An Incident in the Desert

The flickering lights above the Mojave Desert failed to amaze the hardened veterans of the warm sand. They had seen them before, once every two weeks they would be there, every every time in the same exact spot. To the average onlooker, the lights would seem to be from an aircraft base, but to the Tubatulabalinak Indians, who knew the area better than any other person or tribe, it looked as if the Sky People have come back for their sacrifice. Every two weeks they would appear, bringing good fortune and rain, but only if they got a sacrifice from the tribe members. It didn't matter if it was cattle or human, as long as it was alive and healthy. The Tubatulabalinaks were frightened by the Sky People though, for if they did not give them the sacrifice they asked for, they would bring disease and rot to the tribe.

"Go, take them the cattle they want and we shall be done for the night. They will leave and give us two weeks of good fortune." The tribe leader commanded Blackfoot, one of the many skilled hunter-gatherers in the tribe.

At this Blackfoot kneeled onto one knee and spoke.

"I shall do as you ask great and noble Osage. I will be back with good news as soon as I can," Blackfoot said, and went off into the distance with the cattle.

For twenty long minutes, Blackfoot traveled the dusty desert, walking swiftly, but quietly. It seemed almost an eternity for him, but patience was a key quality when dealing with the Sky People, many stories of doom and death from other tribes has found their way into the Tubatulabal tribe, and all due to carelessness and impatience. One tribe spoke of a whole village being wiped out by the Sky People as fire rained down from the sky, whilst another tribe spoke of them wiping out their small camp with fiery steel coming out of their mystical bows. Even amongst the darkness of those specific tales, a light still shone for those who obeyed without fault. One tribe spoke of being greeted by a being in a white suit, with a large oval breathing mask on. This being blessed them with knowledge of a planet with an abundance of minerals and natural resources similar to theirs. Another tribe spoke of the same being, but this time he granted them with a gigantic steel steed that breathed fire and shot steel, a greater weapon then any of the tribes had ever seen before.

Finally, Blackfoot made it to the entrance to the Valley of Thirst where the transaction was scheduled to take place. At the entrance of the valley was a sign that was battered and torn by the great storms that take place in the valley. No plant life grows and no native animals are found in the Valley of Thirst. The only source of water is a small stream that runs from the entrance of the valley to the end, but according to the tribe it was forbidden to drink from, and those who did would suffer a slow and painful death. The valley was normally a dark and forbidding place, however on this night it seemed to be different. Lights shone bright throughout the valley, and strange creatures wearing white "space-suits" were running around screaming in a strange language. They all seemed so angry, so aggressive, almost as if their home planet had been torn by war and poverty throughout the millenniums. Blackfoot has never seen such a strange race before and felt instant fear rise up throughout his body. He had to run back, and take the cattle with him; it seemed as if the strange race didn't even notice him as he stood in the shadow of the mountains that surrounded the valley.

One creature seemed to have a pet, similar to the cattle of the tribe, but this type of animal looked strange and different. It had black fur and four legs, it barked like some of the animals that the tribe kept as pets, but it wasn't a nice bark, it was a bark that you needed to fear. A bark of evil itself, almost as if the animal was warning Blackfoot to turn around and to never show his face again. The animal then started to wag it's tail and scampered away. As Blackfoot continued to walk through the valley he began to notice a change in his surroundings. No longer were there trees, but instead there were tall buildings that seemed to high-tech to be from the world he knew. One building was five stories tall, which was amazing noting that they were in the middle of the desert. As Blackfoot got closer and closer to the magnificent site, the very ground he was walking on began to change. No longer were his bare feet walking on mud and dirt, but instead he was walking on some mysterious black surface. A hiking trail of some sort who was created by the mysterious beings that inhabited the valley; he carefully walked along the trail, only to be stopped by a strange metal gate that led into the marvelous village. A strange looking creature, even stranger than the ones he saw before came up to the gate and started speaking in a strange tongue. After realizing that Blackfoot didn't understand him, he quickly changed languages.

"My deepest apologies, I didn't realize that you didn't speak our language." The creature said in a calm and smooth voice.

"Your apologies are accepted, I am here to deliver you the cattle so our village will be safe from your daunting grasp." Blackfoot explained.

"Understood, follow me." The creature commanded, before pressing a button which made the gate slide open.

Blackfoot followed the creature through a magnificent village, where the population must have been no less than five hundred. Every where he looked there was some sort of anomaly, whether it be a stone statue of a creature in a top hat, or a metallic high-tech steed waiting in some creature's front yard. Blackfoot couldn't conceal his fear, but likewise, he couldn't conceal his excitement. As the creature walked steadily through the streets, towards a gleaming building less than fifty feet away, Blackfoot noticed something strange about the creatures. They would easily go from angry to calm to angry again, almost as if there was something wrong with them. Possibly a small chip in their brain was messed up.

The creature told Blackfoot to enter the building and then walked away as if it was in a hurry to get somewhere. Blackfoot opened the door and walked into a strange room, filled with strange items from the creatures' home world. The walls were painted green and the seats were padded with a strange fungus type cushion for comfort. Another creature, slightly different in its analogy was behind a see through way. It was smaller and thinner then the thing that led him here, and seemed to be similar to the genetic makeup of the females of his race. He then came to the conclusion that this was the female of the creatures.

"You wish to see Frank Le Range?" The creature asked in Blackfoot's native language.

"Yes, can you take me to him?" Blackfoot replied.

"Follow me." The creature demanded and took opened up the door that lead to the leader of the creatures. She took him straight in and told him to sit down, that the creature named Frank would be there in a minute. She then left.

Around five minutes later another creature cam in the room. This one was obviously the male of his species and looked like an obvious leader.

"Let us get straight to business." The creature named Frank began in Blackfoot's native language, "You give me the cattle and I will tell you about my home planet and my race. You can then share it with your tribe."

"This was easier than I expected, here is you cattle." Blackfoot let go of the leash and handed it over to Frank.

Frank then leaned forward and whispered into Blackfoot's ear.

"Go and tell your tribe what I just told you. Share the knowledge of the universe and be back within two weeks with more cattle." The creature said after whispering into Blackfoot's ear. Blackfoot nodded, which meant yes in his native language, and walk back to his tribe, endlessly thinking about the knowledge that had just been given to him.

Blackfoot made it back to his tribe, and commanded the tribe leader to hold a conference with the other tribe members. During this conference Blackfoot got up onto the Tribe's Stage and began to speak.

"Fellow tribe members, I wanted to inform you that my mission was a success and that I learned many great things from it. I will now share with you the knowledge that was generously given to me by a creature named Frank. He said that their race was in the middle of a Great War, a World War 3, as he put it. He said that his commander in chief, or tribe leader, told him to gather a group of colonists and go on colonize our planet just in case that the war ruins theirs. Frank obeyed and left his great race with a group of one hundred colonists. I then asked Frank what his race was called and where they were from. He laughed and delivered me the knowledge that I now share with you. He told me that their race was called Human, and that they came from the planet Earth."