Chapter 116: [33] Close Encounters of the Bus Kind 33 [From Beyond Arc]

Close Encounters of the Bus Kind

[33]

Moving along, Marisol took it upon herself to present her set of powers and Audrey’s, as though they were doing a class presentation together.

She relayed that Audrey had acquired “Doctor Dolittle Syndrome”. She could talk to animals. In addition to her adulation for anime, Audrey was also an animal lover. She gleefully celebrated that she could finally understand what critters like Hamtaro say. Unfortunately, she had thus far discovered that her pet Pomeranian, the first animal she was able to lucidly understand, was limited to basic thoughts like for food and bowel movements. “Butt stuff”, as she relayed, occupied a lot of animal discussion. At least, Nadia admitted, this seems like a much more tolerable version of Leslie‘s telepathy if it wound up being shared.

Flocks of birds, she found to be wildly incoherent. And she was surprised that tortoises actually had a very intricate interior life. For her skill, she did a poof similar to Elsa’s and actually became a dog similar to her pet. Marisol needed to hold the animal back before Audrey reasserted herself.

Audrey explained on her own that whatever animal she turned into had a lot of the natural inklings, but she was still conscious and lucid inside an animal body and brain, even though her efforts at control seemed more like suggestions than commands. This was the smallest she had tried to make herself. The biggest was a Great Dane in the neighborhood. She had thoughts and ambitions about whales and dinosaurs but, when she thought about them, it made her head spin and she eventually passed out before making any progress.

Picking it up from her, Marisol demonstrated her talent by stretching her arm all the way across the table to shake Eva‘s. Additionally, she bent her legs in a looping pattern underneath the table and swiftly retracted them before the waitress came over to check on them. Like a comedy duo, she coordinated with Audrey as Audrey shook her hand and that hand became a pile of goop-like melting taffy that spilled over and out of her grip. Marisol, doing a little bit of a deadpan as her face oozed down, reassured everyone that this talent, which she called elasticity, was one she had complete control over.

The same went for her skill as she drew herself back together and rigidly formed herself into a silver statue with the same pose. There was only one alarming part. After she returned to human form, she relayed that while she was inanimate, the process of remaining perfectly still was actually quite painful, comparable to holding your breath underwater. She considered the upper limit to be several minutes before the pain became too much.

Settling herself down with a few calming breaths, Marisol passed it finally to Thessaly. Thessaly stood out from the other girls as she seems more like a college student than someone still in high school. She was massive with absolutely ripped and rigid thighs that often looked like they were about to burst out of her volleyball pants. Her arms had the kind of ridges that you only saw in bodybuilders. And, beyond that, she even challenged Nadia when it came to figures. But her face and features were slim, soft, and downright adorable. Additionally, her voice could actually go the highest and cutest of anyone in the group. Her dark, shoulder-length red hair often included a bow or a ribbon for fun.

To no one’s surprise, it turned out that Thessaly‘s talent was the ultimate multiplier to her already prodigious strength. She could apparently pick up cars as though they were toys and easily moved the entire table as though it was hovering, even though all the girls pushed down on it against her. Her strength actually scared her a little as the other evening she was doing some isometric exercises against a wall and almost fractured the foundation before she pulled back. She had only recently uncovered her skill last night.

“So, I just washed my bedsheets after cooking dinner for my brother and it was comforting that I went off to sleep almost immediately. The serenity and the calm that filled my body were so complete that it was like I didn’t even have a body anymore. And then I realize that I didn’t. I was outside my body floating through the wall and into the hallway. I believe Gina has a term for it she told me over text… Astral projection. I actually made contact with my brother as he was playing before bed and for a moment I was inside…him. Was very weird. But it was also relaxing to be weightless and able to go wherever I wanted to go and see whatever I wanted to see."

One of Sasha’s first suggestions was whether she should turn Thessaly‘s brother into a girl so he could be a better host for her spirit, but she thought that might not be a good idea. Having now been properly introduced to one another, Nadia felt a sort of camaraderie between herself and this group. There were way too many people and personalities bouncing off one another for her relatively introverted nature but it felt like a group that she could be true to herself with.

Musical interests and a myriad of flung references and pop-culture tidbits ruled the conversation and Nadia suspected that there was an undercurrent of curiosity how about what she and Erin meant to one another but those who were present for the kiss yesterday didn’t seem willing to reveal their secrets.

One of the vital points of concern was adding Nadia to everyone’s social media and the other was their abject horror about having to deal with Nesbitt on Monday in any meaningful capacity. Erin consoled them as a group, but she had to deal with the certainty that whatever authority she may have had last week was gone in her current state. It even seemed doubtful that she would be allowed to be a part of the volleyball team in any capacity. Further questions involved whether any of them would remain on the team or even want to.

Gina lamented, “Blasted alien infiltrators wrecking our reality!” Nadia smiled over the fact that that quote was probably the least weird thing that could’ve been uttered by Gina. She was still curious about this supposedly very stupid but especially secret idea that Eva was keeping under wraps from Gina‘s brain. Eva got up to use the restroom and Nadia considered that now might be the perfect time to ask her about it.

However, Eva seemed to have an understated preternatural ability when it came to matters of her childhood friend and neighbor. She turned around, brushed back her hair, and squinted suspiciously in Nadia’s direction. Nadia leaned back and did her best to look perfectly natural and not suspicious.

Eva briefly orbited the table before tossing some paper in a nearby waste bin. Ultimately, she didn’t do anything more than stare a bit before heading off. She was joined by Marisol and Elsa, who opted to follow the apparent rule of girls going to the restroom in groups. The sort of unspoken stuff that Nadia wished existed in some book that she could study and refer to.

It turned out that she didn’t need a book though, as Sasha and Thessaly coordinated to inquire about what female experiences Nadia had acquired so far. It didn’t take much for Nadia‘s face to feel blisteringly hot. She hoped that the blush wasn’t showing.

Audrey, with a resilient poker face, confirmed that Marisol was a pro at “battle shits”. The fact that that wasn’t a movie that Nadia had ever seen instilled even more ominous delight in Audrey. The horrors of whatever Gina was cooking up in her mind were soon put in the dust by mentions of “peanut butter and jelly”, “crampy diarrhea”, “alien babies”, and “clementine drops”. It all just barely toed the line of being vague enough to mention while some of them were finishing up their food. Tatiana did seem a little bothered, but the other girls apologized.

A few of them warned Nadia about “vallooning” and she was modestly surprised that she was able to guess what on earth that was. Without joking, they made sure to confirm that she had all the prepared necessities for whenever her time came. Nadia had seen just about everything on their list in the bathroom or her closet. Having so many sisters at least embedded her with hope that the necessities wouldn’t be that hard to come across.

Gina avoided most of the gross-out discussion, preferring to focus on how far Eva had gone for the bathroom and whether that meant they were going to get a reroll on talent sharing and which of theirs would wind up the next one. Odessa wondered about dessert while Audrey endeavored to naturally segue the conversation into an anime she was watching with chainsaw demons. Thessaly asked the waitress about the seasoning on a certain dish while Sasha lamented the ply and consistency of standard toilet paper.

During a particular lull in all this chaos, Nadia finally managed to corral Gina‘s attention towards her and ask about the subject avoided by Evangeline up to this point.

Gina took a deep breath and then checked the hallways and corners for Eva. When she still hadn’t returned, Gina stretched back, folded her arms, and began, “So, I’ve had a wish, a dream which is really more than just that. Consider it a lifetime ambition that I am casually hopeful can come true. I call it… Nuke the moon.”

The silence that followed her last statement was complete and striking, as though everyone in the kitchen and the neighborhood had heard that admission at the same moment and were bewildered about what to say next. Thessaly cleared her throat. It was clear that several of the girls around the table had heard this proposal previously, judging from the sighs and downcast looks.

Nadia took a breath and asked, “Nuke the moon?”

Gina cracked a grin that appeared more insane by the second. “YESSS. Nuke the moon. Also known as Project A119. There is some historical evidence to suggest that Soviet scientists had a plan to detonate a nuclear device on the lunar surface. However, what I’m referring to in particular is the American plan to detonate a sizable nuclear device on the moon. There were a variety of reasons claimed scientifically at the time, but just wouldn’t that be so cool. I believe there is a further utility for such an action. Since the early eras of spaceflight, there have been signs that space missions and the lunar missions in particular have been shadowed and acted upon by alien intelligences. There are records of astronauts talking in code about things they have seen out in space that are unexplainable. There was even an Apollo mission where all the electronics went off and then came back exactly as you would experience and we did, in our UFO encounter!”

Gina started to sound breathless about this as she plunged deeper into her spiel, “There is anecdotal but strong evidence to suggest that the moon may not actually be a natural heavenly body. Why do you think they made that movie that tried to disprove the idea that the moon was artificial by making it so silly? Hollywood has long been an arm of the military’s disinformation and re-information campaign to make us think certain things are true and certain things are not. Alien spacecraft don’t need to cross interstellar distances because all of them… well, most of them probably are coming from the moon and just flying to the earth to conduct whatever. And everything that happened to us happened right next to that Air Force Base and we have these Air Force guys poking their noses into our lives.”

She stopped to take a breath and a long sip of her drink. No matter what Nadia may have thought about the ramblings that Gina was providing, she had to admit that a lot of weird shit had happened to them and that wasn’t even really counting the whole Beyond dream thing. She asked Gina though, “But why blow up the moon?”

Gina shrugged. “Because it’s there and maybe it shouldn’t be there. Also, if we unravel the truth that the moon isn’t what we think it is then we can not only get rid of crazy aliens doing all sorts of experiments on us, but we get this moon-shaped spacecraft to go explore the universe before entropy and the expanding size of everything push it beyond our reach. We can totally change humanity’s understanding of reality with just a little firecracker. And even if nothing weird happens, it would be fascinating to see I think. We got so close. It’s the biggest thing we can actually do which might have the wildest effects if all the crazy possibilities of the world are actually true. We already know the world is wilder than any of us could’ve ever imagined just by being here and the things that have happened to us. Why not take control of that craziness and fire back at the void of space to see what will happen?"

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Naturally, this was finally the point that Eva and the others started walking back from the restroom. Some smatterings of the gross discussion were still around for Eva to pick up on and flash some sympathy in Nadia‘s direction. Marisol and Elsa both looked a little green and grateful not to be present. But it wasn’t long after that that Eva flared her nostrils and seemed to smell the presence of things around her.

“She said it, didn’t she?” Eva folded her arms and looked around at the group as though they were an unruly group of children who had broken one of the class rules while the teacher was away. All Nadia really had to do was nod and say the word “moon“.

Eva huffed through her nostrils. “The moon. The fleeping moon! Some little girls want to be president someday, and some little girls have always wanted to blow up the moon. Some children dream of following in the footsteps of their parents, and some dream of starting an interstellar war. Harry Christmas, if you all knew exactly how long and how many times I have heard about the physics and logistics and the possibility and the probabilities and the ideal and the potential and the whatever of blowing up the narfing lunar body! There is no reason, and no one is ever going to do it anyway! Soooo, when are you going to grow up?!” Eva didn’t have a mic to drop but instead, she just flopped down in her chair and drained the rest of her soda.

Gina didn’t look too bothered, even though her eyes were staring off into the distance with one arm folded under her chest while her other pressed against her chin with a fist. Silence once again returned to the group, but it was oddly interrupted by a heavy rumbling that everyone could feel saturating the air and quivering the ceiling. The girls looked around in all directions and a few of them started to duck under the table, as though this were a small earthquake to ride out. But the movement wasn’t constant. It came in batches of two followed by quick echoes.

A thunderous, low bellow passed through the air, rippling out from the front of the restaurant. The windows almost seem to give a shake, but it was hard to tell. The oddest part was that no one else around seemed at all alarmed or bothered by this sudden rumbling. Clustering together, the girls got up from the table and cautiously investigated the front to look out and see whether there was a police helicopter circling nearby or some other event.

Erin explained to their waitress that they thought they heard a strange police siren and emphasized it was one of those sounds that teenagers can hear but adults can’t. The waitress still came with them to try and get a look.

Outside of the restaurant, looming so high in the sky that the haze of the clouds from this day mottled and blunted its obsidian tone, was a massive creature lumbering through the southern part of the city. Nadia would’ve described it as a Cthulhu elephant or one of those creatures from the Mist with more tentacles. At the same time, it was dropping off swarms of creatures that floated like malevolent kites through the air. It brushed itself off like some zoo creature stretching in the sun and unholy masses erupted like rotten sludge. Some of the floating entities, of which there was a countless number, resembled the monster that ate Liz and killed the other Gina.

The girls just stared there in open-mouthed horror at a creature that had to be hundreds of feet tall, practically a kaiju, as Audrey whispered. The waitress puzzled over what the girls were looking at and shrugged and returned to the restaurant. Nadia found it interesting that Erin‘s talent was being shared amongst them again.

With her arms folded, Gina mentioned loud enough for Eva to hear, “You know, I feel confident that we wouldn’t have stuff like this if we just nuked the moon.”

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ADDENDUM

Helpful Reference on Abilities

Talent - Often happens whether they want it or not.
Skill - Not precise, more powerful, but may require training to use effectively.

Nadia Miray Baris -  (Talent) All language recognition, (Skill) Beyond [claims] - boosts the skills of others.

Erin Reeves -  (Talent) Perception beyond the Veil, (Skill) Telekinesis.

Evangeline - (Talent) Can share talents amongst those with them or connected to them, (Skill) Command voice that can will things to happen.

Gina Ferris - (Talent) Energy manipulation, (Skill) Self copy.

Odessa - (Talent) Ability to slow down perceived time, (Skill) Illusion projection.

Leslie Gartland - (Talent) Telepathy, (Skill) Flight.

Elsa - (Talent) Size manipulation, (Skill) Sound control.

Tatianna - (Talent) Invisibility, (Skill) Become other people.

Sasha - (Talent) Prehensile hair, (Skill) Ability to temporarily change boys into girls.

Thessaly - (Talent) Super strength, (Skill) Astral projection.

Audrey -  (Talent) Animal thought reading, (Skill) Turn into animals.

Marisol - (Talent) Elasticity, (Skill) Turn inanimate/metallic.

[I have a question at the end of the chapter again to help with suggestions for where the story should go. I'm actually not that far ahead this time and I am wide open for possibilities for this particular story. Feel free to add an idea which doesn't show up in the options. Also, if you see any random typos or uncapitalized starts of sentences, please pass them along. I have to cut down on my editing due to release speed and my programs don't seem to be catching lowercase sentences. Thank you for reading!]

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