SODIUM:1 Harbinger

by Stephen Arseneault

  Chapter 14

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  The seven of us sat quietly for twenty minutes, looking at the area where the alien craft had once been. The green fog had faded, leaving no trace of the once-thirty-foot-diameter ship. I was the first to stand and to walk toward the fogged area. The vegetation around the edge of the area was wilting from being in contact with whatever the green fog was.

  I looked back. Bull, Allie, and the two poachers were getting up to follow me. Kyle and Susi stayed behind and remained in a long embrace; it would be difficult for them to leave each other’s side for the remainder of their lives. I had a good feeling there would be no more arguments coming from either one.

  I walked up to where the ship had crashed down and looked around for any evidence it had ever landed. There was none. The ground was clean.

  I turned to Bull and told him I thought we should search all of our battle areas for any evidence we could find. After all, it would be difficult to persuade anyone outside of our group that we had encountered them at all, especially if we had nothing to show for it. The people around Roswell, New Mexico, had already experienced that.

  We scoured the area but came up empty. Craig and Scott decided they just wanted to go home. Without evidence, they did not want to be associated with any alien-sighting claims. They had families to feed back at their homes. So, they left when it became clear there was probably nothing left to be found.

  The rest of us made our way around to where they had destroyed the damaged demon and again scoured the area, looking for anything alien. Other than a bare spot on the ground where it had spread its fog, there was no sign anything had been there.

  The small, triangular tracks the demons left were not something that would be lasting. It could also be argued that they were man made and our whole story was nothing but a hoax. We needed something physical to show the world that we were not just some glory hounds out looking for fame.

  As we walked, I told them of how I had lured the red demon into its own trap and had triumphed over it with a lucky throw of my bat. I then told them of how I had been watching as Kyle and Craig blew the large boulder over onto the mother ship, pinning it underneath and knocking me backwards. And finally, I told of my struggle to disable the mother ship: how even though it was taking a lot longer than I wanted, it was such an adrenaline rush to be pounding on it with impunity.

  I told of how much I was in disbelief when it lifted off and moved to just out of range of my bat. I told them they were being gathered up and taken to the ship when I began signaling the red demon. They had awakened one by one as the mist from the red demon had worn off.

  We looked over the area around where the damaged demon had been defeated, and once again came up with nothing. With no evidence to gather, we made our way back toward our packs. Kyle then told us of his encounter with the bear and how he had slid down over the ledge to a spot just out of its reach. He said he knew something had come up and surprised the bear, but he had no idea of what it was. All he knew was the bear was losing badly and it was not because of us.

  When the bear carcass fell over the ledge and knocked him off, he thought it was all over. He had clung to the largest part of the bear as he fell down into Rancheria Creek. He could only imagine that he had survived the drop because he landed in about five feet of water while still clinging to the dead beast.

  Landing on the carcass and in the water had been just enough to keep him from death, but it had given him a severe concussion. He had floated down into a shallower section of the creek and come to rest against a rock with his head out of the water.

  He remembered getting up and walking. He had moved back up the creek, but he had no idea how far he had gone or why he had gone in that direction. Craig had found him wandering around not really knowing where he was or where he had been.

  After we had let Craig and Scott go, they had a run-in with one of the demons, with Craig barely managing to escape. Scott had been captured. Craig had no idea of how to combat the demons, so he was headed back toward his home when he came across the wandering Kyle.

  Kyle said they had talked for several hours before deciding to come back after the others. Craig had one stick of dynamite in his pack that he would use for fishing while they were out poaching. He said it was much easier than carrying a fishing pole and standing around waiting for them to bite. You would light the fuse, toss it into deep water, and wait for the fish to float to the top.

  They had tracked the demon back to its camp but had arrived a day after our last gunfight, so they had no idea we were even around. They thought we had probably gone back to get help from outside of the park.

  Kyle and Craig had hatched their dynamite plan while waiting in the trees after they had discovered the mother ship. The red demon had almost caught them in the open when they were trying to work their way around behind the ship. It was hoped the blast would lift the boulder up higher, allowing it to drop onto the alien craft, fully destroying it.

  When it turned out to just be pinned, they decided to grab Scott and run. With no one else to rescue, it would be best to just leave and let the authorities mess with the aliens, as they would be much better equipped. I had not seen the red demon continuing on past the mother ship when I was headed back to our camp, so I had no idea they would be needing a warning. I was hoping we would all be able to leave or at least all make an assault on the mother ship and the last demon together.

  I told them when I looked through the binoculars and saw the red demon had knocked them down, I somehow instantly knew what to do with my rope-swing plan. I told of how I had swung around and up onto the gully ledge just perfectly, even while clutching my bat with a broken hand.

  When we returned to camp we collected our things, and I took them over to the gully and once again told of my victory over the red demon. When I looked back on the week’s events later, I thought about how lucky we had been at so many different turns and about how the whole thing could have gone very badly for us from the beginning.

  After rising to my own heroic level, I no longer attributed any merit to the Minhafa story. I was convinced it was just dumb luck that it had leaped to my defense when I had destroyed the first demon. It was more likely the demon was interrupting the lion's dinner plans than the mountain lion had come to my rescue. I finally reasoned since it had not shown up during any of the other battles, it was not watching over me; there was no animal spirit guide.

  I was also convinced my victory was not because of luck, but was instead because of my determination. I had crafted my own hero’s patch and figuratively sewn it onto my shoulder for all to see.

  After exploring the gully and finding nothing, we made our way back to the two previous battle sites to explore. We once again came up empty handed. The green fog strategy was thorough and left nothing behind.

  We sat at the last site along Cherry Creek as the sun was setting. We would have to camp out for one more night before making it back to civilization. The danger of an alien attack was over, of that we were certain. We would finally rest for the night in peace.

  We gathered wood to light a fire, and Bull managed several trout from the creek. After eating, Bull and Allie went for a short walk, as did Kyle and Susi. It was the first time they were able to have time to themselves since Kyle had gone missing, and I was no longer in fear of being alone.

  They all returned after a short while. We bedded down for the night, completely exhausted. The red tarps were once again over our heads to keep us dry from the morning dew. We slept in silence, and our sleep was deep and well deserved.

  The sun was coming up over the first ridge before anyone stirred the following morning. It was a two-hour hike up the creek to the Cherry Lake dam, where we hoped we would find a telephone. Bull would call his Sacramento friend and arrange to have us all picked up, as no one was interested in hiking the rest of the way out. I was excited with the thought of telling the world of our encounters and triumph, and especially of
my own heroics.

  As we walked along, I began discussing with Bull about which stories we would tell first. Certainly my luring the red demon into one of its own traps was a highlight. The crowds would be wowed by my heroics on that one. I chatted endlessly as we walked.

  As I talked, Bull would just occasionally nod, and the others remained largely silent. All the glory that was to be was swirling endlessly around in my head. We were just approaching the dam when Bull put out his hand in the now-all-too-familiar stop gesture. He turned slowly and sighed.

  He told me they had all discussed the topic of telling the world. With no evidence to speak of, they had all come to the conclusion that it would be best to just remain silent. They just wanted to return to their lives and forget it had ever happened.

  If the aliens came again, it would be the army's problem, not theirs. They would volunteer to help at that time if needed, but until and unless that time came... they just wanted to go back to their homes and their lives. They wanted to move on.

  I threw my hands up and clasped my fingers behind my head in a show of disbelief. This was such a huge moment in time for us all, and for all mankind. I begged and pleaded with them to support me in telling our tale. I questioned how they could not.

  But one by one they shook their heads no. I was about to come apart. How could I tell anyone anything without them backing me without looking the fool? We all hiked quietly for the last half hour up to the top of the ridge.

  Bull was able to persuade the operators at the dam to let us make a call to Sacramento. Within an hour the outfitter had rides heading our way. Our adventure was over. Bull told him that while the trip was a great idea on the surface, there were just too many things that could go wrong.

  After a few close calls, it was decided he did not want to take anyone who may not be fully prepared on such a rugged journey. Bull promised to come back out in a few months to give him a full briefing and to discuss other possible joint ventures. I knew then that the Yosemite Sportsman Adventure Package would never be sold.

  Several hours later, two cars arrived. It was a long ride back to Sacramento with my arms crossed and a scowl on my face. The driver kept trying to ask questions just to make conversation, but all he got in response were short answers. After the first twenty minutes of “Yes” and “No,” he gave up trying.

  Our flights home seemed to take an eternity. We arrived back in Atlanta around 2AM. Bull and Allie drove me to my house. As I walked to my front door and turned the key, I looked back at them. Allie raised her hand in a halfhearted goodbye as they backed down the drive and slowly pulled away.

  I went into my big, empty house and sat down on my sofa. I stared endlessly at the walls. At some point I was overcome by fatigue, waking up the next morning lying where I had fallen asleep the night before.

  I stood, walked to the kitchen, and made coffee. I then took a long, very over-needed bath. Once dressed, I walked to the front door, opened it, and retrieved the paper from its usual spot in the bushes. The paper was covered with the news of Eisenhower signing all kinds of civil rights legislation.

  Even though the news was immense in its day, it all seemed small and petty compared to the story I had to tell. Aliens had invaded our planet. There was actual intelligent life elsewhere in the universe, and it was obviously much more advanced than us. We were living in dangerous times and yet were unaware.

  As I scanned the paper, I thought about how we had somehow overcome our disadvantages and put an end to the aliens' exploratory mission. I then wondered if they had landed elsewhere. I began tearing through the rest of the paper looking for any little story of such.

  News of aliens would not have been buried in the back, it would have been a front-page headline. After several frustrating minutes, I had come to the conclusion that there was no sign of alien anything... anywhere. Perhaps the military had encountered them, or perhaps they had selected some small backwater country and the news had just not yet leaked out.

  I badly wanted just a piece of one of those demons to hold in my hand, one that I could then hold up to the world. I wanted to tell of our amazing deeds and heroics. The world needed to know. But my story would go nowhere without the backing of the others. My family and friends had clammed up when I needed them most.

  I returned to work the following day, but I left early, as I just could no longer focus. First one week and then two went by. My clients were starting to get edgy with my standoffish and distracted behavior. They had been used to my catering to their every need and to my soothing their every worry. They had been placated with one insurance package or another, sold with speeches about how they were covered and well protected. For several weeks, all they had received were short “yes” and “no” answers.

  A full month had gone by before I finally picked up the phone and called Bull and Allie. I sensed a bit of unease from Bull, and our conversation went nowhere. The only thing we had to discuss was our trip, and he had no interest in talking about it.

  It was driving me crazy having the knowledge I had and not being able to tell anyone. My focus and attention to those things that mattered in daily life were no longer there. I was obsessed with finding the evidence that would set my silenced story free. The call ended soon after I brought up the subject of the alien encounter and asked if he would reconsider. I was truly on my own.