Bob
The drive home was a blur. My heart was pounding the whole way. A
cold sweat dripped from my bald pate. I flew up the gravel drive to my
mobile home and jumped out of the van, slamming the door. I was
inside in an instant and stormed back to my bedroom. Not really having
any purpose for going there, I strode back to the front room and
stopped. To nobody in particular I yelled, “What WAS THAT?” I gripped
my head in my hands, bending over and moaning. “What’s going on?” I
pleaded knowing there was no one there to hear me.
I had just lost my biggest account. Two Hundred dollars a month, gone.
The things that had been happening in my life this week went through
my mind. I remembered now every bit of it. It freaked me out more
than anything that I had blacked out and forgotten things. Things I now
remember clearly. I thought of the giant, and the vision of being put to
sleep and something going into my mouth.
“I will not forget again.” I declare with determination to myself and
whatever evil force was at work. “No, no, no.” I said, “Whoever or
whatever you are, you are not doing this to me anymore. YOU HEAR
ME?” I was yelling now.
I knew now the giant’s name was Gouln. I knew he was not from around
here. My mind rejected the idea of where I thought he was from. I had
vague images of flying though space, and seeing the Earth beneath me.
I no longer dismissed any strange images I remembered. No, that’s what
THEY want me to do. They want me to forget again and they will take
over again and they will ruin my life. I won’t let them I told myself. They
will not win this time.
I didn’t hear a car pull up in the driveway, which is unusual because the
grave road made a lot of noise. I did hear a knock on the door. It’s them,
I thought. They have come to take me away. I went to the kitchen and
pulled out the knife drawer. I grabbed the biggest knife I had and went
to the door. Holding it behind my back I said. “Who is it?” in the most
normal voice I could manage.
“My name is Doctor Hernandez. I need to talk to you. It’s very
important.”
Doctor? I thought. I don’t even know any doctor, haven’t been to a
doctor in a very long time and I’ve never heard of a doctor Hernandez.
“I didn’t know doctors made house calls any more Dr. Hernandez. I think
you have the wrong house.”
“No Bob, I have the right house. I know what is happening to you and I
want to help. If you will let me in I will tell you whatever you want to
know.” Said the voice on the other side of the door.
“Ha!” I said, “How do you know my name and what is happening to me,
unless you’re a part of it?”
“I am a part of it Bob. I can help you if you will just let me.”
“Why should I trust you?”
“Bob, I could just make you black out and open the door. I’m not doing
that. I’m letting you keep control of your own body. I’ll even let you
keep the knife if it makes you feel safer.”
I pulled the knife out to where I could see it. How did he know I had a
knife? Was it true he could just make me do what he wanted? I
remembered the parking lot at the dealership. This guy out there had
something to do with that. He had made me do that. No longer afraid, I
was now angry. I flung back the door and pointed the blade of the knife
right at the face of the man on the other side of the door. He was an
older Hispanic man, he didn’t look threatening at all.
“YOU!” I yelled at him, letting my frustration and rage pour out. “DO
YOU KNOW WHAT YOU HAVE DONE? You have ruined my life.” I pointed
to my own chest with a finger of my free hand, still pointing the knife at
his face. “MY LIFE! YOU HEAR ME, IT’S MINE!”
The doctor just stood there calmly. He nodded his assent that it was
indeed my life. “Yes Robert, it is your life. Let me help you.”
I was still raging inside. “Why are you messing with it then?” I asked.
“It’s not supposed to happen like this. I assure you, if you let me
explain things to you I think you will start to understand and calm down
a little. We can work these problems out if you will just co-operate.”
I stepped out of the way and motioned him to come inside. He walked
past me and with his back to me, walked over to the couch. This was
one cool cucumber I thought to myself. He turned his back to an irate
man holding a very large knife. That meant he wasn’t afraid of me. That
meant that at any time he could do whatever he does and make me
black out again, or just make me stab myself. That should have made
me afraid but it only made my anger continue to smolder.
“Start talking.” I said, pointing the knife at him again.
“Perhaps you would feel more relaxed if you were sitting.” He said,
motioning toward the chair behind me. “Oh, no,” I said, shaking my
head, “I don’t care to be relaxed, thank you very much. Just talk.”
“The very tall man you saw on Monday. The one you had a vision of…”
“Gouln, yeah, I know, he’s the guy I keep having memories of that aren’t
mine.”
He nodded his head. “Gouln is a warrior from a planet called Ola. His
ship was shot and crashed into an asteroid in the asteroid belt that obits
our sun. That asteroid is actually a living creator. Her substance can
mimic any biological matter and even some non-biological matter as
well. She is an intelligent creature whose make up is basically
crystalline. I am one of Her helpers here on this world. I am connected
psychically with her. She tried to save Gouln but his injuries were to
sever and She was unfamiliar with his physiology. If there had been
more time She could have helped him more but the creatures that shot
him down were after him.”
As I listened to this story, even though I thought it sounded ridiculous I
knew it was true. I also knew that this crystalline creature was the one
inside of me. I knew that the vision I saw of Gouln puking the red stuff
in my mouth was how She had gotten into me. It was her that was
doing these things to me.
The Doctor continued. “The crystalline creature, let’s just call her
Mother, had reason to try to keep the warrior alive. She cannot bring
harm to any life, She can only give life. She is in danger from the other
creatures. They are called the Dawlg. The Dawlg even now are planning
to take her substance and use it to their own end. These Dawlg are an
evil race of creatures, they look similar to giant lobster like sea
creatures. Their intent is to take over other life forms and use them as
slaves and as a food source.”
My head was spinning; it felt as if my life was turning upside down and
inside out. This stuff sounded even more fantastic than any science
fiction book I had ever read and I had read a lot of them. It seemed
unfair that God had allowed these things to interrupt my dull and
miserable life. Just this morning I had thought it was God who in His
great mercy had done a miracle but as this story unfolded I began to
realize that was far from the truth. I began to feel alone and helpless.
My despair grew with each word the doctor said.
“The Dawlg, if not stopped, will come here to this world and make it
their own. They will use Mother to do it. Not only this world but many
others as well. You see Mother is capable of interacting with the human
brain once her substance has been introduced to their body. If the
Dawlg can control Mother, and She can control people, then if the
Dawlg gain control of Her they can enslave people without a fight. All
that has to happen is the substance of Mother be put into the food
source, or the water.”
“So Mother needed a warrior to fight for her. Gouln was that warrior
but he was dying. The only other thing she could do is take Gouln’s
memories and transfer them to someone else and they would be a
warrior. You are the one she chose for this honor.”
Up until this point my anger had been turning into despair and a sense
of doom. With the Doctor’s word about being the one chosen for this
honor, the anger surged anew.
“Oooooh? Excuse me? Honor you said?” I shook the knife at him like a
mother scolding a misbehaving child. “Well, I sorry if I don’t feel so
honored by this honor.” The idea of someone thrusting on me a
responsibility was bad enough, but the idea of someone taking over my
body, invading my mind, with no regard to my personal feelings or
desires? that was absolutely unbearable. It was a form of forced slavery
as far as I was concerned and I wasn’t going to have it. If I could stop it
by using my knife on Mr. Doctor here I would. If that didn’t take care of
it, I would rather use the knife on myself than be someone else’s
puppet. I don’t care if it did make me healthy and better looking.
The doctor tried to speak again, as he opened his mouth, I moved closer
to his face with the knife. “Listen, Doctor, you’re not going to talk me
into letting your Mother take me over and make me into some heroic
warrior savior. I hope these Dogs or whatever do take her over. It would
serve her right. Let her know how it feels to be taken over. I want her
out of me right now. You are going to get her out of me right now or I
swear I will use this knife on you in ways you won’t like at all. You’re in
my house and all I have to do is tell the police you came here to try to
kill me and I was only defending myself. And if that doesn’t take care of
the problem, I’ll use it on myself so she won’t be able to use this body.”
I punctuated each of my points by stabbing the knife in his direction.
The Doctor held up his hands. “There is a Dawlg hunting you this very
moment. If Mother were to leave you now, the mind of the Olan might
take over and that Dawlg would be able to find you and you will have no
body at all. It will literally eat you alive.”
I wasn’t falling for it. Nothing this guy could say would make me change
my mind. “And ole Mom is doing such a great job so far of keeping this
Ohlah from taking over my body now? No, I don’t thinks so. So far,
Mommy sucks at keeping me safe from her precious warrior ruining my
life. I just lost two hundred bucks a month. I know that don’t seem like
much since you’re a doctor and all. Maybe you make that in an hour. I
can’t afford it. Plus, I don’t like aliens possessing my body. You know
who possesses people? The DEVIL, that’s who possesses people. And I
know enough about possession to know that no one can possess
someone else unless they give them permission. Am I right?”
The doctor sat calmly. “Mother does not possess you. She is not
controlling you. It is the memories of Gouln that are coming out and
taking actions. It is because these memories are those of a person that
is physically different than you. The brain of the Olan and your brain are
similar but different. Mother is striving to compensate for these
differences but it is the first time she has done this and it is taking her
time. If you would allow her to put you into a sleep she….”
“Oh no.” I said shaking the knife in unison with my head. “No, no. NO!”
I’m already tired of this. She goes. Out right now. No more excuses, no
more talking. OUT!”
He started to protest but I cut him off. My old Baptist background arose
within out of sheer desperation and I said, “I command Mother in the
name of Jesus to come out!”
These words seem to freeze the good Doctor in place. He sat staring at
me, not moving, not blinking. His eyes glazed over a bit. I was about to
repeat myself when he nodded his head and said, “Very well, Mother
has agreed to leave you. There is a part of Her that has changed into
new cells that replaced your old sick cells. Those cells are no longer a
part of Her but a part of you now. Those parts she cannot take back.
You must also know that as long as her substance has been in you, you
have not aged and were protected from all illness. Once she leaves, you
will begin to age at the normal rate and your body will go back to being
vulnerable to sickness and disease again.”
He stood there waiting, as if he thought these things would change my
mind. To me, it was good enough that I was younger than before. I had
a couple of decades at least added to my life. I was ahead of the game
on that account. “I don’t care. She goes now.”
“Very well,” he said with genuine resignation in his voice. “I need to get
something from my car before we begin.”
I motioned with the knife for him to go. “Don’t try anything funny.” I
said as he turned toward the door and walked out. I stood there in the
doorway watching him. He went to the back of the car and opened the
trunk. He left the trunk opened and walked back with a large, gallon jar
in his hands. He climbed the steps and walked back into the house
without saying a word. I closed the door and followed him in.
He turned and faced me. “It will be best if you lay down, preferably on
your belly. Once Her substance leaves your body, you may pass out.”
I motioned again with the knife, pointing him in the direction of my
bedroom. He led the way, walked to the side of my bed and then stood
there waiting for me. I kept the knife in my hand and got on my hands
and knees on the bed, still watching him suspiciously.
He unscrewed the lid from the jar and set it down on my bed stand. He
stood there for a few seconds, and then asked me if I was going to lie
down. I hesitated. He told me that it didn’t seem safe to him for me to
not lie down since I was holding a knife. What if I were to fall on it he
asked. I lay down.
He told me then to put my head over the edge of the bed and then he
lowered the jar to hold it just under my face. I still kept a wary eye on
him.
“When you open your mouth, Mother’s substance will pour out. Don’t
close your mouth while this is happening or the process will be
interrupted and you may choke. Just hold your breath as long as you
can.”
I said ok, and then I braced myself mentally for what was going to
happen. I was about to see if what he was saying was true and Mother
dearest was actually going to leave. I focused on the thought of keeping
my mouth open once I had opened it. I repeated over and over in my
mind, keep your mouth opened, keep your mouth opened. As I did this,
I began to feel strange sensations all over my body. It mostly felt like
tiny vibrations. In my gut, there were weird squishing and squirting
sounds. A feeling that I needed to burp came up in my throat. I took a
deep breath and opened my mouth.
This wasn’t exactly like throwing up. When you barf, there’s great
discomfort, even pain. This was very smooth and easy. I watched as the
jar began to fill with red liquid. There actually seemed to be more of it
than what I remembered going in from the vision. I thought I might ask
the doctor once the stuff was finished coming out. I never got the
chance. As more of the stuff went into the jar, I began to feel
lightheaded and strange. Things began to get fuzzy around the edges,
and then, once again, everything went black.
Dr. Angel Hernandez
Dr. Angel Hernandez shook his head sadly. He looked down at the prone
figure of Robert Lee as he screwed the lid back on the glass jar that was
now nearly full of the substance of Mother. Bob’s mouth was still
opened, slobber running in a stream onto the mattress he lay upon. His
hand still grasped the knife handle.
“I hope this wasn’t a mistake.” he said in his mind. Mother answered
that they had no choice. “He invoked the name of the Creator.” She
spoke telepathically, not from the jar in his hand, but from the asteroid
billions of miles away.
“Yes, he did.” He replied to her in regret. “I hope he will survive.”
“It is in the hands of the Creator now.”
The doctor returned to the front door though the small hallway he had
come through earlier. He crossed the small living room area and opened
the door. He jumped with a start at the sight of the black woman he had
seen at the beach when the Olan had fallen to earth.
“Hello, Dr. Hernandez.” She said cheerfully. She held out a hand in
which was a small piece of paper. “I have some information for you.”
The doctor was stunned. He stared at the paper and then looked back
at her. “Who are you young lady?” he asked.
She smiled then, a playful smile full of perfect teeth. “Oh, you’ll find
that out soon enough.” She pushed the piece of paper at him. “Go
ahead, take this. You’ll need it.”
Still puzzled, the doctor took it, hoping it held a clue as to her identity.
Miracle Joe
4270 Alameda St.
Corpus Christi, TX 78412
He looked up from the paper, held it up a little. “What’s this?”
She smiled her playful smile again and said, “You are going to want to
keep an eye out on that girl. That’s the little girl you saved with your
Goss.”
She giggled now and turned. Before he could say anything she was
walking quickly away. He was about to call after her when she turned
into a figure of pure white light. He moved to cover his face with the
hand he was holding the paper in. instinctively he closed his eyes, even
though no amount of light could cause him permanent damage. In just
the time he had taken to blink, she was gone as was the bright light.
He stood bewildered for several seconds. For the second time this week
he had met this strange woman. For the second time she had
confounded him. Certainly this was the most unusual female he had
met. Apparently she was capable of transporting herself from one place
to another with a flash of light. Could this be another alien from
another world? He wondered at the idea for several seconds. Finally he
turned to the one person that could usually produce answers when no
one else could.
What of this young woman, he inquired of the Mother. Who and what is
she?
I am not certain, she said in reply. I have my ideas of whom she may be
but…well, as she has said, you will find out soon enough.
He knew from experience that was all the answer he would get. He
wanted to question Her further but he knew better. His curiosity was
stirred as it had never been. He found that part of him was excited.
What other strange things would he encounter because of this strange
woman? They had assured him he would know soon enough. He hoped
it really would be soon.