart like a vise. Not the kids too; oh, please not the kids too! I have to get to Vage, I know, but I don’t even know how to open the hatch that leads to her chamber.
"Vage, Harana!" I yell, hoping one of them can hear . "I can’t open the door. Let back there."
"Nick," Loveth’s hand on my shoulder makes feel claustrophobic, and I shake it off. "You can open it with the nanites. Just send the command to the ship ntally." I stare at her stupidly.
Can it really be that easy? She could do it for , I know she could, but that has never been my sister’s way. She’s always willing to help , but never to carry . How ironic that her ability reflects that perfectly.
Without hesitation, I ntally command the ship to open the door, and sure enough, it slides open to my right. I dash through it, heedless of the surrounding blackness. I know the layout, I know there are a few steps before the corridor bends. My eyes adjust to the infrared light just before I slam into the wall.
I run the rest of the way to where I know Vage to be, sensing her faint presence with my switches. I stop outside her door, my breath ragged and my heart pounding, dread pooling heavy in my chest.
Suddenly I hesitate to open the door, terrified of what I might find inside. Loveth hasn’t told what happened to Vage and my kids. She only said the alien was incapacitated, and then she’d started crying.
No, I think desperately, they have to be okay. Maybe the hatching process was traumatic for her. Maybe that’s all it was. Still, the thought refuses to settle. How can eggs hatching be this devastating to the mother?
I don’t know how long I stand there, frozen, but finally I realize there is no more ti to hesitate. I have to face what’s inside. Commanding the ship to open the door, I step through.
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