Layla Gordinski marched down the empty, classified hall, a tablet clutched against her side. Her attire wasn't usual -- gray blazer, gray pencil skirt below the knees -- but a short floral dress. She knew Zaiden would demur, perhaps call her names and threaten to fire her for 'looking unprofessional' and therefore giving him a bad image as well. It was all part of her calculated plan to save those on the ground.
She pushed the door of the conference room open. Everybody turned to her. She straightened her posture and moved to her reserved seat at the roundtable. Zaiden sent her glares but didn't speak on it.
"To answer your question, Mr. President, after running several simulations, I have concluded that it will take, at most, a month to get this dropship built." Huxley stated, "If our generator is running smoothly, and the system doesn't shut down, we should have all the parts we need to assemble within a few days."
Zaiden tapped a pen against his stubbled chin, furrowing his brows, "How long will it take if you work twenty-hour shifts a day?"
Huxley's throat grew dry. Undoubtedly, the team would burn out if they worked that long each day.
She tripped over her words at first, "Two weeks, maybe, but--"
"But nothing." Zaiden interrupted. "I want the dropship done as soon as possible. If Earth is that survivable, we're getting off this flying death machine and living life down there. We mustn't tell the kids on the ground. Continue reading Aster Anson's vitals until we're prepared for take-off."
Huxley's team sent her harsh glares for feeding him hurtful information. She stared at her shoes in shame.
"I understand there are other people on the ground, but Aster will surely convince them into an alliance that will force them to help each other. If not, we'll be coming down more prepared anyway. Enough bullets to kill every last person that isn't ours. The human race will be returning back home." Zaiden turned to Layla, "Tell the council I have an assembly being prepared on Aster's behalf. Those impatient sons of bitches have been up my ass."
Layla set her tablet on the conference room table. She tapped the screen before coming up with a message board. Previous reports could be read at the top of the screen, while a keyboard invaded the other half. Then, to Zaiden's surprise, she slid the tablet over to him.
"How about you tell them yourself," She said.
Zaiden's mouth dropped. He looked around the room in fury before pointing toward the door and demanding, "Get out!"
In a line, scientists, engineers, and other government officials trailed out into the hall. As soon as the door shut, Zaiden grabbed Layla's shoulder. His tone was bitter, yelling at her as if she was a child being disciplined.
"What the hell are you doing?"
Layla shrugged. It kindled his rage.
"You come in here dressed like a slut--"
"Is that what you think of me?" Layla pushed him hard.
He nearly fell out of his chair, grabbing the table. Then, he stood, cold eyes downcast on her. Layla's breath hitched with a strong surge of fear.
"Yes! You look completely unprofessional right now! How do you think everybody sees me now? You're going to ruin my image, Gordinski!"
"Your image should be ruined! How do you think your people are going to react knowing you sent orphans to the ground! Because you were too scared to go down yourself! You even let Aster go down! Kids are being murdered every day since they landed because you only prepared Aster!"
He sucked in an immense amount of air, attempting to calm his nerves. To no avail, "I couldn't afford to prepare them all! And I didn't let Aster go! I would never do that! You don't understand, Layla!"
"I understand that it has something to do with his fear for you!" Layla shouted.
"He is not afraid of me! He considers me a father!"
"Sure he does!" Layla grabbed her supplies and stood to her feet, "You better start treating me like a human being. I won't hesitate to ruin you."
"I'll take you down, Gordinski!" Zaiden threatened.
"And you'll be going down with me!"
"I told you before, and I'll tell you again, I won't hesitate to kill you." He lowly whispered.
Layla's expression remained strong. Unlike before, she wasn't scared. Soon enough, she'd have an entire population on her side and he wouldn't stand a chance.
*
"You are not killing him!" Dahlia whispered behind Aster's ship.
Jasper's eyes were puffy from crying. He sniffled, chest trembling as a result of such a heavy breakdown. Aster's gun was placed in his pocket, he could feel the barrel rubbing against his small thigh.
"I have to -- I'm the leader -- I have to prove myself to Aster--"
"You don't have to do shit, Jasp! I'll go talk to Aster, give me his gun." Dahlia held out her hand and he quickly obeyed.
"I'm sorry, I just can't stop crying." Jasper hiccuped.
"I'll be right back." Dahlia caressed his wet cheek for a split second before turning to find Aster.
He was instantly spotted beyond the firepit, examining the dead, rotting carcass of the monster before him. Dahlia quickly moved through the crowd, glaring up at him.
"Jasper is not killing anybody just because you said so." Dahlia shoved the gun against his chest until he grabbed it, "It's your gun, right? Use it, then."
"Fine. Tell your boyfriend I'll do his dirty work for him."
"He's not my--" Dahlia heavily sighed, "Whatever! But you're not going to make Jasper do shit! He's your leader."
"Well, our leader isn't very good," Aster bluntly retorted, "Where are our rules? Making his people feel safe? We're camping directly next to a dead animal that was seconds away from killing us."
Dahlia's glare sharpened, "Give him time. He's allowed to have emotions. Not everyone can just put them in their back pocket and wait until they can cry themselves to sleep that night."
"It's what a good leader would do, though." A tug smirked on Aster's lips.
"A good leader isn't afraid to show their emotions. Zaiden has you brainwashed." With that, Dahlia spun on her heel and left his mouth agape and eyes wide.
Zaiden hadn't brainwashed him! If anything, he'd do the exact opposite of the president's ways! Aster clamped his mouth shut and clenched his fist tight. Disliking him was one thing, comparing him to Zaiden brought tears to his eyes and anger within his blood. He was anything but Zaiden. He wasn't heartless like him. Cold, selfish, terrifying-- Aster knew he came across as tough, but all of his decisions were made for the sake of saving as many lives as possible. Jasper's emotions would surely be the death of them all.
Dahlia embraced Jasper into another comforting hug, rubbing his back in circles. He instantly leaned into her as if he already trusted her with his life. His cheek felt warm against the fabric of her shirt and his hair tickled her chin. It was reassuring to have someone. He hadn't experienced another person's touch since he lost his parents.
"You're a great leader. Don't let Aster win." She calmly whispered into his ear.
"Thank you, Dahlia." He replied. "For everything."
She had been there since the very beginning and he couldn't have been more grateful. The shorter girl pulled away and smiled widely. It was laced with sympathy, yet he couldn't help but grin back.
"You're welcome, Jasper. If nobody listens to you, just remember, I'll always be here to scream at them."
"I need to form a meeting soon. I've made some rules--" This made Dahlia beam. "And we need to relocate. That dead animal will probably attract more predators that we definitely don't need."
"You're right. Good call." She agreed.
A frustrated Aster moved past the both of them and to the firepit. He examined Moon's state, and then Ezra's. The darker boy's blood had spread up the cloth of his arm and stained the entire left side of his tan shirt despite the frequent bandage changing. If Ezra didn't survive the venom, they would have to simply keep the cure. Moon was not surviving regardless.
"Ezra, can you stand?" Asked Aster.
Rarity turned to him and shook her head, "No, don't even, Anson."
A confused Blaire turned to her best friend, "What?"
Rarity brushed it off.
"I have orders, Rarity. What the hell can you do about it?" Aster's tone was low.
The blonde thought for a moment. He would only suffer until blood loss or infection forced him into a coma before his heart stopped beating. Not to mention the venom surely thickening his blood by the second.
"Just do it somewhere private," She whispered.
"What?" Ezra groaned.
"Nothing, just, go with Aster, alright?" Rarity grabbed his ashen hand and helped him to his feet.
Instantly, his limbs shook and he grew nauseous. His injured shoulder was the least agonizing pain within his body. The blonde assisted him over to Aster, who put his arm beneath his and helped him walk over to his dropship. They stepped inside and Aster lowered him onto the chair, in which Ezra immediately sank into. The genius took a moment to examine the other boy's face. His skin was paler than usual, nearly completely white, contrary to the dark bags beneath his eyes. The venom was visibly draining all the energy from him. His high body temperature caused him to sweat, it dripped down his curly hair and slicked his forehead.
"I can set up a recovery space for you in here. We can keep you cool in here, or try to regulate your body temperature." A wave of guilt fell over him. "Listen, you might not even be poisoned, it could just be one of those snakes that just make you sick. It might not even be fatal."
Aster decided at the rate he was going, he wouldn't survive long enough for the medication to get there. He figured he would be dead by that night and the cause could be a million different ways-- all of which were painful.
"What about Mo?" Asked Ezra.
Once the question was asked, Ezra saw a side of Aster he never thought he would see. Empathetic, vulnerable, hesitant. The taller teen couldn't suppress his emotions as he was faced with the painful gut feeling of breaking the news. He suddenly realized he would never put it on Jasper, no matter his hatred.
Aster cleared his throat, "Moon won't survive."
The Asian seemingly flinched at his words, "What?"
"Moon can't survive his injuries, and nobody knows enough to help him--"
"Rarity and Blaire have been to medical school!" Ezra loudly shouted, brows furrowing and green eyes filling with tears.
Aster kept his cool and bit his lip to calm himself down for a moment.
"They don't know enough to save him. And the ship is only sending down one dose to cure your symptoms and regulate your blood." Aster spoke calmly, "You're getting it because Rarity can't stop Moon's bleeding."
"Fuck Rarity!" He screamed, tears flowing down his reddening cheeks, "Try harder! You can't just let him die!"
"Ezra-"
"I swear to fuck, you let him die and I'll kill all of you!" He took a moment to catch his labored breathing, "You think I'm bluffing, Aster Anson, I'll start with you!"
Aster clenched his teeth and flexed his jaw. He held back on screaming at him simply because he felt bad that he was losing his person.
Ezra had unraveled into utter sobbing, too powerful to get words out of his mouth. His fists tightly tensed, fingernails cutting into his palm. Aster ripped his gaze from the broken boy to stare at his feet. He heard footsteps approaching and saw Jasper standing in the doorway.
"You told him?" The leader mouthed.
Aster nodded before turning to Ezra.
"Listen, I'll give you some alone time but I'll be right back. If you want, I can help you back to Moon."
Ezra let out a shaky exhale, "When are you--?"
"Whenever you're ready." Aster stepped out of the dropship, Jasper right behind.
"I don't know if this is a good time," Jasper anxiously stated.
"When is it ever a good time?" Aster asked bluntly, and Jasper agreed.
"I want to hold a meeting tonight, preferably after," Jasper sadly glanced back to Moon, whose eyes were closed with toiled breathing. "I have a set of rules. And you're right, I should be reassuring my people and making sure they're okay. I also have plans to move camp, but I don't know if I should put this on everyone at once and overwhelm them--"
Aster put a hand on his chest to stop his words, "Stop overthinking it and do what you think is best."
Jasper quickly nodded and sighed.
"Right, right. I just, I want to go over everything with you because I mean, I know nobody likes you as a leader, and even though you are a --" Jasper hesitated, "A-- a little stern at times--" Aster's lips twitched into a smirk, "I just-- You're the smartest option I have here. Dahlia just tries to hype me up and, I need cold advice and I know you won't sugarcoat anything."
"You're right." Aster nodded. "Spill it, chief."
"You're not allowed to leave camp without notifying Dahlia or me, no stealing, murdering, you know, the basics. Uh, stay with the group at all times when we're out. Share, you know, basic human decency." Jasper cleared his throat nervously.
"And what are the consequences?"
"Consequences?" Jasper's brows raised to his hairline.
"You have rules but no consequences?"
"I mean, there are only twenty-five -- er -- twenty... something. There aren't many people so I just figured we would all follow the rules. If it ever happened to come down to consequences, I mean... I haven't thought about it."
"Force them outside the camp for a night," Aster suggested dryly, eyes downcast on the shorter man and examining his expression as it grew more anxious.
"That's a death sentence," Jasper's eyes grew wary.
"It'll scare the shit out of them, yeah, but they won't do it again," Aster grinned and Jasper shook his head.
"I'll figure out a better consequence. I'll see you at the meeting." Jasper walked off, Aster assumed he was going back to Dahlia to tell her all about his suggestion.
He pursed his lips at Jasper's awkwardness, not to mention his soft approach to leadership. Though, he was thankful he was smart enough to come to him for advice despite their differences. Jasper seemingly set aside the fact that he just belittled him. It was nice to know Jasper didn't hold grudges.
Aster turned back to Ezra, who was still sobbing. He lifted the smaller teen out of the chair and headed outside. All eyes were on them as they traveled to the firepit. Everything seemingly went in slow motion. The wind blowing through their hair, the tears falling down Ezra's cheeks, and the way his chest rose and fell in an unsteady pattern. Aster's brows pulled together as he watched the crowd staring in confusion and worry. He then focused ahead on Moon, who cracked his charcoal eyes open just to see his lover. Blood was now spilled out beneath him, creating a pool that neither Rarity nor Blaire could stop no matter how hard they tried.
The gray clouds in the sky had crowded together and rain began to pour. People scattered to their tents to shield themselves from the fear or disliking of the water droplets pelting down on them. It was cold and uncomfortable, but at the very least, it washed them away of dirt and blood. At last, Aster set Ezra beside Moon. Everybody was beneath the shadow of guilt.
As thunder roared and lightning struck, Ezra and Moon embraced each other. Though their bodies ached, they felt comfortable in each other's arms. Moon was only half-conscious, but Ezra was his entire focus.
Ezra swallowed hard. His lover had no idea what was coming. He couldn't imagine how scared he would be to know that it was, so he decided not to tell him about his approaching end. However, Ezra knew and it was heavy on his shoulders. Knowing that he would never hold his boyfriend in his arms while they were laughing and happy was a gunshot straight to the heart. He wondered if he would ever smile again.
"Remember on the ship," Ezra's soft, shaking voice began. "When we would steal weed from our old classmates and get high. And sit by the Starbay Window, just looking into space and laughing at things that weren't even funny."
Moon managed to giggle, "I remember."
Ezra faltered, "I wish we were there right now."
"Me too," He hummed.
"I wish we were still on Sefarina. Even though we were always threatened to go to juvie. We would probably be there right now--" Ezra's lips upturned slightly as Moon chuckled once more but quickly dropped. "You know how much I love you."
"I know." Moon was seemingly getting weaker by the second. "I love you more than anything in the galaxy."
Ezra grabbed his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, "Never forget it, my love."
"I promise."
Ezra pulled away from the hug to examine his lover. He could see the pain in his half-open eyes. He pursed his lips hard to prevent sobs from escaping. He held back tears though they threatened to fall. He didn't want Moon's last image of him to be sad, so he smiled. A wide, toothy grin that never failed to make Moon happy. And it worked, one last time.
Ezra glanced to Aster, silently giving him the okay. Aster swallowed back his sympathy and nodded. He lifted Moon, the pain from sudden movement causing him to groan and soon faint. Ezra let his suppressed cries out, falling to his hands and knees, face against the mud, and allowing sobs to tear through his chest.
The rain washed away the dripping blood before it could stain Aster's clothing. He walked into the woods until his arms grew tired before setting Moon against the tallest tree he could see. He glanced around his environment to assure they were alone before pulling out his gun. His finger twitched against the trigger, though he couldn't pull it just yet. He wanted to speak to Moon, tell him to have safe travels on his way to the afterlife, but he decided that Ezra would want his words to be the last spoken to him.
"You have to do this," He muttered to himself. "Zaiden would be proud." He couldn't help his attachment to the corrupt president.
His finger squeezed the trigger. A gunshot echoed through the forest and caused fresh crimson blood to drip from his ears. He put the weapon back down by his side and looked at the teenager he had killed. A dark hole was planted in his neck. Aster didn't want to mutilate his face or puncture his heart. He dropped to his knees, reaching out for his wrist. There was no pulse. The job was done. Though, Aster's eyes burned. The good thing about the rain was that nobody could see the difference between droplets and tears.
AUTHORS NOTE
i hope you cried reading this even though you barely got to know moon
please give feedback since this chapter is unedited and fresh from grammarly, haha!
votes are appreciated!