Both I, Pok and Elkra seat ourselves upon the three chairs, Pok to my left, Elkra to my right and myself in the centre. I tap the small control mechanism on the side to move the chair forward and up against the control panel before gazing intently at the various controls. Before I can begin, I spot in the corner of my eye Pok placing his legs upon the left side of the control panel and leisurely leaning back on his chair. Both I and Elkra turn to him with utter judgement in our eyes, our gaze quickly convincing him to cease and dissent with absolute haste. Now with proper manners instilled I type several commands and five screens light up depicting the five interrogation rooms.

In each room is several Wokan's chained to their respective tables four males and one female comprise their gender diversity. These five Wokan's are the leaders of their respective divisions of this supposed liberation army against the Demthesians, and since we are unable to access most of the important areas of the ship's computer systems, I only have firsthand knowledge of these people told to me by Zerg and Quroken.

From what they have informed me of these five select individuals is rather scant in the way of details but enough to at least get a sense of who these people are. Let's start with the one on the left, apparently, his name is Gem and he is the head of the security division aboard this vessel, he was not of the military faction of Wokan society and more akin to a police force the Demthesians created. The man looks like his kin but with a more pronounced jaw and a scar above his left eye. Apparently, this security division was originally intended to have the Wokan's police their own kind, a vain attempt to give Wokan's some semblance of control over their own people. This was not well received by the military faction as former Wokan society was a military dictatorship, the military created and administered the laws with impunity. So, a Demthesian sanctioned force of civilians reformed into a security division was not received well by the military who still cling to the old ways.

The second is a female Wokan with the obvious difference in physiology depicted by her six arms, I recognise her from my interrogation, she is part of the former Demthesian logistics department they apparently deal with issues between divisions. That would explain why she was put in charge of my interrogation likely a gesture to treat prisoners fairly until the real interrogation occurs at the hands of Commander Zekton and his men. Her name is Grisha, she is inquisitive and intelligent at least according to Zerg, I got the sense he has some sort of attraction to her since he noticeably flustered every time she was mentioned.

The third is a Wokan male named Galitor who is the engineering chief, a man of few words like Elkra but a staunch loyalist and proud Wokan, he suffered quite a bit at the hands of the Demthesian's, Zerg mentioned he was once beaten to unconsciousness by the former Demthesian engineering officer after Galitor defended one if his people who made a mistake. Hmm, likely his anger towards the Demthesian's runs deep perhaps leading him to ally with Zekton's new regime.

The fourth room contains the lead science officer Zalgot he was found already in the brig along with his fellow scientists, he apparently had a disagreement with Zekton who then proceeded to imprison him and his entire staff. He is not talking about what the disagreement was and is keeping his mouth shut for the time being only demanding his people be released.

Then the fifth and final Wokan, Commander Zekton who is now seated ramrod straight and has not spoken a word ever since he woke up from his sedation. I must admit his ability to remain calm under such a circumstance is impressive, his loyal militia has been quite troublesome when we imprisoned them, a few of them attacked Itoa and his men. Itoa had to pull a few of his men back from beating them to death in the melee, they seem to be fanatical, not a helpful turn of events indeed.

I ponder the current circumstance, debating the various scenarios and methods to deal with these five selected individuals, apparently, I had been contemplating for some time that Pok and Elkra became concerned. Pok tapped me on the shoulder bringing me back to reality, I turn to him and nod in thanks before turning back to the screens. For now, a plan takes shape whether not I can execute it perfectly is another matter, regardless I will speak with Gem first. Deciding on my next course of action I quickly stood up to leave and spoke to Pok. "Stay here and watch the screens, if any of the prisoners cause trouble, press this button to alert me," I state whilst pointing at the announcement button, it is restricted to a single deck and will give me some warning. Elkra stood up to follow me as if on cue. I almost reached the door before stopping as an important matter just came up.

A few Minor Cycles Later, Ruktan Class Frigate, Interrogation Room 1

Elkra opens the door for me as my hands are currently full of the two beverages of the marvellous drink known as coffee, she gestures with her hand to let me in, I nod and enter. Upon entering the room, I am greeted by a stern-faced Wokan by the name of Gem, he eyes me with a narrowed gaze, his insectoid eyes blinking rapidly. I reach the opposite chair, seat myself, placing the two coffees on the table evenly spaced, I have noticed I seem to have a necessity for symmetry. Elkra moves to my right side standing imposingly, towering over the now slightly flustered division leader.

I pause for a moment before pushing one of the coffees forward gesturing the little peace offering to begin reasonable discourse, He does not move and remains stock still. His loss, I grab my own coffee taking a sip of the delicious beverage, savouring the bitter flavour, of course, I offered such a drink to Elkra and Pok but they lacked interest. After I am awash in the drink noticeable sensation I gaze at Gem with as neutral a tone as possible, before speaking. "Pleasure to meet you Gem, I am 4462 but you may call me the Captain if you wish." I had taken to this rank as my main identifier since it is what most of the Garudan's and Quroken himself preferred. A few moments passed and Gem remained quiet but the noticeable flutter in his eyes revealed his intense thought, likely plotting escape or analysing me. Seeing he was not keen on replying I decide to take the initiative. "First off Gem, you have nothing to fear from me, I have no desire to harm your people that did not participate in the enslavement of the Garudan civilians, in fact, I seek to cooperate with the crew of the Ruktan." I ended my statement there and judged his reaction, as expected he did not seem surprised when I commented on the Garudan enslavement, likely he had his suspicions or was already aware.

After some time, he finally opened his mouth to speak, his voice was stern and raspy, he did not seem very old but apparently, Wokan age was difficult to judge. "Why should we trust you, a foreign alien who attacked and imprisoned my kin?" To be honest that was a legitimate question and a concern I would ponder if I were in his position. But of course, I anticipated such a question and had a counter to this.

I lifted the coffee to my lips taking another slurp of the warm scolding liquid, apparently, such a temperature would harm Wokan's, my species have no such issue with extreme heat, in fact, it is rather pleasant. "You shouldn't trust me... why would you as I have not earned such trust, I do not ask you to trust me, but allow me the opportunity to earn it." His head tilts to the side a sign of scepticism from what I have observed, I view this as my chance and continue. "I do not believe you actively participated in the atrocities committed against the Garudan people, during the occupation of this planet, from what I have learned these actions stemmed for the most part from Commander Zekton and the militant corps." He turns his head downwards and scowls or at least I think it is a scowl, his facial features tighten, and his shoulder shake slightly, I think I am getting somewhere. "Security Officer Gem, if you allow me the time to prove I can be trusted, we can end this conflict before more unnecessary blood is shed." It was a bold move on my part to play it this way, but I do not think Gem here requires me to play too many hidden methods for the time being.

Studying him carefully as the Wokan's eyes flutter rapidly indicative of intense concentration, it is clear he is at least thinking about my offer. Some time passes and I indulge in my delicious beverage of fresh coffee, suddenly Gem speaks up with simmering intensity in his voice. "How will you prove you aren't just like the cruel Commander Junt'kar or the tyrannical Zekton, if you can prove to me you are different from them, then and only then will I start to trust you." It was a reasonable request and the fact he did not refer to Zekton as his Commander intrigues me; likely he does not acknowledge Zekton's authority. The most concerning thing is despite Gem having the larger force on this ship, with his security division outnumbering the militants two to one, he has not seized control of the vessel.

There must be something keeping him in check, I will have to probe Gem for further information. "That seems fair, perhaps I can begin to earn your trust now, is there anything you require?" I ask just before taking another gulp of the coffee and gesturing with my free hand towards him with an inviting posture.

His voice propels from his throat swiftly and immediately as he lists his demands in sequential order. "First I want to see my men, to make sure they are unharmed, secondly I want your word that my people will be treated fairly from now on and thirdly I want to speak with Zekton alone." Now the first two requests are reasonable, and I was planning to ensure them anyway, but the third, is concerning and some additional concessions must be made.

I nodded several times in acknowledgement before replying in a soft and welcoming tone. "The first I can do, the second I will stake my honour and word to ensure your people are treated fairly, but the third is only possible if I am in the room as well." I had to make a strong stance on the third as with us there is still little trust between the two, I need to be sure he is not plotting anything with Zekton as the two together can cause some problems with my plans, also I am curious about the subject of their conversation.

He reacts almost disgruntled at my response but seems to ponder the concession for some time before agreeing. "That's fine." His posture immediately relaxes slightly but still noticeably in his chair, that is a good start, his tension would have been a problem if it remained. "Do you require anything else?" He asks noticing I am still locked to my seating position.

I tilt my head slightly before cracking a small smile right before continuing this little bit of reasonable discourse. "Yes, I would very much like to discuss the other division leaders, I am curious about your opinion on them." My smile vanishes immediately after putting forth my question and instead of a replace it with a cold stare with an air of expectation.

A few Minor Cycles Later, Ruktan Class Frigate, Interrogation Room 2

Interrogation room two is the spitting image of interrogation room one, down to the room's dimensions and that dull white colour scheme. Across from me is two division leaders and considering what I have learned about them it was advantageous to put them in the same room. Galitor and Zalgot respectively are the division leaders of the engineering and scientific corps, the two are quite the pair, Galitor just stares at me with a cold expression, whilst Zalgot is fidgeting constantly. The two are mirror opposites in terms of mannerisms and personalities, what I learned from Gem is that these two are more than meets the eye with each having their own agendas aboard this vessel.

I let the two of them simmer in silence for a time while I cast my gaze intently on both, Pok is here instead of Elkra as she has other duties, I sent her to deal with. It seems there was a minor ruckus on the cellblock where a Wokan militant attacked one of the Garudan's guarding him, the fight was rather brutal as some of the other Garudan's came to assist and the situation got out of hand until Itoa intervened, the Wokan militant is currently recovering in the infirmary under guard with Elkra overseeing.

Finally, I decide to speak with a soft and sincere tone something I have been working on for a while, hopefully, it aids in diplomatic areas. "I know the situation Is not ideal, I am a foreign alien that seized your vessel with a group of Garudan's, but what I did was for the best as not only where the Garudan's oppressed, you yourselves were as well." I decided to simply come out with the facts, not all my cards but it was a major one that needed to be played to establish a strong position.

Zalgot naturally continued to fidget uncontrollably before blurting out in a hurried manner. "Whatever your say, I will do whatever you want just please let us go, we won't bother you." His words were expected and his fear understandable, but his actions conceal much more than a simple desire to escape out of fear. I had spoken with Gem; he raised several concerns and his own thoughts on why the scientific division was imprisoned prior to us seizing this vessel.

Naturally, I made my own deductions, but his advice was of great help, I decide to quickly collate my thoughts and begin my verbal attack. "Zalgot?" His face perks up as if he is used to having his name called out in contempt, likely he has worked under the thumb of many people. With his attention now firmly fixed to me, I begin. "I heard Commander Zekton placed your entire staff under arrest after you and he had an argument, from what I have heard it was quite heated." It was a direct approach, but considering the fragile nature of Zalgot, I believe it was the best option. His three eyes almost seem to shake uncontrollable, looks like his mind is racing incredibly fast, perhaps pondering on his very few options.

He looks down for a short while before lifting his gaze to me and speaking up. "It was just a disagreement, Commander Zekton always had a temper... I shouldn't have provoked the man." His attitude seemed meek and subservient, still fearing a man who is now locked up by my hand, Galitor snorts derisively from the side. Zalgot's reactions were expected, from all I have learned about him, he is a brilliant yet sheltered Wokan, conscripted forcefully into the Demthesian fleet as a ship science officer. The most curious thing is most of the medical staff was composed of Demthesian's with only a few Wokan's having medical training.

Several thoughts run through my head as a potential answer springs to mind, the vivid memories of visiting the ship's lab come to mind. I gather my thoughts and glare at Zalgot intently causing him to shrink back in his seat, I level my voice to a calm and cool tone before questioning him further. "Would your disagreement be related to your duties aboard this vessel, perhaps related to that lab I visited, many strange vials filled with blue liquid were found." I pull one of the vials from my side breast pocket and place it down onto the table along with a handheld injection device. The device is like a handgun but with a syringe extended from the barrel and a slot under the grip for an injection vial.

His eyes widen and for the first time I witness a Wokan visibly pale, his face drains of blood becoming oddly blueish. He is clearly frightened by the contents of this vial so much, that he stumbles on his words. "I... I... don't know what that is, I didn't make it, looks like a corstan antidote good for rashes." His lie was utterly transparent but still, I admired his ability to at least come up with some sort of lie, I mean I was not a scientist but clearly being fearful over medicine was not a good sign.

I decide to load the injector with the vial creating a soft beeping sound as the injector blinks slightly, I turn to him, injector in hand and syringe facing him and speak still with my cold tone. I could hear Pok hovering over to get a better look, that Garudan was far too curious, somewhat morbid in a charming sort of way. Zalgot begins to tremble before casting his gaze on Galitor and for the first time, the engineer shows a look of confusion, as expected he is unaware of this. "Well, if this is just medicine, you wouldn't mind testing the drug?" I state before offering the syringe to him as if I was genuinely concerned for his health and offering lifesaving medicine.

From the looks of it, Zalgot had reached his peak in absolute fear, his fidgeting became more erratic as I close in, his beady eyes dart around the room looking for escape and finding nothing. Just as the syringe nears his face, Zalgot finally breaks down and begins speaking frantically in an erratic tone. "Please no, it's not my fault, Commander Zekton ordered us... we... we didn't want to, but he made us, I will do whatever you want just keep that away from me." Finally, we are getting somewhere, I retract the injector and lean my back onto the chair before glancing at everyone in the room. Galitor looks confused as if these events had shaken his calm, Pok is smiling strangely, I really need to have a talk with him about his strange demeanour that got him ostracised from his people.

With such events within my expectations, I feel more assured in myself, I glare down at the injector, disengage the weapon, and extract the vial before presenting it. "Tell me Zalgot, what is this and why did Commander Zekton imprison the science division?" Those were the two questions I wanted answers for, and this fidgeting science officer had all the answers I needed.

He leans forward and hunched over the table, his upper hands grasping his skull rather hard, perhaps some sort of self-punishment, he breathes heavily but manages to muster up a response. "It's the Vixorm serum, Commander Zekton ordered us to make them for him." His words are unfamiliar to me, I had not heard of such a thing from either of the Wokan's I had met, but it seems Galitor knows of it, his beady eyes glaze over, and he ascends aggressively.

His nostril flare and exude steam, perhaps this is the first time I had ever seen a Wokan truly angry before, his four arms trembles before roaring in a booming voice. "Kalot!" The word is familiar I think it means liar, curious about what he means I let him continue. His words are muffled by anger and composed of a difficult to understand the dialect. What I could make out, was he was admonishing Zalgot as a filthy liar or something along the lines and their people would never use such methods. For a time Galitor was seething and started glaring down at Zalgot, the situation became quite heated prompting Pok to act.

He drew his laser rifle and levelled it threateningly at Galitor, his once fascinating smile was gone with nothing but a cold exterior. It was an odd personality aspect of Pok; in general conversations, he was jovial and morbidly amusing but when it came to my protection or the protection of our little squad, he was very serious. The threat seemed to work as Galitor glared hatefully at Pok but still, a tinge of fear crosses his face, probably because of the barrel of the weapon. He quickly descended to his seat with a soft thud and remained passively glaring.

Still, this is some progress, and I am indeed intrigued about this "Vixorm serum.", I ponder for a moment on how to handle this and decide to simply ask the obvious question. "So, tell me about this Vixorm serum?" There was no undertone or hidden meaning in my words, this revelation was new to me, with only the knowledge of the science division developing something and Gem's suspicions, I am intrigued.