Okay guys, I hope you like this. Please comment or leave a response. I really don't know what got me into the Host. Maybe it was because I saw the movie last weekend. Anyway, hope you enjoy! - you may also note the same quote from My Jolly Sailor Bold but its only because that quote inspires me so much. It's what I use for inspiration when I'm sometimes writing.


"I would rather die a meaningful death"

"…than to live a meaningless life."

The sound of footsteps echoed throughout the house. My palms were sweating as I kept a close hand to the holster strapped to my thigh which contained a loaded pistol. I guess you're a bit lost on what's going on. My name's Johanna O'Shea and I'm probably one of the last humans who survived the initial invasion of the strange, alien creatures we call Souls. The invasion was about less than three years ago and they've taken all of our friends and family to use as hosts for the Souls. I've traveled with my two older brothers, Ian and Kyle, since the invasion started. Together we've managed to survive by raiding houses and stealing from various stores.

"Check the upstairs! They have to be here somewhere." It was a stupid idea thinking that we could raid a house in broad daylight, even if it was away from the city.

I could see Ian across from me crouched down behind the dresser as he ushered me to hide behind the door. Carefully maneuvering my body, I was able to slowly move my body further behind the door and firmly press myself against the wall. Kyle was waiting for us just a couple of miles south from here with a truck I had stolen in what used to be Atlanta, Georgia.

The footsteps seemed to get closer to the room with each passing second, their white suits now visible through the crack in the door. Both of us held our breath hoping to God that the Seekers wouldn't discover us, it could only cause more trouble if we were to make it out alive. It felt like my heart had stopped when the Seekers stepped foot into the messy and cluttered room, the sound of the floorboards creaking under the pressure.

'On three.' Ian mouthed to me causing me to give the faintest of nods before retracting my hand from the holster and moving it to the stun gun in my pocket.

'One. Two. Three.' In an instant Ian abandoned his hiding place to take a good swing at the male Seeker who led the pack.

The reaction was almost immediate as the other Seekers started to get into defensive positions. Taking the stun gun out of my pocket, I quickly deliver an electrical shock to the abdomen of the dark-haired Seeker near the back of the group. Once he was on the ground, I moved to the next one and swung a punch towards his face causing his large body to stumble backwards. Thinking off the top of my head, I take a nearby lamp and swing it as hard as I can into the Seeker, successfully knocking him out.

Ian finished taking care of the others and motioned for us to leave. There was no telling me twice as I pocketed my stun gun and slung a backpack over my shoulder. On the way out, I retrieved two duffel bags by the handle. Ian grabbed the other three that we had hidden in the wardrobe and we quickly made our way out into the hallway. Shouts and the sound of footsteps could be heard coming from downstairs. "They're coming." I whisper.

Ian had a grim look on his face as he pushed me down the hall to another room. Setting the bags down, I take a chair and place it against the door in hopes of buying some time for the both of us. "What do we do now?" I ask looking at the soft, pale bedroom that we had ended up in.

"Look for something that can get us out of here." Was his only reply. 'Sure, cause that's so easy. How are we gonna find –well that looks helpful.'

In the closet there had been an ironing board blocking what looked like a door. Pushing it back, I found a set of stairs leading to who-knows-where. "Ian, I think I found something." Ian looks from the hidden staircase to me in disbelief before shaking his head. "Let's go. We need to get out of here."

Already I could hear the sounds of the bedroom door trying to be forced open. No doubt it was the Seekers. Quickly handing me my bags, Ian gestures for me to go down first. We found out that the stairs led to the kitchen which we had previously suspected was a supplies closet. The back door was just a few feet away. I could practically taste freedom.

Sprinting across the kitchen, we try to open the door only for it to barely budge. 'So much for freedom.'

"Jo, it's jammed. Help me." He says while taking a good grip of the knob while I made an effort of prying it open with a disregarded broom I had found in the corner.

Using all the adrenaline I could muster we pull back together until it was a least big enough for both of us to fit through. The Seekers were bound to have broken into the room now. Once we were outside I made a run for it with Ian right on my tail. Kyle was bound to have noticed our long absence by now.

Just past the clearing was the forest we had camped out in for about a week now. We were on our way to Roanoke, Virginia and had stopped in Tennessee to restock on supplies and rest. The sound of barking made me aware of the small blob of white and black coming out of a nearby bush. "C'mon, Ace! Back to camp."

Ace was the border collie that we had found stranded in the mountains practically starving to death. Kyle didn't want to take Ace with us but lost due to majority vote against me and Ian. I could tell that Kyle liked having him around though since he joined our group about a year ago.


Not taking any chances we continued to run, making sure to leave as little to no tracks as we could. I hurdled over the large roots that blocked our path. Suddenly I was very thankful for the fact I had done track for three of my high school years. Senior year I was planning on going all the way and breaking the state record set for public schools but the invasion happened so I never got the chance. See the invasion happened back in 2013 and the year now is 2016. I'm nineteen and I'm pretty sure that my brothers and I are some of the last humans on Earth.

'Please let Kyle be ready with the truck.' I think when I see familiar landmarks signaling that we were close to the campsite. "We'll have to leave tonight. I doubt those Seekers just gave up on us." Ian yells over to me as we slower our pace now knowing we were closer to camp. "They've probably got people watching the area. We should wait at least until tomorrow, until they've given up."

He actually seemed to contemplate that thought before nodding. "I see what you mean. We'll lay low for about a day and leave tomorrow around noon. I'll go back and see if they're still hanging around tonight."

That worried me. I always hated splitting up with one another even if it was for a simple raid. It scared me because the thought of anything happening to my older brothers was terrifying, they meant the world to me. "Just be careful."

Pushing through the bushes we came across a small, little clearing which we used for camp. I could already see Kyle poking the fire with a stick to keep it from going out. "Kyle, we've been spotted." I say when we got closer. I saw the eyes of my eldest brother widen after hearing my news. "We better move camp then. Come on, I'll help pack up." Nodding, I take a seat in one of our mini fold out chairs we snagged in Louisiana from an older Soul's home.

"That's okay but not everything. Leave out dinner. We're gonna stay the night but we'll need to put out the fire and cover it up when we go to bed tonight." Kyle looked towards me with questioning eyes before gesturing for Ian to help him.

This was typical behavior for Kyle, he started questioning any plan that wasn't his which was understandable but damn annoying. He used to be nice, well nice for Kyle standards, but it changed after Jodi left. She was Kyle's girlfriend for about a year before she was taken by the Seekers. She now served as a host for the Souls.

Ace started to nudge my leg while setting its head on my knees in an adorable fashion. "Thanks for today, Ace. I promise we won't have to live with this for the rest of our lives." I mumble out while petting his head fondly.

Ace barked happily while wagging his tail resulting in a smile to take form on my face. Even for a dog Ace was incredibly intelligent, probably smarter than Kyle and Ian. Just that thought alone brought a brighter smile to my face. "Good boy. Here you go." I always brought small treats along with me wherever I went incase Ace did something worth praising.

"Hey, Jo, come give us a hand with this." I hear Kyle shout out. Kissing the top of Ace's head, I make my way to the front of the truck where Ian and Kyle were.

"What did you need help with?" I ask seeing that neither had attempted to clean things up and let my eyes wander to the box of tools at their feet. "Well the truck's acting up and I need you two to take a look at it while I start packing. I'll leave one tent up for you, Jo. Ian and I'll take watch." That was just like Kyle, short and straight to the point.

"So, Ian, you want to get to work on the truck? What's wrong with it?" I ask pulling up the hood of the truck only to be greeted with a nasty sight. The engine looked horrible and when was the last time someone checked the oil level. Now I knew why Kyle left in such a hurry, he was in charge of checking the truck weekly.

'I'll kill him if the damage is permanent.' I think while rolling up the sleeves of my shirt and handing my leather jacket to Ian. "This isn't really serious despite how it looks. We should be able to have it running by tomorrow. Remind me again how you know all this stuff?" he asked.

"I was friends with Henry, that's how. He always helped at his uncle's garage and finally got me interested. I worked there over the summer between sophomore and junior year. Got a good amount of pay from it as well." I could tell that Ian winced a little at my sharp voice when mentioning Henry.

Both Ian and Kyle had scared the kid so much that he started to avoid me all together. It was only after that when I learned that he had a crush on me and was planning to ask me out. Needless to say I was pissed at my two older brothers. "I guess it wouldn't help if I were to say sorry."

"A bit late for that isn't it? Although what's in the past is in the past. Henry was a good friend. Now hand me that wrench, would ya?" I could tell Ian was relieved that I had let the topic of Henry drop.

I remember how mad I was at them in freshman year. I yelled and embarrassed them both in front of the entire school during lunch. Our mom had to come pick us all up and take Kyle to the emergency room because I might have gotten a little too carried away and punched him in the nose. That wasn't the best day for the O'Shea family.

After an awkward moment of silence, Ian went back to the tool box and rummaged around in it for a while. It seemed that he couldn't find something and had given on the search, concluding that it wasn't in there. "Jo, have you seen the other wrench. I can't find it." He says while looking around the ground.

"That's weird. It should be in there." I say wiping my hands of excess oil with an old ratty shirt of Kyle's. Looking around I see Ian staring with narrowed eyes to something behind the truck. Wiping my head fast enough to get whiplash, my eyes widen. I couldn't help but burst out laughing. Ace stood with the wrench in his mouth staring innocently at Ian.

"C'mon, Ace. Give me back the wrench." Ian tries but only accomplished Ace backing up farther a few feet. "Ace." He adds in a warning tone which only seems to amuse the dog as he backs up even further. This greatly amused me as well when Ian took off running after Ace. It amazed me how Ace had gotten the wrench in the first place.

"Come back here!" Ian yells while slipping on a patch of grass resulting in his humiliating face plant into the ground.

I started to laugh so hard that I could barely stand it. Soon enough I could make out the laughter of Kyle and eventually Ian himself. It was amazing how tension could diffuse so quickly between all of us. Even though the invasion forced us to mature quickly, we were still young and kids with barely any experience.

"Alright, that's enough you two. Ace, please bring me the wrench." To add to Ian's embarrassment, Ace came trotting over to my side while dropping the wrench at my feet. This is where Ace's incredible loyalty came in handy. Ian mockingly glared at Ace only causing him to bark happily before running around the clearing once more, this time to chase a grasshopper. "Come on, Ian. We have to finish with the repairs before nightfall." I yell over to him where he still sat in the grass.

Noticing my usual carefree and friendly attitude again he smiles. Ian and I could never stay mad at each other for long, we were just too good of friends. I could always count on Ian for anything when I was at school and come to him for advice if had anything other than to do with boys. Kyle and Ian made it very clear that any boy who I decided to date would be submitted to questioning. 'The joys of having two protective brothers.'

Together Ian and I had managed to fix the truck with enough time for me to cook dinner. It was well-known fact that Kyle couldn't cook and Ian was hopeless in the kitchen. This usually led to our mother doing most of the work seeing as our father was equally clueless when it came to the culinary arts. Luckily, mom had taught me a lot of recipes for the times she would leave town or make it home late due to the late night shifts at the hospital. I personally think she taught me so that the rest of our family wouldn't starve to death or get fat off of junk and fast food.

"Good job, Jo. What would we do without you?" Kyle asks while looking at the truck which looked in better shape than it had a few hours ago. "I really don't know. Since I didn't really have enough time to cook, I just wiped up some chicken noodle soup for us. It's quick and easy, perfect for our last night here."

All of us sat around the campfire as I stirred the soup in the pot. All three of us had a large bowl to fill the soup in while I sat Ace's on the floor next to Kyle. "It almost feels like the invasion never happened. I wish it never did." I say bringing my knees closer to my chest as I slowly sipped the rest of my soup down. Throughout dinner we had constantly told jokes and funny stories of our days in the forest.

That seemed to dampen the mood as Ian and Kyle lowered their bowls into their laps. "I wish it didn't either. I hate running from those filthy parasites. They took everything from us." Kyle bitterly states while setting down his bowl for Ace to lick clean. Both of us knew how Jodi's capture affected him and his view on the Souls. "I miss my friends and school. I really wanted to finish college." Ian adds while following Kyle's example and setting his bowl on the ground.

"I miss mom and dad." That was what set me off into a fit of tears and both of my brothers knew I never cried.

Our mother had been killed while protecting us and our father was taken and injected with a Soul. In fact, we had seen him around a few times and saw how he had become a Seeker. Kyle rushed to my side and gave me a big bear hug that was only reserved for me while Ian gently rubbed my back to help calm me down.

"We all miss them, Joey." He says using my old nickname from when I was a child.

"I know but I just wish they were here with us. Every day I keep thinking that Mom will suddenly appear and tell us to pick up our clothes or that Dad will come around and offer a quick game of toss before he goes to work. I miss them so much." From the look in their eyes I could tell they had similar thoughts.

"It's getting late. I'll take first watch." Ian says standing up while giving Kyle a look almost as if they were holding a telepathic conversation. Whatever it was Kyle understood it because he nodded a second later before taking the bowls off the ground which Ace had finished licking clean of any excess food. "We're going to get up early tomorrow to pack everything up and get on the road by noon. You should get some sleep. You don't have to worry about watch tonight."

Even though I was little pissed that they thought I needed special treatment, I was thankful for it. I was glad that the two of them cared for me that much. I loved these guys, they're my best friends and my lifeline. I never wanted to lose these two and would do anything to make sure they stay with me and survive.


Okay so what did you all think? I don't know if I'll continue or not so please let me know what you think. I'll try and have the next chapter up by next week but no promises. Night classes are killing me!