The Autobiography Of An Alien

Chapter 12 - Alliance, part 6

Draft #51 - Trials

Trials were not often held at the Core, considering that the place was, first and foremost, a place of peace and sanctity. To break the peace at such an establishment was met with scorn, and in some cases, galactic punishment.

The Alliance prided itself on being fair and just. After all, if one were to hold the greatest gathering of sapient species in the known universe and end up corrupt, rebellion would happen just as surely as the death of a star. Therefore, most situations that arose in the Core were handled by that species leader, and in the case of a leader acting up, a small, impartial council would be held to determine the fate of such behavior. Often, it was as simple as sending them home.

***

In the middle of the night, Rulshkka woke to a very concerned Kohgrash hovering over him. His face melted into one of relief as soon as his eyes snapped open.

"Sorry," Kohgrash whispered hoarsely. He cleared his throat, leaning backward. "You were still."

"That's what one often does when sleeping," Rulshkka mused tiredly, unable to find the will to keep his eyes open any longer. They were heavy, like he had weights attached to his very skin.

Kohgrash made a noise, something choked between a laugh and a grunt. "Yeah. Sleeping. Yeah, yeah..." he muttered to himself. Rulshkka felt him pull the blankets around his shoulders. "Vok'Rul..."

Rulshkka grunted to let the human know he was still awake. He had only just gotten to sleep, and while his entire being was exhausted, he didn't know if he could go back.

Kohgrash was quiet enough that he would've suspected he had fallen asleep, were it not for his nervous fidgeting. "Was it your mom who told you that you weren't important?"

Yellow eyes stared at the ceiling, barren and almost unfamiliar before he sat up in the bed, shifting to face Kohgrash. Something in him compelled him to be honest tonight. Perhaps it was the brush with death, somewhere far away from his home. Perhaps it was his exhaustion, chewing at every bone in his body. Or perhaps it was because Kohgrash was looking at him with such an expression that Rulshkka needed to wipe away in order to gain any peace.

"I am selfish, Kohgrash," he started. Kohgrash opened his mouth, no doubt to refute that statement. Kohgrash was the complete opposite of him. The Vokkrus placed his claws on Kohgrash's knee, and his jaws clicked shut with a snap. "I am selfish, and yet, I do not place value in myself, but rather in what I want.

"When I was younger, there were only a handful of things I wanted," Rulshkka frowned at Kohgrash, half-shrouded in the darkness. The only light that came in was from the soft blinking indicators on the outside of the Core, coming in through the window. "To go to school, to learn how to snap my fingers, and my mother's attention."

Rulshkka sighed. He did not want to go into depth about his mother, especially at this hour of the night. Hardly anyone knew about his past, aside from Rukka, and he wasn't even sure how much she knew. Did she remember how their mother treated him? Did she care?

Of course she does, Rulshkka thought to himself, shaking his head briefly.

"She taught me... a fair number of things. Among those things was the necessity to put anything I wanted in front of my own needs. If you live, if you survive another day, even though it may mean that I do not, then I will have died happy. I am selfish, Kohgrash, because I will get what I want."

If he did not, Rulshkka was terrified of what he would do. The burning rage at the Glorcxans had yet to fade from his chest.

Kohgrash's look was intense, and although his eyes did not glow, Rulshkka swore he saw them flash. "That's not fair," he hissed angrily. "Why don't... You need self-preservation, y'know."