Champion of the Bots ✔️

Chapter 2 ~ RENA

Tzing tzing tzing.

The survivors ducked as more bullets came—cracking the windows, tipping tables, hitting a few survivors.

"Hang on to me!" Rena cried out above the clamor, clenching the little girl's hand into her sweaty palm as she gripped the staircase railing. The plane toppled and bounced—crystal glasses clattered and scattered on the ground where people streamed and struggled to stand still.

"What's going on? What's happening?"

"We're going to die!"

"Oh, Lord, have mercy on us."

People sank to their knees to pray to forgotten gods. Others crouched underneath the tables that were nailed to the ground. Some ran into the dormitories to find loved ones. Some stood still and lost all hope.

Rena shook her head to clear the mist. She could vaguely hear more bombs plummeting the Savior. Her fingers grew numb from gripping the staircase railing. The cries and wails of fear nearly burst her eardrum, and she wasn't sure if the sounds came from Nina or her family or herself. For a split second, a memory floated to her mind and swiped the Common Room to a happier time like a better filter.

She remembered the laughter when Tom and Tina, the only twins on board, would hop onto the platform and make fun of each other. She remembered the tears of pain when Sid, Paul, and Rena had a spicy challenge in the center table with chefs from India, Malaya, and Korea stood around them with amusement. She remembered the day everyone stomped on the staircase and got chased around by Grumpy Gary.

"Rena! Watch out!"

With a gasp, Rena plummeted back to reality. Splintered glass and porcelain covered the ground like grass; and as the plane toppled forward, the deadly pieces aimed right for Rena and Nina.

"Oh, shoot!" With another curse, Rena pulled the girl into her arms and jumped. She knew other cursing terms from the world before, but she rather not rant them out with Nina in her arms.

"I got 'cha!"

Dangling, Rena looked up to see Jimmy, one of the chefs, grip her forearm. She smiled her thanks, but her smile was quickly snatched away by the colossal wind that ripped through the gaping hole in the middle of the Common Room.

"I got 'cha," Jimmy repeated, whether to assure her or to remind himself to hold on, Rena wasn't sure. Rena had only met Jimmy once, when she learned that she had allergies to dairy and he had to fix up a special ice cream for her. But now, with life or death dangling between their tight but slipping fingers, Rena looked at the chef, saw past the tiny mustache that tickled his flaring nostrils, and saw a bulky man with bulging muscles that could do a whole lot more lifting than the usual pork he carried around on his shoulder. She saw a kind man who always let everyone have second servings even when the rations were running low.

Why didn't I get to know more about my survivors? Rena wondered. She would contemplate on it later, if she survived.

"Everyone, keep calm!" A deep voice rang from the speakers.

Rena sighed in relief but kept gripping onto Jimmy. Sid was in the control room. He can handle this. He rescued us all before, and he can do it again.

"For those in the Common Room, I want you all to hang on and do not let go." Sid continued, his voice growing faint from the sniping wind.

"Like hell we'll let go!" Jimmy growled, sweat pouring through his brown skin. For a brief moment, Rena wondered if she was too heavy.

"Now everyone, see those string cords in the corners of the walls? Those are emergency evacuations I installed. Grab the closest twenty people around you, pull on the cord, and we'll all meet on the ground. Good luck, survivors."

No one wasted any time. People flocked together, hopped to one corner, and pulled a cord. A transparent bubble popped out from behind the wall and slowly swallowed the survivors. A few people scrambled to join in, and others seemed fascinated at the soft texture of the bubble and poked at it—not worried at all about it being their evacuation to safety.

"Come!" A young woman yelled out, her eyes focused on Rena, gesturing with open palms.

Rena nodded at the unknown woman, hating herself for not knowing everyone's names, determined to sought everyone out when they were safe.

They will be safe. Rena thought as she quickly glanced to nearest window. Hundreds of glimmering glass bubbles plunged to the red sky with hordes of people huddling and rolling around inside. She struggled to see the land below, but her view was suddenly blocked by the grinning face of a young man on the window.