The Eight Lies We Tell Each Other

By Christine Anna Kirchoff

~Editor's Pick~

Lie one: we’re all going to survive.

Nova just wanted to do her duty like everyone else. Become a soldier, keep Earth safe. When her base is attacked, she’s captured by the alien enemies but they’re nothing like she was taught. They’re smart, calculating, curious, and so her nightmare begins.

Surviving. Dying.

When she’s finally rescued, she can’t remember much of her humanity but she can’t tell anyone what she knows, like their language or the experiments. She never expects to meet the boy with the stunning green eyes, Pierce. They bring out feelings in her she had to destroy to survive. Then it comes out that the aliens are looking for something. Someone.

To keep Earth safe, Nova will have to kill the queens. Every. Last. One.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Evernight Teen
• Release date: Jul 31, 2020
• ISBN: 9780369502087

Book preview

Prologue

Memo to all citizens:

Earth is a utopia and it was hard fought to become such a place.

There’s plenty of food, plenty of water, plenty of space. Each citizen lives to their fullest here. There’s no war between countries because everyone is under the control and care of the Unified Government. This would not be possible without the drafting. When a child reaches the age of thirteen, they are taken from their family and placed in defense camps scattered throughout our known universe. They will train to guard our home world from any invaders.

Brave.

Strong.

Heroes.

Soldiers.

We need men and women to defend us from the violent aliens in the deep black of space. Malins, named after the galaxy in which they spawn, are a plague on humanity. At nineteen, men and women will join the ranks. Their sacrifice, your sacrifice makes humanity thrive. When their service time is over (depending on rank and skills), every human will retire on earth to know only peace and prosperity.

It is everyone’s duty to protect our way of life. You are not giving up your child, you are providing them the means to become a citizen like yourself.

Citizenship equals peace.

This has been an automated message from your Unified Government.

Chapter One

Year 8180

Planet: 8140 Reynolds

(Year discovered, name of discoverer)

Are you serious right now, Nova? The voice was one she knew too well. Anna, her roommate.

Nova rolled her eyes and went back to her flat, thin, computer. She slid the tip of her finger along the screen, focusing on her drawing. It was a picture of the quad where they trained. She was going to send it home to her parents along with a thousand other drawings. Hey, they only got one data transfer a year and she wasn’t going to waste it.

You’re going to be late again! Anna shouted as she shoved on her other boot and bolted toward the steel pathway to the quad.

Nova ignored her. She wasn’t hungry for breakfast. Right now, she wanted to draw. She always wanted to draw. She shaded in the tree to her left a bit more so the shadows showed the early hour she’d chosen.

Anna was not her first choice in roommates, but maybe that was because they still had to get used to each other. Maybe. Nova had been here for a year now. Well, one year, two months, and four days. Anna wasn’t that bad, but she snored and she liked to talk too much about boys. Besides, it felt like a lifetime away from her parents. Sometimes she missed them so much she felt herself tearing up and had to hid it before any of the soldiers saw. How would that look, crying in front of the men and women that fought against the deadly Malin! She went back to her work. Nova didn’t know how long she laid on her stomach in front of their barracks, but if she was late for class again, she’d be in so much trouble. The drawing was basically done too. Maybe more highlights on the wall. Yeah, that’d look…

The high-pitched alarms screeched.

Nova bolted to her feet. The handheld tumbled to the ground and she clapped her palms over her ears. Red lights spun round and round. A kid screamed.

Nova! Anna ran back up the path.

It’s a drill. She mumbled this more to herself than Anna.

It’s not! It’s not! Her eyes filled with tears. Look! She pointed to the sky.

Nova turned to look as missiles launched. The sleek gray explosive shot toward the clear blue sky. Up and up it went, until Nova thought they’d lose sight, then it exploded. No. The missile hit something! Oh feck. It was a ship. It was a malin ship.

Nova couldn’t breathe. Her lungs just stopped working. Anna screamed beside her and fell to her knees. They both knew how this would end. No base ever survived an attack. Not yet anyway. Nova swooped down and grabbed Anna’s arm. Move. Now. She tugged her friend to a stand and started running. Her feet pounded on the path as she hauled Anna behind her. In case of an attack, soldiers went to stations, instructors erased sensitive documents, and those in training went for the emergency escape pods. It was the first thing they learned. Come on!

Anna tried to keep up.

Nova had always been the faster of the two. Feck, she beat out all the boys in foot races. She swerved to the left to avoid a soldier who strapped on weapons. This was really happening. She clamped down the thought and focused. Breathe. Pace. Foot placement. Anna, move faster! Nova pulled harder. They passed the fourteen and fifteen-year housing units. Right by the sixteen and seventeen units. Some of them ran, others retrieved their blasters and knifes. What was a knife going to do against an alien with claws?

The quad was in complete chaos.

Blasters were handed out, missiles launched, instructors shouted orders.

Nova avoided it as much as she could, still tugging on Anna’s sleeve.

An instructor saw her and screamed, Get to the emergency ship. On the double!

Where did he think they were headed? She couldn’t fecking fly there! Plus, Anna slackened, out of breath, and stumbled over her feet. Nova stopped beneath the steel archway as they reached the end of the quad. Catch your breath. Twenty seconds, Nova said. She was fine. She could have sprinted to the pods, but she would not leave Anna.

A rumble made the ground shudder. Nova jerked her head from the archway to stare at the normally pale blue sky. What she saw disturbed her to the core. Ships, malin ships, littered the sky like clouds. So many. Too many. Tears sprang in her eyes and slid down her cheeks. Missiles burst toward them, taking one down. The fiery wreck veered right toward the outside of their base. This was a forest planet. Trees of all different colors were set ablaze when the ship landed.

We have to go. Nova grabbed Anna’s arm. Now. Right now. Run! They took off down the wide corridor—passed the medical building, then the learning center, over the small bridge with the lazy brook.

Anna lagged again.

Damn it, Anna!

I’m … t-trying. She gasped out. D-don’t leave me.

Nova didn’t have to look back. She knew her friend cried as they ran. I’m not leaving you. Another explosion sounded and it made the ground vibrate. They’re so close. The sounds were unbelievably loud. Hissing from the missiles launching. The thudding of gunfire.

They surged around the corner to the huge field where the ships waited. Nova skidded to a stop, her eyes going wide. Oh, feck. That explosion hadn’t been a ship. The malins dropped some kind of explosive on this area. The ships were in pieces, thick black smoke filled the sky. People … people were on the ground. Friends. Instructors. The boy that said her drawing was really nice. He had brown eyes like the trees when it got cold. Now they were vacant eyes.

Anna let out a soft keening.

Stop that, Nova said, her voice hitched. Hold it together. This is just the main ships. Emergency vessels are hidden by the… The small area filled with trees shattered. The wave of heat and force knocked them both off their feet.

Nova landed hard but caught herself before her head hit. Flames licked over the wall. A tree collapsed against it. How many of her friends had been on them? Nova felt the tears squeeze out as she shoved to her feet. Pods. It was their last chance. Small two-person pods that would shoot out into space with a beacon that only sounded on human frequencies. Or so they were told. It was technically for soldiers and instructors, but anything was better than staying here. Nova grabbed at Anna’s flailing arm as she tried to stand.

Something flew overhead.

Nova didn’t even have the breath to gasp. A malin ship landed outside the base wall. Run! They had to go fast, like can’t breathe, going to vomit, fast. The pods were on the other side of the learning center. They ran across the ship field where pieces still burned. She kept a tight grip on Anna’s sleeve. Blaster shots rang out. Screams. Nova wanted to scream herself. She clamped her lips closed and kept sprinting. She didn’t look at the anarchy around her. She focused on their destination. Around the corner, in the learning center, top floor, pods. They could share one and get the…

A shadow registered too late. Suddenly something emerged around the corner.

Nova didn’t understand at first. Her brain refused to acknowledge what she witnessed. She’d only seen them on screen. In person, they were terrifying. Nova skidded to a stop and Anna slammed into her back. They both landed in a tangle of limbs.

Anna screamed, pushing away. Then she screamed again.

Nova was on her back, staring at this massive creature. He was so much worse than her imagination. Almost beautiful green scaly skin with oddly jointed legs and black claws at the end of curled fingers. He wore metal linked together over his body and a face that could only be described as shocking. Human eyes, Nova thought as she stared up at him. Human eyes that narrowed at her. Scaly head, no eyebrows, smooth cheeks, and slits for a nose. His lips were plush and a darker green. Those lips parted as he hissed and lifted some type of weapon. Almost barrel-like, it looked like a miniature version of their missile launchers.

Nova balled her hands into fists. She didn’t want to die. She was fourteen. She hadn’t even kissed a boy yet. Nova yelled, guttural and angry. She swung her leg and struck it right in the joint.

He fell back a step.

Nova kicked again, as hard as she could and then shots fired. Someone was on the wall, shooting him in the back. She spun around and surged to her feet. Anna! Her roommate was curled in a ball, crying. Seriously? Run! She reached out as her friend stood. They took off back the way they came, passed their scattered, motionless friends.

Anna cried hysterically, but she continued.

Nova could hardly catch her breath. Shock maybe. She went in the first door she found and slammed it shut. When she leaned against it, her legs gave way and she slid to the floor. Breathe, Nova whispered to herself. Just breathe. She was still alive. She didn’t have a scratch on her. Nova inhaled and held it. Pull it together. How many times had her parents told her stories of their time as soldiers? Her mother never met any malins, but her father had been a Battle-scar. Front line. First defense. Total badass. He fought many of these things and he had the awards to prove it. He survived. Nova shoved to her feet. We can still get to the pods.

Anna stood there, shaking and crying silently. She nodded, trying to be strong.

Nova took her hand. They were in the labs. There was access to the learning center if they looped through, and then they could get to the pods. They’d make it. She started running down the hall. They’d survive this and be the first humans to ever make it out of a base attack. She’d have some seriously disturbed stories to tell everyone. Yes, she would, they would. Nova stopped at the door and pried it open slowly. Soldiers ran up and down the corridor. Some bloody. At least that meant there were no malins here.

All clear. She kept her hold on Anna’s hand and they darted across the wide alley to the other building. The door was blown off. Nova ignored it and kept moving. Three flights of stairs. No way was she taking the transporter now. Being stuck in that would be a death sentence and Nova was determined to live through this. She would. The first flight was easy and she kept urging Anna to move faster. The second set was a bit harder. Not just physical but she’d glanced out the window to see the wall that kept them safe. It had a gaping hole in it. Soldiers were still out there trying to defend the base. They’d make their escape when all the sensitive material was destroyed. If they made it out.

Nova … Anna breathed heavily as they made it to the third set.

Almost. There. She was winded now. Her legs ached as she made it to the top. We’re almost …

Bang.

The sound was astonishing. Loud and echoing. It made Nova flinch right before she plunged painfully to her knees. She shoved her hands out to keep from hitting her face and succeeded. The curse that slipped from her lips would have gotten her grounded at home. Smoke stung her eyes and made them water. She shook her head as if in slow motion and tried to turn around. An— Nova had a fit of coughing. The smoke burned her lungs and she hacked harder as she turned to her side.

"Nova. Anna knelt beside her. … you … kay …?"

Why did she sound funny? Nova sat and shook her head again. Everything sounded odd. The blasters were almost muffled. Eardrums. I think, she said. Was she yelling? Nova glanced at the stairwell they just climbed to see it partially collapsed. Got to move. She stumbled to her feet with Anna’s help and pulled the door open. This level was empty. Here were the pods and only half of them were gone. Nobody else made it? Her ears abruptly popped and the sounds of war returned. She flinched. Find one that’s working.

There! Anna pointed to the round pod with its door open. The outside was lit green and the ceiling already retracted for a hasty exit. We’re going to make it!

Nova felt that surge of hope like a touch. She grabbed Anna’s arm. They were so close.

Anna was suddenly ripped away from her grip.

Nova spun around in time to see the malin slam into her friend. No! It jammed its claws into her chest, and Anna’s beautiful eyes found hers. Anna! Rage replaced fear. Nova leapt like a crazy person onto the alien’s back.

He hissed at her and swung around, trying to knock her off.

Nova jammed her heels in and grabbed the only thing in reach, a knife on his back. The wicked looking blade had a jagged edge and a strange handle like bone. Human bone. Nova screamed as she pulled the knife free. She jammed the edge into the malin’s neck. Once. Twice. Three times. Green sludge sprayed and still Nova attacked. She kept stabbing until he fell to his disjointed knees and landed face first on the floor.

Nova scrambled to her feet, slid in its blood, and fought to get to Anna’s side. Oh no. Oh no! It’s okay. It’s going to be okay. She grabbed her friend’s hand. Cold. Lifeless. She was already gone. Tears spilled down her face until she could barely see. Anna!

The whistle sound was soft before the explosion.

The pod must have been their target. How did they know about these emergency measures? The thought whirled through Nova’s mind before she was blown backward. Her whole body spun, making her dizzy. Heat seared her skin. An acrid smell filled her nose. She landed in a tumble, down the stairs, and skidded to a stop at the hole in the wall.

Nova gasped, unable to process anything but pain. No, they were aches. Not real pain. She stared down, surprised to find she wasn’t even bleeding anywhere. Her mind was a jumble of panic as she shuffled to her hands and knees. Up. She coughed. She had to get up. The blade gleamed from the floor, covered in the malin’s blood. She scooped it up and lifted to her feet. New plan. She needed a new plan. She wasn’t going to die here.

Nova fumbled down the stairs and into the learning center … or what was left of it. Holes in the walls. Oh feck, bodies. She avoided looking and stumbled out the door. Where should she go? Help. She yelled, hoping someone would tell her what to do.

Get to a pod! Someone snapped out at her as they ran past.

No pods left. She shouted back, but they didn’t answer.

The same soldier was thrown back suddenly, a gaping wound in his chest. They were here!

Nova ran. She just ran. She didn’t have a destination. She didn’t have a plan. Nova sped through the alley and came out of the buildings to more soldiers.

They fought with malins. The creatures were so much bigger, most of them over six feet. Nova ran right under one, surprising it long enough for the soldier to stab it with a knife. She veered left, avoiding the quad. Panic made her sprint faster. She surged over the pathway to her housing unit. It was a stupid idea. She knew this. Nova should have stayed with the soldiers, but she couldn’t think straight. She could only see Anna’s face and all her friends on the ground.

Nova threw her front door open and bolted inside. She didn’t bother to close it, instead she scurried into her bedroom. Where was her handheld? Where was the damn thing? The yard. She’d dropped it in the yard. With a growl she surged back outside and saw it glinting right where she left it. Nova tucked it into her shirt. The knife still gripped tightly in her right hand, she ran toward the wall that was supposed to keep them safe.

She leaned against it, activating the data transmission. We’re under attack, she sputtered, trying to hid her tears. The pods are gone. Anna’s… She couldn’t say it. Nova slid down the wall to her butt. I don’t know what to do. I don’t know where to go. I’m sorry, Mom, Dad. I love you both so much. The tears slipped out.

Her father’s words rang in her ears like that explosion: My little Nova, when those aliens were about to kill me, I could only think of one thing. My family. I did whatever I had to, to survive. Never give up. There’s always hope.

I’m not giving up. Nova stared at the screen. I’m not giving up. I’ll survive until you come for me. I will survive. She tapped the send button. A box popped up that the account was charged credits for the unauthorized message and she dropped the handheld to the ground. Think, Nova, think. Where could she hide? Her head jerked up. The tunnels! Damn it. She took off as fast as her feet could carry her. Down the path, through the housing unit… She skidded to a stop at the corner. Soldiers were on the ground. She’d just seen them fighting and now they… Nova ground her teeth together and dashed around them.

Keep going.

Don’t stop.

Keeping running.

Never give up.

She was gasping violently when she came to the gentle brook and splashed in it. She kept the knife in her hand as the cold water sprayed her thighs and climbed to her knees. The pipe ran through the wall, letting the stream continue so their human presence wouldn’t hinder the planets growth too much. It was a weave of tunnels and…

Something moved.

Nova jerked her knife up and stared into dark irises. The instructor watched her with wide eyes. She could only imagine how she looked.

Fast, he whispered.

Nova stumble through the water into the pipe where she found four other soldiers and another kid. Alex! She ran over to him and hugged him. They weren’t friends. Alex had given her some pointers when she’d been training in the quad. He was two years older, but she was just so glad to see someone else.

He hugged her back, squeezing tight. You look like hells, Nova.

She didn’t mind that he tucked her under his arm or that he kept ahold of her. Right now, he was like an anchor. Just walked through hells, she whispered, shaking a bit.

His grip tightened and he laid his chin on her head.

Nova wanted to sink into that touch and cry. Just sob until she couldn’t feel anything anymore. She was thinking like a kid. She had to think like a soldier, like a survivor. Nova glanced at the instructor who hunched near the pipe entrance. What do we do? she whispered.

Alex’s brown hair was clipped close so she could see the dried blood on his scalp when he turned to face the pipe entrance. He shrugged and took hold of his blaster. Where’d you get the blade?

Nova glanced down. She’d forgotten she had it. Off a malin.

Alex wrenched his gaze down to her.

H-he killed Anna. Those words were hard to get out and she fought to keep the emotion in.

Alex nodded once and pressed a kiss to her forehead. I’ve got your back now.

The instructor stepped quietly but quickly. There’s one more way out. He kept his voice so low she could barely hear him. A backup that only a few of us know about. One last ship. Outside the wall about one click south. If we leave while they’re still attacking, we have a chance. He pointedly glanced at Nova. You have to keep up or we’re leaving you behind.

She can, Alex whispered angrily.

Fecking right she could. The instructor took off down the pipe, hunched because he was too tall. The other soldiers followed and then Alex pushed her ahead of him.

Thanks, she mumbled as the water splash around her ankles.

Just stating fact. He gave her a smile that made her stomach flutter. I’ve seen you run.

Nova started jogging. She had no problem keeping up. In fact, she could have gone faster than them. They had to hunch to get around low areas. Finally, being so short came in handy. Blasters still echoed, but they were less and less frequent.

A few moments later, they rushed out of the tunnel into the colorful forest that covered most of this planet. The trek was straight forward without incline. Nova regulated her breath and picked up her normal speed a bit to stay even with their longer legs. The sounds of the battle were faint now, barely audible for the echo of explosions.

She wondered if anyone else survived like her. Huddled somewhere, afraid to move. She shivered and kept moving. As long as she kept her adrenaline pumping whatever aches she had would be kept at bay. The last thing she could do was complain.

The ship was small and tucked under the canopy of trees. The instructor charged straight for it, but Alex slapped his hand on her arm and tugged her back. She fell into him, annoyed that he yanked her out of the path, but both the soldiers stopped too.

The instructor was already at the ship, smacking the pad on the door to open it. He didn’t see the shadows. He didn’t see the enemy. Alex pulled her behind a tree as the other soldiers hit the deck. Run, he whispered.

Where?

Anywhere. Back to the pipe. The malin weapons fired in their direction, punching a small hole in the tree they hid behind. I’ll get you when I can. He grabbed her then, pressing his lips to her forehead. Stay alive.

Nova nodded.

Go.

She took off as the soldiers fired back. Again, she was running. Feck, she was exhausted despite the brave face she put on. She needed to get more cardio when she got out of here.

Nova found no resistance as she made her way back to the base, which was becoming eerily quiet. The pipe still gurgled out water. She charged into it, tucking herself behind a corner. Then she squatted down. Nova stared into those trees, waiting, watching, fighting the urge to cry. Alex would come for her. Nova took a deep breath. There was still hope.

Chapter Two

Lie One: We’re All Going to Survive.

Nova was having a nightmare of her base being attacked. It was so vivid and stunningly sad that she wept. She felt the tears run down her cheeks and … her legs. She blinked rapidly, waking in the rusted pipe. Not a dream. Not a nightmare. Nova had fallen asleep. How long had she been out? She uncurled her legs and nearly cried out. Everything was sore. Her calves, her thighs, her shoulders, even her head.

She eased around the corner of the pipe to see darkness had descended on the forest. She had to have been asleep for hours. Where was Alex? He should have come back by now. A shiver raced down her body. Maybe … maybe he wasn’t coming back. She was alone on a malin conquered planet!

Breathe, Nova, breathe.

Think, Nova, think.

She had to get to a radio. If she could let anyone know what happened here, they’d send the battle-scarred to take back the base. The base checked in every month, right? Damn it, she couldn’t remember. Yes, yes. Every month because that’s when they sent out their data. Okay. This was good, but they were, at least, a six-month journey from the nearest planet! Nova took a deep breath. She kept thinking about her father. He’d been in worse situations and came home. So would she.

Nova eased toward the other edge of the pipe where a giant hole had been blown through the wall. The quad was unnervingly empty. The darkness was chased partially away by the solar lights. It still showed the bodies. Nova winced and looked away. She just had to sneak into the main building, grab a radio, and get back out. She could hide here for days if she had to. Fruit grew on these trees. It tasted sour, but really who cared about taste when they were starving?

Nova edged herself forward, trying to ignore the new aches cropping up. She’d run miles yesterday and been blown up a few times. Could she have something serious wrong? Nova froze. She was only fourteen. She didn’t even know how to check to see if anything was wrong.

It’s fine. I’m fine. Keep moving.

She slithered out of the pipe and flattened herself against the wall. Maybe she could hide in the shadows. She was small enough. Nova placed foot after foot, keeping her eyes off the bloody ground. There was no one on the wall. No one in the nearby buildings that she could see. Where had they all gone? Did they steal what they could and leave? That would be a fecking miracle. In all the attacks they’d never left a survivor and if this one time she could be the exception … she’d be grateful the rest of her life.

A series of clicking sounds made her freeze.

Her breath froze in her lungs. One of them was right there in front of her.

He bounced forward on his disjointed legs and stared around. When he gazed into the shadows, she flinched and silently backed up a step. He couldn’t see her. There was no way. She wore black, had dark hair, and it was night.

The thing tilted his head and then lurched.

Nova screamed as his claws clamped around her shirt and tugged. She fell forward, crashing into him and let loose a barrage of punches. Being that she was so small that did exactly zip to help her. She went for his face, but he tilted back with another series of clicking sounds. Not even their best scientists could decode the language.

Nova tried to kick, but she was shoved backward. Landing on her butt, she quickly spun to escape. His webbed foot, covered in armor, landed on her back. Get off me! she shouted, terror filling her voice. Her knife! She grabbed it from her pants