The Ice Warrior

Chapter 7

The spaceship wasn't like anything she had ever seen before or expected to see. In the limited amount of entertainment that remained after everything else was wiped clean to allow more space for the data necessary for the survival of the species, they always represented spaceships in similar ways.

They were modern, clean, and always appeared to Silv somewhat lifeless. From merely looking at them it was clear that the technology was advanced but in Silv's opinion, boring as well. It was like a perfect, well-adjusted machine, and Silv never believed that anything could be perfect.

The fact that the very people she was working for her whole life tried to murder her only served to prove the point that no system was perfect. Living in the dark, many people assumed that the system maintaining human life on the planet was flawless, but that was much farther from the truth than anyone would have assumed.

The spaceship that Silv found herself in was not in the least similar to those that the early humans assumed would grace their planet with their presence. Even in pain as it was, the ship was the most beautiful, messy ship that Silv's eyes had ever beheld.

Not many people would agree with her about her assessment, but for a person who had never seen any greenery whatsoever in person, it was the most fascinating thing that she could have imagined encountering.

The whole ship was covered in a soft green substance that Silv was unable to identify, but assumed to be some kind of plant. Not the same plants the biologists were trying to recreate in artificial conditions, but a plant the life and beauty of which she could feel radiating from every corner of the ship, even as her eyes took a lot of time to get used to the pulsating red lights.

"Is that the sentient being that your species is in symbiosis with?" Silv asked.

"No. It just fur." Wir Eis said.

It took Silv's mind a moment to understand what Wir Eis was saying having in mind his limited knowledge of the English language, but upon finally understanding that it was something like skin or hair, her fascination grew even more than before.

She couldn't help but wonder what kind of vivid and colorful creature the ship truly was when only it's outer layer was more beautiful than anything Silv had seen in her life.

"Are we hurting it by walking on this?" Silv asked.

"No pain receptor in fur." Wir Eis explained to Silv's relief.

"Can we go to the control room, then?" Silv asked.

"Yes," Wir Eis agreed.

He took a quick right turn down the hall that Silv didn't even notice, fascinated as she was by the strange 'fur' that squished under her feet as she quickly moved to follow the alien before she could get completely lost in the living beauty of the ship.

Silv remembered what Wir Eis said about Sechster Sinn, and she wondered if the feeling she was getting from the wounded ship was her sixth sense picking up all the different sensations that she didn't know she was capable of receiving.

It was as if she could feel the ship's labored breathing in the slight but constant shaking of the floor she was walking on, or as Wir Eis called it 'fur'. Even the warmth radiating from the walls felt more similar to human bodily heat than an artificially maintained environment.

Chances were that her instincts were correct, but she didn't have the time to think it through since there were more important things to figure out, such as how the ship worked and what could be done to heal it.

The strange thing about it was that Silv got the feeling that the ship didn't only need advanced technology to get it started but emotional support for someone whose heart had been broken. She felt ridiculous for even considering such an odd notion, and yet deep down in her core, she could sense the truth of her thoughts.

"Control room," Wir Eis said as he put his hand in a small hole filled with gooey liquid.

As he did that, a huge chunk of green moved aside, revealing the inside of the control room and a very angry alien.

"Human? Here? No!" Sei Eis said, trying to shield the control room from Silv's sight.

"Good human. Help." Wir Eis said.

"No good humans." Sei Eis responded.

Then they switched to the language Silv had heard them use before and she couldn't understand what was being said. However, it was obvious from the body language that they were arguing about her. The last thing she wanted to do was cause division in poor creatures' lives, so she decided to stop the arguing.

"Listen, I think I can help, but if you want me to leave and never come back, I am ready to do that," Silv said.

"Even if Silv die? From cold?" Sei Eis asked.

"Yes, I am ready to leave, even if it means dying from the cold. I've seen part of what was done to you so I can somewhat understand what has been done to your species. I don't want to add to that pain. If my leaving, or my death, will make your lives easier than I think I, in the name of my whole species, owe you that much for the injustice we have inflicted on you." Silv said.

"Silv stay. Silv help." Sei Eis said.

Then she moved aside and left the control room. It was as if although she acknowledged the human's usefulness, she was unable to bear the presence of the member of the species which murdered her family and imprisoned her.

As Sei Eis left, Wir Eis moved to the center of the room, which was glowing brightly. Then, he slid both of his hands inside a container of green goo that reacted by moving slightly, and a stronger vibration could be felt emanating from the ship.

"Controls?" Silv asked.

"Yes. Psychic controls." Wir Eis said.

"Can you show me?" Silv asked.

"Not much work now. Let Silv see." Wir Eis said.

As he said that, he closed his eyes, and Silv could see through the transparent green goo, his fingers moving gently as if coaxing it out. Following his action, the section right in front of him started shimmering and becoming more and more transparent until it became completely transparent, a window into the bleak, old hanger.

"That's so cool. How do you do that?" Silv asked.

"Think. Move gently." Wir Eis said, moving his fingers once more to emphasize his point.

Silv started to understand that the alien ship, unlike any ship that she had seen before, was operated by establishing a telepathic link with the ship's core or as it were with the ship's mind. Upon doing that, slight physical movements were used to adjust and readjust the physical aspect of the movements. It was done to avoid damaging the mechanical parts of the ship since the immediate shift that telepathic connection entailed could harm some of the more refined mechanical parts of the ship.

"Would you mind if I tried?" Silv asked, fearing that it might be impolite or wrong of her to do it but unable to resist the temptation.