Alice lied to me. I saw it in her eyes.

"This isn't fair. You know. You saw it." I tell her.

She closes her eyes and lays her head back against the white wall, "It's bad. They're going to use you. I don't know exactly, but..." she trails off.

"Tell me, Alice."

"No, Bells, I can't. Okay? I just...can't."

I want to argue further, but I stop. Alice looks bad. We sit their together, my arm around her, both wondering at our fates. Alice lays her head on my shoulder, and I feel her falling asleep. I try to relax, but can't. Why am I so relaxed about the fact that we had been abducted? I am scared shitless, of course, but I feel like I understand it. The Antuuk are scared. They're dying out and have had close scares like this before. They aren't thinking out what they're doing. Like in the past, when they dropped off a portion of their population on Earth with little technology or assistance, they're trying to save themselves. I don't like it, but I get it. Maybe that's wrong. Maybe Alice is right.

The door to our holding cell opens, "Humans, come. It is time."

It is the Antuuk who delivered meals to Alice and I. She beckons for us to stand. I shake Alice awake gently. She's lost in a trance, but I take her hand and lead her.

"Do you know where the others are?"

The Antuuk shakes her head, "They safe, but I do not know where they are kept. They are being watched." Her voice is hesitant, like she can't find the words for what she wants to convey.

"Where is my father? Charlie Swan. Tell me."

"Arrived earlier than us. Already taken off ship and into base to be cared for."

"What will happen to him?"
"No Antuuk will harm."

She hesitates, "I hope you not mad at Antuuk. We need help."

Alice listlessly trails behind me, lost in visions, but she snaps out of it, "Then you should have asked. This isn't right!"

The Antuuk shakes her head, "I know, I know. But we are dying."

"Because of your stupidity. You already abandoned the human race once! Now you're using us."

"We did not abandon humans."

"No. You abandoned your own people, and then forgot about them when your planet was restored. You nearly destroyed your home planet and left your own people with almost nothing to start a new civilization. They were defenseless in a new world! You are light years ahead of where humans are, but you didn't even leave your own people with the technology you had! They were promised that you would be back, but those Antuuk were lied to. You left them with nothing, not the return ship. You didn't even know if they would really survive on Earth! Now you are dying, so you're using us, their descendants, damn the consequences."

The Antuuk hesitates, "I do not understand all of your words, but I feel the pain. I am sorry I cannot fix."

We are lead to another room, this one less bare than the prior two. Suits line the wall, all white and sleek. The Antuuk gestures to them, tells us to put one on.

Alice hesitates. I follow her orders and put one on. Despite it seeming large while hanging on the wall, it fits perfectly.

"Why do we need this? If we come from the same origin, shouldn't we be able to breath the same air?" I ask.

The Antuuk explains, "Our planet has less oxygen. It works for us, but much harder for you to breath. Humans became used to the high levels on Earth."

"You left the original humans with suits." Alice glares at the Antuuk.

"Yes, I have been told."

"But only with a few spare sets. Once the Antuuk left, they could have died in Earth's atmosphere."

"No, no, they not die. Just much different once suits became useless. But, humans evolve quickly because of change, after generations it was much easier."

Alice still glares. I don't understand, "Alice, if the Antuuk hadn't been left on Earth, we would have never been born."

Alice explodes, "You're siding with them, Bella! You're siding with these...aliens! We don't come from them. We came from the poor Antuuk they abandoned! Do you really get it? The Antuuk on Earth were promised that a ship would return to Earth within a couple years, either with supplies or to bring them home! They were to test the Earth, to see if it was suitable for the Antuuk to migrate to should their own planet fail. But no, the Antuuk's planet was saved and restored by another alien race, and they forgot about the poor Antuuk still on Earth. We don't come from these Antuuk. We come from the ones who were left on..."

Alice doesn't get to finish. The Antuuk I had counted as almost a friend shoots my girlfriend. I scream and Alice jerks. She falls to the floor. There is no blood and no pain on Alice's face.

The Antuuk barks at me, "She fine. Will not die. But need to keep mouth shut. Understand?" She glares at me with her deepset, beady eyes. I swallow my protests and nod.

The door bursts open, with another Antuuk entering the room. It speaks to the other in their harsh language, pointing at my Alice on the floor. The strange Antuuk nods, picks up a suit and starts pushing the limp Alice into it. The Antuuk who shot Alice comes to me, pulls the suit's helmet onto my head, zips the front of the suit, and presses a couple buttons on my suit's sleeve. She snarls at me, "No escaping or killing self. You do anything, she dies. We try to help you, but you must help us first. Understood?"

I nod. The suit molds to my body perfectly, so walking along with the Antuuk is not difficult, despite her holding on to my arm with great strength. Alice is slung over the shoulder of the other Antuuk. She is not showing the faintest sign of waking.

We are taken through the ship. Again, I see no Antuuk but I know they are around. The Antuuk restraining me stops suddenly, almost making me fall. A door opens, and I am blinded.

We are here. The Antuuk can finally starting using the human race as their weapon.