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- Story Listed as: Fiction For Adults
- Theme: Science Fiction
- Subject: Science / Science Fiction
- Published: 03/06/2014
Coming Home
Born 1948, F, from Phoenix, Arizona, United StatesIt is dark. I’m terrified. He is coming closer. I can smell him. My stomach is squeezing hard and my heart is pumping faster. There are things close to the ground that are grabbing at my legs and tearing at the cloth. I’ve got to get away. He’ll tear me to pieces. My legs are tired and I am weak. The air is heavy, too heavy for me to really run this fast. Then I trip and roll down a hill. Oh it hurts. I think my arm is dislodged. The vegitation above me crackles. I hear him cry. He is so near. I get up from where I landed. There are rocks and water. Oh I’m so cold. My clothes are nearly gone now. They were not meant to protect me from this type of environment. I’m trying so hard to see through the night. Then my feet hit smooth surface and he pounces and begins the assault. His eyes glowed yellow and slimy fluid flowed from his mouth. I feel the blood flow. The pain is as unbearable as the fear of him. I wake screaming.
I’m still wide awake after last nights dream. I couldn’t get back to sleep. The news report said that traffic was snarled because the storm had dumped several feet of snow. I had the thought of just calling in sick. The new supervisor was annoying, but duty calls. As can be expected the bus was late which made me late for work. When I walked into the office he was waiting for me.
“You're late!” Mr. Craig snorted. His cold black eyes glared at me. When he spoke I thought I saw a light behind his eyes. A yellow spark appeared and left as quickly. I could have been mistaken. “If you think you can come to work late and keep your job you better quit now.” It was obvious he was trying to humiliate me. Most of the employees had come in late but he focused on me.
I stared at Mr. Craig and dared say nothing but, “It won’t happen again sir.”
He laughed, “It better not.”
I don’t like confrontations and felt humiliated in front of my co-workers. If only I could get away from these people. Some of my co-workers were nice and tried to give me support that day, which made it even worse. I escaped to the bathroom and stared at the girl in the mirror. Tears came to my eyes. It wasn’t just the unjust scolding I received from Mr. Craig. It was those dreams. He was always so close to killing me when I would wake up screaming. Was I losing my mind? I was seriously considering going to get mental help. I only turn to my best friend, Sandy. She knows about the dreams and sometimes it helps to talk to her. She ask questions about the past. What could I tell her about myself. Truthfully, I don’t know anything about me. Oh I know through trial and error that I hated poached eggs and anything considered slimy. I shudder at the thought of eating snails, oysters and okra. So many facts that people already know about themselves is not in my grasp. Who is my mother and father? Do I have any siblings? Where was I born? How old am I? Where did I go to school. These facts did not escape because of the circumstance of my birth but because of an accident on a lonely road several years ago. I woke in the hospital badly bruised and broken, with no memory. Some kind hearted stranger found me on the side of the road and called for an emergency vehicle. I spent almost a year in the hospital and then in nursing home. I had to learn to walk again. I couldn’t even remember how to use eating utensils. They said I spoke gibberish and they had to teach me how to talk.
“Lila? Are you alright? You know Mr. Craig is an ass hole. You haven’t done anything wrong. He came in late himself.” She put her arm around my shoulder. I looked in the mirror again. Her hair was the same dark auburn as mine. I’ve heard that green eyes are unusual but Sandy and I both have not only green eyes but the same intense green. I think we could have been sisters.
I shook my head. “Sandy it is not just Mr. Craig. It is those dreams again. This time it got me.”
Sandy lowered her head and said in a low voice, “It’s just a dream. Don’t worry about it.”
“I know. I’ll get over it. I think we better get back to the office before Mr. Craig sends in the troops.”
I kept quiet for the most of the work day. Mr. Craig had the habit of standing outside of his office and just staring at his workers. He made everyone uncomfortable. I hated being around him. He was a short man with dark brown hair. He was overweight and had a smell that was quite offensive. Although no one around me seemed to notice.
When quitting time came, I was so ready to clean my desk and get out of that office. Mr. Craig again tried to confront me at the exit door but this time I bolted. “Sorry Mr. Craig! I can’t miss my bus.” I ran all the way to elevators to catch the last closing doors. I breathed a sigh of relief. I’ve got to find another job. Sandy was in the elevator and she gave me a smile of approval. Also in the elevator was a tall older man. He had graying hair but it was at one time black and he also had green eyes.
“Lila. I’d like you to meet a friend of mine. His name is Damon.” I turned and smiled and uttered the regular formalities.
“Lila,” his voice was deep and with a heavy accent. “I am pleased to meet with you. Sandy’s father and I are old friends. We're having dinner at a little restaurant around the corner. Would you care to join us?”
“Oh well, I don’t want to intrude.” I objected.
“No objections. It would be my pleasure.” He was so pleasant and I felt I could trust him and agreed to go with them.
Although it was just around the corner I never really knew this particular place existed. Inside was cozy and warm with low lights. There were not too many people in the little place. I did recognize the old man and his wife, Mr. and Mrs. Ahmed, who lived just down the hall from me in my apartment. I nodded to them as I passed their table.
“Lila! How pleased we are to see you!” I saw them always leaving their apartment and they would greet me warmly. They were such a loving couple. He had always held her hand. She looked like a schoolgirl holding hands with her new boyfried. She carried a big purse for her size. He had what looked like an umbrella over his arm. This he carried even when the sun was out.
The waiter seated us in a booth far away from the entrance. I was seated with my back to the door. Sandy and Damon were facing the front of the restaurant and had a view of everything that went on. This didn’t bother me. I wondered why they insisted on this seating arrangement. Dinner was very good. They had ordered the house special. It was the best meatloaf I had ever ate.
“You like the food here Lila?” Damon asked.
“I’ve never had anything so good. Actually I have a hard time tasting my food. The doctors said that I am missing some nutrition...” I said. I couldn’t help but take the last piece of bread and swiped the plate clean. “Mmmm.” I moaned with delight.
Damon and Sandy looked at each other quickly. “Perhaps the food in this restaurant has what you need. You should come here more often.”
“Oh yes! I certainly will. Tell me where are you from Damon. You have a strange accent that I can’t place.” I’ve never pried into other peoples past but I felt as if I knew this man for a long time.
Sandy began to explain that her father and Damon knew each other when they were attending a university. She has always been vague about her past. I only knew that she came from Colorado. Her mother had died and her father was on tour somewhere in South America looking for ancient artifacts.
“I hope you don’t mind Lila, but Sandy was telling me about your dreams.” His voice was soft, almost caressing. He was genuinely interested in my well-being.
I began to tell him of the monster that chases me through my dreams. I told him how I was running in the woods. The underbrush was tearing at my clothes and my feet burning like fire. But I was so frightened that I forced myself to keep moving. “I hate those dreams! They are relentless. I can never get away from that creature. His intent is to kill me.” I was close to tears again. My heart pounding as I remembered the horror. “I’m sorry they are so real.”
He said that he knew something about dreams. There are so many different reasons adults have nightmares. “You can have nightmares if you are not taking the right nutrition. Also if you have been taking certain medications and have stopped for any reason.
“I don’t take any kind of medication. But as we talked before, I might have a nutritional problem.” I replied after I thought about the subject a bit. I took a sip of the water that came with my meal. The water was refreshing.
“Well...” he began again, but hesitated a few seconds. “There is another reason which is post traumatic stress syndrome. Sandy told me of your accident a few years ago that left you with amnesia.”
I began to explain what I read in the police records. I was lying on the side of the road. My clothes were shredded and my body was broken. They suspected that I was hit by a truck. “My recovery, although continuous, was slow and painful. Perhaps somewhere in the back of my mind I do know what happened to me.”
“Lila. What would you say if I told you that I know you?” He looked at me and searched my face to see if I understood what he was saying.
Then everything went crazy! Damon and Sandy jumped up from the table and moved me aside. “Lila! Stay behind us!” At the same time Mr. and Mrs. Ahmed threw their table up in front of them for protection. The waiter and cook moved quickly to the side of the kitchen entrance. All had weapons in their hands. It was Mr. Craig who came through the door. He was snarling. His eyes were no longer dark but the familiar yellow eyes of my dreams. My God what is going on? This is not happening. Mr. Craig was no longer human, his form vibrated as if it were shaking loose some unpleasant substance. What was standing before us was my dream. This hairy monster with yellow eyes. When he opened his mouth you could see rows of sharp jagged teeth. He screamed. Then everyone fired their weapons. The monster moaned and cried in pain as his body disintegrated.
Everyone relaxed. The monster was dead. “Lila.” Damon said quietly. Your dreams were not dreams. You were mining ore from asteroids near this system and our enemy, the Kwell, found you. They hate us and want us dead. He chased you into this system and your ship crashed landed in the woods. That is where you were chased by him. We were monitoring everything but could not help you. We were too far away. Our instruments indicated that he did catch up with you. He was beating you when that truck came. He was frightened and ran away. The people in this room are members of our clan. We can explain much more about your heritage when we get back home. Let me stress, Lila, you can’t stay on this world. As beautiful as it is you still need nutrients that aren’t here. You will gradually get sick and die. Please allow us to help you get home.”
I was numb with this knowledge. Everyone on this world thinks that aliens are a myth. Only crazy people believe in aliens. I saw with my own eyes what happened today. It is undeniable. Yes I must go home now. But I shall miss this world with it’s greenery and variety of life. A new adventure opens for me. I agree. “Let’s go home.” I said.
Damon closed his eyes and he seemed to be quiet. The room began to sway and the lights became bright then dimmed and the decor of the room dissolved as we reappear on the ship sent to rescue us. When I looked around I saw many happy faces. “Welcome home sister.” one said. Ah yes I’m now home. What adventures await me. Am I the same person that left? Will they accept me as I am? We will wait to see.
Coming Home(Genevieve Skipper)
It is dark. I’m terrified. He is coming closer. I can smell him. My stomach is squeezing hard and my heart is pumping faster. There are things close to the ground that are grabbing at my legs and tearing at the cloth. I’ve got to get away. He’ll tear me to pieces. My legs are tired and I am weak. The air is heavy, too heavy for me to really run this fast. Then I trip and roll down a hill. Oh it hurts. I think my arm is dislodged. The vegitation above me crackles. I hear him cry. He is so near. I get up from where I landed. There are rocks and water. Oh I’m so cold. My clothes are nearly gone now. They were not meant to protect me from this type of environment. I’m trying so hard to see through the night. Then my feet hit smooth surface and he pounces and begins the assault. His eyes glowed yellow and slimy fluid flowed from his mouth. I feel the blood flow. The pain is as unbearable as the fear of him. I wake screaming.
I’m still wide awake after last nights dream. I couldn’t get back to sleep. The news report said that traffic was snarled because the storm had dumped several feet of snow. I had the thought of just calling in sick. The new supervisor was annoying, but duty calls. As can be expected the bus was late which made me late for work. When I walked into the office he was waiting for me.
“You're late!” Mr. Craig snorted. His cold black eyes glared at me. When he spoke I thought I saw a light behind his eyes. A yellow spark appeared and left as quickly. I could have been mistaken. “If you think you can come to work late and keep your job you better quit now.” It was obvious he was trying to humiliate me. Most of the employees had come in late but he focused on me.
I stared at Mr. Craig and dared say nothing but, “It won’t happen again sir.”
He laughed, “It better not.”
I don’t like confrontations and felt humiliated in front of my co-workers. If only I could get away from these people. Some of my co-workers were nice and tried to give me support that day, which made it even worse. I escaped to the bathroom and stared at the girl in the mirror. Tears came to my eyes. It wasn’t just the unjust scolding I received from Mr. Craig. It was those dreams. He was always so close to killing me when I would wake up screaming. Was I losing my mind? I was seriously considering going to get mental help. I only turn to my best friend, Sandy. She knows about the dreams and sometimes it helps to talk to her. She ask questions about the past. What could I tell her about myself. Truthfully, I don’t know anything about me. Oh I know through trial and error that I hated poached eggs and anything considered slimy. I shudder at the thought of eating snails, oysters and okra. So many facts that people already know about themselves is not in my grasp. Who is my mother and father? Do I have any siblings? Where was I born? How old am I? Where did I go to school. These facts did not escape because of the circumstance of my birth but because of an accident on a lonely road several years ago. I woke in the hospital badly bruised and broken, with no memory. Some kind hearted stranger found me on the side of the road and called for an emergency vehicle. I spent almost a year in the hospital and then in nursing home. I had to learn to walk again. I couldn’t even remember how to use eating utensils. They said I spoke gibberish and they had to teach me how to talk.
“Lila? Are you alright? You know Mr. Craig is an ass hole. You haven’t done anything wrong. He came in late himself.” She put her arm around my shoulder. I looked in the mirror again. Her hair was the same dark auburn as mine. I’ve heard that green eyes are unusual but Sandy and I both have not only green eyes but the same intense green. I think we could have been sisters.
I shook my head. “Sandy it is not just Mr. Craig. It is those dreams again. This time it got me.”
Sandy lowered her head and said in a low voice, “It’s just a dream. Don’t worry about it.”
“I know. I’ll get over it. I think we better get back to the office before Mr. Craig sends in the troops.”
I kept quiet for the most of the work day. Mr. Craig had the habit of standing outside of his office and just staring at his workers. He made everyone uncomfortable. I hated being around him. He was a short man with dark brown hair. He was overweight and had a smell that was quite offensive. Although no one around me seemed to notice.
When quitting time came, I was so ready to clean my desk and get out of that office. Mr. Craig again tried to confront me at the exit door but this time I bolted. “Sorry Mr. Craig! I can’t miss my bus.” I ran all the way to elevators to catch the last closing doors. I breathed a sigh of relief. I’ve got to find another job. Sandy was in the elevator and she gave me a smile of approval. Also in the elevator was a tall older man. He had graying hair but it was at one time black and he also had green eyes.
“Lila. I’d like you to meet a friend of mine. His name is Damon.” I turned and smiled and uttered the regular formalities.
“Lila,” his voice was deep and with a heavy accent. “I am pleased to meet with you. Sandy’s father and I are old friends. We're having dinner at a little restaurant around the corner. Would you care to join us?”
“Oh well, I don’t want to intrude.” I objected.
“No objections. It would be my pleasure.” He was so pleasant and I felt I could trust him and agreed to go with them.
Although it was just around the corner I never really knew this particular place existed. Inside was cozy and warm with low lights. There were not too many people in the little place. I did recognize the old man and his wife, Mr. and Mrs. Ahmed, who lived just down the hall from me in my apartment. I nodded to them as I passed their table.
“Lila! How pleased we are to see you!” I saw them always leaving their apartment and they would greet me warmly. They were such a loving couple. He had always held her hand. She looked like a schoolgirl holding hands with her new boyfried. She carried a big purse for her size. He had what looked like an umbrella over his arm. This he carried even when the sun was out.
The waiter seated us in a booth far away from the entrance. I was seated with my back to the door. Sandy and Damon were facing the front of the restaurant and had a view of everything that went on. This didn’t bother me. I wondered why they insisted on this seating arrangement. Dinner was very good. They had ordered the house special. It was the best meatloaf I had ever ate.
“You like the food here Lila?” Damon asked.
“I’ve never had anything so good. Actually I have a hard time tasting my food. The doctors said that I am missing some nutrition...” I said. I couldn’t help but take the last piece of bread and swiped the plate clean. “Mmmm.” I moaned with delight.
Damon and Sandy looked at each other quickly. “Perhaps the food in this restaurant has what you need. You should come here more often.”
“Oh yes! I certainly will. Tell me where are you from Damon. You have a strange accent that I can’t place.” I’ve never pried into other peoples past but I felt as if I knew this man for a long time.
Sandy began to explain that her father and Damon knew each other when they were attending a university. She has always been vague about her past. I only knew that she came from Colorado. Her mother had died and her father was on tour somewhere in South America looking for ancient artifacts.
“I hope you don’t mind Lila, but Sandy was telling me about your dreams.” His voice was soft, almost caressing. He was genuinely interested in my well-being.
I began to tell him of the monster that chases me through my dreams. I told him how I was running in the woods. The underbrush was tearing at my clothes and my feet burning like fire. But I was so frightened that I forced myself to keep moving. “I hate those dreams! They are relentless. I can never get away from that creature. His intent is to kill me.” I was close to tears again. My heart pounding as I remembered the horror. “I’m sorry they are so real.”
He said that he knew something about dreams. There are so many different reasons adults have nightmares. “You can have nightmares if you are not taking the right nutrition. Also if you have been taking certain medications and have stopped for any reason.
“I don’t take any kind of medication. But as we talked before, I might have a nutritional problem.” I replied after I thought about the subject a bit. I took a sip of the water that came with my meal. The water was refreshing.
“Well...” he began again, but hesitated a few seconds. “There is another reason which is post traumatic stress syndrome. Sandy told me of your accident a few years ago that left you with amnesia.”
I began to explain what I read in the police records. I was lying on the side of the road. My clothes were shredded and my body was broken. They suspected that I was hit by a truck. “My recovery, although continuous, was slow and painful. Perhaps somewhere in the back of my mind I do know what happened to me.”
“Lila. What would you say if I told you that I know you?” He looked at me and searched my face to see if I understood what he was saying.
Then everything went crazy! Damon and Sandy jumped up from the table and moved me aside. “Lila! Stay behind us!” At the same time Mr. and Mrs. Ahmed threw their table up in front of them for protection. The waiter and cook moved quickly to the side of the kitchen entrance. All had weapons in their hands. It was Mr. Craig who came through the door. He was snarling. His eyes were no longer dark but the familiar yellow eyes of my dreams. My God what is going on? This is not happening. Mr. Craig was no longer human, his form vibrated as if it were shaking loose some unpleasant substance. What was standing before us was my dream. This hairy monster with yellow eyes. When he opened his mouth you could see rows of sharp jagged teeth. He screamed. Then everyone fired their weapons. The monster moaned and cried in pain as his body disintegrated.
Everyone relaxed. The monster was dead. “Lila.” Damon said quietly. Your dreams were not dreams. You were mining ore from asteroids near this system and our enemy, the Kwell, found you. They hate us and want us dead. He chased you into this system and your ship crashed landed in the woods. That is where you were chased by him. We were monitoring everything but could not help you. We were too far away. Our instruments indicated that he did catch up with you. He was beating you when that truck came. He was frightened and ran away. The people in this room are members of our clan. We can explain much more about your heritage when we get back home. Let me stress, Lila, you can’t stay on this world. As beautiful as it is you still need nutrients that aren’t here. You will gradually get sick and die. Please allow us to help you get home.”
I was numb with this knowledge. Everyone on this world thinks that aliens are a myth. Only crazy people believe in aliens. I saw with my own eyes what happened today. It is undeniable. Yes I must go home now. But I shall miss this world with it’s greenery and variety of life. A new adventure opens for me. I agree. “Let’s go home.” I said.
Damon closed his eyes and he seemed to be quiet. The room began to sway and the lights became bright then dimmed and the decor of the room dissolved as we reappear on the ship sent to rescue us. When I looked around I saw many happy faces. “Welcome home sister.” one said. Ah yes I’m now home. What adventures await me. Am I the same person that left? Will they accept me as I am? We will wait to see.
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