Then I’m shocked by a noise, it cuts me short. I simply switch the machine off and race outside once more. It isn’t until I reach my home that I realize that I’m still gripping tightly to the device, as if my life depends on it.
***
I expect all kinds of things to happen over the next few days, but nothing does. I get no response from the Nya, and my father doesn’t come after me for stealing from him.
Either he doesn’t know, or he doesn’t care.
As time passes, the pregnancy becomes increasingly difficult to hide, meaning that I can barely go outside. Everyone will know the truth, I’m sure of it, and I’m terrified of being lynch mobbed.
I don’t really have any option. If I don’t hear anything soon I’m going to have to leave. I’ll have to do this alone.
I don’t know what I have growing inside of me, and I really don’t want to inflict danger upon the last remaining humans, whatever I think of them. I made the selfish decisions that led me to this position, so it should only be me that bears the consequences of them.
I might be terrified, but I don’t see any other way out. It’s either do this alone, or die.
Once the choice has been made in my mind, I grab the device, the remaining clothes that I have and I sneak out in the dead of night, leaving everyone and everything behind.
*****
Epilogue
One year later…
Wrotg and Arlaf
We did not want to leave Earth, but we had to, to save Angie. If we’d stayed, she would have been killed. We intended to return, when the time was right, but time doesn’t move in the same way for us that it does on Earth. We don’t notice the time passing in the same way that we notice humans do, so it doesn’t feel like we’ve been away for long.
But then we got a message. It was crackled, distorted, and made little sense, but it was her, and that was enough to make us return.
We love her. Our emotions might be different to that of humans, but the concept of love is similar. And that’s what we feel for her.
So now we’re back to find to her. The noise machine is still going on Earth, which is unbearable, but she’s worth it. We need to see her, to find her, to be with her once more.
The only problem is we’ve been examining the human colony for a very long time, and there is no sign of her. We don’t want to communicate with the humans, for fear of starting another war, but we need to see her. We’ve come all this way; we need to find her now.
Maybe she isn’t here.
We think in unison, before starting a hunt. She always did prefer to be away from the rest of the human race, so it’s likely that we’re right about this. Luckily, we have a good sense of smell, so this shouldn’t be too difficult.
We search for a while, up and down the country, until we finally lay our eyes upon her. But she isn’t alone.
Angie is cradling a newborn human Nya hybrid in her arms.
She has a baby!
***
It takes some time, but eventually we manage to build up a brand new colony on Earth, where humans, hybrids and aliens who hated the war live together peacefully. Some of the other Nya came to join us, the ones who had worked alongside us in the underground movement.
It has been challenging, certainly not perfect, but we have now managed to convince the other humans that we’re not out to harm them, just to live peacefully – in the way we thought we were going to in the first place. Even the noise machine is gone, but they still have it, just in case.
But none of that really matters. Not to us. What truly matters is us, Angie, and our baby Jack – the first of many hybrids. We’re happy now, together, and nothing will ever be able to tear us apart again.
THE END
Bonus Story 38 of 40
The Crime of Protection
Avi felt a jolt when the police cruiser attached itself to the top of the spacecraft she had called home for the past year. She had been on the run all that time, and finally, they had caught her. Avi felt her heart pound in her chest, her mouth go dry, and her forehead bead with sweat. She predicted they would promptly storm onto her ship, guns blazing. In her experience, authority figures had a habit of shooting first and asking questions later.
But Avi wasn’t going to give up without a fight; pretty soon she heard the entrance to the ship clang open and the sound of boots clomp onto the floor above her. They would be here very soon. Avi jumped down from the pilot’s seat, grabbed her gun and crouched down behind the first-aid station and waited, gun in hand.
The door overhead burst open and Avi could hear a flood of boots rush into her ship and her belongings being tossed around. She had to force herself to stay put, though she had lived on this ship since the moment she fled Zethron with her life, and she had started to grow fond of it. She didn’t like the fact that they were tossing her things around like garbage, but she had to remind herself that that was the least of her worries at this moment. Any second now, a group of cyborgs would come running into this room and she needed to prepare herself for the worst.
Avi sucked in her breath as the door opened and the sound of boots could be heard entering the room. The cyborgs aggressively tore apart the room, disabling the electricals to prevent booby traps. Then all of a sudden, the voices and the movement stopped. Avi cocked her gun as she waited for someone to call her out, but after a few minutes, she realized that no one was going to. They had all retreated... But why? Weren’t they here, looking for her? Avi let out a sigh of relief, and slid down to the floor. Even though she was safe for this one moment that certainly didn’t mean she was out of the woods. This might be a ploy to get her to crawl out of her hiding place, and she wasn’t going to fall for it. Avi made herself comfortable and decided to wait the night out. She was in the safest part of the ship and knew that staying here would help her chances of surviving capture. This had been her main goal for the past year and there was no giving up on it now.
***
Two Hours Earlier…
A knock echoed on the outside of Exonyie’s door.
“Come in,” he groaned.
“I’m sorry to disturb you boss, but there’s been some news upstairs.” The man spoke quietly.
“What is it Zen? Speak up. I can’t hear you. Tell me that we caught her. Tell me that we have finished this endless chase of cat and mouse and can finally return home.” Exonyie and his crew, a team of cyborg bounty hunters, had been on this ship for almost a year, chasing a fugitive who had been charged with murder. Their mission was to bring the fugitive back to face trial, but after nearly a year, the search was beginning to seem futile. All of the ships that they had taken over or seized weren’t harboring the fugitive. Exonyie was exhausted and yearned for his own bed and his home planet. Traveling the universe was something that he had always loved doing, but the beauty of his home planet always drew him back, and he had been gone way too long.
Zen fidgeted. It seemed like he was weighing the news in his head. He was probably afraid of Exonyie’s reaction to the news. Exonyie had been extremely irritable as of late and blew up whenever he had been given any bad news. He knew that his crew was on edge, because their boss was usually a very calm and professional leader. This new attitude had made them fearful of what he might do to them.
“It’s okay, Zen. I’m not going to yell at you. What happened?” Exonyie asked quietly.
Zen let out a sigh of relief. “The ship that we were chasing did harbor a number of fugitives, but she wasn’t among them.”
Exonyie groaned in anguish and frustration. “I see,” he said.
“But we did get some useful information,” said Zen.
“And what was that?” Exonyie demanded through clenched teeth. It took all of Exonyie’s strength to not pick up the young cyborg and toss him across the room, but he did remember that he promised he would keep his temper.
“The captain of the ship said that a young woman who resembled the one we are seeking landed on a refueling station.
He’d seen her face on a wanted poster. Apparently the woman told one of the captain’s crewmembers that she was headed towards the planet of Varmon to get some more supplies.”
“Have the bridge set course for Varmon. I’ll be down shortly,” he said.
“Aye aye,” said Zen, who then left the room.
Exonyie sat up from his bed and ran his hands through his unruly hair. He had thought of cutting it, but it was one of his features that attracted women to him. As a bounty hunter, any type of sex appeal he could harbor was important It was a lonely life in space, and there was nothing better than falling into bed with a beautiful woman after a long day. He’d thought about marriage, but it was not really an option when his job kept him away from home so much. What woman would want to be married to a man like that?
Exonyie got up from the bed, dressed and put his boots back on. He grabbed his gun and walked out the door towards the equipment room. This was the area where all of his crew would be at while they were chasing their next lead. He knew, as well as anyone else, that they all hoped that this was it for them. All the men had an itch to get this girl Avi Mitchell and bring her back home. They had all been aboard on the ship for way too long and were tense from it. They hoped that the woman would put a good up a good fight, because then they would have the justification to release some tension. Once they completed this job, they could go out and celebrate; head to a distant planet, drink, and meet some girls. Exonyie couldn’t wait for some much needed relaxation himself. He hoped and prayed that this lead would pan out.
“How’s it going?” he asked his first officer, Astoroth. “Any news yet?”
Astoroth looked up at him and beamed. “I think we got her,” he said.
“Explain,” Exonyie replied as he sat down in his seat.
“Well, we found an unregistered ship that was floating by an asteroid field.”
“Like it was in hiding?” Exonyie interrupted.
“Correct. And, when we asked the ship to identify itself it kept dropping our call. So, as we got closer we realized that the ship had previously been registered on Zethron,” the first officer explained.
Exonyie sat up in his seat. He was actually starting to get excited. This could be it.
“So, what do you propose?” Exonyie inquired.
“We’ll force the ship’s system to respond to our call. This way we can get a good look at the pilot and determine if it actually is Avi Mitchell, and how many other people are there on the ship with her,” the first officer informed him.
“Do it,” Exonyie said as he watched his first officer hack into the small ship’s system and access the router that would force it to answer their call. “We’re in,” he said. The rest of the room cheered. Exonyie had no idea that all of the crew was standing by waiting for the outcome of this lead. His crew was just as excited as he was to end this. They had been really loyal to him during this mission and he would have to remember to reward them when this was all over.
Their call screen lit up as it rang the other ship’s system. On the third ring it answered and caught the young woman off guard. She jumped from her seat and tried to turn off the screen that totally dismantled her privacy. Enxonyie’s ship’s computer snapped a picture of the young woman, still trying to switch off the screen, and compared it to the picture from her wanted poster. It was a complete match. Everyone on the ship sighed with relief knowing that their mission was soon to be over.
Exonyie turned towards his crew and yelled, “Let’s go get her boys!” as the room erupted in cheers.
***
The present…
Avi heard a rustling on the other side of room as she rubbed her eyes. How long had she been asleep? The smell of bacon and eggs filtered through the vents and right into her nose. Her stomach growled in protest and she swore because she might have given herself away. That was the one thing that she hadn’t thought about last night, food. How much longer could she survive in this room without eating? Why hadn’t she stocked some basic necessities in here? She could hear her mother now. Avi and her brother Aric had been drilled in survival skills since they were infants. Life on the colony was always a struggle and children were forced to learn survival skills before they could walk. And, now Avi had forgotten the most important part of survival: food and water.
The rustling in the room came closer and stopped right in front of the door. Avi picked up her gun and pointed it towards the door. A piercing sound startled her, causing her to drop the gun and put her hands over her ears. The door flew open and an imposing figure stood over her. He was six feet tall with dark scarlet red hair and freckles. He was dressed in a black shirt, cargo pants and boots. Avi tried to make out the color of his eyes, but she couldn’t get past the electronic gadget that covered his left eye. It was flesh colored, as though it were meant to blend in with the rest of his body, but it actually did the exact opposite. It was 2 inches in diameter and contained a small screen, across which flashed text and images. The cyborg greeted her with an open-toothed smile and Avi’s heart fell in her chest.
“Avi Mitchell. You are under arrest for the murder of Authority Figure 718. Please leave your weapon and come with me,” he said as he pulled her up by the arm and started to drag her towards the exit.
“What are you going to do with me?” Avi asked, fearful for her life.
“We will bring you back to Zethron to face trial. Now, let’s go get you some breakfast,” he growled as he walked her towards the upper deck. Avi didn’t know whether to feel relieved or terrified.
*****
Exonyie set the prisoner down at the table below deck and set a plate of food in front of her. The smell of bacon and eggs was mesmerizing and Avi’s stomach growled so loud that everyone at the table could hear. She looked down in embarrasment, but didn’t touch her food. Exonyie sat down next to her and pushed her plate closer.
“Eat,” he said.
Avi looked her captor directly in the eyes and spat in his face in defiance. Zen jumped up from the table in an attempt to put the woman in her place, but Exonyie put his hand up and indicated that he should sit back down.
This woman was really going to try his patience. He thought to himself. He wasn’t going to let her get him all riled up. He picked up a napkin and wiped his face with it.
“Now, you have two choices,” he said as he picked up the fork on Avi’s plate. “The way I see it, you can either eat or your own or I’m going to feed you myself and I will make sure that you eat every bite. My orders are to bring you back alive and well, and that is exactly what I’m going to do. So, what’s it gonna be princess?”
The woman glared at him as she grabbed the fork out of his hand and started shoveling food into her mouth. Her eyes never left his, challenging him. Exonyie knew that this woman wasn’t going to make this easy for him. She wouldn’t give up without a fight, no matter if she was captured or not.
“Zen.”
“Yes, boss?” Zen said as she stood up.
“I need you to go back to the ship and get room 200 ready for our prisoner. Make sure that you do everything that we discussed.”
Zen’s eyes widened in surprise, but he didn’t argue with the commander. He was well aware of what happened to crew members who question the commander in public. “Right on it boss,” he said as he exited the room and headed back towards the ship.
“As for the rest of you, head back up to the ship onto the bridge,” said Exonyie I will meet you all up there in a few minutes. I want to talk to our prisoner alone.”
Everyone filed out. As soon as they had gone, Exonyie tuned to face Avi.
“Now, that wasn’t so bad was it?” he said as he looked down at her empty plate. Avi looked up as her eyes burned right into him. He could feel the hate radiating from her body and all he could do was laugh until tears were falling from his eyes. “You don’t talk much do you?” he asked as he waited any type of reply or sound to come from her lips, but none came.
“I try to think that I
am a pretty fair and just man. I believe in giving people choices and hope that they make the right one, but I can see that I’m not going to get any any word out of you. So, you can just listen to what I have to say. I don’t like this situation any better than you do, but here we are. My crew and I have been hired to capture you and bring you home. We don’t care if you commiteed the crime or not. And, we don’t care if there was a good reason for what you did. We aren’t paid to care. Therefore, we are going to set a few ground rules until we get back on Zethron. First of all, I am you jailer and you are my prisoner. You will do as I say, when I say, or there will be consequences. You will not speak unless spoken to and you will not speak to any members of my crew unless they have orders to speak to you. You will eat the food that I give you without complaint or you will be force fed, but you will eat. Any questions?” Exonyie asked.
Avi was still glaring at him. However, she didn‘t even utter a sound or seem to react to what he said.
“Since we are in full agreement. Let me introduce you to your new home.” Exonyie said as he grabbed her arm and let her down to his ship and closer to Zethron.
***
Zen had almost completed sterilizing room 200. He was still confused as to why Exonyie would want to house the fugitive in the room that adjoined his and not in the hold, where they usually housed all of the fugivites and prisoners that they capture. It wasn’t his place to ask, because the commander probably had a good reason to keep her there. The commander probably thought it was best to keep an eye on her at all times, and not have to worry if she could get into the heads of the men that were posted to watch her. Yeah, that must be it.
In Time to Love Page 131