Weight of Penumbra Ch. 03

I continued, "A small number think it is wrong what they have done."

Ben still animated with hope.

"Kiowa," his demeanor sunk again. Whatever he was dealing with with Maddie was really waring on him. "You must be careful. You have a privilege to learn more about the Y'vori and the realm than any human ever. Be careful who you trust with what you learn there and share. The aliens may use the information to manipulate your intentions. You don't want to wear out your welcome. Be careful, you are in an extremely dangerous situation at all times both in The Realm and in your colony."

His warning stirred new fears. Was I being spied on or were the constant visits from Y'vori in the colony? Were they waiting to see how I would react? Did they know I have been conscripted into the rebel army?

"I think I will go to bed right now, " It was just too much to take in, I was exhausted by all the constant information and threats being tossed at me. "Why did they want me to go back so soon?" I felt panic rise in my throat.

"We only take orders. We are never given reasons. It is important that you learn this sooner than later. Your questions could be dangerous."

I was clenching my teeth into dust for sure. I was under so much stress since arriving at Ben and Maddie's something wasn't right here and I couldn't figure it out. I forcefully shrugged my shoulders to release a smidgen of tension.

"Come here, " Ben pulled me into a warm embrace gone was the coldness. "Don't worry. Just be safe Kiowa."

I turned my face into his chest and cried. I cried because I needed a hug, I needed my unknowingly surrogate father. I held him tight to me not daring to let go in case this moment evaporated back into the mercurial Ben that greeted me when I arrived. I heaved heavy choking sobs. I had been holding it in for so long, protecting my mom from the turmoil churning inside me but I felt safe to release it all in this moment. Maybe it was just too much to continue to hold in. It felt impossible to take another life giving breath when my next was always threatened.

"I think of you like the daughter I had. I think she would have been as strong as you are, smart too."

Sniffling, I took a moment to pull myself together to look at Ben. His exhausted eyes were rimmed red with quiet tears.

"My wife was killed in a car accident by some kid texting and driving. My daughter was 2 at the time. It was just Daddy and his little girl for 6 happy years. She would be 32, probably married with children of her own.

"Jenessa was 8 when the Y'vori destroyed the area of town she was going to school. I was on the other side of town, Atlanta." He seemed to swallow the lump in his throat. "I worked at the NewsCorp. I was in charge of the news. The mixed-factual reports that the Y'vori paid me to report made people stay in their homes, complacent -- while the Y'vori systematically destroyed town, village, cities.

"I don't know why people didn't just look outside their windows in those days. They could have just opened their eyes to see the lies we were painting.

"Before the aliens revealed themselves, people were distracted, distraught by years of rumors of war, speculation of terrorism. People just stopped paying attention. They were still overwhelmed by the two worldwide economic collapses caused by predatory real estate lending followed by the "unstable generation" that had no hope anyways their lives strapped with educational and medical debt, and the criminalization of people just because of the color of their skin. They had no hope of re-stabilizing the economy. Then, countries were always in conflict. Everyone just stopped paying attention all together. We rather be distracted by our technology, our tablets, social media, celebrity gossip than really see what was happening around us, hell, if we had actually talked to each other.

"The Y'vroi capitalized on our preoccupation with nothing. When they revealed themselves as not humans. They were all over the globe, decades living in a cloak of humanity. It took us too long time see the big picture, to question what was right and wrong.

I helped the Y'vori lie and they killed my daughter. My best friends on the NewsCorp board were Y'vori. We grew up in the news trenches together moving up the ladder together from rookie reports imbedded in the Syrian-Russian war to the top. My friends had their children play with Jenessa. We went to their kids birthday parties, their wives watched our kids while we went on Vegas trips -- just the guys. They were "human." I just did as they did, my buddies.

"My alien buddies behaved as if everything would be alright, so we did too. We had shared the same status with them, so of course, we'd be ok. It was the lower people in society that were causing the trouble. The protesters, the poor humans, the big city folk. We would be ok. They told us to just do a good job with work, keep reporting. We were being tested fir our journalism "it's an exciting, defining time," we told ourselves; and we listened to the lies we were spinning, everything would be alright. My friends promised me but my daughter still died."

My tears were renewed, I squeezed him with all my might.

"Ben, thank you. I think of you as a father, too. I never knew my father. He died during the war."

"Kiowa, you will be ok. Just be safe." He kissed the top of my head. "You should go to bed. The transport will leave at 5am to take you to your host family."

"I'm afraid."

"I know, Honey," Ben smoothed my braids back and tipped my chin up. "You try to keep up a good exterior."

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Dear Treasured Readers,

Thank you for reading this new chapter in the Beyond Eclipse Saga. It's strange and kinda freaking editing this chapter. I wrote it in 2014.

Don't forget to comment and add me as a favorite author so you can be the first to know when I post. This story straddles a number of genres so I'm not going to limit to one category. So make sure to follow me so you don't miss the next chapter. It will be a big one now that Kiowa is traveling to The Realm.

Cheers and Happy Reading,

~Talyis