THE FAMOUS FIVE ????/mmmmm

[izzyb]

Here is another quirky, out-of-this-world tale - a follow up to the adventures of four scouts and their encounter with 'little green men'.


Part 1 of 4


It had barely been a year since the four Portland boy scouts had survived the strangest experience of their lives. Dancing lights, floating green bands, force fields, water that wasn’t water, little green men and objects vanishing into thin air. It was more than their brains could handle.

Despite Skyler proclaiming that he had worked out that beings from another world had performed all these illusions, his friends still had a sneaking suspicion that it was all a secret government operation. The solution would probably never be satisfactorily explained.

None of the four boys had spoken to anyone outside of their group of the strange happenings THAT night in the woods. Not a living soul. After all, how can you put into words what your eyes have trouble processing what they have seen. It will forever be a secret between the quartet.

The group of four became five a couple of months ago when a fifth member, James (or Jimmy), joined them. He had a gregarious personality and seemed to get along with the other four. James had just turned 15, making him the oldest, as Sklyer would turn 15 in three weeks time.

The twins Andrew and Kyle were now 14 and pee-wee Freddie wouldn’t reach that mark for another two months. All boys had grown over the past year though Freddie was, and always will be, the runt of the pack, by a big margin.

Skyler was still considered the leader of the group even though James was marginally older and as tall as Skyler. James’ build and his dark brown hair trimmed in a buzz cut, or crewcut, made him appear more like a marine than a boy scout. Even James was not told about the ‘little green men’.

One sunny Sunday the group of five were tasked with completing an orienteering course to gain marks for an orienteering badge. They were to start, at two o’clock, at the scout hut and were expected to complete the course in five hours. The course would take them over meadows, though a wooded area, down some back streets of the nearby town, over (or around) a river, another wooded area and back to the hut.

Each boy had a backpack with the usual supplies for such a course. A map, a compass, a stopwatch, a whistle, bottles of water, some fruit (apples, bananas, grapes), rope and tackle for climbing up cliffs and trees and a flashlight in case they got lost and finished in the dark.

There were six check points throughout the course and each boy had to clock on once they reached the check point.

The boys were on time at the first check point which involved them in negotiating themselves around some muddy areas, dodging some cattle (and a bull) and climbing up and down some steep embankments. The wooded area presented much more of a challenge as there were no paths to follow, no clearings to mark their progress, and some thick undergrowth. Despite all the obstacles, they all made good time and signed in at the second check point.

From there, they had to tackle the back streets of the town. There were half a dozen streets, all of which were dotted with deserted houses and none of which had signposts to indicate what they were. If the boys travelled up the wrong street they would be hopelessly lost.
The streets were in no set pattern. There were many twists and turns and corners, all of which left the boys scratching their heads as to which one would lead them out of the maze.

The group had gathered at a place where three streets converged and were trying to agree on which street they would take. “I’ve got no idea which street we should take” confessed Skyler. “We’ll do this by a show of hands. Those who think we should go left, raise your hands.”

Freddie and Kyle chose left. “Now, who goes right?” Andrew sided with James to go right.

“That’s a great help. Personally I reckon we should take the middle path.” “All right, how about we go down our chosen paths for about a mile and if we see a check point, whistle as loud as you can. Agreed?”

All gave their assent but, before any of the four had a chance to take one step down the path, they all froze. Dozens of pinpricks of light were zigzagging all around their feet. Then, without warning, green bands appeared out of thin air and wrapped themselves around each of the five scouts. Skyler, Freddie and the twins knew exactly what the green bands were but James was gobsmacked.

The green bands did not touch any of the boys but they wrapped themselves around the bodies of each one of the boys. None of the boys were unable to speak which was probably just as well as, one by one, each of the five scouts vanished into thin air.

[Snozzberry]

Vanishing Scouts certainly poses a problem when it comes to check points or roll call, perhaps they were kidnapped, taken to all the checkpoints in the correct order and finished the course before they even started. Martians can do that ya knows!!!!

🖐🖐

[izzyb]

Part 2 of 4 ……

In one instant the boys had been standing on the ground entrapped by the green bands around their bodies. The next instant all five boys were still standing, tied by the hovering green bands, but they were standing on a silver coloured floor. Their backpacks had been removed and were lying in one big heap on the floor. That was hard enough for the boys to comprehend but what they saw all round them had them staring wide-eyed and with mouths agape.

There were literally dozens of the little green men scurrying around on the floor, some flying through the air and some holding what looked like long silver surfboards!!

The beings were sort of human in form but they looked like stick figures rather than humans. They were all about a foot tall, had two arm-like appendages which had tiny knobs at the end instead of hands. On each knob was a tiny, tiny, but bright light. That explains the dancing lights, thought Skyler.

Their legs were similar to humans but, instead of feet, they had little green knobs on which they moved. Their bodies were as thin as a human’s finger but appeared to be extremely flexible, turning their bodies in a 360 degree arc.

What was even more mind boggling was their heads, or what was in place of their heads. It was a large knob, similar to but larger than their ‘hands’ and ‘feet’. There appeared to be no openings such as a nose, a mouth or eyes but, every now and then, a slit appeared as if they were speaking or communicating with each other. Oh, and another tiny light was perched on the head knob.

The boys could still not speak but were turning their heads back and forth and up and down, trying to take in their new surroundings.

The beings that were holding the silver surfboards – which were about a hundred times their size – then began to move them close to each of the boys. The surfboards, or benches, were then slid under the backs of the boys and in between the green bands behind their backs. When the boards were in place the green bands compressed so that each boy was effectively strapped tightly to the boards. Their arms were by their sides but the straps were so tight, they had no movement for their arms or legs.

When each of the scouts had been tied to the boards they were flipped onto their backs with the boards floating in mid-air. The green bands which entrapped them then, in a flash, all turned to a bright red colour.

James, whose heart was beating a million times a second, thought ‘God, they’re going to disect us!’

One of the beings, who was slightly larger than the others and seemed to be their leader, then approached Skyler, touched the light on top of its head knob and a slit opened where its mouth would have been. It attempted to communicate with Skyler in a squeaky, child-like voice.

The sounds emanating for the being were incomprehensible to Skyler. The boy scout shook his head and furrowed his brow with a look which said ‘I don’t understand.’

The being again pressed the light on his head. “Sorry, forgot to turn on the translator.” When it pressed the light once more it said “Now you all can speak”

James started screaming at the top of his voice “Where the hell are we? What is happening. What are these little green things?”

“These bands are so restrictive I can hardly move a muscle. Same with you Kyle?” said Andrew. “Yep”

Freddie was too busy bawling his eyes out to say anything

“What is your name?” squeaked the being.

“My name is Skyler, I am human.”

“I know you are human you knobhead. We have been studying you and your world for some time. So you are called Sheelah?” squeaked the little being. Close enough, though Skyler.

“Why are we tied to these benches?” Skyler queried.

“To stop you falling off, silly.” The little being not only sounded like a child, it talked like a child too.

“Are you a martian?” James butted in.

“No. We had a big fight with martians. We won. No more martians.”

“What is your name and what is this world?” James was curious.

“No names like you. I am number one. Our world has no name. This is our home.”

“Well, number one, why have you brought us to your world?” Skyler asked.

“We have been watching you with your, what you say, ‘tie-up games’. You all seem to like these games. Are we not right Sheelah?”

“We do not have such primitive bands such as ‘ropes’ but we have our own devices. Would you like to see some?”

[izzyb]

Part 3 of 4 ……

“Yeah, OK, but first could you release us from these red bands. They are very tight.”

Another touch on number one’s light and the silver boards floated silently to the floor, the red bands vanished and all five scouts stood with their eyes agog, wondering what would happen next. While they were standing, all five boys were besieged by dozens of the little green beings, crawling all over their bodies. Kyle tried to kick some of them away but they were too quick, vanishing and reappearing in the blink of an eye.

“Let’s start with you.” said number one, gesturing towards James.

In a flash an apparatus appeared. It looked like a huge hamster exercise wheel but many times the size. Before he could utter a sound, James was placed on his back inside the wheel which was so big he was laid from his feet to his outstretched hands. This time there were about twenty blue bands which tied his body from feet to hands, totally immobilising the boy. The wheel then began rotating at a speed so fast that James and the wheel were just a blur. After a few minutes of these gyrations the wheel stopped spinning and James was then placed on his face on the outside of the wheel and secured by the same blue bands. The wheel, which was hovering in mid-air, again rotated at a furious speed with James strapped on the top.

The wheel came to a halt, James was unstrapped and placed, sitting down, on the floor. The g-forces which astronauts experience after a centrifuge test had James’ brain a scrambled mess. “You like?” number one asked the bewildered boy.


“We show you another machine. Come.” Number one gestured towards Kyle.

A reluctant Kyle had no choice as he was lifted by dozens of the little beings onto a pedestal. A red band secured him to a pole in the middle of a pedestal but with his feet off the floor. A machine situated at the back of the pedestal then began spewing reams of blue bands around Kyle’s body, starting at his feet. The pole (and Kyle) began to rotate at a frightening speed as the blue bands were wrapping the boy like a mummy.

“Hey, what’s happening? These bands are crushing me.” whimpered Kyle, who was now dizzy. “Can you make it …… mmmph” Kyle was silenced as the bands continued up past his shoulders and completely covering his face up to the top of his head.

“You’re killing him. He cant breath.” Yelled his twin Andrew.

“Oh sorry. Which hole does his breathing?” asked one of the little beings.

“His mouth, his mouth” Andrew pointed to his own mouth.

A gap opened in the material which allowed Kyle to take a huge breath, although the rest of his face was hidden by the blue bands. “Better?”

No sooner had Kyle taken breath than the bands again began wrapping the boy, this time from head to foot. Before his friends had a chance to remind the beings that Kyle needed to breath, the gap over his mouth opened.

“Sorry, forgot again.”

When the process was repeated for a second time, number one exclaimed to the four boys who were looking on in astonishment “You like? Good, hey. We use machine to wrap up our enemies.”

As with all occurrences in this Lilliput-like world, the machine and bands that had mummified Kyle and tied him to the pole vanished into thin air as if they were never there.

Kyle collapsed on the floor, his chest heaving as he took huge gulps of air after being deprived of his breathing a couple of times.

…………………………………

“You next, small one.” Said number one, pointing at Freddie. Freddie went straight to Skyler and grabbed him. “Sky, don’t let them do this to me.”

“We’ve got no choice Freddie and they haven’t hurt any of us. You’ll be OK.” Skyler reassured him.

Like ants, dozens of the beings lifted Freddie off the ground and placed him on a bench which had just appeared. There were contraptions at each end of the bench, the reason for their placement would soon become obvious. It looked for all the world like a medieval torture rack on which prisoners would be placed and have their limbs stretched.

The unfortunate Freddie was placed on his back on the bench and blue bands tied his legs to the bench, all the way from his ankles to the top of his thighs. His arms were then pulled up behind his head and attached to the other end of the bench and secured with some blue bands.

“See, Freddie. That wasn’t so bad was it?” Skyler tried to reassure his small friend.

Indeed, if that was all that Freddie had to endure, there was nothing to fear. But, when the contraption at the top of bench started to increase in length, alarm bells were ringing.

“See, this makes the little one taller.” explained number one.

“Stop, stop” yelled Skyler. “The human body doesn’t expand like that.”

“Sorry, sorry” number one spent a lot of time apologising.

The bench was then inverted with the bench on top and Freddie, strapped to it, on the bottom. The bench (and Freddie) started to rotate at a great speed. Freddie must have felt like a plucked chicken on a rotisserie spit – a very dizzy chicken.

When the ordeal was over and Freddie was released from the bench, he wandered aimlessly in circles before collapsing on the floor.

“Damn, after all that I’ll still be the same height. Five foot nothing.” Freddie had not lost his sense of humour.

[izzyb]

Part 4 of 4 ……

Andrew was next and was worried what the little beings had in mind for him.

A large wheel appeared out of thin air and was hovering a few feet off the floor. It was made out of some type of wooden material with half a dozen handles on the outside. Similar to the bench on which Freddie was placed, this looked like another of the torturing devices used in ancient times. Andrew’s eyes boggled at the sight of it but he was shocked when he was forcibly laid on it when the wheel was laid flat on the floor. Andrew’s arms and legs were pulled at a ninety degree angle, forcing him into a huge X position, and strapped to the wheel with red bands. Two more red bands fastened his torso to the centre of the wheel.

The wheel then resumed its upright position hovering above the floor. A dozen or more of the little beings were jumping on the handles of the wheel and, all of a sudden, it began spinning. Slow at first but then at a furious pace. If that didn’t make the boy dizzy and disorientated, nothing will.

The wheel first spun clockwise, then anti-clockwise and then began to gyrate in unrecognisable patterns. The wheel was spinning so fast it, and Andrew, had become a blur.

Andrew had only a few minutes on the wheel but, when he was released, his mind and brain were so scrambled that he staggered around like a drunk man on a Saturday night.

“Wow, that was awesome and horrifying at the same time.” said Andrew when he had regained some composure “But I feel like I want to throw up.”

All the boys except for Skyler had been ‘put through the wringer’ by the little beings and their devices, but Skyler was not forgotten.

“You last Sheelah” proclaimed number one.

Skyler’s arms were tugged behind his back and his wrists were wrapped in several red bands. A large red band of an enormous height appeared above Skyler and it must have been attached to a hook way above the floor. The band snaked its way down towards Skyler’s feet and looped itself around his ankles and yanked him off his feet. The band retracted as it lifted Skyler, upside down, off the floor until he was at least ten feet from the floor, his long black hair flopping downward.

A dozen or so little beings positioned themselves either side of Skyler and proceeded to push him from one side to the other. He was swinging wildly from side to side with the beings obviously having fun. The band then began twisting itself which meant that Skyler was also, not only swinging, but rotating in circles. This continued for almost ten minutes.

When Skyler was eventually released, the little being known as number one addressed the group of five bewildered boy scouts.

“You like our devices? Have fun?”

“I wouldn’t say we had fun, but it sure was different from our tie-up games.” said Skyler as the spokesman. “Now that you’ve had your fun, when are you going to send us back to our planet?”

“No, no. You stay here.”

“What do you mean we stay here? For how long?”

“You stay here. This is your home now.”

“We cant stay here. Our home is Earth, our planet. We have friends and families there who will miss us.”

“No. You will not be missed. We will send copies of you back to your planet. They are exactly like you in every way.”

The boys simply could not believe their ears. These beings wanted to keep them here on their planet and substitute replicas of them back on Earth. In other words they have created doppelgangers of each of the five boys.

Whilst the boys were trying to comprehend what had just transpired, their doppelgangers had appeared back on Earth. They were placed in exactly the same spot, i.e. in the back streets of a town, where the boys had been abducted. The doppelgangers were not just replicas of the boys, they had the same feelings, thoughts and memories of the original five. No-one could tell that they were replicas. Not their families, their friends, their boy scout group – absolutely no-one – could tell that they were not the real boys.

The doppelgangers looked at their stopwatches and noticed that not a second had passed since the switch had been made. They completed the orienteering course in record time and were each rewarded with a badge to sew on their uniforms. The group of five then disbanded and returned home to their families and resumed life as normal.

……………………………

Back on the unknown planet the boys were gobsmacked at what had just happened. They were to spend the rest of their lives, 14 or 15 years old forever, in a foreign environment surrounded by these little beings who seemed to have the power to do with them what they liked.

The boys were to experience many more tie-up sessions in weird ways and on weird devices. It seemed that they had been abducted so that the little beings could study them as humans and also to practice their own tie-up games.

THE END