Vice Versa.

© Tim Barker & Dan Killeen (1999).

Rape.

For Captain Fletcher it had been a usual Louisiana day, so far. That was up until the time that a dishevelled looking woman burst through the door, obviously in a state of shock and babbling incoherently. Fletcher attempted to calm her down then sat her down in an interview room and offered her a cup of chocolate. After about half of an hour she became a little more sedate and was able to communicate in short swift sentences.

"What's your name Ma'am ?" Fletcher enquired.

"Alison Hargreaves." Said the woman.

"And what has happened to you ?" Asked Fletcher.

"Raped." Replied the woman.

"Maybe you'd prefer to speak to a woman officer ?" Fletcher coaxed.

"No !" Declared Alison Hargreaves.

"Then start at the beginning, sparing no details please." Fletcher turned on a tape machine.

"I...don't remember."

"Well, do you remember what he looked like, a description ?"

"No."

"Where did it take place ?" Asked Fletcher determinedly.

"Out on the interstate."

"You were driving ?"

"Yes." Alison responded.

"OK, interview terminated, 3:34 p.m. Tuesday, 20th. August, 1950."

"Thanks Alison, may I call you that ?"

Alison Hargreaves nodded her reply.

"Right, I'll arrange for a patrol car to take you home. Is there someone we can contact ?"

"My husband."

Captain Fletcher arranged for the patrol car to take Alison Hargreaves home, telephoned her husband to inform him of the incident then sat down to ponder his next course of action.

A search of highway 51 was subsequently held but to no avail. It would be many years until Fletcher would hear the name Hargreaves again.

Sightings.

Jonathan Hargreaves was coming of age, he was 21. He had decided not to hold a party as he felt compelled to go to the hill close to his home with a four pack and just sit there, watching the night sky. He had watched the sky all of his life and had witnessed several varieties of phenomena. Sometimes there would be bright lights hovering in the sky, they would simply appear instantaneously then vanish into the night. Other times there would be a low intensity humming around his head and a shadow would pass over him but always, when he looked up, there would be nothing above him.

Tonight it was extremely dark but he was able to find his way as he knew it well. He had climbed this hill many times in his childhood as it had been a favourite place for picnics with his family.

Jonathan was on his third beer when the lights appeared in the sky above him. Red, blue, green combined in various ways to produce a variety of colours. There were more of them than usual too. "Wow !" He exclaimed. He didn't feel alarmed at all as even though this show was unprecedented he was used to it all by now. He simply lay back on the grass and enjoyed.

When the show was over and he had finished his last beer Jonathan ran home down the hill and headed towards the back door which led to the kitchen. His parents were sitting around the huge oak table looking extremely sullen when he burst through the door.

"Mom, Dad, you should have seen it. Coloured lights in the sky, twisting and turning, making all kinds of patterns. It was incredible !"

"Sit down son, we've got something important to discuss with you. Alison..." Said his Father earnestly, turning towards his Mother.

Jonathan sat down opposite his Mother.

"Jonathan, it's about your Father. Now that you're twenty one I must tell you. Oh God Bill." Alison turned towards her husband who simply nodded.

"You see Jonathan, I was raped just nine months before you were born. Your Father must have been the rapist. I'm sorry."

"Why haven't you ever mentioned this before Mom ? How could you ?" Replied Jonathan. He got up and ran to his room, leaving his mother crying at the kitchen table with her husband comforting her.

The next morning at breakfast Jonathan was more rational.

"I want to know all about it Mom, no matter how hard it is for you to talk about it." Jonathan implored.

"Well, it's difficult Jonathan. You see I remember nothing of it." Alison Hargreaves replied.

"You must remember something surely, his face for instance ?" Jonathan enquired.

"No, absolutely nothing Johnny. I'm sorry."

"Have you tried hypnotic regression Mom ? We've studied it in Psych at school. It can be very effective for memory blocks." Jonathan suggested.

"Oh, I don't know Jonathan. I mean, I'm not sure I want to know." Alison said.

"But I do Mom, you owe it to me. It's not painful, it's kind of like being in a trance. It's totally safe too." Jonathan said encouragingly.

"Well, I'll consider it. You better go else you'll be late for class."

"Sure Mom and remember I love you no matter what you decide."

That day Alison Hargreaves drove into town and visited the library. She borrowed some books on hypnotism and psychology then headed home considering her situation. Later that day she telephoned a local practising Psychologist who specialised in hypnotism and booked an appointment for the next week. Jonathan would be pleased.

Regression.

Dr. Deadman was chewing on a pencil, contemplating his previous patient when the intercom buzzed.

"Alison Hargreaves to see you Doctor." Spoke his secretary.

"Send her in please Trudy." Dr. Deadman said.

Dr. Deadman put the pencil down on his desk just as Alison entered.

"Ah, Mrs. Hargreaves, please have a seat. May I call you Alison ?"

"Certainly Doctor." Alison replied.

"Good then you must call me Tom." Said the Doctor.

"OK Tom."

"Now I will explain what I'm going to do to you then you must tell me what you might expect to find."

Dr. Deadman subsequently explained the process of hypnotism to Alison constantly stressing how safe it was with stable people. Alison said that she understood the process as she had been reading up on it and that she was stable. She also told the Doctor of the rape incident that she hoped to find out about. And so the hypnotism began. Dr. Deadman got Alison to lie down on a couch and asked her to fully relax. When he was sure that she was as comfortable as possible he switched a tape on that would induce a deep hypnotic state. After about ten minutes Dr. Deadman began his interrogation.

"What is your name please ?" Spoke the Doctor in a soothing tone.

"Alison Hargreaves." Came the reply.

"And what is mine ?" Asked the Doctor.

"Tom." Replied Alison.

"Good."

"Now, how old are you Alison ?" Enquired the Doctor.

"Forty Four." Replied Alison.

"Good, now I want you to go back in time to when you were twenty three. The date in fact is 20th. August, 1950. Are you there yet Alison ?" Coaxed the Doctor.

"Yes." Alison responded.

"Where are you exactly Alison ?"

"On the interstate, St. Francisville." Alison said.

"Good, now I want you to go up to the time of that awful incident which occurred to you Alison." The Doctor urged.

"Where are you now Alison ?" Asked the Doctor.

"I don't know but there's a light shining down on me and I'm flat on my back with my legs apart. There are three people standing around me." Remarked Alison.

"Can you see their faces ?" Enquired Dr. Deadman.

"No, I can't. They seem to be wearing some kind of surgical mask."

"What are they doing now Alison ?" Asked the Doctor, intrigued.

"They're, they're impregnating me with some kind of protruding device from the machine. It hurts so bad Tom, make them stop." Enthused Alison.

"OK Alison, I want you to come forward in time about twenty minutes, say."

"OK"

"Where are you now ?" Asked Dr. Deadman.

"I'm still on the table but they seem to have finished. Aghh, there's a blinding flash of light. I feel so light headed." Spoke Alison Hargreaves.

"Where are you now Alison, speak to me !" Demanded Dr. Deadman.

"Driving." Came the reply, eventually.

"You're back in your car ?" Asked the Doctor, amazed.

"Yes."

"How do you feel Alison ?" Asked Dr. Deadman.

"Confused."

"Do you remember what happened to you ?" The Doctor enquired.

"No. Blank."

"OK Alison. I'm going to count to ten, on the count of five you will feel relaxed and at peace with the world. You will remember nothing about our conversation and on the count of ten you will open your eyes fully restored." Advised the Doctor.

Dr. Deadman slowly counted to ten and brought Alison Hargreaves back into the real world. After she said she felt OK and Dr. Deadman was sure that she was they sat down at the desk and discussed what had transpired. Dr. Deadman told Alison everything about the three people in the masks, the machine and the impregnation.

"Yikes, it sounds horrific Tom. What do you make of it ?" Asked Alison.

"Well, first I'd like to know if you've ever had any other strange experiences in your life like seeing lights in the sky or strange phenomena ?" Enquired the Doctor.

"No, not me but my son has. Lots of times. Why ?" Alison asked, intrigued.

"Well, it's not exactly my field you know but I think that you may have had a close encounter !"

"You mean with aliens ? You must be joking." Said Alison in almost mocking tones.

"No. Of course, as far as I know, nothing like this has ever been reported before but people have reported abductions." Said Dr. Deadman, not quite believing his own words.

"That's remarkable. That means that Jonathan could be from another world !" Declared Alison Hargreaves.

"Yes, I suppose so. I suggest that you tell no one apart from your immediate family. If word got out about this then Jonathan would become subject to endless experiments." Advised Dr. Deadman.

"Yes, you're right, tell no one. I must tell Jonathan though, it would explain so much to him."

Alison Hargreaves kept thinking of how best to tell her son about Dr. Deadman’s theory as she drove home. It would be difficult.

Secrets.

When Jonathan got home from school he was keen to see his Mother. He knew that today she had had her hypnosis appointment and he wanted to know the truth. He sat down in the lounge with a glass of lemonade for company and waited.

Jonathan had a long wait as his Mother had taken the long route home. She thought this would give her more time to think of what she would say to her son.

As Alison pulled up in her Chevy the cars headlights shone on Jonathan who was standing in the front door. He promptly came to greet her.

"Hi Mom ! How'd you get on ?" Enquired Jonathan.

"Hi Son, let's go inside and talk." Suggested Alison.

"OK Mom." Jonathan followed his Mother to the kitchen. Funny, Jonathan thought, all of the important stuff seems to take place in the kitchen. When they had sat down and got a drink Alison began to speak.

"Jonathan, this is going to be tough, I'm afraid." Said Alison.

"Just tell me what the regression revealed Mom. I'm dying to know." Urged Jonathan.

"Well, OK, but it's a little bizarre." Alison went on to tell Jonathan all about the session then told him of Dr. Deadman's theory.

"Well, it would explain a lot, I suppose." Jonathan said.

"How do you feel about it all Johnny ?" Alison enquired.

"I'm not quite sure, I mean it's a lot to take in. Have you told Dad yet ?" Asked Jonathan.

"No, he's working away tonight and I don't want to tell him over the 'phone." Alison said.

"Yeah, that's probably wise Mom." Agreed Jonathan.

"You're going to tell nobody else either ?" Enquired Jonathan.

"No, not a soul. I think it's best if we keep this to ourselves." Said Alison Hargreaves.

"Yes, I agree."

But Jonathan had other plans. That night he crept into the kitchen and grabbed the longest, sharpest knife he could find. He tiptoed upstairs, entered his Mothers bedroom and stabbed her repeatedly in the chest uttering the words : "It's my secret now Mom".

Jonathan Hargreaves was convicted of murder and sentenced to the electric chair. His incredible secret was never revealed and died with him.

Epilogue

Each night began a new day. Exponentially the days had been growing since Man’s dawn, they had grown sick and disillusioned in the existentialists universe. For a thousand, thousand years he had waited and now it was time.

Edward Moses had been working on the Exodus space project for fifteen years. He had helped catalogue the vast gene banks, a perfect snapshot of Man’s genetic evolution including all the imperfections. The embryos were being placed on “Eyre”, known as “the orphanage”, that very day. He had worked fast, flooding the chambers of the embryos containing the delicate organisms.

The space craft screamed through the exosphere into the vacuum of space, hurtling into the centre of the galaxy and spiralling along it’s arms in a four million year journey. Safe home sought.

Moses actions were discovered too late.

“He’s being questioned Sir”, Exmy Kiel reported to her superior, Epstien, head of Exxan conglomerate.

“Who was this fucking Outsider playing God ?”

“It seems he only destroyed the Indo-Eurasian gene bank.”

“We’ve spent forty billion dollars sending a bunch of losers into space ?”

“Sir, it’s not a totally compromised sample, as to the bio-diversity; with chaotic interbreeding mutations, we should be able to simulate Aryan descendants in five thousand life cycles.”

“Well, that’s that fucked, we’re not funding another shipment. Those two and a half thousand, black or white…”

He stopped talking as Exmy moved over to the window. In the streets shots were being fired and they were alight with fire. She looked up through the smoking sky.

“The last will be first and the first will be last.”