Beyond the mountain of grey and the heady cloud of factory decay, golden hues of sunrise came to start the day. The grace of light brought my eyes to a corroded signboard.

'Great Victoria, land of the west' was on it.

I glanced at Kael, who was still checking his gears. "The topography and name seems to imply we are in Australia," I started.

The edge of his lips twisted. "It used to be."

Leaning sideways on the wall, I looked far into the distance, examining the clearer sight of dunes. "Australia is not in the west. It's east. In regard to the earth's geography."

Kael hummed before repeating the same answer. "It used to be."

Curious, I tilted to him. My eyes took in a mesmerising sight on the instant; of him fixing his hair. It was quiffed and tied back. He looked dangerously roguish. I couldn't help but stare.

The second I caught sign of him turning, I dragged my eyes back to the window. "That must be a mistake."

After buckling up his boots, Kael slung on his bag. He chose to neglect the issue and headed for the door. "Feisty first." He motioned to the outside.

I grabbed my pouch and walked to the exit. "It's ladies first."

"You're not so ladylike last night when you jump me."

My feet halted at his point. I poked his chest with my forefinger, wearing a scowl. "Last night was on you."

Although knowing the very truth, my pride wouldn't let me admit it. What should I say? Carnal impulse was to blame?

Unfortunately, none of my attitudes fazed him. He even threw a laugh down my face. And I helplessly drifted in his glistening emeralds before his thumb brushed my cheek. "Of course." He swivelled, raising an eyebrow before he turned his back to me. "The next one on you."

"What do you mean by that?"

He angled his head slightly, allowing me a glimpse of his smirk. "Last night was indeed on me. Why don't you just say you want me on you instead?"

My eyes widened, understanding what he meant by it. I doubted he was shallow. Stressing he would use my word against me again, I pressed my lips shut.

***

We were back inside the maze of alley without any of us speaking since we left the inn. The land and skyways were already busy with roaring machines. We stood behind the nook to what looked like a garage. Kael assessed the premise. After the coast was clear, he signalled for me to follow. As if I had a choice at the state of being chained to him.

"What are we doing?" I whispered.

"We're getting that." He jutted his chin to a direction.

At the corner of the rundown building sat a hoverbike, assuming by the absence of axle and wheels. The built was robust; a suspension made to carry weight and height. There were two propulsive portions below it, aligned to one another. It looked out of place around the scattering junk.

"Are you serious? You can't just take it," I argued. My eyes took him whole, again distracted by how good he looked while sitting on the machine.

Keal yanked me, instantly landing me on his lap. He closed any space for my escape, holding on the handle to trap me in. When the engine swooshed, it was too late for words. "Hold on tight, darling," he breathed.

Speed put on a show instantly, and I was dragged onto his chest when we zoomed forward. Alas, a contrast to the silent engine was furious roars from three carriers coming from behind. And violet skinned drivers screamed words I couldn't understand. Kael looked through the side mirror and surprisingly smiled. He leaned forth to accelerate, crushing his cheek to mine before I fixed my sitting.

"Are they chasing us?" I asked. My heart leapt every time we made a steep turn inside the tight space between buildings.

Suddenly the aliens started shooting beams, giving me my answer. Kael pulled out his gun and returned fire. An explosion happened a while later, clouding the area with smoke. But two emerged and resumed their pursuit. More bizarre words rolled out of their mouths, or snouts.

Under the commotion, Kael spun around, taking his eyes off entirely from the road. "Drive this baby," his hands let go of the handle "Don't worry, they ran out of ammunition."

"Wow, that's convincing."

Although strung into the action by surprise, I had no choice than to take over manoeuvring. "You're insane! I don't know how to run this thing!"

Feeling the sudden breeze on my back, I glanced behind, witnessing Kael jumping onto one of the approaching hostiles.

"There is no better time to learn than now, " he replied upon landing on the alien vehicle. The two sparred leaving me dumbfounded.

Dread caught up with me as the other alien matched velocity and hovered on my left. The walrus look-alike creature growled and started kicking the hoverbike. Each impact caused the motor to grate the wall.

"Surlulliwova," it screamed.

Fight or freight was nothing I was conflicted with; it would always be the first. My eyes took turns looking to the side, at the mirror and my front in an unmannerly sequence. On a two way path, I veered the hoverbike slightly to enter the right. After estimating the proximity of reaching the intersection, I propelled myself up. Still holding onto the handle, I used drag to span my legs 360° for a split kick. Kael crouched in time before my feet landed on the alien he was strangling. The last alien was distracted and crashed to the line divider.

Whistling, Kael jumped back to the hoverbike. He placed his hands over mine on the handle. His laugh broke out. "What a woman!"

I gasped at the look of mischievous in his face. "You did that on purpose! You could have get it over with."

"What's the fun in it then?" He winked, matching my eyes through the mirror.

***

After leaving the town walls, we entered the dunes. Kael stopped the hoverbike and hopped off.

I checked the motor, running my fingers on the damaged side. "We shouldn't steal. It's wrong."

"They probably steal it from someone else," he replied.

When I glanced at him, he was pissing on the sand.

I sighed. "You don't know that."

"So you know Terra better than me?"

Shielding my eyes with my palm, I looked far into the distance, sand and more of it stretch ahead. "Did it ever cross your mind, not everything other people do is the right way to live? If they steal and they get away with it, why should you?"

A zipping sound pitched before the hoverbike lowered slightly. "Let it be wrong if it's the only way to live," he replied.

After he opened a rectangular-shaped tablet, a transparent screen lit up onto thin air. The image grew and shrunk following his tap. I recognised it as a map. But the more I looked into it, the more I was convinced something was off.

I pondered and looked at his idle face. "Why is Australia on the wrong side of the world, Kael?" I pointed my finger to where it was now marked on the very edge of the earth's left plain.

His eyes moved to me for a second before it returned to the map. Smoke cleared from his mouth, instantly carried by the wind. He spat his ciggy then shut off the tablet. Eyebrows perched together, he finally let out, "The absence of mass on Terra's core is making the magnetic pole shift."

The gears in my skull started to run. Yet it wasn't fast enough to make me understand before Kael continued, "Billions of years ago, Antarctica was a dessert. Do you know why?"

In truth, I began to have a clue, but my brain required assurance. Hence, I shook my head.

"Because at the time, Antarctica wasn't shrouded by the sun. It wasn't in the south. Terra's magnetic pole depends on the mass. Any change on the pressure would also change the axis of its rotation."

Horror struck me, knowing what came next to the event—mass destruction. If earth were to change poles for real, gravity itself would lose its grip. A second was all it took for everything to spiral out from the atmosphere shield.

"The mass, what is it? What is the pressure holding Terra's core?"

"The ice."

"But scientist predicted the ice melting would take billions of more years," I reminded.

Kael sighed and slung his leg over the hoverbike. His jaw set, weighing on something I couldn't decipher. Feeling a sudden need to give him comfort, I leaned to him. "What is it?"

He relaxed, but his smile was bitter. "It's not only melting. It's a gold mine to the outsiders."

"Aliens are harvesting the ice?"

Slowly he nodded.