Princess For Them

by Kelsey Blaine

  “You see we've advanced. We no longer have to bind you to the chair. Now it's simply a matter of deactivating the pulses directly from your brain,” the Dytrusk explained.

  “How...” Gabe croaked again.

  “Do not try to speak. It will only cause you pain. Think about what you want to say instead,” the Dytrusk replied. “There is a needle inserted at the base of your skull. This prevents movement while keeping your brain intact. We wouldn't want to fry it just yet.”

  He chuckled and set the digital device down on a metal plate, reaching for something that was out of Gabe's vision. A different device appeared and the Dytrusk pointed it at a screen across the room. It pulled up the surveillance of Earth and showed the hundreds of people lying still on the ground.

  Bastards, he thought.

  The Dytrusk raised the digital device to his throat again.

  “Indeed,” said the Dytrusk. “Your people have wronged us. We made a peace treaty 123 years ago and yet you still dared to violate our trust in your government and your despicable people.”

  It wasn't us, Gabe thought.

  “But it was. We tracked the exploding drone you had sent our way right back to these exact coordinates, to the very planet that boasts acceptance of all life. What hypocrites you creatures have turned out to be. You've never even accepted your own people, your own races, and you dare to repeat such ghastly things to us,” the Dytrusk explained.

  I swear I would have known if it was us, but it wasn't, Gabe thought.

  “You did. It was you who sent the disgusting drone in our direction. Your little projects were the ones using our technology, taking advantage of our scientists, and then wreaking that havoc on us as if we were your beloved lab rats,” the Dytrusk went on.

  We don't even use rats anymore, Gabe thought humorously.

  “Don't mock me, human. You're the one we want. We've been seeking your genius mind and now we have it to suck every last bit of intelligence that's left. When we're finished with you, you'll be nothing but a drooling idiot who can't speak,” the Dytrusk said huskily. “And your people will become our servants.”

  The Galactic Federation would never let that happen, Gabe thought. We have an agreement. We intend to hold that agreement. Why don't you talk to our government?

  “They're useless. They have allowed the slaughter of our people for centuries before finally agreeing to protect us. We're low-life citizens to you and to the Federation. Negotiating with our own oppressors would only feed them more power. We refuse to participate in such a disgusting system any longer!” the Dytrusk cried. “We're taking your brain whether you like it or not.”

  You can't get away with this. You simply can't. I haven't done a thing to you. My allegiance is to my people. You're putting me in a delicate situation, Gabe thought.

  “Your allegiance means nothing. Your people will soon be as mindless as you and we will reap the rewards of your earthly technology. Seeing as much of it came from us, we're merely taking back our own,” the Dytrusk retorted.

  Torn, Gabe stared in horror at the screen. Before, he couldn't open his eyes. Now he couldn't close them. Something kept his attention fixed on the screen and it was maddening. His gut churned as he studied the blue and purple faces and his eyes twitched as he recognized their lost humanity.

  Oh, Robyn, he thought sullenly. Robyn and Charles. My sweet life. My beautiful creations. All of my friends and co-workers…

  “Yes, that's right, Engineer Operative 002. You will lose everything, just as we have,” the Dytrusk said. “Think of more. We'll capture all of your memories soon enough.”

  Memories, Gabe thought. That's it.

  As the Dytrusk stepped out of his vision, he was able to shut his eyes and rest. Something lulled him into a black haze, into a dark abyss, where nothing but his memories waited to be reviewed. They started in flashes of light, but soon became full visions that filled him with joy and pain. He saw his work station. As he started typing, he imagined the screen as a television displaying all his most sacred treasures that he kept hidden.

  There was his dog from his childhood running towards the screen. The smoke in the background from a fire that once broke out in the gymnasium. A tall building holding colorful windows for a festival. Bits of paper crumbled up in his hand from his ex-wife. A letter sitting in the other about his acceptance into the engineering program. His most recent encounter with Robyn. The way her skin felt against him, how his moans filled the room, and the way their bodies had melted together in a beautiful heap of passion.

  He thought of everything he possibly could to thwart the invasion of his brain, the wonderful pulsing organ that held all manner of engineering knowledge. A grunt came from the distance and his eyes opened, blinking rapidly against the bright lights shining down.

  “Stop fighting!” cried the Dytrusk.

  No, Gabe thought. I will never stop fighting.

  ***

  Robyn shuddered as she followed Charles outside of the metal doors guarding the hospital. The air was deathly quiet. Most of the drones had retreated and the courtyard was dark with dim lights lining the sidewalks, enough for them to see the path that lie ahead. She took his hand and squeezed it.

  “Do you trust me?” he asked her in a low voice.

  “Yes,” she replied.

  “As long as you're holding onto me, they won't see you, okay?” he said.

  She nodded quickly, her eyes watching the sky intently as she took a hesitant step forward. Her shoes clicked against the concrete, each step causing her to shudder nervously.

  “Don't worry,” he whispered. “I have us cloaked. They can't hear us.”

  “What if we can't get on the ship?” she asked. “I don't even see any around here.”

  “There's one on the other side of the engineering building. They are boarding now,” he said.

  “How do you know that?” she asked.

  “Whenever Gabe worked on my leg, he added a few minor technical advances that included being able to read information without having to see it,” he replied. “It sends the information up into my brain where it registers as a memory.”

  “That's fascinating,” she whispered.

  “We can also send each other messages silently,” he added.

  “So, you do have a secret language,” she said with a grin. “Is he saying anything now?”

  “I can't tell...he's too out of reach,” he replied grimly. “But once we get up there, I can locate him easily.”

  “You two should be in the military with how much you've evolved,” she said.

  “We've considered it. However, fighting really isn't our style,” he said.

  “But your brains are incredible. Surely they can be useful,” she said. “Especially now. We wouldn't be doing this if it wasn't for your brain.”

  Charles remained silent as they quickly sprinted around the side of the building. Up ahead, a military pod was boarding with a few soldiers who were wearing Pocket Oxygen, their laser guns strapped to their sides. Charles firmly pulled Robyn towards the entrance and slipped on board while the gate was closing, pressing themselves against the wall. The door hissed shut.

  As the pod took off, Robyn gripped the wall, her stomach doing flips as the pod sped up through the atmosphere. It was nauseating and she found herself gagging while gripping Charles by the hand. He squeezed in response, a sort of subtle way of offering support. The pod lurched suddenly and she nearly vomited as it steadied.

  “Nearing destination,” said a digital voice.

  Her eyes remained locked on the door, waiting for their moment to sprint out. The pod lurched again and then plunged into darkness. Red lights flashed and an alarm blared as the miniature pod shook. When the doors opened, Charles darted out with Robyn in hand, diving between Dytrusk soldiers in order to get to the doors. They dove into the hallway and paused for a moment, Robyn leaning up against the wall to catch her breath. She adjusted the Pocket Oxygen over her mouth.

  Her heart w
as racing. She placed two fingers over her wrist to check her heart rate, eyes widening at how alarmingly fast it was beating. Charles took her hand again.

  “Let's go,” he said.

  With a grunt, Robyn followed and tried to keep his pace. Her heels were clanking off the metal floor and hurting her ankles with every step. The pain became overwhelming and she stopped for a moment to remove them, noticing the small collection of soldiers behind her.

  “Charles!” she cried.

  He turned and darted in front of her to block them, raising his leg to pull a miniature laser gun from the cybernetic attachment. A few shots took the first one down, but the other two kept running, their bulky feet thunderously hitting the ground. He shook the laser gun.

  “It won't fire!” he cried.

  “Watch out!” she yelled.

  Charles ducked and a red shoe went flying over his head, landing in the center of the hallway. The confused Dytrusk soldiers paused and stared with confusion at the shoe. It gave Charles time to fix the laser gun and shoot again, knocking them over from their positions. He turned around and planted a kiss on her lips.

  “Good thinking, darling,” he said.

  “I try,” she said.

  “Let's keep going. We're almost there,” he said.

  A few doors down from where they were standing was a blue door, one that was guarded with digital security. Charles fiddled with the screen.

  “I hate technology,” he grumbled.

  “You only hate it because it's not working for you,” Robyn joked.

  “Hush,” he groaned. “I'm getting there.”

  As Robyn giggled, the doors slid open and she jumped back. A Dytrusk stood on the other side, offering Charles a puzzled expression as he laughed nervously.

  “Fixed it,” he said in a low voice.

  “Duck,” she groaned.

  The other red shoe went flying through the air and whacked the Dytrusk in the face, causing several of its eyes to cross. It teetered for a moment and then stumbled forward to the ground. Charles regarded him with curiosity.

  “Oh,” he said. “Well, that worked.”

  Robyn shrugged.

  “I didn't think it would,” she said.

  “You're just more amazing by the minute,” he said while taking her by the waist.

  “There's Gabe!” she cried, pointing.

  In the center of the room was a medical chair. Gabe was lying motionless on top of it, his skin as pale as a bedsheet. A metal bowl rested over his forehead with wires attached to it that looped around the back of his skull to a large needle. It was drilled into his neck, the wires exiting and curling around the bottom of the chair to a computer across the room.

  “He looks terrible,” she whimpered while approaching his motionless body. “What have they done to him?”

  “I haven't seen this in years,” Charles whispered. “It's a mind control technique that a distant hateful race of aliens developed back in 2218. It was immediately banned by the Federation before Earth joined the Universal Peace Force.”

  “I don't understand why they would do this to him,” Robyn said, running her fingers over Gabe's pale cheek.

  “It's to suck memories from his brain while keeping him immobile. The program effectively wipes each memory and stores it in a database for later viewing, almost like a personal movie archive,” Charles explained.

  “Dreadful,” she whispered. “Utterly dreadful.”

  “This is the most horrific way you can kill someone,” Charles commented.

  “They're killing him?!” she cried.

  “Unfortunately, yes. I'll have to counteract the program before releasing Project X. It'll kill him if we can't get him off the machine,” he said.

  “What can I do?” she asked.

  “Talk to him. Try to coax him out of that hypnotized state,” he replied.

  Taking a deep and shaky breath, she rested her soft fingers against his pallid cheek. He was ice cold. The usual vigorous warmth of his skin had been replaced with ice and his eyelids were barely open, the edges of his lashes coated in miniature icicles. She did her best to brush them away and then cupped his face while resting her lips to his ear.

  “Hello, darling,” she whispered. “It's Robyn. I know we haven't known each other very long at all, but last night was one of the best nights of my life.”

  Computer keys clicked in the background and Robyn could hear Charles grunting. Screens clicked and beeps erupted from the massive computer lining the wall, the lights above them shining bright and then dimming suddenly.

  “You have been such a kind person. Everything I know about you is only superficial, but I feel like I've known you and Charles for the longest time. You two are incredible. I could have never imagined having two lovers, but this has been such a beautiful experience that I couldn't imagine having it any other way,” she went on.

  “Gaining consciousness. Keep going, Robyn,” Charles said.

  “You're amazing. Your mind is amazing. Don't let it go to waste, darling,” she whispered tearfully. “Come back to us, please. We can't go on like this without you. What a horrible world it would be without your amazing spirit.”

  “Just a few more codes,” Charles groaned. “Come on!”

  Robyn turned to see him smacking the keys while grunting. He rested his head against the computer screen. When she turned back to Gabe, his eyes were fluttering.

  “It's working!” she cried. “Come on, Gabe. Come back!”

  Her fingers shook as she held his face, tears blinding her vision as she leaned down to press her cheek to his icy skin. Her lips quivered as she rubbed them against his pallid cheek, dragging them over to his frozen lips.

  “Come back,” she whispered.

  With a heavy heart and a clenched gut, she pressed her lips to his as tears rolled down her face. It was her last effort to pull him from that horrible hypnotic state, to yank him from the depths of his demise.

  And she hoped hard that it would work.

  ***

  A croak came from the lips Robyn was kissing and she jumped back with a squeak.

  “He's breathing!” she cried. “Charles, come quickly!”

  Within seconds, Charles was at her side and helping to detach the horrible needle from the back of Gabe's neck. Robyn did her best to remove it with minimal damage, tossing it to the ground as soon as it was pulled out. She removed the helmet and then dug through her coat pocket for her miniature patching kit.

  As Gabe groaned, she carefully dabbed the wound with a moist disinfectant wipe and then applied an adhesive medical patch to it. A hiss came from his lips, almost like an elongated sigh.

  “These gel patches always come in handy in emergencies,” she said. “The inside layer is coated with fast acting pain killers to keep him from getting a massive headache.”

  When she was done, she stood and held up a tiny light over his eyes.

  “Gabe, can you hear us?” she asked while flashing the light over his pupils.

  He groaned as his pupils dilated, squinting against the light. Robyn sighed with a smile and planted a kiss on his nose. She wiped away a few rogue pieces of ice and then pulled a warm pack from her pocket.

  “What else do you keep in there?” Charles asked with a grin.

  “Half the hospital,” she replied jokingly.

  When she applied the warm pack to Gabe's neck, he shot up from the chair and wailed. She quickly laid him back down and patted his shoulder.

  “Hey, it's okay. You're fine now,” she said.

  “Huh?” Gabe asked, his eyes rolling around the room. “Where am I?”

  “On the Dytrusk ship. You were taken and they were trying to steal your brain,” she replied.

  “I feel like I've been hit by a ship,” Gabe groaned.

  “You're going to have a headache for a few days. I'll get you some medicine from the hospital when we get back,” she explained.

  “The virus,” Charles blurted. “Gabe, I need the virus from you.
”

  “What virus?” Gabe asked.

  “Give him a few minutes. He's suffering some minor memory loss,” Robyn said.

  “We don't have a few minutes. We need to shut this down immediately,” Charles said firmly.

  In one swift motion, she turned to Charles and pressed her finger to the center of his chest. He immediately stepped back as her face flushed red.

  “Do you want him to completely lose his memory?” she asked heatedly.

  Charles shook his head.

  “Then, hush,” she spat. “Because he needs a few minutes.”

  “I'm sorry,” he whispered.

  Robyn softened her gaze, lowering her green eyes to the ground. Her toes were bare against the cold metal floor, her warm skin growing colder by the second the longer she stood without shoes. She raised her gaze.

  “I know you care about us both, but we need to be careful or else he might have permanent brain damage,” she explained. “I'm sorry I raised my voice.”

  “No, you had every right to get angry with me. I'm sorry,” he said.

  With a faint smile, she stood up on the tips of her toes and planted a kiss on his lips before turning to find the medical chair empty. Her panicked eyes darted around the room until they found Gabe standing at the computer. He held up a flash drive in his cybernetic fingers.

  “Eat this, you bastards,” he groaned.

  He slipped the flash drive into the computer and then collapsed to the ground. Robyn rushed to his side and cradled his head to her bosom, stroking the brown hair away from his eyes.

  “You just couldn't rest, could you?” she joked.

  “Never. Not until these jerks are defeated,” he replied. “They rattled around in my brain and tried to take all of my beautiful memories. They can suffer for it.”

  The computer beeped rapidly as the screens became a colorful mess of pixelated shapes. While the computer continued to beep, the lights above them flashed. Within moments, the entire room was plunged into darkness and Robyn pulled out her little flashlight from her pocket. She waved it around the room.

  “What's happening?” she asked.

  “It worked,” Charles replied. “It actually worked.”