I watch, horrified, as the lead alien points a weapon at Koba’s chest and fires. His size is something I have found intimidating from the moment I first set eyes on him, which is why I’m so shocked when I see him fall so easily. Nothing makes sense. Koba said this would be an easy mission. Sneak on board, discover what the Atronox are up to, and then return to me.

But instead, a swarm of green aliens surround Koba and lift him off the ground, carrying his massive, limp body onto their ship. I haven’t blinked or taken a breath since this horrible ordeal began. I don’t know what to do next. If I had any alien technical skills I would try to figure out how to contact the Star Fury from this ship, but I don’t have a clue where to even begin.

Once again I’m alone without any idea of how to proceed.

“Please don’t let him be dead,” I say to myself.

The thought of it crushes my heart. He’s all I’ve really known since I was taken from Earth. The only one that makes me feel calm. If he’s dead, what will become of me on this godforsaken planet?

All of my worries take a backseat when a group of the aliens break off from the rest and begin walking toward the ship. I grab at the restraints in my seat and free myself. Moving as fast as I can, I climb down and check the hatch to see if there’s any way to lock it. I’m frantically trying to remember if I heard anything click or lock when Koba left, but I can’t think straight. They don’t know I’m on board so I wonder if I could try to hide, but no, this isn’t that kind of ship. It is small, no space for hiding cargo. My only option is to make sure the hatch will hold for as long as possible.

The thought of these green aliens opening this hatch and pulling me out sends chills through my body. But then again, if they take me, I can try to get to Koba. I can try to help him … somehow.

I abandon the hatch and move over to the controls, looking for something that could be used to signal the other ships. I’m pushing random buttons, saying things like, “Help” and “Anybody there?” I’m not even rewarded with static. And then, I hear the sound of the hatch being turned. The Atronox are here and they’re trying to get in. Thank God it holds. The steady clanging is a reassuring sign that they’re trying to break in. At least I have a little time.

Soon the sounds change and they’re no longer using only their physical strength. When I look back at the hatch, it looks as if they’re burning a circle around the hatch to completely remove it. I don’t have much time before they break through. The last thing I can think to do is try to arm myself. Koba didn’t mention any weapons on board but I search through the compartments anyway. The problem with being on an alien spacecraft on an alien planet is that I don’t even know what most of the things that I come across are. Weapons can’t be that hard to recognize though, and I come up empty.

The sound of the hatch falling from the ship and landing with an echoing clang on the ground pierces my soul with dread. I will myself to be strong, for Koba, when they finally make their way onto the ship. There’s nowhere to hide. I know it’s selfish but I want Koba here with me. I’m tired of dealing with things on my own and I don’t want to have to be the strong one anymore. I let my guilt bring me along on this mission but now I’m empty except for my fear.

When they reach me and wrap their green claws around my body, I’ve accepted my fate. Without Koba, there’s no fight left in me. They don’t say anything and they aren’t gentle as they pull me to the hatch and drop me out of it. I hit the ground with a rough thud before I’m pulled up into the rough, bony arms of the aliens waiting below. I’m dragged along behind them, toward my steel prison cell, or something worse. When we reach the ramp, the red stain from Koba’s wound bleeds into the dry desert sand, striking hopelessness into my heart. What a horrible reminder of their intentions.

A sob escapes me.

I think of Koba and pray that he’s alright. In fact, I would give anything right now, even my own freedom, if that meant he would walk away from this situation.

I stop fighting. I let the aliens hold my arms and drag me along into the dark bowels of the ship. At first my eyes don’t adjust but I tell myself that it is better this way. When I force myself to open my eyes to see where they are taking me, the dim lights along the corridor give off an eerie green glow. It’s enough to see where we’re walking but it amplifies the ominous feeling of being aboard this ship again.

The sound of their boots echoes off the steel floors and fills the space around us. Other than that, it’s quiet … too quiet. For a ship this large filled with aliens and who knows what else, you’d think there would be more noise. It adds to the dread snaking its way through my veins.

They lead me through empty corridors and if I didn’t know we were on a ship I’d assume we were moving underground. We curve around and come upon a steel door with bars covering the small window. Their technology isn’t as sophisticated as the Force’s. Down here, instead of typing in a code in a digital panel, they have old school locks that require keys.

Nothing can prepare me for what I see when the door swings open. The room is dark except for one flickering neon light hanging from the ceiling. It illuminates the room enough to see the small cages that line the walls, barely large enough for an animal, much less a human. But that’s what I see when I look closer in the cages: human women.

I don’t know how long they’ve been here. They’re dirty. The conditions that they are being kept in are deplorable. They’re sleeping on the cold, steel floors without blankets. They haven’t been given new clothes since they were abducted, so just like me, they are wearing whatever they had on at the time. It’s clear they’ve only been given enough food to keep them alive. It is unnerving how quiet they are, as if they aliens have beaten them into complete submission. When I happen to catch the eye of a woman huddled at the back of her cage, the haunted look that I see there will forever change me.

The aliens drag me past the cages and although I want to shut my eyes to keep out the horrors around me, I force myself to look. It isn’t until we reach an empty cage at the end that they stop and shove me inside. My hands burn against the metal when I throw them out in front of me to catch my fall. The bars slam shut behind me and I don’t realize that I’m crying until my wet tears start to soak the front of my cloak.

“Wait,” I say, frantic now that the shock is wearing off. “Wait, please. Where’s Koba? Can I see him, please? You’ve got to let me see him. I need to make sure that he’s okay.” The thought of him lying dead on a cold slab of metal somewhere in this tomb of a ship makes me go cold.

The alien makes a strange sound but something similar to a laugh if I had to guess. “I will save you the trouble. Very soon, he will be dead. We will dispose of his body once we get into space. One less Gaian to pollute the planet.”

I’m squeezing the bars so tightly with my fingers, my knuckles are turning white. My fear turns to rage. Rage at being taken again and knowing that my rescuer won’t be able to come for me this time. Rage at how they shot Koba like he was nothing and now they’re going to send his body out into space like trash.

I can’t stop myself, I start yelling. I’m screaming, “You can’t do this!” And I just keep saying it. Using whatever strength I have left, I shake the steel door with my hands and when it doesn’t move an inch, I sit back and use my legs and feet to kick at the door. I want them to come back for me. I want them to try to make me be quiet. I scream and kick at the door like a crazy person, but I don’t care. If Koba is dead, then I’d rather be dead, too. I can’t live the rest of my life as an alien slave. I kick and scream and yell until my voice goes hoarse and I have bruises all over my hands and feet. Eventually the fight leaves me and I slump on the floor of the cold cell, defeated.