Author's note: OMG OMG OMG we did it! My friends and I were discussing the idea of a space AU cos Oikawa is alien trash and well... Things kinda exploded from there. Hope you enjoy!
Chapter 1: Crash Landing
"Iwaizumi-san, how's the view up there?"
"Same old, same old." Iwaizumi padded over to a window, peering out at the expanse of stars. "Not sure what I'm supposed to be seeing out here, since I'm halfway between Mars and Earth."
The voice on the other end was silent for a heartbeat before speaking tentatively. "Signs of extra-terrestrial life, perhaps?"
"Like that's gonna happen." Iwaizumi snorted. "You know just as well as I do that there's close to nothing out here, Kageyama."
There was a tense silence, and Iwaizumi could practically see the cogs turning in his junior's head as he tried to word his response right. "You'd never know. Maybe your ship would get sucked into a wormhole and spat out millions of light years away–" A harsh screeching from the control panel had Iwaizumi slapping his hands over his ears, and Kageyama's voice cut off abruptly.
Iwaizumi felt himself tilting. As he stumbled forward, his reflexes took over, making him grab hold of a handrail just as the ship turned on its side. His shoulder crashed into the wall painfully, but he didn't feel any sensation of weightlessness. Good. That meant that the anti-gravity system was still working...for now.
"–zumi-san! Iwaizumi-san!" Kageyama's panicked voice could be heard just under the feedback from the speakers, and though he knew it was futile, Iwaizumi tried to respond.
"Don't worry about me! Track my coordinates! I'll deal with this! Just make sure the higher-ups know we finally found something!"
Something big and potentially deadly, his brain quipped unhelpfully. Iwaizumi immediately quashed the negative thought.
Another burst of static shorted out Kageyama's reply, so Iwaizumi focused on other things – namely trying to hold on as the ship began to flip over and over, almost as if it was in a giant washing machine.
The control panel was still belting out panicked screams when the red emergency lights and the warning siren decided to make their appearance. The final effect was jarring, but mostly irritating, the flashing lights and cacophony of sounds reminiscent of a child throwing a tantrum. The situation definitely didn't look good, but Iwaizumi had been in many drills before, and knew exactly how to handle it.
Moving almost completely by muscle memory, Iwaizumi pulled himself along the bar and leapt for the control panel. He almost missed it, having barely caught its edge by his fingertips, and dragged himself towards it with great effort. Clinging to the panel with one hand, he fumbled along it until he found the override switch. Flipping it quickly, he felt the faint whirr as the ship's steering system switched from automatic to manual. The control panel's screeching cut off, but the emergency lights and siren were still blaring. The communications system was still spluttering as well, and only shut up after its switch received a vicious stab.
Iwaizumi gritted his teeth as he made a grab for the control stick with his free hand. The tumbling motion of the ship combined with the panic of the emergency warning system really wasn't doing much good for his concentration, and he missed several times before finally managing to wrap his fingers around it.
Iwaizumi pulled and pushed at the stick frantically. While the ship seemed to be tilting just barely in the direction he wanted it to, it seemed like he was only helping it to careen even further out of control. A quick analysis of the situation told him that he couldn't do much except to wait it out. Whatever the external force was, it was clearly greater than what his ship's thrusters could overcome. He could only hope that whatever phenomenon he had stumbled upon would be over soon, and would not leave too much damage to the ship.
Moving on autopilot, Iwaizumi grabbed the emergency straps on the pilot's chair, strapping himself in as quickly as he could. Then he ejected the oxygen mask from its compartment and pulled it over his head. That done, he switched the ship back to autopilot mode and leaned back, closing his eyes. He tried his best to tune out the blaring siren and calmed his mind, bracing himself for whatever was to come.
At least, he thought, as the ship spun faster and wilder, no one else would have to die if this turns out to be a suicide mission.
x.x.x.x.x
Iwaizumi was certain he passed out a few times, because his waking moments weren't too coherent, and everything had that dream-like haze to it.
A dizzying spin as his ship careened towards a black void.
An impossible shockwave that shuddered through the whole ship, crumpling the walls around him.
The sensation of being cooked alive, the temperature climbing steadily as evidenced by glowing heat waves and his suit sticking to him in the most uncomfortable way.
The burst of fire from the control panel, acrid black smoke wafting towards him.
He had a vague recollection of moving then, fingers too fat and heavy to undo the safety buckles, skin screaming in pain the moment he tried to move. Was this what second degree burns felt like?
The oxygen mask ripped off his face the moment he stood up, the plastic straps weakened by the intense heat. The white floor of the spaceship was hot, noticeable even through the thick soles of his shoes. When Iwaizumi inevitably tripped, the skin on his knees felt like they were sizzling as if they were bacon on a grill.
Iwaizumi thought he might have screamed. He wasn't sure. Did people scream when they dreamt of getting grilled alive?
The pain was intense enough that he began questioning his state of mind. Was it a heat wave or a dream haze that obscured his vision as he stumbled towards the door? And those black spots in his periphery – were those from the lack of oxygen?
The metal handle of the emergency airlock was red-hot, and Iwaizumi actually hesitated. But then it started turning white, and he cursed – or he thought he did – as he grabbed it and yanked with all his might.
A wordless, soundless scream ripped itself from his throat, and he thought his hand had melted, the skin melded to the burning metal. Then the door fell open, pulling him out and throwing him to the ground.
He thought the temperature of his ship was bad, but the ground beneath him was so much worse.
Iwaizumi could feel the waves of heat emanating from the ground, with puffs of hot air leaking through the cracks. He was certain he passed out then, the pain and the heat too much for him to bear. But even in his dream-like state, he felt like he had gotten to his feet and was stumbling forward, eyes barely open, breaths too shallow and quick, and worst of all, with no sensation in any of his limbs. How he was still moving, he couldn't fathom.
Something flashed in his vision just before he tripped and went down, the skin on his face sizzling and blackening as he hit the floor. This time, he was almost certain he didn't get up, because he felt like he had already become a melted puddle of flesh.
x.x.x.x.x
Oikawa was having a bad day.
Nothing was going right that morning, from the moment he woke up and found a very familiar crow and cat pair nestled in his branches. (If the crow in question wasn't so prone to glowing like the sun – and in his facewhen he wasn't yet awake, no less – he might have forgiven him. At least the cat didn't possess that type of annoying ability.)
After chasing off the sleepy duo (and promising himself to have some words with their clan leaders), he had gone to check up on his fellow trees, only to find that at some point in the night, his second and third in command had gone missing. Normally he wouldn't have cared, knowing that they frequently lost track of time while enjoying each other's company. However, this time he was sure they had not returned because he had explicitly forbidden them to go on the mission, and they had gone anyway.
Curse them both.
Turning his face to the smoke-choked sky, he could make out a faint speck in the distance, the odd colouring and wingspan informing him of the person's identity. Yet he was in no mood to talk to his favourite owl, despite knowing that Bokuto could always make him feel better.
Oikawa turned away and strode to the edge of his clan's territory, navigating the piles of trash that obscured the entrance. He had just squeezed his way past the final obstacle when there was a dramatic sound of wings flapping.
Oikawa strode forward, pointedly ignoring the indignant screech that followed after him. A few moments later, there were the sounds of huffing and puffing as Bokuto ran up to his side.
"Tooru!" Bokuto whined. "I was trying to get your attention for important reasons, you know!"
"I'm not in the mood for anything." Oikawa managed to dull the edge in his voice, but just barely. Bokuto gave him a knowing look.
"Mattsun and Makki are okay."
"You saw them?" Oikawa didn't temper his voice this time, allowing both relief and anger to seep into it.
"Yup! They just left the palace. Found the best loot too. You gotta give me some when they get back."
"Oh?" Oikawa was curious. What could they have found that even wishy-washy Bokuto Koutarou coveted it? "What did your team find? I'm not trading it for nothing."
Bokuto laughed out loud, jovially slapping the brunet on the back. "That's the Tooru I know and love! Always so cautious with what's yours! But really," he continued, "You know my owls don't have anything, we can't take spoils from the pala–"
A burning streak in the corner of his eye made Oikawa look up, and Bokuto whistled beside him as their eyes tracked the falling object. "Wow. That takes 'burning ships' to a new level."
"A ship?" Oikawa perked up immediately, even as his eyes continued to follow the trajectory of the flying object.
"Oh yeah, I forgot your eyes aren't as powerful as mine. Looks like a rocket or something." Bokuto squinted at the ship, now a speck in the distance. "A bit like those old junk ships that the Nohebi collect."
Oikawa felt a frisson of excitement. "Kou-chan, what if it has aliens on it?" He grabbed Bokuto's hand and tugged him in the direction that they saw the ship fall. "This is our chance to see aliens up close!"
"Oi, oi!" Bokuto laughed, even as he let himself be dragged. "I'll follow you, bro. Don't blackmail me, my heart can't take it."
"Bah. The only one for you is Akaashi-kun, the whole world knows that."
"So true! Hey, hey, want me to fly ahead and spot it for you?"
"If you would." Oikawa was practically bouncing with excitement. Bokuto grinned, then shoved his face into Oikawa's. The brunet wrinkled his nose as he backed up. "What?"
Bokuto wiggled his eyebrows. "I need my oxygen boost. I flew here from the palace, you know."
"Argh, you are such a pain."
"At least you know it means nothing." Bokuto pointed out. "I would never betray Akaashi."
"Fine, fine. Aliens are worth it." Oikawa grumbled, but pulled Bokuto's chin towards him anyway. Sucking in a deep breath, Oikawa kissed Bokuto firmly, exhaling as much air as he could into the other's mouth.
The brunet then pulled away and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "Okay, now go! Aliens await!"
Bokuto looked at him dreamily and gave him a blissed-out smile. "Okay. Man, oxygen tastes so good."
"Shut up and go, you brainless owl." Oikawa pushed Bokuto playfully, and the other grinned as he ran off, his form rippling into that of a horned owl just as he launched himself into the air.
Oikawa followed his flying form on foot, his excitement giving him greater speed. He climbed mountains of trash easily, jumping from one unsteady foothold to another as he tried to keep up with the owl. Even the dimness caused by the mid-morning smog couldn't hold him back, and before long, proof of his exertion appeared as black rivulets of sweat streaking his skin.
It seemed like forever before Bokuto stopped, circling an unusually bright area almost hesitantly before diving down. Oikawa was about to follow when a distressed screech stopped him, and a fully human Bokuto stumbled over the incline of garbage.
Bokuto grabbed Oikawa's shoulders when they reached each other. "Tooru, don't go down there. The ship is on fire, and it smells worse than the smog."
"Are there any survivors?" Oikawa tried to peer around his friend, but Bokuto held him firmly in place.
"I don't know, bro. It'd be kinder to let them die if there was anyone on board. That fire is no joke."
"Let me go, Fuku-chan! I need to know!" Oikawa tore himself from his grasp, tripping over the uneven ground as he flew down the trash heap. He had felt the heat from the flames when he was at the top of the mountain, and descending only confirmed that he was walking into a blazing inferno.
Oikawa stumbled back as a wave of hot air washed over him, bringing one arm up to shield his face from the heat. A light of understanding flicked on in his head, connecting the heat and the brightness to an infamous place. He could hear Bokuto in the distance, "Tooru, I told you not to go in there! Are you crazy? I thought you knew that's the Fire Crater! You'll burn!"
"I've got thick skin, I'll survive!" Oikawa called back as he surveyed the Crater. There was no time to regret his decision.
The white spaceship was on the far end, red and orange flames licking at it greedily. Little fires poked up from the garbage surrounding him, their combined heat pressing in on him like a heavy blanket. The brunet shuddered as he imagined them eating away at his body. Burning branches were no joke, and he definitely didn't want to explore the concept of his flesh burning. Maybe Bokuto was right, and he should give up on the notion of saving any aliens from the ship. The heat was already affecting him, drying his sweat and leaving him hot and itchy.
Just then, a wall burst out from the side of the ship, flying across the crater and dragging a humanoid figure along with it. The alien fell off the piece of wall and rolled onto the ground, coming up on hands and knees. Oikawa watched in fascination and horror as the alien stumbled to its feet, taking several steps forward before falling facedown. Though there was no wind, Oikawa could smell its burning flesh, the familiar stench shocking him from his reverie.
In a split second decision, Oikawa jumped to the bottom of the crater, rushing towards the fallen alien. He grabbed hold of the suit the alien was wearing and flipped it face up before beginning to drag it away. The heat emanating from the floor of the crater was not something to be scoffed at. Even though he was in human form, Oikawa could feel the hairs on his arms getting singed by the heat. It was all he could do to suppress his natural instinct to run as far as he could from that place. Instead, he focused on his straining muscles and his pity for the alien, who had fallen on its face on the burning ground.
The sliding and crashing of objects behind him told him that Bokuto had followed him down, but instead of stopping to help, Fukurodani's leader ran past him. Oikawa continued struggling with the alien on his own, inwardly cursing Bokuto and wondering what he was up to. Some moments later, a pair of toned arms slid into his vision, pushing him aside.
"There's no one else on the spaceship. Take the legs. I've got the shoulders." Bokuto grunted as he hoisted the alien up by its armpits, and Oikawa quickly complied, a wave of relief washing over him. The adrenaline rush had blocked his initial worry, and he hadn't even stopped to wonder if there was anyone else on the ship. He would have to thank his friend properly after they made it out.
The alien wobbled in their grip, the uneven weight distribution making them move awkwardly. Oikawa hadn't expected the alien to be as large as them, and definitely hadn't expected to find a being as heavy as the one currently helping him to carry its dead weight. They slipped and stumbled up the trash heap while carefully avoiding the spontaneous fires, cursing colourfully as they backed into cooler air.
At the lip of the Crater, they lowered the alien to the ground, panting in place for several minutes. Now that he was out of the Fire Crater, Oikawa could feel the distinct difference in temperature, and he involuntarily shuddered with relief.
After he caught his breath, Oikawa peeked at the alien's blackened face curiously, trying to see past the layer of dirt. He shook his head mournfully. "I can't even tell what it looks like."
"Looks like us actually." Bokuto observed, suppressing a cough as he poked at the suit, palpated its arm and patted down its body. "Yeah. Definitely human-ish. Oooh, this means there are other humans on other planets!"
"Yeah." Oikawa was excited at the prospect, he really was. But the black and blistering skin on the alien's face combined with the state of its charred suit were not reassuring signs of its chances of survival. If one of their own had gotten this extent of injury, they would take forever to heal without salves stolen from the Nohebi.
Tuning out Bokuto's excited rambling, Oikawa continued watching the alien's face for signs of breathing. He couldn't see any, and that worried him. There was suddenly a patch of pink on the side of the alien's face, and he touched a finger to it tentatively. His finger came away wet, and the sensors in his fingers told him that it was saltwater.
Sweat, maybe?
Squinting at the blackened mass that was the alien's face, Oikawa noticed more sweat starting to appear. He touched a hand to the exposed skin of its neck and immediately flinched away from the heat.
It's burning up. Do aliens get fevers like we do? Or is it heatstroke?
Oikawa felt almost afraid as he leaned down and put his head to its chest, where he thought its heart would be. He couldn't hear any heartbeat, but there was the faintest rise and fall of the alien's torso. Following a whim, he placed his fingers above what seemed to be the alien's mouth, feeling for its shallow breathing, and his heart contracted.
I was right. It's not breathing.
"Fuku-chan. I need you to get Kuroo."
Bokuto snapped to attention at the mention of his best buddy, his mindless rambling falling away. He coughed briefly before saying, "Oxygen boost first, bro. I'll fly faster that way. Anyone else I should get?"
"Refreshing-kun would be good. The alien isn't breathing. Maybe Karasuno's retrieval squad. We definitely can't carry him on our own."
Bokuto shook his head. "They'll all be tired after last night's mission, but I'll try. Hinata should have the energy."
"Whatever. Just get someone, please." Oikawa pulled Bokuto in and gave him three deep breaths. "I'll try to see if Alien-kun here takes oxygen too."
"'Kun', huh? You think it's a guy?" Bokuto's voice was teasing, slightly delirious from the oxygen. The tiniest cough escaped him, but Oikawa was so distracted, he paid it no mind.
"Could be, by the face. Hurry up and go, Kou-chan! Alien-kun could be dying!" Is dying.
"Alright, alright!" Bokuto touched Oikawa on the shoulder lightly as he turned away. "Keep cool."
The sound of powerful wings beating informed Oikawa that Bokuto had left, so he began his work. He hadn't taken to the healing arts like Karasuno's Refreshing-kun had, but he knew the basics. Even better than that, making sure someone else continued breathing was kind of his speciality.
Gingerly touching the alien's burnt face, Oikawa wiped away the soot and grime, its sweat causing the dirt to smudge. Its charred skin was dry and broken in many places, but its face bore similar features to his own.
Eyes, nose, mouth, ears... We're practically the same. And here I thought aliens were little green men.
Curiosity satisfied by his observation, Oikawa steeled himself before pinching the alien's nose shut and pressing his mouth to charred lips, exhaling deeply. He could see the alien's chest rise, and when he pulled away, the alien seemed to be breathing a little better.
Oikawa punched the air in triumph. Alien-kun can take oxygen!
Appeased by his breakthrough, Oikawa took to his new task of breathing for the alien, even though he already couldn't stand the taste of ash and soot.
Pinch, attach, exhale. Pinch, attach, exhale.
Repeat.
It took 148 breaths before he heard the flapping of wings and Bokuto's screech of greeting. 19 more before Kuroo appeared, Karasuno's retrieval squad in tow. Three before the alien was on the stretcher.
There were no more breaths for the alien after that, not when they were moving. Thankfully, by then the alien seemed to be able to breathe somewhat on his own. Oikawa was getting really sick of the taste of ash and burnt flesh.
Turning away, Oikawa gave Bokuto five breaths in thanks before they began stumbling back towards Karasuno. His lips were chapped and dry, and the taste of charred meat would follow him to his deathbed, yet he couldn't help but desperately hope that his newfound obsession would survive.
x.x.x.x.x
Kuroo strode confidently into Karasuno's camp, calling loudly for its leader. Daichi poked his head out of his tent, eyebrows furrowed with sleep and slight annoyance. "Don't yell, Kuroo. Most of us are still sleeping after last night's mission."
"No time, Sawamura. Prep your surgical room. Oikawa found an alien, and it's in bad shape." Kuroo walked back towards the entrance, shouting over his shoulder, "Suga wants the usual equipment, as well as Tsukki and Yamaguchi."
Daichi frowned at Nekoma's leader, but he didn't protest. Sometimes the other overstepped his boundaries in other clans' territories – especially Daichi's – but medical emergencies were one sort of situation he could forgive Kuroo's obnoxiousness for. Stepping out of his tent with more alertness, he went to wake Tsukishima and Yamaguchi. If Suga needed both of them for a healing, then things were definitely in a bad way.
Yamaguchi had just finished laying out the surgical instruments and healing salves when the chatter of their retrieval squad reached his ears. He started towards the curtain, but Tsukishima beat him to it, pulling the fabric aside as their tired and sweaty team burst in. The retrieval squad quickly rearranged themselves such that Asahi and Kuroo were holding the stretcher, allowing Tanaka and Ennoshita to transfer the alien to the surgical table. Hinata stepped out from behind them to hover nervously near the table, his light flickering with his anxiety. Suga brought up the rear, calling out numbers and names of items as he entered the room, and Yamaguchi lunged for paper to take them down.
"Tsukishima, get the cloth scissors and cut that suit off him. Save the material, we can look at it later. Yamaguchi, I need water and clean bandages. Get the IV transfusion kit as well, he's losing too much fluid. Body incompatibilities don't matter right now, he's just another patient. Hinata, stand beside me and keep calm. I need your light. Someone get Oikawa in here, we need him for oxygen. Make sure Bokuto or another owl is always stationed outside, we need someone to take messages and get supplies."
Everybody set about to their tasks, the urgency in Suga's voice not escaping them. Kuroo watched from the door as they cut the blackened suit off the alien, loud gasps echoing as they took in the extent of the damage.
The alien's body was covered in blisters, some of them bubbling with blood. There were more patches of blackened skin than not, and some patches had white edges where the suit had melted and fused to his skin. Suga shook his head once before calling for rags to wipe away the blood, placing damp cloths over the reddened skin.
Kuroo realised that Suga was calling his name. "Kuroo, I need you to get Kenma, please. I have some numbers, but I need to be sure of the extent of the damage."
"Sure. Be right back." Kuroo strode out of the tent, smirking at Bokuto as he exited. "Hey, Bokuto!"
"Hey hey hey, Kuroo!" They shared a lively fist bump, completely forgetting about the dire situation for a moment. Bokuto covered up his cough with a question, "Need me to take a message?"
"Nah. I need to get Kenma, and Nekoma's just round the corner. Save your energy, bro."
"Thanks bro." Bokuto grinned widely, swallowing another cough. "Morphing and flying around so many times in one day is exhausting. Wait, don't go." Bokuto grabbed his sleeve. "How's the alien?"
Kuroo shook his head, torn between leaving to find Kenma and staying to chat with his friend. It seemed like there was something off about him, but he couldn't yet pinpoint what it was. "Looks real bad. I don't think even Suga could save him."
"Well, shit. Tooru's gonna be upset."
"No kidding."
They stayed like that for a minute before Kuroo sighed and walked away. "Well, I'd better get Kenma. Maybe he'll have a better idea of how to save the alien."
"Keep cool." Bokuto called, suppressing another cough. "Kenma's sure to have an idea."
x.x.x.x.x
"He's going to die."
"Ken-chan!" Oikawa wailed. "Couldn't you say it less harshly?"
"No." Kenma's eyes drifted off to the side. "I can't help what I see. It would take a miracle to save your alien."
Oikawa whimpered pathetically.
"Suga-san, is there really nothing we can do?" Hinata asked in a small voice.
Suga shook his head. "My salves could heal the burns, but he wouldn't last long even if he was healed. His body isn't adapted for living on our planet."
As if to emphasise his point, the alien wheezed breathlessly. Oikawa immediately bent over to give him a lungful of air.
Suga continued explaining softly, "He can barely breathe on his own, so I suspect he needs more oxygen than we do. Do you see how badly he's sweating, even though we're indoors? His body isn't meant to be in an atmosphere as hot as ours. He'd heal better if we could get him somewhere at least twenty degrees cooler."
Hinata uttered a soft "Oh", his usually radiant light dimming with his mood. Across them, Oikawa straightened up, his eyes shiny with angry tears. "Isn't there any way to save him, then? Any way to make him suited to living on this planet? I'd send him back where he came from, but his ship is destroyed. He needs to stay with us."
"If he wasn't injured, he could have had a chance at adapting to our planet on his own. It would be slow, but it could happen. He looks healthy in general, and I think he's probably one of those survivor types." Suga sighed sadly. "Oikawa, I understand what you're asking for, but it is impossible. If I knew of such an instant cure, I would have given it to him already. However, if such a thing existed, only the Nohebi would have it."
"Damn it." Oikawa punched the table, sensing the truth in Suga's words. His throbbing fingers curled in the cloth covering the alien, and frustrated tears burned in his eyes.
Why? The first alien I've ever found, and he's doomed to die before he can wake up and tell me all about his planet?
It's not fair! Why does this always happen to me?
Please, someone, anyone, let him survive. I'll do anything. Don't let him die. Not yet.
"Erm, excuse me..." All eyes turned to Yamaguchi, who shrank under their gazes. He gulped once, then cleared his throat noisily, but his voice still came out as a squeak. "We raided the palace yesterday."
"I am very aware of that fact. What is your point, Freckles-kun?" Oikawa's voice was sharp, too distressed to mask his brutal tone.
Yamaguchi paled at the unspoken challenge, but squared his shoulders bravely. "I got a look at the spoils, and I know which ones each clan took. It was a good haul yesterday, so each clan kept what they found on the raid. If I'm not wrong, Aoba Jousai found the most valuable items.
"What I'm saying is, I think Matsukawa-san and Hanamaki-san may have found something that might help the alien."