There's nothing like standing on a dock alone with nature, while the water below you softly hits against the wood, slowly wearing it away. The way everything around you seems to be speaking its own language- the leaves in the trees rustling against each other, the birds chatting in the sky, the water splashing against the shore. It's the feeling of finally feeling calm, as if the world is finally at peace.

Or at least that's the way it used to be.

The way it was before they came.

Now, I stand at the edge of this dock staring at dark, murky water and an equally murky sky. The lake seemed lifeless inside and around it. There were no birds chirping or fish leaping about in the water, nor were there any signs of other animals. I felt as I were the only thing alive for miles, but then I was reminded of the harsh reality I was living in as a spaceship of the foreign invaders raced above us in the sky, the sound of it echoing loudly. My immediate reaction was to duck and hide so I did, forgetting where I was currently standing. I slipped on the edge of the dock and clumsily fell into the lake, holding on to the edge of it for dear life as I could feel the weight of my clothes and possessions weighing me down as if they were trying to drown me on purpose. Just in time, I felt the arms of two strong boys pull me out of the water with ease- another reminder that I wasn't alone out here. My face collided with one of their solid chests, and I could feel the water transferring from my clothes to his as I held onto him tightly in relief.

"How did you possibly get yourself into that mess, Anna?" I could feel Austin's chest vibrate as he laughed.

"One of their ships flew above me and I don't know, I guess it just freaked me out a bit." I admitted, thinking about the daze I had been in before my little embarrassing moment.

"We've been at war with the aliens for months now. You'd think you'd be used to that by now." Rylan joined in from behind Austin. I had barely even noticed him standing there.

But Rylan was right. Our planet was indeed at war with aliens from beyond our world, and things weren't looking too good for the human race.

The sound of gunfire rang out in a deserted field as Captain Weaver and his team of fighters fought one of the many small combats they were challenged with on a daily basis. The firing stopped rather quickly, for the few skitters that made an appearance had been surrounded and out-numbered by the growing army of the 2nd Mass. The only sounds now were the sounds of heavy breathing and the thud of the last skitter collapsing to the ground. Tom Mason stepped around each alien casualty, analyzing them individually.

"It's strange how we didn't have a run in with any Mechs as well…" Tom thought aloud as he paced around the lifeless intergalactic creatures.

"You're right. For as long as we've been fighting them, which feels like a damn long time, those fish-heads are usually accompanied by a Mech." Weaver reasoned, taking his position next to his second-in-command, looks of confusion spread across both of their faces.

"Maybe they made the mistake of straying a little too far from home." Ben said hungrily, his hatred for the skitters becoming apparent.

"Whatever the reason is, let's just say we got lucky that we didn't have to deal with them, too."

As they continued on with their conversation over the skitters and Mechs, they didn't notice the uninvited guest that was silently lurking from behind them. Its long arms dangled at its sides and its slender legs walked swiftly at a slow pace. It was a monster, a dictator, a murderer, though it usually never committed the murder itself. It leaves that job to its army, but this time things are different. With a high-tech spear in hand, it prepared to make its first move on Tom.

"TOM!" Maggie yelled, noticing the movement in the corner of her eye, aiming her handgun at the creature.

Her loud yell caused the rest of the fighters to do the same, but two gunshots went off before any of them could even pull the trigger. With one shot in the chest and the other perfectly in its head, the Overlord fell with a loud thump, its long limbs sprawled out by its sides. Tom stood breathless at the sight, so Weaver decided to take some action.

"Whoever took those shots better come out and show themselves right now!" He yelled into the open field.

On command, out of bushes opposite from each other came a girl and a boy holding their weapons in their hands above their heads. The boy looked no older than 18. He had a tall, slim body, shaggy brown hair that revealed failed attempts at trying to maintain it, and piercing blue eyes that seemed to glow brighter than a brand new glow stick. The girl on the other hand was a great deal shorter, probably about 5'4, and her body showed signs of being an athlete before the invasion. She had long, dark brown hair that reached just below the middle of her back, light brown eyes that also had a small shine to them, and dark eyebrows that framed them perfectly. She stood slightly behind her friend and her facial features displayed how nervous she most likely was at the moment, probably from run-ins with other surviving humans that were not so friendly. Plenty of stories like that have been shared by many throughout the 2nd Mass. Living through the end of the world really seems to bring out the worst in people.

"Who, may I ask, are you?" Weaver interrogated the lifesaving strangers.

"I'm Austin Clark, and this is Anna Lombardi. Who are you?" The boy, now known as Austin, spoke for both of them.

"We're fighters of the 2nd Massachusetts." The captain said proudly.

"You mean, there are more of you?" Anna finally spoke up, immediately interested as she stepped up from behind Austin's body and her eyes glinted with hope.

"Many. How about you?"

"No, it's just us. There was another boy with us, but we were ambushed by a survivor and he unfortunately didn't make it."

"Are you hurt?" Weaver squinted to try and get a good look at the pair, but was too far to see any significant wounds.

"I've got a few bumps and bruises here and there, but Anna has a nice gash up her right arm. Some skitters are determined, I'll give them that."

Weaver paused for a moment, considering his options- there were really only two he could take. It was either good news or bad news for the teenagers. He looked at Tom for assurance who nodded his head in approval, knowing what he was thinking.

"Well, come on then. Let's bring you two back to the 2nd Mass. and get you all fixed up."