Lieutenant Nathan Auridaxe's Story

This is quite the predicament.

The singular concept cut through Nathan's thoughts like a knife, dispelling all illusions he had held up until then. The Ouroboros was gone. For all he knew, everyone else had been killed. So it was him, his mind, and this hazard suit.

Hazard suit. Nathan tugged at the rubbery material now covering his body. It wasn't rubber, of course: it was some sort of plasticine mesh of various chemicals. He wasn't an engineer, and there were none around, so Nathan removed the question from his mind. It was a hazard suit against all of whatever was in the atmosphere. He had been fine shortly after leaving the pod, but Nathan, being the doctor he was, wanted to take no chances. Even now, he expected to keel over and die at any moment from those brief minutes of exposure.

Thoughts of death and the material of the suit creeped back into his head as he marched his way through a grassy meadow, heading towards a jungle area. He resisted the tendrils of these dark thoughts and focused on what he needed to remember:

His name was Nathan Auridaxe. Chief medical officer on the Ouroboros. Ouroboros was now gone. He was on... On... Nawlive, wasn't it? Normine? Norlive! Yes, he had been dispatched with his ship to... To... Investigate why Research Base Norline-07 had sent out a distress call.

Ah, fate, turning the rescuers into those that needed rescue..

Nathan turned around, following some instinct, and immediately regretted the action. Behind him, the colossal shape of the steel hulk that had composed the Ouroboros had been slowly breaking apart in orbit, pieces raining down in short showers far away. It had all made for a very pretty show, with all the chunks of metal forming shooting stars, but noe the whole massive hull seemed to be aflame.

The ship, in all of its 750-metre length, was falling out of orbit.

Not daring to imagine the size of the shockwave when the massive thing finally came to rest, Nathan ran as fast as he could manage away from the shape, moving in leaps and bounds, happy that this suit had been designed to be able to resist small-calibre bullets, much less branches.

When the final blast came, however, sound travelling in unision with a wall of pressure, Nathan was knocked flat on his belly after cartwheeling a couple of times through the air. The wind had been knocked out of him and there was a horrible ache in his chest. Nathan suddenly became very scared: he had no way of seeing or repairing a broken ribcage, as taking off the hazard suit was imprudent at best.

Turning around once more, Nathan saw the carnage behind him: trees uprooted and flung about, soil lying in odd clumps, and far away, the ruined steel bridge of the Ouroboros poking up above the trees. At first Nathan considered returning to it to salvage what he could, but that wasn't an option. The ship would be hot enough to cause fourth-degree burns, and even getting nesr it would be extremely dangerous. Nathan had no choice but to press on, and with a sigh that partially fogged up the visor of his suit, continued back in the direction he was going.

Nathan had finally clawed his way through the jungle canopy, his orange suit now stained light green in some places where odd vines had impacted it, when he started wishing the designers of the cryopods had put a machete into a compartment as an emergency tool. First, it would have gotten him through the jungle much quicker.

Second, it would be good defense against whatever was on this planet.

Almost instantly upon leaving the jungle and entering another clearing, Nathan had spotted a rock, seemingly in the middle of the clearing. It had seemed perfectly normal as he walked past it, until he saw the other side of it.

Lying against it was a body. It was a person, covered in ironplast plate armour, vacuum sealed, the type designed for extravehicular fighting. The faceplate of his helmet was smashed, caved in from external brute force. The face beyond was a bloody, unrecognizable pulp, and blood was still oozing out, covering the white armour plates and the soil below. Looking on one of the soldier's shoulder plates revealed something curious.

Printed on the plate was a green snake eating its own tail. The mark of the infinite loop. Ouroboros.

So this guard had served aboard the Ouroboros, had escaped, and had been killed. Nathan suddenly felt very uncomfortable in the plain he was standing in, but whatever had been there had moved on long ago.

It suddenly occured to him that not only was the corpse that of a security officer, who usually carried guns, but that there would still be some ammunition left on his belt.

It was for that reason that Nathan set upon the unpleasant task of looting him and eventually finding the gun in question, a Magrail .35 calibre heavy handgun. Impressive considering the circumstances, but scraping everything together gave him a grand total of seven bullets. That wouldn't last me through the whole planet, surely.

Nathan felt an increasing pressure to continue onwards, and thus gave his body a final look-over and continued onwards.

Hours past hours of endless trundling had left Nathan desperately tired, hungry, and thirsty. He knew he needed to lay down and sleep, lest he simply collapse, but he had to push onwards. Maybe there would be another research bade here. Maybe.

As he kept moving, though, the desperation began to creep in, and soon the hallucination, and finally the unsolicited delirium. Nathan needed to sleep, but he couldn't. He needed to keep moving. Why, he didn't know. But he did.

Finally, Nathan, weakened considerably by lack of food, collapsed onto the ground, chest heaving as he lay on his side. He was done. He could do no more. He would lie here and die, staring out of his hazard suit's visor at the bottoms of the trees and the strange animals he had seen scurrying around.

The last thing he saw before he blanked out was yet another hallucination: two pairs of feet, belonging to humanoid shapes.

---

Nathan awoke with a start and a violent fit of coughing. He was still in the hazard suit, but instead of the jungle, he was in a strange room. He could barely move, so tired felt his limbs, but he himself? He was wide awake. The backpack carrying Nathan's oxygen cycler had been taken off his back and placed on the floor nearby, but he was happy to see the tube was still connected. Nathan's visor was stained in the lower part, almost as if someone had tried to feed him. Shame they couldn't see through the reflective visor, or at least figure out how to take the hazard suit's helmet off. He was starting to feel as if he'd rather choke on whatever chemicals were in the atmosphere than slowly dehydrate to death.

The room itself was simple: wooden walls, a wooden door, a wooden floor. A reasonably large, glassless hole in the wall was letting in light, but Nathan couldn't rotate enough to see out of it. All he knew was that he was in a room, and stuck. He sighed.

Eventually, a person opened the door and entered. They looked human, but somehow... Different. Nathan couldn't quite place it, he was simply too exhausted. The person in question was a teenage boy, clad in odd, partly translucent garments. Nathan squirmed a little, trying to signal him over, but the boy gasped and ran out of the room, shouting something in some odd language.

Nathan sighed.

Quite the predicament, indeed.

Words drifted in on the wind, wrapping around trees and taking a solid form. His name was spoken, catching his attention and directing it away from the serene landscape. The words came from behind the sky.
Ambassador opened one eye, setting it on the Misu before he raised his head. He had just gotten into a deep sleep, and that was being placed on hold. Disgruntled, he wondered if he would ever have the chance to recover.
When Kaliska began to explain the situation, he became more awake and went through the motions of getting out of the small bed. A monster... in a prison cell? How was that relevant to him, wasn't that the Protector's wife's job? It was explained that the creature was Misu-like in shape, but its skin was a solid bright orange and folded unnaturally. While orange wasn't necessarily a rare color for jungle-dwellers, this wasn't a native species. Ambassador frowned, knowing what that could mean. They had already been caught up with by the Society. But why hadn't they heard the ship? Why not a droid? These questions circulated as he was guided out of the room and down a set of corridors. He had left his boots in the room, which permitted his bare feet to take in the odd feeling of natural-material flooring. It was quite cool to the touch, which made the warmth of the air more tolerable. But there was more. He felt like he had a better sense of connection to the building; like he was actively present within it rather than just observing. It was a tricky feeling to try and pin down.

They were led down a gentle curving incline, sunlight fading out the further they went. By the time it leveled out, only a handful of small windows up high let in natural light. The rest was supplemented with wall sconces. The flames were concealed behind colored glass, giving the flickering light sources a softer look. When the corridor finally ended, it was into a rounded room. There were five doors total, each as exquisitely crafted as the dorms'. He and Kaliska were guided to the middle-right one, which bore the shape of a large serpentine beast. On either side of it stood two Misu guards, who permitted the pair to enter as soon as they understood that the Misu woman was a Castilla. When the door was opened, Ambassador headed inside. And promptly stopped. It was a full-body suit, and a rush of fear gripped his chest. Mandalorian.
But that wasn't right. The visor was wrong, and any Mandalorian would have gotten out of those ties long ago. This was something - someone - else. He just stared, realizing that this would have likely been his fate with the Misu had he not been fortunate enough to meet Kaliska.
On that though, he cast her a glance. Her colors had faded a few shades, but nothing close to what he had seen with the serpent-creature in the jungle. Speaking quietly to her, "This one belongs to the cultures I'm familiar with. Let me see what I can do." He let go of her hand, taking an extra moment to reassure her he knew what he was doing. While she hung back near the door, Ambassador came to stand eight paces from the stranger. He held his frown, looking down at the expressionless suit. Why he was doing this - initiating conversation - he had no idea. He wasn't a Misu, yet he felt somehow like this one was intruding upon his own familiars. Keeping his tone level, he simply asked "Do you speak Basic?"

Nathan squirmed, attempting to communicate but failing.

"W...water... Bring... Water," he managed to croak out. He hoped it wasn't too muffled by the suit.

At the same time, he began picking at one of the tiny emergency release leavers attached to the hazard suit's mask clamp. It was obvious that taking it off was an absolute necessity.

Ambassador's brows came together. He knew those words, and took that as an answer to his question. He asked for Kaliska to act as translator to the other Misu. When the guide had been dispatched to retrieve water, Ambassador crouched down to be closer to the individual's level. He kept his distance for now, until he had enough information to determine whether or not the being meant them harm. "What is your species?"

Nathan was still fumbling with the release lever when the individual came closer. There was something odd about the fact that there was someone who spoke English on this strange planet.

Nathan suddenly had an idea. "Press... button... here... I will... speak easier."

His throat was burning from dehydration, and his stomach was starting to join in where it had quieted down some hours ago. He seemed to lack the basic strength to even center in on the lever, and the fact that the suit's gloves dulled the sense of touch certainly wasn't helping.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a wave of tiredness hit him, and he fell asleep once more.

Ambassador stayed wary, even when the figure gave him instructions. That is, until the person lay still. Limp. Ambassador cast a glance to the Misu before moving forward. He paused an arm's length from the suit, and then moved in just enough to be able to reach him. He knew that environmental suits usually contained more delicate lifeforms within. Despite the apparent lack of consciousness, he gave the precaution "You might not like the atmospheric make-up here..." before flipping the emergency release. What he found was nothing short of a man. Mandalorian. Human. Timelord. Misu. He had no idea. Most likely not the latter though. His sixth heart had not started, so it was improbable that the individual was a Mirror Kind. Then again, he may still be and the lack of cardiological recognition was just a byproduct of not having enough oxygen. Either way, the man was not conscious. At least not awake.
Ambassador debated whether or not to link into the man's mind. He didn't know what he'd find there, what traps might lie in wait. The Misu were not capable of helping him in that manner if he were to become entrapped in the mind of another. Still...
Ambassador's expression twisted into a deep frown. He was in thought when the guide returned, promptly handing him a shell-and-clay miniature vase of water before backing way off. He turned it towards him, glancing at the clear-enough liquid inside to confirm it was water. He was tempted to drink from it. Though the individual before him was clearly in more need. Setting the vase down, Ambassador tried to figure out what to do. He had no confirmation of the man's species, and that left him drawing a blank as to what type of first-aid he could apply. Taking in a deep breath, he scooted closer. Closer than he would like to be, under normal circumstances. He set his hands on either side of the man's head, over the temples. Closing his eyes, he focused. This is for when you become conscious. he stated, leaving a telepathic message. If he did it right, it would be the first coherent thought to cross the man's mind upon awakening. I am not looking to extract secrets or cause you harm. That was the end of his message. Ambassador tried to focus, tried to pull his thoughts away from wondering if the Misu people would find his actions odd. Pulling his thoughts away from the team. Away from....
Shrapnel. Metal. Fear. Sleep. There was a coldness, a sense of death. No memories. Nothing but the feeling of slamming into the ground. Muscle fibers tearing. Fear. He was going to die, if he did not get out of the way-
The connection dropped when Ambassador backed away. The feeling of panic had been too intense, starting his hearts on a rampage of beats. Taking in a shaky breath, he tried to calm himself down. Finally, he stood. And put distance between them. He would wait until the man awoke.

Nathan woke again, and this time the constriction was gone. A thought hit him, out of nowhere:

This is for when you become conscious. I am not looking to extract secrets or cause you harm.

Nathan had not heard of many telepathic species, but of the few he knew of he had occasionally operated on back at the hospital on Praxis. They were always the worst patients. Anaesthetic could do nothing to dull their screaming, but not screaming from the lungs, but from the mind. Their screaming penetrated the minds of the surgeons, instilled dread like no other. They felt their patient's pain, that which the body ignored but the mind knew, and not many could handle it. Nathan had gotten close to the edge once, operating on a Nebula Slug, but he had survived. Just.

And now a telepath stood before him, and he was certa-

Before him. Not through any reflection, not through anything at all.

The helmet. It had come off.

Nathan breathed cautiously. He was alive, which was a relief beyond all. The air wasn't toxic. The same hunger and thirst, however, still echoed through his body. He saw the jug of water nearby and reached for it, and started drinking like a madman. Water had never tasted so divine.

Once he finished, wiping his lips with the back of his gloved hand, he shifted a little in the bed and looked straight at the waiting man in front of him. He began,

"I'm sure you have questions. I'm rather sure you've recieved answers, too, if you're a telepath as I presume. If not, I am Nathan Mallory, a former chief medical officer aboard a research vessel. It crashed nearby, and I managed to walk... somewhere before I collapsed. I assume one of you found me, and here I am."

"Ambassador." he replied, then indicated to Kaliska. "That is Miss Misu." He figured his message had relayed the fact he could be telepathic. He decided not to clarify, nor give his association with any organization. The man - Nathan - must have been quite close to the city to have been brought directly here. Ambassador had to admit he was a bit envious; he'd spent almost two days on the edge of death fighting to get here through the jungle. Still, it was something of a relief to be in the presence of someone who understood the fact that artificial gravity and traveling between planets was possible. And who had a more refined hold on speaking Basic. "Are you with the Society of Lunar Exploration? And, what species do you belong to?"

Nathan gave a sarcastic snort.

"The Society? Wouldn't be caught dead in the same ship as one of them."

He still remembered very vividly an incident the Ouroboros had had on its way to Norline, just after it had left Chandra and the crewmen had gone into cryosleep. The Society, much as they said they were a force for good, seemed awfully powerful in the weaponry and sabotage department. As time went on, Nathan was thinking more and more that maybe the Society had something to do with the ship's sudden and mysterious failure.

He focused on the second part of the question:

"On the other hand, I'm thoroughly human. Under normal circumstances I would think the same of you two, but I'm rather certain that's not the case."

Was it water Nathan had drunken? It seemed to have been incredibly rejuvenating for it. He waved the idea aside; if he wasn't dead, he would probably be fine.

"Judging from the reaction one of the natives here had to me being here, I'm not so sure if I'm welcome."

Ambassador frowned. He was doing a lot of that lately. The response had been a bit less than preferable; though he wasn't in the best favor with the Society due to his home colony's history, he still held them in high regard. They were top-of-the-line researchers. At least, the ones he had encountered. Perhaps not as much so in other star systems where planetary governments didn't have as much say...
"No, I wouldn't expect so." was his response to noting the natives' lack of welcoming him with open arms.
Human. They were a... difficult lot to work with, in most cases. Ambitious. Often shortsighted, but not always. He spoke on behalf of Kaliska, feeling a bit like his title's namesake for the Misu. For this moment, he would be their ambassador. "These people are known as the Misu. They are the indigenous to the planet, and know it thoroughly." he summarized. Then shifted word use. "We here on Norline do not get many visitors that leave their outposts. You understand if we're a bit.. cautious." Ambassador really hoped Kaliska would be alright with him suggesting he was a native alongside them. If not, he'd explain later. For now, "The oxygen is very little in the air here. You'll be experiencing breathing problems pretty soon." At least that's what he expected. As far as he knew, humans were single-hearted, and perhaps that made it so they needed less oxygen than he did. "Why did you come here?" The man - Nathan - had said he was aboard a research vessel, but not the Society's. And yet it had... crashed. Not likely. Proper research ships didn't just "crash nearby". They were built to be sturdy, to last, and their crew was well aware of what they were coming into when they arrived at a new planet. No, Ambassador grew wary. He needed better information from this man; if he had been sent in by the team...

Nathan's eyes widened.

"Well," a hint of desperation crawling into his voice, "Can you please bring me some more food and water? I can get the helmet back on once I can ensure that I can actually stand.

He rubbed his eyes with his fingers, reformulating his thoughts.

"I serve the Sirius Federation, a gathering of numerous star systems im the vicinity of the Sirius star, in the capacity of a medical officer. The Federation, wishing to be one of the first to establish dominion over some part of Norline, deployed a freighter equipped with the capability to start a small base. 892 years in transit, not using Terrion Catalysation Engines to avoid sighting, they arrived here and built up a research base. A few weeks ago we recieved a distress signal. It was corrupted, probably by a damaged transmitter, but spoke about some sort of containment breach and that we should come quickly. Nothing more came."

He sighed.

"We also recieved intel that the Society had suffered a similar problem, and instead of being overjoyed, we became suspicous. One outpost will always go, but two in one strike? Something's wrong down here."

Nathan finally turned to the woman in the room for the first time. "Miss, ah, Misu, do you happen to know if any spacecraft have been around for the past few weeks?"

Nathan's current suspicion was pirates. It could be anything, but this was as good as any of that.

Kaliksa had remained practically frozen against the cell's wall as she watched the exchange between the two others. Though her colors were slightly faded, she forced her features to remain hardened into that of a cool stare. One she'd seen her father take on in many diplomatic meetings. There were several times, however, that she dropped the stance, lifting her eyebrows in surprise or scrunching them in confusion. For the most part she remained quiet, except Ambassador's one request for water, which she barked quickly at one of the guards to deliver.

Kaliska didn't mind letting Ambassador do all the talking. In fact that was what she was hoping would happen. At least when she discovered that the thing was an other and not in fact a monster as the serving boy as believed. At least not one of the fairy tale type. That of his true nature would only be revealed with time.

Mostly she was observing and trying to decipher what they were talking about. Ambassador had used the word telepathy or something like it before, she believed. She did not know what it meant then and now, but perhaps it was something important she should know about. She wondered if his strange actions earlier with this new other was part of it. They talked of stars and societies and for a moment she was fearful that he might be from the same that was supposedly coming after her and Ambassador, but from Ambassador's words and stance that didn't seem right. If she was hearing correctly, they also spoke of another place.

That couldn't be right though. Another place? Like the bad one from before. The Misu only knew of the one. How many more bad places could there be on her star?

Establish dominion over a part of Norline? She frowned not liking the sound of that. Were there more others watching her star? More than just Ambassador's others? Could they have been the ones to start the wild fire? Were there more already on the star? Coming after the Misu? Could the fire be a trap? Could this new other being part of a trap?

With all the new questions popping into her mind, her fear and anxiety was growing larger with each passing moment. Fear for both her people and her planet. But there was something else too, right above the fear that was threatening to bubble over any moment. Anger. What right did all these others have to come onto to Norline, set things on fire and build ugly unnatural buildings that endangers the way of life for many species and not to mention now littering the jungle with bits of burning flyer that would possibly start even more fires and kill even more species?

If either of the male others were paying any attention her at all, they could tell that her hair's color was quickly fading from grey to a blazey red orange that Ambassador might be coming familiar with. She had half a mind to turn and lock them both in this cell till her father returned. Others were proving to be just as much trouble as fabled. Kaliska was so caught up in her furious thoughts that it took her a moment to realize that this new other, this chief Nathan Mallory, was addressing her.

The Misu did not respond right away, partly due to having no clue as to what he was asking her and mostly due to her curry state of silent rage. Her luminous green eyes bore into Nathan for several moments before cutting to Ambassador as if asking him to translate.

Ambassador was silent for a long moment after Nathan finished speaking. He didn't like the words being presented. Nathan had at first spoken of himself being part of a research vessel, and now a federation that had come here to set up a base? The Misu wouldn't stand a chance against bullets and robots. And neither would he, Ambassador. Nathan spoke of being called in from a distress signal, yet his federation had deployed ships almost nine-hundred years ago. It sounded like a weak cover story. Ambassador ignored the request for food and water, despite wanting to help. The federation was clearly doing much more than what the Society did. They had taken it upon themselves not to simply observe and learn, but to dominate.

By the time Ambassador looked to Kaliska, there was a tension in the air. He was taken aback by the fiery scene he saw before him - a rather enraged Misu - and flinched a bit when her piercing green eyes landed on him. He let the silence hold for a short second, then looked to Nathan. "There have not been any fliers here prior to yours." he said curtly. "Excuse me while my companion and I have a word." With that he turned away from the medical officer, hearing tuning in enough in case the man tried to cause a fight. He regretted telling the individual about the low oxygen; if that suit had air, it could sustain him enough. He should've just let him pass out from lack of oxygen and then re-searched his memory.

Ambassador moved swiftly towards Kaliska, stopping a couple paces from her to give her the space she probably needed. He spoke quietly, his expression softening from the one he had held during the Nathan exchange. "May I speak with you in the corridor, please?"

As the two left the room, Nathan's mouth curled into a grim half-smile. He would take no chances with these people, and had thus spent the last 30 seconds convincing himself that he was not Nathan Auridaxe, but Nathan Mallory. If they recognized him, especially the telepath, nothing would end well.

He sighed. What a name it was to bear, Auridaxe. One that only the Federation would dare to take under its wing. It was part of the reason Nathan had signed up to go to Norline: 900 years and his legacy would be long dead with those who had lived to see it. For all public accounts, Nathan was dead. At least, he hoped.

Meanwhile, he decided to focus on keeping himself dead by record only by placing the hazard suit's helmet over his head. As the helmet locked into place and the pressure equalized with a hiss, his head felt noticeably clearer. He was about to reach for and put on the backpack, when he noticed something: the gun he had scavenged before was on top of it.

So these tribals had been stupid enough to leave a foreigner with a weapon. Fine. He grabbed the gun and opened one of the many utility pockets on the hazard suit and put it in. It would be as safe a place as any. Just as Nathan was rising off the bed and putting the backpack on, he stopped. Why was he doing this? Where did he think he was going?

He sighed and dropped the backpack back on the ground and lay back on the bed. He would have to unravel the situation a bit more.

Has not been any fliers...

Kaliska repeated Ambassador's words in her head as he turned and came towards her. Her anger was paused for a moment to be replaced with a hint of confusion. That was not true. Hadn't Ambassador and the other Cole came on a flier as well? She had not seen it for herself, no, but they had to arrive... and leave, on some sort of flyer.

Before she left, she eyed Nathan again, giving him nothing short of a glare and also ensuring that his bounds were still in place and secure. He could move somewhat and maybe even find his way to a privy pot if needed but he would not leave this cell. At least not without a fight ending in spilled blood. The jailers, though not often needed in Ryilla, were seasoned men; well equipped to handle a rambunctious prisoner. Though true the Misu were unfamiliar with guns, they still had sharp points and strength and battle wit. Even their women were trained to handle themselves, though high born did get more attention than that the girls of lower birth. However those of a more noble birth tended to not be as scrappy and followed the rules of a fight whereas the common Misu might be a bit more... unrefined.

Only when Kaliska was satisfied that the prisoner was secure did she turn her back on him to exit the cell. Once outside she instructed the jailers to keep a close watch on the door and small cutout. She did not want to take any chances. She did not want old bedtime stories to keep young Misu in their beds at night to come true on her watch. Or ever for that matter.

Once a few steps away from the cell's door and it's doting guards, she abruptly turned to face Ambassador, the fury from before returning in full force.

"Did Ambassador know about these other others coming to Norline? How many places do you others have? How many more others are coming?" Her tone was demanding and full of rage, but kept in a hushed tone as to not alert the jailers, but even behind the sharpness there was the smallest hint of fear.

He kept space between them, meeting her eyes for a moment and then habitually moving to something inanimate to look at. He was growing more than uncomfortable, adrenaline kicking in. Memories flooded back from the first time he met Kaliska, when he thought her as a simple indigenous native who would probably eat his skin in a sacrificial feast if given the chance. Instinct said to run. He held his ground, chancing glances back at her until he worked up enough courage to hold eye contact. He needed to relay his sincerity. "No. I knew the Society would send people, and that the team was here. When we -" he corrected himself, "When the team arrived, there had not been any notification from the information source that there was another base. The Society is almost always the first to be here, and they try to get exclusive rights to be the first explorers. It is certainly possible the informant knew of this ship or this federation, whatever it is, and chose not to tell the team." Ambassador took a break for a minute, trying to calm himself down. Kaliska was fully decked out in the clothes of royalty, with fierce sunset colors that reflected her current mood down to the hair color. He was almost certain she had feigned ignorance of telepathy and was using her eyes to dig into his mind. "There are thousands, probably more stars in the sky. You know this. For each star - each sun- there can be dozens of planets - stars - that hold life." he was struggling with the terms, trying to remember that she used 'star' to mean 'planet'. "Several of them can travel between stars. Where they can go is.. it's determined by... It's kind of like traveling between cities..." he lost eye contact, staring at the lower part of the door. "It's like traveling between cities. Each star - planet - would be a city, with its own citizens and its own governmental people. Some star-city-planets are open to others visiting, some are hostile. I do not know to which star-city-planet this Sirius Federation belongs to, exactly. They cover many places. I belong to a star-city-planet called Stravin Twelve, which is not so different from this land." Ambassador grimaced at the thought that Kaliska might find it suspicious he had come to a planet he was now saying was similar to his. It wasn't exactly true, but he didn't have time to explain it all. He was too busy trying to convince the Misu he was just as much threatened by this newcomer as she was. "I don't know how many others will come. I really don't. With the Society's outpost being in the state that it is, there may be a few more other ships - fliers - that have landed here. The time-gap between the outpost's monitoring and the Society's rescue ship arriving means that there was a lack of.. I guess, messages being delivered to governments the Society was connected with. Governments that could have prevented the inbound ships." he paused. "Could have prevented the ship I arrived in."
He let silence fall, avoiding her gaze. If she felt betrayed, he wouldn't blame her. He hadn't thought any of this through, not really. Hadn't seen any of this coming when they started on their little week-long visit to pick up research data out of a broken outpost. He hadn't even bothered to think what that might mean for the natives that had been in the report. After all, they were just going to be there for a couple hours and then be on their way...

Kaliska listened silently as Ambassador spoke, she understood most of what he was saying, but some of it was lost on her. It was confusing and frustrating. She never imagined in her whole life she would ever have to deal with any others much less two and now gods only know how many were out there somewhere lurking in the jungle preparing to strike out at the Misu. Or worse... A vision of hundred of sky darkening flier hovering above Isottina ready to crush the city and spill out thousands of tall scary others who would capture and kill the Misu people.

The Misu suppressed a shiver at the thought and pushed it away. That is not going to happen... She hoped. She let out a sigh of frustration as she raked her fingers through her hair, forgetting about the delicate braids the servers had sculpted atop her head. When her fingers tangled she dropped her hands to her sides and took to pacing the small hallway instead. For a moment she wished Jeremiah was here to explain all this to her. Or her father, who would likely send for Jeremiah. Perhaps that is what she should do. Send for them all. There might not be time to go to Isottina. Not if others were literally dropping from the sky.

"Zer am i ustezko orain zer egin? Eraso "ontzi" horiek lantzak eta daga batekin? Zergatik ezin besteek beraien lanetaz gain madarikatua izar egonaldia eta bakarrik utzi Norline? Asko idatzi du Misu ez da inoiz beste izarrak joan eta arazoak eragin zituen. Dute inoiz erre dugu behera oihan edo eraiki leku edo erasotuak herrietan. Oh jainko ..."

While she paced, she hadn't realized that she had been ranting and ever more was that she was ranting in the Misu language. Finally she stopped, once again in front of Ambassador. During her rant, her colors had seemed to cool somewhat. She didn't have Jeremiah which left her only with this other to advise her until her father and Ryilla's protector's return. She has trusted him this far, she would have to trust him a bit more... And first try and calm down.

"What do you think of this other Nathan? Is he a bad other? What does Ambassador think?" The fire was gone from her voice, but it still held that regal firmness she had been taught since birth.

He stood by, risking glances each time he figured she wasn't staring him down. She was clearly distressed, and he realized she was the highest-ranking governmental member in the area. This was her responsibility, and not one that was exactly easy to take care of. Her words were lost to him as she paced, likely thinking aloud. Ambassador took the opportunity to close his eyes a moment and let out a long sigh. Re-opening them, he looked down the corridor for a time. Until he was addressed. Looking back to the Misu, he noticed her tone had softened into assertiveness rather than hostility. He jumped on the fact she was trusting him enough to ask for his opinion, rather than just throwing him in with Nathan. "I think he is lying about why he's here, other than being a member of the federation. I suspect he and the people he came here with intend to take over this planet for their own gain, and they won't be gentle about it. When I checked his memories, his ship had been damaged. It's in the jungle somewhere, like he said. It's possible that caused the fires. He came here - to the surface - in something like a metal seedpod that lets people escape fliers when in danger. He did not make it far, and he is damaged. As a human, and one without any apparent backup or resources to keep himself alive beyond what he has in there, he is at the mercy of the planet and peoples around him." Yet another pause to gather thoughts. He glanced at the door, this time in reflection rather than anxiety. He kept his volume low, trusting the thickness of the door's wood to conceal his words. "He asked for food and water. If he wants that, he'll have to get it from your people." Gaze shifted to her. How would he be able to state his next words... "I have a proposition. If you have a type of plant or substance that can render someone unconscious - or otherwise deeply asleep - you can add it to the water and food. When he is asleep, I can.. confirm or disprove the suspicions." Hoping not to alert her, he added an afterthought: "Being able to share memories only works close-range and with focus. You and I have shared it before, very briefly, when we were trying not to alert the serpent creature to our presence. I sent you the understanding that I was afraid. Do you remember?"