The Phoenix Colony

Reva breathed shallowly staring into the wrong end of the same gun she had whacked Allen with yesterday. It might not have been pointed at her but it sure looked...unfriendly.

"Be-en?" She quavered uncertainly.

Just as Fox stabbed him in the foot.

 

Allen could see that she wouldn't listen to anything but what she was asking.
"He's alive, in the prisão da porta do ferro in Sao Paulo."

 

"Really, not that it matters any more. Pasha do what ever you want with him." says Fox. She begins to slowly walk back to the cave, while thinking to herself "Lonan, what should I do?"

 

"Bitch!" screamed Ben, dropping to his knees and swinging his gun back to Fox. "Your gonna pay for that!" He got up to his feet shakily, wincing with each step, before swinging the shotgun like a club, the front of the barrel nailing the 'freedom fighter' in the head, blood showing clearly on the black steel barrel. "You stay the **** down!" He quickly checked her body for the knife, finding it in one hand and a handgun at her waist. Sticking the firearm under his own belt, Ben took the knife and used it to cut Allen form the tree.

Helping him get his bearings, Ben put a shoulder around him and said, "There, thats good, we're good."

 

Reva drew a breath, time to try again. She ignored everything in front of her momentarily.

"Pasha," she asked sincerely an calmly as she could, "Since when do you do what Fox orders you to? You're not her pet."

 

Raylene opens her eyes, the ringing is still present, her head is throbbing, and she's starving. Pasha has Reva by the shoulders, Fox is on the ground with blood seeping from a wound on her head, and Ben and Allen are leaving.

"What's going on? Who's Jacob? Did he tell you?" She tries to sit up and her head feels like it's about to explode. "Reva!" Her eyes are wild with fear. "I don't understand....."

 

Pasha quietly let Reva down, not even looking at her as he marched next to Ben. His hand instantly went on the shotgun with a strong grip.

“Give Fox’s gun and knife to Reva. Why says you should have the only proper weapons?” Pasha growled, “She can give them back when Fox is in a better state.”

 

While Pasha stalked over to Ben Allen glanced down at Xare. I should kill her now. For some reason he couldn't. She wasn't accountable for her actions. If she didn't have enough of her mind left to want to know more when he offered her everything she'd ever fought for, she couldn't make any decisions with a clear mind. Then his gaze moved onto Reva. She didn't want to kill me.

 

"Fine," said Ben, reaching to his side and dropping it to the ground. Moments later the knife was right beside. "I didn't want any trouble, but Fox, somethings wrong with her, you be careful with her, she might have been sane when we landed, but now I'm not sure." He pulled at the barrel harshly, breaking Pasha's grip on it and began to walk away, Allen at his side, the sun just beginning to rise.

As soon as he thought they were a fair distance away, out of sight at least, Ben let let Allen go, his weak, sore legs dropping his weight immediately. "Now you and I have some business," began the lawyer, pointing one finger at the man at his feet. "We're alone, I saved your ****ing life, and now you tell me who you are."

 

Reva was alone in the presence of giants.

Pasha's big hands lifted from her shoulders and he rumbled away, stomping into the underbrush after demanding Fox's weapons back.

Ben and Allen turned and walked away as though they had a business meeting somewhere. Fox lay at her feet, somehow splendid like a Valkyrie unceremoniously brought to earth, her red hair spilling around her head like blood. Reva smelled blood.

"Help me, Raylene," Reva felt hollow as she picked up Fox's weapons, so much violence for so little, "We have to get her home."

She didn't realize she'd called the cave 'home' until she was halfway down the hill with Raylene as they struggled to carry Fox.

 

Well, it was time to answer, figure out what he could and couldn't tell him.
"I'm Allen. I used to work for the department of intelligence. It seemed that 'Fox' over there didn't like that." Allen looked down at his feet. "Thank you, you didn't have to do that."

 

"Well whoopty'goddamn'dadoo! Don't you **** with me, she hated you, why? Why were you on that ship? Why haven't I killed you yet? I'm tired of tom****ery, you tell me everything, EVERYTHING, right now or I'm shooting you." Ben stepped forward a bit, his foot screaming with pain, but his mind a whirl with anger. Pressing the barrel of the shotgun close to Allen's face, he waited for an answer.

 

Raylene struggled to stand. Her head had never hurt like this before.

"Help me, Raylene, we have to get her home." Reva said as she picked up the weapons.

"Reva, aren't you feeling...weird? Like when the ceaders were attacking us and you ran off. Didn't it feel strange, or could you always run like that? Something is happening to us." She asked as they struggled up the hill with Fox.

 

Allen sighed.

"I really don't know what she had against me, more than that, but somehow she knew me even though I've never met her before. As for why I was on the ship...I killed the director of intelligence."

 

Anger. It seemed to fill his mind as he just walked. He could barely hear the mumbles of Yuri, the begging from him was overtaken by the feeling.

It was winter again, he was in the Russian countryside. He was on the run after killing a small farm family. He didn’t even have time to take their valuables this time, the police had come so quickly. He didn’t know who had tipped them off, but he would find out.

He wasn’t cold, his coat was thick and would last him a few hours. He knew he’d need to get shelter soon, or at least a fire going. Russian nights, specifically during the winter were rough. He stopped suddenly, he could hear the voices and footsteps. He quickly ran behind a tree, his knife was held tightly in his gloved hand.

It was the voice of a man and a woman, they seemed to be lovers on a night walk under the stars. He grinned and waited until he could hear them just feet from him.

He jumped out, looking at one of the rabbits. It fled quickly, as he sighed. He quickly sat against one of the trees.

“You’re on the planet Pasha.” He heard Yuri say, “Stay in reality.”

“F**k reality.” He growled. He took the knife from his hand, and began to carve his arm lightly. The feeling of the blood felt good, calming the agitated feeling.

“You should go back. You should help them, you need Viva.”

Pasha growled, and lifted himself up. His mind came back to Reva, and a smile filled his face.

“Maybe… you can give her the weapon you made her.”

“Maybe.” He mumbled as he walked back towards camp.

 

"Reva, aren't you feeling...weird? Like when the ceaders were attacking us and you ran off. Didn't it feel strange, or could you always run like that? Something is happening to us."

"Feel weird? Yeah, I feel weird," Reva said, her breath a little short, "I was sick this morning probably from some bad antelope last night."

What about the running? Reva paused. She hadn't really noticed before.

"I hadn't thought about the running," she said, "when I ran I didn't run that much faster than ever before but..."

What was weird about it? There was something.

"I didn't fall." Reva realized how odd that was, "Normally I'm a little klutzy, I should have fallen so many times but I didn't."

She shook the thought off.

"Just dumb luck, I guess. You know Britney is going to be REALLY upset when she sees Fox hurt."

 

Hunger. That was all she knew. A burning pain in her belly.

A huge horned ape lumbered past the trees. It smelt something in the air. A mother’s milk. Deep in its brain this smell meant two things – weak young and food. The creature stepped up its pace. Huge muscles flexed ready for the fight to come. The smell grew stronger as the ape broke into a sprint fueled by desire.

She cleaned her mewing cubs. Their mouths yawned open as they slithered closer looking for milk. She hissed as they each in turn sucked more life from her. She had to eat soon. The soft animals were making more noise. Large paws wrapped around the cubs as her eyes grew heavy again.

A branch snapped.

Her head sprang up as she batted her cubs behind her. Their mews grew loud and angry looking for more food.

The horned ape stopped in front of the lair cautiously poking its head in. Large nostril’s flared and filled with the smell of spilt milk. The newborn’s smelt it too and began to shriek.

She stayed still and waited. The ape couldn’t see her but smelt her milk. Her babies could be seen. She knew that for a while yet, their flesh wouldn’t change color. Until then she had to protect them. So she dropped to the ground and pulled her paws close to her body.

The ape roared stretching it’s back and pointing its horns forward.

She was silent. Slowly she began to shift her weight against the rocks below releasing a few drops of milk.

The cubs cried.

The ape roared and ran forward hunger overcoming instinct that warned of a trap. Heavy fists pounded the lair once, twice – before a fist disappeared into wet place and daggers grated against bone. With a tug, she tore the ape’s arm and swallowed. She sprang from the ground. Sharp claws buried themselves into the ape as she let gravity pull it down. The cubs mewed while she ate. Her stomach no longer burned, but it was not full. In the distance she heard a strange noise. New animals. She had seen one before. No shell, no spikes, just meat. She would have to eat many to be full. Fortunately, there were plenty.

 

"Reva, I really can hear things. I heard him say 'I won't tell them about Jacob', when you were talking to him at the tree. When everyone is in the cave though, all I can hear is jumble of voices. Nothing is clear. It's scaring me. I think I'm going to have to leave the shelter and find one on my own. Do you know what will happen if the psychos know I can hear what's in their heads?"

They reach the cave and bring Fox inside and set her down next to Britney. Raylene fetches her first aid kit and sits at Fox's head. "I don't know where to start." She looks at the gash and decides it's best to clean it first.

 

Britney awakes to the sight of Fox's unconscious body. She sees the blood on her head. She quickly sat up and says "What the hell happened to Fox?!"

 

Raylene takes a deep breath. "I don't really know. All I know is that Ben and Allen are gone. I kinda passed out."

 

Britney stares at the gash on Fox's head. "Do....do you need any help treating her?" says Britney while thinking, "Please be ok Fox."

 

"I need some water to clean it up. I just wish I had something more to clean it with."

 

"We can use the spring water. Is there anything that we can use to hold the water?" asks Britney.

 

"Um, Chad, Joey might just be a girl. It's about that time in the year, if you get the drift. Anyway, ten minutes and there'll be eggs." Chrys said, bustling about. "While I'm doing this, you two should look for four sticks that are like the ones I used yesterday. And grab as much grass as you can. Chad, sticks, Derek, grass. That should work."

 

"You think so?" Smith asked looking down at Joey. Joey chirped happily and went back to eating. "maybe." He said as he got up and walked to the wood line. Four sticks where easy to find and brought them back setting them in a pile. "I sure hope those eggs taste as good as they smell." He commented and then looked back down at Joey. "Maybe i should be calling you Jamie?" He asked him/her. Joey chirped back weirdly. "Ok name stays the same."