Lady Luck

Sweat collects on Kevin's forehead. Heartbeats echo in his chest so hard, they threaten to bruise his ribcage. He runs as fast as he can, trying to bypass his fear with adrenalin.

One more left turn, and they were about to face the rebel camp.

Kevin clutches his gun and signals the platoon. In a fraction of a second, they reach the opening. The cave widens in front of them, and they see the settlement. Fortunately for them, the Sorax haven't anticipated their reckless charge.

The camp is small, Kevin can only spot four figures shuffling in the dark.

Four measly Sorax.

This isn’t the big important camp they were expecting. There probably wasn't any crucial intel in here.

They gave up their lives for nothing.

He can see the Sorax's heads twist towards them. Before he can take in any more of the scenery, Kevin opens fire on the silhouettes.

The air is filled with the shrill sound of his platoon's laser guns. The Sorax shriek as the bullets pierce their armor and skin. Chaos erupts in the cavern. Kevin hears his platoon scream in agony as they are ripped apart. The remorse of leading his team here lingers at his peripheral, though the craze of trying to survive keeps it at bay.

The Sorax that were stationed along the labyrinth that led them all here have caught up to the commotion. Now there is truly no hope of getting back to the surface. Anger flashes in Kevin's gut.

"I'm not going to lie down and die for nothing!" Kevin isn't sure if he said or thought that. Nonetheless, he reaches into the side pocket of his suit. He sees a wounded Sorax charging towards him, though Kevin knows it doesn't matter. Time seems to slow as he pulls a grenade out and chucks it at the center of the cavern haphazardly.

The last of his self-preservation instincts lead him to pull his arms over his head. Before he can even think about what he has just done, light fills the cavern. His eyes burn with the intensity of it, even though he has been in darkness only for half an hour or so. Pride fills his chest, if the light hurts him this much, he can only imagine what it’s doing to the Sorax, who have spent their entire lives without light.

His pride is short-lived though, as the blast flings his body against the cavern walls. Unconsciousness swallows him, a faint rumbling of the rock lulling him to sleep.

***

The rumbling noise changes. Stretching and twisting, until it becomes a somewhat familiar sound. His eyes could only see swirling images, but he was sure he recognized that thrum.

Cattle hooves on dusty ground.

He was home.

With that revelation, all that had previously been occupying his mind melted away. War, the rebel camp, enemy Sorax and shredded allies, all became insignificant.

Kevin basked in the serenity that came with familiarity. Even though his eyes still only produced blurred figures, he knew where he was. Laying propped up against the oak tree on the far end of his family ranch. His arms behind his head, making a mess out of his long black hair.

Some part of him remembers it’s been ages since it was that long, that it had been haphazardly chopped in some unnamed barrack. Nonetheless, that part of him was left in the background while he rested. It has been a long while since he could just rest like this, without a care in the world.

Whistles and yelps joined the murmur of cattle hooves, and he knew his brother was corralling the last of the herd. Guilt pangs inside Kevin’s chest. Suddenly the calm of his family ranch brought little comfort.

His eyes were still disobeying his orders, swirls and blurs appeared where he wished to see his brother’s face. Even if he could see it, would it be the same face he left on Earth? Would George’s face still have baby fat, the one he complained so much about to Kevin? Would it be replaced with jagged edges and creases?

A lot can change in seven years, especially for a growing boy like George. Kevin now sat in a vision of what could have been. What could have easily been his life if he never left the ranch, if he didn’t abandon his family.

He knew that he left for a reason, but it seemed insignificant now. Pursuing his ambitions, getting away from the back-breaking responsibility that came with the ranch and his parents’ strictness, now seemed so tiny. Now, all the reasons seemed so stupid, fueled by teenage rebellion.

He tries to call out to George, but only garbled grunts leave his mouth. Determined to apologize to his brother, Kevin urges himself to scream. Grunts and moans escape, but not much else.

His vision darkens. Shapes and colors twist in front of his eyes until they are consumed by black. Kevin’s regrets are left as half-words and sounds that continue even when his dream ends.

***

Apologies said through uncooperative vocal cords echo through cavern walls. Echo? Cavern? Questions zip through Kevin’s mind, though they are quickly answered with memories of explosions and gunfire.

I’m still alive.

Relief spreads through him as he tries to survey exactly where he is. His eyes scan the area around him. Unfortunately, he comes up with just darkness. His helmet must’ve been knocked off during the blast. Without his night vision vizor, he doesn’t have much hope of figuring out how to get out of here.

He reaches for his sonar map, but it’s completely unresponsive. Kevin had hoped it would at least light up so he could use it as a makeshift flashlight, but it seems he’s just going to have to feel out the ground around him and hope his helmet didn’t get smashed.

With a grumpy sigh, Kevin starts searching the ground around himself. Funny how fast gratitude for life turns to annoyance for circumstances in which it is happening.

Fortunately for him, the helmet fell right near where he was laying. Checking with his fingers, he feels that the vizor is still intact. Kevin two, Universe zero! He chuckles and leans against the cave wall.

With a satisfied hum, Kevin plops the helmet onto his head, though the satisfaction doesn’t last long. He knows he couldn’t have been this lucky without some bad luck lurking around the corner. The fact that he survived that grenade and that his helmet what just sitting right next to him, undamaged, had to come at a price.

In front of Kevin, not even two meters away, sat a wounded Sorax.