Renegade Runner Nicole Conway (christmas read aloud txt) 📖

eyes, one mouth, singular central nervous system—that sort of consistency across so many species is not random chance.”

My mouth quirked down into an uncomfortable frown. “Nothing is random,” I recalled aloud. Mom liked to say that all the time.

Enola’s expression brightened a little. “Indeed. Everything about our species was intentionally designed from a molecular level to suit the environment of our homeworlds. We were then left to grow, multiply, and evolve on our own. Sort of like planting a garden and then letting it run wild to see what happens.”

“So the, um, people from Alzumaris … they don’t look human?” I wasn’t sure the term people was even the right word to use. “Oh, er, I mean like us, that is. Not necessarily human.”

She gave a small, weak smile. “It’s okay. I understand.” She pursed her lips thoughtfully as she wiggled her four-toed feet. Each toe was wider than mine and the undersides were padded, reminding me a little of a gecko. I wondered if that meant she could climb on slick surfaces like they could.

“So, um, basically, it’s like this.” She scooted in a little closer until her side was pressed right up against the glass. “None of us look ‘human.’ We all look Alzumarian. They are our common ancestor and we … are their creations. We all came from the very first Alzumarian race, the ancient ones, and were pieced together with altered fragments of their DNA.”

The more she talked, the more that spot on the back of my head throbbed. All my thoughts tangled like the knotted, useless wad my earbuds always seemed to turn into whenever I pulled them out of my purse. I didn’t want to believe any of it. I wasn’t really here. Just the thought that we, human beings, and all these other strange creatures in their glass boxes around me were descended from the same alien race, genetically farmed and planted like crops, was insane. It couldn’t be true. It was impossible.

Right?

Looking at Enola—I mean sure, we had the same basic body build like she’d said. But we were also incredibly different. One glance around at all the other bizarre alien beings caged around us made that idea even more unbelievable. They looked even stranger than she did. Some had fur, while others had horns, four eyes, vibrantly scaled patterns, or even tails. How could we all come from one species?

And what did that even mean? What did Alzumarian aliens look like?

After a long, uncomfortable silence, Enola finally looked up to meet my gaze again. “You have to understand, Brinna, they’ve always intended to harvest a few of us for research purposes, so legally speaking, we are all supposed to be protected by the Alzumarian Ethics Code. It says you can’t interfere with our primitive environments without explicit permission from the Alzumarian Interplanetary Council. But the dredger crews, like the people flying this craft, are technically breaking the law by taking us from our worlds for non-scientific or illicit purposes. We’re stolen goods.”

Once again, I noticed her expression beginning to grow distant, crumpling in on itself like a deflated party balloon. She turned her face away slightly, as though too ashamed to let me see the light die in her eyes.

I tried to keep my emotions in check. I didn’t know her at all. But in the few, short hours I’d been conscious, she’d been all I’d had, and she seemed younger and completely terrified. Maybe that was because she understood a lot more about our current situation, but I couldn’t deny how seeing that look, like she knew her fate already, sent a fresh pang of fear through my gut like a cold spike. “So, um, what’s your species called, then?” I asked quietly.

“Ichetharys.” She shifted uncomfortably, drawing her bottom lip into her mouth to nibble at it with those pointed, almost fish-like teeth. “Our world is considered one of the more hostile environments in the galaxy. It’s highly volcanic, with fluctuations in atmosphere and temperature that would doom most other species. But we’ve evolved to endure it. We can survive even in the worst places. We can go for long periods without food or water, and even adapt to breathe different atmospheres. It makes us the ideal workers for places with … inhospitable working conditions.”

“Oh.” Okay, now I really wished I remembered more about the solar system. What planet could she have come from? Or was she even from the same solar system as me?

Enola gave a small, defeated sigh as she rubbed at her arms. “So, odds are, I’ll be sold to a deep-core mine because my species is one of the few who can survive in those kinds of conditions while operating the complex Alzumarian mining craft.”

I had no idea what that really meant. Mining was something I’d heard about all my life. I knew it was a thing, especially for stuff like coal, gold, or precious stones. I’d just never known anyone who actually worked a job like that. But that look on her face and the way her voice cracked and faltered, shaking with fear. It had to be bad.

“Is there anything we can do? Can’t we break out? Find some way to get back home?” I scooted in closer, trying to sound as hopeful as possible.

Every last shred of hope in her eerie, huge blue eyes died as she stared straight ahead. “And travel all the way back to our home solar systems? With no money, no ship, and no idea how to fly an Alzumarian spacecraft?”

Right. Well, she did have a point there.

“Not to mention, every specimen taken off one of the harvest worlds is tagged and implanted. They would find us easily, even if we did somehow make it off this ship.” She sighed and went back to flexing her toes. “No one ever gets to go back, Brinna. Once we pass through the jump-gate, through the wormhole, it’s over.”

I bit down hard and looked away. I couldn’t accept that. I wasn’t going