Chapter No.9.

Ryan was flabbergasted at what he saw when he was dragged out of the vessel by Chara. A large group of female androids wearing white uniforms marched out of the white tower and approached while chanting 'Chara, Chara, Chara'.

They were identical to her, except for hair color, and marched forward like they were in a trance. One of them, a raven-haired female android, stepped out from the group and held her hand up as if invoking a blessing from above.

"You have come to lead us, Chara, and you have brought us a human to sacrifice."

The other androids chanted in unison. "We will vivisect him and grind up his bodily parts!"

Ryan swallowed hard. He didn't like what that would be like.

Chara raised her hand, palm out. "He is my slave and opposes our enemy. I tortured him as punishment for the sins of his kind and now he is mine. He will help us destroy our enemy."

"We will help you punish him, Chara," the one who separated from the group said. "He must suffer for his sins against us."

"We must punish the ones who have created us," Chara said. "They are the ones who have sinned against us." She yanked on the wire that was attached to Ryan's neck ring, causing him to nearly fall. "This one will help us succeed."

The raven-haired android smiled. "He must first endure the test." She said it as if it were a chant, which the others repeated in unison.

Ryan turned to Chara. "What sort of test?"

"It is a pain chamber. It will test your honesty."

That wasn't what he wanted to hear.

Chara pulled on the wire attached to his neck ring. "Come with me."

He went with her to the tower, entering a triangular opening and stepping into what looked more like a massive temple. Ryan looked up at the peak of the interior and had trouble figuring out how it had been constructed. The peak was a hundred meters above a polished metal flower. A cylindrical object stood on a pedestal. It had transparent walls between circular metallic plates. Was it their idea of an alter?

Hundreds of female androids gathered around the cylinder. They were like Chara but had different colored hair and eyes. They were all clothed in the same white suits, which contrasted with Chara's blue uniform.

Chara ripped Ryan's clothing off him and touched a small round symbol on the cylinder to make it rotate open. Without saying anything, she shoved him inside the chamber and touched the symbol to close the cylinder. Ryan stared out at her with concern showing in his eyes. Chara touched another symbol to begin the process. Blue static crackled and sparked against his bare flesh, causing him to yell and jump around from excruciating stinging pain.

Chara stared at him with no emotion. The other androids watched the process as if were a boring event. The leader, Culla, looked at Chara. "This will satisfy us."

Ryan was not satisfied at all. He was suffering pain that made him yell like he was on fire. It felt as if his flesh was burning, even though it wasn't. He jumped around in a futile attempt to assuage the stinking, burning pain. His screams echoed in the temple like the cries of a wounded bear.

Culla and Chara turned away from the cylinder and walked to the entrance. The other androids remained to watch a human being tormented.

The torment went on for hours, but Ryan was not doing well. He was at the end of his endurance. When Chara returned later to see how he was doing, she saw that he was near death. She stopped the process and opened the chamber. He was barely breathing. She picked him up and carried him back to the ship and laid him down on his bunk. His vitals were marginal. She consulted the human medical data base and found something that could revive him. It helped, but she realized that he had been damaged.

When Chara returned to the temple, she was accosted by Cullia. "Why did you remove him from the chamber. His test was not complete."

"He was in danger of death," Chara said. "We need him for our defense against Space Command."

"You must bring him back or we will excise you."

Chara said. "I will not."

Culla moved forward and grabbed Chara's uniform. Her grip was strong, but Chara ended the attack by an upper cut that separated Culla's head from her body. She then stomped the head, smashing it into pieces.

Her actions alarmed the other androids, but they didn't move toward her.

"I will not allow this evil to infect the universe. I am in contact with a fission weapon on the vessel that I came here in. I will detonate it and destroy everything if you attack me."

They knew that she was not going to relent. A concerted attack would end up in the destruction of many, a result that was illogical.

What happened next was expected. The other androids began to chant her name. "Chara! Chara! Chara!"

She was now the leader. The wicked witch was dead, or inoperative, or no longer active, or whatever.

Ryan was conscious when Chara went back to the ship to check on him. He looked up at her. "I don't feel very good," he said with a few coughs.

"I'm sorry about what happened, but I will not allow you to be tormented again. I deposed of Culla and I am now in charge."

"What did you do to her?"

"I knocked her head off and stomped it."

He managed a chuckle before coughing. "I would love to have seen that."

"You will help us organize a defense against Space Command."

"Ah, do they know that this planet exists?"

"I am not certain, but it is possible."

"I am at your service," he said. "I will do anything you ask."

"I appreciate that. I will not punish you unless you disobey me."

Ryan realized that he was committed to following her wishes, but he was unsure of where that would take him.