Jasmine smiled calmly in the darkness as her fingers brushed over Sieglinde’s golden fur. It was the first time in [weeks] she had been able to fall asleep and wake up feeling rested. The sounds and smells of something familiar were a welcome comfort. Even if that smell was of unwashed dog and the sounds of her occasional high pitched wheeze, it was something. Someone she could relate to; another lost soul hoping for the best in a sea of uncertainty. Jasmine allowed herself to hug the dog a little tighter; the mild tempered animal adored the attention.

“Everything’s going to be okay...” she whispered into its fur. “I’ll talk to them and make my case that we cannot be separated - can’t take man's best friend away from man now can we?”

Sieglinde didn't answer of course, she just continued to breathe terrible breath into Jasmine's face with a big dopey smile. Jasmine didn’t mind though, they would be able to speak soon enough, and that was more than enough of a reason for her to alert the station that she was awake. She closed and covered her eyes and put a hand over Sieglinde’s who started to protest.

“Lights on,” Jasmine commanded, and light exploded into the room. The alcove of the bed provided some protection but it was still necessary for them both to wait for their eyes to adjust to the painful, sudden contrast. She had tried using voice commands to lower the setting but she was learning quickly that despite there being an abundance of different alien types there wasn't a lot of manual variation. The room’s ambient temperature rose and fell with her own body’s -  she had tried to change it a few degrees hotter or cooler manually, shouting at the room but it ignored her requests. She couldn’t increase the flow of air from the vents, or have her bed alcove change the softness of the gel mattress she slept on. (Getting used to sleeping without a blanket or sheet was another challenge, especially since she couldn’t just make the room warmer to simulate a summer's night.)

The worst of all these offenders however was the lack of customisation to the washroom; it was completely automatic and unbearable. There was no drifting off to the artificial waterfall cascading down head and shoulders, no choice in fragrant cleansers or textured exfoliants. You were scanned, dusted, pressure washed and dried. More than once dust and water had gone up her nose and the machine beeped angrily when she dared move or react to an unpleasant jet of water.

It was just awful.

She shuddered to think what the washroom would’ve had in store for her if she still had her long chocolate hair. Jasmine ran a hand over her stubbly scalp, lips tightened as she looked at Sieglinde's fur jealously. Why did the dog get to keep her fur but she be shaved from top to bottom? Why couldn’t she have at least been able to keep her eyebrows? Mercifully all of it was growing back, except a few bald patches on the side of her head. She’d run her fingers over it a few times but without a mirror to check her reflection she had no idea what she actually looked like now. She’d seen a glimpse in the glass of Xant’s terrarium, but that was a faint outline at best.

[Message received From ED Laandi]

Not two [minutes] after the lights were on she was being contacted. Jasmine had learned to keep herself in the dark and still when she wanted to be left alone but doubt was creeping in when Xant had told her about the cameras. She understood why they would be monitoring her of course, but she had this nagging feeling in the back of her mind that the cameras were normal. Xant recorded almost every conversation they had together, he had no reservations about telling her she was being observed. Her every move recorded to be scrutinized for research. She had been granted ‘Creator level status’, but she still wasn’t entirely sure what that meant. ‘Jasmine’ was still a subject to be studied, she wasn’t a ‘person’; not yet.

‘(Don’t be like that. You know how important all this is. It could be a LOT worse... )’ Her mind’s voice encouraged, a faint echo from the translator repeating in her skull. It was right - she could have still been in the clutches of the oversized, uncaring sacks of repulsive flesh that abducted her.

Jasmine climbed out of the bed in the wall and walked over to the small comms terminal.

“Message play.”

ED Laandi: Jasmine, I have been informed of a disruption in the schedule. This is a matter I would like to discuss with you personally. When you are ready I have Captain Rynard waiting to escort you to my office.

“(Laandi will have the final say in all of this,)” Xant’s low voice echoed in her head, with the translator adding another repetition for good measure. Laandi; the Director of the facility, the one who had all the power around here. Jasmine gulped - a conversation where she would have to choose her words very carefully and hope her mind’s voice didn’t leak.

“Great.” She sighed turning to Sieglinde. “We’re both going to need a shower before we visit the boss.”

Sieglinde looked up at Jasmine with a look of utter betrayal in her eyes. Jasmine returned it with a sympathetic grimace.

“Hey, at least it was quick.” She shrugged, trying in vain to unfluff the Golden Retriever's fur. The dog pulled away from Jasmine, curling up on the floor in meek protest.

“No, no Sigi, I’m sorry, I won’t make you do that again, okay? It’s just ‘cause we’re going to go and see the boss today and well... You smell.”

Sieglinde looked up and then away, not convinced. Jasmine smiled, trying to cheer her up.

“I know! We’re going for a walk today! Would you like that? A walk? Walkies? Run?”

Sieglinde didn’t move, continuing to sulk on the floor. Jasmine sat down beside her defeated.

“Sorry Sigi. (I should have taken German in high school.)” She petted the dog on her head for a while, waiting for the dog to forgive her. Jasmine reached over and began loosening the red collar around Sieglinde’s neck. She didn’t have a leash, and didn’t want the dog to leave her side until she knew for certain there wasn't an army of doctors behind her living quarters door ready to snatch Sigi away from her first chance they got.

“Come on, enough sulking, we have to go out,” Jasmine told her, rising to her feet and holding onto the collar. Sieglinde was a little more compliant this time, following Jasmine to the door.

“Living Quarters-”

“GAHHH!!” Jasmine exclaimed as she was met with a wall of black and orange body armour. A literal fucking dinosaur stood between her door and the hallway; its T-rex head lowered into the door frame to meet her eye to eye, revealing an entire mouth full of sharp jagged teeth.

God she hoped it was smiling.

“So, you’re the so-called ‘threat to everyone on board’, huh?” He chuckled. “Gotta say, I’m curious - you look like just another big head, but that little tap you gave me-” he tapped his chest plate “-just now, I can see how you got all ‘em thinkers worried.”

“WHAAAAA?!” Jasmine stared at the brute, her grip around Sigi’s collar tightening as she waited for her brain to comprehend what the heck was going on.

He chuckled again.

“Ha ha! They don’t make ‘em as big as me where you’re from eh?” he folded his arms, Jasmine could hear the body armour creak over his flexing muscles. Sieglinde turned her head to look curiously, trying to move forward to sniff.

“(Fuck no they don’t.) Uhh no.” She blurted out. Everyone she had met on the station, except for Xant had been sleek, smooth. This guy was like if the Hulk was real... and was a Tyrannosaurus rex. “Are you, Captain Rynard?”

“Yep!” He motioned his head to the right. “I gotta take you over to the Director’s office; you’re not gonna try and resist now are ya?”

“I wasn’t planning to?” She replied, still confused.

“Good. Come on then.” Rynard began to stomp down the hall. Jasmine and Sieglinde were left to follow behind, keeping distance so they weren’t knocked back by his tail. Now it made sense why the halls were so damn wide.

Laandi’s office was on the other side of the Living Quarters wing, but still a good ten [minute] walk away from Jasmine’s own hab space. Rynard stood to the side of the door and the collar of his body armour lit up with a little blue light.

“Director, your ‘guest’ is here.”

“Very good Rynard, send her in,” Laandi’s soothing voice replied from an inbuilt comms. Rynard’s tail flicked the sensor and the door slid open with the ever annoying location chime.

“Uhh, thank you.” Jasmine nodded to the guard; he gave her another toothy grin in reply.

Laandi stood to greet Jasmine just to the left of the doorway, and the human was glad she had put in the effort to make herself seem presentable. Laandi was in every sense of the word, elegant. A deep navy blue dress tailored perfectly to fit her willowy body; flowing out at her hips so it gave the illusion that she floated as she walked. A gold chain necklace was draped across her shoulders, a large medallion at her chest and a long drop chain hung between her shoulder blades. A far cry from the greyscale wetsuits and white coats the rest of the station wore. Agile fingers clasped together at their tips as Laandi lowered her smooth, grey head.

“Welcome, Jasmine Howe.” The Director moved with the flow of the ocean as she guided Jasmine to the board meeting table “Please take a seat.”

“Thank you.” Jasmine responded in kind, bowing her head in order to be polite. A quick glance at the long conference table, she chose to sit in the opposite stool to where Laandi’s dataslate lay prepared.

“Sit Sigi,” Jasmine coaxed; and much to her surprise the dog listened. She was finally able to let go of the collar, with her left hand resting reassuringly on Sigi’s head.

Laandi’s black, almond shaped eyes watched the interaction and she spoke approvingly:

“Simply astounding,” The director mused. “No translator, no common language or Frequency and yet, communication occurs.”

Jasmine sat up as straight as she could on the stool, ankles together and tucked to the side.

“Dogs are very quick to pick up simple commands,” Jasmine explained politely. “Sieglinde is a very well behaved dog.”

Laandi studied Jasmine’s formal manner; her tone and posture were completely different from any of the reports Xant had given her. The Creator knew this was different; that this meeting was important for another reason. Laandi smiled, satisfied.

“May I begin this meeting, Jasmine Howe?”

“Miss Howe if you please, Director Laandi.”

“Very well. Miss Howe, may I conduct this meeting?”

“Certainly.”