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Damn it, I want to say. Stop being so nice. Anyone here would climb over her to escape, the round man we’ve left behind included. I stay quiet because she’s a sweet girl who’ll learn to toughen up soon enough. Someone in our path is puking, probably thanks to motion sickness. “This way,” I say back to her and change directions toward the food dispensers. I don’t want to be closer to spilled food, but it’s not shit, so we’re going.
We’re almost there when everything stops again. No movement. No sounds from the ship. Only Earthlings complaining, crying, bitching, or trying to hoist the shit covered people out of the hole. I look up for the laser gun, not trusting this calm from the aliens.
“We might have hit some asteroids or something,” Stacie offers, sitting up at the same time I do. “Those could have bounced us around like this.”
“Maybe,” I say, even though I don’t agree. Wouldn’t asteroids have gone through the ship? Who knows? Our aliens might have shields like the ones on television. Then again, we’re starting to float in mid-air, so a house-sized rock or two might have taken out something important.
“Um, Jess? If everything in the room is weightless, we’re screwed.”
“More like shitfaced, but I get it.” I take her hand. “Come on. Let’s make those turds work to get to us.” I push off from someone nearby to propel us closer to the furthest corner.
“Hey, bitch. Watch it,” some guy younger than either of us says.
I’d like to snap back at him but he’s not worth the effort, even if Stacie seems scared. “C’mon. Let’s just go.” Asshole is still going off like his whining is going to solve anything. He’s not lunging for us, though, so I weave around other people as the weightlessness distracts them. Yes, it’s kinda fun, but won’t be for long.
Finally, we’re at the food dispenser. I didn’t think this room was so big when it was full of other Earthlings. At least, not until I had to pull Stacie across the space while avoiding everyone’s elbows and knees.
We’re crawling up an incline and the change is so subtle I barely notice until Stacie says, “Feel that? The floor is hot.”
I focus and sure enough, our feet are on the ground and it’s warm underneath us. I run through the reasons for why and come up with nothing other than a haywire heating system. “Come on. At least we’ll be higher over there.”
“Should this be so hard?” she asks.
I’m dying to give her a smartass remark, but she’s right. Crawling becomes more of an effort with every movement. My body seems heavier, too, making it tough to lift my hand up. The surface radiates heat so much, I want to stand and breathe in cooler air. “Maybe the wall won’t be as hot.”
Stacie doesn’t say anything, inching up to where I’m stopped by the food dispenser’s bin. I touch the metal to find it’s burning as well. “We’re going to get a lot warmer if I’m right about what’s happening.”
“Which is?”
“I think we’re getting ready to land somewhere with atmosphere,” I say. “Hopefully a breathable one.” We struggle to sit with our backs against the lower bin. I’d had an idea to crawl inside and see if the drop chute led anywhere but not now. Not when we’re doing good to sit upright.
The shuddering has grown, something I hadn’t noticed thanks to the gravity going out of control. “Am I wrong to think we’re going back home?” Stacie asks.
“You probably are. They didn’t come to Earth for nothing.”
She closes her eyes. “I think I’m going to pray now.”
“That might be wise.” I close my eyes, too but don’t get far in my prayer. Something like a plane’s landing gear, only rustier, maybe, begins grinding with effort, shaking the surfaces under us.
I open an eye to peek at everyone else. They’re all looking around until a high-pitched whine has all of us cover our ears. The room sharply lists to our left and people begin rolling toward what used to be uphill a few moments ago. Several of them grab for us as they fly past only to land on the side wall with a crunching thud.
Since I’m heavier than Stacie, I use my weight to be our anchor, keeping us from being slung to the left. Others aren’t so lucky. A rather beefy man is tumbling across in front of us, reaching out and missing our feet. The room begins shaking harder. My teeth chatter and my guts feel like jelly. Just when I think things can’t get worse, we’re thrown to what’s now the back of the room and ever closer to the sewage.
Stacie’s praying out loud now. I can only catch a few references to God because everyone else is screaming or crying for help. She ends up lying across me. Her weight is barely enough to be painful but still hurts a little. I don’t even want to think what the people under us are feeling. I close my eyes, hoping this is all over soon, whatever it is.
Breathing becomes increasingly difficult under the pressure and soon, every breath is a gasp. Stacie’s voice is muffled as she says, “Jess? I’m sorry.”
Her apology surprises me. “What? Why?”
“I know I’m heavy.”
Her sad voice breaks my heart. She feels bad and shouldn’t. No one except the abducting assholes are to blame. I try to reach for her but can’t. I manage to squeak out, “Everyone else is, too. “Don’t worry about it and hope I see you on the other side.” I want to be comforting and hope I am, but don’t think we’ll make it.
“Okay. I’ve been praying for you, too.”
There’s not enough air in my lungs for me to laugh or I would. She’s not the first person to pray for me but looks like she’ll be the last.
The room bounces once, twice, then vibrates as if we’re skidding over a washboard surface. I can take a deep breath now but the grinding and metal tearing is unbearably loud. I’ll be toothless from the shaking and deaf from the noise after this, if I live.
