Was she even alive?
Questions flew through Blue’s mind thick and fast as he passed the threshold into the beautiful home, one he’d dreamed of having from afar.
The Loklear habitat was in tact. The Host were not prone to mindless destruction, just like their masters. The Novae were logical, ruthlessly efficient, and their subordinates were no different.
Blue rounded the arched doorway into the living room and was tackled from the side.
“You.” Max slammed into him and grappled him to the ground. “She’ll be safe will she?” He grabbed Blue by the neck and squeezed. “Where is she?”
“I–she–” Blue gasped for air, but managed to hold up a hand to stop Igor, who had stormed forward and begun forming a deadly blast of telekinetic energy.
Kali would never forgive him if Max were harmed.
Max had no such worries about Blue’s safety, and he smashed his fist into his face.
Blue’s nose exploded with blood, and his ears rang. The blow muddled him, and for a while, he simply spaced out.
Igor and Kenshin rushed forward to physically pull Max away, but his FetchMe landed in front of them with a hiss of warning, baring two inch long fangs, her claws wicked sharp as they sprung from her paws.
Natalya snarled in retaliation.
Eyeing the tiger, worried about her size compared his precious companion; Igor set Natalya loose with a flick of his wrist.
With an enraged roar, the snow leopard lunged forward. The animals clashed in an aggressive bundle of white fur and chomping maws. With a heavy swipe of her gargantuan paw, Baby sent the smaller feline crashing into the wall and bit down on her neck.
Blue finally shook off the blow. “They took her. I’m looking too.”
“Liar.” Max punched him again.
Blue’s vision doubled this time, and he got angry. His mind was precious, and he could not risk a concussion with all he had yet to do. He pushed the larger body off him with a strong hit of psychic power and pinned him.
He motioned to the others to calm the shrieking girl in the corner. He recognised her as Max’s date from the shooting range. Christabella, Kali had called her.
Lara strode into the room with her knife drawn.
Blue shot her a scathing look when she headed straight for Max, a lethal look glittering in her eyes.
“Put that away,” he ordered. He scrubbed a forearm over his bleeding lip, winced at his swelling nose, and finally glared at Max for the damage he’d caused to his face. “I have no reason to lie. I don’t know where she is.”
Pissed he was taken so easily Max glared right back. “I knew something was off with you. You’re one of them.”
Blue didn’t have time for a pointless argument. Kali wasn’t there, and that meant he had to move on, regroup, and figure out what to do next. “Can I let you up?”
“You’re going to stick one of those parasites on me. Fight me like a man.”
Blue let his psychic hold on Max dissipate, over the melodrama. “Not today. Get up and calm down.”
“Baby,” Max barked as he rolled onto his feet. “Knock it off, yeah?”
The tiger gave the snow leopard one last backhand then paced back, hissing menacingly.
Natalya limped to Igor who crouched beside her, his grizzly face aghast at the damage his companion suffered.
Max had eyes on the Hybrids, but petted his companion, and murmured his thanks for keeping him safe when he was distracted. Baby purred in contentment, rubbing against his leg.
Christabella gaped at the Hybrids with wide eyes, but her gaze kept flicking to the biggest of them, the one who petted the leopard, rubbing faces. Christabella thought Max was the biggest person she’d ever seen, but this Hybrid was solid muscle, and just so tall. “My stars,” she breathed as Igor stared at her curiously with eyes like the surface of her birth planet Neptune.
“She’s not here,” Lara said. “I checked all the rooms and encountered nothing but an unfriendly wolf in one of the bedrooms.”
Max’s face darkened “Howl? He’s Kal’s FetchMe, and the most docile creature you’d ever meet.”
Lara ignored him and focused her bored gaze on Blue. “Can we leave now?”
“Howl,” Blue murmured, knowing the FetchMe heard him.
Lara slapped her thigh. “You can’t be serious?”
“Can’t leave him here.”
There was another explosion, and this one rocked the domicile. The windows blew out, casting shards of glass into the room, and a blast of hot air knocked them over.
Furniture uprooted and was tossed across the room, and Kenshin cried out as the heavy sofa rolled and crushed his legs.
Christabella crouched in the corner screaming, and Max dove to shield her with his body.
The FetchMes snarled and roared as they nimbly bounded over obstacles flying at them. Howl ran into the room barking loudly and his clamour set Baby roaring and Natalya hissing.
The VidSee dislodged from its mount, but Igor batted it away with his arm as he slammed into the wall.
The trembling stopped.
Blue stood calmly in the middle of the disarray. He had intuitively wrapped himself in a bubble of telekinetic energy after he had fallen, so had been unaffected by the disturbed contents of the room. Next time he would shield them all. He had to remember he was no longer alone.
Lara was on her feet first, darting to the window to peer distrustfully into the street. Blue noticed she had pulled a pulse rifle from her bag, and was deftly sliding a Blue Matter canister into the hilt.
He was not looking forward to watching her do damage with the deadly weapon, and he eyed the heavy bag she carried wondering if confiscation was in order.
Igor rolled the sofa off Kenshin and helped him up.
Natalya sat quietly at his side.
The silence faded, and there was once again the sound of crying and screams in the distance. There was also the growing sound of laser fire and smaller explosions.
Max worked on quieting Christabella, and Baby prowled around them, agitated and protective. “What was that?” he asked, trying to see out the window.
The domicile across the road had a section of the roof missing, and further down the street he could see other homes in similar states of duress. Dust was heavy in the air and had a reddish tinge. Over the rooftops, Max saw a burgeoning cloud of black smoke.
“You Humans and your bombs.” Lara narrowed her eyes at something coming closer and backed away from the window. Something loud flew overhead. “The fighting is heading this way. Your Alliance hasn’t quite figured out resistance in such a manner is futile.” Her attention switched to Blue. “We need to take off. She’s not here, Omicron, and we can’t afford to get trapped in this battle.”
Blue understood the logic of her reasoning, but he couldn’t give up, not yet. “Go. I’ll follow. You know where I live?”
“I found your home when I hacked the BeepMe network before I was taken. How do you think I found you in all this mess.”
“Your OmniLock?” he demanded.
Lara showed him the strip of sliver on her wrist and Blue swiped his thumb over it to transfer the codes to enter his home.
“You can’t stay here, it’s too risky….” Lara trailed off, blinking repeatedly.
Blue had felt what she had a nanosecond before and had already spun around.
Tremendous surges in power whiplashed through the domicile like the rising of the tide, gathering immense force in a gradual swell. The air hummed and crackled, an electric charge that rippled outwards. The energy contracted, it left the Hybrids stunned and wary, an uneasy pricking over their flesh. The intense expansion of psychic energy would act as a homing beacon their kind would feel for miles.
Blue unclenched his teeth and stared towards the back of the domicile, where the strange event had originated. His pulse raced, and he struggled to keep his face composed as chills of fear ripped through him. He was supposed to be the highest ranked Hybrid on Earth.
&nb
sp; If that was so, what had just happened back there?
“You said we were alone,” he whispered.
Lara backed towards the front door, her face dead white. “We were. Omicron we must leave–”
“Do as I say, not as I do. Go now.” Blue’s gaze twitched to Max and Christabella. “Take the Humans and the FetchMes with you.”
PART THREE: INVASION
Everyone is quick to blame the alien.
Aeschylus
15.
Kali gasped. Lungs burning, she took a step and her legs wobbled madly. She froze. Arms extended for balance, she swiped the air in front of her. Everything was blurred. The murky world smelt too strong, sounded loud, felt too harsh. Random globs of light drew her fractured attention. Solid objects? She scrunched her eyes and rubbed them. They were sore, sensitive, as if she’d woken from two days sleep and been forced to look directly into the sun. Scalp itchy, she jumped as the wind rustled her hair over her shoulders. Her mouth was dry, her tongue thick and swollen. She swallowed to work up more moisture, and it hurt.
Her muscles ached.
Everything hurt.
A chill swept over her skin, and Kali realised she was quite naked. She wound one arm over her breasts, and the other covered her groin. Blood rushed to her face, and she hoped to hell wherever she was she was alone.
Wiggling her toes, she felt grass. Breathed in and smelt flowers and ... smoke? There was a scream and she jumped, her head jerking to the sound. Another scream from the other direction made her tremble. She could hear things exploding, voices shouting, people crying and shrieking in terror.
The sky looked dusty. Kali caught one of the fuzzy black things floating in the air and opened her palm, squinting at it.
Ash?
Rubbing the dirtied hand on her side, she took a hesitant step, her body confused and uncomfortable.
Her distorted vision corrected enough to make out a wall in front of her, then a whole a structure.
It looked familiar.
Home.
“Papa?” she whispered, stumbling forwards to safety.
She reached the doors and winced when broken glass was crushed underfoot and cut into her flesh. It had been smashed? Rikard would blow bosons when he saw it. Was there rioting? Another war? She shook her head at herself, trying to think clearly. There was only one public authority, the Alliance. Civil war? She pushed her hand out, and it passed through where she knew it should be solid. She stepped into the domicile kitchen, and her weak legs gave.
Determined to find her parents then find clothes, Kali crawled on wobbly arms. She blinked rapidly trying to clear her eyesight and began to feel stronger, a sense of purpose driving her actions.
She was beginning to remember. She’d been on a date with Blue, and they had been taken. He’d been hurt, and she had been dragged away and … sent home?
Kali knew it was useless, but she began to cry. When she thought of the hole in her memory she knew that time represented pain and loneliness. She experienced a deep sadness the longer she tried to remember what happened to her, and she sobbed.
She was confused, her heart hurting, and her body cold.
Kali stopped moving and cried harder, the tears hot on her cheeks, blinding her completely. Reaching the corridor, she curled up by the wall and wrapped her arms around her knees.
That was how Blue found her.
Turning the corner, he jerked to a stop when he saw her dark head bowed. Relief made his knees weak. Blue’s heart pounded as he drank in the sight of her safe and whole. Her shoulders shuddered with a heart-wrenching sob, and Blue rushed forward, arms outstretched. Overwhelmed to see her, he grabbed her arms, but immediately pulled away.
Blue took a large step back, confused at the strange sensation that crawled up his arms.
Her neck became rigid, and her eyes locked on his. She blinked stiffly, and when her lids lifted her pupils dilated until the hazel of her iris disappeared. “I’m cold, Blue.” Tears rolled down her cheeks then her pupils returned to normal.
Blue approached her again with care. “Are you injured? There’s blood.”
“I stepped on glass.” She wiped at her face, keeping her legs tucked into her chest. “You’re … you’re okay. Did they send you here too?” Kali tried to look past him. “What’s going on outside?”
“Invasion.”
“That does not sound cosmic.”
“Where are your clothes?”
She wrapped her arms tighter around herself. “I woke up like this.”
That was strange, but he didn’t comment, she was obviously uncomfortable. Blue helped her to stand and tugged off his jacket to allow her some modesty. “We need to get you dressed, and we need to leave. Where’s your room?” He would have carried her there, but she seemed to find no comfort in his embrace, and he didn’t want to stress her further. They had a long and dangerous journey to his home. The sooner they got out of her domicile and on the move the better. Blue knew Lara had been right about getting caught in a battle, there was only so much he could do to protect them out in the open.
Shell-shocked, Kali hobbled onto her bed and clambered on. She grabbed her covers and fisted a hand in the fabric, comforting herself as Blue tore around the room.
Dragging open draws, he riffled through until he got the basics. He grabbed a bag and flung the clothes into it.
Kali shook herself, stood, and began to put clothes on. She glanced out the window and soldiers sprinted past wearing full battle gear with pulse rifles in hand.
She blinked, and the window was clear.
Had she imagined that?
“An invasion. People are evacuating?” Tears pooled in her eyes when her thoughts turned to her parents again. She sat heavily on the bed. “Is that where my parents have gone? They … they left without me?”
Blue paused with clothes bundled in his arms. He considered telling her the truth then decided it wasn’t the time. She looked too pale and shaky. If she went into hysterics he’d be forced to put her under, and he didn’t want to use his abilities on her in that way. “Don’t be afraid,” he said. “I will protect you.”
“It’s not me I’m worried about,” she croaked. Kali clutched her chest, terror squeezing her heart. “Answer my question, Blue. My parents. They took us so did they take others too?”
“We don’t have time to discuss this. Our priority is getting out of this quadrant unseen.” Blue felt the sparks of minds closing in on the house. “We have to take off right now.” He zipped the bag and crouched in front of her, helping her to put boots on. “I promise as soon as we reach my home I will answer your questions, but right now we have to run.”
Kali looked away from Blue’s face and watched her neighbours across the road be dragged shrieking from the basement of their home.
Dead-eyed people separated the emotional father from his wife and little girl. They tore the screaming child from his arms and shoved her into a cage. They wrestled him to the ground and slapped something on the back of his neck as his wife was dragged away in a babbling hysteria.
Kali looked away because if she continued to look she was going to have a panic attack. Maybe she was already in the grip of one, she couldn’t breathe. She clasped her throat. “I don’t … I don’t know what to do. I need time to think. Just give me time.”
Blue stood and held out his hand. “Don’t think. Take my hand and live.”
Kali placed her hand in his and he yanked her out the room.
“Halt!”
Blue lifted a hand fingers splayed. A pulse of energy shot from him and slammed into the soldier who had taken aim when they stepped into the hallway. The soldier was airborne, flying out one of the broken windows.
Blue didn’t wait, he tugged Kali after him towards the back of the house, keeping his senses open for more danger.
“Blue, we’re being invaded by aliens. Aren’t Alliance soldiers good?”
“Good is subjective.”
Kali’s face scrunc
hed when he held an arm out to hold her still as he peeked around a corner. “No it’s not,” she argued, her arms wrapped protectively around her bag.
“It is today.” Blue took her hand and ran.
16.
Blue didn’t know what to do or say. Everything felt wrong. Awkward. Was it a testament to how delusional he’d been about them working as a couple that he had envisioned his reunion with Kali to be different?
He’d been prepared for the tears, and for her to be frantic, but he’d also expected her to be her usual compelling self. Blue imagined drawing her close and kissing her senseless. She would feel his relief and draw strength from the connection they had shared. She must have suffered at the hands of his Creator, but Kali had been accepting of what he’d been before she was abducted, and he would make her see he was the same man.
The problem was that connection. He didn’t feel it anymore.
She stood stoically next to him in the elevator, her arms wrapped around her middle. From the set of her jaw she fought not to cry, but each time he reached to her, she stiffened, her eyes seeking an escape. It shocked him the first time and irritated him every time after.
He’d never hurt her, yet she acted as if he was one touch away from destroying her.
Blue dug deep for patience and understanding, something he could only do for the Kali he knew before this chaos.
The last couple of hours had been dreadful. Maybe after she washed, slept, and ate she’d lift the dampener weighing her down.
The elevator doors pinged, and they entered a long curved corridor of whitewashed walls and gray stone floor. Fluorescent lights bracketed the upper corners and the first door was not ten feet from them. At the end of the corridor in the main living space, Blue could hear the low murmur of excited voices.
His home had never been full. He was used to it just being him, Caesar and Hypatia. It would take some adjustment. The FetchMe flew towards him now and landed on his shoulder. They connected via their ComLink, and she transferred data about Caesar as she was programmed to. Blue rubbed his companion’s wing absentmindedly as images flickered in his mind’s eye. “This is Hypatia.”
Chaos Theory Cosmic Lovely Page 12