Read Online Epic: Book 02 - Outlaw Trigger by Lee Stephen - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Lee Stephen
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Xenobiology. It’s a remarkable field.”
“ Is that why you’ve come here tonight?”
“ It is.”
Torokin fell silent. Archer was the last person he’d expected to run into. But what the new judge claimed was correct. Torokin distinctly remembered hearing about Archer’s involvement with alien interrogations. He wasn’t sure where he’d heard it from, or from whom, but he remembered that it had been briefly brought up.
“ Mind if I?” Archer asked the scientist.
The scientist quickly stood from his chair. “Not at all, Judge Archer, please do.” He allowed the new judge to sit down. “Welcome to Confinement Command.”
“ Thank you very much.” Archer turned his attention to the Ithini. It stared back with blank inattention. “B’nik ya`asua,” Archer said with a smile. “My name is Ben.”
“ I could not get him to connect,” the scientist said. “He does not want to speak.”
“ Oh, but he does,” Archer answered. “He just doesn’t realize it yet.”
Torokin appeared skeptical as Archer began to speak to the alien prisoner.
“ The blue tit is nonmigratory, commonly found in the countries of Europe and western Asia. With a wingspan of approximately thirteen centimeters, it is one of Britain’s smallest and most popular garden-variety birds—”
There was a noticeable change in the Ithini’s expression. Its eyes seemed to shift, appearing frantically more alert.
Archer smiled. “And just like that, we’re connected.”
The scientist’s jaw practically dropped.
Torokin’s stare went from doubting to impressed.
“ How did you do that?” the scientist asked.
“ He made it curious,” Torokin answered.
Archer grinned. “Absolutely correct. You see, before, this was all too typical. You came in, you greeted him, you asked him questions. He knew what to expect.” Archer turned back to the alien. “But what I just gave him was new. I threw him something he didn’t expect. I started talking, and he wanted to know what I was talking about. It’s as simple as that.”
“ Yu’toi yanta ,” the Ithini hissed hoarsely.
Torokin and the scientist stared.
“ Oh, and he’s not happy one bit,” chuckled Archer. “But it’s all right.” He spoke to the alien. “You’re still going to learn something new. A blue tit is a bird, it’s one of the animals on Earth. It flies in the air with wings, and on those wings there are feathers. Would you like a picture?”
“ Yu’toi yanta, nihash tzia -na.”
Archer laughed as he spoke to the men. “That’s about as close as they come to sarcasm.” He rose from his chair. “You’d better get him a picture by tomorrow.”
“ You speak Ithini?” Torokin asked.
“ I’ve studied it. It’s not a difficult alien language to learn. Almost as easy as Bamkanese.”
Torokin fell silent for a moment. “Then you know why they are here.”
Archer moved to the Russian’s side and the scientist sat down again. “‘Jub’isha tau zeinilik Reshuah’,” he recited. “‘The Great Race for Earth’.”
Torokin’s focus trained onto Archer. The new judge was exactly correct. That was what the ics called it. Or at least, that was the closest way for EDEN to remember it. The actual translation was somewhat more complex. More literally, it meant, ‘the necessary obligation to preemptively fulfill Earth.’ As to what that meant, no one knew. “You will not be learning as many new things as I thought you would,” said Torokin.
“ There’s much yet to know. What is this race that they’re running? What is the goal? And more pertinent to us…why Earth? There’s only one thing we truly do know.” He leaned into Torokin, as his voice fell somber. “Whatever it is they’re racing towards…apparently, we’re in the way.”
“ Yet they do not destroy us,” Torokin said. He stared at the now unresponsive Ithini.
“ No they don’t,” Archer affirmed. “When we lose a city to the Bakma, the Bakma abandon it. The
“ Is that why you’ve come here tonight?”
“ It is.”
Torokin fell silent. Archer was the last person he’d expected to run into. But what the new judge claimed was correct. Torokin distinctly remembered hearing about Archer’s involvement with alien interrogations. He wasn’t sure where he’d heard it from, or from whom, but he remembered that it had been briefly brought up.
“ Mind if I?” Archer asked the scientist.
The scientist quickly stood from his chair. “Not at all, Judge Archer, please do.” He allowed the new judge to sit down. “Welcome to Confinement Command.”
“ Thank you very much.” Archer turned his attention to the Ithini. It stared back with blank inattention. “B’nik ya`asua,” Archer said with a smile. “My name is Ben.”
“ I could not get him to connect,” the scientist said. “He does not want to speak.”
“ Oh, but he does,” Archer answered. “He just doesn’t realize it yet.”
Torokin appeared skeptical as Archer began to speak to the alien prisoner.
“ The blue tit is nonmigratory, commonly found in the countries of Europe and western Asia. With a wingspan of approximately thirteen centimeters, it is one of Britain’s smallest and most popular garden-variety birds—”
There was a noticeable change in the Ithini’s expression. Its eyes seemed to shift, appearing frantically more alert.
Archer smiled. “And just like that, we’re connected.”
The scientist’s jaw practically dropped.
Torokin’s stare went from doubting to impressed.
“ How did you do that?” the scientist asked.
“ He made it curious,” Torokin answered.
Archer grinned. “Absolutely correct. You see, before, this was all too typical. You came in, you greeted him, you asked him questions. He knew what to expect.” Archer turned back to the alien. “But what I just gave him was new. I threw him something he didn’t expect. I started talking, and he wanted to know what I was talking about. It’s as simple as that.”
“ Yu’toi yanta ,” the Ithini hissed hoarsely.
Torokin and the scientist stared.
“ Oh, and he’s not happy one bit,” chuckled Archer. “But it’s all right.” He spoke to the alien. “You’re still going to learn something new. A blue tit is a bird, it’s one of the animals on Earth. It flies in the air with wings, and on those wings there are feathers. Would you like a picture?”
“ Yu’toi yanta, nihash tzia -na.”
Archer laughed as he spoke to the men. “That’s about as close as they come to sarcasm.” He rose from his chair. “You’d better get him a picture by tomorrow.”
“ You speak Ithini?” Torokin asked.
“ I’ve studied it. It’s not a difficult alien language to learn. Almost as easy as Bamkanese.”
Torokin fell silent for a moment. “Then you know why they are here.”
Archer moved to the Russian’s side and the scientist sat down again. “‘Jub’isha tau zeinilik Reshuah’,” he recited. “‘The Great Race for Earth’.”
Torokin’s focus trained onto Archer. The new judge was exactly correct. That was what the ics called it. Or at least, that was the closest way for EDEN to remember it. The actual translation was somewhat more complex. More literally, it meant, ‘the necessary obligation to preemptively fulfill Earth.’ As to what that meant, no one knew. “You will not be learning as many new things as I thought you would,” said Torokin.
“ There’s much yet to know. What is this race that they’re running? What is the goal? And more pertinent to us…why Earth? There’s only one thing we truly do know.” He leaned into Torokin, as his voice fell somber. “Whatever it is they’re racing towards…apparently, we’re in the way.”
“ Yet they do not destroy us,” Torokin said. He stared at the now unresponsive Ithini.
“ No they don’t,” Archer affirmed. “When we lose a city to the Bakma, the Bakma abandon it. The
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