“Why do you sound so excited?” Cyra asked in a concerned voice.
“Okay, I know this shit is hella scary and all but like what if we’re witnessing an alien invasion? I know it sounds crazy but hear me out…the border agents looking possessed and then all that crazy shit that happened with them, right? Aliens. The sky changing colors? Aliens. The truck being lifted into the sky like it weighed nothing? Aliens. They must have some sort of advanced technology that we don’t have in our galaxy, right? And that weird ass language they were speaking? Like c’mon I’m surprised it took me this long to figure it out!”
“I hate to say this, mostly because you sound absolutely nuts, but it kinda makes sense,” Jeffrey said with half smile.
“Wow, that explains a lot of the weird shit that’s been happening,” Lollie piped up as a cloud of smoke came out of her mouth from her chain-smoking her juul, like she did when she was stressed or scared.
“Gypsy I thought we talked about these crazy conspiracies…they’re just conspiracies. Why in the fuck would they want anything to do with us? Like what would possibly be so threatening about the human race?” Cyra questioned.
“Cyra, I know we talked about my conspiracies,” Gypsy said in a mocking tone, “but we need to find out what they want and why they’re targeting humans. You’re right, it doesn’t make any sense that we would be a threat at all, especially when their technology is far more advanced than ours. I highly doubt they’re even from our galaxy, and if that’s the case then they are way more advanced than us because that means they can travel to different galaxies and can travel faster than lightyears which like isn’t a thing and…” Gypsy’s rant got droned out by Lollie screaming.
“What is it babe?” Jeffrey asked in a very concerned tone.
“Those beams keep multiplying! Look! They’re picking up random things from the forest!”
“What the fuck!” Cyra shouted as she looked out her window.
The few beams they saw had multiplied into a sea of them. There must have been at least twenty, randomly shooting down into the forest. Logs, animals, and even small trees were being raised into the clouds to go to the unknown. Shai and Cole were still right behind them, but something told Cyra to pull over real quick so they could all get in the same car.
Sticking her head out the window, Cyra shouted at Shai and Cole to jump in so they wouldn’t get separated.
“We already talked about this!” Cole exclaimed as him and Shai climbed in the SUV.
“I know but it just wouldn’t feel right if we all weren’t together, ya know?” Cyra smiled in a scared type of way.
She kept driving until soon the light came on telling her they only had twenty-five miles until empty. This is it. Cyra thought to herself. The moment we’ve all been dreading, but I guess it had to happen sometime. She sighed and kept focusing on the road while her palms began to sweat. Gypsy could feel how Cyra’s energy was changing and looked down to see the light that was causing her anxiety to rise. Grabbing Cyra’s thigh, she gave it a squeeze and took a deep breath that would tell Cyra to do the same instinctively.
“We’re in this together and you know that,” Gypsy said softly.
“I know but like what if one of those light things finds us? I don’t even know how that shit works but…” Cyra’s voice trailed off as she focused on her breathing.
Fifteen miles until empty. Fifteen miles until they had to face the reality of losing their head start. Fifteen miles until they would be left to their own devices in a place none of them had ever been before. Fifteen miles until they had to face the unknown and try to figure out what these alien creatures, if that’s what they really were, wanted with them and the human race.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Their gas tank was quickly approaching empty. Fifteen miles diminished to twelve then just seven before the ‘put put put’ of their exhaust told them there was nothing left in their tank. This is it, Cyra thought to herself as they all braced themselves for the journey on foot that was about to pursue. The beams of light had seemed to disappear as quickly as they had appeared in the first place. All of this was strange but there was no time to sit and try to analyze what was happening; they needed to move.
“We have no idea what those beams are, but clearly they’re strong enough to pick up Jeffrey and Lollie’s truck so we need to try to avoid them and warn each other if we see them,” Cole said, grabbing a jug of water and his backpack as he got out of the car.
“All right, let’s just keep moving then and try to stay hidden,” Jeffrey said encouragingly, though his fake smile didn’t fool anyone.
The sun was beating down on them as the crisp and cool Canadian air dried the beads of sweat that started to form on their foreheads. None of them had any idea where they were going or why these alien creatures seemed so interested in them, but they sure as hell didn’t want to find out.
“I feel like we’ve been walking for hours,” Lollie whined.
“Girl, it’s literally been twenty minutes,” Shai said, rolling her eyes as she cracked a smile.
“Really? Damn I need to get out more,” she laughed.
There was no sign of human life anywhere; every direction they looked was forest or road. Without the protection or speed of the car, they had to be extra alert of their surroundings, or lack thereof. The plush green trees seemed to have been stamped in a repeating pattern that was never-ending. Their water supply was running low the longer they walked.
A few hours had passed now and the sun was starting to set, which meant they needed to find a hidden spot among the trees to provide protection along with the blanket of darkness that would hopefully be on their side, despite the unknown of what the beams of light were capable of.
“I think I see a spot that we could campout over here,” Cyra said, pointing to a clearing on their right.
“Let’s go set up camp before it gets too dark,” Cole directed the group, since he had pretty much become the unannounced leader.
Jeffrey and Cole started a small fire like they had the night before while the girls set up makeshift beds next to it for everyone. However, the wind was starting to really pick up so it was hard to say how long the fire would actually last. Shai cuddled up next to Cole as Lollie did the same with Jeffrey. Cyra and Gypsy decided they would take watch first since the night before they were the last to.
With the smell of wood burning and the chilly air hitting their cheeks, keeping their heavy eyelids open proved to be a draining task. While everyone else slept, Cyra and Gypsy cuddled up next to each other and focused on keeping warm. Deeper into the dark abyss of forest, the trees rustled from what sounded like the wind, but when it stopped for a brief moment, the rustling continued.
“It must just be an animal,” Cyra whispered soothingly.
“Are you sure? It’s making a lot of noise,” Gypsy replied with concern in her voice.
“I mean, there’s like moose and shit out here, right? So that would explain it.”
“You’re right, I’m just trippin’ I guess,” Gypsy whispered back as she cracked a smile.
The fear that had briefly taken Gypsy over subsided as the fire started to diminish and the wind picked up. This was not an ideal situation and she could feel her eyelids getting heavier and heavier until she couldn’t keep them open any longer. She rested her head on Cyra’s shoulder and dozed off as the wind continued to softly whistle in the background. Cyra tilted her head to sit on top of Gypsy’s as she felt her dry eyes close. Just for a few minutes and then I’ll be good as new, Cyra thought to herself.
“THEY FOUND US! YOU GUYS! GET UP! MOVE! NOW!”
What? How long was I out for? Cyra thought to herself when she was woken up to Cole shouting. Her eyes adjusted to the light that was shining down on them. Gypsy must have woken up before she did because all of their belongings had already been picked up.
“L
et’s go! We have to go now!” Gypsy exclaimed as she grabbed Cyra’s hand.
“What happened?” Cyra asked as she got to her feet.
“We fell asleep and those alien things found where we were camped out! Jeffrey and Lollie already took off and I just saw Cole and Shai head in a different direction so we need to get moving now!”
They started to run deeper into the woods. The sun had risen and its rays were shining light on their surroundings that had changed drastically from the night before. The clearing they had camped out in the night before had no trees around it whatsoever. It looked as though they had all just disappeared with the darkness. There wasn’t any sign of wildlife and the ground had turned into this red goopy substance that turned orange whenever pressure was put on it.
In the distance they could hear Lollie shriek and Jeffrey screaming out her name. The iridescent beams of light had returned and were quickly multiplying. Gypsy and Cyra looked up as Lollie’s lifeless body was floating in a beam up to the unknown, followed by Jeffrey’s, whose hand was still outreached and looked as though he was trying to reach for her.
“We have to keep moving!” Gypsy shouted at Cyra as a tear started to fall down her cheek.
They kept sprinting until they felt their lungs burning and had to change to a jog to catch their breath again. The sky was rapidly changing colors again, a rainbow gradient that gradually kept getting faster and faster until all the colors blurred together. Another beam of light shot down in front of them, barely missing them by a foot. Frozen in their tracks, Cyra and Gypsy didn’t know what to do or how to react, so they just stood there, paralyzed.
A whooshing sound so loud made the goopy ground vibrate and another bright iridescent beam shot down to their right, except this time, it was only about six inches from where they were. Gypsy, shaking, grabbed Cyra’s hand and started to sprint again. Guided by nothing but adrenaline, Gypsy maneuvered her way through the trees while keeping an eye on the changing sky and trying to figure out if she could see any kind of pattern with the beams that were persistently picking up speed in their quest to capture anything human.
Cyra followed directly behind, as to not lose her best friend and now guide. She was shaking so bad, she felt like her insides were going to find a way to crawl out of her body. Her stomach kept doing somersaults as she gagged down the bit of puke that tried making its way up her esophagus. Unable to form a cohesive thought, she focused on staying with Gypsy.
Fuck, I hope Cole and Shai are okay, Gypsy thought to herself as she pushed a tree branch out of the way. Not entirely sure what type of outcome she expected for their ‘adventure’, but this most definitely was not it. You’ll be fine. You’ll figure this out. Focus on somewhere hidden.
The beams wouldn’t stop shooting down. WHOOSH. WHOOSH. WHOOSH. One after another, iridescent lights illuminated the lush green trees that remained. They were on a mission and weren’t going to stop. Lollie and Jeffrey had been found, so it was only a matter of time before the already aggressive beams picked up even more.
WHOOSH. Almost like clockwork, another beam shot down. One by one, and never in the same place, they had to keep moving or find somewhere to hide until they could come up with a plan on what to do. WHOOSH. WHOOSH. Too close for comfort. We need to move but I don’t know where to. They’re coming too fast. Gypsy continued to think to herself as she scanned the forest for any hint on a decent place to hide, but there was nothing.
“Just breathe, we’re going to be okay. I love you mimosas,” Gypsy whispered to Cyra as she grabbed her hand.
“I love you mimosas,” Cyra whispered back as she squeezed Gypsy’s hand, trying to steady her breathing.
Another beam shot down a few inches away from where they were standing. At the base of a large tree trunk, they both looked around. There wasn’t much coverage and any promising spots were too far. The beams continued to pick up speed and appeared to be shooting down slightly harder each time. WHOOSH.
WHOOSH. WHOOSH. WHOOSH. WHOOSH.
With nowhere else to run, and hiding spots seeming to be far and few, Gypsy and Cyra sat at the base of the tree trunk, holding hands, but in a daring type of way. They calmed each other down enough with just four words and decided that they were done running. Bring it, Gypsy thought to herself as she tightened her hold on Cyra’s hand. Motherfuckers let’s go, Cyra thought as she felt Gypsy’s grip get stronger. WHOOSH.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Floating. Weightless. Paralyzed. Gypsy and Cyra felt themselves getting higher and higher in an iridescent beam of light like the one that had taken Lollie and Jeffrey. Gypsy tried to reach for Cyra but couldn’t. Her body was completely limp and she felt herself barely breathing, like she was in a deep sleep. Fuck, they must have something in this beam shit that won’t let us move, Gypsy thought to herself as she tried to open her eyes; no luck. There has to be a way out of this. Where are they taking us?
There was no way to tell where they were going or what the beam led to. When they were on the ground, they could only see as far up to the colorful sky. For all they knew, these beams were death traps, taking them to be executed. Even though they couldn’t move, they could still feel when a massive force pulled them from their floating state; the voice inside Gypsy’s head went quiet and they were placed on what felt like some sort of cot.
Cyra woke up first, she felt restraints that looked like airplane seatbelts around her legs, arms, and torso. What happened? She thought to herself as she tried to look around. Gypsy was still unconscious in the cot next to her, restrained just the same. They were in a stark white room with fluorescent lighting. Are we in a hospital? She thought as she continued to look around. They were the only ones in the room. The walls were white and bare, as well as the floor, no markings or patterns, just white. The cots were the only things in the room. Why bring us here? She tried to loosen the restraints but her hands wouldn’t reach the buckles.
Gypsy gasped as though she had been holding her breath for a long time and then her eyes shot open and a look of terror flooded her face. Where are we? She thought to herself as she noticed the restraints and the starkness of the room.
“Hey,” Cyra whispered to Gypsy.
“Dude what the fuck is this?” Gypsy shout-whispered back, just in case the alien beings could hear, she didn’t want any alarms to get triggered.
“I’m not sure but they look like seatbelts on an airplane so I think we just need to unbuckle them to get free,” Cyra replied.
“Okay, let me see if I can shimmy one of my arms free,” Gypsy said hopefully as she wiggled her right arm up. “I think if I bend my elbow like this and move my arm this way…”
A click came from the top restraint that held her arms. She quickly sat up and undid the one around her legs and feet. Once she was free, she jumped off the cot and ran over to Cyra to help get her free. The floor felt padded, almost like it was made of pillows. What is this place? She thought to herself as Cyra’s restraints clicked and she became free. Cyra stood up and they ran around the room trying to find a secret door or some way to exit.
The walls were smooth and rippled whenever something touched them. Running all around the stark white room, they tried feeling every inch and crevice within reach but it was no use; whatever had put them in there was making sure it would be nearly impossible for them to escape. Feeling defeated, Gypsy sat on the floor and buried her face in her hands.
“I just don’t understand…there’s always a way out,” Gypsy said with a shaky voice, “at least that’s how they portray this kind of shit in movies.”
“I know, but now you’re sounding like a bit of a cliché don’t you think? Not to be completely unsympathetic but you would call me out too if I was doing the same,” Cyra replied in a firm, but soothing tone.
“I know, I know. But like do you get what I’m saying? This just feels like a really bad nightmare I can’t wake up from.”
&nbs
p; When Gypsy said that, a light went off in Cyra’s head.
“Yo! Do you remember how in the Wizard of Oz Dorothy clicked her heels three times and said ‘there’s no place like home’?”
“Yeah?”
“Well, what if we need to do something like that? Not the same way, but maybe something similar? Or something that makes sense for us?” Cyra’s voice had an excited tone; she had a gut feeling she was onto something.
“What would we do?” Gypsy asked skeptically.
“So what if we maybe held hands and channeled our energy to take us back to our favorite moment together at a festival?”
“Yeah, okay, like that’ll work…” Gypsy scoffed.
“We’ll never know unless we try?” Cyra tried to stay positive.
“All right, fuck it.”
At that point, it didn’t really take much to convince Gypsy. She felt as though she had nothing to lose at this point; but it was a stronger feeling than before. Gypsy was mentally drained. Thinking outside of the box didn’t hurt and Cyra was able to provide the calmness Gypsy needed. Their fingers interlocked as their palms became flat against each other’s. Closing their eyes, they both went back to the first night of Lost Lands.
The lasers were making geometric patterns again as projections shone above them. The bass was shaking the ground and everyone around them was headbanging in unison. They were holding hands and dancing together like they were the only two people in the crowd. They felt a huge force hit them like they had run into a wall or something hard but it was fine because all was right again, until they opened their eyes.
Much to their surprise, what they had pictured, was just their memories working over-time to bring them back to their happy places. It was hard to make out where they were, but it wasn’t the stark white room anymore. There were strobing horizontal lights and anywhere they turned, only showed their reflections, making it easy to get overwhelmed and lose any sense of direction.
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