Episode 12.1 - Otscharsan's Sister

Somehow, I'm just having bad luck here.

First Kyle, then the prisoners, and now this.

Could he be behind all of it? Even behind the attack just now? Maybe I should finally tell someone about my observations.

After all, the last attack happened in what Kaia said was a safe room.

But at least she was there and saved me.

***

I'm lying in Kaia's arms and I can't help but cry. Her hands soothingly run over my back, her words sound comforting, and over time my tears subside.

It's so nice that she's here for me.

The door to my hospital room opens. Neither of us notices the tall, muscular man who enters. His gaze wanders around the room and rests incredulously on the redhead.

With a slight smile on his lips, he leans against the door.

"I really can't believe this!" The smile has given way to a look of mock shock, which seems too exaggerated to be genuine.

But it's enough for Kaia to pull away from me. Her red eyes glare suspiciously at the blonde man.

"How come? Normally you give everyone one of your deadliest looks if they even step close to you." Otscharsan pauses briefly, running his hand through his hair and giving Kaia a smile. What he says next is unusually arrogant for him. "Except when someone looks as good as I do." The redhead skeptically eyes him up and down. As she opens her mouth to say something, he doesn't let her. "Kaia." The blonde man approaches us, his arrogance gone and replaced by a grin. Kaia's eyes flash angrily and warningly as he leans down to her. "Or have you changed your ways and started hugging people to death?" He bursts into loud, hearty laughter. "If so, I want a turn!"

Kaia immediately turns her offended gaze away from him. "Can't I just like someone for once?" she demands.

"I've known you for quite a while now," Otscharsan begins, but doesn't get any further.

"I'm well aware of what everyone thinks of me." For a moment, her expression looks sad, but only briefly, then she shakes her head and turns to me. Her hand gently strokes my hair, an encouraging smile on her lips.

What is it with everyone? I wonder. She seems so nice.

Kaia is about to say something, but Otscharsan interrupts her.

"As if you do anything to improve our opinion of you," he remarks. Otscharsan seems to ignore her warning look. Instead, he stands behind her and looks at me. "What happened to her?" he asks, his eyes full of concern as they rest on the red welt on my neck.

"Someone attacked her." Kaia's questioning gaze shifts to me. "Did you see who it was?"

My gaze drifts sadly to the ceiling, and as I shake my head to indicate a 'No', I immediately regret it. A sharp pain shoots through me, making me groan. Tears well up in my eyes.

Why is this happening to me? What did I do to deserve this?

Could Kyle be behind this too, or was it even him?

Questions flood my mind. I want to scream them out loud, but I can't. I just can't get any sound out of my throat.

A gentle woman's hand wipes away my tears.

Kaia's gaze shifts to the woman who has so far been standing silently in the room, observing everything. Silently but with a stern look, the redhead orders the other woman to take care of me. A silent command the woman immediately follows.

She seems clearly intimidated. Why, I don't quite understand.

Her movements, even as she opens the cabinet and takes out the vial, are rushed. So hasty that the vial slips from her hands and shatters into a thousand pieces on the metal floor.

Kaia looks angry and impatient. A look that makes the woman flinch immediately. The next vial stays in her hands, though now they are trembling.

Now and then, the young woman glances at Kaia with panic-filled eyes.

Then the next mishap occurs. As she tries to put the vial back in the cabinet, the now filled syringe falls to the floor.

But Kaia's gaze is so stern and warning that even I would feel an icy shiver down my spine.

"An incompetent person like her is put in charge of the infirmary, no wonder something like this could happen," Kaia mutters softly but loud enough for all of us to hear.

The woman, now picking up the syringe, flinches and bumps her head against the table next to my bed.

I feel sorry for the young woman.

A hand rests on Kaia's shoulder.

"Would you mind stepping outside?" Otscharsan asks the redhead, who now looks angrily at him. "Glaring at her like you want to strangle her doesn't help anyone, not even the poor girl."

Kaia snorts but acknowledges he's right. She gets up and slowly walks to the door. "If I catch the bastard who attacked her, I'll tear him to pieces!" she yells as she leaves the room.

The door closes behind her, blocking out her outburst of threats against my attacker.

"Did she break a nail when she chased off the guy?" The blonde man's gaze is utterly confused as it rests on the door. "Kaia usually only cares about her own interests. Defending someone other than herself is unlike her." He shakes his head, sighing.

I chuckle softly. More of a soundless hint of laughter, and I immediately regret it.

My throat hurts so much and still feels like it's being squeezed.

The pain, even around my ribs, only eases when the young woman, now much calmer, administers a painkiller. It's like a relief, even though the pressure on my throat doesn't improve. Nor does it help me to speak again.

"Janine, right?" the blonde man asks for my name.

I lift my head slightly and let it sink back to indicate a 'Yes'. The young woman applies ointment to the chafed spot on my neck caused by the rope.

He sighs before continuing.

"Kaia can be pretty intimidating. When I first got here, I gave her a wide berth." A smile forms on his lips. "But as long as you don't step on her toes, she's okay. So don't be afraid."

I would like to tell him that she doesn't scare me, if I could.

Meanwhile, the young woman wraps a bandage around my neck, then checks if my ribs are okay or if there was more damage from the attack.

She thinks everything looks fine.

"What's going on here lately isn't typical." Otscharsan takes the chair next to my bed and sits down as I continue to be examined. Now it's my throat's turn. "Usually, it's pretty boring here," he says.

"We on the infirmary can't complain about a lack of work," the young woman retorts. Her gaze accusatory at the blonde man, who puts on an angelic expression. "The gentlemen here make sure there's work. If they don't get injured fighting the enemy, they manage it themselves with dumb stunts or crazy bets."

"Oh, that's harmless!" Otscharsan laughs awkwardly.

"Harmless?" She raises an eyebrow. "Weren't you the one who ended up in a coma for a few weeks after crashing your spaceship into an asteroid during a race?"

"That's not entirely true," Otscharsan corrects her. "If I had crashed head-on, I wouldn't be alive now."

"You can still be glad to be alive," the woman says. Then she turns to me. "Your vocal cords are slightly damaged. You won't be able to speak for the next few days, but it will get better with time if you rest." At the last word, she looks directly at Otscharsan before turning her gaze back to me. "Everything seems to be fine, but we'll examine you more thoroughly later. Not being able to breathe is not good for you, as the gentleman here can surely confirm."

I laugh, though I regret it again. Although the pain isn't as severe, it hasn't completely disappeared.

"Yes, I'm glad to be alive," he begins to list. "I'm glad my brain still works fully. I'm glad I still have all the limbs I was born with. Especially the important ones." He grins suggestively. "I'm glad we're not as backward as some of our enemies, not just in terms of technology. And I'm especially glad we have such capable doctors and nurses here. I wouldn't want to miss them."

Again, I can't suppress a laugh. Apparently, Otscharsan isn't too worried about his well-being.

The young woman leaves the room and Otscharsan tells me about the life he leads here on the station.

It sounds interesting, especially what he says about Torsos.

Is he really as Otscharsan describes him? A ruler who not only governs his territory but treats the people around him as friends.

I'm so curious about him.