Taken by the Aliens

by Anna Lewis

  “I’ll be right back, baby,” he said lovingly. “Wait right here.”

  Solemnly, Erika watched as her lover climbed up through the escape hatch, his legs following behind. She turned to watch out the front window, holding her breath as they sped towards the site of the explosion. Erika could see the metal edges of the rail curled up, resembling gnarled vines clawing up at the sky. Within a few minutes, Leonard came into view over the front window. She gasped.

  “Be careful, baby,” she whispered.

  “What is he doing?” asked the woman with the red hair.

  “Saving our lives,” Erika replied.

  They watched in heated anticipation for his feet to hit the ground, Erika covering her mouth while trying to keep her mouth from screaming. Leonard stomped thunderously on to the rail and pushed hard against the pod, causing the passengers to lurch forward. They braced themselves against the front of the pod and each other, Erika reaching out to hold on to Ulita as the rail screeched.

  “Hang on!” Erika yelled, gripping her co-worker.

  The weight of the passengers pressed against her and she screamed, pushing against the glass while waiting for the horrible incident to be over. With a sharp lurch, the pod came to a stop and the passengers fell in to a heap on the ground.

  “Is everyone alright in there?” Leonard called through the glass.

  “Yes!” Erika replied while untangling herself from the group.

  “Oh yeah. We’re great,” said the tall man sarcastically.

  He stood and brushed the dirt from his suit pants, picking up his suitcase from the ground. Holding out a hand, he helped each person up from the ground and sighed heavily.

  “Now what?” he asked.

  “Well, I guess we’re following his lead,” Ulita replied while pointing to Leonard.

  Leonard climbed up over the top of the pod and held out his hand.

  “We’ll have to crawl out through this escape hatch,” he said. “And then we’ll walk back up the monorail.”

  “Are you nuts?” asked the tall man.

  “No, but it’s our only chance right now,” Leonard responded. “You can follow or you can stay here.”

  “I’m staying put,” said the tall man. “I’ll send out an SOS on my chip.”

  “I’ll do the same,” said a purple woman covered in gold marks. “That sounds much safer than trekking up this monorail. What if another pod comes along?”

  “It doesn’t sound safe, but it’s our only hope right now,” Erika explained.

  “Feel free to stay here,” Ulita said while reaching up to Leonard. “I’m not taking that chance.”

  As Ulita and Erika climbed out of the pod, the red-headed woman stepped forward and then stepped back. She appeared unsure of what to do. Erika held out her hand to her.

  “Come with us,” she said.

  “I’m not sure,” the woman said.

  “It’ll be safer with us,” Erika insisted.

  “Yeah, right,” said the tall man.

  Erika ignored his smug comment and persisted to reach for the woman with the red hair.

  “Please,” she said. “Come on.”

  After a moment of thought, the woman reached out her hand and crawled up from the escape hatch. The four of them stood on the roof briefly before climbing down, the others saying they would stay behind.

  “I feel bad,” Erika commented.

  “Don’t,” Leonard said. “They made a choice.”

  “They did,” Ulita added. “There’s no reason to pity people who make their own choices.”

  “Yeah, that’s true,” Erika said. “I just wish we could save everybody.”

  “I know that feeling,” said the woman with the red hair. “By the way, my name is Constance.”

  “Hello, Constance,” Erika said. “I’m Erika. That’s Leonard and this is Ulita.”

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you all,” she said. “Despite the circumstances.”

  The group chuckled.

  “So, what’s the plan, baby?” Erika asked, reaching for his hand.

  Leonard squeezed her hand in his and leaned over to kiss her cheek.

  “I guess we’ll find out,” he replied.

  Erika looked down at the rail beneath their feet, noticing the beams glittering in the afternoon sun. Ahead in the distance, they could see the black clouds of smoke from the destruction and mayhem, watching as another ship hovered over their province and rained green fire down upon it.

  “This is such a mess,” Ulita commented.

  “Indeed,” Constance said.

  “Could someone tap into the news? I’m too low on energy to do it myself,” Ulita asked.

  “I’m on it,” Erika said while tapping her palm.

  ...again. Reports indicate a small crew of ships have been released by the Enadia army, spreading out over each province in order to eradicate the invading species. No information has yet surfaced of the invaders’ origins and crews are standing by to keep the people alert with every new development. This is Finusha Challace with Enadia International wishing you well as we fight back…

  “Nothing yet,” Erika reported. “They did say there are military ships flying around.”

  “Maybe we can hitch a ride with one,” Ulita said.

  “That would be nice. I can’t last long in these heels,” Constance said.

  “I can carry you at some point if you need it,” Leonard offered.

  Erika smiled in his direction.

  “Oh, I think I can manage without them,” Constance said while taking off her heels and tossing them into the ocean. “Farewell, shoes.”

  Erika giggled.

  “I like your spirit, Constance,” she said.

  “I hope it keeps us moving,” Erika said.

  “Me too,” said Ulita.

  “Me three,” Leonard sighed.

  The four of them continued to watch, wincing every so often when they saw the ship fire upon their province. It would take a few hours to reach land and they weren’t sure how long they would last as most of them hadn’t grabbed provisions. Erika squeezed Leonard’s hand hard, hoping that they would reach land before the sun set. As long as they still had sunlight, they would be alright.

  ***

  A loud roar came from overhead and the group looked up to find a military ship hovering near them. They cheered, waving for the ship to pick them up.

  “Down here!” Leonard called. “Help!”

  The others waved their arms as the pilot tapped into Erika’s chip, Leonard watching as she received the instructions.

  “He said the Terramites are the ones invading and we need to board immediately. He can drop us off at a secret base nearby,” Erika said.

  “That sounds great,” Leonard said, refusing to release her hand as the ship became level with the monorail.

  Constance and Ulita boarded first, Leonard and Erika following shortly behind. They sat in the seats lining the ship. The captain made an appearance as they got settled.

  “Good afternoon, civilians. I’m sure you’re well aware of the situation we’re in,” he said. “I’m Captain Theodore Nyugen and I’ll be guiding you back to shore.”

  Everyone nodded as he spoke. They waited patiently for another explanation, but nothing came.

  “Sir, what are we going to do?” Leonard asked.

  “I’m going to arm you all with these disintegrators for your protection. We’ll head for the safe base, and then we’ll make an action plan from there,” the captain informed them. “We’ll need your help warding off these Terramites.”

  Captain Nyugen pointed at Leonard when he said this. Erika grabbed his hand, worry filling her eyes. Leonard patted her arm.

  “It’s going to be okay,” he said. “We’ll get through this.”

  Erika offered a smile and he kissed her hand as reassurance. While the ship made its way towards the shore, the captain instructed the pilot and the group sat in the back making light conversation. Leonard cracked a few jokes
and had the group laughing until the ship shook. The captain made another appearance.

  “We might be running into some trouble,” he said. “I suggest you strap in and hang on.”

  As soon as the captain left the room, the ship shook violently and Constance fell forward. Leonard reached out to grab her and put her back in her seat, helping to strap her in. Erika grabbed Leonard’s hand and squeezed. He could see her jaw clenching and he held on tight. Something struck the ship which made her gasp, her grip tightening around his hand.

  “Hang on!” cried the captain while strapping himself in. “We’re going down!”

  The ship took a sharp dive and began barreling down towards the earth, the passengers all screaming as metal met the ground. It caused Constance to bounce out of her seat. Ulita clung to her straps, and Leonard and Erika gripped each other as the ship skittered across the ground and came to a halt. When the smoke cleared, Leonard unbuckled himself to check on everyone.

  “Where’s Constance?” he asked, turning to help Erika from her seat.

  “I can’t see her,” Erika replied.

  A groan came from the other end of the ship and a blue arm shot up in the air, Leonard sprinting to help pull Ulita from the rubble. Constance was underneath her.

  “Got her,” Ulita coughed with a smile.

  Constance blinked rapidly and rubbed her head, looking around to see where she was.

  “Goodness, can we catch a break here?” she asked while Leonard pulled her to her feet. “I swear it’s like the stock market crash of 2400.”

  Erika laughed at the joke and took Constance by the hand.

  “Are you alright?” she asked. “And Ulita, how do you feel?”

  “Ugh, I’m fine,” Ulita replied while fixing her skirt.

  “As am I, dear. Let’s get moving before those idiots in the sky decide to start shooting at us again,” Constance said.

  Leonard went to check the cockpit, looking around as the captain came to in his seat. The pilot was dead, having suffered severe injury from the attack. He looked through the front window and saw gnarled, bug-like creatures advancing toward the ship.

  “Captain, we’ve got a problem,” he said while turning to help the captain up. “Looks like those termite things are approaching.”

  “Terramites,” said Captain Nyugen. “And get those disintegrators out of that compartment over there.”

  Erika pushed the digital buttons on the wall and opened the compartment, passing around disintegrators to everyone in the ship. They stood in the center, waiting for their cue.

  “Alright, amigos,” the captain said. “This man and I will take the front. Cover our backs and make sure no one approaches us from behind. Got it?”

  The group nodded, Leonard stepping forward to join the captain at the front. As they made their way out of the cockpit, a small group of Terramites began circling around them and then began to fire. Returning fire, Leonard took out the ones on the left while the captain took out the ones on the right.

  When the area was clear, the captain motioned for them to continue moving forward. Leonard heard a squeak from behind and he turned to find Constance hopping on one foot while holding the other. He gave her a quizzical look to which she responded, “I stepped on a rock.”

  The captain motioned for Leonard to pay attention to the front and kept walking carefully up the hill, reaching the level area within just a few minutes. His mouth hung open. Before them stood a legion of Terramites, each of them armed to the teeth. Leonard felt a hand grab his and he turned to see Erika with eyes wide open and mouth agape, scanning the area that was covered in enemy aliens. She whimpered.

  “Darling,” she whispered. “That’s a lot of aliens.”

  “It is, dear,” he responded.

  “Let’s keep moving into that monorail tunnel. We can at least take cover for a moment before jumping them,” the captain explained.

  Leonard nodded and headed for the tunnel, zapping a few Terramites on the way. He heard the sound of zapping behind him. It sounded like the women were doing a great job of covering their backs. Deep in the tunnel, the lights were flickering and the monorail was evidently no longer in use. The silence was nearly total, the only sound coming from down the tunnel where it sounded like Terramites were poking around.

  “Keep moving forward,” whispered the captain. “It won’t be much longer.”

  As they reached the main platform of the monorail, the sound of squealing came from up ahead. Leonard noticed a pod moving slowly on its own, inching forward as if being pushed by an invisible force. Two green orbs appeared in the darkness behind the pod and Leonard realized it was a Terramite trying to push the pod forward. He immediately shot it down.

  Without warning, a whole pack of Terramites suddenly had them surrounded, the group firing their disintegrators at each one in sight and watching as they completely vaporized upon being hit. A hoard of them barreled through the doors of the monorail station, Erika screaming for them to hang on as they tried to contain the attack. Constance fell to the ground, still shooting from her limited position as Ulita tried to cover her. Leonard punched two Terramites and sent them reeling, the captain disintegrating them as they fell backwards.

  “We’ve almost got them! Hang on!” cried the captain.

  They continued to hold off the hoard until there were only two left, Erika fumbling with her disintegrator as they approached.

  “Leonard!” cried Erika while shaking her gun.

  Without hesitation, Leonard stepped up to her side and shot the two Terramites down. The captain patted him on the shoulder.

  “Well done, sir,” he said. “You would make a fine soldier.”

  “Thank you, Captain,” Leonard said. “We should keep moving. I’m sure there’s more of those.”

  The captain nodded and then turned to help Constance from the ground, checking her leg.

  “Is she alright?” Leonard asked.

  “Yes, she’s fine. Just looks like she might have been shot in the leg,” Captain Nyugen replied.

  “It feels like hot fire in my veins,” Constance said. “Like they shot me on a molecular level.”

  “All of it is molecular,” explained the captain. “We’ll get you to the medic as soon as we sprint across the field. You’ll be alright.”

  Constance nodded though her expression was grim. She looked like she was in a lot of pain and Ulita walked up to take her hand, holding it as the captain carried her to the entrance of the monorail station. Leonard ran to the front to cover them, instructing Erika to watch the rear as they made their way forward. There weren’t too many Terramites in the field, but there were a number of ships in the air. Some of them appeared to be military while most of the others were unmarked, just like the one that had initially attacked.

  As they approached the safe base, fire erupted in the sky. It looked like the military ships were making an attack on the enemy species. Small chunks of stainless steel rained down on the group trying to make their way safely across the field. The captain wiped some sand away from an unmarked area and tapped a keypad, causing the ground to shake and reveal a steel door that opened for the group.

  “Quickly! Inside!” yelled the captain.

  Leonard led the group through the entrance and the captain was the last to follow, carrying the wounded Constance. He shut the steel door behind them and turned to lead them through the tunnel that went down into the ground.

  “Welcome to our safe base,” announced the captain as they walked into a spacious room teeming with military personnel.

  A group of men were in the corner, pointing up at digital screens and tapping the glass desk rapidly. Another group was tending to a few wounded soldiers in a room separated by glass. One of them approached to take Constance.

  “I’m going with her,” Ulita said.

  The captain turned to Leonard.

  “You’ve shown a tremendous amount of leadership and bravery. I’d like for you to come out on the field with us,�
� the captain said.

  “Me? As a soldier?” Leonard asked incredulously. “I don’t think I’m cut out for that, sir.”

  “Desperate times occasionally call for a desperate measure, and that’s where you come in. Think of it as a favor to your province, to your people, and to the earth,” explained Captain Nyugen. “You would have the highest honor.”

  Leonard looked at Erika as he mulled over.

  “Do it,” she said. “It’s the right thing.”

  His brows furrowed together and he frowned, holding out his hand to take hers. He rubbed her fingers and then kissed them before turning back to Captain Nyugen.

  “I’ll do it.”

  ***

  As Leonard and Captain Nyugen prepared to return to the field, Erika sat with Constance and Ulita in the recovery room, each of them holding a hot cup of tea. She sipped quietly, looking around the room and focusing on nothing in particular.

  “He’s a brave man, you know,” Constance said from the bed. “He’s a keeper.”

  “I know,” Erika said. “I’m just scared I’ll lose him in an instant.”

  “Don’t focus on that, amiga,” Ulita said.

  Erika offered a small smile and looked down at her cup, observing her reflection wavering in the surface of the liquid. She rubbed the side of the cup with her thumb, ignoring the rest of the conversation that Ulita and Constance were holding. A hand on her shoulder brought her back to reality and she looked up to find Leonard smiling down at her.

  “We’re about to leave, dear,” he said softly.

  “I know,” she said quietly.

  “Don’t worry about me. I can’t quite die with the extended serum, but I can be wounded,” he explained. “They’ve given me another injection to keep my skin from being penetrated by enemy fire.”

  “That’s fantastic,” she whispered, tears beginning to trickle down her face.

  Leonard wiped them away with his thumbs, bending over to kiss her lips.

  “You’re going to be wonderful out there,” she said. “Please, come back to me.”

  “I will. As soon as they’re defeated, I will come back here and give you the most passionate kiss ever,” he promised. “And then we can get back to our lives.”