The Lost Artifact Of Spode

018

Mel stared blankly at the metal wall infront of him. After what felt to him to be days, he was finally freed from that room with the awful lights, and freed from those handcuffs. Only to be thrown in another cell, isolated from others. Again.

It's terrible here, but he'd much rather be locked in isolation than trapped with someone like Imperial Xia. She was ruthless with Mel, and determined to get answers out of him.

He was able to get away with feeding her mostly lies, thankfully, so he didn't garentee himself getting fired. However, it didn't come without a cost.

Mel carefully rubs his swollen wrist. All of his fingers to his left hand were broken now, and his hand is discoloured. He's not confident he'll even keep his hand once he finally makes it home. But it wasn't the only loss she gave him.

He doesn't have his left eye anymore.

It was her opener to the torture she put him through. Mel didn't notice that tools lined the walls of that room he was in, but the Imperial showed him when she pulled a spoon from that wall. Never in a thousand years would he have guessed what she was going to do with that spoon.

But thankfully, she's finally done with him. At least, as far as he knows and desperately hopes. Now, he's just waiting for his chance to be returned home.

Needless to be said, Mel is really disappointed in this trip. He came here on a whim because of some dumb dream of his, and things turned out so much worse than he could have ever imagined. Not to mention the recompressions he's going to face once he finally makes it home.

He didn't even get a chance to find what Spode sent him out for.

Suddenly, a clanking noise snaps Mel out of his sulking thoughts. An alien came by to give Mel his first meal in days. Days Mel was used to.

A metal trey clicked against a platform attached to the door, and on it rested some strange, bright blue... thing.

Not even starving could put off Mel's pickiness. He didn't even bother to stand up to take the trey. Instead, he makes a face at the weird substance on his trey.

"What is that?" He asks, a fearful disgust lingering in his voice.

The alien looks between Mel and his meal. "Breakfast," she answers.

That wasn't the answer he was looking for. "But *what* is that?!" He asks again.

"Fish," she plainly answers.

He didn't bother trying to hide his dread at her answer.

Fish. Of course it has to be fish. The one thing he couldn't bring himself to eat even back on Earth.

But it's another planet, he tries telling himself. Another species entirely. It might not be like what he's used to at all. It can be a good difference!

Still, he sat on the ground. He wasn't ready to approach his meal.

The Proximian suddenly spoke, "Are you... afraid of fish?" She asks.

Mel stiffens at her accusation. He hadn't realised she was watching his strange behavior this entire time. "Eh..." he spoke, but he didn't know how to answer. Of course he wasn't afraid of it, but he hated admitting to people about his pickiness.

Especially now, of all times, when he's supposed to be able to push past it.

She smiled at his reaction. "It's OK, it's dead. It can't bite you."

Her words were meant to be comforting, but Mel found them insulting more than anything.

"Don't belittle me."

Without another word, the Proximian turns and leaves Mel's line of sight. It wasn't until she was gone that Mel realised he didn't want her to go.

"Ah, wait!" He calls after her, springing up from the floor. A wave of dizziness washed over him, but still he stumbled his way to the bars. As soon as he grabbed onto the bar, he let himself fall back down to the floor. "Wait, Senora. Miss, come back please."

Hesitently, she did. Mel finally gets a good look at this alien. She's a rather slim person, and her skin is a much paler blue than the other aliens Mel has seen so far. Her black hair reaches down to her knees and is tied together in several places.

Truth be tol, Mel didn't think this far ahead. He was just very desperate for a conversation. The kind of socolisation that made him feel like a human rather than an animal in a prison. "Er, what are you doing?"

"Work," she plainly answers, unsure what Mel is up to. 

"So what is that? Do you go around, giving prisoners their meals?"

She slowly shakes her head. "You're the only prisoner in this part. I'm just being a guard."

"Wait, really?" He asks, astonished. He looks up and down the halls where his cell resides. "This place is so big. How am I the only one here?"

She didn't know what to reply with. Instead, she finally asks him, "What are you doing?"

"Sitting here."

"No. Are you trying to do something?" She looks around her. "Is this a distraction?"

"Oh! No, nothing like that!"

"Then what are you up to?"

Embarrassed, he glanced away. "Ah... I just want someone to talk to," he admits. "Is that OK?"

Her suspension died down a little. She glances around the hallway again, then gives Mel a small smile. "How cute," she chuckles.

He stiffens. "Not like that-!"

"Do you want a friend?"

He paused. That wasn't what he was going for, but he wouldn't complain if he got a new friend out of this. He hesitently asks back, "Do you want a friend?"

Her smile grew. "Sure!"

"What's your name?"

"Eluyita."

Mel was thankful for another name he would be able to pronounce. He gave her a friendly smile. "Nice to meet you, Eluyita. You can just call me Mel."

To his present surprise, Eluyita let him talk to her. The two had lost the time just chatting with one another. Eluyita really wasn't much of a conversationalist, though. In fact, Mel had to practically drag her through topics just to keep the conversation going for as long as it did. If he wasn't so persistent, every other sentence she spoke would have been then end to their conversation.

But she didn't seem to mind his perseverance. Eluyita was actually enjoying talking as much as they were. She was just, genuinely, really bad at conversating.

Eventually, another Proximian came by and sent Eluyita away. He had no interest in taking her place and left Mel all alone once again, taking away his now old food that he had completely forgotten about.

Mel no longer had anything to do but count the second while he waited.

How long was it again until he would get to go home?