The Prisoner
Have I gone blind or is it so dark in here that I cannot see?
There is no way of knowing. I seem to be in some kind of prison cell. If I haven’t gone blind, then I am incarcerated in a place without windows. My cell is small and there is water everywhere. It’s really claustrophobic, there is practically no space for me to move my body. Not that that makes much difference as my limbs are so weak that I couldn’t move them even if I wanted to. The only one of my senses that seems to be working is my hearing but this is not exactly a blessing, as the only sound I can hear is a constant thumping noise coming from just beyond the cell wall. Bang, bang, bang, it never ends. It’s like water torture.
I shouldn’t be in here, I am innocent and the conditions that I am being kept in are nothing short of inhumane. They feed me through a tube. I have thought many times about escape but the walls are far too thick and my limbs are incredibly weak. I suspect that they put some form of tranquilizer in the food. They obviously want me trapped in here and not making a fuss. Perhaps I am in some form of institution. Is that what has happened, have I lost my mind? I have no recollection of the events leading up to my incarceration. It is like I’ve been the victim of a mind blank. Is that it, is it something to do with military, have I seen something that I shouldn’t? Now I am just starting to sound paranoid. I have to focus, take stock of my situation. There is one positive thing that I can hang onto. My body is building up a natural immunity to the sedative. Every day I feel more alert, more aware of my surroundings. Every day I grow stronger. I shall bide my time and once my body has fully recovered I shall find a way to make my escape.
A few months have passed since we last spoke and I have to confess that it is worse than I could have possibly imagined. Turns out that the cell was alien in origin. I was imprisoned in some kind of space ship on my way to the alien world that I now find myself upon. I remember little of the debarkation, only that ejection from the ship was a very stressful affair. It has taken my senses a few days to get used to their new environment. I was both blind and deaf for a while which was scary but I have become used to their world now. The returning of my senses means that I have now seen the aliens and I know what I am dealing with. They are giants, literally they must be about seven times my height. They are bipedal in form with features very similar to mine although, by proportion, their legs are much longer and their heads are much smaller. It is as though they have just emerged from a hall of mirrors in a fun fair and taken on the image of their reflection. My situation is nothing short of terrifying.
More time has now passed and I am becoming more accustomed to my surroundings. My new cell is the far more traditional type. It is spacious but without any amenities. The floor is solid and the four walls are comprised solely of thick wooden bars. There is no ceiling but escape is still impossible because the walled bars stretch so far up into the air, making me feel somewhat like a tiger in a pen. The aliens watch me from above. Perhaps this is to be my fate, a creature in an alien zoo. I have blankets and I have toyed with the idea of fashioning a rope to make my escape by climbing out of the cage but my limbs are still too weak and my hands lack the dexterity needed for climbing. Who am I trying to kid? Climbing?! I can’t even walk; the journey here has left my limbs worse than useless. Still I don’t lose heart and I continue to grow stronger every day. At first my captures fed me purely on some liquid based protein drink which was lucky because my digestive system was unable to cope with anything else and without it I most surely would have died. I am back on proper food now, although their food is like slop and tastes disgusting. I still don’t trust them and often refuse to eat but they are strong and if I don’t do it willingly they force me. In anger I have even thrown their food back at them but this just angers the aliens more and I’m not sure that getting on their bad side is a good idea. However, despite it’s awful taste the slop improves my strength quicker than the liquid did, something which seems to please the aliens and I have to say that this fills me with dread. Am I cattle to them? Are they just fattening me up so that they can eat me?
It has been six months since our last communication and I am still in the same cell although the bars are not as high now. I think they must be on some form of hydraulic mechanism slowly dropping into the floor but although they are now shorter, they are still far too high for any chance of my escape. What possible nefarious reason my captors have for torturing me in this way I can’t imagine. It is as though they are mocking me. I bet they laugh at my plight when they are alone together although I have to say that this is a rare occurrence. There is normally at least one alien present at any given time and they very rarely let me out of their sight. When they do they have state art cameras and microphones monitoring me at all times.
I have started to identify my guards by their unusual features and I have come to realise that there is a dedicated team supervising my incarceration. Their social structure seems to operate on a matriarchal system. The main guard in charge of me appears female in origin and she is the one who patrols me for the majority of the time. She controls the canteen and is also the one who is largely present during my exercise period. I am allowed out of the cage at certain times of the day into the yard, always under the constant supervision of the aliens. I use this time wisely. There are no weights machines here or any form physio but I am employing the use of calisthenics to strengthen my muscles. Also the fact that this planet seems to have a really heavy gravity is working to my advantage. Every movement is a struggle but every movement makes me stronger.
As well as the female there are other guards who supervise me. A male is also here frequently although not as frequently as the female. The male is more reserved and keeps his distance. It is as though he is frightened of me. Perhaps he fears I carry some form of alien disease. Strange to think that I could possibly be a threat to a race that is so big and strong. Either that or they are both playing some form of good cop, bad cop game, perhaps to try to exert some information out of me that could be valuable to their race. They have little chance of that. I remember nothing that happened before the abduction. I also suspect that there may be something going on between the two main aliens. Some form of romantic involvement because at times they seem overly familiar, although at other times quite the opposite is true. I am going to keep an eye on this relationship as I may be able to manipulate it in the future for my advantage. As well as my main captors there are also two other more elderly guards who regularly appear. I think that the female one is in charge. She is very authoritarian and always seems to be giving the younger female orders. The older male doesn’t do much; I suspect that he is some form of body guard.
I made a break for it today. The younger female was on her communication device. I have noticed that when an alert sounds she is required to report in, sometimes for lengthy periods and during these times she is distracted. I have been very compliant lately, especially at meal times and I think that I have managed to lull her into a false sense of security. Plus, my limbs are much stronger than I have let on and although I am now capable of fast movement, even with their heavy gravity, I have kept that fact a secret. I’ve just been biding my time, waiting for my chance. Today when the alert came and the female rushed to respond she failed to properly close the door at the end of the exercise yard. Seizing my chance and mustering all of my strength I ran for the portal. I had no idea how I would survive alone on this strange planet but I didn’t let that cloud my judgement. I only had one thought in my mind, that of escape, the rest I would sort out later. Alas, I was out of luck. I cleared the exercise yard and ran into the corridor which lies beyond to find the end blocked by a heavy security door. For a moment I thought that luck was with me because as I ran toward the door in blind hope, it started to open. Then I realised the reason it was opening was because the large male guard was coming in from the other side and I was caught. Now they have increased the security on me. I heard them using their big machines to install it during the night and now there are extra security gates all around the prison, any further chance of escape is impossible.
Nearly a year has passed and I have to report that my situation has not improved much. I am still at the mercy of the aliens although I have been granted certain privileges. The food has improved and I now have entertainment. The aliens have a giant display screen in the exercise yard which they use to obtain information and for recreation but when they are not using it they let me watch things on it that are more relevant to me. I am ashamed to say that I have started to fall into my new role and even though they seem to have relaxed security again, thoughts of escape have moved further to the back of my mind. I fear that I have somewhat accepted my fate. What is worse I think that I may be suffering from Stockholm syndrome because I am starting to relate to my captors. Not so much the male who despite our time spent together still eyes me with distrust but the female, who I am starting to believe has a genuine affection for me. I am even starting to decipher their language. I have noticed recurring patterns in the guttural noises they use when they refer to each other and I have been mimicking them with a view to initiating communication. Certain patterns occur more often than others, particularly when they addressing each other and I now realise that they use them as call signs to summon each other or to gain each other’s attention. I have isolated the call sign of the main individual and as a result I have formulated a new plan. I am going to attempt communication with the female. She is the one who seems the most sympathetic to me and perhaps she can be turned. I have no chance of escape on my own and even with her help my chances are still very small but I feel that it is a risk that I must take. I know that she has access to their ships because I have been aboard with her on short journeys to gather provisions and when she has taken me for inspection by her superior officer. If I can just get her on my side she could be my salvation. The next time she collects me from my cage I am going to address her by her call sign and gauge her response, that is the only way I will know if I have a chance or not. It is a big risk. Like the escape attempt once they realise I can decipher their language they may become more guarded as a result, or worse still my new found intelligence may be perceived as a threat. I am taking my life in my hands here but what choice do I have? The longer I remain here the more comfortable I become and I fear that if I don’t try to escape soon this will be my plight forever. My mind is made up, the next time I see the female I will say her name and see what happens.
Here she comes now, here goes nothing.
“Ma Ma”
The End
