Spitfires

The door screeched, metal scraping on metal as it rose, letting the cool morning air rush down the stairs that lead above ground. Haydn took a deep breath in. The ventilation system in the colony had artificial wind, but it wasn’t the same as the gentle breeze that danced across the surface, nor was the simulated sunlight that lit the colony quite the same as the warmth of sunshine directly on her skin.

“Why’s Montgomery so sure his kid’s out here?” Reggie asked. He lifted his rifle as they climbed the steps and stepped out onto the surface.

Haydn shrugged. “Haven’t got a clue. Dex said we’re going out, so we’re going out.”

This was her favorite part of a surface run, the moment they stepped outside the colony, into the breeze and the sunshine, the few seconds before they had to worry about the spitfires above them.

Black dots were scattered thought the sky, high above, sparser than they had been a few weeks earlier on their last cargo run. The cold was slowly setting in, and with it, a decrease in numbers. Not enough to make it safe to be on the surface, but enough to get a decent view of the sky as the winter clouds rolled in.

“The kid’s got a tracker implanted in his shoulder.” Dex said, appearing beside them, GPS in hand. A red dot flashed on the screen.

Haydn frowned. “Why is he tracking him?”

“Worried he might be a target for kidnappers.”

Reggie snorted. “I’ve met the little shit. No one’s gonna want him.”

“Well, apparently his father does.” Dex said. “He’s not far. Shouldn’t take us too long.”

Dex took the lead, one hand holding the GPS, the other on the rifle slung across his chest, both eyes scanning the sky. As they followed the crumbled asphalt road, the black dots slowly grew bigger. Motion on the surface meant the prospect of a meal. Black dots turned to blurred outlines, several feet long, and the silence gave way to a low buzz as the spitfires descended further. They kept their distance, smart enough to know that humans had a form of defense, and patient enough to bide their time, but they were low enough that Haydn could make out the sharp point of their pincers, and the glint of saliva on the tips.

A droplet fell from one of them, shiny and dark against the clear blue sky.

"Incoming." Haydn called, steeping clear of the falling globule.

Both men spread out, the droplet hitting the ground between the three of them. The oily substance spread several feet, bubbly and fizzing as it soaked into the asphalt. The fumes that rose were a noxious mix, the smell of dead ants, spoiled milk, and rotting meat.

"Let's get a move on." Dex called. The spitfires might be patient, but their hunger would drive them down eventually, and once a few made the first move, the entire swarm would quickly follow.

"I say we just leave him out here." Reggie said, taking a wide berth around the puddle of saliva that was slowing dissolving the asphalt. "He's an immune. He'll be fine. He’ll wander back home when he gets bored."

"He's not immune to a pincer in the head." Haydn replied. The spitfires preferred their prey pre-digested, but it wasn’t a necessity. They’d get the kid eventually, immune or not.

They continued on through the distorted remains of the city that had once stood above ground. Decades earlier the buildings had stretched high into the sky, but what was now left was barely recognizable. The toxic saliva from the spitfires dissolved nearly everything it touched, leaving twisted piles of debris that looked like melted plastic. What little plant life managed to break through the mess in search of sunlight eventually ended up shriveled and black like everything else.

"What the hell is this kid doing out here, anyway?" Reggie asked.

“The same thing you are.” Dex called back. He glanced up at the sky occasionally, but his focus was mostly on the GPS as he led them through the ruins, trusting Haydn and Reggie to watch his back.

Reggie glanced over at Haydn, his brow furrowed. “Tracking a spoilt little rich kid?”

Haydn answered with the cheeriest voice she could muster, her words almost verbatim from the sentry recruitment flyer. “Embracing the opportunity to escape the confines of the colony and experience the vibrant world above ground.”

Reggie snorted again. “That kid’s in for one hell of shock then.”

An agonizing scream broke the monotonous drone of the buzzing above. Dex tore off towards it, Haydn and Reggie close behind, the spitfires above them joining the race towards the commotion. Cries for help rose beneath the screaming.

The trio rounded a corner, chaos unfolding in the centre of the crossroads ahead of them. Montgomery’s kid hadn’t been the only one to venture outside the colony. The swarm had congregated above a group of four kids, the spitfires taking turns to swoop the humans below. The three kids that were still standing lashed out at the ones that got too close, punching and kicking to no avail. Saliva from the spitfires spattered their skin, but although their clothes melted away as the acid burned through the fabric, the only damage to the their skin was from the pincers that had nipped at the flesh, leaving streaks of blood to mix with the oil.

The fourth kid, clearly not an immune, was on the ground, writhing in pain as the saliva melted through both his clothes and skin, leaving a waxy mess of blood, flesh, and fabric.

The sentries fired at the spitfires surrounding the kids. The high-powered rounds barely penetrated the thick exoskeleton, but the impact bothered the spitfires, driving them back up towards the main swarm. More droplets fell from the sky as they retreated.

Haydn dodged the drops, finding a clear path towards the kid that was on the ground. He was still screaming, his cries becoming more horrendous as the saliva burnt deeper and deeper. Haydn had seen the effects of the saliva firsthand too many times before, but it never became less disturbing. She grabbed the canister that was clipped to her belt, but Dex stopped her before she could get the lid off.

“Don’t waste it. He’s too far gone.”

The screaming stopped suddenly, and what was left of the kid became motionless, his body barely recognizable as human by that point. The other three kids were huddled together, crying.

The spitfires had retreated, the occasional shot from Reggie keeping them at bay, but they wouldn’t stay away for long. A meal was waiting for them on the ground, and the swarm would only grower larger and more aggressive the longer it was left to ferment.

“We gotta move.” Dex said, herding the three kids away from the crossroads, careful not to touch them. They’d be decontaminated once they got back to the colony, but for now, the saliva that soaked them was just as dangerous as the fresh droplets.

As the group headed away, the swarm started to drop, a few breaking off to follow the surviving humans, but the majority focused on the meal that lay waiting for them.

The girl in the group suddenly gasped and spun around, darting back towards the swarm.

“Hey!” Haydn took off after her as she headed back to the crossroads, straight towards the feeding frenzy that had started. The girl might be an immune, but the spitfires would still attack her, still consume her even without the saliva digesting her first.

Haydn fired towards the spitfires that had turned their attention to the girl. She dropped to the ground, and for a second Haydn thought she’d been shot, then she realized the girl had stooped to grab something off the road. A spitfire darted towards her. Haydn fired another shot just above the girls head, then whacked her on the back with the barrel of the rifle.

“Let’s go.” she shouted. She caught a glimpse of what the girl had rushed back to retrieve; a silver necklace, the chain broken and melted, the heart-shaped locket untarnished. The girl scrambled to her feet and took off back towards the group. The spitfire that had been closing in darted forward again. Haydn fired off another shot, but the spitfire was much closer this time.

Saliva sprayed towards her as the shock of the bullet spurred the spitfire into a retreat, several droplets landing on her arm. The thick leather she wore slowed the acid slightly, but she still only had a few seconds to react. She grabbed again for the canister clipped to her belt, as the leather succumb to the saliva, and the toxic fluid reached her skin. Pain seared through her flesh like someone was trying to flay her alive, her cries of pain drowning out the sound of gunfire around her. She got the lid of the canister off and poured the contents over her arm, frantically rubbing it into the exposed skin. The blood from the canister neutralized the saliva, and though the area still burned, the wound grew no larger.

“You okay?” Dex asked, firing a few more shots to keep the swarm back.

“Nearly lost my arm for a bloody necklace.” she yelled, her teeth gritted, her blood soaked arm gripped tight to her chest. She’d had a spitfire wound before; the burning sensation would last for weeks, and the scar would be thick, but at least her arm was still attached.

Dex fired off a few more rounds as they took off at a run after Reggie and the immunes, away from the ever-growing swarm that had descended on the crossroads to feed, back towards the safety of the underground.