Unseen Colors, Act Five
Act Five: Yellow!
I opened my eyes and looked up to Saxon. I felt so bad for him, he was hurting inside and there was nothing I could do. I couldn't imagine myself going through a loss like that. Pixel was a close friend of mine, yes, but she meant more to Saxon than she did anyone else.
I wrapped my arm around Saxon's, trying my best to comfort him somewhat, though I knew it'd be a lost cause, and I couldn't just leave him. He needed somebody. I know he doesn't care that we're both males (I like that the most about him, careless to genders) so I nuzzled his arm a little, which seemed to help because his weeping slowed to sobs and gasps. I've never seen him cry before. He used to be so strong, yet the kindest soul you could ever meet, now, he felt like a completely different person.
We sat there a while in silence. There was nothing really to say, not from me, anyway. There was a knock on the door, snapping my attention towards it. I looked back to Saxon. "You gonna be okay?" I asked. He nodded, though I knew he wouldn't be, not for a while anyway.
I scooted myself off from his bed and pulled the certain just far enough for him to be out of sight from the door. He didn't deserve to be seen like this. I opened the door to see a tall jaguar with his hands behind his back and body stiff. "Yes?" I asked, crossing my arms over my chest.
"Sir, commander Heart requests you presents on the bridge." He said, making a point of not looking into my eyes.
"Very well," I sighed. "Tell him I'll be there shortly..."
"Yes, Sir."
Kat sighed as she looked over the city from where she sat on the building rooftop. Torn apart buildings and fire littered everywhere the eye could see. This was her city, her home, and now it was destroyed. It was devastating to think about it too much, but she couldn't help but wonder why this was all happening. Why earth was brought into this seemingly pointless war in the first place.
She watched the sun rise between the buildings in the clear morning sky. The night before was long and Kat and Saxon had spent most of yesterday sleeping, trying to get well rested so they could try and figure out what to do next.
Saxon had suggested hunting down some Ra hosts and stealing some of their artillery to better aid them in escaping. It wasn't a bad idea, Kat thought, but it was hard enough to escape the Ra prison, let alone stealing equipment from them. How they were going to pull it off was a mystery to her.
She looked over to Saxon, who had perched himself on the ledge not too far away from her. His grey pants were covered with dirt (as was most of his fur) and his white shirt was no longer white. The jacket Kat had picked out for him was back in the yard that they slept in when the Ethee attacked. He held an old hunting shot gun, something Kat found when they were barricading the house they were chased into.
He watched over the city, occasionally glancing back at her, as if to see if she might go anywhere. Sometimes, she thought as she looked him up and down, he acted as though a puppy, guarding his favorite toy. It was cute, somewhat, to see that he cared so much about her, but why was what nagged her mind. He seemed too willing to be with her, sleep with her...
That thought sent chills down her spine, not bad chills, but excited ones, ones that she used to get when she was a kid and would do something she knew her mother would scold her for, the chills that made her feel dangerous, rebellious, free. She kept watching him, taking in every detail of his fur, of his face, everything. She was happy he was here, maybe it was because she hasn't had any human contact for weeks, or maybe she was becoming more attracted to him?
Attracted to him? Kat shook the thought away. How could she be attracted to him? He was half dog, and an alien, just thinking about it made her head spin. How would that even work? An alien and a human... Strange. What was even stranger was that she was still thinking about it.
Kat pulled the revolver that she had found back at the Ra prison and studied it, trying to distract her thoughts for a while. The gun was a Remington, and a nice one at that. The wooden handle was white (the parts of it that weren't dirtied) while the rest was silver. The barrel was long and heavy, but from what her brother tells her about this particular gun, it's very strong and reliable.
"Saxon," she said, realizing that she can't escape her thoughts. The wolfman's ears perked as he looked over to her, looking as if her voice had just snapped him out of a daydream. "Are you-... are you married?"
His eyes wondered up, thinking about the question. "Married? That's when two humans commit to each other right?"
Kat nodded, and Saxon scratched behind an ear (she noticed that he did that quite often).
"I was, back on my planet. We were 'married' for sixty three years (using my time) and we were very happy."
"What happened?" Kat asked, sitting up straighter as interest crept its way in.
He was quiet, Kat knew she hit a sensitive subject by asking that question, but was determined to know what happened to her. He sighed. "The night before we left for Earth, there was a Ra invasion in my city. Before I knew what was going on, Pixel, my mate, had become possessed by one of the Ra invaders and tried to kill me..." Saxon was quiet for a moment and Kat let him get his bearing together before he spoke again. "Jar, my best friend, saved my life, if I can even call it that, but at a terrible price..."
"He shot her..." Kat finished in a small voice.
Saxon nodded grimly. "I don't remember much after that, just the sound of screaming. Now that I think back on it, that screaming might have been mine... Then I woke up in the infirmary on the ship to earth, that's the last I remember."
Kat sat there uncomfortably, ashamed for pushing the questions. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have..."
"It's okay, no harm in asking." Saxon fiddled with the shotgun. "How about you? Have you committed yet?"
She shifted, relieved the he changed the subject. "No, never. I had a boyfriend, but we broke up a month before the attack."
There was a pause, long and awkward. They stayed like that for a while until Saxon resumed his watch, leaving Kat to her thoughts. She didn't know why she asked him of his romance life, it was none of her business on the first place and she didn't even know why she should care. It's not like she wanted to be with him...
Yeah, she couldn't even fool herself with that one. It's not like it matter though, she'd be surprised if they survived to see it out of this Dome.
She looked back over to Saxon. He stood loose, eyes distant, obviously in thought. His tail was limp, blowing somewhat in the wind as he stood motionless. Kat got to her feet, snapping Saxon out of his trance with a look of curiosity on his face. "I just need to use the bathroom." She didn't really, but the man nodded and looked back over the city with a little more focused than before.
The building they stood on was an old motel. It wasn't in bad condition, but there were some areas in the building that Kat would prefer not to enter due to extensive damage. As she walked down the hall with apartment doors on either side, she began to think about life before the attack and how things might be when this is all over (if it will ever be over). She thought about mom, dad, her brother...
Saxon.
She sighed. It figures she'd fall for someone like him; sweet, caring, and of a completely different species.
She kicked a pile of debris.
Figures...
I looked out the window, seeing what I had anticipated for weeks. It was more beautiful than I thought.
Earth. No more than a hop skip and a jump away.
I was a part of the scouting squad, so I would be one of the first of my kind to set foot on its surface. There was no doubt about it, I was excited. Sure, the Ra was attacking and it was likely that I wasn't going to survive, but still, it's not every day that someone can go to a planet in a completely different solar system.
I looked over my shoulder to see Saxon sitting on the edge of his bed. His eyes were fixed on his lap and face tight. He was nervous. I know that face.
He's been doing much better since Pixel's death. His breakdowns have subsided to almost nothing and he's been sleeping peacefully at night. I've been here, of course, so that must have helped somewhat. I've stayed with him, every day, every night (but I don't sleep in the same bed, there is a point where a line has to be drawn, even so, I don't think he's that kind of guy in the first place. Hurt, yes, but not helpless).
I looked down at my crimson bracelet, the green gem shimmering in the light of the room. It was pretty to look at yet difficult to think about. How they showed up on our planet and why the Ra can't possess any who wear it boggles even Byl's greatest minds. From what I know from eavesdropping and rumors, they seem to relies an invisible (and untraceable) substance into their host's bloodstream and the bracelets never leave the host's wrist until the host die's, then the machine with pop off and walk away in search of a new host. Literally. I thought it was interesting and it'd be cool to see it actually get up and walk, but I didn't want it to be through death.
It wasn't long before my team and I were in out probe on our way to earth. Our mission was simple; touch down, scout the area and protect those who are setting up the Dome. After that we'll be put on the front lines to eliminate all the possessed. It seemed too typical for my taste, but the Ra isn't a bright race and probably won't see it coming until it's too late.
I looked over my comrades. We all wore black armor, no color on us (except for the glow of the bracelets that would be covered up when we touched down on earth.) the majority of the bracelet colors were red or blue, leaving me and a young raccoon the only people in our unit with green (not that it really mattered in the first place).
I didn't really know the raccoon, but from what Saxon tells me, he's a pretty cool fella. Saxon didn't really associate with anyone other than me and a few others, so Saxon to be talking with someone outside his small circle spoke volumes. To me, at least.
"Kat!!"
Kat looked over her shoulder to see Saxon running down the hall in her direction, waving his arms in a shoving motion. "Run! Get out of here, Run!!"
She looked at him, confused as to what he was running from until she looked past him. A swarm are large flying insect looking creatures were in hot pursue and gaining on Saxon fast.
"Run!" He yelled again. Snapping out of it, Kat turned and sprang into a sprint, heading for the stairway to the bottom floor. When she reached the door, she waited for Saxon to get closer.
"Come on!" She shouted as she held the door open. Saxon made it through the door quickly followed by Kat slamming the door shut. With the creatures so close, Kat could see that they bore the resemblance to an insect, only bigger; ranging from the size of her fist to the size of a Honey Dew. Not only that, but they were ugly, looking more like a flying spider/bee/wasp mix. "What are those?" Kat found herself unable to look away from the creatures.
She felt Saxon's hand grab her wrist and pull her down the stairs. "No time to explain." They made it down three flights of stairs before they made it to the second floor. Kat was ready to go down another flight when she hit Saxon's body hard, though it didn't seem to even budge him.
"Go back up!" He said, backing up a few steps before running back up the stairs. Kat heard loud buzzing behind them as they entered the second floor. They ran down the hall, passing closed, opened and destroyed doors until they reached the end. Nothing was beyond that, nothing but a wall and window. By now, the spider/bee/wasp things were halfway down the hall and closing in fast.
"What now?" Kat asked, looking around for some kind of escape route.
"I don't know,"
Suddenly, there was a cracking sound under them as the floor shifted. Kat and Saxon slowly glanced over to each other before the floor fell away from their feed and they were on the ground on the floor below. Kat groaned as she rolled over from her back. She must have landed on a rock or something, sharp pains shot through her back and side like crazy as she tried to get to her feet.
Before she knew it, Saxon had already pulled her to her feet and they were running for the front door with the buzzing sound not too far behind them. When they made it out the door, Saxon stopped them again. This time, Kat could see why. There, hovering barely twenty feet away from them was a large, black aircraft. Kat stared at it. It wasn't anything she's seen before, so it must have been Gashian.
There were two loud, airy shots as two large cans zipped past them. There was a spraying sound as green gas released itself from the cans and the insect creatures surrounding it dropped like rocks.
Kat found herself being pulled towards the aircraft by Saxon, who seemed to be eager to reach it. The doors opened to revile a large bear and a short, thin arctic fox. "Jar?" Saxon said as he stepped onto the craft, pulling Kat inside and seeming oblivious to her discomfort. "You're still alive?"
The fox (Jar, Kat thought) scoffed. ""Course I'm alive you idiot! Who else is gonna keep you in line? Not Van or Fountain, that's for sure!"
They both laughed and Kat saw something on Saxon's face that she hasn't seen before; happiness.
"Who's the chick?" Jar gestured towards Kat but didn't as much as look at her.
"This is Kat, she's one of the survivors." Saxon pulled her closer, making her blush somewhat from being so close to him in front of others. "I don't think I'd be here if it wasn't for her."
"Pff," Kat heard the sound escape her lips. "I wouldn't be here if it weren't for him!"
"How'd you find us?" Saxon asked the question that Kat was thinking herself.
Jar huffed. "Well, it wasn't easy, lemme tell you! At first we thought you were dead, but when no one could find your body I knew that you couldn't have died just yet. I followed your sent to a small Ra hideout, but you weren't there anymore. Then we followed your sent through a couple shops and houses until I got an update from a scout posted at the outskirts of the Dome. He thought you two were Ra, so he was about to take you guys out when he saw the Ethee chase you off. We were actually just on our way to investigate when I saw those Jagies start to swarm that building you guys were in. Duke here wanted to drop a bomb on the building and just get things over with" he gestured towards the bear, who was rolling his eyes and sighing. "But I told him to just wait and see if anyone came out. And Bada-bing Bada-boom, here we are."
Saxon smiled. "Thank you." He said, voice small, but thankful.
Jar shrugged. "Eh, enough mushiness, I've had enough of that from you already."