The next morning, bright and early, everyone awoke and headed down to the place of the wedding reception. It was a beautiful day, the sun was shining in a a clear blue sky, the weather was perfectly warm with just the slightest of breeze to the air, and the birds could be heard singing. All seemed to be just right with the world on this day.
"This will be the happiest day of my life," Elliot said cheerfully to E.T. as they were being driven by Michael to the place of their wedding reception. "You're here to see me marry the girl of my dreams and everything has gone according to plan so far. I don't see how anything could possibly get in the way of things now."
They arrived shortly at their destination which was a small town park. "People usually either get married in a church or a courthouse," Elliot said to E.T.. "But me and Erin aren't religious and we want our wedding to be extra special and personal so we decided to have it where we first kissed and where I proposed."
They then headed over to a pretty gazebo with a light roof providing light shade from the sun. Elliot went under it and stood at the center with E.T. standing on his right side while Michael and Haily joined Keys and Mary in the seats just outside. As Elliot stood waiting patiently for Erin to arrive he noticed a few empty seats as they still didn't know where some of their guests were.
Shortly, Erin arrived and walked under the gazebo and stood beside Elliot. She was in her snowy white wedding dress of pressed silk and Elliot was in his pressed and starched tuxedo.
They waited a few minutes and then Erin whispered to Elliot, "No one has seen Professor Oakley since this morning, and no one has still been able to find Perry and Jilly."
"Other guests seem to be missing also," replied Elliot. "What can we do?"
"Well, we can't wait forever," said Erin. "Let's get married while we can."
Elliot agreed and then the reverend they had chosen to administer the wedding stepped in front of them and began his speech.
"Everyone, we are gathered here today to witness the union of two of our dearest friends, Elliot Taylor, and Erin Lockhart. Over the years we have-"
Then just at that moment there was a sudden stirring in the air around them and then a breeze began to pick up and strangely it seemed to be coming from directly above them instead of around them. Then this was followed by a peculiar humming noise that filled the air. Then the sky seemed to be growing darker as though a great dark cloud had passed over the sun.
"What is going on now?" asked Erin as she tried to keep her dress from rising up.
"I hope it isn't a storm coming," said Elliot.
E.T. looked extremely worried and anxious. He was the only one who could tell what was actually coming but he knew he could do nothing to stop it.
"Everyone, stay close together!" E.T. exclaimed urgently.
Everyone got up from their seats and huddled around each other.
"E.T., do you know what is going on here?" asked Elliot as the wind picked up increasingly.
"It is an oncoming abduction," replied E.T. somberly.
"An abduction? By who, or what?" asked Elliot incredulously.
"I don't know," replied E.T. sorrowfully. "But once it gets started there is no stopping it."
At this Erin clung on to Elliot tightly as did Mary to Keys and Haily to Michael and Nicky and Nicole to them, and everyone else there clung to someone close to them.
Then an extremely bright light appeared directly above them. When they looked up they saw a giant disk shaped object hovering over them and nearly filling up an entire corner of the sky. The light seemed to be coming out of an opening in the bottom of the disk which was surrounded by strange symbols all around.
"What kind of spaceship is that, E.T., do you know?" asked Elliot.
"It seems to belong to the Herods!" cried E.T. in astonishment.
"The Herods? But I thought you said they didn't care about us human beings," said Elliot.
"I thought they didn't," asserted E.T.. "But now it seems they do for some reason."
Just then the bottom of the spaceship opened up to the thinnest brim of it and the light coming out of it became nearly blinding. Then everyone began to feel a magnetic sensation pulling them upward. Elliot glanced down and saw that they were actually being lifted off of the ground inside the gazebo and pulled up toward the spaceship's opening. The ascension became increasingly faster until they were at last sucked forcefully up through the opening in the spaceship.
They bounced up into the inside of the spaceship and hovered in place for a moment and then when the opening in the bottom closed up they came down with a soft thump, all of them still clinging to each other inside the gazebo.
Elliot looked around and saw they were in room made of silvery gray metal with dozens of peculiar looking machines and devices in it.
"What is all this stuff?" he asked.
"I'm afraid I do not know anymore than you," replied E.T.. "I have never been inside a Herod's ship either."
Just then a sliding double-door opened automatically and four strange being with big heads and small facial features and skinny limbs and compact bodies came in through it. They looked in smug satisfaction at all the humans, and then they noticed E.T. among them and their expressions became baffled ones.
"Why, look it is a miniature Brodo Asogian!" exclaimed one of the Herods looking directly at E.T..
"What in the name of the Universe are you doing amongst these human earthling beings?" demanded another Herod of E.T..
"These are my friends," replied E.T.. "I came to Earth to visit them for the occasion of a wedding, which is a ceremony they have when two of them who love each other deeply are united in life."
"Why, how very interesting," said a Herod in a chillingly emotionless voice.
"What should we do with this Brodo Asogian stowaway on our ship?" asked another Herod.
"Well, the captain will most certainly want to know about it, as much he doesn't like stowaways. SO I propose we should bring him with us to the captain," replied another Herod.
"First I want to know what you intend to do to my friends," E.T. demanded of them.
"The captain shall explain everything to you. Now come," responded the first Herod.
E.T. was then escorted out of the room and through the sliding doors by the four Herods. They led him into the heart of the spaceship which was the captain's control room. E.T.'s eyes widened as he saw it was filled with much technological devices that were far superior to that of his own kinds.
They stopped abruptly in front of a tall rectangular shaped silver chair. The first Herod spoke, "Captain, we have found a stowaway on our ship. It is a Brodo Asogian of the miniature kind. What shall we do with it?"
The chair turned around slowly to face them and there sat the Herod's captain and leader. He stared fixedly at E.T. It was evident that he was very annoyed by the sight of him from the way his eyes squinted up.
"What was he doing amongst the humans on Earth?" demanded the captain.
"He claims he has a friendly relationship with the ones we brought aboard, sir," replied the first Herod. "He came to visit them because of a ceremony they have called a wedding. Have you heard of such a thing, sir?"
"Yes, I have," replied the Herod captain in an irritated tone. "It's a most nonsensical celebration of meaningless feelings of devotion which frequently do not last." He looked again at E.T. who quailed under his intense gaze. "As for this stowaway, I'm sure he will be of no use to use, so just send him back to his home planet where he belongs."
"Yes, sir. Right away, sir," said the Herods with a nod.
"But not before we drop off our human captives onto their designated asteroid," the Herod captain added.
"Oh, yes, sir! Of course, sir!" replied the Herods together.
"What asteroid? Why are you taking them there? What is your purpose?" asked E.T. in puzzlement.
"It is Asteroid 962," replied the Herod leader coolly. "We're bringing them there so they can start their lives anew on their new home."
"But why do they need a new home?" E.T. was even more puzzled.
"Because they are now being reestablished as a species by us and Asteroid 962 is the most life-supporting one for them to live on."
"But why do you want to reestablish the human race as a species?" asked E.T. further.
"Why, haven't you Brodo Asogians observed from your long lifespan and trips to the planet Earth what the human race is becoming on its own? They are turning into miscreants that like to destroy everything they build since from the very beginning. They seem to thrill at starting wars, attacks of or on terrorism, killing, stealing from, and just plain ruining each others lives, and the leaders they've had over the centuries have been the worst of them because they condone and initiate such acts. The time has come for them to reestablished, and we are just the ones to do it," the Herod leader said almost in one breath.
"Well, while I do agree that there are many human beings who are as you say they are, there are still a good many genuine human beings who give good nature to the definition of being human," said E.T..
"Yes, I am well aware of that fact," said the Herod leader. "So we are gathering up as many of the humans who are like that as we can and dropping them off onto Asteroid 962 where they may live in tranquil harmony with each other and not be disturbed or influenced by the worser of their species, of which we deal with in a separate way."
"And how exactly do you deal with them?" asked E.T., rather fearful of the answer.
"I'll show you," said the Herod leader. He got up and led E.T. out of the control room and led him down a series of long hallways and then at the last one they turned right and went into a large room and E.T.'s eyes widened in shock and horror as he his mouth fell agape at the sight before them.
He saw hundreds of human beings of all different ages and races standing in lines with strange metal caps on their heads. These metal caps had many wires connecting them to an enormous highly complex looking machinery that was constantly blinking lights and making a humming noise with occasional beeps. E.T. could see a very thin beam of electric energy transferring back and forth from the wires of the machine into the the wires of the connected metal caps and thus into the brains of the human subjects. The humans all held totally blank and emotionless expressions with their eyes wide and unblinking and their mouths slightly open with occasional mumblings coming from them.
"What in the name of the Universe are you doing to these poor humans?" asked E.T. incredulously.
"We are only erasing the data of their minds and entering new data based on that which we found in the minds of the better humans when we ran tests on them so that they may eventually be fully reprogrammed and able to live in peace with the others on Asteroid 962," the Herod leader answered.
"But do you not realize that you are interfering with the ways of which the Universe works and that is wrong to do?" asked E.T..
"On the contrary," said the Herod leader calmly. "We are really doing the Universe a great deal of good for if we were to just leave the human race as it was sooner or later it would destroy its home planet Earth which would no doubt wreck havoc on the rest of their solar system, their galaxy, and then indeed the rest of the Universe."
"But I was always taught by the elders of my home planet to never meddle in the affairs of any other life inhabited planet," E.T. countered, "and also that when left to its own the race of the planets would get along well and fine as the Universe has its own ways of dealing with whatever may come its way."
"Well, I say that you are just a lowly miniature Brodo Asogian who doesn't know hardly anything about living things beyond the plant formations and you are not one to question my decisions in educating you or any race lower than the two of us, and especially the Earth race," the Herod leader said with an indignant glare at E.T..
"But don't you realize that if it took the Earth billions of years to form itself and then make itself habitable for life form of many kinds that it must certainly be capable of withstanding many degradations those inhabitants happen to bring to it?" E.T. pressed further.
The Herod leader now looked thoroughly frustrated with E.T.. "Listen," he hissed sternly, "We are the most advanced, intellectual, and overall superior beings of the known Universe and so if we wish to do something about the disorder of the Universe then we have a right to do it. Now, I will hear not another word from you and you will go back to your home planet where you belong and you can tend to your own planet's needs."
And so saying the Herod leader dragged E.T. out of the room and down the hall and into a vacant room which had a series of circular windows lining the left side of its walls. Then he closed the door behind E.T. and locked it securely.
E.T. looked around and soon figured out he was in a miniature space shuttle which when they reached his home planet would blast out of the spaceship and send him spiraling down to his home on Brodo Asogi. He sighed as he went over to the windows and gazed out at the stars in space and tried to contemplate his situation.
In the far distance he could see a tiny asteroid passing them by on its rotation and knew that it must be the Asteroid 962 that the Herods had mentioned they sent the better of the human race to for reestablishment. He knew that Elliot and his other earthly friends must be on it by now and felt a great pang of sadness for them for all Elliot had wanted to do was get married today just as the others wanted to watch him do so and none of them deserved this fate.
He then thought about those poor humans he had seen in that awful laboratory and felt in his heart that their treatment was wrong and undeserving. It seemed to him that scary looking machine had turned them into brainwashed zombies and that was surely what they had become from now on and would therefore never be able to really mix with any human society ever again.
Those Herods might be top notch on the list of intellectual and technologically advanced on the list of beings in the Universe but at the same time they were also the most arrogant and uptight and self-righteous, and condescending. They were just so full of knowledge in their heads that had become so heavy they couldn't feel any wisdom within their hearts. The wisdom of the heart which E.T.'s race kept sacred since the beginning of time and valued it above all else and tried to share it with anyone in the Universe who cared to understand it. He just wished the Herods could care to understand it, then they wouldn't be so dominating over things which didn't concern them.
E.T. then remembered how he and his fellows stored their wisdom within their heartlights which glowed whenever they found new wisdom or shared what they already had of it. It was what not only kept them united as a species but also let them know the truth of all things of the Universe, including its inhabitants. He remembered that when the time was right they could transfer their wisdom to other hearts whether or not it was of one of them, which was how he had first been able to communicate with Elliot when they first met and he couldn't understand his language.
Perhaps if he could summon enough energy from his heartlight to the heart of the Herod leader he would see that what he was doing was uncalled for and put the human beings back where they were. But then he also knew it would take more than one heartlight to reach out to all of the Herods who all kept their hearts buried deep within themselves.
So, if he could just call out telepathically to his fellows on Brodo Asogi which this spaceship was now approaching they could perhaps generate the wisdom and love they had that the Herods didn't have into their own hearts and minds. It was worth a try.
He went up to the farthest window and turned on his heartlight as he closed his eyes and spoke from within the light of his heart.
Friends, comrade, and fellow Brodo Asogians, I need your help.
