Okay, this is the first fanfic I've ever written, so be nice and tell me what you think of the first chapter. Thanks!

Slave of a Hunter

'Where am I? What am I doing here? Why is it so hot?' Unable to see anything around me I sat up, finding myself surrounded by tall, amber grass. Two hot suns blazed down on me from a cloudless blueish-green sky and the air felt so thick and humid it was hard to breathe without coughing. Wiping sweat from my brow I stood up to get a better look of my surroundings. To my left the plain seemed to go on forever, touching the horizon. On my right—roughly a ten minute walk from my position—I saw a forest with the tallest and strangest coloured trees I'd ever seen. The leaves were a dark brown to orange, spreading out like flower petals and the bark was a vibrant, tropical green. 'Bizzaro,' I thought, but I was grateful I had found a sanctuary from the suns scorching rays. I ripped off my white over coat and wrapped it around my head, then I bent down and unzipped my nylon pants at the knee and made them into shorts. As I walked to the trees I thought about how I came to this weird planet. 'Well,' I thought, 'last I remembered I was in a lab and...' With a gasp, I suddenly remembered how I ended up in this place.

I had been hired to work on the Weyland Space Station. The Station has been orbiting earth for about ten years after they successfully launched it in 2201. I had been hired as an assistant to a shuttle repair technician and was one of the youngest aboard. I was only eighteen, but in high school my teachers had told me I had great potential in the space program. I had always received high marks in astrophysics, chemistry and mechanics. However my supervisor didn't agree with my teachers. He had made me run errand upon errand for him around the station, because he had thought I was too young to do any "real" work with him and the other assistants. I had been living in the space station for almost three weeks and had become sick of being treated as an inexperienced worker. I was running a translator over to the lab for final testings, when I stumbled across something strange. A door was open to a small, dark lab and I could just make the shape of a strange machine at the back of the room. After my eyes adjusted and I could make out the details of the device...it was a transporter. Three large metal pillars surrounded a small platform, their tips bending inward to where electricity flowed through. I had touched one of the pillars with awe. The machines had been were part of a top secret project, but it was later terminated because of the many failures it had. This machine was probably a long ago junked project. I stepped onto the round platform and examined it from the inside. Suddenly I heard a low humming noise and the platform lit up below me. Before I could react there was a blinding flash of light, then everything went black. That's when I woke up in the field. Obviously that project wasn't completely junked.

I finally reached the trees and collapsed under the shade, tank top and shorts soaked in sweat. How can this planet be so hot? It had to be forty to fifty degrees Celsius with a seventy percent humidity. I wondered if this planet was inhabited with intelligent life, though I couldn't imagine who or what would live here. Glancing at my watch to get an idea of the time, another thought occurred to me; one that might get me out of here, but then it fell by the wayside when I thought better of it. My watch had a built in communicator and homing signal. The communicator was good for three light years, but I didn't know how far or how close to I was and I didn't know the coordinates to direct the signal to Earth. I thought of turning on my homing signal but it only had enough power for three days. I didn't want to risk it, at least not yet.

I sighed and wondered what else I had with me. I dug into the deep pockets of my nylons and layed the things I had on the ground. A mini repair kit, with three screw drivers, a metal cutter and a small wrench, a blue pen, half a granola bar, extra cloth from my pants, the translator, a hair elastic and the over coat I wore on my head. 'Well, not much of a survival kit,' I thought. Speaking of survival, my first priority was to find water. Already I was getting a headache from dehydration. I tied back my long, blonde hair so my neck could cool off, put the rest of my belongings in my pockets and stood up. I gazed at the scenery around me and saw nothing but thick tree trunks and bushes. I had no idea where to begin my trek. 'Lord, which way should I go?' I thought. As if on cue a gust of wind came up and pushed me forward. 'Okay, straight ahead then.' As I trudged through the forest floor I prayed I would find some kind of intelligent life before I got too weak.

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I wandered deliriously through the forest for almost two days. In those forty-eight hours I still hadn't found any water, I'd eaten the rest of my granola bar and I spent a sleepless night in trying to outrun a giant bird that wanted to make me it's midnight snack. Even the air was getting harder to breathe. But I still pressed on, stumbling over roots and rocks, ignoring my cramped legs and hysteria. Something in the back of my brain told me that there was intelligent life somewhere, and I had to find it! Another wave of dizziness went through my head and I fell face first on the ground. I tried to stand but my stomach and bowels twisted and spasm into painful knots as hunger and dehydration warred. I held my stomach and rolled into a ball, moaning in anguish.

"It hurts," I gasped, "oh God, it hurts!"

I heard a rustling noise in front of me and I raised my head. Through my blurred vision I saw three huge figures approach me. I wanted to move or make a sound but my stomach sent another jolt of pain and I cried out. When I thought I couldn't bear this torture any longer, my head thumped to the ground and I passed out.

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I couldn't feel the rough forest floor on my face. It seemed like I was lying on my back with something covering my nose and mouth. As I slowly opened my eyes I saw a dim orange light above me and once my eyes adjusted slightly and I turned my head to the left. There were three tables with trays of cutting tools of some sort, lining a black wall. Looking to the right I saw several long, box-like machines that were beeping a flashing little lights. They appeared to be some type of monitoring equipment. I guessed I was in a hospital or medical room and the thing on my face was an oxygen mask. 'Where the hell am I now?' It was the last thing I thought before blacking out.

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I woke up some time later with a raging thirst. I heard a noise beside me and I knew someone was in the room with me. I tried to speak but my throat was too dry and my tongue felt leathery. I felt the mask being pulled off my face and a hand slip under my head to lift it up. A cup was put to my mouth and I felt liquid on my lips. Water! My eyes snapped open and I pressed the cup closer to my mouth. I drank too fast and I ended up choking on the water, coughing and sputtering liquid all over my chest. Once I stopped coughing I looked up at my helper. What I saw made me scream and fall off the table...

Okay that's the first chapter. I guess you've figured I'm Canadian eh? With my use of Celsius. Let me know what you think of it. Thanks, eh!