Commander Gerald was in a foul mood. Frank continued to undermine his orders.

On the ramp of his personal shuttle, he shouted into his communicator to the flagship above, "Tanya - I said that was an order!"

"I will rely your request through commander Frank...", Came Tanya's reply.

Gerald saw red - he was fuming with anger. Rosemary Kennedy then came out of her front door and crossed the gravel drive of her George town mansion, she waved her bejewelled hand, "Gerald darling! I am waiting inside with drinks..."

Rosemary donned a red evening dress and it sparkled in the late evening sun. She came to the base of the ramp and peered up, her pining eyes focusing on the handsome Visitor.

"Edward is out...", she finished with a slight relishing hint. Gerald turned and looked down at her through his dark sun-shades, "then you better call him...I have to go"

Rosemary came forward, "but Gerald I..."

The ramp distended and she stood back feeling very down and disappointed - her face dropped as she stood back to watch the shuttle craft rise into the darkening sky.

Why was he being so hostile to her of late...

VVV

Frank had secretly disclosed the secret location to Sean Steele where the chache of Visitor weapons was housed and stored.

He, Ross Morrell and Duncan Rendall loaded them from the abandoned ware-house to a stolen van. It was then that almost out of nowhere Phillipa came into view with two human police officers.

"So...Officer Steele...we finally meet again", told the female alien, her laser poised out ahead of her. Sean had already shut the back of the van, but Phillipa waved her laser towards it, "let me see what you have in the back"

Ross and Duncan were in the back, and both of them heard Phillipa and the two cops approach the back doors. Ross picked up a rifle as did Duncan knowing what the other resistor had in mind.

They kicked out the rear doors and open fired on the two cops who went flying to the ground. Sean kicked the laser out of the distracted Visitors hand, and as he went to snatch it up, Phillipa went running over to the Visitor police jeep nearby.

Sean rose the stolen weapon and aimed it towards her and fired, the blue bolt hit her shoulder and she slumped to the tarmac in pain before she could reach the jeep.

Sean raced over and looked towards Ross and Duncan, "come on quickly...before she is missed - lets get her into the back of the van"

Grabbing hold of her feet, they picked her up and bundled the alien into the rear of the van. Within a few minutes the van screached off at the burn of the tyres back to HQ.

VVV

Ben Greene came into the lounge of his house to see his drunkard father slumped out on the sofa, he sighed and went to pick up the empty beers bottles that were strewn about the living area floor.

He then turned to see Greg standing in the doorway, Ben's eyes went wide as he shook his head, "How the hell did you get in...?"

"Ben...I dropped by to see you...it has been several weeks since you stopped by at the facility - have you quit the corps?"

Ben swallowed down and crossed his arms, "Yeah...I found that it wasn't for me"

Greg removed his cap and clutched it, "but I thought you enjoyed being apart of us...you were doing so well in the ranks"

Ben hardened his voice, "I said it wasn't for me!"

Greg watched him go to the window, the boy looked at him, "If you don't mind can you close the screen door on the way out...the flies are everywhere this year"

The alien male snapped at him, "Why are you being like this? If you don't want to be friends then you only have to say"

Ben swallowed down and closed his eyes, he then turned and came out with it, "that night...a few weeks back...when that woman ripped the face off your leader...it was so real! They say it was a terrorist attack, they say it was all just a hoax...but...I can't get that image out of my mind..."

Greg's face became stern as Ben pushed by him and went into the sun porch. The room was hot so he opened the window.

Greg followed him in. Ben turned around and asked, "what are you really like...are you like us? Or are you just pretending to be like us..."

Greg held the teenagers gaze, he could see that he had some hopefull look that he would tell him that it was all untrue...

"We are different Ben...I have always said that..."

"Different like me, that's what I thought you meant...but...that stuff on the TV...I can't get it out of my head...it's here inside me and when I look at you...", Ben was getting jittery.

Greg stepped forward and stared right at him, then removing the black glove of his right hand, he laid his hand onto the sun table and looked up to Ben.

"Is this what you want to know?"

Ben looked on in horror as Greg peeled away his fake skin on his hand, to reveal his true self. His true reptilian self.

Ben shook his head and backed away, his eyes revealing the look of angst and betrayal, he then raced to the door and flew up the stairs.

Greg watched him go. Protocol would tell him to haul the boy in...but somehow...he knew he could not.

VVV

Phillipa had been dragged out of the van, and hauled through the resistance HQ in the bank vault with a blindfold over her eyes. She then was unceremoniously chucked into a cage and used as a lab rat for scientists Toni Morrell and Amy Appleton to research the Visitors more closely.

Amy peered through the microscope and analysed the aliens blood, Toni had taken samples of the skin, her real lizard like skin and was prepping them on a makeshift work bench that was cluttered with laboratory equipment.

Phillipa sat in the cage on her backside observing the two human scientists, "You animals...primitive beasts we have come to expect that would treat us like this..."

Amy turned her face from the microscope and pulled a face at her, "WE are the animals? That's rich coming from a race of monsterous space cannibals!"

Toni placed a hand over her friends shoulder, "Easy..."

"It's true though! Once we have finished doing tests on it, then somebody needs to stick a 65 calibre rifle down it's throat, and pull the trigger 50 times!"

Toni sighed, "then that would make us animals - no we as a race are better than that...", she looked towards the alien in the cage, "...it is them who kill...not us"

Phillipa stared back at her in utter contempt and then looked away...

VVV

Ben Greene sat on his bed and wiped away a tear that threatened to fall down his cheek. Greg had come up the stairs and paused at the door, his glove was back on covering up his exposed hand, "Ben...would you like me to leave?"

Ben felt the anger building up within him, he jumped up for release and raged at the alien, "YES! I WANT YOU TO LEAVE! JUST GO YOU ARE A NOTHING...YOU DISGUST ME!", the words caught in his throat as he lowered his tone, "you are not real...you are...", he met Greg's eyes, "...you are a monster"

Greg looked incredibly disappointed at Ben. He shook his head and looked to the ceiling, his expression showing a realisation that was washing over him, "So it was purely a physical attraction, was it Ben?"

Ben looked back at him feeling unsure where this was heading.

"I thought we had a connection Ben...I thought we understood eachother...", he looked to the carpet, "...it seems that I was wrong...I stood up for you when the others turned against you...but you are just ungrateful...you are the same as them..."

Ben raged, "I'M NOT, I'M NOT LIKE THEM! TAKE THAT BACK...TAKE IT BACK!"

The teen came forward and pushed the alien up against the wall, Greg retaliated by snatching hold of Ben's throat and started to tighten the grip.

Ben whimped. Greg, face showing emotional pain, tightened the grip, Ben whimped more..."Please...", he begged, hardly getting out the words, "...please don't kill me"

Greg released his grip and stepped back, he shook his head, "I could never kill you Ben...if you don't know that by now, you never will...", he moved to the doorway and turned, "...they forced us to understand human emotion before we came here...the ability made it easier for us to blend in, even if most of us were repelled by it...there's no time for emotions...feelings, on my world...not when we are at war...but with you, I understood it...I learned that you could love something that is different from yourself...

...it seems I was alone in that"

And with that, he was gone...this time, leaving Ben completely alone.

VVV

Ross Morrell crossed the vault and peered into the lab, "Hey guys - dinner is served"

Toni stood up from the stool, "I'll research these skin samples later - Amy are you coming?"

Amy was still sat at the microscope, "I'll be with you all in just a sec...keep mine warm for me, huh?"

Toni laughed and made for the exit, "Will do...", and with a glare at Phillipa, she left the lab with her husband. Amy stood up when she had finished and turned to the alien, "I suppose we might be able to find you a sewer rat to eat..."

Phillipa glared back at her and watched her leave the lab. Amy parted thinking that the cage was locked and secure...Phillipa stood up when she was finally left alone, because she knew that the cage was unlocked...

VVV

Toni and Ross were dead tired after the meal and decided to get an early night. Amy fed the dish washer, because according to the roster it was her turn.

"I'll be heading for bed myself in a while, I just need to check a few things in the lab"

The vault was dim lit and empty because most people were asleep. She stepped up the corridor and entered the lab, squinting in the darkness.

There was a shadow...

She turned her head towards the cage and realised the door was swinging open.

"What the..."

But she could say no more. Something monsterous clawed hold of her neck and hauled her to the floor. Amy tried to scream out for help, but Phillipa hung over her and sprayed stinging venom in her face. Her snake like tongue making her fake human mask crack, revealing that ugly under current of the aliens true nature exposed.

Phillipa growled and hissed at her, and Amy realised she was going blind, she desperately tried to reach out and snatch at the aliens face, but the Visitor pressured her hand over Amy's nose and mouth and forced down hard sufficating her.

Amy struggled and shook, but in no time, she laid still...Phillipa was satisfied that her prey was dead.

The Visitor then body searched her, and found what she was looking for in an inside pocket. The keys.

Standing and looking down at the fresh corpse one last time, Phillipa was ready to make her escape...

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