They ran, with a quickness. Just as they ran, a bullet shot through the wall of the building they had been standing next to. They had dodged it by a mere centimeter.
"Skill Upgrade: Detect, skill level two. Bonus Skill Unlocked: Dodge. Skill level two." The voice in her head announced.
Deciding this was no time to question the voice, she continues running, not wanting to give the snipper the chance to take her out.
Nami and her new companions ran, until they came across an abandoned house on the base. They would have to find a way out of their soon, but everyone was far too fatigued to continue running like this. They had been on the move for at least twenty minutes now, and it's a miracle that no one had passed out at the moment.
"We can stay here for the night. This seems to be one of the few houses that didn't have residents, so we can't stay too long," Nami announced. Even she had to admit that she was exhausted, though it seems that her stamina had improved quite a bit.
"Why not? Wouldn't they check our friends and families out first? We could stay at least two days, right?" A young redhead named Jace asked.
"Not really. We're still on base, we know that, and they know that. They just shot at us not too long ago, and most of you are too young to be able to run through the night. There's ten of us here, and only three of us have enough athleticism to keep running." Nami explains. "For now we can settle in and get to know one another. Something tells me we're gonna be well acquainted in this mess."
There are nods of agreement around as the youngest ones in the group drop to the ground, no more adrenaline to push them. While they rested, Nami, Daniel, and the blonde whose name they learned was Josh, went to make sure all rooms and doors were secure.
"A good question would be, why are we the ones that survived?" Casey asked. She was Josh's older sister, and the worry was evident on her face.
"That really is a good question, a better one would be what was that loud boom" Nami answered with a huff.
"Inquiry made known. Synopsis of situation: Meteor hit the earth at approximately 0831 hours, containing foreign life forms to earths atmosphere. To survive the new environment, said organisms attached themselves to new host."
Nami froze on spot, not knowing what to do or say. The voice she had been ignoring is now responding to her question. This whole time she could have had some answers, but she thought she had been imagining it.
*What exactly are you* Nami thought to it.
"We are are race known as The Intellectuals. When in contact with other living beings, we bring forth a dormant power within our host."
*Dormant power? What does that mean?*
"The power itself is our own, but the type of power differs from person to person. For instance, your love of gaming systems, has unlocked an ability new to me know as Gamer. You have the power to level up your skills and unlocking skills by performing tasks. I.e. when you assessed your surroundings to make sure it was safe. You now have the ability to detect danger. However, it is only level two, so you are only able to detect within a certain range of your body. You unlocked dodge, because you moved before you were hit."
*Why are the military trying to kill us?*
"That information is not available to me at this current moment."
*Then why did you tell us to run, if you didn't know what they were thinking?*
"A human who had been trying to help us told us of humans with ill intentions. We were warned to stay away before our abrupt landing".
"Are you okay?" Daniel asked, interrupt her conversation with the Intellectual.
"I'm not sure what I am right now." She answers honestly, blowing a breath. How do she relay to a bunch of teenagers that they're being targeted by government officials, because some unknown race of aliens had attached themselves to their very being.
"I get that," he responds with a nod. "You may not be able to sleep, but try to at least rest. We're all gonna need it, if this is how it is."
With a grunt, Nami stands to her feet and decides she'll sleep near one of this covered windows. If her ability helps her sense danger nearby, then she's gonna need to be as close as possible.
Daniel had been right, there was no way she was getting any sleep. Instead, Nami decided to play twenty one questions with her new hitchhiker.
*Okay, Intellectual, I have a question. How is it that we survived the blast from the meteor, but-?*
The Intellectual was silent for at moment, filling in the blank that Nami had left.
"Analysis of thought process complete. Some people did not survive the blast, because our presence is what saved you all from it. When the blast hit, whoever had the doors to their homes open, or were outside there homes, were exposed to the atmospheric pressure that revolved around the meteor of home planet. It briefly changed the climate of the surrounding area, causing some to pass away, while other lived."
*How many casualties?*
"Count unknown." Came the robotic response.
*Why did you choose me?"
"There was no specific reason for my choice. I needed a host, and the blast brought me to your home."
Nami sighs at this answer. She wanted someone to blame for her parents being dead, but so far she can't even blame the hitchhiker in her head.
*What happened to your planet?*
"Like all planets, my home had and expiration date, and ours had reached its age. Incapable of holding life, it began to shatter. Just before it's destruction, those of us that could, escaped within the cracks of the meteor, and used the last of our technology to help sustain us."
After that, Nami decided she was done prying for the night. She had spent so much time, angry that she constantly had to move every few months, but these aliens lost their whole planet.