Stuff

The Invaders

"There!" she said, looking through her binoculars and pointed to something large in the distance.

He nodded at her. "Anywhere better than our-"

She winced and cleared her throat. "Where we used to be." His words made memories flood her mind.

The sound of the gunshots.The exploding bombs, as millions of soldiers from an opposing nation terrorized their city. Their own soldiers bravely fought, battering and beating against the enemy under a sunless sky. But the military men's efforts were futile.

"Just go!" Her mother had said, as one of the enemy soldiers barged into their home. "I will be okay!"

She shoved a few things into a backpack before escaping through the window of their little house. The moment she set her foot outside the house, she ran. The deafening noise of a bomb suddenly rang out. She refused to look and instead focused on running.

At first she thought she was the only one, but thankfully not long after leaving, she found him. When they first met, they bonded over the shared memory of losing their entire known world that fateful day. They were unsure of what had actually happened, after they left. They both left quite early in the war, to escape, find a better place. She assumed it was just the two of them who had managed to escape.

They had spent weeks and weeks searching for a new home. They had been walking on the roughest terrain, under the scorching sun and the pouring rain. She was exhausted of searching, but now she was grateful it was finally over.

She lowered her binoculars and beckoned him to follow. They carefully made their way to the new land that they found.

"What is this?" He snapped, as they landed. This was not at all what they both had expected. The place was a dead wasteland desert, with nothing living in sight. The ground was rough and dry and no place to be able to live in, much less build a home on.

He narrowed his eyes at her. "I thought you said this was a good planet to live in."

She furrowed her brow. "I did! But turns out it's just a desert with nothing living."

"We need to find another place." He sighed.

They were about to leave, to try and find a better place, when suddenly, the ground shook violently. Out of nowhere, a giant brown meteor came crashing down. She screamed, her life flashing before her eyes. She hoped that they wouldn't die.

Thankfully, the meteor missed her by an inch. She was relieved, but her eyes widened to see where it had landed. The meteor had split the ground open beside her, the desert rock fractured like an egg. She looked at him, trying to be cautious. He shrugged, and pointed to the massive hole in the ground. They both carefully peered in and gasped.

There was a thriving civilization underground. Underneath the dead desert was a complete ecosystem. An entire city, with highways and roads, and people bustling through, driving cars, walking on the sidewalks. Some were looking up, wide-eyed at the massive hole in their sky.

She looked at him, her eyes wide open. To see this kind of life again, after losing their old home made them feel like they were in a dream. Both had almost forgotten what cities looked like, since it felt like ages and ages ago since they both had seen one. It felt so surreal and was...beautiful.

Perhaps they could move in and start anew. Start new lives, maybe even a family. Build up from the shambles of a place she once called home and make a new one. One that would feel special to her. He nodded back at her. It was time to rebuild their lives.

And create a new and better army.

* * *

A sharp sensation of pain is felt in your hand. You look at your finger and notice there is a splinter piercing it. You sigh and take it out. A couple drops of blood come out of a cut the splinter created.

You wipe the blood with your shirt and regret ever running your hand along the wooden park bench. Looks like you'll need a band-aid to cover up the wound for a couple of days. Perhaps next time you should keep your hands to yourself.