Scott sloshed through the storm drain towards the hospital. Dirty icy water swirled around his boots, his feet growing numb from the cold. As a form of transport the storm drain left much to be desired but was a vast improvement over the raging winter storm on the surface.
After a great deal of work in the deepening snow, he had managed to pull the woman from the car and pull her up the hill. A full five minutes he held her at the top of the hill, panting, exhausted. He prayed anyone would come along, even a Seeker. But no one had. The snow continued falling, slowly covering Scott and his rescue.
'You can lay down here and die next to this alien. Seekers will be in for a hell of a surprise when tomorrow they find you both frozen,' Scott had thought darkly.
With a shove, Scott had pushed himself up and took hold of the unconscious woman. "We're not dead yet," yelled Scott into the storm. Slowly he made his way down the road till he spied the opening to a storm drain. A narrow little pipe half-full with dirty brown snow, but Scott had known it connected to larger tunnels.
Now Scott carried the Soul woman fireman style down the cold dark tunnel in relative comfort. She was not too heavy and he didn't feel too winded. In the darkened passageway, Scott paused as an odd thought pinwheeled his already racing mind. Back in school, he was always picked last in P.E. class, nobody wanted scrawny little Scott. Now look at him, strong and lean. Years of hard living would do that to you, he reflected.
He resumed walking, counting his steps. In the blackness of this tunnel, he only had his memory to go on. Three hundred thirty steps in and then turn left. Another hundred and eight steps and then go right at the fork in the tunnel. How many times had they run from Seekers down these tunnels or use them to make raids on a Soul store or warehouse?
"Mmmmm…" came a low moan from over his shoulder. Scott froze. He felt the woman shift in his grasp, she was waking up.
'What to do?' Considered Scott. Hesitantly he said, "Hello?"
"Ohhh my head," moaned the Soul, "what happened…to me?" She shifted again in Scott's grip, trying to right herself.
"Careful," said Scott attempting to keep his balance with the fidgeting woman, "You were in a car accident. You banged your head pretty bad, try not to move."
"Itss…dark," her words slurred as she spoke them. Likely a concussion guessed Scott. He wondered briefly how a blow to the head affected the alien parasite. Did it share in the injury or was it immune?
"I know, we're in a tunnel. Just hold still, I'll get you to a hospital." He resumed walking down the tunnel. They had gone a little ways when she spoke up again in her delicate voice, "Who are you?"
'Well, how do I answer that one?' mused Scott. The simplest explanation would be best. "My name is Scott."
A short pause and then in a very timid voice the Soul asked, "Are you a human?"
####
"Is anyone sitting here?" asked the round-faced middle-aged man.
Marc forced himself to put on his best smile. "Of course not," he gestured to the empty seat next to his, "please sit down." The man took off his coat, folded it neatly, and then stored in the overhead compartment. He returned Marc's pleasant smile as he finished sitting down.
Inwardly Marc was cringing and fighting to force down his irritation. The entire cab was empty and this Soul had decided to sit right next to Marc. But such actions from the Souls were the norm. They liked being near each, and many did not seem to get the idea of personal space.
"I'm Long Starless Night, by the way," said the man as he extended his hand. Marc took and shook it gently. "Sings of Twilight," answered Marc. A common enough Bat name, he knew, to not stand out. Standing out was the last thing Marc needed now. To survive in this city required you to hide in plain sight by blending in with a crowd. Now without the crowd, Marc was vulnerable.
"This weather reminds me of my days on Mist World, so cold. I came here to get away from that," remarked Long Starless Night looking out the window into the snow-filled darkness.
A native Chicagoan from birth, Marc took his city's unpredictable weather as a source of pride. He shoved the usual rude human response to the city's weather to the back of his mind and smiled gently, "Never been there. I kind of like it, the snow looks beautiful."
Long Starless Night considered thoughtfully, "From Blind World, right? I guess most sights are a real treat for you."
"Yes," nodded Marc, hoping the Soul would shut up.
The Soul once again looked out the window, "I've been called in to help fix a broken boiler for an apartment building downtown. Elsewise I wouldn't be out in this weather. What brings you out tonight, Sings of Twilight?"
Distracted by thoughts of finding Scott, Marc answered without thinking, "I'm looking for someone."
"Oh? Do you need help?" responded Long Starless Night with concern in his voice.
Ice shot through Marc's veins as he realized his mistake. Never ask for help. Souls, always so polite and helpful, would always come together to help one of their own. And nothing else would draw attention faster.
"Oh, it's okay," answered Marc weakly, trying to recover from his error "I know where he is, just need to go get him."
The Soul's face wrinkled into a very faint frown, "Are you sure? I can make a few calls. A neighbor of mine is a Seeker. He would love to help."
"Not necessary," said Marc quickly, and a little too forcefully.
"Well…if you are sure," replied Long Starless Night. He drifted off and was quite for the first time he had entered the train and sat down next to Marc. The silence sat heavy in the empty train and Marc almost wanted the Soul to start blathering again.
Marc watched out the window, not long until the next stop. He looked back to Long Starless Night. The Soul was giving him a sidelong glance, and as soon as Marc looked at him the Soul's eyes went to the floor. Marc stared forward and waited tense seconds and then glanced back. Again he caught the man staring at him and his eyes imminently snapped to the ground. Marc made out a feeble tremble in the Soul's body.
Marc shifted a tiny amount in his seat, just enough. He was not sure what had given him away. His outburst most likely, but possibly the contacts had not held up. A Soul's silver reflection in the eyes was like bioluminescence. There was no way for the Humans to replicate the effect completely. Under scrutiny, the contacts would betray their wearer as a human. Whatever the reason, Marc had to fix this.
The train slowed as it pulled into the station and in one fluid motion Marc stood and twisted towards Long Starless Night. His left fist connected with the Soul's head with an audible crack. His head snapped back and Marc pressed in with his right arm going for a choke hold. Long Starless Night had been taken by such surprise he hadn't even cried out. His body twitched and pulled trying to get away for a moment and then went slack.
Marc exhaled roughly and pressed a finger up against the Soul's neck. He felt a strong pulse and nodded to himself. "Sorry about the headache you're going to have when you wake up. But I can't be dealing with Seekers and finding Scott at the same time." Straightening his jacket and he stood as the train came to a stop at the station. Glancing back one last time Long Starless Night looked as if he was peacefully sleeping in his seat.
As Marc exited the train he grumbled under his breath, "Scott, if you are still alive I'm going to throw you into the deepest sewage pool I can find."
####
Scott flicked on his small flash light. The darkness around him and the woman retreated. As the light filled the small tunnel, bright silver reflected in her eyes. Those eyes grew huge as she took sight of him. All Scott could do was smile weakly at her.
They both stood looking at each other for a minute, until Scott said with a sigh, "Umm…so yeah…I'm a human."
She stood so completely still as if moving would cause him to attack her. Sensing her fear, Scott backed up a little ways from her, and his action caused her to visibly relax. Again in the timid voice, "I thought it strange for someone to carry me through a tunnel to the hospital. Why wouldn't they get help?"
"Well there was no one around and you were bleeding pretty badly, so I pulled you out of the car and did my best to treat your wound. I half expected someone to come by, but no one did. The weather wasn't getting any better so I started carrying you to the hospital," explained Scott in a rush.
She gingerly touched her head where Scott had wrapped his scarf. Her head tilted ever so slight and with a trace of curiosity asked, "Are you a healer?"
"No, just know a little first aid," answered Scott.
Glancing back and forth in the nearly dark passageway she looked slowly around until she centered back on Scott. "Why did you help me?"
Scott sighed and leaned back against the tunnel wall. "Did you ever have a genuinely bad day where nothing was right?"
The Soul grew thoughtful and blinked slowly at Scott. "This day would count as such a day for me."
Scott chuckled, "Yeah I guess it would. I just wanted…I'm…not sure I know how to explain it. I guess to do something good." He let out a breathy sigh. "Look, I'm not going to hurt you and you still need to get to the hospital. Can you walk on your own?"
The Soul deliberately nodded once. Scott gave her a reassuring smile and they slowly began to walk again down the tunnel. Scott took the lead with the woman behind him. Progress was slow and Scott wondered if she would let him carry her again. Maybe if he got to relax she would accept the idea.
"Uhh…so I told you my name was Scott. What's yours?"
"Sings from the Shadows," said the Soul quietly as Scott turned them down a right-branching tunnel. He was going to ask about letting him carry her when her next question brought him to a complete halt.
"Scott," said Sings from the Shadows, "do you know my partner Matthew?"