My name is Ali Jessica Mason. I go by AJ. Six months ago our planet was invaded by aliens. We call them skitters and mechs. I was thirteen then, and I'm fourteen now. I have three brothers, Hal, who's seventeen, Ben, who's fourteen (my twin), and Matt, who's eight. When the skitters came, they took Ben and they killed my mom. I have straight dark brown hair that comes down to my elbows and has bangs, deep brown eyes and pale skin. I always wear camo cargo pants, combat boots, black t-shirts, a black leather jacket and leather fingerless gloves in, guess what colour. Black. I'm pretty small too, which can come in handy sometimes. I'm only small because I was premature. Hal and I are really close. I like his girlfriend, Karen, she's really nice. I'm also really close to my dad. And now, my story begins. So strap in for the ride.
Falling Skies
"Dad, I wanna go with you," I said.
"AJ, no." He sighed.
"But, Dad -" I began.
"AJ, you can't come in case you get hurt," Hal said. "If you get hurt, I'll be really upset, okay? It'd kill me. So you need to stay here and look after Matt for us until we get back."
"Fine." I huffed.
"Next time you can come with us, okay? But not now."
"You promise I can go with you next time?" I asked, a grin spreading across my face.
"I promise," he assured me.
"Pinkie swear on it?" I beamed.
"Aren't you a little old for pinkie swears?"
"You're never too old for pinkie swears," I said determinedly, holding up my little finger. He wrapped his around it and ruffled my hair.
"See you when we get back, squirt," he said.
"Be careful because if you get hurt I will kick your ass," I warned. He hit me lightly upside the head.
"Don't swear," he said. He and Dad walked out to get food. I went over to Matt, who was sleeping in a chair. So I decided to go talk to Karen.
"Hey." I grinned.
"Hey, AJ," she replied. "What's up?"
"Hal and Dad have gone out and Matt's asleep, so I'm bored," I shrugged.
"Well, I think I've got some old beauty products. I could maybe do your hair for you," she offered. I smiled and nodded. She pulled out a hairbrush and some hair bands, and began styling my hair in an intricate French braid. She also painted my nails a nice forest green colour. I hugged her gently.
"Thanks, Karen. I'm glad Hal's with you, and not anyone else," I said.
Falling Skies
When Dad and Hal came in I was doing art therapy with Anne.
"What are you drawing there, AJ?" she asked.
"The way things were before, and the way they are now," I answered. She held up another picture.
"Who's this?"
"It's Mom. I miss her. I miss her a lot." A lump rose in my throat and as hard as I tried to hold back tears, a few slipped out. She placed a hand on my shoulder. I brushed away the tears and turned round. I ran over to Hal and threw my arms round his waist.
"Hal! You're back!" I cried, burying my face into his jacket.
"You got it, squirt," he replied.
"I just had art therapy with Anne," I said.
"Let's go see what you drew," he suggested. I was good at drawing. It was one of my few skills, along with being able to shoot. But I wasn't athletic, I was smart, and I wasn't able to reach things in high places, but I was quick. He walked with over to Dad and Anne. She was showing Dad pictures that Matt had drawn. Hal looked at them.
"That doesn't not look like me," he said.
"Or me," I added.
"And AJ drew these." Anne smiled, giving Dad my drawings.
"Now that looks like me." Hal grinned. I'd got the nose right, and the bones structure, and the hair and the ears. But the eyes went a bit weird.
"Can I keep these?" Dad asked me.
"If you want," I answered.
"Tom! Tom! Porter wants to see you," one soldier called. Dad placed Matt on a chair and went to see Colonel Porter.
"Hal, do you like my pictures?" I asked.
"Yeah, they're great," he told me.
"Good, because I fully intend to do more of them, and if the world ever, by some miracle, goes back to normal, I'm gonna pursue a career as an artist."
"Good luck with that, squirt."
"Just because you're taller than me. I blame Mom. She was short too."
Falling Skies
I sat next to Matt. Dad walked over and sat down too.
"Why are we leaving?" Matt asked.
"We're going someplace better," Dad replied.
"But tonight's the eight. It's my part," he said.
"Oh, sure thing, Your Highness!" Hal called from his motorcycle.
"Hey, you and AJ had birthday parties too. And it was after they came," he told him.
"We'll try to do something when we get settled. We're doing the best we can," Dad said. He got up and walked away. Matt grabbed his box of possessions and went to trudge after him.
"Hey, give him a break, all right?" Hal told Matt. I looked at my big brother.
"Can I ride with you?" I asked.
"If you want," he answered.
"Cool." I smiled. I put my rucksack onto my back and we climbed onto the bike. I wrapped my arms tightly around his chest so I didn't fall off as we drove with the crowd, being careful not to hit anyone.
Falling Skies
We stopped outside the butcher's Dad was in and I climbed off the bike.
"Dad," Hal said. "Every food store we've passed between here and Acton's been picked clean." Dad began talking to Captain Weaver and I went inside the shop.
"There's not a lot of food, is there?" I asked Anne.
"No, not really. We have over three hundred people to feed and not a lot to give them," she sighed. I heard Captain Weaver yelling but wasn't really paying attention. Anne went to talk to Dad and I ran over to Hal.
"I think we're gonna get some more food," I told him enthusiastically. "And you said last time that the next time you went out to get food, I could come along. You promised." He walked over to Dad and I ran along beside him.
"You need a scout," he told Dad.
"I want you to stay with the group. You stay with Matt and AJ," Dad replied.
"Weaver's more likely to get me killed then you are," he reasoned.
"Hal, you promised I could go with you. You promised," I reminded him. "Dad, please can I go?"
"Fine. Consider this a tester to see if you're ready," Dad sighed.
"You need two scouts!" Karen called.
"Yes I do. Why don't you find Dai and Click and Anthony and one other and see if they'll volunteer?" he asked. He looked at Hal. "You go with her."
"Shall I get a gun?" I said.
"No, I want you to have a knife. Not a gun," he told me.
"Okay. Where shall I get one?" I asked.
"Ask Hal for one when he gets back."
"I'll do that." I ran over to Lourdes and Matt. "Guess what, guys? I get to go with Dad and Hal to look for food."
"I wanna go," Matt whined.
"You can't. You're too little," I said. "Sorry, Mattie."
Falling Skies
"You'll be there right?" Matt asked Dad.
"Will you give this party thing a rest?" Hal asked.
"Yeah, I'll try to be there," Dad assured my little brother.
"I already know what I'm gonna wish for," he said.
"Oh, yeah, what?" Dad asked.
"I can't tell you," he replied.
"Sure, you can. It's rule six-nineteen, I'm your father, you can tell me anything. Hand me that sleeping bag, would you?"
"Are you sure?"
"Of course," Hal said. "How else do you think you're gonna get what you ask for?"
"Well, I wish everything was back the way it was. Our house, my bike, school, my Ripstik and Ben. And Mom," Matt told us.
"Well, I thought you didn't like school?" Dad frowned.
"Well, I like it now," he said. "Dad, I just wish everything was back the way it was."
"Come here." He lifted Matt up. "So do I. So do I." He placed him on the ground. "It's gonna better." He kissed Matt's forehead gently. Hal grabbed Matt from behind quickly. Matt went to slap his hand and he moved it quickly.
"So slow," Hal teased. Matt hit his other hand instead.
"Faster than you," he replied.
"Dream on. Catch you later."
"Okay, see you later."
"Bye, Mattie. See you when we get back," I said, hugging him gently.
"Okay." he sighed. I grabbed Hal's free hand as Dad explained the routes we were gonna take. He handed Hal some more ammo and they talked for a minute. I climbed onto Hal's motorbike behind him and held on tightly.
Falling Skies
Hal and I were looking up and down the river for skitters and mechs when suddenly the ground began to shake. He pushed me down and clamped a hand over my mouth. Two mechs passed with a bunch of harnessed kids following. I saw one of them and gasped under Hal's hand.
"Ben," he murmured. We watched as he passed. "Ben." I struggled to move his hand. He let go slowly. I let a few tears slip.
"Ben," I whispered, "I miss you."
Falling Skies
We drove back to Dad and the others quickly. Hal climbed off the bike hurriedly.
"Which way are they coming?" Dad asked.
"Ben's alive. We saw him!" Hal said.
"What?" He gaped.
"He's harnessed, but he's alive."
"Are you sure it was him?"
"Dad, he's alive."
"It's true. It really was him. I'd know that face anywhere," I insisted.
"And we gotta go get him now. Let's screw this food thing and go get him," Hal ordered.
"Wait, wait, wait," Dad said quickly.
"Dad, it's Ben!" he told him. "We gotta go get him."
"I'm coming," Click announced.
"Me too," Anthony agreed.
"How many skitters? How many mechs?" Dad demanded.
"I don't know, like half a dozen in front of Ben and the other harnessed kids," Hal answered.
"And there might be more coming. You said hundreds in airships," Karen told him.
"Who cares?" he asked loudly. "All right, it's Ben!"
"I'm there, let's go," she said.
"No, it's too many," Dad muttered. "No, no, that's way too many. We gotta stick to the mission. We gotta get the food, we gotta get it back to the group and then I'll get Ben."
"No. I'm going to get him now, with or without you," Hal insisted. He went to climb onto his bike and Dad grabbed him. "Let go already!" He pulled him off and threw him on the floor.
"You think I don't wanna go and get him right now? He's my son! And you're my son! And Matt is back there alone! You think I want him to hear he's lost both his brothers and his father? We do this the right way or we all die! We get the food, we bring it to the group, and then we get Ben," Dad said. "Together. You and me and AJ."
"All right," Hal sighed. "We'll do it your way." Dad climbed off of him and they both stood up. I looked up at them both. I hated it when my family argued and they both knew it. Hal pulled me close and I rested my head on his chest as Dad made plans to get the food later tonight.
Falling Skies
Hal, Dad, Dai and I crept into the supermarket. I was armed with…a knife. And a flashlight. I went with Hal while everyone else split up to find food. Hal climbed up a ladder to get some food on a high shelf and as he was moving the boxes a skitter jumped out. Hal fell from the ladder and I ran to his side. The skitter jumped down beside me and made a grab at me. I screamed and kicked out at it, but it grabbed my ankle.
"Dad! Hal!" I screamed. Dad came over and started firing at the skitter. It dropped me.
"Hal, AJ, get out of there," Dad bellowed. Hal grabbed my hand and pulled me away from the skitter. The ground began to shake as we heard a mech go after Dad. We ran back and Hal started shooting at it as it got ready to kill Dad. It moved its focus to us instead. We ran to hide and there was a sudden explosion as Dad blew up the mech. We heard firing and went over to find that the skitter had attacked Dad and Dai had shot it. It was still alive, and Hal pushed me behind him.
"I wonder what it's thinking," Jimmy said, as it died.
"Nothing now," Dad replied. "Let's go."
"And this is why I need a gun," I muttered.
Falling Skies
We drove to the Littleton Bridge, Hal was beeping his horn on his motorcycle. I took one arm away from his to wave at everyone. We climbed off the bikes and everyone surrounded the car to see what we had all brought back. We walked into a huge barn and Dad placed a box of food down on the table in front of Captain Weaver.
"Well, what took you so long?" Captain Weaver asked. "How much did you get?"
"Truck load," Dad answered. "Enough for a few days. Hal, AJ, you stay." He looked at Dai and Anthony. "Why don't you guys wait outside? My son, Ben, is alive."
"What?" Captain Weaver said.
"Hal and AJ saw him," he told him.
"We're not going back. Our next objective is the Acton armoury."
"I know. And after we take the Acton armoury, I gonna be weaponing up and going back to get him."
"Me too," I piped up. Captain Weaver stared at me for a second.
"So am I," Hal said.
"Are you? Well, I'm your commanding officer. And we're not going back. You're not going back," Captain Weaver replied.
"What would you do if you had the chance to get your kids back?" Dad asked. "He's my son."
"You'll never kill enough of them to get him back."
"They die just like us. You just have to get…close." And with that Dad, Hal and I exited the barn. Dad and I joined Matt, Anne and Lourdes, while Hal went off to do something. Anne handed Matt a cupcake.
"So, you gotta make a wish and blow it out because it burns out fast," Anne told him. Lourdes put a small candle into the cupcake. Matt looked up at Dad.
"You know what the wish is. You sure that's okay?" he asked.
"Yeah," Dad replied, running his hand through Matt's hair. Lourdes lit the candle and Matt blew it out quickly.
"Yay. Happy birthday. It's all yours." Anne smiled.
"Matt, I'm sorry, I don't have anything for you," Dad said apologetically.
"Dad!" Hal called, as he walked over with a parcel. "What's the matter with you?"
"What?" Dad frowned.
"You forgot the thing. The thing you got for him," he said, handing it to Matt. "You're going senile. It's from Dad."
"I know what this is," Matt announced. "It's a Ripstik." Dai walked over and handed him a helmet.
"Ride, fool, you only get ten minutes," Hal said. I giggled and he smiled down at me. I beamed with pride as I watched my little brother ride around on the Ripstik. Everyone gathered to watch him. He climbed off in front of me and I got on, then climbed off to let another kid have a go.
"It's time to go!" Dad shouted.
"All right, we're moving out. I wanna make the Great Meadow by dark. We'll set up camp there. There's good cover there!" Captain Weaver yelled. I climbed onto Hal's motorbike.
"Love you, Hal," I said.
"I love you too, AJ," he replied.
"We'll get Ben back, I promise," I assured him. He smiled and ruffled my hair.
"I'm supposed to be telling you that, not the other way around," he told me.
"Yeah, well, guess I'm just growing up faster than I should. We can blame the aliens for that." I shrugged. "Hal?"
"Yeah?"
"Seeing as how, you know, I'm growing up so fast, can I get a tattoo?"
"No."
"Please?"
"Ask Dad."
"Forget it. He'll say no too." I hated being the only girl. My brothers and Dad were always so damn strict. It sucked.
So what did you think of my first chapter of When the Aliens Come rewritten? I enjoyed writing it, and I love the brotherly/sisterly relationship between Hal and AJ. Hope you'll continue reading this.
Beth x
