Day 2

The questions and electrical shocks continued throughout the night, if it was night. The times I lost consciousness, one of them would shove the smelling salts under my nose and wake me up. Once awake, the pain would continue.

They quickly realized I didn't plan to give them the location of the city so they switched to different questions. "How large is the remaining Meekrob military?" "What is the radio frequency of your military signals?" "What does the commander of your army look like?" Each moment of silence cause more pain that lasted longer and longer. I don't know how long it went on for.

A couple times they switched tactics, just to see if I could be broken at all. They asked me questions about myself. "Do you have a family?" "A lover?" "How old are you?" Questions that had no relevance to the actual information they wanted, but simply meant to humiliate me and force me to give an answer. It was these times that I can't remember if I gave them the truth or not. I remember saying something a couple times and the pain would stop. Rent would look down at me with a smile before asking another question. The pain would start all over again.

During one break from the pain I realized that Krip was missing from the room. I'm not sure how much time passed before he came back but when he did, Char left. They were torturing me in shifts. When Char returned, Rent left, and Krip took a turn at asking me questions.

The pain was more intense and more frequent with him in charge of it. He would ask me questions before he even shut the electricity off. Many times I didn't even remember hearing his question before the pain began again. How long it continued before I blacked out, I do not know.

When I came to, only Squeech was in the room. He was standing off by the computer where my vital signs were displayed on the monitor. He turned to look at me when he realized I was awake. He picked up the same gun-like-machine that he had stuck me with multiple times already and gave me another shot in the arm.

"What is that?" I remember I was surprised by the sound of my voice. It was thin and raspy, barely more than a whisper, and my vocal cords hurt just with the effort of talking.

"A medicine to speed up your healing abilities."

A small laugh escaped me, "healing the damage so that it won't kill me. You Irkens are sick."

Squeech paused. He pulled the needle from my arm and walked around my other side to stick me between my tendrils, saying nothing the whole time. With the second prick, I could feel immense relief as my healing repaired every damaged nerve across my body, though I was still shaking uncontrollably.

"Why are you doing this?" I had the feeling that this Irken wasn't as sadistic as the others, making him my best bet for escape. "What's your propose for coming to our planet?" Still the Irken said nothing, but I had to keep trying, "Do you enjoy doing this to me? Is this some kind of game to you?"

"Not to me, no."

That was not the answer I was expecting, and I fell into silence while Squeech wrote different things on a clipboard. Ten long minutes of silence; I couldn't think of anything to say. He was so vague, his words could have meant anything. I had to be careful if I wanted to gain his sympathy (if there is such a thing for Irkens), it wouldn't do to alienate him so early on.

He put on thicker gloves and poked and prodded me like a doctor would to check for physical damage. With the structural makeup of our species so different, I was surprised he knew where to look for each of my different organs. He knew what he was doing, that's for certain. He hooked an IV up to my lower right tentacle which was still in some pain since my energy flow around there is low and it hadn't totally healed. How he knew I'm not sure, since I made no reaction when he first examined it.

When he finished, Squeech picked up his clipboard and left the room. He paused at the door and looked back at me, his green goggles glowing bright in the dark room. "For your own good, I suggest that you don't antagonize Krip so much," he said; then he left.

He returned, only two minutes later, with Char and Rent.

Rent stepped forward, standing tall with his hands folded behind his back, the definition of "command". "Well Meekrob, our medic has pronounced you well again. Why don't we continue with our little interview?"

I flashed bright enough to blind him, "Why bother calling it anything other than what it is? Torture," I spat. I wanted to show him that his 'high and mighty' Irken superiority complex was a load of shit.

He smirked and lifted his hand, "That's such a vulgar word, and unnecessary, if you would just give us what we want." He gestured for Char to come forward. The muscled-Irken laughed and came up on my left side, opening his satchel. I squirmed against my restraints; that bag was giving me a bad feeling. I soon found out why.

Rent spoke, but I was too concerned with watching while Char removed an array of needles, knives, and other instruments from the bag, that I didn't hear him. A sharp jolt of pain on my right brought my attention back to the commander. He was smiling, "last chance Meekrob," he said. I wiped the fear from my face and flashed bright in his. When I dimmed, his smile was gone. He looked at me like I was a puddle of Slor Beast piss that he had just stepped in. He turned his back on me and spoke to Char, "do it."

My upper left tendril was pulled taught and sharp pain shot through it as a thin electrically-charged needle was pressed in and through and into the table. The crackle of electricity flooded my side. I tried to pull away but that was a mistake, as the needle pulled and burned at my flesh. Any movement and it felt like that pin would slice right through me. I shut my eyes tight trying to ignore the pain from the electricity so I could hold myself still as possible.

A second tendril was pulled tight. I screamed as the next needle was inserted into my flesh. The conflicting charges of electricity made me feel like I was being torn apart.

3…

4…

5…

Until each of my limbs was secured with a pin. The pain was horrible. All that energy flooding into my body felt like I was burning, freezing, being sliced away, stretched, and compressed all at once. I couldn't breathe. I couldn't see. The shocks caused involuntary shudders and spasms which ripped against the pins, pulling larger and larger holes and tares into my flesh. I screamed for it to stop. I screamed for death… but no relief came.

Something pressed into the outer sheaf of skin around my head, what you might look at and think is hair. Immediately the electrical current was routed from simply bouncing around my body to flowing up and out, right next to my brain. I went numb. I couldn't tell if I was breathing or not, didn't know if I was still screaming. All I could see was a blinding light; so intense that even closing my eyes did not shut it out. The rushing sound in my ears blotted out everything. I was trapped in an ocean of noise, light, and pain.

Then it stopped…

I was blind and in pain, barely breathing, and every twitch or shudder began a new wave of hurt, but I was still conscious. I felt a hand run itself over my body, everywhere it touched made me want to cry out, but I had no control over myself anymore. My lungs, eyes, arms, legs… nothing was responding. All I could do was lay there.

"We're not done here yet. Turn it back on."…Rent

"Don't do it Char." …Squeech

"Sorry sir…" …Char

"Sir, I told you from the start that this method would be more dangerous with a Meekrob. His own electrical current is interfering. If we continue this then we'll completely fry his brain." …Squeech… Even as they spoke, I didn't really comprehend what was happening. All I could understand was the pain that every shudder or movement caused. If my body was trying to heal itself I didn't know. "He's no use if he can't remember anything."

I felt another needle stick me in the right side, between my first and second tendril. Relief flooded in and I blacked out.

My return to consciousness was slow. I didn't want to wake up. I knew it meant the pain would come again, and my body gave an involuntary shudder at the thought.

"Finally awake are you? Guess I should go let Squeech know."

My eyes snapped open. Krip stood leaning against the wall directly in front of me, fiddling with the settings on a laser gun. Before I even had time to react, there was a smoking circle next to my head, from his laser discharge. Krip laughed at my shock.

"Aww, didn't scare you now did I? Go on," he said when I glared at him and brightened slightly, "I dare you to talk back to me again. I'm sure there are other puke-sacks out there that will be easier to break than you. Go ahead, give me an excuse." I took a deep breath, which I immediately regretted because of the stinging pain from my lungs, forcing myself to dim to my normal level. I squinted through the pain

Krip just laughed. "Still in pain huh? Good. Maybe you'll learn to behave now." He stood pointing his weapon at me.

"What do you think you're doing!" The door hissed open and Rent's bellow filled the room. "I told you to alert Squeech as soon as it woke up!" Krip sighed and put his weapon away as Squeech rushed in.

"Why bother healing it. We know that his squad is nearby, we could probably have an easier time with one of them."

"That's enough Krip! I'll not have you questioning my orders again or it will be you strapped to that table! Are we clear?!"

Krip looked far from happy. I remember thinking how poorly they worked together considering they're probably a specifically assigned torture team that has probably worked together before. In the end he left the room grumbling.

"You'll have to forgive my subordinate." Rent said turning toward me. "He's never been fond of being near garbage."

"That's not much of an apology."

"Who said it was an apology?" He smirked as he said this. Never taking his eyes off me he asked Squeech, "When will he be ready?"

Squeech was looking at my vitals and making notes. "Probably not today. His molecules aren't even close to stable yet. Even using physical means could cause a breakdown in his structure."

"That's the wrong answer."

"Well too bad. It's the only one you're getting. I told you to start with something else and use that as a last resort." Squeech's tone wasn't disrespectful, just a matter of fact. I was having trouble reading him. If he was my best chance for survival I'd have to get him on my side, but from the sound of it he wasn't going against orders lightly.

"hmm… Fine then. We'll let him stew for a day. No food or water until I say so." Rent said as he left the room. Shows what he knows. Meekrobs can go for weeks without water unlike the average species.

Squeech turned back to the computer mumbling to himself. I think I heard him say something along the same lines of what I'd just thought. I tested it.

"You and I both know I can go for weeks without water."

"Your point?"

"You didn't tell your commander that?"

"Did you want me to? He's allowing you a day to rest. I should think you'd be grateful."

My laugh was weak and it made my chest hurt but I managed it. "Grateful for the chance to escape maybe." At this Squeech looked at me. I still couldn't see behind his goggles, but I knew he was trying to decide if I was serious or not. I knew I was, and he probably knew that to.

The back of his PAK opened up and a communicator extended. "Come in here a second would ya?"

A few minutes later Char walked in. "What's up?"

"I need you to remove your pins from his tentacles."

"But Rent said…"

"I know what he said but there's still a slight current running through them. I have a few tests I want to run which won't work in they're still attached. When I'm done you can put them back in place." Char nodded and set to work removing the pins.

With those extra shots of whatever it was Squeech kept sticking me with, my healing had quickly scabbed over the burnt flesh that ran on the inside of my body around where the pins were stuck. Pulling them out tore away those scabs, causing pain and leaving them raw and bleeding. I winced as, one by one, he pulled all 8 pins out.

He placed the pins on the small metal table beside me. I could see my translucent orange flesh stuck to some of them. It was more seeing that, rather than the actual pain, that made me sick to my stomach. I ended up vomiting.

"Oh grose! What is that?"

"Calm down it's just the contents of his stomach you've seen plenty of species do that."

"Yeah but most of those looked more chunky… that's just… goo."

I tried not to be embarrassed. Which I wasn't so much, but the taste in my mouth now was awful, and because I was still strapped to the table I'd only been able to turn my head enough so it didn't end up all over my chest, instead sliming up my entire right side. I avoided making eye contact with Char as he stared at me.

"Should I clean it up?

"No. Rent said no water for him."

I groaned. That meant I would be slimy and stinking until they decided they couldn't stand the smell anymore. Char laughed; obviously pleased by my reaction.

"If you didn't want to stink then why'd you barf all over?"

"Oh sorry," I said, "I couldn't help it after looking at your misshapen face."

"Why you…"

"Char, enough, ignore him."

Char grumbled but made his way over to Squeech. They lowered their voices as they continued talking. Between the smell and exhaustion I didn't hear much. I knew they were talking about me though because Squeech kept gesturing to my vital signs on the screens.

I started to feel extremely tired. I wouldn't have a chance to escape until they left anyway so I figured I would get some sleep.