Chapter 20: Cosmos

The night was still. Crickets chirped outside.

Trucks were parked in their designated spots, floodlights were turned off.

Earl was fast asleep in his cottage.

A knock on the door prompted Julie to grab her shotgun and throw on her bathrobe, she leaned against the door.

David woke with a yawn.

"Stay back, David. Someone's here."

David ran into the bathroom shutting the door.

"It's me." Said a muffled voice.

Julie opened the door to find a well-rested alien at her door. She quickly let him in.

"What the hell, Gunner? You could get yourself killed!" She spoke harshly.

David ran from the bathroom and ran to Gunner's side. He loved how the alien towered over him with his long legs.

"The ship is fixed. But I gotta get on their fast. Could you and David distract Earl?" The alien glanced at both David and Julie.

"Go by yourself?" Julie narrowed her eyes.

"Look, I'm hated here. I'm a slave. I can't stand this fucking planet. You and David-you've got food, water, shelter. A community. You can re-build America or whatever the hell it's called."

David crossed his arms slowly. "You leave? No."

"I'm clearly the problem, guys. If I wasn't here-you guys could just relax. Be happy." Gunner rubbed his neck.

"No. We are going with you. The shuttle holds three, I'm sure." Julie held Gunner's wrist.

"Yeah. It does. But why? Earth is perfect for you guys. Space is a cold, dead place." Gunner swallowed hard.

"You said it yourself. You can't stand this fucking planet. Neither can I. You think I wanna live in Earl's America?" Anger flared in Julie's eyes. No. Not anger. Determination.

"Y-yeah Gunner. I don't wanna live in a world without you in it." David pleaded to the alien.

A pause filled the cabin.

Julie's arms were crossed, her bathrobe closed.

David put his hands in the pockets of his pajamas.

Gunner stood, looking sleek in his freshly cleaned outfit.

"Let's get the hell out of here." Gunner couldn't smile.

Julie did it for him.

***

Julie stood on Earl's doorstep.

The morning air cool.

The sky is still pitch dark.

Turning on the porch light, Earl rubbed his eyes.

"Julie? What do you want? We came to an agreement. Stop pestering me."

"I gotta talk to you." Julie nodded.

"It's like-1AM." Earl groaned. His bathrobe tied. He admired Julie's camo pants and tank top.

"Well, I wanna just-propose something to you. It couldn't wait." She said sweetly. No gun in her hand. No sign of anger or rage for what had been done to Gunner.

"Dammit Julie, go to bed." He slowly began to shut the door, Julie placed her boot in the way.

"I wanna make more people come here," Julie spoke with swiftness.

"We'll scour some places. That's how we always do it!" Earl had liquor on his breath, his voice raised a bit.

"I wanna-get people another way." Smiled Julie stepping into Earl's cabin. "I uh-well I kinda like you." She brushed her hair with her hand.

Earl stepped back. Thinking he was dreaming.

"Julie, you hate me." Earl blushed madly, turning on the lights of his cabin. "You on drugs or something? Did Gunner give you some stardust?" He chuckled.

"No, Earl. I never saw it before today. You really are a leader. And anyone would be lucky to bear your children."

Walking up to the man, she kissed his lips..

I hate his smell. He hasn't showered in a while. His beer belly rubs against me.

"Julie. God, you're beautiful." Whispered Earl, his hand reached around her and grabbed her ass.

When she released her kiss, her hunting blade was already in her hand. Hiding up against her leg.

"This is for all the innocent lives you took." She whispered in his ear.

As he gasped, she brought the blade to his jugular and pressed it in. It squished and squashed in his flesh, blood flew from his neck like a hose.

Jamming the blade in again, she listened for his gasps and tiny squeal.

Her hand and one side of her face were now drenched in a dark red fluid.

Earl fell to the floor, holding the gaping wound in his neck. Blood covered his face like a bucket of red paint had fallen on his neck. His feet moved ever so gently. His breathing slowed. Little by little.

She washed her hands and face in warm water from a nearby sink once she knew his heart stopped.

The sun began to rise.

The roar of the engine pumped in Julie's ears as she entered the shuttle. The leather seats are arranged in rows. Two in front of the control panel and two in the back for ensigns.

As Gunner flicked on a switch, a holographic board lit with multiple colors. All the letters were very odd-looking to Julie, but Gunner was a wiz at pressing these keys.

The ship began to levitate off the ground.

Jets blast from the back of the small ship.

An electronic voice speaks in Barg. "Prepare for take-off. 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Thank you and have a nice flight."

Once the ship continued rising, it seemed to only take a matter of seconds. Bright lights flashed outside, causing beams of light to surround the commune.

Families came out of hiding to watch the magnificent takeoff. Blasting through the atmosphere.

All three were buckled in tight, but the pressure from this ascent from earth caused a few headaches and feelings of dizziness.

Gunner was used to it, however, he failed to consider how it would affect humans. Julie and David were moving and breathing. A good sign for sure.

The silence of space was almost deafening. David heard his heartbeat in his ears. The machinery of the ship bleeps quietly.

Julie slid in the seat next to her son, getting glimpses of tiny details of earth.

Everything seemed to dissipate around me as I watched our home planet shrink as the ship went further away. It seemed so huge. Taking over our entire view, the deep and light blues. The slight glow around the planet, bright but pretty.

The surface of the earth took up the entire window for a little while.

As the ship moved further away, the blue planet shrank.

It's hard to comprehend it sometimes. That we're so small. That everything that happened to me, to David, happened on this planet, which now looked so small and insignificant. Surrounded by twinkling stars. Knowing that there are billions of possibilities out there, so much life and beauty I'd probably never see. My entire life seems tiny now.

It's hard to remember that we are really just floating on rock, in the middle of a vast galaxy and that my petty worries from before the end of humanity, truly didn't matter.

Cruising through the starry cosmos, Julie was eating a protein bar from her backpack.

Gunner snuck in the backseat next to David.

"Will I see another planet, like ours?" He asked, turning to the alien for a moment, then back to the window.

"Yeah. Hopefully, we hit something out here. Could be a while." Nodded Gunner.

***

The three of them were sleeping, David's head on Gunner's shoulder and Julie reclined back in a seat upfront.

It had been a boring two days. Eating, drinking, and chatting. No way to really stand. No pretty planets to discover. Just black and stars.

A distinct beep came from a keyboard.

An unfamiliar voice crackled through the intercom. "This is starship Endearment we're reading life signs on this craft, is anyone there?"

Swiftly, Gunner got up from his seat, David and Julie woke quickly.

The alien sat in the piolet's chair, holding down one of the many keys on the board, and spoke to the new voice. "Yes, there's two humans and one Barg on here. Over."

Crackle. Beep. "Are you three safe and do you need assistance? Over."

Julie smiled, so did David.

"We'd like permission to come aboard, captain. Over." Gunner spoke.