Star Wars: The Earthling Gamer

Chapter 5 - The New Ally

One week later, in California...

"Finally." I sigh, breathing in the city air. "This is a place to get lost in." Kara breathes. "But we aren't out of the woods yet. We need to find, or make, a place to stay." I say numbly.

"I might know a place, actually." Kara says hesitantly. I raise my brow, and she continues. "You see, I wasn't entirely alone at home. I don't have my phone anymore, but I used to talk with a couple people online, and I know roughly where to look for them, and how to get their attention." She confesses.

"You only bring this up now? I'm not mad, I'm frankly overjoyed we have an idea of where to start. But the problem is finding them, yeah?" I ask lightly. She laughs softly, and hums, trying to recall.

"I think it's a little north of here. But it should be easy. Make ourselves obvious, maybe even send off flares near them." She suggests. I grin at that, starting to think of things we can do. "I can do that. But north of here is far out of the city. Not much of a place to hide, is it?" I ask hesitantly.

"Yeah, but I think hiding in plain sight works as good as anything, right?" She proposes. I shrug, and my mind starts whirring. We started walking north, and eventually, we found a valley with a small community there. Maybe two dozen buildings, and it seemed obvious to me that this was the place.

"So this is it, then?" I ask. She stays silent, her head moving slightly as she scans the area. "Nevermind making ourselves obvious. I recognize that house, I think. I say we just knock, give her a heart attack." She laughs, pointing in the direction of a few houses.

As we approach the house, I continue looking around, seeing people roaming, leaving the store with a bag or two, kids playing around, and I couldn't help but relax, quickly finding myself genuinely smiling, a rarity since the first attack. I felt safe here, more than ever.

Before I knew it, we were there, and Kara was knocking on their door. A muffled "One second!" was heard through the door, and the door opened for me to disheveled teen girl. She gasps, and wraps Kara in a hug.

The new girl had fairly tan skin, with black, bushy hair, all the while layered in a strange combination of a hoodie underneath a shirt, with a strange sort of dress on top of it. It was a mix of a dress and a tank top.

"Karolyn! I was so worried! I thought you were hurt! Oh my god, what happened?" She gushes, before she finally notices me. "Oh. You." She frowns. "What about me? Do I know you?" I say, frowning back. I pushed aside the fact that she knew Kara's real name, because honestly, I kinda expected it.

"You've been on the news. And we used to be classmates before I moved here with my family." The girl answers hesitantly. I groan out, which alone probably shows how irritating this is getting. "Seriously? I've been on the fucking news. Of course. I didn't make this trip for nothing, really. I needed to get away from the public, so we were gonna hide in plain sight, though I guess I can't do that, now I know there's a manhunt for me. Though I still don't know who you are, I suppose it's a pleasure to see you again." I say shortly.

"Haze, it's okay. I can explain, and whatever he's on the news for can be explained, too. Just let us in and I promise I can shed some light on it." Kara pleads. The girl, Haze's, face softens. "Only because I trust you, Kara." She says, sighing softly.

Next thing I know, me and Kara are sitting side by side on the girl's, her name now clarified as Hazel, couch and Hazel is sitting in a rocking chair across from us. "Anything I can get you two? A drink, or food?" Hazel asks, though I could tell it was just pleasantries. "If you have anything caffeinated, that'll do for me." I grunt.

I'm sipping on a Pepsi now, and Kara is gulping down an energy drink as Hazel looks over us. "Hazel. From my Art class? All those years ago?" I clarify, having only really known one Hazel. She nods, and I bark out a laugh. "What's so funny?" She says, arching a brow.