Total pages in book: 69
Estimated words: 63580 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 318(@200wpm)___ 254(@250wpm)___ 212(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 63580 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 318(@200wpm)___ 254(@250wpm)___ 212(@300wpm)
It must have been awful for him to find himself confined to that experimental lab. Someone with his abilities and his natural command would have suffered greatly. I feel angry at the idea of it.
“Launching,” Drak says. He presses a button and there is a soft sound as a warhead the size of a family sedan is ejected from one of the bays. It streaks across space, traveling so fast it is almost instantly nothing more than a speck.
I expect a massive explosion when the missile hits the vessel, but all that happens is both missile and ship stop existing. They just blink out of existence, like they got deleted off the monitor.
“Whoa,” I say.
His head snaps around. He gives me a dark stare, and for a moment I don’t really recognize him. I feel a pang of intense fear inside me, like I am looking into the golden eyes of a beast who has played gently with me, but is capable of incredible harm.
“You shouldn’t be watching this,” Freak says. “Go to our room, pet.”
“But I want to see…”
“Go,” he says firmly. “Now.”
I take a step back, but I don’t actually leave. I want to see what is happening. He assumes I’ve done as I was told. I might be risking more than I realize by staying, but I want to see all of what he is capable of.
“Erase the other two,” Freak says. “Reverse engineer their heading and we will deal with the source. I’m not having the disrespect spread. We need to remind this galaxy who we are.”
I clap my hand over my mouth. I thought he was going to be more chill about all this. Why did I think that? Because he’s sweet with me? Is he sweet with me? I am rethinking everything about being kidnapped by an alien and turned into his pet now. What if it turns out that he’s an absolute monster?
“She’s still here,” one of the others says. I don’t know which one. My eyes are locked on Freak. I am surprised he can’t hear me. Maybe it’s because my mind is frozen and no thoughts are escaping it. Or maybe he’s focusing super hard on removing his enemies from existence.
Freak turns around, walks toward me, picks me up, and bodily carries me out of the room. I squeak and stiffen with fear as his arms wrap around me. There’s something hard and unyielding about him now.
“Stay in the room or we will be making a stop to get a cage for you,” he says. There’s a rough undertone in his voice that feels new. It makes electric tingles race through me.
He puts me down and leaves again.
I don’t know what to do with myself. I don’t know how to process what I just saw. The power these creatures wield is incredible. And to think I was in their realm, acting like the whole place was just sort of ugly.
“But it was ugly,” I say out loud to myself. “If I was a super advanced alien, and I could make a planet look like anything, it wouldn’t look like a piece of high concept art. It would have chocolate fountains.”
* * *
I sit on the bed and I wait for him to come back. I’m a little scared to see him again. Will he be furious at me for not obeying him? Will he punish me? Will he make my ass disappear?
It’s not all that long until he returns. Minutes, probably.
“Did you erase the planet that sent them?”
“No. We let them off with a warning,” he says.
“Nice of you,” I say, picking at the bedding nervously. I don’t want to look at him directly. The animal instinct in me tells me to show signs of submission. His teeth and claws don’t feel ornamental anymore.
“You’re afraid of me,” he says flatly. “You should be.”
That does not make me feel better at all. I look up at him, barely noticing how I’ve backed myself into the corner on the bed. The walls feel cozy and right around me.
“I am a warrior,” he says. “And part of my mission has always been to destroy our enemies. I know you’re probably used to a different kind of battle. Fire being exchanged, casualties being taken on both sides. But that kind of war does not make sense for our kind. We are capable of tampering with the very mesh of reality. This is why we prefer peace, but when war is necessary, we do not take prisoners.”
“Okay.”
“The Baktari are particularly dangerous. They are attempting to destroy peace talks between two solar systems. What I just did will save trillions over the years. I don’t expect you to understand it. But in guarding the best timeline, sometimes actions virtually indistinguishable from evil are necessary.”
“Okay.”
I don’t know what to say to any of that. The guy can literally stop things from existing. Does he really care about my feedback? Has anything I have ever said or done mattered? I feel as though I am cowering before a power so great and so unfathomable there is no way I can comprehend it.