Augustus Phillips hugged his sister under the table, listening to the banging.
"Shh Gus. It'll be okay. It'll be okay…" she carried on whispering into his hair, as if if she said it enough times, it would be just that.
"Everything's gonna be fine." She barely finished when something crashed against the front door. Augustus jumped and cried harder into her arms.
They were coming; for him. He breathed in my sister's spicy smell; trying to relaxing his beating heart. He would later wonder how she had always managed to smell like peppers, even when the world had fallen to pieces.
"Listen to me Gus." The urgency in her voice made the five year old look up, into those emerald eyes, but he quickly look away.
"Look at me Augustus!" He jumped at her outburst, and quickly did as she said.
Something crashed into the door again, only this time there was a splintering sound accompanying it.
"You're special Gus. Never forget that. You not immune for no reason." Intensity radiated from those eyes, and Augustus wondered how he never realised how strong she was before then.
He heard footsteps growing, coming up the stairs. His eyes flicker towards the door, before his sister grabs his chin and twists it towards her again.
"Remember me like this okay? Okay!?" She looked at him with such ferocity Augustsus made himself nod. She sighed before looking towards the door and almost absently added "I'm so glad you won't have to see me go like mom."
Something banged against the closest door, and they both jerked back against the wall. "I love you Gus. Never forget that." She grabs him tightly and the boy began to shake uncontrollable, almost as if he knew what was to come.
"I love you Augustus!" She shouted over the banging.
"Remember-"Her voice was lost in the chaos; the door nearest crashed open; and green monsters flowed into the room like polluted water. He screamed and huddle into his sister.
She snaked a hand over his mouth and he froze, understanding the meaning. Maybe the green monsters wouldn't see them.
The two children, huddled under the table watched green boots thud on the carpet and green torsos and arms look behind the curtains. The table blocked any faces, and Gus was relieved he didn't have to see the grotesque thing's head.
Two black boots stopped in front of them. Gus squeezed his sister tightly. He could feel she wasn't breathing, waiting.
Something thumped on the table above them and Augustus let out a yelp, before burying his head into his sister's lap. He felt the room freeze; the tension crackling, and he felt his sister begin to breathe again.
He peeked out and looked at the boots, before slowly looking up. Suddenly an upside-down monster's head materialised in front of them. The boy screamed and scrambled against the wall. He expected his sister to do the same but she stayed frozen.
The spell on her broke though, when a hand reached in towards Augustus. She suddenly launched herself at the mask, howling like a wild animal. A strange mechanical voice screaming mixed with hers as the two of them tumble on the floor, rolling around like animals.
Augustus wanted to look away, but he was rooted to the spot, staring as his sister tore at the monster's face. Seconds before she had been completely controlled, now she was a wild creature.
The other monsters clambered around, but his sister refused to back down. Any hands that got close were clawed; any feet close enough were kicked.
She leaned over the monster, as if protecting him. His face slipped, and Aunugus couldn't believe it was a man that screamed. No, they were monsters, not men.
His sister screamed as someone managed to grab her arm, and scrawled and kicked the fallen man's face as she was pulled up. Augustus didn't let himself look at the man, just focused on his sister.
Three green monsters were gripping her jerking arms while two more were huddling over their fallen colleague who was coughing and shaking.
He looked back at his sister; who was almost foaming. A green monster stood up. He was different. He was wearing a see-through mask, and Augustus could see every wrinkle on his face. The man muttered something to the monster kneeling beside the unmoving man, and walked over to Augustus' sister.
"You'll never control him. Never." She spat the words at the man; but he just stood there, almost relaxed.
"He's more special than you'll ever know. He's-"The man whiped out his gun and fired it at her forehead. He then nodded at the monsters holding her, and they let her go. She slumped and fell to the ground.
Augustus was frozen; every thought and emotion banished in an instant. He stared at her, his sister, his protector, tormenter, best friend; as a red teardrop dribbled past her eyes and over the bridge of her nose. She couldn't be dead. No way. She hadn't cried, or even screamed. Every person he'd ever seen shot had begged and screamed. No. she was not dead.
But when he looked at her, her eyes were staring just past him. He remembered how his cousins eyes had looked the same, and wished he hadn't. His sisters emerald eyes were glazed, like a dolls'.
He had just opened his mouth to ask his sister to get up when he felt hands grab him and pull him from out under the table. He cried as the green monsters dragged him away roughly. He let them too, didn't even fight back. He let them lead him away from the glassy emerald eyes.
It was only when Augustus lost sight of his sister that he realised what had happened. Who was dragging him away. He tore his body away from the green monsters, screaming, and tried to run back to his sister. Strong hands grabbed him like iron forceps.
He yelled up to her, trying to say sorry for everything in a second, when he felt a prick in the back of his neck. He collapse, and the last thing he was aware of were tears rushing down his cheeks before everything went black.