Part 6
The Colonel opened a door into a room filled with men and women sitting at computer terminals. Except - at least half of them were not men or women. They were grey, with large heads, huge eyes and small mouths - they were my aliens of the Third Kind.
I froze for a moment in shock. What the hell was going on? I looked across at the Colonel but he seemed oblivious. His eyes had gone straight to a huge screen which occupied one entire wall. It was showing what appeared to be a live, aerial view of central Sydney. I saw three tall aliens moving down George Street, in the direction of the Opera House. The camera kept panning up and down - operated by someone in a helicopter, judging by the accompanying noise.
"Well, can you see any aliens, then?" asked the Colonel in a flat tone.
I turned to him in confusion. I was almost certain he didn't know he was surrounded by them. Evidently the Third Kind were still successfully maintaining their camouflage -hardly surprising in the circumstances - now was hardly the best time to reveal their existence! Was I going to turn them in? It was true they seemed harmless enough - in all my years of watching, I had never seen one of them make an aggressive move, until they fought back against the invaders, that is. They appeared to have adapted themselves to our world.
I couldn't help my eyes flicking over those hunched at their desks. One of them turned and smiled. Then it winked, I swear.
I cleared my throat. "Just those three, there," I answered, pointing to the screen, uncertain exactly what sort of a test this was.
He frowned and pursed his lips. "Bring the grid up," he directed one of his staff, a human as it happened.
Seconds later a graph-like grid appeared, superimposed on the screen.
"Give me the co-ordinates." This time he was speaking to me. I saw then that there were letters across the top and numbers down the sides, rather like a game of 'Battleships.'
"C12, C13 and C14." I replied. "They are moving up towards the top right of the picture," I added. Was this some sort of trick? As we both watched the screen, the Colonel gave a brief order to the computer operator next to him. A few seconds later, the three aliens collapsed in flames.
I swear the Colonel's jaw dropped open in surprised disbelief. I realised then that he hadn't believed me. Hadn't believed I could really see them.
"Thank god!" he breathed. "Now we have a fighting chance!"
I blame the knockout drugs for why I was so slow to catch on. My brain was still fuzzy, but I realised then that I had made the right decision. If I had accused those who looked like people to everyone else, no-one would have listened to me, any more than they had before. I would have been bundled out of the room immediately, without a chance to help fight the invaders.
Evidently, I was still the only human who could see aliens.
YOU ARE READING
The Lost Planet of Ko'sstahn (Winner - SFSD 8 Collection)
Science FictionThe Lost Planet of Ko'sstahn, where beasts with three heads and five tails roam the city streets at night, is in peril. Summoned by the Princess Kelliana, James Carver must battle dangerous and powerful foes if the day is to be saved ... A collecti...