Page 12 of Beauty and the Alien Beast
10
Ella
It turnedout Sheryl never had the chance to talk to the overseer before two attendants came in and started rolling my cage out of the room.
“Wait!” she yelled, but they ignored her.
I shot her a helpless look before disappearing out of sight.
I was worried. The farthest I’d been out of the room was to the bathroom. Now they were wheeling me down a long hallway lined with what looked like advertising panels. Then it dawned on me that the panels were meant to acclimate the aliens’ captives—like me—to the foreign world they were now in. But after weeks of constant exposure to their “commercials,” I hated the sight of them. I would give anything for a dark, quiet room where I could just curl up on a real bed and sleep for days. Instead, I was struggling to keep my wits about me as the aliens finally stopped before one of the silver door panels and opened it.
My cage was shoved inside, and one of the attendants stayed behind, turning on a set of blessedly dim lights. He rounded on me, his pale-yellow eyes glowing slightly in the dimness. I realized he had reflections at the backs of his eyes, as a cat would. He inched forward and opened the cage door, gesturing for me to step out.
I nodded and obeyed. Trying to run and escape was futile.
The few times I’d tried, I’d ended up running through what felt like a maze of hallways with no exit. And the aliens always caught me easily and then punished me severely for attempting to escape. I learned the hard way that the layout of this alien prison was disorientating and there was no way out without help from the inside.
I scanned the space, which wasn’t very large. But it had a computer array of some sort covering one wall, a cushy-looking beige suede couch lining the wall across from it, and one of their toilet-shower pod things set into the back wall.
He ran a scanner over me, and the screen behind him started lighting up with more of those golden symbols. He frowned and nodded and then looked up and spoke to me unintelligibly. When I didn’t respond, he scowled and repeated himself in a sharper tone.
At the end of my rope, I shook my head, pointed to my ear, and said in what I presumed was completely untranslated English, “I have no idea what you are saying. This piece of shit translator of yours is broken.”
He paused, brow furrowing, then peered at me and asked a question in a mildly shocked but much calmer tone. I shook my head and then tried to take off one of the damned earrings so I could show him. He saw what I was doing and nodded, reaching for a pair of the funky-looking tongs the little gray alien had used to initially set the gold disks in my ears.
I held still as he removed the right one with a click, took it in hand, and winced. The crystal set into the back was completely black, and the gold contacts connected to it had become discolored. I was surprised it hadn’t zapped me or burned my ear.
He rumbled something that was probably a description of how fucked up my translator was and then looked back at me, nodding. He removed the other earring and tossed both into a drawer, then gestured me toward the shower pod.
Usually, they barely let me rinse off the damn lather before they kicked me out and shoved me into another exotic lingerie set. This time, though, the alien let me scrub off for a long time as he spoke into a small silvery communicator wand. I hoped at least I would be able to overhear my captors again soon.
I washed my hair and scoured my body, letting the hot spray loosen my stiff muscles. Afterward, I stood in the steam, working oil through my thick hair and finger-combing it. When I emerged, I felt a hell of a lot better, even if I was still apprehensive about whatever was going on.
The clothes I had stripped off were gone when I stepped out of the pod. He had left me a bundle of garments on the couch, along with a pair of gold suede ballet slipper shoes and a bottle of shimmering gold cream. I eagerly rubbed the cream all over my skin, glad to finally treat the dry, rough patches on my knees and elbows.
The cream had a scent this time—sweet, rich, slightly musky. I smiled a little as I rubbed it in, checking my look in the mirror beside the bathroom pod. It made my skin shimmer like someone had sprinkled me with gold dust. I pulled on the breast harness and another of those loincloths, which I hastily tied around my hips and crotch. I was getting a little tired of feeling everything I sat on against my bare snatch.
The gown I was to wear over it was so fine it was almost transparent and so soft I almost wanted to wear it without underwear. But I had never been one for the naked-in-a-clear-raincoat look, so I kept the harness and my other clothes on. I was just stepping into the shoes when the attendant returned, carrying what looked like a large toolbox.
It turned out to be a makeup case, and he sat me down on the couch and turned on some bright lights around me before bending over me with the brush. More of that gold stuff went on my eyelids. He painted my lips a slightly darker shade of red-brown and then glazed it to give my lips a wet look. My eyelashes and brows didn’t need any help.
He worked quickly, his hands moving nimbly at different tasks, dizzying me a little. Soon enough, my hair was braided and coiled, my face primped, my nails shaped and painted in gold, and my body perfumed. As a crowning touch, he reached for a small spray vial, this one clear and filled with a thick-looking deep-red liquid. He raised it and then unexpectedly sprayed me in the face with it.
I blinked my eyes closed too late and felt an odd tingle in my tear ducts.Is that sealer? I really hope it’s hypoallergenic.
He nodded once, then gestured to the couch and wheeled my cage out, leaving me alone. I heard the door lock behind him, and I sighed, settling on the brown suede cushions and stretching out. I didn’t know if my chance to rest was a matter of kindness or a prelude to something more sinister, but I stretched luxuriantly and then rolled over on my belly, pillowing my cheek on my arms.
I didn’t know how long I lay there dozing when I became aware of a warm flush running through my body. It started around my eyes and mouth and stretched outward slowly, relaxing me as it spread. It felt like something impossibly soft brushing against my skin. And then… it began to intensify.
I rolled over, staring up at the ceiling. It felt a little like a pot high but more acute and sensual. I squeezed my legs together and moaned softly. My mind and body were at war. My body craved the touch of a man, but my mind was trying to shut down my wanton need.
What’s happening?
Then I remembered the red fluid that fucker sprayed me with.
He drugged me!
The realization made me want to fight the sexual need that was wrapping around me like a vine, but my primal need was too intense and far too pleasant. And it was still growing.
