The Blue Marble Never Slept.
The city stretched long with glasses of tall buildings reflecting flickering different colors of light that is not native to earth. many portals, small to big being opened flickering those strange lights. From those portals ships were emerging carrying species that are very much strangers to this kind of gravity. This was like every other normal day in the futuristic earth.
From the tallest building of the city, a man was watching this view with no particular emotion on his face. The city lights never surprised him as it is the same that he has been watching from his childhood.
The city pulsed with life, but to Lucien it was more than life. It was a system. Every light, movement, fluctuation below could be measured, predicted and controlled.
He inhaled slowly, savoring the stillness of the air on this level. Most people saw only spectacle. The wealthy aliens, dazzled by the novelty, assumed Earth was naive, a playground for their pleasures. But Lucien knew better. He knew the fragility beneath the beauty. He knew that one misstep could unravel everything the portals, the Neutral Zone, the balance between the factions, even the delicate truce between the most dangerous civilizations.
And balance required tools.
"Sir," the voice of his assistant Van broke the silence. His tone was respectful but firm, the kind that came only from someone who had worked with him long enough. "I have found someone that would be perfect for the bodyguard position."
Lucien hummed.
Van approached, holding a sleek tablet that glimmered with encrypted data streams. "I've been monitoring the Zero Credit Auction and one of the assets caught my attention."
Lucien's brow arched ever so slightly. He did not show surprise easily. "A debt slave?" approached, holding a sleek tablet that glimmered with encrypted data streams.
A picture of a dark skinned man with striking silver hair was projected on the tablet.
Lucien's brow arched ever so slightly. He did not show surprise easily. "A debt slave and also an alien?"
"Not any alien, he's from Nebula" said Van.
The name alone stopped him. Nebula. Destroyed. Gone. And yet here, in a city far from that tragedy, one of its scattered survivors was available for purchase.
"So what makes him unusual?" Lucien asked, leaning against the balcony railing, eyes returning to the city below.
Van hesitated. "His record is unusual. He was formerly part of a military unit before Nebula fell. He has experience that is rare combat training, strategic expertise, knowledge of interstellar security systems. And yet..." He glanced at him, cautious. "...he's in debt, sold through the Zero Credit Auction after a catastrophic incident during his last contract."
Lucien leaned against the balcony railing, eyes returning to the city below. The city pulsed, alive, a fragile system teetering on perfection. He didn't ask how a man with such skill ended up a debt slave. He already knew the universe often punished those who were too good, too dangerous, or too unlucky.
" I thought only the children were evacuated from Nebula, how come he survived?" Van asked.
"The files says that he was one of the special Nebullian security assigned to ensure the safety of children after they have been ejected from the Nebula. After the adults were gone, he guided and protected them through the collapse of their planet." Van paused, letting that sink in. "Not just that once they reached new worlds, he helped them acclimate to new conditions, new societies. He managed their safety, discipline, and adaptation." Van Said.
Lucien finally turned his gaze toward the tablet, eyes narrowing as he studied the young man on the screen. Van continued.
"The file recommends him for a position that requires both vigilance and judgment. Given the circumstances, he's ideal for a personal security role someone capable of independent action but who can be trusted implicitly. He's trained, resourceful, and disciplined."
Van looked up at Lucien, meeting his gaze evenly. "He's perfect for Sylvia's bodyguard, sir. He'll follow your command and only yours."
Lucien's lips curved slightly. "Good." He leaned back, considering the implications. A survivor of a dead world. A man who had guided children through chaos and uncertainty. Someone with the kind of skill and patience most would never survive with.
"Yes, Van," he said finally. "Arrange the acquisition."
The Zero Credit Auction was held far above earth in a secure orbital station. Brokers, Representatives, and opportunists from around the universe crowded the hall, their attention on the displayed assets, assessing their value.
People were mingling with each other, laughing sharing contacts for future use. Lucien observed it all from a far away seat on the balcony, reserved for the richest. He didn't find that mingling beneficiary, he thought that it was desperate.
Announcement about the slave auction rang, silencing the whole hall. It was the most interesting auction of all. Not many were to buy the slaves, but many enjoyed the desperate pleading faces of the slaves who were forced to be sold. Like a good show.
Alex's turn came at last. But he was not Alex here, he was an asset, Asset 0986.
He was brought forward, tall enough to be a man but still carrying the precision and restraint of youth. Silver hair, steady posture, eyes that measured everything but revealed nothing. Others might have seen emptiness. Lucien saw focus. Discipline. Trained lethality hidden beneath calm control.
Bidding began. Others tried to outmaneuver him, intrigued by the Nebulian survivor. Lucien let them push. He let them waste effort. And then, with a single command, the transfer was confirmed.
Alex was his.
Lucien leaned back calmly, watching the confirmation on the screen. He considered an irony, a man of terrible importance to Nebula was now being sold as a debt slave. Alex was not just any soldier, He was loyal enough that the Nebula sent him to protect their children while they were dying.
But a little debt and he was lowered to this. Lucien knew that Debt didn't erase loyalty, it didn't erase experience. Debt didn't erase skill. And Lucien knew that Alex would follow him, not because he was Alex's owner, but because Lucien demanded it.
After the acquisition was done, papers were signed, Alex was then hauled to a car back seat. Alex turned to his right a saw a beautiful man with pale skin and blonde hair. He was wearing a silk shirt with black pants, looking ethereal. But his main concern was not about the man's beauty but the question was who was he.
Lucien was sitting in his car, looking outside the window when a man was hurled inside the car beside him. He already knew who was the man and didn't even bother to look t him. He felt that he was being thoroughly observed, and decided to speak.
"I am Lucien Grenfield and I'm now your owner" Lucien said.
Alex looked at Lucien's side profile coldly and didn't say anything to show his defiance.
Lucien glanced at Alex meeting those defiant eyes but didn't say anything. Because he knew that Alex would learn soon enough what it meant to obey him.