Stellar

Chapter Two

Anastasia woke slowly, her mind drifting between alert and asleep. Blue eyes cracked open, but she let them fall back, closing and allowing her to succumb to an almost sleep-like state. It was peaceful, and quiet, and everything she needed, because she didn't wake up expecting to be back in the space station. She knew better. Anastasia knew she was on some other planet, surrounded by aliens, and sleeping in the castle of the alien queen. She knew her shuttle crashed, lacking most details. She knew she had no contact with her crew. The worst possible circumstance as a pilot, happened, and she never thought it'd happen to her.

No one ever does, though. The worst case scenarios can never happen to yourself, but they do. No one is immune to nature's design or the circumstances given, and Ana thought she knew that. She thought she understood the way that the universe worked in all its random chaos, but she was clearly wrong. She had underestimated the impact of nature, and had royally screwed herself this time.

More sleep was futile for Ana. She simply laid there with her eyes closed, her mind blank, but still capable of keeping her awake. So, she stood up from her bed and began searching through the room. There was a closet she hadn't noticed upon arrival; too warn down to notice. Inside held extravagant gowns, ranging in colors and sparkle. They were magnificent, and Anastasia was in absolute awe. Pulling out a blue gown, she held it to her chest, examining the way the silver accents of it sparkled against her slightly olive skin and shoulder-length, chestnut hair. Marveling at its sleek design one last time, Anastasia continued to awe at every dress she pulled out.

Before long, there were no dresses left, and, while the wardrobe was astonishing, Ana knew she needed to do something more productive than look at dresses. While it probably did kill time, her mind was running and her curiosity peeked regarding the rest of the castle. Without further ado, Ana carefully pushed open the door leading to the hallway, noting the lack of knobs.

Weird, she thought, talk about lack of privacy.

She scanned the hallway left and right before stepping out, trying her best to avoid the traffic of any creature living in the place. Ana wasn't sure how she'd communicate, guessing that they all didn't speak or comprehend English like the Queen did.

And of course the queen would have a clue about the language Anastasia spoke: royalty always knew more than peasantry, especially when it came to education. Perhaps they spoke other languages too: French, Chinese, maybe German? Or maybe, Ana was simply holding onto too much hope. Perhaps she had imagined the communication she had with Queen Eris. Perhaps this was all a mistake. Perhaps she was going to be jumped, mauled, cut, thrown into a stew, and served in silver goblets and bowls of a range of styles.

Perhaps this new environment was making Ana's imagination flood in absurdity.

A man, or so she assumed, emerged in front of her, red in color, beautifully intricate horns decorating his skull, like that of a ram. He had a delicate white petticoat, navy vest underneath with a white collared shirt. Black pants covered his legs, but he remained barefooted, revealing the unusually raised skin on the tops of his feet. As he approached, Ana could see the grey designs tattooed on his skull, down the side of his face, and stopping at his neck. They resembled that of tribal designs mixed with mandala effects, dancing on his skin beautifully. His eyes were bright, green, and complementing with his skin.

He didn't speak, simply staring at Ana before turning around and beckoning her to follow with the wave of his hand. Nervous yet unreluctant, she followed, passing red-skinned and a few purple colored creatures. The red ones were dressed similarly; the guys matching the one leading Ana, and the girls in white slips with a navy ribbon wrapped around their waists. The purple skinned women were lavished in silk dresses of various colors, and the men, most with longer hair, wore black pants and colored, sleeved blouses. Ana was curious, wondering the meaning behind their skin tones, as it was obvious there was a class system set into place.