Tevun-Krus #83 - Zombie SF

Lucky Encounter - A Short Story by @jinnis

Lucky Encounter

By jinnis

The aliens arrived shortly before midnight. It was a picture-book landing. Or almost-landing, as the ship stopped a few metres above the cornfield, bathed in an eerie blue light. Like a giant, fast-turning frisbee it hovered there, spinning around its axis with a slight wobble.

From my vantage point on the small hill beside the farmhouse, I observed the circular hatch on the underside of the vessel opening like the aperture of a camera.

Stark white light painted a circle into the cornfield and the stalks caught in it shivered, withered, and fell to the ground.

The ship emitted a low hum that made my teeth rattle. I wondered if I should leave when a movement in the corner of my eye caught my attention. From the farmhouse, two figures in their pyjamas approached, walking towards the field and the ship with steady steps. Why weren't they afraid?

I studied the peaceful faces of the farmer and his wife and realised they were sleepwalking or under some kind of spell. Interesting.

As soon as the befuddled people had passed my hiding place, I followed them at a distance. They stomped through the cornfield as if they were zombies, stumbling and ploughing a path each through the man-high stalks. I was close behind when they reached the illuminated circle, covered in leaves, their bare feet muddy.

As soon as they stepped into the light, the ship sucked them in. Both humans floated gently up towards the hatch, an expression of utmost bliss on their faces. I knew I had to hurry now, or the hatch might close before I reached my goal. A mad dash brought me to the edge of the corn circle, and I jumped into the bright light just in time.

The hatch whooshed shut beneath me, and I landed flat on my belly in an octagonal room. A glance around showed me five blue-skinned, chubby aliens surrounding the unconscious forms of the farmer and his wife. As one, they turned in my direction and pointed thin, pointy devices at me. Electricity sizzled at their tips. I smiled.

Before the first blast of a weapon reached me, I rolled to the left. Smoke rose from the deck at the spot I'd occupied only moments ago. I jumped up, taking advantage of their surprise, and knocked out the first alien before the others found time to react. They hadn't counted on my speed or my determination. I used my momentum to jump atop a console and catapulted myself at my adversaries, ignoring their sizzling weapons.

Five minutes later, the ship belonged to me. I ran a hand over my skull while I studied the hole the alien weapon had left in my thigh. There was no blood, and it wouldn't prevent me from flying this beauty of a ship to the moon and back. Or to the alien homeworld, come to think of it.

Thoughtful, I licked some blue gel from my fingers. It tasted nice, and my energy levels charged faster than with any earthly matter I'd tried. I scooped up some more of the alien brain and devoured it, waiting for the desired effect. Soon, the former unreadable script on the ship's controls became understandable.

A gurgling sound tore me out of my study of the star charts and controls. The farmer had awoken and was busy getting rid of his dinner. When his wife shuddered herself to consciousness, she turned in my direction. Her scream made my eardrums pop. This made the decision easy. I cleaned the remaining alien brain from my finger and operated the hatch to drop the two humans into their cornfield.

As far as I was concerned, they could go home and tell their story to whoever would believe them. I found an alternative source of subsistence and a new destination.

There are undeniable perks to being undead.