I remember it clearly, April of 1945. A couple days before our lives changed, my big brother Ben had been using his three inch, refracting telescope to peep on Miss Ellie Torrance. I had just come up to warn him that Pa was coming home and he shouldn't be caught doing such things. Then I asked for a turn. He wouldn't let me of course. This time was different. He didn't chide me. He just gasped. I thought he finally got a look at the privates I'd never be old enough to see but his scope had slowly edged upwards. "Quick Johnny, look out the window."
"I don't see nutten." All I saw was the lights from the house next door.
My head jolted upwards by a hand and I gapped at what I saw. A big, black nothing. No stars, no moon, which had been full just minutes before. Nothing but black. We crawled out his window to the terrace and gazed upwards. Ben noticed it first, off in the horizon there were stars. They hadn't all gone out. Then I noticed the blinking lights, red, blue, and white. Ben made out that it was probably bigger than the football field at school and traced the outline to be triangular. Since he was good at that kind of stuff he did the math, and determined they were only about 650 feet above us and were 150 feet to a side of the equilateral triangle.
It moved slowly and stayed overhead for a good half hour before the back end was over the peak of our house. We quickly climbed down and ran around to the other side to watch it slowly fly off in the distance.
Dad had arrived home nearly the same time it began to be overhead. He had exited the car and was still gapping upwards leaving the car running. He didn't say a word to us till it was out of sight. "What in blue blazes?" He said quietly.
"Pa, what do you suppose that was?"
"A secret military plane?" Ben asked.
"Aliens?" My fancy was always the better of the two.
"I don't right know son. Best go in now." He ushered us in the front door.
Ben switched on the radio. Only swing music came back out at us. Pa made a few phone calls but no one else even noticed the thing. The Sheriff thought Pa had been drinking. ***
There was no word the next day. We began to pretend it didn't happen. That was until the next night when the radio crackled to life after the comedy show finished. "Please stay tuned for a special report of astronomical proportions."
Within minutes we were sitting ram rod in front of the little wooden box. We all knew what it would mean. We would be vindicated.
"Good evening ladies and gentlemen. Today we have with us a noted astronomer from the United States Naval Observatory at Washington DC, Professor Farnsless. He has joined us today to speak about various purported unidentified flying object sightings. Dr. Farnsless."
"Ah yes, see these are quite sophisticated sightings. At this time only three confirmed sightings have been made. The objects appear to be triangular at 166 feet per side." Ben nudged me. He had been close. "They refract all light in the area making them difficult to see." He went on and on saying some technical mumbo jumbo that I'd never understand let alone remember.
"We certainly don't want another panic like the one Mr. Wells created in '38." The announcer laughed.
"Certainly not." The professor said stolidly. "That is why we have taken the time to confirm our findings. Our government has not claimed these sightings as alien in nature. However, they are unwilling to confirm that the phenomena are a part of the war effort."
Two nights later the town was a buzz with talk of a radio announcement later that evening. I moseyed downtown going home after getting a soda when I caught wind of a couple men talking about it.
"I hears there's gonna be a big National Announcement about them planes on the radio tonight."
"There's going to be more info on 'em? Like what?" One man asked.
"They didn't say much 'cept the typical 'don't panic and do nothing unless you hear the air raid siren' spiel. They says it's not aliens nor nothing dangerous." I took this news home to Pa.
"But then why would it be a special National Announcement?" Ben asked.
Mrs. Marly from the drug store said, "Well, I heard they are new planes. You know they keep improving 'em all. Those Rosies keep on going."
"Really? Do you really think we can build something so big?" The biggest plane I'd ever seen was a biplane that Mr. Todd used to dust his crops.
"Yes, I do believe they're ours. How else do you explain them not bombing us? Now don't you interrupt no more. Now Mary, that's Miss Whitman to you, she said that these planes had been spotted across the nation. She said they were for secret US attacks on Japan and these were victory voyages."
"But weren't they going the wrong way to be coming from Japan?" I asked in my child like naivety.
"Now what did I tell you, Johnny?"
"Sorry ma'am."
"That's better. Now, Mrs. Partridge claimed she knows a military man who knows a senator who said…" She kept squawking like old women normally do until shushed by Pa, the radio announcer had just come back on.
The news report quickly squashed Mrs. Marly's rumors.
"We interrupt our normally schedule program of The Burns and Allen Show to bring you this News Update. The United States Government announced today that the unidentified flying objects in the night sky are not of American Military make. All people are warned to remain inside after dusk.
"Wait… I just received a special report. Japan has claimed these vehicles as their own. We reiterate it is of utmost importance that you remain indoors and turn off all lights until further notice. That is all."
The music came back and Mrs. Marly exclaimed, "Well, I never!"
Two hours later the radio crackled to life, the announcer sounded high strung as he repeated. "A US victory, intelligence reports a ground crew shot off a piece of the foreign plane." His enthusiasm didn't last long when he returned from the music break his voice wobbled like he was on a boat in rough water.
"Apparently the object from the unidentified plane was not shot off. In fact it was dropped for us to find. It is an intact metallic block covered in strange symbols. It is not believed to be dangerous. Military officials are taking no chances however and have quarantined the item until they can study it further."
A couple days later another news flash interrupted Counterspy. I never did find out what was on that submarine. 'Course it didn't matter much, I was too interested in what they had to say about the real life spies overhead. "Linguists confirm the symbols that cover the object are not Japanese in origin. The material it is composed of, according to leading scientists, is of unknown origin and it is not believed the Japanese posses the technology to create the material." Yep, I knew it all along. The guy on the radio talked for some time but basically he didn't know nothing.
Over the next few days every one talked but no one could come up with a proper explanation. Besides me of course. I'd tell anyone who'd listen. "They're aliens. They're giving us their gadgets and know-how so we can learn about them and know they're friendly."
"Ah, Johnny, you don't know diddly-squat." Ben ruffled my hair and went back to watching the skies. ***
One day it leaked out that the object wasn't just a block of metal that everyone thought it was. It was a box! The government men had managed to open it. Inside was a gelatinous substance that moved on its own. They didn't find any mechanics in it, just pure gel. No one believed that the Japanese or anyone else on this planet could have made it. The papers had articles everyday on the thing.
It mimicked things like if you pointed a finger at it the gel would also form a finger. When around music, it seemed to dance. When there was no sound or activity, it just bobbed up and down like it waited for something.
They did a whole bunch of experiments on it. It wasn't alive, it wasn't toxic, and it apparently tasted like a cross between coffee and Brie cheese. So it wasn't really edible.
Panic ensued in some places. They were afraid the aliens were going to take over the planet, especially after the government announced missiles had no effect. They came within 50 ft of the ships and went dead.
The Torrance's boarded up their doors and windows after setting up a sandbag perimeter. Off on the oil road I watched the big green army trucks drive by and waved them on.
Then another radio announcement came. This time claiming more boxes had been dropped in different parts of the world. Some contained what was believed to be food stuffs. The government tested these too. Others said they had some sort of alien widget that made weird sounds. The linguists got busy again trying to figure out if that was their language, only to say they thought it was a musical instrument. ***
Ben and I had begun to grow use to the darkness that would steal the night sky. We watched with bated breath hoping to get a box ourselves. We'd be the most popular boys in our county. The army would come in droves to look at it. Scientists in their white smocks would poke and prod it. For just a few glorious moments I could have held on to it and told all the other boys its weight, shape and feel. I'd be the envy of the town and girls would flock to touch the hands that touched an alien artifact. There was no such luck though.
The final news report came from the President himself. One of the boxes appeared on his doorstep! When the box was opened there was nothing inside. Even so, a voice came out of it!
Apparently a few other world leaders were honored with similar prizes but the President put that off to coincidence. America was special 'cause the message had been in English. Therefore, the aliens must also speak English. No one even bothered to consider that they were smarter and could translate our language. The President told us the alien's peaceful intentions and that the boxes were meant as gifts and would not harm anyone. They had no intentions to land or come in contact in anyway with the humans. They were only observing us. They asked us to please go on with our lives in the way we all have been living them. ***
Nothing more messages were ever sent from the aliens. The messages to all other countries were the same. Boxes still dropped randomly. Over time the night blacked out less often. They never came during the day. Some faceless voice behind a microphone said that was because they could see better in the dark. I think they just didn't want us to see them.
Well, that was many years ago. They have kept to their word. They have never landed and never invaded. No one's ever gone missing nor been burned to a crisp by a death ray. No one's ever died because of them period. Some even been saved by the medicine they sent. Communication has been tried and ignored.
Occasionally, maybe once or twice a year, I'll be swinging on the porch watching the stars when they start to blot out. I'll stand in the open and wave to the faceless underside. If I'm lucky a small box will float down not too far from me. Inside would be a strange treat, a piece of alien food, a gem or what I believe to be a small toy. I have one like the first gelatinous one found in my boy's room.
Nothing unusual, most everyone got a box over time. They seem to like me though, maybe 'cause I wave. Or maybe 'cause when I pick it up I'll look up at the ship with gratitude and wonder just what my visitors looked like. I shake my head each time and walk back to my swing. I'll never find out.
This night I wondered at the little silver box with symbols that reminded me of one of the crop circles that had popped up in our yard one night. Yes, this turned out to be little more than graffiti. I plucked out an oval fruit that was juicy and sweeter than a ripe strawberry. I munched on it a while as I rocked and watched as the stars popped back into existence.
Nope, it ain't so bad living in an alien's zoo at all.
I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. Please send me any comments you might have, good or bad. Copyrighted 2007 by Christine Schnell. Go ahead and share it with others just keep my name with it.
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