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CHAPTER1
AMARA
The wretched line of human females stumbled through the hellish jungle, prodded on by bellowing alien warriors atop their monstrous mounts. As I watched, a cold fury simmered within me. Each step in this alien jungle was a stark reminder of the once-familiar streets of my hometown, now a distant memory. The jungle was not just a visual terror but a cacophony of despair, the distance punctuated by the women’s labored breaths, haunting calls of unknown creatures adding to the symphony of dread. Around me echoed the sounds of screaming joints, ragged breathing, and hopeless sobs as the women struggled on blistered feet.
The acrid stench of blood and fear hung heavy in the thick, humid air that clung to my skin like a second, suffocating layer. Many captives gagged into their hands with each labored step as insects droned ominously all around. Overhead, gnarled branches clawed at the bruise-colored sky, filtering sickly sunlight onto us.
Two young women clung together as they limped along, one rasping in a hoarse whisper while clutching her friend’s arm tighter: “How long until they… use us?”
Their whispers, tinged with a mixture of despair and defiance, reminded me of my own dwindling hope. Their hands, intertwined in a feeble grip, seemed like the last thread of human connection in this nightmare.
Hollow eyes brimming with dread, her friend whispered back weakly, “I doubt they intend to keep us alive much longer.” Resigned to the worst.
Years of military training surged through my veins, steadying my trembling hands and sharpening my focus amid the chaos. My expertise was a shield, but even shields can crack under relentless pressure. Even years of military discipline couldn’t fully quell the rising panic within me, a toxic brew of fear and desperation. I steadied my nerves, focusing on our captors’ positions and their gleaming weapons. The jungle’s dense canopy cast eerie shadows, playing tricks on my eyes, making me see movement where there was none.
Suddenly a woman crumpled with a soul-shattering wail that raised the hairs on my neck. The sound echoed a memory I’d long suppressed, of a comrade lost in battle, reigniting a familiar ache in my chest. Acting on instinct, I bolted over to her limp form.
“Get up! We must keep moving!” I urgently whispered.
But blank despair stared back. She had given up. My heart raced, torn between the urge to help and the cold, hard logic of survival.
Jaw clenched, I slid my shoulder under the collapsed woman’s weight when two others came to support her between them. There was a moment of eye contact, a shared nod among us, signaling a silent, unified strength against our captors. Their hands, though trembling, were determined as they lifted her, a silent testament to our unspoken oath to not let anyone fall behind. I nodded gratefully as they kept her moving forward under the watchful eyes of our captors. As we trudged on, we landed each step with the weight of our collective will to survive, and in that moment, I knew this journey was more than a fight for survival—it was a declaration of our unyielding spirit.
“Speed up or taste the pain stick again!” Boran’s harsh voice cracked through the air like a whip.
I swallowed hard, fighting to maintain my facade as a perfectly docile captive.
But inside, my fantasies spun… fantasies of ending that brutish, four-armed alien beast. Boran. His was the first face I’d seen upon waking to agonizing pain, his deep rumble commanding, “Get up, lazy Earthling!” Then, again, pain blazing through me from the crystal stick in his hand. A torture device that nearly shredded my spine had introduced me to the hell awaiting me here.
Painfully getting to my feet, I dreamed of painting the ground azure with Boran’s vile blood. My flickering chance of vengeance nurtured me in the darkness of captivity. One day I would turn the tables. I had to if any of us were to survive this nightmare planet.
Just hold on, Amara,I mentally chanted, clinging to a sliver of hope. Every step was a calculated move, a silent dance of survival in this alien world. You’ll put a bullet right between those tangerine eyes one day.
My breath hitched when I recalled how I’d gotten on the hellish planet…
I was camping alone, finding solace under the stars after one too many sleepless nights. Gazing at the glittering sky, I spotted a shining red orb tracing a straight line overhead. Then suddenly it curled into a precise zigzag before stopping dead above me. My combat instincts fired even as the thing vanished. This was no malfunctioning drone.
Securing the perimeter, I detected nothing amiss. Yet back inside my tent, I awoke, blinded by a blazing white glow. Before I could react, unseen forces paralyzed my body and wrenched me upright.
I roared at the agony ripping through my muscles and bones as I levitated out of the tent opening.
What fresh hell was this?
The glow faded as it pulled me against a cold metal surface suspended twenty feet up. My vision cleared to see a small spherical chamber around me, featureless save a pulsing orb overhead. The realization turned my blood to ice. I’d been grabbed by something beyond earthly power… Alien abduction, the concept we’d sneered at now my apparent reality.
Training kicked back in, keeping the terror at bay.
Observe.
Evaluate capabilities.
Seek weaknesses.
As a Special Ops vet, I’d escaped near-impossible situations before. But this? My pulse hammered.
Had I met my match? Gritting my teeth, I steeled every muscle and focused my senses. I had to find some way back to Earth or die trying.
And I was damn well not ready to die yet.
