A Green Glow Over the Petunia Field.
By J. L. Young
(writing prompts Green Glow and Petunia)

Evening came. The large wall of windows faced the west so I may say my farewell to the Sun’s last dying beams as they fell on a field of Starry Night petunias.

The flowers gave the land a splash of violet. I walked out onto the deck. The fragrance of the petunias hit me as the chill evening breeze touched me. I welcomed the goosebumps as the heat of the day was intense.

The warmth of a pair of lips pressed against my neck and stole me from my trance. Her arms reached past me and rested a pair of teacups on the railing. She squeezed me and held me. I could feel her heart beating. As the tea grew cold our warmth was lovingly exchanged. I didn’t want this night to end.

An intense green glow pierced through the clear night sky. It pulled us from our embrace. “What is it, Shara?”

I wished I had an answer to give. Steadily the glow brightened and washed out all other light. For a moment, I realized I hadn’t said anything.

She asked again, realizing I was distracted. I broke my gaze, “I have no idea.”

The glow intensified as a machine settled outside our home. Suddenly, the light went out. I was left blinded by the change. “Amira, go. I’ll find you,” I said insistently. But as my voice came out, the glass was shattered by some type of pulse.

In the instant Amira had left my sight, I rolled under the bed. There, I collected my bracers, slid them on, and activated them. I rolled out and fired several rounds from the Gauss cannons built into the bracers. The impact twisted the drone to the side and an intake exploded. I took to the balcony to watch as it struggled to maintain altitude. The drone impacted the earth below.

The instant I turned, I saw Amira standing there. Awe, fear, and dismay were written on her face. “You’re one of them,” she shuddered. “You’re not even human.”

“Genetically, I am human. I’m just not from Earth.”

“I feel so disgusting. When were you going to tell me?”

“We don’t have time for this, Amira. That scout drone has reported that I’m here.”

“Then leave, alien. How dare you come here and seduce me?”

I slipped my suit from beneath the bed and affixed the components on my body. I spoke as each piece attached and activated. “I saw you at the park and something came over me and had to talk to you. What was I going to say? “Hi, I’m Inshara Solena, I’m from a Newet refugee city ship that’s been flying through the void for seven hundred generations? I meant no subterfuge.” Once complete, my armor formed jeans, a bra, and a top. “Need I reiterate? We need to go.”

“Then go,” she snapped.

“Amira, I love you. If you stay they’ll find you and kill you just for being associated with me.”

“Who are they?” Amira asked as I gathered some clothes for her and stuffed them in a duffle bag.

As I moved to the door, down the stairs, and stood over the drone. I began my story, “I don’t know what they call themselves. We call them Castragre. Our people engineered them to serve as a labor class.”

“You mean slaves?”

I saw the drone was beginning its self-repair protocol. I knelt down, pressed my knee on its wing. “Yes. After the destruction of my planet, my people reformed. Our labor is done by our own hands. And that’s the way it has been done for 21,000 years. The Castragre have resorted to piracy to pursue us.”

“That’s a long time to carry a grudge.”

After taking hold of the drone’s engine, I separated it from the disk-shaped fuselage and tossed it away. “From our history, we were terrible. We didn’t appreciate what they gave us. I don’t blame them for being angry. I blame my ancestors. They brought this strife down on us.”

“Perhaps a treaty could be made to end the war on your people,” Amira suggested.

“I’d like that. To live in peace. It’s doubtful they’d listen.”

I lifted up the leading edge of the drone, pointed its optical instrument toward me, and wiped the dust from the lens. “Castragre Overlord, I invoke parlay. I request this human to remain free.”

A moment later a voice came through the drone, “Parlay granted. The terms regarding the human will be satisfied. The Overlord is on his way. ETA Seventeen minutes.”

“I await your arrival,” I said, then I dropped what remained of the drone. “That was too easy. You don’t want to be here when the Castragre get here.”

“What about you?” Amira asked.

“I’m through running from them. I want a peaceful life with you, our petunia farm, late-night binge sessions, stargazing, and cuddling. I can’t have that without the fear that the Castragre will hurt you. I thought I could. I hid well. Alas, they found me.”

Amira stepped to me, took my neck, and pulled me to her waiting lips. “I’m not going anywhere.”

As we waited several vehicles appeared on the long road leading to my home. “Right on time,” I observed.

A black SUV pulled up and stopped with a slight squeal from the brakes. The door slowly opened and a man wearing a black suit stepped down. He sniffed at the air and removed his sunglasses. He didn’t look at me or Amira. However, he did step over to the drone, “Ms. Solena, are you aware that that drone is a two million dollar piece of machinery?”

“Are you the Castragre Overlord?” I queried.

He removed his hat, took out a handkerchief and wiped the sweat from his shiny pate. “I might be.” The man continued, “Do you know just how difficult it has been after all these years. How did you stay so hidden for this whole time?”

“A girl has her secrets.”

“Indeed. Life wouldn’t be as fun without a little intrigue.”

“You didn’t answer my question.”

“And you didn’t answer mine. Are those petunias?”

“Yes, I farm them.”

“I didn’t know a Newet was capable of producing such a fine flower without the work of the Bak. Your hands are not bloodied, calloused, and scarred.”

“We have learned much in the generations it took to find Earth,” I replied. “We have also become teachers, guiding humans.”

“You think this redeems you? You will face the torment your ancestors have placed upon mine. You will know what it is to be Bak. But that is not for me to decide,” He reached toward his lapel.

A tinge of fear followed my words, “You raise your weapon and your ashes will fertilize my field.”

He withdrew a small pre-rolled joint and fished a lighter from his pocket, “Hasten not to arms, Newet. You seek parlay with the Overlord. I don’t wish to dishonor my family due to malcontent. That is beneath me. Come, much needs to be discussed.”

“What of the human?”

“She is of no importance to us.”