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= THE NEIGHBORS ARE DIFFERENT =

a science fiction short story

by John Argo


10.

original art by Brian Callahan 1997Steve, as he tied himself up, had a very noticeable erection,. Charlie looked down and had to admit that he too had one, and the mere thought of Marie made it rise longingly. "Ready, darling," Steve said to the air.

"Ready..." Marie said somewhere, then lapsed into a long, almost painful moan.

"We always have at least one, sometimes two," Steve said.

Charlie felt the bed move. "Two what?"

"Children," Steve said, "each time we do this. You'll be happy to know that the next one will look like you."

"Wait a minute," Charlie said, "I'm not up for any pregnancies. Come on." He wriggled against the restraints, but could not get free. "Wait. Let's talk about this."

"Too late," Steve said. "You had your pleasure all these months, Charlie. We worked hard, performing for you. Now you have to perform for us."

The lights in the room dimmed.

"What do you MEAN?" Charlie asked. He heard his voice, and it sounded thin, as if over water. The bed, he perceived, was slowly moving forward, and Charlie with it, tied up and standing on the foot board. He began to whimper with fear.

"Relax," Steve said, "just enjoy yourself." The lights went out, and Charlie was terrified in total darkness. Then a faint haze of light appeared. The wall ahead of them was not a wall, but a curtain, and now it rose like a stage scrim. Charlie heard splashing, smelled blood, heard groaning, heard also Marie's hissed breathing. Charlie could still not see.

Cold water flooded into the room. Charlie screamed as its chill enveloped his feet up to the ankles. The walls, he saw dimly, were like the inside of a pool. A second pool inside the house, not the one outside. Steve said: "We don't know who we are, or where we came from. As you yourself said, Charlie, the world is full of many kinds of people. Our kind, we live among you. We need you to help us reproduce. I have a theory that we evolved out of sea water and lightning."

"Oh God," Charlie whimpered. He felt his own tears hot on his cheeks. "Let me go, please." He writhed from one side to the other, but was unable to get free.

"You see?" Steve said, "you can taste the salt in your very own tears, feel the salt of the sea stinging your eyes. We are all from the sea." A light came. Dimly at first. Hanging down into the water were thick black cables. On the cables were pictures of red and white lightning bolts. Above were massive galvanized-steel boxes covered with lightning bolts and with signs that read DANGER and 10,000 VOLTS. "No," Charlie whispered. "N O O O...."

"Easy," Steve said. "I'll couple with Marie, while she will perform oral sex on you. Then we'll switch around, and you'll get yours wet. You'll get a charge out of it, Charlie."

"N O O O..." Charlie said, and then he saw Marie.

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