Date on Earth: Thursday, October 5th
"Oh, hey Tesh!"
I met Asher at the surface. He sighed happily as he breathed in fresh air. "Finally. I felt like I was suffocating in there."
I smiled. "So that is why you wanted to get out so badly."
He shrugged nonchalantly. "One of the reasons."
Shivering, I played with the dagger Zogi had given me. The temperature seemed significantly colder than it had been a day before. At the moment, I was thankful to still be wearing my Axonian uniform. Even if it was uncomfortable, at least it was warm.
The sky was also dark. Even with my eyes squinted, it was hard to make out anything besides shadows. It was such a drastic change from the daytime and all its bright colors. On Nibura, you could hardly notice the change from night to day. Here on Earth, the two were polar opposites.
Asher rubbed his exposed arms; he didn't have any fabric to keep them warm. "Pretty chilly, isn't it?" He told me.
I nodded. "Very."
Looking behind me, Asher asked, "Is Tristen not coming?"
"No. I don't think he was too fond of the idea of killing."
"Yeah, I guess that makes sense." He blew out a breath. The cold temperature made the warmer air visible. I breathed out as well, watching as it faded away.
I gazed across the field. The grassy land extended for miles, with only a few trees in sight. It would be easy to spot something to eat.
In the distance stood a bush to hide behind.
"Follow me," I told Asher, then ran forward.
I crouched behind the half-dead plant, Asher next to me.
We waited in silence for some animal to come into view. Overhead were a few bird-like creatures which Asher called bats. Unfortunately, he said they weren't edible, so we had to wait for another animal to appear.
We waited for a long time, when finally a small creature hopped by. It had long ears and a round tail. It stopped for a second to sniff the air, nose twitching.
"Edible?" I asked him. Asher nodded.
"Yup. I mean personally I haven't tried rabbit before, but-"
"Great." I pulled my arm back and aimed for the animal's chest. In a smooth motion, I sent the dagger flying. The rabbit didn't even have time to flinch before the weapon pierced through its heart.
The creature went limp and I ran to it, pulling the dagger out and cleansing the blood off on the grass.
Asher whistled. "Wow, nice throw. You'll have to teach me that sometime."
"I'd be happy to." Handing him the dagger, I picked up the rabbit.
There was an opening in the sky, and the moon shone brightly, casting everything in a bluish glow. I carried the dead animal, and together, Asher and I searched for Zogi's tunnel.
With the dim light, the tunnel was easier to spot. When we got to the entrance, Asher slid in first, tucking his walking stick under his arm. I followed after, cradling the rabbit in my arms.
I landed uncomfortably at the bottom, right on my tailbone. I resisted the urge to gag when I noticed the fresh blood stains on my uniform.
Asher appeared next to me, grimacing. "I would offer to help you up, but your hands are a little...dirty," he said. I looked down at them to find both hands bright red.
I pushed the dead rabbit into Asher's arms and stood up.
"Ew," he said to himself. He looked at me with pleading eyes. "Can I put it down now?"
I chuckled and pointed to one of the dirt benches. "You can place it there."
"Thank you." Asher walked over and put it down, shaking his hands that were now also covered in blood.
A moment later, Tristen entered the room from a side tunnel with Zogi. His eyes widened as he saw us and turned around, bending over. Zogi rolled his eyes.
"About time you two got back," he stated in a bored tone. "This kid has been bombarding me with questions." He glared at Tristen.
"And he hasn't answered a single one of them," Tristen grumbled, color returning to his face. "You two gonna, uh, clean up?" he asked.
Tristen let out a high pitched scream as Asher walked over and wiped his hands on his arms.
"Asher!" he screeched. Asher bent over, laughing hysterically.
"I didn't think it was possible for you to scream so high!" He wiped tears from his eyes.
Tristen then said something I was told was not appropriate to write.
"Zogi, is there a place we can wash off?" I intervened before a fight could break out.
He sighed. "Follow me. And bring the rabbit with you so you can clean it too."
Zogi took them down the main tunnel to a hole filled with water. Above was a small opening through which moonlight shone through.
"One of the reasons I chose to make my burrow here is because of the network of underground rivers," Zogi explained. "New water constantly filters out the old water. Meaning I don't have to clean my bath."
He started to walk away. "Have fun bathing in blood," he called out.
Tristen groaned. "Just had to say that, didn't he?"
Asher smirked and pulled his shirt over his head. Tristen copied him, throwing his shirt to the side.
I watched awkwardly as they started to pull down their pants. Tristen nudged Asher before he could take it all the way off.
Asher turned to me with an awkward smile. "Oh, um..." his cheeks reddened and he chuckled softly, rubbing the back of his neck. "I'll just, uh, bathe in my underwear."
Feeling my cheeks warm as well, I turned my back towards them, stripping down my armor until I was only wearing my undergarments.
For the first time since the crash, I could see my injuries. Across the side of my midline was a large bruise. I ran my fingers along it and flinched at contact. There were also a number of smaller cuts that had formed scabs.
I joined Tristen and Asher in the water, sighing quietly as the cold water hit my wounds. I swam deeper into the water. One of the things I missed on Nibura were the beautiful pink oceans. Every few days, Lyzel and I would sneak away to swim at the beach. We would stay there for hours until our faces peeled from the Great Star.
Closing my eyes, I could almost picture myself among the waves, floating while creatures swam below.
I snapped myself back to reality. getting out of the hole, I picked up the dead rabbit and dunked it under the water.
The water and blood started to blend, giving it a reddish tint.
Asher and Tristen immediately got out of the water, gasping.
"Maybe a little warning next time?" Tristen said.
My face heated up once again. "Sorry."
I finished washing it off and placed it on the rocky ground. Taking out my dagger, I shaved off the fur until only the skin showed. When I was done, I placed the rabbit down on a slab of rock and got up.
"We should start heading back," I told the two boys after I had changed. "I have finished preparing the animal to cook."
They nodded and put on their dry clothes. "I'll make the fire so long," Asher said before running ahead.
Tristen walked with me, clearly avoiding looking at the dead creature in my arms. His eyes were glued to the ground, his hands in his pockets.
"Is something wrong?" I asked him. He looked up. "You seem anxious."
The tall boy thought for a bit, taking a deep breath. "It's just...all this stuff. From learning 'bout aliens to getting freakish abilities to actually having my life at risk...it's so crazy. I keep on expecting to wake back up in my room and go back to my old life."
Tristen looked at me with sad eyes. "I never had to fight for things. Not like Asher and Diana. My life was easy. And whenever I did have a problem, I ran away from it. Now I don't got that choice."
He looked up at the dirt roof, lost in thought. "I wasn't the right person for any of this."
I shifted the animal to my left arm and put my right hand on his shoulder. "Many people feel that way. I'm sure Asher and Diana are thinking the same things. It is an enormous responsibility.
"I might not have as much faith in the Jh'ai as others, but I can assure you that if you were Chosen, that means that you are strong enough for this. Trust me."
We arrived at the main room. Asher was sitting in a corner next to a fire, waving us over.
I grabbed Tristen's hand and gave it a quick squeeze before going to sit next to Asher, placing the dead animal next to me.
The skinny boy was warming his hands, humming a tune. He smiled widely. "You know what I'm in the mood to do?" he said mysteriously.
"No."
He got up and pulled us up with him. "Let's sing a camping song!" Tristen slapped his forehead.
I tilted my head. "A 'camping song'?"
"Yeah!" He pointed at Tristen. "You got a song we can sing?"
Tristen rolled his eyes and said nothing.
"Fine, I'll just choose one." Asher grabbed each of our wrists and rocked back and forth, screaming, "Mary had a little lamb! Little lamb, little lamb! Mary had a little lamb, ITS FLEECE AS WHITE AS SNOW!"
I laughed at the funny song. Tristen rolled his eyes again, but chuckled lightly.
Asher cheered. "See, now you guys are smiling! Who's gonna sing with me this time? Here, I'll start: Mary had a-"
Tristen silenced him. "Please stop before I go deaf."
Asher sighed dramatically and mumbled, "Such a joy-sucker."
We sat back down. I took one of the spare sticks for the fire and stuck it through the meat. I dangled it over the fire and watched as it cooked.
Laying back, Asher stared at the ceiling. "So...what are we going to do after this?"
"What'd you mean?" Tristen asked him.
"I mean, we can't stay here forever, right? Diana still needs saving. Plus, if I have to stay here another day I'm going to go insane."
"If I have you three living with me a second longer than you need to, I'll be going insane." Zogi appeared behind them, standing around the fire. "Which is why tomorrow I will be helping you find your friend."
Tristen immediately turned to him. "Really?"
"No," Zogi said. "I just said that so I can crush your new hope."
We stared at him in silence. He put his hands up, exasperated.
"Of course really! What, have people on Earth not heard of sarcasm?"
"How are you going to find her?" Asher asked.
"The Jh'ai release an extremely strong energy pulse. If it's on Earth, I can sense and track it. Like how I could sense you two. I must say, it was hilarious watching you guys search for hours." The statement caused me a prick of annoyance.
"And that's why we don't know if you're joking or not," Tristen muttered.
Zogi sighed. "Yeah, yeah."
"Well then, when are we going to start searching?" Asher asked.
"First, y'all are going to eat and sleep so you actually have a chance of doing a successful rescue mission. Then I will help you find her."
There was a moment of silence. "What if she's not on Earth?" Tristen said softly.
Zogi didn't say anything, and he didn't need to. We knew the answer already.
If Diana wasn't on Earth, then there was no hope of finding her.
"She will be on Earth," Asher stated firmly. "She has to be."
I spent a few more minutes cooking the meat. When it no longer looked raw, I took it off the stick and handed parts off to the two boys.
Asher took one of the legs, tasting it and licking his lips. "I have to say, it's not as bad as I thought it would be. I mean, it could definitely use some spices, but still. Not too bad."
Studying the piece of meat he was given, Tristen cringed. "Think I'm gonna go vegan."
"Hey, you do you buddy. But if you don't eat it, give it to me," Asher told him, reaching for his food.
Tristen pulled it towards himself. "Still hungry." Asher grumbled and pulled back.
I took a bite of my own piece. It was definitely a strange taste, but I found myself enjoying it, finishing it in seconds.
Asher helped himself to three more servings while Tristen struggled to finish one. Eventually, there was no meat left, leaving us stuffed and tired.
Tristen yawned. "Gonna go to sleep." He got up and dusted the dirt off his pants. "There any beds?" he asked Zogi.
The little Zygot crossed his stubby arms. "Nope. I stole a few pillows but that's it. I'd recommend sleeping next to the fire. It tends to get cold in the mornings." Zogi went over to yet another compartment and came out with three pillows. "One pillow each. And none of you better snore or I'll kick you outside."
He threw one pillow at each of us before walking away.
I put the pillow under my head, adjusting it. Being in the supine position suddenly made me realize how tired I was. The day had been exhausting, mentally as well as physically. My eyelids drooped, and I felt my consciousness slip away.
...
The night had been miserable.
I only managed to sleep for a few minutes at a time before being startled awake. I would wake up to my mother's tear-stained face. She would smile at me and wave.
Then she would catch on fire.
Burning and burning. Until nothing was left except her bare skeleton.
The entire time I would watch, gradually getting farther and farther away. I would scream until my lungs nearly burst, but it wouldn't stop.
After the third time of waking up from the same scene, I gave up on sleep and resorted to staring at the dirt roof.
"Can't sleep?" I heard a voice whisper in the dark. I turned my head. Asher was looking back at me, smiling slightly.
I shook my head. He looked away. "Yeah, me either."
"Why can't you sleep?" I asked him. He sighed.
"I feel like I can't breathe in here. There's no fresh air or windows, and I keep on imagining the ceiling crashing down on top of us."
"Oh," I played with my hands.
Asher got into a sitting position, rubbing his back. "Why can't you sleep?" I looked down.
"My mother," I said simply. Asher went quiet.
"I'm sorry," he said softly.
"Don't be," I assured him. "My mother knew the risk when she decided to rebel. As much as I wish things could be different, I knew this was a possibility. I just...need to accept it."
"Don't push yourself. Everyone needs time to adjust after something like that happens. You can't rush it. And people like Tristen and I will be there for you to make it easier."
"Thank you," I said in a soft tone.
"Anytime."
We waited in peaceful silence for the others to wake up. It hadn't been too long when there was a loud noise.
"Rise and shine you stinky gargoyles!" Zogi banged two rocks together. Me and Asher immediately sat up, plugging our ears.
Zogi walked up to Tristen(who was still sleeping) and banged it in his ear, yelling, "Wake up, Sleeping Beauty!"
Tristen rolled over and covered his head with a pillow.
"I'm up, I'm up!" he exclaimed when Zogi didn't stop the loud noise. Tristen sat up as well, spitting dirt from his mouth.
The two boys were filthy from sleeping on the dirt ground, and I was sure I didn't look any better. I did a failed attempt of running my hand through my knotty hair. It probably looked like a bird nest, as my mother would say.
Asher ran his fingers through his hair as well, which was adorably messy. He flipped his hair back, just for it to fall onto his face again.
"I need a haircut," Asher mumbled. Tristen nodded in agreement.
However, even though Tristen had been the only one of them to sleep, his hair still looked perfect and tamed. With his fingers, he poofed it up.
Tristen looked between Asher and I, tilting his head. "You guys look exhausted. You even sleep?"
Asher snorted. "Nope! Like I said, it's overrated."
"Personally, I find sleep the only way I function," said Tristen. "Literally passed out as soon as I laid down."
I rubbed my eyes tiredly. "That must be a wonderful gift to have."
Zogi threw his rocks on the ground. "Well, I don't care how sleepy you three are—we are leaving! Now get up!"
I forced myself off the ground, dusting some of the dirt off my clothes. I rubbed my sore back. The night had been anything but comfortable, and my muscles were proof of that.
We followed Zogi out of the tunnels. I shielded my eyes from the sun when we reached the surface.
"Earth is too bright," Zogi grumbled, pulling out a pair of dark glasses that had a large crack through one of the lenses.
Tristen squinted his eyes. "How you gonna find her?" he asked Zogi. He sighed.
"Just give me a second! Gosh, do human boys have any patience?" He shook his head and bent down, putting his hands on the ground. He closed eyes like he had done while reading the Kinshe sie's markings.
There was the same faint glow that seemed to come from his hands. He concentrated, scrunching his eyebrows together.
"I sense her," Zogi said after a while. "They just landed not too far from here."
"Why would they land so close?" I thought out loud.
"Could be a trap," Tristen speculated.
That did make sense. The Jh'ai protectors would most likely be expecting us to attempt a rescue mission.
"Eh, trap or not, I'm still gonna go," Asher said, stretching his arms over his head. "I mean, what else are we gonna do if we don't try this?"
He did make a good point.
"I...guess we are going then," I said finally.
"About time." Zogi walked forward, waving his hand. "Well, come on then! We don't have all day."
I laughed quietly at his extravagance before trailing behind him.
We passed by trees bigger than any plant on Nibura. They stood up strongly, reaching toward the stars. A few looked familiar, like I had walked by them before.
"Hey, look!" Asher suddenly exclaimed. "It's the Gandalf Tree!" He pointed to a large tree in front of us. Its branches sagged to the side, and long gray plants grew on it. The way the tree was shaped really did make it look like a face, though I didn't have a clue as to who Gandalf was.
"The moss really does look like his beard," Tristen observed.
"I know, right?"
"Yes, let's all just get distracted by a centuries-old tree," mumbled Zogi sarcastically. "It's not like we were doing anything important beforehand."
I put my hand on Zogi's head. "I think they can use a bit of a distraction," I told him. "All of this cannot be easy for them. They have already been through so much these past few Earthen days."
Zogi sighed loudly. "Your wisdom never ceases to amaze me, Ms. Aster. Trust me, I know how hard this must be for them. Heck, back when I was a young'n, I went through the same thing! Well, not exactly the same, but pretty darn close. However, they can't afford to get too distracted, otherwise they might lose their friend. And that kind of guilt can destroy a person." Zogi's eyes clouded with sadness, as if speaking from experience.
"You are right," I said softly. I walked over to where Asher and Tristen were studying the tree.
"I think it's time to move on," I told them gently.
"Oh yeah, right. C'on Ash," Tristen said. Asher took one last glance at the tree before picking up his walking stick and coming with us.
The next few hours were long. We traveled mostly in silence, Asher chiming in once in a while to comment on something. Zogi would stop for a few minutes, searching for the Jh'ai signal. Those few moments he would take to find it were always nerve racking. There was always the fear that the Axones had moved. That they had left with Diana and were now in space, where the human girl was never to be seen again.
I let out a breath of relief every time Zogi would catch the signal again.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, a large spaceship came into view.
The spaceship of the Protectors.
From the distance you could see two Axones standing in front of the ramp, guns in their hands. They gazed across the forest, and I signaled for us to duck right before their gaze turned to us.
After a few seconds, I took the risk to peek over the bush. The two guards hadn't noticed anything.
"Well, now you three are here," Zogi said. "I'll be heading back to my burrow now. Good luck on retrieving your friend."
"You're not going to help?" Asher asked.
"Have I not already helped you? I must've walked at least five miles, my legs are just about finished. What, do you not appreciate my help?"
"Of course we appreciate it," I intervened. "We are very grateful. Thank you Zogi."
He humphed. "Don't let the Protectors catch you," he said as a last warning before wandering off behind the trees.
"How we gonna get in?" Tristen asked quietly. His voice trembled a little and I caught him grabbing his hands to stop them from shaking. I felt a pang of pity. It was unfair how he was forced to take up such a responsibility without any say in the matter.
Just another reason why the Jh'ai should be regulated.
"We need a distraction," I responded. "Otherwise there will be no way to pass through the two armed Axones."
"There's only two?" Asher said.
"Well, yes, but-"
"Perfect." Asher started to stand up, dusting his knees.
"What are you doing?" I questioned, hoping he wasn't about to do what I thought he was.
"On my signal, run to the ship," he said. "I'll catch up with you guys."
"Asher, sit your ass down right now," Tristen snapped.
Asher clicked his tongue. "Now there, don't be saying no-no words Tristen." He stepped out from behind the bush.
Tristen growled. "Asher I swear, if you-"
"HEY!" Asher suddenly shouted. "OVER HERE!"
The two Axones jerked their heads his way.
"YEAH, THAT'S IT. COME GET ME!" He gave one last look at the two of us.
"See you guys soon." Then he ran off, pushing himself forward with his walking stick.
Sure enough, the two Axones ran after him, abandoning their post.
This was our chance.
"Let's go," I whispered to Tristen. The tall boy's face was pinched in anger as he watched Asher run away.
"Idiot," he spat. And I couldn't help but agree. There was no way Asher would be able to fight off both Axones.
"There's nothing we can do for him," I said, feeling a small trace of anger seep into my own words. "However, we can still save Diana."
After a moment, Tristen nodded. "Let's do it."
Then we darted towards the ship.