Hello! Long time to see from Whistlebird! I know it's been a reeeeaaally long time since I posted the last chapter… but here it is! (In truth I had half of this written like a couple months after the last one was posted. I procrastinate with major writer's block. Forgive me, but I do plan to finish this… eventually.)

Here's another chapter from Miles' perspective:

...

Phil would flip if I told him what was happening now. Savanah would whack me upside the back of my head and tell me I needed to stop watching science fiction and get a girlfriend. My parents would probably, assuming they took me seriously, take me to a shrink at best and at worst commit me for my own good. Forget juvy camp. I wasn't a delinquent; I was a nut-job.

Because this was insane. Forget that I'd already established that fact a million times over the last few chapters, not to mention this last day or so. It was unbelievable. Period.

I was surrounded on all sides by ginormous man eating monsters, far beneath the surface and probably pretty far out to sea. No they didn't want to eat me. Apparently I wasn't man enough to eat. But I was one of them. Human (I think) but a part of their family. As if the fact that electricity was dully buzzing away in my veins, making my skin glow and I still hadn't drowned though it must have been hours since we last tasted air made me an honorary adopted monster club member.

We sped through the deeps in a massive group that spanned a few good miles of ocean, followed from far, far above in the sky by an equally massive tumbling wave of electric clouds. Where exactly we were headed I hadn't a clue, but we were getting there fast. Everyone slid through each other's currents as if it took no more effort than riding a slipstream of air. Nim swam right along beside me the whole time, his thoughts still somehow attached to mine as if they were a part of my own. All their thoughts connected with mine in that unexplainable way in a network so simple and yet so massive it made my head spin if I thought about it. So I didn't think about it. We were one and we had a purpose. I just went along with it. We just went along with it.

The large group's sense of self was far stronger than mine. My own thoughts still ricocheted around against the insides of my skull, asking questions, wondering what was happening, where we were going, why I was there, what possessed me to follow them—but they were all distant. I could barely feel them sometimes. In those few lucid moments I had, that scared me. Until I forgot again. Just as before at the beach with the hundreds of little ones and again with the submarine, I was overpowered by the same unanimous will that fueled us all toward our destination.

Occasionally I caught more individual thoughts from the giants that surrounded me in the current of single-mindedness. Hungry, some would say. Enemies close by, others would warn. Sometimes one or a few Nims would break off for a while to hunt or scout. They always returned quickly.

Getting closer.

My Nim was silent now, though I could tell he was keeping me carefully in his sight, while also keeping close tabs on any large Nimrods that came too near. I sensed that his thoughts were shielding mine as well, as if he was all that stood between me and the immense force that would break my mind to pieces like a sheet fragile glass. I tried sending a silent, awkward thank you, and received what I felt was a smug "that's right, without me you're puny brain would be mush", though it wasn't said in so many words. In one of those moments where I could think I also tried asking "where to?" but I didn't get an answer to that. Just an extra strong push forward from the communal rush.

After that I think I surrendered for a while, lost to any memories of my own or sense of time.

Eventually I became aware of this annoying tugging sensation. I pushed back, angry and groggy for some reason, but the tugging continued, more insistent. I shook it off.

I was flying through the darkness, wings full of water, great dark shadows at my side, my followers, my friends. I was the head, the Leader. Destroy, we thought. Forward, we thought. We were strong. No weakling half-lives could block our path. Devour all that lies before us, feed our hunger, increase our numbers, we were—

Ow!

My brain snapped back into place as I felt a sharp pain in my arm. Owowowowow! Dizzily I remembered who I was, and where I was. I was still swimming. The dark water around me was still full of enormous speeding shapes glowing the same electric green as my flesh. And Nim's face was clamped around my arm, sharp teeth embedded in my skin.

…Nim?

His slitted eyes fixed themselves on my face, regarding me coyly, like a cat. Then he released his grip on my arm and sidled a few inches away, his body snaking away through the water just beside me. I rubbed my arm where his teeth had pierced the skin. That would leave a mark.

Leader. Lost in dreams is dangerous for leader.

Dreams? What?

It was then I realized Nim wasn't the only one that had his attention riveted on me. My stomach did an odd turn when I looked around and queasily noted at least a dozen golden slitted eyes were specially aimed in my direction. I also noticed the group had almost come to a halt. What was going on?

I felt their thoughts distinctly within my head, but it was different from the last times. Before, they had been focused on an outside threat or goal, and I was simply swept up in their over-powerful feelings. This time… I was the center of attention. It seemed they'd finally noticed me. Was it finally my turn to be eaten?

I braced myself for a wave of killing intent, for the deadly static discharge. Holy crud, I was going to die…

But the hostility never came. The tendrils of thought that slipped into my mind, crazy as it seemed, only prodded and shuffled around curiously. Their force and number, and the raw power and strength barely sheathed within their thoughts would have knocked the breath out of me had I been breathing, but it was like they were just curious.

WHO?

The question came from a hundred different minds at once, and translated as a sharp pain in my head. I cringed. Nim moved protectively closer. Not time yet, he intoned in their direction. Not strong enough yet.

Not strong enough. Strong enough? A few thoughts echoed Nim's statement, as if testing it out for truth. WHO? The thoughts came stronger now, nudging my mind painfully, as if searching for the answer. WHO? WHO IS?

I grabbed my head as numerous buzzing curiosities charged the water and crowded my mind to bursting. I couldn't handle it. Lights began to dance around my vision and I think maybe it wasn't just the electricity returning. I cringed away from the glowing shapes that drew closer. WHO? Not a half-life. US. Not us. Tiny strong power. WHO?

This wasn't good. I was starting to black out…

Destination close. It was Nim's voice, or thought pattern. Time running out. Go. Hurry. Everyone hungry.

Dimly, I felt the minds within my brain loosen and withdraw.

HUNGRY, they agreed after a few moments. Must feed soon. Not enough fish here. Time to move on.

I gulped in relief as I felt the last mind leave mine. I was exhausted. My head was aching fiercely and I fought to remain conscious. The group was moving again. Hundreds of mountainous bodies surged through the water anew. Without thinking, I began to follow, to move with them, but Nim stopped me with a bump of his snout. Leader not strong enough yet, he reminded me gently. Must leave hunters for now, or suffer greatly. Too many here, too large. Not strong enough for so many.

Yeah… I agreed faintly, only half understanding. Not strong enough. Had the water been this dark before…? Maybe it was that the brilliant darkling light from all the Nims was fading fast as they moved on without us, or the strange sense of loss I felt at their departure, but the water deemed to thicken suddenly, pressing in on my body and my eyes. At the same time, lights kept appearing at the very edges of my vision, though they fled whenever I turned my head to look at them. Weird… This was all so weird…

Leader, Nim sent, bumping me urgently. Can't sleep yet.

Right, right. Sure I couldn't sleep here, out in the middle of nowhere. I couldn't, but…

Can't sleep, Nim insisted, nudging me to get moving. Human boat not far away. Sleep there.

Human boat? Enemies. Wait, no, that wasn't right… I squeezed my eyes shut, willing myself to remember something important. Boat… Human… I was… human? So boat must have meant something good, right?

From somewhere above me a thrumming sort of rumble grew near, shaking the faraway surface. I sensed life from it, heard noises and felt my heart leap with a buzzing static. For a moment I was ferociously hungry. I hadn't eaten in so long… It was my turn to hunt. Determinedly, I began to rise.

I caught a thread of amusement coming from Nim then, and stopped, shaking my head. Man, now was not the time to lose it, but I was losing it. I closed my eyes, wishing like never before that I could just wake up from it all. I was so tired, and my ears were starting to ring. Even my heightened senses were starting to lose focus. That WORD attack earlier had really done me in. I couldn't even think strait. Couldn't see strait. Couldn't hear strait. The darkness was caving in on me. I was rising, but it didn't make any difference, because the sun wasn't getting any closer. If anything, it was getting farther away…

I sat up suddenly, then banged my head against something hard and fell back to the pillow, groaning and pressing my hands over throbbing eye sockets. What a killer headache… What had I been doing? Had I been sick? That would definitely explain all those bizarre dreams I'd been having.

"Well smack me silly and call me a mackerel. The dead awakens," some unfamiliar voice spoke next to me.

I groaned again, annoyed. "Savannah!" I called as loud as I could with my throat as dry as it was. "Did you let one of your stupid boyfriends into my room again? I'm telling you this time I'm gonna k—oh." I opened my eyes and realized the man who spoke definitely could not have been my sister's boyfriend. Too old. Way too old and dirty. And bearded. And what was worse, this was definitely not my room, or even my bed.

"Aw man," I groaned, and closed my eyes again.

"You got that right, son. Looking at you makes me feel right fit and purty. I didn't think you were alive when we fished you out, no boat, no wreckage of anything in sight. How did someone as unconscious as you make it out alive? I'd say that's what I call a miracle. Isn't that right, Benny?"

"That's right." A gruff voice from further to the right introduced itself as yet another old man, this one slouching on a stool and resting a long shotgun on his lap. I sat up again, careful this time of the bunk inches above my head. The world bucked around me as I squinted blurrily around the cramped wooden cabin and two men inside it. There wasn't much in the room. It was mostly empty except for a cluttered desk, wrinkled, water-stained navigation charts, and dirty walls. Not to mention the putrid smell of rotting bait and fish oil. It was a fishing boat, I guessed, as the cabin rocked again and creaked.

So it had been real, all of it. Well of course it had been real. If it wasn't, I would have woken up from a dream like that ages ago covered in cold sweat and gasping. And I could still feel it inside of me: that creature side of myself that saw these surroundings as a cage and these men as half-life enemies. Instinct didn't like them and my inner lightning reacted just enough to send my heart buzzing. But I knew better. These men just saved my life.

"Uh." I started, clearing my rasping throat. "Thanks, I guess. For… for saving my life. Could I… could I have some water?"

The first old man guffawed loudly, slapping a thick thigh. "But haven't you had enough water, boy? Ocean's not enough for you huh? Kuhuh, don't worry, I'm way ahead of you. Here, drink this."

He handed me a brown canteen and I took it eagerly, bringing it to my parched lips. I took a large gulp then suddenly bent over double in the bed, coughing and spluttering, hacking, anything to get that stuff out of my mouth.

"Auuuhghg," I choked, still coughing. "Is this some kind of—hack—joke? This isn't—cough—water."

The man heaved backwards in his chair, guffawing and holding his round gut. "No, it's not water," he informed me. "It's better. Something my Ma made a recipe for, back in the day. Cures anything you got, and if it doesn't, you're done for anyway."

"Uh huh," I answered flatly when I could catch my breath, not sure whether or not I felt grateful. "So… where exactly are we?" I remembered uneasily the friends I had forgotten while with the Nims. Guilt pinched my conscience. Were they alright? That green electricity… they couldn't possibly have survived something like that, could they? Even if I'd somehow managed to convince the Nims to hold back at the last moment…could they have gotten away? Were they still stuck? Were they d…I didn't want to think about it. Caitlin…

"Where are we?" The man scratched the rough hair on his neck. "Now that's a good question. Where are we now Benny?"

"Not getting closer to where we gotta be. Those blasted monsters sped up again. And we'll lose 'em again if we don't get going, Ed." The man named Benny stroked his gun pensively.

"But don't you know where we are? We cast off at Stone Harbor, but we've gotten a ways North on the New Jersey coast chasing those things, am I right?"

"New Jersey?" I rasped, my voice cracking. "How the heck…" My vision blurred for a second. Wasn't I just in North Carolina a few hours ago? There was no way.

The great bearded Ed leaned back in his chair with a sigh. It creaked loudly as the cabin swayed. "Ah, what are we going to do about this now? We've got a kid aboard, Ben. Maybe the Monsters can wait. We should drop this one off at the nearest port and let him call up his folks or something, am I right?"

"We'll lose 'em again," Benny growled. He loaded the rifle with a clunk and glared fiercely out the cabin door. We may never get a better chance before they pick us all off. They're takin' over the world Ed, if we let 'em. I say we take the kid with us."

My stomach turned uneasily. Was he talking about the Nims? Of course he was, what else would be talking about? But wouldn't that put me on his hit list too? No, stop, I couldn't think like that. I wasn't one of them. I was human. They were just…

"Wait…" I said. "If you're talking about the giant sea monsters… How are you planning to kill them? There's got to be hundreds of them. They're huge."

Benny gave a throaty chuckle. "Oh don't worry. Follow me and you'll see." He grunted and stood, resting the gun barrel on one bony shoulder. He jerked his head at the door and headed out. Reluctantly, I slid my legs off the bunk and stood, swaying dizzily for a moment before staggering behind.

"Now, Benny," Ed protested as he followed us along a short corridor and up a ladder leading to the boat deck. "He's just a kid. And he's still fresh from the water last night. What if it was the monsters that got his boat or something? You think he'll be wanting to see them nightmares again after escaping death from them so soon? He don't need to see our weapons. What if he tells someone?"

Benny ignored his friend and continued to lead us while both my doubts and my curiosity grew. Weapons? What kind of weapons?

"Been collecting for years," Benny grunted as he emerged into the open air. The wind hit his face and whipped the pale grey hair from his eyes. The bright afternoon sunlight hit them in a way that made them glitter in a manic sort of way. We all climbed after him onto the deck and he led us to a heap of something tied down with a canvas. "Help me loose this, will you, kid? What do they call you, anyway?"

"Miles," I answered. I bent down and picked at a knot.

"Miles," Benny repeated, busy with the knots himself. "You're a man aren't you? How would you like to save the world?"

"Save the world?" My stomach sank like a ship. I knew what was coming. What kind of a wack-train had I gotten myself onto now?

"Yeah, save everyone, go down in history as the one who wasn't afraid to risk everything. The girls like a hero, don't they?"

"Ben, I don't approve of you preaching to a kid."

"Quiet, Ed. You want to be a hero, don't you Mike?"

"It's Miles," I corrected. "And I don't think I'm the guy you want. I've got to let my mom and dad know I'm alive and find out about my friends…"

"You want to protect your Ma, right? Or would you rather go see her and get eaten together with the rest of 'em all?"

"That's enough already from you, Ben," Ed said sternly. "Kid you don't have to listen to him—"

"Behold!" Benny ripped the canvas off with a crack like a whip. "This'll be the death of 'em all for sure!"

I gaped. I'd kind of expected something like this but the sight was still shocking. Boxes and boxes of weapons and explosives stacked on top of one another, and not just the kind of hardware you can buy anywhere. Some of the boxes had radioactive caution signs or warnings in bright red. On top of that, there was even a gigantic harpoon at the base of the pile. A harpoon. Did this guy think he was going whaling? And radioactive explosives? What was this guy thinking? Where'd he get all this?

I backed away. I couldn't help it. This stuff was dangerous. These men were dangerous. A now familiar buzz started in at the base of my spine and rose quickly to my neck then spread to my fingers. What could these half-lives think they were going to do to us? How could they think to challenge us? I had to do something about this.

But what? My mind was switching channels like television even as I looked back at Benny's avidly exultant face, fiery in the sunlight. Too bright. Ed was saying something but my ears had started buzzing too and my concentration was beginning to slip. I'm human, I told myself for the fiftieth time. I don't need to do anything, just refuse their offer. Refuse and get out quick. Where was Nim? I could just jump off and swim to shore, couldn't I? I wasn't too human for that.

As if in response to my thoughts I detected a tendril of familiar thought from somewhere nearby. Miles, Nim sent. Miles in danger? Attack?

No, I sent with difficulty, squeezing my eyes closed to shut out the violent buzzing of electricity in my head. If I opened my eyes would it show? Would they notice?

"Son, are you all right?" It was Ed's voice, and I assumed that was his hand on my shoulder. Somehow the contact helped clear my head. "Benny, cover that up. The kid's not ready for something like this. Come on, Miles. You still ain't feeling well, right? Let's get below deck."

"Right," I said. I felt calmer now and the electricity receded. Nim seemed satisfied I was alright as well and slipped out of my mind, leaving only the slenderest connection intact.

As Ed lead me back to the ladder and Benny grumbled behind us he pat me on the shoulder saying, "Don't worry kid, Benny can be a little overzealous, but he's not a bad guy. His son wouldn't join and it's been hard with just the two of us mannin' this ship. He believes the world is gonna end if we don't do something about it and I want to agree with him. But don't give it too much thought, son. I'll make sure you make it to a port soon as we can. I wouldn't want you gettin' mixed up in all this."

"Actually…" a thought occurred to me, but was I crazy? "Actually, I would like to go with you. Just for a while."

"You want to go with us?" Ed sounded as surprised as I felt. "Are you sure, kid? This ain't a child's game."

I wasn't sure. "Yeah, I'm sure," I said. "I'm not a child. I want to go with you."

Nim, this is such a bad idea.

Miles get stronger, was all Nim responded.