[ IP ] Said the Stars

`` Remember to look up,'' he had said. 
 
 The words felt especially deep tonight; and more real than ever before. Blurred by the nuclear haze to the west, the evening's first stars had begun to speak as sweetly as her brother. Lana listened to the crackle of tiny stones beneath the hard rubber of her nearly threadbare mountain bike tires. Just as the awareness and awe of stars in the heavens, the rounded, spoked saviors had been a gift from Jonathan as well - each mile ridden, the bitter sweet chorus of a song of survival, and of hope. 
 
 Hopping off of the bike, the swimming pool of exhaustion, emotion, and adrenaline that was Lana's new existence sloshed to a slow, easy ebb, moving gently back and forth in her head. 
 
 *30 miles today*, she thought. *Far enough to fight another day. * 
 
 Giving in to the cradling arms of the now dark and star speckled sky, the world around her faded as she fell asleep. 
 
 *Cccccrrrraaaahhhahahahahahah! * 
 
 Lana's soft breathing was immediately replaced by the sound of her katana's blade leaving it's protective sheath. Time ceased to exist, and as she focused, everything around her morphed to the form of the the giant, antlike creature that scrambled rapidly toward her. 
 
 *Schiing! * 
 
 A swift stroke of the blade later, the `` Giant'' ( as they were called ) fell, it's head rolling away, trailing dark syrupy blood in its wake. She had felt strong enough to survive anything the last time Jonathan stood watch over their camp. Now, alone and afraid, she was n't sure. 
 
 She did n't want to look up. She did n't want to have to remember. Jon had always done that. A tear fell heavy onto the hard, crusted soil, and hopelessness overcame Lana. Three days after his death and she was crumbling. Weeping herself back to sleep, she dreamed of him. The stars above sang silent lullabies, and as her chest rose and fell, they watched the unforgiving world turn. *Nature takes it's course. Suffering is inevitable. But hope is essential. When you find yourself losing it, and night falls, remember to look up. * In the fog of her dream, Lana touched the ghost of her brothers face as it faded into the sunrise of another day. In the distance The city of Esperanza, home of the human resistance stood shimmering, and in her subconscious state, Lana clung to the mirage for dear life.
