by Jay Morris
“I promise I will,” I said.
She nodded then said “Do you think there is a good chance we will both be alive in a year?”
I caught myself from answering bullshit, instead I thought about it. I answered her the best I could
“Honestly no, there is a chance but it would be like winning the lottery twice or something.”
She nodded then taking a deep breath,
“Do you love me enough to marry me right now, right here?”
She didn’t sound like a kid, she sounded like someone who saw and felt pain and death and loss on a daily basis and accepted her own fate like an adult. I hoped I would sound the same,
“Karen, I love you in so many ways, ways I could not describe. If we waited until we were 25 or 30 or a 100 I could not love you any less than I do right now. Every time I touch you, every time we kiss or just talk, every time I look in your eyes I can only feel that love for you and nobody else.”
She remained silent, so I swallowed hard but almost blew it when I said
“Karen, if Selena Gomez and Taylor Swift, before she got all old and everything, were in this room naked with us right now, I’d still pick you”.
“What?” she snapped.
Her brows raising in disbelief, she put her hands on her hips like she does when she was about to tell me I’m stupid. Well I might have been a kid but I knew a tactical error when I saw one so I just told the truth
“Karen, I mean I love you and I am ready to marry you any time you say so.” Whew.
She said, “Good, then since there are no preachers left that we know of, I declare us married forever and ever unless I change my mind or something.”
Then she kicked off her unlaced boots, un-did her belt and shimmied so her camouflaged pants slid to the floor and she stepped out of them, I thought I might pass out. She slowly, deliberately, undid the buttons on what Tucker called her blouse; which was just really just an oversized, matching shirt to her pants.
She slowly swayed her hips a little bit from side to side as she as she worked her way down. She spun around to face away from me then she took the blouse off too and suddenly she was naked. Words do not exist to describe the emotions I had at moment, to see the light flickering off her smooth, perfect skin, she was made of gold and far more precious. I couldn’t breathe, move, think, swallow or speak. She slowly turned to face me and my symptoms got even more profound. After a few more moments of me staring she said
“Well?”
Once again she was striking that pose that meant I was stupid and was supposed to say something so I did;
“Thank you”.
I felt that maybe that wasn’t quite right so I quickly added
“You are the most beautiful woman ever, and I love you”.
She smiled and taking my hand we went to bed and I found out what all the big deal was about. I also discovered we didn’t need a hose person at all.
At dawn we were awakened by a hammering at the locked door, Karen and I were in each others arms and to honest I would have preferred to stay there for about a million years. We were both very young and I admit the first time wasn’t great because neither of us had done anything like it before, but by the third or fourth time we made love that night (we were young remember), I thought we were getting pretty good at it. I swear she had places and parts that I never really suspected and I did my very best to caress or kiss every single one of them. Really all you have to do is exactly what she says, especially if she isn’t using words.
Alas the banging continued and we looked at each other and said simultaneously, “Amy.” We called out together that we were coming then got up and started to get dressed. I loved looking at her, watching her every minute, I guess she thought it strange and finally said “What?” I smiled and said
“I just never thought I could be this happy”.
She smiled and I swear she blushed a little. After 5 minutes or so we came out to face the steely eyed glare of Amy Driscoll, arms across her chest, she was leaning against the counter.
Suddenly she lunged at me grabbing my left arm and tried to pull me towards her,
“Johnny! What have you done to her?” she demanded.
Karen got right up in her face,
“Nothing I didn’t want him to do and for your information I liked it, so if you don’t mind my husband and I are going to get breakfast.”
She took my other arm started dragging me towards the storage room.
“Ha! Married now are we?” Amy said in a pained, sarcastic way.
I decided that I should participate so to set her straight
“No, WE are not, just Karen and I are.”
“That’s not what I...”
She started but her mouth fell open and then snapped shut when Karen held her left hand out showing off a huge diamond wedding set.
“See Amy? We are so totally married.”
I stared at the rings on her finger not having seen them before. She told me later that they were Mrs. Hardy’s and she was keeping them until Gina got a little older and that I could pick some up of her own anytime. Amy was stumbling over her words
“You can’t be married because...”
“Because why?” Karen interrupted “because the government says so? Well they are dead, because my mom or Johnny’s say so? Well they are dead too. The lawyers and preachers are dead, everyone is dead. I love Johnny and he loves me so why can’t we happy for a little while, just a freaking little while. And frankly while I consider you part of the family here and I think Johnny and I think of you as a mother figure, this isn’t about you!”
With that she pulled me into the storage room. I heard Amy yelling at Diane about why she didn’t back her up, Diane muttered
“Well, I think she has a point.”
Then Amy yelled at Tucker who yelled right back
“It’s none of my business.”
Carl added “Leave me out of this.”
I heard Amy say something that sounded like “Ugh... Men!”
The rest of the day went quite the same, Amy coming up with all sorts of reasons why we shouldn’t and Karen would just hold up her left hand and say “Married”. It went like this;
Amy: “You are too young!”
Karen: “Married”
Amy: “What if you get pregnant?”
Karen: “Married”
Amy: “It’s against the law in 43 states and the District of Columbia”
Karen: “Married”
Amy: “Your Mom wouldn’t like it!”
Karen: “Married”
Amy: “Well I don’t like it”
Karen: “Married”
At one point Lucy, Gina, Silent Bob, and Ronald Bear ran up to Amy and announced that they were married too. Amy chased them away saying
“Oh no you are not!!”
The girls, Diane and I laughing at their joke.
I looked over at Tucker, Carl and the gray deep in crayon conversation and I realized no one was on over watch so I kissed my WIFE and went up to the roof, just me and my 7.62 caliber shadow.
Day 38, Continued, Command Area, Vehicle 1-3
The war council of 8 came up with several protocols, some were based on useful observations of Director 17s technicians, they were broadcast to all of his surviving sub-directors and it was made available to all of the Directors 1 planet wide. Two more Director 1s had been slain, one in the largest continent the other on a large island just off the Eastern coast of that continent.
“Insistive-Broadcast (Director 1, All Directors) Statement-Factual-Composite :{
Insistive-Protocol-Initiate Composite :{
Technical-Re-tasking-Cutting-Laser Authorized
Inhibitor-Maximal-Range- Disable
Technical-Re-Tasking-Binder-Gun
Inhibitor-Required-Contact-Disable};
Insistive-Protocol
Tech-Alien-Projectile Denied.
Insistive-Technical-Re-Tasking-Pod-Vehicle All-1,
Patrol-Identify-Indige
nous-Life-Aggressive-Vehicle-All,
Tech-Application-Transportation-Field Strength-Maximal,
Protocol-Condition-Terminate Aggressive-Tech-Vehicle-Destroyed,”
Insistive-Bio-Tech-Defender-Locative-Pod-Required.”
The Da-Nah had gathered several of the Life Form Aggressive projectile weapons but tests had been disastrous, broken bones were most common but in one case the technician’s entire arm had to be removed surgically following the attempt. No, the gravity was too great and their skeletal systems had not evolved to handle them. One of the primary Directors even suggested that Biotech be performed on the Da-Nah, to strengthen their skeletons, enhanced with layers of bone or perhaps steel alloy fibers. It was all that he could do to keep the other prime Directors from censoring him for heresy. The evolutionary path of the Da-Nah was predetermined and therefore no deviation via biotech was allowed under any circumstance. The universe must be allowed to shine on the apex of existence, the Da-Nah.
Day 38, Continued, Lobby, West Virginia Welcome Center
“Permissive-Broadcast (Indigenous-Life-Form-Aggressive, underling-we),
Chronal-Displacement (6.75),
Statement-Factual-Natural-Event (Appearance-Initial, local Star).
Query-Broadcast (Indigenous-Life-Form-Aggressive, underling-Pod-8) Composite :{
Permissive-Query Protocol-Guard-underling Cease,
Permissive-Query Da-Nah-Vehicles-Access-Allowed,
Permissive-Query Broadcast (Indigenous-Life-Form-Aggressive, underling-Pod-8)
Locative-(6.2, 3.7) Chronal Displacement (0.0)};”
“Permissive-Acknowledged Query-Acknowledged Agreed“
“Permissive-Acknowledged Query-Acknowledged Agreed “
“Permissive-Acknowledged Query-Acknowledged Agreed“
“Permissive-Acknowledged Query-Acknowledged Agreed“
“Permissive-Acknowledged Query-Acknowledged Agreed“
The underling was almost giddy, not that his face would reflect that, he had just got the Pod 8 underlings to agree to betray their masters, open the entry’s hatches to all the vehicles at dawn. Then the underling will join him here, not to be alone again, to rest in the dreamshare of the underling once more, it nearly brought him to his knees in anticipation. Of course the Aggressives will ensure the Da-Nah never pursue them here, their alien allies will kill the Da-Nah. He looked at the two images that reflected the two possible results of their proposal. He picked up the one that showed open doors and underling running away into the rising sun, not the one with the closed doors and the underling walking guard duty. He handed the picture to the largest male and he, the tall female and the other adult male made sounds that he assumed were joyful, that and they slapped their paws together high above them in the air. He wondered if they might having a Ta-Ang Drinking Ritual now, he liked the Ta-Ang Drinking Ritual very much.
Day 39, Forest Edge, Colonization Site, Pod 8
The forest was nearly silent in the early morning gloom. The change in the weather put a layer of fog over us like a blanket. The whole scene reminded me of an old Dracula movie or maybe the Werewolf I am not sure. The fog was a couple feet off the ground but it faded away a couple feet higher. I felt like a fish underwater, looking up at the trees on the shore. Karen was by my side, her camo looking very effective, we both cradled out M-4s as we lay on the ground. We were on the opposite side of the alien camp, our job was to pick any aliens off who tried to escape. I was relieved that we were not expected to enter the vehicles, I had seen enough slaughter.
Across from us waited Tucker, Diane and Carl, Carl was shouldering the rocket launcher that he and Tucker had been studying for the last two days. I could tell Carl was nervous and his left leg was jittering up and down. I realized the last time Carl Weir had been in a raid or fight was in the ambush on the aliens and that had not worked out very well. I wondered if his lack of real coffee was to blame for his nervous nature.
All the way there, in the Humvee at first and then on foot I hear Carl whispering to himself over and over again;
“Safety lever to Fire
Charge lever to Charge
Don’t touch Launch Lever
Squeeze the trigger
Sight alignment, sight picture
Release trigger
Launch lever to Launch and hold
Pull the trigger
Don’t miss”
It was his mantra and all I could do was offer my own silent prayer for him, especially for the last bit. Tucker and Carl had locked the first rocket in the tube, I hoped the second would not be necessary. So we waited for dawn. Another 20 minutes passed, and just as that pre-morning glow began to appear we saw movement in the camp. Underlings appeared from each vehicle and they joined the two that had been “walking post” as Tucker would say.
Some of the underlings carried bundles or cases but the last one out from each vehicle turned, put their hands on the access panel, the underling did something with the same hand and when they walked away the doors stayed open. Then each and every underling disappeared into the forest, their little feet hidden by their robes.
As soon as they were gone Tucker and Diane entered the huge vehicle we recognized as the main housing vehicle. Tucker made his way quickly through the machine, Diane behind him. It seemed the underlings had been kind enough to make sure all interior doors were set to open upon approach. Tucker started with what we would call the master bedroom, he threw himself on them, a combat dagger and his fists were sufficient weapons to kill our sleeping enemies. Room by room he killed them, some he held their head down, his free hand across the forehead, he slashed across their throats viciously, severing their heads entirely in at least two cases. With the young he sometimes strangled sometimes crushed their heads with one crashing blow from the butt of his knife.
Diane followed him back out and she promptly vomited. Tucker was heading for the lab vehicle when a sleepy eyed alien appeared at the door, it started screaming all sorts of buzzes, hums and clicks, its face and chest flashing a sequence of colors that were mostly purples and whites. From Tuckers expression it had emitted one of their stinks as well, before it could turn, Tucker shot it in the side under the armpit, apparently the round pierced both lungs and maybe whatever they used for a heart because blood pumped and squirted from him in great fountains. This time Tucker didn’t enter the vehicle he just threw a hand grenade in; then turned to face the largest vehicle just as a huge sliding door on its side opened and the giant armor plated monster stalked from its storage place. The target we had come here to destroy, and the true reason for this butcher’s yard.
It somehow looked familiar but I couldn’t place it. It was way bigger than what I had anticipated. Carl scrambled up to his feet and began to go through his mantra, Tucker was running straight towards Carl. Leading the monster towards Carl. Tucker huffed and puffed past Carl, he spun and picked his rifle up from the ground and started firing, that was our signal and we started firing into the doorways of the last two vehicles. I saw several aliens try to get out but that had been a bad plan since our rifle rounds bounced and ricocheted all over the place. There was already a splattering of blue blood on the wall and door jamb.
I glanced over to Carl, the pink and gray behemoth nearly upon him, I could hear Tucker screaming for him to fire. He pressed the trigger, then nothing, Carl looked at the weapon in shock. The creature slapped at Carl and his body flew 15 yards to the right, he crashed into the trees and slid to the ground. Diane screamed and opened fire on the things armored back, the rounds glanced off like they were spitballs. The creature was half way around to face her when Tucker screamed profanely at the creatures and it turned back. The rocket left the launch tube, a trail of flames coming from both ends as it jetted towards the monsters belly. The explosion was tremendous and it blew the thing onto its back, it actually spun a bit on its shell. My brain was trying to figure it out, a turtle? No, an armadillo. Its guts and shattered steel and
bone skeleton was splattered all over the camp. After that Tucker slaughtered anyone that was left, Diane covering his six. I heard the aliens screaming, begging, or praying, whatever it was they were doing. I didn’t want to think about it so I yelled to Karen, “Come on!” and we jogged to were Carl was laying on the ground at the base of a tree.
We knelt next to him and Karen gave him a drink of water and I asked him “Carl, what happen?” He coughed and spat out blood then halfway laughed
“fo.. I for.. forgot to hold the launch lever down.”
“Well let’s not worry about it now” Karen said. “We can make a stretcher and ...”
But when she touched him his moan and agonized expression cut her off.
“Don’t ... don’t move me...please”.
I gently unbuttoned his jacket, his whole right side was crushed, and both arms and both legs had multiple breaks. I noticed that when I accidentally touched the jagged white piece of bone sticking out of his thigh he didn’t react. It didn’t take a doctor to understand, he was paralyzed from the waist down. I thought that was a blessing. I had not noticed the killing had stopped until Diane dropped to the ground next to us. She spoke to Carl and did the same cursory evaluation. I looked at Carl and I choked down my sobs and tears.
“It’s okay” he said, “it’s okay”, Carl’s voice was growing fainter, he was having trouble keeping his eyes open.
“I’m tired Johnny, so tired” his voice barely a whisper.
Karen held one of Carl’s hand and Diane the other. For a second he dozed off but he shook his head to wake himself up
“Johnny, don’t leave me, don’t” Carl said.