《When The Sky Caves In》


 government dogs

    A metallic bird with steel wings flew silently against a darkened Ansondrian sky.


    "Reiterating what was said in our meeting last night," the speaker crackled, "your mission is to land in enemy territory and survey the location nearby. Lupus de Caelo, do you copy?"


    "Roger that, Manga Canis. I''m looking for a landing spot now."


    When the higher-ups see you as an expendable life, when your only purpose is to receive and carry out orders from a man you barely know, you begin to forget the reason you''re fighting in the first place. By the end of your first few months, all your passion has drained, and you''re left with the husk of who you used to be. Your individuality stripped away by nearly five years of training, you learn to do what you''re told. It''s the only thing you know how to do.


    You''re just another gear in the machine.


    And it''s been drilled in your brain. You''ll never forget it. Even if you make it out alive, you''ll never be the man you were before.


    Even if you make it out alive.


    The war in Ansondria had lasted for a year and a half at this point. After the interdimensional barriers broke down during XC-1''s attacks, even the first dimension, home to the planet Earth, saw it as an opportunity to snag exclusive resources from the now-vulnerable dimension.


    Ansondrians had never been prone to war in the past. The country had gone a remarkable 6,000 years in total unity, and when interdimensional travel was discovered, they had kept relative peace with their neighboring dimensions. It wasn''t until now, when Ansondria was at its weakest point, did their allies turn their backs on it. Earth had joined the interdimensional war later, after XC-1 had permanently damaged Ansondria''s barriers. After a barrage of attacks from allies and enemies alike, Ansondria was forced to build up a military defense of their own and engage in combat for the first time in thousands of years.


    No one expected the Ansondrians to fight so fearlessly. Tolerance is Ansondria''s virtue, and the other dimensions had awoken an ancient god, who, while slow to anger, was merciless once aggravated.


    Upon landing, the exterior of the aircraft displayed a computer-generated camouflage, the patterns randomized based on data collected from its immediate surroundings. The technology was patented by the US military in 2186 and is still used today. Its pilot had disabled the technology''s effects a while back, as the natural red color of the aircraft had a bold contrast against the green shrubbery of Ansondria, making it easier to find after landing.


    It seemed as though thousands of years had passed since anyone else had been to this exact same spot. The dirt, grey in its age, was hard and flat. This clearing makes a perfect spot for camp tonight, the aircraft''s pilot, Lucius, thought, as he set up a small fire and unrolled a sleeping bag.


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    The sun was falling swiftly over the brush, and there weren''t many minutes of daylight left. Darkness, like a black ink, bled against the papery Ansondrian sky, and watercolor clouds drifted lazily into the night. The aircraft, a dull brick red in color, gleamed in the fading sunshine. It''s like a bird of another name, he thought. Birds, flown by people, to do man''s bidding. Forced to obey commands.


    Aren''t we, too, not unlike the machines we build for war? Aren''t we, the soldiers of our countries, made into machines, trained from our natures to be obedient and dutiful, bending to the will of our masters, our commanders, broken out of our senses to remove ourselves of any individuality we had left¡­


    We''re just government dogs, aren''t we? He looked at the aircraft. The sun''s reflection had disappeared. His gaze drifted towards the smoldering embers of the fire. And then to the bushes beyond it.


    Two small eyes glowed beyond the fire.


    Lucius held its gaze, slowly reaching for the gun strapped to his left calf, but before he could grab it, the eyes shifted away. "Hold it!" He shouted at the creature ¨C or was it a person? He couldn''t tell.


    Dashing after the person ¨C he thought it was a person, now that he could get a good look at it ¡ª with his gun in hand, Lucius realized he could never imagine killing another being. He''d been trained to do it, even done it countless of times in simulations and training scenarios, but it was an entirely different thing, having to kill an actual, living being. He could never bring himself to put down his childhood pets when they grew old. How could he ever take the life of another human being?


    Cornering him against a tree, Lucius pointed his gun directly in the other man''s face, despite his trembling hands affecting his aim. The other man cowered in fear, his eyes shining despite the lack of visible light, perhaps refracting what little bit remained from the nearby fire. A pair of ears ¨C cat''s ears ¨C were pinned against the back of his head. Lucius remembered hearing that Ansondria was home to various types of ninganima ¨C people that were part animal ¨C but he never thought he''d be able to see one up close. In his surprise and awe, he faltered, and the man in front of him swiftly pulled out a gun of his own.


    "Back off, or I''ll shoot," the man''s voice quavered.


    Lucius didn''t. A single shot fired from the barrel of his gun, and it went into the chest of the other man.


    The man immediately dropped his gun and pressed his hands against his chest, coughing. Wait. Lucius suddenly realized what he had done. No.


    Lucius watched in horror as the man crumpled to the ground, blood gushing from the open wound left by the bullet. He knelt down beside him and grasped his arm, gently. He pressed his own hand against the stranger''s wound, against the hole left by his own weapon. No.


    No.


    No.


    No.


    And as he watched the light die in the other man''s eyes, he wondered what it was all for. He wondered why the lives of so many innocent young men had to be taken in old men''s wars. And he wondered why he had to shoot. Couldn''t he have turned away like he was told? He couldn''t betray his country. He never could.


    His feet felt heavier as he slowly walked towards his campsite. His hand dripping with blood, he slipped the gun back into its holster.


    The stars are crying tonight, as usual.

 when two worlds collide

    The wet scent of blood soaked the air. Desperately, Lucius shook his hands free of the dripping red liquid, but it never seemed to end.


    What am I supposed to do? He thought. I''ve just killed a man, and now I have to¨C now I have to¨C


    He stood up and turned southeast toward a river he recalled seeing from his aircraft. This isn''t hard, I just have to¨C Suddenly his pace halted. I''m just supposed to clean up and pretend this never happened. The reality of what he did was beginning to sink in.


    I killed him.


    The river, red with blood, glimmered in the light of the moon. The reflection of the white moon danced across the surface of the water. The water was cold, but clean, and Lucius almost felt refreshed after cleaning himself of the blood.


    The face of the dead man haunted him. Every time he closed his eyes, it glared back ¨C lifeless eyes wide, mouth gaping. He thrust his face into his cold, wet hands, hoping it''d bring him out of his terror. It didn''t.


    People die every day, and what are we supposed to do about it? The world moves on. You can''t spare a whole lot of time for grieving. Society isn''t built that way. I have to get over this. There''s going to be dozens more people I''ll have to¨C


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    Murder. He would have to murder them.


    I''m just doing my job.


    Or so he told himself that.


    A magpie circled above him. Lucius felt its eyes staring into him. It soon landed in a tree nearby, all the while maintaining eye contact with him.


    "What are you looking at?" He spoke sarcastically at the animal. Magpies are intelligent animals. Maybe it''ll have something to say. He almost laughed at the thought. The bird continued to stare.


    "Got a problem?" He smiled this time.


    "Chirp", said the bird.


    HUH?!


    Lucius pointed his gun at the magpie. "Don''t do that, smartass." His voice was unsteady, as were his hands.


    "What? I''m just chirping," the bird replied. Before his eyes, the bird transformed into a humanoid figure, with hair as black as the bird''s feathers. The man pointed his own gun at Lucius.


    The face of the man he killed returned to him. Lucius released his grip on his gun and held his hand in the air ¨C a universal signal of peace. The other man did the same.


    He couldn''t do it again. He wouldn''t.


    He turned around and ran. Slowly at first, but Lucius soon broke into a sprint.


    Meanwhile, the other man once again took upon a bird form, and followed.


    Is socializing worth the effort?

 education is mans foundation for knowledge

    When Lucius finally stopped running, he collapsed on the ground, gasping for air. It must''ve been at least a mile before he had stopped, hadn''t it? The man surely wouldn''t follow him for this long. He turned around, and the man was there once more. Lucius stared. He was too exhausted to do much else.


    The other man spoke first. "I''m Lennox," he said, and extended his hand towards Lucius.


    "Th¨C that''s illegal," Lucius stuttered. "You''re Ansondrian." He could tell based on the design of his uniform.


    "And you''re American." Lennox stared back at him. "What''s your name?"


    Lucius hesitated a moment, deciding whether or not to use his real name. He couldn''t think of a different name to give, so he told the truth about himself. "I''m¡­ Lucius." He took the other man''s hand and pulled himself off the ground.


    "I''ve been sent on a solo mission by my commander," Lennox said. "And, by the looks of it, so have you." Lucius squinted at him in silence. What is his deal? "I haven''t seen another living being face-to-face in weeks. I figured I might as well have a chat with them once I saw them."


    "Uh-huh."


    "So, I wa¨C"


    "How do I know you aren''t a spy or something?" Lucius interrupted him.


    "Well, if I''m a spy, I''d be doing a pretty bad job at it right about now." Lennox rolled his eyes. "I''m trying to get along with you, and you just aren''t having it, are you?"


    Lucius sat in silence for a moment, processing what the other had just said. "I guess. Anyways, I''ve always wanted to ask an Ansondrian this question before, do you mind if I ask?"


    "No, go ahead."


    "Why are some of you¡­ animals?"


    Lennox looked at him. "Why¡­ are some of us¡­ animals." He thought about what Lucius had said for a moment. He remembered being taught about ninganima in school, but he couldn''t remember exactly what was told to him. "It''s called ninganima, ''ningen'' meaning ''human'' and ''anima'' meaning ''animal'' . It''s a special gene only found in Ansondrians. I don''t really know a whole lot about it, though. Something about genes, y''know."


    Lucius nodded. "So it''s a gene, not a separate species? That makes more sense." Doesn''t explain how it actually works, though. "I have another question. How come you speak English?"


    "What do you mean?"


    "Wouldn''t you speak Ansondrian?"


    Lennox thought for a moment. "I mean, I know Ansondrian, we''re all taught it in school, but it''s kind of a dead language. Nobody actually speaks it in practice. Occasionally you''ll see a sign or something in Ansondrian, which generally means they don''t want people from other dimensions in there. But yeah, nobody speaks it since English is the universal language."


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    Lucius nodded again. "Okay, okay, I have one more question to ask you ¨C but it''s kind of weird."


    Lennox gazed at him in response, wondering.


    "Would you¡­ teach Ansondrian to me?"


    Lennox looked at him. "Why?"


    "Well¨C I just think it''s a cool language." He glared at him. "It''s fine if you don''t want to."


    "No, no, I can. But, like, I''m not super fluent in it, like, I can teach you, but it won''t be as good as having an expert teach you."


    "I''m fine with that."


    "Okay."


    "Okay."


    They stood there, awkwardly, neither of them having much to say.


    Lennox broke the silence first. "We can start now, if you want."


    "Oh, alright."


    Lucius sat down, and Lennox sat beside him.


    "So, I guess I''ll start off with some basic words, like I/me/mine. The words for ''I'' and ''me'' are the same, it''s egome."


    "Egome, got it."


    "And ''mine'' is egomin."


    "Uh-huh."


    "Can you remember that?"


    "Probably."


    "What''s the word for ''me''?"


    "E¨C uh¡­"


    Lennox stared at him in disappointment. "Let''s try again. Egome."


    "Egome."


    "Good, say it again."


    "Egome. I got that, can we move on?"


    "You''re gonna say it over and over until you don''t forget it."


    "What?!"


    "Say it."


    "Egome."


    "Again."


    "Egome."


    "Okay, fine, that''s enough."


    Lucius sighed. This wasn''t going entirely as he planned, but at least he had learned a new word. "What''s the next one?"


    "Egomin, it means ''mine''. Got it?"


    "Egomin, got it. Does Ansondrian have a special alphabet that it uses, or does it just use the Latin alphabet?"


    "It had an alphabet, but again, nobody uses it, since we can just use the Latin alphabet for it."


    "Okay, what''s the next word?"


    Soon, the sun began to set and dusk began to fall. Ansondrian nights were eerily similar to nights in America. They both had a singular moon, they both had dozens of stars. The clouds of Ansondria tended to be heavier and more prominent than clouds on Earth. Rain was common, especially during nighttime, when the cool air condenses the vapors into raindrops, which fall upon the earth.


    "I''ll see you back here tomorrow, right?" Lennox asked.


    Lucius nodded. "Yeah, if you want to."


    Lucius returned to the place he had landed his jet at. He unfolded the main body of it, revealing a rather large cavity inside the plane, equipped with a couch and a stall for a bathroom.


    Sleep found him quickly that night.


    It''s strange to think that nighttime is the natural state of the universe.