The violent inhuman growl was deafening, it silenced the chaotic screams at once.
They weren't human. They weren't human. All Camila could do was repeat that same thought over and over again in her head.
Tall, so god awfully tall. The horrifying creatures stopped directly in front of the cage, forcing all the women to look up with barely suppressed whimpers at their seven-foot stature. Staring with wide eyes in frozen shock, Camilla's brain tried to formulate what she was seeing in front of her, to somehow make sense of the creatures snarling on the other side of the cage.
It had the face of some sort of crustacean. Large flesh coated mandibles protracted with every guttural sound revealing its shallow jaws underneath. Its close-set eyes were oddly human in their familiarity, but that was where the familiarity ended. The creature's large bulbous head peaked up at a slant casting its face low and its head tall. At the crown of its head, long black rubbery looking appendages laid down around their neck and shoulders like dreadlocks. Each one wore the long black appendages differently, some with metal adornments throughout and some kept back in a long thick ponytail. Some of their skin reminded Camila of the underside of a snake's belly. Cold, pale, and speckled like a reptile.
One stepped forward and hit a panel on the wall. Red foreign symbols activated under the creature's large clawed hand. The cage began to move.
Terrified screams echoed off the walls as the women formed an even tighter huddle against the back wall, nearly crushing Camila. She didn't care though, as she watched the metals bars retract into the floor leaving them with no protection against the giant crab-like monsters, Camila honestly wished she would be suffocated instead.
Pressing a button on his wrist device, another creature walked up to them and stopped.
The whining beep around all of their necks was their only warning, before a blue tethering rope banded to the next closest collar. Instantly, they were all manacled together by the necks with only a gap of two feet between them of rope. The blue light rope securing them was a lot like the light she inspected on the cage earlier. It felt rubbery, like rope light, but it also felt like braided metal as well. How could that be? Tugging violently on the lead rope, one of the creatures led the sobbing women in a line out of the room as the other three giants flanked them in their procession.
Camila couldn't bring herself to cry yet. Though, she was sure it was only the shock running through her system that kept her from completely breaking down. A part of her, kept thinking it was all just a terrible nightmare, and that any moment she was going to wake up, back in her cozy little apartment in San Diego. But as they were marched outside the dark room and down a metal ramp outside, Camila's stomach dropped when she looked up at the cloudless sky.
Two red moons filled a portion of the sky. Turning her head, to look back, Camila had to bite her tongue to keep from gasping. They weren't kept in some sort of building this whole time, it was an enormous spaceship. Looking up, she nearly stumbled as she was forced to keep walking forward. The ship had to be as tall as some of the sky scrapers downtown back home.
This wasn't a joke. This wasn't some cruel prank, or the work of some serial killer. They weren't on earth anymore.
No one talked as they followed along the set path through the dense forest. One sound, earned you a nasty growl. And if you dared one word, it earned you a viscous backhand. Camila eyed the girl, two girls in front of her who made that mistake earlier, with a pitiful glance as she now rubbed her swollen cheek with a hushed whimper. All of her nurse instincts pulled at Camila's heart as she watched the girl nurse the wound but she couldn't do anything to help her.
Traipsing along through the forested path, Camila tried to focus on some of the obvious differences of this planet's flora. Beautiful phosphorescent flowers with deadly looking quills bloomed up dark gnarled looking trees, while giant translucent beetles skittered away from their presence. Why couldn't this all be a dream?
Breaking through the trees, Camila's heart clenched as her stomach turned in sickening fear as they approached a clearing. On the other side of the clearing, stood a large group of the same alien creatures, turning to give them a predatory snarl as they accessed their group. Directing the women to sit on the ground, two of the four guards left them to join the other creatures. Huddling together again, every woman watched with fearful eyes as the tall creatures communicated amongst themselves with a series of rolling clicks and growls.
"What do they want with us?"
"Are they going to eat us?"
"My God this can't be happening! This can't be real."
While the other women whispered to each other in shock, Camila began to take in the surrounding details. These—aliens—weren't anything her mind expected when she thought of aliens from another planet. Everything around her seemed to be a juxtaposition of ancient and highly advanced. The clearing had a large flat cobble stoned pathway that reminded her of an ancient Aztec temple, that led up to a large stone dais where a large black metal chair sat. The metal was exactly like the black metal from the ship. But it wasn't just the odd ceremonial looking clearing that seemed contradictory, it was the creatures' clothing as well. Over their pale reptilian body each creature wore a type of black netting that seemingly covered them from neck to toe. Bones and bits of metal hung from each warrior like decorations, or like trophies reminding her of ancient tribal warriors of some kind. Although, as much as their outfit seemed primitive to her, the heavy metal bracers covering their forearms and matching metal greaves on their feet reminded Camila without a doubt of their technological capabilities.
The thundering steps on the dais captured all of their attention, women and aliens alike. The group of warriors walked up to the edge of the dais and stood at attention, as a much larger and grander looking alien warrior stepped in front of the throne. Dressed in a large black cape that hung from his black sleek armor and covered in various hanging skulls the imposing warrior leader stood holding a large metal spear. Flanked by a row of four guards on either side, the creature snarled at the lined warriors in front of him.
Angie's hand clutched Camila's arm painfully when the lead warrior gestured to their huddled group of women with his spear. The band of warriors let out a deafening roar in unison as a response.
"There are twelve of them," Fiona whispered as she stared wide eyed.
She was right, Camila swallowed nervously, twelve of them and twelves of us she thought. Why didn't she notice that before?
The snarling and clicking stopped. Were they done talking?
Turning, the warriors stomped heavily toward them, stopping in front of the two sentries guarding them. One of the guards made another inhuman noise. One warrior stepped forward, ignoring the resulting screams. Its glowing yellow gaze looked left and right as he stared at each individual woman. They were choosing! Dear God they were choosing which one to take. Camila wanted to faint. This was it, this was the moment they were going to find out what terrible things these creatures were going to do to them. Sick, Camila looked back up to the giant creature, his clawed hands and mandibles flexed aggressively. Not him, dear God not him, she thought. There was nothing about him over the others that stood out. He was a little leaner than his counterparts, not nearly as broad, but there was something utterly hostile about him that set the hairs on her neck on edge.
Pointing directly forward, Camila felt her world go dark for a moment as his clawed finger pointed in her direction.
"Noooo," Angie scrambled violently underneath the guard's hold as they unlatched her and tossed her easily to the growling creature.
Activating her leash, the lean alien half tugged half dragged Angie effortlessly across the clearing forcing her to her knees as he stood with his arms crossed, waiting.
Again, and again, the warriors began to choose. With each turn the women grew wild and frantic, some warriors ignored them, some doled out a violent reprimand shutting them up immediately. Camila scanned the remaining six warriors and shuddered at the violence she sensed from each one. With Fiona and Angie already chosen and drug off to across the clearing, Camila sat alone in the back of the small group. Her heart clenched when she watched the next warrior approach. Nervously Camila let her eyes drift from his clawed metal boots and up his exposed thighs, the skin there was pale with dark green scales reminding her of an alligator. The warrior's belt acted as an armored skirt, with a long metal scaled plate that hung in the front and the back hanging nearly to his knees. Unlike the rest of the warriors, this one did not wear any sort of shirt or armor over his stomach. His abs were kept bare and his wide chest and shoulders were fitted with matching armor that made him look even more imposing. This creature wasn't like the rest of them. Where the others snarled and flexed their fleshy mandibles exposing their fangs beneath, this one stood tall and calm, as if he had nothing to prove. His stillness unnerved her.
When her eyes did meet his glowing green gaze, Camila found herself immediately averting her own. The women in front of her gasped bringing her attention back forward. He pointed at his selection.
He was pointing at her.
There was no time to even react. The rough hands of the guards closed around the softness of her upper arm and hauled her nearly off the ground completely. Biting her lips, to avoid crying out at the sharp pain, the guard unlatched her collar with a swipe of his wrist and propelled her towards the silent warrior.
Stumbling to a stop in front of the creature, Camila stood shaking as he activated her collar again leashing her to him. With her head barely reaching his chest, Camila tried to control her breathing. She wanted to cry, she wanted to run, she wanted to do anything but stand here shackled to this thing! But she knew she couldn't. With no courage to bring her eyes up any further, she stared at the scaled skin on his muscled thighs. Even if she was foolish enough to try and run there was no doubt in her mind he could catch her with those powerful looking legs.
Attaching the end of the glowing rope leash to his belt, the creature began to move forcing her to keep up or be drug. Stopping a little away from the rest of the warriors and their leashed women, Camila sent a longing glance to Fiona and Angie. She wished she was near them now, she felt safer together as a group. Now that she was alone, she felt even more panicked. There was nothing to rely on. No cage in between her and these things, no other women to block her from any immediate damage. Camila felt sick to even think that but she couldn't deny that was how she felt. Now alone, she felt any minute, any second even, her worst fears could come true.
With the last girl leashed, all of the warriors moved back in front of the dais standing back to attention. The powerful grip to her shoulder startled her as her creature pushed her to her knees beside him. The rope forcefully pulled at her neck giving her no choice but to cock her head painfully at an angle as he stood waiting for the leader.
More clicks and growls sounded from the leader on the throne ahead of them. Camila felt as if she was listening to some sort of commencement speech, the way some warriors puffed up their chest in an obvious show of pride or the way the leader gestured occasionally with his spear. They were preparing for something, Camila was sure. The leader suddenly stood up from his chair and lifted his spear high over his head while spreading his horned mandibles wide and let out a deep roar. The others all followed suit.
Whatever it was, whatever event brought them here, was just beginning.