Setting
Default Location for The E.T. Project
Minimap
northwest |
north |
northeast |
west |
You are here. |
east |
southwest |
south |
southeast |
Clarkton is a part of 
The E.T. Project.
12 Characters Here
Jemma Zanthe [7] "I don't mind. Lets do what you want!"
Delandrea AbreV`k [6] - "So, you imprison imperfect individuals inside sealed facilities - a challenge, but for whom? the guardsmen or the guarded?"
Seto Hanakura Adachi [6] "WHA-?! Another complaint?! You're kidding!" MWIP
Toddlk Lorav [5] "Woah! Humans are so cool!"
Ecru Dichro [5] "It's a very bland world, I live in."
Julian Meyer [5] "Oh let me hold that for you -- it's fine, really."
Ayano Himura [4] Woow, much W.I.P Luna
Cypher Maimo [3] "Let's make the most of this."
Kira von Snow [2] Unavailable Character
Montgomery Cartwright [2] {MWIP}
Start Character Here »
Arizona, at this point in the day, was looking marvelously beautiful. The sun sat, plump in the light blue sky, and far below, a young boy was staring directly at it in amazement through the window of a car. It was a sight to see: a small teenager buckled into the back of a black, bulletproof car. Two tough looking men sat in the front seats, a very large gun in the hand of the one in passenger's side. The one who was armed seemed to be observing their escort by a constant turning of his head. Upon seeing what he was staring at, the man informed the youth that the sun was not something to be looked at for long periods of time. The boy, in response, turned to face him, but his hands immediately shot to his eyes. He made a small whining noise before drawing his hands back to his lap and looking out the window once more, ignoring the sigh of his guard.
The boy's name was Toddlk Lorav and he was an alien. To any outsider, that statement would seem bizarre and unbelievable, but it was the truth. Toddlk did not come from earth, but when he had arrived as a visitor, he had been treated with respect. In fact, Todd had nearly just arrived. He'd landed in a small ship at some secret military base in northern Arizona, and he was on his way to yet another secret facility.
Suddenly, the car jerked to a stop, it's wheels kicking up dust from the sandy road, pulling the small extra-terrestrial out of his thoughts. He immediately found himself, once again, glued to the window, his eyes widening at the sight of their destination. In truth, he'd expected it to look nicer, as it looked quite like a prison from the outside. It had large stone walls covered in barbed wire and practically an army of guards surrounding its gate. Before Todd could finish looking, his door was pulled open by the driver of his car, whom Todd did not notice get out. He stared at the unfriendly looking man through the opening in the car, Todd not moving from his seat. The two boys locked eyes, Toddlk still not budging. Eventually, the driver seemed to realize what the issue was, leading him to bend over the short blonde in his car and unbuckle his seatbelt. "Thank you!" the alien cried as he grabbed his small suitcase and leaped out of the car, landing in a catcher's stance. He quickly stood up, trotting toward the massive clump of security guards. The driver, who had followed him from the car, rested a hand upon his shoulder, signaling him to wait a moment. Todd didn't mind, as he instead knelt down and began to play with the sand below them.
The man gruffly spoke some sort of code, as "Butternut" was not a word that often came up in regular conversation. The security force grunted in acknowledgement, parting so that the gate they were guarding could be passed into. There was a loud buzzing noise, followed by the swinging open of the gate. Todd took this as a cue to stand up and approach the facility that would be home for the next few weeks.
Upon stepping into the facility, his breath was taken away. Despite its outward appearance of a prison, the city inside was stunning! There were small houses lining the streets, Todd figuring that they were the homes of those in charge of and running the experiment. There was a rather large building, which happened to be filled with classrooms, although the young alien did not know this. In the middle of the town square lied an enormous fountain, water trickling down from the mouth of an extravagant angel resting at the top, all the way into the pool below. The sight made Toddlk flinch with discomfort.
Before he could admire the scenery much longer, he was approached by a stranger wearing a white lab coat. The man, his appearance leading Todd to believe that he was a scientist, seemed fascinated by the sight of the young alien. To be honest, his appearance did attract interest, as he hadn't mastered human fashion at this point. He wore a pair of orange board shorts, paired with a maroon sweater that did not match in the slightest nor looked comfortable in the Arizona heat. However, the man did not seem to be put off, as he approached the young boy and placed a hand upon the lad's head as he examined him. "Mr. Lorav. A pleasure to have you!" he spoke after he had sized the young man up, recognizing him from the profiles of participants available to the staff. "I expect you knew that, when coming here, you'd be paired up with humans, correct?"
Todd stared at him, slightly baffled, only half paying attention to what the man was saying. But, his lips parted into a wide grin and he placed his hand upon the stranger's head, as he figured that it was some human welcoming ritual. The man pulled away laughing, as if Toddlk had done something he found funny. "The dorm buildings are right over there, if you would like to get settled into your room," said the supposed scientist, pointing to a large building down the street and to the right. "I have to stay here to welcome our other guests, so I'll see you later." As Todd turned to leave, now on his own, the man waved at him. Todd waved back, grinning stupidly, before making his way to his room.
The dorm building was about two stories tall and quite wide. Its outer facade seemed quite new, not a single crack to be found upon its surface. It had a few steps leading up to its wooden door, which Todd quickly climbed, prying the entrance open. He stepped inside, finding the foyer to give off a very quaint feel. The lobby had comfortable looking couches inside, and a television hanging upon the far wall. Steps lead up to the next story, a small platform above holding the entrance to six different rooms. The young alien hurried up the steps, finding that, upon each door, two names were plastered. Todd searched until he found his own name, next to the name of a stranger. Eagerly, he stepped into his new bedroom. To his surprise, it seemed quite homey, so he plopped his suitcase down upon the floor. The room contained a large bunk bed, a small kitchen area with a mini-fridge and microwave, and a bathroom tucked away in the back. Todd, unknowing of what to do next, sat himself down upon the floor and stared at the door.
The boy's name was Toddlk Lorav and he was an alien. To any outsider, that statement would seem bizarre and unbelievable, but it was the truth. Toddlk did not come from earth, but when he had arrived as a visitor, he had been treated with respect. In fact, Todd had nearly just arrived. He'd landed in a small ship at some secret military base in northern Arizona, and he was on his way to yet another secret facility.
Suddenly, the car jerked to a stop, it's wheels kicking up dust from the sandy road, pulling the small extra-terrestrial out of his thoughts. He immediately found himself, once again, glued to the window, his eyes widening at the sight of their destination. In truth, he'd expected it to look nicer, as it looked quite like a prison from the outside. It had large stone walls covered in barbed wire and practically an army of guards surrounding its gate. Before Todd could finish looking, his door was pulled open by the driver of his car, whom Todd did not notice get out. He stared at the unfriendly looking man through the opening in the car, Todd not moving from his seat. The two boys locked eyes, Toddlk still not budging. Eventually, the driver seemed to realize what the issue was, leading him to bend over the short blonde in his car and unbuckle his seatbelt. "Thank you!" the alien cried as he grabbed his small suitcase and leaped out of the car, landing in a catcher's stance. He quickly stood up, trotting toward the massive clump of security guards. The driver, who had followed him from the car, rested a hand upon his shoulder, signaling him to wait a moment. Todd didn't mind, as he instead knelt down and began to play with the sand below them.
The man gruffly spoke some sort of code, as "Butternut" was not a word that often came up in regular conversation. The security force grunted in acknowledgement, parting so that the gate they were guarding could be passed into. There was a loud buzzing noise, followed by the swinging open of the gate. Todd took this as a cue to stand up and approach the facility that would be home for the next few weeks.
Upon stepping into the facility, his breath was taken away. Despite its outward appearance of a prison, the city inside was stunning! There were small houses lining the streets, Todd figuring that they were the homes of those in charge of and running the experiment. There was a rather large building, which happened to be filled with classrooms, although the young alien did not know this. In the middle of the town square lied an enormous fountain, water trickling down from the mouth of an extravagant angel resting at the top, all the way into the pool below. The sight made Toddlk flinch with discomfort.
Before he could admire the scenery much longer, he was approached by a stranger wearing a white lab coat. The man, his appearance leading Todd to believe that he was a scientist, seemed fascinated by the sight of the young alien. To be honest, his appearance did attract interest, as he hadn't mastered human fashion at this point. He wore a pair of orange board shorts, paired with a maroon sweater that did not match in the slightest nor looked comfortable in the Arizona heat. However, the man did not seem to be put off, as he approached the young boy and placed a hand upon the lad's head as he examined him. "Mr. Lorav. A pleasure to have you!" he spoke after he had sized the young man up, recognizing him from the profiles of participants available to the staff. "I expect you knew that, when coming here, you'd be paired up with humans, correct?"
Todd stared at him, slightly baffled, only half paying attention to what the man was saying. But, his lips parted into a wide grin and he placed his hand upon the stranger's head, as he figured that it was some human welcoming ritual. The man pulled away laughing, as if Toddlk had done something he found funny. "The dorm buildings are right over there, if you would like to get settled into your room," said the supposed scientist, pointing to a large building down the street and to the right. "I have to stay here to welcome our other guests, so I'll see you later." As Todd turned to leave, now on his own, the man waved at him. Todd waved back, grinning stupidly, before making his way to his room.
The dorm building was about two stories tall and quite wide. Its outer facade seemed quite new, not a single crack to be found upon its surface. It had a few steps leading up to its wooden door, which Todd quickly climbed, prying the entrance open. He stepped inside, finding the foyer to give off a very quaint feel. The lobby had comfortable looking couches inside, and a television hanging upon the far wall. Steps lead up to the next story, a small platform above holding the entrance to six different rooms. The young alien hurried up the steps, finding that, upon each door, two names were plastered. Todd searched until he found his own name, next to the name of a stranger. Eagerly, he stepped into his new bedroom. To his surprise, it seemed quite homey, so he plopped his suitcase down upon the floor. The room contained a large bunk bed, a small kitchen area with a mini-fridge and microwave, and a bathroom tucked away in the back. Todd, unknowing of what to do next, sat himself down upon the floor and stared at the door.
Seto sat solemnly in the car as he was ferried towards his new location. The heat of the Arizona sun easily matched the heat he had felt while living in Japan for most all of his life... though the landscape did seem to be alot emptier. Where was he going again? Some walled of town where he was promised a chance at a better life? Something like that. He had only moved to New York two years ago with his mother and father... and already he was being shipped off to some new location. Alone this time. That scared him... he still wasn't even entirely sure of his purpose in this place. He had been told that he'd be meeting someone... someone who could help him to become a "better person". He saw nothing wrong with the way he was... he had calmed down alot since the days where he'd beat up thugs in the streets, so he saw no personal benefit to going along with this odd and fairly shady plan.
At least that's what he had told himself until they promised to wipe his criminal record.
With his Father dead and gone... and his mothers medical bills piling up to high for Seto to manage... the wages obtained from odd jobs and shelf stocking were just not enough to get his Mother the medical attention she so desperately needed. However, nobody would ever dream of hiring a school drop out with a criminal record over someone else who would almost certainly be seeking the job in the modern era's economy. Even without the criminal record it would be difficult, he knew that... but the important thing was that without the record he at least stood a chance... and in the name of some God he didn't believe in, he needed a chance.
For her sake...
~A Few Months Prior~
"Seto... Seto-kun... where... where are you going?"
Seto stood at the door to his run down New-York home, a single barely packed suitcase clutched tightly in his hand. His mother was slowly losing her sanity with her illness. He had explained to her the situation many times... explained that she had given her consent for him to leave for a few weeks at minimum... Still, it seemed he would have things to her one more time.
"Okāsan..." The young man kneeled down by his Mothers bedside for the last time for what he was sure would be a lengthy time away. "I told you remember? I'm going to- do some work for some nice people in Arizona. It's like community service, I'll be gone for a little while... and the people from the nursing home will be taking care of you for that time as a favor... but they say they'll clear my record if I do my best. I'll be able to get a real job then! Isn't that wonderful?"
His sickly mother smiled. "Oh yes Seto... that sounds wonderful... try to do your best for me... and make some new friends... Oh wait until I tell, y... your father... he'll be so... so very..." Her eyes flickered closed and she faded into another deep sleep.
Seto clutched his suitcase tightly and stood up as he heard his Mothers temporary caretakers knock on the door. He would make her proud... he would make her well. He had to.
"I'll come back soon... Okāsan."
~Present Time~
"Hey kid, c'mon out. We're here."
"Huh? What? Sorry I was just... thinking." How odd, Seto hadn't even noticed this man leave the vehicle... he supposed he had acknowledged the fact that they had arrived just barely. But the drivers departure from the car had been almost ethereal from his perspective. The man was what he assumed to be a "typical government agent" type of guy. Suit, sunglasses... beefy enough to hurt anyone he wanted and no doubt with the required training to back that up. Not even Seto was up to taking that guy on directly... though he probably still would have if he felt like he had to. Thankfully he had no reason to believe that the people around him at this strange walled off town were out to get him... well... at least not yet.
Seto couldn't help but gawk at the place in front of him. It was so unlike anything he had ever seen before and his confusion and awe only increased as he was led inside after his escort muttered some ridiculous code word. It was a massive enclosure, surrounded by cold stone walls topped with painful looking barbed wire. One might expect that the inside of such a place was akin to a concentration camp... or worse; but such assumptions could not be further than the truth. Inside of those walls was instead a perfected suburban town akin to that which might be seen on some picturesque postcard. There waiting to greet Seto, was a man wearing the typical white lab coat that gave away his trade.
*A scientist?* Seto thought inwardly. *Is this whole thing some kind of massive research experiment?*
"Aha! Well how fitting that our first human arrival is our little criminal hero eh? Come in, come in! We're pleased to welcome you here Mr. Adachi!" Seto walked forward hesitantly as his escort stayed behind. *Human? Why specify that I'm human?* Was the first thought that ran through his head. Regardless he walked forward and accepted a hand extended in welcome in a firm shake.
"Now then... there's not much time. You know why you're here. I know why you're really here and I'm sure you are MORE than prepared to get to work. The scientist spoke quickly, as if dismissing Seto due to time constraints. Still, the young man smiled... he was happy to be getting straight to the point. "Ahh, seems like we're getting straight into this eh? Well I'm ready for anything... Mr?..." The scientist shook his head quickly, ignoring Seto's implication of seeking a name.
"Now now Mr. Adachi, my name is unimportant. The dorm building is over there... you should get in there and unpack anything you have with you. Your alien partner should be arriving soon... so don't get too comfortable, you'll be making an inter-planetary first impression pretty soon!" Seto nodded and moved in the direction motioned to him for a few moments... before stopping abruptly.
Had he said... aliens? Seto turned around to question the man in the lab coat again, but he had already started moving towards the gate to await and presumably greet the next young participant in this very odd experience he had signed himself up for.
Seto opted to move inside the dorm as requested... still... aliens? Inter-planetary? Maybe the scientist was just a horribly open racist and the "aliens" were folks of other nationalities? Then again he was Japanese... wouldn't that make him an aline in a racists eyes? It didn't make much sense... but whatever, Seto didn't really care. What was the worse that could happen? Seto hated judging books by covers so he was certain that he could find a way to get along with whomever walked through his rooms door.
As Seto made his way up the stairs of the dorm building and toward the assigned rooms, he just barely managed to see another boy with a very odd clothing choice enter into his own dorm room. Seto attempted to say something, but before any words passed from his lips the other boy was already inside his room. (Which after a quick inspection Seto discerned was not his.) Deciding to instead ignore the strange boy, Seto continued down the hall until he reached a door, second from the end of the fairly short hall.
~Seto Adachi~
~Ecru Dichro~
Ecru Dichro? Huh, Seto had to admit that that name certainly did sound rather foreign. Still, it wasn't like it mattered to him. He supposed he would just wait and see just what kind of person this so called "Alien" was... and with that in mind, he entered his darm room, tossed his suitcase to one side and sat comfortably down on his bed (which he quickly claimed as the bottom bunk) and patiently awaited his new room-mates arrival.
The longer she sat, the more engrossed with her own thoughts she became, the scenery she was supposedly watching barely ripping an inch of her thoughts away... Just how much pain had she caused her father before he passed away? The only reason why she took this was to make him happy... She had no idea that he'd take his own life in the end. So maybe she just had to move on herself.
First comes first though, she needed to get through this.
"Hey, Himura. We're here." The rather... bear like agent spoke with a bored tone in his voice, one that sounded much like her own.
"Huh, looks like it." With a click of her seat belt, she was up and out of the car as the man exited at the same time. It was empty looking, to say the least, but then again saying the least was saying a lot here. "...Bland." Hopefully that meant she'd be left alone when push came to shove.
"Yeah, yeah. This is going to be you're new home for awhile, kid." The agent shrugged off the younger women's complaints with ease as they continued what seemed to be something of a... code and made their way inside the prison like walls to... Well, a fair more nice looking town. A fountain, houses... Seemed like this place had it made for something that was made to keep them inside it.
Blinking, she stared at the incoming adult with the rather... odd outfit. Who would wear a sweater in the summer? Especially in America? "Ms. Himura! Pleasure to finally meet you. You're extraterrestrial roommate hasn't even arrived yet!" Ayano's eyes widened as the adult snatched up her hand, shaking it firmly as she looked back at the agent with a petrified expression. Things had just escalated to a whole new level of weird, but... The walled up town? The agents? The security guard?... Shit, she should of really paid attention while agreeing to this. "Now, judging by the way you're apparently processing things, I'll just speed things along, alright? The dorm rooms are right over there, you have a female roommate, and let's see... Oh! They should be here soon!" Well that was one hell of an explanation, and without even opening her mouth she was already moving towards the dorms on autopilot.
It certainly seemed like they were serious about this alien business, weren't they? Walking into the, what appeared to be, new dorm house, Ayano glanced around to attempt to get the structure itself down. A lobby with six couches and a TV on the wall... Nothing abnormal. Heading up the stairs, she began to read the name plates carefully to find her own. Ignoring most of the other names, she finally stopped when she read her own name neatly on one of the doors. Beneath it being some girl's name... Cypher Maimo? Sounded strange enough. Walking into the room, instantly Ayano was already climbing onto the top bunk of the bunk bed with her bags. Now she was just waiting for this... "alien" girl named Cypher Maimo. Hopefully she arrived soon enough anyway.
Cypher took in a deep breath, tasting the Earth's air on her tongue. There was so much air here with different smells and tastes, nothing like the clean and nearly nonexistent air back home. The smells on Rem were in few as well, but here was different. The air in this area had a dusty smell to it and the breeze was hot, though there was a slight hint of water somewhere in the distance. On Earth having such a strong sense of smell would probably be considered abnormal, but after being on a planet with barely any smells or tastes, Cypher couldn't help all the new scents rushing to her.
"We're nearly here. It's up ahead."
Cypher turned her head from the window for a second to nod at the suited man who spoke. Her lips were curved up into a very small smile, as she was doing her best not to look too excited. She didn't want these to people to think of her as childish.
She'd dressed in her nicest clothes for this occasion, wanting to make a good first impression when meeting the human she would be paired with. It was also her job, after all, to establish a professional connection with the authorities in charge of the experiment. She had her coat, vest, and tie perfectly straightened with not a wrinkle in site and her shoes had been freshly polished that morning. Her bright hair that held the same bright orange as the sunset was tied back in the usual braided ponytail that she often kept it in with a dark red ribbon holding it in place. Yes, right now she felt nervous but also ready.
When the car pulled to a stop she took in another deep breath, though this time more to calm herself than to taste the air. The door opened and she stepped out, thanking the man as she did. From where she was standing the place looked awfully dull. It was a little hard to believe at first that this is where the experiment would be held, however after retrieving her large rolling suitcase and making her way inside the walls her thoughts were completely turned around. This was practically a little town!
"Looks like we're going right on schedule! That would mean you're Ms. Maimo?"
Cypher was approached by a man in a lab coat with a clipboard in hand. After little inspection she guessed he must be one of the humans in charge of the experiment. She gave him a polite smile and nodded. "Yes, Sir, I am. It's a pleasure to meet you."
The man chuckle and held out his hand to her, something she thought of as a little odd. "You're a polite one!" After a few moments of silence the man realized Cyphers confusion and kept up his wide smile. "You're supposed to shake it. Sorry, you're probably not used to this kind of gesture."
"Ah, I'm sorry! I didn't realize-" The man shook his head and turned to the side to point in the direction behind him. "Nothing to apologize for! I've got to make this brief, unfortunately, so feel free to make yourself at home. The dorms are in that building just over there and your partner just arrived a few minutes ago."
"Thank you!" She said as the man went off in the other direction. She let out a small sigh. "I know I only had a week to study this planet but I should've at lest known how to greet someone! ..How embarrassing." She shook her head in an attempt to clear her negative thoughts away, reassuring herself after deciding that next time she would know what to do.
Once she reached the dorms he as quite relieved to be out of the heat. Her attire really wasn't fit for this sort of temperature, but the temperature back home was always cool and perfect for what she was wearing. With the buildings here being cooled though it shouldn't be too much of a problem. A she passed by the other doors, none of which had her name, she took the time to read the plaques on the doors. She topped once she found her name next to the name of her roommate. "Ayano Himura. What a pretty name." She spoke silently to herself, her mind running with thoughts of what this new place would be like and what type of people she'd meet. She cleared her throat and turned the nob, discovering it was unlocked, meaning Ayano must still be inside. "Excuse me." She said loud enough for anyone on the other side of the door to hear so that they'd be aware of her presence before opening it and taking a step inside.
Jemma stared blankly at the bland, arid landscape outside the car. The occasional cactus passed by every once in a while, and, though that had been exciting at first and Gem had asked the suited men up front as many questions as they would allow, even the cacti they passed quickly became dull. It felt as though they had been driving all day, and she had been flying for the past two days without much time to adjust either. A large sliver of sunlight came through the highly tinted windows of the air-conditioned car, and since they had been driving one way for a long time, it was starting to make her bare legs hot and uncomfortable.
For Gem, most of the trip had been somewhat of a disappointment. When her parents dropped her off, they were running late, so she hardly got the chance to say goodbye. At the end of a long, Trans-Atlantic flight, she expected to be in America, and maybe even sightsee before the flight to Arizona, but her overnight layover was in Canada of all places. The man in a suit who picked her up in Canada drove her directly to a hotel and immediately escorted her to her room, making sure she knew she was not allowed to wander. He would not even answer her questions, responding only with a stony glare. She was obviously no more than an interruption to his usual work. He made sure she got on her flight and left without even a wave as she boarded. She never even got the rude man’s name.
After another long flight from Canada to here, Jemma was picked up by the two agents currently sitting in the front. The driver had yet to say anything, but the man with a gun in the passenger seat answered some of her questions at least. Well, to an extent. Still, Gem felt wary of the man. He had a certain air about him that made her uneasy. Eventually, he had tired of them and told her to hush. It had been probably an hour since then, and Jemma debated whether to break that silence.
Finally, boredom won out. “Uh, Agent Neman, was it? Are we at least getting close? And are there any other towns nearby?” She heard a sigh from the front seat.
The man cleared his throat before answering, “Yes, and no.”
She gave her own sigh, and a short, “Oh,” in response. A moment of staring out the window later, Gem tried another question that had been on her mind. “Are there any animals out here? I haven’t seen a thing. Or is it too hot for them?” She noticed him look at her in the mirror for a moment, and met his eyes, well, sunglasses, for a moment.
He gave what Gem assumed might pass for a smile and said in an almost sarcastic tone, “Oh, yeah, there are animals out here. Coyotes, rodents, lizards, snakes. Lots of spiders and scorpions. Be sure to shake out your shoes before putting them on and you’ll be fine.” As he looked to the front, he suddenly said, “There it is.” The driver gave what sounded like a sigh of relief, and Gem rolled her eyes. Soon, Jemma was straining at her seatbelt to see it, but her view was mostly blocked by Agent Neman’s big head. Perhaps the seat to, but his head was more annoying.
She quickly undid her seatbelt and moved to the middle seat, leaning forward to see better. Neman growled at her to sit back down, but she ignored him. Odd how easy it was to ignore a man with a gun. Jemma could soon make out a large, bland grey stone wall that stood out from the dessert. As they got closer, she caught the sun flashing off what seemed to be barbed wire strung about the top. Neman shouted at her to sit back in her seat and she scowled at him, but obediently moved. They would be there in a couple minutes anyway, so she refused to put her seatbelt back on. She was too irritable and annoyed at ‘Agent Neman’ if that was even his real name, to be totally agreeable right then.
Finally, the car slowed to a stop before the gate and Jemma noticed the slew of guards patrolling about the entrance. A nervous flutter settled in her stomach. It looked like a prison. Agent Neman opened the door, and as she got out, the urge to run suddenly came upon her. She stood glued to the spot for a moment as the agent approached the gate. She realized he had put her bags down in front of her, and, for some reason, that snapped her out of it. She slung the two smaller ones over her shoulder and pulled up the handle of large rolling suitcase.
As she approached, Agent Neman began speaking to one of the guards. A hand suddenly rested on her shoulder, and Gem squealed at the sudden contact, almost jumping out of her skin. She turned to look behind her and saw that it was the driver. He immediately shushed her. “Not my fault you’re so quiet,” Gem grumbled. Finally, the gate was opened, and the driver gave her a little nudge before turning back to the idling car. Gem huffed, but grabbed her suitcase and went inside the gate.
As soon as she entered, her jaw dropped and all her anxiety faded. It was not like a prison at all. It looked like a typical suburb. Everything looked new and well maintained. A man in a white lab coat Jemma had not noticed before began addressing her. “Well, Miss Zanthe, correct?” He did not wait for her to nod before continuing, “If you would just head to the dorm building over there, your Alien roommate should arrive soon.” He then walked off toward the gate. For a moment, Jemma was too distracted identifying the building he had pointed out to notice what else he had said. Soon, it hit her and she turned to ask what he meant by alien. He was no longer paying attention to her, and one of the guards made an annoying shooing motion when Jemma called out to the scientist.
She huffed, annoyed at all the people who refused to answer her questions, and stomped over to the dorm building. What had the scientist meant by alien anyway? Her mind immediately went to all the T.V. shows she had seen about “alien encounters.” She had always thought the people were just crazy. On the other hand, there was the supposed “Area 51” that was supposed to be somewhere in the American southwest, right? What if this was it? Would she end up seeing an alien? As Jemma entered the building and was immediately cooled by a wave of icy air, she began picturing the typical green alien with a bulbous head and large, beady black eyes. She shook her head as she pulled her heavy suitcase up the stairs. There was no way aliens could be real.
She searched for her name among those on the door, and finally found it. Next to her name was ‘Delandrea AbreV`k.’ That didn’t seem too horribly alien, but maybe foreign. ‘Oh!’ Gem thought, ‘maybe he meant a foreigner. She could be Russian, or something with a last name like that.’ Gem nodded, that had to be it. Unfortunately, Russian was one of the languages she knew only a few phrases in. Hopefully this Delandrea person knew English well enough that they would have no issues. If not, maybe she knew German or French?
Jemma opened the door to reveal a nice looking room, set her bags to the side, and clambered up to the top bunk. She decided to wait until her roommate showed up. She was too full of questions to start unpacking yet.
Ecru had already very unfortunately been scolded three times since his arrival to the new planet. Or, rather, the planet wasn't new, per say, in its- Well, whatever. Nobody around him liked hearing him rambling on about all his new discoveries anyway. He'd made more than he could count on two hands and two feet in just the short amount of time he had in walking to the car, and in riding the way to the facility he was expected to live in for, what he now realized, was possibly an undetermined amount of time. He made a mental note to ask about that at a later date. He was sure these people had it all properly planned out. They weren't exactly the most intelligent beings he'd ever come in contact with, but they were fine for what they were worth.
He'd learned very quickly that the world here was much livelier than the one he'd known his whole life. There were colors here, not just blacks and whites and shades of gray. He nearly felt blinded when he first arrived and gratefully accepted a pair of glasses that dimmed the extremes of everything. The brighter ones were especially painfully, but after a while, he took off the glasses and convinced himself that as long as he would be living there, he would have to adjust. He lasted about twenty minutes before his headache got the better of him and he put the glasses back on. Taking things slow would probably be for the best. His head was already swimming with so much new information he was afraid his internal circuits would fry.
The car ride was noisy despite his lack of conversational skills. A man and woman sat in the front seat of the, in his personal opinion, primitive motor vehicle and chatted noisily away with each other. Every so often, the woman would turn in her seat and explain a few things to him, like the expected procedures, the basic schedule, how things were expected to work during his stay; a general briefing he supposed.
"You will be staying with a human- but you should already know this," the woman went on as they arrived. The man opened the door for Ecru, and the alien stepped out, staring up at the building. The architecture was all different than he was used to. Even the things that weren't splattered with color were decorated in designs, in pieces of art and, well, all sorts of stuff. His first thought was to consider these things a gigantic waste of time, but after a few minutes of studying a few different things around him, he decided that maybe it wasn't all that bad. He could see the compulsion, just not the purpose.
"Mr. Dichro, pay attention." Ecru stopped short of walking into a wall and blinked at it. He turned his head towards the woman, who he was convinced was named Arylide due to the dirty blonde of her hair, but she assured him it was actually Ms. Macy, which sounded nothing but weird to him. Macy couldn't possibly be a last name. And if it was actually her first, then what kind of color was Macy? It had to be a shade of yellow. Then again, he'd learned quickly that humans didn't do things the same way on Earth as he did on his planet. Maybe people weren't named after their colors, seeing as colors were more- "Mr. Dichro." He snapped back to attention and felt embarrassed for losing track of what he was doing.
She seemed satisfied for getting his attention, but sympathetic for his situation. "Mr. Dichro, for now, you'll drop your stuff off in the dorm." She pointed in the direction of the dorms. "You should get well acquainted with your new roommate. You'll be spending a lot of time together. I'm sure you have a lot to teach one another." I doubt that. "For now, that will be all."
Ms. Macy started walking away with the man in tow when Ecru thought of something. "Wait. What if I have questions?"
The woman with the dirty blonde hair paused and shared a look with her companion. "Then I suppose, Mr. Dichro, you will have to find an answer."
Ecru frowned. That seemed...unprofessional, somehow, but the two humans turned a corner out of sight and he was left alone. Feeling uneasy, Ecru carried on to his room. He found his name alongside another's outside an already open doorway and swallowed his nerves before going inside. He found the other person, whose name surely couldn't be Seto Adachi, already in the room. He didn't look like he'd been there long, but Ecru didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing.
He didn't have much in terms of luggage. He had a single suitcase with all his belongings, which consisted almost strictly of clothes with the exception of a few snacks from his home. He stood in the doorway for the longest time, lingering in an almost painfully awkward way, before remembering to remove the sunglasses he'd been given. "I'm Ecru Dichro," he greeted stiffly. "Nice to meet you." In this case, Ecru noted that the human's eyes seemed to be, to him, his most prominent features. "Cyan." He nodded his head, shifting into the room by just a margin and motioning towards the bed. "May I take the top bunk? It might relieve any feelings of homesickness." Clearing his throat, he continued. "To inform you: I'm not familiar with human customs. If I do anything offensive, tell me."
D`ersh Sector coordinates 92843
219,122 Terran miles above Terran surface
219,122 Terran miles above Terran surface
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XXX - Mission briefing – Delandrea AbreV'k - XXX
XXX - Temporally assigned to independent communications operation department - XXX
XXX - Observer to Terra Major - XXX
XXX - Temporally assigned to independent communications operation department - XXX
XXX - Observer to Terra Major - XXX
____________________________________________
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###You are assigned to the Terran Sytem AberV'k, your mission is to observe local alien representatives during the Terran galactic audience request###
###The Terrans have expressed the wish to convene a summit on their planet to improve interplanetary relations between their system and the local sentient beings. Though technology theft was suspected by the intelligence department as the reason behind this summit, risks deemed acceptable###
###The 7th Flotilla shall remain in the Terran system suitably camouflaged should you require extraction###
###Terran technology is deemed unremarkable but hazardous, global military presence assessed at 175% above late interplanetary exploration stage average, due to remaining sectarian divisions###
###3 unknown space platforms have been detected during the past planetary rotation – assume this to indicate the minimum number of arriving representatives...
Del read the briefing, a puzzling procedure. Like all Aber, and almost all Ky'R she could access such information though computer databanks at will… normally.
For 15 Terran "days", Del had been absorbing the Terran written and spoken language – programing her senses to process both. Of the two variants she had processed, Del had focused on Russian – deemed the most advanced language on the planet. English, the more common language was known to her, but Del struggled with its nuances.
"What's in those papers yar reading?" – asked the shrouded Terran, his features well and duly covered by his space colored outfit. Del hadn't distinguished herself in the study of Terran dressing habits – but in her mind, this so called "suite" was impractical for security personal.
Del ignored the question and folded the reports back into a round canister she carried, much like several passing humans she had seen do – such was the nature of primitive technology.
Stranded as she was on a planet with no grid infrastructure to speak of, Del would have to get use to making use of such lesser means.
The suited man seemed irritated at the silence but didn't pry further, Terrans where curious but that curiosity did not come before professionalism – and Del respected the security man for it.
The reminder of the journey was spent in silence though Del did not gain much peace of mind for it. The consistent "bumps" of the… land rover, as Terrans called them kept Del's sensor output hazy.
When they finally arrived at their destination, Del struggled to disembark from the infernal machine and moved unevenly towards the complex – past a moderate series of defensive fortifications around the inside buildings. A white cladded Terran male came forward and made his greetings known. Del in the meantime noted that the dark color was consistent with the security cast while the white appeared to be that of the Scientific cast amongst these people.
"Greetings, greetings to you! You must be Delandrea AbreV'k – representative of the Ky'R Empire. We where told to expect your arrival, a tad late but we are glad to have a representative from your esteemed people. Now, your human companion has already arrived and will be glad to meet you! Thank you again for coming!"
Del was never given the chance to speak to this person before his attention seemed to be diverted by a series of beeping noise on one of the computing machines. An unfortunate shortcoming of the humans but it could not be helped. Del was, however surprised at the fact that both the security man and the scientist spoke this plain dialect called "English", it had been her impression that Russian was the language of technological innovation.
Del made her way towards the rooms, arriving both to her own living quarters and to the conclusion that these human companions must be the superior charges of their race and therefor most likely speakers of the superior Terran dialect known as Russian.
Del opened the door and soon noted the presence of the surprisingly small female, Del remained silent for a few moments unsure if this was her charge but decided to assume she was. The human was busy removing the contents of her containers and placing them on one of the sleeping areas of the compartment.
Del saw this as, most likely a rite of some sort marking ownership of a territory and proceeded to do the same with the contents of her containers… or bags as they called them – least the Terran presume to claim her part of the room.
As she set the containers on her "bunk", ignoring the human momentarily as she did so but then, Del turned towards the human and bowed her head in traditional Ky'R acknowledgment. though they may foes in the quest for territory in these rooms, Del was prepared to compromise over half of it. She meant for the Terran to understand her initial silence as the mark of recognizing their division and the show of respect as Del's wishes to exist mutually.
Del spoke her prepared greeting in Russian to the human:" I bid you Greetings, Zantfee chosen of the Terrans. Though you are aware of my titled name, Delandrea AbreV'k, you may simply call me Del whilst we are addressing each other".
"I shall conclude my formal greeting by stating that the Ky'R Empire holds this mission with great regard and intends to put aside previous aggressive histories for a mantel of mutual and enlightened self-interest of all the parties involved".
Del repeated her words in English just in case the Terran failed to understand them but struggled to find a word which conveyed the meaning of Ky'R which in human dialect conveyed "Peoples Empire".
Ian woke up with a start, his body lunging forward as the car came to a sudden stop. He yawned, rolled his neck, stretched his arms, and checked his right cheek in the rear-view mirror for any marks his seat-belt may have left while he was asleep. The scorching heat of the Arizona sun rushed in and quickly replaced the cool air the car's ac had provided as a bulky, stereotypical agent man (whom Ian identified as his driver) pulled the door open. "Thank you, sir." The man nodded sharply in response. Ian's home for the next whatever amount of days was large, lacking nothing in terms of security, and unfriendly as far as he could tell. In a nutshell, the place was basically - no, literally - a prison. The government man signaled for Ian to follow him with a slight wave, and placed his sunglasses in his back pocket as he whispered to one of the guards. Ian's fingers twitched as he eyed the glasses, and he promptly shoved them into his pant pockets. Refraining from stealing was going to be tough.
Ian's eyes were torn away from the glasses as the government man pulled him to the side. The large gate swung open to reveal the stunning city it protected, causing a whirl of dust where it met the ground. Ian squinted to keep the sand out of his eyes and took his first steps into the secret base. He took a look around, hardly noticing the government man's departure, his mouth opening slightly in awe. The place was far more fanciful and expensive than it's outside suggested; a large school-like building, several beautiful houses, and a showy angel fountain completed it's fancy look. He put his luggage down and rolled his shoulder.
"Welcome," the unidentified man paused to look at the clipboard he carried with him, "Mr.Meyer." Ian turned to his left to see a man dressed in a long white lab coat, with several different colored pens tucked into his jacket pocket. Ian held his hand out as the man approached. "That's me, it's a pleasure to meet you." The man eagerly took his hand and shook it several times before letting go. "I don't believe your partner has arrived yet, but you can go ahead and wait in the dorm building over there,"The scientist pointed in the direction he was to go. "Thank you." Ian swung his bag over his shoulder and began his short walk towards the building.
By the time Ian had arrived at his destination a period of at least ten minutes had passed, including the time he spent using his hands to splash water around in the pool. Upon opening the door, he found that the building's interior was just as extravagant as the city itself. The inside was decked with everything he would have expected to have seen in a home decor magazine; it was complete with several couches and a large flat-screen T.V.. Ian continued upwards, to the second story of the building. He traveled down the hallway until he came to a door that read Julian Meyer and Asa Lluic. He turned the handle and pushed the door open, making his way into his room. Similarly to the rest of the place, his dorm room did not fail to impress. The room's floor and ceiling were made of smooth wooden boards, and came with a spacey bunk bed, a kitchen, and a bathroom.
Ian sighed, and officially claimed the upper part of the bunk bed by placing his luggage on top. The peacefulness of the place as nice as it was, bored him, and Ian promptly made his way downstairs and turned on the T.V. to break the bothersome silence. He sat down on one of the couches and began flipping through the channels offered. Figuring no one else had arrived yet, as the place was practically devoid of sound, he turned the volume up and leaned back into the couch.
Seto's eyes widened as he saw his new roommate enter the room. "W... what on Earth is he... wearing?" was the first thought that popped into Seto's head. The young man, whom quickly introduced himself as... ehm... Ecru Dichro, was wearing one of the most bizarre outfits he had ever seen. Seto wasn't exactly a prime fashionista himself, wearing mostly jerseys and jackets, but even he wasn't this disconnected.
"O... oh yeah! Name's Seto Hanakura Adachi, but you can call me Seto. As you can tell from just the name alone... I'm not originally from around these parts. Haha..." Seto finished with an admittedly forced laugh as he allowed himself to examine his new roomie with a little more precision. In terms of general appearance he didn't seem too odd... his skin was a fair deal darker than Seto's
Ecru's clothes however... were far far from what Seto would have considered "normal". Examining them a bit closer, Seto saw that Ecru appeared to be wearing some sort of white and black jumpsuit... fitted with a frilled mask that ran across Ecru's nose. W... was that lace? It looked like lace... surely not? Seto scratched his head. He practically knew by that point that Ecru's was foreign... he certainly wasn't from America, THAT was for sure. Still, for all the ignorant Seto knew, these odd clothes were the traditional garb of whatever country Ecru may have come from... keeping that in mind, Seto decided not to mention this "aliens" choice in fashion.
Seto himself wasn't wearing anything fancy, just his usual casual wear. A white bandana was wrapped around the high neck of his black jacket, underneath was a plain black jersey which he had considered stripping down to for hours in the Arizona heat. On his legs he had a plain black tracksuit with a single white stripe running down the right leg and the Japanese kanji for "wind" emblazoned on the front of the left. His shoes were a basic pair of black combat boots that his mother had bought just recently, they were clearly new and Seto was still wearing them in... but the thick leather used in their construction made for reliable footwear, especially in hot areas such as where he would be living for the next little while.
It was just then that Seto was snapped out of his train of thought by Ecru's voice... he asked for the top bunk due to homesickness? Was his home high up? This caught Seto's attention, but what caught his attention even more was the fact that Ecru claimed to be "unfamiliar with human mannerisms" and apologized should he make any mistakes with such things.
Seto's eyes widened... high up places? Disconnection with self identification as a "human"? The term "alien"? How could he have been so blind! It suddenly all made sense!
The scientists working at the facility Seto had signed up to help... were kidnapping children from mountain climates and trying to make them feel and act as a lesser species! Seto really was in some sort of hyper racist slavery camp! What was Seto's purpose... to condition this poor young man, Ecru, to behav like some sub-human degenerate? To try and trick Ecru into being some self doubting slave?! That was sick! Seto wouldn't stand for such cruelty... but creating an uproar so suddenly would be foolish... he would have to be more tactful if he was going to uproot this conspiracy.
"Yeah, sure you can have the top bunk... I prefer bottom anyway." Seto looked uncomfortably to the side as he delicately approached his next question.
"So... Ecru, right? You eh... obviously aren't from around here... where do you come from originally?... Oh and ehm... how did you get here? You weren't brought here... against your will... right?
Toddlk Lorav found that he could not, in fact, last very long without something to do. The floor soon grew dull, as did staring at the door, when there were other matters for him to take care of. For starters, Earth was cold. He had realized that the moment that he had stepped onto this planet's crust, but he had imagined the further down they went, the warmer it would have got. Coming from an unearthly desert community, the 100-degree weather was nothing to him. In fact, it caused him to go as far as to rip the sheets off of the bottom bunk and huddle under the blankets in a pile upon the floor.
However, the alien did not hesitate to pop out of his small fort at the sound of the opening door, eager to greet whoever might be entering the room. He expected his human partner and even prepared his greeting, but found that this was not the case. Standing before him was yet another human in a lab coat (how many were running around this place?), only this time the being appearing to be female. "Eh?" grunted the smaller life-form, lost as to why the woman had come to see him.
"Todd-lick Lorav?" she asked, unaware of how incorrectly she was pronouncing the boy's name. Todd, not offended by this, merely nodded in response, standing up from his position on the floor, allowing the blanket to slide off of his shoulders and onto the ground. The girl seemed nervous, placing a hand on the back of her neck as she blushed and attempted to continue speaking. "I- um, we-... There's been a mistake with your rooming situation and we've placed you in the incorrect area. I'm so sorry, sir." She spat out her words with an impressive speed, so fast that the alien in front of her had to take a moment so that he could figure out exactly what he had just heard. Her expression practically screamed "Please, don't get upset with me and dissect my brain!", but Todd supposed that that couldn't be helped.
Trying to soothe the woman's anxiety, Todd smiled brightly. "Okay! he said cheerfully. However, his thoughts quickly changed, as he looked down at the mess he had made with the blanket that had turned out not to be his. Not understanding exactly how to make a bed, Todd dragged the blanket back to its original spot on the bottom bunk and tossed it back on, patting it slightly in a futile attempt to straighten it, giving up on his mission and instead gathering his belongings. The woman seemed slightly disturbed with his antics, but, when he was finished, opened the door for him none the less. "Thank you, Honn!" he said, his last word translating to "Miss" in his own language. Todd still did not understand English honorifics, or even human honorifics for that matter, so he used Fleiohirian dialect instead. The woman, however, was dumbfounded by this and simply stared at him. Eager to leave the situation, she simply pointed at the door that must have been Todd's new room. "You might want to knock," was all she said before vanishing down the stairwell.
Todd sighed. The poor woman had been a complete nervous wreck, and probably completely unaware of the fact that he could sense her horrified emotions. He hoped that his partner, whenever it was that they met, would not be as intimidated. It seemed funny that Toddlk Lorav, the strange empathic kid that was beat up all throughout his high-school experience, was not scaring human scientists.
But, Todd didn't dwell any longer on his thoughts, as he now stood in front of the door he had been directed toward. It had two names plastered upon its facade, neither of which belonged to the blonde alien. He had been told to knock, but that was a problem as he had never knocked upon a door before. He could only guess as to how he was supposed to carry out the odd act. So, in his best attempt at knocking, Todd slapped the door with the palm of his hand, an immediate stinging sensation there to alert him that he had done it wrong. If one looked closely, they could catch the glare Todd sent at the inanimate object as he opened it, throwing the matter behind him.
With a large, bright grin, the alien strolled into the room. "Hello! I-" However excited he may have been, Todd's words were quickly brought to a halt as he stared at the vacant room. He sighed, figuring he had injured his hand for nothing. Still, not all hope was lost, as another person's luggage had been thrown onto the top part of the conjoint beds, a contraption Toddlk found to be quite dangerous looking. Learning from the human's example, Todd threw his own belongings into the bunk below, not before pulling the blanket off and wrapping it around his shoulders. Unknowing of what exactly to do, the creature plopped himself down on the lower bed, careful not to bump his head, closed his eyes and took a deep gulp of the unfamiliar air. He felt that he was going to like this Earth, and he was one to trust his gut.
However, the alien did not hesitate to pop out of his small fort at the sound of the opening door, eager to greet whoever might be entering the room. He expected his human partner and even prepared his greeting, but found that this was not the case. Standing before him was yet another human in a lab coat (how many were running around this place?), only this time the being appearing to be female. "Eh?" grunted the smaller life-form, lost as to why the woman had come to see him.
"Todd-lick Lorav?" she asked, unaware of how incorrectly she was pronouncing the boy's name. Todd, not offended by this, merely nodded in response, standing up from his position on the floor, allowing the blanket to slide off of his shoulders and onto the ground. The girl seemed nervous, placing a hand on the back of her neck as she blushed and attempted to continue speaking. "I- um, we-... There's been a mistake with your rooming situation and we've placed you in the incorrect area. I'm so sorry, sir." She spat out her words with an impressive speed, so fast that the alien in front of her had to take a moment so that he could figure out exactly what he had just heard. Her expression practically screamed "Please, don't get upset with me and dissect my brain!", but Todd supposed that that couldn't be helped.
Trying to soothe the woman's anxiety, Todd smiled brightly. "Okay! he said cheerfully. However, his thoughts quickly changed, as he looked down at the mess he had made with the blanket that had turned out not to be his. Not understanding exactly how to make a bed, Todd dragged the blanket back to its original spot on the bottom bunk and tossed it back on, patting it slightly in a futile attempt to straighten it, giving up on his mission and instead gathering his belongings. The woman seemed slightly disturbed with his antics, but, when he was finished, opened the door for him none the less. "Thank you, Honn!" he said, his last word translating to "Miss" in his own language. Todd still did not understand English honorifics, or even human honorifics for that matter, so he used Fleiohirian dialect instead. The woman, however, was dumbfounded by this and simply stared at him. Eager to leave the situation, she simply pointed at the door that must have been Todd's new room. "You might want to knock," was all she said before vanishing down the stairwell.
Todd sighed. The poor woman had been a complete nervous wreck, and probably completely unaware of the fact that he could sense her horrified emotions. He hoped that his partner, whenever it was that they met, would not be as intimidated. It seemed funny that Toddlk Lorav, the strange empathic kid that was beat up all throughout his high-school experience, was not scaring human scientists.
But, Todd didn't dwell any longer on his thoughts, as he now stood in front of the door he had been directed toward. It had two names plastered upon its facade, neither of which belonged to the blonde alien. He had been told to knock, but that was a problem as he had never knocked upon a door before. He could only guess as to how he was supposed to carry out the odd act. So, in his best attempt at knocking, Todd slapped the door with the palm of his hand, an immediate stinging sensation there to alert him that he had done it wrong. If one looked closely, they could catch the glare Todd sent at the inanimate object as he opened it, throwing the matter behind him.
With a large, bright grin, the alien strolled into the room. "Hello! I-" However excited he may have been, Todd's words were quickly brought to a halt as he stared at the vacant room. He sighed, figuring he had injured his hand for nothing. Still, not all hope was lost, as another person's luggage had been thrown onto the top part of the conjoint beds, a contraption Toddlk found to be quite dangerous looking. Learning from the human's example, Todd threw his own belongings into the bunk below, not before pulling the blanket off and wrapping it around his shoulders. Unknowing of what exactly to do, the creature plopped himself down on the lower bed, careful not to bump his head, closed his eyes and took a deep gulp of the unfamiliar air. He felt that he was going to like this Earth, and he was one to trust his gut.
Ecru gave the human a blank look. Past the bland expression was a slow turning clock of disbelief and an immeasurable amount of confusion. He wasn't even sure where to start with this one. Perhaps with the fact that his name really was Seto. Colors were both important and vastly unimportant for the people of his society. They were important for organization purposes--as in: names. Ecru was a tannish, yellow-ish color, like a brown mixed with yellow, yet still light. That defined him. The word 'seto' meant nothing. It was just a word. Adachi was just a word. That was, to put it lightly, stupid.
He felt himself being watched and made sure his movements were careful, so he wouldn't do anything to make an idiot of himself. There was no way of judging his roommate's intelligence--although, if the other humans he'd met was anything to go by, he really didn't have anything to worry about. He didn't want to insult him or his culture. Or his clothes. Or his name. Or, well, his way of talking, and how he seemed to be pretty interested in holding a conversation despite how arbitrary it was to do so. Then again, they were supposed to get to know each other and, from there, learn about one another and- well, whatever. He'd figure it out.
In the room was an array of basic necessities. He found two small clothing containers on the other side of the room, and what Ecru assumed was a closet, so he began unpacking what clothes he brought along. "Originally? My mother's womb." He almost, almost smiled, his eyebrows raised as he peeked over his shoulder to see if Seto got the joke.
...Maybe that was a bit dry.
Clearing his throat, Ecru went on. "I wasn't brought here against my will, no. It was a volunteer program. I assume we all knew what we were getting ourselves into prior to getting into it."
He took his folded clothes out of the suitcase, unfolded them, and then carefully refolded them before putting them into the small dresser drawer. There was no reason to code them by size or color since they were all exactly the same. He had two outfits for winter, but he wasn't sure what to expect on Earth, so he wasn't sure what to bring. He wasn't even sure if it was possible to ask for his parents to send him something warmer depending on the climate change. They weren't exactly happy with him coming here in the first place after the incident with his work. Maybe if it came down to it, he could borrow clothes from his roommate. If they didn't mind, of course.
"My home is Nullius. It's very...different." Finally, he finished putting his things away and turned towards Seto. He frowned at the discarded suitcase in the corner of the room, scratching lightly at his pants to suppress the urge to clean it up. Disorganization was really unfavorable.
He glanced outside and noticed a few other faces passing by the open door and wondered if they were supposed to interact with the others. The woman told him he was just supposed to figure things out, but that was ridiculous considering his situation. He'd marveled at the color of grass for crying out loud; how was he supposed to figure out what to do from this point on? "Are we expected to fend for ourselves? Do we have free reign?"
It felt uncomfortable to assume they they could just do what they pleased. He didn't know the schedule. He wasn't sure when to expect his next meal or if they were allowed outside this facility, or how far for that matter. He was pretty sure talking to the others wouldn't mess with the experiment so long as they didn't end up choosing sides, like some human vs. aliens things. Oh god, this human's imagination was already starting to get to him. What if it was infectious? He'd never be able to return to his home if he came back acting like, well, one of these people.
Then again, curiosity was starting to get the best of him. "Cya- Seto, maybe we should take it upon ourselves to...explore a little." He wanted to see more, and he doubted Seto would be fine sitting around in this stuffy room. Even Ecru, who was used to blandness, found it a bit bleak. With a small frown, he added, "And when we return, maybe I'll help you unpack. You obviously need it."
Jemma swung her legs slightly as she sat on the top bunk. Every time she heard noise out in the hall, she looked to the door, but her roommate had yet to enter. After a few moments, she glared at her bags which still had to be unpacked. It would be something to do so she would not go nuts just sitting there waiting, but she wasn’t quite that desperate yet. Instead, she pushed herself off the bed, dropping into a crouch as she hit the floor with a small thud. Gem stood and walked over to one of the windows in the room. Perhaps there would be something interesting to see?
As she looked, she soon realized the window was on the wrong side of the building to see much of anything. Most of the view was blocked by a neighboring building, and Gem wished she could see out to the gate. Still, even in the air-conditioned building, she could feel some of the heat through the window. Gem was in no mood to face the heat unless she was in a nice cool pool, and even being in a pool was no fun unless there were others there. No, she would stay in the room at least until she met her roommate. Then, perhaps, she could suggest something for them to do together, or even go meet the others here. She had seen their names on the other doors, but had not really paid attention to them. Jemma did recall that some of the names had been rather strange.
Her mind went back to what the scientist had said as she stared blankly out the window. Something about an “alien” roommate? Or maybe he did say foreign. She couldn’t remember now. Either way, there was probably nothing to worry about, and Gem would have the opportunity to learn about a foreign culture! That could be exciting. As long as her roommate liked her, Gem was sure it would be plenty of fun.
After only a few minutes, Gem began to get rather anxious. Looking out the window just was not enough to distract her. Finally, she gave in and dragged her suitcase over to the closet. Thankfully, there were already hangers, she didn’t think about packing that particular item. She unzipped the bulky bag and began haphazardly throwing her clothing onto the hangers and stuffing them into the closet. This was always one of her least favorite tasks, especially when moving.
Jemma almost missed hearing the door open, and rather belatedly turned to see who it was. She quickly realized there was a girl standing in the doorway. She had rather odd blue hair, but Jemma had seen more exotic colors. The girl came in and set her bags on the lower bunk, and Gem managed to squeak out a surprised, “Oh, hi. Didn’t see you there.”
As Jemma turned, she had managed to get several of the hangars she was holding in an odd entanglement involving one of her shirts. It took a few moments of irritating disentangling before she could rescue the garment, and she laid the excess hangers on top of her half empty suitcase, turning just in time to see the blue-haired girl nod in her direction as she began her own unpacking. Gem crossed the room to the beds, and her roommate began speaking in Russian. Jemma was hardly able to decipher any of the quick words coming at her, and she could only think, ‘So I guessed right, she must be Russian… I do hope she knows English….’ Gem could only pick out a few words, and she was quickly getting confused.
Still, Gem did not have to worry long, as the girl repeated her greeting in English. She seemed to hesitate more, especially before she said she was from something like the “People’s Empire.” Is that what Russians called Russia? Gem had not been there herself, so she couldn’t be sure.
Once her roommate, Del apparently, finished her introduction, Jemma gave a small relieved laugh while smoothing the back of her hair. “Nice to meet you Del. My Russian is a bit elementary, so I am glad you speak English,” she started, smiling warmly. “Oh! I am Jemma by the way. Jemma Zanthe. You can call me whatever you like, but a lot of my friends call me Gem.”
She extended her right hand for a hand shake before asking curiously, “The ‘People’s Empire’? That is Russia, right? Sorry for not knowing. I haven’t actually been there, so some of the lingo goes over my head a bit.”
Elementary Russian?, Del was taken aback but not surprised - maybe these youths only studied the advanced language later?
Del was surprised however at the human's extended hand... though not as insulted as she would have been had this human companion been male. Del thought extensively, this hand movement strongly implied a part of the bonding ritual - an action she would have to undertake at this time, one Terran year ahead. Could she return this gesture? what did it mean to Terrnas?, she could only assume it meant some sort of greeting but... could it be as committing as the Ky'R relative gesture?
"Do excuse me, but I wish to understand to what extent you signify your social advances through your hand? Among our people's Empire, we do take to ourselves meaning of hand bond, I do not know what the hand bond signifies to people to... English speaker".
Del had struggled with the sentence, with this English. Her earlier presentation had been memorized, but she hadn't thought to prepare herself for extended adaptive use of English.
The ‘People’s Empire’? That is Russia, right? Sorry for not knowing. I haven’t actually been there, so some of the lingo goes over my head a bit.”
Del was puzzled, Ky'R where the people and thereby to Terrans people's Empire. Russian was the advanced dialect, not a place - did the Terran mean she had not studied Russian? and what could be lingo? had the Terran meant she did not posses the aptitude to manage Russian words? Was the Terran asking if she had studied Russian? no... it seemed more likely that the question was weather all Ky'R spoke Russian... was the great cast of Terrans so segregated it did not communicate with the inferiors, was this Terran wondering if Del was one of the technology speakers?
"Of my understanding of your query, I am not certain. People's Empire is of my people, I deliver the meaning of Russian but the people do not manage through Russian. We know of Russian, but the people speak as we move - sing our intent though trials and adversity". - Del paused, could it be possible that the Russians had not informed her companion of the mission?, Del did not know how to explain.
Del stepped back and looked towards her bunk and back to "Gem", gesturing for her to follow her as she walks towards her things. Del opened her canister and removed her collection of chats - marked data nodes which stored much information. Each chart was black, blank but for a series of designations stating the chart's function. It was a triangular shaped object, the size of a opened hand. one of the three points to the triangular was a finger high while the depending lines to the other two points lowered to the point of but a mere nail of thickness at the ends.
Del put the chart down on the bunk and told it (mind to machine) to expand outwards as the housing height contracted to a nail's thickness. The eventual deployment claimed the size of a Terran "pillow". the dark matter faded at small tiny points revealing differently colored round objects, patterns, borders and systems.
Del didn't know if the Terran understood, the many objects where little different then grains of Terran sand.
"This is the people's Empire, we fly, swim and walk in the light but our hearts drive us from the beacons of our paradise to the darkness of the horizon".
Del could not find the words, they lost meaning and significance through direct talk but could she belittle her meaning?
Del was surprised however at the human's extended hand... though not as insulted as she would have been had this human companion been male. Del thought extensively, this hand movement strongly implied a part of the bonding ritual - an action she would have to undertake at this time, one Terran year ahead. Could she return this gesture? what did it mean to Terrnas?, she could only assume it meant some sort of greeting but... could it be as committing as the Ky'R relative gesture?
"Do excuse me, but I wish to understand to what extent you signify your social advances through your hand? Among our people's Empire, we do take to ourselves meaning of hand bond, I do not know what the hand bond signifies to people to... English speaker".
Del had struggled with the sentence, with this English. Her earlier presentation had been memorized, but she hadn't thought to prepare herself for extended adaptive use of English.
The ‘People’s Empire’? That is Russia, right? Sorry for not knowing. I haven’t actually been there, so some of the lingo goes over my head a bit.”
Del was puzzled, Ky'R where the people and thereby to Terrans people's Empire. Russian was the advanced dialect, not a place - did the Terran mean she had not studied Russian? and what could be lingo? had the Terran meant she did not posses the aptitude to manage Russian words? Was the Terran asking if she had studied Russian? no... it seemed more likely that the question was weather all Ky'R spoke Russian... was the great cast of Terrans so segregated it did not communicate with the inferiors, was this Terran wondering if Del was one of the technology speakers?
"Of my understanding of your query, I am not certain. People's Empire is of my people, I deliver the meaning of Russian but the people do not manage through Russian. We know of Russian, but the people speak as we move - sing our intent though trials and adversity". - Del paused, could it be possible that the Russians had not informed her companion of the mission?, Del did not know how to explain.
Del stepped back and looked towards her bunk and back to "Gem", gesturing for her to follow her as she walks towards her things. Del opened her canister and removed her collection of chats - marked data nodes which stored much information. Each chart was black, blank but for a series of designations stating the chart's function. It was a triangular shaped object, the size of a opened hand. one of the three points to the triangular was a finger high while the depending lines to the other two points lowered to the point of but a mere nail of thickness at the ends.
Del put the chart down on the bunk and told it (mind to machine) to expand outwards as the housing height contracted to a nail's thickness. The eventual deployment claimed the size of a Terran "pillow". the dark matter faded at small tiny points revealing differently colored round objects, patterns, borders and systems.
Del didn't know if the Terran understood, the many objects where little different then grains of Terran sand.
"This is the people's Empire, we fly, swim and walk in the light but our hearts drive us from the beacons of our paradise to the darkness of the horizon".
Del could not find the words, they lost meaning and significance through direct talk but could she belittle her meaning?
Despite his efforts to improve his situation, Ian, once again, found himself completely and utterly bored. There was absolutely nothing going on, and Ian became fully aware of the chic, minimal design clock ticking away as several minutes (Ian felt like they were hours) passed by. The T.V. was doing little in keeping Ian amused, and the channels it provided were fairly limited, so it was turned off very shortly after being turned on. Ian sighed and wiggled his toes, patted the couch, practiced rolling his 'r''s, and basically did anything he could to keep himself amused for the time being. He was so preoccupied in entertaining himself that he hardly noticed a fairly average height, average weight, and overall average looking young woman let herself into the building, go down the hallway, disappear for a few moments, and then reappear in the lobby.
"E-excuse me. You're Julian Meyer...is that correct?"
A young woman tapped his shoulder, making sure she had his attention. Ian glanced up and quickly got up on his feet and put his hand out in greeting. "Yes, nice to meet you..Can I..help you with something?" The young woman was dressed in a lab coat, loose black pants, and a pair of plain brown shoes. She ignored his outstretched hand and looked aside. "There's been a slight change of plans. Your new roommate will be "Toddle-ick, T-Toddl-ak, Todd--Mister Lorav." She blushed at her slight struggle with pronouncing his name, and left quickly. Ian stretched and looked around the room, though he knew there wasn't anything new to look at. "Huh." The woman's sudden appearance wasn't that big of a deal, but it was one of the most interesting things that had happened to him all day. "Oh," the woman appeared again, apparently with something extra to say, "and, but, well, your room is still the same so don't worry about it. Thank you." "No, thank yo-," Ian began to reply, but the strange woman had already left.
Ian took another glance around the room, and wondered whether or not his partner was already here. Curious, he began making his way down the hallway and back to his room, taking his sweet time to read the names of the other participants. "Cypher Maimo...Ecru Dichro...Asa Luic...,"Ian continued on, stopping when he go to the door that read "Julian Meyer" and "Toddlk Lorav". Ian paused before the door, and used the shiny doorknob to check his reflection. He played slightly with his bangs, rearranging them in several different ways before giving up. He ran his finger across the name "Toddlk Lorav" and practiced saying it, in the case that his partner was in fact, already in the room. He remembered his mother repeating over and over again that "First impressions are everything." Ian fixed his bangs for the five hundredth time, and then resumed his practicing. "Todd-lick Lorav. Todd-luk Lorav. Todd-lack?" Ian sighed. Despite being an expert conversationalist, and a full-time social butterfly, he found himself getting nervous about meeting someone for once in his life. He rolled his shoulders, took a deep breathe, and placed his hand on the doorknob.
"Hey, what's up. I'm Julian but you can call me Ian."
Ian smiled brightly as he entered the possibly empty, possibly occupied-by-an-alien room. Ian looked around the room, and smiled as he caught the eye of a small, petite-looking boy with large violet eyes. The boy - no, alien - appeared to be around 12, 13, maybe 14 years old, and Ian struggled with the thought that this, this child was an alien. If anything, the only thing that really hinted he wasn't from earth, was the boy's bizarre taste in clothing. "So are you really an alien? Or is this some huge, complex, practical joke?" Ian made himself comfortable on the floor, waiting for his roommate's answer.
Todd found that his wait was not long at all, as, within a few moments, he noticed the doorknob turn. The opening of the door followed with the entrance of another being, a person which Todd assumed was human. The boy introduced himself, stating that his name was Ian, a shortened version of Julian. He also paired his name with the question "What's up?", a phrase that the alien did not understand. "What's... up?" he asked, leaning his head back to check. "The.... bed above me?" He had no idea why anybody would care to know what was above him, but he knew it must have made sense to humans.
After answering the human's odd question, Todd turned back to his roommate. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ian. My name is Toddlk Lorav, but most people seem to have difficulty saying that here, so call me Todd if you find that easier to say." He didn't exactly know how to greet the people of Earth, and he debated trying the strange head tap that a scientist had used on him a few minutes before. However, a quick read of the human's emotions told him that he had done all that he needed to with his introduction.
Without much of a hesitation, Ian responded with a question. "So are you really an alien? Or is this some huge, complex, practical joke?" asked the human, who now settled down upon the floor.
"Yep, I'm really an alien!" he cried, as if the statement had excited him. Technically, from Todd's perspective, Ian was an alien also, but since Todd had come to his planet, he figured it was only right for that title to go to him. "I'm from Fleiohiri, although it's quite far away so I doubt you've heard much about it. It's a lot warmer there," Todd said as he fidgeted with his blanket. "So, are you from around here?"
Toddlk leaned forward, allowing his roommate to answer. Everything about earth intrigued him, leaving his mind practically begging for information and insight. However, only a few moments passed before a loud voice, belonging to neither of the occupants in the room, echo throughout their dorm. The sudden noise, which came from below the bunks, scared the poor alien sitting above it half to death. "Hello there, participants. I hope that you are all settling down into your rooms and getting to know your partners. As you've probably realized by now, half of you... aren't from around here. As its getting later, the staff of this facility have decided to order you all pizza. If you could begin to make your way to the foyer downstairs for dinner, that'd be great."
Sliding off the bed, Todd decided to examine the source of this voice. He lowered himself onto his hands and knees, not giving Ian much of an explanation to his random behavior, and peered under the bunk. It was there that he found a speaker, one of the many that must have been rigged in every room. He wondered if the scientists could hear them as well as talk to them.
This did not bother Toddlk, though, as he had not come to Earth with intent to judge its people. If it was a human thing to hook up software in the bedrooms of citizens so that you could listen in on them, then who was Todd to deem it odd? Anyway, he had other things to wonder about. For one, what was pizza? He guessed that humans ate it, and he would most likely eat it as well. Although, he couldn't help but wonder if the alien food of Earth would agree with his digestive system, built for foods Earth did not have to offer. Todd had not been smart enough to pack snacks in case he couldn't eat human cuisine, but he didn't worry about it too much. He didn't even seem to care much when he came to the realization that anything and everything about Earth could possibly disagree with his alien body. His solution to his slightly pessimistic thought was to simply not get sick.
Quickly realizing how awkward he must have looked, Todd stood up and dusted himself off. "Should we get going?" he asked Julian.
After answering the human's odd question, Todd turned back to his roommate. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ian. My name is Toddlk Lorav, but most people seem to have difficulty saying that here, so call me Todd if you find that easier to say." He didn't exactly know how to greet the people of Earth, and he debated trying the strange head tap that a scientist had used on him a few minutes before. However, a quick read of the human's emotions told him that he had done all that he needed to with his introduction.
Without much of a hesitation, Ian responded with a question. "So are you really an alien? Or is this some huge, complex, practical joke?" asked the human, who now settled down upon the floor.
"Yep, I'm really an alien!" he cried, as if the statement had excited him. Technically, from Todd's perspective, Ian was an alien also, but since Todd had come to his planet, he figured it was only right for that title to go to him. "I'm from Fleiohiri, although it's quite far away so I doubt you've heard much about it. It's a lot warmer there," Todd said as he fidgeted with his blanket. "So, are you from around here?"
Toddlk leaned forward, allowing his roommate to answer. Everything about earth intrigued him, leaving his mind practically begging for information and insight. However, only a few moments passed before a loud voice, belonging to neither of the occupants in the room, echo throughout their dorm. The sudden noise, which came from below the bunks, scared the poor alien sitting above it half to death. "Hello there, participants. I hope that you are all settling down into your rooms and getting to know your partners. As you've probably realized by now, half of you... aren't from around here. As its getting later, the staff of this facility have decided to order you all pizza. If you could begin to make your way to the foyer downstairs for dinner, that'd be great."
Sliding off the bed, Todd decided to examine the source of this voice. He lowered himself onto his hands and knees, not giving Ian much of an explanation to his random behavior, and peered under the bunk. It was there that he found a speaker, one of the many that must have been rigged in every room. He wondered if the scientists could hear them as well as talk to them.
This did not bother Toddlk, though, as he had not come to Earth with intent to judge its people. If it was a human thing to hook up software in the bedrooms of citizens so that you could listen in on them, then who was Todd to deem it odd? Anyway, he had other things to wonder about. For one, what was pizza? He guessed that humans ate it, and he would most likely eat it as well. Although, he couldn't help but wonder if the alien food of Earth would agree with his digestive system, built for foods Earth did not have to offer. Todd had not been smart enough to pack snacks in case he couldn't eat human cuisine, but he didn't worry about it too much. He didn't even seem to care much when he came to the realization that anything and everything about Earth could possibly disagree with his alien body. His solution to his slightly pessimistic thought was to simply not get sick.
Quickly realizing how awkward he must have looked, Todd stood up and dusted himself off. "Should we get going?" he asked Julian.
Jemma looked on in confusion as Del seemed abashed by Gem’s outstretched hand. It was not like Gem was asking her to dance or anything, but the blue-haired woman seemed confused and wary all the same. When she finally spoke, her accent seemed a bit heavier. English was definitely not Del’s first language. Maybe Jemma would be better off learning more Russian… Perhaps Del could help her learn as Gem helped her with English?
"Do excuse me, but I wish to understand to what extent you signify your social advances through your hand? Among our people's Empire, we do take to ourselves meaning of hand bond, I do not know what the hand bond signifies to people to... English speaker".
“Oh!” Gem said, coloring slightly. She had dealt with other cultures fairly often, but it was always embarrassing when she ended up doing something that was more offensive or intimate than what she meant. She withdrew her hand and began nervously fiddling with her fingers. “Sorry, I wasn’t aware of that. In most cultures, it is just a polite greeting. Like, you know, when you meet someone or are conducting business especially. No biggie though,” she said hurriedly. Though Gem had been looking down throughout most of the speech, she looked up at Del with the last sentence and gave an embarrassed smile. It would not be cool if Del had thought Jemma was upset over the misunderstanding in any way. She already decided to be a bit more cautious about what she did. It would probably be awkward at first trying to navigate around the possible pitfalls of an unfamiliar culture, but Jemma was willing to do everything she could. It would probably end up being really fun to learn about this new culture.
Del’s response to what the so called “People’s Empire” was only confused Gem more. It seemed that Del had sort of misunderstood her question. By quite a bit, actually. Gem stammered, “No, no. I did not mean what language you speak. I—” Gem said, cutting off because she did not really know how to explain. She was beginning to think that Del was not exactly from Russia. The question now was where the blue-haired girl was from.
A look of what Gem hoped was understanding crossed Del’s features. She motioned Gem over as she sat on the bunk and began opening a metal canister of some sort and sorting through rolls of blackened paper. Jemma was immediately curious about what was on the papers, but that did not seem to be Del’s focus at this point. The thing Del pulled out was triangular, with one side higher than the other two. Jemma looked at the object curiously. She had never seen anything like it before, and had no idea what its function could be. She did not see Dell move her fingers or press any sort of button, so she was surprised when the device suddenly changed shape.
Jemma moved to sit on the bed near the girl, her eyes fixed on the now larger machine. Small dots of light speckled the surface sporadically, and Gem tried to make sense of what they were meant to represent. As the design fully surfaced, she was able to make out different, irregular shapes. After a moment, Gem’s mind was able to grasp the meaning. “Oh, it’s a map!” Del explained that what was shown was the People’s Empire, with a whole bunch more poetic phrasing that completely went over Gem’s head. Jemma examined the map carefully, trying to figure out what country it could be. The shape did not seem familiar at all, and Gem’s lack of knowledge frustrated her more than a little.
Not wanting to seem overly ignorant, Jemma suddenly said, “Yeah, now I get it. I know where that is. Thanks! I… uhh...” she stammered, not sure where to go with that. As if on cue, a voice suddenly sounded out of nowhere, rescuing Gem from her awkward lie. Gem jumped at the unexpected noise and hit her head hard on the wood of the top bunk. Jemma flopped back down on the bed for a second. She groaned softly, rubbing the sore spot on her head as she stood. The voice seemed to come out of nowhere, and she looked around for it as it spoke.
"Hello there, participants. I hope that you are all settling down into your rooms and getting to know your partners. As you've probably realized by now, half of you... aren't from around here. As its getting later, the staff of this facility have decided to order you all pizza. If you could begin to make your way to the foyer downstairs for dinner, that'd be great."
As she was unable to find where it was coming from, Gem just guessed there was a small speaker somewhere in the room. She opened the door and looked out as a couple more doors opened around the hall. She turned to face Del as she fully opened the door. “Might as well, right? Wanna go get some of that pizza?” Jemma said, smiling uncertainly.
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Del heard Gem announce her understanding of the Karachina, or loosely translated in English "sleepless guide from our heart to the horizon". Del was glad for it, she didn't think she could survive anymore of this English - her own experimental translation matrix struggling to deliver the meaning of Ky'r thought through Terran words.
Del waited for the questions she thought Gem would "bombard" hear ears with by now but none came, Del was made curious.
She looked towards Gem and was taken aback, she did not see a gesture of understanding, rather the opposite. Del could hardly believe it, she had seen some examples since coming to Earth but decided these where uncommon. Now, Del was forced to understand Terrans did not share their thoughts, and that their means of expression where conflicted between words and action,body and soul.
Del tried to asses why Gem or any Terran would hide their ignorance but could not find the answer without more information.
A sudden interruption of a irritating voice disrupted Del's concentration on much more important matters, though curious - pizza sounded too much like the Ky'r word Paizza, or Rubbish - a word Ky'r and Terrans alike shared in simplicity.
"Very well" said Del and followed Gem, noting to herself to investigate the human ability to move against the body.
Del waited for the questions she thought Gem would "bombard" hear ears with by now but none came, Del was made curious.
She looked towards Gem and was taken aback, she did not see a gesture of understanding, rather the opposite. Del could hardly believe it, she had seen some examples since coming to Earth but decided these where uncommon. Now, Del was forced to understand Terrans did not share their thoughts, and that their means of expression where conflicted between words and action,body and soul.
Del tried to asses why Gem or any Terran would hide their ignorance but could not find the answer without more information.
A sudden interruption of a irritating voice disrupted Del's concentration on much more important matters, though curious - pizza sounded too much like the Ky'r word Paizza, or Rubbish - a word Ky'r and Terrans alike shared in simplicity.
"Very well" said Del and followed Gem, noting to herself to investigate the human ability to move against the body.
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