Chapter 7: Fighting Back

Javier rested against the wall for what felt like hours. His mind was at war. Fear and anger were constant friends, and he did his best to keep himself composed. For the most part, he felt sane. Memories would rush through his mind like daggers in the wind. It was difficult to keep himself together at times.

He felt the wave of hunger hit him again. For a moment, he looked at the fish that were swimming through the vein-like structures. There were nice little compartments designed to reach his hand into it. The Shal’rein must have designed the system perfectly so that you could grab one of the fish. Apparently, the fish were all capable of replenishing their own stock and be devoured by the Shal’rein crew. It was an interesting design, but Javier still didn’t feel hungry enough to try the local food raw. Nonetheless, the hunger was getting stronger. He wondered how much longer before it would overwhelm his thinking.

He heard the door open, which was enough to pull him out of his thinking as he focused on the door. The moment he saw the person come in, his adrenaline kicked in. He immediately recognized who it was.

“There is my favorite human,” Gishra’lar said with some ferocity in her voice. She came in as the door closed behind her. She began to ball her fist up and hit it with her other hand. Her long hair waved as she gritted her teeth at him. A devilish smile was displayed for him to see.

Javier stood up as he watched her. For a moment, he felt a surge of fear, but the memories of her previous assault ran through him. To be told what she did to him by the doctor only caused anger to run through him. He clenched his fists as he prepared for a confrontation.

“I’m not going to plead like I did last time,” Javier told her.

“When I am done with you, you will be...” She said. “I made the mistake of knocking you out. You will be alive and well when I have fun with you.”

“Says the weak little Shal’rein that has to rape aliens for a little thrill,” he snapped back at her.

Javier was not going to have any more of it. Hunger was driving his emotions. He knew of the situation and the power that he could have over her. The time of negotiation had ended. If she killed him, then she would be possibly punished for her actions. Shira had hinted it enough that he was better alive than dead.

“What?” she asked as she displayed her teeth to him. The serrated teeth looked like she could cut through anything.

“You heard me, puta,” Javier replied calmly. “You’re weak on the inside. Next time I’m in the battle, I won’t miss putting a bullet into your skull.”

Javier could feel a sense of control in the situation. It even surprised him. The sense of hope Shira had given to him flourished. Perhaps it was a lie. Most likely, it could be a lie. Maybe a hidden camera was posted somewhere that she was using to watch him. Regardless, a small part of him knew that there was a slight glimmer of hope. He was going to utilize this gift. Hungry or not. Weakened or not. Hopeless or not, Javier was going to fight to the end.

“Folar ... human...” she began to say in her own words. “Shan’tal resh.”

She said it with such ferocity. He knew that is she was speaking in her own language that he had tilted her well. A small part of him hoped that by angering her, she would be reckless. He knew she would attack him whether he wanted it or not.

“Then what are you waiting for,” Javier said as he got into a battle stance. “Fresh meat ready to be picked...”

Girsha’lar unhooked her holster and tossed it to the side. She simply gave him an angry gaze and walked up to him. Javier knew this was going to be a tough fight. Even with the knowledge, there was a likely chance he would lose, and she was going to have her way with him. He made peace with himself. Knowing the events that were going to come, he simply waited for the inevitable.

Gishra’lar walked around the pool as she got closer and closer to him. He watched every move that she was going to make. He noted her walking and even the direction in which her tail was swinging. This time, the battle would be different. Even if he was physically weaker than her, he was going to utilize every last ounce of energy. A strategy began to form in his head. He even felt a sense of peace as the adrenaline surged through him.

Her first action was a downward swing. Her towering frame forced her to attack downward at him. Javier quickly dove out of the way of the swing. He saw that it was in the direction of her large fin-like tail and could not swing it at him. This helped prevent her tail from being used against him.

She then tried to make an uppercut with her other hand, narrowly hitting him. Her fast speed was still a massive threat to him. It was still possible that she could win this battle easily. Instead, Javier was forced to back up. It was exactly what he wanted her to do.

“Hold still!” she yelled at him as she repositioned herself.

Javier could now see it. She was preparing to do an uppercut with her right arm. She positioned her tail so that if he dodged, he would go straight into her fin. This was a similar mistake that he made last time, and it resulted in him being put to the ground. This time he had the knowledge given to him. He had only one chance to win this fight. A small opening would appear, and he knew if done correctly, it might take her by surprise.

It was like time slowed down. The fist began to fly as her right arm flew through the air. There was a tiny opening that appeared. The uppercut she was making was wide, leaving her left hip open for a counterattack, but that was where the mistake was made. She was swinging her tail almost at the same time. Going to the right was the path to getting knocked down.

Instead, he went for the opening this time and leaped at her. He used all of his leg strength to propel himself as hard as he could directly at her head. The uppercut narrowly missed him. A few inches and the fist would have smacked his hip and sent him flying. The tail swung, but it would miss him.

He had cleared a foot from the floor as he held out both of his hands. She didn’t see it coming. She must have known that any counterattack by him wouldn’t have done much to her anyway. Even a clear shot from a fist into her snout or jaw wouldn’t have hurt her. Girsha’lar would be a titan if she were human, but thankfully she wasn’t. She had left the opening just enough that he flew closer and closer. Her right fin-like ear next to her head was the apparent target for Javier, and nothing was going to stop him.

Javier’s left hand hit her cheek, almost going into her mouth, which would have been a problem in itself. He even felt a slight graze as the skin of his arm narrowly hit the razor-sharp teeth that she had. His right hand, on the other hand, had the best approach. He felt it, and it grabbed true to its mark. All five of his fingers grasped the base of her ear.

Girsha’lar’s eyes widened as she realized too late what the man had done. With a powerful pull and tug by Javier, he twisted her fin ear as hard as he could. The grip was solid, and he could hear the sound of tearing flesh and bone. There was even a slight cracking sound as the bone began to pull in a direction that it shouldn’t. Javier had found her weak spot.

It was the first time he ever heard a Shal’rein scream. It was high-pitched at first but fell into a deeper tone. It was like her body had become paralyzed. Her tail fell stiff and still. Javier had grabbed onto her and wouldn’t let go. Her arms tried to grab him, but she had no strength in it.

“AHH ... Ahhh!” she screamed at the top of her lungs. She fell to her knees as Javier continued to pull as hard as he could at her. Blood began to even trickle to the deck as the fingers tore into the skin. He jumped around her to maintain his grip, but there was not much Girsha’lar could do. The action was implemented perfectly, as her left side had gone limp. It was like controlling her motor functions. Her right side was barely operating at all.

“Yeah, like that?” he said, rubbing it in. “Think it’s fun trying to rape me, huh? Who’s the bitch now?”

She was barely breathing, and a part of him wondered how long he should keep going. She was writhing in sheer pain. A portion of him didn’t want to let go. He felt that as soon as he would, she would turn and try to press her attack.

Instead, Girsha’lar was whimpering in pain. Her breathing was even staggering, like she was threatening to pass out.

Javier simply continued to twist and pull. A wave of anger was taking over him. It was sheer revenge by now, and he didn’t know what to do. Each second was like an agonizing minute for her.

The moment that Javier had hesitated seemed to be calling though. He never relinquished her grip, and it actually happened naturally. As she lay on her knees, she fell backward straight onto Javier. She was still screaming, but the weight knocked the wind out Javier. His grip weakened as she was only able to perform one last action. She rolled to her left, breaking free of his grasp.

Javier knew that he was in trouble the moment it happened, but at least he did what he could. He was staggered as he rolled and tried to get back on his feet. It was there that he saw the blood on the deck.

The Shal’rein was gasping as she slowly got back up. Her left side was completely limp, and it appeared that he damaged her motor functions. She was struggling to get up as she was giving deep chirps with her mouth. The damage was done as Javier was huffing and puffing. He got back in a battle stance as he faced her again.

Again, she staggered backward, almost falling to the ground. At first, Girsha’lar tried to hold her fist up to fight again, but she was drained. Her facial reactions even showed a moment of anger and panic. She was back on her feet, and she began to make a retreat.

Javier had enough as well. Perhaps out of sympathy or exhaustion, he didn’t want to continue the attack. He simply held his stance and readied himself if she would try to go after him again. From what he could see, Girsha’lar was in a staggered retreat. She was gaining enough purchase that she limped to the other side of the room. She hurriedly grabbed her holster and went to the exit. The man watched as the door slid open and the Shal’rein escaped.

Once the door closed, Javier finally smiled. He relaxed as he stood. He won the fight. Even if she returned, he could feel at least a sense of victory. Even if the Shal’rein were going to do horrific things to him, he had won this day and hour. It was more than enough that he could ever have. Hope and confidence had been restored in his mind.

Javier took a deep breath as he walked to the pool. He gently slipped into it, feeling the warm waters. Once he fully settled in and sat down, he rested his back comfortably, closing his eyes and smiling before he fell asleep.

Javier was startled awake by the sound of something metal placed near his head. The metal clink of something hitting the deck caused him to shift away from the noise almost instantly. His mind had been at peace for all this time until now.

As he turned to look at the source of the sound, he could see who it was.

“Doctor Folar’sha?” Javier reacted. “You surprised me.”

The doctor looked like she tried to come in quietly. He never even heard the door slide open. The Shal’rein woman appeared to be holding something she placed on the deck near him. She remained at ease as she stood up and backed away from him.

Javier looked at the metal container near the pool’s edge. It was square and had a metal connecting lid.

“What is this?” he asked her.

She kept her response as professional as possible. “Your meal. Lesser Adjunct Shira wanted to make sure that you are healthy.”

Javier could feel the hunger kick into full swing. It seemed to drive his mental state a little bit as he put his hand on the metal bin handle. Upon opening it up, he could see some steam come out. The bin was holding a square-shaped plate inside it. There was no silverware to it, but he could see what was on the plate.

“What is it?” he asked her. He looked at the plate, and it was a large piece of baked breaded meat of some sort. His mind filled in the blanks of what it was, but she answered before he fully figured it out.

“Jesk,” she replied. “It is the same marine life you see on the walls. It is cooked, breaded, and prepared for you.”

Hunger was driving Javier at the moment. He couldn’t think of the consequences of eating it and what it would do to his stomach. If the doctor had brought it to him, then maybe that was a sign that he could eat it.

It almost looked similar to fried catfish. The long tentacle had been cut off, and it merely looked like cooked fish. It was quite large but looked delicious.

Without much hesitation, Javier stuck his hands into the plate and grabbed the meat in his hands. He brought it to his mouth and took a bite out of it. It made a satisfying crunch in his mouth as he began to chew it. It had an excellent taste in his mouth as he began to eat it. His body couldn’t think of much else as he swallowed it.

The man paused almost to catch his breath. He closed his eyes as he felt the food hit his stomach. Satisfied, he opened his eyes to look at her. The big fish was still held firmly in his hands as she placed a large metal canteen next to him. It must have been water of some sort as well. She began to walk away to leave him behind.

“Doctor...” he called out to her. “Thank you...”

The doctor stopped as her tail swung in place. She turned around to look at him before giving him a few small, quick nods. There was even a brief smile on her face.

“Doctor...” he asked her. “About using the bathroom ... errm ... do you have a toilet?”

“Yes,” she said as she pointed to the panel. “If you need to use it right now, let me know, and I will have you escorted to it. The pool is also clean urine.”

“Wait, what do you mean by that?”

“It is a pool used by our crew. Urination happens in it all the time.”

He had a disgusted look on his face as he looked at the water. With the fish firmly in his hand, he almost stood up.

“Do not worry, Javier. It is designed to filter and clean the water quickly completely. I wouldn’t have put you into that pool if it had been dangerous for your health.”

“I guess that makes sense,” he said. He didn’t tell her that human public pools operated almost in a similar way in any case. For all he knew, their water was cleaner than even human water.

She began to walk out of the room. Javier took another bite as he relished the taste.

“It tastes better than cevan back on Cebravis,” he commented to her. She stopped as she turned her head to him. Her fin-like ears on her head turned to focus on his voice. She was quiet for a little bit.

“Doctor, I just wanted to thank you for keeping me together,” he continued. “I know you were more talkative than before, but something must have happened. They probably don’t want you talking to prisoners.”

She took a deep breath as she nodded her head in response.

“I just had a regular conversation with Lesser Adjunct Shira,” Javier told her. “She didn’t seem to mind talking with me. She seems more ... agreeable than the Adjunct.”

Folar’sha turned around to look at him. That seemed to break her loose of whatever was trying to hold her back from talking with him. There was a look of appreciation on her face.

“Yes ... I like her,” she replied to him.

“She must be a good Captain for this ship.”

“Yes, she is.”

“I noticed something when it comes to the Itrean language. I hear them use the word ‘Folar’ in reference to a cuss word. Your name is Folar’sha. Is your name a bad word?”

She tried to understand what he said as she tried to answer the best she could. “The word Folar would mean ‘less than dirt’ or ‘shit’ in the human language ... I think. Our language is designed to be modified into new ones when other words are added to it.”

“Ah ... so what does your name mean?” he asked as he took a bite of the fish and chewed on it.

“Umm...” she seemed to think about it. “Sacred home ... sacred place...”

“I am amazed at how good your language skills are. Even most of the Shal’rein have such good knowledge of our language. I can hear your accent, but it isn’t that bad. I wonder why?”

She seemed to think about it. “Our ... language is very ... specific. It is a very hard language to learn and speak. For example, you spoke Folar as a word, but because of the tone you used, it almost meant something different. For example, when you speak out of anger, it makes the word an insult. If you use it in a friendly tone, Folar can mean a friendly word.”

“Wow ... so simply the tone alone can mean the difference between the definitions of the same word?”

“Yes. That is just an example. Another example ... say the word ‘Hajl.’”

“Hajl,” he replied back in a neutral tone.

“That is the word for ‘Hello,’ but you have to say it correctly. Any tonal differences can turn the word into a word of insult.”

“That must have been difficult for you. I can understand why the Itrean clans fight each other now. A simple mistake in the word, and you can end up causing the people to hate one another.”

“Yes...,” she replied. “Your ... language is easier. I can say a word more freely and not worry as much that I might have hurt an Itrean’s feelings. The words can also be different among the genders as well.”

“Well, you don’t have to worry about that ... I guess,” he worded correctly. “I know that Zilik’s Disease wiped out the male population.”

She shook her head. “The ivon and the L’ivon are treated as male. I know personally...”

“You’re an ivon?”

She seemed embarrassed to confirm it.

“It’s alright,” Javier remarked. “I know it hasn’t been easy to force women to become men.”

“You know about the ivon?”

“Yes, I researched the cultural history of the T’rintar clan. I know it hasn’t been easy for your people. An entire race of people that lose their male population and then forcing some of the women to become ‘male’ to help ensure that the other women have a ... mate and have children.”

She did her quick nods to him. “Yes ... I wish for the day that my procedure can be reversed.”

“You were forced?”

“Yes ... by ... random selection.”

“Hmmm ... maybe things will get better. The UWA made an alliance with the T’rintar clan. Their benefit is starting to come through now.”

“Is it ... true?”

“What?” Javier asked her.

“I ... heard stories that the T’rintar ambassador got pregnant ... from a human. Other stories began to show up in other encounters as well. Is it true?”

Javier nodded his head.

“I...” she stammered. “I am finishing my tests right now to see if it is. I need to get back to work. Take care, Javier.”

The Shal’rein turned around and began to walk out of the door. Javier seemed to think about it for a little bit as he watched her leave the room. He looked at his fish and resumed eating. He thought about her words as he tried to eat as much as possible.

An hour had gone by as Javier passed out in the pool. The plate was empty. He felt a sense of happiness as he finally had food in his stomach. He drank the water given to him. The victory of the fight and nourishment was at least some symbol to him that he was doing alright under these circumstances. He had to keep himself aware of the goals that the Shal’rein had over him. Once the doctor finishes these tests, it would mean something very good or bad will happen. He did know that it was unlikely he would ever see home again.

The man opened his eyes as he could feel a presence in the water. He turned to the side to see Shira had just settled into the pool next to him. She was in the same spot as before, being topless in all. Her four fingers reached into her cigarette bin to pull out a cigarette as she had done earlier. Her composure was the same as before. She was calm and collected. Her demeanor was very neutral as she plucked a cigarette and used the laser lighter to begin lighting it. Once it started to burn, she placed the lighter into her box and decided to sit back and relax in the pool.

“Do you know?” he asked her.

She took a deep whiff of her cigarette as she looked ahead away from Javier.

“Know what?” she asked.

“It worked ... what you told me.”

Her eyebrow peaked as she turned to look at him. “Explain to me.”

“Gishra’lar tried to come in here and ... assault me. I used the knowledge you gave to me to full effect. She didn’t succeed.”

She turned her head forward and continued smoking. “I know...”

“Yeah, I imagine you do...”

“Knowledge is power and strength, Javier. With it, victory can be achieved. Both you and her have learned something valuable from this experience. She has learned that a human is more threatening than she expected. She underestimated you and will now spend a week recovering from it. As a result, I suspended her from her duties for putting herself in that position. Her foolishness will cost her in the report I have written. You have learned something from this event. You have gained confidence in yourself. You know that just because something is bigger than you doesn’t mean that they will always win the battle. You have also impressed me greatly from this victory as well.”

“Did you send her in to attack me?” he asked.

“No. She chooses to come in here and endanger our mission. She wanted revenge for your actions. Revenge does not gain much ground in the field of battle. You only use it to put the enemy at a disadvantage in combat and not yourself.”

“Don’t you have guards to prevent anyone from coming in here?”

“I do not need to have guards. You can’t escape from here.”

“What about Gishra’lar?”

“What about her? She is more afraid of you now. She will not return to bother you.”

Those words made Javier smile. Shira turned her head a little bit to see his smile. She looked forward and took a deep whiff of her cigarette. Her uncovered eye closed as she rested comfortably in the pool.

“Sure, you don’t want to smoke?” she asked as she gestured her cigarette to him.

There was a moment when Javier almost said yes. He shook his head and said no.

“Not much of a loss for you,” she continued. “I still have more of the poor brand I have to use up.”

There was a long moment of pause. Javier decided to bring things up.

“You captured me so you can use me to help repopulate the Shal’rein.”

“Hmmm...” she seemed to counter his words. “Not exactly...”

Javier seemed to look at her as he waited for a response from her. She seemed to concentrate on her smoking before she finally gave an answer to him.

“You think we launched an invasion on Aphadus to capture one lone human?” she asked.

“It appears to be.”

“Partly..., there was one main goal by the Shal’rein clan when they ordered me to attack your world. It was to cause as much damage as possible. The second goal was to capture a live specimen of a human. They ... wanted you much like the Aksren wanted with the humans.”

“For some reason, that doesn’t sound very good. I’m not comfortable with that idea.”

“Nor should you,” she said as she breathed out the cigarette smoke.

He began to feel a strong sense of unease. Cipra was such a disaster, and the end result was that the Aksren supposedly developed a bioweapon to drop on human worlds. Only recent events with the T’rintar clan seemed to slow it down. It was now evident that the Shal’rein were on similar goals.

“They want to make sure they have a weapon to drop on your worlds just as the Aksren do,” she confirmed. “You are to be brought to our capital world to be dissected.”

“Why are you telling me all this?”

“To confirm things. I followed my orders and did the task, but ... I can do things my way as well. I am the leader of this vessel. Only the Adjunct of the fleet holds any command over me.”

“I guess Folar’sha is going to be the one to take me apart then...”

“She will not. The tests that she is running are essential. Hope that she can confirm it ... it is the only way it will save your life.”

“How long will it take?” he asked.

“As long as it should.”

Javier felt a wave of frustration. The wave of doom seemed to gleam over him. The idea of being experimented and taken apart by their scientists to be converted into a weapon didn’t appease his mind. He knew since the beginning that he was in trouble the moment he was captured.

She turned her head to look at him. Her eye examined him closely as she kept a neutral face.

“Look...,” she commented. “Your situation is understandable. You have the right to feel the way you do. The goal is to hold your anger towards the leadership and not the soldiers doing their duty.”

“You have launched an attack on my world. You devastated my home, kidnapped me, and now tell me that I am going to be killed to help kill my people. How would you think I feel?”

She took a quick drag of her cigarette. “Remember, hold your anger towards the people who are in charge.”

“You were in charge of the attack on my world. It resulted in a death of a friend. Lives were lost.”

She turned her head forward as she continued smoking her cigarette. “Let me ask you something. I took charge of the attack on your world for many reasons. Yes, it was a goal by the Shal’rein clan, but what about my goals?”

The question took Javier off guard. He was flustered as he gave her a fierce gaze. She simply closed her eye as she sat comfortably in her spot.

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“Think about it. I implemented an entire plan that resulted in bypassing your fleet. Your leader decided to foolishly send the defense fleet away from Aphadus long enough for my ship to come in and attack your world. Why would I commit to such an action? The Shal’rein clan have plenty of warships available. Their initial plan was to just bash into your defenses in one all-out assault. I argued otherwise. Why would I do that?”

“The T’rintar Clan would have come to our defense...”

She waved her cigarette at him. “We would overpower the defenses, launch a raid on your world, and we would ensure that we gather a few specimens before we left. I argued against it. Why would I do that?”

Javier tried to think about it. He began to picture the battle and how it would have played differently if it turned into one full-out assault.

“Describe to me in detail what you see,” she told him.

“I can picture hundreds of warships fighting one another out in space. Reinforcements are coming in from all directions. Both sides would take casualties. Many lives would be lost.”

“More so than what you saw not long ago?”

Shira had a point that Javier hadn’t considered. He kept thinking of the battle and how it played. It was a quick precision strike rather than an all-out assault. If Shira had been telling the truth, then it would have meant that the Battle of Aphadus would have been a lot different than it was going to be.

“Alright ... so you created a battle that resulted in fewer casualties ... I still don’t know if I can forgive you for that.”

Shira sighed as she kept her eyes closed. “I am not expecting forgiveness. Forgiveness can result in forgetting. Forgetting can lead to a disaster that results in more lives being lost and foolish mistakes from being made. That is why history is important. You let the historians study the battle and let them analyze who did what.”

Javier noted that she opened up her eye and peeked in his direction when she said it.

“What?” he asked.

She looked back forward. “Javier, let me ask you another question. Is all your anger towards me?”

“What do you mean?”

“You hold anger towards me for the events that led you here. I carried out the plan that resulted in many deaths, including your friend. Is the anger only directed towards me?”

“I ... certainly feel a lot of animosity towards you, yes.”

“What about your leader?”

“My leader?”

“The plan fell perfectly because the defense fleet left Aphadus. How do you feel about that?”

Javier remembered listening to the command staff and how the battle should have been conducted. He thought about Fleet Admiral Gray.

“I am ... frustrated with the command staff and how they operated in the situation,” he admitted.

“I concur. The operation I had planned out was designed for your defenses. I anticipated the command staff of your world would commit to such an action, and they did it exactly. Predictable and idiotic. If there is one thing that you will learn about me, it is that I dislike incompetency. Us Shal’rein are capable of committing to the same mistakes as you saw on your world.”

Shira turned around and stabbed her cigarette into the ashtray. She then grabbed another cigarette from her metal bin before lighting it.

“This lighter ... I need a new one,” she commented with the cigarette in her mouth. “This thing barely works anymore. Ugh...”