Cross-Species Communication

"Hey, hey, hey, human girl, are you awake?"

Sensing that her body temperature had returned to normal in every respect and that her pulse had grown strong again, Starscream knew the human girl had awakened. So, would this human be willing to have a proper conversation with him now?

"Who? Who's talking to me? Where's my mother?"

Well! Had she been so traumatized that she'd selectively forgotten? Had this human girl forgotten what had just happened to her?

"Hey, hey, hey, what is wrong with you humans? Look outside your window. Don't tell me you don't even remember me?"

Starscream remembered meeting this human girl earlier. Before passing out, she had even let out a shrill scream at him. That should have left quite an impression, shouldn't it?

At Starscream's reminder, the human girl peered out through the glass above her head and saw a sight that drained the color from her face.

First, a massive mechanical arm glowing red passed by the aircraft window. Then she saw Starscream's head deliberately lower itself. Wasn't this the terrifying "demon god" who had just beaten those desert bandits into nothingness?

"Y-you, my lord... Have you already eaten me? Am I inside your stomach? Why... why can't I move?"

Well! By normal logic, what would a human woman who had never encountered a Transformer think in a situation like this? Didn't it look exactly as though Starscream had "swallowed her into his belly"?

"Fine! I really can't stand primitive creatures like you. How ignorant! If you insist on speaking to me properly only while outside, I don't mind letting you enjoy the cold wind out there!"

As he spoke, Starscream opened the door to his cockpit. The desert night wind was anything but mild, and it immediately froze the human girl, who had been feeling rather comfortable moments ago, until she shivered all over.

"M-my lord, I-I was wrong! Please spare me, I'm cold! I'll tell you anything you want to know. I can give you anything you want!"

Well, humans really were quite fragile. They couldn't even withstand such a slight chill. Still, Starscream should close the window right away. If desert sand got into his instrument panel, cleaning it out would be a real nuisance!

"Fine. I'll ask the questions now. You only need to tell me everything you know. As for the information I need, I can obtain it through my own analysis!"

"Yes, my lord!"

Although she still had no idea what exactly was going on, after witnessing the power of this giant, the girl—apparently the only person Starscream had found—began her first contact with an extraterrestrial civilization.

"Then let's begin. My first question is..."

This was cross-species communication, after all—and communication between a species from a higher plane and one from a lower plane at that. It was obviously going to be quite difficult, wasn't it?

Less than twenty minutes into the conversation, Starscream gave up.

The information the girl before him, Hani Lia, could provide was simply too limited. All Starscream learned from her was that there was a nomadic tribal settlement about thirty kilometers away, along with the girl's name and the names of her family members. As for high-tech equipment, energy reserves, and the like, the girl said she could not understand a word...

"Lord Starscream, that's really all I know. How about we go back to our tribe and ask the elders? They're the oldest people in our tribe and have traveled to many places in the world. Maybe they know about the things you mentioned..."

Well, for humans living in a dark age, the questions Starscream had raised were at least five hundred years ahead of their time. Even their elders probably wouldn't know the answers.

Still, if he wanted a preliminary understanding of this planet, it seemed he would have to meet more older people. He might as well visit this girl's tribe. In any case, Starscream had no plans to return anytime soon. He had no desire to run into that annoying Sixshot again the moment he went back!

"Fine, I'll trust you for the time being. But I don't have much faith in your sense of direction, little girl. Next, I'll need to borrow your brainwaves to navigate. Your scalp may tingle a little, so please cooperate. Starscream, transform!"

After seeing Hani Lia's muddled logic earlier, Starscream couldn't be bothered to have the girl lead the way. He transformed directly into an aircraft. But he was no longer as friendly toward the girl as before. Something like a metal detector extended from Starscream's instrument panel and was placed directly over the girl's head.

"Bzzz! Bzzz!"

This was hardly a mere tingling scalp—it was practically a powerful electric shock. The girl let out a muffled groan and passed out immediately.

"Host, this human's brain capacity is limited. Using electric shocks for an extended period to obtain map directions will cause her considerable harm. Are you sure you want to do this?"

The Ever-Changing Steel System seemed rather kind-hearted. Even toward an ordinary creature on an unfamiliar planet, it appeared to retain a measure of goodwill. In contrast, Starscream seemed far too careless.

"You really are a nag. Just control the intensity. When it's close to the limit of what this girl can endure, stop. It's only thirty kilometers. At my speed, that's just a few minutes. I can find that grassland just by visual estimation!"

Starscream was not boasting. As one of the universe's finest super fighter jets, as long as he had the general direction right, finding a human grassland tribe would be easy!

"Fine! But I think suddenly appearing before those humans in our current state would be a bit... much. I hope we don't cause any chaos among them. What we're doing now is essentially interfering with the civilizational progress of a lower-level species!"

Well, it was unexpected that the Ever-Changing Steel System followed the rules of interstellar civilization so closely. But this was Starscream, air commander of the Decepticons. When had any Decepticon ever obeyed the order of the universe?