Mutant Monsters

Prompt for September:


As WDC is celebrating its 16th birthday, it is appropriate to have a birthday themed prompt. The creatures on Monster Lane are celebrating a birthday. Write a story that employs two genres.

At the end of your story include a word count and indicate what genres you selected. Deadline is on September 30 at midnight, WdC Time.



Mutant Monsters

     Klaan entered the control room. “Another group of creatures has been transferred to Monster Lane.”

     “I wish you would stop calling them that. They aren’t creatures. They’re humans just like you and me.” Patrina kept staring at a light green planet that filled the main monitor in front of them.

     “They used to be humans, but they aren’t anymore. The Vions were always the ugliest humans I have ever seen. Now they are even uglier since that plague bomb destroyed their planet.”

     “It’s people like you that’s the reason why we are here. Once a week we get another batch of mutant humans from Vion to transfer to Haavon. It’s our jobs to transfer them from this space station to Haavon below. If you didn’t want that responsibility, then why are you here?”

     “I’m here because I need the credits. I owe a lot of credits and we get one hundred of them with each monster we transfer to Haavon.”

     “I wish you wouldn’t call them monsters either. They aren’t monsters. It’s not their fault they are of mutant humans.”

     “It’s not just me that calls them that. Almost everyone here does.”

     Patrina sighed as she sat down in the chair behind her. Klaan had already taken the chair beside her. “I know they do, but they aren’t as open-mouthed about it as you are. They keep it to themselves or behind closed doors.”

     “You know me. If I think something is wrong or I don’t like something I won’t hesitate to say something about it.”

     “I thought I knew you, but I don’t. We have known each other for almost thirty years. You have never acted like this before. Why are you doing it now?”

     “Because I don’t want them on our planet. What are we going to do if someday we can return there?”

     “We will deal with that if that ever happens. According to reading we still can return to Haavon. It doesn’t look like we are ever going to return there.”

     “Now we can’t thanks to the Vions. We are going to have to live out our lives on these space stations.”

     Patrina sighed again. “We Haavons have been living on these space stations ever since our planet became inhabitable about three thousand years ago.”

     “Yes, I know our planet’s past. Remember, I was one of the best at Learning. Especially when it came to our past. We tried to live underground and underwater, but the meteors didn’t just destroy our surface. The chemicals within them seeped into our world too.”

     “The space station in orbit around Haavon was the only way we could stay on our planet without actually being on it. Personally, I don’t believe what the so-called experts are saying. I think we will be able to return to our planet someday.”

     “If you feel that way then why aren’t you against these monsters, mutants, too? It sounds to me like you are. Are you one of those who kept it to themselves or behind a closed door?”

     “I didn’t say we were going to get Haavon back anytime soon, but we will get it back. It’s just going to take another two or three thousand years before we can do it. The mutant humans will be long gone by then.”

     “What makes you so sure about that. When the Vions asked us to help them it was only supposed to be a few thousand at the most. Now it’s a couple of hundred thousand and growing.”

     “The mutants are getting better every day they are on Haavon. It all started when that group stole a spaceship but crash landed here while trying to find a new planet to call their own. By the time the Vions found them they were already starting to get better. That’s when the Vions came to us for help.”

     “Everyone knows that. What we don’t know is why they are getting better.”

     “We may never know that. Then again, maybe we will. After all, both Vion and Haavon is working on it. If they can do that then maybe, we won’t have them on Haavon anymore.”

     “Then I hope they do. The sooner they figure out why the faster they can get those monster off our planet. Before you start yelling at me again we didn’t call them monsters first, the Vion did.”

     “I wasn’t yelling at you before and I wasn’t about to. Everyone knows the Vion started it first. Especially with the more violent ones. Those are the mutants that they have been sending to Haavon.”

     “They didn’t think there would be more than a few thousand. That’s why they only set up Monster Lane. Which is what they called it before us. Because it was long enough with buildings on both sides of it to accommodate all the mutants sent there.”

     “That one lane is now fifteen, but Monster Lane is still the main one. That’s where we transfer all the mutants. Speaking of transfer, how many mutants did we send down this time?”

     “It was sixteen. I was about to tell you that when you started yelling, talking loud, to me.”

     “I know we did get a little sideways again didn’t we. We do it almost every time you turn in your report to me. Speaking of reports, are there any more mutants that need to be transferred to Haavon?”

     “There’s only one batch left. I believe there are about twenty of them in this one.”

     Just then the entrance into the control slid open. Patrina and Klaan looked over there as Cheem entered. “Something is going on with the Vions on Haavon.”

     “What is it?” Patrina asked.

     “I’m not sure, but I think they are planning something against us. They are setting Monster Lane up for something. I think it’s a planning party. Whatever it is all fifteen lanes are participating in it.”

     “I don’t like the sound of that. We need to check that out Klaan.”

     “We definitely do. I agree with you about that Klaan.” Patrina turned toward Ollive who was glancing up at her monitor in front of her every few seconds as she punched buttons of her control panel. “Send out a Spy Probe.”

     “I’m about to do that right now.” Ollive tapped a big red button.

     Patrina returned to looking at the main monitor with Klaan and Cheem as a small metal ball came into view and headed for the planet beyond. A few seconds the image of the planet was replaced with the cloud above Haavon. Then the surface of that planet.

     The probe was traveling fast. It looked like it was about to smash into the planet. Suddenly, it stopped and hover above Monster Lane.

     “You’re right Cheem. There is definitely something going on down there.” Patrina got up and walked up to the main monitor. Klaan and Cheem joined her.

     “I can’t tell what they are up to.” Patrina turned toward Ollive. “We need a closer look.”

     By the time Patrina looked back at the main monitor they could see the probe was barely above the crowd of mutants below it. They could see there were only a couple of hundred, but more was coming up by the second. Each one was headed for one male: Shaking his hand, patting him on the back etc.

     “They sure are ugly. Are you sure they’re not monsters?”

     “Let’s not start that conversation over again Klaan.” Patrina glanced over at Ollive. “Can we hear what they are saying?”

     Ollive started tapping at her buttons again. “We should start hearing it any second. I didn’t set it up before now because I wasn’t sure if you would want it since the probe would be visible to the Vions down there.”

     “I don’t care if they see it. They already know we do it several times a day.”

     “That depends on what they are doing Patrina. If they are planning something I think it’s best if they don’t know we are spying on them.”

     “True, I agree with you Klaan but if they are up to something we need to know about it. The sooner we know the better we can deal with it. I think it’s worth the risk of us being seen. We’re not going to find out what it is by just looking at them. We need to hear what they are talking about.”

     A few seconds after Ollive announced they should be hearing the conversation they did. They were just too busy talking to each other to notice. Either that or it just wasn’t that interesting to them to listen to it. Until now. They all turned back toward the main monitor.

     The Vions on Monster Lane were shouting happy birthday to someone. They were also yelling their name too, but it was too long to understand. Their names are ten to fifteen letters long. Klaan, Patrina, Cheem, and Ollive tried to pronounce it to the others but none of them sounded like what they heard coming from Haavon.

     “It’s just a birthday celebration. Probably for that male everyone was saying hi to when they first got to Monster Lane.”

     “You’re probably right Klaan. Not only about it being a birthday celebration but because it is for that male. I’m still not sure that’s what’s going on. They could have seen the probe and started chanting that. I think we should continue monitoring them until we know for sure.”

=====-=====-=====-=====-=====-=====

     “Patrina’s Personal Log: 21346: We have been watching this celebration for the last six days and it looks like it’s finally almost over. The Vions have started breaking up and returning to their own lanes. I’m glad it’s about over. I didn’t think it was ever going to end.”

     “Most of it was eating, but there was a lot of dancing and singing too. We must have transferred down a month’s worth of food in the last week. At times like this, I’m glad we don’t deal with their food, clothing etc. All we do is transfer and monitoring because we are the closest space station to Monster Lane.”

     Just then the voice of Klaan could be heard. It bellowed everywhere in the small sleeping quarters where Patrina was at. “Another spaceship from Vion has arrived.”

     “Log stop.” Patrina started speaking toward the ceiling. “How many mutants are there on this trip.”

     “One hundred and Fifty-three. That’s the most we have ever had at one time.”

     “It’s getting worse with each trip. Isn’t this ever going to end? We have been doing it for almost twelve years now.”

     Klaan sighed. “It sure doesn’t look like it’s going to be ending. Does it?”

     “Unfortunately, I think you’re right. Proceed with the transfers. The sooner we get this done the better.”

     A few minutes later there was a large explosion that sent Patrina to the floor next to the sleeping he was sleeping in. “What happened?”

     Patrina got up and quickly tapped the grill of a small box next to the entrance. “What’s going on?”

     The voice that answered that question belonged to Cheem. “The Transfer platform has been destroyed. One of the Vions they sent backup dead for transfer back to Vion had an explosive within her. It went off just after the transfer ended.”

     “Maybe it was a celebration going on for the last six days or maybe it was just a cover up what they were really planning on doing. Either way, it definitely wasn’t just a birthday celebration.”

     “Did you say something?” Cheem’s voice echoed in that small room.

     Patrina turned the small knob under the grill of the box she stood next to. “Never mind. I was just talking out loud to myself again.”

     A few seconds of silence. “How bad was it? Was anyone hurt by it?”

     “The platform has been destroyed. As for who was hurt, there was several sent to medical but there was only one death. It was Klaan.”


Obviously, this is a Science Fiction story with a little bit of Horror/Scary and a lot of Drama.

Word Count = 1,990