Chapter Two:

"What if I don't come with you?"

"We can make you."

She used to be a friend. They used to fight side by side. Then, they took her, and he thought she was dead. It was a relief to know that she was alive, but she was now with them, harnessed, and a puppet to their violin. But who was she, and why did she mean so much to him?

"Tom."

"I have to do this." He turned toward the man standing behind him and was filled with admiration and respect. This was his leader. He could feel it, but who was he to such a man? "I have to do this for my son." He turned back toward the young woman patiently waiting for him to take her by the hand. "I'm sorry," he thought, "but they cannot have my son again."

"Tom!"

A monstrous face appeared before him. Its dark eyes made a silent scream rise up into his throat. Its large hands wrapped around his neck, lifting him off the ground. He struggled to breathe, but he could feel himself slipping away. A sound chilled his ears. The monster was laughing, an unsettling hiss that rattled his nerves, and he struggled to strike at it with his fists. But then the creature threw him aside like a rag doll.

"Skitter!"

He jolted upright. His eyes needed a moment to grow accustomed to the dim lighting. He felt something cold press against the back of his head, and his hand found hers. He tried to speak, but his voice was hoarse. "Skitter," he whispered. "Skitter."

"Sky." The young woman moved quickly away from him. "I told you to let him rest."

"Sorry." As she moved away from him, he spotted three silver quills sticking out of the back of her neck. As if she sensed his gaze, her hand gingerly covered them from his sight. "He was having a nightmare."

"Tom." He wiped the sweat off his brow. "My name is Tom."

"You remember?" Lady walked over to him. She quickly examined him and once again shined that damn light into his eyes. "What else do you remember?"

"I have a son." Tom smiled. "I have a son."

"That explains why you chased the boy. He must have reminded you of your son." She gnawed on her lip. "What else do you remember?"

"I went with the aliens." She backed away from him and motioned for Sky to do the same. "It was the only way." Tom now sat up on the cot and rubbed his face with his hands. "They were going to take him. Again."

"Again?" Lady now fixed her stare on Sky. "Did they succeed?"

"I don't know. Why?" Lady gestured for Sky to now take a seat and began to examine the quills sticking out of her skin. "Why?" He stumbled to his feet. "What does it matter?"

"It matters." Lady now stared intently at him. "We rescued five harnessed kids. I tried like hell to get those damn things off them."

"Ow."

"Sorry, Sky. These three are just stubborn. They won't fall out like the rest." A trickle of blood ran down Sky's back. "We lost three children. Only a young boy and Sky here survived." Her fingers pressed against the skin surrounding the quills. "Hard."

"What?"

"Nothing, Sky. You can go. Go now down the tunnel to where our people wait."

"They don't want me with them. I want to stay with you." Sky remained sitting. "The boy's quills fell out. He's normal. I'm not."

"You look normal," Tom said with a smile. "You were also right. I was having a nightmare. How'd you know?"

"Sky here is our security system." Lady took a gauze pad and wiped the blood off Sky's back. "Ever since she got better, she could sense the skitters a mile away. When our scouting parties go out, she goes with them. In the beginning, it took a lot to get her to talk." Lady patted Sky's face with a gentle hand. "Now, she's a chatterbug. Off with you." Sky slowly slid away out of view. "I don't want them coming back for her. It took a lot for her to return to… Normal, and if they get her again, she won't make it back."

"And the boy that you saved?"

"Alive and well with his parents." Lady now took a seat. She studied Tom, trying to sum up wherever he was friend or foe. "Another parent lost their child when we took the harness off. He blames Sky. She's his scapegoat, and he's made it unbearable for her to be with us. She hides out here, or she goes out up there."

"What happened to him?" Tom now focused on the soldier, who rested in-between consciousness and unconsciousness. "How did you find him?"

"Luck." Lady walked over to the soldier to examine him. "From what we could gather, his unit took on the skitters and the mechs, but they were no match for them. They were slaughtered. He was lucky to have survived, if you call this living." She checked his bandages. "With what antibiotics I have, it's not enough. If I never took an oath, I would put this man out of his misery." She stepped closer to Tom. "Don't make me regret saving you." She left the room.

"Tom," the soldier whispered. "Tom."

"You know me?" The soldier struggled to lift his good arm and held his hand out to him. "Tell me. Who am I?" Tom took his hand, tightening his grip. "Who am I?"

"Captain Weaver. We tried to meet him, but we were ambushed." The soldier swallowed hard. "Tom, what are you doing here?"

"I don't know. I know that I went with the aliens. I didn't have a choice."

"We all have a choice." The soldier pulled Tom closer. "Kill me. Please. I can't live like this. I can't live in pain."

"It's okay. I'll get Lady. She can help."

"No! Damn it, Tom. You're a good man. Do this for me. Please…"

Gunfire erupted out into the hall. Sparks lit up the dark. Ear-piercing screams penetrated through a façade of safety. The skitters had found them, and they were closing in. A bullet struck the wall, inches away from Tom's head.

"You!" Lady limped forward. Sky hovered behind her. "You brought them here. They know that we are here because of you!"

"No." Tom moved away from the soldier. "No, I didn't." He raised his hands up before him. "I swear that I didn't."

"They're tracking him," Sky whispered into her ear. "I can sense them. More are on their way."

"I should kill you." Lady's hand shook as she aimed her gun at Tom's head. "I was such a fool to believe in you."

"Please." Tom took another step forward. "Believe me. I did not bring them here." His eyes now met Sky's gaze. "If I did, it was against my will. I meant you and your people no harm. Look into my eyes. I don't even know who I am." Lady's finger curled around the trigger. "If you want to kill me…" Tom dropped his hands to his side. "Then, go ahead." For a moment there, he thought she would.

"No." Lady lowered her gun. "Sky?"

"Yes?"

"Lead him to the surface, and then get him the hell away from here. If we're lucky, they'll follow him."

"No. No, I'm not leaving you." Sky embraced Lady. "I won't leave you."

"I'm sorry, Sky." Lady hugged her back. "But you have to go. You have to go with him." Tears ran down her face. "I already set the C4. You only have a few minutes left to leave."

"Lady…"

Tom slowly pulled the young girl away from her. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders as she cried. He looked from Lady to the soldier wishing to die, and he got his wish. He would go down fighting one last battle, one last hoorah, and Lady would be another causality of war. They were losing, and they were using him to do it. And he would be damned, if they use him again.

"Go!"

Lady's last word broke him from his reverie. He pulled Sky out into the corridor, which was partly blown apart. The hole above them gaped eagerly, waiting to chew them up with broken, sharp pavement teeth. He turned toward Lady one last time, who slowly nodded at him. This was how it had to be. The black box waited in her hand, and she would wait for the skitters to get closer. He had to go, and he would take Sky with them. She didn't need to know or see what was going to happen next.

"I'm sorry." Tom lifted Sky up into his arms and slowly made it up and out onto the surface. "I'm sorry."

"You don't understand," Sky whispered into his ear. "You just ended mankind."