Dark Humanity

by Gwynn White

  “I don’t want to go back to those… aliens,” said Bruce, scowling. “I can’t stand them.”

  “You have to,” said Blayze. “Act normal and hopefully, once we get to their planet, we’ll figure out a way to escape. Obviously, there’s nothing we can do in space. There’s nowhere to run.”

  “What about you?” I said. “Everyone’s after you.”

  “I know and that’s why I needed to get to you before they erased my memory again. I also wanted to make sure that you saw this.” He removed the flash drive and handed it to me. “Keep it safe. If they catch me, they’ll confiscate it.”

  I took it from him. “I’ll hide it.”

  “Hide it well,” he said, looking toward the doorway. He rubbed his jaw, which was now covered in stubble. “I’ve got to go before they find me here.”

  “Where are you going to go?” asked Jimmy.

  “I’m going to try and hide near the engine room. It’s pretty vast, with lots of nooks-and-crannies.”

  “Do you want us to bring you any food or water?” I asked, slipping the flash drive into the inner pocket of my jacket. I zipped it up and hung it in the closet.

  “That would be great, but I don’t want you meeting me there. They’ll catch one of us.”

  “Where should we leave it?” I asked.

  Before he could answer, Jimmy spoke up. “Hey, why don’t you come back here at night, when everyone is asleep? You could hide out in our bathroom.”

  “Yeah, you could even sleep in the tub,” I added, walking over to one of the closets. I opened the door and pulled out a pillow and blue flannel blanket. “In fact, you shouldn’t leave this room right now. Hamilton is probably still searching everywhere for you. He’s already been here, so I doubt he’ll be back.”

  He smiled. “Actually, that is a much better plan. At least, for now. I don’t want to put any of you at risk. You get caught with me and we’re all in trouble. We won’t remember this conversation.”

  “What if your dad finds Blayze here?” asked Bruce, looking worried. “He’ll give him up.”

  “We’ll keep the door locked and tell Dad that we were scared. After all, you’ve lost your mind,” said Jimmy, looking at Blayze. He smiled grimly. “Right?”

  “I haven’t lost it yet,” he replied. “But if we don’t figure something out on Planet Z, we’re all going to lose more than that.”

  I shuddered, thinking about it. I’d rather die than become some alien’s host. This was my body and I would fight for it. No matter what. “I wonder how many of them are on that planet now? What we’re up against?”

  “I have no idea,” he answered.

  Someone tried opening the door and we jumped.

  “Crap,” I whispered.

  “Alex? Jimmy? Why is your door locked?” called Mom.

  “Just a second,” yelled Jimmy as Blayze scrambled into the bathroom. We heard the shower door open and close. He looked at me and nodded.

  Taking a deep breath, I walked over to the security pad and punched in the code. When the door opened, Mom stood there looking bewildered.

  “What’s going on in here?” she asked. “Oh, hello, Bruce.”

  He laughed nervously and waved at her. “Hi.”

  “Didn’t you hear the news, Mom?” said Jimmy, rushing toward her. “Hamilton’s nephew has gone crazy and is missing. It’s why we have the door locked. You know, just in case he shows up here.”

  “Oh, good idea. I doubt he’ll be showing up at your room, however,” she said, patting his back gently. “So, you can relax.”

  “He might,” said Bruce, playing along. “So, from now on we should all keep our doors locked. I’m going to tell my parents to do it as well.”

  “I doubt your parents will feel threatened by a teenaged boy,” she replied, smiling. “Anyway, I don’t think that Blayze is dangerous. Just very confused right about now.”

  “What do you think is going on with him?” I asked, wanting to see her reaction.

  She shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe because of the breakup he recently had with his girlfriend? He’s obviously suffering inside, for whatever reason. Personally, I think that he needs to be evaluated by a doctor. I hope that Hamilton realizes that as well.”

  The concern in her eyes gave me hope that she wasn’t acting. That she was still just Mom and hadn’t been taken over by the aliens.

  “I’m sure you’re right,” I said.

  “Now, I was going to check out the gym, Alex. Would you like to join me?” she asked.

  “Uh, sure,” I replied, thinking that it would be a good idea. I could keep her busy and find out what was happening. “Let me change my clothes first.”

  She nodded and then looked at Jimmy and Bruce. “So, what kind of mischief are you two boys thinking about doing?”

  “What do you mean?” asked Bruce, looking worried. “We aren’t trying to do anything. Really.”

  I groaned inwardly. So much for playing it cool. “They’re just goofing around,” I said. “Weren’t you two going to make a fort, or something?”

  “Yeah,” said Jimmy loudly. “We were. Come on, Bruce, let’s get started.”

  “Okay.”

  “Would you like help?” she asked as I went into my suitcase and grabbed a pair of shorts and a short-sleeved top.

  “Crap,” I mumbled under my breath. I wasn’t about to undress in the bathroom. Not with Blayze hiding inside. “Actually, I’ll just wear this,” I said loudly, shoving the other clothes back into the suitcase.

  “Are you sure?” she asked, looking at my dark velour flight suit. “You’re going to sweat like crazy in that outfit.”

  “Isn’t that the point?” I asked, walking toward the door. “Sweat. Burn oodles of calories.”

  “Yes,” she said, frowning. “But, it’s your flight suit. If you rip it or something, I don’t know if we can get you another one.”

  “I’m not going to rip it. It’s durable and very comfortable. I can move around easily. I don’t see what the problem is.”

  She shrugged. “Okay. If you really want to wear that.”

  “I’m wearing it.”

  Boys,” she turned to them. “Lock the door behind us.”

  “Sure, Mom,” said Jimmy, following us to there.

  “Don’t open it for anyone but your father or me. I mean it,” she said, turning to him. “Especially since they don’t know where Blayze is. Not that I think he’d hurt you, but one never knows.”

  “What about my parents? They might… they might come for me,” said Bruce, looking pensive.

  “Well, obviously, that would be fine,” she said, giving him a funny smile. She studied his face for a few seconds. “Are you okay, Bruce?”

  He nodded quickly. “Yes, never been better. Why?”

  “I don’t know,” she said. “It almost sounded like the idea of your parents coming for you was making you nervous.”

  “No, ma’am. I just want to spend time playing with Jimmy. Right, Jimmy?”

  Jimmy nodded. “Yeah, Mom. Sheesh, don’t make him uncomfortable. Why would his parents make him nervous? I mean, seriously?”

  She looked at me and shook her head. “Boys.”

  “I know,” I said, rolling my eyes. “They’re so weird, aren’t they?”

  “We are,” said Jimmy. “So, don’t listen to anything that we say. It’ll only confuse you.”

  I wanted more than anything to tell him to shut-up. That he was trying way too hard to act natural. “Come on, Mom. Let’s go and work out.”

  “Okay. Secure the door and if you need anything, you can access the workout room with the tele-communicator. I’ll keep an eye on it, in case you send us a signal.”

  “Okay,” said Jimmy.

  “Goodbye, Mrs. Logan,” said Bruce.

  “Goodbye,” she said. “You boys have fun.”

  “We will,” they said in unison.

  We left them and began walking down the hallway in silence.

  “Y
ou must feel a lot better,” I said after we turned down the next hallway. “I mean, you were puking your guts out this morning and now you actually want to work out.”

  “Oh, that was because of my nerves and the G-force,” she said. “I feel one-hundred percent better.”

  “That’s good,” I said.

  “So, what do you think of the ship?”

  I shrugged. “It’s okay.”

  “Still not impressed, huh?” she asked, smiling in amusement.

  “I didn’t want to be here. I told you that.”

  “I know. But, like I said before, it’s for the better of all –”

  “Mankind,” I interrupted, my voice tight. After what I’d learned, going to Planet Z wasn’t better for any of mankind. “Yeah, I got that part.”

  Mom grabbed my arm, stopping me. Her eyes bore into mine, but I saw nothing reflected there but concern. “What’s wrong? I can tell it’s more than just the trip.”

  I licked my lips and forced a smile. “No. It’s really nothing. I’m just tired, I guess.”

  She continued staring at my face for a few more seconds and then let go of me. “I know this hasn’t been easy for you, and I’m sorry. We made you drop everything for this trip…”

  “It’s okay,” I said. “I know you had no choice.”

  She sighed as we started walking again. “You know, your father and I are an important factor in this mission, but above all, we’re still your parents. We only want what’s best for you and Jimmy and... well… this is going to hopefully secure a better future for you. For everyone. That’s why we have no regrets about leaving Earth.”

  “And by that, you mean, leaving Earth, temporarily.”

  “To be honest, the chances are that we won’t be going back there.”

  I stopped abruptly. “What do you mean?”

  “Why would we want to?”

  “Because it’s our home,” I said, staring at her in shock. “I mean, you said this was just a mission. You never once mentioned that this was permanent.”

  “Face it, Alex. Planet Z will be our new home. It’s filled with fresh air, water, and all of the resources that we need to rebuild our lives. Everything that we left behind can be duplicated there. Heck, made better. One-hundred percent better.” Her eyes glittered as she stared into off space, a dreamy smile on her face. “Believe me, once you get there, you won’t want to leave. You’ll never want to leave.”

  Her idolization of the planet gave me the chills. “You sound like you’ve already been there.”

  She looked at me again. “No, of course not.”

  “Then how can you honestly say that it’s the best thing for us? It might not be as marvelous as you think.”

  “It is,” she said, smiling again. “You’ll see. It’s going to be our utopia.”

  I felt the hair stand up on the back of my neck. She said she’d never been there, but from the look in her eyes, the planet meant everything to her, which could only mean one thing – she really was being controlled by an alien. One who was highly anticipating its return home.

  I blinked back tears and began walking. “Let’s just go work out,” I said, trying not to cry.

  “Good idea. It’s important to keep our bodies fit and healthy.”

  “So they say.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  I hopped onto the treadmill and ran at a steady pace for thirty minutes, staring at the hologram in front of me. It was one of the reasons I enjoyed running. The holograms gave the illusion that you were actually running outdoors while enjoying the scenery all around you. Each treadmill had a program which allowed the runner to select some kind of nature scene. One that looked like something out of the old history books. Blue skies, green grass, colorful flowers. This particular one showed a dirt path set between a beautiful snow-capped mountainside and a slow-moving river. Deer drank from a stream and once in a while, I’d pass by a rabbit or other furry animal that would scurry away as I got closer. Normally, I let myself get taken away by the hologram, enjoying the journey through the scenery. Today, however, all that I could think about were my parents being aliens, Blayze hiding in our bathroom, and the video of Hamilton. Unfortunately, I still couldn’t remember most the events leading up to the time that my memory was erased. They’d obviously done a good job on me, but I was curious as to how Blayze’s memory had resurfaced so quickly. I decided to ask him about that when I got back, which would have to be soon. I was worried that they’d spill something to Dad when he checked in on them. If that happened and he really was an alien, we were all screwed.

  Mom ran next to me, listening to her headphones as she stared at her own personal nature scene. Besides us, there were five other people working out. None of them spoke to each other and something told me that they were all controlled by aliens and were very much aware that I wasn’t. Especially from the way they watched me in the mirrored walls when they thought I wasn’t looking.

  “Phew. I’m done,” I said loudly, after I finished my ‘cool-down’. “I think I’m going back to the room now.”

  “That was quick,” she said, pulling off her headphones. “Aren’t you going to do any resistance training?”

  “No. I’m still a little tired from this morning. Besides, I should go back and check on the boys. Make sure they aren’t going through my things.”

  “Okay. I’ll be back in another hour or so. If you see your father, tell him I’m still here.”

  “Okay,” I said, wiping some of the perspiration from my forehead with the back of my hand.

  “Oh, and,” she lowered her voice, “remember, if you see Blayze, don’t interact with him.”

  “I know, Mom. See you later,” I replied, walking toward the exit. As I reached out to open the door, it swung open and there stood my father.

  “Hey, honey. I heard that you were both here,” he said, smiling over my head at Mom.

  “Hi,” I said. “Did you find Blayze yet?”

  He sighed and scratched his head. “No. To be honest, I don’t know what the big deal is. I think Hamilton is overreacting.”

  “Oh, yeah?”

  “He’s just a boy. One who obviously needs someone to talk to, not a bunch of security guards scaring the poor kid. Hamilton is acting like he’s some kind of terrorist. It’s ridiculous.”

  I would have agreed with him under normal circumstances.

  He put his hand on my shoulder and squeezed it. “Tell you what, if you see Blayze, tell him to come and see me. I’ll straighten things out between the two of them. Okay?”

  “Uh, sure,” I said. “I mean, if I see him. I doubt he’d seek me out. We never really hung out in school.”

  “Maybe not, but if you do end up bumping into him, let him know that he has a friend in me.”

  I chuckled. “Okay.”

  He dropped his hand and looked over at Mom. “I’m going to get in a little workout. It’s important to keep active on the ship, now that we’re confined here for the next few days.”

  “Yeah, because God only knows if you miss out on a week of exercise, what it will do to your body,” I said dryly.

  His eyebrows shot up. “Wow, what’s that all about?”

  “Nothing. I’m just tired. It’s been a long day.”

  “I understand. Go back to your room and get some rest.”

  “I doubt that will be easy with Bruce and Jimmy around.”

  “Oh, Bruce’s dad came and got the both of them. They went back to their cabin to play for a while. So, the room is all yours for the next couple of hours. Hopefully.”

  “Uh, cool,” I said, feeling a little anxious about that fact. Now that I knew Bruce’s folks were aliens, I didn’t really want Jimmy around them, especially Sue. “Oh. Well, I guess that will be nice.”

  “Yeah, enjoy the peace and quiet,” he replied, walking around me toward Mom. “Hey, Mary. Ready to race?”

  I could still hear her laughing as I left the work-out room. When I finally made it back to our cabin, I fou
nd Blayze still hiding out in the bathroom.

  “Hey,” I said, knocking on the bathroom door.

  He looked relieved when he saw me. “Your brother left with Bruce and his father. I thought maybe your dad was stopping back to check on things when I heard you come in.”

  “Don’t worry. I ran into him already. He’s working out with my mother.” I went over and sat down on the lower bunk. “I hope Jimmy is going to be all right with Bruce’s parents. The woman is horrible and I don’t know if we should let them stay there.”

  He shrugged. “As long as they don’t say anything out of the ordinary, they should both be fine.”

  “That’s the problem. They were trying a little too hard earlier.” I bit my lower lip. “I wonder if I should check on them?”

  “They seemed to be acting pretty convincing when Bruce’s dad showed up. Nothing too weird. At least from what I can tell.”

  “Still…”

  “You’re going to have to trust him to act normal around your parents, too, you know.”

  I let out a ragged sigh. “I guess. How long do you think they’ve been aliens?”

  “I don’t really know.”

  “What about your parents? Where are they?”

  “I don’t know that either,” he said, quietly. “I haven’t seen them for a few weeks.”

  “Seriously?” I asked, surprised.

  “They left for work, early one morning, and never came home.”

  “What exactly do they do?” I asked, feeling horrible for him. At least I knew where my parents were, aliens or not. It was better than not knowing anything.

  “They both work for Hamilton. They’re part of the council.”

  “Did you ask Hamilton about them?”

  “Yes. He said that he didn’t have any idea. I could tell that he was lying, though. He knows exactly where they are.”

  “Were your parents also controlled by aliens?”

  “No. I’m sure they weren’t. In fact, I walked in on them talking about conspiracy theories one night. When I asked them about it, they quickly changed the subject.”

  “That sucks,” I said.

  “Tell me about it. I wish they would have confided in me. I might have been able to help them.”