《The Visitors》


 Chapter 1 - Elder Bronson

    "Gather around children and listen to this old fogi!"


    Many of the tribes children were crammed into the tent. A sanctuary against the freezing winds outside.


    The children looked up excitedly at the man who had entered the tent.


    "Yay!"


    "Elder Bronson!"


    "Tell us about skibidi the brave! Please!"


    "Calm down children!" the greyed man waved a hand over the small people.


    "Sit, and listen quietly or you will not remember the story." he put a finger to his lips cautiously.


    The children quieted and numerous black pearls looked on around the light of the fire in anticipation.


    A sadness filled the mans eyes for a moment, before quickly warming again. He smiled.


    "Once long ago, so long ago now- the snow would melt, and the world would be covered in warmth and color. I was only a child then. Like you." he pointed around the room with a coy smile.


    "Never!" a child blurted out, causing the group to giggle.


    "Oh, but I was!" he stroked his bristly grey beard laughing a bit to himself. "What a time it was."


    "Sing the song!" a hand raised in the back of the crowd.


    The old man waved his arms around "No, no- gods I drove my parents mad with that song and now you do the same towards me!"


    "Baby shark do-to-do!"


    The crowd erupted into song and the old man pinched the ridge of his nose.


    Then he joined in-


    "Momma shark do-to-do!"


    He''d shout the word shark and jump at one of the children causing them to run away giggling.


    After awhile even that song gets old, and the children became tired enough to listen.


    "Aha, yes, I annoyed my family quite a bit with that one."


    A child raised their hand. "Yes Carmen?"


    "Did you ever see them?"


    The room became quiet and some of the warmth seemed to recede.


    "Yes. I did. But that is apart of my story, no doubt you have heard the rumors of the aliens. From your older siblings, or you over heard it from an adult. -It''s true. Partly, some folks around the village exaggerate- but I was there! When I was not much older than you, mind you- they came. In great balls of fire- they fell from the sky!"


    He dropped a small clump of coal into the fire causing it to flare up.


    A young women who was cleaning clothes in a wash basin in the back of the tent looked up at this.


    The man looked from child to child, gauging their reactions. "They had two arms, and two legs like us."


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    "And a nose!"


    The old man pointed at the boy- "And a nose."


    He picked up a walking stick that sat near the fire at the center of the tent and began pacing around the fire.


    "They kept to themselves at first, gathering and creating lands of their own."


    He drew circles on the ground with his walking stick.


    "They created farms, bred beasts, and spoke in strange tongues."


    "Were they nice?" a child asked sheepishly.


    "No!" the children shrinked away and the man let out a sigh.


    "They were the opposite of nice. Their lands, were poisonous to us, the beasts they bred- became dangerous and no longer respected humankind. The tongues they spoke could drive a person mad if they heard them long enough!"


    "I don''t like this story..." Another child said.


    "It''s scary..."


    "You should be frightful, my children. Oh, you should be. And I''m sorry, but this is a story everyone must know. They must know if they''re to be prepared if they come again. The Visitors, they waged a terrible war on our people. Changing us, killing us."


    "Where did they go?" the young women who was washing clothes asked.


    The elder looked into the fire.


    "The tribes of the world left them alone for a time- we tried to negotiate- to speak with them. But like the worlds we lived in, our very words were harmful to each other. They could change to live in our world, but we couldn''t change to live in theirs. So the tribes made a decision."


    He tightened his grip on his staff.


    "Did they ask them to leave?"


    "Did they use their guns?"


    The elder nodded.


    "They did. They believed, rightfully, that this world was theirs long before the visitors. So if humankind was to fade into the night, so too shall their world."


    It was a shameless act, but he didn''t need to tell the children that. Anyone would determine that for themselves, like his old history teacher said.


    It wasn''t his job to tell them what to feel.


    "They sent bombs to places around the world that changed the weather, it changed the world and forced the beings to leave."


    "Is that why we have no more summer?"


    "Yes, child. We vanquished one foe, only for another to take their place. Only, this one didn''t speak, or care, or to think of others. It was nature. And we''ve unleashed it onto ourselves. We''d rather brave the forces of nature than face the alien and the strange."


    "If we didn''t know them, maybe they weren''t so bad!"


    "If they were good, they would''ve treated humankind more fairly child. No, if they ever return, know this- they are as uncaring as the cold. They will leave you to starve and die just as the cold will. The main difference being, the cold doesn''t have two legs in which to follow you with."


    He looked towards the entrance to the tent.


    The children''s gaze looked as well.


    Suddenly the tents flaps opened and a burly man shouted; "BLAH!"


    "EEK!" the children shrieked which quickly turned into laughter. Little hats and gloves were tossed at him which the man playfully batted away and shielded himself from.


    The elder laughed.


    "Welcome back chieftan, so I take it your hunt was a success?"


    "Yes, the rights are prepared. Have you... Told the children yet?"


    The man shared the melancholic expression as the elder.


    "No... Not all of it. Yet." He turned towards the children.


    "Children, I tell you this- not to scare you. But to protect you. You are our future, you must be ready. Remember my stories, and tell them to your children. In time, the lessons will become clear as you get older... I- I.... Must go now. To go on my great journey."


    "Awe!" the children were a smattering of disappointed faces and some even seemed on the verge of tears.


    "-Know of the visitors and know that to reclaim the world of color and warmth- you must be prepared to make sacrifices." he waved his walking stick towards the children.


    A child began to cry, John, he was always a sensitive child. But that sense would serve him when he was older.


    "Now children, no tears. You know our tribes ways, and they are good."


    The Elder put a hand on his shoulder.


    "Abide by them. ...I''m not leaving you, the great journey is an honor every elder does to preserve the future of his tribe. I will still be with you in the stories I''ve told you, in the lessons I''ve taught."


    He gave a warm, bittersweet smile.


    "I walk with you in your hearts. As you walk within mine." he placed a hand over his chest.


    "Now come here." he opened up his arms and the children huddled into a group hug.


    "Who will tell us stories?"


    One of the children said as they embraced him.


    "Go make your own stories you lazy louts."


    The elder jostled their hair and turned to the village chieftain.


    "I''m ready."


    The two ducked out of the tent- freezing winds blew into the tent nearly extinguishing the fire.


    The children went to follow but another man stopped them.


    "Children it''s time for rope lessons! -Don''t give me that face!" the man shouted angrily.

 Chapter 2 - The Hunt

    "Carmen! Keep up!" John shouted, running over the hard sections of snow.


    "I am! Talk to me when I''m out of range of my shot!"


    "Then take it!"


    Carmen slid forward through the snow and drew his bow.


    The arrow arced into the air and thudded into the snow near a moose. Which scampered away leaving them behind.


    "Damn it! -Don''t fucking rush me!"


    "I''d rather be rushed by John than starvation."


    Laura said as she jogged over.


    "We''ve been out here too long, over working won''t do us any good. We need to go back and get some warmth in our bones. We''ll try again." John said, pulling his fur lined hood up.


    "I''m so fucking tired of hunting moose! They take like- five arrows to put down! And your traps do fuck''all to stop ''em!"


    "My traps aren''t designed for moose... And I get it Carmen, I do. It''s the deer as you say. They''ve stopped passing through here, perhaps they''ve learned."


    "Great, so it''s no ones fault when we starve to death." Laura said.


    "Honestly out of the two of you Laura, Carmen is the better shot." Laura punched Johns shoulder.


    They bickered as they went back to their makeshift hunters camp. A small tent barely big enough for the trio to sit cross-legged around a small fire.


    A failed hunt wasn''t unusual, it was more common than a successful one. But the fact remained- it was a failure. It meant hungry mouths back at the village for another day.


    Nothing hurt the heart more than to return to see their hopeful faces and be empty handed.


    "What are we going to do, John?" Carmen asked.


    "We can''t go back with nothing- not again."


    John sighed and wiped his face. "Chew with your mouth closed Laura, Jesus Christ."


    Laura smiled coyly at him, showing teeth dirtied with smoked meats.


    "I have a plan, I say we hunt something that won''t run away."


    "Agreed."


    "You two are insane." Laura sucked her teeth and threw the rib bone outside of the miniature tent.


    "No, we''re desperate. It''s as you''ve said, Laura. It''s either greater risks- or starvation. Who knows if the deer will come back? We need to find another regular source of food."


    "Well, I got plenty of arrows. We could do it. Bring down something big." Carmen was thumbing over the many pointy sticks in his quiver.


    Carmen was always cocky as far as hunters went- but he was good. So long as you can get him to the beast- he could bring it down.


    He was just a sloppy tracker. That''s where John came in.


    Well, and Laura. Though she was sort of a mix between the two, a decent shot, a decent tracker, but she didn''t excel at either.


    The team fit together well and got things done. That''s why they were together, that''s why anyone was together in this world.


    A person wouldn''t survive other wise.


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    That''s what family was, whoever survived together- stayed together.


    John knew he had a responsibility to them, to make the time so that people could do other things besides simply survive.


    it''s a weight he''s always carried with him.


    The worry and dread, it made him plan constantly. To prepare. To foresee.


    And he''s considered this situation before. A stable food supply.


    "We go to the pit."


    "Now I KNOW you''re crazy."


    "The pit? You mean the place the old folks go on their "Great journey?", I gotta agree with Laura John, you''re crazy."


    John poked a few fingers into the tents entrance and peaked out.


    "It''s the best bet, think about it- the deer don''t come here because we come here. So... Let''s go somewhere we don''t usually go. And a dire beast won''t run from a human it''s expecting to eat. Makes for an easy shot, right Carmen?"


    "Yeah, they don''t hide or run because they have a bunch of geezers walking right up to them to feed ''em." Carmen mimed a person walking with his rib of meat and then took a big bite.


    Laura looked on enviously as Carmen munched on his ration.


    "Also, they eat people, so if we eat them- isn''t that cannibalism?" She said.


    "So long as they''re not one of us, I don''t care if our meat is the same."


    The trio eventually came to an agreement.


    Throughout the night they took turns resting and keeping watch.


    But then midday approached and they had to make the most of the light while they could.


    They packed up their miniature hunting tent and set off towards the pits.


    The village was surrounded on most sides by a valley of mountains. A giant bowl of snow and half-dead evergreen trees.


    They headed to a split between such mountains, a partly concealed pathway.


    Which led to a cliffside with an abyss on the other side- which dire beasts climbed out of.


    Many elders would leap off it rather than surrender themselves to the beasts that prowled the area.


    The elders called it; "The Final Path".


    It was there that they would find their regular food source.


    The snow crunched under their feet as they made their way to it.


    It wasn''t so far, the valley wasn''t overly large, only a few hundred acres across.


    "So you seriously think we can do this John? You ever see one of those things?"


    "...I''ve heard stories. But as monstrous as they are- they fear the village and keep their distance. It''s something we can kill. And I got something new I wanted to try."


    "Oh, Johns got a new toy. Great."


    "Hey! Don''t my ''toys'' work? Trust me, neither of you would ever see one of my traps if I didn''t think it''d work."


    "That moose snapped your snare like it was a shoelace." Carmen snickered.


    "You got me there... But trust me, this one will work. You''re good with a bow, even Laura-" John dodged out of the way of one of her punches.


    "-Here! Look!" John quickly pulled a small steel ring from his pack.


    "A... Bracelet?" Laura cocked her head to one side.


    "It''s a bear trap! I made it after something I saw in one of the elders books. Watch, you open it like this-"


    He pried the ring open doubling it''s width and revealing a few iron teeth. It clicked into place and he sat it on the ground.


    "You put a stake through this ring here to anchor it- and..." John pushed the small metal plate in the center and ''SNAP'' it closed crushing the stick.


    "That''s uh... Actually pretty nifty." Carmen stroked a non-existent beard.


    Johns traps were the only reason he was a hunter and not a miner or carpenter.


    Of course, everyone was a hunter when times got hard enough.


    And that''s why led to John creating these traps- he couldn''t shoot with a bow or throw a spear.


    "Do you expect them to just walk right into it?" Laura said.


    "Like any trap, it takes a degree of planning and foresight. I''ll place a few in a line at a chokepoint- where we''ll lead the beast."


    "How many do you have?"


    "Three."


    "Doesn''t seem like enough."


    "-It''s enough, trust me. We''ll bag something big and the entire village will be fed. We''ll be heroes, like in the old mans stories."


    "Ugh, don''t remind me." Laura waved a hand at John.


    The mountain path wasn''t too far from the village, but they had no plans to return until they had some food and kept on hiking by.


    Red metallic cans marked the path to the pit, impaled onto tree branches and crumpled into rock crevices.


    They were officially on the path, the ''great journey'' people in the village did when they got too old to take care of themselves.


    "This place is good, we''ll set it up between those two cliffs, it''s a natural footpath. -That''s how animals think- they''ll take the path of least resistance. So... Let''s make it easier."


    John began kicking snow out of the way, dragging branches to form miniature walls.


    Gradually making a cone shape that led to his set of traps.


    "When animals run away from us they make split second decisions and they''ll always choose the most open and clear path they have. And that''s where we''ll get them."


    John set the bear traps.


    "Don''t step into my traps." John said.


    "No shit." Carmen and Laura said together.


    "It''s getting dark, soon the dire beasts will start coming out." Laura was looking around the tree line, a hand on the hilt of her dagger.


    "We need to get some warmth in us before the hunt... We''ll need to work quickly. Set up the tent, set up some bait, and be ready to run."


    They spent the next hour working quickly.


    Their miniature tent was setup a dozen acres away from their traps.


    It was far too cold to spend hours at a time outside, so any person who worked away from the village had to carry tents like these.


    "What do you think a dire beast taste like?" Carmen asked.


    "Like meat." Laura said, lying across his lap.


    The tent was just too small to value personal space.


    She closed her eyes to rest as Carmen began to work on his arrows, shaving them into points, and adjusting the leafy feathers.


    After an hour or so they left their tent behind and resumed their hunt.

 Chapter 3 - Moose Stew

    They waited, dire beasts didn''t need to be tracked after all. They prowled. They would find them.


    The trio climbed trees not too far from one another and knocked their bows.


    Even John, as poor a shot as he was, he could draw the beasts attention all the same.


    After awhile, the cold was beginning the bite. And John hoped a dire beast would show soon.


    Sure enough, his prayers were answered and a black shape was seen marching into the path.


    Even though there was still daylight left, it''s figure was still jet-black in the light of the orange setting sun.


    It was lithe, and tall. Like a tree, thorny tendrils sprouted from the torso in random lengths and directions. It walked on all fours.


    And It made a ghostly gasping sound, like it struggled to breath.


    Fear bubbled up in Johns chest, but it quickly turned to excitement. He could do this. He could change everything for the tribe, and it begins today.


    It approached their bait, a bit of meat hung from a stick. It walked around it for a time, seemingly confused as to why it was there. It looked around.


    It quickly saw Carmen- the one nearest the bait. But as it did, he let loose his arrow, and so did the others.


    It roared as the arrows bit into it''s bark like skin- it swept the bait away and charged at us.


    We leaped from the trees and ran to the traps.


    -It was fast- even faster than they expected. But it still wasn''t enough to catch them.


    They weren''t far from the traps- they had no reason to be.


    John leaped over the line of traps and looked back.


    Carmen and Laura were right on his heels and leaped over next to him.


    "Come on! No time to gawk!" Laura grabbed his arm and pulled as she ran sending him staggering after her.


    They ran further- just to be safe- just so they could make it to the village if they had to.


    Until they heard a ''SNAP'' and a groan of pain, the creature fell to it''s side grabbing at it''s foot.


    Then it rolled into another trap causing it to roar again, it furiously thrashed around trying to free itself.


    "Now!"


    They all shot arrow after arrow at it.


    Many missed, but enough landed. Eventually, it went still.


    "WHoo!" Carmen cheered.


    "Thank god no other beasts showed." Laura said as she gathered her breath.


    "That''s why I setup so close to the valley, they shouldn''t wonder so far on this side of the traps."


    Carmen slapped John on the back "All according to plan! That''s why you''re the leader!"


    John blushed. "Yeah... Well, you know."


    Laura scowled at him. "You need to learn to take a compliment."


    "We all did good. But... Thanks. Let''s uh... dress it. Shall we?"


    "Yeah, this is gonna'' to be interesting..."


    The three walked over and gazed at the charred looking corpse.


    The skin was hard and flaky, but it looked like something that could''ve been a moose at some point.


    Rigid tendrils of black limbs stuck out from it, alongside the arrows. Some were wrapped around the shafts as if they could pull them free.


    John swallowed hard, and began slicing into the body. It was warm, and red. Like deer. But instead of fuzzy hide it had black thick scales clung to the flesh.


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    They went back to the village, packs laden with wet meat.


    Proud and victorious.


    As they approached the rows of tents and wood shacks, people emerged and surrounded them.


    Children played around, knowing the adults would be in a better mood now that food was assured.


    A man in his grey years approached, he was a cook essentially and handled the towns food supplies. "The hunt went well?" he asked.


    "It... Did." John said.


    "Moose?"


    "...Yeah."


    "Very good. We''ll put it in tonights stew. Ya'' boys did good."


    "Ahem." Laura coughed.


    He waved her away "Oh, you know what I mean."


    The smell of the meat floated up from the cooks tent, and the sun had finally set on a day that seemed to last forever.


    The trio was the talk of the town- they were just one of a dozen hunting groups- but now they were held in high esteem. Other hunters would hound them for advice.


    For times like these, some coal from the mines was spared to create a bonfire that kept the cold of night at bay.


    At least for a few hours.


    They walked around and made conversation. Drinking potato vodka, eating stew. It was a luxurious feeling.


    "So tell us, how did you do it? We''ve been trying to nail a moose for days now. No deer in sight." one of the other hunters asked as they ate.


    "I have a new trap, handles the big stuff."


    "Is that what you wanted all that metal for?"


    "Yep. look-" John demonstrated the traps for them. Crushing sticks into them.


    "That''s hella cool! You should stick around and make some for all of us rather than hunting! We''ll be eating like this normally!" the other hunters cheered.


    At this point the other villagers had left them alone and now the hunters wanted to talk shop with them.


    "Man, moose tastes a bit strange compared to deer."


    "It could taste like dirt and I''d still eat it. If it means never going hungry."


    Well technically, you could still starve by eating too much of the same thing. But John understood his point.


    John didn''t want to tell them it was a dire beast. The topic of dire beasts is a bit taboo in the village. He didn''t understand why- in most ways, they were just another animal.


    John did what he had to. They were desperate and a regular food source like this will tide them over so they could instead focus on venturing further from the valley as a people.


    Camren was joking with some hunters, Laura was showing some children how to run with a bow and quiver.


    Some of the other hunters with fidgeting with his traps, trying to reverse engineer them. It''s just a device described in a book, one of many in the elders library.


    Most people probably didn''t have the time to read though- but that would change. Now.


    Perhaps his traps would work well on moose too. It''s just the nature of moose that makes them more difficult to catch.


    Moose flee, dire beasts chase. And that''s perfect for Johns traps.


    John looked down at his bowl, the floating chunks of meat and potatoes.


    And he slurped from the bowls broth. It wasn''t as good as deer- but it was delicious.


    "Oh my god! Liam, what are you doing? AAhHh!"


    A older woman''s scream ran through the small village.


    John looked up towards the source of the noise and everyone had gathered outside a families tent.


    He stepped behind the crowd and looked- the tent flap opened and a young man stepped out.


    Blood smattered his face, he had a black tendril sprouting from his nostril. His head snapped to the side, and his body bent into an awkward shape.


    His eyes looked straight ahead lifelessly and he roared, it wasn''t a human noise.


    "Dear god, it''s the curse." an elder said.


    John looked down at his bowl in horror- he saw a tendril growing from one of the chunks of brown meat. Reaching out- feeling.


    It clattered to the ground, spilling. A chunk of meat crawled across the floor, dragging itself by an inky black tendril.


    The infected young man lurched forward and swiped at one of the people.


    A hunter brought him down with a hatchet and they surrounded him beating him to death.


    But it was too late, people were changing all over.


    One after another. They got a far away look in their eyes and black tendrils would begin sprouting from them.


    Until they went feral and attacked.


    Those who haven''t changed yet fought.


    But eventually the trio found themselves in the back of one of the larger wooden shacks as the infected pounded at the doors.


    "You fools, you''ve damned us all!" an elder walked up to John, snatching him up by his collar.


    "That was dire beast meat! Wasn''t it? It must''ve been! There''s a reason we do not hunt them!"


    Another elder approached putting a hand on his shoulder.


    "Elder Bren, it is too late, in any case. We should''ve been less secretive about these things. It is partly our fault. Release him."


    The spry older man dropped John to his knees.


    He spit on him and walked away, helping the others hold the door closed.


    John looked up to the other elder remorsefully who looked back at him pitifully.


    "I''ve doomed us all." John said.


    "Yes."


    John felt his gut churn, it felt as if something was beginning to claw it''s way out from within him.


    It was happening to him now! He clutched his stomach.


    "Elder please! Is there someway to stop the curse?"


    "Yes.", the elder grabbed Johns hand and placed a root in it.


    Then closed his fingers over it.


    Then he took a piece of the root himself and ate it.


    After a moment he began to convulse and foam at the mouth.


    He was dead before thirty seconds.


    He looked around at the chaos in the room. Some sat huddled crying holding each other.


    The pain didn''t stop, it built and built within John. He opened his hand and looked at the small root.


    "John- I''m scared!" Laura collapsed near him, clutching her chest.


    "I''m so sorry Laura- I didn''t know!" he looked her pleadingly in her eyes.


    He saw Carmen step away from the door and start clutching his body as well.


    He knew how she felt about him. He would''ve been whatever she wanted him to be for her, if she''d forgive him. If it would let her know- Camren, the village- if it would let them all know he did it for them. He didn''t mean it.


    He would do anything.


    Feel anything.


    But it was too late.


    The door to the shack exploded open and the infected stormed the room.


    His vision was fading as his body convulsed and he twitched and crawled over to Laura.


    He placed the root into her mouth.


    "I-it''s easier... Than this.. I-I''m sorry... I''ll see you on the other side... My friend."


    Tears filled her eyes and she chewed the root.


    They shook in each others arms as the pain racked them, the sounds of fighting and the death throes of others fading in the background.


    And a voice filled his head.


    "Foolish human."

 Chapter 4 - Spaceship

    Everything went black for John, but to his own surprise, he awoke to a metal floor. To the murmur of conversations around him.


    "You''re finally awake."


    He looked up to see a man a decade older than himself at least.


    "Who are you? Where am I?"


    "I haven''t heard much but what I heard from the others. Seems you really screwed the pooch."


    "The... What?"


    "A saying where I come from." the man offered a hand.


    John grabbed his hand. He didn''t look like the others in his village, he had darker skin. He was told about how there were diverse peoples elsewhere by the Elders.


    "John!"


    Carmen ran over and hugged him, John was still in shock of being alive- he hesitantly hugged him back.


    "Carmen? What happened? Are we dead?"


    "No, turns out the Visitors never left, they were just in space watching. That''s what we think this is at least. I mean, they came from space, and look." Carmen pointed to the ceiling.


    It was the Earth. Covered in cloud and white. Spots of sickly green and black.


    So this place belonged to the Visitors? And they saved them from Earth?


    He looked around, everything was gleaming metal. There were benches and tables throughout the room and people were sitting and talking.


    His tribe- the village. Mixed in with others. Strangers.


    There was a stage too at one end of the room.


    "Where''s Laura?"


    "Oh- don''t worry she''s okay. Apparently she took some poison and it''s taking some extra care to bring her back."


    Oh, another thing for John to remember and regret. He starred off for a moment, then snapped back.


    "Wait- bring her back?"


    "Yep, the visitors are crazy, death is just a sickness to them."


    John didn''t know what to think, what to feel.


    "John? Yeah, I know- take a moment. Here, take a seat."


    They sat down. The man who spoke to John first sat nearby. Drinking from a silver cup.


    "The Visitors brought us here, saved us, why? I thought they were-?"


    "We all did." the man from before spoke.


    He placed his cup down and smirked at John. "Emanuel Ramirez" he reached to shake his hand.


    John shook his hand. "John."


    "John? That''s a bit generic don''t you think?"


    "Generic is easy to remember." Carmen reached his hand out, "I''m Carmen."


    "Nice to meet you Carmen. So I''ve over heard you all, this man killed his tribe?"


    Johns heart sank. Carmen grimaced.


    "Technically I messed that up too- we were starving, and the deer left the valley. So..."


    "You ate a dire beast."


    "We ate a dire beast." Carmen nodded.


    "Yeah, never eat the cursed. Seems you got lucky. I''ve seen plenty of people turn into monsters and they never ended up here."


    "And where is here?" John asked.


    He looked around. Even the boy who was first infected was alive again, laughing with his family as if nothing happened.


    It was surreal.


    "I don''t know, some kind of prison? Our people know about as much as yours do. Y''all lived in one place? Must''ve been crazy good hunters, or a really good spot."


    "I can''t speak for the rest but I just might be the greatest hunter alive."


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    "Mmhmm." the man drank from his cup.


    "What are you drinking?"


    "Uh, water?"


    "Can I get some?" the main raised an eyebrow and looked over to a device on the wall a distance away.


    Carmen got up. "You want one?" John nodded, and he walked away.


    "Hey, cheer up friend. Like you said, times were desperate- it''s not like you knew."


    "But it all just happened..."


    "Sometimes shit just happens."


    John blinked a few times. What an odd saying. Of course things happen.


    "Just give me a minute..."


    John stood up, and walked over to the center of the room.


    "Uh... Hey! Hey everyone!"


    The roar of different conversations goes down to a murmur as many of the people in the room looked towards John.


    Many faces were angry.


    "I just wanted you all to know- how fucking sorry I am."


    The faces starred back at him as he stammered to find more words than that, but he couldn''t. Beyond that he was sorry.


    An Elder stood, the one who spit on him before-


    "Sorry doesn''t fix anything... But, as my brother had stated, we as Elders were a bit too secretive when teaching children about the nature of dire beasts."


    A few murmurs started between some of the elders.


    "But that doesn''t absolve you completely! There was no reason you should''ve said it was moose meat! All this could''ve been avoided if you only told the truth."


    "Yeah!", "I can''t believe I ate that...", "Kick him out.", "Where? Into space?"


    voices around the room quieted as the chieftain stood.


    "It''s true! John has failed us. But he did not do so out of malice, and has admitted his guilt. He should be allowed to die with honor, and go on his great journey."


    John looked around the room, and some others did as well. Where would he go?


    "Clearly that is no longer possible. How John will make recompense for his actions, time will tell. After we discover the nature of these... ''Visitors''."


    "Okay great! Thank you, please be seated!"


    A new voice joined the foyer, every bit as commanding and confident as the chieftains.


    A women walked across the metal stage. Displays like the old TVs the Elders books showed were on the walls behind her.


    "My name is Sindy Chromwell, that is of course- ''Sindy with an s''." A few S''s flashed the screens.


    She looked around the room, surveying her audience.


    She was dressed in a fluffy pink jacket and jean shorts with high heel boots.


    "Are you all from the americas? That''s like, so cool. I was from america. Until the Annunaki showed up back in 2024. Now I represent them for other people. ''Cause some people get like, weird about them. So if you want to ask them you can ask me. Any questions? Just like, real quick?"


    She gave a polite smile and began looking around the room. Did she say 2024? That was... 72 years ago. But she looks younger than John did.


    A chorus of voices erupted with questions.


    "Why are we here?", "What is this place?", "Who are the Annunaki?", "Do you have beer?"


    "Yep, yep." She nodded her head at the people and waved them on.


    After awhile the questions petered out and she waited a moment before continuing.


    "Cool, great. Uhm, well... Like, the Annunaki are the Visitors who are uhm, like, aliens and stuff? And there''s like, this ship, that''s outside space, on the coast of the earth? Coast? Uhm... It''s not a prison, and you''re here ''cause humanity was like... Going extinct and all?"


    She had an inflection in her voice that made everything she said seem like a question.


    The crowd stirred again with more questions.


    "Where are we going?", "What do they want with us?", "Do we live here now?", "and the beer thing?"


    She clapped her hands. "Okay! Nice! Uhm, well, humanity isn''t like most things they''ve come across so far, so they''re kinda playing it by ear. Is what they say. I mean they didn''t say that exactly but that''s like, their vibe. You know? We talked a bit, and we got a good phase one for our new program."


    "Where''s the fucking beer?"


    "Shut up Carl, you fucking alcoholic."


    "Don''t call me alcoholic you cuck!"


    "I''m not offended by that." The angry man just starred at him in silence.


    "Uh-huh... Anyway!" she clapped her hands again. "We''re gonna go on a little trip, we''ve kind of worked with the Visitors to organize this, and I''m not one to brag but... I think you''ll all be SUPER excited for this."


    The screens flashed and showed tropical islands, roaming fields of green, snowy mountains, massive deserts.


    The people were enraptured in the screens. Like John they''ve likely seen the old books and their pictures, but this seemed so much more vibrant.


    Then it showed a world from space, three moons of varying sizes floated around it.


    "Introducing! -Earth 2 point O. Isn''t it great? My friends and I were able to swing a good deal for it. No need to thank us- we did it for the helpsies, cause we all need some helpsies sometimes you know?" she made a look she likely thought seemed sympathetic but to the crowd it was patronizing.


    "Why are you showing this to us?"


    The chieftain asked.


    "Because this is where we''re moving you silly.... Here, you''ll be out of the Annunakis way, and you''ll be safe and happy."


    No Visitors, no more cold, or toxic land, just a massive beautiful world? It was all too good to be true, and yet, John felt off about this. As if there was more to it than that.


    "What is your price?" The chieftain asked.


    The young women looked back in confusion. "Oh you poor thing."


    She stepped off the stage and walked over to him. He was a fairly bulky man easily twice her age.


    She looked up at him and rubbed his arm. "It must''ve been like, SO hard..."


    "Life is hard."


    "It doesn''t have to be... If you have enlightenment."


    "En..lighten...ment?"


    "Yep. If you were just like, enlightened, you could be like, liberated from your worldly desires and worries and stuff." she hugged him.


    The chieftain looked at the rest of us in confusion. An Elder shrugged.


    After a moment she released him and climbed back onto the stage.


    "Why can''t we have our own spaceship, and go our own ways? Why should we live contained when there''s a people out there in the stars?"


    "If you were enlightened you could get stuff like that but... Nah, that would just make your situation worse. I mean, you bombed yourselves because of us. That''s like, pretty stupid. Imagine if we gave you worse weapons than that. Like, wow."


    Us- has this girl forgotten she''s human just like the rest of ''us''? John thought.


    "Yeah, we decided it''d be better if we gave you a play pen to sort it out. In the Visitors own words- well sort of- ''Those of you who are enlightened, have a path for ascension.'' So we gave you a world worth wandering in. Figuring enlightenment out. Like a cradle."


    "This is... Patronizing."


    "Like literally, and again, you don''t have to thank us. It''s all helpsies. But! I do have to tell you- it won''t be like it was on Earth 1.0. On Earth 2.0, you get-" she opens her mouth and strikes a ''are you ready to be excited?'' pose-


    "Fantasy powers! Wow!" she looked back at the crowd disappointed by their reaction.


    She sighed.


    "When you arrive, you''ll be presented with basic class choices, and you can go from there. Like a video game. Make houses, wage war, make babies, you know- human things."


    She''s sort of lost her interest a bit it seems as she examines the back of her elaborately painted fingernails.


    "When do we arrive?" Emanuel asked.


    "Anytime you''d like, but there is just ONE more itsy-tinsy tiny-whiney little thing." she pinched the air in front of her.


    "We need a tribute. One from each of your groups to enter a special program! Choose whoever."


    "What is the nature of this... Program?" The chieftain asked.


    "Its a secret."


    "Tell us this secret."


    "Uhm..." She rolled her eyes.


    "No. Yeah, nope. It is NOT optional and you gotta pick someone- sorry, but hey- paradise?" She shrugged and held her hands up like she was weighing something.


    "Pick some old person or something. That''s my advice. I''m going to stop talking now. I''ll come back in like, five minutes."


    She walked away, even her walk was irritating to John.


    The different groups began arguing over who this tribute would be immediately. You''d think we''d talk a bit about what kind of planet this was. Was their deer to hunt? No, no one asked such things.


    Johns village looked towards him. And he just nodded and sat in silence.

 Chapter 5 - Married with Children

    After five minutes Sindy returned to the room and directed the main groups towards a set of sliding doors, and the 4 tributes to another set.


    It wasn''t a heartfelt separation, no hard goodbyes, Johns parents were just about as disappointed as the rest of his tribe and couldn''t really meet his gaze. It was the same for Carmen.


    And it seems the other tributes were equally as alienated by their tribes. Two of them were elderly, and one was younger but they rubbed John the wrong way. The look in their eyes made him... Uneasy.


    Carmen tried to stay with John, and make a case for Laura as well, but when a few robotic beings appeared and Sindy demanded him to follow his group, there was nothing he could do.


    So there he was, with three others walking down a hallway.


    "Where do you think we''re going?" an elderly woman asked.


    "I don''t know, maybe they have a worse planet for us."


    "They probably wanted a chance to cull the outcasts, and used us as a barometer for who the outcasts were." the strange man said. He had pale white skin, and dark eyes with dark hair.


    "Slave labor", is what the old man said.


    "Possibly..." John said, though he was likely only an outcast because of a recent mistake. It really was just another kind of program the aliens had, in all likelyhood. They were just not going to a world with magical powers. But the sky was the limit besides that.


    They arrived at a set of small doors. It was human architecture type doors, with knobs. It was surreal to see them surrounded by mechanical spaceship innards. Panels and vents. Then there was a wooden door with brass handle.


    A voice emerged. "One tribute to each door."


    There were slight differences to each door, from color and build, to the type of doorknob.


    The elderly woman walked up to a white door with pink flowers on it. It has a glass doorknob. "Good luck." she said as she walked in. "You''re just... Going in?"


    "I''m too old to wait out here with you all."


    She closed the door behind her.


    The other older man walked to another door, it was heavy and brown, with a lever handle.


    John looked towards the strange man. There were more doors than tributes in the hall. Plenty more to choose from.


    He scoffed and walked to a seemingly random door and went inside.


    John stood alone in the hall. Which door should he choose? Did it matter? He walked to a glass door, it was like a greenhouse door, from the old magazines.


    He pressed his hands against his brow and the door trying to block the light and see into the black interior. It was no use.


    He stepped back and examined the door. There was dirt and grime gathered around the edges. Seemed harmless enough.


    John took a deep breath, pulled the brass lever and stepped inside.


    He took a few steps and then the ground disappeared. Falling through blackness he screamed out. Then light surrounded him and he fell onto a soft squeaky surface.


    He heard a pleasant chirping noise. The sun shown brightly into a room past white drapes. Golden sun flowers could be seen just outside the window.


    If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.


    Rustic furniture lined the walls, odd little knick-knacks cluttered the room.


    He was in a wooden house- an old farmhouse or rather, a new one?


    John heard thudding footsteps on the hardwood floor outside the room, a toddler burst through the door and jumped onto the fluffy white bed sheets causing it to squeak.


    He climbed into Johns arms and looked up at him expectantly.


    "You''re up! Finally! Can I open my presents?"


    "Your... Presents?"


    The kid laughed. Another one appeared in the door, carrying a stuffed animal. A little girl. She was wiping her eyes.


    Then a woman appeared behind her,


    "I told you to let your dad wake up on his own." she scooped the boy up in her arms and kissed John casually.


    "Uh... Where am I?" John shook his head, and grabbed the sheets of the bed. It felt so real.


    "What do you mean? Are you okay?" the woman asked.


    "Yeah, I''m fine, I just uh... Woke up.", he rubbed his head. The aliens sent him here? Was this real, or a very real dream?


    "Okay well perk up I have coffee ready downstairs."


    Coffee? John never had it, but he''s heard of it. A bitter drink that gave people a boost of energy before they crash out.


    "Come on kids get your breakfest before it goes cold." She a gave John a ''hurry up'' look as she left.


    John looked out of the window.


    The morning sun was rising over fields of sunflowers and corn. There was a massive barn with a shiny metal roof. A tractor sat outside it with someone working on it. "Mother-fucker!" they shouted.


    There was fences where some barn animals were, horses and cows.


    Then he noticed the smell, it was... So much. In the snow, John hardly smelled anything in the cold air. But here, he could smell the land. The air. It was gross, but also the best thing he''s ever smelled.


    "You''re still getting ready? Make sure you wear what I laid out for you, for the pictures." the woman put a hand on the door frame and looked in for a moment.


    "Yeah." John said as she left.


    He walked over to a white collared shirt that was hanging on the a closet door. This fabric was so thin, what could it protect against? Why even wear it? He thought.


    After getting dressed he walked down the hall. It was all so... Peaceful. He walked into the kitchen and smelt what must''ve been coffee. And the sweetest meat he''s ever smelled.


    "Bacons done!" the woman turned around from the stove and started plating it on the childrens plates. He ogled the precious resource being served out so casually.


    "Are you sure you''re okay? You seem a bit off this morning, are you feeling sick?"


    "Maybe a little bit, sorry."


    "It''s okay." she walked over and placed the back of her hand on Johns forehead. "You do feel a little warm."


    "I''m done! Can I open my presents?" the boy said as he set his silverware down loudly around his empty plate.


    The woman laughed, "Okay okay! But watch your cartoons, we''ll will be in in a minute."


    John rubbed his face, this was all way too surreal.


    The kids ran from the room.


    She looked towards John with concern.


    "Don''t worry, I''ll be fine." John smiled.


    "Good." She walked up and adjusted his collar. "After all, it''s his special day." she kissed him again. As she went away she had a confused concern on her face hesitantly leaving the room.


    John grabbed the mug of some hot brown fluid and drank it. It was the best thing he ever drank and quickly emptied the cup.


    It made his heart beat faster and woke him up. Which he did feel as those he just woke up, even though he just walked through a door.


    He was still himself, his reflections said so. Why was he here? Did his tribe get another life and he got someone else''s? He had hoped not, as much as he liked this place, he felt like an intruder and wanted nothing else but to leave.


    But then what would the kids think?


    John walked out of the kitchen into a type of living space with couches and a flatscreen TV.


    The kids were sat in front of it watching a yellow square in a suit talking to a squirrel in an astronauts outfit under water. It smacked a pink thing on the head and it sprang back up with broken teeth.


    "-Haha!" John laughed, he quickly caught himself- but it was so unexpected. The kids looked over their shoulders smiling.


    "Alright alright let''s get to it then." John walked to the couch and plopped down. He was still getting used to his senses, they were all firing off to new experiences.


    Hopefully they just thought he was having a slow morning.


    "Yay!" the boy said and ran to the corner of the room, there was a table with some colorfully wrapped packages on it.


    John just went with the flow and tried to act natural. This was his family. Play the part.


    He frantically unwrapped a package. The woman walked over and sat at his side.


    "It''s a switch!", "Oh nice!" his sister told him.


    "You got him video games? What happened to your rule?" The woman asked John.


    "Uh... Well, you know?" he coughed.


    "You big softie." she squeezed his arm.


    Honestly, he could get used to this.


    "Can I play it?", they looked towards John.


    "Don''t you have others first?" John said glancing towards the table of presents.


    The screen on the TV changes instantly, from a talking crab to a concerned man in a suit, talking to the camera with a stack of paper in his hands.


    The words "Emergency broadcast" were displayed at the bottom.