Nightfall

Ike disconnected me from the machines and gently nudged me to my feet. I was surprisingly sturdy but I didn’t chance it, grabbing the first thing to stabilize me…it was soft and squishy. I glanced over at Andromeda who was blushing and I immediately removed my hand from her chest. What luck! First time I touch a woman like that and I’m gonna get slapped for it. Not my ideal daydream.

Andromeda instead gripped my arm and pulled me closer. I staggered.

“Andy, enough. He’ll be fine,” said Tarric as he helped me straighten out. I noticed the strange look he threw at Andromeda who shook her head blushing. I wish I had that comadreship with my crew members, but nope here I was about to hunt them…in a shift. I blushed as I felt a breeze where no person should.

“C-clothes. I-I n-need c-clothes,” I stuttered and Ike sniggered.

Andromeda turned a rosy cheek to me. “We have that covered. Ike? Tarric? Show him the dressing room.”

Tarric nodded and steered me by the shoulder to a locker room not too far away. It doubled as a shower area. I didn’t take long, and soon I was dressed in brown pants and a white tee. A brown bomber jacket was held up for me.

“It’s what pilots wear around here,” said Tarric.

I slipped it on and finger-combed my dark hair. It lay shaggily around my head. “Do any of you have the time?”

Ike brushed his lab coat sleeve back to show a regular Earth watch of the era tied to his wrist. It seemed an antique.

“A quarter to two in the afternoon and clear dark skies as always,” he muttered slipping the lab coat back in its place. Tarric stared at where the watch had once been nonplussed.

“Was that a watch? As in an actual dial watch?” he asked dumbfounded.

Ike blushed, nodding. “Yeah. An heirloom. Anyway, Junior is dressed. Get Andromeda. He has to go on his hunt already.”

Tarric nodded and we all walked back into the room. Andromeda sat with her back to us talking to the child who was hospitalized next to me. Her radiant smile was on full blast, as she watched the child animatedly bounce on her knee, flaying his little arms to tell her a story. I watched and smiled when she gasped and slowly tickled him. She was good with kids. Something I wasn’t.

A smell like honey vinegar only sourer invaded my senses and I knew it was the scent of Lana. It had the undertone of oil.

“One of my crew mates is close,” I said pinching my nose from the horrid smell.

Andromeda glanced up and met my eyes nodding. She sat Juan down and walked over to me.

“Strong?” she asked pulling a small coin from her pocket and flipping it in the air.

“Very,” I sighed and started to walk toward the smell. She and Tarric followed. I walked past the none descript entrance. It looked like a crack in the surface of this place, which was littered with them. The walls had various cracks and wedges. It was also far colder down here and I thanked Tarric and Ike for the bomber jacket. I followed the smell up a corridor that was alight with torches. It was pretty dark otherwise. The next corridor was lit by luminescent moss. We were in housing areas for the people of Tierra Onda.

Andromeda pointed out where she and Ike lived with their mother. I followed the nasty smell all the way to a crack in the wall where what I saw made me want to hurl. Lana was being sucked dry by Jude. She was near unconsciousness. I didn’t want to deal with a feeding Jude, and I kinda wished she would die from her abusive boyfriend, but it wouldn’t have been in me to let Lana suffer for being a big bitch.

She groaned and held Jude against her neck even closer. Ok, what the Fuck? I’d want him off yesterday. Then again she is a part machine so maybe this doesn’t hurt her like regular humans? Whatever. Their stink was making me nauseous. Lana’s blood stank and I wondered how Jude could drink that.

Andromeda was antsy as I pulled back from the crack disgruntled. “W-we’ll l-let t-them f-finish,” I said. “B-besides t-that’s two of them w-we n-need a third m-member.”

“What does he smell like?” asked Andromeda as she glanced at the crack that I came from. A very pale Lana was emerging with a very satisfied Jude who was licking his lips. Ugh, shoot me. This was nauseating to see how screwed up my crew was. A few days ago I was stopping Lana from killing him and now I was watching them be lovey-dovey for each other? What happened to my cousin?

“W-What are you doing here,” croaked Lana as she glared at Andromeda and Tarric before glaring at me.

I glared right back. “I s-see s-someone i-isn’t s-surprised to see m-me a-alive. Tell Ike he p-probably h-has a m-mole in h-his ICU w-when you g-get back, T-Tarric.”

Tarric saluted and smirked. “He’ll have fun with this one. The last one he sucked the life of too soon.”

I smirked as she gasped slightly. “W-Where is B-Bartholomew?”

Jude interjected. “GuardingJohanson le pew. He talks far more than you, Matt.”

“Far too much,” muttered Lana shaking her head.

“He stinks as a pilot,” Andromeda said.

Jude laughed at that.”I knew it. I knew he was all talk and no skill.”

Lana sighed and turned to me. “You are our Captain! Help us, not them!”

I laughed and managed to choke out some decent words. “You also left me to die twice. I stopped being your Captain and turned into your scapegoat. Not this time.”

Lana screamed and charged me but I could see her every move. I dodged her punch, stepped to the right, and grabbed her in a headlock, squeezing. She struggled for air punching my arms.

“I am done being your scapegoat, Lana. Done,” I said squeezing hard enough to lock her airways, and slowly she was dragged under to unconsciousness.

I glanced at Jude who had his hands up in the air.

“I’ll show you where Bart and le pew er Johanson are, just don’t hurt me, senorita,” he said smiling a fanged smile at Andromeda who called him a cabron and put some cuffs on him.

Tarric scooped up Lana like a sack of potatoes and handed her to Jude. “Your sweetheart.”

Jude snorted but carried Lana and led us to another nearby crack where Bart was in the middle of backhanding a twenty-some guy with gold curls and blue eyes.

Jude winced. “Bart again?”

“He was getting handsy with me! Lana doesn’t mind it but I do! What took so long did you…” he turned around to face Jude and us.

“We kinda got caught,” shrugged Jude.

“Y’know B-Bart, f-from L-Lana I-I u-understood. S-She’s a grade a bitch, b-but f-from y-you? W-who i-is f-family? You could have ignored her and gotten me some help sooner,” I stuttered clenching my fists.

“You were dead or good as!” cried Bart as he realized I was standing before him. “How are you alive?”

“A damn good medic,” muttered Tarric blushing and Andromeda smirked elbowing him in the side.

I crossed my arms and rolled my eyes. “I-I w-was d-dead. I have a-arisen to h-haunt y-you and L-Lana. As you s-see I got my r-revenge on L-Lana.”

Bart didn’t register for a minute before yelling. “Son of a bitch!” and rushing me. He was quicker but again I was able to anticipate his moves before he made them. I blocked his punch with an open-fisted jab to his chin. Stepping inward, I kicked his stomach sending him to the ground with a crash as he collided with a weak stalagmite.

He tried to catch his breath and glared at me rising from the debris around him. “You can’t win in a fight cuz! I’m way beyond you!” He began emitting perfect energy. A blend of the energies within a perfect human that a normal being can’t make. I stood there and got into my fighting style sliding one foot forwards and the other slightly back enough to still keep balance. I raised my arms to my face and watched patiently as my cousin charged like a madman.