Where the Willow Tree Bends

A grey and white cloud-covered sky hung above Jack as he leaned against the concrete that wrapped around the top of the warehouse. In the distance was a rumble of thunder, and Jack looked up at the clouds.

"Think it'll rain?" he asked.

"Yeah. I can feel it in my bones," Clive nodded from the folding chair he sat in.

"Fuck does that mean?" Jack turned his head, a cigarette in his hand trailing out a laze of smoke.

"Southern thing, ya wouldn't get it," Clive smirked, "all us folk who were born on Earth can tell ya if there's rain coming. Even smell it sometimes. Like a coin that's hanging right under your nose."

"That's bullshit," Jack rolled his eyes.

"Nah, he's right," Simmez nodded from his seated position next to Jack.

Now Jack looked at Simmez, a "not you too" look on the alien's face. Simmez only held up his hands, then turned around as he heard a sound.

"Sup with you?" Clive asked.

"There's an owl over there," the Human said.

"A what?" Jack's face took on a look of curiosity.

"An owl," Simmez repeated, pointing, "sitting in that tree, look."

Now Jack turned back around, leaning on the concrete again. He looked where Simmez was pointing, and did see some kind of animal in a tree, across the parking lot where the tree line to the forest started.

The animal was covered in fur, or feather if Jack had known what an owl was. It had yellow eyes with beady black pupils, and sat with a mysterious posture in its tree, as if it was looking back at the raiders who watched it.

"What kind of animal is that?" Jack asked.

"You've reall never seen an owl before?" Simmez questioned.

"I really haven't," Jack's voice was full of what could have been amazed wonder.

"There flying predators," Clive's voice said from Jack's left shoulder.

The alien Titan native jumped, taking a sharp breath. Clive snickered as Jack pushed him, and Clive patted Jack on the back.

"The fly real quick, catch snake and mice and all types a little critters out the grass. Really cool if you ask me. My old man used to have one when I was a kid. Used it to keep the mice out the barn and the vegetable garden."

"I keep forgetting your parents are fucking farmers," Simmez shook his head, "like they missed the memo this is, you know, century twenty-two."

"Their just simple folk, don't mean they don't have any technology," Clive said, "they have little robots that herd the cattle, put out the feed, lock up their barn and stuff like that. They got those machines that cut the grain in the fields, roll it up into big old bales and keep em' tied real tight. They like a quiet life my mom and dad."

Jack only grunted as he watched the owl that was in the tree. He put his cigarette back to his lips, taking a last puff. He inhaled before smashing the cherry between two fingers, then looked down over the side of the building before dropping it down. The gentle drone of the shield generator was filling the empty air around the three raiders, but a call of,

"Ew, what the fuck?" came from down below where Jack had dropped his cigarette butt.

"Sorry!" the grey alien called down.

"Fuck you!" called the other raider standing guard outside.

"Ah!" Jack threw his hand at the raider before he stepped away from the edge of the roof.

Jack, Clive, and Simmez had been on the roof for the past hour or so, watching the day get late and the night slowly approach. The day had been quiet with little to do, and the raiders found themselves bored for the first time in a long time.

With a grunt Jack dropped down into one of the chairs on the roof, where nearby a makeshift shack had been set up nearby, giving whoever was on rooftop watch a good place to observe what was going on with the east side of the warehouse.

"Dam, what now, huh?" asked Simmez.

"Hell, why not this?" Jack held his hands out, putting one foot up on his knee, "fucking sit around and run out the rest of the day before we call it a night?"

"Ah, just been to quiet, you know?" Simmez smirked.

"That's the old mercenary in you talking," Jack tossed a hand at the Human, "we got people set up all around this place, and a guard set up at the library. Nothing to worry about. We'll probably lay around here for a few more more weeks before Krang puts together a plan to hit the Federation hard."

"We could hit them hard right now!" Clive held out his hands, "we get back in the Maude Ann, jump on the laser cannons, and put the hurt on that Federation outpost that's up north!"

"Yeah?" Simmez looked up at Clive, "us and what army?"

"This army!" Clive pointed at Jack and Simmez, "us, and Nida, and Pavo, and Toth, and Norway, and all of Zoff and his boys! We got us more manpower than we have in the last... hell, two years since I been joined up with Krang! It's time we did something!"

Jack shuffled in his chair then, sitting up to rest his hands on his knees.

"You think so?" he asked in an even voice.

"Yes!" Clive pointed at Jack with both hands.

Now Simmez sat up some, looking at Jack. Jack looked at Simmez, who only nodded. Looking back at Clive, Jack stood up, then said,

"Ok. Let's say I go inside, round up every able body who wants what you do, and we all get abord the cruiser and storm that outpost. You really think we have a shot?"

"YES!" Clive threw his hands up without missing a beat.

Now Jack stood up, and took a step closer to Clive. From his hip Jack pulled out his laser pistol, and spun it before taking it by the barrel. He held it out to Clive and said,

"Then I swear to you, by my people who are Titan's flesh and blood, that we will strike against the Federation, and hit those mother fuckers where it hurts."

Clive bared his teeth a grin then, and laughed as he took Jack's gun by the grip, and took the Titan's face in his hand, putting their foreheads together. Jack let himself grin as Clive laughed, and the pair broke away, Clive letting out a huff, flexing his hands.

As Jack holstered his gun, he looked at Clive, pointing a finger at the Human.

"If we do this, it's gonna mean we're running for the rest of our lives. No more hiding, no more this," he waved his hands around him, looking over his shoulder, "you ready for that?"

"I'm ready," Clive said easily, "to make a fucking difference for our people."