(A/N: Aloha 🌺

Another chapter for You. Thank you for your comments and votes and I am asking for further feedback 😊 It motivates me immensely and draws attention to things I missed.)

It all started with a meteor shower. 

They were not as large objects as the one that (supposedly) made the dinosaurs extinct, but still big enough to cause a lot of damage. The bombardment lasted several days, which completely paralyzed any movement between continents, countries and even cities. People hid in houses, but still many died, not only from the blows themselves but from accidents caused by them; demolition of buildings, road collisions, and one particularly large meteorite caused a tsunami that claimed thousands of lives. Humanity has been decimated, and the destruction, covering the entire globe was colossal. 

 When the meteors finally stopped hitting the Earth and people thought that it was over, all hell was about to break loose.

Aliens appeared.

In fact, no one didn't exactly know where they came from. No telescope, radar or satellite had detected their ships coming until they occured out of nowhere near the South Pole and spread over the entire Earth.

One day you had gone back to work because the threat of falling meteorites had disappeared, and the next day a state of emergency had been declared in forty-four countries around the globe.

Hollywood's darkest alien invasion scenarios had come true. Although, in fact, probably few people thought that this was how humanity's first meeting with intelligent extraterrestrials would look like. At first, most people tried to resist, but they died en masse in clashes with this hitherto unknown force. Few pacifists talked about simply not attacking, putting the weapon aside and trying to communicate with them somehow. Unfortunately, this point of view was not taken seriously by the rulers. The armies of most countries pulled out the heaviest artillery, but they did it with the consent and encouragement of the majority of society. Although the effect of this tactic was negligible, it only slowed down the attackers. 

It soon became clear that the meteorites must have been their doing, though no one knew how they could have done it.

Volunteer troops had been formed in almost every country to fight the invaders. Regardless of their size, level of experience, or training, they died within seconds after meeting just a few aliens. Only nukes did not manage to go into battle. Before anything was decided at the extraordinary meeting of the heads of the greatest states, the aliens, as if sensing what it could mean for them, got into the bunker where the meeting was taking place and ... from then on, you could say that your civilization had ended. 

There were fears that now some fool would unleash nuclear hell, as if there wasn't enough trouble, but it looked like the aliens had technology that blocked the possibility of launching missiles. At least that's what the media, in their last breath, reported. So apparently someone tried to do it.

In just a few weeks, most of the world began to resemble a post-apocalyptic B-movie. The few media, which had not yet died, gave only fragmentary information about the next destroyed cities and instructions on how to hide from the Reptiles, as they called the invaders, but nothing could guarantee a hundred percent safety.

Of course, the name Reptiles comes from the appearance of aliens. 

They looked humanoid in a way. From the few testimonies of witnesses and photos and recordings, it was known that they were bigger, much stronger, and looked like huge lizards. Their skin was hard and thick, from a distance it resembled a reptile-like, but those who got to know it up close did not lie down long enough to say anything about it. Their skin also came in different colors, from brown and beige through reds, yellows and blues and additional patterns.

The term that best suited them was: humanoid reptiles with large mouths, full of sharp teeth and flat nostrils. They wore what looked like tinted goggles over their eyes and dark strappy and knee-length jumpsuits.

Their heads were adorned with colorful, feathered mohawks reaching their backs. They had membranous ears and sharp claws on their hands and feet. The feet were built similarly to four-legged animals (the heel did not touch the ground), which helped them to jump well. 

And also tails. Thick, and tipped with feathers similar to those on their heads. They probably helped them keep their balance while jumping. 

They worked alone or in small groups. The reports from the first month, when radio, television and the Internet were still operating, had shown that no one had managed to kill any of them.

It turned out that almost every country had written so-called "alien invasion response protocols", but in the case of the Reptiles, everything failed. They were too clever, too numerous, too technologically advanced and attacked too many countries at once.

Every day brought news of the destruction of more cities. The aliens were merciless, they killed anyone who stood in their way ... they ruthlessly destroyed all large-scale buildings. At least that's what was said in the mass media.

Those who were smart escaped from larger human settlements, where it became very dangerous. The reptiles operated stealthily, but that did not detract from their effectiveness. Death at their hands was quick and painful. Usually, you didn't even realize it was coming. They could perfectly blend into the background, like chameleons, so at first people didn't even know what was attacking them.

In just three weeks since the first reports about their appearance, they have decimated the population of larger cities. Corpses littered the streets because there was no one to take care of the dead, which was the cause of further misfortunes, namely the spread of diseases.

Stupefied with fear, people began to turn against each other. You were horrified to hear the news that in larger cities there are whole groups looting shops and private homes, sparing no one. The world was in complete chaos.

You lived in a small city, in a country that was one of the last to be attacked, so you and your family had time to prepare and protect yourself.

***

The city was burning. Huge tongues of fire reached almost to the very starry sky, and you watched them from a safe distance. You stared at the flames, enchanted, even though you knew you should leave. Run away as far as possible, as your loved ones did. But you couldn't. Something kept you there like you were waiting for something or someone to come out of the flames.

'(Y/n)!' You heard your mother calling you from a distance, but you couldn't turn to her. Not now, just a moment..

'(Y/N)!' Someone shook you, and dream ended abruptly. You blinked, trying to see something in the dim light. 

Your mother was standing over you with a lit candle. 'Wake up, darling. We're leaving.'

'What?' you murmured, still sleepy and partly still in your dream.

'We're going to the factory,' she reminded.

'Now?!'

'Yes. The electricity went out. Julius is sure that the reptiles must have attacked the power plant. Hurry up.'

You scrambled out of bed and started gathering your things. You've been together for some time now, in your parents' house. First because of the meteorites, your aunt and her family didn't return to the capital city, and then, when the aliens had appeared, they brought Patrik's parents as well.

There were nine of you in total now. Lots of people to move elsewhere unnoticed.

Under the cover of night, in the midst of an outbreak of panic caused by cutting off the power plant, you set off on foot to an old canning factory in the suburbs, where you planned to hide. It was a place abandoned years ago, standing far from other buildings. Your grandfather worked there, so you knew there were large cellars in the factory that could have been the perfect shelter for you.

Even though it was May, the nights were still cool, so you put on many layers of clothes not to be cold, but also to carry as little weight as possible. Everyone had a backpack full to the brim, and the men carried bags full of essentials.

Your father insisted that you go to the factory by car, but your uncle laughed at the idea.

'Why don't we get your old drum kit out right now and start playing it, shall we?' he growled angrily. 'Don't you understand, idiot, that we're supposed to sneak in there unnoticed?'

'We're not going to turn on the lights. There's still cars on the streets. A few hours ago the neighbors left with theirs!' Your father tried to convince him but in vain. Uncle was adamant.

'We don't know what happened to them. Without the lights, we'll make noise anyway, and it could blow the hideout. We're going on foot, understood? The cars stay.'

You submitted to his will because there was no other choice. 

You left the house and carefully crept along the street, ignoring the noises and panicked screams coming from all sides. That's what your uncle told you. You were supposed to focus on yourself. At that point, everyone had to fend for themselves.

It was his words that didn't resonate with you at all, but you were part of that group and had to comply.

'Somehow no one else is worried about the noise,' your father hissed, aptly describing the situation around.

'Shut up, Ben!' uncle chided him.

You were heading northwest, wanting to get to the factory as quickly as possible. It was very dark because none of the artificial light devices were working. Fortunately, the moon was nearing full and gave enough light that you could walk without turning on the flashlights.

You passed a few neighbors who were fleeing to the sewage channels and tried to persuade you to do the same, but your uncle categorically shook his head and urged you to keep going. 

A few blocks from your parents' house, you stumbled upon a fresh mess left behind by none other than a reptile or two. Four cars smashed and dented as if someone had thrown them. The passengers, or rather what was left of them, were still inside.

Julius looked at your father meaningfully, but he didn't seem to notice the look, too scared the scene you came across.

Your cousin Bea, holding her son in her arms, vomited profusely, staining her shoes.

You reached into the overturned wastepaper basket and pulled out one of the newspapers. The article on the front page talked about aborted drilling in Antarctica, so you concluded that it must be an old newspaper. For over a month, only information about the damage caused by meteorites and aliens appeared in the press.

'Here,' you handed the newspaper to Bea as she finished emptying her stomach. 'Use this.' 

She wiped her shoes best she could, as you took the kid from her arms. Patrick, and uncle Julius peered into the vehicles to see if anyone had miraculously survived. Having checked all the vehicles efficiently, the men just shook their heads and you moved on.

Weakened by vomiting and clearly terrified of facing an alien, Bea leaned on the shoulder of her mother-in-law, Bianca, while you still carried Elijah, who was smart enough to know that, for the sake of all of them, he had to keep quiet.

'Stay close to me, okay, (y/n)?' Bea asked in a weak voice, probably wanting to have the child by her side in case of danger. Although truth be told, little could change that. If any reptile stood in your way, no one would get out of this meeting alive. In addition, another danger has recently emerged. Groups of so-called savages, people, mainly men, who preyed on the situation, became more and more popular. They attacked others just to get what they needed. You heard they killed in cold blood for a pack of cigarettes.

You walked slowly, trying not to make any noise and to get out of the city by the shortest route possible. However, you quickly found traces of the reptiles again. From a distance, you saw the glow of a fire illuminating the darkness around you. Heaps of bodies of people who died terribly painful death piled up on the street, piled up in front of the burning church building. And here, probably, many tried to find shelter...

Bea started throwing up again while Bianca held her long blonde curls. And you barely suppressed your gag reflex. 

'Get it together, girl!' uncle hissed at her. 'Let's go! We seem to be on their heels, we have to go around...'

'Shouldn't we help somehow? There could be someone alive inside...' you began, looking at the burning church. Tall flames reaching the night sky reminded you of your dream.

'I highly doubt it!" snapped uncle.

You frowned. There was no point in counting on the fire brigade, as it had been for a long time. And at the moment, even human altruism could not be counted on.

Your mother came to you. 'All right, darling?'

'Silence!' Julius hissed again, so you just nodded in response.

Your mother stretched out her arms to take Elijah from you, which you readily agreed to as he was beginning to feel heavy. 

Uncle headed north toward the park. There was a good chance you'd actually be safer there. But you stayed behind, hesitating.

You looked at the raging element again. Maybe if you hadn't had that dream you would have gone on without thinking, but... you had this feeling like you really had to wait for something...

Tongues of fire were pouring out of the main entrance to the church, but the side entrance seemed safe... You could run and check if there was anyone inside...

Suddenly you saw movement.

Someone emerged from the darkness of the street and stood in the glow of the flames, among the dead bodies. Seeing who it was, you wanted only one thing: to run a mile.

Unfortunately, you were completely paralyzed by fear and you couldn't even move a finger. So you stood in a stupor, watching how the reptile slowly walk towards the church.

It was huge and scary as if a crocodile or komodo dragon suddenly took a human shape. A little dinosaur-like, a little bird-like, a little human-like...

It was hard for you to tell the color of the skin or the plump feathers that grew on his or maybe her head and tail, in this light, but you had to admit that despite the terror emanating from the alien's form, it looked wonderful, absolutely delightful.

It hadn't noticed you yet, or so you thought because it was still staring at the burning building. You watched closely, slowly getting over your fear. The alien walked slightly bent, bending his knees and balancing his tail, as if ready to jump. After a while, however, you realized that probably the reptiles move in this way, due to the structure of their legs. You had never seen one before with your own eyes, and what the media showed was mainly blurry spots and so-called memory portraits. Despite the fear, you felt curious about this hitherto unknown species.

A car passed by. The driver, seeing the alien, accelerated, and the terrified screams of the passengers could be heard. However, the reptile completely ignored it and, to your amazement, entered the church through the side entrance, just as you intended. The fire burst at it as soon as the door was open, but it jumped into the flames anyway and disappeared inside.

Surprised, you wait until it resurfaces. You regained control of your body, so you walked closer and stood behind the parked car on the street, staring at the side entrance to the church.

Seconds ticked by and the reptile was nowhere to be seen. You were about to leave when the sound of breaking glass caught your attention. One of the stained glass windows that did not crack from the heat was broken. The reptile jumped out of it, although the word jumped out could be replaced with the word flew out, holding something small that whimpered softly in its arms. You strained your eyes to get a better look at it as the alien set the thing down gently and you jumped in surprise to see it was a human baby. A little girl, no more than four years old.

Your movement didn't escape its notice because you stepped on a twig that might not have made much noise, but was loud enough for the reptile to hear you.

Feathered head instantly turned towards you, and your eyes met, whether you wanted it or not.

It felt like electric shock.

As if you had already died or jumped out of your body and stood next to it. 

You wanted to vomit, and at the same time you were filled with something indefinable, but it was the closest thing to a feeling of total ecstasy. Fear has completely disappeared... 

No, that's an understatement. You felt as if fear never existed at all, as if it were some artificial concept with no substance at all. 

You struggled to stay on your feet, but somehow you couldn't break your eye contact.

You didn't really know what was going on. It was strange, even very strange... You've never experienced anything like it.

The reptile also looking confused, sighed heavily and took a step back. Finally, it tore the gaze from you and looked at the child crying at its feet. Then looked at you again, and you already knew, though it was hard to believe, what it meant.

You nodded your head slightly, and the alien just disappeared as quickly as it appeared, leaving you in a state that was hard to describe in words. 

It was as if a window had suddenly opened in your head, letting in so much light that it blinded you completely. As if all at once, so much information flowed into your mind that it was unable to filter it.

You weren't sure if what you saw wasn't just an illusion, but the crying girl who remained in the same place where the Reptile had left her reassured you that everything really happened after all.

Recovering a bit, you ran over to her.

'Hey, don't cry, it'll be okay.'

The child looked at you and then you recognized her. It was Cornelia, a girl from the hospice that you and Eliza visited, what felt like hundred years ago.

'Where are your parents?' you asked, even though you were afraid of what you might hear. The girl pointed at the burning building. You didn't ask further.

'I'll take you with me, okay Cornelia?My name is (y/n), we met in the hospice. Do you remember?'

The little one nodded, and you took her in your arms and ran as fast as you could toward the park.

***

The family noticed your absence with a delay, so before your uncle got furious, you managed to join them back and briefly tell what happened. But they didn't want to believe you.

'Stop talking nonsense. If you risked yourself for this little girl, at least have the courage to admit it!' growled uncle Julius. 'We've wasted enough time on you already. Let's go!'

'You must have been imagining something, darling,' your mother said softly to you. 'Maybe it was just a man.'

You made your way through the bushes of the park, as quietly as possible.

'Ask her,' you pointed at Cornelia. 'Tell me, Corny, who was it? Who carried you out of the fire?'

'Monfta," replied the child.

'A monster, see? She wouldn't call human like that.'

'I don't know, (y/n)... It's hard to believe such selfless kindness on their part, especially since if you really saw the reptile, it probably started the fire. Why would it save one small child at the risk of its own life?'

'I have no idea. I'm not saying it's logical, I'm just saying what I saw. I'm curious...'

'Curiosity killed the cat.' uncle snorted. 'Can you finally be quiet? Or are you in a hurry to meet the reptile one more time?!'

***

You managed to reach the factory without further obstacles. A family of four was already sheltering there, and they welcomed your arrival very positively. A few people joined later, so you've made a pretty solid group. Some brought weapons, others food supplies and the skills you need to survive.

A few days after your arrival, at the factory, to your joy, Eliza appeared with her husband, whom, unfortunately, no reptile managed to catch. That's what you thought at first, although you were still not sure whether your suspicions that Anthony (that was the name of Eliza's husband) was using violence against her are true. 

When the Internet was still working, you wrote a message to Eliza that the old factory could be a safe place to hide in case the situation becomes very dangerous. As you can see, she thought so too.

'Is it Cornelia?' she asked seeing the children playing quietly as you showed her and her not-so-talkative husband around your hideout.

'Yes,' you admitted.

'Her parents came here too?'

'No, she's the only one from the family here...' You looked at her meaningfully. She understood what you meant. The girl's parents were dead. You were about to tell her about the reptile carrying the baby out of the flames when Eliza asked again, 

'I guess she's adapted, huh?'

'Yes, much faster and easier than we thought. It's Elijah's credit, of course, he doesn't give her a moment's rest, and you should see how he comforts her when she starts crying.'

'So your cousin Bea is taking care of her, right?'

'Not quite... it's a little bit everyone's responsibility, I guess...'

'No guardian assigned?'

You shrugged your shoulders, not knowing what to say since you haven't agreed on anything yet. You took the kid, so you guess everyone expected you to take care of her. Of course, you took your time with her and made sure she had everything she needed, but you were glad to see Bea doing the same. Just like your mother, Patrick's mother, and other women. Taking care of a child full-time wasn't your dream.

'Because... if you want, we could...' suggested Eliza. You saw so much hope in her eyes. You two never talked about it, but it suddenly hit you that Eliza wanted a baby, and wanted it badly. 'Right, Anthony? We'd take care of that child, wouldn't we?'

'Of course, honey,' the man nodded. He seemed genuinely eager to adopt the baby. Anthony was a very tall, slim man with fair hair that fell over his forehead and a hooked nose. He looked quite gentle, even when he spoke he seemed gentle. However, you couldn't help but feel that there was an ominous purr in his tone. Maybe it was just your imagination, but maybe Eliza's husband really beat her, so will the baby be safe with him?'

'You remember she has cancer. We don't know when and how the next attack of the disease will manifest itself... Actually, we don't know anything... Taking care of her can become very difficult emotionally... We don't have enough medicines here..."

'I realize that, (y/n), but I want to take the responsibility anyway. I would like to give this baby a little joy...'

'Okay, I'll talk to Bea and Mom... we'll see what they say.' 

You stalled, wanting to observe Antoni for a few days.

***

The next day you talked with your mother and Bea about Eliza's proposal. They both thought it was a good idea, so you also told them about your suspicions about the possible aggression of a eventual future father.'

'Impossible, (Y/N),' your mother shook her head, always assuming that everyone was a saint. Bea had similar views on the world, and not even current events could change that. 

'It was only one bruise, you have lots of bruises too...' she said.

'Because I'm clumsy.'

'Antony seems like a really decent man,' your mother took it. 'I think that maybe they just can't have children and that's why they would like to take care of Cornelia. And she liked them too. Besides, for now, we'd rather stay here together. If someone behaved indecently, it will not escape our attention.'

So Eliza and Antoni became official guardians of Cornelia. Soon she began to treat them as her real parents. Eliza was staring at her in amazement, Antoni also seemed infatuated with the child. You didn't notice anything suspicious, so soon you stopped thinking about it at all and were glad that the little one would know at least a little happiness. 

You still often played with or looked after the little one, especially since one of your duties had become to look after the children while others prepared the meals and kept the hideout up and running. Even so, most of your attention has been devoted to helping convert the factory into a convenient place to live.

The building was ruined and boarded up, it stood on the border of the forests surrounding the city. In its heyday, sixty years earlier, it produced the best-canned goods in the country, with the help of your grandfather. The business developed so much that processing was soon moved to the capital, and the building was left alone. There were no takers for it, so it deteriorated over the years. The area around it was neglected and overgrown, providing good protection against prying eyes. Inside, there were a small patio and spacious cellars, where you found a large stock of tinned food from half a century ago, some of which were still edible. If you could still call "food" something that didn't spoil for fifty years. 

The city's waterworks were still running by themselves, and to your amazement, the factory was still connected to them. They only pumped cold water, but it was always possible to heat it on the fire if necessary. 

You arranged places to sleep in the cellar, and as a kitchen you adapted a room next to the patio, where you lit a fire in the evenings, so dinners were the only warm meal you ate, and only when the moon was not shining too brightly. You didn't want someone else to see the smoke and track you down.

You placed the bathroom in the rooms with machines with a water connection and the armory in a small storage room right next to the main entrance, where you stored weapons and ammunition. It wasn't much, but it was enough for your needs. No one tried to attack you, neither the reptiles nor savages, so you only used your weapons for hunting. It turned out that Anthony is a great hunter, so every now and then he would go out with a group of men to bring you something fresh to eat. 

At first, everything went quite well; it was spring, then summer, when one didn't have to hunt, men brought fruit or vegetables dug up from someone's abandoned garden. Then autumn and winter, that was the hardest for you. Fortunately, you had a supply of canned goods that helped you survive. 

Over time, you managed to create a thriving community, led by none other than your uncle. You tried to live as little as possible. If you needed anything other than food, no more than a few armed men went on a supply foray on foot. You had two passenger cars, in which two families reached the hideout. However, you hid them in the factory garage and saved them for a critical time.

It happened that no one came back from the supply foray, and sometimes they came back with an enlarged squad, having found someone who wanted to join your group. But the scouts never brought good news. The reptiles ruined everything and everyone who decided to stay in the city, and those who managed to escape from them had to remember about the savages. Fortunately, according to the findings of the scouts, neither of them was prowling close to your hideout.

***

Although time passed, you still didn't stop thinking about what you saw that fateful evening when you had been running away from the city. You tried to reconcile it somehow with the image of the reptiles you know so far. They were the worst plague to hit the Earth. Merciless, cruel, bloodthirsty. Such were the testimonies of eyewitnesses. Anyway, you saw what they left behind.

Nevertheless, this one and only reptile you saw with your own eyes, not only hadn't show too brutal nature, but also saved the child. From what you knew about them, the alien should have either ignored the fact that human was going to die in the flames or just hastened her death.

And it wasn't a good explanation that they were just sparing children, because they hadn't done that before. They killed everyone, regardless of age or gender.

It was really weird and bothering you, likewise what happened to you when the reptile looked at you. You still felt weird... Somehow different. 

In addition, at night you began to have strange dreams. 

You dreamed of a man's hand. You saw it clearly in front of you. It looked strong, with long, slender fingers that at one point closed over another hand, completely black with white stripes,  hard skin and sharp claws. 

This dream haunted you the most. Since the day you fled the city, you've become more sensitive to the messages of your dreams.

You knew you could see a human and probably a reptile's hands, but what it could mean, you had no idea. You knew it definitely meant something and you were sure it would become clear sooner or later, as the first dream.