Are You Here?

Prologue

A Passage Taken From the Diary of Buck Withers

They came by the thousands. Just scooping up people in the streets and carrying them away in their ships. It was like the movies, you know the kind. Alien abductions taking people into their ships and doing scientific tests on them, then leaving them naked in a field the next day. It was almost exactly like that. Except these abductors were our kind and they weren't returning their victims. It's funny how just a small group of just a couple thousand can go unnoticed when they want to, then all of a sudden spring out at you when you least expect it. They worked behind the scenes at first, leading mass cyber attacks against the different main governments, then having them believe that it was the other countries fault. Then, while the big countries were devouring each other, they began to work on quietly destroying the other countries. By assassinating the leader, they sent the country into hysteria. Then, they would reach down with their ships and carry away massive groups of people at a time. Soon, many countries in Africa were completely empty, and the entire continent of Australia, as the ships had stolen them from their homes. What they were doing with these people? I didn't know until much, much later when I was almost taken myself.

I was living in Australia at the time. It was a particularly nice day, and most everyone was outside enjoying it. I was enjoying it myself, hosting a BBQ for my family and some close family friends. They were all taken that day, and I curse myself for not trying to help them more. I know that there was nothing I could do, but I still feel as if it is my fault. I remember that day as if it were yesterday. I was only 24. Just married, and with a baby on the way. I remember being so excited to be a father of my own. It was to be a girl. We were going to call her Harper Diana Withers, Diana after her beautiful mother. I haven't seen my wife in 32 years, and I will never see my baby girl. I was just handing out the burgers, after being complimented on my great grilling skills when the ships appeared overhead. We were the first people ever to be attacked by the ships, so we had no idea what was going to happen. It wasn't until we heard the screaming of our neighbors that we began to run. I tried to help Diana, but she was already 8 ½ months pregnant and she was panting within a few minutes. It was no use. The ship caught up to us and she began to float. I sprinted out of the beams and watched with the scene with horror. The entire town was flying in mid-air.