Just Another Kids' Story

"Wow," exclaimed a rather striking young man, "a starship of 138 people vanished in minutes. They say that their autopilot malfunctioned and the ship crashed into the planet it was orbiting, but no debris has been found yet. Their communications were shut off manually yesterday and they haven't been heard from since. I reckon it was a Ghu-Roth attack."
"You really believe in that nonsense? Here I was thinking you were smart!" said his friend, who was behind a rather complicated wall filled with flashing lights, switches and buttons.
"Daddy," said a young girl, who stood beside the young man, "who's Ghu-Roth?"
To which her father responded, "The Ghu-Roth are a group of cannibals that wipe out entire colonies at a time. The starships they attack are never heard from again and neither are their inhabitants. Their uniforms feature bulky hobnail boots, a helmet and a one piece suit made out of an unknown material - all the darkest black, aside from a red insignia right in the centre of their chest. They have technology that surpasses ours by thousands of years. It can shut off communication systems and open any locked door."
"Captain Welley, did your parents ever sing you a rhyme about the Ghu-Roth?" said the man's friend.
"I might've, but I'll say no just so I can hear your incredible voice sing it to me," mocked the captain.

"Lock up your children, lock up your wives,
The Ghu-Roth are here to take all your lives.
In the middle of the night, in the middle of the day,
There's nothing you can do that will keep them at bay.
They'll sneak into your cabin, unlock down your door,
The Ghu-Roth are out and they're hunting for more.
They'll snap all your bones, tear off your flesh,
But only if the meat is fresh.
Lock up your children, lock up your wives,
The Ghu-Roth are here to take all our lives."

Captain Welley's friend took a bow.
"Bravo! Encore! Fantastic!" he cheered sarcastically. The captain responded by slapping him sharply before leaving the room to assume his post in the cockpit.

Captain Welley was overseeing the night shift in the cockpit. Like most nights, it was quiet. A thick, almost tangible silence hung about. Though it felt impolite and generally unacceptable, he broke the silence.
"The radar's clear," he told them, "we're loaded with fuel and we have a stable communications signal. Take the night off! Go, enjoy the company of your friends and family!"
Of course, it was against protocol, but he needed to curry some favour in his work force. He stayed in there, nonchalantly watching the stars and planets through the windshield as he dozed off.

The captain was woken by a siren accompanied by a flashing red light on the control panel. Something had triggered the movement detectors in the docking port of the ship. Reluctantly he dragged himself onto his feet.
"Probably just some kids mucking around," he told himself, "or maybe a false alarm."
Captain Welley left the command capsule and began his brisk walk to the docking port. It was quiet. He didn't doubt that most people on the ship were asleep.

The captain arrived at the airlock the docking port was behind. His heart was beating fast. On the way there he thought about all of the evil that could be on the other side of the door. It was connected to space, after all.
"No," he thought to himself, "there was nothing on the radar. It was a false alarm."
The captain took a breath and opened the door. To his relief there was nothing there. Captain Welley started his way back to the cockpit.

He took the long way back, the way that went past the dorms, for no particular reason. The captain was strolling by when the thick silence that had surrounded him since he left the cockpit was broken by a high-pitched shriek. Many others broke out and soon enough the dorms erupted into an endless flow of screams. The captain broke into a sprint. Something was horribly, horribly wrong and he needed to make a call for help.

He slid around corner after corner, heart beating in his chest, the rubber soles on his shoes adding to the shrieking. Captain Welley was running as fast as he could. He turned a corner and slipped over and his head slammed into the ground with a loud thud. The captain was lying there, trying to catch his breath and get pack onto his feet when he heard a set of boots hitting the floor, closing in alarmingly fast. His eyes were having difficulty focusing, but the captain managed to catch a sight of a human figure standing over him holding a baton. Welley pulled out his gun and fired a single shot at the figure. A shot that hit it on a red spot right in the centre of its chest. A shot that should've killed. A shot that didn't faze the figure at all.

In the middle of the night, in the middle of the day,
There's nothing you can do that will keep them at bay.

The figure swung and the captain managed to roll out of the way and onto his feet in time. He bolted to the cockpit, trying to shake the rhyme from his head.

The captain was surprised to find himself at the door of the cockpit. The boots were still behind him, but not as close as before. He dared not sneak a look, not even from the corner of his eye. The door opened and Welley ran in, going straight for the radio.

"This is Captain John Welley, calling for assistance." he said. "We're in need of urgent help. The Ghu-Roth are attacking us."

"What? The Ghu-Roth are just kids’ stories! Stop wasting my time, jackass." responded a gruff voice on the other end.

The door opened behind him. He didn't need to turn around.

They'll sneak into your cabin, unlock your door,
The Ghu-Roth are out and they're hunting for more.
They'll snap all your bones, tear off your flesh,
But only if the meat is fresh.

Captain Welley knew his fate.