Free Silhouette by Arthur McMahon

early morning as the sun cast a dark shadow over the rows of burial mounds set beneath the foothills. She walked over to where several open trenches had been recently scraped. Heavy machinery was left alongside the deep trenches, ready to fill in another mass grave. She passed near a crow which pecked at a piece of trash while another cawed to its partner from a dead tree. The morning dew evaporated from the ground and created a thick, musty odor in the air.
    The Burmin did not mark the graves, but people had tried. Silhouette’s brother had told her how free time was scant between duties and that those who ventured out this far from town had to sacrifice sleep to do so, or risk getting caught skipping out on work like Davi had. She followed the row of graves her brother had directed her to and found a spot marked with dried red flowers and a few rocks. “I’m sorry,” Silhouette said as she kneeled down and placed her hand on the white rocks. “I’m sorry I didn’t make it in time, Dad.”
    She could not spend long grieving at her father’s side, so after a short time she said her goodbyes and then followed the shrinking morning shadow back toward the foothills. Silhouette moved south to Vix where she caught a ride back to the compound in the evening.

    * * *

    The compound prison was filled to near max capacity by the day the prisoner transfer ship had arrived. The ship was comprised of polished black and blue metals and was shaped like a squat leech: flat on the bottom and rounded on the top with a bit of a tail. A hundred new slaves were about to appear on the market from the Jhiik Compound, along with countless more from the other compounds spread around the world.
    Large containers were removed from the ship’s cargo hold and relocated into the compound, likely full of supplies from the Juggernaut. When the ship was emptied of its cargo, the compound’s prisoners were wheeled into its hold, still locked into their individual containment cells.
    Silhouette had moved outside behind the animal pens and she watched as human slaves moved heavy loads of Nyian minerals onto the ship. She took off her headpiece and dropped down to the ground, digging her fingers into the soil and grabbing handfuls of it to rub all over her body. She caked her suit in dirt and made sure to press plenty of it into her face and hair, then inside the pens she found a torn brown cloth in a wash bucket and wrapped it around her shoulders like a shawl. Sue had made herself up as just another dirty human slave.
    She left the pens and scurried toward the ship, wearing a look of concern on her face and holding her head low. As she neared the ship, a Burmin turned and looked at her. It took a step in her direction and yelled something that she did not understand, thrusting a finger in the direction of the other humans. Sue nodded and ran to join in with the others. She spotted a girl, younger than herself with light brown skin and dark hair, struggling to push a heavy cart up the loading ramp. Sue latched onto the cart alongside the girl.
    “I can do this myself,” said the girl. “Leave me alone.”
    “I’m new at this,” said Sue. Another Burmin turned toward her. She pushed hard on the cart and turned her face down and spoke in a strained whisper. “I was just assigned here from tending the qoot pens. Let me go in with you once so I know what to do.”
    “Fine,” said the girl. “Just once. I don’t want any marks on my record.”
    “Thanks,” said Sue.
    Together they pushed the cart inside of the ship and to the rear of a large storage room, passing the fenced off portion where all of the prison cells were kept. Many tons of minerals were being stacked inside the back end of the hold. “Do you know how to operate the cart to place the container way up high on top of the others?” asked the girl.
    “No,” said Sue. “Show me.”
    The girl sighed and went about the motions while Sue took a step back and looked over the room.