Amplified Minds by The Cataclysmic Variable

THE ARRIVAL
(short story :/: album intro)

The sounds of the thunder booming across the sky and plump raindrops pounding the roof masked all signs of the creatures’ arrival. The group of 5 college students living just a short drive from the campus were simply making the best of the inclement weather situation, mixing various beverages and trying their hand at weed-infused pastries. Gina, the quirky literature guru, had the squad partying to an even higher level with her 22nd birthday just on the horizon.
So when the fleet of vans pulled around and parked in the backyard, nobody noticed.
Just as a classic 90’s punk rock song kicked on over the stereo, a loud pang sounded and the lights flashed violently.
“Jesus! That must’ve been right on top of us,” Zack, frat boy to the bone, laughed.
“Crap, I just bought a gallon of milk,” Gina sighed. “If we lose power, it’s doomed. Better start pouring us some White Russians-.”
A loud scrape against the back door stopped her suggestion. Before the undergrads could even exchange nervous glances, the creatures ripped the door from its frame, as simple as a child peeling away bark flakes from a tree. Three of the roommates, Zack, Gina, and Dawn, screamed in terror while Claire and Sam stiffened, paralyzed in shock. The beings moved with prestige across the floor, gliding their chunky green tentacles in various directions, leaving streaks of discharge as a slug would. The slick, platinum guns coiled between the frontals.
As Zack grabbed the nearest “weapon” (a school-logo’d umbrella), the leading creature shot the boy in the chest, dead center. A bullet would’ve killed him, though the fierce purple dart came close. Blood sprinkled the floor as each student was impaled with the knockout serum.
The intruders dragged the students outside to their vans, leaving abstract ripples through the mud.
Claire was the first to awake, having been given a smaller dosage than her roommates’ bodies. However, as her vision came to, she desperately wished for the slumber to kick back in. Two creatures hovered over her, grunting and mumbling in an unfamiliar language. They seemed to be picking at her, though she could feel nothing, not a single nerve was alive inside her. The numbness chained her shriek down. She could only make out a shallow “eep”. One creature seemed to notice her stirring. It cackled and peeled a chunk of skin from her head.
By the time Zack and Sam had awoken, an array of carnival-colored cords was already sewn into their skulls while each of their limbs strained against the thick leather straps.
Dawn woke up next, followed by Gina, each still silent due to fear and the numbing chemicals. Their pupils darted around, searching for any type of escape should their nerves recharge at any given moment. The vans, of course, only had one set of double doors, and these were both padlocked and guarded.
After what seemed like 500 miles, the vans finally parked. The young undergraduates weren’t sure if this was celebration-worthy. As the menacing green strangers opened the doors,
the feelings began to return. The air from outside was humid, and tasted like rust. Each student was propped up on their table which effortlessly transformed into a wheelchair-esque vehicle.
The site outside was not worthy of celebration.
Gina’s lip quivered, taking in the large crowd of screaming mutants, some holding up banners, others lifting their hands/paws/tentacles fist bumping and screeching with gusto.
The creatures wheeled them onto a wide stage decked out in amps, strobe lights, and streams of glow sticks. Tacky Sam thought.
Two creatures whirled their head over at him just as the thought popped into mind. He flinched at their glare. “W-Wait-,” he whispered as they promptly wheeled him to the center. Sam’s passive personality kept most of his judgements to himself.
That was about to change. The chords were connected wirelessly to the amp devices, glowing blue as Sam drew nearer.
I dunno what drugs Gina jammed into those muffins, but this is nuts. Am I hallucinating? I MUST BE. This is insane. I’m just tripping, these guys are probably just specks of dust on the wall. This stage design is tacky as hell...maybe I’m in the kitchen?
The crowd snarled and continued to yell in foreign tongue.
Please end this trip, God.
Sam’s tongue fizzled, dry from the lack of moisture. To his left, Claire struggled with the leather straps. In a spike of energy, she thrashed her body around, straining her throat to speak, though by now she was sure the chemicals in the darts had altered their vocal chords. Her struggle quickly caught the attention of the head creature.
Its lips curled into a conniving smirk. Globs of pale drool oozed off its lower lip. It raised a sharp tentacle to the stiffened boy’s face.
Claire’s forehead throbbed, veins protruding through her forehead. The cords sparked, jabbing jolts of electricity into her mind. The amps began blasting her fears through the atmosphere:
Untie me, please! I’ll give you anything, anything you want. My wrists are burning. My whole back is drenched in sweat. PLEASE! Just let me go. If any one of us deserves to be set free, it’s me! Screw them! They had their frickin’ chance! All four of them are bad people. Do this for justice.
Her comrades combatted and suddenly the stage swirled with rage and fear. The amps shook violently on stage with the increased volume.
Dawn: You frickin’ betrayed us, you jerk! I hope they eat you raw!
Zack: Are these relatives of yours? This is quite the family reunion. Very untraditional! Sacrifice yourself and do us all a favor!
Gina’s thoughts were almost too scrambled to make out. ‘Happy…birthday’ was clearly stated but the rest seemed to be bits and pieces of songs the gang had listened to that night.
The tornado of thoughts really ramped up the audience. The talk show had become a wrestling match, each student threatening the others with how much more their life mattered compared to the others. The energy was fierce, the neon lights were eccentric, and the invasion had just begun....
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The Cataclysmic Variable is an innovative hip hop collective founded by artists and producers who have set out to revolutionize the music scene and provide their own take on hip hop entertainment. With recording artists from coast to coast and in every state in between, The Cataclysmic Variable provides our own unique brand of psychedelic hip hop across the country.

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