Seslie sat down on a bench, watching the clock on the wall tick along.
Time always seemed to go SO much slower when you stare at it.
The past couple of hours were hectic, so much had happened. Seslie and Kyle almost got eaten by a vicious beast, who just so happened to be her close friend, Tripp.
So much information was given them about him. Who his master was, where he was from, and apparently what he could be. And even with all that information, it still didn't say much about him, but it did explain a bit why he was the way he was.
She felt so bad for him, the way he was treated, the pain he went through for something natural for his species. She was able to get through to him, but still in a beastly way, he tried to attack his master, Sterile, and got himself shot. So, in a way, Tripp wasn't entirely cured.
Now she was in the back hallway of the motel they were staying at, waiting for Kyle to finish patching up Tripp. The front of the hotel was decent for guests to see, and the rooms were okay enough to deal with. But because the hotel wasn't used very often, there was no need for upkeep. Or at least the care to upkeep it. The motel smelled like bad cabbage and the carpet was pretty stained with something dark, and she was hoping it was coffee or dirt. 'No wonder we can afford it..' She thought to herself, feeling a bit sick to her stomach at the thought.
But what really got to her, was what Sterile said as he described about Tripp, he also included about using her people's power to give Tripp and whoever else, their powers. Surely this has to be recent since she left home, as she hadn't heard of any kidnapping of anyone she knew. And she couldn't imagine anyone volunteering for such a heinous crime. Sterile had to be stopped, but she didn't even know where to begin with that.
Seslie sighed nervously, trying to shake the feelings aside as she looked down at Kida, who was sitting by her feet.
She actually paid attention to what the wolf looked like, how her fur laid flatly against her body. It was a soft, dark gray with silver highlights. Along her face, tail and the fur on her jaw were just slightly soften with blonde shading.
Kida tilted her head up at Seslie and stared at her for a moment as though wondering why she was being stared at. Her eyes were deep and wild, like a dark forest with no way out. She looked intelligent, like she could speak and understand just as well as anyone else. Of course, nothing was coming out of the wolf, just an intellectual stare.
Paris stepped out of the room that was beside the bench. With a quiet sigh, she sat beside Seslie, petting Kida on the head.
"Well? How is he?" Seslie asked worriedly.
"He'll be fine." Paris answered, calmness covered whatever panic or worry she may have had. "Kyle is just finishing up, he'll be out soon."
Soon after saying that, Kyle came out the same room, pulling nylon gloves off his hands, his chest bare without a shirt as his torso was wrapped with gauze and medical tape. "Oh, how sweet, he has visitors." He said jokingly after looking upon Seslie. "He's fine, he'll be up in a little while."
Seslie nodded in relief, trying not to notice the different scars that seemed to be chiseled into Kyle's bare skin. She figured that it must help him be more clean in the surgery without a shirt, and with his injuries, it was probably hard for him to adorn one. She then asked quietly, "How bad was it?"
"Eh, I've seen worse." He replied casually as he tosses the gloves in a nearby trash can, "But if he was in his human form, there's a slight chance he could have died. Just a slight chance.
The bullet that was used was made out of cast iron. Not very popular nowadays, it's pretty rare and illegal in the R.C, with good reason. Cast iron can do a real hurting on you that you may not recover from. Sterile must have known what he was using. I'll do some analysis on the bullet when we get back to the ship."
Seslie started to ask another question before she heard footsteps to the left of her. As she turned her head, she saw Helios jogging stiffly towards them, his clothes dripping wet from the rain.
"Where have you been!?" Seslie demanded gently, standing up to meet him, "We looked everywhere for you."
Helios tried to catch his breath as he spoke, "Sorry, sorry, sorry.. It was weird, after the monster shoved me-"
"Tripp is not a monster." Seslie interrupted. Tripp was still Tripp to her, however he looked. And now was not the time for Helios' name calling.
"Monster, beast, Boogie man, whatever.." Helios waved her off, "As I was falling, something saved me, caught me in mid air as I fell. I don't know who, it was something.. When I gain consciousness, I was in some alley a few blocks away. Then I ran here, hoping to find you- Cap, what happened to your shirt, Tripp ate it or something?"
Kyle didn't reply, just gave a small glare, narrowing his eyes. Same as Seslie, he didn't feel like hearing Helios and his big mouth. Kyle was relieved to see Helios in one piece, no doubt, but the man didn't need to come in the scene prancing about.
Seslie nodded, actually glad of her brother being okay, but also ignoring the nonsensical question, "Well, I'm in one piece, I think Kyle is.."
"Just a few bruises, a cracked rib or two." Kyle shrugged nonchalantly,
"Nothing I haven't had before."
Paris gently placed her hand on her husband's forearm in a silent, affectionate way, "It could have been much worse.. I think there's a possibility that Tripp was still slightly conscious of what he was doing, or everyone would have been in worse condition."
Kyle nodded in agreement, returning the favor with his hand over hers. "He used a paw to knock me out. He could have easily used his claws, but he didn't. It's not like he didn't have orders to kill, but unless he was toying with us, he held back... Just saying all that sounds weird. I've heard of shape-shifting before, sure but.. Not of this magnitude."
"What happened with that guy, the bad guy that was in control?" Helios inquired, taking off his trenchcoat to hang it up to dry, "Told you he was a total creep.."
Kyle sighed, as though just the thought of the answer tired him, "We don't know, other than he jumped ship. I sent Fedrick and Nothang to scout around and they didn't find a body, or really any clues, but they're still searching. Snax should be back at the ship, updating Helgala and Al. When we get back, I'll have alot of research to do."
"Is there a chance that the one that saved Helios, saved Sterile?" Seslie asked curiously.
"Not likely." Kyle countered. "Obviously he's a bad man, and if he had henchmen, they wouldn't help his enemies, which is us apparently. If they had saved Helios, they probably would have kept him."
"Pff, What sort of dumb name is Sterile?" Helios joked, a smirk growing on his face. "It sounds.. Well, it sounds gross."
"It's a name you shouldn't joke about.."
The group jumps, a bit startled and turns around to see where the voice came from.
Behind them was what appear was a young woman, her face shrouded by the hood of the cape she wore, which was also dripping of the rain from outside.
Seslie took a step closer to her brother, not trusting strangers at the moment.
Kyle thought differently as Paris reached for her blaster on her belt.
"Can we help you?" Kyle asked bluntly as he leaned towards the bench to retrieve his shirt. He didn't need any more aggravation at the moment, he wanted sleep, as did the rest of them.
"I apologize that I didn't come to you sooner." The female answered, her voice soft like cool water and yet it had a cold firmness like ice to it. "Are you the K-Force? The group that a Trippstone Aron, travels with?"
"Who wants to know?" Helios butted in. "We're not gonna give him away to just anyone."
"We're not going to give him away at all!" Seslie grunted, swatting her brother's arm.
The female looked at Helios with slight interest, her face not too visible from under the hood, but she then turned her attention to Kyle, seeing how he looked to be in charge. "I feel as though I can trust you all, as did he and you took care of him. May I see him?"
Kyle glanced at Paris for a moment then peered back at the stranger, "Listen, we've all had a long day, and if you think you can just-"
"I have to see him, Captain Darius." She insisted gently as she pulled back her hood. "We are of the same people."
Her almond shaped eyes shone a deep green in reflection of the light, full of wild emotions and certain intelligence, like Tripp and Kida did. Her hair was a brindle color, a mixture of light brunette, gray and blonde. It was cut just under her shoulders and was held on a braid, with a few strands on each side of her face.
Her face was sharp, sculpted. Her cheeks had a faint gray marking on both sides, almost like a wave of stripes. And as she spoke, her teeth, canines specifically, was even sharper, like Tripp's.
What got everyone's attention was the long ears she had on each side of her head. They were thin and stood tall, about four inches, pressed up against the side of her head. The ears were covered in soft fur that was just a bit lighter colored than her hair, with small tuff of dark fur on the top.
Helios stared, completely gobsmacked by her appearance. She was tall, slender, yet was fit and elegant. She looked amazing! Like some warrior elf with weird ears. He had seen and met many of aliens, but this time, he was struck stupid on this one, "You're a fox!"
The young woman looked once again toward him, and although her expression did not betray it much, she was not pleased at all at such a comment as one of her ears twitch slightly in irritation, "I am no fox.."
Helios went to either correct himself or dig a deeper hole, but Kyle spoke first, much to Seslie's relief as she again swatted her brother's arm.
"I'll take you to Tripp, he's just in this room. Hopefully you can explain something to me."
~~~~~~~~
"He is alot.. smaller than I recall last we met."
Tripp laid quietly asleep in the makeshift bed Kyle made. His chest was also bare as his shoulder was wrapped with gauze and medical tape. His face seemed drained but something about his appearance made him look older, more mature. Not much of a difference, yet didn't quite look like the same innocent lost boy he once was.
Kyle stepped forward and started to remove the restraints on Tripp, "So, as nice as I want to be, I've got alot of questions and they better be reasonable answers." He demanded. Gently, but with needed firmness.
The young woman nodded her head, and then glimpsed over as the others were coming in the room as well.
"I guess I should start from the beginning as well as I can.. My name is Eeva Heatherfur and I am an Aronite, same as Tripp. I have been sent by my queen to retrieve him and take him home. Or at least to confirm his renown existence."
Kyle's eyebrows furrow together in confusion but Paris stepped in and spoke, "Okay, we need a tad more than that, we barely know him, nor you. We only know from what this Sterile told us. Who is this queen, and why do you need him?"
Eeva twitched her nose slightly as she again nods, "Then you may want to sit down for all this, I'm not sure how safe it is to repeat any of it."
As everyone got themselves comfortable, she took a deep breath before continuing, "The Tripp you know and see before you is an Aronite, a beastly humanoid that lives on the moon of Aron.. Or what's left of it. You see, there's a planetary system called Alyiss on the west side of the galaxy. It's made of a very small planet, surrounded by four moons, but now it only has the one moon able to be inhabited, which is Aron."
"How come?" Kyle asked curiously. "Three moons is alot to lose."
"Alyiss is a peaceful system, but it's has seen rough issues.." Eeva added. "Including the genocide about fifty years ago. Aron is the last remaining habitable moon and where us Aronites used to live. But after the last war, we've either scattered, been captured and turned to slaves, or was killed.
We Aronites are guardians of the throne on the mother planet, Aiross. I have only survived because I was within the castle at the time. Tripp was captured on Aron.. As least that's my assumption. I haven't seen him since the war."
Paris looked to her husband, "That explains a little bit."
Kyle didn't return a response but instead asked, "Wait.. How old are you exactly, Eeva?"
"Honey, don't ask women that, that's offensive.." Paris whispered, giving Kyle's sleeve a gentle tug.
Eeva's mouth slowly curled into a faint smile, small canines showing, "There is no offense. I am currently a hundred and two years old."
Both Paris and Kyle choked on air in surprise, Paris more than Kyle.
"I have seen aliens of many planets able to age well in many of years but you barely look over twenty." She stammered then looked to her husband, who tried not to look as flabbergasted.
Eeva smiled wider, bowing her head in agreement, "Thank you, I'm assuming that is a compliment to your culture. Aronites live to about three to four hundred years on average. Mostly because we're not prone to catching sickness and we age slowly. Everyone in the Alyiss system is like that, actually."
Seslie and Helios exchanged glances, Seslie looking a bit worried, but kept it to herself.
"Soo.." Helios joked, "Do you have the fountain of youth on your moon-"
"Ignore that, Eeva-" Seslie interrupted, ready to throw her brother out the room. "How old is Tripp?"
Eeva's eyes flash over to Seslie and looked her over in question before answering, "He should be around ninety-three years old."
Kyle took a deep breath before running his fingers through his hair, "Geez, I need a drink. He looks no older than you do. I shouldn't be surprised, but not what I was expecting."
Seslie started to look shock, but surprisingly it didn't last. Confusion ran over her face more. "Sterile kept saying Sage to him. Does that mean anything?"
Eeva nodded casually, "Well yes, Sage is his birth name. Sagestone. Sage is a very nobel and honorable name. Sterile must have given him his new name when he was bought to help hide his identity. It's not a very good one though.."
Seslie frowned and muttered under her breath, "I happen to like it just fine.."
Eeva didn't seem to notice the comment as she looked back at Kyle, "Has he traveled with you long?"
Kyle shook his head, "For about two months, not too long. We picked him up off a planet Rago-X. He had no memory other than his name- er, adopted name, I guess. He said he was there for two years as far as he remembers, and where he was before or how he got there, I'm not sure. He has acted.. Aggressive, I guess you can say. Beastly, but he never harmed any of us. Protective is really the word he is, but it only happens when he's pushed. He has never transformed though, that I'll admit. Claws extended, yes, but not full fledged hellcat."
Eeva frowned at the thought, "That doesn't surprise me. Sterile is a wicked man, and treats his workers harshly. He must have done something to prevent the transformation, amongst other things."
"Is he like some mad scientist of some sort?" Helios joked, grinning widely, but Eeva didn't find it humorous.
"That is exactly what he is. He purchases slaves and does experiments on them, making mutants of them. None of them were successful, as the experiments end up lethal, from what my resources tell me." She explained. "Sage is one of his first. I am not sure of his background, but I've heard that he has always been a genius and unfortunately, he's using it for bad purposes."
Kyle crossed his arms, now that his mind was composed and was slowly taking all this information in, "Sterile mentioned he created Tripp as a weapon. And his lightning was Sterile's invention."
Eeva's expression was composed, but solemnity settled in quickly enough, "I thought I saw a bright light on the building during the confrontation, but it seems my fears have come true and Sterile's testing have finally succeeded..
Sterile, like all slave masters, don't want to lose control of their subjects. Sterile must have used the name Sage as a code to be in complete control of Tripp. A memory trigger, as it were. To prevent any sort of betrayal, Tripp would not be able to become powerful and transform without the code or command by Sterile. Without the presence of Sterile around, the strength of the control hold may have weakened. I'm not sure how it is done, but it is very strong and effective."
"That explains why he has used electricity and slightly turned Catty." Kyle smirked at his joke, then stopped when Paris nudged his arm, "Anyway, that must be why Tripp wasn't able to fully function on his own. When we found him with Sterile, he was terrified and it was as if something mentally was going on that prevented him from listening to us. If we work with him, maybe we can loosen him from the bond, since transforming is supposedly natural for him."
Eeva nodded again and looked at Tripp, who stirred in his sleep, pity washed over her face, "He was a fine warrior and friend back then. He would have made his people and his father proud."
Seslie raised an eyebrow as she watched Eeva, narrowing her eyes as she did. Who was this woman who just decided to show up now and thinks she knew Tripp? Sure, Seslie didn't know squat compared to Eeva but she wasn't going to give him over to her like that. Tripp certainly hasn't mentioned her.
She huffed under her breath at the thought, then realized what this feeling in her chest. 'I'm not jealous, just suspicious, is all.' She tried to convince herself. She didn't like it, but some reason she couldn't help it.
Kyle broke her thoughts, "Well, this has been alot of.. Drama, to say the least, and I think we need to get some sleep. It's been a long night. Trust me, we have plenty of more questions, but for now, we all need rest."
"May I stay with him?" Eeva asked softly. "I won't disturb him, but I'd like to be here when he wakes up."
"I'll stay with him too-" Seslie insisted, but then realized what she just asked so she shrunk back slightly.
Kyle just shrugged and nodded. He was too tired to care at this point.
"It's fine, someone needs to watch him anyway. I'll be just outside on the bench, let me know when he wakes up. I need to update with Fedrick about all this. C'mon, sweetheart." He gently pats Paris' shoulder and they both walk out the room, Helios following.
"Lucky man.."
"Helios-" Seslie snapped softly, her face hearing up with embarrassment, hearing her brother snicker as he leaves the room.
She then sighs and sits down in a chair, thinking things over.
Eeva eventually broke the silence, "Your brother is an interesting.. person."
Seslie nodded, trying her best not to roll her eyes, "Yes, he is. He's Helios and you have my full permission to ignore him. I'm Seslie, by the way. How'd you know he was-"
"Your brother?" Eeva responded, her forest eyes scanning over Seslie. Kindness were in her eyes, but emotions had no connection to her expression. "You two look very similar, and you have the same scent... My apologies, one not of my culture may not understand -"
"No no, it's fine." Seslie said, smiling, feeling a bit more relaxed. "I've been with Tripp- er, Sage for almost two months, I'm pretty used to him using his many senses often."
Eeva smiled as she looked to the floor, the loose hair from her braid falls to her face, "Thank you for the respect. Were you two close?"
'Were you?' Seslie wanted to ask bluntly, but then realized it wasn't right for her to assume anything. Why would she think that? 'He doesn't even remember her, why does it matter? Why does it matter that I care? Why do I care?!'
She quickly shoves the thoughts aside and responded in nonchalance, "We're good friends. All of us are on the K-Force. We're a close team."
"As any team should be." Eeva brought out bluntly.
"Right.. So.." Seslie paused before continuing, "You said you were sent to find him? What made you come here?"
"This is a port, it's a place to get information the quickest. I just got the perfect answer." Eeva gently dragged her small claws on the bed post, as though testing out the material, then she respectfully placed her hands behind her back. "Queen Aurora has been trying to find the scattered Aronites across the galaxy. There's not very many and we haven't been lucky on finding them. Sage was my first lucky find."
"Even after a fifty years?" Seslie asked, finding interest in all this, especially being Tripp's history. "How few of Aronites are there?"
"Too few.." said Eeva with solemn expression, her ears folding back against her head. "It took us half of that time just to recover and clean up. We caught wind from one from our spies at Galax Moon Port about someone who attack a few slave traders, and with the description, it seemed to match Sage. So I departed and tried to pick up clues until now."
Seslie nodded, feeling a bit sick to her stomach at the thought. Eeva knew everything about Tripp and now she can take him home. 'What am I supposed to do now? The K-Force is amazing but.. it wouldn't be the same.' She sighed nervously and had to ask, "Will you take him back with you?"
Eeva looked to her, again scanning her dark eyes over her. Her ear twitched slightly, her voice soft and courtesy, "Not quite and not yet. We shall see how he is when he recovers. I hope him not to be mentally too far gone.. But again, that is something else to wonder about until then. For the time being, you should rest. You have had an exciting night."
Seslie nodded, now just noticing how tired she actually was. She slid down the chair a bit to get comfortable to sleep, then glanced over to Eeva, who was getting comfortable in the corner, "Eeva..?"
"Yes..?"
Seslie hesitated before asking, "You wouldn't happen to be the one that saved my brother falling off the building, were you?"
Eeva responded in the same hesitation, "I am.. You I can tolerate well with, but your brother better not make me regret my favor for him, for his sake."
Seslie sat there, not sure how to take that, but things were quiet and calm for the moment.
Helios will just have to be on his own on this one. If Eeva can transform like Tripp can and be just as powerful, Helios better be on his best behavior.