Michael's hands slammed hard across the steering wheel as he wrestled on what to do next. Be brave and go help Divona, or listen to her advice and stay in the pickup. He thought about driving off to save his own ass, but that was too cowardly even for him. His mind told him to stay away but his heart pulled him to her. He thought about the way she smiled at him before she left and in that moment he knew what he had to do.

Being out on the country road in the dead of night was difficult as there was no visibility, no streetlights, and Michael soon began to realise that even if he wanted to help this it was going to be a real problem. He didn't have a flashlight, and besides the headlights of his pickup there was almost nothing to shine away the darkness. Thick clouds covered the full moon above and the air felt heavy with moisture. The sound of thunder engulfed the clouds above.

He drew his pistol and slammed open the car door and then ran to where he guessed Divona was. He went up a steep hill, pushing away for mounds of dried plants and shrubs that slammed into his face that he couldn't see. He reached the crest and in that moment a flash of lightning lit up the land, revealing Divona in the valley below. The image was gone almost as quick as it came, and it dawned on him he may be in over his head. The light from the lightning wasn't going to be enough.

I can't see a thing…

I could shoot her by accident if i'm not careful.

What am I gonna do?

How can I help Divona?

Thinking about it for a little while Michael decided to run back to his pickup, dropping his keys twice as he scrambled to open the door. He wished the car had automatic unlocking but he was always a cheapskate and decided he would have no use for it. How he regretted that decision now. When he finally got in, he pressed on the accelerator and attempted to drive the old pickup up the steep hill. The engine revved and whined, struggling intensely but luckily it had just enough power to make it up the top even as the wheels slipped on the uneven surface.

He turned on the high beam, and the darkness in the valley bellow vanished in an instant, showing Divona's battle with the drone with greater clarity than before. He saw the drone properly for the first time, and it wasn't what he expected. Its skin was silver and metallic, and yet it moved and behaved like an organic. The long elongated body was in the shape of an insect, most notably a praying mantis, complete with two front scythe like claws it used to strike with deadly precision.

The drone lashed out at a much smaller Divona but never quite managed to hit her. She was much too quick on her feet, like a boxer who moved quickly from side to side, avoiding attacks with ease. She was so fast that it was like her reaction time was almost immediate.  She was skilled in her movements, graceful even, and strong when her fists, knees and elbows connected with the drone, hitting it with a force much greater than her mass would indicate. The strikes sent it flying backwards, hitting a tree so hard it nearly broke in two. The impact of her strikes could be felt in the ground, so powerful it was like they had tonnes of forces behind them.

For Michael, this whole thing felt insane. It was strange seeing a girl with her stature moving like the lead in a martial arts Hollywood action movie. Divona at first glance appeared to be an ordinary young woman, but this fight proved anything but that. She was superhuman in every sense of the word, from her blinding agility to her crushing strikes that would make a bulldozer seem like a toy. The mantis drone simply could not keep up with her, and the longer the fight dragged on, the slower it seemed to become. That was likely Divona's plan after all.

Michael decided to take a chance, so he rammed the accelerator and drove the pickup down the slope, hoping to get closer and help Divona out any way he can. He poked his gun out the side window, holding it in front of himself and waiting for a chance to use it. The ground was uneven, and it made keeping his arm steady difficult. To make it worst the headlights focused only on what was directly in front of the pickup which was a problem because both Divona and the drone never stayed in one place.

Changing tactics, Michael left the lights on and exited the vehicle to get as close as he could by foot. He waited for the perfect shot, but it never came. The two fighters seemed to pay no attention to his presence anyway, and even when he screamed at Divona to get out of the way she continued on fighting as of he wasn't there. Sweat ran down his petrified face as he held his breath whilst keeping his finger firmly on the trigger, ready to fire.

Divona hit the drone dead centre on its underbelly with her fist, and almost immediately it morphed into a small ball the size of a basket ball that rolled against the ground until it stopped near the pickup where Michael had his gun cocked right at it. He had no idea how a giant robotic machine even managed to turn into a small object anyway, but that didn't make him feel any less safe. The drone seemed to be disabled as it lay motionless against the ground, and that's all that really mattered at the moment. Michael took no chances, so he moved a little closer and fired a single bullet directly at it. He missed. He fired again and this time his aim was true but the bullet did not seem to do any damage as it ricochetted off with a loud clank and sparks.

"It's bulletproof..." Michael said.

Divona appeared calm. She flicked her messy hair back in place as she casually walked over to the drone.

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"Michael, please throw me that weapon."

Michael did as she asked. He tossed her the gun and she grabbed it seamlessly with one hand. She approached the drone, leant down and aimed the gun as close to it as possible and fired off the rest of the clip. The bullets didn't bounce off and Michael figured she had aimed for some kind of weak spot. The smokey residue exiting the back of the pistol, indicating the short fight was over.

Divona then placed her hands around the round enemy, closing her eyes as if she was concentrating on something, and almost immediately the drone disintegrated into dust that fell through her fingers like sand on a beach. The grains then were reduced further into nothingness as they were scattered off into the wind.

Afterwards, Divona seemed to take a moment to reflect. Michael wasn't sure what was going on through her mind, but it seemed like she was busy doing some futurey stuff he did not or could not understand. When she was finished, she headed back to the pickup, opened the passenger's side door and sat on her seat. She waited patiently for him to join her, and he did. She handed the gun back over to him.

He grabbed it and stuffed it under his pants. He then looked at her in worry. "Are you alright?

"I am fine." Divona said in her usual calm voice. "My energy levels are not as low as I projected them to be after this fight."

"So...the black hole's fine? it's not gonna explode or anything?"

"No Michael, it is stable for now."

"Well that's good. Perfect. The Drone's gone and the world still here. Perfect." Michael said.

"Luckily for us, the drone appeared to be suffering the same affliction as I. It was running at minimum capacity due to its critically low energy levels. Sometimes time travel, especially to the past can have some very strange side effects when it comes to energy. In my case, my overabundant energy reserves dissipated into the time stream. Anything that came through the same time portal likely suffered from the same effects. That is why the drone was so much weaker than it otherwise would have been."

"Anything that came through...Ya mean, there's more of them?" Michael said, horrified.

"There is a ninety five percent probability this drone was the only one. Normally, the portal itself is very unstable and allows only a specific set of matter with a certain frequency range to travel across it. This drone was likely designed to travel with me. A most curious predicament."

"I don't fully understand what's going on. Feel like explaining all this to me? or are we just gonna drive off and pretend like nothing ever happened?" Michael said.

Divona knew what he said but she smiled as if it was not so. She was equally mysterious as she was beautiful. Why was it that when she smiled at him, all his worries somehow vanished into the ether?

"We should get out of here, I will explain everything to you later." Divona said.

"Yes, ma am. Don't need to tell me twice."

They drove back on the main road, leaving no sign of what had just transpired moments earlier. Divona was as calm as her usual self, her gaze focused on the road ahead. His heart had stopped racing but he still felt the adrenaline coursing through his veins. Divona, in contrast was as cool and casual as ever. The clothes he got her were ripped and full of dirt but the way she acted was nothing like it. Divona gave the vibe of an ordinary human, but in a strange way also felt very distant to it. Very alien-like. There was a sadness that emitted from her whether intentional or not, almost like she was completely mechanical on the inside, and it was only her eyes that showed glimpses of her soul- if there were even such things.

"You can really take care of yourself," Divona said, smiling at him as she made eye contact. "I did not expect you to be so heroic. I am impressed."

Michael smiled back goofily. "Second amendment. Useful to defend from government tyranny, and also from alien drones, apparently."

Divona laughed a tired laugh. It somehow sounded both natural and unnatural at the same time. He wasn't sure what to think about her, even now. She had the best poker face he'd ever seen, but something made him trust her, and he wondered whether if that was because she was a woman or if it was because he was simply naïve.

"What happened to the drone?"

"I sent a virus to its nanites, activating their self destruct sequence. There is a zero percent probability it will rebuild itself."

"Nanites?

"Tiny replicating machines. They make up all things in my time, including me. I explained it to you before, though not in great detail." Divona said.

"Right, right, nanotechnology...cool. I've got a buddy who specialises in that field, he'd kill to meet you. That's for sure...not like literally but you know what I mean."

When they arrived back, Michael parked the pickup truck in the most crooked way ever, so unlike him. He prided himself on his good driving but at the moment he did not care. All he wanted to do was go home and stay there in safety, leaving all this craziness behind him.

On the way to the front entrance, Divona looked at him with an innocent expression.

"Michael, I am in need of more energy."

It almost him laugh, in a good way. Her frankness and honestly was as cute as ever, and for a moment she reminded him of his first ever girlfriend. Being with her made him feel like he was back in high school all over again, albeit somewhat different. In his gut he knew that as long as he associated with her, there was more trouble to come, but he didn't mind. She was worth it. That much he knew for sure.

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