It was dark out. Robin fidgeted with the small box under the table cloth. The waitress surprised him and he asked for a scotch.

'Bit adventurous, eh?'� Kate asked.

'What? Course not. Just...'� Robin said. He looked around. 'Food's slow.'�

'Told you we should've gone Mexican,'� Kate said. 'Just going the bathroom.'�

Robin shoved the box into his jacket pocket as Kate rose. As Robin tore his paper napkin and tried to predict this evening's eventual outcome the Asian waitress moved towards him with a plate in each hand. She laid the food out and bowed before dancing away to a couple in the corner. It smelled good. Kate came out of the bathroom and was walking past the payphone. She looked down and smoothed-out her red dress and Robin thought, Now or never. His hand shot across the table and he placed the box under Kate's napkin in the time it took her to look back up.

'Okay?'� he said as she took her seat.

'Wow. It looks great,'� she said, nodding to the food. She sipped her Diet Coke and smiled at Robin.

'We don't do this often enough.'�

Kate rolled her eyes and smiled. 'I know. Beats micro-waved noodles and Casualty by a mile and a half.'�

Robin took a small bite of his chicken and said, 'You look beautiful tonight, Kate. Really.'�

Kate leaned over and gave him a gentle kiss. She took a deep breath and said, 'I'm hungry.'�

For the next ten minutes Robin couldn't keep his eyes off her napkin. They discussed Kate's brother, Robin's job, completely avoided the topic of Kate's job ' the students were driving her nuts ' and tried to decide which movie to watch on television before bed. 'That Clint Eastwood movie is on, I think.'�

Kate laughed and shook her head. 'No way, mister. No cowboys, tonight.'�

'You'd like it. It's got a girl in it somewhere, I'm sure.'�

Kate's hand moved an inch towards her napkin and Robin's heart almost stopped. 'Well, there's that Tom Hanks movie on Channel 3 I wanted to watch.'�

'One of the funny ones?'�

'I think so.'�

'Who else is in it?'�

'Denzel Washington.'� She grinned at him.

"What a coincidence.'�

'I'm sure there's a girl in it somewhere,'� she said in a phoney Rambo voice.

Kate finished her rice and placed the knife and fork parallel to each other on her plate. Robin was beginning to panic, even starting to sweat.

'You hot?'�

'Yeah,'� Robin said. He shrugged off his jacket and let it hang over the back of the chair. The waitress appeared as if by magic and asked them if they would care for dessert. 'Sure,'� Robin said. 'Kate?'�

'Ice cream?'�

'Me too,'� Robin said and, pointing to his glass, 'And another one of those?'�

The waitress bowed and left, taking the dishes. 'Easy,'� Kate said.

Robin was rubbing his eyes with his hand. He looked up and tried to act casual. 'Kate, you've got...'� He motioned with his hand, scraping at his bottom lip.

'Oh, sorry,'� Kate said. She wiped at it with her thumb. 'Got it?'�

Robin swallowed hard. 'Um, no. Still there.'�

Kate licked at the corners of her mouth. 'This side?'�

Robin nodded. 'Still there.'�

Kate used the back of her hand to wipe at her lips. She smiled and leaned in closer to Robin, putting her elbows on the table. Robin shifted uncomfortably. 'I've had a good night tonight. I don't know what I've done to deserve this. What are you staring at?'�

'Still there,'� he muttered.

Kate frowned and leaned back. She wiped her fingers over her mouth a few times and Robin scratched his face nervously and shook his head.

'Use your napkin,'� Robin said.

Kate checked her hand, sighed and smiled, looking at him again.

'Use your napkin,'� he said.

'Come on,'� she said. 'You're having me on, now.'�

Ignoring her, he said, 'Use your napkin. What it's there for.'�

'Christ,'� she said, scratching the corner of her mouth. 'Is it like paint or something?'�

'Kate, just use the bloody napkin like any normal person!'� Robin shrank back the second the sentence came out. He hid behind his hands.

'What the Hell's gotten into you?'�

Robin peeked from behind his fingers.

'Hey! Don't ignore me. What's the Hell is wrong with you?'�

Couples at near by tables stopped their conversations to listen in. Robin noticed this and made eye contact with a curious elderly gentleman. He looked back to Kate and came out of hiding. He took a deep breath and tried to laugh but it came out as a desperate whining sound. He frowned at the strange noise he had created and thought, What the Hell? 'Kate, use your napkin. Please?'�

Kate pushed her chair back to stand and grabbed the paper napkin, scrunching it up and hurling it at Robin's head. 'You use the fucking napkin!'� She picked her handbag up from the floor and span around to leave. Upon seeing the small box she stopped dead in her tracks. Her jaw nearly hit the floor. She stared at the neat little cube a moment, then looked at Robin, who by this time had his head firmly buried between the palms of his hands. He glanced up at her.

'Marry me?'�

Kate played with the collar of her dress, her other hand smoothing out the bottom of it, conscious of the entire room now watching her every move. She looked at him, eyes wide in shock. 'You bastard,'� she said.

Robin's heart sank.

'No, no,'� she said, laughing. 'That's a yes, you silly shit! Yes!'�

Robin stood up straight, took a deep breath, and only then could he manage a laugh. They almost knocked the table over in their effort to get at each other.

Robin and Kate kissed to the delight of the other diners. They were given a small round of applause and sat down, holding each other's hands tight. They waited for their ice cream. Kate smiled at Robin and tried the ring on for size. It almost killed him how beautiful she was.

***

They locked arms and walked slowly towards the edge of the pavement to hail a taxi. Kate stopped. 'Let's walk,'� she said.

'Okay,'� Robin said.

Kate rested her head on his shoulder and looked at the way the diamond shone on her finger. 'You know, I have no idea what I'm doing,'� she said.

He laughed and said, 'That's good, neither do I.'�

The crowds of the main streets started to thin out as Robin and Kate made their way home. They found themselves walking beside the river. The sounds of the city were muffled by the trees that lined the pathway. The night sky had a faint orange glow, a roof on the world. Robin put his arm around her and they kissed. She felt that, yes, she probably could spend her life with this man.

The voice that broke the comfortable silence didn't come from Robin or Kate.

'Got any change, mate?'� he said.

'Uh, sure. Hang on,'� Robin said as he fished for a pound.

Kate looked at the man and he looked right back. She smiled politely and his eyes shifted to the space behind her. Grasping at her hair, the second man pushed Kate to the floor. Robin had time enough to turn his head before the third man cracked the cricket bat over the back of his skull.

Moments of hushed violence punctuated a comfortable darkness for Robin. At first he could see only the strange faces of his attackers, growling teenagers with blunt objects. The boy kicked at his eyes. The girl spat on him and pressed her shoe against the side of his head. He screamed but he couldn't make out what it was he said. Kate had vanished when Robin next woke up. The girl took the bat, striking him on the leg over and over. The only sound that made it through to Robin was a scream. It wasn't his. Cold punches to the stomach sent him back into the dark. The last thing he heard was laughter.

***

'Stab wounds.'�

'How's the-'�

'Put-'�

'Robin? Robin?'�

'Robin, wake-'�

Robin woke up alone. The curtains were drawn but the window was open. He could hear the crickets chirping away outside and he realised he'd never heard that before. He always assumed it was a fake movie thing. He strained his eyes to try to see past his drip feed. Waves. Curtains. He heard footsteps. Clicking. Female. They faded away.

It was night-time. It was night-time and he was in a hospital. He was tucked into his bed tight and didn't have the strength to push himself up.

'Hello?'� he said, the effort sending a pain down his throat all the way to his lungs.

The call button glowed behind his head. Where's Kate? he thought.

'Oh God,'� he whispered. He took a deep breath and said, as loud as he could manage, 'Kate.'�

Groans came from outside the curtain.

'Kate,'� he said.

The ceiling gave him no answers. He closed his eyes and tried to remember. Pain. All he got was pain. Fuzzy, second-hand sensations came back to him. Where was Kate?

'Kate,'� he said. 'Kate!'�

The pain in his throat disappeared in his panic and Robin screamed and shouted until the clicking sound sped up and the nurse appeared through the curtains.

'Where's Kate?'� he asked.

'Calm down, sir,'� she said. 'Please.'�

'My girlfriend. I want to see her.'�

'Visiting hours are over. You can see her tomorrow.'�

'You don't-'�

'I'll call her for you in the morning. Now, if you don't be quiet I'm going to have to give you something to make you sleep.'�

'But-'� With his throat on fire he could do nothing but gasp for air.

When the nurse returned she brought with her another woman in a white coat. She pinched his arm. It felt like drowning. He stared at the ceiling. Something moved up there. Something big.
Deep within the Earth Robin lay sleeping. He was hurt and he was sad but he would be okay. He was not alone. The blackness moved all around him. They were leaving for the light. Soon they would be sunside.

***

'I envy you,'� Robin said. 'You see her mind. You see everything. You've got her to yourself.'�

The creature clung to the ceiling above the bed and didn't move. It hadn't moved for two days, not once since the invasion. It was the size of child, with long fingers and a tail that swayed backwards and forwards. The creature's face was blank; there were no marks of any kind. It had no mouth, no eyes, nothing. Its skin was black and leathery. Robin's fear of the creatures had gone now.

A creature stirred behind Robin. It was his own. There was one creature for every person in town. They watched everybody. Robin could feel it now, inside his mind, absorbing his memories. He was hooked. There was no running away. A body lay on the floor near by: chubby legs; a hospital gown; a bloodied stump where the head should be. He had tried to run. Once the creature has you it has you. Breaking the psychic bond would be about the same as slamming a meat cleaver down the middle of your brain.

Kate had been in a coma ever since the attack. Her ring had been stolen. Robin wheeled himself closer so he could touch her hand. 'Bastards,'� he said. They had the ward to themselves. Nurses, doctors, patients, they all ran first chance they got.

Someone was screaming outside. 'Get away from me! What do you want? What you want from me? I got nothin'! Get away!'�

Robin moved to watch. The man was waving a rifle around. He was the only person left alive in the street that Robin could see. He had done well to survive this long. Probably been hiding, Robin thought. The man was getting himself worked up. He ran across the street but the black creature jumped down off the streetlight and followed him. The man took refuge in a shop doorway and started pointing the rifle at the strange beast.

'Stay back!'� he shouted.

The creature got close enough to establish a connection. The man must have felt it because he dropped to his knees and started to claw at his head. 'Get out! Get out!'�

With the creature only a metre away, the man fired directly into its head. The creature flinched. The man's head exploded. When the bond is formed there is no escape. Damage inflicted on the creature is reflected back ten fold on its human host. Some sort of defence mechanism, Robin reasoned. It was why almost everybody was dead. The townsfolk who hadn't run away tried to fight back. The creature on the street disappeared into a crack in the ground.

Headless bodies lined the pavement, some were hanging out the windows of crashed cars. They hadn't understood. The blood had dried in the sun. The streets were black. Maybe some survived, Robin thought. Maybe someone will come. Robin looked to his creature and smiled. He moved towards it and began to speak. The creature stayed exactly where it was, perched on top of a neighbouring bed.

'Wake her up,'� he said. '�Wake her up for me.'�

His creature moved its head towards Kate's creature. They communicated, Robin saw. The creature was afraid. It knew what fear was. They learn fast, he thought.

'I can show you what you are,'� Robin said. Pushing the wheelchair closer, he put out his hand. Robin first touched its face. It felt like marble, smooth and cold. Holding his palm flat against its icy flesh, Robin closed his eyes. He moved his hands over the creature's body. When the creature crawled away onto the ceiling Robin heard a familiar voice.

'Robin, is that you?'� It was Kate's voice.

He turned quickly and saw that Kate's eyes were still closed. Her creature dropped to the floor, landing on its feet. It stood on its hind legs and walked towards him.

'Robin, it's dark,'� the creature said. Kate's voice sounded hollow within the creature's hard skull.

'Oh, God. Kate...'�

Robin glanced up at his creature; it was leaving. It crawled towards the window and slid out over the broken glass. It was going back to the underground. Kate's creature seemed curious. Its face was inches away from Robin's.

'What have they done?'�

'I'm scared,'� she said.

Robin looked at Kate's body. The creature that shared Kate's mind, that had copied her thoughts, was before him. He had to talk to it. It had become her.

'Don't be afraid,'� he said. Robin tried to stand. The wounds in his stomach ached and his felt something in his leg crack. He cried out.

'I feel like I'm dying.'�

'Kate, don't... don't worry.'� He fought the urge to shut his eyes and cry and wait for it all to end. 'It's okay.'�

'What has it done to me?'�

'It is you, Kate. It has your thoughts and your memories. Don't be afraid.'�

She started to cry. Her creature, mimicking movements from a past event, put its head in its hands.

'Imagine, Kate, you are giving this creature life. They feel nothing. They are dead. You... you've saved them. Imagine the best friend you ever wanted, Kate. Every time you've ever felt alone and every time you've ever cried, it will cry too. It will relive your life through your eyes. Every time you ever smiled, it will smile too. It will do what you do and dream what you dream. Kate, it's you. I love you, Kate. It loves you. You will help them to see.'�

Kate's body became cold on the bed. Robin saw her breathing stop and her eyes relax.

'Goodbye, Kate.'�

The creature slumped to the floor, standing on all fours now. Robin watched it as it left through the window. He was alone, more alone than he had ever been. He wished the creatures well and climbed into the bed next to Kate's. Robin would wait. He was alive. He could wait.

When he closed his eyes he saw the underground. He saw his creature curled up with the others in their cavernous lair. In his mind's eye he saw them at rest. They were sleeping. For the first time in over a million years, they were dreaming.


THE END.

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