He was drowning in darkness.

Swells of waves pushed him under, deeper into the bottom. With a circular sweep, they'd bring him back up. The pain was gone and he was able to swim upwards, in search of the surface. Above was a shimmering light, its long rays extended and flared out just a few feet away from him. Rapidly kicking his legs, he reached up and inched towards it. His hand broke through the top layers. He emerged from the depths.

The ocean churned all around him.

"Benjamin!" Someone's voice distantly called out to him.

Turning his head, he noticed land. Not far from him, a woman stood on the shoreline and motioned to him. It was his mother.

"Mom!"

She cheered as he swam to her. "You'll be okay! Don't worry, just relax."

It sounded as if the voice was coming from somewhere else. The sky? He looked up at the stormy and pendulant clouds above. They resembled huge boulders tumbling through an infinite gray vastness. Fake and surreal looking, they speedily rolled in different directions. His eyes scanned for his mother on the shoreline. She was receding, rapidly moving further away from him.

"No!" He yelled as he vigorously kicked his legs. "Come back! Don't go!"

"Shh, just lay back."

"Why? Why are you abandoning me?" Why the hell is she telling me to lay back? That doesn't make any sense! He shook his head.

Finally, it dawned on him that he'd been in a fever-induced dream. Stuck somewhere between dreamworlds and hallucinations, that's where he'd seen multiple versions of his mother. None of it was real. The days, weeks—he wasn't certain how much time passed—all turned into one disorderly blur.

Some days he'd wake with a gasp and realized that Syrqnä was helping him into a seated position. Something was being placed into his mouth. Food? Water was also being poured into his mouth, he wasn't sure if he ate all the food and drank all the water, or just mainly choked on what ever he was fed.

Other days he dreamt of his hometown, surrounded by people he didn't know or recognize. Though it would always eventually melt away into a city he never heard of nor visited. Lost and walking aimlessly, he'd repeatedly stop at the same places. A store clerk would yell at him when he grabbed a chocolate bar. Someone spoke to the enraged man and paid for his chocolate bar. Two adults approached him.

A man and a woman. They looked like his parents, but they weren't. They were Kraälst, he was sure of it. Kraälst pretending to be his parents, trying to lure him into a trap. He'd always return to the depository many times. It was as if he'd never been there. All the cryotubes were neatly arranged and in pristine condition. Everything was back to normal in that horrible room. More children and people were being placed into the tubes. The Kraälst were still capturing children. Still ate them, while all he could do was watch helplessly and useless to do anything about it.

"Don't hurt the children!" He'd yell, but the Kraälst would just turn to him and eventually carried him away into another room. There he would remained locked up in pitch darkness, listening to others crying and wailing.

After six weeks, his mind was a confused mess. Syrqnä would remind him that it was all in his head—nothing more than a figment of his imagination. Nothing was real. He was safe at that moment, but he needed to be quiet, because a sentry was going to be passing on the walkway near their building. His arm was in a makeshift sling, mending speedily. The pain that had taken residence for days within his body, rapidly dissipated with the accelerated time. She found some pain relievers to help him through the days when it was at its worst.

A month later, he was able to walk around within the building, often stretching and squatting. His muscles cramped from being bedridden for that long. With a bunched up t-shirt, he'd do hand exercises to build up strength in his arm. The bathroom was a different story.

An unfortunate situation, since there weren't that many rooms. Embarrassed and completely uncomfortable, he'd use the furthest one down the corridor within the eastern wing, but the strangeness of it was too difficult for him to grow accustomed to. It was strange, since he had to do the same thing in the underground area they previously hid at, but that place was huge. Usually, he waited until Syrqnä was away to perform bathroom duties.

They had set up their sleeping area, or commons area, to a room further back in the middle section of the building. When he returned, he was surprised to find her already there. His cheeks flushed with a crimson color as he held his head down, averting his gaze. At that moment, he would've traded anything for a normal bathroom. She paused and lifted an eyebrow, but didn't speak. Instead, she reached into her bag and took out a white bottle, shaking it in front of his face.

What's this? He read the label. Multivitamins?

A fortunate find. I don't believe you're getting all the proper nutrients from eating canned food and the rare tuna packets. Not that it's been stunting your growth, but I think it would be wise for you to take them. She reached in, pulled out a knife and held it out towards him.

Okay! I'll take them! Just put the knife away! He held a hand out.

It's to cut your hair.

With a knife?? No. You get that thing away from me!

We'll do this the easy way or the hard way.

He ran away from her. You can't make me.

I won't run after you, though ... you know I can easily catch you. At least braid it? Look how long and matted your hair is. You resemble an Orangutan.

She was right. He held out a tuft of long hair, it was just a few inches above his waist. What about the Vikings, they wore braids. Didn't they? They still managed to look manly. A ridiculous image of him as a Viking took form in his head and quickly changed his mind. It might not have been the best look for him. Begrudgingly, he rescinded his previous statement.

Fine ... cut it.

The knife ruggedly pulled and cut on his hair, often snagging on a strand. He muffled a whimper and furiously glared at her. Was she trying to kill him? His neck would jerk in different directions as she quickly pulled segments to cut through. There was a crink to the left, backwards, to the right, forwards and he was fairly certain she was going to break his neck. After ten extremely annoying minutes, Syrqnä placed the knife down.

Done.

It feels weird? Do you have a mirror somewhere in that bag? His hand rummaged through his hair, it felt uneven. Tugging some of the longer ends, he huffed. I think you did a crappy job. Stick to your equations, fighting Kraälst and leave my hair alone! You suck!

You still have your ears.

Lucky! I probably look insane. It probably looks a hundred times worse than it did before. I should've just gone for the braid! He kicked her bag.

Hey, I just made that. You could have kicked the insignia and we would have a deflated corpse in the middle of the room.

The memory came rushing back. Holding a hand over his mouth, he stifled his laughter. I almost forgot about that feature.

You're welcome.

A shifting and clinking sound came from the middle room.

What was that?!?

It's Mluglalk Bli. He wanted to watch you for a bit before appearing. The only humans he's seen have been the ones at the swamp ... running for their lives.

Mluglalk Bli skittered through the entrance and approached them. The tips of his legs tapped and clinked lightly against the floor. Standing at barely five feet, his eye rotated upwards inside his see-through shell to look up at Benjamin.

Oh! Yeah, I remember him. Why's he here?

He's here to make sure you don't get into any trouble while I'm away.

Huh? He crossed his arms. You got me a babysitter?!? I don't need a babysitter!

Precautions. With you, one can never be too safe. Plus, he can distract the sentry IF you do decide to get into trouble.

Mluglalk Bli jumped back and then walked around in a circle. "Mluglalk Bli, gluggli glurp glurgle blirg blurblig grugli."

What's he saying?

She shook her head. You don't want to know.

Mluglalk Bli made several more low gurgling sounds and rapidly gestured with a spindly leg. The creature pointed one directly at Benjamin, who looked wide-eyed at Syrqnä.

He said he'll impale you with one of his legs while you're sleeping, before he's forced to fight with any sentry.

Violent insect.

"Glutgliglu!"

"Shh!" Syrqnä whispers. You'll be fine. I believe you'll both get along.

Oh, yeah! Riiiight. Sure, we'll talk about all kinda things. Well, I'll talk and he'll just sound like he's drowning.

Mluglalk Bli turned, skittered into the previous room and hid in a dark corner. From within the shadows, his black shimmering eyeball stared at Benjamin with an unwavering gaze.

I just remembered something about you humans. Ah, that's it. You're at that age—a complete teenager.

What do you mean by that?

Syrqnä walked away.

Hey! Come back! What did you mean?

For almost a month, Benjamin was followed by Mluglalk Bli everywhere he went. The creature shadowed his every move and behavior. During one early visit to the bathroom, Benjamin threw a bag at him. With a loud rustling, it missed its target and landed limply against the wall.

"Ah! Soo annoying! No, you don't! You're not following me in here. Go away!" He whisper yelled.

Mluglalk Bli backed away a few feet, but remained waiting in the corridor.

When he exited the room, he grumbled and slumped his shoulders. The clinking sounds followed him to the commons area where he sat down to eat from a can. As he searched for a bottle of water, the can gently scraped against the floor behind him. He quickly turned and saw the creature's trunk-like proboscis slurping some of the canned meat.

It trembled and shook. Taking three steps back, it uttered several gurgles. "Blarg!" It spat out the meat.

"Hey!" Benjamin angrily whispered. "You just wasted my food, you stupid insect."

The word 'insect' always seemed to anger it and this time was no different. Mluglalk Bli charged, lifted a leg and rammed it through the bottle. Benjamin's eyes widened when he saw the water pouring out of it. Squinting, he frowned at the creature.

"I'm going to poke your soft shell and watch you deflate like a balloon."

Incessantly nagging Syrqnä for days, he finally got her to concede in allowing him to venture out. Everyday he stealthily investigated the abandoned segment, learning its turns and divisions. He hid behind buildings and learned the paths the sentry took. Twice a day—just like Syrqnä had told him—it would pass near their building. Further expeditions were taken, inching closer the the city's border. Once he memorized the area, he wanted to go out into the swamp.

He had a theory he wanted to test. Preparing a bag for his adventure, he placed a torch inside, two bottles of water and a can of vegetables. The arm that had been injured was completely healed and functional. Slipping it into the gun, he gazed at it. Syrqnä's print was still embedded into the top part of the frame. Each of her fingers were perfectly detailed with the palm print containing every groove.

Standing at the building's exit, he leaned over and looked out. The sentry wouldn't pass for many hours, but he wanted to make sure nothing else was on the walkway. One of the vents that connected to the underground was just a few meters away, but he didn't want to risk taking that one. He decided to take the one near the Factory of the Forgotten. It had an easy route to the swamp. Running through into the city section, he stopped and peered over the edge of a building.

Coast's clear. The hole was no more than ten feet away from him and he prepared himself for a sprint. Please work! He jumped into the vent.

Just as he entered, he quickly pressed the insignia and activated the shield. Legs first and plummeting downwards, he knew that if it didn't work he'd be a splattered mess at the bottom. The landing was harsh, his bones vibrated, but nothing was broken. He was alive. It worked. Within the darkness, he felt for the bag and lobbed it in front of him.

The flickering light from the torch illuminated the way. Speedily running, he eventually slowed down to a jog. It was longer than he remembered. Sweat trickled down his face and stung his eyes. Up ahead, he could make out the faintly glow of the exit. No rocks covered the entrance and light trickled in from outside. He turned off the torch placed it in his bag, drank some water and activated the invisibility functions.

A few hours later, he heard a distant screech echo throughout the swamp. He ran to the direction it came from. When he neared the location, he ran in spurts and paused behind a tree, using it for cover. Not that they would've seen him, but if they heard the constant squelching of the mud under his feet, he might've alerted any Eaters that were in the area.

Steam mists rose from the warm muddy ground in a clearing up ahead. Transparent white plumes twisted in the cooler air, tumbling and gyrating into themselves before dissipating into tiny droplets of water that fell into the ground. An item laid in the middle, he narrowed his eyes, but couldn't decipher what it was. Hopefully, a bag with some food and water inside. As he stepped out from the tree, something appeared in the clearing. He hid behind the tree again and peered over.

It was a scout, with its usual young teenager disguise. Taking rigid steps towards the item, it paused to glance down for a moment. Benjamin looked around his feet for something he could use. A rock, the size of his hand, was six inches away from him. He threw it with all his strength far to the left of him. With a loud plopping sound it landed in between two trees.

The scout straightened his back and vacantly peered at the location the rock fell. Slowly turning, he walked away from the item. Benjamin aimed and consecutively released plasma shots. Nonstop the plasma hit the scout until it fell to the ground. He kept shooting at its prone form before it could even look at its attacker. With a squelching burst, the scout was gone.

When he approached the item, he stared at it confused. What is it?

Two golden straps seemed to wrap around a dark-brown covering. There didn't seem to be any openings, or anything that would indicate a way to opening. He ran a hand across its surface. The material was a sort of smooth metal with a golden frame covered the sides of the oval object. Shiny, round, bolts were embedded within the golden straps. Turning it around, he noticed a circular groove on the top of the back part with a line that ran down the middle. Engraved near the edges were some triangular symbols of different shapes.

When he ran his index finger over them, a faint yellow glow lit up the symbols, but nothing happened. He touched them in a series of sequences. After several attempts, the circular segment popped up with a hissing sound. Bright orange vials lined up the side compartments of a tube-shaped structure. In between laid two, flat, circular discs with more symbols.

Maybe Syrqnä can find out what these are? He placed the tube in his bag and walked away from the clearing. Nothing else seemed to be laying around the area. Walking for over an hour, he decided to return back to the underground area. At the entrance, he removed his bag and searched for the torch.

And how exactly did you plan on getting back into the abandoned segment?

He dropped his bag and scanned the area around him, but she was invisible. Having her speak telepathically to him, she sounded like she was in all directions. Taking several turns, he shook his head and walked into the tunnel.

Did you pick up anything that could help you scale the vent?

No. He picked up his pace.

So? What was the plan?

I don't know, but since you just keep following me, you can help me get back then! Right?

Maybe.

He turned and pointed the torch at the empty dark space behind him. Maybe??

I suppose this means you can finally help me search for items on a regular basis.

Really!?!

Yes. Did you use the shield function when you threw yourself in the vent?

Yup! Pretty neat huh?

What would have happened if you landed on your head though?

Aww, come on! You know that was an epic idea and you know it.

It was. I wouldn't have risked it, but now we know. Let's go, I'm sure Mluglalk Bli misses your company.

Ugh. Why is it still with us?

What if it were you having to be all alone on an alien planet?

He thought about it for a moment and suddenly felt bad for the creature. It would actually suck. Fine, I'll be nicer to the insect.

You can start with not calling him that anymore. He might resemble one, but he still has emotions. The fact that he can receive your brainwaves, proves how advanced he really is. No adult Mluglalk Bli would have opened the door, they know better. So, he's just as stubborn and curious as you are. In fact, if he were to be a human, he'd be much younger than you. I would say ... the equivalent of an eleven year old.

Well, that explains why he follows me around so much! All right. I'll just call him Blee. He's still annoying though.

Later in the evening, she explained that the discs were explosive devices and that the vials were a form of supplement that belonged to a Saurornithoides Thubanis—from constellation Alpha Draconis. For a month they canvassed the swamp in search of items. Sometimes they encountered a random scout that searched the areas. She had grown confident in his ability to take care of himself when it was a lower level Kraälst and would let him dispose of them when needed.

You're kind of quiet today. It's freaking me out. He asked as he rummaged through a large hiking bag, dropping a sports drink in his and reading the labels on the food packets.

Tomorrow the cellar door to Earth will appear.

Already? You mean I get to go home! That's awesome! Where?

Based on my calculations, it will be within a zero point eight-hundred and five kilometer radius near the western edge of the abandoned segment.

Home. I get to go home. He stared off into the purpling sky.

Yes. You can finally leave.

****

***Saurornithoides, a small Carl Sagan joke.

Song above 'You're Somebody Else':

You look like yourself but you're somebody else / Only it ain't on the surface. / You talk like yourself... No. I hear someone else though / Now you're making me nervous." When that lyric actually came out of the ether, it was more a matter of one speaking to oneself rather than to another person. Sometimes when we're dealing with psychological issues, we literally feel displaced internally; alien to ourselves. This song ended up taking on multiple meanings and perspectives but the root of it at the beginning was as a sort of self-talk, self-therapy.—Cole Randall

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