After completing the sampling phase ahead of schedule, the trio draws a conclusion: that race has at least one nociceptor type that can be neutralized with caffeine, and at least one of these nociceptor types is universal.

  “Tomorrow, we return home. For the rest of the season, we’ll attempt to identify that race’s neurotransmitter neutralized by caffeine!” Lokath lays out the plan for the rest of the off-season.

  “And possibly write a paper!” An ecstatic Aqqar beams, feeling that she’s getting closer to completing her dissertation.

  “Speaking of papers, I have a question: how important are research papers to get into AAA-accredited grad programs?” Killanaus asks the other two.

  “They definitely matter more for class-one licenses, then again, these programs are scholar degree programs, training researchers. It’s still a plus for other license classes, though” Lokath answers him. “More so class-three. Because of your interest in abductions, I requested the department that I would become your faculty advisor for your final year as an undergrad!”

  Oh boy: I learned so much in the past 19 days, about the realities of abduction as a profession. About what that implies for my future life away from my family home, Killanaus starts dreading the return home after the voyage ends. Namely that I can move everything around based on what other tasks I need to complete first.

  Once that meeting ends, Killanaus meets with Aqqar in her cabin, with a question for her:

  “I have a question: what drew you to abduction?”

  “As an undergrad, I never really thought about abducting people. I wanted to work with analgesics. However, I wasn’t as enthusiastic about performing abductions as you!” Aqqar answers him. “You see, a lot of class-one abductors, or people working towards such a license, mostly see abduction as a necessary evil, especially when you want to do research on primitive races. What about you?”

  “As for me, I feel in control over the abductee, if only temporarily. At no point in my life up to the start of this voyage did I feel in control to this extent. And, of course, the UFO flight portion of the job: I can get away from my overbearing parents!”

  But as he returns to his cabin, Killanaus feels a shiver down his spine because tomorrow is the last day where he would be able to enjoy the freedoms he cherishes most. At least for the next two seasons or so.

  Stay strong, two more seasons and I might, hopefully, win my freedom permanently, the little green man’s inner dialogue takes over. I’ll never look at abduction the same way again, now that I tasted life as an abductor.

  The following day, Lokath flies the UFO back home, jumping to ultraspace, and, during the trip home, Killanaus reads accounts of alien abductees about abduction by their kind. About how some people among the abductees’ races seemed to portray the abductors as villains, especially the race of the Stoneship Files.

  In the latter case, he learns that, while the Stoneship Files abductees overthrew their own race’s government in place at the time, they were deeply traumatized for the rest of their lives, even in power.

  One thing is for sure: trauma will be part of my future career, no matter how I slice it. So even if, by abducting someone, I ultimately save the abductee’s life, what made them need an abduction will have traumatized them first, Killanaus is left wondering about how he sees his role in the infliction of trauma as a future licensed abductor.

  It’s during that short amount of time that he starts looking up specialist degree programs leading to class-2 abduction licenses. It appears these programs tend to be split into two types.

  Those specializing in developmental biology tend to produce abductors who specialize in youth protection, and the others seem to be more oriented towards toxicology and other areas of biology and biochemistry that are relevant to abducting criminals.

  “We’re returning home in a few minutes. Get ready to pack your baggage!” Lokath signals to the other two UFO occupants.

  It’s then that Killanaus starts to dread the thought of returning to the geodesic dome he calls home. Oh crap, I wonder how will my parents react when I’m going to tell them about the freedoms I enjoyed for the past 20 days... and they’ll definitely ask me about what my plan for the future is.

  And, after their reversion from ultraspace, the UFO enters atmosphere so that it can get to the university’s hangar, passing through pink clouds, on final approach towards the Flying Saucer’s top floor.

  They are greeted by a familiar face when the UFO has landed, using its autoland system.

  “Well, if it isn’t Killa returning from his abduction voyage!” Qinlei opens her arms, while her beloved Killanaus has a suitcase on one hand, with his belongings needing to be cleaned.

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  “I learned so much about abduction as a profession, and it was so good that I could do chores and other personal stuff whenever I deemed it appropriate. Now I have a better idea of what I want out of being an abductor!” Killanaus’ eyes turn starry, gazing her again.

  “What do you mean?”

  “I feel like abducting for research is actually too restrictive, so I might consider earning a class-two license instead”

  “Why?” Qinlei asks as both Aqqar and Lokath go their separate ways.

  “It’s a little complicated, and I think Majuro or maybe even Keyela might be interested in the details of what made research abductions so restrictive in the first place!”

  “You gotta tell me about these restrictions!”

  I’m not surprised by Majuro’s potential interest. But why does he think that Keyela, a pre-med, might want to know about restrictions placed on research abductions, much less the why? Maybe one of these reasons is of interest to a pre-med, Qinlei’s mind starts racing against the clock when he mentions classmates he feels might be interested in the background of why he thinks research abduction is too restrictive for him.

  Before returning home, he emails these people abridged notes about the Stoneship Files as well as the epidemic that caused the abduction licensure system to be implemented. And, of course, his parents, thinking that maybe, if they understood the context behind his decision, they might be more supportive.

  Speaking of whom, upon his return to the family’s geodesic dome, they start unpacking his suitcase. His dad smells that something’s fishy, akin to black coffee:

  “Why does your suitcase smell as if someone spilled analgesics on it?” his dad yells at him, as his skin turns grey.

  “I drank more analgesics than I should have, especially in the later stages of the voyage, when analyzing the experimental data!” he tries his best to fabricate a plausible excuse for his clothes’ smell of coffee.

  I spent twenty days in orbit of an alien world injecting caffeine on insectoid abductees! Killanaus keeps to himself as his own skin turns grey. As much as Lokath might have shady practices sometimes, at least I was able to meaningfully contribute to the project. Not like some other profs, who might be fine with their undergrad interns not contributing a whole lot during the off-season.

  “This job isn’t healthy for you!” his dad scolds him. “And has unstable schedules, too!”

  “As a prison guard, you don’t understand how fickle insights really are in the lab! You want to keep going as long as you have them, even if it means chugging more analgesics!”

  “Working that job made you drink too many analgesics for your own good!”

  “The mechanistic part of working as a research abductor is the data collection phase! When you abduct the test subjects and experiment on them!”

  “The unhealthy part of working as a prison guard is the amount of stress you’re under! Past incidents do keep you up at night, even at a min-sec, but at least there are clear limits to your working time! Not like research abductors, and you make it sound like they regularly pull all-nighters!” his dad harangues him about how these professions differ.

  “Speaking of research abductors, I also learned an uncomfortable truth about that job!” his skin takes on a darker shade of grey as his emotions intensify.

  “What do you mean?”

  “While I still want to earn an abduction license, the impact of botched abductions can be far greater in research, perhaps too great for me to handle, so I decided that I might be better off earning a specialist degree leading to a class-two license!”

  “What kind of jobs can class-two licensees hold?” Killanaus’ dad asks as her mom has finished putting their son’s clothes in the dry-cleaning machine. “I really hope that these jobs are healthier than scientific research!”

  “Being a prison guard isn’t healthy either! You get stressed out all the time, with all the health hazards this mean, and that’s if the inmates don’t hurt you! As a crane operator, my stresses came from a different source, but I recognize that abductors are more than glorified crane operators, as I kept hearing when I worked!” his mom retorts, facing him.

  “Mom, at times you make me feel like some failed abductors become crane operators, when the only part that overlaps is the need for abductors of any class to learn how to operate tractor beams!” Killanaus turns to his dad. “But to answer your question, dad, common jobs held by class-two abductors include space patrollers and youth welfare social worker!”

  “A youth welfare social worker I might have understood, because you use developmental biology daily in that job, but why would a biology department train space patrollers?” his mom questions him.

  “A.k.a. police abductors!” his dad shouts.

  “Toxicology being the main area, and also other biological knowledge as relevant to a police agent on patrol!”

  “It’s just that typically, people with biology backgrounds in police departments tend to do more forensic work than patrolling!” his dad adds on what he had to say about class-2 abductors. “If you decide to become a police abductor, you’ll get all the stress sources I do as a prison guard, and then some! There will be times when your nerves will be put to the test while on patrol, especially in life-threatening situations!” his dad warns him about the stress aspect of police abduction.

  “I guess, as a prison guard, you must have worked with police abductors…” Killanaus sighs.

  “One of my previous bosses resigned to become a police abductor. I kept in touch with him after he went back to school for biology, and what a shock collegiate life was for him!”

  His parents then step out of the room because they feel like this discussion about abduction licensure is going to degenerate.

  Once again, my parents are criticizing my career choice, even when I narrowed it down to careers requiring a class-2 abduction license! Killanaus mopes while the rest of the season is going to be spent at home. A year from now, I’m going to be away from home for grad school. That is, if I get in. But, from the looks of it, I think I’ll do just fine once in grad school.

  Speaking of grad school, he feels like he has some soul-searching to do. He takes the AAA’s online personality test to determine what kind of class-2 grad program is best for him.

  Which essentially amounts to determining which one between law enforcement and youth protection is best for a prospective abductor, even without the abduction part. And without the interests within biology being considered.

  “Drat: this personality test is inconclusive, and I feel like this decision of which branch to pursue will hang on whether I seem to like toxicology or developmental biology more…” Killanaus moans afterward.