If he’d been trying to comfort or console these people, he went about it the wrong way. Now there were understandable screams and cries as people pleaded for the safety of their husbands and children. It appeared that they believed the words of their kidnapper, so they came to the conclusion that there was no room for others.
“We are on our way to our new home as I speak. I understand that there will be an intense moment of grief, so I will leave you until such a time that we hear calm in the gymnasium.”
I stared at the speaker above me in disbelief. If what he shared was true, then these people just lost everyone they loved and it was forever. Some lost parents while others lost children. These were obviously a bunch of successful models, so they also lost their careers as well as co-workers and friends. And yet their abductors chose to leave these women inside a giant gymnasium to wallow in their grief?
“Do you believe it?” Mercy asked me as she knelt down next to one of the women and took her into her arms.
“Not sure. I need more evidence,” I said, kneeling next to her.
Mercy was whispering something to the lovely blonde model whose makeup was now streaked with blackened tears. She held her in a tight embrace, telling her that we’d all get to the bottom of this. Then Mercy turned to me and nodded.
“I agree. I’m not believing a single word until I see evidence.”
Thirteen
The sturdy metal hatches near the left side of the visitor’s bleachers opened about an hour later. Shortly after they opened, three women and one man walked in, pushing some wheeled carts in with them. Each of these people were dressed in what I could only describe as baggy black sweats. The carts they brought were probably loaded with the same articles of clothing.
The man who wore his brown stubble in a sharply trimmed beard stepped forward while the three women remained behind him near the carts. I didn’t like this man because he didn’t seem the slightest bit scared, worried, or apologetic. His perfect hair and perfect beard encircled a perfectly white smile that screamed “I’m better than you, so listen to me.”
“Now that it has quieted down for the most part, I thought it time to introduce myself. I’m the captain of the USS Maelstrom, Hiram Toth, and I’m sorry about the news you received today. While we wish we had the ability to rescue ten billion, we only have suites and food for two hundred. Yes, you only amount to one-eleven, but that was never the plan when we stopped by.”
“My husband is-” “I have two kids who-” “We have room for my-”
The room erupted again and I couldn’t make out anything. I only knew that everyone had someone they knew who could/should be rescued.
“Listen! Hush! Please listen!” he hollered, raising his hand, “We already did one jump, placing us about a half-lightyear from Earth already. We’re not going back – not ever. It’s simply not an option.”
Soon, the gym was awash in the tears of a hundred-plus models. We were right back where we started.
“HUSH!” I screamed, causing a lull to follow almost immediately, “Listen, I don’t know about all of you, but we’ve already been through the worst news. We’ve already been told what happened and why. We’re alive, like it or not! We’re alive and being given a second chance – like it or not! Would you please let the Captain speak?”
The man stared at me in appreciation… which I didn’t appreciate. He and I were most certainly not friends. Nevertheless, I wanted him to finish his train of thought. I didn’t want another hour of being locked in the gymnasium with some crying women.
“Thank you, and yes, you’ve all been given a second chance at life. It’s not ideal and certainly not in the best circumstances, but nevertheless, you’ve been rescued. Let’s all please accept the hand we’ve been dealt and start taking this new life one step at a time. Let’s begin with comfortable clothing. The majority of you do not look the slightest bit comfortable and the heating systems on this ship are not ideal, so these next two months will be a little on the cold side. I’m sure you’ll find these offerings in the carts will suit your needs. These three behind me will assist you in getting dressed. They too were rescued from Earth a year ago and have joined us in an effort to assist you through your current struggles. After all, they were in your shoes this time last year. I will leave you for the time being while you get into something more comfortable. After that, you will be escorted to your suites. I think you will soon discover that you are going to be treated like royalty. This is the way of the USS Maelstrom.”
And with that, he paid me a curious glance and then dismissed himself from the room. The three women at the wheeled carts then began to gesture us toward them. It was time to get out of this horrible dress.
Fourteen
Mercy and I stayed close to the three crew members who doled out the clothing. We kept our backs to each other as we changed out of the skimpy dresses and into the surprisingly comfortable sweats. There was no room for modesty in the gymnasium as models were apparently accustomed to changing clothes quickly in front of their peers. We made it appear that we were equally comfortable around such bold nakedness.
“Yes, it’s very much like Earth except a little more tropical than we’re used to in the United States. Imagine Central America or maybe Hawaii but without the volcanoes,” a crew woman nearby said in reply to a model’s question, “Rest assured, we’re taking you to a nation that will welcome you with open arms. You’ve each already got your own apartment at no cost to you in appreciation for your contributions to our world.”
“There has to be a way to save my family. My parents are expecting me for dinner tomorrow!” someone said.
“We aren’t the bad guys. The bad guys are the ones who somehow cancelled the mass exodus some three hundred years ago. The bad guys are the ones who stopped building spacecraft and warning the world about the inevitable destruction of the Solar System.”
“You said ‘we’… do you identify as these people now?” someone asked.
“Well of course! After the Titanic sinks, do the survivors still identify as passengers of the Titanic or do they identify as survivors? Their places of residence would forevermore be anything except the Titanic!” she said, “If someone later referred to someone else as a resident of the Titanic, then it would be understood that they died in that tragedy.”
“My family…”
“I’m truly sorry. I wish I could show you the future. We can’t fix the past, but you’ll see that the future holds so much joy and opportunity.”
“We can’t fix the past?” I whispered to Mercy, having overheard this conversation.
The two of us had been standing nearby, pretending to wait impatiently as the others changed clothes. Mercy turned to me.
“I think time travel must have been discovered after the 2500’s. Perhaps they don’t know about the Chronocidal Guard or the things that are being done to alter the suicides of the past,” Mercy whispered, “Do we tell them?”
“No!” I said a little too loud, “We don’t know that any of this is true and we certainly don’t know if we could trust them. Do you think that the ones who rescued us from the past really believed that these were aliens?”
“No, they couldn’t have. They had to have known that these were humans and maybe they even recognized the ship. But at the same time, we were sent here armed and trained, which means there’s something more. Perhaps they knew that we’d see through the charade and still take over this ship and turn it around.”
“So, are we going to do that? Take over the ship and turn it around? What if there really is a black hole coming?” I asked.
“Well, that’s something that we need to figure out,” Mercy said.
The sound of carts moving drew our attention to the women of the crew. They had apparently finished passing out the clothing and taking our dresses from us. After that, one of the ladies insisted that we follow her out of the gym and into the corridor. Mercy and I stayed back, allowing all the others to depart ahead of us. We
lagged behind the long parade of models, keeping our eyes and ears opened as we examined our surroundings.
Besides the presence of my fellow abductees, the corridors were empty as we made our way to the residency level. Mercy and I hadn’t been aware of the fact that our escort was now an older lady who walked with a cane. We hadn’t been able to see our escort as we’d been trailing at the rear of the group. It was only as we neared our own suites that we could see the woman with the cane.
“Here is your berthing for the duration. Please press play on the computer terminal for your indoctrination,” she said to the model in front of me.
The model entered the room and the door closed behind her. The grey-haired woman with the cane then took a few more steps and tapped the door across the hall.
“Here is your berthing for the duration. Please press play on the computer terminal for your indoctrination,” she said, turning to me.
I turned to Mercy, realizing that we would be split up at this point. I hadn’t been prepared for such an idea. Mercy and I had been inseparable since the moment I was rescued from my suicide. Now I was expected to continue on alone.
“I’ll be over in a bit,” Mercy whispered to me, probably noticing the worry in my expression.
I sighed, then entered my suite. The door closed automatically behind me. I noticed a fancy private bathroom to my immediate right, then as I proceeded, I found a fair-size bedroom with a large double bed. I also noticed a dresser, a computer desk with a desk lamp, a computer, and some writing supplies. An enormous flat television took up a giant portion of the wall across from the bed – or at least I assumed it was a television based on the world I’d once lived in. But since the computer was recognizable, maybe some of these technologies were stationary throughout the ages. I saw similar devices in my own time such as air conditioners, washers, dryers, ovens, and automobiles. Someone from fifty, sixty, or even a hundred years before my time would recognize these things in my own era.
I noticed just then that the computer monitor had a large command boldly displayed in red letters. It simply directed me to press “play”. I pulled out the office chair, then took a seat before an unfamiliar keyboard. While the QWERTY keyboard looked the same in many ways, there were dozens of extra function keys along the top and left side. That was the moment I discovered a set of keys on the left that resembled the ‘fast-forward’ and ‘pause’ buttons on a television remote. That was where I immediately located the sideways triangle of the ‘play’ key.
I pressed the key, causing the image on the monitor to flicker, then switch over to the face of the captain I’d seen earlier.
“Welcome again to the USS Maelstrom. My name again is Captain Hiram Toth and I’ll be in charge of your safe arrival to humanity’s last hope of survival in this universe – Zeta2 Cancri. That name is a bit of a mouthful, so the people of the world simply call it Cancri as it’s the only Earthlike planet in the whole Cancer constellation. Allow me to be your guide to this ship.
“No need to concern yourself with your meals because they will be brought to you, three times a day. Simply hit the F1 key at any time throughout the day and you will be presented with a menu for the day’s meals. Go ahead and order whatever you want with no regard for cost. The television comes with a remote which you will find on your bed. You will have access to over ten thousand films and hundreds of comedy skits. If that doesn’t suit your tastes, simply use the game controller on the nightstand and hit any button. You’ll be presented with over a thousand games to choose from, some of which can be played against others throughout the ship.
“If you desire physical activity, take a look at the map I’ve displayed on your screen. Please take note of the highlighted areas on the map. Here, you’ll find three exercise facilities, a gymnasium which you’ve already seen, and a swimming pool. You have unlimited access to all of this. We only ask that you log where you intend to go when you leave your suite. There is a terminal next to the door where you can log this. Simply enter your destination, then the door will open for you.
“We have about two months together as we make our way to Cancri, so my goal is to make sure you’ll enjoy your accommodations. You are a gift to our people and to the future of mankind. It’s time you realize that. Welcome to the USS Maelstrom and thank you for joining our world.”
The screen went blank, then suddenly it brought up a main menu. This menu offered ‘games, literature, history, encyclopedia, data entry/writing, ship-wide net, mail, and Cancri’. I scooted the chair back just as someone beat on my door. I got up quickly and approached the door.
“Come in!” I hollered, knowing it was most likely Mercy.
“I can’t,” she hollered back, “Open the door.”
I noticed the terminal as I approached. It was like a digital pad that had some predetermined destinations imprinted on them. I had a choice of the gym, any of the exercise facilities, and the swimming pool. Then I noticed ‘visit fellow guest’. I hit that function and the door suddenly opened.
Mercy shot into my room and the door closed behind her. She placed her hands on my shoulders as she pressed me up against the wall.
“I’m sure they can hear us, so don’t say anything without thinking first. I’m staying here. The beds are big enough and neither of us are comfortable alone. What do you say?” she asked.
“I agree a hundred percent. But… well, I want you to know that I’m heterosexual,” I said.
Mercy laughed, then released me from her grasp, “So am I, Hunter! Did you really think otherwise?”
“I simply didn’t know and you seem so affectionate at times. And I’m totally cool with that because I really need a hug sometimes… like ‘sometimes’ soon. Like now.”
Mercy took me into her arms as she continued to laugh. She held me tight and I wrapped her in my own arms.
“You’re just as affectionate as I am, Hunter. It’s just that you lack the compunction to move in and hug someone when they need it. Nevertheless, I’ve got you,” she said, releasing me as she seemed to examine me, “You okay?”
“Yeah, it’s just really crazy in my head right now. Not sure what to believe and what to do next.”
“Good – that tells me you’re sane and you’ve got it all together. I’m with you, girl,” she said, “Let’s grab some writing utensils and some paper and get to work.”
Fifteen
We took the pad of paper and the pens from the desk and then sat down on the bed. We needed to come up with a plan, but we needed to do so without any talking. There may not have been any recording devices in the room, but it was probably best to assume there was. As a group of unwilling abductees, we’d been given far too much freedom which made no sense to me at all. As such, there was good reason to believe that we were being watched and listened to.
We wrote back and forth our thoughts, concerns, and plans.
“We are being treated like valuable cargo, like the slave trade of the 1600’s. Granted our living spaces are significantly better than on those old slave ships,” I wrote.
“I got the same feeling. Maybe everything is true about the black hole and our new home on Cancri, but this trip isn’t free. And besides, who has ever thought ‘Wow, we need more people in our city’?” she wrote.
“So, how do we investigate without drawing any attention to us? And whom do we investigate? Do we go see the captain? Or how about those women who were abducted a year ago?”
“Those women seemed brainwashed to me. We need to locate some real crew members who were born and raised on Cancri.”
“Then what? We’re expensive cargo, so they won’t be willing to talk or share secret information.”
“They will when there’s a gun to their head!” Mercy wrote.
I laughed aloud, then wrote, “Is that your answer for everything?”
“It worked in the alley, didn’t it? Besides, it’s why we were given these.”
Suddenly the door opened and two angry-looking men rushed in. I was sta
rtled just then to hear some crinkling as Mercy shoved our paper into her mouth and started chewing it.
“You swallow that paper and you’ll die,” a man said, pointing a finger at her.
She continued to chew with a smile on her face.
“We’re serious! The paper is poisoned just to prevent such things. Spit it out and do not swallow your spit!” the other man said, “We’ll give you an oral rinse to remove any latent poisons in your mouth.”
She stopped chewing as her eyes grew wide.
“You can taste it, can’t you? It’s a bittersweet taste.”
She spat out the paper, then started spitting repeatedly onto the bedspread. A third man entered the room carrying a clear bottle filled with a blue fluid. He gestured anxiously for Mercy to follow him into the bathroom. She leapt from the bed while I watched one of the men grab the slobbery ball of paper.
I could hear Mercy gargling and spitting stuff repeatedly into the bathroom sink. It surprised me when the man started pulling the wet paper out of its ball shape. He didn’t seem to care that it was spit he was getting all over his hands as he proceeded to return the paper to its original form.
“What do we have here?” that was the captain who just entered my suite.
Mercy was being escorted back to the bed while the captain held out his hand for the tattered sheet of paper. The man handed it to him while Mercy scooted close to me on the bed. She took my hand in hers while we all waited for the captain to finish reading what we’d written. I noticed that his beard and hair were still perfect. He didn’t even have a five o’clock shadow on his neck or the other areas around where he’d cleaned up the edges.
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