I’m lying in bed, trying to rest. I should feel more like myself now that we’re back, but I don’t. I blame it on Koba and the fact that I feel so damn homesick when he isn’t with me. Not to mention I can’t stop thinking about our time together on Zephyrus. I’m wishing, hard, that we’ll have more time together before I leave to go home.

Every time I try to clear my head so I can get some much-needed rest, something new pops into my mind. I find myself thinking about those poor women in the cages on that ship. Or how I felt when I saw Koba get shot, and how I thought for a short time that he was dead. I think about my heart and if I’ll be able to survive leaving Koba when the time comes to go home.

I’m worrying myself into a fit of anxiety when there’s a knock on my door.

“Marilyn?” It’s Koba’s voice.

I fly out of bed and run to the door. I press the button to open it and fling myself at Koba when I see him standing healthy and strong before me.

“I’m so glad you’re alright. I was worried about you,” I say.

He returns my hug and then sets me back down. It’s then that I notice he’s not alone. Raydn, the other Force officer, is with him.

“I am alright, thank you. And I have some news.”

He’s acting strange. Maybe it’s because of Raydn standing there with him. Maybe it’s because we’re back at the station and he needs to have a professional relationship with me. Maybe he decided it was a mistake to do what we did together on Zephyrus. He would be right, but that doesn’t mean I can forget about it.

“What’s the news?” I ask, stepping back from Koba.

“We found more women in the Atronox ship. Would you come with us? I think they would feel more at ease if you were there when we let them out of the cages. It would be helpful if you could communicate to them what is happening.”

“Oh my God, yes, of course.” I step out of the room and into the hallway, eager to follow them and see their discovery. “More women? I can’t believe it.”

“I know,” Koba says. “I couldn’t believe it either.”

We make our way quickly back the docking bay and the Atronox ship. I follow them down the ramp, but it’s so dark below. Even with these huge warriors I’m afraid.

“Are there lights?” I ask quietly. Raydn looks at me like he forgot I was here. Then, he presses another button on the panel and a dull yellow light starts to flicker on below. “These creeps need to figure out their electrical system,” I say as the lights struggle to switch on, and when they do they continue to flicker. Raydn and Koba look at me questioningly. “They never have working lights,” I continue as way of clarification. “You should be able to press a button and…boom, lights on.”

Koba smiles at me for the first time. “They’re cheap little bastards. They won’t waste the time or money,” he says. Then he motions with his hand for us to follow him down. “Come on.”

I follow them down, anxious to see the women and help them. Kayne is standing in the cargo bay surrounded by boxes. He nods at me when I enter the room. I’m already looking past him, through the opening in the boxes to the cages beyond. There aren’t that many of them, only about five women. Which is good, I guess, but that just means there are so many more out there that we still need to rescue. Seeing these women also makes me realize that we have no idea how many women the Atronox have captured.

I snap out of my thoughts and move toward the cages. “It’s alright,” I say, as calmly and quietly as I can. “We’re here to help you.” I move closer to the cages, trying to figure out how they open. I grab onto the bars and give them a shake, hoping to see where a lock might be.

“You need a key,” one of the women says to me. “The guards carry them.”

I look back at Koba. Without having to say a word, he knows what I’m thinking. “There are two dead guards in the command center,” he says to Kayne.

Kayne nods his head. “I’ll go,” he says. He turns and runs.

Then Raydn, Koba and I are left standing here with five caged women staring at us, wondering what the hell is going on. I try to reassure them while we wait, letting them know that they’ll receive help and medical care.

It doesn’t take long for Kayne to return. Not only does he hold the keys in his hand, but he has more members of the force with him. There are a lot of huge, muscular alien men in this small space with a lot of scared women.

Kayne walks over to the first cage and unlocks the door. He moves down the line, unlocking each one until all of the doors to the cages stand open. None of the women have made a move to leave the cage yet.

“It’s okay,” I say. “You can come out. There aren’t any Atronox on the ship.” They look at me strangely but they won’t move. “The green guys. There aren’t any green guys on the ship. Just the friendly blue guys.”

Slowly, one of the women crawls out of the cage. Once one leaves, the others decide to follow her lead. One of the women tries to stand but her legs are shaky and weak. I move quickly to her side in order to help her stand. When she leans her weight on me, I start walking her toward the ramp. The faster we get these poor women out of their dark dungeon, the better. This place is something straight out of a horror movie and I wouldn’t be surprised if the whole situation haunts my dreams tonight.

Eventually we get all of the women out of their prison and off of the ship. Some of the women are being carried by some of the members of the force, being too weak to walk on their own.

I’m not really sure what to do next. They need to see a doctor, they need to clean themselves and change their clothes, they need food and they need time to rest, in a comfortable bed. As if reading my mind, Raydn comes up next to me. “I’ve alerted Dr. Trevvula to the situation. He’s standing by with other members of his team. He’d like to do thorough physicals before we get them situated.”

“Let’s get them to the medical bay,” Koba says.

Last time, my visit to the medical bay didn’t go so well. But this time, I need to find my strength. I need to get over the short stay I had on the Atronox ship and start showing strength for all of these women who have had it far worse than me.