Chapter 6 Dr Kiera Sun, The First Vessel

• Drake couldn't believe he heard his name from somebody who was a total stranger to him.
• He wondered in bemusement, “How the hell did she get here? I didn’t come across her anywhere in these woods hours ago.”
• “And now she says she knows me… and that I’m trying to run away from a secret…?”
• Drake couldn’t read through the stranger her face unreadable, eyes strange. There was something wrong beneath her skin, something off, something trembling beneath the surface.
• Lena’s eyes widened in confusion as she instinctively stepped back… one slow, dragging foot retreating through the dead leaves.
• Drake asked sternly, “Wha...t are you doing here? And who are you?”
• Kiera already possessed by the alien tried to move, but her knees buckled, as if her bones had been drained from the inside.
• She collapsed, convulsing violently. Her body jerked and twisted like it was trying to crawl out of itself. Bones cracked a sound like breaking ice.
• Her breath caught, like something pulling her breath from within.
• Then her jaw snapped open, too wide unnatural then slammed shut with a bone-clacking snap.
• Drake’s breath hitched. Lena’s fingers trembled cold, slick with sweat. Her heart pounded too loud for her ears to catch anything else.
• And then the woman spoke in a strange voice that is not her own.
• “Flesh remembers pain… but you, little spark, do not know the First Wound.”
• “This world... is not yours. You borrowed it. You bled it. Now it answers back.”
• She tilted her head too far then slowly,creaking twist of her neck.
• “Four. Must. Awaken. One. Must. Fall.”
• Her voice dropped low multiple echoes layered inside it. Then silence. She collapsed unconscious.
• Drake wasn’t just shocked. That voice, that phrase she knew something about the Dome.
• He rushed to her, kneeling beside the crumpled figure. He turned towards Lena who was just there stunned.
• “Hey dummy don’t just stand there. Help me! Do something!”
• Lena pointed, stunned. “Mr strange dude.. Don’t you dare call me that! And what are you even planning to do with this?”
• Drake’s eyelids fluttered like he was battling both sleep and truth. He whispered under his breath,
• “We can’t just dump her at a hospital… she knows something. But if we hide her and she dies, they’ll think I killed her. Someone’s watching me already…”
• He looked at Lena, urgent. “We gotta get her to a hospital. Now.”
• Lena snapped, “Strange dude, I don’t care who or what you call yourself. You better watch your tone.”
• “What’s that supposed to mean?”
• “Just minutes ago, I saw you searching through the woods for God knows what. Then this strange woman who I’ve never seen in this town shows up and starts spitting weird cryptic shit, about you. And now you want my help?”
• Drake’s voice frayed. “Ignore that, for now. This woman needs to live she might know what is going on with this Dome.”
• Lena’s jaw clenched. Her teeth ground together behind tight lips.
• “By the way, strange dude, my name is LENA.”
• “I don’t give a f*ck about your name right now. Just help me.”
• He knelt lower. His voice cracked with pressure. “We need to move. She’s fading fast.”
• Lena grunted and rushed to his side. Together, they lifted Kiera and hurried out of the woods toward the hospital.
• As they moved, Lena muttered beneath her breath, her tone sharp as glass:
• “You've a lot to explain strange dude, if I found out you know anything about this situation… you are as good as dead.”
• “Don’t call me that.”
• “Oh? Then what should we call you, Mr. Strange?”
• “I’m Drake. Drake Marson. You better mind your business and watch your back.”
• *****
• The story of the stranger in the woods spread like wildfire. Whispers turned to questions:
• Who is she? Is she the cause of the Dome? Is there a way out?
• Mayor Vic was informed immediately.
• He smirked. “Something feels wrong about that man.”
• A mere rat can’t block my path. I will find out exactly what he is hiding soon enough.
• He ordered the sheriff to place Drake and the Strange woman under observation eyes in every hallway.
• Then, cloak swirling, he strode toward the priest’s residence with purpose.
• *****
• At the Hospital, a sheriff stood by the hospital doors, unsmiling, eyes hard. Civilians already crowded the place asking different questions waiting for an answer.
• Drake stared blankly at the sky. His eyes were dull, like they forgot how to see. Chest tight.
• He waited for word from the nurses. Kiera was still unconscious, hooked to a drip stabilizing her vitals.
• His mind replayed the voice in the woods:
• “This world is not yours. You borrowed it. You bled it… Four must awaken. One must fall.”
• What the hell did it mean? What did she know?
• “Hey, dude,” Lena said, approaching.
• He jolted. “What!? I told you already my name is Drake.”
• “You’ve got a serious temper,” she muttered. “How is the woman?”
• Drake snapped, “Is everyone strange to you?”
• Lena scoffed. “Really? You appear the second this damn thing traps us, and suddenly you are saving people like you’re f*cking Spider-Man?”
• “Girl, you don’t know shit about me. Cut the crap.”
• Just then, a nurse rushed out. “She’s awake!”
• Drake and Lena rushed forward, only to be stopped by a fierce-looking guard.
• “Back off. You can’t go in.”
• Drake’s rage flared, hot and fast. “What the f*ck?! I brought her here. You gotta let us in.”
• “The Mayor won’t like this,” the guard warned.
• “Give us five minutes. Just five.”
• After tense hesitation, the man nodded. “Five minutes. Then you are out.”
• Inside, Kiera Sun lay pale and weak. Her skin was clammy, eyes dim. The alien hadn’t fully let go.
• Drake moved to the bed, gentle.
• “Hey… I’m Drake. And this is Lena.”
• She blinked. “Where am I…? How did I get here?”
• Drake replied softly, “We found you in the woods. After the Dome came down. You were… not yourself.”
• “What Dome?” she asked.
• Lena exploded, “Don’t tell me you don’t know! You spoke in a dangerous language!”
• Drake held her back. “Lena. Let me talk.”
• Kiera looked at both of them, still confused. “Who… is this?”
• “She’s Lena. We met in the woods too. You fainted after… whatever that was. Please do you know what’s happening?”
• “I’m Dr. Kiera Sun. Astrophysicist researcher.”
• “A doctor!?” Lena scoffed.
• “I don’t care what your title is,” Drake said. “What does ‘Four must awaken. One must fall’ mean? What’s going on?”
• Kiera hesitated. “The alien king supreme once lived in this world with other creatures associating with human. Then I was hired to research alien artifacts with Black Hollow Mining Agency. They claimed to mine gold but that was a front.”
• She swallowed hard. “This… thing. It isn’t just a Dome. It’s alien. We’re inside an alien construct.”
• “You’re lying!” Lena’s fists clenched, knuckles bone-white.
• “Alien Dome?” Drake echoed, disbelief in his voice.
• “How the f*ck are we supposed to believe you?”
• “This is just the beginning,” Kiera whispered. “There will be more deaths. Black Hollow won’t get away with this.”
• Drake sat back, disturbed. His stomach dropped with the weight of no escape.
• “There’s a… mysterious alien egg,” Kiera murmured.
• She paused, voice strained.
• “There’s more you need to know, Drake. But first… you need to get me out of here.”
• Drake’s eyes widened. The weight of her words hung like a blade.