Bradley had decided to sort of stay out of Arell’s way for awhile, not wanting to pinch a nerve with her. She was bad enough in a good mood, no way in hell did he want to experience what would happen to him if he made her lose her temper. So, he sat quietly on a table behind her, while she worked on something on the interface. Neither of them said a word, as Arell busily worked, and Bradley sat and did nothing, which he was fine with. Better than getting mixed up with his giant hostess.
A zoo. God, what were those people going to have to endure? A whole life behind bars, when you had committed no crime, and there wasn’t even a chance of parole for the victims, either. Bradley had never owned a pet in his life, by some feat, and now he thought he never will. Hell, if he managed to get back to Earth and somehow everything reverted back to normal, he would join an animal shelter and rescue abused puppies.
His train of sympathetic thought was interrupted when he was suddenly lifted off the ground.
“Hey! Woah!” Bradley cried, startled immensely. “Wh-what are you doing? What’s going on!?”
“Calm down, I just need you for a second,” Arell replied. “Geez, I can’t even pick you up without you getting all worked up.”
Stop squeezing me and throwing me around like a toy and maybe I won’t, Bradley thought.
Arell placed Bradley on the surface of her desk and then tapped her finger against it. “Lay down here.” Peterson quickly obeyed, and Arell reached down and produced a small device that looked similar to a price scanner. A cord danged beneath it, and Arell plugged it into an unseen thing, and then held the device over Bradley. It emitted some thin beam of light, which Arell ran across Bradley’s body. He watched her do this, but wasn’t sure what she was doing. He was incredibly nervous of what she was doing, but also of asking about, not wanting to provoke her. Fortunately, she answered for him.
“Relax,” She said, noticing his nervous movements. “I just need to scan your body for something, you won’t feel a thing.” She scanned him three or four times and then placed the device down and began working on the interface. Looking down at her screen, Bradley saw a 3D image of his body. What she was doing, he couldn’t tell, but it might be better to not ask right now. She seemed to be getting in a bad mood about something, and best to lay low. So, he sat down off to the side of the desk and let Arell do whatever it was she was doing, listening to the sounds of her fingers padding against the interface.
She hadn’t answered his question. What was she planning to do with Earth. When he had shown his concern, she had merely told him what she ‘wasn’t’ (allegedly) planning to do to the planet. He wanted to ask, but Arell was not always forthcoming with information. But the mere fact that she was willing to round up people for a little human zoo for her people was not only terrible, but showed that she really didn’t respect human life. Though he wouldn’t dare say it, such a thing was a little hypocritical of Arell, who spoke of how important it was for him to respect her, though she had not shown him the same. The real question was…why had she sounded mad when he had said humans weren’t animals? He could see her agreeing with the notion, she HAD said that “Earthies” were inferior to the Avakonians (Bradley’s new word for Arell’s people, she wasn’t the only one who could play that game), but she hadn’t sounded particularly bitter about it at the time.
He was too busy wondering these things that he didn’t really pay much attention to Arell’s movements. Thusly, he didn’t notice when the sound of tapping stopped. And he didn’t notice that Arell was watching him until her eyes suddenly took up his vision as she bent to look at his face.
“You’ve been awful quiet,” Arell said. “Any thoughts to share, little Earthy?”
Her tone was calm and normal. Whatever she had sounded angry about earlier (assuming she was, he hadn’t been able to tell) it seemed to have been forgotten for now. It was on the tip of his tongue to mention the little ‘zoo’ that her people had in mind, but that had been the subject (or something about it) had pricked one of Arell’s nerves. Maybe it would be wise to say something else…if only he could think of something else.
Before he could, Arell picked up on his hesitation.
“Oh, stop worrying,” She said. “They’ll be fine. You know, your fellow Earthies won’t be the first race that we’ve done this sort of thing to...”
“That’s great…” Bradley mumbled.
“…and we treat them fine,” Arell continued, ignoring him. “Since every race we’ve discovered are so little compared to us, it’s easier to accommodate them…and keep their behavior in check if need be. That doesn’t happen often, really. Most are too intimidated by our size to resist anyway, and most of them aren’t intelligent enough to. You Earthies should be happy to know that you’re the second most intelligent race in the known universe. Next to us, naturally…”
“But you’re taking them against their will!” Bradley protested. “What it they don’t want to go? You can’t just imprison them!”
Arell said: “Why not? You Earthies didn’t seem to mind when the Germans did it.”
There it was again…that angry tone. It was subtle, it was controlled…but it was there, and Bradley’s heart began to pick up. “Well…” He began. “We…that was…look, nobody is proud that that happened but…still…why do they even want such a thing?”
“Because they want to see you,” Arell explained. Thankfully, the tone was gone. “They haven’t actually seen any of you. They only see what I give them to see. I, being the researcher, decide what information to release. They know you exist, but they rarely see you in the flesh.”
“But that guy you spoke to on that video…” Bradley protested. “He sounded like he could care less about what I had to say!”
“Oh, they care about what you have to say,” Arell said, grinning, playfully. “But, one, I’m their researcher who’s been watching your race longer than you’ve been alive, so my thoughts carry more weight. And two…you didn’t really give an…’interesting’ response, my little Earthy”
Ha, ha, ha…use my own words against me, will ya, Bradley thought.
“You may know a lot about the human race as a group,” Bradley said. “But you can’t know each person individually. How much do you know about me? You keep calling me ‘Earthy’ so much, I bet you don’t even know my name.”
“Bradley Peterson,” Arell replied, smiling. He froze. It was both surprising and sort of weird to hear her finally say his name. “Thirty years old, alcoholic, single, no children, one estranged brother, works at a department store, selling water beds…”
“Alright, alright!” Peterson cried.
“Never question my knowledge,” She said, winking. “That can be a costly mistake.” She stood up and clapped her hands together. The sound hurt Bradley’s ears. “Now! We could talk about this until your planet revolves around the sun completely, but, regardless, I’ve already agreed to it, and, therefore, it’s going to happen.”
She pressed a button on the interface. When she did, something happened outside the ship. It was similar to riding an airplane and you could hear the wheels being retracted into their slot, but you couldn’t hear it happen. Glancing down at the interface, amongst all the gibberish of Arell’s native language, was a 3D image of Earth. It was focusing on East Coast of North America, specifically, New England.
“What’s happening!?” Bradley cried, worried.
“I am using what you’d understand as a ‘tractor beam’ to transport them onto the ship from the surface of the planet,” Arell explained. “Except the ‘beam’ is more of a scan and any Earthy it touches will be instantly brought aboard.”
“How is that even possible?” Bradley asked, shocked.
“Simple,” She replied, as she did, she pressed another button and the holographic interface was emitted. “I scanned your body and relayed your organic information into the scanner. It will not only be able to tell Earthies apart from something non-living, say, a car…but also to other living life forms, say…a cow.” She paused, looking thoughtfully at the interface. “Hmmm…I’ll have the transporter put them in the aquatic tank. It’s empty right now, and should be big enough to hold as many Earthies as I need.
“H-H-H-How many are you going to take?” Bradley inquired. A part of him really wished he was bigger so that he could do something to try and stop this madness. Damn it, why did she have to be so goddamn big!?
A whirring sound outside became noticeable before Arell could respond. Now that she had said all of that…it did sound like some sort of scanner running. The ‘bzzzt’ noise that he had heard while Arell had visited Earth sounded, and this time it was close. Turning towards it, Bradley saw a large, empty, aquarium-like box. It was hard to see because the clear class hid it in the bright white walls of the ship. Little bursts of static popped inside it…and each time a new hapless victim was now added to Arell’s ever growing collection. It started slow but it began to pick up as more crowds started getting hit. Pretty soon, it sounded like microwave popcorn popping.
It went on forever to Bradley, who watched as people entered the same world that he had been forced into. When the popping finally stopped, Arell stepped forward and bent down in front of the tank. All of the Earthies fled to the other side, trying to get as far away from her as possible.
“Hmmm…” Arell mused. She was quiet for a moment and then laughed, satisfied. “Alright. Listen up little Earthies!” She tapped the glass to get their attention (not that she didn’t already have it). “I’ve gathered you all here for a special reason. You are all going on a one way, all expenses paid trip across the universe to my home planet, Avakon!” Whatever the population of the tank thought of this, Bradley couldn’t hear it. They were too far. But he imagined there were screams. This was hinted further when Arell continued. “Now, now…no reason to fret, no one’s getting hurt, I promise. You all just sit here while I run an errand. When I get back, you all will be off! I’m sure you’ll all love my home planet, they are a lot of things that you couldn’t even begin to dream about now.”
She turned away from her new captures, all of whom still huddled against the other side of the tank, and pushed a button on the wall. A large compartment slide out of the wall in front of Arell, though what was on it, Bradley couldn’t see from his position. Arell took something off of it and she stood back enough to see her putting on a black utility belt around her waist.
“What are you doing?” Bradley asked, slowly and cautiously.
“A good lesson in life is that even the most advanced tech is not infallible,” Arell said. She put a rectangular device in one of the pouches of her belt. It was impossible to tell what it was. “The scanner ignored non-living things, so that means any Earthies that were inside did not get picked up. The only recourse is to go down there myself and get the remaining Earthies.”
“You’re gonna go down there!?” Bradley was stunned. “Why? Do you have to have the ‘entire’ town to do this?”
“I suppose not,” Arell shrugged. She placed the little transporter that she’d used on the President in another pouch. “But, I already took the majority of the people from the town I just scanned. Might as well get the rest. No sense in leaving them there. That wouldn’t be fair, would it, my little Earthy?”
It’s not really fair that you’re doing this AT ALL, Bradley thought.
“Arell, this is completely…..what…what is that!?” Peterson shrieked.
Arell was placing what seemed to be a type of gun that her race used in a larger, holster like pouch on her belt. When it was in, she patted the handle of the weapon and then looked towards Bradley, smiling.
“Just as a precaution,” She said.
“But…but….but…” He stammered. “You said that no weapon would hurt you! Why do you even need that if that’s true!?”
“I imagine that there will be some resistance to me,” Arell explained. “So…yes, you’re right that whatever weapon used against me won’t do anything. However…it needs to be shown that, other than my size and raw physical strength, I have other means of dealing with…dissenters.”
“But that thing is fucking huge!” Bradley protested. “You’ll destroy an entire COUNTY with that thing!”
“With this thing?” Arell laughed. “That’s almost assuredly not going to happen with just this. I only have this thing readily available just in case I need to show a little force, but, for my race, this is the equivalent of a BB Gun. This was actually a gift from my father…when I was little.”
And…how long ago was that, Bradley thought.
“Still…” She continued, smiling brightly. “It should suffice for anything that comes across me. I don’t plan on using it, per se. If your fellow Earthies accept my rule without giving me complications, then I won’t have to use it at all. So any damage will be the result of their choice, and thus, their responsibility for the consequences.”
She pushed the button on the wall again and the compartment slid back inside its slot. Arell walked back towards Bradley…and reached for him.
“Wait! Wait!” Bradley cried as he was lifted off the ground. “What are you doing?”
“Wow, you really are prone to panic,” Arell giggled. “You need to learn to relax. I’m just taking my favorite little Earthy with me…”
“What!?” He exclaimed. “You’re…why? Why do I need to go?”
“Listen,” She said softly. “You and me are going to be together for quite some time. So, it’s important that you get used to my company, since you’ll be in it for awhile. Plus…I thought’d you like to visit your home planet?”
I wanted to go back but I had a different image in my head of that event, Bradley thought.
“But Arell, I…”
As he tried, she pushed one of the red lights on the right shoulder of her suit, causing it to glow white. She then held Bradley close to it as it shot out a beam of energy. Recoiling desperately, the beam coated him and in inflated like a balloon. By the time he realized that it didn’t hurt…he noticed that he virtually WAS in some sort of balloon. A balloon of whatever energy that Arell’s suit used to levitate items. He floated up to Arell’s face, and she winked at him.
“There,” She said. “Now you can come with me, no problem.”
“Arell…” Bradley begged. “Please…PLEASE…don’t do this.”
And then, she did something curious. She sighed…very deeply.
“…I have to.” She said. Her tone struck him. It was one of resignation. He was on the verge of asking why, but then she answered that for him. “It’d take too long for me to explain why, but just know that I have reasons for why I must do this. Whether or not you like this doesn’t matter. It’ll happen either way, so I suggest you just deal with it.
She raised the transporter and pressed the button. She and Bradley disappeared from the ship.
…
All across America, things were plenty tense.
People were not going to work, schools were cancelling lessons, and even transports were not going anywhere. Only highways remained active, as people tried to get to loved ones. It was as if a zombie outbreak had occurred and everyone was fleeing the city, but there were no dead people. But the fact that a giant woman from the stars was taking over the planet…that seemed all the reason to flee.
But with the mass amount of people trying to do so, some people got stuck and gave up. In the midst of all of the failure of the transport systems, groups of people, sometimes complete strangers to each other, banded together to get out of the city their own way. But even with additional manpower, success was not guaranteed.
“Goddammit,” Col. Edgar Stark muttered as his group saw the traffic that was leading out of the city of New York. They had lived here most of their lives and knew to walk about to see how bad it was before actually attempting to drive.
“That’s what I was afraid of…” Sarah LaFleur sighed.
“So…” Randy Fredrickson asked. “What now…?”
“Dunno, son,” Stark replied. “We’re running out of options. Unless we fucking walk, I think we’re literally stuck here. Every way out is full of people trying to leave.”
This particular group had met up at a bus station, and had tried, in vain, waiting for their ride to come and get them. It took several hours after the bus was due for them to hear that it was late from traffic and would not arrive soon. Having spoken to each other for quite some time, the group decided, in these crazy events, to stay together.
Kevin Ward, one particularly talkative member of the group (much to Stark’s chargin) was very excited about the whole thing…and for all the wrong reasons (also, much to Stark’s annoyance). He had brought his camera and several roles of film with him. He had been completely struck by the image of the Alien Woman, as Stark called her, ever since she had made her public broadcast early that day.
“She’s fucking hot!” Kevin had exclaimed after the broadcast had been aired. Only her head had been seen for most of the video, but some signs of the lower parts of her body had been seen, and they were, Kevin assured, the signs of a really sexy woman. “I guarantee it. She’s probably a fucking hit on her planet. Oh, man, what if her planet is all female, THAT would be…”
Stark had told him to shut up at that point. Kevin had merely wanted to leave the city, thinking it’d be more likely to run into the new “leader” of Earth if he moved around. He wanted to get as many pictures of her as he could. His friend, Alfred Bowden, a silent type, quietly agreed. His own eyes had been wide when he had seen Arell on the TV, and though he knew not to say it near Stark…he thought he was in love.
“Maybe e just need to wait a day or two,” Todd McFinnley suggested. “It can’t stay like this forever.”
“Maybe you’re right,” Col. Stark sighed. “I’m old and I’m tired. Been trying to find ways to get out of this damn city all day. I’m going home…I guess if you folks still want to go about this as a team, you’re welcome to join me.”
“I think that’s a good idea,” Sarah said smiling. “I think I’d feel more comfortable if I went through this with other people. I feel…safer that way.”
“Yeah, that’s cool,” Kevin said, adjusting his sunglasses. “Super cool.”
Stark muttered at the thought of Ward staying in his house, but didn’t really protest it. Though he’d never admit it, and he hated himself for it, he too had been attracted to that bitch on the TV. Those bright blue eyes…they seemed so…majestic…so different and foreign, yet breathtakingly beautiful. Even though he hated that Alien for invading his damn planet…part of him was thinking the same thing that Ward was. He thought maybe, if he could, he’d steal one of Kevin’s pictures should he ever get one. A young woman with a great behind had always been his favorite…
Todd and Randy felt no such attraction, however. Todd was mostly terrified of the very thought of a woman so large dominating Earth, and Randy had been intimidated by her character. Both of them would prefer to stay out of her way, rather than take pictures of her. In fact, the two of them would have been happy if they never saw her personally.
The group turned and walked back towards where they had come, and headed towards Brooklyn.
…
Arell and Bradley reappeared on Earth within seconds of disappearing from the ship. Peterson had no idea where they were, exactly, but he knew it could be referred to as Small Town, USA.
It was a New England kind of town, one that had a touch of older days about it. Days when most of the land were fields, and cars were just starting out. It had once been a sleepy town, but now it was more of a ghost town. Cars were abandoned on the streets, some trash littered the roads, and not a soul was in sight.
Arell, standing at her hefty five hundred plus feet, weighing at possibly over twenty thousand tons, was far too big to be in such a little town. Her feet, Bradley noticed, would barely fit in the streets…if they would fit at all. As he looked down towards the ground, he shuddered. Not because of how high he was up (though that always made him uncomfortable)…but at how small everything looked in Arell’s eyes. The cars were the size of Lego blocks, the buildings didn’t even reach her knees. A wild part of his mind though: Christ, her ass could probably take out an entire block if she were to sit down somewhere!
She looked at Bradley, smiling.
“Good to be back?” She asked, happily.
“You do realize that you’re way too big to be here right?” He asked.
Arell shrugged. “As I told your President,” She said. “I’m going to cause damage no matter what I do. Might as well just accept it, as fighting it will only slow things down. Yes, I might do significant harm to this town, but, that’s why I picked a quaint little place. It won’t be a major issue if I do happen to level it accidentally.”
She shifted her feet. One of them plowed through a house. It was just that simple. One moment, a perfectly fine and seemingly sturdy home was standing there. The next, it was a flattened pile of debris shooting dust into the air. Bradley looked at Arell in shock. She just shrugged, as if saying ‘case in point’.
“Well, let’s get to work!” She said, smiling widely.
She began to walk.
Every step she took destroyed a home, left a deep chasm in the earth, sent a tremor that rattled and damaged more buildings…
…and most certainly killed someone.