Sci Fi & Fantasy / Hangar 18
Hangar 18
“A sunset over little ole’ Clovis, New Mexico. One of the greatest scenes that most people never see,†commented my friend Dave. We were about to take his small single engine aircraft out over the desert to watch the sun set over the hills. I stepped up into the passenger side as Dave heaved the prop to get it spinning. After a few clicks, a putt, and a cough, the engine roared to life and we taxied down the runway.
Once in the air, we turned west and headed for the desert. We flew for a bit, chatted some, and waited for the “show†to begin. Slowly, the sun crept downwards, as if making sure we would see it. Down, down, down it fell until finally it hovered just above the horizon. The moment the sun touched the horizon, there was a blinding flash and another plane appeared from the brightness of the sun. It fell, flaming and smoking, toward the ground, until it finally impacted the Earth. It smashed into the ground, making a tidal wave of dirt and sand, as if it had landed in water. The object slid on, carving a deep gash into the red sands of the desert. Dave glanced at me, with a look of disbelief on his face, and threw our plane into a rapid descent.
Our plane’s landing touched the rocky and uneven ground with a bone jarring jerk. This small plane obviously wasn’t meant to be landed on anything except a runway. The wheels pulverized the gravel beneath us, spewing a stream of debris onto the belly of the plane. The plane finally ground to a stop, and we threw open the doors. The wreckage of the other object burned, spitting fire into the night sky. We sprinted towards it, wishing we could have landed closer. As we neared it, we slowed down, out chests heaving.
We stared at the burning wreckage. And we stared. It wasn’t the sheer chaos of the fiery scene that stunned us; it was what the burning object appeared to be. There, in front of our eyes, was a smoldering hull of an object that appeared to be none other than a UFO. It wasn’t your stereotypical alien spacecraft either. Instead of being a disc shaped ship with a glass dome on top, it reminded one of a sleek shark, more biotic than machine. The metal was a purplish-blue, and emitted a faint glow, even discernable through the inferno.
Our minds numb with disbelief, Dave and I walked in a wide circle around the hulk of the ship. And there, lying on the cold ground was the single thing that could make this event even more unbelievable. In front of us was a semi-humanoid life form, with a short, flat head, and cold gray skin.
Dave and I looked at each other, out hearts pounding in fear. We took a few steps forward, but leapt back again when we heard a low rumbling, like one a heavy truck might make. An indeed, a heavy truck pulled up behind us. Only it was terrestrial.
“On the ground, hands out in front of you,†a cold voice called out. We knelt down, and then fell forward, face down. The man from the truck crunched towards us, and slapped a pair of handcuffs on each of us.
“As per United States Military code 45812, I am hereby authorized to detain you, and escort you back to base of questioning. And with that, we were thrown in the back of the truck, and the engine rumbled to life.
A bumpy eternity later, the squealing brakes slowed the truck to a halt, and the engine died. There was a rattle at the back doors, and they flew open. After being in a nearly pitch black truck for an hour, the bright floodlights outside nearly blinded us. As we stumbled down out of the truck, the first thing our squinting eyes noticed were the gigantic steel walls around the entire complex. It was impossible to tell whether we were underground, or at a secret military base deep in middle of the desert. The enormous floodlights overhead were positioned in such a way that we couldn’t see the night sky, or for all we knew, the roof of this cave. Before our eyes could adjust, we were lead to a large building labeled Hangar 18. From the name of that building, I assumed we must be outside somewhere. We entered the building through an inconspicuous door, which lead to a dimly lit corridor. We followed the hallway to its end, and entered a door which lead to a cramped office space, with a desk and a few chairs.
We were motioned to sit down in the chairs, to which we complied. The man that had been leading us sat down behind the desk and stared at us intently. Neither Dave nor I were sure what to say, so we sat there wondering what was going to happen. After about a minute, the man behind the desk finally said something.
“So I imagine you’re wondering why you are here, and what you have just seen. First of all, you’re here because we need to figure what you’ve seen.†The man fell quiet again. He looked at us for a bit longer before saying, “Well?†We stuttered our story out, as he recorded a summary on a little notepad he had lying there. We finished recounting our experience and then waited for him to say something. He glanced up at us, and looked deep into our eyes. There was a look on his face, but it was impossible to determine what it was. It could have been pity, or anger, or confusion for all we knew. Unfortunately, after an uncomfortable few minutes of silence, we figured out what the look meant. He opened his mouth, and shut it a few times before simply stating, “So you’ve figured out that aliens really do exist. And by this meeting, I assume you have inferred that we have known about them for a while now.†Dave and I both remained still, unsure of what to say or do. “The great government conspiracy,†he continued. “Aliens exist, yet the general population doesn’t have solid knowledge of their existence. Why do you think that is?†Once again, Dave and I just sat there with blank looks on our faces. “Let me help you out. It’s because the people who have seen them are either dead, or in your case, going to be forced into a new life. And in that new life, they still won’t tell anyone about what they’ve seen. And why do you think that is?†This time he didn’t pause before answering his own question. “It’s because they all know if they say anything, they will be taken away, and killed. Does that sound appealing to you? I didn’t think so.†I sat in my seat trembling. I glanced at Dave, but he wasn’t looking at me. He was staring back at the man, with a determined look on his face. Dave had apparently found the courage to speak, and he did.
“You can’t make us do anything,†he stated. “You can force us to move, take away our possessions, and disgrace us. But we will tell someone. The word will get out. I will make sure of it.†Dave fell silent again. I looked at the man, and shook my head, making sure he knew I didn’t agree with Dave.
The man simply gazed back at Dave and remarked, “I’m sorry you feel that way.†The man behind the desk pressed a button on his phone that was lying on the desk, and the door behind us opened. Another man was standing there, dressed in a black suit, with a quite unhappy look on his face.
“Come with me,†he gestured at Dave. Dave had no choice to comply, so he reluctantly stood up and was lead out of the room. I glanced between the door, and the desk man’s impassive face.
“It’s a shame your friend there felt like being a hero,†he simply stated. “I take it you will keep quiet?†he questioned. I nodded my head rapidly, with plenty of emphasis, just to make sure he got the point. In the back of my mind, I wondered what was going to happen to Dave, but I knew it was in my best interest not to ask.
“Let’s get down to business, shall we?†the desk man commented with a slight smirk, as if he was almost enjoying this. “Where would you like live now? Hawaii? California? Florida?†I stammered out that any of those would be fine, my mind still reeling. “That sucks for you then. You don’t get a choice. You will be moving to Maine. Far away from any other people. And if someone does ask you who you are, you are to respond that you are a retired artist, who moved from Colorado. The good news is that we will provide you with enough money so that you can have a nice house, and not have to work.â€
“Oh, ummm, that sound nice, I suppose,†I stuttered. My mind was still too numb to think about anything else.
“Now let’s get packing!†he laughed. “Oh, wait, you’re not allowed to take anything,†he commented with a mirthless laugh. “Let’s head to the plane, shall we? We need to get going. Your new life is waiting for you. And when I said “we†I of course meant only you.†I was really starting to loathe the man.
I stood up from the chair, and opened the door. I felt like this was all a dream. I followed the same path out of the building that I took to come in. Once outside, a small jet was waiting for me, looking almost inviting. I climbed the steps into it, and the pilot greeted me. He seemed much nicer. He started to make conversation, but I quickly replied that I was tired and needed some sleep. I reclined into a seat that felt entirely too comfortable, and tried to think about the positive effects of the situation.
“Well, back home was pretty boring. All I had was a dead end job, a small house, a lot of wasted money, and not much income. I was wanting to look for a new job anyway, I just couldn’t get up and go do it. This could be just the motivation I need to turn my life around. An ironic form of motivation, but motivation none the less,†I thought to myself. A million other thoughts ran through my head, but had nothing to connect with, so they passed on with leaving a trace. I laid my head back and fell into a dreamless sleep.
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