She listened to what he said by the airlock. For whatever caution she was holding on to, he still had her full adherence, not just so she'd see what his next move was, but because she was intrigued. She couldn't hide anything from him now, not when the parts of him that were woven into her told him, and let her feel the things that he wanted. He was emotionally affected and sought to be closer through the glass when the creature tasted her finger without hurting her, like they were a family, and the multilegged, hairless spawn was their child, suckling off her. Zara looked at him again, and he smiled in a small way to let her know his contentment in that moment.<br/><br/>She asked how he may be part of her, but it was with a curious tone more than objection. His eyes told her what she might suspect. He intended to meld them in a most primal way - a method humans preferred. With his body bare, she saw him grow slightly as he presented himself at a better angle. Kaldeio didn't mean to be coy with her, because she wanted it, even if everything was new to her. His breath made a film on the glass. An entirely inviting being, offering her the answer to all that ache inside. The invading threads in her wanted to go to him, but there was a part of the woman who'd also desired this kind of connection all along. He had felt their affinity the moment she discovered him.<br/><br/>He was happy to soothe her with his hand form the other side. Everything was going to be alright. Their quiet understanding through the dividing pain was only part of what he could offer. And then they were rudely pulled apart by the purging cloud filling up the room. Kaldeio had been so engulfed in the biological drives that he'd not noticed the second male intruding. The chemicals in the air were colatile, meant to disinfect all manner of pathogens, and it hurt both the creature in him, and the man himself. He could still feel Zara, and the rage that soaked into her. Kaldeio added to it with his presence in her body through her blood.<br/><br/>Max had reacted instinctively, still reeling from the sight of the former captain cut open from what must have been the worse kind of birth. That kind of mayhem justified all persecution. But when he'd freed her from the crawly that sat on her, and started the cycle of cleansing in the chamber where the newcomer was, Zara had become livid. It caught Max off guard even if he meant to continue his mission to keep her safe, and there by guarantee his own continued safety. His resolve folded in on itself when she said the lewd thing. Max had always felt inadequate for her, and he'd always wanted her. His brittle ego hurt enough for him to hesitate in his mission.<br/><br/>Somewhere inside it all he'd lost his grip on her. And there was pain shooting through his face from her direct elbow. He was further paralyzed when she spoke to the critter. It was starting to dawn on him that whatever had afflicted Laura might be present in Zara, as well. That kind of conclusion took time to set root, even if it made sense. He stared at her, nose bleeding and head full of all the noise that panic and disbelief comes with. In the flood of smoke coming out, she looked inhuman. He was of course hurting from what she'd said about his physicality. It wasn't fair! Kaldeio was a fucking monster. Of course he'd have monster anatomy. All these thoughts weren't helpful, but they infested Max. Perhaps that was her intention. His anger was all he had, without the gun and Zara turned against him.<br/><br/>Without her training to stay calm, he lashed out. He wanted his power back, he wanted her to pay for her verbal slights. It ended with her unconscious on the floor because through it all, she'd trusted him not to hurt her, and not realized he was rabid with fear too. After he'd spoken into the com the smoke reminded him of what must have happened. Max turned his eyes from the monster who wanted to protect Zara, and looked to the now open medical room. The cycle of vaporized disinfectants was fading, but he couldn't see the looming silhouette of Silverman. He went to kick the critter aside again, and then strode into the newly opened chamber, gun first.<br/><br/>"Where the fuck are you? Backup is coming. You might as well give it up..."<br/><br/>Out of the shallow layer of gas, Kaldeio stood to his full length. It made Max turn, but the towering, naked adversary was too close for the angle of the firearm. Kaldeio easily squeezed Max's hand, and lifted it where it wouldn't be of any use to either of them. Max tried to struggle, other hand curling into a fist to repeatedly impact against Kaldeio's jaw. It didn't even deliver enough energy for the specimen to move his head. With exhaustion came a cold fear, and Max, with tears in his eyes, tried to wrench free, wrist bleeding from the hold, and knuckles hurting from the useless self-defense.<br/><br/>Dangling in the grip on his gunhand and unable to inflict any damage, Max stared in crippling dread as Kaldeio lifted his other hand to wrap around Max's neck. It Kept Max's head still. The creature he'd been shooting at jumped out of the residue of the gas to climb his leg. Max struggled but it amounted to nothing. The wings of the spawn soon hugged his head, and its leg dug into his cheeks when the appendage that had been so gentle with Zara's finger violated his mouth.<br/><br/>The backup found the naked Kaldeio holding Zara, draped over his arms. Lin, who was leading the group, held a rifle she wasn't trained to use at him. "What the fuck do you think you're doing! Put her down!"<br/><br/>Kaldeio, ever stoic, looked over to Max, who was waking up, shaking, with the spawn unmoving next to him. "He acted erratic. Officer Dawson fought him." he explained as a man with John Lake on his uniform put another M4 to his temple.<br/><br/>Max felt sick standing up, and couldn't really remember anything from when he'd come here. While the group was shaken up, they refrained from ending Kaldeio right then and there.<br/><br/>Zara would wake up on their ship, with a rapport of what had transpired on the tablet beside her. Max was banging on her door and if she opened she would see that he was pale and sickly. "T-they put him in containment, waiting for you to examine him." he muttered and held his stomach. "B-but. I want you to check me out first. I don't feel great." he said, shaking his head and cradling his stomach. "Do you remember what happened?" It was up to Zara, based on what she'd read in the rapport and what she wanted, to decide the truth of what had transpired.<br/><br/>The threads in her were calling out for Kaldeio, and she'd be able to find his cell even without having been told where they kept him.<br/><br/>Max fell on his knees, weak and reached out with one arm not hugging his stomach. "Please. I think it did something to me."