Alec battled through the howling wind as he approached the starship hideout, his coat whipping around him. Outside, Elena stood fidgeting, her gaze darting nervously toward the darkening sky.
“Alec!” she called, barely cutting through the gale.
“Get inside, the weather’s turning worse,” Elena urged, her words trembling as thunder boomed, shaking the ground. She flinched. “That doesn’t sound like a regular storm,” she whispered, eyes widening with worry as Alec slammed the door shut behind him.
“Where are Brady and Maria?” Alec asked, scanning the room anxiously.
“They’re on their way,” Elena replied, focusing on the ominous sky outside.
Alec’s face hardened. “Elena, I saw something... something massive in the sky. It looked like an asteroid, but—whatever it is, we need to be ready.”
A sharp knock echoed through the hideout, interrupting him. Elena rushed to the door, letting in Brady and Maria, both spooked due to the changing sky.
“I couldn’t get in! Why the barricade?” Brady’s voice was taut with urgency.
“Keep it down,” Elena warned, glancing at Alec. “Something’s coming.”
The group gathered around Alec, who was glued to a monitor. On the screen, a dark, hulking shape tore through the atmosphere.
“It’s a spaceship,” Alec muttered, his voice low and strained. “And it’s not friendly.”
The ship grew larger as they watched, casting an eerie shadow over the station.
“Grab our weapons,” Alec barked. “If they break in, we shoot first—no questions.”
Elena quickly punched in the code and handed out the assault rifles. The sound of the storm outside was joined by something more sinister, a distant hum.
Captain Carter’s voice suddenly crackled through the comm. “Alec, do you read?”
“Carter? Where are you?” Alec asked, tension rising.
“At the Cadet station. They… shot us down. My crew—they’re gone.” Carter’s voice broke.
“Carter, what's happening? What are these beings?” Alec demanded as doom started to linger.
In their own hiding space, Carter’s team was busy testing a prototype ship. Above them, a massive shadow circled like a predator—a manta-like warship. A green beam shot down, obliterating the shuttle. The screen flickered to black.
“Earth’s been invaded,” Carter continued grimly. “We’re doing what we can, but Alec, if I don’t see you again—it’s been an honor.”
Alec’s throat tightened. “Likewise. Stay strong.”
Elena moved to the computer, her rifle close. “Is there any way to identify it?” Maria asked, hands trembling as she grabbed a scanner.
Elena worked quickly, running the spaceship’s design through the system. The computer beeped. Elena’s face paled.
“Alec, it’s a Gaian warship.”
Alec’s eyes widened. “The Gaians? Raiders?”
“Not just raiders,” Elena said, her voice hollow. “They conquer worlds.”
A sudden rumble shook the station. Outside, a green light pierced the clouds, cutting through New York’s skyline.
The warship had begun its assault. The beams tore through skyscrapers like paper, reducing landmarks to rubble. Military efforts were futile against the ship’s advanced defenses.
“We need to get out, now!” Alec shouted, panic rising. “If we stay, we’re next!”
They scrambled to prepare. Elena rifled through drawers, grabbing food capsules and critical research. “Brady, Maria—help me pack,” she ordered. Alec moved faster, knowing the gravity of their situation. For once, fear gnawed at him.
Maria hunched over the console, flying over the keyboard as she worked to override the station’s locks. Brady reinforced the door, stacking crates and debris as the pounding outside grew louder.
“They’re almost here,” Elena whispered.
Brady loaded his rifle, taking a position. “We’ll hold them off,” he said, glancing at Alec in a silent goodbye.
Alec and Elena exchanged a fleeting, painful look. “Be careful,” Alec said.
He knew the odds of them making it out were slim.
Maria gave a tight smile. “Just survive. We’ll handle this.”
The door buckled under the strain, and the first Gaian soldier burst through. Brady fired instantly, his shots ringing out in rapid succession. “We’ve got incoming! Hold the line!” he shouted.
Maria joined him, rifle blazing as they fended off the invaders. “Go!” she screamed at Alec and Elena. “Get to safety!”
Elena wept, her heart pounding. “We can’t just leave them!”
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“We have to!” Alec snapped, grabbing her hand. “They’re buying us time—don’t waste it!”
They rushed toward the emergency exit as the control room descended into chaos. Maria and Brady's bullets found targets amidst the alien horde.
The bullets went through the Gaian invader's body armor; their technology seemed outdated by the looks of things, and maybe the human race could win.
The bastards looked like humans, but their eyes were coated with evil as they tried to fire back.
Brady and Maria were still holding the line.
“Go!” Maria's voice pierced through the chaos, desperate and commanding.
Alec hesitated, then with a final glance, he and Elena disappeared into the darkened corridors, the sounds of battle crashing behind them like a fading storm.
Brady continued to fire, not giving them much of a chance to retaliate.
“There are too many of them!” Brady bellowed, his voice hardly audible over the din.
“Do it now!” Maria ordered.
Alec glanced back as they reached a safer distance. Brady pulled out his grenade launcher and aimed at the advancing horde, while Maria took the lead, buying him seconds to find the right position.
The grenade flew through the air toward the Gaians. Brady barely had time to react as their fire cut him down, but the grenade was already in play.
An earth-shaking explosion tore through the corridor, debris raining down in a catastrophic wave.
Alec stumbled, nearly losing his footing as the ground trembled beneath him. He grabbed Elena's arm, steadying her as the walls groaned in protest.
Elena's tears fell freely now, streaking her face as they ran toward the emergency exit.
Behind them, the sound of collapsing stone and metal rumbled—a final goodbye to Brady and Maria’s last stand.
With a heavy thud, the exit door sealed shut behind them, cutting off the chaos and sealing them in a suffocating silence.
The sounds of the fierce battle were muffled now, a distant echo as they raced down the stairwell.
Each step felt heavier than the last, the weight of their friends’ sacrifice pressing down on them with every inhale.
When they finally reached a safe distance, Alec and Elena collapsed against a wall, heaving with exhaustion and sorrow.
Elena slid to the floor, her body shaking as she sobbed uncontrollably.
“Maria and Brady… they saved us,” Alec said quietly as he sank down beside her. His own tears fell freely now.
"It was foolish... we should have been standing with them, shooting these sons of bitches," Elena said, dealing with the crippling guilt that they left them to die.
“They didn’t deserve this,” Elena said, breaking the silence again.
“Maria was always so hopeful. And Brady… he never gave up.” She shook her head, a fresh wave of pain crashing over her. “If we’d just done something different--”
“Elena.” Alec’s voice cut in gently but firmly. He turned her toward him, holding her gaze. “We did everything we could. They knew the risks, just like us. This wasn’t on us. It was the Gaians. They’re the ones responsible.”
Elena lunged toward him, and Alec responded by holding her tight, not letting her go limp.
Elena choked with emotion as she clung to him.
"Elena, I know it's hard, but... they are no longer in pain. We must keep going. We can't go out," Alec said, pushing her back slightly and wiping her face with his thumb. "Not without a fight," he added.
"I... for years, I tried so hard. I wanted humanity to thrive... but it's been for nothing. If I knew we were going to die before the famine struck us harder, then I would have focused more on other things... like more leisure time. Just live a little," Elena said.
"All we did was mission-related things..." Elena said. "If I could have that time back..."
"Hey, we were still together as a group. Being together was our leisure time, so our final moments were spent well."
"We were a tight-knit family... and soon we also will no longer be in pain when this is over," Alec said.
"Do you... believe we won't make it?" Elena asked.
"We won’t, but other humans will," Alec said. There was no point in lying—there was a slim chance that they would survive. The Gaians are too advanced.
Elena nodded. "And in the meantime, we’ll honor their sacrifice. We have to make sure it wasn’t in vain,” she whispered her words both a vow and a plea.
"Yes, but rest first. For now, we are safe here. And when they come, we’ll take a handful of these assholes with us," Alec said.
Elena exhaled. "We will. The Gaians have underestimated us, and I will give it my all," she said.
"We are strong together."
They sat there for a long moment, holding each other tightly as the reality of their loss set in.
The buzzing of the bunker’s lighting was the only sound that filled the room, a hollow backdrop to the grief that weighed heavily on Elena and Alec. The air was thick with the scent of smoke and the faint remnants of gunpowder, remnants of the battle they had barely survived. They had sought refuge in this small, makeshift sanctuary, but solace was fleeting.
A bittersweet feeling came over Elena... "I miss them already," Elena smiled guiltily.
“They were incredible. We owe them so much.” His words, usually so strong, wavered as he spoke. The loss of their friends, their comrades, weighed on him, an unbearable burden that he knew they had to carry together.
Elena responded by burying her face in his shoulder. She mourned her friends, soaking through the fabric of his blouse. He wrapped his arms around her, offering the only comfort he could, though his own pain mirrored hers. He gently stroked her hair, his touch soft, but his eyes were distant, filled with unshed tears as he gazed around the room.
The bunker was small, its walls lined with the essentials of war—a few scattered weapons, supplies hastily thrown together in their retreat. But it wasn’t the stark, utilitarian nature of the room that caught Alec’s attention. It was the absence of Maria’s bright smile, the silence left behind by Brady’s infectious laughter. Their absence hung in the air, a void that could never be filled.
“I keep thinking… is it in these creatures' nature to attack planets, or did we provoke them somehow?” Elena said.
"What do you mean, darling?" Alec asked.
"Everything happened so suddenly. Only after a few days, when we came back from Mars, a large warship came for us. If these beings followed us, then it's my fault..." Elena said.
Alec tightened his hold on her, searching for the right words. He knew none could ease the pain, none that could bring their friends back. But he had to try, for Elena’s sake as much as his own.
"Elena, that's enough. No matter what we did in space, it doesn't warrant the Gaians invading our planet like that. They are here because they are either after our starships or our soil. None of this is your fault," Alec scolded, but Elena knew behind his scolding there was love.
It made her final day bearable.
Elena nodded, though the motion was almost imperceptible.
The grief was a weight she carried with her, one that Alec could feel in the way she leaned against him. Slowly, she pulled away, her eyes red and swollen from crying.
She reached for the small, makeshift memorial they had set up earlier—a simple arrangement of candles and photos placed on a nearby table.
It was a modest tribute, yet it held so much meaning.
The flickering candles cast a warm, gentle glow over the memorial.
Alec stood beside her, his presence a steadying force as he squeezed her shoulder. He drew strength from her words, allowing the grief to harden them for the final battle.
Both cadets couldn’t afford to let the sorrow of loss paralyze them.
The room fell into a mournful silence, broken only by the soft crackle of the candles.
Wrapped in each other’s arms, Elena and Alec allowed themselves this moment of shared sorrow.
The pain was raw, but beneath it all, they would carry on—not just for survival, but in honor of the friends they had lost.
In that silence, they made a vow, though no words were spoken. The Gaians may have taken Maria and Brady, but their memory would not be so easily extinguished.
Together they turned away from the memorial, certain that they could pave the route of escape for the other cadets.