Among Us - Contact

"It is your lack of conviction that is stupid Adam."

"You can read my mind? For fucksakes!"

"As I indicated before, we are forever bound to your consciousness. Your thoughts are ours."

Adam flinched at that but tried to relax and look past the darkness. At first nothing was happening, and he was about to give up when he suddenly thought he could make out a shape. The more he tried to concentrate on the shape, it became clearer, like staring at those old 3d puzzles. The longer you stared the more your brain recalibrated its focus until a hidden image became noticeable. These images were like that, coming to him in 3d, but they were symbols that meant nothing to him. They looked like some kind of Egyptian hieroglyphics.

"You are not far off. Some of the earliest symbols on your planet resemble our communication. It is not our first time here..."

Adam was astounded as the markings were clear as day now and the longer, he viewed them the more familiar they became. "In..indos Op..opeus. Indos Opeus?"

"Very good. You are close. Indious Opiusium"

"What's that mean?" The young man inquired.

"In your language, it is the equivalent to Greetings Opius. That is where we are from."

"Indious Opiusium." Adam repeated it. "So, I just close my eyes until I see the symbols and say Indious Opiusium?"

"Now that you are so aware it will be an instantaneous reaction. When you close your eyes with the intent to reach us, the symbols will appear immediately, and your thoughts will express the words required. It is how you transport to the temporal plain. But remember, your physical structure remains on Terra where you are at the time, and you will not be connected to it consciously. In affect, you are left in a vulnerable state when you are here."

"So, someone could steal stuff from me while I'm like this?" Adam was concerned for his body back on the subway.

"In theory, yes, but the passage of time here is on a much different scale. What would represent an hour of your time here, on Terra it would be the equivalent to a minute. However, it has been our experience that seconds can be the difference in life and death."

"Well, that was pretty ominous!" Adam stared at his mother's apparition. Maybe I should go back to... uhm, me on earth. I don't like that I'm vulnerable on a subway heading downtown. Can I communicate later?"

"You can communicate anytime you wish. We do not sleep like your organic natures."

"Ok... well good to know. So... uhm, talk to you later?" Adam shrugged and waved good-bye to the perplexed look on his fake mom's face. When he opened his eyes, his surroundings seemed unchanged from earlier. "That... was fucking freaky." He muttered to himself. Adam immediately pulled out his phone and started making notes of questions he was going ask, the next time he spoke with... the aliens. "This is so fucked up."

Sarah was waiting on a bench, located in the park across the street from the subway stop where Adam was meeting her. She couldn't believe how smitten she'd become with this young man. She just met the guy and barely knew him, but her heart was all a flutter just from thinking about him. His thick, wavy, dark hair, the crystal blue eyes... he was beyond handsome! She could immediately feel herself getting wet between her legs.

"Why do I get like this so easy when I think of him?" She asked herself, but she had little time to think about it as his familiar form exited the building. Seeing him look around, she gave a wave and he saw her instantly.

If she was getting wet before, she was going to be in a bad way, she thought, as she watched him make his way towards her. Everything about his movements exuded confidence. He was like her schoolgirl crush, movie star crush and sex fantasy all tossed into one person. She smiled at herself as she once considered he acted like a virgin. "Not likely girl... not fricken likely." She teased herself.

"Hey!" She stood as he got close.

"Hi Sarah. You look very nice!" Adam gestured to her casual, yet sexy outfit. "So, what did you want to do? "

"I thought we could walk through St. Lawrence Market, maybe grab a treat... plus there's a new street artist there and everyone says her stuff is crazy good!"

"Sounds good. Lead the way." Adam gestured for her to take the lead and he stole a glance at her extraordinarily perky bottom. *Mom was right!* He thought, only to get busted as Sarah looked back and caught his eyes. If he thought his leering upset her, the huge smile on her face was proof of the opposite.

"So, your mom got away ok?" She watched Adam nod. "She's like the sweetest person I ever met Adam! You're so lucky!"

Adam grinned largely. "I'm extremely fortunate, that's for sure."

"What does she do, that she had to head back for meetings?"

"She's co-owner of Bottom Line Athletics and they're branching into other things too. She had to cover for my Auntie Vern."

Adam was startled by the slap on his shoulder. "OH MY GOD! That's where I know her from! She's one of the models they use for their promos!" Adam smiled at the genuinely excited girl. "She's so built! Her and the other two girls are incredibly sexy!" She watched Adam's face contort a little wither statement.

"I know she's your mom, but sorry, she's got a gorgeous body, she fit right in with the other models!" Sarah continued.

"Adam smiled again. "She's a dynamo that's for sure. So are my aunts." He could see her confusion. "The other two ladies in the promo... yeah... they're my auntie Veronica and auntie Jade."

"SHUT YOUR MOUTH!" Sarah slapped his shoulder again. "You're shitting me, right?" She was shocked as he chuckled and shook his head.

"Nope. They're my aunties. They opened the business together right after college."

"I thought for sure they were just models. They... they're just too perfect! Don't get me started on their asses... they're like perfection personified!"

Adam was laughing out right now. "I'm not sure how I'm supposed to take the fact that you think my mom has a hot ass." He watched her blush with embarrassment.

"Well, it's true..." She whispered in embarrassment.

"If it's any consolation, she pointed out that you had a cute butt."

"Is that why you were copping a look?' She teased and now it was Adam's turn to blush, but his goofy little smile told her all she needed to know. "I can't believe those other hot women are your aunts... what do you guys eat?" Her ridiculous question made Adam snort. "When are they going to open up one of those gyms here? They look awesome!"

"I'll ask my mom next time I speak with her, which knowing her will likely be later today."

The young couple chatted freely as they made their way down to, and through the market. They stopped for some local Kabocha and a not so healthy sugary treat. At the end of the market was a large collection of people and that caught Sarah's attention.

"I wonder if this is where that artist is set up. She just popped up a few days ago and everyone's already super excited by her stuff."

Adam could tell this was something that Sarah enjoyed and was happy to tag along. Sure enough, it was a small gallery of various drawings, paintings and even some sculptures, but not pottery sculptures. They were made from various pieces of junk you'd find discarded in a trash bin or a back lane. Something caught Sarah's attention and she excused herself, so Adam slowly perused his way around the art. He had to admit that the person responsible was quite talented, as his eyes floated from one picture to another. He circled a structure made purely from cans of all sizes, shapes, and condition. At first, he didn't see the significance, but as he finished his circle, he began to see the hidden art within. It was a handheld can opener made purely with empty cans... it was brilliant! He smiled and shook his head at the level of imagination that required. Adam turned to his left and what he saw, stopped him in his tracks. His eyes locked on a charcoal sketch of a man standing with one arm reaching out like he was trying to help someone up. The man himself wasn't anything special except his eyes were clear... or white, he guessed. There was no discernible pupils or lenses, just white empty eye-sockets. Just below the eyes, was a shadowy banner that covered the nose and mouth. Written inside the banner was one word... HERO. Adam had no idea why, but he felt connected to this picture, like he didn't want to look away. Why was that?

"There you are! Hey Adam, I want you to meet Michele... she's the artist who made all this great stuff!"

Adam tore his eyes off the picture and turned to the voice. He smiled at Sarah and then looked to the artist, who had her hand out. Adam smiled and shook her hand, immediately he sensed he knew her somehow. She released his hand and gestured to the charcoal drawing.

"This is my most recent work." She told Sarah.

"It's so simple, but so powerful Michele. Is he a superhero or something? I feel like he is." Sarah seemed so intrigued by it.

Adam could hear the banter, but his mind was somewhere else, like he was trying to remember something important, something crucial. Suddenly, in his mind, he was looking down at a woman on her knees with his cock stuffed down her throat. If it wasn't weird enough to have that image pop into his head, he could clearly see that the woman sucking his cock was the artist! He closed his eyes tighter and shook his head, like he was trying to descramble the image. Then he was back in the dream he had, where some random girl was sucking his cock... it was her! The images... what do they mean? Why do they feel so real? Suddenly he felt someone grab his arm and his eyes shot open.

"Adam! Are you ok? You look like you saw a ghost." Sarah was leaning into him to help him keep his balance.

"Here..." Michele had grabbed a loose chair. "Get him to sit and I'll see if I can find a nurse or something."

"Sit here Adam, I'll go find you some water." Sarah scootched off.

Adam's breathing was a little labored and he could feel his heartbeat, like it wanted to come through his chest. "What's wrong with me?" He whispered. As soon as his eyes closed the alien entity's voice spoke to him.

"The events were real Adam. I will replay them from our shared consciousness."

Adam was back in front of his building that night. The events were similar until he found a girl cowering from a violent man. The entirety of the scene played out from the attack he withstood, the analysing and killing of the man with one punch to his heart. Then he analyzed the girl... Michele. A gender switched victim of sex traders and he saved her... he did more than save her... he fixed her! He was able to remove all her emotional scarring and literally fed her full of confidence and a will to live better. He fixed her... with his cum! WHAT THE FUCK!

"You need to return to your consciousness now. All is well Adam. We have much to talk about."

Adam's vision returned and he was staring into the concerned green eyes of Sarah.

"Where'd you go Adam?"

"P... pardon?"

"You were looking past me like you couldn't even see me. Are you ok?"

Adam nodded his head as he reached for the water bottle in her hand and drank half of it down. "I'm ok." He could tell by her eyes; she wasn't buying it. "Honestly... I'm good." He reiterated.

"All these people and not one of them is a doctor or nurse. Closest thing I could find was a massage therapist." Michele offered up.

"Sarah's looking pretty stressed. Maybe she could get a massage." Adam joked. It made Michele smile, but Sarah was still on the fence. "Sarah... I'm ok. Trust me."

Sarah looked like she finally relented and stood up from her crouched position.

Adam took the opportunity to change the topic. "So, Michele, how long did it take to do all this art? Have you been showcasing your stuff for a while now?"

Michele smiled at his curiosity. "Actually, I was stuck in nowhere for quite some time and I kind of did my art stuff to keep myself grounded." She gestured around to her works. "This is about 5 years in the making. I was recently inspired by a stranger and for the first time in my life I feel in control of my destiny. I see life in a whole different way now." She beamed.

"Is that the guy who inspired you?" Sarah pointed back to the charcoal drawing of the hero.

"Most definitely! His features were hard to remember, but he gave me an incredible gift!" She was smiling off in the distance. "He saved my life... in more ways than one."

After a few moments of joint reflection, Adam stood up and smiled at the artist. "Your stuff is good... really good, Michele. Something tells me your career is about to take off."

"You're not wrong. I had two artisans offer to purchase most of my stuff and then contract me for more original work. It's like a dream come true!" Michele glowed with pride.

"That's incredible!" Adam was genuinely excited for her. "Well, we should let you get back to your exhibit. It was nice to meet you, Michele."

The girls embraced in a brief hug and the two of them made their way out of the market and back into the busy downtown streets. They walked in comfortable silence for a while, but Adam could feel Sarah's eyes on him constantly.

"How do you do it?" Sarah broke the silence.

"Do what?" Adam looked back at her.

"One minute you were spaced out and the next you were talking to her like you were long lost friends. In fact, if I didn't know better, it was like you two knew each other."

"I was just being friendly is all. You're not the jealous type... are you?" Adam teased.

"If I'm being honest, maybe a little, but I've had some guys stomp all over my heart before." Sarah suddenly felt very vulnerable.

Sensing the change in her mood, Adam grabbed her hand and stopped her right in the middle of the sidewalk. "Sarah... I have no idea where this is going..." He gestured between the two of them. "But I can assure you, I'm not like those other guys. My family raised me right."

Sarah gave a little embarrassed smile. "I know Adam... I can tell." She looked into his eyes, and she felt the urge to kiss him... so she did. He was shocked at first, but he let her lips caress his and with a mild determination, she coaxed his tongue out to play. The young couple explored each others' mouths, unaware and unconcerned about their surroundings.

"Get a room!" Someone teased as they walked by, causing the two to pull apart all the while staring into each others' eyes.

"Wow..." Sarah had no other words.

Adam was lost in her eyes. "Yeah..." Was all he could manage.

"Can we do that again?" It came out as a question, but Sarah's mouth was back on his before he could reply.

Sarah felt a rush throughout her body. Her mind felt caressed by gentle affirmations, while her heart felt safe, secure... desired. Her arousal was quick and intense enough to cause her to grind herself into his pelvis. What is he doing to me? She asked herself. With a great deal of effort and a degree of apprehension, Sarah pulled back from the kiss locking eyes on the young man who just rocked her world with a simple kiss.

"Where did you ever learn to kiss like that?" She breathed.

"I... I don't know. I mean, bedsides my mom and aunties, I've never kissed a girl before." Adam reluctantly admitted.

Sarah raised an eyebrow in defiance of his answer, but the more she looked into his eyes, she could see it was the truth. Before she could say another word, they were knocked off balance by a man running by.

"Get the fuck outta the way shithead!" The abruptness of the action and the man's words stole Adam's attention immediately.

"Pardon me! You ran into us!" Adam shot back.

The larger man stopped and walked back towards the couple. "You got something to say faggot? Want me to come over there and show your tramp what happens when you shoot your mouth off?"

Adam gently tucked Sarah behind him and stared the man down as he got closer.

"Tough guy huh? Maybe a trip to the hospital will fix that!" Just before things got out of hand a small crowd had gathered throwing water on the big man's plans. He looked at the gathering and realized he didn't need the trouble. "Keep your head up dickface. Next time I'll pound you into dust!" As quickly as the situation began, it ended, and the man went back to his run.

"What the hell was that all about?" Sarah was still visibly shaken. "Why was he so hostile to you?"

"I have no idea. He clearly didn't like me much." Adam faced the young woman. "You, ok?"

Sarah nodded her head and leaned in and kissed his cheek. "Thanks for protecting me." She could see his confusion. "You placed yourself between me and that jerk. As scared as I was, I felt weirdly safe around you. You seem so... so confident... in a tough kinda way."

Adam chuckled at her assessment. "I'm glad I have you fooled, because I think I need to change my underwear!" Seeing her smile was just what he was going for.

CHAPTER IX

"The organic you encountered was not likely a true Terran."

"A true Terran? What does that even mean? He looked human."

"By appearance... yes, but the inner identity was likely Barkkwa."

"Bar what? His inner identity? You lost me there. Is he the same as me?"

The entity spoke at length about the extensive history of the Barkkwa and how their encounters with Opius dated back further than Terra's existence. What was once a cooperative blending of the two species, eventually turned adversarial. Opius by it's nature was always committed to harmony and mutually beneficial connectiveness, the Barkkwa were inherent scavengers by nature and were always looking for other worlds and energy forms to grow and nurture their way of life...

"So Opius good... Batwards bad!" Adam sarcastically summed it up.

"Bad is not a proper description. By Terran standards bad indicates a choice of some kind. The Barkkwa are what they are. It is the purpose of their existence. We thought we could harmonize with them and alter the destructiveness of their being... we were wrong."

"So, these Barkwad's are trying to takeover our planet?" Adam guessed.

"Barkkwa..." The entity corrected. "Think of them more as a parasite. The are here to consume all that benefits them and when that is complete, they move on."

"So they hang out for a couple of years, steal some minerals and take off. What's the big deal?"

"Much that they require would come from the life force of all living matter on your planet. No planet is left habitable when they are complete."

"Haven't you been talking to the leaders of our planet? Why don't you just tell them what you're telling me and have them killed. They can die... right?"

"You are correct, they can die. There would be little chance of Terran diplomats taking our word for something so serious, nor can we offer definitive proof. We know of the Barkkwa have been on Terra dating 25 cycles. If they have the availability to commandeer a host, there could be hundreds on Terra. There was no way to figure out who they were... until now."

"I'm going to assume this is where my warrior part comes in... am I right?"

"Your role will soon play out Adam. We have many assets on Terra that share our consciousness. It has allowed us to monitor certain things."

"You mean people like me, don't you?"

"There is no other like you Adam. You are the one. The other assets are but information gathering units for us. We share a small part of their consciousness so we can see what they see."

"And the people are ok with this?" Adam questioned. "Do they know they are being used as information vessels?"