1. A Higher Power,Whatever

If I hadto choose someplace to die, this would be it.

Maybe I wouldn't have chosen the journey it took to get here—I'd happily skip the alien abduction and trafficking bit. But as I drift into a brightly-colored, unknown ocean, it's pretty damn peaceful.

I learned long ago that worrying about things out of my control was useless. I could rage, scream, and slam my fist into my plastic security bubble, but it won't make a difference.

I am going to die, and I'm going to wonder at the beauty of this place before I go. I doubt another human has seen these rainbow-hued fishlike creatures swimming by. A set of googly eyes dangle from long stalks below their torpedo-shaped bodies. Their scales glint in the sunlight as the schools float around me, almost reminding me of camera flashes back on Earth.

I take a deep breath and try to enjoy their unearthly elegance, leaning my back against the gently curving wall of my security pod.

This plastic bubble I've danced in has become familiar. I know every scratch and ding. Despite how much you claw at its wall, it won"t open from the inside.

Whatever space-age plastic the Deenz aliens use is robust. I don't know how much of the growing pressure it can handle as we descend further into the depths of this seemingly bottomless ocean.

The sunlight from the surface is ever waning, and the waters around me get darker and murkier the further I fall.

Another breath fills my chest as I try to quell the anxiety creeping in from the peripherals of my psyche. The school of creatures follows me like companions ushering me to the afterlife.

I put a hand against the plastic enclosure to thank them for not leaving me alone. I've always loved the ocean. Many of my tattoos are of underwater scenes: the coral reef on my calf, the stingray guarding my bicep, and my favorite tattoo—Aphrodite reclined on the half shell on my shoulder.

My soul has always been called to the water, so I guess this demise is fitting.

Thanks, universe, or whatever higher power controls this kind of thing.

As I try to project my gratitude to these little aquatic creatures and some higher power, I catch a flash of yellow from the corner of my eye. It moves too fast for me to get a good look. Spinning around in my bubble, I search for whatever it was.

As the school of alien fish shift suddenly to the left, I see him.

A muscular canary-yellow alien, his head full of pulsating tentacles, gapes at me. The tentacles shift as if moved by the underwater currents. They splay around his head like a lion's mane. His strong arms and legs pump as he descends with my bubble.

I say "he" because his cock is something you really can't miss. It isn't hard, but still floats proudly on display. His dick's impressive length is nestled in tentacles similar to the ones that surround his head, but they're much shorter. Almost like if you traded out pubes for a sea anemone. I guess that makes sense since his head "hair" is also comprised of tentacles.

I wonder what that would feel like. I quickly scrub the thought from my mind.

I'm more than likely going to die, and I don't want my last thoughts to be about alien dick.

I break my gaze from his crotch, not wanting to be a complete and total pervert. His smooth yellow skin is covered in a pattern of squiggly teal rings. He's got the physique of an Olympic swimmer, with a broad set of shoulders tapering into powerful legs.

His eyes are blue and bore into me as if questioning my very existence.

"Hi," I huff, taken aback by this strange alien Adonis who's found me.

When I speak, two of his head tentacles that appear longer than the rest spring out and grip the outside of my bubble. My descent stops so rapidly that I drop to my knees like a stone.

Tentacle Man pulls me closer. The strength in those two thick appendages sends a strange thrill through me. He puts his face against the plastic and appraises me with his full lips agape.

"What are you?" He cocks his head, his deep voice muffled through the water.

"I'm Lena. I'm human," I whisper, shocked he can speak.

He screws up his mouth and furrows his brows.

"I don't understand you," he says, tapping a spot in front of his ear. "I don't have a translator chip, and I don't think you speak Andjin. There's no tech allowed during the Great Proving—we are only as the goddess created us."

What in the flying fuck is the Great Proving?

But even in my confusion, I realized he's stopped my bubble from dropping further into the ocean…does this mean I won't die?

"Are you going to help me?" I say slowly, as if that might help him understand me.

"I'm sorry, I don't know your language. I don't even know what species you are…but it seems like you're in danger." His face softens, and he places his slightly webbed fingers against the glass.

"Can you understand me? If you can, nod," he tells me softly.

I nod, and he smiles.

"Well, at least one of us can get our point across…." He trails off as if catching sight of my body for the first time.

I'm wearing the thin, near-pornographic costume that all the trafficked human women wear. Its light blue stretchy material is strapped tightly across my neck, belly button, and nipples. All connected to a vertical strap covering my crotch.

"I like your skin's patterns," he says, letting his eyes drag down my body. "But I think there's something wrong with your camouflage, as beautiful as they might be."

"Those are tattoos. I don't have camouflage," I say practically to myself, knowing he doesn't understand me.

"Do you need help?" he asks, his eyes full of sincerity.

I nod aggressively.

I don't have to die today.

Do I trust the bizarrely handsome alien man in front of me? I'm not sure. He seems kind, but my trust disappeared not long after I was abducted. I don't know if it'll ever come back.

I'm not sure how long I've been dancing at this point. Everything after my abduction blurs together. The Deenz, the hive-minded purple alien fucks who captured me from Earth, give us all kinds of shots.

Downers to sleep, then uppers and aphrodisiacs to "work." It doesn't make it easy to keep track of time, and sometimes it's better to forget any of the memories you make.

"I'll try my best to help you…" He pauses. "My name is Kitaico. What's yours?"

"Leeeenuh," I tell him slowly.

"Leeeenuh," he repeats. He smiles at me, his grin full of sharp teeth slightly more tapered than mine. I scramble backward, taken off guard by his predatory mouth.

I start to second-guess myself—that maybe this wasn't the best idea, but I'm out of options and apparently willing to gamble on a total stranger for help.

A shadow floats below my bubble as we try to figure each other out. I crane my neck down to see what it is, wondering if they'll be more beings like Kitaico.

It's not. An immense creature, about the size of a blue whale, approaches us. But there's nothing gentle looking about the giant rising quickly in the distance. While its head is whale shaped, that's where the similarities end.

The creature's sides pulse with bioluminescence as it cuts quickly through the water. Its tail is some nightmarish combo of a stingray and a scorpion. A barb at its end flashes with blue light. As it spots us, it lets out a terrifying roar and opens its mouth filled with jagged rows of fangs.

I gasp, turning back to Kitaico; his skin has changed to the deep blues of the surrounding waters. He sets his jaw and turns away from me, and for a moment, I fear he will leave me to be devoured by the creature.

As he swims, I realize his two longest head tentacles are still wrapped around my bubble, and he's dragging me toward the surface.

His powerful legs kick wildly as we climb. I can tell he's struggling to keep up his pace. Looking down, I see the monster gaining on us. It snaps its mouth, gnashing its fangs.

"Hurry, Kitaico!" I yell in vain, hoping he'll understand me.

He doesn't respond, but his camouflage shifts wildly between colors. I wonder if the effort of our escape puts his body to its limits.

I push myself against the bubble's far side as the monster's mouth closes around the bottom. With a violent crunch, it rips away a chunk of my former prison. It thrashes its head like a shark attempting to subdue its prey, but the action puts some distance between us once more.

I barely have time to hold my breath before I'm sucked out the bottom. The water crashing in makes the air rush out like a vacuum. My muscles clench painfully from the blast of water as I tumble into the warm ocean, spinning head over foot, and shut my eyes. Soon enough, I'll be nothing but fish food.

Something snakes around my ankle, tugging the skin so hard I can nearly feel it rip. Then there's something around my waist, drawing me up again.

"Leeenuh, hold on!" Kitaico yells as he hoists me into his arms, "Only a little bit closer toward the surface, the scripiat won't be able to follow much longer. He can't survive in the shallows!"

He strokes one hand behind my head and tucks my body into his chest.

I don't have enough air. My lungs burn as I involuntarily cough, and what little breath I have left escapes, bubbling upward.

Kitaico slows and his heart is still pounding against my ear.

"The scripiat returns to the depths. We are safe," he whispers.

I kick my legs weakly, pointing my finger to the surface. I can't stop myself from gulping in a deep breath of salt water and choke on its mineral taste.

"Leeenuh, we are safe now. Stay calm."

My vision blurs and I lose control of my head as it slumps onto my alien hero—it's not his fault he doesn't know I breathe air.

Darkness creeps into the edges of my vision.

I point up one more time before I lose consciousness.

We were so close.