"Why s'nalian wo' are you looking at me like that?"
It's been a few hours. I've spent them watering plants, listening to Mira prattle on about nothing in particular, and trying to avoid any more of her bizarre questions. Eventually, the work is done, and she tells me it's time for lunch. I'm not sure if that's because of the schedule that Llywelyn mentioned earlier, or just because she's hungry. But I follow her out of the greenhouse, and we head back to the cafeteria.
Llywelyn is already there, sitting at a table with a plate of food in front of him. He's wearing a similar outfit to earlier, dark blue slacks, a ruffled cream shirt, and a long black coat. He looks up as we walk in, and his eyes narrow.
Frankly... he's being a little unfair. I didn't even get the opportunity to stare at him awkwardly because of Mira's unhinged gossip. He could at least let me be guilty of the crime before accusing me of it.
I glare at him.
He looks. Even more offended. His chest pulses a vibrant blue.
"Good afternoon, Llywelyn!" Mira says, cheerfully, as if she doesn't notice the silent argument we're having. "How was your morning?"
"Fine." He says, and looks away. "You're late."
"We're not late! It's right on time!" She plops down at the table.
"I've been here for an hour." He says, flatly.
"Oh, well, I didn't know that!" She giggles.
He gives her a long, suffering look, and then turns to me. "And you. What have you been up to? Gossiping like a hen?"
I frown at him. "I don't gossip." I say, primly.
"Oh? And what were you and the rock talking about, then?" He raises a brow.
"I told her that she could-"
I cover her mouth with one hand. "Nothing that concerns you."
"Ah, you're adapting to her already?" he leans a cheek on his hand. "That is the most effective method to deal with her, I'll admit. I'm impressed."
"I am sitting right here!" Mira whines.
We both ignore her. "What were you doing?" I ask, instead.
"I just said. Sitting here."
"For an hour?"
"What else would I be doing? Working?" He wrinkles his nose in distaste. "Absolutely not."
"His work shift starts in an hour." Mira says. "So he just likes to sit and brood in the meantime. It's his hobby."
I stare at him. "Your hobby is being moody?"
He lifts a shoulder. "If you want to call it that. It's relaxing. Having no responsibilities for a time. Enjoying the silence." He glances at the emerald woman. "It's a nice change of pace to have someone else absorb her inane chatter."
"Hey! That's mean!"
"You have a very annoying voice. I should know. I've had to endure it for..." He trails off and makes a face, before shaking his head. "Eh. Far too long."
I don't understand their relationship at all. He seems to despise her, and she seems to either not notice or care. It's... odd. But I suppose I can't expect alien relationships to make sense. Even human ones don't always make sense.
"Sarah and I had a good time!" Mira says, proudly. "We talked about all kinds of things! She's very nice. She doesn't get upset when I talk about sex."
"We did not talk about sex." Any talk of sex was over my protests. But I don't want to explain that to him, of all people.
Llywelyn's expression is a strange mix of disgust and intrigue, and he leans forward. "You talked about sex with the sub-sapient? Disgusting. Tell me." His eyes gleam, and the blue glow in his chest is alarmingly bright. "What do they do?"
"Apparently they mate without breeding sometimes." Mira says, casually, and I feel like I've been betrayed.
I cover my face with my hands, and just hope that this is some kind of nightmare that I'll wake up from. This can't be my life. This can't be what I'm stuck with. A beautiful, but obnoxious and cruel man who wants to hear about human sex and a living gemstone that wants to tell him.
"Is that so." Llywelyn is clearly enjoying this. Unfortunately, I can see him through my fingers. His smile is wide, showing off those fangs. "Well, at least they know how to have some kind of fun. Most sub-sapients are only good for breeding."
I slam my fist on the table hard enough that not only Llywelyn and Mira jump, but also the poor server startles and spills a plate.
"THAT IS IT!" I snap. "I am not a sub-sapient! I'm not some fucking animal! I'm just as sentient as your smarmy self-superior ass. I - humans! - are not 'only good for labor' or breeding, or whatever fucked up shit you come up with next! You know NOTHING about humans! If I'm so fucking inferior, then how is I outsmarted your damn slave traders so much that I burned their whole operation and got dozens of humans sent back to Earth while they couldn't do a damn thing, huh?!" I shove my finger at his face, and I'm standing so fast my chair clatters to the ground behind me. "You and your damn, stupid Galactic Empire are full of shit! If you gave us the chance to join your fucking disgusting slave trading empire we'd refuse anyway, because at least we've figured out not to SELL PEOPLE!"
I am breathing hard. My pulse is pounding in my ears, and my face feels hot. My hands are shaking, I'm so angry. I don't even know what I'm saying. I'm just so tired of this. Of being treated like an animal, of being condescended to, of being looked down on. Of being stripped of - of everything! - of being tortured and abducted, of watching my friends die and be hollowed out...
All because some! Assholes! Decided that humans were less than them!
Llywelyn is staring up at me, wide-eyed. There's an unreadable expression on his face, and his chest is pulsing blue. The server sets down our food and quickly walks away.
"Sarah..." Mira says, her voice small.
I don't look at her. I'm too angry. I'm too... everything. I can't. I don't want to deal with this. I grab the plate of food that the server left in front of me, and turn around, marching out of the cafeteria.
I don't know where I'm going. I just need to get away. I need to be alone. I need to... I don't know. I just need to not be here.
I walk down the halls, not paying attention to where I'm going. I just... walk. My feet carry me, and my mind is a whirlwind of thoughts and emotions. I'm so tired of being treated like this. Like I'm less than. Like I'm nothing. Like I don't matter. Like my whole species is just a bunch of dumb animals.
I'm so angry. At them. At the empire. At Llywelyn, and at Mira for not understanding, for thinking this is normal, for thinking it's okay. At the aliens who took me from my home, from my life. At the universe for letting this happen.
I don't know where I am, and can't hope to find my way back to anywhere I know on my own... but I find myself in a room with a large window. The glass looks out into the blackness of space, the stars, the colorful clouds and distant nebulae. It's beautiful, but I can't appreciate it right now. I just feel...lost.
I sit down on the floor, leaning my back against the wall. I set the plate of food beside me, not really hungry anymore. I just stare out the window, at the endless expanse of the universe, and feel... so very small.
I don't know how long I sit there. Time doesn't seem to matter. It's just me and the stars, and the silence. And the pain in my chest, the lump in my throat, the tears that I refuse to shed.
I hear footsteps behind me, but I don't turn around. I don't want to talk to anyone right now. I just want to be alone. I just want to-
"Sarah." The voice is soft, gentle. Not Llywelyn. Not Mira. Someone else.
I glance over my shoulder, and see a woman I've never seen before. She's tall, with long, flowing hair that seems to be made of light. Her skin is pale, almost translucent, and her eyes are a deep, glowing purple. She's wearing a simple white robe, and she's barefoot.
"Who...?" I ask, my voice rough.
"I am Jxyim. I am... a...friend of Xilukulkas. And you are Sarah, correct?" She tilts her head, her hair shifting like a halo around her.
I nod, warily. "Yeah."
She smiles, and it's a gentle, serene smile. "I was sent to retrieve you. He wants to see you."
I feel a chill run down my spine. "He?"
I ask it as if there's any chance that it could be anyone else. I know who she means. Xilukulkas. The one who...bought me. The one who I'm supposed to call Master.
I don't want to meet him. I don't want to see him. I don't want to face him. I certainly don't want to answer a summons that's come right after I screamed and cussed out the whole galactic empire in public. But I don't think I have a choice.
She smiles. "The Great Xilukulkas, yes. He wishes to meet with you."
I sigh, and look down at my food. "I wanna eat first."
I'm surprised when she giggles. "Of course. Take your time." She walks over to the window, and stands beside it, looking out at the stars. "I'll wait with you."
I don't know what to make of her. She seems nice, but I don't trust that. I don't trust anyone here. Not yet. I look down at the plate, and pick up a piece of bread. It's still warm, soft. I bite into it, and chew slowly.
The silence is...not uncomfortable. It's not the heavy, oppressive silence of the prison camp, or the tense silence of the rebel base. It's...calm. Peaceful. Jxyim doesn't try to fill it with chatter, doesn't ask me any questions. She just stands there, watching the stars, a faint smile on her lips.
I finish the bread, and then the... noodles? They're still good, even cold. I don't know what they're called, or what they're made of. I just eat them, and then the soup, and the slice of whatever that was. It's all strange, but good. Filling. Satisfying.
When I'm done, I set the plate aside, and take a deep breath. "Okay. Let's go."
She turns to me, and nods. "Alright. Follow me."
I get to my feet, and trail after her. She leads me through the halls, the same ones I walked through before, but I still can't figure out where I am, where we're going. It all looks the same to me. All grand and opulent and alien.
We stop in front of a pair of large, ornate doors. They're made of a dark wood, carved with intricate patterns. In the center of each door is a large, round knob, made of some kind of crystal. Jxyim places her hand on one, and it glows. The doors swing open, silently, revealing a room beyond.
She gestures for me to go in first, and I hesitate, but then step forward. I don't know what to expect, but what I see is...not what I imagined.
The room is huge, much bigger than any other I've seen so far. The ceiling is high, the walls are covered in tapestries and paintings, the floor is covered in plush rugs. There are statues, and vases, and all kinds of art and artifacts. It's like a museum, or a palace.
In the center of the room is a large, round bed, piled high with pillows and blankets. No one is present in the room.
"Please be seated." Jxyim says, pointing to a low, round table, with cushions scattered around it. "He will be with you shortly."