The Arrival by CM Doporto

said he would do whatever it takes to save her. He also said
their approach is untested, unproven, and has many side effects.”
    “Oh, my God.” Kate gasped in horror. “So
that’s what killed those girls.”
    It made sense now, what Dimas had told
me, and why they hadn’t let us go. They were determined to not only save their
race, but also create the perfect specimen, a pure Eslite.
    Even if they killed us in the process.
    “We have to get out of this place,” I
said with a heavy sigh. “We can’t let these Eslites take advantage of us any
longer. We have to fight. But we also need to send the Eslites back to their
planet. We have to let the authorities know that we may all end up sterile, if
not dead. And if we’re lucky enough to have babies, they may not be human.
Worse, we may become aliens, ourselves.”
    “And who’s going to listen to us?” Kate
asked, in a small voice.
    “I don’t know. How about the cops?”
    “The cops?” Gaby shot me a disdainful
stare.
    “Yeah, we can start there.” I shrugged.
“And if they don’t believe me, then I’ll tell the Feds. Isn’t that what they do
in the movies?”
    “I guess.” Gaby frowned.
    “What about your dad?” Kate chimed.
    A snicker slipped from my lips. “Well, I
don’t know.”
    “What? He’s the city mayor, for cryin’
out loud.” Kate pounded her fist on the tub. “That’s his job, to respond to the
citizens of Myrtle Beach.”
    “She’s right.” Gaby came alert in an
instant. “You should talk to your dad. Let him know what they are doing to us is
not only putting our lives at risk but also is endangering the human race. And
how many girls are they shuffling through this prison? A thousand or more a
month? I know at least six thousand girls are here right now.”
    With Gaby on board, I had hope for the
first time. And they had a point. It would be hard to convince my dad, but it
was worth a try. “And what if he ignores me?”
    “Then do what you said. Go to the police
and then the Feds,” Gaby encouraged.
    “Yeah, and if that doesn’t work, then we
can go to my uncle, who’s a senator.”
    “A senator?” I asked.
    “Yeah, Senator Wesley Bosch.”
    “Oh, that’s right. I think I recall
meeting him at one of my dad’s campaign rallies. I guess he could help us.”
    “You’re darn right he can help us.” Kate
pumped a fist in the air.
    “Shhh.” Gaby flushed the toilet. “Not so
loud, Kate.”
    “Sorry.”
    “We have to remember to keep our voices
down.” I gritted my teeth. “If they find out about our plans, we’re toast.”
    “Agreed.” They nodded in unison.
     “I guess I can tell my dad what’s going
on, and then we can meet with your uncle. Together, they can go to the senate
and rally supporters to reverse the bill.” The Eslite bill required all females
between the ages of fourteen and twenty-five to undergo donor testing. The bill
Congress signed that actually gave the Eslites authority to exterminate the
human race.
     “Sounds like a plan, but how are we
going to reach my uncle? I don’t think it’s safe to call him, because they will
be listening. He lives in Columbia, South Carolina,” she said, all hope
diminishing from her face. “That’s over the sixty mile restriction they gave us
for traveling.”
    “Crap, you’re right, Kate. Dimas said
they will be watching us, which means they’ll be tracking us.” I had never told
anyone what I learned in the Technology Lab, where I worked and contributed to
the Nidus community, mainly for fear of the consequences. I had sworn to keep
the information private, as had Gaby. But things were changing, and I had to
take that risk.
    “I think you have a great idea, Miranda.
It won’t be easy and it’s dangerous,” Gaby said, flushing the toilet one more
time. “The good thing is I may be able to help.”
    At that moment, something told me Gaby
knew what I knew. “How do we block the nanocytes in our blood?”
    “The what? What’s in our