forum Here to There (CLOSED - Stalkers welcome and get free selfies in space)

Started April 16, 2019 by @ElderGodSwimwithGamers group

tune

"F-fine…" Tears burst through her defenses, spilling down her cheeks softly.

James felt the pain too, but he wasn't focusing on himself. "Hey, Alley, we'll get through this. We were chosen to come together, all of us, and I know it sounds cheesy, or something from a film, but we didn't come this far to only come this far, okay?" James says, heart aching.

"Y-yeah." Alley lost her control, leaning into him and sobbing.
"I-I'm scared…"

"Scary, scary," Aza sang. "Scary Mary, oh, so scary, how does your garden grow?" She laughed. "With demon fingers and children's souls, watch as your world grows cold."

James hugged her close to him. "Me too." His voice cracked, but he held strong. "We'll get through it, I swear." He sighed. "I saw some icecream in the freezer, if you'd like." He offered

Alley gave a small smile.
"Just like my favorite song goes: Stuffing your face with ice cream makes you happy inside." She sang, slightly off-key due to her crying constricting her throat.

James swallowed the lump in his throat. "So that's a yes then? I saw chocolate and vanilla. The classics." He said.

Alley nodded yes.

"Cool, I'll be right back." James says, and stands. He jogs to the freezer and grabs the two containers. The cold takes a minute to penetrate his big sweatshirt. Leaving the freezer, he locks the door tightly. "If that thing's not already dead, the cold will kill it." He muttered. James passed the infirmary to grab a small flashlight and some salve. He returned to the dining room and took two bowls out of the cupboard. "Chocolate or… vanilla?" James asks.

"Chocolate or vanilla," Aza repeats. "Chocolate, or vanilla? Vanilla or chocolate? Chocolate-Vanilla! Vanilla-Chocolate?" she sings shrilly.

"Chocolate." Alley felt the cold bowl with her hands. It chilled her, but it felt good.

James put chocolate in the bowl and a vanilla/chocolate mix for Aza. "Tada!" He says, placing the bowls in front of them both. He served himself a vanilla scoop. "Ice cream is the best cure. For anything, really. Especially when you eat it for dinner." He says, taking a bite. "Oh, yeah, I'm going to check your eyes for a concussion when you finish, Alley." James reminds himself.

Alley nodded. She turned so James would have a better time looking at her eyes.

Aza dipped her finger in the ice cream. The cold flushed her body, jolting her back to reality again. "How long was I out?" she said to James.

James took out the flashlight and shined them in Alley's eyes. He watched her pupils, one specifically. It was a tad larger than the other. "I think you have a mild concussion, but I don't think it's too serious. Just don't go to sleep for a few hours and you won't suffer any memory loss, in my estimation." James said, clicking off the flashlight. "Oh yeah, and your arm. Can I see it?" He asked.

James turned to Aza. "A while. Uh, there was an alien invasion and we have an injured, but no casualties. You okay? You kinda killed the alien, so thanks!"

"Yeah. I remember that much. It just got all scrambled." She waved her hands vaguely.

Alley held out her arm. It was still red, but it didn't hurt anymore.

James nods. "You did good. Especially for someone with your condition. Well, when you girls head back to the cabin, make sure Alley doesn't doze off, if you can. And uh, maybe next time you're out, we can wake you with ice cream!" James smiles.

James inspected the red area. "Hm, it looks like a rash, but I don't know if it's internal bleeding or not. We'd have to wait a little to find out. If your arm hurts or gets worse, tell me immediately."

Alley nodded. She felt alive, the cold ice cream rejuvenating her.

James stretched and let out a small yawn. "Well, guys, I'll be heading to the control room and then to bed. Uh, buzz me if you need me or your injuries get worse." James stands and brings his dirty bowl over to the 'dirty dishes' pile. "Good night, Aza. Good night, Alley." James retreated into the hallway, and looked at the shot-out security cameras. "Right, gotta fix those." He mumbled. "I'll do it tomorrow." He said to himself, fatigue washing over him, along with a wave of sadness.

Alley didn't feel like sleeping, which was good, seeing as she couldn't sleep for a while anyway.
She walked around, marking down all the damage.

Making it to the control room, James looked at the finished result of the scan. Everything was good and in tip top shape. "I'll run another test, just in case." He muttered, turning on the scanning system. He clicked on the scan ship button and rested his head on his arm. He was so tired, he faded out of consciousness, into sleep almost immediately.

As James slept, the system buzzed with the same notification, over and over: ERROR

Alley finished marking down all the damage, then went to the control room to talk to James.
"James…" She trailed off, hearing the error.
She ran over, shaking James awake.
"James! James!"