Authors: John H. Carroll
Tags: #scifi, #coffee, #alien, #novella, #indie author, #cheap ebook, #bem
Jillian looked at the clock. “It’s getting
about time for Raymond to get home. I’m not sure how he’s going to
react to everyone being here.”
Mister Fizziggle waved off the concern.
“We’re just about to leave. Are you going to tell your husband
about us, Jillian?”
She shook her head vigorously. “He wouldn’t
believe me. Raymond doesn’t believe in extraterrestrial life. I
love him with all my heart, but we have our differences. We’re
happy together.”
“That’s wonderful,” Mister Fizziggle stated.
Wonderful seemed to be his favorite word and he used it even more
than Sclurp used dude. “I like you, Jillian. We’re not going to
take any action against you. You already gave your word not to tell
anyone and I believe you mean it.” He gestured at the others.
“They’re not in trouble either. Their mission is entirely
confidential and much more valuable to the Amalgamation than
reporting any violations. In addition, you all rescued those two
little fools that crashed in the jungle. That grants everyone some
goodwill.”
Mister Fizziggle stood and downed the last of
his coffee. “Have a nice life, Jillian. Officially, we’ve never
met. None of this ever happened and you’re a nice human woman
living blissfully ignorant of the presence of an observation
station a short distance away.” He moved to the door and gestured
for the others to follow him. “Unofficially, I’m not paying
attention to whether or not you visit the station or if your new
friends, as you call them, stop in for a bit of coffee or tea. I
expect everyone to mind their secrecy though.”
“We will,” Jillian responded immediately. She
was thrilled at not having her mind wiped, being turned into an emo
bunny or anything scary like that. The fact that she would get to
keep seeing them made it even better. “You’re welcome to stop by
for coffee anytime you like too.”
He paused at the door. “. . . Perhaps. We’ll
see.” With that, he stepped outside.
Nyxulla came over and gave Jillian a fierce
hug, which Jillian returned just as tightly. “I’m so glad we’re
friends.” She stepped back and held Jillian’s hands in hers. “Can
we come back to visit?”
Jillian nodded vigorously. “I’ll be hurt if
you don’t.” They hugged each other tightly again.
Sclurp came up with front arms outstretched.
Jillian held up a hand defensively. “I’m happy to meet you, but I
don’t quite trust you enough for a hug.”
He looked sad and his shoulders slumped. “Do
I get to come back for coffee too?”
Jillian smiled. “Yes, of course. Just don’t
steal from my cup. You can use the one with OMG on it. I’ll keep it
clean for you.”
“Thank you! I love you, Jillian,” Sclurp did
a spin and headed out the door after Mr. Fizziggle.
Buffy came forward and bowed. “I would like
to visit you for a cup of tea now and then.”
“You’re welcome anytime,” Jillian told the
BEM. “I’d like to come to the station occasionally too and try some
new juices.”
“I have some in mind that I think you’ll
love,” Buffy told her.
“As do I,” Nyxulla agreed. “Come by anytime
day or night.” She gave Jillian another hug then they followed the
others out.
Jillian sat down at the table after closing
the door. She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. None of it
seemed real, but at the same time, it seemed more real than the
rest of her life. Everything was dreamlike.
A short while later, Raymond came home and
found her sitting at the table. She apologized for not having
dinner ready like she normally did. She enjoyed cooking and loved
that he enjoyed eating her meals. He smiled and took her out to
dinner instead.
She didn’t fall asleep until late that night.
The events of the day raced through her mind over and over and she
was afraid it would all be lost if she did.
When Jillian woke up the next morning, she
did remember everything. Best of all, her new friends showed up for
coffee and tea shortly after Raymond left for work. She listened
contentedly while they told her of their worlds and all the amazing
things in them.
###
Near the beginning of the story, I mentioned
an Indie Band called Letters From The Fire. They’re worth checking
out. You can find them here:
http://www.lettersfromthefire.net
***
John H. Carroll was the youngest of seven
children and was born in Atlanta, Georgia in 1970 where he was kept
in a dresser drawer with the clean socks. Luckily, he wasn’t kept
with the dirty socks or else he might have grown up to become
slightly warped.
As a child, John spent most of his time
wandering through the Mojave Desert in an attempt to avoid people.
He would stare at the sky, imagining what it would be like to
explore different worlds. One of his favorite memories is watching
his dad build the fuselage of Evel Kneivel’s skycycle in their
garage. One of his least favorite moments was watching that
skycycle fall into the Snake River. (Not his dad’s fault and he has
documentation to prove it, so nyah)
As a teenager, John spent most of his time
driving wherever he could in an attempt to avoid people. He would
stare at the road, imagining what it would be like to explore
different worlds. He was the captain of the chess team, lettered in
golf and band while in high school, and wasn’t beaten up anywhere
near as much as one might imagine.
As an adult, John spends most of his time
staring at a computer screen in an attempt to avoid people. He
stares at the monitor for hours, imagining what it would be like to
explore different worlds. He has been married to his wonderful wife
for sixteen years and they have three obnoxio . . . wonderful
children who always behave . . . when they’re asleep.
Emo bunny minions surround John at most
times. He is their imaginary friend and they look to him for
guidance. At one point, they took over the world. No one noticed
because they left everything exactly as it was. They gave the world
back after a week because it was depressing.
The Willden Trilogy is his first endeavor
into the field of writing. Other series and standalone works will
be forthcoming. In addition, John has written a number of short
stories that can be found at most eBook sites. He writes in the
evenings and weekends whenever possible. Regrettably, the family
mentioned in a previous paragraph desires food and shelter,
requiring the author to possess a full time job until his writing
makes him rich.
You can follow his blog where he discusses
writing, emo bunnies, family and various other topics of
insanity.
http://www.ryallon.blogspot.com/
Follow him on twitter if you like insane
ramblings and random comments.
Find him on Facebook where he discusses
current projects and writing in general:
http://www.facebook.com/John.H.Carroll.Author
His Goodreads Page:
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4479427.John_H_Carroll
New!
The Emo Bunny
that Should - Illustrated Edition:
With beautiful illustrations
by Arlene Rose. You can get it at the store where you found this
one.
Emo the Bunny was a sad bunny. He
preferred gloomy days, walks over a cliff and misery of any sort.
One day he saw something very unusual. Normally he'd take a nap and
try to forget about it, but for some reason he took an interest.
Then things happened. Emo the Bunny hated it when things happened.
Caution: This story is not for normal children.
“
A Collection of Stories for Demented
Children”
You can get it at the store where you found this
one.
Five short stories combined into one,
written for demented children and adults too. Text versions of
these stories can be found for free individually. I am charging for
the compilation in the hopes of earning a living from my writing in
order to support my own demented children. Some content may be
disturbing for younger, or sane, children.
My full-length novels are set in the world
of Ryallon. They are high fantasy with rogues, knights, dragons and
flower children. You can get them at the store where you found this
one.
Willden Trilogy
(Written first)
Ryallon
Anilyia
Kethril
Dralin Trilogy
(Set in time before
the Willden trilogy)
Dralin
Ebudae
Pelya
Stand-alone Novella
Rain Glade
Coming soon:
The Crazed Trilogy
(Set in time after
the Willden Trilogy)
The Morhain Trilogy
(Set in time
after the Willden Trilogy)