I sat in a silver swivel chair next to a passed out Xan, lying on a cot in Neron's resting area. He seemed so motionless and pale. I didn't understand anything that had happened to him and no one was explaining it to me.
I placed my hand on his and he felt cold. Was he dying? He wasn't like me. What would hurt him and how would he heal? I became painfully aware of how little I knew. All I did know was that I was worried about him. I didn't want anything bad to happen to him.
"He's your former partner, Neron?" The woman asked from the doorway behind me. They didn't think I could hear them or understand them.
Neron had welcomed us as guests on his ship. The minute Xan collapsed, they took him to a cot to rest and set his ship to follow us on autopilot. We had taken off hastily to take advantage of the small window of incapacitation for Alano and his beings. I was happy to put as much distance as possible between us and that horrifying man.
"Yes," Neron confirmed.
"But didn't you have a falling out because he so rigidly serves the Torian empire?"
Neron grunted in assertion. "We disagreed on ethics. I doubted the decisions of the empire but he followed them blindly."
"Then what is he doing with this being? Doesn't he know the Torian empire will have his head for this? They will want her turned over immediately."
An exasperated sigh escaped Neron. "I have no idea what he's doing. But we can't let her be turned over."
I turned to look at them and they just stared back at me, like I was an animal at the zoo to be looked at. What will the little human do next?
I stood up and looked at them sternly. "Tell me what's wrong with him," I demanded.
Neron arched an eyebrow. "I have no idea what she's saying," he said to the woman and she smiled uncomfortably.
They turned to walk away, but I felt the anger flow through me. Being human did not make me inferior and I would not be ignored!
I grabbed his shoulder and to his surprise, turned him around to face me.
"Then learn!" I insisted, pointing to his wristband and then his temple, trying to indicate how Xan understood me.
Neron's shock quickly turned to amusement. "I see... so Xan has downloaded your language."
I nodded. Again he chuckled. "Xan is just full of surprises these days."
I sighed. They made Xan sound like a monster, but he just didn't seem that way to me. Right now, he was all I had in this universe and he saved me. I owed him the same.
I watched impatiently as Neron brought up the frequency bar on his wristband like Xan had before. He held it towards me.
"Let's hear it, darlin'."
I scowled at him and leaned closer to the frequency bar. "You are an idiot," I said flatly as the bar fluttered.
Just like Xan had, Neron took the data and held it up to his temple, but also to the woman's temple. Their temples lit up with the blue light for just a moment before Neron looked at me pensively.
"Did you call me an idiot?" He asked amused.
"I guess it worked," I replied with a smirk. "Now tell me what's wrong with Xan! Is he going to be okay?"
Neron arched his eyebrow. "What's it to you, human?"
His words shocked me. That was the first time I had heard it said out loud with such disdain. Human. So inferior I wasn't even allowed to inquire about Xan. I felt the heat rose inside of me; the heat of shame and anger.
"Just tell me," I growled.
The woman exhaled in exasperation. "You're not funny Neron stop messing with her!"
Neron broke out into laughter. "She's so serious and angry though, it's hilarious."
I looked at them dumbfounded.
"Relax," Neron said kindly. "I'm just having a little fun with you," he laughed with a wink. "It's not everyday you meet an ancient one. But where are my manners? I'm Neron and this is the lovely Trish."
The woman smiled and waved politely, seemingly much different than the fierce warrior I had witnessed earlier.
"Xan," I pressed again, uninterested in idle chitchat. "Will he be alright?"
"Relax, kid," Neron breathed dully. "He's fine. Takes more than that to take down a government Torian."
I crinkled my nose in confusion.
"Neron that doesn't mean anything to her," Trish interjected with an eye roll. She brought her attention to me.
"Xan is... different," she sighed. "Torians can manipulate electrical pulses, but Xan works for the Torian empire. They've been...enhanced... differently. He is much stronger than your every day Torian."
I looked back at him. He still hadn't moved at all. Could I believe anything they were saying?
"What happened to him?" I asked.
"He expelled too much of his own energy," Neron chimed in, an edge to his tone.
"He shouldn't have pushed himself that hard, but that guy was strong," he added. "He overdid it."
My face must have revealed the panic inside of me. Trish placed her hand on my shoulder.
"He will be fine. He just needs to rest." I nodded just as my stomach let out a loud growl. It was then that I realized I hadn't eaten anything since before I could literally remember, back when Earth existed still.
Trish laughed and directed me towards the door.
"Why don't we get something to eat,"
She suggested as she escorted me out of the room and I glanced back at an unconscious Xan one last time.
Outside of the resting area there was a long hallway that seemed to have other rooms branching off of it. This ship was more than 5 times the size of Xan's and seemed like it was. made to be more of a home.
I followed Trish down the hallway to a room on the right. Inside, the room was dark, but it only emphasized the gorgeous view of the galaxy outside the wall of windows. Across from the windows was an ivory countertop with matching cabinets. The refrigerator followed the same theme with different white appliances along the counter as well. Everything was backlit by a gentle blue light.
"Take a seat!" Trish recommended pleasantly, motioning towards the white bar in the center of the room with a top that glowed with the blue light as well. It was surrounded by several white swivel bar stools and I sat down in one.
I looked on uncomfortably as she went into the fridge and pressed a button. The fridge unfolded itself and revealed three different levels of packaged food. She rifled around through the shelves while I watched.
It felt strange being here and not having Xan as a buffer. These beings seemed to know about me, but Xan had been so careful about trying to conceal things about me. Was it okay that they knew?
She came back with a platinum plate that contained what looked like a chocolate protein bar, freeze-dried vegetables, and some kind of pudding. She placed it down on the bar in front of me and gave me a fork and spoon with an expectant and excited smile, urging me to eat.
I gave an awkward frown and pointed to the breathing mask on my face. Trish laughed.
"Oh, sorry! I should have told you, I converted the air to oxygen on the ship so you wouldn't have to worry! You can take that off."
I took a deep breath. Every time I took it off I had a mini panic attack, fearful that I wouldn't be able to breathe without it. Cautiously, I removed it and found myself relieved to be able to breathe.
Trish was staring at me. She really wanted to see me eat. Though this food looked less than appetizing, I was so hungry I didn't even care.
"So what's your name?" she asked as I poked at the bar. I stabbed it with my fork and found that it looked like peanut butter protein inside.
"My name's Aeris," I replied, finally taking a bite. My brow furrowed as the taste was like seasoned meat. It was good but surprising. I was expecting a sweet taste like candy, but this indeed tasted like actual food.
"Sorry, we don't really have gourmet food here. We sort of function on quick and nutritious," she explained after seeing my face. I nodded in understanding.
"You must be pretty confused," she said sympathetically now.
"Of course she is," Neron answered walking into the room and sitting down at the bar as well. He looked at me and smiled. "Trish, get her some of that good coffee. At least that will be something familiar for her."
I smiled. That did seem familiar. Familiar would be nice.
Trish nodded and quickly scurried over to one of the appliances that looked like a capsule. She pressed a button on the side and the top part popped open. From the nearby cupboard, she grabbed a little silver sphere and popped into the top of the capsule before pressing another button. It began to hiss and steam, filling the room with the familiar aroma of coffee.
Neron sniffed the air. "I forgot how refreshing oxygen can be," he lamented.
I arched an eyebrow. "Why is oxygen available if none of you need it to breathe?" I pointed to my mask. "Why are these masks even necessary?"
Neron chuckled. "Some organisms thrive better in different elemental environments. For you, living is thriving. Though it's not necessary for other beings we still enjoy the benefits of different atmospheres. An oxygen-rich space is soothing and healing, most likely since the mother race depended on it. Meanwhile, a nitrogen-rich space is more energetic. Ozone provides a more protective space, people use it to keep other elements and molecules at bay."
Neron was still talking about different types of molecules and atmospheres while I just stared at him blankly and continued eating. I understood, these beings converted environments to envoke different energies. After understanding that, it was hard to keep focusing as he rattled on the details.
Trish placed the coffee down in front of me in a platinum mug and I all to eagerly held it to my nose. The smell was so intoxicatingly wonderful and taking a sip proved all the more so. I grinned at Trish and thanked her.
"So why does that mask make it possible for me to breathe?" I asked, taking another delightful sip.
"It's a molecule converting mask," Neron replied simply. "It's used when your atmosphere choice is more personal and you don't want to have others be affected. Also great for beings who are ill to help them heal or function better."
I blinked a few times. "A thing like that exists?"
Neron chuckled and flicked my forehead. "A lot of things exist that you ancient ones have no idea about."
I frowned. "Well, I'm the only one now," I replied looking at them, the expressions on their faces more dismal with the realization.
"So who are you guys anyway? Why were you at Vasio?"
Trish and Neron grinned at each other. "We're vigilantes," Neron replied.
"Specifically working to prevent the illegal trafficking of exotic organisms and species," Trish added. "We knew about Deek's shipment and we were there to put a stop to it. It was only suppose to be plant life from Valrox though. Imagine our surprise to find you!"
Trish smiled at me kindly. I got the feeling that this was a cause she was passionate about. She wanted to take care of other beings. It seemed very genuine.
"We do what the GIU fails to handle," Neron announced proudly.
"You're a bunch of space bounty hunters," Xan groaned, leaning against the doorway with his fingers pressed to his temples.
Neron huffed. "Don't downplay our part," he scoffed at a miserable looking Xan.
Xan's eyes fell to me as I cautiously approached his side. They were silver again, but still very faint. He still wasn't well, he looked pale and sick.
He placed his hand on my forehead and he emitted a very faint golden glimmer, a slight wince crossing his face. His hand was still quite cold, not the usual warmth I was used to. This was energy he shouldn't have been using.
"I'm fine," he muttered, clearly feeling my worries. "You're okay?" he asked it as if he was searching me rather than asking me.
"Yes," I replied quietly, gently taking his hand off my forehead, wanting him to save his strength.
"Good," he breathed, squeezing his eyes shut tightly and wincing once more.
Neron laughed. "You're so dramatic, Xan. Those guys weren't that strong. Toughen up a little."
A tired smirk drew at the corners of Xan's mouth as he looked at Neron with exhausted eyes.
"You still have that illegal recovery chamber you've been hiding on this ship?" Xan asked with a twinkle in his eye.
Neron crossed his arms and grinned. "Well, that depends on whether 'stick up his rear' GIU Xan is asking or my former friend Xan is asking."
Xan let out a cough that turned into an amused laugh. "Let's just keep this one off the record."
Neron chuckled. "Then I guess you can follow me," he announced.
"Recovery chamber?" I inquired.
Neron's eyes lit in excitement. "Follow along, Earthling," he said heading out to the hallway for us to follow. "You might learn something about your new life."
As I followed along behind the three of them I realized how true that was. Earth was gone and so was whatever life I had there, even though I couldn't remember it. This was my new reality and I needed to find a way to make it work, no matter how terrifying it was.
My eyes fell to Xan as we walked and I felt the sense of comfort inside my chest. Whether he wanted it or not, he had become the only connection I had in this universe.
I had heard Neron and Trish before, I knew the possibility of him leaving me behind somewhere was great, but that didn't change the one fact that I realized now; I wanted to stay with him.
The question was though, would he allow a human to stay with him?