I felt like a long drive would help clear my head. My week of work had been particularly stressful, and I wanted to be alone with my thoughts -- hopefully clear out the cobwebs and relax with some fresh air. Driving on the empty country roads felt liberating. The sun was setting in the west, all my windows in the pickup were rolled down, and I could hear the enthusiastic chirping of crickets along the roadside as I drove nowhere with a purpose. I had no idea where I was headed, and I didn't really care.
Time passed and the countryside rolled by. As my thoughts drifted, I considered how hard I'd been working and that I'd been neglecting myself. Everyone needs some alone time. If for no other reason, it lets you assess life and think things through. For me, it's all too easy to focus on work and the problems of the job, rather than take the time to decompress and tend to my own well-being. After passing through several small towns in the Flint Hills, the sun had fully set, and I realized I no longer had a good idea of where I was. I had really been driving aimlessly. I pulled over to check the GPS on my phone and decided it was probably time to head home. I mapped out a route across some back roads that I figured would have me back to town in an hour or maybe two. It would be late, but the time I'd spent unwinding on this drive had left me feeling refreshed. My little evening excursion had been well worth it.
Pulling back onto the road, I began following the route mapped out by my phone. I was struck by how far I was from the city. It was dark. I mean, really, really, dark. There was no moon, only stars, and that intensified the feeling that I was clearly out in the middle of nowhere. I was thankful once I'd left behind the gravel road and I was back on the paved highway.
In the distance on the road ahead, I saw bright, flashing lights. I assumed it was an 18-wheeler or a farm tractor stopped with engine trouble or maybe a driver asleep for the night. As I got closer, I slowed down and tried to figure out how I was going to get safely past. It was then I realized the vehicle was still moving, and the bright light made it very hard for me to see. I quickly slowed, pulled off the road and stopped completely. I had no intention of getting hit by whatever was coming. I watched as the lights moved closer, but they slowed suddenly and stopped as well. I breathed a little sigh of relief, knowing that I had been seen, and everything would be okay. Maybe this driver did need help afterall.
The vehicle lights stayed on, and I could not see past them. As I peered ahead, trying to decide what to do, a person wearing what looked like a hazardous material suit appeared at my driver's window. I was sure they could see my window was down, and I started to speak out in greeting. But before the words were even out of my mouth, I saw a raised hand spray a fine mist through my open window and into my face. Everything went black.
I woke up very confused. The first thing I noticed was an antiseptic smell in the air. The surroundings were dark, but I was bathed in a pool of white light. I began to hear strange noises like a hundred whispers in an amphitheater, and I had the sense of being in a large space. I was laying on something so soft I could not feel it. It was gentle and supportive. I was extremely comfortable, but when I tried to move, neither my arms nor legs would respond.
With difficulty I shifted my gaze and saw I was four or five feet above the floor -- floating! I began to panic. While I could certainly feel everything, I was unable to move in any significant way. I found I was limited to wiggling my fingers and toes and blinking my eyes. Otherwise, I was frozen in place. I felt a rush of air move through the room, and I suddenly became aware that I was naked. My mind was absolutely reeling -- I was immobilized, suspended in space, completely nude, and utterly helpless.
I saw movement on the edge of my field of vision. A large shape was approaching. It looked human, . . . sort of, but it was more of an androgenous shape, neither male nor female. It was headed right for me, and I could do nothing to defend myself. I tried to open my mouth to cry out, but I was unable to form a sound.
"Try to remain calm," I heard each word forming inside my head. "We will not hurt you. We only want to learn more about you and your kind." The voice was unlike anything I'd ever heard before and weird enough to intensify my feelings of panic. The sound of each syllable seemed to be a different language or accent. One syllable was English, the next Spanish, the next no language I'd ever heard. Yet it all somehow made sense inside my head. Still, my panic had taken over. I started hyperventilating, and my heart was beating out of my chest. As if in response to my panicked state, I suddenly felt a warmth flow into my veins. I knew I was being drugged. In spite of myself, I felt my body relax. My fear subsided, and a pleasant wave of calm began to take hold of my mind.
The creature stood over me - it was very tall. Its skin was gray and smooth, and rather than legs, its body rested on one mounded foot. As it moved around me, it seemed to glide rather than walk. Its head was oval-shaped with two large, black, eyes that had tremendous depth. Its mouth was small in proportion to the rest of its face. Instead of arms, it had a set of numerous tentacles that slowly undulated as it stood still, gazing into my face. This was some type of alien life form, and I was under its control.
The figure slowly turned away and began to make a series of grunts and clicks facing toward the darkness. I assumed it was speaking to the owners of those whispers I'd heard when I first awoke in the room. I was being watched.
After a moment, it turned back to me. Once again, I heard alien's voice in my head. "It is our intention to perform a series of experiments to better understand your physiology. Please know that we are already somewhat familiar with your species, and we will take special care to see you come to no harm and suffer no discomfort. If at any time you feel unpleasant in any way, please speak out, and we will stop our experiments immediately. Do you understand?"
Without moving my lips, I formed the thought in my mind, "Yes, . . . I understand," not really knowing whether I'd be heard by the alien or what to expect.
Almost immediately the alien responded, "Good, good! You have discovered on your own the best way to communicate with us. That is superb," I heard the alien say. "We will now proceed."
Once again, I felt a warmth of something entering my veins. I immediately felt a surge of energy, and my heart rate increased. Although I was completely motionless, my body felt as if it was exerting itself, almost like I was running. Beads of sweat formed on my body, and my breathing mimicked the pattern of a strenuous physical workout. This continued for several minutes with my heart beating faster and faster until, at last, it began to slow down. Even my muscles seemed fatigued. After a few additional moments, I began to recover my breath and return to a normal state. Whatever had just happened left a sheen of perspiration covering my body. I saw one of the alien's tentacles reach for a soft sponge, and it gently mopped the moisture from my face. It felt cool and refreshing. "Thank you," I thought in my head. "You are quite welcome," said the creature. "As noted from the beginning, you are safe, and we mean you no harm."
The alien continued to speak in my mind. "That test was to confirm your physical conditioning. we are pleased to say that you are in quite good physical shape. Had you failed this test, we would have released you. But, as we suspected when we captured you along the road, you seem very well suited to our planned experiments." The alien turned back to the audience sitting somewhere off in the dark and grunted, clicked, and squeaked for a long time. I wondered what would happen next. I wanted to believe these creatures were not going to intentionally hurt me. I worried they were not completely familiar with my human anatomy, and whether they meant to or not, something could go wrong. I was utterly helpless, and I was going nowhere until they were finished with me. I could only hope that if I decided to cry out, they might let me go. But there was certainly no guaranty. If they had the power to immobilize me and cause my body to act in this way, they probably could do whatever they wanted.
Finally, the alien turned back to face me, and I heard, "We are now ready to move on to the next stage of our experimentation. We believe you may find this next test more enjoyable and less strenuous than the last. We recently developed this test from sessions we have conducted with other members of your species."
I recognized the feeling of a new substance flowing into my veins. Within a few seconds, a different type of warmth spread throughout my body. I became extremely aware of the sensations coming from each and every nerve ending. It was like I could identify every hair in every pore of my body. I felt hypersensitive and unbelievably alert. It was a simultaneous feeling of elation and energy. My entire being felt electric and alive, and I was convinced I could take on any challenge. If my muscles had allowed it, I know my face would have been beaming with confidence. My mind was filled with the thought that I was the luckiest man in the world.