“Yes sir.” Martinez departed on the run, glancing back often over his shoulder.

Oblivious to human concern, the front of the ancient relic continued to open.

No one breathed. The slowly opening panel was similarly noiseless. People avoided bumping into things.

The cover of the capsule, or whatever it was, finally stopped. It had swung out and back about 120 degrees, revealing a padded interior. A rainbow of wires, pads, and things with unknown and unimaginable functions enclosed and criss-crossed the inert body of the alien. When nothing else happened, a small cluster of engineers and technicians, men who had been halfway out the tunnel at the first movement, began to edge back for a closer look.

The first two guards arrived, panting heavily. They took one look at what was taking place and immediately ran around the perimeter to the right. That way they would have a clearer line of fire into the capsule.

First sight suggested a mating between a crab and a Kodiak bear. The being was clearly constructed along lines with power commensurate to size. The trunk was broad and deep. Lines of muscle showed clearly under the skin at the bare spots. Most of it was covered by a bristly silver-white fur centimeters in length, fading here and there to a light brown. Plastrons of some shell-like substance, mottled white, covered the chest area. The fur there was sparse and stunted around the edges.

Four thick, jointed legs, bare of fur and armored like a battleraft, trailed from the limp torso. A thick tentacle at each shoulder point divided almost immediately, splitting four-fifths of the way down into four smaller, finger-like branchings. There were sixteen manipulative members, then. The branching limbs descended to a point just above where the legs began.

There were four eyes, two on either side of the curved white beak. Two large ones close to the center, with a smaller to the far left and right. Furred lids shut tight over all four. The beak was closed, but four short, pointed canines projected outside the mouth, two up and two down. There was no external evidence of ears or nostrils.

Six guards now focused their weapons on the thing. Mal, Kitten, Philip, Kingsley, and a batch of fascinated technicians and engineers stared open-mouthed in its direction.

“Ugly thing, isn’t it?” said Porsupah into the silence. The engineers immediately started to buzz among themselves, a dozen conversations suddenly going at once.

“I’m not in love with its features either, Pors,” Kitten replied. “Anyone recognize the species?”

“I don’t want to interrupt any fascinating dialogue on alien cosmetology,” said Philip quietly, “but I believe I just saw an eyelid flicker. Yes, there it is again.”

Kitten backed away, moaning. “Oh god, I think I may suffer a lapse of training. I’m going to scream.”