Page 4 of My Big Scaly Alien Naga
That simple truth blazed inside me, brighter than any memory.
I wanted to wake.
I wasn’t ready yet.But I was closer.
Closer to answers.
Closer to freedom.
Closer to whoever had whispered to me in the dark.
My eyes snapped open.
Light poured in – sharp, sterile, white.I flinched and immediately regretted it.Pain stabbed behind my eyes and my stomach flipped with nausea.Everything hurt.Muscles I didn’t remember having clenched in protest.
I groaned.The sound was hoarse, ragged, as if my throat had forgotten how to make noise.My mouth was dry and my tongue felt thick.
I tried to sit up.Failed.Tried again.This time I managed a shaky elbow and dragged myself into a half-reclined position.I blinked against the brightness, squinting at my surroundings.
The space around me was dimly lit, with blinking lights somewhere in the distance, but it was enough to see that I was in a metal box.A coffin?
Panic rose, swift and sharp.
I was trapped.
Above my face was a round piece of glass, giving me a view of a high ceiling full of pipes, cables and lights.It made me think of a factory, or maybe the engine room of a ship.
The future didn't look too good.My past was shrouded in fog.All I had was the present.And in the present moment, I wanted to panic.I didn't know how I was clinging on to rational thought.This was a situation where anyone would go crazy with anxiety, right?The fact that I didn't told me something about myself: I was used to dealing with difficult situations.Or maybe I was simply brave, ridiculously brave.Either way, I was glad that I was clear-headed enough to focus.
First step, gather more information.I felt along the edges of my coffin as far as I could reach, searching for any sort of button, indentation, lever – or anything that would tell me something about my prison.
I didn't find anything beyond a few well-soldered rivets.Most of the coffin's interior was smooth, without hinges or an obvious lid.I didn't even know how this thing would open.It had to open.Right?
I pressed my face against the glass, trying to get a view of what was next to me.The room was in semi-darkness, but I could just about make out the top of a silver, curved metal ovoid next to me.I bet that's what my coffin looked like from the outside.That meant I might not be alone.And if they were awake too, they might have more information.Maybe they didn't lose their memory.
A beep sounded and the coffin shook.A click echoed through the small space.
Could I be so lucky?
With agonizing effort, I pushed the coffin’s lid open.It lifted slowly, assisted by a quiet hiss of hydraulics.Cold air rushed in.I sat up all the way, swaying slightly, and planted my feet on the floor.
Running my hands down my body to search my trouser pockets, another revelation hit me.I was naked.I wasn’t even wearing underwear.I shivered even though I wasn’t cold.I felt exposed, vulnerable.Clothes wouldn’t protect me from whatever was waiting for me.
What was I supposed to do now?
I stood.Somehow.Legs shaking, knees buckling.I braced a hand against the wall.The floor was cold beneath my bare feet.My skin felt hypersensitive, like every molecule was still waking up.
I looked around the room.None of the other metal coffins were open.Maybe I had been lucky.Or was this luck?An ominous weight settled at the bottom of my stomach.Maybe I should stay in the coffin and pretend to be asleep.
But I spotted a blinking light, next to a narrow panel in the wall.I approached it.My fingers shook as I reached out – and paused.
I was being watched.
I didn’t know how I knew.But the sense crawled over my skin like electricity.Someone was watching me.
I shivered and wrapped my arms around myself.Whoever it was, they hadn’t shown themselves.Yet.
Fine.Let them watch.
