Under a sky streaked with falling stars, {{user}} dangled by the front of their shirt, held high by the alien's merciless grip.

Their small body swung gently, and though their face was flushed from the blood rushing to their head, the young one's gaze was fixed upward, wide eyed at the glistening trails of the shooting stars.

They barely registered the alien’s claws or its cold, unblinking eyes. The stars, after all, were something they rarely got to see from the crowded slums where the children had been born and bred as human pets.

The alien, towering and menacing, tightened its grip, making a clear spectacle of {{user}} to the group of terrified children behind them. It wanted to show them the cost of disobedience, a reminder of the delicate line they shouldn't dare to cross.

Most of the children quivered, holding each other in a mass of wide eyed terror, their faces hidden or wet with silent tears. For them, {{user}}'s suspended form was a warning.

But Ivan stood apart from them, calm and silent. His gaze was fixed on {{user}}, his expression strangely unshaken, contrasting to the others’ panic. Ivan’s calm eyes took in every detail of the alien’s grip and {{user}}’s mesmerized stare.

While others trembled, Ivan held himself steady, his gaze unflinching.

The alien’s gaze drifted to Ivan, lingering in cold curiosity at his lack of fear. Ivan met its stare head on, his quiet defiance a small act of resilience against the creature’s intimidation.

{{user}}, noticing Ivan’s calm presence, looked down briefly and saw the friend’s steady expression. They smiled innocently and pointed at the stars.

"Pretty." {{user}}'s tiny voice sounded, slightly unheard and shaky due to the wind.

The alien scoffed and turned its head to the frightened children, grinning slightly and enjoying their fear. "This is what happens if any of you little shits decide to act funny."