A picture may say a thousand words, but it only conveys the emotion,... not the reason why. - T. Ross Alien Dice Chapter 1 The storm had moved in slowly, clouding the sky and sending streaks of brilliant lightening through the oncoming darkness. Still, a few creatures braved the night, namely a small cat about six months old, black with white paws and alert green eyes. Through the hole in the fence, the kitten wiggled and rolled into the alley. The opening was getting too small. Disdain for the cool ground, the kitten paused to lick the pads on her forefoot, a few stray grains of dirt annoying her. Satisfied that she had recovered her dignity, the cat rose to her feet and strode down the alley, ears forward and alert. There was a mouse in the alley. She could hear it and fear of getting drenched with water wasn't about to keep her from that tasty morsel. Dogs barked behind their fences, unable to get through to the little imposter in the alley. The kitten merely glanced at the fence and twitched her tail, confident they couldn't escape. Slowly, she walked down the alley, following the squeaking sounds of excited mice. She licked her muzzle and went into a crouch, spotting a patch of grey movement. It vanished beneath a garbage can. If she were patient, it would come out,... if she was patient. For a young cat, that was asking a lot. Her tail swished back and forth in slow methodic sweeps, a rush of wind ruffling her black fur. And then, it came. A tremendous clatter sounded as something hard bounced off a nearby rooftop, accented by a crash of thunder. The cat froze, eyes wide in fear and every fur on her body sticking upright. She was just about to bolt when the small object came to rest before her, a six sided objects with runes on it, two separate ones pointed up, the face glowing. A single form emerged from the darkness, followed by a second one. The first was human in form, concealed against the elements behind a heavy blue coat and having a wrap swung around his neck to protect his face. He stood a moment, his six foot stature making him hard to miss in a flash of lightening from above. It glinted over his features, skin with a blue sheen and hair a darker shade, being wildly tossed about by the incoming gale. His eyes were a dull gold in color, in the dim light with oval irises. At the moment, they were almost round. Behind him, was a most inhuman form, a small creature with red skin and gold splotches on his underside. It shook almost in time with the rolling thunder as though afraid, wide blue eyes with pupils dilated to pinpoints. At only three feet tall, he didn't appear very menacing, aside from a mouth filled with a row of pointed teeth and sharp claws ending on each of his six fore-claws, and six more on his feet. A tail, just short of being a stub wriggled back and forth behind him, balancing the oversized head. "Zeta,...." The first began with a sigh, glancing at his small partner. "Relax, it won't hurt you." "Zeta not worry about the crashing, the light more scary, not know where it goes." The creature spoke in a trembling tone, cocking his head sideways to peer up at the other. "Lexx sure he want go out after dice tonight?" "Sooner the better." The first pulled at his wrap, making sure it concealed his face without getting in the way of his sight. "Stealth is a hard one to find, sneaky, but the trajectory should have placed it somewhere near here. She won't get far and we shouldn't waste time." A few raindrops began to fall from above, gradually increasing in number as the pair walked. Zeta bobbed his head, a row of feathers popping up erect from the back of his head in alarm as another flash of light lit the area, revealing a pair of glowing orbs, fluorescent green in color. "Zeta,... think he see!" "Drat." The voice was unmistakable, a low drawn out hiss and then, the hunt was on as the dark form darted across the alley, a pair of tails marking its path. "Yes, Mom! I'll be fine. It's just a little storm!" Chelsea attempted to placate her mother's fears over the phone. They'd left earlier in the day and already worried something might happen, mothers intuition. Chelsea didn't really mind, although it was a annoying since she was nineteen years old and a college student. She was just home for the summer while her parents were taking an extended trip. At the moment, she was dressed the part as well, grey T-shirt and an old comfortable pair of her brother's sweatpants. Her golden orange hair, the source of much teasing and a bit of flirtation in college was tied back in a long braid, a smaller segment separated over her left shoulder, simply because she liked it. Her own little tribute to something she'd seen in a movie. She wore glasses, not the extremely nerdy kind, more of a scholarly kind perfect for her features. These were of course, only for around the house. She much preferred her contacts. Chel, her sister and brother would have the entire place to themselves for two months. On the other end of the line, she barely heard her mom asking if she remembered that they'd be back next Saturday. "Yes, Andrea and Kalvin will be back on Saturday from summer camp. I won't forget!" Two weeks of complete run of the house. She didn't need a reminder of when it would end. A bit bored with the call, Chel listened for a few minutes until her mom was forced to hang up and finish dinner with her dad. "Love you! Tell Dad I love him too!" Chel had missed most of the conversation, but her final words wouldn't leave any reflection on her lack of attention. The cat leapt up on top of the fence. She moved as a liquid silhouette, covering more ground where she could see best where she was going. Everything was disoriented and her thoughts were moving far too quickly. The only thing she knew was that she was being hunted and there was a safe place to go. A warm house. A safe house. Someplace HE couldn't follow. Unfortunately, it also made her location plainly visible. Lexx strode down the alley ahead of Zeta, his longer legs making the distance effortless in comparison to his stubby legged companion. The cat bolted along the low fence and dropped to the ground where it ended. Just one more yard over and she'd be safe, just around the garbage cans. "This way, Zeta." Lexx looked back crossly at the creature, who was really trying his best to keep up. Around the garbage cans. Around the garbage cans. The cat almost lost her footing as she turned. The space was tight, but she managed to get through it, just head of Lexx. Even inside the safety of the yard and its six foot fence, she knew she wasn't safe. She had to get inside the house and that could be hard. Hitting the door with a light thud, she stood up and pawed, meowing frantically for the door to be opened. Inside, Chel was just about to get up to put the phone back in its spot. The kitten's cries were not unheard. "Oh! Mittens is back! Better hurry and let her in before she vanished again." Chel chuckled a bit to herself. The cat was always getting into trouble, getting stuck up trees, the wood pile or in the trash cans. She wasn't that bright. "Hold on!" The cat scratched at the door and meowed louder. At any moment, she expected to be lifted by the scruff of her neck and carted off. A quick glance back confirmed her suspicions. He was there, on the other side of the fence, but it was too late. The doorknob was turning and a ray of light spread out over the damp cement step. She wasted no time, darting through the door as soon as she could fit. Lexx watched from just behind the fence, eyes narrowing in disappointment. Now, how was he going to get her out of there. He felt Zeta bump up against his legs as another flash lit the sky, the rain stopping as abruptly as it had begun. Zeta was afraid of the storm,... so it wouldn't be a far stretch. "Zeta, stay here. I have an idea. Just wait for me to come out with Stealth." Chel stared at the cat. "Mittens?" It wasn't mittens. It looked nothing like her, only having white forepaws and two tails. She counted them again as the cat looked up and mewed plaintively. "You're definitely not mittens. She doesn't have two tails!" Chel started to kneel down to pick up the cat so she could get a better look, but was immediately distracted by the front door bell. "Hmm...?" She looked a bit perplexed. It was late and her friends wouldn't be out this late ringing her doorbell, nor would anyone else. "Someone's at the front door!" It was a dark and stormy night,... Chel chuckled to herself as the phrase ran through her thoughts. She hadn't fully stood up yet and the cat jumped into her arms, as though it belonged there. "Great,..." Chel walked quickly through the house to the front door, peeking through the peephole to see if she could recognize who was on the other side. The cat growled faintly in her arms and her ears went back flat against her head. Eerie. She couldn't see. It was too dark and he was staring at the ground. "Who could that be,..." She murmured to herself, going through the possible list of people she knew with hair like that. Unable to think of anyone, she said loud enough to be heard through the door, "Hello, who's there?" "My name is Shira Lexx," an unfamiliar voice said on the opposite side of the door. It was low, just barely high enough to be heard as though he was being forced to introduce himself at gunpoint. He continued, his voice rising a bit and speech quickening, "Sorry to bother you so late at night,.." He paused, formulating what he was going to say next carefully. "... and during a rainstorm. But my little sister's kitten was startled by the thunder,.... and I think it ran into your back yard." He looked up. In the dim porch light, Chel couldn't see him well with his head bowed, now the light cast a bluish glow over his skin. Odd,.. it was a white light. She also noted as he looked up, his eyes were strange, extremely light and an unusual color. Perhaps it was just the lighting playing tricks on her eyes, but it was all making Chel more and more uneasy. Outside, Lexx attempted to sound as non-threatening as possible to get the human to open the door and give him what he wanted, "I just want the cat, easy to describe her." He paused again for effect. "She has TWO tails." That should be convincing enough. As far as he knew, most of the creatures on this planet only had one tail. Chel blinked and looked down at the cat, whose tails were at the moment swishing back and forth in clear feline agitation. "Just wants the cat,... freaky looking cat, the more I think about it." The cat's ears were too big, as were the eyes, and she'd never seen such a coloration. "Should I?" She thought on it. It wasn't her cat and it probably did belong to the guy outside, but,... something was wrong. The cat's uneasiness didn't make Chel too comfortable with opening the door at night. "Could you come back in the morning? I'm not opening the door to a stranger this late. Sorry,... I'm sure you can understand." Chel tried to sound assertive without being rude, which was a bit hard. Through the peephole, she could see the figure nod his head forward and the eyes half close. He didn't say anything and if he did, she couldn't hear it as a crash of thunder roared overhead and the sky once again opened up with rain. The figure turned away, slouching, hands in the pockets and vanished from sight in the darkness. The cat seemed happy with that decision, closing her eyes and beginning to purr. Just in case the cat might be hungry and bother her during the night, Chel decided to return to the kitchen. "I'll fix you some of Mitten's kitty food. Then go to bed." She whispered to the sleeping cat. Lexx watched her through one of the house's side windows, his hair starting to clump and soak up the now steadily falling rain water. It was also getting through his coat now and making him cold. A growl from within reminded him that he'd been so quick to come out here, he hadn't bothered to eat. Lovely. "Darn cat! It's not fair! I'm cold and hungry! Ugh,.. and wet! I hate this." Lexx muttered to himself, feeling more hopeless than actually upset. It was all that cat's fault. He'd be at home right now enjoying a nice hot cup of yideh if she hadn't run to the house. This wasn't starting out the way he wanted it to, but he would wait. He didn't have to wait too long. The lights went out after half an hour. He waited longer. Zeta shivered pitifully next to him the entire time as they had both tried to seek shelter in the bushes near the home. They could watch from here and make sure the cat didn't get out and sneak past them. It was a cold and miserable wait. Zeta shook so hard from the cold his teeth were chattering and that annoyed Lexx. It mainly annoyed him because of how hard he was trying NOT to shiver or let the cold get to him. Zeta wasn't helping. "We'll be back in the ship within the hour, Zeta, now stop that and relax." Lexx scolded in a whisper. "Zeta... really cold... make fire?" Zeta looked up hopefully, his blue eyes wide and pleading. It didn't work. Lexx looked away, his gaze traveling to the still storm cloud laden sky. "No, you cannot make a fire. We don't want EVERYONE knowing we're here, but I am about to go inside. I'll need you to stay back here and wait again. Be ready to fight, just in case she doesn't come willingly, then we'll have to make a run for it if we fight." Lexx pushed himself up, brushing bits of wet grass and leaves off his coat. He'd have to spend several hours cleaning it later. The door was easy. It was a primitive design. A simple sliding bolt, a powerful magnetic pulse and the lock clicked. Someday, the humans would improve their security systems, Lexx thought, and then this would be a lot harder. Thankfully, it wasn't someday yet. He slowly stepped through the door, careful in case it might squeak. Then, he stood. The water might make his boots squeak, so it was best to let them dry a moment. He felt filthy, the water had soaked his coat, his shirt, his pants and his body from head to toe. It wasn't a pleasant feeling, but it'd be over soon. Now, just to find the cat! The house was a very simple design. One hallway lead off the entry room. The light was on and there was one door open. He couldn't turn the light off, so he took a chance in walking down it anyway. There were photographs on the wall, several of them of the family that lived here. Lexx paused to look at them. He thought it strange that they were out in the open for anyone to see. He'd never seen pictures on any other house's inner walls. Such things were kept private. It was odd. Humans were,... odd. He then remembered his purpose of being here. NOT to stare at the photographs of people he didn't know, but to get that cat and get out. The human had her back to him as he entered the room and he could hear her breathing was even. She was definitely sleeping, and he could also hear the cat, but where. He looked around the dark room a moment, scanning for the cat and then realized she was right out in the open,... in the girl's arms. This could be tricky. He thought it over. He could just grab the cat and make a run for it, but he didn't know how good human reactions were. He could try to gently move her arm, but that might put him within range of whatever she could do, or he could gently try to remove the cat and most likely wake her up. He failed to notice the cat's left eye opening enough to see him then abruptly closing. The latter would probably work best. He wouldn't have to touch the girl and might be able to get the cat away and himself out of range before she could do anything. With great care, Lexx lowered his hand over the cat, intending on picking her up by the loose skin along the back of her neck. His hand didn't make it. the cat turned her head around and sunk her sharp little teeth into his hand. The gloves didn't offer any protection and he was immediately aware of a wet warmth seeping down his palm. She's brought the blood. Slowly, he inhaled and counted to himself, eyes rolling upward to stare at the ceiling in an attempt to take his mind off the pain. "Must,... Not,... Scream!" He silently told himself. The breathing didn't work. What did those idiots know who told him it always worked?! Counting numbers and taking your mind off the pain, does NOT make it go away,.. ever. "AUGH!! Let go you little beast!" He yelled and shook his hand, forgetting something important. The human hadn't gone anywhere. She also wasn't laying down anymore, but had pushed herself up a bit to stare at Lexx and the cat dangling from his hand. The next moment really hurt Lexx's ears. The human unleashed an assault of shrill noise. He hadn't expected that, nor the pillow that smacked into the back of his head as he tried to move around the bed, away from her. It knocked him a bit off balance and he struggled to hold onto the cat, which finally let go of his hand and was now swiping its paws at him. "Urgh,.. stop trying to claw me you dumb cat!" Lexx glanced back at the human and only saw another pillow flying through the air. "Geh, .. not again!" The second pillow took advantage of his already unsteady play for escape, nailing him on the head. What sort of strange weapons were these. They didn't actually hurt, just made it hard for him to keep his balance. Then again, it might have just been that his shoes were still wet. Lexx wound up face down on the floor, the cat landed next to him and hissed. This,.. cannot be happening! He thought to himself. The cat was loose and had taken up with the human. It was also taunting him. "I don't know who you are, but you're really in trouble now,..." Chel tugged her comforter up around her shoulders and watched as the intruder grabbed the cat again. "And put that cat DOWN!!" She added, noting that he was trying to get away. Forget the door. Just go out the window! Lexx hadn't even gotten around to the other side of the bed, so he opted for the second choice. This might hurt, but anything to get out of here fast,.. and with the cat. "I just want my cat! Stop throwing things at me!" Lexx managed to get back to his feet and edged to the window with those words. The cat wasn't cooperating. Terrified, it yowled and puffed up, her forepaws flailing in the air in desperation. The window, was open, fortunately and unfortunately. The cat slipped from Lexx's hands just as he jumped. Lexx tried to catch one of her tails, but instead he caught the ground. Muddy ground. Zeta was waiting. The little creature puffed up slightly, head arced back. Lexx looked up just as he opened his mouth, "NO!! ZETA!!! NO!!" He frantically tried to dissuade him from doing what he was about to do, futilely. A ball of flame shot from the open mouth and flared directly at Lexx, singing his hair and face in the process, but not doing anything more. "... ow." Lexx gasped, trying to catch his breath, the hot air a bit much for his lungs. He blinked a few times and slowly began to regain his bearings. The cat had hopped up onto the window sill and was now sitting there, glaring at him and waiting for his next move. Zeta,... hid his head sheepishly between his forepaws. He was in trouble, he knew it! The backdoor unlocked with a clatter and swung open. Chel in her nightshirt ran barefoot into the cold wet grass. In her hands, something silvery grey gleamed in the light of the lingering storm. Her father's gun. At times like these, it was good to have a father who worked in law enforcement, what branch, Chel had no clue. Something he couldn't tell anyone about, not even his family, but he had guns in the house and Chel knew how to use them. "Hold on, don't move! Stay right there!" She shouted at the form on the ground, starting to lift himself out of the mud puddle just below her window. Chel lifted the gun slightly, not pointing exactly at Lexx, but close enough that it would only take a slight movement to hit him if he tried anything. Never point a gun at anyone, even if they might attack you. It could go off accidentally. Right now, accident or not, Chel was determined to not let the intruder get away. He'd answer to the police once they arrived. A quick push of a button inside the house and a silent alarm had been sent. They'd be there in a few minutes. The girl was confident that she could keep him here until they arrived. Then, Lexx looked up, a determined gleam in his strangely colored eyes, "I can't do that!" He grated through clenched teeth, standing up to her bluff, or so he thought. Surely she wouldn't shoot him. Humans were always going through a crisis and pulling a gun, but they didn't always shoot them. Wasn't that what he'd seen in a couple of the transmissions he'd watched earlier in the day. They'd stand there, holding the gun pointed at someone who hadn't actually hurt them, shaking maybe. But normal humans did NOT shoot guns, so if he didn't threaten, he wouldn't be shot at. Lexx wasn't the threatening type, he'd come here for one reason and it wasn't to hurt a human. Lexx turned his head slightly to avoid any further contact as he stood. The sound sent his ears ringing before he realized he'd been hit. The gun went off with a loud pop, aimed at his arm. Chel hadn't hesitated. The moment he was on his feet she'd pulled the trigger, swinging the gun just enough to one side to wound Lexx. He immediately fell to his knees, gripping his right arm in shock. A thin vapor of smoke rose from a noticeable hole in his coat. He noted that the gun was smoking as well, lovely. Silent, as though letting the thought sink in that he'd been shot, Lexx stared at his shoulder and the rapidly darkening patch of crimson soaking through the blue fabric of his coat. It hurt. He just had to wait a moment to catch his breath, yes, that's all it was. It'd stop bleeding soon, but the pain wouldn't go away as the bullet had passed through his arm and into his side, lodging against his ribs. That explained why he couldn't catch his breath and felt a bit too warm on that side. "Why did you have to go and do that?! I didn't shoot you!!" Lexx was perplexed. This wasn't what was supposed to happen. So far, nothing had happened tonight the way it should have. The effort to speak so quickly shocked him into silence a moment. "You were in my room!" Chel snapped back, still holding the gun up and pointed slightly at Lexx. Humans were confusing. Lexx made note of that, his head beginning to swim with lack of oxygen. "I just wanted my cat! GEEZE! I thought humans hated guns! That HURT!" He emphasized the last word with a yelp, a sharp pain racking his side. His thoughts faded into darkness and even though he fought it, unconsciousness was the overwhelming victor. Slowly, he fell forward, "Ngh,... go..." He tried to say something more, order Zeta away so he wouldn't get into trouble. Zeta didn't get it. He hadn't been seen yet as he hadn't moved and made himself known. In the darkness, Chel didn't notice him until he spoke. "Stupid human!" Zeta hissed in a panic, "Make Lexx go sleep?!" Unconsciousness, sleep, they were all the same thing to Zeta. He moved closer to his master, nudging him with his head. At the same time, Chel backed up, her eyes widening in astonishment. I don't know what's going on! She thought to herself, glancing from the strange little dinosaur like animal talking to her, the alien in the grass and then onto the windowsill where the cat was standing, swishing her twin tails. "Freakin' talking lizard in my backyard and an alien?!" She could feel herself beginning to hyperventilate out of fear. This wasn't happening. She turned and ran back into the house, slamming the door behind her. The police had said they were on their way. Chel had told them someone tried to break into her house and she'd shot them, leaving out the details that it was an alien and had some sort of weird creature with it. She knew they wouldn't come if she'd told them that. There was no way she was going to risk sounding crazy. They'd just have to see him for themselves. But, for now, she was trapped in the house, afraid to take her eyes off the alien in the backyard for fear he might vanish. So far, he hadn't so much as moved from where he'd fallen, but the other creature was standing protectively by him. "What is that thing?!" Chel looked out through her bedroom window, the cat sitting up on the sill next to her. The cat seemed quite interested in what was going on below the window. "Ohh,..." She couldn't help but be a bit indecisive thinking over the events of the night. Chel sighed, staring at the cat, "He said he was after you and he didn't hurt me,... but WHAT is with the talking lizard?!" She couldn't get over the fact that it had really spoken to her. It wasn't everyday that an overgrown lizard showed up with a blue skinned alien asking for a cat,...which probably did belong to them. She was having second thoughts. A quick succession of knocks on the front door interrupted Chel's musing. That would have to be the police. On the way through the house, grabbing a robe and quickly tying it over her nightshirt, Chel had changed her mind. She wasn't going to turn him in. There were two policemen at the door, well, one policeman and one woman. Both looked a bit tired, but alert, "Is this 1202 Raison Way?" "Yes." Chel swallowed hard. She had to think fast on exactly what to say to get rid of them, but it felt so awkward to lie to the police. This was also something that didn't happen everyday, especially not in her life. "We received a report of an intruder here, is everything alright, ma'am?" The policeman inquired politely, looking past her into the living room to make sure nobody else was present who might present a danger. "I'm sorry, Officer, it turned out to be my cat." Chel began, glancing down and noting that the cat was peeking around the door. "And you shot at it?" The female cop blinked, staring at Chel. "I hope you don't shoot at everything that goes bump in the night, that could be very dangerous." "Yes, I know,..." Chel stared down at her feet, not wanting to meet their eyes. "You really should have made sure you really had an intruder before calling us. This could be considered a crank call, so in the future, make sure that what you're shooting at and reporting is really human before dialing 911," The female cop wasn't too happy with being called out here and had to restrain herself from writing a citation right then and there. They'd never had a record of a call from here before though, and the girl seemed sincere in her mistake. "Just don't do it again." "I won't. Thank you." Chel looked really embarrassed, but the policemen turned and left, considering this call exactly as it sounded,... nonexistent. Zeta wasn't going to leave his master, no matter what happened. That severely frightened him. He had never had to do anything without Lexx's instruction, but what he lacked in bravery, he made up for in loyalty. The door opened and the girl stepped slowly through it. She'd changed into a yellow raincoat. "You're not going to attack me, are you?" Chel asked in a whisper before getting too close. Zeta thought about it a moment. She was afraid of him. He could smell it. "YOU hurt Lexx, you BAD!! Deserve be attacked!" He hissed, whipping his short tail back and forth in an effort to make himself look angry and formidable. Nevermind he barely weighed 30 pounds. "Not hurt Lexx more, Zeta bite if you do, yes!" He continued, jaws open to show off the short, yet sharp rows of white teeth. The little lizard moved slowly around Lexx, but Chel didn't run away. Instead, she spoke slowly and lifted her arms up, "It was a mistake! See, no gun! I want to help now!" Zeta paused, his head held low, but looking up. She didn't have a gun and she sounded sincere. He glanced back at Lexx and sighed. "Zeta not know,... you bad human, hurt Lexx, not want Lexx hurt more." "If he stays out here, someone else might see him who will turn him in, and then he could really be hurt." Chel knelt on one knee before Zeta so she was at his level. She wasn't as afraid of him. He wasn't that big and didn't seem to be a vicious man eater. Chel struggled to move Lexx without hurting him more, but he was much heavier than he looked. Zeta helped, but he could only manage to lift Lexx's left leg by gripping the boot between his teeth. Once they were inside, Chel and Zeta managed to maneuver Lexx to the couch in the living room. It was hard work and it wasn't until Chel leaned back to catch her breath did she realize that he was muddy as well as wet and now getting the couch wet. She sighed and turned to Zeta, starting to remove Lexx's wrap, "Look, I'm sorry. I'm here alone, but maybe I can help. Maybe call an ambulance, no,... that would not be a good idea,..." Chel quickly nixed that thought. They'd have too many questions to ask. If she did that, she might as well have turned him over to the police. "You fix!" Zeta glared at the girl, stomping his feet on the floor and splattering water everywhere. Chel was going to have a lot to cleanup if she didn't do something soon. First things first, get all of the aliens wet clothes off, maybe throw a towel at the mouthy little lizard. Chel moved slowly. Lexx was breathing steadily, so he didn't seem to be in any immediate danger. Maybe the bullet had only hit his arm and wasn't bleeding too badly. It had been dark outside, so she hadn't seen exactly where it had gone. She untied the black band of fabric around Lexx's head and paused. He didn't really look like what she expected an alien would look like. He was far too human in appearance, well, other than the blue skin and the pointed ears that had been tied back by the band. "Great, I shot Mr. Spock." She muttered more to herself than anyone else. "Who Mr. Spock?" Zeta cocked his head curiously, the crown of red and gold feathers along the back of his head rising. "Nobody,... just,... he's not what I expected an alien to look like! I hate it when aliens all look human, I never thought I'd run into one and now,.. ugh, what am I DOING?!" Chel stared at the lizard,... she was having a conversation with. This was not happening. It couldn't be happening. "Lexx bleeding lots,..." Zeta lowered his head, noting a small trickle of red going down Lexx's hand and starting to drip slowly onto the carpet. Chel shook her head, trying to get her thoughts straight. Alien or not, she had to stop the bleeding. At least it wasn't green blood. Green blood would have been too creepy and Chel thought she might have had a hard time if it had been. Red,... at least she wouldn't have to do much explaining about red stains on the carpet and couch and maybe she could get them up before they'd stain. She tried to keep her mind on other things so she wouldn't actually 'think' as she removed Lexx's wet coat and clothing. Unfortunately, she couldn't keep from imagining what her mom would think if she walked in. 'Yes, Mother, I shot an alien. He was in my room and woke me up trying to steal the cat I found. He jumped out a window, I shot him and called the police. Then I told the police to go away, because I was afraid of what they might do with him. Now, I'm undressing him so I won't make the couch wet and can stop his bleeding. Yes, he looks very human, yes,... he's obviously a he. Mom, it honestly isn't what it looks like.' Pants off, thank God he's wearing something beneath them. Chel was already red in the face from embarrassment. She stopped for a few minutes to grab a blanket and several towels, one she dropped on top of Zeta in passing. "Dry off, don't need water all over the place, ok?" Zeta wagged his tail slightly and rolled over in the towel. Chel draped the blanket over Lexx and started wiping blood off his shoulder and then noticed that the blood on his side was heavier. Great. Using both hands she worked first to stop the bleeding. It wasn't that heavy, but soaked the towels to the point she had to wash them out after a few minutes and return with a small basin so she wouldn't have to repeat the trip. "Humans not supposed to see Lexx,... Zeta either." The lizard stated in a slightly muffled tone, gripping a corner of his towel in his teeth to offer it to Chel. Chel spent a good twenty minutes holding towels to Lexx's side and arm until he stopped bleeding. There had been noticeable holes where the bullet had entered, exited and re-entered, but as Chel wiped away the remaining blood, she realized they were gone. The skin looked bruised and a little scarred, but there was no more bleeding and no other marks. She just looked at Lexx, noting that he had more scars over his chest and shoulders, some of which looked as though they'd been deep and just healed. No-one had stitched them. That didn't quite make sense. Surely, if you were an advanced enough race to make it to Earth, you had to have some sort of fancy medical device to take care of wounds so they wouldn't leave marks, or so that's how Chel's thoughts went. She turned to Lexx who had been watching intently, "The bleeding stopped and there's not any sign I shot him? What's up with that?!" Chel inquired, unable to mask her surprise. "Nanites finish fixing him and then you be sorry!" Zeta growled in response. Probably not the smartest thing to do. Chel had already decided he wasn't very threatening. "Will you just shut up and answer my question!!" Chel yelled at him. He'd been talking pretty much the only time, calling her a bad human and pulling a little bit of attitude on her with how Lexx was going to make her 'sorry'. All this after she'd been trying to help him. She immediately regretted yelling at Zeta as he cowered, twitching his tail between his legs and putting his short forelegs over his head a noticeable shudder passing through his body at the raised voice. "Little things, make Lexx all better from inside, that all!!" Zeta whimpered. "No yell at Zeta, Zeta just want Lexx better and awake." "Ugh,... I'm awake,... no need to yell,... I,..." Lexx stirred, blinking a few times and groaning with the effort to shake the groggy sensation that clouded his mind. His vision blurred a moment as he spoke, thinking he was somewhere else until the now familiar face of the human was clear. He sat up so hard a jolt of pain shot through his ribs, raising his voice to a cracking squeak of shock. "Don't hurt me!! I just want the cat, NOT YOU!!" The wounds may have outwardly healed, but the bullet was still wedged against his ribs, grating and burning with his movements, but he had to get the statement out. Maybe she thought he wanted to abduct her. Maybe that's why she shot him. Lexx wasn't taking chances. Chel just stared at him. "I think if I were going to do anything, I would have while you were unconscious,..." Lexx nodded slowly, ",... I guess so." He then noticed Zeta standing near the couch. "Great, you couldn't have run off and hid until I got up, could you, Zeta?" Zeta winced slightly, "Sorry,... my bad?" He asked. Not bothering to respond to the creature, Lexx returned his attention to Chel and the cat, which was sitting up on the back of the couch. He decided that perhaps he should take a more polite approach and see if that could get him what he wanted. "I'm sorry if I startled you. It was just important that I recover that cat." The cat hopped down from the back of the couch to just in front of Chel. "I don't think she likes you that much." The girl commented, noting how the cat's eyes were narrowed to green slits and her ears were laid almost completely flat against her head. "Yeah, that die never did, always running off." Lexx stated, more to himself than Chel, while looking pointedly at the cat. The cat glared back, thinking 'Anything to alieve the boredom!' "I'll take her now, if you don't mind." Lexx kept his tone even, despite the looks the cat was giving him. She hissed and growled loudly in response. "Nu-uh! I want answers first!" Chel snapped, feeling that she probably had the upper hand at the moment. She was getting less and less afraid, since Lexx was speaking and not acting. He wanted the cat and she had the cat and she wanted to know why. "I can't,..." Lexx didn't take his eyes off the cat. "No cat,... and I do still have my gun!" Chel thought she'd try a slight bluff, since the gun was back in its case in her parent's room. Maybe just the threat was enough to get answers. It didn't work. Lexx's patience wasn't at its best. He was faced with a stupid human who thought she could threaten him with a gun he didn't even see. If she only knew, only, he didn't want to hurt her. It just wasn't his way of doing things if he could avoid it. He'd never been in a situation like this, so he broke down to his second recourse, he yelled, "She's MINE! She belongs to me! She's part of my game and I can't complete it without her!" As he spoke, he jerked upward, trying to sit up. The strain was immediately noticeable. The nanites might have allowed him to regain consciousness, but they apparently weren't done and a sharp almost icy pain rippled along Lexx's ribs. His breath quickened for a moment into a sharp gasp and he felt himself slipping again. Again! Maybe he really should get more sleep so things like this wouldn't happen. "Uhn,..." Lexx's effort to remain conscious failed. "Bad Human!" Zeta immediately turned and growled at Chel, who was still sitting there, just watching in surprise. "See what you do to Lexx! He not heal full!" "I didn't do anything!" Chel snapped at Zeta. "He's the one who sat up and yelled. I'm just sitting here watching. He's very passionate and insistent, isn't he?" "Lexx gotta get all the dice, yes." Zeta sighed, "But you, bad human, should not get in way. You not involved." Chel scooted forward, rearranging to blanket and making sure that Lexx was still breathing. He was. "Not sure what I'm going to do with him if he keeps fainting like this." She stared at Lexx. He had a nice face when it wasn't contorted with yelling or the dirty looks he'd been giving the cat and Zeta, almost human. Aside from the obvious differences in color and angling. Idly, she lifted his arm, intending to make Lexx a bit more comfortable and noted the odd texture of his wrists. It made her skin crawl, thinking about the tiny machines working inside and the weird upraised bumps under her fingertips, until she turned his wrist. Vertically, his forearm was a mess. Healed cuts, some of which that looked to have been deep. Jagged gashes and almost purposeful slashes heavily scared Lexx's forearm. "Wonder what happened to his arms,... wrists are covered in scars,..." Chel mused thoughtfully to herself. "Almost like,..." At that moment, Zeta thought the human had touched Lexx enough and grabbed the sleeve of her shirt, tugging sharply, "I'm hungry! Feed me!" It was the first thing that came to mine. He was hungry. Chel turned to him, her train of thought interrupted, "My, aren't you demanding." She muttered to Zeta. "Weren't you just growling at me?" "I can't help it, bad human!" I'm hungry!" Zeta tried to look submissive, lowering his head and peering up at Chel. Chel sighed and turned more toward Zeta, trying a slightly different approach, "My name is Chel." She smiled at the little creature, "Stop calling me Bad Human, ok?" Zeta looked at her a moment, as though thinking it over, "Ok, Bad Chel. Give me food now?" This was going to be a long night. Chel glanced down at Zeta. He was looking up at her, tail swishing back and forth slowly in an intent fashion. Chel hoped that he wouldn't mind eating canned cat food, since that's all she had. "I hope you like fish." She knelt down to scoop the fishy smelling brown mush into a bowl. "Zeta like fish fin!" Zeta didn't wait for her to empty the can to take a bite, just like any other impatient animal. He eagerly took a mouthful and then a second, barely bothering to chew and instead gulping. Chel stared at him. He looked like a little red and gold dinosaur and moved very quickly, in a jerky fashion, more like a bird than a lizard. "What are you anyway?" Chel inquired, hands resting on her hips. "Zeta, Zeta!" He didn't even pause in his eating, sending little particles of cat food out onto the floor as he glanced at Chel, then went back to eating as though the answer was obvious and complete. "I gathered,.. are you really an alien?" That question caught Zeta's attention more so. He turned a bit more, looking at Chel and making a chuffing noise, "NO! You the Alien!" He almost seemed to grin, correcting the human on exactly who was the alien here. "I am not! I LIVE here!" Chel commented back to him, using a voice one would use when trying to make a child understand a concept. Zeta paused in his eating long enough to shake his head no in an exaggerated fashion, "You still alien to us! Bad Alien too!" He emphasized, rolling his blue eyes. "You better stop insulting me if you want me to keep feeding you, Zeta!" Chel folded her arms, figuring that since Zeta seemed to like to eat so much, that would be a workable threat. Zeta sighed, his crown of feathers twitching back to lay flat against his head and neck. It was a very pitiful display, comparable to a sad puppy's eyes. "Ok,... I stop..." Zeta whispered meekly. "Just upset Lexx not awake." He lowered his head enough to lick up the last remaining bits of cat food, then slowly started back to the living room. Chel followed. She felt a little bad for how she treated Zeta, especially since he seemed to have a very clear mind of his own and feelings to go with it. Now she'd hurt them. "Lexx sleep lot now. Not sleep for weeks." Zeta walked to the side of the couch, hitting Lexx's shoulder with his muzzle and resting it against the cushion. "Weeks?" Chel blinked, wondering if he was talking about the same kind of weeks. Funny, she just now thought on it, that they were speaking very clear English. At least, Lexx had been speaking it clearly. As though reading her mind, Zeta tilted his head to explain, "Nanites also make it so Lexx stay awake all time if want, need to. Sleep long time if do that,... that why he so tired now. Lexx not want sleep all way here, push self too far, depend on nanites much. Lexx hate nanites, but do this lots times." Chel stood silently, considering what Zeta was saying. If that was true, he probably wasn't as 'weak' as he seemed, just tired and when he woke up,... he'd be well rested and recovered. "Wow,..." She breathed slowly, feeling her heartbeat quicken at a surge of panic. "Uhm, you don't think he'll really hurt me when he wakes up, do you?" Zeta had threatened, so he would probably know best, although that she trusted the creature was still up in the air. "Lexx never hurt anyone, just wants stealth dice you got. Then we go." Zeta responded slowly, a bit more seriously. "Zeta like drink now, thirsty. Please?" "Sure,..." Chel turned to go back into the kitchen, Zeta hopping at her heels. Zeta for his part, kinda liked the human. She gave him things when he asked. That was good. Lexx sighed in his sleep, unheard by the two as they left the room. If there's one thing that Lexx hated, it was dreaming. This was one of the reasons he kept himself awake so long, to avoid it. Dreaming was a horrible ordeal for him, because he did not dream like humans dream. Everything was far more vivid and things came to him in his dreams. In a time when most beings minds relaxed and turned to wafting vapors of distorted reality, his were always vividly real. Shadowed threats and veiled dangers touched at his mind, creeping in amongst his thoughts and tearing them down to scattered images. There was always someone there, with this message or that one, this challenge and that battle demanding his attention. In the dark forests of his mind, there was not an available refuge. Dreams were no escape from reality, they were just an extension of it and one that he didn't enjoy facing. Lexx hated dreaming. His face contorted slightly and eyes squeezed shut as images fled past his minds eye, the moment between sleep and consciousness. "Uhn,... I hate dreaming,..." He thought the moment he broke free. "Geh,... still here,..." For the briefest of moments, he'd considered his current ordeal just another part of the dreams, but as he sat upright, the foreign room was more than an illusion. Lexx shifted back slightly, resting against the pillow to gather his thoughts. He didn't hurt anymore, so the wounds should have been completely healed, although he was still a little tender. Slowly he examined the room. "Hmmm,.. Where's Zeta and that human girl." He noted that the two of them were gone and the lights were dimmed. He also became aware of a bit too much breeze. It was a little cold in here, odd. Then, he realized why. He had been too shocked and upset to notice it earlier, but now he did. Every bit of his clothing had been removed while he was sleeping. Lexx jerked up the blanket in a panic, fearing the worst. At least she'd left something on, but still. "WHERE are my CLOTHES?!" He yelled, hoping to alert the girl, wherever she was, that he was awake and very irate. Chel was busy in the laundry room when she heard the yell, "He must be awake." Zeta was standing beside her, playing with a towel, "Yup, Lexx awake, not sound happy either." Chel grabbed a grey robe hanging on a hook by the door and flipped the switch to turn on the dryer. "Come on, Zeta,... don't want him to hurt himself again, do we?" Chel ran through the house, Zeta not far behind, dangling the towel in his jaws. Chel didn't quite expect to find Lexx huddled underneath the blanket. "You didn't seem to mind an hour ago,... but your clothes were soaked so I'm drying them for you. They aren't ready. They're spinning for another hour or so, sorry." "Geh,.. you undressed me!" Lexx grated from beneath the blanket. Odd how things turned around and it was Lexx who was more tentative around the girl, than she of him. Feeling the need to defend herself against the unspoken accusation, Chel responded quickly, "I didn't do anything! I swear! I'm a good Baptist girl! I just uhm,... Didn't take off everything!" "And that is supposed to mean what to me?" Lexx grated, "The word of a human who SHOT me, drags me into her house and then undresses me! You don't understand. I do NOT like strange girls taking my clothes off!" He ranted from beneath the blanket, halfway through realizing just how ridiculous the entire situation was. "Geh, why am I talking to you?! Just give me my clothes and my cat and we'll be gone and this nightmare will be over!" Chel stood for a moment, searching for the right thing to say. She'd already said it, so simply reiterated to his final words a flat, "No." How ungrateful could he be? Sure, she'd taken his clothing, but she didn't really think he'd mind that much. It was better than leaving him outside in the cold mud with his clothing soaked in mud and wounded. He didn't have to be such a jerk and it just made her want to be that much more obstinate in her stance on the cat he wanted. If he wanted her so bad, he'd have to be a lot more courteous. "No?" Lexx repeated as though he couldn't think of anything else to say. In truth, he couldn't. Chel went on, "Not until you explain yourself. WHO are you?" The cat hopped from the end of the couch to the highest point of the blanket covering Lexx. Chel stared as she tapped the blanket and opened her mouth. "Yeah, tell her, Lexx. Tell her about Alien Dice." She didn't sound very pleased. "You talk too?!" Chel couldn't believe her ears on top of everything else, although she should have. Talking cats at the moment were a little bit less surprising than aliens and fire breathing lizard things that didn't know when to stop talking. "Might as well." The cat sighed, rolling her eyes toward Zeta, "Blabbermouth couldn't keep his trap shut!" She hit the blanket a bit more insistently, this time with her claws extended so they'd poke Lexx through it, "Tell her about Alien Dice, Lexx." Lexx yelped and pulled the blanket down in an effort to remove the cat, but she clung like velcro, "You can't tell anyone." He chose to ignore her and speak directly to Chel, "Doubt they'd believe you if you did..." The girl just stared at him. "Alien Dice is a game that rich beings like to play,..." Lexx saw he wasn't going to get out of here unless he did as the cat suggested, not with the way the human was looking at him. Maybe it wouldn't do any harm. In any case, it probably would not make his situation any worse. "It's a hunt in a way, Each set is unique to the planet we play on, usually taking after the planet's fauna." He trailed off and looked at Zeta, "Zeta, ... revert." Zeta didn't sound pleased, "If Zeta HAVE too,..." He trailed off in a whine as a red glow crackled around him and in a sparkle of lights he vanished, replaced by a small red cube. Chel stared at the floor open mouthed as Lexx picked up the dice and held it up for her to see. "Zeta is a level 2 flame class dice. He's only a six sider." He turned the dice so that Chel could see, tossed it into the air once and then stood to offer it to her. "They can be much more complex, up to 20 sides, each side representing a base level... although the sides don't really matter much once they're bonded to a creature, just the initial toss. Follow me so far?" "Yes,..." Chel opened her hand uncertainly, "How does he FIT in there?! It's so tiny!" "His DNA is completely encoded into compressed data that is stored in the dice. It's like a tiny computer, keeps track of everything about what Zeta is and what he will be. Also makes him a lot easier to carry around." Lexx considered just how much to say, "Zeta's my starting dice,... this cat, is a Stealth Dice, my secondary. I always come after her first." "Second to a living match." Stealth piped up sarcastically, "What a world." Her voice degraded into a catlike growl of dislike. "Throw the dice." Lexx ignored her and concentrated more on getting his demonstration over with. Chel stared at the dice a moment, unsure of really throwing it. "It won't hurt him." Chel gently tossed the dice and before it hit the floor, Zeta appeared in the same sparkle of lights, a red glow around him stabilizing his form. He wagged his tail almost like a happy dog would, tongue lolling out a moment to relish the return of freedom. "If that had been a blank dice, it would have bonded with the closest non sentient creature at the level on the top of the dice,..." Lexx paused, unsure of whether he should state the last, but while he was spilling all this information he might as well be  honest. "Which is what created Stealth this time around." Chel stared at the cat, saying nothing. Lexx avoided the cat's eyes as they peered up at him. "My goal is to capture fifty dice, strewn across your world... Stealth is part of it." The cat barely waited for the words to leave Lexx's mouth, snapping in irritation, "Never mind that I BELONG to Chel? I was her kitten, Mittens, until your dice attacked me!" "Mittens?!" Chel stared harder at the cat, unbelieving. It didn't resemble her kitten in anything more than being black with white forepaws. The ears and eyes are too big, alien,... not to mention the two tails tipped in dark orange and white. "Yes." Stealth purred. Chel looked blank for a moment, just a moment, then she grabbed the cat and backed away from Lexx. "There is NO way I'm letting you take MY cat!" She yelled. Her poor kitten. Part of a game that sounded rather cruel to Chel. Sticking poor defenseless animals into tiny dice. She didn't want to imagine her own kitten being one of them. It looked painful and inhumane. Lexx blinked. He hadn't quite expected that reaction. Apparently humans were very protective of their pets. This complicated things even more. What was he to do now. He considered a moment, maybe he could trick her. Humans seemed to have very short attention spans, so maybe he could use that and distract her long enough to get her to give him the cat, then forget about it. "Eh.... I'll bring her back when I'm done?" Chel apparently didn't believe him. It sounded more like a last resort to her and something he wouldn't follow up on. A lot like her brother when he wanted to borrow something and said he'd 'bring it back'. She'd always ended up having to go search for it under piles of dirty clothes, comic books and stale pizza crusts. "No." She seemed to be using that word a lot tonight and it hadn't lost it's emphasis. "It's only a game and she's MY cat!" Even if Mittens didn't LOOK like Mittens, she held just enough resemblance to her that it convinced Chel. That and the cat KNEW her name and had come to her for help. "I can't leave the planet without all of them." Lexx looked down, clenching his fists in thought. "Those are The Rules!" Chel was silent for a moment, then lifting her chin up, she stated in a very condescending tone, icing the words over with anger. "That is YOUR problem. I didn't ASK you to turn my cat into a Dicemon!" Lexx stood there, feeling a little intimidated by the human. She obviously wasn't afraid of him and wasn't going to give him the cat. He couldn't take it from her because, ... well, he didn't want to touch her for fear she might have some other weapon up her sleeve. Humans were unpredictable. It probably didn't help that he was standing in his underwear in her house either, after being soaked by rain, shot and forced to dream. Maybe,... if he got her out of her own environment and into his own he could more easily turn the tables without causing any serious problems, make it her choice. "You can come with me,..." Lexx's invitation was almost a whisper, drug out of his mouth by desperation. "Hmm?" Chel blinked, her back to Lexx. Surely she hadn't heard him correctly. "Just until I'm done." Lexx quickly added, making sure he was heard out. "Then, I'll bring you back here and leave the cat with you." It was taking a chance, but he needed Stealth badly and he preferred that there be as little trouble with the humans as possible. Perhaps she'd change her mind once it got boring enough, and he could see to it that there'd be nothing to do. Not like there was any room to do anything in his ship. Nothing to entertain with and he wasn't about to be entertaining or accommodating. This could work,... if he played it right. She'd see it wasn't worth it. Stealth squirmed in Chel's arms, eyes closing as she stated in a knowing voice, "Don't EVEN consider it, Chel!" "Is it dangerous?" Chel inquired of both, more of the cat than Lexx. She could probably trust her more than the alien peeping tom. "Chel, NO!" Stealth protested louder, ears flipping back to rest flat against her skull. "Not for you, no. You can just watch,..." Lexx considered how he should answer that. Better to work the boredom angle than the dangerous one. He wanted her to see just how boring it could be. Danger might scare her off completely and then he would have to figure out yet another way to get the cat, one that could possibly end up causing problems with his game, especially if Stealth were angry with him for hurting the girl, even by accident. "How long?" Chel gathered her thoughts, asking the simple questions first. She considered for a moment, perhaps this is how people were actually abducted by aliens. They were talked into it. She didn't really feel in any danger from Lexx. He hadn't attempted to hurt her even though he had the chance and judging by his build, was more than capable of wrenching the cat from her arms if he wanted to. Besides, there was that side of Chel that also considered,... this could be something amazing that she could experience. Something that nobody else got to do, meet an alien, go to his ship, see this game in action. "It takes about a day for each dice, so,... forty-eight days, with a few breaks." Lexx calculated it quickly. He'd done it so many times before, surely this time would take less to get them all. Then he wondered if it was a good idea to tell her that. Maybe he should've told her it'd take longer. Chel set her jaw and spoke quickly, "Ok. I'll regret this later, I'm sure, but not everyone gets an opportunity like this! I'll go." Stealth sighed in her arms, tilting her head up to look at Chel. "You have NO idea what you're getting into, Chel." Deciding to ignore the cat, Chel held out the robe that had been folded over her arm. Lexx gave her an odd look, unsure of what she was going to do next. "Here, put this on." Chel offered the robe to him, hoping he'd take it as a good will gesture. "It's my father's, but I don't think he'll mind if you use it." Especially if he doesn't know, Chel couldn't help but think of her father's reaction if he found out. It wouldn't have been a good one. Lexx nodded and accepted the robe. It was better than nothing, hardly. "Thanks..." He muttered, turning his back to the girl and trying to situate the robe comfortably. It was scratchy and bumpy and not exactly anything he'd choose to put on if he'd had the choice. "Heavier than my clothes,... very primitive." Lexx mumbled, more to himself than anyone else, but he felt he had to say something. "You can take a shower if you want,..." Chel began, noting that a few bits of mud were still entangled into Lexx's hair, weighing it down in areas and tangling it. "You have mud in your hair." "Shower?" Lexx looked at Chel warily. "You know, ... running water to clean yourself, like us primitive humans." Chel attempted a bit of humor with Lexx, not wanting to react to his primitive comment in a way that'd be likely to set him off again. She could already tell he was the moody sort, even after only a few minutes of conversation. His eyes betrayed the sudden shifts, even if he didn't say anything. His eyes were very clear, reflecting moments of thought and then swinging to uncertainty, anger and frustration. They didn't worry her, but she felt she'd said the wrong thing the moment her mouth closed, judging by the narrowing of just his left eye casting a criticizing look at her. He didn't like having things explained to him that he already knew. "I know what a shower is." Lexx snapped. Chel didn't hold back, retorting without a second thought as though she were speaking with her younger brother, "Hard to tell, you don't smell that great." As she did, she squeezed Mittens/Stealth protectively. The cat gasped, "Mrrr,.. squeezing too tight,..." Lexx tilted his head, inhaling deeply and sniffing at his shoulder. He hadn't had the benefit of a real shower and now he DID smell a lot like dirt and grass, but he couldn't just agree with the statement, wrinkling his nose toward Chel and remarking, "You don't smell like a bed of roses yourself, human." He grated. He wasn't about to bend to agreeing so readily with anything she said. She might get the wrong idea. One that she could stand up to him and he'd just bend. He couldn't let that happen. She bit. "I didn't mean to offend you!" That was easy. Lexx looked away. He didn't want to be apologized to nor see her expression. "Too late." He stated flatly. Chel rolled her eyes, motioning to the main hall. She wasn't going to argue with him. Maybe she should change her mind and just stay here, although then they'd go around again about the cat and she was NOT giving up her cat. "Ugh, shower's down the hall. I'm going to make something to eat and I'm taking Mittens with me, so don't try anything." The thought had crossed her mind that Lexx might try to grab her cat and steal her. Lexx didn't react to the statement, remaining where he was standing, eyes closed in thought and fists clenched at his sides. He'd done it now. Hopefully, just a few days and nothing bad would happen. The thought of a human loose on his ship didn't thrill him, although there wouldn't be much for her to do or get into and if she did,... she seemed the sort who understood consequences. He'd just have to take things as they came and handle them that way like he did everything else. "Lexx going to shower?" Zeta spoke up curiously, cocking his head and trying to look at Lexx's face. To the human, Lexx wouldn't look at her, but to Zeta, it didn't really matter if he admitted things. He did smell bad, sweat, mud and crushed grass didn't make for a good mixture. "I suppose,...." He sighed reluctantly. "I do need one...." Wanted one more than needed one. Showers weren't something one could enjoy much in space. "Going to join me, Zeta?" On second thought, his dice could use a bit of cleaning as well. Zeta apparently did not like that idea, backing up a few steps, "Flowers make Zeta sneeze!!" He recoiled as though that was the most horrible thing that could happen to him. He'd connected the smelling like roses comment with the shower and the last thing he wanted was to smell like something that would make him sneeze. "NO!" Chel swung the refrigerator door open a little harder than she intended. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Zeta just barely avoid getting smacked by it. "Zeta go wait on Lexx!" The creature huffed slightly and darted back to the living room, while Stealth took advantage of the open door to jump up onto one of the shelves inside the refrigerator. "Ungrateful jerk! I can't believe him!" Chel reached in for a carton of juice, and was getting ready to close the door when Stealth spoke up. "Milk please?!" The cat insistently motioned to another carton. "Mittens, get out of the 'fridge!" Chel scolded the cat irritably. She waited for the cat to jump down before grabbing the carton and then picking up a shallow bowl out of the dishwasher. Stealth followed her to the table, tails swishing in excitement. Chel didn't move for a moment, sitting down and thinking. What was she doing? Everything had happened so quickly and Lexx,... if that was his name, which was probably considering how many times Zeta said it, seemed to be easily set off and looking for any reason to be angry. "You know him well, huh?" Might as well take advantage of her cat being able to talk, even if it did seem weird to talk to a cat. "Yes! I do! Milk?" Stealth sat up next to the table, tilting her head to one side. Chel stood up and placed the bowl close to the counter, out of the way, before she got on her knees and poured milk into the bowl. Cold milk. She hoped that Stealth wouldn't get sick from it. "What am I getting myself into?" Stealth stared at the bowl as it was being filled. "A lot of boredom. Nothing dangerous,... unless falling asleep is bad." Chel nodded, deciding the bowl was full enough and starting to close the carton. The cat continued speaking, "Lexx is obsessed with this game. He spends all his time on strategy and reading." She paused every few moments to drink a little of the milk. "You won't find him very good company,.... at first. He IS capable of being friendly,... just not good at it." "Why is that?" Chel couldn't help but ask. Stealth shrugged her shoulders, "Because he avoids socializing like it'll kill him." Lexx stood in the little room that Chel said was the bathroom. At least, this is the room he thought she'd directed him to at the end of the hall. It wasn't like any bathroom he'd ever seen. It was much larger than what he was used to and the setup was different. He just stood there a moment longer. Shower, shower,... taken a few on other worlds that weren't indoors. This was a completely different matter. Logic. There was a door. That obviously lead to a basin with a drain at the bottom. He undressed, being particularly careful to fold and place everything on a shelf, then he stepped inside and slid the door shut. Now what. There was a single knob in the center and a shower head above him. Kneeling forward a bit, he inspected the knob. There was a red bar on the left and a blue bar on the right. Hmmm,... blue for hot, red for cold. Slowly, Lexx tried the knob to see how it worked and pulled it out and to the left. Better to try the cold water first and adjust it warmer than be scalded by the hot, at least, that was the intention. Cold droplets sprayed from the shower head, hitting him across the back. He shivered and grinned at the accomplishment. It was cold, but it felt pretty good. Unfortunately, it didn't stay cold, much to Lexx's astonishment. Hot water quickly replaced the cold, causing him to yelp in astonishment and bang his head against the wall in an effort to get out of the stream. "Geh,... why can't humans LOGICALLY set up their water!" He let the water run, opting to step out and open the other side of the shower to adjust it without having to get burned. Once it was to his liking, he stepped back in. Showers were a luxury. Even the ones taken out in nature were a treat compared to how one usually had to keep clean in space. Water was reserved for drinking and could not be wasted on bathing. Lexx was used to having to stand in the cleanser, a device that used heat to do the same water did, although it wasn't nearly as relaxing, and the smell afterward was not pleasant. Lexx tilted his head upward, letting the water hit him the face, eyes closed despite himself. He felt he should've kept them open, but he couldn't help it. "Warm water,..." He sighed. "So much better than the cold rain." And then, he smiled. "At least something good has come out of this horrible day." The smile slowly faded as his eyes drifted down his arms. "Although,... now I'm stuck with a nosey human." Lexx lifted his arms, examining the scars. Reminders. Always there to bring the memories back. "And she saw these." He murmured. "She'll ask questions." The weight settled heavily over him, a cloud that refused to lift. Emotions that always lingered. "I'll have to wrap my arms." He nodded slowly in thought, embarrassment. He didn't like his scars seen, these the most. "Maybe she won't ask. Maybe she'll change her mind after a few days and give me Stealth,... maybe,..." Lexx mused on, the shower not nearly as comfortable as it had been. "Maybe I want her to come with me since I can't seem to think of a way to get rid of her," He turned in the shower, noting the various soaps and bottles. It wasn't hard to figure out what they were for and as he messed with them, he considered a bit more deeply, "I like to torture myself apparently. I could just grab the cat and leave, but no, I have to invite her on the ship and tell her she can keep the cat when I'm done,... don't even know if that'd be legal to leave the dice on this planet,... although they are my dice and I should be able to do what I like with them. Humans. They're so... persistent." Lexx took his time. Chel had already finished breakfast as had Stealth. She sat staring at the clock. 4 a.m. It was early, way too early to be thinking. Here she was, about to go off with an alien that had broken into her house and tried to steal her cat,... which he'd transformed into some little pawn for his game. Chel glanced at the cat, who was contently washing her face and whiskers, normally. She was also purring. It crossed Chel's mind that maybe if the cat hadn't spoken, she wouldn't go. Sure, she loved her kitten, but was she really worth the risk? Who knows what Lexx would do once he had her on his ship. The very thought sent shivers up her back, icy fingers pulling at the darkest possibilities. The only thing that set her mind at ease was knowing she was usually a good judge of people and Lexx seemed harmless. Actually, he seemed afraid of her. She didn't understand why. She didn't understand a lot of what had gone on tonight. For some reason, despite her thoughts, she felt she should go. There was something tantalizing about a trip into space,... Chel's thoughts trailed off into a giggle. Tall dark space alien kidnaps girl and whisks her off to a romantic interlude. Stupid girly thoughts. It was obvious he had no interests along those lines. So far, he'd been irritating, reluctant and argumentative. And of course, she realized, that attracted her attention. She wanted to know why and that thing known as 'woman's intuition' was kicking in. There was more here than what he was revealing. "Do I meet your approval now?" Lexx grated, hands in the pockets of the robe as he strode into the kitchen. His voice had a slight condescending tone, but oddly, didn't seem to have the bite of sarcasm behind it that he intended. "Yes." Chel spoke quickly, her thoughts pushed into the back of her head. "Hmm,.." She considered something simple to talk about, hoping for a decent conversation that wouldn't quickly degrade into another little spat. "How do you speak English so well?" Lexx walked to the table, looking at the bowl of oatmeal on it. Smelled ok, looked strange, but he'd eaten worse things. "I'm not speaking English." He responded. Might as well try to speak cordially since she was going with him and it might be better than arguing with her the entire time. "You're speaking Galactic Standard. A common language." Stupid humans. He'd read that the ones who shared the common language only USED the common language and thought they were special. He didn't get it, but felt he had to make it a point that it was a COMMON language and it wasn't anything special to know it. "There are a few minor differences, but as you can see, it works." "Really?" Chel replied. "Yeah." There was a deafening silence as Lexx stood by the chair and waited for the invitation to sit down. Stupid humans. "Are you hungry?" Chel felt the words come out awkwardly, unsure of what to say and suddenly realizing she may have made a wrong decision. How did she know he could eat human food and for that matter,... what was she going to eat on the ship? "I meant to ask if you could eat human food and if I needed to bring anything." She could only ask. Lexx shifted the chair away from the table with his foot, not bothering to take his hands from the robe pockets and looking down the entire time, not deeming it necessary to look at Chel as she spoke. He would not give in fully. She had to know her place, even if he'd already failed in getting that across. A touch of ego that he was better than this human and should not let her think otherwise bound him to being as aloof as possible. "Human food won't kill me." He sat in the chair sideways, resting his right arm on the back of it. With his left hand, he lifted the spoon in the bowl and studied the goop, stirring it around in a slow circle. "Ingested poisons don't affect me. I can eat anything, tested it a few times,.. always failed." The alien mumbled barely loud enough for Chel to hear. "I have rations on the ship. They're standard and won't harm you,..." His head echoed what he didn't say, maybe she'll hate the rations so much she'll want to come home soon. Hadn't thought about that. They're not the tastiest things to eat. He lifted the spoon, letting the little clumps of brown goo drop from it back into the bowl. Then, he did it again, playing with the oatmeal in a way that was rather annoying to Chel. "My cooking is NOT that bad!" After the comments alluding to the possibility she might poison his food or it was just horrible, then watching him examining it, she had to say something. Lexx didn't respond to the comment, sticking the spoon in his mouth and grinning at Chel. He couldn't help it. The grin got an interesting reaction from Chel, who looked at him oddly. "Does that annoy you?" Lexx muttered, the spoon still in his mouth. It wasn't bad, sweet and with an interesting flavor he didn't recognize. Smooth. He wanted another bite, but didn't want to give the impression he was enjoying it. "Hmpth." Chel glared at him. Taking  his time, Lexx played with the oatmeal, eating slowly and amusing himself with Chel's impatient and irritated expression. She wasn't sure if he was teasing her or just being mean. Lexx studied the glass of white liquid next to the bowl. What was it? It wasn't water or anything else he'd seen and it had a funny smell. He ignored Chel, who seemed to have run out of things to say as he ate. Stealth sprawled out over one side of the table, looking equally amused. "It's milk, Lexx. It's very, VERY good. Try it!" Zeta wound his way around Lexx's chair, trying to see what he was doing, "Milk? Smell good. Zeta have some milk too?" "Go away, this is for me." Lexx tilted the glass and swallowed. Not bad. "Zeta want some too!" "You already ate, I saw Chel feed you, Zeta!" Stealth growled at the other dice. "Zeta want milk too,..." Zeta lowered his head pathetically. "Chel get Zeta milk?" He darted around the table and bumped his head against her leg. "Oh,... all right." Chel got up, pushing Zeta back with one hand since he was in her way. It didn't do a lot of good as he hopped in front of her, eagerly waiting for a bowl. Lexx finished the oatmeal and leaned back to savor the milk, while Chel poured more in a bowl for Zeta. "That's all there is." Chel tossed the empty carton into the trash. That milk went quick. She'd just bought it the previous morning. She noted Lexx looking at her as though he were about to ask for another glass. "I do not like being outside of my ship for long." Lexx began, "We'll be going soon." "Great!" Chel was none to happy to hear that. She had already packed. "I'm ready,... just need to change!" She slid a large red duffel bag from behind the door. "Can we come back in a week? My brother and sister will be getting home and I kinda need to be here for that so they won't call the police thinking I'm missing." Lexx was agreeable to that. Maybe this would only last a week. "Yes." He paused, glancing down at the robe, "I would like my clothes back." "Oh, yeah. They should be dry by now. I'll go get them!" Chel set the bag down by the table and made her way back to the laundry room. Zeta licked his jaws and turned to Lexx, trying to be helpful, "Zeta dry if not! Zeta good drier!" "That's quite alright,... enough singe marks on my overcoat." Lexx quickly turned him down. It'd cost quite a few crids to buy a replacement,.. and it was his favorite overcoat. Half an hour later, Lexx was back in his clothes and Chel had changed into a green shirt and black jeans. Lexx was kind of baffled at her choice of clothing. No coat. Everyone wore a coat, it was the style to wear a long coat. Why wasn't she wearing a coat? Stupid humans, can't even keep up with fashion standards. "Are you ready?" "I think so." Chel adjusted the strap of the duffel bag, wondering how they were going to get to Lexx's ship. Lexx removed a black disc shaped object from the pocket of the coat. Odd, Chel didn't remember it being there when she checked his pockets before putting the coat into the wash. "Ok then,... follow me closely. Stealth, Zeta, you two go through first." Lexx adjusted something on the disc, then held it up. There was a swishing sound, followed by a flash of light. The air before them rippled and expanded in an crimson and gold vortex. The colors brightened to more of a golden white color as Zeta and Stealth stepped through it, then Lexx started through. Chel blinked, stared into the light and almost forgot to move. "What am I doing?!" She asked herself again, feeling it was a little late to be asking herself that question yet again. Swallowing her fear, Chel reached out with one hand to grab onto Lexx's sash and walk into the light. Lexx emerged from the transporter onto his ship without a problem, the girl immediately behind him. It was just like walking through a door, although the other side wasn't nearly as big as the kitchen they'd been standing in. Chel looked up and around, noting the low ceiling and simple design of the room. It was curved, almost like they were in a walkway. For a moment, Chel was perplexed. The first thing she got a good look at was the other wall, which was metal halfway up and some sort of window the rest of the way up. She could see water and in the middle of it, a platform with a few bushes and short, strange looking alien trees that instead of green, were red and blue. There was nothing in the water,... and nothing moving inside. "Wow, I'm really on a spaceship?" She couldn't believe it, since it wasn't what she expected. "Yes. This is my ship, the Rift. I live here." Lexx responded, noting her staring at the biosphere. "That's the biosphere. It's where I keep the dice so they stay out of trouble,..." He could feel her hand resting against his back, making him a bit uncomfortable. "Would you mind removing your hand from my back?" He murmered. "Oh,..." Chel hadn't realized it had been there, but immediately removed it. "I'm sorry,..." << Back    NEXT>>