Tao's POV

Being sprayed again with the super smelly toothpaste/old gym sock substance was not fun. Not that I was in the mood for fun in the first place. If I had been at an alien concert taking place on a moving roller coaster, I would probably have looked just as excited as now. What was wrong with me? Everything felt like a burden. These branches uncurling from my middle were a burden. Chanyeol's smiling face was a burden. The wind and sky and just everything was burdensome. My mind wanted to drift back to my earlier thoughts of pointlessness and how fast those lake frog-things could crush every burdensome bone in my body.

But of course, this guy here didn't understand.

“I'm so glad I found you!” the tall alien grinned and caught me as I fell forward out of the slimy tree's clutches. “You know, I got worried there for a second when your signal went zooming away to the robin nesting ground, but here you are.”

“Here I am.” I said with a weak smile, leaning on him because my legs didn't enjoy all the burdensome weight of the rest of me.

“We should turn off your signal, Zitao; it's dangerous to show your signal out here. Did you forget or did you know I was following you?”

Did he really expect me to know that the signal even existed, let alone that he had been behind me this entire time and I just didn't stop to say hi? Chanyeol sat me down on the ground and began working on my helmet while I stared uselessly at my hands. He stuck a tongue out between his teeth and pressed something on the side down hard and I was startled with a painful shock to the temple.

“Ow!” I rubbed the area and stared accusingly at him.

“Sorry. I forgot how to turn off the signals so I just broke it instead. Did the same to mine too, see?” He turned his head and I saw a crack in his helmet. Inside the dark crack, an electrical light flashed every once in a while. Wasn't that sort of thing dangerous?

For a minute, I wondered if my death would be caused by a helmet malfunction instead of super-lake-frog-things. Then I stopped caring. It was too easy not to care about anything.

My hyena buddy hopped up on my legs and held out the golden feather again. Boy, was it a persistent little fellow.

Fine, I'll care. Kind of.

I need to find Kai. This thought struck me like the bolt of electricity to my temple, and a small feeling of determination bubbled up in my chest.

“Chanyeol, will you help me find Kai?”

“Hmm?” he looked up from where he had been inspecting a small yellow plant with white flowers. “Oh, yeah. Of course. That's why I'm here in the first place.”

“What do you mean?”

“Kai always knew exactly which genetics to combine to solve all our planet's problems and well...” Nervously, Chanyeol picked a small sprig of the plant and turned it over and over in his hands. “I mostly took care of the animals. Normally I'd be able to take over his spot easily, but – I don't know – I think I've forgotten some things after being changed.”

“Like a side-effect?”

“Maybe.” Chanyeol put the sprig of flowers between his hemet and the attached eyepiece and held out a hand. “Ready to go?” he asked.

“Whatever.” I rolled my eyes and stood on my own, taking a few shaky steps before giving in and accepting his supportive arm. Progress to Kai was going to be slow, but much faster than if I had been on my own. As much as his chipper mood was annoying the hell out me (Seriously, what was wrong with me?), I needed his help.

Chanyeol poked me gently on the cheek, eyes alight with curiosity. “You should tell me all about what happened with the robins.”

To that, I scowled and began the stupid story, finding myself unable to say no to such a happy face.

***

Kai's POV

“Please eat this, Kai.” Suho pushed the little piece of purple fruit to my lips again, but I couldn't make myself eat it. It didn't sound appetizing and it didn't sound worth the energy when all I had to look forward to was the arguing SHINee members, the pain and crying, and the slow and steady rumble of the metal cage as it was wheeled down the forest path.

Where were we going? Where were they taking us? Why use such a primitive form of transportation?

For now, the cage was still, sitting by a river while the Anonymous bathed and gathered water for the journey. All except one member of the enemy group were out there. This one exception was watching us with his strong jaw set and brown eyes narrowed, daring us to try to escape so we could make his day.

“What's wrong with him?” this guy asked in our native language, eyes gluing themselves to my face as I turned away the fruit yet again and lay my head across Suho's lap. The way his hands automatically went to pet my hair reminded me of my days on Earth with Tao. It was calming and familiar.

“If I've read the symptoms correctly, it's severe depression brought on by withdrawal from hormone-stabilizing injections.” replied Suho tiredly. Surprised he even answered, I cast him a glance. His gaze seemed to be focused on the Anonymous member, defiant and strong despite the pallid look to his skin and the bags under his eyes. “He needs his shot, and more than that, he needs his lover. Like our red-ed robin, he could die of a broken heart in this kind of state.”

“Red-ed robin?" the man scoffed. "You mean those abominations you created that kill everything in their path?”

“They are also currently eating the dire infestation of toxic gas breathers that were killing our entire planet's ozone layer. We have them and our workers to thank for all this clean air we're breathing and the current temperate weather patterns. Do you miss the harsh winters of avalanches and glaciers? Do you miss the springs that drowned every living thing that couldn't swim in rains and floods? Do miss the summers so hot that the very ground burnt every surviving mammal's feet to blackened bits or the autumns so dry that your lips would be cracked and bleeding after mere seconds of exposure outside? Hmm?” Suho kept his head held high, eyes never leaving this man and never losing their judgement. “Well, do you, sir?”

“It isn't natural.” the man growled back. “You will throw the whole universe out of balance.”

“Want to know what else is unnatural? You. You, who was bred and born in a test tube like the rest of us. You, who eats our man-made fruits and vegetables to be in this superior state of self. You, who thinks that your survival in this world is not important compared to what you call the natural flow of the universe's inner workings when every living thing in this universe has one purpose and one purpose only: to survive.”

Perhaps if I hadn't been feeling like death, I would have applauded him. This speech was fantastic and the look on the guy's face was priceless. He wasn't even finished.

“If creating ways to survive is unnatural, then the universe was never natural. What is the benefit of behaving in a way that you think is natural anyways? Our entire planet would die and turn black, a lifeless lump of rock floating in space until it hit something and became some other planet's problem. Life would restart after millions, billions, trillions of years and maybe these new lifeforms would be just as unnatural as us.”

Suho smiled, but it held no emotion. “There was a time when same- couples were considered unnatural because we couldn't breed. You have a male lover, dear sir. Tell me, what do you think you could do without him? What would you do if the world told you what you had was unnatural when you know it to be the most natural and most fulfilling thing in the universe?”

“Stop.” he growled, baring teeth at us all. “That is different. You can't choose gender, but you can choose not to release murderous beasts on us all.”

“Those murderous beasts are saving us. When the real, natural, murderous beasts have all died out, we can work on making our creations less fierce. Our world can be at peace only when those who hold the most threat are cut out.” Narrowing his eyes dangerously, Suho spit out, “I hope for your sake you make the cut.”

The Anonymous man was called by his lover, and he turned to assure him that everything was alright and that the prisoners were safely secured. He had a mole on his neck, just like Sehun.

Was everyone back in the building okay? I'd been worrying about Tao all this time, but they could be in danger too. When we left, there were still desperate citizens at nearly every door.

“These men weren't always Anonymous.” Suho whispered to me as the man went off to speak with the others, probably telling them to invest in muzzles for all of us. “True Anonymous members don't have an Earth form.”

It was true. The men who held us captive had human bodies like us. Most of our planet had made the change when we brought back stories of how incredibly the humans could survive on their own even without gills, spikes, tails, claws, and fur.

“They are converting?” I whispered back and he nodded.

He gestured to Onew to come closer, speaking quietly in his ear, though I could still hear it. “The word of the Anonymous is spreading in a more palatable form to people like us. Their numbers are increasing and their ideals more skewed. We need to find out more about this and if possible, pass a message on to the others. For now, let's talk to our captors and gain their trust-”

“What are you two doing?” the man asked, jogging up to the cage and hitting the bars with a metal club. The weapon was able to send electrical shocks, so the impact made me jump as I expected an electric current to rattle our brains. The weapon must have been turned off.

“We're flirting.” Suho responded. “My lover cheated on me and I'm considering retaliation.”

For the stupid answer, I got off his lap and slapped him upside the head, laying down the hard metal floor instead. “You forgave him a long time ago, idiot.” I mumbled.

***

Kris' POV

Kyungsoo wanted to find out what other symptoms Zitao could be experiencing if he managed to survive his depression, but the question was, who was going to be the test subject? Luhan couldn't do it because his brain was already fully developed as an adult's. This left Kyungsoo and Baekhyun.

“Forget it.” Baekhyun kept saying, ignoring every bit of logic and pleading we fed to him. “There's a reason why I didn't take up your offer for weird shots, Kyungsoo-”

“Why does he get to call you Kyungsoo and I have to call you D.O?”

“Shut up, Chen.” snapped Kyungsoo, trying to reason with the stubborn alien once more. “If I'm out of commission, who's going to take care of everyone during an emergency? I'm the only the other medical specialist here, and I can't make good observations and rational choices if I'm a depressed lump.”

“You know, I've been observing you work for years, D.O-”

“Shut up, Chen!” Kyungsoo grabbed Baekhyun's hands off the many dials and buttons and looked him in the eyes. “I know you don't like these humans,”

“That's an understatement.” said Baekhyun wryly.

“But these humans have saved our planet, Baek. It's the information from their planet that has helped restore our fragile ecosystems. Do you remember what it was like before? There were huge expanses of black all across the ground where nothing could grow, nothing could live. Our planet was poisonous, Baek. We owe the humans so much.”

Snatching back his hands, Baekhyun stood and shoved the unblinking alien's shoulders. “Humans had nothing to do with it. In case you hadn't noticed, they were in the middle of killing their own planet twelve years ago. They didn't do anything to help their own ecosystems. Their ecosystems were there by chance, not from their own hands. We owe them nothing.”

“What about the humans who opened the pods-”

“Don't even get me started on the humans who opened the pods.” he said through his teeth. “Do you know what those erts did? Do you know what they made me do? Do you?” Without waiting for an answer, he spat out, “No. So don't tell me that I owe those monsters for opening my pod.”

“But we aren't like that.” I in, moving to protect Kyungsoo, who had been looking shaken up, behind my back. “Not me. Not Lay. Not Luhan. Not Tao. We knew that what we found was incredible. We knew that you guys weren't to be taken advantage of or thrown away.” Was I reaching him? Baekhyun was listening to me, but I couldn't tell what he was thinking. “When Suho appeared in my apartment, I didn't see a thing from another planet. I saw a person who needed my help. He obviously wasn't human, but he was still a person with thoughts and feelings.”

Xiumin moved closer to Luhan, hand caressing the man's cheek and eyes focused solely on the other. With a smile pulling at the side of his mouth, he spoke. “You were afraid of me when you first found me and you still took me in. I bet I looked completely helpless.”

Shrugging back, Luhan replied, “You didn't look helpless for more than a few minutes. Your brain is absolutely amazing. I knew within the hour that you could take of yourself without any problems, because you didn't need me with that capacity for learning. I'm the one who needed you, Minnie.”

Over by Sehun, Yixing began confessing his own thoughts. “Not a minute goes by that I don't feel bad for cheating on you, Sehunnie. Honestly, I feel disgusted in myself for having such little faith in you.”

“As long as I have you," said Sehun. "I don't care. Maybe it's stupid, but even if I had to share you, I wouldn't care. I just don't want to lose you again.”

“For the record, I'm not up for sharing. I'm all yours and yours only.”

“Good to know.”

“Right.” I said quietly, tearing my eyes away to speak to Baekhyun again. “We think of you guys as family and family takes care of each other when things get difficult. That's the whole reason why Tao left us in the first place. Kai is Tao's family.”

“Then why did Chanyeol leave me?” the alien responded, desperately searching for an answer I didn't have. “Am I not family? What makes that human better than me, the one who spent years looking for him and making sure every day was spent happily when we found each other again on that ing horrible planet you humans call home?”

“I don't know why Chanyeol left-”

“Then stop, just stop!” he yelled and a shock of golden light flashed angrily through the veins next to his eyes.

Kyungsoo peeked out from behind my back to speak, “Baekhyun, calm down. Your hormones are making you unusually angry-”

“It's not the hormones, Soo!” The light flared up stronger and lit up in his neck and hair. Baekhyun scowled at everyone before him. “I am not going to help that human. I'm not even going to help Chanyeol. If you need me – and you better ing not need me – I'll be with the SNSD division, making rain clouds and patching up the ozone layer of our atmosphere. Now, excuse me,” The alien pushed his way past and left down the hall without a glance back.

“Now what?” asked Luhan, voicing everyone's thought.

“Well, like I was saying before,” said Chen, coming to speak to his boyfriend. “I've been observing you work for a long time, D.O-”

“Chen, shut up.”

“No, listen. You sometimes have me act as your assistant anyways. If you were the test subject, I could take over your work and you could give me crash courses while you are still you.”

Kyungsoo shot the idea down instantly, saying he didn't like it. “You're already swamped with most of the hacking and protection work here. When was the last time you slept, Chen? I can't push you to take care of me, take care of everyone else, and take care of our defenses.”

“There's always plan C,” Yixing offered up with a shrug. His boyfriend stared at him and shook his head minutely. Ignoring this, he continued, “You could convert someone else into a moody teenager.”

“That's dangerous.” Sehun hissed at him. “You aren't doing it, Lay. I told you, I forgive you, but only if you stay next to me.”

“Lay can't do it anyways. He wouldn't be a dynamic enough test subject. The mood swings need to be stronger to accurately represent Tao's condition.” called Kyungsoo lightly, and suddenly it was like the whole room knew what he was going to say before he said it. “I need someone younger, Sehun.”

The alien's stern eyebrows didn't look so stern anymore when the eyes underneath were wide open in fear. “We won't have enough people working on our defense systems.” he supplied after regaining a bit of composure.

“Luhan can take your spot.” Xiumin assured him. “The humans are not useless, Sehun. They are learning.”

Learning. We are learning. We are changing; I could feel it in my bloodstream. Heavy objects weren't heavy. Difficult and complicated subjects were simple to me. My body moved faster and my mind stayed so very alert. This uselessness and lack of trust was going to end. Finally!

“I'll learn from Kyungsoo,” Yixing stated, lacing fingers with his boyfriend for comfort. “and take care of you, Sehun. Don't worry. I won't let you out of my sight.”

Turning to me, Xiumin asked that I help him find volunteers to go out and find our missing men. As leader of the humans, or course I accepted. Tao's disappearance was my fault anyways; I had the bruise spreading over my jaw to prove it.

***

Author Note:

Whoooops, monster chapter.

You don't mind, do you?

(still laughing that I made Xiumin punch Kris)