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Joe McArdle

Short Stories
- W I N O
- Sir Bob Wires
- Downtown Area 51
- Coalboat Cadbury
- Rams Face
- Charity Hall

Downtown Area 51
         by Joe McArdle
Page 2 of 4

In that case we could line it up with the first three things that come into our heads. We carried out all types of experiments. Not one single thing out of the ordinary. No strange images or phenomenon. No strange or unusual readings. There's even been a speed camera set up on the roundabout for the last five years. Think they might have spotted a, two kilometre long, brightly lit spaceship hovering above it. We've tried everything at our disposal. And a few other methods that you would not usually associate with us boffin lot."

"Such as, Professor?"

"Animals. See if they can sense something. Other experts. Like the ones you' ve just been talking to. As we in the white coat world call them, the Bone Rattlers Brigade. Shake a few things in the air. Sprinkle the earth. Nothing unusual."

"I want you to explain this, Professor." He switched on the video.

A bright light shone through a window. A female figure was silhouetted against it. She was smoking, shaking. Agitated. She blew out a puff of smoke.

"I was driving along Dune Lane...I just finished work then there was this bright line. Next thing I know I'm a hundred meters above the ground. Then I looked up an' saw this thing above me.."

"Thing?"

"Like a structure. There was a big hole, like a door thing. It was all lit up inside."

"Then what happened?"

"I got pulled inside. Then this bright light again."

"Was there anyone or anything with you?"

"Yeah. Well. Not sure. I remember being surrounded by other people, but not really being there. Strange."

"Tell us about the people you saw. Had you seen them before?"

"They kinda looked familiar. Like I had seen them before, but they were strangers."

"What were they doing?"

"We were all sat eating something. Couldn't taste it. At this round table. Then one of the guys started throwing up. Then this wee monster thing jumped out of him and ran across the table. Covered in stuff."

"What did it look like?"

"Only saw its tale."

"Then what happened?"

"All I remember is screaming and running about. Then I woke up..or.. I was back in my car. Driving along Great Roswell Street."

Another silhouetted figure appeared. A male. Non smoker.

"This bright light. Just got dropped off at the junction. Turned around, I was being transported upwards. Towards this, looked like a ship of some sort. I was in the navy. Looked like one of the hatches on a ship. Taking onboard supplies an' that. Just all this whiteness. Then there was some people. Dressed up in something. Like uniforms All sat at computers or something. I thought it was an amusements arcade."

"Where were you?"

"Like, sat there with them, but, like not there."

"Did they say anything to you?"

"Don't know. They seemed to be talking to each other. I could hear this voice in my ear. Kept saying his name was Scotty. There was this big screen in front. Had white things flashing past it. Then it started shaking. Like it had collided with something. Then there was all this smoke and flames. Then these two guys appeared in the middle of all this. Just out of nowhere. Just materialised. Just appeared."

"What did they look like?"

"Normal. 'Cept,. One of them had, like, pointy ears."

"Pointed ears?"

A new backlight appeared. Two silhouettes. One looked like a dog. The one doing the speaking sounded female. "We were out walking one night." A sniff.

"Just the two of you?"

"Yes."

"Can you tell us what happened to you both?"

"Well. It was the dog. They took you away, didn't they chooookums?"

A sniff. The two turn to face each other. Another sniff.

"Just the two of us. Then this humming noise. A bright light. Noises. I heard these noises.

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