The End of
the line… Giovanni Gallardo shook his
head. When they said end of the line, they weren't kidding, he thought as he
watched out the porthole. The ship he rode on was docking at a spaceport of
a backwater planet. He was at the end of the line for sure. He was
practically at the end of the universe.
Spaceships
didn't even fly beyond this point, not unless the pilot was totally loco.
Giovanni wasn't a pilot but he also wasn't so sure he wasn't loco either. He
had to be out of his mind to come to the edge of the known universe in the
hopes of starting a new life away from earth.
And who in
the hell named someplace The End of the Line? What kind of name was
that for a city? Granted, it wasn't a large city, and it was kind of creepy,
but still. Who came up with this shit?
Of all of the
places he could have picked to settle in he had to choose this one? Yep, he
was definitely loco. But desperate times called for desperate measures. No
one back on earth would ever think to look for him here—he hoped.
Blending in
with the local population was Giovanni's best hope of not being discovered
but as he watched the inhabitants of the planet scurry around the spaceport,
he was having his doubts. He'd never even seen some of the alien species
walking around, much less heard them described.
Giovanni had
hoped to travel as far from earth and his former owner as he could possibly
get. He had thought coming to this planet would do the trick. But he was
seriously beginning to rethink that plan. There was no one here to help him,
not that there was back on earth either. But this place went so far beyond
bizarre, even he seemed to stand out.
Men with blue
skin and antennas drank foaming green liquid at what seemed to be an outdoor
bar. Standing next to them was a person with a flat head. Giovanni blink.
The guy, at least he assumed it was a guy, literally had a flat head. He
could have carried a drink on it and not spilled a drop.
Giovanni's
eyes were rounded with shock as he disembarked from the spaceship. He
clutched his small bag tightly to his side as he stared with wide eyes at
everything he passed. This was definitely not earth.
Aliens were
segregated back on earth. They did not mix with the general population. They
were only allowed inside the red zones. Giovanni had seen a few, mostly on
the vid-screen and in magazines. He'd never really seen one in person. He
was astonished at the variety.
"Hey, watch
it!" someone snapped when Giovanni walked into them.
"Sorry."
Giovanni quickly back peddled, fear spiking through him. He needed to watch
where he was going. Giovanni wasn’t sure what the aliens’ customs were,
never having known a single alien in his life. Could bumping into someone be
considered a deadly offense?
He stiffened
and clutched his bag tighter to his side when the thing snorted and blue
smoke blew out his… snout? Giovanni was rethinking that whole escape from
earth and you'll be safe plan he'd come up with. He just might have
stepped out of the frying pan and took a nose dive right into the roaring
fire.
People were
starting to turn and watch him. Giovanni felt like a bug under glass. He
wanted to blend in. He felt like he stood out like a sore thumb. He
tightened his grip on his bag and lowered his head as he made a hasty
retreat and tried to find some dark hole to hide in.
As much as he
had hoped he'd be able to hide on this planet, if too many people saw him,
word would get back to Drake. Once that happened, even hiding at the edge of
the known universe wouldn't save him.
Giovanni
found a small hiding place between two large crates against the back wall on
the loading dock. He squeezed his small body in between them, for once
thankful that Drake barely fed him. Hardly anyone would be able to get to
him where he was hiding.
The space was
tight, but it hid him from prying eyes. If he could just stay hidden for
awhile then he could work out the rest of his plan. Right now, he had none.
His only thought had been escaping. Beyond that, he didn't have a clue.
Giovanni knew
he'd needed a job or some way to support himself. Being a sex slave to the
biggest boss in New Chicago wasn't exactly something to put on a resume.
Well, not unless he planned to peddle his ass on the streets and Giovanni
was really hoping to avoid that. He'd had enough of being used and abused
and never being able to say no. He wanted to try something different—like
free will.
Giovanni
clutched his bag tightly to his chest and hunkered down between the two
wooden crates. For now, this seemed like the safest place to be. Besides,
he'd had a long trip. Being on a spaceship filled with other people didn't
exactly make him comfortable. Giovanni couldn't remember the last time he'd
slept and he was exhausted. Maybe, for just a few minutes, he could get a
little rest.
He'd decide
what to do with the rest of his life once he got a little shut eye. With
that thought in mind, Giovanni closed his eyes and leaned his head back
against the side of the crate. Maybe when he woke up things would look a
little better because so far, the End of the Line was looking almost as bad
as Earth.
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