CHAPTER THIRTEEN

 

CHAPTER THIRTEEN: A UNASSIGNED MISSION

 

            Sleep didn’t insure time, waking up in the backseat of the same dark interior sedan with the taste of dirt in my mouth and a harangue of throbbing on the back of my head. It was dark, the only lights coming through the wind shield from the streetlights outside. My legs were sticky on the leather seats but my head was elevated on something warm, throwing myself upright from the mysterious bulge beneath me.

“Samantha” I flinched from something reaching towards me through the dark, inching towards the window where I could actually see things. My consciousness was still hazy and unable to define objects or make any sense of where I was, who I was with, or what had happened. The acid in my stomach was complaining for not having something to devour, a few growls sufficed to ease the cravings. The car slowed down into the driveway of Ian’s house, too drowsy and impatient to wait for it to come to a complete stop and rolling through the swung car door. A few scrapes on my legs and a sore shoulder hardly fazed me, searching for the side of the house to begin my hike home but I was beginning to feel I wouldn’t reach it that night. I would’ve probably passed out again and slept the rest of the night in a bed of leaves and sludge.

            It was so dark that half of my body slammed against the edge of the house and threw me to the ground. Exhaustion had me in a wreck, beginning to sob obnoxiously at the sky and letting my limbs slack on the dirt, too tired to even wiggle my toes. “You tell that Mister-Head-of-Investigation that I’m going to kick his a*s! Get the heck outta here” I choked on my sobs, taking a few heaves of air before I continued with my whimpering. Recollections of the interrogation slowly returned, crying louder as I lay hopeless and too tired to fight it back. Ian lowered over me, blocking a space of the starry night, before I blacked out again.

            I began going through sequences of memories through my dreams… “Ian, I don’t think we should do this” I panted on his  ear as he tugged at my pants with his shirt already slipped off.

“We have prot—Ian and I sat patiently in the living room, watching the news report. “Warning, this footage is real and may be disturbing” warned the anchorman, shuffling his stacks of paper and his eyebrow twitching before a clip popup appeared. It was a shaky, crappy homemade video at the mall. The view was locked onto a window full of mannequins in flashy clothes. One of them was out of place but we hardly took note of it. There was the buzz of voices in the background and blur of people cutting through the view. This didn’t seem important, Ian shifted as he intently watched the screen. We watched the mannequins…

“What the hell was that?” cried Ian, scrambling over the couch as I clasped my mouth. The middle mannequin that hadn’t seem to fit in at all, moved to reveal a pair of catlike eyes—Clamping my lips to quiet my sobs and save my siblings of panic and terror, I began to dig the grave—“It will be over soon” whispered Ian as we struggled to hold our breaths in the cramped closet as we listened to the movement stirring behind the door. Could it hear our frantic hearts and desperation to stay quiet and survive?--My head still hurt from the last test, staring up at the blank ceiling to cool the aches. Stroking my bulging stomach—I thrust Nick into my chest, looking to Ian to block out the hanged  bodies off the traffic light pole—The pain would never end and I would die in this place. I thrust my face into my cot to let the guards beat me, knowing it wouldn’t last long until the next beating. The searing pain crawled over my skin, pushing my face deeper in to forget… When I fall asleep upset, I wake up upset. The day was gray and early for any activity.  Ian was asleep on the sofa with his limbs sprawled over the edge and his arms failing over his head. Surprisingly, I didn’t feel drowsy or have the desire to lay in bed for a few minutes to try to fall sleep. A forceful energy wakened me and only heightened when I remembered yesterday, throwing away my covers and hurriedly changed into dark clothing to replace Ian’s jacket I was still wearing. Ian hardly stirred at the sound of the clothing wiggling as I threw them on. My movements were rough and quick, storming out of the bedroom into the dark hall. The entire house was sleeping like the people occupying it.

            For once, I had no thoughts, only the need to do something…something extreme, something dangerous, something vindictive, something against them. Anger was a powerful thing that I had never come accustomed to or understood its potential and growth. Nor did I know the consequences of submitting to it and how it could change a person.

            My stomach was still gurgling in hunger, quietly retreating into the kitchen and snatching the entire case of pudding cups, leaving one for Nick, knowing how he had to have at least one pudding cup after every dinner. The car keys were on the counter and the gun was under the sink. Both sat heavy in my hand as well as unflinching anger and thrill to get out so I ran out of the house with no regret or hesitation. The air was muggy and cold as it shuffled through my hair and walked beneath my clothes onto my skin. The car had a thin layer of mist on top of it, gliding my fingers over the hood before leaping into the van. There was a walkie-talkie in the glove compartment, flinging it out the window as I throttled the wheezing van out of the driveway towards the road that would take me to the bottom of the mountain.

            Unfortunately, the car couldn’t keep up with the racing anger pulsing through my body as I descended down the mountain. The van could hardly go ninety miles an hour without whining about it; bouncing, wheezing from the engine, and sudden depleting of the speed. Every curve was a thin line between life and death, taking great pleasure in the way my body rocked to the side door and the van felt as if it were going to teeter onto its side.

            I didn’t know where I was going but I knew what destruction I was going to do. The glasses squeezed my head and it was still mellow outside to a cooling gray. There was little alien activity, only spotting a few jogging on the sidewalk or approaching a shop. Rolling down the windows, I let the wind smother me and pull at my lengthening hair to ease the overwhelming frustration so I could think straightly and avoid making any irrational decisions. Trying to think in the benefit of the human race was difficult when malicious thoughts and the spent terror in my memories were distracting me to hallucinations of blowing up underground bases, trashing stores, terrorizing civilians and condensing me into a fouler mood. There was a museum I had heard of and constantly saw advertisement for but that didn’t seem as appealing as busting into a grocery store, pointing a gun to an alien’s head, and demanding it to tell me where I could find books or files on their race. The museum would possibly offer some information or incite on the aliens and maybe there would be a gift shop with books as well.

“Ha” I snorted at the thought of the aliens partaking in a cultural event with five year old children that screamed and whined to leave and have a shiny or fluffy object in the gift shop window. It sounded too normal and casual for a hostile race. I grew gloomy, remembering a fun time going to the Getty Museum with my parents on my fifteen birthday and how everything was as usual. It was shocking the strength of my craving to be there with my mom gawking over Van Gogh paintings while my dad tried to explain the historical background of every work. My dad had flown from Phoenix, Arizona, away from his new fiancée and busy life as a accountant for a booming company to spend the day on my birthday. It had been nice day with just my parents who had managed to get along. Now it was just a breezy memory and not another would form to even come close to it.

            There was one problem to my ‘devised’ plan… I had no clue where this museum was. Parking the car in some unruly bushes, I wondered in a parking lot until the day got brighter and the aliens became more social. The gun was in the back hem of my pants, glad that I was wearing a baggy sweatshirt to hide the bulge protruding out of my tee shirt. I tried to bite down my augmenting hatred to approach one of them without looking as though I wanted to claw their eyes out of their skulls.

“Excuse me?” I skipped towards a young male with black hair that streaked down his back without a tangle or hue of any other color. He turned abruptly towards me from his strange vehicle with a quiet smile. His eyes blinking a few times and his hands shoved into his pockets.

“Hello. Do you need something?”

“Yes” I almost nodded; nodding was not something that the aliens were familiar with. It was a human gesture. “It would mean so much to me if you could help me. I’m Sliver of Light” he smiled genially, pressing a smile in return was hard for me.

“I’m Unwinding Soul. What help do you need?” of course it would be this easy. The aliens always made time to help out their neighbor, even if it disrupted their plans. It was their code of conduct to be polite and helpful.

“I’m looking for the museum. Do you know where that might be?” Hopefully he knew what museum I was talking about since I couldn’t read or pronounce its name on the billboard. He shuffled his feet as he peered at the sky that was beginning to tint into an ashy blue.

“Ahh, yes. The—“ I didn’t know the next word “Museum. You’re in luck. It’s not that far away. I’ll take you there”

“Oh, you don’t have to” I panicked, putting on a friendly and modest smile to shoo away his offer. “Directions alone would be fantastic”

“Please. It’s easier and I insist” it would be rude and unusual to deny his offer and I wasn’t sure if that was a risk I was willing to take.
”Okay. Thank you” he motioned me to his vehicle. It was only thicker than a few bicycles pinned together with two wheels on the bottom. It was shiny and the average height of a regular human car. The black tinted windows shined my confused face.

“Hop right in” He took the front, the tiny door pushing up to reveal a single seat and small windshield. I opened the door next to it by pressing the chrome button. I quickly jumped out of the way of the rising door and stepped into the tiny space. It was incredibly dark and cramped and all I could see was the back of Unwinding Soul’s head. The walls were jammed against my side but the seat was cushiony and flexed back a little. The gun cut into my skin, adjusting it underneath my shirt while keeping my eye on the back of his head. Then the car started up, propelling me against the seat at the sudden speed. I almost enjoyed the ride. It was smooth and edgy, feeling it sharply turn and accelerate. “We’re here” he stepped out of the vehicle, following him as I tried to calculate the time spent. The trip had only been five minutes. “What do you think?” my jaw dropped, gaping at the sight of the museum. It was hovering in the air over hundreds of feet off the ground with a large arch roof of glass that shimmered in the sunlight. A large archway for the entrance was attached to the front on the white walls of the cube shaped building. A bridge was attached to it with an elevator to take people to the bridge. It was too high to see the details of the building or its structure. “It’s much more beautiful at night, of course.” Obviously, a floating building in the sky was normal to them so I didn’t question how it was possible. Seeing it in the sky at a complete standstill was a bit eerie and I wondered if it was worth visiting. “Would you like a tour guide?”

“Oh, no. Thank you. I’m meeting my brother. He works here and is giving me a tour” he smiled, believing my phony lie that I made up on the trip here. “Thank you for your troubles. It was nice meeting you Unwinding Soul” I motioned my hands into a triangle around my chest. It was a risky chance but there was no need to worry, he copied my action and climbed back into his vehicle. I held my breath until he sped out of the half packed parking lot. The vehicle was incredible, gliding over the asphalt in high speed and made sharp turns that would make any other vehicle roll over.

Peering back to the museum while rubbing my cheeks from smiling so much, I contemplated the next few hours of my visit.

            Following a pack of chattering teenagers towards the elevator was almost as easy as blending in. It was eccentric how alike the aliens were to the humans in manner and stance, picking up on their social postures and gestures came natural.

            The elevator was similar to a human’s elevator; a tin box crammed with people and pulled to the top. But the inside was completely different. Instead of buttons there was a touch screen with a tiny television screen that was showing a plastic looking woman with a cheerful smile who was welcoming new visitors and going over the rules and history of the museum. It was surprisingly spacious in the compartment with laser, changing photos of advertisements and the exterior of the museum. Luckily for me, it wasn’t too crowded but just the presence of them was enough to make me uncomfortable and stir anger. It was important to appear pleasant and display correct socializing skills and interest. There was no doubt they were smart and could scrutinize my every action and word.

            I tried to listen to the woman on the screen above the excited chatter of the teenagers and a small family with two whiny children. The sound of my heart thumping was thickening, tracing a finger across my cheekbone and taking it back with a puddle of sweat on the tip. I leaned my head back on the velvet wall with a grimace, trying to concentrate on the present and my mission than my conclusive hatred and vengeance on the aliens who were only an outstretched palm away.

            It was a relief when the elevator halted smoothly, the doors swooshing open and the aliens piling out, waiting until they all passed before I went.

“Oh, wow” I gasped, staggering to the nearby rail and feeling sickly when my torso bended over to see the great drop down. It was unnerving to be at such an incredible height with the bridge cut in half; a wide cut that showed the trees and parking lot below and divided the two halves of the shiny tin bridge. There was no rail cutting it off either, making walking a thoughtful matter. The bridge stretched about a mile or so, making the sight of the gap seem wider and the hovering building more awkward. Clenching my jaw, I began walking on the right side, grasping the rail that had no traces of fingerprints or smudges. I kept my eyes straight ahead at the growing image of the museum and the backs of the head bobbing mindlessly ahead of me, astonished to see some walking on the gap. All of them were swerving over the middle, gripping the rail harder as I shook away the thought of actually testing it.

            The great building was stark white with intricate, unfamiliar carvings bordering the top before the roofed angled into an arch of glass. The entrance was grandiloquent with it twisted archway of copper and silver that swallowed the entering visitors. A giant sign with the museum title hung over the archway with silver embedded in the dots and dashes. Giant torches on each side of the arch sprayed and flickered like a branch of sparklers or fireworks in vibrant reds and blues. Breathing heavily, I crept through the entrance but there were no guards or booths to take tickets which I didn’t have anyways. It was just a short corridor with holograms of old, pensive profiles of alien scientists and historians. There were squeaks and giggling, I tried to relax and find some excitement and focus as I approached the showrooms. The exhibit was more mind boggling than the building’s mysterious ability to float and the gap in the bridge. The exhibit was a large, highly lit room with objects, from decaying books to glowing rocks, hovering in the air as if they were sitting on an invisible shelf. They were stacked up, evenly spaced with tiny red hologram labels extending out beneath it. Aliens were skipping through the aisles of floating clutter while some were studying the objects and taking notes on metal clipboards with touch screens and inkless pens. Everything was white but those red labels. My eyes burned from the swarming, insipid bleach that washed the walls that were highlighted by the bright light coming from the glass ceiling.

“Wow—“ I yelped, slamming into a case of brochures while staring at the objects. A couple behind me giggled as I tried to fix the plastic, translucent shelve of brochures with burning cheeks. I shoved a brochure or two into my pocket, stepping away from the case as if nothing had happened.           Curiosity compelled me past the crowds of people and through the aisles of things I had never seen. Lightening from Planet of the Long Necks, I watched bolts of lightening flash inside a tiny capsule and then moved to the next object, Flammable Stones of Sand Scratch Planet. Two rocks of rustic, brick red hovered in the air, nearly screaming when one of the rocks burst into flames of orange and purple when my breath washed over it. The flames flickered for a few minutes then extinguished just as the other one became engulfed in fire. I went to the next object, Reflecting, Jumping Sand of Shimmering Waters Planet. It was jar of grainy sand with mirror qualities, seeing the reflection of the ceiling on the top. Some small grains flicked into the air, sparkling brightly in the light before rejoining the shining surface. The next object reminded me why I was there. Mesmerized by the strange, new objects that I forgot where and why I was there.

             It was book, The Origin of Our Species by Twinkling Suns. The book was bond with a metal spine and had grainy sheets for pages. It was thick and nothing restrained it when I picked it up. Flipping through the delicate pages, I could determine this book was worthy of taking and placed it exactly where it had been. I would take it later when there was less people to notice it was missing. There were other books hanging in the air, furtively leafing through them and making a mental note to snatch them before I left.

             It had been two hours of sightseeing before I met the gift shop that was teeming with people. Of course everything was fully stocked and free. The aliens were too modest to gorge on free merchandise, watching them file out of the shop holding a roll of three dimensional stickers or dorky hats. The bustling of the people pushed me to the far corner of the shop and my glasses sliding down my nose. There were a few metallic backpacks, taking a green one and shoving all the books and brochures I could find. I knew this wasn’t incognito but no one stopped me or stared meticulously at me. About to the finish rounding the entire shop when a door stepped into my view. It opened to a stock room, looking over my shoulder to see if anyone was looking and stepped in and locked the door behind me. It was a small room filled with translucent cases that were piled with tee shirts and other silly knick knacks. This was a perfect place to hide and wait until the place was empty and closed. Crawling in between two crates of fake rocks and bouncing balls in the back and using my backpack for a pillow, I drowsed away into sleep.

            I stretched before I peeked through the crack between the wall and door. I hadn’t meant to sleep for so long. Darkness had already devoured the day and taken the aliens back to their homes. Slinging my backpack, I crept through the gift shop trying to make the least sound and avoid any boxes or racks. Stepping back into the exhibit, I was blasted by light. The hovering objects were now sitting on shelves of sparkles and glitters. The light of the moon and stars looked down through the glass ahead. The shelves shone like stars, rubbing my fingers on the side and leaving a trace of glitter on my fingers tips. Had the shelves been there the entire time or had they been put in place while I was asleep? They were beautiful and stunning and it made it harder to snatch the books off the shelves without staring at the shelves, dazzled. It was like floating in space with the stars at a stretch away.

            It was calming to be there alone under the stars and darkness that hugged them. I forced myself not to think of the rage Ian had when he found me absent, again.

“So when are you and Sailing Suns getting married?” I had just packed the last book when I heard the clicks and saw a beam of light shoot down the aisle beside the shelves. Adrenaline pulsed through me, grabbing the gun as I slithered to the opposite of the shelf and lowered at its side. Holding my heavy breathing, I peeked around the edge to see the beam of light bobble into the aisle. My body stimulated into tension and my senses heightened to pick up the soft patting of boots, jingle of keys, and the arrival of the alien’s voices. Monitoring my breathing, I bent lower to the floor with the pack weighing down on me and my quickening heart nauseating me. The gun didn’t seem so empowering or intimating anymore.

“Soon. In a few days. We won’t make the delivery this spring or summer if we don’t” I ducked my head away in blindness of the straight beam.

“How many—Hey! The Text of Our Early Ancestors and Scoping the Land are gone!” Those books were tucked in my pack with numerous others.

“We better scan the area, now!” I skidded upright and ran to the very last shelf with the pack jumping on my back and loudly thudding with the books jostling. “I heard something. Go!” I cut into the aisle before the beam of light flashed over. Another beam of light shined to my other side. They were going to close in on me if I didn’t do something quick. There was no where to go but up. The shelves were gritty and puffed onto my skin and clothes as I climbed, trying to maneuver around the objects on the shelves to minimize the sound. I swung my leg over onto the top, pressing my body flat and folding my arms and legs so they couldn’t be seen over the edge down below. Holding my breath, I waited for them to check the aisle and prayed they didn’t look up.

“Got anything?”

“No” I gritted my teeth as the two beams of light flashed down the same aisle. “This isn’t good. I’ll call in reinforcements. Let’s go through all the aisles and see what else was taken” the two aliens were stocky and muscular in their security uniforms. They double backed, walking through the next aisle they passed, scanning the shelves for the objects I had taken. What was I going to do? They would hear me and more were coming. I smiled when I thought of a trick Ian had played once. All I needed was a lot of commotion and I knew how I could do that plus I would deal some vengeful destruction. Standing up, waving my arms in circles before balancing and overcoming the height, I began to rock the shelf. I dug my feet in, pushing my weight from side to side as sweat began to loll across my face. It began to wobble before I climbed down halfway, finding it easier to shake the shelf from there. The objects began to clatter and when the first object crashed to the ground, I commenced into hurried, last resort, hopeful lunges on the shelf.

            “Hey did you hear that?” I growled as I gave the shelf one last push, feeling it slide and fall beneath me, holding harder to the shelf as it swung down to crash into the other shelves like a bunch of dominos.

“NO!” there was the deafening splintering of the shelves falling on one another and the sound of all the intricate and unique objects splitting, rolling onto the ground, and jamming in between the starry shelves. I panted in the thrill and panic of riding the falling shelf, patting my knees as I stood up on the uneven surface of the crackling shelf. My shoulder popped as I flung my arms up in the air to stretch, the backpack was starting to pull at my back. The aliens must’ve been under the shelves but they were alive. They were strong and healed faster than humans.

            I climbed down, meeting a glass case of funny white backpacks. “IN CASE OF EMERGENCY” it read with a set of instructions and diagram. It was supposed to be some kind of parachute. I slammed the butt of the gun into the glass, tripping as I stepped back as a row of parachutes shot out.

“Interesting” I picked up one of the white vibrant parachutes that was a vest with a little red button on the chest and a backpack attached to it. Swinging my head to loose the glasses, I let my backpack drop and tried on one of the vests. It was very uncomfortable and form fitting, unable to slip it off. The red button my chest began to glow as I pulled my arms through my backpack straps so the pack sat on my stomach.

“HEY YOU!”

“Oh no” the two guards were pushing away the shelf remnants and glitter off their uniforms with one of them pointing at me. The pack suddenly felt heavier.

“Is that a human?”

“STOP!” they began racing towards me, pointing my gun at them made them pause and stumble on the layers of shelves. Their eyes shone through the darkness from the light of shelves and the stars through the glass. It could have been so easy to pull the trigger, to take their lives like they had with my family and friends. But as much as I abhorred them and thrived on the thought of making them suffer as much as they had made me, I was not willing or ready to take a living creature’s life. They had their eyes drawn on me, waiting for me to make my move. With a quick breath, I snapped my arm towards the ceiling and shot the glass arch multiple times. The blast of the gun zapped my nerves, shocked at the power of the weapon and sound that had emitted from it.

“UGH!” I ran towards the entrance as the large shards of glass toppled down, one of them sliced my arm and the rest scattered over the exhibit and the guards. The sound of the ceiling collapsing burst through the museum, my ears buzzing at the sharp snap of glass pounding on the floor and shelves. The backpack weighed me down now that it was slung over my chest. “STOP!” they were coming behind me, shooting the gun a few more times at the ceiling and walls to cause more obstacles.

            The bridge was stretched out ahead of me, stuttering in my steps to see the middle gap a path of diamonds, just like the shelves and sky. “YOU’RE GOING TO PAY HUMAN!” barked the guard in clicks in pops. My feet pounded on the bridge, flipping my head back as I watched the, now four, guards chasing me and groping for something on their belts. The elevator isn’t going to work! With no choice and the security of the parachute on my back, I flung myself over the rail. I screamed as the wind banged against my body like two kids pushing me back and forth. The wind wrung my hair and my body flailed powerlessly through the rough air. Ripping air flashed in my ears, my eyes stung as I struggled to make sense of the dark scenery around me. I slapped my chest hurriedly, seeing the platform of trees, that would catch my fall, getting closer. The parachute jumped out of the bag, ripping me back with my legs kicking the air. Looking up, I saw the webbed, translucent chute and a glittering beam holding up the museum building. The disappearance of the ground beneath my feet had me panicking into twists and kicks, watching the trees take on an abrasive and deathly sight just before I crashed through them. The branches lashed at my falling body, the parachute tugged at my torso to make my limbs sour in soreness. It was dark so I had to rely on my hearing, the only sound was the smash of my body breaking through branches thick with leaves and pine needles and the disturbance of the trees rattling as I passed through them. I hadn’t felt the cut on the back of my head amongst the other lashings pulling and scraping at my skin so I hadn’t expected and couldn’t remember when I fell unconscious. All I would remember was falling and darkness—