~ Andrew ~
Tossing and turning in his sleep, Andrew relived got pulled into a reoccurring dream. His little five-year-old self choked on the thick smoke pouring out of the vents running along the top of the walls. Since he’d been born and raised on the Taron ship, he was used to emergencies every now and then. This felt different somehow. Everyone was running around, females were screaming, and the normally stoic male’s voices were tinged with panic.
It was getting difficult to breathe. His slight form was getting bounced around as people accidentally bumped into him as they rushed past. Carefully searching every face, he found that none of the adults were from his family. Getting emotional, he held his hand over his face. Suddenly out of nowhere, a large hand locked down around his wrist. Relief flooded his system as he realized it was his grandfather.
“Run faster. We are under attack.”
Andrew moved as fast as his feet would carry him, thankful that his grandfather never let go of his wrist. Of course, he wasn’t called Andrew back then. His name had been Androd.
At one point, they heard the familiar sound of Krador squalling. His grandfather quickly pulled him into his arms and began to run for one of the exits. Andrew had been too terrified to speak, for fear the Krador would find them.
The moment they staggered out the door, a large human male grabbed them. Before his grandfather could react, the man fired a weapon over their shoulder. Andrew watched in absolute horror as an overlord fell motionless to the ground. The alien shouted in Kalian, “Survivors go to the right. Rescuers are waiting to transport you to safety.”
The strange alien warrior shoved them to the right, just as a huge Krador came crawling out of a hole in the ship’s hull. Several of the strange aliens gathered with long rifles, intent on taking the huge creature down. His grandfather staggered to the left, away from the creature. Andrew watched over his shoulder as the aliens shot at the huge creature’s many legs, then began targeting the triple row of eyes running back over its head. Andrew noticed something the strange aliens didn’t. Dozens of tiny Krador young scurrying from the vessel and taking refuge in the nearby woods.
Finally, his father stopped running. They approached a huge vehicle of some sort. It was white with a large red sign upon it. The people there looked like medics to his young eyes.
His grandfather, asked about other survivors. “We have family aboard the ship. I won’t leave without them.”
An alien male stepped forward wearing green with a funny design on his clothing. He had weapons strapped all over his body.
“You’re going to get your ass on the Red Cross transport right now and get your boy to safety.”
“Who are you?”
“Sergeant Marcus Ross. Now, move your ass.”
Andrew watched a female with long red hair approach. “If you can’t interact with the newcomers any better than that, you need to leave.”
Ross spat on the ground and stood to glare at her for a moment before speaking. “The last time I checked sergeants’ outranked nurses.”
“The last time I check, I was in charge of this unit, and you were assigned to protect us. Unless you want us to file a formal complaint with your chain of command, you will step back and allow us to access to our patients.”
“We need to evac the area.” Holding his hand to his ear, he paused briefly and frowned. “A Krador is loose and just attacked a team of militia.”
“Gather up as many as you can find. We don’t leave anyone behind.”
The Sergeant gave a clipped response. “Yes, mam. You heard the lady. Fleece the area. If they have a heartbeat, they come with us, even if you gotta stun them.”
The annoyed woman frowned. “That is not what I said.”
As the males stalked off into the darkness, the woman turned to them. “Come, we have hydration packs, and you can rest in our vehicle. It armor plated so you will be safe there. What is your name?”
His grandfather’s dispirited voice responded quietly. “I am Malok, and this is my grandson Androd. How is it you speak our language?”
“We were given an inoculation with of alien languages. My name is Rebecca, and I’m a healer. It’s nice to meet you and your grandson. I know this is a difficult situation, but you are safe with us. Under the new inter-species treaty, Earth is now your home. Is there anything you need right now?”
“I just want to see my family survive this night.”
Andrew watched the woman place a reassuring hand on his grandfather’s arm. “We’ll do everything we can to see that you’re reunited with them as soon as possible.”
Before they could get onto the large transport, the males wearing green came back, herding dozens of rescued slaves. “We gotta go now. There are half a dozen Krador, and they’ve torn people apart limb by limb back there.”
Everyone rushed aboard the vessel. His grandfather sat him down and tried to get back off but was shoved back by the alien males in charge. The man leaned over and stated quietly. “You don’t want to do that. There’s no one alive back there. The sight will haunt my nightmares until the day I die. You have the boy to worry about. He’s all you have left.”
The older man’s knees buckled under him, and an agonized wail of grief escaped from his lips. The Keening was a sound he would never forget. Andrew watched the nurse kneel and wrap her arms around his grandfather. That was the moment it hit Andrew that his father, mother, brothers, and sisters were all gone. Instead of the sounds his grandfather made, Andrew felt like his life-force had been knocked from his body, only to be filled by an infinite well of sadness.
Jerking awake, Andrew padded through his house to check on his own two small daughters. They were each in their tiny bed, surrounded by their favorite stuffed animals. Shutting the door, he walked back to his room and stood in front of his nest. The lights were dimmed for the night cycle, but inside the clear glass, his unborn child rested in the gently bubbling liquid. He checked to make sure the temperature was stable, and the proper amount of oxygen and nutrients were circulating through the water.
Running his fingers over the metal casing he remembered his joy in building the mechanical device meant to bring his children through their last stages of growth before being born into this new world of privilege and freedom for his kind.
If his grandfather could see this one, it would have brought more joy to his life yet. Unfortunately, he had passed away shortly after his new human mate died. Andrew’s chest constricted painfully when he thought of his grandfather. The male had spent many long years enjoying this new human world alongside the human woman who lived only for his smile. Andrew had been loved and doted upon as a child. Now he was alone in the world, just his girls and him.