The Deviants, part three

Collecting vegetables from the field, Ava still couldn't wrap her head around the fact she'd been at the base for over a month.

Within days of settling into her new room, a job to harvest fruit and veggies opened, and she took it. There had been no way for her not to do something. Everyone pitched in, and she didn't want to feel like a freeloader.

She had also made several new girlfriends besides Christine and Lola, who hovered around her whenever she had the chance.

Mara, Opal, and Skye were all welcoming and open-minded. It'd been a while since a group of girls accepted Ava into their fold.

Ava also spent some of her free time and meals with Nash when he wasn't running various missions. The more time she spent around him, the more she liked him, which was wild since they weren't the same race.

But it was difficult not to like him.

Picking up her last basket of carrots for the day, Ava headed to the kitchen, where the food was prepped for either immediate use or stored for later.

The air boomed again, and she jumped but kept moving forward. Ava really hated what those noises meant.

After dropping off the food, Ava decided to go to the compound square, where she normally hung out with her friends after completing her daily work.

Skye was waiting for her at their table with drinks, Ava waving and smiling. "Hey."

"You seem happy." Skye handed her some hot tea. "Or is your true personality finally showing through?"

"It's nice having people waiting for me."

"Yeah, well, work ended early for me."

"Aren't you one of Christine's nurses?"

Skye shrugged, "Not many injuries today."

Ava enjoyed the shade they sat in as they relaxed from their work. Mara and Opal joined soon after, ordering light snacks from the small cafe, chatting away about their activities on the day.

Not even the booms broke the conversations. Ava supposed they were safe from whatever was happening miles away.

Then Lola plopped herself next to Ava, not looking happy.

"You okay?" Opal tilted her head.

Lola didn't answer, staring at her folded hands.

Ava rubbed her heart locket, not liking the sudden unease, more booms filling the air.

***

"What is it?"

Nash lifted his gaze from the coordinates on the ship's screen, eyeing Galen, his copilot and friend, "I don't know, just gotta bad feeling about something."

They were flying out of the atmosphere, doing their patrol in space. If they needed to destroy enemy fighters, Nash preferred the damage to be minimal.

Galen raised a brow. "What do you mean?"

"It just feels like something bad is going to happen." He felt the heaviness in his chest and stomach.

The turbulence stopped as they flew into space.

"I doubt anything bad will happen."

"I don't mean to us."

A smile spread across Galen's face. "It's that human female you brought back."

"Which one?"

"The one with the necklace."

Nash ignored both the stare and the heat rising in his face. He couldn't help it. There was something about Ava...it drew him to her.

"So it is her."

"Have an issue with that?"

"No. I'm actually quite pleased," Galen rolled his shoulders, "I have one I like, but don't let your feelings compromise your ability to protect the base."

"Oh, do you now?"

"Yes."

"Who?"

"I'll tell you later."

Nash grinned, circling around the Earth, scanning for any enemy ships nearby. He couldn't find anything on the scanners, but the dread wouldn't dissipate.

The mothership and the fighters had moved away from the moon, heading for the planet humans called Jupiter. The magnetic fields of the gas giant would disrupt their tracking abilities.

Nash gritted his teeth. "Dammit."

"I know, they are getting smarter."

He glared at his copilot.

"Don't give me that look." Galen straightened his posture, "Besides, we both love a good challenge."

"It's awfully risky."

"We have to."

He was right. They needed to check in soon. Nash nor Galen could not blow their covers. So, he headed toward the asteroid belt and danger.

***

The booms didn't stop.

In fact, they kept getting louder as the hours passed, and despite what her friends kept saying, Ava couldn't take it anymore and retreated to her quarters.

Ava listened to them, lying in bed. She squeezed her pendant hard, her heart pounding against her ribcage.

She knew the shields protecting the base would protect her, but she couldn't stop herself from jumping at every noise.

Didn't help she was by herself in the room, not having someone to share it with.

Then new blasts flooded the air, Ava shooting out of bed to her window.

Flying fairly close to the ground, the Deviant chased down several enemy drones, shooting each. The drones exploded, the bits hitting the dirt.

Ava smiled.

Nash had exceptional timing.

Slowly, the booms died down, and Ava climbed back into bed, closing her eyes.