The morning sunlight streamed through the thin curtains, painting golden lines across Prince Singh's room.
He sat cross-legged on the floor, staring blankly at his notebook. The equations in front of him refused to make sense, no matter how long he stared.
> "Why does math always feel like an alien language?" he muttered to himself.
The irony of his words would hit him later.
At sixteen, Prince lived an ordinary life in a small Indian town. His family wasn't rich, but they weren't starving either. He had parents who nagged him to study, neighbors who compared him to "Sharmaji's son," and a younger sister who delighted in stealing his phone charger.
He wasn't tall—five feet six—but his lean, toned body drew more than a few glances from classmates. His face was above average by local standards, with sharp eyes that often seemed lost in thought.
> "Beta, go buy milk!" his mother's voice snapped him out of his trance.
Prince grabbed his wallet and stepped out into the humid morning air. He didn't know it yet, but this would be the last normal errand of his life.
---
The Sky Cracks Open
The streets were unusually empty. The usual sound of cycle bells and barking dogs seemed muted. A strange stillness hung in the air.
Prince felt it first as a vibration in his chest—a low hum, like a giant tuning fork struck far away.
He looked up.
And the sky… split.
A black line cut across the heavens like cracked glass. Glowing veins of blue light spread outward. Slowly, impossibly, the crack widened.
From the gap, a shadow emerged.
Massive.
Unnatural.
A shape that didn't belong to Earth.
> "Is that… a ship?" Prince whispered.
It wasn't sleek or shiny like in movies. It was alive—pulsing with veins of alien light, covered in spines and shifting plates of metal and flesh.
As it descended, smaller ships peeled off like hunting birds leaving their mother. They darted toward the towns below, their engines screaming.
Prince's legs refused to move. He watched as one of the crafts hovered above the main square, its underbelly opening with a hiss.
Figures dropped to the ground—humanoids, but wrong.
They were taller than any human, their skin pale and slick like polished stone. Their eyes glowed faintly, and their armor shimmered with symbols that twisted when he tried to read them.
---
The Culling
Screams erupted.
People ran in every direction as the aliens raised glowing rods. Beams of light shot out—not deadly, but paralyzing. Those struck fell to the ground, stiff as statues.
> "What are they doing?!"
Prince ducked behind a fruit cart as the aliens fanned out. One by one, his neighbors were immobilized and stacked into strange floating cages.
Children. Elders. His own classmates.
Nobody fought back. How could they?
> "They're… they're taking us."
He felt a hand grab his wrist. It was Mrs. Patel, the grocer's wife.
> "Run! Hide in the temple—"
A flash of blue light struck her in the back. She fell mid-scream, her body locking rigid as two aliens approached.
Prince's breath came fast and shallow.
I have to move. Now.
But before he could stand, another beam of light slammed into his chest.
---
The End of Earth
Darkness.
Time lost all meaning.
When sensation returned, Prince found himself lying on a cold metal floor. The air smelled sterile, tinged with something sweet and nauseating.
> Where am I?
He sat up slowly, his head pounding. All around him were people—hundreds of them—huddled in tight groups.
Earthlings.
Men, women, children. All stripped of their clothes and belongings, dressed in identical gray robes.
A glowing collar encircled his neck.
He touched it instinctively and winced as it shocked him with a faint zap.
---
The Auction Begins
A deafening voice echoed in a language he didn't understand. Symbols flashed in the air before his eyes, then shifted into Hindi.
> "Earthlings. Subspecies: Homo Sapiens Terra. Classified: Non-cultivator. Base price: 300 credits."
A platform rose slowly from the floor. At its center stood a woman.
But she wasn't human.
Tall and graceful, her skin was a deep shade of silver-blue, her eyes glowing gold. Flowing white robes clung to her slender frame, and a crown of thin metal circled her head.
The alien woman surveyed the crowd with calm disinterest.
---
The Glance That Changed Everything
Then her gaze fell on him.
Prince froze as their eyes met.
Her expression didn't change. No anger. No curiosity.
Just… emptiness.
But for some reason, she spoke.
A low, melodious voice that resonated through the chamber.
> "This one. Male. I'll take him."
Before Prince could react, two armored aliens grabbed his arms and dragged him forward.
> "Wait! Let me go! Where are you taking me?!"
The silver-blue woman didn't answer. She didn't even look at him again.
The collar around his neck tightened with a soft click. His vision blurred.
> "No… no… no…"
---
The Pet of the Stars
When his eyes cleared, he was no longer in the auction hall.
He was kneeling in a lavish chamber filled with alien artifacts and floating lights.
And she stood before him.
The woman who bought him.
A being so far beyond him that he felt like an ant before a storm.
> "You are mine now, little Earthling," she said softly.
Prince's fists clenched.
But deep down, he knew.
There was no escape.
This was only the beginning.