The Last Humans

Chapter one

It bit into her leg with gusto and I screamed like a fucking lunatic.

"Get it out!" The other cry was hoarse and coated in pure agony. I had never seen someone's face turn that shade of red before.

I looked down in horror at the giant worm-like creature the size of a dehydrated cucumber trying to borrow its way into Malia's leg. The scariest thing was that it was succeeding. Halfway in, blood seeping from the wound, the creature wiggled its wrinkled grey body, effectively pushing it's way in inch by sopping inch. The sound was really the worst part. The squelch...

Fuck, I wanted to throw up. I pressed a hand to my mouth, cutting off my own scream.

"Ming! Do something!"

I looked up with startled eyes to see everyone looking at me anxiously. Then it hit me.

Wait, me? No, no, no, no!

I was the makeshift leader of this pathetic little band of human misfits, yes, but not by choice. If I had known that having three PHDs and a bossy personality would automatically nominate me to leadership status I would've pretended to be an illiterate pussy when we'd crashed here. Instead I'd taken charge like an idiot driven by my survival instincts. Who wanted to be the leader of this group of women? Yes, they all were smart... but for all the book knowledge they had they still feared everything.

That fear was the reason they now looked at me expectantly, because I  would have to be the one to take one for the team and pull a parasitic alien worn from the leg of the bitchiest bitch I know. Too bad it was too late to hitch a ride out of here.

No way on Earth-- or rather whatever this planet was called-- was I going to touch that thing. Fuck that. I turned to leave... my destination: the bathroom to empty the protien bar I had for lunch.

"If she dies there will be no one to maintain the ship. She's our best engineer." Someone said. It was enough to give me pause.

In slow motion I turned to see Malia's ashen face as she weakly gripped her thigh above where the worm was still actively trying to get further in...

And here comes the vomit again. I clamped my lips tightly.

Brown hair, grey eyes, pasty skin and a nasty mouth hidden behind plump lips. Malia.

No. Touching an alien worm for her wasn't worth it.

I shook my head and looked away.

"You've got me. I'm also an engineer," I said to Cardoza who'd pleaded for my help a second ago.

"You heartless... little bitch," Malia sneered across the room at me but it came out weak and breathy.

Well, lovely, it takes one to know one. I mentally sneered.

"A bitch that's not going to help you." I sing-songed with a fair amount of malice that I couldn't help. I couldn't stand the woman. The worm was probably doing us all a favor actually.

Did I feel bad for my thoughts? Maybe. Did I care? Fuck no.

I hated Malia with her perfect hair, hourglass figure, and her need to bring me down at every turn. I was holding a grudge and I've decided that her dying wouldn't be a horrible thing... well, not for me at least.

I turned away. Again.

A hand on my shoulder stopped me. "Help her. If not for her then for me."

Guilt trip.

"No, don't do that," I whispered. Cardoza was my longest friend. I've known her years before the end of the world, long before we became the only survivors of the human race.

"She tried to kill me on the last planet. She left me there to dehydrate, you're lucky I don't throw her out into space right now with that thing still in her leg."

She sighed in that way that said she knew where I was coming from. "You're right, she deserves that. And I agree she has been very nasty but--"

I raised a brow daring her to continue.

She stuttered. "Okay, she's worse than that. But allowing her to die makes you no better than her. She is also one of five women... one of five humans left. Like it or not she is one of us and the human race needs her even if she's the worst example of what a human is..." Cardoza's pleading face was on full force.

I bit down on my lip hard while internally I warred with myself. Hating Malia didn't change the fact that my friend was right, Malia was despicable but she was still... I hated to say it... she was still human. Gag.

"Its time to be the hero." Cardoza went in for the final blow. She new I always wanted to be the hero. But hero work was hard. And alien worms were fucking nasty!

But...I'm going to have to play hero.

Cardoza smiled as if she saw the acceptance on my face. I rolled my eyes.

"Fuck. Move out of my way."

"Right away, boss." I could practically feel the smile in her words as I pushed passed her. The sighs that came from our other two crew mates whispered in the room.

They were lucky I was the only one in here with balls, literally.

"I'm only boss to you when you want something. And I'm not making any promises to save her life..."

Cardoza stuttered but I cut her off, "--but I'll try. For humanity's sake." That last bit I had to work to get out.

I looked down at Malia, I could no longer see the tail of the worm but its tubular outline was clear under her flesh. Gross.

"Get be a sturdy elastic ban. One from the supplies draw," I said to no one in particular but I heard scuffles. I was soon handed what I requested.

"Hold her down."

And yes, I took a certain amount of joy from having Malia pinned like a deer caught in a trap.