Sore and Sick

My eyes widened and I froze, shocked at the newest development. Stunned by Wolf's seeming defeat. My shoulders started to shake, but Devon's voice pulled me from the void sucking me in.

"What the fuck is THAT?" he yelped.

I turned to look at the thing that had tackled Wolf at the same time it turned its attention on us. Behind it, other drones piled past bent bars, crawling through the small tunnels to the surface. This strange-looking one had created a hole for them to escape.

My fingers tightened around my sword and I widened my stance. Determined to keep Devon behind me, I stumbled back into him with my free arm up as a protective shield.

"Stay back," I said, though my voice had suddenly lost all of its confidence.

The monstrosity before us was a massive creature of muscle and rage. It stood erect like the human-xenos, but it wasn't the emaciated bio-mechanical skeleton I had grown accustomed to—this one had some mass. Instead of the smooth, black carapace skulls, it had a stunted forehead with slicked-back, dread like appendages—familiar and foreign at the same time.

It hissed and pulled back a set of webbed, slime-covered mandibles. I took another step back, pushing Devon along despite his protests.

An image of Jailbreak flashed across my mind. We'd found him in the woods, killed when the chestburster had been born.

This was that chestburster, all grown up.

Our staredown ended when Devon unleashed a barrage of semi-automatic fire upon it. The bullets pelted the beast, no more effective than paintball pellets. The hybrid launched itself at us, roaring a war cry that rattled my insides.

I tripped over Devon in my haste to counter and shoved him aside. There was just enough time to raise my weapon and block—then it was on me, forcing me back against a guard railing. I pressed my free hand to the flat of the blade, battling to keep the thing off me.

Raw power fueled the monster; it was like trying to stop a car with my bare hands. It kept pressing its forehead against my sword, growling and clawing for purchase. The bars of the railing cut into my back and the hybrid was a few seconds from shoving me through a small opening between the metal rods.

Or breaking my spine, whatever came first.

Grunting through clenched teeth, I put all my strength into shoving the thing off of me, pushing forward with any leverage I could exploit. I planted my feet and put my back into it--but was unable to make it move.

Instead, I made myself move.

Using my much smaller stature to my advantage, I used its own strength to push myself away and to the side, slipping past it and letting it slam against the guard railing head-first. It reared back, momentarily dazed, and then Devon lit it up with more gunfire.

The creature's body jerked with each bullet pummeling its back and it whirled around, screeching so loudly it made my skull rattle.

Devon was backed up against a wall, emptying his clip into the creature's chest, but still it advanced on him. Its sharp tail lashed, but Devon side-stepped.

Grip white-knuckled on my sword, I waded toward the creature and stomped down on its tail as it swung back for another strike. I was about to chop the thing clean off, but it wrenched its tail free and sent me stumbling back.

It decided to ignore Devon and attack me again.

I swung my sword wildly, still trying to regain my balance. It dipped and dodged around my sloppy attempts before slamming into and pinning me against a wall waist-deep in water. I dropped my weapon from the force of the impact and it skittered across the platform behind me, well out of reach.

The Hybrid hissed and peeled back its mandibles, membranes slick with mucus. I froze, terror icing the back of my head and filling my limbs with lead. The hybrid moved within range of the second set of jaws, coming in for the kill. I struggled against it, wiggling and kicking to free myself.

To my surprise, the beast didn't go for the kill. It instead examined me, close enough that its forehead and closed jaws brushed my cheek. The hybrid nudged my head to one side and then the other.

I held my breath, watching from the corner of my eyes as it shifted, waiting for my opportunity to break free. My heart thundered in my chest and my blood roared in my ears as I waited.

That wasn't the case, though, and it reared back, spreading those mandibles wide.

Panic set in and I struggled to breathe. My vision blurred and I tried to move away, but I was stuck against the wall.

/Escape!/ My instincts were screaming at me.

Finally, I drew in a deep breath and stopped fighting against its weight. I let myself go slack and submerged myself in the drainage water, slipping underneath it. The beast's limbs thrashed in the waters, trying to grab at me, but I slithered away and came back up several feet away, gasping for breath.

It found me almost immediately, but Wolf came roaring out of nowhere and slammed into it before it could make a move. They grappled for a few seconds, then Wolf managed to discharge a shot from one of his shoulder-mounted cannons, just barely missing the thing's head.

It disengaged and fled, leaving an it-sized hole in the wall, the brick and mortar crumbling down as it fled to the surface.

My hair clung wetly to my face and neck. I took deep breaths to steady myself, shaking from the cold and the adrenaline that coursed through me. I looked around for the next enemy, but there were no more.

We were alone again.

Somehow I was able to stand and I held my arms out from my side. I took a deep breath and forced myself to look up. I forced myself to stand tall, but I couldn't stop the tremors wracking me. My fingernails bit into the skin of my palm and I ground my teeth together.

I had to find my weapon. I looked around wildly, ignoring the panic and pushing it as far down as I could. The sword was no longer on the platform, or at least not where I could see it.

"Hey, Nichole."

Startled, I spun around with my hands up to defend myself, but it was only Devon. I sighed with relief and finally allowed myself to relax. Wolf came up as well, his head canted to the side. He was sporting new wounds, but none of them seemed to be bothering him at all.

Devon handed me my sword and said, "You dropped this, yo."

"Thank you," I managed to mutter. I placed the blade back on its magnet strap.

We took a moment to catch our breaths. As the adrenaline ebbed, both of us started shaking. It didn't help that it was freezing cold down in the sewers, the water soaking us only compounding that.

However, we had to keep going.

"What do we do now, Wolf?" I asked, turning to face him.

Wolf growled an answer and slipped something over his fist. It whirred to life and he climbed onto the catwalk behind us. I started to follow but leaped back when he punched right through the concrete ceiling to the street above.

"This guy," I muttered, climbing up onto the walkway once rocks stopped falling.

Car tires squealed up top, making me wince.

/Maybe they'll just keep driving,/ I hoped.

"Well this is going to be a PR nightmare," Devon muttered. "Does he think before doing, ever?"

"Not really," I sighed.

With practiced ease, Wolf jumped straight up and onto the street above. I shook my head at him, though I was certain he wouldn't be able to see. I motioned for Devon to give me a boost up, but he put his hand on my shoulder to stop me and gave me a searching look.

"What? Help me up," I requested.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

"Yes, I'm fine," I said with a terse smile. "Are you alright?"

He shook his head. "No! That thing was fucking terrifying. I couldn't shoot it! I can usually shoot anything thrown at me."

Sighing, I rubbed my face. "I know. Just do what I do and shove it deep down to deal with it later."

"Yeah, that's healthy," he scoffed.

"Just help me up, would you?" I harrumphed.

Wolf growled from above, also eager to start the hunt.

Grumbling, Devon locked his fingers together and I stepped up, using his boost to reach for the edge of the street. However, when I put all my weight on his hands, Devon grunted and dropped me. My legs buckled when I hit the platform and I fell on top of Devon, knocking him down, too.

"What the hell happened?" I groaned.

We untangled and I glared at him.

He raised his hands above his head and said, "Look here, lady, I'm tired, okay? I didn't . . . brace myself right. Let's try again."

"Don't drop me this time," I teased, pointing an accusatory finger at him.

"Lose some weight, then," he muttered.

"Excuse me?"

"Nothing, I'm kidding. You're not fat," he assured me.

I rolled my eyes at him.

Devon boosted me up again, this time with success. I grabbed the edge of the street and started to hoist myself up with Devon pushing on my feet, but my upper body strength was failing me. I struggled for a moment to pull myself up, hooking my arm over the asphalt.

"Hurry up! I can't hold you forever!"

"I'm trying," I hissed through clenched teeth. My muscles refused to work, shuddering from the exertion and fatigue.

Wolf's coarse hand startled me at first, but he lifted me up the rest of the way with minimal effort. He set me up on my feet and cocked his head to the side, crackling a question at me.

"I'm okay, thank you," I said, turning back to the hole and peering into it. "Alright Devon, jump!"

He snorted. "Yeah, right. This is not gonna work."

"You got a better idea?"

Shaking his head, Devon jumped for my hand but missed.

It took a couple of tries of him climbing up on the railing and jumping, but eventually, I was able to grab his hand and keep my grip on it. Wolf offered no help until it became apparent that I wasn't in any condition to pull him up with my own strength.

I didn't ask for his help, though, content with my futile struggle to heave Devon up.

Still and all, Wolf reached past me and yanked Devon out of the hole and onto the street, sprawling him out on the ground. When it was all said and done, Wolf wiped his hand on my shoulder as if Devon had left a disgusting residue on him.

"Don't be a child," I shot at the alien.

His response was a derisive churring sound.

In an attempt to be the bigger man, Devon mumbled his thanks to Wolf and turned to face the hole we'd crawled out of, his face twisting in disdain. "How are we going to explain this?"

"Gas leak?" I offered, wringing water from my shirt.

I assumed everything in my backpack would be wet and ruined, as well, but it seemed like it had done a pretty decent job of keeping things dry. Some water had soaked through the outer pockets, but luckily there wasn't anything in there.

Which meant I had a dry change of clothes waiting for me.

Devon's disapproving expression was piercing. "Really? Gas leak? We use that so much."

I motioned toward the eyesore in the street. "You got anything else? That's the go-to for explosions."

"I guess, but it wasn't really an explosion. He punched a hole in the street," Devon said, his hands on his hips. "Through concrete. This is mad."

Sighing in exasperation, I waved my arms. "I don't know then, Devon! We just won't explain it. They'll come up with their own conclusions and then we can leave covering shit up to Hassan. Right now, we need to worry about the fact that these things are loose in the city!"

"They don't have any way to multiply right now, no queen," he reassured me. "They're just running around looking for a place to nest."

"That doesn't mean they aren't still dangerous to the citizens," I retorted.

He opened his mouth for a rebuttal, but he clamped it shut and kicked the ground. "Fuck. I guess you're right."

"Of course I am. Wolf, do you know which way they went?"

"He should really cloak. Sure it's dark and shit, but people will still see him," suggested Devon.

Ignoring him, I waited for Wolf to do his thing and locate the trail. It only took a few seconds, and then he was pushing me across the street. As if in afterthought, or perhaps he'd thought enough time had gone that it seemed like his idea and not Devon's, he cloaked himself.

"Really? We're not going to stop? For just a little bit?" Devon complained. "We gotta change out of these wet clothes before we catch our death and we need a break."

"We don't have time to take a break," I said, though I also really wanted one.

I would never admit that I sorely needed something longer than a few minutes to recuperate.

Devon groaned, but followed us. "Can we at least change?"

"Yeah, probably. We gotta find somewhere to do it, though."

We found a secluded alley and took up positions on either side of a big dumpster. Wolf stood in front of it out of cloak, his back turned. Devon and I swapped out our soaking wet clothes for the drier sets we'd brought with us.

Instead of putting my wet shit back in the bag, I just dumped it in the bin. They would just make everything else fit.

"Okay, you ready?" I asked, standing at Wolf's side.

Devon stretched his back and shook his head. "Listen, I gotta stop. I'm fucking tired and starving. I can't go on anymore. You can go ahead and leave me if you want, but I can't follow that alien anymore. He's a god damn machine."

I opened my mouth but couldn't find the words. Instead, I turned helplessly toward Wolf. I couldn't deny that I was running on fumes, but we didn't have the luxury of breaks, and Wolf wanted to keep going.

Wolf could keep going. I needed to match his pace, to keep up with him. If not, how would I ever be able to justify going with him?

The alley was safe for now, and Devon had to prop himself up on the wall of the building next to us. Now that I wasn't moving anymore, my legs were shaking and it was nothing short of my own willpower that was keeping me standing.

"I gotta stop, Nichole. We've been awake for . . . ," he checked his watch and closed his eyes in disapproval. "Thirty hours. If I'm going to keep going, I need coffee and food. Ten minutes to sit down."

There wasn't much conviction in my voice when I said, "We don't have time to stop."

He looked behind me and I followed his gaze to Wolf. He hadn't moved since we'd started this argument again, just watching us with his head tilted. I couldn't hear the noise he was making, so I couldn't even hazard a guess as to what he was thinking.

"Then, I guess if you really need to, you can go without me. I wish you wouldn't, though. He'll run you ragged if you're not careful, Nichole," Devon said, nodding his head toward Wolf.

My eyes were burning and I rubbed them. I'd been hiding yawns for a while, ever since my latest dose of adrenaline had run out. Standing was becoming more and more of a chore, but I forced myself to stay upright. I couldn't be tired. If Wolf wasn't tired, I couldn't be.

I moved closer to Devon and lowered my voice. "Devon, I know, I know it's hard. I'm hungry, too, and I'm exhausted, but I have to keep going. I can't . . . be left behind. I have to be better."

"Nichole," he sighed, rubbing his face.

This close I could see the bags under his eyes, like growing bruises.

"You do not have to prove yourself. To anyone, least of all that alien. He's already given you that . . . that thing on your wrist. He's accepted at least part of you."

I dropped my gaze and held my wrist in my hand, rubbing the raised, rough scar beneath my thumb.

"You're human, Nichole," Devon continued. "If he can't accept you like that, then you're better off without him."

"Ast'ni." Wolf put his hand on my shoulder and nodded, chattering at me in his language.

When I just stared blankly at him, he pushed me toward Devon with a gentle nudge. As gentle he could while being so strong, anyway.

Shaking my head I said, "No, we can . . . ," but he stopped me mid-sentence with a sharp growl and pointed at my partner. I pursed my lips together and looked over my shoulder at him. Devon already said he couldn't keep going, and I knew it was only a matter of time before I collapsed.

If I was being honest with myself, I didn't want to leave Devon alone, anyway. He was my partner, and we'd always seen our missions through together. Not only that, but if I wasn't with him, I was afraid I'd never see him again.

Afraid I'd lose him the same way I'd lost all of my friends.

No way I was abandoning him, not like I'd abandoned them. Not this time. Not ever again.

"You sure you're okay without m—with us splitting up like this?" I caught myself and lowered my head to hide my embarrassment. Of course he'd be okay without me.

He dipped his head in agreement, chittering idly. I sighed and gave him a determined look. "We'll catch up as soon as we can, okay? We know which direction they went, so we'll find you, and we'll try to see what's going on in town at the same time, okay? We'll have something to report."

Again Wolf nodded and then disappeared into thin air. I watched the spot where he'd been for a second, my lips thinned into a line. He didn't seem disappointed, but I couldn't tell.

"Well," Devon grunted, managing to stand on his own, "I guess he can be reasonable sometimes."

Smiling to myself, I nodded. "I suppose so."

Devon pointed with his chin back the way we had come. "I saw a couple of different places we could catch some food and coffee on the ride through town. They should be nearby. If it's not too late, hopefully, we can get in before somewhere closes."

I hummed to let him know I heard him, motioning for him to lead the way. He shrugged and headed out of the alleyway and back onto the mostly-dead street.

After a pause, I followed after him, casting one last glance in the direction Wolf had gone. I felt like I was taking a walk of shame, admitting that I couldn't follow Wolf forever.

But, Devon was right. I was only human.

I would only ever be human.