Three: Shel

Shel Sens pushed her bright turquoise hair out of her face as she leaned
forward and lifted the cardboard box from the back seat of her vehicle. One
hand slid into the handle that had been cut in the side, right through the
logo: "TAAE, The Terran Association for the Advancement of Exans."

The box was heavy, more so than she expected, but she didn't mind. The
struggle, for her, was worth it. Volunteer work could be sweaty and
backbreaking, but it was always rewarding when she delivered one of these boxes
to a poor Exan family in need. Besides, as her Exan Studies professor told her,
after centuries of brutality and oppression inflicted by humans against Exans,
a little bit of volunteer labor for an Exan charity was the least a Terran can
do while keeping a sound conscience.

Without warning, something hit her in the back of the head. When her vision
cleared, she was laying on the sidewalk, surrounded by young Xeltans. Two of
them had roughly torn open one side of the box and were now opening the snack
bags and protein packs inside, and passing them out to the others.

One of them spoke in a heavy Xeltan accent. "Human dirt! We don't need your
pity! But we will be taking your... gifts." The others laughed uproariously
through their spoils.

Once the crowd around her had turned their attention to the remnants of the
box, a female Xeltan stepped up to Liz and extended a hand to help her stand
up. Once she got to her feet, Liz started to say "thanks," but only got as far
as "th--" before a fist belonging to the same female Xeltan slammed into her
face, breaking her nose.

Shel dropped to the sidewalk and curled into a ball. She started to shout
apologies as she tried to cover her face, her head, her neck. She understood
their anger! She only wanted to help them to voice it! She knew why they felt
this way, if she could only explain, she was on their side, she was trying to
help them...

The Exan crowd was surrounding her again, and the toes and soles of their
shoes, and their fists, were pummeling, stinging, jabbing, bashing into her
ribs, her back, her legs, her head. Blood took over her vision, and she could
no longer tell whether she was curled in a ball on the pavement, or suspended
in the air without weight. All manner of Xeltan and Terran insults and swear
words were raining down on her: "HUMANIST PIG," "FUCK HUMANS," "FUCK TERRANS,"
"DEATH TO EARTH."

Then, Shel no longer heard any Xeltans, no longer heard any insults, or any
voices at all. Shel no longer saw the blood that had begun to form a pool
beneath her. She no longer felt the venom from the knuckle spikes. She no
longer felt anything.