2527

Unaffiliated planet of Madrigal

8:00am, local clock

Village/Mining Outpost of Jurgen

Local Diner, known as " Valentina's ".

Renowned around town for its front sign: A neon bullet, glowing red.

" Hey, Salyuk ? Your turn, man. "

Seated across the barely-sanded, oak wood , and slightly dusty table from the other miner who'd prompted him, the other rock-hound slowly glanced down at the Mahjong playing board that sat surrounded by an assortment of stained glasses, bowls filled with strips of biltong, and a few miscellaneous forks.

The pieces on said board- the same one that'd been used for games at this exact diner for the past 30 years ( the badly faded rose-red and avocado-green paint on most of the playing pieces alone could testify for that )- had actually moved. Well, obviously, though- he wasn't playing against himself, after all. Kind of impossible to do with a game that required at least 4 players.

It definitely put him at a disadvantage...but, then again, he kind of had an excuse...

" Hmm ? Oh...oh, right. Just got distracted there for a second. ", he murmured, waving a hand vaguely toward the TV screen mounted high and ahead of him, yet still where all at the table could view it easily. " Big stuff goin' on out there, y' know ? "

" Ughh...don't remind me. Why d'you think I decided to waste my evening here ? Aside from the biltong..", replied the other miner- a square jawed man with a scar just below his left eye, named Savaram.

" Ay ! We still gotta worry about it. "

Salyuk tossed that truth out, as he leaned forward, studying the board again as he prepared to move his own piece again. He didn't need to elaborate much more beyond what he'd said, anyway, and everyone at the table- of the whole town, frankly-knew about the " big stuff " that the TV had showing for the past half an hour...

Specifically, the recent UNSC raid on a " rebel " held asteroid base somewhere around the Galileo system...which was the same cluster ( Rome ) as Madrigal. Essentially next door, though with the vast distances of even a " short " stretch of space like there was between here and there, it also wasn't.

But, still...close enough. Major military moves like that by a force as vast and powerful as the UNSC were going to go unnoticed by nearby worlds that weren't governed by them, as few as they were. Again, that was a list that Madrigal was on, and just for that alone...they were paying attention.

Not just for that, either, though. On top of all the UNSC hustle and bustle that was thrumming out there...came additional news reports about some kind of " unknown " threat that was out there as well. The network of sovereign colonies ( of which Madrigal was one ) overall didn't have much that was tangible on exactly who/what this threat was- it pretty much ended at " There's someone out there that hates both the UNSC and everyone else ".

Well, that and the slightly more concerning rumors about...plasma bombardments taking place on some other colony worlds, both UNSC and otherwise alike. That seemed like an outright fairy tale, though. Plasma bombardments ? The UNSC had plenty of nukes, as did some of the rebel factions, but pure plasma weaponry ? Nobody had that. Let alone enough of it to affect a whole planet...

Had to just be rumors...had to. Still, even the rest of all of what the headlines were saying about the UNSC getting more and more active across the cluster as they pursued the rebels was enough, because Madrigal was there, after all, and it was pretty much a given that a UNSC battlefleet would be paying the miners a visit sooner rather than later, having either mistaken them for rebels, searching the area for rebels, or both.

One way or the other, Madrigal was basically getting subjected to the planetary equivalent of a " Probable cause search ". And they weren't entirely thrilled.

" You know how it goes: some backwoods planet shows a hint of teeth, and the UNSC drops the hammer on 'em, yelling that they're " rebels " ", lectured Salyuk, as he finally moved his playing pieces, before taking another strip of dried meat and leaning back to let the next player go. " Guess who might fit the bill 'round the cluster next. "

With a deliberate eyebrow raise, he pointed the beef strip around at the rest of the players, before promptly tearing off half of it with his teeth and eating it with visible satisfaction.

A sharply annoyed click of a tongue emanated from Yulsen,the miner at the very end of the table, on his right. Despite his granddad-sounding name, he was actually the youngest one there, at just barely having hit 30. Still, like every other man of the town, he was bearded and scarred- neither of which, however, could hide that still-present youthful impatience.

" I say this, with all due respect...you sound like you're 70 ", the other rock-cracker grunted, rolling both eyes.

" Come on...the news cycle is just that: a ***king cycle. Just around and around...the same old stuff. Nothing ever comes out of it. We've got actual things that need taking care of right here. "

" Slegete idee, ignoreer wat daar buite aangaan ( Bad idea, ignoring what's going on out there ) ". Savaram shook his red head, after dispensing that nugget of wisdom.

He breathed deep for a moment, and the others didn't miss how a shadow seemed to sweep over his face. Before the could ask why, as it wasn't normal of him...

It didn't matter. He spared them the need.

"...While I was prospecting on Tanarak, ' bout a 2 months ago...I saw movement through the foliage. Wouldn't have thought much of it, other than grabbing my 8-gauge, but...there were purple lights on them. Purple ! "

Pausing, he glanced around at the others, allowing the words to fully take hold. Most of the other guys were, at the bare minimum, clearly listening to what he had to say, save for the one or two that still had their focus on the thing they were drinking/ eating right before them, or on their section of the board if they were playing. Their faces, specifically, were a mix of actual fascination, skepticism...and that was pretty much it.

Again, though...at least they were listening.

" Literally, nobody ", he emphasized, with a knife hand to boot, " uses purple lights. Not on the ground, or for any kind of aerial vehicle- and I saw some of those rising above the trees as well. It wasn't a plane , either, because it just kept going till it was so high, that it was gone. "

He shook his head, and let his hand fall. " Call me crazy, a nutcase, whatever you like. I showed you the images I got of it. Basically...all that chatter about " burning colonies ", and " unknown " bad guys ? Maybe there's something to it. Maybe. "

Yulson grunted with disdain, but said nothing. Nobody was surprised at that reaction, anyway: He'd always been like that. Typical of the youth of Jurgen, overall, with their highly-centered view of the universe, and their lack of any higher understanding of said universe past Madrigal. The local education system was fighting day and night to change that, but...it was a pretty sluggish change at that.

" Till I actually see one, there's no convincing me. ", he declared, crossing his arms.

" Probably just a UNSC scouting team. They know our Duterium is worth more than gold. That's what's gonna draw 'em here ", stated the youngest of the miner with a authoritative note.

Savram moved one of his pieces- putting him just a stone's throw away from winning the whole game, as the overhead fan continued vigorously spinning with that whp , whp, whp sound it always kicked out. " Kid...love 'em or hate 'em, nobody's accused them of burning a colony. "

The other man didn't seem to have bought it. " Yeah...sure. Didn't say I hated 'e, but if you did burn a whole colony, who'd be alive to say anything ? "

" Now who's the skeptic, hm ? ", countered Salyuk.

" Hey, like I said: when I get hard proof-like one good video-, I'll believe it. ", shot back Yulsen. He took hold of his glass, and drank, signalling he was done.

It had to begin somewhere, after all.

That rigid, quite skepticism that couldn't be cracked aside from the most overt and noisy proof. It was something that could be found just as much among the older residents, as it could among the youth.

Aged high or low, or anywhere between...they were all patriotic Madrigalians, and Madrigal came first to them. Whether it was mining the ground for the former, or just staying out of trouble for the latter.

Speaking of which, most of them, at the moment, anyway, weren't even at the town at all to even speak their minds the way student-age adults did about topical things. Which was probably for the best, anyway. Under-30s tended to have a bad grasp on how to debate, even by modern standards.

Then again...Madrigal youths were generally different. Self-sufficient, and stubborn minded ( as much as their elders ), they were as passionate about the world as anyone. Not of age to harvest the Duterium alongside their fathers and uncles, though

"Hhh...***k, I hate having to breathe.."

Without having opened her hazel eyes, Kwan ha expertly revealed the only thing stopping a kiss from dragging on for literal hours- the need of all humans to have some O2.

It really was...such a nuisance. Why should anything ruin the moment, least of which the need to breathe ? It was just getting annoying...when you were pulled deep through that addictive world of endorphins and euphoria that came from sharing a deep, passionate kiss. It set your whole body on fire ( figuratively speaking ), and shut out the entire rest of the universe from the exact spot where you were, all the way to the nearest star..

Which was exactly where Kwan had been, till just a second or so ago.

" Hhhh..hh..."

Beneath the near-total-sun-shade coverage provided by the ample branches of the willow tree overhead, the still-slight-dazed 18 year old let her tanned forehead rest against that of the young man who's lap she was currently ( and very contentedly ) planted on. Her arms- bare, and sporting a tattoo of a sun with a pair of hammers crossed behind it- were draped around the man's neck, and her lips were tantalizingly close to his.

Just...just as close as they could get, without clamping over them yet again. The temptation was overwhelming, and she knew she couldn't resist it for long, but..

..Dang it. She needed to breathe. She literally had to...much of an annoyance as it was right now.

What a drag...!

Ugh...

"...Tell me about it. ", responded the man she's been searingly making out with. His own eyes- grey, and as shamelessly betraying how turned on he was as Kwan's own were doing for here- were open as well, and he had a hand firmly ( yet also gently ) cupping Kwan's chin, with a thumb stroking her cheek.

The other hand...well, that was currently doing some cupping as well- Kwan's right boob, that is. It was just big enough to require a whole, good-sized male hand to grasp, and as an apprentice miner, Aaron DuLirek had some of those, for sure.

Basically, the way that a woman would know a man had good hands...however sure she might be otherwise.

" Gotta say, though...it was worth it while it lasted ", he added, a slight, but enthusiastic smile gracing his features.

The potential for that statement to go somewhere filthy wasn't lost on either of them, and Kwan giggled at it- a school girlish, singsong-y way, which was why she always hid it from any of their fellows. Around Aaron, though, she didn't care at all.

Why should she, anyway ? First they'd kissed, and then she'd let him touch her boobs. Getting distressed about him listening to her giggling wasn't a thing anymore. If it ever had.

"...You got that right ", she replied, with a weighted whisper, as the urge to kiss him at least once more overpowered her.

Leaning forward without a hint, she did exactly that to him, again. Just as firmly and with as much raw energy as before.

And, Aaron responded with equal, if not greater, force.

Just as before.

Eventually...they finally realized that there was one other thing that might bring an end to any making-out-session:

Having nosy friends.

Or, at least " We're just worried about you , because you said you were going out to look for berries for our cookout, and didn't come back for a while "-claiming friends. Which they did, actually. About half a dozen of them, just a few hundred feet away, around a well-built campfire they'd gotten going a while ago. Its column of ashy-grey, obsidian-dark smoke was still curling its way higher and higher through that gap of the forest's canopy where they'd set their makeshift camp, so at least there wasn't a way to miss it.

And...technically, there were good things there. Plenty of drinks ( thermos of coffee and tea, sparkling water, juice, some cold, others hot ), and food as well: all the stuff to craft some smores, plenty of dried beef, bags of chips, and some mangoes. All the stuff you'd probably need for a couple of hours spent chilling under the branches of a wonderfully dense forest.

Or...temporarily forgoing it for the sake of some steamy kiss-and-touch fest. The sense of privacy and calm given away by all the tightly packed, big-trunked trees with their bushy branches hanging overhead was kind of addictive on its own.

But, eventually, it had to end, sooner or later ( for one reason, or another ) , and so...here they were.

Trekking back through the undergrowth of the forest, brushing through the ferns and shrubs to emerge once again on the perimeter of the hidden bunch of their fellow youths.

" Haha...guess who's back ! Its the lovebirds ! ", taunted one of the tallest members of the bunch: a beanie-wearing , jock-looking kid named Rosco. With a shameless grin, he pointed at them, while still holding a can of Vimtok.

" Ditched us so you could get to know each other better, ay...", he added with a laugh, before taking a deep swig of the drink.

The " greeting " ( if you could call it that ) was greeted by an overlapping chorus of more laughter and hyena cackling from the others. As was the norm, of course: prone to humor as they were on their own, when Rosco was around, he had a tendency to get them going even more. Not a bully, no, but...kind of a ringleader when it came to needling anyone for something.

All the " good fun " kind, though, naturally.

...Mostly.

" Yeah...who actually thought they'd bring back berries for real ? ", teasingly called out a thicc girl with a pair of red stud earrings: Deidra. " I mean...maybe they did, but they probably got carried away with all their " fun ", and ate 'em ! "

That triggered a fresh wave of laughter, as the aforementioned lovers strolled back through the middle of the camp- with, contrary to popular belief, an old-school wicker basket that was, yes, at least partially filled with fresh berries. That, alone, was enough to keep the real sting of their friends' teasing to a minimum. Though, even without it, they both knew none of it was mean-spirited, or caustic. That was just their way, though that a lot of them were South African Boers, that wasn't entirely out of a vaccum...

They were just like that. Loud, boisterous, and always ready to do some ribbing. Nothing bad about it. Besides, they always knew when to let the foot off the pedal and get real, anyway.

" Ok, ok...you comedians "

Waving both a greeting, and a defiant dismissal of their heckling, Aaron now raised the other hand, which was the one grasping the basket. " Hope you enjoyed your own fun, 'cause we still got what you want ! "

He shook the wooden container, and the berries it was carrying made a suitably appetizing rattling sound.

" Yeah- and I got some extras right here ", Kwan triumphantly added, quickly fishing through one of her pockets, and pulling out a handful of more .

" Who's laughing now, ji ( Traditional Chinese for " chicken ) ?! "

Now that.....that...was how the game was played. Take it on the chin, and then give it back yourself- but with something to offer. Showed you could take it ( not that they'd ever really cross any kind of line, but still...you had to stand your ground ), and that it hadn't dampened your mood that much.

Ebb and flow. That's how kids operated...more or less.

" Alright ! You've redeemed yourselves ! Well done ", Rosco remarked approvingly, as the wandering pair came over, and found a place to sit ( side by side, needless to say ) close to the ruggedly roaring, sharply crackling fire.

" Had my doubts for a while..."

" Skeptic ", stated Kwan, with a smirk. " Beiguan zhuyi zhe ( pessimist ) . "

" Ugh..! ", protested Deidra. " You keep doing that-speaking Chinese at us, so you can say anything you want. That's a low shot. "

" Maybe you'll learn not to poke the bear, then..! ", a-barely-suppressing-laughter Aaron pointed out. Clearly, he was delighted with how his girlfriend could land ( verbal ) shots.

" Yeah...as if she'd give me some slack just for that ", was the half-joking response.

Chuckling and telling glances all around ensued, as they finally then got around to actually distributing the harvest, such as it was. Still enough to feed them all, which was proven moments later, as Aaron flipped open the basket with a flourish to reveal a mound of berries- all gold, red, and purple. They'd even been washed as well, courtesy of the creek that they all knew flowed through this area.

Good old Springbok Creek. It had delivered again..

Soon enough, with the addition of the recently cleaned berries, the outdoor excursion they were enjoying only got better. It'd already been great, with the relative seclusion, the scent of the leaves and the dirt, the perfect temperature ( balmy, really, where there was no danger of sweating, or getting chill-triggered goosebumps )...the quality chow they had..

Yep. It was really coming together now. Genuine laughter began to arise from everyone, and chatter flowed freely. They knew they had a while to kill before the elder of the town would get suspicious about how long they'd been away, and would doubtlessly take action to find them because they'd " been out too long ", or something. Most likely, they'd unleash a salvo of Chatter calls/ messages, asking over and over where they were and when they might be coming back. Failure to actually do so, everyone knew, would definitely lead to a lot of floor-scrubbing, potato skin scraping, or other miscellaneous chores on top of the ones they already had.

Nobody wanted that. They were honored to have a good worth ethic, but getting extra stuff heaped onto it wasn't a decent price for some fun.

Still...they had a few hours till then. Might as well get all their mileage out of it...

So, for the next few hours they did exactly that: chowing down, drinking zesty drinks that were perfectly chilled, and shooting the breeze about just about every pop culture topic of the day that they cared about: movies, holovid shows, the best fishing spots around the surrounding countryside, and even the open air festivals held on the neighboring planet of Sonoran IV...which was so dependent on their shipments of Duterium, that they had a standing agreement to give anyone to wanted to attend from Madrigal a major discount. Needless to say, that drew these kids there like bees to honey- when they could cajole their parents and legal guardians to splurge their hard-earned coin during the mining summer break on a trip.

Worth it, whenever they could get their shot at it.

But, for now, they were running their own show, right here and right now. The food and drink was plenty, the atmosphere was vibrant, and they were digging it. Aside from the unpleasant and unwanted task of having to lug their trash back home for disposal, things were going great.

And by great, that translated to-

" Come on, you grade-a wuss ! "

" Go, go, go, go...! "

-well, at the moment, a spontaneous arm-wrestling contest.

Specifically, a pretty close-run thing between Roscoe and Aaron-all going full tilt for the sake of a free case of mango-flavored seltzer. It might've struck some as low bidding goods, but for them ? Hardly. Besides, from all the yelling and bellowed encouragement going on, you might've thought there was an outright professional MMA fight going on here within the confines of a 50,00 seat arena !

..Alright. Slight exaggeration, but close enough.

Close enough.

For Kwan, at least though, it might as well have been the opposite, because pretty much none of the other girls were out-shouting her here.

" You have this ! You. Have. This ! "

Pounding a closed fist on the top of the hard fiberglass cooler they were using for a table, she hammered the point home. Every syllable, and every impact, she knew, would only give her guy even more motivation...

" You want to lose ? Huh ? Wanna lose ? Dig deep...! "

Even better...he hardly seemed to need it. Roscoe was a big fella, but Aaron was deceptively strong for a tall, thin man, and he was actually winning this contest. It was by a slightly narrow margin, granted, but it was going steady ! He was nearly there ! A lot of grunting was going on, along with tightly clenched facial muscles and some badly shaking arms, but that just showed it was going as full-throttle as it should.

Well...as well as it was, that is, because about 20 seconds later-

Thunk !

" Agh....ek het jou amper gehad ( I almost had you ) ! ", Roscoe cried out, recoiling slightly from the pain of his wrist hitting the cooler's top, as cheers erupted all around.

That, and more than a few jeers and laughed taunts. Such, however, was the price you had to pay when it came to losing, now wasn't it ? Give it the best shot you could, but it still might go wrong...

Or right. Which it had, for the other guy, that is...

" Hahaha ! Almost isn't actually there, though ! ". Triumph practically dripped from every syllable of Aaron's words, as he raised both fists overhead with a gesture of victory.

" Close, but no BBQ ! "

More deep laughter ensued, as Kwan leaned forward, kissed Aaaron on the side of the face, and hugged him- all only needing one fluid movement do to both. It was something that'd taken her a bit of practice to get it down to a science, but she'd finally nailed it.

Obviously...she'd be crazy about him no matter what, but...but she was so proud of him, though ! He'd pulled off a big win here...a big win.

Everybody was cheering and laughing, though. They were wrapped with the enthusiasm themselves, and even though it'd fade soon, for now...

...For now, Aaron was a titan among men.

" Ok....alright....ya did good. ", Roscoe hedged, even summoning a wry grin, and a shrug.

" Ya did good. But..! "

He pointed then, at the man who'd bested him. " You think you can prove it wasn't a fluke ?! "

As if on cue, many ooohhhs rose from his saying that, along with a few shark grins. If there was one thing the youth liked nearly as much as winning/watching someone win, it was when someone threw down the gauntlet.

Which Roscoe had just done...

Kwan could sense the hair on the back of her beck standing with anticipation-and it'd only been a few milliseconds. It was a good kind of hair raising, though, and even better...she had supreme confidence that her guy would accept it...even without glancing at that handsome face of his.

A confidence that was proven to have a good foundation another millisecond later.

With a confident smile of his own now forming, Aaron shrugged back.

" Hey, why the heck not ? 2 for 2 sounds great to me ! You game ? "

" Already was, man ! Let's do this ! "

The knot of fellow youths around them hollered and cheered yet again. This was perfect. This was exactly the kind of thing that could capstone their outing here- or give them a reason to head down to the creek nearby and cool off.

Either way...a day well spent.

" Ok, buddy..."

Rubbing both palms together, Roscoe turned back toward the cooler.

" Ready when- "

ZZZZZZZISSSSSSHHHHH !

Out.

Of.

Nowhere.

Literally, and absolutely, out of nowhere. It was the sheer amount of abruptness of it that stunned the most. And by " stunned ", that was the kind of stun where it seemed like an electric shock had barreled through your body like you'd just touched a live power line. It seemed like you were literally about to have cardiac arrest right then and there...!

Actual, real stoppage of the heart...! Like it you'd had your " off " switch thrown, and were about to keel over to have your lifeless corpse hit the ground/floor.

Then again...

Roscoe had just gotten his chest torn open from the back by some kind of beam of energy, so maybe it wasn't so out of left field after all.

Not really.

It wasn't...as red mist, chunks of flesh, and fragments of bone sprayed out from the point of impact, like a hideous garden hose turned to full. It wasn't...as the cheers, jeers, laughter and chuckling switched to soul-tearing screams and wails so fast, it'd give anyone whiplash.

Which it did for Kwan, actually. The whole load of sensory overload- what she'd seen, what it'd caused her to feel, the coppery scent of the red fluid, and the primal screaming from everybody around her- were all so strong, and so sudden...

...That, her body, and her mind practically shut down. Reflexes and shock automatically took over, and she found herself suddenly sprawled half on her back- she didn't even remember staggering backwards, and falling over-

ZZZZZISSHHH !

ZZZZZISSSHH !

ZZZZZZISSHH !

ZZZZZZISSSHH !

Speaking of falling...that's what Deidra had just done , right on top of her. Kwan's head had cleared just enough for her to spot the slightly heavyset girl running ( despite her weight, she wasn't slow...for all the good that did ) full tilt from left to right, only for another of the beams of energy to outright pop her head like a pin through a balloon. The image of her face- tanned, with a slight scar below one lip- going from an actual face, to just...a mishmash of redness and gore that her own mind short-circuited as it connected the dots of change.

" HHAAaa-! "

" Hhhkk- "

A raw howl of fear, horror, and surprise burst of her- and then it died, just as quickly. A hand of hers had already flipped over to shield her face, and something damp ( and...fleshy ) smacked against it. Subconsciously...she knew what it was...but all she could do was lie there, as what she knew was her friend's body tissue dripped from her own hand.

...She was entering a state of shock. That was pretty much all her conscious mind was capable of doing anymore..

Aside from possessing the screaming.

The screaming..

The raw, fearful, screaming, and crying-

" Kwan ! Kwan ! "

Through the raging storm of mental numbness, a familiar voice reached her ears.

" Kwan ! "

Usually, the sound of Aaron calling to her would've brought her joy. As it was now, though...she barely even registered him, as he came scrambling over to her, and grabbed her by both shoulders. More of the hissing, swishing energy beams stabbed out, shredding tunnels through the forest's thickly bunched branches and leaves, and sending countless shards of them going every which way...

" ...Hey ! They're killing us ! ", he bellowed, voice charged like a bottle rocket about to launch with urgency and weight. " Running's our only shot ! Stick with me ! "

Like a sword through a sheet, his words finally breached the mental haze that had descended around Kwan, and with a gasp and a spastic jerk, she came alive again.

"..They're...what the...they're...", she babbled.

" What..."

As her neural pathways continued short-circuiting , Aaron bodily hauled her all the way onto her feet, and turned her around so she was facing ( roughly ) the direction of Jurgen, roughly a mile or so away.

" I've got you ! Here we go...! "

A hand closed over hers then- his. Fierce and tight. Aaron began to run, and Kwan found herself getting pulled along with him.

As they lurched forward, her mind finally began to operate again- but like a live wire sliced, it was going erratically. She could...couldn't, actually, comprehend what had just happened. Her friends...the beams of energy that'd killed them...

It..it was a dream. A horrible, horrible, dream. The kind your memory automatically deleted from storage, so to speak, so it wouldn't torture you any longer.

Yes, that's what it was-

ZZZIIIISSHHHHH !

A grunting, gurgling sound burst from just off to her right, and the vise-like grip around her hand vanished, as quick as thought. A bunch of firm-feeling...things smacked against her, along with a liquid that reeked of copper.

Then there was a thud..

Like that of a body hitting the ground.

Staggering badly, Kwan nearly face-planted, but caught herself ( somehow ) at the last moment. She still stumbled around, slightly-

-and was soon greeted by the sight of Aaron lying on the ground.

With a gaping hole where his right lung should be. Smoke curled, wisp-like, away from it...

And just like that, Kwan's mind's conscious side stopped operating again. Couldn't handle what was getting thrown at it. Kwan could literally feel it- a yawing void, just expanding through her skull like the shockwave of a bomb. A chilling, numbing sensation ( like getting wrapped with freezing rubber ) , that soon spread to the rest of her body after just a millisecond.

All she had left, after all that...was her pure reflexes. Self-preservation, really...now that wasn't anybody around her anymore. There was nobody...

Nobody alive, anyway. Unless they were behind her, but those energy beams had barely missed a mark. How could anyone be alive back there ?!

And even if they were...

She knew she could die even half-going back to look. All she could do..

...was what she was doing right now: Running, on her own now, with everything she had left, back toward Jurgen. It wasn't a pretty run-stumbling, staggering, a bit of flailing- but at least it was a run, at all.

Because standing still was death.

Because the man she had loved, with what had turned out to be his dying wish, had told her to run..

Because she'd seen what those beams of energy could do.

She didn't want them to punch a hole through her..

So, she ran.

Ran down the slope of the forested hill...ran through the mass of brush between the trees that she'd once been smothered by as a child moving though them. Back when she had nothing to worry about, and was as carefree as any kid.

Not anymore. Now, she was a 18 year old kid, who'd just watched some honest to God aliens kill everyone around her, and with beams of pure energy...who were still after her, and still shredding the forest like it was made of just dry twigs with their rays of pure death.

All she could do against that ?

Run.

Run for her life.