I strained to see my hand. I didn't see it until it was right in front of my face, and even then I only saw the faintest outline. I wanted so badly to yell and scream and shout but I knew that if I did I'd be dead.
         We had left our home two years ago and have been on the run ever since. If we wanted to live we'd have to be quiet. I breathed gently through my nose trying to ignore the scent of them. It was like rotting fish and I gagged a little.
     Ruko punched me in the arm and I stuck my tongue out at him even though he couldn't see it. I heard their strange language through the closet door and curled into my brother's arms more. They were searching for us, for anyone from our planet. Stupid invaders.
       In my head I cursed them. They had taken our parents, our neighbors, our friends. I wouldn't curse my absolute worst enemy to be taken by them. They were sometimes pale or tan and dressed in white but were also sometimes brown and dressed in orange and would sometimes wear strange bowls on their heads. Such strange creatures. They had landed two years ago and more and more came periodically to our blue planet, traveling in strange ships. They wore little engines on their backs that sprayed out clouds and flames and helped them fly. Such unnatural things.
        I heard them walk away and then the slamming of the front door. I let out a breath I didn't realize I had been holding. Ruko pulled me in tighter to his arms, but relaxed a few minutes later when we heard no more noises.
" Are you alright Neuge?" I felt, rather than saw, my brothers eyes on me. I nodded and then remembered  it was to dark to actually see it.
" Yes, I'm alright." he sighed I relief and I saw the flash of white as he smiled and pushed open the closet door slowly letting in silver rays of light.
        We stepped out and froze when we saw one of them standing there looking smug with his white clad hands on his hips and a strange flag striped with red and white on his chest. He pulled of the bowl and gave a warm looking smile. I spit at him and Ruko glared holding me, his arms wrapped protectively around me.
"Do not fear me, I am here to save you from your dying planet." I cowered in his arms as a voice deep and heavy with some sort of accent came from the thing. I didn't know how I was able to understand him, even to this day it puzzles me. I looked into it's eyes and saw only compassion and kindness. 
" Brother. I trust him." I said telepathically to Ruko, and the creature didn't seem to hear, how pathetic, he couldn't hear, he wasn't one of us, but still. His smile faded and he looked worried.
" And I trust you sister." it stared at us as we talked, our lips never moving. 
" What do you say? Would you like to come with me?" I turned to the man and spoke to him aloud.
"We will go with you." the smile returned to it's face and was even bigger this time.
       He led us onto a platform floating in the sky and we got on with him. It descended from the homes in the clouds and below was the vast expanse of our oceans, the tops of them frozen over in most places. All around us there were creatures on platforms and  some of them were flying with the strange engines on their backs. Such unnatural creatures, needing machines to fly. My brother held onto my hand the whole ride to one of their enormous ships, the mother ship probably. 
        The creature instructed us to follow him and we did. He sat us down in puffy seats with belts holding us in place. In minutes the ship left our planet and was hovering over another one. It had blue oceans like ours except only the top of the planet was frozen and there were even huge masses of land! This must have been the planet I had heard stories about when I was little.
" Children of  Planet Neptune. Welcome to Earth."
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*
         I sat on the rocking chair and smiled at my grandchildren as they giggled and smiled when they saw my white bird-like wings extended. I had been telling them about how I and Ruko, may he rest in peace, had come to the planet of Earth.
" Nana Neuge, is it true that the people of Neptune all had wings like you do?" I smiled at the youngest, she was named Ruka for her blue eyes that so resembled my dear brother's.
" Yes, the sky people did. The ones of the sky tribe. There were also those of the water tribe that were like what the earthlings call mermaids." I laughed when looks of shock and awe came over their tiny faces. 
" Nana?" it was Ruka again.
" yes sweetie?"
" will I ever get to see the holy land?" I felt immense sadness when she mentioned my old home. The holy land was what the children of Neptune called our home planet now.
" I hope so sweetie, but the sky tribe is obliterated on Neptune. The thin atmosphere is gone and our land of the clouds disappeared many years ago." the tiny, pale white, wide eyed children frowned, disappointed.
" Well then we'll just stay here with Nana!" I smiled as the other children cheered and smiled along with Ruka. 
" I suppose so. Now it's time for bed. Let's go." I got up and shuffled the children along to their respective rooms as they groaned and complained about going to bed.
        I went to my room and laid in my bed staring at the picture of me and Ruko with Admiral Collins, the astronaut who had saved us from our dying world. I stroked Ruko's face and smiled remembering all the fun we had, had before those two years began. 
"Good night, dear Ruko." I whispered to him in the dark and kissed his cheek, just like I used to do.