The gathering had dispersed shortly thereafter, with the Namekians still chattering and whispering to one another in awe of the only woman of their kind as they began the trek back to their settlements. Sanshiva sat with her back against a wide ajisa tree and sighed as she picked at a wildflower poking up from the ground beside her, slowly stripping it of its petals and idly wondering how long the journey to Earth would take. Motoki, Moori, and Tobi were seated on the grass across the way, talking to one another in soft voices. For a moment, Sanshiva could just barely make out bits of their conversation but chose instead to focus on her breathing and closed her eyes. Just before she could relax enough to enter a meditative state, Doji sniffled from the opposite side of the tree.
She paused for a moment, struggling to find the right words. "This probably isn't the best question to ask, but… Will you be alright, little guy?" Sanshiva opened her eyes again, and stared down at the naked, wilting flower stem in her hand.
"I don't know, I think so..." Doji sat with his back flush against the tree and pulled his knees in close to his chest. "I guess right now, I'm just scared."
"Well, this monster's leaving," Sanshiva said as she tossed the stem away, "…so you don't have to be scared of me anymore."
"…alone," the boy mumbled.
"…I'm sorry?"
"I'm scared of being alone." Doji looked down at his hands as he twiddled his fingers anxiously.
Sanshiva didn't know how to respond; she had spent most of her life alone and had grown accustomed to solitude and silence, but slowly realized that Doji had lived his life opposite to hers. The boy had always known the company of his friends, the elders, and most importantly, his father, and sighed as she felt the guilt of her actions creep onto her shoulders once more. The silence between them seemed to stretch on until at last the boy spoke in a soft tone.
"I don't think you're a monster."
Sanshiva tried hard not to guffaw at his remark, but the sound still burst from her lips and she instantly regretted it. Her heart slowly sank into her stomach as she replied, "I appreciate that, Doji, I really do, but… I am a monster. There's no way around that fact." She rolled around the base of the tree to sit beside Doji and looked at him plaintively as she mirrored his pose, bringing her knees into her chest and curling her arms around her legs. "But at least I'm going to find a way to handle that and get your dad back, right?"
Doji rubbed his nose with his sleeve and nodded. He looked at Sanshiva and for the first time studied the piercings on her ears and face. She had two smaller, delicate silver studs on either side of the bridge of her nose; both of her long green ears had four ornate silver rings along the cartilage, and on her left earlobe was a single, round purple crystal that hung from a short silver chain. His eyes again met with Sanshiva's as he asked, "Why'd you do that?" He reached and tapped at her left earring, watching as the gem swayed back and forth.
The young woman blinked back at him and smiled, her white teeth contrasting sweetly with the jade tones of her face. She spoke in a jovial tone and answered, "I'm a big fan of shiny things, so I thought I'd put them there." She giggled as the words left her lips; it was a pleasant, unfamiliar feeling to her.
"You could put them on a shelf instead, you know." Doji giggled back.
"So… You're telling me I should have just put all these pretty rings and rocks on a shelf, where no one else could see them? What kind of nonsense is that? Do you hoard stuff on shelves?"
Doji covered his mouth as he laughed heartily. "Well… not stuff. I like animals, so I have a lot of animals at home."
"Oof, sounds like a lot of work to me."
"But it's not!" Doji sat upright and crossed his legs in front of him as he gave Sanshiva a determined look. "I love caring for them and learning about them! I'm making an encyclopedia and writing about them and drawing them and… and…"
"Hey, hey, relax little guy." She mirrored his pose again and crossed her legs, placing her hands on her lap as she smiled gently at him. "You know, I think it's great that you're doing that. If you love what you do, it's not actually work, right?"
Doji nodded and gave her a small smile. Their ears twitched slightly as they both heard a soft whooshing sound, like a focused gust of wind, come from behind them. As the two of them stood up and walked around the tree, they beheld an ovular, white spacecraft with small spikes along its top and two port windows on either side. It landed on the ground softly, its long white legs balancing perfectly atop the stone. The ship's large circular windshield resembled a lone eye at the front, its dark glass glittering in the sunlight. Doji ran towards Hama, Kiba, and Himura to get a closer look, and Sanshiva watched from behind as a circular section – a single floating platform – descended from the underbelly of the ship and Porunaga stepped out with his son in tow.
Moori turned away from the ship to look back at his daughter and sighed deeply, Tobi and Motoki just behind him with their hands on his shaking shoulders; Porunaga and Toriega stood beside him with their hands held behind their backs. Sanshiva picked up her bag from beside the tree and walked towards the group, her eyes shining in the light as she struggled to hold back tears.
'This is it…' she thought to herself.
Porunaga cleared his throat and addressed Sanshiva softly as he looked deep into her eyes. "My prayers for your safety and success on your journey. I hope to see you again one day."
Sanshiva bowed respectfully, silently thanking him, and swept her hair away from her eyes. Toriega moved forward, stretching his hand out to shake hers. As she returned the gesture and their hands separated, the young man spoke kindly to her.
"Good luck out there, Sanshiva. I've heard some… interesting things about Earth. Try not to get caught up in too much, okay?"
"Thanks. Pretty sure I can take care of myself, but I appreciate your concern."
He nodded to her and stepped back. Tobi and Motoki stepped forward and bowed respectfully.
"It's a shame to see you go so soon, I would have loved to get to know you, honey," Tobi said sweetly. "Take care and don't be a stranger when you get back home!"
Sanshiva smiled back and said, "Thank you so much, Tobi. When I get back, I'll come visit you."
"Be careful out there," Motoki said in a prudent tone, "You are still a woman, after all, and women have a history of being taken advantage of in the wide universe. Show them you're made of stronger stuff." He winked at her, and she smiled again, nodding slightly as she faced her father.
Moori was already in tears and sniffling quietly as his daughter stood before him. She gave him a pensive look and placed a hand on his shoulder before pulling him in for a soft hug.
"Come now, Father, you knew this was coming." She rested her head atop his and squeezed him tighter.
"It doesn't make it hurt any less, you know," Moori said between sobs, "Please promise you'll come back?" He released his embrace and reached up to cradle her face, and she smiled tenderly at him as a tear escaped from her eye. He wiped it away and asked, "Please promise that when this is all over, I'll see you again. That I… That I can make up for all this time?"
"Of course, Father. I already promised to come home, remember?" She pulled away from her father and looked down at Doji, who was huddled beside his friends and the firedrake. "I promised I'd come back with Dokira, right?" The three boys nodded back to her, and she stepped towards them, kneeling to lift Doji's chin with a delicate finger.
"Doji, you are not alone. You have this awesome violet firedrake here," she said as she winked up at Himura; the firedrake roared in response and grinned wildly. "And it looks like you've got two fantastic best friends," she continued as she used her hand to rub Hama and Kiba's heads playfully, the boys giggling in response. She stood back up and grabbed her bag, slinging it again over her shoulder. "Take care of them, and I'm sure they'll take care of you just fine."
He nodded to her and extended his arms upwards, silently asking to be held. Sanshiva bent down and with her free arm, she scooped him up to hold him tightly, rocking him back and forth. Doji felt her energy encompass him again and swore for a moment, she smelled like his father; like ajisa blooms and the dew after the eclipse, and he exhaled sadly as she put him down gently on the ground before walking towards the ship.
She waved to the others one last time before she walked up the platform and softly commanded the ramp to ascend, uttering a single word in Namekian. "Pikkoro," she whispered. The platform levitated back up, joining its adjacent panels with a soft click.
Sanshiva walked around the vessel, thinking it resembled more a Namekian house with legs than a ship. Its main area looked like a large, white-walled room with brown segmented tiling, and there were two smaller offshoots neatly tucked into one side, each with its own door; one led to a small restroom and the other to a bedroom with a single bunk and nightstand. The ship's massive control console stretched across the front, directly underneath the large, tinted windshield.
She dropped her bag as she approached the console and sat in the captain's chair, rubbing her hands across the smooth arms of the seat and sighing heavily; she leaned forward and tapped a few times at the console in front of her, jumpstarting the ignition cycle and pushing the flight lever forward; as the ship thrummed to life and slowly hovered upward, Sanshiva watched sadly as the Namekians waved back at her from outside; their forms shrank away and as the fullness of the green planet came into view against the star-speckled backdrop of infinite space, Sanshiva exhaled before saying softly, "Take me to Planet Earth."
The ship continued on its preset path, and she stared for what seemed like hours as the only home she'd ever known floated further and further away.
"This is going to be a long, long trip," she said to herself.
7 Days Later…
Sanshiva exhaled softly as she stepped out of the hot shower, her green skin dripping wet and steam rising from her body as she grabbed a thick black towel from the metal rack on the white tiled wall. She dried herself off and dressed quickly, stepping carefully across the dark, cool floor, and turned to the sink. Sanshiva wiped away the steam that coated the rectangular mirror above it and stared back at her reflection.
"Too plain," the young woman said aloud as she began to reinsert her jewelry. She slowly placed her earrings in, carefully sliding each one into its spot and clasping it at the back. Next came her bangles, which she quickly gathered and slipped over her arm; they jingled as she moved again to grab her dermal studs, which she wiggled back into place. She looked at her reflection again, and said, "Now that's much better."
Sanshiva stepped back into the main room and put her boots on, glancing vacantly at the stars that whizzed by the ship's windows. She moved towards the console and her eyes wandered across it, rows of buttons and various meters blinking and beeping back at her. Her eyes stopped at a flat, circular blue button on the console that had a clock symbol. She pressed it firmly, and the holographic map changed to show a landing timer. A sterile, stiff male voice echoed from speakers attached to the console. For a moment, Sanshiva thought it sounded very much like a robotic version of her father.
"T-minus twenty-three days, fourteen hours, and forty-two minutes to Earth landing," said the computer in Namekian.
"Ugh," Sanshiva, "This thing can't go any faster?"
An image of a fuel tank coalesced in the hologram and the computer responded in the common tongue, "Initiating hyperdrive will run the risk of depleting fuel stores unless a secondary stop is made. Fuel level is currently at eighty-five percent."
The young woman pondered the possibility of making a pit stop but quickly realized she didn't have the money or trade materials necessary to purchase more fuel if she decided to engage the hyperdrive. "This is ridiculous… Of all the stupid—"
Suddenly, the ship's computer beeped several times and Sanshiva strained against the sharp sound that rang in her ears. An image appeared on the holographic monitor, revealing the view from behind.
"We're being hailed," the computer announced. "Transmission incoming."
Sanshiva's eyes widened as another spaceship came into focus – a slightly larger and flatter, spherical vessel with a black top and white hull. It had several round tan pods sticking out from all around it in evenly spaced intervals, and large, dark circular windows. Her heart dropped into her stomach as she realized the ship matched the description of one her father had seen, some sixteen years prior: a Frieza Force mercenary vessel.
The rearview camera clicked off, and the display in front of her flashed with the image of an alien: a burly, blue-scaled creature with what looked like a large gray fin sticking out from the top of his head, and two smaller ones on his neck. He had thick cerulean lips and beady black eyes that wandered across her visage. He was wearing a hardy black cuirass with large shoulder pads that jutted out sharply from either side, and a small machine fitted against his left ear with a single green lens attached that neatly covered his eye. Sanshiva thought he looked like a fish that had hijacked the body of a man and smirked. He smiled back at her.
"Ooh, look what I found!" His gravelly voice resonated through the loudspeakers and Sanshiva winced. The sound hurt her ears, and she watched in disgust as the alien's eyes wandered to her chest and he licked his lips.
"Congratulations, you found a Namekian. My eyes are up here by the way." She used her fingers to motion to her face and crossed her arms to cover her chest. Sanshiva's grin had given way to a look of irritation; she thought of Motoki's words and realized just how right he had been.
"Namekian? They got girls over there now?"
"Not anymore, they don't."
"Hmph. Alright, lady, I'm gonna just cut to the chase here. I'm pretty lonely and low on fuel. I'm going to board your ship," he said, pointing at himself, "…and you're going to let me solve both of those problems." He chuckled lowly and gave her a lecherous grin as he pointed back at her.
"Like hell, I will!" She pounded her fists on the console and shot the strange man an angry look. "I've got somewhere to be too, idiot!"
His thick brows raised and he chortled again. "Oof, such harsh language for such a pretty lady," he said mockingly. "And where would that be?"
"Somewhere between 'none of' and 'your business.' Now buzz off."
"Playing hard to get, are we?" He licked his lips again and Sanshiva felt sick to her stomach as she looked back at him. "You should be a little nicer instead, lady. I'm not the one you want to mess with. Spare yourself the heartache and let me board your ship." The alien nodded in her direction and raised his brows as he awaited her answer.
Sanshiva's right eye twitched and her brow furrowed as she stared back at the hologram, anger boiling the blood in her veins. She inhaled deeply before cursing loudly at him, "Listen here, you maggot-brained, fish-faced, blue-balled son of a bitch! I'd rather be dead than let you get a piece of me or my ship."
The alien's grin was replaced by a scornful look as he took in the full magnitude of her insults. "Fine," he growled, "have it your way."
The man's image disappeared, and the rearview of the ship came back on the display. Sanshiva watched as three large grey cannons slowly emerged from several hatches underneath the ship and aimed at her vessel. The blood drained from her face, and she watched in horror as the cannons began to charge with hot, bright energy.
"…Damnit," Sanshiva said breathily.
The cannons suddenly let loose three massive shots, the heavy blasts slamming against the aft like a horribly loud lightning strike. She struggled to hold onto the console as the ship rocked back and forth and a painful, blaring alarm sounded from the speakers.
"Breach detected. Hull integrity at sixty-two percent. Engaging shields," said the ship's computer. A large swath of green light appeared and encapsulated the vessel as it continued to take shots from the alien craft just behind. The Namekian ship teetered against the force of the cannon fire, and Sanshiva yelped.
"Please tell me we have something to shoot back with."
"Negative," the computer responded. "Namekian spacecraft are Class-C civilian vessels—"
"ARGH! Slow and useless?! You've got to be kidding me…"
"Shields functioning at eighty-five percent and decreasing," the computer announced.
"Then tell me what the hell to do!" She screamed and looked about the console, searching across the dash with terrified eyes.
"Recommended course of action: evasive maneuvers."
With a gentle metallic sound, a small round opening just underneath the center console appeared. A white and silver steering wheel quickly popped out and positioned itself upright with a series of soft clicks and whirs. Sanshiva quickly sat at the captain's chair and grabbed the wheel, pushing it forward and forcing the Namekian vessel into a sharp dive downwards as it narrowly avoided a renewed barrage of cannon fire. The alien ship gave chase, firing relentlessly as Sanshiva struggled to weave back and forth to avoid the blasts. She lurched forward as another volley slammed against the shields and she screamed in frustration. The computer's next announcement didn't help, either.
"Shields functioning at fifty percent and decreasing."
"I CAN SEE THAT," Sanshiva roared back.
With no way to fight back and the panic quickly setting in, the young woman panted and her eyes darted across the stars in front of her. She felt as if her heart was ready to burst from her chest and sweat formed at her brow as she squinted and scanned the darkness of space. She could see small stones floating in the air around the ship and could hear a series of small clangs and zaps against the shields before the computer spoke up again.
"Approaching asteroid field. Please reroute to avoid—"
"No, damn it! This is exactly what we needed!"
Sanshiva spotted her opportunity to lose her attacker, marveling at the massive clusters of rock and gemstone that floated towards her vessel. The young woman continued her erratic piloting and forced the ship onward, driving the vessel under, over, and between the gigantic asteroids that came into focus against the backdrop of stars. Smaller stones sped by and smacked against the ship's shields, making it flicker and pulse with green light. Sanshiva glanced at the monitor and watched as the alien ship mirrored her motions. It was gaining on her, soaring over and ducking under asteroids with relative ease.
The computer spoke up again, saying, "This is not a recommended course—"
"Alright, why don't you fucking drive, you stupid computer!"
"Negative, I am unable to—"
"Then shut up!"
She struggled to calm her breathing and keep her vessel stable amidst the cannon fire. Her stomach churned and her heart seemed to stop as another three blasts hit the ship; Sanshiva screamed again as the forcefield sputtered and the computer spoke pointedly.
"Shields functioning at fifteen percent and decreasing. Please continue evasive action."
"Oh yeah, because that's clearly working," she said sardonically, shaking at the helm as she veered left, once again barely avoiding another cannon barrage from the alien ship. She forced her vessel downward through an asteroid riddled with craters and tunnels, struggling to keep it steady as she tried to make it squeeze through narrow, rocky passageways. She exited the tunnels and flew further onwards, the bright volleys from the cannons behind her creating rocky debris in their wake.
Before she could steady the ship's position, a massive asteroid smashed into the shield at the side of the vessel, and Sanshiva was thrown from her seat by the force of the sudden impact. She gasped and winced as she landed on her back and the ship veered wildly out of control, careening further into a thick field of icy rock. Sanshiva fought against the ship's momentum as she pulled herself back onto the chair, and grabbed the wheel to bring it back to equilibrium. Another blast hit the aft and the ship teetered again; the shields crackled and spluttered as they faded away, leaving her vessel completely exposed, the ship now being barraged by the small clusters of stone that sped by. The computer let off another blaring alarm before making another pointed announcement.
"Shields have failed."
"Grr... I KNOW!" Sanshiva slammed her fist against the console in frustration. She watched the holographic monitor in terror as the alien ship floated in front of her, its cannons aimed directly at her through the windshield. "Oh, screw this! Initiate hyperdrive now," she ordered.
"Please confirm the destination," the computer commanded.
"JUST GET US THE HELL OUT OF HERE!"
"Lightspeed travel in commencing in three… two… one…"
Just before her attacker could fire the cannons again, the Namekian ship hurled forward into space, knocking the alien vessel aside before disappearing into the darkness. The ship's momentum pinned Sanshiva flat against the chair, and she listened as meteorites clanged against its exterior as it sped away. She watched through the windshield, the stars racing past in blinding multicolored lines, the horizon a single pinprick of black in the center of her field of vision.
Ten minutes later, the ship began to decelerate, the stars once again forming pinpricks of light in the darkness of infinite space. Sanshiva clutched at her chest and slowed her breathing, relieved that she had finally shaken off her attacker.
The computer announced, "Threat successfully evaded. Hull integrity at forty-eight percent. Shield recharge failed; central shield processor has been damaged. Fuel level at five percent. Recommended course of action: activate distress beacon."
Sanshiva exhaled and responded, "What are the chances I'll flag down the same guy that just tried to kill me?"
The computer beeped and whirred as it made several calculations and answered, "Thirty-two percent."
"That's a bit too high for my liking." She sighed again, ran a hand through her hair, and looked down at the floor, feeling she'd regret the answer to her next question. "And how far are we from Earth now?"
There was a long silence pockmarked by the small sounds of machinery and the hum of electricity as the computer contemplated the question.
"T-minus forty-two days, seventeen hours, and six minutes."
She rolled her eyes and scoffed, realizing she did, in fact, regret asking. "Oh great... Are we anywhere near a fuel station or something? Anything at all?"
"Nearest spaceport: Jae-Ujani. Approximately ten days' flight time from the current location when accounting for remaining fuel and gravitational acceleration," the computer explained.
"Does that take us farther from Earth, or closer?"
The computer paused before it answered her again. "Farther."
An image of a floating station coalesced on the holographic display. Sanshiva squinted and examined the image cautiously; the spaceport looked filthy, like a giant, multi-tiered machine made from the junk remains of different spacecraft, floating alone in deep space.
"Well then… I guess that's where we're going," Sanshiva said as she rose from the chair.
Sanshiva stretched and let out a long sigh before walking to the center of the chamber and assuming her lotus position. She hovered just above the floor and closed her eyes as the computer set a course for the grubby spaceport, the gentle hum of the ship slowly flooding her ears.
10 Days Later…
The computer's voice blared through the speakers, startling Sanshiva as she rose quickly from the bunk and scrambled out of the bedroom to the control console, nearly tripping over her own feet.
"Approaching Jae-Ujani Spaceport. Flagging Galactic Alliance Control Tower C914-68."
Sanshiva leaned against the console, stared out the window, and shuddered in revulsion as she studied the structure. Up close, the lone station resembled a gigantic mass of five terribly filthy and vaguely rectangular metal containers, each a different color, stacked clumsily atop one another. Jutting out in different directions from the structure were multiple communications towers, each with a blinking red light at its apex. Sanshiva watched as spacecraft of all different sizes, colors, and styles weaved into and out of the docking station shields at the lowest level of the spaceport and saw the small figures of people walking about the docks.
A soft chime emanated from the console and Sanshiva's antennae and ears twitched in shock as a young female voice sounded through the speakers. "This is GA Control Tower C914-68. Please state your business."
"My ship n-needs fuel and repairs," Sanshiva replied nervously. "I ran into a… m-mercenary on my way to Earth. I had to drift most of the way here after the hyperdrive exhausted the fuel. I'm going to need a little help... p-parking if that's at all possible…"
Sanshiva anxiously peered at the docking station through the window and waited for a response. A few seconds later, the voice came through again.
"You're cleared for landing. Sending a tow ship to your location now. Please begin craft shutdown procedures."
Sanshiva watched on patiently as a large, dilapidated, boxy yellow vessel emerged from the docking bay and approached her ship slowly. A small square opening appeared at the tow ship's stern, and a thick cable shot forward; it wrapped around one of the legs of the vessel, and the tow ship gradually backed into the docking bay, Sanshiva's ship being pulled along like a massive white spiked balloon. Sanshiva tapped a few keys on the console until the computer made another soft chime.
"Shutting down," said the computer softly.
The lights and meters on the dash slowly darkened, and the overhead lights followed suit, taking slightly longer as the young woman stood in the vessel. She walked to the center of the main area, whispering the command for the platform to descend; the underbelly of the ship opened and touched the metal platform below with a soft clang. As she covered her chest and head with her cloak, Sanshiva stepped down the platform and looked about the docking bay, scanning her surroundings. She walked out from under the ship, marveling at the strange sights and sounds of Jae-Ujani.
The poorly lit platform held multiple other spacecraft beside hers and connected to a concrete central walkway that split like a spider's web in all directions. The platforms were lined with massive beams that marked the spots for each vessel; around them snaked a series of thick pipes that hissed steam and hard bundles of wires that vibrated with electricity. Sanshiva looked up and eyed the wide lamps on the ceiling; tucked in neat intervals between large metal girders, half of them had died out and a good portion of the others flickered and buzzed as they struggled to release light. The noise in the docking bay was nearly too much to bear; the female Namekian could hear every footstep, every ship's hatch open and close, every person as they talked amongst each other in foreign languages. She watched as numerous aliens – different species, each with unique forms, markings, and clothing – made their way across the docks, exiting and entering their own oddly shaped spacecraft. The acrid smells of fuel and waste wafted in her direction as a nearby craft prepared to exit the bay, the hot stench burning her nostrils. Sanshiva recoiled in disgust and covered her mouth and nose with as much of her cloak as she could.
"Ugh!" Sanshiva tried hard to stifle a gag, but to no avail. "I bet hell itself doesn't smell this bad." She coughed as she commanded the platform to rise, closing the ship as she wiped a tear from her eyes.
"You know, it'd be awfully funny if you were right," called a dulcet male voice nearby.
Sanshiva quickly looked to her left and stared in shock as her eyes met with the source of the voice. An adult Namekian, dressed in a sharply pressed black suit and a polished black, short-brimmed cap to match, jumped down from the side door of the tow ship to greet her. She studied his cheerful face and athletic form as he strode confidently toward her; the silver buttons that trailed along the center of his chest seemed to glisten slightly with each movement. On his lapel was a single round silver pin that resembled a planet with an oblique ring around it and had the letters "GA," stamped in red across its surface. The gentleman stood a few feet in front of her, removed his cap, and bowed as he greeted her.
"Welcome, traveler! My name is Hasana, and I'll be helping you today." He gave her a slightly curious look before smiling politely and fitting his cap back atop his head, tucking his antennae neatly inside. He gently placed his hands behind his back and looked up at the ship behind her, eyeing the scratches and dents on the surface of the vessel. "Had a run-in with a mercenary, did you?"
Sanshiva nodded quietly. She thought his voice was nice enough, but his accent sounded odd to her. His vowels were elongated, and his R's rolled off his tongue softly like a sigh. She hadn't realized that she was staring at him, and he broke the awkward silence that hung in the air. His eyes met with hers as he asked, "Culture shock?"
Sanshiva swallowed hard and nodded again as she held the cloak tighter against her face. 'More like a culture sickness,' she thought. 'If I have to breathe this in much longer, I think I'm going to hurl.'
"It's perfectly normal," the young man said. "It was the same way for me when I left home, too." He rested a hand against the leg of the Namekian vessel and exhaled deeply. "Seeing something like this brings back a lot of memories," he said with a sigh. "Since I'm the only one here who knows anything about your ship, I'll be the one fixing it. I can promise you that your vessel is in perfectly good hands!"
Sanshiva looked at the ground, her eyes darting back and forth as she studied the scuffed and dirtied metal beneath her feet. Hasana took a good look at her, taking note of her slender form, her vivid emerald skin covered by black gi and the lines and pink segments on her arms that looked just like his.
"Forgive me, I've never seen a woman like you before, but you look like… A-Are you a... A female Namekian?" He blushed slightly as the words left his mouth, and gulped quietly as he studied her shaded eyes.
Sanshiva breathed deeply and cleared her throat. "I'm the only one. Wasn't easy back home so… I had to leave." She prayed he wouldn't pry further; the idea of explaining the events back on New Namek to a total stranger – even if he was one of her kind – didn't sit well with her, and her stomach churned as the memory of the taste of blood coalesced on her tongue.
Sensing her apprehension, the uniformed Namekian spoke softly and nodded as he said, "I understand. Let's take a look at your ship, shall we?" He nodded once more to the young woman before pacing slowly to the back of the ship.
After over a week, Sanshiva still hadn't gotten a look at the damage and followed closely behind him, noticing the rough scrapes and scores that covered the ship's exterior. When they stopped, Sanshiva inhaled sharply as her eyes settled on the aft. Several damaged metal plates had nearly detached from the back, barely clinging to the ship, black and ashen along their melted edges. Like a gaping wound, the hole left by the cannon blast had exposed and incinerated a large chunk of tangled wirework, and several large portions of circuit boards dangled out alongside several thin hoses that dripped an oily green substance onto the ground. Hasana seemed to wince as he surveyed the damage.
"Um... Miss? If I'm being perfectly honest… That doesn't look particularly good."
Sanshiva gulped again, staring with wide eyes at the large hole in the aft. She let her hands fall to her sides as she stepped closer, and her cloak slowly fell onto her shoulders, revealing her head and face. Focused on the sight before her, she touched the burnt metal edges with her right hand. Her mouth felt dry, and a lump formed in her throat as she took in the sight of the mangled and melted wires and cables. With her left hand, she clutched at her chest, her heart aching; she felt a mixture of both horror and remorse as she slowly realized how close she had come to death before she had even gotten the chance to fulfill her promise to Doji. Something deep within her magnified the pain and sent waves of sadness pulsing through her body, and she struggled to speak against the choking feeling in her throat.
"I… I didn't have any way to defend myself," she said quietly. She turned her head and Hasana gasped as he took in the sight of Sanshiva's jeweled visage and purple mane of hair. He blushed again as he realized he was staring at her and quickly looked away.
"So, they let you leave… without a weapon?" He raised a brow as he gazed into the great metal chasm in her ship.
Sanshiva exhaled deeply as if she'd held her breath for ages. "In the Elders' defense," she said sadly, "...this wasn't exactly a planned trip."
Hasana nodded and hummed as he crossed his arms and walked away from her, inspecting the beaten vessel slowly and carefully. Sanshiva watched on as he paced a full lap around the ship and continued to hum lightly, thoughtfully rubbing his chin as he examined the large groupings of scratches, as well as the sizable dent on the ship's side – the aftermath of its collision with the wayward asteroid. Sanshiva shuddered slightly and rubbed her nose, and Hasana tsked before sticking his hand in his pocket and pulling out a small rectangular device with a bright blue screen. He pushed a button on its side, and she continued to watch him as he tapped away at the screen, its blue glow shining against his face. From the corner of her eye, Sanshiva saw a sizable hatch slide open on the side of the tow ship, and a small, round white robot came rolling out, making various beeps and whoops as it approached Hasana and stared at him with one large dark blue pupil. Sanshiva stared at the machine with raised brows, thinking it resembled a sentient eyeball.
'That's… not creepy at all,' she thought as she shuddered in disgust.
Sanshiva cast her gaze to the uniformed Namekian once more, his eyes still affixed to the screen in his hands as he typed in a single command.
"Here we go…" he said softly. At once, the robotic eye made a soft whirring sound and began to hover, casting soft blue laser lines to scan the ship as it crossed between Hasana and Sanshiva and made its rounds. Sanshiva gasped slightly, still slightly repulsed at the machine's slightly macabre appearance. She thought she heard Hasana chuckle beside her as the robot finished its scan and made a soft series of beeps before dropping back to the ground and rolling back into its cubbyhole aboard the tow ship. He glanced one more time at the device in his hand before shoving it into his pocket and looking at her with a concerned eye.
"Well… I'm still shocked they let you leave without some sort of armature. I should be able to install a few cannons for you, upgrade your computer and shields, and remedy the cosmetic damage."
"Mr. Hasana…" Sanshiva hesitated and looked shamefully at the ground as she spoke. "I… I don't have any money. Is there some way I can… earn it?"
Hasana sighed, looked around the docks cautiously, and put a hand on her shoulder as he asked, "Just call me Hasana, please. Pardon if I'm prying again, but… I can't help but notice your energy seems extraordinarily strong… Are you a warrior, perhaps?"
Sanshiva blushed and twiddled her fingers. "I-I'm still learning," she stuttered, "...b-but yes. I'm a fighter... of sorts." Her voice trailed off and Hasana smiled as he looked thoughtfully at her.
"I'm going to suggest something that is completely against Galactic Alliance code, but I won't tell if you won't," he said quietly.
Sanshiva tilted her head as she looked back at him.
"If you think you can help me solve a problem we've been having here at the docks… I'll fix your ship, free of charge." He shot her a challenging look.
Her eyes shot open, shocked by his proposal. "What?!"
The young man motioned with his hand for her to lower her voice, his palm still facing the ground. He placed his hand over his heart and bowed. "You have my word."
Sanshiva raised a brow at him and crossed her arms. "…Why do I get the feeling this is going to be a tall order," she asked warily.
Hasana chuckled as he stood up again and adjusted his cap, flicking at the brim with his thumb and forefinger. "Technically, I won't be able to discuss the problem right now since I'm supposed to be working. What I'd suggest is that you go explore for a bit," he said, pointing to the elevators, "...and in about three hours, I can meet you by the elevator entrance on the third floor. Does that sound reasonable?"
Sanshiva nodded to him and bowed in respect. "Thank you, Hasana. I don't know how much I'll be able to help, but I'll certainly try."
"…You know," he spoke hesitantly, thumbing the brim of his cap, "I never got your name..."
"It's Sanshiva," she said as she flashed him a tender smile. "I'll see you in a few hours." She gave him a wave and turned around to walk towards the central platform.
The elevators towered over Sanshiva like large, grubby vacuum tubes. She could see through the glass shaft as people stood inside what looked like canisters that seemed to disappear into the ceiling. She trailed behind a group of aliens as they stood before one of the elevators, its metal doors opening with a loud hiss. Sanshiva crammed herself into the lift beside them and felt a sharp pain in her ears as they spoke to one another in a series of odd chirps, clicks, and whistles, thinking they resembled a flock of birds. Their faces and necks were covered in red and orange gradient feathers that were brushed back. They had short, sharp-looking yellow beaks and small black eyes, and each wore a bright red robe that covered the rest of their bodies. She struggled to mask the pained look on her face as they continued speaking to one another.
The elevator doors opened to the first floor of the spaceport, and Sanshiva hurriedly stepped out, pushing one of the feathered aliens aside as she moved forward. It cawed in frustration behind her, but the sound soon became lost amongst the throng of people that crisscrossed between tents and stalls arranged in neat rows along the cold metal floors for what seemed to be a mile or more.
Sanshiva wandered slowly through the mass of people, taking her time as she eyed the stalls full of bits and baubles for sale until she came across a series of alleyways created by the presence of several blocky iron structures clustered together towards the eastern edge of the first floor. Aged metal signs pointed to several different inns and bars that could be found in the maze of passageways. Sanshiva roamed further into the alleys and spotted a large metal door with peeling blue paint; the faintly lit sign read "Sapphire Cantina."
The female Namekian cautiously stepped inside and closed the door gently behind her, glancing about the space and taking note of the tattered bounty posters on the dark blue walls and utilitarian seating arrangements. She paced past tables full of different, strange folk; species she'd never heard of, let alone dreamed existed, and tried hard to mask her shock. Sanshiva spotted a small empty booth at the back of the bar next to three tall, tree-like creatures draped in brown robes that whispered as they held cards in their twiggy fingers and tossed small black chips at one another.
As she sank into the tatty blue leather seat and sighed heavily, she crossed her arms and closed her eyes, listening intently to the foreign languages that overlapped in the air, the strange string music that played over the beaten speakers along the walls, and the clinks of glasses as they were cleaned, filled, and carried out to other tables. Suddenly, one of the creatures at the booth next to her stood up and tossed his cards at the others beside him, stomping out of the cantina and slamming the door.
'I wonder if they'd teach me to play,' Sanshiva thought as she raised a brow and rubbed her chin.
A sharp whistle sounded, signaling the end of the workers' break, and Hasana winced against the sound as it echoed through the docking station. He had changed into a baggy light blue jumpsuit; several hand tools clanged against each other as they hung from his thick black utility belt, and his uniform cap had been replaced by a tattered blue bandana. Hasana huffed as he dragged a large black toolbox behind him, the wheels shaking with every step he took toward Sanshiva's vessel.
He walked to the aft and reached deep into one of his pockets to pull out a pair of thick blue gloves, put them on, and reached carefully into the hole. He pulled out masses of damaged wire and clusters of melted circuit boards and tossed them into a receptacle nearby. Hasana then leaned down and opened the top of the toolbox, revealing several large spools of replacement wiring and circuit boards, a moderately sized soldering iron, and a few hefty rolls of electrical tape.
Hasana worked slowly and diligently to untangle and repair the remaining wires that hung limp from the aft, before concentrating his attention on the circuit boards and screwing them into place. He started to hum a simple tune as he continued to work but was soon interrupted by a gravelly voice from the other end of the ship.
"Great, so we got another one of you bugs around, eh?"
Hasana rolled his eyes as he soldered the last connection and angrily threw his tools into the box beside him. He spoke up, irritation seething from his lips as he walked to the front of the ship.
"Great, so the talking fish has returned, eh," Hasana mimicked as he crossed his arms and leaned against one of the vessel's legs.
The young man's eyes affixed to the strange man before him; a hideous, blue-scaled alien with lips that took up far too much space on his face, and small black eyes. He had a fin on his head, like a webbed mohawk, and smaller ones just beneath his ears. Hasana could hear the scouter the man wore make several beeps and whirs as it calculated the Namekian's energy level.
"That's Makeru to you, vermin. I'd suggest you start talking respectfully before I beat some sense into you. Now where's my money? I'm starved." The alien stepped closer to the Namekian and held out his hand.
"You'll have to starve a little more because I'm not paying you."
Makeru squinted back at the Namekian and scrutinized him for just a moment before throwing a heavy punch against Hasana's cheek. Hasana stumbled backward as he tasted the blood pooling in his mouth and spat out a tooth. He wiped the blood from his lips and looked back at his attacker.
"You know I can do worse, insect," Makeru smiled menacingly at the young man and cracked his knuckles. "Now pay up."
Hasana spat again, his purple blood staining the floor beside the ship, and reached deep into his pocket; he fished out several large silver coins and threw them at Makeru, and they landed around the man with a series of soft clinks. The mercenary shot Hasana another angry look and punched the Namekian in the stomach as hard as he could. Hasana buckled and hit the ground, clutching his gut as he fought the urge to vomit. Makeru knelt in front of him and grabbed the Namekian's left ear with his webbed fingers and pulled hard. Hasana grimaced, feeling his skin slowly split as Makeru gripped his ear tighter.
"Why don't you try that again? And this time, put the credits in my hand." Makeru slapped him across the cheek and Hasana winced.
The young man picked up the scattered coins and warily placed them in Makeru's outstretched hand, and the alien glared at Hasana before flashing him a cruel smile and kicking him in the face. Hasana saw stars as he hit the ground; when he opened his eyes, he watched as the underbelly of the ship seemed to spin above him and he struggled to sit up; he barely had time to catch his breath before a cold boot pressed hard against his chest, pushing the rest of the air out of his lungs as the mercenary leaned over and forced him back onto the ground.
"The next time I come for my money, you'd better show me some respect, or it won't be just a tooth you'll lose." Hasana nodded slowly, his head still swimming and his vision blurry. Makeru smiled cruelly again before he stomped on Hasana's chest and walked towards the elevators.
Hasana coughed and clutched at his chest as he struggled once more to get up. He pulled out the tablet from his pocket and massaged his cheek, noting the time.
'This problem will be dealt with soon enough,' he thought.
He walked back to the aft, working as quickly as he could to finish repairing the damage before it was time to meet back up with Sanshiva.
Sanshiva smiled confidently and shifted slightly in her seat as she glanced at the glossy cards in her hand. The metal chair creaked from underneath her as she leaned forward and pushed a small tower of black plastic chips toward the center of the beaten table. She looked at the alien seated across from her; its beady green eyes stared back from underneath the shadow of a brown hooded robe, and it pushed forward a matching stack of chips with a long brown finger, its hand like a cluster of small tree branches emerging from the soft cloth as it moved.
Sanshiva counted to three aloud and the two of them slammed their cards on the table. As they both eyed the cards, Sanshiva realized she'd won the round and with it, all the money on the table: a solid 1,000 credits. The alien let out a series of loud, foreign curses and stood up, kicking the chair and storming out of the bar as it waved its arms about in frustration. The large, rusted door slammed shut, and a strange silence overtook the cantina.
The occupants of several tables nearby looked up from their drinks and studied the young woman as she blushed furiously and covered her head again with her cloak, silently cursing the blood in her cheeks. The chatter resumed slowly but surely, and curious sets of eyes watched the Namekian as she sauntered towards the main bar with her satchel of chips. She sat on one of the stools and called behind the bar to a tall, brawny man sporting a long black apron that covered his red overalls; she could hear the thump of his giant black boots against the floor as he tapped in time to the music emanating from the speakers. Sanshiva's brows raised as the man's head perked up and he turned to her; ebony-skinned and built like no warrior she'd ever seen before, his long black locks flowed behind him, and his piercing emerald eyes met with hers as he paced towards her and leaned across the bar. Sanshiva thought she could smell the ocean on his skin, and smiled as she placed the satchel in front of him.
"What's a human doing all the way out here?"
He spoke in a deep voice like velvet with an accent that sounded like a dance on his lips, sweet and rhythmic. "Long story my dear, but if I had to make it short…" he said as he grabbed up the satchel, "I was taken from my home a long time ago and made my way here as the years went by. What about you? Namek is such a long way from here."
Sanshiva's eyes dodged his as she tried to think of a lie. "S-sightseeing," she stuttered. "Wanted to know what else was out there…"
The barman eyed her curiously and winked at her before turning to a small beaten register behind him. "So, my dear, will you be getting drinks or credits?"
"Both, if that's alright with you? I feel like I haven't had water in ages…"
"I watched you play back there," the barman said, turning his head away from the register. "That was impressive, considering you didn't even speak their language. I'll give you a glass of the really good stuff for free if you tell me your secret."
Sanshiva blushed slightly and nodded slowly as she responded, "A person's eyes and body will give away more than their speech ever could."
As the words left her lips, she realized with embarrassment that she'd outed herself. The barman laughed quietly and turned back to the register, his fingers shifting the contents of the compartments as he counted her credits and gently placed them in the satchel. He tossed it back to her over his shoulder and paced away to fetch her water, smiling gently as he glanced at her one more time.
Sanshiva eyed the mass of coins inside before closing it back up and shoving it into her pocket. The barman came back with a tall blue glass, chips of ice clinking against the inside. Sanshiva grabbed it and quickly gulped it down, tucking a few ice chips underneath her tongue and savoring the cold sensation.
"Tell me the truth and I can refill that for you," he said coyly, his arms crossed around his burly chest.
"I… um…" Sanshiva cowered slightly, still thirsty as she grabbed a large ice chip out of the glass and stuck it under her tongue. "Well… I left home to look for a fortuneteller from Earth. Her name is Baba." She held her breath, silently hoping he wouldn't ask for more information.
The barman nodded to her and carefully took the glass to refill it. "Baba, huh? I've heard of her before," he called to her over his shoulder as he scooped a generous helping of ice chips into the cup. "I hear her fortunes cost… well, a fortune. If you don't have the money, she'll tell your fortune for free if you can beat her fighters."
"Um… Fighters?"
"Yes. There are five of them, each more difficult than the last. If she doesn't get her money, Baba will extract the price for her services in blood."
He slid the glass across the bar, straight into Sanshiva's open hand, and watched as the young woman inhaled sharply before taking a long sip from the cup. Sanshiva sighed in satisfaction as she emptied the last drops of water from the glass and watched as the ice started to melt from the heat of her fingers around the cup.
'If I turn into a monster again while facing her fighters, I just might end up ruining my chances to figure this mess out,' she thought.
Sanshiva traced her finger around the rim of the glass again, wondering if the fortuneteller would let her skip the fight in favor of another method of payment. Her eyes wandered to the door as it swung open, and a familiar sight came walking through with four others of his kind in tow: the same creature that had threatened to violate her and had very nearly succeeded in killing her a week after she'd left home. She felt his terrifying strong life energy and shuddered. The chatter in the cantina quieted as the five men walked to a table at the far end of the structure and sat down noisily.
"You've got to be kidding me," Sanshiva said under her breath. The bartender gave her a tense look and eyed the group's leader, a beefy, blue-scaled man sporting a black cuirass and scouter.
"You know Makeru," he asked in a hushed tone as he raised a brow and pointed a thick finger in the group's direction.
"Well, no, not personally. He tried to board my ship and I may have… called him a few things before running away…" Her voice trailed off as she covered her arms and chest with the rest of her cloak.
"That was most certainly a bad idea…" He chuckled, crossing his arms around his broad chest again. He looked down at Sanshiva and watched with sympathy as she tried to make herself look smaller and smaller. "I'll make you a deal, young lady," he said quietly. "If you leave me a generous tip, I'll distract him so you can get out." His eyes darted to the door and then back to her. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a large silver coin embossed with the number one hundred at its center. He smiled at her and bowed slightly. "Oh, and one last thing: Baba lives in the middle of a desert. Unfortunately, I can't tell you exactly where, but if you manage to get your hands on a map, look for an oasis shaped like a ghost. Good luck!"
He grabbed a towel from underneath the bar and slung it over his shoulder as he winked at her. She slunk away from the bar quietly as the bartender walked towards the group, greeting the group of mercenaries in a boisterous voice like a long-time friend. His massive body and energetic movements blocked their line of sight to the door and Sanshiva quietly made her exit, her heart pounding with the fury of a thousand drums.
She breathed heavily as she sped frantically through dirty alleyways and past rusted alcoves back to the main crossing, where the elevators towered above her once again. She stood in front of the doors, her foot shaking in anticipation against the ground; when the doors opened, she lunged inside and quickly jammed at a small button with two inward-facing arrows, forcing the elevator doors shut. She could hear the people that had waited behind her, angry and cursing in foreign languages, and jabbed at a blue up arrow twice and leaned against the wall, all the while trying to still her heart and slow her breathing as she waited to arrive at the third floor.
When the elevator doors reopened, Sanshiva was greeted by a much different sight than the metal jungle on the first floor. As she stepped onto the main platform of the third floor, the metal walkways stretched out into neat rows with small square homes, each the same as the next, like bright green containers adorned in buzzing lights; along the darkened walkways were tall lamps that flickered and struggled to emit light. Both the uniformed and civilians alike wandered about, chattering amongst themselves as they traveled in small clusters through the maze. A familiar voice sounded from behind as she stared into the distance.
"Culture shock?"
Surprised, Sanshiva spun on her heel and her eyes widened as she faced Hasana, immediately noticing the bruise on his cheek and the small bloodstain on his blue jumpsuit. She reached forward as if to touch him, and he stepped back. She let her hand fall back to her side and inhaled sharply.
"What happened," she asked, concerned.
Hasana's eyes darted across the ground, and he coughed nervously, answering, "Not here. Please, follow me."
He walked around her and led the way through the labyrinth of passageways. Sanshiva stared at the back of his head and noticed a small scar right at the base of his left ear as if someone had pulled hard enough to split the skin. Her brow furrowed and she crossed her arms in front of her as she continued to follow him. After some time, he stopped abruptly in front of a home that looked like the others, save for the glistening coat of white paint and a Namekian adage, carefully inscribed in glittering emerald ink along the doorway that read, "Speak and act in kindness, that it might return to you a thousandfold."
She smiled gently and he looked back at her as he placed his hand on a small screen by the door. A small pinprick of light above it changed from red to green, and the door slid open to the right with a slight hissing sound. He motioned for her to go inside, and she tenderly stepped forward across the threshold; Hasana followed behind and shut the door before thumbing at a switch on the wall. Sanshiva gasped slightly as the lights hummed to life, illuminating the modest space. The walls were covered in bookshelves crammed full of tomes of different colors and sizes and titles that she couldn't understand; long clusters of vines trailed out from several planters that hung from the white ceiling; at the center of the room was a large green sectional that made a boxy U shape around a polished metal table. In the corner was a small metal desk, atop which sat what looked like a massive black box, plugged into a small computer with several thick wires.
Hasana followed her, and explained, "I need to upgrade your computer so it can utilize the ship's new armature properly." He tapped at the keyboard a few times, and the screen showed an update in progress. Sanshiva had never seen anything like it and tilted her head again. He smiled at her, and asked, "Would you like some water?"
She nodded and said, "Yes, thank you."
Hasana walked away and reached into a black box from behind the sectional that spewed a cold fog as he closed it shut, holding two cold glass bottles of water. "If no one's told you yet, don't drink the tap water here. It tastes like jet fuel. Horrible stuff, really," he said as he passed her a bottle and opened his, taking a long swig.
Sanshiva twisted the cap and took a sip as she scrutinized Hasana's swollen cheek. "It is safe to talk about what happened yet?"
"…Yes," he said dejectedly as he walked around the sectional, motioning for her to take a seat.
Sanshiva plopped herself down across from him and placed the glass bottle on the table, and crossed her legs. Hasana let out a sigh and took another long sip before clearing his throat.
"I've searched for months, Sanshiva, for someone to help me, and the only reason I asked you is because I felt your energy earlier. I thought… If the Elders let you leave, then you must know how to defend yourself, how to fight for yourself and others…" Hasana's voice trailed off as he put his water down and clasped his hands together, resting them against his stomach as he sat back.
'It wasn't so much letting me go as it was making me go, but fair enough,' she thought.
"Even now, it sounds selfish of me to ask you to do something like that for a complete and total stranger like me but… I don't know what else to do…"
Sanshiva uncrossed her legs and sat forward with her elbows resting on her knees and her head in her hands. "So… you're asking me to… beat someone up?
"I… don't know how to fight. I can build or fix almost anything someone puts in front of me, but… I can't fight the man that did this," he said, pointing to his cheek. "He harasses the dock employees and shakes them down every time he lands at Jae-Ujani, and usually when he leaves, too. He's been at it for months, and only recently as he turned his attention to me. Just this afternoon I lost five hundred credits to him, half the week's pay gone in an instant…" He massaged his cheek and stared at the floor.
Sanshiva blinked back at him and lifted her head slightly as she spoke. "Isn't there someone above you who can do something about that? Sounds a little odd to go beat the guy up when all it would take is to have the people that run this place kick him out of here." Sanshiva grabbed her bottle and began taking a long sip as the young man responded.
"In a perfect universe, Sanshiva, that would work, but I'm not the only person he's done this to. Just last week I overheard two of my higher-ups – lieutenants of the GA fleet – saying that over seventy former dock employees have encountered him and were forced to pay exorbitant amounts of money, just to secure the chance that he wouldn't kill them outright. I also remember hearing that over half of those former employees have… gone missing."
Shocked, Sanshiva coughed and spluttered as water spewed from her lips. She wiped her mouth with her hand as she swallowed hard. "That many people have gone missing, and those people up there are just… sitting on their hands?!"
Hasana nodded and gave Sanshiva a sad look. "…I am so sorry."
Sanshiva moved to sit next to Hasana, and placed a hand gently on his shoulder as she asked, "What do you have to be sorry about?"
"You've only just left our home world," he said as he looked back at her, "…and you've got a stranger asking you to do the impossible—"
"What you're asking of me is not impossible, Hasana, just… unexpected. Who is this guy, anyway?"
"His name is… Makeru."
Sanshiva's brows shot up and she gulped before giving Hasana a nervous look. "This Makeru guy… He wouldn't happen to look like a blue fish piloting a really strong body, would he?"
Hasana chuckled for a moment before he thought about Sanshiva's remark. Suddenly, his jaw hung open as he asked, "Wait… you know him?!"
Sanshiva looked at the floor and twiddled her fingers. "W-well… He's the one who put that hole in my ship. He happened to wander into the cantina with a few of his friends. The bartender helped me get out before he could notice me."
Hasana sighed heavily and said, "I'm so sorry, Sanshiva. Had I known it was him, I wouldn't have asked." He put a hand on her shoulder and stood up, walking over to the computer. "You're welcome to stay here while I finish the upgrades on your computer. He has an assigned name, by the way," he said as he picked up the console's central processor. He pointed to the bottom, where Sanshiva noticed the small Namekian letters that spelled out "Midori." He placed the black box down and he gave her a tender smile before looking away.
Sanshiva watched Hasana pensively as he tenderly massaged his cheek again and took a sip of water before he moved his hands to type at the keys. Her mind wandered for a moment in the silence between them, pondering the possibility that one day Hasana, too, would disappear if he didn't continue to pay up. Her stomach seemed to curdle, and her mouth went dry as she looked back at her hands as balled them up into fists.
She remembered how terrifyingly strong Makeru's energy had seemed as he swaggered proudly and loudly into the cantina with his four cohorts; relived the feeling of shrinking underneath his presence and the terror of near death in the cold darkness of space. Her heart raced and she swallowed hard as the habitual urge to run began to creep up on her shoulders like a cold wind. She thought about finding somewhere – anywhere else – to hide, to stow away and find another route to Earth on her own and hope that she didn't become a monster as she had before. She looked again at Hasana and watched as he keyed in lines of strange code along a packed screen, the blue light shining against his green face as he tsked and hummed and continued his work.
Watching him, she thought about how willing he had been to place his hope in her, a stranger. Hope that he'd be able to work and live in peace without having to ponder the possibility of his demise every time Makeru wandered through the docks; hope that no one else would have to suffer what he and so many others had suffered in the absence of action from those in power. She felt her face get hot with anger and looked away, still frustrated that Hasana's superiors had failed to put an end to Makeru's activity against the dock workers at Jae-Ujani. Her heart pounded furiously and something deep within her bubbled up, primal and ambitious, and starving for a fight.
'That bastard,' she thought, '…doesn't deserve the air he breathes.' Suddenly, a familiar phrase passed through her mind like a whisper, and like a strange reflex, Sanshiva repeated it aloud in their native tongue.
"Against every evil, there will be good."
Hasana looked away from the screen and stared back at Sanshiva; for a moment, he swore the room felt hotter, and a strange, dark aura seemed to rise from her skin. She rose from her seat and stood to face him as he turned in his chair. They looked at each other for a moment and Hasana's curious expression gave way to awe as he silently stared at the young woman before him; her energy level had slowly risen, and the cosmic aura faded away as soon as she stepped a few feet away from him. Sanshiva, not noticing anything had changed, shoved her hand in her pocket and took out the satchel, still heavy with credits as she placed it on the desk beside him.
"Where is he," she asked pointedly.
He blinked at her and grabbed the satchel, peering inside before inhaling sharply, "He'll probably be on his ship. But Sanshiva, if you can pay for the parts, you don't have to bother with Makeru. Maybe if I just keep reporting him…"
"Oh yeah, because that's been working well for you." Sanshiva crossed her arms and seemed to stand taller as she scoffed and looked down her nose at Hasana. "I'm not going to sit around and play cards again while one of my own gets robbed and beaten on the job. So, once this update is done," she said, pointing to the computer, "…we're taking a walk back to the docks and going fishing."
Hasana chuckled at the thought. "…Thank you, Sanshiva," he said softly as he smiled with gratitude.
She sat back down and finished her water, sinking into the spongy green seat and closing her eyes as she fantasized about all the ways she'd make Makeru pay for messing with her, or anyone else.
Several hours later, Sanshiva found herself holding the elevator door open for Hasana as he walked in, his toolbox squeaking behind him. She could feel Hasana's energy, hectic and frightened, and placed a hand on his shoulder as she pressed the down arrow three times to get them back to the docking station. She breathed deep and steadied herself against the wall as the elevator slowly descended, the second floor passing by, then the first. Soon the darkened dock station rose to greet them, and the elevator doors opened with a soft hiss. She grabbed at her cloak and covered her head, looking around for any sign of the blue alien and his cohorts.
The docking station was still buzzing with activity as the two strode out onto the main platform, peering among the long rows where dozens of different starships sat parked under flickering lights. Hasana briefly pointed to the left, and Sanshiva followed his gaze until her eyes met with the same menacing ship she'd seen ten days prior, taking up an entire row of its own. Sanshiva lowered her head and moved closer to Hasana, and asked quietly, "How long will it take you to finish the work?"
"I already fixed the damage to the aft, and last I checked the repair droids I left behind should have finished fixing the panels and were working on the cannons while we were upstairs. All that's left is for me to install Midori back into the console," he said as he motioned to the toolbox.
"How long," she asked again.
"…Sanshiva, you don't have to do this. Let's just go to your ship and I can finish—"
"No, Hasana, I'm doing this. Now answer the question."
Hasana gulped and looked down at the toolbox. "Thirty minutes, forty-five at most. But that's... That's too long, Sanshiva, and what if he's too strong for you to—"
"That's enough time for me to give him a taste of his own medicine." She gave him a determined look and spun around quickly, her heartbeat drowning out the noise of the station as she walked to Makeru's vessel.
Hasana ran past small groups of people to get to Sanshiva's vessel, towing the toolbox behind him and panting as he reached the ship.
"Pikkoro," he said hurriedly; he cursed under his breath as the small platform slowly descended, waiting and watching from the corner of his eye as two boxy robots with massive arms floated underneath the ship, soldering the last of the connections on the secondary cannon towards the aft. When the platform finally hit the ground, Hasana leaped inside the ship and sat at the captain's chair, working frenetically to reattach Midori to the center console.
At the other end of the station, Sanshiva could feel the fabric of her clothes rub against her skin as she trembled beneath her cloak. She was acutely aware of the sweat accumulating on her brow and the impossible pace of her heartbeat, and breathed as deeply as he could, her boots clanging against the metal beneath her. The ship towered above her the closer she got, and when she finally reached it, she balled her hands into fists at her sides and whispered to herself in Namekian.
"Against every evil, there will be good."
She knocked twice and waited patiently for an answer. One of Makeru's group, an amphibious-looking creature with green-scaled skin and large yellow eyes opened the port door and a small ramp descended. He walked down and stared at her, clutching his blaster between green webbed fingers.
"What do you want," he asked in a gruff voice.
"Makeru wouldn't happen to be around, would he," she asked, batting her eyelashes.
The frog man looked her up and down, and smiled, "You're a Namekian, ain't you?"
"Yes, how wonderfully astute of you," she said mockingly as she clapped her hands together. "You know, I bet anything you're the real brains of this outfit, huh?"
He shot her a suspicious look and harrumphed at her. "Whoever you are, you've got a pretty bad disguise. Namekians don't have girls that look like you, much less girls at all. Now get going, or get shot," he said, waving the blaster in her direction.
"Oh, this isn't a disguise." She took her hood off and watched as his expression changed from wary to shocked.
"What the f—"
Before he could finish, Sanshiva lunged forward and punched in him the mouth. The man stumbled back and spat out several teeth, taking his eyes off the female Namekian; angered, he raised his blaster to aim at her, only to find she had disappeared. He looked frantically around himself, confused and frightened, and walked forward, wondering where she'd gone. The female Namekian reappeared behind him and grabbed at his neck, keeping him in a chokehold as he struggled against her strong, slender arms, dropping his blaster and clawing for air. He finally stopped struggling, and the young woman dragged his heavy, unconscious body underneath the ship. She grabbed the blaster from the ground and held it behind her back as she walked onto the ship, quieted her steps, and lowered her energy as much as she could, careful to avoid setting off the group's scouters.
The main entrance led to a circular hall with white walls and tiled tan floors, and doors placed at even intervals as the hallway continued. She exhaled and grabbed at the handle to one of the doors nearby before quickly hiding inside as she heard a voice call from around the bend.
"Yo, Kaeru, what's going on out there?"
She hid behind the door and kept her head low, carefully listening as the voice continued, "Ugh, that idiot left the door open again." The ramp slid back with a soft hiss and the door sealed shut; she listened as the footsteps grew louder before softening again as the man passed by, and slowly opened the door, peering down the hall as the gray-skinned, catfish-like alien continued his leisurely pace, blissfully unaware of the Namekian's presence. She stepped behind him silently and heard a small chime come from the scouter on his ear; before the alien could fully turn to face her, Sanshiva lifted the blaster from behind her back and crashed it against the top of his head; she could hear the bone crunch from underneath the butt of the gun, and he fell against the floor with a loud thud.
Sanshiva tucked the blaster into her belt and grabbed the alien, dragging him across the floor and stuffing him into another room before continuing her quiet steps down the hall; she could feel her heartbeat in her ears, her antennae twitching in time with the pace. Two more voices could be heard from further down the hall; Sanshiva peered carefully around the bend before shrinking back and covering her mouth to stifle the gasp that threatened to burst from her lips.
Two aliens, eerily similar to Makeru in appearance, were seated across from each other on the ground in front of a massive grey door, which Sanshiva assumed led to the bridge, where she could sense the mercenary's massive energy signature. It looked to Sanshiva like the two of them were playing a game of sorts, a cup of dice and credits spread on the ground beside them.
"I swear if your dice are loaded," said the first, "I'll fucking punch you, Pogi."
"They're not, Saba, just play the game and shut the hell up," said the other, chuckling as he placed a hand over the cup and shook it.
Sanshiva waited as the sound reverberated around the hall, and she heard him slam the cup on the ground, silence once again overtaking the atmosphere.
Finally, Saba yelled out, "You son of a… Those are loaded! No one gets sixes four times in a row!"
Pogi retorted, "Lady Luck's on my side tonight, what can I say?"
"What did I say I'd do if those dice were loaded?"
Sanshiva held her breath and closed her eyes as she waited for the argument to reach its climax.
"I told you," he said, "I'd punch you!" He raised his fist and growled in irritation.
"Aw, c'mon now, don't be such a sore loser. I told you they weren't loaded" said the other. "Besides, punching me won't change the fact that you're down eight hundred credits."
She heard the one called Saba scoff before silence washed through the space again.
'Now or never,' she thought to herself as she reached for the blaster in her belt. She released her breath and steeled herself as she sprang from around the bend and pointed the blaster in their direction.
The two of them gasped and stood up quickly before crossing their arms in unison. Pogi smirked and said, "Ooh, ain't that the girl Makeru was talking about?"
Sanshiva could feel their energy heighten in her presence, like a wordless threat.
"Yeah," said Saba, "...that's the one. He said she looked like a purple-haired slug covered in shiny stuff." They laughed together and Saba approached her slowly, standing only a few feet away from her.
Sanshiva chuckled at their remarks and lifted the blaster higher, aiming at Saba. 'He didn't seem to think that when he was asking me to solve his "loneliness,"' she thought.
"Don't know how you managed to get past Kaeru and Namazu, but whatever little tricks you've got up your sleeve won't work on me. Drop the blaster, sweetheart, and I'll promise I'll be nice to you."
"…You sure you want me to drop it," Sanshiva asked as a coy smile formed on her face.
"Did I stutter?" He eyed her angrily and crossed his arms again.
"Okay," Sanshiva said playfully. She shrugged and raised her hands above her head, releasing her grip on the gun. Before it hit the ground, she kicked it back up into her hand and lunged forward, whipping Saba across the face with the barrel. She punched him in the gut as hard as she could, sending him tumbling into the other behind him. A voice called from behind the door, loud and angry.
"What the hell are you idiots doing out there," shouted Makeru.
Sanshiva smirked and called back to him, mimicking Saba's voice as best she could. "Nothing, boss!"
She leaped forward silently and grabbed the fins on the alien's heads, pulling them together and smacking their skulls against one another, the sharp crack resounding down the hall. They collapsed, unconscious, and Sanshiva grabbed each of them by the arm and dragged them aside. She exhaled slowly as she stood before the door, and it swung open inwards as she raised her blaster to eye level.
Makeru stood at the threshold, the barrel inches from his face. He glanced past Sanshiva's shoulder for just a moment to see his two guards slumped against the wall, snoring loudly. He grinned and raised his hands, stepping back to allow the female Namekian to join him on the bridge. Sanshiva shut the door behind her and locked it, pushing the barrel of the blaster against his cheek and nodding behind him to sit down in the captain's chair. Makeru paced backward and slowly sat down, resting his arms on either side as he sighed loudly.
"Hm… If you wanted to visit me, you could have just knocked on the door." He smiled at her and licked his lips. "I wouldn't say no to you."
Sanshiva shuddered slightly in disgust and walked forward, pointing the barrel inches away from his face once more.
"Oh, dear Makeru, I did knock," she said as she looked down at him through angry purple eyes, "…but your doormen were so rude. I had to teach them some manners." She leaned forward, inching the barrel further into his face until it barely touched his nose. "So… What's this about me being a purple-haired slug covered in shiny stuff? Sounds like you were trying to deny what you asked of me over a week ago."
"I said that to keep them away from you. I'd rather have you all to myself." He gave her another lecherous grin and she exhaled shortly, sickened by the look on his scaly face.
"No thanks, I'll think I'll stick to my own kind. Now… where are the others?"
Makeru blinked and looked past the barrel into Sanshiva's eyes. He cackled and said, "What others? Those men out there were—"
"The dock workers, you bottom feeder," she yelled, pushing the barrel against his face. "Where are they?!"
He winced slightly and paused before he started to laugh. What started as a chuckle transformed into full-blown hysteria, with Makeru pounding his head against the back of the captain's chair, tears forming at the corners of his eyes and his mouth agape in a wide and terrifying smile. He reached up and snatched the blaster from Sanshiva's hand, smacking her across her left cheek with it and tossing it to the far end of the bridge.
Sanshiva fell backward and grasped at her cheek, wincing as she felt blood pool in her mouth. Before she could scramble back to her feet, Makeru stood just above her and grabbed her by the neck, lifting her slowly off the floor as he squeezed tighter and tighter. Sanshiva's eyes shot open, and she dug her nails into his arms, desperately trying to claw herself out of his grip. She breathed heavily through her nose, the nauseating taste of blood flooding her tongue. Makeru pulled her in close to his face, her feet just barely touching the floor.
"So, the little gear worm Hasana sent you, did he? I should have known he'd send somebody else to stick up for him, the weakling. Such a shame, really, I was considering leaving him alone after today, but now…? Now I think I'll just use both of you as my punching bags. That is… unless you're willing to strike a deal?"
Sanshiva's heart raced faster and faster as she struggled to breathe against Makeru's grip, staring at the alien with wide, frightened eyes.
"I'll leave Hasana be… if you submit yourself to me." He licked his lips again. "Stay by my side, and serve me in all the ways a woman should."
Her expression slowly changed from terrified to appalled, and she breathed deeply through her nose before she spat a mouthful of blood into his eyes. Makeru recoiled in disgust and threw the young woman against the door, the clang of her head against the metal echoing across the bridge. Sanshiva shook her head and slowly stood up, barely catching her breath before Makeru leaped forward and punched her firmly in the gut, pinning her against the metal as he pressed harder. Sanshiva screamed as the last of her breath left her lungs, her insides feeling horribly squeezed and misplaced by the weight of the mercenary's massive fist.
Sanshiva fell to the ground on her knees and saw stars in her eyes as she reeled and held her stomach. Makeru's fist landed against her cheek before she could blink, and she fell hard and fast against the cold floor, grimacing in pain. He bent down and grabbed her hair and punched her in the face three times – each blow harder than the last – before throwing her back against the floor. She felt a cold, hard boot against her ear, and Makeru growled above her. "Disgusting! Little! Bug!" He stomped his boot against the side of her head in between each word.
Her heart seemed to stop as he dug his heel into her cheek and started laughing again. The sound of his voice hurt her ears and a cold shudder ran through her spine; her vision was still blurry, and she slowed her breathing as she felt tears fall down her cheeks. She listened to Makeru as he spoke again, his voice deep and cruel, echoing through the bridge.
"Did you really think that you're the only one who's ever tried to stop me?!" He pushed his boot down and Sanshiva winced as the tile underneath her head cracked slowly, the pressure of his foot almost too much to bear. She could feel a tooth at the side of her mouth ripping away from her gums and blood flooding her mouth once more. Sanshiva tried to spit, the blood staining her lips as it dribbled down in a thick rivulet, pooling onto the floor. She coughed and gagged as the taste washed over her tongue and her stomach turned.
She heard him chuckle before he stomped on her head one more time and said, "I think I can spare a moment to tell you what happened before I grab up that gear slug you've seemed to make a friend out of."
He took his boot off Sanshiva's head and leaned down, picking her up again by the neck and letting her feet dangle inches above the floor. Sanshiva didn't have the strength to struggle and hung limp in his grasp; through her blurred sight, she could vaguely make out the outline of a smile on his face.
"I tore them apart, piece by bloody piece," he said callously, "…and then... I ate them!" He cackled loudly and his grip on Sanshiva's neck got tighter; she coughed and spluttered in his hand. "Once I'm finished with you, you wretched little insect, Hasana's next!" Makeru continued his assault, punching her in the chest and stomach as he held her body like a weighted bag. Sanshiva cried out in pain, the agony washing over her body with every blow as Makeru repeatedly struck her for what seemed like a lifetime.
"Hasana should have known better than to place his faith in a child." Makeru cackled again as he held her up, surveying his brutal handiwork. "No one will ever stand up against me again." He started to squeeze her neck tighter, Sanshiva gasping against his grip.
'No… No, I can't let this happen,' she thought. She could feel the pain in her chest as her lungs screamed for oxygen, and the cold creep of death inching up her spine as Makeru continued to laugh. 'I made a promise… And I can't… I won't… break it!'
Sanshiva's eyes shot wide open and began to glow a fierce purple as she stared at Makeru. She could see him clear as day now, his hideous face contorted into a vicious smile as he laughed hysterically. A dark purple aura hovered just above her skin, and a seething hatred flooded through her veins like a boiling hot liquid; the fury bubbled up from within her, and she felt her body shake with a vengeful power as she glared at him. Makeru glanced at her, annoyed, and his scouter let off a series of loud beeps; his callous expression shifted to concern as the number he saw kept increasing, slowly but surely.
"Wh—"
Before he could finish, Sanshiva wrapped her arms underneath and around his, and with the crooks of her elbows pulled in opposite directions as hard as she could. The snap of bone seemed to ring in Sanshiva's ears and sent another cold shiver through her back, and she smirked as his hand went limp and she finally took a deep breath in. Makeru howled in agony and tried to strike her face again with his other hand; she quickly unwrapped her grip and with a single hand blocked Makeru's shaking fist. She looked deep into his eyes and swiftly twisted his arm counterclockwise until the bone snapped and he screamed again. She held onto his hand tightly and swung him around, using his weight against him as she tossed him over the control console and through the windshield; glass shattered and bone crunched as the alien landed on the docking platform with a loud crash.
Makeru could barely stand up, both arms stinging with the feeling of broken bone poking at him from deep inside. His scouter beeped loudly again and before he could focus well enough to read the number on the lens, Sanshiva leaped out of the ship and struck him three times in the face. While he reeled from the impact, Sanshiva grabbed the fin on his head and headbutted him, and he fell to his knees. She swiftly kicked him in the face, several pointed teeth and blood flying from his mouth as he dropped heavily onto the cold metal platform and curled up in pain.
Sanshiva stood over him and slipped her fingers underneath his cuirass by his chest, gripping the armor firmly. She pulled him up slightly off the ground and leaned down to look him in the eye.
"This," she said, "...is for the hole in my ship."
With her other hand, she pointed two fingers into his stomach and pressed hard against the cuirass. Makeru could feel the armor heat up and winced as a beam of light shot forth from her fingers, piercing through his armor and burning his flesh away. He started to scream again, and the bloodcurdling sound echoed across the docking station. By now, a small crowd of people had gathered at the central walkway, watching on from a distance as Sanshiva continued her assault on Makeru.
Sanshiva punched Makeru in the side of the head, breaking the scouter and eliciting another sharp cry from the man beneath her. She held her grip on his cuirass and tossed him further along the dock and towards the crowd, a sharp series of gasps resounding in the air.
Makeru whimpered as he struggled to stand again, his head throbbing, his arms burning, and the heat of his blood filling his body from the wound in his stomach. He breathed shakily as his eyes met Sanshiva's. Makeru screamed furiously and flew forward, executing a rapid succession of high-speed kicks at her, and the collision between his feet and Sanshiva's hands caused ripples in the air as she skillfully blocked his strikes; when he tried to lunge at her one last time, she rapidly sidestepped and grabbed him again by his leg, whipping him back and forth against the floor several times until he lay motionless on the ground.
"This," she continued, "...is for every dock worker you've ever robbed and hurt." She grabbed him by his neck, just as he had done to her only moments before.
Sanshiva let loose a flurry of hard punches at his chest, the armor cracking with each well-placed hit, Makeru groaning as he struggled to breathe against the force of her fingers around his thick neck. She broke through his cuirass and pieces of it clanged to the ground; by the eightieth punch, Sanshiva could hear his ribs crunching underneath the pressure of her fist and feel his thoroughly shattered breastbone shifting through his chest and decided he'd had enough for the time being. She let go of the alien's neck and he fell to the ground with a heavy thud. Sanshiva grabbed him by the fin on his head and dragged him across the central platform and onto the dock where her ship waited, Makeru shrieking the whole way.
The crowd followed a short way behind and watched as Sanshiva looked up into the ship.
"Hasana," she yelled through the rampway, "Look what I caught!"
Shocked by the sudden interruption, the young man jumped from the captain's chair and flew out of the ship; his eyes met with a bruised and bloodied Sanshiva, and she smiled as she raised her arm, forcing Makeru to stand beside her. The mercenary whimpered again, his arms limp at his sides and blood still leaking from the hole in his stomach.
"I think you owe this man an apology," Sanshiva said as she gave Makeru a terse look.
The mercenary mumbled a curse under his breath and looked away from the two of them; Sanshiva grabbed his chin and forced him to look at Hasana, and the alien side-eyed her and cursed again.
"Stupid fucking—"
"You've got another ten, maybe twelve minutes before you bleed out," Sanshiva nodded to the wound in his stomach.
Makeru hesitated and a sloppy grin crossed his face before he answered, "I'm not apologizing because I'm not sorry."
"Oh, is that so?" Sanshiva raised a brow and motioned with her hand for Hasana to go back inside; he acquiesced but hesitated before going back up and looked at the female Namekian with anxious, questioning eyes, and she returned his gaze with a look of firm resolve.
He nodded to her and flew back into the ship, scrambling to complete the last of the connections for the massive central processing unit that still hung open from the control console. With one last shot from a small soldering iron, Hasana tossed his tools aside and placed the unit into the square opening on the panel. He pushed until he heard a small click, securing it into the console, and he called out to the computer with a shaking voice.
"Midori," he called out, "Please deploy the surveillance drones!"
The main console came to life, its buttons and dials glowing bright colors against the stark white panel. Hasana's ears twitched as the ship hummed and buzzed and the lights came on.
"Deploying SD-1 and SD-2," said a rigid Namekian voice from the speakers. The console displayed a holographic split screen, and Hasana watched the images nervously as the scene outside continued to unfold.
The dark aura surrounding the female Namekian's body seemed to grow darker; her eyes began to glow and flicker again, like embers of purple fire, and her hair wavered like a violet flame atop her head. She turned and faced Makeru as he swayed and chuckled weakly beside her.
"You've got one last chance, Makeru."
He chuckled and kept his eyes closed as he responded, his words slurring sloppily together as he continued to sway, "Little slug, why do you feel the need to avenge strangers you've never even laid eyes on? Besides, I stand by what I said earlier. I'm not sorry for taking out the trash."
"Excuse me?!"
"That's what every single one of them was: a low-level piece of space trash. I had fun with them, though."
"Fun?! You toyed with people's lives and murdered them; you beat and robbed people of their hard-earned money… You call this fun?! You think ruining people's lives is… Fun?!"
Makeru chuckled again before nodding. "Absolutely," he said hoarsely. "I'd do it all over again, too."
Sanshiva had had enough; she felt a hot energy envelop her body and could feel the anger as it surged through every fiber of her being; the dark aura that surrounded her body began to cloak her skin in a black miasma, and her eyes and hair were set wholly aflame, casting a bright purple glow across her darkened face. When Makeru opened his eyes, his brows shot up and his mouth hung open as he realized the female Namekian's body had grown; she was now several feet taller than him, and the very tip of her fiery mane lapped at the belly of the ship as she loomed above him, staring at the alien with blazing eyes. Makeru thought she looked like something hell itself had spat out. When the female Namekian spoke again, it almost sounded like two voices were emanating from her throat; one smooth and young, the other demonic and menacing.
"You'll feel sorry by the time I'm done with you," she said maliciously.
With a massive, shadow-cloaked hand, Sanshiva grabbed the fin atop Makeru's head and tossed him onto the ground and away from the ship. She walked over to him and wrapped her fingers around his skull, and banged his head against the cold metal again, and again, and again, until Makeru laid face down in a pool of his blood and teeth. He laughed and spat when she lifted his head once more.
"Is that the best you got," he spluttered, blood dribbling from his lips as he grinned weakly. "What a piss-poor excuse for a parlor trick."
Thoroughly angered, Sanshiva snarled and ripped the fin off his head; the mercenary screamed in agony as the flesh tore away and blood trickled from the wound and onto his face. She wrapped her hand around his neck and with her free hand broke away the last of his armor, his pale blue skin bruised and bloodied underneath. She held him up to face the crowd and punched at his lower back – brutally and rhythmically – breaking his vertebrae bit by bit, Makeru howling in pain with every strike. He could no longer feel his legs.
She tossed him onto the ground where he lay face up and Sanshiva hovered over him. The crowd stared wide-eyed and shaking at the sight of the giant Namekian phantom before them, breathing hot, heavy, and loud, the strange dual voice emanating from the darkness of her mouth.
"You have five minutes left."
"Y-you bitch… I-I'd rather d-die."
Sanshiva grinned threateningly from above him, her sharp white teeth glistening, and growled back, "Fine. Have it your way."
She picked him up by his neck again, placed the nails of her right hand against his chest where she had broken through his armor, and pressed firm, slowly piercing his flesh. Makeru winced as she pushed harder until her nails began to reach through his skin and stopped briefly at the muscle underneath. Makeru let out an anguished cry as she continued to push through, and she twisted her hand, her nails slicing through layers of muscle as she forced her hand deeper into the wound until finally, she thrust her hand forward and it shot through flesh and bone, blood streaming from Makeru's back as Sanshiva impaled him. She flexed her hand before she threw him off of her and towards the crowd that had followed her across the platforms, her arm dripping with his dark blue blood. He coughed sloppily as the last of his breath left him and he said his last words.
"D-Damn you… s-stupid… bug…"
The last of Makeru's energy faded as the life left his eyes. Panicked by the witnesses to her transformation, Sanshiva panted heavily and looked down at her shaking hands as she stood before Makeru's lifeless body before releasing a thunderous roar. She began to shrink to her original size, and the dark miasma that covered her skin peeled itself away and faded into the air; her hair was no longer alight, the fire in her eyes died down, and Sanshiva could feel her body weaken as she fell to the ground on her knees. She glanced at the crowd, numerous frightened faces staring back at her, whispering amongst themselves as they parted to let several officers in starched black suits come forward.
"What happened here," asked one of them loudly. He looked warily at Makeru's dead body before turning his attention to the female Namekian panting on the ground in front of him.
Sanshiva spoke weakly, her breathing shaky, her vision blurry and her heart still racing inside her chest. "I… t-took care of… the p-problem…" She collapsed against the floor and swore she heard a familiar voice call out before the darkness consumed her again.
"Sanshiva!"
Dear Readers:
I wholeheartedly encourage you to leave a review or send a message with any feedback you have regarding this story. Sanshiva's tale is far from over, so stay tuned! Chapter 4, "Lost and Found," is currently undergoing final edits and will be available on Friday, 6/23/2023. I look forward to sharing the next part of Goddess of Darkness, and I hope you've enjoyed this adventure so far.
