Chapter 2: A time machine won't fix this
Author: ZeusFluff.
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the V characters. Date Started: 8/27/15. Date Finished: 8/31/15.
Erica knew that even with a time machine it wouldn't fix all the damage done by the V's. She couldn't focus on Tyler, on what she'd lost. Not right now. Right now she was busy looking through profiles of six different people who could be V hunters. Inside she felt her soul weeping, but on the outside she'd been hardened by the pain and grief her son's death had caused. Her eyes wandered to the old picture of her and Tyler as an infant. She'd taped it to the computer monitor to remind her not to lose focus on what she was fighting for. But of course, how could she forget? Suddenly a photo of a tall man appeared on her screen. He had round-rimmed glasses and a scar on his left cheek. He looked like anyone else and to her luck he lived in Brooklyn. Motioning for Paul to come towards her, Erica clicked on the screen a few times with the mouse to get an address.
"Paul I think I've got something."
Kendrick quickly strolled over towards Erica and pulled up a chair next to her.
"What've you got Evans?"
Smiling for the first time in about a month Erica pointed at the photo staring back at her.
"Mark Bryson. Age: 34. He's been detained several times by the DEA for smuggling heroin. That's the cover story at least."
Kendrick furrowed his brow and thought for a moment. Another thought came to mind.
"So Evans, I've been meaning to ask you: What's this I'm hearing about the purpose of the Red Sky and red rain?"
Swallowing, Erica stopped typing in Aliases and looked Paul straight in the eye.
"I'm not sure, but I do know that the Visitors want human's for breeding."
Kendrick stared at her stony faced and then turned when he heard a voice.
"The purpose of Red Sky is to make all human females on Earth fertile. All the females of child-bearing age."
Erica closed her eyes and bit her lip. Heart hammering in her chest she opened her eyes and found herself staring into the eyes of Joshua. A general pushed Joshua and Lisa forward, the two landing on their knees.
"Found these two wandering around outside. They seem to know a lot about what the V's are planning. Can we trust them Agent Evans?"
Nodding she gave a small smile to both Joshua and Lisa.
"Yes they can help us. Their Fifth Column. They can help us. You wouldn't have access to these two without me. Yes they are visitors, and they are our best allies and best chance at defeating Anna."
Erica swore that she could see a hint of a smile dawn on Joshua's face. It was as if looking at her was like finding a long lost friend. A frown replaced Joshua's smile.
"Unfortunately for you Agent Evans, you are at the top of the queen's list. She's selected you for breeding first."
Erica felt as if she were going to vomit. How could she defeat the V if she couldn't even be out in the open? Disgusted, aghast, frightened and confused Erica knew the risks of being out in the open, but her best chance at surviving this was to stick with Joshua and Lisa. She looked to Lisa and explained what would happen.
"What your mother doesn't realize is that human women don't lay eggs like the Visitors do. We bear our children and carry them here."
She placed her hands on her stomach for emphasis. Lisa had a question hanging on her lips.
"How many children can human females have at once?"
Erica paled at the thought. She was astonished at how little Lisa still knew about humanity. She was like a small child in a grown body.
"The last I'd heard 8. Now is there any way you can contact more allies on the ship?"
Joshua shook his head no and folded his hands in front of him. He looked as if he were thinking on a very serious subject.
"No. The queen banished us to live our lives among humans. We are no longer allowed to board the ship. However, I managed to acquire and bring various medical supplies with me. I assure you they are harmless. This scanner will detect if you have high levels of Phosphorus in your blood. None of the items I have with me are intrusive."
Erica's gut clenched at the thought.
"Is there a room I may examine you in?"
Joshua had always been polite with Erica, and she trusted him with her life. However, the four generals surrounding the two rogue Visitor's didn't. Guns were now raised towards them. Erica threw her hands up and became slightly irritated.
"Guys relax! It's just a medical scanner. It won't hurt you."
Although she knew it wouldn't harm any of the human's in the room, in the past the V's had used medical instruments to gain an upper hand against humanity. Still skeptical the general's stood their ground. Erica demonstrated for them as Joshua scanned the span of her right arm.
"See? It doesn't hurt. He was checking to see if I had a broken bone."
Hesitating the four generals looked at the scan taken of Erica's arm. No fractures or clean breaks. Just a solid unbroken bone. Nodding with hesitancy the general in the back gave approval.
"Alright. There's a room down the hall you can use. But you've only got 10 minutes. There will be guards posted outside the door the whole time. If something goes wrong with Agent Evans, we'll storm the room and you Joshua will disappear somewhere not even your own kind can find you."
Erica followed Joshua down the hallway and into the room. Shutting the door, she found a soft chair to sit in. She watched as he pulled the scanner from his pocket and recalibrated it so it was in a different scanning mode. Running the scanner along the length of her body Joshua sighed. If this weren't a dire situation they were in, she would laugh. He was more human than he gave himself credit for. Swallowing, she felt herself tense.
"I'm sorry to have to give you upsetting news Agent Evans, but your Phosphorus levels are nearly 400 times what they should be."
Inside she felt herself begin to quiver with fear, anger, confusion and an assortment of many other emotions she wasn't quite sure she understood right at the moment. Diving in she asked a question that was blooming in her mind.
"What happens to me if she succeeds?"
She felt like vomiting again. A serious mask fell over Joshua's face.
"The queen will select a V male for you to mate with. If you have a male you will survive, but the queen will dispose of you after you've given birth. If you have a female, you will lose your life before you even make it to term."
Her mind was racing, she couldn't let this happen. It would mean the extinction of the entire human race. Getting up from the chair, she all but ripped the door open and found the nearest garbage can. Emptying what little contents she had left in her stomach, she looked up in time to see Paul walking down the hallway towards her. His forehead knit in concern, he approached her.
"Went that bad huh? You're not…"
Glaring up at him and nose flaring she wiped her mouth with the back of her left hand.
"Of course not Paul. The very idea makes my skin crawl, my head ache and my insides quiver with fear. I'm a walking target."
As she made her way back to her desk she felt faint. This was almost too much to take in at once. Chris guided her to the chair and she lowered herself down into it. Paul came back with a glass of water.
"You alright?"
Erica shook her head no and recounted what Joshua told her.
"No. How would you feel if you were in my shoes? If a V doctor told you that Anna was going to pick someone on her ship for you to be 'with' and you had to give birth to a child, preferably a male, she would dispose of you after giving birth. I wouldn't survive if it was a female. But I am not letting any of it happen. If it does happen, it means the extinction of everyone on Earth, and not just the women."
Chris tried to wrap his brain around what Erica just told him. He wasn't sure what was going to happen next, but he most definitely had her back.
To Be Continued…