The Neko's Tail - 18. The Test

A door slammed closed, startling Artemis. He stood up as a Faro, a Dalmar, and a Xanar approached.

“Good afternoon Captain,” the Dalmar said, holding out a hand.

A blue bracer rested on her forearm, and Artemis shook her hand before throwing an uncertain salute.

The Dalmar chuckled, her chocolate fur shaking.

“Relax Captain,” the Faro laughed. “We’re a relaxed bunch here. It tends to make new recruits more willing to join when you don’t bite their heads off immediately.”

A necklace dangled from his neck, also blue. He shook Artemis’ hand, a twinkle in his eye. He shared a similar colour to Reinard, though he had hints of a brown running through his body.

“I am Seeker Eitaro. This is Commander Dorail and Commander Nidara,” he said, motioning to the Xanar and the Dalmar in turn. “I am assuming you do not seek testing for yourself?”

“No Seeker,” Artemis said, motioning toward Elias. “This is my ward, Elias. He is the one who needs testing.”

The neko cringed as five sets of eyes settled on him.

“A little shy hmm?” the Xanar spoke, their deep voice surprisingly gentle.

Nonetheless, Artemis noticed Elias’ ears flatten in displeasure.

“Hey, we talked about this,” he said quietly to the neko in his own tongue. “He won’t harm you.”

Commander Dorail switched his gaze to Artemis, and Elias relaxed slightly as the Xanar’s attention left him.

“Has he had run-ins with Xanar before? He does not appear to take kindly to my speech.”

“Yes, Commander. He was kidnapped by a Xanar slaver in Asla. There was some difficulty in recovering him, and it has left him with a fear of your people. One I am working to remove.”

“Does he understand Common?”

“Yes Commander, though he does not speak it yet. He is learning, though, given his preference for silence, I also have him learning sign language.”

The Xanar nodded in understanding, turning back to Elias.

“Elias, do you mind if I talk to you by yourself? I promise your friend Captain… er…”

“Artemis,” the tiger provided, and Dorail flashed him a quick smile.

“I promise Captain Artemis will be right here waiting.”

Elias looked at Artemis fearfully. The tiger reached over and ruffled his hair lightly.

“You’ll be okay. I promise,” he said.

Slowly, Elias nodded. Artemis handed Dorail the chip with Elias’ language on it and the Xanar led the neko through a door.

“So Captain, why don’t we have a seat and you can tell us more about Elias,” Nidara smiled, motioning to the chairs.

 

“Excuse me ser, can I help you?”

Reinard jumped as an old black Faro approached the other side of the gate, a pair of shears in his hands.

“Eigal?”

The Faro squinted.

“Where did you hear that name?”

Reinard grinned.

“It is you! It’s me, Reinard!”

Eigal’s eyes widened.

“What about Reinard? What do you- Hold on.”

He unlocked the gate, letting Reinard through. Reinard ran to the old Faro, embracing him. He had so many good memories of the fox, picking vegetables with him, hiding from him in the hedge maze while munching illicitly gained fruit.

“What are you- Reinard…?”

The Faro wrapped his arms around Reinard as realization struck him.

“You’re home… You… You’re alive!”

Pulling away from the younger Faro, Eigal sniffed.

“Your Mara will want to know,” he said.

Reinard frowned.

“What about Segal?”

Eigal flinched.

“He… he died in the same... you were…” he said quietly. “I’m so sorry.”

“What? He’s dead…?”

Reinard choked back a sob, fighting a flood of memories.

“Can… Can you take me to Mara please?” he asked.

 

Elias flinched as the door closed behind him. He was cut off from Artemis again.

Dorail stuck Artemis’ chip in their bangle.

“Elias, I want you to relax. Nothing is going to happen to you in this room. We are just going to talk,” they said.

Elias scanned the room warily, taking in the green walls and cushioned chairs. He watched Dorail sit in one of the chairs, the Xanar gesturing toward another seat. Elias sat in the chair they pointed at, not wanting to anger the alien.

“Would you prefer to sign?”

Elias shook his head. He didn’t know enough to hold a conversation.

“Do you know why you are here Elias?”

The neko nodded.

“Can you explain why you’re here?” Dorail pressed.

Elias frowned.

“Artemis said I should be tested,” he said quietly, Dorail’s bracelet repeating his words in the common tongue.

“I see. Do you want to be tested?”

Elias nodded but didn’t elaborate. The Xanar sighed but didn’t push him on the testing.

“How do you feel about leaving your planet? That must have been scary.”

Elias shrugged. It had been, but he was used to it now.

“And Artemis? How do you feel about him?”

The neko closed his eyes. The Xanar was determined to make him talk.

“He saved my life,” Elias said.

“That is the story of many an explorer. When I was younger, I saved a young human from a criminal. I introduced her to space and to the fleets. But she and I didn’t get along too well, and I helped her find her own way in the universe.”

Dorail examined Elias.

“But that’s not your story, is it? Your tail tells its own story. You care for Artemis.”

Elias nodded. He did care for the cat. The neko caught his tail, holding it in his lap.

“It’s nothing to be ashamed of.”

Dorail stood up, facing Elias.

“I hope you understand that I have your best interests in mind,” they said. “Let’s head back out, and we’ll get your testing started, okay?”

 

“It seems like trouble in constantly following him.”

“I wouldn’t say constantly,” Artemis protested. “I mean, if anything, trouble is following me around.”

He heard the door open and turned. Elias followed the Xanar from the room, his expression unreadable.

“We’re ready to start testing. I’ll get the pod ready,” Dorail said, passing into another room.

“Great,” Eitaro smiled. “Elias, what do you know about the testing process?”

“Nothing, Scholar,” the neko murmured.

“It’s Seeker, actually. I haven’t been a scholar for three years now. We’re going to put you in a medical pod, but there won’t be any glass. Instead, we will stick some gels on you to monitor things. The test will take place in your mind. It is different for each person, but at the end, we will know if you are ready for any of the fleets.”

“You don’t mind if I stay with him during the test, do you? I don’t want anything to happen to him,” Artemis said.

“Well, we’ve made exceptions before,” Nidara replied with a look at Eitara.

The Faro nodded.

“You may stay with him, as long as you do not interfere in the testing. Elias, please follow me.”

Eitara walked through the door Dorail had entered and the neko followed him a moment later. Artemis trailed them uncertainly, Nidara bringing up the rear.

“Please remove your shirt. You may leave your pants on.”

Elias looked at Artemis uncertainly.

“It’s okay,” the tiger said. “I’m right here with you. Nothing’s going to happen to you.”

Taking a deep breath, the neko pulled his shirt over his head. Artemis swept his gaze over Elias’ torso, drinking in the sight. He looked so much better now than he had when he found him.

Eitara held up a circular pad.

“We’re going to attach these to your head,” he said.

Nidara ran a wipe over Elias’ forehead and the neko wrinkled his nose at the smell. Artemis knew how he felt; the antiseptic on those wipes smelled terrible.

Eitara began sticking the gels to the neko’s head, spacing them evenly around Elias’ crown.

“Hold out your arm please,” Nidara requested.

The neko silently did as he was told, allowing the Dalmar to wipe the inside of his arm. Artemis saw a small needle in Nidara’s hand and he winced as Elias was stuck with the needle.

Elias yelped as the metal entered his arm.

“Relax. That needs to stay in your arm, okay?” Eitara said. “Go ahead and get into the pod.”

Artemis stepped forward and scooped the neko into his arms. He deposited Elias gently into the pod, before backing away.

Dorail set a small mask over the neko’s mouth and nose.

“We are going to put you to sleep now. You will wake up after the test,” the Xanar said. “I’m going to count down from ten, okay?”

Elias nodded slowly, his eyes wide.

“Ten. Nine. Eight. Seven. Six.”

Artemis watched Elias’ eyelids droop slowly.

“Five. Four. Three. Two. One.”

And like that, the neko was asleep.

 

The Faro stood in front of the tall doors, his hand inches from the doorbell. He had made Eigal promise he wouldn’t tell Reinard’s Mara that Reinard was home. The Faro would do that himself.

He just needed a moment.

He could do this. Mara would be happy he was home. His ardai would be happy he was back. No one would regret this. Reinard just needed…

His finger stabbed into the bell, and he heard the deep chiming echo through the large house. It was done; there was no going back now. The Faro took a deep breath.

The door opened, revealing a smartly dressed cream coloured Faro. Reinard gulped, face to face with his ardai.

They stared at each other in silence, neither daring to speak.

Finally, the Faro whispered, “Reiny...?”

Reinard nodded, his bottom lip quivering.

“H-hi Neistar…” he breathed.

He was suddenly enveloped in a crushing hug, Neistar’s face buried in his neck.

“You’re alive… How did you get home? Where were you… Hold on, I’m going to get Segal.”

Patting Reinard’s shoulders, Neistar turned and hurried up a flight of stairs.

Reinard took a shaky breath, looking around the room. He felt like a stranger here. Nothing was the way he remembered, if he even could remember. The velvet curtains open in front of the large window shedding light into the room was new. Or was it? And the red cushioned settee facing a viewing screen. Had the screen been there ten years ago?

“Reinard…?”

Turning back to face the stairs, Reinard watched a brown Faro walked slowly down the stairs, staring as though he couldn’t believe his eyes.

“You’re home…”

Reinard rushed forward, wrapping his Mara in his arms.

“I’m home…” he whispered, tears flooding from his eyes.

 

The neko stood before a wooden table, a giant hedge on the other side of the table. Several objects sat before him, a sword, a bow with a quiver of arrows, a strange circular device, and a staff. A piece of paper lay beside them, and Elias approached cautiously. This was the test? Artemis had made it sound so scary.

Picking up the paper, the neko squinted at the words on the page. He recognized most of the letters.

Quietly, Elias began sounding out the words, hoping his translator would help.

“Ora telin e cara tiel ora igar…”

Nothing. He couldn’t understand the words, and the device in his mind wasn’t translating them.

But he was asleep. Didn’t that mean he was in his mind?

Tucking that thought away to examine later, Elias stared at the words, trying to glean some sort of meaning from them. One of them was familiar; a number.

One.

Glancing between the paper and the objects on the table, Elias realized what he was being asked to do. He needed to pick a tool.

The neko stayed away from the weapons. He never wanted to kill again. Picking up the circular object, he saw a small stick swinging back and forth in it, passing over a letter. After a moment’s inspection, he realized it was a W. More letters were written around the stick, N, S, and E.

Elias turned the device in his hands, watching the stick spin against the turn. It stayed in the same direction Elias was facing, and the neko frowned. Was the stick broken?

No… Something was making the stick stay there. If he turned…

The neko slowly turned around, watching the stick spin until it was pointing at him. Or at something behind him. Maybe he was supposed to figure out what it was pointing to?

Turning again, Elias noticed the table was gone and a hole had opened in the hedge. Shrugging, the neko stepped toward the plants, entering a maze of vegetation.

 

Nidara injected a green serum into Elias’ arm, returning quietly to the viewing screen behind the wall.

“He chose the compass,” Eitara noted.

“But he spent a while trying to figure out what it did. I don’t think he’s fully figured it out yet,” Dorail added.

Nidara stared at the screen thoughtfully, watching Elias step around trees and over roots.

“Let’s give him a few minutes. Maybe he needs to test it in an actual situation,” she decided.

Artemis was silent, watching Elias navigate the maze of his mind. He was proud of Elias. The neko couldn’t read very well, but he still understood what he needed to do. He was one smart kitten.

The neko stopped next to a tree, looking up into the sky. Suddenly he leapt at the tree, scurrying up the trunk. Artemis watched with interest as Elias breached the crown of the tree, holding the compass in a hand.

“He shows a lot of promise,” Dorail said, watching the neko scan the horizon.

‘And he looks so good doing it too…’

Artemis fought the thought back. He could deal with sexual frustration later.

Elias scampered back down the tree, glancing at his compass. He turned, and set off again, picking his way slowly through the forest.

“I’d say he’s getting the hang of orientation,” Dorail said. “Nidara, why don’t we stir him up a little, remind him that exploring isn’t always safe. Something from his past perhaps?”

Artemis frowned as an image appeared on a separate screen. This could help Elias a lot, or it could drive him insane.

 

“You’ve been a slave this entire time?!”

Neistar growled, pacing the room.

“The Dalmar held you captive beyond the war. This is unacceptable; a breach of the treaty!”

“Neistar, calm yourself.”

Reinard stared at his ardai helplessly. Neistar was pissed, and rightfully so. But he was home. There was no sense in getting upset about things that couldn’t be changed.

His Mara saw sense though.

“Segal, we’ve been looking for Reinard for ten years. And now we find out he was with the Dalmar the entire time. Those beasts lied to us-”

“And what do you want to do about it Neistar? Start another war? One that will kill millions? Seira died in the last war, your Mara. Do you want to follow him into the grave, along with the rest of our clan?”

“I want the Dalmar punished for hiding my ardai from us!” Neistar snapped.

Reinard spoke up.

“Neistar, I killed her. I killed the Dalmar who held me as her slave. Isn’t that punishment enough? I just want to put this behind me.”

“Your ardai speaks sense Neistar. Reinard, where is the one who brought you home?”

“It was a tiger and… I think he’s called a neko. Captain Artemis of the IEFL, and Elias. They were ordered to keep me collared until I became an Alliance citizen. But they were both kind to me.”

His Mara nodded to his words.

“Send word for them to join us tomorrow. I wish to thank them personally for bringing you back to us,” he said to Neistar.

The Faro nodded stiffly and left the room.

“Reinard, we kept your room the same, though I’m afraid your old clothes will no longer fit. We’ll fix that tomorrow as well as get you registered with the Alliance.”

“Thank you Mara,” Reinard smiled slightly. "I’m going to rest for a bit.”

“Of course. Take all the time you need. I’m just so happy to have you back.”

 

Elias climbed over a wall of vines, wincing as one cut his arm. He didn’t know how long he had been walking for, but he was always heading in the direction the stick pointed.

It was nice walking by himself. Maybe he was failing the test, maybe not. But he could do whatever he wanted right now. The silent forest around him soothed his mind, reassuring the neko that no one was around to punish him.

Dropping from the wall, the neko checked the device, making sure he hadn’t been turned around.

“We found you.”

Elias yelped at the sudden voice, dropping low as he looked up.

Danuva and Quarian were blocking his path, cornering him against the wall.

“You shouldn’t have run from us,” Quarian said.

He hadn’t run. At least, he hadn’t run from Quarian…

“Show him what happens when slaves try to escape Quarian,” Danuva grinned.

Quarian snarled, melting into a large black wolf. He growled at Elias, stalking ever closer to the neko.

The stench of urine filled the air as Elias’ bladder failed. He curled into a ball, waiting for the wolf to attack.

A rock clattered next to him, and the neko grabbed it in desperation. As Quarian finally lunged, Elias swung his arm, the stone connecting with the wolf’s jaw.

Quarian crumpled and Danuva snarled, stepping toward Elias. The neko leapt up and grabbed the wall, scaling it as fast as he could.

Dropping back onto the other side, Elias took off running, tears streaming down his face.

 

“Pull him out.”

They ignored him, as he knew they would. Artemis couldn’t watch this. There was nothing he could do to help Elias right now.

“He does not appear to favor combat,” Nidara said.

“His mental stability is also in question. These memories do not appear to be real,” Eitara added.

They watched the neko slow down, falling against a tree. Elias suddenly scrambled to pull off his pants, tearing them and leaving a strip of fabric hanging from the tree.

“He is making lures,” Dorail noted with interest. “Nidara, could he actually accomplish anything with them?”

“It depends,” the Dalmar replied. “Canines have acute senses of smell. He would have to either set up an ambush…”

“Highly unlikely in my opinion,” Eitara said.

“...Or cross his own path enough to thoroughly confuse his trackers.”

Artemis watched the now-naked neko climb a tree, leaving his ruined pants below. The tiger winced as scrapes and cuts appeared on Elias’ legs.

Removing his shirt, Elias flung it over a branch, stepping lightly along another branch. He jumped toward another tree, catching a branch one handed.

Artemis let out a quiet whimper as the neko dragged himself up the tree. He was bleeding in several places but he kept moving, repeating the jumps several more times while following his compass.

“He is resourceful,” Dorail smiled. “I could see him being an explorer.”

Elias’ ears flared as a howl was heard. He leapt to another tree, flattening himself against a branch.

“I think we’ve seen enough,” Eitara said. “Nidara?”

The Dalmar stepped toward a set of vials, drawing an orange liquid into a syringe. Making her way to Elias, she injected the neko again.

“We’ll give you the room,” Dorail smile at Artemis. “He should wake in five minutes. By then we’ll have our decision.”

The tiger nodded distractedly as he saw himself appear on the screen, drawing Elias into an embrace. The Fleet officers left the room, closing the door quietly behind them.