Chapter 8 - Breaching
Time went on and the relationship between the host family and the Baklavaia slave grew. Aerialus felt a sense of belonging with them to the point that if possible, she wanted to stay with them. This aspect also made her more willing to try things. With being companied by one of the family members, she did not have to fear of being taken away. At the same time, she felt herself wanting to do something by herself despite it would be retaliating against by her slave masters' rules.
One afternoon being all alone in the house, the alien was doing some chores. After finishing one, she was one of the bedrooms. Stopping and taking a look around the space, something from the window caught her eye. Being on the second floor of the house, she saw that the neighbor's house was in view. The thought of going to the door and ringing the individual's doorbell came to her mind.
"...!?" Aerialus reacted with a blink. Shaking her head, she tried to rid of the pondering curiosity.
About to go back to doing another chore, the thought slowly came back again. It infested her mind quickly like bacteria making her turn back to the window. The wanting to know more about the person next store was still of high interest. Thinking about what the limitations are for her to go outside, she needed an escort to do that. At the same time though, she didn't want to inconvenience any of the family members. The thought that there maybe a spy drone outside came to her mind as well.
'That is a bit paranoid,' she said in her mind. Going to the same dismissing motion with her head, she didn't and continued to stare at the glass fixture.
'...well...I am only going to the next house over. It isn't like I will be leaving the proximity of this house.'
Feeling that her reasoning was sound, there was a ping of doubt. It questioned her if what she wanted to do was okay. Putting her cleaning utensils down, she slapped her cheeks. Feeling the sting from hitting herself, it seemed to be enough to remove the superstitious pondering that lingered. Mentally telling herself to forget about it, Aerialus looked down at the utensils.
'Just pick them up and do the next task,' the woman spoke in her brain. Feeling her arms hesitate, she didn't moved. Frowning at herself and speaking again in her mind, she still didn't grab the cleaning tools.
"..." the alien reacted with mild frustration.
Sighing out loud, the Baklavaian forced herself to move. Going to the bathroom that was nearby, she flicked the lights on. Standing in front of the mirror, she stared at herself. Trying to figure out what she wanted to do, she knew that greeting the neighbor was the interest. Figuring that she was determined despite the risks, she began to examine herself closely.
Straightening herself out a little bit, Aerialus began to brush her hair a little. Using her hands to rub and push down her shirt and skirt, it removed much of the creases and wrinkles from working. Checking herself one more time to see if anything was out of place, she believed she looked fine. Nodding to herself from feeling prepared, she turned around. Leaving the bathroom, she picked up the cleaning utensils. Going to a small storage closet and putting them away, she headed back to the stairs.
Taking the steps down to the main floor, she went to the fixture that was the place holder for the family's accessories. Retrieving a spare house key and putting her shoes on, she looked at the front door. Taking a deep breath in and out, she grabbed the handle and turned. Opening it enough for her head to pass through, nerves began to tingle through her fingers and stomach. Tensing up and rethinking her approach, she peered out first slowly. Looking around without moving, it seemed the day and sky looked normal.
From where she is, there didn't seem to be anything or anyone staring in her direction. Mentally giving herself a push from the back, Aerialus blinked and opened the door a little more. Carefully taking a couple of steps outside, she was on the porch. Standing with tension, the first steps outside by herself seemed heavy and uncertain. Paranoia seeped into her mind making her doubt herself quickly. Feeling some preying eyes were on her, she started scanning around from the porch with more scrutiny.
'I don't see anyone watching from the immediate surroundings,' Aerialus thought. Glancing at the windows from houses across the street, there didn't seem to be any viewing lens or someone's face seen. Looking at the roofs, all were vacant. Behind those houses were more homes along with tall trees here and there.
'...possibly the trees if they put a scout there or something...' she continued. Staring for a minute or two at the towering green leaved plants, nothing stirred. Closing her eyes and sighing out loud, she focused herself back at what her orginal task was.
'I know my paranoia...it is probably right,' the female said in her head. Turning around and opening her eyes, she stared at the front door. She still had it open with one hand on the inside handle.
'But if I don't do this...I will never be able to move forward.'
"..." the alien reacted with a flinch.
Pressing her lips together, she forced herself to let go of the door. Grabbing the outside handle and pushing it closed, the noise of the fixture seemed louder than she remembered. Feeling a knot forming in her gut, she clenched her teeth together. Powering through her trepidation, the blonde got out the house key. Inserting it and turning the lock, it was now secured.
"...okay..." Aerialus muttered to herself. Turning around and looking down the steps from the porch, they seemed steeper than before. Taking a deep breath in, she let the air out slowly to calm down.
"...here we...go..."
Hiding in one of the high trees of the neighborhood, a Baklavaian slave was acting as a scout watching the environment around her. Being posted to watch a brethren participating in the host-family program did not emotionally bother her. Given her time on the slave trader ship, loyalty and bonding amongst her kind and the Primusians were not an advantage for survival. Having a ridged mindset on taking care of herself only to stay alive, doing something like this to another slave was just another aspect of extending her lifespan and staying out of immediate trouble.
For the time being assigned to this reconnaissance, observations were rather simple. Aerialus did not go outside by herself nor disobey any directive from the masters. Even though the host-slave had restrictions, the slave scout had limitations as well. Mobility for her was almost range-free; however, she wore a collar that acted like a beacon. If she went outside the stated border area that the ship Commander stated, it would shock her. Failure to correct would lead to further electrocution and potential death. That was enough of a threat for the Baklavaian lookout to not defect.
"..." she reacted from seeing movement at the front of the house. Bringing her binoculars up, she watched and waited.
'...she has been standing on that podium for 5 minutes...now she is looking-!?' the scout mentally spoke. Moving the zooming tool down to not show reflective light, she kept herself still. Able to see the blonde slowly turn around, the female alien brought the binoculars back up.
'She's actually leaving the house,' the Baklavaian thought while tracking her movements. 'Is she trying to escape?'
'...no...she is not stupid like the others...' she continued then narrowed her eyes. Following her, Aerialus walked slowly to the driveway. Moving toward the sidewalk and stopping, she looked around.
'She is being smart for being very paranoid...but if she goes anywhere outside of the vicinity of the host's home...what is she up to?'
Seeing the host-slave stop looking around, she took another deep breath in then out. Straightening herself, she turned right and walked forward. Passing the indicated barrier of now being in the neighbor's territory, she stopped at the mailbox next to the walkway.
'She is going...there?' the surveillance individual wondered. Adjusting her position a little to get a better open view in the tree, she was now curious about what would happen.
'It looks like just a regular house,' Aerialus thought viewing the next door's house.
Feeling her fingers fidget a little, she steeled herself and began walking to the front door. The front lawn was cut and trimmed well with a lush green color of being well maintained. A stone pathway was laid down which contrasted with the plain concrete one that her host family has. Reaching toward the end of the path, it had a couple of steps up to the elongated patio. Having a decorative fence to indicate the platformed area, it was as wide as the front side of the house.
Swallowing, the Baklavaian began to go up the steps. Each footstep felt heavier and heavier getting closer to the front door. Reaching the top and in the veranda, she glanced around. To her left, there were a couple of rocking chairs made of dark brown wood. Looking to her right, there was a hanging bench which metal chains attached to the ceiling. Blinking and searching a little bit more closely, she noticed something peculiar.
'This is...very clean for being outdoors,' she commented in her mind. 'I don't see insects or dirt anywhere. Even the cobwebs in the corners on the crevices of the ceiling are not there.'
'Anyways...the real focus,' Aerialus thought and shook her head. Looking back straight ahead, her eyes locked on the entrance.
'There's the front door...he should be home for he rarely leaves the house during the daytime,' she concluded to herself internally. Moving slowly to being in front of the fixture, she stopped. Straightening herself out once more and brushing her clothes again, she nervously moved a strain of hair over her left ear. Stopping herself from playing with her hands to combat nervousness, she raised her left arm. Swallowing the small lump stuck in her thought, she knocked on the door three times.
'She knocked on his door...will that person come out?' the scout wondered, captivated a little about what she was witnessing.
The alien woman had seen the neighbor's peculiar behavior since being stationed with her new position. Eerie glows of light from the windows were seen during the night as well as a dark silhouette. She did not notice on the first or second night for she didn't focus heavily on it. During the daytime though, she caught glimpses of some kind of shadow that would appear and disappear. After training her sight on detecting any movement from the two houses, she finally spotted the individual. A man of some sorts that seemed to glide on the ground effortlessly.
Despite the creepiness and darkness that the unknown neighbor projected, the Baklavaian felt drawn to the individual. Like Aerialus on not too sure why or how, there was a strange sense of calmness and wonder that filled her mind. The curiosity of wanting to know how the human could move so stealthy seemed to peek her interest. There were a couple of incidences in which she could have sworn that the neighbor was staring back at her despite not seeing their silhouette in the windows or outside.
'F-Focus...you were ordered to do something,' she mentally told herself. Shaking her head to get out of her daydreaming, she trained her sights on the front door with the Baklavaian in view.
"..." Aerialus spoke staring at the door.
Empty silence filled the air making her feel tense. Nervously scratching her right forearm, she glanced around her surroundings. Seeing nothing different and looking back forward, she tried knocking again. The sound of her hand hitting the wooden rectangular object seemed dull. Nothing steered nor any noise from inside the home. Working up some courage and gripping her skirt in nervousness, she opened her mouth.
"...h-h-hello?" the female's voice came out quiet and timid. Feeling that was inadequate, she cleared her throat and tried again louder.
"...excuse me...i-is anyone home?"
'She is calling out to him,' the reconnaissance alien observed. Given a device for eavesdropping at great distances, she pulled out a foldable spherical looking tool. Setting it up quickly, she aimed it at the front of the neighbor's dwelling. Putting on an ear piece, she got the tail end of what Aerialus said. A feeling of suspense grew inside as she kept focusing the zooming lens at the door.
Again, empty silence filled the air. There was no sound of someone moving inside or any indication that anyone was coming to the door. Waiting for a little bit longer, she pressed her lips together to fight off the anxiety that was building inside. After a couple of minutes with nothing changing, the Baklavaian tilted her head down. Bringing her hands together and playing with her fingers, she turned around.
'I guess...he wasn't home...or does not want to talk to anyone,' she thought in mild disappointment. Stepping down from the patio to the stone pathway, the only noises produced was her shoes lightly hitting the ground. As she stepped further away from the entrance, sound around her slowly got louder.
'...that...seems odd...' Aerialus wondered.
Stopping suddenly and waiting, she focused on listening. Oddly, things in her immediate vicinity were clearer. At the same time, things further away were muted. Blinking from the perplexing development, she moved her arms up. Cupping her hands around her ears, the noises changed to a hollow one. Hearing something sliding directly behind her, she blinked rapidly and spun 180 degrees.
'...what...was...that!?' the scout slave wondered with alertness. Hearing the noise and seeing the facial expression of the Baklavaian, nothing behind her approached her or moved. Holding her breath and slowly leaning harder again the tree, she continued to watch.
"...!?" Aerialus reacted being a little startled. Everything looked the same. Everything was the same in front of the house with no changes. Glancing quickly at all the windows she could see with her eyes, nothing was behind them. Viewing the sides of the house, there was no shadow on the ground nor a presence peering around the corner. Putting her hands down and arms to her side, she felt itchy for one reason or another.
'...there's nothing there...he is either not home...or not answering,' she reasoned with herself. Trying to calm her nerves, she turned back to the pathway.
'I took my risk...and my first offense,' she mentally continued with walking to the sidewalk. 'Knowing the masters...I will probably be pulled from my host family.'
'There might be a small chance that this infraction will be overlooked,' the alien mused in her brain. Heading back to her home without deviation, she walked normally with an expression of brooding.
"..." the scout slave motioned with stillness.
Despite only hearing the sliding movement, it wasn't what her eyes were focusing on. The Primusian binoculars had a small monitoring function which could detect things including things behind objects. A small indicator on them lit up after the noise. The arrow directed towards the front door as if there was something behind it. Despite it stating that, none of the other indicators stated the same thing. As quickly as it came on, the light went out as if it were just a blurp in its operation.
'...he was there...and now he's gone?' she pondered confused. 'Why did she leave if he was there? Did she sense him? Or did the neighbor call out?'
'...no...he won't have called out...' the scout mused.
Watching the Baklavaian go back into her hosts' home, she kept the listening device active. Not hearing the female speak and only her footsteps, she didn't go anywhere else. Climbing the steps and opening the door with her key, Aerailus entered and closed the door. With the distinctive sound of the lock being engaged, the surveillance woman lowered her binoculars. Knowing that this event was something to report, part of her didn't want to.
'I can't tell if my reluctance is due from not wanting to betray a fellow Baklavaian,' the scout began in her head. Rummaging in her carryon backpack, she retrieved a mobile device. Opening it up and going to the contract number, she paused before dialing.
'Or that we have a common interest,' the scout continued. Grimacing a little, she hit the call button and brought the phone to her ear. After a couple of rings, the connection was made.
[Captain Olton speaking] his voice came with a tone of authority.
"S-1057: Fiona. Reporting," the female spoke in a neutral tone.
[Ahhhh...calling when a report in isn't till the near end of the day] the leader spoke with a more entertained tone. [This must mean you have something...juicy to tell...heh heh heh...]
"..." she reacted with feeling faint regret of calling.
[You may report your findings slave]
"Yes sir. S-0923; Aerialus, was seen leaving the home by herself. She went to the neighbor's house and knocked on the door. She waited a few minutes, but no one came or answered. She walked back to her host's dwelling and locked the front door."
[...I see...anything else? Such as going across the street? Passing items along with anyone outside of her host family?]
"No sir...just to the neighbor's front door...then back in her assigned home," the Baklavaian answered. A feeling that he was disappointed came to her based on his slight tone change when asking the questions.
[Hmmmmm...very well. Continue monitoring until further notice]
"Aye aye sir," Fiona replied. Hearing the connection end, she did a mild sigh of relief. Adjusting herself, she waited to see if something else would occur in the home or the mysterious adjacent house.
'...again...with the neighbor...mmm,' Captain Olton thought while frowning a little. Hitting the disconnect button that was on his desk, he leaned back into his chair. Feeling it recline back a little, he looked up at the ceiling. Focusing on nothing in particular, he began pondering. Lost in thinking, he didn't hear the footsteps coming into his office.
"Captain," Commander Utern spoke. Grabbing a glance from his commanding officer, he just continued.
"Did the slave scout's report reveal anything new to you?"
"Well...she reported that Aerialus did technically go outside by herself," the Captain began. Sitting up in his chair, he put his hands together to look contemplative.
"The caveat is that...she only went to the neighbor's front door then back into her host's family residence. I am not too concerned about that small infraction with the regards of her...she would have only broke a rule unless there was an outside factor that led her to do so."
"...?" Utern reacted with a lone eyebrow raised.
"Don't lecture me about procedure Commander...I only care about technicalities for slaves I don't care for."
"...I am truly amazed sir that you have evolved so quickly since coming to this planet," the other official remarked then gave forced smile. The rigid 2nd in command looked humored.
"Uggghhh...just shut your trap," the Captain stated with half-hearted irritation.
"..." Utern cleared his throat and recomposed himself. "If technicality is not the concern, then what sir?"
"It is this...neighbor character," Olton answered then stood up. "Come with me. I have to call the race council regarding this matter."
"Aye sir," he spoke then gave a small nod. Both left the chamber and headed to the communications department on the same deck.
"Curious if I may speak Captain."
"What is it?" the bearded man questioned with disinterest.
"Assuming this isn't to report regarding a slave breaking the rules...which race council are you going to speak to?"
"Our race council. The humans won't do anything because that neighbor is one of their own. And if the individual hasn't been physically seen by either our two slaves, they will just shrug it off as nothing."
"I don't remember our council with the higher officials being...graceful to honor any issues we occur during our expeditions," Utern informed.
"Thank you for that so informative insight...shut up."
"Aye sir."
Going to a conference room and activating a switch on the wall, a contraption began to move. A screen came down from the ceiling then flickered on. Making a dispatch call on a small computer monitor on the round table, it took a couple of moments before a picture came into view. On the large viewing screen, there were three distinct looking Primusians. They wore luxurious tailored slave trader attire along with distinctions from service and position in political powers. Frowning from distaste of the higher officials' wares, his facial hair masked the expression. Hearing the center one clear his throat, he spoke first.
[Captain Olton. You request our council during your expedition?] he asked with a stoic voice.
"Yes councilmen," he spoke changing his tone to a neutral one.
[What can we assist you with?]
"I wish to report on the developments of one host-program that my slave is partaking on planet MW-3."
[Very well Captain. Give us your report]
After taking several minutes to give a detailed report with refences to his scout slave that monitored developments, the race council looked deep in thought. The three converged towards each other and had a discussion amongst themselves. After a short period, they pulled away. Going back into their previous positions, the center person began first.
[Captain Olton. In regards to how things have progressed, what do you wish to do?] the lead questioned. Both slave officials felt vibes of disinterest from the three on the roll down monitor.
"Since I cannot deal with the human neighbor given the local government will not aid me, I wish to pull the slave from the host-program. If the Baklavaian is being influenced by an outsider to go against the code of conduct all slaves are enforced to uphold, then the slave needs to be relocated if to continue with the host-program on this planet."
[Based on your report and the developments...we have concluded that further evidence is needed. The unorthodox behavior you mentioned from said human and the conduct of your slave is not enough to warrant an immediate removal from the program you participated in]
"But councilmen...my slave is being drawn to this "neighbor" human. It has made her go against my instructions!" he stated with controlled agitation.
[As we said before captain, there needs to be further evidence to make a concrete statement that your slave is affected by this individual that you speak of. The other slaves you have pulled showed that they went against not only our rules, but also Primusian Law of slave restrictions. S-0923 has not broken our laws nor has the evidence shown that she strayed beyond her restricted premises of the host family]
"..." Olton reacted with grinding his teeth with his mouth closed.
[We shall depart for now Captain. Seek our council when you have something more than a petty issue] the spokesman commented before the connection was killed.
"Grrr...bunch of old fools!" the ship leader flipping off the screen as it reeled up into the ceiling. Utern restrained himself from chuckling at his commander's demise of not getting his wishes.
"You are enjoying this...aren't you Utern?" the bearded leader asked with a glare.
"You can't win every battle, sir. Your war with the race council is still ongoing."
"That's what I hate," the Captain stated turning to the other official.
"You just need more patience."
"Patience!? I am patient!" the Primusian leader retorted. Turning to his 2nd in command, he pointed at him.
"Get back to your post Commander!"
"..." the other man replied with smirk. Standing at attention, he did a slow turn around to leave the room.
"Aye aye sir...aye aye."