by Brett P. S.
Chapter 4
On Instinct
“Absolutely not!” one of them shouted. It was the one second from the right. He appeared to be the most outspoken. Gina kept her eyes on that one.
“Why not?”
“Our laws forbid trafficking of …” At’rif said with a pause.
“What?” Gina stammered.
“Lesser sapiens,” he replied hesitantly. “Your place is not with us, and nothing will change that.”
“This human has no arguments to sway my reasoning,” one of them said.
“Understand, council elders, that you can see this human in person. By leaving this system, you are condemning an entire species to extinction.”
“That consequence is of their own design,” the same one said. “We gave them too many chances already.”
Gina clenched her fists and bit her lip. The muscles in her arms tightened, and a nauseating sensation built up in her stomach.
“Perhaps we could remove the weapons,” At’rif said. “They’re fairly harmless without them.”
“They will build new weapons.”
A rush of blood thickened in her veins to the point where Gina felt her heart beat inside her chest. She grabbed hold of a patch from her ragged clothes to ease the pressure building up in her neck, and the tension mounting through her spine.
“Population control then. Reduce their numbers, and the threat softens.”
“We cannot cull their numbers forever. Humans divide like cells, and they will take some of our own in the process.”
“I won’t go back.”
At’rif jumped a few centimeters back and gasped while the council of elders looked at her with empty faces filled with soulless ebony eyes. Their arguments spit at the value of human life. Raids came every week, some band of brothers trying to claim more resources. She lost the last of her kin to slavers, and these bastards were having a damned philosophical debate!
“You must return to your world, human,” the slender Visaari said.
“Over my corpse!” Gina shouted.
“An excellent idea,” At’rif said, pushing her back. “Killing this human should be of little consequence considering the scope of your decision, elders.”
“It is not the same,” the slender one replied. “Humans will die at their own hands. This one will be no different.”
“I agree,” another said.
Gina surpassed the limits of her patience and reached up high to strangle At’rif by the neck. She pulled him down and arched his back while she pressed his head close to her chest with a firm grip on his arteries. At’rif struggled somewhat, but she kept a tight hold, leaving him helpless within her grasp.
“You won’t send me back there,” she said. “Take me with you or this one dies.”
“Observe this human,” the outspoken Visaari said. “This is why we must leave this system.”
Gina glared at him with tears rolling from her eyes. Oh, how she would love to strangle him instead. At’rif had done nothing but defend her. The problem was that he was the only one in reach.
“Please let him go,” the slender Visaari said.
“I won’t until you agree to take me with you.”
“And if our answer is no? Can you live with his blood on your hands?”
“I’ve done worse before,” Gina said.
At’rif stopped squirming, instead placing his hands over hers and lowering to his knees. He shut his eyes, remaining calm and still while a dead silence coursed through the air of the between Gina and those up high. Neither words nor murmurs left the lips of the Visaari elders while the slender one stared forward. All eyes were on Gina, but the slender Visaari in particular drove a gaze straight through her.
“You want us to give Earth a chance?” The Visaari said. Gina tightened her grip. “Prove to us that you can choose the right path, even when the course drives you to inflict suffering.”
Was she lying? Of course she was. Every nerve ending inside of Gina told her the alien was manipulating her with words to spare her comrade. Letting him go would change nothing, nor would killing him for that matter. These beings operated on a system of law that placed principle above life, and the Visaari would not violate those principles, even if it might save their friend. Maybe the rest didn’t care about him, but this one did.
Still, Gina very much wanted to entertain the thought. She saw her fate as certain from this point, so she loosened her grip and drew back her hands. At’rif fell to his knees and bowed forward. Gina stared up at the council and shambled back.
“Thank you,” the slender Visaari said. “The council will consider this new evidence.”
Something clicked as it snapped around her neck. Gina lost her ability to focus clearly and her senses wandered around the room. She tried to move her limbs, but her arms refused to respond to the signals her brain sent out. At’rif stood up.
“Thank you for waiting,” he said.
