Some days, it was all I could do to keep up the act. To not just let loose on Gaelinin, with its asinine, repetitive questions, or to try and kick down the door to the horrible little cell they called my room. It sounded easy enough to act like an idiot - any idiot could do it, after all. Right?

Oh, that was what I had thought, those first few days when the idea had really sunk in. But while the game was easy enough to keep up for a few days, that changed entirely when those few days dragged on, and on, and on.

I tried scratching marks into the wall of my cell, at first. They vanished every time I left for another session with Gaelinin, or for the meager time they gave me to hobble around the hallways. Around, and around, and around, I walked. Their idea of ‘exercise’, apparently. Every time I’d step back into my room and find it just as pristine as the very first day.

I tried leaving notes for myself, or tearing rips into the fabric of my bedspread, or any number of other things. If you can think of it, I did too. But in the end all I had was my memory of how many days had passed, and that failed me soon enough.

I told myself it had been months. I knew it was probably closer to years, even if I wouldn’t admit it. The only interaction with another living thing I got was with Gaelinin or the others of its species I saw wandering the compound every now and again, and, well. I had to act like an imbecile. That didn’t leave much room for satisfying conversation.

Only a little longer until I made my move. I repeated the phrase like a mantra. Only a little longer. Just a little more. One more day. And another - and another. I didn’t know quite what I was waiting for, but I was definitely waiting for something.

“Sam?”

I blinked, coming back to reality with a snap. The latest printout was in front of me, right under my fingertips. I couldn’t remember it being handed to me. Slowly, painstakingly, I lifted my head.

Gaelinin stared back at me with its four eyes, fingers interlaced in front of it. “Are you all right, Sam?” It said, every bit as slowly and carefully.

“I...uh,” I said, letting my eyes drop back down to the sheet. “I’m...sorry. I don’t remember. What exactly am I, um.” Lots of stammering - my favorite. Confusion was never a bad reaction, as far as my relationship with the caretaker was concerned.

Sure enough, it flushed again, the wiry hair sticking from its skin rustling gently. “There’s no rush, is there, hmm?” it said, its voice cheerful. “Just take a deep breath, and tell me how many squares you see.”

As though I didn’t already know that. There were only so many different tests they gave me in this stupid compound. It didn’t exactly take a genius to figure out what I was supposed to be doing, did it? But, I’d clearly done my job a little too well. Biting back a sigh before it could escape, I glanced back down at the printout.

Not before I’d seen the way Gaelinin’s eyes flicked from side to side, almost...nervously. It was anxious. I hadn’t seen that before. It was odd enough that for a long moment my mind was scattered again as I eyed it.

Its long, multi-jointed finger tapped the sheet in front of me, even as its other hand dropped down to the belt on its side. “Pay attention now, Sam.”

Almost by instinct, my chin dropped, my eyes fixing obediently on the printout. I hadn’t been subjected to the same trials as the other subjects, the ones I could hear distantly even as I stared at the squares. The ones howling their pain for all the world to hear. I’d avoided that, so far. But that didn’t mean that I’d never felt the bite of the collar, the jolt of electricity or whatever it was that it had. Gaelinin was softer on me than some of the guards, but it still didn’t react well to being ignored.

I masked a grimace behind a yawn. This particular challenge was as simple as ever, but I couldn’t put my mind into it, either. Whatever they’d done to me, whatever they were doing, they were clearly mapping something. I didn’t want them to know I was pulling my mental punches.

“I think…” I said slowly, wrinkling my forehead.

“Yes?” Gaelinin said, leaning forward to stare at me. “How many? How many do you see?”

“Uh. I think, um. Twelve?” I said hesitantly, offering it a vacant smile. Inwardly, I was confused. It was being so damn pushy. Something was off.

Its face fell - assuming I was reading it right. The ridges around its facial structure all seemed to droop, and, well, there were only so many things that could mean. “Ah. Well, thank you for trying, Sam.”

I grinned broadly, as though I couldn’t see the disappointment in its expression. It turned away, rising from its half-crouch to skitter over to the wall. The sound of keys being pressed echoed through the test chamber. A slit on the smooth, steel-grey surface spit out another sheet.

Gaelinin took it, turning back to me with all of its earlier eagerness. “Well, why don’t we-”

The door slid open with barely a sound. We both stopped in our tracks, turning towards the unexpected disturbance.

Another of Gaelinin’s race stood at the door - the Nalitokk, it had told me when I’d asked once, ages ago. It peered in, eyes flitting between me and its colleague.

“Did you forget?” it said, watching my caretaker. “We’ll be late.”

Gaelinin jumped, the printout crumpling in its hand as it seemed to come back to itself. “Oh. Oh yes. That is today, yes?”

The newcomer seemed to glare at it, its eyes whirling. “It’s right now.”

“Yes, yes, yes. Of course. Right. Yes. Ah,” Gaelinin turned on me in a flash, its six legs moving underneath it as it accelerated towards me. It took everything I had not to flinch. They were absolutely horrifying to see in motion, drawing out all of those half-buried fears of spiders and insects lingering somewhere in me. But practice makes perfect, and I didn’t so much as twitch.

“Sam, sweetling, something’s come up,” it said, patting my shoulder even as it keyed something on its controller. My collar beeped. A bit of the tension slipped out of me. “We’ll continue this later tonight. Go get some rest for now, hmm?” Its cheeks spread, exposing the sharp, pointed teeth underneath. It was trying to smile - to mimic the human expression. It had been trying to do that ever since it had met me. I hadn’t had the heart to tell it how terrifying a smile was on something as inhuman as the Nalitokk were.

Its colleague sighed, settling lower on its haunches as it stared at Gaelinin. I got the feeling it was entirely unamused. But, I’d been dismissed, and that was that. My mind spun. This was...different. Very different. We’d never had a session interrupted like this. I forced myself to keep looking straight as I slowly made my way down the hall, still smiling faintly.

I flopped down onto my bed as soon as the door to my cell shut behind me, hiding me from sight. There was no guarantee that I wasn’t being watched even in my room, of course, but I was probably safe. Safer. One hand reached up as I stewed on the events of the day, my fingers sliding under the smooth, cold collar around my neck. It itched. It always had, and I knew it always would.

What was going on? I’d never seen Gaelinin so distracted, so off-balance. Did something happen? Was something wrong?

How could I use this?

My pulse thundered in my ears. This was it, wasn’t it? The moment I’d been waiting for. I’d been looking for something, anything to tell me that now was the time, the chance to make the final push. I had the caretaker wound around my finger - it was completely convinced that I was harmless.

Not that I wanted to hurt it, either. The alien had always been reasonable to me, so far as these things went. It was still my captor. It used discipline if I didn’t listen to it, but not needlessly. A smile crept onto my face, the first honest one in a long, long time.

My mind was made up. I would do it that night. No more waiting, no more being afraid, no more backing out. I needed to take action. I could do this.

Forcing myself to take deep, steady breaths, I lay back on the rigid, uncomfortable mattress. Something had come up - something that had called Gaelinin away. But it had said we’d continue later, after it was done. If the way its limbs had trembled at the reminder was any indication, it wasn’t going to be any more settled down at that point. I’d have to move quickly, when my chance offered itself.

There wasn’t anything actually in my cell, of course. Just the bed and the walls, and a few books they’d given me. They’d hoped I would read and learn, I knew, grinning crookedly. Surprise was on them. But the complete, stark bareness of the room left me staring blankly, feeling the wait stretch on.

And on.

And on.

All of the pent-up terror and adrenaline slipped away as the hours stretched on. How long was this going to take, exactly? Not that I wasn’t used to waiting - I was - but having something new and exciting looming at the end of the tunnel just added a whole level of difficulty to the whole matter.

There was no sun in the compound. No moon, no stars. It was a little thing, something that seemed completely obvious. But it had been one of the most challenging things for me to overcome, those first few weeks. Minnesota had gleamed with light, a thousand stars shining off a thousand lakes with the moon high overhead. The sun, beating down endlessly, streaking my already-blond hair with yet more gold. Together, they formed a smooth, seamless rhythm, one that I’d known my entire life.

The same truth did not hold true in the compound. All I had were the walls, without so much as a clock to help me keep track of time as it passed. I’d thought about asking for one - but why would they give one to me? This place wasn’t designed for my comfort, and someone as clueless as I was supposed to be wouldn’t care. There was no way for me to get around the facts of the matter, and so I went without.

Little by little, my eyes drooped lower. The lights were turning down, dimming incrementally as the compound’s sensors registered my fatigue. The final effect was rather like the nite-lite I’d had as a child; dim enough to cast the room in a murky, grey haze, but bright enough to still keep me awake. I threw an arm over my eyes, swearing under my breath, and rolled over.

The door beeped.

My eyes slit open, ever so slightly. I groaned, my limbs heavy and unresponsive. What, now? Had I fallen asleep?

The doorbell rang again, a bit more insistently. I blinked, the sleep beginning to flee my mind. I had. Where had Gaelinin gone? It had told me that we were supposed to meet again after they went to their...whatever they had gone to. But from the fog in my head, I knew that that hadn’t happened. I’d slept the whole night through, undisturbed.

The doorbell bellowed its complaint a third time, echoed by a crisp, clear chiming from my collar. I flinched. If I didn’t obey, then they’d just open the door anyway, and I’d face punishment for not listening. Forcing myself upright, I staggered to my feet.

Morning already. Another fun-filled day with Gaelinin awaited, then. I could hardly wait to get my hands on the math problems and puzzles it had no doubt laid out for us to work through. Wonderful.

I still had no idea what was going on, though. Should I continue with the plan? Should I wait to figure out what on earth had happened to get them in such a fuss?

The door sensor triggered as I straightened in front of it, pressing a hand to my face as I yawned. It slid open in a whir, my collar beeping its acknowledgement softly.

“Good morning, Gaelinin,” I said, forcing my eyes back open. And stopped.

It wasn’t my caretaker standing in front of the open doorway, even though our routine had gone unbroken for...well, for far too long. I had no idea who it was, in fact. Another Nalitokk - that was all I knew.

No. I did know it. It was one of the guards, if I remembered correctly. I’d seen them walking the halls now and again. They’d barely given me more than a passing glance.

It smiled down at me. “Good morning, 10177.”

I froze. What was going on? Who was it, and why was it here? Where was my caretaker? What should I-

It reached for my arm. I flinched back despite myself, feeling adrenaline pumping its way through my veins like ice and fire. It seemed to shake its head, its eyes whirling with displeasure. One hand slipped to its wrist - and the little device there.

The collar around my neck screeched discordantly. A fog hit me, sweeping through my mind in a heartbeat. I slumped, reeling and grabbing at the frame of the door for stability. It had a tool on its belt - it had been years since I’d held one, and the design was strange, but I knew a gun when I saw one. I eyed it, the thoughts racing in my head, but it was on the far side of me. It was going to be hard for me to get to. And maybe, just maybe there was still a way to-

“None of that now, 10177,” it admonished me, looming tall overhead. One hand had already closed around my forearm, even as I tried to creep back into my room. My limbs were heavy and limp, too slow to do more than watch as it slapped a cuff around my wrist.

No. No. Not now, not when I was so close. I’d been- I was nearly there. I tried to pull back to slide away into the hallway, but I could hardly stand without it holding me up. It smiled the same horror-inducing smile as Gaelinin down at me as it fastened my wrists together in front of me. “See? Come on, now.”

It reached out, settling one long, many-fingered hand around my upper arm, and tugged me away from the door. I staggered, nearly falling, but it held me up. Its other hand reached up to the panel outside my cell, tapping out a harsh staccato.

Whatever black magic they’d worked inside of my head was still working - even though the lettering on the screen should have looked like illegible scribbles, I could read it all too clearly.

The guard was entering some sort of command, ordering the room to purge. Whatever that meant. Purge and...lock. A confirmation window popped up.

Retire room?

Yes

With one final tap, the door slid shut with a final-sounding click. My blood ran cold. That didn’t sound good. None of that sounded good. Between Gaelinin’s disappearance, our abandoned appointment, and me being whisked out of my suddenly-forbidden room by a guard, I was getting a very, very bad feeling about all of this.

That was a good thing in the end, though. The adrenaline pumped straight to my head, electrifying my skin even as my breath came ragged.

“Calm down, you freak. Come on,” the guard muttered, hauling on my arm again. It towered above me. Every skittering step of its was two of mine. I followed along as best I could, dragged onwards with no alternative, but it had to slow down for me to have any chance of keeping up. I could see the irritation in every line of their being - from the corner of my eye.

I wasn’t looking at it.

I was looking at its gun.

It didn’t notice what I was staring at as he pulled me down the hall. They had no reason to spare me another look - not between it sedating me and the lackluster reputation I’d spent my internment developing. In its mind, I was already handled. Harmless.

But there was a lot of adrenaline in my system by then, burning straight through whatever his device was pumping into me. The world was looking a lot sharper than it had a few minutes before.

And it had a gun.

I swallowed hard, still feeling the fuzziness around the corners of my vision but working hard to force it away. Whatever was happening, one thing was for sure.

My plans had just been moved from “sometime later” up to “right now”.