The cosmos universe

Tokki lived in Cherryville, a small town with houses, hotels, and skyscrapers reaching

toward the clouds. She was small and frail for her age, with dark hair and curious eyes, but she

was sharp as a tack. When her mom, who worked for NASA, told her she had been chosen for a

special space program, Tokki could barely believe it. Her mom hugged her tightly, trying to hide

how worried she was. She knew Tokki was fragile, and letting her go felt like sending a piece of

her heart away.

When Tokki walked into the waiting room, four kids were already there. Hana gave

Tokki a nervous smile, which made her feel a little less awkward. Moka stayed quiet, twisting

her sleeve between her fingers. Beck leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, looking way

too confident for someone who was also nervous. Hanull sat by himself, watching the room like

he was trying to figure everyone out. Tokki wondered what she had gotten herself into. Then

they were called toward the spaceship.

The ship was a giant metal beast, its lights shining like tiny stars. Its doors opened as if

welcoming them inside, and the machines hummed around them. Jewel helped everyone get

settled, while Rhonda stood behind her, watching the kids without saying a word. Tokki couldn't

shake the feeling that something was off.

Tokki tried to ignore the uneasy feeling in her stomach as she followed everyone into the

main room. The room was wide and silver, with glowing screens along the walls and soft blue

lights above them. The air was cold, and the steady hum of the spaceship sounded almost like a

quiet heartbeat. Jewel stepped in front of the children with a tablet in her hands. Rhonda stood behind her, completely still. Her pale face showed no emotion, and her eyes slowly moved from

one child to the next. Tokki caught her staring and quickly looked away.

“Before we go any farther, there are five rules,” Jewel said. Her voice was calm, but

Tokki could hear something serious underneath it. “First, you must wear your ActiWatch at all

times. Second, never enter a room with a red light above the door. Third, never touch equipment

you haven't been told to use. Fourth, if you hear an alarm, stay where you are and wait for

instructions. And fifth...” Jewel paused. The lights flickered. “Be in your room by nine.” The

room went silent. Even the machines seemed to stop humming for a second. “Why?” Hana

asked. Jewel smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. “Because those are the rules.”

Tokki glanced at Rhonda. Rhonda was still watching her. Then she slowly tilted her head, and

Tokki felt a chill crawl down her back. She couldn't explain it, but she suddenly wished she were

back home. That night, Tokki lay awake, staring at the ceiling as the spaceship hummed around

her. Her thoughts raced like a hamster on a wheel. At 9:47, she finally got up to use the

bathroom. The hallway stretched ahead like a tunnel with no end. Silver walls stood on both

sides, lined with numbered metal doors. Thin blue lights glowed along the floor, while pipes and

wires twisted across the ceiling like metal vines.

The cold air raised goosebumps on Tokki's arms. Her footsteps echoed through the empty hall.

Tap... tap... tap. Tokki froze. The sound tiptoed through the darkness behind her. “Probably the

pipes,” she whispered. She stepped forward. SQUISH. Green slime spread across her shoe.

“Seriously?” She wiped it against the floor and kept walking. The tapping followed. Tap... tap... tap. Tokki

spun around. Nothing. She turned back and bumped into someone. “Beck?” “No.” Hanull

switched on his ActiWatch. A bright beam sliced through the darkness. Tokki jumped, then saw

Rhonda standing at the end of the hallway. She was as still as a statue, her eyes fixed on them.

Then the ship shook. BOOM! The sound punched through the hallway, and the walls groaned in

protest. Red lights flashed overhead. BOOM! The second blast made the floor tremble beneath

Tokki's shoes.

The next morning, everyone questioned Jewel, but she dodged every question about the slime,

alarms, and creature outside. That night, all five kids secretly followed the green trail to the door

glowing red. Tokki pushed it open. Her stomach dropped. A small alien sat strapped to a metal

chair. Its blue-gray skin shimmered beneath the lights, and its four thin arms trembled against the

restraints.

Its huge glowing eyes were like two moons trapped in a frightened little face. Green slime clung

to its skin and dripped onto the floor. Chrrr... chrrr... Its cry was small and shaky, like it was

trying to call for help without knowing the words. Screens surrounded the chair. Jewel watched

the creature's reactions while Rhonda adjusted a machine beside it. The machine beeped, and the

alien flinched. “You're hurting it!” Moka shouted. “Stay back!” Rhonda snapped. The kids

moved forward anyway.

Jewel blocked their path, while Rhonda grabbed Hanull when he reached for the restraints.

“Don't touch it!” Hanull pulled his arm away. Then his eyes locked onto a symbol glowing on

one of the screens. “I know that symbol.” His voice suddenly went quiet. “My mom had it in her

files.” His mother had been an astronaut. She discovered that the creatures were intelligent and

that the secret project was capturing them. She refused to help. Days later, she died during her

mission. The report called it natural causes, but Hanull had never swallowed that story.

“She found out what they were doing,” he said, his hands shaking. “Then she died.” Tokki

looked at Jewel. “Is that why we were chosen?” Jewel's silence answered before she did. Tokki's

chest tightened. Their intelligence wasn't the whole reason. They had been brought here because NASA wanted them around the experiment without telling them what was really happening. “My

mom trusted you,” Tokki whispered. Before Jewel could answer, the alien child screamed.

SKREEEE! The sound ripped through the room like a siren with a voice. Something enormous

slammed into the ship. BOOM! The mother alien appeared outside the window, her massive

body blocking the stars. Her eyes burned with fury as she stared straight at her child. “She came

for it!” Hanull shouted. The mother struck again. CRACK! A spiderweb of cracks raced across

the window. “Move!” Jewel yelled. The glass shattered. Air roared toward the opening, dragging

papers and loose equipment across the room.

Tokki grabbed the chair as her hair whipped around her face. Moka grabbed Hana before she

could slide across the floor. “Hold on!” Beck yelled. Hanull wrapped both arms around the

alien's chair and reached for the final restraint. Jewel grabbed his shoulder. “Leave it!” Rhonda

seized his arm. “No!” Hanull fought against her grip. “My mom tried to protect them!” The

mother roared outside, and the ship shook like a wounded giant. Hanull pulled harder. Tokki

grabbed his arm. “We're not leaving it here.”

The alien child looked up at them, its glowing eyes wide with fear. For one second, everything

went silent. Then another BOOM shook the ship, and the walls began to tear apart around them.

The spaceship shook like it had been caught in the grip of a giant storm. Air screamed through

the broken window, dragging papers, equipment, and anything loose toward the opening. Tokki

wrapped both arms around a metal support, her fingers aching as she held on for dear life.

Hana and Moka clung to each other while Beck grabbed a railing with both hands. Hanull was

still beside the alien child when one of the restraints snapped loose. The little creature was

suddenly pulled from the chair and flew toward the broken window like a leaf caught in a

hurricane. “NO!” Hanull shouted. He reached for it, but it was already slipping away. The alien

child cried out, “SKREEEE!”, its frightened voice being swallowed by the roaring air. Outside, its mother stretched toward it. Her enormous arms reached through the opening, and her glowing

eyes locked onto her child.

BOOM! The ship groaned as if it were begging for mercy. The mother caught the alien child

against her chest. For a moment, Hanull could only stare. Then he remembered his mother's old

words about the creatures being intelligent. “She wasn't attacking us,” he whispered. “She was

trying to get her baby back.” Jewel crawled across the floor, gripping anything she could reach.

“Everyone, hold on!” she yelled.

Rhonda tried to reach the emergency controls, but another violent shake knocked her backward.

Tokki spotted the emergency seal panel and crawled toward it, her heart pounding like a drum.

She slammed her hand against the button. Metal plates began sliding over the broken opening,

inch by inch. The air fought back, roaring like an angry beast, but the seal finally slammed shut

with a heavy CLANG! The room went silent.

Everyone stayed frozen for a moment, catching their breath. Through the sealed window, the

mother alien hovered outside with her child safely in her arms. She looked at the five kids, then

slowly disappeared into the darkness of space. Hanull lowered his head. His eyes filled with

tears, but this time they weren't from anger. His mother had been right. The creatures weren't

monsters. They were a family. Tokki looked at Jewel, who stood silently among the broken

equipment. “You knew all along,” Tokki said. Jewel didn't answer. The truth was finally catching

up with her, and there was nowhere left to hide.

Jewel finally told them the truth. The program had been a cover for the secret experiments, the

aliens were intelligent, and Hanull’s mom had discovered the truth before she died. The five

teens had been chosen because NASA wanted to study how they reacted to the creatures. Then Jewel led them back to the escape ship. When they landed, the doors opened, and their parents

were already waiting.

Tokki spotted her mom first. Her mom ran toward her, grabbed her, and held her so tightly Tokki

could barely move. Behind her, Hana’s parents kept checking her over, Beck’s dad was asking

him questions before he even stepped off the ramp, and Moka’s mom had tears running down her

face. Hanull’s eyes stayed on the crowd for a moment before he quietly looked away.

Later, as everyone started leaving, Hanull walked beside Tokki. “Hey... do you wanna hang out

sometime?” he asked. Tokki smiled. “Yeah. Sure.” Before either of them could say anything else,

Hana called from behind them, “You guys aren't seriously leaving without us, are you?” Moka

hurried over. “We're all friends now!” Beck followed. “Apparently.” Tokki laughed as they all

walked away together.

At the edge of the station, she stopped and looked up one last time. The sky was dark and quiet.

Then she saw it. A tiny light twinkled between the stars. Tokki smiled. Then she ran to catch up

with everyone.