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Separation Anxiety

Asha had been gone for too long. Though Brolath was not familiar with the scent patterns of Lacertans, if any existed, he could smell the air turning oddly metallic in the direction of Lashar.

The Lacertan’s claws were dug into his palm and his red eyes would occasionally dart down at the human captive who was still pretending to be asleep.

He was worried.

Empathetic emotions from Lacertans were still a curiosity to Brolath, even with their truce in mind. Had anything happened to Asha, it would have been in the Lacertan’s best interests to write him off to maintain survival.

But then, they were on a mission. One that happened to coincide with Brolath’s own.

I suppose sometimes two enemies can have joint objectives.

Lashar broke out of his stressed trance by a buzzing noise coming from his bag. Hissing, he ripped it open and pulled out Brolath’s datapad.

“Who’s calling? Lashar pointed the screen at Brolath.

Proclath, Brolath grimaced as he saw the name on the screen.

“My boss,” Brolath bit his lip. “I need to answer it.”

“He shouldn’t be calling,” Lashar whipped his tail. “I cracked your datapad ages ago and programmed it to send bogus tracking data and dynamically messages. He shouldn’t be calling.”

“I need to answer. He will get suspicious.”

Lashar narrowed his eyes but relented, passing the datapad over to Brolath.

“Take a walk away from camp,” Lashar ordered, pointing at the human. “I’m going to have a chat, don’t want your boss catching my voice on the call, eh?”

Brolath was taken aback by the level of trust but figured that Lashar must have bugged his datapad. Whatever he told Proclath, it would have to be shared with a Lacertan.

On the off chance that Lashar made it back to Logos, would the information in the call even matter? What would Proclath possibly want, another Prince to be killed in his idiotic succession battle with the Claw?

Inhaling, Brolath calmed his mind and pushed seditious thoughts out of his brain. He heard Lashar rousing the human from sleep and took several more steps away from the camp before finally answering the call.

“About damn time, Captain!” Proclath’s face materialized on the screen.

His face was gaunt, almost as bad as some pictures of POWs Brolath had seen. Brolath could not hide his shock and Proclath noticed it.

Grumbling a bitter laugh, Proclath spoke, “Something disturb you, Captain?”

“No, Grand Regent.”

Proclath pointed to his tight skin with a snarl, “The Claw poisoned me! I almost died today, Captain, and I am done cooperating with them!”

Were we ever, truly?

“I heard you abandoned your Adjunct. Why!?”

“I caught a lead that needed to be followed up on immediately and he was busy with the Duchess.”

“Alright, good, good...” Proclath snorted, “...might be good, just having a conversation between Regulians, you know?”

“Rorgh is a loyal subject.”

“Yes, yes...but you know...we can trust each other more, can’t we?”

There was something bothering Brolath about the Regent’s tone. His voice had a strange sing-song quality to it, which he didn’t even have during the last plot he had Brolath go through.

He was going to suggest something very bad.

“How is your progress going with the case?”

“Getting very close. If I’m lucky I could find the lab within the week. I still don’t know the exact location but we’re getting there.”

“Good,” Proclath leaned into the screen and whispered, “we need you to retrieve the most advanced specimen the humans have and hand it over to me personally.”

The fur on Brolath’s back stood up.

“Sir, you’re not thinking of using that weapon in the war?” Brolath whispered, looking back at the camp, hoping that Lashar was not listening in. “Deploying it would be too unpredictable and dangerous, if the Smart-Antibiotics were to malfunction...”

“Fuck, Brolath! Who the hell do you think I am?” Proclath roared. “No, I’m just going to use it to perform a well-needed purge of the Claw and then burn all traces of the damned thing. So many non-Regulians in the Claw now, just lure them into meetings with us and gas the whole lot of us. If what the intel says is true, we can program it to ignore Regulians and then shoot the remaining Regulian Claw agents there!”

“Regent, I have no love of the Claw-”

“Good!” Proclath pointed at the screen. “You and I, we both know they’re the biggest program the Empire has! And I am damn well sure they’ve already sent their own agent to the lab, they might already be in there! Better to be in our claws rather than theirs, yes?”

“That may be-”

“The day of reckoning is coming soon,” Proclath rubbed his crotch. “The Regulian Guard must choose the next Emperor, no matter what. We have our current candidate under lock and key, all we need is the Claw to be pushed aside.”

“I agree that-”

“Atay...if he somehow survives this purge I think I’ll have his teeth and claws removed, then locked up in a cell in my manor. He has caused me so much stress, I think he needs to service me for awhile,” Proclath continued to rub. “He has a mate too, doesn’t he? I think she needs to learn why Regulians conquered her kind, she’ll be screaming my name in joy while Atay watches...”

Proclath suddenly cut the transmission and Brolath was left alone in the chilly evening dark.

Shaking his head, Brolath turned around to face the camp but hesitated to step forward.

Proclath has lost his mind. His lust for violence and sexual domination has poisoned his mind. He isn’t thinking right, there is a time and place for such things where its constructive but…

Brolath paused his thoughts. He had just defended Proclath’s actions under certain different circumstances and that made Brolath feel uneasy.

What circumstances? Conquering a planet? Raiding weaker species for slaves? Raping your captives to break their spirit?

Were the context behind those just?

Did they convince Chikal of the joys of Regulian servitude?

Or Abel?

Leon?

Regulian myths are full of heroes doing all those things but rarely make the distinction between someone doing them for a good reason or a bad one. It’s just assumed and implied that it’s always good.

Is the Empire’s actions that much different from Proclath’s?

Is Proclath just doing what he’s been taught?

Are we all?

Traitorous thoughts had been building up in Brolath’s head. It was concerning him. He was almost convinced that some of Asha’s venom had permanently tricked his brain into becoming disloyal but at the same time there was logic behind his thoughts.

Walking back to the camp slowly, Brolath attempted to parse his thoughts. As he rounded a hill, his attempts quickly became impossible as he was presented with a shocking image.

Lashar was lying naked behind the human, caressing his chest with one hand and feeding him a chip with the other. Tears were running down the human’s face.

“Get off of him!” Brolath roared, stomping forward.

Lashar lazily looked up at the Regulian while the human withdrew deeper into Lashar’s embrace, hiding his face.

“Why? What do you think I did to him?” Lashar asked calmly.

“You ra-”

“We happen to be having an emotional discussion about all the shit he’s been through in his life. He also said he secretly found aliens attractive and asked if we could snuggle like this. So chill the fuck out.”

The human popped his head out of Lashar’s arms, smiling as tears went down his cheeks, “Lashar’s really nice, please don’t be mad.”

It was not unusual for Regulians to snuggle casually or even platonically. However with Proclath’s speech in mind and Brolath’s questioning of his Empire’s customs, he found rage bubbling to his head far quicker.

“I’m sorry,” Brolath lowered his head. “I overreacted.”

“It’s cool,” Lashar wrapped his tail around the human’s waist. “So, how was the call?”

“My boss...” Brolath paused, debating whether to reveal what Proclath had said, “...wants me to bring him the best sample the lab has so he can gas some of his rivals.”

“And are you going to?” Lashar spoke without any delay. No doubt he had been listening into the call.

Refusing to do so would be betraying the Empire…

But there’s no Emperor right now, is there?

There was not enough time in the day for Brolath to reconcile his news feelings on the Empire and what that meant for his loyalty. But one thing was certain.

I can’t betray the Empire but I can betray Proclath.

“No,” Brolath said simply. “We destroy it, all of it.”

In violation of the conclusion Abel had come to moments earlier, he attempted to delude himself as him and Hada followed Meyer down the hallway.

Perhaps a fourth Lacertan...could have been another mission…

It was a folly, a mere fantasy, but Abel could not dissuade himself from fleeing into another world.

But as they drew closer and closer to the lab, it became harder to ignore the reality that someone very dear to Abel was in grave danger and he might very well have no way of saving them from a very cruel fate.

Meyer knew I made love to them and she has a Lupiad boyfriend maybe… Abel wiped sweat from his brow. No, she wouldn’t work for people like this if she had that degree of empathy.

Indeed, Meyer and Hada were deep in gleeful conversation. The doctor ran off a series of biological tests she would be doing today to Hada, the contents of which were beyond Abel’s understanding of science except that it wouldn’t be conductive to Lashar or Asha’s continued well-being.

Metal doors slid open and the trio entered into an airlock. The door slammed shut behind them and a loud fan roared.

“Here you go,” Meyer opened up a locker and passed around lab-coats to Abel and Hada. “Can’t go to a party without a costume, right?”

Abel forced a chuckle.

The fan came to a halt and the doors on the opposite end slid open, revealing a spacious lab with around a dozen scientists milling about.

The usual hallmarks of a lab were there, fume hoods, beakers, Bunsen burners; but what immediately drew Abel’s attention were the plate-glass windows lining the walls. They looked almost like prison cells.

Abel’s skin went cold as his eyes passed over the nearest window to his right. A brown Equuleian was on the floor in there, dried blood caked on the floor next to his long snout. He was not moving.

It can’t be...it can’t be him…

“Something the matter?” Hada put her hand on Abel’s shoulder, startling him.

“Sorry,” Abel swallowed. “He...this one looks familiar.”

Hada stepped forward and retrieved a sheet of paper from a tray hanging from the wall next to the cell door.

“Looks like it’s from the same brothel you were at,” Hada whispered.

Ruhan.

Abel’s throat went raw and went he opened his mouth, nothing more than a rattling noise came out.

“Did you know it?”

Reaching for the document, Abel’s eyes immediately connected with the one word he was dreading to see: deceased.

“Yes,” Abel swallowed. “It is not always easy to see someone you know like this…”

“It’s for the cause,” Hada said.

“It’s still difficult.”

Hada wrapped her arms around Abel, holding him tight.

I’m sorry Ruhan.

You were my first male partner and despite it being under duress, I remember the event quite fondly.

I don’t know if I meant the same to you but your kindness…

I’m sorry, I never could repay you and now its too late.

Abel was not a praying man and he didn’t know much about Equuleian religion or if Ruhan was a practitioner, but Abel still gave a little quiet prayer that Ruhan would find peace wherever he desired in whatever afterlife there might be.

“At least the Lacertan...” Hada whispered, “...at least you have no relation to him.”

You have no idea, Hada.

“He’s awake!” Meyer called out, motioning for the team to join her around a window at the far end of the lab.

A swarm of scientists ventured forth to join her and Abel broke away from Hada, quickly walking towards the clamor.

I can repay Ruhan by saving another in his stead.

He would like that. He was a kind soul.

A wall of white lab coats blocked Abel from looking into the window and he pushed between them, mentally preparing himself to see black or green scales.

Asha’s emerald green scales flashed under the florescent lights as soon as Abel fought past the crowd. The Lacertan was naked and stood up straight, almost proudly showing off his muscular body to the curious scientists.

“Have we trained the first test batch?” Meyer asked one of the scientists.

“Yes, ma’am. Was far easier than we expected. We’re ready to filter it in, expected results are intense pain upon exposure to the mucus membranes,” one of them spoke, a tiny woman with thick glasses.

“If this works we could develop an assassination model in record time,” Meyer inhaled. “Imagine that.”

There must be something I can do…

“Our mission is almost over,” Hada sighed.

“Was he alone?” Abel asked.

Meyer looked over at Abel along with several of the scientists.

“He was alone, yes,” Meyer nodded.

“We should put this on hold for now,” Abel said, forcing as much confidence into his tone as possible.

“What the fuck?” Hada stared at Abel aghast.

“If there’s one thing my education has taught me, right or wrong, it’s that Lacertans have extreme biological modifications done to them. So extreme that many could be considered different species.”

“I went to university with you, they never taught that,” Hada objected.

“My...” Abel forced a snort, “...so-called father, being a minister with the Kingdom of Earth, he had access to more information than most.”

“I think I see where this is going,” Meyer crossed her arms. “But tell me, what are you suggesting?”

“The Lacertan was alone but has he been questioned about whether he had any accomplices on the planet?”

“He has been unresponsive to questioning.”

Meyer knows that there are two Lacertans, she smelled them on me. But she can’t admit it without revealing what I did.

“Can we try again?” I asked.

Meyer sighed and rolled her eyes, “If we can get a second sample, it would be useful, at the very least to confirm what we know. At best, it could show, as Abel suggests, that the weapon might need further tooling if Lacertan genetic diversity is as great as he suggests.”

“And it would probably be best to hold off on potentially contaminating this specimen for now, if so,” another scientist piped in.

Yes!

Pressing a button next to a speaker, Meyer spoke in Regulian, “Lizard, were there any other Lacertans with you?”

Abel pressed up against the glass, staring at Asha as intently as he could. Slowly and subtly, Abel nodded.

Asha said nothing.

“Repeat,” Meyer pressed the button. “Were there any other Lacertans with you?”

Come on, you stubborn fool!

Abel blinked rapidly. The Lacertans were not much on body language, but even though Asha was not nearly as socially skilled as Lashar, he surely had to understand what Abel was hinting at.

Abel wanted to pound on the glass, whatever it would take to get the hint into Asha’s thick skull.

“This is pointless,” Meyer shook her head.

“What a minute!” Abel exclaimed, putting his palm on the glass. “Can he see us?”

“No, it’s a one-way glass.”

“Can we get the light turned off in there?”

“Why?”

“Turning the lights off would make us visible, right? As far as he might know, he’s just in an interrogation room getting asked questions without any direct consequence. He doesn’t know that he’s this close to getting experimented on,” Abel pinched his fingers together. “You’re not using the leverage that you could be using. Imagine the lights go out and you see a bunch of scary scientists in lab-coats staring at you, your imagination starts to wander, you start to get afraid.”

“Are the lizards even capable of that?” Hada asked.

“Well,” Abel shrugged, “it’s as easy as turning a light-switch off. If you ask me, that’s not a lot of effort for a little experiment.”

“Excuse me,” Meyer turned to a fat male scientist, “go to the electric controls and turn off the lights in the cell.”

“Of course!”

The scientist jogged off across the room and into a small office.

Meyer slowly counted on her fingers one by one until she reached her second thumb. One second later, the lights in the cell went off.

Only Asha’s silhouette was visible but Abel would appear as bright as day to him from inside the cell. Abel crept up to the window, planting his palm on it with a thump.

“Lizard,” Meyer pressed the speaker button again, “were you alone or with another Lacertan?”

Abel nodded at the silhouette as rapidly as he could without drawing attention, begging deep in his heart that Asha would get the clue.

There was a long silence. Agonizing dread crept along Abel’s skin.

Come on, Asha. I have to save you...I have to…

Speak! Do it!

“I was with another,” Asha hissed. “I will say no more.”

It took all of Abel’s strength not to break down on the floor and cry with relief. His chest ached, his head was pounding, and it felt like his heart was about to stop any moment now.

But he had just saved his dear Asha.

If only for another day.