"They're after you? Why?" demanded Thorton.
Czarina hesitated for a moment, uncertain how she should clarify the things she knew.
"General, the aliens that kidnapped him are from a place called Liaper. I suppose you're wondering how I know this. It's because it's located in the same system as Oleaftar and the two planets have been enemies for as long as they can remember. Liaper has always been competing with Oleaftar for technology and the domination of planets. Since Hapar always considered Earth his prize jewel for conquering, they must thought they now have a chance to take it over themselves with his recent defeat. They must have something to detect my presence, just not me specifically. Otherwise, they would have taken me and not Lieutenant Hunter," explained Czarina.
She turned to stare at the general, the Pit Crew and Doctor Slate. Placing her hands on the table, she never noticed the two figures arrive behind her.
"Czarina, we got your message and we came as soon as we could. General, we're terribly sorry that Liaperians have to be here and they have the man behind your main line of defence. We should have had an inkling a long time ago that they might come here," Justin told the group.
The doctor climbed to her feet with a question on her lips and the two cats turned in her direction.
"Is there any way to get Lieutenant Hunter back from them?" she wondered.
"Yes, we can get him back. The main problem we obviously face right now have is finding them. There's a chance they've landed their ship somewhere and cloaked it. They could be settled anywhere within New Tronic City or even on its outskirts, we won't know until we find whatever we're looking for. They could be in orbit for all we know. Anywhere it happens to be, we have to find him soon before he should break," Jennifer explained.
"And what exactly can we expect them to do to the lieutenant? What are they going to do when they find out that he's not the one they're looking for?" wondered Garth.
The two cats gave themselves an uneasy look and Czarina couldn't help but turn her stare to the floor.
"They won't believe a word from him or anyone else unless Czarina shows up and transforms into Tera before them. They're extremely stubborn as they don't stop to consider they may have snatched the wrong person. We've seen plenty of innocent beings tortured or killed because the Liaperians refuse to admit they've made a mistake," Justin explained.
Everyone picked up on the one word and it was scaring them beyond a doubt. Doctor Slate gulped as she was the first to force herself to speak.
"'Killed'? Y-you mean Lieutenant Hunter may be end up - dead -because they're looking for Czarina?" the doctor stuttered.
"He will be thoroughly examined and then tortured for any information he may have. Like I said earlier, they will most likely not believe anything he tells them otherwise for they are positive they have the right person. Let's just pray that we can get to him before the worst happens," Jennifer explained.
Czarina stared out the window, wondering how on Earth they were going to find the lieutenant. Her heart was already in her throat at the thought of what he was going through.
00000
Dwayne groaned as the haze that had filled his mind was slowly starting to dissipate. The last thing he remembered was being at the café with the others before two aliens showed up and strangled him.
"Ah yes, it's good to see you awake. Now you can answer our questions," a voice filled his ears.
Dwayne turned in the direction the voice came from and his vision cleared enough to see two figures standing nearby. It was then that he realized that he couldn't move. His arms were shackled to the wall and his legs were tied to the floor and they were already starting to chafe his skin for he could see the redness starting to form.
"Who are you? What exactly do you want with me?" he demanded.
"My, my, aren't we the eager one?" another voice came.
One of the figures lunged forward and placed a hand on his chest. Dwayne screamed as an intense power tore right through him. The alien drew back and the human gasped for air as he went slack in his restraints.
"We ask the questions around here! Do not dare defy us, monster!" the first voice ordered.
Dwayne managed to look up at the two and finally got a good look at them. He gritted his teeth, wondering why they called him a 'monster'. There was only one possibility that crossed his mind and he dreaded that they would soon confirm it.
"I am Tane, he is Shzar and we are now your masters. Tell us, where is Hapar?" the first ordered.
"I don't know who the hell you're talking about," Dwayne lied.
Another jolt went through his body and he tried not to show the pain but failed miserably. Sweat was beginning to bead on his forehead as he tried to catch his breath but Shzar leaned over and grabbed Dwayne by the throat again.
"We know you've been in contact with Hapar recently and therefore the robot that defends this part of the planet. We need to know where they are and what kinds of weaknesses that he might have. Where are the military bases? Are there any other defenders? Anything you can tell us will be useful," he whispered to the lieutenant.
"I still have no idea what you're talking about. Whoever you're looking for, it's not me. You've got the wrong person," choked the lieutenant.
"We don't have the 'wrong person', as you say. We've searched out the one on several planets that Hapar had chosen for conquest. Some have tried to say they don't know anything but we knew we still had the right one. You are the chosen one for this planet so don't try and deny it," Shzar quietly told him.
Dwayne gulped, realizing no matter what he said or did would change their minds about him. They had been after Czarina and the plucked him up instead. Fear crossed his mind as to what they were going to do next. Shzar released him and Dwayne felt like throwing up after learning all this information and what they planned to do to him.
"Shzar, let's get him up on the rack. No sense expending our energy when we don't have to. We need him to talk and it will be more persuasive there. Besides, we'll need to perform the examination," Tane called over to him.
Shzar smiled as he realized what they were going to do. He reached into his robes and pulled out something that resembled a dagger. Dwayne wasn't certain what they were planning but he knew it wasn't going to be good.
"We could have done this while you were unconscious but we have found it's no fun since we don't get to hear your screams," Shzar laughed.
He roughly grasped Dwayne's jacket and placed the dagger on it. The alien began to tear the human's clothes off his body and the pieces slowly began to fall to the floor. Dwayne winced as the dagger poked and sliced his skin several times during the procedure and figured there would be blood. Soon enough, everything Lieutenant Dwayne Hunter had been wearing was now laying in a heap on the floor and he was bared for all to see. He glanced down at himself and the shreds of clothing at his feet before he returned his attention back to the two aliens. Tane had walked over to them by then and joined Shzar in circling the human before them. Dwayne felt a bit embarrassed that he felt so exposed as he had noticed the two were scrutinizing every possible inch of his body.
"What now?" Dwayne calmly asked them.
Tane forcefully grabbed Dwayne by the wrists while Shzar unshackled the chains from the human's limbs. As soon as they were off, Dwayne tried to struggle but found his captors to be exceptionally strong. As soon as Shzar grabbed the lieutenant's ankles, they began to cart him to a nearby table. They placed him on it spread-eagle and metal restraints immediately clamped down on his wrists and ankles. The two grinned as they hovered over him.
"Now here's the fun part, human, at least for us. You see, you try and resist your bonds, it'll only make things worse for you. All you have to do is answer our questions and nothing will happen to you," Tane explained to him.
"What 'harm' is going to come to me? All you've done so far is strip and restrain me," Dwayne wondered.
His answer came as a long, thin wire attached to a nearby console and it was sitting within Shzar's hand. The pilot became worried as he wondered what they would possibly do with it for it appeared to have a mind of its own. The alien suddenly reached down and forcibly grasped his genitalia before starting to push it inside the sensitive organ. At first, it felt like a prick but as it continued to make its way further into his body, Dwayne Hunter heard himself begin to scream.
TBC…