The Purge
Chapter 19: Halley

Halley

“The strong feed upon the weak. It’s such an obligingly simple rule. Except in this world, my friends tried to be strong.”

Armin; Attack on Titan

We call it the Trance. It’s the drift between the waking and the sleeping mind into the Inception. Traveling in the Trance felt like being in a tunnel, floating into space and entering another dimension. It was a different kind of teleportation. Only that, along the way, some roads haunts you with memories.

I don’t know any story about my comrades. I believe their life stories belong to them. It’s not my prerogative to intervene. Through the Trance though, we get to take a glimpse of each other’s lives. Our stories suddenly open towards each other like an opened book. We don’t have a choice but to pass through them. Bri’s aloofness, Athren’s selfishness, Sigourney’s hidden sadness, and Conleth’s fire were stories tucked away to make way for a better soldier. There were just enough pages for me to realize that this is our planet, not theirs. I may not have experienced the wrath of the aliens as much as they did, but this planet doesn’t belong to them.

When my mind woke up in the Inception, I realized I could feel the danger lurking. It was a different kind of sensation. One between puking and a dire headache. The feeling had reminded me of the time back in camp. Their voices filled my ears with dread.

Kill. Kill. Kill.

They repeated in chorus. Their voices sounded like the whispers of the dead. Rough and haunting. They have one goal implanted in their system. Kill us.

I squeezed my eyes shut and I hear Bri telling me to be brave. I suddenly hear my dad telling me to focus. I hear Conleth telling me he got my back.

There are people who needed me. And so I opened my eyes.

This is a cruel world, Halley. You can’t be a soldier if you keep on cowering.

Bri’s words filled my ears again. I heard them coming. They’re near. I felt them like fire awakening my veins. My body was trembling from the force.

“Conleth, enemy approaching at nine o’clock!”

Fire and ashes were everywhere.

The others materialized their weapons like grasping a dream. I tried to picture a weapon in my hand. I pictured it sharp and deadly and it materialized right in front of my eyes on my hand. It looked happy to be there only I wasn’t so sure how to use it. My mind had given me a pole. A pole arm weapon. I recognized it immediately as the Japanese’ Naginata. A weapon of rich history. It felt heavy in my hands as I surveyed it. Its curved blade at the end of the pole glistened like a meteor winking at me.

The Predator dove in front of Bri, setting its jaws wide open for a delicious prey. The impact had dropped her off her feet and the beast prowled at her with delight. It was so focus on her that it didn’t see the flying glaive that was heading towards its scales.

The glaive sliced deep into the Predator’s scales and thick purple-green blood oozed out of its body. Conleth held his hand out and caught the flying glaive with ease as it made its way back to him contentedly.

“Hey, pig!” he yelled at the Predator. “Pick someone your own size.”

The Predator has its attention set on Con and it bared its fangs at him and shrieked. I suppressed the urge to cover my ears. Its wound closed in a matter of seconds. It crouched and it bended itself into a huge metal ball. Spikes flew out of its body as it rolled towards Con.

He reached out behind his back and another glaive materialized in his grasped. They glowed in red and then they turned white as he engulfed them in blinding hot flames. He bent his knees in a fighting stance.

Just as the Predator reached his ground he strikes at its scales but it mended immediately as easily as swallowing meat. Our Agoge training had taught us that in order to kill a Predator you will have to strike its heart. It’s the only place its armor didn’t cover. Yet, the thing is, the scales that protect it made it very hard to terminate it. It’s moving in eight legs, it kept crawling like the king of the galactic. Smart alien.

It made a full round at Con before it returned back into its legs. It spit acid at him but Bri was able to pull a force field right in front of Con. Distracted, Con looked back at her and the force field disappeared into thin air, making way for the Predator’s claws digging deep into Con’s chest. I felt the whole world ran into a blur. Con’s breath filled my ears like the last gush of wind in an open space. His eyes never left Bri’s as he sank into the ground in his knees. The Predator victoriously pulled out its claws off of my comrade’s chest. It moved back just to make another striking blow. My instincts cut in and I rushed and pulled him out of harm’s way.

My first thought was to look back at Bri. But she was already back in action. She slipped down the Predator’s body before it clawed Con again. She found its weak spot and she pulled the trigger of her gun. The Predator tilted its body backward, Bri slipped out of its carcass before it fell on the ground in a loud thump.

“Halley,” she called for me but her eyes were on Con’s unmoving body. I could tell, even with her helmet on, she was worried.

Con’s helmet retracted into his suit in time I reached out into his neck and looked for his pulse. I was relieved when I felt a slow, steady beat on my forefinger. I raised my head to find Bri standing close. Her helmet was also gone in her suit. She was breathing heavily that I feared she might collapse at any moment. I distracted her by saying: “There’s two more.”

Bri masked herself back to our commander. “Which direction?”

“It’s—” I gasped when a Predator glitched right in front of me.

Bri raised her hand and a force drove it out of our way. It crawled back in its legs and it snarled at Bri. She raised her gun at it and she started firing. Her hands shook as she does. She had to use both of her hands to steady her gun. But the damage was nothing compared to a quick healing Predator.

I laid Con gently on the ground hoping he wouldn’t stop breathing. I felt the earth shake as the feeling of nausea in me intensified. There are more of them coming. We have to close the Gates.

The Predator came charging at Bri as she kept on firing. I tapped the ground with my palm. The surge of energy came rushing into my veins like a force of wind. Whatever power that is trapped inside of me, it wanted to get free. I knelt on the ground as I wielded the energy in my hands. I balled my hand into a fist and I struck the ground with the force I never thought I have. Unimaginable metal went out of my hand and it created cracks along its way to the Predator. It consumed its body, molding it into a metal figure. I opened my fist unto the ground and the Predator shattered into pieces.

In a daze, I turned to my comrades, “One more.”

“Close the Gates.” Bri commanded as her suit retracted her helmet back to her head. She turned to Athren who was looking at Con in shock. “We’ll make this fight brief.” She glanced back at Con before returning her hard gaze on the Gates.

“Halley, help me close the Gates.” I stood up as soon as she mentioned my name. “Sig, eliminate the last one.”

Athren snapped his fingers and with it came two tornados. Sigourney electrified both of them. I turned to one of the Gates and pulled with the force I had. Bri closed the other with one flick of her hand. Her eyes kept on darting back at Con.

As I have expected, Predators started rushing in the closing Gates. With a wave of his hand, Athren wielded his storm towards the last Predator within our vicinity. The Predator was smart enough to avoid the first one. But the second hit it and swallowed half of the beast’s body.

I was able to close the Northern Gate just in time Athren decided to merge his tornados. Bri was able to close another Gate. One more.

I glanced back at Con lying on the ground. I have to close the last Gate. Sigourney added more fume to Athren’s tornado as it attacked its target like a black hole. The tornado served its purpose by grabbing hold of the Predator’s leg and pulling it inside its vortex. The Predator writhed in pain as the storm consumed it.

But it wasn’t over.

I was half way to closing the last Gate when the Predator lashed out its tongue and struck home around Sig’s ankle. She screamed as she fell on the ground grinded towards Athren’s angry tornado. Athren lost his concentration and the tornado split up. The Predator got free and it swung its tongue like a whip right at Athren. He flew out of its way. I stopped closing the Gate and I raised my hand in a tight fist. I tried to wield back the same energy I’ve felt earlier but it wouldn’t come to me.

Bri stood a few meters away from Con. Her hand glowed in incandescent blue light. It lit brightly like the morning star. It burned in her hand like blue fire. She let out the energy with a powerful strike of her hand towards the ground. It bore a great big hole on the ground taking away everything with it even the Inception. Holograms started to destruct with the debris falling to the hole. The Inception itself was collapsing. Athren got his bearings and he bended his stigma to push the Predator toward Bri’s black hole. The Predator clawed at the ground as it tried to set itself free. In one swift move, Sig drew her kusarigama and swiped at the Predator’s clawing metal paws. It broke free of its hinges and it fell to the black hole before its paws could even mend.

Bri’s black hole closed as soon as it ate its meal.

“Bri, the Gate!” Athren shouted at her. She was set to kneel before Con. But as soon as she heard Athren’s warning, she turned towards the last Gate.

“More are coming.” I told her.

I looked around. There are five of us. Three unharmed. One unclosed Gate. More Predators to come.

If this continues, we might not make it.

The air pierced through my skin like violent knives. Athren was wielding the wind to push the Barriers. Bri pulled to seal the Gates. Sig who was half slumped on the ground, managed to throw great amounts of electrifying balls out of the Gate. Piercing cries were heard from outside. It gave me just enough chills right to the bone.

I closed my eyes and I tried to call upon the energy that surge into me the moment we entered the Inception. I stayed calm and I cleared my mind. The energy came floating to me like a weightless rope. I grasped it with my soul and I pulled hard at it. The energy willingly obliged as I pushed it towards the beasts outside the closing Gates. I wielded it to destruct them.

And then.

And then there was just silence.

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