Chapter 117: [34] Close Encounters of the Bus Kind 34 [From Beyond Arc]

Close Encounters of the Bus Kind

[34]

“So, what do we do?” Elsa nervously asked with her hands squeezing together tightly.

Eva brushed her hair back and responded, “Keep the launch codes out of her hands. And just let me walk away a little bit so we don’t have to see that.”

Elsa urgently questioned, “Does Coach see this all the time?“

Erin stared at the massive creature and swallowed. “I’ve never seen anything like this. I feared and felt something similar the other day and saw eyes. But not like this."

Elsa appeared as though she was getting smaller and responded with a slightly higher-pitched voice, “Do you think it wants to hurt us?”

Eva smacked her fist against one of the beams at the front of the restaurant. “It probably doesn’t even know we’re here. If we draw attention to ourselves, then who knows what could happen? Better just to forget we ever saw it.”

Sasha let out a deep breath. “She’s probably right. I mean look at that elephant… horse gross thing. All I got is hair and it’s not long enough to tangle with that beast. And I wouldn’t dare try to turn it into a girl. Assuming it isn’t one already.”

Odessa was at the front of the group, with her hands clasped in front of her. Nadia wondered if she recognized the parasitical creatures coming off of the massive beast as being similar to the ones they encountered at Sears. For how much strife and effort it took them to just deal with the one, the dense rain of the entities felt absolutely soul-crushing.

She had a vague understanding of so-called eldritch abominations and Lovecraftian mythos. Movies and TV shows typically got it wrong because entertainment always wants to show human beings or at least the good guys in the story, winning. So, to win humans have to be a match for an otherworldly, immense beast. Some secret Achilles’ heel or quick way of sealing them back into the darkness.

But this was like the ambitions of a flea to take down the dog and humanity was collectively the flea. This thing and they were on entirely different levels of existence, not to mention clearly different aspects of reality. It was utterly hopeless if it was hostile. Fortunately, it just seemed to be taking a stroll through the south of downtown. It was even stepping calmly between the buildings. Nadia did her best to envision it as just a skyscraper-sized cow.

Odessa looked like she was mulling a few things over before she finally spoke, “I have some ideas. I can’t really activate my illusion skill on demand yet, but it might be worth attempting it. We know that these creatures seem to be able to see them, based on how the situation went yesterday.”

Eva’s neck tightened. “Yesterday was a nightmare. This thing literally sheds what we barely… and didn’t… survived yesterday. Whatever idea you have, you better be sure.” She focused intently on Odessa, not with malice but concern and fear showing above barely restrained trembling. Odessa backed away and bowed her head.

Elsa gestured to the massive beast looming in the sky. “But what do we do? What if that thing is hurting people?” She took a couple steps forward toward the sidewalk from the front patio of the restaurant. Swiftly, one of those kite versions of the Sears monster swooped not even fifty feet in front of them and sprawled out like a ruined, slimy sheet of living oil. It wasn’t as large and didn’t have the masses of screaming hungry figures beneath it. The same sorts of mouths that ripped the other Gina apart, leaving only pieces, flared and lashed at the air like snakes. Eva took several long breaths but gazed at her feet. Elsa covered her mouth and tried to look down the road.

The entity slowly probed the region in front of the restaurant as people just came and went like normal. They had plenty of bewildered expressions for the nervously tense group of girls at the entrance. Some passersby actually walked through the creature without stopping and neither the entity nor the people reacted to the passage. For one nervous moment, what appeared to be the head of the entity, although it was hard to tell, reared up and inspected their entire group. It checked each of their faces one by one. None dared to take a breath.

Nadia had no idea what to do. She tried to make it look like she wasn’t vividly aware of the predatory mass looming so close to her like a land shark. Focusing on Erin seemed like the best idea. She seemed to have gotten the same notion, as she rested her eyes on Nadia. The two of them did their best to appear lost in each other’s gaze when really they were focusing their peripheral awareness on where that horrible thing was going.

What had only been several seconds passed like torturous minutes. Mercifully, the creature aimed itself away and shot off like a sprung rubber band. It darted down an alley and seemed to pass through a wall. Only after giving it a long lull to make sure it wouldn’t reappear, did the girls finally take a breath and start to look around like normal.

Elsa panted a few times. “But we’re good guys with superpowers. Aren’t we supposed to fight monsters?” Nadia wished she knew what to tell her. But there definitely seemed to be far too many monsters out there and not enough things they could possibly do. Elsa did have some sort of sonic talent but if she used it against the creatures then Nadia worried that it might cause more damage to the surrounding area and undue attention. Tatiana would only be useful if she could turn into one of the creatures, although with the way she lost herself in her role, Nadia I didn’t see that as a positive. Marisol might be able to use her rubber mode to capture one of them, but she was just as likely to get hurt. And Audrey couldn’t become much bigger.

That left Eva commanding them, Erin‘s telekinesis, Thessaly’s strength, and whatever she might be able to do. Even if Leslie was around, she could only fly around the big one. If she heard its thoughts, Nadia feared for what might happen. The paralysis of the group ended with Eva shaking her head and heading back into the restaurant. No one followed her back in until the looming vision faded back to a normal day. Erin turned away and pressed herself against Nadia. She held her close and kissed her on the head. Beyond be damned.

She had no direction to actually scowl in, but she hoped the sentiment was received by that foul old woman anyway. If these were the kind of creatures that their group found permissible, then Nadia didn’t want any part of their advice or nudging about how she should lead her life. If she believed their lecture about what her ability actually was, then she found it far more preferable to strengthen the people around her to make them better prepared for the unseen monsters.

Let Erin get stronger to defend herself. Let her rend those wretched creatures to screaming pieces so that just going to Hell would be a mercy. She didn’t know what she could do to bolster Erin‘s abilities intentionally, but she definitely focused her love, enthusiasm, and support on Erin to make her stronger. Thessaly squeezed herself tight with uncertainty, as though every inch of her flowing muscles was just a protective bodysuit she put on.

You are reading story Interactive Short TG Fiction at novel35.com

Marisol made a gesture to the air which wasn’t precisely profane but definitely contained disgust. Audrey and Gina regarded one another, with the feeling that there were so many ways to translate that appearance and presence in geeky language, but they were each left speechless with fear and so many other emotions.

It wasn’t long before the entire group made their way back into the restaurant and their table. As far as the best-accorded explanation for their strange grouping outside, Erin relayed that she had heard about a daytime meteor shower and one of them looked out the window when going to the restroom and thought they glimpsed a bright flash. It was a detailed pile of bullshit but sufficed. That led Duman to take a peek with some of the staff for a minute and regale the girls with details about the telescope he would like to use at the park after dark.

To deflect their anxiety and also focus on finishing their food before dessert came, the group focused on the lingering, playful, increasingly obvious implication between Erin and Nadia. Duman had lavished attention and concern on Erin as though she were his surrogate daughter. He apparently had plans for her to indulge in practically every dessert the restaurant had to offer. Erin expressed gratitude that she had a teenager’s metabolism.

Else was also keen for dessert and eager to put the horrifying visions outside out of mind.  Bolstered by Thessaly smiling and smirking, the girls started to press about what Erin and Nadia meant to one another. The group in the know politely held their tongue and just watch the proceedings. Nadia wished that she could’ve brought the necklace, but with all the uncertainties and pressures of church, she feared that even if it didn’t feel like a hot brand in her pocket, then there was the possibility that someone might know and take it from her again.

Instead, she detailed its appearance and traced a phantom version along her neck with the smiles and encouragement of all the other girls. The romance was out in the open after being a giggling joke among the team towards Paul and Erin. Like ‘oh look at Coach and Mr. Bus Driver fawning over one another and smiling and looking like they’re about to erupt in bright blushes!’ But beyond the teasing, the girls were also their biggest cheerleaders. It seemed like a regular proclivity for teenagers, particularly teenage girls, to “ship“ certain adults together, especially those in authority or close to them. At least, that was what Nadia gathered.

A customer showed up with a big, diligent English Labrador service dog and provided a pleasant distraction. The tan dog obediently scanned the room, and the girls could easily hear it with a gruff but warm tone, “Looking around looking around. Keep her safe keep her safe keep her safe.” A few of the group hopped up and had to resist petting the animal, especially as it warned them not to do that. But they lingered around the dog and asked service animal questions of the polite patron. Nadia felt some measure of relief that sharing had shifted to one of the other talents and it hadn’t been one of the troublesome ones. Unfortunately, she also knew that this once again left poor Erin as the only one of them who could see and feel the barrage of horrible monsters outside.

The prying about what the two of them meant to one another didn’t stop though. Tatiana seemed restless with her hands as she mentioned, “I’d be easier now for the two of you than it would’ve been when you were back in high school. I mean, you’re going to be back in high school. Oh wait, oh I’m sorry.” Nervously, Tatiana explained her oversight as she had neglected the fact that Erin and Nadia weren’t a lesbian couple in high school. She felt some measure of confused amusement that the girl had somehow forgotten that Nadia was supposed to actually be a man.

Audrey still considered the two of them to be “technically adults” with the reasoning drawn from anime and other sources. She glossed over a reference to 1000-year-olds who appeared young. Their bodies may have taken on the appearance of teenagers, but their minds and souls and essences were still in their 30s. That immediately raised questions for Nadia about whether her brain cells had enough resilience.

Dipping back into podcasts again, she reflected on the uncertainty of cloning animals and how particular ones suffered from genetic defects their entire life and protracted aging. In 20 years, would she have the brain of something like her 30-year-old self or would it be more of a 50-year-old presence? It wasn’t that she was interested in immortality, she just didn’t wanna suffer. What worth was it to look young and fresh but be wasting away inside? Back to the ominous and unnecessary notions though. She pushed the thought away.

Erin casually but firmly confirmed that they were a couple, which earned a wave of girlish sounds from the group. They even demonstrated a quick kiss that paled in comparison to the one they shared yesterday. The team banded together though and made absolutely sure that the two of them would be taken care of at school and none of the people who might make fun of them would be allowed to do so. They couldn’t really do much about Nesbitt, but they resolved to lend each other as much strength for the uncertainty ahead.

The conversation shifted fully to interests and hints of romance, suggesting that the cute couple should make fun dating plans. But the momentum of this line of inquiry halted when Erin‘s face lost its color and her jaw tightened. She had to hold back the full force of this mysterious sentiment as Duman and several servers came out with plentiful trays of desserts for the entire group. Nadia felt her heart break despite the smile she had to wear with the pain that Erin was obviously holding back. They all had to appear naturally delighted and carefree about this meal whilst unseen terrors bloomed.

It took the longest time for them to actually get some privacy. All that Erin could whisper in the meanwhile were the tense words, “It’s here…” That was enough to trigger all of Nadia‘s fears.

Duman finally stepped out and Erin was able to express, “It’s here it’s here. One of those flying flap grease motherfucker angelfish ghost eaters. It’s right in the room. It was circling around your dad‘s neck like it was tasting him and now it’s in the Cantina.” Erin seemed like she wanted to cry, scream, and shake to pieces at the same time. Even though they couldn’t see it, several of the girls glanced in the direction of the hallway leading to the Cantina. Nadia narrowed her eyes with tingling fury flowing down her fingers, as though her hands were suddenly alive with unseen fires.

No matter what Luna said, no running away. They got rid of one of these creatures and surprised that mysterious little girl. Even if she had to do it herself, with her bare hands if necessary, Nadia resolved that they would kill this piece of shit for daring to even get close to her father. 

 

 

 

[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!]

Poll below

You can find story with these keywords: Interactive Short TG Fiction, Read Interactive Short TG Fiction, Interactive Short TG Fiction novel, Interactive Short TG Fiction book, Interactive Short TG Fiction story, Interactive Short TG Fiction full, Interactive Short TG Fiction Latest Chapter