*Click*

*Click*

*Click*

    I opened one eye, seeing the gun to my forehead, the female above me pulling the trigger time and time again as the gun flashed red; yet nothing came out of the chamber. She spoke a few words. I didn't understand them as she pulled the trigger several more times.

*Click*

*Click*

*Click*

    “She means to say that you're lucky she hadn't reloaded since they captured you." The android's head spoke to me. I'm not sure whether that was a serious sentiment or she was taking mercy on me for the time being. I exhaled, a sigh of relief after all that had happened thus far. It'd certainly been a wild ride, and in all honesty, the normalcy… Whatever I was dreaming about earlier…

    …Wasn't meant to be. I didn't have much of a life back home on Earth, having jumped straight from Primary to Secondary schooling, being a university graduate to working and playing the cutthroat game that was put in place to be part of the space programs. I didn't have a sweetheart, I didn't have kids, I didn't exactly have much back home other than my parents and my dog.

    My thoughts were interrupted by a red hand placed against my forehead, the creature's golden eyes staring at me inquisitively. Almost as if she had seen something, a vision of something wholeheartedly unexpected. She took a step back, slightly shocked as I attempted to sit up, a great pain coming to my chest. Wincing, I bared through it, looking at her with the same confused look. She spoke a series of words in repetition and low utterance that I didn't quite understand, my head naturally turning to the only translator that I could rely on in the room.

    “She keeps claiming that, 'There are more.' Sir. Perhaps the good Admiral's diplomatic efforts have been in vain? Such a shame, he continued to report to us that he was getting rid of the galactic scum; the outcasts of society. I wonder what went wrong?" the android informed me, confusing me for a few moments. I decided not to delve into the issue for the moment as I winced, holding my ribs. They felt like they were still weak, but not broken.

    Pushing herself back against the wall, I watched the female attempt to regain her composure as she folded all four of her arms together, speaking in a softer tone to herself, tapping her forehead, rubbing her chin. Snapping her fingers, she takes hold of the android's head, pushing it into my lap, saying something firmly.

    “She wants me to translate everything she says by the word." He declares, his eye interface moving back to her as she continued with a slow series of words, pointing to her hands that each held a low light glow. I seemed confused, looking down to L-153.

    “She wants to do, what I believe is called in your tongue, a 'Lie-Detection Test'. Unfortunately, I don't think it translates well… It's more of an emotion and mind reader test. We do not have many documents on her kind in the Armada's databanks, but we do believe that they possess some sort of essence reader. My apologies about the failure to translate." It spoke, my hand patting its head as I stared at the female for a few moments.

“Why couldn't she just investigate or do that without asking me?" I asked, keeping my eyes locked in her golden mirrors as the android repeated my question, her eyes darting to the metallic head, responding while peeking glances back up to me.

    “She apparently needs verbal consent, it's a tradition. Whether it's true or means anything outside of a tradition, my databanks fail to recognize." It told me, as I continued, “Right… Well… Is there some way for us to get out of… Off… Wherever we are? As much as I love being in the hands of a hostile unknown entity…"

    “Position unknown, my apologies sir." It spoke to me, my attention then turning to the strange creature that stood before me. “What now, then?" I asked, the remains of the robot conveying my question.

She paused. For one moment, for two. For a dozen or more so minutes she stood up straight, her arms crossed, a mixed look of disdain and confusion plastered on her face as I rested, the wounds that had been inflicted on me earlier pulsing through my body in rapid waves. She spoke a few words quietly, a whisper under her breath as a yellow and black eyed head poked itself around the door, strewn ruby feather-like hair coated along its head down to its shoulders. A second poked around, looking eerily identical, except for sapphire feather-like hair instead of the previous one. They eyed me and I pretended to not notice them until they fell over in the doorway, one atop the other.

    The four-armed female took a few steps back before turning her head to them, lifting them up and sighing, the nearly twin-like scaled creatures brushing themselves up as the conversation continued onwards. Leaning my head down, I asked, “Eh… Translate..?"

    “Ah, my apologies sir. They appeared to be interested in, I quote, 'What the hell that thing is.' Their intentions overall seem half hostile, half curious using voice analyzers. The Jhakenn appears to be scalding them about not waiting for her orders. She is apparently their leader." He informed me.

    It was odd. Very, very odd to feel that my only seeming ally was the severed head of some android I had assembled what felt like moments ago. I was, to say the least, unnerved by the situation; what was to happen to me.

    I had made my peace with life before I left Earth. I said my goodbyes to my family, my mother… She wept as I hugged her and my father was as stern and silent as he ever was; though as I left, I noticed a dampness around his eye. Neither were too great about expressing their true emotions, it was either overdone or underdone responses. I prepared for my dog to be taken care of; I'll miss Lilly's smirk every time I scratched behind her ear or complimented her. Especially when she'd wake me up by hopping on my bed and falling asleep on my face, nearly suffocating me half the time. I'll even miss how the old guy who worked a homemade food stand near where I lived; he gave me discounts, offered to hook me up with his granddaughter or even just the strange stories he used to tell me. Bit of a pervert, but it's the little things you can look back on and smirk at sometimes. 

The world leaders had given all of us a vast quantity of wealth to enjoy ourselves for our final few days on Earth; a sort of thank-you for giving our lives to them. I had enough left over after all my splurges to give the old man enough to finally retire in comfort, my parents to take their adventuring across the globe in my name, and to my sister to finish off her college debts and for taking care of Lilly.

    Regardless of all the happy memories that I have, and all the preparations I made, I still feared for myself, like there was something that I hadn't finished that I wanted to get done. Fear, one of my oldest enemies, one of the driving forces of mankind…

    Looking up, my attention back to me, I hopped back, seeing the four-armed creature's golden eyes in my face as she stared curiously at me, a brow lifted. Leaning back, she spoke a few words, her eyes never leaving my face as mine never left hers.

    “She asks, sir, how many there are of you. If cooperation is to be given, then you may perhaps go back… I'm sorry, this must be lost in translation somewhere. She says 'Go back to your memories', though it may be back to home, to where one was, I am not certain."  L-153 spoke to me, my eyes narrowing.

    “Ask her if she just read my mind, I almost feel as she was prodding around in my thoughts." I spoke, wondering if it was something that she or her species could do. Before the robot started to speak up, she put a finger to its head, speaking in a stern tone to me.

    “She says, 'You gave consent to prod as I pleased, so answer the question'." He spoke up. I felt a lump grow in my throat as I sighed, rubbing my forehead. “Overall, through the colonies—“ I began, the android halting me. “I beg your pardon sir, but it's best to not answer that." He told. Pausing for a moment, I hadn't even begun to think about any of the repercussions that would occur.

    Nodding slowly, I narrowed my eyes, sitting up straighter while rubbing my chin, staring into her almost hypnotizing scleras. Narrowing my eyes, I begun to verbally retort; I had made as much peace as I could with myself, now to stand my ground, whether my spine agreed with my actions or not. “I believe I am due for an answer first. I'll work by you answering one, then I'll respond to one." I spoke, grinning and thinking, 'If you don't like it, tough luck. I don't care about not being in a position to demand answers.'

    As the robot translated, I felt her eyes burning a hole in my forehead, sighing as I imagined she could read my mind and the response I gave her in a half-experimental fashion. She leaned forward, taking a few steps towards me, stopping at the end of the bed that I was laying on. I tried to keep my face, my mind solid as she responded in her language.

    “She does not believe she is allowed to officially, and she once again expresses disdain for you, but if it'll get you to cooperate somewhat, she'll answer some." L-153 responded, adding, “Sir, the Admiral is pinging my location, would you like me to send him the coordinates? Perhaps a rescue effort may be in the works." I nodded to the robot head, my eyes shifting back towards the Jhakenn, extending my right arm out that had many point-based scars by now; a new anomaly, but I would ask later.

    Holding my right hand out, I spoke, “Very well. I can work with that. Where I come from, this is a sign of agreement or greeting, depending on the situation. Grab my hand, and move your hand up and down slowly." As the robot translated in a confused tone, she let off a laugh, turning towards me and grasping my palm with one of her four hands; a cool touch greeting me as she grasped it and attempted to shake my hand to some success. “I am called Nick. My species, as you may or may not understand, are Humans." I spoke, starting at the very basics. “S'vant." She spoke as best as she could with phonetics, continuing the sentence with her own tongue.

    Dialogue flew between us for nearly an hour before two more people walked in, both hunched over, long brown coats adorning most of their bodies with white clothing under the coat. Words were exchanged between the three as I kept my position, looking down at the robot's head as he spoke, “Message is sent, coordinates are sent. The Admiral has sent a confirmation ping, unknown ETA. Power reserves are low, unit is heading into minimal function mode to continue broadcasting the signal." Nodding at it, L-153's red eyes slowly dimmed before turning off.

    Alone now without a translator, just a peachy time. It was about here that I started to remember what I was accused of when I started speaking with her. Genocide? Rebellion? What exactly was Barakov doing out here? He was human and left our system with not so many resources, so how'd he exactly get a hold of all the advanced technology to construct a battleship? So many unanswered questions…

    Looking up, the three were staring at me, the four-armed female speaking in her tongue at me, to which I held up the head, showing her that it was deactivated and I couldn't understand what she was saying. Grunting, she nodded, shoving the two out the door, slamming it behind her.

    Nearly ten minutes later, she returned with a floating entity behind her; the entity a translucent green with a single flame at the center of its head, sporting a human-like physique and two blue eyes in front of it. As I stared at it, it approached me, looking all over before it reached out its ethereal like hand to my head. Flinching a little, I tried to swat it away, my hand merely phasing through the form. I was utterly confused by what this was or what it meant.

    It tapped my forehead, burning with the fury of a thousand suns, my head being thrusted back into the rest behind me, my body spasming out for a short period of time. “Ease yourself." It spoke, my body shaking uncontrollably, eyes fixated on the creature that glowed gently as it spoke, somehow knowing my tongue.

    My eyes rolled back slowly, my vision darkening as the mixture of scalding and sharp pain suddenly overtook my body. “F-Fuck!" I exclaimed, my mouth giving out before I faded out even further.