Vera shifted the weight between her feet for what felt like the hundredth time. Pretty much everyone around her was doing the exact same thing. She gave her head a slow shake. "And let the waiting dance continue…" Even though she muttered that under her breath the person in front of her huffed out a noise of agreement.

It felt like she had been waiting here for hours now. In this stupid line. After discovering that Rick was very much alive, and at least well-known enough to warrant having his picture plastered on a giant screen, Vera knew what her next step had to be. Rushing away from that intersection Vera didn't have to sprint far to find herself in front of a very large, and very new-looking building. The mountain of stairs leading up to the multiple doors seemed only a little bit like overkill. The banners that draped down in front of the building a shockingly drab green with some weird triangle logo in a sick looking yellow. Whoever decided on the color choice for this place really dropped the ball. Aesthetics aside it was obvious this was a place of information. Both humans and aliens alike were milling about. More of those weird praying mantis people in official looking clothing than people mind you, but still.

So anyhow there she was ready to make an expedition of those steps only to have herself be yanked away almost instantaneously. One stern glare, an "Uh-HMM", and a very convincing lobster claw later (really though it was an alien that looked like a person, but with blue skin and LOBSTER CLAWS), Vera found out that everyone and their mother had decided now was a good time to make a trip to the alien city hall.

An hour later and Vera had come to the conclusion that this line was in fact composed of almost entirely of her fellow man. Add that to the gawking menagerie of alien life forms she had already seen pass by in nearly every color under the sun, and Vera was starting to get a little cranky.

"I feel like we're exhibits at a zoo."

The man who agreed with her before had now decided to turn around. He went just about to her chin, so short for a man, with the ovalest head she had ever seen. The thing was like when you take a hard-boiled egg and squash it between your hands just enough so that you don't get gross yolk oozing out everywhere. Who was she to judge though. Maybe his mom had a pretty gnarly birth canal.

"Oh you get used to it after a while." He brought out a hand to shake, which Vera returned. She noted his grip was pretty limp even though he was the one who offered. "Gene Vagina. No relation."

Vera knew hew face betrayed what social decency expected for he quickly withdrew his hand. "As I was saying you'll get used to all this alien hub-bub soon enough." "That so?" Vera tried as subtly as possible to look behind good 'ole Gene here. The line had started to pick a little bit faster. More little than faster. She could see scary Lobster Lady again.

Undeterred Mr. Vagina rapidly nodded his head, his tone now a tad smug. "When you're principal of a high school you see a lot of craziness. I've seen students frozen and subsequently shattered into hundreds of little bite-size pieces. Bite size pieces made of ice of course. The clean up would have been terrible otherwise. "

"Uh-huh." The line seemed to have remembered it was moving and subsequently stopped.

"And then there was the time a blue man was on the pathway to repairing my divorce, when he disappeared," Vagina crept closer to regain her attention, "Right before my very eyes!"

Vera truthfully only caught the tail end of that. There seemed to be about twenty people left in line before her. "Spooky."

"But the strangest of them all was the time giant floating heads filled the sky!"

Vera had to stop and look at him now. "... What?"

"Oh yes. You remember. Couldn't have been that long ago actually. When the giant floating heads had come down from the heavens," Vagina lifted his arms upwards, his voice taking on a sense of awe. "In all their wisdom they led us, only to take it all away. I was to join them you see, hand picked by them personally." Vagina really hadn't made his tale seem any more real. Especially when he had begun to encroach on Vera's space way too much in the end there. She had no choice but to look down at his face as his eyes sort of glazed over. "My disciples attached balloons to my body and from there I began my holy pilgrimage."

That was the last coherent thing Vagina uttered before he fell to his knees in front of Vera, hands grasping towards the sky.

"Why have you forsaken us?!" Vera walked right past the crazy man as he continued his rant. The people behind her did the same. Only ten more heads ahead of her now as she left Gene Vagina behind.

"Your prophet demands answers!"

Shaking her head in disbelief Vera continued on with the flow of the line. In what felt like considerably less time than the past hour had been Vera found herself at the front of the line. A couple more minutes passed before she was waved through to climb up the stairs and enter the building.

And climb she did. Vera couldn't remember the last time she had to traverse something so steep. By the time she got to the top she realized why the line had been moving so slowly before. The part of her that had been surviving the past year on alien planets hoped these stairs weren't being used as some endurance waster to make herself a lot easier to eat. Fancy building or no everyone not human on Earth was still an alien to her. That thought didn't exactly fade away as easily as she would have liked. Vera found herself ushered into a large room set up with what had to be at least a hundred desks.

As she clumsily sat down Vera found herself face to face with Lobster Lady yet again. Of course she worked in whatever place this was. Thankfully the blue-skinned woman didn't seem to remember Vera as she gazed down at her, seemingly bored to death.

"Name?"

"Vera Floyd?"

The creature gave Vera a look before typing out something on the tablet with a holographic screen. She drolled out yet another question.

"Race?"

Vera scrunched her eyebrows as she slipped her hand back down into the coat pocket, running her fingers over the 3DS. "Well my mom was adopted so we don't really know for sure. My dad's Mexican though." Vera shrugged her shoulders. "So I guess that'd make me a mutt?" She also ended her answer with a tiny nervous smile. Anything to get the lady in front of her to form some sort of emotion.

Lobster Lady's face didn't even move a muscle. "Human."

It didn't even come out as a question. Vera nodded mutely and looked down. Coming from Claws-For-Hands that didn't really sound like a good thing to be. The alien let out a heavy sigh before continuing her questioning.

"And what are your skills?"

"Skills?" Vera gave out a soft chuckle. More to calm her jittering nerves than anything. "What is this some kind of on the spot job interview?" Vera trailed off at the end there, taking the time to finally dart her eyes at the other desks around her. More than half of the people there were dressed up pretty smart. Attentive to the questions, hanging on the word of each alien that sat across from them. Oh.

"Oh…"

Lobster Lady had one claw up against her forehead. Vera guessed she wasn't the first clueless human she's had to talk to today.

Trying to salvage the situation Vera raised both her hands in understanding. "I don't need a job. I'm here to look for someone." Lobster Lady didn't seem to take notice, and just kept massaging her forehead. And somehow not hurting herself. That must have been one doozy of a headache coming on.

"I think whoever is in charge of this whole alien operation thing on Earth may know him. I saw his face on the news earlier today." Lobster Lady's tapping continued.

Ver shifted more excitedly, getting to the point of her coming here. She didn't stop the pride that escaped her voice either.

"He's some pretty big shot scientist. And inventor." Vera took in a deep breath before continuing.

"My fiance Rick Sanchez. You may know him." She finished on the edge of her seat, face broken out into in a grin and her hands clasped together in front of her. This was it. She was going to see Rick.

As if she uttered a spell, Lobster Lady froze. Come to think of it every desk in their vicinity did too. The aliens at least.

Lobster Lady's eyes grew wide. It was like Vera short-circuited the woman. Vera fidgeted under the lady's expression of shock. The moment dragged on longer and longer, all the desks now in the room settling into an eerie silence. Lobster Lady seemed to just stare back at her. Vera's grin began to fade. She sat back in her seat with her arms falling down to her lap. That should have been her first indication not everything was as she assumed.

The button on Lobster Lady's tablet that was slammed down the second she came back to her senses was the second.

RVRVRVRVRV

"There are very few things on this backwards planet I tolerate Miss Floyd. Humans and liars are not on that list." The praying mantis alien… thing leaned back against her desk, arms crossed and face severe. "And from what Agent Cessa has told me, you're now 2 and 0 in that department."

Vera tried to sit up straight in her chair, the metal rods set across the back extremely uncomfortable. Add that to the freezing temperature this very commanding alien liked to keep her room in, and Vera was starting to feel like she had thrust herself into some major trouble. From the decorated uniform Vera could guess who she had the misfortune of talking to now was somehow very high-ranking. She also looked to be the type who handled authority with ease. And she was terrifying to boot. Vera never realized how pointy and sharp the limbs on these bugs really were until now.

As if she could read her mind the alien raised an appendage, pointing it directly at Vera, who subsequently gulped.

"No one in their right mind would ever," She punctuated her point by slashing the air, "Ever willingly enter a Galactic Federation embassy all just to utter that man's name." She took a step away from the desk, smoothing out the front of her button up jacket. Vera took note that this alien probably didn't like to have her emotions get away from her. "I'm afraid I don't know whether to think you insane or suicidal. If you feel like you have to be locked up Miss Floyd let me assure you this was probably the worst way to go about it. If you're suffering from some mental break the Federation can help you."

"No, I don't need help." Vera felt some of her confidence creeping back in as her interrogator calmed down. She slipped her hand back into the pocket of the handheld, taking note how the alien's gazed followed her arm. Immediately she drew her hand back, rubbing it over her pant leg. "Ms-"

"Major Sluugbuug."

Vera bit down on the inside of her cheek to prevent the snort that wanted to burst free escape. She ended up silently hiccuping, her body giving off a strange twitch. It was a really weird name for a praying mantis alien to have you had to admit. Even though the major didn't have eyebrows to raise, she somehow managed to make her very large and very red eyes do the exact same thing.

"Major I saw my fiance's picture face on your news after not seeing him for a whole year." Vera leaned towards Sluugbuug, trying to get the significance across. "Last I saw him he was dead on our living room floor. With all the crazy techno advancements you guys already have here on Earth, how is it unreasonable to think the only man who probably would have any idea what alien technology is end up under your guys' radar?" It was Vera's turn to cross her arms, falling back against her chair. She tried to stiffen her wince as she came into contact with the metal. "I know he's alive. I know he's a good man. What I don't get is why your whole Galaxy Federation thing seems to have it out for him!"

Sluugbuug stared back at Vera, her gaze unblinking. Vera in turn narrowed her eyebrows, sick and tired of being stared at today. Vera was just about to go off when the Major shifted her body, going back around to sit at her desk. She brushed down the front of her shirt yet again, picking at invisible dust before she looked back up. Her eyes never left Vera's face as she explained.

"The 'good man' you call your fiance has been on the Galactic Federation's most wanted list for almost five decades. An amount of time I realize for your kind is more than half a lifespan. He has stolen, blackmailed, armed assassins... " She pulled a tablet from the corner of the desk, swiping through screens before settling on a collage of images. She pushed it towards Vera's side of the desk. "He has killed thousands upon thousands of beings. A majority of them my own kind." Vera didn't want to look down, to play into this lady's trick. Her nonsense.

Rick Sanchez was a man who invented robots to cut butter and tried to make life better for those he cared about. Was he closed off? Sure, what genius men weren't. But to think he had managed to live a double life the whole five years past they've been together? Nope. It didn't happen. This bug be trippin'.

"I don't believe you."

Vera pushed the tablet back towards Sluugbuug without even looking down. The major let out a deep sigh and tapped what would be her hands together. "You're saying he entered your life in a manner that was anything but sudden, unexpected? He literally didn't drop himself into your life and force himself upon your very own aid and generosity?" Vera flexed her right hand, realizing it had turned into a fist. Whatever sick psychological mind games this bug was trying to pull won't work on her. The fact she first met Rick in alley by her apartment after a random flash of light be darned. How he pushed himself into her life so quickly. They just clicked very well very soon. Weirder things had happened.

"Miss Floyd you've been manipulated-"

"No."

"Stockholm Syndrome is what humans call it I believe..."

"No!" Vera rose to her feet, fists balled up at her sides.

"The man you love is a cold-hearted murderer who used your affections for his own selfish gain-"

"Shut up! You're the liar!" Vera heard herself echo in the room. The fact this stupid alien bug didn't look the least riled up while Vera felt herself a tightly coiled spring ready to snap only made her feel worse. And for some reason childish. But how else are you supposed to react when someone who has no idea the kind of relationship you had starts acting all 'holier than thou' and saying it was wrong? Unnatural.

Vera and the Major just started back at each other. Vera tried to make herself calm down. She could be cool. Like Miss Slug over here.

A door opened from behind Vera. She didn't bother to turn around as another praying mantis walked over to the desk. Sluugbuug gave no response as he whispered to her earhole. He kept sneaking glances over at Vera though, so she kept herself on guard.

Which was why she flinched back so suddenly, as did the messenger when the Major brought her arm up in swift motion. She stopped right in front of his face, his voice dying down at her command. Vera fidgeted in her seat. Not even caring what Sluugbuug thought she stuffed her hand back into the coat pocket. Like a talisman she ran her fingers over the familiar pathways of the system. She absently began pressing down on one of the back buttons as the Major cleared her throat.

"It would appear the stage has been set Miss Floyd. Now we can see who was right after all." She gathered herself up and walked over to Vera's chair. The messenger trailed behind her, a vicious grin plastered on his face. Vera didn't like where this was going, so she too got up to her feet, one hand on the back of the chair as the other stayed in her pocket. Her eyes narrowed at Sluugbuug, "What do you mean?"

Choosing not to answer the Major swept by Vera, leaving her alone with the other. She paused at the door, her back to the room as she spoke. "Ant would you please restrain Miss Floyd and debrief her before the ship leaves?" Before she even finished talking Vera had her arms pulled out behind her, effortlessly locked in some form of restraint for a bug with sticks for hands. "Good grief and now you expect me to believe his name is Ant? Is your emperor's name Ladybug?"

The Major turned around and came right up to Vera's face much quicker than anything she anticipated. In a flash the point at the tip of her arm that was her hand brought Vera's chin up to face her. If she wasn't currently being held hostage on alien territory Vera would have probably spat in her face. She turned her glare on full blast to Sluugbuug in retaliation. Ant tightened the hold on her arms enough to cause Vera to grunt with pain, her glare melting into more of a grimace. The Major kept her hold under Vera's chin.

"You better hope your brief, insignificant time with Rick Sanchez trumps our fifty years of character profiling Miss Floyd." She brought her face close, the tone of her voice very much less conversational as it was before.

That's it, Vera was stockpiling the spit.

"Or else you. Are going. To die."

After jabbing Vera with each pause the Major looked back to Ant and nodded. Without looking back Major Sluugbuug left the room and turned abruptly left, letting the door close on her way out.

Her parting words doused Vera's fire immediately. She couldn't help but tremble as the door closed, the bright light from the hall shut out with it.

With a snicker Ant turned her body around so she was walking ahead of him, guiding her towards a door on the opposite side of the room. Vera felt herself be pushed by the alien effortlessly, her steps rocking her body along like waves out on sea. In her past year of planetary travel Vera had never felt more alone, and more in danger than what was currently happening. Happening to her because of praying mantis bug aliens of all things. She had seen Rick's bloody corpse, been hunted as food countless times, and have even ended up on worlds that to the core were filled with horrors even the most seasoned of survivalists would be terrified of.

But never had Vera felt as great a sense of dread or foreboding than she did right in this moment, held captive by an alien empire whose only goal in her mind was to convince her that everything she ever had, or thought she had with Rick was just a charade. A farce. That Rick Sanchez, the love of her life was a terrorist. A heartless sociopath who cared about nothing but his own agenda.

That she now had to depend on their love, which had been absent for a year, to be the difference between life and death. Her life or death.

Oh what in the world was going on?

Vera wished she knew.