The Thought Experiment

After a while, Sevai started to stir.

The Invader let out a small groan as he attempted to pick himself up off the floor.

Laes looked at Lard Nar who hadn't moved at all and was most likely asleep again, which was good.

He crawled to the edge of the mattress and looked down at Sevai.

The Invader was on his hands and knees with his eyes squeezed shut in pain.

The blanket was lying beside him. He probably tossed it off.

Both of his wings weren't moving.

They weren't injured too, were they?

Laes had no medical experience at all... well... that was a lie. Bann tried to teach him some basic first aid on that horrible jungle planet... he just never managed to learn any.

"Hey um... I was told you weren't supposed to stand, so don't do that ok?" he tried, knowing full well his words carried no real weight and the Invader would probably just ignore him.

Sevai's large black eyes slowly opened.

"Laes...?" he questioned, sounding just as confused as Lard Nar guessed he would be.

"This means... I am in my room, correct?"

"Uh, yes," Laes responded with a quick nod. "You were teleported in here a while ago... um... Kachori visited you but you were probably too unconscious to remember..."

"She should not have done that..."

Sevai tried to move into a kneeling position, but he collapsed and gripped his head with both hands.

His legs curled closer to his body as he let out a pained hiss.

"You don't need to move..." Laes told him. "It um... probably hurts less not to move..."

At least whenever he was beaten he found lying sprawled on the floor not moving hurt less.

"I... I apologize..." Sevai stammered, wincing. "What a state to be in... and in front of guests..."

"Both Lard Nar and I have ended up writhing on the ground in pain a few times so... of course we're not used to it or anything, but you're hurt right now, so don't worry about us ok?"

He felt the mattress shift a bit, so he glanced at Lard Nar and found his former cellmate sitting up and looking over at Sevai.

"Would you like to use the bed?" he asked, and again Laes was reminded how much better Lard Nar was at actually helping people.

The other Vortian seemed to have a knack for this kind of thing.

"No... I..." Sevai's arms were beginning to tremble again. "I..."

"Is there anything Laes or I can do to help you right now?"

"No..." Sevai responded; his voice growing quieter. "I made a mistake... I am very sorry..."

He removed his hands from his head and used them to prop himself up as he gazed down at the floor.

"Your Irken friend has died... he cannot be brought back."

Laes' mind blanked for a moment. Then he felt Lard Nar's hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry for your loss..."

"Oh... ha ha... yeah... um..." He rubbed his arm and looked away. "Darden wanted to blow himself up ever since... yeah so... I mean... I kind of expected him to die eventually because he hated following me around so much... it's... kind of sad... but not unexpected..." Laes spoke until he realized he was rambling a bit; then he stopped.

He was going to cry about it later... he could already feel tears threatening to spill from his eyes... to stop that from happening, he blinked a few times and bit his lip hard.

"Can I ask how he died?" Lard Nar questioned.

Was it Laes' imagination, or had the other Vortian's arm become more rigid...?

Lard Nar's grip on his shoulder was definitely harder than it was a moment ago.

"I spoke with him... a little while ago... I made the mistake of... not turning on... the echo receiver... I had no idea what he was planning... but after I left... another scientist entered to paralyze him for the data extraction procedure.."

He sucked in a trembling breath.

"She found the Irken lying unresponsive... she began to leave in order to call someone else to the scene... the Irken's PAK attacked her however... it somehow disabled her barrier, and killed her. The other scientists were quickly alerted... the Irken's device injured several more before..."

He whimpered and brought his hands back to his head.

"It was smashed into pieces..."

Darden wanted to die. He'd been planning to die from the moment he met him.

Then when Darden lost his self-destruct button he begrudgingly accepted he might not die, but he probably kept thinking about it.

Attacking someone from a race of people he considered an enemy was probably the best way he could think of dying.

"I see..." Lard Nar removed his hand from Laes' shoulder. "Darden chose to do what he did... you shouldn't blame yourself for it."

The whole ordeal didn't make any sense.

Laes dragged a hand down his face.

The Invaders had captured a few Irkens recently... they should have known how dangerous Irken PAKs were... so why hadn't they disabled Darden's weapons at least?

"You guys know about Irken PAKs right...? So why didn't anyone check to make sure he couldn't use his to attack people...?" Laes questioned.

"I don't know..." Sevai admitted, grinding his teeth together as he attempted to rise to his feet.

He managed to get into a crouching position before collapsing again... was this really what happened when an Invader's antennae got bruised? They couldn't even stand up after?

"Darden was not under my watch... that duty belonged to the scientist who died..."

"Who was her supervisor?" Lard Nar asked.

It sounded like the scientist who was supposed to be keeping an eye on Darden was inexperienced... having a few older and wiser supervisors in the lab would be a natural thing then, wouldn't it?

"Delarla."

"Wouldn't she be the one responsible for making sure Darden was safe enough to approach in the first place?"

Sevai grew quiet for a moment.

"Not turning on your machine only stopped you from catching a problem that was already there..." Lard Nar concluded.

"I didn't think of it like that..." Sevai quietly admitted.

"It doesn't sound like your co-workers did either..."

"...My family does have a history of making mistakes... it's only natural I be blamed," Sevai concluded, managing a smile which quickly twisted into a grimace.

He squeezed his eyes shut again. His face still looked pale, and now he was shivering.

"Are you cold...?" Laes questioned, scooting a bit closer to the edge of the bed.

"A little..." Sevai answered; his voice barely above a whisper.

Laes carefully lowered himself to the floor. "I'll just um... get the blanket...?"

Sevai's eyes snapped open. He wrapped his arms around himself as he brought his knees close to his chest.

"I'm sorry..."

"It's no trouble, really, you're hurt so just think about getting better ok?" Laes told him as he stepped around Sevai.

He bent down and grabbed the blanket off the floor. Then he spread it over the Invader, starting at his feet.

As soon as he reached Sevai's neck the Invader winced, so he let go of the blanket and took a quick step back.

"Sorry," he immediately apologized. "Did that hurt?"

"It was an involuntary response... because my antennae were injured... anything moving towards them will invoke a similar reaction..."

"Oh uh, I see..." Laes said, taking another step back.

Sevai was probably feeling a bit nervous.

Lard Nar was right... the Invader needed his space right now.

"Hopefully you'll start feeling better soon..." Laes spoke, chewing his lower lip.

"You're curious aren't you...?"

He was curious about how sensitive Invaders' antennae were... maybe morbidly curious was a better way of putting it... but he would never act on his curiosity.

It was already plenty obvious that their antennae were much more delicate than he ever imagined.

"Um... yes?" Laes responded, clasping his hands behind him.

It was better to be honest than not.

Besides, he couldn't lie to save his life. He'd already proven that a few times...

"Your antennae seem to have an unusually low tolerance for pain," Lard Nar commented after being quite for some time. "Is this normal among your people?"

Sevai breathed a sigh.

"Yes... our antennae are able to sense vibrations... they are what makes hearing possible... but since they are so close to our eyes, having them pulled causes hearing and visibility losses... as you can see, it also damages our sense of balance..."

"Will you get in trouble for sharing this information with us...?" Lard Nar questioned. He seemed to be concerned about the rules of this place.

"It's against protocol, but you have already witnessed some of the side-effects... if my people were hoping to keep our weakness a secret at this moment... they..." He sighed. "They wouldn't have placed me here..."

Sevai managed a smile. "Perhaps this is a good sign... my people seem to think that Vortians are worth keeping on board our ship for further study and dialogue. This is not usually a part of our protocol."

More tests? Was that really such a good thing?

Laes was really wondering about that.

"You're not blind right now are you?" Laes asked, taking a small step closer.

"Everything is blurry... but I can still see... your voices are quiet and unclear... however, since this is a small room and you are speaking loud enough... I can still comprehend most of your words..."

"Kachori said it would take two days for you to get your balance back."

"Two Vort days...?" Sevai questioned as he carefully moved his legs away from his chest and drew both of his wings closer. "Yes... I can see that being the case..."

"You're not planning to lie beside a perfectly good bed for two whole days are you?" Laes remarked with a smile.

He was trying to joke a bit even though he wasn't too sure how Invaders joked or even if they did joke.

"I should be able to sit up properly in the next few hours," Sevai said, closing his eyes. "Of course... even then I won't be very useful... I apologize..." he paused for a few short moments before continuing, "I can at least request your return to Vort if that is what you wish..."

"Ah... I wasn't trying to say..."

Invaders were a pretty serious race then. He'd gotten that impression at the beginning, but he thought he'd try a bit of humour anyway just in case.

He'd have to remember not to try that again.

"I was just thinking the floor can't be very comfortable so..." Laes tried to explain, tapping his fingers together.

It was nice being able to do that again. He's gotten pretty used to having just one hand, but having two was definitely better.

Sevai eventually accepted their help moving off the floor and onto the bed.

He flinched when they touched him, and he remained tense until he lay down on the mattress, letting out a weary sigh as he did.

"Again... I'm sorry for this unfortunate delay..." Sevai told them. "As soon as I am able, I will extract the data from that device you gave me... it is the least I can do... and... unfortunately this incident will make convincing the council... to use an alternative method in dealing with the Irkens impossible..."

He took a moment to catch his breath before continuing.

"However, you and your people have proven yourselves worthy of an agreement between our people if that's what you desire... I am sure the council would agree to that at least."

"What if we were to become allied with the Irkens like we were in the past?" Lard Nar questioned.

As far as Laes knew, Darden hadn't been following Lard Nar around for very long... but they must have had some pretty good conversations or something if his former cellmate was able to speak like this about the Irkens.

Or maybe the only Irkens Lard Nar hated were the Tallest?

"Then your people would not be able to form an alliance with us," Sevai answered, sounding very certain. "However, I don't foresee anything negative happening to them solely based on your allegiances... the council would not have taken the time to separate the Vortians and the Irkens if you held no importance..."

Laes glanced at Lard Nar as the other Vortian spoke, "and what plans do you have for the other people who were impacted by the Irkens?"

"I believe I mentioned... we are taking steps to correct the damage done to all of the planets that were devastated by both the Irkens and the 'worms'... as for the people... I haven't heard anything specific in regards to them."

"I see..."

Lard Nar looked thoughtful. He was obviously thinking about the Resisty right now.

How would the Invaders interact with people who weren't considered very advanced?

Hold on... hadn't they used a Bludonian as a live incubator recently? Was Lard Nar thinking they might be interested in doing that kind of thing to the different races involved with the Resisty?

Oh glare... shouldn't Lard Nar look a lot more disgusted if he was thinking something like that?

"Vort still has allies," Lard Nar informed the immobile Invader. "We had business deals with companies from other planets, and we also had a study program designed specifically for the inclusion of other races... these agreements were never broken."

"Then we..." Sevai began, but he paused.

He was quiet for a few moments, then he spoke again.

"This will need to be brought up with the council. If you were to come up with some kind of list perhaps...?"

"I will," Lard Nar assured him. "And I'll also urge you and your people to stop hunting down the Irkens... I request this as a member of the Resisty who has dealings with Bludon. Your people also have agreements with that planet, which means they are a mutual ally right?"

Sevai became silent again. This was probably a lot for the injured Invader to think about.

"If the Buldonians agree with you, then I will have something else to present the council with..." He let out a sigh as he lowered his gaze. "But I doubt it will be enough after... after my mistake..."

Laes felt a heaviness settle in the pit of his stomach. Darden was dead. Sevai got him killed... no... wait... he held the side of his head as his gaze dropped to the floor.

What was he thinking about...?

Lard Nar was also asking Sevai a lot of pointed questions even though he said earlier they should give the Invader some space but... why was he suddenly feeling angry?

Darden died. Darden shouldn't have died.

It was Sevai's fault. The Invader needed to pay for his mistake.

He dropped to the floor and curled up clutching his head. He should just go to sleep now. These thoughts should go away if he drowned them with some good old fashioned unconsciousness right?

"Night..." he mumbled.

He listened for a reply.

It didn't sound like Lard Nar was moving at all.

Sevai might have noticed he was acting strangely, but the Invader wasn't saying anything about it.

Oh good. Sleeping should work out just fine then.

"Are you the one who started the war between Irk and Vort...?" Lard Nar's voice sounded low.

Was he angry too?

"The council decided that the alliance between your planets needed to end... I did not have a lot of say in the matter... but I was not opposed..." Sevai admitted.

At least he wasn't trying to dodge the question.

Actually, the Invader was being very honest about everything. That was kind of weird... was he doing that on purpose? Why would he admit to being involved by not being involved?

There was a growing uneasiness now... Laes could feel the tension in the air.

The Invaders were the ones to blame for all of the death, carnage, and mayhem. They were the ones who instigated the war which resulted in Vort being conquered and his parents being imprisoned.

His niece had died during that stupid war, and Lard Nar lost his whole family.

Sevai hadn't spoken against it which meant Sevai let it happen.

"Lard Nar... Laes..." Sevai's voice sounded small and a little scared. "What you're experiencing right now is Lathalrim... it is a combination of a thought altering gas and a powerful mind relay... it seems to have taken some time for it to fully affect you..."

"Make it stop...?" Laes asked him hopefully as he continued clutching his head.

"I am unable..." Sevai admitted in a calmer tone. "I should not be telling you this... but both of you are in the middle of an experiment..."

"Why do all of your experiments have to go after my brain...?" Laes questioned, and he rolled from one side to the other. "I only have one of those you know..."

"I apologize... but please... if you injure me now I won't be able to help you anymore..."

"Did you know about this?" Lard Nar asked, not sounding very impressed.

"I knew the experiment would be a possibility... but... it's not usually conducted when the target subject is incapacitated to this extent..."

So this was just another Invader experiment?

They were probably doing this because Lard Nar's mind had been too difficult to read.

"I can give you no further details..." Sevai said.

The Invader attempted to prop himself up when Lard Nar approached the side of the bed. His arms shook under the strain as he managed to sit.

"All I can do is ask that you please reconsider doing whatever it is you are currently thinking about..."

"I'm going to sleep," Laes insisted, deciding he would rather do that than anything potentially harmful. "Wake me up when the horribleness stops."

Maybe he should have stayed awake to make sure Lard Nar wouldn't do anything... but he couldn't even trust himself right now. He was too angry... he'd never felt this kind of overwhelming anger before, and it was all being directed at Sevai.

Of course he had to dream he was a terrible person. It wasn't enough for the mind relay or whatever to infect his consciousness, it also had to completely wreck his dream too.

He watched himself grab Sevai by both of his antennae, and he yanked on them until the Invader collapsed and was writhing on the ground in pure agony, sobbing and pleading with him to stop.

If that wasn't enough, his nightmare self decided to grab one of them again. This time he pulled so hard it actually detached. He was holding a detached antennae in his hand.

He screamed.

Then he started hyperventilating.

He woke up hyperventilating and was struck by a wave of nausea.

Then when he remembered everything clearly, he screamed and bolted up so fast from the floor he nearly fell.

"I apologize..." Sevai spoke loudly and clearly through his screams. "I should have mentioned that one of the potential side-effects of Lathalrim is nightmares..."

Laes covered his mouth to stop himself from screaming. He could feel the tears trailing down his face.

He saw through the blurriness that Sevai was sitting up in bed, and Lard Nar seemed to be seated across from him.

It looked like they were playing some kind of foreign game he didn't recognize, though Lard Nar had dropped everything and was studying him now.

His former cellmate was probably wondering if he should say something or not.

Sevai really should have mentioned the nightmare side-effects.

He wiped away some of his tears, feeling a bit miffed that the warning had come too late.

"Why didn't you tell me earlier!?" he questioned the Invader loudly.

"It is a rare side-effect, so I forgot it was a possibility..." He paused for a moment before adding, "if the nightmare was too severe, I can request it be erased..."

"No!" Laes insisted while waving away Sevai's words and shaking his head. "Stay away from my brain please..."

"Yes... of course..."

Swallowing the lump in his throat, Laes slowly approached them. "So um... what was that about...?"

"The experiment you were just in was to test your... natural reactions when faced with an upsetting scenario..."

"Shouldn't you already know how we'll react?" Laes questioned. "You guys can read our minds whenever you want, so you should have a pretty good idea how we'll respond..."

Hopefully there was no one reading his dreams otherwise he'd probably get thrown off the ship and into a death-ray of some kind...

He glanced around the room, looking for any kind of visible mind reading devices.

If there were any they'd probably be invisible though...

"Those are my sentiments as well... but it seems someone else thought it was necessary..." Sevai hung his head and let out a small sigh. "It is an extra precaution... neither of you are being detained or hindered beyond our usual security measures..."

"Now that Laes is awake, we really should return to Vort," Lard Nar interjected.

"Ah yes... this might prove to be a bit difficult as I no longer have access to any technology..." The Invader closed his eyes. "I'm afraid you will have to wait for someone to come and get you. I apologize for this inconvenience."

"You being injured isn't just an inconvenience.." Laes mumbled, but Sevai was giving him a strange look, so he stopped talking.

Some Notes:

Darden isn't just dead, he also can't be brought back... not that the Invaders would do that even if it was a possibility since they're not exactly fond of Irkens.