side, my fingers struggling against the sheer power of the creature’s grip to keep the gun from dropping to the ground. The back of my neck warmed at the touch, sending a shooting, tingling sensation straight down my spine. A flash of something serene filled my vision. I could feel it, cool and wet … and salty. I blocked out the tingling sensation, focusing only on the vision before me.
Water.
Lots and lots of water. An ocean.
The flash snapped and disappeared, and the tingling sensation returned, spreading down my spine and igniting my skin in pure, rich warmth. Jet screamed my name, the muffled booms of his guns drowning out his voice, and I cried out in horror when the Invader’s face came into view, moving to stand directly in front of me. Its hand still carefully clamping my neck, its dark gaping holes stared back at me while its shrill screech pierced my ears, its ghoulish jaw dropping in a howl. Liquid ooze drooped down its chin in a river of clear discharge, and my stomach flipped at the sight, sure the creature had hailed straight from the depths of some morbid, watery abyss. I watched helplessly as its hand revealed a silver sphere, its other hand still clasped tight around my neck, the tingly feeling sending more sparks up and down my spine. My entire body felt hot now, an oven heating up from the inside.
Then the unthinkable happened.
As the others ceased fire to glide in behind it and join it in its appraisal of me, the pack’s screams united in a single high-pitched yell, and almost reverently, they all began to retreat backward, lowering their weapons. Jet’s gunfire ceased, and the clammy creature’s hand released my neck, its eyes boring into me cautiously while it lowered the silver sphere. The pack rapidly glided away from me and Jet and left us there in the woods, hearts pounding and feet planted firm in the soil. All went still, and my only conscious thought was still the same—the one Jet had instilled in me so relentlessly.
Keep your finger on the trigger.
FOUR
This was the first time since we’d begun running together that we’d run from silence. Nothing was chasing us, but our feet told us otherwise. They couldn’t carry us fast enough through the woods, away from the formation of Invaders that had just ambushed us, only to let us go.
“What the hell was that?” I choked out, my breath heavy as I sprinted through the brush. Jet was running ahead of me, his arms lithely pushing branches out of the way as he moved. He ducked and weaved with sleek precision. If I hadn’t been so frantic, the sight would’ve been mesmerizing to watch while I followed in his path.
“Don’t know. Never seen anything like it.”
“Where are we going? Maybe we should stay and rest while we can.”
“Can’t. They might come back.”
“Jet—”
“Skylla, keep moving. We have no idea what they’re up to, and we’re not going to wait around to find out. We need to get to that railroad.”
“No, hold up.” I sprang forward and snatched his shirtsleeve, forcing him to turn and face me. “I need to catch my breath. I’m not … not a machine like you. I don’t have the stamina, and how are you not at all freaked out by what just went down back there? I need to slow down, need to think.” Especially about the water I’d seen. The ocean. I couldn’t shake the image from my mind. Peaceful, yet so unsettling. I couldn’t wrap my brain around the strange contradiction.
Jet’s earnest face searched mine, then the perimeter behind me, his eyes unable to focus on anything for longer than a few seconds. His brow was sweaty, his nostrils flaring. “Think later. I’m just as freaked out as you are. But I also know that whatever just happened, it wasn’t an accident. They retreated for a reason, and whatever it was, it’s not good for us. Come on, I’ll carry you.”
He started forward to reach for me but I refused him, jutting backward. “You can’t carry me and run like that
Water.
Lots and lots of water. An ocean.
The flash snapped and disappeared, and the tingling sensation returned, spreading down my spine and igniting my skin in pure, rich warmth. Jet screamed my name, the muffled booms of his guns drowning out his voice, and I cried out in horror when the Invader’s face came into view, moving to stand directly in front of me. Its hand still carefully clamping my neck, its dark gaping holes stared back at me while its shrill screech pierced my ears, its ghoulish jaw dropping in a howl. Liquid ooze drooped down its chin in a river of clear discharge, and my stomach flipped at the sight, sure the creature had hailed straight from the depths of some morbid, watery abyss. I watched helplessly as its hand revealed a silver sphere, its other hand still clasped tight around my neck, the tingly feeling sending more sparks up and down my spine. My entire body felt hot now, an oven heating up from the inside.
Then the unthinkable happened.
As the others ceased fire to glide in behind it and join it in its appraisal of me, the pack’s screams united in a single high-pitched yell, and almost reverently, they all began to retreat backward, lowering their weapons. Jet’s gunfire ceased, and the clammy creature’s hand released my neck, its eyes boring into me cautiously while it lowered the silver sphere. The pack rapidly glided away from me and Jet and left us there in the woods, hearts pounding and feet planted firm in the soil. All went still, and my only conscious thought was still the same—the one Jet had instilled in me so relentlessly.
Keep your finger on the trigger.
FOUR
This was the first time since we’d begun running together that we’d run from silence. Nothing was chasing us, but our feet told us otherwise. They couldn’t carry us fast enough through the woods, away from the formation of Invaders that had just ambushed us, only to let us go.
“What the hell was that?” I choked out, my breath heavy as I sprinted through the brush. Jet was running ahead of me, his arms lithely pushing branches out of the way as he moved. He ducked and weaved with sleek precision. If I hadn’t been so frantic, the sight would’ve been mesmerizing to watch while I followed in his path.
“Don’t know. Never seen anything like it.”
“Where are we going? Maybe we should stay and rest while we can.”
“Can’t. They might come back.”
“Jet—”
“Skylla, keep moving. We have no idea what they’re up to, and we’re not going to wait around to find out. We need to get to that railroad.”
“No, hold up.” I sprang forward and snatched his shirtsleeve, forcing him to turn and face me. “I need to catch my breath. I’m not … not a machine like you. I don’t have the stamina, and how are you not at all freaked out by what just went down back there? I need to slow down, need to think.” Especially about the water I’d seen. The ocean. I couldn’t shake the image from my mind. Peaceful, yet so unsettling. I couldn’t wrap my brain around the strange contradiction.
Jet’s earnest face searched mine, then the perimeter behind me, his eyes unable to focus on anything for longer than a few seconds. His brow was sweaty, his nostrils flaring. “Think later. I’m just as freaked out as you are. But I also know that whatever just happened, it wasn’t an accident. They retreated for a reason, and whatever it was, it’s not good for us. Come on, I’ll carry you.”
He started forward to reach for me but I refused him, jutting backward. “You can’t carry me and run like that
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