Shattered Stars

Interrogation

"Agreed."

"What!?" I shouted at Kyrom, baring my teeth. "You can't be serious!"

The General nodded. "That is greatly appreciated, Captain."

"My statement from before still stands," Kyrom assured him. "He will not attack. It is in his best interest."

"Why you motherf—" My voice stopped working while my mouth formed certain choice words. Kyrom had remotely activated my acoustic camouflage.

The General addressed me as the three officers strolled toward the van. "You will come with us. You should be able to fit in the back of the van."

After I calmed down, I examined the van and peered at Kyrom. He nodded. "Follow the General."

"We will return within one hour," the General announced.

I looked at Neval for help. He flinched slightly under my gaze. "It will be over faster if you cooperate."

I sighed, ending it with a growl. "Fine."

The Colonel opened the back of the van, and I eyed him warily. He looked like he wanted to say something to me but only motioned for me to get in.

I eyed the three aliens a final time, before squeezing into the back. The driver gave me nervous glances as I curled myself up so I would fit comfortably. Ronna and the Colonel both sat stiff as boards in the row in front of me.

"This is so dumb," I complained as the engine rumbled to life. "What the hell is this going to accomplish? What would I know that could possibly help them?"

The van turned around and drove back the way it came, bumping along the dirt road.

Kyrom was the one to respond. "That, I do not know, but it will help them trust us better regardless... Just be cautious with your words."

While he talked, a "Transmitting" symbol appeared in a corner of my interface. I furrowed my eyeridges. "But you still don't trust them, huh? You're really going to spy on them?"

He took a while to respond. "Part of the mission protocol is we see what each other sees."

I shook my head. Spying it is then.

Everyone was dead silent during the short drive to the bottom of the mountain. We stopped in the middle of the road, inside a circle of masked soldiers holding rifles.

My breath caught in my throat. More guns pointed at me...

The General, Colonel, and Ronna scrambled out, leaving the paranoid driver stranded in the van. The back of the van flung open.

"Out," barked the Colonel.

The word stung like a slap in the face. To be treated like a wild animal by my own species... It felt like betrayal. I almost didn't leave the van because of that, but I thought better of it. I eased out of the back, and sat on the road, surveying the circle of soldiers around me. A few of them had their rifles pointed at me. I struggled against the urge to cower in fear. The van pulled away and turned around, shining its headlights onto the scene.

General Bradson joined me in the middle of the circle, his eyes scanning me head to tail. "Alright, Croc, I will ask straightforward questions, and if you give me straightforward answers, we will get along. Understood?"

I nodded timidly.

He narrowed his eyes. "What are you?"

I looked down at my draconic body, perplexed. "W-Well, it's tough to explain."