Well, here I am again. Trying on science fiction; the kind that seems like the writer has visited another world in another galaxy and seen or been through some things that NO ONE has seen/been through before (I'm trying that with "Majoumyaku" but someone told me it's like combining "The Fast and the Furious" or "Death Race" combined with pod racing from the first Star Wars movie...).
Meet "Fawn", a 15 year old half Maori girl living in fictional Lyrua, Georgia U.S.A.. The whole world is under the control of invading pacifists aliens called "Hellents". After Fawn commits a horrible crime against the Hellents, a squad from another species of aliens called Kindarians, vow to protect her.
Comment and critique please. And feel free to vent because I haven't continued with my other stories yet ^^;;
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Fawn
Chapter 1
Her room window clattered and rumbled from the high-bass hip-hop music booming from outside and, even though it was closed, loud conversation and raucous laughter made way through the glass pane. She twisted and turned underneath the blankets holding the pillow over her head. All she wanted was a few more minutes of sleep; a slumbering escape before waking up to the cruddy reality she has been living in for the past 5 years.
She was almost off to dreamland again until she heard her room door creaking open slowly. Claws tapping across the tile floor and her roommate's laugh and snorts from downstairs made her eyes flare open again.
She saw her blue and white, pointy-eared canine with his head laid on the edge of the bed and he stared back with his sad, pleading golden-brown eyes, even though his tail wagged seeing that she was awake. As cranky as she was from being rudely awakened, she couldn't help but smile at him, "'Mornin', Buick."
Now wide-awake and a hungry dog giving her the sad eyes, she lazily rolled out of bed. The blankets broke her fall but she had to squirm and wriggle out to untangle herself. Standing up, she gently scratched at the gauze bandage taped on her left cheek, another reason she wanted to mope in bed, and walked up to the window.
If there was one way she could describe the world the way it was now it would be 'gray', both literally and figuratively. If the entire sky wasn't thick, dusty brown, it was cloudy as if a terrible, harsh rainstorm was on its way. Their changed environment made these projects look more unsettling and depressing but they didn't let them stop having their fun and freedom.
She stepped out the bathroom moments later, feeling refreshed and less naked after she got dressed. She grabbed her key rings and headed out the room, running down the stairs with Buick in tow and entering the living room.
"Kendall! All that laughin' ain't necessary," Fawn grumbled as she walked between him and the TV stepping over his stacks of manga, video game magazines, and DVD covers.
Kendall Billingsly was an example of the stereotypical nerd; scrawny, his baby face covered in pimples and wearing black thick-framed glasses. He set up camp on the couch in front of the TV with bushels of cords and wires coming from behind it.
Kendall calmed down wiping drool from the corner of his mouth and rubbed that same hand through his short blonde hair, "I can't help BUT laugh! Ninja Ninja is hilarious. 'That a motherfuckin' RPG? A RPG in a motherfuckin' backpack?!'."
She grabbed for one certain key and unlocked the padlock that kept heavy chains secure around the old, small chipped-up refrigerator. Buick backed into the living room when the chains fell to the floor in a loud, collective clatter. Peeking inside, she was grateful to see there was enough to eat for breakfast.
"How 'bout givin' Ninja a break and get in this kitchen and learn how to cook?" She set everything on the counter, faraway from Buick's reach, and washed her hands as she let the gas stove heat up, " I ain't your mama, you know."
Kendall complained, "It's Ninja Ninja! You say his name twice! And you remember the last time I tried to cook. I nearly set the whole place on fire."
"I'm still tryin' to figure out how'd you did it with only a pot of water." It didn't take long for the aroma of bacon and scrambled eggs to fill up the small apartment. Kendall drooled at the smell but he couldn't be pulled away from watching black puffy-haired samurai dueling with a robotic version of himself way above the storm clouds.
Fawn carefully placed a plateful of bacon and sausage links on the floor and Buick went to town on them, grunting, chomping, and swallowing loudly. She called Kendall before sitting down at the small raggedy round table with her plate, "Kendall, get in here before I give Buick the rest of your share."
The action part of the anime was over at the moment so he did finally get up, walking into the kitchen while scratching his rear end. "Geez," he snickered teasingly, "What do you have to be so cranky in the morning, Bambi?"
Kendell saw the bottom of a shoe coming straight at him and quickly ducked. It hit the wall with a loud 'whack' and landed upside down. She continued eating as if she hadn't made a move "Get my name right or you gonna lose that head of yours." she grumbled.
"I was just kidding, Fawn!" He fixed his plate, carefully watching his glaring roommate, and cautiously took a seat across from her, "I thought you said you had patience."
"I do. That don't mean I don't have a limit." Fawn sprinkled pepper on her eggs before eating them.
Kendell stayed quiet, eating his meal and waiting until it looked like Fawn was calm before striking up a morning conversation. An imaginary battle was already taking place in his actively creative mind. "I bet you could take on Afro, Fawn. That'd be a good match to see," he chuckled.
Fawn spoke with a bacon strip sticking out the side of her mouth, "For the last time, I don't come from a family of samurai. I'm Maori."
"That's the beauty of it," Fawn quickly avoided staring at Kendell when he spoke with his mouth full of food, "Samurai warrior versus Maori warrior. Agility and skill versus strength and ferocity."
Fawn shook her head, "I think I saw them do that on TV once, only it wasn't a samurai the Maori fought. It didn't end too well for my side so I think I'll keep my distance from samurai and monks."
"You're a party pooper." Kendell pouted.
"And you're disgusting. I don't wanna see what your food looks like after you chewed it," Fawn rolled her eyes.
Kendell apologized while wiping his face with a napkin and stayed quiet during the rest of the meal.
Fawn was young but she was a good cook so the food was delicious as always. There were a just few things missing to go along with the southern breakfast. Fawn sighed a little after finishing her meal, "I'd kill for a bowl of cheese grits right now. If we had some flour, coulda made some biscuits or sausage gravy."
Kendell groaned, "Fawn, please stop. You're making me hungry again and I'm stuffed."
Fawn collected the empty and dirty dishes and headed toward the sink. "Where do you think you goin'?" She asked hearing Kendell trying to tip-toe out the kitchen.
Kendell froze. "Uhm, back to--"
"Get back in here. It's your turn to do the dishes."
"But I'm still sleepy and I have sensitive cuticles." He whined.
Fawn finished her orange juice and tossed the cup in the sink. "Sensitive cuticles? What are you, a Valley girl?" She tossed him a pair of rubber gloves after putting the dirty dishes in the sink, "Put those on and make you a pot of coffee. We're almost out of dish detergent too, so don't use it all. You shouldn't stay up all night watching cartoons."
"Anime! There's a difference!" Kendell grumbled as he headed to the sink tossing the gloves aside.
Fawn dreaded the thought of sitting on the couch since Kendell made that his place to lay his head. Seeing the manga covers with hot women posing in teeny bikinis with breasts that were about twice the size of her head, Kendell was doing more than sleeping on the couch. Retrieving the gloves from the kitchen, she dragged the sheets off and sat on one of the pillows stacked behind the couch.
There was no cable set-up in the San Fran Ghettos so residents depended on their favorite movies and television series on DVD to keep them from dying of boredom. Unfortunately for Fawn, her DVDs were possibly broken and shattered underneath rubble that used to be her house, so she was stuck with hundreds of selections from Kendell's scattered anime library. Keeping her gloves on, she sorted through the cases for an interesting title putting the ones she didn't want to see in a neat, short stack.
"FAWN!" Kendell came charging in the room, knocking over the DVD stacks and creating a bigger mess. The commotion sent Buick running halfway up the stairs and Fawn jumping up on the couch, missing the cushion.
He waved around the mini calender that Fawn kept pinned above the kitchen sink at her. Kendell squeaked with glee, "Guess what today is?"
"The day you pack up your shit and go room with someone else?!" Fawn growled, then she jumped to her feet startling him and yelled, "What the hell, Kendell!? You tryin' to make my heart stop?! I thought you saw a-"
Kendell shoved the calender in her face ignoring her anger and sounding as giddy as a Japanese schoolgirl, "Look look look look look! The date!"
Fawn snatched away the calender grumbling at him, then her anger went from boiling to lukewarm seeing the 19th, which was today, circled in red. "Oh shit, today is Supply Day isn't it?"
"SUPPLY DAY!" Kendell squealed and ran around the confined living room like a kid hyped up on sugar. Fawn watched him for short while before pressing the calender against her forehead. "If you trip and break your neck, I ain't callin' the ambulance. Are you gonna put some clothes or what?"
She made sure Kendell all the way upstairs and closed the bathroom door before heading back to her room. Fawn knelt down beside her bed and reached underneath pulling out an old shoe box that held her two Colt 1911s. After properly cleaning them and making sure the cartridges were fully loaded, she slipped them in her pockets.
"Just one more thing," Fawn reached under again and pulled out her father's taiaha, a wooden spear with symbolic carvings in the sharp tip. She gently pressed her head against the area where the spear tip met the long staff and whispered a small prayer while holding her jade Manaia necklace pendant.
Fawn passed the bathroom, dusting her pants off, when she heard the shower turning walking by the bathroom, "I'm givin' you ten minutes, Kendell, then I'm off."
She was only halfway down the stairs when someone banged loudly on the door. Buick barked viciously, pacing around the door thinking that an intruder was trying to barge in. Fawn could hear a familiar voice from behind the door. "Get back, girl, before that dog bite your ass!"
A faint fragrance of fruit and flowers and herbal hair grease was the first thing she smelled once she opened the door to greet her two nosy neighbors. "What's up, chicks?"
"Fawn, you know what today is?" They both were excited and eager as Kendell was.
Fawn cracked a wisenheimer smile, "Yeah, today is Thursday. The 19th, I think."
"Girl, quit playin'! You goin' to get the stuff or what?!" One of the girls shrieked, "We starvin' and my baby need pampers!"
Fawn leaned in the doorway and crossed arms, not intending to move an inch. She leaned in the doorway smirking as her neighbors backed off when Buick came closer. The dog wasn't threatened by their presence, just curious and enjoying the scent from lotion they wore. "Why do I always have to be the one to go get the stuff?" Fawn said, Ya'll can drive down to the checkpoint yourselves and get it, can't you?"
Both of their eyes widened and they looked over their shoulder as if something vicious was creeping up behind them.
"You know we scared to drive out there! With them Hellents around?!"
"Shiiiiit! We know they scared of you though. So you goin' or not?"
"I guess," Fawn feigned a defeated sigh, "Since you 'scared' and 'starving'. Just waiting on Kendell. Would y'all move so I can get to my car?" The girls gladly moved out the way as Buick walked between them. Fawn stepped off the concrete steps and onto uneven dirt ground.
The area around the San Fran Ghettos looked as if it had been struck by an earthquake; broken pipes and wires stuck out of raised ground, damaged cars stood in place rusting from the passing years, buildings that didn't survive had collapsed into the ground or were slowly crumbling brick by brick, and piled garbage and debris made up the project's perimeter. Despite the gloomy, destroyed appearance, the residents felt safer than where the rest of their surviving families were living at that time.
Fawn followed Buick down the slope to her desert camo tomcar with a rusty black trailer attached behind it. Since the incident, it was dangerous to go out on foot. The only way to get around were in smaller vehicles like sandrails, tomcars, and ATVs and only a select few were able to get ahold of them.
Buick took his position in the passenger seat, wagging his tail and panting anxiously. He whined and woofed softly at his owner as she unlocked the chain that tied the vehicle to a thick, rusty pipe sticking out of the ground.
Her two 'friendly' neighbors stood on the slope like overseers. "And don't take all day," one of the girls complained, "My baby needs to eat some ce'ral."
"It's because of your fat greedy ass that your baby ain't eatin' nothin'!" It was music to Fawn's ears. The girls cringed hearing the Ghettos leader, Blue, walking up behind them with her hands on her hips, glaring at them, "Ain't you suppose to be watchin' him anyway? No tellin' what kinda trouble he's gettin' into now. Probably drinking a bottle of bleach 'bout now."
The two girls skittered by, cowering and muttering under their breath as they headed back to their homes. Fawn gave Blue a friendly, informal salute, "Thanks Blue. Those two headaches were gettin' on my nerves."
"They get on everyone's nerves! I ask them why they stay here in the Ghettos when they can go stay in Spera with their mamas. Sheita say because her son's claustrophobic but li'l man told on her and said she's the one claustrophobic." Blue watched her step as she came down the slope, "Need any help? Look like you havin' trouble."
Fawn fumbled with the numerous keys in her hands. "I'm fine," She scratched her head. "Just this is the hardest key to match with this lock. I've got two--no three keys on here that match the one I'm lookin' for."
Unlike her neighbors, Blue was a dog person and gave Fawn's excitable pitbull thumped on the ground as Blue rubbed behind his ear. "Need me to go with ya?" she asked.
"I'm good, Blue. Got Kendell coming with me," Fawn replied.
Blue grunted, "Ugh, I don't see how you can put up with that slob."
"Because no one else can and I feel sorry for him. I was treated the same way in school, you know."
"Yeah, I remember. That Shanequa bitch told that tale that you kill and eat people."
"And no one wanted to bother gettin' to know me, so I gave him a chance. Only problem is I didn't know he was some messy, nasty pervert who wishes he could chase Japanese schoolgirls. He knows most of the rules, though, so he's not all that annoying." Fawn finally found the right key and unlocked her tomcar free from chains.
Blue saw Kendell coming down the slope from the corner of her eyes and whispered, "You know, word's goin' around that he has a Hellent girlfriend now."
"He told me that too," Fawn said as she sat in the driver's seat searching for the tomcar keys. "But I think he's just being all talk. I'll have to see it to believe it."
"Well until then you keep an eye out, on him and your surroundings." Blue forced a smile and waved at Kendell when he greeted her. As Kendell argued with Buick, who refused to listen to any of his orders, she noticed Fawn's left cheek taped with a large bandage, "That's still buggin' you?"
Fawn didn't respond until she found the key and stuck it in the ignition. "I hate lookin' at it." Fawn said in a sullen voice.
Blue gently put a hand over Fawn's. "It wasn't your fault, Fawn. There was nothing you could've done. You know that."
"But why was I-" Fawn lowered her head staring at her shoes and tightening her grip around the steering wheel, "Why was I left alive?"
Blue's consoling words and Kendell's whining were drowned out as Fawn slipped deep into her consciousness, reminiscing what happened five years ago.
She was ten years old again standing in shock as she watched blood spray everywhere covering the whole beach. The screamings echoed in the air and seemed to go on until they were silenced with a slice across the neck. Everyone was running to get away but they were upon them in an instant and slashed away at their bodies. She couldn't move; frozen in fear she could do nothing but sit among the dead bodies and cry.
With everyone dead, the cerulean blue and silver gray beings saw she was the only one standing and untouched. They slowly advanced toward her, smiling cruelly and not planning to show any remorse to a frightened little girl. Fear did give her the strength to get up and run but she was grabbed by the wrists and pinned down. She screamed and squirmed and kicked begging for her life, then a familiar, blue-skinned being stood over her smiling coldly as a arc-shaped blade protruded from its upper arm.
Buick's playful baying and growl-talking and Kendell's screams at the uncooperative canine snapped her back in the present. Blue hovered over her worriedly, "Fawn, are you alright?"
She jumped back when Fawn screamed, "KENDELL! SHUT THE FUCK UP AND GET IN THE BACK!" Kendell stopped in mid-sentence and slipped into the back seat watching Fawn nervously.
She apologized to Blue and started up her tomcar. She kept her eyes forward, "I'll be back, Blue."
Blue stepped aside when she heard the vehicle go in gear. Fawn drove at a safe, moderate speed up the cleared path that took her behind her home and driving on the jagged, broken street, where all the activity took place in the neighborhood.
Guys playing basketball quickly moved out the way as Fawn drove through in the middle of their game. Children ran up beside the tomcar, laughing playfully and trying to grab onto the back of the tom car. Fawn smiled and sped up a little until the children weren't able to keep up. Young ladies, friends of hers, enjoying a lazy day on the porch waved and shouted as Fawn sped by and Fawn responded by honking her horn twice.
Nearing the exit of the projects, Fawn drove a little faster being careful of friends walking by carrying buckets and laundry baskets as they headed to or left their water source; a leaking pipe pouring clear water into and filling a concrete depression.
Driving past the chain link gate entrance and onto the dirt road, Fawn waited until she got halfway down before she slammed her foot down on the gas. She took off at top speed between the cleared path between the debris pile leaving trails of dust clouds behind. Kendell hung for dear life, "Fawn! Be careful! I have a coccydynia!"
Lyrua used to be a large and unique city. Downtown was famous for its architectural design between traditional and futuristic; people could admire city sights like the massive Ferris Adadoll Stadium, Caspilon Park with its rolling hills and Amour Lake, and Arietova Macon Conference Center while riding on moving sidewalks or 'trackless' transit AuraTrains.
If visitors felt crowded in the city and wanted to get away from subways and escalators, the countryside was always a nice place to relax. Driving by flowers valleys encircling freshwater fishing ponds could put one's mind at ease. Old-fashioned southern villas and cottages still stood on a wide property of grassy fields after hundreds of years and slightly renovated to serve the homeowners' needs for the century.
Past the rural areas were Panalon and Egon Beach, two sand and shingle beaches. Panalon was known to be a great fishing spot and Egon baptismal spot for the nearby historic Egon Baptist Church. And Olia Beach, a large and wide public beach that used to be full every summer, and the gigantic amusement park, Pleasure Island, was right across its waters.
Everything changed when the economic market plummeted and eventually crashed. There wasn't enough city funds to keep city buildings from falling into disrepair or the transit running. People by the billions lost jobs and couldn't support themselves or their families. Starvation, homelessness, illness, and death increased amongst the population and spread across the world. Angry protests often broke out into senseless riots and it often fell on the government officials deaf ears. Survivors were left to fend for themselves during another Great Depression.
Kendell held on to the edge of the door wincing and cringing as they sped on a bumpy road, each rock and pothole they rode over sent an extreme tingling pain in his sprained tail bone.
They were nearing what people living in the free territory knew as 'Mickey D's Point', a McDonald's restaurant half-sunken in the ground that was like a junction that connected the four areas. Four or five people, usually Spera Haven residents armed with rifles and shotguns, stood on the rooftops daily keeping watch for intruders or pointing the way to territories for wanderers that got lost. Hearing the distant approaching engine hum, the spotters on the roof saw and recognized Fawn's tomcar. They waved and shouted out their hellos and Fawn smiled waving back.
Kendell shouted when another bump sent sharp pain in his rear, "Okay! Fawn, stop here! Please!" Fawn stopped the vehicle and he limped out holding and massaging the area right above his rump. Buick trotted by her and deciding to take a bathroom break, sniffing at a nearby pile of broken concrete seeing if any other canine used it recently.
"You should really get that looked at," Fawn said to him, "Could be something serious."
"I'm ain't seein' no doctor! I don't want no needle bein' stuck up my ass!" Kendell whined.
Fawn watched Kendell limp around, "A shot in the ass last only a second. Be better than dealin' with what you're goin' through for the rest of your life."
Kendell started to walk without any pain at the moment and stood up straight. He stared ahead past the Mickey D's Point, "I think I'll walk the rest of the way."
"To there?" Fawn glared at him, "So it's true?"
"Hey, she fell for me, not the other way 'round!" Kendell explained with hands held up, "I just walked in looking for someone and the next thing I know she's all over me. They don't have chubby, pizza-face guys in outer space so one look at me so she probably found me attractive."
Fawn leaned against the tomcar, "Or she could be playing you. There's no telling what those damn Hellents are up to."
"But they've done so much, Fawn! They're doing what the people in Congress aren't doing!" Kendell replied, "People were starving and dying and they did nothing, then these strangers from worlds beyond ours crashed here and saved us. And if you and everyone else would stop being so stubborn, this whole empty territory could be turned into Felicity territory."
"We ain't bein' stubborn. We're bein' careful." Fawn slid back in the driver's seat, "You heard what happened five years ago. You think most of us just up and forgot about that? If they want everyone else's trust, they'd bring back the people they took from us."
Kendell didn't know how to respond. Surely intergalactic creatures with greater strength and knowledge and advanced technology would be able to have the ability to bring back to dead.
Fawn started up the engine when her dog sat back down in the passenger seat. "Whatever. Do what you want," She responded bitterly. "People have their reasons on doin' what they do. Just don't come cryin' to me when these aliens start another slice and dice massacre."
Kendell sputtered and coughed from dust clouds the tomcar's spinning wheels kicked up. He waved dust from his face watching her drive further and further away until she was a cloudy dot. He slid his hands in his pockets and sighed deeply, dragging his feet as he headed southeast.
Lyrua, like most of the cities far and wide today, was nothing but barren dust fields. Since nothing was being done at first, few people with green thumbs tried to grow food for themselves and what was left of their community. The ground didn't hold enough nutrients to sustain plant growth.
The government did finally send military soldiers across the states, setting up outposts and checkpoints at state and certain city borders. Survivors, mostly those with large or young families, have made the outposts their temporary homes. A majority of individuals stayed away from anything related to their slow, unreliable government and lived in their own communities creating territories, but they were quick to accept food and supplies delivered to them on the 18th on months with thirty days or the 19th on months with thirty-one days.
Lyrua Outpost was shaped differently than most spread across the country. There were two border fences separating the free territory of Lyrua and 'Mini Lyrua', a small settlement built up from the remaining ruins of Lyrua, with the military encampment and checkpoint was settled in the middle of it all. Fawn drove toward it staying on one side of the road as military cargo trucks drove on the other side in the opposite directions, carrying people heading toward their new homes in more decent territories.
Army soldiers near the gate left it open after the last truck drove by allowing Fawn to enter, nodding her a hello. Slowly she drove around the encampment passing by large tents that housed either soldiers or civilian residents, waving to the few she recognized.
The supply tent, one of the biggest ones in the outpost, was next to the gate that opened to Mini Lyrua, or "Mini Lu", area still run by U.S. government.
There were still a bunch of areas around the world still run by their country's government but news is, even during the worldwide crisis, things are not getting any better. People living in cities untouched by alien intruders despised the ones living alongside aliens, either because of patriotism or jealousy.
Fawn got weird stares and angry glares from Mimi Lu residents as they walked by carrying their supply crates. She frowned right back at them and Buick growled, gruffing out short barks at each one that walked by.
A familiar soldier, a middle-aged, toned man, stood in front of the tent waving at Fawn and motioning for her to drive forward. Captain Travis Giuseppe had been in charge of Lyrua Outpost since it was first set up and had become good friends with Fawn. She calls him a hero because if it wasn't for what he did five years ago, she believed she wouldn't be alive today.
"What's up, Cap'n G?" Fawn greeted him with a playful, friendly salute.
"You know, Fawn Lee. Different day, same shit." He ran his head through his short light-brown hair, "And in need of an immediate haircut. Here to pick up supplies for your sector? How come they always send you?"
Fawn shrugged, "Because everyone else say they scared. And if Blue left the place for one second, the Ghettos would be on fire. The supplies packed and ready?"
"Just about. Gotta new recruit checking the count, but before you go, I wanna ask you to do a little favor for me." said Giuseppe.
Before Fawn could ask how big the favor was, a skinny young soldier with a blonde buzz cut and pureness still in his light-gray and blue eyes came up behind him and saluted. "Supplies are here and accounted for, sir," The young soldier loudly said.
Giuseppe didn't even have to look out the corner of his eyes at the young soldier, "At ease, Cadet Merrill."
The young man dropped his hand to his side still keeping the firm look. Giuseppe put a friendly arm around the cadet's shoulder and brought him forward, "This is the new recruit, Alonzo Merrill. He's only been here a week and already growing accustomed with the way things are done around here. And Cadet, this is the lovely Fawn Lee Oakley."
Cadet Merrill jumped back a little and a smile broke his hard expression. "So you're Fawn. It's nice to finally meet you," He chuckled a little. "I'm still thinking you're ten years old."
Fawn blinked rapidly looking down at the ground and let out a small laugh, "Nope, not ten anymore. Fifteen now."
Giuseppe patted Merrill on the back and instructed him to head back into the tent to help the other soldiers load supplies onto the trailer. After a quick salute, Merrill disappeared into the tent. "You still keep that picture, G?" Fawn asked the captain.
Giuseppe didn't turn around immediately, "I didn't mean for him to mention that. And of course I still have the picture. I keep it as a good luck charm."
Fawn answered, "I don't see what's so lucky about it."
"Fawn." Giuseppe summed up the courage to face her, "Everything went to hell when the stock market crashed. Everyone was starving and dying in the streets. Now this new threat came down on us from outer space. I didn't want to believe it until I saw it myself. . .and I did see it; cold-blooded creatures that I've never seen before prowling, hacking, and slashing at innocent people. Death was everywhere no matter where we went. Then I was stationed here and we got that distress call from Olia Beach."
Fawn shuffled her feet a little and began to cringe as he was nearing to the point. "And we finally got a good look at those heartless alien bastards. I know we were too late to save everyone but we did save you. And that to us was a miracle, Fawn."
"If you say so," Fawn said sadly. She felt his hands grip her shoulders and she lifted her head. "If you're still blaming yourself for what happened on the beach, then you wipe that clear from your mind right now." He said firm yet softly, "That wasn't your fault. It's those damn Hellents you need to be angry with, not yourself."
Fawn lowered her head looking away again, "I just wish--I could've stopped--"
"Sir!" Merrill appeared behind his commanding officer, "Supplies are ready to be shipped off to Spera Haven, Vivid Village, and San Fran Ghettos!"
Giuseppe turned to the young officer, "Good job. Get the lieutenant and both of you ride out and deliver them to those designated areas."
"Wait, they're delivering to San Fran too? But I do that." Fawn said, not quite sure why they changed delivery plans now. Giuseppe pulled her close to his side, "That's what I meant about the favor I mentioned. I'll have my men deliver food and supplies to San Fran Ghettos if you do this for me."
He pointed to a family standing on the Mini Lu side of the fence; a balding, lanky middle-aged man, a woman also middle aged, possibly his wife, with long blonde hair leaning on a crutch, a teenage girl with hair identical to her mother's, a teenage boy with short black hair, and a little girl with short brown hair hugging a stuffed, blue bunny. Giuseppe smiled, "Meet the Siskins. They want to move in."
Fawn squirmed away from him and slowly backing away, waving her hand, "No way, I'm not playing taxi and taking them to Hell. Forget it!"
Giuseppe shushed her. "You're not taking them to Hell. They are moving into Spera," He whispered. "We noticed them too late after the transportation trucks left."
"So call 'em back," Fawn said. "Why are you doing this to me, G? You know how I am around people from the U.S. side!"
"How long has it been since you last seen your grandmother, Fawn?" Giuseppe asked sternly crossing his arms, "I bet she's worried sick."
"Geeeeeeeeeeee, don't do that." Fawn whined slumping her shoulders and leaning her head over away from him. She sighed and growled a little, "Fine. I'll take 'em under one condition. Put just my supplies in the trailer. Gotta couple of thieves in my neighborhood."
Under those arrangement, the guards opened the gates letting the captain greet the family. Giuseppe read over the paperwork the balding man handed to them, checking it thoroughly before allowing the family inside the encampment. Giuseppe guided them into his tent while young soldiers loaded Fawn's supplies and cardboard boxes with the family's belongings onto Fawn's trailer, then covered it with a large tarp. She spoiled her dog with tummy rubs as she waited listening to Giuseppe giving sincere explanations of the do's and don'ts of living in the Lyrua free territory. Although she didn't understand why he bothered since Spera Haven was probably one of the safest place in the Lyrua free territory.
She stood up when the captain lifted the tent flap and the family walked back outside. "And here's your transportation," Giuseppe walked over to Fawn's side patting her shoulder. She could see baffled looks on the family's faces and it made her uneasy.
"Don't worry. This here is a very good friend of mine and she'll take really good care of you," Giuseppe explained. "She lives in the free territory and knows the area like the back of her hand. Fawn, say hello."
Fawn put on a friendly smile and waved before saying, "*Tena koutou! Nau mai haere ki Lyrua! Ko Fawn taku ingoa. No hea koe?"
She giggled mischievously, seeing family's expressions go from uncertain to distraught, even as Giuseppe tugged on her braids. "Please excuse her." He sighed, "She's trying to be funny."
The older woman asked, "Was that Spanish?"
"Maori." Giuseppe replied, "She can speak English too, which I hope she'll continue to speak during the drive."
"Yeah, yeah now will you let go of my hair!?" The hair tugging didn't hurt her. She was just acting to annoy the captain even more, "I should sue you for child abuse."
It act made the girls' laugh but it made the father worry more and Giuseppe could see it. "You don't need to worry, sir. Fawn knows the way to Spera Haven. She used to be a resident there," he said.
"Used to be?" The father asked.
Giuseppe chuckled, "Apparently, Fawn thought she was too grown to stay there with her grandmother so she lives with a bunch of other juveniles in an area called the 'San Fran Ghettos'. It's more like a college campus but without the college."
As Giuseppe assured that Fawn's driving could be trusted, she noticed that the boy, probably about the same age as her, staring at her rather hard, as if he was daydreaming. He snapped back to attention dropping his suitcase, startled by his mother after she screamed at his little sister, "Kissy! Get back here!"
The little girl had spied Buick and had sneaked by Fawn and Giuseppe up to the tomcar. The dog's tail wagged wildly, thumping against the seat, as he sniffed at and licked the girl's hand. The little girl smiled and gently petted the dog's muzzle.
"It's okay, ma'am. Buick here is a big baby." She saw the mother wasn't convinced when she pulled the child back to her, "C'mon Buick, you'll hafta sit in the trailer like a good boy."
"See? She can be responsible." Giuseppe said as he and the family watched her tug Buick to the back of the tomcar, "But if you'd like, you can wait here in the military camp until the cargo trucks return. I don't know how long that will be. If they come back before nightfall, you'll have to wait until tomorrow for us to take you to Spera Haven. It's too dangerous to travel at night."
The father and mother got into a small huddle whispering to each other. The father was being stubborn and reluctant. It wasn't Fawn he was worried about, but about what was out beyond the fence into the free territory. His wife gently rubbed his back speaking softly consoling him. The man glanced at his wife, barely able to support herself on the makeshift crutch, and his kids looked miserable with dirt smudged faces and wearing rags. He exhaled regretfully, "Alright, we'll go."
Fawn clenched her eyes, inhaling sharply between her teeth. "Damn, there goes a relaxing drive back home," she thought.
She stood next to the trailer with Buick as the family
Fawn stood by the trailer next to Buick as the family placed their suitcases in the trailer underneath the tarp. The boy wasn't pay attention and nearly crashed into her, skidding on his feet. He only gazed into her hazel eyes for a few seconds before quickly lowering his head, hiding his reddened cheeks, and scooted past her lightly bumping against her shoulder.
Fawn blinked and frowned watching the boy sulk into the car. She was beginning to wonder if he was being rebellious and hated that his parents decided to move into the free territory instead of roughing it out wherever they came from.
"Now remember," Giuseppe walked up to Fawn. "No taking them sightseeing or some wild ride through mud puddles-"
"Take them straight to Spera and be on the lookout for strangers and Hellents," Fawn smirked at him smartly.
"And visit your grandmother." Giuseppe finished.
Fawn let out a frustrated sigh and answered sarcastically, "And visit DaMa. You're a worst nag than she is. Nag nag nag nag nag!"
Fawn slid into the driver's seat strapping on her seatbelt. The mother had taken a seat in the passenger side holding her youngest daughter in her lap while the father and two oldest children managed to squeeze together in the back.
"Alright ladies and gentlemen. Make sure you're strapped in, keep your hands inside the vehicles at all times, and no smoking or drinking," Fawn said jokingly. "Hope you enjoy the ride."
Fawn carefully drove through the encampment, waving goodbye to Giuseppe, Cadet Merrill, and a few other regulars, and picked up speed after going through the exit, driving back into the desolate wasteland she called home.
She wasn't up for chatting but didn't feel comfortable with the family's silence or seeing the hopeless looks on their faces. She stayed focused driving on the beaten road, "If you have any questions that you forgot to ask Captain Giuseppe, I'll do my best to answer them."
Kissy, the little girl, broke the silence leaning forward to stare at Fawn, "You have pretty eyes."
Fawn's cheek darkened and she let out a shy giggle. "Thank you, li'l bit." Fawn said, "That's the nicest thing anyone said to me in long time."
Seeing that Fawn wasn't one of those hardened, uncivilized residents she heard about, the mother joined in, "And you have a lovely name too. Fawn, is it?"
"My eyes are the reason I have my name," Fawn lightly scratched the back of her head, "My dad said I had 'Bambi eyes'."
"You do, you do!" Kissy laughed, "Pretty Bambi eyes."
With the ice broken, the family introduced themselves. The Siskins were an outgoing family from Valdosta, Georgia. Richard, husband and father, was an outdoorsman who loved to camp, hunt, fish, and hike. His wife, Linda, used to be a banker head of a her own book club. Kelli, their oldest daughter, had graduated from Valdosta High School and was a photographer in training. Kissy's full name was Kissimmee Twila, a spirited five year old.
"You figured out what you wanna be when you get older?" Fawn asked the little girl.
Kissy beamed, "I wanna be a movie star!"
A faint chuckle came from the middle of the back seat, "With the way things are going, you'll be 89 before that happens Kissy."
Fawn glared in the rear view window, "Whose Mr. Grumpy pants there?"
Kelli roughly nudged her younger brother in the side. "This emo kid is Xavier." The siblings exchanged glares, "He's been like this since we decided to move here."
Fawn slowed the vehicle to a stop so the family could view the desolate rolling hills of shattered earth and crumbled buildings. She replied softly, "The way this place looks now, I wouldn't wanna move here either."
"So this is Lyrua." Richard gazed grimly.
"What's left of it." Fawn continued driving being careful as she rolled downhill, "The meteorite wiped out most of the city. They were able to evacuate the city in time before it hit so there weren't many casualties."
Linda asked, "Why split into different groups? Why not try to stay together?"
Fawn explained, "We did try that at the start but then we started having problem with each other. Either one person had too many supplies and wouldn't share, someone kept taking too much food out of the community garden, someone was pissin' or takin' a dump in our water source. We just got sick of fightin' and went our separate ways. Now we have four territories."
Kelli leaned closer to Fawn's chair, "It used to be just two territories, right? Where'd the new two come from?"
"It used to be just Spera Haven and 'Hell', yeah." Fawn had two fingers up then lifted up two more, "Then came the San Fran Ghettos and Vivid Village. You might wanna stay away from Vivid Village. The leader is a crazy 'religious' lady preaching her own sick and twisted gospel. Her followers are loyal to the core and will do anything she tells them. And most of the people livin' in the San Fran Ghettos are just kids who used to live in Spera but moved out. It's an okay place but don't expect to get any sleep with the drunken parties they have almost every night."
"Parties?!" Kissy squirmed in her mother's lap, "Let's move to the Ghettos instead! Sounds better than Spera Haven."
Fawn chuckled softly, "No no no, Spera Haven is a much better place for you and your family to live in. You'll be more protected from strangers and monsters."
"You mean the Hellents," Xavier sounded intrigued all of a sudden. "You ever see 'em?"
Fawn took awhile to respond, "Yeah, they creep 'round sometimes."
Then he asked, "Who do they look like more? Like Xenomorphs? Or the Yautjas?"
"Forget all that E.T. and Star Wars shit you seen in the movies. Hellents look just like you and me. They would be almost human if it wasn't for their skin color and weird eyes. Don't let their 'peaceful nature' fool you. If you come across them, don't talk to them, don't look at them, don't even give them a chance to get near you. Just get the hell out of there and don't turn around," Fawn was gripping the steering wheel tightly as she spoke.
The rest of the drive was quiet until they arrived to Spera Haven entrance, which wasn't as extraordinary as Giuseppe described it. A few residents waved from the hulking dirt mound seeing Fawn's tomcar pull up. One of them, a young black man with continual strands of cornrow braids dangling from his head, approached Fawn's side. "Hey girl, was startin' to wonder if you were dead or not," he said grinning.
Fawn waved lazily, "Hey Day-Day. How's DaMa and Ni-Ni?"
"They a'ight." he replied, "Waitin' on you to come back."
She answered, "Tell 'em to keep waitin'. Help get these folks get settled in their new home."
Pulling a walkie-talkie from her back pocket, her cousin radioed to his friends and other able men. The door from the tiny shack on top of the mound opened and out came out possibly around ten to twelve men followed some curious onlookers. They greeted the family warmly welcoming them to Spera.
Richard rubbed behind one of his ears, "I thought Captain Giuseppe said it was massive."
"Oh this is massive alright, but it's the underground you gotta see." Day-Day replied.
The family's mouths dropped opened and gawked at Day-Day. "Underground?" Kelli had her hand over her chest, "We're goin' to be living deep in dirt like moles?!"
Fawn had stepped out her vehicle to stretch when Kelli had her outburst, "Not in dirt. Underneath here is Lyrua's underground subway garage and it's so massive that it could hold everyone who lives in Lyrua and maybe even people in the next two towns over. That's the extraordinary part."
The Siskins were already having second thoughts. They couldn't turn around and leave now. The parents seem to sadly stare off into space as the men helped carry their suitcases, crates, and other belongings up the mound and disappearing into the tiny shack. Fawn walked with Kissy to go see Buick while their parents talked to one of the "chiefs" of Spera.
Sitting in the trailer having dirt clouds kicked back at him, the blue and white pitbull had turned dusty brown. A few quick shakes turned him back to normal. "Don't believe all that crap they say on the news, Kissy. Pitbulls can be the nicest dogs if you treat and train 'em right." Fawn said as she watched the little girl carefully pet the dog, who was huge standing next to her, "I dunno how Buick got so frikkin' huge. He was a scrawny runt when my cousin gave him to me."
Buick was loving the attention and leaning into Kissy, his tail thumping on the hard ground as she rubbed behind his neck. "Does your cousin have anymore puppies?" Kissy asked.
"I dunno." Fawn sat on the side of the lightened trailer, "You can ask him after you get settled in, but he mostly breeds dogs for people livin' above ground so they can have protection."
"Protection? Oh right, from the monsters." The dog rolled over and she rubbed on his tummy. Both of them were having the time of their lives and it made Fawn smile a little.
"What was those words you were speaking?" Kissy asked curiously, "The captain man said 'Mah-wee'?"
Fawn laughed softly, "Maori."
"What is that?"
"It's a native language spoken by Maori people."
"So you're Maori."
"Well, half. My dad was Maori. I heard him speak it when I was little and it wasn't long until I started speakin' it."
Kissy heard her mother calling her. She, her father, and Kelli were on top of the mound getting ready to enter the shack. Kissy turned back to Fawn, "How do you say 'goodbye' in Maori?"
"Well, I say 'Hei kona' because you're staying here and you'll say 'Haera ra' because I'm going back home." Kissy held out her hand and Fawn gently shook it, "Hei kona, hine."
"Hey kona, Fawn!" Kissy waved as she went to join her family.
"Nice kid. And the family's cool too." She felt something wet and slimy lapping against her fingers and saw Buick sitting next to her, "Ready to go home and eat some hamburgers, boy?"
Buick climbed back in his favorite seat. Fawn eyed Day-Day making sure his back was turned before sliding into driver's seat. Before she grab the key, she heard a voice next to her and it wasn't her cousin.
"You're leaving?" Xavier asked.
Fawn didn't look up. "Yeah. I don't live here remember?" She answered.
He held out his hand stopping her from the turning the ignition, "Before you go, I've gotta know. Why does everyone hate the Hellents?"
She had a short convulsion that made him jump back and she gripped the steering wheel again. She growled between her teeth, "I already told you about 'em so just forget about it."
"But I wanna know why!" Xavier urged, "No one's given me a clear explanation. Some people says that they can't be trusted, that they're ruthless killers, and some say that they're miracle workers and saved a lot of lives. Which one is it?"
"I ain't a Hellent encyclopedia!" Fawn growled under her breath leaning forward lightly pinching the bridge of her nose.
Her bad memories were coming back at full force and it made her scratch at the bandage on her cheek. Xavier noticed, "Did they do that to you?"
Fawn gave him a cold glare and he felt it burning through his soul. "Hey hey, playa. Back off," Day-Day came from around the tomcar frowning at the nosy boy. "I think you asked enough questions for today." He flicked his head toward shack on top of the mound.
"O-Okay." Xavier took a couple of steps back, seeing a mixture of hurt and hate in Fawn's eyes, and walked passed Day-Day heading up the hill.
Fawn flopped back in her seat, "Thanks, cuz."
Day-Day kept his eyes on Xavier until he was at least half-way up the mound, "Yeah yeah, no problem. But now we got him off your back, it's time for me to talk to you."
She tensed up a little when he took a seat in the back. It was time for that solemn conversation again.
Day-Day spoke gravely, "DaMa's worried about you."
"I know." Fawn answered softly, "Tell her I'm alright. Nothing's wrong. . .yet."
"Why don't you come and stay with us?" he asked, "You'll be safe with us."
Fawn slowly shook her head, "No I won't. And neither will anyone else in Spera. You know this, Day-Day. Everyone does."
"We'd think you'd be safer underground instead of walkin' around with them fuckin' Hellents stalkin' around."
"Is Mrs. Salinas and her family still livin' down there?" Day-Day flinched and looked away not answering. Fawn lifted her head, "Now what do you think is gonna happen if I suddenly appeared and she see me? Last thing I need is her reminding me of that day in details."
Day-Day exhaled deeply from his nose then shrugged with a sad smile, "I tried. Can't you at least come in and say to DaMa and Ni-Ni?"
Fawn thumbed at the trailer, "I got food I need to get to take back home and to Uncle Benji and then a crazy roommate to pick up. But I'll come by tomorrow, I promise."
"DaMa made this. She'd knew you'd like a slice," Day-Day pulled a small, styrofoam carry-out box out of his sling bag.
Fawn smelled a whiff of peanut butter and she drooled. She smiled softly, "Tell her I said thanks."
She sped off as soon as her cousin got out the seat. Sitting near the shack entrance, Xavier watched her disappeared over a hill in the distance. He closed his eyes burying his face in his knees, "Why do I start off the wrong when I first meet girls?"
*"Hello everyone. Welcome to Lyrua. My name is Fawn. Where are you from?"
[All characters are © Rai Pager]