Melissa nodded and turned to leave, her shoulders slumping.
Peter watched her take a few steps over the lawn.
“Damn. What’s her name?”
“Melissa.”
He called out, “Melissa, don’t go looking for him. I can’t promise I’ll find him, but I’ll keep my eyes open, okay?”
She looked back with a glint of hope on her face, and Peter smiled. It didn’t reach his eyes, but still seemed reassuring.
I’m so glad you’re not the one missing. I don’t know what I’d do if you disappeared again.
She should probably say something encouraging. He had no reason to be nice to her neighbor.
“Thanks. You didn’t have to do that.”
For a moment she forgot about their own problems, but when he put his hands on her shoulders his serious expression reminded her that he carried the fate of her world.
“Be careful. I’ll be back as soon as I can, but don’t worry if it takes a while. I will be back, I promise.”
*****
As long as Peter was around, his calm demeanor kept Rachael together. The moment he left, her heart raced, and her stomach flipped over. She visualized particularly beautiful places she’d seen in real life or on photos and bawled with loss, even though the disaster hadn’t occurred yet.
The EMP made more sense now. Sure, it caused problems, but rendering humans’ weapons useless spared them a war that would destroy their entire cultural heritage, maybe life itself.
History repeats itself. Humans have done it over and over again, and now someone else does it to us. At least they tried to be gentle.
Every time her tears waned, she imagined someone or something she cared for gone, and cried herself sick.
“I need to stop this.”
Not even her voice sounded right, but it gave sound advice, and she splashed cold water on her face.
Who is Peter, really?
Surely not a regular soldier. He talked like someone who would give orders, not just accept them. What was his role? From the sound of it, he’d been involved with June, whoever she might be. Strange, she’d never seen a female invader, never even wondered what they might look like. All the troops were men.
I need a cup of tea.
She rose and the house shook, making things rattle on the shelves. It felt like an earthquake.
“What the hell?”
A part of her wanted to look outside, and another claimed she should stay clear of the windows. Peter always told her to keep the windows closed, but if disaster approached, wouldn’t she be better off knowing?
She opened a slit in the curtain and squinted at the bright sunlight.
Shouldn’t the end of the world come with rain and thunder?
It took several long seconds for her to decipher what she saw. A large ship hung at a distance, hovering over the downtown buildings like an enormous zeppelin. It dropped a seemingly endless row of round black disks, each exploding on impact.
“Oh my God.”
Is it coming this way? What should I do? Take the cat and run? There’s nowhere to go.
She had a cat carrier, but Bonbon hated it. Of course. They only used it for going to the vet.
Even if she could catch the cat, going out on the streets on foot would be suicide. There would be nowhere to hide from this horror. Maybe she could find a way out of the city, but it would only be temporary relief.
She squinted, trying to find points of reference to ascertain if the craft was moving, but it was difficult to see.
How long until it comes here?
Peter told her to stay where she was, and she had nowhere else to go, but he probably hadn’t predicted this.
She closed the curtain slowly, elaborately, and tiptoed to the sofa. The room felt chilly all of a sudden, and she pulled a fleece throw over her legs. The cat had been hiding most of the day, but now she came to sit on Rachael’s lap. Bonbon rolled up and purred, and Rachael patted her for a while before folding her hands together.
If death came, there was nothing she could do about it.
If salvation arrived, it would whether she expected it or not.
Time went by so slowly she thought she must have waited for hours, but her old clock claimed only twenty minutes passed between the first bomb and Peter’s knock on the door. She recognized the sound and exhaled softly.
“The security chain is on, and he knows the security chain is on. Get to your feet and go let him in.”
Knowing he was close gave her courage to stand up, and she plodded off to open with the fleece still wrapped around her and the cat in her arms. He looked serious when she opened, and the wrinkle forming on his forehead made her wonder just how pitiful she looked.
“Are you okay?”
She nodded, shook her head, and said, “Sure,” barely aware of fresh tears trickling down her cheeks. “This isn’t going so well, is it?”
Peter grimaced.
“It is not.”
He put his hand under her chin and forced her to meet his eyes.
“Do you trust me?”
His features held nothing but concern, and she nodded.
“Good. Come with me.”
She didn’t want to move, couldn’t move.
I want to stay in this house and grieve the demise of the world as I know it. If it’s coming to an end, I might as well meet it here, hopefully with dignity.
He took the cat away from her and she watched Bonbon run into the house. Then, he took her throw and tossed it over a chair.
“You have to come right now.”
When she still didn’t move, he seized her hand and tugged until she stood in the yard.
“What about Bon?”
“She’ll be fine if we go now.”
All of a sudden, his arm was around her waist, and she had no choice but to follow him forward.
“Where are we going?”
“Space.”
That made her look up, and bury her heels in the driveway.
“Oh no.”
He didn’t miss one step. Suddenly, her feet hovered over the ground as he carried her towards a small spacecraft.
“I thought you said ‘you trusted me.’“
“Yes, but...”
“So trust me.”
It sounded so easy when he said it, but the thing on her lawn didn’t even look like a spaceship. It looked like an oversized motorcycle with large thrusters underneath it instead of wheels. An Earth vehicle would have handlebars, but this one had a strange panel with switches and lights.
How come I never wondered how he travels between here and the ship? I must be so naïve.
Peter straddled the machine and patted the seat behind him.
I really don’t want to do this. Maybe I should just... run away?
“I’ve never even been on a motorcycle.”
“I won’t let anything happen to you. Get up.”
She fidgeted and he pressed something on the panel. The machine shook a little.
“Are you sure this is safe?”
His mouth twitched.
“Your planet has been invaded. There are bombs falling all over it. You’re having an affair with one of the intruders, and this is what worries you?”
It was rather comical, but she still made a prudish face.
“Yes. I prefer to die with my feet on the ground. This thing, I mean, with my balance, I’ll fall off and kill myself in a much scarier way than having a bomb drop on me.”
“You won’t fall off, and you’re not going to die, because I won’t let you.”
She stuck her tongue out at him, but sat up behind him anyway. He pressed a control, and an invisible hand grabbed her around the waist.
“Whoa…”
“See, you’re not going to fall.”
I guess not; I can barely move.
“Can I... hold on to you?”
“Any time.”
He sounded like he smiled, but she couldn’t see his face. His fingers flew o
ver the console, and she peeked around him to see what he was doing. Then, she glanced down and yelped as she saw her own roof a few yards under her feet.
Whatever might happen next, she didn’t want to see.
She buried her face against his back. With her eyes closed, she barely noticed their movement.
Strange that it isn’t cold and windy. I mean, the thing looked open, no hood or anything.
The air around her was still and warm. Air...
“How do we breathe in space?”
“You breathe. We’re surrounded by a force field. You’d see it if you’d look up.”
He sounded amused and she squeezed her eyes shut harder.
“I’m not looking at anything until we land.”
A few minutes passed in silence.
“You really should see this.”
She shook her head, careful not to turn her face so far from its hiding place she’d accidentally catch a glimpse of space. To her desperation, she felt the movement under her change and her lover move. She held on to him, but he was turning around in the seat, and she had to let go.
“Open your eyes.”
It was difficult not to obey his serene voice, but she really wanted to keep her eyes shut. She felt his fingers touch her cheek.
“Open your eyes, Sweetheart. Trust me.”
She had to comply, and saw him turn backward at a nearly impossible angle to be able to look at her and touch her.
Maybe I’ll be okay if I can keep my eyes fixed on his.
The images of peripheral objects made their way into her mind, and even though she wanted to stare at Peter, her eyes darted to the sides. The ship seemed large from the ground, but up close, it covered her entire field of vision. It was big, dark, and unnatural.
Strange, it doesn’t look metallic at all. Was that a ripple? It looks like a big animal trying to get rid of an annoying fly. How does that thing fly? How do people live in there?
Peter’s voice ripped her back to reality.
“That’s good. We’re short on time, but you have to see this. Look down.”
Not obeying wasn’t an option, but she clutched his uniform to steady herself before moving her head. Then, she gasped for breath. They drifted with the Earth stretched out under them, a blue and green jewel hanging in space.
“It’s amazing.”
“Isn’t it? I have seen many planets, and trust me, yours is the most beautiful I have ever visited.”
From there on, the journey was easier, but she still held him tightly. The ship looked even more organic when they came closer.
Is it alive? It can’t be. That’s preposterous. Delusions brought on by stress, that’s what it is.
Peter steered them closer, and a hatch slid open. It looked too small for them and she squeezed her eyes shut again, expecting to bump her head. It felt like they landed, but she wasn’t sure, and keeping her face pressed against him seemed... safer.
“You can look now. There’s no scary space around you.”
He sounded much too amused.
“Sure, you do this every day, but it’s kind of a big deal to me.”
She felt him sigh, but he didn’t say anything, so she opened one eye and peeked to the side. They were in a huge and dark room, but it was a room, and the vehicle had contact with the floor. She jumped off and hurried several steps away, just in case the thing would decide to move. Then, her legs folded under her, and Peter caught her.
“Are you okay?”
“Sure...”
I’d fall to the floor if you didn’t hold me, but sure, I’m peachy.
Being carried would have been excellent, but she had no intention of asking. She was quite pathetic enough as it was, thank you very much.
The dry air smelled of oil. It was cold enough to give her goose bumps, and when she finally dared look around, she couldn’t see the far edges of the room. Peter kept an arm around her waist, supporting her.
“You’ll be fine. This is just a hangar. The rest isn’t much better, but a little.”
She followed him along a seemingly endless path, keeping her eyes on her feet.
One foot in front of the other and forward we go.
“You are the first person from your planet on one of our ships. That makes you an explorer.”
She didn’t feel like an explorer, but his words made her feel better.
“You’re always so calm. Don’t you ever get scared?”
“Of course I do. I’ve just... practiced not letting it get the best of me.”
Good advice.
A small animal ran right in front of their feet. It startled her, but she was determined to follow his lead and not let it get the best of her.
It’s too big to be a rat. Extraterrestrial rats? Strange, it looked like a cat.
Peter didn’t seem to notice, so she ignored the creature. If it wasn’t normal, he would have said something.
From now on, she would be cool.
Peter paused in front of a surprisingly pretty door, decorated with green fluorescent vines. He released the grip on her waist and took her hand instead.
“Are you ready?”
“I think so.”
My legs are apparently carrying me, so I guess it can’t be too bad.
Thus far, the ship looked nothing like her imagination, and the corridor that met them threw her off completely. It was wide and bright, but she couldn’t see any fixtures. The light emanated from the walls themselves. There were alcoves to the sides, and she wanted to stop and look at one, but her lover was in a hurry, and she followed without questions.
Chapter Twelve
The corridors were endless, and Peter and Rachael didn’t meet anyone.
Rachael was too scared to ask any questions, and trudged on with her eyes darting around. Peter finally stopped in front of a door decorated with a glowing star.
“This is the heart of the ship.”
“Where you fly?”
A smile lit up his face, and he shook his head.
“No. Men aren’t allowed on the bridge. Only women can communicate with the ship. I’ll tell you all about it later.”
Communicate with the ship? What is he talking about?
She didn’t have time to brood. The star flashed, and the door split in two halves, opening just enough to let them in. Peter walked, and his tug on her hand made her follow. She only came two steps into the room before she stopped to gawk.
The walls were pearly white and glowed softly, and seemed to continue upward forever. When she craned her neck to follow their shape, she saw a white cathedral ceiling. At the top, far above her head, hung something resembling the child of a big chandelier and the pipes of a church organ. It was utterly strange and absolutely beautiful.
She saw no furniture or decorations. The room held nothing besides white walls and a white floor.
I thought we were going to meet June, but I must have been mistaken.
“I never expected to be in here. I’ve only heard of this. Come, we need to go to the middle of the room.”
What is this place? What are we doing here?
No words came over her lips.
He gave her fingers a reassuring squeeze, and when they stood right under the peculiar chandelier, he pressed his lips against her temple.
“Just be yourself. Be honest, and everything will be alright.”
Was he afraid too? This couldn’t be good.
As soon as Peter stepped away from her, a warm white light streamed down from the ceiling, filling the entire room.
It seeped through her, and she imagined it flowing through every cell in her body.
Every corner of her heart and soul, every joyous memory and dusty dark secret she’d ever had was somehow known. But by whom?
The experience was so profound she forgot to be afraid. There was nothing but calm. She was safe and comfortable in a way she hadn’t been since her mother held her as a baby.
The moment lasted for a few seconds and forever.
“It is your wish to make this Earth woman your One.”
That language could not be of Earth, but she still understood.
Maybe it’s pre-programmed in my DNA.
Peter was also filled by the light. He looked more relaxed than she’d ever seen him. He gave his head a slight nod.
“Yes.”
The voice sounded amused.
“You know what this will mean, but she does not. Still, I can see in both your souls that you are devoted, and your hearts are true.”
When the voice spoke again, she was the focus of its attention. Her skin tingled, but on the inside.
“Do you accept?”
I don’t know what the question means. What is the right answer? Yes? No? Maybe?
She sought Peter’s eyes, looking for advice, and he nodded ever so slightly.
He brought her here, all the way to space from her home so she could answer this question. It had to be important.
“Yes.”
The voice lost interest in them and sounded as if it discussed the quality of vegetables at the local grocery store.
“Very well. Your request is granted.”
The light disappeared in an instant and she blinked, willing it to come back. Her body, her very soul, were diminished without it.
She wanted to say, “Come back,” but her mouth wouldn’t move.
Peter didn’t stir.
She was used to him being completely unfazed, but he looked as dazed as she. He finally gave his head a slight shake, took a deep breath, and ran his hands over his face.
They looked at each other for a few long moments. Eventually, he reached out to entwine his fingers with hers, and they crossed the large room in silence.
She wanted to ask what happened, but speaking seemed blasphemous.
On the way there, her lover had been determined and in a hurry. Now, he took his time. Maybe the light had an even bigger impact on him than on her?
He stopped outside the door, staring straight ahead into nothingness, and didn’t move until she squeezed his hand.
Operation Earth Page 15