Starsnatcher - Trapped In An Alien World [COMPLETE]

Chapter 3.2

"We can do this the easy or the hard way," Crick transmitted.

Wow, verbal clichés truly transcend space and time.

Our monochrome hospital room was featureless. No shelves. No boxes. It had been cleared of furniture to create a sense of isolation only an interrogation chamber provided. As during our first meeting though, the entire wall was lit by LEDs with an extra-bright spot near the ceiling. That spot shone straight into my face like a desk lamp. The rest of the wall's lighting was dimmed to increase the lamp's effect.

Crick never spent longer than five seconds without flickering.

They were light-sensitive creatures and probably thought shining on my face like in a cliché cop show would break me.

I closed my eyes.

"It truly should not pose a dilemma to you," Crick transmitted. "Option one is that you explain what took place while the terrorists attached you to their virtual reality. Option two is that we overwhelm you with unpleasant sensory experiences and then you explain what took place while the terrorists attached you to their virtual reality."

My fingers tapped on the millipede robot's surface. Finding the right words to say was hard enough without the threat of torture. What if I told them that I just gave Sye the ability to control the strongest weapon on their planet? Wouldn't that give them an extra reason to torture me?

"Keep in mind that my patience is not as vast as my intellect," Crick added.

"Professor, let's not pressure him," Helix cut in. Then, they turned to me. "How about an offer? If you tell us the truth, you receive amnesty. It doesn't matter what you told them. As long as you stick to the truth, you won't be punished."

Were they playing the good and the bad cop again? I wondered if they watched the same TV shows as we humans did. If they did, it explained how they knew these cliché phrases.

I was about to ask them what Sye's organization was up to, but by asking that question, I would have given away who interrogated me. Therefore, I asked for something else.

"I'll explain when you make just one promise," I transmitted. "You must promise that you will work on a program to fly me back to Earth. Only then will I talk."

"You are making impossible demands," Crick transmitted. "On purpose. You are complicit in terrorism."

They knew!

I opened my eyes again. My eye contact was with them to avoid staring directly into the ceiling light. Don't know I did this. Probably out of fear that they might have planned something while I was half sleeping.

"What exactly are you accusing me of being complicit in," I asked. "Just curious."

"Right now, I am accusing you of stalling time!" Crick transmitted. "But to counter your ludicrous evasions, I will explain what we observed.

"You passed out after harming yourself with a stick found to be poisoned. When we retrieved you from the dome for medical treatment, terrorists shot our wardens and carried you into this room. We did eventually find the culprits and arrested them.

"However, during the ensuing mayhem, terrorists allied to them abused the chaos to launch an attack on our President's hall."

Helix pulled out their terminal. It blinked in a way that reminded me of phones buzzing whenever someone sent a message.

"Professor-"

"Stop defending him!"

"Professor, we should go!"