by T. J. Quinn
“Is she the female I asked you about?” the captain asked, stopping the hunter.
“Yes, sir, she is. I was just ordering the hunter to get rid of her.”
“Get her on the table,” the captain ordered, and the hunter immediately obeyed.
Eskol opened his mouth as if to protest, but the captain’s expression made him hold back his protests.
The captain examined the female, for a few minutes. “We’ll keep her, despite her problem, I’m sure we’ll find a buyer for her.”
“But…” Eskol started but the glance the captain gave him, silenced him effectively.
“Zadok, take her to a cell,” he watched the hunter leave the room before he turned to look at his slave master. “There is a lot to do if we want to have everything ready for when we arrive at the meeting point.”
“Yes, sir, you’re right.”
“I know you don’t see eye to eye with me with this last slave, but my instinct tells me we shall profit from her.”
“Very well, sir.” But he wasn’t convinced, and he sure as hell didn’t plan to waste his precious time on her.
Eleanor came to herself a few minutes later, just to find herself lying on a cold metallic floor. Her head was pounding hard, and she was feeling nauseated. She looked around with narrowed eyes, carefully, not sure of what she was going to face as soon as she opened her eyes wide. Apparently, she was alone, in some kind of cell, with a small bunker and basic bathroom facilities. The bars that closed the cell seemed as if they were electrified or something since they were glowing menacingly.
She was still wearing her own clothes, and the only thing different she could perceive was a metallic collar wrapped around her neck. She tried to remove it, but she wasn’t able to even sense where the damn thing locked.
Letting out a growl of disgruntle, she looked around once more. She needed to use the bathroom, urgently, but her wheelchair wasn’t anywhere around. She would have to crawl to get there.
She was halfway there when she heard Sasha.
“Eleanor, are you there?”
Waves of relief flooded her. Sasha was somewhere close. “Yes… in some sort of cell.”
“Yes, me too. Are you alright? Did they hurt you?” her friend asked again. Sasha had always been overprotective of her, and she loved her for that.
“I’m fine. But they didn’t bring my wheelchair,” she protested, smiling when she heard her friend’s chuckle.
“Shut up you two, you’re going to attract the lizards here.” Another voice sounded some place nearby.
“Sooner or later, they’ll come for us.” Another voice sounded.
“Well, I rather have it later.” The first voice grumbled.
“How many of us are here?” Sasha asked, sounding worried.
“So far… four voices…” the first voice replied. “I’m Anya, from Norway, by the way.”
“I’m Gil Ra, South Korea.” The second voice introduced herself, as well.
“I’m Patricia, from Brazil.”
“Sasha, from the USA.”
“I’m Miranda, from Mexico.”
“And I’m Eleanor from the USA as well. But, I have a strong feeling I wasn’t supposed to be here,” she added, finally reaching the toilet, and struggling to get on top of it.
“Why do you say that?” Gil Ra asked, too curious to stay quiet.
“First, because there is one of each country, and second, because I’m sure I’m not good enough for whatever their plans,” she explained.
“Don’t put yourself down,” Sasha protested.
“I’m not, I'm just realistic. They abducted females, from all over the world. I’m sure they’re not after scientific knowledge,” Eleanor replied, making one more try to reach the damn toilet.
“What the hell are you doing, Eleanor?” Sasha asked, clearly worried.
“Trying to use the toilet,” she explained, huffing heavily. It took her a few moments to finally sit on the toilet.
“Where do you think, they are taking us?” Miranda asked, in a low tone, with a thick accent.
“No idea, baby, but unfortunately, there isn’t much we can do. Just judging by the number of lizards that went for us, we’re outnumbered, out of our planet, and God knows where,” Sasha replied in a cold tone.
Eleanor managed to do her things and slid down from the toilet before they heard a swish sound, announcing the arrival of the aliens.
Eskol entered the dungeon area and looked around. The women were awake. They had implanted the translators and collared them all, including the one the captain had insisted on keeping alive.
He stood in the middle of the dungeon, where they all could see him. “Greetings, females. My name is Eskol, and I’m the slave master of this vessel. We come from planet Slython, on the fourth quadrant and our people are basically traders,” he informed. “You have been selected among millions to be sold to the highest bidder,” he informed, slowly turning around to face each and every one of them. “We have implanted a translator into your hearing systems so that you’re able to understand us and any possible master.”
“What gives you the right to do this, you’re freaking lizard?” One of them asked, furious.
Eskol recognized her as the one that had put up a fight with his men, and slowly he raised a small gadget that controlled all of the collars, and pushed a button, sending a command to them. Soon all of the women were on the floor squirming and whimpering with pain.
“We give ourselves all the rights,” he replied in a cold tone. “The collars on your necks, are called training collars. Each time you disobey me or any of my men, a drug will be injected into your bloodstream, and you’ll feel pain. It can also paralyze you, or even kill you,” he explained, with a satisfied smile on his reptilian face.
“You bastard.” The same woman grumbled, through gritted teeth and he repeated the action.
“When one of you violates the rules, you all suffer,” he explained, with a hideous smirk. “Is that clear?”
No one answered, and he pushed the button once more.
“Not answering my questions is disobedience. Is that clear?” he asked once more.
“Yes, sir.” They all replied, panting through the pain.
“Good, I’m sure you’ll all learn very fast.”
“It will take us two weeks to get to our destiny, and other females, from other planets, will be joining you. It might be a good idea to let them know about the rules,” he concluded and was about to leave when his eyes fell on the crippled woman.
“As for you… For me, you would already be dead, but the captain seems to think he’ll be able to sell you,” there was a lot of scorn in his tone. “Stay away from me, make me forget you exist, or you’ll regret it dearly.”
Eleanor nodded and lowered her eyes. She had been right. She wasn’t supposed to be there, and that hardly mean good news for her.
Chapter Eight
He finally left the room with another swish, and a thick silence fell on the room.
“Elly, are you alright?” Sasha murmured.
“Yes, don’t worry about me,” she replied, trying to sound as normal as possible. Her life was hanging by a thread, but there wasn’t much she could do about it.
The next few days went by in a blur. Every day, a new female from another planet arrived at the dungeon and was informed of her new role in life.
The slave master paid them a few visits, to make sure the females were clear on what was expected of them and to train them for the auction. How they were supposed to walk, stand, and allow the customers to examine them thoroughly.
Eleanor was the only one left on her cell during those training, and she usually stayed as close as she could to the bars, praying Sasha with hold back her rage and impotency. The creature would never leave the dungeon without insulting Eleanor, one way or another. He seemed to take deep pleasure in it, and Eleanor had to struggle with her own rage on those moments not to answer back the disgusting bastard.
Soon, there were fifteen females ready for the auction. According to the men feeding them, the day was coming very soon, and all the women were nervous and edgy. They had no idea what was expecting them, and that was the most upsetting part. You couldn’t prepare yourself for the unknown.
One morning, the slave master entered the dungeon accompanied by someone they hadn’t seen before.
“Greetings, females. I’m Rurik, the captain of this ship. Tomorrow, we’ll have your auction, and you’ll all find new homes with your new owners,” he announced and a collective groan filled the room.
“Silence,” Eskol ordered them.
“Today, you’ll be ringed and prepared for the auction. I expect your best behavior.” The captain concluded, and he was about to leave the dungeon when he spotted Eleanor’s cell. “I want her ringed and prepared as well.” It was a clear order, and Eskol dared not to protest.
“Of course, captain.”
They left the room, and some of the girls whimpered.
“What do you think he meant by ‘ringed’?” Sasha asked through her bars. Her cell was the one next to Eleanor’s.
“No idea,” she let out a deep sigh. “We’ll be separated tomorrow,” she stated in a low tone.
“You don’t know that yet,” Sasha protested.
“Of course, I do, and you do too,” she had tried not to think of that, during the past days, but now, there was no possible escape.
She also knew if the captain wasn’t able to sell her, the slave master was going to kill her. She kept that certainty for herself because the last thing she wanted was for Sasha to get in trouble trying to save her.
She still wasn’t sure what option she preferred, but she had always been a fighter, a survivor, and she believed that while there was life, there was hope.
“Why this had to happen to us?” Sasha grumbled, and Eleanor was able to sense the tears her friend had welled up in her throat.
“It did, and we can’t change it. Just promise me you’ll do your best to survive and find happiness,” she asked her friend, in a low tone.
“As a slave? You ask too much of me.”
The door to the dungeon opened up again, and Eskol showed up, with two other men. After he pushed a few buttons, a metallic table, appeared from the floor, and the strangest devices were pulled from the roof.
One by one, the women were taken out of their cells and ringed. The process was quite similar to getting a piercing on your left nipple, but the process seemed to cauterize the skin at the same time. It didn’t appear to hurt since all the other species went through it in silence.
The slave master left the humans for last, and soon they discovered why. Before he ringed them, he had their naked bodies completely covered in some strange goo that removed all the body hair. Only then did he insert the ring on their left nipple.
Eleanor was left for last.
Eskol ordered one of his men to get her on the table, and once he had her there, he decided to have a bit more fun with her.
“This is a waste of time, and we both know it, don’t we, useless human?” he asked, pinching both her nipples hard.
“Why don’t finish it once and for all?” she challenged him, a bit daring than she usually was. But there wasn’t much on the line for her, after all.
“You know I can’t, but I will have no doubt.”
He released her and covered her with the goo. He must have changed something because unlike the others, she felt so much pain, she almost passed out.
Her legs weren’t insensitive. She couldn’t walk because the pain of standing was unbearable, so when he covered her body with the goo, she felt its elevated temperature in every single inch of her. It felt as if he was burning her alive.
She did her best to contain the whimpers and the cries, biting her lips hard, determined not to give him the taste of her pain.
The goo was ripped off her body, violently and this time she wasn’t able to hold back the cry of sheer pain.
“Did that hurt? You must be weaker than the rest of you,” he mocked her, with a hideous smile.
She said nothing and waited for the rest. She guessed he hated her so much because his wishes about her hadn’t been taken into consideration.
He took the piercing gun himself, and she summoned all her inner strength to resist his attack. Once more, the pain was terrible, but she managed not to show it. When he had, the ring inserted in her skin, he pulled it hard and twisted it.
“Tomorrow… you’ll be in my hands tomorrow,” he whispered in her ear, with his hissing voice, before he stepped aside and ordered one of his men to drag her back to her cell.
Soon the dungeon was back to its usual look, and they had been left alone.
“Elly… are you alright?” Sasha asked, clearly worried.
“Yes, of course,” she tried to appease her friend's concerns.
“Did it hurt you?” she was puzzled, and that confirmed her suspicions.
“Yes, a bit. I guess Eskol gave me a special treatment,” she admitted, not exposing the extent of the pain she had been through. Her skin still felt raw and tender.
“I can’t leave you behind,” she grumbled.
“There’s nothing you can do about it,” she crawled as much as she could to the bars of her cell. “Sasha, please, promise me, you won’t get into trouble, trying to save me.”
“How can you ask me that?”
“Because it would be worthless and it could get you in deep trouble. Please, I wouldn’t stand knowing you were hurt,” she insisted.
“This has to be a damn nightmare,” Sasha pounded the wall between them.
“Just be safe, please.”
That night, nobody slept. The weight of the unknown, hanging over all of them.
Chapter Nine
Asgar ran as fast as he could towards the council room, smashing the door against the wall in his way in.
“You better have a good reason for this abrupt entrance,” The King scolded him, without even raising his eyes from the documents he was examining.
“The Slythonians are back.”
Those words were enough to make all the men in the room to get up.
“Where? When will the auction take place?” the King asked, trying to sound calm.
“They have established their orbit a day away from here, and the auction will be held in two days,” Asgar announced, not bothering to hide his enthusiasm. The two females he had brought back from the last auction had proven to be much more than they had expected.
“I guess you have all set for the travel,” The King said with an ironic grin.
“Yes, of course. We leave in just a few minutes,” Asgar admitted.
“Very well,” The King nodded. “Bring back every human they have on that ship, no matter at what cost.”
“We will don’t worry.”
“And see if you can get the coordinates to this planet. We have searched out intergalactic maps, and none mentions it, they don’t even mention their solar system,” Brynjar added.
“Yes, I had that in mind. I’m sure we do have it, but the probabilities are that we name it differently.”
“I guess that’s possible.”
Asgar nodded and left the room, leaving the rest of the councils murmuring excited, heading straight to his vessel.
Egil was already there waiting for him, with everything ready.
“All set. Are we leaving at once?”
“Yes, I just warned the king and the councils, so we are ready to go.”
“I’ve accommodated a few rooms for our guests. How many do you think we’ll be bringing back?”
“I have no idea, but let’s hope more than two. The king wants us to bring back every single human they might have on that vessel,” Asgar replied as he gave the order to take off.
The journey to the meeting point felt eternal. By the time, they arrived at the established orbit; Asgar had made contact with the Slythonians and announced their presence.
“We
lcome, my friends. We’ll be very pleased to receive you in the morning for the auction,” the captain replied his message. “I’m sure you’ll be very pleased with our cargo this time.”
The men on the Zuvrakian command center cheered the news.
The next morning, Asgar and Egil boarded the Slythonian ship along with several other customers.
The auction followed as expected, and once more, the humans were left for last. One by one, the women were brought to the front of the stage and Asgar, once more felt the same urge he had felt the first time. Unlike the other two women he had bought the first time, these were very different, in height, color, and even body shape. But it was the last one that kicked the air out of Asgar’s lungs.
Tall, taller than any of the other, with black, long, straight hair, amazing blue eyes, and a powerful body, not quite muscled, but yes, strong and fit, along with very feminine and voluptuous curves, she was more than he had ever dared to hope for. And she was his, his soul mate. The pull was so strong, so powerful; he almost went up the stage and claimed her. Now, he could understand the way Haakon and Fritjof had felt.
“You found yours, didn’t you?” Egil asked in a low tone, next to him.
“Yes, is that obvious?” he admitted.
“God, yes,” his friend chuckled, and Asgar punched his arm.
The captain announced the examination period and Asgar did all he could to stay away from her. He knew he would have trouble focusing on his purpose with her too close. Egil, on the other hand, did all the pertinent inspections.
After a few minutes, he joined his captain. “Something is going on,” he murmured, discreetly.
“What do you mean?” Asgar asked, remaining impassive.
“The woman is making demands.”
“What?” Asgar turned to face his friend, too surprised.
“Approach her. You might want to hear what she has to say.”
Intrigued, Asgar took hold of all his self-control and approached her. He stood in front her and ran a finger down her cheek.
She didn’t move, and when he was starting to think Egil had imagined things, she murmured. “If you buy me, without buying my friend, I’ll make sure your life is a living hell.”
