Chapter One
Kelsey gripped the bars of the small cage she’d been locked into, staring out at dozens of aliens in the large room. They came in all sizes and shapes, from what she’d seen over the past twenty or so days since she’d been taken from Earth.
The pale pink alien in the next cage had been with her since she’d been transferred from the first spaceship onto a second one. That had been at least a week before. Maybe two. It wasn’t easy keeping track of time while being held captive.
Kelsey turned her head to stare at Nexis. Her race was Titan, which proved that space alien races made no sense. She believed that a titan should be something large and scary. That definitely wasn’t her new friend. Nexis almost appeared human…if humans had delicate, puffy fur covering their pink skin and violet-colored eyes that were a tad too large for their faces. She also had pawed hands similar to a puppy, with petite fingers instead of claws. Her ears were pointed like an elf’s.
Nexis looked like some adorably sweet fairytale creature who stood about five feet tall.
The two had already shared their “how we ended up here” stories. Nexis’s planet had been invaded by raiders. She’d been kidnapped and sold to some alien jerk who’d made her his sex slave. She’d spent almost a year being abused by that male, until he’d tired of her and sold Nexis to her current alien captors. She’d been loaded into a cage next to Kelsey’s, and now they were both about to be sold at a large slave auction held on some space station.
As for Kelsey, she’d been betrayed by her home planet. Everyone complained about overpopulation on Earth, but the government had hit a new low when they’d started trading unwilling women for alien technology. They hadn’t even had the decency to ask for volunteers. That would have implied they’d informed the public of the plan—which they hadn’t.
Kelsey sighed, running one hand down the skimpy nightgown she’d been given to wear. It didn’t cover much but it was better than being totally naked. “So this is the auction house, huh?”
“Yes.” Nexis didn’t sound any happier than Kelsey felt. “Big ever auction slaves held in year. I wish new owner nice over last.”
Kelsey filled in the blanks in her new friend’s speech, feeling lucky they could communicate at all. It probably had something to do with the little surgery that had been performed on her by the aliens from the first spaceship. The surgical wound behind her ear had at least healed and didn’t hurt anymore. Given Nexis’s odd speech, Kelsey couldn’t imagine the aliens had implanted the best translator. She’d probably gotten the cheapest one on the market, judging by the language difficulties.
She remembered what Nexis had told her about her previous owner. He’d grown annoyed with the female’s shedding. Kelsey glanced at her friend’s cotton-candy-like fur. She could see how pink bits of fluff shedding everywhere might become a problem. Especially since the bastard had regularly yanked Nexis around by her fur. A few bald spots confirmed the abuse her friend had suffered.
“Look big red aliens. Wish to gods don’t buy.”
Kelsey stared down from the stage at the aliens gathering to bid on slaves. The big red males were easy to spot. They had tall, stocky bodies, and their features were harsh. “They look mean.”
“Dolten alien eats,” her friend hissed. “Us food!”
“Shit.” Like the prospect of becoming some alien’s sex slave wasn’t bad enough for Kelsey. “Seriously?”
“Yes. Green with the moist skin? Nupas. Wish don’t buy.”
Kelsey figured her friend now had to be talking about the toad-looking aliens. They stood on two legs but had long arms with suction cup fingertips. Their skin did indeed have a wet-looking sheen in the bright lights. A few of the guards belonged to that alien race. “I’m almost afraid to ask, but tell me why.”
Nexis made grunting sounds and pumped her hips. It was her way of saying sex.
“Ewww.”
Her friend gave a sharp nod. “At all time.”
“Great. Alien toad guys are super horny. They look disgusting.”
“Yes. Much wet from body. Mouths.” Nexis pointed to her crotch. “Bad ever.”
“Enough. Don’t make me barf. I get what you’re saying. Nupas are disgusting.”
“Bigger body blue man with face damage? Good. Nice. Wish to gods buy.”
There were a lot of blue aliens, but there was one of that color who stood taller than the others, and had a lot more muscles. He had a scar on his blue cheek.
Kelsey pointed. “Him?”
“Yes. Parri. Many live home on my planet. Theirs die. Good. Nice. No pain. Good. No…” She mimicked being punched, then pretended to tear at her flimsy gown.
“I think I understand what you’re saying. Those types of aliens aren’t going to force us to have sex with them or beat on us?”
Nexis nodded. It seemed she could understand Kelsey just fine. The translation technology Nexis had must be better than whatever had been shoved into Kelsey’s head.
“Cristos!”
The fear in her friend’s voice had Kelsey stiffening. “What are those?”
“Scales,” Nexis hissed. “Worst ever bad!”
Another race that was easy to spot. The scary-looking reptilian aliens had just arrived. Their heads reminded her of those of a snake, but their bodies were like upright, walking crocodiles. They had thick arms and legs, with long, bulky torsos. Their mouths were large slits, their eyes pitch black, and dark scales covered their skin. She also caught a glimpse of thin tails hanging out the back of their black pants.
“What’s worse than eating us?” Kelsey turned to peer at Nexis but the female had moved away from the front of her cage to huddle in the back, on the floor.
Nexis’s big violet eyes filled with tears and she uncurled a little, touching her tummy area. “Buy warm female. Need us. Fill with much eggs.” She made the grunting noise for sex. “Much pain. Eggs break inside.” She threw both arms out, making a popping sound. “Eat us in to out. Us baby food. Die!” Nexis curled into a tight ball once more, her small body shaking.
Turning her head back toward the buyers, Kelsey stared in horror as more of those scaled aliens entered the auction area. There were ten of them in all. The blood drained from her face. She was certain she’d understood exactly what Nexis was saying. Those things would rape a slave, implant them with eggs, and they’d become a feast when the babies hatched inside their bodies. They’d eat the mom.
Which would be her and Nexis, if they were bought by the creepy-looking Cristos.
“Shit.” Kelsey had seen a very old horror alien movie somewhat like that once. She didn’t want aliens bursting out of her body while she was still alive. Especially knowing how they got inside her in the first place. A shudder ran down her spine, and she backed away from the front of the cage too, going to the back.
“Cristos,” Nexis whimpered, rocking her body.
“It’s going to be okay,” Kelsey lied. They had no control over who bought them but there were a lot of aliens coming to the auction. More kept arriving. She glanced at the other cages at the back of the stage, doing a slave count of the females present. There were thirty-six women up for auction. Her and Nexis were the only ones of their kinds. A good majority of the females were of the toad alien race.