A Fictional Tale
Based on the artwork of Kelsey Smith aka: Amidst Silence
Written by Nick Flash
Only five minutes till the arcade closes. She was the only one left, and down to her last token. She’s so close she can almost taste it. It’s now or never. She’s been at this same machine for over a month now and has it down to a science, but the alien has always eluded her. Her room is filled with wretched little stuffed kittens, bunnies, puppies, and bears, all to clear the way for the UFO Catcher’s claw to finally nab the little green alien she’s been obsessing over. Maybe then she’ll finally get some answers, she thought. Maybe then they’ll finally believe her. Maybe then she can finally prove that she’s not just some crazy conspiracy theorist vying for attention. Then again maybe it will prove nothing. Maybe it will just have the opposite effect, and she’ll discover she really is crazy. No. No way in hell. She’ll never allow herself to believe that. She knows what she saw. The answer she’s looking for is right here, right here in this machine.
All the fear, hurt, anger, and anxiety she felt are gone. Her focus is razor sharp now. It’s just her and the machine. The alien is glowing. It’s beckoning her, taunting her even. It’s like they’re connected, emotionally, telepathically. It’s been waiting for her, she knows. Waiting for this very moment, and she’s got to seize it. It’s been close to a year now, since the disappearance, and everyone has seemed to have forgotten. Not her, she’ll never forget. Never. It’s like they’re all brainwashed. Looking for anything they can to protect them from the bitterness of the truth. Except him. But his nonchalance is unnerving, unsettling, scary even, but fascinating. If she can just get him to talk to her, to notice her. He can help her, she knows. But will he? Or is he just a part of all the madness that seems to have overtaken her life.
He left his tickets today on Cyber Drive. He never leaves his tickets. Why was he in such a hurry? They were always the last two to leave the arcade. But today it’s just her, amidst the silence. The music seems to have stopped completely, only the glowing buzz of the neon fills the void. She taps the joystick lightly. She knows the routine, she’s done it a thousand times before. But today is different. One wrong move could prove disastrous. Someone else could disappear. Could die. Could be experimented on like a lab rat, dissected and used to bring our civilization as we know it to utter destruction. She can not let that happen. She is not ready to live the rest of her teenage years in some post apocalyptic wasteland, or worse yet, a slave to some diabolical creature who god forbid will use her to breed some sick new hybrid species. Now is not the time to speculate, she thought. It’s a time to act.
The claw itself is a pretentious thing, she’s come to realize. It has it’s moods. But today it was feeling generous, she knew. They’ve come to understand each other now, she and the claw. She knows all it’s tricks, all it’s quirky behaviors, knows it’s favorite positioning when it want’s to reward all of your hard work. Once it has it’s belly full of tokens and has pushed your patience right to the brink of insanity. That’s when it rewards. She’s never been a patient person, but the claw has showed her how to be. Her patience is running thin, she knows the power could shut down any minute and the manager will be trying to kick her out the door. She has it, she knows. The claw is hungry and dangling right above the aliens head. It’s feeding time. She knows that it spins counter clockwise on its decent, which can throw off it’s grip, but not this time. Everything was in perfect alignment.
She waits with it there for just a brief moment, watching it dangle, channeling every ounce of hope and positivity she possibly can. But this is it. She’s waited long enough. She slaps the button. Bam! The claw descends, the alien glows brighter and brighter. Too bright, blinding even. She has to look away, but she knows she’s won. She can feel a powerful force sweeping over her, one that’s not of this earth. She is not scared. It’s a protective force, she can feel it deep in her subconscious. She hears something bang against the prize chamber. This is not just some stuffed animal, she knows. This is alive. The blinding light is gone. She reaches her hand inside the prize door and pulls out the alien. It’s heavy and slimey, almost reptilian. Cold blooded, it’s eyes as black as deep space. She stares at them, transfixed. It’s eyes. The answers she’s been looking for are in it’s eyes. Suddenly the fear comes rushing back. She’s in danger. Her whole town is in danger. Hell, the whole planet is in danger. Him. She’s got to find him. He’s the only one that can help her now, she knows.
The lights go off, the arcade machines shut down. Yet somehow Cyber Drive stays lit. His high score beams down at her, quadrupling everyone else’s. No human can ever get a score that high on Cyber Drive, she thought. Why didn’t she see it before? His long stream of abandoned tickets brush her sneakers. She rips them from the machine and folds them neatly into her purse, determined. Determined to find him. Determined to bring her best friend home. Determined to finally be able to prove that The Truth is Out There.