by G. K. Scott
She looked at the bottle. “It’s a rather weak alcohol compared to yours.” She used the side of her wrist blade to rip out the cork. She watched it froth and pour out before settling. “You might like it.” She pulled up the bottle taking a drink. “I do.” She passed the bottle over to Jeuki who pulled it up taking a drink. He pulled it away looking at it. “It’s frothing in my mouth!” Emma laughed slightly. “All part of the taste.” Jeuki flared his mandibles. “Alcohol shouldn’t froth.” Emma took the bottle. “Well with my race it does.” She took another long drink. “Cheap campaign always the best.” She put the half finished bottle down. “Who sent this?” Jeuki pulled up a clawed hand. “The rude ooman who wanted to take your armour off.” Emma found herself laughing again. “Isn’t that your job?” Jeuki turned slightly putting a clawed hand on his chest. “All hunters who are close look out for one another. There’s nothing wrong with your ooman body. So I don’t mind taking your armour off.” Emma laughed again taking another long drink. “I don’t mind seeing you naked ether your well hung.”
Jeuki laughed aloud. “Oh so now I find the truth you don’t mind my naked lowers.” Emma took another drink. “Look it was just a shock, like I said on the tropical planet.” Jeuki looked at her. “I do hope you’re not saying this because you’re getting drunk on weak human alcohol.” He grabbed one of the packages pulling out the chocolate. Emma grunted lying herself across the bed. “Look Jeuki after drinking your races version of alcohol. I suddenly find drinking my own races alcohol like fruit juice.” Jeuki picked up another Campaign bottle he used his upper left mandibles to yank the cork free. He flicked his mandible throwing it off “Well even if does froth I’ll drink it. The taste is unusual.” Emma smirked. “You know if you want something stronger I’ll annoy the scientists. They’ll bring you some of the strongest alcohol they can find.” Jeuki turned slightly. “You don’t like those ooman scientist’s do you?” Emma leaned on her elbow. “No I don’t like Lucy the blonde or Julia the one who kept doing tests on me.” Jeuki took a long drink “But there oomans like you.”
Emma slowly met his amber gaze. “That doesn’t mean I like them. Trust me Jeuki not all human’s are nice.” Jeuki cocked his head to one side “Your nice.” Emma smiled at him. “So are you Jeuki.” She sighed aloud, “I guess they both just remind me off the things I prefer to forget about my old life. I prefer your way of life to there’s.” Jeuki looked up slightly. “Why what it about my races ways that makes you like as so much.” Emma looked at the bottle in her hand. “My race is all about property, ownership and credits. To be any one of importance you need credits. The world revolves around some human’s being fifthly rich like the Oran who’s owns these two ship and those who are poor and can’t afford food.” She eased up her hand. “Human’s end up classes the very rich the working class and the very poor. Your class depends on your importance, in society. On the whole it’s cruel and unfair.” She slowly met his amber eyes. “Your race doesn’t care for any off this. Your race is not about property or credits it’s about honour and things that are meaningful.”
She leaned forward. “A hunter doesn’t hunt for money he hunts to become a better a hunter and to earn respect and honour his trophies being his most honourable gain and a sigh of how good he is.” She took a long drink before smiling widely. “From what you’ve told me your race lives peacefully when not hunting. No wars, poverty just bliss and solitude where your pups grow up till they come of age.” She raised an eyebrow. “All your wars are fought to breed. You don’t even use credits you trade items for items on board your mother ships. You’ve solved all the problems my race can’t seem to get around because there so lost in them selves.” She pushed her hair back. “What saddens me is my race calls you ugly because of your appearance. If only they realized how impressive you really are as a species.” Jeuki turned slightly. “I don’t expect oomans to understand my races ways.” He turned looking at the bed. “I like that you understand my ways that’s enough.” He turned sitting slowly on the bed he tapped his right upper mandible. “I still feel that your race has strange ways though.” Emma turned sharply hearing a heavy crack.
The bed Jeuki was sitting on suddenly buckled underneath him. The bed hit the floor with Jeuki on it who fell back, before sitting up looking confused. She got up quickly. “Are you okay?” Jeuki looked at the broken bed. “Ooman beds are weak!” He pulled up a clawed hand. “I’m fine.” He picked up one of the broken steel legs looking at it. “Weak ooman metal.” Emma put a hand on his shoulder. “We’ll both sleep on the wrecked bed. I mean it will probably work better anyway. I can just move this beds pillows so your feet have something under them.” Jeuki put a hand under his chin. “Is everything oomans make so weak?” Emma sat down next to him. “No not all of it. I just don’t think they make beds to compensate for your races weight.”
8
Julia slowly looked at the scans again. She turned to Lucy who was looking through a stethoscope at some cells. “How long did you say she was in space for again?” Lucy ignored her keeping her eye on the cells in front of her gaze. “A year that’s how long in this ships space time, which is four and a half months in Earth time.” She moved the lenses closer. “This is not compensating for the fact that her and her ugly friend’s ship has a hyper drive.” Julia pulled up more images of the skeleton. “Marcus believes that to be broken he believes it’s only travelling at half speed. But it’s still way faster than anything we’ve got.” Lucy looked up slowly. “What’s wrong don’t like the freezing sleeping chambers which we use for very long travels?” Julia sighed aloud. “Look have you done what I asked?” Lucy smirked. “Oh yes this stupid experiment in trying to find detraction in Emma’s cell. Yeah I’ve completed it there is none. She’s in very good shape overall but I’ll put that down to her diet.” Lucy raised an eyebrow. “Your looked at her stomach fluid…couldn’t you have just put that tube in the machine?”
Lucy turned in her chair. “Look you’re the medical expert, I’m the cell expert, How’s about you let me do my job?” Julia rolled her eyes. “I hate you people from level thirty your so interested in cell growth it’s scary.” Lucy pulled up a test tube. “I’m not a cell growth specialist. I work in cell reproduction there’s a difference. My area is mixing cells and looking at extinct animal cells.” Leo looked up from his electronic papers. “If you where so good why haven’t you resurrected a Thylacine yet?” Lucy sneered slightly. “Oh please what possible use would I have for one of those?” She turned back in to the stethoscope. “You utter moron everyone in cell science knows that bringing them back would a useless and costly.” She looked at the new cells again. “What use would I have for a big mouthed marsupial that looks like a striped wolf anyway?” Leo sat up. “Oh I don’t know maybe he’d be your friend. Since you don’t have any, being the bitch you are.” Marcus pulled up his hands. “Please people, this is annoying and it’s getting irritating.”
Lucy sighed turned looking at the stomach cells. “Well what I was going to say before Julia interrupted was that Emma has had a healthy diet of No Bo recently as well some other interesting animals. Fruit and meat mostly but there’s something I can’t identify it’s like rich protein liquid. It’s seems like a water based compound but unlike ours its far more protein based.” Marcus leaned back in his chair. “You mean it’s like one of those energy drinks we have here?” Lucy raised an eyebrow. “Yeah only with three times the kick and probably none of the addictive qualities.” She leaned back. “It’s probably why she’s lost so much weight. And gained a lot of muscle from what ever it is her and the big alien do no doubt they lead an active life.” Leo rolled his eyes. “Their hunters, she probably hunts with him.” Lucy leaned back. “Actuality I wasn’t referring to that.” Julie shivered slightly. “Oh that’s disgusting and twisted how could you think that they’ve crossing the species threshold? That’s so wrong.” Lucy raised an eyebrow grinning. “Oh now look who’s narrow minded.”
She shrugged her s
houlders. “Okay let’s take away the fact that his face looks like a mutilated crab for a second. First of he is humanoid his DNA might be quite very similar to ours then there’s the fact that he talks perfect human language and he doesn’t seem dangerous.” Her grin widened. “Now if you could see past his facial looks you could almost forget couldn’t you?” Marcus pulled up a finger. “Okay I’ll admit that when you speak to him you feel like you’re talking to another human with a gruff voice, he’s not human though the claws spots and face say it all.” Lucy rolled her eyes. “You people have no vision.” Julia shivered again. “I’m sorry but your vision of a human female and that alien is gross. I mean his face is plain hideous.” Lucy pulled up her hands. “Oh please if he had a human face I bet that you’d have a singing different tune. I mean it’s only his mug that’s different okay it’s ugly but I could see a human finding fascination in it.” Leo pulled the brain scans up on screen looking at them again. “Despite that I don’t normally agree with Lucy I actually agree with you on this one.”
Lucy narrowed her gaze. “Nice to know we can agree on something Leo.” Carlos folded his arms in annoyance. “Skeleton and brain scans please.” Leo looked up sharply. “Oh right well her brain scan seems normal despite that protein she’s been drinking.” Julia put a hand on her chin. “Well so far all I’ve found discounting the a broken jaw is evidence of a leg fracture and a two broken ribs but their all healed. Marcus smirked slightly. “Seems our girls been doing some interesting things to get those injuries.” Carlos watched as all the findings moved on to his computer. He smiled slightly. “Oran will be most pleased with these findings.” His grin widened. “You people just keep doing what you’re doing your doing a stunning job.”
8
Oran looked at the notes on his screen before letting his gaze meet Carlos’s. “A water protein most interesting.” Carlos nodded slightly. “Could be very important to as If we can find out how it’s made.” Oran smiled slightly. “Yes a new form of human drug you say this is one of the reasons the hunter girls so fit?” Carlos folded his arms. “It could be sir.” He smirked slightly. “It seems to give her heaps of adrenaline, but the cell scientist has a theory that it might not be very additive.” His smile widened. “Frankly I think she’s fit because of her diet and her lifestyle, but this protein she’s been taking could be a great avenue to explore.” Oran looked up slightly. “I see.” He turned looking out in to space. “Anything else of interest?” Carlos looked up slightly. “Nothing out of the ordinary, the only point’s that’s been made is about the hunter’s behaviour. Which even I’ll say is odd, our boy Oni Jui doesn’t act like does at all.” Oran sighed aloud. “You mean the rather soft attitude towards people?”
Carlos nodded. “That and his overly friendly behaviour, with the Emma Wingates.” Oran sighed aloud. “He’s just not like our boy mind you Oni Jui has stated that Jeuki tends to have a rather soft attitude, he did among his own race way before this girl ever got involved.” He leaned on his elbow. “Wingates has just made him softer.” Carlos grunted aloud. “So Oni Jui and Jeuki know each other?” Oran slowly tapped the screen bringing up brain scans. “They hunted together on Callisto. They never got on though, despite there rank in society.” Carlos leaned forward. “What was their rank in hunter society?” Oran sat back. “They were both well on there way to becoming full warriors who could ether hunt alone or teach others to hunt.”
He breathed in. “Callisto was their last hunt before they got to make their choice of which path to take.” Carlos laughed aloud. “Oh I see well it seems nether has taken ether path. Oni Jui is now a bodyguard who gets rid of our problems, while Jeuki has turned in to a soft lug who cares for a human girl who he treats like his own, it’s all rather amusing.” Oran put a hand under his chin. “Speaking of Wingates has she been paid yet?” Carlos raised an eyebrow. “Paid?” Oran folded his arms. “Yes paid for the months she spent in space.” Carlos sighed aloud. “No sir, but I’ll make sure it’s done.” Oran’s smile widened. “Take what ever she’s owed and double it.” Carlos’s gaze widened. “Double it! Why?” Oran slowly pulled up a cigar. “I want her to be trusting, to make people trusting you give them credits and treat them like there special which is what she is since she can solve all my problems in the lower levels if she helps us.” Carlos sighed aloud. “As you wish, I’ll sit her down and talk to her about it if I can get her alone. Jeuki seems to follow her around like a lap dog.”
Oran lit his cigar. “Oh and tomorrow night I intended to meet with her, I would like to see what possible interest a hunter could have in her.” He grinned widely. “Of course I’d like Jeuki to come along since he can talk and understand what I’m saying.” Carlos breathed out heavily. “Aren’t you concerned about Oni Jui interfering?” Oran breathed out the smoke slowly. “Carlos your job is to keep him amused, throw some hybrid nursery Knopf’s in to the hunting pen. Let him add more trophies to that ever growing wall of his.” Carlos looked around slightly. “I don’t like that wall of his personally, the fact that the skulls are taking up room is getting annoying.” Oran growled aloud. “Carlos I don’t care for your problems, just do as I tell you.” Carlos nodded. “Yes sir.” Oran sat back. “Just keep the Wingates happy in every possible way.” He leaned forward. “Oh and find out if she has an electronic note pad everyone was issued with one on Callisto, I’d be fascinated to read hers.”
8
Emma groaned hearing a horrible sound hit her ear. She knew that sound! It was that irritating stupid alarm bell that she’d always hated. She slowly got up of the bed moving Jeuki’s arm from around her. She watched him tap his mandibles in his sleep. She yawned looking for the control panel before finding it and knocking it with her fist causing it to switch off. She turned to walk away only to hear the computer bark something. “Welcome to Iron Year Emma Wingates. You have five new messages.” She turned slightly. Like she cared about messages, she kicked one of the empty packages out of the way. The computer voice suddenly barked up again. “I will read your messages.”
“You have one message from an Eddy Ida from the marines asking you out on a date.
Your second message is from the level ten gyms giving free gym time as long as you’re here.
Your third message is from an unnamed group on level sixty cargo hold telling you to leave and F off back in to space…I don’t believe they like you miss.
Your fourth message is from Carlos asking for some personal time to talk about your credit issues, details on screen."
Emma sighed aloud. “Don’t you have an off switch?” The computer voice carried on speaking. “Your finally message is from Oran himself, he is asking for a meal in which your friend is welcome. Details are on screen now. Would you like me to send replies?” Emma sighed aloud. “No.” She looked at the information on screen. The computer started talking again. “Would you like to send e mails?” Emma turned snarling aloud. “No but I would love you to shut up!” She looked around. “Don’t you have a silent mode?” She looked around if it didn’t have one she’d hack in to it and give it one she slowly tapped the panel hearing the voice shut down. Her gaze drifted back to Jeuki. Somehow she wasn’t looking forward to today, she had no idea how everyone was going to look at her. It was going to be a frightening experience, to say the least. She looked at the details one last time before sitting herself back down on the broken bed where Jeuki was laying. She could hear his breathing. Slow almost rhythmic. She eased her hand slowly moving her fingers across his upper mandibles. He barely seemed to notice her touch and just lightly clicked them. Her hand moved slowly over his crest admiring the patterns. She slowly moved her hand away. How was she going to get to tell him? This was getting stupid! She should’ve told him when before they landed. She ran her hand through her hair in frustration.
Why couldn’t everyone just leave her alone? It seemed like this since she’d gotten here. She hadn’t had much of peace and it would only get worse. People probably feared her, and feared Jeuki ev
en more. That was always the human to way to fear what you don’t understand. She sighed aloud. Lying back on the bed, maybe she was just thinking too much. It wasn’t like she could change things. Maybe this was all happening for a reason. She turned slightly shaking Jeuki’s chest. “Hey wake up.” Jeuki opened his eyes slowly “Uh….” He tapped his mandibles coming fully awake. “Is something wrong?” Emma pulled on her wrist armour slowly. “I’m bored would you like to take a look around?” Jeuki yawned opening his mandibles fully. “Are you sure the oomans want as looking around?” Emma grunted aloud. “Isn’t it true that your races invisibility cloak is hard to trace by other races?” Jeuki turned slightly. “Yes why?” Emma grinned widely. “Oh I don’t know just thought it’d be good for as to look around with out anyone noticing.” Jeuki pulled up a clawed hand. “I don’t understand why hide from them, there your race?” Emma slowly started to tap the buttons on her wrist guard. “Because I don’t want them to escort us around and to stop us from going places.”
CHAPTER 8
NOT CONFORMING TO THE SYSTEM AND ITS RULES
Location somewhere in the galaxy, wandering around freely on board the Iron Year science vessel.
Human beings are so insecure. They are so afraid of what they can’t see. They look around almost afraid of there own shadow. I guess I’m being mean; I have such an advantage over them. I should know better a cloak is for hunting, not for foolish Childs play. I can’t help it though. I hate those quarters there dim and boring. On top of that there were another four welcoming packages out side our door. I’ve already got an overly full stomach from last night. The thought of more naughty food is making me ill. If I see another packet of candy I think I’m going to be sick. The water around her tastes so sterile. Jeuki’s bath water tastes nicer god do these people even know I’m here? I guess not five of them just walked right past me. Okay I’m walking the long rails but I thought they’d have seen me by now. Still give it twenty minutes and everyone’s going to be looking for as. When they find empty quarters and start running around in panic. I don’t care though. I’m not going to be escorted around by an android or some doctor.
