ANLIENS

It's 6:00 Am, 21st of May, 2172. I knew this firsthand without a tip because a day before yesterday Judith had hurried into the bathroom to press the phone to my ear, a direct call straight from the office of the Superintendent. I have prepared for this meeting throughout the week and I wouldn’t be a minute late. Finally! After thirty-five years in the police force, my service is being rewarded. The meeting was scheduled for 10 AM, so I had four hours to prepare. Judith lay beside me but rather than my little game, I turned the other way and avoided looking at her. The medication she was applying to make her look young and beautiful made a coat on her face I could barely recognize, appalling to look at in fact. The fact that she got to wear this every night was depressing but the feminists’ speech is getting to every household these days with an avid message of ‘your body choices are yours and yours alone’, I had not a single choice. I was stuck, so I made the best of it. I made a little game of it, if I woke up looking at her, I will have a bad day, if otherwise occurred, it was an omen of good things .Today was different, I didn’t leave anything up to luck. 

I gave a command to Siri to scroll through my notifications while I took my bath. Judith was still on the bed when I left the bathroom, the coat clearing on her face. These mornings were reminders that I choose to love and choose all that came along with it. I should have shrugged my head vehemently when we signed the ‘no-children’ contract. Those darn feminists with body choices! These days, it seems Siri was the wife than Judith, she could predict what could make me happy than Judith. Good Lord! Siri’s voice loomed through my speaker as she announced, ’35 new cases of Anliens have been found; nineteen in Surulele, 11 in Enugu, and 4 in Port Harcourt’. I smiled, first at Siri’s effort to pronounce ‘Surulele’, and being grateful that there is once more a need for my expertise. The epidemic has been going on for four months; humans’ parts were evolving to be like ants’ all over the world. One would think this was a spread-out infection from one part of the world to another, so just like the Coronavirus pandemic, the US embassy shut down to avoid the spread. That didn’t stop China from experiencing seven cases simultaneously.

There was no trace history to any of the cases but just like an apocalypse people were turning to ants. It started first with a throbbing headache, something so severe that no drug could cure, and then Jack! Your nails are falling apart, your skin getting brown and your parts evolving. It didn’t happen to everyone happily so, it happened to youths of random age under the workforce, but not everyone under the workforce. It was like this apocalypse was selective; choosing only a select few, and we had no inkling of what factor it was connected to. Workers under twelve hours to five days routine; companies heads and corporations, youths who stayed up with the ‘work and grind’ motto; those receiving the heavy bills were getting infected and not a single reason was found. We thought it won’t get to Nigeria, not at all! And even if it did, we expected it to be the ‘Rich man’ disease. When the first case was reported in Surulele of a young man whom the community reported he was into the Yahoo .2 extra, we thought it was a punishment from God on those who cared less about dignified labor. The man of twenty-two had lost consciousness from a throbbing headache after staring at his computer, after seven hours he woke up with his hand's exchanged for that of an ant. He went into hiding for a few days before he was caught dead in his room, the body of an ant-man with his face recognizable. That was the first case we discovered here. Nigerians went nut, explanation poured in. No, the young man hasn’t been outside Nigeria, he has been stuck with his laptop all day, misleading clients; so why did this happen to him?. The nation went into prayers, the body burned and ‘abomination’ was called at it, and the family and friends were quarantined. It didn’t happen to any of his friends and family members, it instead happened to a man of nineteen who had a honest living piling blocks for new buildings at every instance he could get. Whereas it was an abomination then, this was serious and evil! The cases kept rising like mist during morning hours, young people mostly. The report in the newspapers read, ‘TROUBLE FOR THE ECONOMY! THE MOST ACTIVE PART OF THE WORKFORCE IS TAKEN BY THE PANDEMIC’ but that was the best they could do-report. The world didn’t know what hit it.  

Today, I was going to meet a group of scientists headed by Dr. Hansol, the best the world has seen since Stephen Hawking, the wizkid of his class, dedicated his life to the pursuant of his study for thirty-five years. He was going to address us on the pandemic and we, the police force, needed to be there to learn the best ways to bring the infected individuals to the lab. I, Inspector Bari, have successfully combated twenty cases, and hands-on arrested these people barehanded without getting caught by the pandemic. Why Hansol wanted to speak to me in person! The first occurrence was when I got to arrest a lady of thirty-four, always stuck up with her system freelancing, not a partner or child to her name. I had found her in her fancy apartment, not a pitied corpse but a full woman with her legs and hands slowly metamorphosing into the parts of an ant. She was alive alright, alive enough to attack me! It was one of those moments my life was before my eyes, and my colleague couldn’t be helpful when their legs had carried them four yards away from the scene in a split second. As I pulled on my uniform, I looked at the scar that case left me, right at the nape of my neck. Mercy. That was her name. She shouldn’t have attacked me, there was hope for her. Although it wasn’t guaranteed here, in Nigeria, where stigmatization came first before a broader perspective but most cases abroad were quarantined and their parts were slowly recovered. Yet she did, and that one break where I escaped her clutches and got her apprehended single-handedly has won me the qualification to be present in this meeting. I waved Siri goodbye and ignore Judith! Darn divorce rape! Darn those feminists!

The meeting was more private than I imagined. The press was kept out of the building, the security top-notch and all the top officials were there. I parked my Benz C Class closed to the atrocious ride that stood glorious and sheen under the sun. The officials I passed took a shake with me, all moving to the meeting with a fast stride. In times like this, no one should move with a pace of a snail even if their belly couldn’t afford that leisure. The room was brightly lit as we walked in. The blinds were kept shut but a slow circle of light made a way through it. Officer Adesina was making a little talk with me about his wife and that darn treatment that was trending. He was the only one who made conversation with me ever since I entered there, others gave me an arm’s length. Not the reception I wanted but who cares-I was here! It was thirty minutes into the show and Dr. Hansol wasn’t here. Adesina had dozed off by my side while other officials were engaged on their phones, engaging with Didi, the online sexual doll avatar.

 A young lady walked in by 11:31 am, her steps were heavy and she didn’t look good as she held on to the whiteboard that the presentation would be projected on. I recognized her almost immediately, Bethel. Bethel: age 43, entirely devoted to her work, a maniac at it, a help to Dr. Hansol. She hardly made an appearance but stood in the shadow of Dr. Hansol. That’s why no one would care that she was standing right there shakingly. No one else could notice as she held quite loosely to the board, her finger a bright show of brown. Everyone was glued to their screen but my eyes widened at what was about to happen in the next five minutes. She looked directly at me as she clutched her heart, her eyes with a certain kind of peace that was unexpected. I held to my seat tentatively, shocked to my bone. This was the first time I had looked into a victim's eyes' and seen a clandestine peace. For others, there was this vagueness, fright, confusion, and pain that accompanied their transformation. Bethel however was far from afraid. She knew something I didn't. A thump to the ground brought everyone to Bethel's body oozing out fumes. I rushed to her side, trying to get ahead of the situation. The first thing you will notice is that smile that stood fixed on her face. It was scary. Most people ran away, and few stayed. I was by her side, still confused as to what to do. Why her? Who was supposed to give us the answer, what could I do? Why was she peaceful? Someone screamed by me as we stood by Bethel's body. One would think that she did this by reacting to Bethel's situation but when she slumped, a turn brought me face to face with Dr. Hansol, a full Anlien with just his head seated awkwardly in a giant ant’s body. I have seen thirty-seven cases so far but none could prepare me for this. I swear I had no idea what happened but I blacked out in few seconds.

*********

What time is it? 

A reoccurring buzz was happening around me but I had no idea what it was. I kept silent, listening, waiting for a note of similarity but I found none. I listened again, someone was talking but I couldn't decipher who it was.

'He isn't ready to know yet. Let's give him some time to take it all in'. It was a female voice, sharp and loud.

A male voice spoke immediately, a firmer and older voice. I recognized this one but vaguely, 'We need him, a lot of cases are running wide and his men are catching them for the kill. We need him to make a statement. Now!!'

'Give him time', the female voice rang clear and I heard a door open and closed so loudly.

I opened my eye with various assumptions in mind. A white lab coat was turned to me. I tried deciphering who it was but my memory failed me. Something was wrong about this entity. It didn't have the shape of a regular human, it was disfigured and largely big for that lab coat yet it's head was neatly hidden from my preview. Goosebumps sprang on my skin and I start shaking at this realization. The figure must have noticed because it stirred a bit but didn't turn to me. I tried talking and letting loose of the string that tied me to the bed I laid. The figure didn't turn it's back but it seems to work at a fast pace at getting something put together.

I struggled letting loose as fast as I could, not letting go of my vision of the figure. It finally turned to me, and there dressed in a lab coat, humans legs but hips upward that of an ant with Bethel’s head on it. 

Slowly I was beginning to recall but the result was a frantic push to break free.

'Calm down. I am not a threat'. It said calmly.

I didn't buy it. The door opened and the last figure that greeted me ran in- Dr. Hansol present in his ant body. My head was swirling so bad but I knew for a fact I wanted to get out of here. 

Hansol stood by the door as I broke free from one line.

'Now!'

Something penetrated into my skin and I went numb. Suddenly everywhere became hazy and I felt strength oozing out of me. 

Bethel, I think, stood by me.

'Rest now'. She said reassuringly. 'You don't want to be one of us'.

That was the last thing I heard before I fade into silence

Did you piece the clue to give you the answer to the pandemic? If you're so sure, state it in the comments' box.