Chapter XXXIV
I sat at the featureless metal table, in a rather nondescript interrogation room, waiting for either a death sentence followed by an autopsy, or for someone with the power to make a decision to listen to what I had to say. I was actually pretty hopeful, all things considered. I mean, I did manage to get through the initial arrival with only one additional hole, and they didn't immediately shoot me the second the real cops arrived, which was always a bonus. Honestly, by this point, if they were going to kill me, it would be after they sponge me for as much information as possible. By that point I would have been able to give my entire story, as well as my desperate pleas for aid, so at least my job would have been finished.
They were taking an awful long time to get to me, though. The trip between the museum, the wait at the police station, and the trip to whatever secret government facility I was in right now combined was probably shorter than how long they've made me wait in this tiny room.
I was probably exaggerating a bit, but not by much.
As I sat there, wondering what possibly could be keeping them so long, my enhanced hearing picked up the sounds of two sets of footsteps coming down the hallway. There was also this weird humming noise that I could have sworn I had heard before, but I honestly couldn’t remember where. Other than the footsteps and the humming though, they were quiet, which immediately put me on edge.
I strained my ears to pick up even a hint of what was going to happen, but as it turned out, I really didn’t need to. My hearing was extremely good, and when they did start talking, I was able to pick up on what they were saying with ease. “Colonel Conners, a thought suddenly occurred to me… what if he loses control? I mean, he has those… things in his head, what if the bugs’ programming reactivate? I mean…”
This immediately made me freeze up. They already know about the krin, about me, but how? I thought to myself as I slowed down my perception of time, trying desperately to figure out if I was going to have to fight my way out of this. They called them ‘bugs’ though, and the tone wasn’t exactly flattering, so at the very least they have a negative view on the aliens. But… what does that mean for me? I spent what seemed like hours combing my brain as I tried to figure out how this was going to go down, and whether or not I was going to have to treat my own people as the enemy. Finally, after getting nowhere, I decided to play it cool for now. No sense in causing a ruckus without an immediate reason. Best to play it dumb until I know more… I thought as I let time reassert itself.
“Extremely unlikely, Doctor,” a strange, almost metallic voice chimed in. “From The Purpose’s reports, Alexander Cunningham has developed a gift that allows him to control krin machinery on a whim. While he does not have access to a spiritual field on this planet, the changes he has made to his implants are quite permanent. It would require a full wipe and reinstall of his systems for him to do anything outside of his control. Even if they managed that, however, it would be rendered completely inoperable the moment he came into contact with a sufficiently strong spiritual field.”
Ah… That explains it… I thought to myself as I felt my entire body relax. I might not have recognized the voice, but I did recognize the name of the vessel that the metallic voice dropped. The snakes got here first. I’ll have to remember to thank Akitesh the next time I see her.
“Why is that?” the doctor asked curiously, completely ignorant of my internal monologue. “If the machines are in his brain, then shouldn’t he be unable to use this… power?”
“I've already explained this to you, doctor. Magic is not psychic power, as such a power simply does not exist. While it requires thought to use and fully realize, a brain is not, strictly speaking, necessary; a soul is.” There was a slight cough following this pronouncement, and I could practically feel the doctor’s disdain from the other side of the wall. “Scoff how you like, Doctor Phillips, but the soul is a very real phenomenon. If you still require proof, I am certain I can convince one of our wizards to demonstrate it for you.”
“...You don’t really use the word ‘wizard’ for them, do you?” Doctor Phillips asked in a disbelieving tone.
“No, the word is actually Ellikior. It translates to ‘master of the somewhat known.’ A shorter, less accurate translation would be a scientist of the theoretical, but members of our Alivarioa have a certain sense of propriety and humor. It is common practice among them to translate the title as ‘wizard’ in any language, and those that practice practical knowledge as ‘mages’. At least, that is how they decided to translate those titles into your English. There was actually a debate on whether to use the word ‘warlock’ or-”
“As interesting as this all is, we really don’t have time for a lecture on quzin traditions and language,” I shouted through the door, immediately silencing all of them. “If you would all be so kind and get in here already, we can begin. We really don’t have a whole lot of time, and we’ve wasted far too much already.”
The silence that followed this was pretty fantastic, and I would have paid good money to have been able to see the looks on their faces when I had said that, but sadly, no one can really have everything in this life. Without any further waffling, the door sprang open, revealing the people on the other side.
Leading the group was a soldier wearing fatigues, as well as a sour look on his face. He was a fairly tall individual, nearly reaching my ridiculous height, but missed the mark by a couple of inches. His short brown hair was partially covered by a cap that matched his fatigues, and had the word RANGER printed on the front in big, bold letters. Due to what the doctor said earlier, I really didn’t need to look at the patch to know that the man was a colonel. I did anyway, though, as there was something strangely reassuring about the silver eagle on his shoulder.
Right behind him was a stuffy looking man in a white lab coat and half-moon glasses. He looked to be in his mid-fifties, was in the process of losing his hair, but thankfully he wasn’t trying to hide it with a nasty comb-over. He was also currently giving me a look similar to someone inspecting a particularly fascinating specimen of mold under a microscope.
He wasn’t the one to draw my attention, though. The one to do that was the hovering silvery orb right behind the two. It was nearly featureless save for the holes along its side, most likely serving as speakers and microphone, as well as the single lens on the front. I kept my eye on it for a few seconds, before I stood up, took a few steps forward, and offered an outstretched hand to the ranger in front. “Hello, Colonel, I hope I'm not overstepping myself when I start by asking how long the snakes have been here?" I asked, my eyes flickering towards the orb before coming back to the colonel’s face.
"Not long… their fleet appeared in orbit a few days ago… was there something we needed to know about them?" The colonel asked pointedly as he shook my hand, his eyes asking far more than his tone or words were.
"No, nothing wrong. In fact, that just makes a few things easier: You already know who, and more importantly, what, I am,” I said before I retreated back to my seat. “While I don’t fully trust the snakes, let me tell you right now that they’re a far sight better to see on this planet than the krin. There might be a few issues later down the road, but for the most part, I’m pretty sure you can trust them when they say ‘we come in peace.’”
The colonel looked a little shocked at my bold statement right in front of one of the quzin’s representatives, and his eyes quickly darted back to the probe to gauge it’s reaction. He needn’t have bothered, as the machine gave the person on the other end an unbeatable poker face, but it was a natural reaction that I could sympathize with. After a few seconds, with no reaction from the snakes, his eyes eventually returned to my masked face. “Why is it that you don’t trust them?” The colonel asked carefully as he moved into the room and took the seat opposite to me.
I shook my head, a wry grin on my face as old, painful memories sprang up. “Just a natural reaction for someone in my shoes, Colonel. After what I’ve been through, it’s pretty hard for me to trust anyone, regardless of their actual guilt. If it means anything, as far as I know, they’re completely innocent of any wrongdoing towards us, and have pretty good intentions overall.”
“That’s a relief…” the colonel sighed, before rubbing the bridge of his nose between his finger and thumb as he took the seat opposite of me. “So then… I guess with the most obvious problem out of the way, let me be the first to officially welcome you back home, son.”
I couldn’t help but feel the tears well up in my eyes at that, but I forced down the sappy part of myself with a single deep breath. We weren’t out of the woods yet, and I still had a mission to complete. Plenty of time to get sappy later. “Thank you, Sir. Despite the less than warm reception, it’s kind of good to be back,” I said, before gesturing towards my bandaged arm.
“Were you ever in the military, Alex?” the colonel asked me curiously.
I shook my head. “No, sir. My dad was, though. He was a ranger, so I know how most of this goes.”
“Well, then don’t call me ‘sir,’ Sam will do. You aren’t under my command, so I don’t expect you to hold formalities with me,” the colonel told me.
“Yes, sir,” I said, unable to pass up the opportunity.
The colonel let out a tired sigh as he shook his head, but let my cheekiness slide. “Son, how are you here, and why? Not that I’m complaining, but last I heard, you were on an alien world. You were supposedly safe, but far, far from home; If you’re here to warn us, you’re a little too late, seeing as how the snakes beat you here. You seem fine with them, though, but strangely you still say we don’t have much time. Why?”
“Tell me, sir, how much have the snakes told you about the people that found me?”
“Just that you were in ‘good hands.’”
This made me let out a small chuckle, causing the two humans in the room to look at me in confusion. “That is… technically inaccurate,” I said, before reaching under my mask and wiping away a tear. “They’re not bad people, far from it, in fact. They’re some of the most wonderful people I’ve ever met, but I cannot honestly say I was in good ‘hands’ while I was over there.”
“Why is that?” Doctor Phillips asked, piping up for the first time since the door had opened.
I let out a few more giggles before I shook my head, held up a hand, and waggled my fingers at the doctor. “Because they don’t have hands. Nicest people you’ll ever meet, but not even remotely human-looking. Human-feeling and human-thinking, yes, but human-looking? Oh boy, no. But… I’m getting a little off track.” I turned back to the colonel, before I reached into my breast pocket and pulled out a small metal disk. It was something that Celestia had given me before I left, stating it was a ‘badge of office’ since I was sort of representing them to another nation. The disk was a little on the thick side, made of silver and gold, and was just a little bit smaller than a CD. On it it depicted stylized versions of Celestia and Luna, each pushing their respective charges around the outside of the disk, while the background was swirled in an artistic representation of the day and night. “I’ve been sent by the Alivaria of Eli-thali-mal-las to formally request an alliance between Earth and...you know, they never actually gave me the name of their world. Needless to say, they want to open relations, and to form an alliance as soon as possible.”
The colonel looked down at the disk curiously, though I couldn’t help but notice the distrust there. He also didn’t answer me directly, choosing to instead turn towards the silver probe behind him. “And what does your high priest have to say about all of this?”
The probe hummed in a manner that strongly reminded me of Guilty Spark, which caused a shiver to run down my spine for a few seconds. However, it did not immediately attempt to kill us, so I let it slide. “The high priest is busy. His meeting with the United Nations begins in six hours, and he needs to revise his speech and have it re-translated. However, our laws on the subject are quite strict; the alliances of other nations is not to be intruded upon, unless such alliances would prove detrimental to our sovereign territory. This is two steward spaces joining together, and as such, we have no say in this matter. We wish you the best in your new joint endeavor, however, and would encourage you to be mindful of your neighbors. A new power, no matter how primitive, always attracts those that would put such bonds to the test. It does not concern us, however, and we actually encourage such cooperation, as it makes for a more peaceful galaxy.”
Colonel Conners scoffed at the probe’s seemingly laid-back attitude. “Nothing about this worries you?”
“Oh, we are quite worried. Just not about the formation of your alliance. We are more concerned with how Alexander came to be here, and why the formation of such an alliance is necessary at this time,” the probe said, its lens parts moving in such a way as to make me think the thing was focusing more intently on me. “Surely such a formation should occur after initial peace talks. Alexander’s purpose should be to formally introduce the nation that took him in, and to serve as a translator for further talks. Trade agreements may follow, followed by joint cultural exchanges, possibly followed by an alliance if such events end positively. Instead, he is sent as the bearer of the alliance itself. It is a most unusual breach of any known protocol, and begs the question: Why?”
The colonel looked back at me, before pointing a single thumb towards the probe. “Yavaar’s right, you know. What’s so important that you’ve gotta start with the alliance?”
“Because the bugs are coming for them,” I said simply.
“...And there it is...” Conners stated, his whole body stating louder than words that he was sick of this crap.
I shook my head, the colonel's dry wit making me smile briefly as a wave of nostalgia washed over me. Nevertheless, I still had a job to do, and I knew that I didn't have the time to get all sentimental. “Yeah, I know. No one comes with good news. I’m here to request help. If no one comes with me, then fine, I’ll go back, and you’ll never hear from us again. However, if that happens, let me tell you right now that the bugs will become far, far more dangerous than they are now.” I then slowly took off my mask, revealing my face for the first time on earth. “And let me tell you, if they conquer them first, the rest of humanity will follow in my footsteps, the bugs will make sure of it.”
Doctor Phillips stood stock still for several seconds, just staring at my horrifying visage. After a few seconds of this, he started making a sound like a stepped-on mouse, which quickly grew into a terrified scream as he bolted from the room like a madman. I could hear a scuffle from behind the one way window as well, and I knew that if it weren’t for Conner’s hand raising in silent protest, I would have been filled with holes right then and there.
Conners, however, looked decidedly less impressed. He looked disgusted, that was for sure, but his reaction was significantly less than what I was expecting. “...You’re not surprised?” I asked him.
“No, I saw what you looked like before. Comparing the two, this is definitely an upgrade. You’re still absolutely haunting, but you’re not a nightmare, at least,” he said, his voice still completely level.
“...Thank you,” I said, before returning the mask to my face. “I know it’s not perfect, but the Yi-tha-nas did the best they could. At least now I can speak English again, and that alone is enough to saint them in my opinion.”
The second my mask returned to its place, Colonel Conners leaned forward, suddenly very buisness-like. “I’ll pass on the request for an alliance, since it’s not really my place to say either way. However, while we’re waiting, would you mind answering a few questions?”
“As many as you like, but please hurry, our time is short. I really wouldn’t be surprised if they’ve already started attacking while I was away,” I said as I leaned back into my chair.
Conners opened his mouth, but before he could speak, Yavaar beat him to it. “How did you come across this information? You speak as if the assault has yet to occur, yet you are certain of their intent. However, from our last communication with The Purpose, no such information was known.”
I looked at the probe, not really sure how to say what I knew without getting myself laughed out of existence by the human in the room, or ordered off to a madhouse by the ones behind the glass. Finally, I decided to start with the beginning, to see where they were at. “...Tell me, Colonel, how much have they told you about magic? Like, do you know what’s possible with it?”
Colonel Conners looked confused at the sudden change in subject, but thankfully, he decided to roll with it. “It’s… basically everything we imagined it would be, while at the same time nothing we’d expected. Fire, shields, teleportation-”
“Did you know that it’s possible to see the future?” I asked, interrupting him.
Conners looked at me funny, as if expecting me to suddenly say ‘psyche!’ and to start pointing out hidden cameras. When I made no move to do anything like that, he then half-turned towards the probe, a smile on his face. “You’re kidding… He’s kidding, right?”
The probe didn’t answer immediately. In fact, the thing stopped bobbing ever so slightly, and sat perfectly still in mid-air the moment I had said ‘future.’ Conners looked somewhat worried, even going so far as to snap his fingers a few times in front of the lens while calling for attention, but I already knew what was happening.
I knew that I had said something in front of the quzin drone that had touched a nerve, and he was off to get someone higher on the totem pole.
“High Priest Yovakior would like an immediate audience with the one known as Alexander Cunningham,” the robot suddenly said, his voice sounding far more formal as he turned towards the one-way window. “General, does the High Priest have permission to enter the base?”
There was a slight pause, followed by a tale-tell clicking of an intercom system coming online. The voice that came through from the other end sounded sure and commanding, the sort of voice you’d expect a general to have. “He does, but make sure he knows that I would like to speak with him as soon as he is finished.”
“The high priest has accepted your terms. I am proud to announce the arrival of his greatness, High Priest Yovakior, leader of the Holy Armada,” Yavaar said, before tilting forwards ever so slightly. There was a sudden flash of white, blinding light, and a quzin far larger and more regal-looking than Akitesh suddenly appeared in the small room. He was dressed to impress, his entire outfit a white and gold affair, and his stance screamed ‘in control.’
His face, however, looked like he had seen a ghost.
As soon as he arrived, though, I felt something change. A warmth that had been absent the moment I had arrived was suddenly present again, and deep down I knew that I was inside a magical field again. My mind seemed sharper, my body felt energized, and for a brief moment, I felt like I could take on the world.
It was somewhat distracting, to be honest, but not enough to pull my attention away from the searching, withering glare that the high priest was giving me. “Tell me, young human. What has Tra’cul the Creator revealed to you?” the quzin asked in perfect krin as he leaned forward over the desk, all four arms planted on the metal surface.
I gave a small smile, before shaking my head. “I wasn’t the one given the vision. It was Priestess Akitesh. And in her own words, ‘none of us are going to survive this if they aren’t stopped.’”
The snake eyed me for ten seconds straight, and for a brief second, I felt something lightly brush against my soul. As soon as I felt the sensation, though, it was gone, and Yovakior broke his gaze to turn towards his probe. He barked something in his native tongue, and the probe quickly materialized a chair in the small room, onto which the snake planted himself as he turned back to me, his gaze significantly less serious, and more fearful. "Please, tell me more."
I settled in, ready for the long haul. I figured it might take me some time to get them to understand, but at least I now had their attention. As I talked, though, the snake’s face became progressively more infuriated, and I could tell that he wasn’t happy with how things were going down. The other humans in the room were unfortunately left out of a good portion of the conversation, but thankfully Yavaar was there to translate for us.
Finally, after what seemed like hours, the snake leaned back before he rubbed his forehead with a single hand and turned towards Colonel Conners. “We did not come with an infantry capable of repelling such a force, and as he has said, we are too far out to be of any help in space. We need to stall this enemy for time while the other fleet makes it towards Eutai.”
Conners looked confused for a second, but that was quickly erased as Yavaar translated for the high priest. Conners than shook his head, before he stood up and made his way to the glass. “You get all that, General?”
“I did, but it isn’t ultimately up to me. We’re going to have to go through the president for this one, and by the sounds of it, the rest of the U.N. as well,” the commanding voice stated, clearly not happy. “We could provide some support, but we’re hardly equipped to fight a war covering an entire planet.”
There was a short pause as Yavaar translated for the high priest, after which the snake-alien fixed me with a long, calculating stare. “I think if we’re going to get the nations of your world aligned in this, we have the perfect tool ready-made. Conners, didn’t you say something about showing those pictures? Well, I see someone in front of me far more compelling than some simple photographs.”
There was another pause at this as Yavaar related his master’s plans, and outwardly I was completely and utterly calm. Inwardly, however, I couldn't help but feel a growing pit in my stomach. You know, you knew something like this was going to happen, right? I thought to myself as I watched an unsettling expression appear on Colonel Conners’ face. Yeah… I just didn’t think it would be this soon.
Suddenly, I felt somewhat regretful that that security guard hadn’t put a bullet in my skull the moment he saw me.
* * *
"-while President Xi Jinping has been saying that this is nothing more than an American hoax, President Vladimir Putin has expressed hopefulness of a new age in cooperation with the alien visitors. For now, everyone present is eagerly awaiting the appearance of the aliens, and what more they can tell us about this mysterious threat."
Valerie let out a sigh of contentment as she planted her seat back onto a human-made sofa. The snakes had been more than hospitable during her stay with them, but most of their seats had been uncomfortable, to say the least. They all had these weird ridges running through them, and were obviously made so that their naga-like bodies could curl around the structures. Comfortable and practical for snake-people, considerably less-so for humans.
After a few seconds of staring at the ceiling, Valerie finally turned her attention from her seat to the t.v., though she wasn’t entirely paying attention as she had her mind on other things. Due to her work with the military, she was privy to a lot of the weirdness that had been going on, and because of this she already had a pretty good idea what the alien leader was going to say. She still watched, though. She wouldn’t miss this for the world, as every minute was history in the making, regardless of how dark the future might be.
There wasn’t much going on at the moment, but she knew that that wouldn’t stay the same for long. President Darris had just entered the room, and she instinctively knew that things were about to get interesting as he stepped up to the podium and cleared his throat. “Esteemed members of the United Nations, it is with great honor that I introduce the leader of the alien force, High Priest Yoh-va-kor. I only hope that our combined future is filled with peace and prosperity.”
The Iowa-born man turned slightly, a single hand outstretched as the snake creature entered the room from behind the curtain in the back, his long, sinuous tail lagging conspicuously behind him as he slithered his way to the front. He approached the podium, looked at the microphone curiously for a second, before he cleared his own throat. He then began to speak, his words completely unrecognizable, up until there was a weird surge of noise. An alien rune began to glow at the snake’s throat, and as sudden as a bolt of lightning, the snake alien’s words shifted into the more recognizable English tongue. It was still somewhat choppy, but at least it was understandable.
“Havalati-so-ca, thonas fo vor. Ithala-Brothers and Sisters of wonder blue gem you call Earth. It is great pride, honor, that I speak you today. I extend blessings and fellowship of his holiness, the Prophet of Tra’cul. His people, the Theocracy of Zerthal, bear you no ill will, and wish only happiness between us. I not come peace, though. We not come peace. We come for war, for evil has set sights on your blue gem.” There was muttering throughout the hall at this announcement, but no one interrupted the alien’s speech. They had already heard this part before, and were waiting for him to say something new. “Am understanding if not trust. If our place reversed, would be similar. Why trust strange being with no tail? Why trust this creature, not seen, not speak like us? Have proof. Have proof will show today, exactly what enemy want do to humans. If they win day, what in store for all humans. Alexander, please come forward.”
Valerie felt her heart leap into her throat at the mention of that name. It can’t be… No, Alex is a common name, there’s no way in hell it’s him… she thought as she quickly pushed down the sudden rush of emotion she felt welling up inside her. However, as the curtain moved, revealing Alexander in all his glory, she couldn’t quell the sense of unease that was rising in her. Whomever this person was, it was clear that he wasn’t quite human now. He had the same general shape and features of a human, but his limbs were too long, his flesh too pale, and he moved with an almost unnatural fluidity. He wore a black suit and tie, and over his face he wore a mask depicting an almost childish smiling expression, which if anything, only served to deepen the unease the monstrosity exuded. He walked with an even, purposeful stride towards the podium, and without any ceremony, the white-and-gold clad snake moved out of the way to allow the creature access to the microphone.
He tapped the microphone once, causing a ‘thump’ sound to be heard throughout the United Nations building, and through televisions the world over. When he spoke, his voice had a weird duality to it. It sounded low and harsh, but there was another, higher-pitched metallic voice interlacing the first one. “Hello, people of Earth, or rather, hello my fellow human beings. About one year ago, I was a human just like you-” he started to say, but stopped short when someone in the audience stood up.
“The floor recognizes the representative of Great Britain,” the master of ceremonies said, nodding to the lady in question.
“Excuse me, but why the mask?” Elane Pierce asked, a slight accusation in her voice. “If what you say is true, and you are from Earth, then why hide your identity?”
There was a mass of muttering followed by this near accusation, and Valerie could see the creature’s posture droop. “I do not show my face to hide my identity, but to spare you the horror of what the aliens did to me. If you are set on seeing it, though, I will show you. For those of you at home, please send your children away. You really don’t want to see this.”
“I rather think we do, Alexander,” the representative of Britain said, not backing down, or even bothering to return to her chair. “I would also like to know why you chose that… particular design for a mask.”
The creature let out another sigh, before he reached up and touched the mask. “The mask was a gift from a… rather eccentric friend. She felt it was probably better to hide my face behind a smile at first.”
“Regardless of the sentiment, we would really like to see the face of the man underneath,” Elane Pierce said, though her tone was somewhat softer now. “If only to fully realize what we’re dealing with.”
Alex’s shoulders slumped in defeat, and he finally pulled off the mask.
The effect of that one, simple action was instantaneous. Several present immediately let out startled cries, while others began shouting questions at the clearly inhuman individual on the stand. To Great Britain's credit, their representative did not move a muscle, but her expression clearly showed that she was spooked by the reveal.
Valerie was in shock. All she could do was stare in mute horror at the visage before her. The face was still somewhat human-looking, in the fact that all the major structures were there. Eyes, ears, mouth, and the general shape, all present. The details in that face, however, was where things descended into madness.
Alexander’s teeth were too sharp, to begin with. They looked like they would be far more at home in the mouth of a wolf, though as she examined them closer, a shark was probably a better comparison, as they were ever so slightly serrated. His nose looked stubbed and deformed, almost as if it had been slightly melted. His skin was a pallid grey, completely hairless, and seemed to cling to his skull, showing very little musculature underneath, with the whole effect bringing to mind thoughts of death and the grave.
The worst part, though, were his eyes. They were pitch black, devoid of pupil, iris, or any other distinguishing feature, and seemed to contain the very essence of the void. It was no wonder that people were panicking, and she couldn’t help but wonder what people the world over were thinking as they stared into that horrifying mug.
“There will be order!” The master of ceremonies shouted, trying desperately to regain some level of decorum. This seemed to work somewhat as people quickly realized that Alexander wasn’t about to leap out at them and gobble them up, but their fear was quickly replaced with anger, as several people all began to shout at once, demanding answers to a multitude of questions in a multitude of languages.
“Please, please, I will answer any questions you have in time, but first, I must finish,” Alex stated loudly through the microphone. This seemed to do very little, up until the master of ceremonies brought his gavel down several times, finally restoring order. Alexander gave him a greatful smile which, if anything, made him look even more deadly, before continuing his speech. “Thank you. Now, I know you all have many questions, the most important being how I can prove I am really from this planet. After all, I hardly have any credentials, and don’t even remotely resemble the person I once was. However, I can still prove it. I’ve already given my information to the authorities of the United States of America, and they have already verified my identity. However, some background information is needed to convince you of my story, so I will give it. My name is Alexander Brandon Cunningham, and I was born in northern Maine, on the seventeenth of March, nineteen-ninety-one. I went to M.I.T. and received my bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, and soon afterwards found a job working for Edwards and Edwards software firm in Portland, Maine. While I was there, I fell in love with a wonderful woman, and was planning on proposing to her. None of that mattered to the aliens that took me from my home.”
Valerie was in shock. She couldn’t move a muscle, couldn’t even begin to think of anything to say, other than to stare in abject horror at the inhuman monster her boyfriend had become. His words washed over her, unheard, unheeded, as she tried to comprehend the living hell that her life had become.
As dead to the world as she had become, though, Alex still continued to speak, his words echoing throughout the otherwise completely silent main hall of the United Nations. “I tell you this as background, to tell you that they could scoop literally anyone from their homes, and turn you into an unthinking, unfeeling murder machine. In fact, they have done exactly that. There were fifty of us, all taken from our homes, and forced to do unspeakable acts of violence, all because of the wires they stuck into our brains.”
“All I see is an American who was taken from bed,” someone shouted over the silence. The camera panned to the Chinese delegation, with President Xi Jinping front and center staring directly at the former human with hard, uncaring eyes. His translator stood next to him, though he didn't look nearly as imposing as he tried to stare Alex down. “If they took a Chinese citizen, they would not have found themselves so easy prey.”
Alex looked at the man for a full ten seconds, and for a brief moment, it looked like he had nothing to say, as his face gave away very little in the way of expression. He soon changed that impression, however, as he cleared his throat, and began to speak. “Wang Xiu Ying, Sichuan province, identification number seven-eight-three-three-four-six-seven-eight-three, birth date April fifth, nineteen-eighty-seven. He was married to Chenhua, and they had a beautiful baby girl by the name of Changying. He worked as a factory worker, and had a little bit of a drinking problem. He left his job to head home about eight p.m., September seventh, two-thousand-fifteen. He never made it home.”
Alex then turned his head, his eyes seeking out someone, before pointing towards a particular seat. “President Putin, there was one Kazimr Vasiliev, he lived in Volgograd, his identification number was three-three-eight-nine-four-one-seven-eight-three-zero-two, and was born on August twelfth, nineteen-seventy-two. He had three kids, his wife, Anastasia, died in childbirth, as did their fourth son. He worked hard to support his three remaining kids, and somehow made ends meet. He disappeared one night, though, taken after he stumbled home from a night at the bar with his friends."
On and on Alex went, naming person after person, describing a short snippet of those people's lives, giving intimate details that left no doubt in the minds of anyone watching that he knew each and every person he named. More importantly, he spoke in terms that made it absolutely certain what had happened to every single one of them.
Finally, he reached the end of his long, long list, his breathing ragged as he leaned into the podium, clearly drained at the ordeal. "Every single one of the people I've just named was taken, just like me. We were stolen from our beds, twisted into forms barely recognizable, and forced to do unspeakable things, all because of this." Alex then slowly turned, before pointing towards something on the back of his neck. The camera zoomed in, as did the view of the large monitor behind him, to reveal something that punched a hole through Valerie's stomach and filled it with ice water. There, on the back of his neck, right at the base of the skull, was a round, metallic hole, somehow, impossibly, joined perfectly and naturally with the flesh surrounding it.
Valerie could actually hear some of the less prepared representatives void their stomachs on international television. As bad as it was, however, it wasn't nearly as bad as what Alex said next. "We were nothing but weapons to them. They forced us to hunt down their enemies, to kill all that opposed us, even going as far as to force us to eat people. You don't have to believe me. You can walk away thinking whatever you want, that I'm just a trick of Hollywood, that the aliens created me to lie to you, whatever it is you want to make it easier for you to sleep at night. Go ahead home, and lie to yourselves, that everything is fine, and nothing is wrong. Just know that your warning has been given. They are coming. They have no morals, no decency, and no sense of propriety. Nothing is sacred to them, they don't care about your status or race or species. You are all just tools to them, a means to an end. If we don't band together and face this threat, our homes, our families, our very souls, will be nothing more than fuel to feed their war machine. Thank you for your time, that is all."
Alex then turned and walked away, completely ignoring the storms of questions and shouts of outrage that followed his statement. Valerie found that she couldn't keep her eyes off of him as he slowly made his way off the stage, only to disappear behind the curtain as if he had never existed.
The second he vanished, Valerie bolted from the sofa and dashed to her apartment's door, only pausing long enough to wretch it open. As expected, two servicemen stood guard next to her room, as she was still a civilian, and not technically authorized for too many areas around the base. The soldiers looked a little startled by her sudden appearance, and even more so by the angry look in her eyes. "Ma'am, is there something wrong?" one of them asked, concern in his voice.
"I need to see Colonel Conners now. If not him, someone that can point me in the right direction," Valerie said, her voice oddly calm considering the cocktail of emotions that were playing havoc inside her chest. "There's someone I need to talk to that involves the project I'm currently involved with, and the sooner I can speak with him, the better."
The soldiers didn't salute, but one of them did start relaying the request through his walkie. It didn't take long for her request to be approved, and before she knew it, she was being led through the base, and hopefully, towards answers and closure.
More importantly, she was off to finally hug, and berate, someone whom she had nearly given up hope of ever seeing again.
* * *
“How are they taking it?” Alex asked before Conners had even finished opening the door.
Colonel Conners glanced at the inhuman monster, before shaking his head a little. “About as well as you’d expect. That bit with your fellow captives really got them scared, and they’re all panicking, trying to fortify their own positions.”
“Expected that; the United Nations isn’t really a governing body. More like an exclusive clubhouse where everyone yells at each other. The point wasn’t to get their support, but to alert as many people as possible what was going to happen,” Alex said, before he reached under his mask and rubbed his eyes. “What about N.A.T.O.? Is there any help coming for Eutai?”
Conners let out a sigh, before he collapsed into the chair opposite of Alex. “Our generals are talking to them, but you gotta admit, it’s a hard sell. Not only do we have to convince them that our planet is connected by an alien gate to a world of alien horse people, but that these people can see the future, and that helping them is a far greater use of their time and resources than hunkering down and fortifying Earth.”
Alex sighed in frustration. “Well, if help isn’t coming, then I really have to go,” he said, before he stood up and smoothed out his clothes. “If they fall, then our world is next, and they’ll be bringing Eutai’s magic against us. No way we can fight against those two combined.”
Conners stood up and held out a single hand to stop him. “Woah, there. You can’t just go off by yourself. You may be a weapon, but you’re only one gun, and one that’s wounded at that. Anything you do will be like throwing a snowball into Hell.”
“I can’t abandon them,” Alex said, his glassy, black eyes completely unfathomable. “They helped me, fixed me up, gave me someone to talk to when I literally had no one. I can’t just let them die alone.”
Conners gave him a soul searching stare, before he shook his head and lowered his hand in defeat. “You know, for an alien monster, you’re pretty bad at acting like one.”
“...You just haven't seen me on a bad day," Alex said, a slight grin in his voice. "Now, will the military let me go, or are you going to force me to stay?”
“I wouldn’t dream of forcing you. You’ve committed no crime, and you aren’t military, so I could hardly order you around. However, I would ask you to stay just a little bit longer,” Conners said, before turning towards the door. “After all, someone would like to speak with you.”
Alex’s face was covered by a mask, and even if it weren’t, his augmented facial features made it hard to read his expression. He had been so calm, so collected, so in control of everything he did up to this point, that Conners had begun to think that the man was incapable of feeling anything. However, when that door opened and revealed the person on the other side, Conners could see the man wilt in abject terror, as he was suddenly faced with someone that he clearly didn’t expect.
“Alex...?” Valerie asked as she took a hesitant step into the room.
“No… No no no… I’m not ready for this, please why God, why?” the human turned alien weapon started muttering as he quickly backpedaled into a corner. “No, you shouldn’t be here, why are you here? You can’t be real, I didn’t want to meet you like this, I’m… I’m… oh please, I’m really not ready for this…”
“Alex… I’m real, I swear…” Valerie said as she slowly approached the inhuman bio-weapon. She reached out with a single hand and without fear, slowly turned his head to face her. Without skipping a beat, she then reached up with the other one and carefully removed the mask he wore, revealing him in all his twisted, alien glory. “Oh, Alex… what did they do to you?”
Unbelievably, this confident alien weapon, so far removed from the human race, started doing the most human thing possible as tears slowly began streaming down his face. She lightly placed a hand on his cheek, and without another word, used her other arm to pull him closer. Once they were close enough, she wrapped her arms around him, hugging him tight, like he might disappear at any moment.
Alex didn’t return the hug at first, and instead looked up, as if seeking guidance from the only other person in the room. Conners refused to be of any help though, choosing to instead leave the poor soul to figure this out for himself. Before he closed the door, however, his last sight of the two was of Alex slowly, tentatively, reaching up to return the hug, almost as if he wasn't sure that this was really happening.
Though, on second thought, that was probably exactly what was going through the former human’s mind.
Conners nodded once to the two soldiers stationed outside, before he turned around and started making his way to lab four. He was confident that Valerie would be able to stall Alex long enough for him to get everything ready, but if that weren’t the case, the two guards were to take the most circuitous route possible. After all, the worst kind of surprise party was one where the recipient showed up a little too early, and the way Alex was acting back there, Conners was sure he was going to spoil everything, gallivant back to Eutai or wherever alone, and take all the fun for himself.
Such selfishness wasn’t something Conners could ever abide by. Parties were made to be crashed, after all, and Conners still had to make sure he had enough favors for everyone.