Scotty’s mother and Alison appeared totally lost. He further explained,
“There is an extremely large, fast-moving gamma ray burst careening through space, some light years away. The burst is still hidden from Earth, behind a relatively nearby star. Soon, their now common trajectories will deviate away from each other. Then the gamma ray burst will become visible from our most powerful telescopes. But seeing it will make no difference, because not only will Earth be destroyed, so will the entire Solar System.”
“When … when is this supposed to happen?” his mother asked, her brows tightly knitted together.
“Sixteen months from now.”
Alison shook her head. “But it’s only speculation, right? They don’t know for sure … how could they?”
Scotty stared back at her blankly.
“I guess they’re pretty smart about such things,” she acknowledged. It was a lot to take in. Knowing that within a year-and-a-half, not only could their own lives come to an end, but mankind’s as well.
“You’re here to tell, um, world governments? Like, help us prepare?” his mother asked, the harshness in her voice softening.
“That’s already in process. Undoubtedly, you have been following recent events ongoing with the International Space Station, right?”
They both nodded. “It went missing … was somehow destroyed. Some kind of terrible accident,” his mother said.
“No, it is fine. The crew is fine. A Vallic space ship is in nearby space. The ISS is fully contained within it. About now, communications with NASA are in progress.”
“So … you really are Scotty? You really are my son?”
Scotty gazed back at her, seeing raw emotion in her demeanor; tears brimming in her eyes. He nodded, “Yeah, I really, really am.”
In a blur, Brianna was off the couch, practically bowling him over. Arms wrapped around him, she hugged him so tightly he had to struggle to breathe. He hugged her back, feeling sixteen years of grief spilling out of her. Larry began to bark, running back and forth within the small confined space. His mother continued to sob, almost to the point of hysteria. Trembling, she struggled to catch her breath. Scotty caught sight of Alison, still sitting across from him on the couch, chewing on her inner lip. She was blinking away tears of her own.
All this was so very Human. Life on planet Hope was nothing like life on Earth. Not that it was an emotionally devoid existence living there, just nothing like this. Humans were messy, emotional creatures. A trait he had learned, over time, to personally bury. Now, feeling his mother’s love pouring out, and seeing what had to be the most beautiful creature he’d ever laid eyes on sitting across from him on the couch, he felt oddly embarrassed. Overwhelmed suddenly, a part of him craved the quiet stillness—the centeredness of being Vallic, his alternate genetic composition. He’d spent far more years being Vallic in nature than Human.
His mother cleared her throat, finally pulling away. “I’m sorry. I’m … I don’t know what I’m supposed to do now.”
Scotty patted her back several times then awkwardly stood up. “Um, I need to use the bathroom.” He glanced to Alison, but she wasn’t looking at him anymore. She was staring up, beyond them, toward the front door. An expression of disbelief then anger crossed her face. In the process of swiveling back around, Scotty got a quick glimpse of the big man storming into his mother’s flat. He recognized the policeman’s face—just as he recognized the large black flashlight arcing its way toward his own head. His last conscious thought, before being struck, was that he really had to perfect the amount of time he needed to change into his more energetic form. The sound of Larry’s barking faded out as he dropped hard onto the worn, threadbare carpet.
PART II
WAYS OF THE VALLIC
Chapter 24
Sixteen years ago …
Nine-year-old Scotty Sullivan tried to make heads or tails out of what was happening to him. To him and Larry. Larry, wet and dankly smelling of the sea, was barking nonstop. Scotty, his arms tightly wrapped around the dog’s midsection and his face buried in his tangle of fur, ventured a peek out—at what lay around them. Not much. It looked like the inside of a cave—dimly lit, everything mostly a drab, mud-brown color. But Scotty knew he wasn’t in a cave, he was in a spaceship. He knew that for sure. His right arm still hurt where something had grabbed ahold of him there; some kind of clawed thing.
“Okay … enough! Stop the barking, already!” Scotty said firmly, yet gently, taking the dog’s muzzle in his hand, the way he’d often seen his dad do. Repeatedly shushing him, he stared directly into the dog’s brown eyes. Larry, sufficiently chastised, did as instructed, though he continued to mutter low growling noises.
Realizing, at least for the moment, that he wasn’t going to die, Scotty slowly rose to his full height—about four-and-a-half feet. Only then did he sense a gentle swaying motion beneath his feet. They were moving! Without a doubt, he figured they were no longer hovering above the shoreline, near his family’s Nantucket vacation home. As the corners of Scotty’s lips reflexively turned downward, he used the back of his hand to wipe away tears and the snot from his runny nose.
“I want to go home now,” he said, just loud enough for anyone nearby to probably hear him. But when no one answered, he spoke out even louder: “I want to go home … now!”
Larry let out a heavy huff before dropping down near Scotty’s feet. Apparently no longer sensing any danger, which was somewhat comforting.
“I wish there was a window so I could see out,” Scotty said to Larry, taking several tentative steps toward a nearby wall. Placing a hand on its surface, he quickly jerked it away. “Freaky,” he muttered aloud. He did it again, only this time letting his palm stay put. The wall’s surface, somehow, didn’t feel familiar, like he thought it would. It was warm and moist and somehow seemed alive. Sort of like how Gomez felt—the skin on his brother’s pet box turtle.
Scotty then thought of his mom, experiencing the same feeling of loss. Sadness began to close in around him, like it had moments earlier. He swallowed hard, doing his best to keep fear at bay.
“Hello? Is anybody in here?”
He listened hard, but on hearing nothing back, he continued to explore—taking slow, deliberate steps. The interior of the ship was nothing like what he thought a spaceship should be. Not like those cool-looking spaceships on TV, or the ones he’d seen in the movies. This ship was more like being underground. There were walls, and even what could pass for steps, leading to either raised or lowered sections.
“It’s like being inside a big ant hill, Larry,” Scotty said, glancing back the way he’d come. But he could no longer see Larry from where he stood. He was about to retrace his steps when the floor began jostling back and forth beneath his feet, forcing him to crouch down. Then, just as suddenly, everything became still, no sense of movement. Slowly, Scotty rose back up. “Larry! Come on, boy, … ”
Feeling a cool breeze flowing out behind him, Scotty spun around. Instantly confused, he was sure a wall had been there only seconds before. Now he faced a large open space, leading into distant darkness. ,”Crap … now this is totally creepy,” he said aloud. Again, he called out for his dog. “Larry! Come on, boy!”
Unsure why, Scotty felt compelled to take a step deeper into the open area—then another. He noticed the texture on the walls and floor in here was slightly different. Smoother. Less like a mud cave, more like the skin of a melon—a cantaloupe.
Startled, Scotty jumped, feeling something move past him. Close enough he felt something actually brush against his skin. “Hey! Who’s there? You’re scaring me!” Now he really wanted Larry—wanted him to be by his side. No, what he really wanted was to go home. He badly wanted to see his mother.
“Larry!” he screamed at the top of his lungs, not understanding what was happening. Why wasn’t his dog obeying him? He decided to hurry back and look for him. Quickly glancing both left and right, Scotty sensed something near him—something close—even t
hough he couldn’t see it. Spinning fully around, he thought, Wait … where’d the opening go? Where’s Larry?
Chapter 25
Scotty could now make them out. A bunch of them were scattered all around, like glowing blue ghosts. But not ghosts—people.
“Hello, Scotty … I know you are scared. Try to relax. You will not be harmed.”
Scotty wondered how the alien knew his name. He then noticed the glowing figure kneeling next to him was close enough to reach out and touch. Somehow, he knew she was female. Friendly, her voice sounded feminine. He studied her face—a face that didn’t have distinct features. Her eyes, nose, and mouth were sort of there, but not really.
“Can I go home now?”
“Eventually.”
“Where’s my dog?”
“Safe. You will see him again.”
“Why am I here? I want to go home.”
“We know that, Scotty. My name is Seve. I promise you, no one is going to hurt you. In fact, you’re destined to have a wonderful life.”
“I don’t know what destined means. Where’s my dog?”
“Safe, I promise.”
“Is this a spaceship?”
“Yes, Scotty, it is,”
“Why does it look like the inside of an animal?”
“Because it is made of organic material. You can think of it as being alive.”
“Why is it alive?”
“My people have found that growing technology is far more efficient than manufacturing technology.
Scotty nodded, still not really understanding. “I’m supposed to be home by dark. I could get into trouble.”
The glowing figure named Seve glanced away. Scotty sensed he had said something that upset her. He didn’t like to hurt people’s feelings, but this wasn’t his fault. He didn’t ask to be here. They just took him. Both him and Larry.
“Listen to me, Scotty. You are not going home for a long time. I’m sorry if that is upsetting to you. Someday you will better understand just why you are here. Why you have been introduced to the Vallic.”
“What’s a Vallic?”
“I am a Vallic … those around us are Vallic. Just as you are Human, we are Vallic. Actually, Vallic-Human … but we have time to discuss all that.”
“You look weird. You’re all weird aliens,” Scotty said, lashing out.
“No, you are the alien. There are more of us … so the only weirdo is you.”
Scotty didn’t want to laugh, but he couldn’t help it. He liked Seve. Liked it that she didn’t treat him like a baby.
“I’d like to show you around. Let you meet some others … just like you,” Seve said.
“People like me?”
“That’s right, the other children that are here. Then it will be time to transform.”
Scotty had no idea how to respond to that. What did transform even mean? He had toy transformers; cars that turned into robots. Were they going to change him into a robot, or into a car?
Seve stood upright, taking his hand in hers. Her almost invisible hand felt normal enough. Scotty let her lead him off, past a cluster of similarly glowing figures.
“How old are you, Scotty?”
“Nine. How old are you?” he asked back.
“Seven-hundred-and-nine, in your years.”
“Wow! You’re older than my great-grandma. She uses a walker. Good thing you don’t need one of those.”
“Yes, that is a very good thing. The Vallic do not age the same way Humans do. In Human years, I am about twenty-nine.”
“That’s close to my mom’s age, I think. At least, that’s the age she says she is every year, though I don’t know why. Can we go get Larry now?”
“Larry is safe where he is, I promise,” she said, as they meandered through a maze, of sorts: Identical-looking spaces, with mud-colored walls separating one area from the next.
“I don’t get it.”
“What is it you don’t get, Scotty?”
“Where does everyone sit down? Where’s all the furniture; the neat contraptions spaceships are supposed to have?”
Seve stopped and peered down at him. “I can understand why you find these surroundings a bit plain. Boring even, yes?”
Scotty shrugged.
“We will not be in this vessel long. It simply is a temporary means of transportation. And since the Vallic have no definitive mass … weight … the need to sit, to lie down constantly, isn’t there.”
Scotty had a lot more questions but decided to hold his tongue … for now.
“Come, you will feel far more at home when we reach the Qhuant.”
Scotty was about to ask what Qhuant meant when they suddenly passed through a shimmering section of wall. Not a wall, really, but something else. Scotty, turning, pointed back at it. “What was that?”
“In your language, I suppose it is similar to an airtight doorway.”
“An airlock,” Scotty said, glancing up at her.
“Very good. Yes, more like an airlock.”
Seve stopped again and held out a hand. This is the Qhuant. A comfortable waiting area. There is a kind of bathroom here and other Human accommodations. And these are the children who will make the journey along with you.”
There were four of them. Other little boys and girls he guessed, who were about his same age. Two boys and two girls, they all looked miserable. Red puffy eyes stared back at him. A little boy, a bath towel wrapped around him, was quietly sobbing.
Scotty noticed this area of the ship had actual places to sit down. Part of the wall, protruding outward, created a long bench encircling most of the space.
“Let me introduce you to the others in here.” She took his hand again and walked him closer to the group of kids. “Scotty, this little boy on the left, is Ernesto.”
Ernesto had dark hair and skin that was darker than his own. Arms crossed over his chest, he was the only one that didn’t look scared or sad. He looked angry. “You’re fucking kidnappers!” he yelled defiantly. “Where are you taking us?”
Ignoring him, Seve said, “This little girl next to him is Pamela. Say hi to Scotty, Pamela.”
Pamela possessed long blonde hair and a homely face. The only one in a dress, there were streaks of red, purple, and green in her hair. Scotty instinctively knew she’d been taken while attending a party. Birthday girl was written all over this kid. Unenthusiastically, she limply lifted her hand to wave.
“This here is Thomas. He is still very upset.”
Thomas, the boy wrapped up in a bath towel, kept his head lowered. His exposed arms and legs looked as though they had never been in contact with sunshine. Turning his head away, he wore a pouty expression.
“And next to Thomas is Tori.”
Tori seemed the most normal of all four children. Even though she looked as if she’d been crying, she was dealing with the difficult situation there. Offering him a lopsided smile, she said, “Welcome to a whole lot of crazy.”
Scotty instantly liked her. She talked like someone older than her years—more like his older brother, Kyle. Scotty offered back a lopsided smile of his own.
“I must leave you now, Scotty, but it won’t be for long. I must make preparations for your transformations.”
There was that same word again. As Seve left, out the same way they’d entered, Scotty stood still.
“You going to just stand there looking stupid?” Ernesto asked.
“Why don’t you shut up,” Tori said. “Maybe give him a second. It’s not like this sort of thing happens to people every day.”
Thomas’ whimpering began to increase in volume as he wiped his teary eyes with a corner of the towel.
“A couple of the ghost aliens snuck in and grabbed him while his mommy was giving him a bath, then she got a phone call, or something,” Ernesto said, mimicking him in a baby-like voice.
“No-o-o! I was giving myself a bath, stupid! My mom wasn’t even there,” Thomas shouted back.
Ernesto, raising his eyebrows, tilted
his head to one side. His deadpan face emphasized his point.
“You can sit down, you know,” the girl in the party dress said.
“What are you looking around for?” Tori asked.
Scotty said, “Larry … my dog.”
“Dead. I’m betting they killed it. I bet they’re eating it right this minute. You know they eat dogs in China,” Ernesto said.
“You are so mean,” Tori said. “And it’s Korea. They eat dogs in Korea. But I’m sure your dog is fine. They probably have a different place here for animals.”
“Yeah, like a kennel,” Pamela offered, sounding optimistic.
Scotty decided to sit next to Tori. As the five young children sat together, lined up on the circular bench, no one spoke for a while. Then Ernesto said, “At least I wasn’t kidnapped wearing only a pink towel.”
Scotty saw Tori roll her eyes, trying not to smile as she glanced toward the rather pathetic–looking Thomas.
Scotty wondered if he was the only one on the verge of totally freaking out here. Suddenly, as a bleak sadness built up within him, he was afraid the other kids would see the tears now welling-up in his eyes. He knew they would make fun of him, call him a big baby. But right then, all he wanted was to feel his mother’s arms wrap tightly around him. For her to make all this somehow go away. Perhaps tell him all this was nothing more than a bad dream. But he knew it wasn’t a dream. And he knew things were going to get worse—a whole lot worse.
Chapter 26
Scotty realized he was probably the youngest of the group. The other four kids looked as though they were maybe a year or two older than him. Pamela might be as old as twelve or thirteen. She definitely was older than his big brother Kyle, who was eleven.
Seve reentered the room as silently as a ghost. On seeing her glowing presence, the boy in the towel leaned forward and demanded, “I have to go home! I have to go home now!”
“Come on, we all want to go home, Thomas,” Pamela said, resting a reassuring hand on his bare shoulder, sounding and acting motherly.
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