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Description
Nina woke up with a jolt, then flopped back down on the bed. The springs dug into her back. Nina felt terrible, almost drugged, like the time she woke up after she had to get a hole in her lung fixed when she was 5 because of an infection. Nina shot up again, almost hurling. She'd forgotten. She was at home when THEY came.

The aliens, or the Solanumians, as they called themselves, came to Earth 20 years ago, when Nina was 6. The Solanumians are about 6 to 7 feet tall, purple-ish skin and no hair. They looked a lot like humans, except for their limbs are slightly longer and their bodies were more slender. They also have the typical almond shaped eyes.

They used people as workers to mine up or gather things they needed, like cooling lava, or using them as lab rats to perfect diseases, both home- and alien-based. Unfortunately, the harsh working conditions of labor and being lab rats reduced the population by 75 percent. 90 percent of the rest where used as target practice, whether it be for testing out weapons or the engineered diseases. The remaining people were either bought as pets or placed around in zoos around the universe.

Nina was one of the many to be placed in a zoo. She also knew there were Ray, one of her friends, was in the same zoo. The "cages" looked a lot like a hospital room, but with one wall being a glass. Nina was so close to getting out of the zoo yesterday. She made it passed the zoo guards and almost to a snowmobile-looking car before getting shot with a pretty powerful sedative.

Nina got up to walk off the rest of the sleepiness. She paced back and forth for awhile, thinking to herself. A sudden bang made her jump. There, at the viewing glass, was Ray. He continued to bang on the glass and was saying something. She ran over to the window to hear him better. It was no use. The glass was too thick.

Nina motioned to her ears and shook her head. He gave her a blank look for a moment and then fumbled into his pocket, producing a round disk. He showed it to her and pressed the center. Ray pointed behind her. She looked and the door slid open. She turned around and nodded. Ray then turned and pointed down the path to the zoo's helipad. Nina nodded again and then screamed.

One of the Solanumian guards had snuck up behind Ray and injected him with a needle. He struggled and fell to the ground. Nina hit the window and yelled, trying to wake her friend up. He didn't move as the guard carried him away.

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As the guard carried the escaped animal, a little girl with grey-colored eyes asked, "Momma, why did that did that one hit the window of the other one's cage?" The mother, with the same grey eyes and a scientist who was studying the humans that they had in the zoo, shrugged her shoulders and said, "Maybe they wanted to go home."

"Why?" her daughter asked. The mother looked at her, then at the human. The female was still hitting the window and screaming, watching the guard take the male away. The mother looked back down and asked her daughter, "Wouldn't you want to go home if you were stuck in some place you didn't want to be in?"

The little girl looked down at the ground, thinking. She looked back up at her mom and said, "Yeah, I guess so." The scientist looked back at the human, who was now laying on the ground and crying, and started thinking.

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Nina slept on the floor that night. All she dreamed about was Ray and how she now had no one in the zoo she knew. She was was shaken out of her dreams to one of the guards grasping her shoulder and talking to her in a foreign tongue. The guard pulled her to her feet and pushed her to the door.

The guard lead Nina down a long corridor and into a room. It looked like a hospital room from the movies. The guard shoved her in the room and pointed to the chair in the middle of the room. She looked at it and back at the guard. He pointed to the chair and said a word. He left the room and Nina leaned against the chair. A little while later, another alien came in with Ray.

"Ray!" Nina cried, tears streaming down her face. She ran into his arms.

"Nina! Are you okay?" Ray asked.

"Yes, but it's you I should be asking!" Nina replied.

"Of course, they gave me a sedative, that's all." Ray replied. The Solanumian said something and he said, "I know, Dr. Frost! I'll tell her!"

"You can understand her?" Nina asked, pushing him away.

"Well, they gave me a pill of some-sorts and I was able to understand them and vise versa." Nathan told her.

"But.... why?" she asked, backing away. The scientist said something and started to walk towards her, digging in her pocket while doing so.

"No! Stay away!" Nina yelled, trying to push the alien scientist away. The scientist overcame her and force-fed Nina the pill.

"See? That wasn't so hard," the scientist said. Nina looked at the alien, dumbfounded.

"Come on, you two. We should head home!" Dr. Frost said cheerfully and walked out of the room. Nina stared after the alien, still dumbfounded. Ray grasped Nina's hand and ran after Dr. Frost.

The ride to Dr. Frost's apartment was quiet. When they arrived, Dr. Frost unlocked the door and was nearly knocked over by a little girl, her daughter.

"Mommy, you're home!" she squealed.

"Yes, I'm home," She said, smiling. The little girl noticed Ray and Nina and said, "Oh, it's the two from the zoo."

"Yes, it is. And this is their new home."

Description
Nina woke up with a jolt, then flopped back down on the bed. The springs dug into her back. Nina felt terrible, almost drugged, like the time she woke up after she had to get a hole in her lung fixed when she was 5 because of an infection. Nina shot up again, almost hurling. She'd forgotten. She was at home when THEY came.

The aliens, or the Solanumians, as they called themselves, came to Earth 20 years ago, when Nina was 6. The Solanumians are about 6 to 7 feet tall, purple-ish skin and no hair. They looked a lot like humans, except for their limbs are slightly longer and their bodies were more slender. They also have the typical almond shaped eyes.

They used people as workers to mine up or gather things they needed, like cooling lava, or using them as lab rats to perfect diseases, both home- and alien-based. Unfortunately, the harsh working conditions of labor and being lab rats reduced the population by 75 percent. 90 percent of the rest where used as target practice, whether it be for testing out weapons or the engineered diseases. The remaining people were either bought as pets or placed around in zoos around the universe.

Nina was one of the many to be placed in a zoo. She also knew there were Ray, one of her friends, was in the same zoo. The "cages" looked a lot like a hospital room, but with one wall being a glass. Nina was so close to getting out of the zoo yesterday. She made it passed the zoo guards and almost to a snowmobile-looking car before getting shot with a pretty powerful sedative.

Nina got up to walk off the rest of the sleepiness. She paced back and forth for awhile, thinking to herself. A sudden bang made her jump. There, at the viewing glass, was Ray. He continued to bang on the glass and was saying something. She ran over to the window to hear him better. It was no use. The glass was too thick.

Nina motioned to her ears and shook her head. He gave her a blank look for a moment and then fumbled into his pocket, producing a round disk. He showed it to her and pressed the center. Ray pointed behind her. She looked and the door slid open. She turned around and nodded. Ray then turned and pointed down the path to the zoo's helipad. Nina nodded again and then screamed.

One of the Solanumian guards had snuck up behind Ray and injected him with a needle. He struggled and fell to the ground. Nina hit the window and yelled, trying to wake her friend up. He didn't move as the guard carried him away.

********************************************************************************

As the guard carried the escaped animal, a little girl with grey-colored eyes asked, "Momma, why did that did that one hit the window of the other one's cage?" The mother, with the same grey eyes and a scientist who was studying the humans that they had in the zoo, shrugged her shoulders and said, "Maybe they wanted to go home."

"Why?" her daughter asked. The mother looked at her, then at the human. The female was still hitting the window and screaming, watching the guard take the male away. The mother looked back down and asked her daughter, "Wouldn't you want to go home if you were stuck in some place you didn't want to be in?"

The little girl looked down at the ground, thinking. She looked back up at her mom and said, "Yeah, I guess so." The scientist looked back at the human, who was now laying on the ground and crying, and started thinking.

*********************************************************************************

Nina slept on the floor that night. All she dreamed about was Ray and how she now had no one in the zoo she knew. She was was shaken out of her dreams to one of the guards grasping her shoulder and talking to her in a foreign tongue. The guard pulled her to her feet and pushed her to the door.

The guard lead Nina down a long corridor and into a room. It looked like a hospital room from the movies. The guard shoved her in the room and pointed to the chair in the middle of the room. She looked at it and back at the guard. He pointed to the chair and said a word. He left the room and Nina leaned against the chair. A little while later, another alien came in with Ray.

"Ray!" Nina cried, tears streaming down her face. She ran into his arms.

"Nina! Are you okay?" Ray asked.

"Yes, but it's you I should be asking!" Nina replied.

"Of course, they gave me a sedative, that's all." Ray replied. The Solanumian said something and he said, "I know, Dr. Frost! I'll tell her!"

"You can understand her?" Nina asked, pushing him away.

"Well, they gave me a pill of some-sorts and I was able to understand them and vise versa." Nathan told her.

"But.... why?" she asked, backing away. The scientist said something and started to walk towards her, digging in her pocket while doing so.

"No! Stay away!" Nina yelled, trying to push the alien scientist away. The scientist overcame her and force-fed Nina the pill.

"See? That wasn't so hard," the scientist said. Nina looked at the alien, dumbfounded.

"Come on, you two. We should head home!" Dr. Frost said cheerfully and walked out of the room. Nina stared after the alien, still dumbfounded. Ray grasped Nina's hand and ran after Dr. Frost.

The ride to Dr. Frost's apartment was quiet. When they arrived, Dr. Frost unlocked the door and was nearly knocked over by a little girl, her daughter.

"Mommy, you're home!" she squealed.

"Yes, I'm home," She said, smiling. The little girl noticed Ray and Nina and said, "Oh, it's the two from the zoo."

"Yes, it is. And this is their new home."