Alien Caged (27 page)

Miragin leaned back and captured her face between his hands so she had to look at him.  His face was gentle again, the Imdiko she’d gotten used to.  With a jolt, Elisa realized she liked both versions of Miragin:  the tender and the bestial.

He smiled at her with that considerate and concerned look only he could offer.  “Our situation is ugly because you’re looking through your eyes at everything around us.  Stop seeing with your eyes, Elisa, and you’ll find the beauty.”

She blinked at him.  “I don’t understand.  How can you see anything but this nightmare?  We’re probably going to die rather than escape!”

“That is true.”  Miragin’s peaceful, somehow happy expression didn’t change despite his words.  “However, I can still see the beauty before me.  That’s because I’m looking with my heart, and I’m looking at you.”

Elisa’s heart warmed at his words, but dread remained.  “It’s different for me.  You are doing what you must; trying to escape.  There is nothing to trouble your conscience over.  You don’t feel the guilt I do.”

“Don’t I?  There is always enough guilt lying around for anyone to pick up.  My mere presence has put my clanmates’ lives on the line because they would die to protect me.  Taking you with us has put you in danger.  If I want to feel guilty, I have plenty of material in supply.”

Elisa looked at him, at his peaceful countenance.  “You’re saying this is a choice?  To feel the ugliness and yet still see something good?”

Miragin nodded.  “I can feel the pain of our situation and still appreciate the good that has happened.  You can too, if you want to.”  He smiled encouragingly.  “I can love you and enjoy it for however long I’m allowed, whether it be seconds or decades.  I refuse to let any of this horror darken that part because you are too precious to me.”

Elisa stared at him in amazement, astounded that he could do such a thing.  Surely it couldn’t be so easy?  And yet there was warmth and quiet joy present on Miragin’s expression right now.

Her thoughts suddenly seized on something else. 
Wait.  Did he just say he loves me?

* * * *

The half dozen pilots Oret chose were sent out through the service tunnels as soon as they had their orders.  They would crawl and climb their way to one of the fighter bays to steal those one-man ships.  They were to head towards the closest space station, which would have been two weeks’ flight for Zemos’ destroyer.  In the fighters, had they possessed the ability to re-fuel, the trip would take five days.

A fully fueled Earther fighter would run for approximately twenty-seven hours.  The pilots were on a suicide mission to share the information Zemos had gathered unless they happened to come across a patrol.  The chances of that were incredibly slim, though by keeping to known patrol paths, the fighters would eventually be found.

For all the hopelessness of the situation, the Nobeks now inching their way to the fighter bay had been thrilled to go.  Their heroism would be the pride of their parent clans and other relatives, their names recorded for future generations to revere.  It was a good way to die.

Having sent them off, Zemos looked towards the closed door of the office Elisa and Miragin had disappeared into.  Oret followed his gaze.  His grim face eased with a smile.

Zemos asked him, “Should I suppose our Imdiko is distracting our guest again?”

Oret chuckled.  “Maybe he’s trying to convince her to clan.”

“He can be quite persuasive when he wants something.  I don’t think there has ever been anything he hasn’t been able to ‘talk’ me into when he sets his mind and body to it.”

The two men shared a lecherous grin over their Imdiko’s bargaining abilities.  It lasted for a second before Oret’s expression turned serious once more.

He told Zemos, “I am all for glorious death as any Nobek, but I hope we can escape this situation alive and that Elisa will come with us willingly.”

“As do I.”

Oret looked around to make sure no one listened in on their conversation.  Satisfied, he pitched his voice low.  “Tell me what I can do to make her our Matara, my Dramok.  I have no experience with attracting a female lifemate.  What will win her?”

Zemos shrugged.  “I have no more experience than you, Oret.  Possessing strong Nobek characteristics, I am as little prepared to offer her tenderness as you are.”  He sighed.  Giving love advice was definitely not his province. 

He tried anyway, knowing Oret needed some sort of guidance.  “You spoke well of your feelings towards her earlier.  I was impressed with how you expressed yourself.  You were almost as eloquent as Miragin.”

Oret’s brows rose.  “Was I?  I have no memory of it at all.”

“No?  A pity, because your words were amazing.  If I remember correctly, you told her you wanted her because she was beautiful in heart, mind, and body.  You swore you would always keep her safe.”

Oret looked at Zemos in disbelief.  “I have never spoken of my emotions that I recall.  Are you sure I said such things?”

“Positive.  Perhaps you did so well because you had no time to think it over and worry how to speak.”

The Nobek scowled.  “I am worried about it now.  I am at a loss as to how to approach Elisa and make her want to be ours.  I fear anything I say could push her away.”

Zemos considered.  In the end, he could only shrug.  “If I had to guess, I would say be her Nobek.  Now that you have proclaimed it, show Elisa how you will protect her.  Show her she is worth more to you than your own life.”

Oret thought about that.  “In our current situation, I have plenty of opportunity for that.  However, I think watching me kill men of her race might do more harm than good.  I need a strategy for drawing her to me that doesn’t require violence.”

Zemos nodded.  “You have to show her how she makes you feel then.  Do kind things for her if you can.  Ask after her health.  Tell her the things in your heart, if you are moved to.”

The Nobek pulled a face, as if he’d eaten something rotten.  “Miragin is our wordsmith.  I am not a man who knows how to say pretty things to win hearts and minds.”

Zemos struggled not to smile at the idea of his Nobek reciting poetry or professing undying devotion.  “If Elisa is the woman I think she is, she will not respond so much to ‘pretty’ as she will to truthfulness.  Even if your speech comes out awkward, the sincerity will at least ring true.” 

“Awkward.  There’s a word for it,” Oret snorted.  He shook his head, his brows drawing low as he struggled with the obstacles looming in his path.  “It is so much easier with men.  Talking of such things would be an insult to you or Miragin.  I would be saying, ‘I cannot protect you as a Nobek should, so I must tell you how I feel instead.’  It’s disgusting.”

Zemos nodded.  “Actions are better than words, but women like to see and hear our devotion.  It’s how they are made.  I think it is a challenge worthy of you, my Nobek.”

Oret’s scowl deepened until his expression was thunderous.  “Why can’t I just fight off a dozen armed men for her?  That would be easy.”

“Miragin would tell you that anything easy to claim is not worth the bother.  You will have to fight with feeling rather than with fists this time.”

The Nobek drew a deep breath.  Held it for a moment.  Blew it out in a rush.  He finally gave in to the inevitable, though with bad grace.  “I will try.  She is worth it, I believe.”

He stalked off, muttering to himself.  The men in his path moved out of his way, not wanting to tangle with a temperamental Oret.  Zemos couldn’t blame them.

For his part, Zemos had a struggle of his own – keeping a straight face.  Now was not the time to come to blows with his clanmate, though he’d never wanted to laugh so hard in all his life.  Remaining sympathetic to Oret’s dilemma was possibly as demanding a task as the Nobek declaring his love.

* * * *

Joseph’s head ached fiercely by the end of the day shift.  It was almost a relief when Chase and Robards entered his quarters, giving him an excuse to look away from the computer.

He pushed his chair away from his desk and sighed at the two men who stood before him.  “You have something good to report, I hope?”

The men looked at each other.  While they both maintained staid expressions, Joseph sensed something between the two. 

He realized neither had saluted him upon entering the room.  He went on guard, feeling somewhat comforted by the blaster on his hip.  The officers were also armed, so it was false security.  Still, he felt better knowing he wasn’t completely defenseless.

It didn’t escape Joseph that things had gotten pretty bad when he wanted to be armed against his own crew.

Robards smiled.  The strained quality of it sat poorly on his face.  “I’m making some headway on security system work-arounds.  It’s taking my staff time to get through the codes the Kalqs set up.  We’re having to go through unrelated channels, but we’re building paths towards the buffering systems.”

Joseph said, “It sounds complicated.” 

The tactical officer nodded.  “It is.  Believe it or not, we’re re-routing commands through the private com archives to get into the rest of our programs.  It’s a system that requires security clearance, but it’s low level enough that we’ve been able to access it.  We’re building on it a little at a time.  It may take a couple more hours, but we’ll be able to break into Engineering.”

Joseph waited a moment to hear more, but Robards didn’t offer anything further.  Tension sang through his body though, letting the captain know something was definitely up.

His smile as false as Robards, he said, “Very nice work, Commander.  My congratulations.”

Chase spoke up.  “You may not think so when you hear what he found and showed to me.”

“What would that be?”  Joseph kept his tone professional.

“The Holy Leader’s conversations with you, including the one that said that hostage Elise Mackenzie is to be executed with the Kalquorians.”

Joseph’s temper flared.  His fingers twitched next to his weapon, and he wondered if he could actually draw on his officers and kill them in cold blood.  He’d never done such a thing, blasting at men face to face.  Attacking an enemy ship, where one didn’t see the eyes or expressions of those in the line of fire, was a far different thing.  He’d never appreciated until now how much easier it was to kill those he couldn’t see.

Something in Joseph shrank at the thought of murdering these two, even at the cost of his life.  He wasn’t sure if it was conscience or cowardice that made him hesitate.

Those thoughts flew through his head in less than a second.  Frozen by indecision, he stalled for more time.  In the coldest tones he could summon, he said, “Those communications were not for your eyes or ears.”

Robards dropped any pretense of good humor.  He retorted, “The orders from our Holy Leader are plain, and you’ve chosen to disregard them.  Even after he gave you the command, you still insisted we not execute Mackenzie for the crime of lustful activity.  You have willfully disobeyed the Voice of God.”

Chase interrupted, his demeanor that of a reasonable diplomat.  “We know you mean well, Captain.  No one can dispute that you’re a good man.  But you have your orders straight from the Holy Leader himself.  Unpleasant orders to be sure, ones difficult for anyone to carry out no matter his devotion.  You do not have to worry about the matter, however.  We will be certain it is carried out.”

Joseph’s fingers twitched again, but they did not touch his blaster.  Not when he was looking right in their eyes.  Yet he tried to sound strong.  “I forbid it.  Elisa will not suffer any more than she already has.  Our Holy Leader is not here to see our situation and know what it is we face.”

Chase only smiled with more certainty.  “The Holy Leader knows all.  He is infallible.”

Robards nodded.  “The fact he was snatched from Earth before Armageddon could claim him tells us of his perfect union with God.”

Joseph said, “He had a private shuttle ready to go at all times.  The moment he knew the Kalquorians were at our security grid, he jumped on it and ran for his life.  There was no deity behind that.”

“You are under a lot of stress.  Any man in your position would be, Captain Walker, which is why we’ll excuse your heresy.”

Chase said, “The fact you are disregarding the Holy Leader’s commands show the responsibilities are getting to you, as they would for anyone who has had to lead in these trying times.  It is nothing to be ashamed of.”

The time had come to fight or surrender.  Joseph could not order Elisa’s death and live with himself.  Yet he could not force his hand to close around his weapon either.  He was not a cold-blooded killer in any sense.

Still trying to stave off the inevitable, he said, “You want me to step down so you can take command.”

Chase’s eyes widened in a parody of shock.  The expression was so cartoonish that it would have been funny if lives hadn’t hung in the balance.  “Not at all, Captain.  Many in the crew are becoming just as shaky as you are.  They see those of us who maintain our reason as more of a threat than a light through the darkness.”

Robards nodded emphatically.  “You are not a harsh person.  It would be better if you were stronger, but it’s that very quality of compassion that keeps so many in their place.  Your being captain calms those who are wavering.  You are still needed to prevent more of the weak from abandoning the right cause.”