Fear engulfed me as I felt something vile latch onto my body. I struggled madly, punching and kicking with every last ounce of energy I had. Desperation pulsed through me as my eyes met those of the creature's, a deep and sinister shade of blue, the same blue that I'd seen pulsating on that creature on the girl's neck. "I am not going to end up like her," I thought.

Unable to move, constrained within its grasp, I did the only thing I could. In a final effort of desperation, my face contorted in rage as I lunged at the creature once with a guttural yell, sinking my teeth into the horrific being and tasting its foul blood.

"Ah! Mother fucker!" The creature screamed in pain and stumbled backward. I lunged again and it dodged away, its grip tightening on me.

"Alec! Dude! What the fuck? You bit me, you fucking prick!" The creature swung a fist at me, connecting with my face with a sickening thud. My head snapped back as I reeled backwards, unsteady on my feet, the world around me spinning.

It grabbed me and shook me and I snarled again, struggling to pull away.

"Alec, calm down! Alec!" It shouted before delivering a sharp slap to my face. I fell to the ground and felt my head slam into the wall, and finally, the pain brought the world back into focus, my senses returning to me.

I peered up at the creature again, and slowly the horrifying features melted away to reveal none other than Michael - his shirt now stained with blood where I had bitten him moments ago, color blooming across the white fabric. He held the wound tenderly, his expression furious.

Michael stepped closer but I held out my hands and scooted back, shaking my head. I bit my lip hard until I tasted blood and and whimpered softly. "No. Stay away." My whole body shook with fear as I backed away from him and stood, pressing against the wall.

Michael's expression changed from one of fear, anger and pain, to one of confusion and genuine concern. He knelt down. "Alec? Hey? I've never seen ya like this."

"Stay away," I repeated, my voice hoarse.

"Alec, it's me, I would never hurt ya. Well, I mean, I punched ya in the face, but what the fuck is this...?" My body began to shake uncontrollably as his words hung in the air. Abruptly Michael disregarded my warning, taking deliberate steps forward and capturing my hands within his own and pulled me to my feet.

"No, please, please don't, don't, please," I repeated, my voice strained.

Michael pulled my arms to the side, setting them on his shoulders and spread his own wide in an invitation for an embrace.

When I didn't move or react, he slowly moved closer, pulling me into a hug and squeezing my body against his own as I continued to fight off the urge to break free.

I shut my eyes shut tightly, feeling like I was melting into Michael's embrace. My heart raced as he rubbed circles on my back and whispered soothing words into my ear. I closed my eyes tightly, feeling like I was melting into Michael's embrace as every breath gradually brought more relief into my mind that it was finally over – that I was safe now.

I lowered my head and placed my face against Michael's chest and sobbed uncontrollably. With every shred of strength left in my body, I returned his embrace and tightened my grip around him until the shakes subsided. "Oh my god, oh my god. Michael. I was so scared."

Michael cradled the back of my head and held it into his shoulder. "What happened in there, bub?" He whispered softly into my ear, refusing to let go even as I involuntarily convulsed and trembled.

My body removed from a fight or flight state, I found myself no longer able to speak, my frame twitching as I clung to Michael like a lifeline, tears streaming down my face as the horror of what I had witnessed replayed in my mind. My breaths came in ragged gasps, and I could feel the pulse of Michael's heartbeat against my cheek.

Michael remained still, saying nothing as I slowly regained my composure. With a deep sigh, I pulled away and stumbled towards the closest seat, my legs trembling beneath me. I waved my hand in a dismissive gesture as if to say I didn't want to talk about it.

Michael remained still. His own breathing was even as he said nothing and did nothing other than offer support while I collected myself. His face betrayed no emotion but still hinted at something that bothered me greatly, something different.

Sniffling and rubbing my eyes and nose with my sleeve, I scanned the room around us.

The room was hectic; medical personnel raced around shouting instructions while injured people groaned from wherever they lay - on the floor, on wheeled beds, or slumped in chairs. Blood stained everything, its metallic scent hitting my noseand threatening to bring up what little food was in my stomach.

"H-how did I get here?" I asked through choked sobs, gesturing to the chaos around us.

"I brought ya here." Michael replied gruffly. "Ya got knocked out by the blast. Hit the wall pretty hard too, knocked ya head again. Me n' Em, we carried ya here like a sacka taters. You're a heavy sumbitch."

I twisted around, scanning for Emily but she was nowhere to be seen. "Wh-where is Emily?"

Michael didn't answer my question, instead avoiding eye contact with me.

"Why'd you have to c-carry me?"

"Cars ain't working, most of the power grid is gone." He replied, adjusting in his seat. "Whatever those things zipping around in the sky are, they mess with electricity sumtin' fierce."

"Zipping around? What?" I inquired.

"Ya. They got some kind of aircraft. Crazy looking shit. All covered in spikes and thorny looking things."

I groaned and closed my eyes. "Aliens. Fucking aliens. It's fucking really f-fucking aliens?"

"Ya. Looks like it." His voice trailed off, leaving the silence between us thick with tension.

I let out a string of profanities, and then held my breath for a moment, trying to quell my hiccups, clearing my throat before trying again.

"Michael, buddy, where is Emily?"

No response.

"Hey man, you're freaking me out here. Where is Emily?"

"She left."

"For what? Isn't this a safe place?"

He chuckled bitterly and shook his head. "Buddy, this is a FEMA outfit set up in a dentist's office for Chrissake. Those bastards just showed up out of the blue right after the first bullets started flying. It's like they were expecting somethin. "

My eyes widened fearfully and I swallowed a knot in my throat before asking, "Then where did she go?"

"She said she needed to go get her lil' brother. He only lives a few blocks from here."

"Okay... And when was that?"

He stared off into the distance, his eyes glazing over as his jaw muscles rippled as he clenched his teeth together in frustration. "About four hours ago." He finally said, his voice sounding hollow - like a man condemned to die, or worse, a man told his partner had been condemned to die.

WHOMP WHOOMPH BOOM.

A shockwave rattled the windows and I cried out, ducking and covering my head with my arms. Everyone else did the same. Michael, however, didn't flinch.

"Dunno why y'all duck like that." He said. "They ain't targeting the ground. They're just aimin' at our jets."

I knit my eyebrows together. "Then what caused the blast that knocked me out?"

Michael sighed heavily. "A downed jet hit our block."

My heart stopped at his response. What a thing to survive...

I glanced around for someone who might be able to explain further, a soldier or someone that looked like an official, but saw only frightened civilians nursing various injuries, and overwhelmed medical professionals crouching over gurneys and makeshift desks piled high with x-ray films and charts.

It was clear that no one would help us here. I took a moment to inspect Michael more closely, noting his pale skin and the brace wrapping his ankle.

"Are you hurt?" I asked him softly. I'd been so wrapped up in what I had seen, I didn't even ask if he was alright.

Startled by the question, Michael answered hesitantly, "No? I don't think so. Just twisted my ankle a bit carrying you here, but I'm okay now."

But despite his words, I could see a faint sheen of sweat glistening on his forehead and the discomfort that lingered in his posture as he spoke about it - signs of inner turmoil that belied his calm exterior.

"C'mon man," I said, tugging at his arm. "You know where her brother lives, right? Let's go find them."

Michael shook his head, fear coloring his face. "Ya don't understand. There's these little nasty spider things, they jump onto people and drag them away and... The screams, Alec, the screams are so..."

I shuddered, my body shaking with fear as I recalled the savage destruction I had witnessed only minutes earlier. My breath was shallow and rapid, and I felt a cold sweat on my brow. "Holy fuck," I realized. "I think I have PTSD."

"I know," I said quickly, holding up a hand, wanting to cut off any further discussion. "I saw what makes them scream, Michael. And it's worse than you can possibly imagine. It's what freaked me out so bad and why I came running out here. And it's why we need to go find Emily."

Michael nodded gravely. "They're everywhere out there, from what I hear," he said glumly. "I wish I'd known before I let Emily go. Thought she could make it three blocks and back."

I furrowed my brows in confusion. "Why didn't you go with her?"

Michael pointed at his wrapped foot. "Tripped coming in here," he explained gruffly. "Your lard ass landed on my ankle and sprained it." He paused for a moment before continuing in a softer voice. "They wrapped it tight and left it that. Didn't even have any painkillers to give me."

He stood and squared his shoulders, steel in his posture. "Let's do this – let's go try to find Emily." He whirled and locked eyes with me. He stammered for a moment, seeming to sway in place. I put a hand on his shoulder to steady him. "I'm afraid one of those things stole her away man," he whispered. 

My heart sank with dread at the thought of Emily being taken by one of those monstrosities. I put on a brave face for Michael. "She'll be fine," I said confidently. "She's a resourceful girl."

Despite my outward appearance for my friend's benefit, I couldn't help remembering the death throes of the poor girl in the other room - her screams echoing in my head as she was ripped apart and devoured by one of those creatures - which caused me to shudder once more. "If Emily is gone... I really fucking hope a jet landed on her," I thought to myself.