Neutral Space(3)

“What did she do?”

“She refused to fire on a human ship.”

“This is the Trekes, right?”

“Why do you think the guards had it on all the monitors?” I barely missed a clout on the head from an angry guard. I found my mind drifting back to the first time I met her.

I was on a week leave on Micea. It’s a neutral planet, completely alone. It was exactly what I wanted. My tent was pitched, and a fire was blazing. I was a short hike from the lake, perfect for fishing and swimming. I’d been there once before and loved the spot. As I put a pot of coffee on the fire, I saw the ship coming in hot. It was in trouble, and the pilot was struggling to keep it steady. I grabbed my med pack and ran to where it was going to crash.

The ship knocked over trees as it skid into the ground. The earth shook, and there was a crash when it impacted. I nearly lost my footing. It only made me run faster. Whoever it was wouldn’t have much time if the ship was heavily damaged. I was relieved to see it was a human craft when I reached the ridge; an old one, but human nonetheless. The hatch was still closed, which was a bad sign; and, the ship was on fire. I found the emergency release lever as I wrapped my hand in the corner of my shirt to protect it from the hot metal. The hatch opened like a charm when I pulled it.

I fell on my ass when I saw an unconscious Kelsairan woman. It was a human craft. Why the hell was a Kelsairan piloting it? She groaned slightly. Kelsairans were the enemy. I should have left her. I couldn’t abandon her to die now that I knew she was alive. My honor wouldn’t allow it. I cursed the whole time I pulled her out of the wreckage. She was bleeding from a wound in her leg, and I knew my med kit would be useless. Kelsairan anatomy was different than a human’s. I cursed again as I hunted for her med kit. Luckily, she’d kept it close at hand, and I found it quickly.

I dragged her to safety just as her ship exploded. It knocked me back a step, and I instinctively covered the woman from debris. The noise had my ears ringing. The heat from the fire was unbearable. I pulled her further away until I could figure out a plan.

It was a long hike back to my camp. I bandaged her wound temporarily before making a sled to take her the rest of the way. Getting her back, unfortunately, was the easy part. I had to properly address the wound on her upper thigh once she was at my camp. Her one-piece outfit complicated everything. I needed to get to the injury, and its location made it impossible to just cut off the pant leg. My task would have been far easier if Kelsairans didn’t look like humans, but they did. They were usually taller and leaner with opaque eyes and ridges on their brows. Everything else made them appear human.

This woman was no exception, and she was undeniably attractive. She was tall and slim. Her breasts were small, yet firm; her hips were perfectly curved. She had ice-blonde hair that was slicked back. Her oblong face had high cheekbones and full lips. I was never this close to one of their women before. I never realized how beautiful they were. Well, this one was anyway. I tried waking her first, hoping I wouldn’t have to undress her myself but she was unconscious. I considered waiting until morning, but the wound was oozing, and I was afraid of it getting infected.

I shook her one last time before reaching for the zipper at her neck. Nothing, she was out cold. Damn, I pulled the zipper down my hands shaking like I was a virgin. I tried not to look as I quickly undressed her, I put one of my own t-shirts on her, but her body was flawless. If I think about it, I can still remember it now. I draped a blanket over her torso and other leg as I worked on her wound. There was a piece of metal lodged in the wound. I had to fish around for it before disinfecting and bandaging it. She looked ridiculous in my shorts. At least she was dressed.

I didn’t want to move her again, so I brought my sleeping bag out of the tent and rolled her in. The coffee I’d started earlier was ruined now. I started a fresh pot for my night vigil. Who was this woman and why was she here? I sank into my chair watching as she slept.

“Jack come on, or the guards'll clobber ya. They called lunch ten minutes ago.” It was Jim pulling me out of my thoughts.

“Yeah, all right.” I threw down my pickaxe and fell in line. At least I could watch more of the trial.

No such luck the monitors were off as we were marched into the mess hall. I was worried something was going down until I heard the guards talking. The trial was adjourned until tomorrow. So it was back to digging that afternoon.

For some reason, my mind was void of any thought of her except her face as she slept. It was so peaceful and flecked with firelight. How could she be Trekes, how? If I would have left her to die, how many lives would have been spared? Maybe it wasn’t her; perhaps I was wrong. How could she be Trekes? My mind played the same questions over and over all afternoon. They haunted me and plagued me, so much so that soon I had a nagging headache. I skipped dinner that evening hoping to be alone.

It was no use. Jim, Dan, and Crow, my cellmates, hounded me for answers. They asked me the same thing I asked myself: “How could you save Trekes?”

“Do you think if I’d known it was Trekes that I would have saved her?” I nearly shouted at them. They stared at one another. “She was a woman, and she was hurt. We were in neutral space. What right did I have to shoot her? How could I have lived with myself if I let her die?”

“He’s right,” Dan reasoned. He was the oldest, in on a life sentence for crimes none of us knew. He said it was for our protection. Which meant they were pretty bad. Even the Kelsairans avoided him. “We don’t know what happened and its best for all of us if it stays that way. No one breathes a word of Jack’s involvement with her. Got it?” Jim agreed. I saved his life it was the least he could do for me. Crow was terrified of Dan, so my secret was safe.