Page 22

CHAPTER 22

VANESSA

I trace my fingers along the cold metal walls of my cell, searching for any weakness. Three days in this nightmare, and I still can't believe this is real. The dim purple lighting casts eerie shadows across the floor, making everything feel like some twisted sci-fi movie.

"You should eat something." Mar'oo's soft voice comes from the doorway. She holds out a bowl of what looks like glowing blue rice. Her silver eyes reflect genuine concern.

"I can't stomach anything right now." I sink down onto the hard bench that serves as my bed. "How many others are here? Like me?"

Mar'oo sets the bowl beside me and sits cross-legged on the floor. Her translucent skin shifts colors with her movements. "Just two others. Most humans don't survive the journey through the void."

My stomach lurches. "And what happens to the ones who do?"

"Rich masers buy them. Keep them as…exotic pets, usually." She picks at something invisible on her sleeve. "Some end up in research facilities."

"Why are you telling me this?" I pull my knees to my chest.

"Because you deserve to know. And because..." She leans closer, voice dropping to a whisper. "I think I might be able to help you."

Hope flutters in my chest, but fear grips tighter. "Why would you risk helping me?"

"I'm not here by choice either." Mar'oo's skin darkens to a deep blue. "They took me from my fishing village, forced me to help them catch humans. I hate what they make me do."

I study her face, searching for any sign of deception. All I see is the same trapped desperation I feel. "If we get caught-"

"They'll kill us both." She stands, smoothing her strange iridescent clothing. "But staying here... that's just dying slower."

I nod, understanding completely. We're both prisoners here, just in different ways.

"You need to get out before the auction begins. There's a hallway you'll be escorted down. That's your chance. Your only one." Her silver eyes dart to the corridor. "Once they process the bids, it's over."

Heavy footsteps echo down the hall. Mar'oo vanishes through the door just as voices drift closer. I press myself against the wall, straining to hear.

"The female specimen is prime grade." A gravelly voice reverberates through the metal. "Young, healthy, excellent physical condition."

"What's the starting bid?" Another voice, smoother but somehow more chilling.

"Two hundred thousand credits. She's got spirit too - the kind of fire that'll make an excellent addition to any collection."

My skin crawls. I dig my nails into my palms to keep from screaming.

"Any signs of genetic manipulation?"

"Pure Earth stock. We ran full diagnostics. No augmentations, no tampering. Natural beauty, as they say."

"Interesting. My employer has been seeking an authentic human for his menagerie. The last one... didn't survive the adjustment period."

Bile rises in my throat. I slide down the wall, wrapping my arms around myself.

"This one's stronger. Look at the muscle tone, the bone density readings. She'll adapt."

"And if she doesn't?"

A laugh that sounds like grinding metal. "Then you'll get first pick of our next batch. We have scouts tracking several promising targets on Earth."

Their voices fade as they move down the corridor, but their words echo in my head. More humans. More people like me, torn from their lives to be sold like animals.

I pull the key card from my pocket, running my fingers over its strange symbols. Mar'oo is right - I have to get out of here. Not just for myself anymore, but to warn others. To stop this from happening again.

The question is: how much time do I have left?

The door hisses open and three hulking figures fill the entrance. Their skin looks like polished obsidian, reflecting the purple lights in nauseating patterns.

"Time to go, pretty thing." The tallest one reaches for my arm.

I spring into action, ramming my shoulder into his midsection. He stumbles back, more from surprise than impact. I dart past him, my heart thundering against my ribcage.

The corridor stretches before me - just like Mar'oo described. Freedom is somewhere at the end of it.

My bare feet slap against the metal floor as I run. Behind me, curses in alien languages echo off the walls. I push harder, faster-

Something wraps around my ankle. I crash to the ground, chin smacking the floor. Metallic blood fills my mouth.

"Feisty one." A three-fingered hand grabs my hair, yanking me up. "But stupid."

I kick and thrash, connecting with something solid. A grunt of pain. Small victory.

"Enough!" The obsidian alien pulls out a small device. It hums with electric energy.

Pain explodes through my body. My muscles seize. I can't breathe, can't think-

The world goes dark around the edges as they drag me down the corridor. My limbs won't respond, but my mind screams in frustrated rage.

"Careful with the merchandise." A new voice, silky and cold. "Damaged goods fetch lower prices."

They prop me up against a wall. As my vision clears, I see we're in some kind of amphitheater. Dozens of alien faces stare down at me from elevated seats, their features blurring together in a nightmare kaleidoscope.

"Now then." The obsidian alien fastens something around my neck. "Let's begin the bidding."

The creatures tower above me, their forms blending into a horrific mosaic of teeth, tentacles, and too many eyes. My neck burns where the collar digs into my skin.

"Look at the pigmentation." A spindly being leans forward, multiple pupils dilating. "So rare to find one with this coloring."

"The bone structure suggests prime breeding age." Another voice, like gravel in a blender. "And the muscle density readings are exceptional."

Tears slide silently down my cheeks as they dissect me with their gazes. I try to make myself smaller, but rough hands force me to stand straight.

"Show them your teeth," the obsidian guard growls, yanking my chin up.

I clamp my jaw shut. A jolt of electricity from the collar makes me gasp in pain.

"Perfect dental formation." Someone clicks in approval. "No genetic modifications at all."

"The hair length is ideal." A tentacled creature reaches down, wrapping a slimy appendage around my ponytail. "Most specimens we receive have such short, coarse strands."

My stomach heaves as alien fingers prod at my arms, my face, treating me like livestock at auction. More tears fall, but I refuse to make a sound. I won't give them the satisfaction of hearing me break.

"The last one with this much fight lasted three cycles in my arena." Another voice booms. "I'll start the bidding at three hundred thousand credits."

I close my eyes, unable to watch as they bid on my future. The tears won't stop now, streaming down my face in hot rivers of despair. Everything I am - my dreams, my life, my humanity - reduced to numbers in an alien marketplace.