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Start reading now! Description: Bella is not an ordinary person. After being found unconscious by the side of the road, she woke up in the hospital with no memory of her past. The doctors look at her so peculiarly, as though they know something about her that is so dreadful. Yet, for three weeks they refused to tell her anything, claiming she needed to recover physically first. Finally, after such a long wait, a nurse, Jenny Smith is assigned to tell her everything. However, Bella is far from expecting what she is about to hear... Created: June 1st 2007 Last Updated: January 10th 2008 Number of Entries: 94 Rating on TheSims2.com: 4.84   Welcome to my new story series: The Fate of Alchemy. The whole story is very long, so I’ve cut it down into several big parts, which will each have a certain number of chapters in them. This is the first part: The Donnavi Prophecy, which should be made of 10 chapters.   Before I actually start the story, I just need to say a couple of things. As you can see, my story is about the pre-made characters from the game. Indeed, it will tell what I think happened in the Pleasantview and Strangetown neighborhoods of the original game. This is actually the second time I’m writing a story concerning Pleasantview. From November 2005 to November 2006, I wrote a story series called The Fate of Pleasantview. Because of a bad glitch, I lost everything I had done for that story in my game. There were some things about that old series that I didn’t really like, so I took this opportunity to start the series over and make it better. The Fate of Alchemy is the result of that. You can still read The Fate of Pleasantview, however, on this website.   So, this is the first chapter of the first part: The Strange Town. Already from this first chapter, you’ll be able to notice that I’ve changed things since the last series. I just want to emphasize on the fact that The Fate of Pleasantview and The Fate of Alchemy are really two different stories, and what happened in one, won’t necessarily happen in the other. They will share some very important storylines, but otherwise, they’re really different, so don’t read FOP expecting to find out what’s going to happen here… It wouldn’t be fun that way! Okay, I’ll stop blabbering now, and I’ll let you start reading. Enjoy!   Bella sat on the side of her hospital bed, absent mindedly twisting the bed sheets through her fingers. In a matter of minutes they would come to tell her what they knew; she would find out who she was.   Bella’s story wasn’t of the most ordinary. The first thing she could remember was waking up in that very same hospital room just a few weeks ago and being told she had been found in a bloodbath by the side of the road. She was unable to recall who she was and where she came from. However, the doctors had refused to tell her anything about what had happened to her, though they assured her she would know in time. At first, she assumed she had been involved in a road accident of some sorts but the hospital staff seemed to know something she didn’t. Bella noticed the way the nurses looked at her, with a mix of interest and pity. It soon became clear to her that no one here knew who she was either.   The only information she had for now was her name, Bella Goth, based on the ID card found beside her. She had also been told where she was: a small scientific settlement in the middle of the desert, which went by the name of Strangetown, quite an odd name it was, indeed. The doctors hadn’t told her anything else, claiming she needed a full physical recovery from her injuries before she could start the psychological therapy. For weeks she had lived in the frustration of knowing nothing of her past and identity.   Finally, a few days ago, the doctors announced her they had found her a home and that she would be starting her therapy, once she moved in. She was to live with one of the nurses from the hospital, Jenny Smith. Jenny was a middle aged wife and mother. Her house was big enough to greet an extra person so her family had volunteered to host Bella until she was ready to make it on her own. This announcement hadn’t entirely reassured Bella. She was, of course, glad to get out of the hospital and start her treatment. However, the doctors were talking as though she was going to be in Strangetown for years, maybe even for life. What Bella had hoped was going to be a quick treatment seemed to be turning into years of therapy. What could possibly have happened to her that was so dramatic?   Today was the day she would get answers to all her questions, for it was today that she was finally going home with Jenny. Jenny had been the one to find Bella and had been taking care of her since the first day she had arrived so they were already well acquainted. Jenny was a tall blond woman, with a long full face and large green eyes. She was a cheery and calm person and Bella had no worries concerning their living together. Jenny hadn’t told Bella much about the rest of the family yet, claiming she wanted to keep the surprise, but had briefly mentioned she and her husband had two children.   So, today was the day and she was ready for it; she had been waiting for it for what seemed like a lifetime. Jenny eventually walked in the room with her usual smile on her face. Bella immediately stood up, perhaps too quickly and was forced to sit down again to wait for a head rush to end. Jenny chuckled sympathetically at the dazed woman. “I’m ready to go if you are.” she told her. “Yeah, let’s go.”   Bella stood up again and prepared to walk out of the room but stopped as Jenny handed her a paper bag. “I brought you some clothes from home, since you don’t have any. Surely you weren’t expecting to walk out of here in your pajamas?” It was now Bella’s turn to smile, though mostly because she was embarrassed. She had been wearing her hospital gown for weeks and had forgotten she would be wearing real clothes again, when she got out. She thanked Jenny and went to change in the bathroom.   Inside the bag she found short white pants, a brown top and a matching light green sweater. She then put the bag down near the sink and gave herself a look in the mirror; her face still wore the signs of recent physical injury. She opened the faucet and applied water to her dark hair, trying to flatten it. After the accident, it had been left uneven and short and Bella had a strange feeling that it used to be rather long.   She emerged from the bathroom a few minutes later still trying to flatten her hair. “Sorry I took long in there. I just feel ridiculously self conscious of my appearance.” she apologized. “You look fine. Well, shall we?” Jenny gestured towards the door and led the way out of the hospital room. Bella glanced back one last time and followed her.   She hadn’t been out of the hospital since she had first arrived; in fact, she had hardly been out of her room. Jenny led the way down the hallway and to the elevators. Bella looked around at all the people as she followed. She couldn’t help being fascinated by everything she was seeing, after having seen only very few people for weeks. It was as if she was discovering what life was and what it had to offer. One of the nurses she had known passed her bidding her farewell and Bella smiled back. She followed Jenny in one of the large elevators and they made their way to the lobby.   The elevator doors opened in front of the entrance to the emergency room. Bella stood still for moment, watching the people through the glass doors but was forced to jog to catch up with Jenny who had turned left, into the main entrance. It wasn’t a very large room, though the hospital wasn’t so big itself. Bella and Jenny emerged at the back of the room where the wooden front desk and an aquarium stood. Jenny waved to her colleague sitting at the reception, as they made their way towards the exit.   The front of the room was especially a seating area, which surrounded a rather imposing fountain that made Bella gasp in admiration. Bright floral ornaments decorated the space between the seats and made the entrance look like a very peaceful place. Large windows that went from the floor to the ceiling gave a panoramic view of the street and the desert beyond. Bella circled the fountain and walked out of the hospital and breathed in warm outdoors. Even though the desert air was heavy and dusty, it seemed so refreshing to Bella. It was so exciting to be outside and just see strangers walking by or a nurse enjoying her cigarette break.   She followed Jenny to the back of the hospital and to the parking lot. “This one is mine.” Jenny said pointing at a bright red pickup truck. They stepped in and drove back around the hospital to the street. Jenny stopped the truck to wait for an opportunity to slip into traffic. They both sat in silence; probably knowing that in a few moments Jenny would be telling Bella everything they knew about her.   What should have been a short and boring ride to Jenny’s home was actually a very exciting trip for Bella. Strangetown was in fact very small. It was mostly made of one large road, divided into two by a strip of ground, and a few smaller roads that led off it. There were only a few shops and a diner in the center, otherwise just houses. Jenny came to a halt in front of a bright yellow home. What surprised Bella most when she first laid eyes on Jenny’s house was that it had a garden, with real green grass! Seeing Bella’s astonished face, Jenny explained: “My husband is a gardening nut.” She seemed quite amused. “You’re really enjoying seeing me discover everything, aren’t you?” “In fact, I really am.” Jenny laughed.   The garden was full of neatly kept bushes and trees. The whole house was surrounded by a white picket fence. In fact, if they hadn’t been in the middle of the desert Bella might have thought she was on the set of a fifties movie. “Are you coming?” Jenny asked, bringing Bella out of her wonderment. She was already halfway up a set of stairs off the side of the front porch. Bella hurried to follow her. Jenny opened the door and stepped inside and Bella went in behind her.   They had walked into the front of the living room. Just near the door was a staircase leading to the second floor. “That leads to a bathroom.” Jenny told her, pointing to a door on their left. “And here you have the living area.” The room was quite simply furnished. A comfortable maroon sofa stripped with white and a burnt orange arm chair composed the seating area around a large flat television screen. A few small black and white pictures were hung against the walls in which Bella could recognize Jenny surrounded with people, who were probably her family.   At the back of the room was a small wooden rectangular table surrounded by chairs on both long sides. The back wall was covered with long windows, through which Bella could admire the house’s back yard. It too was very green, though it was mainly occupied by a large swimming pool. “I guess it’s useful having one of these around here.” Bella stated. “Yes, especially in the summer months. We’re in there all day long.” Jenny laughed. The room was open to the right onto the kitchen. The walls were lined with beige counters and a matching oven and refrigerator. “Through there is my bedroom.” Jenny told her, nodding towards a door on the right wall. “Come on, I’ll show you your room.”   She returned to the entrance and climbed up the stairs. Six doors led off the upper landing, including a large glass one, which opened onto a balcony. Jenny turned left and opened the first door. Bella followed her in.   It was a small room, decorated with baby-blue furniture. “We only got you the necessary stuff, that a bedroom requires but you can fill it with personal effect later.” “I have none.” Bella chuckled. “You’ll get some.” Jenny smiled, almost seeming apologetic. “Well, I’ll let you get comfortable and when you’re ready to start, come back downstairs.”   Bella was so desperate to know what had happened to her, she almost followed Jenny out of the room immediately. However, she thought it best to wait a few minutes before returning to the living room. She sat on the corner of the bed and admired her new surroundings. This room was definitely cozier than the one she’d known in the hospital. Yet, she continued to have the dreading feeling that people were expecting her to stay in Strangetown for a long time. She stood up and took a look at herself in a tall mirror that stood in the corner, almost hoping she would suddenly remember who she was. But it didn’t work, so instead, she exited the room and headed downstairs, to find out who she was.   She found Jenny sitting at the dining table and sat across from her, her back to the window. Jenny’s usual pleasant smile seemed to have disappeared and her face looked calm and serious. “Okay then, let’s get started.” she stated rather formally, as though Bella and she were meeting for the first time. “I know you have a lot of questions and I’m going to try to answer them the best I can. Being the one who found you, and having followed you for three weeks now, I am probably one of the best placed people to tell you exactly what happened. You need to know that you are not the first person to arrive in Strangetown under such circumstances and you probably won’t be the last either. Your condition is related to this town’s unique history. As you may have noticed, since you woke up, the medical staff has only been giving you a limited amount of information. I understand this must have been frustrating but there was a reason.”   “Strangetown is not a town like any other; it wears its name properly. To understand what happened to you, I will need to tell you about its history. You may not see how it is related to you right away, but you will soon understand. The story of this town begins in the fifties. At the time, there were several rumors about spaceship sightings, mostly hoaxes, but some cases remained unexplained. The government tried to hush the rumors as much as it could but a group of young scientists was determined to prove aliens did really exist. According to them, there is an energy field that crosses the galaxy and allows spaceships to move very quickly. They call this field: “The Galactic Highway”. The concept is quite complicated but to make it short, the alien spaceships orbit around the Earth, gaining speed and energy, to use it as a sort of slingshot. This way, they create what is called “a free return trajectory”, which means that they move using the Earth’s gravity only.”   “After careful studying, they found that the aliens’ spaceships passed right over this desert when they wanted to do this procedure. So they set out to this location and created a small scientific settlement, in order to study these ships and attempt to make contact with them. They worked relentlessly for months, gathering fragments of information from each experiment. They were quite surprised when, one day, they actually saw a spaceship fall out of the sky and crash not far from their settlement. No aliens survived the crash; however, a man was found in the remains, my father. They took care of him and brought him back to health. When he awoke, he had no memory whatsoever of the crash, or his life before it. Since he had nowhere else to go, he stayed with the scientists and joined them in their research; it seemed he had a certain scientific knowledge from his past, which allowed him to be a great asset for the group. He chose the name Glarn Curious, though never explained this choice.”   “Wait a second…” Bella interrupted. “What are you talking about? I mean there were never any aliens on Earth. We don’t even know if they exist. You’re talking like if all of this is normal.” “Normal is a point of view, Bella. As I told you, this town is like no other. We’ve known about aliens for a long time, but as I will come to tell you, no one believed our discovery. There are many things I will tell you that you won’t understand, because you consider it impossible. This is why we’ve refused to tell you anything for weeks: we thought it was best you recovered from your physical injuries first.” “I’m sorry, but I just don’t understand how any of this is possible.” she had been trying to find a hint on Jenny’s face that suggested she was joking, or that she was testing her. For the past three weeks she had been imagining many scenarios in which Jenny explained some complicated accident that she’d been through. Never had she thought any of this could imply alien intervention.   “I know it’s hard to understand, but let me tell you more and things may already get clearer. You’ll soon get all the proof for what I am telling you, so don’t worry, no questions will stay unanswered. So, let’s return to our story…”   “Glarn was very well integrated into the community, after his sudden arrival. It’s thanks to him that this town has a name today: a few weeks after the crash he called it ‘The Strange Town’. This name became an informal way to refer to the small settlement between his colleagues and he, but in the end, people got so used to it that they kept it. Indeed, at first the scientists didn’t think they would stay in the desert very long. Once they had gathered enough proof of alien existence, they expected to be able to present their results to the worldwide scientific community. However, they were only mocked and humiliated. Several scientists decided to leave the team, however, even though their results were in majority hushed like all the other theories, they attracted the eye of many new followers, who joined those who decided to stay in Strangetown, to pursue their passion.”   “From that moment on, Strangetown was cut off from the rest of the world. The community grew and became an actual town, which, even though it was small, did create its own identity. Over the years, the scientists realized that Glarn was not the only human to be dropped from space. Whenever they find life on a planet, aliens abduct the beings who live there, in order to study them. Sometimes, these experiments are harmless for the abductees, who are then returned safely to their homes. However, there are also groups of space pirates. These are aliens, which are much more aggressive and brutal. They don’t care for the well-being of their abductees and, once they are done using them, they erase their memory using sophisticated techniques and drop them in the desert, thinking they won't be found. Our settlement is too small for them to actually consider a threat. I think you may have guessed by now, that you were abducted by these aliens.” This was the sentence Bella had feared. “I was abducted by aliens?”   “That’s what it seems. People hardly ever see alien spaceships releasing their hostages, the event itself being relatively rare, and no one saw them release you, but we know all the signs that show a person has endured an alien abduction. All those signs were present on you, when you were found.” “So that’s why I can’t remember anything?” “Yes. The pirates usually erase their victims’ memories to prevent them from remembering what they saw, while they were on the ship. However, here in Strangetown, we have been studying ways to reverse this procedure for years.” “Has anyone ever recovered yet?” Jenny looked uncomfortable “Technically, no. For many years we actually didn’t know what we were doing. However, recent studies are giving much better results. I think your case is not entirely hopeless. We are still discovering many things so your treatment will be composed of some experimental techniques, nothing harmful of course, but some things may be a little more useful than others.”   Bella didn’t know what to believe anymore. Wherever she had come from before, she had certainly never believed, nor really cared about the existence of aliens. Yet, Jenny seemed so serious, and deep down, she could tell that she was telling the truth. “So, what will this treatment consist of?” she finally asked faintly. “Well, already I must admit we have lied to you these past weeks. We didn’t find an I.D. card near you when we found you; we found a journal, your journal. That is how we know your name.” “You found my journal? Why didn’t I get to see it? Where is it?”   “It’s being kept safely at the hospital. The reason you haven’t seen it is because it will be used as a part of your therapy program. If we give it to you now, you will probably want to read it all as quickly as possible, it’s a natural reaction in such a situation. However, we believe that in order to ensure a full recovery, it is best you only read a little bit at a time. By reading little pieces, you will have a much bigger chance of remembering each specific event. We will regularly allow you to read excerpts. Once you’ve read everything, you will get the entire journal back.”   Bella resisted the urge to argue. She found it unfair that the doctors were keeping her personal items away from her, but Jenny had said enough to make her understand it was for the best. She nodded to let Jenny know she accepted the situation. “Okay. The rest of your treatment will largely consist of hypnotherapy sessions. There is also a group of people in the same condition as you that meet every few weeks to discuss their experiences and support one another. It is strongly recommend you at least attend a few meetings. Otherwise, there will probably be a lot of improvising, because sometime you may spontaneously remember something, on which case we’ll try to help you remember more.”   “Okay.” Bella replied simply. She didn’t know what else to say. She hadn’t expected the conversation to go like this, and was overwhelmed by everything she had heard. She still had a hard time believing the people of Strangetown had made contact with aliens, let alone that she had been abducted by some, but Jenny seemed to take all this for granted. “Are you okay?” Jenny asked her, seeing the troubled look on her face. “I don’t know. All of this seems surreal. I’m still half expecting you to tell me all of this is a joke.” “Well, it isn’t.” Jenny smiled. “And sadly for you, I haven’t told you everything yet.”   Bella took a few seconds to understand what she was being told. What could she still be unaware of? “I think it’ll be best if I continue my father’s story. He really was a pillar in this town’s foundation – I hate to put it so immodestly. Anyway, all you need to know is in that story. It’ll also be a good way for you to know me better.” she added with a grin. “Okay.”   “So, as I told you, when the scientists exposed their theories to the world, they attracted a lot of attention from the scientific community and were joined by some new members. My father began a romantic relationship with one of these new scientists. Her name was Glabe and they both fell in love quite quickly, before eventually getting married.”   “A couple of years into the marriage, my father was abducted again. This time, he had been taken by the good kind of aliens and was returned to the settlement a few hours later. However, this second abduction left him with more than just his memories. Again, what follows won’t seem possible for you, but let me explain it, before you ask any questions. When he returned from space, Glarn realized he was pregnant. Aliens obviously have much higher advanced technology than humans. They have found ways to cheat nature’s ways and implant an artificial uterus in male bodies. They consider it an honor to be able to carry life and sometimes perform this procedure on their male hostages to give them a chance to carry children of their own. Oddly, alien and human DNA is quite similar, and they are able to procreate. Of course, there is no way the men can actually give natural birth, and nine months later, the children and the artificial womb need to be extracted by Cesarean section.”   “This way, my father gave birth to two alien twins, who shared half of his genetic heritage. Many scientists in the community were very enthused by the offspring, as they were a window on the alien race. However, Glarn was tired of being the poster boy and resented the children. He wished to get rid of them; to leave them between the hands of the greedy scientists. Glabe opposed herself to his decision and pleaded for the children; she felt like they were in part hers too. Glarn pretended to agree to her plea, but one night, he abandoned her and the two babies behind and he never came back.”   “Glabe was left to raise both alien girls by herself. She named them Lola and Chloe. They never officially met their father until their later life, because Glarn tried to avoid them at all costs. That wasn’t to say that they didn’t see him on several occasions, Strangetown being so small. Glabe often told them about him, without hiding the truth about his feelings for them. Today, Glabe has passed away and the girls are grown up and live here, in Strangetown. Technically, they are older than me, but aliens live much longer lives than humans and they grow almost two times slower than Man. So, even though they’re 48 this year, they have the physical and mental state of twenty year olds. Luckily for them, we decided it would be best, for social reasons, that they only gain an age year, every other Earth year. So, we’re actually celebrating their 24th this year.”   “A few years after divorcing Glabe, Glarn remarried another scientist: Kitty Hoglegg, my mother. I was the first born from their union and remained their only for six years. After that, they had my three brothers: first Pascal quickly followed by Vicund and finally Lazlo. Of course, my father had some notoriety in the community, for being the man who had been abducted by aliens. He never liked talking about this, when we were growing up and tried have us lead a normal family life – or at least as normal as it gets in Strangetown.”   “I think he managed that quite well. Even though he always stayed a passionate scientist, there was a part of him that always closed up about his personal experience with aliens. My brothers and I were probably too young to understand any of this. We were really some of the first born children in Strangetown and we grew up hearing all these stories about aliens, so none of it seems so strange to us. We always need to remind ourselves that people from the outer world, like you, believe aliens to be fiction.”   “My brothers now live together on a hill not far from my own house in a very modern home, from which they study extraterrestrial life. Pascal was abducted by aliens himself last year, and was impregnated. He’ll be giving birth quite soon. Vicund and Lazlo are both hoping they will get their turn, though personally I feel much better staying at home with my family. The three of them are continuing the work of our father and his colleagues and are much respected in town for that. They were really pioneers their study for the reverse therapy you will go through and it is thanks to them that we now know how to treat abduction victims much better.”   “However, things have changed since my father’s time. Almost twenty years ago, an alien spacecraft landed in Strangetown, without crashing this time. Out came an alien, one only. He was a very interesting being and seemed very eager to learn how to communicate with us. He attracted a lot of attention in town because of his peculiar appearance and…” Bella who had kept quiet for several minutes couldn’t keep her questions any longer. “I’m sorry.” she interrupted. “But what exactly does an alien look like?” “Of course, I forgot to tell you!” Jenny exclaimed. “Well, the aliens we know look very much like humans. The main difference is that they have green skin.” Bella couldn’t help but laugh. “Green skin? I’m ready to believe a lot of things by now, but that is really too cliché!” “It is cliché, because the government made it look like a silly legend, when they started mocking the Strangetown theories.” “But how is it possible to have green skin?”   “Their skin contains chlorophyll, a green pigment we usually find in plants and algae on Earth but that they seem to have acquired in the process of evolution, on their home planet. Thanks to this chlorophyll, the alien race can achieve photosynthesis, meaning that they can gain energy by absorbing the sun’s light. The desert is a great place for them to live in, because there is so much sunlight. Another noticeable alien feature is their eyes, which are completely black, unlike ours. This is related to what I previously told you: these eyes allow them to absorb much more light than we do and can help them for photosynthesis. Other than that, aliens look pretty much like us. Generally their faces are longer and thinner than ours though.” She paused for a moment and seemed to choose her words. “What was I telling you just before this?” “You said an alien landed in town and was attracting attention.”   “Yes, thank you. It took while to be able to truly communicate with him – a couple of years, I think. When we tried to learn his name, he laughed and told us that names were specific to human culture, but that his species didn’t have any. They just call each other by their title of function. Basically, they would call me: ‘nurse’. Then, to make a difference between all the other nurses, they would give me a specific number. The alien who landed in our town was in charge of fecundation experiments, during abduction missions. So, it seemed his population called him Pollination Tech#9. He insisted on keeping this name, when arriving in our town, but no one ever really calls him that. He just goes by the nicknames Poli and PT9.”   “He was confused when we told him he needed a last name too. All of this was rather new for him. However, he was fascinated by human culture. The first time he saw cars and washing machines he burst out laughing, for some reason. He was very intrigued by the way we lived and did his best to adapt to it. He ended up picking the last name: Smith, after a family he saw in one of his favorite old movies. It turned out, Poli had been part of the team who had abducted my father for the second time, and it was his DNA which had been matched to Glarn’s in order to create the future children. He met Chloe and Lola some time after he arrived in Strangetown and did his best to bond with them. Parenthood was also one of the new concepts for him, as children in his culture are educated together by specialized aliens. In fact, he found that humans were a lot more friendly and social than his own species.”   “Poli spent a lot of time with my family, though my father had been reluctant to make any social contact with him, at first. He liked to consider aliens as his subjects of study, not friends. He did eventually accept Poli and allowed him into our lives. It was thanks to Poli that my father accepted to meet Chloe and Lola after so many years. I found him to be very fascinating and got to know him very well. There was something about him that made him so much more interesting than ordinary people. To my great surprise, he asked me out, one day. Technically he is much older than me. Based on what he’s told us, he was born around 1880. But, as I told you, aliens age slower than men, so he’s the equivalent of 60 human years, today. So that does still make him almost 20 years older than me, but there was something about him…” Once again, Jenny stayed silent for a moment after saying this. Bella appreciated the dreamy look that settled in her eyes.   “We got engaged another couple of years after we first started dating.” Jenny finally continued. “Sadly, my mother died shortly before the wedding. Still, it was a very beautiful ceremony, out in the desert. Poli was confused by the whole preparation, but just went along. As strange as things get around here, I guess we could all agree to say this union was truly bizarre: I was marrying the man with whom my father had children… But it didn’t matter to us. My father passed away a few years into our marriage. He was very missed by the community, because of the key role he had played in the town’s early years. We never found out who he truly had been in the past. He only recovered small pieces of his memory, but not enough to create a full identity.”   “However, Poli and I soon rejoiced over the birth of our first son, Johnny. He inherited Poli’s green skin, though he has my eyes. Poli may have many anonymous genetic children spread out throughout the galaxy, but he definitely took his parental job very seriously when it came to Johnny. He wanted our children to have a chance to fit in properly in society and not have to grow two times slower than everyone else their age, so he tampered with their embryos, to make sure they didn’t inherit his alien aging genes. According to him, they should still live as long as an alien, so I guess they’re pretty lucky there.”   “Six years later we had our daughter Jill. I think Poli’s got a fetish for names beginning with the letter ‘J’: he’s the one who picked out the children’s names because it amused him so much. Jill looks a lot more like me, mostly because she doesn’t have the green alien skin. Poli was a very devoted husband and father. Even though we live in the strangest of places, he’s always made an effort to have us live a normal life. A few years ago, he saw that usual American families have big lawns and he went to great lengths to make grass grow in the middle of the desert. Our neighbors laughed at this idea, and I can’t blame them, but he did somehow manage so I guess the joke’s on them.”   “Well, I think that’s about all you need to know about us. I know all this must be a lot to take, right now, but as I told you, proof for everything I told you is available. In fact, you’ll meet Poli in a few hours and then you’ll see I’m not lying about this alien story.” Bella’s fright of meeting an alien must have been visible on her face because Jenny quickly continued: “Don’t worry; he was part of the good aliens, not the pirates. I know you’ve suffered trauma, but the best way to move on is to face your fear. Poli lives here, so you should get used to his presence soon enough. If it really becomes unbearable, we can always find a new home for you.” “Okay.” Bella simply replied. “Where is your family anyway?” she said in an attempt to move past the awkward moment.   “They knew you were coming home this afternoon, of course, and since Johnny and Poli both have physical signs of their alien heritage, we agreed it was best they left the house until you were informed about the whole situation. Even though you’re still shaken about everything I’ve just told you, you now accept that there are aliens in this town. I can hardly imagine your reaction a few hours ago if you had met a man with green skin.” “Yeah, that’s true.” Bella said, smiling for the first time in hours. “Poli and Jill are at my brothers’; Johnny is out with his girlfriend, Ophelia.” “He has a girlfriend? I’m sorry, I was under the impression he was a child. How old is he?”   “He’s actually sixteen. Ophelia and he are going to college in a few months. They’re both obviously very excited at the idea. They’ve been looking forward to this for years.” “I’m sorry; I thought you said Strangetown was cut off from the world. How can they go to college?” “Well, we have a college here in Strangetown. It’s actually on the location of the original settlement. The town that we live in, here, was created around the spaceship’s crash site. The college is a few miles away, and it’s actually bigger than the town, because it’s where we have most our research facilities and scientists. It’s what all young people look forward to in this town.”   Bella suddenly felt tired and confused. “Is there anything else I should know?” she asked Jenny. “No, I think I told you just about everything.” “Okay, well I think I’m going to rest for a bit.” “Sure; I took the rest of the afternoon off so I’ll be around.” Bella got up and headed upstairs, she hoped she hadn’t sounded too rude, cutting the conversation short so suddenly, but she was saturated with new information and needed to let it sink in.   She arrived in her room and collapsed on her bed. She stared at the ceiling trying to imagine what her recovery would be like. It was so frustrating not knowing who she had been all her life. For all she knew she could be an awful person. Thankfully, she would still be able to read her journal, and at least know a little bit of her old life, even if she might not remember it. An angry tear escaped from her eye and ran off the side of her face. She turned her head to wipe her eyes on the sheets and felt a moist stain against her cheek, where the tear had fell moments ago. Everything around her was unknown; she had nothing to relate to. Her only hope was kept by that diary.   She rolled over and reviewed all Jenny had told her. Aliens; a concept she knew had never specifically interested her and which was now a reality. In a few hours she would be meeting one. She closed her eyes hoping to get some sleep but was suddenly disturbed by an intense vision.   It started so suddenly she gasped. She could see two green men with enormous black eyes standing over her. She was lying on a cold hard floor, wearing a torn red dress and bleeding onto the white tiles. She was in pain, she wanted to scream, to ask them to stop, but they didn’t seem to pay attention to her. They spoke a strange language she could not understand. Their eyes made her uncomfortable, because she couldn’t tell which way they were looking. “Well? What are you waiting for? Continue!” commanded a shrill female voice, belonging to a person Bella couldn’t see. The two aliens looked at each other and picked up their instruments. They leaned down towards her, they were going to hurt her, she screamed.   The vision ended as suddenly as it had begun. Bella’s eyes shot open and her bedroom reappeared around her. She was still lying on her bed; beads of cold sweat had formed on her forehead. Her breathing was very shallow and fast. A shiver ran up her spine and she whimpered in fright. What she had just seen had really happened; she knew it. It had been a memory from her abduction. It had seemed so real, so scary; she knew it couldn’t be her own imagination. Everything Jenny had told her was now falling into place and she had no doubts concerning its truth. The stifling hot summer air warmed her skin, which had felt so cold moments ago. Outside her window a bird was singing and a few cars could be heard driving past the house. Everything was calm; she was safe.   She slowly rose from her bed and exited the room. She needed to find Jenny and tell her what had just happened. She returned downstairs, but the house seemed empty. She stepped out the backdoor, which led from the living room to a small back porch. She made her was down the steps and saw Jenny further in the garden to her right, tending some shrubs by the white picket fence. Bella walked around the pool and headed towards Jenny up a small slope.   Jenny turned around and saw Bella. “Hey that was quick… Are you okay?” she asked suddenly seeing Bella’s weak look. Bella sat on the ground clenching the ground in her hands. The grass was warm and slightly dry, so that it crunched as Bella’s hand squeezed it. The sun was shining at her face and dazzled her. “Bella what is it?” Jenny asked, sounding concerned. “I just remember something…” she told Jenny about her vision for several minutes, trying to remember everything she had felt.   When she finished, Jenny had a serious look on her face. She stayed silent for a few moments and stared blankly at her house. She had stopped tending the bush and had sat next to Bella. “Well this is definitely good news, no matter how bad the experience was.” “I’m just so scared now. I think it’s one of the things I wished I hadn’t remembered just yet” “You shouldn’t think like that. You’ll want to remember everything, the good and the bad. Even though you’re in shock now, you’re going to be glad you remembered something. It’s better than staying in the dark.” “I suppose.” Bella replied, not sure whether she really was convinced. “Who do you think that woman was?” Jenny asked. “I don’t know; I didn’t see her…” “I don’t think I ever heard of an English speaking person on an alien ship… That’s odd.” “You know, after today, I think I’ll never say that anything is odd anymore.”   As they sat in the sun in silence, they heard the backdoor open again. A small blond girl with pig tails rushed out onto the porch and looked around the garden. When she saw the two women sitting in the grass she started running towards them. “It’s four o’clock already? I guess they’re back” Jenny said, getting to her feet. Bella followed her gesture and stood up, rubbing her hands clean against each other.   Jenny greeted her daughter with a hug before saying: “Jill, this is Bella; Bella, my daughter Jill” Bella looked down at the little girl. She looked a lot like her mother, and nothing about her said she had an alien father. “Hi.” Jill greeted her in a sweet voice. Bella returned the salutation, which made Jill break into a large grin. She looked very attentively into Bella’s eyes with amazement. She looked at her mother, and then back at Bella, still with the same attention. Bella could tell Jenny had asked her daughter not to ask their guest any questions when she met her, and Jill seemed to be resisting the urge to break this rule.   Jenny must have noticed this too because she returned to her daughter. “Did you have a good time with your uncles?” “Yeah, Uncle Pascal is really big now. I touched his stomach and the baby was moving!” Jill replied with widened eyes. “Jill, I already told you, babies don’t grow in stomachs. Where’s your father?” “He’s inside; he asked me to find you.” “Well, let’s go join him then.” Jenny steered her daughter by the shoulders and walked towards the house. Bella followed them but had to force herself not to stop walking. She was about to meet an alien.   They walked into the house by the backdoor and stood in the living room. “Poli, where are you?” Jenny called in the house. The bedroom door by the kitchen opened, and out came a tall green man with large black eyes and silver hair. Bella couldn’t help but scream as she first laid eyes on him, and felt embarrassed for not controlling her emotions. To her surprise Jill burst laughing and cried: “Daddy scared Bella!” she ran up to her father and hugged him, though he didn’t move. “Can I go watch TV?” she asked, obviously having had enough fun with this encounter. Poli nodded at her and the young girl rushed to the sofa and turned the television on.   Even though Jill’s outburst had been inappropriate, Bella was thankful for it, for it had given her time to regain her composure. “I’m – I’m really sorry” Bella stuttered. “No need to worry, I get that a lot from newcomers.” the man replied. He had a high pitched squeaky nasal voice and spoke with an exotic accent, Bella couldn’t recognize. “Poli, this is Bella.” Jenny pointed out uselessly she kissed him on the cheek and headed towards the kitchen. Bella wasn’t very comfortable being left alone with Poli. Even if Jenny and Jill were still in sight, she couldn’t help feeling unsafe.   Poli walked forward and Bella instinctively took a step back and hit the wall behind her. “Boo.” Poli said in a very dull tone, before his face broke into a warm smile. The effect of such a spontaneous and pathetic joke made Bella realize how ridiculous she was being and she suddenly started laughing uncontrollably. Poli’s face remained calm; he seemed quite pleased with himself. “I’m sorry, you’re right, I’m being silly.” “You have no idea how useful I’ve found that little joke to be with people like you.”   “Just out of curiosity, how many people in Strangetown are in my case?” “I dare say you’re about a dozen now; well, maybe a bit less.” “And are there more aliens in your case, who have chosen to live in Strangetown.” “No, I’m the only one. I liked the Earth so much that when it was my turn to retire, I thought it would be the best place for me.” “Wow, so you must have some great stories about your travels, around the galaxy.” “Sadly, I don’t. When you chose to leave the alien community, you must undergo a simple procedure that erases most your memory. Aliens are very secretive and they don’t want too much of their technology and techniques to get out. Of course, I wasn’t part of a pirate community, so my procedure was a lot less brutal than yours. I was still allowed to keep affective memories, and all the memories of my travels on Earth, since that was where I was going.”   “Why don’t they want you to remember them?” “It’s not something you can understand well, because it’s not part of your culture. Humans are very communicative and open creatures. We, aliens, have a very different culture. Of course, I did my best to adapt to human society and they’ve told me I’ve done quite well.” he finished with a smile. Poli turned out to be a very interesting person. He was very wise and told her what he remembered of his travels on Earth. All the fear she had felt prior to meeting him disappeared within an hour of speaking with him. She now understood the difference between the good aliens, and the pirates.   As the sun started setting, Jenny and Poli’s son, Johnny came home. He too had green skin like his father, but had his mother’s green eyes. His face was thin and his blond hair was styled in a very wild fashion; the front looked like it had been blown to the side by ferocious winds. Johnny was a very outgoing and friendly teenage boy. He dressed in large basketball clothes and seemed to have a peculiar affection for the word “cool”.   Around seven o’clock, Jenny announced dinner was served. Bella wasn’t very hungry, but thought it would be rude to pass. During the meal, the Smiths continued to tell her about themselves. By the time desert had been served, Bella had heard stories of Jenny’s childhood with her brothers, she and Poli’s wedding and a few of the family’s anecdotes that followed Johnny and Jill’s births. When the meal was over she excused herself from the table telling them she was tired after such a long day.   She retired upstairs, changed into a pair of gray pajamas Jenny had lent her, brushed her teeth and went to bed, exhausted from everything that had happened to her. So, now she knew everything she had been waiting for, over the past three weeks. In just one afternoon, she had learned so much and now understood why people were expecting her to be here for years: no one had ever reached full recovery before. Bella just continued to live on the hope of her diary and the fact she was already remembering things. She was impatient to start her treatment, to remember more, happier memories. She fell asleep on these thoughts of hope and was awoken the next morning by the sun teasing her through the drapes.   She went downstairs to find the whole family already seated at the table, eating cereal. “Good morning.” she greeted them all. “Sorry if I slept late.” “Oh please, we just got up” Jenny reassured her, before getting up and helping her around the kitchen. Once Bella had been shown where to find plates and utensils and served with a mug of coffee, she grabbed the cereal box on the counter and served herself. The pack was quite light, and she had just enough to fill her bowl.   “This pack is empty. I’ll just throw it away.” she told them heading for the trash compactor, however she was halted by a shrill cry. “No!” Poli had gotten up from his chair and shouted, as though someone’s life was in danger. Bella looked from the cereal box to Poli. He looked utterly alarmed. However, Jenny, Johnny and Jill all snorted with laughter in their cereal bowls. “What?” Bella asked them in confusion. Johnny coughed a word that sounded a lot like ‘Coupons’. Poli turned his head towards his son and shot him a mean look. Jenny laughed and attempted to explain: “The coupons, on the box; Poli loves to collect them.” she said with difficulty, because she was still laughing. “Oh…”   Bella turned to box and saw that there were indeed two coupons to cut out. “I’m sorry.” she said, placing the box back down on the counter and coming to sit at the table. “Oh, don’t you apologize, you didn’t know.” Jenny reassured her. “Poli is just fascinated by anything humans do and that aliens don’t. Caring for gardens and collecting coupons are his favorites among other things.” “But family comes first!” Poli squeaked. “How sweet and corny of you…” Jenny sighed, but gazing at her husband fondly, too busy to see Johnny pretending to be vomiting, at the other side of the table. Bella and Jill both held back a laugh.   “By the way, Bella, I forgot to tell you that we’re going to have a small dinner party tonight to celebrate your arrival. You’ll meet my brothers, as well as Poli’s daughters, Chloe and Lola. We also invited Johnny’s girlfriend, Ophelia, and her aunt.” Jenny told her. “The girl is almost family to us.” “Oh, well, thank you. I’ll be pleased to meet everyone.” Bella replied. “Why her aunt?” she asked out of curiosity. “Oh, her parents died a few years ago… She lives with her elderly aunt.” said Johnny. “Oh my God, that’s awful.” “Yeah, especially that she has to live with that old witch….” “Johnny, don’t speak like that of people!” Jenny lectured. “Come on Mom, the woman is creepy! She always talks to people as though she knows some kind of big horrible secret about them. And what kind of person has a graveyard in front of their home?” “She’s a sweet little old lady, and that graveyard is probably just some dead relatives or something.” “She’s got a whole bunch of relatives then…”   The Smith family was very pleasant to live with. They were very friendly and warm and made Bella feel at home right away. They spent most the day outdoors, playing in the pool or just lying on the grass. At lunch, Poli grilled some hotdogs, which was apparently another one of his favorite things. “The barbecue is his favorite cooking item, because it represents the outdoor family meal for him.” Jenny told her. Johnny and Jill were typical siblings: they loved to annoy each other. Johnny usually took advantage of his size to pick Jill up and throw her in the pool. Jenny always worried when he did this, reminding him Jill was just a child. However, Bella thought Jill knew how to hold her own. She usually liked to trick her brother, by throwing him a water balloon from behind, or scaring him when he didn’t expect it. Bella was amused to see their childish attitudes. She spent the day relaxing and sunbathing, almost forgetting she had intense therapy coming soon.   The evening came quick. Bella tried to look as nice as possible, though she still had a black eye. Jenny had taken her to the hospital, a few hours earlier to get her stitches taken out and it was a relief to see they were gone. She wore a light green summer dress, which had once belonged to Jenny.   She went downstairs, where she could already hear some new people talking. She entered the living room to see three men surrounding Jenny. As she approached them they turned to face and once again Bella could not contain her surprise. A man with straight black hair and round glasses standing to her left was unmistakably pregnant. She gasped and clasped her hand to her mouth, before remembering what Jenny had told her the previous day and apologizing. “It’s okay.” the man told her. “This mustn’t be a usual sight for you.” Bella shook her head. “I’m Pascal and you must be Bella.” “Yes, hello.” she turned to face the others. Jenny took a step forward and said: “As you probably guessed, they’re my brothers. This is Vicund, and here is Lazlo.” Vicund had middle-length blond hair and was wearing green sunglasses. Lazlo seemed to be the youngest of the three and had shoulder length dark hair. Neither of the two seemed to be pregnant.   Jenny’s brothers knew a lot about Bella’s condition, since they had spent a large part of their adult life studying it. Like Jenny, they told her that remembering any memory, good or bad, was an achievement of its own. “We’ve found that you’ll usually remember the events closest to your abduction easier than events that occurred a long time ago.” Lazlo told her. “You’re also very lucky to have your journal” Pascal added. “Some people turn up with nothing. A journal is probably one of the best possessions you can be found with after being abducted, since it’s a place where we keep our memories.” They continued to tell Bella how her treatment would take place over time, and what she could expect soon. She was especially excited when she was told her first therapy session would be in a matter of days.   Half an hour later, Johnny’s girlfriend Ophelia arrived. She was a young girl with dark skin, but with blond hair attached in cornrows. She told them her aunt was too tired to make it to the evening but that she had sent Bella a welcome gift. She handed Bella a small box, in which was wrapped a necklace. It was a string with a silver pendant shaped like a dragon hanging off of it. A large red stone was in the middle of the dragon’s body and a smaller stone was placed in each other dragon’s hands. “It’s beautiful. You will thank her very much for me, won’t you?” “Of course, she’s really sorry she couldn’t come.” the young girl replied.   A few minutes later, the door bell rung again, and Bella was introduced to the twins, Chloe and Lola. Even though they both shared the alien skin and eyes, the difference between both girls was remarkable. Chloe was dressed in dark attractive revealing clothes and her long wavy red hair was attached in a casual ponytail. She obviously paid close attention to her appearance and advantaged her natural features with makeup. Lola, on the other hand, had her black hair attached in a tight bun and was dressed casually. Jenny had in fact been right: it was impossible to notice either of them was 48 years old; they both looked younger than Jenny or her brothers.   That evening, Poli grilled burgers for everyone on his barbecue and they ate dinner outside. Even though the sun had already set, the air was still warm from the long sunny day, escaping from the overheated soil. A long rattan table had been brought out to sit all eleven of them and Jenny had lit several long flaming torches, whose lights gently danced in the wind, lighting the area in a soft pinkish glow. They ate in loud and lively conversation.   Vicund was telling Jenny about the latest study he had led with Pascal and Lazlo. Bella tried to follow, but their conversation was very technical and she had a hard time keeping up. Poli and Pascal were also listening intently, though they seemed to be familiar with all the technical jargon that was being used.   Bella turned to the other side of the table where the younger members of the family were seated. They were much noisier then the others and seemed to be having a good time. Their conversation was disorganized, deconstructed, punctuated with spontaneous laughs and excited cries.   She noticed that Johnny and Chloe seemed to be the moving spirits of this excitement. They shared a remarkable complicity, which allowed them to be the center of their conversation group. Bella needed to keep reminding herself that Chloe and Lola were almost her age. Based on what Jenny had told her, Johnny would look older than his half sisters in a few years. In just a few days, she had entered a world in which nothing could surprise her anymore, because everything seemed possible.   As the evening moved forward, Bella got into a conversation with Pascal, about the imminent birth of his child. “I’m just afraid I won’t know how to be a good father.” he told her. “I mean, I’ve studied aliens my whole life, but what do I know about raising a kid? I never took care of babies. I’ve been trying to read as much as I can on the subject, but books can only take us so far…” Bella found it amusing to watch the worried parent. “Pascal, trust me, you have nothing to worry about. The simple fact that you’re worrying so much means that you’re going to be great. You’re there. If you ever need any help, don’t hesitate to ask. It doesn’t look like I’m going anywhere anytime soon, so I’ll be around.”   After dinner, Johnny and Chloe decided to start taking a late swim and were joined by Ophelia and Jill. Lola preferred to stay dry by the side of the pool and watch them. The men started a game of darts on the back deck. Bella wasn’t in the mood to participate in any activities, so she climbed to the upper balcony to watch them all without being noticed.