Attack Of The Sans As my space ship whizzed past the bright glowing stars, another ship came by and almost collided with me. "Fland, that ship is in trouble." "Do you think I'm so stupid that I can't see that?" I immediately followed the ship to a small beach planet called Axium. The pilot was soaring out of control until he made a crash landing. After I touched down on the sandy surface, I ran to the crashed ship. My skin felt as if it would melt from the blazing hot flames. I had to act fast. The ship would explode soon. The door was too hot to touch. I looked to my left and saw a stick. I jammed it in the door and pulled fiercely until I pried it open. I carried the pilot away from his ship as fast as my legs would move. After I dragged him seventy feet, his ship exploded. Glass and metal went soaring through the air. The pilot was a tall lizard man. He had green and scaly skin. He was biped like a man. His red eyes, sharp teeth, and long tail made him look vicious even though he was in no shape to be a threat. He looked at me and began to speak. "Take this. You must help my people." The lizard man handed me a computer disk and then died. The crash was just too much for him. As Cynthia stroked her hair with a brush, I became angry. "This person has just died. How can you just stand there and brush your hair?" "Hey, I have to look good." Cynthia's good looks and fantastic body made her vain. Her cute dimples and long flowing blond hair made her think she was it. Fortunately she had other qualities. She was loyal, trustworthy and dependable. I too had faults. My ego was as large as my I.Q. I believed I could succeed even if the odds were stacked against me. But I guess being an advanced alien would only naturally make a person's ego swell up. My square jaw, husky build, and dark brown hair made me look fierce and powerful. I walked back to my ship and loaded the computer disk. The lizard man who gave it to me appeared on my screen and began talking. "Hello. My name is Lester. I'm a Reptallian and the leader of a planet called Narburg. My people lived in peace until a race of slug creatures called the Sans came to my planet and slaughtered most of my people. The remaining Reptallions built a giant hidden city that's surrounded by trees. On this disk you will find the space coordinates of Narburg and the location of our hidden city. Please come to Narburg. We're in dire need of help." When I finished viewing the disk, I turned to Cynthia. "We're going to Narburg to help the Reptallions." "That's nice, but just look at me. I'm the most beautiful girl alive." "If you were any more vain, you'd want to date yourself." Cynthia and I soared into the sky. We then warped to Narburg. As I landed my ship, I saw trees everywhere. Narburg appeared to be a rain forest planet. Cynthia and I climbed out of my ship and began to scour the countryside. The air's aroma was sweet. Much sweeter than on Earth. The sky was bright pink and the grass was blue. Roses were growing all around and they were changing colors. As we walked past the trees, Cynthia became curious about the Sans. "Are the Sans really as dangerous as they sound?" "They're even worse. Intelligent life means nothing to these evil creatures. Years ago I studied about them in school. They all look identical. The insides of their bodies are fillrd with a powerful acid. The slime trail they leave behind them and their saliva are also filled with acid. They can stretch out their tongues to four feet long. If they touch their tongues to a person's flesh or if someone accidentally steps in their slime trail before it hardens, the acid instantly dissolves their flesh and leaves a skeleton." "Look at the top of that hill. It's a Reptallion." "Let's go to him." After hiking up the steep and rocky hill, we came to the Reptallion. "Hello. I'm Cal. You two are aliens. Do you come in peace?" "Yes." I replied. Cal seemed to be shy and timid but friendly. He looked exactly like Lester. Like the Sans, the Reptallions all look identical as well. Suddenly a San crept up behind Cal and killed him with his tongue. My laser gun was my only hope. I pulled it on him, but with one furocious swing, he knocked it from my hand. It then fell in a pile of quicksand and sank. Shaking from fear, Cynthia grabbed my arm. "What are we going to do, Fland?" "We're going to die." This looked like the end. We were sure to be killed. But to my surprise, the San only sprayed us with a liquid and then slithered down the hill. The San's large black body and one eye in the center of his forehead made him look vicious. He had muscular arms and a long tail but no legs. Cynthia was bent over, gasping from fright. I was stunned because we weren't killed. "He didn't kill us. Why didn't he kill us? Sans never give up an opportunity to kill people. Why did he let us live?" "Just count your blessings. Be thankful we're still alive. Why are you so worried because he didn't kill us?" "Because it makes no sense." "Shouldn't we get going?" We walked past the trees. The scent of the liquid we'd been sprayed with seemed familiar but I just couldn't quite place it. As we continued walking, I kept talking about the Sans. "An old professor of mine visited the Sans planet and discovered their weakness." "What is their weakness?" "I don't know. He was killed before he could finish his transmission." "Was he killed by the Sans?" "No. He was killed by Santa Claus. Of couse he was killed by the Sans. Duh." "You'd better watch it." Cynthia disliked my sarcasm but tolerated it. "My professor did say one thing about the sans. But I'm having trouble remembering what he said." I racked my brain. This was a long time ago. Suddenly it came back to me. "He said for such powerful creatures, there's an incredibly simple way to kill them. If only I knew what he meant." As gusty winds made the trees branches sway back and forth, we finally arrived at the entrance of the Reptallion city. A computer was attached to one of the trees. It had to be programmed correctly to open a hole in the force field that surrounded the city. "This is your forte, Cynthia. See if you can program this computer." Cynthia was ready to program the computer, but the pale and flustered color she turned spelled trouble. "What's wrong?" I asked. "The computer informs me that I have only two chances to program it correctly. If I fail both times, we'll be atomized by a high energy beam. It's a defense mechanism to keep out enemies." "Can you program it correctly?" "Hopefully." She programmed it but was incorrect. "Good going, dummy. You did really good." "Shut up, Fland." What went wrong? Cynthia was one of the best computer specialists of her time. What if she failed once more? We'd both be killed. Suddenly a bright look of hope came to her face. "That's why I was incorrect. This is a primative computer. It's almost identical to the Earth computers in the nineteen-eighties. It uses basic language." As she began to program it a second time, perspiration ran down my brow and a cold chill ran down my spine. Could she do it? Suddenly a hole opened in the force field. She did it. "We must hurry. We only have ten seconds before the hole closes." Cynthia grabbed my arm and pulled me through the force field. Behind the trees was the Reptallion city. The entire city was made of gold. Even the streets. "This looks like paradise." Cynthia said. Suddenly we were greeted by a Reptallion. "Hello. My name is Boris. You two made it through our force field. Are you friends or foes?" "Friends. We're here to help you fight the Sans." "Excellent. Someone has finally came to our aid." I soon learned that Boris was a very loyal and dedicated individual. I found his bravery, charm, and honesty quite refreshing. He was a great warrior who was bound by duty. I suddenly became curious about something. "Boris, the Sans are telepathic. How do you keep them from locating your city?" "The trees that surround this city were developed by our scientists. They are a hybrid breed. Besides giving carbon dioxide, they also block telepathy." "That's very clever." "Our race is almost extinct. There was once five million of us. But since the Sans invaded this planet, only five thousand of us remain." "Yes. The Sans are barbarians." "When we achieved world peace seven thousand years ago, we destroyed our weapons. That's why we can't fight back." Suddenly I recognized the scent of the liquid Cynthia and I were sprayed with. It was chemicals. Chemicals that were traceable. "I remember. That San sprayed us with traceable chemicals. That's why he didn't kill us. When he saw us talking to Cal, he knew we'd come to this city to try and help. The San's Know this city's location." "Then we are doomed." "Maybe. Maybe not. We must work fast." "Is there anything we can do?" "Perhaps. I need a tissue sample of a San." "We can provide you with a tissue sample. We recently found and collected a dead San's carcass. We've examined its DNA but could find no weaknesses." Boris immediately took me to a laboratory. Solid gold scientific instruments were all around. Boris carried a tissue sample to the other side of the room. When he placed it under a powerful DNA microscope, I immediately spotted something. "I recognize this DNA. It's almost identical to that of an Earth Snail. The Sans must have evolved from snails. Salt kills snails so it must kill Sans as well." "We have plenty of salt in this city." "No. The type of salt on this planet won't work. Only Earth salt will do." "But Earth is in another galaxy." "Fortunately my ship's warp drive can get me to Earth in a matter of seconds. But how are we going to get the salt on the Sans? If we try to get close enough to throw it on them, they'll kill us." Suddenly I felt a light tap on my shoulder. It was Cynthia. She wanted to speak to me. "I heard you talking to Boris and I know what you can do. Pack the salt in shotgun shells and shoot the Sans." "That's a dumb idea. When I want your help, I'll ask for it." I walked back over to Boris. "If we pack the salt in shotgun shells and shoot the Sans, that will work." I said. "Yes. That's brilliant." Cynthia had her arms crossed and was tapping her foot on the floor. The stern look she gave me indicated that she wasn't pleased. "What did I do now?" I asked. I returned my attention to Boris. "We have a problem. I have no money to buy shotguns, shells and salt." "We can give you a good sized load of gold to trade for the items. Gold is our biggest resource. That's why the San's invaded this planet. I will have the gold loaded aboard your ship immediately." Suddenly I heard the clatter of footsteps. It was Cynthia. She was staggering around until she slammed hard into a table and then collapsed to the floor. "What's wrong?" Cynthia was ill. What could be wrong with her? Suddenly I knew. "It's the chemicals. You have an allergic reaction to the chemicals we were sprayed with. Why didn't you tell me that you're ill?" "You couldn't have been able to concentrate on helping the Reptallions if you were worried about me. I didn't want to be a burden." "You stupid girl. You could never be a burden. I love you. You should've told me." Boris walked over to us. "Can you help her?" Boris said. "Maybe. She needs antibiotics. Do you have any?" "No." "Then I'll have to get some on Earth. She'll have to stay here. It's not safe to move her. I estimate that she only has five hours left to live. And in that same amount of time, the Sans will have deactivated your force field. Speaking of which, you'll have to open your force field to let me out." "Yes and I'll show you a path out of this city that's underground." After returning to my ship, I saw that the gold had just been loaded. As I was climbing aboard, a cold clammy hand clamped around my left ankle. It was a San. As I held on to the door, the San pulled frantically trying to jerk me out. I was losing my grip. Finally I freed myself by kicking him hard in the head. As I soared into the sky, the San was burned to death by my ship's exhaust blast. I immediately warped to Earth. I had only five hours. What if I couldn't do it? It was such a short length of time. But I couldn't waste time worrying about that. I had to carry on so I could save both Cynthia and the Reptallions. Three and a half hours later I returned with the items. After returning to the city, I administered the antibiotics to Cynthia. "I hope that this works." But what if the antibiotics didn't work? What if she still died? It would be my fault. I brought her to Narburg. I got her into this. I knew if she did die, I'd never be able to live with myself. Cynthia slowly began to recover. After awhile I saw that she'd fully recover. "Cynthia, are you alright?" "Yes. You saved me. You're my hero." Suddenly I felt a light tap on my shoulder. It was Boris. "We've finished filling and loading the shells. We,ve also received a report. The Sans have deactivated our force field." "Send your people into battle with the two thousand shotguns. Then you and I are going on a flight in my ship. We'll fly above the clouds. It's raining heavily. We'll dump the remaining salt in the clouds." "And the salt water will kill the remaining Sans." "Correct." As the reptallions went into battle, Boris and I soared above the clouds. We dumped the remaining salt in the clouds and killed the remaining Sans. When Boris and I returned to the city, a Reptallion had bad news. "Not every San was killed. One remains. The leader. He came through the sewer and kidnapped Cynthia. He left you this document." I looked at the document. "It's a map. It even tells the exact spot where he's taken her. They're in a large cave. Let's go there, Boris." "I don't like this. Why would he tell you where he is? It must be a trap." "I'm still going and so are you." Boris and I went straight to the cave to face the San leader. The entire cave was made of gold, including the throne the San was sitting on. Highly advanced scientific equipment filled the cave. Suddenly the San lowered a cage. Cynthia was in it. "It's over San leader. We've killed your invasion troops. The Reptallions will live in peace again." I said. "You are mistaken. I had the foresight to have a nuclear bomb constructed. I'm going to detonate it and destroy this planet. I will commit genocide." "Wrong. I know your weakness and I'm going to kill you." Suddenly a numbness came across my body. All of my limbs were motionless. I was paralyzed. "I've zapped you with a paralysis ray." Boris walked towards me but was knocked backwards. "I've put up an invisible energy barrier behind you so your friend can't help you. The red button on the panel behind you will terminate my paralysis ray but two thousand volts of electricity runs through it. If anyone touches it, they'll be killed. I'm going to detonate my bomb but first I'm going to kill your girlfriend." The San began stretching his tongue towards the cage. He was going to kill Cynthia. He wasn't bluffing. He'd kill her all right. He'd do it just to see the look on my face. He was indeed a monster. The San's tongue was getting closer and closer to Cynthia's skin. I stood there frozen. She was surely going to die and I was forced to stand there helpless while it happened.. But suddenly something startled the San. He put his tongue back in his mouth and I was no longer paralyzed. Boris was pressing the red terminate button on the panel behind me. As two thousand volts of electricity ran through his body, I called out to him. "Let go of that button. You'll be killed!" "No. Quick, shoot him or else he'll detonate the bomb." I quickly aimed my shotgun at the San and fired. Black slime oozed from the throne to the ground as the San melted. I deactivated the energy barrier and went to Boris. As I held him, he coughed up blood. He was dying. "Boris, you shouldn't have thrown your life away like that. I still could've defeated him." "No. It was the only way. He thought I wouldn't touch the button because it was boobie trapped. But I'd do anything to save my people. It was nice working with you, Fland. I had fun." Boris slumped out of my arms and died. He sacrificed himself to save his planet. He was a true hero. I released Cynthia from the cage. After disarming the bomb and giving Boris a proper funeral, it was time for Cynthia and I to be off. Somewhere evil was at work. Cynthia and I were going there to put up the good fight.
Copyright © 2004 Randy Johnson |