Page 5 of Diamond
It's monotonous, but some things take priority, and right now, this is it. I walk along all the walls of the outer cloister, the brown stone reminding me of the rest of the desert. I make my way back to the courtyard and see a small crowd gathering.
They are mostly males, and they are not supposed to be here. I attempt to weave through the crowd, then spot Samke talking intensely with another guard.
I interrupt them. "What's happening? Why are there so many males here?"
He doesn't get a chance to answer before we hear cries of alarm, most of them talking about the sky.
We all look up, falling silent for a long moment as a silver and pink… object descends toward us before landing in the inner cloister. The place where no one but females may go, except when there is an immediate threat.
The screaming of women and younglings gives us a clear reason to intrude where we are normally not allowed. I know what I must do, as do my fellow protectors, and we roughly push open the forbidden gate, rushing toward the strange vessel.
It becomes a battlefield, with screams and loud crackles ripping through the air. I follow my brothers and Samke as we screech out our battle cries.
Horrific blasts of green lightning cut through buildings and people, leaving smoking ruins and bodies behind.
Still, I continue on, stepping on the dead bodies of my fellow protectors as I sprint through the inner cloister, unfamiliar with its halls and turns. Another lightning bolt goes through the air, and I hear a pained scream as another body adds to the pile on the ground.
I can taste sand on my tongue as I step on another singed body and almost lose my footing. I look down and recognize him instantly, watching with horror as his glowing cheeks come to a weak end.
I look up, glimpsing gray skin and bulging eyes through some sort of viewing area of the vessel. It sears into my mind, this strange sighting of our enemy.
My chest hardens with hatred for these beasts and the horrors they have brought upon my people. I turn around to search for Samke, hoping he will help me destroy them, but something hits me on the neck and I reach up with a hand to pull it out of me, the cold metal of it feeling smoother than seems natural.
My vision blurs and my legs give out. I fall on my side and try to use my hands to drag myself forward, but they fail me too and I lie limp in a pile of bodies, fighting against myself to just move, to do something.
Forcing all my strength into the only mobile part of my body, I struggle to turn and catch sight of the amorphous figure, bleeding pink as it makes its way toward me.
It makes a honking sound as black dots bleed into my vision.
3
Rin
The moment I regain consciousness, I know right away that something isn't right. What trouble have I gotten myself into this time? My brother will never let me back into his house again, not this time. I know it.
An odd, grating sound comes from above me, and I crack one eye open and see a blob… floating? No, there is glass between us. It's staring at me with beady obsidian eyes that radiate nothing but hunger.
Our eyes meet and its face contorts, making my breath hitch. I open my mouth to scream, but a sharp pain attacks my throat, and my hands instinctively press against it. It honks out a wet sound.
My brain is unsure of which horror to process first. Panic fully sets in. It isn't human or any animal I've ever heard of. I need to get away immediately.
"This one will give us a lot of credits," the blob above me says, making the short, honking sound again before sliding off the glass between us and walking away. My stomach heaves as I watch it through the pink-streaked glass, three short legs moving it as flesh jiggles.
I can understand it. Why?
There are more of them surrounding this odd cage I'm in, and I catch a better view of them, retching as I take in more details, my brain burning. The things are shorter than a human, though bigger, and they have no real shape—gray with something pink seeping out of them, leaving a trail as they slobber away from me.
I shut my eyes tight, willing it to be a dream, but when I open them again, the scene is the same, blurring slightly as a headache thumps right behind my eyes.
Where am I? There are odd trees above me, in colors and shapes I have never seen before, but the squelching sounds of the aliens brings my gaze back to them.
Is this a different… planet? My head spins at the thought, instantly rejecting it as ridiculous. Did he just say he planned to sell me? These are obviously bad people… things?
A sense of immediacy drives me. I need to get away, and my hands push against the glass, but nothing happens. It's some kind of glass and silver cage, seemingly made to fit my exact body proportions, and I realize that escaping is impossible.
Whatever these aliens have planned for me, I can't escape by fighting.
I lie there in a silent panic, ignoring my headache, wondering how I ended up here. If I could just retrace my steps, I might figure out how this happened—how I wandered so far from my brother's house and ended up in this strange place with these awful creatures.