Adaralai opened her eyes. Through a thick web of what seemed to be cobwebs, she could just barely make out what looked like a cave. A very odd cave with walls made of…something. So, maybe not a cave at all. It was dark though. In the dim light, she could see compartments in the wall across from her, filled with cobwebs and…people. None of the people seemed to be moving or even awake. Where am I? she thought.
Suddenly, memories came rushing back to her. It had been her tenth birthday. Her father had come home early from his job in the city, and her mother had baked a cake. She could remember the smell of the ginlar berries in the cake. Her mother had just taken it out of the oven. That was when the Wraith came. She could remember the whine of the darts as they flew low over the city. The screams of her neighbors funning for cover. And then the true destruction began. Larger ships had descended upon the city and began to fire weapons upon all of the buildings. The threat that the politicians of her world had argued about for so long had finally come true. Many had feared that all of the technological advances their people had made in recent years would just bring the vengeance of the Wraith down hard upon them. And now their worst fears were coming true.
Her parents had grabbed her by the hand and drug her toward the door. They told her they would have to make a run for the woods near their house since the Wraith were destroying all of the buildings. But they didn't make it. She could remember her parents struck down by Wraith weapons beside her as they ran. The blank look on their faces as they fell. And then a blindingly bright beam was coming swiftly towards her and her world went black.
With a gasp, Adaralai came back to the present. My parents are dead. My world is no more. Tears leaked from the corners of her eyes. She realized that she was utterly alone, trapped on a Wraith hive ship, and would most likely soon be killed. As she was considering her desperate situation, there was a sudden lurch of the structure around her. She could hear explosions and the sounds of running and shouting. She trembled in fear and wondered what could be happening now. The sounds of a battle raging around her continued for some time. In fact, Adaralai quite lost track of exactly how much time had passed. And then all was still.
Adaralai strained to hear some sound that might indicate what had happened. And then faintly she could hear the sound of footsteps coming in her direction. And voices. The voices were low and rough. As they got closer she could make out what they were saying. "The people in this section are too old. We cannot move them without them dying. How is it they have been here so long?" "Perhaps this hive as just recently awakened. They have only just begun to hunt again." "Perhaps. It makes our job extremely boring though." Two shadowy shapes were coming closer to her. The light was too dim and the cobwebs so thick that she could not make out their features. "Hold up." The figures stopped in front of her. "This one is quite young. We can take her." At that, Adaralai felt whatever slimy thing that had been binding her release. Weak from being still for so long, she fell forward into. Two strong arms caught her around the waist before she hit the ground and set her on her feet. When she felt steady, she looked up to her two rescuers. She looked up into the faces of two Wraith.
"Do not be afraid, little one," the first spoke. They were both male warrior with long and straight white hair and matching tattoos on their faces. "We are here to save you." "I doubt that very much," she responded. "And I am not afraid." She stood up as straight as she could, although her bottom lip trembled slightly. The second Wraith laughed. It was a deep, gravelly sound, and not entirely unpleasant as one might expect. "You seem to be very brave for one so young," he said. "What is your name?" "Adaralai," she responded in a small voice. "Well, Miss Adaralai, please come with us." He put one hand on her shoulder and led her down the hall. "I will meet you later," he said over one shoulder to his companion. He then fell silent. After a confusing walk down many corridors, Adaralai and her escort entered a vast, open chamber. In the middle of the room huddled a group of humans. Adaralai was left with this group of people. She did not recognize any of them. She sat at the edge of the group, watching, waiting. Smaller groups of people were brought into the room, accompanied by Wraith. After some time, the group numbered about one hundred. And then she heard a noise she had hoped never to hear again. It was the whine of many wraith darts flying toward them. She could hear screams as the people around her began to panic. Then with a flash of light, she was gone.
When she awoke again, she found herself not bound tightly in an alcove, but in a room unlike any she had seen before. It seemed to be built of the same odd material as the hive she had been on before. On one wall there was a bed, and across from that there was what appeared to be a desk. What was odd was the way the furniture seemed to grow out of the walls and floor, as the room was a plant. Then she noticed the door. It was an odd sort of door, with two sides that seemed to be fused together. Adaralai pressed against them, and was unsurprised when nothing happened. As she pondered this, she noticed a blinking light out of the corner of her eye. Upon further inspection, it appeared to be a control panel of some sort, located on the wall next to the door. Adaralai grinned despite herself. She loved figuring out puzzles. Perhaps this would be similar. She pressed different areas of the panel, with no result. She then began to try pressing different areas simultaneously. She jumped nearly a foot when the door suddenly opened. She hadn't actually expected to be successful.
After taking a cautious look out the entrance, she crept into the deserted hallway. Not quite sure what to do from their, she decided to go right. After following several passageways and making several turns, she realized she was quite lost. Although, she hadn't known exactly where she was in the first place. She was so busy trying to decide what to do next, she didn't notice the sound of footsteps coming toward her until they were almost upon her. With panic rising in her chest, she looked desperately around for a place to hide, and was sorely disappointed to find nothing. At that moment, a Wraith walked around the corner, stopped, and stared at her. "How did you get out?" he said at last. Adaralai shrugged. They regarded each other for a long silent moment before she burst out, "you are the same Wraith from before!" He blinked. "Not just brave, but clever and observant," he said. "I suppose I cannot put you back in that room if you are just going to escape again." He sighed. "I think it would be best if I took you before my lady Queen. I believe she would want to meet you. If you would follow me, Miss Adaralai." She frowned. "You remembered my name?" He laughed his gravelly laugh again. "You are not the only one who can remember things. And now, come." He held out his hand to her. It had the same bluish tint as the rest of his skin, sharp looking nails, and a slit down the center. For feeding. Adaralai paused hesitantly. The Wraith sighed. "We do not mean you any harm. You have my word." Still, she did not move, but looked down at her feet. Gathering her courage, she looked back up at the Wraith. "I will go with you then. But first, what is your name?" The Wraith looked surprised to hear such a question. But then he smiled in what was certainly meant to be a friendly way, although it came off rather ferocious looking. "My name is Inaqor. I am pleased to make your acquaintance. Now, may we continue on?" Adaralai nodded, took his hand, and found herself once again being led down a hive hallway by this Wraith. No, by Inaqor she corrected herself.
At last they stood before an ornate door. Inaqor knocked once and entered when bidden to do so. Adaralai was led to the center of the room and found herself before a female Wraith. The Queen had long silver hair and gazed at Adaralai with deep and intent catlike eyes. Adaralai's knees were weak with fear, not just because the Queen looked so frightening, but also because she looked so ancient and wise and powerful. Inaqor stepped forward, and the Queen shifted her attention to him. "Matyra," he said, "this young human is brave one I told you about earlier. I just now found her wandering the hallway after having managed to escape from her room. I though you might be interested in her." The Queen smiled a terrible smile. "Thank you, my son. I certainly am now." She turned her attention to Adaralai. Adaralai could not determine what changed, but the Queen's smile seemed to soften, and she found herself more at ease.
The Queen spoke. "I have certainly never seen such cleverness or bravery in a human so young. And I have lived many ages. But if your family is still alive, I will not keep you from them. You can settle on one of out safe planets or go back to your world. Do you know if your family was there when you left the other hive ship?" At the thought of her parents, tears came unbidden to her Adaralai's eyes. "No," she whispered. "My family is dead and my world has been destroyed." "I am sorry to hear that, my dear", the Queen responded. "But now you are welcome to stay here. I see great potential in you. I think I may even begin to train you myself." Adaralai frowned. "I'm afraid I don't understand. Do you not what to, well…eat me?" Both of the Wraith laughed, the Queen a higher more tinkling sound compared to Inaqor. "Dearest, on this hive we do not feed off of humans. In fact we save humans from other hive ships, just as we have saved you. We gain our sustenance the same way you do. Many of the humans we have saved live on our protected planets and give us shares of their crops." Adaralai gaped. "Then you are Queen Qaeshulyn. I thought the stories my grandmother told about you were just myths." The Queen smiled. "The stories are quite real. And I am Qaeshulyn. Come sit by me, and I will tell you more."