Page 15 of Ava Greasemonkey

Ava watched the sleeping Tuxa rhythmically breathe for a moment, hoping they wouldn’t be allowed anywhere else on the ship. She never directly talked with one before and really never wanted to. Her body shuddered involuntarily. They gave off a bad vibe.

If the Tuxa did venture out from this area, it would make everyone on board on edge. Ava was glad she had her own placedown in the engine hall away from all the chaos. It was the first time she was grateful about being so closed away. It was enough that she would probably need to be around them some when she shared in helping out with the prisoners like the queen requested.

Ava got on her belly to slide along the vent that pumped air into each of the cells and traveled the entire length to peer into the warehouse room next to the animal holding area. She moved slowly to make sure she didn’t make any noise and carefully peeked through the grate. More Tuxa were there, looking like they were still just setting up. There was a lot of activity in that room, so Ava quickly turned around and left, feeling anxious from their pacing. She would have to come back to observe more later. Or not.

The Vorbax are more interesting anyways.

Now that Ava had scoped out the entire area, she turned around and came back to hover over the Vorbax, stopping and pushing into the grate to get the best view she could. The video logs of them were fresh on her mind, but it was different seeing them in person. They looked huge, or maybe it was the angle. Or maybe it was just her perception from being on the smaller side herself. She shifted her eyes side to side to compare them as best she could from her vantage point.

I was right, they definitely are all male. And even more handsome in person.Ava felt warm all over with the thought.

The information packet on the Vorbax noted that they didn’t allow any photos taken of their females. There was one in the file, but the image was blurred out. From it, though, Ava was able to infer that that the females were small, slight creatures.

Not at all like the ones below Ava now, with their vast expanses of muscle that Ava could see under their sleek lines. Even their colors were more vibrant in real life than what showed on the screen. They were a luminescent blue, and itwas fascinating to look at them because they seemed to almost change colors as she watched, shifting from a blue to a lighter shade. And glowing?Yes, there definitely is a glow.

She moved back and forth between the cells noting the differences between the four. They all looked similar.

The one on the far left, nearest where she could enter the room from above, looked to be asleep.

The next appeared to be in a meditative state—he was sitting still with a peaceful expression on his face, and, yes, glowing.

The third appeared to be checking every corner for a weakness, prowling the cage restlessly. Ava clenched her teeth watching him, seeing his unease.

The last was tossing some soap in the air and repeatedly catching it while lying back on his mattress.

Ava quickly decided to settle down over the head of the one in the meditative state to observe. This one had a glow of energy that surrounded him like a current. As she watched, his colors shifted across the entire spectrum, giving different undertones that blended with his blue body underneath. His face was blank and peaceful, making her feel at ease watching him, which in turn made her curiosity about his luminescence grow.

She matched his breathing while settling in the vent so it was as comfortable as possible. He was beautiful. She could admit that as she watched him breathe in and out rhythmically. His muscles flexed with every inhale. Through the cell bars, she saw the others begin glowing like he did after a moment, all except the one still sleeping.

“What are you?”She heard the question in her mind.

It startled her so badly she jumped and made a small ding that echoed in the vents.

Ava breathed out slowly and hoped no one noticed. By the time her heart rate stilled, she was wondering if she had imagined the words. She must have dreamed them up, becausethe feeling of calm and silence returned. In fact, it was stronger than before.

She shook herself mentally.I probably need more sleep.

Ava sat there, watching, almost dozing off herself, until the intercom blared again noting the start of the next rotation.

The announcement shook her back into action, making her aware of the time she’d just spent watching. With stiff muscles, she slowly started to move back out of the area. The three of them were still glowing, though the one she was above was a bit brighter than the rest.

Why are they all shining now?She frowned, unable to piece anything more together. The one on the left was still asleep.

The Tuxa, who had ignored the prisoners the entire time she was watching, burst through the door before she exited the area.

Ava startled, pausing her exit to watch their interaction. Two Tuxa had some food and water. They roughly shoved it through the cells toward the Vorbax, growling the entire time about having to do the menial task.

Two of the Vorbax stopped shining and moved to take the food. The one who was asleep the entire time still didn’t move. The last one, the one Ava had watched from above, continued glowing.

Ava shook her head to clear her mind. With that intercom signal, she knew it was time to get back to the control room. As she started moving away, she could have sworn she heard again, in her head,“Goodbye trapped bird.”

Shaking her head, she thought back, “I’m not the bird, that’s Nuor,” with a mental image of Nuor in her mind. She could have sworn she heard a ghostly chuckle, but the next minute the feeling of calm reappeared.

She really needed some more sleep.

“What do you make of that?”Vox’s brother, Erox, asked regarding the tiny creature that had observed them for more than two candle marks from above.

“It felt like one of our females almost,”Lirell offered, jumping into the conversation. He soon fell back out when he let his meditative state drop to eat his food. He was the youngest of the four and could not hold it nearly as well when he was distracted.

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