P.O.V Sinatra:
(Thursday night)
I'm an alien. A Klyntar. Blackness, surrounding everything. I'll protect you. Enveloping my body and mind. I struggled for air, I fought for my body. I bent to its will, I let myself go. It moved in silky threads around my joints, like a cage pressing around every millimeter of my being. Its touch was gentle, soft, fragile and firm. My vision is an absolute blindness straining my eyes, and I could feel my pupils dilate in response. No matter how hard I tried, my body would not respond to insistent tugging. Instead, all I can feel are my hands pushing on the mattress to get up. It's odd, the disconnect between the mattress and my hand. As if my nerves were dulled, unable to fully feel. But it felt like, at the same time, as if another layer of skin was doing the feeling for me, in a way that's still connected to my original epidermis. The blanket lay piled on the side, its protection long forgotten. Instinctively I kept struggling against the force moving my body.
Calm down. The silky strands nudged me with a little more force. Irritation flared up and I forcibly shoved my body back down. It retaliated with a hiss.
Calm down? For the alien in me? Ice hardened out the fear, covered the words in armor and sent them cutting towards the voice. A spike of impatience cracked against my head like a slap. Fine, it (she?) bit out. Her aggravation jutted like bones against thinly stretched skin, but lacking even a hint of concealment. Want your body back so bad?
The image of someone snapping their fingers appeared, hovered like mist, until it began pulling itself to the forefront of my mind when suddenly, inexplicably, the force withdrew and ceased its prodding. I flexed my fingers, testing their movement. Waited with baited breath, expecting control to be wrenched back away within moments. But that didn't happen. I tested them again. They felt, along with the strange disconnect, odd. Too long. Too sharp. I experimentally swept the tip of one across the mattress. The tip caught, then the sound ripping followed soon after. What have you done?
Beneath the curiosity, and the still-hammering heartbeat, lingered a steady pulse of my fear. I'm showing you. The reply sounded like a child on Christmas morning, anxious to wake their parents and run 'em downstairs to open gifts as soon as possible. A jittery sort of anticipation that leaked right back to me.
Look at yourself. Amusement curled snake-like in my organs. I can't see! I retorted. Rising panic built upon my unease as I realized the truth of the statement. They simmered under the surface of my control. My eyes still work, I assured myself. Neither gone nor broken. Just covered. Blocked off by this inky, slithering thing that wouldn't stay still. I shuddered. Then let me show you. The voice was everywhere at once, rumbling like a bass stereo full of depth. Powerful. Tempting.
It was alluring.
I shut my eyes for a second, took a breath in. The temperature tonight hovered at a chilling 48 degrees, yet my body felt overheated and humid. And tired. My muscles ached. My eyes, despite the adrenaline, ached. Her offer is a debate to be made, a careful one. One that I, against all instinct, already knew the answer to. I reluctantly relaxed my grip on the bed until, one by one, the claws were resting motionless, instead of digging into the bed-frame. Spine-tingling anticipation tore through me before being quickly retracted and clamped down on, but it wasn't my own. And yet, it's strength urged me on while simultaneously driving me further away. It felt too alien, too invasive. My spine went lax. It gently fell back onto the awaiting mass of tendrils. They were poised and ready to catch.
I begin to move again, but the movements are careful (a feat considering I could taste her energy being withheld), and they keep me from being jostled too much. I'll show you, she repeated.
The tangle of tentacles hardened and interwove into each other before finalizing a more solidified and stable form. Slick, cool patches of wood tickled underfoot as she stood us up. What felt like tip-toes was the method of walking, helped by what felt like only two toes being used. I felt the steps of the smooth gait, recognized the direction we were headed before we got there. The destination sat just across from my bed and took no less or more than seven steps to reach. If I could see, I would've seen a full-bodied mirror facing us. A simple one both hung and propped against the wall. I would see dust covering its edges, would see my own face, but my view remained dark.
Watch.
I felt a budding sense of disconnect, then nothing. Everything quickly shut off. The unease, the writhing pile of emotions, dulled. All I'm left with is a blankness, because now, and not for the first time, there was just nothing to feel. The final, unwanted step to protect myself. And that, is familiar.
My mouth opens, but it feels wrong.
My chest took in air, but the pressure on top seems too large.
Let me help you, she whispered. The covering over my eyes peeled back to allow dull light from the outside to filter through. The city's never-endingly bright every single night, but not this time. This time, tonight , the light is dulled, as if even the moon and city themselves wan to shrink away from what's happening under their gaze. But it gives enough light anyway, because they can't stop themselves from peeking in. It's enough for me to make out what's staring back at me. Cold shock washed over my bones. It twisted knife-like into my skin with no way to fend off. I couldn't stop staring at the creature, the thing- How rude- staring back at me in the mirror. It was the kind of thing you would expect a child to see when they say there's a monster under the bed. Nothing was more nightmarish than what's standing before me now, whose body is perfectly illuminated in pale out-wash. It had no eyes except for my own peering through. Two long, bumpy tongues protruded from a hood like some twisted version of hair. Jagged teeth that gleamed pristine white were slick from spit, and a large maw curved into an inappropriately cheerful smile.
The hood's reddish-pink inside prompted some maniacal part of my brain to start singing "Little Red Riding Hood". The only problem with the song in this scenario, is that Little Red Riding Hood is not some cheerful little girl. Whatever is standing before me would have no trouble playing the wolf. The hood was lined with small teeth whose wicked edges curved every which way. More spike-like teeth decorated and outlined the body. They ran everywhere, with some lines even reaching down to my ankles. A thin, elongated, raptor-like claw grew from each ankle and clicked against the floor. A white band circled just above my knees and laid home to an odd pattern of circles branching above.
"This is you...? What you're made of." A feeling of silent confirmation responded. I lifted a knife thin claw and carefully ran it over my -ours, hers?- arm. I doubled back. "That's not my voice." It rang so much smoother, so much surer than mine ever did.
Actually, it's my voice, but since I'm covering you, it's now our voice. The voice seemed amused at the questions. And stop calling me "voice", or I'm afraid I'll have an... Issue. The cold slither at the end of the sentence knotted a loop of fear in my chest, which I quickly forced down. I carefully rested our claws against our chest, holding firm and keeping any wavers from entering my voice. "Then what do you want me to call you? You still haven't told me."
A force yanked my hand down to my side, right before my body spread both arms out and leaned back. My eyes were covered once more, cutting out my sight in a blink. I panicked and yanked at my arms before that same heavy force straightened my head towards the mirror. The jagged maw opened, revealing fleshy pink insides glistening with saliva. Suddenly I-the voice- our body- let out a prideful shriek. It rose high and sharp in an ear-splitting crescendo before cutting out. A brief, intense spike of adrenaline surged at my worry of it waking Dad. My vision swam afterwards, but I saw. Or, felt, rather. But more than that, it was disorienting. The vibrations from the call lingered and vibrated off the walls, outlining everything and creating what's effectively a grey blueprint. Objects were outlined, their true details fuzzed out, but still mostly legible. The image stuck after the sound ended, and it was clear. Even objects behind me were now known. Her voice came again, high off my sudden rush, and I couldn't help but shake in unhinged, silent glee. "Sonar," she caressed.
"I like it, what do you think?"
"I think it's time you showed me everything your species can do." A wicked smile was playing over my mouth, and it felt good.
She laughed, and that felt good, too. Minuscule pin-pricks of neediness were starting to poke through her careful concealment. And even that, dangerous as may be, bombarded my inquisitive desire. Alright, we may as well. I took one final look back, felt one final streak of concern for Dad, before she launched us out the window.
Be careful!
My request was met with maniacal laughter. "But isn't this fun! Do you not feel that beating heart?"
My stomach churned in another head-pounding drop. Sonar's control over my-our- body, was still unsettling. Especially when she was using it to run across rooftops with no concern for our lack of sight. Veering across another split of concrete, Sonar launched herself off another building and let us drop for longer than usual. I can feel her relishing in my pounding whirl of emotions. My equilibrium tumbled and bile rose in my throat.
"You must learn to not be so worrisome, you know." Frustration curdled like milk in the sun. The rush of free-falling was exhilarating. That's undeniable, but it was sickening when every drop made me want to hurl. The navigation of echolocation didn't help ease me up, either.
Sonar dug her claws into the side of the building she had jumped off until we jerked to a halt with her claws splitting the stone. We hung there, bathed in the light of an over-filled city. It outlined our coiling, inky darkness against the night and cast shade to Sonar's never-ending shadow. The building's glass windows were broken, shattered, with their pieces long gone and lost to the shambles of the city. Moss invaded the wounds and crept inside like worm. Lucky for us, Sonar had kept to the more abandoned parts of the city. The parts of the city where buildings are nothing than husks and the people are sparingly spread out.
"Try to enjoy it," she purred. I'd enjoy it more if there wasn't puke in my mouth. There is no puke in your mouth! Sonar's displeasure radiated along my nervous system. It looped back to me and my irritation only grew. With a snort and a thoughtful hmm, Sonar climbed to the buildings top once more and situated herself on the crumbling roof.
She turned to face the opposite edge, then backed up several long steps. The velociraptor claws clicked against the ground. We dropped to the one knee, head hanging low, waiting. A fire suddenly washed over me, red hot and blazing. Never was there any doubt of who it came from. It was a fire of snap-decision determination. Sonar snapped our head up and I could feel her concentration range pinpointing in an arrow. Nervous caution seeped into my bones at the behavior. Sonar burst to her feet with a laugh and, with no chance of me stopping her, practically flew across the rooftop. She screamed out a shrill burst, highlighting everything in grey, and cleared the entire distance in a few lightning-paced steps. Flinging herself off the roof in such brazen behavior made my heart thud against my rib-cage with all the sudden panic of a person who has a gun in their face. We descended towards the ground with no signs of slowing, and I clenched in preparation for the sick sensation soon to follow.
It never came.
Sonar shot out a tendril and latched herself onto the top of another building, letting us swing down a few more seconds before sharply pulling up in a thrilling rush of speed.
It was different from before. It was reckless. It was free.
My muscles clench and strain under the pressure, but I hardly had time to focus on their pain, for within seconds she was shooting upwards from the arc and heaving us onto another rooftop. We dug our feet onto the rim of the rooftop. I felt the concrete crumble under the pressure as we used the momentum to fling ourselves back off. She shrieked, aimed for another building to the side, and latched onto it. We jerked up and rolled onto the roof before she flung out her claws and skidded to a halt.
Had I not been completely covered, and thus rendered nearly immobile at the moment, I'm sure I would be shuddering in an adrenaline high. My breathing came out in breathless gasps of laughter.
Better now? Her smug satisfaction crept across to me. If humans get sickness so easily from falling, you should have let me know beforehand. It would have been much easier.I shook my head. Seems like you figured it out fine on your own. Maybe me yelling about it the entire time had something to do with your epiphany. Deep, soothing chuckling answered my words. "Want to see the rest?" Of what we can do.
Thrill-ride excitement spread out in my nervous system, but now it's hard, hard to differentiate who it belongs to. Me, or Sonar. I can't even tell. And I don't care.
Thin double-blades extended from my wrists. They dug into the roof we're still kneeling on. A show of power from her, one fueled by that same neediness. "I can't risk expelling myself by swinging, so I hope climbing is alright to you from now on." A shame, but understandable. Fine by me, I replied. She smiled. A horrifying sight, were anyone around to see her gaping maws and teeth. "I would take you underwater, but I don't quite think you like water." A vicious joy followed the accusation. No. Not if I can avoid it. My suspicions of another being in my mind and body slipped back. "Fine by me."
A splitting scream of alarm cut the night. My body tensed and I tried in vain to stay down. To wait. To watch. But Sonar forced us up. Her heightened senses filtered the screech of far away cars, the slight murmur of people, and the whistling wind. The scream came from in front of us just a ways away. She crept closer. Soft snarling filled the space around her. Let's get out of here.
We need to head that way to get home anyway, why not investigate? Besides, she drawled, there's nothing on this planet that can harm me. Well, not anything some low-level crook can get at least. My heart still jack-rabbited despite the "reassurance". My instincts warned me off. My mind told me to slip away, to vanish, before anyone even realizes we were here.
"Why?"
To get away unharmed and away from danger while keeping any spoils I have. My dry tone of thought was met with silence. I can feel a silent debate going on in her, like a ghost. After a minute the sensation ended, and Sonar dropped us the rest of the way towards the ground. She uncovered my body before reappearing as a hoodie. The hood was still lined with teeth, as are my shoulders and back, same as when she completely covers me. You'll be able to get closer without arousing so much suspicion.
We land in a strip of narrow alleyway. From down here, all the light of the city which stood so starkly contrasted to the natural entrapment of the night, is now muted, and colorless. We cast no shadow, for there was no warmth to encase the outline. Garbage cans spill across the cracked floor with all the care of the person who had left them here. Apprehension crept through my mind following Sonar's actions. Dark alleyways like this were never something I liked to be in, even during the day. There are plenty of cold bodies in these kinds of places, and I take care to make sure I'll never end up as one of them. You'll be safe with me. I muddled up some gratitude and pushed it towards her. We kept the wrist-knives out and started walking. One step, then two, three, four. I was tensed, and only getting closer to an unknown incident.
"No!" A shout from in front had us whipping our head towards the source. Sonar rustled and a low growl entered my head. Far away from a nearby street light, about a block ahead of us, came the sound of a garbage can hitting the ground. Then the squelch of the garbage being stepped on. The alley gave no clues to what was going on, but already I know. Yet at this level of closeness, a morbid curiosity strings me along. I tell myself to get away, I tell her.
We need to leave. Now.
And where's the fun in that?
"Where's the fun in getting us slaughtered?" My words came out disgusted. Don't pretend you don't want to, Sonar sang. Besides, I'll protect you. Long claws seeped out of skin and enveloped my hands in a stubborn barrier. Killing people isn't exactly protecting me.
Isn't it?
Staring off into the alley's darkness does nothing to help sheathe my curiosity. My eyes narrow in anger. Anger is useful, anger will keep me on guard. We descend into the darkness with ought a sound, for our steps are planned, and light.
The further we move in, the louder the louder the sound gets. An odd sound, a squishing sound. Yet it doesn't disturb me as much as it should. Every few seconds it'll stop, only to be replaced by something new. A loud crunch, the bang of a garbage can. A chuckle. Still Sonar is drawn in, almost hypnotically. A buried, primal instinct seemed to be leading us both. It guides us closer where I don't want to go, and then I realize, my body is no longer my own. Not anymore, for my will no longer controls it. Still, my own fascination lets it happen without much resistance, and all the while my brain screams at me to stop.
We rounded the corner. A sickly-sweet, copper smell invades my nostrils. It burns strong until I can practically taste it.
Sonar foamed inside my gut, as rabid a dog as can ever be. A large, white back blocks our sight from the source of the scent. Anger lashes through my gut. Hot and sharp is its fury, so much so I take a step back.
The creature has to be nearly 7 ½ feet when standing, and even hunched it's back is taller than I. Two muscled arms gab at something on the ground. A rat-like tail swished across the air, its arrowed tip dark and dangerous. Swirling dots tremble in clusters upon the creature's shiny surface. They're nfused upon the body in a way that seems like nothing other than ink spreading across parchment. The skin's slickness churns in chaos. Tendrils wiggle out of its sides and tail. Their movements are fluid, smooth.
The realization hit me like a ton of bricks. It''s a Klyntar. Sonar, it's a Klyntar!
The creature stops munching. It inched its head back in slow, purposeful movement, very much a predator to my prey. White eyes shone, swirling with the bright reflection of a cat's irises at night. Panic stormed and ran rampant at its unhinged, empty gaze. Desperation muddled my thoughts, my actions, and I could only plead for Sonar as the creature stood up.
The beast swung its body at me and I ducked back slamming my body against the corner. My back hit the wall with a thud that left me wincing. Pain blossomed in my shoulder, but the beast missing me is worth it. It landed in a hunched position and stopped. Sonar! I screamed her name. There was no way I would even have a chance at getting away from this thing on my own.
It sprung to its feet and barreled towards me again. I dodged, this time swiping out with the claws still covering my hands. They drew a satisfying growl of pain from the creature, who lay clutching its side as its substance dripped from its body. It stared at me and howled, running again. Once more I dodged, barely a hair's length away, dancing out of the way and waiting. Too unfocused to actually fight, even if I knew how to. Too sharply focusing on its details to do anything about them. My options are limited to a dead end one way, an empty street the other.
And Sonar, still unresponsive save for the twisting against my bones, would not help. There's no doubt this beast won't hunt me down until I'm dead and buried. Dead and eaten, more like.
It came at me again and again, each attempt closer than the last, each time ending with a claw slicing a little deeper into my skin. I stumbled across the garbage littered floor, slipping against bottles and slime and frantic to escape. My back hit the wall again and, in a last-ditch effort to save myself, I put my arms up, unthinkingly letting them take the brunt of every hit. Let the blood run down in scarlet ribbons to stain the floor.
My body was getting tired. My muscles ached. My mind scrambled. And still Sonar writhed at the smell of blood and rotting skin only a few feet away. The beast's claws scraped against mine in a strangely metallic shriek. I grit my teeth and forced my body to weather the impact. My knees nearly buckle, and before I can right myself the beast is on me.
Its whipped its body across the air in a fever. My mouth opened in a silent shout of pain as the tail's sharp end dug into my upper arm. "Dammit Sonar!" My voice cracked with the implication of near tears. You wanted to do this, now help me! I'll be damned if I'm going to die because of you! Not like this. Claws shred jnto my skin wherever they can reach. Arms, sides, stomach, again and again until fresh scarlet is the only color between us. My eyes shut tight and I hold my head down and out of danger.
My muscles buckle under the straining torrent of abuse. My eyes shoot open and I focus my gaze behind the creature. I stare, vision spotted, using the dead space to get a grip. Repeating a mantra in my head steals my mind away. All my life, no matter the pain, it didn't matter. My pain doesn't matter, because others have it worse. But that doesn't make me better. Even now, the pain wouldn't matter to anyone. But it used to. It used to matter when my family was in a shambled shack in the woods. But that time is done now, so now my pain doesn't matter to others anymore. So it shouldn't matter to me, I spat. My anger built, fortified, everlasting and furious. Ever strong, because I don't matter. Because there's always someone worse, right?! Well, that's not me, not this time! This time I won't be the one who's worse off!
The creature jerked its arm up, claws outstretched, going for a kill. Its eyes shone glaring, the only color against the sky. Its collar of teeth stood imposing against the night. I struck at its moment of triumph. At its unprotected body. Strong claws with lethal ends glinting in malice, struck. They connected, catching it across the chin and skimming across its eye. It reeled back, screeching, clawing where bits of its "skin" had splattered off. Sick delight coupled with a cornered animals desperation and pain sent me launching myself at the creature in reckless fury. Sweet crimson rolled and dripped from my wounds, filling me with twisted determination. I propelled my body and twisted away from the beast's outstretched arm. Drawing both hands at the ready, I pushed into the air. My legs forced my mass off the ground higher than I would've thought possible, had I not been recently infused with an alien. Time stood still above the beast's head. Up in the air, I could see the outline of its curled ram horns.
What a sight, another body to litter the world. Gravity brought me hurtling back down the instant my arc reached its peak. A cruel smile played upon my lips.
The lumbering shape looked up, widened its pupil-less eyes at me, and howled in pain as claws came raking down across its back without mercy, digging in and tearing away in frightening exhilaration. Its tail raked across my cheek before, drawing a slice of skin away before I growled and trapped it in my grasp. Black, inky tendrils waved out of my body in dazed aggression. The sharpened tail slithered part way out of my grip. I grunted through gritted teeth. The tail eluded my grasp, aided by the beast's frenzied attempts at getting me off its back. I caught and pinned it once more.
My entire body is nearly encompassed by black, completed by flashes of interlocking pink and white. A force is pushing against my mind. It goaded me on in excitement. "No," I bit out. Some part of me was still pleading to stop, to not go through with this. Frustration corroded my view and I did what she prompted me to do. I placed a single claw against the middle of the tail's length, and swiped.
And tore. And pulled. Finally, within seconds of several extra tendrils helping the disgusting impulse, the tail severed and went still. The end of it dropped to the ground with a thump. The creature screamed and spasmed as its substance pulled away from its body. It flung itself into the dirty alley wall, effectively crushing me and making me lose grip. I slid down in a heap of ragged breathing and short-circuiting vision. The creature's substance pulled away from its hosts body. Tendrils swirled and clashed in the air in a spectacle of unbound chaos. Glimpses of pale hair, ripped clothes and a screaming mouth, was all that could be seen underneath the alien.
"Shit," I breathed. Fear was starting to creep back at the display and agonizing screams.
Soon the creature pulled itself back in and took a solid form again. Sonar swelled and overtook me, blanking out my vision to complete darkness once again. I felt it's wide, opal eyes trained on me until I growled and flexed my claws at it. It took a few steps back, then ran towards a building wall and jumped up. Digging its claws in, it scaled the wall and pulled itself onto the roof in seconds. I lay panting in silence, catching my breath in wait for it to come back. Only it didn't. The night ambiance ticked onward, comprised of shuffling feet and car horns instead of crickets and frogs. The night scent was replaced by the still-lingering scent of food. Sonar pulled some of herself back, but left herself over my mouth. Food.
The smell of blood lay stewing from the corpse that the creature had left behind. Its scent rose in steam the way one might expect to see from a freshly cooked turkey on Thanksgiving night. All fresh and enticing, rich in a way that had you slavering at the mouth.
No...
Please! Her desperate voice entrapped my attention immediately. Had Sonar ever said "please"? Since when had she ever sounded... Sounded so desperate? In pain?
I rose up. My claws scrape against the gravel and I push up. The scent is to strong. It's sweet, like a berry surrounded by thorns. A fresh carcass. A trap. Its juicy reward collected only after getting harmed. A test. One I could not avoid, for I was already bound, and Sonar's stricken need is forever pushing us onward.
I crouch down next to the mangled body.
Long, jagged marks have been left embedded on flesh and bone. Deep crevices mar its surface, yet they're strategical. The marks collected closer to the main veins and dug into them with more ferocity. The heaviest set was located directly at the neck with a quick, clean break. At least he went quick. This damage was done after. It's sadistic. The man's casual set of clothes lay in shreds around his body. But still, it isn't what we're looking for. Gently taking the back of his head under a claw and turning him to face me gave me reeling shivers. The top of his head was missing. A dark hole greeted me where his brain was supposed to be. His head was empty.
No, not entirely empty. Slime oozed out of the ears and leaked out the eye sockets and sloshed inside the man's head, but there was still something in there. A chunk of something lay waiting in the dark. It was peaceful, patient. Waiting. My fingers clenched. My heart hammered and I forced myself to lean over the man's exposed skull socket. A sheen of slime lay glistening off the chunk. My other hand reached in and, careful to avoid touching the edges of the skull, picked up the chunk. It was only half, but it was enough. Grey and white branches of color were set in specific patterns, but I find it doesn't smell as bad as it should. All too quickly, I'm in my 8th grade class again, holding up this thing that held all the pieces of what someone is made of. Their personality, their dreams, their memories. It's not a soul, not God, who made us who we are. It's this. Sonar's hunger was still being spat at me and dousing me in acidic venom. It's all to easy to imagine the pleas Sonar is silently making.
All to easy to use them as a distraction.
Now!
People die all the time. At least this one won't be a waste. This one will be a help. If he has a family, they won't know, but he'll be a help. We all die. I paused. But we all don't get eaten after our death.
Still, the brain was now to my mouth. And really, I had no hope of denying her any longer. Not when her hunger so easily placed itself into the pit of my own stomach. I opened my mouth, felt her cover me fully once more. It gave me a merciful break from seeing what I'm about to do. In one quick motion, she tore off half the brain. Its slimy texture slipped easily down our throat. Before I had even completely swallowed it I was moving onto the other half. The two hood-tongues wrapped themselves around the air in excitement.
My mind went numb, tinted only by surprise and horror. Sonar calmed down with but a sigh of ease. A tremor ran through my body at it. Burying my face in my hands I held back the quick approaching sob building in my throat, but much too soon it ripped its way free. Before long I was left curling back into myself with shuddering gasps and a swimming head.
My moment lasted no longer than any other brief response to sudden sadness. Only minutes.
I attempted to wipe my eyes before realizing I was unable to. It seemed like forever, the time I sat there. Wasting away, numb.
It was food. Sonar said it was food. She needs food. I had to, I have to. He was already dead, I didn't kill him. He was useful, I didn't kill him. I needed him, I took what he had to give, because I could.
It's not like he was using it anymore anyway. A dark edged humor sliced through my thoughts like a dagger before vanishing, only to be replaced by a dim, melancholy veil. We need to. I jumped and mentally screamed in a furious, protective, thorny barrier of outrage. I'm going to kill you!
You can't live without me, she hissed.
Can't I? Even inside my head my tone was biting. What have you given me that's so great?! All you've done is made me a cannibal, and I can certainly live without that! Another killer in the news to be categorized and locked up. Another face, another story of the deranged monster. Another choked out sob came out. I'm a monster.
Oh, but little one, you said so yourself. You never killed anyone, an alien did. We simply took what we needed, she strained.
And... Wasn't that true?
My mix of emotions ebbed, leaving me behind to sift through them. Self-disgust, yes. At myself, at her, at that creature that left the body rotting. Sonar edged my thoughts on, like she knew what I was going to say. Like she knew what was skimming below the waves, dangerous as a shark and patient as a killer. The hunger was sated from the half-brain, but only for now. Only for a short while. And perhaps it was this knowledge, this truth, that forced my hand. Because it wasn't something dead and buried deep down. No, it was alive, seeped in toxic strength. She knew. And I knew. And though my mouth worked up and down, pointed teeth clacking together in a wasted try of words, it was my mind that was able to admit it first.
And a small part of me admitted that that felt good, too.
I want more.
P.O.V Chloe:
(Friday Night)
No," I whispered. "No no, no." I shook and fluttered like a leaf under his intense, watchful stare. My legs were drawn up under my chin. Wet spots blossomed on my knees every time new tear fell and was collecting into soaked fabric rubbing against my chin. I curled into myself, hoping it would all just stop.
Get up! I flinched at the command. A hiccuped followed by a sob was my response. Get! Up!
"No! I won't," I wailed. Cracks split my words into pieces. His anger was overwhelming. It flared at the slightest disagreement. It's an unsteady force I cower at. "Please, stop," I whispered. The alien in front of me hovered just on the verge of striking. How something made of goop could be so terrifying might have been funny some other day, but today, terrifying is the only thing he is.
Cold, white claws scraped over my chin. Their presence tickled my skin until I tried burying my head further down. To my dismay, that just made it worse. The claws gripped my skin and forced me to look up through tear-stained vision. Their tips brushed over my chin, the contact made all the more intimidating from his close proximity. Four small, yellow eyes set in un-blinking sockets rove over my face. Get up, or I'll make you wish you weren't alone. My stomach twisted, tempting me to throw up again. I'll make you scream, he promised. I don't doubt it. Puddles of white decorated his blue body, reminding me of the poisonous frogs who used their markings to show their toxicity. His markings weren't the same stunningly bright colors, but it's the same display, same warning. My esophagus worked to swallow against the lump sitting in my throat. It was all too easy to imagine the sprays of blood my family could come home too. All to easy to imagine their horrified faces. All to easy to imagine their delight...
I furiously shook my head. "You'll hurt me anyway..."
Wrong words, evidently. Those yellow eyes widened for a fraction of a second, but whether in shock or anger was unclear, and then narrowed into slits. A force pulled my body up till I was standing, but it didn't bother quelling my trembles. He started making me walk towards my door before I felt his attention shift. A new bout of panic surged, made me ask "What are you doing?!" before a crack of pain split down my side. I cried out and was rewarded with a shove. Tears sprang anew, and I could only feel helpless as they vigorously rolled down my cheeks.
You're sister is due home soon. My breath caught and held itself. You'll feel better when you see her again. I think we'll wait for her, how does that sound? It sounds lovely. The cold feel of claws pressed lightly into my sides. "No!" I blubbered. I struggled to turn my head around. To see those eyes, and plead. "Wait, wait! I'll do it. Take us upstairs before she gets home, please!" I begged. "Please stop!" The tears couldn't dry fast enough before new ones took their place. Their salt, tasting bitter on my tongue, were just another reminder of how pathetic I must look.
That so?
"Yes."
The force controlling my body retreated, but the claws tightened a hairline away from breaking skin. The little gesture was more than enough of a reminder.
My sister's face, positioned alongside my parents, lingered in my mind and I forced myself to turn back up the stairs. I didn't dare linger for fear of causing my family pain. I made it back to my room and shut the door. A heavy, pulsing thud shook every limb, and every beat was felt. A strenuous silence filled my head, leaving me no room to wonder anything Other than the possibilities of my fate, and where it may lead, trapped in the clutches of this alien as is.
I can only wonder where it might lead my family...
A bolt of annoyance punched my gut and slammed me back into focus just in time to see the alien's face come back into view. Its lack of a mouth, curious as it is, is a comfort. Are you ready? A twisted sort of enjoyment wrapped around the words, and I can't help but hate him for it. No, I'm not ready. But that wasn't an opinion I dared voice."Yes," I replied. "I'm ready." My voice's quiet mumble could barely be heard. I don't know what you want out there, but if it means my family is safe, then I'm ready. I bit back another sob. The claws dug in just a little deeper, drawing a gasp from my lungs, before releasing my skin and falling away entirely. His head started shrinking, its rivulets of goo drawing back into themselves before wrapping around to the back of my body. I held my breath, didn't dare blink. The goo stretched out behind me, and though I couldn't see it, I could feel it. It elongated, turning nearly blanket-like in structure, before slipping down onto my skin. Into my skin. A cold, slimy trail followed every tentacle's path as they burrow down. I struggled not to shudder at the feeling of worms combing my body.
Yet before I knew it, it stopped.
The tentacles lingered half-in and half-out, just long enough for confusion to bubble up at their delay. A small, small part of myself hoped he would never move again. But I found the hope quickly dashed as their trail started up, only different in trajectory this time. Now they were pulling out. They widened, thickened, covered. They wouldn't stop. I closed my eyes and sent a brief prayer to whatever God may be listening. The alien's slick skin matched its warmth to my over-heating body. He covered me.
I opened my eyes when the mass finally stopped. What felt like years must have actually took less than a minute. I did a double-take, blinked, unable to process a change before my eyes. Everything looked sharper. Better defined. Smells strengthened until their taste started seeping to the back of my tongue. My minutely heightened senses paved away a lone road in my field of despair, and I made the mistake of letting a slip of happiness take over.
"Let's go." We moved towards my bedroom window. I shivered, still unsure as to what he wanted out there. This evening he had just said "Food", and left it at that. He'd said "I hope you're ready to eat one of your own". And no, no I wasn't. But that doesn't matter. All that matters is that my family is safe. All that matters is to not think about what'll happen, I reasoned.
He opened the window. I can't stop it.
All that matters is to not pay attention.
God help me...
Our body took a step onto the roof, ready to drop to the ground.
All that matters is that my family is safe. All that matters is that my family is safe. Not what will happen, I reason, as we drop to the ground.