The Shift

Dax's eyes slowly opened, the fogginess blurring his vision. A suddened swarm of smells flew through his nose, fighting for attention. Steril metal. Sweat. Disinfectant. Vomit. Animal dander. The 17 year old boy's vision slowly cleared. A piercing scream from a few yards away made him jump, causing him to bang his head with a loud thump. The scream turned to a strange gurgling noise, a cross between sobbing, choking, and an inhuman wimper. The sound slowly lessened to a more restrained sniffling.

Dax shook his head nervously and sat up. A sharp pain shot down his back, making him gasp. He had been sleeping on a hard metal floor with only a thin blanket, bairly worthy of being used for a tissue. He looked around quickly and suddenly realized he was in a cage. His forehead began to perspire, and he looked around wildly.

There was a dish of what looked like dog food next to him, along with a mug full of room temperature tap water. There was a bucket in the far corner. Dax realized with a horrified look over the side that it was for his "waste products." the cage was just large enough that he could sit up, and long enough to lay on the floor with his legs slightly bent. Beside him was another cage, then another, then another. The same arangement was also in front and on the other side of him.

He bit his bottom lip, his eyes wide with panic. What on earth was going on? Was this some twisted game his friends were pulling? His throat clenched, clogged with emotion. The metallic taste of feat coated his mouth.

"Guys?" He called out nervously. No response. "Guys!" He called louder. Still nothing. His mouth was as dry as a bone, and his voice cracked as he yelled out. "Help!" His lower lip began to tremble slightly, but he refused to loose his cool. "HELP!!" He screamed. "Please! Help!" his vision became foggy as his eyes began to water, but he sucked it in. Don't cry, you big baby! "HEEELP!!!" He screeched.

"Shut up!"

Dax was startled to hear a frustrated voice beside him.

To his right was a boy, maybe fourteen-years-old. Dax hurriedly tapped the side of his cage to get his attention.

"Hey! Hey you! Where am I?"

The boy looked over and raised an eyebrow.

"In a cage, idiot." he smiled with a fake sweet smile. Dax bit his lip again, holding back the tightness in his throat.

"That's not what I mean and you know it."

The boy sighed.

"Alright you got me. We're actually on an alien spaceship and we're being used as cattle."

Dax gave him a withering look, his fear being replaced wit desperation and anger.

"Listen, you little smart mouth, I asked you a question and I want it answered!"

The boy just raised his hands as if in protection.

"Alright, alright! Jeeze, ya have a little fun and some guy goes crazy on ya... Look, no one really knows where we are. "

"Stop it! Just tell me where I am!" Dax was sure he would strangle this kid if there wasn't a mesh wall between them.

"That's the truth!"

"Yeah, right!" Dax hissed.

The boy growled in frustration. And then Dax's eyes grew wide with horror and disbelief. Hair began to grow from the boy's skin. No-not hair. Fur. His ears lengthened and thinned out, drooping over his face, which elongated into a muzzle. And then, in place of the boy was a brown mutt.

"How-" Dax's eyes grew large. He backed up in his cage, afraid for his life. Dax blinked and leaned forward, stretching out his hand. He reached his fingers trough the bars and touched the dogs brown fur. It was dirty and matted, like a dog on the streets.

The dogs face twisted with pain and let put a loud yelp and a stifled wimper. Dax quickly pulled his hands away, knocking his elbow on the cage. The boy slowly reverted back to human. He was panting like crazy and he groaned in pain.

"What was that?!" Dax yelled.

"L-look, I really c-can't explain..." the boy trailed off, his voice quivering from the pain he suffered.

Dax sat with his back against the cage and put his head in his hands. This had to be a dream. A nightmare. He'll just wake up in the morning and everything will be fine and dandy... Aw, who was he kidding! He was in a living Hell and he knew it.

The boy caught his breath and looked over at Dax.

Dax's eyes began to water as panic set in. He pulled his knees in to his chest. This isn't happening. This isn't happening. This is happening.

There was a clang to the right of him, then the skeeeEEEEE thump! of a door closing.

Two men in long white cloaks came in, carrying a large portable cage that must way a ton. They had a handle each, opposite of each other to share the weight. They came straight for Dax's cage. A spike of painful nausea swept over him. These men looked anything but friendly.

Dax let out a sigh of relief as the men opened to door of the cage next to him, opening the now open carrying cage up to it. A girl crawled out of it, into the cage. She had long messy brown hair, her brown eyes shown brightly in hatred and exhaustion. She was panting and struggling to claw and grab the hands that were closing the cage door. She finally collapsed on the floor, unable to hold her self up.

Dax jumped at the sound of metal scrapping metal, and his stomach plummeted. Before he could move, a pair of glows hands grabbed him.