Brilliant Man/Vir Clarissimus (Latin)

Chapter 26 Flight of the Bumblebee

Alicia was heavily bruised, permanently tethered to the rough floor, and breathing heavily suppressed; in fact, her last conscious memories, before she was knocked cold were her emotions. Tears after learning they would be imprisoned forever, the blood from her beating, and sweat from the strain.

She and Hirashita were being flown to the intergalactic penitentiary of Polaris in Zed's space vessel.

Flashes of fuzzy purple light shined in her eyes. Woozy, Alicia blinked, then surveyed her confines. Thick chains cuffed both her hands and feet of her crinkled, distorted legs (she was locked up by a salacious guard, so tangling her legs protected her from harm). Angered by his treatment, Alicia gritted her teeth, tasting damp cloth – screaming out this attempted rape had earned her a gag.

When recovering some of her strength, Alicia unloosened her body; she shifted onto her side, watching the wall beside her. Amber eyes all faced her, switching on or off in eerie unison for about a minute; next, the creatures dispersed, exiting through the small holes in her dark enclosure.

Alicia gradually began stringing together bits of her memory. She remembered seeing Hirashita (he was chained as well) for only a few seconds outside before the anesthetization; a faceless figure carrying a tall, pointed syringe had shoved against her, plunging a needle into her arm. Only waking minutes ago, this memory triggered a sting from her point of penetration. Alicia stoically refused to cry, but tears of anger and her suffering still flowed despite this intention; adding insult to injury, with her hands confined up over her head, she could not clear them.

Hirashita turned and faced Alicia, his eyes splashing their light onto her. By using a mini-saw built into his arm functions, he had freed himself and was also capable of emancipating Alicia. Very softly, he inquired, "Forgive me if I'm interrupting you, but might I know how you are doing?" beginning from her mouth gag down.

For a moment, Alicia wouldn't respond; she was trapped in a small daze of thinking. This continued until the android finally unraveled her gag.

Instantly, she knocked against the wall, filling herself with the room's spicy, acidic air. Her sensations up until this point had been threaded in the cold, shaking fingers of anxiety. She feebly responded, "Well, not good is all I need to say.." – her cheeks simmered, "but I hope Ozwald is. He's more important than us; we're already out of this game, so what we must do is cheer him on."

She lowered her head sadly as Hirashita gave her a surprising response. "Sorry, again, Alica.." - her head somewhat moved in acknowledgement - "but your heartrate has increased through... blushing? Shall I perform on you a diagnosis; perhaps this is an early case of a col--"

"No, no, Hirashita! Seriously, it's okay... I'm fine," she began to chuckle. Her stony expression crumbled, blossoming into poppies and roses; her mind raged with thoughts about her companion, each become more silly, insane, and fantastical over time. Was Ozwald okay? And on the flip-side, she craved his approval, desire.. marriage.

Yes!

No, Alicia.

Well, she didn't mind the possibility.. Only that..

Just then, the chamber doors burst open, absorbed by the rolling, pale-green skin of a heavy creature. Its face instantly lit up after catching Alicia's eyes trained on its spunky ears resembling antenna. The colorful humanoid pointed its webbed, viridescent finger at her, exclaiming, "Why... What do we have here?"

She cringed. This would be annoying.

The creature smirked – stacking up its three chins – gravitating to her side in a slow, horrendous motion. Dropping its voice, it said, "We know what you've been on, little girl. No worries though.. Your robot friend-in-crime is outside waiting for you." Before she could get up, the humanoid proceeded to tear off her mouth gag.

For lack of energy, Alicia remained strewn on the ground. She faced her side, finding nothing but a wall. There was no steel man with lightbulbs for eyes and an android heart, but barren, dungeon walls. She had merely imagined their encounter. "Don't worry, I'll join you.." she hissed, adding, "'Robotic friend' my ass.. he's an android and his name is Hirashita, not some it you can boss around."

The humanoid laughed, leading Alicia to believe he carried a more sinister undertone. "And I'm Miystro, ma'am, and I'd best be on my way out of this chamber before it's done forcefully. And be grateful.. at least it is more.. livable here compared to Polaris – damn place doesn't even have toilets." He began laughing again, savoring her frightened look. "Don't move so I can get you unchained, Barabbas; do anything freaky, we're trying again, alright?"

Alicia nodded silently, burning with temper while Miystro removed her constraints with the help of a key. In a twisted case of irony, although freed, she was unable to whoop for joy – both her hands remained cuffed.

"You'll be alright; I've removed most of your confines, excluding your Jovian rights," her fat, emerald enemy laughed. In that moment, she nearly snapped, but caught herself.

"Hey, you ca--"

"Good. Follow me, okay?" Miystro commanded, gesturing to the wooden door ahead.

They both exited the place.

~

Alicia briefly contemplated escape but was reminded by a sting in her arm of the consequence: more abuse, syringes, and possibly death. With a sigh, she fell to her superiors, following Miystro from behind. Outside the dungeon doors was a beautiful sight.

Directly outside her prison was the large main deck, its wide space capturing the sheer size of Zed's spaceship. One giant, circular glass-pane wrapped around the space, making this both a lounge area and observatory. Outside this revolving window was Space, infinite in galaxies, planets, and stars. Alicia tracked one form in particular, a quiet, freezing world. Peering closer, she confined it was, indeed, a planet, one she was actively making towards.

With Hypertravel, she had just twenty minutes to rest, so she used much of it to restore her motivation. Sure, Zed's team had irresponsibly used she and Hirashita, but she trusted in Ozwald's success. Additionally, Hirashita had joined her, appearing the same as before.

She ripped from the dome-glass, joining Hirashita who – possessing her same fascination – tried to make out all the small fossils of the cosmic record. Beside him stood Miystro.

"Greetings, err..?" he began.

Alicia nodded, smiling down at Hirashita. "I'm Alicia Turnup, this is Hirashita, and my friend, Ozwald, is going to beat Zed."

~

A flurry of events followed their brief descent. First, after settling in a reasonably-crowded Stardock - parking-space reserved for private outer-space and air-travel vehicles – Alicia and Hirashita were whisked away by vehicle to the suburbs of Circuit, Polaris.

The pair were cramped behind the taxi, whizzing through the suburbs; their fly-time lasted a quarter-hour before entering an underground passageway. Like a bird with clipped wing, their vehicle experienced sea after trailing the skies. Cruising Curcuit's world of sewage, they encountered cracks, pipes, and angry, buzzing drivers before relieving this horrible trance as light spilled into their eyes.

Lean, angular buildings assembled Circuit's skyline. At night, its neon lights illuminated the brave new world like a lucid collage of artsy glass and skeletons of either brick or quartz. Hirashita gazed at two spindly metal veins zigzagging in his front. The swooping lines of steel formed the chiseled canopy above, decked with the traffic lights of this bridge.

After a brief flight, taxi, and walk, their excursion finally ended at the exterior of a large, factory-lookin building. Steel crescents hid mechanical units and bricked sections; most of the building, including its multiple rows of cylindrical ventilation parts, were held upright by these brick walls.

The imminent Polaris Penitentiary.

Alicia and Hirashita exchanged solemn looks while in silence. Only a minute later, outfitted in sweltering, baggy attire, the pair stood clung behind steel cell bars.

They needed Ozwald's help.