The Unknown

TWENTY-FOUR | newcomer.

"Are they dead?" Tess asked, frozen.

"No," Dave said. "They'll wake up, and they shouldn't remember a thing. What you need to do is search the room for intel, and I'll take screenshots of what I see through your eyes."

"That's...creepy." She reluctantly stepped forward, dodging the sprawled-out bodies.

The drawers at the president's desk were locked, but she found a key in Jade's pocket and held up the papers Dave was interested in. Then she grabbed Jade's communicator and noticed it had a retina scanner to unlock the device. 

Tess lifted Jade's head by her hair and shuddered when she saw her eyes were already wide open. She was still unconscious, her face expressionless. Tess held up the communicator to Jade's face and dropped her head when the device was unlocked.

Her fingers swept across the screen, darting through every file on Jade's communicator. Much of what she saw was fascinating, terrifying, confusing, or some combination of the three. There were guides for communicating with the Species, maps of their ship's layout, and statistics on the number of humans they had control over.

"Keep going," Dave urged, excitement audible in his voice. "This is a goldmine."

That's when someone knocked at the door. Rosalie's voice came through faintly. "Is the party over?"

"What do I do—"

"Be silent," Dave said. "Lie down and play dead."

"Now they're going to know there's a traitor, and they'll suspect me," she whispered as she eased herself prone on the floor.

"Don't make a sound." His voice was low and commanding.

Rosalie or someone else was kicking at the door now. It was sturdy, designed to protect city leaders. 

Within minutes, the people lying around Tess began to move and groan as they slowly regained consciousness. Tess peaked through her eyelids and spotted the object that had released the black gas.

Jade would find it. Rosalie had seen her carrying it. She could hear her rapid pulse in her ears. She was caught. They would know it was her. 

She couldn't point this out to Dave, or they might hear her. She doubted he even cared if she was in danger. She was just a tool to him, a means to get information. 

Everyone slowly got up and groggily returned to partying. It was as if they remembered nothing, not even waking up on the floor. Tess stood, dazed. She walked over and picked up the device, then discreetly shoved it into her pocket. She needed to get rid of it. 

She opened the door and shoved past a confused Rosalie, heading back outside. There was a big garden with a pond next to the capitol building. She tossed the device into the center, where it landed with a small splash and sunk.

Tess knelt and took a few deep breaths, enjoying the quiet and cool night air. The pond looked like a black pool, its water completely still. Its banks were surrounded by little white flowers that made the air smell sweet. 

That's when she heard the unmistakable sonic boom of a fighter jet soaring overhead, faster than the speed of sound. 

Dave said with a nervous quiver in his voice, "That's not ours, I can assure you—"

The ground vibrated underfoot. There were rapid BOOMS like massive fireworks going off. Tess stood, awestruck, watching smoke bloom across her city. The plane circled back around, coming straight in her direction.

"Run," Dave whispered.

The quickest way away from the capitol building, a likely target for any bombing, was across the pond. She filled her lungs and dove in, tumbling through the dark waters. Tess kicked her feet and propelled herself in what she thought was the right direction. It was all blackness, so she couldn't really tell.

There was a deafening thunder, and a shockwave seemed to tear through the water and ripple through her body. Needing air, she paddled desperately toward her best guess of the surface.

She broke through, gasping and reeling. There were no stars, just black smoke and the burning, destroyed building that she'd been inside only minutes ago. It had been so grand and imposing, made of solid stone—now crumbled into ruins.

Tess moved to the shoreline opposite the smoldering wreckage, throwing herself onto the muddy bank. "Dave?" she said hesitantly, aware of how childlike her voice sounded.

It took a full minute of silence for him to respond. "You're okay?"

There was a real human moment here, of basic empathy for each other's wellbeing. "Yeah, I'm okay. You?"

"Very lucky to be deep underground."

Tess hauled herself to her feet, eyes scanning the skies. "Who do you think that was?"

"My best guess? Other, faraway cities had trade agreements and diplomatic relations with ours. After your kind took over, they must have investigated our lack of communication and realized what was happening. Like...like a cancer, they probably want to destroy us completely before the invasion can spread. Even if they take out some healthy cells—ordinary citizens, too. Human beings will do a lot for self-preservation. I can't say I blame them. Maybe it's a good plan, really. Our offenses aren't working. But I don't think—"

"You talk too much when you're scared," she interrupted. "What should I do? Do you think my friends—"

"Survived? I can see that building through your eyes. It looks pretty devastating."

She nodded solemnly. "What...what does that mean for me? Are we still doing this? There's no one left for me to spy on."

"I don't know. I guess it depends—"

More jets sped across the sky, followed by more bombs in the distance. Tess winced, her hands flying to cover her ears.

"I'd say get out of there. Leave the city. You're of no use to me dead."

"And Kyle?" 

Dave sighed. "I guess the writing's on the wall. Our government and military hardly exist now. There's no point anymore. I'll get them to let out the prisoners if I can."

"Thank you," she said heavily, with sincere gratitude.

Tess took off running, drenched and covered in mud. She had to weave to avoid blazing buildings, impassable rubble, and flight paths of the jets overhead. 

This isn't a war, she thought. This is genocide.

_________

Hello, I'm sorry I didn't update for a few months there. There are a few reasons: my school semester was demanding, I was and still am having health issues (scheduled for surgery in July), and I completed a story for the 2023 Open Novella Contest (after trying two other years and failing to finish). I was also a bit fatigued with this story after working solely on it for a long time. After a break, I'm feeling more refreshed with better ideas for it, I think.

The ONC story, called Fiona on Fire, is about leaving everything behind to become an actress, the pitfalls of fame, and finding meaning in life, with a touch of romance. It's just over 20k words.