Short Story
There isn’t a person in the world who doesn’t like stories. Stories can be found everywhere in our daily lives, like in a conversation with a friend, a radio talk show, or a local newspaper. They are a timeless form of entertainment for a good reason. They allow the audience to fill in and customize the visual aspect, and to make each individual’s vision the truth. I have written a short story, now all you have to do is let your vision free.
Everybody said it was a bad idea to go wondering in the woods alone. However, Alex didn’t care anymore. Nothing and nobody was in his thoughts in this frozen stillness of the snowy forest. For the first time in his life, Alex had the freedom to do anything. A sudden adrenalin rush washed over him and his legs took off running. The snow was deep and it took a big effort to move fast, but the boy’s liberty gave him strength.
He ran for what seemed like an eternity, until his vision registered something unusual up ahead – a flickering bright light. Only at this point did Alex realize that the forest has gotten dark and dense, and that he was lost. The boy’s ears rang, he felt dizzy, and his legs were heavy as concrete.
The light emitted an unpleasant foreign energy which also acted as a magnet. Alex clambered up a hill that gave him a good overview of the area. He couldn’t believe his eyes. Just below, at the bottom of the rolling slope, was a large crater-like hole with crumpling sides – a fresh bald wound to the forest. A couple of trees have been knocked off of their stems and thrown aside. The impact had sent several pieces of earth flying in all directions, creating a rim around the indent.
Alex felt like he was dreaming of some Sci-Fi film because he was looking at the unreal. In the crater’s center lay a crumpled chunk of metal with a large crack on the side. The object’s surface bore strange glowing markings, which resembled henna tattoos. A light flickered inside the crack and gave off eerie buzzing that sent shivers down Alex’s spine.
Suddenly, he no longer wanted the freedom. He wanted to return home to his arguing parents, whose fighting seemed miniscule compared to his current situation. Alex’s friends were right; he shouldn’t have gone onto this forest walk alone.
However, the boy felt like he was past the point of no return as he could not unsee. While Alex stood there contemplating, he decided that if he turned back now, he would regret this action for the rest of his life. No, he had to see.
Alex climbed down the slope on weak legs and crept towards the large shining metal object. His heartbeat drowned out all surrounding noise. As if in slow motion, Alex watched his hand place itself onto the patterned surface. He half expected for something to jump out and attack him at the touch, but everything remained calm. Alex traced the delicate glowing designs with his fingertips and awed at their detail – this was something otherworldly. He walked around the mysterious thing and noticed that it lacked windows and doors and was the size of three minivans. Alex stopped beside the flickering crack. It drew him in like a Siren and made his stomach do summersaults. The boy cautiously poked his head inside.
No, he should have just turned around and went back. This was too much. Alex was paralyzed with fear and could not stop staring at the nightmare. In the buzzing faulty light, he saw a misshapen cabin with a sea of complicated controls. There was also that thing; a creature that resembled a stingray and a calamari. Its unmoving feline eyes stared ahead into nothingness. Was it dead or unconscious? So much emotion was running through Alex that he began to feel numb. There was no more thinking – just doing.
Once Alex placed the being on the ground, he realized that it was as big as a dog and wore a thin transparent cover – a spacesuit? Suddenly, its deep cat eyes blinked and looked up at Alex with wonder and fear. On the next moment, it was transforming. It increased in size as thin slimy tentacles slithered out if its body, like turtle heads poking out of their shells. Alex noted that the being’s mouth, located at an awkward place, was full of sharp fangs. The creature snarled and that was enough to send the boy flying up the side of the slope.
He ran as fast as an Olympic athlete and could hear the growling thing follow behind. Alex didn’t have the energy for this and every part of his body ached. Out of nowhere appeared a thick branch and caused him to fall headfirst onto the ground. Then there was nothing.
Something prickled on Alex’s forehead when he opened his eyes. The creature was standing beside him, back in its original form. It moved forward and Alex’s hand reached out defensively, so that he and the being made contact. Fear, confusion, curiosity suddenly became the boy’s emotions, as if mirroring those of the creature. For that instant, they were one. Where am I? My spacecraft encountered a system error and crashed on this foreign planet. Unbelievable, they could communicate by passing thought through touch. Alex replied, you’re on Earth… What are you, an alien? Confusion flickered through those cat eyes, what is an alien? I am Ino from planet Quem. A real life alien! Oh how Alex regretted not having his phone and camera.
Listen, you must help me. The resources necessary to maintain my life are scarce and I must contact my kind to ask for assistance, thought Ino. Only now did Alex notice a transparent jar at the creature’s back filled with wispy glowing gas. Confused Alex thought, but what can I do? For all he knew this whole situation seemed as real as a dream. You must help me activate the Fura. I need it to project a signal to my home planet.
Once the boy and the alien got back to the crater, Ino glided up to the spaceship on three slimy tentacles and disappeared inside. Alex was alone. Now was his chance to take off and end this nonsense.
However, as the boy was about to turn around, out came Ino carrying the most extraordinary piece of technology. It consisted of a series of thin shiny rings that rotated around an invisible force at the center, slightly resembling Saturn. Occasionally, sparks of light appeared at the center and floated about like snowflakes in a snow globe.
Alex came up to Ino and touched him, thinking, so this must be the Fura. Indeed, thought the creature, you must now help me find a sufficient light source as this device runs on light. Alex looked around the dark night forest. Perhaps we can use the Moon as the power source. We just somehow need to find a place where it’s visible. The bright orb was unusually low tonight and completely hidden behind tall trees. Ino was now more puzzled than Alex, the “Moon?”
The only way Alex could think of for getting a proper view of the Moon was by climbing to the top of a tree. While Ino was busy setting up the Fura, Alex’s intuition told him that he wouldn’t be coming back to the crater. He sneaked up to the damaged spaceship and pocketed a chipped piece of the outer surface he’d found on the ground.
In the next five minutes, Alex was climbing up a bald maple tree. The bruise on his forehead and a lack of energy weren’t a big deal at this time. What bothered Alex was the slimy alien attached to his back by seatbelts taken from the spacecraft. Meanwhile, Ino was managing to hold on to the weighty Fura. This was surreal, but there was no way to wake from the ridiculous dream. All boundary between reality and dream was lost.
The two settled on a high branch, which gave a vast view of the forest flooded in the soft moonlight. Alex observed Ino attach wires to his spacesuit and connect them to the machine. The amount of gas in the creature’s container has significantly decreased. Time was of the essence. Ino touched Alex, I am most grateful for your assistance. However, I must warn you. It is unknown how the following process will affect you. Alex had no response to that.
The communication procedure began. Ino emitted an otherworldly sound, causing the Fura’s rings to rotate in slow motion. Then came another disturbing noise, another, and another. Each time got louder and chilled the boy to the bone. Eventually, Alex began to feel like he was going to faint. Some sort of invisible energy unintended for Earthlings was present. Everything seemed to happen far away, as if Alex was watching a movie with many black pauses and muffled audio.
It must’ve been the movie, but Alex saw things get brighter until it hurt to look. More darkness and muffled noise. Something large was hovering nearby. It was cold, windy, uncomfortable, and the view was shaking. More darkness. Ino was now leaning over Alex. Finally, the audio, discomfort, confusion all vanished and once again, there was nothing.
Cold and wetness. These were the first sensations Alex felt when he began to wake up. As he opened his eyes, a river of questions flooded him. The boy looked around and saw a barcode – black bare trees and white snow. Suddenly, he remembered. Everybody said it was a bad idea to go wondering in the woods alone. There was the feeling of freedom, the running, the light. Wait, or was the light just a dream? It must have been because then came the crater, spaceship, and alien... It was definitely a dream.
Something bulky lying in Alex’s coat pocket was creating discomfort. He reached in and took out a chunk of metal embellished with detailed glowing patterns. This couldn’t be. This object was as real as all of the recent absurdity. The tree-climbing, the strange calls, the hovering object... Then how did Alex get here? The last thing he remembered was Ino leaning over him. There were no footprints in the snow as far as the boy could see... Did Ino bring him here?
Suddenly, the still quiet of the forest was interrupted by fait calls. They were shouting Alex’s name. That’s when the he realized he’d been gone since yesterday. The boy heard his mom and dad amongst other voices and took off running. Maybe things weren’t so bad. Perhaps this incident would open his parents’ eyes and they won’t fight anymore. What if they could all be happy again? There was also the alien story that somewhere deep down inside Alex suspected nobody would take seriously. Still, Alex was full of hope. With every stride, he got closer to his family and farther away from the lonely freedom of the forest.
