Chapter 3: The Goddess of Water and Beauty Part 1

It was like a dream...

For a moment, Scott was mesmerized. Was this the same woman he danced with that night? Was there a god that wanted to make such a union possible? A nearly naked alien woman sat in a pristine bed, almost as if she were beckoning him to join her.

No ... Scott’s mind was pulling him ... tugging his emotions into reality. The Itreans were supposed to be like this, right? They behaved this way on purpose. At the same time, he had to remember that this wasn’t something that might not lead to a relationship. Maybe she was just acting friendly, and he was falling in love with the very idea that he liked someone who was gentle and kind to him.

“Scott?” Veleshar leaned her pointed snout forward some. A hint of a chuckle could be seen on her face as Scott regained his senses.

“Oh ... um ... I’m sorry,” Scott fumbled his words. “Adjunct ... Uh ... Greater Adjunct Veleshar. Yes ... Petty Officer Scott, reporting for duty...”

“Yui’to, ... you have your duties to attend to. Leave me with Scott so I can brief him on the ship’s operations.”

Yui’to bowed her head a little bit. She lightly slapped Scott’s backside. “Remember...” The towering Shal’rein told him. “Gym ... today ... be there.”

With that, Yui’to left the Adjunct’s quarters. When the door closed behind her, it left just Scott and Veleshar alone. The Shal’rein captain leaned back to her in a similar pose as Scott gained his bearings, adjusting to the sight before him.

“I knew you would come,” Veleshar told him in her serene voice.

“Ah ... um...,” Scott tried to say as a hint of a smile appeared on his face. “Yeah ... Let’s just say that our dance left a good impression on me. Honestly, I didn’t think you meant it when you asked me to come to your ship.”

“I absolutely meant it. For a little while, I was nervous that you wouldn’t accept it.”

“I thought about it ... let’s just say that I needed something new in my life.”

The way she spoke. There was barely any accent at all. There was certainly something mystical about it. Her mastery of the English language was near perfect. It was almost as if she were raised by humans in a human environment.

“So ... Scott,” Veleshar addressed him. “You wish to work on my ship and learn about us. Is that correct?”

“Yes...,” he answered.

“Tell me about your skills.” She moved her finger. “About your experiences. I know it, but I want you to tell me ... from your own words.”

“Let’s see ... I’m an engineer. I originally worked as a plumber for ten years after I graduated from school. Eventually, I decided that enough was enough before I joined up with the military.”

“How is it?”

“Better than the civilian life, mostly. I served onboard the UHN Mountbatten, one of the more powerful warships in the UHN, for almost ten years.”

“And the prestige that also follows it.”

“Eh...,” Scott waved his hand in a teetering motion. “Nelson Battleships were known as maintenance hogs. The earlier ships were prone to breakdowns. It’s an engineer’s nightmare. The only good thing about it was that I ended up learning about every little piece of equipment and tool out there. Then, I got shifted to Gunner’s mate. Cross rated into it a few years ago, although I still work with engineers often and know their tricks of the trade. That was ... before we met your people, obviously.”

Her curiosity was present. “Continue...”

“Once they signed the whole partnership treaty, I felt like enough was enough for me. I needed a change. I asked to volunteer and be reassigned to the Cebravin Lend-Lease Engineering Corps ... get a chance to see your people up close on those Ikra Battleships and ... the technology as well, even if it was, by your standards, forty or fifty-year-old tech.”

“Not true...,” she corrected him.

“What?”

“You are implying that fifty-year-old technology is obsolete. We, Itreans, are much slower in advancing our technology than yours. You humans are quite stunning in how you improve your technology.”

“Really?”

“Yes. The only true limit for our race is resources. Poor economies mean that our ships get weaker, built to fit the usage of mass construction under weakened budgets. For example, those Ikra class Battleships were built at the end of the Emphra War. I’m sure you understand what that war was about.”

“I’ve heard a little bit about it,” he replied.

“They were built to serve the United Itrean Republic. It was designed so that Yutilians, Aksren, and Shal’rein could operate the equipment equally. But...,” her eyes looked away. “It never really came to be. They were mass-produced by each clan and slowly discarded. I remember my former mate was disappointed in how little care was made for them.”

“Well, at least we use them. Better for us to utilize them instead of just letting them rot in the shipyards.”

“Indeed, I agree.”

Scott looked around and saw his bags. “I don’t understand,” he told her. “Am I supposed to get my own quarters?”

“There isn’t any room available in the habitat ring,” she replied.

“Umm...,” he pointed at the door. “All your rooms are used up?”

“Yes, much of the space in this ring has to be devoted to the cloaking scales. Did you expect to have your own room?”

“I ... uh...”

Scott didn’t have an answer. He knew where the conversation was going next. Did she actually intend for him to stay in her room? The man scratched the back of his head.

“I ... yeah,” he replied. “I mean, Captain and enlisted ... being in the same room...”

Ugh ... his mind knew that was a crappy response. Yet, his bags still remained by his feet, and there was a partially naked captain sitting in a bed before him. It was so awkward to him, almost like she set it up this way.

She smiled and looked down some. “Are you basing your thoughts on UHN rules?”

“Let’s just say ... that I don’t want to create some interspecies incident with the Adjunct.”

“I doubt you have anything like that to worry about. Besides, I was the one that requested to have you sent here. How about ... that you stay in my room because I’m worried about you getting caught in some ‘interspecies incident’ with my crew?”

Scott had to admit that was a good response. He was starting to see more and more of Veleshar’s wisdom, which naturally flowed from her words.

“Hmmm...,” he thought. “You got a good point. Just not used to being such an underling being in the same quarters with a person in such a high place.”

“You may find the benefits of being with the person at the top of the sea. Many of the lesser centurions have crowded spaces. Thankfully, the Yutilians have enjoyed the enormous space since it was meant for Shal’rein to live in.”

Once again, the question in Scott’s mind came back to fruition. It was time that he finally asked it.

“I don’t understand,” the man said. “I’ve never seen a Shal’rein Captain ... err, Adjunct in T’rintar clan forces, especially one that commands a warship.”

“There are a few. You just never met one until now.”

“But the T’rintar still consists of mostly Yutilians. Their ships would have to be more specially built to accommodate Shal’rein. They would normally prefer Shal’rein in the role of soldiers than anything else, let alone the construction for such a ship as this ... it’s ... incredible.”

“Because this ship was built by Shal’rein. I built it alongside my former mate whose name it carries.”

Scott displayed surprise upon hearing that. “Wait ... what?”

“This is a Shal’rein warship.”

“T’rintar Shal’rein ... you’re saying that your former husband was Gular’shel?”

“No. This was not a T’rintar Shal’rein warship. This was built at the orbital platform at Shal’tar. Gular’shel was a Grand Master Adjunct of the Shal’rein clan. I was his mate.”

The words sank into Scott’s mind as he considered it. This vessel is a Shal’rein clan warship. Yet, it missed the colors of purple on the outside hull. At the same time, Veleshar’s prestige seemed to outshine anything in that instant.

A Shal’rein warship ... the realization of what he just heard. How was that possible? A mild panic began to build in his mind. The thoughts went back to the incident he heard at Aphadus last year.

“Umm ... uh...,” he tried to say.

“Are you ok?” she asked him.

“No ... no ... this ain’t real.”

“What isn’t real?”

He pointed his finger at her. “This is a Shal’rein warship ... the purple interiors ... I should have seen it coming ... the hints were all around me, and I didn’t see it.”

“What is?”

“I’m being kidnapped, aren’t I? I fell into your little trap. You’re just being nice to me. It’s going to be like what happened to that one officer at Aphadus, except he was taken by force. I’m being shipped to be dissected by your...”

“Javier? Do you know him?”

“No ... no...,” Scott shook his head. “I’m on board an enemy warship. Nice try, but I’m not answering...”

“Wait ... wait,” Veleshar held her hands up to stop him. She stood up and walked over to him. “Scott, I served the Shal’rein clan. Me and my crew defected to the T’rintar with this ship. I serve the T’rintar clan. I can assure you that I have no ill will in taking you back to Shal’rein clan space.”

The moment Scott heard that he relaxed a little bit. “You ... switched sides?”

“Yes, most of the crew on this ship are the original crew that left their homes a year and a half ago. We took one of their best ships with us in the process.”

The man put his hand to his mouth as he showed a hint of relief. “Oh...,” he put his hand to his forehead. “Boy, did I embarrass myself or what?”

Veleshar walked and gripped the man’s hand. “Scott, you have nothing to fear from me,” she explained. “This ship was built by me and my prior mate. Gular’shel was a man of wisdom and power forged by his past experience. When I decided to leave the Shal’rein clan, this ship would come with me. I could never leave his memory behind. Besides...” She let go of his hand and used the other hand to brush his face. “I could use somebody like you onboard my ship. I know the strengths and weaknesses of the Gular’shel. It needs a crew that knows how it works and how it can be fixed when something breaks.”

Scott shrugged. “I’m honored by the proposal, but my expertise only goes so far. An Itrean is going to know more about her equipment than a human that’s worked on it for over a year.”

She shook her head. “It’s exactly what I’m looking for. As you would say, I need an outsider, one that thinks ‘outside the box.’”

“I’ve never worked with cloaking scales before. I can help out on weapons, but that’s assuming the railgun technology is the same as the Ikras.”

“Good.” She turned around and walked back to her bed. Her long, gray, fin-tail almost seemed to drag along the carpet almost intentionally. She almost whipped around so quickly that a part of her left breast was partially exposed. The Shal’rein woman gripped and caught her breast before exposing herself to him. She sat back down as Scott shook his head.

“So...,” she asked him. “Is there anything else you want to talk to me about?”

The man felt a slight tug of war in him. He needed a moment to digest the information being given to him. The realization that this was a Shal’rein clan ship led by a former Shal’rein Adjunct was still echoing in his mind. Veleshar was correct. If she wanted to bring harm to him, she would have already done so.

Was that the case, though? Were the other Shal’rein clan people just as friendly as Veleshar?

No, there were still cases of Shal’rein clan violence against UWA interests. This was a complete total war. The Aksren and Shal’rein clans had unofficially declared war on the UWA the moment they met them. But what about those who disagreed with the war?

“Why did you defect?” he asked her.

There was a pause as she thought about it. “Many reasons,” she said. “Too many to count.”

Veleshar wasn’t going to elaborate any further. Perhaps it was too early to ask that question, and in time, maybe she would expose more to her reasons.

“I see...,” Scott remarked.

“Let’s just say that I had to...,” she told him. She bent her leg up, showed her webbed foot, and slowly oriented her left leg to cross them with the other. There was a very brief moment when Scott swore he saw Veleshar’s vaginal slit exposed underneath the bathrobe. He knew she did that on purpose. She played innocent in her action, almost as if it weren’t her intention, but her shark-like eyes glared into his and the very tiny movement when his pupils naturally fell to gaze between her legs.

“Ehmm...,” Scott cleared his throat. “So ... What’s going to be my first assignment since it seems I will be reporting directly to you?”

“Actually, you’ll be working with Yui’to for most of the ship operations,” Veleshar explained. “The first priority is to get you checked out with our Doctor. We need to make sure you are fit to be able to operate on this ship.”

“I can promise you that I’m ready.”

“Still, just to be safe. I need you to report to our medical. Doctor Kol’da’gash has never been well-mannered. You’ll have to check up with her first, though.”

“Well-mannered?”

Veleshar gave a slight hint of annoyance. “She has a tendency to challenge and aggravate others. I trust her, though, and you can’t have a better greater centurion than her ... at least in medicine. I’m not going to have much else for you to do in the day except meet and operate with the crew. I’m sure Yui’to will have plenty of work for you to do.”

“What about your assignments?”

“Being a Greater Adjunct has its advantages. We aren’t too busy during these couple of days, but ... you know that a battlefield is an unpredictable place. I almost have to thank the T’rintar for sometimes not being too aggressive, although it still carries its share of problems. At least it will give you a chance to adjust.”

“Of course.”

Veleshar stood up from her bed as she walked over to a set of cabinets. She tapped a button as both shelves popped open. There was a nearby wardrobe where she opened the two furniture doors. A small mirror, along with racks of uniforms, were neatly tucked away.

“I am sure you understand Itrean time operations?” Veleshar asked as she looked in the mirror.

“Hmmm ... that ... might be a problem,” Scott said. “I’ve heard of it. You call it ‘Gosin Neu Trea,’” he tried to make a click sound with his voice.

“Close enough ... not too bad.”

“Is it true that it’s 12 hours a day?”

“16-hour day cycles, but ... we use the 15-hour Bensa’Do’Trealo scale on this ship. It’s the Gok’shinta time scale. We prefer it since it gives 5 hours per each watch while giving enough time to eat and exercise, along with at least the time needed to get sleep.”

“You still have a shadow watch?” he asked.

“After the 1st duty shift of the day, yes.”

“So, in other words, it’s ten-hour workdays with five hours off?”

“Yes.”

“Well, that’s the catch. We, humans, typically need six to eight hours to sleep.”

“I know. I’ve already instructed Yui’to that you need more sleep than Itreans. Don’t want you passing out.”

“And making a fool of myself in the process. Heh...”

“What is it?” she asked as she pulled out her uniform.

“Just sharing that sort of information with you. I mean ... you’re a Captain, and I’m just a lower enlisted man. I’m just not used to that.”

“My ... what you would call ‘uncle’ became a mate to a lesser adjunct long before the great disease. He was just a Lesser centurion.”

“Really?”

“Yes,” she slumped her fresh uniform onto her arm and turned to look at him. “Love happens anywhere, Scott,” she said with a hint of pride. “In Itrean society, a lone bachelor never ignores the desire for a higher rank. It’s a symbiotic relationship for both individuals.”

“I guess it brings a whole new level to fraternization.”

“It is a rare word in Itrean society. We prefer that the ‘underlings’ seek the attention of those at the top. Love is just one of its many possible bountiful rewards.”

Again, she said it with a hint of pride, like there was nothing wrong with her statement whatsoever. For Scott, it almost felt like a hint of fresh air, as fraternization wasn’t a popular concept in the UHN. But, with the Itreans, they almost seemed to welcome it. To him, it brought a new meaning to “sucking up to the boss.”

“Mmm...,” she smiled as she stiffened her stance a little bit. “I need to change. I suggest you unpack. You may use my cabinets to store your belongings. I will need to do my daily rounds. I can take you to meet our Doctor, but I will make sure that you meet up with Yui’to after that so she can tour you around the ship. Does that sound good?”

Scott nodded. “Yes, it does.”

She was about to enter her bathroom when Scott was tempted to ask her another question. He could see that the Adjunct had a schedule to keep. It was best to come back to it at a later time...

“Come in, human,” a disgruntled female voice echoed in the room. “Sit...”

“Alright,” Scott said.

“I’ll wait outside,” Yui’to replied.

The medical bay of the Gular’shel was small but cozy. For Scott, it would be described as a long rectangular room consisting of three large beds. There was a single closed-off office and another room that was allocated to something else. Scott wandered over to the first bed and sat on it as Yui’to left the room.

Doctor Kol’da’gash had already set a persona in the room. She was like a typical Shal’rein, being about eight feet in height. Scott recognized that she might have been a Gok’shinta in origin. She had a stout body, was bald, had fin-like ears, and had dark grayish scale-like skin. Her stubby snout had a single tattoo with what appeared to be three ink slashes near the left cheek, almost like they were tally marks. She wore a green and purple uniform with a loose-fitting jacket that slung over her pants. It carried a row of various medical tools that hung from her pocket, almost as if they were ready to fall out.

However, Scott could see that Kol’da’gash was seemingly ill-tempered. A part of her left lip would show a hint of her shark-like teeth, but she was not being openly hostile toward the man.

She sighed and walked over to the bed from where Scott sat down.

“Doctor Kol’da’gash?” he questioningly greeted her.

“What is it?” she begrudgingly replied.

The man could see she wasn’t happy. She stood in front of him and took out her set of tilons. The two metal strips were pulled apart as she pulled out a small probe scanner. The tiny spike device was held not far from the man’s nose.

“How ... was ... your day?” he hesitantly asked her.

“My English is poor,” she told him with a few clicks in her voice. “Quiet ... I scan you.”

Scott had a chance to see more of the room as the doctor was doing her scans. There was a display mounting placed over the medical bed to Scott’s left. It seemed to show a set of vital signs, but a flashing set of squiggly lines were flashing. Was it an error message?

“Humans...,” the Doctor said. “So weak ... one heart...”

“I can promise you that I’m not so...”

“Quiet!” the woman raised her voice. She seemed more annoyed as she continued her scan.

Scott could see what Veleshar meant when it came to the ship’s medical officer. He had to trust that Kol’da’gash was just mean in person.

“Hold still,” she told him. The Shal’rein reached up and grabbed the man’s head. The heavy four gray fingers gripped the top of the man’s head as he felt his head be jolted to the side. The same probe was being brought to the base of Scott’s neck. There was a light pop sound from the sudden pull, but nothing painful.

“Agh...,” Scott reacted with a grunt.

“Relax,” she begrudgingly told him.

The scanning continued. Scott couldn’t tell if the doctor was having a hard time with her scans or not. The same flashing message could be seen on the display. Kol’da’gash would momentarily stop and look at the display before shaking her head.

“Having a hard time reading me, huh?” he asked her.

“Yes...,” she replied in annoyance. “You ... different ... no Itrean.”

“Hmmm ... sounds like a glitch or mechanical fault in your systems. The Ikra battleship equipment worked just fine in being able to scan me.”

“Ergh...,” she placed her probe on the table. “Fine. Have your shots...” She pulled out a series of large hyposyringes from one of her pockets. They were shaped like coned pencils with clear vials at the ends. Each one had a different colored fluid to them.

“I received the shots last year.”

Scott knew that he was due to receive more booster shots. The threat of pathogens, bacteria, and viruses that the Itreans had was ever-present. Even if their bodies were well capable of handling disease, human bodies were more susceptible to them. Even the most simplest of diseases could be lethal. Thankfully, the T’rintar were quick to assist humanity in finding vaccines for a variety of pathogens and deadly bacteria.

The doctor was aggressive. She would take each applicator and practically jab them into the man’s neck. The injection was painless, but slamming the dull applicator into him did hurt.

“Hey, take it easy,” Scott explained.

“Hold still,” she told him.

“Ack!”

“Do not be a child, human.”

There were three applicators slapped into his neck. When the doctor finished up the three injections, she slapped them back into her pocket and forcibly let go with her large hand. Finally, she pulled out one last hyposyringe and gazed hard into his face.

“What?” he asked.

“Your pants ... off,” she said.

“What?”

She sighed. “Pants ... clothes below ... off.”

Was she serious? “Fine,” Scott said. “I’ll do it. Why do I need to?”

He was undoing the Velcro of his uniform and began to expose his shirt and boxers to her. Her gaze looked upon him without a scent of care. She was waiting.

“What is this for?” he asked her.

“Booster shot,” she replied.

“It has to be injected into my lower extremities?”

“Yes. Diseases attack anything. Can make things rot ... and fall off.”

“Heh ... can’t argue with that.”

Scott began to pull his underwear down. He didn’t consider the fact that he was exposing himself to an alien doctor, but he was sure that she knew what she was doing. One question did remain, though. Why was he getting a shot down there? He never needed to be vaccinated below the belt. Why now?

He pulled his underwear down as his penis plopped open. The large flaccid member was exposed, showing a thin line of dark pubic hair. It was so large that it even made Kol’da’gash’s eye show a hint of surprise for a second. It didn’t take long before she brought the applicator down to the man’s right leg, near the base of his right leg. A simple injection, and she pulled it back.

“Hmmm ... not bad,” she commented with a hint of annoyance. “We are done here.”

“Not bad, what?” Scott asked as he pulled his underwear back up. He began to slap the Velcro back on and cover himself again.

“Your ... penis,” she made a few clicks in her voice. “Same size as mine.”

“Oh ... you’re an ivon?”

“Yes ... not my choice.”

No wonder she was cranky. “I see...”

“No pity,” she waved her hand at him. “Just go.”

“Alright,” Scott said. “Thank you.”

The man hopped off the bed as the doctor left. Scott could see that she wanted nothing more to deal with him. He looked at the display again and kept note of it before turning his attention to the door.

When the medical door opened, Scott left the room to the outside passageway. Yui’to was perched on the opposite wall. She appeared to have some sort of toothpick pressed between her teeth, almost as if she were bored. She used her fingers to clean the tip before putting it into her pocket and focusing on him.

“Ready to go?” she asked him.

“Yes,” he replied.

“Then follow me.”

He began walking alongside Yui’to. Scott wasn’t going to let this walk be one of silence. He decided to bring in the small talk.

“Your Doctor is ... uh...,” he tried to say.

“We say ‘Zic’Zic.’”

“Zic’Zic?”

“I’m not translating it. She’s always like that.”

“I guess it’s as Veleshar commented.”

“Our Doctor is one you do not cross. Even her mate is one that treats her with care.”

“I see.” They made it to a turn. “So ... where are we going?”

“You need strength to survive this ship,” Yui’to explained. “In the Shal’rein clan, the greatest, smartest, and strongest of Shal’rein gain the pleasure of serving onboard a Krintarch Warship.”

“That’s what this vessel is?”

“The ... type 266. Krintarchs were among the best warships of the Nak’Ko’Ken before the United Itrean Republic. They served as frontline command ships and heavy hitters. In Veleshar’s ambition and Gular’shel’s wisdom, they sought to bring these warships back,” she made a few clicks in her voice. “However, Gular’shel knew these ships could be improved. Before his death, he created the designs of a Krintarch fitted with cloaking scales and better weapons. In his wisdom, he believed that the cost of making a ship like this was worth it.”

“I can believe it,” Scott said as they made another turn down the passageway.

“Gular’shel believed that the best crew combined with the best equipment could make a ship that could wipe out hundreds of Emphra warships. As the second in command of this ship, you must prove to us that you can serve it.”

“It’s ... a serious undertaking, Yui’to. I won’t lie that I don’t feel overwhelmed by your ship and what it stands for.”

“Then the first step is to make you a warrior. You must have the courage to face hundreds of foes at once. Veleshar may trust you ... but you must serve us. In order to do that, we need to talk about your people.”

“What about it?”

“I ... heard the humans hate guns. That belief makes a Shal’rein angry.”

“Ummm ... I wouldn’t necessarily say that’s completely true,” Scott countered. “Some planets they ban firearms, others we have no laws on firearms. Some are in the middle. It depends on the people and the politics that preside over it.”

“You carried no gun ... I saw the others on your base that didn’t carry them. Do you not believe in protecting yourselves?”

“We have guards that do it.”

“That is stupid,” she said with a few clicks in her voice. “And if your guards betray you or are occupied, they can’t protect you.” She stopped as Scott turned to look at her. “Do you stand there and let the enemy kill you?”

“I imagine the answer would be no. Look, Yui’to, I know what you’re getting at, but I think you are more preaching to the choir than giving me a lesson. As a gunner’s mate, I work with weapons all the time. I help qualify those to use guns ... working with weapons ... and so on. I know a lot more about firearms than you think.”

“What does Veleshar use?”

Scott looked at the gun that was holstered on Yui’to’s right hip. It was shaped like a large revolver, unlike Veleshar’s, which had something that was more of a semi-automatic. It was gray and white with a main barrel and a secondary barrel mounted underneath, most likely a mini grenade launcher.

“Veleshar is using an SH-110, mostly in black,” he answered.

She seemed impressed. “Good ... what else do you know about our guns?”

“Most of them have a palm reader so that only the owner can fire it.”

“Because all Shal’rein are taught to build their own guns. If the shooter’s gun doesn’t work, then it’s the Shal’rein’s fault for not having it built well enough or having good ammunition.” She made a few more clicks in her voice. “They won’t let you carry a gun ... a ... disgrace. I remember seeing the humans on the Lifen ... the warriors that were training. There was happiness in their faces. The guns they carried helped give them strength.”

Where was this conversation going? Before Scott knew it, the two reached a door as Yui’to tapped the nearby panel.

The door slid open to reveal a long rectangular room. Yui’to stepped inside as Scott followed close behind her. The interior compartment consisted of a workshop of some sort. The scent of sulfur, gunpowder, and gun oil seemed to loom at times. One section consisted of equipment where an adolescent Shal’rein with curly brown hair, white and purple dress, and light blue scale skin resided. She was so busy looking at a pistol frame that she barely noticed the two walk in. Her butt was planted to one of the chairs as she brought the frame to what might have been a drilling press with blue fluid housed on its sides.

The other side of the vast interior appeared to be a shooting gallery. It wasn’t anything particularly big, as the ship’s rotating ring limited the size of the room. There were at least twenty meters available.

“Cio’dejdra,” Yui’to called out to her. The towering Shal’rein began to speak her own language. The sounds of clicks and chirps could be heard along with the fluent Itrean words to accompany her. The teenager paused in her work and looked at Yui’to and the lone human next to her. The blue Shal’rein responded back in the Itrean language, gesturing to her work.