Rebirth
-Chapter Fifteen: Home Sweet Nothingness
She blinks, staring into the fragmented dark abyss that now seemed to be sprinkled with Earth portions. “Oh God….” Jynx whispers out in mere shock. Was this really happening? Her homeland now completely demolished into nothing more than drifting glitter tumbling slowly in space.
She could hear a soft gasp as little hands touch her leg; it was Erica, the little girl that managed to survive the insanity. Her worry filled azure eyes look to the window in awe. “Was that home?”
“Yeah. It was.” Jynx chokes out unable to hold herself together. What now? Her entire life seemed meaningless if not her meeting with Jersey. Her own home, the one chance she hoped to gather some recollection of sanity was nothing more but mere ideas now.
She could hear a snort coming from behind her as David stares at the floor to ceiling window besides him. “And here I thought I was gonna go back home.” The tall brunette whispers out.
“We’ll find another place to land.”
“Where? There’s nothing safe here. Jynx or whatever your name is, just admit it. We’re all gonna die aren’t we?”
Narrowing her eyes, she could feel the soft throbbing inside her head close to erupting into a minor headache with all the worries that seem to fall all around them. “No. Because Jersey will find us a place and save us.”
“Save us? At what cost? Dude we have NO where to go now. Besides that space port we left, there is no where else to land without some drama. So unless she does miracles I would love to know where to go.”
Scowling, the man was getting under her skin. If the little girl wasn’t in the room, she wouldn’t have hesitated at hitting the man. “Leave that for her to worry about David. We have a lot more to deal with than your complaints.”
Huffing, the man reaches for his little sister excusing themselves from the room to leave her alone. After the argument with Howie, she was in no way in a nice mood to hear the berating from others. She knew this was hard enough for Jersey to handle. That the fact Jersey now fully opted to reveal herself behind the mask or in this case pants, was a lot of burden for the new leader to handle. Jynx would remember the time when Jersey presented her with the idea of “Jeremy” that this was her way of dealing with the anguish and burdens set before the young woman.
Heading out of the room Jynx pulls up her dark locks heading to find someone, anyone at this point to discuss what just happened. Hearing the pounding of footsteps behind her, she steps aside to see Jersey and Howie rush to the main station where Kevin was struggling to drive the ship safely away from flying meteorites. Curiously, she follows behind to see the rest of the crew already gathered there, everyone’s expression held the same horrified look of disbelief.
Rhade growls, staring out the window tucking a strand of dark locks behind her ear. She was just getting to know the new leader when this disaster struck. With only the space port left to go back to, there was no where else to land that wouldn’t get them into trouble.
Locking eyes with the young woman, Rhade pulls Jersey by the shoulders to face her. “You need to get us out of this now. You can do it. I believe in you as do the rest of us here. “
“Where to go? Earth was our last chance to fill in the missing puzzles.” Jersey sighs, slumping against the wall. Why did it seem just when things were looking up, something horrible has to take that away? The little hope she was holding onto left. She needed to make her presence known and have Howie back down his position as general. If he wasn’t willing to work with her, she would take matters into her own hands.
“Our last chance is to go back…back there.” Howie bites his lower lip feeling the piercing glances from everyone in the room.
“Excuse my blondeness but where the hell is there?” Nick raises an eyebrow hearing a few murmurs behind him.
“We need to make a stop at Mars. There are elevated ports bringing in people but the planet is loaded with armies of Mystyrians if we’re not careful we can lose people on this ship.” Jersey quickly explains going over to the metal walls, pressing her hand against the symbolic hand shape plate that identifies her and quickly sliding open to reveal a closet full of arterially. “For everyone’s protection, we should all be armed against those beasts out there. They have no mercy for anyone and I can’t protect everyone here.”
“This is gonna be a messy process. The one thing we had is now gone. Do we just fight till we die?” Howie holds onto the swirling seat taking a laser gun shoved into his hands by her.
“For now we just worry about landing on Mars. I’ll think of something once we get there.” Jersey pulls on a strand of honeysuckle hair as her mind floods with a billion and one ideas that don’t have any guarantees of survival.
Kevin steers the ship, sighing, quickly glancing at his little cousin being a forced leader. He was sure she was fighting to be strong. Something of this extreme and to maintain being level headed is a lot of pressure.
“Earth…they destroyed our home! We should slay and destroy each of those beasts without thought.” Skyla growls out, clutching the small laser gun to her chest.
“Ohhh that’s my baby!” A.J. grunts out happily. “Down with the Mystyrians! Come on people!” He starts pumping his fist in the air to get the other’s attention.
Nick grins, the blonde meeting the lovely honeysuckle leader eyes, quickly lifting up his arm cheering on. “Down with the Mystyrians!”
Exhaling lightly, Jersey was glad for AJ’s sudden distraction. The team needed to be at their top game now that war was head on and a little encouragement was greatly appreciated.
Orlando pulls out his gun lifting it in the air chanting with the others as the room becomes invigorated with anxiety and hope, everyone ready to suddenly take on the challenge.
“We can do this guys! We’re fighting for our home! Our families that they took away. They’re going down.” A.J. shouts out pumping his fist in the air dramatically.
Smiling, Jynx falls into the chant and soon everyone including Kevin and little Erica were chanting the same thing as one voice.
Maybe there was a way around all this after all, Jersey thinks to herself clapping along with a random fighting song the men begin singing.
Rhade watches the humans impressed with their sudden vigor of hope, when she was sure they would have given up. But she has a lot to learn about this race, these people weren’t the tired slow creatures she was told about in her early days.
Jersey grins, quickly asking for them to line up to gear them up. She wasn’t taking any chances of losing anyone on this ship as far as she can help it. Those Mystyrians took away too much of her life but now it was time to even the score.
She scans around the group to see the former soldier and his sister trace their fingers on the glowing map before them. “I’ll watch over your sister when we set out. She’ll be safe in one of the centers. But we need everyone’s help including yours.” She watches the man nod stepping into line with the others.
Brian couldn’t help but be proud of this sudden resurgence that arose in his cousin. She was doing exactly what she was meant to be doing. And that was leading. Not to say Howie didn’t know what he was doing. But he was never in a war this big. He needed all the help and now they have the best on their side.
~*~
The bobbing lights filled the night sky over the camp grounds of the red planet where they were to stay till daybreak. By then they would take cover in the many drenches that lead to an underground quarter for people’s safety. Already in the distant, she could see the marching lines of the Mystyrians as some fly around already grabbing innocent bystanders for their menu.
A shiver raced down her spine as she licks her dry lips. There was the war. Those things, those sick animals ready to eliminate anything that stands in their way. Hearing the rattling of cans behind her, she watches Howie bring armful of UV flashlights dropping them on the table.
“If our theory is correct, they can’t survive in the intense light.” He looks over to her still a little unnerved in seeing the woman finally doing her role.
“That’s what we’re hoping for.” Jersey picks up a flashlight, tucking it into her belt.
“About our earlier…talk. It’s just a bit overwhelming and to finally see the one we’ve been waiting to arrive after everything we’ve been through is a lot to take in.” Howie busies himself strapping on weapons checking the status of the batteries for the flashlights.
“Apology accepted. I mean that is an apology isn’t it?” She quirks a glance over to the Latin man who nods in agreement and quickly gathers up the flashlights aligning them on the table.
“To a degree yes. Though it’s much easier if I just said I’m sorry for overreacting.”
“Mmm that sounds better. I’ll take that one then.” Jersey smiles, sharpening her sword with a pebble.
“You’re not nervous?”
“Yeah just don’t expect to see me quiver before you.” She lies her sword down as Nick strolls into room behind them.
“Nick, do me a favor and take one of these for you. The Mystyrians have a low tolerance for strong light so this should stun them or blind them if we’re lucky.” He hands the flashlight to him exiting the room to leave them alone. For a moment only silence seemed to fill the room till Nick clears his throat.
“I’m glad you came and told them. Heh did you see everyone’s face when you were giving commands? Natural at it.” Nick leans against the metallic wall, his eyes drifting over to her pretty face. He couldn’t help not staring at her as weird as it could make her feel.
“Thanks. I’m not making many friends here since that announcement. But I guess that’s the price you pay for being honest huh?”
“I for one think you’re doing what needs to be done. I think Howie is a cool dude but this was made for you. You have experience what with your family having taken part before.”
“Eh.” She shrugs watching the ship land on the Mars port with its thick smoke exhaust outside covering the plane for a moment till it fades into thin air. She could hear her cousin Kevin announce over the speakers they’ve landed and to take everything they needed before getting off the ship. Heading off the ship, the crew traveled down to the underground lair without stepping into the dusty red planet.
Blinking, Jynx stares at the pretty underground environment. The way the ceilings seemed like an endless sphere of pale blue skies to the feel and touch of the ground. Instead of floors, it was actual land, sidewalks to even the gravel like one would find in a driveway or such.
“Holy fuck this is sweet.” The male survivor states holding his sister’s hand as Erica tries mercilessly to free from her brother’s grip to run into the cobblestone street.
Jersey couldn’t stop smiling, this was like a dream estate for her, and this place was designed so beautifully no wonder people risked their lives to come here. In the distant she could see houses occupying residents from all over the Earth. There had to be over a million remaining survivors here but that was a very small number when one thinks about the entire population that the former planet Earth once contained.
Squealing happily, Erica tugs at her older brother wanting to run to the small park with swings, slides and even a see saw.
“How the hell did they re-create all this?” A.J. gazes around stunned, the pretty blonde Skyla attached to him.
“A lot of time on their hands that’s for sure.” Rhade steps over the dirt leading the group down the sidewalk. Children ran past them laughing and tossing a ball as if nothing was wrong above ground. Security was tight and everywhere one turned there was an armed officer ready to handle a situation.
Clearing his throat, Orlando walks behind the alien woman grinning. Something about the way she commands action reminds him so much of himself that it was no wonder he was drawn to her.
Skyla’s emerald orbs scans every detail of this new found homeland in memory just completely speechless at how they –well whoever they are, the Martians- managed to design such a earth like atmosphere for the survivors.
Whipping out a communicator, Kevin brushes past a few kids and pedestrians milling around an outdoor food market. He managed to walk a little behind to check out some things that stood out to him.
Howie quietly walks near Jynx, who he was sure was still upset with him since their recent argument. He couldn’t help to feel thrown aside while the missing woman miraculously shows up to everyone’s odd joy and welcomed back. Was he jealous? Maybe, a tad bit. But he knew when he had to step aside and bring down his ego.
The group reach a hill and each slowly climbing up it find a gorgeous lit up building taking in survivors. Walking inside, Jersey blinks as seeing a one eyes woman taking a phone call at the front desk.
Erica gasps, pointing out the most obvious, bluntly stepping up to a one eyed Martian telling him where did his other eye go.
A few chuckles escape the group from her comment as she was pulled back by her brother as everyone is finally able to breath out in relief that they made it this far.
Jersey looks over to Jynx worriedly as her friend clasps her hand squeezing it for reassurance. “You’re doing fine Jersey.”
“Thanks……..my only question is what now?” The tall flaxen beauty breathes out, her mind already working over time for some kind of solution.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Rose speaking here, yep we're updating again. Me and my lovely friend Jamelet hope you enjoy! Let us know whatcha think! hehe.
