Slowly standing, I answer his question. “Maybe I should have phrased that better,” I say, gritting my teeth. “This is how the planet wins.”
The sentinel’s mechanized eyes analyze my every move. Since I’m about to strike, he grabs the front of my shirt. “No,” he growls. “This is the day you become a sentinel.”
It’s as if time has slowed down. The purest blue energy radiates across my body. I can feel it, quickly draining my soul.
The sentinel lifts me, forcing me nearer to the glowing Resnyx. “No,” I shout. “You can’t do this. Think of our people. Think of what we used to be.”
His grin is sharper than a warrior’s blade. His tongue shoots bullets. “You cannot destroy the past,” he says.
Maybe. But if that’s true, there is something else I can do instead. I can destroy their future and make sure they never have another chance to inflict harm ever again.
Every bone in my body aches, but I can’t let go of Emma. The thought of her gives me new strength.
I don’t know if I can come back from the effects of the Resnyx, but I can make sure this alien never sees the light of day again.
I force my hand forward, fingers gripping the cracks of his mask. Automatically, the hydro-joints open and expand. The mask falls off, revealing his scarred and eye-less face.
“I won’t die without her,” I say. “I refuse.”
He tries not to let go, but the radiation is far too powerful to let him keep his strength. Dropping me, he stumbles back.
“What have you done?” he screams and hisses, wildly searching for his mask.
I take the mask and hold it up to my face. Loosely placing it against my skin, the joints sink in and connect with my jaw. It forms to me, giving me new strength.
“I am no fool,” I say.
I am measured and calm, but my emotions for Emma give me strength.
I can see their world, red lines that make up a solid grid. Every movement he makes is registered. His weaknesses display in my retinas.
As I stare at his floundering body, I cannot see any heart beat. There is just a solid mass inside him, floating like a rock.
I can see him for what he really is. A nobody. A nothing entity. These aliens gave up their souls long ago.
“Slain will destroy this planet and seek refuge. He doe
s not care about anything but himself. You cannot comprehend the mess you have just made,” he screams.
But he is like a cornered cockroach, and I’m the one who is about to squash him.
He scrambles away, but I can see three steps ahead of him now. I kick his ankle out from underneath him and watch as he falls head-first into the energy source.
“N-N-No!” he shrieks.
Losing energy fast, I watch as the blue beams of light consume his body. In agony, he writhes. His face grows older. His armor immediately rusts over.
“You’ll pay...” he croaks.
Within seconds, he is gone. There is no left-over body to step over. There is only that great beam of light.
I’m shutting this place down.
I hobble toward the wires along the wall. Using the sentinel mask, I shoot a laser beam from my eyes, cutting through the tough cables.
The glow starts to fade. Soon, it’s gone.
The Resnyx that Slain has collected disappears into the atmosphere.