by Zara Zenia
A thousand thoughts were spiraling in my mind and all of them culminated in my death. I envisaged a plethora of alien agents out there ready to kill me with their peculiar handguns. I stared at the curtains to see if the blue lights on top of their weapons were shining through the thin fabric, but they weren't. There was no other way to know who watched me than to pulled the curtain back and reveal the face of my tormentor. But I couldn't do it.
I tried to but my arm refused to move. I was frozen to the spot, unable to act like a rational adult.
"Pull yourself together!"
With baited breath, I yanked the curtain back.
Blackness. Just the night.
Across the road, a light flicked on in the Montgomery house before turning off. Somewhere down at the end of the road a dog barked and a car sped onto the highway. There was nobody there.
Opening the window to look down at the flower bed, I searched for footsteps and trodden flowers but there were none. If there was anyone here they were as light as air and as fast as the speed of light. I was just imagining things. For the time being, I was safe from enemy agents. But then I saw it.
It began as a shimmer beneath the street lamp, a faint glow like a heat haze that drifted through the darkness. Trying to think logically, I assumed it was fog, a slight patch of mist that drifted by. Maybe it was even a low cloud. But there was something different about it, something that made it glitter with an almost tangible sense of pearlescence. It was strangely beautiful, hypnotic and light. It moved with a subtle sentience as though it was watching me, waiting to see what I was about to do next.
For a moment, I wondered if it could be a ghost, but I didn't believe in them. Yet, until a couple days ago I didn't believe in aliens on Earth either. What were the chances? Ghosts and aliens on my street within a matter of days. Surely the odds were astronomical. And what would a ghost want with me anyway?
Beside me, Sophie jumped up onto the window ledge and mewed faintly as though she was trying to get my attention. Then her eyes fixed on the quivering haze outside the window. It moved along the sidewalk before settling on top of the grass, it's haziness mingling with the glistening dew drops on the lawn.
Sophie arched her back and pawed at the window before hissing wildly.
"Stop it!"
I patted her in an effort to calm her, but she hissed louder and bared her teeth, screeching a horrendous scream until I clapped my hands over my ears.
"Sophie, stop it!"
She screamed even louder, working herself into a frenzy until her tail thrashed frantically like an out of control rattlesnake. Meanwhile, her paws were smacking the window, her claws catching the glass like nails down a chalkboard.
"Stop!"
Spying the blanket on the sofa behind me, I thought fast and grabbed it, hurling it over her. It confused her long enough for me to subdue her, lunging forward and tackling her to the ground as she kicked in my arms. Her back leg caught me square in the mouth and at last, I couldn't contain her anger anymore and I dropped her and the blanket onto the couch. She made a hasty escape from her velvety confines and leaped up the stairs, screaming all the way up until I heard her enter the bedroom.
"What the actual fuck?"
I rubbed at my bottom lip and felt it swell up. Walking over to the mirror, I saw the small trickle of crimson blood that rested between my teeth.
"That little bastard gave me a fat lip!"
She had never acted like that before so why now? She was always such a placid animal, a sweet little thing that loved everybody. Whatever she saw out there must have really frightened her. I remember reading as a child that animals' eyes worked on a different spectrum to ours and that they could see things we couldn't. Cats, for example, could see colors we didn't even know exist. They could see shapes we couldn't comprehend and view energies, frequencies, and impulses that to us were nothing more than wizardry. It has even been said that they can see Wi-Fi signals and notice the breath as it escapes our mouths. If that's the case, then what did she see out there?
Glancing back out the window, I saw the haze was still there. It crackled in the air and grew the more I watched it. It was harnessing power from somewhere, becoming stronger with every passing second. I could feel its magnetic pull in my gut and the way it shifted back and forth across the sidewalk. It pulled at me, beckoned me to go outside.
"What are you?" I asked.
And as though it heard me, it pulsed in the moonlight precisely three times like an Ouija board answering for a poltergeist.
With trembling legs, I took a few tentative steps toward the front door then stopped dead. I wasn't brave enough to do it. No matter how much I wanted to find out what was happening, I couldn't go outside. Even when I walked a little further and found myself standing in the hall with the front door in front of me, I still couldn't do it. Yet still, the mysterious force outside was calling its electrical siren song.
It infiltrated my ears like a distant, ancient modem crying out in pain. Despite the harshness of the noise, it sounded serene, almost beautiful. I wanted to reach out and touch the enigmatic substance, feel it snap and fizz in my hands.
Something began to tug at my clothing, touching me from all directions like a thoughtful breeze attempting to gain my attention. I looked down and saw the tassels on my pajamas rise as though mocking the laws of gravity. I gasped and covered my mouth in shock.
The coats that I had so carelessly flung on the banister were next to move, the toggles and straps of the garments flying into the air like hair caught in an underwater current.
"This can't be happening."
Upstairs, Sophie screamed like a banshee. There was the sound of her clawing at the side of the bed, the walls, the carpet but the noise was soon eclipsed by the electricity in the air.
The lights overhead flickered on and off with the sound of a power surge pulsing in and out of the house. It felt as though the walls were alive and the building was breathing. A low rumble moved through the floor and I yelped as it thumped under my feet.
"What the hell are you?" I shouted and made for the door.
Flinging it open, a wind gushed through me. It felt as though it was taking over my body, penetrating every cell inside me.
Meanwhile, out in the street, I could still see the mist floating below the street lights. It moved from side to side as though pacing in boredom. I half-imagined it reaching out a forefinger and wagging it at me as it scolded my lateness.
"What do you want?" I called out.
Across the road, the lights in the upstairs bedroom were switched on and I saw the curtains twitch. Mrs. Montgomery was looking down at me as though I was crazy. I saw her gesture for her husband to join her at the window and a moment later, he was ruffling his hair and yawning as he rested his elbows against the window ledge. In the bedroom next to theirs, little David also woke up and walked to the window. He looked down at me with his teddy bear, Gilbert clutched under his arm.
I waved up to them to show them everything was okay. I wasn't insane and shouting out to nobody, I was just... I was just what? I had no idea what was going on and couldn't think of a single thing to say to assuage their concerns. All I could do was wave like an imbecile and shout:
"It's okay. Go back to bed!"
But all they did was blink at me and watch more intently. Then all at once, they saw it. I saw the flicker of confusion sweep over their faces one by one at the same moment. They saw the mist too. Mr. Montgomery scowled and rubbed his sleepy eyes while his wife reached for her phone. I wasn't crazy, they were seeing it too! But what was it?
I took a step out onto the porch and its force grew stronger. I could hear the static in my ears, feel it breeze through my hair that was now sticking up on end. David's jaw dropped open as he ponytail stick up on end.
"What are you?" I called out to the mist.
The closer I walked, the more it felt as though I was trying to penetrate an invisible wall. The street lamp overhead crackled before blink
ing one last time and fading to blackness. Then I watched as each street lamp died one after the other until the street was plunged into darkness.
My heart was beating so fast I was sure I was going to faint. I clutched at my chest and felt the tears fall from my eyes. Except they didn't truly fall. They simply drifted up from my eyelashes before joining the electricity in the sky.
Across the road, the lights in the Montgomery house began to flicker on and off, then other houses were affected too. Down the road, a car alarm was sparked into life and beyond that, a burglar alarm was triggered. People were walking out into the street, clutching their hands over their ears as they tried to fathom what was happening. Meanwhile, all I could think was that I wish Dray was with me.
Chapter 19
Draygus
She was standing on her porch calling out into the darkness. In front of her, sat the lingering electric mist that has descended across the neighborhood. Up and down the street, people were coming out of their houses and looking out their windows. Lights were flicking on and off of their own accord and cars seemed to come alive like sentient robots. I was parked behind a red SUV that seemed to be quaking as though inhabited by an invisible monster hell-bent on escaping the confines of its walls. The windshield wipers batted back and forth whilst the alarm blazed. A jet of windshield cleaner shot out from the front and poured a fountain across the street. I followed the line of water and saw it land on another car who's engine was revving by itself. To the untrained eye, it looked as though the neighborhood was being hounded by a hundred invisible ghosts. I could hear the screams of terror from the nearby houses and watched as the family across the road from Anya ran out into the street clutching a few essential items. The woman was holding her cell phone out in front of her, screaming into it desperately.
"Hello? Hello!"
She wasn't to know that there was no signal. I couldn't help but smirk at her ignorance but then regretted my arrogance. Her son, a small boy no older than ten, clung to her legs in his pajamas. He pressed a toy bear to his heart and sobbed.
"Mom? What's happening?"
His face was briefly illuminated from the streetlamp above that appeared to be moving through a spectrum of colors.
"Mommy's trying to call the cops," the woman replied before turning to her husband. "Joey! For Christ's sakes will you do something! There's no reception. What the fuck is going on here?"
"Calm down, Bertha!" he shouted across the street in a state of confusion as he tried to wrestle with his car door.
Looking back to Anya's house, I saw she had moved onto the lawn, her bare feet sinking into the damp grass. Her hair was pointing skyward like an antenna, her thin clothing flapping from the force of the electricity field.
She may have refused my help, but I sure as shit wasn't going to abandon her. I'd protect her at any cost, whether she wanted me to or not.
Yet, as I watched her from the safety of my car, I felt momentarily paralyzed by the sight of her. As ever she was mesmerisingly beautiful, with her gorgeous face glowing amidst the chaos around her. She said something but I couldn't hear it, could only see the shape of her mouth as she cried out. Her face was crumpled, her brows furrowing as she tried to fathom what she was looking at. It was then, as I watched her raise her arms in frustration that I made a mental pact with myself. I would always be her protector. Whether she loved me or not, I would always love her and ensure that no harm would ever come to her. More than anything, I wanted to dive out of the car and scoop her up in my arms, tell her to not be afraid. I wanted to smother her in an endless embrace and look into her eyes as I promised my life to her. Unfortunately, I had something else to do first.
The people in this neighborhood may not know what was going on, but I did. I had seen this phenomenon dozens of times before and understood every intricate part of what I was seeing.
The electrical field was uniquely Orban and something that, although normal to me, would appear to be pure wizardry to the average human. I could see the look of terror on Anya's face as she tried to mentally grapple with what she was seeing. Meanwhile, the family across the road were become frenzied and panicked, pacing up and down the sidewalk with no hope of escape. As much as I tried to sympathize with them, they were driving me crazy and before I knew it, I found myself sliding down my window.
"Pssst..."
The little boy noticed me right away and pulled his bear tighter in his arms.
"Hey, kid."
He stood frozen to the spot while his parents argued behind him. I waved him over to the car but he refused to move.
"That's right, kid. You shouldn't talk to strangers, but I promise I won't hurt you."
His face softened and he raised his eyebrows. He took two nervous steps toward me and it was then that I could see the tears in his eyes.
"Your mom and dad are having a bad night, aren't they?" I asked.
He nodded and swallowed down his tears.
"I bet this all seems real scary."
Again, he nodded and gulped.
"Do you like movies?" I asked.
"Yep."
He bobbed his head up and down vigorously.
"It's just like a movie, kid. It's all just special effects. In fact, they're filming a movie right now. There's nothing to be afraid of."
His eyes beamed at hearing this and his mouth spread into a wide, cheeky grin. I noticed he had two front teeth missing and it only made his sudden happiness more endearing.
"So listen," I said as I leaned out the window. "Tell your parents to head back inside. Tell them it's all a movie. You can't see the cameras because they crew... they're er... really good at their job and they're trying to film secretly."
"Secretly?" he asked confused.
"Yeah, because they want your reactions to all this to be real."
I waved my hand up and down the street and he followed my gaze before looking back at his parents who were oblivious to the whereabouts of their son.
"So yeah... You tell your mom and dad to go back in the house. Soon enough you'll all be in the movies but until then, go back to bed."
He glanced over his shoulder then back at me before saying:
"Thanks, mister!"
And he ran over to his parents, pointing and squealing loudly as he told them what I said. His parents looked over at me suspiciously and I gave them a thumbs-up. Slowly, and with a great deliberateness, they stepped back into their house and closed the door. Now they were gone, I was free from any distractions.
Turning my attention back to the electrical impulses, I could begin to figure out my next move. I could only imagine what Anya was feeling without knowing what she was experiencing. No doubt, she was processing the information in the part of her mind that was used for understanding paranormal activity. One day she'd remember this event in the same way she'd recall any other spooky scenario like phantom lights in the sky or mysterious, disembodied footsteps. What she didn't know was that the force field that was setting her body alight with static energy was, in fact, a normal part of Orban military strategy.
The cloaking mechanism worked in a somewhat similar way to an invisibility cloak but was less crude and more efficient. It could, for example, shroud entire neighborhoods and disarm any electronic devices for a ten-mile radius. This was, of course, what Palzu's men were doing right now. I cursed myself for leaving Anya as a witness. I led them straight to her, something I had not previously anticipated before I fell in love with her.
Now, her street was shimmering in electricity and, if you were to look at her street from above, it would look like nothing at all, a mere glitch in the atmosphere as though the place never even existed.
It was a cunning technique to not only hide troops, but also hide the entire area so no one could get in or out and no one could report on what was happening.
Luckily for me, I wasn't an average human and I could see what was going on. I also had the tool necessary to see through the electrical cloak. Reaching into my technol
ogical bag of tricks, I yanked out the glasses that looked so sleek and stylish in my hand but almost clumsy and ugly on my face.
Hooking them around the backs of my ears, I looked at my reflection in the rearview mirror. Not the smoothest moment of my life but I wasn't here to look fashionable. The glasses were for a purpose and they were the best money could buy. As I focused them to the specific requirements of my eyes, I could suddenly see an array of beings that only moments ago were seemingly invisible.
Palzu's men, there were at least twenty of them scouring the neighborhood like menacing predators. I crouched down lower in my seat until my eyes could only skim past the dashboard. The men were clambering around Anya who was oblivious to their whereabouts. One of them, a burly young boy with a clumsy habit of dragging his left leg as he walked, approached her. I could see her eyes widen as she sensed something insidious yet invisible. Her body stiffened and she pulled her arms taut by her side.
The young man moved in closer, so close that his nose was almost pressed up against her face as he sniffed her female scent. The bastard. He'd better enjoy what precious moments he had with her because he didn't have many left.
He sniffed her again. I could see her mouth open as she asked:
"Who's there?"
The soldier seemed to chuckle to himself, enjoying every moment of her fear. I pulled my pistol up in front of me, the sights focused on his forehead. Steadying my finger on the trigger, I readied myself to shoot but Anya moved and soon the sights were set on her face.
"Fuck," I groaned.
The young man's face leered toward her. I could see his arousal, almost sense the thoughts in his head as he planned what to do with his human prisoner. Behind him, other soldiers were fast approaching, making their way toward her front door. I had seconds to make my decision but dashing out the car with guns blazing wasn't an option. I would be just one man against twenty others and they'd be sure to knock me down in a hail of bullets. I had to smart and silent, quick but sly.
My eyes bore into the back of the young soldier's head as he reached out a hand toward Anya. I squeezed the trigger slightly. Then a clatter. Everyone jumped and pointed their guns across the street. A dustbin lid gently toppled off a garbage can and rolled down the street before a cat screeched and darted into the bushes. Terrified by the noise, Anya rushed inside her house and slammed the door shut. A second later she was peeping out through her curtains from the safety of her living room.
