Aliens that Walk Among Us
by Janice Mayer (mirrian@wwdg.com)
Note: This was written for the 1997 "Spy on Board" fan fiction
challenge.
Aliens That Walk Among Us.
I sit here, watching. Waiting. I am alone. The sadness that
I hold is a tragic remembrance of a past I long to forget. But it
comes back, and will not leave. Oh how I wish it would leave me in
this peace I call terror. For every waking moment uncovers another
mystery, another sadness about the Aliens that walk among us. I am
all alone on this world, and no one can help me over come this. I
have been betrayed by those whom I love. They refuse to accept who
I was, and so they have left me to die on this unforgiving planet.
I wish I could let go of my worthless life. But I am still here.
Still haunted by my unforgettable past. The past that haunts me to
this day...
* * *
The young girl squinted into the darkness, desperately trying
to seek out the movement she had sighted moments before. Her eyes
flicked from side to side, not really looking any longer. She knew
she was not imagining things. She was sure of herself. Far more
sure than she was a few nights ago, as wasn't the first time she
had seen one of these "aliens". She shivered as the icy wind
rushed through the tent, causing the light to flicker dangerously.
Her thoughts whirled, trying to figure out whether to scream in
fright or run to her father for comfort.
It made her worry that they had lived on this planet for so
long without sighting one. Humans were smart creatures, but she
knew in her heart that the beasts out there were smarter. Again
she saw the glimmer of yellow eyes in the darkness beyond the tent.
For once the harsh, yet calming moonlight did not fall across the
land that was so foreign to them. The two moons that the sky
usually held was the only thing that they were sure of in this new
world.
And now the pair of shining eyes that forever looked over them
were hidden from the truth. Hidden from the night. She knew a
wild storm was brewing, and she could smell the fear in the air.
The wind sliced through the tent, sending a shiver down her spine.
She looked around her and half expected to see the yellow slits
towering over her. Then she heard it again. What had captivated
her mind the first night of her discovery. The unmistakable howl
of a Terrendler.
That's what she called them. Half Terrian, half Grendler. It
had a Terrian's body, only it walked on four legs instead of two,
with the mouth of a Grendler. And yellow shining eyes. So far
only she had sighted them. Unless they were hiding the truth from
her, after all, she was only a child. She squeezed her arms around
her waist, hugging herself. The wind was fast and chilly that
night. Again she saw the movement. Then the eyes. They looked at
her.
The wind tugged at her golden hair. Her eyes widened. She
saw the white fangs light up in the darkness. She felt the shadows
draw into a tight circle around her. The tent flapped. The
Terrendler howled. Rain broke loose from the clouds above. This
time the cry of the Terrendler was disguised by that of the wind
and rain. The light flickered. She squeezed her eyes shut. The
Terrendler dashed away. The light suddenly went out. Her scream
of terror was heard only by the Terrendler as lightning struck
nearby.
Again and again her shrill cry echoed throughout the campsite.
A few figures darted out of tents, all heading towards the same
destination. Immediately light spilled throughout the room and
familiar faces swarmed around the frightened girl. Two strong arms
caught her in a tight hug, as if trying to force the shaking out of
her.
"Terrendler was here...So terrible...It's eyes..." Her words
were jumbled and consistent, somewhat slurred. No one really
believed the words she was saying.
"True...shh...darling, it's going to be okay..." the man
whispered into her ear. She was not crying, only in a state of
uncontrollable hysteria.
"Everyone leave and let Julia through!" His voice had changed
from soothing to a rather hoarse command. The worried faces parted
somewhat to reveal a female. She pulled out a syringe and silently
injected the girl with the substance. True sank back into her
fathers arms, asleep. "She won't wake until morning," was the only
comment as the group left the family alone. Father and daughter.
* * *
Julia walked away from the tent, glancing up at the clouds
that dropped light rain on her. Her hands in her pockets, she
wandered around, waiting for the colony to once again settle. She
noticed that the storm was receding. They didn't often come across
storms, and it was a horror to all. Most of the Eden Advance team
had grown up on the stations. Before they landed on G889, most
hadn't even been in a rain shower. But the storms, they were the
most terrifying.
They came so unexpectedly, then disappeared again. Julia
chanced to look at the sky. Patches of black with twinkling stars
happened to shine through. She sighed, and wandered around the
back of a tent. She saw the scorched earth, and could guess that
was where the lightning had struck. It was a miracle that it
hadn't landed on any tents, or struck a tree. But then again, this
new world was full of surprises and miracles.
A gasp formed on Julia's lips as she saw the figure. A once
magnificent beast, it had been brought to its knees. It had been
killed. The creature lay, slumped on its stomach, a brutal hole
ripped in its back. Its head was hidden from her view. Without
another thought, Julia strode over to the animal, and checked for
life signs. Upon finding none, she glanced around her and withdrew
the syringe from her pocket. It glimmered as she held it to the
light, and then Julia plunged it into the animal's flesh.
Grimacing, she withdrew the blood and quietly walked away.
* * *
The darkness hung heavily like a blanket that refused to lift.
Stars, so distant but still close, twinkled kindly. The moons had
decided to show their faces. None of this mattered to the figure
that darted in and out of the thick forest of trees. She noticed
none of this. All she wanted to do was escape...but they refused
to let her. The Terrendlers wanted her to be one with them. They
would not leave her alone.
True moved swiftly, panting heavily as she ran. She didn't
look back. Never again did she want to return to where they could
find here. She needed to escape, yet she knew that was impossible.
They would find her -- wherever she went, they would still find
her. They knew the land better than her. They could hear her feet
pounding against the ground. They could hear the vibrations echo
throughout the caverns that were their home.
She pressed against a tree, gasping for air. Then she began
to run again. Her arms moved at her side, she swayed as she ran
incoherently. She was almost at the state of complete exhaustion.
Her cry of terror was heard by no one as she was inescapably sucked
into the ground. Finally, she could rest.
* * *
Julia walked quietly amongst the trees, her light casting
eerie shadows around her. She walked almost aimlessly, one would
say she was incoherent of her surroundings. A snapping twig
brought her to attention. "What the hell..?" she whispered as
Julia realised where she was. A cave loomed before her, and a
frown crossed her face. Her hands shook as she brushed a strand of
hair away from her face. She inched closer to the opening, an
indescribable force pulling her toward the cave.
Fear flashed in her eyes as she stepped into the cave and
descended into the darkness. Her light bounced across the walls,
a sure sign of an intruder. "Hello?" she said softly, watching
shadows move around her. She emitted a cry of alarm as she
suddenly stepped into a cavernous world. Where am I? she thought,
wondering what she was doing there.
Then she saw the figure approaching her. "We have been
waiting," said a gruff voice. Julia raised her light, wanting to
get a better look at what was talking to her. But the animal moved
out of sight, in and out of the shadows. It was like it was
stalking her.
"W--What do you want?" Julia stammered, loosing her calm
appearance. "Why did you bring me here?"
"You have no idea, do you? Do not fear us, all will be
revealed in time. You will come to understand us with time. Time
is the important factor here, Julia. Each second that passes
brings you closer to the day you leave your life," came the voice
again, a humorous tone mixing with its sternness.
"Are you threatening me?" Julia asked, obviously nervous.
"No, Julia. We do not wish to harm you," he paused. "Do you
wish to harm us?"
"I don't even know who you are. Why do you know my language?"
"Others of your kind call us Bromaggs. We are masters of all
things," he said, his head looking to the side. "Hurry now, you
must leave!" he commanded.
Julia saw the fear flash in its eyes as she turned and ran,
her mind blank. She would remember little.
* * *
The visions moved quickly around her. Her sight was clouded
and unclear. Wherever she turned, True could sight no one. The
darkness of the night was no longer swirling around her for the
caverns in which she stood were dimly lit; and she was surrounded
by shadows. She had never seen this place before. There was
something...hostile about the tunnels that broke off the empty cave
in which she stood. She had vaguely heard of this place. But her
friends' description was far from what she was seeing now.
The darkness seemed to grow more intense. She noted the
shadows shifting around her. None of them brave enough to face the
first human who had trespassed on their sacred land. Then she saw
one again. A Terrendler. It looked at her, almost in a sad way as
others of its kind advanced. A menacing look was matched on each
of the faces. Their jaws drooped, revealing unattractive mouths
full of jagged teeth. She turned, only to find more of them
closing in on her.
She tried to speak. She could hear her voice echo throughout
the dream-like land. None of the creatures responded to her plea.
She turned around and around, but not at her will. She felt like
an ancient Earth dancer -a ballerina they called them- spinning out
of control. The difference in the shadows and light slowly
dispersed as they melded slowly into one, the colours appearing and
disappearing at will.
The face of a lone Terrendler danced in her mind - they all
now looked upon her as a trespasser. Steam misted her vision as
she was lowered to the ground. They held her in their grip. She
was restrained. Couldn't move. "Help me, please..." came her soft
whisper as all colour faded to black.
* * *
Julia squinted through the eyepiece of her microscope. She
sat back, and rubbed her distant eyes.
"You sleepy, Doc?" came a voice from the door of the tent.
Julia turned, to see Alonzo standing in the doorway.
"Not really. Actually, I can't sleep... I keep thinking about
what True was saying about her 'Terrendlers'..." she replied.
"True? For all we know, she was probably having a nightmare."
"But didn't you notice her undisturbed bed? She was not in
her night clothes, either. It makes me wonder if there really are
things out there..."
"Good point. Though, she probably saw the Luma-lights of...
who went off into the woods anyway?"
"I think it was Bess and Morgan," she replied, her head in her
hands in an exhausted posture.
"And they went...?" he asked.
"Don't ask me. Do you want something?"
He paused before answering. "Not much, though I could do with
a sleeping sedative."
"Sure thing. But you've been having a lot of them lately,
haven't you? Can't you sleep?"
"I can't sleep," he confirmed. "Ever since we came across
these woods the Terrians have been contacting me constantly. It
wears me out," he paused, running his hand through his tousled
black hair. "I think things would run a lot smoother if Devon was
still here..."
Julia busied herself with the various bottles displayed on her
shelf. She chose one, and undid the cap.
"Life's like that. We all must move, we must accept *who* and
*what* we are. Hell, we'll all die some day. To delay would be
resisting fate." She handed Alonzo a small package. "I suggest
you only take it when you are lying down. It's pretty potent."
Alonzo nodded, and headed toward the door. He paused before
exiting. "Thanks, Julia. Get some rest, we move off tomorrow.
See you in the morning."
"Good night," she muttered, turning back to her work. She
paused, True's words echoing in her mind. She whispered them to
quietly, almost as if she was trying to convince herself of what
True had said.
"Terrendler was here..." she said softly. "So terrible...It's
*eyes*." What *had* True seen? Was it possibly the same thing
that *she* had? Her eyes rested on her microscope, and she removed
the glass slide containing her sample from beneath the lens. Julia
placed it beside two other glass slides and picked up a pen. She
wrote on the first "Uly's DNA." The second held "Julia's DNA."
She paused before writing on the last one.
"Bromagg - Terrendler DNA?"
* * *
Julia's eyes popped open as the early morning sunlight
streamed through her door onto her once sleeping face. She sat up
and left her bed. She had a lot to do before they packed up and
left. She dressed swiftly and grabbed her carry bag. Then she
exited her tent and headed towards the woods, glancing behind her
to make sure no one saw her leave.
Once she was safely out of sight, she picked up her pace, the
morning sun shining through the trees onto her face. She slowed to
a stop, taking in her surroundings. Wherever she looked Julia saw
nothing apart from trees, the same, familiar kind. Any amateur
roaming the forest would easily get lost.
Once satisfied that she was alone, she reached into her bag
and pulled out her Gear. The trees disappeared from around her and
she was standing opposite another human. She didn't bother with
the her usual hello.
"What the *HELL* did you do to me?" she screamed.
Her opponent stared back at her, his face pulled into a tight
smile. "Hello to you, too. Where have you been, Julia? We missed
you," he said flatly, his hands clasped behind his back.
Julia started to pace. "I asked you a question, Reilly, and
I want an answer. What did you do to me? I found them. You
thought that they would avoid me, but no. I am smarter than you
think I am. I found the Bromaggs. So what are you going to do
about it?"
"Nothing. How do you know that we did not plan it this way?
Besides, you were bound to meet them some day. They called you
back because they need you."
Julia stared at him blankly. "How many of us are there? One
more? Two? Dammit, is the whole colony part of your little scheme
of 'change the humans'?!?"
"No, no, no, Julia. You have it all wrong. What would be the
point of all this secrecy if the whole colony was one with the
Bromaggs? There is only one other."
"One other *WHAT*?! WHAT AM I??? Am I *really* anything that
you say I am? And why did you try to blow me up?? WHY DID YOU PUT
ME ON THAT SHIP IF YOU WERE GOING TO BLOW IT UP?!?" Julia screamed,
wanting to take hold of the man's neck and shake the life out of
him. But she knew he was not real. She stood in silence, her mind
engulfed with angry flames of hatred.
"You have it all wrong." Reilly said calmly. "It was not the
Council that tried to blow you up. It was Blalock. I thought you
knew that. When he found out about the links we had with the
Bromaggs, he decided if he couldn't have that, no one could. So he
tried to stop your departure. When that didn't work, he activated
his bomb." He paused. "I'm glad that you escaped."
"What about Wentworth? She sabotaged the ship, Reilly. Was
that Blalock's doing as well?" Julia screamed.
"Why yes, I'm glad you know something. Blalock knew that
there were Bromaggs at New Pacifica, and he wanted Eden
Advance, along with the Council's two spies, as far away from them
as possible. He also had the hope that you would die in the
crash."
"That's *BULL* REILLY!! I bet it was *you* that told Alex to
take us down. You knew that there were Bromaggs at New Pacifica,
and you also knew that they could protect us from the Council.
That's why you can't hurt me any more!! The Bromaggs are
protecting me!"
Reilly looked at her curiously. "Julia, how can you make such
accusations? Why would the Council try to hurt you? After all,
you are our key player."
"How do I know you are telling the truth? How the *HELL* can
I trust you, Reilly? You are nothing other than a deceiving
sonofabi--" Her transmission was broken off, and she found herself
standing alone amongst the trees. Sighing, she stuffed her Gear in
her bag, and continued her wander amongst the trees. She had a lot
to think about.
* * *
Julia strolled into the clearing, a vacant expression on her
face not revealing her conflicting emotions. Almost instantly, she
was surrounded by familiar people, the worry and anxiety evident on
their faces. John pushed his way through the crowd, and took Julia
roughly by the shoulders. "Where's True?" he demanded.
Julia looked at him, a stunned expression on her face. "True?
I don't know. Why? What's wrong?"
"Where did you take her?" he yelled, shaking her by the
shoulders. Alonzo made his way through the people, and placed a
hand on Danziger's shoulder.
"She probably has no idea what's going on. Get a grip, John,"
Alonzo said in a soothing voice. Danziger released Julia and
stepped back, looking at her warily. "How can we trust her?"
Silence came over the group as they all remembered how, not long
ago, they had come to discover Julia's secret link with the
Council. How little they knew.
"I can promise you, I am no longer with the Council. Besides,
what would that have to do with True?" she asked, her hands up in
the air in exasperation.
"I don't know. It's just that..." John paused. "You gave her
that shot last night. Then we found True was gone this morning.
And so were you. Isn't it natural for anxious people to fear the
worst...? You should know, you're the doctor here. I can't
believe True is gone as well..." His rugged features clouded over
as John's thoughts took another course. "It's like I place a curse
on every female that happens to cross my path. First Elle, then
Devon. Now True... My darling daughter True." He broke off on a
note of hysteria and grabbed Julia roughly by the collar of her
shirt.
"What did you do with my daughter, you betraying traitor?"
"I DIDN'T DO *ANYTHING* TO HER!! THEY DID, NOT ME!!!" she
screamed, pounding her fists against the man who was accusing her.
The others watched in a stunned silence.
Bess spoke calmly but firmly. "Who's 'they'? John, put her
down."
"NEVER! NOT UNTIL SHE TELLS ME THE TRUTH. WHO THE *HELL* ARE
'THEY'?" John yelled.
"The Bromaggs... The Council... Them..." she sobbed, finally
letting loose all her emotions. "That *damn* Council. Those
wretched Bromaggs. They... They *CHANGED* me, John." She looked
at him pleadingly, tears running down her cheeks.
"Julia, I thought you learnt you lesson last time," Morgan
said sadly from the outskirts of the group. Julia looked around at
the nodding heads.
"I--I did..." She chocked out. "But they...they control me.
You don't understand. It's a thing you cannot fight. If you
ignore them continually..." She shuddered. "You have a complete
breakdown. You fall apart. I can't help but follow their orders,
you have to understand that. I CAN'T HELP IT!"
"Julia," Alonzo said softly. "Did you take True?" All eyes
focused on her.
"Not to my knowledge. Maybe I was under influence, and I
can't remember. I honestly don't know where she is. I didn't even
know she was gone," she whispered.
"What were you doing in the woods, then?" Morgan asked, still
unconvinced.
"Taking a walk," she said softly. Bess bent down and picked
up Julia's bag. She opened it and withdrew Julia's Gear set.
"Why the secrecy, Julia? We all use Gear, so why hide it?"
"I--I don't know. I just happened to pop it in my bag after
I used it," she said boldly.
"Did anyone talk to Julia via Gear this morning?" Bess asked,
glancing around the group. There was a murmurer of no's.
"What were you doing with the Gear, Julia?" One could guess
the answer to Morgan's question.
"Talking to the Council," she answered shamefully.
"I'm sorry, Julia. We must hold you personally responsible
for the disappearance of True. You are in serious trouble this
time, and you're not going to get out of it," John said coldly.
"Hang on, you're jumping to conclusions here. Julia says she
has no memory of doing anything to True. Does that mean she did?
And you know how she said the Council is using her. That can't be
helped if the consequences are dangerous." The group stood in a
stunned silence, pondering Alonzo's words. Julia was beginning to
wonder if anyone was on her side. She knew that one was.
"Are you on her side, Lonzo?" Morgan asked.
"I'm on my own side. And so is everyone here on G889. Even
Julia. We are a team, a group. You must come to accept that some
are different. Julia can't help but obey what the Council wants.
At this stage, all that is is reports on our progress. What harm
is that in reality?"
"Alonzo," John said coldly, "we have a member of our crew
missing, and Julia here is the prime suspect. We can't just ignore
that and let her be."
"And we can't ignore the fact that she has no where to go.
She will not survive long without us. Besides, what are we doing
here fighting when we could be searching for True?" he said.
John sighed, running his hand through his shaggy browny-blonde
hair. "You're right, Lonzo. We need to look for True. Julia, you
need to tell us all you know." He looked at her.
"Can I sit down first?" she asked.
"Sure, why not? You want a *drink* with that?" he asked
sarcastically.
"I'm on your side, John. Nobody else's. I want you to
remember that," Julia said softly.
The atmosphere took on a sober note as they led Julia to the
congregational meeting place. They sat and each pair of eyes were
turned expectantly to Julia. "From the top, Julia, that's all we
want." Morgan said, his eyes boring into hers. She sighed.
"I don't know much about *what* I am. But I have an idea.
When I found out that my parents had my DNA altered, my life
totally changed. I wanted to know *why* they did that to me. They
said that I was made to serve, and somehow, I became a part of the
Council. I don't know if I joined willingly, or if they forced me
to do so, but I was soon wandering the stations, reporting,
recording and secretly testing people. After all, I was a Doctor.
They told me that I was just another "normal" part of the Council,
but, somehow, I knew I was much more than that. They kept tabs on
me, and were always setting me new and more challenging tasks."
She paused, collecting her thoughts.
"Then I heard about the Eden Project, how they were going to
journey to another world, a new world, and settle there. I didn't
know why, but I was drawn to the Project, and found myself looking
up Devon Adair's background and work with the Syndrome Children.
I asked the Council if I could be a part of the Eden Advance team.
They permitted me that privilege. I thought I was alone in the
world, that no one cared about me apart from the Council. So I
jumped at the opportunity, and joined Eden Advance as an assistant
doctor."
"So you weren't *told* to come along?" Danziger asked.
"No, I wanted to. They hadn't told me to do anything specific
like research or anything, they just said to keep checking in and
tell them our progress."
"But you experimented on Uly. How did you know there would
not be another doctor around to get in the way?" Bess asked,
curious.
"They only told me to do that after they found Uly had a link
with the Terrians." She paused. "This was a link with the planet
they did not know about, and they were afraid."
"What do you mean they did not know about it? What kind of
links *did* they know about?" Alonzo asked angrily.
"They didn't know about you, either Alonzo," she said hastily.
"Then what do you mean? What links?" Morgan asked.
Julia sighed. "My links," she said softly, watching the surprise
light up on many of her friends' faces. "But I'll tell you about
that later. I have to continue my story." Danziger nodded her on.
"Everything was going fine, I checked in with them as soon as
I came out of cold sleep, on the ship when no one else was around.
My orders were still the same: they wanted me to report in on our
progress. It confused me a bit, as all we would be doing would be
landing in New Pacifica and setting up a colony. The Council acted
like they knew more than me, and when we crashed, they were not the
least bit surprised. Then I knew why. Alex must have been part of
the Council, too. But they didn't tell me...
"Things went on, and I told them all. And when Uly was cured
by the Terrians, they were shocked. They wanted to know *what*
they looked like, if we could understand them, if any of us were
familiar with them. I told them about Alonzo. They wanted me to
experiment on the both of them, but they lay off when they realised
that Eden Advance was going to desert me and leave me to die.
Somehow, they got you to come back for me." She placed her head in
her hands.
"I don't know how, they just do all these things that I find
totally baffling. Totally inhumane. They acted like they were God
or something, telling me what to do. They used me like a pawn, DO
YOU KNOW HOW I FEEL ABOUT THAT???" Her voice had risen to point of
hysteria. "They used me all these years. They have been
controlling and monitoring my actions since the day I was born!
And everyone acts as if I'm some kind of traitor. Can't you see
that I have no choice?" She looked up, tears running down her
cheeks. "They will kill me, trust me, they *will* find a way! I
have no choice!!"
"Julia, you do have a choice." Alonzo said soothingly. "You
can help us find True, can't you?"
Julia shook her head. "I have no idea where she is. I can't
do anything. I lay in the shadows for a while, not attempting to
do anything. They gave me no new orders, and I was beginning to
wonder if they had forgotten about me. Then Devon got sick. Since
everyone was so depressed, I used that time to keep in contact with
the Council in depth. They gave me shocking new orders. They
wanted me to get rid of the *entire* Eden Advance team, one by one.
They told me to make it look like an accident." She stared hard at
the ground, tears falling silently.
"I'm sorry, it was me who killed Walman. I didn't mean to...
But by the time I realised what I had done, it was too late. I
came to the conclusion that they had... *controlled* my body and
told it what to do. I guess they had gotten tired of the delay.
I didn't want to kill my closest friends. You mean too much to me.
So I broke off with the Council, figuring it was better to get hurt
than to hurt others. That's when I started to get sick. I
realised that I would never get well again, unless I did what they
told me to do." She looked around at the group.
"But when we entered these forests, I got better. It was like
they couldn't hurt me in here or something. This morning I talked
to the Council, for the first time in weeks. When I got back here,
you told me that True was missing, and that's all I know."
"Hang on a sec. You said something about "your links". And
you mentioned "Bromaggs". Are they linked with the Terrendlers
True talked about last night? Are you forgetting something,
Julia?" Danziger asked gruffly.
Julia sighed yet again and shook her head, almost as if she
were trying to clear her thoughts.
"My links. Bromaggs. Everything is so confusing." She said,
clearing her throat. "I believe that the Bromaggs are the same
race as the "Terrendlers" True was talking about last night. I am,
I think, part Bromagg. I'm not sure why, but I have an idea. I
also have a theory to back it up, but since it was not pure fact,
I thought you wouldn't be interested."
"We are interested with anything to do with True," Danziger
said sadly.
"For starters, I was curious about these woods. Why wasn't
the Council able to harm me? Then I figured if something in this
forest was concerned about my well-being, they would try to protect
me. I found a dead Bromagg last night. I think it got hit by
lightning. I find this strange, because they seem like such smart
creatures and all. But to be killed by natural lightning, you'd
think it died on purpose. I took a blood sample and left it where
it was.
"I thought it was really strange, but for some reason, I was
not afraid of it. I tested the sample last night, and cross-
referenced it with a sample of both my blood and Uly's blood.
There was definitely something similar between the three, although
there were slight differences with Uly's. Then I decided on my
theory.
"Say the Council wants a loyal, reliable person to go on a
mission to a planet they want to know more about. But this person
must already know something about the planet, and know how to
survive against all the odds. So they choose me, alter my DNA and
turn me into a doctor. Somehow, they already have contact with an
alien race on this planet. They merge my DNA with a sample of the
Bromagg's. Since I was human to start with, I took the form of a
human. I was raised a doctor, and drawn to the planet by the
Bromagg instincts in my blood.
"Don't ask me why the Bromaggs would want a human that was
only half their race on their planet, working for humans, possibly
against them. But they did, and I was that human." She turned her
head upwards and looked at the sky. "I wonder why the Council
can't hurt me. I'm glad the Bromaggs are our friends."
"We don't know that. They could be *your* friend and *our*
enemy, Julia. We really know nothing about this planet. I hope
that we can survive," said John, standing up. "Now that we know
your story, I guess we have some leads. Would the Bromaggs have
taken True?" he asked.
"I honestly don't know." She said wearily, placing her
fingers on her temples. "I don't know anything any more, John."
* * *
We searched the forest for days, but as I suspected, we found
nothing. I didn't even run into my friends the Bromaggs. We had
come to the conclusion that it was indeed the Bromaggs that had
taken True, although we could not understand why they would want an
innocent, young girl to help them on this planet we now call hell.
We have lost so many, but to loose a child brings heartbreak to
everyone. Yet, we can not escape the clutches of evil, for our
lives are already mapped out before us, our actions destined to be.
So now I sit here, writing down the story of how this all came
to happen. I can not believe that they left me once again, and
this time I fear they will not come back for me. John still blames
me for the disappearance of his daughter, although it was not I who
took her. And I find it unfair that they left me behind, for I can
not help *who* I am. I was born and changed, I was destined to
turn against my truest friends. Ironic how I use the word "True"
for it was her that literally turned the group against me. But
then again, I say they were my friends. I find this impossible as
I was the one who betrayed them.
But I was not the only one. I had been wondering for days who
Reilly was talking about. For there was one other within the group
who had once turned against Eden Advance. But she was strong
minded, and refused to accept what she was. So they tried to kill
her. I have finally come to a decision that the "one other" in our
group was none other than our leader; Devon Adair. She has done
something that I dared not do before I came across these woods, my
protection, my saviour. She turned against the Council, and they
tried to kill her. She would be dead now, if she wasn't... I
pause, a hysterical laugh rising in my throat. She would be dead
if she wasn't frozen.
I find sitting here, worrying to myself, of little use as I
can do nothing about it. I have no communications, limited
supplies and one tent for shelter. John figured if the Bromaggs
could protect me, they could look after me as well. But he was
wrong. I have been alone in these woods for days, and I will not
be able to catch up with the group. And, surely, I would not
survive long without the Bromaggs' full protection. I feel sorry
for Devon, I never knew that all along, she was on my side, working
for the same leaders. If only she hadn't turned against them.
I wonder what provoked her to change her mind. Maybe they
told *her* to kill off Eden Advance. Maybe they told her something
else. I will never know, and can only sit here and speculate. I
wonder how the group will survive without me, without a doctor.
John said that he would prefer to leave me where the Council cannot
harm me, and where I cannot harm another. I know for sure that
they will not return for me. I have concluded that Devon was told
to turn the party around, to rescue me. I never knew she was my
friend.
I stand now, and walk over to my bed. Sitting at the head is
the package that Alonzo handed me before they left. I have been
afraid to open it, afraid to find what it holds. I pry open the
tape and lift the lid of the box. A gasp escapes from my mouth.
Nestled amongst packing is a Gear set. I quickly lift it and
examine it, but find no traces of the computer chip I used to
contact the Council. I slip on the Gear, praying it will work.
"John," I say simply, watching his face screw up in anger.
"How did you get a Gear set?" he asked angrily.
"Shut up, John and listen to me." I pause, and glance around
the room that I now call home. I sigh. "John, we can save her. I
know what is wrong with Devon."
* * * * *
End.
(
geocities.com/area51/vault) (
geocities.com/area51)