by Lili Zander
Back at the hastily created NASA training camp, my cellmate would drone on about her football team for hours on end. I’d start to edge away once she got going. But that was then. Now, not even a mention of Tanya’s beloved Dallas Cowboys gets me a reply.
Say something, I beg silently. Please. Just so I can hear the sound of another voice.
There had been ten of us on the Zorahn spaceship, but we’d been auctioned off in pairs. Tanya and I were brought here, to this strange world where the sky is purple, red sand surrounds us in every direction, and water is scarce and precious. “We are in the middle of the desert,” one of the female scientists had told us the first day. “It is a ten-day journey on foot to reach civilization, and there is no water anywhere. If you try to escape, you will die.”
I desperately want to escape, but I’m not stupid. I cannot carry a ten-day supply of water. I don’t know where the nearest town is, and I have no idea if the residents there will help me or enslave me. I need to bide my time.
There’s still no sign of the scientists. Anxiety prickles the back of my spine. The three Zorahn—Nara’vi, Fal’vi, and Kravex—are creatures of routine. Why aren’t they here yet?
The two of us wait in silence. Tanya stands passively by the door. I’m not nearly as calm. Something’s going on, and I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or not.
The day passes. The sun rises higher, and our cell becomes suffocatingly hot. My stomach growls, and my throat is parched. The scientists have forgotten to feed us, another anomaly that sends foreboding through me. The experiments have not been going well. Wherever they're trying to do, they appear to be failing. Each day, the trio of scientists looks more and more frustrated.
Have they given up?
Have they abandoned us to die?
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Glossary: Who’s who among the Zorahn
Lenox. Currently High Emperor. Son of Dravex, brother to Arax.
Raiht’vi. Highborn Scientist. Trapped on the prison planet.
Brunox. Head of the Council of Scientists. Raiht’vi’s father.
Ru’vi. Currently Spymaster of the High Empire. Rumored to be Lenox’s mistress.
Tarish. Leader of the Rebellion.
Surax. Formerly Spymaster of the High Empire. Deceased.
Beirax. Scientist belonging to the rogue Order of the Crimson Night.
Mannix. Technician. Deceased.