A Pearl

A Pearl

By: Lee Eckensweiler

Looking up at the night sky Sean struggled to deny hearing his father's words in his head.

“A glowing pearl in a vast ocean.”

As a teenager Sean didn’t see a pearl or an ocean. He only saw the Moon. It was obviously just reflecting sunlight and that’s why it was so bright. Sean had learned enough in school and books to know his Dad was just blowing smoke. He knew that well. Even so, he couldn’t shake his Dad’s voice, turning his imagination on whenever he looked up towards the stars. He’s always trying to make things seem like more than they are. Sean thought to himself, smirking. 

It was a cool Spring evening and his parents were out. His Mom was visiting his Grandmother, for she was quite sick and needed the help. Sean's Dad was working. He was always working. If he wasn’t doing his regular 12 hour day he was on call or taking extra shifts. Sean hadn’t spent quality time with his Dad in awhile. As an only child he had the house to himself when his parents left. He had school in the morning, but he finished his homework and figured he would sit out in the backyard and get some fresh air before packing it in. He sat barefoot, slouched in a dark green lawn chair. The grass felt spongy and cool between his toes. 

Sitting outside in the backyard and gazing up at the stars had become a routine for Sean. It cleared his head. A fascination with space kept the habit strong. For hours on end, he could stare up into the sky and attempt to fathom the depth of the vastness that is outer space. Sean considered it a thing of beauty. He and his Dad used to stargaze for hours on end. When Sean was growing up he would listen to his Dad tell elaborate stories of worlds far away. Stories of time travel and of things that happened long long ago. Sean knew now that it was all made up, but as a kid he truly believed in those stories, or at least, he wanted them to be true. As Sean grew up, he grew apart from his Old Man. Lately, his Dad's work has been taking most of his time. He couldn’t remember the last time they sat out and watched the stars. I’m too old for those stories and made up worlds. I know better than that now. Sean thought to himself, pushing back any urges to reminisce or miss those moments. 

Sean started to dose off a little bit. He took one last look at the bright moon and all its scars and closed his eyes.

DONG!

Sean was startled awake by a loud metallic sound. He felt his eyes open up yet he still couldn’t see. He was blindfolded! Whatever was tied around his head was tight enough to make his head ache. His hands were trapped too, held down with metal clamps. Trapped and blind, he began to panic. Where am I?!

“Hello?” Sean cried.

“Is anyone there? Help me! Please!” He thrashed his arms and kicked his legs hoping to free himself from this prison. 

He heard footsteps heading towards him.

“Is someone there? Help me out of this chair!” He screamed, feeling desperate.

No response. The footsteps continued right until they reached Sean's side. He could feel an unusual and foreign presence looming over him. A chill ran down his spine, silencing him. He had no idea what was happening but he felt a deep fear that he could not explain. Deeper than anything he could ever remember experiencing. No longer was Sean concerned about receiving help from whoever or whatever was next to him. He was no longer concerned with imprisonment. He wanted this presence gone. He would choose blindness and restrained hands over feeling this horribly uncomfortable alien sensation. He did not want to see what was behind his blindfold. He realized he had been holding his breath. He was afraid to move or make any sound. Afraid of being seen. His body was perfectly still. The ominous presence swept by his face and he felt the blindfold loosen and fall to the ground. He kept his eyes squeezed shut, not daring to open them. The dark sensation slowly faded as the footsteps left his side and continued until Sean could not hear them any longer. Starving for air he exhaled before letting in a breath of fresh air. His lungs filled up fast and his fear subsided if only a little. Just then, his nose was flooded with a pungent scent. It was alarmingly dry, stale and fungus-like. Sean almost choked. Where am I and what is going on? Sean decided he couldn’t keep his eyes closed forever. With a snap he opened his eyes wide.

Metal. Shining and impossibly smooth. Sean blinked and squinted. Bright light shone from above his head and reflected off the floor, walls and ceiling. It was all metal. An opening into some sort of hallway lay before him. It looked as though he was surrounded by solid mercury. He turned his head to the left and found himself looking into the eyes of another human. The man’s mouth was covered up with a torn piece of his own shirt, ripped from his sleeve. The man looked to be maybe in his forties. He had a wild, desperate look in his eyes. Assuming he saw whatever had entered the room earlier and based on what Sean had experienced so far, he felt like he could relate to that look. He could only imagine what sort of thing had visited him a few moments ago. They locked eyes for only a few moments and before Sean could say anything they both turned their heads to the doorway. Footsteps. Very fast and very heavy. Sean's heart began to beat. Fast. The steps were rushing towards them. He was afraid and trapped. Nowhere to go. No idea what to do. He looked over to the other man. His eyes were not met. The man's eyes were fixed on the doorway. Sean looked back at the door, anxiety coursing through his veins. The footsteps got closer. 

And closer. 

And closer. 

Sean sensed that the footsteps were in that very room. He could feel another presence in the room aside from him and the other prisoner. Sean could see no one else around. The clamps around the other prisoners wrists were released and he got up on his feet. He didn’t make a sound or say a word as he walked out of the room with a hand stretched out before him. Sean sat motionless as the unknown footsteps and the random stranger left the room. What kind of horror have I woken up to? Sean thought to himself. A deep fear settling into his stomach. He couldn’t think straight or make sense of any of it. Have I been… abducted? By aliens? Sean could hardly believe his own thoughts. It seemed so ridiculous. It all felt too real. He turned his head to the right and found himself looking out a window. Space. Empty vast space. Millions and millions of stars. Out of habit he found himself searching for the Moon. It was nowhere in sight. He felt lost and alone.

“ARRGH”

A loud grunt followed by shouting came from the hallway. Sean eagerly stared at the doorway. Feet sprinting down the hall echoed into the room. It got louder until the other prisoner emerged in the doorway and took a sharp turn, headed straight for Sean. His eyes looked crazed. The cloth had fallen off of his mouth and rested down around his neck. He ducked down behind Sean's chair and seemed to be tinkering with it. 

“What's going on?! Where are we?! Who are you?!” Sean sputtered. He had too many questions. 

The man didn’t say anything and continued fumbling behind him. The clamps released and Sean's hands were free. The other prisoner came around in front of Sean and looked him in the eyes. 

“We don’t have a lot of time right now, you need to come with me. There is an escape pod down the hallway. Don’t ask me how I know it's there. Lets go!” The man grabbed Sean’s wrist and pulled him up off of the chair. 

His legs felt like rubber, they felt weak. That's when Sean noticed what was on his wrist. There was some kind of electronic panel. There was a bar on the screen. It appeared to be shrinking. Sean pulled his wrist out of the man's grasp and clawed at the device. It was totally flush with his skin. The man saw Sean's struggle.

    “Don’t bother. It won't come out. When that bar empties you die. The only way to deactivate it is to get in that escape pod. Once you’re inside, your timer will stop.”

    The other prisoner grabbed Sean again. The screen ingrained within the man's arm was right in front of Sean. He saw the bar was almost empty. It looked as though he had only seconds to live. He thrust Sean forward. Sean looked forward through an opening into what appeared to be the escape pod. A cushioned seat with a control panel waited inside. Sean looked the man in the eyes.

    “Come on get in, you’re almost out of time!” Sean stammered.

“It can only take one person. I got you here, now get in! Before my time is up I need to tell you something. I dropped a grain of...” The man continued, but Sean wasn’t listening. 

    Sean looked down at his watch and his bar was no longer shrinking. Why can't we both live?

    “Get in anyways! If it shut mine off, maybe it’ll shut yours off too!” Sean yelled at the man.

“...There is no way to tell what happened to that grain of sand. Especially from this far up…” The man continued while looking at the floor.

“Listen! Just get inside, you don’t know if it’ll work or not! Please! you don’t need to die!” Sean screamed. Over the man's blabbering he could hear footsteps rushing down the hall towards them.

“They’re coming! Hurry! Get inside and let's go!” Sean screamed in panic.

“...Standing strong within a vast Ocean that will always…” The man continued.

Sean could hardly hear the man     speak anymore. The whole world went silent. The stranger's shoulders were suddenly and violently twisted around. Sean knew it was those things taking him away. He couldn’t stick around any longer. He quickly spun on his foot and went to jump into the escape pod. Just then a human hand landed on his shoulder and stopped him in his tracks. Sean felt no fear anymore. He knew it was the other prisoners hand. The man must’ve broken free somehow and was coming along with him in the escape pod. Sean felt a sense of calm wash over him and turned to help his new friend into the pod.

    Sean's eyes snapped open. The presence of a hand upon his shoulder remained for but a moment before releasing. In front of him lay his backyard. Under his feet was cold grass. Sean immediately turned his head around just in time to catch the silhouette of a man open the backdoor to the house, enter, and close it behind him. Dad? A few windows were glowing with soft orange light. His parents had returned home. HE had returned home. What a strange dream. He thought to himself. Sean couldn’t shake the feeling that it was hauntingly similar to the stories his dad used to make up to scare him as a kid. That other prisoner and the things he said, it all felt too familiar. Leaning back in his chair he appreciated having unbound hands and a comfortable place to sit. That’s when he remembered the things the prisoner was trying to tell him just before he woke up. Although he wasn’t listening at the time he could recall every word now as he thought back. 

...I dropped a grain of sand in the ocean back on Earth. I did it on purpose. It may seem odd, and may not sound significant to you, but it’s the most beautiful thing I've ever done. There is no way to tell what happened to that grain of sand. Especially from this far up, but I know in my heart that it’ll be alright. All I can hope is that a clam will swallow it whole, challenge it to its core, and it’ll break free when the time is right. Revealed as a bright pearl. Standing strong within a vast ocean that will always challenge his imagination... 

He rustled in his chair and looked back at the house again, trying to make sense of it all. Sean was so caught up with everything going on he didn’t read the signs. Was that prisoner my D… bah, it was just a dream. Sean tried to remain convinced of what he told himself. Am I the grain of sand? Sean shook his head. Was my Dad telling me this story while I slept? He smirked and looked up at the sky. Jeez that man has quite the imagination. He blinked a few times, the sky didn’t look quite right to him. He couldn’t see the Moon anymore. Instead a bright glowing pearl sat above him, resting in a vast ocean.