It was safe to say that this was the most important task Azdrei’in had been given in his life.

The Lunvalgan people had been searching for a new planet to call home longer than he’d been alive. Like the rest of his generation and the one that came before, all he knew was the inside of a spaceship. Many years ago, his people had fled from their home, Ashad’te, when the planet’s water supply had been irreversibly contaminated with a rapidly reproducing spore that killed any living thing that ingested it. The spore had spread across lands and tribes too quickly to combat, contaminating their resources and withering vegetation until all that was left was a desolate wasteland, barren of life.

Azdrei’in was too young to remember the catastrophe for himself, but he’d seen it in the memories of his elders. The once lush planet the Lunvalgans called home had shifted from green to gray, and more than three-quarters of his ancestors had lost their lives to the spore’s infection. Within the span of a decade, their entire race was nearly decimated because of a mutated bacterium, and those who survived the onslaught didn’t escape without consequences of their own. The Lunvalgans who pulled through soon discovered that the spore had wreaked havoc on their females’ reproductive capabilities. They never determined why, but ever since the cataclysm struck, fertility rates in half the population had dropped more than five hundred percent, leaving them with an alarming new issue: They were struggling to recover the numbers the disease had erased.

Overall, their once-great race was in exceedingly poor shape, and they were desperate to find a planet on which they could start over. Their leaders, the Eilix, hoped that by uprooting the survivors from their shriveling home world, they could find the resources they needed to truly recover, so they could recreate the flourishing society they’d established on Ashad’te. Thus, they had been traveling for generations, scanning the cosmos until they’d finally come upon a promising planet: Earth.

Azdrei’in still clearly remembered the day the Eilix had announced that their voyage was finally over. It had been a day of weeping and celebration, emotions riding high in everyone who thought they would live their entire lives and die on the spaceship before they found a new home. The only problem was that the new planet was already inhabited by another apex species.

Because of their already dwindling numbers, their leaders were cautious. Instead of confronting the Earthlings right away, they waited, delaying their descent until they knew whether the foreign race was hostile or benign. Unfortunately, after a year of observing the planet’s inhabitants, watching them conduct war on their own kind and spill blood over matters that could be resolved through intentional discourse, it was determined that they were savages and that landing on the world wouldn’t be safe for the weakened Lunvalgan people until they were eradicated.

The solution to this problem was the invention of Strizin, a virus modeled after the very disease that had killed their own people on Ashad’te. Using a sample of the spore that had been kept in a lab and a few Earthlings they had abducted to use as test subjects, Lunvalgan scientists created a biological weapon that would only target the species that currently dominated the planet, cleansing it of the violent race so they could move in without fear of being forced to fight for their place and risking the loss of their already small population.

Now, one year had passed since they had released the virus over the Earth, and the next phase of the invasion had begun.

Approaching the planet’s atmosphere, Azdrei’in leaned forward in his seat, entranced with the sight of the blues and greens before him. He, along with fourteen other Lunvalgan warriors, had been selected by the Eilix to explore their new home before the rest of the fleet descended. Dubbed the Yihai, or the ‘vanguard,’ the group’s job was to ensure that the Earthlings had succumbed to the virus and to nullify any other potential threats that they may come across while they surveyed the land. It was an essential role that he took seriously, but it would have been a lie to say that he wasn’t also excited to see a healthy planet with his own two eyes after he’d spent his entire life inside a metal ship.

As his craft made contact with the atmosphere, he braced himself, adjusting the controls as necessary to keep the vehicle on course. He had practiced landing in simulations as well as on one uninhabited planet, so he was skilled enough to bring the ship down safely on this one. His translucent white eyes flicked over the gauges with steady focus, and he traced the tip of one clawed digit against the panel’s glassy surface. For the most part, the craft was designed to stabilize itself as it dropped, so he merely kept watch for warning signs that he needed to take over control, in case something went wrong.

In this case, the ship operated perfectly, and Azdrei’in eased it to the ground in a graceful descent. As soon as it touched down, he could feel the beating of his two hearts increase with anticipation. He’d landed in the middle of what looked like an abandoned civilization. Tall structures sprouted all around him, reaching toward the cloudy sky overhead, and he craned his neck to peer up at their tops. The Earthlings who had lived here first may have been savages, but it seemed like they’d been innovative as well.

Unstrapping himself from his seat, he tapped the release for the door and stood up, climbing down automated steps until he felt an unfamiliar texture beneath his feet. In the span of a second, he was surrounded by a world of new sensations. The star providing light above him warmed his dark skin pleasantly. All Lunvalgan people were characterized by their dusky pigmentation, ranging in shades from gray to black. Azdrei’in was on the darker end of the spectrum with a complexion only slightly paler than pure black, but his coloring was lightened by a satin quality that gave off a subtle silvery sheen in direct light.

Enjoying the natural warmth, he took a moment to stand still, letting his pellucid eyes wander idly over his surroundings. Against his skin, his white irises contrasted starkly, as did his long white hair, which had been pulled back in a series of thin braids. Between both, a shallow ridge defined his forehead, traveling from the bridge of his nose to the back of his skull. It was a gendered feature that was more prominent in male Lunvalgans than in females. Some of his people boasted broad plating, while the crest could hardly be seen on others. Azdrei’in’s laid somewhere in the middle: easily visible but not so large that it dominated his face.

Deciding that he’d spent long enough in one place, he turned around to close the door to his ship by pressing his open palm against a scanner. Each of his five fingers was topped with a short claw, formed by an extension of the bones at the ends of his digits. The predatory feature was matched with a set of fangs behind his lips. On Ashad’te, his people had been the species at the top of the food chain and had therefore predominately consumed other animals. Since they’d transitioned to living on a spaceship, they had been forced to abandon their carnivorous habits and eat supplementary meals developed in a laboratory, but the tools they’d used to hunt were still there.

Once the door had been securely closed, Azdrei’in stepped back from the craft and turned toward the blocky structures again, drawing a laser gun from its holster at his belt. Although his kind was equipped with built-in weapons, they had developed more advanced technology to protect themselves as needed. In case there were any Earthlings that were still alive, he felt more comfortable with a firearm in his hands, so he could kill them before they got close enough to attack him.

Gripping the gun in his left hand, he reached for a communication device with his right and hitched it to one elongated ear. The mothership had flown close enough to the planet to keep in touch with the Yihai as they scouted out the terrain in order to respond quickly if any of them reported that they were in danger. However, right now there was nothing to convey to the Lunvalgans on the receiving end, so he merely left it in place as he strode toward the abandoned ruins of the Earthling’s civilization, beginning his exploration to ensure that the planet was ready for his people to take over.

For as long as Artemis could remember, her father had been the prepper type. He believed that the world would end soon, putting a lot of his money into a bunker that would protect them from any war. To her, it seemed a bit silly, yet that had changed when the first serious virus had hit the world when she was 12, they had to go on lockdown and so her father had shown her that his fear wasn’t that strange.
Back then the population of humans had gone from 10 Billion to only 7, all because of a virus that gave the humans a fever that few survived.

Those times had passed, until she was at the age of 23, her visiting her parents when the ships started to show up in the sky. Only a telescope would be able to see them at certain times in the day, and so her father decided they would move to the bunker. At first, it seemed to help, as the filters kept the sickness at bay. At least that was until most of the population got infected in a matter of weeks.
The humans that got the sickness actually became aggressive and more like zombies than anything else. It was a scary world, they felt safe in their bunkers. Only to have that same hope have chattered when her mother started to show the symptoms. At first, she would just stare at the wall, only to try and attack her father. He was able to knock his mother out and so, they feared for what would happen next.

A few hours after the attack, her father began showing the same symptoms as her and so he decided to leave on his own. Showing her how to use the surveillance around their bunker at the farm. Showing her how to use everything and telling her not to leave the bunker until all infected humans would be gone. And so she tried her hardest to do as he said.

Now she was a year later, she had watched every show that they had added in the bunker and actually felt like she was going insane. The plants in the back actually thriving, which meant that once in a while she had tomatoes, potatoes, and other fresh vegetables. She even had made her own type of Wilson, but instead of a basketball, it was a statue of a cat.

“I know Spock... I can’t go outside... I just miss the fresh air.” She told her friend, only to see the alarm went off. She ran towards the computer, wondering what the thing has seen. Only to see that her trap had caught a bunny, a smile on her face as she finally would have some fresh meat. “I caught a bunny Wanda!” she screamed.

“Don’t start. But dad put those things there for a reason.” She said as she moved to put on some clothes. Ones that would blend in with the green at the farm of her parents. Making her way to the door as she looked back. “I’ll be right back Wanda. In and out without a sound.” She said as she made sure to grab a knife and an aluminum baseball bat. She needed to protect herself, and guns made way too much noise.
Moving into the sluice that would first close the doors behind her, before it would open the doors to the outside. Watching as those doors opened, taking a deep breath as she actually could smell the grass and trees once more. Oh, how she had missed that smell!

Looking up at the sky as she pondered about what she would do. Silently making her way over to the rabbit. She knew there were still humans, but they were still mostly in the city... If they still were there. She had no idea… Those things were beasts and she just wanted the fresh meat.

But when she finally got to the rabbit in the humane trap, she hesitated. Looking at the cute animal and deciding to just put it in her backpack. Wrapping it in cloth so it would be able to move, she could use a pet.

Just when she wanted to head back, a loud sound was heard in the sky. It sounded like a boom and so she looked up, her heart beating much faster as she realized that she saw nothing. Just the movement of air and the sound of a huge machine. Was there help?
The warnings of her own father clear in her head, yet she wanted to see what it was. Little did she know that his ship would be able to detect her heat, showing that a human was in the area. Their farm was one of the older ones, on the outskirts of the city close to some woods.

Curiosity got the best of her, and instead of going to the shed and back into the bunker. She went to her home, moving up the stairs and looking through the telescope. That thing had an amazing range, yet all she saw was something had landed on the ground at the city. Was that a spaceship?

Artemis never had thought it would be possible, that any moment she would wake up from a dream. She had been watching Star Trek way too much these days anyway. Biting her lip as she knew that it was a stupid idea to go into the city. That was something she wanted to risk.
All she knew, was that there was a chance that the alien would look for her. And so she had to cover all of her tracks and make fake ones. And so she went to work, leaving some wrappers in the house and going to the kitchen to make it seem that someone had looked through all the cabinets. Eating some of the food before running off.

She needed to lead everything away from the shed, yet she wanted to know more. She wanted to see what they looked like. It was then that another thought hit her. She could just hide in the shed, watching the alien as it went around the farm. The farm that actually had deer coming and going since they weren’t afraid of her anymore. She never hurt them, and they started to feel at home at the abandoned world. At least nature seemed to be blooming from the thing that happened.

And so she stood against the shed, looking at the wooden wall that would lead to the bunker. All they had to find was the hidden keypad and the 7 number passcode to gain access. Holding the bat ready for if she had to protect herself. She just hoped that she wouldn’t be found. Her heart pounding in her chest as she wondered about just going inside the bunker instead.

At least that was until she heard something in the distance. Slowly turning to look through the cracks of the wooden shed that also worked as a stable for the cows. At least it seemed to be an overcast day, making it so that she was well hidden from prying eyes. Her backpack with the bunny, left at the house, she could always go back for it.

It was then that she saw the creature for the first time, her breath catching in her throat as it looked like a mix between a Klingon and a human. It was a dark skin, almost glowing and she couldn’t help but stare in wonder. Was this even real?

If the alien would search the house, it would show a human was living there, yet one that was smarter than the beasts that took over after the virus. There was always a chance of immunity and so he would know a human was in the area.

Artemis feeling even more self-conscious that she was only 5’6”, skinny from the fact that it was hard to understand day and night in the bunker. She had a muscled yet thin frame, from the year in the bunker. She was also a redhead, her long hair tied back as her green eyes watched every move of the alien. So if it would move into the shed, she would just knock it on the head as hard and fast as she could. She didn’t want to die.

Everything Azdrei’in encountered was new and intriguing. He explored the ground between the looming structures around him, comparing the shapes and materials of each one to what he had seen in the memories of his elders who’d lived on Ashad’te. With no context, it was impossible for him to tell what the constructions’ purposes had been before the Earthlings had been exterminated. The best he could do was peer through dusty windows and guess. However, the point of his visit wasn’t to figure out what the previous inhabitants’ lives had been like. Once the rest of the Lunvalgan people arrived, they would most likely tear everything down to build their own infrastructure anyway. He could ponder over his surroundings as he walked, but his purpose was to search for survivors of the virus and eliminate them so that his people would be safe.

Although he couldn’t see any other living things at the moment, he was aware that he wasn’t alone in the ruins. He could detect the heat signatures of at least a few other creatures nearby, using yet another predatory tool to his advantage as he made his way deeper into unknown territory. The only trouble was that he couldn’t tell what the other creatures were. There were at least a few other species within the radius of his senses, but it was well known that Earthlings weren’t the only race that existed on this planet. He couldn’t assume any of the warm bodies he had pinpointed belonged to the beings the Eilix had attempted to kill off.

But that was what he had been sent to find out.

Proceeding slowly, he altered his course to approach one of the larger creatures he’d detected, raising his gun to shoot if it proved to be hostile. Around the corner of one of the structures, there was a heap of foul-smelling bags that had been ripped to shreds by scavengers. The animal he’d located was on the other side of it, so he closed the distance and peered around the edge of the visual blockade, only to find that the warm body belonged to a four-legged beast covered with matted hair. The creature had been digging through the bags, most likely searching for something to eat, based on the prominence of its bones. He studied it with a mixture of caution and curiosity as it took notice of him, bristled in fright, and ran in the opposite direction. It was a species he’d never seen before, but he was certain it wasn’t an Earthling. According to the Eilix, their targets walked upright like Lunvalans did and shared some similar anatomical features. So, he left the heap of bags and kept looking.

There were a few other warm bodies in the area, but most of them seemed to be a similar size as the hairy creature he’d just found, so he disregarded them. It wasn’t until a larger animal began to approach him at high speed that he raised his weapon again.

Spinning on his heel, Azdrei’in tensed as he got his first look at the race he was supposed to kill. Earthlings were shockingly similar to his own kind, with the same general physique and height. However, the being running toward him now had much lighter skin with a pinkish hue and short, messy brown hair. From a distance it was difficult to tell what color its eyes were, but they seemed darker than the Lunvalgans’ as well. Unlike the hairy beast, the Earthling wore clothing like his people too, although this one’s shirt and trousers were tattered as if they hadn’t been changed in many days.

Realizing quickly that it was coming to attack him, he fired his laser gun before it could get any closer and watched as it fell to the ground. At least they are easy to kill, he thought to himself, stepping over to examine the twitching body. Somewhat hungry after his flight from the mothership, he wondered offhandedly if Earthlings were a viable food source, but since they looked so much like his own people, he couldn’t bring himself to find out. Instead, he left the corpse behind and moved on, reporting to his commander through his communication device: “I have found one human that was still alive. It is dead now, but there may be more. I will send more information as I gather it.”

Just as he started to move on to a different area, he paused as he took notice of another larger heat signature nearby. This one was farther away than the Earthling that had just charged at him, but now that he was familiar with the general size of their race, he suspected the creature he’d sensed just now was a target too. Determined to hunt it down before it could do the same to him, he changed his course and tracked the Earthling by its warm body temperature until he came upon an open field. The sight reminded him of the farmland he’d seen in his elder’s memories, only this farm was more primitive. He strode onto the field, his white eyes sweeping over the closest structure, one that was far smaller than the massive constructions he’d seen before. Judging by the residual heat he could sense inside of it, the structure had probably been serving as a home for an Earthling who hadn’t yet succumbed to the Strizin’s effects. He could tell it wasn’t currently inside though.

Stopping briefly, his gaze traveled to another structure, an even smaller one that radiated warmth from multiple creatures inside. Some of the bodies were too large to belong to an Earthling—unless they grew far bigger than the one he had killed—but it was worth looking inside to find out if there were any targets that he needed to get rid of.

Ignoring the home, he crossed the rest of the way to the second structure and pressed one hand to the door, pushing it open while he lifted his weapon to shoot if he saw any creatures that looked like the one that had attacked him not long ago.

When she had turned against the wall, behind the divider between her and the shed door, her heart was beating loudly. She realized that there were aliens and that those were the ones that had made the whole population sick. Within a week every human seemed to be infected, they were the reason that her species had died out. Yet she couldn’t bring herself to care all that much since the earth had suffered so much because of her kind. Only a year had passed and nature was already trying to take over the world once more.

She had been able to hear birds sing, could see her cows starting to become wilder, even when they still got hay and feed from an automatic feeder. She was just so lonely, it was the first time she saw something that didn’t act like an animal. As it walked over the farm, looking around and holding some sort of gun. She just wanted to survive, she didn’t want to be alone, it was a strange thing to be at.

Artemis was pulled from her thoughts as she heard the sounds of his footsteps on the stones that lead to the barn itself. Holding on tight on the baseball bat, wondering if violence even was the answer. The door creaking loudly as he pushed it open, her eyes moved to the end of the divider. She could see the weapon in his hand, waiting until he was walking into the barn itself. The cows actually seeming to panic at the sight of the alien.

Their mooing was louder than she ever had heard and so she had the advantage. She swung the bat, making sure to hit him on the back of the head. It was something that would kill a human, her eyes showing her fear as she watched the large figure fall to the ground. Instantly the cows went as far as possible, her eyes on the alien as it fascinated her. “I’m so sorry.” She said as she then went to grab the gun that he had with him. Putting it in her pocket, only to go and grab the cellphone like thingy.

Would it have gps? She worried about it and so she just ran out, realizing that she had to be quick. She needed to make sure that they wouldn’t come here, and so she stopped. Trying to figure out what to do with it, only to decide to just put it in the birdcage in her home. Maybe it would help in not sending anything out and in. And so she left it there, what was the chance they would even find the bunker?

And so she went to grab her backpack. Going back to the shed and realizing that the alien was still breathing. Cursing as she realized she couldn’t leave him there, it would only show that she was as aggressive as any other human on this planet. She moved a plank to the side and entered the passcode, the wall moving and so she pulled the human-like creature inside the sluice.

His skin was hard, warm and rougher than her own. It was interesting to see, she never even would have thought she would ever be able to be around anyone. Why she was helping? She had no idea, she just couldn’t leave him to die.

An hour passed before she was even able to put him on her couch, getting the medical supplies as she was careful to use things on the back of his head. It showed a gap and instantly she felt horrible. And thus she used some saltwater spray to clean it out and then put some ointment on it. One that would keep it from getting infected. Wrapping a cloth around his head before she went on with her day.

The gun that he carried, lying in her safe, as she didn’t want that creature to use anything against her. The baseball bat back after lock and key. Placing a glass of water on the table with some meal she had made from canned food. She didn’t know if he would eat, but she wanted to show that she wasn’t going to hurt him.

It was at that moment that she thought about the poor bunny, pulling out a huge plastic box from the back, filling it with straw that she kept to fill up her mattress. Laying out some vegies for the animal and also a ceramic bowl to drink from. Letting it free from its containments and just looking at the cute little creature.

Only to look back at the larger creature, it still made no sense that she had an alien in her bunker. “I know Wanda, it’s a freaking Klingon and I took him in after hitting him on the head. I just couldn’t let him die.” She told the black cat statue. Her bunker just looking like a home underground, one that had more than enough food to feed a family of five for 5 years. She was just alone, and how was she going to survive this? She basically hurt the alien, and now she had cared for him and put him in her home? What would her father say?

She then went to grab herself some food, moving to the counter of the kitchen, as that looked out on his couch. Watching the creature sleep as she started to put the food in her mouth. “Alexa, play Shindler’s list.” She told the cube next to her. It dinged and soon soft music was playing in her home. Watching the creature as close as possible, ready to run or grab a knife if it seemed to be needed. The rabbit actually starting to relax and going to the freshwater.

A day ago she was completely alone and now there were 2 other living things in her home. Fearing the fact that aliens were here now, that she would just end up dead in the end. But a part of her wishing that she could just learn more. It was one hell of a chance, her inner geek loving the idea of an alien species being close by.

On the other side of the door, Azdrei’in came upon yet another kind of creature he’d never seen before. These ones were large with short hair in shades of black and white and brown. They didn’t smell pleasant either. At the sight of him, they started making loud noises of distress, and he stiffened, his index finger hovering over the trigger of his gun to fire it at a moment’s notice. Although the racket the large beasts were making put him on edge, the only species he had clearance to shoot were the Earthlings. As long as the other animals didn’t prove to be hostile, his leaders wanted them to leave them all untouched, so they wouldn’t affect the planet’s ecosystem before they understood how it functioned. They had killed off the last apex species in order to take over, but his people weren’t killers without a purpose. The only other times they took another creature’s life was to eat or to protect themselves.

So, he turned away from the lumbering beasts and stepped inside the structure, searching for the smaller creature he’d detected from a distance. There was a chance it was just the offspring of one of these animals, but he was going to make sure before he moved on. If there was an Earthling here, he needed to kill it to keep the other Lunvalgans safe. From the surveillance they had conducted a year ago, they’d determined that the other kind was too barbaric to leave alive. The dominant species on this planet was advanced enough to have developed weapons like his people had, but they used them on one another and lived disharmoniously with their own world. They were like a plague that was better off wiped out, so the Lunvalgan colonists could move in without fear of being attacked.

Suddenly, he sensed rapid movement behind him that reminded him of the way the Earthling in the city had felt when it had sprinted toward him. He shifted his weight to turn around, but the source of the motion was already too close for him to react. Before he even had a chance to get a look at it, he felt a sharp blow to the back of his head that made his vision go black, and he staggered forward, collapsing onto the ground.

--

The first thing Azdrei’in was aware of when he began to regain consciousness was a dull ache emanating from the base of his skull. He groaned and lifted a hand to touch the sore spot, only to find that it was wrapped in a snug cloth. The sensation was strange enough to raise a warning flag in his mind, and he remembered abruptly that he’d been attacked while he had been hunting down an Earthling. If he’d had time to think about it, he would have found it strange that he was still alive when his assailant had had every opportunity to finish him off after he’d passed out. Instead, he reacted in a panic, his fight-or-flight instincts kicking in as his eyes snapped open and he jumped to his feet.

Upon standing up so quickly, his leg bumped against a table, knocking over the cup of water sitting on top. The sound startled him, and his hand flew to his waist, where he kept his gun. Only this time, the weapon was gone. He bristled with the realization that he’d been unarmed while he’d been unconscious, his eyes darting over the room he was in as he evaluated where he was. It was a different location than the place where he’d been hit, so he had to have been moved. However, his surroundings now were perplexing. He would have thought that the Earthling would have locked him up as a prisoner, but this room looked more like a home than a cell. He’d been left on a soft seat without any restraints, and there was even a dish with something that looked like food as if the Earthling had tried to feed him. He wasn’t sure what to make of it all.

Belatedly, he noticed he wasn’t alone either. There was sound coming from nearby along with the warmth of another living creature—or two, if he included the smaller animal he sensed as well. He turned toward the source tensely, prepared to fight back if it tried to attack him again. To his added bemusement, it didn’t look as hostile as the last Earthling he’d killed. It was eating its own meal next to a small, fluffy animal in a container. The unexpected sight made him pause, but he recovered after a second and narrowed his eyes. Whether the Earthling looked dangerous or not, it had still knocked him out and taken him to a location he wasn’t familiar with. He flexed his clawed hands at his sides. He may not have had a long-range weapon anymore, but he still had the tools he’d been born with. The only thing that kept him from striking first was the fact that it seemed like this creature had tended to his injury. It was confusing to him, since he’d been told that all Earthlings were ruthless savages.

“Where am I?” he snapped, still on edge even though he didn’t make any moves to kill his abductor… yet. As soon as the words left his tongue, he wavered, realizing that it was highly unlikely that the Earthling spoke the same language that he did. Stupid, he chided himself, lifting his hand to touch the bandages wrapped around his head again. It was going to be difficult to communicate with a being from another planet, but he was determined to find out what was going on and get his gun and communication device back.

Artemis nearly jumped when the alien woke up, jumping up and nearly knocking the table over as he got up. The bunny didn’t seem to even be phased and so she knew it probably was sick or dying. Or it had been someone’s pet at one point. She just looked at the larger creature, her eyes on him as she slowly moved her hands up in the air. “I won’t hurt you.” She said as she had no idea what he had said. It almost sounded like an elven language, it was a beautiful yet scary sound. His fangs more visible, at least she figured that he was a male. He didn’t seem to have any female forms, as most animals did show that. He also had a ridge on his forehead and she figured it was like the red thing on top of a rooster. One thing was for certain, that alien was much faster than she ever was.

Biting her lip as she pondered on what to do, moving her hands to herself “Artemis.” She said as she wondered why she was even trying to speak to it. Was she really trying 'me Trazan you Jane'? It made no sense at all. She also wanted to clean the table and so she went to grab some cloth to clean it up. Moving very slowly as she then showed it to him. How was she even going to explain it was to clean up the water? It also wasn’t the best idea to be walking towards him.

Oh how she wished to apologize for hitting him on the head, it had been terrible but she knew that she had to protect her life. And thus she spilled some of her glass on the counter, using the cloth to clean it up and then wringing it out at the sink. Only to look at him and acting like she was going to throw it. At the third movement, she tossed it on the table in front of him.

Going back to her food. Deciding to try and communicate with him even more. “Food,” she said as she pointed at the food and then moved her hand to her mouth. Taking some of the food and eating it in front of him. Then pointing back at her “Artemis” she said as she wondered if he even knew the difference of names and what she was. Deciding to use a picture of her parents that hung on the fridge. “Human,” she said as she pointed at both of her parents and herself. “I’m Artemis,” she said as she then went back to sit down.

Wondering if she even had any books to work with, only to realize that she probably had some movies for children and toddlers. Just because it could have happened between her parents. And so she took the tablet near her. Looking through it as she then just went to draw something on it. How was she was going to make it show that she was sorry to have hit him, that she just did it so she wouldn’t die? Would he even understand such a notion?

She figured that that had to happen later. And so she moved to open the fridge, grabbing some water and she gently pushed it to the end of the counter. “Water?” she asked as she then pointed at the bottle and then at the creature before her. He was beautiful. She wanted to talk to him, but how would she even begin to do that?

She had no idea and she failed to think of anything, most people would even have the basics down. She just had to show him that she didn’t want to hurt him. Would he understand that she was sorry? How smart would he be? Did he have emotions like her?
She just decided to go sit back down and hoped that he at least would relax a little. Taking the tablet once more as she decided to try and get the message across that she was sorry. Drawing her as a stick figure and him shooting her with a gun. Moving the screen to the side and her knocking him out and her alive with a sad face. It was silly, but she wanted to show him that she cared. Holding up the tablet and showing both images to him. Moving her hand to the back of her head. “Au, Hurt,” she said as she then went to try and explain it to him.

“No hurt.” With no, she shook her head, and then with the hurt, she showed the pained face. And at last, she said “You” and pointed at him. “I Artemis.” She stated once more and then she pointed at him. “You?”

To Azdrei’in’s surprise, the Earthling responded to his question. Of course, he couldn’t understand what it had said, but just the fact that it had recognized that he’d spoken and attempted to reply was enough to make him stop and think. Logically, it made sense to him that a race that had the intelligence to build impressive structures would have their own language, but he hadn’t expected one to try to communicate with him without prompting. He’d thought they were all bloodthirsty savages who were quicker to fight than they were to talk. The being standing before him now was far different than the image he’d painted in his head. It didn’t even behave like the one that had charged at him not long ago.

As the Earthling gestured to itself and spoke again, he stared at it wordlessly, trying to process what it was doing. For the moment, he’d completely forgotten about his missing gear, too wrapped up in the strange scene before him to think about anything else. His crystalline eyes swept over it with quiet intrigue. Earthlings seemed to be somewhat diverse, perhaps even more so than his own kind. Unlike the being he’d shot, this one had even brighter features. Its hair was red, not brown, and it had colorful green irises. Upon closer inspection, he determined it was a female as well, based on its anatomical similarities with female Lunvalgans and the higher pitch of its voice.

It—or rather, she—picked up a piece of fabric, and he tensed, eyeing the object warily. By itself, the cloth didn’t look harmful, but if it had been doused in a chemical, it could be used as a weapon. “Come near me with that, and you will lose your arm,” he said dryly. He was aware that she couldn’t understand him, but the threat slipped out anyway. However, it turned out it wasn’t necessary when the Earthling demonstrated that the cloth was used to clean up water. He blinked and looked down at the table in front of him, on which the full cup she’d left for him had spilled when he’d hastily stood up. Apparently, her species wasn’t fond of messes.

When she tossed the rag onto the table, he carefully picked it up between two claws, lifting it to his nose to sniff just to make sure there was nothing dangerous about it before he risked touching it against his skin. Obliging her implied request, he bent over to wipe up the spilled water and then glanced up at her again when he saw her move in the corner of his eye. Interestingly, it seemed like she was still trying to communicate with him. He watched her gesture to the food on her plate, speak a word, and then do the same thing after indicating herself. Next, she drew his attention to a picture. Another word was spoken, then two more.

She is trying to teach me her language, he realized, his eyes widening slightly. He turned back to the plate, recalling the word she’d used to describe it, then looked at her again. She had indicated herself as well as other Earthlings when she’d used the word ‘human,’ and he guessed that was the term her species used to refer to themselves. They called themselves humans just like his people were Lunvalgans. In spite of himself, he felt a thrill of excitement at the prospect of understanding what the creature in front of him was saying. He had never encountered another being outside of his own race before, and since he’d thought Earthlings were barbarians, he hadn’t considered the possibility that he might speak with one like this. It was fascinating.

He tracked her with his gaze as she picked up another object and then retrieved something from a large, upright container, which she pushed toward him. Another word was spoken, this time with a raised inflection at the end. He presumed the context was different. A question, perhaps? In any case, he assumed the liquid in the sealed container was meant for him, and he cautiously stepped closer to examine it. Picking it up, he opened the top and smelled it, determining that the liquid was water. It didn’t seem contaminated, so he lifted it to his lips and took a small sip, tasting the drink on his tongue before he swallowed.

He was still baffled by the human’s actions. If she had been the one who had knocked him out, it would have made more sense if she’d taken the opportunity to kill him. Instead, she was treating him like a guest in her home, trying to make conversation and offering him food and drink. It was far from the way he’d expected her species to behave.

When she sat down, he relaxed slightly, less concerned about keeping track of her movements now that she was off her feet. He brought the water to his lips again and downed a larger swig while she toyed with the object she’d picked up earlier. In the back of his mind, he was aware of his orders to eliminate any Earthlings he came across, but technically his leaders hadn’t said he had to kill them right away. Surely he could indulge his curiosity a little before he finished this one off. What was the harm?

As she turned the screen of her device toward him, he set his water down and looked it over with a hint of amusement. The human had resorted to drawing pictures to communicate with him. His eyes flicked up to her face when she vocalized a few more words, using her drawings and gestures to conclude that she was talking about what had happened in the structure where she’d hit him in the back of the head. Absently, he touched the spot that hurt, understanding that she had attacked him because she had seen his gun and fought back to protect herself. It was a reasonable response, since he had been about to kill her if she hadn’t stopped him. Although it was mildly irritating that an Earthling had gotten the best of him in a fight, he supposed it had been a good thing in hindsight. If he’d shot her right away, he wouldn’t have had the chance to learn more about her kind, which was turning out to be more docile than he’d thought.

The human said the same word about herself again and then pointed a finger at him, speaking with the same raised inflection she had earlier. Now he was certain it meant she was asking a question. He processed briefly before it clicked in his head. A name. She had given him hers and was now asking for his. Eager to try talking to her again, he pressed a hand flat against his chest and replied: “Azdrei’in.”

Gaining confidence in the exchange, he decided to take it a step further. Pointing at her, he tested a few human words on his tongue, “You… Artemis?” He made sure to inflect his voice the same way she had when she asked him a question. The short phrase sounded different when he spoke it, colored with an accent because of the way he was used to pronouncing words, but he was pleased that he was able to recreate the sounds she had made. Now that he knew they were capable of communicating, he wanted to find out more about her people.

But first, it was smarter to start small. He picked up the container of water again. The human had used a word when she’d passed it to him, but he wasn’t entirely sure if she had been referring to the liquid or the clear unit that held it. To find out, he held it up and mimicked the word inquisitively: “Water?” However, he supposed it was still difficult to tell what it meant, and he frowned, perplexed. Earthlings looked quite similar to Lunvalgans. Perhaps they could exchange information the same way his kind did?

Experimenting with his theory, he decided to try approaching his question from a different angle. Reaching out to her telepathically, he created a vision of a river from Ashad’te in his mind’s eye and presented it to her while he repeated out loud in her language, “Water?”

Artemis watched him in curiosity, seeing him sniff the water before taking a drink. Would he be immune to all the bacteria, viruses and other microorganisms? The water was still filtered, yet she always had loved sci-fi movies. War of the Worlds being one of her favorites, it posed some great questions even when the fact that they needed human’s blood seemed so silly. The feel of it was still amazing. Yet nothing compared to the feeling of having someone real in her home after a year in complete isolation.

Truth to be told, she had tons of series and movies to watch, books to read but that didn’t change the fact that there was no real connection. Watching him as he cleaned the table as she actually felt joy after a long time. She felt silly talking to him as a child, yet it seemed to be working. Only to gasp as he said his name.

“Azdrei’in.” She repeated as she then pointed at him. A smile on her face as she could barely hold in her excitement. She finally had a conversation that was real, she finally wasn’t alone anymore. Granted, he had wanted to kill her, but she knew why. Humans were aggressive and she would have done the same if she had to power.

It was then that he said two words. Actual tears forming on her face as she heard her name on another his lips. Actually laughing audibly, she was so happy. It had worked! Me Jane, you Tarzan. Who would have thought that Disney would be correct after all? To her, it was more than just speaking. She had been alone the whole year, or was it even longer than that?

“Yes!” she said as she nodded her head. “Me Artemis, you Azdrei’in” she said with a smile on her face. It had been so damn long since she even had spoken to someone that could answer. Her smile and tears showing that it was the highlight in a very long time. The accent was stunning, it made her think of Elven, spoken by a dragon and she couldn’t wait to teach him more. Granted, he had slaughtered the human race, but she also knew he was her only chance at survival. Even when it was just as a damn pet.

Gaining confidence in the exchange, he decided to take it a step further. Pointing at her, he tested a few human words on his tongue, “You… Artemis?” He made sure to inflect his voice the same way she had when she asked him a question. The short phrase sounded different when he spoke it, colored with an accent because of the way he was used to pronouncing words, but he was pleased that he was able to recreate the sounds she had made. Now that he knew they were capable of communicating, he wanted to find out more about her people.

It seemed that he was far more intelligent than her species, smiling as he started to mimic the words that she was trying to teach. Only to completely freeze and look in wonder when he showed the river in her mind. Her mouth agape as she realized what was happening. The world that he showed was stunning, glowing plants everywhere as she saw the river.

“This is insane.” She muttered to herself only to say yes again as he let her heard the word in her mind. Deciding to use the tablet once more to draw something. Drawing two stick figures with thoughts. With hers, she decided to add her red hair, with him she decided to draw some fangs. Putting though balloons on top of them. With an arrow pointing at her head from his balloon, from her balloon to his head, she put a big cross over it as she then showed it to him once more.

She wanted to teach him so much, but she also needed him to know that she knew what had happened. Wiping the tablet and swiping towards the tv screen that was against the wall. Both of them could look at it while she was drawing. Or anything else she would do on it. Deciding to just show her one of her drawings from the past. Of humans fighting and nature suffering. Drawing a sad face above it.

Then she went on to show him the fungus. Fast images on how it changed her world with the footage. Of her and her family moving into the bunker and even showing him that her parents got ill. That she never had been, even when she had been around them. It was easy to show him with video, even when it was hard on her. She often watched that footage again, of her and her parents.

Only to show the season summer on earth with her with some birthday cake next. Letting him show that time passed while she was alone. Only to end at the moment where he was there with her, she didn’t want to make him sad and so she showed a picture of some randomly drawn humans. Pointing at the female as she spoke. “Female.” She said as she then pointed at her “Female”, doing the same for the male and then looking at him. “Male?” she asked very hesitantly.

She wanted to do more, she wanted to teach him more words. But what would be best to start with? She wanted some conversation, she wanted to be able to speak to a real person. Only to get an idea, she wanted to know more about his world. And so she decided to show him the difference in nature because of the virus. Smiling as she walked towards the screen and touched the trees, of the cities starting to overgrow. Trying to show that she was happy about nature being able to survive.

Then a picture of her, talking to the damn cat, alone in the bunker. Drawing yet another sad face. Showing that she was sad to be alone. Drawing the two faces as she then pointed at the sad face. “Sad” and when there was a happy face “Happy”.

“You and me” she said as she pointed at her and him. “Happy” she said as she frowned. Deciding to just take a video of two people talking. “Talk” she said as she pointed to the two people. Trying to show that she was happy to be talking. She then wiped it away once again. Biting her lip as she wondered how to ask him about his story.

And so she drew a spaceship on the ground, drawing him outside of it. Moving to just a spaceship from one of her favorite tv shows. Would he know that it wasn’t real? It was quite obvious to her since she had grown up watching all those things. Yet if they had studied her species, he would know that they never had made such vessels, only rockets.

She wondered if she had gone too far, yet she had been longing to talk to someone for so long. She wasn’t made to be alone. They were a social species. If only she could explain to him that not all humans were bad. Money in power was what seemed to be more important. She just hoped she could convince him that she was different.

Interestingly, it seemed like the human was even more excited about communicating with him than he was with her. As a smile appeared on Artemis’s face, Azdrei’in’s gaze dropped to her mouth, taking notice of the rounded shape of her teeth. On the outside, her species shared many similarities with Lunvalgans, but he was beginning to find more differences the more time he spent with her. Apparently, Earthlings lacked the predatory traits that helped his people survive. She didn’t have fangs and, upon sneaking a glance at her hands, he saw that she didn’t have claws either. Her skin looked more delicate than his as well.

It was a wonder to him that such a defenseless race had established themselves as the dominant species on this planet. It must have been their intelligence that set them apart rather than their ability to establish themselves as the strongest species. On Ashad’te, his ancestors had done the same thing, but they had still used their sharp ends to bring down prey to eat when they were hungry. The thought led him to ponder what humans ate if they didn’t have the same hunting tools as his kind did.

That was a question for another time though as Artemis responded to his inquiry about what the word ‘water’ meant. The look on her face when he shared a vision of his people’s planet amused him. Judging by her shocked expression, he guessed that humans didn’t communicate telepathically like Lunvalgans did, but she was still able to receive signals from him. That would make it easier for him to speak with her, at least. Even if she couldn’t answer the same way, he could send her images and impressions to clear up misunderstandings.

It was a pity that her species had been deemed too violent to cohabitate with. He leaned against the tall table while he watched her draw more pictures on her device. Despite their decision to commit mass genocide, his people weren’t unreasonable killers. They had only spread the disease to eliminate the human race because they’d feared that if they didn’t strike first, the Earthlings would have killed them as soon as they tried to land their ship. By proving themselves to be a savage species, the humans had brought their extinction upon themselves. He was just glad that this one wasn’t as quick to kill, so he could learn more about her kind before they were all gone.

He still kept a close eye on her, just in case she suddenly snapped and became hostile, but for the most part, he’d relaxed while she was preoccupied with speaking with him. His posture was mellow, with his shoulders down and back and his breathing slow and even. When he’d first landed on the planet, he hadn’t thought that he would spend his time interacting with one of the creatures he’d been sent to finish off, but he had wanted to learn as much about the Earth as he could. What better way to do that than by talking directly with one of the beings native to this world?

When another screen turned on nearby, he jumped, caught off guard by the sudden motion until he registered that Artemis had somehow connected it to the smaller device on the table. Human technology was different than what his people had developed, but it was advanced in its own way. Fascinated, he crossed the room to take a closer look at the larger screen, watching as the human’s drawings were replicated on it. The next one told a familiar narrative, seeming to depict Earthlings at war with one another while the natural world rumbled around them. It was the reason why the Eilix had decided they needed to die.

After the image was pulled down, he followed along as she presented a series of photos and videos to him that painted a picture of what had happened when his people had released Strizin over their planet. As the images flashed before his eyes, Azdrei’in shifted his weight uncomfortably. He understood that sending a plague had been a necessary evil, but it was easier to see it that way when he was removed from the virus’s direct effects. Watching the deterioration of Artemis’s family elicited a pang of dissonance inside of him. The pain she endured was the same pain his elders had experienced when they’d watched the people closest to them die back on Ashad’te.

As she moved on to pictures of herself, he gained some insight into the reason why she was so eager to speak with him. It looked like she had been alone since the virus had taken her relatives’ lives. He looked away from the screen to peer at her over his shoulder in quiet contemplation. If humans were social creatures like Lunvalgans, she must have been deprived of interacting with anyone else for quite some time. He did have to wonder why she seemed to have been immune to Strizin’s effects though. The virus was supposed to have killed off all Earthlings, and those who survived were supposed to become animalistic according to the biochemical engineers who had created it. Yet somehow Artemis seemed to have kept her wits intact.

Her next image coaxed him to turn back to the screen as she drew two figures that he recognized as male and female and proceeded to identify herself as the latter. The hesitation in her voice when she asked if he was male was humorous to him, and he chuckled. “Male,” he repeated, facing her and pressing his hand to his chest again in confirmation while a thin smile curved his lips upward.

Of all the details she could have focused on, it amused him that his gender was one of the first things she asked about. It seemed unimportant to him, since they didn’t belong to the same species. He did find her features visually appealing, particularly the exotic green color of her eyes, but she wasn’t a Lunvalgan. Therefore, it didn’t matter if she was a male or a female because to his kind, gender was only important in terms of mating, and he would only mate with the female that the Om’phaers—their fertility specialists—selected for him based on reproductive compatibility. It was what was normal for his people, especially since their ability to reproduce had been hindered by the disease that had destroyed their home planet.

As Artemis approached the large screen, he eyed her carefully, still watchful for any sudden movements. Up close, he noticed that she was slightly smaller than the average female Lunvalgan. Not by much, but he still stood about a head taller than her in close proximity. He followed her gesture toward the trees onscreen, then watched as the image transitioned to one of her with a small, fake animal. Her description of the simplified faces she drew clicked quickly. He understood that she was portraying positive and negative emotions.

As she explained in simple terms that she was happy when they talked, he found that he agreed. He was enjoying learning from her even though it wasn’t what he’d been sent to the Earth to do. It does not matter, he thought, justifying his breech in protocol. The rest of the colony will not join us until the planet is deemed safe, and that will not happen for a long time.

Watching her draw another picture, he laughed again when he realized the craft she had sketched was supposed to be his ship. The shape was vaguely similar, but it was apparent that she had never seen a Lunvalgan ship up close, if at all. He wasn’t entirely sure what she was trying to ask him by drawing the image, but he could tell that she was expressing interest in him, so he replied, “No,” and corrected her by projecting a mental image of the private craft he’d piloted when he’d come to her planet. The black vehicle was sleek with crescent-shaped wings and a body shaped like a water droplet that tapered at the nose.

Letting the image dissipate, he paused, tapping a digit against his thigh as he contemplated showing her more. It felt strange to him to tell a being that his leaders had labeled an enemy anything about his people, but she wouldn’t be alive much longer anyway. There was no reason to keep secrets when he was still under orders to kill her before the rest of the colony arrived.

Deciding to satisfy her curiosity, he conjured an image of the mothership, where he and the rest of his people had been living since before he’d been born. Along with the image, he expressed a warm, comfortable feeling in an attempt to convey that the ship had been his home. He showed her the various spaces his people had established on the craft for sleeping, eating, socializing, and even the area where he and the other Lunvalgans who had been assigned as warriors trained.

In their society, every career path was designated by the Om’phids, a group of specialists who were in charge of placing each Lunvalgan in a role best suited for him or her based on personal aptitudes. Those who scored highest in physical abilities such as strength and reflexes were often selected to be warriors: the members of their society who protected the masses from danger and who, once they settled into their new home planet, would be responsible for hunting down animals to feed them. He was unsure if humans had developed a similar process or not, so to explain it without words, he tilted his chin up and brushed his braided hair aside, revealing a black brand on the side of his neck. It was difficult to see against his dusky skin, but the mark didn’t have the same silvery tone as his natural complexion. It was a circle with the Lunvalgan symbol for warriors in the center. As he showed it to her, he impressed a sense of strength along with images of Lunvalgans firing laser guns at target dummies, rehearsing combat formations and piloting individual spaceships.

Letting his hand fall back down to his side so his hair covered the brand again, he envisioned the memory of his commander assigning him to be a member of the Yihai, a snapshot of his flight down to the Earth, and his exploration of the ruins he’d come across when he’d first landed, including his encounter with the hostile human and his discovery of her farm.

Afterward, he studied her face and focused on the structures he’d seen not too far from where she lived, sharing with her his curiosity about what they were in the hopes that she could tell him more about what he’d seen.

It was a relief to be able to communicate, finally having something that wasn’t the same as every single day. Smiling as she watched his responses, it seemed to be a lot like the way that humans showed emotion. Sadly she knew that her race was violent. A part of her knew that an alien race would eventually deem them too violent as well. She knew that if the humans had known, that his race would have ended up dead.

First, he showed her the image of the beautiful spacecraft, something that her species never had been able to make. At least not one that could overcome the gravitational force of the earth itself. It looked so different of what they had shown and she smiled “Spaceship” she then said as she was curious to learn more about his life.

When he then showed her the images of his life, Artemis realized that he must have lived on a spaceship his whole life. “Home,” she said in reply as she looked at him. Actually seeing that they were quite a bit like ants, even them having to hunt to have food. Her eyes sparkling as it looked like he was teaching her the ways of his people. To her, it seemed like they were more like ants in that way, a smile on her face as she then tried to figure out how to learn him more.

“You Warrior,” she said as she then went to show a video of ants. Where the person talking about them was just blabbering. Moving to the classes of ants as she just skipped past the queen. “Workers,” she said to the ants that started building the walls and moving things. Then the larger creatures that had huge jaws and that went hunting as well. “Warriors,” she said as she pointed at the ants.

Then she went to show him a video of different jobs of humans. Showing him hospitals and other things that seemed most important. Showing him that there were many jobs with humans. She wasn’t going to explain the money part of it all. Since that was the largest problem of the human race.

She then showed a lion hunting an antelope for food. “Lion,” she said as she pointed at the predator. “Predator.” She then said as she then looked at the antelope. “Antelope prey.” She said as she then showed another part. Of a cat hunting a mouse. “Cat predator.” She said as she then pointed at the small mouse “Mouse, prey.” She said as she then decided to show him the way humans had evolved.

“Predator hunts.” She said as she showed a video of a lion going after another antelope. “Humans don’t hunt.” She said as she shook her head. Then showing him that they started walking upright, that they started using tools and weapons. Showing him a cartoon of Neandertals that would hunt Mammoths by mere wit and making them fall from exhaustion. It always made her sad and so she went on to show how it all changed.

She then showed the cows that he had seen “Cow prey.” She said as she then showed him a video of her taking the milk. Only to show him how humans put animals in slaughterhouses. Looking away from the screen as she couldn’t even watch it. She showed him how they got shot in the head and then the cadavers moved to meat. Showing him the supermarkets.

She wondered what he made of it, of the mass capitalism and so she just started to show him what money was. How they used it and how in the end, it divided the people and how it caused wars. It made her sad and so she moved to the fact that there were happier things. Of how humans could be kind and were social, how in the past humans would gather berries and only ate meat when they needed it.

She wanted to tell him that she thought that humans were bad, but how was she even going to explain bad? And so she showed him war “War,” she said as humans were against each other “Bad”. Only to moving to a kid that was told no, only to do it anyway “Bad” she said again as she tried to convey the message.

Showing her race again, showing him the different colors and races that there were. Taking over the world like a virus. “Humans are bad.” She said as she then showed him how a virus would infect the body. “Virus,” she said as she then went to the earth.

“Earth... Humans are a virus.” She then said as she sighed. Showing how the population went to over billions “Too many” she said as she then showed the same with ants in a box. “Too many” she said as she was trying her hardest to show him. Then showing how humans would fight each other. “Violence,” she said as she then went to show him the worst of humanity.

Biting her lips as she wondered if there was any way to show how his species was good for the earth. How she didn’t like the idea of her species ruining it all. And so she went to show him a few clips of how humans envisioned how aliens were. All violent ones as she stopped with a scene of War of the World.

“Lie” she said as she smiled at him. “I’m male,” she said and shook her head “Lie,” she said afterward. Hoping that he understood what a lie even meant. She then moved to a video of the earth moving back to nature and smiling at him. Trying to convey the message. She still had to show him the cities and so she decided to just show him the pictures of the world before the aliens had released the virus.

“House,” she said as she then drew a house and then just moved her finger to show him that this was a house as well “House… My home” she said as she then hoped he would get a bit of it. She then wondered how she could even have him use the whole thing. She wondered how she could teach him her language, yet to her, it sounded a lot like elvish. Deciding to just go with it.

Moving to a movie as she first showed a cartoon, a silly story of Lucas the spider “Story.” She said as she knew it would be clear that it was nothing more than imagination. Moving to the movie of the lord of the rings. “Story.” She said as she then went to the place with the elves. They had their own language as she then smiled at him. Wondering if he understood what she was trying to show, that his language sounded like that to her. That humans had more than one language and even fake ones.

But if her idea was right, that his language was a lot like elvish. Then maybe it would be easier to communicate. Deciding to pause it and looking at him as she spoke one sentence in Elvish. A year alone would do strange things to a person. “I love the sound” she spoke as she wondered how he would respond. To her, it still made no sense, but maybe she could show him that it was working.

Moving to a video of a person speaking in different languages. “Languages,” she said as she always had loved that idea. “Even in stories,” she said in English as she then showed a Klingon speaking in the language that humans had created. Watching him closely to see what he was thinking.

As Azdrei’in showed Artemis images of different aspects of his life, he paid attention to the words she spoke to describe each one, learning how humans referred to them. She threw a lot at him at once, but he was able to keep up easily enough. Like the rest of his kind, he was a rapid learner, absorbing new information and piecing it together with the limited context he had to understand it. He picked up on the way she strung multiple words together, memorizing the patterns of her speech and storing each word away in a mental bank from which he could draw it out again when he needed to reply to her. The language she spoke slowly became more complex as she introduced more terms other than things he could see or touch, but he was determined to grasp it, so he observed her closely.

He found it interesting that she compared his people to a type of six-legged creature on her own planet. Apparently the nuances of their society existed in other species as well. He watched the screen as she went on to give him examples of the jobs humans took up. Many of them reminded him of similar roles among Lunvalgans. His people also had physicians, teachers, scientists, mechanics, and other specialized workers. There were plenty of duties that needed to be taken care of on their ship, and every individual played a part in helping the craft run smoothly. There would be even more jobs to fill when they began colonizing the Earth.

He followed along as she described the nature of predatory animals with their prey, understanding the concept right away. It was interesting to him that humans had abandoned hunting as they’d evolved. His people had also developed methods of trapping and killing prey with tools, but that had never become their sole method of hunting. Instead, they had more of a hybrid between humans’ resourcefulness and other species’ basic tactics of stalking and pouncing.

“I hunt,” he spoke slowly, trying another attempt at her language. Alongside the statement, he sent her a memory he’d seen from one of his elders, one of a group of Lunvalgans chasing down an animal not so dissimilar from the antelope she had showed him. The creature in the vision had bluish hair though with white stripes that luminesced under the light of Ashad’te’s three moons. The group of Lunvalgans, who shared similar swirling patterns on their skin that glowed in the darkness, had separated the beast from its herd and drove it into a trap. Only when the animal had collapsed did they finally shoot it between the eyes at close range with a gun.

“No hurt antelope,” he explained, trying to convey that his people didn’t torture their prey when they hunted. When possible, they killed their food swiftly, so it wouldn’t suffer. The mercy they showed was both for the beast’s sake as well as for their own, since the meat tasted better when their prey hadn’t been panicked and fighting for its life before it died. To him, it seemed like a superior method over the way humans apparently slaughtered their food in masses. His people took what they needed one day at a time and left the other creatures to roam free when they weren’t needed to feed the Lunvalgan tribes.

Artemis’s following description of how humans were like a plague to their planet lined up with what he’d been told. It interested him that she viewed her own species that way though. There was no pride in the way she spoke of the other Earthlings, only condescension of their violent ways. He found the diversity of her kind fascinating though. Among the pictures she showed him, he saw some humans with fair skin and bright features like hers but also some with darker pigmentation that reminded him of his own people. However, even the darkest among humans were different because their coloring was a shade of brown rather than gray, and their eyes and hair matched. In contrast, Lunvalgans had dusky complexions with pale irises and white hair.

The videos she showed him of other species captured his attention, and he watched them with his head cocked slightly to the side, wondering if humans had encountered people from other planets in the past. However, when she spoke about something being untrue afterward, he concluded that the video hadn’t been real. Creating images like those on the screen were probably her kind’s method of telling stories, since they didn’t share tales telepathically like his people did.

He turned toward her when she explained the word ‘story,’ understanding it to mean an imaginary history. Lunvalgans had plenty of those as well, although they weren’t told using technological devices. Her example with a race of people with pointed ears entranced him, and he leaned toward the screen, intrigued by the way they spoke. The sounds were similar to his own language, and he almost felt like he was listening to a different dialect spoken by a high-pitched Lunvalgan.

When Artemis suddenly spoke in the language as he was hearing in the video, Azdrei’in turned back to her with a surprised expression. He hadn’t expected her to speak more than one tongue. “You are a captivating creature,” he mused in his own language, his pellucid eyes wandering over her smaller frame. Although he was still a little chagrined that a human had been able to knock him out, he was glad that he hadn’t killed this one right away. Earthlings may have been a violent species, but he was discovering that there was much more to them than just the wars they fought amongst themselves. He wouldn’t have learned that if he’d shot her among the cows.

Interest piqued, he reached out to take her by the wrist, lifting her arm to touch her light skin with his other hand. She was softer than his own people, more fragile. He felt like he could snap the limb if he applied enough pressure. However, he wasn’t cruel enough to experiment with the theory, so he let her go as he circled her once, taking in her lithe figure from every angle before he left her side to wander the room. He found the fake cat he’d seen in the picture, but he also found a living creature. There was a small, hairy animal inside a box-shaped container. He leaned over it, wondering if it was a source of food for her like the cows.

“Mouse prey?” he queried, turning back to Artemis and gesturing at the tiny creature. While he explored the Earth, he was going to have to eat at some point, and he was interested in finding out which animals made the best meals.

At the thought, he frowned. He was enjoying learning about humans and their planet, but he was getting sidetracked from his orders. He couldn’t stay here forever. He also wondered what Artemis would do if she knew that he hadn’t forgotten he was supposed to kill her. Would she become violent, as her people were known to do? That is a question best saved for later, he decided, reaching into the container to scoop the animal up with one hand. The hair on its body was exceptionally soft, and its pink nose twitched in a curious manner.

“Food?” he rephrased his question to make it clearer, idly trailing a clawed finger down the length of its back.

Artemis watched him and merely nodded as she heard him said that he hunted. “I know” she said as she then moved her hands to show claws in a way. “Claws,” she said as she then used two fingers to her mouth and moved them where his fangs were. “Fangs”. She then said as she watched as he walked closer. Trying to remain as still as possible, watching him as he took her arm. Watching as his hand moved to touch her.

His skin was hard and warm, more like that of a snake than that of a human. Her breathing completely stopped as she hadn’t even had touched another being in so long. The hairs on her arms rising as her body wasn’t used to being touched anymore. Instantly her body responded, as it felt like a lingering feeling. It was as if his hands were still around her as she nearly forgot to breathe. God, she had missed being touched. She wished to touch him as well, yet she chose not to. She could see his muscles, the swirling patterns and she could barely even forget the sight of the creature hunting.

The antelope had been stunning and she knew that that image would hunt her forever, it was stunning. Earth would never be as beautiful unless they had brought plants and animals of their own. He moved around her, yet that barely registered as he moved to the bunny. “No, Bunny,” she said as she then used her hands as the ears of the small creature. She didn’t want to kill the bunny, her plan was to keep it as a pet. And when he said Food she just swallowed. “Bunny not food.” She said as she looked at him.

“I have Food.” She said as she then moved to go to the freezer. It was a huge one next to the fridge. Moving a bit faster as planned. She knew he ate meat and so she needed to make sure he ate. She barely had eaten from the meat that they had. Thinking that the one cow in there had to last her for a month. And so she opened the fridge and pulled out a few steaks. Thinking that half a kilo would be enough for him. Closing the freezer and placing it on the table.

She also had taken some icecubes. “Frozen.” She said as she pointed at the two. And then at the ice cube. “Frozen water.” She said as she then pointed at the meat. “Frozen meat from a cow.” She said as she wondered if he would understand. Looking at the bunny as she then looked at him. “Bunny is a pet” she said as she then grabbed her tablet and went to look for images of her and her dog. Instead, she found a video of her as a child playing with a dog and feeding it after. “Dog, pet.” She said as she then looked at him.

How was she going to explain that she couldn’t kill the animal? It was then that it hit her, she needed to show him that she couldn’t kill some poor animal. That she wanted it to die after a long life. And so she drew the moment where he had killed the human. “Kill a human.” She said as she then looked at the bunny.

“I don’t kill the bunny.” She said as she then moved her hand through her long hair. Deciding to show him that she ate veggies most of the time. “I eat meat… vegetables.” She said as she then pointed at the vegetables. Only to smile as she realized that she could tell him easily. Moving to show rotating earth. “Day,” she said as she held up one finger. Making the earth move around once. Then she went to move the earth thirty times. “Month.” She said as she looked at him. Holding up one finger as she looked at him “One day” she said as she then moved the earth once. “I eat meat.” She said as she then moved to put 29 stripes on the screen and then she looked at him. “29 I eat Vegetables.” She said as she tried to make him see.

Only to show him the footage on how her family went with eating meat. “Cow,” she said as she showed the process of calves, to adult and then a video of one cow just dying of old age. “Then I eat.” She said as she hoped he would understand.

“Kill Bunny or cow. Sad. Can’t kill” she said as she tried to show him what she meant. That she just couldn’t hurt an animal. There were other ways and so she decided to show him how most humans lived. That no human actually killed animals, that they just went to get the meal.

“I can’t hurt Bunny.” She said as she then looked at him. Realizing she needed to show him the difference. “Bunny is a friend.” She said as she then bit her lip. How would she explain the idea of a friend. Deciding to go to two kids playing together. “Friends,” she said as she looked at them.

Then showing him all kinds of animals on the screen. “Animals… A friend is pet” she said as she knew she was saying a lot. Looking back at him. She wanted him to be her friend, but she wondered if he really wanted it. She also knew that she needed to know if he wanted her to kill.

“You didn’t kill me.” She said as she smiled widely. “I don’t kill” she then continued as she looked at him. She hoped he would even want to get to know her. She was still a human. Then she had an idea, to show that she might be able to ask what she wanted to ask. Moving to draw more of him. In the spaceship as good as possible.

“They want you to kill me.” She said as she then went to have them send him a message. And drawing him killing her. Only to then draw him and her “We friends?” she asked. Hoping that he would be willing to be her friend. That she didn’t have to die.

Azdrei’in wondered what purpose Artemis had in keeping the bunny if it wasn’t meant to be food. He assumed she was planning to use it for something, since she had bothered to catch it and bring it into her home. As he held it in his hand, the small creature began to squirm, so he set it back down in its container. He was curious to find out what it tasted like even though she didn’t see it as a food source. Having lived his entire life on a spaceship, he hadn’t yet had the opportunity to hunt for himself. He and the rest of the Lunvalgan people had been living off supplemental meals that had been created by nutrition scientists to replace the meat they would have eaten on Ashad’te. The instinct to kill and consume his own prey still existed inside of him though, and he was eager to eat fresh meat rather than bland, artificial stuff from a lab.

When the human said something about food, he turned away from the bunny and watched as she removed a few slabs of meat from another large container. They looked like they had been stored from a creature that had been killed in advance, probably a cow since she had told him that was an animal her kind ate. Whatever it was, the sight captured his attention, and his mouth watered as she placed the cuts of meat on the table.

He understood the concept of freezing something to preserve it, so while a few of the words Artemis used didn’t register, he knew she was explaining to him that she had frozen the food so it wouldn’t spoil. It was her next explanation that was more difficult for him to grasp. He stared at her as she said something about the bunny and then proceeded to show him a video of her with a hairy, four-legged animal like the one he had seen near the pile of bags in the ruins. The only common word between the two phrases she spoke was ‘pet,’ but he couldn’t tell exactly what it meant based on the context alone.

Perhaps she had seen the blankness of his stare, because he didn’t have to ask her before she went on to explain herself more in depth. He found it interesting that humans ate more than just meat. It answered the question he’d had about the dulled shape of their teeth. They didn’t just have to rip and tear into their food; they also had to grind plants like herbivores did. Their diets were obviously more diverse than that of his own people, who dined exclusively on other animals to survive, and as she told him that she ate vegetables most of the time, he wrinkled his nose with distaste.

“I don’t eat vegetables,” he spoke the last word slowly, finding it harder to pronounce than the others. “Vegetables… are bad. I eat meat.” He was unsure if he was using every word properly, but he felt like he’d strung enough of them together to get his point across. Besides, she had probably already guessed his palate of preference since she knew his kind hunted their food. He had just wanted to make sure she understood the dietary difference between them and practice her language again.

Her explanation that she didn’t kill her food either baffled him. From what his elders had told him, meat tasted the best when it was fresh and the animal was young. If one waited for an old creature to die before eating it, it would be a bland, stringy meal. Only scavengers did that. Lacking the word to say so, he substituted with “Human are not predator” and presented her with a vision of an aged beast on Ashad’te collapsing into the grass, where it was surrounded by a pack of lenphe: small, six-legged creatures with leathery blue skin and jagged teeth that scavenged the carcasses of dead animals.

When Artemis introduced the word ‘friend,’ Azdrei’in finally grasped the meaning of ‘pet’ as well. It seemed like humans formed bonds with other humans as well as with other creatures, differentiating the connections with two separate terms. The bunny was an animal she had become attached to. He looked at it again, mildly disappointed with the realization that she wouldn’t be happy if he turned her pet into his dinner. It was probably for the best though. He wanted his first hunt to be a challenge, so scooping a tiny animal out of a box would be too easy.

Then she brought up the fact that he hadn’t killed her, and he turned back to her somewhat cagily. Only because I did not have the chance, he corrected her silently. It was true that she didn’t kill—and that she was generally less violent than he’d expected a human to be—but he hadn’t let her live because he was planning to spare her. The smile on her face made him concerned that she had gotten the wrong idea since he hadn’t finished her off the instant he’d woken up.

At her question, he hesitated. While he was enjoying learning about her species, the fact remained that he was still under orders to kill every human he came across. His leaders hadn’t made any exceptions for humans who didn’t seem to have been affected by Strizin. Although, on the other hand, they may not have even been aware that there was at least one Earthling who was possibly immune to the virus. Absently, he touched the spot on his belt where he had kept his communication device. He would have informed the other Lunvalgans of his discovery if he’d still had it with him, but he had no idea where Artemis had put it. Until he got it back, he couldn’t tell anyone that he’d found a human who was still in good health and who didn’t act as savagely as they’d predicted.

“Human kill Lunvalgan,” he stated, stepping toward her slowly. He hadn’t wanted to tell her that he was still going to follow his orders so soon, but now that the subject had been brought up, he had to address it. “We are not too many,” he continued, attempting to describe their waning population on the ship, which was the reason why they were so careful to protect themselves. To clear up the point, he showed her a mental image of a large, nearly empty room with only a few of his people inside of it. “I kill human; human don’t kill Lunvalgan. Earth home.”

Stopping in front of her, he touched his finger to the side of her neck, tracing the tip of his claw against her fragile skin. He didn’t know enough of her language to continue discussing the topic, but he made up for the deficit by projecting feelings of distrust and urgency. He wanted her to understand that he didn’t think that he could let her live without repercussions. It was his duty to make sure that the rest of his people were safe on this new planet, and if anyone got hurt because he spared one human’s life, he would never forgive himself.

“You talk friend,” he said in a low tone, narrowing his eyes at her warily. “I don’t know not lie.” As he spoke, he held his hand against her throat and hovered warningly. The gesture was meant to intimidate, so she would know he hadn’t abandoned the thought of killing her, but a part of him was also curious to see how she would react. With his claws poised to dig into her flesh, he wanted to know if she would cower, become violent, or otherwise react to the confrontation.

Artemis realized that he was in fact a complete carnivore, there was no way that he could choose to just eat vegetables. No wondered he hadn’t touched the dinner that she had made, he wasn’t able to even process it. “I understand,” she said as she nodded, watching him further. Tense about the idea that he was coming closer and closer to her. She could see that his eyes had changed, his body became tenser and she knew that it was the same look as a panther looking at something new. Looking to see if it was a friend, foe, or a prey. She didn’t want to become that last one, so she just tried her hardest to remain calm.

Cocking her head to the side as she knew that she had no chance against him when it came to a fight. She didn’t have anything to defend her, and even if she could do that. She wouldn’t if she even moved in the wrong direction. She was dead.

“I know… Humans kill Lunvalgan. Humans kill humans, humans kill.” She said as she then looked at him as she felt the urgency in which he spoke. Sadness coming to her as she realized there was only a handful of his kind that was surviving, yet she barely saw any females either. It seemed like it was a dying race and she wondered why it made her so sad.

She was very well aware that humans would kill them all and so she watched as he was almost standing right in front of her. Looking up as she nodded. “Humans would kill all Lunvulgan. No more Lunvungan.” She said as she wondered if that was what he meant. “You kill humans, so they don’t kill Lunvulgan.” She said as she froze completely when his hard claw moved against her neck. She swallowed down the spit as he seemed to act as if he wanted her dead.

When he moved his claw to wrap it around her neck, she just froze completely. Only to realize that he just hovered it around her neck. Just one move and he would be able to just squeeze her neck, one swift move and she would be his meal. Her body started shaking, realizing that it was a far more primal response than what she ever had felt. Every fiber in her body knew that he was far more of a danger. That he was higher up the food chain as a human. How was she going to show him that she didn’t want to be like others? And so she just looked up at him.

“Humans bad. I wish I wasn’t human. Humans were violent. I’m not violent.” She said as she wondered if he even would understand. “I won’t kill Luvungan. I want to help.” She said as she wondered how the hell he even would understand. “I helped you hurt.” She said as she wondered if that would even make him understand. She wanted so much more from him, she wanted to know more about his creatures and so she swallowed and wondered how she was going to show him that she meant well.

She wished she could show him a video, or something else that showed him that she meant what she said, that she wasn’t lying to him. “I won't lie to you.” She said as she wondered if Alexa, the AI in her home could even help them. She realized that maybe there was a fertility issue at their kind since she only had seen a handful of females of his kind.

“Alexa, please show IVF” she said as she knew the computer would answer. The robotic voice answered and then there was a video of a woman crying at a doctor’s office. Then it would switch to that of her taking pills, only to be followed by the whole process of IVF. The attempts at giving women their own children. It would also show the fact that humans had 22 chromosomes and one extra that made up if you were male or female. It also had shown the base of their DNA.

Little did she know that it looked a lot like their DNA as well, at least the basic building blocks. What she didn’t expect was the video to go on with showing how they used that in horses as well. To use a surrogate mother to care for the foal of another. She hoped that her guess was correct and that he indeed had issues with fertility.

“I won’t kill you.” She then said once more. Taking a deep breath as she looked into his eyes and then gently moved her free hand over his own. “Go ahead. Kill me. I won’t fight.” She continued as she hoped that he at least would be doing it quickly. She didn’t want to suffer, she knew he would find a way out of this place anyway. His kind would be better for the earth anyway. She just didn’t want to die, she wanted to learn more and she just hoped she would even be able to teach him about the internet one day. The humans had a lot of knowledge and maybe she could even have his kind restore it all. She was just sad she wouldn’t be there to see it happen.

Just because Artemis seemed to understand the reason he had for killing humans didn’t mean she was sympathetic to his motives. Azdrei’in watched her carefully as she began to quake beneath his loose grip. There was no better way to tell how prone a creature was to violence than by backing it into a corner. By threatening to kill her, he was experimenting to find out how quickly she might resort to fighting back. It wouldn’t have surprised him if she tried to defend herself. Plenty of other species were faster to fight than they were to flee, including his own. He merely wanted to see how she would react to a blatant threat, curious if she was as savage as the reports on her kind had stated or if she would give him a reason to actually finish her off right then and there.

Instead of fighting back, though, she continued to stand still without even attempting to backpedal or push him away. He studied her pale face while she spoke to him again, intrigued that her first impulse was to continue trying to negotiate with him. This wasn’t the kind of behavior he had expected to witness when he’d encountered a human. He didn’t understand most of what she was saying this time, but the tone of her voice wasn’t hostile. If anything, she almost sounded sad.

As he stood over her, the tension began to ebb from his body. Artemis was different than the image of humans that he’d conjured in his head. She seemed genuinely harmless. The more he thought about it, the more he realized that she had given him no reason to believe she would suddenly turn on him. She had hit him over the head because she had been protecting herself, but she had also tended to his wound and offered him food and drink. As they interacted with each other, he got the impression that she was curious too—just like he was about her kind. She’d had plenty of opportunities to kill him, and yet she had taken care of him and started teaching him her language instead. Those were not the actions of a violent creature.

Just as he had begun to let down his guard, he startled at a sound behind him and tightened his grip on the human’s throat, the tips of his claws digging into her thin skin. He whipped his head around to defend himself if someone else had snuck up behind him, but there was no one there. It appeared that the noise had come from another video on the large screen.

Relieved, Azdrei’in loosened his hold on Artemis again and watched the moving images. At first, he wasn’t sure what Artemis’s purpose had been in showing him this. She wasn’t trying to wriggle out of his grip, so it wasn’t a distraction. However, as the video progressed and delved into something that looked like an artificial method of reproducing, his eyes widened. He wasn’t sure how she had known that his species was dying out, but somehow, she must have figured it out.

If we are able to use this strategy too, it could save us, he realized, his hearts beating faster with excitement. Now more so than ever, he was glad that he hadn’t killed the human. If he had, he never would have stumbled across the information she was sharing with him through the video.

He turned back to her when she spoke again and placed her smaller hand against his. It seemed like she had accepted the thought of dying, but he had made up his mind. Despite his orders, he couldn’t bring himself to bury his claws into the throat of a creature that not only wasn’t fighting back but had also just showed him that she wanted to help his people overcome the problem that was preventing them from repopulating. If she had any information that they could use, she was valuable to him.

He let his hand fall from around her throat. “I won’t kill you,” he decided, echoing the words she had just said to him. A brief pause followed before he punctuated the statement with a curt: “Friend.” His leaders had ordered him to eliminate anything that might be a threat to the Lunvalgan people, and he had determined that she wasn’t a threat. That along with the invaluable knowledge she had about artificial fertility treatments was enough cause for him to let her live. For now, at least. His leaders would ultimately make the final call about what to do with her, but he had a solid case now for abandoning his duties.

Stepping back from her, he walked over to the large screen and gestured at it. He lacked the words to express his questions, so he reached out to her telepathically again, projecting a feeling of curiosity alongside a conceptual vision of a mated pair of Lunvalgans going through with the same procedure. He wanted to know if she thought the method was viable for another species to use. Given that the video had showed humans and another animal, he hoped that meant it was plausible that his kind would be able to replicate it as well. He didn’t know much about fertility, since he’d only been educated about information that warriors needed to know, but he had to think that if the process in the video worked for Lunvalgans too, they might finally be able to escape the threat of extinction.

Artemis let out an audible sigh of relief, when she was standing back on her own two feet. Rubbing her neck with her right hand and swallowing the pain that had settled for that short time. She knew he barely had used any force and yet, she knew that her neck would be red and soon a bruise would form. To her it had been a strange day, and she realized that she expected to wake up from a dream. Why did that though make her feel despair? The answer was simple in her mind, which meant that she would be alone again. She wouldn’t have anyone to talk to and that was worse than death. Still, she wanted to know so much more, she wanted to explore space and be seen as an equal in that world that his kind would be creating, even if it was just as a pet to the aliens.

She barely had been able to catch her breath, when the images filled his mind. She could see that the woman did seem more delicate than the males of his kind. And she then looked at him with a frown. “I don’t know. It depends.” She told him, realizing he probably didn’t even understand what she was telling him. Biting her lip as she tried to think of a way to tell the man that it all depended on how well their reproductive organ still worked. She sadly only knew the basics, as she still had been in school for a medical degree.

“How am I going to explain this?” she asked herself aloud. Only to think about a video about a woman that had to get her eggs planted into another person, because her uterus wasn’t up to the job. And so she took the tablet again. Moving to look up a picture of a woman and then the video that showed how a baby normally was born. It even had their chromosomes and if he knew anything about medicine, he could see that their DNA was quite alike. It went through all the stages and then she paused it at the uterus. “Uterus.” She said as she then pointed where it was at her body. Only to move to the ovaries and showing him a video of a woman making eggs. “Eggs.” She said as she then pulled at her hair.

“No Eggs, no baby” she said as she then showed a picture of a baby. “Bad uterus... No baby” she said as she then went to the movie of the woman who had used the egg of another woman. Her DNA was replaced in that egg and then the sperm of her man was used to get a viable embryo. She then showed the movie where another woman, got the egg planted into her body. Carrying the baby to term and then handing it to the couple.

Artemis didn’t understand how a woman could even get rid of a baby, she knew that she never would want to give it up. It was then that she remembered that humans had brought back zebras by using that technique and putting the embryos in horses. Showing it to him that she knew there had to be a way to get it done. But then they would need a viable host body. Briefly wondering if a human could be a surrogate. A part of her even wondered if their species, it they combined, if they would get a hybrid that was able to reproduce. And so she also showed the result of a donkey and a horse. The mule was adorable and so she pointed at that “No baby.” She said as she hoped he would be understanding it all. It was best she would talk to a doctor, she would need to do a whole lot of studying and she knew that even then, she wouldn’t be able to make the medicine.

Going back to the picture of the woman that couldn’t have babies, showing that she was taking medicine. Then looking up the structure of that medicine on the screen. Would his species know organic chemistry?

She knew he was much smarter and so she knew he needed to learn her language. She also wanted to learn his language, since it sounded a lot nicer than the language she spoke. It also would serve as survival for her kind.

She then decided it wasn’t a bad idea to get him to understand that they probably needed a specialist. Showing the different doctors and focusing back to that specialist that had helped the woman. “Specialist doctor.” She said as she took a deep breath. “We need specialist doctor.” She said as she could only do so much. She was still a young woman, one that had wished to become a doctor, yet she was nowhere near that. She couldn’t make the medicine, she couldn’t even find out what hormones would be needed for his kind. That would need someone that knew things, how were they even going to find that? She didn’t believe that another alien would be as kind as Azdrei’in. Then there was the fact that there was so much more information on the internet.

“Or internet.” She said as she wondered how she was going to explain that. “This.” She said as she then showed the picture of their small room filled with servers. Yet they only held a fraction of information that his father was able to download from the internet. “Very little of internet” she said as she then went to show a video that explained the internet to old people. How it would send information all over the world. “Internet broken… virus… no people, no internet.” She said as she then looked at him.

“I need the internet to help” she said as she then looked at him. Hoping that he would understand. Unable to stop the yawn from forming as she covered her mouth. She could fight it a bit longer, yet she knew that her headache only would go away if she slept.

Her throat hurting a little as she then went to grab herself a cough drop. Putting it in her mouth and loving the fact that it gave her a little relief from the pain that had started after he had grabbed her by the throat. She just hoped her help was enough to keep her alive. And if she was correct, his kind probably needed humans to carry their babies. Her mind going to dark places as she was only human. Human woman being bred with men to get more females, those females only used to carry child after child of his kind. They locked in cages, all alone. Shaking her head to get that image out of her head, she rather be in a cage than in this bunker anyway.

Artemis’s response to his attempt at inquiring about the process wasn’t exactly reassuring to Azdrei’in. He frowned, struggling to distinguish if she meant that she didn’t know if his people could use the method or if she hadn’t understood what he was trying to ask her. Lacking a common tongue was especially frustrating when they were trying to broach a topic as complex as artificial fertilization. He glanced at the screen again and drummed his clawed fingers against his thigh as he pondered over a better way to tackle the language barrier. However, before he found an answer, the human beat him to it.

He watched as the scene changed on the screen, and she brought up a video of a human female giving birth. At first, the abrupt switch baffled him, and he turned back to her with a perplexed expression, unsure why she thought this was relevant. When she spoke again and pointed to her middle, he glanced between her and the screen, piecing together that she was trying to explain her reproductive anatomy to him. He did his best to follow along, though he had next to no knowledge about the subject. He had a general concept of his own people’s anatomy, enough to be able to accurately guess the vicinity of most of their internal organs, and of course knew how procreation worked. Beyond that, he hadn’t been educated. Only Lunvalgan physicians were taught about such things.

He did manage to grasp the problem she was describing to him though. It was common knowledge among his people that the reason why they struggled to procreate was because the disease that had spread across their home planet had interrupted their females’ reproductive systems. Three generations later, they still didn’t know exactly why it had attacked that specific part of their bodies, but they had discovered that ever since their race had been infected, Lunvalgan females were mostly incapable of carrying a fetus to term because their uteruses often ejected it too early. Artemis’s solution of using a surrogate was interesting. If it had been tried among his people before, it hadn’t been successful, but what if…

He studied her with quiet intrigue. She looked incredibly similar to the females of his own species. He wondered if it was possible for them to use humans to carry their fetuses, since the Earthlings didn’t suffer from the infection that had ruined the Lunvalgans’ procreative abilities. If so, there was hope that they could recover before their numbers dwindled too far to repopulate. He wished he still had his communication device, so he could pass on the information he was learning to his commanders on the mothership. He wasn’t equipped to single-handedly solve this issue by himself. Unfortunately, the device was either lost or hidden somewhere by the human, and he didn’t have the words to ask her if she knew its whereabouts.

“Spaceship have specialist doctor,” he tried instead, attempting to tell her that there were physicians on the mothership that knew more about this than he did. If he could speak with them, they would be able to do more good than he was capable of.

Her description of something called “internet” went over his head. The best he could do was guess that it was something that contained more knowledge than what she had, since she claimed it would help. He wasn’t exactly sure what it was though, since she only showed him a picture of more technological devices that he didn’t recognize. It was probably something abstract, which would make it difficult for him to understand. So, he didn’t try very hard to comprehend it as she fumbled through her explanation.

Since he had woken up on her furniture, he’d been working constantly to absorb as much as he could as she spoke to him, but he could sense that he was starting to reach his limit. The mental fatigue coupled with the faint ache in the back of his head where she had struck him made it difficult to keep paying close enough attention to follow a conversation. He strode away from the screen on the wall to sit down again, pondering idly how much time had passed since he’d arrived on the Earth. He had spent a while in the ruins, exploring the unfamiliar terrain, had been unconscious for an indeterminate amount of time, and had spent even longer trying to interact with Artemis and watching the numerous videos she showed him. Belatedly, he also remembered that he hadn’t had anything to eat since he’d landed.

“Too many,” he exhaled, turning his head toward the human as she ate something he couldn’t see from a distance. What he lacked the verbiage to say was that he was overwhelmed. He had found an Earthling that had survived the virus with little to no repercussions, had learned enough of its language to communicate at least a little, and had discovered that it potentially had knowledge that could save his people from dying off. It was a lot to take in in just one day, and he was exhausted. To tell her, he projected a feeling of weariness and then an image of light fading into darkness before it returned at the start of the next morning, hoping that she would understand that he wanted to take the night—if it was night—to digest everything before he spoke to her further the next day.

Artemis watched him as he listened to her, realizing that he did seem to understand and when he sat down and told her it was too many. She smiled “Yeah it’s a bit much.” She told the man before her. She wanted to make sure he slept and she knew that he was tired as well. “Yes, it is night.” She said as she showed him the image of the cameras outside. Smiling brightly at the stars that showed on screen, the loss of light, had made the stars shine bright and it was one thing she loved in this terrible world. She then realized he had spoken about the specialist on the spaceship. Realizing he probably needed his device to contact her. And so she decided to take a risk, going to draw him the door inside and outside. Showing him where the keypad was and then writing down the 7 figure code for the man.

“I’ll be right back.” She said as she realized he probably wouldn’t even understand what she was saying. Making her way over to the door and then pressing in the code. The door gave a huge release of air before the sluice opened, having her walk in and then pressing the button to lock the door on the inside and the one on the outside. She had a visual alarm that blinked when there were dangers nearby and so she just decided to move fast. Going to the birdcage and picking it up, the cage of faraday was keeping it so that his device wasn’t working. Showing that the humans did understand physics. Artemis herself, always had loved science and wished that she was much more intelligent. Jogging back to the safety of the bunker and doing the things needed to get back inside.

She then placed the birdcage on the table before him. “Have a good night.” She said as she then realized it wasn’t fair for him to sleep on the couch. “Come.” She said as she left the cage and used her hands to lead him to her parents room. Opening up the door for him, and pointing at the bed. “Bed” she said as she then opened the other door that led to the bathroom. Giving him a smile as she then showed it to him. “Bathroom, shower” she said as she then went to turn on the shower. It was set to a higher temperature and she held her hand under it. Hoping that he would understand. He would probably figure it out, and so she yawned once more.

“See you tomorrow.” She said as she then left the room and went to that of her own. Closing the door behind her and making sure that he couldn’t see her while undressing. Making her way over to the shower and letting the warm rays move over her. Cleaning herself from all the dirt that had sat there from the moment that she had been hunting for the rabbit. “Alexa turn of the lights in living room.” She told the AI. “Dim the lights until off when sleeping. Turn lights on slowly automatically when we wake up.” She told the AI after it would tell her that it had understood her commands.

It was going to be a short night, though she felt like it wouldn’t matter if she slept longer this one time. Cleaning her whole body, drying herself off and laying herself down into the bed. The tabled remaining on the table as he would be able to use it if he wanted to. She barely had thought about teaching him more, she was just happy that she no longer was on her own. And why was it that Azdrei’in seemed beautiful to her? She realized that she never really had felt that way about a human man, as a teen she always dreamt about falling for a Klingon or an elve. It was silly, and she believed it to be rather innocent.

“Alexa. Softly play ‘Harry Potter and the chamber of secrets.’” She told her computer. She just liked the idea of a voice talking to her. She didn’t think he would be able to hear it, at least he wouldn’t have heard it if he had human ears. She put herself under the covers and just let that voice lull her to sleep. For the first time in over a year, she was talking to someone again. She just hoped that he wouldn’t leave her on this planet.

It shouldn’t come to a surprise really that her dreams were of her being on that ship. A mix of Star Trek and this new world. Where the ship would be able to translate what they were saying, where she actually could explain the workings of humans to the creatures that had taken her up from the earth. They had wanted to end all humans, just to save the planet and their own species. Oh, how beautiful outer space was. The windows showing her how beautiful it was, today that dream didn’t seem as farfetched as it could be.

Azdrei’in watched as Artemis gave him what seemed to be an entrance key to the door of her living quarters, taking in one last piece of important information before he veritably shut down for the day. It was interesting to him that humans used codes to open locks. His people preferred bio scanners that worked on hands, faces or eyes. He didn’t feel like explaining that to her though, so instead of sharing a mental image, he leaned into the cushioned back of the furniture he was sitting on and closed his eyes to relax.

When she left, he realized idly that she could escape from him while she was gone. If there was any part of her that was determined to survive, it was the perfect opportunity for her to run away. Just because he had deemed that she wasn’t a threat didn’t mean he trusted her wholeheartedly, so, while she was gone, he passively tracked her heat signature to make sure she didn’t disappear beyond the radius that he could sense. If she did, he wouldn’t hesitate to get up and go after her. Because of her knowledge about fertility treatments, he wouldn’t kill her, but he wouldn’t allow her to leave now that she’d made herself valuable to him either.

Fortunately, there was no need for drastic measures. Artemis didn’t wander too far, and before long she had returned with his communication device inside of a cage. The sight was amusing to him, a creative solution, and he looked up at her with a hint of interest before removing the piece of Lunvalgan technology from its holding.

The following gestures she made were ones he understood as beckoning, so even though he was tired, he reluctantly indulged her by standing up to see what it was that she wanted to show him this time. Ambling along to a different room, he was mildly surprised to find that she had taken him to a space designated for sleeping. He’d thought she would have left him on the other furniture, since that was where he’d woken up the first time. He stepped over to the bed, which was quite a bit larger than the one in his quarters on the mothership. It looked softer too, and he was suddenly eager to find out how comfortable it would be to lay down on.

First, though, he let Artemis show him the attached room, where he watched as she demonstrated the use of a system he’d never seen before. He studied the “shower” curiously. It looked like it was designed for the purpose of bathing, but he’d never seen an upright bath before. His kind used pools of water to cleanse themselves of dirt and grime as needed, often in a shared space separated by sex, so they could conserve the precious resource. He supposed humans wouldn’t have the same need, since their planet was covered by so much of it, but he was still intrigued by the design of the system.

Once he was alone, he strolled back over to the bed and collapsed onto it tiredly, his first order of business being to get some sleep after the incredibly long day. The human hadn’t killed him earlier, so he felt fairly confident that he was safe enough to rest without fear of being murdered in his sleep. Between the plush surface underneath him and the mental fatigue of learning so much in the span of a few hours, it took no time at all before he’d drifted off into a light slumber.

Like the rest of his kind, he didn’t remain unconscious through the entire night though. After some time, while it was still dark beyond the human’s hideout, he stirred, drawn back to wakefulness by his empty stomach. He stretched languidly on the bed and sat up, gathering his bearings before he eased himself to his feet. His vision during the night was equally as clear as it was during the day, so he located the door in spite of the lack of light in the room and strode back out to the common space. With the artificial lights turned off, the bioluminescent patterns on his dark skin glowed a soft silvery white, matching the same dim glow of his crystalline irises. On Ashad’te, the genetic feature helped the Lunvalgans blend in with their environments, but on the Earth, it would cause him to stand out inconveniently at night.

Regardless, he was hungry and restless and determined to find something to eat. Artemis had shown him her frozen slabs of cow meat, but he bypassed the freezer and went straight to the door, entering the code she had shown him to get out. He wanted to hunt his own meal, so he went outside to search the area for wild prey, thrilled by the prospect of catching something for the first time.

There were a few animals on the farm, some large like the antelopes the human had showed to him earlier and some small like her bunny. Since he was only out to feed himself, he tracked down the latter, only needing enough meat to fill his stomach for one meal. He found a few tiny creatures in the structure that housed the cows. They had round ears and long tails, with short brown hair that covered their bodies. He easily snatched up two of them after frightening them out of their nest in a wall and then caught a slightly larger beast with a bushy tail and ringed patterns in its hair that he discovered snuffling around the outside of the building.

The fresh meat was immensely more satisfying than the supplements he’d been fed on the Lunvalgan ship, both in taste and texture. By the time he’d finished his hunt, he sauntered back to the human’s hideout with a pleasantly full stomach and the lingering metallic taste of blood on his tongue.

On his way to the door, he decided to take a moment to report back to his commanders now that he had his communication device back. He hitched the piece to his ear and pressed down on the transmitter, relieved to find that he had a clear signal. “This is Azdrei’in, reporting,” he spoke into the receiver, stopping just outside the structure to lean against the wall while he checked in with the mothership. He didn’t even have to wait before one of the commanders, Zalla, responded.

“Azdrei’in, where have you been?” she asked curtly. “We could not reach you for hours. We considered sending a rescue team to find out if you had been killed.”

“I am fine. I just lost track of time,” he replied, choosing not to admit that a human had knocked him out for a while and stolen his communication device. No harm had been done, so Zalla didn’t need to know about that. “I have made some discoveries that may be of interest to our people though.”

“What do you mean?” Zalla asked.

“I found an Earthling that is still alive,” Azdrei’in explained, idly brushing at a spatter of blood on his clothes from his prey. “It is a female that seems to have been unaffected by Strizin. She has been living in some kind of safehold on a farm by herself, so I am unsure if there are others who have survived as well.”

“There have been multiple reports from the other Yihai of Earthlings who are not dead yet,” Zalla said somewhat jadedly. “You did kill this one, did you not?”

“No. This one is completely unaffected, commander,” he pressed. “It exhibits no signs of mania, uncontrolled impulses or illness. It is not violent either.”

“That does not matter,” Zalla snapped impatiently. “Need I remind you that your orders are to kill all Earthlings you come across? They are a danger to our people and must be eliminated.”

“I understand that,” Azdrei’in exhaled. “However, I have a good reason for keeping this one alive…” And he explained everything Artemis had taught him, reciting the information to the best of his ability. The news that the human was educated about medicine and fertility shocked Zalla, and she reluctantly agreed that he had made the right decision by not killing her right away.

“I will have to look into this,” she mused. “I will pass what you have told me along to the Om’phaers and find out their thoughts on the matter. For now, continue doing what you have been doing, and do not let this Earthling out of your sight. If it is valuable to us, they may want you to bring it back to the ship.”

“I will keep an eye on her, commander,” Azdrei’in said obediently.

The transmission ended, and he entered the code to return to Artemis’s hideout. With nothing left to do, he supposed he could go back to sleep, but as he passed through the common room, he noticed that she had left the small screen out that he had been using to communicate with him earlier. He stopped and studied it. The device seemed to have quite a few different functions, and he wondered if he could learn how it worked if he tried to use it.

Foregoing sleep for now, he picked it up and sat down at the table, fiddling with the screen for a while and pulling up different pages of information written in a language he couldn’t read. It would be difficult for him to effectively learn anything when he didn’t know what all the symbols meant. So, he decided that was his next challenge.

He browsed the device until he came across a feature that read the words on the screen out loud in a feminine voice. From there, he searched for one of the words he had been taught by Artemis by speaking it out loud to the machine. The device picked up his voice and ran a search for “food” (it was the easiest word for him to conceptualize) and he managed to figure out via the disembodied feminine voice that the name of the language he had vocalized was English.

It took some trial and error and awkward fumbling for a while, but eventually, he succeeded in learning the language’s alphabet phonetically and found a source to use to begin studying more words and grammar. He spent the rest of the night refining his knowledge of English until he grew too tired to keep his eyes open anymore and went back to his bed to get some more sleep.

Artemis worried that Azdrei’in wouldn’t be there when she woke up, and that seemed to be a worse fate than ending up dead when his kind found out. Wondering if she had made the right choice to talk to him and tell him about the fertility program. She was by no means an expert and she wondered if he had even understood what she had been trying to say. It was hard to explain things with simple words and she wondered if there was a way to make it better. Stretching before she got out of the bed and went to clean herself a bit more.

Deciding to wear a blue dress, the weather was going to be nice after all and she just wanted to show that she didn’t just wear pants and oversized t-shirts. Making sure to brush her hair and teeth before she moved into the living room. Realizing that her tablet wasn’t on the table. Did that mean that Azdrei’in was still there? Relief washed over her as she seemed to hear him snore. At least she wasn’t alone anymore. Moving to the rabbit and making sure it was fed before she went to work on her own food.

She put some oatmeal in a bowl, poured some fresh milk with it and heated it up at the microwave. It would take a few minutes and she still was very sleepy, what was that dream even about? She remembered waking up in a spaceship and a man would wake her. Realizing that it was none other than Spock. “I dreamt about you Spock” she said to the statue of the dog that stood next to the cat. “Not you you, but you know from Star Trek.” She said as she then just turned on the TV and went for another viewing of Star Trek Discovery, the first episode.

How sad what it that she didn’t even need the subtitles to understand Klingon these days. “They are coming. Atom by atom they will coil around us and take all that we are.” She said along with the Klingon on the screen. Chuckling at the screen “That are humans for you. Though your race is based on violence.” She told the screen. Realizing that she was indeed going insane. She couldn’t stop talking to herself and she wondered what Azdre would think of that. She wondered if he even was planning to keep her alive. She knew that his superiors wanted all the humans gone. But who could even blame them for that. Humankind was nothing like the Federation.

She had to admit that she always had loved the way the Klingons looked in discovery. They were dark skinned and looked like predators. Somehow she found that his species looked like that, they had the same feeling of belonging together. They were nothing like humans, who thought they were better just because of the color of their skin. It was an idiotic notion. Ever since she was little, she was the type of girl that watched Stargate SG1, Battlestar Galactica, Star Trek… Hell anything that had to do with space exploration. She even had wanted to call her first daughter Michael or Samantha because of her love for those shows.

And now? There was a peaceful alien in her own home. It still felt like a dream, like she would wake up at any moment and be back at the horrible world that the humans had created. It wouldn’t be long before they had destroyed the earth after all. If Azdrei’in would walk in at that point. She was sitting on a barstool, eating the oatmeal and watching a show that was all about spaceships and space itself. The beginning music of the show playing as she looked at it with wondrous eyes. For over a year, that had been her sole source of human voices. Acting as if they were talking back at her, she wondered briefly if there were others like her. Surviving on this planet. A shudder moving over her back as she realized that the outside world was horrible.

When the ship moved to warp speed, she wondered if that was even possible. She wanted to get on that ship. She wanted to see others of his kind and touch the metal that was his ship. A childlike glee forming inside her body as she realized that maybe she would be able to get into space. To watch the earth from above in the vacuum of space. To see other planets and stardust. I was a dream come though.

What was the worst that would happen to her? That Azdre would take her as his pet. That she had to do anything he would ask of her? She wouldn’t even mind to be his servant. She just didn’t want to be on her own anymore. Swallowing the oatmeal as her mind wandered back to the moment that she talked to him about the surrogates. Would her body be able to carry their babies? Would she be willing to pay that price to stay alive?

But she would have to carry a child to term, she would have to feed it right? Or would they take that away from her? She then shook her head once more. Deciding that it was horrible to think about, no matter what happened. It could be worth it, yet they would be mistaken if they thought they could just take her child away.

It was in that said moment that the dream came back to her. It was a dream where she met the man that was sleeping in her parent’s room. Yet the next thing she knew, was that she was carrying his child. How insane was that? The human mind could do strange things when it was overworked after all. She still was human after all, when she was still in school, she never had wanted a child. But now that she was locked in the bunker. She often had wished for a man and a baby in her life. At least then she wouldn’t have to be alone. She would be able to be distracted by the child, teach it how to walk and talk and being able to touch them.

Would he take her to space? Would he even care to show her that? Or was she just going to be examined by the others of his race? She had no idea, but for now. All she cared about was to see the man again when he woke up. If he would show, she would be sitting there, watching the TV that was playing softly. Their interpretation of space travel on the screen and her bowl empty. She wouldn’t even notice him that easy, humans weren’t the ones that were hunted after all.