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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Ankh-Morpork Guard" data-source="post: 4068490" data-attributes="member: 10079">Chapter 567: One WordMarix stared down at the Yuuzhan Vong calling himself Qroal, her mind trying to process far too much at once. Caution kept a good two meters between where she stood and where he still sat against the wall, having not made any attempt to even get to his feet. That concerned her, as it was unlike anything she’d seen from the Vong before, but it was impossible to miss the fact that both of his hands were in her view the entire time. It was as if he was trying to prove to her that he was not a threat. But that caused Marix’s senses to be on even higher alert...just in case.    While this need to be alert too up most of her attention, what was left did its best to quickly catch herself up with how the situation was changing. This Vong was different, there was no doubt about that. So how, exactly, was that? He spoke to her, for one. That was initially the most important of the differences, along with the fact that Qroal had gone to at least some length to bridge an understanding, linguistically, between them. Which meant he wanted to talk. Not fight. Or at least talk until he could fight, which was much more likely to Marix.    But then her eyes looked him over with much more care than before. Instead of seeing just another Yuuzhan Vong, Marix really looked at him. Even though Qroal was sitting, she could tell he wasn’t as tall as most of the Vong she’d encountered. He also didn’t look to be as strongly built, though he still looked to be able to put up a fight. The lack of armour he wore was something Marix attributed to his previous captivity, and so disregarded that. But that did mean he was in clothes that looked almost like rags that showed much of his almost-grey skin, which said something else. There were tattoos and scars on him like with every other Vong she had seen, but not as many. In fact, even the scars weren’t as disfiguring. His face only had one, horizontally across his brow that was linked by an odd, pointed tattoo on the left side of his face before thin, black hair covered the rest of Qroal’s skull. Overall, he looked remarkably...average. Not average Vong, from what Marix knew, but just average. Nothing special, nothing amazing, just a person.    That was almost as worrying to Marix as the fact that he’d made no move to kill her.    At a loss for how to proceed, her natural proclivity to simply be direct took over, “Is there are a particular reason you haven’t tried to kill me yet?”    The scar over Qroal’s eyes formed an odd v-shape as his eyes narrowed slightly. Marix couldn’t figure out if he was looking closely, thinking, or about to pounce. But when he replied, the Vong’s voice displayed no malice at all, though it might have been due to the thing in her ear, “Is there a reason you have not killed me?”    He had a very good point. Why hadn’t she...wait! Wait wait wait. What had he just said? It was almost as if he had expectations of her, which didn’t make sense at all.    Marix’s eyes narrowed and scanned him for any kind of tensing of the muscles that might indicate he was preparing for something. But she saw no change at all beyond that scar on his head. Nonetheless, she readied continue to keep her distance and adopted a stance that showed she was very ready for anything, “Why would I kill you?”    The Vong inclined his head slightly, a move that almost made Marix pounce at him claws first, “Why would you not? What am I but dead weight that you must worry about stabbing you in the back every moment I still live?”    “You...” a thought started, but Marix’s mind didn’t finish it. She had to pause a moment and really consider that question. Why was he still alive? What use was he? An answer, thankfully, quickly came to mind. The reason she’d dragged him out of that cell in the first place, “You are the first chance I’ve had at information about your people. If I kill you, I leave myself in the dark. But I leave you alive, and I learn everything I need to know about how to protect my people from yours.”    Qroal actually laughed at that, though it almost sounded more like some dying creature coughing than a laugh. But then again, what response had Marix expected to that? The response she’d expected actually came after he finished laughing, “And why do you think I’d tell you anything?”    Why did she think he’d tell him anything?    Another good question. Again, she took time to quickly run through that. Marix was not one to second guess herself, but it had been such a snap decision to take this Vong with her that there hadn’t really been time to go over all of it. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Marix had worked it out. Now she was finally bringing those to the forefront, “You are the only Vong I have seen captured. I may not know much about your people just yet, but you’re small and the only time you tried to fight was a weak attempt at escape when I dragged you out of that cell you were in. The fact that you aren’t dead right now means that, for whatever reason, you won’t take your own life. So perhaps you want to live. You obviously don’t want that known, but it is not hard to see that you value your life more than any Vong I have ever seen.”    An angry sneer crossed Qroal’s face, proof that Marix was reading the situation correctly. When he did not respond beyond that, she added, “And that right there is proof to me that you are no warrior. You just sit and scowl at me because I’ve figured out more than you think I should be able to. But I’m not stupid. I may not know much about your people, but I do know that I’ve never seen one willing to talk. You won’t even threaten me! Are you actually afraid of me, Vong? Cowering against a wall on the other side of the room, pressed against it like an animal, and you barely manage a growl back at me.”    “We are more than just brutish warriors!” Qroal finally did manage to growl back, though it was weak. Tobias sounded angrier when he was younger and was told ‘no’. But Qroal was damn well trying, that much was obvious on his face, “The only reason you get nothing out of them is they are insane! They would tread into death when it is not even necessary! But I can endure torture as much as any of those fools! If you think I would tell you any more than I told that slug, you are as stupid as the warriors!”    In her head, Marix smiled. He’d just told her information without meaning to. This was going to be too easy. Of course, she kept the smile off of her face. Marix was not about to show a single hint of emotion to this Vong, lest he find a way to turn it against her as she was doing to him. What she did do, however, was relax her tensed muscles. It was time to show Qroal that her words were not just words. She wasn’t even worried anymore.    Just in case, though, she decided to make an important point understood to him, “Your warriors might be mindless brutes, but not among my people. If you think you can talk your way into an escape, go right ahead and waste your time. If you want to get on those feet of your and try to fight your way out, again, you may waste your time. Either way, you will fail and still be right here. You don’t fear pain? Somehow I don’t believe that. I think you want me to believe you’re as strong as your warriors, but your actions speak differently. So, Qroal, how about you stop playing these games and trying to be something you’re obviously not, and start answering some very important questions.”    Just as she finished speaking, Marix got a surprise. In a surprisingly swift motion, Qroal was suddenly on his feet and charging right at her. Something was in his right hand, but the movement was too fast and she couldn’t see what. Not that it mattered. Though Marix had relaxed, it was not hard for her to take one step to her right, grab Qroal’s wrist in both her hands, and then break the bone with a strong pull in just the right way. The snap was drowned out by the Vong’s cry of pain, which reminded Marix of the roar of a small dragon back on Alraxia.    Her eyes saw a small object drop to the floor. Seeing that, Marix threw Qroal back to the wall he’d charged off of. The Vong stumbled back clutching his injured hand, hit the wall, and then finally slid back down to where he’d been before. Marix then noted an interesting trail of black blood that followed the exact path that Qroal had taken to and then away from her. Still standing there, her eyes darted down to the object on the floor. It was long, slender, and covered in the same black blood.    A weapon hidden beneath the skin.    “Thank you for proving my point,” Marix spoke calmly as if nothing had happened, her eyes finally turning back to the Vong who was not acting like any Vong she’d ever seen, “Now that we are past that...are you ready to answer my questions?”    “That Hutt locked me away because I killed seven of his men that tried to interrogate me,” Qroal’s voice sounded pained, but at least he seemed to be trying to hold that back, “Do not think I will not kill you, too, Alraxian.”    One word had a way of changing everything.    This Vong might not have been a warrior, but he damn well wasn’t an interrogator, either. He talked too much and gave into his emotion too easily. Not that Marix was complaining, though that single word completely changed what she wanted to know from Qroal. It was suddenly very obvious he knew important things...or at least, things that were of the upmost importance to her.    For the first time struggling to keep her voice level and the emotion off of her face, Marix spoke very slowly, “How do you know what I am?”    Qroal just sneered at her.</blockquote>

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