The meeting continued on without our input, while decisions were made regarding who would be deployed and where. Effectively, things that we would never be allowed to be involved in. The General had already made it clear that he would make sure we were not allowed to be embedded with any of the units under his command.

‘Which is utter nonsense, but they will see soon enough,’ Muse snorted at me.

I couldn’t help but smile as I reached for a piece of paper and pencil from the centre of the meeting table. There were a lot of details that they were calling out, and taking notes was definitely in vogue. No one looked at me strangely for taking them.

Like the schoolgirl that they claimed me to be, I wrote something in the corner of the sheet, then folded it over. I was smiling mischievously when I flicked the note down the table, passing it to Martin.

He looked surprised to see the note as it slid in front of him, and he gave me a questioning lift of his eyebrows – I gave him my sweetest smile back.  With a twinge of amusement, he unfolded the paper and considered what I’d written and then after a moment's consideration, reached for a pen and started jotting down his answer. When he returned it to me he was far less careful, almost like he didn’t care if anyone saw us passing notes around.

Are we going to evacuate Stockholm?

We already are as of 3 hours ago. Want to go to Sweden?

I squinted at the text as I read it, already considering my reply.

‘Given this General’s incompetence, yes. You should do so immediately,’ Muse answered in my head.

Alright then.

My eyes still looking at Martin, I made it obvious that I was writing three large capital letters and then passed the paper back to him.

He stared at my response for a long moment, a hand placed to his chin in thought.

After about half a minute he rose from his chair, gestured for the three of us to follow him, and paced from the room.

The military discussion wasn’t even disrupted by our departure.

The instant we were out of the room, he had pulled his mobile phone from a pocket and was busy making calls. He beckoned for us to keep following him as we stepped out into the cool evening air.

“What’s going on?” Casey asked me.

“I think we’re going to Sweden,” I whispered back, my cheeks flushed with excitement at the sudden flurry of activity.

“What are we going to do there?” she asked, her eyebrows lifting. “Didn’t we just get shut down hard by General Shits?”

I smiled at the name she’d used for him, but shrugged. Honestly, I had no idea.

Martin was still talking quietly on the phone, mentioning names and places but they didn’t really mean much to me. There were a few instances where he said our names, but then gave reference to another thing I didn’t recognise.

“I want you in Stockholm tomorrow, ostensibly helping with the evacuation,” he said to us, his expression serious. “In truth, you’re going to be nearby when that thing comes down. Get some sleep, your plane is in the early hours.”

Then he turned to Rish, flashing him a grin, “I need to get you some gear, eh? You’re gonna need at least a computer.”

 

The sudden change of plans had me worried about what was going to happen, but we had an actual sense of purpose now. All three of us walked back to our accommodation buildings with a spring in our step, discussing what we’d just heard in low, hushed voices.

Rish was a little overwhelmed by all the new information, but infuriated by what had happened.

“That General was a fucking prick, Erin,” he growled to me. “You were the only person in that room that even knew what the big picture is and he just ignored everything you tried to say.”

I gave him a sad half-smile in reply.

“I’m getting used to it, to be honest,” I shrugged. “I think it’s the breasts.”

He glanced down, then smirked at me.

“Story of my fucking life,” Casey grumbled, joining in. “As soon as guys see it’s a girl talking, they immediately ignore at least half of what you say.”

Rish promised to look after Sarah while we were away, and I thanked him again for coming. I hoped that we’d be able to make our teamwork actually function in some way, but I honestly wasn’t sure how right now.

We parted ways and trudged back to our cabin.

Sarah was still there with Sabina when we returned.

I pulled my sister into a hug and told her that we’d be disappearing in the morning. She squeezed me back.

“You’d better come back,” she warned, although there was more love than anger in her words.

“I’ll do my best,” I laughed.

Sabina was more lively now, and she hopped between us – she only stopped to stare at my eyes every few minutes.

Sarah took the little pest with her back to her own cabin, and I gave her a pat on the head as she left. That earned me a faux scowl.

With our personal space now clear of sisters and squirrels, Casey and I got ready for bed. I changed into just my underwear and a camisole for sleeping in – it was too warm for much else.

It was still early by our standards, with the sun shining brightly outside, but I thought it best that we at least try to sleep. That attempt was foiled by the fact that my girlfriend was so damned hot.

I spent some time teasing her with tickles and caresses, which she did a heroic job of resisting for at least thirty seconds.

Then we were lost to each other, our mouths locked together in passionate kisses. I tried to forget everything that was happening in the world for a blissful half an hour, uncertain exactly when we’d get the opportunity to do this again.

Cuddling up to her, I murmured, “I can’t help but love you.”

“Yea, I know,” she smiled, planting another, kiss on my nose, “That’s how I feel about you too, y’goof. I never used to believe in love at first sight, or whatever it is that we have, but…”

I couldn’t help smiling as I snuggled myself up in her arms.

---

Sunday

There was a loud knock on our door in the middle of the night. I was still feeling extremely groggy as I woke up, but Casey groaned in her sleep and rolled over, laying her arm on top of me.

I dragged myself out from underneath her and staggered to answer it, forgetting to put any clothes on in my haste. Thankfully, I noticed just in time and used the door to hide my body as I peered through the gap.

Emilia was outside in the darkness with a bundle of fabric in her arms, and her now-familiar clipboard and paper.

“Good morning, Erin,” she said with a tired smile when she saw my face.

“Morning,” I replied, already having to stop myself from yawning.

“I was ordered to bring you both uniforms to wear while away. I had to guess your sizes, so I hope they fit.”

My brain still wasn’t functioning properly but I edged the door open a little more so she could slide the clothing into our cabin. From first appearances, they seemed to be similar in style to the camouflaged get-up that I saw around the base quite frequently. There were two pairs of comfortable looking hiking boots nestled on top, as well. They looked a bit nicer to wear than the ones I’d seen the soldiers sporting.

She pulled up her clipboard, and fetched a small torch from one of her pockets – then she began to read.

“So... Ms Sanford has asked me to give you these instructions,” she went on. “You are to fly to Stockholm where you will be met by a member of a team of independent UN military observers.”

I blinked, struggling to take the information in. It took me a few moments, but I nodded for her to continue.

“A bus will take you to the airport in one hour, for your flight,” she added. She then unclipped the piece of paper and placed it down atop the pile of uniforms.

“Don’t be late!”

That made me giggle quietly, and I reached for the sheet. “Make sure you get some sleep tonight, Emilia. Tomorrow will be a busy day.”

She gave me a quick salute and smiled, “I will see you soon, I hope.”

I waved to her as she turned to leave, then went back inside, dragging the uniforms with me.

That also got me thinking. Would I see her again? I had no idea how any of this was going to go down, which was both exciting and terrifying in equal measure.

 

I had to wake Casey up with some more kisses and caresses before we were able to shower together. We were both dubious about the uniforms, but we changed into them once we were clean and dry.

The uniform I’d been given was maybe slightly bigger than I’d have preferred, but I had to say that the boots were very comfortable. They supported my poor feet in all the right places, leaving me feeling like I had a bit more spring in my step.

When I saw Casey dressed in hers, my breath was taken away – she’d definitely missed her calling. She was hot in a uniform.

She must have seen my expression because she broke into a laugh.

“You’re pretty stunning yourself, babe,” she answered back, receiving a kiss from me as a reward.

We spent some time putting our hair up to ensure that it wouldn’t get in the way – I still needed help from Casey with mine.

We also decided that we’d probably be best travelling light, only a few changes of the essentials with us. These were all stowed away in our rucksacks.

Once suitably packed and ready to leave, we headed for the courtyard where we’d originally arrived. There were a few other people waiting already, and it was only a few more minutes before our transportation appeared in the form of a minibus.

The time before our flight allowed us just enough opportunity for some breakfast and to buy some more food and water to take with us. Thank goddess Casey’s Dad was loaded because airport prices are nuts.

Our journey to Stockholm would take us just over two hours, and both of us had the chance to sleep a little more on the way over. The plane itself was almost completely empty, but I still chose to sit next to Casey. Except for the obvious reason, it also allowed us a bit more time to look at the instructions that we’d been given.

All we’d been told was that we were to meet up with a contact at the airport who would then drive us to the team of military observers that were operating in the area. I had always thought that these ‘observers’ typically kept an eye on places like the middle-east and Africa – but what did I know?

Flying was never a fun experience for me. I’d noticed that there was this constant tension in my body which made it challenging for me to relax and keep calm. I had no way of distracting myself with much in the way of entertainment on this flight, either, which left me feeling frustrated as well.

‘Take this time to prepare yourself, Erin. Don’t be too eager for what is to come,’ Muse said, soothing some of this anxiety that I was starting to feel.

Eventually we came in for landing, and I got my first view of the sprawling area below us, lit up and sparkling in the morning sunlight. The city itself was built on a bunch of islands – most of which had been heavily developed – and they were all connected together by roads and bridges. From above it all looked so beautiful and serene.

We flew north of the city, coming in low to land at the airport a few miles away from the outskirts. This allowed an even better view of the scene on the ground. What had seemed to be peaceful at first was actually turning into quite a hectic swarm of vehicles, all heading in the same direction – out of the city.

“I guess the evacuation has already started,” Casey commented to me, peering out the same window at the lines of traffic. “I wonder where they’re all heading.”

The ground was coming up quickly now, so I gripped my fingers tightly around the armrests and closed my eyes. The sudden bump as we landed left me releasing a breath I’d never even realised I’d been holding.

When I finally disembarked from our plane, I saw just how busy the airport had become after the evacuation order. It seemed that there were thousands of people queueing up for flights, and I hoped that they all managed to get out in time.

This reminded me that I still needed to watch the news to find out what everyone knew.

We found our contact as we were leaving the airport terminal building – he was holding up a placard with our names on, as is standard for us by now. He was a South African guy called Jacques, and he seemed quite upbeat and positive. His calm and carefree demeanour betrayed the fact that he was highly experienced in situations like these. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’d served in several warzones or areas of conflict already. He was dressed in a darker camouflage uniform than ours, and he had his national insignia and the UN patch proudly displayed.

“Aren’t you both a little young for all this?” he asked us, leading us to where the United Nations marked SUV was parked.

“Probably, but you might say that we’re uniquely qualified,” I answered back with a small, sly smile.

He lifted an eyebrow but said nothing. He jumped into the driver’s seat while we settled into the back.

I was too busy checking the news headlines on my phone to notice whether he asked us anything. There was a heck of a lot of global attention on what was happening here, and no wonder. This was massive.

Evacuation of Stockholm underway as meteors approach

So, they’d decided that they’d just go with the meteor angle and not mention aliens? That was likely the smartest move for now. They needed to delay the inevitable panic.

Speculation was running wild as to why these meteors hadn’t been spotted sooner, but the official stories were incredibly sparse in detail. There was also another evacuation order in place on the Canadian side of the US-Canada border, although there didn’t seem to be any major cities in the immediate area. I hoped that they managed to deal with that mess without us.

There was a military checkpoint set up on the road just ahead of us, and we had to show identification to be allowed to pass.

“Am I allowed to ask?” Jacques queried, once we were back on the road westward.

“You can ask, but you won’t believe us,” Casey answered, reaching for my hand.

He chuckled, but kept his eyes on the road ahead, “Try me.”

I glanced at Casey, but allowed her to continue the conversation.

“It’s an alien invasion,” she eventually said, her expression deadpan.

“Right,” he laughed. As soon the silence dragged on enough to suggest that she wasn’t joking, he flicked his eyes to the rear-view mirror. “Wait, you’re being serious with me right now?”

We both nodded to him, but I decided to clarify, “The meteor is actually a scouting force for an advanced machine race that is coming to sterilise the planet.”

There didn’t seem to be much point in keeping it from him. He was going to find out anyway in about eighteen hours or so. I could tell by how he kept his expression stony that he was struggling to believe us.

It seemed that incredulity won out over credibility when he snorted in amusement, and asked, “If that were true, then why are you here?”

The road ahead of us was almost completely empty – all of the traffic was travelling in the opposite direction.

“Because we’re the only chance we have,” I replied, with a cryptic grin. He rolled his eyes at me, swore and shook his head.

---

Jacques was quiet for the rest of the journey. I wasn’t sure if he believed us or if he thought that we were full of crap. Either way, at least we’d told him the truth.

We pulled up to the building that the observers were using as their team base. It was a squat, single storey building that looked like it had been a school of some kind before the evacuation had begun. I could hear the thud-thud-thud of helicopters overhead, and Jacques led us inside without a word.

Coming to greet us was a middle-aged woman that introduced herself to us as Nicole. She was Swiss, going by the flag that she had sewn onto her uniform and her accent was somewhat French.

The first thing she offered us was some food and water, which we accepted. Even though I’d bought some things with me, I really didn’t want to run out.

Once we’d devoured a couple of packaged sandwiches, and half-emptied our bottles of water, she got down to asking us why we were here. We kept our story to a similar vein as the one we’d told Jacques, but we didn’t go into the specifics. People had tended to react negatively to us when they saw what we were capable of. Instead, we just told her that we’d been asked to be in the area when the meteor came down.

Jacques was watching us, though he was quiet which seemed uncharacteristic for him.

She contemplated that for a moment, confused, but invited us to come on the next patrol that she and Jacques were going to be making after lunch.

“In the meantime,” she said, “you can use one of the rooms for sleeping or resting. You’ve come a long way and you look exhausted.”

We thanked her for the hospitality, and went in search of somewhere that we could nap.

The room Nicole had mentioned wasn’t difficult to find – it looked like a small study room that had been recently emptied. It contained two single cots set apart to opposite sides, with a large gap in between. We quickly slid them together so that they formed something akin to a double bed.

My next mission was to persuade Casey to rest. She looked like her thoughts were racing a million miles per hour through her mind.

“We’re not going to get another chance to sleep before tonight,” I argued. “Besides, you have to at least be as tired as me.”

“Alright, fine. I’m just hella antsy. We’ve done a ton of sitting around already,” she answered back.

We pulled each other into a hug where she rained kisses down on my forehead, making me smile.

“Soon,” I whispered, trying to placate her. "Soon."