By Joshua Merer
Stephen was a very ordinary fifteen-year-old boy. He lived on an ordinary sort of street, in ordinary town, in a very ordinary country, which happened to be placed in an ordinary part of the world. Nothing in particular stood out about Stephen. The way he dressed was obligingly ordinary, even the way he spoke screamed ordinary without having to scream at all, suffice to say no one ever really noticed Stephen, not even his own parents.
Stephen attended Winifred B. Hayes High School; enough could be said about the caliber of this school if one was to only say it was an ordinary school. Stephen woke up every morning at 7:15 sharp, slipped out of bed down the hall and into the shower, and was clean dry and dressed by 7:45. After a bowl of cereal Stephen would head out and walk the .4 miles to his high school every day for his first class at 8:15. However on this day there would be no shower, and there would be no cereal, this day was very out of the ordinary.
“CRACKLE CRACKLE CRACKLE!!!… Gooood morning fair people!” shouts the radio host. “Today’s forecast will be a high of seventy-two, with a low of, hey would ya look at that, seventy-two. Well thanks for tuning in folks that will be all for weather on the thirty sevens, I am Chase Chettlingson signing off at 8:37” he says in a dark tone, and the radio shuts off.
Stephen shot up in his bed. Immediately he knew there were a few things with this situation that were very out of the ordinary. First, Stephen had the night previous set his alarm to 7:15 as he does every night so he could wake up to weather on the fifteens with Champ Brewster. This was the only weather, on the hour every hour, so Stephen knew something was wrong. Secondly he had never heard of Chase Chettlingson, the name sounded fake to Stephen. Third and probably most important was the fact that the display on his Panasonic metallic silver radio alarm clock was reading 8:37.
“Oh no, this is not good! I am amazingly late” Stephen says to him self as he falls out of his bed while trying to grab his jeans off of his chair and a shirt off of the ground, all before taking the most necessary of steps, getting out of bed. Stephen picked himself up off the floor and clumsily got dressed in whatever clothing was in his hand, it happened to be very ordinary blue t shirt, a pair of ordinary blue jeans, two white socks, and white canvas sneakers.
With two moon walk bounds Stephen was down the hall and at the top the stairs, a few more quick steps and out he front door he ran, down the street the .4 miles to his school. Stephen ordinarily didn’t run, but today he was sprinting as fast as he could.
However when Stephen approached the intersection of First and Spruce, something happened. A black sedan with tinted windows screeched to a halt in the middle of the intersection right in front Stephen. Due to the speed at which Stephen was running before he could come to a stop he ran into the right side of the hood of the car. Immediately Stephen fell to the ground, and the passenger side door opens, but no one exists. Not feeling to particularly hurt besides being slightly dazed Stephen gets up and continues to keep running to school.
Jeez, Stephen thought, some people really need to learn how to drive. Before long Stephen was running across the front lawn of his school past the sign reading Winifred B. Hayes High school, “Congratulations to the W.B.H. Dancing Warriors Jazz Masters on winning state.”
Stephen was winded, when he walked up the front steps of his school. “Wait!” he said to himself, as he turned around to walk back down the steps. There was usually a hall monitor lurking by the front door somewhere, so Stephen thought that the side door was a more appropriate choice for a point of entrance. But as Stephen was approaching the bottom of the steps he noticed that same black sedan with tinted windows pulling into the driveway of the school. I don’t have time to deal with this Stephen thought as he broke into a run towards the side door.
Stephen was very quiet walking through the halls of school; first period was about to end. Stephen thought he could blend into the crowd of students that was about the burst into the halls. And sure enough the bell rang throughout the building and masses of students proceeded to flow into the hallway, Stephen blended in perfectly with the wash of back packs. He walked briskly to his second period class and took a seat in the middle of the room as Mrs. Brofkowski began her European Literature lesson. Today’s lesson was on Shakespeare, a rather boring topic in Stephens’s opinion.
Before too long the third period bell rang and Stephen was walking through the halls to his third period class. He wasn’t the least bit surprised, no one ever really notices him anyway. So it wasn’t out of the ordinary that no would notice he missed first period slipped into the building and just went on with his day. Walking through the halls no one ever made eye contact with Stephen, he went unnoticed by anyone and everyone. Football players would yell to their teammates down the halls, nerds would be running through the halls dropping their papers, and getting shoved into lockers. And then there was Stephen. At least nerds were worth attention; Stephen would give his right leg to be shoved into a locker. In Stephens’s opinion it would be infinitesimally better to be yelled at, and taunted every day than to just be ignored.
Lunch was Stephens’s favorite period, he at least sat with someone. Stephen had one friend; if you can call what Tyler was a friend. Tyler was similar to Stephen; he didn’t really hang out with to many people either. He was a hacker. Tyler spent most of his time outside of school engulfed in his computer screen. Whatever he did was beyond Stephen. He didn’t really understand computers, let alone really have a hobby. Sometimes he would sit in Tyler’s room watching television while Tyler clicked away on his computer. However during Lunch they actually managed to have a conversation sometimes.
As Stephen sat down across from Tyler, he let out a huge gasp and gave Tyler a look of grief.
“Hey man I didn’t see you before first period today, what happened, I thought you might be sick, but you never get sick so… what’s up?” Tyler asked.
“I over slept today” Stephen replied tiredly. “It was a very weird morning” he added. Tyler looked at him with a grin, and said,
“You over slept, that’s not like you.”
“Yea I know, and then I was running on my way to school and basically got hit by this car!” He said loudly. A few people turned to see where the noise came from, but due to Stephens unassuming manner no one associated him with the outburst, after a second or two everyone returned to eating.
“Jeez Man,” Tyler said to Stephen as he leaned across the table slightly. “Are you ok?” he asks Stephen.
“Yea, Yea its just been an out of the ordinary day” Stephen retorted. However just as those words left Stephen mouth a dull roar spread over the lunchroom. Three men in black suits, with black sunglass and very stern looks on their faces marched through the isles of the lunchroom apparently looking for something. They were there for a few seconds before the spotted Stephen, right as they did they made a bee line for him.. Shocked by what was happening Stephen didn’t move, he had no inclination of what to do. Just as he did process what was happening two of the men were standing over Stephen, their hands on both his shoulders, the third man with his back to the first two keeping guard to make sure no one approached them.
“We need you to come with us Stephen.” The men said in unison, with an apparent lack of motion in their mouths.
“Um excuse me?” Stephen said meekly. The lunchroom was dead silent everyone was waiting to hear what would happen next. Just then a teacher outside of the lunchroom realized that it was silent, and concluded that something was wrong, and headed inside. The teacher noticed the three secret agent esque men; standing over a student that the teacher had never seen before in his life.
“You must come with us” The two men insisted. “It is a matter of the utmost importance.”
“Err, no I don’t think so, I have to go to school.” Stephen once more sheepishly replied. The two men then said only one more word.
“Now!” And they grabbed Stephen by the shirt and pulled him up from the bench he was sitting on. His feet hit the ground and the two men preceded the drag him by his shirt, while his feet scraped the ground behind them. Not a soul did anything to stop these men. If one of them had maybe recognized Stephen, they would have been more inclined to help, but alas not a one did, except Tyler, who just watched with his jaw hanging so low it could have hit the ground. One girl even whispered,
“Does he even go here, maybe they are kicking him out, cuz he’s like a trespasser or something!” When the three men and Stephen reached the teacher who had previously entered the room, the teacher put one hand up and gave a surprisingly strong,
“Halt!” The three men pushed him aside with ease and continued to drag Stephen out into the hall and through the emergency fire exit, the alarm went off, and Stephen was thrown into the back seat of the same black sedan that had been following him earlier this morning.
As Stephen sat in the back of the black sedan with tinted windows with the three men who just dragged him from his lunchroom, he began to panic. One thought kept popping into his mind, who are these men, CIA, FBI, some other sort or super secret clandestine organization whose existence he was unaware of.
“Who are you guys, anyway’ Stephen asks the three men. No reply came. After a few the minutes the silence was broken by one of the men reaching into his pocket for a small black device with buttons on the side.
“Hey! What is that thing?!” Stephen exclaimed in terror.
“This will be slightly uncomfortable” All three of them said at once.
“What? Uncomfortable, how so?” But before Stephen could go on, a blinding light filled the sedan and the feeling of being squeezed through and old-fashioned clothes wringer filled Stephens body. In the frame of time as we understand it, this only lasted .23 seconds. However to Stephen it felt like 23 minutes.
Still groggy from the squeezing, Stephen opened his eyes, he was in a grand bedroom The bed was at least ten feet by ten feet, with multi colored mosquito nets draped over it hung from ornately carved purple wood. The room was littered with giant cushions to sit on, and bowl of what looked like fruit sat on the table, but it was not fruit that Stephen has ever seen before.
Stephen picked himself up off the bed and crawled to the edge. He wasn’t wearing his blue shirt, and blue jeans any more. He was wrapped in a silky gold robe that flowed all the way to the ground.
“They undressed me? Kinda creepy.” Stephen muttered. Walking across the room ,Stephen had never seen anything like it before. A strange sound came from the other side of the room.
“Ahh so nice to see you awake” A slightly purple three foot man with a rather large belly said as he strolled into the room. Stephen could not speak; this was definitely the strangest thing he had ever seen. “Please, please, take a seat you must be exhausted, the first time anyone travels at such speeds through an invisible portal is always a little trying” The short purple man says in a gentle tone.
“Is that what just happened to me.” Stephen asks.
‘Yes we transported you at 1,000x the speed of light through an artificial worm hole between earth and our ship. We would like to apologize for the uncomfortable ness of the trip but it is the quickest way to get someone to the other side of the galaxy.”
Stephen stared at the tiny man with a blank stare. There was a strange feeling coming over Stephen he was getting very dizzy. “I would also like to personally apologize for my assistants” as he gestures to the three men in suits on the other side of the room. “Glorans are very efficient beings, but do lack a sense of manners.”
“Glorans?” Stephen asked worriedly
“Yes, Glorans” he said dismissively “I would also like to apologize for changing your alarm clock this morning. But I thought we could snatch you up before school, however, we were unable to accomplish that” the tiny man said while shooting a glance at the three men. “However I will say, I think I have nailed my earth man impression, did you like it, and I thought the name was a good touch, Chase Chettlingson, sounds like a real earth name to me!” the little purple man adds.
“Where have you taken me!” Stephen screamed.
“Calm down, calm down no need to panic” The tiny purple man said in a concerned voice. But it was too late, full on panic mode had set in. Stephen got up from the cushion he was sitting on and made a bolt for the door. It shot open and in front of him lay an enormous window, and beyond that window lay nothing, but the deep dark expanse of space.
“Oh my god…” Stephen said to himself. The dizziness came back, but this time with an overwhelming sense of nausea. Before he could do anything Stephen fell to his knees and vomited in grotesque heaves.
“Wow, just splendid!’ the little purple man said with a pleased tone. “Your species never ceases to intrigue me. Humans are sometimes known to expel their bile when overwhelmed, and in a vulnerable state, simply magnificent.”
“What are you talking about?” Stephen said while wiping of his mouth.
“Oh never mind, have you worked that out of your system?” queries the tiny man.
“Yea I think so, but where am I?” Stephen asked again.
“You are on a Sardonian government cruiser in the southwestern quadrant of a small globular star cluster about ten light years away from Betelgeuse,” replied the little man “I think that should suffice for now.”
“I’m not sure why I even asked” Stephen murmured.
“My name is Torak, I am the President of the Galactic Senate, and your name is Stephen, nice to meet you.”
“Er, yea nice to meet you. But usually on earth after you say your name, I say my name, and then you say nice to meet you.” Stephen quietly interjected.
“AHAHA!!” Guffawed the tiny man “I am very excited indeed to learn more about your culture, and very excited to get to know more about you Mr. Senator.”
“Mr. Senator? What are you talking about, I’m not a senator I am just a kid, you have me mistaken with someone else, senators are adults” Stephen protests
“Maybe on your planet, but age is not a factor we take into consideration when choosing government officials.” The tiny man says rather smugly “Don’t you think age is a rather arbitrary requirement to serve the public good? And you Stephen have been chosen to be the Senator to represent earth.”
“Senator? Me? No, I cant!”
“But you can, you really can” replied Torak. After a few seconds Stephen asks,
“Why me?” in a skeptical tone.
“Well for a number of reasons, but one more so than every other.” The tiny man says.
“Well, what is it?”
“You are the most ordinary person on your planet….”
“Really, that’s why you chose me, because I am the most boring person ever.” Stephen says back to the tiny purple alien.
“Precisely” Torak said, very matter-of-factly. “We have been watching you for some time now.
“Hmmm I don’t buy it, that cant be why I am here” Stephen continues to argue.
“But it is, it really is. You are so very ordinary that there is no point of contention in your body, no high-minded thought, or feeling of self-righteousness. You are just you Stephen, so very ordinary that you understand what is going on. You are the common man; you are in touch with your planet. And we at the Galactic Senate feel that you would be an excellent first ever galactic senator from earth.”
“The first ever, wow, that is a big honor.” Stephen jokes.
“Yes indeed” apparently missing the sarcasm in the statement, “and now you must make your inaugural speech. You must let the world know that we are out here, and that we mean no harm, you must let everyone know that we wish you to be one with us. Once a civilization approaches seven billion we always incorporate them into the galactic union.”
“A speech, no I’m not very good at public speaking.” Stephen says as he draws back from Torak.
“Well you must speak to the whole world Stephen, and you must do it in 2 minutes.
“TWO MINUTES!! Are you insane I don’t even have a speech prepared, what am I supposed to say”
“Say whatever comes from your heart Stephen.”
“Whatever comes from my heart?! Great, well that’s helpful” Stephen once more sarcastically remarks.
“You are wasting time Stephen, better get ready.” Torak chuckles. Stephen began to pace back and forth.
“What the heck am I supposed to say? I could tell them that I met a very nice three-foot tall, purple man named Torak. No that will never work. I could tell them that I was squeezed through a clothes wringer, no that is preposterous.” The seconds were flying by and nothing was coming to Stephens mind. Thoughts were racing in and leaving before he could process them. His heart was racing and his palms were getting sweaty, once again he could feel the nausea coming back. And just then, he saw a microphone dangle down from the ceiling and a cold chill came over Stephen.
“It is time” Torak said, “You are live.”
Stephen approached the microphone and cleared his throat.
On earth, in every corner of the planet, on every mountaintop, in every valley, out on every ocean, in every city, and in every farm, a high-pitched microphone squeal came through the air. Everyone single person on the planet at that exact moment stopped what they were doing and looked to the sky. A few seconds passed and nothing happened.
Meanwhile, Back on the ship, the tiny purple Torak was standing at about belly height right next Stephen,
“Go on Stephen you can do this” Torak says calmly. Stephen looked in Torak’s eyes, and with a reassuring glance from him; he stepped closer to the microphone and said five words that changed the course of history.
“Hello, my name is Stephen.”
It is a seldom occurrence when I find myself staring at the stars. Or at least, a far too seldom one for my own good. When I look at the stars a sense of child like aw drapes over me, as if to send me to a time where troubles like the ones I know now do not exist. It is a most invigorating feeling, a feeling that far to seldom occurs. However on one particular night, a scenario came to mind. A scenario in which most people of sound constitution may find themselves running to hug their loved ones, or merely staring into the abyss with a sense of, “now what”, painted onto their faces during their last few seconds of life. … It’s Armageddon, a blaze of flaming extraterrestrial rock and metal hurling directly toward you to end this existence you know as your life, and the lives of everyone else on this planet.
