Capture
Hannah
Hungry. My stomach growled at the thought of food.
I had been running for a while, newly energised by my encounter with that huge creature, but it faded quickly.
Now my legs felt like lead, my thighs sore from rubbing together for so long, and my still-damp shift and hair made the slight breeze feel ice-cold on my skin.
On Earth, this would have counted as a pleasant summer’s day, but here I felt little warmth.
The thick crown of the trees blocked out most of the sun’s rays, leaving me in the shade, cold and shivering.
Goosebumps crawled up my skin and I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to warm up, which did little to nothing.
I slowed my sprint to a jog and then stopped moving altogether, looking around and seeing nothing but trees, grass, and stones.
Occasionally I heard typical forest sounds, but for the most part it was quiet.
That was a good thing. I wasn’t being followed closely, though I knew it was only a matter of time before that beast made its way across the river.
For now, I was too exhausted to run again, so I stood still and listened to the sounds around me, trying to come up with a plan. My stomach growled again, louder this time. I rubbed it, attempting to soothe the pain of my all-too-empty stomach, but it did little. I needed food and water.
Thinking back to the last time I had eaten or drunk anything, my mind drifted to the planet where they had dumped us after the aliens captured us back on Earth.
Like cattle, we were shoved into their spaceships, into little cells, and kept there for what felt like weeks.
Some cried, some screamed, others tried to calm each other down, speaking words of encouragement, saying that we weren’t dead yet, that we still had a chance.
It all ended when our captors, creatures in heavy armour and face masks, led us out of the spaceship into what I could only describe as a huge marketplace.
We were closely guarded as they lined us up, forced to stand there for hours, not allowed to speak.
From time to time, someone would come by, point at one of us, hand over a bag, and drag that person off.
Every time someone was chosen, they cried, screamed, tried to escape, but it was futile.
Until I was picked by that same reptilian creature who later flew me to my new home.
I was dragged away, washed, and dressed in that flimsy little shift.
I thought that was it, until he came back holding something in his hands.
He grunted something at me, which I couldn’t understand, then wrapped his meaty hand around my head, tilted it, and placed whatever that thing was into my ear.
With his other hand, he covered it, making sure it wouldn’t fall out.
I screamed and thrashed, yelling at him to release me, but my protests were cut short when a searing pain shot through my head.
I could feel whatever he had placed at the entrance of my ear move.
It crawled inside, up my ear canal and into my skull.
My vision blurred, my stomach churned. I opened my mouth to scream, but nothing came out.
Then the thing stopped wriggling. The pain subsided, and he let me go.
I fell to the ground, breathing heavily, clutching my head in my hands.
“Well, well now, all that thrashing wasn’t necessary,” I heard the reptile say.
I looked up at him through teary eyes, blinking, and realised that I understood what he had said.
“See, they pay better if you can understand them,” he snickered. “Now up, we’re tight on time.”
Grabbing my arm, he pulled me to my feet. Still dizzy, I stumbled after him, my head spinning.
At that moment, my stomach growled violently, dragging me out of the unpleasant daydream and back into the present.
Whatever had happened back then was in the past. I needed to focus on the now. And the now was just as dire.
Surviving an alien attack and being sold into slavery was bad enough, but starving to death didn’t sound like a better option either. I hadn’t escaped just to die like this.
Having no other choice, I moved on, walking this time, observing my surroundings for anything that looked remotely edible. I had no idea what was safe to eat, but sooner or later I would be forced to take a risk.
Coming across a clearing, I noticed how low the sun sat on the horizon, making me aware of yet another problem.
Night would fall soon, or at least I assumed it would.
I decided to look first and foremost for a place to spend the night.
Somewhere higher up, preferably, where I would be safe from roaming animals.
Or huge green men, I thought to myself.
Moving through the trees, I looked up, searching for something I could reach.
A little further on, I found a tree that seemed suitable.
From below, its crown split into many branches, creating what looked like a flat surface between them.
Walking around the trunk, I found branches low enough for me to climb.
With what little strength I had left, I hauled myself up, climbing higher and higher until I reached the top.
I was relieved to see that my assumption had been correct: the branches did create a flat surface large enough to lie on.
I pulled myself fully into the crown and crawled into the middle, lowering my body down and breathing deeply and steadily.
So much had happened today, but I was alive. I was breathing. I could make it.
The crown of the tree was thick enough to shield me from the wind and from unwanted eyes above. It wasn’t warm, but it wasn’t too cold either. I could make do until morning. Hopefully, my hair and shift would dry by then, making it easier to move around.
Although there was still a faint light filtering through the foliage, I curled up and fell asleep almost instantly.
Something was wrong when I woke.
It was pitch black, the middle of the night, but my body was on high alert, screaming at me that I was in danger. I listened, straining my ears for anything that might reveal what was amiss. And then I heard it.
Footsteps.
My heart dropped.
Down at the base of the tree, there was someone. Or something.
I stayed curled up, eyes wide with fear, listening. The footsteps came again, slowly circling the tree I lay in.
No, no, no, please, no, I thought frantically.
I tried to breathe as shallowly as possible, not moving a muscle, listening closely, trying to understand what it was doing. Whether it would climb the tree.
And then what? I thought bitterly. Jump? That might have worked once at the cliff, but this was at least twice the height. I would surely injure myself, making me an easy target.
Unable to move at all, I lay there, listening, praying it would go away.
After a few more circles around the tree, it did.
At first, I thought my ears were playing tricks on me, but no—the footsteps grew fainter and fainter until I couldn’t hear them at all. Whatever had been there had left.
I exhaled shakily, wrapping my arms around myself and stroking my upper arms to calm down. For a while longer, I stayed awake, listening for any sign that someone was still nearby.
But the forest remained calm and silent.
And as my mind finally relaxed, exhaustion washed over me once more, pulling me back into sleep.
Drokahr
I knew she was up that tree. Caught you, I thought smugly to myself.
After she left me behind at the river, I followed its path a little further downstream, eventually finding a spot that seemed shallow enough to cross. Annoyed at getting my pants wet, I made another mental note that I would make sure she knew exactly what a nuisance she had been.
Once across, I made my way upstream again and soon found her footprints leading from the river into the forest.
I followed them without hesitation. The sun stood low on the horizon, and I mentally prepared myself for the questions my fellow clan members would throw at me, wanting to know where I—and my pet—had been.
I wouldn’t make it back before nightfall, that much was certain.
I sighed heavily, wishing I had chosen anything other than a human as a pet. But what was done was done, and once she was captured, I would make sure I never let her out of my sight again.
I marched on until night fell, following her footsteps. There was no need to slow down; I could see perfectly well in the darkness. Eventually, her trail ended at a large tree. I saw where she had circled it, and then her footprints stopped abruptly.
Looking up, I noticed smears of dirt on the trunk, as if someone had climbed up. I circled the tree a few times, but there was no doubt about it.
She was up there.
I could have climbed the tree and dragged her down myself, ending this irritating little adventure of hers. But I felt a thrill at the thought that the tables had turned. I had hunted her. Cornered her. All that was left was to capture her.
My prize. My pet.
She had better be worth all the trouble she had caused me today.
I decided to give her a false sense of security. Close enough to observe the tree, but far enough away that she wouldn’t spot me immediately, I hid behind several large rocks and rested my head against one of their cool surfaces.
Now all I had to do was wait.
Shortly after dawn broke, I heard rustling. Peeking out from my hiding place, I saw leaves swaying and branches creaking, followed by a dull grunt as she hit the forest floor and emerged from behind the tree.
Now I was close enough to study her properly.
She had long, light brown hair reaching the middle of her back, pale skin, and eyes that appeared brown as well. She looked around the forest, turning on her heels as if deciding where to go next.
A low growl broke the silence.
I watched her bend forward, clutching her stomach as her face contorted in pain. She must be hungry, I thought. After all that running, no surprise. She rubbed her stomach once more, then straightened and turned in my direction, starting to walk toward me.
I hid behind the rocks again, waiting for her to pass.
Her footsteps grew louder until she walked right past me. I stood and stepped out from behind the rocks. She must have heard me, because she suddenly spun around to face me. Her eyes widened when she saw me standing only two steps away.
I stared at her, curious to see what she would do next. My heart beat strangely in my chest now that she was finally this close. I only had to reach out to touch her—
—but she didn’t give me the chance.
Once again, she turned and ran.
Snorting at her futile attempt to escape, I took off after her. Her small legs carried her only a few steps before I caught up and wrapped my arms around her.
She kicked at the air and screamed for me to let her go.
I chuckled.
“The chase is over, little pet.”