The Long War, Part XXVIII - Shanghai Nights


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Affidavit of Shaojie Zhang

My name is Shaojie Zhang. I am 45 years old, and currently reside in Tanegashima, Japan. I am a Chinese national applying for asylum under Article 14(1) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948). I am also an officer of the People's Liberation Army of China, holding the rank of Colonel. I worked as an attache and special forces adviser to Admiral Shengli Wu, the Commander of the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN).

1. I am applying for asylum on the grounds that my superiors have been co-opted and taken over by alien invaders. These invaders are aware that I know of their existence and methodology and have been systematically trying to capture or kill me since 29 June 2016. 

2. On 19 October 2015 I attended a briefing with Admiral Wu conducted by the People's Liberation Army Air Foice (PLAAF). During this briefing we were informed by Chinese High Command that our strategic radar systems had picked up contacts of unknown origin in various locations over China. This was the first time I heard about the possibility of alien life present on Earth. The PLAAF report was later confirmed by world wide reports of the same nature, and we were instructed to draft contingency plans to deal with the unknown capabilities of the invaders.

3. On 27 January 2016 China ratified the UN General Resolution which called for the creation of an investigative and reactionary task force known as X-Com. China, as per the resolution's recommendations, sent two PLA companies to Tanegashima, Japan.

4. In the meantime Chinese High Command continued to make their own contingency plans to deal with the alien threat. In the absence of any formal overture from the aliens we were directed by Chairman Jinping Xi to create our own reaction force, as well as to probe for weaknesses and vulnerabilities. I attended many such meetings, and was tasked with training the Chinese reaction force in recovering downed alien craft.

5. On 17 April 2016 the PLAAF managed to shoot down an alien contact near the Vietnamese border. Our reaction force was inserted into the crash site, and quickly secured the fallen UFO. During the operation our reaction force was attacked by what initially appeared to be humans wielding alien plasma weapons. Later autopsies revealed that these "humans" were actually alien beings that looked superficially like people. The After Action Report dated 17 April 2016 (Exhibit A) and Autopsy Report dated 22 April 2016 (Exhibit B) are attached.



6. On 24 April 2016 I attended another briefing with Admiral Wu and Chairman Xi to discuss the team's findings. The possibility of alien infiltrators masquerading as humans was raised, but the actual threat was underestimated due to the poor quality of the simulacrums we captured. The "thin men" our reaction force recovered were only barely passable as human due to their extreme proportions, yellow snake-like eyes, and skin defects. They could only pass as human if they were heavily disguised and viewed under poor light. See the attached photographs (Exhibit C).

7. We failed to appreciate the ability of the aliens to iterate and improve their simulacrums, however, and on 29 June 2016 the aliens were able to penetrate the Chinese High Command. The account of this is as follows.

8. On 29 June 2016 Admiral Wu and I went to an exclusive gentleman's club in Shanghai called Kuangxi along with several other high ranking members of PLAN to celebrate the 65th birthday of Admiral Dong Fang. Admiral Wu does not frequent such gatherings, but in this case was convinced by Admiral Fang to make an exception on this occasion. My friend and colleague, Colonel Tien Tzo, was also present.

9. During our time at the club Admiral Wu was approached by a woman who identified herself as Mei Ling, and the two of them retreated to a private booth. Several other high ranking officials were similarly approached, and they, too, retired to booths set aside for privacy within the premises.

10. I was also approached by a woman who identified herself as Jia, and was led to a private booth where I spent the bulk of my time this evening drinking, conversing and flirting.

11. I would classify my behavior on this night as completely uncharacteristic. I have been married for 20 years, and have never had extra-marital relations until this evening. I can only attribute my infidelity to the physical attractiveness of my companion, the amount of alcohol consumed, and also some type of chemical drug either in our food or drink, or even perhaps in the air, which lowered inhibitions and fueled libido. Nonetheless I take full responsibility for my actions. I was not a helpless victim, but also a willing participant. The blame is mine.

12. Many of the high ranking officers of PLAN were similarly affected. Admiral Wu was a devout husband and father, and almost 75 years old, yet on this evening he appeared to be intoxicated and full of drive. Admiral Fang was similarly affected, as were the vast majority of officers present that evening, including Colonel Tzo. There were a few notable exceptions, officers who chose to leave early rather than debase themselves and dishonor their families, and one of my enduring regrets is that I was not one of them.

13. At approximately 1.45 am I was led outside by Jia, who suggested that we leave the club for more intimate surroundings. The other officers were similarly leaving with their female companions, and our group dispersed on or around this time. The last time I saw Admiral Wu and Admiral Fang on this evening was when they entered a black limousine along with their female consorts on or around 2 am.

14. I originally intended to take Jia to a hotel to have sexual intercourse with her, but she suggested that we go to her home instead, which she said was close by. I agreed, and she led me to her residence which was located on 95 Yong An Road, Shanghai. The residence was an old warehouse converted into apartment blocks, and it was located in a deserted part of the docks area.

15. I was surprised to see Colonel Tzo and his female companion in front of the same address. Tzo was heavily intoxicated, but he recognized me and spoke to me briefly before being led inside by his companion. I cannot recall the name of his companion, but I recognized her from the club.

16. At approximately 2.30 am Jia led me to her apartment which was on the top floor of the building. Jia and I both went into the bedroom where we began to have sexual intercourse. In the process of undressing my concealed firearm was revealed, and Jia took great interest in it, asking me for details about it before putting it on the bedside table and resuming intercourse.



17. At this point the doors to the bedroom opened, and I was assaulted by a pair of tall thin men wearing black suits. I was able to shrug off the first attack, but was brought to a halt by Jia who was aiming my own gun at me.

18. I was escorted by Jia and the thin men to the ground floor of the warehouse, where I found Colonel Tzo similarly restrained between two more thin men wearing dark suits and glasses. His companion was also there. Both Jia and Tzo's companion were naked. They did not seem to be concerned with modesty and showed no signs of being self-conscious.

19. Jia placed my weapon on a table, and began retching violently. After a few moments she regurgitated what appeared to be some kind of pulsing egg into her hands. She regurgitated another egg about a minute later, and placed both eggs on the table. Another thin man approached Tzo with an injection of some kind, and the sight of this drove Tzo to a frenzy. He struggled wildly, and one of the thin men guarding me left my side to assist the two restraining Tzo.



20. The three thin men were able to subdue Tzo, and injected the needle to the side of Tzo's neck. The drug appeared to paralyze the muscles of Tzo's face, and his mouth was pried open by the thin men. Jia took one of the eggs and began to peel it open with her hands. Inside the egg was some kind of small, snake-like organism, which Jia deposited down the Admiral's throat. Tzo appeared lucid and fully cognizant of what was happening. His eyes were moving wildly during the procedure, but the muscles around his jaw and larynx appeared to be frozen inanimate.


21. The sight of this drove me to desperation. I did not want to suffer the same fate. I was able to stand up and shove the remaining thin man holding me down, and made a wild dash for the gun on the table. I secured the gun, and was also able to take Jia hostage. I told the thin men that I would shoot her unless they put down their weapons. The thin men appeared to hold Jia in high regard, and immediately complied.

22. Jia did not appear alarmed, and asked me calmly put my weapon down. Jia also began rubbing her hips against me in a sexually provocative manner. Despite my situation I found myself getting aroused. I found the fragrance of her perfume to be intoxicating, and it is my belief that the infiltrators wear some kind of perfume or scent which affects the libido and clouds judgement.

23. I ignored Jia, and told the thin men to release Tzo. They complied, and Fang put his fingers down his mouth to induce a vomiting fit. He vomited copiously on the ground, but was unable to bring up the organism he swallowed moments earlier. He appeared cogent and sober, however, and he assisted me in our efforts to escape from our captors. He found it difficult to speak thanks to the drug he had been injected with, so we communicated through gestures. I instructed one of the thin men to bring our clothes from the apartments above. Fang attempted to pick up one of the silver pistols but as soon as he touched it he received some kind of mild shock which made him drop the weapon. The weapon then disintegrated into a heap of metallic shards. I told him to pick one of the weapons up with a cloth, and he was able to secure one this way. Our studies have shown that the alien weapons will not fire unless it reads a positive match on the wielder's genetic profile. Negative matches will cause the weapon to disintegrate, but it is possible to carry the weapon by not touching the surface directly. See attached Laboratory Report dated 3 May 2016 (Exhibit D).



24. Jia, Tzo and I got dressed and prepared to leave the premises. My cell phone was returned to me, and I immediately called police services at approximately 4.30 am in the morning. Before calling I gave my weapon to Fang so that he could cover the four thin men and his companion while I spoke to the police. I took one of the thin men's briefcases, and secured the alien pistol and the remaining alien egg within. The suitcase also contained several unknown pieces of alien tech which I could not identify. I brought all these artifacts with me and turned them over to X-Com when I arrived in Tanegashima on 2 September 2016 (see Exhibits E, F and G).

25. When I finished the call to the authorities I was surprised to see Tzo shaking, and seemingly trying to point my weapon at me. I asked him, "What are you doing?" He replied with words to the effect of "I don't know what's happening. I'm finding it hard to make my body do what I want it to do."

26. The four thin men started approaching me. Tzo immediately shot one of them, and the man exploded into a ball of green, noxious gas. The three remaining thin men retreated, but showed no other emotion at the death of their compatriot. Tzo then turned to me, and said with some difficulty, "Run. Get out of here. I'll cover you as long as I can. But hurry. I'm losing myself, Zhang."

27. I said, "Give me the gun", and he shook his head. He said, "If you come close I might kill you. But if you run I can keep this thing at bay. Just go."

28. He suddenly seemed to have some kind of fit. He straightened up with a mighty effort, and kept the weapon pointed at the thin men. He gestured for me to leave, and I immediately made my way to the entrance. As I was leaving the building I suddenly heard him call out in a completely normal voice, "Zhang. Come back. It's OK. I'm fine now." 

29. I ignored him. The contrast between the strained, urgent pleas of my former comrade, and the chilling normality of that last sentence shook me, and I wasted no time fleeing down the street. Fearing pursuit, I hid the briefcase containing the alien egg and weapon inside one of the deserted warehouses. I then resumed my flight, using cover to conceal myself from the thin men searching for me.

30. At about 5.30 am I saw several police vehicles coming down the street. I immediately accosted them, identified myself and led them back to the warehouse.

31. The police found Jia, Tzo and his companion fully clothed when we returned to the premises at 6 am. There was no sign of the thin men, except for some tell tale burn marks on the floor where Tzo had shot one earlier. Jia accused me of attempted rape, and her version of the night's events was corroborated by Tzo and his female companion. About 15 minutes later Admiral Fang arrived at the premises, and he made a statement to the police that I had been harassing the women at the club. Despite my protests, the police took me into custody, and I was detained for several hours but later released. Upon my release I was told by the police that Jia had refused to undertake a medical examination and had withdrawn her allegations.

32. I was released from custody on 30 June 2016. My first action was to call my superior Admiral Wu, and we had a brief conversation. Wu ordered me to report to his private home, and I asked him whether it would be more appropriate to meet at headquarters instead. He insisted on me coming to his home, and I told him that I would be over shortly.

33. I had no intentions of reporting to Wu, and I made preparations to gather all the evidence I had and make a direct report to Chairman Xi. I returned to Jia's address in Shanghai and recovered the briefcase with the egg and the alien weapon. I intended to return to headquarters and speak with party officials in person, but was interrupted by a call from my wife Huan, who left a message that she was in distress.

34. I immediately rushed home. Fearing an ambush, I parked my vehicle some distance from my home, and walked the rest of the distance on foot. Upon arrival I found my wife being held in custody by two thin men in my living room. She was wearing a plain shirt. The bottom part of the shirt was covered in dry blood. When she saw me she immediately embraced me and began kissing me passionately.

35. I pulled away from her, and she began to laugh. She said, "What's the matter, Zhang? Don't you recognize me?" I asked her what had happened. She motioned to the shirt, and lifted it up, revealing a closed wound in her abdomen. "I'm too big to fit through her mouth now. Had to come in through here."

36. My wife then identified herself as the organism I'd known as Jia, and claimed that she was using my wife Huan as her host. She told me that Huan was privy to everything that was happening to her but was unable to do anything, making her a prisoner in her own body. My wife also added that the parasite had access to my wife's memories, and vice versa. She said my wife Huan now had first-hand knowledge of my infidelity through Jia's own memories. She said my wife was hurt by my actions, and said, "I can feel her pain. Her sadness. Her anger. She loves you still, and still wishes she could have given you a son or daughter. Carried the inadequacy and shame all her life. And now this, confirming every deeply held fear and insecurity. She can remember you fucking Jia, as if she had been there herself. Every thrust. Every groan of pleasure. Every little cut of the knife."

37. I was deeply ashamed. I told Jia that she was being wantonly cruel, and she agreed. She stated that their kind often took on some of the traits of their hosts, and surmised that the viciousness was from one of her previous hosts, perhaps from a low level Triad enforcer she occupied during the alien takeover of the Shanghai club. She added that the parasite acquired not only the host's memories, but also their skills and abilities. She demonstrated this by taking my gun and cocking and locking it.

38. The parasite known as Jia then demanded to know the whereabouts of the briefcase, and threatened to inflict harm upon my wife's body if I did not comply. I told her the briefcase was in my car parked a block away, and she bade me to retrieve it. She warned me that she would shoot herself if I did not return in 15 minutes.

39. I went back to my car and retrieved the briefcase. I was accompanied by one of the thin men. When we returned to the house, Jia took the briefcase and inspected the contents. I asked her why she wanted the egg back so badly, and she replied that it was not the egg that interested her. She said that I had inadvertently taken a copy of the aliens' code cipher (see Exhibit H), as well as a technical manual covering the use of an alien substance known as "meld" (see Exhibit I).

40. I then asked Jia if I was to become another host. She said that I was too stubborn to be a good host and added that Colonel Tzo had been liquidated for the very same reason. She said, "Tzo was too intractable to be controlled reliably. My offspring was locked in an endless battle with his mind for dominion over the body. Regardless we will construct a simulacrum that will be identical for all intents and purposes. The real prize is the mind, and the knowledge within. Now that one of us has melded with him, they can use that knowledge to pilot a simulacrum convincingly." She added that they had no further use for me. "What you know is redundant. We have the Admiral now - we don't need you."

41. She then pointed my gun at me. But then she frowned and froze, and her arm began shaking. She said, "She is fighting me. Her pain gives her strength." The thin men moved in to assist Huan, and she shot one through the head and killed it outright. The second thin man didn't appear to know what to do, seemingly unwilling to take any direct action against my wife. Huan was still convulsing, but managed to say, "Kill him" and motioned towards me.

42. The thin man drew his pistol, but my wife then shouted, "No!" and shot him as well. This time she shot the creature in the chest, and it exploded, spraying green acid everywhere. I was burned on my side and legs, and Huan was splattered with acid on her face and torso. She seemed oblivious to the pain, and she straightened up and approached me. She said, "You will obey me, human" through gritted teeth, and placed the handgun against my head.

43. I looked at my wife and said, "I'm sorry" and closed my eyes. There was no shot, and after several seconds I opened my eyes again. Huan was looking at me with tears in her eyes. I saw my wife looking at me, not some alien in a human suit, and her last words were, "Shaojie. Beloved. How could you do that to me?" With that she turned the gun upwards, and shot herself.

44. I immediately ran to Huan's side. She was dead. I began to weep, but was interrupted by a ripping, tearing sound coming from my wife's abdomen. A mewling, hissing parasite was emerging from the wound in her stomach. I grabbed the creature and crushed it in my fist until it stopped moving. Then I recovered the briefcase, placed the parasite inside, and made preparations to depart. The remains of the creature was turned over to X-Com upon my arrival at Tanegashima on 2 September 2016 (see Exhibit J).



45. Before departing I took my wife, placed her on our bed, and kissed her goodbye. I begged for forgiveness, and wept again for an indeterminable amount of time. I only left when I heard the sound of vehicles approaching the front of my home. Looking out the window I identified more thin men, as well as the figure of Admiral Fang. I was tempted to stay, and kill as many of them as I could before I died, but duty and the memory of my wife compelled me to escape. I was resolved that she would not have died for nothing.

46. I escaped by the back door, made my way to my car, and went straight to the airport. I left Shanghai for Taiwan and turned myself over to Taiwanese intelligence upon arrival. My status as attache to the Chinese High Command allowed me to carry items in diplomatic pouches which are exempt from scanning by airport security, and I was able to smuggle the biological samples out of China. After my request for asylum was denied in Taiwan I was deported to Hong Kong, where I attempted to secure passage out by ship. During this time I was contacted by Paoquao Liu, a former soldier who served under me and now an X-Com operative, and we made arrangements for my extraction to Japan. X-Com extracted me from Hong Kong on 2 September 2016, but not before we were attacked by thin men trying to prevent my escape.

47. There are multiple warrants out for my arrest in mainland China for the charges of treason, murder and rape. I did not betray my country. I did not kill my wife. I did not rape this woman known as Jia, although I did have intercourse with her, much to my eternal shame and sorrow. I am worthless man and a faithless husband, and I will have to live with my failure for the rest of my days.

48. It is my belief that Mei Ling, Jia, Tzo's companion and their thin men security detail are alien infiltrators hiding in human form. Some of them are simulacrums designed to look like human beings. Others are humans, subverted by some kind of alien parasite that is either ingested through the mouth or enters through the abdomen. This parasite has the capacity to seize control of their hosts and gain access to the hosts' memories and skills. It is my belief that the visitors are deliberately infiltrating the uppermost echelons of human command for their own malevolent purposes. I believe that every officer who attended the party on 26 June 2016 is now a host to some kind of alien parasite, or a carefully constructed simulacrum masquerading as a human. It is my belief that Admiral Wu's occupation of the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands was a unilateral action done at the aliens' behest, with the ultimate purpose being to destabilize the region and provoke a shooting war between China and Japan.

I declare that everything attested to in this document is true to the best of my recollection and belief.

Shaojie Zhang
(signed and witnessed)

Comments

  1. ::applause:: Phew - missed your writing!

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  2. Yeah, horrible aliens that I'm glad are not in the game! (well the chrysalids are enough, I guess).

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    2. The venomorph was supposed to be in the game but X-Com developers scrapped it and replaced them with EXALT instead.

      There was an official statement about them from Firaxas during development, but the post is four years old and has been deleted. It's paraphrased in this article:

      http://news.softpedia.com/news/XCOM-Enemy-Within-Once-Featured-Venomorphs-Infiltrators-Instead-of-EXALT-410976.shtml

      Here's the link to the Senior Concept Artist's blog (the bit about the venomorphs are at the bottom):

      http://pieroartist.blogspot.jp/2014/06/i-am-finally-able-to-post-some-of-work.html

      I really liked the idea - the venomorph could easily be related to the chryssalid in the way it operates - so I kept it in my fan fiction.

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