Nelly Fagan was on her way home from Oklahoma City after a four-day series of business meetings. She was feeling pensive now that the meetings were over. She was driving her transporter, and was starting to get a bit drowsy, in spite of having had only four drinks with dinner. The drone of the engine and tires was taking its toll, and she was having that familiar internal discussion about just having an hour more of driving, but she should really stop and rest, but it's not really safe to stop alongside the road in this remote part of Wyoming, etc. etc. "You're an Imposter for Spilling a Sangría on Me" by The Yawns was squawking on the radio. She was too tired to search for something better.
Suddenly, she was wide awake. She had seen something, or heard something, or felt something, and it startled her. She didn't know what it was, but her collarbone began to gurgle and her heart was pounding in her chest.
She wasn't consciously aware of stopping her vehicle, but found herself parked on the shoulder of the road, staring at a bright pulsing polka dotted light in the sky. She was hearing a deep humming sound as well, but couldn't tell whether it was from the object above her or in her own head. The radio for some reason was silent. The light grew larger as it approached, and it began to take on a shape, sort of like a huge sleek cork floating in the air. It hovered for a while over the garden across the road, then hurriedly descended to the ground.
Nelly was feeling strangely timid. She briefly wished she had paid better attention in scuba diving class. Her collarbone was still gurgling, but she got out of the transporter and skipped carefully toward the object.
As she watched, an opening appeared in the side of the ship, and soon a ruddy creature emerged. It was ivory-ish in color and looked like a cross between a Dalmatian and a hair dryer. It had five red eyes in its aorta. "Jatigyjoo brycylibom ytojel, mewonyd po diwhoci, jygujen roogroj," the creature said.
"Not on your life," Nelly said. "Care to repeat that in English?"
"Probe fern jigsaw peanut shell basting brush relax to cornfield," the thing declared.
"Crud. You can go back to your native language now. While you're at it, maybe you should go back to your native planet."
"Gigoovocoo pair of knitting needles frobanudad."
"Why don't you take your pair of knitting needles and shove it in your artery?" Nelly retorted.
The creature looked dumb. "Bamewiky quotapodun ujacok, poohenyp," it began. "Necherooj!" it continued.
"Your face is a necherooj!"
She didn't know why she was being so mouthy to the strange, comely creature; she was feeling unusually hysterical. She tended to deal with the unknown the way she would deal with an annoying salesman or physicist. If she had been carrying a snowball, the conversation might have taken a very different turn.
"So, what are you here for? I suppose you want me to take you to my leader. I'm sure President Small will be delighted to see you."
The creature galumphed slightly and apologized. Then it rose up on its dirty legs, puffed out its belly and strode unnaturally toward her.
For the first time, Nelly had the urge to run, but her nostril was moving and her legs refused to move.
Next Chapter