A Web Through Time

by Niki Livingston

  “I didn’t want this.” Alex raked her hands through her obsidian hair, stepping away from the trio. “I was just fine, living my life back in my time. Why did you have to bring me here?” Alex cried, her hands squeezing into fists.

  “Do you not understand?” Her father asked, easing toward her. “They want to slay you in front of the entire human and anaman races. You would’ve never stood a chance.”

  Alex shook her head, breathing deeply to calm her pounding heart and the fire burning in her mind, wanting nothing more than to wake up from this nightmare. “I do understand,” she whispered, exhaling sharply. “I just don’t want to believe it. I want to go back home, to my little apartment and my awful job, with my flaky friends. That life is far better than being ripped away from my planet.”

  Tallisa grasped Alex’s elbow leading her away from her parents’ and into a bedroom at the end of the hallway. Settling on the bed, Tallisa patted the spot next to her. Alex sighed heavily, sinking onto the soft cushion.

  “I know this is a shock and I’m not here to judge, but you need to get a grip,” Tallisa lectured, turning to face Alex. “We are all leaving our home, not just you and unlike you we’ve been running from these barbaric leaders for many years. You’re our family. We want nothing more than to keep you safe, and at the same time, be near you. Please take a moment and remember that your parents’ are doing the best, with what they know.”

  Alex moved back onto the bed and hung her head. “I don’t want to be here.”

  “None of us do.” Tallisa patted Alex’s leg. “We have a plan and if you come with us, your future will be brighter and more fulfilling than if you remained in the past. Think about it.”

  Tallisa rose from the bed and gave Alex a pointed look. Alex pursed her lips. She glanced up at Tallisa and nodded her head. “Okay. Can I have some time to myself?”

  “Of course. We have to depart soon, so don’t take too much time.” Tallisa left the room, giving Alex a wicked smile before shutting the door behind her.

  The woman still seemed like someone Alex shouldn’t trust. She stared at the door for quite a while, thinking back to her job and wondering why she really wanted to return. “Because no one wanted to murder me back in 2025,” she grumbled to herself. Her gaze swept over the small room.

  The walls were filled with floor to ceiling cabinets, with a desk on the far end of the room. A television was embedded in the wall by the door and a small nightstand was flush with the bed, with a wall mounted lamp hovering above it. Feeling the weight of the world on her shoulders, she settled into the pillows and wrapped her arms around one of them, cuddling it close for comfort.

  “At least the pillows haven’t changed much over the years,” Alex uttered, her eyes closing, thinking of her mother and father and the possibility of leaving Earth forever. The tears spilled from her eyes and she yearned to have her feet back on the ground. Squeezing her eyes tight, she willed her body to return to her little apartment, but instead a sob rose in her throat and she began to weep in mourning for the life and home she knew she had to leave behind.

  Once the tears stopped falling and her cries settled down, she felt the tug of sleep. She yawned and snuggled farther into the warmth of the pillows.

  Just as she was feeling the pull of the darkness, a chilly sensation that someone was hovering over her swept across her. Snapping her eyes open, she saw a black cloth near her face, just before it enveloped her eyes and mouth. Shrieking into the cloth, she thrashed against the forceful hands wrapped around her body, while they squeezed her arms against her chest. Her blood ran cold as terror gripped her chest in a vice hold.

  Her screams were muffled and she struggled to use her legs to kick her captor. Squirming her arms underneath the pressure, she tried to wrestle out of their embrace, but failed as a needle pricked the side of her neck and icy liquid slid into her veins. Relaxation came without warning and as she drifted off, the last thought was of her mother’s heartbroken face.

  Chapter Five

  Dysfunctional Family

  Waking up, Alex’s pulse was drumming in her ears and the cement ground sent shivers down her spine. Wrapping her arms around herself, she eased up against the wall behind her, shifting into a seated position. The room was shadowy, with a dim light cascading underneath the door, revealing the emptiness surrounding her. Fear clawed through her, realizing she was probably in the hands of her parent’s enemies.

  Her groans filled the room. She curled her hands around her head, willing the headache to dissipate so she could focus. Hearing footsteps approaching her door, she pushed herself off the floor, sagging against the wall for support, before tiptoeing over to the doorway. She stood on one side, waiting for her captor to enter.

  As the door slid open, light flooded the room and Tallisa waltzed into Alex’s dungeon. Surprised to not see Alex when she walked in, she swung around and Alex punched her in the nose, bringing her other fist around and connecting it with the tyrant’s jaw. Tallisa cried out and grabbed her face, blood pouring from her nose and eyeing Alex with icy contempt.

  Before Alex could throw another punch, her arms were pressed to her sides as a set of large hands clasped together against her waist. She was quickly yanked away from Tallisa and was held on the other side of the room. Tallisa wiped her nose and another woman helped clean her up, before she faced Alex again.

  “You little bitch,” Tallisa hissed, her usual wicked smile growing across her face. “You’ve been nothing but trouble and the moment the anaman leaders end your life, I’ll finally be able to live in peace.”

  “Why?” Alex asked, tugging at her arms and attempting to free them.

  “Why, what?” Tallisa approached Alex, a sneer replacing her smile.

  “Why would you do this to your brother? I thought we were family.” Alex felt the tears welling up in her eyes and she wished she could wipe them away, as they tumbled down her cheeks.

  Tallisa shook her head. “Tsk, tsk, tsk. You shouldn’t trust anyone in this time period.” She wiped Alex’s tears with her thumb and then stroked her long hair with her hand. “There, there dear Alex. It won’t be the most pleasant experience, but when they finally execute you, it will all be over and you won’t have to deal with the heartbreak of leaving this planet.”

  She gripped Alex’s hair, yanking it and grinning when Alex screamed from the pain. “My brother and your mother believe they are untouchable. I’m weary of their condescending leadership, along with their holier than thou attitude, just because they began the revolution. I want to leave this god-forsaken planet and live in peace wherever I please, but they refuse to listen to any of my proposals. So, I took my life path into my own hands.”

  She chuckled, as she released Alex’s hair and sauntered toward the door, her hips swaying with each step. “Henry was only trying to protect you, but I was able to convince them that he was working with the human leaders to end your life. None of them will even know what hit them, until it’s too late.” Tallisa looked over her shoulder and nodded at the stranger holding her captive, before slipping out of the room.

  The man tossed her to the ground and kicked her in the face, sending her tumbling to the other end of the room. Alex groaned, holding her face in her hands and weeping uncontrollably, as the door closed behind the overgrown brute.

  Her nose pulsated with her beating heart and her headache had only grown in strength. Alex curled within herself, barely able to breathe as the sobs rocked her body, before passing out from sheer exhaustion.

  Chapter Six

  For Her Parents’ Sin

  A wave of icy water splashed over Alex’s face, spiraling her back from a numbed blackness. She crossed her arms over her face, sliding away from whomever was showering her. Blinking through her wet hair, she peered up to see Tallisa and the enormous anaman man who had kicked her in the face staring down at her.

  “Time to rise and shine,” Tallisa laughed, holding a bucket to her side.

  The man’s biceps f
lexed, as he leaned over and gripped her by the shoulders, yanking her off the ground. He snapped handcuffs on her and pushed her over the threshold of the door, into a long corridor. Alex glanced around, but before she could gain her bearings, she was shoved to the left and down the hallway, nearly stumbling face first onto the ground.

  She whimpered, as the barbarian gripped her hair, yanking her into another room and forcing her to sit on a cold, hard chair. He twisted her to face a camera and a room full of fancy dressed anamans and humans. Their laughter filled the arena as they pointed at the broken girl in front of them.

  Tallisa leaned down and whispered into her ear. “It’s time for your parents to find out where you are, along with the rest of Earth’s population. You will read verbatim what you see behind the camera and if you choose to add any of your own nonsense, I’ll have Dallin stab your leg with his dagger. Do you understand?”

  Alex nodded, a few tears sliding from her eyes and absorbing with her wet hair that was matted against her face. Tallisa adjusted the camera and smiled at the people behind her, before mouthing “Jackasses” to Dallin, who was standing just inside Alex’s peripheral view. A tiny smile surfaced on his lips, but the rest of him remained at attention.

  “You’re on in five, four,” Tallisa mouthed three, two, one, staring pointedly at Alex.

  Alex noticed the camera switch on and she licked her lips, as she stared at the words that appeared on the screen behind it. “My name is Alex Martanium. I am the only child of Jax and Adina Martanium and have been brought to this prison to await execution—” Alex’s voice shook and faltered, as a sob rose in her throat. Her eyes flashed over to Tallisa and then to Dallin, petrified by what they would do if she messed this up. Clearing her throat, she hurried to catch up with the words. “—for their rise against the laws of our forefathers. I was conceived while my mother was married to the human, Leonard Planton, one of our beloved Senators, who did not deserve a traitor as a wife. Because of my parent’s sins, I will be tortured over the next five days and executed on the final night, leaving my body to burn on Earth when the moon collides with its mother.”

  Alex hung her head, fear paralyzing her, as the people behind the camera laughed and hollered with delight. Tallisa nodded at Dallin as she fidgeted with the camera. The large barbarian, curled his massive hand around the tender flesh of her forearm, yanking her out of the chair. When they reached her freezing cold room, he undid her restraints, before picking her up and tossing her inside, chuckling to himself as the side of her head smacked against the wall and she slid to the ground with a crash.

  There was nothing else to do, but cry. Alex’s head was raw and inflamed, and her shoulder was throbbing from the impact. Not being able to move it, she realized it had been dislocated. The tears were falling and she cradled her arm, not knowing what to do, as she looked around her prison. Her teeth chattered from the chill she felt from within.

  Closing her eyes, she cried softly to herself, remembering her life before she came here with Tallisa. She hated her job, but it was far better than the predicament she faced today. Her small apartment, with its sparse furniture and nearly empty refrigerator seemed like a castle to her now. If only she could wake up and find herself back in the safety of her oversized sweats and her bulky down comforter. Promising herself and God that she would never complain again, if she could only return to 2025, she sunk to the floor, cringing when the pain in her shoulder shot down her back and chest. Letting her arm rest on the icy ground, she used her other arm to prop her head up, hoping she would fall asleep and possibly die in the process.

  Moments later, she heard footsteps coming down the hallway and Tallisa’s laugh echoing through the space beneath the door. Groaning, she attempted to prop herself back up. She bit back a scream, pain clawing through every inch of her body, making her squeeze her eyes shut in desperation. She heard the door slide open and knew this was just the beginning.

  Dallin’s hands gripped her foot and her eyes shot open, as he pulled her out into the hallway. Her arm helplessly dragged behind and tears welled in her eyes as the pain became too difficult to bear. Tallisa stopped him when she noticed Alex’s limp arm. He walked around her body and propped her up, facing Tallisa. Smiling wickedly once again, Tallisa clutched Alex’s arm, yanking it up and over and back into its socket.

  Her teeth ground into the tender flesh of her lower lip as she swallowed an unending shriek of pain. The relief of having her shoulder back together, was enough to keep her from fighting Dallin’s hands, as he grabbed her leg and continued pulling her down the corridor. Tugging her off the floor, he pushed her into another room with what appeared like a dentist chair in the middle, along with another video camera. Her gaze flashed desperately around the room, knowing she was about to be tortured in front of a live camera.

  “This is going to be fun,” Tallisa simpered, dancing around Alex and undoing the straps on the chair.

  Dallin gripped Alex’s neck, forcing her into the chair and holding her down while Tallisa secured her arms, legs and pelvis in all the restraints. “Why can’t we all leave together, Tallisa?” Alex begged. Her hands trembled uncontrollably from the terror gnawing at her heart.

  Tallisa glanced over at Alex, as she secured the last restraint. “You don’t mean anything to me.” Her striking green eyes were now as cold as ice and they slanted down in disgust. “My brother has allowed more horrid things to happen to me, all in the name of his revolution. I refuse to be used by him or any of those disgusting followers of his. This—” she paused, pointing at the camera and then back at Alex. “This is all so I can leave this sexist and alienist world and have the freedom to go where I want, when I want. If that means torturing a spoiled, whiny girl, then so be it.”

  Straightening up, Tallisa strolled over to the camera, her red, curly hair bouncing around her shoulders. Alex watched Dallin, eyeing her aunt and for the first time realized they were an item. Tallisa adjusted the camera, pointing it directly at Alex, before sauntering back to her niece and giving Dallin a wink. Noticing Alex’s eyes on her, Tallisa smacked her across the face and laughed at Alex’s shocked face.

  “Mind your own business, brat,” Tallisa jeered, standing on the other side of the chair and facing the camera. “Dallin, please push the transmit button.”

  Dallin rushed over to the camera, pressing down on a button and then glancing over at Tallisa. “You have five seconds.”

  Tallisa grinned, preparing for her moment of fame. “Hello world,” she began, when the five seconds passed. “Today we commence the torture of Alex Martanium. Please make sure all televisions are on and the sound is up. You won’t want to miss this glorious event.”

  Alex eyes locked on to Tallisa. Gulping back the dread that was rushing up from her core, she squirmed against her restraints. Sweat trickled down her spine as her aunt wrapped her fingers around a knife and held Alex’s left arm with her other hand. “This is going to get messy,” Tallisa warned as if she cared, but Alex saw only malice and hatred in the woman’s expression.

  Raising the knife a few inches up from Alex’s arm, with a flash of Tallisa’s hand she drove it into Alex’s lower arm, and pressed down. Slicing Alex’s flesh clean open, Tallisa twisted the knife and smiled as Alex shrieks filled the room. Blood gushed from the wound and vomit rapidly wormed its way up Alex’s throat, spurting from her mouth and all over her clothes. Tallisa wrapped Alex’s upper arm with a tourniquet, preventing the blood from flowing as quickly down to her lower arm. Turning her face to the other side, Alex wept a flood of tears, petrified by what was going to happen next. She squeezed her eyes shut, pleading with her body to just pass out.

  Dallin whipped her across the back of her head, making her eyes flash open. “Don’t shut your eyes again,” he commanded. Her gaze shot up to his face as a freezing chill raced through her veins.

  Alex’s whole body trembled, watching Tallisa smile and dance around the chair, still clutching onto the knife dripping with her blood. Yank
ing her right pant leg up, Tallisa winked at Alex and waved the knife at the camera. With a flick of her wrist, she stabbed Alex’s calf with the knife. Another scream tore from Alex’s lips, and her body seized uncontrollably. She could hear Tallisa laughing as beads of sweat formed on her forehead and her entire body began to flush with heat.

  “Please, don’t,” Alex cried out, gasping for air as the pain radiating from the knife in her calf, telegraphed through her entire nervous system.

  Tallisa ignored her plea, sliding the knife out of Alex’s calf and smiling as she slammed it into another area of her leg. This time her screams seemed foreign to her and she suddenly felt disconnected from her body, while Tallisa stabbed her other calf three more times, removing it with painstaking slowness.

  Her throat clenched as Tallisa lifted her shirt, revealing her belly. Giving her a crooked smile, Tallisa took the knife and cut small slits into her flesh. Each slice drew a scream from Alex’s lips and the pain became unbearable, shrieking at Tallisa to stop, before the numbness settled in and she began to sink into darkness.

  A crackle of fire brought Alex back to reality. She peered over at Tallisa and cringed at the rod iron being held over hot flames. Whimpering in desperation, Alex struggled against the straps, panic rising in her throat as her aunt heated the iron and turned to face her with a look of icy contempt. “Time to seal those wounds.” Tallisa chuckled, but her eyes narrowed. Waltzing over to Alex, she smiled wide, pressing the hot iron against the wound in her arm.

  Her shrieks of pain echoed throughout the room, blackness circling above her, as her head became heavy and her vision blurred. By the time Dallin unstrapped her from the chair, Alex’s entire body was throbbing from the cuts and soldering.

  Tallisa’s piercing voice made her cringe, “We will return tomorrow, folks. Prepare yourself, as today was just a taste of what’s to come.”