"So you're telling me that if I agree to let you put this funky alien snake thing in my head, I'll be cured, but I'll have to leave everyone I know and go join some intergalactic war with other snake heads?"
Delicately put, I know, but I've never really been a good talker. Besides, that is essentially what he'd told me. I looked at him again. Military. That was the only word to describe him. Air force, actually, but still.
I'm Jaime, by the way, Jaime DeMarko. I'm sixteen and I am dying of cancer. The doctors say I've got a little while, but I can read faces, and what I see is not good. After chemo failed I could tell it was all down hill from there. I was right. Turns out I've got about a week left.
Strangely I'm ok with it. I've never really had a problem with dying. Then Mr. Military shows up and offers me my second chance. He starts rattling on about top secret military stuff, come on, I'm dying, who am I gonna tell? He talks about wormholes and aliens and all that great mumbo jumbo. Apparently earth has been at war with these go-old guys for years and no one knew. Fancy that. He says there are some parasite good guys, okra or something, who need hosts and if I want, they can cure me.
But of course there's a price. There's always a price. Mine is to play dead. Everyone, my family, my friends, everyone must think died of cancer. I can go on living, but it must be a different life. That's when I gave him my ever so elegant summary.
He looked slightly uncomfortable with my casual terms. "That's about right," he said.
I sat there, silently. I was totally for this, of course. I mean I'd hate to lose my family but I was going to lose them no matter what. It was this or death and I'm always up for a good adventure. Besides I imagine being dead would get boring pretty quickly. The part I couldn't quite accept was the symbiotic relationship part. I've always been an independent free spirit and the idea of sharing my body with another being wasn't exactly welcoming, but like I said it was this or death.
"Cool. When do we leave?"
If he wasn't unsettled by my actions before, he certainly was now. "Um…" he stammered. "Well, if you agree to the blending we can leave four days from now."
"I agree. God. Blending, it sounds like a smoothie or something."
He smiled at that, before leaving me alone with my thoughts. For the first time since my diagnosis I had a purpose now, something to look forward to. I was happy.
Four days later the doctors reported my unfortunate death to my family and insisted on a closed casket funeral. I was smuggled to Colorado Springs. When they drove me to Cheyanne Mountain I was completely confused. I hadn't really paid attention to Mr. Military and I was expecting some sort of space ship hanger deck with lots of little blue men walking around like from star wars, not a mountain. Deep inside I was introduced to a friendly looking man with a totally messed up voice and told that he would take me to the okra home world where the blending would take place. There they go with the smoothies again.
When the 'stargate' activated I was totally shocked. I'd never seen anything like it. It was like water, but definitely different. When I was told I had to walk through it my face lit up with excitement. I guess knowing you're supposed to be dead makes a person a bit reckless. The okra man looked at me thoughtfully.
"I have never seen anyone so happy to go through that for the first time," he said. "Most people are scared out of their wits."
I gave him my famous mischievous grin in answer and proceeded up the ramp and on to another planet. The not-water was cold and I emerged on the other side shivering, but still smiling. The planet wasn't what I had expected. I don't know what I had expected, but it wasn't this.
Okra man led me to a certain patch of ground, though how it was different from any other patch of ground was beyond me. He activated some sort of transportation device and then we were in a structure a little more like what I had expected. It was a tunnel of something like crystal and I assumed it was under ground. Clever.
I was lead to a room that was to be mine until my first mission. Mission, that's the word they used, like FBI or something. After I had settled in a bit I was taken to see the high council. Apparently I wasn't what they had expected.
"This is who they sent us?" one, a leader type, practically bellowed. "A child?" I stood there, slightly amused. I was more than they had bargained for and they would soon know it. After that they decided I would have to do and they moved on to other business which completely bored me. Eventually they adjourned and left, saying simply that the blending would take place tomorrow morning.
Let me know what you think and if I should continue with this idea.