Dark Realms
Abductions
P.R. BEAN
Copyright 2012 by P.R. Bean
Smashwords Edition
Chapter One
The Sighting October 2008
Orange embers floated through the air as John tossed the logs into the fire. He bent down and gave Aimee a kiss and then rejoined Mark on the other side of the campfire. Aimee smiled and then quickly turned her gaze back to the marshmallow that she was roasting. It popped and sizzled making her mouth water as she waited for that first sweet crunchy bite. Mid-terms had been tough this last week and the trip to the lake had been long overdue. As she glanced around the campfire admiring her circle of friends she smiled. She was ready for a nice relaxing weekend even if it was freezing. It had only been a few hours since they had arrived at Coopers Rock and she could already feel her stress melting away. Her friend, Cheryl, rubbing her hands together over the fire was enjoying its warmth. She and Aimee were discussing plans to go shopping together next week, while Joanna and Brian were fighting as usual. Mark and John were drinking hot toddies with smirks on their faces as they listened to them argue. A typical Friday night for them, well except for the camping.
It was getting late and it was getting colder. Slipping into a nice warm sleeping bag sounds great right now. Aimee thought to herself. She took John by the hand nudging him towards the tent. “Good night all we’ll see you in the morning.” John walked behind wrapping his arms around her waist. As they stepped inside Aimee giggled as she lay down. John was zipping up the tent laughing at himself; he was having trouble getting his fingers to work, a combination of the cold, and being tipsy. Suddenly a loud blast echoed through the mountainside. It was followed by a shock wave like one of those sonic booms the space shuttle makes when it comes back into the atmosphere. The sides of their tent trembled from the blast. Aimee reached for John’s hand and they went back outside.
“What the hell, was that an earthquake?” Brian asked.
“Look!” Aimee exclaimed.
As they looked out across the lake there was a flash of light then a glow through the trees. Aimee stood in the back ground and was mesmerized as she watched the outline of her friends’ bodies that were being silhouetted by the immense glow. They felt the sensation of an electrical charge in the air followed by a low hum.
Mark held out his arm. “You feel that, look at the hairs on my arm; it’s like static electricity or something. Whatever that was, it’s close.”
The guys had gotten the crazy idea in their heads to investigate. The three of them huddled together discussing their plan. “I think we got us a UFO!” Brian screamed as they hurried to get their plan into motion.
Joanna seeing trouble in their eyes confronted Brian. “Please tell me you’re not going to do what I think you are going to do?”
“Joanna, you have your camcorder with you right? Bring it and let’s go. Start collecting your gear. We’re going to find us some aliens!” The three men raced around the camp collecting their things.
Clouds of dust swirled in the air as they shoved past each other. Cheryl stopped for a moment and sat down under a large tree and began to cry. Mark heard her crying and went over to her.
“Hey sweetie what’s wrong?” He whispered.
“I don’t understand why everyone does whatever Brian says.”
Mark turned defensive. Cheryl had not yet learned the cardinal rule; you never question anything Brian does. Every man has an alpha leader and Brian was theirs. “We don’t do whatever he says. You’re just being a baby!” Realizing that he was being harsh he changed his tone. He pulled her close kissing her gently on the lips. “Hey, you trust me don’t you? I won’t let anything happen to you I promise. I’m sure it’s just a meteor or something and we’ll all be laughing about it come morning.” He kissed her again, this time she reciprocated.
“Well let’s not be too long I have a surprise for you.” She nibbled his ear. The two of them hadn’t been dating long and she had planned on making love to him for the first time tonight.
“Oh you do huh? Well, let’s go then.” He stared at her cute little backside as she turned to resume her packing; he swatted her on the rear as he walked passed her making her squeal.
Mark picked up his gun and shoved it into his duffle bag as nonchalant as if he were putting an apple into his bag. “What are you going to do with that?” Aimee asked.
“It’s just a precaution.” He said.
She tossed her backpack on the ground and began to lecture him. “This is bullshit; we have no business being out in the woods this time of night searching for aliens! Haven't you guys seen those shows about abductions? This is how it always happens. Some dumbass kids go hunting down strange lights and they get sucked up and then they’re never heard from again. Bringing a gun Mark, don’t you think things are getting a little out of hand?”
“We have to do this.” He said. “What if it is aliens? We could get the first documented video of them. With the six of us as eye witnesses we could make a fortune!”
“Or get ourselves killed!” Aimee exclaimed.
Aimee stopped to sit for a moment on the edge of an old log in front of the fire. John sat next to her and put his arm around her. “Come on baby it’ll be fun!”
She gazed into the fire thinking what a great boyfriend he has been. After dating all of these years, he had finally asked her to marry him. She had turned him down, telling him she is not ready for that kind of long term commitment. Now she wondered if she would ever have the chance to marry him. She had a real bad feeling about tonight. She looked into his eyes and realized there was no talking him out of this. She rubbed her hand gently across his cheek; then she kissed him lightly on the lips. As she looked into those deep blue eyes of his that she loved so much she thought, what am I waiting for? “I will marry you. I love you.” She said softly.
His eyes lit up. “Are you serious? Oh man you just made my night! I love you too!” Pulling her close to him he kissed her. They gave each other a quick smile and then stood up together holding hands. Aimee pulled the hood of her jacket over her head. She had tears in her eyes. “Well come on let’s go, the aliens are waiting!” She said it as a joke, but deep inside she was terrified.
Brian led the way with the rest trailing behind. Aimee yelled at him to slow down so they could keep up. Trampling through the thick layers of trees and shivering from the cold the closer they got to the light the more of an uneasy feeling they had about being there.
Mark waved at them. “You guys shish, look over there, what’s that?” The glow had led them to a large crevice that was etched into the mountain. They followed a winding path laden with moss and cold mountain stream water which opened into the mouth of a large cave.
Strange shadows danced eerily across the walls of the cave. Mark motioned for them to hunch down so they could creep silently inside. They hid behind the rocks and watched but they still couldn’t believe what they were seeing.
There were three of them, these beings, and the glow was emanating from their bodies, an iridescent blue that shimmered as if it made its own light. And they were fast, each one able to scale the cave walls that were at least five hundred feet high in a matter of moments. Moving like serpents their bodies twisting and turning as they slithered up the walls. “What are they doing?” Joanna whispered.
“I don’t know it looks like they’re collecting something.” Mark said.
They must have heard us whispering; one of them turned to look at us. Its face had no human features to it. More like the face of a snake. Its eyes shaped like diamonds were dark and ominous. Mark pulled his gun and aimed it at the creature. He wondered if he could muster up the courage to pull the trigger. This thing glided towards him curious as to what he was holding. His hand trembled causing the cold steel to shimmer as it reflected off of the creature’s luminescent body. They watched as this thing came dangerously close coming within inches of Mark and peering into the barrel of the gun as though it were looking for something. Mark fired out of fear. The bullet missed its mark and the creature let out a blood curdling shriek and then the three of them vanished. Cheryl passed out (from the fear I guess). They were all frozen with fear. They couldn’t move, they couldn’t even breathe. These things were terrifying.
“Where the hell did they go?” Mark asked.
Brian answered him. “I don’t think they went anywhere. Listen they’re still here. I can hear them. Oh my God, they’re invisible!”
Aimee began tugging at John’s shirt sleeve. “We have to get out of here. They’re going to kill us!” John crept over to Brian and tapped him lightly on the shoulder whispering to him. “Brian, Aimee is right, we have to get out of here man. Who knows what these things are capable of?”
Brian nodded. “You’re right, come on guys grab Cheryl and let’s get out of here!” They picked up Cheryl and fled the cave running as fast as their legs would carry them.
Blood trickled into Aimee’s right eye from a bad cut on her forehead. Somehow in all of the confusion they had lost their way and ended up in a briar patch. Their faces and hands were being sliced by razor sharp barbs. Her white jacket had turned red from all of the blood. She fell to her knees out of breath and exhausted. “I can’t run anymore, just leave me here.”
They decided that she was right; they needed to stop for a while and regroup. John tore his shirt sleeve tying it around Aimee’s head to ease the bleeding. She reached out and touched his cheek. “You’re bleeding.”
“I’m okay, it’s just a scratch. I am much more worried about you. Does it hurt?”
“No, I guess I am in shock or something. I don’t feel a thing.”
Mark went over to check on Cheryl. “She’s out cold.” He said.
“Just leave her be. I wish I was unconscious!” Joanna screamed. Poor Joanna was the most popular girl in school. Always has been, but not much in the brains department. She and Brian had been dating since high school. He’s an asshole and has always treated her like shit, but she still comes back for more. Brian walked over to Joanna. She looked up at him and waited to feel his arms around her to tell her that everything would be alright. Only to have her hopes crushed when he asked her where the camera was. She picked up a rock and threw it at him. “What? Are you fucking kidding me? That’s all you’re worried about is that stupid camera! We could all die here you asshole!”
Aimee had yelled at them to shut up, and listen. The same low hum had started again. They had placed Cheryl on the ground with a jacket under her head. She was coming around. “What’s happening?” She asked rubbing her eyes and feeling dazed.
Tiny red, blue and green lights appeared, spewing about like Fourth of July fireworks. One of them stopped in front of Aimee’s face. She looked at it, and feeling as though she were being violated, she swatted it. As she did it let out an intense screech, making them feel as though their ears would burst. They grabbed their ears to muffle the sound and fell to the ground screaming. The hair on their bodies stood up from the static electricity, and then suddenly they couldn’t move, or speak. With their backs arched in excruciating pain they were elevated into the night sky and then disappeared.
It would be a week before they would be heard from again. All six were found by a search party at their campsite, completely nude. They were awake, sitting on the ground staring out at the lake, totally unresponsive. They were taken by air to the hospital where they were found to have nothing physically wrong with them. After numerous tests, and many weeks in the hospital, their parents had them transferred to the nearest psychiatric facility where they have been ever since. That was over six months ago.
Rachel Norris met with Dr. Jenkins the attending physician at the psychiatric hospital where they had been transferred. When Rachel stepped into her office she could immediately detect the distinct smell of vodka on her breath. Dr. Jenkins, a tall, slender, salt and pepper haired woman looked tired and much older than she is. Her rubber soul shoes squeaked as she walked from the door to her cluttered desk. “Please, have a seat won’t you.” The doctor said to her in a monotone voice.
“Thank you for seeing me on such short notice doctor. I am Rachel Norris the Chief Field Investigator for UFO sightings.” Rachel took her badge wallet out of her pocket flipping it open to show her credentials.
“I had no idea they had special investigators for alien reports.” The doctor scanned Rachel’s ID carefully and then she closed it tucking it back into her suit pocket.
“When I received your report I knew that I needed to come here to question these individuals about the sighting.”
The doctor slammed her files down on her old metallic desk giving Rachel a dirty look. “I wasn’t the one who faxed you that report.” She said sharply.
It was obvious that she wasn’t happy about her being there. It took some doing, but Rachel finally convinced the doctor to speak with her. She had to pull the government card on her, explaining that she had to share her information with her, or there would be consequences. She then unhappily obliged. Rachel positioned herself on a chair in front of her desk. It was one of those old metal folding chairs. The kind they use in classrooms or a church. She could feel the cold metal on her skin as she sat down it made her shiver.
“Yes, well let’s get started then shall we.” Having one of the file folders already in her hands she opened it and took out the report and began to read aloud. “Mark Johnson, Brian Dalton, John Anderson, Joanna Myers, Cheryl Evans, and Aimee Reed, these are the patients’ under your care, correct doctor?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“I hear the only one who is responsive is Ms. Reed, this is how you obtained the story that we have so far. Although I had hoped that I might be able to question the other five as well. Are any of them responding to treatment? Have you gotten anything out of them yet?”
“No nothing.” The doctor answered. “They’re completely shut down. Physically there isn’t a thing wrong with them. Their brainwaves and vitals are all normal, but it’s as if they are in another world. I have never seen a case like this before where so many have the same malady at once. It’s like mass hypnosis.”
Rachel pulled another report out of her file and handed it to the doctor. “I have some questions about the findings here.”
Dr. Jenkins sat back in her chair and shifted into defensive mode. “Yes, what is it?” She asked.
“Take a look at that report; it’s in the third paragraph, second line.”
“Yes I’ve read this; it’s the condition they were all in when they were brought to the hospital after the search party found them, so?”
She handed her another report. “This is Ms. Reed’s statement of what happened to them in the woods after the sighting. The briar patch incident to be specific.”
“Yes, I remember, what about it?”
“Take a look at page four, right there.” Rachel pointed at the exact line where it talked about the cut on Aimee’s head. “If Ms. Reed had such a bad gash on her forehead that her boyfriend had to tie his shirt sleeve around her head to stop the bleeding wouldn’t she have some sort of a remnant of this wound left on her head a week later?”
The doctor looked puzzled. “Well, yes she would.”
“Yet the report states that when they were found they were in perfect health without a scratch on them, is this right?”
“Yes, that’s right.” “What do you think happened to all of the cuts and bruises that she talks about in her report? What about the cut on her forehead, just a little food for thought. So, how is Aimee, is she back to normal?”
“I don’t know if you can call it normal but you can talk to her. We’ve kept her heavily sedated ever since she recalled what happened. We took her off sedation early last night, as per your request, so she is lucid for questioning. I have to warn you though, she is easily agitated. We have cameras set up in her room so if she tries anything we can come to your aid quickly.”
“You don’t have to worry about me doctor, I can handle myself.”
“I’m sure you can.” The doctor went over to the coffee maker to pour herself some coffee. “Would you like some?” She asked.
“No thank you.” Rachel said politely.
The doctor stood with her back turned towards Rachel stirring her coffee incessantly. Rachel saw from her reflection in the mirror that she was adding vodka to her coffee. She waited for her to finish. When she finally sat back down Rachel continued with her questions. “I see that the toxicology reports were negative, well except for a little marijuana, but that wouldn’t be enough to make them all hallucinate about aliens.” She was prodding her, she wanted to see how much she really knew and what she believed happened to them.
The doctor tapped her pen nervously on the edge of her desk and then scribbled something down on a paper in front of her. “If you’re asking me if I believe in UFO’s you are way off base. I am in the business of science and medicine. I think that something scared the shit out of those kids, but I believe it was human, not extra-terrestrial. We just need to find the right mixture of drugs to get them back into reality that’s all! That, and some intense therapy and they will be able to function in society again.”
Rachel collected her paperwork stacking it neatly on her lap; then she put it back into her bag. She stood up and reached for the doctor’s hand. “Yes, I am sure you will figure something out. Thank you so much for your assistance, you’ve been a great help. I’m ready to see Ms. Reed now.”
The doctor shook Rachel’s hand and then reached for the telephone. “You’re quite welcome; if you don’t mind I will have my orderlies show you the way, I have some reports to finish.” Dr. Jenkins buzzed for the orderlies.
“Sure, no problem, thanks again doctor.” She walked Rachel to the door and when she stepped out into the hall the doctor slammed the door in her face.
Two orderlies met with Rachel at the end of the hall. One of them, an older man, looked more like a janitor with his gray hair, moustache, and keys that dangled from his uniform pants. He had the name Marv neatly stitched on his name tag. The other orderly had the name Pete stitched on his tag. He looked like trouble. A middle aged man in his late forties with lots of gang tats, dark hair, and a gold tooth on his upper right canine; he looks like a reject from a biker gang from the seventies. I can just bet I know what he loves to do with the young drugged up female patients, definitely a pervert.
Both men stood quietly beside her while they waited for the elevator doors to open. The pervert glanced over at her, smiled, and then winked. She nonchalantly turned her gaze back to the elevator doors as they opened. Marv pressed the button after they stepped inside.
The doors opened on the third floor to what can only be described as a scene from a horror movie. It was definitely quite a difference from the first floor where the patients’ families met with the doctors and the patients who reside in this facility. The screams of patients echoed throughout the halls, some of which sounded as though they were dying. The strong distinct odor of feces and urine permeated the air as she stepped out of the elevator into the hall. It almost made her gag. The walls had been painted dark green, and the floors were black linoleum tile. A circular nurse’s station in the center of the floor stood empty; and every window was barred. “Right this way mam.” Marv pointed in the direction they were headed.
The first door they came to was Brian Dalton’s room. She peered in through the sliding peephole on the metal door. There was nothing in his room, but an old dilapidated hospital bed. He was sitting on it rocking back and forth as he stared out the window. “Is he always like this?” She asked.
“Yep, that’s what they all do, just sit on their beds and stare out the window like they’re waiting for something.” Pete said.
“You don’t sedate the other five, only Ms. Reed, why?”
“Ms. Reed is the only one who gives us trouble.” Marv answered courteously.
When they finally reached Aimee’s room she peered in through the peephole. Aimee was sitting on the bed smiling at her like she had been expecting her. Marv unlocked the door. The loud clang of the heavy metal bolt echoed down the halls sending a chill up her spine. The two of them stepped inside with her. The orderlies started towards Aimee to secure her for questioning, but Rachel ordered them to stop. She told them that she wanted to be alone with her. Marv stepped back into the hall, but the little pervert; well he had his own ideas. He came in close to Rachel’s ear whispering, “You better let me hold her down for you she can get pretty wild.” He looked over at Aimee scratched his crotch, and snickered.
Rachel reached out and grabbed hold of his manhood and squeezed with everything she had. Then she whispered into his ear. “Look you little pervert, you will leave me alone with her and I want you to turn the camera off as well. I’m sure you’re real familiar with where the switch is, aren’t you?” He grimaced with pain and nodded. When she finally let go he fell to the floor letting out a deep sigh of relief. “Now, give us some privacy!” Marv helped him up; Pete called her a bitch as they closed the door behind them.
Rachel waited for the red light to go off on the camera and then she pulled up a chair and turned to face Aimee. “Hello Ms. Reed, do you prefer Ms. Reed, or can I call you Aimee?”
“You can call me Aimee.” She said in a sweet voice. She had on a dirty green hospital gown; and her long bright red hair looked as if it hadn’t been brushed in weeks. A beautiful young woman who has the biggest and bluest eyes she had ever seen. And those lips, women pay good money to have lips like hers.
“Do you know where you are Aimee?”
“Yes, do you?” She answered sarcastically.
Her sense of humor is still intact, that’s a good sign. Rachel thought.
“My name is Rachel Norris. I’m here to ask you some questions about what happened to you and your friends. Is that alright with you?”
Aimee got up from the bed and went to the window. “Are you a doctor, because if you are, I’m not talking? They don’t believe me and I don’t trust them.”
Rachel walked over to the window and touched her hand. Aimee turned to look at her. “I will believe you. I promise. And no I’m not a doctor. I’m a friend. I have been through a similar experience and I need you to tell me what happened to you so we can figure this out together.” Aimee pulled her hand away.
“Well Rachel, I’m not saying anything until my friends and I are out of here. Until then I have nothing to say to you.” She was a smart one. She could tell she wasn’t going to get anything out of her as long as she was here. It was time for her to make a phone call.
“Aimee, I have to make some calls. I will see what I can do. I’ll be back in a little while. Can I get you anything? Are you hungry?”
She shrugged. “I’m fine. I could use a shower though.”
Rachel patted her hand. “You got it. Marv, I’m ready to come out.” She shuttered as Marv once again slid the bolt to open the door. Rachel explained to him that she needed some privacy. He took her to the nurses’ station and she made the call to her superior.
“General Arnold, this is Agent Norris. I’m fine sir. Yes I’m here now. Well the other five are still unresponsive, but the girl, Aimee, she is willing to speak to us but only if we take her and her friends out of here. No sir she will not talk unless we move them. Yes sir I think her story is legitimate and that she will be of use to us. It’ll be hard to convince the doctor to let them go without the proper paperwork. She isn’t too happy about my being here. I’ll get you the fax number. You have it already? Alright good, and oh we’ll need a transport as well. Yes sir I’ll speak with the doctor now. See you at 0800 sir. Goodbye.”
Upon hanging up the phone she motioned for Marv to come over. “I want you and those nurses over there to get Ms. Reed and her friends ready for transport. They’re coming with me. They’ll need showers and clean clothes. I will leave it up to you to get the men ready.”
She looked over at the two female nurses leaning up against the wall. “You two, would you come here please.” It makes me wonder what these people do here. So far I haven’t seen a single patient being looked after. She thought to herself. They both hurried over smiling nervously. “I would like the both of you to shower and dress Ms. Evans, Ms. Myers, and Ms. Reed please.”
“Yes mam.” One nurse answered meekly.
“Make sure their hair and teeth are brushed as well.” The nurses turned towards the shower room. They whispered something to each other, laughed, and then hurried down the hall. The pervert was sitting on a chair close to her. She shot him a dirty look. “Not you! You stay right here in this chair until we’re gone, got it? I’ll be checking up on you. I don’t think that you are the kind of man who would do well in prison.” Pete’s eyes widened, then she looked over at Marv. “I want them ready within the hour.”
“You got it.” Marv smiled as he looked over at Pete.
The general had sent the paperwork; it was waiting when she got downstairs. She showed it to the doctor and got the usual threats of lawsuits, but they were out of the hospital and on the road within hours. They had to sedate the patients for the trip for their own safety, and to keep the location they were transferring them to a secret.
Private Buckeye was smiling at her as she approached the gate. “Well hello there beautiful. How are you doing today?”
“I’m just fine Billy, how are you?”
“Better, now that you’re back.” He said winking at her.
“How’s that old dog of yours doing?” She asked.
“He’s doing much better. Dr. Morrow fixed him right up.” He gave her the thumbs up sign.
“I’m so glad.”
“Thanks for the referral.”
“You’re welcome. Happy I could help.”
He leaned inside the cab of her hummer. “So, when are you going to have that drink with me?”
“Soon, I promise.”
“That’s what you always say!” He looked disappointed.
“Yeah I know, well I am a busy woman.” She smiled. “Speaking of busy...”
“I know General Arnold is waiting for you.” He said sadly.
“You know I love you!” She blew him a kiss as she pulled away from the gate. He waved her on grabbing at his chest like she had broken his heart making her laugh. Private Buckeye is a sweet good looking young man. His real name is Billy Williams. She calls him by his real name Billy, but everyone else calls him Buckeye. He got the name Buckeye because when he goes deer hunting they say that he can hit a buck right between the eyes at over five hundred yards. One of the perks in working with the military is that there are a lot of nice looking young men to choose from. She just wished she had the time to take most of them up on their offers.
She was in the elevator with Professor Milltown; he was new to the facility and had hitched a ride with her transport. She had his full attention while describing the facility to him. “We are entering the second layer of security. The outer area is a small military base and it doesn’t look like much on the outside, and that’s the way we want it. But the underground, now it’s impressive. This is the largest and most top secret research facility in the world. It has intense military surveillance on the highest level. The massive compound is filled with the best scientists, and research analysts known to man. It’s all self-sufficient, having a bio chemical lab; a weapons’ lab, and our own hospital. In the event of a nuclear attack we could survive over ten years down here. Each floor has different levels of security. Level one being the lowest priority security all the way to up to level twelve, that being the highest. Very few people have access to that level. Only having the President of the United States, Generals, and other high level military personnel allowed. I have a pretty high security clearance having access as far up as level nine. To my knowledge nothing or no one has ever been put into level twelve. Each level has its own section of housing as well. The generals and top officials are housed on level ten. I have been to the general’s quarters before and they have quite a decent spread up there. The whole floor is set up to cater to their every need. Levels eleven and twelve, well those were pretty much no man’s land and unless you had the highest security clearance you were not allowed on those floors. Doctors, scientists, and investigators such as we, are housed on levels seven, eight, and nine. All low ranking officials and military personnel stay on levels one through four. Five and six had the labs, and hospital. There was even a shopping mall, movie theatre, bowling alley, and nightclub on level one, as I said, all self-sufficient.” The elevator doors opened and the patients were met by medical personnel. They were then transferred to the medical ward on level five to get their vitals and to run more extensive tests on them. Their sedation won’t wear off until tomorrow morning. Rachel said her goodbyes to Professor Milltown.
“Thank you for the information Ms. Norris. It was very informative.”
“You’re quite welcome Professor. I am sure we will see each other again.” They shook hands and then the good professor scurried down the hall to his first call of duty, which she noticed was the latrine. While walking down the familiar hallway to her quarters she yawned. As she slid her keycard in the slot of her front door and opened it she noticed the digital clock on her wall, it was after eight. I need to hurry if I am going to debrief the general and the staff on what I know so far. She collected her paperwork putting it into her folder and then grabbed her key card off of the nearby table. As she opened the door of her apartment to leave she heard a voice from inside the room. “General Arnold is on the line.” It was her video phone system. She turned around and went back inside. “Connect video on.” She said. The general appeared on screen. “I’m on my way sir.” She said.
“We need you in the infirmary now!” The general ordered. She watched Aimee on her monitor; she was on a gurney flailing her arms with doctors and nurses trying to hold her down. She was screaming. “They’re here, they’re here!”
Chapter Two
The Discovery
Guards stood outside the door of the infirmary they were fully armed. “Go on in mam.” One of them opened the door for her. Aimee had quieted down a bit with a little help from sedation. Seems she had knocked out one of the nurses. The nurse was sitting on a gurney with a busted lip, and a soon to be black eye. “What the hell happened to her sir? How did she get so out of control? They have her on some pretty powerful drugs.”
The general and all of the staff were pretty shaken up. They were still reeling over what had just happened. She glanced over at Aimee and noticed something strange about her hair. She walked over to her to get a closer look. It looked like it was moving. What the hell is that? She turned Aimee her on her stomach, and then pulled her hair up to look at the back of her neck. There was a hole in the center of her spine right where the neck and the skull meet. It was covered in a pink tinged gelatinous material. As she looked closer she could swear it looked like it was breathing. The hole would open and close like a fish out of water that was struggling for air. She reached out her hand to touch it when one of the nurses grabbed her hand. “Don’t! That’s what made it come out the last time.”
“Made it come out?” She asked.
“You need to see this.” The general said. What she saw next was unbelievable.
They played back the video of what had happened earlier. One of the doctors had called the general, to tell him that they had found something on the MRI scan of Aimee’s brain. The general had come to take a look at it for himself. Upon looking at the scan the doctor had the nurses turn her over to look at the area in question. When they did they saw the same hole in her neck that she had seen, and when the nurse reached out to touch it this thing, whatever it is, shot out of the hole like a frog flicking its tongue to catch a fly hitting the nurse in the face not once, but twice with lightning speed knocking her unconscious before slipping back into its hole again. Soon after that was when Aimee started to scream. It took five men to hold her down to get her sedated. Then they showed her the MRI scan. There in the middle of Aimee’s brain was something? It was hard to tell, but it almost looked like a fetus. “What the hell is that?”
Doctor Blake answered her. “We don’t know, but whatever it is, it’s alive.”
“What about the others? Have you done a scan of their brains?” She asked.
Dr. Chase, one of the research analysts, said that they had. “The others have something in their brains as well. But theirs is different. Much smaller, and it doesn’t seem to be alive like this one.” He paused for a moment. “There’s something else.”
She looked at him curiously. “What?” He looked over at the general looking for his approval. The general nodded. “Show her.” He said.
Aimee, who was now fully sedated, had one of the doctors sit next to her. All of her vitals proved her to be completely under. No response to stimuli whatsoever, not even to deep pain. The doctor then asked her a question. “Aimee, can you tell me where you are?” To Rachel’s amazement not only did she answer his question, but she answered it in a strange dialect, and in a different voice. They had recorded her response and were now playing it back on the computer. “How is it on playback it’s now in English?” She asked. Dr. Chase. He put the machine on pause so he could explain this to her.
“Our scientists and researchers have discovered a way to analyze any language through the use of computers and to transform it into any language, (ours being English), so that we might better understand what our visitors are saying. As you can see we have been quite successful.” He stated with great pride.
Aimee’s response was that she was in an underground military research compound in the Colorado Mountains. She even gave the right latitude and longitude. “How could she know this? She has been sedated since leaving the hospital in West Virginia, traveling in a van with no windows? It’s not possible.” She asked.
“We can’t explain it.” The general answered.
“It’s as if she has an outside source giving her the information.” One of the doctors replied.
The general had decided that it was best to put all six of them into isolation on a higher security level. He was moving them to level eight. “General, I would really like to question her again.” She asked.
He thought about it for a moment. “Too dangerous, we need to keep that one sedated.”
She reached for his arm. “General please, that’s why we brought her here, to find answers. I believe I can get through to her. At least think about it.”
He nodded. “I’ll take it under advisement. Until then I don’t want anyone getting close to that girl. Not until we figure out what's going on inside of that brain of hers.”
“Yes sir.”
Rachel followed behind as they escorted Aimee and her friends to level eight. They had moved them into a room with an auto scanner which can scan and record bio readings without having to come into direct contact with the patient. She wondered how it is that all of their readings are normal yet they have some strange entity inside of them. She noticed the general having a private conversation with a few of the doctors. She went over to ask him what was up. “What’s going on general?”
“It would seem that we have had a change in plans. The doctors and I have decided to open up her up to see if we can get at whatever it is that’s in her brain.”
“Do you think that’s wise general? That thing attacked a nurse just for looking at it; imagine what it might do if it feels it’s being attacked?” She asked.
“All of the doctors have discussed this and we all agree it’s the best thing for Ms. Reed. This thing might be killing her, causing pressure on her brain. We need to try and get it out while it is still small. You and I both know that it’s some sort of life form. We get it out and then maybe we can save its life as well and find out some information about it. Security has been alerted if their needed.”
“Would it be possible for me to watch the procedure?” She asked.
The general agreed. “I don’t see why not.” He would sit in as well.
“Alright, let’s get started then shall we?” Dr. Chase said.
“Give us about an hour to get everything ready.”
“Alright doctor.” I have a real bad feeling about this. She thought to herself.
Rachel went to her room and got a sweater before she sat down in the operating theatre. “I don’t know what it is about hospitals why they have to keep it so damn cold! It’s freezing in here!” She said to the general shivering. “Poor Aimee, I hope everything goes well with her surgery.”
“She’ll be fine.” The general assured her.
When they rolled Aimee into the surgery suite, she hardly recognized her. They had to shave that beautiful red hair of hers. Now her head looked like a large honey dew melon. The heart monitor beeped with the rhythm of her beating heart. It wasn’t long before they had her in position and ready for surgery. Rachel took in a deep breath as the doctor took the scalpel into his hand. The blood began to pour down the sides of her head as he made his incision.