U.S.S.A Alice

Chapter 2 Dreadful dreams

We talked for a little while about how our weeks were going and what we wanted to do we he got back from his tour. "Alright I should get going, the ships going to be leaving in a few hours so I gotta get ready. It was good to see and talk to you again, you know I miss you right?"- "Yeah, I've missed you too, just please make it back safe."- "You know me, I'll be fine, I'll be back before you know it...Damien out."  The call ended with a zap. I just hope he'll make it back safe and sound, it's been a lonely month. I went back to the lab to finish analyzing and cleaning off the rest of the artifacts; It's interesting the things we've dug up from previous centuries, the rarest items being from when society had all but collapsed back in the 23rd century. I just had one more item to clean and catalog. As I bent down to grab it out of the case it was secured in, I noticed another case behind it. It was made out of a purple-grey metal. The strange case was tucked into the shelf, almost as if it was being hidden, though not very well. I lifted the case onto the cleaning table, it was a bit of a struggle as the case was unusually heavy. "Well, what do we have here?"  I whispered to myself as I looked at what was inside. There was a...well it's difficult to describe, it was made of two small but very solid, alien-looking orbs that intersected each other. It was made from the same metal as the case it was inside; it hurt my head to look at it. I put it back inside as I was getting a migraine just by looking at it.

 After discovering the oddly shaped artifact, I put it back where I found it and continued my work. I just wanted to be done with everything so I could go back home. I checked out at 6:00 P.M. My coworker and work friend Lisa came over to have one of our after-work chats as I was packing up to leave.- "Hey Alice, have you been cooped up in the lab all day?"  I heard what she said but my mind was filled with a blurred vision of some kind, it was hard to tell where it was but it was horrible, there were tall dark figures everywhere being slaughtered by something...someone very angry. "Hey, you dreaming or what?"  I snapped out of my trance when she put her hand on me, I gasped as I came too. -"Oh uh sorry, I must've been daydreaming."  It was a good thing she was there to snap me out of it, it was not pleasant at all, to say the least.- "So what were you dreaming of hmm?"  She asked teasingly. "That boyfriend of yours I bet? I would too, when was the last time you saw him anyway? Like a month ago?"  It was more like a month and a half. She just had to remind me; one of the things that annoyed me about Lisa, she often reminded me of things that were bothering me.- "No I've just been having bad dreams is all, that, and I could maybe use a holiday."- "Yeah maybe a holiday and something else as well." She said suggestively raising her done-up eyebrows.- "Get your mind out of the gutter, I don't need to be reminded of that."  She pouted at me after I said that. She got closer to me and looked into my eyes with her unnatural purple gaze.- "We should go out to a club or something, I think we could both use a destresser with how crazy busy this week has been."  That actually didn't sound like a bad idea, I was tired earlier but now I'm feeling kind of restless.- "I don't know, which club do you have in mind?"  She tilted her head as to think." I don't know, there are so many good and crappy clubs. I'll have to do some research. I'll let you know what I find, okay?"

After I finished packing, we walked out to the exit together.- "Have a good night ladies." Ricky said waving to us. "Goodnight Ricky."  We both said in unison.- "So still up for going out?" - "Maybe, I think I just need to relax a bit first. Today's been a weird one."  She looked at me confused. "I'll tell you about it later."  We both went our separate ways, I got inside my car and drove back home. As tired as I was, I just couldn't fall asleep, something was keeping me awake I just didn't know what it was. The drive home was uneventful. It's a wonder how people centuries ago used to drive manually, it's a good thing my work is only a half-hour drive away. When I got home, it was the same quiet apartment it had been for almost two months, I sighed as I dropped my bag on the chair I leave by the door. It was only a few more days. God, I felt like a puppy who missed Its owner, it would be kinda cute if it wasn't so pathetic. 

I decided I'd cook some pork to go with a Greek salad, the good thing about living alone is that you don't have to argue with someone over what to eat. I got out of my work uniform and into a pair of small shorts and one of Damien's large tee shirts. I put in my earbud implant to listen to music as I was cutting up ingredients for the salad, I danced side to side to the beat as I was chopping the tomatoes on the board. As I was cutting them up, for some reason I thought I could hear a whispered voice that wasn't supposed to be there in the song. "Alice...listen closer, gaze into the abyss."  My vision went black moments after hearing that phrase. There was a brief moment of quiet at first, but then the sounds of screaming and howling deafened my ears and forced my eyes open as I looked toward the source of the horrible sounds. I could barely make out what it was, there were strange humanoid beings running for their lives from something large and...angry, something livid. I could feel its rage as it came closer to me and the fleeing apparitions. It cut them down like they were prey, slicing them open and consuming their insides like a starved animal. It was when it turned its head to face me that I got a closer look at it, its purple head dark as a rotted violet and eyes glowing white as a blue moon, that seems how rare it would be for me to be able to get away from it. Its unhinged jaw shut close as it stood up to face me, it walked towards my direction and then sniffed the air. I was too scared shitless to run, it towered above me like a statue made of muscle and metal. Its head lowered to meet my gaze. The look in its eyes looked familiar as if we've always known each other. I lifted my hand to touch its face, the creature snorted almost like a horse as my hand caressed its face.  It stood back up and lifted its large double-bladed arm. I threw my arms up to protect myself as its blades came down. I felt a sharp pain in my left hand as the knife sliced my thumb, blood gushing over the tomatoes. "Ow! Goddammit! What the hell was that?"  I had snapped back to reality from that dreadful dream.