Bard looked at Halfor with a curious face…or more like a confused stare, the alien had placed a sort of plate with what seemed to be food but the only problem was…
Bard: "What…is this?"
Halfor: "Sorry but travelling with food is risky for many reasons so we just have dehydrated can foods…it tastes better than it looks"
Bard: "Are you sure I can eat that?"
Halfor looked puzzled then slid on his wrist with his hands and his board appeared again…he looked and scratched his neck.
Halfor: "Honestly, I am going solely on assumptions here…your physiology is very different from my kind…we do both breath oxygen…but I require less oxygen and more nitrogen whereas you can handle this current level of nitrogen so far…but aside from your breathing and the fact your body is carbon based like mine…I can only assume you can consume what my folks can…If Taffy was (*Halfor's expression froze mid-sentence before he looked away his eyes betraying some pain*)…she could have made a better biological analysis…sorry"
Bard: "…who's Taffy?"
Halfor frowned and spoke.
Halfor: "Not important, moving on what you can eat, I suggest we try small so as to prevent any risks…"
Bard felt terrified to see the alien for the first-time having anger plastered on his face. He looked down at the food and used what seemed to be their equivalent of a fork…and pierced through one of the cubes composing his plate…it was glistening and almost jelly-like. He brought it to his mouth hesitantly and closed his eyes while retracting his lips a bit in disgust. He stopped then lowered his hand which made Halfor looked puzzled. Bard looked at him with concern.
Bard: "Hypothetically speaking…if I were to have an indigestion…are you able to heal me?"
Halfor: "This ship is equipped with a system of bioengineering I designed to learn about problems that are hidden within bodies…normally, it would be for my kind…but if I tweak it a bit, I suppose I could make it able to heal you…hypothetically"
Bard frowned unconvinced.
Bard: "That sounds like a big maybe"
Halfor: "Eat the cube, please. We will watch what it does to your internal organs within few hours and I will check your vitals again…if anything feels strange you can also say so…it could help understand how I could make…consumable food…actually, I doubt I could, there's not enough components on this ship for that…so let's hope you can digest this…"
Bard sighed and looked away before looking again at the cube. He grimaced while bringing the cube to his lips, his tongue sticking out a bit to taste it…then he widened his eyes before bringing it entirely in his mouth. He melted under the taste, similar to something he used to eat.
Bard: "That got to be pizza!"
Halfor twisted his face in confusion.
Halfor: "I am sorry, the translator had issues, what did you say?"
Bard: "Don't you guys have pizzas? It's like dough with tomato sauce and…wait why would I assume, you have that on your planet, sorry I was jus-"
Halfor: "You are a very weird creature but it is alright, I may not be familiar with your…local dishes but as long as you do find this stuff good, I can't wait to make you taste real Ta'rhuan food"
Bard: "hm.."
Bard ate but his thoughts drifted elsewhere, thinking about his world apparently gone meant much more than he could fathom for now.
Halfor: "are you alright? You are making a weird expression…is the food making you nauseous or anything?"
Bard put the fork-like object down and looked at Halfor.
Bard: "Sorry…I know you are doing your best to be kind and all and it does help but…I still can't believe it; my home is gone…for centuries?"
Halfor felt like he had to say something but he didn't know anything that could help.
Halfor: "I haven't been totally honest with you"
Bard arched an eyebrow and listened.
Halfor: "There's another reason I am reluctant to be on the rogue planet…"
Halfor shifted a bit and his shoulders tensed as he cleared his throat before speaking almost uncomfortable.
Halfor: "I grew up on that planet"
Bard: "what?"
Halfor shifted and looked away as if trying to remember old memories.
Halfor: "My mother was sent on a mission, just like the one I had before being sent to your world, it was exploring space and trying to get information on our conception of the universe…she was what you call a scientist. She was my only family, at least the last family I considered as true. One day, on a basic out of vehicle session…her suit…(*Halfor's voice cracked a bit*) they told me her suit malfunctioned and was separated from the ship…she died before they could maneuver the ship…(*Halfor chuckle more in irony than anything*) She died…and then my male genitor thought that he would become a lesser again, my mother was of high nobility, making our family a great one on my planet…but when she died, he decided he couldn't bear becoming a lesser…so he sold me"
Bard widened his eyes at the atrocity of the act and felt deeply sorry. Halfor sighed before continuing.
Halfor: "I was bought by a cruel man, a pirate of the black market, quickly I became his small thief…I was quick, small and looked innocent…I was innocent in a way, but I had no choice…"
Halfor looked away and rubbed his forearm.
Halfor: "I was his property and so I kept on doing his bidding until I came of age and finally got caught by Ta'rhuan military forces and sent to jail. I spent days, then weeks, then months, soon years…and even if I hated that man…he was all I had…he never came to save me…I was alone again. That's when, she found me. She offered me freedom…but at one cost, telling where that pirate was hiding…at the time, I didn't think much and told her what she asked for…soon enough I was brought to the rogue planet back to my pirate's crew…I was a decoy, a bait…the man…he seemed relieved to see me and for that brief second I was about to think that maybe he had always tried to find me back…then he pointed a blaster at my face and said 'You are back, it means they bought you…you are no more of use' at that very moment, I felt so empty…and I didn't blink when his head exploded from a shoot from the military troops hiding…"
Halfor fidgeted with his hands, his eyes blankly staring at Bard's plate, at the cubes there…before he continued his voice a whisper like a burnt voice after a glass of whiskey.
Halfor: "some of the crew member managed to escape and since all rogues are united, they chased us off…my once home of sort was now against me…I had nothing left…I became an engineer for her "
Bard was at loss of words and frowned concerned before talking.
Bard: "Why are you telling me this?"
Halfor chuckled.
Halfor: "I don't know…but my point is…it might be on a smaller scale than your loss but…I think I can understand your pain…So, if you need to talk or anything…I would be honored to share your pain…On my planet, there's a culture of befriending the neighbor, it's an expression standing for making friends with strangers because they might be different from us but we still share emotions…every friend is a stranger you haven't yet befriended"
Bard: "That's…actually deep. I get what you mean…I am sorry for what happened to you…sorry for asking, but you referred to a 'she', who's that?"
Halfor was about to say a word when lights started beeping and there was a ringing noise.
Bard: "what?!"
Halfor: "Space warp…they are coming"
Bard: "Who?"
Halfor: "My people"
Soon, several ships appeared in a flash around the smaller ship. Halfor understood, this was not good, if they found Bard, they would take him.
Halfor: "we need to hide you, quickly"
Bard didn't even get the time to protest that the alien was already guiding him in a lower compartment of the ship, next to the power source module.
Halfor: "Stay here and don't make any noise, I will be back as soon as possible"
Bard: "Wait, the cylinder"
Halfor frowned then spoke.
Halfor: "Too late for that, I will craft a story…just stay hidden. This block is made of an alloy that prevents our scanners…so they can't see you as long as you stay here"
Before bard could even say another word, he was already gone. Bard found himself alone in a space that was still wide enough to move but I was very hot here. He looked to the source of light here and could see a sort of cube rotating in rings also spinning, a weird alien display…well, fair since it was alien.