The Legacy

The Legacy: Living on Eggshells

John W. Gilmore

“I can’t imagine being anywhere else, can you?” She asked, large brown eyes blinking, sitting in front of the TV watching Star Search 2550. “There are bad things going on in the world...horrible. I’ll admit that,” she said, “but you have to learn to roll with the punches sometimes. Tim, your problem is that you aren’t rolling.” She pointed the remote at the TV and began to click through channels. She paused and looked at me. “Roll Dear. You better roll because you really don’t have a choice.”

I tilted my head slightly. “Surely we have a choice. This is a democracy. Everyone has a voice.” She looked at me and purposely bulged her eyes. “Come on, Cassandra, you can’t be that cynical.” She sighed.

“Well. I’ll back you up. You go in the world and make it better. Better yet, vote to see it happen. Or run for office.”

“I’m a human. I can’t vote, or run for office without a sponsor.”

“There you have it, Tim. You want control?” She extended her hand with the remote in it. “Here you are.” I frowned. She laughed. “God you humans are stupid. You are entertaining, but you are just so ignorant sometimes. You just keep believing the same things over and over and you don’t learn anything, do you?”

“Why...what is wrong with you? Why are you so cruel?”

“Because I am not human, thank God! You better be happy that you belong to my cottage, or I’d tell the others what you’re saying.”

“Go ahead Cassandra. You don’t have any feelings anyway. I’m sure you would like to see them kill me.” I headed for the kitchen. She got up and followed.

“I didn’t say I didn't have any feelings. If I didn’t care about you you wouldn’t be here. You would be out in the cold like the rest of the humans trying to hunt for food that doesn’t exist anymore because your ancestors tried to wipe out the whole planet!”

“If you are trying to comfort me it’s not working!” I said.

“Let’s take a break, OK? Before either one of us says something we will regret later.” She stood there, hands on hips, breathing hard. Obviously in a rage, but able to contain it. I went to the coffee maker.

“You want coffee?” I asked.

“Yes. I do.” She sat at the small table in the middle of the kitchen. “I don’t know how I get so worked up. We aren’t supposed to get that way. I’m sorry.”

“Let me tell you something. If you keep watching that Flat Screen you’re going to destroy the world too. Don’t you get it? They’re brainwashing you too. You think that humans are stupid and inferior, but the rulers are shrewd. I can see where they are already manipulating you.”

“Ha! Humans manipulating us? How is that?” I walked over to her and set down a mug of coffee. She reached for it.

“Nice nails,” I said. “How much did it cost for you to get them fixed like that?” She held them up and looked at them. I took a seat with my coffee. “Beautiful hair,” I said. “Very attractive.” She smiled. “Why did you get it styled like that?” She ran her fingers through it a few times.

“Well humans do have some good things, but if you are saying they are slowly trying to take us over by offering us these things and moving us into their economic system…” she paused. Her face turned to a mask of anger.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean...”

“You’re right!” She jumped to her feet and marched into the living room, right through it, and into her bedroom. She was making a call. After a few moments she came out and put her foot through the big screen TV.

“What the Fuck! I didn’t tell you to destroy everything, Cassandra. You know how much that costs?”

“That costs!?” She threw the remote down hard. “I was wondering why I was acting so mean lately. It is you humans!” I just stood there. “I heard you were deceitful and like a disease. Now I see how subtle you are. We can only do one thing--destroy all of your media and drive more of you out into the woods.” She looked at me as if waiting for a response. She scared the shit out of me. I didn’t have one. She started laughing. “You better be careful of what you are saying. Someone might take you seriously. Now go to the store and order a new Flat Screen, please.” She sat on the sofa. “Let me tell you something, Tim. We are in charge. We have always been in charge and always will.” She held up her hands showing me the nails. “Who do you think introduced these things to you?” That was a little too much for me to take.

“Get yourself together and go order another Flat Screen, please. In the meantime I’ll get some meals together for you and the others. Why I have collected so many humans I don’t understand. It is strange to have animals that are so highly evolved, but also very frustrating. Do you understand me?”

“I’m afraid to say no,” I said.

“That is so sweet.” She stood up. “Come and hug me right now. Come on.” She opened her arms and we embraced. “Now doesn’t that feel good, Tim?” I forced a smile.

“Yes, it does.”

She stepped back. “You’re still afraid aren’t you? Well I will comfort you by letting you know this: I recommended you for a political position just now on the phone. You will be one of the humans who work closely with us to rule over the whole western region of the United States. What do you think of that?”

“Me? Why me?”

“You’re smart. You have a good temperament. Why not you? Elections are happening soon. It will be good to have you representing us.”

“You said it was to represent humans, didn’t you?”

“Yes, but we know that you will be representing us, don’t we? Have I chosen wrong, Tim?” She put her hands on her hips.

“Of course not, Cassandra. Anything for you.”

“That’s the way I like to hear humans talk.” She crossed her arms and lowered her chin. “The Flat Screen.”

“Oh yes,” I said. “One question. Did you actually destroy that Flat Screen for a joke?”

“Yes. And because I’ve wanted to get another one for a long time. That gave me an excuse. I also wanted to show you that I won’t hesitate to destroy something that I care very much about to get a point across. I hope you understand. Anything can be replaced. All it is about is ordering another one.”

“You really make me feel like shit when you talk like that, you know? Is that your intention?”

“No Tim. It‘s just the way I am. That's how our people are. You better get used to it. You need to learn to take your marching orders without question if you want to be part of my family. Is that something you want?”

“Do I have a choice?”

“When I brought you home from the prison camp after you had lost the war, I thought you would understand that under this roof you are part of my family.” As she was speaking Roderick, her brother walked into the room. She continued. “If you don’t understand that we have to have a serious talk.”

“Bravo!” He said. “It’s about time.”

“I understand. Of course I want to be part of the family.”

“You better. And don’t let me catch you talking to any of those wild humans. What happens in our cottage stays in our house.” Roderick began to laugh.

“This isn’t funny Roddie,” I said.

“The funniest thing I’ve heard in a long time,” he said walking over to the coffee pot. “Ah, some left.” He got a cup and began to fill it with black coffee. He leaned with his back against the counter.

“So Cassandra. I take it that you don’t like me anymore.”

“As much as is possible right now,” she said. He grinned. My jaw dropped. She tilted her head slightly in the reptilian fashion, and then smiled. She knew she was in control. She was a hybrid, but full of Reptilian DNA, Nanos, and who knows what. I didn’t know what to do next.

“Get the Flat Screen,” she said, as if reading my mind. I looked at Roddie. He was just sipping coffee. I got out of there as fast as I could.

Chapter 2

The streets were clean, as they always were. Small trash-can-like security robots rolled up and down the streets scanning the chips implanted in our forearms. Few people walked the streets.

Most people lived beyond closed doors in large compounds that looked like nothing but flat walls from the street, but contained large courtyards and several floors on the inside hidden from prying eyes. The Terrarians liked it that way. The Terrarians were hybrids. Apparently during the ancient times, the Reptilians, a race that evolved from reptile life, and the mammalians shared the Earth. A catastrophe occurred that sent the higher form of reptilians into space when the temperatures on the Earth first raised to unbearable heights and then dropped.

The Reptilians longed to come back, but by the time they had the opportunity the Earth had changed. The temperature was different as well as the atmosphere. Human beings, with the help of other races, had evolved to be the most intelligent on Earth. They had taken the place of the reptilians, but the Reptilians always wanted to come back.

So, long ago, a deal was made. The mammals and the reptilian DNA was mixed, along with the higher form Extraterrestrials. This produced the modern day human being. At first they thought of them as hybrids, but they were not reptilian enough. The Reptilians continued to work on hybrids new until they came up with the Terranians. The Terranians were very much Reptilian in disposition, but adapted to the Earth. They looked very much like Earth beings, but were much stronger, had longer life spans and were full of nanobot technology that could connect them as a web of beings and also work to repair their bodies if there were ever difficulties.

Now the Reptilians were back. They took the place of humans as the dominant life form. They were brighter, faster, had better technology and knew how to work together whenever necessary. They also know how to tap into human beings and use them against each other as was necessary. Many of the humans didn’t catch on until it was too late. Now we were in a different world.

The streets were almost empty...no children playing. Perhaps they were behind the tall cottage walls. We were essentially alone. We were lonely, single creatures outside the walls in the city moving through time and space until we got back home to the places where our families stayed. We were each under the protection of a royal family. Some were not. We called them the Rovers. They roamed the streets and lived in the woods--what was left of them, eeking out a living for themselves and their families. They were often culled if their numbers got too great, so they had even learned to use birth control to prevent that.

The others, like myself, lived in the barren cities and became dependent on these families. I often wondered about it. Especially when I got out of the compound and started walking the lonely streets. Cassandra was the one in charge. She was strange. She was somewhat attractive. I often wondered if I was experiencing Stockholm syndrome, but I felt that she really cared for me. I don’t know why though. She was often cruel, as was her nature.

I continued to make my way to a small shop on the corner. No front door. It was just open. I walked in. I was the only one in there except for a Reptilian, a real one, not a hybrid. They lived on Earth too. There were several different types of Reptilians. The ones who lived on Earth were somewhat small, the size of human beings, so as to not bring trauma to the Earth family as would the larger ones who could be as large as 10 feet tall.

I walked over and saw him examining one of the many Flat Screens. He looked up. “How can I help you, Earthling?” He smiled. “Oh. You are here for a new Flat Screen. You are Tim, right?”

“Yes. How did you know?”

“Nanobots, of course.”

“Well why did she have me walk all the way down here if she could have just sent you the message.”

“That’s not the way we do things. You probably needed to get out of the house.” He headed toward a counter and pulled out a comp pad. “I’d like you to sign for this, please.”

“Of course,” I said. I began to sign. There was a little ad on the pad for chocolate candies.

“How much are they?” I asked.

“Why?”

“I may want to buy them. How much? I would be taking it out of my own account.”

“Twenty,” he said.

“I’ll take them. Can you send them along with the rest?”

“No problem.”

“Leave a note on them for Cassandra, OK?” He grinned.

“Sure thing. You wanna sign it?”

“No. Just anonymous, that’s all.”

“Sure.” I signed for both and walked back home. I must admit it felt good to arrive at the large gate, to open it, and go inside. It felt like a safe space. I don’t know why, or how I could have gotten used to living with these hybrids and other humans. Roddie was lying there on a lounge chair near a pond sunning himself. I walked over.

“Why’d you laugh at what Cassandra said? It wasn’t that funny.” He looked up at me.

“It wasn’t to you. It’s about time she put you in your place. Spoiled human.” I sat on the chair across from the lounger he was on.

“What is my place, Roddie?” He looked at me and grinned.

“Leave me alone, Tim. You humans are so...annoying sometimes. You always ask too many questions. Can’t you just rest and let your minds stop roaming and wandering all the time.” He looked away and closed his eyes.” He opened them and looked at me again. I was still there. “You’re always looking for double meanings and things like that. Your place is to stop annoying us.”

“The superior race,” I said.

“There you go with that race crap again. That’s what I mean. We’re all in this together. You remember that. There are groups that could wipe everything off of this planet, you know. We all have to play by the rules. Your place is to play by the rules. You’re lucky we came here. The first plan was to just wipe all of you out. This was the second plan that a lot of the more enlightened races, as you call them, I just call them beings, fought for. So don’t go acting out!”

“I’m not. I didn’t mean to…”

“Upset me! You humans are good at that.”

“I’m sorry.” I started to walk away.

“Wait a minute,” he said. I paused. “This has been the first real conversation we’ve had. Keep it up, Tim.”

“I’ll be sure.”

“Where’d you go anyway?”

“To order a new flat screen.” He grinned.

“I think it will be here pretty soon.” He laughed a little. “Yes. It is on the way with the other package.” I frowned and he laughed.

I went into the house. Cassandra was sitting there on the sofa in front of where the flat screen had been with her eyes closed. She really looked kind of cute. I looked at her for a few moments. Her eyes popped open as if she had been startled, and she looked right at me.

“I’m back,” I said.

“Good. I’ve left you some dinner in the kitchen. Go clean up and have a bite. If you would like,” she added, with a smile. I went in and found a nice hot meal sitting on the stove. I went to the ice box and pulled out a cold drink. I started to eat. It was good. I heard the door-bell ring. They were already delivering the flat screen. I heard her thanking them. She came into the kitchen carrying a large box of chocolates. It was much larger than I thought.

“Look Tim. Look at what someone sent me.” She grinned from ear to ear. “You think it’s a secret admirer?”

“Probably.” She opened the box.

“Oh. Here’s a card.” She opened the card and read it. “I know I probably shouldn’t be getting these for you, but I can’t resist. I dream of you day and night sexy lady. Signed. Tim.” My jaw dropped. Why had he done that? She looked at me and smiled.

“Oh. The hair and the nails must really be working, eh?” I was speechless. “We’ll talk about this later, Timmy. Come into the living room and maybe you can sit on my lap while I watch the new Flat Screen. Better yet. Maybe I can sit on yours.” She gave me a winked and headed back out to the living room with a little bounce in her step.

The End.