Season Three: Episode Nine (Journey to Xibalba)
"They're ok, right?" Matt asked, standing up and peering carefully at his father. "No, they're not ok." Tom whispered. Hal and Ben looked at one another, while Ericka stared at the ground. She couldn't help thinking that there was some way to prevent it. "There's nothing left…" the youngest Mason trailed off. He was distraught over the death of his baby sister and Anne, who was motherly towards him. Tom quickly stood, gently grabbing ahold of his son's shirt. "There's us, we're left." he replied, pulling his son into a hug
"Dad, you know this for certain, about Anne and Lexi?" Hal interrogated. It seemed unreal that Anne and his sister were dead. There was something that Ericka still didn't quite understand. If Alexis was half-alien, why would the Eshpeni kill her? She was part of them, wasn't she? Then again, nothing made sense anymore. "Yes." Tom answered quickly, squeezing his eyes shut tight and attempting to repress the memory. Moments later, Tom gave this short speech on hate. It didn't seem like him. All he had left now was hate; they killed his wife, his girlfriend, his child, they bugged his son, they harnessed his other son, and there were so many countless things that were caused by this war. He walked off, with Ben going closely behind. When Ben stopped, she chased after him. Ericka fell in step beside him.
"I'll walk with you, I'm heading to see Weaver too." she simply said.
…
The couple walked quietly through the streets with their hands intertwined. Though it was dark, there were few lamps and lights to cast a glow in the crowded path. Pushing past the people, they headed somewhere quieter; down one of the streets many people didn't go. Ben was thinking about his dad. He told him almost a year ago that "if hate was all he the aliens already won". When he brought it up earlier, Tom said "all he had left was hate". Her thoughts were on Tom as well. Maybe what he saw wasn't what he thought it was? She didn't know anymore. She just wanted the war to be over, the aliens to be dead, and everything go back to normal. If Tom's plan worked, they could possibly win this war with the Volm's help. They were putting a lot of trust in the Volm.
"What's the first thing you're going to do when the war is over?" Ericka asked Ben. Sometimes they would talk about what happened that day or something random.
"Probably get my spikes removed." he answered truthfully. The only reason he was keeping them now was to help with the war. Once the war was over, and all the aliens went to their planets, there was no need for him to keep them. She gave a huge grin as she looked at him.
"I wanna shoot off some fireworks, light up the entire sky." she told him all excited. Her eyes sparkled with joy, like she had been dreaming of it her entire life. Ben chuckled at his girlfriend's fantasy. He snaked his arms around her waist, leaning in for a kiss. She leaned too, closing her eyes. Ben glanced back at the direction they came from. "Ben?" questioned Ericka when she was left waiting. She opened her eyes to see a quick smoke heading for them. Ben tackled her to the ground that way the force didn't push them into anything. When the smoke cleared, he helped her up. Coughing, Ericka released some dust from her lungs. Before she could say anything, Ben grabbed her hand and practically dragged her closer into town. She found Colonel Weaver walking with a group of soldiers.
"Colonel Weaver, what's going on?" Ericka questioned with concern. From the force of the smoke, there was probably an explosion.
"The Volm's spaceship exploded. Cochise was the only survivor." he informed her. Then he gave her a gesture to follow him. Ben nodded, before taking off in another direction. There went their plan. The Volm's device was in the final stages of completion. It still wasn't finished and the Volm were all dead, except for one. Plus, it was buried under all that rubble. What were they going to do now?
…
"Lourdes, better get back below; we're liable to have more causalities after this is over." Colonel Weaver ordered upon seeing her heading for the stairwell that led above ground. She nodded, following his orders and heading back to the infirmary. Ericka walked up the stairs with them. There was no sun, only clouds and fog. "Do you think that Tom's telling the truth?" he questioned. She had sat in and listened to Tom's plan on taking down Karen back in Boston. It seemed like a genius plan. Though, there were a few things to consider. One (and perhaps the biggest) is whether or not Tom was eye-bugged. If he was, then this could be a trap. "Yes, but I don't think he's at 100%, especially after what has happened." she responded. It was true; he was not at his full capacity. Tom can't go in with his mind clouded with hate, or he could put someone at risk. His one true goal was to kill Karen. This goal could possibly get in the way of them accomplishing there mission. Colonel Weaver stopped, causing her and the other two men to stop with him. "You think he could jeopardize the mission." he stated. She opened her mouth to explain.
Suddenly, the ground began to shake. It felt like an earthquake, but it was really an explosion. Turning their heads to look at where they had just come out. Rocks and cement blocked the exit, trapping anyone below. Her mind began to race, wondering where everyone was. She didn't know where anyone was except Tom; he was still down there when the explosion went off. Though more and more of Charleston moved above ground in the seven months, there were still a lot of people below. Now, all of those people were buried. There was no doubt in anyone's mind that this was the mole's work.
…
"Colonel Weaver!" Ericka shouted, jogging over to him. She was out of breath from running all the way across Charleston. He gave her a moment to catch her breath, before nodding for her to continue. "We managed to dig out some people, but there's no way we can get inside. They were trapped in a closed off space." she informed him. He had sent her to monitor the progress where some of the others were digging out survivors. "How many survivors and how many are dead?" he asked, looking at her seriously. He desperately wanted to know where his daughter, Jeanne, was. He hadn't seen her since the explosion. The fear of not knowing was gnawing at him. "Four survivors, eleven dead." Ericka answered.
Dan was about to ask her about Jeanne, but she seemed to know this already. She shook her head 'no'. If there was any sign of his daughter, she would've started off with that. Finding out Ben and Matt were safe, she was thrilled. She's been looking for her sister, Hal, and Hanna since the explosion.
There was no telling if any of them were still alive, but she had hope. Hal and Maggie were survivors.
…
Ben ran up to Colonel Weaver with Matt behind him. Weaver and Ericka were walking at a quick pace, heading to check on progress at another digging site. They had to move fast. The dead were being respectfully piled up and the injured were taken to a makeshift infirmary in one of the buildings. There were way too many casualties. With most of the leaders buried below, Dan was left in charge.
"Colonel Weaver! Matt had a better idea on how we could get a visual of what's going on below." Ben blurted.
"Speak up, son!" shouted Weaver. He didn't have time to waste.
"Well, I thought that maybe if we went through the storm drains that Ben could hear better." he explained. It was actually a smart idea. They had to do everything they could to free the people trapped underground.
"Good idea, make it happen. Ericka, go with them just in case they need help." he added. Ericka nodded, leaving with Ben and Matt to the nearest storm drain. The boys were mostly silent. She tried to remember where her sister was. Ericka hadn't talked to Kathleen in days. She was so busy going over plans for the mission with Weaver and the others. What about Hanna? All she could do was hope that they were ok. Truth be told, she was starting to grow tired of that word, hope.
…
The three of them started to scope out the area. Ben thought he would be able to hear something, anything, but he couldn't. Ericka focused in on the constant dripping water noise.
"I'm worried." Matt randomly stated. Everyone was worried. It was the fear of the unknown that truly messed with a person. Ericka wondered who the mole was. Where was he or she now? "So am I, they could all be dead." Ben told him, shining his flashlight over a part of the wall. The floor was wet and murky, covered in either water or some kind of mud.
"Maybe that wouldn't be so bad." Matt's voice echoed through the tunnel.
Ericka's eyebrows furrowed as she turned to Matt. Ben's gaze also shifted to his younger brother. "What do you mean?" Ben asked. Neither of them could believe what they were hearing. It didn't sound like something Matt would say. He was supposed to be the innocent one.
I guess innocence is something everyone's lost, thought Ericka.
"Dad's lost it. I don't know what Karen did to him, but she did something." he informed them. Ben and Ericka had also taken note to Tom's behavior. He was acting unlike himself. This was just his way of grieving with the loss of his girlfriend and newborn child. "He changed…" Matt continued. Ben silenced him, hearing something. "If they did that to you, you'd change too. Hey wait, I hear something." "What?" Matt questioned, looking around. Ben tried to concentrate, searching for the source of the sound.
Ericka walked in front of them, quietly continuing to scope out the area to see how far it went. She stayed close to them. "I don't want dad to die down here, I don't want Hal and Maggie to die down here. Not like this." Ben firmly told Matt, continuing to look around.
"You're the only one she can't kill, you realize that?" his brother questioned, shining his light on him.
"I can die too, Matt. I can die just like you, just like anybody." he argued.
Ericka kicked a puddle of water; making is splash against the wall. She tried not to listen to the conversation. She didn't want to hear Matt's twisted thoughts. An eleven-year-old shouldn't have to think about the death of his family and friends. He shouldn't have to be prepared for his own death.
"No, whatever happens, you'll be there to see it, no matter what." Matt protested.
She kept her back turned to them, heading a little further down the tunnel. Besides the light from their flashlights, it was pitch black.
"Well if you're not there, I don't want to be there."
"It's not up to you." muttered Matt. Silence returned as they looked over every opening around, hoping Ben would hear some form of life. "I know it…and so does Ericka." he finished. She froze when he mentioned her name. She didn't want to be in this conversation. Ericka just wanted to walk in silence. Running all around Charleston was starting to take its toll on her. She was exhausted, growing tired with every step. Since they arrived back in Charleston, she had been able to sleep better than before. Ben would stay awake beside her until she drifted off to sleep, being in his arms soothed her.
"I'm right, aren't I, Ericka?" he questioned her. She shushed him. "We should be quiet so Ben could hear." Ericka said as they turned the corner. Almost as if on cue, there was a banging noise. The three of them surveyed the area for the sound until Matt pointed to the pipe. Ben hit his flashlight up against it. "Hello!" he screamed, hoping whoever it was would hear them.
"Hey, we're up here!" shouted Hal, who was groggy from lack of air.
It was Hal, he was alive. Matt ran off to gather a crew to help Hal. "Hurry, we're almost of air." Hal added. Ben put his mouth closer to the opening of the pipe. "Open the pipe, ok, the pipe!" he hollered as loud as he could. "I can't!" a woman screamed, it was Maggie. Both of them were happy to hear that Maggie and Hal were ok. He stared up into it, shining the flashlight on the pipe.
"Ok, just hang in there! We're gonna get help, we're coming for you. Don't worry, don't worry." replied Ben with a small smile. His chocolate brown eyes fell on Ericka. She never answered Matt, only avoided the question.
…
"We found the mole." Anthony said, only partially happy. Though he wasn't happy that Lourdes was the mole, he was glad they found her. "Who is it?" Ben asked. "Lourdes."
Ericka's eyes shot open. Out of all the people in Charleston, she would have never expected that Lourdes would be the mole. How had she gotten bugged? Someone tapped on her shoulder, causing her to turn. It was Hanna. Ericka quickly hugged her friend, thrilled that she was alive. "Thank goodness you're ok!" she rambled. She was covered in a layer of dust from the explosion. Hanna was probably trapped underneath when it happened.
"Kathleen's mom is dead..." Hanna spoke softly and quietly. Ericka moved back to look at her. She was only a year younger than Ericka. Somehow, looking at her she seemed so much older. It was like Matt in the storm drain, he lost his innocence. Though Kathleen's mom was a bitch, she was still her mom. "Her old friends, Linda and Jessie, they died too." Hanna added. Kathleen was all alone. Ericka was now her only family and friend.
"Is...is there more?" Ericka asked. It wasn't something she wanted to ask, but had too. There seemed like there was more. Hanna was awfully silent and closed off. "She watched her mom die. We...we were trapped down there with fifteen dead bodies." Her voice cracked, almost as if she were going to break out into tears. Since Jimmy's death, she hasn't really cried over anything. Ericka sighed, running a hand through her hair. She knew what it was like to lose a parent. What's even worse is that she knew what it was like to watch one die. Her mind flashed back to the memory of her father bleeding out on their living room floor. There was nothing she or anyone could've done.
AN: I thought my writing wasn't too great for this chapter, but eh. Review?
I wanna thank madog98 for favoriting this story as well as the two people who reviewed, soleil cantarutti and Tori LMX. All of you who are reviewing and favoriting/following are so amazing. You have no idea how happy I am when I see the email. I would love it if you guys read my other story. It's the same as this one, but the chapters are rewritten. When it's finished I'm taking this one done and re-naming that one. If you guys could just read and review the other one, I would be thrilled. You have no idea. :)