The Princess and the Human

"Wait... are you seriously telling us that Humans found a way to free themselves from the limits of the Hyperlanes?!"

The small alien slightly tilted her head to that question.

"It's a bit strange to word it like that because, excluding me, humanity isn't even aware of the hyperlanes. Maybe there just aren't any near us. We already invented it a while ago, this is just the first time we used it for such a long distance. But either way... if... I mean, it's just one possible explanation, but if... just if..."

Her voice died down as a single drop of clear liquid rolled from her left eye down her cheek.

"Then we might have found a clue to your people," Silgvani finished her sentence. "Uncle, I know when it comes to the military, I can't override my parents' orders, but-"

"Don't worry about that," her uncle caught her thought. "There is no one here to attack, we spent the last ten days confirming that, even if there are still people hiding somewhere down there. Her and His Majesties' orders are thereby void, and technically, we weren't ordered to return right after, so I do have some leeway in deciding what to do from here on out. And I should try to figure out what happened here anyway so I can assess whether there is a threat to Hohmiy. That being said... could we please not act as if we hadn't just heard something completely outrageous?!"

To that, the princess couldn't help but chuckle.

"You'll get used to it."

"A ship that doesn't need the hyperlanes," Mirtan's second-in-command thought loudly while the admiral was still busy staring at his niece. "Depending on how exactly it works... it basically means we can't judge this situation and time frame with common sense anymore. But it's at least an explanation that theoretically works, assuming the ship's big enough and some other factors align. But let's say this ship really is behind this; if that's the case it could've gone literally anywhere from here, potentially even to planets we don't even know about. If we at least had a clue why everyone is gone, then maybe we could figure out something from there. But we practically have no information about this place since the day the Tystrie started with their isolation. And our time limit isn't helping."

Nadine blinked a couple of times.

"Time limit?" she asked, almost choking on the words. "What do you mean with "time limit"?"

"Well, you see..." Mirtan started to explain, having found his voice again. As he did so, he extended a hand toward Nadine, making the small alien flinch backward. He stopped talking and looked at her confused.

"You are wearing your suit, Nadine," Sligvani gently reminded her.

"Oh, r-right. Sorry. Please, go on."

"Did I do something wrong?" Sligvani's uncle inquired, seemingly not wanting to drop the topic just like that.

"You, um, you didn't, please don't worry about it," Nadine insisted as she calmed her breath. "It's just... you see, it's not good if you touch my skin. But that's what the bodysuit is for, I just got worked up and forgot I was wearing it. Please just leave it at that."

"Okay... then, as I was saying we didn't come here expecting a long operation, so our storage capabilities aren't exactly at full capacity right now. Even if we reduce the safety buffer to the absolutely acceptable minimum, we'd have to depart at the absolute latest in twelve days."

That wasn't good news. Even if Eroas had a very low population count, it was still a planet, and twelve more days wasn't a lot of time.

A strange, high-pitched sound made the princess turn her head. After a few tiggs of confusion, she realized that it was caused by Nadine's protective suit as she clenched her hands into fists.

"Excuse me for a minute. I'll go talk to her."

She turned to leave, and Sligvani rushed to reach the door before her.

"Are you sure that is the best idea?" She asked as calmly as she could. She had already seen this facial expression and heard tonal shift before. Whenever the topic reached the former ambassador, there was this almost drastic change in Nadine's demeanor. There was also the fact that she refused to use her name. Nothing happened last time, but it still left the princess with an uneasy feeling that extended contact wouldn't be good for the alien girl. Add to it that the things causing her these "nightmares" had once again become a talking point and that they might be close to finding - or worse, missing - a clue to the fate of the colony ship, Silgvani didn't need to be a doctor to notice that Nadine wasn't in the best state of mind right now.

As soon as the words left her mouth, the expression on Nadine's face softened a bit. "Don't worry, Sil, I'll be fine. But she has to know something, I can't just ignore that."

"If you say so. But... don't let her get to you, okay?"

Nadine grew quiet for a second but then closed her eyes.

"Yes, I promise."

Silgvani then cleared the way, and as she watched the small alien exit the bridge, she could hear her mutter a quiet "thank you".

The door closed, and the princess suddenly felt light-headed. Her legs also seemed to lose strength and she reached for the nearest wall, but the doctor was already next to her and supported her.

"You shouldn't overexert yourself, Your Highness. You're doing much better, but you still haven't recovered fully. That's why I told you to rest until we reach the fleet."

"I was resting," Silgvani insisted.

"Sitting and resting is not the same, Your Highness. Admiral, are there some free quarters nearby where she can lie down?"

"Of course," he answered and gestured for one of his officers to guide them there. Silgvani decided against another comment. While she was relieved that her people wouldn't have to answer for an unjust attack on a supposed ally, the new situation demanded fast results. Was there really nothing she could do right now?

***********************************

Kykla's arms hurt. Her muscles burned, her joints ached, but she kept holding her hands up regardless.

It wasn't like she was new to keeping her current position for extended periods of time. During festivities for example, there were certain ceremonies that included fairly long prayers. None of them, however, were this long. How long exactly "this long" was, Kykla couldn't tell nor did she care. All she cared for was to somehow keep her arms up, keep praying, keep begging the Goddess that her people, her husbands, her children, were safe.

Just what had happened here? She hadn't even been gone for that long! If she could just go down there herself, look for them herself, maybe she would find something! Alas, stuck in this cell, her prayers were her only hope to achieve anything. Should she have cooperated with the Vanaery? But if she did, she'd risk exposing the very secrets she had tried to protect with every single step she had taken so far. What if there was a simple explanation for everything? Forget being judged, how could she even face the Goddess after her execution if she doomed her entire kind because of a panicked decision?

As she finished her prayer, about to mentally start the next one, she stopped and considered for a second. Maybe instead for her family's safety, she should ask the Goddess for guidance? A sign whether she should help or stay quiet? Would the Goddess answer, even though she wasn't a high priest?

She wasn't able to finish her thoughts as she heard the door opening. Due to the interruption, she allowed her exhausted arms to drop onto her bed and lifted her head. It didn't even take a moment for her to flinch and her heart rate to spike. It had entered. The door had closed right after, and this time, there was no glass between them. How the logical part of her mind assessed this situation didn't matter because it got entirely overridden by her instinct. Her body was frozen to a statue as she stared at the tiny monstrosity, who in turn merely stood there and stared back at her. The room would've been silent had it not been for Kykla's hitched breathing, which this time was loud enough that she could hear it.

Too much on the edge to form a clear thought, Kykla wasn't sure how much time passed until the alien noblewoman moved. She sat down, once more on the floor. Seriously, why was she doing this?

From her bed, Kykla just looked at her as she sat there with her legs crossed in front of her body, a strange position. The Tystrie Matriarch wasn't sure if her own legs would allow her to mimic the position even if she tried. Despite the difference in elevation she still looked quite threatening, but Kykla slowly got used to her presence enough that she could calm down. She remained quiet for a bit longer, but the alien just kept looking at her with that distorted look on her face. Oh, right, she wasn't wearing her translator.

"I don't get you," Kykla said as soon as he had the gadget around her neck. "Among your kind, you are regarded high enough to represent them. Your sovereign trusts you enough to send you alone! And yet, here you are before me, sitting on the floor like some low-born. I voice vile thoughts about you, yet you remain quiet until the princess of another people takes pity and defends you."

"...your point?" the alien finally spoke.

"My point?! How can you, a supposed noble of your standing, simply ignore having your honor and dignity openly questioned by someone who, at least from your standpoint, is a criminal, as if you don't care?!"

"Well, at least you're aware of what you are."

"I always was. It's just that I was willing to pay that price for the sake of my people."

Nadine's face contorted even further. "Then I'll answer your question with one of my own: do you care what the dirt on your soles thinks about you?"

Whatever kind of answer Kykla had expected, that certainly wasn't it. Despite her long experience with dialogues of varying degrees of vileness, she had no idea how to respond to that.

The alien suddenly raised her hand to her face and pinched the protrusion between her eyes.

"Ah, damn it! I just promised Sil! ..."

She then closed her eyes and took a deep breath before once again fixating her gaze on Kykla.

"Okay, look: I hate you. I hate you more than I ever thought I could hate another person. Frankly put, I think you are a monster. But your people aren't to blame for your crimes, they are innocent. And something clearly happened here. If, as you say, all you do is for the sake of your people, helping us find them should be in your best interest!"

"Should it now?" she asked as she cocked her head. "And what is your interest in this?"

Another moment of silence followed, the alien seemingly contemplating her answer.

"A group of humans went missing, alongside a ship with a certain technology. Said technology is currently our best explanation for how so many people just vanished. And believe me, you want us to retrieve them."

There it was. Her incentive for why she even bothered. Sure, it had been obvious that she wouldn't actually care about the missing Tystrie, why would she? She had nothing to do with them. But the sheer audacity to insinuate that even Kykla should care more for the humans than her own people... Lady Nadine would've needed to lose her mind to honestly believe that.

"Then good luck with your search. My prayers will continue to be dedicated to my family."

"What the hell is that supposed to achieve?!" the alien shouted with her face contorted again. "What if they need help?! ACTUAL help?! What if something preventable happens because of your inaction?! What if they DIE?!"

"Then I will mourn them and find solace in the knowledge that they are at peace in the eternal embrace of the Goddess. They did nothing wrong, so they obviously will be allowed to spend eternity at her side. And if her mercy grants it, I will see them again on the day she judges me."

The alien's eyes narrowed.

"Great. And if you don't lie to yourself?"

"Lie?!" With the last comment, Kykla's anger finally overwhelmed her uneasiness and she matched the alien in volume. "The only lie would be to not claim that if it went as you wished, you'd sent me to the Goddess right here and now! You know nothing, yet you mock her truth like you have seen it all!"

Once her outburst ended, she didn't receive an immediate answer. The alien slowly tilted her body backward and leaned against the door.

"Okay, yes, I'm biased in that regard. After the USAG - no, forget it, that would take too long, let's just say that recent history left scars. Maybe it is indeed true, your Goddess, your afterlife, all of it. You're right, I don't know that. What I do know however is that I have my current life, as your people have theirs. Lives that might be in danger, but that we might be able to save. And you know that as well. Your Goddess could be real. But your fear for family, that definitely is real. You yourself said that you are praying for them. That's what I meant when I said that you're lying to yourself. You want to find out what happened, and if necessary help them, just as much as I want."

"Help?" Kykla spat. "We both know you want to help your people. You have nothing to gain helping mine."

"Gain? Helping others isn't about gain! If someone needs help, then that is enough reason to help them!"

Kykla's tail curled up before smacking against the floor. Was she truly honest? No, she couldn't be. No matter how social a kind was, a different species would always be a different species. She couldn't allow her emotions to overrule the teachings she had been raised to follow!

"If you said what you came here for, then I would like to resume my prayers now."

The alien's expression shifted again, but she didn't say anything. Kykla quietly watched as she stood up and turned around. But as the door opened, her mouth suddenly opened and moved before her thoughts could catch up.

"Do they have a map of Eroas?"

The alien halted. "I think they have an old one from before the isolation," she answered without turning around.

"That doesn't matter. These places are old," Kykla explained before she could stop herself. "Two thousand lynes north of the Temple of Grace. Seven hundred lynes southeast of the Temple of Serenity. One thousand three hundred lynes northeast of the city Merim. One thousand four hundred lynes north of the arena close to the city Kylias. At each of those places, you will find the largest and oldest mining facilities on the planet, impossible to miss. The tunnels have since been repurposed. If there still is someone left, they will likely be in either of those."

After a short pause, the alien nodded and closed the door behind her.

Why did I tell her all that? Kykla thought as she let herself fall onto her bed. And yet, somewhere in her mind, there was a tiny part of her that insisted this had been the right choice.