An Unexpected Find

The stone steps led to a cave that was lit eerily with blue light and the explorers entered cautiously. They had come seeking artifacts initially, but what lay before them exceeded what any of them could have imagined. Of the group of four, each imagined something different.


Jack imagined the fame that this discovery would bring him. Maria began to imagine ways they could profit from it. Ben was filled with horror at way lay before him. Joan was awestruck by the beauty in front of her. Tenderly, she reached out and touched the small, glowing alien baby that lay nestled within the wreckage of what appeared to be a wrecked space craft. Slowly, she reached out and lifted her up, smiling at the beautiful baby as she cooed and reached up to her face.

“Wait! Don’t touch it,” Ben shouted. “You don’t know what it’s capable of!”

“She’s just a baby,” Joan scoffed. “She’s alone. We can’t just abandon her here.”

“Let me see it,” Jack demanded.

“No, give it to me,” Maria insisted.

Joan clutched the baby a little tighter to her chest, suddenly uneasy about the strong interest they had in the small alien. She felt her own emotions surge and wondered if the baby herself were causing their feelings to be intensified. The baby cuddled closer to her. Joan took a step back.

Jack reached out and tried to grab the small alien from her. Maria was coming at her from the other side. Ben looked on in horror. Joan turned and began running into the cavern, Jack and Maria in hot pursuit. As she ran around a bend in the cavern the baby began to wail. Joan tried to comfort her as she ran and looked for a hiding place or escape.

“Shhh! It’s alright,” she assured the baby, hoping her tone meant something to the alien child.

She ran through the cave and tripped over a tree root, instinctively turning to take the brunt of the fall in her shoulder and protect her charge from her weight. Joan fought back a sob as she tried to stay focused on getting them to safety. She got up and began trying to run, but her ankle wouldn’t support her. Maria and Jack were closing in on her.

Suddenly, they both stopped short and their eyes went wide. Joan tried to comfort the crying child, who made the only sound in the room. She realized they weren’t staring at her and slowly she turned to look behind her. A tall, fierce-looking alien with blue skin, wide eyes and black hair stood behind her. Despite his fierceness, she thought to herself how beautiful and exotic he looked. She looked into his eyes and tried to produce a friendly smile.
She offered the crying baby up to him. Then, suddenly, he’d picked her up and was carrying her and the alien child off. They walked up the ramp to a second sleek ship and the door closed behind them.