Josie grabbed a cup of coffee and headed to work. When she got to the work building she discarded the cup of coffee she had emptied and grabbed a lab coat.
"Josie" called her best friend as they entered the same elevator, "You could have at least worn makeup" said her best friend, Jay.
Jay was probably referring to the bags beneath her eyes that were as a result of her frequent nightmares.
Josie had no energy to give him a reply and chose to remain silent. "Are you excited? I heard that many other professors from all over the world will be present for the unveiling of 'Proxima B'
Josie was aware, the astronaut had said there were no signs of life up there, initially they had decided not to send anyone and just make use of their technology to scout the land but some of the professors were unconvinced. So they ended up sending three men up.
Josie had a disturbing feeling that kept telling her something was wrong but she just couldn't tell what it was.
"There's no need for excitement. They are just people"
Jay rolled his eyes at her lack of enthusiasm and dragged her out of the elevator into a large hall with a huge screen in front. The hall was similar to Cinema, with all the chairs arranged for them to seat.
Numerous people in white lab coats were littered about, all bursting with excitement and discussing what to expect on the planet.
Josie realised she was the only one who was worried something would go wrong. She found a seat to rest while Jay excitedly went to mingle.
Josie closed her eyes to get a little rest, "Well look who we have here"
Josie could recognize the voice anytime and any day, she calmed the anger she felt at being disturbed and opened her eyes.
"Doctor Rogers" , her ex boyfriend.
Jake, who was addressed as Doctor Rogers, smiled at Josie. He could tell by the fire in her eyes and tone of her voice that she was angry.
"You don't mind if I sit here do you?" He asked, already taking a seat by her left side since the right one was reserved for Jay.
"As long as you remain silent" she says, closing her eyes once again. He was aware she didn't like him yet he always made his presence known around her.
If it was any other day, he wouldn't have listened to her but after noticing the bags beneath her eyes he remained quiet. He wondered if it was because of those nightmares.
After a while everyone settled down and the president gave a short speech. Then the huge screen came on.
"Josie, it's time." Jay whispered and shook her awake.
She nodded her head and stared at the big screen as it lightened up.
At the bottom left of the screen were the words 'Welcome to Proxima B'.
The image was so clear that it looked like they were on the planet. They saw the three astronauts walking ahead.
The planet was red in colour and according to the temperature range on the screen it was slightly hot but not unbearable. The planet had red coloured trees, grasses and shrubs. There were also rocks that looked as dark as coal.
So far there were no signs of life.
Josie froze at the sight of the planet, "It can't be" She muttered but Jake heard Jay was too busy ogling at the screen to notice.
"What's wrong?" Jake asked, worried.
"They have to abort the mission", Josie said and looked into Jake's eyes. Jake saw fear in her eyes.
"Why?" He was confused. They should abort the mission? What got her so scared?
Jay looked over and also noticed something was wrong.
"I have to tell them to abort the mission or they'll die." She said and made an attempt to stand up but was held down by Jake and Jay.
"Calm down, you can't just go up there. Tell us what's wrong first?"
Josie calmed her nerves down, "In my nightmares… This planet is the one in my nightmares."
Jake and Jay shared a look she had never told them about her nightmares but each time she woke up from them she'd cry or be silent in fear. She had dreamt of Proxima B??
"There's signs of life." Everyone looked at the screen.
There was a little green coloured creature on the floor, it was about the size of a baby. It had tentacles for hands and looked… cute.
One of the astronauts cautiously approached it while the others stayed behind.
"No." Josie said, choking on her tears that were already falling, she closed her eyes as if she couldn't bear to look at the next scene as if she knew what would happen next.
Jake was confused but soon understood her reaction when he saw the next scene.
Two more of the creatures appeared behind the other two astronauts. They were twice the size of the astronauts and looked similar to the baby sized creature.
They grabbed the two astronauts with their tentacle-like arms and lifted them into the hair. They wrapped the other tentacles around their helmet and easily broke it.
The two astronauts screamed and alerted the third one who looked back and was met with the gory scene.
He saw the creatures drill their tentacles into the head and backs of the astronauts and extract their brains and hearts before leaving the lifeless bodies to fall into the ground as they ate the organs.
"Oh my God!!" Jay exclaimed in fear as they watched. The third astronaut ran, but he didn't get too far as the little one had clung onto his legs holding him back with unbelievable strength, then the other two his organs.
Soon all three creatures disappeared, "They're coming" Josie muttered with a serious expression
The scene on the screen showed a UFO above the Earth's atmosphere.
