Encounters Out There

While walking her dog, 'Joanne Frisco' observed a suspicious man parked outside the dog park. But she was not suspicious of the growing number of strangers who had lost their livelihoods and lived in cars, only the one stranger.

Nevertheless, she called the police.

She peeked around a corner as the police officer spoke with the stranger, nodded, and left.

'That's it? There's something odd about him.'

She called the police dispatch again … "There's something wrong with that person!"

"Ms. Frisco, we understand your concern. Please come to the station to file a report."

Joanne arrived at the station and entered a private room where the stranger and an officer sat.

"What's he doing here?"

"He's your biological father, Joanne."

"But …"

"She suffers from a memory disorder ever since that alien takeover," said her father.

"Is she your daughter?" asked the officer.

"Not anymore.” Her father shook his head. “The alien's consciousness suffers from residual traces of Joanne's memories. My daughter's soul is no longer with us."

"Oh, right," said the officer, "we lost over a billion in the Replacement War. Bloodless but entirely tragic and invasive. Not everyone is as they seem."