Part 6

The sound of keys in locks woke her up. Michelle noticed Travis awake too. His hand, which still grasped hers, squeezed her hand briefly, giving her courage. Then three men walked into Travis’s cell. They both stood up. The young man that seemed so nice was with the other two men. “Travis, we need you to come with us.” he said and she could tell he was scared to be near the young man.

Travis smiled at Michelle. It was a brief smile but it made her spirits lift. They probably just wanted to ask questions. Travis would be back. Each of the men went to Travis’s side and garbed an arm. They led him out but when Michelle caught the kind man’s face, her own went ashen. He seemed to force the smile he gave her but he was sweating and not looking happy with the situation.

Her throat went dry and all she could do was watch Travis disappear down the hall to where who knew what would happen to him.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Travis was not feeling good about this either. He had made himself smile to Michelle, but he knew that today would be different then what had happened to him yesterday and he was scared. He was led into a room and when he caught sight of what was in there, he bulked. A flat bed was in the middle of the room, surrounded by all kinds of metal equipment. Four scientist, including Ben and Jean, were watching him enter from off to the side.

“Ah, Travis. Nice to see you today.” Ben said, smiling just as he slipped on a plastic surgeon’s mask.

Travis tried to break the grip the two men had on his arms but he dragged him closer to the bed. He saw Jean pick up a syringe, squirt water out of it, and hand it to Ben. “What do you want with me?” Travis asked, trying to keep the fear of his voice as he was stopped a few feet from the bed.

Ben just chuckled as he walked up to Travis. “Come on now Travis, my boy. This is for science. You are the first alien to come down to earth alive and you wonder what I want with you?”

Travis paled and his arms were forced behind him, preventing him from struggling. “I’m just going to give you a little sedative to calm you down. You’ll feel numb but you’ll be less likely to hurt yourself. Now hold still, this will only hurt a little.”

Ben quickly stabbed the needle into Travis’s neck and released the liquid into him. As Ben moved away, Travis tried to wrestle his arms free but the stuff was fast and he was already feeling weak.

“Take his jacket off and lets strap him in.” Ben’s voice said, sounding distant in Travis’s ears.

He could feel his jacket being taken off and he was lifted up onto the bed. His mind screamed for him to move. To struggle. But he couldn’t! “Please...don’t...” he muttered but the only person that seemed to notice was Dan.

He fidgeted nervously as he watched this inhuman act. So what if he was an alien? He looked as human as everyone else and yet they were treating him like a labatory rat. He couldn’t get the picture of Travis and the girl, Michelle, holding hands, asleep on the floor together. He had never known love but he felt tremendous sympathy for the girl.

Travis’s hands were strapped to the metal sides of the bed and his shoes were taken off. Another person buckled the straps over his legs and thighs, pinning him to the bed. Another unbuttoned the boy’s shirt, revealing his muscled chest, and unbuttoned the cuffs to his shirt on the right side, rolling up the sleeve to expose the bare arm underneath. Once the shirt was stripped away, more straps were buckled across his mid-section and upper body.

Travis was helpless. He couldn’t move and he felt cold terror wash over him. His vision was blurry and he could see blurred images of the people moving all around him. His vision caught the young man standing off to the side. He was about to speak but suddenly a man in white blocked his view and forced his mouth open. Travis tried to yank his head out of the man’s grasp but he felt groggy and couldn’t think or move fast enough. Something was forced into his mouth, nearly gagging him. He tried to spit it out but it was stuck. Then something cold and hard was pushed under his nose. A sweet yet awful smell filled him. He couldn’t escape it. His senses were becoming clouded, yet he was wide awake. He couldn’t move his arms or legs but he felt dozens of sharp pricks stabbing him in the right arm. More followed on his chest. His head was strapped down and all he could move was his eyes. He had to find that lone man. Something told him this man could help him. His vision cleared for only a moment but he saw the brown haired, young man.

Dan felt his throat tighten as he watched. He wanted to tear his eyes away and leave but he couldn’t. The recorder he held felt like a dead weight. He nervously pushed his glasses back on his nose as he watched the tube being inserted into Travis’s mouth. He knew the sedative would only make Travis unable to move. It wouldn’t help with the pain when Ben did more then stick him with needles. His eyes seemed drawn to the young man’s face and he was immediately captured by Travis’s gaze. His body went cold as he saw the pleading for help in the young man’s eyes. He also saw a tear escape and roll slowly down the cheek.

“Uh, Ben...are you sure you should be doing this. I mean, how can you be so sure he’s, you know...”

Ben looked up, his eyes cold and angry with the intrusion. “Look Dan, you saw the test and what happened yesterday. All we heard was a hum, yet Travis heard more.”

“Well, yeah, but he could also have exceptional hearing. I just think...”

“I don’t pay you to think! Now get over here with the recorder. I’m beginning.”

Dan didn’t want to go. But this was the only job he could do really well. He had to obey. He forced his eyes to not look at Travis and walked over to Ben.

“Jean, make a note of that jewel around this boy’s neck.” Ben said, looking at his associate. “It is very odd and when we’re done we should do some research on it.”

“Do you want to take it off now?” she asked.

Ben seemed to ponder it. “Yes, might as well.” He reached for it and grasped it in his glove hand. Smoke started to drift up and a second later Ben yelped in pain and dropped the glowing jewel. “Damn, it burnt me!” he ripped off his burnt glove and replaced it with another. “We’ll take care of it later. Let’s get started.”

The beeping of the heart monitor mixed in with more beepings and other sounds. Dan was again drawn to Travis’s face and he could see the fear plainly in his eyes. He knew he couldn’t talk while research was in session and he had to bite his tongue when syringe after syringe was stabbed into Travis’s body, taking in and putting in liquids of all sorts. He lost track of time and he was glad all he had to do was hold the recorder for Ben. He was glued to his spot, every inch of him going out to the young lad. They took more samples and then some x-rays and when the ordeal was finally over, Dan ran to the bathroom and threw up.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Michelle looked at her watch for the hundred time. Four hours had gone by since they had come to take Travis away. She was growing more and more anxious and worried. What were they doing to him? She paced her cell, barely touching the food that had been left for her. She couldn’t eat, not when she didn’t know what was happening to Travis. She loved him more than ever after he had told her the shocking truth. She couldn’t bare to lose him now.

Suddenly footsteps were heard and Travis’s cell was open and he was dumped unceremoniously on the hard floor.

“Travis!” she said, running to where their cells met. But he didn’t look up. She could hear him breathing hard and when a soft groan escaped, her face went white. What had they done to him?

“Travis? Travis!” she called to him frantically. His back was to her and he was laying on his side but his jacket was gone and so were his shoes. His shirt was hanging off of him, exposing a bare shoulder. “Travis...” she sobbed, sinking to the floor. “Please speak to me.”

But he didn’t move. “Oh please god.” she said, tears rolling down her face. “Travis, please, tell me you’re all right.” She reached out to him, but he wasn’t close enough for her to touch.

A few minutes later, her door was being unlocked. She didn’t look at who walked in. She kept her eyes on her love, willing him to reach out to her.

“Michelle...” a soft voice called to her. She turned, her eyes red rimmed from crying, to see Dan standing there, blanket in hand. “Come with me.”

“Why should I trust you? You took him away from me and brought him back like this!”

“Please, trust me, I didn’t have a choice. I feel terrible about what happened. Look, they won’t be coming back for him today. I’ll let you see him.”

Michelle eyed him suspiciously but stood up and followed him to Travis’s cell. He unlocked it and let her in. She ran to him and sank to her knees, running her hands over his trembling body. His blue eyes were only half open but he recognized her. “Michelle...” he whispered.

“Here.” Dan said, handing her the blanket.

Michelle half smiled her thanks and wrapped the blanket around his shaking shoulders. She noticed several red marks dotting his exposed skin and anger filled her. She drew him close and cradled him in her arms, trying to warm his shivering body with her heat. “What did they do to him.” she asked quietly.

Dan sighed and looked away. “Tests mostly. But I’m afraid there will be more.”

“Isn’t there some way you can help us?” her voice sounded small and Dan could hear her begging for his help.

“Look, if I interfere, I’ll be fired. Just being here and letting you in is costing me my job. This is the only job I can do that pays well.”

Michelle frowned and looked at him. “You call doing inhuman acts to a human being, a Job?” she hissed softly.

Dan didn’t bother to correct her. Even if he was an alien, this was no way to treat him.

“Thank you for the blanket. Could you leave us alone for a little bit, or will you get in trouble.”

“I’m already in trouble, thank you. But I’ll leave you alone. I wish I could leave you with him but Ben will have my head if he sees you in here.”

“I understand.”

Dan nodded and left, locking the door behind him.

“Oh Travis,” she whispered, stroking back a lock of tousled blond hair, fighting back more tears that threatened to fall.

“I’m..sssorry, Michhh..” he stammered softly. His voice sounded so weak and his lean, well-muscled body seemed fragile under her hands.

“Shhh..it’s not you’re fault, Travis. Don’t apologize.” She felt her voice catching. She had to be strong for him. “We’ll get out of here. I think I’ve made a friend.”

Travis closed his eyes and nodded. His skin was deathly pale and she rubbed her hand briskly over his body, trying to warm him up. She didn’t even know the young man’s name but she knew he was their only chance of escaping alive. She couldn’t let Travis down.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

She had trouble sleeping that night. Two hours later Dan had come back telling her that she had to leave. By then Travis was looking and feeling a little better and she helped him into the bed. She sighed and rolled onto her side. She could hear the soft breathing of Travis and wished she were beside him. She wanted his arms around her, holding her and comforting her. When morning came she felt like a zombie. She bolted out of bed when she heard the familiar ringing of keys on metal. Travis was up too and she could see the look of terror on his face. No, they couldn’t be coming for him again!

When his cell door opened, she didn’t see the young man with them. Ben, Jean and two burly men walked into the cell. Travis backed into the corner of the wall in fear and she felt like pouncing at them for doing this to him.

“Can’t you leave him alone for one day?!” Michelle yelled, her hands gripping the bars in anger.

Ben ignored her and smiled at Travis. “How are you today, Travis?”

Travis just glared at him.

“I need some questions asked, Travis. So if you come with me, we’ll start.”

“Just...leave me alone.” he muttered, his voice quivering.

“Don’t make me remind you about the consequences of not obeying me.” Ben said in a low voice.

Michelle paled when she realized what Ben was doing. He was blackmailing Travis with her life! “Don’t listen to him, Travis!” she cried out. Before she could move, Ben had moved over to her and viciously grabbed her arm. Michelle cried out in pain as he twisted it through the bars.

“Now Travis, I will break her arm if you don’t come with us now.”

Travis’s face went pale. “Don’t...don’t hurt her.”

“Then come with me.”

Travis pushed away from the wall and walked towards them.

“No..Travis!” She cried but another viscious yank caused her to cry out in pain instead.

“Stop it! I’ll come with you!” Travis said stepping closer.

“That’s a good boy.” Ben growled and released her when the two big men had grabbed Travis.

When Travis was led out, Ben turned to her. “Next time I will break it. You had better cooperate with us.” With that he turned and left the cell. Michelle let out a shaky sigh as she sunk to the ground, cradling her arm. What was she going to do? They would continue to threaten Travis with her until he couldn’t defend himself. They were going to kill him, and she couldn’t stop them.

Travis felt his heart pound in his throat as they led him into a smaller room. A metal chair was sitting there and he was forced into it. Metal cuffs pinned his wrists and ankles to the chair. The cold metal made him shiver and the room was cold also. Another metal bar was clicked into place over his chest. His head was forced back and another metal band was locked into place around his neck. He couldn’t move his head forward and he couldn’t escape them.

Ben pulled out another syringe and uncapped it. Travis tried to struggle but it was no use. He couldn’t escape his bonds. Ben quickly stabbed the needle into his arm and backed up. “First Travis, we’re going to ask you some questions. If you don’t give me the answer I want, we will have to resort to other means.”

Travis swallowed hard. He was again feeling lightheaded and his vision swam. But whatever Ben had given him didn’t have the same affect as before. His body didn’t go numb. But Travis knew something bad was going to happen and he wished he could just pass out.

Ben slipped into a chair and Jean sat beside him with recorder in hand. Ben jotted some notes on the paper in front of him and then looked up at Travis. “Tell me Travis about your planet.”

Travis clenched his fists and again tried to pull his wrists free. But his bonds wouldn’t budge.

“Travis...answer me.”

His head swam and he wanted to throw up. But he couldn’t...wouldn’t answer any question that this guy asked him. He’d rather die before giving his planet away to this creep.

“Are you going to make me use drastic means?” Ben asked, pushing down his glasses to look at Travis.

“I’m...not going to...answer anything.” Travis spat out. His hair fell over his eyes, shadowing his pale good looks.

Ben sighed and looked at another doctor who had been standing in the corner. “Lets set him up.”

A metal contraption was brought forward. Thin metal rods attached together were shaped in a circle and Ben put it on Travis’ head. Travis tried to struggle but the other doctor held his head as his eyelids were forced open. The metal dug into the soft flesh around his eyes and Travis found with horror that he couldn’t close his eyes! Then he was pitched into blackness as a metal visor was put over his eyes. He could hear Ben’s voice talking to him and the scrape of a chair as the doctor sat back down. Travis wanted to rip the contraption off of him but he couldn’t move. Metal bit into his flesh as he fought against his bonds.

“Now Travis, I want some answers. If you fight, it will become worse for you.”

Suddenly the blackness was gone and a bright light blinded his vision. It flashed on and off, then more colors blinded him, each flashing irratically in front of him. He felt sick as he watched the colors bouncing around. He heard Ben ask him the same question. Pain flooded his head and Travis tried to fight it. He couldn’t close his eyes. He couldn’t block out the awful swimming of color in front of him.

“Stop it....” he gasped.

“You have to answer me first Travis. Now tell me about your planet.”

The pain got worse. His head felt like it would explode. He couldn’t think. “Stop it! Please...” he cried out, trying to force his hands out of his bonds, not realizing that every yank forced the metal deeper into his flesh. Soon he had blood running from the cuts along his wrists, ankles, and neck.

“Travis, it will get worse until you answer me!”

“I can’t! STOP IT!” Travis couldn’t think. His brain throbbed. The colors spun faster. He heard Ben say something about giving him another. He felt the sharp pain of a needle in his arm. The visions got worse. They lept out at him and the pain traveled down from his head to his chest.

Ben’s voice seemed to get louder. “Tell me Travis. Tell me something about your planet. It won’t stop until you do.”

Travis felt like he was in hell. He couldn’t give out anything about his planet. Yet he couldn’t take the pain and the feeling of being lost and swallowed up in the flashing visions any longer. Suddenly the colors and flashes stopped. Everything went black.

“Now, are you willing to tell me something?”

Travis was gasping for breath. His throat was dry and he couldn’t get the words out. But after having a break from the torture, he felt new energy. He wouldn’t tell then anything.

“I...I won’t say anything...”

“You know you are killing yourself because of your stubbornness. I just want to know some answers about your planet. We Earthlings are curious about other space life. Now this next time will be worse if you don’t tell me something.”

Travis saw Michelle. Her soft hair and blue eyes laughing at him sweetly. He could feel her soft skin against his.

“Travis...”

“No.” he said, licking his cracked lips. “I won’t tell you anything.”

The visions of Michelle disappeared and was replaced by the flashing colors. Travis’s scream of pain could be heard through out the building.

Michelle jerked her head up at the sound. It was Travis! “No!” she yelled. “Stop it!” She knew she couldn’t be heard but she couldn’t help it. She pounded her cell door, screaming along with her love. “STOP IT!”

Exhaustion took over and she sank to the floor crying. The scream had ended but she feared the worse.

“I think we should stop for now. You won’t get any answers with him dead.” Jean Velvet said, looking at the trembling young man. Blood dripped on the floor from his strugglings with the metal bands.

Ben sighed. “I guess you are right. Tomorrow we’ll do more. Let’s take him back to his cell.”

Michelle was nibbling on the food that had been brought when they dragged a half conscious Travis into his cell. She immediately went to the place where their cells joined, calling his name. What had they done to him this time? She saw blood smeared on his feet and when he rolled over on his back she saw more blood on his wrists. He also had scratches around his eyes and they were red rimmed and puffy. He turned his head and looked at her.

“Travis...” she called softly, fighting back more tears. His face showed confusion and he blue eyes looked glazed over, as if he wasn’t all there. He blinked but he gave no other sign that he even knew who she was. She bit her lip to stop it’s quivering and leaned her head on the cold bars. His skin was pale and he was shaking again. She wished she could find a way into his cell and comfort him

. He neither moved nor spoke the entire night. She stayed right there with him, talking to him softly, hoping to get any sign that he was okay. But he just lay there, limp and unresponsive, as if his life had been drained out of him. Yet she couldn’t miss the lone tear fall from his eye and roll down his cheek.

She was asleep when Dan came by to check on them. He shook his head as he looked at the trembling body of what had use to be a strong young man. He knew he was the only one to stop this. He had over heard Ben talking about what they were going to do for the next day. It wasn’t going to be fun for Travis and Dan knew the young man probably wouldn’t live through it. He bit his lip as he walked back to his office. He knew what he was going to do, wether it cost him his job or not.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

“Please,” she begged as Ben, trailed by two men and Dan walked into Travis’s cell. “Can’t you see that you will kill him if you don’t stop what you are doing?”

Ben just smirked at Michelle. “Don’t worry. I’ll let you join him when we are done.” He turned away and snapped his fingers. The two men yanked Travis from the floor, who groaned but didn’t bother to struggle, and dragged him out of the cell. Dan was the last out. He winked at her and threw something into her cell, then followed them out.

Michelle frowned as she looked at what was laying on the floor. It was a small silver key. Her eyes widened and she picked it up. Running to the cell door, she looked out and seeing no one guarding her, she reached her hand out and stuck the key into the lock. The sound of the lock clicking made her heart leap in joy. She took a final look around and followed where they had taken Travis.

Dan followed them down the hall, trying to think of a plan. He felt the gun he had in his pocket and new courage filled him. He knew not only his job, but his life was going to be finished if he did this, but he knew he couldn’t live with himself if Travis died. Dan swallowed the lump of fear he felt rise up as they got closer to the ‘operating room’. Maybe he shouldn’t do anything. Michelle was free now. But he shook his head at the thought. Michelle would get herself killed. No he’d have to take control. It frightened him that he would, for the first time in his life, be trying to get himself fired from a job that paid very well.

All Travis felt was numb. His whole body wouldn’t do what he was wanting it to. His vision swam before his eyes, causing colors of the people and the white walls that surrounded him to blend together like paints that had been spilled. His throat was dry and his tongue swollen. He couldn’t force his mouth to say the words. He tried to push away, to fight for himself and for Michelle. But their grasps on his arms wouldn’t budge.

What he did recognize was the room with the bed in the middle of it. Travis tried to cry out. He tried to break free and run from this place of horror. But he couldn’t! His attempts were only in vain and he heard Ben speaking to him, although it sounded far away. A sharp stab in the neck followed and his legs couldn’t support him any longer. His legs buckled under him and the only thing that kept him from falling completely was the death grips on his arms.

“You know, Travis. All you have to do is tell me something about where you came from and all this can be adverted. Will you make me hurt your girlfriend to get you to talk?”

Michelle! Travis tried to shout to him but he couldn’t say anything. Leave Michelle alone! His whole mind screamed that sentence but he couldn’t say it aloud.

Ben sighed and motioned to the bed. “Put him on.”

Travis was hoisted up and put down on the uncomfortable bed-like table.

Dan grimaced as they strapped Travis down. His mind fought back and forth about what he should do. He found himself glued to the floor, watching the terror fall on the young man’s face. Ben was busing himself with examining each of Travis’s eyes, shining the light in it, then writing something down. He caught Jean looking at him, frowning. Did she know what he was planning? Did any of these people feel remorse for what they were doing to the young man? They couldn’t all be hard-hearted like Ben Dover, could they? His eyes roamed to a little tin table situated next to the bed. Several sharp operating tools were laid out. His face when pale and his mouth went dry when he saw Ben pick one up and look at it. He couldn’t let this happen! It was now or never.

Part 7