Captives

In a completely dark space, the mech pilot slowly awoke from unconsciousness. His memories still lingered on the moment he had swung his weapon, only to be suddenly swallowed whole by a gaping maw that had lunged out from within the enemy warship.

He opened his eyes, yet felt as though he had not, because everything around him was utterly black. There was not the slightest trace of light. If not for the sensations from his body, he might not even have realized that he had performed the physical act of opening his eyes.

He tried to move, only to discover that something had tightly restrained him. He could not move.

Suddenly, a blinding beam shone upon the mech pilot. The sharp-witted pilot immediately closed his eyes, pretending that he was still unconscious.

However, his act was futile.

"If you're awake, don't pretend to be asleep."

The voice spoke the Commonwealth's universal language. The mech pilot understood it, but he had no intention of "waking up."

Before long, though, he had no choice but to wake up. A sharp pain erupted in his abdomen, swiftly spreading through his entire body. Panicking, the mech pilot lowered his head to look. Under the light from an unknown source, a tiny spike was embedded in his abdomen. That was the source of the agony.

Pain came from bioelectric signals transmitted to the brain after bodily damage. Artificially generating and amplifying such bioelectric signals posed no difficulty at all for the Collectors. If the Collectors wished it, they could make someone literally die of pain.

"If you don't want to die, I suggest you stop entertaining any thoughts of escape. You aren't the first to wake up."

The mech pilot, who had just been about to connect to the Spirit Realm and teleport away,