A Thread by Bri: Part 3

When he first saw the human, an expression of disgust curled on his features. The creature was so gangly and ugly, just as his parents had always told him. *Vile thing,* he thought. *Look at it. Thinks it's so safe. We'll just see about that.*

It was simple to jump the human. It let out a strangled gasp as his hand closed around its throat, drawing it into the room he had been hiding in. It was dim with no lights on, but the light from the hall filtered in though the open doorway, giving enough to see by. He shoved the two-legged creature against the wall and held it there, whispering mennacingly, "If you so much as twitch I'll gut you right here.*"

The human couldn't understand, obviously. Stupid thing wouldn't even understand if it knew the language. All humans knew was how to *kill* things. Nothing else mattered to the horrid little species. He certainly wasn't going to pull this creature into his Core. He shuddered at the very thought. He didn't want the human to understand what he was saying *that* badly. Still, it would have been nice to frighten it.

Not that it wasn't frightened already. The human shook like an autumn leaf in a windstorm, eyes huge with shock and locked on his face, mouth moving but no sound coming out. His face swisted into a sneer. When its hand inched toward its waist at the tiny red and white ball hanging by its belt, he caught the movement and gabbed her arm.

The human cried out, finally making a sound. It stuttered out various high-pitched sounds which he imagined was some form of language, crude and much too fast.

"Shut up," he snarled, giving it a shake. His implication obvious, the human's mouth snapped shut. It stilled, waiting for him to do something.

He paused too, getting his first real look at it. From his meeting with the Pidgey he knew it was a youngling, little more than a hatchling really. And female. What was the name? Gobrianna. He stumbled over the word a few times, then got it right.

Her muscles froze as she heard him speak her name, her eyes, if possible, getting even bigger. A tiny bit of his fury melted away. She almost seemed...innocent...defenseless.

No! He shook his head, now angry at himself. *Look how easily you were pulled into feeling sorry for it!* he snarled mentally. *No murderer is innocent, no killer defenseless. Don't let your guard drop again!* Still, when he gazed into the wide blue eyes of the human, he realized he didn't really want to hurt it. Not that it...she didn't deserve it, but....

With another disgusted shake of his head, he released her. The human slid, boneless, to the floor, her eyes never leaving his face. Before she could reach for the red and white ball again--probably some kind of weapon--he picked up the length of cable he had found as he searched the human's dwelling. He grabbed her arms and hauled her to her feet, turning her around and firmly bindly her hands behind her back.

"You're coming with me," he told her unceremoniously, his voice slightly less harsh. He shoved her through the doorway and down the long hall, back toward the double doors that he had entered when he first found the building. She stumbled, her legs shaky, but kept pace ahead of him and didn't try to run.

Uncountiously, he thought she was kinda brave. For a human.

****************

Gobrianna's mind was still, amazingly, working properly. When the strange creature had grabbed her, her first thought (when she was thinking coherently again) was to run. But the creature's fist remained locked tight around her throat, warning her not to make a move, and she had been left with no option other than to study the fury-contorted face inches from her own.

The creature was a biped; its long feet looked strong enough to knock over a Dragonite. A short tail whipped back and forth behind it, seeming to keep its balance. It was built in the proportions of a human, with two arms that ended in human-like hands. But its face was much longer, a snout really, with two long ears that stood upright on its head as it glared at her with raging golden-brown eyes. Its fur was a dark green color, tipped with purple at its feet and hands, tail, and ears. Rising from its back she saw two large, feathered wings. Like its fur, the feathers were green, tipped with purple.

*This is the most amazing creature I've ever seen,* the Pokemon trainer thought in awe. *Could it be a Pokemon?* She realized she was so scared she had been mouthing the words as she thought them. *Snap out of it!* Gobrianna ordered herself. *You're here, it's here, deal with it!*

Well, if it was a Pokemon, then Charizard could talk to it. Maybe find out what it was so mad about. Slowly, so as not to startle the creature, she slipped her hand toward her belt. But it saw her and grabbed her arm, holding it in a grip so tight she winced.

*Okay, bad move. This thing either isn't a Pokemon, or doesn't want to talk with its kind. Try something else.* "L-look," she said said. *Ouch, I'm stuttering like a two-year-old.* "I-I don't know why you're angry, but I'm not going to hurt you. Why don't you l-let me go and--"

The creature didn't like that at all. It growled out something and shook her, telling her without words to stop. Gobrianna thought it would be a very good idea to do what it said, especially since she was beginning to have trouble breathing.

When it suddenly released her, it took her completely by surprise. The starch seemed to have leeched from her legs as she slid to the floor, staring up at the creature in surprise. But just as quickly she was on her feet again, as it hauled her up and tied her hands behind her back. With a rough shove it sent her out the door and down the hall, and she complied. Gobrianna had taken a firm hand on her terror, reigned it in and buried it deep. First, she would find out just what this thing was and what it wanted with her. Then, she would find some way to escape. Lastly, she could have a nervous breakdown later, when she was safe. *Think now, panic later!*

When the strange being pushed her out the front doors of her Gym, the sunlight hit her like a slap in the face. The heat hit a split-second after, and she stumbled, unprepared. The creature snarled and jerked her to her feet. Again that strange combination of hisses and low roars assaulted her ears, and she wondered if it was a language. Finally, it seemed in frusteration, the being picked her up off her feet and bounded away from the Fantasy Gym.

"Whoa!" Gobrianna cried out as the creature flew over the land with great leaps, carrying her with no visible effort. The grass and some sparse trees flashed by in green blurs. *Those feet aren't just for show!* she thought.

It seemed to Gobrianna that they traveled about two miles, though it was hard to tell. The journey reminded her of traveling by Rapidash. Those fiery ponys never seemed to tire either, and ran like wild flame. When her captor slowed its pace, the Pokemon trainer glanced ahead--

"Oh. My. God," she breathed, turning her head to look at the green and violet creature still holding her. "You...you're an alien!"

He set the human down beside his totaled lifepod, smirking at the way she couldn't seem to take her eyes off it. *I think she just realized I'm not from around here,* he thought. The human's gaze continued to linger on the metal craft--looked like some giant had stepped on a tin can, but she could still see it for what it was. When she did finally look up at him he could tell she stared at him in a whole new light. No longer was he something unknown, maybe hostile. Now he was something Not Of This World. Her fear changed to fear of the unknown, which can be the most frightening kind.

The human opened her mouth and spoke again, but it was nothing more than gibberish to his long ears. The pounding in his head suddenly rose to an almost unbareable level, causing his vision to fade to black for a moment. He closed his eyes and swayed on his long feet. The human made sounds that he could have sworn sounded like concern, and he forced his eyes open again in alarm.

But she hadn't moved. She sat, hands still bound behind her back, at the base of the tree his lifepod had met quite harshly. This fact amazed him; he couldn't explain it. He had been momentarily defenceless...but she hadn't attacked him. Why hadn't she took the chance to at least try to escape? It didn't make sense.

And his head hurt. He really wasn't thinking clearly, hadn't been since the crash. With a short growl of, "Stay there," at the human on the ground, he leaned against the broken window of the pod. Inside, the console remained dark and unrespoding. Emergency power hadn't cut in yet...shouldn't it have? Oh yeah, he had to do that manually.

Reaching through the broken window, he punched a button, turned two dials and threw a switch. A few of the lifepod's lights blinked to life, but most didn't change. Now why hadn't he done this before? His mind didn't provide an answer.

One small light in the far right corner of the board blinked blue: operational. But what did it do.....? His mind sparked with insight. Oh yes.

Universal translator.

He turned to look back at his prisoner. *You turned your back on her again, you idiot!* he berated himself. But she hadn't moved, although she couldn't have understood his order. She just gazed at him, her human eyes drawn together with an expression that he knew was concern this time.

He heaved a sigh. "Get up here," he muttered at her, grabbing her arm and hauling her up to stand beside him. He flipped the translator on, knowing anyone within a radius of twenty feet would hear any words spoken in their own language. It also could be used for ship-to-ship communication--actually, that was what it was usually used for. "You understand now?" he demanded.

The human's eyes widened in shock, answering his question. She instinctively pulled away from him, but he kept a firm grip on her arm, preventing her. She stopped her struggle and peered into the lifepod uncertainly before locking her eyes on his once again.

"I...understand," she whispered horsely, nodding. "What...why are you here?"

"I didn't plan on being here," he snarled at her, causing the human to flinch. "And from now on, I ask the questions. And you better be telling the truth, or I'm not going to be so gentle with you from now on, you got me?"

She nodded in a hurry. "Whatever you say, sir."

"Right, now I don't suppose you've ever seen anything like me, have you?" He used his free hand to brush his drooping right ear out of his eyes, but it flopped right back. She shook her head negitively, and he sighed. "Of course not. Just my luck. You the only human around here?" She nodded. "Good."

"E-excuse me, but...why do you hate us so much?"

He shook her roughly. "I told you I'd be asking the questions." The human swollowed and nodded again.

"Why don't you answer her?"

He wheeled around, taken by surprise by the voice behind them. But as he did he saw an expression of pure relief pass over the human's face. "Blu!" she cried out happily. "You--AH!" A shriek tore through her throat, her happiness instantly transformed into horror.

He stared, stunned, by what he saw before him. A creature on two long legs, with long ears and wings just like himself stood causually, her expression telling them both she had everything in control and was waiting for an explanation. She was bright blue, and she looked *just like him!* Tigen was looking at the first other member of his species he had ever seen.