My Human

Chapter 9

"Aeris."

It was the voice from before.  The voice from my dream.

My eyes opened and all I could see was the night sky above.  Stars shimmered and twinkled next to a milky-white full moon.

I turned to face the voice but again it was still blurred like I was talking to a ghost.  Still, I sensed that I knew this person.  I felt it.  I knew him well.

"Don't worry," he said soothingly.  "Nothing will keep us apart."

"Nothing."

*   *   *

My eyes crept open slowly with the murmur of an engine.  I placed my hands on the ground and felt the cold ridged metal floor. My head was disoriented and I blinked my eyes several times, trying to get my head in the right place.

I was next to a fluffy tree like a pine tree, but its needles were rose red and little yellow flowers sprung from between the branches. It smelled lovely like pineapple with a hint of Gardenia.

I looked around me and suddenly realized I was inside a glass case. I jumped up and pressed hands against the encasement, feeling the terror rush through me.

My gaze darted around the room and several glass cases lined the hall, each containing exotic plants.

"You're awake, my little gem." The Torian with the green hair approached my cage and smiled evilly.

"Why am I in here?" I demanded but he only laughed.

"I don't know what you're saying, but by the look on your face I'm sure you're not singing my praises," he laughed.

I glared at him. He must not have realized I still had the buds that let me understand him.

"Don't worry, cutey. I'll make sure you go to the highest bidder. Lots of science guys looking to get their hands on a creature like you."

Anxiety ran thick within me. Xan had warned me about this. My cover had been blown in less than 24 hours. The fact that I was locked in this glass case with stolen foliage meant I probably wouldn't be able to breathe outside of it.  The vent at the top made it clear that oxygen was being filtered in.

I hit the glass and yelled some choice curse words at him while he merely laughed.

A Roxan woman approached him and grinned. My eyes grew wide as I remembered her as the aggressive vendor from the market. She was the one who sold me out!

"Still waiting for my payment, Deek," she cooed seductively, flashing a golden card at him.

The man who I could only assume was 'Deek' rolled his eyes and grabbed her card. "Greed isn't a shade that suits you, Pela."

She pouted. "It's not greed when a service is supplied!" she huffed. "Don't forget I'm the reason you are able to acquire such exotic pieces to sell to your high roller clients!" she spun, pointing to every plant, before turning her attention to me. "And give me credit for finding your this rare little flower here. I'm sure beings would kill to get their hands on one of these ancient ones."

She tapped the glass like I was a fish and I scowled. These people treated me like I was an animal like I wasn't even...human.

I realized quickly, 'human' didn't really mean anything to them either. 'Human' was serving more like an antiquated Earth term and being human seemed to mean that I was now an inferior being.

Deek tapped on his watch that looked much like Xan's. A barcode popped up and he held her golden card to it. After a moment it made a ping sound and she smiled victoriously before snatching her card back.

"Always a pleasure, love," she breathed, blowing him a kiss as she skipped away.

Deek glanced back at me and the hungry smile grew on his face. I was pretty sure he just saw money signs when he looked at me.

I muttered a few more curse words and turned my back to him, to which he only laughed. His footsteps drew away and I turned to make sure he was gone. I sighed in relief and sunk down to the ground feeling helpless.

The engine grew louder and the ship thrust upwards. There were no windows in this storage area, but I could only assume we were about to go somewhere that wouldn't bode well for me. I had never felt so hopeless and I had watched my planet fall apart.

The cards were stacked against me and there was no telling what horrors awaited me at my next destination. All I knew for sure was that it wasn't going to be a warm welcome.