Sunday 13 November 2011

strange beings

They came out of the mist, unsteadily, the tufts of grass and uneven ground was difficult for them to navigate and their ungainly stride made a faintly ridiculous sight. Their intent was unclear but it was argued amongst the professional observers that it was plain they carried no obvious weaponry. The more wary advised a cautious approach with defensive preparations kept in close reserve. Hysteria was inevitable however, one faction rushing for the hills, the other reaching for their guns.
It was assumed they must communicate by some kind of telepathic method, there was no obvious oral or any other sensory communicating organ. Their limbs were stiff and indicated a preference for some kind of powered movement. They appeared superficially homogenous but on closer inspection the subtle differences in their surface markings demonstrated an individuality comparable to humans.
The ship that hovered above bore a distinct resemblance to a welsh dresser, the rows of willow patterned plates rotating slowly and emitting a quiet hum. The blanket of white had concealed the means by which they had descended to the surface. We waited. They waited. It seemed a standoff was developing, neither wishing to make the first move for fear it be a faux pas.
Then an unassuming volunteer stepped forward. She seemed to have some instinct about the strange beings and they reciprocated, parting awkwardly to gather her into their fold. She looked back once and was gone.

(Linking back to Magpie Tales 91. Finding myself a little surreal today. My first thought on seeing the image was the scene at the end of Close Encounters where the bloke goes up into the space ship surrounded by all those weird little aliens ... go figure.)

12 comments:

  1. Hahaha - that's great! Way to think outside the box, and the dresser, etc. Thanks for visiting my blog and following too. I'm following you as well. I'm interested to read what more!

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  2. I'm just nuts about this. Wonderfyl! And those chairs do look a bit X-files to me :)

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  3. The ship that hovered above bore a distinct resemblance to a welsh dresser, the rows of willow patterned plates rotating slowly and emitting a quiet hum (!!!) Fabulous!

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  4. Wonderfully imaginative and whimsical. I loved this!

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  5. I love it. This is at once funny and touching, like there's some subtle message here about recognizing things for what they are.

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  6. This is so good! LIke those crazy dreams we try so hard to remember when waking.

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  7. This is wild! I enjoyed the tale.

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  8. Telepathic chairs? We are screwed.

    Really crazy piece, but highly amusing.

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  9. as long as the visitors dont make me wash dishes we will be fine...ha...nice write...

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  10. Surreal and clever. Loved this trip.

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  11. Fun glimpse into a story. I loved the image of the welsh dresser & willow plates. Nice magpie! I'd like to read the rest, please...

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  12. Remind me to count my chairs... Very clever. Thank you!

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