What Did You Do In The War

A William Johnson short story. This is book Zero, of the William Johnson Family series

Three large objects were heading towards Earth. Large enough to do real damage. Even more concerning, they didn’t look like asteroids at all. The three appeared to be rectangular. They were coming in fast, incredibly fast, on a collision course. Another notification alarm began sounding. The object’s trajectory and speed were changing. They were slowing and separating. Taking up positions around the Earth. The station supervisor activated the emergency alert system, and reached for the red phone.

Before anyone could react further, the visitors removed our eyes and ears from the sky. Without an understanding of how this could happen, orbital satellites began vanishing. Our ground based systems confirmed it. Somehow, they were being swept away. Foolishly, we stared at the monitor screens watching it happen, like rabbits watching the oncoming headlights, mesmerized by the mystery of it.

The war began on August 8. Without warning, they attacked. We were being exterminated, down to the last person on Earth. And in spite of our efforts to fight back, we couldn’t seem to stop them. That is, until William Johnson saved us.

Today, William Johnson has agreed to once again recount his experience of that crucial moment in time, when the fate of humanity was suspended, waiting for someone to do what was needed to tip the balance in its favor. He will tell the story with all the raw emotion those old memories will force upon him one more time.