Chapter 1
The alarm resounded throughout Orion’s darkened room, the chilled air wrapping around him, replacing the previous blanket’s warmth with a blanket of chill as he stood up from his bed. He looked at the clock,reading seven o’clock, sighed and then stretched his arms out. Dragging himself out of the bed, he flicked on the lights, went over to a dresser and pulled out clothes, a plain black t-shirt and a pair of black pants with a green stripe down the sides.
Orion slipped on his clothes, grabbing a holster with pistol inside that sat on his nightstand,unlocked his door to the outside and walked out into a hallway, where white plated walls extended in two directions, each side coming to a T intersections on either side. Orion turned left and continued to the T intersection, coming up to a metal door labelled in thick bold letters MESS HALL, and opened it, the door producing a metallic groan as it swung open,revealing an rather spacious dining room, circular tables evenly spaced, all with equal chairs for everyone of them.
He made quick unwilling glances around the room,at the small holes piercing the white plated walls,the claw marks on a few of the tables,the dried blood on the floor. He was slightly nervous as he went to kitchen,as if something was going to leap out at him. He breathed out a sigh of relief,an unexpected relief however; He couldn’t figure why he would be relieved when he was stuck on this station,He guessed that he knew somewhere in the back of his mind he would be safe if he acted normal,if he didn’t pose as a threat.
He took out a premade meal tray out of a freezer drawer and put it inside of the microwave,who’s cover still had smears of blood on it. Orion looked away from it as his breakfast slowly cooked,his thoughts drifting to his fellow crew members. The timer went off,shaking Orion back to the present where he grabbed his meal and sat down at one of the tables.
He ripped off the cover,and began slowly ate. The taste was absent for most of it,and what could be tasted was edible. As Orion ate,his ear could hear footsteps behind him,claws scraping against the metal floor,and a long tail dragging behind the creature which approached him. Orion continued normally,a lump in his throat growing as the sound grew near. Sweat was running down his brow,but he remained as he was,trying to swallow his food but fear had other plans.
He turned his head,coming face to face with a creature a foot taller than he was,adorned in thick dark green scales,jagged teeth jutting out from under it’s lips,dagger like claws on its hands and the two feet it stood on,and a thick heavy tail dragging behind it. The creature made no motion towards him,but towards the chair beside him,on which it attempted to sit on,with some success in its endeavor;Its final position seemed mildly uncomfortable,it’s tail having to be bend over to the side.
Orion swallowed the food still in his mouth,and spoke to the creature that stared at him with bright yellow eyes.
“Good morning Starlight.”
“Good morning Orion.” A voice said in the back of his head;The creature didn’t move it’s mouth.
“You know that I still haven’t gotten used to that.”
“Well maybe if you understood my language I wouldn’t have to use telepathy.”
“I knew I should have taken that class in alien lizardese. I mean what do you do anyways? Roar?”
“Telepathic communication works best,but for those not listening,growling and baring your teeth seems to work...sometimes anyways.
Orion took another bite and looked at Starlight.
“Hungry?”
“No I just got done eating.”
Orion hadn’t noticed the blood on her lips and claws. She definitely did eat,very recently. He set down his fork for a minute,his body overflowing with anger and sadness.
“Orion whats wrong?”
“Nothing...just...don’t worry about it.”
“Are you still mad what happened to the other humans?”
“No not mad…” Anger quickly turned to fear again,his body tensed and the lump reformed back in his throat. “Just...it’s just hard to take in...thats all.”
“Are you mad that I’m eating what’s left of them?”
“Yes...no...just...don’t talk about it please.”
“I don’t want you to be mad at me. It wasn’t my fault...”
Orion went silent for a time,wanting to scream out his true feelings, but he ultimately knew two things. That she was right, and that reacting too harshly would provoke her.
“Yeah...I know. It was self defense. But...eating them? Starlight...those people were my friends…”
“You told me that before. We went over this before Orion. I got to eat...and we do not waste what we kill. If it’s any consideration, they taste very good.”
“Stop.” Orion clenched his fists,holding back a blackened storm cloud from exiting out of his lips; Thoughts that were best kept to himself.
“Sorry.” Starlight moved over to him,nudging him with her snout. “So...what do you want to do?”
“We-Well I got the weekly maintenance done...we can just go to the rec room.”
“And do what there?”
“Um...damn...how about we just watch TV? I know there’s a few movies out there.”
“Movies?”
“Moving pictures...damn that doesn’t work either, um,you’ll see.”
“This better not be a trick.” Starlight tensed up,her posture shifting forward and her eyes focused straight at her potential threat.
“No tricks, I promise.”
Orion finished his breakfast and led Starlight out of the mess hall,into the hallway,where crimson streaked across one side of the wall,and holes the size of a bullet dotted it’s twin. The two walked through a hanging mist of silence,which seemed to collect inside Orion’s throat as a heavy lump. The corridor continued down,parts of which were stained in past events,depicting the final moments of his friends and fellow crew members,while he walked alongside the very creature responsible for it all,and the two were both heading out to sit down and relax;That thought alone made him miss a step in his pace.
Finally the two entered a large room,where gym equipment sat in one corner, a small lounge opposite it,and in the front of the room was a large couch with an equally large and wide screen posted at the front. Orion went over to the lounge area,while Starlight stood in the middle of the room,her golden eyes staring at him as he opened the fridge,taking out a can. He walked back to the couch and sat down.
“Care to join me?” He said.
Starlight uttered a sound,animalistic and feral,but non-threatening. She looked at the soft fabric of the couch before sitting down as best she could,her tail laying beside her.
“Now what?” She asked,her unblinking eyes still fixed on Orion.
“Now we watch.” Orion picked up the remote; Starlight uttered another sound,deep in her throat,animalistic and feral as before,but now threatening. Her body tensed up as well,her claws almost digging into the fabric,her posture leaning forward as if ready to pounce.
“It’s just a remote...calm down…”
Starlight’s deep growl dissipated,but she was still tense. As Orion leaned back in his seat,Starlight pushed herself closer to him; Close enough to feel her warm breath on his neck as she aimed her shredding jaws at the bridge between his head and the rest of his body.
Orion,sweating nervously,turned on the TV,and picked a movie. It was one of the older ones he heard about,but never got to watch. Something about people with laser swords and magic. The 1970s were odd.
“See...nothing can hurt you here.” Orion said,setting down the remote.
Starlight said nothing,as her gaze turned to the screen,bewitching her body as if she was paralysed.
“I can see you’re interested in it. Don’t get too into it now.”
Starlight looked at him,nudging his arm out of the way and pushing even closer to him,her weight leaning onto him.
She’s warm. Orion thought. Her species must be warm-blooded.
His observation startled him. Why was he taking notes about her? She isn’t a scientific discover,she was a killer,a monster,sitting next to him,keeping him warm in a cold room,watching a movie together. For someone who killed everyone except one on this station,she didn’t seem like she could harm a fly. At least in actions seemed that way; Her appearance was that of a predator,and he knew she was. She ate only meat,she couldn’t nor wouldn’t try to stomach the rations. She wanted fresh kills,meat that was going to go to waste anyways,and that meat was what remained of the rest of the crew.
He looked at Starlight,who’s attention seemed to be glued to the TV,and slowly opened his can of soda. He had a thought that the pop of the can would startle her,to the point he’d end up having claws through his chest. But she didn’t move or even flinch. She was a child who was busy watching television,and nothing would be able to get her attention.
Orion looked down at his hip,his handgun firmly secured in his holster. If she didn’t notice the can pop open,surely she wouldn’t notice him prepare his gun? He looked away,taking a sip of his drink. He knew he couldn’t risk it now,he knew she wasn’t going to hurt him unless he tried to hurt her. But then again the lump formed in his throat,accompanied by a burning feeling next to his heart,the feeling that he wanted,needed, her dead. Vengeance for the people she killed.
He took another sip,clearing his thoughts. Right now,he just wanted to relax after a week of maintaining the station by himself. The two sat in silence for the next few hours,Starlight already asking for another movie before the current one ended. Eventually,as the hours drifted by,their sixth movie just starting,his eyes felt heavy. He looked at the clock,reading 8 O clock. He hadn’t realized they sat and watched movies for more than ten hours,but his body knew it. He could barely keep his eyes open long enough to see what was going on. His head dipped low,his body feeling a warmth next to him; a perfect place to put his head. His eyes closed,and his head laid against the warmth,and then there was darkness. There was nothing
But in a second,there was a voice,calling his name.
“Orion? Orion,wake up.”
The darkness turned to a bright light,focusing into a blurry image,coming clear as he lifted his head up. He rubbed his eyes and yawned and turned to see Starlight. His mind still half asleep,he almost jumped at her sight,reaching for his pistol,stopping before he could unfasten the strap. Starlight leaned herself back away from Orion,and tilted her head,looking more curious than aggressive.
“Sorry...you just scared me,that’s all.”
Starlight relaxed herself,her head hanging low. “Oh...well,it stopped.”
“What stopped? Oh the movie. Well,we can watch another one later. It’s late,and I’m still tired.”
“Oh...okay. Well I’m hungry so I’m gonna eat something before I sleep.”
“Something. Yeah…” Orion sat up,not looking at Starlight as he left the room.
His stomach growled at him,raking a set of claws from the inside. He stopped by the mess hall,grabbed some food and ate on the way back. His shock finally hit him as he walked; He almost tried to kill her,and he regretted that,and he didn’t know why. He couldn’t figure if it was because he was scared of her,and of what she would do if her life was threatened,but there was something else. He was scared of hurting her. Silence filled the answer to the question he kept asking himself as he walked into his room,undressed for bed,locked his door,and climbed into the bed. After all she had done,why would he wish not to hurt her,to avenge the ones she killed?
