The fire burned, and the two girls sat next to each other, dried tracks of tears on their faces.

Shawna motioned to Averi’s prosthetic. “So how does it work?”

“To be completely honest with you, I’ve got no clue. Adlai is the one who usually helps me with that sort of stuff.”

“Ah. How did you two meet?”

“Oh, it’s a long story. I’ll tell you later.”

“Hm. Are you two, uh, together?”

“WHAT?” Averi gagged, the thought apparently sickening to her.

Shawna couldn’t help but laugh. “Sorry, you guys are just inseparable. I just assumed-”

“Dude, He’s like an actual grandpa, and he’s also my brother.”

“Blood or…?”

“Ah, no I guess adopted is the best word for it?”

“Is this a part of your wild origin story?”

“Oh yeah.” Averi sobered a bit, her smile disappearing.

“What’s wrong?”

“I just hope he’s fine.”

“Me too.”

They both turned away, content to sleep next to the now warmly crackling fire.

Shawna awoke the next day to the radio crackling. Scrambling over to it, she fiddled with the dial.

“Hello?”

“I found a radio!”

Averi ran over to Shawna. “Adlai? ADLAI!”

Adlai chuckled over the radio. “Hey Averi, I told you I wasn’t going to die. Are you guys doing good?”

Shawna and Averi looked at each other and laughed.

Adlai’s confusion crackled through the radio. “What the hell? Whatever, I found some water, but no food. Did you guys get food and water?”

Shawna responded. “Yeah, We still have a bit of water from the rainmaker, but we only have one MRE left.”

“Alright, I’ve got my half of the bottle, and I think I found a way up. Remember the hole in the ship?”

“Yeah?”

“There’s this weird tree growing through it, I’m going to see if I can climb it. I might need that pipe we used, so meet me there.”

“Alright, sounds good.”

“Bye.”

Static took over, and the two girls looked at each other. Shawna got off her knees, brushing the sand off, and Averi did the same. Their sleep hadn’t been too difficult, excluding the dryness of the desert air. Shawna couldn’t help but lick her lips in a futile attempt to moisten her chapped lips. Turning around for some reason, she saw a dust cloud rising in the horizon. Narrowing her eyes, Shawna tried to see what was causing that dust cloud.

“What do you think that is?”

“Probably not good, let’s get moving.”

An element of panic pervaded the makeshift camp, and the two girls didn’t speak as they packed up their meager belongings. The dust cloud grew larger, and a figure broke through. An armored beast emerged through the swirling sands, standing on two segmented legs. Shawna could barely make out the mouth, which seemed to meld seamlessly into its large, staring eyes. It stood stock still for a moment, and an antennae seemed to emerge from the cracks in its mandibles. The feathery strand swished through the air, and Shawna had remembered enough snippets from the biology professor to know what was happening.

“It can smell us.”

Averi’s eyes widened and she froze, as if her not moving would stop it from smelling them. The mandibles opened up, and they raked the air, covered in ragged ridges. A keening screech emerged, resonating through Shawna’s body. The alien began to sprint. Its legs stretched to nearly impossible proportions, and it never stopped screeching. Shawna felt a gasp rip through her throat, and she turned to run. Averi stood and stared, mesmerized by the piston-like movement of the alien’s legs, churning the ground to get to them.

“Averi! AVERI!”

Shawna turned and grabbed her, dragging her along. The ship loomed in the distance, and her lungs burned in the dry air. The other girl was like a deer in headlights, her eyes dull. The keening kept getting louder and louder, and both girls covered their ears, Averi now running. They reached the cavity, and Shawna jumped through the gap like an olympic hurdler. Averi took the jump, but was kicked to the ground by the creature, its keening wails even more excited. Its mandibles opening and closing, mucus dripping. Averi screamed, her eyes wide. Suddenly, the ground burst, and a massive alien swam through the air. Its eyes lit up with bloodlust, and it released a deep, reverberating groan. It lunged through the air, 40 feet covered in an instant, and the other beast was ripped in half, still screeching. The floating alien seemed to revel in the blood, shaking the now mauled corpse to and fro. Averi laid on the ground, completely frozen in fear, hands shaking. The alien only now seemed to notice the humans, gliding around them. Its eyes met theirs, and what could only be described as excitement fueled its call. It rippled through the air, back into the caves, and another reverberating cry filled the air.

The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Shawna jumped back out, hoping to grab Averi and drag her to safety. Running out to her, another hole opened up, and the ground crumbled beneath the both of them, falling into the dark abyss.

The fall was rough, with jagged outcrops of rock ripping up Shawna’s arms, but it was mercifully short, dropping them onto a surprisingly soft surface of spongy moss. Shawna sat up slowly, clutching her arms, the pain rising to a crescendo. She groaned softly as she gently touched the now bleeding scratches. A light shone in the distance. Wounds forgotten, she got up, running towards Averi. Her heart pounding through her chest, she shook Averi, trying to get her out of her daze.

“Averi! Averi come on!”

The light came closer, and she scrambled back, hitting a cool moist wall. She was going to die here. She didn’t want to die like this, not yet. She turned her head up to the sky, praying that it would be quick and easy.

“Shawna?”

The light reflected off a slightly tan face, topped with brown curly hair, now covered with dust. Shawna ran towards him, hugging Adlai tight, before dropping him like a rock and stepping back.

“I’m sorry, is your chest fine?”

“Yeah, it’s okay. Where’s Averi?”

Averi laid on the ground, a wilted daisy on hot asphalt. Her arms and legs were covered in scratches and bruises, and her eyes fluttered. Adlai’s face paled when he saw her.

“Oh shit, oh no.”

He kneeled down next to her, his hands shaking a little bit. Her eyes opened a bit wider.

“Adlai?”

“Yeah, yeah I’m right here.”

“I think I’m okay.”

“That’s good, that’s great. Just stay still for me, okay? I’m gonna bring you some water. Can you feel your hands and feet?”

Averi wiggled her fingers in response, but her eyes widened in fear when she looked down. Her leg was twisted under her, to an unnatural angle.

“I-i can’t feel it. I don’t think I can move it.”

Adlai whipped back around. “What do you mean?”

Shawna silently gestured to the other girl's leg, now swollen and an angry red.

“Oh fuck.”

He ran one hand through his hair, the other carrying the ripped water bottle, full of clean water. She gently grabbed it out of his hand, and held it up to Averi’s mouth, who gratefully drank deeply from it. Shawna began to carefully probe around Averi’s leg, hoping she wouldn’t see any ripped skin or open wounds. She delicately pressed her fingers around Averi’s ankle, looking at the other girl's face for a reaction. Averi winced a bit, but didn’t react as much as Shawna would’ve liked. Adlai sat down next to her.

“Do you need me to help with anything?”

“Find me something I can use as a splint, and something to tie it to her leg.”

Adlai left, carrying the lantern. Averi gingerly turned her head towards her.

“I’m gonna be fine right?”

“Yeah. You should be.”

Averi went quiet, and Shawna could guess what she was thinking. She regretted making fun of the girl again, the cruel irony of the situation hitting her hard. Averi really was the weak link now. She cursed again under her breath. Adlai returned, running. In his hands were some sort of stick, some strange fibers, and the radio?

“Listen!”

“krshsh…Colonists of the Hera ship, this is the research hub, do you copy? Over.”

“We’re here! There’s three of us!”

“krshhsh..Ship…any more of you? Over.”

“Not that we know of, Over.”

“Have you made any contact with…Over.”

“With what? Over.”

“Didn’t copy, Over.”

“What were we supposed to have contacted?”

“....Predator species…Sensitive to sounds…Mimics noises…”

“You’re breaking up!”

“Coordinates have been transferred to your radio, use the GPS function. Good luck colonists. Over”

“What predator species!”

The radio crackled out.