Then the little being scampered from the room in a rush of angry claws. Snaps was the only comparable companion Helix had encountered, and the fur-person had been easier to handle. Snaps had enjoyed chasing the cleaning unit and digging in the garden. Somehow, he doubted a companion species that was bored by geometry but found calculus entertaining would be amused by such simple pastimes.

“She can be a bit grouchy and territorial,” Qalu noted.

“So I observe. Is it discourteous to inquire as to her species? I am unable to connect to any additional databases at present.”

“Is that so?” She came closer, though she stopped short of physical contact. “The processor is a prototype, but I never intended to cut you off from all your normal resources. That must be very frustrating.”

“And limiting.”

“I’ll run diagnostics and restore that function as soon as possible. And regarding your question, Aevi is a Pherzul, highly intelligent and native to Tiralan. They normally stay within their own colonies, but when I found Aevi, I couldn’t let her perish.”

“That was…kind,” he said, though he had no true notion whether that word applied in this instance.

“Sometimes I wonder, because she’s deprived of all the normal relationships she would’ve known. Perhaps her progenitors would have returned for her.”

“There is little probability of that. If she was in a precarious state, it seems more logical to conclude that you did, in fact, save her. And that life with you is preferable to none at all, even if it deviates from Pherzul norms.”

Qalu’s head tendrils fluttered. “That is…peculiarly comforting, if a bit grim.”

“I’m pleased I can offer value.”

“Perhaps those were your original parameters, but you aren’t required to be productive or useful here. Interacting with you is enough for me.”

Another emotional response, this one softer and more pleasant. But before he could respond, a terrible wave hit him, a fire centered in his being, and his limbs crumpled, unable to bear weight. He immediately wanted whatever she had given him the day before to make this stop, but he couldn’t get the words out.

“Helix? Where does it hurt?” He tried to indicate, but his flesh wouldn’t cooperate. She bent beside him without touching him, using a device to investigate his physical state. “This may seem like an odd question, but have you…emitted waste since we ate last night?”

“No!” The horrified answer came out sharper than he intended.

“I believe that’s the problem. To help you to the facilities, I need to touch you. Do I have your permission?”

“Yes.”

This time, he barely noticed her touch because there was so much interference screaming inside him. Their progress was a stumbling blur, and Helix wished he could block out what followed with her hovering outside, calling concerned questions. “Are you all right? Do you have any questions? Did you manage to—?”