A/N Another update! As always, let me know what you think. Cheers for all the great reviews I received for the first chapter. I'm glad you're enjoying it so far :)
I awoke with a startled jolt as a loud bang rattled the cage.
Wincing, I'd hit my head on the top bars as I scrambled to press myself against the back of the cage. Hugging my knees close to my chest in order to get myself as far away from him as possible, my heart pounded beneath my chest. Staring at me with his yellow eyes, my gaze wandered a little ways down to see that he's holding the familiar metal bucket.
Reaching into it, he pulled out a slab of what I could only describe to be meat. Throwing it between the bars, it landed near my feet with a sticky thud. I grimaced as I looked down at it. The flesh is coloured a sickly grey-purple. It looks fowl and it smells even worse. Every day he makes his way down the line of cages, throwing the hideous meat at us, and every day I refuse to eat it.
I feel sick with just the site, let alone the thought of consuming it. But the other beasts surrounding me didn't seem to have a problem in devouring their portion of the meals. Waiting until he left, I reached over and picked up the sticky meat before throwing it back towards the front end of the cage. I don't want it rotting and stinking beside me.
Resting my head back against the bars, I swallowed. My throat is tight and as dry as a hot desert. My stomach growled and twisted with painful knots. I winced as my arm clutched around my belly to try and sooth it. I haven't eaten since I woke up in this hellish prison; two days ago. It's been nothing but cramped suffering.
I can barely sleep.
When I do it's filled with horrible nightmares. I remember back to the frightening day I was taken. I remember my Father screaming my name – and then nothing. I tried to ask and see what had happened to him. I wanted to know if he's safe, if he's okay, but the creature wouldn't answer me. He'd chuff or growl before stalking away to leave me alone and surrounded by these monsters for hours on end.
I hate him and this place.
Leaning further against the metal bars of the cage, my spine and ribs suddenly dug into the metal painfully. He's standing in front of my cage again, looking at me and then at the meat I'd discarded once again. Making a clicking noise, his fist banged against the cage and I jumped in pure fright.
"S'yuit-de" it growled. I didn't understand a single syllable of what he'd said. The language is far from English. He pointed to the meat with a clawed finger and I shook my head. It's obvious that he wants me to eat it, but I won't.
I don't care if I starve.
The creatures large hands clenched by his sides, his chest heaving up and down in anger. I half expected him to rip the door open and grab me, but nothing of the sort happened. Instead he turned and strode away without another sound. Taking in a lung full of air, I didn't realise I was holding my breath. Calming down, my eyes closed as my head feels dizzy.
I don't know how much more of this I can take. I live in constant fear and hunger. It never ends. I just want to go home. Curling up in the corner of the cage, my head rested to the side before I eventually slipped back into the darkness of sleep. I dreamt of my Father, my Mother, my life and how it all went so incredibly wrong.
Apart of me feels like I'm going crazy.
The dream lasted what felt like only minutes before I was jolted awake again. My mind went into panic as I thought he'd returned, but he was nowhere in sight. The beasts around me are going hysterical with their loud noises and thrashing. The whole room is vibrating and shaking, like we're experiencing an Earthquake. Then a thump happened and my body lurched to the side a little; my bony shoulder digging into one of the metal bars – the place went still after that.
What's going on? What just happened?
I slowly shifted forward to the front of the cage, careful not to step on the wet purple slab of meat. Holding onto the bars, I looked out to see if anything was different. There was nothing as I waited for at least another half hour. Maybe it was an Earthquake. The fact still didn't give me a single clue of where I am exactly. I could be in the middle of nowhere for all I know.
My nose wrinkled as I suddenly caught a waft of something unpleasant. The stench wasn't that which came from the alien beasts. Leaning down, I briefly smelt my skin and grimaced when I realised the odour is coming from me. I haven't been able to clean myself since I was kidnapped. With that thought I scratched my hair as it itched. My once soft brown locks are now oily and tangled. The simple cloth undergarments that cover my breasts and privates haven't been changed either.
I've never felt so filthy.
Discarding the thoughts of the unclean state of my body, a loud gush of air sounded and I even felt it caress the skin of my body before the very end of the storage room began to move; the metal creaking with a hum. The wall began to lower and I realised it was forming some sort of ramp. What is this? Are we on a ship of some sort? It would explain the lack of windows.
Immediately pressing my face close to the bars, I couldn't see anything beyond the ramp as a dense smoke wall shielded the site from me. Rubbing my eyes, black figures appeared admits the smoke. They walked up the ramp and once they emerged from the white clouds, I realised it was more of them – those tall creatures. They looked identical but also different to the one that had captured me.
Continuing to watch, they began to unhook some of the cages to take them away. To where, I didn't know. I only knew I didn't particularly want to follow, or stay for that matter. Shifting back to the other end of the cage, I waited patiently until I saw them walking straight toward me. My body tensed and I prepared myself.
They're unhooking the cables to my cage. The metal bars clanged a little and I squealed when the whole cage had begun to move across the metal ground. Where heading straight for the wall of smoke that had only dissipated a little. Holding on, I closed my eyes and held my breath when I went through to end up on the other side.
Slowly opening my eyes with a blink, I can see we're in a large docking bay of sorts. There's more ramps and more cargo being unloaded. There's commotion all around and there's plenty more of them. There moving around everywhere, talking to each other in that odd language. There's too many. A few of them stared right at me as I'm being dragged past. I curled into a tighter ball in the corner of the cage and kept my head down.
I didn't look up again until I heard what sounded like the noises you'd find at a busy market place. I can smell mouth-watering food and I could hear a barrage of their language being spoken all around. It's hard to listen. It's hard to focus. When the cage stopped, I dared to take a sneaky look around. I'd been dumped beside two other cages beneath a canopy tent made of pelts.
There's decorated tents and stalls everywhere, each of them very busy. More of those things roamed around. Some are dressed in just a loin cloth, pelts or bits of armour. I gawked as I saw two of them walking past with masks upon their faces. Dangerous. Deadly. It made the hairs on my entire body stand on end. My heart raced.
Looking to my left, I saw someone in particular catch my eye – a woman walking amongst the crowd of creatures. I gasped with relief and joy. The first human I've seen in a small eternity "Help me!" I called out desperately through the bars. The woman stopped at the sound of my voice. Her blonde hair shifting along her shoulders and her blue eyes filled with sympathy once she saw me.
I didn't expect what happened next.
The woman didn't reply to me. She didn't come over. Instead she kept moving along with the flow of the crowd. I couldn't believe it. Why isn't she going to help me? Then more questions sprung to mind. Why is she walking so freely amongst those things? She wears a collar just like me. I don't understand.
My hope became further crushed.
Sitting in the cage, my mind zoned out as I thought of nothing – it's just blankness. I only came crashing back down to reality when another one of those things unlocked my cage and swung the door wide open. It held a leash in its hand "Ki'cte ooman" he grunted with a raspy voice.
I didn't move as I glared into the creatures eyes. Its mandibles flared a little in annoyance before he banged his fist against the metal bars. I jolted but tried to remain as firm as possible. I don't want to be weak. I don't want to be scared. Not in a place like this. He banged the cage once more, and when I didn't move, he pulled a metal device off from the belt that hung around his waist and held it up to the cage.
I screamed.
It was like nothing I've ever felt before. Immense pain, shooting up through every tendon and vein in my body like strikes of lightening in the sky. Panting, my muscles stung and tears welled in my eyes. He shocked me again before I quickly rushed toward the front of the cage. Leaning down, he clipped the leash to my collar and took a step back to yank me out the rest of the way.
My body lurched forward from the momentum. My neck ached from the harsh treatment. I was disoriented for a moment as he dragged me just out of the canopy tent and toward a small raised platform. Giving a firm shove to my back, he threw me up onto the stage. Tying the other end of the leash through a metal loop in the centre of the platform, he turned and left.
I struggled as I stared down at the metal loop in the floor. My fingers tried to scratch at the leash, trying to untie it so I could run away. I don't think I'd get very far, but I wasn't going to waste any opportunity I have. Not when I know what I'm being faced with. My fingernails are starting to bleed as I clawed at it. I sniffled. It's not working. Nothing is working. I hit it with a grunt of frustration.
"Don't fight" came a light and feminine voice.
I gasped as I looked up. I hadn't heard her approach – the blonde woman who ignored me earlier. I reached out and grabbed her, pulling her toward me "Get me out of here, please" I begged "I want to go home"
She shook her head and grabbed my hands in her own "The Mother Ship is your home now. There's no going back. Don't fight and do what they say. They'll keep you alive"
"How can you say that to me?" I snapped with anger "What are you talking about? Mother Ship? What is that?" I squeezed her hands to make her look at me with her big blue eyes "What are they?"
"Hunters" she explained "Yautja"
Pulling her hand away, she frantically looked around as if she were scared "I have to go" turning around, the woman quickly scurried away before I could grab her again. Watching as her blonde locks disappeared into the crowd. I slumped back on the platform. Bringing my legs up to my chest, I sat in a ball and held my hands over my head as I looked down at my lap.
I sniffled as I rocked back and forth. The woman talked so quickly I could barely keep up. I have to take a minute to process everything she'd told me. That I wouldn't be going home. That I'm on a Mother Ship. That these things are Hunters – Yautja. Tears welled in my eyes once again, they dripped to land on the skin of my inner thighs; tickling the flesh as they trailed down.
A large warm hand suddenly pushed me from the right and I fell over on my side with a thud and a small yelp. Quickly getting up to my knees, I became instantly alert as I looked to where I'd been pushed to see a Yautja standing there; looking at me with his grey sunken in eyes.
"N'ritja" he grunted at me.
My brow knitted together in confusion as I backed away from him. Don't they know I can't understand what they're saying? The whole thing is beginning to irritate me. Although, I'm not going to shake my head again. It seems they're a race that doesn't like to be denied or disobeyed.
Pursing my lips into a firm line, I glanced him up and down. Black netting cladded his reptile like flesh, wrist guards are tied to both his arms, and a loin cloth covered his modesty. There's golden rings every so often along his hair-like appendages, and there's a piece of plated armour that goes over his right shoulder.
"N'ritja ooman" he grunted and crossed his thick muscular arms, as if growing impatient.
I turned my head when I saw the other Yautja who'd leashed me to the platform step out to greet the one who'd pushed me. They talked back and forth as I watched. The one who'd pushed me over turned to look me up and down with a chuff.
"S'yuit-de pyode amedha" the Yautja made a snickering noise. I knew he must have insulted me in some way. It made anger flare in my chest.
The one who'd tied me down stepped over and grabbed my leash. Baring my teeth, I too wrapped my hands around it. Squirming and squealing as he dragged me closer, I was pulled to be so close I could reach out and touch them. The one still holding the leash gestured to me as he spoke. I felt a clawed hand grab my jaw and I was made to look into a pair of familiar grey eyes.
Turning my head this way and that, the Yautja inspected my face as if I were merchandise. The thought made me sick. Is that what I am? Is this what's happening? Am I being sold? I shifted my head enough to bite into his hand as hard as I could. He pulled away with a growl and I watched as fluoro green blood began to ooze from the wounds I'd inflicted. My eyes went wide at the site before I wiped at my mouth and spat the brightly coloured liquid out of my mouth.
Disgusting.
A hand fisted into a clump of my hair and I winced with a cry "Let go of me" I growled as my hands raised to move over his own.
Cocking his head slightly to the side, the Yautja with the grey eyes stared at me before letting go of my hair and speaking a few hushed words to the other of his kind. I watched as I was untied from the platform and exchanged for a leather satchel that rattled like a bag of coins.
I shook my head "No" anyone with sense could assume I'd been sold, right then and there – so quickly "I'm not going with you" the Yautja with the grey eyes flared his mandibles at me and gave a deep growl. I turned my head away with a wince before he pulled on my leash.
Stumbling forward with a gasp, the Yautja started walking and I had no choice but to follow. Lingering as far behind him as I could, I took the opportunity to take in the view of the markets as we walked amongst the crowd. I can't see anywhere where they wouldn't be able to find me. As the minutes ticked by, the amount of bodies around us began to dwindle and soon we were walking down a large and quiet hallway.
I stared at his broad shouldered back as his muscles moved beneath the black netting. His hair-like appendages, that looked more like dreadlocks, swayed a little as he moved. Surprisingly, despite his size, the Yautja's footsteps weren't heavy but light in a way. I was quick to stop as to not collide into him as he paused in front of a door; one of many.
Opening it up with the press of few button with the familiar red dashes, I peeked around to see that it's a large room of sorts. He stepped in and I was tugged to follow. The first thing that caught my eye in a terrifying way, is the mirage of cleaned skulls. All of them are alien looking and quite large. I'm glad their dead. I wouldn't want to be confronted with one of those things.
Glancing around, I felt a soft fur rug beneath my bare feet and I can see a working table pushed to the right side of the room, and a grand canopy bed covered in more pelts positioned in the centre of the large space. I could assume this is where he lives. Drawn out of my thoughts, a tall and formidable figure stepped in front of me. His grey eyes glared down at me, and before I could look up – I crashed to the floor with a thud.
My cheek went numb before throbbing with a searing pain. Whimpering, I tried not to make too much noise. I didn't want him to know how much it really hurt as tears watered my eyes. Blinking them away, I stayed on the floor and didn't look up. My whole head is spinning, the world tilting this way and that. Darkness crept into the corner of my site. I clutched at consciousness for as long and as hard as I could, but it wasn't enough.
A/N In future chapters, after Milaina starts to learn the language a bit more, I'll be putting the translation in brackets beside it so you can all understand what they're saying. Or do you guys prefer it to be listed after the chapter? I know a lot of people do that for their AVP stories.
