ROTH
By Jessica Frances
All rights reserved.
Copyright ©2014 Jessica Frances
This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance of characters to persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. The Author holds exclusive rights to this work. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited.
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jessica-Frances-Author
Cover Design by MGBookcovers
Editing by C&D Editing
Earth – Book 1
Roth – Book 2
Chapter 1
Mattie
I am in a child’s bedroom, searching over the book titles and trying to take in what I’m reading. Over the past week or so, I have found a lot of books for Logan. He can’t read yet and I realise it will be up to me to teach him how. For now, I settle on finding some decent reading material he will find interesting enough to listen to, but not so exciting that he’ll stay awake to hear me read the whole thing. Just yesterday, I found a lot of simple, short reads. Now, I’m looking for something that will take longer than ten minutes to get through.
I again stare at the book titles, this time actually taking one of them out to read the back to see if it will be interesting enough for Logan. I have been staring at this shelf for at least ten minutes. Although, if you ask Logan, I have been forcing him to stay in this boring house for hours, if not days. I learned a lot about Logan these past few weeks, and one of those things is that he loves to exaggerate when he tells me anything.
‘I haven’t eaten in weeks.’ ‘I just walked twenty-ten million thousand steps.’ ‘My feet are falling off.’ This morning, he assured me there was a monster under his bed with three eyes, a pink nose and it growled. When Marduke looked under there, after Logan insisting he should do it—I assume chivalry is a thing on his planet, too—he found a rat. It ran out at him and shocked him enough to dive out of the way and knock over a dresser. Logan screamed his lungs out and tried his best to deafen us all while I did something surprising.
I leapt towards it. Not because I wanted to kill it, but I wanted to catch it. I wanted to hold it in my hands and maybe even hug it.
For weeks, we have been on the run from the invasion, and I haven’t seen any animals. The best I have seen were a few random ants and tiny bugs out in the forest. No pet cats or dogs. Not even fish. I mean, we have been in houses that have fish tanks, but they were empty. What the hell are Marduke’s people doing to our animals? I honestly believe they’ve been taking them to do experiments or just to empty this planet of any life, but I don’t want to ask Marduke because there is a part of me that doesn’t really want to know if I’m right.
So this rat was a survivor, and I wanted to hug it and congratulate it. I didn’t catch it, though, and it was out the door in the blink of an eye. Thinking back, it was probably a good thing. I doubt it would be overly hygienic to be holding onto a rat.
“I’m bored. When can we watch TV?” Logan asks me for what has to be the fifth time he has asked me today, and probably every day, actually. He can’t seem to understand that there won’t be any television to watch.
“Not now. What do you think of this book?” I pass him over the one in my hands, realising I still didn’t read the blurb to find out what it was about.
“Where is M’Dude?” he says instead, dumping the book on the bed he was just been sitting on. I guess he isn’t too fond of that one.
“He’s filling up the trunk with supplies.” I can’t help but redden slightly thinking about him.
For the past few weeks, we have been getting to know each other. Not only talking in depth about our lives before the invasion, but also physically. At first, my body wasn’t all that into it, probably because neither of us had any experience with what we were doing. There was a lot of trial and error, and I even feared that maybe there was something wrong with me. But now? Wow. If we didn’t have Logan, I am positive we would go days without leaving a bed, and clothes would definitely not be worn for that duration.
Instead, we’re forced to almost act like an old married couple—happy to sneak in mind-blowing sex when we can. Although, for fear of being woken up in the middle of the night naked, either by machines or Logan, we mostly dress afterwards, and we keep any noise down to a minimum. I am sure Logan is traumatised enough by Earth being invaded and losing any friends or family he had, so he doesn’t need to walk in on Marduke and me having sex.
Logan says something else to me, but my eye catches a photo on the shelf above the books. It’s of a mother and child. No doubt the child is the owner of all of these things I am haphazardly rummaging through. I try not to think of the people we are stealing from because, if I do, all those thoughts try to drown me.
Where are they now? Are they dead or were they taken away? What would they think about me being in their homes? What about Marduke?
Thinking about humans and Marduke together always causes my heart to ache. His family is the reason for the invasion on Earth. He’s not human, even if he does look like he is to me. The only thing that sets him apart from us is the scar over his neck. He described it as saying that his brain is sort of like a computer. He has a regular brain like I do but with the ability to access it and feed it information from a small information chip that just has to be inserted at the base of his neck. What he has in there now gives him access to a lot of knowledge involving Earth, like languages and culture.
He told me he watched a lot of documentaries and read many books to grasp what it is to be a human on Earth. I don’t know what his thoughts were when he read about our wars, past and present, or our lifestyle. I hate to think about what he thought when he admitted he did see some reality TV.
But when his brother tried to kill him back on Earth, he was forced to run for his life. He then showed me that he is a good person, human or not. The first time I saw him he was selflessly saving the life of a small girl. He has saved my life and Logan’s countless times. He has always protected me and I trust him.
My heartache comes from the thought that I am betraying humans by caring about Marduke. When I am with him, I am overwhelmed by how much I feel for him. Attraction, love, security and friendship are just some of the feelings I have for him. It doesn’t feel wrong when I am with him. However, when I step away, when we are apart like right now, I wonder if I am a traitor. I wonder if anyone would understand the way I feel and would accept it. I wonder if I am a bad person for loving the enemy.
I focus back on the photo in front of me, staring at the woman who has her arms wrapped around a small boy. He is smiling at the camera, but the mother looks as though she’s in mid laugh. They both look happy, and now they are gone.
My heart sinks and grows heavy in my chest. Every day since the invasion I have had this darkness swelling inside me, trying to suck me into it. I didn’t notice it at first. I think because I felt like I needed to help keep Lisa afloat. I knew I had a job and that was to help Hank with her. She isn’t weaker than us; she just wasn’t numb to what was happening. Hank and I stalled in shock and anger, but she jumped straight into grief and loss. Now, my two best friends are both gone, too. They were taken away from me by Marduke’s brother, Ival. I don’t know where, but Marduke has tried to assure me they are both on his home planet, Oden, and they’ll be okay.
I hope he’s right. I allow that hope to keep the darkness away. I try not to acknowledge any hope over my parents and sister, but I know I do feel it. I am just too scared to look closely at that hope, in case I realise that it’s misleading. I can’t handle any more loss.
Moments like this, in this stranger’s home which I’m freely taking possessions from, yeah, I feel that darkness growing.
“Who’s that?” Logan asks, standing by the window. I am fairly certain he might have been ta
lking to me this entire time and I’ve just tuned him out.
“Who?” I move over to the window just as he decides to race past me, nearly knocking me over in the process.
I only take one glimpse outside, one quick look at Marduke talking to his brother, and I scream for Logan to stop. It’s too late, though, he’s on a mission to get outside. He has no idea the danger he’s running towards.
I chase after him, tripping on the stairs and bashing my knee into the ground. It doesn’t slow me down; I get back up and run for him, making it outside in time to see Ival holding a gun.
Then, everything in front of me slows down. My vision darkens and narrows. I only have eyes for Logan. He’s running for Marduke, and given that he doesn’t appear scared, I think he might actually be a little excited. Marduke has discovered another human being, or so Logan thinks.
He only makes it a few steps before I hear the gunshot. I actually pray that Ival has aimed for me. Not because I want to die, but because I desperately don’t want Logan or Marduke to die. Besides, I am wearing the bulletproof vest Marduke continually insists I wear. As long as the shot is aimed for my chest, I’ll live.
But when I see Logan falling, I know my prayer hasn’t been granted.
I don’t see what happens after that, my eyes are only for Logan. I make it to him too late, watching as blood pumps from his small chest. I collapse next to him, pulling him into my arms and holding my hands against the wound.
“Ma- Ma-e…” he stutters my name, his body shaking in fear. His chin wobbles and I know there is a scream on the tip of his lips as he tilts his head to glance down at himself. I take one hand away and hold on tightly to his chin, keeping his line of sight on me and not the blood pumping freely past my hand. My fingers stain his clean, pale skin with his own blood.
“You’re okay Logan; you’ve just got a small scratch. You’re going to be fine,” I assure him, wondering how the hell we’re supposed to fix this. Because we have to be able to fix this; there is no way we’re going to lose Logan. Not like this, not ever. I won’t allow it. But we have no hospitals nearby or even any doctors working in them. As far as I know, we are the last humans on Earth.
Marduke and Ival are facing off; most likely one of them is going to be killed. It won’t matter to Logan which one. If Ival lives, then he will kill us both regardless. If Marduke wins, then Logan will still be bleeding out.
My heart races and then pauses. Races and pauses. It leaves me breathless and faint.
I don’t know what to do.
“Do… my dad?” he asks me, part of his question coming out mute. He gurgles and I am horrified when I see blood coming out of his mouth.
I hold him tighter, now letting go of the wound, which is pouring out blood since my hand is useless. The blood was just bypassing my hand that was trying to stop it. I know, deep down, there is nothing for me to do for him to save his life, but I can try to give him some peace.
“Your dad is waiting for you, you know. He was a brave man and so are you, Logan. So brave, and he’ll be very proud of you,” I repeat these same words, taking in the small smile over his lips before my eyes blur and I can’t see him anymore. I blink my tears away, never wanting to forget his face, but when I see him properly, his eyes are shut and he’s deadly still.
I howl in pain, positive that a stray bullet must have gotten me, too. I’ve just had my heart crushed and destroyed. Inside, I feel the darkness growing, urging me to fall into it. However, my anger flares higher, and my narrowed vision changes from only Logan to Ival.
He’s speaking to Marduke in a different language, one that sounds foreign and awful. It’s like every word spoken is a nail scratching on a chalkboard. I don’t know what he’s saying to Marduke, but from his stance, I know it’s not good. He’s slowly beating Marduke to death and I fear he will continue doing this until there is nothing left of him.
My anger turns into a full blown rage, and after gently placing Logan’s body on the ground, I charge at him. Marduke sees me running and gives his last piece of strength to try and save me. He wrestles a control free, and then all I see is darkness shooting out at me.
I scream in anger. My throat is sore, my bones ache and my skin burns. Then I hear my name being called out, and I open my eyes.
Hank is shaking me awake, and since he knows the drill, as soon as my eyes open, he passes me a bucket and I hurl into it. Nightmares have been plaguing me since I arrived on Roth, a planet that is under Marduke’s father’s control.
I take deep breaths, trying to reassure myself that what I saw was just a nightmare except it was also real. Unfortunately, my nightmares are just making me relive that same scenario over and over. I have dreamt of nothing else, and I fear it won’t change anytime soon.
I try to reassert myself and recall where I am and what I know. Thinking about what facts I have learned usually helps to ground me and keep the darkness at bay. I take deep breaths, trying to swallow past the bile and recall our mission.
So far, what we know is that humans are being extradited from Earth and scattered amongst the planets that Marduke mentioned his people “own.” More likely, they are planets they stole. This means that Lisa and the girls could be on any of the other planets Marduke’s people have, and if my parents and sister survived, then it’ll be the same for them, too. It’s hopeless to try and find them. It will never happen. All I know is that my family, Lisa and those two girls, Marie and Hope, did not make it to Roth. There won’t be any chance for me to reunite with them, no opportunity for me to find out what happened to them, and to know if they are alive, but revenge is possible. I’m fine with settling for that.
“Are you sure you’re ready for this?” Hank asks, pulling the bucket away from me when I have nothing left. With the awful food we’re getting here, I don’t vomit for long. I’m not the only one whose stomach is refusing to accept the food we are given, either. It’s a bland, strange, white mush, and it smells as gross as it tastes. If I hadn’t agreed to go on the mission Hank told me about, I would probably stop eating altogether and give up. Some people here have.
It’s been weeks since I arrived on Roth, and my body and mind have not accepted my new conditions at all. Apart from the awful food I have to eat, I can’t stop the headaches I keep having. The strange smell and weather are to blame, I think. The air has a metallic edge to it, which I have learned to hate and can’t ignore, and the weather is frustrating.
The two suns here are confusing and they aren’t in sync, so we are never covered in darkness for long. What’s more, it’s impossible to tell time in relation to Earth time because I don’t think this system works on a twenty-four hour routine. The days feel incredibly long, but the nights are short.
When the two suns rotate close to Roth, we are blanketed in hot days with stifling and stuffy heat. Then, like clockwork, after a week or so of unbearable heat, the suns drift farther away and it will become cold. It often rains and the winds are chilling, but we haven’t had hail or snow here yet. Maybe we won’t.
The cold weather lasts much longer than the heat, which is a blessing. The heat makes it too hot to even attempt sleep. It’s uncomfortable, and since we don’t have many extra clothes for everyone, it means people stick to the same clothing and they smell. It’s sometimes so overpowering I feel faint.
I am stuck in my same jeans and am ready to burn them, yet I still try to shower as often as I can. It gives me something to do, and when it’s hot, it is one of the only ways to cool down. My only annoyance is that I can’t take off the stupid vest Marduke gave me. I have tried touching every inch of it, but it doesn’t work. I need Marduke to be the one to take it off, and with him dead…
He’s dead. Knowing that doesn’t ever make it less hard to be reminded of it.
I have never lost anyone close to me before. A few years ago, our family dog passed away, and that had felt devastating. Although he had cancer and was fifteen, it wasn’t a shock he was going to die soon. Part of me had been prep
aring for the news, but to lose my parents? My sister? My best friend? My… lover? Boyfriend? I don’t know what to call Marduke.
Regardless, I have known him the least amount out of everyone, but his loss feels just as horrific. We shared experiences no one else will ever understand. I have never felt the way I did about Marduke with anyone, and I don’t think I ever will feel that way about someone else.
I am determined to avenge Earth and what has been done to humans. I hate Marduke’s people because of what they took from us, what they have destroyed. But I despise Ival for taking Marduke from me. If this was only about my friends and family, I would be determined to just get Earth back. I would want to just take down Marduke’s people and be done with it. That’s not all this is anymore, though. I want to find Ival. I want him to hurt for not only what he did to Marduke, but also Logan.
I loathe him, and it is that anger and rage that keeps me motivated.
It is as if we have been placed on Roth where they hope to break our spirit. It’s working on many people since there is nothing to do here. With no hope of being able to get away and most people now only focusing on what they have lost, it is depressing. The knowledge of all that is enough to cripple people, sometimes it feels crippling to me. However, I haven’t let it consume me. Instead, I keep my hatred alive and I refuse to let this go. I will not stop until I am dead.
For basketball, I used to train with passion, with determination, and I was stubborn. I would set a goal and wouldn’t let myself rest until I reached it. I ran eight laps last time? Then I will run ten the next time. I did two hundred push-ups last time? Then I will do two hundred and twenty this time. I never let myself give up and those same principals are helping me right now.
I won’t give up until Earth is ours again, and I won’t ever stop.
“Mattie? Are you okay?” Hank whispers. His hand moves over to rest on my forehead, no doubt checking for a fever. He’s constantly worried about me, and I’m not sure why he isn’t used to me drifting off in my thoughts by now. It happens constantly. It’s easy to tell most people around here are stuck in their own heads. Hank, too, gets lost in his memories of Lisa when she is brought up. I just wait it out until he comes back to the present because, often, he’s remembering something good with Lisa, and I don’t want to rush him coming back to the crushing reality of her not being with him.
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