They had been on the Arktora's vessel for just under twenty-four hours having spent the first several hours pulling shrapnel from Kershala's battered body. The process had been tedious even with the tools they had found to use to pull out the deeper pieces. Kale couldn't imagine how painful it would be to have someone pull jagged pieces of metal out of your skin but Kershala barely even winced throughout the whole process. The tools they found seemed medical in nature, but Anubis was sure that they were not used for this on board an Arktora vessel. Kale had mainly used a very fine silver needle to pull the pieces out trying his best to be gentle. Once they had finished the process Kershala had succumbed to exhaustion and insisted on sleeping while he was able. Anubis had interfaced with the ship and used its sensors to keep watch and was satisfied they were alone in the Sol System.
Kale was still dealing with the sick feeling he got from being teleported to the vessel. The technology was something he had only ever seen watching science fiction television shows when he was younger. Needless to say, those shows didn't do a good job preparing him for the process of being ripped apart by his molecules and put back together in a different place. The buzzing on his skin almost reminiscent of receiving several intense static shocks but all over your body at the same time. Once he had the time, he found himself looking himself over to make sure everything was where it should be. He sat beside Kershala having just woken up and looked at his surroundings. Despite the sick feeling in his stomach he couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement, he was sitting on the bridge of an alien star ship. Likely the first human to be looking at his planet through the viewer of a ship capable of faster than light speeds. The possibilities ahead of him seemed boundless as everything he knew to be reality only a few months ago seemed so insignificant to what his reality was now. He went to go stand up and a light headedness come over him suddenly, he paused and steadied himself on a nearby console.
"Take your time, you are not yet used to the artificial gravity field, most non-spacefaring races have difficulty adjusting to it the first time they experience it," said the AI.
"How long does it usually last?" Kale balanced himself and stood up straight. He hadn't slept well or for very long and he was sure this wasn't helping matters any.
"You should start to notice reduced effects over the course of a couple of hours. I suggest not exerting yourself in the meantime."
"Got it." Kale walked over to the viewer at the front of the bridge that still displayed Earth from a high orbit. He started feeling as though he was looking down from a high place and cracked a smile at the thought of his body reacting to heights. "That's incredible. Completely unbelievable." Kale rested his hand on the screen it didn't react to him, but it was warm to touch. He gazed at the screen at a loss for words when he suddenly had a thought. "Anubis, can you show me the surface of Mars, um, the red one…"
"Yes." The screen went dark briefly and reillumined with an image of the red planet.
"Is this live?" The feed displayed the Mars rover traversing the terrain.
"The sensors on this ship are not often used to collect this type of data but the feed is accurate."
"Is it true what our scientists say? Could it support human life?" Kale wondered at the question.
"It would require extensive Terra-forming to become like your Earth. There is evidence of several major impact events that turned it into the dust ridden mass it is now," Anubis explained. Kale turned at a sound behind him to see Kershala standing up. The shrapnel had all been removed from his body but had left behind scarring that would take time to go away. Kale walked over to him as quickly as he could happy to see him awake. "How do you feel?" Kale suddenly lost his balance and fell forward. Kershala caught him and smiled at him.
"How do you feel? Gravity sickness has taken hold of you I see."
"I guess so," said Kale. Using Kershala for balance he began supporting himself again. Kershala still only had a pair of track pants on from the clothing they had stole and no shirt. The scars left behind were all over the right side of his body and there was dried blood scattered over his chest and dried on his pants. Upon looking Kershala over Kale looked at himself to see that he wasn't much better off, though it was not his blood it was still covering his clothing. He himself only wore a pair of track pants and a short-sleeve shirt. Kale ran his hand over the scarring on Kershala's face. "It's not hurting anymore is it?"
"I am not in pain." Kershala took Kale's hand and kissed his palm. "Do you feel any better after using the teleporter?"
"I'm okay, little dizzy, maybe a little bit of vertigo but I don't feel like puking anymore." Kale smiled and reclaimed his hand before looking back at the viewer. Kershala stepped away from him and walked toward the screen.
"What are we looking at?"
"Mars actually." Kale walked slowly up behind him. "Just one of the planets in our neighbourhood."
"Anubis are you able to interface with the navigational system yet?" Kershala turned around to face the AI core that had been affixed to one of the consoles.
"I have been able to access it though I've not yet learned how the interface works, it will not be long, however. Kershala I suggest you familiarize yourself with this vessel as we may be on it for awhile."
"I agree. Kale and I shall look around." Kershala walked toward a rounded doorway positioned on the back wall of the bridge.
"Maybe we can find some new cloths," said Kale as he followed. They stepped up to the door and Kershala looked around at the frame. "What are you looking for?"
"It should open as we approach. Anubis are the doors locked down?"
"I have kept this shut to prevent anyone or anything from moving throughout the ship freely when we first came on board. I will sync them to your implant for easy access." A half second passed, and the door opened into a small lift, the two of them stepped in. "I will send you to the main living deck." There was a light buzzing noise as the lift moved but Kale couldn't feel any motion and seemingly only seconds later the door opened into a long-darkened hallway. They stepped off the lift and Kale felt a certain feeling of dread come over him, the lighting was a far cry from the well-lit bridge.
"Talk about a tone change. Why is it so dark?" he asked.
"Do not be afraid, the ship is likely set to conserve power, and if anything is here," Kershala took Kale's hand and looked at him, "I will protect you." Kale could feel the heat rushing to his face and was suddenly glad for the darkness. They proceeded down the hallway, the walls and floors were made of a greyish metal. Kale could see raised paneling every couple of meters that he assumed were maintenance access ports. The atmosphere was completely quiet almost like they existed in a vacuum. Kale could hear Kershala's laboured breathing as they walked, telling him that he wasn't being completely honest with him about his condition. It wasn't long before they were at another door. Kershala turned to face it and it opened. The door opened to a room that was about the size of Kale's apartment. They entered cautiously looking for any movement or traps as they examined the room before them. The walls were lined with what looked to be well used technology, Kale could tell that these were computers even though they were alien in nature. The screens were flashing a series of glyphs across them in a green hue.
"Can you read any of this?" asked Kale as he walked up to the holographic monitors trying to find an interface.
"Yes, it is displaying a warning about the AI's invasion of its computer core." Kershala stood beside Kale and looked over the displays.
"This technology doesn't look as advanced as what I saw in your pod, do you know how to work it."
"You are correct this technology is likely stolen and very old, Daoran technology has always been focused more on science where as this ship has clearly been outfitted for battle. All other systems are treated as secondary," Kershala explained. Kale watched Kershala touch his implant and the screens began changing and funneling through information.
"It's just that easy for you to interface with it? Isn't that dangerous?"
"It would have been, had the AI not intercepted the ships cyber warfare suite. Now it is basically a river of information." Kershala seemed to occupy himself with the computers as Kale turned to explore the rest of the room. It was clear that this was the Arktora's personal quarters. He walked deeper into the room to examine what looked like a large bed sat beside a window on the wall. He could only see the stars through it, telling him the orientation of the ship. As he got closer, he could see that what he assumed was the bed didn't appear very comfortable, there were no blankets or pillows and it was made of the same metal the floors were. Next to it there was a tubular casing with a door on it, he opened it up and pushed a panel on the side of it. A blue light activated and there was a buzzing sound, it reminded Kale of a sterilization chamber. He jumped back at first not sure what to expect at the noise or if it would be safe for his skin. "That is a grooming station," said Kershala without looking away from what he was doing. "It uses a combination of light and sound to remove dirt from the skin. Clearly the only thing in here not used very often."
"Well why don't we use it to get cleaned up? Get that blood off your body."
"I am almost done with what I am doing? You may use it first, it will not hurt you." Kale looked back at Kershala standing in front of the monitors and then back to the machine that had apparently ran its cycle and shut off.
"Um do I take my clothes off?" Kale looked inside the machine trying to determine how it functioned, there was no visible parts other than a light panel at the top of it.
"Only for my benefit, the machine will work either way." Kale looked over at Kershala to see he had cracked a small smile. With that the clothes came off and he stepped into the machine hitting the activation panel on the way in. At first, he didn't really feel anything only a slight heat from the light as it turned on, likening the experience to a tanning bed. He started to feel a beating against his skin like he was standing in front of his speaker. Dirt and blood had caked onto his body during both the scuffle with the soldiers and the process of removing the shrapnel from Kershala's body. The beating seemed to be loosening the visible mess from his skin and it seemed to be evaporating as it fell from him. He smiled to himself as he stared down at his feet, thinking about how many new experiences he was in store for in whatever was to come. Each thing he found seemed to be stranger and more interesting than the last.
"I should have left my clothes on, unless there's some kind of Shironian washing machine here somewhere."
"We will wash the clothing afterwards." The cycle finished and Kale looked up to be staring Kershala in the face. As much as Kale wanted to stay in with him the whole idea seemed less romantic than a shower together. The predetermined amount of time the cycle took place and the fact that they wouldn't both fit in the machine comfortably didn't help. Kershala had removed his clothing and left it on the floor as he opened the door to the machine. Kale smiled at him as he stepped out brushing his hand across his abdomen. Kershala shut the door and the cleaning cycle activated. Kale looked at the dirty clothing on the floor of the cabin, not wanting to put dirty clothing on after being cleaned up. He shrugged his shoulders and sat on the cold surface of the bed, flinching at first as the cold material touched his bare skin. He sat and looked out the window staring into space.
"So where will we go from here?" he asked as he gazed.
"I am not sure, I know of a few systems where the Shironian influence is minimal. It may be a good idea to head to one of them and lay low," Kershala paused, "We won't be able to keep this vessel, no matter where we go, we will most likely be perceived as hostile."
"Have you thought of maybe using it to attack the one who killed your …" Kale didn't finish the question, not sure if now was the time for the discussion.
"I had not considered it."
"Are we going to just run forever? I don't think these guys are going to give up and just let you be." There was a pause and Kale turned to look at Kershala who was clearly contemplating the statement.
"You are right Kale. But I am not alone now, and I need to consider your safety as well." The cycle ended and Kershala stepped out into the cabin and picked up the clothing. He threw it into the machine and activated it. Kale watched as he walked back to the computer monitors that hung on the wall and looked up at them. "There is much more information here than I expected to find. Travel logs, star charts… victim profiles. This creatures name before it was changed was Jinnar."
"Is that significant in some way?"
"No, but it was believed that the Arktora held no memory of their previous life, this proves that theory wrong. The AI will have to catalog what we've found here to see if there is anything we can use." Kershala walked back to the machine as the unit finished its cycle and grabbed their clothing. He tossed Kale his and they each got dressed. "We should continue our exploration." Kale nodded and they exited the room back into the corridor.
Kershala had found some very disturbing information in the Arktora's database. He didn't feel it important to share with Kale but the profile the Arktora had been given on him seemed more extensive than he had first thought it should be. Not only did it contain intelligence reports on he and his family's movements but recent information suggesting that the ship had been in orbit for awhile collecting information on his interactions with Kale and the other humans. Even after the Arktora had been dispatched the ship continued to gather information on him from orbit. It had effectively been watching him. With the cyber defence system inactive it no longer mattered as it was not watching, but the fact that the technology had been that honed on him was troublesome. All he could do was hope that none of the information had been transmitted to anyone else. As they walked the implant took readings of their surroundings, there was no sign of anyone else ever being alive on the ship as a crew mate proving the Daoran theories about Arktora operations correct in that they worked alone. They had come to another door the implant could only detect a small room on the other side with what read like storage units. He stepped in front of the door causing it to open and he and Kale walked in. It was indeed filled with storage units.
"Maybe we can find a change of cloths in these," said Kale as he walked over to one of the units. "How do we open them?" The units were cube shaped with no interface point visible. The implant couldn't get any readings through the units themselves, but he could see the electronic lock.
"I can unlock them using my implant but there does not seem to be any external interface present." Kershala walked over to the box Kale stood beside and looked it over. "I cannot get any readings from inside, stand back I will unlock it." Kale took a step back and Kershala used his implant to deactivate the locking mechanism. The unit sprung to life as the top lifted and slid to the side held on by two arms on either side of the unit itself. Steam poured from the box and as it cleared Kershala was pretty sure he was looking at food stores. It was mostly fruit and vegetables but there were some dehydrated meats as well. The implant told him it would be safe for both of them to eat as he reached in and grabbed one of the teal colored fruit and took a bite of it.
"That's lucky," said Kale, "Is it safe for me to eat?" All Kershala could do was nod as he chewed the sweet tasting fruit. It had been so long since he had tasted a kralar fruit he couldn't believe how much he missed it. "I've never seen you smile while you eat before," Kale chuckled.
"I have not had one of these since my Matriarch used to have them in her garden." Kershala offered fruit to Kale and as he took it, he looked it over. "It is very sweet, you will like it. And very juicy it will quench your thirst." Kale took a bite of the fruit and Kershala watched his facial expression he could see that he was enjoying it.
"You're right, it's really good." Kale wiped at his face as the juice ran down his cheek. Kershala grabbed another one out of the box and they proceeded to eat their fill. They hadn't really thought about eating since they got to the ship with everything that had led them to this point. But it was clear that they were both incredibly hungry, eating most of what was in the box aside from the meats. Kershala knew that it wouldn't be strange for the Arktora to potentially eat its victims, so they abstained. "I wonder if all these boxes are food?" Kale got to his feet and walked over to a pile of boxes in the opposite corner. Kershala stood up and using his implant closed the unit containing food and reactivated the lock.
"Let's find out." Kershala unstacked the units and sat them each beside each other. The boxes weren't heavy, but they could have been made of a material used to lighten the load of a vessel. They unlocked the first couple of them and sure enough there was more food. It was good that they had food onboard since they didn't know when they'd be able to restock again. The next one they opened contained clothing from several different cultures. None of it appeared to have been warn according to the implant's scans, it could find no traces of DNA or chemical traces left behind by cleaning products. "This is likely something it picked up at a merchant on one of it's planetary stops."
"Seems so strange for them to be feared wherever they go but they can also just go shopping," said Kale.
"They pay small prices in exchange for the merchant's safety." Kale pulled some of the clothing out of box and held it up.
"This looks like a fit." As Kale began putting the outfit on Kershala moved on to the next containment unit. As it unlocked it revealed a compartmentalized tool box with several precise tools Kershala could already tell could be used to repair the AI core. "That looks useful." Kale glanced in before stepping into the clothing. It turned out what he picked up was actually a body suit. "Hey, can you zip me up? Feels like a really comfortable onesie." Kershala stood up and Kale turned around, he found the seal on it.
"This is actually a carbon fiber suit, it will help protect you from certain types of energy weapons for a couple of shots should the need occur." The white and blue body suit fit Kale well and Kershala admired his curves underneath it.
"Then it's a good choice then." Kale turned and smiled at Kershala seemingly knowing that he was looking him over.
"Indeed." Kershala went back to the box he had opened deciding the time was not right and used the implant to scan through it quickly. "I can use these to repair the AI. On our way back to the bridge I will bring this box with me to get it started." Kershala resealed the box and moved onto the next two they only contained more food. After Kale found a similar body suit for Kershala the two of them exited the room and headed back into the hallway.