NOT HUMAN

Chapter 35 - Mission

They entered a room without much light, Zane wished they brought flashlights. It would've been smart. There was a mahogany shelf leaning against a faded green door that looked to be closed off. The shelf held a collection of antique books.

The place was falling apart. The white paint was peeling back, and crumbling to the concrete floors. It smelled of earth and dirt as they all entered the room.

A chill went down Nixon's spine as he moved his feet slowly stumbling on an antique book and falling on his face. "Ah, my glasses again!" He cried, reaching for his cracked glasses.  He broke the deadly silence, and everyone turned to him with a long sigh or groan of frustration.

"Don't worry, we'll get you new ones." Blade patted his head like a kid, and gave him a hand standing up. He thanked Blade and turned away mortified. It was the second time he fell on his face and broke his glasses.

"Come on." Blade waved for them to follow. The room was spacious, but there was no spaceship there.

"Uh, where's the ship?" Andy questioned.

"It's here." Blade reassured her.

They continued on the short walk around the room when suddenly Blade stopped in front of an old painting. It was of a pretty lady in a flower dress, with blond hair, and bright eyes, and she was under a sunset laying down in the long green flourish grass.

"Nice painting," Trey commented.

"Yeah, the lady is hot," Jax interjected, rudely.

"Ew," Cherry said, next to Trey who was still helping her walk. She thought Jax was shallow, and now looking back she regrets ever hooking up with the guy. She desperately wanted to barf.

The painting suddenly opened up when Blade pressed his palm against the sunset, and there was a latch at the back of the painting, he pulled on it and there was a door!!

It was camouflaged with the wall paint, and he opened it to lead down a long staircase. It was nearly pitch black down there.

"Ugh. I can't see a thing." Cherry still feels Trey's arm under hers, assisting her.

"Don't worry, I'm here." He snickered.

Andy bumped into someone's back and pressed her hands on it to push off. "My bad can barely see a thing."

"It's fine." Nixon's voice cracked, as his face heated, luckily it was dark so no one could see his blush.

"Oh, it's you." Andy felt a sudden rush to her cheeks as well. She ignored it.

"Guys we are finally here." Blade notified, then they all could see a bright light up ahead. They walked towards it.

"Wow," Angelica gapes. "It's so pretty."

"Yes." Blade replies.

"So, this is it, eh?" Nixon chuckles, not waiting, he rushes to the spaceship and skims his hand over it. "It's great." He states looking at it.

"You're such a nerd." Andy snorts.

Nixon glares at her for a moment, before turning back to the ship.

It was huge. It reached a very tall ceiling. It had a strong exterior opening and was made out of something similar to metal, but it was a stronger material. There was a symbol on the face of it, two purple circles overlapping one another. Just like the one in Lily's dream thought Blade. The shape was white and purple.

"So, what now?" Zane turned to Blade.

"Well, we start packing for the ride of our lives of course!"

...

Meanwhile in outer space*

Sitting here in the bleak, cold room. Not being able to leave or tell what time it is. There are no clocks here in the ship or outer space. There's no pretty sunrise or sunset, no blue sky, no birds singing in the morning.

She sits up moving her blond out of her face and staring blankly at the walls. She ponders on her what will happen today. Will she have another session with needles, injections, and foreign objects? Or will it be medications and taking blood?

There was no telling. Or maybe she doesn't leave the room today. It could be one of those boring days where nothing happens.

Well, whatever it was all she hoped was that David stuck with his promise. To leave her team alone. But she had a feeling that it was all a lie, a ploy to get her easily. If that were true then her surrendering herself was a waste; a big waste.

Lily laid down on her bed. It was soft, and her pillow cushioned her achy head, and her feet stretched out to the ends of it. It was perfect you'd think. Nevertheless, she missed her bed back home.

She lifted her body off the mattress and stood up on her feet feeling slightly shaky from all the tests she was forced to take. She moved towards the bathroom door that was installed in this room. She twisted the knob and opened it. She stood in front of the mirror and glanced back at the strange woman. This imposter had bags under her silver eyes, stress coated on her pale complexion.

She reached out and touched the glass seeing herself and how much she changed since she got here. From the bright glint in her eyes to what state it was in now; a dull gray. It saddened her. She couldn't give up hope. She knew that Blade was coming for her.

Now all she had to do was wait. Or maybe she could do something for them while here. She could be useful.

So, she decided she would.

"Hello!" She banged on the white metal door and slammed her fist on it for a full five minutes.

Finally, someone opened it.

It was one of the Oculos guards.

"Hey." She greeted. She knew David had been teaching them English but her best guess was this one didn't take any of those classes.  Because he stood there staring at her like she had spoken a different language; which she had.

"Ahem." She cleared her throat. Maybe she could speak their language too.

"Hello, I'd like to take a tour of the place. Sure my 'dad' wouldn't mind." She attempted her best to speak Oculos with growls, and other obnoxious animalistic sounds. It was weird how she knew it, almost like an instinct of hers.

"Yes, David Valerie, right?" Oh my god. He spoke back. He understood her! Yes!

So, the guard took her on a tour. The ship was more vast than she imagined. It had many floor units, many rooms, and halls. Many Oculos guards, staff, healers, etc.

The guard was 8'5 towering over a few of his comrades. The Oculos had red eyes. He didn't seem too bad. But she thought back to how the Oculos guards held her down to the bed and tied her to it. And allowed the doctors to do experimental tests on her.

"Do you feel bad?" She asked as they turned down a hall. She could see two human prisoners cuffed by two other Oculos guards. One of the humans had brown dull eyes, streaked with wet tears, and his face was bruised, and the other was a young woman with pale blue terrified eyes. They looked like they'd been through hell. She didn't doubt that they had.

She knew what they did to humans here. She questioned if the sob story her dad had told her was even true. Was he ever a prisoner here? Or was it all a lie? Had he sided with the Oculos at the very beginning?

"No." What?

"Y-you don't?" Why was she even remotely surprised by this?

"It's an honor to work under the first. I'm simply following orders." The Oculos didn't express any sort of empathy. He was completely devoid of any emotion. Were all Oculos like this? Was her mother like this?