How does a trainload carrying several tons of explosive chemicals disappear into thin air?

News reports came out today that a trainload of 50 tons of explosive chemicals disappeared somewhere between Wyoming and California. Say what?

Just “disappeared?”

I made some phone calls to my people in Wyoming to get the lowdown. This is the scenario as described to me:

John had been sheriff of the small town of Laramie, Wyoming for fifteen years. He always had a feeling that something was off, something lurking in the shadows of the mountains that surrounded the town, something twisted and dark. He often thought of it as a phantom, an apparition in his mind that he couldn’t quite put his finger on.

Today, that feeling was brought sharply into focus.

John had just returned from a two-week hunt with his deputy, Andy, and he was greeted with news that a trainload of fifty tons of explosive chemicals had gone missing between Laramie and San Francisco. The engineer, Bob, had reported the incident to the railroad company, who in turn had notified the sheriff’s office.

John was immediately concerned. Such a large quantity of explosives could be used for a variety of crimes. If the wrong person got their hands on it, it could potentially be a disaster.

John made a quick call to the railroad company. They were still trying to track down the train and its cargo, but so far had nothing. The last known sighting of the train had been in Laramie, nearly a day ago.

John asked Andy to gather a team of deputies to search for the train. He wanted to cover as much ground as possible in the shortest amount of time.

John and Andy set off in John’s old pickup truck, traveling along the winding mountain roads, searching for signs of the missing train.

As they drove, the sun slowly sank lower in the sky, and the shadows grew longer. John had been searching for hours, and he was beginning to worry. Where had the train gone?

Suddenly, they rounded a bend in the road and saw an alien ship hovering over the horizon. John couldn’t believe his eyes. He slammed on the brakes, causing the car to skid to a stop on the gravel road. Andy looked at him with concern as the ship descended from the sky, landing on the road in front of them.

John immediately drew his gun and instructed Andy to do the same. They both cautiously stepped out of the car, their eyes trained on the ship. The air was thick with tension as they waited for something to happen.

A tall, humanoid creature emerged from the ship. It had pale skin, large black eyes, and long fingers with sharp claws at the end. John’s heart raced as the creature approached them.

“Who are you?” John said.

The creature cocked its head to one side, as if confused by John’s question. It made a series of clicks and whistles, then spoke in perfect English.

“I am Zerinth. I have traveled millions of miles over many days to get here. We need the chemicals from the missing train to power our planet. There is nothing you can do to stop us.”

Aliens? From another planet? Needing the explosives for power?

John took a step forward, his gun still trained on Zerinth. “I’m sorry, but I can’t just let you take those explosives. They’re highly dangerous and could cause massive destruction in the wrong hands.”

Zerinth let out a low growl, its claws flexing as a beam emerged between them, growing into a ball of energy. He set the ball of the ground and it continued to grow, sparks jumping off its glowing surface.

John’s mind began to drift back in time to his early adulthood, childhood and early days. The energy ball was controlling his thoughts, scanning his brain as if to unlock the key to total domination. But John had been trained in the art of mental fortitude and he knew how to resist mental manipulation. He closed his eyes, cleared his mind, and focused all his willpower on blocking out the invasive thoughts.

Zerinth growled in frustration, its beam fizzling out as John broke free of its grasp. John opened his eyes and raised his gun, pointing it directly at Zerinth’s head.

“I won’t ask you again. Leave now, or I’ll be forced to use lethal force,” John said.

“Lethal force?” Zerinth laughed. “You mean like…”

Dozens of laser pulses emitted from the edge of the ship,striking the ground all around the men. John took his hand off his gun.

“That’s what I thought,” Zerinth laughed. “Sorry, fellows, but I have to go. Tell your people you tried.”

He floated up, up and into the ship. The spacecraft turned, tilted, whirred and shot into space.