Mindoir
Children played, adults bathed in the sunlight, and pets relaxed at their masters feet. It was a wonderful day for little Elizabeth Shepard, wearing a beautiful dress with yellow dandelions on it, her favorite flower.
Her father was sitting next to his wife, Loving Mother of Two. She was playing with her best friend,Guio, a Golden Retriver breed Canid, and her adopted brother, Lover of Insects, he was wearing his special glasses and looking at an interesting Tri Beetle, this one having a white shell, instead of the normal black.
"Hmm, your very interesting, I wonder, could I publish you?" He asked the insect, still young enough to wonder if it might answer back.
But he was knocked over and the beetle flew away,"No! Come back!"
He went chasing after it in his 8 legged mech suit, custom made to look like a wolf spider. But he just wasn't fast enough, and lost the beetle. He turned and scuttled back to the spot where he fell, finding a laughing Elizabeth rolling in the orange and green flowers and blue grass.
"Why did you push me, that was a good specimen, I could have entered him in Insect of the Week for Biology Monthly!"
She slowly stopped laughing and got up, and, still smiling, told him,"Oh you don't need bugs, what about your sister, what if she wants to play with you?"
He squinted and turned away, mumbling. She shrugged and ran off, playing with Guio, the Canid boy running much faster than her, though she was born with a secret advantage. She stopped and unbuttoned some flaps on the back of her shirt, and let a pair of gossamer wings come through, looking like a mix between a bats wings, and a dragonflies, with tiny bones arranged like fingers going through them. On her calves, finlike protrusions extended, meant to be used as rudders for her flight.
She flapped and got off the ground, and soared, easily beating her friend in a race. "No fair, your cheating," he yelled at her from below.
"Sorry, I can't here you over the sound of victory!"
She looked down, and saw Guio looking up and laughing, the he started frowning, then a look fear came over his face, and he started running for real, reverting to all fours, trying to get away.
"RUN! Lizzy, Fly away!" He yelled at her, scared out of his mind.
She didn't understand why he yelled that, but she did when she turned.
There was a ship, and not just any, a Batarian slaver vessel. Her father had shown them to her on his omni tool, and she knew why her friend was running. She flew down, trying to reach the ground, but she heard a whistling sound, and turned to see a net coming right for her.
"No!" She screamed out, the net hitting her, causing her to fall directly to the ground. She screamed when she felt the tiny bones of her wings break. She tried to pull away to get free, but the net had magnetic ball locks, she was stuck, helpless to watch as people were captured, killed, or raped.
She heard a noise beside her, and saw her brother trying to undo the mag locks, to no avail.
"Go, get out here while you can Insects, at least you'll live!" She told him, trying not draw attention by yelling.
"No, I have to get you out, you can-" he stopped due to sheer fear at the voice that sounded behind him.
"Why hello there, looks like I caught some good meat with that net, and some of it ain't even in the net!" The grizzled Batarian started laughing.
Elizabeth had no idea what to do, she was stuck, but her brother was facing the slaver himself.
"Hah, but you, to be truthful, you'll never do at the market. Your wearing glasses, means you can't see well, no one's gonna buy you. Sadly no money in the slave market, though, I have read that you guys were considered good eating way back. Maybe I'll get some money from selling your carcass at the fish market." The Batarian smiled, raising his pistol.
Elizabeth was screaming,"No, no, no!" at the Batarian, watching the pistol move upwards in slow motion, until she finally heard the trigger get pulled. She saw a small stream of light, then a few drips of blood on the ground, the still goofy Dolphin grin on her brothers face.
She started crying, a mark about the size of a pin appeared on his head, the mechsuit still holding him up. The Batarian moved in to pull him out of the suit, and drag her back to the ship.
"But before I do anything, I think I'll get rid of some... unnecessary spices to the meat." She felt him grip the base of her wings.
"No, no please, no-AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" her scream piercing the sounds of yelling elsewhere. She nearly passed out, but somehow maintained consciousness long enough to make out his face, it having been blocked out by shadow before. He was missing his lower right eye, a large, three clawed gash, still bleeding heavily, across his head, and a small tattoo of a scantily clad Batarian woman on his right cheek. In his hands he held her wings, the beautiful wings she groomed every night, their bases singed from the omniblade he cut them off with.
"I'm gonna enjoy the meat tonight," he told her while she was lying on her stomach, unable to move from pain.
She heard something, a deep throated roar. The Batarian stood up, and saw a predatory animal heading for him. It had red feathers the color of dried blood, massive arms with 3, foot long claws, a long neck, a hooked beak, firey eyes, a long tail with an armor tip at the end, and a Sanhanae riding it, holding an energy weapon, pointed at him. He then ran in the other direction, still holding her wings, heading straight for the ship. The last thing Elizabeth Shepard saw before passing out, was the faces of her family.