Original prompt here
Jackson collapsed onto his air mattress, sprawled out among his dirty laundry. He had been forced to move to a smaller apartment after he could no longer afford the rent of his condo. The stench of the filthy clothes and rotting food in the kitchen woke Jackson from his exhaustion. He rolled over. Isabel would have cleaned this place if she were here, he thought. She was just like that.
Stifling a groan, Jackson rose from his deflated mattress and headed towards the kitchen. I need food. Piles of dirty dishes and magazines covered with red circles where Jackson had been hopeful enough to apply for a job lay strewn across the counter. The plates made a loud clatter as the hit the floor, while the newspapers fluttered slowly to the ground. Jackson rummaged through his refrigerator, gradually realizing he had no food. He let out a loud sigh.
"Damn. Looks like I'm going to bed hungry again."
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Jackson rubbed the sleep from his eyes and yawned. "UUUNNGGGAHHH!" he screeched as he stretched and cracked his back. He rolled over and immediately noticed something was wrong. His apartment was clean and smelled like flowers, but more importantly, the entire wall where his door should have been was replaced by bars. "What the hell? Where the hell am I?"
"Ah, you are awake. That is pleasing," grumbled a voice.
Jackson glanced around and identified the speaker to be a creature that resembled a cross between a human and an insect. It had two legs, yet four arms and appeared to move by walking on all sixes. Where the head of a human might have been, one massive, bug-like eye took its place, with a small crease in the middle that was presumably a mouth. The creature move closer towards the imprisoned Jackson. It motioned to an assistant who lit the room beyond the bars. Jackson could not tell where the light emanated from but that did not matter. What did matter was the massive set of monitors and what appeared to be computers that lined the far wall.
"I am known as Kle'go of the Kogeret. You are known as Jaa'go," boomed the alien.
"Actually, my name is--"
"SILENCE! You have been selected to partake in an enlightening program about humans. You will be part of a... a zoo has you call it."
"Do I have a--"
"A suitable mate has been found for you. You will be expected to breed or otherwise endure harsh punishments."
"Listen here you freaky bug piece of shit!" yelled Jackson. "I've got several worried dishes that need washing and maybe a concerned piece of clothing that I have to get back to. Now let. Me. Go."
"Critog, punish the human," commanded Kle'go as he scuttled out of the room.
Jackson leaped into the air as he felt a sharp jolt in his foot. Then another, and another, and another. The alien seemed to laugh as Jackson danced fearfully.
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Fiona was a small woman with bright red hair and darling smile.
"You're to damn happy about this whole situation," growled Jackson.
"Well maybe you need to look on the bright side--its not as if we can escape and if we were to be abducted at least it was for the purposes of a zoo," chided Fiona. "Anyway , from what you've told me, you've got nothing to go back to anyway."
"Well that doesn't mean I have to be happy about it!" he snapped back.
Fiona and Jackson were currently living in the exhibit that had been prepared for them. From what they could gather, the Kogeret were a highly esteemed civilization praised for their incredibly diverse intergalactic zoo. The humans were part of a new "Milky Way" exhibit that displayed various sentient life from across across the galaxy.
Their exhibit was sunk in the ground. It consisted of a modern three story house with a grassy front yard and white picket fence. The backyard was roughly the same size as as the front yard yet surprisingly barren except for a single sycamore tree. There appeared to be a sort of electronic barrier the prevent entry from above and to contain the oxygen required for the humans.
Before Fiona could respond, there was a slight hiss as part of the wall the bordered the backyard slide down. Kle'go scurried towards them, his white lab coat shining in the light.
"Greetings, humans. Your stay as been pleasant, I assume? Good. Here is how how things will work: we will have a grand opening of the "Milky Way," as you call it, Exhibit in one cycle or four weeks for you. You will behave or face the consequences. Understood?"
"We got it chief!" Fiona smiled. "We'll be on our best behavior."
"Speak for yourself," muttered Jackson.
The alien turned away, yet paused. Kle'go calmly stated, "The sooner you get to breeding, the better you will be treated." Without waiting for their response he scuttled off.
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"Why is subject H2 consistently failing to cooperate?" Screamed the head zoo curator. "It'll your head by the next half cycle if you can't get him to breed!"
"I apologize sir. Our scouting reports lead us to believe in the the terribleness of his existence. He had no way to secure food or water and his mate abandoned him," replied Kle'go. "There is no no logical reason to his fierce resistance."
"Then kill him and go get another!"
"We can't sir. The humans are too far away for it to be economically feasible."
"Damn." The head curator massaged his eye. "At least the female is cooperating," he sighed. "You have been cutting off his food, have you not?"
"We have sir, yet it seems to make no difference."
"Commence code Kogo."
"Yes sir."
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Jackson blinked feverishly. He hadn't slept for longer than a few hours. He would just have settled down and fallen asleep when he would feel a sharp jolt in his side. Previously, they had stopped feeding him as much when he refused to have sex with Fiona. They attempted to prod him towards sex: a fancy meal here, a candlelit venue in the backyard there. Jackson could only assume the sleep torture was punishment for his further noncooperation.
Jackson wasn't quite sure why he was resisting--its not as if anything awaited him on Earth. Maybe he was just annoyed that Fiona was being so cheerful. He hadn't gotten a damn peep out of her about her past and so far they were treating her well. "Greetings, Jaa'go. I am glad to see you are awake," spoke Kel'go.
"My name's Jackson and you know full well why I'm awake, you cheap bastard," snapped Jackson.
"We can't have you disobeying orders. Anyway, you could have a happy life here! You will be provided with food, a secure home, and a lover. What more could you want?"
"That sounds pretty good and all, but maybe, just maybe, I would like to be on Earth, no? You ever consider that?"
"Jaa'go," he spoke gravely. "You have no freedom here and you never will. Submit now or be punished."
Jackson's spit made a loud smack as it hit Kle'go in the face.
"You fool! You just caused yourself unimaginably excruciating pain!" screeched Kle'go.
"I dare you."
"Very well. We will begin now, and I'll be there every step of the way." He grinned devilishly. Several assistants scurried forwards and latched on to Jackson. Screaming and fighting madly, they dragged him away.
Submitted September 22, 2016 at 04:29AM by wildman171 http://ift.tt/2cLOZTn WritingPrompts
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