Page 3 of Gyft

“You’re such a beautiful sacrifice,” Yvette says, the quiver in her voice from trying to sound brave.

I nod. “I feel much braver now.” A little bit of goth has always been such a forbidden temptation and I’ve never allowed myself to do it before now.

I feel like I’ve reached a new level of growth.

Sighing, I look around at my pink and white bedroom with cool metallic accents of silvery grey from the original house structure. From my balcony, I have a view of the impressive city. Vivid streaks painted across the colorful New Earth skies that used to be blue. Purple flashes of black light from hover vehicles. Powerful windmills and buildings topped with solar panels—an imposing sight. Unless one realizes my view is that of a take-off and landing port. Beneath the red, vitamin-enriched soil, the dirt parts to allow my father’s magnificent invention, the wormhole shuttle—basically a time-capsule—to fly. It’s barely largeenough for one person to fit inside because anything larger will implode upon atmospheric entry.

It’s the shuttle I’ll be taking.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Yvette whispers. “Throw off the coordinates? What if it goes horribly wrong?”

I grit my teeth. “I’d rather die by my own hand in a location of my choosing than allow men—Father included—to choose my tragic fate for me.”

I straighten my spine and Yvette looks impressed with my sacrifice. Plus, I should have the energy to conquer the world. I’d sucked down not one but two energy drinks, one for strength and one for courage. It also helps that I remembered the engineers who put together the shuttle mentioned the main coordinates couldn’t be permanently deleted for safety reasons. The shuttle will still arrive on his planet. I just won’t be delivered to his castle like a sleeping princess. I’ll be roaring to go as soon as I land.

Depending on where, I’ll be able to escape and hide. Maybe find one of their hidden cloaks and live out in the jungle.

Well, Jungle Jane I’m not. Maybe there will be a small city where I can blend. Surely their people can’t look too different from ours?

In the entryway, the loudspeakers click on to alert me of the footsteps falling in a marching rhythm coming from down the hallway. My father’s uniformed guards.

When they arrive, they’re in full gear. Their gloves contain built-in metallic knuckles to knock upon the thick door of my quarters, bolstering a thunderous sound at the door of my suite. Otherwise, I might not ever hear a knocking.

The door swings open and the males stand in two lines down the hall, leaving me a space to walk between them.

Yvette takes the train of my gown and holds it up to walk behind me. Her sniffles echo down the corridor. Such a loyal maid of honor.

The guards, strategically placed around us to keep us from escaping, escort us to the lower-level port where the shuttle will soon depart. Where, if I were to stand on the balcony I’d just left, I could watch as it creates another colorful streak from the fuel across our sky. I have to force back a sob. My beloved balcony. The place where I’ve watched hundreds of test runs from the shuttle, never once imagining I’d one day be a person on board.

When the doors to the port area slide open, a hush takes over the room. The giant viewing screen has a life-sized image of my intended, his head angled slightly so the hood covers his face.

I guess I’ll never know what he looks like.

My father’s lips tighten at the sight of my dress. He knows what a slight it is, even if the Kashians don’t. He leans in toward me as if kissing my cheek... or to whisper in my ear, but he’s really checking to make sure I wear all the expensive gold gifts he’s given me. The necklace chains, the earrings, the oversized amulet. Armbands, bracelets, anklets... as much gold as possible, without anyone realizing why.

I whisper under my breath. “I don’t want—”

“Olivia, we’ve talked about this. You get married, or Earth goes to war with an alien race who will wipe us from existence. One life for the lives of many. Do you want the rest of us to die? Do you choose death for us all?”

I stop to think about that. Really, I’m barely twenty... ish. Should the weight of the world rest on my slender shoulders?

“We’ll start the ceremony,” Father says, barely sparing me a glance as if he has no patience to wait for my decision. He motions to the head justice, who steps forward to speak.

His voice rings out. “This ceremony will be according to Earth standards since it is being performed on Earth. However, the planet Kashia agrees it shall be a binding ceremony for their planet as well.”

He clears his throat, straightens his spine, and belts out the modified ceremony in a sing-song tone used for weddings, reminiscent ofGregorian chants. “High Commander Gyft T’shil of the Third District Kashian fleet, do you agree to accept our highest offering as your bride, to have and to hold, to choose to cherish, protect and love forevermore, as long as you are both bound as one?”

I notice they took out the death-do-us-part piece. Maybe the higher ups were afraid the alien would kill me off?

I force my dry throat to swallow.

Two words, rather formal in their simplicity, scroll across the bottom of the screen, tragic words that seem so final and... deadly.

I do.

Yvette breaks into heart wrenching sobs, fitting because as my best friend, she’s obviously thinking the same thoughts I do; maybe the Kashians will turn me into a literal sacrificial lamb.

“Then may I present Earth’s first and only bride, Olivia Alexandria Nash, daughter of Prominent Admiral Alexander Noah Nash. The marriage is legally binding. And Earth’s bride will reside on planet Kashia along with her husband and his people.”

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