Page 1 of Bred by the Alien Prince

PROLOGUE

The Year 2106

The attack on the S.S. Ignis

Caspian

The engine whirred and halted with a violent push forward, knocking everyone about. A clipboard I held flew across the wide silver and polished metal hall, taking the list of names of every man, woman, and child who lived on the fifth deck in sector fourteen.

My ribs cracked, knocking the wind right out of my lungs, forcing me to take a massive intake of air before I could breathe out again.

“Gloria!” I called the woman who lay slumped against the wall; a trail of smeared blood followed her trajectory.

The whine of machinery and the twisting and grinding of metal was like being inside the belly of a tremendously hungry beast.

“Gloria, are you alright!?” I asked through the grinding ache of my body. “Please speak to me!”

Nothing. She was out like a light, and I was afraid that it was more than a simple concussion.

Rule forty-five of the RA handbook and simulations of emergency events prepared me for this, but now that an emergency was taking place, my confidence eroded, and I was like a child who didn’t want to step into the classroom on their first day of school.

I dug my stubby nails into the carpet, pulled myself along, and hollered once the sharp pain seemed to pierce a nerve. The walls appeared to shift and distort, and another violent rattle tossed us up into the air and flung us to the ground with a hard smack. Groaning, I rolled on my back, gazing at the cracking ceiling; the walls vibrated as the beast cried in terror.

I reached for my comms device, which resembled a simple voice recorder but connected me to the rest of the RAs onboard and our supervisor. Once I opened all the channels, a flood of crying voices and distress calls overwhelmed the airwaves. I was not alone in distress and panic.

“Help! This is Caspian Storm, RA number 88603. I’m on the fifth deck, sector fourteen, and I’m injured… it doesn’t look so good. There’s a passenger nearby, Gloria Benson. I don’t know if she’s alive!” I cried, wanting to give in to the fear and panic.

The chorus of pleading drowned my voice, but I still waited for a response as I took a shallow breath and rolled back onto my stomach to finish the crawl towards the woman who didn’t move.

When I reached her, she was lying on her side; I rolled her over on her back to assess the wound on her head. There was a lot of blood, and she showed no signs of stirring awake any time soon. I checked her pulse; it was weak, but she was alive. She wouldn’t make it if I couldn’t get her help soon.

I crawled over to the metal bar attached to the wall and struggled to hoist myself into a standing position. My head hurt fiercely, and my eyelids were like a massive weight pressed on them. I think I was concussed, and I was losing the will to stay awake.

If I couldn’t pull myself together, I was afraid I wouldn’t wake up, and there was a hysterical part of my mind that was okay with that.

I turned to the woman and looked down the hall both ways. Left seemed to be the shortest route to take, which led to the sealed doors that divided the different sectors of the ship. It was just how long it would take to grin and bear it through the gnawing of my nerves to get Gloria out of there.

I leaned over to latch onto her chest and clasped my hands together. Okay, Caspian, turn this pain into motivation to get moving!

I pictured Rocky Balboa, a character from one of those old vids running through the streets in his grey jogging suit, getting high fives from the cheering crowd around him. I hummed the song that played during that moment. I forgot the name of it, but it made me feel like I could at least get through anything.

Through the comm chatter, there was a familiar voice. Deep and raspy, even as he gritted his teeth and groaned. It was Derek, my friend, so far through it all.

“Caspian!?” He shouted through.

“I’m here!”

“Listen, I need you to get on our private frequency.”

“Okay!” I said, knowing what he was talking about. It was our private channel; no one knew about it but us and it helped me out during the first rough months onboard this ship. “I’m on,” I said once the chatter vanished, leaving only a soft hum.

“Deck Five experienced a massive breach! Most of the area is sealed; anyone trapped there is already considered a DOA.”

This was not the news I was hoping to receive.

“What?! I'm on five, in sector fourteen!”

“Stay calm and do as I say. There are still some sectors that haven’t been sealed. I know a path that leads to the escape pods on Five. They’re already programmed to go to the colony. But at FAL speed.”

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