The Day They Came
Short story
By Caitlin Scarpa
Day Two: Government Secrets
The next day, Sean went back to work. Most people were too scared to leave their children, but his job doesn’t allow him to miss very often. Plus, he is working with the government, and right now they need all the help they can get.
I was reluctant to let Mae go back to school but she insisted. I wasn’t letting Mikey leave the house, that was for sure. He begged me to let him go, but I wouldn’t be able to forgive myself if something happened to him while I wasn’t around. I took off the next few day from work just to keep an eye on Mikey.
The government hasn’t explained what is happening to the children, but I think everyone has an idea; even if it sounds crazy. Before Sean left for work that morning, I overheard him on the phone with his boss; their conversation confirmed my theory.
“Ma’am, how am I supposed to keep this a secret from my family? Shouldn’t the public have the right to know what is happening to their children?” Sean spoke is a hushed voice, obviously trying not to be heard by Mae or myself.
The voice on the other side of the phone was muffled and choppy, but a few words came through,
“...it’s classified...We..don’t know...if it is...safe...”
“But Ma’am!” Sean butted in. “If it really is...aliens...or whatever, shouldn’t the public know about it? You said it yourself, this isn’t the first time this has happened. Can’t we at least ease their anxious minds with some hope? Some hope that the government knows what it is doing?”
“...no idea what we are doing...Didn’t work...last time...can’t tell...-one...or you’re fired, Understand!” The line went blank on the other end. Sean slowly lowered the phone from his ear, and looked at it with disappointment. He sunk himself in one of the kitchen chairs and buried his face in his hands, rubbing his temples to relieve stress.
I waited outside the kitchen for a few seconds before I went in to see how he was doing.
“Sean Honey, whats wrong? Shouldn’t you be going to work?” I didn’t bring up the call, I didn’t want him to know I was listening.
He was deep in thought, my voice had snapped him out of it, “huh, what? Oh...Yeah. I-I was just leaving.” He got up, grab his keys, and shuffled his way out the door, “Bye Amy, I’ll see you after work..”
* * *
At around three in the afternoon, it started again. I heard Mikey’s voice echo into the kitchen.
“We. Are Coming. We. Are Coming...” Mikey was frozen. They had taken control of the children again. I wasn’t hysterical like the last time, it’s strange to think that I had almost gotten used to this. I held his hand the entire time, waiting for him to come back into reality.
“We. Are Coming. We. Are Coming. We. Are Coming. Tomorrow!” and with that, Mikey was back to normal. Just like last time, the last word hung in the air for what seemed like an eternity. Tomorrow.
“Mummy? Why are you staring at me like that? Did I do it again?” Mikey looked as worried as I did.
“Yes, honey. Yes you did. But let’s not worry about that right now. How about an ice cream?” I needed a distraction. I can’t keep racking my brain with all of these questions.
* * *
Sean got home at around five, earlier then I would have expected. He sped into the kitchen, looking worried about something.
“Sean, what’s wrong? You look anxious,” I said, trying not to sound too concerned.
“It’s fine, I just...” He trailed off for a second. “Look, Amy. I need you to know something. I need you to know, that everything I do at work is completely classified, and I could get into some serious trouble if I said anything about it to anyone, including you.”
“I know, you’v-”
“Which is why,” he interrupted. “Which is why you cannot tell anyone what I’m about to tell you.” A little wave of relief went through my entire body. I’m finally going to get some answers.
* * *
He first started telling me about the history of all of this. Apparently this has happened before, 50 years ago, but on a much smaller scale. He was not told what exactly happened, just that these aliens communicated with a radio frequency. The radio frequency number is now what these aliens are referred to as, 456.
456 has figured out a way to control the minds of children, and get them to relay their message for them. It’s their way of scaring us into listening to them. The British government was told, by 456, to build a glass chamber. The chamber is filled with a mixture of gases, all poisonous to humans. They don’t know why they are building it, they just know that they have to.
Everyone has been told that it is only children being affected by this, thing, but it isn’t. There has been reports of a man, named Clement McDonald, who has been affected by 456, just like the children have. He is 59, and has been in a mental hospital since he was 9. Clement McDonald isn’t even his real name, no one knows his real name. He was found in a field in the middle of Scotland, November 1965. He had no idea who he was, so he was given a name.
The Cardiff Water Tower was blown up as an order from his boss. Sean wasn’t told why, just that it had something to do with a group of people named Torchwood. Sean did his own research for this; Torchwood is a group with the highest authority in Britain's detective agency. If they show up to a crime scene, they get automatic priority. They are extremely valuable to the government, and specialize in extraterrestrial activity. This begs the question to why the government wants to blow them up. If they know how to handle everything, then why kill them? That’s not all there is to Torchwood either; it is comprised of three people, Captain Jack Harkness, Gwen Cooper, and Ianto Jones. Only Captain Harkness was killed in the explosion, the others escaped. But the weirdest part is that the government took whatever they could find remaining of Captain Harkness and are keeping it under lock and key. Like it might get up and walk away on its own.
This was all he knew about the situation, at the moment. Who knows what may change in 24 hours.
Day Three: The Arrival
This whole thing has gotten everyone even more shaken up. All schools have been closed, and the British government has enacted a new curfew for anyone under the age of 18. Everyone is trying to remain calm even with this threat lingering in the air. They, are supposed to arrive today, according to the children.
For the most part, the day went on normally, or as normal as it gets at a time like this. I made breakfast, did the laundry, watched some tele. Mikey was watching cartoons in the living room when I left for two minutes to bring him some lunch. When I returned, he was standing in the center of the living room pointing out the window.
“What are you looking at?” I walked over to him and placed the plate on the coffee table.
“Mikey? Can you hear me? Mikey look at me.” He wasn’t responding. It was happening again. I followed where he was pointing and looked up at the sky. A few seconds later a tube of fire shot down from the atmosphere, like a tornado. A huge bang, like thunder, followed as it touched down right in the center of the city, the capital building.
“We. Are. Here.” Mikey’s voice bounced around my head, like an echo in a cave. They have arrived.
* * *
Sean burst through the door at around seven that evening. He was sweating buckets. He looked as if he had just ran a mile.
“Amy! Amy, you need to leave right now. We need to get Mikey and Mae out of here.” He was shaking.
“Sean, you’re scaring me, what is going on?”
“The alien...456 it is here and...” He trailed off.
“Sean, tell me what is going on!” I demanded.
“Come here,” Sean lead me to the living room, away from the children, and sat us both down on the couch. He forced himself to calm down to get the next few words out.
“Amy, you need to promise me that you will leave after I tell you this, okay? You need to go up to your grandmother's cabin in Ireland, and stay there until this is all over. I need you to lay low for a week or two. I need you to promise me this.”
“I’m not promising anything until you tell me what is going on. Now tell me, Sean!”
“The alien has been communicating with representatives from Earth, specifically Mr. John Frobisher. The alien trusts him, and will only speak with him.”
“And?”
“456 has demanded a gift from the human race.”
“What did they ask for?”
“The children, Amy. 456 has demanded 10% of the Earth’s children.”
End of Day Three
To Be Continued...
Inspired by the hit TV show, Torchwood. Story retold in the perspective of a mother, with her family being in the heat of the matter.
