Hojoma had sneaked out of the ship that was heading for Sentiel III. Grenix the sith had told Jerome about it, of course. Hojoma had escpaed in an escape pod on the ship and headed back to Heifong and that was all Grenix knew. Jerome didn't order Grenix to follow Hojoma, but continue to Sentiel III. Jerome was going to deal with Hojoma, if and when he spotted him.
Hojoma silently opened the window to Aisha's room. The little Terran next to her stirred but didn't wake. Aisha, on the other hand, woke up to hear Hojoma enter her room via the window. Aisha and Hojoma both stared at each other for a full minute.
"Who are you?" asked Aisha.
"Hojoma Jinjin" said Hojoma, bowing slightly. "it was you that killed my life mate, Sara"
"You want revenge?" asked Aisha, who got out of the bed as quick as lightning. The Terran on the bed stayed asleep.
"Far from it" said Hojoma. "I want you to be my wife"
"Ngyya?!" asked Aisha. "I don't want to marry anyone yet...especially to a slaver!"
"Why are you with these puny Terrans?" asked Hojoma, glancing at Jim. "they're just pieces of meat"
"That 'piece of meat' happens to be my friend" growled Aisha. "and ctarl-ctarls and Terrans can live in peace, you know"
"Thier fate is to be our meals" said Hojoma. "they're weak. The strong prey upon the weak"
"I think you better get out of here" said Aisha. "or I might have to kill you"
"Even in front of that young Terran?" asked Hojoma.
"If I must" growled Aisha.
"I like your spirit" said Hojoma. "that's why I'm attracted to you. Sara was weak and not worthy of being my wife. You, on the other hand, are strong and quite worthy of being my life mate"
"I'm not looking for a life mate at the moment" said Aisha.
"Oh?" asked Hojoma. "are you going to mate with one of these Terrans? That would be interesting...I wonder what your offspring will be like..."
"Get out!" spat Aisha.
"But, haven't you wondered what that Terran kid would taste like?" asked Hojoma, gesturing to Jim. "he looks delicious to me. How about to you? Doesn't he look like a little meat loaf like that?"
"I'll never eat Jim!" yelled Aisha.
"Even if you had no other choice?" asked Hojoma.
"I would rather starve" said Aisha.
Hojoma smirked.



-----------

"But, momma, I don't wanna eat that Terran!" yelled Connie, the daughter of the Ctarl-Ctarl bounty hunter.
"You get in there and eat that Terran" said Janell, her mother.
Jerome smiled and opened the door to the room that held the young Terran in question. Seeing that she had no other choice, Connie walked into the room and Jerome closed the door behind her. Connie looked at the Terran, who was cowering in a corner of the room. The Terran looked to be no older than herself. Connie approached the Terran, and the Terran squealed and backed away from Connie.
"What's your name?" asked Connie in a kind voice. The Terran didn't answer, instead he started to cry.
"Just get it over with" said John, sniffing. "you don't give a damn what my name is, do you? All you care about is eating me and...."
"Who says I'm going to eat you?" asked Connie.
John didn't answer. He knew that all ctarl-ctarls were monsters that ate Terrans. The Ctarl-Ctarls were the monsters in bedroom closets that little kids were afraid of. The Boogeyman himself was a ctarl-ctarl...all the fairytale villians that ate people were ctarl-ctarls. The whole race didn't care about what Terrans thought, or how they felt. Terrans were simply meat to a ctarl-ctarl.


"What she's doing in there?!" asked Janell, her ear to the door. Jerome puffed on his cigar.
"Maybe she wants to lead him on a false sense of sercuity" said Jerome thoughtfully.
"That's my girl!" said Janell. "yes, make Terrans trust you...and at the last moment, you pounce on them and gobble them up. She gets it from me"
Jerome chuckled.