Not Human

Chapter 9 - Start Of Chaos

"Hold it firmly like this, and let go." The shells spun in the air whistling loudly and plowing through the center of the dummy. Lily's eyes stayed on the target, as she filled up the empty magazine with 17 more rounds. She took a stealthy squat in front of it, the gun squeezed between her thumb and an index finger on it. She breathed, then the bullet grazed the target mark, missing the center barely.

"...Oh...you're a natural...unbelievable..." Blade closed his gaping jaw and patted her on the back. "Really good job, Lily. I'm proud."

I'm proud.

Proud. That was a big word, it meant more to her than he'd ever think. No one has ever told her that before. Not her foster parents or two foster brothers, and one foster sister. She never knew her real parents or any real family for that matter. One thing she knew for certain, her foster family would never say that. They decided since day one she was always an outsider.

She was glad they were gone. She never had a real family. But looking around at everyone now she felt like she finally belongs.

Andy was tutoring Nixon with the guns. Funny he understood all the mechanics, but physically was bad at shooting. He hated the idea of shooting, it meant they may have to shoot something alive. Of course, aliens were what they'd shoot at.

Jax had fun shooting he had an unhealthy obsession with guns. He named all of them one he called 'Babe' and she was his rifle, the AR-15 one of the best.

"Babe, come on, we need to hit the target right on the mark." He c****d the gun, squeezed the trigger, exhaling as the bullet broke through the dummy right on the red spot. "Good girl." He praised.

Cherry lagged as usual. Zane had fun shooting wasting a lot of ammunition. Blade got onto him about it. Angelica was hesitant every time they started target practice. Zane made her shoot with him.

"Hey, Angel, look at it like this it's you or the aliens. Therefore, it's kill or gets killed. Or did you forget what those monsters did to Lily and Blade?"  He held a handgun to her already loaded with ammo. "Take it."

"Angel?" She made a quizzical expression.

"Yeah, your new nickname, how about it?" He smirked. "You like it?"

"No one has ever called me that before."

"Well, starting now I will." He pointed at the dummy and took a lucky shot an inch off the mark.

"I've been wondering why are you so...quiet? You have friends too." He looked at her. She shrugged.

"I don't do the talking much. I like the solitude. My friends are great and all but some things they don't understand about me." She looked aloof, out of place, her eyes matching the greenery in the woods.

"I get that I do that's why I keep to myself.  I don't like people. I have good reasons too, you know." He glanced at Jax by the guns then his eyes circled back to Angelica.

"Yeah, hahaha. Guess we both are lone wolves." She laughed.

"Maybe not. We have each other." He pointed out.

"Yeah, guess you're right."

It was a cool day, the sun was less glaring and hiding beneath clouds. It looked like it might storm today.  Gray clouds fogged the sky beneath it Blade was shouting words- instructions of the proper form of the excruciating workouts. They were all sweating buckets, and soon so was the sky.

A big fat droplet landed on Andy's nose, she bounced up on the ball of her feet dancing and splashing the puddles in every direction sending water flying. Everyone got soaked in it and glared at her.

"Andy will you watch it," Jax growled.

"Oh, big boy I thought you were supposed to be tough. What's a Lil bit of water  gonna hurt, you wuss."

"You should stay off those meds." He spat.

"Hey, stop all the negativity, please. For crying out loud." Lily said, calmly. Andy's nature and Jax's seemed to bump heads a lot. Both of them were overly cocky and both liked to be deemed 'alpha' which none of them were per se, Blade was the leader after all.

"Okay, Jax, I will kick the water over here." She frowned.

"Good." He smiled.

"Aye, Andy." Nixon shivered. "I'm here." He was waterlogged, his shirt stuck to his skin like glue, showing his torso pretty detailed. The water made his clothes look skin tight. He was skinny, no kidding. But Andy noticed the new definition that wasn't there before. Maybe these workouts were working. Not a waste after all.

"Ooh, look at you all wet." She teased, kicking another puddle.

"Did anyone ever tell you, you're like an annoying kid?' Nixon asked, swiping the droplets off of his glasses.

"Maybe."

...

It rained the rest of the day. Everyone stayed in doing anything to keep them from dying of boredom. They ate chilly dogs that Blade himself made. He let the maids, and butlers go on vacation. He thought, it'd be best for them with all the 'alien s**t going on' he believed it was gonna get worse soon.

"Do you think the aliens can track us?" Nixon filled the silence. They all were seated in the living room. The TV was off by the storm, the power line was cut off. Blade hoped it'd be fixed soon. Lily had the idea of candles and flashlights. Cherry used a lighter, to flick the burner on, luckily the stove was powered by gas.

"It's is likely." Blade answered.

"s**t," Zane commented.

"Did you hear that?" Cherry, shook throwing herself into Jax's arms who happened to be by her on the couch. He gladly took her in his arms, like he was some sorta night in shining armor.

"What, Cherry?"  Angelica looked just as scared as her.

There was a 'boom' then another 'boom and a 'crash' a loud commotion followed. "Should I look outside?" Lily stood up, lifting the curtains. Her eyes froze so did her body. "Guys you might want to look at this."

Outside, there was a fire on the other side of the gates, and people were screaming, running like wildfire, which they were also running away from. Explosions were going off, then aliens attacking. A whole army of aliens. They were coming this way.

"Everybody we need to move now!" Blade commended. "Get as much ammunition as you can, Jax. Bring the guns, we need supplies, but it must be light. We don't have much time, hurry!"

Nixon piled up bags of salt, Blade kept for the trust of Bill's 'theory just in case you never know. Zane grabbed cans of food and water. Cherry packed all the hygienic products, like shampoo, toothpaste, razors, lotion, perfume, and tampons. She thought, if this came to the end of the world she'd need those. Lily piled up clothes and helped pack up everyone else's clothes. Angelica asked anyone if they needed help, Andy did the same.

"Hey, we won't bring all of this, okay?" Blade pointed at the clothes, and some unnecessary hygienic products like, stacks of lotion and perfume. "Bring two outfits that's it. We only need some of that s**t, Cherry." She hesitantly tossed all the perfumes and packed up deodorant, and shampoo with tampons.

"Let's go." They all piled up in a van hidden in the garage. Everyone fit nicely, so did the supplies. Blade, drove at full speed knocking the gates down, passing corpsed after corpse. Something gray landed on the hood, red eyes stared back. An alien, it grunted, slashing the glass. Blade drove side to side, scraping the walls of buildings or nearby stores. It roared.

"It  said it wants me." Lily shocked everyone by saying. They all turned to her with the same expression 'how the f**k do you know that.'

"Stop messing around. We know Blade told us that you're somehow the key and all that other shit." Zane said, not believing her.

"...I thought you said you can't understand them." Blade took his eyes off the road to meet hers.

"I know but since that nightmare, it changed...I don't know how or why." She sighed.

"HEY PAY ATTENTION WE ARE IN A CRISIS, BLADE!" Cherry screamed.

"Right." He swerved a left turn down an alley, flames dancing around the passing apartment complex. The alien hooked its claws into the windshield. "Okay, shoot it." He ordered Jax.

"Yes, half-brother." He smirked. The gun held tight c****d back ready to kill. He shot three bullets holes, two in the head, and one on the body. The creature roared in pain, falling off, Blade crushed its remains driving over it.

"I told you not to call me that." Blade said, in a cold voice.

...

"We are we going to go now?" Lily asked, in the passenger.

"I'm not sure yet." Blade said it was dark out now. They had left behind 'Ordinarily Strange' not planning to come back. Blade wondered if there were any survivors. But he doubted it. Those aliens were cruel, vicious, and territorial creatures from what he'd seen so far.

"I hope the aliens were only here." Andy folded her arms to keep warm. It was cold, she scooted closer to Nixon to share body heat. He reddened pretending not to notice their arms touching. "I wonder if my family saw the news yet."

"Yeah, same here," Cherry said, thinking about her little sister Amy, and her mom. Her father had been missing from the family picture before she was born. So, she wouldn't know about him, whoever he was.

"Yeah, I wonder how my father has been doing. Haven't seen him for a while." Jax sighed. It surprised Cherry. He never talked about his family now that she thinks about it.

"Do you and Blade have the same father or?" Cherry's nosy side was showing.

"No, we don't. Only the same mom." Blade said, bluntly from behind the stirring wheel. "Okay, we should get some sleep and take turns on watch. Who's first?"

"Me." Lily volunteered.

"You sure?"

"Positive. Now, you need some rest." She pushed him into the passenger. He rested his head on the window, watching the stars twinkle in the night sky.           

"Lily, I want to know if what you said earlier was true. Could you understand the alien?" He asked in all importance. 

"Yes."

The questions were endlessly building up, like an overload on the computers system or an incurable disease that no doctor or scientist could find the cure for. Questions without answers. Blade was thirsty for answers, he would solve this. Why are they after Lily? How can she understand them? And what about her nightmares? They make no sense.

He dreamed of Lily she was smiling dancing in a floral green dress. She had her hair down in waves at her shoulders. She held a hand out to him, "Dance with me." She glowed like the sun. His heart thumped. He wanted to hold her. But her smiled faded. "Blade!" She cried out. The flames engulfed her burning like her eyes used to.

"NO!" He jumped in after her. But found no Lily. Then an alien attacked him. It was wearing Lily's dress and it screeched. The eyes were blue just like Lily's eyes.

"Lily this isn't you." He held the alien in his arms, it sunk its teeth into his shoulder, and hooked its claws in his back again. He moaned in agony. The world around him turned into utter darkness.

"Hey, Blade, you alright?" A voice called to him. He panted, wiping sweat from his brow. It was just a dream, just a dream. He felt relief wash over him.

"Yes, Lily."

"Well, it's morning, now what do you have planned today?"