The following days pass in a sort of strange sort of peace. Llywelyn and I settle into a routine, of sorts. We do our duties together, we eat together, we sleep in the same room. We are both terrorized by Mia's endless cheer. It's not as if we're glued at the hip, obviously. I make a point to give his baths a wider berth now. And we do have separate duties.
And I'm not just seeking him out. If I don't happen to cross paths with him for a while, that's fine, I can fill in the time with the few people I've met or just. Sitting outside under the nebula, which is still visible from the planetoid, although we've long left it behind. Or with the creepy bird. That one. Is not intentional.
The damn thing just stalks me.
Anyway.
The week has just about passed. I need to tell Xilukulkas what I've decided. But... I just haven't yet. Maybe I'm pretending, to myself, that I'm still debating whether to stay here or go with him, and haven't allowed Llywelyn's presence to influence that.
Even if... maybe it actually has. A little.
I just don't want to go through the embarrassment of admitting it.
So I won't.
Admit it, that is. I guess I'm still going. Eventually.
It's late in the afternoon, and I'm walking to the gillworg pond. Llywelyn is there, I know, and I want to see if he wants to join me for lunch. Or just talk. Or whatever.
I'm not sure why I want to see him. I just... do.
I'm pathetic.
I sigh, and round a corner, and then I stop. There's a figure standing in front of me, blocking my way.
It's not Llywelyn. It's not anyone I know.
He's tall, and muscular, and wearing a black suit. He has pale skin, and short, silver hair, and dark eyes. He's... intimidating. And dangerous. I can feel it.
He looks at me, and smiles. It's not a nice smile. It's a predatory smile. It makes me shiver.
"Hello, little human." He says, his voice low and smooth. "You're Sarah, aren't you?"
I narrow my eyes, and take a step back. "Who are you?"
He chuckles, and walks towards me. "I am Nizhalan. A friend of your master."
I don't believe that. I don't know why, but I don't trust him. He's... shady. Extra shady. I'd rather just not be near this man any longer than I absolutely need to.
And I don't like the way he's looking at me. Like I'm prey.
"What do you want?" I ask, glaring up at him. Everything about him. Just makes me want to hit him. Or run. Maybe both.
He stops in front of me, and reaches out to touch my face. I flinch, and slap his hand away.
"I just wanted to see you. I've heard so much about you." He says, his smile widening. "You're quite the celebrity, you know. The human who fought back. The human who managed to orchestrate a whole prison break. The sub-sapient who tricked sentients."
He leans in, and I can smell his breath. It's... foul. Like rotten meat.
"I'm very impressed." He whispers, his eyes glinting. "And very curious. How did you do it? How did you resist the conditioning? How did you kill all those guards? All on your own, so efficiently?" He laughs. It's not a pleasant sound in the least. "A little human like you, managing to burn down a whole operation and let some of those subsapients escape... it's amazing. You must have help, of course. Who was it?"
Of course he'd think I had help. And he's not wrong I did. But I know he means one of his precious 'sentients', not the truth that humans, working together, are stronger than he realizes. He doesn't seem like the type of person interested in having this - or any - conversation in good faith.
"You think I'd tell you something like that?" I scoff, and try to sidestep him to move past him. Rather predictably, he moves with me, blocking my way.
"Come on, little human. Don't be shy. I just want to know. I'm just... curious. A subs-sapient should be flattered to get any interest from a superior species at all." He says, and reaches for me again.
I slap his hand away again, and back up. I've never wanted to interact with a person less than this man in my life. "Leave me alone. I'm not answering your questions no matter how many times you ask."
He sighs, and shakes his head. "You're not being very cooperative. That's not a good trait in a slave. You should be more... obedient."
Obedient?
To some kind of scum like him?
I'd rather die.
"You should be more careful that a violent human doesn't stab you." I warn, clenching my fists.
He laughs, and then his expression twists to an angry scowl in an instant, and he lunges at me, grabbing my arm and twisting it behind my back. I cry out, and he first pulls me close to him, and then shoves me against the wall, pinning me there.
"Now, that's enough of that." He hisses in my ear. "You're going to tell me everything I want to know, you're going to be a good, obedient sub-sapient for me, or I'll make you regret it."
He's strong. And I don't have a weapon. I don't have anything. I've never. Had to overpower an alien physically. Not like this. I'm not trained for this, I'm not built for it, I have no history of it. I'm... in the worst possible position with no way out.
But I'm not going to give up. I'm not going to let him win.
I struggle, and try to kick him, but he's too close, and too heavy. He laughs, and presses his body against mine.
"You're feisty. I like that. It makes it more fun." He says, and his hand moves to my neck, squeezing it. "Now, talk. Or you'll be lucky if you can even breathe when I'm done with you."
I gasp, and my vision starts to blur. I can't breathe. I can't think. I can't...
"Fuck off and die." I hiss. I'm not going to give him the satisfaction of breaking or giving in. I refuse. No matter what.
He growls, and tightens his grip. "Wrong answer." He snarls.
"Don't let me stop you." A dry voice says from behind him. "She's a damn nuisance. Frankly, you'll be improving the atmosphere."
Nizhalan turns his head, and sees Llywelyn standing there, his hands in his pockets, a bored expression on his face. But his collar is glowing bright blue, and his eyes are hard.
"Eh. You're that Akutwasian reject. Go mind your own business in a cave, glow-worm." He sneers. "This is between me and the human."
"I can see that." His gaze flickers to me. "You're quite unsubtle. What was your name again? Nihal, was it?"
"Nizhalan." The man snaps.
"Ah. Right. She's annoying, isn't she? Can't get her to back down no matter what you do."
"Oh, I'll show her who's boss." He says, and squeezes my neck harder. "You can watch."
I choke, and claw at his hand, but he doesn't let go. Black spots are dancing in my vision.
The man, idiot fish. Just stands there. Completely unconcerned. His chest flares with light and his eyes are still boring into the asshole slowly trying to kill me, but he's. Just standing there.
I don't know what the hell he's trying to do.
But I never asked to be rescued. I just. Want to breathe.
I twist my body, and kick with all of my might. I have no reason to be confident that this random kind of alien has the same sort of weaknesses that a human male does, but. It's all I can think to do.
I feel a sick sense of satisfaction as I connect with something soft, and he yells, and loosens his grip just enough for me to breathe.
I gasp, and cough, and he recovers quickly, grabbing my hair and yanking my head back. "You kznetghz-!"
"This is just embarrassing, Nihazl." Llywelyn sighs, and I can see his shoulders fall, but there's a faint smile on his lips. "You know she's sub-sapient, right? You are aware?"
"She's-" He's starting to sound angry now.
"My property." The voice that splits the conversation is calm, and as cold as ice. I feel the temperature around me drop.
I've never heard Xilukulkas sound like that.
Even Nizhalan is so shocked he lets go of my hair and stumbles a step back. I drop to one knee, hand going to my throat.
The figure at the end of the hall has always been tall. Incredibly tall. I've never seen him look so huge. He fills the entire hallway. His eyes are a burning red, and his expression is contemptuous. "You have damaged my property. You have violated the terms of your invitation to my home. Return to your mistress and inform her that your careless paws have severed the trade agreement."
I gape. My head is spinning, but I still catch the disbelief and the fear that flits over Nizhalan's face. He's the one who looks like prey now.
He sputters. "I-! I had no idea that this beast was-"
"Careless idiocy is no excuse." Xilukulkas' voice is still as calm as ever. "You have been disrespectful, presumptuous, and violent toward my belongings. I will not soon forget this insult. Leave this place before I take my fine from you in flesh, rather than jewels."
"I-" The man looks around and I slowly get back to my feet, bracing a hand against the wall. His eyes narrow, and he spits out a curse in his native tongue, turning on his heel and storming out of the hall.
Llywelyn is at my side by the time he's out of sight.
"Steady, you ugly woman."
"I'm not-" I start, but I can't seem to get enough air. My throat hurts, and my head is pounding. And I feel...
"Please see her to medical." Xilukulkas is suddenly standing over me. I hadn't even noticed him move. His eyes are soft green, and he reaches out with his delicate fingers, gently brushing my hair away from my face. "Sarah, refrain from speech. Focus on air until the medic has seen to you."
I just nod, unable to argue. I can't seem to look away from him.
"My apologies for the actions of my guest." He murmurs. "His mistress is a careless fool to send someone so volatile to my home. She will never be welcome here again."
I blink up at him in confusion. It's all very... nice of him, intervening on my behalf. But he can't actually mean that. He...
"I will never tolerate violence against my own household." He says, as if he's read my mind. "No matter the source." His gaze turns to Llywelyn. "Thank you for alerting me. Go now." He nods toward medical.
Llywelyn gives him an odd look, before turning back to me and helping me walk away from the scene. The trip to medical is quiet and I don't have the presence of mind to even try to look around at my surroundings. I don't know if my throat's actually been damaged, or if it's just a post-adrenaline crash. Or some combination of both.
It's...
I don't want to say I felt afraid.
I-
I don't know. It's confusing. I guess I'm glad someone came to help. Even if it was Xilukulkas. Even if it's just because he's possessive.
This time, I guess, it helped.
Llywelyn shifts and shoves me into a bed I haven't noticed, as we enter a room I don't remember entering. My legs collapse under me, and I'm glad he did so.
"Hey. Stay with me, you wretched hetchki." His hand smooths over my hair. "Don't die. I'll be furious."
"You're bein... dumb." I protest. I'm nowhere near dying. My throat is bruised, I'm sure. But I can clearly breathe. I probably don't even need the doctor at all, short of just...
Could do with an aspirin.
"No talking. Master's orders." His voice is. Serious. And the faintest bit afraid. Which is. Odd. "I'll get the medic. Just... don't go anywhere."
"Like I'd-"
He doesn't wait for the rest of my comment, just turns and runs off.
I sigh, and look around. There's only one other bed in the room, and it's empty. The walls are white, and there are machines and monitors everywhere. It looks like a hospital room, or a lab. Or something. It's weird.
I hope it doesn't take long. I want to go back to my room, and sleep.
I hope Nizhalan never comes back. I hope he gets eaten by a space monster.
I hope Llywelyn isn't worried.
I close my eyes, and wait.