Theo picked up the sandwich, white bread denting where his fingers pressed, bits of sloppy-joe already tumbling out the back, falling onto the Styrofoam lunch tray with a plop. His milk lay off to the side a bit, a simple, white, unbendable plastic straw sticking out from it. To his left was a set of eating utensils given at each lunch. Why anyone would need a fork for a sloppy joe, he would never guess.

Mark, one of his friends, was chattering on aimlessly about something that he couldn’t possibly give less of a shit about. Perhaps football, or baseball, or just balls in general. Mark seemed to have a thing for balls.

Timmy was listening on the other side of the lunch table. He seemed to be more interested in his food than his friend. Theo couldn’t really blame him for that. It wasn’t like he was the epitome of focus.

In fact, his thoughts were drifting over to the other corner of the large room. Past the other tables packed with high schoolers, surrounded by a mental black cloud, sat a group of girls. They all had a similar look. Black shirt, black shorts, simple shoes or thick boots. Their hair was done simply, sometimes hidden under a hat, black of course, or simply hanging in long, flat lines. Nothing fancy, save the occasional stripe of color. He struggled for the right term. Goth? Emo? Punk? Something like that. Whatever it was, Theo liked it.

Maxi, the one leaning against the wall, her dark eyes half shut, her black skirt tantalizingly short, her boots deliciously thick, was Theo’s not-so-secret crush. He had liked her for a while, even managed the courage to talk to her once. It didn’t go well.

She was a junior this year, and he was only a freshman. Hell, she was even taller than he was. When he had tried to talk to her she had patted him on the head, grinned, then said “Aw, look, he thinks he’s people.” She had then asked, “Don’t you have some sandbox you could go piss in or something?” He hadn’t known how to respond to that, so he kindely fucked off, and never tried to talk to her again.

Now he had sunken to creepily staring at her from across the lunchroom. Typical.

“Hey,”  Mark said excitedly, ramming his elbow into Theo’s ribs. “Are you listening? This is the best part!”

“Hmm… yeah.” His most convincing agreement.

“Good. Anyway…” Mark continued his story, Theo turned back to the girl, then to his sandwich, still dripping meat out the end. It almost looked like the sandwich was shitting reddish-brown, slimy turds. Appetizing, truly.

Theo took his first steps into the fresh air that awaited him outside the confines of school. It always tasked nice, clean, not filled with other people farts. He liked the smell of outside.

He also liked being done with school for the week. Friday, what a happy time. The people all around him, pushing and shoving lightly, seemed to be in a slightly less irritated mode then they usually were. Maybe it was because it was sunny out. Then again, this time of year, it was always fucking sunny.

The boy managed to squirm his way through the crowd, soon stumbling out into the open area to the side of the main entrance. That was one of the few benefits to being a small little freshman. You could squeeze through large groups without too much hassle.

He turned then, his backpack pulling heavily on his shoulders, one of his shoelaces hanging loose and untied. For a brief moment he wondered if he should tie it. He decided not to, knowing that it wouldn’t be the cool thing to do. So, he continued on his way, turning around the building, feeling like the most badass kid in the world. He had left his shoe untied for Christ sake. Perhaps he should go to the mall and buy some black clothes to match his new persona?

But, something more important presented itself. As he turned the corner he noticed a single person walking. Her boots crushed the grass underfoot without mercy, her black hair flowed in the slight breeze, accented by a single pink stripe. He immediately recognized Maxi.

For a moment he wondered what to do. This was the way he always went, but still it felt weird walking behind her. Would he stare at her ass? Shit, he knew he would. He was such a creep. Would she turn around at some point? Notice him? No doubt she would freak out and think he was stalking her. Then she would call for help, and he wouldn’t know what to do. He’d freak out. He’d panic. He’d do something stupid. Better just avoid the entire thing. He turned back, heading to the corner and the flow of students just around it.

Wait, what the hell was he thinking? People were allowed to walk behind people, why was he being such a pussy? It wasn’t like he was going to try and talk to her, or do anything creepy. He gulped, silently hating himself. Why was he always so damn awkward? Why couldn’t he just be fucking normal?

He turned around yet again, following a few paces behind Maxi, his eyes trained on the ground, his heart beating faster than it should have. He had to keep reminding himself that there was nothing wrong with what he was doing. Just going home. Just following the path he always took. Sure it was out of the way a bit, but it was the fastest. Nothing wrong with wanting to get home quick, right?

“Oh man,” he whispered as his eyes looked up, finding the girl’s form. She was so sexy. Her legs were so pale, so well formed. He just wanted to take a bite out of them. Not actually of course - that would be creepy as fuck - but they did look warm and soft. His heart was beating faster, blood pumping throughout his veins.

She still hadn’t noticed him, or if she had, didn’t care. That’s what he was hoping for at least. His eyes returned to his feet, and the tiny blades of grass that crumpled under his steps. Tiny black dots sometimes lept from the strands just as they started to bend. Theo couldn’t help to smile at the thought of all the bugs that didn’t escape his footfall. At least he was bigger than something at this school.

He almost jumped as he heard a loud, mechanical sound erupt from somewhere ahead. A quick glance up showed that the girl’s wrist was glowing a faint blue. The sound must have been coming from that, though he couldn’t imagine what it was.

Before him, the girl gave an audible sigh, bringing the device before her, pressing on the touchscreen. Suddenly the space directly in front of her lit up in a dazzling display of lights and colors, quickly forming into what appeared to be a holographic image. Theo could barely contain his shock at the sight. He quickly ducked down, hiding behind a nearby bush, his eyes unable to look away.

The lights were compacting, becoming uniform, taking on a shape that seemed to resemble a human. Still, it looked odd. The colors weren’t right, the shape was a bit too long and thin. The head was… disturbing, resembling something close to that of a squid. It wasn’t human. What the hell was happening? Theo could only watch.

“Zone Commander Q-89_D, requesting communications with Sector Ambassador E_A-12?4. Please respond.” The voice was shaky, like the image, as if it was a bad signal.

Maxi didn’t look happy when she answered. “Yeah, that’s me. What do you want?”

Now it was the… whatever-the-hell-it-was’s turn to look annoyed. “It is customary to refer to a-”

“I don’t really care. What do you want?”

The thing paused for a moment, the hologram staying relatively still, Maxi looking as annoyed as ever. Finally, it spoke. “Your mission has been called upon for review. The council has determined that your research entitled ‘Studies of Human Subculture, Female, HIgh school, Clique, Punk,” will no longer be receiving funding.”

“Fucking great,” Maxi answered. “Any particular reason?”

The being still looked disappointed. “I’m sure your attitude had nothing to do with it.”

“Research, you squid headed henti star.”

“Charming, Really.”

Theo blinked, still unable to come to terms with what he was seeing. It looked like Maxi was really talking to the hologram, but that couldn’t be possible. That shit was only in science fiction, right?

“In any event,” the squid monster continued. “A ship is scheduled to pick you up for reassignment in two days. Pack up any items you need, everything else will be taken care of by the SIB.”

“Cool. Thanks a bunch, squiddy.” Her tone reeked of sarcasm. “Really making my life easy.”

“Not my call,” it answered.                                                                              

“That’s what everyone says.”

Wait, did that thing say a ship was going to be picking her up? What the hell was going on!? Theo was trying to wrap his head around things, but the only ideas he could imagine seemed like the opening to some crappy space flic. Maxi wasn’t one of them, was she? He cringed at the idea. If he had a crush on a squid headed octopus alien, his friends would never let him live it down.

“By the way,” the squid face said, nonchalantly. “You have a voyeur.” Theo’s heart froze.

Maxi turned, her eyes sweeping the area quickly, passing over him, then darting back after a brief moment. Theo could only cringe. She looked pissed. “Thanks for the warning, Squid.”

“Make sure you take care of it.”

“I will.” She clicked off the device, the hologram disappearing, her wrist device returning to its normal appearance. She then took a step in his direction, her heavy boots crunching on a leaf. Theo’s heart was pumping again, though he wished it wasn’t.

“Wait, I can…” he started to say, standing, his hands up. She wasn’t in a mood to hear his bullshit.

She grabbed the collar of his shirt roughly, shaking him. “What the fuck were you doing?” her tone was anything but inviting.

“I was… I mean…” His mouth was dry, his stomach burning, his cheeks red. Why did he always have to freak out like this?

“Shut up you little shit.” She shook him again, his body easily moving, already off balance due to his backpack. “What did you see?”

“Well… Uh…”

“Fucking talk!” She slapped him suddenly, his head jerking to the side. He had never been hit before. Not seriously.

“Sorry,” he muttered, turning back to her. His cheek was already burning, growing a bright red. “I just… I was trying to get home and when I saw the… thing… I just tried to hide.”

“So you saw everything?” He nodded weakly. “What was I talking too?”

“I don’t know,” he answered honestly. “It looked like an alien, or something.”

Her grip tightened on his collar, pulling him closer, almost to the point where their foreheads touched. Even now, Theo couldn’t help but feel attracted to the girl. She was still so sexy, so tough, so cool. Everything that he wasn’t.

Her lips were only an inch away from his. He wanted to lean forward that extra bit so they touched, he wanted to find out what they tasted like, but he didn’t dare. Not when she looked like she wanted to bite his head off already.

“Listen, shiteater,” she whispered, her voice so low he could barely hear over the humming of crickets. “If you breathe a word of this to anyone, I’ll kill you.” Her eyes were locked with him, unmoving. She was serious. “You don’t tell your friends, your family, your fucking pet fish. If anyone finds out, and I mean anyone I’m going to sink a knife into your gut, drag it until I see intestines, then start ripping. Got it?” He could only nod. “Good.” She released him, he immediately took a step back. His face was noticeably paler.

Her lips rose a bit, forming a mocking grin. Did she like seeing him this frightened? He couldn’t help his reaction, none of this made any sense. “What are you still doing here?” she asked, her tone ice.

He turned, eyes wide, heart about to burst. Slowly he took a step, trying to wrap his brain around things. He wasn't having much success.

Three strides was all it took before Maxi called out to him again. “Stop.” He cringed. What did she want with him now? Had she reconsidered her actions? Was she going to stab him? He knew that sounded stupid, something a dumb, scarred freshman would believe, but that look in her eyes… somehow he didn’t think she was joking.

“What is…” he said, turning. Her hands latched onto his face, pulling him forward until he felt something warm on his lips. It took a moment to realize it was Maxi’s mouth. The girl continued pressing into him, her lips playing with his lightly. They were warm, just like he imagined they would be. Soft too, and tasting like strawberries. Suddenly, he loved strawberries.

Then she pulled away, looking into his dumbfounded eyes. Her face didn’t show any of her opinions. Finally she let go, turned, and started walking away. “Get lost, dork,” she called from over her shoulder after a few steps.

Theo simply stood where he was, his face one of confusion, his legs rooted to the ground. “W...What?”

Theo had his back against the rough bark of a tree, his butt sitting on one of the sturdier branches, his vision trained on the tiny patch of light some distance below. Maxi’s window was closed, but the curtains still hung open, allowing him to view everything inside.

Her room wasn’t how he expected it to be. There weren’t any skeletons or skulls, no posters of death metal bands, no blood and guts. It was painted a bright pink, as opposed to black, with a ceiling that looked almost white. Her bed was small, pressed against the wall just under the window. It looked like a typical girl’s room.

“What the fuck am I doing?” Theo asked himself for the hundredth time that night. What had happened that afternoon had been confusing, perhaps even disturbing. This, however, was not the proper reaction. Creeping on a girl, looking in her window, hiding in a tree… that was all shit you got arrested for.

But he couldn’t get those things out of his mind. Those… monsters. What they hell had happened? What were they? And, most of all, why the hell had she kissed him? Something inside him wasn’t going to be satisfied until he knew the answers.

So, he had followed her home, then, once it got dark, snuck into a tree and watched. Nothing had happened so far. He was no closer to finding out answers, but a hell of a lot closer to being labeled a perv for life. “Theo, you fucking idiot,” he whispered to himself, and not for the first time that night. That was one more mystery. Why was he acting so strangely?

Then the girl’s door opened. Theo’s heart started to pump a little faster, his cheeks burning red. Maxi walked in, threw herself onto the bed, then reached for something. It looked like a magazine.

Sap had already made Theo’s cloths sticky and uncomfortable. The air was getting colder, the wind becoming more of a nuisance than a pleasant surprise. Bugs were all around him, chirping loudly, calling out to whatever would listen. Then the girl turned.

Her face appeared at the window, staring out into the dark yard. Theo froze, praying that he hadn’t been spotted. But that was almost impossible. She couldn’t possibly see him, concealed as he was. He was safe.

Then she turned, her eyes seeming to meet his. But, no, that was impossible. She couldn’t have seen him. He wasn’t even moving. Still, he dared not breathe. Just a lucky glance, that was all. Her hands reached up to the curtains, pulling them across the window with a single tug. Theo’s let out a low breath, oxygen returning to his lounges.

“Shit,” he whispered after a moment. That had been too close. He shouldn’t be here. He shouldn’t be doing any of this.

He started to turn, meaning to climb down the tree, away from Maxi. No good could come from stalking her, monster or no. Besides, that had to have been some sort of a trick, right? Yeah, just something she made up to scare him. That hologram didn’t even look real.

“Ah!” he yelled, Maxi’s face only inches away from his. Theo pulled back hastily, his sap soaked butt coming off of the branch. Rapidly he flung his hands and arms about, trying desperately to grab anything to keep himself from falling. He found nothing.

He hit the ground with a thud, his back instantly aching. His eyes were shut, his mind racing. That couldn’t have been real, right? Just his imagination. No one could move that fast. He was just losing his mind.

But, when he opened his eyes, she was still there, sitting lazily on the branch above, looking down at him curiously. Theo wanted to die. It seemed like an easy option at least.

Maxi dropped down from the tree, her boots thumping into the earth only a few feet from his head. She stood over him, clad all in black, her face radiating contempt. “The fuck were you doing?”

“I… well…” Theo struggled for words as he tried to sit up. She placed one of her boots on his chest, forcing him back to the dirt.

“You were looking through my window.” It wasn’t a question.

“No, I was…”

“What? I’m curious to see what lie you can come up with.” He stayed silent. “Nothing?” she asked after a moment. “You didn’t lose your Frisbee in its branches? You weren’t trying to chase down a squirrel to fuck? Is that what it is? You fuck squirrels?”

“What!? No... its just… I” he was truly a master of words.

“Pick one, dipshit. You a squirrel fucker or peeper?”

“I…”

“Pick one, or I stomp on your head until your brains splatter.”

Theo gulped. Her eyes were steady, her voice unquivering. Just like before, he somehow believed she would do it. “I was looking in your window,” he admitted, afraid of what would happen if he didn’t.

“Thought so,” Maxi said, almost disappointed.

“Ugh… What are you going to do?” he asked timidly, now afraid of the answer.

She shrugged, seeming not to care. “You seem to have gotten obsessed over what happened. Guess I’ll have to kill you.”

He was going to say something else, but her boot moved too fast. Before he could even let out a cry, the thick, hard sole crashed into his face. He fell back into the dirt, the world quickly growing black.

“Ugh…” Theo moaned, coming back to reality. His vision was foggy, only making out general shapes and colors in the dark room. His back hurt, his face throbbed. Then he remembered what had happened. “What the…”

“Be quiet,” he heard, the voice sounding distant. He tried to push himself off the hard ground, but found his hands tied behind his back, fastened around some sort of metal pole.

“Hey, what’s-“ Again he was cut off.

“I said be quiet.” The voice sounded closer now, more familiar. His vision started to clear, shapes becoming more detailed, colors more vibrant.

“Maxi?” he asked, the girl’s form coming into view. She didn’t look happy. Then again, she never really looked happily to begin with.

“Didn’t I tell you to just forget about what happened? Didn’t I tell you to just fuck off? Why couldn’t you?”

He tried to shrug. The room around him made about as much sense as his life. There weren’t any windows, the only light source coming from glowing white orbs lining the wall. The floor was hard, grey, probably some form of concrete. But what caught his eye was the massive computer set up on the far wall. He couldn’t tell much from his point of view, but it looked big, powerful, glowing, and just a bit out of place.

“I just wanted to find out what was happening.”

“And so you decided to follow me home. Good call, freak.”

“I know it was stupid. I’m sorry. Please, just let me go. I’ll leave. I won’t tell anyone.”

“See, I already gave you that chance. Now you fucked up.” Her voice had no humor in it.

“Please,” Theo begged, fear starting to rise in his throat.

“Stop. Its degrading, and you already have such little dignity.” She turned walking over to the computer. “How do you want it done?” she asked over her shoulder casually.

“Have what done?”

She groaned at his stupidity. “How do you want me to kill you?”

Theo gulped. He didn’t know many murderers who gave you a choice. Still, not really much of a consolation. “Can’t I just leave? Please, I swear I won’t-“

“Oh come on, just pick something. Anything. Want to have your head exploded?” She turned back to him, leaning on the massive machine. She looked almost smug. “Drawn and quartered? Tar and feathered? Bug eat out your brains, or perhaps you'd rather be tossed into a black hole? Come on, that last one has to have some appeal.”

“No!” Theo shouted, now desperate. Somewhere, still in the back of his mind, he hoped this was all some sort of a sick joke. He struggled to his feet, the rope that tied his wrists together sliding up the pole with him. “Please, just let me go!”

“Fucking freshmen,” Maxi muttered, smiling, shaking her head. “Always got to be dipshits.” She said her next words slowly, as if talking to an extremely dumb person. “Pick. A. Death.”

“I… I don’t want to.” He gulped again.

Maxi turned, dropped onto her knees, opened up one of the nearby drawers built into the computer, and soon emerged with a device he didn’t recognize. Completely chrome, from thick, orb shaped end to thin, stabby-looking front. “Pick, or I do it for you.” She turned back to her cringing captive. “And trust me, you won’t like what I pick.”

“No, come on. This is insane!” Despite everything that was happening, he found himself smiling. Hell, he was almost laughing. “You can’t kill me. This is just… just… you can’t.” She started coming closer, the shiny object glittering in her palm. “This is insane.” Her heavy boots thudded off the ground. “You're crazy!” She had almost closed the gap by now. The look on her face was a frightful mix of pity and pleasure. “Stop!” he shouted when she was only a step away. She didn’t.

He cringed at the objects cold touch. “Do you know what this is?” the girl whispered, leaning in. The metal devise was at his throat, but his thoughts were drawn to her lips. Once again they were only a few inches away. Despite the situation, he found himself wanting to kiss them again. Perhaps those poor priorities had something to do with his current predicament.

“No.”

“Have you figured out what I am?”

“Yes.”

Maxi smiled, seeming to take pleasure in watching her little captive squirm. “What?” she asked, slowly, seductively.  

He breathed heavy, his mind trying desperately to understand the situation, to make sense of the chaos that surrounded him, had bled into him, consumed him. Finally he spoke, though his voice was only a thin whisper. “Vampire.”

“Holly shit,” Maxi said, almost laughing. “You are dumber than I thought. Vampire? What the hell about me says vampire?”

“I… well… the dark clothes I guess.” Well, that was obviously the wrong answer, though his tormenter no longer seemed to be in such a dark mood. “And your hair.”

“My hair? The fuck is wrong with my hair?”

“Nothing!” Theo quickly corrected. “I just mean I looks like something a vampire would have.”

She looked at him for a moment, her features radiating a you-really-are-as-stupid-as-you-look vibe. “Vampire?” she asked again, still not really believing. Her eyes rolled as she brought her fingers up to her mouth, spreading her gums for Theo to see. “I got any fangs, fuckface?” She did not.

“I’m sorry, I just thought that was what you were going for.”

She pulled back a bit, her attitude much less threatening than the sociopath before. “What, is that some sort of fantasy for you? Some twilight level bullshit?”

“No, of course not. I just...”

“Oh, Edward,” she moaned, sliding up to him, wrapping her arms around his waist. She felt warm, even through his clothes. “Please, protect me. I’m just a little vampire girl who doesn’t know what to do.” Her voice was high, childlike. “I’ll do anything for you Edward,” she continued, Theo cringing. She leaned in closer, her lips almost touching his cheek. “Your skin is just soooo shiny.”

“Stop that,” Theo said, not harshly. “I don’t think you a vampire.”

“Oh, perhaps werewolves are more your thing. Sorry little boy, I can’t rip off my shit and show you a six pack. I’m sure the football team would be more than willing to, though.”

“I didn’t say that other. I just meant… well, what are you then?” His horror had been replaced with curiosity. He liked curiosity better. Curiosity didn’t threaten to kill him.

“Starts with an ‘A’.” Maxi pulled away from him, waiting for an answer.

“Animal?”

“Okay, I was planning to scoop out your brain later, but I don’t think you have one. Try again.”

“Alliga-“

“You call me an alligator, I fucking punch you.”

He cringed, but was determined to guess. “Alien?”

“There you go. Was that so hard?”

His brows furrowed. “Wait, you’re an alien?”

“Yeah,” she answered, crossing her arms. “Got a problem?”

“No, its just… I always thought aliens were more… green.”

“Wow, that is offensive.”

“No! I just thought…” Why did he always have to be so stupid?

She was smiling, shaking her head at his ignorance. “Just shut up.” He did. Perhaps he should do it more often. “Now, back to my original question.” She held up the pointy, metallic device. “Any idea what it is?”

Instantly Theo connected the dots. If she was who she said she was, an alien, then that long, pointy, shiny thing in her hand could only be… “A probe?”

“No.”

He breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank god.”

“Do you want me to get a probe?”

“No!” he shouted.

“I mean, it’s a bit outdated, but still usable.”

“Its fine. Just… what is it then?” He tried to move, but the ropes at his wrist were still tight.

“Shrink serum.” She said it as if it was the most natural thing in the world. After a moment, one in which he must have looked completely stupefied, Maxi continued. “It makes you small.”

“How small?” Because there weren’t any better questions he should be asking.

“Depends,” she answered playfully. “Its got a bunch of settings. I could shrink you down to only a foot, a few inches, centimeters, if I’m really feeling cruel, millimeters. Hell, I could make you microscopic.”

He gulped. “You aren’t going to make me microscopic, right?”

“No. It's no fun when I can’t see you. When I step on things, I like to feel them under my boot.” She grinned, he grimaced. “So, how small do you want to be?”

“I want to be my normal size!” he yelled back. “I want to be out of here.”

“Neither of those things are going to happen. You already know way, way too much about this whole thing.”

“No I don’t!” he insisted. “I don’t know anything. I’m an idiot. I’m the stupidest person you will ever meet. I swear!”

“True.” She seemed to think about it for a minute. “Still, I just got fired. I’m in the mood to squish something. Pick a size.”

He could feel the blood draining from his face. Like her past threats, he saw there was some truth to it. She wasn’t the type to just make things up, and the recent events helped her validity. Theo gulped, asking himself once again why he was such a dunce.

“Can I just-“ A loud buzzing cut him off, the computer screen across the room erupting in an array of colors and symbols that didn’t make any sense.

Maxi groaned. “Fucking perfect timing. Looks like you get to live for a few more minutes, dork.”

Maxi turned back to the computer, placing the shrinking machine on a nearby table. She clicked a few buttons and the screen went black. A moment later an odd looking hologram, though one of much nicer quality than the one on her wrist, took form. It was another one of the squid headed creatures, its head as disgusting as the first time Theo saw it. Then again, perhaps it was the same alien. It wasn’t like he could tell the difference. Theo could now make out large holes in its head that seemed to pulse, a thick goo lining them. Its face was flat, devoid of a nose, or lips, or even much of a mouth. Its eyes were squid like, an oval pinched in at the middle to make a sideways eight. The rest of its body was covered in a long robe.

“Zone commander Q-89_D, requesting communications-“

“Shut up and talk. What do you want?”

The squid looked mildly annoyed, or at least as annoyed as a squid could be. “I’ve been ordered to follow up on the complication from earlier. What did you do with the human?”

Maxi grinned, turning back to her captive. She took a few strides over to him, saying, “Well don’t you have good timing, squido.” She reached Theo, putting one arm over his shoulder, leaning against him as if she was a friend. Theo only stood still, confused about the situation. Nothing made sense anymore.

“Got him right here. Was about to do some fun stuff when you happened to call.”

“Ah, then my timing is, how do you earth folk say it? Totally rad?”

Maxi cringed. “Yeah. That’s what we say. Now what do you want?”

“Your reassignment is still to be carried out, on schedule, but those upstairs have seen fit to assign you a minor job until you are picked up.”

“A three day job? I never like those.”

“Well, you might like this one. Its fits right up your alley.” If a squid could look cocky, this one did.

“Speak then. What is the job.”

“Perhaps it would be best if we didn’t speak in front off…” he tilted his head towards Theo.

“Aw, I’m sure our little… the fuck was you name?”

“Theo,” Theo answered.

“Really? Theodor? Are people still called that? Whatever.” She turned back to the squid. “Our little Theo can hear whatever it is you need to say.”

“Fine. We need you to conduct more research on human genitalia, as well as the mating rituals.”

Maxi rolled her eyes. “What is it with fucking? Why do you need every cadet and his mother fucking humans every other month. Do you watch it back on your ships? Is that what it is? Cause if you want something to jerk off to I can-“

“Stop,” the alien said, holding his hands – tentacle? – up in defense. “Its nothing like that. The ritual just changes a lot. Please collect as much data-“

“Fuck as many people.”

“Sure. Just fill out the customary forms. You can probably use your little Theo as a test subject.”

“Perfect. Now you better leave. I need to perform this ‘research.’”

“Fine. Good day.” The alien disappeared without another word, the room returning to its normal atmosphere.

Theo turned to the girl, one eyebrow raised. “So, are we going to collect data now?”

She rolled her eyes, taking a few steps towards the computer, and away from him. “Stop thinking with your dick,” she said over her shoulder, tapping away at a few keys. “It isn’t as fun as it sounds.”

“But it isn’t going to kill me, right?”

“Probably not.”

“Probably?”

“Probably.”

“Okay.” He wasn’t sure what to think about that. But, a little sex play had to be a step up from brutal murder, right? And it wasn’t like Maxi was some hideous alien or anything. She was a sweet, cute, sexy teenager. One that he had fantasized about for years. One who he had tried to talk to, but shot him down mercilessly. Maybe this was the miracle he was always hoping for. He allowed a half smile to cut his features. Things were looking up.

Maxi turned around, a wall of light about the size of a sheet of paper emanating from the device at her wrist. “Okay,” she said back to him, quickly scanning the document. “First part is a simple questionnaire. Please answer honestly and truthfully. Got it?”

“Yep.” It wasn’t like Theo had much to hide about his sexuality.

“So you wouldn’t mind a lie detector?”

His voice was a bit shaky as he answered, “Nope.” He had a little to hide about his sexuality.

“Good.” Maxi pulled a cord from her wrist device. It looked like any other earth cord, black and rubbery, but with a bright yellow piece at the end. Without much warning, she shoved it up his nose. Theo struggled for a moment, the tiny wire wiggling its way up until he could barely feel it anymore.

“The fuck was that?” he yelled.

“Lie detector. Ninety nine percent accurate. Ready for the questions?”

“I guess. Can you untie me though?”

“Well shit, Theo, want me to serve you caviar on a gold plate as I do it?”

He shrugged. “Never was a fan of caviar.”

“Good.” She went behind him, working at the knot. “I don’t got any anyway.” The ropes slid free. Immediately he brought his wrists in front of him, tenderly rubbing the red patches. “Now, question one,” she said, returning before him. “How many-“

“Wait, can’t we sit down first?” She looked at him with hatred.

“Fine, your majesty,” she answered, waving over to a couple of chairs that sat at the computer. Theo sat down, the fabric expanding around his tired, aching body. It might have been one of the comfiest things he had ever sat in.

“These are amazing chairs,” he said, sinking in lower, swiveling back and forth a bit. “Do they have some weird alien tech in them? Like nano-fabric or something?”

“I got them at Ikea.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah. You good now? Going to need anything else?”

“Nope, shoot.”

“Don’t tempt me.” She swiveled in her chair, leaning back, resting her shoes on the computer. “Question one, how many sexual partners have you had?”

“Ever?” Theo asked, a bit nervous. Maxi nodded. “None.”

“Fucking wow.” She pressed at the sheet, a slight ding sounding. “Guess you don’t have any STD’s then?”

“No.”

“Good for you. Ever gotten to third base?”

“No.”

“Second?”

“No.” She paused, looking over at him with disappointment.

“How old are you?”

“fourteen.”

“And you never touched a tit?”

“Not yet.”

She rolled her eyes. “You’ve kissed someone, right?”

At least he had this. “Yes,” he answered with a bit more pride than he probably should have. Who cared if it was only this afternoon.

“Good. At least you got that. How many times to you jerk off a week?”

He hesitated. “I’m not really sure.” These questions were getting a bit more personal than he wanted them to.

“Rough ballpark.”

“Three?”

Her wrist device blinked red. She smiled. “Try again.”

“Five?” Red light. “Seven,” he admitted with a sigh. No red light.

“Such a player,” Maxi noted, tapping at the screen. “How big are you?”

“About five foot six.”

“Dick size, fucktard.”

“Oh…” he hesitated answering. This was definitely more personal than he had wanted.

“Nevermind,” Maxi said, the board disappearing back into the device. She stood up, walking over to him. “Guys always add a few inches anyway.” Her hand came down to his waist.

“What the hell are you doing!” Theo shouted, pushing her away.

“Measuring.”

“Well, don’t.”

She wasn’t impressed. “Listen, tiny. A girl is going to touch your little pee-pee. Enjoy it.” She reached down to his waist again, this time without resistance. Theo leaned back in the plush chair, his cheeks burning, his eyes darting around the room, finding anything to look at other than the girl. There was a funny little poster in one corner of the room that looked like a guy with a really big smile. No, wait, his throat was slit.

Theo’s cheeks blushed even more as he felt Maxi’s warm hand against the sensitive skin of his crotch, quickly descending to his genitalia. Her fingers wrapped around his member, pressing lightly, her wrist device making a slight beep. She then pulled her hand out, saying, “See, wasn’t so bad, right?”

“No. Not bad,” Theo admitted, happy that it was over.

She returned to her seat, flopping down in the thick fabric, the board popping back up. She started typing. “Four point two inches.”

“Wait, its bigger than-“

“Next question. Got any fetishes?”

“Fetishes?”

“Yeah. Funny things that get you hard even though they shouldn’t. Feet, for example. A lot of guys like to jerk off to feet.”

“N.. No.” The device beeped red. He was starting to hate that thing.

“Okay, so you have a fetish or two. Don’t worry, almost everyone does. Hell, the weird people are the ones who don’t.” She typed a few notes, then returned to him, smiling a cruel, mocking smile. It made her face light up. “What type of fetish you got, Theo?”

“Well…” he mumbled, his hand coming to the back of his neck.

“I ain't going to judge.”

“I guess feet.” The light didn’t buzz.

“Anything else?”

“Nope.” The light buzzed.

Maxi smiled more. “Something really weird then. What is it?”

Theo cringed. He barely even knew this girl. Really, he didn’t know this girl at all. Hell, he didn’t even know if she was actually a girl. He should probably ask about that before she tried to touch his junk again. “I…”

“Furry fetish?”

“No.”

“Death fetish?”

“Not really.”

“Latex?”

“No.”

“anal?”

“That’s a fetish?”

“Technically.”

“Then yeah.”

“Anymore?”

“Nope.” The red light dinged. He wanted to fucking murder it. Maxi laughed.

“Amputee?”

“No.”

“BDSM?”

“Nope.”

“Giantess?”

“Nope.” That damn red light again.

Maxi smiled. “Ding ding ding, we got a winner. And of course it has to be one with a shit ton of sub sections. Do you really have to be this annoying?”

“Can't really help it.”

“Right. I’m just going to list ‘em off. Stop me when you hear something you're into.”

“Alright.”

“Interacting with boobs,”

“Yep.”

“BBW, Body exploration,”

“That one.”

“Breast enlargement, Butt, couples, crush,”

“That.”

“Crush, really?”

“Yeah.”

She laughed a bit. “Guess we both would have liked my choice then. Feet, you already said yes, furry, said no, futanari, gentle,”

“Gentle?”

“You want to be treated gently by a giantess.”

“I guess.”

“Fine. Growing or shrinking out of clothes.”

“Is that really a sub section?”

“Yes.”

“I guess.”

“Growing woman.”

“Yep.”

“Humiliation.”

“Yes.”

Maxi rolled her eyes. “My little pervert, hugh? Incest?” When he didn’t respond, she shrugged and went back to her list, a bit surprised. “Insertion?”

“Insertion?”

“Think human dildo.”

“Oh. Yeah.”

“Pervert.  Legwear, lesbians, maternal, mouth play,”

“Yeah.”

“Holly fuck this is taking a while. Muscle? Odor, Scat.”

“That one.”

Maxi almost laughed. “You really want to get shit on?” He shrugged, his cheeks turning the same shade of red as her devilish button. “Whatever. Slave, slow size change, unaware,”

“Yep.”

“Violent?”

“Yes.”

“Vore?” he nodded. “Waterspouts?”

“Shouldn’t that be included in scat? Like, under one heading, like ‘toilet’.”

“I don’t write this stuff. You like getting peed on or not?”

“I’m just saying it seems unnecessary to distinguish.”

“You like getting pissed on?”

“No.”

Maxi was amazed when the device didn’t beep. “Really?”

“What?”

“Scat is fine, but getting pissed on is a turn off?”

“Yeah. You want to get pissed on?”

“No, but that's not the point. I don’t want to get shit on either.”

“You ever tried it?”

Maxi rolled her eyes, groaning. She typed some more stuff into the computer, trying to keep her mind away from the clear deviation from the norm. This kid was weird. “Fine. Any other fetishes you can think of?” She hoped for a “no.”

“Nope.” Close enough. The machine didn’t even buzz.

“Thank god. We can move on to step two.”

“A more thorough collection of data?” Theo said, trying to sound seductive. It ended up sounding more creepy-uncley.

“Says the kid who almost fainted when I touched his dick.”

“That was unexpected.”

“Sure. Now take off your pants.”

“Really?” Theo asked, a thin smile spreading despite his best efforts.

“Yeah. Strip bitch.”

“O… Okay.” Theo stood, his hand descending to his pants. Maxi was looking at the glowing board in front of her, occasionally typing something. He was relieved she wouldn’t be watching. First time jitters and all.

He slipped his pants off, the fabric crumbling around his ankles. He only now noticed how cold the room was. Was a warm temperature so much to ask? Maybe these aliens didn’t like the warm air though. Might explain why he never saw Maxi wearing too much clothing. But, that went against his growing theory that they were a reptilian species, as the squid heads would suggest. Wait, were squids reptiles? They were definitely slimy looking…

“Underwear too.”

“Oh, ah, sure.” His fingers slipped into the tight waistband of his boxers. Of course they were transformers themed. Couldn’t have one aspect of this experience free from humiliation. “Ugh, Maxi?” She glanced up at him, her raised eyebrow asking, “What?” He fumbled for the right words, finally settling on, “Just don’t laugh, or anything.”

She rolled her eyes. “Stop being such a bitch. I’m not going to laugh.”

He felt a little better, though not much. Somehow he always expected his first encounter with a girl to be less… researchy. Like, maybe in a party when they were both a little tipsy, or after dinner and a movie, or something. Life, just one big surprise, right?

His boxer’s flopped down, bunching around his ankles along with his pants. For a moment he just stood there, not really sure of what to do next. After a moment, Maxi looked over and smirked. “Wow, your the biggest guy I’ve ever seen.”

“Really?” he asked, pride swelling into his body, pushing away the reasonable parts of his mind.

“No,” she answered flatly, returning to the sheet. “You can sit if you want.” He did. Perhaps Maxi could feel the tension as well, for next she said, “Biggest guy I ever saw in person was a guy named James Chung. Yeah, Asian guy. I know.”

“Weird,” Theo said.

“Very. You know Kelly?”

“Yeah.” She was one of Maxi’s friends. Similar attitude and attire, only she came from a rich Jewish family and was doing things more to piss off daddy than anything else. Classy girl. Theo distinctly remembered that she was small, probably only five feet.

“Well, James practically split her in half. It was at a party, right? So, James starts talking to her, said a couple corny lines, Kelly practically forces herself on him, and they go into the back room. Thing was, he wasn’t that tall or anything, so i just thought it was a normal hook up. Anyway, the walls were pretty thin so I got to hear everything.” Her voice went higher as she started imitating her friend’s cries of passion. “Oh, yeah. Yeah. Fuck me James. Uhh… Ugh… Yes! Yes! Oh my god yes!” She let her body go limp, her tongue sticking out of her mouth as she pretended to convulse. “Yes! You're so good! Oh my god fuck me harder. You're my Asian sensation! Yes, stuff me up! Ugh… Ugh… I’m your kung-pow chicken!” Theo was trying not to burst into laughter. “Yes! Yes! Yes! Wait… ouch. Ok, hold on a… Ouch! Stop! Ouch, it's so big! Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow! Stop! Stop! Stop… Don’t stop. Harder. Yeah! Yeah. Ouch! Yes! Ah Fuck! Yes! No! Aw! Yes! Ouch! GLLLLAAAHAHAHAHHA!” She fell against the chair, her body twitching a bit, faking orgasm.

Theo couldn’t control himself. He was laughing openly, covering his face with his hand.

“Yeah, it gets worse. The entire party heard, so when the door opened, kelly standing there with her hair all over the place, they did what any party would. Started clapping like idiots. Kelly cringed, moving aside. James then jumped into the door frame, back bent, tongue out, yelling something along the lines of ‘YEEEAAAAHHHH!”, his dick spinning like a helicopter. Like I said before, it was big. Everyone went silent, looked at Kelly, then burst into a chorus of laughter and cheers.”

“That’s horrible,” Theo said, managing to control himself.

“Yeah. But funny as hell.” She stood up, the lit up writing thingy disappearing back into her wrist. A few steps later and she was standing in front of Theo, his lower regions uncovered, exposed to her scrutiny. “Going for that all-natural look, eh?”

“Ugh… I wasn’t really planning any of this.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Maxi said, her hand grabbing one of his legs as she slipped down to her knees. “I’m a down and dirty type of girl.” She started to lean forward.

“Wait,” Theo said, blood rushing to his cheeks. “What are you doing?”

“What does it look like?”

“Oh… Okay i guess.”

“Are you not into this?”

“No, I am. Just a bit nervous.”

“That’s good.”

“Good?” he said, confused. “Why?”

She glanced up at him, her features looking cute and innocent. “I like the whole ‘innocent virgin’ thing. Makes me feel like a predator.” She made a growling noise, probably the most seductive thing Theo had ever heard. Her vision returned to his package. “And it will help you stay flaccid.” She started leaning forward.

“Wait, why would I stay flaccid?”

“Oh yeah, don’t get a boner,” she said flatly.

“Why not?”

“‘Cause if you do, I bight.”

“What?” Theo said, his eyes bulging.

“Hard.”

“Really?”

She nodded. “All part of the study. Just don’t get hard, kay?” Before he could answer, she leaned forward, her tongue lightly sliding over the head of his penis. Unsurprisingly, it was one of the most intense feelings Theo ever had. A mixture of pleasure caused by her delicate touch, the surprise of the experience, and, most of all, confusion. He still wasn’t sure how any of this was real, how any of this could be real. Still, sometimes it was best to just lean back and let a good thing happen, right?

So, without any more resistance, Theo leaned back in the fluffy Ikea alien chair, closing his eyes, intent on enjoying the experience. Maxi’s tongue continued to slide along his member, first upwards, then down, going in long, fluid movements. Soon, he could feel tiny droplets of drool gliding down his skin. Within only a few seconds, he felt his breathing change, his heartbeat increase.

“Theo,” Maxi said up, her eyes still locked on his package. “Remember what I said.” She went back to licking, her tongue caressing his skin. By this point, Theo was about half mast.

But shit, he had already forgotten Maxi’s one rule. Don’t get hard. But, how was that supposed to happen? It wasn’t like that was something he could control. He couldn’t simply will himself not be sexually aroused, especially when someone like Maxi, someone so cute, so adorable, so hot, was licking at his junk. Her tongue sliding delicately, her fingers gripping his bare thigh, her lips tantalizingly close to his…

No! Those were exactly the type of thoughts that would get him into a bad situation. Theo closed his eyes tightly, his hands gripping the armrest of the chair. He couldn’t imagine a worse way to finish this than having her bite down. How hard would she do it? She hadn’t exactly been delicate with him up to this point. She wouldn’t bite down all the way, would she?

One would think the image of a cute punk girl biting down on your dick, blood spurting out in thick gulps, skin tearing and whatnot, would be a turnoff. But, as Theo looked down, he realized it wasn’t have the desired effect. Perhaps Maxi’s lips were just that pleasure full. Maybe he was just more of a freak than he thought.

“Come on Theo,” Maxi said, pausing only for a moment, then diving back at his exposed genitals. Her lips made contact with his nearly erect penis, sucking lightly. Her hands had glided up further along his thigh, her soft fingers delicately rubbing against his skin.

Theo struggled to keep himself down, trying to think of anything else besides what was going on at his waist. He tried to think of his grandma, her old saggy skin, her dentures, the funky way she smelled all the time. Nope, wasn’t working. He tried to think of church, and the boring sermons that he never went to. Tried to think of the old, ugly minister who always spoke of god as if it was the only damn thing in the universe. He tried to think of… Maxi had placed the tip into her mouth. The sensitive head pushed in through her soft, delicate lips, and into her warm mouth. He couldn’t think of anything else. It just felt so good.

He thought he heard Maxi chuckle lightly, but he was lost at this point. Fully erect and unable to do anything about it. If Maxi hadn’t been so attractive, so beautiful, then maybe. But now, with her tongue sliding along the underside of his member, pressing against the taught skin, her cheek making contact with his head, her fingers now playing lightly at his base, he found himself unable to control even the slightest attributes of his body.

Theo was close. This was the first real sexual experience of his life, but it didn’t look like it was going to last long. The feeling was too intense to control. His heart was beating quickly, his body hot to the touch. His fingers dug into the arms of the chair. He could feel himself about to explode.

Maxi must have known as well. She started moving a bit, sliding a small portion of his member outside her mouth, then back in, but in a new position. He felt something odd, something he couldn’t really recall, but he didn’t care. He was so close now. Theo was about to finish when he felt a pressure.

He looked down, catching her mischievous gaze. Then he remembered. “Wait-” was all he managed to say before she bit, her teeth pressing on his member, pinching it painfully between her molars. Theo gave a yelp, jumping back, the chair’s wheels squeaking in protest as they inched away. “The fuck!?” he shouted, his gaze darting between the girl’s thin smile, and the teeth marks on his cock.

“I told you what was going to happen.”

“That doesn't mean…” Theo couldn’t find any more words. “What was the point of that?”

Maxi shrugged, standing, moving over to the computer. “Just another box that I gotta fill out.”

“And you needed to bite me for it?”

“No, that was just funny.”

Theo didn’t say anything. With his luck, he wasn’t going to say anything useful anyway. Hell, He’d probably end up in a worse situation. She might get annoyed at him, losing the “nice” attitude she now had, transforming back into that monster. Maybe she would even use that probe-thingy. Theo silently sulked. He didn’t want to be shrunk. After a minute or so, he asked, “So, what’s next?” He didn’t say it happily.

“Shrinking.”

He gulped. “Shrinking?” His voice was wobbly.

“Yep.”

“Why?”

“Why not?”

“Well, It isn’t really that safe…”

“Nonsense,” Maxi interrupted happily. “Being shrunken is barely any more dangerous than being at normal height. Just don’t fuck with anything bigger than you, and your fine.”

“But-”

“You know how many bugs there are on this planet?”

“A lot.”

“Yep. Do you think there would be so damn many if being tiny was really that bad?”

“I guess not.” Theo still wasn’t convinced. He had often wondered what it would be like to be tiny, to see the world from an insect's perspective, but had always knew it was impossible. Nothing more than a fantasy. Nothing more than a secret wish. Right now though, he was more concerned with where his pants were. “Well, how small do I have to be?”

“Have to be? Theo, isn’t this one of those fetishes you have?” The girl looked at him quizzically. “I thought you would enjoy this.”

“Well, yeah, but… It doesn't seem safe. How big will I be?”

“An inch or two.”

He gulped again, looking down at his hands, at the end of his thumb. He had always been told that was a rough approximation to an inch. Still, he couldn’t imagine being that small. But, as he sat, thinking about the possibility, something new came into his stomach, edging out the anxiety and worry. Curiosity. “How long?” he asked, a bit more interested.

“An hour or so.”

“What do I have to do?”

“Nothing really. I’ll handle all of the fun stuff.”

“Fun stuff?” Suddenly he remembered her earlier threat, and her preferred method for killing people.

“Nothing painful. You ready?”

“Wait!” Theo said, jumping at the sudden reappearance of the chrome doohickey.

“What?” Maxi asked, almost annoyed.

“Can’t we just-”

“No.” A bolt of blue light erupted from the chrome thingy’s tip, arced gently to Theo, then blasted him in the face. His mouth opened, his body started to fall. The last thing he saw was a single glowing orb directly over head. He wondered what the hell they were, though there were probably other things he should be more concerned about.

Where were the blankets? Theo couldn’t seem to think of anything besides the cold chill in the air, odd considering the previously summer weather. He wanted to bring the soft fabric to his face, snuggle deep inside his cocoon, and close his eyes once more. But, his probing hand felt no such fabric. So, his eyes slowly, grumpily, opened.

“What?” he asked lightly, his voice coming out as a high pitched squeak. Things didn’t look right. The walls were blurry, the furniture oddly stretched, or refracted, or bent, or something weird. And blurry.

He started rubbing his eyes, sitting up. When they opened again, when the world remained unchanged, only then did the recent events come rushing back to him. “Ugh,” he groaned, flopping onto his back.

“Morning, sleepy,” he heard a voice say lightly, the sound slightly distorted. Still, it was recognizable.

“How small am I, Maxi?” he asked, his eyes trying to focus on the dim, odd little bulb of light hanging directly overhead. He was finding it more difficult than he would have expected.

“What?” the girl said. “Shit, can’t hear you kid.” She moved out of her seat, dropping onto her knees with a thud. Placed her forearms on the chair Theo now lay upon, her head lowering until it rested in her arms. “Say that again.”

Theo sat up again, looking her in the eye. She had beautiful eyes. Almost purple. “I asked how small I was.” He said it with a bit more volume than he normally would have, though it didn’t help the high pitched squeak.

“Oh, about two inches. I figured you couldn’t get too hurt at that size. I mean, any smaller and I might crush you by accident. Now, I might just give you a bruise or two.”

“Great,” Theo answered, not eagerly. He took the opportunity to look around again, taking in some of the features of the great landscape. His mind was still having trouble putting it all together, realizing that the mountains in the background were really only the different parts of Maxi’s computer, and the ceiling above wasn’t just another infinitely high object, like the sky normally was. It was all amazing, and as his senses came back to him, exciting.

Maxi went to say something, her words echoing around him, sounding deep in his ears, but he wasn’t paying much attention. Instead, his imagination went crazy, picturing all the things that, up until now, had just been an impossible fantasy. He was really two inches tall. This was real. He could camp in someone’s belly button, swim in a glass of water, feast on a crumb… or do some things more sexual. His gaze returned to Maxi, his penis twitching as a smile spread it way over his features.

“Did you hear me?” Her question brought him back to his unbelievable reality.

“Oh, sorry, I was lost for a bit.”

“Whatever, spaz. I asked how you felt. Nothing broken, out of place? Organs all functioning?”

Theo looked down at his naked body - his clothes did not shrink with him - as if he could see any problems with his innards. He then patted his belly, because that was going to tell him more than the sight test did. In the end, he shrugged and said, “I think so. Bit cold though.”

“Yeah, that happens. Square cube law.”

“What?”

Maxi rolled her eyes. “You have more surface area in relation to your volume. It makes you colder.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

“Can I have some clothes then?”

“No.”

“‘Cause you don’t have any in my size?”

“‘Cause I need to jerk you off before we do anything.” Theo’s penis twitched again, the breath going out of him momentarily.

“R… Really?” he asked, his squeaky voice carrying a bit more eagerness than he would have liked to revile.

“Yeah. Part of the tests. Lean back.”

Theo wasn’t about to argue with that. He let himself fall, his back landing on the rough strings that made up the chair’s bottom, closing his eyes, eagerly awaiting Maxi’s touch. He wasn’t embarrassed about being naked, or the thought of a practical stranger doing things like this. Excitement, sexual desire, curiosity, they were all peaked inside Theo’s little body. In short, he was ready.

Still, a burning wave of pleasure shot up his spine at Maxi’s first touch. It wasn’t even anything special, just her soft finger being placed on his cock. She didn’t rub, didn’t push, didn’t go in cute little circles. It was still enough to cause Theo’s hands to desperately grasp the fibers, his smile to widen, his cock to harden.

“Excited, are we?” Maxi said down, her voice lost somewhere between his ear and his sex-crazed brain. He  groaned in response, his tongue coming out of his mouth a moment later, licking his lips.

Maxi grinned down at her little Theo, spread eagle, naked, his tiny wee-wee hidden under her pale finger. She didn’t love humans most of the time, but when they were like this, tiny, helpless, completely in her control, she thought they were adorable. She just wanted to take a bite out of his little belly. She started rubbing.

Theo’s hands dug into the fibers as the giant started her message, working at Theo’s groin slowly, teasingly, rolling his erection between her finger and his warm crotch. Already the sensation of cold was only a distant memory, Theo’s little body pulsing with heat of arousal, his cheeks flushing red, his breath steamy, his heart rushing. Even now, only moments after her first touch, Theo could feel himself on the verge of climax.

He tried to hold it in, knowing that this ecstasy would end the moment he finished. He didn’t want it to stop. He hated the very idea, could despise nothing more than having this moment slip from his grasp. But, his body was betraying him, pulses of pleasure gripping him, physically moving him. He could feel his pleasure like he could never before, each slight roll tearing his brain apart, shoving chemicals between the severed halves, then forcing it back together in an explosion of pure physiological bliss.

His heart beat, blood pushed through his veins. His smile was wide, exposing the glistening whites of his teeth in a grin that was almost savage. His breathing was fast and quick, like an animals. His eyes filled with a fire as they opened and found Maxi’s.

So, you're that type of human, eh? Maxi’s grin grew wider as the situation dawned on her. She didn’t need to be gentle with someone like him. She stopped her teasing, pushing down on his cock, her finger mashing against his burning hot skin. She leaned in, increasing the pressure beyond what most people in Theo’s condition would consider pleasurable, even beyond what most would be able to even endure.

In response, Theo yelled. Not a scream of pain, not even one of pleasure. Just a pure, animalistic shout as he reached climax, as chemicals poured into his brain, altering his wiring, sending signals at a rate beyond what his human mind should have been able to do, as his body writhed, as his fingers gripped harder, as that fire in his eyes burned, as his heart violently forced his burning blood through the shell that constricted his body.

Maxi pulled her finger away, cum dripping from the tip, some thick strands forming a bridge between Theo’s tiny body and her hand. As she pulled farther away some drops fell onto the chair, staining it a sick white, and the bridges stretched, eventually snapping.

“Damn Theo,” Maxi said, resting her head on her arms once again. She too was breathing heavy, a feat that few humans could claim ownership to. “You might be more interesting than I thought.”

Theo sat at the edge of the computer desk, his legs dangling over the side, his body nude and exposed. Though, for some reason, he didn’t care. He didn’t mind being naked, barely even gave a thought to the fact that Maxi could see every inch of him. Perhaps he felt closer to the now titanic girl, maybe it was the shrinking. Whatever the cause, he felt free.

For perhaps the first time, he was able to look around the small room and take in the scenery. Now Maxi’s small torture dungeon looked like a normal basement, with a couple alienish things scattered about. The floors were normal concrete, the ceiling overhead consisted solely of crisscrossed wood beams. The walls were bare, a gray that might have once been white. A desk sat on the other side of the room, looking normal and unthreatening, a couple of books stacked on top. There were the chairs they had been sitting in, the massive computer, a small window, the odd glowing orbs, and an overhead light.

But, the interesting things were what lined the few book cases Maxi kept against the walls. There were three in total, each colored a dark grey, almost black, and filled to capacity with odd tools and supplies. He recognized almost nothing, and was almost glad to. If they were anything like the rest of Maxi’s tools they would undoubtedly be the stuff of nightmares.

The giant herself was sitting in her chair, leaning back, her boots resting on the computer desk only a few inches away from her tiny captive. Her attention was devoted to that odd glowing sheet, her eyes darting across the lines of text - though in some unknown language - and her fingers occasionally clicking on something.

Theo had been tempted to slide over those few inches and snuggle up with Maxi’s gargantuan boots, but had so far decided against it. He couldn’t imagine she would be happy about it. That, and he wasn’t too confident he could survive a sudden movement, especially if it resulted in her boot landing on him. Two inches really isn’t that big.

Still, her boots were so attractive at his height. Some parts glistening black, others a dark matte. Her soles were thick and powerful, completely capable of crushing him to a pulp, and covered in mud and dirt. Then there were the tiny metal parts attached, the lace buckles, the tiny circles for decoration, the zipper, all shone brilliantly in their chrome details.

“So,” he ventured, the temptation growing. “What are we doing next?”

“Not sure,” Maxi answered, without looking at him. “I’m still reading through this. Giantess stuff isn’t super common, so I don’t know it that well.”

“So, you do this type of thing often then? The sexual studies?”

“Kinda. Whenever we don’t have anything to do they send us to do them. Don’t ask why, ‘cause I don’t know.”

Theo nodded, though it wasn’t like she could see. “Who is, ‘we’ anyway?”

Maxi sighed. “You know, my captives aren't usually this talkative.”

“Want me to shut up?”

“Not really. I don’t have anything better to do. I’m a member of an intergalactic species that often acts as a military or police force. We go around to different planets and put things back in order when they get fucked up.”

“Like the U.N.?”

Maxi shrugged. “I guess. We don’t fuck around though.” She turned to Theo, giving him that mocking smirk she used so well. “You ever see a fleet of ours, your planet is in for some shit.”

“Damn. How bad we talking?”

“If we go to war, that planet either gets demolished, or most forms of life go extinct. Like I said, we don’t fuck around.”

“So why are you on Earth then?”

“One of our lesser known duties is to help develop and protect fledgling worlds, like yours. My job was simply to gather information, make sure you're still on track and not doing anything stupid.”

“Oh. And you were doing that by studying punk culture? That really that important?”

“Not a fucking bit. But my boss, you’ve seen him, tentacle head, likes to have thorough records of everything. I’m just glad I didn’t get stuck on fungus duty again. You know how much fun it is to be a mushroom? Not fucking very.”

“You were a mushroom?”

“Theo, did you think I was born looking like this?”

“Guess I never really thought about it. Things went kinda fast.”

“Well, I wasn’t. We got a bunch of nifty tools to change how we look, act, think.”

“Cool. So were you originally a squid thingy too?”

“Hell no. I’ve never had tentacles, and never plan to.”

“So what then?”

Maxi shrugged again. “Not really important. Beside, I just found out what we got to do next.”

“What?”

“You’ll like this.” She sighed. “Pervert.”

“What?”

Maxi moved, swinging her boots off of the table, the thick soles smacking against the concrete. Her hands lowered to the metallic clasps, moving expertly, loosening them. Theo looked on eagerly, his heart fluttering with expectation. To think that he had been scared about being so small. He really was an idiot sometimes.

The girl placed her hands on the lip of her boot, pulling at the dark fabric, her arms straightening with the effort. Then, in a sudden burst of movement, her foot shot out from the boot. “Got it,” Maxi said, tossing her shoe to the side carelessly, crossing the newly freed appendage over one knee. Her sock was a simple red, tiny black polka dots covering its soft exterior. Theo couldn’t help but feel a rush at the sight.

Maxi caught his eye, knew the look. “Excited?” she asked teasingly.

“A bit,” Theo admitted.

“Good.” Maxi’s fingers lowered to her foot, working lightly at her sole, pressing into the soft flesh. “Don’t worry, this next part isn’t anything bad. Just a bit of a warm up.”

“Warm up for what?” Theo asked, momentarily forcing his mind away from the gorgeous sight of a giant massaging her massive foot.

“You’ll see,” she answered with a smile. Her fingers slid up her ankle, eventually hooking under the elastic that held it in place. “Want to see it without that sock?” Theo nodded. “I knew you would. Perv.” She dragged down, pulling the sock away. When it was off, when her bare foot was exposed, Theo could barely contain his excitement.

It was everything he dreamed it would be. Well shaped, pale, soft looking, toenails unpainted, but still pretty. For a moment, he could think of nothing else then having it cover him completely, having his tiny body mashed up against the soft flesh, feeling every inch of the beautiful creation. Then he noticed he was drooling.

“Oh, sorry,” Theo said, turning away, wiping away the spit. He cheeks were a bright crimson then.

“It's fine. Being small fucks with your biology a lot. Chemical imbalance and shit.”

“Ah.” Theo looked back, consciously trying to keep his vision on her eyes. He wanted so much for them to drop lower.

“Yeah.” Maxi placed her hand onto her foot again, started rubbing. Her fingers slid between her toes, her palm glided over her sole. “So, what are you thinking about?”

“Nothing,” he answered, his vision already drifting.

“Nothing?” Her thumb pressed into the thick skin below her toes, her flesh pushing in, forming great valleys. Theo crossed his legs, knowing what was happening between them. It seemed he had no lack of sex-drive when he was this tiny.

“Not really.”

“Too bad.” Maxi started wiggling her toes. “You know, those boots are cute as hell, but they're so tight, you know?”

“Yeah,” Theo answered mechanically. He was barely hearing what she was saying.

“I mean, my feet get all sweaty, and gross. Just have to let them breath once in a while, right?”

“Yep.”

“Honestly, I should probably take a shower or something. Eh, it can wait, right?” Theo nodded. “Besides, you like gross stuff, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Knew you were a perv.”

Theo snapped out of his daze. “Wait, what?”

Maxi leaned back, groaning loudly as her back snapped. “You want a lick?”

“A… a lick?” Theo could barely control his heart. “I guess a lick wouldn’t be bad.”

“Knew you’d say that. Perv.” Maxi brought her foot up, placing it on the computer desk, a few inches away from her captives tiny form. She wiggled her toes for effect. “Tell me if it gets too intense or something.”

“Sure.” The tiny boy wasted no time sliding over to Maxi’s foot. He placed a hand tenderly on the soft flesh, a tiny shiver running through his body. Slowly, lightly, he started rubbing the thick sole, enjoying every second, wanting to go further, but still feeling awkward about the situation. He glanced at Maxi again. She rolled her eyes, then nodded. He leaned in closer.

His first lick was a light one, his tongue barely making contact with her flesh. Still, the sensation was overpowering. A desire coursed through Theo’s tiny body that was stronger than any he had experienced in life before. When he was alone, normal sized, before all of this happened, something like this had only been a distant fantasy. To see the impossible come true, to have his greatest desires right in front of him, was an experience that had no equal.

His second lick was longer, more force put behind it. Her skin tasted salty, a bit of sweat dancing across his taste buds. He had imagined the taste as intense, borderline disgusting, something that would cause him to gag. The reality was much lighter. Theo smiled, placing his hands onto her sole, pressing into the thick bulges that formed the sole of her foot.

“You really like that, don’t you?” Maxi soon said after a few more deep licks. Theo peeled his tongue away from her sole long enough to give a smile and nod. “What is it you like anyway? I mean, it's a foot.”

Theo let his forehead sink into her sole, giving thought to the question. He took a deep breath, inhaling her scent, smiling again, then spoke. “I don’t really know, honestly. It's just… I guess it’s the curves, maybe?”

“The curves?”

“No, not really.” He tried to think, put his desires into words. Whenever he looked at Maxi’s foot, he saw something beautiful, something adorable and sexy. He loved her toes, the way they balled up towards the tips. He loved the thick folds in her skin, loved how hard the flesh was at her heel, loved the almost microscopic ridges that made up her skin. But, perhaps more than that, he loved the size. “I think it might be a power thing,” he answered, moving forward so that he could lean against her foot and still see her.

“Power?”

“Yeah. I mean think about it. If you just move your foot over a tiny bit, I’m squished. You grab me in your toes and squeeze, I pop. There are infinite ways you could kill me, and most would require almost no effort on your part. You don’t think that’s kind of hot?”

Maxi shrugged. “I’ve never really been that into power relationships. I get it, I guess, but I’m not a dominatrix or anything.”

Theo smirked. “Ever tried?”

Maxi didn’t look happy. “No, and I don’t need to.”

“Sure.”

“I don’t.”

“I’m just saying, a lot of people don’t know what they like until they try.”

“Theo, you're an idiot. Get back to rubbing.”

The boy grinned. “And you say you’re not into domination.”

“Ugh,” Maxi groaned, leaning back, rolling her eyes. “Fucking idiot.”

Theo continued to rub against the great soft skin, smiling warmly. He was calm now, that animalistic craze gone out of him, replaced by the simple serenity that came with being so close to Maxi. Lightly his fingers slid over her smooth skin, back and forth, back and forth.

The giant herself had returned to the device at her wrist, browsing through what Theo could only assume was an alien equivalent to a computer. She would look at him from time to time, their eyes would catch, and she would smile playfully. Perhaps she was actually enjoying this lull in action.

A few times Theo managed to run his fingers over a particularly sensitive area of skin, resulting in a slight giggle from his giant captor. At first he had continued to work at that spot, enjoying the fact that Maxi could barely control her ticklish nature. She had eventually looked at him, on the verge of laughter, and told him, “Stop that, or you're going to be a bloody spot on the ground.” Theo had shrugged, then moved on.

“So,” Theo started, peeking out from between the giant’s toes. He wasn’t sure how much time he had spent at her feet, how long he had petted, stroked, and caressed her lovely skin. “What are you doing?”

“Nothing much. Reading stuff.”
                “Like what?”

Maxi looked up from her screen. “Alien stuff. Why?”

“I don’t know. Curious.”

“So you finally realized there is more to life than my foot?”

Theo shrugged. “I guess.”

“Or are you just getting bored?”

“How could I possibly be bored?”

“You want to do something else?” There was a hint of playfulness in her voice, one that Theo loved to hear.

“Like what?”

Maxi smiled. “How about I place you on the ground, then stomp on you.”

“Like, for real?” Theo pictured it in his head. His penis and brain seemed to have different opinions of his body smashed to a pulp.

“Sure. I don’t mind, it's not like clean up would be that big of an issue.”

“Well…” he didn’t want to say no, but there was no way he was saying yes.

“Well what? You scarred?”

“No, its just… actually yeah. I don’t really want to die.”

Maxi rolled her eyes. “Pussy.”

“Sorry.”

“Whatever. I’m still in a mood to kill shit though. What if you just watched me flatten something. What do you think of that?”

Now that was an idea. Theo could see Maxi step on something, watch her completely smush some poor object into nonexistence, and he wouldn’t even be hurt. “Sure. Got anything with you?”

the giant smiled. “Oh, I got some stuff. Get off my foot.”

“Fine.” Theo pushed himself out from between Maxi’s toes. As he looked down, he found his body considerably dirtier than it had been before. Not to mention the strong aroma of sweat. But, somehow, he doubted Maxi would mind.

The giant returned her foot to the ground, bent over, opened a drawer, took something out, shut it. Theo couldn’t recognize what the object was. Another piece of alien technology, without a doubt, he just didn’t know what it would do. He was eager to find out though.

“Wait here.” Maxi moved across the room, her one foot, still covered in a boot, causing slight booms with every step. Her other foot, completely bare, didn’t make a sound as it landed on the floor. She reached into one of the bookcases, fumbling through the boxes of mystery objects, eventually pulling out a jar. She glanced quickly at Theo, then turned so that the jar’s contents were hidden behind her body.

Theo couldn’t do much but wait. Wait, and wonder at the mysteries, for there were many. He still didn’t understand much of the situation, how it was possible, how it would end, but at least he was enjoying it.

There was a blue light flash from across the room, then Maxi returned the jar to its place. Her boot thudded as she returned to her little captive, something small resting in the palm of her hand. “What's that?” Theo asked, pointing to the object. “Something squishy?”

Maxi smiled. “It will be soon.” She held up the tiny thing, clutching it between her forefinger and thumb. A simple snail, its shell a deep, speckled brown, it's green, slimy body wiggling furiously in an attempt to escape the giant’s grasp. The prey, captured by the apex predator. “What do you think?”

“I think It’ll work,” Theo answered. “It's not like it can run away.”

“Oh, so you’re into the idea of me killing something?”

“When did I say I wasn’t?”

“No, it's not that. Just the psychology of humans. Its… interesting.”

Theo raised an eyebrow. He was determined not to stray from the current path, but he couldn’t resist the urge to ask the obvious question. “Interesting?”

“Nothing. Don’t worry about it.” She held out her free hand, palm up. Theo climbed onto it, tripping slightly at the uneven landscape, soon coming to a rest in the center. Her hand was soft against his bare skin, covered in grime as it was.

It took only a quick bend for Theo to be placed on the ground. Soon the snail joined him, only a couple of paces away. Theo couldn’t help but smile; it was so pathetic. Small, weak, fragile, and completely at the mercy of a giant girl. It didn’t know what was going on, had no idea that its life was about to be ended, and no power to stop it. Maxi placed her feet on either side of the tiny bug, her boot looking menacing, deadly, her bare foot looking delicate, yet powerful. All it would take was a simple movement, a simple step, and her body weight would take care of the rest. Even so, Theo doubted it would be over so quickly.

“Ah, look at the little guy,” Maxi said lightly, moving her bare foot closer to the snail teasingly. “It looks so small.”

“Totally,” Theo answered, craning his neck to look at the giant, standing thousands of times his height. This was the first time he had seen her from the ground, the first time he was truly realized how small he was. To Maxi, he was barely bigger than the snail she now tormented. A little speck for her to walk on without a second thought. A small organism whose existence couldn’t possibly matter when compared to her thousand foot form. At least she wasn’t torturing him, unlike the snail. “What are you going to do?”

“Oh, I don’t know.” Maxi’s foot just touched the slimy back of the creature, her toe pressing slightly into its body. Instantly it retreated into its shell, sensing danger. Like that fragile thing could really protect it. “I’m thinking I’ll just play with it for a bit.” Her foot lifted, a shadow flying across the ground, covering Theo for a brief second before it retreated back to her prey. The thick balls of her foot came down on the snail’s shell, lightly pressing it. “Theo, you got a good view down there?”

“Definitely,” the small watcher answered. He could see everything from where he was. He saw the snail, retreated inside its shell, saw the chubby folds of Maxi’s sole bending gently around the curves of its back. Her toes wiggled slightly, coming down in front of the poor creature sometimes, almost forming a jail cell. Theo liked that thought. The snail was trapped, truly.

“Well, what's it doing?”

“Nothing much. It retreated back into its shell.”

“Aw. Thats too bad. Maybe I can get him out though.” She started moving her foot in a tight circle, the mollusk rolling along with it. Theo’s excitement was peaked as he watched, loving every moment, already fully erect at the sight. He couldn’t stop thinking about the bug, wondering what its thoughts where as it was rolled about by Maxi’s foot, almost wishing that he was in the same position.

“It come out yet?”

“Nope. Still stuck deep inside.”

“Hm… I think we might just have to crack the shell.”

Theo grinned broadly. “I think we’ll have to.”

“Hear that bug?” Maxi called down, targeting the snail for her verbal torment. “Better come out now, or I’m going to crush you to mush.” She stopped moving her foot, instead allowing her meaty sole to lay on the shell as it had been before. “Your shell broken into a thousand pieces, your tiny body popping under the pressure, a thick puddle of slime the only trace left of your existence. And once I’m done, I can even wipe that off of my foot.”

Theo sat down, grinning broadly, his eyes locked on the giant’s foot, his penis rock hard. He was picturing her words so vividly, wanted them to become reality.

“Is it out of its shell?” Maxi asked.

“Nope,” Theo answered gleefully. “I think it needs to be dealt with.”

“I think so.” Maxi shifted her foot, her heel moving to rest on the tiny snail. She pressed lightly, her skin contorting a small bit under the pressure. The snail’s body must have been on the verge of breaking. “Come on snail, I know you don’t want to die this easily. Just come out, and I’ll let you live for a bit longer. You can be my little foot slave until I get bored. Either that, or I press down.”

Theo was giddy with anticipation, his eyes flashing between the poor little snail on the verge of being crushed and Maxi’s cruel, yet adorable, face. Theo had never seen Maxi as she was now. Cruel, dominating, powerful. Truly enjoying what she was doing. It was a good look for her.

“Five,” she said down. Theo’s vision locked on the insect. “Four, three, two… one…” Her grin widened as she started to press slightly more, the shell showing the faintest sign of cracking. Perhaps it was the pressure, perhaps it was the torment. Whatever the reason, the snail emerged from its defenses.

Theo was torn then. He wanted to shout at Maxi to stop, to watch what she did next with her little, apparently compliant, victim. But he could think of few things sexyer than watching her sole crash down on its body, smushing it into paste. His cock was burning, eager for completion. But, there would always be time for that later. “Maxi, stop!”

“What?”

“It came out.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

Maxi took her foot away, letting it descend onto the concrete a few inches away, staring down at the thing’s wiggling body below. “Well look at that. Apparently this little guy isn't a complete moron. Still, if it wants to live, it needs to work.”

“Work?” Theo asked up, his heart thumping in anticipation.
                Maxi nodded, then brought her bare sole over to the creature once again. “Listen up snail, as you might have noticed my foot is rather sweaty and disgusting. Dirty, gross, and grimy. You're going to help with that.” She lightly kicked the snail, spinning it until it was facing her. She then lowered her foot so that it was directly in front of the bug, her toes spread a bit. “Get in there and lick, or whatever it is you snails do.”

Theo almost laughed. It was a wonder the snail decided to come out when it did. Surely it wouldn’t actually lick her foot though. It was just a bug after all, right? And what would she do with it when it didn’t? Stomp on it, surely.

But, to Theo’s amazement, the bug started to crawl forward. Then it went between her toes, its shell spreading them a bit more as it pushed in. He couldn’t tell, but it almost looked like it was… he quickly got up, rushing forward to see.

His jaw dropped when he saw. The snail’s body was outstretched, the hole that could only be called its mouth pressed against Maxi’s skin, dipping deep. “Holly shit!” Theo shouted, his smile widening further on his features. “It's actually sucking!”

“Had a feeling it would,” Maxi answered shifting her other foot back a bit so she could have a better view of her little foot slave. “The little guy isn’t bad. It just better be sure to slurp up all the gunk that's down there.”

“But, how?” Theo couldn’t take his eyes away from the sight of the tiny mollusk sucking at the dirt and grime between a giant’s toes.

Maxi shrugged. “You can make most things do what you want, as long as you have the motivation.”

“Really?” Theo asked, amazed.

“Yep. For example, I can make you suck my toes too.”

Theo lifted an eyebrow. “How?”

“The same thing I did with our little friend there. Threaten to step on you.”

“I guess that would work.” Theo turned back to the snail, enjoying the sight.

“Theo.”
                “Yeah?”

“Start sucking my toes.”

The boy turned back to her. “What? I’m watching the snail though.”

“Theo, start sucking.”

“But…”

“Do it, or I’ll crush you.” Theo stood still for a moment, unable to tell if the girl was joking. Her glare didn’t help. “Better hurry up little boy. You’re squishy body isn’t even as strong as the snails.

“Well, ugh… alright.” Theo moved closer to Maxi’s toes. He couldn’t deny that her toes were adorably sexy, that he wanted to shove his tongue against her rough skin and drag it over the entire thing, but it was the way she gave the order. So savage, without any mercy. So… dominating. He grinned as he knelt down next to her big toe, his tongue slithering out of his mouth. And she claimed she wasn’t into that type of thing. Ha.

Maxi smiled down as she watched her little bug and her tiny boy kiss her feet, slurping up all the gross things that were glued to her sole, working deep between her toes. Even she had to admit, for such feeble lifeforms, they knew how to make a girl feel powerful. Maybe she would keep them around for a while. Well, at least Theo.

Maxi’s toes tasted delicious. Well, it wasn’t really the taste that Theo loved so much. The salty, slightly dirty sensation that danced across his taste buds wasn’t something that filled him with joy. It was simple fact of what he was licking. That he had such an opportunity to lick such a powerful persons feet, that he could see his fantasies turned into reality. It was perfect.

As he continued to suckle on her big toe Theo started to wonder what his future was going to be like. Would she let him come back every now and again? She seemed to like him at her feet. Maybe this could be a regular thing that they did. A little secret that they had between them. Or, maybe she would take him with her when she went back to wherever she came from. Theo wouldn't mind that. Sure, it would be sad for a little, but the idea of such things was something that filled him with a special little giddy feeling he had rarely ever felt before.

Another lick, then a deafening boom drove its way into his ears, past his skull, and into his brain, shaking it violently. His vision was ripped into a thousand bright shards, the floor spinning around him, the ceiling rotating as well. Then he felt his back hit something hard. Something cold. He looked to his right. The world was dark and hazy. Maxi was lying a few feet away, a pained look on her face, her shirt torn and burnt. The world was growing darker. His ears only registered a horrible ringing. He saw boots step between him and Maxi. His world went dark.

 His ears were ringing. His head felt like it had been split in half, his exposed brain then attacked mercilessly with claws and teeth. Even now he still felt a great throbbing pain that came in steady beats. Thud, thud thud, he cringed every time.

His vision wasn’t much better. Fog made up the great part of his world, insanity took over what remained. He could see things spilled over the floor. Broken things. Things that shouldn’t be on the ground. He saw a pencil only a few feet away. A massive pencil, colored a bright yellow, it's pink eraser barely even rubbed down. His only thought, that should really be on a desk…

A scream brought his senses back to reality. He sat upright quickly, his muscles struggling to act. “Maxi!” he screamed before he knew better.

The girl was at the other side of the room, on her knees, struggling against two dark figures that Theo could not recognize, nor make out any features. Their clothes were dark, black, only they didn’t flow like they should have. It was like watching smoke cling to a person’s body, wrapping around it, yet not truly tethered. It didn’t make sense. Nothing made sense.

The rest of the room was a mess, two of the bookcases cracked and on the ground, their contents spilled all over. Maxi’s boxes had been overturned, tiny baubles of gold, silver and chrome spilling out in every direction, flowing under and around the bigger pieces of debris. Glass jars had smashed coating the bare parts of the ground with sharp shards.

He could hear other sounds. Screams, cries… but not that of Maxi. “Maxi!” he called again, his attention returning to her. One of the figures hit her, the girl’s cheek opening up, blood flowing from the wound. They said something he couldn’t make out, she spit in the person’s face, he hit her again, harder. Theo wanted to puke.

A boot landed only a few paces to his side, the thick sole creating a shockwave as it landed, forcing Theo back to the floor. The boy quickly rolled, looking up at the third thing, catching only the slightest glance at its face. It looked pale.

The third person walked the last few steps to Maxi’s computer, its fingers working quickly at the keyboard. At the other side of the room, the two were taking turns screaming at Maxi. She looked in pain. No, that wasn’t right. Her fists were balled, her jaw clenched. She was angry.

“Hey,” the third figure shouted.

“What? Find something?”

“Yeah. Lizard girl was doing some research.”

Maxi tried to struggle free from their grasp. She didn’t get far before she was pushed back down. “Fuck you!” she still managed to scream.

“The fuck did you find?” the second called.

“She has an alpha.” The only sound was the endless ringing.

“No,” the first said, turning back to Maxi. “There’s no way a low class grunt got her hands on an alpha. Re-read it, T’leigh.”

Theo didn’t know what type of a name that was, and he didn’t care. Things were clearly not going the way they were supposed to, and in his state that was a very bad thing. A two inch freshman wouldn’t be able to do anything if they found him.

For a moment he considered Maxi, knew that he should help, but knew that he couldn’t. His best chance for survival would be to hide. Hide and pray that nothing further happened. Pray that they wouldn’t do anything more to Maxi.

Even as he told himself that it was his only option, as he rationalized the situation, he couldn’t help his stomach from churning. What a hero, rushing for cover when someone needed help. Well, this world wasn’t made for heros. That was just a fairytale.

“It says an alpha. Even has a couple measurements.”

“Wait, a couple? She wasn’t done with it?” The third figure shook its head in answer. “So she still had it.” Theo didn’t like the pleasure in its voice. It turned back to Maxi. “Listen, we both know how this is going to end up. We find what we are looking for, then we leave. The only variable is how much of a cunt you plan to be. Tell us where the alpha is and I won’t hit you anymore.”

Theo wanted her to tell them. He wanted nothing more than to hear Maxi open her mouth and tell them everything they wanted to know, to have her out of harm's way. “Please,” he whispered silently, crawling under something chrome, one end broken off in thousands of sharp edges. “Please.”

“Fucking die.” Theo cringed at the sound of a slap.

“Fine. You want to be a bitch, be a bitch.” The first figure had lost any hint of kindness in his tone. “At least stay still so I don’t have to kill you.” Theo didn’t hear any complaints. “You two, start searching.”

“Fine,” he heard one answer.

“Whatever,” the second said.

He didn’t have any more time. Theo hastily searched for a place to hide, one where he would be concealed from whoever these giants were, and from whatever they were searching for. The only thing he saw was a glass bottle, shards that once made up its neck scattered all around. Not ideal, but the tinted glass would at least hide him.

His tiny legs took him to the bottle within a few steps. The ledge was sharp, jagged. He could only hope that his small size would somehow help. “Shit,” he whispered as he grabbed onto the ledge and started pulling. He felt the glass digging into his skin, though it had yet to split.

“Find anything?” he heard someone call. It sounded like the first one.

“Not shit,” one answered, followed by the loud sound of something metallic falling back to the floor. Theo pulled himself the last few inches, forcing his body into the narrow opening. He slid forward into the dark inside of the bottle, a burning sensation suddenly gnawing at his hand.

He hit his head when he fell, barely managed to stiffen a curse. He reached a hand to his neck, when he brought it back it was bloody. But, no, it was a cut on his palm. That was it, just a long, deep cut with crimson blood oozing out at a steady pace. It wasn’t his head. “Shit,” he whispered again, a tear forcing itself on his eye as he squeezed his hand into a fist.

It wasn’t the pain that did it. Perhaps the pressure of the situation had grown too much, maybe it was Maxi, maybe he just didn’t want to die like this. Maybe it was the head wound, maybe he was losing more blood than he thought. Maybe he was going to die. He couldn’t think right, couldn’t understand what was going on. This didn’t make sense.

“Find anything?” he heard from outside.

“No,” was the answer. Theo moved a bit closer to the jagged end of the bottle, peeking his head into the light so he could see. The figures were still searching, one was rather close. Theo gulped, for his mouth was terribly dry. At that moment, he wanted nothing more than to be back home, in his own bed, at his own size, drinking a cold soda.

The figure turned around, seemed to take a few steps away. Maybe they weren’t going to find him. Maybe it was going to be alright. Then he heard a sound somewhere close by. What was it? High pitched, like a cracking. Like a glass breaking. Like someone stepping on a shard… and was that panting?

Theo gulped again, moving back into the shadows of the bottle, his heart thumping so fiercely he thought they might hear it. He wanted it to just stop. But what was that panting? Was it the alpha they were looking for? What the hell was it anyway? Something alien. Something horrible. He didn’t want to meet the alpha. He didn’t want-

Two hands appeared over the edge of the glass, one curling over the bloody spot Theo had so recently left. The figure pulled itself up, a horrified face coming into view first, then a bare chest. He didn’t look like Theo expected. He looked like a normal person. Brown hair, a young face. What was he doing here?

The kid paused when he saw Theo, his eyes opening wider than they had. “Hey, can-” he started to say.

“Ah, look what I found!” someone bellowed. Theo saw a shadow on the glass grow larger, heavy boots echoing off the ground, coming closer. He turned back to the kid, frantically trying to pull himself the last few feet up, his stomach sliding over the razored edge, gashes of blood already cutting across his otherwise smooth skin. Then something came down behind, a hand. It grabbed the boy by the legs. It started pulling up.

Theo could only cringe. Cringe and shake. Shake and watch as the boy desperately tried to hold onto the glass, as more blood spewed out, as he cries of, “Help!” echoed through the chamber like a wraith's howls. He just sat there, starring.

“Is this it?” T’leigh asked, holding the boy up to the others. He was upside down, still fighting against his captors even despite the fall that would await him if he managed to succeed.

“Shit. You, girl, is that the one we're looking for?” There wasn’t an answer. He hit Maxi again. “You fucking answer when I ask you something. Is that it?”

“Eat shit.”

Laughter. “You just have to be a cunt.”

“What should I do?” the other asked again, still holding the boy.

“Rip his legs off.” His tone was solid, without any emotion.

“But wouldn't that…”
“No, it won't. Well, not if he's the alpha.”  

“And if he isn’t?”

The figure gave an annoyed grunt. “If he isn’t then you can fuck his dead body for all I care. He isn’t worth anything. Now rip.”

Theo watched as the dark figure, the one with the kid, smiled. Instantly his stomach churned in a way he hadn’t known it could, everything he had eaten threatening to erupt from his mouth in a geyser of filth and disgust. He wanted to look away, knew that he should look away. The kid was screaming. Not even begging for help, just screaming, as the giant wrapped his fist around his upper half. Even though the boy was gone from sight, his screams lingered on.

Theo saw muscles tighten, saw the giant’s hands strein, then saw them violently pull apart. The screams stopped, replaced by the sickening sound of the kid’s organs slumping out of his body, dangling down from his waist, slipping to the ground far below.

“The results?” the first figure asked, seemingly without a care. Hell, he even seemed happy.

The other opened his hands, palm up, observing the carnage. The boy was in two halves, his legs and waste in one hand, his upper body in the other. Long, coiled ropes of organs glistened in the low light, blood continued to pool over his black gloves. “It doesn't look alive.”

The first shrugged. “Then it wasn’t what we were looking for. Toss it.”

“Fine.” He casually threw the body parts into the air. They hit the ground moments later, the sound of his body cracking when it hit the pavement enough to finally make Theo puke.