FOUR

The moon was still nearly full, but it was on the downward spiral in terms of its cycle. For now, it provided excellent light as Priscilla and Aaron made their way to the well. Normally they would get the water during the day, but they both wanted some time away from the city and to enjoy the silence that night brought them. It was peaceful out here by themselves. Even after they had filled the bottles they brought with them, they wandered around until they found a little hill. That was where they had been for the past half hour, just staring off into the emptiness made visible by the bright moon and the stars.

"I hope Charlie is okay," Priscilla mused, drawing them both from their thoughts.

It had been two days since Charlie and Monroe disappeared. Aaron had been saddened to know that she hadn't said goodbye to him. He had always felt a special bond with her. Hell, he had known her since she was small. The sting of her disappearance lessened when he realized her departure hadn't exactly been planned. "I hope so. God only knows with Monroe."

"I don't think he would hurt her."

"What makes you say that?"

She shrugged as she turned her head to look at him. "He had so many chances and yet he always seems to be there for her."

Aaron let her words sink and in realized she was right. "Still, he's not a liked man, especially out here. Trouble follows him like moths to a flame. She'll always be in danger just by being around him."

Priscilla shrugged. "She's a smart girl, she'll be able to take care of herself."

Aaron smiled as he thought about all the things Charlie had been through lately. A part of him was proud and thought about Ben. Her father would have liked the strong woman she had become, but he wasn't so sure he would have liked the "kill first, ask questions later" attitude of hers. That part eerily reminded him of Miles. Not wanting to think about that, he put an arm around Priscilla. "We should probably head back."

She nodded and got to her feet. "Are you planning on staying here?"

"What do you mean?"

"I want to stay with you," she said, smiling up at him. "But my daughters are out there somewhere and I would like to see them again."

Aaron nodded and pulled her to him. "Any idea where they could be?"

"Maybe Wichita. It's the only place Darren had family other than the East Coast."

"It's a start," Aaron said and smiled at her when she pulled away. "We'll go soon. We'll find them."

They only took but a couple of steps back towards the town before a blinding streak of light forced their eyes shut. When they could open their eyes again they discovered a small group of green fireflies to their left. Both of them stared at the group with wide eyes. Rooted with terror, neither of them could move from their spot. Something changed in the swirling buzz and Aaron squinted as he saw something. It was almost as if they were attacking one another.

His gaze slid to Priscilla who seemed to be realizing this same thing. As he turned back to watch the fireflies, he noticed there was definitely two groups of bugs. A very small group was being assaulted by the majority and they were losing quickly. Their lights started to dim and the ones being attacked fell to the ground. As if that was their goal, the large swarm hesitated for a second and then disappeared as fast as they had come into view.

Priscilla and Aaron could only watch as the battered fireflies pulled themselves together and took on the form of a blonde woman. Priscilla heard Aaron's breath hitch and looked to see his eyes fill with recognition. "Maggie?" he breathed, his voice full of disbelief.

The blonde didn't smile back at him as she wafted over the patches of grass and dirt. She shimmered like a ghost as if there wasn't enough energy to make a full image. He could see through her, what little there was of her. She stopped within an arm's length of him and reached out, her arm forming as it moved. "Help us," she said, her voice cracking.

"No," Priscilla stated defiantly. She was done with the Nano.

"Help us," Maggie repeated. "There is... division... human... key to extinction." Her voice went in and out like a broken record, her image distorting like a hologram every few seconds. "Some of us... too powerful... don't agree."

"I don't understand," Aaron said.

She moved closer and wrapped her hand around his wrist. Priscilla watched as he went still, his eyes wide. It looked as though he were getting shocked, but she knew he was receiving a message. "Help us," Maggie repeated again as she let go, a look of pleading in her eyes.

One instant she was shimmering brightly before them, the next she was gone. In her stead was a pile of fireflies with a dying glow to them. Aaron snapped out of his daze and hurried to scoop them up. "I need a container," he said urgently.

Priscilla found an empty one and held it out so that he could gently put the dying Nano bugs into it. Aaron met her eyes, his full of worry and something else, something like hope? "What did she tell you?" she asked.

"Everything we could have hoped for. We need to tell the others," he replied and gave her a smile before taking her hand and pulling her towards the town.

That feeling of being powerless flowed through her body. Power wasn't something she craved, but losing it was her worst nightmare. She could see Maggie struggling beside her as they sat there, tied to the chairs on the plane. The men were rifling through their packs and poking fun at Aaron being overweight. He was tied down too, but towards the back, too far away to do any real help. One of the men stopped going through her stuff when he realized her eyes were open and Charlie tried hard not to flinch.

He placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled luridly. He leaned in even closer and closed his eyes as he inhaled deeply. "I wonder if you taste as good as you smell."

"Leave her alone!" Maggie cried out, earning a slap from one of the other men.

Charlie's eyes closed for a second and when she opened them again, her surroundings were different. She was standing in a large room filled with people. Some she recognized, some she didn't, but one thing stood out the most. Strausser. He had a gun aimed at Danny and before Charlie realized what she was doing, she moved to stand between them, the barrel centimeters from her skin. As his fingers inched towards the trigger in slow motion, Charlie's eyes closed again.

As she expected, the scene changed again. She was pressed against the wall of the bar and someone off to her right was locking the door, keeping her in. Her fingers clutched at the wall trying to force herself to stay on her feet, but the drugs in her system were too strong. The men advanced on her, their leering faces and lust in their eyes made her sick. That feeling of powerlessness hit her again, this time stronger than before.

Her vision blurred and her eyes fluttered. When it cleared the bar was gone, replaced with the interior of a former safe house. Neville stood before her with his gun pressed against her temple. Her body shook as she tried to remain brave in the face of death. Her guilt wracked her nerves as his finger slid to the trigger. They locked eyes for what seemed like eternity, but the determination, hate, rage, and sorrow in Neville's dark eyes never wavered. As his finger squeezed the trigger, Charlie's eyes closed yet again, the clicking sound fading away as she found herself lying on the floor of the bar.

Her vision was still cloudy, but she could make out the bodies and the blood that littered the floor. She heard footsteps and looked up to see him approach her. He had blood smeared all over him and an unreadable emotion on his face. Had she been more alert she would have been able to read it, but as it was, she could feel herself giving in to the drugs. The feeling of being powerless coursed through her as he approached and she felt true fear for the first time in a long while as he leaned down. As his arm extended to reach for her, Charlie felt her eyes closing again, her name on his lips swarming around her like an echo.

Charlie inhaled deeply as she sat up with a jolt. Every fiber of her being felt as though she had been hit by a car and her skin was bathed in a cold sweat. As she opened her eyes she saw Monroe kneeling by her side. He had a hand on her shoulder and concern in his eyes. "Charlie?" he questioned wanting to know what was wrong and how he could help.

There was fear in her eyes, real fear, and Monroe tried to remember if he had ever seen that in her before. If he had, he couldn't recall. He had seen bravery, determination, sadness, and a myriad of other emotions, but not fear. She had never been this vulnerable around him and Monroe didn't have the slightest clue how to handle this situation.

She closed her eyes as her mind worked through what was real and what had been a nightmare. Her breathing calmed and her heart wasn't slamming against her chest anymore. Slowly she blinked her eyes open and looked up at Monroe. She felt his hand on her arm and took the comfort he offered.

"Are you alright?" he asked as she moved into a sitting position. He stayed where he was, on his knees, and looked at her.

She nodded and brushed the hair out of her face, pulling it together and over one of her shoulders. "It was just a dream."

"That was one hell of dream," he commented, earning a sharp look from her.

She nodded. "I was reliving some of the bad things that happened in the past."

"Oh," was all he could say. He pushed himself to his feet and offered his hand to help her up as well. She took it and nodded in thanks as he tightened his grip as she stumbled. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" she asked, their arms slowly going back to their sides.

"The bad stuff."

Monroe was grateful to see that the normal playfulness in her eyes was back as well as that permanent smirk on her lips. "I wasn't dreaming about you."

He was surprised by that. He was silent as she moved to their supplies in search of water. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"No."

"Charlie-"

She shook her head as she finished the bottle and tossed it back in the bag so they could fill it again later. "Let it go, Monroe. That stuff is in the past."

"You don't have to be strong all the time, Charlie."

"Yes I do. If I let myself wallow every time something bad happened I would be a train wreck. Bad stuff happens, I deal with it, I move on. What's done is done." She turned and began to walk away from their makeshift camp.

"Where are you going?" he asked, taking a step after her.

"I need to pee," she replied over her shoulder and disappeared into the thinly spread nature surrounding them.

Monroe sighed and looked around. He admired her strength, but he hadn't realized until that moment that he had never seen her not be strong. She was stubborn and strong all the time. He snorted as he thought about how much like Miles she was. He stopped moving as his thoughts went down another path, one that was interrupted by Charlie's voice calling his name.

It was soft and devoid of any urgency, but filled with wonder. He followed her voice as she called for him a second time and stopped short when he found her. Charlie had her back to him when he approached, her gaze stuck on the patch of dirt before her. There were five fireflies, but instead of yellow they were green and they appeared to be dying, their lights flickering.

"Nano?" he asked. She nodded and moved to get a closer look. As she bent down to pick one up, Monroe lifted her by her bicep and pulled her back. "Don't touch them," he pleaded, looking at her with wide eyes.

Before Charlie could protest or pull out of his grip, a cracking noise like static on a TV filled their ears and they could only stand there and stare in awe as a figure appeared before them. They both recognized the woman and Charlie could feel her eyes well with tears. "Nora," she breathed.

Nora smiled, a bright flash of light coursing through her image. "Help us," she said, looking at first to Monroe and then to Charlie. "Chosen." No sooner had she said the words did she vanish.

Charlie pulled out of Monroe's grasp and bent to pick up the fireflies. Four of them had stopped glowing and had wilted, but one of them still hummed with energy that she could feel in her hands. "What the hell was that?" Monroe asked.

"I don't know," Charlie replied as she took the surviving Nano in her other hand, letting the dead ones fall to the ground. "But we should keep it."

She took his hand and placed the bug into his palm, curling his fingers around it. "What-"

"Put it in a bottle or something," she said as she let go of him. "I still have to pee." Needing to take care of those needs as well as needing to deal with her nightmares and seeing Nora again made Charlie want some alone time. Monroe was right, she didn't need to be strong all the time, but she wasn't ready to be vulnerable around him on purpose yet. Instead, she left him there, holding a dying piece of Nano while they both wondered what the meaning of their message was.

Miles and Rachel had been lounging on the couch when Priscilla and Aaron stormed in. They sat up quickly, Miles reaching for his sword, ready to confront whatever danger followed. Aaron fumbled as he produced a bottle and set it down on the coffee table. Aaron took a moment to catch his breath while the new couple took in the sight of the barely flickering light the captured bugs were emitting.

"Aaron," Rachel began, her voice light. "Is that-"

"Nano, yes," he answered.

"Why would you bring that here?" Miles asked, still holding on to his sword.

"They asked us for our help," Priscilla stated.

"They took the form of Maggie," explained Aaron. "They couldn't form whole sentences, but they said something about extinction and a human key." He paused and shook his head. Rachel noticed the way his eyes lit up in the dim light as he continued. "They told me everything."

"Everything?" Rachel questioned.

"Everything," he repeated.

Miles put his sword down and looked at the bottle that contained the Nano. "Aaron, please explain what the hell is going on."

"It was taking too much energy for them to speak as Maggie. She touched me to deliver their message. As you know from what they told us from possessing Priscilla, they have decided that humans are the problem and they next step is to destroy the human race. But that's not true for all the Nano."

Rachel's eyes went wide as she exchanged glances with Miles, but they remained silent as they waited to hear what else Aaron had to say.

"Some of the Nano know that killing off the human race is not what they were created for. There is a schism within the Nano, those that believe they were created to help heal the human race want our help. They want to stop the other Nano before they team up with the Patriots or anyone else bent on destruction."

"They're teaming up with the Patriots?" Miles stated. "Fuck."

Aaron nodded, but he smiled brightly. "The good Nano are still small, but they're building their numbers. They mentioned a Chosen One, someone that they would be able to evolve in order to save the human race and take out the other Nano. All they want in return is for us to help. The message was cut short, but I remember something about Bradbury, Idaho. It was significant enough for me to remember, I'm sure it's something worth looking into," he concluded.

"Did they mention who the Chosen One might be?" Rachel asked.

Aaron nodded and smiled warmly at her. "Charlie," he breathed. "They said it was Charlie."