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The Dilemma

For as long as Richard can remember, the Earth has been a barren wasteland, filled with bizarre looking robots. As a self-proclaimed archeologist, and grave robber, Richard had made it his business to discover where everything had gone wrong. According to scant pieces of information, everything had started with Iran. Since the US had an anti-missile defense, Iran had decided to attack them indirectly by targeting countries like Canada, Cuba, Mexico and oddly enough Venezuela. Iran also orchestrated similar attacks around Europe and also Russia.   

Since Iran had gone a little crazy, North Korea too felt like setting the world ablaze. Since the incident, a strange fog had blanketed the entire world, disabling all electronic communications. With no communications, all the world powers, blaming one another entered into a precipitated nuclear war.

In the midst of the chaos, the US, Russia, China and Great Britain united to put an end to all the fighting. Through overwhelming force, they wipe off the map all the undesirables. They gathered all the nukes and uranium and ship them to out of space. In doing so, they hope to prevent any and all nuclear wars. By then, these super powers had created other doomsday devices, so these weapons were remnants from the old shattered world.

The last piece of information about the old world had a utopian feel to it, as far as Richard was concerned. It went on about forming a sort of Union to fight against the ecological disasters, poverty, and hunger.

Richard had read plenty of such idealized plans before. It was neither the first, nor the last time mankind had bothered to try to end world hunger, or bring about world piece, through the sword. Considering the bleak state of his current reality, nothing had come from all those good intentions.

He left the ruins of what appeared to be a computer lab. Whatever scant data he had managed to salvage, he photograph. Most hard drives were useless, crippled by a barrage of EMPs. For this reason, Richard always prioritized written data. On his way out, he ran into the kill bits. These bipedal mechanical monstrosities, warped facsimiles made in man’s image, always unnerved Richard.

As he ran away from them, he could not help noticing something strange. Despite the barrage of bullets, that flew his way, he was not getting hurt in the least. Back when he was younger, he had chugged it up to luck, but as of late, he felt that it was getting a bit ridiculous. Why, when everyone else died, he still remained? It was this question which prompted him to search for information of the old world.

He was picked up by a self-proclaimed war correspondent, and her little army brigade. The maiden went by the name of Linda, and she was covering the attacks and the advance of the robots in the area. They were not so much out to destroy all humans, as they were localized in certain areas as of late.  This change of had gotten Linda curious.

When they met, Linda and Richard followed tradition and traded whatever useful information they had. Richard’s information earned him a temporary escort. From Linda, he learned that the robots had alien origin. After analyzing the ancient technology vs. current trends, there was no way these machines could have been manufactured by human hands.

Richard went with Linda to study another ruins. The data there described more hunger and sickness. As before, the world leaders were slow to deal with the crisis. He was about to get more details, when an EMP was shot out. The computer and all the electronics died, but surprise, surprise the kill bots were still operational.

Linda commented, “Mmm…now this is interesting.”

“I can see why you would imagine our assailants were alien ware,” commented Richard.

The exchange was cut short, when the soldiers entered to escort Linda and Richard out of danger. For the next visit, Linda took Richard to a ruin she knew about. She had not made much progress with it because the computers in the area were Macintosh and other Apple computers.

The base was located in a city that had been struck by many bombs in the past. The explosions had caused a tsunami, and then later a volcano had erupted. When they arrived, the ruins were overrun by space ships and their machines. The entire area was a fusion of fire and water.

“Mmm…I am starting to think that your alien theory is not too farfetched,” commented Richard.

After much sneaking about, Richard managed to arrive to the UN bunker. Once inside, they found blueprints that resembled some of the android machines. Linda said, “This doesn’t mean anything. Theoretical concepts for many things like a time machine and the teleporter exist, but do they work? No.”

Aside from this information, Richard found more fragments pertaining to the 21^st century. The US president had been pressuring certain states, with sanctions for insubordination against the federal government. This caused a second civil war, but a smaller scale. Only one state ended up taking arms, while the other rebel states backed down at the last moment.   

Something productive had come from this entire visit. Using the blueprints, Linda and her team was able to device a jamming signal. The downside to it was that lured the big machines, which were immune to the signal. So, it was a last result sort of deal. It also took two days to charge up.

As before, whenever Richard left the ruins, a random EMP would get fired up, corrupting the digital data. It was a good thing he had taken the time to print it. The EMP attacks were starting to get ridiculous.

The years passed, and Richard kept traveling with Linda. He witness with her one of the silliest fights he had ever seen. One of the standing armies where fighting the alien machines with biplanes from WWII. Since they used old technology, they were not greatly affected by the EMPs. The combination of biplanes and laser Gatling guns made Richard smile. It was all a pitiful, exercise in futility.

There was a strange thought creeping in the back of Richard’s mind. However, he was not ready to vocalize it. Linda too was acting quite distant. In the end, Richard discovered what the problem was. While spying on Linda’s personal documents, Richard acquired an interesting tippet of information acquired from a downed enemy machine. Thanks to the jamming signal, Linda and her team had managed to capture and examine an enemy robot.

The bit of data not encrypted was written in plain English text. Richard thought, so, these robots are not aliens, how disappointing.  The humans who had created this machine had gone exploring the nearby systems in search of a second Earth. However, all the so called viable planets were actually unlivable. Apparently, the dark matter floating about the vacuum had historically messed with the scientist’s observations of the known universe. As such, the planets that seemed habitable were actually the complete opposite.

Since they could not find a second Earth, and the Earth they hailed from was unlivable, they had decided to go back in time. This was the origin of these robots, which were set on replacing the humans who lived there with clones they would control. To assure their future selves, all they needed was the creator of their technology. The rest of the people were expendable, according to their calculations.

Richard finally understood why his companions had stopped going out on missions with him. They were deciding whether to kill him or not. For some reason, Linda was convinced that he was responsible for the kill bots. In order to get to the heart of the matter, Richard decided to face the machines. He eluded Linda and her soldiers.

Once he was in the hands of the machines, he was able to meet the humans from the distant future. Their cleverly disguised space ship was located in a patch of the night sky that always seemed too artificial with its star arrangement.

The leader of these humans was a pale, red haired maiden, with a skinny, languid appearance. She spoke in a soft, emotionless voice. She said, “Based on our scouts, you probably have already figured out, who and what we are. I am here to tell you who you are…and more to the point who I am. I am your descendant, as well as the rest of the people on board my ship. As the records in our machines stipulate, we tried and failed to find viable planets in other star systems. We even went as far as Andromeda and found nothing… For you see, the spectrometer was sending us incorrect data. Planets that show carbon molecules and oxygen were actually made of boron and helium. The further we look away, the greater the margin of error of our observations. So, when supplies ran low, we concocted this half-baked plan to go back in time…And now we are here.”

“What do you expect me to with these revelations?” asked Richard.

“We expected you to do as you will…as you would had done if we had not been so unfortunate enough to meet, such is the problem with time travel, and all that messy nonsense, though we have our own theories on this matter,” said the lady.

“What if I kill myself?” asked Richard.

“Suit yourself. Die for the people you care so little about, or live and see the many wonders you will bring about with your existence,” said the Lady. She added smiling coolly, “It matters not such machinations, for the fact that we are still here means that you already decided.”

The Right thing to Do

Roger Preston never thought he would ever see his brother again. And yet, here he was, conveniently appearing to rescue him from certain doom. While his twin drove him away, Roger breathed in a sigh of relief. All his troubles were behind him, for the moment.

His brother now went with the name of Ronald McMillan, the last name of his adopted family. Life in the orphanage for Roger seemed like something out of Charles Dickens, with the hunger, the running away and the petty crimes.

As for Ronald, he was a respected carpenter, owner of his own shop in a small of North Dakota. It was not an interesting life, but it was at least uneventful, till he had seen his own face plastered all over the news.

When he arrived home with his twin, his adopted mother said angrily, “What do you think you are doing?”

“Helping my brother out, what do you think I am doing, mother!” said Ronald raising his voice.

His mother, the old Mrs. McMillan winced, as if struck by a blow. It was the first time Ronald had ever raised his voice to her. She narrowed her eyes, as if she was looking at a stranger. Stammering, she said, “But, but he is a criminal…you could get into a lot of trouble. I am calling the police.”

She made a motion for her cellphone, but Ronald took it away. While this was taking place, Roger was quietly getting acquainted with his new surroundings. He was almost disdainful at the little dilemma his dear Ronald was facing. He decided to stay quiet, in order not to further antagonize Mrs. McMillan with his voice.

“But please! Ronald! Call the police! It’s the right thing to do!” implored Mrs. McMillan.

“No! Mother, the right thing to do was for you to adopt the both of us!” said Ronald caustically. He left the kitchen and went to the garden slamming the door behind him.

Mrs. McMillan sat down in a chair, and placed her hands to her forehead. When she looked down, she saw Roger pouting, with an amused look in his face. He then said, “Truth be told, mother…it was I who you originally wanted, but I gave you the old switcheroo. Now, live with that you old sack of bones.”

With this little emotional sabotage, Roger had secured himself a place at the McMillan table for the moment. Later that day, Ronald’s wife returned home with his daughter that was at daycare. She too showed animosity towards Roger. Using the guilt card Roger secured for himself a temporary refuge from all his problems.

One day, Ronald awoke to find his brother gone. He left neither note, nor object. Almost as if he had not been there in the first place.  

Seishin yume tantei! 4

Today was the first time, James had ever worked in coordination with other “soldiers of God”, as Malik liked to put it. Just as before, the angel Malik would appear by his bedside and wake him up in the most annoying fashion available. The angel started repeating over and over, “Mewosamasu, Seishin yume tantei-kun!” till James got up from his bed.

James saw beside Malik a group of strange people, one of them was a little blonde girl. The other a black man dressed like a construction worker. The other three was a gypsy hag, an apache teenager, and woman dressed like a ballerina.

Malik was about to offer the formal introduction, but James said, “Let’s just get this over with.”

Sighing, angel said, “Merciful God, who art thou in heaven, give me patience, lets I commit a mortal sin.”

The blonde girl said, “Get on with it!”

“The case of today is most dangerous indeed. There is a man who is taking people’s souls and holding them up for ransom. Those who do not pay end up die, and their souls get sent to Gods know where.”

“Gods?” asked James coolly.

“I meant God,” said angel. He then continues, “The current Victim at the moment is the son of a Senator. This is getting media attention, unlike the other victims. The police at the moment is tracking down the kidnapper, based on this picture.”

James, along the 5 people assembled there took a good look at the photo. The little girl commented, “It looks as if the kid has some weird disease or something.”

The apache man said, “Where have I seen this before. I know, the kid looks like the girl from the exorcist.”

“Pity that the kidnapper could not try something original,” said the construction worker.

“Why change something that works?” said James getting up from his bed.

The Swat team tracked down the location where the photo was taken. James and his team trailed along from a distance. The Swat entered the elevator. James was going to join disguised as an officer, but the gypsy hag stopped him and pulled him back. The elevator made a bunch of noises, and when it opened again, the Swat team was gone. Malik came to them and showed them the recording from one of the cameras of one of the officers.

James grimaced, and said, “Eww! Sheesh!”

“Meh! They should have taken the stairs,” said the little blonde girl.

“Not funny, Blondy,” said James.

“It’s Delfin or Dolphin,” said the little blonde girl.

Laughing, the construction worker commented, “I bet your parents are Hollywood stars. Only those fools from California give such abnormal names to their kids.”

Delfin opened her mouth to complain, but instead made a moaning sound. After this exchange, they went inside the elevator carefully. The construction worker known as Clifford stood by the door, to keep it from closing. The gypsy hag tapped the walls, and noticed a fake wall. Moving it aside, she saw an endless, howling void.

Smacking her dry lips, she said, “Now I see…”

James peered his head inside the endless void, and then went back out, as soon as he felt a slight rustling of fingers on the back of his neck. Trembling, he asked, “What is that place? Is it hell?”

“There is more than just heaven and hell in this world, James,” said Malik.

“In there…it’s the Astral Realm. This building is an illusion designed to mask the true nature of where we are,” said the gypsy hag.

Looking up, James saw the face of the kidnapping staring back at him, but in a fish eye perspective. Once they got out of the building, the hag said, “This building is like a type of Ouija Board, we will not be able to get him from here.”

“Well…if he is there, but not there. I say we call it quits and give him what he wants,” said the ballerina maiden Giakova.  

“I have been practicing robbing banks. We could rob a bank and give him the money. When he comes to collect it, that’s where we nab the guy,” said apache Pinal.

“I could bless the money, and use it to weaken his powers,” suggested Delfin.

“That Scooby Doo plan is not going to work because he is getting help from a demon named Amy,” said Malik.

“Amy? Tutatuun!” said Delfin chuckling.  

Malik added, “This time he doesn’t want money. Read the back of the photo.”

James read the back and started laughing. He passed the photo to the others who also found it laughable. Sighing, he said, “So he is crazy. That doesn’t help us much.”

“We could try praying for a miracle,” said Delfin.

“Sure…fine whatever. Let’s get this show on the road, so I can get to school tomorrow,” said James crossing his hands.

Delfin was quiet for some time. She meditated on the nature of the universe as a whole. James could not help, but visualize what Delfin was thinking about. It was part of her process. Delfin thought, when God created the universe, he had to create an area devoid of his presence. It is this area that is the border between the creation and its creator. In this border, evil can grow, and it is there were this evil man has his seat of power.

Delfin then started as thus, “God, who created the Universe, that in order to exist must be devoid of him. Please remember that abominations exist beyond you. Please defend the widow and the orphan from the evil that exists beyond you…”

During the prayer, a new Swat team was able to get inside the elevator and not get spirited away. Since the kidnapper felt his powers waning, he sent his demon Amy to possess the Baby. To counter him, Pinal blessed a water faucet from a nearby bathroom. The formally torpid waters that exited turned pristine, clear, becoming holy water. Pinal soaked the photo of the baby to keep the demon at bay.

The man finally gets arrested and sent to a holding cell. The cops were at a loss as to how to deal with such prisoner who showed clear, supernatural abilities. While they waited for a priest, and exorcist, or something, Delfin started talking with the prisoner. James had to admire the work of Delfin. She was indeed a manipulative little bastard, with her innocent eyes, and her malicious smile. She told him that she had the ability to take and amplify the talents of people. She showed him the powers she had collected from other people. Impressed, the prisoner eventually gave Delfin her powers.

The power he gave her was rotten, tainted and worthless. It withered away to the core, where only the prime originator of this talent remained. The prisoner was finally as feeble as the rest of the mere mortals. Without his powers, the demon that was shadowing lost interest. The next morning James awoke, and he found himself smiling for reasons he did not understand.

The Descent

It was 1950, in the Bronx of New York City and Michael Medin was working on developing more comfortable polio braces. He had helped treat the epidemic in the past. Every summer, like clockwork, hundreds of patients would get diagnosed, and be carried into his office. By the time they came to see him, it was already too late. The fever had taken hold, and those who were unfortunate enough to survive never walked right.  

Medin always had a grim view of his role as a doctor. A firm believer in euthanasia, he always felt that it would be better for his patients to die, than to live with the terrible burden that was polio. He never spoke this thought out loud, and he did his most to uphold his Hippocratic Oath.

His general melancholy, turned to full on depression when his very own sister was stricken. Using all known treatments, he did his best to stave off the advancement of the fever. When it passed, his sister had her lower limbs extremely debilitated.

He submerged himself in his work, while stoically trying to pretend that everything was the same for his poor sister’s sake. However, it was painful for him just to watch her trying to walk toward the next room. He had given her the polio braces and the sticks, for her to retain some semblance of independence.  

He should have never allowed her to drink tab water…Or maybe it was those produce from the farmer’s market she enjoyed savoring so often, though Medin pitifully.  He thought over and over, reformulating the same “If only” scenario.

One day, he was at church with his sister. She had taken the host, after doing the line, refusing to have the Lord brought to her like some invalid. Feeling inspired, the preacher went on a rant about the miracle he had just witness. Medin narrowed his eyes, as he drowned the voice from the stupid man that claimed to speak for God.

God! God he rants about, as far as I know, God should not allowed for this to happen. Milly is not getting better, nor will she ever get better. If only, thought Medin.

He closed his eyes as his chest heaved a sigh of desperation. When he opened his eyes, he saw he was back at home. It took him some time to come to grips with what had occurred. After observing many sights, and the current state of his beloved Milly, Medin concluded he had somehow traveled back in time.

Heh! I guess miracles do happen if you ask with a strong enough faith, thought Medin happily. For now, it was 1947 so there was still time. Throughout those years, in preparation for the coming epidemic, Medin started campaigning for the creation of a polio vaccine and better sewerage systems in the cities. Whenever summer came, he would become like a mad preacher warning people of the dangers of tab water. Using his future knowledge, he worked alongside with Dr. Hammond to release the polio vaccine before the dreadful epidemic of 1950.

For all his good will, and faith, and hard work, there came a neurotic aspect to his behavior. The madness started creeping ever so slowly. Medin wondered after 1952, about the future that lay before him. Beyond that time, he had no idea what other dangers were to befall his sister. At first he started restricting the time she was allowed outside. Whenever she went outside, she was escorted by either himself or someone of trust. Eventually, he became paranoid of others, and he started to doubt if he would be strong enough to protect his sister. When a maiden got mugged in the alley behind his apartment, his paranoia reached new heights. 

He became suspicious of anything that might seem dangerous to his sister. To solve this problem, he made Milly a prisoner. Only at home, would she be protected from dangers of the outside world, both real, and imaginary.  

The Origin of Vigilante Petty Sue

Petty Sue was exiting the Publix with her groceries, as she would do, every weekend. As before, she would turn the car on, and then put the groceries in the back. She would do so, because the afternoon heat would always overheat the interior of her car. So, while she got busy, she had her car vainly fight against the summer sun. The moment she closed the lid and moved towards the driver seat, the car spun away without her. It had gotten stolen, with keys, groceries and all.

After curing the 4 winds, she made her way back home on foot. Her cousin Catty who lived with her asked, “Why didn’t you call the cops right away?”

“I forgot cause I was so freaking pissed,” answered Petty Sue.

While Catty called the cops, and describe in detail the stupidity of her cousin, Petty went out into the street to look for her car. In her state of mind, Petty saw a car with the windows rolled down. It was an old car, so she knew it lacked modern security systems. She got inside and hotwired it. She figured it would be easier to look for her car inside another vehicle.

She found in the glove compartment a compact a smith and western handgun, with the handle made of pink quartz, and the rest decorated with rhinestones. Petty got bored of circling about the block after 10 minutes. She decided to drive towards an apartment complex that was a haven for criminals. Without warning, she started shooting up the place. She then drove away before anyone of the criminals and low lives had time to react. She had not seen her car in the parking lot. So she went to look elsewhere.

She continued this mad little spree till dusk, hitting up random places home those she considered low lives, and other poor neighborhoods as well. Meanwhile, Catty was looking for her cousin. It was not till 11 PM when she saw an interestingly bizarre news report. Someone had stolen a cement truck, and had poured a message demanding for the return of her car. Suspecting that it was Petty, Catty was at amiss as to what to do about the entire situation. She decided to take a step back from the entire situation. Without much explanation, Catty drove down to her mother’s house in the Florida Keys, and decided to stay there till Petty had calmed down.

For weeks, Petty kept causing problems for both the general authorities and the crime lords of the city. To get her to turn herself in, the Lexus Company offered her a new car. However, Petty did not want a new car, she wanted her own car and she wanted it now.

In the end, it was the local drug lord named Jessie, who tracked down her stole vehicle and the guy who stole it. Jessie had seen how Petty had eluded the police, and thought her reckless driving and accurate shooting useful. Aside from her skills, nothing much was known of Petty. Even the information provided by the police, and the Petty’s family members were sketchy at best.

Aside from being third cousins, Catty did not know much about Petty. Catty could tell that her mother knew more than she was telling, but she could never get her to talk about it. Catty was now starting to suspect that her silence was for good reason. No one likes to be vociferous about someone so trigger happy.

 Jessie rendezvous with Petty in the mangrove forest beach near the Keys. Why Petty had chosen such a location only added to the eccentricities of this lunatic. She asked Jessie, “Is this the guy?”

“Yep,” answered Jessie.

“And that’s what left of my car?” she asked.

“We can talk about repairs later,” answered Jessie.

“You, where is my computer?” asked Petty.

Trembling, the tied up man said, “Well…mmm…I think the mechanics threw it away, because it was so old…”

Petty was quiet for some time. She then took a deep breath and brought out her handgun.

Ia Nov Drop Et

Alison and her brother Christopher were in the middle of watching one of the most bizarre animated movies. After a drawn out, 40 minutes, the true nature of the film came into the limelight.

Unlike other movies, this one had a bit of a magical element to it. The characters were not too important, rather the artifacts being discovered where the centerfold. Curious about the lack of rising action, Christopher stopped the film to see how much time it had left. It had about 30 minutes left, so if they were going to do something unexpected, now was the right time.

From what Alison had gathered after watching 2 hours of the film, the movie was about a University librarian with the silly name of Candida Marxianus. Her name alone made Alison smile. If she was an alien, her last name was a little too much on the nose, about it. Not much was known about her past, other than that she lived alone and was obsessed with chronology devices.

Her rival was a tenured professor Hopkins, and his over bloated archeology department.  Both were only researches in name, since they had a preference for items that actually did something. Many historical sites were dissected in the prologue, as Hopkins dynamited the pyramid of Egypt to reveal a hidden entrance. After rummaging through priceless papyrus, and other pieces of antiquity he found what he was looking for.

Candida had arrived late, and was watching Hopkins from the shadows. He knew that any vermin that should not be there was actually Candida in disguise. Later in the movie, it was shown that Candida had a pendant which gave her the ability to shape shift.

After reveling in his discovery, he quietly putted the item away. His peers asked him, “Well…what is it?”

“I will tell you about it later. For now, we should leave, let’s we catch our death from this pungent, moss filled air,” said Professor Hopkins.

As of now, the film had not shown the usefulness of a collection of buried statues, featuring different Egyptian Gods. All they had seen was Hopkins opening the statues, and carefully removing a coiled piece of wire, like those used in a lute.

The movie moves on ahead, and switches to Candida. She goes inside to explore a cave, but runs away when a centipede falls on her arm. She runs away crying in her doggie form. She jumps, and cowers on top of Hopkins, who laughing says, “We will take it from here, Candida. If we find something, we will show just for leading us to this spot. Now…don’t give us those sad puppy eyes. Everyone has their own little phobias. John, take her back will you.”

John, the unpaid intern, grudgingly escorted Candida back to the university. After the 20 minute ride back, Candida is still curious about the cave. After not thinking much, she thought, maybe the bugs are just an entrance thing. Caves then to get deader as you go further in…

To bypass the entrance, she went inside an elevator. She jammed it, by pressing the emergency button, and putting in a key. She then wrote the name of the place she wanted to go, using chalk. Whenever the cave lacked an official name, she named it. She also wrote other conditions of this teleportation. The elevator was in nowhere magical, but the power laid in this 50,000 year old chalk piece. Candida did not like relying on its power, since it was finite. When the elevator opened its doors, she was distraught to notice the high tech nature of the cave. There were pipes, and then bellow them a hallway. It reminded her a bit of the hallway of a hospital, due to his white cleanliness.

She started exploring the facility, but then she hid when she heard guns and explosions. The noise soon died and then she saw a strange sight. Hopkins and his team were carrying boxes and boxes of military grade hardware and artifacts. Smiling, Hopkins said as he walked quickly, “I think there is still some junk left, if you care to look. Bye, Bye.”

All that Candida could mouth was, “Uh?”

Professor Hopkins had robbed a secret military base. How he had managed to this without any official training would have been amusing to see.

Then again, thought Candida, I do not know the extent of the power of some of the artifacts he owns.

Walking in the direction she had seen Hopkins, she found a room safe, with metal doors at least 1 meter thick, melted open. Inside the room safe, she rummaged and found spear. Based on its look and feel, she realized she was holding the true Spear of Mortal Pain.

She placed the spear inside her magic satchel, one of the many cookie items from the old world. It could hold an innumerable amount of items in another dimension. Candida continued to explore the underground base till she found a clearing. It was not noticeable from the outside, and the buildings looked residential, almost like town houses, but sleeker in design. Inside a school looking building, she saw in the kitchen a bunch of scientist, doctors and odd looking students. The students were dressed in white, and they seemingly staring at a white piece of paper.

Candida was about to take a closer look, but one of the doctors asked her, “Who are you?”

“Mm…I am a behaviorist…I am here to study behavior,” she said giving a nervous laugh.

“You think this clever disguise will help you escape! Security! Security!” yelled the doctor.

The students looked up from their paper and started staring at her. Based on their eyes, there was truly something not human about them. The typical guards one finds in a loony bind gang up on Candida, and the doctor tries giving her a sedative. Before he can manage, she flexibly opens her mouth and bites the neck of the doctor. Using the back of her spear, she knocked out all the doctors. After the fight was done, the students turned to look at the television. The television was showing an emergency broadcast.

The TV was not showing anything per say, rather it was playing an odd signal, some low, rhythmic radio waves. As the doctors came to, they too became docile staring at the television.  Guessing something was amiss, Candida used her magic chalk to take her to see Professor Hopkins. Indeed, he was up to no good. By combining the wires, and other chronology devices stolen from the military, he was broadcasting a radio signal worldwide that had the world under his control.

Candida brought out her spear and pointed at him. Smiling coolly, Hopkins said, “This does not concern you Candida. Why don’t you leave the problems of Earth to Earthlings and focus on the happenings of your own home world.”

“It is because I am not human, that I am here to stop you,” said Candida, “Even if it means, showing my true self to the world.”

The movie then ended just like the movie the Grey. It jumped to a postscript telling you the aftermath of the battle.  Both siblings were disappointed that the curtain was dropped just when the movie had finally gotten interesting.

The ending only said: The humans were set free thanks to Candida’s heroism. Now the truth of the aliens was out there, and through their influence planet Earth became a better place to live.

“But wait!” said Alison, “The ending implies that the humans were still controlled in some way.”

“Meh! It’s just a stupid feel good movie Ali, don’t let it sucker you in with its message of interplanetary cooperation,” said Christopher scratching his tentacle, “There is no benefit in dealing with those aliens.” 

The final credit scroll was quite picturesque, featuring crude drawings of all the wonderful peaceful technologies developed, after the incident. The song playing in the back was pure gibberish as far as Alison was concerned. The only words she could make out were “Ia Nov Drop Et”.

The Colored Pencils

Vanessa had just concluded her laps, and had entered the gym to take a bath. After she concluded, she was annoyed to see that her change of clothing was gone. Grimacing, she picked up her gym clothing to change back. However, her friend Latoya came to the rescue. Latoya was vice president of Vanessa’s after school Theater Club. Latoya handed her a pink dress from one of the past shows. It was one of those western saloon dance dresses, but with the skirt a lot shorter, and wide, like those of a ballerina. She putted the dress on without a bra. Latoya gave Vanessa a clean gym short, for undergarments.

After looking through her raided locker, Vanessa breathed in a sign of relief that only her clothing had been pilfered. It was such a petty robbery, almost like the works of a juvenile teen, or a perverted janitor. Dressed as such, Vanessa went to the portable classroom where her club held its meeting.

When they saw her come in, each member gave her a buck to replace the clothing that was stolen. Colin, said, “You should report it to the police or the principal.”

“Why bother…it was my own fault for putting such an easy locker password,” explained Vanessa.

“Not the brightest idea putting 1,1,1,” commented James laughing.

“You,” said Vanessa pointing.

“Wait, what no. I just assumed that you put 1,1,1 or 0,0,0, or some other repetitive number. It couldn’t have been since I spent all afternoon playing chess, right Fuu,” said James gesturing at Fuu.

Fuu raised an eyebrow and said, “I have no idea what you are talking about.”

To put an end to the annoying conversation, James opened all the content of his backpack onto the table, as well, as opening his jacket to check inside. Laughing, Vanessa said, “Sheesh, James. Can’t you tell when I am joking?”

“We all know, prim and proper James would never steal,” said Colin.  

“Hahaha…very funny,” said James putting his stuff away, a bit sulky.

“Just out of curiosity, why do you have two cellphones?” asked Latoya.

“Oh…no reason, it’s just, because of…mmm…do you really want me to say it,” said James embarrassed.

“Fine, its fine,” said Latoya laughing, “What you do with your cousin’s cellphone is none of our business.”

The rehearsal for “The Comedy of Calisto and Melibea” by Fernando de Rojas went without incident. Latoya had chosen such an obscure play because she was sick of Shakespeare. Like the Beast, she thought that English speakers had to get over that overrated. Latoya never quite understood why her current inventory was considered a comedy, seeing as though the titular characters die in the end.  

When rehearsals ended, Colin walked Vanessa home. He was concerned that someone would target Vanessa for dressing in such a fashion. It was a cool, spring sunset, and the air was crisp with the noon shower. The peacefulness of his surroundings and the companionship of Vanessa made Colin think that some of his father’s paranoia was rubbing off on him. Colin always carried a pistol in his coat pocket for protection, even though the school did not allow students to have a weapon on campus.

Vanessa stopped suddenly and stared at a rundown apartment building. One of the fallen staircases had a case filled with coloring pencils. Vanessa picked up the color pencils, and saw that they had received plenty of usage. She placed it back down, where she had found it.

“Why don’t you take it?” asked Colin.  

Not looking or listening to him, Vanessa said, “You know…all of this is a popularity contest. Just like the red pencil is the one most used. So too is…never mind.”

“Finish your thought, Vanessa,” said Colin concerned. It was not like her to go on rambling.  

“You know, Colin, I have always been a klepto, even though, I have never taken anything that doesn’t belong to me. I do not know if these pencils have an owner, or if they were abandoned, for this reason I will not take them. But you can have them if you like,” she said continuing her walk.

Looking back, Colin should have asked more questions. He took whatever Vanessa had said, as face value not realizing that this was the last time he would see her. The moment she closed the door of her home, Colin never saw Vanessa again. He had never loved her, nor been close friends with her. He only related to her insomuch as the club activities dictated, or to satisfy his impulses to play the chivalrous man.

She was listed as missing, and that was the end of the police investigation. Rumors of her and her death went from the mundane to the ridiculous. For a time, Colin thought Vanessa’s overprotective father had killed her in a fit of jealousy, or had taken her out of the country or something. In the end, Colin had never found out what had happened to Vanessa. He would never had obsessed about her had she not disappeared in such a mysterious fashion.

Thirty years passed, and Colin had almost forgotten about Vanessa. He only thought of her, whenever he felt the familiar feeling of dread whenever his own daughter said she was going out with her friends. Focused on his career as Senator, he had no time for such mundane matters. The years had turned him into a bitter, harsh man. Though, this harshness was masqueraded by a cloak of politeness, and a handsome smile to boot. During one of his fundraisers, a strange man approached him. Like everyone in the gala, the man was dressed in a tuxedo. Though, when he saw the man from up close he realized the person was a woman.

A familiar voice then said, “Nice to see you moving up in the world, Mr. Red Pencil.”

His face turned pale as a ghost when he recognized Vanessa. Despite the many years, she still had the same face, thought with some crow’s feet, and pronounced laugh lines. Colin opened his mouth to say something, but he was stupefied. Vanessa gestured with her head, and Colin followed. He did not hear his friends calling for him to speak with another important Congressman, or about the health bill.

Colin asked, “What happened to you?”

“Nothing much, just 30 years…” said Vanessa.

“Nessa…” started Colin.

Shaking her head, Vanessa said, “Its Van now. At least on paper,” she said turning to face Colin. She then added, “I did not come to relieve the old days. I am not one to waste words, unlike you. I came on business. Tomorrow, vote no.”

Knowing full well that Vanessa was not going to elaborate, Colin decided to vote no on the proposition he had been pushing for the last four months. Even after 30 years, Vanessa still held sway over him. After all, she was the leader of the theater club, and he would not have been there today if it was not for her pointers.

Stubbornness

Professor Hopkins had started the new school year. He had been teaching in the same High School for the last 3 years. Since his friend was the director, he received twice as much as the average teacher. Even with the above average pay for someone in his position, he was still nowhere near at chipping away at his school debt. He was possessed by a most singular thought, for now he had to play his part for another year.

Once this year ended, he was destined to get a tenure job at the university. When he arrived at his desk he found a letter with some instructions. This letter was usually sent by the principal whenever the teacher was to host a student with special needs. He had yet to deal with one of such students; mainly because he taught AP elective classes.

Professor Hopkins thought, well there is a first time for everything. According to the letter, the student with special needs was not so much special; rather he was severely traumatized. He had read about Cedric Striges in the newspapers. He had quite the number of scarifications all over his body. Based on his physical description, he matched the profile of a young boy who had been taken from an orphanage 10 years ago. Professor Hopkins doubted that he was the same Cedric. Something clearly bad had occurred to him, which much was for certain. Since he refused to speak and even to write about it, the media was given free reigns to speculate.

The theories as to what had occurred to Cedric were enough to make one cringe. Despite whatever ordeal Cedric may have endured. His entrance exam to matriculate in the school, and set upon a grade and class levels was enough to award him all AP classes. He was a sharp young man, for certain, though somewhat temperamental.

According to the letter of instructions, Cedric was not be pressured into participating in class. If he suddenly got up and left, he was not to be stopped. If he got started working on another project or started scribbling in his notebook he was not to be pestered. All interactions had to be limited to homework, text and class assignments.

If he appeared not to be paying attention, there was no cause for concern seeing as though he had an IQ of 137. There were other lists of instructions and suggestions, but Professor Hopkins was not in the mood with dealing with the little gremlin. The sixth period arrived, and it was time for Professor Hopkins to meet the mysterious Cedric. When he saw him, he looked just like any ordinary bored teenager. Based on his clothing, it seemed like his nonexistent mother did the shopping for him, with the black jeans, that the brown and teal square patterned long sleeved turtle neck. It did not seem like a deliberate choice on his part, he would pull at the neck of his shirt from time to time. Cedric obviously appeared to be regretting wearing such an outfit.

The class Hopkins was teaching was German Literature. Like most teachers of his day, the professor was in love with Friedrich Nietzsche. He thought of the bastard like some brilliant visionary, omitting the fact that he German philosopher was declared insane at the age of 26. It was a wonder just how many of his works were produced during his descent into madness.

While Hopkins was boring the class with his third rate interpretation of Zarathustra, Cedric was pulling at his turtle neck. In the end, he got up and left the room without even raising his hand or writing a note, or even using sign language to ask for permission. According to his 3 page manual of instructions, Cedric did know sign language, and would use it in a pinch.

Losing his frame of thought, Hopkins asked, “So where was why?”

A bright, doe eyed blonde maiden then said raising her hand; “You were going on about the Camels, the lions and the baby.”

“A yes…” said Hopkins.

About 15 minutes later, Cedric returned with the neck of his shirt cut, clearly with a scissor. This gave the students plenty to laugh at. Cedric pouted in response and returned to his seat. The three days passed in a similar fashion. Cedric’s behavior was slowly becoming more disruptive. The last drop was when he started listening to music in the middle of class.  

Hopkins took Cedric’s headphones, and then said, “I am onto you! While you are in my class, you will pay attention, is that understood!! No more listening to music, no more coming and going as you please. I am your teacher, now do as I say or else.”

Cedric scratched his temple with his index finger. He then started gathering his belongings. Losing his patience, Hopkins said, “Where do you think you are going?”

Standing by the doorway, Hopkins said defiantly, “If you try to leave, I will call security. Students aren’t allowed to roam the hallways.”

The moment Hopkins stood on the doorway, Cedric started hyperventilating. With a panicked dazed look, he started looking about for an exit. He went towards the windows, and he removed the lock with a trembling hand. Alarmed, Hopkins yelled, “Somebody, stop him.”

Before, the jocks could get to him; Cedric had jumped out the 4^th floor window. At least that is what it had appeared. Dexterously, he had climbed up the pipe, and onto the roof. That was the last interaction Hopkins had with Cedric. To help Cedric stay put, the guidance Counselor had moved Cedric to another advance class. The hippie Studio Drawing teacher was more condescending with Cedric.

From time to time, Professor Hopkins would see Cedric roaming the halls. His disdain for school rules and teacher’s authority was having a negative effect, even in the most well behaved students. They were slowly realizing that there is a difference between good behavior and obedience.