Theresa, with a small bag clamped under her arm, carefully clutched the doorknob and turned it with utmost care. She did not want to wake her husband while sneaking out of the house on such an inhuman hour in the morning. Theresa cursed softly when a loud metallic-like clack was heard, coming from the door-lock. In this early silence such trivial sound tolled through the house like a reverberating church bell. 

“Quite early for a stroll, don’t you think?”

Theresa leapt up, let the bag fall on the floor and spun on her heels to saw Maverick, her husband, leaning against the doorframe, looking at her with a smug below his narrow eyes. Theresa cursed herself.

“Don’t blame yourself, sweety. It was the vacant spot in bed that sold you out. 

“What are you up to anyway?” Maverick asked, as his eyes narrowed even more, becoming two thin lines.

Theresa sighed, but did not answer her husband. She picked the bag up and opened the door, ready to walk outside, until she suddenly felt a strong hand grasping her wrist.

“You’re going to feed that Stinesaa kid again, aren’t you?”

“Just… let me go.” Therese said, wrenching herself free from her husband’s grip.

“Curfew is still in effect at this time, Theresa. You're putting us all at risk. If the enforcers will find out…” Maverick’s words vanished in thin air, for his beloved wife was already merged into the darkness of the streets. 

“or worse… the Goddess.” Maverick spoke softly to himself. 

Theresa made her way through the town's square and took a second to observe the positively large statue, sculptured out of natural white marble, stationed in its center. It wore the resemblance of a slender young girl, looking proudly with her hands on her hips and a wide stance. 

Theresa's heart almost made a jump when she heard some incoherent words being mumbled, reverberating through the air. She heaved a sigh of relief when she saw that it was merely the Goddess talking in her sleep. A frequent habit of her. Theresa’s face churned in disgust when she saw the sight of a young blond girl, barely legal, turning around in her bed as the sheets were completely entangled with her slim naked legs. 

Theresa's throat made a gargling sound when she produced a loogie and spat one big green lump of spittle to drip from the statue's pedestal. She couldn't care less that an act like that could lead to the death penalty. 

No matter how much hate Theresa sends to this girl. The fact stood that her life, together with millions of others lay now in the hands of this college girl. 

+++ 

Bound by the wrists with shackles attached to the wall, Addison had only little space for finding a comfortable position to find sleep on her ragged mattress. Her attempts proved unsuccessful though. She repositioned herself for the umpteenth time and uttered some words of lamentation when this pose proved to be laborious painful too.
When she finally managed to find a somewhat comfortable position, on her back, as her mind stood on the verge of entering the state of relieved slumber, Addison cursed loudly when Lindsy’s sleep-mumble woke her up again. Then, the door to her shack opened with a long creak and a dark silhouetted head peeked around the corner. 

“Leave me be, you Caspivurian scum!” Addison shouted. 

“You’re not hungry?” A feminine voice called back. 

“I… what do you have?” Addison asked. 

“Just some dusty apples and a stale bagel for the ones with the appetite for it.” 

“Don’t you have anything better?!” Addison snapped back. 

“For your information, miss demanding. Its from our personal meager filled larder. My husband forbade me to give it to you. Yet still, here I am, risking not only my own life but-“ 

“Okay okay okay. I heard it, I heard it. Give it to me.” Addison said. A bag was thrown her way, scratching over the floor. Addison snatched it up, opened it, grabbed the bagel and started chewing on it like a starved alley cat. 

With her mouth still full, chewing, Addison looked at her good samaritan whose face was partly veiled in shadow still. A tiny stripe of light landing on one side of her head, revealed that this woman had black hair, mixed with gray roots. 

“I should be the one feeding you.” Addison said.

“well you're not.” The woman replied. “You're eating scraps. Just like the rest of us.” 

“Don’t talk to me like I’m your equal, because I’m not.” Addison said. 

“You're right about that, child. We're definitely not equals here. No one likes you. And beside my aid, no one is going to rush to your assistance when the need is there.” 

“Well, screw you and your aid! I don’t need your pity! Its only two more days till I get out of this dump. And when I do I will-“ 

“If… you get out of this dump.” The woman said. “The Goddess has never let anyone out of here. Rather he or she is a Caspivurian or not. 

“Yes, that’s right, child. We’re not all Caspivurian scum around here. I was once Lindsy’s history teacher. Until a bad grade from my side was the final straw that broke the camel's back and led to her failing to graduate.” She sighed. “I never expected such wrath from a good-mannered girl like her.”

“Wait, so you’re miss Packinmaker?” Addison arched her eyebrows. “Theresa Packinmaker?” 

Theresa nodded solemnly. 

“You were all over the news for months!” Addison said. “The feds are still looking for you as we speak.” 

Theresa snorted. “Well, their methods aren’t bearing any fruits now, are they? 

“Listen child, the Goddess is as cruel as a hag. Just keep in step with how things run around here and you will manage. You will hate it. You will be forced to do things which make you hate yourself even more. But you will live.” 

The chains rattled when Addison tried to stand up. “Look, I already told you, I don-“ 

Both Addison and Theresa focused their ears when some agitated voices were heard outside of the shack on the streets. 

“I have to leave.”Theresa said, hasting to usher herself towards to exit. Addison covered her ears when a piercing alarm started to blare all around them, coming from outside. 

“The fuck!” Addison screeched. 

“I have to go, child.” Theresa said. “Stay in line. I’ll be back.” Addison saw Lisa leaving through the door she came from. Not a minute later, two gruffly men in black military suits came in, untied her from the shackles and yanked her along, forcibly.
Taking step outside of the gloomy shack, Addison had to squint her eyes when a painfully bright light brutally invaded the layers of her retina. Way above her, Addison could see the artificial sun that was actually a table lamp, providing this sudden daylight. 

“Move along. To the square.” The soldier grunted, and prodded Addison to walk faster, giving her a harsh nudge from time to time. 

“I’m moving as fast as my short legs can you beefcaked imbecile!” Addison managed to spat in his face, before she was given another hard push which made her almost stumble. 

I’m soooo going to relish in my revenge upon all these critters when I grow back. Addison thought. 

Bending around a corner after exiting a narrow alley, the threesome were directed to a vast open square, adorned with scarlet-colored cobblestones. The square was packed with an innumerable amount of people, with even more pouring in from all the alleys and streets adjoining the plaza.
Addison saw more black soldiers ambling through the throngs, barfing them to their places, telling them to get on their knees.
Addison moved along with the flow when another soldier grabbed her by the arm and yanked her along. Various other soldiers pushed, shouted and slammed people aside, to create a path for Addison and her entourage to walk to the center of the square.
Addison noticed that all civilian people, men and women, young and old, were sitting on their knees in a praying stance. Addison almost had to puke when she heard them uttering words of reverence directed at the so-called Goddess, Lindsy.
Deep in the kneeling crowd, Addison could discern a woman walking that looked like Theresa. A sturdy man and two children, slightly younger than herself, accompanied her. Addison had a swift eye contact with her before Theresa and her family found a spot to kneel down and started praying. 

“Move it.” A soldier prodded Addison. 

“I am! Am I not?” Addison said.

She approached the center and saw a white statue, rising positively high. She had to crane her neck deeply to be able to see the face. She couldn’t resist a snigger when she saw that the statue wore the spitting image of Lindsy.
To her surprise, Addison saw that she was ushered towards a clearing in the middle of the crowd. She was commanded to take place in the midpoint of the clearing, right in front of the statue, and to kneel down in bowing reverence. Addison followed the first command and took her place in the middle, but refused to obey the second.
The whole situation was so queer, this scene, with these followers, soldiers, pompous statue and rough suppression, it was all so strikingly familiar to Addison.
The only difference was that she herself was now one of the shrunken people that was forced to worship instead of the one who was being worshiped. And she hated it.
Addison was used to being in control of things, was used to being able to shape fate for others. Her whims had always been law in their household, even before all the shrinking stuff happened. With her caring parents wrapped around her little finger and an army of servants crawling under her thumb, Addison made sure that her every whimsical wish received instant gratification.
Then, shrinking technology made its impactful entrance into the world and a room full of bruising cities, the size of a small country, found themselves under the cruel thrall of the fourteen-year-old brat.
Addison ruled with an iron fist and struck hard when she was forced to deal with insubordinate behavior. She loved every minute of it. It felt great to posses a hefty say in the family's household. It felt even greater to have absolute power over a civilization of real-life shrunken people. 

All the more disturbing it was to Addison to be shrunk down to a size almost impossible to be seen by the naked eye. Control was a wonderful thing, but only if you yourself was the one wielding it. 

“Kiss the dust!” A voice barfed in Addison’s ear. Not a moment later, Addison felt a stabbing pain when a truncheon whipped hard against her knee-pits, forcing her to fall on all fours. 

“Show your respect for the Goddess, girl!” A soldier looked down upon her. Addison gave a wailing squeal when he placed his boot on her back, pushing her body against the cold cobblestones. 

The indistinctive chatter all around her forthcoming from all the chanting and barfing of commands ceased instantly when a thundering giggle rolled over the city. Everyone seemed to hold his breath, with the soldiers also plunging down on their knees, kissing the stones. With the heavy boot now removed from her back, Addison was able to move more freely. She dared to take a peek at the sky and witnessed a spectacle of unmatched magnitude when a dark silhouette of monstrous proportion started to loom higher and higher over the city's rich skyline. 

Addison's eyes became as wide as they could stretch, as her brain ceased to give command to her lungs to pump oxygen through her body. Lindsy's celestial huge figure kept rising. Her gleeful face richly adorned with blond tousled morning hairdo soared higher and made place for her ample filled bosom, displaying themselves in their white naked gloriousness. Addison was able to see things more in perspective now and was astonished to see that even the largest skyscraper could easily be knocked over by just Lindsy's nipple now, if that was her wish. 

Addison felt deep envy nagging within the inside of her stomach when she saw what phenomenal power Lindsy had over them all. 

“Quite impressive ain't it, Addi?” Lindsy's voice boomed from the heavens. With her hands clenched into fists, Addison sank her nails into her skin when she heard Lindsy addressing her by the moniker she loathed so much. 

“As you can see, I have properly trained my subjects into showing respect upon my arrival, how is that for a style?” 

Addison snorted. My subjects don't need a siren to be informed of my arrival. She thought. Valuable hard lessons have learned them to anticipate it. You're not worthy of being a Goddess.