A little bit earlier.
Amethyst spreads her wings and waits for the purple substance to cover its gaps and harden.
Once the wings are dry, she gives them a mighty flap, immediately, a sharp pain shoots through her right wing.
Aghh what is this… pain
She nearly crashes back on the floor.
My right wing must be hurt…
But I still gotta get out of here.
She starts flying towards the ceiling, slowly with large flaps, unable to start up her wings properly due to the pain of the fracture.
She flaps towards the lamps and past them, the ceiling lamps hanging from the ceiling casting their light downwards, leaving the ceiling in darkness.
She sees the approaching ceiling with her irises night vision.
Perfect, doesn't look too sturdy.
She starts channeling her purple flow to her blades, as the pressure drops in her wings, the purple starts leaking out rapidly through the fracture in her right wing's bone.
A purple ball covered by the flight film had been building at the tip of her broken wing bone that now drops, the film breaking mid-fall exposing the purple substance to the outside air, bursting into flames.
It whooshes down and hits somewhere below.
The last remains of the purple liquid remaining in her wing's canals leak out, it ignites, the fire starts dripping down her wing’s frame.
Oh shit.
Two voices say in unison inside her head as she notices the glow of flame on her back due to the light it is casting.
She flaps as quickly as she can, the flaming trail going further down the wing and approaching her exposed back skin.
She haphazardly cuts a triangle on the ceiling and flies out, feeling the heat of the fire approaching her unprotected back.
Outside, a sun is shining. A single sun.
She’s in a different solar system.
Maybe even in a different galaxy.
Fields of green grass, flowery meadows, rolling hills and thick forests of overly green trees spread all around the large fenced compound.
The nature looks totally untouched, if it wasn’t for this great facility in the middle of it all.
She doesn’t have time to think of her destination, anywhere other than here is fine, a hill about the same height as the compound catches her eye. It’s not too far, but hopefully far enough away from this place, she estimates she should be able to make it there before burning too badly.
As she flies across the compound towards it, she sees a lot of people scrambling around on the yard with guns and other gear.
Animals run around on the fenced grounds fighting them.
The humans fire their laser guns as well as some other rifles Amethyst does not recognize.
Some throw nets on the smaller animals to recapture them, while trying to steer the large ones directly into cages situated on the outside.
A large dark gray animal breaks through the border fence and other animals follow behind its trail.
The humans don’t chase after them but instead run to block the hole in the wall, standing in the way of any further escapees.
“Hey? You see that?” Somebody shouts from below.
Laser fire zips past her, but she is quickly out of range and on the other side of the fence.
The fire starts feeling uncomfortable.
Amethyst contemplates on using her head wings to get there faster, but she'd rather not use any more of her blood if she could help it.
She's feeling faint as it was already.
“AaaaaaAAAH!” She buzzes aloud in pain, her antennae frantic and mandibles wild.
The flame has reached her back, it burns, smolders there, ever burning like napalm.
She's almost at the hill, with her final enduring strength she launches herself forwards and upwards with a large flap.
She can no longer take the pain and starts folding her wings, the purple glass shatters and sparkles in the sunlight as she contracts her wings and closes her back’s shell.
She flies through the air with her remaining momentum, just about making it over the hill’s steep cliff edge, narrowly avoiding a head on collision.
Crashing down uncontrollably on the hill, she plows into the green grass and dirt.
...
Wake up
...
Come on, get up.
You can’t stay here.
Who are you?
Amethyst asks the unknown feminine voice in her head.
I... don’t know...
Are you the strange voice I keep hearing?
Yes, I believe so.
I am my own voice, as well as yours.
I am also your knowledge.
I-
She wakes up, delightfully not burned to a crisp in the meantime, her closed back armor had extinguished the fire ravaging her bare skin.
What was that?
Can you hear me, Voice?
...
She gets no answer to her thoughts.
Amethyst is laying on her stomach on the green mound, a gentle slope leads downwards into the verdant forest, its thick tree trunks, blooming flowers and flourishing leaves are inviting and calming.
However, Amethyst cannot get over the main color of the nature here, this revolting green, simply unnatural.
She strains herself up and onto her feet, the searing pain in her back intensifies as she bends it, reminding just how badly she was burned.
So tired and hungry...
Practically running on fumes for how much effort she’s recently had to exert just to survive, she starts a weary march onwards, down the hill.
Her arms feel strangely heavy, lifting them feels like too much effort to spare, so she opts to drags them along the ground, leaving two dirt lines as the blades sink through the green grass.
Her antennae smell strange new odors in the air as well as the fresh air, which was sorely lacking in the spaceship and her cage.
The trembling of leaves sound all around in the faint wind, right ahead she hears the blissful sound of flowing water.
She reaches the bottom of the hill and lugs into the forest, vegetation covers the ground, flowers, underbrush, all mostly in the color of disgusting green.
Is there anything else to eat but this… green stuff?
...since when have I cared about what I eat?
…
I’ll just get water first then eat… even if it’s green...
If I don’t find anything else…
She looks around at the bushes and trees as she walks towards the sound of water, searching for any fruits, berries, anything to eat.
Maybe some birds or other small animals...
Amethyst hears chirping and various caws from around, but cannot spot any, the thick foliage obscuring their location.
Just seeing all this green all around her, wherever she looked, made her nauseous, her empty stomach just might turn soon.
She wasn’t consciously aware why, and Amethyst wasn’t too keen on following that train of thought to remind herself of the reason.
The ripple of water gets louder, she breaks through a bush, behind it a clearing and the river, gently flowing, some vines and more bushes grow along its low bank.
She lumbers to the bank, there’s now sign of anybody or anything in the vicinity. The shallow water sparkles and flows serenely, smooth colorful stones of different sizes cover its bottom.
She lowers herself and leans towards the water with her upper body. She smells the water with her antennae, it smells much of nothing.
Amethyst lowers her head towards the water, her chin hitting the cool water first, a bit lower, and her mouth touches it too, her mandibles come out as she opens it.
The mandibles start paddling water into her mouth as her lips slurp it up as well.
She drinks deeply, so much so that once she finally stops she feels a bit unwell.
Now to eat… something...
She turns around and takes a step, her head begins to throb with sudden pain and all strength disappears from her legs.
She falls on her face.
What…? My legs...
Why does my head hurt so…
Why am I so hot all of a sudden?
Her vision starts fading.
...
I wish I could get some spaghetti, meatballs, lasagna. Or oh my god... pizza!
What? Amethyst thinks.
Oh and hamburgers how could I forget? Or sushi or any human food ugh!
Why does she have to be so hungry, it’s even making me ravenous!
God, and something sweet to drink with it, lemonade, a cola, anything!
Not just some random dirty alien river water!
What is going on? She asks the Voice.
Oh sorry, I didn’t know you could hear me…
Anyway, I should ask, what do you think you are doing?!
Why are you back here once more?
How in the world did you manage to pass out again?
What? I-
Hmm, I see you probably passed out for drinking too much water…
Yes, that must be it.
Yep, definitely...
Y-you must not have great sodium levels in your body I’d guess, your ever present anemia isn’t helping either!
What are you talking about?
Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.
Even with your self-awareness you can’t control your animalistic instincts?
Don’t just gobble everything up like your life depended on it!
You might be hungry and thirsty but it’s not like you are gonna die if you pause for a minute!
In fact if you don’t pace yourself you might just really die instead!
I… I’ll keep that in mind, Voice.
You better!
Amethyst wakes up.
Aagh my head, I feel so cold and… weak...
The sun is setting, it’s turning to evening soon.
Amethyst shivers, her armor feels freezing to her already cold skin, she tries to stand, but collapses back down again.
She’s never felt this, bad, this lethargic before.
The bushes rustle, her antennae stand into attention.
Something is coming.
Amethyst struggles to turn her head at the direction of the sound.
A fearsome beast leaps from inside the bush, heading straight for her head, she is too apathetic to react in time.
The beast, a small yellow cat like creature, starts relentlessly prodding her antennae on her head, it swats them around with its little front paws, playing with them eagerly.
“Oh, hello” Amethyst moves her head and the cat jumps back startled, its twin tails shooting up and fluffing up to look bigger as it hisses incredibly loudly, the cone behind its head greatly amplifying the sound.
The same cone starts glowing yellow, brighter and brighter, streaks of light running across it, building up on it.
“I don’t mean you any harm!” Amethyst attempts to calm the creature, anxious of what’s to come if she fails to do so.
The charge reaches a critical point and it releases a flash that illuminates the forest like it was the middle of the day.
Amethyst is blinded for a moment, she quickly blinks her eyes, sight soon returning to them.
The cat has disappeared, scurried away after temporarily blinding her.
“No, please come back!” she reaches a bladed hand forwards, it weakly drops down on the grassy ground.
The cat’s head appears from a bush as it surveys her suspiciously.
“Please… can you find… food”
The cat’s squinted black eyes stare at her as its head retreats behind the bush again and disappears.
Did I scare it away…?
I wonder if it understood me…
With her head laying there on grassy ground, she grabs and cuts a few blades of grass with her mandibles from the ground.
I… I got to eat something… I can’t even stand anymore...
Her mouth appendages push them to her mouth and she swallows them in whole pieces.
Some of the grass sticks to her throat and irritates it.
She coughs and a few blades of grass fly out.
I think I might just throw up if I eat any more…
It tastes… so bad…
So green…
It tastes like…
Death...
The scene of her mother being thrown around in the ship, the green blood splattering around and on top of her plays in her head…
She tastes the revolting flavor of her blood as it splattered on her lips...
The smell… the horrid smell of green… this taste reminded her of it...
Her body was still probably splattered in the dried blood of her mother.
What had happened to her?
She didn’t know.
Amethyst was first trapped in the ship and then trapped in a smaller box.
She had no memories of anything in between.
She was growing sleepy despite the coldness that seeped down to her bones.
The bushes rustled and shook again, something was approaching again.
“Yellow… is that... you?” She buzzes with long strained pauses.
Out steps a man, wielding a laser rifle.
“You!” Amethyst shouts appalled, her drowsiness clearing.
“Hey, been a while” The photographer man steps into the clearing, wearing totally different clothes, an outdoorsy jacket in two shades of green and blue trousers instead of a suit.
Amethyst tries to frantically stand but she cannot prop herself up with her weak arms and collapses back down.
“Say, you don’t look too good… What happened?The man asks, looking downwards at the prone Tyrchid, but keeping his distance.
[https://i.imgur.com/wl0yGxc.png]
“I’m… I’m just hungry that’s all…” Amethyst answers as convincingly as she can.
“So hungry you cannot stand, or barely even move? You look so pale and unwell too.
I doubt that’s all of it”
Hmm...
Her insect like biology, but still having skin and humanoid features probably suggest either warm blooded or Semi- echotermic circulation…
“No no, I’m fine, go away and leave me alone” Amethyst looks at him sternly, especially eyeing his weapon.
“Oh this? Sorry” He puts it behind his back and hangs it across his chest from the rifle's leather strap.
“I can’t just leave you alone here, you are in a bad shape”
"Say, can I feel your forehead?”
He takes a step forwards.
“What?”
“I mean to measure your temperature, you look like you have some severe fever” He says clarifying his intentions.
“N-no!” Amethyst’s face is completely flushed red, she hadn’t noticed it herself before, nor it turning a more deeper shade now due to his question.
“It’s okay, I won’t do you any harm. I just want to help you” The man attempts to calm her by showing her empty, open hands before her.
“Why? Why are you here? Just so that you can drag me back there?” Amethyst accuses him with an angry tone.
“No, I-”
The bushes rustle once more and the cat jumps into the river bank’s clearing and right in front of the man. It has returned, holding a green fruit in its mouth.
It notices the man, instantly dropping the fruit and quickly scooting away.
“Oh! The Solarophone! Don’t worry it’s just me, come back out Pineapple"
What a good smart cat he is, brought his starving friend a snack too.
The photographer leans forwards and taps on his blue trousers.
“Here kitty kitty”
Pineapple pops its little head from the bush, followed its large cone struggling to come with it, and runs up to the man.
It nuzzles against the man’s trousers with the side of its cone and its body.
The man scratches Pineapple on the head and it starts to purr, as loud as a car engine without a muffler.
Amethyst observes this strange interaction unveiling before her eyes.
The rumbling stops as the man stops petting Pineapple, it sits a little way away and starts licking its paws, using them to clean its cone.
The photographer, missing his signature camera, picks up the light green fruit dropped by Pineapple.
He notices Amethyst’s eyes intently following after it, with serious eyes.
“Do you want this?” He asks the Tyrchid presenting the fruit on his hand.
“…Yes” She responds with a low echoed buzz.
“You can have it, but can you tell me your name too? You do have one right?”
“Amethyst” She spits out.
“Nice to meet you Amethyst, I’m Frank Sinett”
“Okay Frank… can you give me that… fruit thing now?” Amethyst asks condescendingly.
“Alright, here, its an Applenut, it is covered by a hard shell” He lays it down on the ground in front of Amethyst’s face.
“Can you-” Frank interrupts his own words and jumps back as Amethyst swings a blade at the fruit, it’s a sloppy blow, but the blade still presses through the shell and slices it in half.
That was a stupid question huh.
The fruit’s very faintly green innards pop out of the shell, it’s slippery and glistening with fresh juices.
She nudges the edible part of the fruit closer to her mouth with a blade and her mandibles grab it, shoving it in her mouth in one piece.
It is nice and moist, it slides down her throat easily, much better than grass.
The juices of the fresh fruit taste heavenly, a little bitter but mostly sweet, its freshness is rejuvenating.
It doesn’t taste green at all despite its light green color.
She gulps down the other half with gusto too, feeling a little better after this meal.
Frank turns to the cat in the meantime.
“Pineapple, can you find us some more fruit?”
The cat licks its paws, like it doesn’t even notice Frank.
Solarophones… stubborn like normal cats I see…
“Oh well, I guess I better make a fire, it’ll get awfully cold here at nights”
He looks up at the perpetually growing dark of the sky.
“I’ll gather some wood for us right away”
For us?
“Don’t go anywhere okay?” He says and smiles in jest at Amethyst.
“I’ll be right back”
Frank disappears into the forest through the bushes, as he does, Pineapple quickly gets up and runs after him.
Amethyst attempts to stand up again, she feels hot and cold at the same time, her face sweating.
Overall discomfort worsening as she attempts to get up.
She does however manage to sit up at least, her four legs spread on her right side.
She rests a moment after the straining task.
Now to just get away while he’s gone.
Her legs feel like noodles, whatever those are, that’s the first thought that came to her.
She attempts to get herself up from the ground using her blades, but they just sink into the ground instead of raising her up.
Guess I’m not going anywhere…
I’m so tired...
She lays back on the ground, this time on her side, amongst the soft grass, tickling her face a little. She tries to no think of its green color, the dark making it easier, as her night vision doesn’t see color very well.
I’ll just rest a bit…
------------------------------------
“Oh Pineapple, thanks for joining me. Do you wanna show me where you found those fruits?”
The Solarophone cat walks on his side, it looks up at him and a fleeting streak of light shoots across its head cone.
“I’ll take that as a yes”
The cat trots slightly faster and gets ahead of Frank. As they go Frank picks up some sticks and dry leaves along the way.
They arrive at a tall and thick tree, only a few branches lead the way upwards.
“How in the world did you get up there? Can you even climb with a head like yours?”
The cat sits down and ignores him, looking off into another direction.
“Well excuse me for asking”
I didn’t plan on camping out tonight… if I had my usual gear I could climb that…
He tries to think of any alternative methods of getting to the fruit.
‘I’ve never tried shooting down fruit from a tree, but I don’t think it would work. I’ll just be burning the whole forest down with laser fire...
He surveys the surrounding area, grass, tall flowers and bushes surround the Applenut tree.
“Hey Pineapple, can you show me some light here?” He walks up to a bush nearby and hails to the cat.
The cat just licks it’s paws and washes its lush tails.
I’ll just try and see for myself.
He lays down the sticks and leaves and takes out his communications device.
Why in the world does this thing not have a flashlight?
Frank turns the screen’s brightness to max and squints at the berries of the bush.
The blue light of the screen barely illuminates the berries, but they are definitely cyan in color and oval shaped.
Nice, Cyan buckthorn berries, they’re full of nutrients.
He carefully proceeds to pick up berries, gathering them on his left palm while avoiding the poisonous spikes of the bush’s branches.
Just a couple more and we should probably have enough to give Amethyst a pick me up.
“Ack” He pulls her right hand back quickly and almost spills some berries.
A thorn pierced a small round hole below his thumb’s knuckle.
Blood starts to gather at the puncture wound’s location, a little bit oozing out of it.
Oh great, this’ll sting for a while.
He places the berries to his left jacket’s pocket and brushes the blood to his sleeve and presses on the wound a short while, it mostly stops bleeding, though it stings like hell.
He picks up the wood and leaves again, “Pineapple, let’s go back”
The cat lazily stands up and trails after him as they start walking back to the nearby riverbank.
“Amethyst we’re-”
She’s laying there on the ground on her side, motionless.
Oh she’s sleeping already, I better let her rest.
He lays down the sticks and leaves into a pile, fetches some wet stones from the shallow river to surround them with.
Once he’s done setting it up he takes out a lighter.
At least I never leave home without a way to make a fire.
The lighter, more of a small pistol shaped device, that upon press of a button, shoots out a long stream of fire.
He points it at the sticks and the hot flame ignites the leaves as well as the sticks.
The fire starts crackling and he warms himself in its glow.
He is dressed in a rather thick jacket and otherwise in warm enough gear, but his hands are still a bit cold from the dip in the river.
He sits down and Pineapple immediately forces its way to his lap and curls there to sleep.
Aww, you do like me don’t you?
He lays a hand on top of its soft fur and strokes it gently, but not too hard to make the cat rumble, as to not wake up Amethyst.
He enjoys this moment of camping out in the wilderness, in the fresh and chilly air.
He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath holding it in before serenely letting it out.
Opening his eyes, they fall on slumbering Amethyst.
Should I measure her temperature now? She probably wouldn't wake up right?
No... I better not…
She told me not to…
Besides if she did wake up I’d probably get gutted instantly...
The thought sends a single shiver down his spine.
He looks upon Amethyst’s face, he finds it surprisingly beautiful, in a strange, dangerous way.
Suddenly Frank realizes something about her face.
Wait, she doesn’t have a nose, how do I know she’s not dead?
I can’t see her breath, and her mouth is closed too, not even her chest heaves up and down, it's all armor!
How does a Thyrchid even breath!?
Amethyst just continues to lay, completely still.
...
I’m probably worried for nothing…
She’s quite insect like so she probably has some special made gaps or openings in her carapace built specifically for breathing.
Right?
...
I’ll just trust all you have is a fever and you live despite outwards appearances...
Like to set Frank’s mind at ease, Amethyst’s mouth contorts as do her eyebrows, like she was in pain, momentarily.
Well that’s good, I’m sure you’ll get better by morning.