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Candy Androids from Outer Space

Story © Russet'14

Characters © their owners

-0- Act 1: -0-

Curled up on the sofa in just a pair of shorts and his dressing gown Florin was engrossed in his book. It was a thrilling tale and after a day spent in the shop being polite and obliging to customers he was quite happy to lose himself in the realm of imagination. A distant thumping made the giraffe lift his head for moment, one of his ears cocking sideways as he tried to determine where it had come from. Shifting one brown furred leg onto the floor he twisted to glance at his roommate and business partner. The black dragon was slouched in his easy chair by his turntables, long purple hair hanging in shaggy bangs over his head as he bobbed along to whatever record he was enjoying. As usual the dragon had stripped down to just a pair of shorts, his purple chest and stomach a sharp contrast against his black scales and from the way he was still rocking out the thump hadn't come from him.

Shrugging Florin back to his story and he'd just found the rhythm of his book when the thump came again, this time making both his ears stand on end as he sat up.

"What..." closing his book the giraffe swung his legs around, settling his hooves into the carpet and slowly standing up, drawing his robe tightly about his shoulders as he moved to the window and parted the curtains. The street outside their shop was empty so he turned back to the house and paused as the thumping echoed up from below him.

"Shank," he kicked the Dragon lightly with one hoof, "Shank pay attention," he hissed and turned, ears up and straining to pick up any sound.

"What..." the Dragon pulled off his headphones and touched pause, blinking and peering up at the giraffe, "Was it too loud or..." he trailed off as Florin shushes him, then started up slightly as a loud thumping echoed from downstairs followed by a faint rattling of glass, "Was that the shop?"

Easing the door to the hall open Florin stuck his head outside then moved quickly to press an ear against the door that led downstairs to the kitchen. "Yeah, we did lock up right?"

"Yes, come on lets look I mean it's probably an anim..." he trailed off as something hit the floor with a faint crash of shattering glass, "Uhm... should we? Call someone first just in case?"

"Yeah..." Florin whispered, shuffling down the hall to the table with the land line and frowning as nothing happened when he lifted the receiver, "Lines dead... that..... Shank try your mobile."

"It's in the kitchen," the dragon whispered, cautiously sliding open the door and starting down the stairs, "If we are quiet we should be able to grab it."

Gently moving down the stairs Shank gripped the banister and took a huge step over the last three steps to avoid the creaking floorboards. The kitchen was dark, the only light a refraction of orange hues through the frosted glass of the back door. Florin watched the dragon grab his phone and the giraffe almost fumbled the catch as Shank suddenly threw it at him, hoof tipped paws were not the best for catching things. He then glanced at Shank and motioned him back over to join him. Shank shook his head, his usually red horns surrounded by an eerie corona of orange light as he pointed at himself then the door to the shop before pointed at Florin and motioning him back upstairs.

"No way," Florin mouthed silently, pointing at Shank then upstairs, "Come back up with me," Shank shook his head, spread his wings and started toward the shop door so Florin sighed and retreated back upstairs to call the police. He missed Shank easing open the door that led to the store room and the shop. However the faint clink and rattle of glass jars followed by a loud thump was audible. It sent Florin scurrying back up to the apartment, flipping open the phone and hitting the button for emergency calls.

"Police please..." Florin asked as the smooth, calm woman on the other end of the line asked him what service he needed. Pacing back and forth, hooves clopping softly on the carpeted hall Florin's jumped as the sound of shattering glass echoed up from below,

"Yes hello, this is Florin Doodlebug from Forgrof sweets, we think someone is downstairs in the shop. Mmhmm... yes we're safe. I'm in the flat above and my business partner is in the kitchen downstairs... OK thank you."

Hanging up and slipping the phone into a pocket the giraffe started back down the stairs. "Shank," he whispered, peering down into the kitchen, eyes darting from side to side through the gloom. He frowned at the empty room and slowly started to edge toward the door into the hall. Glancing from left to right the giraffe moved toward the shop and peered inside cautiously. It was dark, the shutters over the windows didn't let much light in but what they did was further blurred as it refracted through the glass jars lining the shelves. The ones he could see looked empty and all the lids were off which was wrong! Florin stepped into the shop and his hooves crunched on broken glass making him start back in alarm.

"Damn it," he muttered, peering around and fumbling for the light switch, he froze as he found it already in the on position and flicked it twice. Shank must have been this way already which meant... slowly turning the giraffe scooted toward the cellar door. It was partially ajar and as he reached for it the light on the cellar stairs flickered. He screamed as the momentary flicker illuminated a dark silhouetted figure. Bright eyes stared out at him and then before he could back up the creature lunged through the door and seized him with an animalistic scream.

-0-

Turning his van off the main street Hailey pulled in behind the sweet shop and peered over the wheel at the closed gates to their back yard. It looked quite so he clambered out from behind the wheel and tried the side gate which clicked open for him. The police dog paused before going through to settle his peaked cap atop his head, flicking his ears to poke them through the holes cut into the fabric. Moving into the empty delivery yard the dog pulled his blue jacket straight then tilted his head and clicked the speak button on his radio.

"Car 537 to dispatch, I'm at Forgrof sweets, shop is dark but upstairs lights are on."

"Roger that 537, no further contact with caller but we have their number, advise you attempt contact and if failure wait for backup."

"Roger," the dog said back then checked his tablet for the number from control, dialled it into his phone and waited as it started to ring. After a few moments there was a click and a soft voice spoke at the other end.

"Hello Shank Forgrof's phone, Florin Doodlebug speaking...."

"Sir this is Officer Hailey I'm outside in response to your earlier call do you still require assistance."

"Oh officer," the voice sounded a bit sheepish, "We feel a bit silly for bothering you now, we think it was an animal that got into the cellar. Lots of mess, broken jars and missing sweets but Shank doesn't reckon anyone was inside."

"That is good news sir, did you want me to have a look anyway? It may look like an animal got in but we've been trained to identify such things."

"Well... OK officer, that'd be nice, the back door should be unlocked, if you want to come down to the basement we are down there having a look."

"Very good sir, be right there, though you really should have locked your doors before retiring for the night."

"Oh we did, but we opened it when we came out to look at the windows from outside."

"Ah of course sir, well I'll be right down," shutting down his phone Hailey crossed the yard, eyes darting toward the basement window. It was ever so slightly ajar and there was a light on down there. Deciding to forgo clambering down into the little well the window was set in the police dog tried the back door and opened it. Walking through the kitchen he made his way down the hall and into the darkened shop, his neat black boots crunching over glass as he headed for the illuminated cellar stairway.

"Mr Fogrof, Mr Doodlebug," he called out as he clumped down the stairs and brushed through a screen of hanging plastic at the bottom. He glanced around, frowning at the hanging sheets of plastic filling the cellar space and decided to approach the centre of the cellar and the source of the light. Pushing through several more sheets of plastic he called out again, "Where are you?" he froze as the bright blue light shifted and engulfed his body, blinding him, forcing him to shield his eyes with one arm, "What are you doing?"

"Analysis 50% completed...." the voice was high pitched, light and echoing gently and as it finished a flickering figure appeared in front of Hailey making the officer gape in shock. It was him but quite nude, soft white body shining lightly, shimmering as if he was made from living latex. He was white all over, muscled from long hours in the officer's gym, black tail tip, brown ears all sparkling lightly.

"What the hell.... stop this!" he turned, looking around, hand falling down to the grip of his baton, "Mr Fogrof.... I.." words failed him as the shiny, glistening reproduction of himself started to rotate, shrink and change.... twisted and morphed into an odd new configuration.

"Analysis complete, projection is within tolerances, this specimen meets our criteria. Do we convert?" The hanging screen of opaque plastic drew back in one direction and Hailey looked up. His baton fell against his feet, clattering away as he saw what was sitting enthroned before him. His eye darted from one figure to the next, over their strange armoured faces, the fixed happy smiles and then the device starting to move toward him.

"No.... no," he turned, trying to flee but something seized him, pulled him off his feet. He shrieked as he was dragged backwards toward the flickering light and waiting figures. Scrambling, struggling Hailey screamed again as the lights began to flicker and the police officer shrieked one last time, eyes filled by the image of what they were planning to do to him....

-0- End Act One -0-