Share
MidReal Story
An alien invasion takes place after the zombie apocalypse happens
Scenario:An alien invasion takes place after the zombie apocalypse happens on the whole planet
Create my version of this story
The city was in ruins.
Buildings crumbled, and cars lay abandoned on the streets.
Debris littered everything, left behind when people fled to escape the zombies.
The stench of decay filled the air, a constant reminder of what had happened here.
I moved cautiously through the city, my eyes and ears on high alert for anything that might give away the presence of the undead.
My brother, John Johnson, followed closely behind me, his tall form a comforting presence just over my left shoulder.
Our parents had taught us years ago to always be aware of our surroundings, but after the apocalypse, it became even more important.
No one was safe, and there was no telling what might be lurking just out of sight.
The world had been overrun with zombies.
A virus had spread like wildfire, turning people into flesh-eating monsters.
No one knew where it had come from or how it had happened, but it didn’t matter.
All that mattered was surviving.
My brother and I were survivors.
We lost our parents in the first wave of the apocalypse, but we hadn’t let that stop us.
We’d been on our own for over a year now, and we were determined to keep going for as long as we could.
We knew it wouldn’t be easy, but nothing worth having ever was.
Carefully, I made my way around a pile of bricks that had fallen from a building that stood towering over us.
It was still mostly intact, but there were holes in the walls where pieces had fallen away and exposed the interior.
I didn’t want to go inside – you never knew what might be hiding in the dark – but there was no telling where we might find supplies in this city, either.
I glanced back at John and nodded toward the building.
He gave me a tight smile in return and motioned for me to go on ahead.
He would follow behind me while keeping an eye on our backs.
We’d been working like this for hours now, carefully moving through the city to see what we could find.
There was no telling what the future might hold, and we knew we needed to stock up on as many supplies as we could.
We’d found a few things so far – a couple cans of food and a small bottle of water – but we needed more if we were going to survive another day.
I swallowed hard at the thought.
If there was one thing I’d learned over the past year, it was never to take anything for granted.
“I don’t see any movement,” John said from behind me.
I turned my attention back to the building before us and shook my head.
“There might be something inside, though.”
“It’s worth a look,” he said, and I could hear the determination in his voice.
It was one of the things I loved most about him.
No matter what, he never gave up.
I took a deep breath and steeled myself, then I moved forward and pushed open the door to the building.
John followed close behind me, his gun at the ready and his eyes scanning the room for any signs of movement.
It was quiet inside, and I let out a small sigh of relief before turning to give John a quick smile.
He returned it, his blue eyes shining with something I couldn’t quite place.
In that moment, without saying a word, I knew we were both thinking about our parents.
They wouldn’t have wanted us to give up.
They would have wanted us to keep going, no matter what.
And that was exactly what we were going to do.
John and I headed for the stairs, hoping to find something on one of the upper floors that we could use.
The building looked like it had once been a small office complex, with cubicles set up on each level and desks scattered around.
It was clear that people had once worked here, but now it was empty.
I pushed open the door to one of the offices and stepped inside, my eyes scanning the room.
There was a desk in one corner, with a computer monitor still sitting on top of it.
A few papers were scattered around, but there was nothing else inside.
I turned back toward John and shook my head.
“Nothing in here.”
He nodded and motioned for me to follow him.
“There’s another office down the hall,” he said.
“I’ll check it out while you wait here.”
I moved back into the hallway and leaned against the wall next to the door I’d just come through.
John disappeared into the second office, and I could hear him moving around inside.
It was a strange feeling, standing there waiting for him.
We’d been through so much together over the past year, and I knew we’d face even more in the future.
But no matter what happened, I was glad he was there with me.
Suddenly, a loud crash came from the other end of the hall, making me jump.
I turned toward the noise and saw a group of zombies stumbling out of a room at the far end.
They moved slowly, but they were definitely heading in our direction.
I reached for my gun and motioned for John to move more quickly.
The zombies must have heard me because they suddenly started moving faster.
One of them let out a low groan as they headed straight for us.
I took aim and pulled the trigger, my gun firing off a round that hit the zombie square in the chest.
It staggered backward but didn’t fall.
John came up behind me then and fired off a few rounds of his own.
The zombie went down this time, its body falling hard against the floor.
The others kept coming toward us, but it didn’t take long for us to dispatch them too.
Once they were all down for good, John and I hurried through the building to see if we could find anything else before heading back out into the city.
We’d barely stepped outside when the sky opened up and it started to rain.
I looked up at the dark clouds above us and let out a small groan of my own.
“I really hate this,” I muttered under my breath.
John laughed quietly beside me.
“Yeah, well there’s not much we can do about it now.
I sighed again as we started walking.
It was going to be a long day.
The building was dark as we walked inside.
Sunlight streamed in through broken windows that lined the walls, but it did little to light up our surroundings.
We moved down a narrow hallway that led deeper into the structure.
Our footsteps echoed off the walls around us as we walked.
There was something about abandoned buildings that felt wrong.
Like they’d somehow been forgotten by time itself.
I shivered at the thought as we continued on.
The place was in bad shape.
Debris covered the floor, broken furniture littering the area around us.
Some of it had been knocked over, while other pieces were missing legs or arms entirely.
It was as if some great battle had been fought here and all that remained was a barren wasteland.
The air was thick with the musty scent of decay as we moved deeper into the building.
Dust caked every surface around us, making it hard to see anything at all.
But our eyes quickly adjusted to the darkness.
Soon, we were able to make out the shapes of doors that lined the walls and small piles of rubble that had fallen from the ceiling and littered the floor around us.
We stepped over the debris as we went, making our way toward the back of the building.
It was a routine we’d done a hundred times before, and yet my heart still pounded with fear as we moved through the darkened hallways.
I’d never get used to it, I knew, but it was just something I had to do in order to survive in this new world we now lived in.
We were on the second floor when we finally found something worth taking.
It wasn’t much—just a few cans of food and a box of water bottles—but it was better than nothing at all.
I held out my hand and motioned for John to stop behind me.
I could hear him coming up beside me a moment later, his footsteps muffled by the debris on the floor around us.
“Anything?” he asked quietly as he came up behind me.
I shook my head and pointed toward a door down the hall.
“Not that I can see.
We might have better luck on the next floor though.”
He nodded and motioned for me to lead the way.
I started down the hall, moving as quietly as I could as I went.
The stairs were just around the corner, and I knew we’d be safe once we could make it back outside.
The building was old and creaky, but it didn’t take long for us to find what we were looking for.
I stepped inside and motioned for John to follow me as I did.
He came up behind me a moment later, his footsteps echoing off the walls as he went.
We moved quickly down the hall, making our way to the back of the building where the stairs were located.
John had his gun out and at the ready as we went, while I kept my eyes peeled for any signs of movement in the darkness.
It didn’t take long for us to reach the stairs and start heading down to the first floor below.
The air was even colder down here than it had been above.
There was something about being underground that was always so unnerving to me.
Even if it was just a few feet below the surface, it was still enough to make my skin crawl.
We’d only made it a few steps when I heard something move off to my left.
I stopped in my tracks, my heart pounding in my chest as I tried to figure out what had made the noise.
It had been faint, but I knew I’d heard something.
John must have heard it too because he stopped behind me a moment later, his gun at the ready in his hands.
I turned back to him and motioned for him to be quiet.
He nodded and motioned for me to follow him as he moved toward the source of the sound.
We walked a few feet before he stopped again and looked back at me.
“Do you see anything?”
I shook my head and motioned for him to keep going.
He nodded and started forward again, moving slowly as he went.
I followed close behind him, my eyes scanning the area in front of us for any signs of movement in the darkness.
It took us a few minutes to reach the end of the hall, but when we did we found nothing at all.
The room was empty and completely devoid of life, save for a few small piles of debris that littered the floor.
John sighed and motioned for me to follow him back out into the hallway.
We’d been so sure we’d find something down here, but it looked like we’d been wrong after all.
The place was completely empty.
We turned around and headed back toward the stairs.
Our footsteps echoed off the walls around us as we went, each one sounding louder than the last.
I could feel my heart pounding in my chest as we moved through the empty hallways, and I knew John could too.
We kept walking until we finally reached the stairs and headed back up to the first floor above us.
The building was eerily silent as we went.
The layers of dust coating the floor muffled our footsteps and made it hard to see anything at all.
But we moved forward anyway, knowing we had no other choice.
To stay behind would be suicide in this world we now lived in, and neither of us was willing to take that chance.
We moved quickly through the empty hallways, making our way to the front door where we’d first entered.
It wasn’t long before we finally made it outside and back onto the streets above.
I took a deep breath and closed my eyes for a moment as the sun hit my face.
It felt good to be back outside again.
I’d never get used to being inside those old buildings.
There was something about them that always seemed wrong and out of place.
I shivered at the thought and turned back to John.
“Let’s go,” I said quietly.
We still had a lot of ground to cover today, and not much time left to do it in.
I started walking and he followed close behind me.
Even though the building was far behind us now, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong.
It was like the silence of that old hospital had seeped into my bones somehow and refused to leave.
I shivered again and focused on the road ahead of us.
It wouldn’t be long before it was dark again.
We’d spent most of the day searching the hospital, and now it was time to move on and find somewhere safer to spend the night.
We’d been walking for a while when John finally spoke up behind me.
He’d lowered his voice to a whisper so only I could hear him.
“I think we should check out the basement,” he said.
“We might be able to find something down there.”
I nodded in agreement and turned down the nearest alleyway.
The entrance to the hospital basement was just ahead of us now, and I could feel my heart start to pound again as it came into view.
I didn’t like the idea of going down there one bit, especially after what happened last time.
But I knew John was right; if there was anything down there then we needed it.
We’d have to take our chances and hope for the best.
We walked over to the hospital entrance and went inside.
The stairs leading down into the basement were just ahead of us now, and I could feel my hands start to shake as I looked down into the darkness below.
I took a deep breath and started down the steps, careful not to trip on the way.
It was hard to see anything in the dim light, but I could feel my eyes starting to adjust as we went.
I strained my ears, listening for any signs of movement around us, but the place was completely silent.
It almost felt like we were the only ones here, even though I knew that couldn’t be true.
I reached out a hand and placed it on John’s back, letting him know I was still behind him.
He was taking his time going down the stairs, each step slow and deliberate.
His grip on the flashlight was firm, the bright beam of light shining ahead of him as he moved.
I stayed close behind him as we went, one careful step at a time.
Eventually, we reached the bottom of the stairs, and I could feel my stomach start to churn as I caught a whiff of something foul in the air.
It smelled musty, like decay mixed with something sweet that I couldn’t quite place.
It wasn’t a smell I was used to, but it made me uneasy all the same.
I took a deep breath and tried my best not to think about it.
John motioned for me to follow him again, and we started down the long hallway ahead of us.
There were closed doors lining both sides of it, each one a barrier between us and whatever secrets lay hidden behind them.
Without another word, we split up and began checking each room in turn, our footsteps muffled by the thick layer of dust on the floor.
My heart was pounding in my chest as I went, but I kept moving forward anyway.
We had come this far already; there was no turning back now.
The first few rooms yielded nothing but dust and debris, but I kept searching anyway, determined not to give up so easily.
It wasn’t until I reached the end of the hallway that I heard John let out a muffled curse behind me.
I turned around and rushed back to where he was standing.
He was staring at a door that had been broken down from the inside, its splintered remains scattered haphazardly across the floor in front of it.
I put a hand on his shoulder and waited for him to tell me what was wrong, but he just shook his head and motioned for me to follow him inside.
I took a step forward, my eyes scanning the room for any sign of movement, but it was empty.
The walls were lined with metal shelves, most of them knocked over or broken beyond repair.
There were a few items scattered on the floor that looked like they might be useful, but I didn’t see anything worth getting too excited about.
John must have seen the disappointment on my face, because he gave me a reassuring smile and motioned for me to follow him further inside.
We moved cautiously through the room, our footsteps echoing in the silence around us.
I could feel my pulse quickening as we went, but I did my best to keep it under control.
I didn’t want to do anything to give away our position if there was something—or someone—else in here with us.
We made our way through the stacks of fallen shelves and boxes, the light from John’s flashlight casting eerie shadows on the walls around us.
I could hear my brother’s breathing start to quicken, and I knew he was getting nervous.
I reached out and squeezed his hand in mine, hoping it would help calm his nerves.
We’re going to be fine, I whispered, my voice barely louder than a breath.
He nodded and gave me a small smile in return, but I could tell he didn’t fully believe it.
I took a deep breath and tightened my grip on his hand.
I didn’t know what was waiting for us in the next room, but I wasn’t going to let it get the best of me.
I was stronger than that.
We reached the end of the room and stopped.
There were a few more items scattered around on the floor in front of us, but most of them looked like they had been broken beyond repair.
John motioned for me to search the left side of the room while he checked out the right.
He gave me one last look and nodded before heading off in the other direction.
I waited until he was out of sight before turning my attention back to the mess in front of me.
I took a deep breath and started sifting through the debris, my hands moving quickly over the scattered items.
Most of what I found was either broken or useless, but I set aside anything that might be of even minor value to us.
I didn’t want to get too excited yet—I had been disappointed too many times before.
The longer I went, though, the more I started to lose hope.
I had almost reached the back corner of the room when something caught my eye: a glint of light reflecting off a metal surface.
My heart skipped a beat as I hurried over to it, my fingers trembling with anticipation.
I brushed away some of the debris and found a small cache of canned goods tucked away behind them.
There were only a few of them, but they looked to be in good condition.
It wasn’t much, but it was better than nothing.
I grinned to myself and picked up one of the cans before turning around to find John.
I had to bite back a gasp when I saw his face.
His expression was frozen in fear, his eyes wide and locked on something behind me.
Before I could ask him what was wrong, I heard a loud crash come from somewhere ahead of us.
I spun around to see a group of figures emerging from the doorway we had just walked through.
For a moment, I had to wonder if they were zombies.
It wouldn’t have been the first time we had stumbled upon a group of them while scavenging.
But then I got a better look at them and realized that they weren’t human at all.
They were tall and thin with long limbs and sharp claws that clicked against the floor with each step.
There were four of them in total, and they were all wearing strange suits of armor that covered their entire bodies from head to toe.
Even their faces were hidden behind helmets that were molded into insect-like shapes.
I didn’t know what they were or where they came from, but I knew one thing for sure: they weren’t here to make friends.
As if to prove my point, two of them raised their weapons and aimed them at us.
John’s grip on my hand tightened and he pulled me behind one of the overturned tables.
I ducked down next to him and tried to catch my breath.
My heart was pounding in my chest so hard that it felt like it was going to burst right out of my ribcage.
But I didn’t have time to worry about that.
I had to stay focused.
I had to stay alive.
The two aliens who had been aiming their weapons at us suddenly fired, releasing a blinding flash of light that made my eyes water.
I heard John swear under his breath and I knew he had been blinded, too.
He ducked down lower behind the table and squeezed his eyes shut, but it didn’t help.
The light was so bright that I could see it even with my own eyes closed.
And then, just as quickly as it had started, the light died away.
I opened my eyes and blinked the spots out of them, trying to get my vision back.
The first thing I saw was one of the aliens standing over me, its weapon raised and ready to fire.
I didn’t have time to think or react—I just moved on instinct.
I swung my machete up with all my might and watched the alien’s head topple off its shoulders and hit the ground with a dull thud.
I scrambled to my feet and looked around for John.
He was standing a few feet away from me, his back to the overturned table and his fists clenched around a sledgehammer he had found somewhere in the room.
His face was pale and his expression grim, but he gave me a small nod when he saw that I was okay.
I raised my machete and nodded back, ready for whatever came next.
But when I looked at the aliens, I found them frozen in place, staring at us with looks of shock and confusion on their faces.
I followed their gazes and realized what they were looking at: the bodies of their two fallen comrades.
The aliens’ weapons suddenly let out a high-pitched whine, and I knew what was coming next before they even fired.
I ducked behind the table and covered my head just as twin beams of energy shot out in front of me.
The table started shaking and splintering under the force of the blast, but it held.
I waited until the sound of the weapons died away before poking my head out of cover and glancing around.
The two aliens who had been firing at us had switched targets and were now focused on John.
He was on the ground, his sledgehammer lying a few feet away from him on the floor.
I knew I had only seconds before they turned their weapons back on me.
John!” I shouted, but he didn’t look up.
I was about to call out to him again when the aliens’ weapons let out a fresh round of fire, forcing me back into cover.
I heard the sound of their energy beams hitting something solid, and I knew it was only a matter of time before they broke through the table.
“John!” I called out again, but he didn’t answer.
I glanced around the room and saw him still lying on the floor.
He looked pale and weak, and I could see blood staining the side of his shirt.
I knew he had been hit, but I didn’t know how badly.
I had to get him out of here—now!
I was about to leave my hiding spot and try to reach him when he shook his head and held up a hand.
“Don’t,” he called out.
“You can’t help me.”
“What are you talking about?”
I asked, my voice rising in panic.
“Don’t be stupid.
Of course I can help you.
I’m not leaving you behind!”
“I’m not asking you to leave me behind,” John said.
“I’m asking you to go get help.
You can’t help me right now—I’m as good as dead already.
“You’re not dead until I say you’re dead,” I snapped back.
“We’ve survived worse than this, John.
We’re not going down without a fight!”
John met my gaze and held it for a long moment.
I could see the pain and fear in his eyes, but I could also see the determination and strength that had always been there, even when things were at their worst.
“We don’t have a choice,” he said finally.
I knew he was right, but I couldn’t bear to face it—not yet.
I wasn’t ready to give up hope—not when we had come so far and fought so hard to get here.
I met John’s gaze and gave him a small nod.
He returned the gesture and raised his weapon as if preparing for a charge.
I did the same with my machete, ready to fight by his side until the end.
We waited in silence for the aliens to attack again.
But the attack never came—at least not right away.
Instead, we heard the sound of more footsteps approaching from down the hall, and we knew we were out of time.
John raised his weapon and gave me one last look before nodding in the direction of the wall behind me.
“There’s a passage that way,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper.
“It leads back to the surface.”
I shook my head and tried to argue, but John cut me off before I could even get the words out.
“Go,” he ordered, his voice firm and full of authority.
“I’ll cover you.”
“But—” I started to say, but he didn’t give me a chance to finish.
He grabbed my arm with one bloody hand and pulled me close, cutting me off midsentence.
“You need to go now,” he said urgently, his voice low and urgent.
“Don’t wait for me, Sarah—just go!
I didn’t want to leave John behind, but I knew I didn’t have a choice—not if I wanted either of us to survive this attack.
The sound of more alien soldiers approaching from the other end of the hallway made up my mind for me, and I nodded to show John that I understood.
He gave me one last look and squeezed my arm reassuringly before moving to the other side of the room and taking cover behind one of the overturned gurneys, where he could keep an eye on both entrances at once.
I watched him go, trying to ignore the pain that was threatening to overwhelm me as I stood there all alone in the middle of the empty room.
When John was in place, I turned and started to make my way toward the wall where I’d first seen the hidden passageway, hoping that I would be able to find it again before it was too late.
But before I could get very far, I heard the sound of more gunfire coming from the other end of the hallway, and then I saw them: two more alien soldiers approaching from the other end of the hall, their weapons raised and ready to fire as they moved quickly toward us.
I started to raise my own weapon as if preparing for another fight, but the look of sheer terror on John’s face stopped me before I could even take my first step.
“Go!” he shouted, his voice barely audible over the sound of gunfire.
“Get out of here—I’ll be okay!
I hesitated for just a second, and that was all it took.
The aliens were on top of us before I even had a chance to react.
The next thing I knew, one of the aliens was grabbing John by the shoulders and lifting him off his feet as if he weighed nothing at all.
John fought back—of course he did—but the alien was stronger than him.
Much stronger.
And there were two of them now.
The other alien grabbed John by the waist and started dragging him back toward the hallway where the other soldiers were still fighting.
John struggled and tried to get free, but it was no use.
He turned and looked at me as if making sure that I was still safe.
I tried to speak, but no words came out.
Instead, all I could do was nod and give him a tight-lipped smile that I hoped would convey all of the things that I couldn’t say out loud—not then and maybe not ever.
John met my gaze for a long moment and gave me a small nod before turning away and following the other aliens down the hallway toward the sounds of gunfire.
I watched them go, trying not to think about the fact that I might never see my brother again.
John was strong and brave and resourceful and all of those things—but so were the aliens who had taken him captive.
And they outnumbered him two-to-one.
I didn’t know if he would be able to get away—even with all of his training and experience—and that thought was almost too much for me to bear.
I sank to my knees and wiped a few stray tears from my eyes as the sounds of gunfire finally faded away, leaving me all alone in the empty room.
For the next few minutes, I tried to catch my breath and focus on something—anything—other than what had just happened.
I heard a few more gunshots from somewhere else in the building—probably the other soldiers still fighting or maybe even the aliens themselves—and I knew I had to get out of there before they came back for me.
But my body was already starting to betray me.
At first I thought I was okay—I didn’t see any blood on my clothes or feel any pain—but then I tried to stand up and realized that wasn’t the case at all.
Every muscle in my body ached like I had just run a marathon and then gotten hit by a truck for good measure.
I tried to take a step forward and almost fell over again.
For a few seconds I fought with my own body—like it was some kind of enemy I had to defeat—but eventually I realized that was a losing battle.
I was hurt—not as badly as John was, maybe, but still pretty badly.
If I wanted to get out of there and find someplace safe, I would have to take it slow.
I made my way to the wall and used it for support as I started walking down the hallway.
I didn’t know where I was going or how I was going to get there—I didn’t even know if there was a way out of the building that wouldn’t involve me fighting more aliens.
But there was one thing I did know: I had to find my brother.
The only problem was that I had no idea where they had taken him.
There was a door not far from where we had been hiding before—and I could see a few streaks of bright red blood leading in that direction—so I started making my way toward it.
For a little while it seemed like I might actually make it—maybe even find John and make our escape together—but eventually my body gave out and I sank to the ground in a heap.
I wasn’t sure how much more pain I could take—how many more steps I could take—before I just collapsed on the floor and gave up for good.
But then again, maybe that wouldn’t be so bad.
At least then I would be with John again.
I used the wall to pull myself back up to my feet, ignoring the pain in my side—where I could feel a fresh wound already starting to form—and taking one step at a time.
I was almost back to the other room now, and I could see the door just a few feet away.
It was still hanging open a little, and I could see the dark room beyond it.
I made my way to the door and pushed it open, stepping back into the room I had almost died in, only a few minutes earlier.
The first thing I noticed was the blood—there was so much of it on the floor that I could almost smell the iron tang of it in the air.
I tried not to think about what that meant—not right then, when I was so close to giving up anyway—but it was hard not to.
After everything I’d seen, after everything I’d done, there was no way John was still alive.
There was just no way.
He had fought back against the aliens for as long as he could, but eventually they had overwhelmed him, and that was that.
It was hard not to let myself sink into despair—hard not to believe that John was gone, forever—but I tried my best.
Instead of giving up, I tried to think of something else—anything else—that would keep me going.
And eventually I did: I remembered the blood that I had seen on the floor earlier, and I realized that if I followed it, maybe it would lead me to John.
It was a long shot—I knew that—but I didn’t have anything else to do at the moment, so I got to work.
It didn’t take me long to find the blood trail—it was leading away from me, toward the back of the building—so I started following it, praying that it would actually lead me somewhere.
It took me through a few more dark rooms—some of them with blood in them, some of them without—but eventually I made my way down a narrow corridor, hoping that this would be the end of my search.
But when I reached the end of the corridor, I saw that there was another long flight of stairs leading even higher up into the building.
I didn’t know how much more strength I had left in me, but I forced myself to keep going.
I almost wished that there were more alien soldiers around, just so that they would have to pick me up off the floor and carry me all the way to wherever John was.
That would have been nice, but it wasn’t going to happen.
So I put my head down, bracing myself against the sharp pain in my side, and forced my legs to keep moving.
I’m not sure how long it took me to make it all the way to the top, but eventually the stairs gave way to a door, which opened onto the roof.
I stumbled out into the open air, gasping as my eyes adjusted to the bright sunlight, and looked around.
And what I saw next almost made me give up on the spot.
The roof had once been a serene place—a place where people would go to take breaks or catch some fresh air on their breaks.
There were even picnic tables set out all over the place, like something out of a movie.
But now it was a war zone.
Alien soldiers—a small group of them, though there were probably plenty more around somewhere—were firing their guns in all directions, trying to take down the helicopter hovering just out of their reach.
It was one of the strangest things I had ever seen: it was shaped like an airplane, but it didn’t have any wings; instead, there were two large blades on either side, both of them spinning faster than anything should have been able to.
The helicopter was clearly not having a good time—the pilot must have been some kind of alien, as well, because there was no way a human could have flown something like that—but it was holding its own against the alien soldiers, dodging most of the bullets coming its way.
But then everything changed: all at once, the helicopter stopped moving, as though it had run out of fuel, or electricity—or something else entirely.
Whatever it was, it caused the helicopter to drop out of the sky like a stone.
The alien soldiers looked around, confused, but whatever had happened seemed to clear up pretty quickly.
The helicopter was still spinning, but it had started moving forwards again, right towards the aliens.It wasn’t going fast; if anything, it looked like it might just be drifting in the wind.
But then it started firing its guns again, and everything changed.
The alien soldiers were caught off guard—they had been about to start firing at the helicopter, but instead they found themselves diving for cover, trying to avoid being torn apart by the bullets coming their way.
Most of them managed to get behind one of the air conditioning units or duck behind one of the doors—though not all of them were so lucky—but even those who hadn’t managed to find cover were able to dodge most of the bullets coming their way.
The ones who weren’t so lucky were forced to dive out of the way, hoping against hope that they would be able to avoid being hit until someone came along to save them.
Which was just wishful thinking.
The aliens didn’t slow down.
They fired off a few more shots, then turned on their heels and started running, trying to get as far away from the helicopter as they could.
But it was too late.
Even as they ran, the helicopter kept getting closer and closer—and then all at once it was there, and the blades were striking anything and everything around them.
Some of the alien soldiers saw it coming and managed to dive out of the way; others were not so lucky.
The blades sliced through their armor as though it weren’t even there—and maybe it wasn’t—and then they sliced through the soldiers themselves.
The aliens fell apart like wet paper, but the helicopter didn’t slow down; instead it just kept going, plowing through the ones who had managed to get out of the way before.
The first wave of alien soldiers were all but wiped out; those who hadn’t been killed by the blades were shot down by the machine guns.
But even before the last alien soldier had hit the ground, reinforcements began to arrive.
First came the helicopters—two of them this time—then the fighter jets.
They started shooting at the alien soldiers before they had even touched down.
They didn’t wait for orders; instead they just started firing on anything and everything that moved.
It was a strange thing to see: the alien soldiers moved much faster than anything humans had ever built—but even so, they couldn’t dodge the bullets coming their way.
The helicopters and fighter jets didn’t stop firing until every single alien soldier had been taken down.
Then, with nothing left to do, they turned around and headed back towards home.
I watched them go, but my attention wasn’t on them; instead it was on the ground below me.
The heat coming off of all those explosions was intense—it felt like I was standing right next to a bonfire—but that wasn’t what scared me.
What scared me was the sound.
After the first wave of alien soldiers was taken down, I expected the second wave to turn around and head back home.
They must have realized by now that Earth was not going to be an easy target—not if they had to fight for every inch of it.
And, after all, what more could they do?
Their landing zone was gone; their reinforcements had been wiped out; and most of their soldiers were dead.
It seemed like a hopeless battle.
Yet instead of turning around and heading home, they kept coming.
Alien soldiers kept falling from the sky, and as soon as they hit the ground, they started to fight.
And then, just as I thought it couldn’t get any worse, I heard a sound—a new sound—that sent shivers down my spine.
I turned around just in time to see a new wave of alien spacecraft descend towards the city, and all at once I knew: we were doomed.
I let go of the edge of the rooftop and fell flat on my stomach, hoping that by making myself as small as possible, I would be able to ride out what was coming.
The building trembled beneath me, and a second later there was a loud explosion just a few feet away.
I was thrown into the air, but I managed to grab onto a piece of rebar before it could throw me off of the side.
I clung to it for dear life as another explosion went off nearby, then another, and another.
The building shook so violently that I was sure it was going to collapse; but somehow it held together, and a few minutes later everything fell silent.
I let go of the rebar and slowly climbed back to my feet.
My entire body hurt; every single movement was agony; and all I wanted to do was lie back down and go to sleep.
But there was no time for that.
I forced myself to get up, then turned around and looked at the building across from me.
It was completely unrecognizable.
A missile strike had hit it while I was watching, and now there was nothing left but a smoldering ruin.
I screamed my brother’s name, but my voice was lost in the wind.
Even if he was still alive—and chances were he wasn’t—he wouldn’t have been able to hear me anyway.
I stumbled backwards and nearly fell over.
My vision was blurred by tears, but I forced myself to keep moving.
If I stopped now—if I let myself think about what I had just seen—I would never be able to continue.
So I took a deep breath, then forced myself to keep going.
There was a lot of smoke and dust in the air, but even so I was able to make out a few shapes.
They looked like people—or at least parts of people—but it was hard to tell for sure.
I squinted my eyes, then forced myself to focus on what lay before me—and that was when I heard it.
A voice—a familiar voice—calling out my name.
It was barely more than a whisper; if I hadn’t been listening for it, I never would have heard it at all.
But I was listening for it—and so I did hear it—and that was enough.
“Sarah…”
It was my brother’s voice; I was sure of it.
I couldn’t see him—there was too much smoke and dust in the way—but he was there.
Somewhere in front of me.
The voice called out to me again.
“Sarah…”
This time it was louder—much louder than before.
And it was coming from somewhere off to my right.
My right—where I had last seen him.
That was where he was.
The voice called out to me one last time, then went silent.
The building rumbled again—this time even more violently than before—and then the ground gave way beneath me.
And that was the last thing that I remembered.
For a long time nothing happened; nothing at all.
But then, slowly, my memory began to return to me.
And when it did, it brought with it the memory of what had happened—or at least some of it.
Images flashed before my eyes—images of the aliens attacking us—and with them came the memories of everything else that had happened.
The gunfire; the explosions; the screaming—all of it came rushing back to me.
And in the midst of all that chaos, I saw my brother’s face one last time.
He was fighting—fighting to save me—but he wasn’t going to be able to.
They were too strong; they were going to kill him.
I tried to call out to him—to warn him—but my voice wouldn’t work; my throat was too dry.
So I just lay there and watched as the aliens effortlessly overpowered him—and that was when everything went black.
The memory faded away—just like it always did—but this time it left something behind: a feeling of despair.
Tears welled up in my eyes, but I forced them back down again.
Crying wouldn’t help me now—not after all that had happened.
So instead of crying I just lay there and waited for it to end—but it didn’t end; not for a long time.
Instead, things just got worse: someone grabbed me by the arm and dragged me away from the rooftop.
My body was covered in cuts and bruises—I could feel them—but there was nothing I could do to resist.
There were too many of them; they were too strong; they didn’t care what happened to me or how much pain they caused.
The last thing that I remember was hearing my brother’s voice one last time.
He was calling out to me—and this time he sounded desperate—but there was nothing that he could do.
So I just lay there and listened; listened as his voice slowly faded away—and then, finally, went silent.
“Sarah…”
I heard him say, “Sarah…”
But there was no answer; there was no one left to answer him.
I don’t know how much time passed after that; not much, I don’t think.
Everything was a blur; a haze of pain and exhaustion—and then, suddenly, the pain was gone, and so was the exhaustion.
My eyes flew open, but all I saw was white: white walls; white ceiling; white floor—all of it covered in a layer of frosty white ice that made everything look even more cold and sterile than it already did.
I tried to turn my head—I don’t know why—but I couldn’t; something was holding me down, keeping me from moving.
I tried to lift up my hands—I wanted to rub the sleep out of my eyes—but something was holding them down too: a pair of restraints, made out of some kind of cold, hard metal, covered in greenish white rust, dug deep into my skin, cutting off the circulation to my hands—and then, slowly, finally, everything started coming back to me: the building; the aliens; the rooftop—and then, suddenly, it all came crashing down on me at once.
I tried to scream—I tried to fight—but nothing happened; the restraints were too tight.
I couldn’t move; I couldn’t escape; all that I could do was stare at the ceiling while the tears ran down my face.
The floor was cold beneath my bare feet; the walls were closing in on me—and everything ached: the cut on the side of my head; the lump on the back of my skull; the bruises on my arms and legs; the deep, throbbing pain in my chest where one of the bullets had hit me—I could feel all of them at once: all at the same time; all at once: pain: pain: pain: pain: pain: pain: pain—
There was something wrong with my vision too: everything looked wrong: blurry: distorted: out of focus: out of focus: out of focus: out of focus: out of focus—
Still, I tried to sit up.
It was hard—I could barely move—but eventually I managed it.
The chair was made out of metal and plastic and it was just as cold and hard as everything else.
But there was something else wrong too: when I tried to move my head I found that I couldn’t.
It felt like my hair was caught on something—something sharp and sticky—but when I reached up to check I found that it wasn’t: my hair was fine; my hair was free—it was my head that was caught on something instead.
I tried to turn my head again and this time I could feel it: a larger, thicker piece of metal, roughly the size and shape of a tin can, bolted into the back of my skull.
The dizziness came back too: a wave of dizziness so strong that I almost passed out again.
So instead of fighting against it I just closed my eyes and lay there for a while, waiting for it to pass: waiting for things to go back to normal again.
The voices came next: two voices, speaking in a strange language that I didn’t recognize—one high and whiny; the other low and gruff—coming from somewhere behind me.
I opened up my eyes again but I still couldn’t see anything.
The room was too small and too bright and everything was too blurry; still, I could hear them clearly enough: talking and laughing; talking and laughing—
The sound of their footsteps grew louder as they drew closer.
But I still couldn’t see anything—not anything that I wanted to see anyway.
Not anything that I wanted to see—
The two aliens stepped into view a second later and I almost screamed when I saw them.
The first one was tall and skinny with long thin arms and legs; he had a round head that was covered in slimy green skin, with six or seven eyes dotted around his face like a spider’s; he had a mouth that was full of sharp fangs, with two long tentacles poking out of his nostrils; they writhed and wriggled as he talked, leaving slimy trails in their wake that glistened like snot or spit in the bright white light of the room.
The second alien was almost identical to him; but there were a few key differences too: he had fewer eyes; fewer tentacles; his skin was a little bit paler in color; his body was a little bit lumpier and a little bit hairier; he smelled worse as well—it was a sharp sour stench that made me gag as soon as it hit my nostrils—and it was almost enough to make me forget about the other thing altogether.
The first alien took a step closer to me then and his tentacles wriggled even harder than before; his eyes were fixed on mine now; they glinted in the bright white light of the room; they bored into mine like two hot coals blazing in the dark.
“Do you understand me?It sounded like a question but it wasn’t: it wasn’t anything like a question at all but there was no mistaking what he meant anyway.
I looked at him for a long time before I answered—he waited for me to answer—but there was no answer that I could give him: there were no words that I understood at all.
The first alien said something to the second alien then—the whiny one said something to the gruff one—but he didn’t take his eyes off mine; they never left mine; they never strayed from mine; they bored into mine; they blazed into mine—
I tried not to look at him anymore—I tried not to look him in the eyes—but it was impossible: they were too bright; too hot; too fiery; they captured my gaze and held it tight and there was nothing that I could do to get it back again once it was gone.
“What is your name?”
“Where are you from?”
“I’m from Earth.”
The first alien raised one of its tentacles at that—I thought that it was going to hit me—but it didn’t hit me.
It didn’t hit me at all—
Then what do you know about the Earth’s military capabilities?What do you know about our resistance?”
The tentacle came back down again.
“I don’t know anything,” I said.
“I don’t know about that stuff.”
I tried to sound calm and confident but I wasn’t.
I tried to sound brave and strong but I wasn’t.
I tried to sound like I knew what I was talking about but I didn’t.
I tried to sound like I wasn’t scared but I was.
The alien could probably tell that I was lying—the other alien could probably tell that I wasn’t telling the truth—but he didn’t say anything about it.
He didn’t say anything at all.
He just stared at me instead, with his unblinking eyes and his writhing tentacles, waiting for me to answer him.
But I had already answered him—didn’t he remember?—and I didn’t have another answer to give him: not one that he wanted to hear anyway.
“What is your name?”
he asked me again.
I didn’t answer him this time.
There was no point in answering him this time.
He knew what my name was.
He knew everything about me already.
The question was just a formality—the question was just a trick.
The alien stared at me for a long time again, with his unblinking eyes and his writhing tentacles, waiting for me to answer him—waiting for an answer that he already had.
Tentacle shot out at me again—another one—another one—and struck me in the chest, knocking me back in my chair, knocking me back to the wall behind it, and knocking all the breath out of my lungs in a single blow, in a single strike, in a single hit—
Then another one came—another one—another one—and struck me in the stomach, knocking me back in my chair, knocking me back to the wall behind it, and knocking all the food out of my stomach in a single blow, in a single strike, in a single hit—
Then another one came—another one—another one—and struck me in the face, knocking me back in my chair—knocking me back to the wall behind it—and knocking all the blood out of my nose in a single blow, in a single strike, in a single hit—
Then another one came—another one—another one—and struck me in the head, knocking all the sense out of my brain and all the thoughts out of my mind, and leaving nothing but blackness behind—
Then another one came—another one—another one—and struck me in my hands and my legs and my body until I couldn’t feel them anymore.
Until there was nothing left of them at all.
Until there was nothing left of them but pain.
Then it stopped—for a little while—it stopped—for a little while—and I was grateful for that.
I was grateful for that—for that small reprieve—for that small pause—for that small break.
I was grateful for it—but it didn’t last for long.
It didn’t last for long at all.
It didn’t last for long: not nearly long enough.
“Are you ready to answer my questions now?”
he asked me.
he asked me.
he asked me.
I shouted at him—I shouted back at him—I shouted into his face.
“I don’t know anything!”
I shouted back at him.
“I already told you that!”
I shouted back at him.
“I have nothing to tell you!”
I shouted back at him.
I have nothing to tell you,” I shouted back at him.
I have nothing to tell you,” I shouted back at him.
I have nothing to tell you,” I shouted back at him.
The alien stared at me for a long time again before it finally spoke again.
“Very well,” it said at last.
“I will give you one more chance to cooperate with us.”
“Please,” I begged it.
“Please don’t do this.”
“Please don’t do this,” I begged it.
“Please don’t do this,” I begged it.
“Please don’t do this,” I begged it.
“Please don’t do this,” I begged it.
Then he hit me again—with his tentacles—with his slimy tentacles—with his slimy tentacles—and he didn’t stop for a long time—not until there was nothing left of me at all—not until there was nothing left of me but pain—not until there was nothing left of me but tears—not until there was nothing left of me but blood—
It felt like he would never stop—but he did stop: eventually—and he left then too—and he told them to keep watching me—and then he left—and then he left—and then he left and then he left and then he left and then he left—
I tried to sit up after that—I tried to stand—but I couldn’t do either of those things anymore: not really: not properly: not at all.
My body wouldn’t obey my commands—not anymore—it wouldn’t obey my commands—it wouldn’t obey my orders—it wouldn’t obey my wishes—it wouldn’t obey my will—
