WARNING: Major Characters Death ⚠️

- - -

"God bless you. And may God bless the United States of America."

You always believed in those words and not just because you had American blood, but because they really made sense to you. You believed in its message of Peace and Brotherhood. And even when someone tried to destroy it, you fought with all your strength to save lives. To save the hope of better days...

Just that, the unexpected happened in one of those days and the one who was considered the enemy of the nation, had become a valuable ally - and maybe something more personal to you. But this was superficial, because the one who served your own country for a common cause, was pointing a gun at your face right now...

So, what hope did you believe in, if nothing?? Though a dangerous threat loomed beneath your world, you had to face your own species first and accept that not everyone was on the same side. And there you are, watching your brother risk being shot by his friend to protect you from the choices you made yourself...

But the silence finally died when a single click vibrated against Nick's temple.

《I remind you that I'm still in command of this team, so if you pull that trigger now, I won't hesitate to do the same for insubordination.》

Eric pronounced his sentence a few steps from Sergeant Kay, who lowered his rifle without a word, freeing Jason from his range.

《I see, this bitch got you so duped you'd point the gun at your wife too!?》 Just then, Rachel spat out angrily without changing her position 《She'll kill us when you least expect it, you'll see—》

*COUGH, COUGH*!

The coughs cut off the woman's speech abruptly, losing focus on you for an instant. However, when she seemed to have recovered from it, she coughed again and harder than earlier, to the point of falling to her knees.

《My head...what...》 Just then, Rachel put her hands on the head in pain 《What the fuck is happening to me?!》

Now that she was harmless, you went to check what was happening; her throat reminded you of the Iraqi shepherd's, and so did Clarice's too, but something was wrong though, because you didn't see any wounds or bites like yours that could lead to a possible infection, so you thought the cause must be something else...

Until you saw it moving up the gorge.

Fuck, that's inside her!

You begged Rachel to do as you said, even at the cost of throwing up if necessary, but the older woman pushed you away every time you tried. Something had infected her and now it was moving inside her body; just to be safe, Jason stepped forward and pointed the shotgun at a aching, but still yelling officer.

《What are you waiting for, shoot me!》 She growled frantically, trying to fight her own wobbling by clinging to Nick, now clearly confused and concerned for her...there was no doubt that she was the only one infected in there!

Really, the fate could be cruel sometimes, or she was simply getting the lesson she deserved. But the truth was, even the meanest people deserve a second chance and after that, Salim grabbed your shoulder to tell you something in private.

《I believe there's a way to stop the infection.》 He started to explain 《Do you remember the cocoons where the vampires hatched? I think they must have been there for so long, yet they have stayed intact...maybe, the answer is in the slime they were wrapped in and if we try–》

《Try to cocoon Rachel...that's what you mean? Seriously?》 You raised an eyebrow, obviously thinking that was crazy 《You've seen her, there's no way she'll consent to such a thing!》

Despite the doubt, there was nothing else to lose and so, you warned Jason of Salim's plan. As you thought, he wasn't as convinced either, but still decided to get the message to the rest of the others.

Hope dies last, they say...

However, the CIA woman didn't seem thrilled by the news and immediately shrugged off the sergeant's touch, stealing his rifle in the meantime.

《I'm not being fucking cocooned!》

You were forced to stand still when she aimed the gun at the rest of you, by now it seemed impossible to reason with her; Rachel looked at her husband one last time, before turning and running away from the star chamber. Nick wanted to bring her back, but your brother prevented him as soon as you all heard a painful but powerful cry coming from outside. As for Clarice, there was no way you could do more in her current condition.

Eric gritted the teeth with his head down, trying to fight the pain was growing inside him. You headed towards the mirror of water at the back of the room, maybe still looking for the good side in things, especially now that you were alone...but before you could go into a nervous breakdown, someone knelt next to you.

《If this helps, I'd never have shot Jason. He's like a brother to me.》 For the first time, Sergeant Kay spoke openly with you and more calmly than earlier 《It's partly my fault too...I should have taken better care of Rachel, but instead I fucked up everything. She was wrong to pick on you.》

Even if you couldn't quite forgive him for his act, his confession made you feel a little better. Nick glanced at you and at the bandages on your wound and without warning, he took a med-kit from his backpack.

《You need it more. Again, I'm sorry for what I've done.》 You thanked him before he walked away. Right now, the most important thing was staying together more than ever, so as not to lose anyone again.

• • •

Hundreds. Or maybe thousands. You weren't sure, but you thought they were enough to attack a city, if not a whole country! Soon, those cocoons would hatch and it would be impossible for you to get out of there with all those creatures...this time, you needed a plan not to escape from them, but to destroy them once and for all.

But the problem was, how to do that, because one of you would have to go down there to place the explosives.

《...who's going to place the dynamite?》

You turned your head left and right, waiting for which soldier would stand up to perform such a brave deed, but without believing that your own brother would have done it...so, when you saw him get up, you did the same to stop him.

《No. I won't fuckin' let you go down there, Jason.》 You warned by grabbing his arm insistently 《And you can't go alone, it's too dangerous!》

《Eric and Nicky have their brains elsewhere and Salim has a son waiting for him outside...I've no choice Y/n.》 Jason answered you in a low but calm tone, probably he was sure of what he was doing and this scared you even more. Your brother noticed it and smiled slightly before turning all over to you.

《If I—》 He sighed heavily before starting, this was tough even for someone like him 《If I don't make it, just know that I'm sorry for not calling you and for all the bullshit I've done in the past...I know I haven't always been a model brother for you, but I hope–》

《Please just stop that...》 You said as you punched his chest, the same one you had medicated so carefully 《Just...dammit, just come back and we'll be even!》

You sobbed a little after that, but Jason kissed your forehead lovingly, as any good brother who had hurt or let down his beloved sister would...without saying anything else, he went to head towards the mountain of cocoons and Nick had the button to activate the bombs, as soon as they were ready; you were trying to see your brother in the distance, when Salim lent you the binoculars to let you see better and luckily, he had no obstacles in his path.

《Don't worry, he's smarter than you think.》 He said that thought out loud with a smile and you greatly appreciated his encouragement; he was right anyway, because you saw Jason sneaking through the cocoons with swift, silent gestures, even when you caught the vampires flying in the dark sky above him.

《That's enough, we have to leave before they all wake up.》 Eric ordered after the second bomb had been planted 《Bring him back, sergeant.》

But strangely, Nick was no longer able to get through to the first lieutenant, even Salim couldn't find him with binoculars and you got a lump in your throat.

《What happened?》 Eric asked with his head turned towards the marine, now more tense than earlier and not really sure what to do.

《I...I can't get in touch with Jason.》 He answered staring blankly at the button, not knowing whether to press it or not. Not knowing what was the right choice to make in that moment...

Until growls were picked up on the radio, along with a breathy voice.

《—NOW!!!》

Without further explanation, Nick pressed the button and a few seconds later, a big light appeared in front of you, accompanied by multiple bangs which scattered over the mountains of cocoons; at this point, Eric motioned for you to cross, before the space became a fiery field and before the creatures became aware of your presence.

《Wait, Jason is still there!》 Speaking of that, you didn't know where your brother was, or if he was okay after the explosion 《What if he's injured, we need to find him–!》

《I'll do it.》 Suddenly, Salim preceded you and without waiting for the others 《But it's dangerous here, better you stay with the others...I promise I'll be back with your brother.》

You wanted to argue with that, but he gave you no time to answer and just then, you were pulled out of that hellfire along with Eric and Nick. Of course, they also noticed Salim were missing, but there was no way to figure out where he was...the only thing you hoped was both of them returned safely.

But then, someone scaled the cliff upon which you had taken refuge, a few steps from the exit, and you sighed when you saw that it was Jason.

Only Jason.

《Where's Salim?》 He asked when noticed the absence of the Iraqi from the group and you blinked in total disbelief.

《...w-what?》 You said incredulously...how could it be that he hadn't seen Salim??

《What are you saying, he went looking for you!!》

Jason didn't know what to say, as a hissing "fuck" came out of your mouth and with your hands in the hair, clearly agitated; right there, the cap boy received a call from the radio and picked up the voice of the Iraqi soldier, warning he could do nothing else, as vampires were everywhere around him.

《...tell my son I did everything I could.》

Those were the last words you heard before the connection went dead. Salim was still there, trying to survive alone while your "friends" didn't lift a finger to go and save him.

《What's there to think about?!》 The sergeant called when saw his friend with an uncertain face 《We go back down there, we die with him!》

Jason said nothing and stared at the void in front of him, definitely there was no doubt what needed to be done at that moment! Except, for them it wasn't worth risking their lives for an enemy and you had the proof when you heard the same, damn thing from Eric.

"That man is not one of us."

You no longer saw from anger, as you expected, no one was going to help Salim; Kolchek didn't agree with those words too and as soon as he looked up to find a solution, he immediately noticed that something had changed.

《Y/n?》 With the head down and your fists clenched at your sides, Jason didn't like seeing you shaking nervously and now he knew why 《Listen to me now–》

《Fuck, I'm going!》 You didn't even turn around and threw yourself off the cliff, leaving the others completely bewildered.

No matter what, you wouldn't have left Salim behind. Not now, not ever.

Jason was speechless and unable to stop you, as you were already running down the walkway and was about to do the same thing when Nick grabbed him.

《You'll die if you go back in there. Think about it, man–!》

《Fuck you too Nicky, I won't leave my sister in this shitty hole!》 The first lieutenant freed himself from his grip, moving away from the other soldier.

《See you all at the elevator.》

Eric nodded and wished him good luck, promising to wait as long as possible. Nick shook his head without saying anything, now that he had lost Rachel, he felt guilty for not being able to do the same thing to save her.

• • •

You ignored the breath was missing in your lungs. You remembered the road you had taken earlier, but after the explosion the place was now on fire, no way you winced every time the earth shook again under your feet. The further you went, the more disoriented you were...and closer at their nest.

But no trace of Salim.

A few growls warned you of the creatures' presence, some of them had hatched from their cocoons and were flying through the smoked sky, but you were sure that noise was closer than you thought. You didn't have anything to defend yourself with, definitely it wasn't a great idea to jump in there and without a weapon with you; but yours had been an instinctive gesture, guided by your feelings...

Your feelings for him. You prayed Salim was still alive, maybe caught red-handed while stabbing his metal stake into some vampire's chest and smiling with tremendous satisfaction...until he met your eyes and it was a whole other thing.

Evan had never given you such a feeling, yet you knew him for much longer...but Salim was different and not only because he belonged to another world...he was a man of values, brave, kind and didn't give a shit about this war; but most of all, when he was with you, Salim thought of nothing but your safety, yet looking at you as if he wished to do or say more and this was evident when he spoke in Arabic. For you, it was the lighthouse found in a stormy sea - or desert, to say better...

But this time, all he could do was thrash against the creature that had knocked him down, with no chance of escape.

Salim!!!

He needed help and you were the only one who could help him now. Right there, you saw it was possible for you to reach the metal stake left on the ground, but you thought you didn't have enough strength to inflict so much pain on the creature...

Until you remembered the lighter Salim left you.

Without wasting any more time, you unbuttoned and removed your shirt to roll it around the tip of the bar and set the fabric on fire with a quick flick of the lighter; the flame was enough to send the winged creature into pain with a clean stab on the back.

Take this, you son of a bitch!

You kept pressing and shouting, getting some scratches as Salim was trying to get up and help you killing it for real this time. But once finished, he wasn't really comfortable to see you there.

《Why did you come back here...》 The Iraqi said breathlessly, staring at you seriously, but you looked down at the red cuts on his uniform, definitely more serious than yours and it would have been even worse if you hadn't arrived in time.

《I-I had to do something...I couldn't leave you here!》 You said sincerely, yet Salim shook his head in total disagreement and you didn't understand why.

《That's no good, Y/n. You shouldn't have done something so rash–》

《So what! You'd rather stay here and fuckin' die!?》 You whispered louder than expected, as if you didn't believe he was scolding you after you saved him again.

《You really think I'll let you do that?》

Salim didn't know what to say except to worry about you more and more, especially when you did something stupidly crazy. But the truth was, he could no longer see you struggling as if you were a soldier in the middle of a war.

《You don't understand Y/n...why should you—》

Suddenly, silence settled over him, as you placed both palms on either side of his face and kissed him intensely with your lips. You heard the older man swallowing hard, more than amazed by that gesture, but he didn't push you away...on the contrary, Salim pressed his lips closer against yours as if he had been waiting for them for a long time. Damn, you couldn't believe you were actually kissing someone you had just known for less than 24 hours and in that moment, even the growling of the vampires around didn't seem to scare you at all!

Ooh God what I'm doing!!!

When you parted your lips with a light smack, you saw his dilated pupils gaze at you with clear astonishment.

《Y-Y/n...》

Salim whispered your name as if it depended on it and you couldn't stop looking at him with the same intensity with which you kissed him. But before you could hear the rest of the story, a series of shots were fired from behind you and you saw the figure of your brother running towards you.

《Joined the fun, bro?》 You raised an eyebrow, just to fight the big fire was raging inside you and Jason said nothing, surely he wasn't happy you ran away without warning him. Anyway, getting back together was his primary concern now.

Just that, unexpectedly your hand didn't separate from the Iraqi's, holding tight to his all the way until you joined the others, where you were forced to break contact.

Many of Jason's teammates were missing. Some dead during the ambush, some inside the caves, against the vampires. Clarice was becoming a monster in front of your eyes and so was Rachel, thus making you the only woman who survived it all. For now...

Even though you weren't quite out of there, Jason cheered on the rest of the group with a victory shout. Everyone except you and Salim, of course.

《Uhm, you should do it too...you've killed a lot of vampires with that thing!》 You tried to say at the black-haired man, however without looking at him. Salim noticed your confidence was suddenly gone and the reason was clear, because also him was struggling to stop thinking about that between you two.

《Well, you are a vampire slayer as much as I am...we should do this together, don't you think?》 He answered you with a smile on his lips, but still reddish after your first kiss.

You laughed at that and Jason grimaced, on the contrary, but not being bothered by it, at least not like earlier. Beyond that, Salim was no longer an enemy threat and Eric also seemed to have given up on it.

《Where did your shirt go?》 Surprisingly, Jason seemed to notice the change and you nodded slightly, blaming the heat which was spreading rapidly after the explosion in a way.

《She set a vampire on fire with it to save me.》 Salim spoke proudly of your incredible audacity, albeit reckless most of the time and you confirmed his words, plunging your brother back into silence.

What's wrong with him this time... You thought in confusion.

When the elevator reached the top, you and the soldiers run towards the waterfall of the caves, where a couple of lowered ropes await you to climb back up. Jason and Nick decided to go first, making sure the road was safe and to fix what happened in the temple, Eric made Salim go in his place, but when realized you weren't nearby, the blond man turned around and saw you staring suspiciously at the waterfall.

《I think I heard something coming from there.》 You suggested even if with little conviction, however it was enough to alert the colonel and went to check more closely, reaching out towards the running water.

《Seems to be nothing, don't worry—》

But just as he was finishing his sentence, something shot out of the waterfall and landed just a few feet away from you and Eric. Both of you were utterly shocked when you recognized Rachel beyond that pale, monstrous face.

《Go away!!》 King yelled just before the human monster lunged menacingly at him. But she pounced on you, instead, pushing you back inside the cave and towards a black hole.

It was evident Rachel was physically stronger than you, but now that she was a vampire, her actions had become faster and more brutal. You grit your teeth every time her claws cut the skin on your legs and arms, any attempt to escape seemed impossible for you alone; moreover, your situation took an even worse turn when your feet felt the earth crumble beneath them.

You grabbed the rock ledge closest to you when collapsed just later, but unfortunately also Rachel saved herself and aimed at you to drop you down into the deep void.

I-I can't take it anymore, help!

You were just about to lose your grip, when suddenly you saw Nick rushing to your rescue.

《Give me your hand!》 The soldier managed to pull you up, but Rachel was still hot on his heels, and before she could attack you again, Nick got in the way, shoving the snarling and ravenous woman away.

You reached the rope, but didn't climb it when you heard the sergeant's screams echoing painfully off the cave walls. At that point, it was Eric who intervened with some shots and Rachel growled at him with her toothy and bloody mouth, thus giving the marine the opportunity to drive a dagger into her chest.

This time, the colonel made sure you actually climbed the rope and you did, getting help from your brother at the top. Later, both Eric and Nick were halfway there when another earthquake struck and the trembling made the rock around you collapse...as a result, one of the ropes fell down the waterfall.

《Come on!》 Jason screamed and the two men repeated the procedure using a single rope, with Nick behind Eric. Meanwhile, you guys made sure the rope stayed tight.

《W-watch out!》 You warned when you saw Rachel's figure running back towards the two soldiers, scarier and more dangerous than before. In fact, she also started to climb the rope to reach the two men.

《Shit, the rope is snapping!》 Jason cursed as he tried to retrieve another knot but in vain, the best thing was to hold it so that his companions could get to the top.

《Hurry up!!》

《Go on, I'll take care of stopping her.》 Sure, Eric couldn't leave Nick alone and didn't understand what his words meant until he saw the marine press the hand to his right hip, as he tried to keep up, but the wound opened just further because of that.

《You are injured sergeant, you can't–》

《Fuck! Go away colonel!》 Nick raised his arm to urge the blond to leave, knowing that such a gesture would have marked his own survival.

But he didn't seem to care, as he was losing too much blood, most likely Rachel had cut something important using her sharp claws against him and you couldn't help him in any way, not without the proper equipment...right now, the last thing he could do was destroying what in his eyes, was no longer what he had loved.

《I'm ordering you to climb this rope now!》 Eric persisted again but only got a quick, derisive glare from the dark-skinned marine.

《No matter how obnoxious you were, I always did your bidding sir...》 He explained as he raised the knife in the air 《But this time, I can't follow your orders.》

Without hesitation, Nick cut the rope in the space which separated him from Eric, falling a few meters near the waterfall. The other didn't know what to do and his hands just started to sweat rapidly, risking to lose his own grip; luckily for him, Jason and Salim took care of helping him from over the cliff.

《Where's Nicky?》 Your brother asked peering into the void and immediately noticed the rope cut in half and the anguished silence of the colonel.

《Hey! If you can hear sergeant, answer me!》 Then, he tried to speak through the radio to his ear, hearing nothing but a brief interference before the connection was lost altogether.

《Fuck! We must do something–》

《There's nothing we can do for him, lieutenant!》 Eric replied by kneeling for a second to catch his breath, again he was reliving the same drama as for his wife 《He was losing too much blood...we'd both be dead if he hadn't cut it off. He saved our lives with his sacrifice.》

If it hadn't been for the shaking in the earth that made you run away, Jason would still have been paralyzed by that shocking news about his best friend, because he couldn't have done anything to help him. Sure, Colonel King had broken his entire team thanks to his mission, but there was still hope to get out of there alive and on this opinion, Jason had to be thankful that you were there too, definitely your more sensitive nature had it made less impulsive and more tolerant about some things. Maybe even about Salim.

The temple was beginning to collapse on your heads, preventing use of the main doors. But they weren't where you were supposed to go, as your eyes caught a beam of sunlight right from the ceiling.

There it is, the exit!

The only way to reach it was through the main hall, using the temple ruins as a stairway. It wasn't as easy as it seemed, at least for you, and every time you took a step, you were inches from falling off...and when that actually happened, someone grabbed you from behind and an instant before you lost your balance.

Of course, your eyes sparkled immensely when you recognized it was Salim.

《Don't let me go until we are out!》 He just said as he took your place with a quick overtaking, so that he could guide you on that steep and dangerous ascent. You were tired and your heart was pounding fast, but you couldn't give up now that you were near the end...

The Hell was finally over.

• • •

You narrowed your eyes suddenly as you stepped out into the light. Being the first to climb, your brother helped you out of what looked like a big hole in the middle of the desert and after that, you sat down in the dust to get a long breath of fresh air, as the rest of the others came up from underground.

You paid no attention to the morning sun, on the contrary the warmth of it warmed your sweaty and aching skin and it was a relaxing feeling.

《Hey.》 There, you turned to your brother's exhausted expression with a soft smile.

《Hey...how do you feel brother?》 You wrapped your arm around him, rubbing his back with the intent to comfort him 《I don't care what you're thinking, you've a good job with them.》

Jason just rested his head on your shoulder, pretending that those words reassured him, but it wasn't that simple...the death of Nick and all his companions had strongly affected him and seeing him so down made you feel so helpless.

《Dropkick to Coyote Two. Radio check. Over.》 You heard Eric communicating over the radio with air support, making all of you breathe a sigh of relief, including Salim.

Of course, you hadn't forgotten about him and you saw the man with emotion printed on his mouth and eyes at the idea that he would be home soon.

《I have to get back to my boy, he must be worried about me!》 The Iraqi soldier said loudly, but clearly catching your eye and after that, he looked down in total embarrassment.

Was he really thinking about his son??

《Sure he'll be very happy to know his dad escaped from a space war...!》 You joked witty, but didn't know why you were feeling this ache in your chest. Soon, the Americans would be arriving there with more soldiers and it would be a problem for Salim to go home, so the only choice he had was to leave before them.

《I know, you have to go but—》 Suddenly, a lump in your throat interrupted what you meant, catching the Iraqi man's attention almost tenderly. The truth was, you wanted him to stay there - to stay with you - but he just couldn't...but before you could say such a thing, Salim grabbed your hands and brought your knuckles under his lips to kiss them with extreme sweetness. He wished that moment would never end.

Then, you noticed the Iraqi leaning closer to you, thus admiring your pretty freckles, your bright green eyes and that swollen lower lip that he couldn't stop staring at, as if he were ready to recapture it with his own. God, how he wanted to kiss that beautiful angel again and before it was too late...

Too late for him.

《We'll meet again Y/n, I'm sure about this...but not in this time, and not in this place.》 He gently let go of your hands to put them back in place, giving you a dejected face.

Is this another promise??
You really hoped so.

When Salim looked up, he saw the light had dimmed strangely and the sky had suddenly turned black as pitch, although it was morning.

《Oh no...》 The strange phenomenon also caught your eye and you gasped in concern as you rejoined the group of soldiers 《T-that's what Clarice was referring to...she knew there would be a solar eclipse this day!》

Eric shook his head in total distress, how he had missed such an important detail! Jason took the rifle back in his hand to reload it, sure the battle wasn't over yet. Something unpleasant was going to happen and indeed, an echo of ferocious growls spread across the wasteland...until they soared high in the sky on their demon wings.