Ryan Bettencourt has an enviable life. Happily married with two great kids and a successful and profitable career he loves, the world is at his feet. But one evening, while driving home, something extraordinary changes everything. His ordinary life takes a twist into the bizarre when his drive home is interrupted by a ship visiting from another planet. He is now an unwilling guest on the spaceship Solar Flare, an extraordinary blend of machine and sentient being. The Solar Flare has been sent to Earth to retrieve a human being, and Ryan is the lucky winner of this new adventure. The ship, using telepathy and Ryan's help, awakens the ship's crew, four humanoids and Tobias, a being unlike any Ryan had ever seen or even imagined. With elfin features, light-green skin, dark-green wings, and a tail similar to a monkey's, Tobias is truly alien. Ryan soon learns that the visitors are running from enemies and are now lost-and in need of humanity's help. The extraterrestrials explore Earth and determine that it will be a suitable place to lay low for a while. Once safely hidden from their enemies, they begin repairs to their battle-scarred ship. Maybe they can ever figure out where they are and how to get home. But when Tobias accidentally kills two humans, no one seems to care that it was in self-defense. Can his shipmates and new human friend rescue him before he's executed?

COSMIC MISFITS

By Ray Rogers

iUniverse, Inc.

Copyright © 2012 Ray Rogers
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4759-5317-6

Chapter One

Ryan Bettencourt climbed into his black luxury car, and set his briefcase on the floor in front of the passenger seat. He closed his door and settled in behind the wheel, getting comfortable in the plush, tan leather seat. Business had been hectic that day, leaving him utterly exhausted. It felt good to be done with work. He was anxious to get home.

Ryan started the car, and backed out of his parking space. His was the only remaining vehicle in the lot; his hired help had already left for the day. Ryan placed the automobile in drive, and headed toward home.

It was twilight. The sun was setting, and daylight was waning. In another few minutes, stars would be visible in the blue sky above, and soon thereafter, blue would change to black.

Ryan switched on his headlights to combat the impending darkness, then fiddled with the radio. His eyes returned to the road as he was about to run a red light at a busy intersection. His eyes went wide, and his pulse quickened. He cursed as he hit the brakes. Had he not stopped in time, there would have been a major collision, and it would have been his fault. He sighed in relief, his hands trembling on the wheel.

Pay attention to the road, idiot! He scolded himself as he watched a blue sedan cross his path through the intersection. A woman in the passenger seat glared angrily at Ryan as the vehicle passed. There were more stares and shakes of the head as other vehicles followed. Ryan averted his eyes, feeling properly embarrassed. He waited for the light to change, then continued on his way.

Ryan Bettencourt was a middle aged real estate broker who ran a successful firm in the city. He was five feet, eight inches tall, and had an average build. Ryan had brown eyes, and his brown hair was starting to gray at the temples. He wore eyeglasses to correct his astigmatism. Ryan was happily married, had two terrific kids, and money wasn't a problem. All in all, Ryan was a lucky man. He was an ordinary guy, living an ordinary life.

Something extraordinary was about to change all that, however.

He was about a mile from his home in the suburbs when something materialized in the near distance. It had appeared out of nowhere, and was directly in his path. It started out as a shadowy shape, and then took solid form. It was shaped like a bell, and looked metallic. Its silver skin gleamed beneath the glow of the streetlight.

What the hell? Ryan thought as he quickly brought his car to a halt on the side of the road. The giant silver bell was right in the middle of the lane, and he was forced to veer around it to avoid a collision. His black Mercedes ended up at the edge of the asphalt, where the road and earth converged. For the second time in under thirty minutes, Ryan had barely avoided an accident. Ryan silenced the engine and got out.

What the hell is that? Ryan wondered as he studied the giant silver bell, slowly walking around it. It stood about eight feet high. It was eight feet in circumference at the base, six feet at the top. Ryan stared at it in utter astonishment as he reached out to touch it. It was made of an alloy Ryan wasn't familiar with.

"What the hell is this?" Ryan muttered aloud, his voice filled with awe. He looked around, noticing for the first time that he was the only one around. "And why isn't there any traffic?" This was normally a busy road, and there wasn't another soul in sight. It added to the eeriness of the situation.

Ryan's attention was drawn from the deserted street to a sound coming from the giant silver bell. A door was opening, sliding from right to left along its track, disappearing into the hull of the strange contraption. Light spilled out from within, illuminating the night and exposing the giant silver bell's interior. From his vantage point, Ryan could see a light blue wall and what appeared to be a chrome handrail about waist high. Frowning, he stepped closer.

Reaching the threshold, he poked his head inside. The wall was blue, the flooring was black, and the ceiling was white. The chrome handrail ran the entire circumference of the interior, cut off on either side of the door. There was a small square panel just inside the door, on his right. It contained a keypad with strange symbols on it. A foreign language? Ryan wondered. He frowned as he took it all in.

Go inside, a strange feminine voice said in his mind. Ryan gasped and staggered back, his hands trembling and his heart racing. Go inside, it repeated. The voice was soft, soothing, oddly comforting. Ryan didn't realize he had entered the strange capsule until it was too late. There came the quiet hum of the door mechanism engaging, and he whirled around in time to see the door closing.

With a groan, Ryan moved forward in a futile attempt to get out before the door sealed him in. He pounded on the door with both fists to no avail. He uttered a whimpering sound. "Let me out!" He cried. "You've had your fun, now please let me out!"

It was of no use. There was no one around to hear him. There was no car, no pedestrian, no curious bystander waiting in the wings. He was alone, trapped in the giant silver bell with no hope of getting out.

Something began to happen. There was a low, barely audible hum, and the sensation of movement. Ryan stared at the small square control panel beside the door; it was glowing, the keypad illuminated, the strange symbols he didn't recognize seemingly mocking him. He forced himself to release his grip on the handrail in order to approach the control panel. His trembling fingers tapped and poked the keypad with no result. All he got for his efforts was a series of electronic beeps.

"What the hell is going on, here?" Ryan moaned, becoming more agitated by the moment. "Whoever you are, this is not funny. I demand to be let out of here ... now!" He was trying to sound tough, but it didn't quite come across. He sounded more frightened than anything. The damned thing appeared out of nowhere.

The sensation of movement ceased, and the low humming noise ended. Ryan braced himself, preparing for the worst.

"Now what?" He asked the silence.

Chapter Two

The door to the strange capsule opened, and then another door opened beyond that. Ryan was reluctant to move at first, but since he didn't know what else to do, he decided to venture forth and investigate. Gathering his resolve, he took a deep breath, exhaled, and stepped across the threshold.

He found himself standing in a large oval room. The room was light blue, with a shiny black floor and a white ceiling. Looking down from the very center of the ceiling was a large, smoke-grey dome, like those concealing surveillance cameras in retail stores. Looking up, he wondered if it too had a surveillance camera behind it. He stared at it for a moment, then began investigating the rest of the room.

At the opposite end of the room where he'd entered was the main control center. There were two stations with matching chairs situated before them, and the chairs were divided by a console with more controls on it. The chairs themselves were black with silver trim, with high backs and head supports. The console and control panels were done in shades of grey and black. The control panels themselves were illuminated with twinkling lights, scopes, and monitors. Above the control panels were more lit panels, situated so that they could be reached from the chairs. Ryan wondered what purpose the control center served. For all he knew it could have been anything. Deciding to get a closer look, he walked to the control center, studying everything with curious interest. He studied everything with a curious eye, awestruck by the sophistication and intricate detail.

After satisfying his curiosity with the control center, Ryan continued to look around. On the wall to the left of the control center was a large rectangular view screen. It was framed in black, and there was a set of controls at the base of it. Hi-definition Flat screen TV? If it was, this was an odd place for it. Closed circuit monitor, perhaps? All he had so far were questions without answers.

Ryan turned around and noticed another control station, directly opposite the large viewing screen. This station was less sophisticated than the main control center, but no less impressive. There was another black chair identical to the two at the main control center situated before it, and another rectangular viewing screen built to the wall at eye level. Ryan noticed that everything in the room was built in, integrated. Even the chairs were secured to the floor. He frowned, wondering at the unique design of the room, and the sophistication of the equipment. He had never seen anything like this before in his life.

This is like something you'd expect from NASA, Ryan thought. I'm not at a NASA facility ... or am I? Ryan wanted answers.

Continuing his unguided tour, Ryan made his way to the rear of the room, directly opposite the control center. The rear wall had three sets of doors; a single door to his left, behind which was the giant silver bell he'd arrived in; another door to his right; and a set of double doors in the middle. There were no handles on any of the doors, so Ryan had no choice but to assume they were automatic doors. When he approached the twin doors, however, nothing happened. Frowning, he stepped back, looking for an electronic eye of some kind. There was some sort of gizmo above the door, but it could have been anything. It certainly wasn't opening the doors.

Ryan peered in the window of one of the twin doors, seeing nothing but total blackness. There wasn't even a trace of light beyond these doors. Deciding this was a dead end, he went to third and final door.

He noticed light spilling out from within the room through the eye level window in the door. The window looked into a narrow, rectangular room, the deepest point directly opposite the door. The room had the same light blue walls as the control room, and the floor was the same; a shiny, highly polished black. The ceiling was done in a flat white. Ryan noticed glass panels on opposite walls to his left and right. Behind the glass panels stood human figures. Their eyes were closed as if asleep, and their arms hung limply at their sides. They stood on pedestals in individual compartments, which were set back in the wall. The figures were illuminated by a soft light glowing from above their heads. Curious, Ryan wanted a closer look.

I wish I could get in that room, Ryan thought. As if reading his thoughts, the door slid open, disappearing into the wall with a whisper of sound. Ryan hesitated before finally deciding to enter the room. Go, enter the room, said a voice in his head that wasn't his own. Gathering his resolve once more, he entered the room.

There were three figures on one wall, and two more on the opposite them. They appeared human except for one; a little man with light green skin, dark green wings, and a tail similar to a monkey's. He had pointed ears and elfin features. He was no more than eighteen inches tall, The strange creature was dressed in a one piece gold colored outfit. Ryan imagined the back must be open to allow for his wings. The little winged man was barefoot.

Ryan frowned, wondering what it was. Surely that can't be alive, he thought, and yet it was too lifelike to be anything but. Ryan walked over to the strange little creature's compartment, studying the diminutive figure closely. He stared for several moments, then moved on to the figure standing in the next compartment.

This one contained a tall, rugged looking black man with shoulder length black hair. The man had a thin mustache and a short, well kept beard. He was dressed in a single piece suit of some kind. The suit zipped in the front, and was light blue with dark blue trim. It looked almost like a ski suit. Or a flight suit? Ryan wondered. The man wore black boots. Ryan studied the man appraisingly. He was all muscle and looked like he could tackle a bear. Ryan found the man rather intimidating even in sleep. Sleep? Is that what these people are doing ... sleeping? Ryan would do almost anything to get some answers.

On the opposite wall were a man and two women. The man was slim but well put together, like someone with an active lifestyle. He was all lean muscle, like a runner or swimmer. He was Caucasian, clean shaven, and had short brown hair. He wore the same style suit and black boots the tall, ruggedly built black man was wearing. Ryan studied the man for a moment, then moved on to the next compartment.

Next in line was a pretty, petite, Caucasian woman. She was about five feet tall, and couldn't have weighed more than a hundred pounds. She had an oval face with delicate features, and red hair fell to her shoulders. Small silver earrings in the shape of a half-moon dangled from her ears, and there was a single diamond stud in the left nostril of her nose. The woman was wearing a feminine version of the blue suit and black boots the men were wearing. Ryan found her rather intriguing, staring at her for several long moments before finally moving on to the last remaining figure.

In the last compartment was another woman, taller and more curvaceous than the little redhead. She too had fair skin, though hers was not quite as pale. She had a rather long face with a high forehead and a long, narrow nose. Her long, dark brown hair contrasted sharply with her fair skin. She apparently liked jewelry as there were multiple piercing's in her ears and her nose. The blue suit and black boots she was wearing seemed out of place with her Gothic appearance.

There were other compartments in the room, but they were empty. What the hell is this place? He wondered. Who are these people, and why are they asleep in these little cells? Ryan stood at the center of the room and took it all in, his gaze once again falling upon the petite redhead. He stared at the woman for a long moment, then approached her compartment until he was once more standing face to face with her.

Let me out, said a feminine voice in Ryan's head. It was the same voice that had previously urged him to enter the room. He gasped, and he staggered back a couple of steps.

Let me out, the voice said again, louder this time. Ryan groaned as he closed his eyes and covered his ears as if he could block out the sound. He opened his eyes and uncovered his ears, once more looking at the still figure behind the transparent barrier. After a moment's hesitation, he went back to stand before the woman.

Let ... me ... out. This time the voice was louder and firmer than before. It was no longer a request, but a demand. Ryan cried out in surprise. He wasn't accustomed to hearing voices in his head, after all. It was rather disconcerting.

"I can't let you out," Ryan said, looking at the pretty, still figure behind the glass. "I don't know how." Then, to himself, added, "Look at me; I'm talking to her as if she can actually hear me."

I can hear you, said the voice. Now, let me out of here.

"Stop that," Ryan said, wincing as he covered his ears again. "Get out of my head, please. It's driving me nuts."

Let me out, now! The feminine voice in his mind demanded yet again. Ryan made a frustrated sound, his expression going angry.

"I told you, I don't know how," he shot back. "And would you please get out of my head?" He didn't quite sound as tough as he would have liked.

The control panel beside the door, the feminine voice said.

Ryan looked at it, and shook his head. "What about it?" He asked. "I don't recognize these symbols," he said.

Just touch the top key, said the feminine voice.

There were two keys with alien symbols on them. Ryan touched the top key as she asked, and the keypad emitted a low electronic beep. The woman began to stir as if awakening from sleep. She stretched in the close confines of her little cell, and she yawned. Her eyes opened, and she seemed disoriented at first. Realization settling in, she looked beyond the transparent door. She caught sight of Ryan, and stared. Ryan gasped and moved back, his eyes wide and his heart racing. Her green eyes held him captive, refusing to let go. Ryan tried to avert his gaze, but could not. His expression grew frightened, while the woman's face was void of emotion.

(Continues...)

Excerpted from COSMIC MISFITSby Ray Rogers Copyright © 2012 by Ray Rogers. Excerpted by permission of iUniverse, Inc.. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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