Jennifer Pelland's "Captive Girl" (short story, science fiction): Don't bother unless you can stand graphic horror
Another story that had no business being in this year's Nebula Award preliminary list. Or may be there are a lot of people out there that love graphic horror - not my genre.
Full text of this story is available for download.
Story summary.
First & unnamed human colony planet beyond earth. People live under domes. Something attacks it. Lots of people die. Attackers apparently didn't want anything - apart from slaughtering a lot of people!In the aftermath, local administration wants the skies watched - need ample warning before another attack. Security agency in charge recruits 3 little orphan girls. Their bodies are grossly mutilated surgically - most sensory organs removed, brain linked to some kind of sky watching machine, face permanently covered in some kind of metallic plate, confined & forcibly restrained to a chair, ... They each have caretakers assigned whose job it is keep them alive.
They do 8 hour shifts watching the skies; then be lonely miserable invalids rest of the time. No holidays, since there are only 3 watchers.
Story is told from the point of view of Alice. She was recruited into the program when she was 9, & has been brainwashed to think that she actually volunteered. Her caretaker, Dr Marika DeVeaux, takes a fancy on her incapacitated body - becomes sort of lover, & the only person Alice is somewhat intimate with.
Alice is now 19 - she has spent 10 long years in the program. First one of the girls break down; then other is on the verge of breaking down. Word leaks to civilian administration; they move to shut the program down.
The girls will be rehabilitated & freed - with artificial transplants, but can never be normal either physically or psychologically. And are also ugly, thanks to all the facial mutilation originally done.
Alice's lesbian partner, Marika, no longer wants her - she only wanted the invalid - making the girl depressed. Eventually, Alice will play to Marika's fetish - will become mock invalid when Marika is around!
Fact sheet.
"Captive Girl", short story, reviewFirst published: Helix magazine, #2, Fall 2006.
Rating: C
Passed first round of Nebula Awards 2007 nominations in short story category.
2 comments:
I'm not sure from your review why you dislike Captive Girl other than it being horror (which isn't a crime:)). But I agree with you that it shouldn't be on the Nebula. I found it melodramatic and sophomorish. If this really is the best SF available, no wonder the short story outlets are in trouble.
Ref: Comment #1above.
"why you dislike Captive Girl other than it being horror (which isn't a crime:))"
Personal disposition, I should say. I cannot stand horror - certainly not when I'm looking for entertainment.
Incidentally, I started this site 6 months ago to understand "science fiction" genre - when I was a complete genre novice. Over these months, I've sort of matured to the extent of not being bothered by rather loose interpretation of sf (speculative fiction - ha! what fiction is not speculative?). But I still cannot stand horror, stories about losers, ... May be more brainwashing over a couple of years will make me more tolerant!
And getting science fiction, let alone decent one, from so called genre magazines - even a big one like Asimov's - is an utterly frustrating experience. Strong reaction here is probably out of frustration getting the stuff I like even from Nebula list (this is the first time I'm looking at a Nebula list for possible worthy reads).
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