Xant glanced at his time keeper. It had been three hours since the incident in Krydon’s office. Jasmine had not contacted him or any other attending staff. It being [0408 hours] currently, he calculated it was probably during her sleep cycle. Concern, however, convinced him to check on her; he brought up the security feed on his personal terminal from the camera that had been installed in her room.

Jasmine was indeed sleeping - curious that her species would require such a long cycle, even more curious that she would be willing to lay prone for hours at a time. He recalled her talking of the benefits of caffeine and how the people of her homeworld were so accustomed to it there were entire professions built around it. Such things would have to be sanctioned of course; unregulated caffeine providers wouldn't be allowed into Council Space.

The specimen she had taken into her custody was awake, taking a walk around and sniffing various items in the admittedly bare room. Then it decided to jump up into the sleeping alcove, circling before resting at Jasmine's feet.

The human stirred a little, her arm patted the bedding in front of her. The creature looked up and immediately moved to lay beside Jasmine, almost face to face. Jasmine laid a hand over the ‘puppy’ and stroked its fur. The puppy sat there, happily awake and on watch.

Actions were wiser than words when it came to humans; did they sleep such long cycles because the protection of these creatures allowed them to do so? But to what end? Would it not be more productive to be awake? Did the creature have to be taught to read her gestures? Or was it simply an understanding, like with his own people? The specimen did have an external translator fitted, but why did it rip it out? Why would it not want to be understood by those around it?

Jasmine understood it. She cared for and protected it, felt its pain and fear - she already followed the teachings of The One without even knowing its name.

Of course she wouldn’t know its name. Perhaps ‘The One’ translated to something more ominous in her tongue. She had been tactful in her apprehension. He’d have to explain it himself, the thought of returning to Behavioral Studies to ask for help made his nose twitch. Between Myra’s deafening infatuation signals and Jess’s erratic thought patterns, he’d need to take a full shot of depressors just to go down there again. It had been years since he had spoken with another Zenthi: Five in total since his assignment to Uleesia station. Having just a taste of it again with Jasmine, he realised how much he missed his own kind. Jasmines translator was capable of channeling her 'thoughts’ into the speech Frequency as all Zenthi translators were supposed to do, but it couldn't project it onto the natural Zenthi Frequency. The translator had never needed to. The complications of her brain's physical makeup would be challenging technicians for years to come. Why would any being her size need that much brain power?

So many questions; thankfully, it was his profession to ask and answer.

If she was stroking the ‘puppy’s’ fur then she would be conscious enough to converse.

He rose from his desk, collected his project dataslate, and headed outside.

Jasmine's room was right at the end of the hall for security reasons; he was happy they had not posted a guard in light of the incident.

‘Who goes there?!’

Xant stopped in his tracks. He was alone in the living quarters, no other Zenthi were in several thousand [light years] of his location and yet he was being contacted on the Natural Frequency.

His ears lay flat on his head as he took another step closer.

‘(I’ve smelt you before,)’ The voice pondered. ‘(Who is there?!)’

Xant was hesitant to answer. It was not Jasmine's voice and there was only one other creature within the vicinity. The puppy.

‘(A friend…)’ He answered cautiously.

‘(Friend?! Another Friend!)’ The voice was excited.

‘(Yes I am a friend, I do not wish to cause you any harm.)’ Xant explained as clearly as he could.

‘(Yay Friend! Oh! Friend! I found a Namegiver!!)’

Xant continued forward, opening the door to Jasmine's room. It was dark still, but he could see just fine in the low light. The 'puppy’ lay under her arm, it's ears folded down when it saw Xant.

‘(Friend?...)’ The creature asked sadly. Xant walked slowly, sitting down at the desk stool carefully, so as not to disturb Jasmine - she was sound asleep in the alcove.

‘(Yes, I am a friend)’ Xant insisted; mimicking the puppy’s speech pattern as best he could.

The specimen sniffed the air, still refusing to move from underneath Jasmine’s comforting arm.

‘(You smell like the Namegiver - if she is your friend then you are my Friend!)’

Xant gave a small sigh of relief; the creature was not afraid of him, and was willing to converse. His heart skipped a beat as it all began to sink in. Duuarn’s specimens were telepathically capable, no wonder he was keeping all of his notes as secretive as possible! They would have been transferred into Xant’s supervision immediately had he informed anyone. Duuarn was jeopardizing the User for his own personal gains; deplorable.

‘(You are a friend of the Namegiver?)’ Xant asked the puppy.

‘(Yes! She protected me from the Takers. They were not kind. They put me in a dark room and took me from the other dogs.)’ The specimen lowered her head sadly on the bed. ‘(I miss Kimiko and Spades.)’

The problem with Users and most Modifiers was they often spoke as though you understood everything without context, getting aggravated when you needed to ask clarifying questions. You had to ask the same question in many different ways to get the information you desired. Xant decided to start slowly, just as he had done with others he had interviewed over the years - slightly disappointed he did not have the right Frequency recorder with him.

He took his dataslate and began taking notes under a personal log entry. He was out of practice with the written word, but he would make do.

Research Transcripts of Dr. Xant: User Specimen Sieglinde

[These transcripts are for office use only. Unauthorised distribution will result in immediate termination and a fine in accordance with the Conglomerate Espionage Act 26.051. Transcripts are official property of the Esaander Corporation.]

[Note: The specimen speaks on the natural Zenthi Frequency; translator not required. Specimen and I are able to converse as though we were both Native Zenthi.)

Dr Xant: ‘(Subject Jasmine called you a puppy, but you said you missed the other dogs, are you a dog or a puppy?)’

Specimen: ‘()(NO! I’m too big for a puppy! Only the Namegiver can call me puppy, I am a grown Dog!)’

Dr Xant: ‘(The Namegiver, is the one next to you?)’

Specimen: ‘()(Yes! She is not my Namegiver, but she is a very good Namegiver.)’

[Note: For clarification the ‘Namegiver’ is the Subject Creator Level Jasmine Howe in the context of the singular, or the Human species as a whole in context of the multiple.]

Dr Xant: ‘(Is she a good Namegiver because she protected you from the Takers?)’

[Note: For Clarification, the Takers would be the Uleesia station research staff]

Specimen: ‘()(Yes! She protected me from the Takers and made me a Pack Friend. Now I have to take her to the other dogs so we can Pack together!)’

Dr Xant: ‘(The other dogs, you said their names were Kimiko and Spades, are they a part of your pack?)’

Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

Specimen: ‘()(Yes! They lost their Namegivers too, we will band together to find our lost Namegivers! And the Namegiver’s lost dog!)’

Dr Xant: ‘(Was it the Namegivers who gave you the name dog?)’

Specimen: ‘()(Yes! They have many names for us, they call us dog, and dog and dog and dog and dog!)’

[Note: The Frequency understanding has automatically translated the many different phrases into the one for my own comprehension, I will clarify the different names with the proper recording apparatus as soon as possible.]

Specimen: ‘()(My Namegiver gave me two names because I am special to him, my Names are Sieglinde and Sigi. You may call me Friend Sieglinde, what is your Name Friend?)

Dr Xant: ‘(My name is Xant)’

Specimen: ‘()(Xant! Friend Xant, I am Friend Sieglinde, are you are friend of this Namegiver? You have her smell on you.)’

Dr Xant: ‘(Yes, She is my Friend, she is Namegiver Jasmine.)’

Specimen:’()(Namegiver’s name is Jasmine? But she didn’t say the naming sounds to tell me her name, she knew my name but didn’t say hers, am I not her Friend?)’

[Note: Specimen User level Sieglinde was very upset that Subject Jasmine had not conveyed her name to the creature, obviously names are important to the specimen’s culture and understanding.]

Dr Xant: ‘(What is your Namegiver’s name Sieglinde?)’

Specimen: ‘()(My Namegiver is Oskar! He is a very good Namegiver, we have been together since I was a puppy, he chose me and gave me my name! He feeds me and walks me and gives me lots of toys! I protect him and his home from birds and Takers who come to the door! My special job is to fetch the beer!)

[Note: For clarification, ‘Taker’ seems to be the description for those who are not designated Friend, Pack or Namegiver.]

Dr Xant: ‘(So you protect him and he looks after you; that is a wonderful thing.)’

Specimen: ‘()(Yes! Yes it is...) ()(I miss Oskar.)’

Dr Xant: ‘(Do all Namegivers belong to a pack?)’

Specimen: ‘()(Yes! All good Namegivers have a dog, if you are lost and you find a Namegiver with another dog's scent they will help you, that is what my Lifegiver told me, and that is what I will tell my pups when they are given!)’

[Note: Specimen is pregnant, she became pregnant whilst in a temperate enclosure with two other specimens, previously mentioned Kimiko and Spades, ‘Lifegiver’ is the colloquial name for progenitor.]

Dr Xant: ‘(Are you excited about your pups?)’

Specimen: ‘()(OH YES!! I cannot wait! I will be the best Lifegiver! Then my Namegiver will name my pups and we will be a big pack!)’

Dr Xant: ‘(You do not name your own pups?)’

Specimen: ‘()(No! That’s what the Namegivers do! They give us our names!)’

Dr Xant: ‘(How long have the Namegivers been given this honour?)’

Specimen: ‘()(Since always and always! Since before they built cities of stone and metal and glass, that is what my Lifegiver told me. We are special, we are the ones who were given our names first! They name us like they name their own pups! We will Pack together for always and always!)’ Bark Bark!

[Session Ended]

Jasmine woke up with a start as Sieglinde barked excitedly.

“Geeze dog, you’re going to give me a heart attack.”

“Ah, you’re awake Jasmine-” Xant greeted.

“AGHHHHHH! (WHAT THE FUCK???)” Jasmine shifted back, smacking her head on the wall and letting out a whimper of pain, Sieglinde simply turned around and began licking her face.

“Down Sigi! just-DOWN” Jasmine snapped at the dog, who stopped and sat back, panting happily.

“Jesus christ Xant, what the heck are you doing sneaking around in my room?!” She turned her attention to the dog with an annoyed expression. “(and why didn’t you warn me he was here?!)” her mind scolded.

Xant put down his Dataslate.

“Lights on,” he ordered the room.

“AGHHHHH!” Jasmine yelled again as the room suddenly became as bright as day. “My eyes!” She rubbed them growling slightly between pants of breath. “Xant don’t do that!” Her voice was strained and frustration was being thrown at both him and the dog.

Sieglinde whimpered.

“I believe I have misread the situation.” Xant acknowledged.

Jasmine sighed, slowly blinking her eyes to get used to the light.

“What do you want Xant?” Her normal congenial tone was not present, she was still upset.

“My apologies Jasmine, I checked the security footage and saw you take coordinative actions, I had thought you were awake and calm enough to start a discussion-”

“Security footage?! There's cameras in here?! Of course there's fucking cameras in here...” She buried her face in her hands, taking deep breaths to calm herself. “Xant I’m tired, I’ve had barely any sleep and I’ve been up for god knows how long. Could we maybe do this later? I’ll call you over comms when I’m not feeling like I’ve been thrown under a bus”

Xant paused and considered, but decided against it.

“I’m afraid I cannot, your actions hours ago with Sieglinde has caused a disruption among station schedules, I need to update you on the situation before it becomes a problem.”

“My actions? You mean when I scared the incompetent lizard who nearly choked Sigi?” She huffed.

“And your confiscating of Duuarn’s prized specimen, yes.” Xant informed “He will do what he needs to ensure Sieglinde is back into his custody for the remainder of the tests.”

“Fuck him.” Jasmine spat tiredly. “He can have her back when I know she’s not going to be in any more danger-” Jasmine's blinked. “Wait, how did you know her name was Sieglinde? You can’t read German.” She reached for the tagged collar that sat loose around the dog’s neck, peering at the tiny writing.

“She told me.”

Jasmines eyes grew wide as they stared at Xant, her jaw dropping and heart racing.

“She? She told you?” Her anger vanished and was replaced by something else, a pure and elated sensation flowed over Xant's being.

He nodded.

“Yes, Sieglinde can communicate with me on the natural Zenthi frequency, we have been talking. I should let you know that she thinks you are a very good Namegiver”

“Namegiver.” Jasmine repeated, and Xant felt a rush so grand it was like he had taken a spike of undiluted serotonin. “Namegiver, is that what you called me Sigi?” Jasmine cupped the dog’s face and rubbed her fur rigorously. “Oh you’re a good girl! The best girl! You’re the best girl!”

Sieglinde threw her head back and enjoyed the affection, Xant sat in wonder.

“Tell her that!” Jasmine smiled, “Tell her I think she’s a good girl!”

Xant nodded his head and turned to Sieglinde.

‘(Friend Siglinde, Namegiver Jasmine says you are a very good girl)’

‘(OH YES!!! I am a good girl! Namegiver Jasmine is a good Namegiver and she will be good in our pack!)’

Sieglinde barked.

“Well??” Jasmine begged “What did she say??”

“Sieglinde says that you are a good Namegiver and that you will be good in the pack.” He relayed.

“The pack? Are there other dogs?!” Jasmine could barely hold the excitement in her voice, Xant had to hold onto the table to steady himself.

“Yes. Duuarn currently has two other dogs under his supervision-”

“Then I need to see them! And you can help me talk to them! Can we get a translator installed?! Oh my god I can’t believe this, I’m going to be able to talk to them, I’m going to talk to dogs!”

“Jasmine… Calm yourself for my sake.” Xant panted, his body growing warm and fuzzy. “That is why I came down to speak to you, Duuarn has been very possessive of the dogs, the prestige that comes with discovering a new species is immeasurable. He might feel compelled to act if he suspects you would disrupt his research.”

Jasmines excitement waned.

“What would he do?”

“At the very least he could have you isolated from the dogs, at worst he could have them and himself transferred to another facility-” Xant choked, struck with a bullet of Jasmine’s fear, he shook his head and forced himself to continue. “-but, if we are diplomatic we might be able to come to an arrangement.”

“But I’ve been nothing but compliant! I’ve followed every rule you’ve given me, I’ve answered every question and I’ve never complained! I just want to make sure the dogs are treated humanely.” Jasmine pleaded, her lip quivered and her head dropped, “I’ll do what he wants, as long as I am able to see the other dogs and make sure they’re taken care of, if he has any questions I will answer them. (It’s not like I can refuse anyway…)” a bitterness lingered in her mind.

“That is likely all he wants,” Xant reassured. “Jasmine please understand, I came down just to warn you of the possibilities. Duuarn himself hasn’t even issued a requisition order yet; Laandi will have the final say in all of this. As long as you can demonstrate restraint and cooperation during the negotiations I am positive they will overlook your outburst in the Medical labs.”

“Okay.” Came the sullen reply. Sieglinde forced herself into the human’s lap, nudging Jasmine’s chin with her nose.

‘(I am here Namegiver, do not be upset!)’ Sieglinde whined. The human patted the dog and the tensions eased slightly, her bleary eyes closing to rest.

“Don’t worry Sigi, I’ll be good, for you. Fuck I’m tired.” She sighed defeated.

“I will leave you to rest,” Xant stated, slowly rising from the soft cushioned stool. “I will let you know as soon as negotiations are scheduled.”

“Uh-huh,” came the disinterested reply. “Can I turn the lights off?”

“As you wish-”

“Lights off.” The second darkness fell Xant heard Jasmine slump back onto the mattress.

‘(Goodbye Friend Xant!)’ Sieglinde called, but the Doctor was already out the door.

Xant was forced to hold onto the wall as tried to get back to his living quarters. Staggering with every step, struggling to keep his vision straight. Her mood swings were becoming worse; amplified by the creature. If the response to the mere mention of being separated from the dog was that strong, he shuddered to think what would happen if it were to actually transpire. His hand slapped the door sensor, throwing his body into the room as soon as the plastic slid aside. He fell to the polished tile with a shocking thud, his body becoming a burden as his mind shook. Xant dragged his bulk across the floor and heaved it up to the desk, his Medipen and supply of depressants lay tucked away in the first drawer. He almost ripped the drawer off its rails getting to the vital equipment, almost crushed the vial connecting it to the pen. His arm screamed as he thrust the needle deep into the back of his neck, releasing the cool, beautiful chemicals into his over firing brain. Xant’s muscles gave way as the pain was silenced by the depressants. There was another sickening thud as he let his body fall to the floor for the second time.

“Lock door...” he breathed, his vision fading. “Do not disturb, No exceptions…” The computerised room chimed in compliance.

Xant felt the rug under his hand, it was smooth and comforting. He would be alright in a few hours…

He would be fine.