by Zara Zenia
The trail stretched ahead, with bigger trees now arching their branches over the worn dirt and crunchy leaves on the ground. As she passed under the lanky tree arms, she reached up to run her hands through the leaves still clinging tightly to their stems. They made a delightful rustling sound as her fingers flowed around them, like a dry delighted laugh. On either side of the path stretched tendrils of golden grass. Each blade glistened like silk thread, reflecting the warm California daylight. The scenery here was ever changing, with transitions from yellow grass stalks, to frail brown trees, then to bright greenery and areas with thicker, sturdier tree coverage. It was amazing to come across so much variance in nature when she spent most of the year in the city, and she truly missed it at times.
As these feelings tugged at her heart, the dirt and leaves beneath her feet turned to sand and she came to a bend in the trail where the trees gave way to the clear, open sky. Another fork in the path lay before her and she paused next to the sign marking it which read, There's beauty in beach wrack. She smiled out at the ocean waters admiring the places where the sand met the sea and where the ocean met the sky. This place felt warm even in the winter air, and she couldn't help but to rush to the oceanside and soak in as much of the feeling as she could.
The tide rolling in and out and the soft lapping sounds of the frothy water nearly mesmerized her, but she still had a journey ahead, so she turned abruptly and began walking alongside the ocean. The state-made path cut off after a short trek down the beach, but there were many unmarked paths along the beach worn from the foot traffic of local explorers. When Cara was younger, she and her high school friends would map paths through the rocks to find hidden sections of the beach. With years of practice as her guide, she moved carefully along the unsanctioned parts of the beach, scaling large rocks and making careful trails through the receding sea water where necessary.
As she continued on her way, the sun fell lower in the sky. She guessed that it was getting close to three o'clock and knew the opportunity to catch the movement of the light on camera was fading. She came upon a section of the beach that was clear of the usual debris, and admired the white sand glistened in the sun. The rocks, worn smooth by the tide, were dark and black in contrast. A few caverns peeked out from the sand, most too small to hold more than one person. Behind them stretched the green and gold expanse of plant life, high up on the rocky ridge. This was the spot she wanted to photograph.
She found a large, flat stone area toward the farthest part of the beach, hugging the dark boulders. She rested there for a moment, pulling a large bottle of water from her belongings and taking several long sips from it.
Cara moved quickly to set up her gear and take a few simple, preliminary still shots of the scenery. She captured the foliage perched behind the caverns, and the ocean pressed firmly against the distant skyline, then took a series of shots framing the extreme white of the sand against the deep blacks and grays of the rocks dotting the beach. Every breath she took combined the intimate smell of her camera set up with the pleasant aromas of the west coast beach.
With the still series complete, Cara resolved to find the perfect shot to practice the exposure tricks she had been mastering along with her normal photography work. She pulled her camera from its stand and began to walk the sand, scanning through the lens for a frame that matched the idea in her head. She pulled closer to the mouths of the beach caverns, drawing back from the water's edge to get as much of the sky in the camera's view as possible. Her feet glided along the ground as she felt her way back without looking.
She paused her movement as the light around her dimmed suddenly, causing her to look away from the camera's viewfinder to see that she had entered the mouth of a particularly large beach cave. When she glanced back to the camera a small gasp escaped her lips as she noticed the perfectly framed scene. She quickly marked the spot below the camera with her foot and rushed to get her equipment set up and ready to record the moment she wanted to capture. It would be a while for the long exposure image she wanted of the sunset. She carried out the motions that allowed her camera to capture the transition of natural light in a single image. The sun sat beautifully glowing above the ocean waves, with the cavern mouth barely bordering the edges of the frame. She smiled wide with a child-like glee before stepping back to let her camera finish the job.
Cara's eyes floated up to the ceiling, tracing the smooth curvature of the stone. A small sound of movement behind her drew her attention to the back of the cave. She wondered how far back the empty darkness went as she lost her gaze in its depths.
"Get out," a deep masculine voice slivered coldly from the void beyond her vision, causing Cara to jump in surprise at the realization that she was not alone in the cave she had stumbled upon. She raised her hand to her chest, feeling her heart beat heavily, as she searched the darkness vigorously for the source of the voice. For a moment she thought she may have imagined it.
"I can't," she insisted calmly, turning her ear toward the caverns depths.
"Oh, and why exactly is that?" the disembodied voice demanded in response, his tone becoming more unwelcoming with her defiance.
At the confirmation that someone else was sharing her discovered cove, she became perturbed at their absurd request. She had no reason to leave the public beach and had no intention of stopping in the middle of her shot.
"Why should I?" She crossed her arms in front of her chest, glaring into the cave. "I'm not doing anything that should bother you, so just ignore me. I'll leave when I'm done."
"Just get out of here, find someone else to bother!" he shouted aggressively, his voice closer to her now.
She turned her head in his direction, locating his voice even though she still couldn't see him.
"If you don't leave now, then I'll—"
"Do whatever you want, I'm not leaving!" she challenged him, turning back to her camera as it captured the setting sun. From behind her she heard steady footsteps and turned with her eyes wide. Cara's body tensed as the footsteps grew closer, and a spark of fear lit in the corner of her mind.
The light from the opening of the cavern faintly caught the stranger's movement as he drifted closer, his outline becoming more distinct with each step. From the curtain of darkness a tall inhuman figure emerged, staring at her with yellow eyes that squinted in the bright sunlight. Her assured expression changed to confusion as she studied him. His pale skin almost glowed in the afternoon light, the same color as the sand that shifted under his six-toed feet. He lifted a hand to block the sun and Cara could see that he had six fingers as well. He glared at her as an ocean breeze rolled past them, shifting his long white hair around his pointed ears. Cara was in awe at the being before her, unable to stop her eyes from tracing the handsome and foreign features of his nude body. She should have felt embarrassed, but her curiosity overwhelmed her senses as she stared, open mouthed, at the aggravated creature.
"What... are you?"
3
Cara instinctively reached for her camera bag, pulling out an old polaroid camera she had gotten as a teenager. With her mind in a haze, she pulled the viewfinder to her eye, unable to comprehend what stood before her. Her finger smashed the shutter button, pulling her attention from the creature as she yanked the fresh photograph from her antique machine. In the picture she saw traces of confusion and concern clear on the subject's face. When her gaze lifted again, the strange man had vanished back into the darkness.
"Wait!" she called urgently as she dove headlong into the depths after him. After a steep descent, the cave path turned upward, and Cara could see that the back of the cave was lit by strange technology not visible from the outside. The stranger walked quickly ahead of her, making his way to a house-like structure.
"Wait," she said again, catching up to him, "I don't understand, are you an elf?" she asked, trying to make sense of the situation.
"No," he replied vaguely.
His annoyance was evident as she was sure he was recovering from her re
action to his appearance. He obviously had intended for her to be afraid of him, probably hoping she would run away and leave him alone. However, she wasn't afraid, she was completely intrigued.
"You have pointy ears though, and you live in a cave. You know, in nature with the ocean and forest and mountains all around, so…" she trailed off, realizing the assumption was faulty. "So then, if you aren't an elf, what are you?"
The creature paused, looking at her. It seemed his frustration with her was about to peak again, but then his expression changed to one of confusion. He sighed heavily, then drew in close to her face.
"I'm an alien," he said coldly.
He was clearly hoping that this new information would actually scare her off this time, but
Cara's eyes grew wide, glinting, not with fear, but excitement. "A real alien?" she replied in almost a whisper as his face still hovered inches from hers. She stepped back to take in his appearance again, blushing from the proximity and the realization of his nakedness.
His face contorted as he lost his patience with her. He lurched forward, probably to yell at her, but was stopped fast by her outstretched hand.
"I'm Cara." She smiled, introducing herself.
He ignored her attempt at a handshake and looked as though he was unable to comprehend the unexpected enthusiasm from her. Instead, he stared at her in shock for a moment before turning away and grumpily walking toward the house like structure.
"I'm called Egrix," he responded to her introduction before disappearing through a panel in the side of the alien structure.
"Egrix," Cara said his name quietly to herself. She felt dazed and giddy from the sudden, unexpected interaction, her mind filling with questions. She looked to the place where the alien man had disappeared, but she couldn't see a door in the structure.
"Egrix?" she asked louder, realizing he'd left her alone in the cave. She looked around at the unrecognizable tools and machinery that dotted the floor of the cavern. The lights she had noticed when she walked in were even more strange looking up close. They looked natural in the cave environment, like a plant or creature stuck to the stone wall but had an artificial buzzing that gave away the mechanics within. They seemed to be made of something gelatinous and glowed brighter than any lightbulb Cara had ever seen. There were various containers scattered around the campsite. Some stood open, with the lid lifted, however, the closed ones had no indication of where they would open, seeming to be one solid cube. These were made from the same substance as the structure in the center, which Cara now approached.
It was egg shaped and about ten feet tall, grazing the ceiling of the chamber. The material looked thin and shiny, with tiny ridges decorating the side that wrapped all the way around. At a glance it resembled a giant sea shell. Cara found it odd how fragile it looked as she placed her hand flat against it and was surprised to feel a slight hum coming from inside. The surface was metallic to the touch with a heat emanating from within the otherwise cool surface. She traced her hand along the outside of the structure, searching for the entrance that had seemingly vanished. She wrapped around to where she had started and took a few steps back from the alien structure, perplexed and debating whether she should go back to her camera and give up.
She glanced behind her to where the cave arched back up to its opening, crossing her arms and biting her lip before looking back to the odd campsite. She nodded decidedly to herself, this was a once in a lifetime chance that she couldn't afford to miss. With that, she walked to the side of the seashell house, leaning against it to sit down. She wrapped her arms around her knees, resting her chin on her kneecaps before cautiously calling to the alien inside.
"Egrix?" Her call echoed in the quiet cavern and she could hear a voice grumbling through the material of the wall in response.
"What?" he spit back, clearly still unhappy about her presence.
"Oh, ummm—" Cara was a bit surprised that he replied, even more so that he'd continued the conversation, so she tried to pick her next words carefully, "I-I'm sorry about earlier. I really didn't know anyone was in this cave."
She apologized honestly, hoping to clear the air of their harsh introduction. It was obvious he didn't want her there but still, she felt drawn to the grumpy alien. Of course she had a plethora of questions at her disposal that had been thought up with her dad during the years they spent studying the stars together, but it was more than just curiosity. There was an uncanny desire to see Egrix, like a force that could only be satisfied when she was in his presence. She couldn't explain it, but even though she knew he didn't want to talk to her, she had to convince him otherwise.
"I'm a photographer in a city a few hours away from here. That's why I came to the beach today, to take some pictures." She thought perhaps if she offered some information about herself that he might feel more inclined to share with her in return. She still had an hour before the photo she really wanted to capture would be finished, and she thought she wouldn't mind spending it like this even if he ignored her the whole time.
"My parents live near here, so I drove down to visit them for the next couple of weeks. I have time to kill while I wait for my camera to finish processing the sunset, so I think I'll stay here for a bit and keep you company, then I'll head back home."
The silence was heavy around her as she wondered if Egrix was even listening. With little else to do, she investigated the cavern from her perch next to the alien pod. It was oddly round, with no traces of water. There were no stalactites or stalagmites to prove that there had ever been any water present in the large space. Inspecting it now, the ground was also incredibly flat for a cavern. It didn't make any sense that this room of the cave could occur naturally. She made a mental note to ask Egrix about the strange phenomena but decided to let it go as she tried to engage the alien man in conversation again.
"I know this may be bothersome for you, but you did disturb me first when I was only minding my own business. I've been exploring these beaches since I was a kid and I'm not going to leave anytime soon. I don't much feel like ignoring you either, so sitting here seems like the best option since you can just pretend I'm not here if you'd like and I can pass the time without being lonely up by the water."
A loud whooshing noise directly beside her made Cara jump away from the pod wall with a small shriek. The panel of the sea shell structure lifted up again to show Egrix standing just inside. Behind him, Cara could make out a few mechanical objects with her peripheral vision, but Egrix had captured her attention, and she couldn't seem to break her eyes away to get a better look. Just as before, she felt mesmerized by him, still bracing her arms against the ground beneath her after being spooked by the door. Egrix glared at her with his yellow eyes, but there was a gentleness to his face.
"Are you really just going to sit out here talking to yourself?" he grumbled at her bewildered expression, causing her senses to return to her slightly.
She shook her head slightly to clear the strange trance she had fallen into, before pushing up from the ground to stand. "I was hoping not to," she replied while brushing her legs off, "but I suppose that is entirely up to you." She grinned at him, lacing her fingers together to clasp her hands behind her back.
"Yeah," he agreed, looking at her face for a moment longer than necessary before stepping out of the doorway and letting the panel close behind him. "Well, if you're going to stay here anyway, then I guess it doesn't make much sense for me to lock myself in there."
He gestured to the alien pod as he casually walked to one of the containers on the ground. With the light touch of his hand, the top of the crate lifted, and the sides folded away, turning into a table and 4 chairs, all connected together and made from the same shell-like alien material. Egrix took a seat and motioned for Cara to do the same as she marveled at the stunning and strange technology that he had just casually introduced her to. She sat across from her alien companion, her glee at the situation purely evident on her face. Egrix looked as if he might want to smile back at her
but instead, furrowed his brow further. Even though he was trying to be cold to her, she could sense a curiosity there in his eyes too.
"So, what do you want? You have things you want to ask, right?"
Cara looked up at him and nodded from across the table.
Egrix avoided her gaze, looking down at the palms of his hands. He suddenly looked shy and unsure of himself. "Well, fine. I'll answer your questions if they interest me, but you have to promise not to tell anyone about me or anything I tell you."
"Of course I promise! It'll be our secret." Cara squeezed her eyes closed as a big, toothy grin bloomed on her face.
Egrix was caught off guard by her enthusiastic smile, his eyes widening as it occurred to him just how adorable Cara looked. He could feel his cheeks heating up and quickly stood up. He faced away from her announcing, "Please give me a moment to put some clothes on."
If she was going to be staying a while, he should at least be dressed. He was doing something unprecedented by making contact with a human in his alien form and discussing his mission. He was nervous, knowing how much trouble he could be in if his union found out, and how much danger he could be in if the humans did. He wanted to be careful, but he also wanted the companionship that this woman was offering. He hoped, with a slight sense of dread, that she wouldn't make him regret the decision. He glanced up at Cara, trying not to give away his concerns on his face. He turned and went into the pod. Inside, he pressed his back against the cold surface of the door, trying to calm his racing heart.