Chapter 2
We had a wake up call really early in the morning due to the bugs not being around, and now we are walking through an open field, I had to look around and admire all I can for the time being, just because I know I may end up being dead before we reach the pick up point. Then I remember what it is that Reed had told me a day ago.
"You do have something to live for", he says.
"Like"? I ask looking at my hands not really caring about what he is going to say.
"Your living for what my come tomorrow, at least if their isn't anything else, then live for yourself", he says. I look at him wide eyed and watch him get up and walk out of the lunch room.
I shake my head and look around, no sign of the bugs yet. That being the key word. I then look at all the people, the other survivor ended up getting killed by a bug, which leaves only Reed. I eye my friend Alissa as she hits one of the other soldiers ass. I narrow my eyes at her and look around for Sam, and like usual she can't be seen. I sigh and still walk, but look around once more, I then stop seeing the most beautiful sight before me.
A lighter coloured bug with many babies running around it, I look at my companions and see they notice but leave alone due to the fact that its just a bunch of small ones. I groan wishing I had brought a camera with me so I could take a picture of this, its so cool, you would never have thought to see something like this. Then we continue at the fast pace to get to our destination that is going to take a few days to get to, and hoping that the bugs will not attack us while we are resting.
We walk for a few more minutes till we get to a small canyon, and stop, every one sitting down looking at every thing around them. Their isn't any way for them to get us unless they come over the walls or enter the way we came and the way we will be heading. Its now been about half a day since we've been walking and this break seems wonderful.
I set the big bag down beside where I sat and pull out a water bottle. I open it and place the opening of the bottle to my mouth and let the water slowly fill my mouth and slowly go down my throat, with out even choking. I then lean over, the bottle still in my hand and sigh. I'm feeling hunger but I don't want to quench that yet, I want to wait, I have to save the food I have in case something worse happens.
Boots then stop in front of me and I follow them up to the face that owns them, and smile, Sam is smiling down at me. She then sits beside me, opposite of where my rather large bag is.
"How are you fairing"? She asks. I sigh and look at the bottle, swooshing it around and watching the water move as though I'm on a ship, boat not space ship, in bad weather, thunder raring in the distance lightening lighting up the dark, and water getting splashed every where, the boat rocking back and forth then falling down a large tidal wave to miraculously being caught by another before it dives nose first into the water, and is back floating above the water.
The people aboard it working fast and hard to make the boat move the right way and also trying to make sure they don't fall off like others around them have. I shake my head and still the bottle getting the images out of my mind.
"I'm doing fine, really you don't need to worry about me, the fearless leader that I am", I say smiling at her.
"You should come and sit with the rest of us, you never know how many of us will lose or lives today", she says. I sigh and look down.
"I don't think about that. I want to believe that every one will be able to live... I'm not going to think other wise", I say. I'm scared that I have lost myself with in this whole other world where every one will live and the war is over due to an understanding, we started this, and they just retaliated, if we didn't this wouldn't be happening.
"Hikaru you know you have to think about it", Sam says putting her hand on my shoulder. I shake my head and groan.
"Look you live the way you like to live, I'll live my way, you and I are complete opposites"! I snap, not actually meaning to, just lately I have been trying to figure out why I haven't really let myself leave. After what Reed had told me I just can't stop thinking about it, and in doing so I'm not myself.
"Sorry, I'll leave you be", she says as she gets up and walks away with out looking at me.
"All right we've rested long enough, lets get moving", our commander says. Then we all get up and toss the bags back onto our back. We walk deeper into the canyon. At first this odd feeling that is telling me to turn back was so small, then, it became bigger, as we walked for hours through the canyon, it seemed to branch off into many places, and one scared me the most. I can feel as though there are bugs their. I then look up, feeling the adrenalin of fear going through my veins, franticly looking around.
Then I freeze spotting one, it is of the new species we have seen dead... Then another and another and tones more, just standing their staring at us.
"We have bugs"! Screams one of our comrades. I fiddle with my gun, I didn't want to kill any of them, but if it comes down to it, I just might have to. Some people then go in front of me, Alissa included with in that bunch of people. I put my gun down and step back, walking right into some one, so I turn around and its Reed. He looks at me blankly.
"Scared"? He asks almost in a sense of amusement.
"Yes, but if I have to I will kill", I say shakily, when it comes to the over whelming odds, of a large number making our large number small in comparison, you can't help but be afraid.
"Good because I wouldn't want you to die... You still have to find out what your living for", he says as he raises his gun waiting for the moment he is going to have to back up any one. I look around us, seeing that we are stuck in here, from all sides, even with in the fork, bugs every where. I hear one of them let out a screech and then the ground rumbles with them rushing at us, the intent to kill.
Every fibre in my being is telling me to just fall over and act as though I died of fright, but for some reason I stand my ground, holding up my own gun in hopes that I won't have to use it.
"Fire at will", I hear our commanders voice say and then the gun fire and the screams of agony of bugs at the moment as they start to fall due to the bullets hitting them countless times, taking a few down. Reed moves, gun raised as he fires it, I then fallow suit, not knowing which bugs it is that we are hitting, but they are approaching fast, men in the first line turn tail and run, the only one remaining in front of us is Alissa, some men had been killed tossed behind all the bugs and torn to pieces with in the incoming horde.
Alissa kills a whole wall worth of bugs till I hear a clicking noise come from her gun, my eyes widen in horror as I watch a bug run over the wall of bodies and impale her leg, she screams in agony and attempts to remove the object that has impaled her. With out thinking I start firing with all my might at the beast, its screams in pain and then falls, and with in that firing I managed to sever the item that is with in my friends leg.
I then rush over to her aid, she looks at me pain with in her eyes but smiles.
"Thanks pal", she says smiling with some blood dripping down her face, not hers, but green. I then grab a hold of the appendage that is stuck in her leg and give it a yank and as I pull it out she screams in pain.
"Reed help me", I say looking over at him, he looks at me and rolls his eyes but puts his gun to the side and rushes over getting onto one side of Alissa while I'm on the other side of her and with a scream from her we lift her. Then start to turn only to stop and watch as the wall of bodies come tumbling down. I don't know how he did it, but Reed grabs me, and pulls me to safety, Alissa screams and then silence.
Tears start to fall down my face with out me even wanting them too, she didn't deserve this, she had a familaly back home, her parents are still around.
"ALISSA"! I scream and try to get to her, to help her even though I know she is all ready gone, Reed struggling to keep me with him says, "Shes gone, lets go".
"No we can still save her"! I yell still trying to get to the heap of bodies over the one I want to see. I hear Reed groan, he then turns me around and slaps me, the connection of our skin echoing through the canyon where very little bugs remain and an even smaller amount of people.
"Pull yourself together, she is gone, and we have to get out of here", he says narrowing his eyes at me. I just star at him shocked, I've never been hit by any one before, sure I was abused from my ex but never hit before.
"I'm sorry", I say as though I'm small.
"Lets go", he says and drags me along behind him by my arm. I watch as the pile of bodies slowly becomes small, and a couple of bugs come running at us. I didn't care if they got me, I feel like I had failed, I had, I failed my friend, my parents... I look down as I let Reed Drag me to where I don't have a clue. Then gun fire, bugs screaming and people talking.
"Whats wrong with her"? I hear Sam's voice.
"Her friend Alissa I believe that's her name had been killed", Reed's voice answers her. Then Sam comes into my view.
"I failed her, I failed them all", I say tears once again streaming down my face.
"Oh Hikaru you didn't fail any one, you tried", she says. I then hide my face in my hands and start to sob, she just stands their watching me, every one knows better then to touch me or try to comfort me, I'm not big on the whole comfort thing any way.
I'm shocked with myself that I had actually saved the lesser being known as Hikaru. And now I'm watching her have some sort of break down.
"Good work soldier", the leader lesser says as he stands beside me. I look around their is now around 20 men left, which requires one more attack and then its going to be down to the amount that is actually needed.
"Thank you commander", I say looking in his direction for a brief moment then looking back to Hikaru. I didn't know it was hard on them to lose one of their own, its shocking really, but no one else is doing the same thing for their other fallen comrades. These lessers are confusing at the least.
"So no one else survived"? Leader says. I look at him once more and nod my head seeing as though he is looking at me.
"Want us to finishing off the rest right now brother"? The eldest sister asks.
"No let them recuperate and give it a day and then you can attack again", I answer her back.
"Hikaru you still have me, I'm still here, focus on that", I hear her friend say to her. I look back over at the two and Hikaru seems to have calmed slightly.
"I know, its just...", she trails, she then turns to me, I flinch some, not knowing what she is going to do to me hitting her the way I did. She walks over to me and smiles at me.
"I want to thank you for slapping sense into me to let you drag me here", she says then looks down.
"And I'm sorry", she says.
"No need to be sorry, some one you found dear was killed, its normal to act this way", I tell her to reassure her, or an attempt to do that.
"I know, still thanks again", she says then takes her bag off her back and pulls out a bottle of water. She opens it and then drinks some.
"Hikaru you have any food in their"? Another soldier asks. I look over and every one seems to be looking at her now.
"Yes, but I don't think its a good idea to rest here, seeing that we had been attacked", she says.
"Hikaru is right, we move out in 20", the lead lesser says and turns then walks to investigate something.
"Well in any case, can we have some water"? Another one asks. I watch as she hands the bottle she had been drinking from to him, he takes a few mouthfuls then hands it to another. By the time the bottle hit the 10th lesser, it had been empty.
"You want something to drink"? I hear her ask, so I look at her and instantly realize she had directed that question to me. Not needing one I thought better then that, since I hadn't actually eaten or drank anything in a while in lesser standers, I nod. She then hands me a bottle, I take it and open it then take a drink. Once done with the amount I believe as a lesser needs, I nod at her and hand it back after closing it.
"Lets move", the leader of them says. And I watch as every one follows him, going to the middle one, of the three paths that can be taken. I shake my head and sigh then follow them.
We walk for hours, we had decided to walk through out nearly the entire night and the one thing that I can't seem to not notice is how the bugs watch us as if waiting for the order to attack, I don't think that others have noticed.
Then we stop, I don't know what time it is, but we stop, setting up camp. I sit in my tent looking out and see Reed walk by, I then get out and rush to his side, he stops sand looks at me.
"Yes"? He asks.
"I was just wondering if you noticed the bugs watching us, they had a lot of openings to attack, and they hadn't", I say.
"Yeah I noticed, maybe they don't want to attack right now", he says.
"That's what concerns me, what is their bigger plan"? I ask. He looks at me as if he has something to hid.
"Their just a bunch of bugs, they don't have plans", he then says and looks away from me. I see from the corner of my eye some one walk.
"Well if you don't mind I have things to take care of before I sleep", he says then makes his way in the same direction as the other person. I look around myself and see that I'm the only one up aside from Reed and this other man. I then slowly make my way over to where he had gone. Stopping when I hear voices.
"Your strange", a male voice says.
"Really"? Reed asks.
"Yes, you act as though your not human", the man says.
"Your a god damn bug, I'm telling every one about it". Then I hear flesh tearing, and a shocked gasp. I move so I can get a better sight and my eyes widen, I put my hands over my mouth to stop my own gasp, Reed is turning into a large black bug. I couldn't tear my eyes away from him, I had to watch, he walks around the man and then impales him, through the lung so he can't let out a scream.
Then he tosses the body aside like it where a doll. After being shocked their for a while. Reed as the bug looks over in my direction and instantly I turn away and rush back to my tent. Going into it, and closing the zipper door. I then put my blanket around me and listen for any sign of something coming, and nothing does. With a sigh, I close my eyes after laying down and try to sleep.
It hadn't taken me long to turn back, but fear surrounds me, I didn't get a good look at the lesser being that seen me. Now I have to watch every one and hope that that being don't go and tell any one till I find out who it was. But one thing I know for sure, it was a female. And lucky me, their are only four of them. I smile to the thought then another one comes to mind.
What happens if Hikaru was the one that saw, I walk over to a large rock and sit on it, thinking it over, if she had seen I don't think I would have to kill her.
"When do you want the attack"? My sister asks. I sigh and look around, wondering when the attack should happen.
"I'll let you know, but I would have to say when we reach the water", I say back. If Hikaru had seen, then maybe she might actually be my ticket into getting what I need, she can teach me more about the human, lesser beings ways, but that is if she don't care that I'm not one of her own kind. I put my head in my hands and groan.
'What the hell am I thinking'? I shake my head and look around once more, then eye the body, I then get up and walk back to camp
"So Reed, what is going through your mind through all this"? The leader of the lessers asks. I look at him and he is sitting on a log around a fire that they had made.
"I don't really know sir... I mean I get locked into that bug cage, and then having to eat it... I guess I could say I want out of hell", I say as I take a seat on the other side of him. He starts laughing. I watch him amused, I had to say something that he would understand that would make me seem human.
"Hell", he says and laughs some more.
"Sir"? I ask now confused.
"Sorry soldier but your right this place is hell, a bug hell", he says, and looks at me now serious.
"What where the people doing her in the first place"? He asks. I look down trying to remember everything that my queen had told me. What it was that the lessers where on our planet in the first place.
"Well sir, that's because we where sent here to capture the queen", I answer now remembering.
Flash Back
"You do know why the lesser beings are here for right"? The queen asks.
"No my queen", I answer truthfully I do not.
"I've been hearing rumours that the lessers are here in hopes of getting another Queen... Its rare to find queens", she says. I look at my queen shocked. How had they found this place in the first place. My brothers and sisters start screaming and screeching to the hatred they have toward the lessers. I do understand where they stand, but I find them fascinating, how its so easy to tear through their flesh. How they are so small, and have these strange weapons they use to kill my kind.
"I want to rid our planet of these foul beings, and I would like one of my elites to form into a lesser being and go to their home world, I want to know everything to know about them", my queen says. I look around and every one goes silent.
"Who is willing to do this for their queen"? She asks, she is going to give us a chance to say yes or no.
"I will do it my queen", I say after a few minutes of silence from the rest of my siblings.
"You sure about this"? She asks, turning her many eyes onto me.
"Yes", I say.
"Very well, lets attack them here, and make yourself out to be a lesser... The only survivor", she says. I then turn and start walking, looking forward and also fearing what I'm about to put myself into.
End Flash Back
"Their is another queen"? He asks. I look at him and nod my head.
"Well, I guess they will be sending more people down here then, but they will be more prepared this time", he says. I look at him and smile, little does he know that I am one of them sent to see what their weaknesses are. And to learn about other raids.
I toss and turn not able to get any sleep or get comfortable, then I sit up and sigh. I can't get the sight of Reed turning into the bug out of my head, and if he actually saw me. I sigh once more then get up, open my tent and walk out, looking over I see our commander and Reed sitting at the fire.
"Hikaru, your still awake"? Our commander asks. I smile and look at Reed, he slowly turns his attention to me. I tense some, and instantly shake it away.
"Yeah I can't sleep for some reason, maybe its because of losing Alissa", I say and look down.
"Come sit", My commander says. I look at him and then back to Reed and he smiles at me. I smile back and walk over then sit beside Reed.
"You'll get over the lose", The commander says.
"Yeah when"? I ask now glaring at him.
"In time", he says and gets up then walks to his tent. I sigh and reach my hand out and let the fire warm them up.
"I'm truly sorry about your friend", Reed says. I look at him and smile, then nod.
"So am I", I say and look back at the fire.
"I guess the other reason why I can't get to sleep is because I'm scared", I say.
"I mean, I lost my friend, and I honestly don't believe I'll get off this planet alive".
"I take it you still haven't figured out what to live for yet", Reed says. I look at him and then put my hand to my heart and shake my head.
"The moment Alissa died, I believed that what I was living for was love, the love from people that still care", I say, closing my eyes.
"But I feel as though if I lose Sam, I will have nothing to live for, they are my only friends".
"So I take it their is no man in your life"? He asks. I then look at him and shake my head. He then looks at the fire and says, "Maybe that's what you should be living for.. The day you meet him". I couldn't help but be shocked with that, it is true, I could be living for the love that I don't have yet.
"Maybe your right", I say.
"But I have to wait and see if I get off this planet first". He smiles at me and pits his hand on my back and says, "We will". At that, he gets up and walks back out of camp. I look back at the fire. Glade that he don't know it is me that seen him, and if he does know, he isn't acting like it.
Well that's it for the second chapter, hope you in joyed it.