《Amethyst of Blades》 1. Midnight Iris A mining operation is taking place at a new outpost on Midnight Iris, a planet settled only a month ago. A sea of purple trees, red grass, and various colorful flowers grew in this unknown terrain, inhabited by strange plants and exotic wildlife. All very much uncharted waters to the planet¡¯s new human visitors. The venture had been a great success so far, the planet''s rich resources exceeding all of their expectations, but it had not been without its setbacks. Attacks from various indigenous animals were commonplace, not even the weather seemed to be on their side. But today, in a long line of black rain and storms, it was sunny once more, the twin suns shining down harshly. In the bright sunshine, near the bottom of a long winding path that leads up the side of a quarry, a man walks up it. He stops before a strange out-of-place lump on the dusty path, an event he had witnessed, and heard from afar. At his feet, a creature he has heard so much about; unconscious. He strokes his chin¡¯s stubble thoughtful while observing the animal. After a brief analysis, he makes up his mind and draws a device from within his white scientist coat.A small gun-like object, a rod sticking out of a rectangular metal frame. He adjusts its settings on a small screen, aims it at the creature, and pulls the trigger. From his command, a white ball at the tip gathers a teal glow, erupting out a ray of energy, hitting its helpless mark. I wonder what kind of result this blatant misuse of our latest and greatest, leads me to. Using it on this, of all things. The scientist taps the display, navigates through the user interface, and turns it off. He swipes his lab coat to reveal a holster on his belt, plonks the pistol-like invention in its slot, and covers it again. The creature before him lies on its side, motionless, four legs splayed in every which direction. Its arms lack fingers found in conventional hands, replaced instead by a curved blade of purple, shiny, and almost see-through, like colored glass. Another much bigger such blade at both of its elbows too, one of these blades sunk to the pebble-filled dirt ground, but appearing undamaged. It would have been outright sinful for me to pass up such a great opportunity for more tests, just hurry up and wake up... It¡¯s still alive, right? Did I miscalculate? Maybe the latest parameter change was too much... His tapping foot creates a small localized dust storm around his shoe. The creature is completely covered in a tough-looking carapace, consisting of different segments, adorned in various shades of purple and blue. Heavily armored, apart from a few spots, mainly its face, covered by pale gray skin-like tissue instead. Its features resemble a human¡¯s in basic aspects, even with a set of equally purple hair to go with the rest of its appearance. Its eyes closed with an expressionless face, missing a visible nose. He scratches his short brown hair, attempting to decipher the remaining details of this strange humanoid, though it¡¯s hard to make out everything, even with detailed study. The strong insect-like features are confusing, a real mess of arthropod-like appendages, blades, and gems. The gemstone-like objects are embedded in its body in various locations, on its shoulders, knees, and the biggest one just below its chest. Crystals, yes, that¡¯s what its blades also resemble, these purple stones, like amethysts. Truly unique gems, like there is something swirling inside, like a whirlpool, as if they were hollow. So very fascinating. Is it born with them or do they acquire the stones during their childhood? Do they collect them? Maybe even fight over them? Suddenly the figure¡¯s legs spasm, in response, the man retreats a few meters back. Finally, the experiment starts! The creature¡¯s upper body straightens and the creature stands up taking support from the ground with its bladed hands. It stands tall and proud, approximately two meters tall, facing away from him, showing a hard shell also covering its back. Remarkable, it survived the fall all the way from the valley unharmed? The man looks up at the sheer cliff above them, a few purple tree¡¯s leaves and trunks can be seen high above. He looks back down and spots a green liquid run down the creature''s left arm. Or not quite unharmed. The armor is bent inwards and fractured on the spot, it must have punctured the softer tissue underneath. The insect turns its head to the left and right, looking around. On its head, hard segmented bone-like appendages, antennae of some sort, form a wing-like structure on each side, just without anything covering the gaps. It resembles a sort of an elaborate crown or a chandelier. Various smaller antennae cover its head too, sprouting from under the flock of hair, the two bigger main antennae even covered in some dark fur. All of them shake and turn as if grasping the situation, smelling the air. No science with no danger. The scientist takes a deep breath. ¡±Hello? Can you understand me?¡± In response, four legs nimbly turn the insectoid around in place, it looks over him calmly. Its eyes are strange, arctic blue irises, filled with even more eyes, sort of like compound eyes. However, it also has a black pupil at the middle of each eye, with a normal white sclera as the background for each. Some sort of hybrid eyes? What benefit would it have for a split vision like that? It looks in his direction, but it''s hard to tell if it''s actually looking at him or not. As if it¡¯s looking past him, or maybe around itself at the same time? ¡°Are you okay?¡± The man asks a follow-up question. The creature seems to turn all of its attention to the man as all of the eyes in its irises turn to look at him, as well as the two pupils. Then it nods. Its face betrays no emotion, appearing almost devoid of such things. Amazing! ¡°You don¡¯t look okay to me, you¡¯re hurt,¡± he points at the creature''s left arm and then touches his own left arm at the same spot. The creature moves its right bladed-hand and touches its arm with the wide side of its blade. As it connects, the creature recoils with pain, its lips contort and frown, the first show of emotion. ¡°Hurts, right? My la- uh, clinic is at the other side.¡± He points far into the distance, at the far wall of the quarry. ¡°Come with me and I¡¯ll help you with that.¡± The creature tilts its head quizzically, its antennae wildly rotating around her head before fixating backward. ¡°You don¡¯t understand? A clinic is a place to fix injuries. Make hurt go away.¡± The creature nods once more, but its antennae have stopped moving entirely. Slowly they shift from left to right, like tracking something. As the antennae start to point directly behind it, a massive cat-like creature appears, far along the path to the valley, at the very top. It seems set on walking down towards them. ¡°You fell because you escaped those sabertigers? Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.Come on, let''s go, we¡¯ll ascend that stone pile to escape them, they''re terrible climbers.¡± The insect creature wastes no time and starts a four-legged run down the path, he dodges out of the way, letting it take the lead, before bolting into a run himself. Looking behind him, he witnesses the sabertiger sniffing the air, its large cat snout twitching. The majestic beast looks like a mix between an ancient saber-tooth tiger and a normal tiger, although contrary to both, it''s as big as a truck. It bellows out a roar and starts running towards them, its massive paws shake the ground with each of its leaping steps. To top off their misfortune, another one jumps down onto the path and joins on the hunt. They reach the bottom of the upwards-sloped path and get to the ground level of the quarry, huge piles of large stones are laid around, with wide paths in between them. The stones stacked and collected by the workers, lie ready for shipping and further processing to get to their valuable ore inside. Ahead of him, the insect creature seems to have understood his instructions as it''s already galloping towards the nearest stone pile. He is woefully left behind by the large and unwieldy-looking creature, somehow better built for speed than he is. Where¡¯s everyone? I really hope somebody hears me! ¡°Saber alert! Saber alert!¡± The scientist shouts as his long lab coat billows behind him. He glances back at the approaching doom, the massive tigers are more than halfway down. He forces himself to quicken the pace, pushing himself to his limits. At the rocks, the insect is scaling them already, its long four legs making the climb look easy. The ground shakes violently and the scientist almost falls mid-run, only the wild waving of his arms allows him to keep his balance. Behind him, the first tiger has taken a shortcut and just jumped the rest of the way down. Just a little more to the rocks. A quick glance behind him confirms that the tiger is only two steps away from making him its breakfast! ¡°Hey, you! Insect creature!¡° He calls out for help, no reaction from the rock-climbing quadruped. The ground shakes once more. ¡°Insectoid! Arthropod! A- Amethyst!¡± The last one manages to make the insect creature turn around and stop climbing, almost having reached the top already. ¡°HELP ME!¡± The ground trembles right behind him and the sunlight darkens, but he doesn¡¯t look back. Almost there! He scans the pile, spotting a dozen cracks between them suitable for hiding, awaiting ahead for him. A booming sound of two hard surfaces hitting each other echoes, followed by a ferocious bone-chilling roar. A massive stone drops right next to him, shaking the ground, splinters of stone and small pebbles blast him. The boulder, at least a meter in diameter, has sunken into the ground from the force of the impact. What the hell! That almost crushed me! He looks behind, but mostly upwards, right as another rock strikes the tiger, hitting its shoulder, the eight-meter cat roars in pain flinching backward. Up on the pile, the scientist spots the source of the stones; the insect, stabs a nearby stone with both bladed hands, seemingly easily puncturing the stone. Then, the stone is lifted above its head momentarily, before flinging it down towards the tiger. His savior staggers forward a little by the force of the throw, threatening to almost go with it, fortunately, its four spread-out legs manage to keep it steady enough. What the-? Not intent on wasting any more time than his shock demanded, he sprints and reaches the stone pile. Jumping up against the first rock, his chest hits the hard stone painfully, but he quickly pulls himself up regardless. Screw hiding if I can get up there to this super strong insect¡¯s side! He was confident he¡¯d get enough covering fire from his stone-flinging pet to make it. Surely the cats wouldn¡¯t try to climb after him, the stones would definitely roll loose under their massive paws and weight. He didn¡¯t want to think what would happen though, if the cats decided to try it anyway and caused a big rock slide instead. The other sabertiger stomps past its stunned mate''s side, as another stone hammers the first tiger. The scientist concentrates on climbing higher and congratulates himself on the decision to wear his brown climbing boots, despite only having planned to go on for a brief outing. They looked downright awful combined with his lab coat, so he usually avoided using them if not necessary. It was bad enough everyone ridiculed his way of wearing a lab coat everywhere, but those fools just didn¡¯t get that science is made wherever he goes, wearing it at all times was mandatory! Only one person understood that¡­ biting his lip, he grabs ahold of another stone, relentlessly pushed ahead by his panicked body. The sound of laser guns firing fills the air and the other tiger gets peppered with gunfire. It flinches in pain and roars, turning towards the shooters to advance on them, but as the barrage continues, it¡¯s discouraged quickly. Another stone is flung, missing its target as both of the tigers have turned tail and are now fleeing up the same path they came down from. The rifle-wielding crowd chases after them up the path, they wear mostly worker uniforms, some soldiers in the mix, but all wielding laser rifles or other laser shooting weaponry. They number at least 30, a good-sized crowd, but nothing compared to the total number of staff present on site. All eager to secure some vengeance, and some good-tasting rations. With the adrenaline still running through his veins, a swift climb up the stone pile leads him to the insect still standing there, waiting for him. ¡°Phew, that was close¡­ thanks, Amethyst,¡± he pants and leans on his legs. In response, the creature tilts its head puzzled. ¡°Is that not your name?¡± It doesn¡¯t respond, only retaining the same blank expression as before. ¡°Is it okay if I call you that anyway?¡± No reaction. He points at himself. ¡°Grent.¡± And then to the insect creature. ¡°Amethyst.¡± ¡°Okay?¡± Amethyst nods. Grent looks up at the path and the people have just about reached the top in their mad hunt for the sabertigers. ¡°Alright, let''s get down from here and continue to the clinic, we still need to treat your arm¡± Grent says, makes a 90-degree turn at the top and starts scaling down towards the direction of their destination. Amethyst does as she is told and follows. Getting down is much easier and faster than climbing up, but Amethyst still passes Grent just two steps in. They skip their way down and lay their feet on top of firm soil once more. ¡°If we just go left of this next rock pile and then continue for another two piles, we will reach the entrance to my clinic.¡± They set out walking, headed around to the next stone pile¡¯s left side. Grent observes Amethyst walking before him, it doesn''t seem to want to keep pace on his side, the long stride of four legs always pulling ahead. But he doesn''t mind, it works out this way just fine. ¡°You''re injury has stopped bleeding? Well, we should still hurry and get it checked out. We wouldn''t want it to get infected or inflamed, now would we?¡± Amethyst keeps on going, Grent getting no reaction nor confirmation of it hearing this. As they reach about the halfway point of the pile, voices echo from above. ¡°Retreat!¡± ¡°Run-!¡± Screams sound from the valley as the sabertiger hunters appear again and scramble down the path. They are being chased by something else than a tiger. A violet and blue arthropod, with elbow blades and the same for hands, four legs, and purple crystals covering its body. So it came back... Grent thinks before announcing, chipper: ¡°Okay, we climb once more! Up the rocks!¡± Amethyst stares at the creature, the same species as she, except triple her size. ¡°Hello? Amethyst, we gotta climb.¡± Grent tries to get her attention back by waving his left hand in front of her. ¡°I said...¡± As it has no effect, he grabs the hilt of his holstered pistol-experiment with his other hand. ¡°We must climb.¡± Amethyst snaps out of it, turns around, and obeys, starting to scale up the pile of rocks. He lets go of the pistol¡¯s hilt and hides its holster under his coat again, joining in on the climb to safety. 2. Rampage They make good progress in their steep climb, Grent getting more proficient in climbing these massive rocks. He had entertained the idea of scaling one of these piles up before, but had seen no value in doing so, until today. His bare untrained hands getting the worst of it, soft ¨C not yet hardened by grunt work. Not that he was especially weak, one needed strength to build, tinker and move heavy parts around after all, his hobbies just didn¡¯t require endurance quite to this degree. Grent stops climbing for a moment to rest and observe the situation unfolding on the valley way. The gunmen run down the slope for their lives, trying to shoot the big insect chasing after them. To no avail, as the creature¡¯s blades are soaked in strange, flaming purple glow, easily deflecting or absorbing all of their laser attacks. Its blades leave behind a purple trail, hanging ephemerally in the air, like embers in the wind. The ginormous insect barrels down the hapless men, its four sharp legs trampling over any who fall behind, stomping them to death or piercing their bodies with its sharp legs. Some are kicked off the edge into the quarry or try to slide down by themselves. Fortunately, most of the gunmen are able to outrun it, as its large legspan makes it slow on this narrow path. The group, counting around in the twenties still, reach the bottom of the sloped path, heading to the direction of the two rock climbers. Go the other way damn it! Grent looks up at Amethyst, she has reached the top of the stone pile and stares at the direction of the carnage. Its expressionless face, an enigma. What is it thinking? Does it recognize it as kin? Reaching the top of the rocks, he stands at Amethyst¡¯s side, a deep calculating scowl darkening his face. The gunmen have led the rampaging insect towards them, soon to pass right next to their stone pile if they continue their course Why is it here now? No, more importantly¡­ Is it the same one as that day? ¡°Amethyst¡­ Once that creature is in range, start throwing stones at it¡± Grent says cold finality in his tone. Amethyst¡¯s head starts slowly rotating towards him, rest of its body ¡ª completely still. It stares at him, giving a shaky, strained nod, stiff like faulty clockwork. ¡°Good, aim for the legs first. Don¡¯t stop until it¡¯s dead.¡± Amethyst lowers its trembling body and reaches for a stone. Stabbing it with both hand blades, lifting it up over its head, ready to throw. The sounds of battle get closer as the carnage approaches, the giant insect swishes at the men with its blades. Its stabbing victims ignite in purple flame and burn to ash in an instant. ¡°Somebody do some- grahhh!¡± another man flares up, disintegrated. Only about ten remain, desperately firing their laser guns at it, in vain. ¡°Damn, what¡¯s holding up the big guns, they know it¡¯s here right?¡± ¡°Fuck knows! If they don¡¯t show up soon-¡± The two chattering men are the first to pass right under them and scramble with their equipment. Frantically checking their pockets as they run, presumably looking for their communication devices. Soon followed by the rest of the men, the massive purple insectoid right on their tail, steadily gaining. Why isn¡¯t Amethyst throwing yet? It''s in range already? The creature is soon to encroach on the mid point of their pile, right below them. But she isn¡¯t throwing. Grent separates his eyes from the action below and glances at Amethyst. It is shaking all over, the sharp slender arthropod legs, strong and hard torso, as well as its bladed arms, unsteadily hold the stone up. Is it exhausted? Surely it would have thrown or laid down the stone, if that was the case. Hrmm... ¡°Throw the rock now!¡± Grent commands with anger plain in his voice. Amethyst visibly resists this command, shaking all over, but unable to over come the order. As she''s about to fling it, her trembling body''s legs slip, temporarily loosing balance. The weak throw falls short. This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. It hits the side of the rock-mountain, another stone comes loose, then the two stones collide with other stones, which strike more... In no time, a rockslide starts building momentum, headed right towards the giant insect and the men fighting it. Rumbling down with terrifying force, the stone ocean has grown wide enough to hit everything below them. Suddenly the stone Grent was standing on disappears from under him. Before he falls down with the rock slide, he manages to grab the arm of Amethyst, right above the bladed hand. Barely avoiding mutilating his hand on the incredibly sharp blade, but as gravity swings him around, the blade¡¯s edge sinks into his wrist instead. Amethyst looks down on the devastation, the rock slide rains down on the giant insect, it has no time to react. Huge boulders squash two of its legs, flattening and breaking them, large green pools forming underneath. More rocks rumble down and batter its body while it screeches in pain. It slices at the rest of the incoming rocks valiantly with its flame slathered blades, cutting them straight in half or smashing them entirely. But the rocks are simply too numerous. A large stone hits straight on its shoulder, the force recoiling its whole upper body back. The creature cannot escape, it¡¯s already completely immobilized within a swamp of stones. Then another large rock, one of the few still rolling down, ricochets from another. It strikes straight on top of the creature¡¯s head, splattering its antennae and breaking its bone crown. It falls limp in the stony sea as green liquid starts oozing out from on top of its head. With a weak low buzz, its blue eyes loose their luster and the purple flames dissipate from its massive blades. The few surviving people gather around and celebrate triumphantly. ¡°We killed the Purple Death!¡± ¡°WOOOOOOHH!¡± ¡°We s-survived!¡± They are too busy to even look up or question the source of their smashing victory.
As the rumbling and chaos subsides, Amethyst hears something. ¡°A-amethyst! Help!¡± Grent cries out, still holding on for dear life on Amethyst¡¯s arm. Enduring the pain of his injured wrist, he hung on tightly, a lot of empty air occupying the space under his feet. Amethyst slowly raises her hand higher and moves the hanging scientist above solid stone again, without looking away from the sight below. Grent drops on his knees and holds his wrist, which bleeds profusely now that the blade is withdrawn from it. Amethyst¡¯s vision becomes blurry. She opens her mouth. Eight mandibles shoot out out of it, spreading on the outside of her mouth, spacing themselves evenly. Hissing and gurgling sounds echo from her throat, accompanied by a low buzz from her mandibles starting to rub against each other. "F- fl-" The restraints placed on her thoughts are starting to clear away and she tries to pronounce something, with a clearer, different voice. ¡°M-m-mo-¡± An electrical zapping noise from behind, interrupts her. Her trembling hands start to settle down as the watery hybrid eyes calm and lose their glow, becoming devoid of emotion, just as before. The mandibles retreat back inside of her mouth and her posture relaxes, loosing all tension. Amethyst¡¯s expression becomes cold and empty, brought back under control.
Grent puts the invention back to its holster and demands: ¡°Amethyst! Cut my shirt with your blades!¡± It obeys without hesitation, coming to Grent and leaning down to cut the fabric from between his outstretched hands. He wipes his crimson flooded wrist temporarily clean, with the sleeve of his pure white lab coat, which absorbs the blood into bright red smears. Grent quickly ties the strip of cloth around his wrist, while it is still relatively dry, bandaging it up. The bandage starts to darken immediately. ¡°Okay now we really gotta hurry to the clinic, Amethyst let¡¯s get going.¡± He stands up wobbling slightly with a deep grimace carved on his face. Amethyst nods and they start walking along the ridge of the mountain of rocks. Grent hops from rock to rock, carefully, while Amethyst¡¯s leg reach is enough to just bridge the gaps between them, like walking on level terrain. They advanced in silence, but it was anything but quiet inside Grent¡¯s head. How unexpected, is speech a side effect of some sort? It wasn''t designed to be used on non-humans, so¡­ Hmm... How very interesting. This is turning out to be a much more fruitful experiment than I thought. A wicked smile spreads on his lips, immediately wiped away by his wrist reminding him of his condition. They reach the end of the stone ridge before long and descend back on the quarry¡¯s level ground. Just two more piles to pass to their destination, they set out walking towards the edge of the next pile. Grent looks back to see his comrades working the cranes and drills, clearing away the rocks to get to the insect¡¯s buried body. Amethyst walks before him, Grent runs up to it and points forwards. ¡°Look, there¡¯s the door to my clinic, just a little further.¡± Sharp pain stabs his wrist as he does, regretting not using his left hand for this distraction. The bandage is now completely red, but it hasn¡¯t leaked any blood outside of it, yet. He had probably succeeded in squeezing it tight enough to staunch the flow. Amethyst doesn¡¯t react, still steadily walking towards the entrance alongside him, with unaffected stride and an unshaken neutral expression. Maybe he was worrying for nothing. 3. The Clinic They draw close to Grent¡¯s ¡®clinic¡¯, a cave entrance, plugged tight with a massive plate of steel. A small, equally steely, door adorns its left corner, truly minuscule in comparison. Grent trudges up to the door and takes out a key card from his lab coat¡¯s, zippered, side pocket. He swipes it across the reader embedded in the stone next to the door, it blinks a green light in approval, as the door¡¯s locks disengage. ¡°After you.¡± Amethyst passes him and stares at the closed door for a moment, before raising a hand to hover over the handle of the door. She slowly lowers the bladed hand to rest on the handle. As soon as Amethyst applies any force to try opening the door, the end of the handle clatters on the stone below, cut clean off. Oh... I probably should have opened it¡­ But how does it even know how to use a door? Amethyst tries again, this time bringing her hand from the side but only managing to cut the rest of the handle off from the very base, which joins its other half on the rocks with a loud noise. ¡°Just try to open the door, don¡¯t worry about the handle.¡± As instructed, Amethyst stabs its bladed hand through the spot where the handle was and pushes. The door opens slightly, though now the blade is stuck to the door. The insect reaches forwards and pushes the door open. Crouching down, it start to move sideways like a crab, carefully bringing her legs over the threshold one by one. Once half are on the other side, Amethyst brings its upper body over with an even deeper crouch. Rest of its legs get through the doorway and it faces backwards to free its blade. One strong pull is all it takes to bring the curved hand blade loose. Amethyst is now facing backwards, having done an 180 degree turn during her entry, standing in the dark room, with only a single red, low power, light above. In the ominous lighting, it looks directly at Grent, betraying no happiness for its triumph, nor embarrassment on its face from this needless struggle. ¡°A-amethyst please walk further in, you are blocking the doorway.¡± Amethyst takes a few more steps backwards as commanded. Grent follows through and notices the door¡¯s inner locking mechanism lying on the floor in small metal pieces, he steps over it into the room. Closing the ruined door behind him, it only opens back up again with a creak. Grent closes the door again with a sigh, proceeding to slam it shut repeatedly before it finally stays closed. He flicks a switch next to the door, lights flashing on around the room, reminiscent of a reception area. At the back, like a center piece, a wide wooden desk with a computer laid on top and a flimsy chair behind it. Only the receptionist is missing from behind to welcome the visitors in. But other than that, the room appears to be used strictly for storage now. Random junk line the walls and floor, monitors, large glass tubes, machinery, lots of boxes all around. A bookself on the back wall as well as many hooks with some sort of equipment and tools hanging on them around the room. White wooden walls hold up a few paintings and posters depicting company slogans and products. One particular poster has a cartoon style green lizard wizard, holding up a pickaxe, with a slogan "Mine and dine, how divine!" above it. Below, a smaller text which reads: "Affordably priced Centizard products to our brothers and sisters at Intergalactic Resources!" The room has no roof, the stone it was carved inside serving as a natural ceiling. Apart from the mess, it is quite a cozy room, a fluffy green full floor carpet covers the neatly lit room, a few colorful couches livening it up too. Three doors lead further into the complex, one in each cardinal direction. Normal, low security, doors lead to the right and straight on, while a contrasting heavy steel plating covers the left wall, with an equally heavy duty door. Grent takes the lead. ¡°This way¡± He walks up to the steel door on the left, wading through the labyrinth of stuff. Swiping another key card reader, this time the door opens up automatically and he steps in first, leaving the door open after him, the door remaining open after him. Amethyst follows without hesitation. The lobby''s ceiling is very high up, allowing it to walk without crouching, the floor however proving to be impossible to navigate cleanly. It knocks over a few boxes and steps on a couch cushion, which gets stuck up its leg. The punctured blue cushion gets launched into the opposing wall as the giant insect shakes it off. Grent is peeking through the doorway at Amethyst''s antics, making way as it finally made it through the minefield. Amethyst crouches and shuffles through the doorway inside, Grent closes the door, multiple locks click loudly. The white bright lighting gives the room a sterile atmosphere, cabinets, drawers, medical equipment and machinery laying around, lacking any obvious order or meaning to their arrangement. Grent hurries to a desk on the right, with a computer on top of it, right next to a fridge. He boots up the machine and with shaky hands, turns to rifle through the contents of the fridge. He piles on things onto the table from inside, vials with different colored liquids, disinfectant, a canned drink. His left hand opens up the drink with a fizz, gulping it down greedily. ¡°Ahhh...¡± his parched throat was due a drink ages ago, he plonks down the can and takes out bandages from the desk¡¯s drawer. Blood drips onto the tiled floor as he carefully opens up the shirt bandage on his wrist. Popping open a bottle, he pours disinfectant on the cut, pain induced hisses escape his lips. Amethyst has stood idly by in the meantime, watching the man scramble around his workshop for the whole time. No instructions, no commands, not even a vague suggestions to fulfill. The scientist finally remembers the hulking insect in the room. ¡°Oh, uh, set yourself up on the bed and I¡¯ll treat you in a moment.¡± Grent proceeds to dress his wound into a neat bandage as Amethyst turns to look at the rest of the room. Long test tubes cover the back wall with different colored liquids in them, the left wall lined up with three different exotic stuffed animal heads. A strange looking moose with green skin, mushrooms growing out of its skin with antlers that look to be made of thorns. The second head, a sort of elephant like creature, though this one has no ears and four trunks instead, it¡¯s a bleached red color with three tiny eyes on its forehead. The last of these hanged heads, a familiar creature, a sabertiger¡¯s cub, its head still quite massive, though without the long signature fangs of the adults. Its furry orange face looks contorted in terror. Looking at the heads, a fleeting sense of trepidation courses through her mind, as her body continues its advance to the bed. The long and wide hospital bed, looking too big for human usage and made of way too thick steel beams for supporting their light bodies. It has small heavy duty wheels on each of its four legs. Amethyst lays a hand on the ¡®bed¡¯, the cloth on top of it is more like plastic, ripping from just merely putting down her blade on it, revealing the cold steel beneath. Much to Amethyst¡¯s surprise, she feels something well up inside of her again, some kind of feeling, like¡­ uncertainty. It lingers just long enough for her to notice, but right as she is about to grasp onto it, hold it, the feeling has already disappeared, like it hadn¡¯t been there in the first place. Returning her mind to its pacified state. The purple insect sits on the table and flips her four legs over the edge and onto the bed. The smoothness and the feeling of this unusual movement catches her off guard. She didn¡¯t know what sitting was, but she had done it, like she¡¯d done it before countless times, her body guiding her along. The surprise disappears from her face as a state of blankness takes it over. Amethyst lays on her back, looking up at the stone ceiling, empty like a husk. Four legs spread apart like a hand fan, her bladed arms on both sides, her antennae, completely still on her head, along with her crown. She awaits for further instructions. Meanwhile, Grent has finished treating himself and is using the computer. His quite long and pale fingers deftly type on the holographic keys. He turns on a scanner in the ceiling, which shoots a near invisible blanket of light, swooping over the operating table and Amethyst. Grent pays close attention to Amethyst during the scan, but it does not seem to notice the procedure. The display reads: ¡°Scanning complete. Compiling Data: 1%¡± Can¡¯t wait to see just what¡¯s going on in that head, maybe my mind ray was a bit too powerful, breaking apart the insect¡¯s mind? Or maybe the opposite, I¡¯ve never seen it wear off that quickly before¡­ It was very obedient though... So many unknowns still remain in the equation. Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. ... What should I do with it? Amande, could you forgive and forget? Tell me, what should I do? What would you have wanted me to do? Grent closes his eyes and waits to hear something, waiting for any sort of a sign. The computer¡¯s fans whirr, blowing the time away with their susurration. There is no sign, no second opinion, the voice of Amande does not grace his ears. He takes another sip from the can and picks up a syringe and a vial next to it. The sharp needle penetrates the upside down vial''s plastic cover, sucking itself full of yellow liquid. Once he is done, he places it on a small steel cart, various other instruments cover its surface already: Scalpels, tweezers, pliers, anything he may need. Alright, let¡¯s do this then. Grent takes a deep breath and presses a button on the table. Zwoop! Jet black, belt like restraints shoot from underneath the bed and bind Amethyst tightly against the bed¡¯s steel frame. It¡¯s clearly startled and attempts to break free from its shackles immediately, eyes wide in surprise. Grent takes a final glance at the screen. ¡°27%¡± The insect cannot move at all, not its legs, not even its blades. Only the humanoid head is free to move, its bone crown and antennae move around frantically as its head is raised. It struggles against the restraints, its smooth purple hair moving around with the motion, the longer bangs of hair get thrown around in wide arcs. ¡°Now hold still, it¡¯ll be fine.¡± Grent appears on her left side with the syringe, he looks upon the fractured armor plate on its shoulder. The hole is messy with green conjugated blood all around it with pieces of carapace shards in the mix. It is impossible to see what kind of injuries are hiding below. The syringe¡¯s thin sharp needle glistens against the light as he prepares to inject it through the skin of the wound, one of the few places not protected by a hard shell. This should work, how complicated its physiology could possibly be? "This''ll sting just a bit" Amethyst''s face is slowly hardening in expression, its eyebrows, eyes and mouth contorting as the needle approaches. She fights fiercely against the restraints as panic takes over. The whole table shakes, but I doesn¡¯t budge, the wheels locked in place. ¡°H-hey! Calm down Amethyst!¡± Grent shouts, laying down the syringe on the roller table and pulling out the laser gun. He turns on the display attached to it and starts fiddling with it¡¯s settings. Amethyst''s mandibles appear from inside of her mouth and she speaks with an echoing voice, the sharp, curved mandibles vibrating along. ¡°No.¡± Grent stops. ¡°No?¡± He looks up from the display of his mind ray to see Amethyst¡¯s crystals, all around her body, starting to glow; brighter and brighter. The plastic cover of the table starts melting in the areas near the crystals, then the steel table under it. The black restraints snap from around her arms, as her blades are charged with this purple flame too. Grent fires the device at Amethyst, aiming for the head. The energy projectile is deflected, as Amethyst raises her long elbow blade to block it. It gets imbued with the purple flame as the ray zings across the room striking a long glass tube at the back, leaving behind a black scorch mark. Amethyst uses her other hand and snips the rest of the restraints clean off, anger written plain on her face as her mandibles and antennae move around restlessly. ¡°Amethyst, get back on the bed!¡± Grent raises his voice and shoots again. She sits up on the table and ricochets the projectile using her wrist crystal. He shoots again and again, until the pistol starts beeping and flashing a red warning light on the display. Amethyst expertly deflects them all, using whatever blade or crystal in her body that was closest to the shot¡¯s aimed location. Purple flaming projectiles ricochet around the room, one reflected by chance right back at Grent, too busy tinkering with his malfunctioning equipment. It hits him square on the chest, burning through his shirt, exposing skin. The pain and the force knock him back, he tries to take support from the metal cart, but it instead rolls away from underneath his arm. His weight launches and flips the whole table, the tools scatter everywhere and the glass syringe shatters onto the floor, in a yellow puddle. Grent falls on his back, the suggestion ray is knocked from his grip and bonks on the floor, receiving a dent on it¡¯s metal frame. Amethyst gets up from the table towards the door, but at the same time Grent suddenly scampers back up from the floor already. His brown hair is disheveled, his dizzy and confused face bleeding. Amethyst turns back around, bladed hands raised at the ready. ¡°Where¡­ am I? What happened?" Grent notices the sharp, threatening blades. "Wait wait! Don''t do anything rash! I just want to talk. You wouldn''t know what''s going on?¡± ¡°Who- Agh, my head is killing me. Just hold on, please.¡± Grent holds his head and limps to the table, starting to rifle through its documents and drawers. ¡°Painkillers, painkillers¡­¡± he mutters. "Somewhere here... there must be something." Amethyst looses interest in the man and her purple glow fades from her crystals and blades. Finally she is able to be herself after so long, but something feels different in her mind. Like there was something more. Something extra that didn¡¯t belong in her head. But that would not distract her thoughts from the one thing that mattered, that which pressed upon her mind the hardest. Mother. She felt this fundamental yearning to help her, to save her, much stronger than she was aware of ever feeling before. Had she been aware of her feelings before today¡­? Had she even thought of her as mother on a non-instinctual level until now? Her head burst with foreign knowledge, with words and feelings she didn¡¯t know the source for. Amethyst¡¯s head throbbed in pain, unable to receive answers to her jumbled thoughts. She slowly creeps towards the door, looking upon it, trying to navigate the fog of her brain, she knew how these worked right? Why couldn¡¯t she remember? Why did she know how these worked? Why would she possibly know that? Did she really even know? ¡°Hey, where are you going?¡± Grent asks from behind her again. Amethyst does not turn around but ponders the endless questions in her head, including a solution to this door problem. ¡°Please you¡¯ve got to help me! I don¡¯t seem to remember anything about me, I know concepts and everyday stuff, but I don¡¯t even know my own name! What''s going on!?¡± Grent panics but manages to calm himself. ¡°Come on turn around, please. Look, I found this picture, I¡¯m in this right? Do you know where the other person is? Maybe they know what is going on?¡± He pleads. Amethyst turns around out of curiosity, Grent is leaning on the table and tiredly holds up the photograph for her to see. In the picture, it is undoubtedly the man before her and another human¡­ female? They both wear long white coats, the woman¡¯s near-golden hair are blown to the side by the wind. Their arms spread over each other¡¯s shoulders, with big grins on their lips. Amethyst almost faints upon seeing the photograph, her own thoughts and consciousness being overwhelmed, threatening to get put back into the background again. She forces herself to look away from the photo, the extra presence in her mind fighting against her. Grent feels his face, tears form under his eyes and flow relentlessly down his cheeks. ¡°W-what¡¯s going on? Am I crying? But... why?¡± Amethyst closes her eyes momentarily, trying to clear her mind. The throbbing inside subsides, as the presence seems to yield, though her mind remains abuzz of other thoughts. She turns around and returns her gaze at the door, staring at it in silence. ¡°Umm¡­ do you not know how to use doors?¡± ¡°Shut... it.¡± She hisses, her mandibles shaking in chorus, with clearer articulation than before. Grent, obeying the command, falls silent and turns away from her. He puts the photograph back on the table and glances at the computer screen. It shows a detailed scan of Amethyst¡¯s whole body, a red message written above in the image: Warning: Artificially injected consciousnesses Amande, stronger than original mind. Current assimilation: 11% Why does Amande somehow sound so familiar...? He continues reading after this seemingly random thought:
Recommended action: Remove the infringing consciousness before it absorbs the original. Failure to do so in time, can lead to the subject experiencing the following symptom(s), as the assimilation rate rises, see Amethyst_Symptom_Assessment.txt
Grent¡¯s empty mind does not understand who he is reading about, but follows the computer¡¯s command and finds the appropriate file. Inside, a long list of probable symptoms and conditions are listed, sorted from the most likely to the least:
Amande absorbs the original mind 95% Chronic insanity 87% Brain Death 75% Coma 75% Depression 70% Schizophrenia 66% Total organ failure 50% Full body paralysis 50% Weakened immune system 46% Partial paralysis 37% Aggressive behavior 29% Mindless husk 23% Amande replaces the mind while remaining functional 15% Suicidal tendencies 10% Original mind absorbs Amande 5% Chance of condition improving on its own 0% Chance of no symptoms 0%
Grent felt sorry for this person, whoever this Amethyst was, nothing in the file sounded good, but he couldn''t help but feel happy for a moment. Somebody else was somehow doing worse than his amnesiac mind.
I¡­ I¡¯m not human. Right? I don¡¯t need to open doors. I¡¯m¡­ me... Not a human. Amethyst was finally able to at least answer one question in her mind, a seemingly obvious question with an apparent answer, but now she knew exactly what to do. She concentrates and commands muscle flaps inside of her body, unique to her species, evolved to fulfill only one purpose. Her green blood shoots along the path and into the organs along it, which looked like purple crystals from the outside. Inside them, the green blood mixed in with another compound manufactured by this gland, the mixture turned to purple. She had burned through her ready-made supply earlier to escape the restraints, so she had to synthesize more. Letting in a small amount of blood before closing down the access to these special veins. Spending too much would lead to anemia or poisoning of her own blood, if she let the purple compound get into her circulation. She then opened the next muscle gates leading to her arms, the bright purple flowed into her blades and seeped through their surface in small amounts. The compound burst into flames as soon it came into contact with the outside air. Her blades were now ready, ablaze with incredibly hot purple flame. She stabs an elbow blade through the metal door, it begins to melt from around it immediately. She slices a long cut downwards from the spot, followed by a swing from her other hand''s long blade, making a large V-shape slice all the way through the steel wall. A third cut at the top to finishes it into a triangle, the steel slab with molten edges falls into the lobby¡¯s side of the door. The liquid steel sets small fires on the fluffy green carpet. Taking a long step through the hole over the sizzling plate, crouching to get through the hole, liquid metal drips onto her shoulder from the doorway''s rough edge. Most of it slides down her armor and onto the floor, she notices it, but does not react, there is no pain. Still, as Amethyst makes it through, she hovers her flaming arm near the metal drop''s remains, but does not touch it. The rest of it evaporates from her shoulder, leaving only a small gray stain behind on the purple carapace. She hurriedly gallops through the lobby, boxes, chairs and equipment are launched and shoved from her way as she stampedes. Nearing the last door between the outside world, the final obstacle between her and her mother. The fire spreads and grows behind her, in front of the hole she made to escape. Her blades leave a flaming purple trail as she runs, fluttering in the air before landing onto the carpet, starting more small fires. She ignores the busted small door ahead, opting to use the preheated blades to slice another triangle on the thick steel wall. The blades sinking in easily and make quick work of it. She steps through the hole into the harsh sunlight of the twin suns in the sky. For a moment she feels relieved and free. However, worry quickly takes over. Amethyst cannot see her mother anywhere, the piles of rocks are laid around in the distance, where she was last seen, but no sign of her. She emits a low, but loud, buzzing sounds from her mandibles, as she cries out from her throat, a very high pitched continuous note. She soon stops her calling and listens. Her antennae scan for sounds, pointing all around, flicking and moving rapidly, almost like they had a mind of their own. Amethyst hears no response, only faraway human voices, the hum and rumble of machinery and the crackling of fire in the facility behind... No sign of mother. 4. Take Flight Where is mother? Why isn¡¯t she answering? Amethyst tenses her back¡¯s muscles underneath the armor, the carapace splits in two and moves out of the way, like the shell of a beetle. As it opens, the gray skin beneath is exposed to the world. Inside the compartment, two folded bone wings, dark purple in coloration, sprout from her back. She stretches her segmented wings out, baring a major resemblance to her wing like appendages on her head. However these wings are just the skeletal structure, they have nothing in between the five bones, nothing to produce lift with. She channels the purple substance away from her blades, back up her arms, opening the special canals inside her shoulders, pushing the purple into her back. Her blades fizzle out slowly, as they burn through the rest of the liquid seeping in them, before completely extinguishing. The purple substance flows up inside the wings, splitting up evenly between both wing¡¯s structures, going up inside the top four bones. A slit is present underneath each bone for its entire length, the liquid blocked from freely flowing out by a sticky film. Amethyst closes the wing¡¯s access to her back canal and pushes the liquid forwards inside them, the pressure increasing as the purple liquid is pushed against the film. The liquid becomes stiff, gel like, as it is squeezed through it. The wing bone¡¯s gaps are getting covered by it, unfurling like sails and attaching to the bone below. This happens symmetrically on both sides and continues down from the next one below, after the above one has finished. The moist gel between the wing bones, shines in the sunlight for a moment. Gradually loosing its reflectiveness and hardening into a solid substance. Now ready for flight, she flaps her wings slowly, but powerfully to get some height first, creating a small dust storm below. A few meters off the ground, she starts flapping them rapidly, the wings become a blur and produce a low buzzing susurration, bearing many similarities to more traditional insects. With her wings started up, she quickly zooms upwards, rapidly gaining height, along the first stone pile, and above it. Until she can see the whole quarry, almost flying up to the same level as the edge of the valley. Hovering in place, Amethyst scans the area with her hybrid eyes and spots some sort of huge box of metal with large rigid wings, landed at the far end of the quarry. Thanks to Amethyst¡¯s unusual eyes, she is able to see it accurately despite being far away. Her subconscious recognizes the metal structure as some sort of a ship... a spaceship, whatever that is? Its back is opened, a metal slope leading up to it. Right next to the ship, her mother is chained up to a floating metal plate ¡ª with all too familiar black restraints. She is crumpled up in a heap on top of it, motionless, as she is transported towards the ship''s opening, humans pushing the platform along. I''m coming mom! She shoots through the air like a jet towards her. Relief burned inside of her, for finding her, though she¡¯s unsure why exactly. Even entertaining the opposite thought, of not going to her aid, squeezed her chest and tightened her throat. She couldn¡¯t figure out which part of her mind it belonged, to the old or the new. But it didn¡¯t matter now, this was the one thing they could agree on. She flies over a second stone pile, the buzzing of her wings getting louder the faster she flew. ¡°What¡¯s-?!¡± ¡°Look!¡± Humans hollered below at the purple lightning streaking across the sky, she heard their voices only for a split second, before the audio got lost in the wind. The humans have just loaded her mother inside of the ship, scattering away from inside of it as the door starts to rise back up, to close. Will I make it? She unfurls the sails on her head wings too and turns her head vertical against the wind. The film covers the gaps, spreading out quickly due to the wind pressure, the semi-liquid gel withstands the force of the wind, remaining in place. The door is rising, about one fourth closed, she''s over the fourth rocky mountain now, only two remained to be flown over. The film dries fast in the sunlight and the wind, she flaps her head wings, which start buzzing loudly as they pick up speed. She can no longer hear anything but the sound of her wings as they accelerate her further. Halfway closed, she¡¯s almost there, just above the last stone pile. Rapidly approaching, way too fast, but she couldn''t slow down, if she was to make it. Right at the door, she quickly closes her wings, the solid substance breaks and shatters like glass, raining down from the sky, sparkling in the sun''s rays. The wings tuck themselves into safety, inside of her back¡¯s hollow armor, which then closes back up. She shoots through the last gap of the door as aerodynamically as a speeding bullet, carried by her momentum. Holding her long elbow blades in front of her, the blades sink deep into the steel wall awaiting to flatten her. The blades embed themselves almost up to her arms, lessening the impact force tremendously. A life-saving maneuver she had learned flying through her home¡¯s forests, performed on instinct. Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. She hangs limp on her blades for a moment catching a small break, resting momentarily as the door fully closes behind her. It becomes dark, but through the compound eyes in her iris, she is able to see in the dark, but only for short distances. Her pupils instead meant for long ranges, but being useless in the dark, so she only sees by the edges of her vision in the dark, a large ball of black in the middle. Both parts of her eye being able too work together in light, but also having their own specializations. Amethyst hangs above an entrance to somewhere, this room having a higher ceiling than the next one. She channels energy to her elbow blades, as they ignite, she slides down, leaving behind two clean, red glowing cuts. They shed a minuscule amount of light in the dark, the molten slag peeling off, giving them a messy look. Her four sharp, slender legs hit the ground with a metallic clang. There¡¯s a corridor right ahead of her, lit by some dim ceiling lights to show the way forward. She turns around, her mother is laying on the platform before her. Completely still. Amethyst approaches her and emits a low and sad buzz, it echoes empty and alone in the steely room. Her head lies on its side, antennae mushed on top with green stain in her mane of light violet hair. Only one head wing remains on her head, being just a short stub of bone. Her eyes are closed, the reek of blood coming off of her makes Amethyst''s antennae retreat backwards. Suddenly everything starts shaking and she almost falls, being able to regain her balance thanks to her four legs. A pressure tries to push her towards the floor, she fights against it, then suddenly it pushes her backwards too. The room seems to tilt slightly, accompanied by the loud roar of an engine and the rattling of the shaking vessel. She cannot move, it takes all her strength to stay still. The body of her mother is thrown up and down, back and forth, green liquid oozes from under her. Green blood is split and splattered around the room, onto the floor, walls and the ceiling. Onto Amethyst. The corpse¡¯s head limply bounces against the platform, as do her legs. Bang. Bang. They crash down after each shake of the ship, striking the hard metal beneath her, only her main body has been secured with the restraints. Bang. Bang. Standing there, not being able to do anything, Amethyst flinches with each strike of this sickening sound. A loud crunch plays as one of her mother¡¯s legs comes loose, it¡¯s mangled and broken, but somehow in one piece. It hops along the floor, leaving a green smear as it travels to the cargo door, settling to shaking and bouncing up against it. Amethyst¡¯s vision starts fading, something impairs it, happening once again. She cannot do anything to prevent it, she cannot wipe or touch her face with blades for hands. An emotion emerged from inside of her. A completely new feeling to her. This feeling¡­ This emptiness¡­ This invisible pain¡­ This despair¡­ She felt¡­ Loss. Loss of something important Loss of something dear. The loss of something irreplaceable. Mother... The ship¡¯s shaking subsides. ¡°This is an automated cargo ship, traveling to planet: ¡®Viridan Macula¡¯. If there are humans left on board by mistake or negligence, please make your way from the cargo hall, down the corridor and to the left. There you will find a safety seat to strap yourself in for safe travel to your destination.¡± A robotic voice filled the air pausing for a moment before continuing: ¡°Engaging warp drive in 60 seconds, please be seated before that. This action cannot be cancelled. So if you hear this, enjoy a forced trip to our destination. Tough luck. Intergalactic Resources and Wildlife Ventures thanks you for your cooperation and understanding.¡± She didn¡¯t fully understand what the ethereal voice was trying to tell her, she recognized the words, but lacked context and their meaning. ¡°50,¡± the intangible voice counted down. However, the voice clearly had urged her to take action, she had to do something, she didn¡¯t want to go to this ¡°Viridian Macula¡± place. But what could she do? ¡°40.¡± She was trapped, vulnerable and injured. She was not safe, she had to get back to her forest and hide. Something kept her from cutting down the door, the way they she had come from. It was like another small separate voice, another new instinct she had acquired. It screamed, in no circumstance, should she damage that door, this new feeling fought hard against her old instincts. ¡°10.¡± The arguing of these mixed messages stirred deep confusion inside. She looked at her mother for help, for refuge. And she found it. As she looked at her, Amethyst''s mind calmed down, but the noise was replaced by the invisible pain again. ¡°0.¡± She had been unable to make a decision in this short time, wrestling with the turmoil inside of her. The ship suddenly slides from under her legs and she¡¯s sent hurtling towards the back wall. She tries to grab hold of the restraints, which keep the corpse of her mother tied down. Touching the first with her hand- Snap It immediately breaks as her hand blade cuts through it. The next one. Snap Sliced through before it could even slow her fall. Snap Snap Snap Snap Snap She tore through all of the black harnesses and Amethyst¡¯s back slams on the cargo door. Her armor takes the brunt of the blow, but it still hurts. The solid purple film that still remained on her head wings shatters from the impact, the small pieces proceeding to rattle against the steel door with her. The invisible pressure holds her against the wall, unable to move at all. Suddenly, her peripheral vision is filled with her mother. She didn¡¯t see her coming at all, due to being unable to utilize the middle of her sight in the low light. The large carcass smashes into her at high speed, and her conciouscness fades. ... ... 5. Intergalactic Wildlife Ventures Click The shutter of a camera clicks, as a man in his thirties takes a picture with a small digital camera. Its lens is wide, almost bigger than the device itself, giving it a goofy look. Click ¡°Just like that, can you look at the camera and give me a big smile¡± He asks the subject of his shot expectantly. His muse, as big as a bear, bares its blue long teeth at the photographer. ¡°Ah there you go, good job¡± Click ¡°Thank you, that should do it¡± He thanks the dark gray creature, its head resembling that of a fox in its shape. It is held inside a large rectangular cage, a white tinted force field forming the walls and covering the roof. As the cameraman turns to leave, the fox like creature growls. Its two, long but thin, ears press against its head¡¯s thick and long fur, an incredibly thick mane starts from its head and covers its entire back. He hears the growl and turns back around to face the creature: ¡°Whoa, what did I do to you? No hard feelings okay, you¡¯ll be going to a good home I¡¯m, sure¡± The foxbear stares at the man for a moment with its faded gray eyes before blowing steaming air through its large snout and settling down laying on the steel floor, snuggling on top of its six legs. The man takes out a small device from his pocket and turns it on. Its screen lights up and he opens a program, within it a file titled: ¡°Pictures for auction #459¡± ¡°Alright, picture taken of ¡®Ashen Sextuple Foxbear¡¯ ¡° He swipes a finger over the name on the screen, drawing a line over it. So what¡¯s next... He swipes downwards and checks his next assignment on his work list. A... Thyrchid? A what? I¡¯ve never even heard of such an animal. Though I am a fan of the name already, heaps better than the nonsense they usually assign to new species. Gah, it just makes me cringe thinking of the infamous Triple rainbow mosquitollibri of sucking. They say the name was the dying man¡¯s wish who captured a whole swarm of them, before he died of blood loss, at least according to the legend. Who¡¯s gonna believe that? They just wanted to mess with us with that name for sure... The man shakes his head and returns his wandering thoughts back on track. Anyway, this is gonna be exciting, I¡¯ll get to witness an entirely new species! Been a while since last time, this one being a lot more mysteriously named than the Sabertiger. Lets see where this Thyrchid¡¯s cage is at¡­ He presses the species'' name on screen, a large map of the area appears, innumerable cages littered around in some sort of formation inside a large building. The map zooms in right next to him and shows the Thyrchid¡¯s location to be the second cage on his right. What? Next to the Solarophone? But that cage is empty? He lifts his gaze from the screen and surveys the supposed cage of this new species and spots a purple mass laying on the floor. Oh I must have missed it, as it¡¯s just laying there motionless¡­ Is it okay? He approaches the cage and looks at the Thyrchid from up close, his blonde locks almost getting fried by the force field. This quite large, vaguely humanoid, insect-animal thing just lays there, a heap of arthropod limbs, bone like appendages and blades. He squints at the creature trying to make heads or tails of it. What even is that? I hope it¡¯s not dead... A metal frame surrounds the cage¡¯s force field, generating it and making the cage easily movable by machinery, its top and bottom covered by a steel slab. At the cage¡¯s frame at an easily accessible height, there is an electrical box like hunk of metal, two large buttons adorn it. The red one says ¡°release¡± and a white one has just a lightning icon on it. Sorry about this, but maybe this will spark some life in you. He plants a palm on the large white button, it presses down gently and rises back up. A white electrical charge shoots out from the force field with a crackle, it arcs down from the ceiling and zaps the violet pile. The Thyrchid inside twitches from the electrical strike, its body slowly increasing in movement. Amethyst is roused from her unconsciousness. Where am I? She opens her eyes to unknown surroundings. She teeters up, taking support from her blades against the steel floor. Ouch She inspects her body for damage but her armor seems to be intact, apart from her previously injured left shoulder, despite the soreness all over. She almost falls back down as a wave of weakness washes over her. I¡¯m so hungry... Click A camera¡¯s flash lights up Amethyst¡¯s body, her crystals and blades reflect the light back harshly. Oops, well that¡¯s a ruined picture, didn¡¯t realize they¡¯d be so reflective. The photographer thinks and turns the flash back off from the touch display of his camera. Amethyst brought a bladed hand to protect her eyes from this sudden flash of bright light, from behind it she looks through the world with purple tinted colors. She is in a cage, that¡¯s inside of a dimly lit building, the ceiling is high up with large lamps hanging from it. She looks to her left and right. What¡¯s going on? So many different creatures¡­ trapped? Her antennae spin around in a circle: she hears the cries of scared animals, the sad wail and anguish. The roars of defiance and grunts of dissatisfaction, echoing from all around her. But right there in front of her is a man, holding a strange device. Click She expects another flash, but as it does not arrive, she lowers her hand from covering her face. Wasting no time, she instead strikes the force field with her blades. The white wall sparks but her blades do not penetrate this thin, seemingly solid wall. ¡°Whoa whoa easy now, that won¡¯t do you any good, you¡¯ll only hurt yourself¡± To the man¡¯s surprise the Tyrchid stops its assault of the impenetrable wall, like it had understood him. Amethyst eyes up this human with a cold stare of her hybrid eyes, his long hair, this peculiar device on his neck. Some sort of black suit accompanied by a flat hat of the same color on his head. A strangely well dressed man in a shady place like this, her head echoes. She shakes that foreign thought away and makes her own conclusion. A thoroughly insignificant and unarmed man. You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.¡°What a majestic pose and that thousand yard stare, if looks could kill¡­¡± The man¡¯s face sinks behind his camera. Click Amethyst¡¯s crystals light up, soon followed by her blades engulfed in flame. ¡°Wow!¡± The man goes wide eyed. What a display! is it trying to intimidate me? Click Click Click, the man lets the shutter sing, with each click the arc of the Tyrchid¡¯s flaming swing proceeds forwards. ZWAP Searing elbow blades strike against the force field, Amethyst strains and pushes against it with both arms, the wall starting to bend. The cameraman is startled by the noise and looks up from the camera, retreating a step backwards. ¡°H-hey cut that out, I keep telling you it won¡¯t work!¡± The force field wall bends more. Does it not get electrocuted through its blades? How can it keep this up? Amethyst looks straight at the man with all of her eyes as she presses against the wall harder. Her mandibles appear from inside of her mouth. ¡°Let me out¡± She buzzes with an echoed voice. I-it spoke?? Amethyst slashes at the wall again and again with her blades, but it does not give in more than the slight bending. Her blades go out as she gives up. ¡°I- I can¡¯t just let you out even if you are¡­ sapient¡± He speaks carefully, his astonishment not yet passed. ¡°Why?¡± Her mandibles grasp around restless on the outskirts of her mouth. ¡°Because you are now property of ¡®Intergalactic Resources and Wildlife Ventures¡¯, I can¡¯t just free you and not face punishment myself, you know?¡± ¡°No I don¡¯t know, just let me out¡± Amethyst answers unwavering. ¡°I¡­ I¡¯ll try to figure something out, I¡¯ll talk to management. I mean they probably don¡¯t want charges on slave trading, since you can talk and everything. It¡¯s very much against the intergalactic law after all¡± Not like most of this is by the book anyway, but charges are much higher for that than illegal animal trading. ¡°Just wait here and I¡¯ll be back soon, I promise¡± The photographer says with a smile directed at the creature and is turning to leave. ¡°No¡± Defiantly, Amethyst locks eyes with the man''s copper brown orbs before he turns around. ¡°No?¡± The man repeats in surprise and stops on his tracks mid step, meeting the Tyrchid''s gaze. Amethyst heats up her blades once more and backpedals to a corner of the cage. The floor is made up of material she is intimately familiar at this point. Steel. With her curved hand blades ablaze, she stabs the floor, still looking straight at the man, it easily sinks in. She then breaks their stare and starts walking around the cage cutting the metal as she goes. ¡°Wait wait wait, stop!¡± Amethyst ignores the man¡¯s panicked plea. She reaches the first corner and turns, looking to cut a square shape out of the floor, about half of the total volume of it, big enough for her to fit in. What do I do? Do I report this? Sound the alarm? The photographer¡¯s eyes fall on the white lightning button. Amethyst turns the second corner, a trail of bubbling steel left on her wake. I¡¯ll just zap her so I won¡¯t get docked pay, yes just¡­ press the button. Wait... Her? When did I¡­ start thinking of it as a person? Aghh what do I do? What do I do! He holds and shakes his indecisive head. Amethyst reaches the third corner, just one more line to cut. I¡­ that¡¯s literal torture then right? I just can¡¯t¡­ treat it as an animal¡­ anymore. Though I did electrocute her once already¡­ The reality of his situation dawns on him. Oh god, is she going to kill me for that??? With shaky eyes and a trembling face he looks up from his hands and sees Amethyst just finishing the final line, the cutting complete. ¡°You won¡¯t k-kill me when you get out, r-right?¡± Amethyst shoots him a cold gaze. Her lips curl upwards into a slight smirk for a moment before she returns her attention to the steaming steel square. SHE¡¯S TOTALLY GONNA KILL ME! Amethyst turns off her blades and nudges them through the gap and under the steel plate, with one hand she flips it up, it strikes against the force field and starts producing a loud sizzling sound. There is now a square hole on the floor of the cage, she also cut up the floor of this compound at the same time, the cement below filled with gashes of various depths. The photographer staggers backwards but trips on his own feet in his panic, falling on his rear. He scrambles further away on his butt before getting up and running. Amethyst steps inside the square onto the factory floor and feels woozy. Ahh, my head, I really need some food¡­ She slips her both, extinguished blades, under the cage¡¯s floor from the left side and pulls upwards hard. The photographer couldn''t just completely run away and miss the antics of this new mysterious creature, he took to hiding behind a cage, 50 meters or so away, intently perusing the movements of the Tyrchid. The cage starts rising up as Amethyst lifts, higher and higher, she ducks and flips the cage over her head. It crashes into the cage to the left of hers, the much smaller enclosure, housing a small yellow cat inside. Not a totally ordinary cat, from the base of its neck rises a circular collar attached to its body, it is cone shaped, like an old school gramophone¡¯s tube. Though it seems to be made of some sort of fabric or skin, instead of metal. The falling cage crashes on top of the smaller steel structure, bending it harshly, shutting the force field down. The cat shrieks a terribly loud cry and shoots out of the cage just before it collapses completely. Its two peacock like tails, but fluffy and furry instead of feathery, flutter as it runs The cat in its panic desires to get higher, it jumps on the electrical box of the next cage, pressing the release button with its back leg as it pulls itself up, shutting the force field down. The cat jumps again, onto the cage¡¯s steel roof, then to the next one, continuing its jumping until it disappears from view into the depths of the large hall. The Ashen sextuple foxbear walks proudly and gracefully out of the cage. Its hungry eyes scan its surroundings. Oh shit this is bad, Foxbears love to hunt, it will definitely smell me and run me down if I leg it! The photographer takes a page out of the Solarophone cat¡¯s book and starts climbing up on top of the cage he was hiding behind using the electrical box as a foothold. The cage is home to the Giant Viridian Centizard, a native species to this planet. He reaches up and steps onto the electrical box, it shifts slightly under his weight. The photographer pushes himself up, the box comes loose under his shoe just as he gets up. Oops. The force field shuts down and the centipede like lizard slithers out of the cage, its innumerable legs tapping against the cement as it skitters along the ground. Hopefully all of them will ignore me now, I¡¯m high enough that I won¡¯t be easy to get to... He looks at the ongoing chaos, the cat is gone, the foxbear is prowling around growling and glaring at other animals inside the cages nearby. The centizard just disappeared altogether, a surprisingly fast species that one. Meanwhile, the Tyrchid has spread out its wings. It can fly? Damn, I wish I could fly away from this situation right now¡­ A purple goop starts to ooze from its wing bones to fill the gaps of its bony wings. What a novel way to fly. Are its wing¡¯s not symmetrical? Oh no, that one bone must be broken. The Tyrchid¡¯s right wing¡¯s second last bone is snapped from the tip and pushes out a thick purple liquid. That looks bad. The Tyrchid¡¯s purple substance seems to harden on the intact parts of the wings as they start to gleam in the hall''s dim light. The gap of the last two bones missing the film completely, the damaged bone still just pushing the substance out from its damaged end. It flaps its wings hard, the Tyrchid takes off, but leans heavily on the right and almost crashes right back down. The strong flap of its wings throws some of the thick liquid on the ground. It ignites as it strikes the ground, though the fire does not spread due to it striking the concrete floor. The photographer glances to see where the foxbear is, he witnesses it spit a green blob from its mouth at an animal in a cage. It sploshes against the force field, but also splashes a heavy layer on the electrical box that starts smoking and smoldering. An over all, much smaller creature, but much taller, Giraffeduck trembles inside the especially high cage. The acid burns through the steel box and the force field goes out. The Giraffeduck bolts into a quick run on its four small flippers. It squawks and honks as it waddles away in a panic, its long neck being a hindrance to its speed, the foxbear dashes right after it excited for the hunt. The Giraffeduck is much more agile however, it turns tight corners, its long neck bending at each curve balancing it, the foxbear instead crashes into boxes and other cages spread around the facility as it enjoys the thrill of the hunt. Some more animals are let loose as a result. It¡¯s complete chaos here. He takes out his communication device and taps through some interfaces. Yes, I would like to make a safety report. ¡°What kind of emergency is befalling the Viridian Mecula''s facility?¡± a text on the screen asks. Options listed below are: 1. Intergalactic police 2. Spreading fire 3. Loose Animal(s) 4. A general safety and health hazard 5. Other serious harm to life or property He quickly taps 3, 4 and 5 and scrolls down. Please give detailed information below, your GPS location will be saved upon submission. The screen asks, with an empty text box. A sound like fire approaches from the sky and a fiery glob of purple falls down landing into a stack of boxes, igniting them immediately. He calmly scrolls up on the form and presses 2 for fire as well, before returning to the bottom and hitting submit. The screen reads: Thank you for submitting your report. Stand by. Immediately red lights light up and a wail of sirens start. The photographer takes a deep sigh and just lays on top of the cage¡¯s steel roof on his stomach, his camera on his side. I think I get the naming convention now, I must apologize for ridiculing you before. Therefore I would like to propose a name change, from now on that purple insect of mayhem should be known as ¡®Tyrchid, the violet blades of chaos and inferno¡± Why? Boss, just look around and tell me that isn¡¯t an appropriate name. Thank you for your understanding, I will cherish this promotion. He finishes the imaginary conversation in his head. ¡­ Now somebody please come help me! 6. The Green A little bit earlier. Amethyst spreads her wings and waits for the purple substance to cover its gaps and harden. Once the wings are dry, she gives them a mighty flap, immediately, a sharp pain shoots through her right wing. Aghh what is this¡­ pain She nearly crashes back on the floor. My right wing must be hurt¡­ But I still gotta get out of here. She starts flying towards the ceiling, slowly with large flaps, unable to start up her wings properly due to the pain of the fracture. She flaps towards the lamps and past them, the ceiling lamps hanging from the ceiling casting their light downwards, leaving the ceiling in darkness. She sees the approaching ceiling with her irises night vision. Perfect, doesn''t look too sturdy. She starts channeling her purple flow to her blades, as the pressure drops in her wings, the purple starts leaking out rapidly through the fracture in her right wing''s bone. A purple ball covered by the flight film had been building at the tip of her broken wing bone that now drops, the film breaking mid-fall exposing the purple substance to the outside air, bursting into flames. It whooshes down and hits somewhere below. The last remains of the purple liquid remaining in her wing''s canals leak out, it ignites, the fire starts dripping down her wing¡¯s frame. Oh shit. Two voices say in unison inside her head as she notices the glow of flame on her back due to the light it is casting. She flaps as quickly as she can, the flaming trail going further down the wing and approaching her exposed back skin. She haphazardly cuts a triangle on the ceiling and flies out, feeling the heat of the fire approaching her unprotected back. Outside, a sun is shining. A single sun. She¡¯s in a different solar system. Maybe even in a different galaxy. Fields of green grass, flowery meadows, rolling hills and thick forests of overly green trees spread all around the large fenced compound. The nature looks totally untouched, if it wasn¡¯t for this great facility in the middle of it all. She doesn¡¯t have time to think of her destination, anywhere other than here is fine, a hill about the same height as the compound catches her eye. It¡¯s not too far, but hopefully far enough away from this place, she estimates she should be able to make it there before burning too badly. As she flies across the compound towards it, she sees a lot of people scrambling around on the yard with guns and other gear. Animals run around on the fenced grounds fighting them. The humans fire their laser guns as well as some other rifles Amethyst does not recognize. Some throw nets on the smaller animals to recapture them, while trying to steer the large ones directly into cages situated on the outside. A large dark gray animal breaks through the border fence and other animals follow behind its trail. The humans don¡¯t chase after them but instead run to block the hole in the wall, standing in the way of any further escapees. ¡°Hey? You see that?¡± Somebody shouts from below. Laser fire zips past her, but she is quickly out of range and on the other side of the fence. The fire starts feeling uncomfortable. Amethyst contemplates on using her head wings to get there faster, but she''d rather not use any more of her blood if she could help it. She''s feeling faint as it was already. ¡°AaaaaaAAAH!¡± She buzzes aloud in pain, her antennae frantic and mandibles wild. The flame has reached her back, it burns, smolders there, ever burning like napalm. She''s almost at the hill, with her final enduring strength she launches herself forwards and upwards with a large flap. She can no longer take the pain and starts folding her wings, the purple glass shatters and sparkles in the sunlight as she contracts her wings and closes her back¡¯s shell. She flies through the air with her remaining momentum, just about making it over the hill¡¯s steep cliff edge, narrowly avoiding a head on collision. Crashing down uncontrollably on the hill, she plows into the green grass and dirt. ... Wake up ... Come on, get up. You can¡¯t stay here. Who are you? Amethyst asks the unknown feminine voice in her head. I... don¡¯t know... Are you the strange voice I keep hearing? Yes, I believe so. I am my own voice, as well as yours. I am also your knowledge. I- She wakes up, delightfully not burned to a crisp in the meantime, her closed back armor had extinguished the fire ravaging her bare skin. What was that? Can you hear me, Voice? ... She gets no answer to her thoughts. Amethyst is laying on her stomach on the green mound, a gentle slope leads downwards into the verdant forest, its thick tree trunks, blooming flowers and flourishing leaves are inviting and calming. However, Amethyst cannot get over the main color of the nature here, this revolting green, simply unnatural. She strains herself up and onto her feet, the searing pain in her back intensifies as she bends it, reminding just how badly she was burned. So tired and hungry... Practically running on fumes for how much effort she¡¯s recently had to exert just to survive, she starts a weary march onwards, down the hill. Her arms feel strangely heavy, lifting them feels like too much effort to spare, so she opts to drags them along the ground, leaving two dirt lines as the blades sink through the green grass. Her antennae smell strange new odors in the air as well as the fresh air, which was sorely lacking in the spaceship and her cage. The trembling of leaves sound all around in the faint wind, right ahead she hears the blissful sound of flowing water. She reaches the bottom of the hill and lugs into the forest, vegetation covers the ground, flowers, underbrush, all mostly in the color of disgusting green. Is there anything else to eat but this¡­ green stuff? ...since when have I cared about what I eat? ¡­ I¡¯ll just get water first then eat¡­ even if it¡¯s green... If I don¡¯t find anything else¡­ She looks around at the bushes and trees as she walks towards the sound of water, searching for any fruits, berries, anything to eat. Maybe some birds or other small animals... Amethyst hears chirping and various caws from around, but cannot spot any, the thick foliage obscuring their location. Just seeing all this green all around her, wherever she looked, made her nauseous, her empty stomach just might turn soon. She wasn¡¯t consciously aware why, and Amethyst wasn¡¯t too keen on following that train of thought to remind herself of the reason. The ripple of water gets louder, she breaks through a bush, behind it a clearing and the river, gently flowing, some vines and more bushes grow along its low bank. She lumbers to the bank, there¡¯s now sign of anybody or anything in the vicinity. The shallow water sparkles and flows serenely, smooth colorful stones of different sizes cover its bottom. She lowers herself and leans towards the water with her upper body. She smells the water with her antennae, it smells much of nothing. Amethyst lowers her head towards the water, her chin hitting the cool water first, a bit lower, and her mouth touches it too, her mandibles come out as she opens it. The mandibles start paddling water into her mouth as her lips slurp it up as well. She drinks deeply, so much so that once she finally stops she feels a bit unwell. Now to eat¡­ something... She turns around and takes a step, her head begins to throb with sudden pain and all strength disappears from her legs. She falls on her face. What¡­? My legs... Why does my head hurt so¡­ Why am I so hot all of a sudden? Her vision starts fading. ... I wish I could get some spaghetti, meatballs, lasagna. Or oh my god... pizza! What? Amethyst thinks. Oh and hamburgers how could I forget? Or sushi or any human food ugh! Why does she have to be so hungry, it¡¯s even making me ravenous! God, and something sweet to drink with it, lemonade, a cola, anything! Not just some random dirty alien river water! What is going on? She asks the Voice. Oh sorry, I didn¡¯t know you could hear me¡­ Anyway, I should ask, what do you think you are doing?! Why are you back here once more? How in the world did you manage to pass out again? What? I- Hmm, I see you probably passed out for drinking too much water¡­ Yes, that must be it. Yep, definitely... Y-you must not have great sodium levels in your body I¡¯d guess, your ever present anemia isn¡¯t helping either! What are you talking about? Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.Even with your self-awareness you can¡¯t control your animalistic instincts? Don¡¯t just gobble everything up like your life depended on it! You might be hungry and thirsty but it¡¯s not like you are gonna die if you pause for a minute! In fact if you don¡¯t pace yourself you might just really die instead! I¡­ I¡¯ll keep that in mind, Voice. You better! Amethyst wakes up. Aagh my head, I feel so cold and¡­ weak... The sun is setting, it¡¯s turning to evening soon. Amethyst shivers, her armor feels freezing to her already cold skin, she tries to stand, but collapses back down again. She¡¯s never felt this, bad, this lethargic before. The bushes rustle, her antennae stand into attention. Something is coming. Amethyst struggles to turn her head at the direction of the sound. A fearsome beast leaps from inside the bush, heading straight for her head, she is too apathetic to react in time. The beast, a small yellow cat like creature, starts relentlessly prodding her antennae on her head, it swats them around with its little front paws, playing with them eagerly. ¡°Oh, hello¡± Amethyst moves her head and the cat jumps back startled, its twin tails shooting up and fluffing up to look bigger as it hisses incredibly loudly, the cone behind its head greatly amplifying the sound. The same cone starts glowing yellow, brighter and brighter, streaks of light running across it, building up on it. ¡°I don¡¯t mean you any harm!¡± Amethyst attempts to calm the creature, anxious of what¡¯s to come if she fails to do so. The charge reaches a critical point and it releases a flash that illuminates the forest like it was the middle of the day. Amethyst is blinded for a moment, she quickly blinks her eyes, sight soon returning to them. The cat has disappeared, scurried away after temporarily blinding her. ¡°No, please come back!¡± she reaches a bladed hand forwards, it weakly drops down on the grassy ground. The cat¡¯s head appears from a bush as it surveys her suspiciously. ¡°Please¡­ can you find¡­ food¡± The cat¡¯s squinted black eyes stare at her as its head retreats behind the bush again and disappears. Did I scare it away¡­? I wonder if it understood me¡­ With her head laying there on grassy ground, she grabs and cuts a few blades of grass with her mandibles from the ground. I¡­ I got to eat something¡­ I can¡¯t even stand anymore... Her mouth appendages push them to her mouth and she swallows them in whole pieces. Some of the grass sticks to her throat and irritates it. She coughs and a few blades of grass fly out. I think I might just throw up if I eat any more¡­ It tastes¡­ so bad¡­ So green¡­ It tastes like¡­ Death... The scene of her mother being thrown around in the ship, the green blood splattering around and on top of her plays in her head¡­ She tastes the revolting flavor of her blood as it splattered on her lips... The smell¡­ the horrid smell of green¡­ this taste reminded her of it... Her body was still probably splattered in the dried blood of her mother. What had happened to her? She didn¡¯t know. Amethyst was first trapped in the ship and then trapped in a smaller box. She had no memories of anything in between. She was growing sleepy despite the coldness that seeped down to her bones. The bushes rustled and shook again, something was approaching again. ¡°Yellow¡­ is that... you?¡± She buzzes with long strained pauses. Out steps a man, wielding a laser rifle. ¡°You!¡± Amethyst shouts appalled, her drowsiness clearing. ¡°Hey, been a while¡± The photographer man steps into the clearing, wearing totally different clothes, an outdoorsy jacket in two shades of green and blue trousers instead of a suit. Amethyst tries to frantically stand but she cannot prop herself up with her weak arms and collapses back down. ¡°Say, you don¡¯t look too good¡­ What happened?The man asks, looking downwards at the prone Tyrchid, but keeping his distance. ¡°I¡¯m¡­ I¡¯m just hungry that¡¯s all¡­¡± Amethyst answers as convincingly as she can. ¡°So hungry you cannot stand, or barely even move? You look so pale and unwell too. I doubt that¡¯s all of it¡± Hmm... Her insect like biology, but still having skin and humanoid features probably suggest either warm blooded or Semi- echotermic circulation¡­ ¡°No no, I¡¯m fine, go away and leave me alone¡± Amethyst looks at him sternly, especially eyeing his weapon. ¡°Oh this? Sorry¡± He puts it behind his back and hangs it across his chest from the rifle''s leather strap. ¡°I can¡¯t just leave you alone here, you are in a bad shape¡± "Say, can I feel your forehead?¡± He takes a step forwards. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I mean to measure your temperature, you look like you have some severe fever¡± He says clarifying his intentions. ¡°N-no!¡± Amethyst¡¯s face is completely flushed red, she hadn¡¯t noticed it herself before, nor it turning a more deeper shade now due to his question. ¡°It¡¯s okay, I won¡¯t do you any harm. I just want to help you¡± The man attempts to calm her by showing her empty, open hands before her. ¡°Why? Why are you here? Just so that you can drag me back there?¡± Amethyst accuses him with an angry tone. ¡°No, I-¡± The bushes rustle once more and the cat jumps into the river bank¡¯s clearing and right in front of the man. It has returned, holding a green fruit in its mouth. It notices the man, instantly dropping the fruit and quickly scooting away. ¡°Oh! The Solarophone! Don¡¯t worry it¡¯s just me, come back out Pineapple" What a good smart cat he is, brought his starving friend a snack too. The photographer leans forwards and taps on his blue trousers. ¡°Here kitty kitty¡± Pineapple pops its little head from the bush, followed its large cone struggling to come with it, and runs up to the man. It nuzzles against the man¡¯s trousers with the side of its cone and its body. The man scratches Pineapple on the head and it starts to purr, as loud as a car engine without a muffler. Amethyst observes this strange interaction unveiling before her eyes. The rumbling stops as the man stops petting Pineapple, it sits a little way away and starts licking its paws, using them to clean its cone. The photographer, missing his signature camera, picks up the light green fruit dropped by Pineapple. He notices Amethyst¡¯s eyes intently following after it, with serious eyes. ¡°Do you want this?¡± He asks the Tyrchid presenting the fruit on his hand. ¡°¡­Yes¡± She responds with a low echoed buzz. ¡°You can have it, but can you tell me your name too? You do have one right?¡± ¡°Amethyst¡± She spits out. ¡°Nice to meet you Amethyst, I¡¯m Frank Sinett¡± ¡°Okay Frank¡­ can you give me that¡­ fruit thing now?¡± Amethyst asks condescendingly. ¡°Alright, here, its an Applenut, it is covered by a hard shell¡± He lays it down on the ground in front of Amethyst¡¯s face. ¡°Can you-¡± Frank interrupts his own words and jumps back as Amethyst swings a blade at the fruit, it¡¯s a sloppy blow, but the blade still presses through the shell and slices it in half. That was a stupid question huh. The fruit¡¯s very faintly green innards pop out of the shell, it¡¯s slippery and glistening with fresh juices. She nudges the edible part of the fruit closer to her mouth with a blade and her mandibles grab it, shoving it in her mouth in one piece. It is nice and moist, it slides down her throat easily, much better than grass. The juices of the fresh fruit taste heavenly, a little bitter but mostly sweet, its freshness is rejuvenating. It doesn¡¯t taste green at all despite its light green color. She gulps down the other half with gusto too, feeling a little better after this meal. Frank turns to the cat in the meantime. ¡°Pineapple, can you find us some more fruit?¡± The cat licks its paws, like it doesn¡¯t even notice Frank. Solarophones¡­ stubborn like normal cats I see¡­ ¡°Oh well, I guess I better make a fire, it¡¯ll get awfully cold here at nights¡± He looks up at the perpetually growing dark of the sky. ¡°I¡¯ll gather some wood for us right away¡± For us? ¡°Don¡¯t go anywhere okay?¡± He says and smiles in jest at Amethyst. ¡°I¡¯ll be right back¡± Frank disappears into the forest through the bushes, as he does, Pineapple quickly gets up and runs after him. Amethyst attempts to stand up again, she feels hot and cold at the same time, her face sweating. Overall discomfort worsening as she attempts to get up. She does however manage to sit up at least, her four legs spread on her right side. She rests a moment after the straining task. Now to just get away while he¡¯s gone. Her legs feel like noodles, whatever those are, that¡¯s the first thought that came to her. She attempts to get herself up from the ground using her blades, but they just sink into the ground instead of raising her up. Guess I¡¯m not going anywhere¡­ I¡¯m so tired... She lays back on the ground, this time on her side, amongst the soft grass, tickling her face a little. She tries to no think of its green color, the dark making it easier, as her night vision doesn¡¯t see color very well. I¡¯ll just rest a bit¡­ ------------------------------------ ¡°Oh Pineapple, thanks for joining me. Do you wanna show me where you found those fruits?¡± The Solarophone cat walks on his side, it looks up at him and a fleeting streak of light shoots across its head cone. ¡°I¡¯ll take that as a yes¡± The cat trots slightly faster and gets ahead of Frank. As they go Frank picks up some sticks and dry leaves along the way. They arrive at a tall and thick tree, only a few branches lead the way upwards. ¡°How in the world did you get up there? Can you even climb with a head like yours?¡± The cat sits down and ignores him, looking off into another direction. ¡°Well excuse me for asking¡± I didn¡¯t plan on camping out tonight¡­ if I had my usual gear I could climb that¡­ He tries to think of any alternative methods of getting to the fruit. ¡®I¡¯ve never tried shooting down fruit from a tree, but I don¡¯t think it would work. I¡¯ll just be burning the whole forest down with laser fire... He surveys the surrounding area, grass, tall flowers and bushes surround the Applenut tree. ¡°Hey Pineapple, can you show me some light here?¡± He walks up to a bush nearby and hails to the cat. The cat just licks it¡¯s paws and washes its lush tails. I¡¯ll just try and see for myself. He lays down the sticks and leaves and takes out his communications device. Why in the world does this thing not have a flashlight? Frank turns the screen¡¯s brightness to max and squints at the berries of the bush. The blue light of the screen barely illuminates the berries, but they are definitely cyan in color and oval shaped. Nice, Cyan buckthorn berries, they¡¯re full of nutrients. He carefully proceeds to pick up berries, gathering them on his left palm while avoiding the poisonous spikes of the bush¡¯s branches. Just a couple more and we should probably have enough to give Amethyst a pick me up. ¡°Ack¡± He pulls her right hand back quickly and almost spills some berries. A thorn pierced a small round hole below his thumb¡¯s knuckle. Blood starts to gather at the puncture wound¡¯s location, a little bit oozing out of it. Oh great, this¡¯ll sting for a while. He places the berries to his left jacket¡¯s pocket and brushes the blood to his sleeve and presses on the wound a short while, it mostly stops bleeding, though it stings like hell. He picks up the wood and leaves again, ¡°Pineapple, let¡¯s go back¡± The cat lazily stands up and trails after him as they start walking back to the nearby riverbank. ¡°Amethyst we¡¯re-¡± She¡¯s laying there on the ground on her side, motionless. Oh she¡¯s sleeping already, I better let her rest. He lays down the sticks and leaves into a pile, fetches some wet stones from the shallow river to surround them with. Once he¡¯s done setting it up he takes out a lighter. At least I never leave home without a way to make a fire. The lighter, more of a small pistol shaped device, that upon press of a button, shoots out a long stream of fire. He points it at the sticks and the hot flame ignites the leaves as well as the sticks. The fire starts crackling and he warms himself in its glow. He is dressed in a rather thick jacket and otherwise in warm enough gear, but his hands are still a bit cold from the dip in the river. He sits down and Pineapple immediately forces its way to his lap and curls there to sleep. Aww, you do like me don¡¯t you? He lays a hand on top of its soft fur and strokes it gently, but not too hard to make the cat rumble, as to not wake up Amethyst. He enjoys this moment of camping out in the wilderness, in the fresh and chilly air. He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath holding it in before serenely letting it out. Opening his eyes, they fall on slumbering Amethyst. Should I measure her temperature now? She probably wouldn''t wake up right? No... I better not¡­ She told me not to¡­ Besides if she did wake up I¡¯d probably get gutted instantly... The thought sends a single shiver down his spine. He looks upon Amethyst¡¯s face, he finds it surprisingly beautiful, in a strange, dangerous way. Suddenly Frank realizes something about her face. Wait, she doesn¡¯t have a nose, how do I know she¡¯s not dead? I can¡¯t see her breath, and her mouth is closed too, not even her chest heaves up and down, it''s all armor! How does a Thyrchid even breath!? Amethyst just continues to lay, completely still. ... I¡¯m probably worried for nothing¡­ She¡¯s quite insect like so she probably has some special made gaps or openings in her carapace built specifically for breathing. Right? ... I¡¯ll just trust all you have is a fever and you live despite outwards appearances... Like to set Frank¡¯s mind at ease, Amethyst¡¯s mouth contorts as do her eyebrows, like she was in pain, momentarily. Well that¡¯s good, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll get better by morning. 7. Feeding Amethyst? Mhm? How do you feel? The Voice asks her, concerned. Not that good¡­ I¡¯m sick with something right? I¡­ think so. It hurts everywhere, even my thoughts seem a little hazy. Almost if I was back under his control again... But that¡¯s not possible, is it? ¡­ Listen¡­ I¡­ I... gotta tell you something¡­ What is it? Umm¡­ I... ... N-never mind¡­ it¡¯s nothing¡­ Just try to hang in there okay? I¡¯m rooting for you. You even got that nice man to help you now, you¡¯ll be fine. Do you think I can trust him? I¡¯m positive you can, he seems like a genuine, good willed man. ... I don¡¯t think so¡­ he¡¯s just trying to build trust before he betrays me... He¡¯s a human after all. I mean, I¡¯m human, I¡¯ve never betrayed you right? Just trust him, he only wants to help. What do you mean, how could you be a human, Voice? What are you even? ¡­ The Voice does not answer, but Amethyst still continues giving it a piece of her mind. I don¡¯t even know you. You are just a voice in my head. ... Chiming in even when I''m awake, without asking. Nesting in my head uninvited.... Obscuring and taking over my thoughts... ¡­ I¡¯m sorry¡­ The Voice apologizes. ¡­ Amethyst wakes up. It¡¯s morning and the sun has risen, the dawn¡¯s rays casting long shadows through the trees and foliage. She feels much better and sits up, but as she does, her head throbs with immense pain, she almost passes out on the spot. Ahh what¡­ why? I feel fine now¡­ I think the fever passed¡­ but why¡­ What is this splitting pain? My back still burns and aches, but that¡¯s to be expected... Why my head? Amethyst just staggers and sways even while sitting up, without meaning to, she just cannot hold still. A burned out campfire is before him, on the other side, Frank still sleeps on his side, laying on the grass, Pineapple curled up against his stomach. His nostrils contract and subtract as he breaths, her long blond hair disheveled and full of grass, a silly smile on his lips. Frank¡­ He¡¯s still sleeping... Amethyst slowly stretches her legs and balances herself with her blades as she manages to stand up. After some trembling, her legs steady and she takes an unsure step, repeating the motion with each of her legs one after the other. She manages to keep her balance, but it¡¯s slow going. ¡°MEAOOW!¡± A booming yawn sounds as Pineapple wakes and stretches its legs. Frank shoots up to a sitting position, instantly woken up. Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. ¡°Wha-!?¡± He glances around getting his bearings before realizing the source of the sound. ¡°Oh Pineapple¡­¡± Frank spots the sneaking Amethyst, trying to slip away along the river''s bank unnoticed, though not hidden at all. ¡°Where are you going?¡± Amethyst stops walking and looks back his way. ¡°Away¡± ¡°Is that wise?¡± ¡­ ¡°How are you feeling?¡± Frank asks another question as his previous one was left without an answer. ¡°Good, I¡¯m fine¡± Amethyst buzzes quickly. ¡°You don¡¯t look too good. You are practically shaking non-stop¡± ¡°It¡¯ll pass. I¡¯ll be fine¡± Amethyst dismisses him. Frank stands up. ¡°You think so? I wouldn''t be so sure. You aren¡¯t flushed anymore, but you are even paler than yesterday when I saw you for the first time, and that¡¯s saying a lot¡± ¡°I¡¯m always pale¡± ¡°Do you look like you''re always in constant pain too?¡± ¡°So what? Are you going to stop me from leaving? Fight me over it?¡± Amethyst raises her hand blades up and in front of her body. ¡°Whoa there, I¡¯m not going to fight you¡± Frank holds his open hands before him as if to calm her. Though in your weakened state I think I might have a pretty good shot¡± He can''t help but add. Amethyst turns her whole body around and steps towards Frank, he retreats a step in response. She almost falls after the step, having to take support with her blades to not to. ¡°I wasn¡¯t trying to provoke you, it¡¯s just a fact. Look, this forest is quite safe, but not that safe. Plus you did let out some apex predators out yesterday, and who knows what else has taken residence here over the years with all the escaped animals¡± Well I do, most of them don¡¯t live so near to the facility, but it¡¯s still a chance. ¡°¡­¡± Amethyst does not say anything. ¡°What would you achieve with just wandering around aimlessly?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°What do you want to do?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°There must be something right?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Do you want to go home?¡± ¡°!¡± Amethyst wakes up as if she was in a trance before. ¡°Yes¡­ I¡­ want to know what happened to mother too¡­¡± ¡°You know that she¡¯s... dead¡­ right?¡± ¡°Yes¡­¡± Amethyst affirms forlorn. ¡°I¡¯m not sure what they did with your mother, but I can try to find out. I live here in the forest, come with me to my house, you can eat and rest there while you wait¡± ¡°Oh! That reminds me¡± He shoves his hand to his right pocket and takes out the cyan berries, most had survived the night unsquashed. ¡°I gathered these for you, they¡¯re safe to eat and nutritious, albeit taste a bit bad¡± He slowly walks towards Amethyst with his hand bearing berries extended before him. Amethyst lets him get close without showing resistance. Frank is right there, before her, looking up at this two meter insect. ¡°Uhh, how do we do this? I¡­ can¡¯t just give these to you¡­ can I?¡± Franks heart races in his chest, frantically pumping blood through his stiff body, in full alert mode. Amethyst''s many blades being intimidating enough from afar, not comparing to the terror of being within in their slashing range. Amethyst is eyeing the berries on Frank''s palm intently. I¡¯m still so hungry¡­ Without saying anything, Amethyst lowers her posture and leans forward. Her mouth growing closer to Frank¡¯s open hand. Amethyst opens her mouth, the mandibles wriggle out. Oh god. Frank steels himself and looks through squinted eyes. As she lowers her head, the purple flocks of hair fill his view, her two long bangs hanging in the air and shake, as she still trembles. Ascending even lower, her head now right above his open palm, the mandibles start plucking the berries from Frank¡¯s hand. It tickles as the small blade like appendages poke at the berries and gently brush against his hand in the process, reminding him of the sensation of feeding fish, when they try to nibble your fingers and feet. He holds back laughter, fearing for his life if he lets it out. She swallows the berries whole, barely tasting them at all, only a faint bitterness spreading from the few punctured berries. Finally Amethyst raises her head and it¡¯s over. Frank¡¯s eyes water from holding in the laughter caused by this stimulation, he finally breaths out and quickly wipes his eyes clean with his left hand. ¡°S-shall we get going then?¡± Frank asks still a little shaken. Pineapple appears from somewhere and brushes itself against Amethyst¡¯s left front leg. ¡°Can you get me back home?¡± She asks with judging eyes. ¡°I¡­ don¡¯t know, you will need a spaceship to get there, you come from Midnight Iris, right?¡± Amethyst tilts her head quizzically. ¡°I don¡¯t know¡± ¡°I suppose you might not know what name we have given your planet... Well, that¡¯s where your file said you were from, so it must be true¡± Frank pauses for a while to think before continuing: ¡°Anyway, I¡¯ll try to find you a way home when I investigate what happened to your mother too, how about it?¡± ¡°Why?¡± Amethyst bluntly asks. ¡°I want to help you¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I was sent to capture you, yes, with orders from above... but I want to learn from you, get to know you, you know?¡± ¡°No I don¡¯t know¡­¡± She admits. ¡°Oh, well, you are just so extraordinary, so different, I want to¡­ well I don¡¯t want to obey them anymore, I won¡¯t turn you in, if that¡¯s what you are worried about¡± Amethyst remains silent, looking unconvinced, so Frank continues: ¡°I think I¡¯ve had enough of the broader life for now, maybe it¡¯s time I made a change, stay in the straight and narrow, I haven¡¯t exactly been true to myself since... ¡°Well, anyway, thanks for the uhh- wake up call¡± He finishes awkwardly and timidly holds his arm. ¡°You¡¯re¡­ welcome?¡± Amethyst says, confused, answering like the feeling in the back of her aching head compelled her to. ¡°So are you ready to go now? Don¡¯t worry it¡¯s not too far, though we will probably have to take it quite slow¡± ¡°Okay¡­ let¡¯s go¡± Amethyst finally relents, having a good feeling about the first real choice she has got to make herself. Never again would she be made to submit to anyone against her will. 8. Journey through the Viridian Forest The trio, Frank, Pineapple and Amethyst, crest the bushes at the river bank and step into the forest, beautifully lit by the day¡¯s early rays, shimmering past branches and leaves. The light makes the morning dew on the leaves of flowers and plants glisten, the forest is slowly waking up to a new day. Flowers, some tiny and others as tall as Amethyst, are starting to crack open their blooms with the growing light as they journey through the underbrush As they slowly walk with Amethyst¡¯s pace, Franks asks her a question. ¡°Amethyst, are there more like you back home, back on Midnight Iris?¡± ¡°Yes... my brothers and sisters¡± ¡°Are they¡­ aware like you?¡± He asks carefully. ¡°No¡­¡± Figures, she¡¯s definitely no child, yet her communication skills don¡¯t seem to match her age. I wonder how long she¡¯s been like this, it cannot have been that long ago. ¡°Do you know, how¡¯d you become sapient?¡± ¡°No¡­¡± I barely understand all that happened back then myself... ¡°I see¡± Frank ponders for a moment. ¡°Well, Amethyst, what do you like? What do you do for fun?¡± Amethyst looks at him confused. ¡°It may be a strange question¡­ you seem like you¡¯re still in pain and maybe not very experienced with conversation¡­ but can you humor me just this once?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°That¡¯s just normal human customs, when you meet a new person you want to get along with, you¡¯ll asks them questions to get to know them, like what they like and don¡¯t like¡± Frank explains with a warm smile. ¡°So what do you like Amethyst? There must be something¡± ¡°I like¡­¡± Amethyst thinks and glances up at the cloudless teal sky. "Flying¡± ¡°Ah I see, I wish I could fly too, it must feel awesome, the freedom, the wind on your face...¡± Frank is about to gush more about the awesomeness of being able to fly, but restraints himself, as he notices Amethyst¡¯s longing gaze upwards. What else?¡± ¡°My blades¡± Amethyst drops her gaze from the sky and looks at her hands, turning and observing the state of her blades, the purple translucent crystal like dagger hands, her long elbow blades. They were a little dirty however, dirt, mud and grass sticking even to their hard and smooth surface, regardless, they remained ever-sharp. ¡°Your offense and your defense, I understand, they always have your back, ever dependable. Anything else?¡± ¡°I¡­ like¡­ Grent¡­¡± Amethyst stops walking. ¡°Grent? Who¡¯s Grent?¡± Confusing takes over Frank¡¯s tone of voice. ¡°No, no I¡­ I don¡¯t like Grent!¡± She almost collapses to the ground, her legs buckling under her as she leans forwards. ¡°Not him! Shut up! NO! I¡­ I¡­!¡± Amethyst holds her head with the sides of her blades, her shaking intensifying. Her closed eyes and contorted face tell of the struggle inside of her mind. ¡°Are you alright Amethyst? Try to stay calm¡± What can I do? How do I help her? Frank knows better than to lay a hand on her, even if to try and calm her, what could he possibly do to help? ¡°I¡­ like¡­ I¡­ I... love¡­ mother¡± Amethyst finally managed to say something after much struggling and opens her eyes again. ¡°I¡­ I¡­ am fine¡± Amethyst says frantic and panting through her open mouth, she lets go of her head and straightens her posture. ¡°L-let¡¯s keep going¡± Her echo-like voice buzzes weakly. ¡°O-okay¡± Frank says bewildered, unsure of how to react to what he just witnessed, deciding it¡¯s better to not question it. They continue on through the forest, various birds of different sizes fly in the sky, letting out strange cries, the main ambient noise as the conversation ceased. Treading forwards, they come across a thick area of vegetation, like a jungle, Frank takes the lead in showing them through it. The lush area is full of fruit trees and berry bushes of strange colors and shades, but green being the commanding palette even here. Vines grasp onto Amethyst¡¯s legs as she drags them close to the ground, further hindering her already sluggish pace. ¡°Are you doing alright?¡± Frank asks as she looks backwards to the left-behind Amethyst. Amethyst heavily leans forwards and cuts the vines and vegetation tangled to her legs. ¡°Y-yeah¡­¡± ¡°Alright¡± Frank picks up a low hanging applenut, as he is easily able to keep ahead of Amethyst¡¯s slow laboring pace. ¡°Why¡­ do you care?¡± Amethyst suddenly asks from right behind him. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. ¡°O-Of course I care¡± Startled, Frank drops the second applenut, managing to catch it mid-air, shoving it into his pocket too. ¡°But I¡¯m injured and sick¡± Frank turns around. ¡°That just means I got to take even better care of you¡± ¡°...¡± Silent, Amethyst looks away and continues onwards, past Frank who follows her walk with curious eyes. Meanwhile Pineapple races around the jungle, nimbly running under vines, jumping over roots, dashing back and forth happily. Enjoying its time in this environment brimming with stimuli. Frank collects two more fruits and easily catches back up to Amethyst who is slicing more plants restricting her. It takes them a short while to get through through the harsher terrain back to the forest. Unexpectedly, Amethyst takes the initiative to converse. ¡°Frank¡­ What... do you like?¡± ¡°Oh me? Well, I like photographing, taking pictures to immortalize meaningful and unique events and creatures in them. I like animals too, big surprise, that¡¯s why I work here, the pay is good, and I get to combine the two things I love. I get to see and interact with so many new and interesting creatures. Before¡­ I have to say goodbye to them... But I¡¯ve never met anyone like you before in all my time here¡± He smiles at Amethyst, who vaguely looks his way, her eyes focused somewhere else. ¡°Not to say you are an animal or anything¡± Frank quickly adds. Amethyst does not seem to understand or care about this comparison. ¡°I like camping, nature and the outdoors too, all of my hobbies really come together out in the nature I suppose. The green of trees, grass and nature is just so refreshing¡± Amethyst focuses a piercing gaze at Frank. ¡°I hate green¡± ¡°W-what? Why?¡± ¡°Blood¡­ is green¡± She doesn¡¯t elaborate further and looks away, focusing her attention back to her own walking. ¡°Oh¡­ I see. I¡¯m sorry about that¡± Frank now understood the origin of the faintly green stains dried on Amethyst¡¯s hair, chest and hips. ¡°What about you Pineapple? What do you like? You want to come live with me in my house?¡± Frank asks from their Solarophone companion. The yellow cat walking before them does not acknowledge this question. ¡°Well, that¡¯s fine¡± With a loud whisper he says to Amethyst. ¡°Just between you and me Pineapple is way too full of himself anyway, he can just stay in the forest for all I care¡± The Solarophone¡¯s proud saunter is interrupted as it turns back to stare at Frank with its dark cat eyes. Its cone starts building up swirling light, accompanied by a whirring sound. ¡°Wait wait I¡¯m just kidding, just a joke-¡± Zwap. The photographer gets caught in the flash, the light being bright even through his closed eyelids. Amethyst reacted in time and looked the other way entirely. Frank continues teasing Pineapple: ¡°So it''s a yes then, you-!¡± Light starts swirls again in Pineapple¡¯s head-cone. ¡°-lovely and fuzzy, dependable and cute cat...¡± Pineapple winds down the charge, turns around and continues marching forwards head and tails held high. Frank steals a glance at Amethyst¡¯s expression walking beside her, a slight smile visible on her otherwise troubled face. They arrive at the edge of a meadow, green grass and small flowers in any color imaginable sway in the faint wind. Small insects buzz around from flower to flower. A small mammal bolts from the far left edge of the meadow back into the forest as it sees them arrive, disappearing into the forest. ¡°My house is just across here, how are you holding up?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Amethyst just stares at the sea of flowers. ¡°Do you like flowers?¡± Frank asks her. ¡°I¡­ think so?¡± ¡°What is your favorite color?¡± ¡°Orange¡­ I think¡± Amethyst answers unsure. ¡°Can you tell me why that is?¡± ¡°I like melting steel, it turns into bright orange¡± ¡°Ahahah, that¡¯s true, alright, hold on a moment¡± Frank steps into the meadow from the edge of the forest and gazes intently downwards at the flowers searching around. Amethyst follows him with her hybrid eyes, curious as to what he is doing. He snaps an orange flower, resembling a pansy, from below the bloom, leaving a short stalk on it. A flower with three large heart shaped petals, a colorful gradient starts from the edge of the petals changing from white to orange and to black right in the middle. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll approach you now and stick this flower on your head¡± Frank announces as he carefully holds the delicate flower between his thumb and index finger, walking back to Amethyst. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a good luck flower from me to you, it¡¯ll look great on you I¡¯m sure¡± Frank slowly approaches Amethyst, who is wearing a quizzical look. He stops right before her. ¡°I¡¯ll put it on now okay?¡± ¡°Okay¡± Amethyst stares at the beautiful flower Frank collected for her, this dainty plant somehow awakens strange elation in her heart. As Frank gets on his toes and moves the flower towards her head, she follows it with her gaze, until it disappears from her field of view. Frank sets up the flower on her head, just below the antennae, taking care in placing it, to avoid it falling off immediately. As he finishes, Amethyst is still looking up and to the left, where the flower is situated on her head. ¡°But I cannot see it¡± Frank steps a little way away, puts his hands to his hips and looks up at Amethyst with a big grin. ¡°Well I can, it suits you great, you look very dashing!¡± ¡°T-thank you¡± Instinctively a slight blush blooms on her cheekbones, as a small smile sneaks on her lips. Frank cannot help but blush too. ¡°MEAAAAOW¡± A thundering meow blasts from behind Frank, from further down the meadow, blowing flowers around on the ground harshly with its air pressure. ¡°Oh Pineapple, do you want a flower too? I¡¯ll get you a nice yellow one¡± Frank says turning around, and starting to search for one. ¡°Here¡¯s a nice one¡± He plucks a large daffodil looking blossoming flower, walks up to the awaiting cat and places it on its head. It purrs loudly and starts marching forwards with high joyful steps, the sound waves it emits immediately drop the flower down from its head, but Pineapple does not notice. Frank looks back to Amethyst, she¡¯s standing still, looking up and to the left with her eyes, towards the flower. ¡°Shall we keep going Amethyst?¡± Frank asks as she returns to her. Startled from her intense focus, she stammers: ¡°N-no...¡± ¡°Why?¡± Surprised, Franks cannot help but respond with Amethyst¡¯s signature line. ¡°Can we¡­ go around?¡± She¡¯s still standing at the edge of the forest and the meadow. ¡°I¡­ don¡¯t want to destroy them¡­¡± ¡°Oh of course, Pineapple, let¡¯s go around the edge!¡± He shouts at the cat, it just continues its happy rumbling march onwards. ¡°Oh well, I¡¯m sure he heard, let¡¯s just go around ourselves, it won¡¯t add much extra length to the trip¡± They set out walking together along the edge of the forest, they occasionally glance at the cat, which has given up its proud and sophisticated act and is chasing after butterflies instead. Not many minutes after, the tree trunks start revealing a building behind them, little by little, first a sliver of a blue roof. ¡°Over there, that¡¯s my home. Others live inside the facility grounds, but I got special permission to live here myself¡± Through the trees a two storied log cabin emerges, a small porch at the front with wooden beams holding up its roof. Its walls consisted of logs laid on top of each other, reaching further than the length of the wall, these extra beams then crossed with the next wall, forming a firm bond. Its walls were unpainted giving it an all-natural stripped and preserved wood look. ¡°I built it myself, or well with some help from my pals and machinery, but it was worth it. It even has water and electricity, getting the permission to cable and pipe those off was almost harder than building the house itself, hah¡± ¡°I¡­ like it¡± Amethyst looks up at the cottage before looking at Frank. ¡°Thanks, I knew you would¡± Frank beams a smile to her. A yellow blur dashes past them both and takes the lead towards the cabin. ¡°Ah, there you are Pineapple¡± 9. Cleaning up ¡°Welcome!¡± Frank announces with his hands arms open in the air as he walks up the stairs onto the smooth wooden porch. He places his hands on the quaint double doors¡¯ knobs, big panes of translucent glass adorning them both, the doors glide open without a sound as he pulls on them. He steps to the side and Pineapple zooms past him into the cabin. Amethyst still stands on the ground, staying silent and starting at the entrance. It was my choice to come¡­ ¡°Everything okay?¡± Frank asks letting concern shine through his tone a little too much. Amethyst closes her eyes. ¡°Amethyst?¡± She reopens them with a glint of newfound resolve and takes a step up the stairs. Each step causes the wood to groan under her as she slowly ascends them. To Frank¡¯s relief his stairs hold and Amethyst is now standing on the patio, with her head bent to the side, due to the roof¡¯s height. ¡°Do you think you can fit in?¡± Even with double doors, the entrance isn¡¯t exactly made to fit four legged insect creatures through. ¡°Yes, I have experience with doors¡± Her confident tone makes Frank look forward to the result with trepidation. Amethyst steps forwards and brings her first leg over the threshold. She then ducks her upper body and moves her weight over with the second step, her left front leg lands on top of a rug, the fabric slips from underneath. As a split second reaction Amethyst swings her left elbow blade to the door frame, it sinks in and prevents her from falling. At the same time she slams her slipped leg down on the floor to further keep her balance, her leg sinks into the exquisite wood strip floor. Frank winces. Amethyst regains her balance, wedging her blade loose from the wood with a few shakes sending splinters of wood flying. Followed by pulling her leg loose from the hole in the floor, the floor cracks from around sending small fractures running through the wood. Frank sinks his head into his hands, peeking through the gaps of his fingers. Amethyst makes it inside the house without further incident and straightens her back. The house opens up into a high ceiling space with the living room, followed by the kitchen after it on the left with lower roof height. Directly on Amethyst¡¯s left, a small door, next to it straight stairs that go upstairs, which overlooks the living room area. Frank, still stands on the porch, looks at the damage horrified, the deep cut on the door frame and the gaping hole on his immaculate floor. He notices small nicks near it, a trail leads out the door and down the terraces¡¯ stairs, following Amethyst¡¯s path perfectly. Oh my beautiful house¡­ Frank hurries inside and closes the doors behind him. ¡°Amethyst, why don¡¯t you wait on the couch and I¡¯ll bring you something to eat soon¡± ¡°Okay¡± Amethyst drags herself to the green sofa and sits down, both of her elbow blades sink into the backrest¡¯s cushion. ¡°Oh¡± she pulls her hands up to get the blades out, placing them on her lap instead. ¡°D-don¡¯t worry about it¡± I knew the risks but I still wasn¡¯t prepared for this¡­ Frank walks into the kitchen from behind the sofa, he lays down the fruits on the kitchen table that he collected during their journey here: two Applenuts, one Banorange and his personal favorite, Dragon Lemon. He takes a ceramic plate from a cupboard and turns to the fridge, suddenly stopping in front of it. ¡°Amethyst, what do you actually eat?¡± ¡°Anything is fine, I think, as long as it¡¯s not... green¡± She responds, her stomach aching with its emptiness, though that was much more bearable than the constant throbbing of her head. ¡°Alright¡± Frank opens the fridge as Pineapple brushes against his leg, begging for some food. You go first then, just don¡¯t tell her okay. He thinks and smiles at the cat. He takes out three small fish from a plastic covered plate, laying them on the plate, resembling some species of vendace, just with green eyes. Before he can even set it down Pineapple is almost climbing up her trousers to get to the fish. ¡°Hey Pineapple wait just a second will you?¡± He whispers. He jabs the fridge door closed with his elbow and sets the plate down on the floor for Pineapple, it eagerly starts gnawing the fish. A loud purr starts. Hey this was supposed to be our secret! Amethyst does not seem to mind however as there is no reaction. He washes the fish out of his hands and takes out another plate from the cupboard. So what to get for Amethyst¡­ Banorange is probably a bit too difficult for her to eat and I doubt she¡¯d want more Applenuts. ¡­ Sorry but the Dragon Lemon is for me. Frank grabs the Dragon Lemon to his other hand and bites into the soft red skin, it gushes juice from its seedy yellow innards. The perfect mix of bitter and sweet blesses his taste buds. He pries the fridge open with his elbow and evaluates its contents. In the fridge''s small clear plastic compartment, situated at the bottom, he has artichoke, leek, salad and other fruits and vegetables, mostly in the banned color. He looks higher, his eyes landing on yesterday¡¯s leftovers on the top shelf: fried lizard meat, cooked potatoes and some brown sauce are on a plate covered by a plastic wrap. I was going to eat this later... But this is probably the most balanced meal for a starving anim- person. I can just eat at the cafeteria at work. ¡°Do you care if I heat your meal up or do you prefer it cold?¡± Frank glances at her direction. ¡°C-cold is fine¡± Amethyst answers from the sofa, her head held down between her bladed hands¡¯ sides. Frank lays down the empty plate and grabs the one in the fridge, placing the half eaten fruit from his hand on the table too as he unwraps the plate. He is about to bring it over, but notices the large size of the steak, a scenario runs through his head: Amethyst is attempting to cut the steak into smaller pieces to fit into her mouth, but she manages to cut through the plate and the whole table at the same time. Everything comes clattering down and finally the blade sinks into the floor. Frank shudders and turns around, he takes out a knife and a fork from a drawer and proceeds to cut the meat up into five smaller pieces. Frank picks up the plate back up and carries it on one hand like a waiter. He curves around the back of the couch and places the plate in front of her, on the dark brown table. ¡°Here you go¡± Amethyst looks down at the meal, then at Frank. ¡°Finally, some real food! Not some alien fruits but an actual human cooked dish! Never thought I¡¯d see the day!¡± She exclaims with a big grin and then looks down at the plate again. ¡°I did tell you to trust him didn¡¯t I? I do know the best after all!¡± ¡°W-what?¡± Frank¡¯s eyebrows shoot up as his jaw drops down. Amethyst lowers herself and eats up with her mandibles, they shove the food down fast. She raises her head afterwards, crumbs and stains cover her lips, she notices the strange look Frank is giving her. Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. ¡°What?¡± she buzzes confused. ¡°What was all that about?¡± ¡°What was what?¡± ¡°That thing you said just before you started eating?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t say anything?¡± Amethyst looks at Frank perplexed and her head tilted to the side. ¡°Oh, uh okay¡± What are these episodes she has? That did really just happen... right? ¡°Well, uh did you enjoy it?¡± Frank awkwardly recovers and scratches his face. ¡°It was delicious, I feel a little better¡± Amethyst smiles briefly before her pained expression returns and she looks away. ¡°Glad to hear it¡± Frank gazes at this once so proud creature, her armor dusty and dirty at spots, with green dried blood giving the final touch of grime. Amethyst¡¯s shoulder are slumped, looking down and defeated, shaking in anguish with pain and forlorn reflected in her strange eyes. A shadow of her former self when she grinned at him as she was breaking out of the cage back then. How could anything bring down this creature- this person full of power? What in the world is wrong with her? He did not know how to help improve her condition, other than offer her food and rest, but he could at least help regain some of her dignity. Would she be averse to a shower? She could really use one... Frank imagines Amethyst walking through the bathroom door, leaving wide cuts on the frame, stepping on the tiled floor, with each step the tiles crack and break under her. Once she finally makes it to the shower he has to be there to hold it for her and shower her up. Then she¡¯d turn and accidentally cut the shower line, water going everywhere, Amethyst would panic and¡­ No way, that ain¡¯t happening. I do feel sorry for her for having to wallow in her mother¡¯s blood... Even with injuries of her own no less. ... I¡¯ll just have to do it the manual way. ¡°I should soon go to work, I¡¯ll look for your mother and a spaceship to get you back to your home there. But before that¡­ Would you like me to clean you up? Especially your shoulder wound and those¡­ green stains...¡± ¡°Yes... Please...¡± She says with a serious expression, sadness reflected in her blue hybrid eyes which do not look at Frank, but stare at the table. He heads towards the kitchen, Pineapple passes him and strides up the stairs and into the second floor. Exploring the house huh? This alien cat really is just a regular one with a light show? At the kitchen Frank opens up a cupboard above the sink and finds a cleaning rag and some paper towels. He slightly soaks both of them and returns to the living room. ¡°I¡¯ll start by cleaning your shoulder wound first okay?¡± ¡°Okay¡± Amethyst answers quietly, slightly wobbling from side to side. The armor has fractured and bits of the purple chitin are stuck to the green dried blood, only small areas of gray skin visible through it. With the paper towel he cleans up the wound, the blood soaks and becomes liquid again, and the armor shards stick to it nicely. Amethyst does not react to this clean up at all, opting to stare off into space. The hole is now clean, underneath, multiple scabs have formed, they look clean, without any swelling of the skin around them. She isn¡¯t even suffering from an infection? ¡°Good news, your shoulder injury seems to be healing nicely¡± ¡°Do you want me to take a look at that fracture in your wing too? I noticed it when you, uh, escaped yesterday¡± Frank says feeling a little guilty. ¡°Amethyst?¡± ¡°Oh, please do¡± Amethyst finally answers apathetic and opens up her back shell. ¡°Are you doing okay?¡± Frank asks as he presses down a lever on the sofa¡¯s left side, which lets down the backrest and turns it into a makeshift bed. ¡°No...¡± She responds nearly silent. With the backrest out of his way, he kneels on the sofa and takes a look at her back. Her wings are folded up inside, the right wing¡¯s second last bone shorter than the rest, but no longer leaking, it has sprouted new bone and started to mend. Her gray skin is badly burned from around the right wings root. ¡°Hold on, I¡¯ll get some cream for your burns¡± He quickly stands up from the sofa and searches through his medicine cabinet, finding a small tub of cream just for burn treatment. Wait, I shouldn¡¯t just give medicine to a creature I know nothing about. He quickly glances through the ingredients list at the back, determining it doesn¡¯t include any actual medicinal substances. Well, I guess it should still work and be safe. Hopefully. He returns to Amethyst. ¡°This will probably hurt a little, I¡¯ll apply some cream to the burns now¡± Frank opens the tub and swipes some white ointment with two held-together fingers. He brushes his fingers gently against the gray skin, bumpy and raspy from the damage. Amethyst recoils slightly, silently hissing in pain. ¡°Alright, that should help it heal better¡± As he retreats his hand, Frank spots a loose bone about 20 cm in length, laying at the bottom of Amethyst¡¯s back shell¡¯s compartment. He reaches for it and picks it up. It¡¯s light and hollow, he looks down it, it is completely empty. ¡°Uhh Amethyst, your fractured bone has started to grow back, however, the old piece of bone was still inside. ¡­What do I do with this?¡± Frank asks holding the dark purple piece of bone in his hands, conflicted. ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ it is just bone¡± ¡°I guess I¡¯ll hold onto it then¡± Frank returns to the kitchen with the bone, laying it next to the sink and puts the cream back into the cabinet. ¡°Oh and you can close your back now, we are done there¡± Frank hails from the kitchen as he washes his hands in the sink before returning to Amethyst. He grabs the rag from the sofa. ¡°Alright then, the general clean up next¡± He walks to her left and notices the orange flower still in her hair, Frank''s lips can''t help but turn into a smile as a feeling of warmth spreads in his chest. ¡°I¡¯ll start with your hair and go down from there okay?¡± ¡°Okay¡± Frank carefully grasps the stained strands of hair with his left hand, while cleaning them with the other hand holding the rag. Her purple locks are surprisingly soft as they caress his left hand, a contrast to the otherwise coarse and dangerous exterior. Amethyst follows his work with her gaze, the black pupil along with the multitude small eyes in the azure iris staring him down. He grows a little anxious under her watchful gaze, being extra careful to no pull her hair or to disturb the flower. Frank talks to ease his nerves and the awkwardness of the moment. ¡°D-do you know what is wrong with you, what is causing your weakness?¡± He asks without looking directly at Amethyst¡¯s face, finishing up with her hair, fully shining purple again. ¡°No¡± He moves on to cleaning the dirt and grime from her left shoulder and arm. ¡°I see¡± Frank answers while cleaning the tough and rough armor, getting its shades of purple and blue back into their full glory. What about your strange¡­ outbursts?¡± ¡°Maybe¡­¡± ¡°So, you have an idea?¡± Frank wipes long sweeps down her back armor with the rug. ¡°A strange pressure in my head... painful¡­ and a voice I do not know¡± Amethyst glances at Frank as he starts cleaning her right shoulder. ¡°A Voice?¡± Frank repeats surprised, stopping his cleaning, focusing his attention entirely on Amethyst. ¡°Have you¡­ talked to it?¡± ¡°Yes¡± Amethyst says and meets Frank''s gaze. ¡°Do you know anything about it? Maybe its name or what it wants?¡± Frank asks serious. ¡°No... I don¡¯t know¡± She looks away, staring at the floor instead. ¡°Well maybe the next time you talk with it you can ask it some questions¡± He advises as he moves down from her shoulder to scrubbing the blood from her right hip. ¡°I¡¯ll try¡± Frank is done with most of the cleaning, just one area now left. ¡°D- do you want me to clean your chest armor too?¡± Amethyst looks at him with a curious gaze. ¡°Yes¡± ¡°Okay¡± Frank swallows hard and reaches over Amethyst¡¯s side and starts rubbing her hard chest armor just below her neck, a small green splatter up there too. Oh... her lips are stained in sauce and crumbs too... But I can''t possibly ask to clean that for her... He feels like he voluntarily got into a guillotine, though the blade looms below him, much closer. One wrong move by Amethyst and Frank¡¯s guts would also join in on destroying his perfect wood floor. He works his way down, onto the darkest purple in her armor, a large crystal just below it, he cleans the grime and polishes the crystal. Amethyst looks down on Frank from above, quietly as he works, finding it strange how his face was changing color the more he cleaned. Frank gives Amethyst¡¯s stomach plate a hasty clean in circular motions and shoots up, gasping and finally breathing out. Amethyst looks at Frank worried. ¡°T-there all done¡± Amethyst¡¯s expression softens into a smile, as her armor sparkled in the rays of light shot through the window. ¡°Thank you¡± ¡°You¡¯re welcome¡± Frank rubs the back of his head and smiles too. ¡°Anyway, I should go to the facility now, I¡¯ll try my best to find your mom and get you a way back home. You should rest in the meantime¡± Pineapple jumps onto an armchair at the right of the table and curls up to sleep in the warmth of the sun that shines through the window directly onto it. ¡°I was talking to Amethyst, Pineapple¡± The cat¡¯s eyes remain closed, a single ear turn is all the attention this remark is deemed of deserving. ¡°Anyway, try and get some sleep¡± He hesitates and adds: ¡°I don¡¯t mind if you end up stabbing the couch full of holes...¡± ¡°Okay¡± Amethyst remains sitting, glances at Pineapple and then to him. ¡°Take care, I¡¯ll make my way back as soon as I can, might be until the evening, maybe earlier¡± Frank talks as he goes to the kitchen and scoops the Dragon Lemon with him, as well as placing the two Applenuts into his pockets. Amethyst follows him with her eyes. He walks to the doors and opens them, stopping briefly and tapping his left pocket to check for the presence of his work ID. ¡°See ya, sleep well¡± Frank glances back, gives a small wave and closes the door behind him. Amethyst stares at the closed doors for some time, before laying on the sofa, her legs spill over it on the floor, but at least her upper body is on cushions. She Places her hands on top of her stomach, her left elbow blade invades and lays on the table, while the other sticks out off the other end of the sofa a little. She stares at ceiling made of lumber, her head abuzz and pulsing with pain, even worse than before, somehow. Amethyst questions how it would be possible for her to rest in such a state, but it does not take long at all for her to succumb to sleep. 10. Espionage Frank emerges from the forest and arrives into the clearing, at the edge of the fenced off Wildlife Ventures'' facility. Even though the stampeding animals had broken through the gate and the fence on different spots yesterday, both were already patched up, albeit haphazardly. He takes the ID card from his left pant¡¯s pocket and hangs it on his neck, while walking towards the checkpoint at the gate. The two guards stationed there, in full military gear, spot his approach from afar and look his way. ¡°Heya, Jack, Jill¡± Frank greets as he gets close enough. ¡°If it isn¡¯t Frank, any luck out there?¡± Jack asks adjusting his cap, a green and brown camouflage texture covering it, his right hand resting on his weapon¡¯s stock. ¡°I¡¯m, afraid not¡± Frank shrugs. ¡°So what brings you back? I think the boss man¡¯s orders were: ¡®Don¡¯t come back until you¡¯ve captured it¡¯ And you seem to have returned empty handed¡± Jill grills him with a grin, drilling into Frank¡¯s soul with an intense stare of her amber eyes. ¡°That¡¯s just it, I was hoping to talk to him about it¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± Jack settles the cap into a downwards angle hiding his gray eyes, then looks down at Frank from below the rim of his cap with a look of superiority. ¡°How brazen, how utterly foolish¡± Jill scoffs and rolls her eyes, throwing her light brown short hair around dramatically with a flick of her hand too. The guards and Frank stare each other a while in silence. ... Hah, sorry Frank, I just love giving you a hard time¡± Jack speaks up first. ¡°Of course we¡¯ll let you in¡± A slight smile creeping on his usually expressionless face. Frank puts both of his hands to his pockets and takes out the Applenuts, tossing one to Jack. ¡°Wha- why didn¡¯t you lead with these if you got them?¡± Jack deftly catches the fruit with his left hand. Frank then throws the other one to Jill. ¡°Damn Frank, making us look soft¡± Jill pouts and looks away, catching the fruit without looking at it. ¡°Hahaha, keep up the good work¡± Frank grins at them both. The pair groans and rolls their eyes at him as Jack slides the iron fence gate open, slightly bulkier than the surrounding fence. Frank walks through into the facility¡¯s grounds, they close the gate shut after him with a rattle. The main entrance¡¯s large steel double doors are bumpy and dented for being torn down and stomped under the foxbears¡¯ feet just the other day. They don¡¯t seem to close quite right anymore, but at least his colleagues have managed to prop them up again. On his right, on the far end of the fenced facility is a separate building, a block of flats, the on-site residence of all other employees, or well everyone but the boss and him. The manager of this location lived in the main building, in a separate penthouse-esque space above the first floor of the facility facility. The facility itself was only on the ground floor, but made up for it in its sheer size and high roof. He entered through the heavy door, it squeaked and dragged against the ground as he pushed it open. A faint smell of smoke irritates his nostrils. Maybe they should have waited in patching the roof and the walls to make sure all the smoke got out first¡­ The doors opened straight into the large open space of the animal cages. He strained to close the door back up and set out for the employee dressing rooms to the right. He walked along the bleak corridor of gray and grayer, cement floor and metal walls, at least all the actual work spaces were more cozy. Passing by some colleagues on the way, he gave them a wave or a nod if he was at least acquaintances with them. Only a few of them returned the gesture, others cringed and ignored him the best they could. He pushed open the door to the men¡¯s locker room, six neat rows of lockers forming small corridors in the room, with long benches between them and on the back wall. Here the walls were actually wood and covered with light blue paint, even the floor was tiled yellow, although its color starting to fade. Seemingly nobody else was present, he went to his locker, opening it with his ID that also functioned as a key card. He started undressing from his usual clothes, and changing to the formal suit he was forced to wear at work. Frank didn''t hate this manner of wear, but it was much too stiff and impractical, he actually felt he looked quite fetching in a suit. He had even gotten some looks from the ladies at the workplace the first few days of his promotion, but in reality those could have been anything. Maybe they mocked him for his long hair as it even more prominently contrasted against these fine clothes. He had recently been promoted to auction organizer, hence the suit. Though he still kept his old responsibility of photographing the animals, as he had basically been doing half the work of an upper level job, for a long time before getting promoted. He missed feeding and otherwise taking care of the animals himself, however. Having to deal with auction organizers and customers remotely, or even on site, did not compare to making taking care of the exotic alien animals. Even if their time together usually was brief, only a few days, sometimes weeks, before they were shipped off to buyers or factories. ¡°If it isn¡¯t Frank the Alien Whisperer¡± The voice of Pablo rings on his left. ¡°What brings you here, didn¡¯t boss basically banish you for what went down on your last shift? Or did you already catch the thing?¡± ¡°I¡¯m working on it¡± Frank quickly responds as he pulls up the suit¡¯s trousers. ¡°Hah, you better be, I¡¯m amazed you had the balls to come back without it, don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever seen him so angry!¡± The man with a chestnut complexion booms with his low bass voice. ¡°Well his face wasn¡¯t even half as red as it was back five years ago, when he shouted so much he lost his voice for a week¡± Frank adjusts his god awful green tie with yellow stripes running down it in acute angles, while looking at the mirror of his locker. ¡°Damn, what a blessed week after that must have been, was it due to the Mosquitolibri debacle?¡± ¡°No, it was even earlier than that, nobody even talks of it as they fear they¡¯ll get overheard by management¡± Satisfied with the state of his tie and dress shirt he puts on the suit¡¯s coat and turns to Pablo. ¡°Oh man, I need to know exactly what happened!¡± The gossiper of the workplace exclaims with a glint in his dark brown eyes. ¡°Well, I¡¯ll tell it to you some other time, I¡¯m quite busy now¡± Frank gives Pablo a mischievous smile while buttoning up his coat. He turns back to the locker, grabbing his camera from the top shelf as well as his hat, placing them on the bench below, before locking it up. ¡°Well alright, good luck Frank, if anyone can survive this, it¡¯s you. He wouldn¡¯t dare to just fire the longest employed employee¡± Frank lifts the camera from the bench and hangs it around his neck from its strap, followed by perching the flat hat, accompanying the attire, on his head. He wasn¡¯t sure what the point of it was, but maybe it made him look more presentable. ¡°Hah, I wouldn¡¯t be so sure, but thanks Pablo¡± Frank headed out of the dressing room, leaving Pablo behind, who hadn¡¯t yet managed to do any changing himself. He continued down the corridor on the right of the dressing rooms, to the cafeteria, situated after another right turn. Alright, after I¡¯ve eaten, hmmm, where should I start? Maybe the shipping manifest of Amethyst¡¯s ship, it should say where they hauled off her mother¡¯s body. He joins the queue for the cafeteria¡¯s self service counter, there were some employees here even thought Frank arrived at an unusual time. The cafeteria received constant patronage throughout the day due to the work times being flexible, you could start and end your day whenever and take breaks as much as you liked, as long as the job got done. Though if the boss caught you lazing around too much you¡¯d likely get assigned more work. I hope I don¡¯t run into him, easier to snoop around without him breathing down my neck. Gotta eat fast and then get on it. He bought a lizard stew and a lizard meat sandwich, the viridian centizard was a plentiful and also a good tasting source of food, so it was used widely in many dishes. It was also their number one export, one of their few legal ones. He sits down to an empty table and starts sipping the soup up. ¡°Enjoying your last supper?¡± A voice, too familiar, grated Frank¡¯s ears. ¡°How¡¯s it going Rocco?¡± ¡°Oh, on a first name basis are we? Last time I checked you still hadn¡¯t recaptured that Tyrchid, so it¡¯s Mr. Crondeston to you¡± His boss sits on the same table, directly in front of Frank. ¡°Fine, Crondeston, whatever, why do you need it back so badly anyway? You never told me the reason¡± Frank spoons up soup and takes a bite of his bread on top. You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. ¡°Because you don¡¯t need to know anything else than that we need it, and this time your job will actually be on the line¡± Rocco¡¯s elbows are on the table, his fingers interlocked, he leans his jaw to his thumbs like some overlord, sizing up Frank. Hah, how many times has he said that to me by now? ¡°You never assign anyone to retrieve the escaped animals? Why now? Is there something special about this one? Is it especially dangerous to the ecosystem?" ¡°Well, I- no, you are getting nothing out of me!" Rocco raises from his slouch on the table and crosses his arms. "Is it... valuable?¡± Frank asks with a grin. L-like I¡¯d tell you, need I remind you that nosiness is up there for punishment along with betrayal and failure¡± Bingo ¡°In the transport that it arrived in, there was another one, larger, right? Do you know where it is, can I see it?¡± The bald, slightly pudgy man scoffs loudly. ¡°Of course I know where it is and no you cannot see it¡± ¡°Why? It would be very beneficial, I could analyze the contents of its digestive tract, see what it eats, where I¡¯d likely find it, see what kind of climate and areas it prefers¡­¡± ¡°Would you now? The answer is still no¡± ¡°What? I thought you wanted me to find this thing?¡± Frank raises his voice a little and leans forwards, quickly swiping his long blond hair back, before they soak in his stew. ¡°I do. But I can¡¯t show it even if I wanted, it has already been sent to HQ. You should have come up with this strategy sooner¡± Rocco smiles contentedly as he speaks. What? Why would Headquarters want it¡­ Frank leans back on his seat. ¡°Well that¡¯s unfortunate¡­ I guess I¡¯ll have to make do without it¡± ¡°You better¡± He raises his head and wags a finger at Frank. ¡°I suggest you finish your slop and get back to it immediately if you know what¡¯s good for you¡± Rocco says sternly, his face tinting a bit red already as he stands up. ¡°Well, I still have some more pictures to take for tomorrow¡¯s auction, as well as dealing with some of our VIP clients, I can¡¯t well be neglecting my duties even if I¡¯ve been assigned to retrieval¡± Frank stares at Rocco¡¯s blue eyes. ¡°Ah¡± Rocco¡¯s smug demeanor changes completely. ¡°Did I ever tell you how I admire your diligence, everyone else should follow your example. People like you have a bright future ahead of you here in the IWV¡± Rocco walks around the table as he speaks and slaps Frank on the shoulder. ¡°Keep up the great work¡± He saunters away and leaves the cafeteria. Rocco is always Rocco¡­ Frank downs the rest of the banaorange juice and cleans the remaining stew, getting up from the table, the wooden chair pushed backwards with a screech. Alright then, since I promised¡­ First, my actual work. Frank sets out to work, efficiently going through the cages housing animals that still need pictures taken from them, the warehouse side was mostly in order again, though the burned stack of boxes hadn¡¯t been cleaned up yet. Frank makes his way to his work computer, situated in a room on the left side of the facility with other office spaces separated by thin movable walls. He uploads the pictures from his camera and organizes them on their blackmarket igweb (Intergalactic web) page. He jots down the descriptions and details of each animal, as well as the starting bid prices, so that it''s ready to go live tomorrow. A fair bit of their merchandise having to be unlisted for having escaped, surprisingly, the Tyrchid seemed to not have made this auction list in the first place. Once that¡¯s done he has a few video calls with VIP customers and live auction organizers about upcoming stock. Frank hated this part of the job, sucking up to some millionaire¡¯s whims. But at least some of them seemed to be taking care of the animals, as they frequently asked him for tips on how to best treat them, as well as for advice when they got sick or had some other issues. Those people weren''t too bad, he was happy to lend his knowledge each time. Frank then sends some emails and inquiries to legitimate businesses and their factory lines about their need and demand for some centizard products, the end of email signature he was obligated to use ticked him off each time he saw it. ¡°Eat you when I meet you¡± -slogan, with a green cartoon Centizard lizard below wearing a wizard hat, cape and wielding a wand. Underneath this farce his employee name and number so their customers know who they are dealing with. Their marketing department had had a break through by advertising their products with this centizard wizard cartoon mascot called Cenzard, their products demand had skyrocketed after the first ad campaign, which had been steadily growing ever since. Cenzard¡¯s whole shtick was about how it fought with magic against the evil Centizards depicted as their real life counterparts and saving the day by turning them into food products. While often getting comically confused to his non-intelligent food product kin and ending in all sorts of misunderstandings. Frank wasn¡¯t happy about the undertones of this marketing, a species voluntarily and happily selling out its kin, which didn¡¯t seem to bother the public at all. But it¡¯s not like such nonsensical marketing hadn¡¯t been done in the past before, cartoon characters depicting products committing cannibalism or other heinous acts. ... Maybe it wasn''t wise to think too hard about the underlying crazy world of ads... Ugh, enough about getting upset about this crap again... He checks when the next scheduled flights, both automatic and manually flown, in and out of the base are, refining the search results with ¡°Destination: Midnight Iris¡±. There¡¯s one ship leaving today¡­ 1 hour ago. WHAT? They sent in a ship there, today!? He checks the passenger list, 15 people from security and¡­ every single one of their researchers? Why would they suddenly send so many to a mining outpost of our sister company? He was going to check the work list next to see if the researchers were still working in the lab, but now he wouldn¡¯t need to even do that. He suddenly remembers and checks the clock. Rocco should be having his afternoon feast right about now. Phew, just in time, I should have a small window to go around without him monitoring me from the cameras. Frank gets up from his workstation and inconspicuously makes his way down the halls and to the Lab, only a few doors away from their offices, also on the left side. He arrived at the double doors of the lab and cracked open the right one, the lights were out, only the faint blue glow of monitors and some machinery lit up the room. He stepped into the room and turned on the lights, long fluorescent lamp tubes blinked into full glow. The door¡¯s springs close it behind him with a swaying back and forth motion, as it opened to both directions, until the door finally stopped moving. Alright, let¡¯s see¡­ He first checked the four computers in the room, all of them were locked up and password protected. If only it was that easy. Frank opts to searching through the last computer''s desk instead, ruffling through the numerous papers around, reading their headlines. Papers on Giraffeduck feather pillow ad campaign and the scientific benefits listed on sleeping on such pillows. Another one on¡­ Centizard toothpaste¡­ Ew. A draft of Cenzard holding a toothbrush in place of his wand is doodled to the side of the paper. Finally he found a promising paper: ''Foxbear fur''s usage in house construction as insulation''. He quickly glanced through the research, it was really interesting, delving deep into the numbers and reasons as to why it was better than normal insulation. If he was ever building another house he¡¯d have to keep this in mind. That table being a bust, he glances around again, spotting a workspace on the far left, with a centrifuge on it, next to a fridge. Papers lay on it too, one with very faint green stains on it. He hurries to the table and picks up the paper, avoiding the green dried liquid. The title reads: ¡°The properties of Tyrchid blood and substance P¡± He reads through the whole thing, it lists in great detail how they researched the blood that first seemed to be useless and not react with anything, until they combined it with the purple liquid inside of a separate vein system and glands in the Tyrchid¡¯s body, substance P. The combination of these two was an explosive ball of fire, igniting immediately. They ran some tests on the details of this new combination and found it to be much more combustive, burning much longer and hotter than currently used top grade spaceship fuel. He read a segment in the paper over and over that especially struck him: ¡°With careful handling and combination of these two substances inside a durable enough rocket engine, it could up their fuel efficiency by 540,27% and their over all output by 1768,61%. This fuel source would also be renewable as it comes from an organic species, a challenge mankind and the rest of the galaxies have struggled with since time immemorial. However, no such rocket engine currently exists that could withstand the full combustion of these two substances in a closed space. Further research is needed on the optimal storage and preservation of this blood and substance P. Fresher blood and in much larger quantities are required.¡± At the bottom of the page, a signature of Rocco Crondeston authorizes further research, dated yesterday evening. Oh my god. They sent an expedition on Midnight Iris, to harvest the Tyrchid¡¯s blood? The blood of Amethyst¡¯s family? Cough Somebody clears his throat behind him. Frank quickly drops the paper back on the table and turns to see Rocco in the doorway. ¡°And just what do you think you are doing?¡± He eyes him suspiciously, blocking both of the double doors with his body. ¡°I¡­ decided to see if the researchers had happened to have any notes of their own on the behavior, habitat or diet of Tyrchids. Since, unfortunately none of them were present and I didn¡¯t want to wait for tomorrow¡± Frank spouts half-lies trying to remain calm and believable. ¡°You know how they are, always so early to get to work, when you¡¯d need them in the evening they are never present¡± ¡°Yes, of course quite so, did you find anything to help in its capture?¡± ¡°Well according to this paper their blood is green, and I do think it was injured so that¡¯s a pretty good lead. I do remember spotting some splatter resembling the shade on this paper earlier in the woods, so I think I better get on her trail fast before it moves to another location¡± Frank quickly makes his argument. ¡°Oh, very good then, please do hurry on tracking her down¡± Rocco says, awfully calm and cooperative. Frank walks starts walking towards Rocco as calmly and normally as possible, intending to make his exit. As he approaches, Rocco gives Frank way. ¡°Have a good evening sir¡± Frank says as casually as possible as he is about to pass him. ¡°Likewise¡± Rocco¡¯s gaze is fixated on him, through his squinted eyes he evaluates Frank as he passes him and exits through the left door. Frank walks away from the lab with a quick gait, glancing behind him in occasion, as he makes his way to his computers. Nobody seems to be tailing him, but it''s hard to tell in the badly lit corridors. He sits down on his office chair in front of his PC and types furiously for a few minutes. As he is finished, he sends two emails from his personal account. Just a little insurance. Then he hurries back towards the dressing room, at this point in time, there isn¡¯t that many employees present. They have gone home or are doing some free time activities in other parts of the facility. He enters the dressing room and hastily ditches the suit for his preferred wear as well as putting the camera back back on the shelf. Frank makes a swift exit from the facility, he hadn''t exactly done anything wrong, but he couldn''t help but feel uneasy. The facility no longer felt like his place, no longer like a home. A foreign dark corner of the world with shady personnel and even shadier business. He breaks through the heavy door with a struggle and enters the yard. The sun has almost set already. Damn it''s that late already? I hope Amethyst is doing alright... 11. Cabin Fever Ungodly racket pulls Amethyst back from the clutches of sleep. She opens her eyes, the setting sun blinding her immediately as she does. The familiar wooden roof greeting as she averts her eyes from the dazzling window. Slowly making sense of the noise she''s hearing, recognising it to be Pineapple. Hissing, meowing and making all sorts of extremely loud noises. The cat runs around the house seemingly at random, bumping to furniture and dropping things to the floor. What is going on? Amethyst tries to move her legs to the side of the sofa to stand up. ¡­ Why are my legs not moving? She tries to move her hips. Nothing. Then her back, shoulders, elbows, arms... Not even a feeling of them being present. Finally, her neck moves, not just sideways but up too, she cranes it to see the rest of her body still being there, but unable to feel anything from her neck down. Even then, she¡¯d rather not have felt anything up there either. Her skull-splitting pain had not ceased, only returned with a vengeance once she had woken up. Why can I not move!? Suddenly, the sun shining on her goes out. Startled, Amethyst turns her head to look out the window. A large beast stared her down with old faded gray eyes from the other side. Its long ears shifted around vigilantly, the large snout breathing on the window, causing it to mist over. Pineapple attacks towards the creature, jumping against the window while keeping up the noise pollution and flashing its light at it. The large beast flinches and retreats, the sunset returns to shine on Amethyst. I think I saw that beast before, it was chasing after other animals in the dark hall¡­ GROOOURGH A loud roar deafens over the racket made by Pineapple, the cat falls silent and scoots away somewhere. Has it come to eat us too? ¡­ Amethyst tries to remain calm, surely she could still move... How could she be¡­ paralyzed? That simply wasn¡¯t possible. She concentrated on each of her limbs one at a time, each joint, each muscle. But nothing happens. Even trying to control her special muscles for directing her blood, however, unable to get any connection to them either. The beast roared again and slammed against the house, the entire building shook. Items not yet dropped on the floor due to Pineapple were rattling down. The small chandelier above the living room table swayed and chimed as its loosely hanging decorative glass pieces struck against each other. The house itself seemed to hold for now. Come on... MOVE! ¡°AhhhhhhHHH!¡± She cried out in frustration her mandibles in a frenzy, the sound was drowned out by the house shaking again accompanied by another louder roar. This cannot be... Just¡­ move¡­ ¡­ How did this happen? ¡­ Why? She strained her neck, like trying to pry her body up with just her neck muscles. Unsurprisingly it made no difference. How can I ever hope to get back home like this¡­? I¡¯m just forced to lay here. Unable to do anything. Pathetic and useless. Amethyst''s head throbbed. ¡°AHHHHH!¡± The pain was intensifying, making her feel light headed, her grasp on reality loosening. I-I can¡¯t take this anymore¡­ Amethyst shook her head rapidly from side to side, but it didn¡¯t help, there was nothing she could do. What even is the point of it all¡­ if living is such agony? Why did I become sapient? Just so I would be conscious¡­ of my suffering? Somebody end this¡­ terrible pain¡­ Please... ... I can¡¯t even k- Please¡­ don¡¯t ever say such horrible things. Voice? Is that you? Hello? But there is no answer. ...
As Frank ran towards his cabin, he heard familiar roars and growls from afar. Once his home revealed itself from behind the forest¡¯s trees, his assumptions proved to be correct. A foxbear, half as big as the house, was prowling around, growling, going from window to window, its shoulders slamming on the walls. He sighs and takes a deep breath as he starts walking towards the foxbear. It turns its head towards the sky and sniffs the air, soon turning around to stare at Frank. He kept on calmly walking towards it, his eyes locked to the beast¡¯s dark gray ones. ¡°Velvet, did you follow my scent all the way here?¡± He keeps on his steady approach, unflinching. ¡°I¡¯m sorry you had to wait so long for me, I know it must be frustrating¡± Velvet stares him down and pushes a puff of hot air through its snout. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t make such a racket, they¡¯ll get the wrong idea about you¡± He¡¯s almost at the beast, it sits down on the ground to wait. Velvet whines and lowers its head once Frank is right next to it. ¡°You know that was very rude of you, yes it was¡± Frank scratches the beast silk smooth fur behind its ear. ¡°There there, you¡¯ll know better next time to not go scaring my friends like that okay?¡± ¡°I bet they¡¯re terrified of you, that¡¯s why they didn¡¯t come out to play¡± He stops scratching Velvet and runs his hand down the rougher mane of its head. ¡°Now stay here and wait patiently, I¡¯ll be back soon¡± Velvet raises its head up again and follows after Frank with its big eyes as he heads for the front door. I would have expected Amethyst to be out here confronting the beast¡­ has something happened?
Through her slumber, closing in on unconsciousness, she hears a voice. ¡°Amethyst! Amethyst!¡± A voice calling for her. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. She labors to opens her heavy eyelids, a blurry picture of Frank slowly focusing into view. He is knelt down next to the couch with a red face and wet eyes, his hands placed on her shoulder. ¡°Oh thank god you¡¯re alive!¡± Frank exclaims firmly holding onto her shoulder armor, while wiping his eyes with his left hand. Amethyst turns her head towards Frank. ¡°Am I¡­?¡± Frank freezes momentarily. ¡°What do you mean, of course you are¡± She looks deep into his eyes, forlorn and panic taking over her expression. ¡°Frank... I cannot move¡± ¡°What!?¡± ¡°I cannot feel anything from my neck down¡± ¡°I-¡± ¡°Please help me...¡± ¡°I-¡± ¡°What do I do?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Amethyst calms down, faces away from Frank and looks towards the ceiling. ¡°I cannot get back home like this¡­¡± ¡°A- y-yeah¡­¡± Frank says interrupting his own words, unsure of what to do, he lets go of Amethyst¡¯s shoulder. Can I really tell her about it now? What would that accomplish? Just further... break her spirit? ¡°Frank. What... is it?¡± Amethyst winces in pain mid sentence and closes her left eye momentarily. Frank cannot help but hold his own head as he wrestles with his thoughts. It would only make her more depressed... Make her mind sink in the dark depths of despair, for her being so helpless¡­ Unable to aid her kin... Knowing they won¡¯t live to see a happy tomorrow. How would she take it? H-how¡­ How long will she even¡­ She looks so- He looks at Amethyst, her face contorted in restrained hopelessness and pain. ¡°I-I¡¯ll carry you home if that¡¯s what it takes!¡± ¡°But-¡± ¡°No buts!¡± Frank says a little too forcefully. He wastes no time and starts straining to even slip his arms under Amethyst¡¯s upper back and the sofa, the cold rough armor pressing hard against his hand. His right hand scoops the four legs up much more easily. Amethyst stares at him, surprised. Her elbow blades are dangerously close to his chest, but Frank still squats and tries to lift her with the help of his leg muscles, putting all his strength to it. He strains and struggles but Amethyst¡¯s upper body only slightly raises above the sofa¡¯s surface, the rest of her body not even budging. ¡°I- I¡¯m much too heavy... for you¡± she chuckles softly which gets interrupted by a coughing fit. Frank wipes a bit of sweat from his brow to his sleeve and gives up on the idea. ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡­¡± Frank looks down upon the floor ashamed. ¡°Frank. What is it you wanted to say before¡­ Did you find out something? Please tell me¡± ¡­ Can I really- No, what am I thinking. Amethyst has the right to know. It is not my place to hold this information from her. ¡°Okay¡­¡± Frank lifts his head and starts talking with a serious tone. ¡°The men who run the place where you were imprisoned, sent a ship a little more than an hour ago to Midnight Iris. Their plan is to capture more like you, capture your... siblings¡± ¡°N-No! B-But why!?¡± Amethyst¡¯s eyes are terrified and her lips tremble. ¡°They ran tests on your mother¡¯s corpse, mainly her blood and the purple compound. They found out that it could potentially be used to make a new rocket fuel, way more powerful and efficient than the current ones¡± ¡°T-they will... my brother and sisters¡­¡± Her eyes start to water. ¡°I¡¯m really sorry Amethyst. I¡­ I¡¯ll try- No, I¡¯ll stop them! I swear I will!¡± Frank¡¯s lips twisted in indignation, try to smile regardless. Amethyst attempts to answer, but only gets out hoarse coughs, her body starts to convulse violently. Frank flinches backwards to avoid her erratically moving blades. The convulsions soon stop, Amethyst looking worse for wear afterwards. ¡°I¡­ thank you Frank. For all you¡¯ve done. For all your kindness...¡± ¡°No¡­ Amethyst you can¡¯t¡­ please don¡¯t¡­¡± Amethyst just smiles and blinks her eyes in pain, tear drops are set loose that run through her face and drip down onto the sofa. ¡°I¡­ don¡¯t know what purpose my life had¡­ Why I became aware..." ¡°Please¡­ Don''t say things like... Like you''ll-¡± ¡°It could have been worse... At least... I met you¡± Frank swallows hard and manages to continue speaking: ¡°I- I''m glad we met too, however brief it was, even if I thought you might kill me in a few occasions¡± Frank''s empty chuckle is turned into a cough by his arid throat. ¡°I won''t forget you¡± ¡°Can I ask... for one more... thing?¡± Amethyst¡¯s voice is a low and weak buzz, her head shakes slightly, seemingly uncontrollably. ¡°Anything¡± ¡°Can you... hold me hold my head¡­ I... I¡¯m so cold¡­ please¡­¡± Amethyst speaks slowly and quietly, with frequent pauses. ¡°O-of... course¡± Frank sniffles mid sentence, his voice breaking after. Frank sits next to Amethyst¡¯s head and raises it gently upwards and shuffles his legs below, laying her head carefully back down. Her head still trembles on his lap, the bone crown on her head prods against his stomach a little, but it didn¡¯t bother him. He caressed her purple hair, gently petting her head, his other hand held the side of her head, his skin against her soft cheek. Amethyst''s formerly flopped, almost folded in two, antennae straighten a little as a result. ¡°Thank... you... You are... so warm¡± The shaking of her head subsides. Amethyst looks up straight into Frank¡¯s copper eyes, her curious and beautiful light blue hybrid eyes filling with moisture. Frank cannot help but start flooding from his eyes too. This¡­ this can¡¯t really be happening¡­ Why does it always happen to me? Frank wipes a rolling tear from Amethyst¡¯s soft cheek, her skin is freezing cold. ¡°Frank¡­¡± She struggles to keep her eyes open, her eyelids twitching, a tender smile on her trembling lips. ¡°A-are you there?¡± She speaks as her irises¡¯ azure color fades and turns to black. ¡°I-I¡¯m right here¡± He says gently and caresses her gray cheek, keeping himself from panicking over her eyes sudden change into pitch black glossy orbs. ¡°Frank¡­ Where did you go?¡± Her mandibles vibrate weakly and start slowly retreating back inside of her mouth. She slowly closes her hybrid eyes, fighting against her eyelids, but her efforts are in vain as they close regardless. A final singular tear separates from her lashes, rolling down her cheek colliding with Frank''s hand embracing her. ¡°Amethyst!¡± Frank shouts panicked and hugs her head. She no longer reacts to Frank¡¯s voice or touch, her smile fades from her dark lips. ¡°Amethyst!¡± Useless. ¡°AMETHYST!!!¡± Futile. Frank closes his eyes and a river starts pouring, its raging rapids flowing onto Amethyst¡¯s face in large streams. A single petal disturbed by his tears separates from the orange flower on her head and flutters towards the floor. Pineapple sits there under the table, still and silent, it follows the petal with its eyes as it floats down. It lands on the Solarophone¡¯s nose, its whiskers twitch as it closes its eyes, as if taking part in the mourning. I¡­ I don¡¯t even know what happened to you¡­ Why did it have to turn out like this again!? ... Why¡­ Why?! I will find out what happened to you¡­ Protect your family, your kin. This will be the last time... Intergalactic won''t get away with this. Rest well Amethyst¡­ Frank opens his eyes, Amethyst¡¯s are still closed, their faces so very close now. He blinks his eyes as his vision blurs, setting loose large teardrops that spread over her face. He straightens his back and wipes his eyes to the back of his hand in a large motion. Frank lifts Amethyst¡¯s head carefully like a priceless artifact that could shatter from the slightest bump, he inches away from under her and lays her head back on the couch. Frank stands up and takes one more look at her, staring longer than intended, searching, pleading for any signs of life on her face. Any minuscule, movement of her arms, legs, anything. For what feels like forever, he gazes upon her, but there is no sign. He slowly drags himself away from her and grabs his backpack from the coat rack and starts packing, canned food, tools, rope, supplies, anything he might possibly need. The banaorange from the table too as well as his laser rifle, strapping it on top of the backpack. One more thing. The most important one. From next to the kitchen sink, he picks up the dark purple bone, still laying there, alone. I¡¯ll carry you home, you¡¯ll see, lay you to rest in your home soil... Let¡¯s go Amethyst, we have your brothers and sisters to save, you¡¯ll get to meet them again. He quickly rubs his eyes, misty once more. ¡°Pineapple, are you coming with?¡± The cat runs up to him immediately. ¡°Thanks. I can use all the help I need. Just know it will be dangerous¡± He exits through the door with the cat, the foxbear still waiting outside. It sits on its six legs, only four of them touching the ground. Velvet emits a low and sad whimper as they approach, Pineapple keeps its distance. ¡°Velvet, want to join me in quest for justice?¡± The big creature looks at Frank intently. ¡°Can you give us a lift to the facility, as fast as you can. You can either join us after or do whatever you want, free your brethren, help other animals whatever you wish¡± He says to Pineapple and Velvet, resolved, gazing upon the purple bone: ¡°As long as we live, we are free to choose whatever we want to do, I won¡¯t force either of you to do this¡± The fox bear stands on its six legs again and looks at Frank expectantly. ¡°Thanks big guy, I knew we saw eye to eye¡± Frank slips the bone into his backpack and climbs on top of the large foxbear, its long fur and stubby legs assisting in the climb. He holds on tight to the fuzzy and thick mane. Frank glances to see Pineapple running ahead already, opting to use its own four paws instead. ¡°Let¡¯s go¡± Velvet roars and starts trampling towards the facility. I¡¯m sorry I have to leave you like this, but every second counts, they have already left for your home¡­ I must catch up to them as soon as possible. You would understand, I''m sure. Frank thinks and beams an ephemeral smile to the orange lit evening sky.
Inside of the log cabin, in the shimmering sunshine, the body of Amethyst lays still and alone. Without complaint or protest, patiently awaiting for their return. 12. Infiltration Under the orange sky, long shadows are cast as Velvet rushes forward, its six legs thick as logs rumble and shake the ground. Birds scatter from trees and small animals scurry from their way to hide from this force of nature tearing through the forest. Frank holds on for dear life to its thick tufts of coarse fur, Pineapple runs behind them, struggling to keep pace. They break out of the forest and into the facility¡¯s clearing. ¡°Velvet over there!¡± Frank shouts and points at the gate entrance to direct the foxbear. The far away guards seem to have already noticed them. However, Velvet keeps its course and crashes through the fence right in front of them instead. Like match sticks, the iron fence bends and breaks, not exactly flimsy, but no match when on Velvet''s way. The gate guards no doubt having alerted the compound, run towards them as the first response group. Oh great, I wished I could have talked to them first... ¡°Velvet, that¡¯s enough¡± The wall of the facility approaches, Velvet shows no sign of stopping. ¡°Stooooop!¡± The beast keeps on running, straight at the facility¡¯s concrete wall. Frank leaps from the foxbear''s back and rolls to soften his fall. However, the backpack and gun on his back stop his roll and his legs strike the ground hard instead of completing the roll. Ahhh, that... stings. The foxbear strikes the wall with its shoulder, but the wall¡¯s surface only cracks slightly. Frank sits up from the ground and holds his shoulder that got yanked by the backpack¡¯s straps. With an aching back he struggles to stand, the guards are fast approaching, though the guards seem more concerned about the beast than him. Playing it cool, he casually strolls towards them along the side of the building. The gaping maw of Velvet opens up as it backs off from the wall slightly, it lifts up its tongue and globs a big ball of acid from the glands underneath. It hits the wall that starts sizzling and melting, a green-gray concrete ooze mess slowly dripping down. Pineapple runs to Frank¡¯s side and proceeds to take some cover behind him. ¡°Let¡¯s take the main entrance¡± Frank says quietly to the cat. The guards run towards them, heading straight for the foxbear, Frank avoids looking at them as they pass. ¡°Frank! What the hell is this about!?¡± The other guard grabs his shoulder as his partner continues to the foxbear. Frank turns to look at the guard. ¡°Pablo! Oh sorry about the mess¡± ¡°This is no time for joking around, give me one good reason why I shouldn¡¯t arrest you right now¡± ¡°Because this is really important¡± Frank looks at him serious with determined eyes. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you all about it if we ever meet again¡± He breaks Pablo''s gentle grip on his shoulder and breaks into a run with Pineapple. ¡°You better!¡± Pablo shouts after them and mutters under his breath: ¡°Better be the best god damn story..." At the main entrance, Frank pushes aside the door, too damaged to be locked. They hear more commotion arriving from the residential area, entering into the facility as quickly as the heavy door allows. The lights are out, most worker''s day already being over, with little to no business to the facility''s premises at this hour. ¡°Pineapple, can you please give me some light, just this once¡± The cat¡¯s cone swirls with light, row after row lighting up into a large sphere of light. ¡°You¡¯re the best! Follow me¡± Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.Pineapple purrs happily which echoes in the massive hall, as they navigate through the maze of cages. Animals wake up as the light falls on them, some snarling at them disgruntled from the rude awakening while others ignore them entirely. The foxbear has entered the building through is own hole, as the crashing and gunfire approaches. Animals shriek as their cages are damaged and broken somewhere in the distance. They proceed forward in Pineapple¡¯s light. BOKOOCK! Frank¡¯s heart jumps to his throat as a Chickstrich on the loose enters the cone of light. MEAOOW! Pineapple dashes after it and the white and gray ostrich like bird runs away. ¡°Pineapple!¡± Frank calls out, but before he can even finish, he is left behind in the darkness. The cone of light flickers around the hall as the cat chases the bird all around. It takes a little bit for Frank''s eyes to adjust to the dark and he starts seeing the cage¡¯s white tinted forcefields. They barely produced any light, only being able to see the faint outlines of the few nearest cages. Occasional electricity crackling on their surface produced a little more light, but not enough to tell him the correct path for sure. Some loose red lasers swish over Frank''s head, high enough that they likely weren''t meant for him. Followed by a loud clanging of metal, echoing from nearby, somewhere in the surrounding dark. Frank gazes around wary, but does not see its cause. As the clang fades a very quiet sizzling takes its place. The lasers just probably hit some metal¡­ They should really watch their fire... Y-yeah... He continues towards the back wall, or where he thinks it will be at, the cages at least keeping him from going around in circles. From the animals he saw or heard, he could establish his location for he remembered the layout somewhat. He dared not to check his communicator for the map to see where he was, what better way to get caught than have the device transmit his location to the people he''s trying to avoid. New cage outlines stop coming into his view, he holds out his hand and carefully creeps forwards. After a bit of fumbling, he touches a stone cold wall. Somewhere here is the entrance to the spaceship hangar¡­ He starts shuffling along the wall to the right, feeling the wall''s rough surface for any protrusions. Light footsteps sound from behind and a light beam shines on him. He turns around and shields his face, Pineapple has returned with some gray and brown feathers in his mouth and some white downs sticking to its face. ¡°You actually caught it?¡± Pineapple swirls its twin tails pleased. Did he eat it? No way, that¡¯s just a mouth full of feathers from one bite¡­? Right? Frank gazes back on the wall, now lit up, and sees that he has just passed a large plastic blue button. He presses it and the massive door, a meter to his right, starts rolling up. Light floods into the dark space through the ever widening gap as the spaceship hangar''s lamps flash on in rows. Dozens of spaceships are parked in the hall in neat rows with plenty of space between each of them. The hangar is massive, almost as large as the main cage area. Frank eyes the two kinds of ships available, the automatic ships resemble these metal boxes with wings, unpainted and lacking in any flair or pizzazz. While the manually flown ships are much sleeker and have two sets of wings for actual maneuverability within atmospheres. He picks the closest manual ship, in front of the main door and little to the left, its cargodoor facing them. The only way into these ships, meant only for transportation of goods, was through such a back door, no other options existed. His chosen ship is otherwise completely metally gray, just two dark green strips run along its hull vertically, setting it apart from others of the same model. The duo arrives at the ship¡¯s back, Frank digs his employee ID and flicks it over a dark black sensor, it beeps with a green light and the cargo door begins to descend. They board the ship and he presses a button on the other side, the door starts to close back up. A semi-large metallic cargo space opens before them, the floor full of cinches to ensure sufficient grip and the wall''s having rings attached to them to tie the cargo from. A large but still narrower corridor leads they way into the cockpit It¡¯s only a three seater, the pilot¡¯s seat, and one seat on each side of the corridor, facing forwards. One the sides some table space embedded in the wall, maintenance hatches and grates. Straight ahead a large windshield, in the middle, right ahead of the pilot chair a display, with various buttons, gauges, levers, switches and dials. Frank sits on the pilot¡¯s chair and checks some of the gauges as he turns on the power from a large reddish button. Fuel... check. Battery... check. Alright¡­ should be all good to go soon, just got to open the hangar door and warm up the engines... Soon we are out of here Amethyst. Just hold on a little longer... He remembers the bone and quickly slides the backpack off his back, opening its flap. Phew. He breaths out, glad his fall didn¡¯t break the bone in two. Strange glistening shines on its surface however, he picks up the bone out of the way to look deeper into his bag. The banaorange he grabbed as snack is squashed and leaking liquids everywhere, on his spare clothes too... Damn it, why did I pack it with me, this always happens! He dunks the banaorange into the bin, located next to the pilot''s seat, afterwards drying his hands and the bone with a paper towel. Alright, it''s all fine now... Though it definitely still smells like fruit... Frank packs the bone back up and gazes at the dashboard, the energy levels have risen high enough. Now to warm up the engines¡­ As he is about to start the proceedings for launch, he glances at the monitor that shows the ship from the outside from different angles via cameras. Some sort of triangular slab of metal has appeared on the ground behind their ship, some distance away. 13. The Voice / Bargain Amethyst? Amethyst!? Are you still there? ¡­ Voice? Is... that you? Listen Amethyst¡­ We don¡¯t have a lot of time. You are... dying¡­ I think... I may be the one killing you¡­ What!? I¡­ my human mind is absorbing yours... it has for a while now. That¡¯s why we can even talk like this¡­ because we are becoming one. We are reaching a point of no return. Oh¡­ The voice continues distraught: But¡­ I don¡¯t want to die¡­ After a short silence, Amethyst dares to ask: What do you want then? I¡­ I¡­ want to see my husband. Your¡­ husband? ... The man at the clinic? Yes¡­ I want to see him. So badly¡­ I need to know he is alive. You- We left him in the burning building... But¡­ I can¡¯t even remember his name. Grent. What? Grent is his name. Oh¡­ I see. Thank you, Amethyst. I just want to reunite with Grent again¡­ More than anything. But... I don¡¯t want to... kill you either. You¡¯ve been through such a lot¡­ I¡­ already had my time. I¡­ It wouldn''t do for me to rob yours. There are those who still need you, your species, your planet¡­ Frank... ¡­ Can you promise me one thing? What is it? Don¡¯t be mad at Grent, don¡¯t despise him. He is just a bit rash and eccentric. And maybe a little out of control without me to rein him in... But he is really a good person. ... Do you believe me? I don¡¯t know... He treated you badly, I know, manipulated you even... Made you kill your mother... But promise me that you won¡¯t take revenge, that you won¡¯t kill him when you get back to your home planet. Take care of him for me. ... Promise me this p-please? I- I don¡¯t know if I can¡­ P-please!? The Voice struggles to get words out. I¡­ I promise¡­ But... Why? Aren¡¯t you going to come with me? We can''t both make it back. One of us has to die, to save the other... I choose to entrust you with my mind. Yielding, so you can take over. Tell Grent I love him, I always have and always will. ... I will. Thank you¡­ Voice. ¡­ ¡­ ¡°Is it dead?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, looks like it¡± Amethyst gasps and shoots up to a sitting position on the couch. ¡°Frank!¡± She shouts without thinking, men in thick vests and guns surround her. One man sticks out from among them, with his fancy clothes and a round body shape. ¡°Oh, it can speak? So that¡¯s why Frank called ¡®it¡¯ a she¡± How novel, no wonder he couldn¡¯t resist stealing you away¡± ¡°Frank? What did you do to him!?¡± ¡°Hah, we didn¡¯t do anything to him, he wasn¡¯t here when we arrived¡± ¡°What do we look like? Murderers or some sort of savages?¡± Before Amethyst can answer he scoffs: ¡°Phah! Hardly¡± The troops led by the bald man produce empty chuckles along with him. Amethyst remembers what Frank said during her delirium. He must already be at the facility now! I hope I¡¯m not too late. ¡°Alright, that¡¯s enough chit chat, pack her up¡± A soldier aims a very large barreled, strange-looking, weapon at Amethyst, holding the massive weapon over his shoulder. Instantly shooting up from the sofa, Amethyst cuts the barrel of the gun clean off, causing it to misfire a net towards the roof. The net tangles to the chandelier above, crackling with white electricity for a second before going out, as its connection to the gun was cut. The lights of the house flicker on and off until finally staying out. Three more grunts aim similar weapons at her from up close, from different directions. As they are about to press the trigger, Amethyst dives for the window, the guns go off in the room. The surface of the glass is broken by her blades, making a hole for the rest of her body to follow through. Sharp pieces of glass rain on her hair and bounce from her armor, the orange flower with two petals remaining is knocked off. She crashes outside on her stomach but quickly scampers up. With the target escaped, the nets flew and tangled around inside the house¡¯s crowded interior. ¡°You imbeciles! What a-a-a-are you d-d-d-d-doing!?¡± The voice of the man with the fancy clothes stammers as a crackle of electricity sounds through the air. Amethyst has broken into a gallop already, and is not present to hear anything further. All of her wings are spread out, film flowing to cover the gaps. As they harden, she takes off into the deep red evening sky. She soars in the sky effortlessly, she had almost forgotten what it felt like. Her body was so light, so nimble and fast, her lethargy had completely passed. In her mind, she remembered clearly who she was, but in the back of it, there was knowledge of things she had not learned herself. Basic information on the galaxy, human civilizations, equipment, objects, concepts and much more. Some with context backing them up, others just loose words that she knew what they related to, but not what it actually meant. If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.Hold on Frank, I''m on my way! Arriving at the facility, she sees the fence broken and a big hole in the concrete wall. Gunfire, shouting, animal cries ¨C sounds picked up by her sharp hearing, but there is so much commotion it¡¯s impossible to determine where Frank is. Amethyst flies over the roof of the facility, the sounds fading away. She spots the old escape hole she made, not patched up yet. She takes some distance from it and cuts a new triangular hole into the metal with blades aglow. Through the hole, she cranes her neck into the room. It¡¯s dark, her peripheral night vision shows her that this is still the cage area, the creature that was at Frank¡¯s cottage is rampaging inside, joined with other large animals. Smaller ones running around panicked trying to escape the chaos and predators that chase them. Spaceships are commonly held in hangars¡­ I think. What is a hangar though? She didn¡¯t know, but this certainly wasn¡¯t it, she took one last glance at the area searching for Frank, but no luck. Taking flight again, she continued straight on, and the roof soon became a few meters lower. She flew some distance in, landed and made another hole, letting loose another sizzling triangular slab. Lights are lit inside, and she sees a spaceship close by, it¡¯s a little different than the one she arrived here with. Green stripes adorn its side. Amethyst jumps down the hole and lands gracefully with a few flaps of her wings. She unfurls them, translucent purple shards clink on the concrete floor. Where is Frank? Has he left without me already? She looks around and sees the hangar doors, no sooner than she locates them that they start opening, slowly letting in daylight to the artificially lit hangar. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Frank ignores this seemingly random metal slab phenomenon and continues fiddling with the spaceship controls to make it ready to fly, he pushes a button to send a command to the facility to open the hangar door. Something in his subconscious makes him glance back at the screen to check out the triangle again. In the display, a Tyrchid has appeared, he blinks his eyes and brings his face way too close to the screen. ¡°Amethyst! It really is her!¡± Frank flies out of the pilot¡¯s chair and zooms to the back of the ship, smacking the button to open the cargo door. I can¡¯t believe it! That was Amethyst right?! I wasn¡¯t hallucinating? No, I couldn''t have. Another Tyrchid? No way. Struck with immense relief and numerous questions, he waits as the door reveals the hangar from behind it. But how is that possible? Whatever, I¡¯m not going to question it now! Frank hears a painful screech as the door descends, revealing Amethyst inside a white force field net, a cord going back to a netgun, held by Rocco Crondeston. His hands are covered in slight burns, his formal suit slightly ripped and scorched at spots. Amethyst struggles and stabs at the net, but its dynamic shape and flexible nature don¡¯t allow her to cut it to escape. She turns to look at him. ¡°F-Frank I-I found you!¡± Amethyst speaks buzzing and twitching in rhythm with the electric shocks. ¡°I- I thought you¡­ Never mind that now!¡± ¡°Rocco! Let her go!¡± Frank takes the laser gun from his back and levels it at his boss. ¡°Frank... I¡¯m so disappointed, I told you to not betray me, didn¡¯t I? But you got greedy, you are sorely mistaken if think you can steal from IWV, much less from ME!¡± ¡°No its-¡± ¡°What else could it be? What could you possibly hope to accomplish with such a stunt?¡± Frank looks at Amethyst, the white force field zaps her periodically inside of the net. Her expression is that of pain, her forced smile is erased with each jolt, only to return more strained than the previous. Rocco looks between Frank and Amethyst as they gaze at each other. ¡°Wait wait wait, are you serious? One of your animal pals finally speaks back to you and you to fall head over heels for it or something? Are you cr- No no, as your employer the fault lies with me, I should have seen the signs and gotten you some help-¡± ¡°Shut up!¡± Frank grits his teeth. ¡°Amethyst is a person!¡± And fires the laser gun. A warning shot, that hits the ground to his right, Rocco flinches but regains his composure. ¡°Next one will land between your eyes¡± ¡°What? Are you going to kill a human over some alien creature? You know, just stop this madness, you can still come back to work, we will forget this ever happened¡± ¡°No, I don¡¯t think so, you¡¯re the insane one here¡± ¡°Hah, what if I just crank up the output now and kill her, I wonder if that would that get you to come back to your senses?¡± Rocco rubs his bare chin as a sneer forms. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t!¡± ¡°Try me, I¡¯ll do anything for my employees'' well being¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°What will it be? I¡¯m running out of patience¡± Rocco taps his fingers against the knobs of the voltage and amperage dials on the netgun¡¯s base. ¡°Will you really let her go if I just come back to work?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ It¡¯s too late for that, I changed my mind, you did shoot at me after all¡± ¡°What?!¡± ¡°Sign an eternal contract, no pay, no vacation time-¡± ¡°Slavery. Don¡¯t you think you are getting too greedy?¡± Frank says and starts walking down the slope of the ship, very slowly, he aims down the sights of his rifle. ¡°Fine, I¡¯m just joking Frank, I¡¯ll even give you a raise of 20% your current pay, I¡¯m feeling extra generous, how about that?¡± ¡°Will you really release her, you will not capture her again, not kill her?¡± ¡°F-Frank¡­¡± Amethyst struggles to speak. ¡°Yes, I am nothing if not a man of my word¡± Frank reaches the end of the spaceship¡¯s slope. ¡°Come any closer and my finger might just slip though...¡± Rocco hovers her right hand on the gun¡¯s dials. ¡°I¡¯ll put my rifle away now, let her go and we can start signing my promotion, okay?¡± Frank slowly and elaborately starts lifting his gun up and over his head. Rocco grins victoriously, intensively staring at Frank, he¡¯ll be damned if he misses a second of this. As Frank is about to take the gun¡¯s strap off his neck, Pineapple launches forwards from behind him The cat¡¯s cone is fully charged as it makes its entrance, flashing a blinding light out immediately. ¡°Ugh! What!?¡± Rocco reels and covers his eyes with his free hand. Pineapple had been walking behind Frank, carefully remaining hidden as they strode down the slope. Charging the short distance between them, he clobbers the dazed Rocco¡¯s head with the back of his rifle. The hard strike echoes in the vast space, as his boss staggers backwards and falls on his rear, the netgun falling from his grasp. Frank lets the laser gun hang from its strap and picks the netgun up with both hands, quickly pressing the disengage button. The white electricity disperses and Amethyst makes short work of the actual net with her multitude of blades. ¡°Now quickly to the ship!¡± Frank tosses the netgun and runs up to Amethyst who joins him in the short run to the ship, they exchange a relieved look. The trio ascends the slope and Frank presses the button to close the door. Rocco stands up from the floor and holds his nose and forehead with both hands, red blood dripping from between them. He blinks his eyes rapidly, sight returning. ¡°FRANK! This isn¡¯t over!¡± ¡°Hope to see you never Rocco!¡± The door is high enough for them to no longer see him. ¡°Thank you Frank¡± Amethyst beams a wide smile at him. ¡°No, thank you Amethyst¡­ I don¡¯t know what I would have done if you too¡­ if you really had¡­¡± He awkwardly brings a hand behind his head. ¡°I don¡¯t know what I would have done if you left without me!¡± Amethyst shoots back unusually sassy. Frank laughs briefly. ¡°True, I doubt you can fly a spaceship¡± He is brought back to their current situation by his own comment. ¡°Oh yeah, we better get this bird out of the ground too¡± Frank dashes to the cockpit, shoves his backpack and rifle to a small compartment on the left wall and shuts its door before sitting on the pilot chair. This time properly prepared for take off, he sets his back firmly against the backrest. Amethyst follows after him, Pineapple running underneath her spacious leg space, reaching the cockpit before her. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s see, the hangar¡¯s door is now open, turn off the tracker¡­ prepare the wings¡­ Oh and heat up the engines... Alright after that just gotta fly her out¡­ yes, that should be all¡± He turns his head to Amethyst. ¡°Okay, better take a seat and please be careful¡± ¡°I''ll try¡± Amethyst takes caution and keeps her bladed arms away from walls and the seat. Frank glances back at the displays showing the outside, a bunch of soldiers have appeared that tend to Rocco. His face is beet red as he shouts, impossible to make out what portion of the red is blood and which his flushed skin. Frank stands up from the chair and turns to Amethyst who has seated herself on the seat left of the doorway. ¡°I¡¯ll strap you in now, okay?¡± ¡°O-okay¡± Amethyst watches as the black belt like straps are spread across her body in the form of an X. She swallows hard as sweat drips down her face, recalling past memories. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Frank looks at her concerned. ¡°Y-yes, don¡¯t worry about me¡± Frank finishes fastening the straps and turns to sit back down, he glances at Pineapple. ¡°Pineapple, just hold on to something, I don¡¯t know, keep your self still with your claws, cat stuff¡± Pineapple already standing on the right seat braces itself. Frank sets himself back on the pilot chair, more soldiers are gathering and discussing something. Somebody is bandaging up Rocco''s head. I don¡¯t think we can afford to wait any longer, but the engines are just 25% ready¡­ What¡¯s the worst thing that can happen? Frank fires up the engines. In response Rocco shouts and waves a hand forward, the lot of them level their weapons at the ship. Oh no. Frank puts the engines at full throttle, the ship makes some clunking and cracking noises, but begins to roll forwards very slowly on its wheels, the cold engines struggling to provide enough thrust. Electrical nets are shot at the turbines, but the airflow they generate is just enough to blow them away. The ship nudges forwards little faster, from the screen he sees some soldiers lifting heavy tubes to their shoulders. Rocket Launchers. Oh fu- Velvet drifts through the hangar door, smashing into the door frame, unable to maintain sufficient friction due to its speed. The ground quakes and the soldiers stagger slightly. Velvet''s feet regain grip it continues straight, barreling through the soldiers. They are flung around as the foxbear collides with their number, the ones holding the rocket launchers drop them to catch their falls as they are shoved from behind. Some unlucky few are caught under the foxbear¡¯s massive paws, their bones crushed. The ship accelerates faster and faster exponentially as the engines start warming up more. Velvet looks worn, patches of fur are missing, scorch marks on the revealed pink skin, as well as red blood on its fur, its left ear completely missing. It roars and blood is splattered around the hangar from its bleeding mouth as it stampedes among the unfortunate soldiers. Frank can¡¯t take his eyes off this scene, even though he should be flying the ship, he keeps glancing down at the display to see what happens while keeping an eye on the upcoming runway. The ship accelerates even more. A struggling soldier grabs a rocket launcher and manages to shoot it at Velvet. The missile hits its front left leg. As the explosion''s smoke clears, the massive leg is gone. The fox bear¡¯s jaws make a painful looking roar as it collapses on the ground trashing. The ship shoots out of the hangar and straight towards the forest, going through the whole length of the runway in a blink of an eye, the ship going way too fast. Thank you Velvet. Frank gives the ship his full attention and pulls the controls towards him as hard as he can. Amethyst is pushed hard against her seat as her mind runs through the situation she felt this the last time in. Pineapple is completely vertical, its nails clinging on to the backrest. Swoooosh. The ship ascends harshly, billowing leaves everywhere from the forest underneath, lifting up into the red sky. 14. Coming home The ship shakes and clatters as it climbs higher, Frank''s knuckles turn white as he keeps it steady. It swiftly climbs into orbit and the shaking ceases. ¡°Everyone okay?¡± Frank pulls a lever that releases his chair''s rotation, and flings the chair backwards with a motion of his feet. ¡°MROUWW¡± Pineapple growls as it sets its back paws down from the backrest and sits on the seat normally. ¡°Y-yeah¡± Amethyst says barely audible, her mind swimming in bad space travel memories. ¡°Good, I''ll initiate a warp next, it shouldn¡¯t be as rough, though its start and end are quite bumpy still¡± Franks says and turns the chair back and locks it, he glances out of the window. Black space of the Chartreuse system opens up before them on the other side of the windshield, calm and desolate, if not for the distant stars and another planet of the system: Basil Cochlea. Darker green in appearance than Viridian Macula, its surface entirely covered in mostly waist deep water, home to all sorts of exotic algae and seaweed like plants. Very shallow, apart from two incredibly deep oceans, perfectly mirrored on both sides of the planet. It is theorized the oceans reach deep into the planet and connect from the ''bottom'', too. A theory still unproven, but supported by sightings of creatures only previously seen on the other side of the planet, or so Frank has heard. Not many would guess how much harder it was to explore deep underwater than space. Poaching such animals was even harder, but it didn¡¯t stop IWV from trying. Frank navigates a touchscreen¡¯s preloaded warp drive locations: a bunch of IWV facilities are listed as well as some Intergalactic Resources ones. He quickly scrolls through all of the IR locations, looking for something that he recognizes. Midnight Iris was in the Sangria system¡­ right? He presses its icon, two planets pop up on the screen of the twin sun system. Midnight Iris and a massive gas giant, Perwinkle, rotating far on the outer orbit, its 3D model in the map system a bright pink with swirls of purple. ¡°Hold on! Next stop, Midnight Iris!¡± He presses its icon on the screen. The warp drive shakes and rumbles the ship, before stating to steadily accelerate the ship along with its normal thrusters. It reaches the correct speed, the space folds around them, as stars become a blur. The ship speeds along and achieves its max speed in a few minutes, the ride steadies up and quiets down. Frank turns the pilot chair around to face Amethyst. ¡°So, are you really fine now Amethyst? You won¡¯t just suddenly collapse again?" ¡°I¡¯m okay Frank, I feel great!¡± Amethyst attempts to smile a reassuring smile. ¡°That¡¯s a relief¡­ but how is that possible? You¡­ you were-¡± Frank hesitates and averts his eyes, looking at Pineapple instead who stares him down in return with its irritated black eyes. ¡°The Voice in my head saved me¡± ¡°Wow¡­ I owe her a big thanks then, can you deliver it for me?¡± Frank looks at the seated Amethyst again. ¡°¡­ She¡¯s not there anymore¡± Amethyst instead looks at Pineapple now, who returns the gesture in kind, confused as to why everyone keeps on staring at it. ¡°She sacrificed herself to save me¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry¡­ But still, I¡¯ll forever be grateful to her for saving you¡± ¡°Forever¡­ grateful?¡± Amethyst makes eye contact with Frank. ¡°Y-yeah?¡± ¡°Me too¡± Amethyst smiles, steadily getting over her haunting memories. Frank keeps on staring into her eyes. "Were your eyes always that dark?" "My eyes?" "Yeah, I could have sworn they used to be a shade of lighter blue before?" He leans forwards and intently peruses Amethyst''s dark blue eyes. "I can''t say, I haven''t really given it much thought before" "Oh well, I may just be imagining it" He relaxes again and leans back on the chair. "Anyway, we''re just glad your okay now, right Pineapple?" The ship starts decelerating slowly, they are pushed forwards now instead of backwards. "MOOURR" The cat is holding on to the seat with all of its paws, fighting against the forward pull now instead. Frank strains to speak, his back being pressed against the seat, as it¡¯s facing away from the ship¡¯s front. "That was a yes¡­ You gave us quite... the fright" "I''ll try not to make it a habit" She says as her armored body is pulled against the restraints. "Good, I don''t know... if my heart... could take it... if you did" The ship continues to slow down before it enters back into normal space again, right into Midnight Iris'' orbit. Frank spins the chair around and checks the ship''s status and their fuel, they had started with a full tank, but now 55% was already gone. A more efficient rocket fuel huh¡­ ... He looks out the window. ¡°Wow your planet is beautiful Amethyst! I see why it is called the Midnight Iris, that big black dot makes it look like a purple eye¡± Frank says as he grabs the sticks and flies the ship on approach to its atmosphere. ¡°Do you happen to know what it is exactly?" ¡°It¡¯s an ocean of black water, I¡¯ve been there once¡± "Is it safe to swim in?" "I don''t know, I can''t swim" "Oh, right. Makes sense" "But the water should be fine, it rains down from the sky after all too" ¡°What really? Black Rain...¡± Frank looks back at Amethyst and her astonished expression as she intently gazes at her planet. ¡°Ever seen your home from space before? ¡°No¡­ Is that really my home? It looks so strange from up here¡± Amethyst says fixating on the planet that fills the windshield more and more. ¡°Oh you¡¯ll see, just wait till we get closer¡± They break into the atmosphere, the hull heats up and blazes with fire. The ship¡¯s protective coating and insulation work in tandem, making sure the temperature only raises a few unnoticeable degrees inside. Turbulence shakes the ship as they break through the gray clouds, below forests of purple and red spread out endlessly. ¡°We really made it back!¡± Amethyst''s voice is laced with glee. ¡°We sure did!¡± ¡°Thank you Frank!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t mention it¡± Frank adjusts his green shirt''s collar. He gradually slows the ship down and sets course to the location shown by the radar, directing them to the outpost. Frank cruises with the ship above the trees, Amethyst looks down at the purple forest, or tries to. She''s still locked in her seat, trying hard to catch more glimpses of her home, but cannot see much of anything but the half-cloudy blue sky. The outpost¡¯s massive main building and the mining quarry behind it come into view. ¡°This is an Intergalactic Resources Base, your ship was not on our landing schedule, state your business, we have anti air weaponry present¡± A male voice, slightly degraded by transmission static, speaks to them through a channel that opened up in a nearby screen automatically. How could I forget! Frank picks up the mic receiver and takes a deep calm breath before pressing the button to speak. ¡°This is an Intergalactic Wildlife Ventures cargo ship from Viridian Macula, sorry about the trouble, see we... forgot to bring some equipment with the last ship that landed just few hours ago, so it was thrust upon me to bring them in straight away¡± He nervously looks out the window at the impressive base and its oppressive massive twin turret atop it, almost larger than the facility itself and adds: ¡°We uhh, couldn¡¯t get into contact with our own already here to let you know of our arrival. We don¡¯t have your communication codes and boss wasn¡¯t around... you know how it is¡± Frank lets go of the button and ends the transmission, waiting on pins and needles for their response. They fly ever closer, the huge gray facility getting bigger as they approach. ¡°Yeah, even we know how Rocco can be, hah, my condolences, you are free to land in C7, welcome to IR Mining Branch¡¯s base on Midnight Iris" Frank sighs from relief and opens the communications line again. ¡°Tell me about it. Anyway, thank you, over and out¡± "We aren''t here to deliver anything, are we?" Amethyst asks confused. "No, I just had to figure out something so they''d let us land" He steers onto the landing pad and turns on the hover thrusters for landing the ship. "I see" Their green striped hunk of stolen metal touches down on seventh spot of row C. All around the platform workers run around, carry small cargo by hand or large crates with machinery. As well as massive open containers filled with large rocks, carried by large forklifts or by massive hoverplates, thick black platforms with a ball in each corner. Barely enough to support their weight and still float. Frank twists two knobs, flips a dozen switches and the ship powers down, only the lights inside remaining on. ¡°The dock is filled with people, any ideas on how to get past them?¡± He asks Amethyst as he gets to work, setting her loose from the chair. ¡°I doubt they¡¯d let us just waltz through¡± ¡°We¡¯ll fly¡± Amethyst answers as Frank is about to set her free from her first seat belt, but stops upon hearing this comment. ¡°But there¡¯s nowhere to land such a big ship in the forest, is there?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯ll fly us there¡± ¡°Oh¡± ¡°I can carry you, I think¡± She gives Frank a sheepish smirk. ¡°Can¡¯t I just hop on your back for a ride?¡± Frank asks scratching the back of his neck and tilting his head. ¡°You¡¯ll get in the way of my wings¡± ¡°Oh, of course¡­ How can you carry me though, won¡¯t I get¡­ stabbed?¡± He undoes the first seat belt. ¡°I can hold you up on my arms, I just can¡¯t hold onto you¡± ¡°Oh... great¡± He undoes the last of Amethyst¡¯s seat belts and backs out of the way as Amethyst stands up. ¡°You got any better ideas?¡± Amethyst says and glances at the docks, finally able to see them. ¡°I suppose not¡± Frank shrugs and starts walking down the corridor to the cargo hold, Pineapple hops down from its seat and trails after him. As Frank and the Solarophone get into the back of the ship Frank notices it and turns around. ¡°Pineapple, you can stay behind and guard the ship right?¡± Pineapple walks closer and pounces at his chest, his claws out, the cat sticks to Frank¡¯s skin. ¡°Ow ow ow ow ow!¡± Frank grabs the cat and pulls forwards, its claws letting loose from his skin. ¡°Okay fine... just come with us then¡± Frank takes the cat on his arms. Amethyst walks down the corridor to join them in the cargo hold. "You should know better than to tell Pineapple what to do by now" He responds with abashed laugh. "I suppose that''s true" Amethyst approaches him, her arms held open ahead of her. "W-wait how are we going to do this one?" Frank recoils away a little, the comment stops her, but only for a moment. ¡°Just stand there and I¡¯ll scoop you up¡± Amethyst starts picking up the cat carrying man, her left arm takes him from his knees while the right one supports his back. ¡°Is this really the best waaay¡± Frank''s words unintentionally stretch out as he is picked up. A moment later they are both held up on Amethyst¡¯s outstretched arms. ¡°Are you comfortable?¡± She asks looking down at them. ¡°Y-yeah¡± Frank smiles awkwardly glancing up at her for a moment before looking away, in truth the hard armored arms were far from it. Pineapple doesn¡¯t look back at her, seemingly content with his position in this. ¡°Then let¡¯s go¡± Amethyst opens her back and her wings come out, fitting just about inside the ship. The film starts spreading out onto the gaps as her crystals glow producing more, purple swirling inside Frank feels warmth from behind him and at his right knee and shoulder, even through his clothes, as her shining crystals radiate heat. The wrist crystals being far enough to keep it from being uncomfortable, but her big chest gemstone continues to get hotter and hotter. Frank starts to sweat, as he¡¯s about to say something, the crystals go out. Phew. He breaths out, relieved to avoid burning to a crisp on her arms. ¡°Take me to the button and I¡¯ll open the door, we will quickly slip out and then close it again¡± His long hair flows down and over Amethyst¡¯s elbow blade¡¯s outer surface, just mere soft contact not quite enough to clip his hair short. ¡°Okay¡± Amethyst walks to the button, her four legs echo against the metal floor, Frank reaches out to the button and presses it, the cargo door starts to descend, letting in the tropical outside air. ¡°Oh hey, I came to check on you since you weren¡¯t coming out of your ship. You need help with your cargo?¡± A deep voice of a man asks from the other side of the door. ¡°N-No, it¡¯s okay, thanks, I was just¡­ feeling unwell, so I had to pace myself¡± Frank answers quickly. ¡°Oh in that case you should come to the infirmary, I¡¯ll take care of unloading for you¡± Shit! As the door descends, a lone worker is revealed behind it, suspenders hold up his blue worker bottoms, a yellow hardhat on his head and a black bushy beard. The warm welcoming smile fades from his wide face. ¡°WHAT? T-T-That¡¯s-¡± The worker points at Amethyst, her wings fully spread, carrying a long haired man with an awkward smile on its arms, the man in turn carrying a strange yellow cat on his arms. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.Pineapple hisses at the worker loudly. ¡°Sorry, we are in a bit of a hurry, so don¡¯t mind us¡± Frank says as Amethyst walks down the ship door¡¯s slope, the man staggers backwards and falls on his rear. Amethyst veers to the right and jumps down from the slope, her sharp legs leave small marks on the black asphalt of the landing area. Frank quickly slides his ID card across the reader and the ship¡¯s door starts closing. ¡°Alright, we are off, have a good day sir¡± Frank says to the prone man paralyzed in confusion. Amethyst flaps her wings powerfully, Frank grasps Amethyst¡¯s shoulder armor hard with his left hand, the right one cradling the cat. They lift into the air, a few more flaps and the wings loudly buzz into full gear and become a blur. Amethyst flies over the landing area, slowly climbing higher. The workers below gaze up in wonder at the man and the cat being princess carried by this purple creature. ¡°W-what are you gawking at? ¡°Look up, that¡¯s the purple death!¡± ¡°To battle stations!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you see, it¡¯s carrying someone!¡± Frank waves down at them, before quickly taking hold of her arm again as the pit of his stomach informed him he wasn¡¯t holding on to anything. ¡°What¡¯s going on!?¡± ¡°Do not be alarmed, we come in peace!¡± Frank shouts down at them while holding firmly to Amethyst. ¡°What???¡± ¡°Shoot it down!¡± ¡°Somebody do something!¡± Workers and other personnel start dashing around in the ground, scrambling inside or taking cover behind ships. They manage to cross the open area and fly over the gray, slightly tilted, shiny metal roof of the outpost before any of them manage to dig out weaponry. On top, the ginormous anti air turret juts out from the roof, mounted on a large circular base. They fly between the anti air turret¡¯s two long metallic barrels pointing almost directly upwards. They sure are heavily armed... a blast from that and our ship would have ceased to exist... They rise higher and higher and reach up to the valley and its forest. Amethyst keeps on upping their altitude to get a wider view on the surrounding area. Frank looks behind them, past Amethyst¡¯s side. You gotta be kidding me. The air defense cannons are rotating along their base. ¡°Amethyst! Fly lower!¡± ¡°Why?¡± Amethyst looks down at Frank¡¯s panicked face who is looking behind them. ¡°J-just do it! Now!¡± Amethyst starts dropping altitude. The cannon base locks in place towards them and the twin barrel cannon starts descending. Oh god. Frank stares at the tilting barrels¡¯ tip, refusing to blink, his light brown eyes drying up. The cannons lower themselves faster than they drop altitude, and soon point directly at them. However, only briefly, as Amethyst descends even lower. The turret seems unable to follow below a 45 degree angle. Amethyst stops descending just above the treeline. ¡°I can¡¯t go much lower¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine. Damn that was too close...¡± ¡°What was too close?¡± ¡°Uhh, nothing, just don¡¯t fly any higher than this okay?¡± ¡°Okay¡± They fly close to the purple tree tops, each tree''s leaves seem to be different than the previous, or maybe it just seems like it. The tree''s trunks themselves very dark violets and reds, even a couple brown ones. All sorts of foliage in deep violet and red colors, flowers and bushes can briefly be seen when there''s a gap in the trees below. ¡°You know where your kin live right?¡± ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll take us there¡± Amethyst observes the familiar forest, its trees of various lengths and different kinds. Some faint hills and large rocks, all familiar landmarks. A red laser shot flies up into the sky, coated in purple flame, some distance to their right. ¡°Seems they found them before we did, let¡¯s go help¡± Amethyst immediately veers to the direction of the laser without a word of response, accelerating her flight. They cross over a small clearing and spot the men of the IWV dragging Tyrchids confined in netgun¡¯s white nets. Loaded onto hoverplates for ease of transport and pulled along using the cords of the netguns. The soldiers have just finished capturing another and are in the process of delivering a hoverplate to put it on. Zapped inside their nets, the captured Tyrchids struggle to break free in vain. ¡°Land us somewhere near but where they cannot see us, okay?¡± Frank says as Amethyst veers back to the clearing for another fly over. ¡°..." ¡°Amethyst?¡± Amethyst stops her wings, bends them upwards and starts a sudden free fall. Frank cannot utter a sound in protest, feeling like his internal organs would shoot from his mouth instead of words. A short fall later, a single flap of her wings softens the fall slightly, though all of Frank wants to keep on going down with gravity. Amethyst slams on the ground quick and hard, bending from her four legs¡¯ knees, one leg directly stabbing and cutting the line of the netgun to the newly captured Tyrchid. She is zapped through her leg as the cord breaks, but doesn¡¯t even flinch from the pain. The freed Tyrchid buzzes and with heated blades breaks the powered off net and runs into the forest. Pineapple jumps from Frank¡¯s lap immediately as they land and Amethyst quickly lays down Frank on his feet, who teeters a moment after the sudden rollercoaster. The soldiers right in front of them immediately raise their weapons. Amethyst keeps her blades in front of her, walking sideways, going to stomp more net lines. ¡°Wait! Please!¡± Frank says pleading his hands up, realizing now he left all of his stuff back in the ship, including his weapon. ¡°Frank?¡± One familiar voice sounds as a man makes his way through the platoon. ¡°At ease men¡± The soldiers obey the order and lower their guns. The squad leader steps forwards, grabs the hem of his hat and adjusts it higher on his head, revealing all of his face. ¡°Jack! You got sent here?¡± Frank recognizes his friend instantly. ¡°I sure did, but what in the blazes are you doing here? With a Tyrchid no less... Wait, the Tyrchid maybe? And what''s the deal with the¡­ cat?¡± Pineapple stands next to Frank, its eyes closed and head held high. ¡°I¡¯m here to save my brothers and sisters¡± Amethyst says defiant and looks at the soldiers as she stomps on another cord, the Tyrchid breaks free of the net and flees. ¡°What the fuck, they can talk!?¡± Jill breaks through the crowd. ¡°Oh hey Jill, you¡¯re here too¡± ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m supposed to be here, unlike some people. How about you get lost and stop interrupting our mission...¡± ¡°You¡¯ve done enough damage already¡± Jill shoots him a gaze that could kill, before pointing her weapon at him that can. ¡°Let¡¯s not get too hasty¡± Jill''s gun is pressed down by Jack, who becomes the target of her furious eyes instead. ¡°I¡¯m sure Frank has a perfectly good explanation as to why he has decided to come and ruin everything we¡¯ve accomplished so far¡± Jack says calm, with scarily empty silver eyes. ¡°Yes, Midnight Iris is the home planet of Tyrchids, a planet of a new sapient species, you know what that means right?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t get paid enough to play guessing games¡± Jill answers instead of Jack. Jack grabs the cap of his hat and pushes it downwards, covering his eyes slightly. ¡°Yeah figures¡­¡± He sighs and shakes his head, the earrings on his left ear reflects the light of the suns directly to Frank''s eyes. ¡°That¡¯s that then. We are getting out of here¡± Jack quickly concludes and starts walking away, grabbing Jill¡¯s shoulder and pulling her with him. ¡°Jack!? What the hell?¡± Jill questions him as she breaks free and turns around to avoid falling over. She stomps after him, as further voices of dissatisfaction ring out among the troop. ¡°We can¡¯t just leave empty handed!¡± Jill protests further, Frank now realizing that she also wore similar earrings on her left ear as Jack. What a sweet couple. ¡°You heard the man, let¡¯s not start any galactic wars out here alright? One simply doesn¡¯t mess with the ISSA. Release the rest of the Tyrchids¡± Jack continues. The men obey, released Tyrchids flee into the forest, the soldiers gripe as they start walking away. ¡°We really did it Amethyst!¡± Amethyst beams as a response, before asking: ¡°What is the ISSA though?¡± ¡°Well-¡± ¡°AAAAargh!¡± ¡°Auugh!¡± ¡°ACKGH!¡± Bone chilling shrieks fill Frank¡¯s body with adrenaline and pushes a cold sweat to his skin, he turns to look towards the noise. Tyrchids stab the soldiers through their chests, chop off their limbs, blood flows on the ground like a river. Amethyst stares at her slaughtering kin in disbelief. "W-what are you doing!? Stop!" The soldiers struggle to fight back, the unrest in their ranks made them unprepared for an ambush. A familiar severed head flies into the air and lands on the already red leaves on the ground, further coloring them crimson. ¡°J-Jack!¡± Jill sways in the middle of the carnage, she starts turning around slowly, struggling to do so. Her comrades are torn asunder all around her, blood splatters to the side of her face, but she doesn¡¯t flinch. Facing directly at Frank, she glares at him with yellow piercing eyes of anger. She limps towards them and holds her chest with both hands, as she removes one, blood shoots from the gaping hole. With that hand, she grabs the handle of her rifle hanging from her shoulder, her hand trembles wildly as she attempts to raise it up, towards Frank. ¡°You¡­¡± Her yellow eyes burn with hatred and loathing. ¡°Jill...¡± The weapon rises slightly before her hand limply looses all strength. Her eyes roll back as her face is erased of feeling. Jill¡¯s body slumps face first onto the ground. This cannot be happening. This isn¡¯t real. SCRLING A loud sound of crystals hitting together rings right behind him. Frank turns to see Amethyst crossing blades with another Tyrchid, both of their blades aflame as they strain against each other. The other Tyrchid is of the same size, its eyes green tinted and hair short and of the same color. ¡°W-what are you doing!? Frank¡¯s on our side!¡± Amethyst says to no apparent effect. Amethyst pushes the Tyrchid away, which retreats a few extra steps backwards. Frank looks back at the Tyrchid group, they have finished their massacre, a bloody mess of human organs, heads, arms... all sorts of gore. No survivors. His head aches and throbs, his vision blurs from the sight before him. ¡°T-they are¡­ eating them¡± Frank says weakly and feels faint, he sways and staggers before dropping onto the ground on all fours. The smell of the carnage invades his nose and his mind, he retches but keeps it in somehow. Pineapple nuzzles against him, as if trying to comfort him. Amethyst looks around to see that they are surrounded by other Tyrchid¡¯s that have appeared and stalk them from the edge of the clearing. On top of those already feeding and the one facing Amethyst. All of them bear this hostile look on their gray faces, in their judging hybrid eyes. A look given to somebody who doesn¡¯t belong, who¡¯s an intruder in their forest. ¡°B-but I¡¯m one of you! W-why are you doing this?!¡± Amethyst realizes something and instead of talking human language, produces a guttural echoed buzzing. The Tyrchid before her doesn¡¯t respond, opting to just stand there. Amethyst looks back at Frank, he is down on all fours, shaking. His long hair spread all around his back and over his head in a mess. They carefully approach him, wary of the Tyrchids around them, Pineapple hisses at the group to their side and blinds them. Amethyst hastily scoops Frank to her arms, Pineapple jumps on top of him, he weakly grabs hold of Amethyst as they quickly ascend into the sky. The dazed Tyrchids stay on the ground, as do the others, opting to not give chase. However, the one Amethyst dueled with soon appears into the sky after them. ¡°Pineapple!¡± Amethyst turns mid flight against their assailant, Frank holds on tight to her and the cat, the pit of his stomach not approving this maneuver. Pineapple flashes their chaser with its blinding light, it starts swaying from side to side in the air and starts to fall. It soon recovers and corrects its flying upright again, but gives up the chase regardless, returning down to the forest. Amethyst flies back towards the quarry and speaks, as the immediate danger has passed. ¡°I¡­ I¡¯m so sorry¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t know¡­ this would happen...¡± ¡°Jack¡­ Jill¡­ all of them¡­ They just-¡± Frank jerks upwards on her arms, threatening to throw up. Amethyst quickly adjusts her arms closer together to not drop him. ¡°It¡¯s my fault¡­ I should have seen this coming¡± ¡°I¡­ It¡¯s not your fault¡­ there was nothing you could do¡± ¡°And¡­ it¡¯s not like you are like them¡± ¡°Yeah¡­ not... like them...¡± Amethyst gazes down at her forest, it didn¡¯t feel like home anymore, as if she wasn¡¯t welcome here anymore... The purple of trees, the crimson grass and flowers. The smell of the fresh air and the humid wind on her face, waving her hair with its gentle blow. It all suddenly felt so... Foreign. Hostile. ¡°I guess we at least succeeded in saving your family... So... what do we do now?¡± ¡°We take back the planet¡± She says firmly, but hesitates: ¡°I-If you still¡­¡± ¡°I- of course. We¡¯ve come too far to give up now..." Frank looks up at Amethyst''s face through his hazy eyes, she looks ahead determined, but pain shines through her sad eyes and quivering lips. 15. Recapture / Legacy The main entrance to the Intergalactic Resources facility is guarded by two men. Clad in uniforms textured with a digital camouflage of gray, brown and black, differing from the greens and light browns of IWV''s. Three steps of gray stone stairs lead up to them, a small roof of stone sheltering their heads, held up by round pillars of equally bland color. The entrance¡¯s materials not matching the rest of the building, but it had captured the same apathy and simplicity regardless. This entryway meant for pedestrian traffic, would have been completely deserted if not for the guards, a stark contrast compared to the landing site before. A dirt path leading down from it, trampled in the middle of red grass and small swaying pink flowers, proving it had its busy moments too. Amethyst touches down on the trail, in full view of the guards. Her unfurling wings shatter, raining shards onto the dirt, faintly clinking against the pebbles and sinking amidst the blades of grass, making for quite the entrance. Pineapple jumps to the ground from Frank¡¯s lap first, before Amethyst sets him down gracefully on his feet. Despite them being caught unaware, the guards quickly level their laser rifles and aim at them. ¡°It¡¯s you! The man and the purple menace!¡± The young army man on the right of the door shouts, blond short hair bursting out from under his cap. Pineapple growls dissatisfied with the lack of recognition for him. ¡°Don¡¯t you move¡± A man wearing black sunglasses orders, completely hiding his eyes with them. Not receiving any extra attention despite its protest, Pineapple sits down to spectate and see how the scene unfolds. ¡°At ease, we aren¡¯t hostile, we just need to have a word with the director of this place¡± Frank calms the men with his hands held up in front of him. ¡°You think we¡¯d just let you waltz right to her?¡± The left guard looks them down from over his black sleek shades, revealing his dark brown eyes, a deep scar running over his left eye. ¡°What kind of guards would that make us then, huh?¡± ¡°We will not harm her, I promise¡± Amethyst says. The bespectacled man flicks his weapon¡¯s battery off from safety, his buddy following, with less than steady hands. They raise their guns from their hips up to their shoulders and sharpen up their focus as they both take aim at Amethyst. ¡°You should leave¡± ¡°We aren¡¯t going anywhere until we meet her¡± Amethyst says back. Frank shows up to the side of the young man on the right and presses his gun down towards the ground. He looks at Frank confused, not noticing his approach for them focusing only on Amethyst. The guard struggles against Frank¡¯s grip on his gun. ¡°Let go!¡± "Get it together Sam" The other guard says, keeping his aim at Amethyst. Before it turns into a fight, Frank places his other hand on the guard¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Come on, if you really want to make sure we behave, then just come with us¡± The man stops struggling for the control of the gun, as his uncertain green eyes calm down. ¡°Ehh, I-I suppose... Is that alright Douglas? Can we leave our post for this?¡± Frank lets go of his weapon, as an accord seems to have been reached. ¡°Stop being so soft, Larsenia is too important to waste her time with them¡­ And it¡¯s Doug¡± ¡°We will meet with her. Whether you allow it or not¡± Amethyst says sternly, standing her ground in front of the barrel of Doug. ¡°Do you really want to make her angry? We can do this the easy or the hard way, both leading us to meeting with her¡± ¡°And in both of these ways¡­ what happens to the Director?¡± ¡°She lives, but¡­ you might not¡± Amethyst threatens with a neutral voice. He sighs deeply and lowers his gun, putting the safety back on. ¡°Fine¡­ we will escort you there¡± He gestures with his gun to the double doors, a different, darker, shade of gray than the rest of the entrance. ¡°Come on, was that so hard?¡± Sam blurts out. Doug doesn¡¯t respond, the silence causing him to realize the line he crossed. The black shades just stare at him, Sam¡¯s own reflection in them telling him the answer. Pineapple stands up and stretches in large motions, its double tails, fluffy like cleaning dusters, vibrate along with the enjoyable act. ¡°Thanks¡± Frank says and takes the lead, pushing open the double doors, which reveal a beam of metal in the middle. He almost walks right at it. Moreover, the doors are loaded with springs, so they flap right back closed as he retreats from the near collision. ¡°What a truly terrible door¡± He says as he instead walks through the right one and holds it open. Pineapple takes the opportunity to zoom inside, stopping a few meters in, he observes the wide corridor busy with traffic opening before him: people, workers, walking and running, carrying packages, driving around on small machinery. What a perfect opportunity to run right in the thick of it, darting past the bewildered workers, zigzagging between their legs. Soon they''d all run after him in a frenzy, keeping up the chase and chaos for as long as he liked, until he''d finally ''accidentally'' end up in a dead end. Right in the peak of their joy, when they''d finally think they caught the troublemaker, he''d turn around and zap them all with his radiance and make his escape. ... For the time being, the fantasy itself was enough for the alien cat, as he sits down elegantly to wait and wash up in the meantime, while his servants engaged in some meaningless conversation. Sam¡¯s face lights up, somebody finally agreed with him about the state of the door. ¡°Right? Who thought it was a good idea to put that metal there. A real hazard I say!¡± ¡°It¡¯s supposed to be a two lane door, you enter from the right while those leaving can use the left door¡­¡± Doug corrects him. ¡°Ohh¡± Sam says instinctively, hit by this revelation. ¡°You are not supposed to fling both of them open, like some child who can''t control themselves¡± The sheer disappointment in his voice is enough to carry through his feelings, even with his hidden eyes and neutral expression. Frank feels a sting of shame, this wasn''t the first double door he had opened with such disregard. Amethyst carefully steps up the narrow stone stairs and crouches underneath the roof. ¡°Can I remove it though? I don''t think I will fit inside otherwise¡± ¡°Can you?" Sam asks surprised. "I wouldn''t mind getting rid of it, I have the right to fling open both doors if I want to!¡± Frank silently cheers on Sam''s brave and inspiring conviction, deciding against voicing it himself. ¡°Just watch¡± Amethyst heats up her hand blades and they swoosh into flames. ¡°Hey, don¡¯t-¡± Doug reaches out to stop Amethyst. She swings at the top of the metal beam, a clean cut, but a bit too long. ¡°Sorry, I cut the other door a little too¡± A small slit on the left door, which oozes molten plastic, slowly melting the gap bigger. His hand stops in the air before it reaches Amethyst, the perpetually expressionless face replaced with an astonished gaping mouth. He quickly retains his composure and mutters under his breath: "Damn kids, the lot of ''em" ¡°That¡¯s so cool!¡± Sam exclaims leaning forwards. ¡°Wait, I¡¯ll hold the other door for you¡± He slips past Amethyst and pushes the left door open too. ¡°Okay go!¡± Amethyst crouches further and reaches the bottom of the beam, cutting it with ease, it falls inside with a clang and a clatter. ¡°Whoo! The door is finally fixed!¡± The other guard grunts and pushes his sunglasses deeper on his nose. Before Amethyst can walk inside, Doug shows up to her side and grabs her arm. Amethyst turns to look at him bewildered. ¡°Don¡¯t even think of pulling any more tricks with those blades of yours¡± The black screens stare at her. ¡°But I don¡¯t do tricks?¡± Amethyst answers confused. He lets go of her and cuts in front, kicking the steel beam loudly, it launches to the right and hit''s the wall and Frank''s big brown boots. "Hey!" "Sam, take the rear" he shouts as he walks on past Frank without a word or a glance at him. "Y-yes sir!" Sam shouts back. Doug stops ahead at the wide corridor''s edge and waits, Pineapple looks up at the man curiously. Sam follows Amethyst intently as she lumbers past him and through the door without difficulty, other than having to stay constantly hunched. They gather on the threshold to the wide and taller main corridor, some colored lines seem to be on the ground as guide lines. Seven lines for left and right, each a different color, fourteen in total. The halls are well lit with lamps sunken into the white ceiling, walls a surprisingly light gray color. "Alright Pineapple, you''re coming with me" Frank says and picks up Pineapple, holding it against his chest. The cat looks up at him long and hard, but surrenders to its fate. Doug gestures them to follow and takes the lead to the right. Sam keeps the rear, they march through the crowded corridor, however they are given plenty of space ahead of time. ¡°W-what is it doing here!?¡± ¡°They finally caught it!¡± Some of the passersby''s gossiping reaches the group''s ears. ¡°Aaagh!¡± One man screams and runs to a room along the corridor to hide, slamming the door loudly. ¡°Now to the right¡± Doug says and also gestures with his hand showing the way. They obey and take a right to a narrower corridor, the orange, red and white line snaking on the floor with them. Only few personnel walk along this corridor, their clothes being fine and clean unlike the overall wearing workers, they eye the strange group with concealed curiosity. ¡°Next left¡± They walk down an even narrower corridor, just wide enough for Amethyst to walk in normally and still have room for a person to walk past her. Only the white line left to keep them company, the sole survivor of its fourteen brothers. ¡°Stop" Doug holds out a hand. ¡°I¡¯ll get the door¡± He knocks on the door twice. ¡°Director, you have visitors¡± ¡°Come in!¡± A muffled voice of a lady sounds through. ¡°Better brace yourself¡­¡± Doug says back and opens the door, stepping to the side with it. Frank steps into the room holding Pineapple, followed by Amethyst. Director stands up from the table, a young looking woman with long blond hair and glasses. Donning a white shirt, a mix of a typical office attire and an army commander¡¯s uniform. She abruptly stands up upon seeing them. ¡°We are here to talk¡± Amethyst says. The director sits back down, surrounded by a U-shaped table, filled with monitors, papers and handheld devices. Despite the sheer amount of stuff, the office appears tidy. She lays her hands on the table reserved and stares at the invaders in her office. A thoughtful look in her blue eyes, with a hint of irritation on her cheekbones, a moment passes in silence. ¡°Go on then, speak¡± ¡°We would-¡± ¡°Not you, the purple one¡± She cuts off Frank without hesitation. ¡°Please leave my planet¡± Amethyst says back sternly and meets the Director''s challenging gaze. ¡°Why should we do that? We own it¡± ¡°Because you are not welcome here¡± ¡°That¡¯s unfortunate but not grounds for us to abandon all of our investments, the billions of dollars poured into this facility¡± Her interest on the conversation seems to waver as she sizes up Frank and Pineapple in the middle of her speech. ¡°This is the Tyrchid¡¯s home... my home, do you want to mess with the ISSA?¡± Amethyst parrots what she heard before. ¡°Is that so?¡± She adjusts herself, rolls on the office chair to the side and half-disappears behind a monitor, typing on the keyboard right before her. ¡°Well, to be honest with you, the application is submitted, we are giving you an ahead notice to avoid any galactic repercussions¡± Frank chimes in and pets the sleepy Pineapple on his arms. Larsenia focuses her visible eye on Frank as he speaks, but does not respond. The clicking of a keyboard fills the air again. Frank takes out his communicator and checks the galactic standard time it is set on. ¡°In fact, why don¡¯t you tune into... lets say channel 888 news right now¡± The director projects the channel''s broadcast on the left wall from her computer with impressive speed. ¡°Reportedly, women over the age of 35 have an increased risk of catching the Dust Sentence -virus, spreading throughout Metropolis once again. It was first seen about ten years ago, diminishing in active cases steadily since, however it has made a new resurgence-¡± Larsenia slams the keyboard and mutes the broadcast. ¡°Are you mocking me? H-how could you tell I was really that old?¡± Larsenia''s cheeks puffed up she gets up from her chair, pink spreading on her face. ¡°Guards!¡± ¡°No no! 35 isn¡¯t even old! In fact I¡¯m- no that¡¯s not the point!¡± The two guards surround them from both sides, Doug instantly grabs his arm and starts pulling him towards the door. Amethyst glares at Frank, disappointed. ¡°Just- just hold on a minute, that was just unfortunate timing! How could I have known exactly on the dot what they¡¯d report and when!¡± Frank fights against Doug''s pull. Larsenia is not convinced and Sam grabs Frank''s other arm, Pineapple wakes up and jumps off from his lap onto the floor. ¡°L-look, they¡¯re just about to cover it! Just unmute it, please!¡± Larsenia slowly sits down, a single finger descending on the keyboard, a key clacks. The guards still hold Frank, but stop pulling him away. ¡°And our next story is from the Intergalactic Sapient Species Association¡± The left of the two news reporters say, a man, by the name of Ur''kai, according to the text on screen. He''s well dressed in a black suit with a snazzy lime and lemon colored tie. His rough big red hands laying on the table, very slightly gesturing with his speech. Behind his back, closed large veiny wings dominate the scene, along with black horns curved in a G-shape on his head. A human subspecies, known as Ashen ¨C not a Demon, calling them as such was a grave offence. The right news anchor, a bald woman with modest make up, slightly red lips and long black lashes adorn her striking orange eyes. This beautiful tanned woman wears a simple red dress, a blurb reveals her name to be Ninnha, as she continues the broadcast: ¡°ISSA has received a new application from a new Sapient species, though it is not yet approved, their representatives will soon embark to Midnight Iris to meet this new Tyrchid species in their own habitat¡± Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. Larsenia¡¯s eyes widen in surprise and everyone in the room immerses themselves into following the news. ¡°As is tradition, all ISSA documents and applications are public information and handled post haste. Just like here on Channel 888, you can trust us to be on top of all current affairs, as you dear viewer are right on time for this galaxy''s first coverage!" Ur¡¯kai speaks with a rough but excitable voice, smirking a charming sharp-teethed smile. ¡°Here you see the first ever picture of a Tyrchid, it was provided to them with the application¡± Camera pans to the left of Ninnha, and she presents a picture of Amethyst. She''s in a white cage with a fierce look in her eyes, just about to strike the force field with a flaming blade. ¡°Not to worry citizens, the applicant described that this picture is of a misunderstanding and the Tyrchid in question is no longer imprisoned. Though clearly not happy about this situation, let¡¯s not get off on the wrong foot shall we?¡± ¡°If any Tyrchids are watching right now, we hope that this incident does not sully our future relations¡± Ur¡¯kai quips as the view returns to show them both again, the picture disappeared. The camera zooms backwards and the two news anchor''s chairs automatically spread further apart, a graph appears in the middle of them. ¡°A period of much economical and cultural growth always soon follows after a new species is officially granted their protection and made an official citizen species of our galaxy¡± She gestures with her hand to the many lines and blocks on the graph, showing positive spikes when new members have joined, with an overall upwards trend over time too. ¡°Opening up easy ways for the new species to build relations and establish trade, a beneficial arrangement for all involved if there ever was one¡± The Ashen adds. ¡°I think I speak for all when I wish the Tyrchid¡¯s good luck so that they can join us soon as a new sapient species. We will welcome you with open arms!¡± Ninnha symbolically opens her arms, showing off her red painted nails. ¡°Hope to see you in the Metropolis soon!¡± Ur''kai performing a gesture somewhere in between a hat rise and a salute. ¡°Next, a new discovery has just been made on the ruined Earth¡¯s excavation site-¡± Larsenia mutes the broadcast again and intently turns to look at the visitors in silence, her arms resting on her desk. ¡°Frank¡­ what was that picture of me?¡± Amethyst whispers. ¡°Sorry¡­ I didn¡¯t have any good ones and I was in a hurry¡­¡± The director holds her head and slowly shakes it. She looks back at the visitors and adjust her glasses further back up her nose. ¡°Well it seems you have us beat then..." A heavy sigh escapes her lips. "Very well, who do I owe the displeasure of being outwitted by?¡± ¡°Frank Sinett" Frank brings a hand to his chest. ¡°Amethyst¡± And Amethyst mimics the same gesture with her blade. ¡°Frank¡­ Amethyst...¡± She looks at each of them. ¡°You have my word, we will depart within the hour... however, there is a condition¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Amethyst asks. Larsenia raises to half-standing from her chair and looks over her desk at the yellow cat struggling with the whims of evolution, unable to scratch behind its ear with its back leg, the cone being in the way. ¡°Give me that cat¡± Pineapple freezes in place at the mention of its name, before perking up and looking up at Larsenia. ¡°Why would you want Pineapple?¡± Frank asks, as the cat jumps on the table of its own volition, right before Larsenia, who¡¯s face lights up. ¡°What an amusing name, it really suits you, a cute name for a cute cat¡± She pets the cat¡¯s silky smooth fur and practically starts glowing as Pineapple nuzzles against her hand. ¡°You know Pineapple is really bad natured, he¡¯ll attack you for no reason, is proud and selfish...¡± Larsenia scratches Pineapple behind its ear, and it starts to purr. ¡°He¡¯s also really loud and useful with his light flash attack¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Intrigue shines through Larsenia¡¯s voice. Pineapple turns to look at Frank, smugly, before prancing around on the table and brushing against Larsenia¡¯s arm again. ¡°A-anyway, we can¡¯t possibly give you Pineapple¡± Frank steps forwards and quickly picks up the happy purring cat, too busy to notice while being doted on by her. It resists and swishes with its legs in the air during the lift. He holds it with straight arms to stay out of its claws'' range as the cat growls deeply. Larsenia''s expression turns sour as Frank takes Pineapple away. ¡°Hmph, I was just kidding, I-I hate cats and all cat like creatures¡± Pineapple struggles harder in Frank¡¯s lap, its nails drawn and swishing at the air, at Larsenia now instead. ¡°So you¡¯ll still leave?¡± Amethyst asks hopeful. ¡°Yes yes¡­ now please leave my office¡± Larsenia brings a hand to her temples and massages them while leaning on them, her eyes closed. The guards escort them out of the door. As the door closes, The Director turns the chair around and picks up a mic from a stand on the table. ¡°Attention all personnel, Attention all personnel, this is Director Larsenia speaking, you are to evacuate this planet within the hour, take what equipment you can with you. Do not panic, just be glad we are finally leaving this shit hole. I repeat-¡± They enter back into the narrow corridor, Larsenia¡¯s announcement plays all around the facility, from loudspeakers embedded and hidden somewhere in the walls. Ahead, personnel hurriedly run around in the previously tranquil three line wide corridor. ¡°I trust you¡¯ll find your own way out¡± Doug says to them while walking away from them, not bothering to wait around for a response. ¡°We¡¯ll be fine!¡± Frank shouts after him "Yeah, I''ll take my leave too, good luck" Sam waves at the group and inches away. "Bye Sam" Amethyst responds with a small wave of her own. Sam jogs away and soon joins into the current of people, Amethyst, Frank and Pineapple are left alone in the corridor. Pineapple starts struggling in his lap. ¡°You won¡¯t run off to do mischief or go get back at Larsenia if I let you down, right?¡± The cat just stares at him silently. ¡°I¡¯m sure he won¡¯t, Pineapple is a good cat¡± Frank¡¯s communicator starts vibrating in his pocket. ¡°Okay down you go, someone¡¯s calling me¡± He dredges it out of his trouser¡¯s pocket and looks at the caller¡¯s name. A tired sigh is let loose as he thinks: It really is just one thing right after the other... ¡°Amethyst, Rocco is calling me, the man who captured you back in the hangar¡± Frank walks backwards, deeper along the corridor, to escape from the noise of the wider one, and to make sure they are not clobbered by the door if Larsenia wishes to exit her office. ¡°Him?...Are you going to answer it?¡± Amethyst follows after him, Pineapple underneath her, it seemed to think this as an interesting place to be. After all, she was the only one this could be done to, well, without tripping said person. Frank stops, midway to the next door, he fidgets around with the phone like device before answering her. ¡°Yeah, I think I should¡± Amethyst walks close to Frank. ¡°But what does he want with you?" ¡°I have a pretty good guess¡± The phone still vibrates in his hand and he finally accepts the video call. Rocco¡¯s bandage wrapped head greets them, along with his incandescent face. ¡°WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING!?¡± ¡°What¡¯s up Rocco?¡± ¡°You know full well what¡¯s up! Don¡¯t play dumb with me! You are behind that ISSA application!¡± ¡°I sure am, just one visit to ISSA''s public database tells you as much¡± Rocco''s angry rant suddenly ends as this unexpected answer pulls him out of his thoughts. ¡°What are you trying to pull? You know there is harsh sanctions for submitting fake ISSA applications!¡± Rocco asks, mostly calm now. ¡°Fake? Do you not know Tyrchid¡¯s are sapient?¡± ¡°I highly doubt that, I-¡± Frank tilts the camera so that Amethyst''s head appears in the shot. ¡°Hello¡± She smiles contentedly. Rocco grits his teeth. ¡°This is not over, you¡¯ll see¡± ¡°I highly doubt that¡± Frank copies his answer and smirks, though it is a smile devoid of ridicule. ¡°Just you w-¡± A sound of a door opening and slamming shut is heard through the phone speakers, Rocco looks away from the camera. ¡°Boss! The Space Coppers are here!¡± ¡°FRANK! W-why!?" His face fills the whole screen, the red builds up on his cheeks before fading as his cobalt blue eyes grow panicked. "How could you do that to us...¡± His gaze restlessly darts between Frank, Amethyst and somewhere off screen. ¡°No hard feelings Rocco¡± ¡°I¡¯ll take you down with me!¡± He focuses on Frank again and points a fat finger at him. ¡°Go ahead tell em all you know, I''m all clean. They freed me of all charges" Frank can''t help but feel a little smug. ¡°Even to everything you did before?¡± ¡°How do you-? O-of course" Amethyst eyes up Frank without turning her head, a crack in his facade tells her the truth. She had seen Frank lie so many times, she''d started on picking up on some of his cues. ¡°Why... this can¡¯t be happening¡± Rocco despairs and covers his head with his hands, grasping at hair that he doesn''t have. The phone drops from his hand onto the table, showing only the soothing light blue ceiling of his office. ¡°If you plead guilty maybe they¡¯ll let you get off easy and put you in the open wing of Hadel, I hear the planet is quite beautiful actually¡± ¡°I¡­ I thought you were on my side¡­ that you understood me¡­ I see how it is now..." Rocco''s voice is heard quieter from off screen. "Two can play that game¡± He cuts the call and stands up from his lavish leather chair. ¡°Talk to me Bruce, how far are they into the facility?¡± ¡°Inside at least, I don¡¯t know-¡± Bruce is interrupted as the closed door behind him slams into his back, sending him face first on the floor. He barely manages to prevent his head from smashing against the hard pastel blue floor, causing everything else to painfully hit it instead. ¡°Rocco I presume?¡± A man dressed in a decorated Police uniform enters from between two burly men who broke down the door. His nameplate reads Chief Aldricht, A young man, who looks barely even eighteen. ¡°Take them in¡± The groaning Bruce is ripped up from the ground and his arms twisted behind his back. ¡°Aghh that hurts-¡± Steel cuffs are fastened around his wrists, still the number one choice for all restraining needs. So this is how it ends¡­ Rocco stands still with empty eyes, as he is cuffed too, showing no resistance. Aldricht approaches him and walks behind him as he is held in place by the other policeman. ¡°You should know better than to sign up for an organization of my uncle¡± He kicks Rocco from behind to his knees, he falls down, barely avoiding falling down further. ¡°Or well, the wrong uncle. I guess the mighty Crondestons never could recover from that day... Father really did do an excellent job¡± As Rocco drops to his knees, his mind returns to a hospital room, all too familiar to him. Inside, two iron frame beds, a window that overlooked the town and the continuous, never ending, beep of heart monitors. The rancid smell of musty sheets and stifling air vividly comes back to him. Couldn¡¯t even wait for your son on his big day. This isn''t enough? ¡­ I see. He covers his face with his hands but tears do not come. ¡­ Instead his face only contorts in seething anger. His whole body feels hot, as does his face, maybe his tear canals were completely dried up, arid and dusty as the desert climate outside. Maybe it was something else. Rocco stands up but does not look at his parents. His ears ring with the constant single beep, deafeningly playing without end. The blood rushing in his ears grows louder and overwhelms the sound, until he can even hear his own heartbeat. Hanging his head like his neck had no bones, he takes a swaying step, with each step towards the door his stride steadies and his head rises. He slams the door open, it hits the back cement wall so hard it slightly comes off its hinges. As he steps through, it swings back, and the nameplate ¡°Crondeston¡± falls down, covering the floor with small glass shards from its protective glass. Hurried footsteps echo from the bend of the white corridor behind him, he walks the other way for the exit and passes by reception. ¡°How were your parents doing?¡± A sprightly young lady peeks from behind a monitor, sitting at a wooden service desk. This sincere comment completely paralyzes him, his head clears as the red escapes his face. ¡°Honestly? The best they¡¯ve ever been¡± He fails to procure a fake smile. ¡°How delightful to hear¡± She beams a smile so divine, it wrenches his heart, almost squeezing a tear loose. He looks away and quickly leaves the hospital as the receptionist¡¯s phone rings. ¡°Mister! Mister Crondeston!¡± The woman runs after him and hails from the entrance, between the automatic glass doors. But the man already has quite the head start, his black locks flowing in the wind in his wake. ¡°Come back, your parents-!¡± He keeps on walking through the sandy parking lot underneath the scorching sun and ignores the receptionist¡¯s pleas. ¡°They- They¡¯ve¡­¡± her voice trails off. ¡­ Rocco is kicked again and he free falls on his face. His teeth strike against the blue tile floor, producing a terrible sound, followed by his wounded forehead right after. The pain is amplified tenfold from his wounded already on his forehead, he bites his lip to stop himself from screaming. Taste of blood fills his mouth, his tongue automatically runs over his teeth and follows the trail, locating an empty space between his upper teeth. ¡°Nothing to say? No pleas? No begging? Aren¡¯t you the silent type¡± Aldricht continues to taunt him. ¡°¡­¡± Did you not wait for me¡­ because... you know all along¡­ I¡¯d fail? ¡°Are you really even him? Everyone always goes on and on how harsh Rocco is, how he¡¯s angry like no other, were all of those stories just fabrications?¡± ¡°...¡± Did you always know¡­ I wasn¡¯t going to make it? Rocco presses his eyelids tightly shut to prevent the tears. Though it was a useless reaction, he couldn''t cry even if he wanted to. ¡°Fine then, let¡¯s go¡± The chief finally says, the henchmen grab Rocco from his suit¡¯s back collar and pull him to his feet. ¡°¡­¡± That I¡¯d never be successful like you... ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ll make you talk yet, nobody will have any complaints of how you are treated, if it leads to the arrest of the real CEO of Intergalactic¡± Him¡­ Maybe all is not lost... A faint smile spreads on Rocco¡¯s lips as he is dragged away.
As Rocco''s call is cut, Frank stares at the phone with mixed feelings. He brushes them aside and quickly checks his notification bar. Two alerts from his email: ¡°Application received and in progress¡± from ISSA, received only minutes after he sent the email back in Viridian Macula. They were frighteningly fast to act. And another email titled ¡°Re: Viridian Macula¡¯s IWV facility¡± A reply from the Galactic Police. He felt the temptation of reading it right way, his finger trembled over email''s notification, but he instead forms a fist and pulls his hand away. Amethyst notices this, still standing right next to him. He pockets his communicator away, rather read the replies at a better time. ¡°That¡¯s that then. Midnight Iris is safe again¡± Amethyst beams a smile as her eyes meet with Frank''s. ¡°As is my family¡± ¡°Yeah¡­¡± Uncomfortable memories cause him to look away. Susurration of steps, talking and occasional shouts fill the silence. Pineapple nuzzles against Amethyst''s hard leg and then at Frank''s soft trousers. ¡°Frank¡­ A-are you going to leave?¡± Warily Frank meets Amethyst''s sad eyes. ¡°Do you want me to? I was going to ask if I could stay¡± ¡°But what about your old life? Your home?¡± ¡°Well... life at Viridian Macula wasn¡¯t all bad, but recently I just couldn¡¯t stop thinking of how I¡¯ve been stuck there for over ten years...¡± ¡°You''ve really been there that long?¡± ¡°Haha, yeah" Frank awkwardly scratches the back of his head, ruffling his long blond hair. "Besides, Viridian Macula isn¡¯t even my home planet, Metropolis is, I just work- or worked there. So I don''t really have anything there for me anymore...¡± Pineapple attacks his leg playfully, biting through his pants and wrapping its paws around his leg. "You don''t sound so sure..." Frank finally notices Pineapple and lifts it up to his lap, on its back, the cat starts to swish at his hair and pulling at the long locks. ¡°If I''ll miss something, that''d be my cottage... Building it was a lot of work, truly, but it was all worth it¡± Frank has a hard time retaining focus in talking with his hair being pulled. ¡°Not your camera? Didn¡¯t you like photographing?¡± Amethyst asks surprised and amused at the display before her. ¡°Well yes, but I¡¯ve been thinking about it and the reason I loved it..." Frank separates some strands of hair from Pineapple''s grasp. "I think it¡¯s because I had to immortalize these creatures that I¡¯d never get to see again otherwise, who¡¯d be gone for good otherwise" Pineapple looks up at Frank, straight into his eyes as he scratches its stomach. "But I don¡¯t need that if I live out here, all of Midnight Iris is here for us to explore and experience, that isn¡¯t going to go anywhere" He shifts his gaze to Amethyst and smiles warmly. "And neither are you, I¡¯d hope¡± ¡°No, of course not, I just got here silly¡± Amethyst carefully brings her hand close to Pineapple who stops moving and looks a little terrified. She gently pets its stomach with the back of her wrist once and then backs off. ¡°So what¡¯s next now that we are both home? Wait for ISSA?¡± Pineapple keeps on staring at Amethyst, like something truly unforgivable just went down. ¡°Oh, actually I made a promise, there¡¯s something I gotta do¡± ¡°A promise? To who?¡± Frank attempts to console the terrified Pineapple, but the cat remains stiff and unresponsive, despite his best petting. ¡°You¡¯ll see, come with me¡± Amethyst teases and turns around in the corridor, her sharp legs clacking against the hard floor. "I think it''s high time we left this place already" 16. Amande /A Breather Amethyst leads Frank and Pineapple along a familiar route of dirt and pebble, down on the bottom of the quarry. The way to a certain clinic she knew all too well. Frank looks around, the tall cliff walls and the mountains of rocks, majestic in a way, but also melancholic. The untouched nature of Amethyst¡¯s home, ruined so devastatingly. They¡¯ve dug up so much ground and all those massive piles of ore... Are they really leaving all of this behind? They could have asked of us to let them transport them off first¡­ did they really have to leave at such a hurry, sure ISSA works fast but¡­ Does Intergalactic Resources know something we don¡¯t? Frank stops pondering things he can¡¯t possibly solve without more information, massages his sore shoulders and drops his gaze, fixing it at Amethyst. ¡°Where exactly are we going?¡± His question seems to have echoed on deaf ears. What if Grent¡¯s dead? What if he burned down along with the place¡­ Sure there¡¯s some things near the door that weren¡¯t there before but¡­ ¡­ The Voice¡­ I¡¯m sure he¡¯s still alive, so I can keep my promise¡­ ¡°Amethyst?¡± Frank¡¯s voice interrupts her intense staring. She had stopped in front of a pile of partially burned things, sofas, carpets, scorched machinery. They lay in a disorganized clump. ¡°What is this place?¡± ¡°I think he called it a clinic?¡± He? A clinic? Frank looks up and down the massive circular steel plate with a tiny door and a triangular hole in the bottom middle section, finding it hard to believe this would pass as a clinic anywhere. Amethyst leads the way by stepping in through the hole without prior warning, Pineapple immediately follows her. As they disappear through, Frank hurries to catches up to them. He steps in through the peculiar hole, its edges messy with hardened metal drip like frozen raindrops hanging from the top and pools of metal around it on both sides. This is definitely her handiwork. Further in to the compound, Amethyst spots Grent walking through the open door on the left, carrying a computer. The carpet is gone from in front of the door, cement is revealed in multiple spots on the floor with scorched holes. Lots of burned furniture around the place still, a thick smell of smoke layered with moisture in the air. He sets his load down and wipes sweat from his forehead. Without looking around he picks up a tablet device from near the packed up boxes. ¡°I see you¡¯re still alive Grent¡± The unaware scientist flinches and turns around hastily. ¡°W-what!? Amethyst y-you''re back!?¡± Grent utters with a horrified face. ¡°How? Why? They say you boarded the ship and-¡± Amethyst interrupts his confused ramblings. ¡°I made a promise to see you were okay, I fulfilled it, see you later¡± She turns to leave. ¡°Wait! Who did you promise that to??¡± ¡°Your wife¡± She answers with her back turned. ¡°My¡­ Wife? What? How?¡± She turns her head to look at Grent with a sideways glance. ¡°Your wife¡¯s voice in my head¡± Frank looks at Amethyst and then back at Grent in disbelief. ¡°!¡± Grent places the tablet down and runs up to Amethyst. ¡°Can it really be, Amande are you really there?¡± Grent tries to grab Amethyst''s arm but stops himself abruptly coming to his senses about the safety of the idea. Amethyst turns around to face Grent again. ¡°She¡¯s not in my head anymore, she¡­ Amande sacrificed herself to let me live¡± ¡°Oh¡­ did she¡­ say anything?¡± Her sad hybrid eyes turn into a stern focused stare as she continues: ¡°She... chided you for being so out of control without her to rein you in¡± Among other things... ¡°Ohh my Amande, she really was back!¡± He steps back from Amethyst and celebrates. ¡°This- This changes everything! I can resurrect her!¡± Grent¡¯s following laughter is of excitement and relief, with maniacal undertones. Though it is short lived as Frank steps forward to Amethyst¡¯s side. ¡°Wait, what in the godess'' name is going on?¡± Frank steps forwards to the side of the Tyrchid. Frank narrows his eyes and instinctively clenches his fists. ¡°What did you do to Amethyst, how could your wife have been in her head!?¡± ¡°I¡­ well... Who are you?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t change the subject, just tell me¡± ¡°I umm¡­ shot her with my suggestinator ray¡­¡± He mutters under his breath but Frank still hears him. ¡°And what does this ray exactly do?¡± ¡°Uhh, it temporarily imprints the mold of my late wife¡¯s consciousness, stripped of anything but basic human knowledge, speech, walking, some words and the like. In order for them to be gullible and obidient, so they can be used to follow basic orders¡± Grent nervously explains, wary of the two figures before him, suspected to not be too pleased with him at the moment. ¡°Or so I thought anyway, how could have Amande been back like that? It shouldn¡¯t be possible for the mind to have retained any actual memories...¡± ¡°So¡­ regardless, your ray somehow made Amethyst aware of herself?¡± ¡°Well¡­ yeah, the blank mind inserted is always eventually overwhelmed and destroyed or in rare cases absorbed to the original stronger human mind. As the actual personality and memories of the subject always win in the end¡­¡± ¡°But¡­ Amethyst isn¡¯t human, is that it?¡± ¡°Yeah¡­ I wanted to test what would happen, I did not anticipate this result, even if it seems obvious in hindsight¡± Grent sheepishly shrugs accompanied by an awkward smile. After all, the ray was originally made for the purpose of controlling others¡­ So what if I try to find some better uses for it? The prototype is in such ripe workable state, such potential cannot be squandered. ¡°Without the good will of your wife, Amethyst would have died, is that right?¡± Frank pushes the envelope of blame further on the scientist. ¡°Let¡¯s not start declaring any absolutes-¡± Grent attempts to stave off the anger of, what he thought to be, a man unreasonably mad at him. ¡°So you aren¡¯t even going to deny it?¡± ¡°All¡¯s well that ends well?¡± ¡°You¡­ you still made me kill mother¡­¡± Amethyst¡¯s comment brings about a dead silence, ending the men¡¯s arguing. Frank¡¯s demeanor radiates the intent of being ready to do something irreversible to Grent''s being. ¡°Let¡¯s not get hung up in the details-¡± Grent holds his hands open in front of him in a calming manner. What bothered him the most was that he didn''t know which one to really watch out for, the vocally angry man or the dangerous silence and empty floor-bound stare of Amethyst. ¡°What! Are you for real!?¡± Frank explodes, but rebuilds his wits before continuing, though letting his disgust shine through in his voice: ¡°How could you do something like that!?¡± ¡°I- ¡° Grent looks away from them both for a moment and sighs. There was no weaseling his way out of this one. ¡°I¡¯m sorry Amethyst, you see¡­¡± He struggles to come up with the words and hesitates, a look of regret and sadness reflected in his eyes. The scientist and the Tyrchid stare each other straight in the eyes. ¡°Your mother killed my wife¡± Her serious neutral expression doesn¡¯t budge, showing no sympathy, no rage. ¡°So it was revenge¡­¡± Frank says disappointed, grasping the bigger picture. ¡°I guess you can call it that¡± Grent answers abashed. Amethyst stays silent, but her brow no longer remains neutral. Appealing to her worsening state of mind, Grent makes his case. ¡°I was hurting and... in a bad place¡­ Losing Amande hurts so much¡­ I¡¯m still not over her... I know it¡¯s no excuse, but now I have hope... you¡¯ve brought it to me Amethyst. Maybe I can get her back, it¡¯s all different now¡± ¡°But Amethyst will never be able to get her mother back¡± Frank says. ¡°That is regrettable of course¡­ I am truly sorry about all that happened Amethyst¡± ¡°Are you really okay with all this?¡± Frank asks in response to her silence. ¡°I promised Amande I wouldn''t hate you¡± Amethyst looks away, her mouth contorting. ¡°Nor would I¡­ kill you¡­¡± Her hands and blades tremble. ¡°I¡¯d make sure... you¡¯re safe¡± Her eyes grow misty as they drift around the room, she notices Frank looking at her. She meets his look. It feels... comforting, like he knew exactly how she felt, eyes filled with empathy bore straight into her. ¡°Thank you Amethyst¡­¡± Grent says sincerely. ¡°I know it¡¯s not a good time¡­ but can I ask something more of you?¡± ¡°What... is it?¡± Amethyst asks without breaking her gaze with Frank, her demeanor growing softer the longer they kept it up. A gentle smile rises on Frank¡¯s face. ¡°You uhh¡­ shoo¡¯d everyone else off planet¡­ I can stay here right? I¡¯ve got my lab and everything already set up, I-¡± Grent says as he fiddles with the bandage wrapped around his arm. Frank can¡¯t take it anymore and turns beet red and breaks their gaze, Amethyst turns to look at Grent and interrupts him. ¡°Yes¡± Frank looks at Amethyst appalled, but she¡¯s focused on Grent. ¡°Thank you Amethyst! I¡¯ll be good I promise!¡± He can¡¯t help but laugh a little, which he abruptly stifles before quickly grabbing the computer and carrying it back inside his lab. Pineapple, who engaged in thorough exploring of the warehouse-like lobby during their conversation, darts after Grent and into his lab. Frank speaks up after Grent has left. ¡°Why did you allow him to stay?¡± ¡°Better here where we can keep an eye on him...and I promised, I can¡¯t ensure his safety if he is somewhere else¡± ¡°I think you¡¯ve honored that promise well enough already¡± Frank answers bluntly, letting some of his anger through. ¡°Have I? Aren¡¯t promises something eternal, something that can never be broken?¡± ¡°I uhh¡­ I suppose so? Though people don¡¯t usually treat them as permanently as that¡± ¡°Well, I do¡± Amethyst hastily answers. Frank is taken aback by her response. ¡°...Are you mad at me?¡± ¡°No¡± Another quick answer. ¡°You know if you keep promises as firmly as that I think you shouldn¡¯t lie either...¡± ¡°What? I-I¡¯m not lying, I¡¯m just not mad¡± she pouts. ¡°Alright¡± The whirring of air conditioning and some rattling from Grent¡¯s lab fill the awkward air. ¡°Besides you lie constantly¡± Amethyst snarkily adds. ¡°No I-¡± Frank raises a gesturing hand to defend against this accusation, but it quickly flops back down. ¡°Okay, you¡¯re right, but they were necessary for us to get this far¡± ¡°So it¡¯s okay to lie if you¡¯ve got a good reason for it? Is that it?¡± Amethyst shows no intent in backing down in this argument. ¡°Uhh, well, I guess so?¡± ¡°So how do I know you haven¡¯t been lying to me this whole time then? How do I know you are really on my side?¡± Amethyst looks away from him, eyes closed and towards the ceiling. ¡°I- I¡¯d never lie to you, I only lied to get us through tough situations, you know that¡± ¡°Uh-huh¡± Amethyst finds her arms crossed around her chest, a strange mannerism her body seems to have automatically taken at some point. She ponders the meaning of such a pose, of its use. When did she develop all this sass? ¡°I promise to never lie to you. Will that do? And this is your definition of a promise¡± Amethyst finally looks back at Frank and uncrosses her bladed arms. ¡°Fine-¡± ¡°You guys are still here?¡± Grent comes out of the lab and walks towards them. ¡°Uhh, we were just leaving?¡± Frank gestures for Amethyst to follow him as he turns around, his long hair fluttering. ¡°Oh before you do, care to tell me what was that Larsenia¡¯s announcement all about? How¡¯d you manage to make her do it?¡± ¡°Why are you so sure it was us?¡± Frank asks suspicious and stops as Amethyst isn¡¯t following, turning back around. ¡°Come on now, that strange announcement and you two showing up out of nowhere, there¡¯s no world where that isn¡¯t connected¡± Grent smiles smugly. ¡°Besides, if you were listening to the conversation earlier, Amethyst already admitted to it¡± ¡°Oh¡­ right¡± When did she say that!? ¡°So? How¡¯d you do it? She put me through hell to even allow me to stay here, getting them to leave should be next to impossible¡± ¡°We lied¡± Amethyst blurts out spiteful, glancing at Frank to see his reaction. ¡°No no, we didn¡¯t lie¡± Frank vehemently denies Amethyst¡¯s statement and notices her burning gaze. ¡±We just, uh, bluffed until our lie became true¡± He can¡¯t help but sound a little proud. Grent stares at them deadpanned. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Frank declared this planet as mine, as belonging to the Tyrchid species using ISSA, so Larsenia decided to leave¡± Amethyst quickly explains with a tired and dismissive tone. ¡°W-wait, what? The I-ISSA?¡± ¡°Yeah? Why are you so freaked out about it?¡± Frank asks inquisitive. Umm... ¡°Y-you know that Amethyst is the only sapient Tyrchid right?¡± ¡°But it was the only way to get them leave and to safe guard against them using-¡± Ah! I almost told him of the properties of Amethyst¡¯s blood! ¡°Using what?¡± Grent asks very interested. ¡°You are the last person I¡¯d tell that to¡± ¡°Whatever, you do know you¡¯ll probably get arrested if they find out, deemed a liar and a criminal in the public eye, shamed in front of the whole galaxy, for faking the Tyrchid¡¯s application, lying to the ISSA. Not to mention shaming the Tyrchid species and Amethyst in the process¡± ¡°Frank! Is that true?¡± ¡°Yeah¡­ but we just gotta get Tyrchid¡¯s up on the list and you gain the protection of ISSA, one of the most powerful organizations in the whole galaxy¡± ¡°Most... powerful?¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s not clear if Galactic Police, ISSA or Intergalactic Corporation is the most powerful¡± ¡°But-¡± Amethyst¡¯s protest is cut off. ¡°We just can¡¯t let them find out the truth¡± Frank insists. ¡°That¡¯s a real risky game you¡¯re playing Frank¡­¡± Grent crosses his arms and leans onto one hand thoughtful. "That gives me an idea... what if, all the Tyrchids were sapient?¡± ¡°Grent¡­ do you know what you are saying?¡± Amethyst spits out. ¡°What? We go and shoot every single Tyrchid and hope they don¡¯t just die like Amethyst almost did?¡± ¡°Well¡­ if I make an imprint of Amethyst¡¯s mind and use that instead, their minds should have a better fighting chance¡­ In theory¡­ Though a mind that¡¯s a merge between a human and Tyrchid is still stronger than an unmerged insect brain...¡± ¡°So there is no guarantee that even a single one of them survives?¡± Frank summarizes bluntly. ¡°Well, that¡¯s a possibility, albeit an unlikely worst case one, but the suggestion ray was designed to have the inserted mind expire, not get absorbed. In order for them to actually gain sapience they¡¯d need to not be too strong to completely overpower the foreign mind, but not too weak either or their original mind would get destroyed¡± While in theory even the mind destruction could just turn them into faded copies of Amethyst¡¯s blank persona, they might just become empty altogether if the mind never recovers to actual proper functional state¡­ All of the possible options are so fascinating... ¡°This isn¡¯t right¡­¡± Amethyst shakes her head with an expression of pain. ¡°We are in quite the moral dilemma, do we gamble on their lives and minds to protect them in the end or hope we can fool ISSA?¡± Please say gamble¡­ I badly need more data¡­ Especially now. ¡°Giving sapience to other beings is not a thing to just play around with¡­¡± Amethyst shoots a harsh glance at Grent, who smiles an awkward smile. ¡°But they are¡­ kind of savage right now¡­¡± Frank says thoughtlessly what was really swimming through his mind, steadily filling with a red haze. ¡°No they are not! It was self-defense! They didn¡¯t know they were leaving...¡± ¡°Sorry Amethyst... I¡¯m just still¡­¡± Frank looks like he might be sick, but keeps the revulsion at bay. ¡°I don¡¯t know really know what you¡¯re talking about, but can¡¯t you like communicate with them Amethyst, you are one of them after all?¡± ¡°They didn¡¯t exactly seem to recognize me¡­ but we should try again before we do anything... drastic¡± ¡°Alright... Well... we can think of how exactly we want to do that-¡± Frank yawns. ¡°Once we¡¯ve gotten some shut eye¡­¡± ¡°Can we stay here Grent?¡± Amethyst asks ¡°Yes, of course, plenty of room to go around and who am I to deny you after you let me stay too?¡± ¡°The last time I got any sleep was literally sleeping by the river on hard ground¡­ Grent, please tell me you got some beds here¡± ¡°Just take the door to the right for the ward, there¡¯s some hospital beds there¡± ¡°Actual beds this time?¡± Amethyst says. Grent adjusts his shirt''s collar. ¡±Yes¡± ¡°Do I want to know?¡± Frank says. ¡°No¡± they both answer at the same time. ¡°Okay, well lets just go sleep then¡± As they are about to proceed to the door, Frank stops and turns around. The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. ¡°By the way, what¡¯s the length of day here?¡± Grent stops his gait back to the lab and answers. ¡°46 hours, 36 of daylight, 2 hours of dim light due to only the smaller sun in the sky and 8 hours of darkness. There¡¯s still 18 hours of light left so you can sleep a fair bit¡± Grent says confident, without visibly even checking the time. ¡°Great¡± Frank thinks of thanking him, but decides to proceed through the door instead. Inside it, rows of hospital beds, with actual mattresses and crisp white sheets. A metal crisscross frame to allow their height to be adjusted and wheels below them. The room itself is brightly lit and very clinically white, with just a hint of blue on the floor tiles. Amethyst¡¯s legs clink on the tiles, but they seem to hold under her. Frank notices this as he walks after her, glad and envious, if only his own made wooden floor was as durable as that. How silly, he was reminiscing over his house, about the floor of all things¡­ These thoughts faded as he tried to grasp his backpack. ¡°Oh yeah, I left my backpack at the ship¡­ I¡¯ll just go get it real quick. Pineapple? Amethyst? Wanna come with?¡± Wait, where¡¯s that cat now? Oh well... ¡°I think you can handle walking that distance on your own¡± Amethyst says as she slowly samples sitting on a soft bed. That¡¯s not the point Amethyst¡­ ¡°Okay fine, I won¡¯t be long¡± As Frank leaves, Amethyst waits about ten seconds and stands up and walks to the door. Carefully opening it from the handle with her wrist, she slips out. With no Frank in sight, she slips towards the lab.
As Frank arrives at the Intergalactic Resources main facility, most of the workers are already gone. In a place that was buzzing with activity, the silence feels eerie. As he turns to walk down the yellow line to lead him to the landing pads, he hears a door open behind him. He turns to see a figure standing in the doorway. ¡°Larsenia, was it?¡± ¡°Oh. You¡± She slams the door shut and walks towards him. ¡°Sorry about driving you guys out, but you know how it is¡± Frank says to her as she joins on the walk down the corridor. ¡°You didn¡¯t seem very sorry about it at the time¡± ¡°Well you attempted to shoot us down with a damn anti-air cannon! Among everything else...¡± ¡°Fair enough¡± Larsenia surrenders with an amused smile. Frank ponders if he should ask her about how she agreed to leave so easily and so soon. Surely it will cost them a lot to abandon so much ore and equipment. ... That¡¯d just sound like I¡¯m rubbing it in¡­ His thoughts are interrupted by her question. ¡°Say¡­ you are an IWV employee, right Frank?¡± ¡°Ex-employee by now, I suppose, but... what of it? Her smile fades, replaced by her usual seriousness as she speaks in a formal tone: ¡°You better watch your back, the Intergalactic Organizations are sore losers, you¡¯ve not only made enemies of two subdivisions but the whole organization by now I¡¯d wager. I hope you know what you are doing¡± ¡°Uh, thanks for the warning¡­ are you by any chance included in that enemy list?¡± Larsenia stops. ¡°Hah, you know, I like you Frank, not many have managed to pull something like this on me¡± She flicks her communicator out of her pocket, uses it and shows its screen to him. ¡°Here¡¯s my number, I can¡¯t allow you to connect to my device to send it, but I trust you can do it the old fashioned way¡± She shows a screen from her communicator and Frank nervously types her number down. ¡°Thanks?¡± Frank awkwardly rubs his shoulder. ¡°Don¡¯t misunderstand, this is strictly professional" She adjusts her glasses. Give me a call if you need help, I¡¯ll see what I can do. It¡¯s a one time offer" "Why are you doing this? Aren''t you still employed by IR?" She leans in a little closer. "Well, strictly between us, I wouldn¡¯t mind getting to land a blow to the organization myself, you seem like you have potential to make some waves¡± What? Larsenia starts walking away, leaving him behind. Frank glances down at the unsaved new contact on his communicator, the ''first name'' -column empty. ¡°What¡¯s your name? Larsenia glances back to answer, but does not stop her strut. ¡°Cecil, but you will only get to call me that in your dreams¡± She gives a seductive smirk accompanied by wave and a wink before disappearing behind a corner. Frank just stands there, bewildered. Huh?
¡°Hey Grent¡± Amethyst stands at the open doorway to the lab, completely blocking it, leaning with her upper body to the frame. ¡°Y-yes Amethyst, what is it?¡± Grent is setting up his computer again on his work desk. Open boxes of stuff nearby, unpacking what he had managed to pack before getting the permission to stay. Pineapple roams in the lab and pushes against machinery, carts, then a large glass tube, which starts teetering. ¡°Hey, you cat, stop that!¡± Grent turns towards it, but the cat hides as soon as he does. ¡°It¡¯s Pineapple¡± ¡°Whatever this furball is called doesn¡¯t decrease the amount of gray hairs its giving me¡± Hearing this, Pineapple zooms around, darting below his desk, sending papers flying, making a turn before hopping on the operating table. The cat''s claws go through the white plastic, a terrible screech rips through the air as they scratch metal. Startled it jumps and hides somewhere, a momentary respite from the cat''s shenanigans. ¡°Aaagh!¡± Grent holds his head frustrated and starts gathering the papers spread on the floor. Amethyst enjoys seeing him so annoyed and on the mercy of a harmless creature like Pineapple. She just stares amused at the scientist groveling on the floor, trying to reach the papers underneath machinery and then far under his desk. Her silent presence most likely causing him even more distress. Once Grent gets out from underneath the desk, Amethyst starts on speaking of why she came to see him in the first place. ¡°You know, Something¡¯s been bothering me since¡­ that day¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Grent asks as he stands up with a stack of, now dusty and crinkled, papers. ¡°What were you going to inject me with, that yellow liquid...¡± ¡°It was just a sedative, after which I would have numbed the wound to treat it¡± Grent answers his back turned, laying down the papers and getting to working on plugging various cables between his computer, monitor and other devices. ¡°Why did you restrain me then?¡± ¡°I-I needed you to remain still to inject it, you were already pretty restless¡± Grent looks over his shoulder at her. Amethyst squints her eyes at him. ¡°It wasn¡¯t for more¡­ revenge?¡± ¡°H-Honest!¡± Amethyst keeps on staring. ¡°I¡¯ll be keeping all of my eyes on you, so don¡¯t try any tricks¡± ¡°Do you consider my science as tricks?¡± Grent stops working on the cables and turns to her to defy this insult head on. ¡°Hmmmmm, just don¡¯t do anything suspicious to living things, don¡¯t even think of using that mind ray thing on Frank¡± ¡°I-I would never!¡± Amethyst spots the familiar pistol like device on the table behind him, now repaired. ¡°Or rather just don¡¯t use that at all¡± ¡°But I need it to bring my wife back!¡± Grent looks over the shoulder and quickly puts the device inside an open desk drawer and pushes it shut. ¡°How are you going to do that? You aren¡¯t going to replace somebody else¡¯s mind again?¡± ¡°Of course n-not!" Grent feigns being insulted at the assumption, but his shaky response cuts its potency. Though... it''s not like I know how to make inorganic things sentient much less sapient..." Amethyst¡¯s eyebrows quirk in response. ¡°Yet! I¡¯ll figure something out. You¡¯d think I¡¯d just abduct some random woman and implant Amande in her body or something?¡± He chuckles, like he just told the most absurd joke. ¡°Yes!¡± Amethyst answers instantly. He purses his lips as his amusement fades. ¡°Of course I wouldn¡¯t do that! Just imagine how mad she¡¯d be with me when she finally comes to¡­¡± ¡°You seem to understand your position well, have fun figuring this one out¡± Amethyst stops leaning at the door frame and is about to leave. ¡°Oh one more thing¡­ Amande wanted to see you really badly, she asked me to relay a message since she couldn''t come¡± ¡°Really? She did?¡± ¡°Tell Grent I love him, I always have and always will¡± I think that¡¯s how it went. Anyway, message delivered¡± Amethyst leaves and closes the door behind her. For a moment, Grent just stands there, processing this information, a big smile steadily spreading on his face. He flings himself on the office chair and picks up the picture frame from the table. It showed young Amande and Grent, smiling, their arms wrapped around each other'' shoulders. Despite the age of the photo, he didn''t look much different than now, a real babyface. Even back then, Grent wore a white labcoat, as did Amande, his girlfriend at the time. Though, for their wedding they did actually wear proper fancier clothes, he did have that photo too, it was stashed away behind this one in the same frame. However, Grent preferred this one, after all, this was taken on their home planet, which was now long gone. Though it hadn''t been captured in the beautiful wilderness, but in the city in the middle of an industrial boom. Mining machinery, ships in the sky, a large facility and columns of smoke stain the background. Signs of what¡¯s to come, but they were still blissfully ignorant at the time to just what the organization, praised for bringing so many jobs, would ultimately lead to. It still served as a reminder all the same, of their home, why they were doing all this, what they wanted to accomplish. Amande had been beautiful, even more so when she got a bit older. A shame they hadn''t had the time to take pictures lately. Her hair, almost glowingly golden, with a personality to match. The warm smile and the dark, almost black eyes of his wife fill him with resolve. I had already given up hope... But I promise, soon we will be reunited¡­ No matter what it takes... We can finally continue where we left off¡­ His smile continues to widen, threatening to creep unnaturally high into some twisted grin. ¡°Ack!¡± Pineapple ambushes him and invades his lap. ¡°What are you doing??¡± he reaches over the large cat and lays down the photo safely. ¡°Scram, get off¡± Grent waves his hands at the cat in a shooing motion. Pineapple curls on his lap and lays down his head and yawns. What does this vermin want? ¡­ What are you afraid of¡­ it¡¯s just a¡­ cat. Grent is held hostage by Pineapple for several minutes until he gains the courage to carefully touch the cat¡¯s fur. It¡¯s soft, like puffs of cotton batting, he slowly runs his hand down the cat and starts a new petting motion. Pineapple¡¯s loud engine starts which startles Grent a little. ¡°By no means does this make us friends¡­ you pest¡± Pineapple opens one eye and looks up at him, Grent quickly retreats his hand. ¡°Tsk¡± He clicks his tongue as he bridles his head. How insufferable can a mere alien cat be? --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Amethyst walks into the lobby, through the door to the ward, opening it with her arm, making sure to not touch it with her blades. Inside, Frank sits on a bed. ¡°Oh did you wait for me?¡± ¡°Yeah, you looked to be blocking Grent into the lab and having a chat. Didn¡¯t want to intrude, you¡¯re capable of roasting him on your own¡± ¡°Oh, yeah¡­¡± I¡¯m capable of doing what...? I suppose my blades are hot, but... ¡°I was just keeping an eye on him, Pineapple is with him by the way. It seems to like Grent or likes causing him trouble¡± ¡°Oh, I can imagine that¡± Frank answers and taps the space next to him on the bed. Amethyst approaches and carefully takes a seat left of him, the mattress sinks underneath her and Frank has to adjust a little to not slide with it into her lap, or to her deadly blades They sit silent, each hesitant to speak up. ¡°If this is about what happened in the forest¡­ I¡¯m-¡± Amethyst starts. ¡°No, it¡¯s not about that. E-even if we weren¡¯t there the Tyrchid¡¯s would have¡­ set themselves free on their own, right?¡± ¡°R-right¡± Both interlocutors seemed to find the blank white wall especially fascinating, a wall adjacent to the one they had entered from. At the very least, it did house a light blue door they had not ventured through yet, so maybe it was in part that, instead of the effect of going through a tough subject. ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t know... What I really wanted to say even... I guess I''m just really impressed how you could just forgive Grent¡± His right hand disappears into the jungle of his head as he directs a tense but a mellow expression her way. ¡°I haven¡¯t forgiven him though¡± Amethyst answers with a peculiar look. ¡°Well, still, you didn¡¯t even try to... harm any of the staff here, or even him, nobody could have really blamed you if you did¡± ¡°And that makes me such a stark contrast to my kin?¡± Amethyst''s eyes shoot daggers at him, an unnecessary move, considering her bladed hands who were more than adept for the job. ¡°No, I didn¡¯t say that!¡± ¡°But you were implying-¡± ¡°No! ¡­I was just admiring your maturity¡­ I don¡¯t think I would have been that strong if I was in your position¡± If I had such overwhelming power... ¡°What do you mean? You¡¯re such a kind and good willed person¡± Amethyst''s expression changes to that of confusion. ¡°Am I?¡± Frank looks upon his hands. Maybe ten years ago I would have agreed... ¡°Yeah, you helped me without question, didn¡¯t even kill Rocco when you could have¡± Because you were there to see it¡­ ¡°You are so much weaker than me and still you¡¯ve stood tall and conquered all our obstacles with ease¡± ¡°Hah, is that supposed to be a compliment?¡± ¡°Yeah! You didn¡¯t even have any weapons, but you still managed to do it all with your words and your wit¡± Yeah, I forgot the rifle in the ship¡­ Though... ¡°I suppose you do have a point¡± Frank smiles at her a little. The chatter is broken by growling emanating from deep within Frank. ¡°Frank¡­ are you hungry?¡± ¡°A little bit¡­ but let¡¯s just go to sleep now, we¡¯ll worry about eating tomorrow¡± ¡°Alright¡± Amethyst moves to sit on the bed next to his. Frank flings himself to the other side of his bed and reaches for his bag. As he opens it, the purple bone is right at the top of it. Oh¡­ right. The overpowering sadness and despair that he had wrestled with back then, try to grip at his heart and mind. He easily pushes them away, everything was fine now, with Amethyst at least, she hadn¡¯t died, he didn¡¯t have to go do some desperate last stand alone. Why had he felt such a strong urge back then, the obligation to do these crazy things? To go to such lengths? ¡­ He slips the bone vertical and buries it further into the bag. Taking out a fresh pair of boxer shorts, white with orange stripes, he feels a bit embarrassed about the coloration¡­ Had he picked these ones on purpose back then? Frank starts taking off his clothes, sitting on the bedside, starting with his jacket and shirt. ¡°What are you doing Frank?¡± Amethyst asks curious from behind, sitting on her own bed. ¡°I¡¯m changing¡± Frank glances backwards. ¡°Do you mind not staring at me so intently?¡± His cheeks taking on a hint of extra color. ¡°Oh, so that¡¯s what changing means, changing clothes?¡± Amethyst thinks for a moment and comes up with a follow up question. ¡°Why do you use clothes?¡± ¡°It would be cold without them, usually at least. They also protect us from the elements and the environment¡± Frank leans down to remove his shoes. ¡°Don¡¯t they cover your true body, I¡¯ve never seen you¡¯re back before. Isn¡¯t that dishonest, hiding your true self?¡± She asks quizzical and true wonderment in her voice. ¡°I¡¯m not hiding anything, the clothes are just an addition, though I guess they are in a way an essential part of me too¡± He jumps on the bed to get the edge of his pants from underneath him and starts removing them. ¡°You know, like your armor is a part of you, I bet you¡¯d feel weird without it too¡± ¡°I see, yeah, I¡¯d feel vulnerable without its protection, but only that, not embarrassed. But that¡¯s learned too? I think. Since us Tyrchids are born without the armor, it grows first only after we are few years old and then adjusts with us throughout our lives. Is that the same to you?¡± ¡°Well, our clothes are artificial, we don¡¯t ¡°grow¡± them from ourselves. But you are correct, we are also born without them and learn to use them from an early age¡± So you¡¯re embarrassed about your naked body, because of artificial reasons have taught you to be? That sounds sad and restraining, isn¡¯t that the most natural state for you to be, especially when your armor is so easily removable?¡± ¡°Wait, can your armor be removed?¡± Frank asks hanging onto Amethyst''s words and then realizes what he just asked. ¡°Not exactly, that was just a... figure of speech, I think?¡± ¡°A poorly structured sentence implying something which wasn¡¯t true?¡± ¡°Uhh, yeah¡­ that¡± Frank has managed to change into his fresh boxers. Amethyst¡¯s antennae spin around on her head, the short black fur covering them shaking. They fixate towards the bed in front of her. ¡°Frank¡­ why do you smell so good all of a sudden? Is it... your underwear? ¡°What!?¡± Frank¡¯s heart tries to jump all the way up his throat. ¡°Ohhh, you must mean the fruity smell, that¡¯s because a banaorange exploded in my bag and stained my clothes with its juice¡­¡± Amethyst¡¯s antennae quiver and she leans forwards. ¡°Can you stop smelling towards me?¡± ¡°Why?¡± She leans further in. ¡°It¡¯s making me... uncomfortable¡± Frank admits and looks away. Somehow he felt even more naked now, than moments ago when he literally had been so. ¡°Is that a learned reaction too?¡± ¡°Maybe? But it¡¯s also rude¡± ¡°Oh I see, I¡¯m sorry¡± Frank glances at Amethyst from over his shoulder. ¡°Just ask for permission the next time okay? Wait what did I just say? A mischievous smile spreads across Amethyst''s lips and he instantly knows why. ¡°Frank can I s-¡± ¡°No¡± ¡°Awwww¡­ but the smell is so delicious¡­ so sweet...¡± Amethyst''s voice buzzes more than usual as she spoke those words. ¡°Let¡¯s just finally sleep now, okay?¡± ¡°Fine¡­¡± Amethyst lays down on her bed, on top of the blanket and lays her arms on top of her stomach. Frank goes and gets the lights from next to the white door, it becomes pitch black, the room having no windows. Only the faint glow of emergency exit signs on top of the two doors and the faint glow of small displays of equipment next to each bed. In the dark he easily makes it back to his own bed, the corridor between the beds on both sides of the room was wide and easy to navigate. He could still see the space as if lit up in his mind and retraced his steps. On the nightstand, a faint red blinking light of his communicator reminds him of unread messages. Oh¡­ right¡­ He picks up the communicator, lays down on the bed and unlocks it. Setting the brightness of the screen as low as possible, he starts by opening up the ISSA¡¯s email from the notification bar.
Thank you for submitting the form: Application for registering a new Sapient species. Our team will be with you shortly to document all about the new species so that we can fairly and accurately assess and evaluate their abilities, readiness and suitability for the galaxy as a whole. Once this procedure is complete and the initial criteria have been fulfilled, we will be in touch with the date and time for your hearing. Our team will contact you separately and let you know of their arrival ahead of time so you may prepare accordingly. Wishing you best of luck and prosperity in you future endeavors, thank you for contacting Intergalactic Sapient Species Association. This is an automated message, please do not respond to this email. If you require help, please see the ISSA documentation or contact our customer service.
Something caught his eye in the email. ISSA¡­ the I stood for¡­ Intergalactic? Frank already knew that, but... Larsenia had warned him against the Intergalactic Corporation and it¡¯s subsidiaries, but¡­ surely ISSA wasn¡¯t one? Sure, it had the I-word, but he had never heard of its ties to any criminal organizations. Frank searches the Intergalactic Web¡­ wait¡­ Intergalactic¡­ web? Did they control the internet too? Surely not, that¡¯s just a coincidence, a way to future proof the name once we eventually reach another galaxy¡­ Despite his best efforts, all the information on ISSA¡¯s history and founding were vague, giving no background on it. What had led to its founding exactly? All he could find was the surname of its founder: Aldricht. And even that was from an unreliable source. But this name¡­ it seemed familiar, had he heard of it somewhere else? Regardless, it seemed ISSA¡¯s history was covered well, or lost to time, considering the age of the association being only about 60 years, the latter was unlikely. Frank knew that this information search had been a mere distraction, he was genuinely suspicious now, but he had just been playing for time. For he knew what email he had to open next. What if, they had not pardoned him? They could be on their way to arrest him right at this moment. Maybe they had failed to capture Rocco and all of his employees were now out to get him? Well, all of them might still be, he couldn''t blame them for being angry at him, even for hating him after this. It was his decision to throw them all into the proverbial spaceship turbine. He blatantly used Velvet for his own gain, he manipulated Pablo, eventually caused the deaths of Jack and Jill and their whole squad. Likely caused such harm and suffering to the few that were innocent and irreparable damage and consequences for the rest of the guilty one''s lives. Pablo¡­ He was a good man, mixed in the same stuff as he, for similar reasons too. Now he was likely soon serving time, somewhere, hopefully not on Hadel... Enough. Frank tore down the notification bar and tapped the email before he¡¯d change his mind again.
Re: Viridian Macula¡¯s IWV facility Thank you for the documents and files, Frank. They will prove to be essential in pressing charges and getting them to stick against Intergalactic Wildlife Ventures. If you have any more information, possibly even about the main organization, the Galactic Police would be more than happy to provide ample compensation for any further info that leads to arrests. - The chief of Galactic Police. Aldricht Argo.
Hold on, Aldricht? The same one who founded ISSA? Well¡­ it¡¯s likely just a coincidence, and even if the Police Chief was somehow involved, that¡¯d just be further proof of ISSA not being in cahoots with Intergalactic... Right? ... And no mention of my charges being dropped... Frank scrolls down to the newer reply on the email.
We have successfully detained Rocco and all of his personnel. I have decided to accept your proposal, I will erase all of your criminal records that you would have gotten from being involved. The official documentation and procedures will take a few days, I will send the files to you the earliest it arrives. Now stay on the straight and narrow road from now on, alright? Pleasure working with you, Aldricht Argo.
Phew... He was in the clear after all, his plan of many holes and variables had worked after all. Now to respond... Frank somehow resists the temptation of asking for more details about his surname, about ISSA and the Galactic Police. He couldn''t risk the Chief changing his mind due to his nosiness. He types out a generic response thanking the Chief and sends it. Exhausted he lays the phone onto his stomach and lays there, staring at the dark ceiling, faintly illuminated by his communicator¡¯s display. He remembers where he is and glances at the direction of Amethyst''s bed, she is looking right at him. Her crown hangs off the edge of the bed, for there was no other way for her to turn her head so drastically to the side when lying down. The light of the communicator faintly lights her face up in eerie shadows. Amethyst¡¯s hybrid eyes¡¯ numerous eyes glimmer in the dark, reflecting light like a cat¡¯s. Frank realizes he is holding his breath and staring wide eyed at her. ¡°A-amethyst?¡± he hesitantly whispers. ¡°Frank¡­ what were you doing?¡± ¡°I was just reading some emails¡± ¡°Emails?¡± Amethyst lets the question hang before continuing: ¡°Are you lying?¡± An accusing question asked in the dark, answering wrong seemed dangerous. ¡°No! Emails are electronic messages¡­ sort of like the news broadcast in Larsenia¡¯s office, just¡­ only text¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ okay¡± Amethyst seems content with the explanation as she moves her head back on the pillow and faces upwards. Frank grabs the communicator and turns off its screen, darkness envelops them once more. "Good night Amethyst" His heart still races as he calmly apologizes. "And sorry for keeping you awake...¡± ¡°It''s okay... Good night Frank¡± 17. Those who are damaged ¡°Were you planning on sleeping all day?¡± The voice of Grent wakes the duo up. ¡°Ughh¡± Amethyst groans as bright lights assail her narrowed eyes. ¡°Just a little longer...¡± ¡°Come on get up, I uhh, I even made you breakfast¡± Frank¡¯s clear and already fully awake eyes, find Grent¡¯s head poking from behind the half open blue door. ¡°Breakfast in bed? Wow Grent you shouldn¡¯t have¡± ¡°Good, because it¡¯s in the lunchroom¡± Grent slams the door shut. ¡°Lunch...room?¡± Amethyst asks still sleepy. ¡°I guess there¡¯s even more rooms here¡± Frank says and sits up on the side of his bed. They get up from their beds, leaving them a mess. Frank¡¯s unmade, unlike Amethyst¡¯s who didn¡¯t even use the blanket. However, her bed is already a bit scruffy and worn from her armor and blades tearing into the sheets in her sleep. They enter and explore beyond the same blue door Grent came to wake them up from. A narrow corridor opens up before them, a little cramped for Amethyst. Its walls surprisingly colorful, the upper part light blue and the lower white, divided into two segments accurately from the middle. A door to the right lays in the middle, another one at the end. Frank goes first and opens the plain middle door, peering inside. ¡°Looks to be the bathroom, showers and a sauna?¡± ¡°Sauna¡­? Let me see¡± Amethyst crams herself behind Frank and looks into the room. The exposed cave floor continues even into the showers, a floor drain and showers on the left, ahead of which a glass door leading into the sauna, the bottom fourth of the door missing. The whole room is quite sizeable, though the door blocks the view to the right. ¡°What is a sauna?¡± Amethyst presses against Frank and tries to peer further into the room. Frank steps into the room before he gets shoved in and Amethyst squeezes through the doorway too. ¡°It¡¯s a room you heat up to high temperatures to sweat and relax in¡± Frank walks ahead and opens the glass door for her. ¡°Really? That¡¯s strange¡± Amethyst walks halfway in and peers inside, two long rows of shining wooden sauna benches attached to the walls in a stair like manner. A one smaller, stool like bench sitting before them, serving as a foothold. A large rectangular electric stove, filled with asteroid like stones, sits in the corner proudly. ¡°I¡¯m not a big sauna guy myself, but its health benefits are the real thing. It relieves stress and unwinds the body and mind. Most of all it is a social space¡± Amethyst looked at the low ceiling and the benches that approached it, she determined that she wouldn''t fit, not that the thin wood planks would not be pierced, or at the very least, chipped by her sharp feet. ¡°Though I doubt it would be pleasant for you with your unremovable armor and everything¡± Or I dunno, maybe she¡¯d be fine? Her body still has to somehow regulate her temperature? Unless she really is cold blooded. Amethyst steps out and Frank closes the glass door. ¡°How hot is it when warmed up?¡± ¡°Like minimum sixty degrees celcius, I think, and up to 120¡± ¡°Is that lower or higher than what it takes to melt steel?¡± ¡°Uhh, way- like a lot lower¡± Frank strokes his hair and gets his hands stuck to a tangled clump of hair. ¡°I think, tho I¡¯m not sure what Steel¡¯s melting is exactly¡± ¡°Hah, I could probably take it then¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Frank asks as they are leaving the washroom. ¡°My armor¡­ insulates? my skin from the heat of my blades¡± Amethyst inflection rises to a question, as she wonders if the word meant what she thought it did. ¡°Want to see?¡± Amethyst¡¯s crystals light up and she¡¯s holding a bladed hand to her stomach armor. ¡°N-no! It¡¯s fine¡± ¡°Aww¡­ okay¡± Her glow fades, before her hands could catch flame in the crowded corridor. Frank opens the door at the end of the corridor and steps inside, to what appears to be the rumoured lunchroom. The floor is less rugged, polished and even, unlike the corridors. The room itself is more like a modest break room, equipped with a basic stove and a sink. Microwave on the side table and a moderately sized round table in the middle. Bunch of drawers underneath a stone kitchen stage, with a random assortment of appliances on the top, including a sandwich grill. Some of them even looked like they were handcrafted by the clinic''s residents. A door at the other side of the room leads to the left. Grent takes some plates from the dish draining closet as they enter, he turns to them. ¡°Frank¡­ what are you wearing?¡± He asks deadpanned. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m wearing plenty¡± Frank presents himself with wave of his hand, only boxers covering him up. ¡°Besides this is our most natural state, isn¡¯t that right Amethyst?¡± ¡°Of course!¡± She steps to his side from behind and looks Frank up and down and stops at his chest. ¡°What are those red lines?¡± ¡°Oh these? Remember when Pineapple jumped on me yesterday?¡± ¡°Ah-¡± ¡°Technically it¡¯s still today¡­ And that beast did those?¡± Grent interrupts them. ¡°Take it with you when you leave, won¡¯t you? For some goddess forsaken reason it seems to be way too fond of spending time with me in my lab¡­¡± Grent places a plate with a massive sandwich, consisting of crispy and very slightly charred toast, bursting with molten cheese, on the table. Cut diagonally, it glistens with grease on the surface and wafts a delectable aroma. ¡°Its presence is not helping me progress my research at all!¡± He throws his hands in the air to prove his frustration. ¡°Where is he even right now?¡± Frank asks, walking past the stopped Tyrchid and taking a seat on the dark wooden chair with a backrest and a small pink cushion. He grabs the plate and eagerly digs in, he had regretted postponing eating till the morning all night. Nice job keeping watch on him Pineapple! Amethyst thinks and carefully nudges a chair from underneath the table with her blade and takes a seat next to Frank. ¡°I don¡¯t know, it¡¯s like the textbook definition of the extinct cats of Earth, could be anywhere by now¡± ¡°Oh well, fair enough. Pineapple sure is just like it, right? Straight out of the ancient history books¡± ¡°It is strange, but I suppose that¡¯s just evolution, can¡¯t always be churning out monsters like Amethyst¡± ¡°Hey!¡± She shouts in protest, but is distracted as Grent brings her a warm sandwich in front of her too, after which he takes a seat across the table. ¡°Will you be alright Amethyst?¡± Frank asks as Amethyst looks at the massive sandwich perplexed. ¡°Yeah... I¡¯ll just carefully cut this here and¡­¡± Amethyst slices the toast vertically from one side to the other and then mirrors the movement, ending up with four pieces. She heats up her blades and the sticky cheese evaporates from her blades, a slight burnt smell spreads in the room. Lowering her head, she gobbles down each triangle one after the other, as quick as her mandibles can shove them down her throat. In just a few seconds, her breakfast is finished. Grent looks wide eyed at what just happened. ¡°Mmmm¡± she looks down at the empty plate. ¡°Grent are your plates faulty? This one has scratches on it¡± ¡°You just made those dummy¡± Grent says. ¡°They¡¯re even in the shape of an X!¡± ¡°Whaaat? But I was being so careful! Are you sure you just didn¡¯t give me a plate like this to mess with me?¡± ¡°Why would I do that? I¡¯m, not a kid or something who¡¯d play pranks¡± ¡°Could have fooled me¡± Frank quips. ¡°Aww... sorry plate. I¡¯ve scarred you for life¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry it¡¯s just a plate Amethyst¡± Frank consoles, but Grent continues his sentence: ¡°and now we¡¯ll know which is yours in the future too!¡± ¡°Oh¡­¡± ¡°Hahaha¡± Frank chuckles. ¡°You break it, so you¡¯ll have to use it¡± Grent continues. ¡°It¡¯s not broken!¡± Grent laughs too. ¡°Ahaha, well I suppose not quite¡± Frank adds. ¡°Why are you both laughing!?¡± She pouts. ¡°Sorry sorry¡± ¡°It¡¯s just you are so¡­ human¡± Grent adds, wiping his eyes moist with hilarity. ¡°Oh¡­¡± Amethyst¡¯s upset face changes into sadness and she looks down, her sight hits and clings to the plate. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. In the moment, she felt a certain kinship with the banged up ceramic dish. Just like it, she would never be the same again, forever changed against her will. Its pristine shining surface, ruined, different from its peers in the cupboard, ever the outsider. Neither whole, nor broken. ¡°Anyway, have you decided, what will we do about the Tyrchids?¡± Grent asks. Frank and Grent look at Amethyst expectantly, though Frank with worry mixed in seeing her expression and vacant gaze. She slowly lifts her head up from her partner in fate. ¡°Well... I think we should gather some fruits and try and make friends with them. There¡¯s this one berry that I- we really like. I think...¡± ¡°Will that really be enough?¡± ¡°I¡­ I did try to talk with the one who tried to attack you Frank, I¡¯m not sure if I got through¡± ¡°You mean with your own language? That¡¯s what the weird buzzing was about?¡± Frank comments as he finishes the last of the warm toast. ¡°Yeah¡± ¡°What did you say to it?¡± ¡°Friend¡± ¡°Wait a second, you have your own language?¡± Grent leans on the table, over his empty plate. ¡°I¡¯ve never really thought of it that way, but yeah, I guess¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t having a language to communicate make them basically sapient already?¡± Frank asks hopeful. ¡°Well, not necessarily, even birds communicate with their kin with different chirps, alerting of danger, setting up their territory and the like. I suppose it depends on the complexity. If they can learn new words, expand their vocabularies, form more complex sentences¡­¡± ¡°What kind of words does the Tyrchid language have?¡± Frank asks ¡°They are all just simple things, like food, friend¡­¡± ¡°Well that doesn¡¯t really mean anything at this point, the need to innovate, to make changes and better your living conditions if the basis of advancement. If they have no need to form complex sentences, or build their own culture, barter and the like, they could just ¡®choose¡¯ to not develop it further¡± Grent concludes. ¡°Hmm, that¡¯s true I suppose, we¡¯ll just have to go and see what they¡¯re really all about then¡± ¡°Sorry, I can¡¯t be more helpful¡­ I remember some things of my time, of my memories from my past but they are¡­ hazy, I don¡¯t know if I¡¯ve forgotten, if it¡¯s some side effect or...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry we will just have to find out then¡± ¡°Yeah¡± Amethyst smiles. ¡°Thanks for the breakfast Grent. Are you gonna come with us or?¡± ¡°Nahh, I¡¯ll leave that to you, I¡¯ve got my own stuff to do¡± He dismisses the notion with an uninterested wave of his hand. ¡°Oh, what could that be then?¡± Amethyst asks a loaded question. ¡°W-Well, you know perfectly well what I¡¯m talking about, research for resurrecting my wife. M-maybe I¡¯ll even run some numbers for you. Maybe I can get an approximate chance of success in Tyrchid¡¯s survival rate using your previous scanned data when exposed to the mind ray and adjust it based on what you¡¯ve told me so far¡± My previously scanned data? ¡°Hmmmmm fine then, if you do anything bad me and Pineapple will know¡± ¡°Oh yeah?¡± ¡°Yeah, and you better hope it¡¯s pineapple who¡¯ll do the punishing¡± Amethyst raises a hand blade that glistens under the artificial light and stands up from the chair. Grent swallows ¡°R-right¡± ¡°Anyway, mind if I use the shower first? And Grent since this is a clinic, surely you¡¯ve got some spare supplies like bandages, disinfectant and the like? Just in case, you know¡± Amethyst glares at Frank. ¡°Just a precaution¡­ can¡¯t be too careful¡± Frank looks at Amethyst pleadingly as he slides the chair underneath the table, but bangs its backrest on it instead. ¡°Fine, I guess. Towels are in the cabinet in the same room¡± ¡°Oh and maybe pack some sandwiches as lunch for us, who knows how long we¡¯ll be there¡± ¡°What? Am I your mom or something? You can do that yourself¡± ¡°Can I do our lunch?¡± Amethyst eagerly suggests, her many eyes sparkling with excitement. ¡°Argh¡­ fine I¡¯ll do you some packed lunch¡­¡± Grent says with a mocking tone of voice. ¡°Won¡¯t have a kitchen to return to otherwise¡­¡± he mutter under his breath and leaves the room. ¡°Nice work Amethyst¡± Frank gives her a thumbs up and also leaves the room, through the other door with a small backwards wave. Amethyst stands there, left completely alone. What am I supposed to do in the meantime? She sit back down at the table and resigns to just wait. Soon her thoughts began to wander again, as she looks at her reflection on the plate¡¯s surface. The large X¡¯s unreflective surface cuts her eyes out of her image. What if my plan doesn¡¯t work? Maybe they remember us from yesterday, having forever labeled us hostile. If they attacking us on sight¡­ could I even fight back? What if I have to¡­ kill... They didn¡¯t recognize me before¡­ shouldn¡¯t they know their kin? Shouldn¡¯t I know them? Amethyst tries to dig into her memories of the time before Grent scrambled her mind. Only sudden, singular flashes remain of moments, of some events from her previous life. The faces of other Tyrchids are blurry, unrecognizable. Like an old projector, spinning a reel way too fast, the film being damaged and worn, just grayness and static remaining on the canvas of her mind. She remembers no names, no appearances of anyone. Only the stern slightly wrinkled face of her mother, of Queen. But that is only because Amethyst saw her, after she herself¡­ changed. Her appearance seems absent from her old memories entirely. She remembers some bits and pieces of her home, of the forest, but the memories do not have anything visual associated with them. Her Tyrchid instincts, the basic knowledge of her kind remained, but¡­ where was everything else? A tear sploshes into the white, uneven crevice. She raised her head so that she could see her eyes in her reflection. They were the dejected eyes of an outcast. Her sclera slightly growing greener as her veins gathered more blood in them. She couldn¡¯t bare to look at herself and closed her eyes, a few more drops of liquid forlorn dropped down, forming a perfect half sphere on the smooth plate. Another falling onto a piece of still soft, spilled cheese. The tear splayed around it upon hit, the unexpected obstacle breaking its form. ¡°...¡± Maybe¡­ just maybe... she would remember something after meeting more Tyrchids, some she had been friends with before. The Tyrchid language contained the word for Friend, so it had to be true. They had to exist, she had only been away for a few days after all. It was just a matter of finding those that knew her, those she¡¯d recognize. Grent smacks the door open and Amethyst flinches, looks away from him and pretends to be uninterested at his arrival. Without saying a word, Grent rattles a bunch of stuff on the table from his lap. And by the sound of it, starts picking up the plates. As Grent steps near her, Amethyst turns to look at him, furious. His extended hand grasping at her plate, disappears to the safety of his own personal space. ¡°What? I¡¯ll just wash the plate for you¡± Amethyst realizes just how she looked at Grent and forces a softer expression. ¡°Go ahead¡± Grent looks at her nervously and slowly picks up the plate and proceeds to the sink. Gentle flowing of water and clinking of dishes fills the room. ¡°So¡­ if you don¡¯t mind me asking¡­ just what exactly happened with you and Amande?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Come on, okay, let me be more specific, how did you speak with her?¡± He glances backwards a bit as he scrubs the plates in the sink, awaiting a response. ¡°Fine¡­ whenever I lost consciousness, I could sense her thoughts, hear her speech in my mind¡± ¡°I see¡­ unconsciousness, neither mind in control, opening up the channel for two minds to interact and mingle as equals. Hmm¡­ Let me guess, soon after that you started to lose yourself¡± ¡°I guess, I started hearing her sometimes even when awake and experienced more frequent thoughts that didn¡¯t belong to me. Near the end I started having blanks in my memories just from a few second ago too...¡± Amethyst speaks slow and quiet, the sound almost drowning under the dish washing. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, that must have been tough¡± ¡°I don¡¯t need your pity¡± ¡°Fine, it should have been Amande who came back¡± ¡°What?¡± Amethyst¡¯s tone sends shivers down Grent¡¯s back and through his scalp, feeling like her brown hair might just lift off his head. ¡°Not in the mood for jokes, huh?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s more than enough that you came back with the knowledge of Amande¡¯s resurrection being possible, don¡¯t take it so seriously¡± ¡°You¡¯re lying¡± Amethyst seethes. ¡°I¡¯m not lying¡± Frank open the door to the room, fully dressed in his usual light green shirt and a shade darker jacket. His teal trousers bag on top of his feet as he steps inside barefooted. ¡°Whoo, my hair¡¯s all smooth and straight¡­¡± As he sets his eyes in the two awaiting him in the room, their oppressive atmosphere causes him to trail off. ¡°Perfect, you¡¯re here¡± Grent says and lifts the last of the plates into the dish draining closet and closes the doors, proceeding to walk away. ¡°You can do your own toasts or whatever then. The bandages and crap are on the table along with a box to put your bread and stuff in¡± He slams the door and leaves before Frank can get a word in. ¡°What¡¯s up with him?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t k- I don¡¯t¡­ care¡± Frank twirls the towel around his long hair and into a tube, as he lets go of it, it stays on his head. ¡°Well I can understand, I can hardly expect you to get along with Grent¡± Frank strolls to the fridge casually and opens it. ¡°Just know if you want to talk about it, I¡¯ll listen¡± He closes the door with push of his foot, with a lap full of bread making ingredients. ¡°I-if you don¡¯t want to, that¡¯s fine too¡± ¡°He¡¯s just so¡­ infuriating-¡± Frank rustles a plastic bag and takes out bread from inside of it. ¡°Oh sorry, continue¡± ¡°inconsiderate, terrible, selfish...¡± ¡°mmhm, you just described Grent alright. At least, given I barely know him¡± What did Amande possibly see in him? How could she defend him? ¡°Not to defend him-¡± Frank suddenly surprises Amethyst as he uses the same word she just thought of. ¡°but you haven¡¯t exactly had the best start to form a friendship or anything¡± ¡°And whose fault is that? How could I ever forgive him?¡± ¡°Maybe, you will, in time¡± If you don¡¯t, our stay here might be quite rocky¡­ ¡°Was I¡­ mistaken in letting him stay?¡± Surely he would be as safe anywhere else in the galaxy as here. ¡°I can¡¯t really say¡± Frank chops some vegetables on a cutting board, loudly. ¡°That remains to be seen, if nothing else he is pretty smart¡± ¡°A smart-ass maybe¡± Was that word really included in Grent''s vocabulary package¡­? ¡°Alright, sandwiches done, maybe once we return we can eat something else than bread¡± It¡¯s not like the fridge exactly had anything else¡­ Does he just live off bread and toppings? ¡°I¡¯ll just get my backpack, pack all this up and we¡¯ll go?¡± ¡°Okay¡­¡± Once Frank leaves the room, Amethyst stands up, creeps up to the dish closet and carefully wedges it open with a blade. Inside: glasses, cutlery and an orderly row of plates, side by side. From their side profiles, Amethyst couldn¡¯t find the one who was hurt on the inside. Only from the subtle drops of water on their surface, could she determine the three recently used ones. As she peered closer to the three plates, she was surprised to notice the first having a chip on its edge, a piece missing. The second one also marred, a large scar running across its bottom, more hidden than the first¡¯s. The third one was completely intact, apart from the new glaring X mark on its surface. All of the three, injured, abused and shamed in their own ways. Some obvious from the outside, even at a glance, but most, only visible upon closer inspection. 18. Schemes in the coulisses Midnight Iris¡¯ orbit. Interior of Intergalactic Resources Executive Ship. 12 hours earlier. A ship sits still in the ethereal glow of the planet¡¯s atmosphere. Inside, a small display powers on, soon a video feed of a woman, a secretary, appears on it. ¡±Larsenia, what is the meaning of this? Why are our ships leaving Midnight Iris in such high numbers?¡± ¡±Vice President Crondeston, I was just about to call you¡± A stern woman with near-white hair questions her words on the other side of the screen. ¡±We had to vacate the planet, we lost it to ISSA, Tyrchids have started the process to become members¡± ¡±Why did you act alone? Reinforcements were on the way, an Enforcer Squad no less. You should have held it to the last until they arrived¡± ¡±An Elite team? Why? I-I had no idea the location was that vital¡± ¡±Of course you didn¡¯t¡­" She scoffs. "He, nor the Enforcers, are going to be pleased by this¡± Sam and Doug listen in on the pilot¡¯s conversation, watching from their chairs a bit further away. They were late to leave, so they got to ride in the Director¡¯s ship, all other ships had already left. ¡±Stand by, I will inform him right away¡± A furious clacking of a keyboard, the blue light of the monitor reflected in her eyes hiding anger and disappointment. The typing stops and for a while it is completely silent. ¡±Larsenia, you are fired for incompetence. Please visit our office in Metropolis today to return your security keys, key cards and other company property¡± ¡±W-what?" I''m... fired?! "But, I¡¯ve got two guards on my ship, I¡¯ve got to-¡± The vice president fills the whole screen with her face, attempting to peer behind Larsenia, to get a good look at the guards. ¡±Come closer and state your names¡± They unbuckle from their seats and do as they are told. ¡±Sam Fiscer¡± ¡±Douglas Blantel¡± Vice President retreats and seems to read something off of her screen. ¡±Our sources say that you were seen escorting the Tyrchid and this Frank person to Larsenia¡¯s office. Is that correct?¡± Her¡­ sources? ¡±Yes, that¡¯s correct¡± Sam admits, Doug looks at him from over his sunglasses. ¡°Does Mr Blantel agree?¡± She coerces. ¡°Yeah... that was us¡± ¡°Good¡­ good. You are both fired as well¡± Doug¡¯s expression breaks into a short-lived grimace. ¡°Looks like you all have the same journey then. Drop off your company property at the same office and immediately leave the premises, you will spend your termination protection period on forced vacation. All of you¡± The broadcast ends and the screen turns off. Larsenia slumps on her pilot¡¯s chair and leans on her hand. Doug speaks up. ¡°Why¡¯d you blurt that out? We could have denied-¡± ¡°Do you think lying would have helped, that nobody would say anything?¡± Sam cuts him off and rants. ¡°After we paraded through the facility with the Tyrchid in tow?¡± ¡°You¡¯re the one who let Frank get one over you! Then basically surrendered!¡± ¡°You think I knew this would happen? Besides it was the right call, it¡¯s not our fault we lost our jobs¡± ¡°Come on now, you¡¯re not-¡± ¡°Why do you think we got fired? Not because we escorted them to the Director, it¡¯s because Larsenia caved to their demands and decided to run away!¡± ¡°Sam!¡± ¡°Douglas¡± Larsenia says sternly, grabbing his attention immediately. ¡°Sam is right, I¡¯m the one to blame. It was my poor judgement that led us all into this situation¡± Doug grits his teeth and pushes his shades deeper before turning around and retreating back to his seat. Sam follows suite and re-buckles on the other side of the cockpit. Larsenia collects herself, straps in and sets a warp course to Metropolis.
Few minutes later, Intergalactic Fighter Ship. Registered owner: Enforcer Squad Delta. ¡±Delta come in¡± A voice hails them through the speakers and a screen turns on with the pale visage of the secretary of their leader. A beautiful young woman wearing a broad gold necklace, with numerous gems attached to it, answers her and whips back her long black hair. ¡±Delta, listening¡± ¡±The mission is cancelled, ISSA was faster¡± An angry grunt and groaning is heard from behind me. ¡±Return to HQ, stand by and prepare for plan B briefing, everyone except Sola. He wants to see you¡± ¡±Understood¡± The broadcast is cut. He wants to see me? ¡±Ohohoho what have you done now?¡± A clink of a metal knuckle duster sounds as a meaty hand is placed on the back of my pilot chair. A massive muscular woman with short curly blond hair towers over my sitting form and laughs deadpanned. Two red gemstones embedded on both sides of her mouth to her cheeks, very slightly glowing, look rather painful. She was Beam, a most fitting, if not ironic, nickname. ¡±He must be furious¡± A large man with broad shoulders, covered by a long sharp jet-black coat, comments. Leaning to the wall of the ship on the left, he appears to not actually touch it. He adjusts his stetson like hat but with a much broader brim, of equally enigmatic color. Atro enjoyed giving off a mysterious air, but often failed to live up to it. I don¡¯t honor either of their comments with a response. ¡±Or maybe hissss secretary issssn¡¯t enough for him anymore¡± A slithering hiss says from behind, the only other person apart from me to have the common sense to actually sit down during spaceflight. ¡±Time to learn how to sssssu-¡± his other snake head echoes and narrowly dodges a thrown iron knuckle. It slightly dent¡¯s the wall of the ship and clatters to the floor. The man with two snakes attached to his body, slithering around his shoulders and neck isn¡¯t fazed, nor are the snakes. In fact it would have been extraordinary if the human head of the body had reacted, since ¡®it¡¯ is known for being in a state of perpetual unconsciousness. ¡±Karme has a point, she is very attractive¡± Atro says factually. ¡°Saying such things with a straight face...¡± I hold my head between my hands seductively and coyly look at Atro. ¡°Careful or you might make a young girl fall for you¡± I flutter my long eyelashes along with my sweetest and most innocent of tones. I can sense his tough act crumble, even if I don¡¯t see his eyes in the shade of his hat. ¡±Are you sure it wasn¡¯t Kaarme?¡± Beam gets caught to a totally different point of the comment. ¡±You still can¡¯t tell the difference between the heads? Not even when they both look way different?¡± Disappointingly, he shows no signs of giving into my charms, or hides it well, as he meets Beam¡¯s look and reveals the entirety of his handsome face. ¡±Of course I can, give it a rest, you trying to make me smile?¡± Beam cannot help but grimace slightly, the red glow a bit brighter in her gems than before. ¡±Go ahead, give me your biggest grin¡± Atro throws away his hat like a Frisbee and it lands on Karme like he was a coat rack. He immediately squirms underneath it and manages to drop it on the floor, not wanting to miss this. I yank the steering sticks and turn the ship around to return back to base, the whole ship rapidly tilts to the right and back again. I hear the two trouble makers stumbling around but not falling. ¡°Is fighting amongst yourself all you can do?¡± ¡±Stay out of this newbie, us enriched are having a talk¡± Beam rudely shoots me down. ¡±Yes, yes!¡±Karme shouts, he was the bigger of the two, like an anaconda. ¡±Give us a good laser show!¡± Kaarme riles them to continue, a thin noodle in comparison to his ¡®brother¡¯. ¡±Yeah, time to settle this, I¡¯ll show you what true strength is¡± ¡±You sure you can do that, At-ro-phy?¡± Beam pronounces mockingly and realizes she never fetched the other iron knuckle she threw. Atro growls and throws off his jacket, which was only lying on his shoulders, revealing his naked insanely muscular upper torso. His head turns unnaturally 180 degrees back while he turns his body around, a sight to behold for the first time. Though I can''t say I was still used to it. A massive hairy arm is revealed sprouting from his back, very grimly sticking out of it. His skin around it, barely healed from the recent operation. ¡°I don¡¯t even need a sword to beat you, just a single arm will do¡± He flexes the gigantic arm. I sigh. ¡±Atro, your grating voice and that massive ego, so off putting, not even mentioning that arm, rivaling you in its atro-city. Just shut up already¡± ¡±You¡¯ve got some gall girl!¡± He brandishes his animal arm at me. ¡±Hahahaha¡± Beam almost smiles, her cheeks illuminated from the glow of her gems by now. ¡±Did the Leader hit you in the head with a beam when you were enriched or is there some other reason you¡¯ve got sawdust for brains?¡± Beam¡¯s face goes sour and she quiets down. ¡±Karme and Kaarme, how the hell are you the most experienced in this squad? How are you still alive with your personalities?" I stop my berating for a moment to savour the moment. "Your body should really rein you in¡± The both snake heads writhe and wriggle agitated in response. ¡±Unwise move...¡± Karme says. ¡±To mention him¡± Kaarme continues. ¡±He is our vessssel and nobody els¡¯s, you got that girl?¡± The both heads threaten in perfect sync. The human face of their body, still and expressionless, almost looking lifeless. A silence of emptiness, like the space outside, spreads inside the cockpit of the ship. ¡±Maybe Sola really has the makings to be an Enforcer¡± Atro cuts through the void, with a surprising smile to boot. ¡±Hahah, you said it¡± Beam booms with an off-putting combination of a hilarious laugh and a serious face. ¡±Sssshe is gifted. You are new, but already know ussss¡± ¡±Know what to ssssay, how to annoy us besssst¡± The two heads take turns to say. They seemed to always speak in a certain order. ¡°Of course, I wouldn''t be here otherwise¡± ¡°Save some pride for when you¡¯ve actually been enriched¡± Beam says and finally picks up his fist weapon from the floor. ¡°Might not be that far off¡± Atro picks up his hat and jacket too and dons them both again. ¡°Do you really think he called me because of that?¡± I answer cutely and feigning ignorance. ¡°A missssion¡± ¡°To prove you are not wasssste¡± Finally¡­ It¡¯s my turn. I can¡¯t help but smile a wide grin at the rapidly passing stars of the ongoing warp. A smile, so wicked, so devilish, it almost makes me laugh as I see it reflected back at me in the windshield.
Intergalactic Space Station. Docking Bay. We walk down the fighter¡¯s slope, the trio ahead of me. ¡°Come train Atro?¡± Beam asks. ¡°Nah, apparently R&D wants to see me¡± ¡°Maintenance?¡± ¡°Doubt it, too soon¡± Beam quickly changes her aim after rejection. ¡°Target practice Karme & Kaarme?¡± ¡°Sssso, we are your ssssecond choice¡± ¡°Inssssolent woman¡± ¡°Yes or no?¡± ¡°It issss¡± ¡°Acceptable¡± They take a corridor to the left together and Atro continues ahead me for a bit, before going to the right. Left by myself, I proceed straight onwards, through the wide and grand corridors of Intergalactic''s Headquarters. Scientists, grunts and other personnel I come across give me a wide berth as I stride proud past them. They seemed to be much more numerous in the recent days, not knowing the exact reason for that bothered me. I can¡¯t help it, I live for the power, revel in the superiority. And respect I get. Well, from everyone who recognized me as a member of the Enforcers that was, those who didn¡¯t would soon falter as they found out. Except those in the Enforcers themselves, those who were Enriched. Just thinking of them soils my good mood. To vent I give a passing cleaner a look that could kill, along with my best mad grin and crazy eyes. He jumps in surprise and hurries off terrified with his cleaning equipment. I laugh out loud heartily and wipe off a small tear. Sola¡¯s addition to the squad was currently holding down Delta¡¯s squad ranking. Two spots in the squad were recently vacated, one dead, the other on a secret mission. Only through that opportunity had she finally gotten the chance to rise to her position. The first spot filled by Atro, who was newly enriched even before joining the squad. It was unheard of. Sola had climbed up the corporate ladder for years to be here, from a row soldier, to among the most Elite. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. However, she had done little to no fighting to achieve that, as her strengths laid elsewhere. But she couldn¡¯t wait to taste real power, the highest honor. Enrichment. With it came many freedoms, much better pay and more dangerous missions. But most importantly of all, inhuman powers. He, their leader, alone decided who''d go through the process, finally having recognized her talent and gotten scouted to the position of the Elites. Just as she had been planning all along. She had gotten to meet him face to face before, but he was not as easy to sway as everyone else. While this greatly upset her, it was to be expected of their leader, it only made him that much more enigmatic and desirable. That much more satisfying to surpass him. I shake the fantasy and memories from my head as I arrive to his secretary¡¯s office. She barely acknowledges my presence and just gives a sharp glare and a sideways head gesture towards the leaders'' door. I push open the massive double doors of black and put on my most captivating smile. ¡±You wanted to see me Sir?¡± I coat my words with allure and purity. ¡±Ready to earn your Enrichment?¡± His deep voice asks, the turned long leather chair¡¯s back hiding him entirely. ¡±Of course. I¡¯m ready to prove myself. To do anything¡­¡± I let my words trail off. ¡°Do whatever necessary¡± ¡±A good answer¡± He slowly spins around in the chair to face me. A writhing, bulging mass, humanoid in form, but malformed with various animal parts. The most Enriched of everyone, the word was that he¡¯d live forever. ¡±I have a special mission, perfect for just your strengths¡± Sola remembered the days when he was still a fearsome leader, but his age was catching up to him. His once gigantic, powerful implanted arms, like Atro¡¯s, were now shriveled to human size, or smaller, like a child¡¯s. He had wielded them and his other appendages with finesse, an unmatched arsenal of various racking claws, sharp blades and puncturing stringers. Two more gigantic ape like arms for more ¡®delicate¡¯ work. He¡¯d been in the front lines of many operations back then. Of course, for the last few years he had started to show up publicly less and less, even now, he wore a strikingly stylish and sharp black jacket, hiding his body entirely. Only his face, visible to the few who¡¯d get the honor of meeting him, had been cut and chiseled to look normal, like a human¡¯s to keep up the facade. No way he¡¯d look even fraction as good without frequent operations, not even mentioning combining it with his now degrading body. It was a well kept secret, but her ways to acquire information were unmatched, in form and function. Suddenly she realized just where Atro got his style from, no wonder the leader had Enriched him so early. A like minded soul possibly, maybe he thought of Atro as his successor. The thought made her almost drop her act. As the leader lays down her mission¡¯s details, his movements are sluggish and associated with heavy breathing, marred with frequent pauses during talking. He tries to hide his state as best as he could. It wouldn''t be long now that he¡¯d be gone. No wonder he is so eager and hasty to test her, to Enrich her. He¡¯d need everyone in top form for his plan. ¡°It shall be done, great leader¡± I bow graciously and manage to hide my sickening grin. I¡¯ll gladly play along¡­ for now. I leave the room, flash him a final tempting smile and the door¡¯s automatically close after me again. The secretary gives me a sideways glance as I leave her office through another set of double doors. ¡°So was it an Enrichement mission then?¡±Atro leans to the cold steel wall, next to the doors, looking as enigmatic as ever, with his jacket pulled high up. ¡°Yes, a secret mission too¡± I say and manage to conceal my despise behind a grin. ¡°Seems to be going around¡± ¡°But I think I¡¯ll be working with you all still, or at least towards the same eventual goal. Not like he removed me from Delta¡± ¡°Interesting¡± ¡°I can¡¯t say any more than that¡± I notice a sword of a massive size, sheathed and leaning to the wall next to him in the corner. ¡°R&D really outdid themselves this time huh?¡± ¡°They say I¡¯m the only one capable of wielding this one, so I was chosen for its prototype use¡± ¡°Oh, how wonderful¡± How truly wonderful Golden Boy. There¡¯s no way that pea-brain Beam couldn¡¯t lift that too¡­ The bias and injustice make my grin rise high enough to reveal my white row of teeth bitten together, which I swiftly and covertly veil with my hand. A light chuckle to top it off and the deception is complete.
Sangria System Crimson Merlot ¨C Refuel, Bar and Winery. Metropolis was a few warps away, stopping to refuel at space stations on the way was mandatory. This was the higher ups smaller ship with less fuel capacity than the cargo ships after all. They had stopped to refuel the ship for two times already on their way to Metropolis. As they landed for the one final refuel, Doug thought again of going after Larsenia, as she sauntered past him, soon exiting the ship alone. He had wanted to go after her, to talk with her privately, each time they landed. Psyching himself up to go, but every time, he didn¡¯t know what to say. None of them had spoken a single word since, the trip passing sluggishly in silence. Only words after that call had been: ¡°I¡¯ll refuel, be right back¡± She said those exact words each time. Best to leave her alone, she¡¯s probably still recovering from the shock¡­ I can¡¯t exactly argue against us getting fired not being her fault. Maybe they are both busy thinking of where to get a new job. I bet they are. This development seemed to have hit Sam especially hard, he seemed different, changed. Sure had been annoying, but they had never fought, or even had an argument over anything, for the whole month they¡¯d been on Midnight Iris. Sam would always fold under my pressure, my command, often very easily. Well, month isn¡¯t exactly a long time to get to know somebody. I take off my sunglasses and clean them with a cloth I always carried with me. Happening to glance at Sam''s direction, our eyes meet Sam¡¯s look, evaluating, inquisitive. I return the gesture and look back questioning. Our gazes locked, frozen in mettle. The ship¡¯s back door opens with a whizz and a whirr. Larsenia walks from in between us as she returns to the cockpit, breaking our line of sight. I quickly blink my dry eyes before Larsenia¡¯s hips have passed. But Sam is looking away already, towards the windshield and through the window. Its over, as quickly as it had started. ¡­ What was that about?
Carnation System Planet ¡°Metropolitan Sanctuary of Life¡± City of Metropolis. We land on the landing pad of ''Intergalactic¡¯s operations and offices, public facility'' They sure liked their names long and complicated. As we exit the ship, Larsenia stays behind to do a quick check up to the ship, me and Sam proceed without her. ¡°Wanna go return our stuff together? For old times¡¯ sake?¡± The proposal catches me off guard. ¡°Sure, one last hurrah¡± Maybe he is over it now? I hesitate to ask, but still do. ¡°Got any gigs lined up?¡± ¡°Maybe I¡¯ll return to where I used to work before. You?¡± Sam asks as we walk through the automatic doors. ¡°Where did you work before? I don¡¯t think you told me¡± ¡°Just a shoddy private security company, you¡¯d hate it. Upper management is even sterner than Larsenia on duty and with worse temper than that Rocco guy¡± ¡°Not going to deny that. As for me¡­ I don¡¯t really know¡± I take ahold of the rim of my shades. ¡°Maybe I¡¯ll become an entrepreneur and open an optician¡¯s shop¡± ¡°What? Is that a joke? Getting fired must have really rattled you¡± Sam turns back to me as he is swiping a key card to grant us access to the staff only portion, the non-public areas. ¡°I¡¯m being serious¡± ¡°Hahaha, well you¡¯d probably do well in that business¡± They make it to the men''s locker room and Sam opens the way. We needed to gather all our stuff first before returning our key cards, we could always get out without them, but even locker rooms were behind readers. Inside, a dressing room, multiple lockers lined up and by accessing a console, your''s would be brought up to replace another. I open my locker, why we even had lockers all the way here when we worked anywhere but here, I didn¡¯t know. Some dusty corporate rules I guess, at least some space to store your stuff was nice, I guess. Oh here they are. I rifle through a selection of different ordinary sunglasses, propped to a clothes hanger, of various shapes and sizes and find a pair of yellow ones. Very distinctly shining from between them all. They¡¯d have fired me too if I¡¯d actually forgot these here¡­ Maybe I should request a repaint¡­ how am I supposed to use those and not attract attention? As it stands now, I¡¯ve only got one good pair¡­ ¡°Man, I joked about how you have a whole collection of sunglasses, I didn¡¯t know I was actually right. Did you already open up shop?¡± I slip the yellow ones into my pocket. ¡°You done already?¡± ¡°Yeah, I don¡¯t have a lot of stuff. I know we agreed to turn our stuff in together, but something¡¯s come up in that security company I told to you about already. Mind if I go ahead without you?¡± ¡°Uh, no that¡¯s fine. It was nice working with you¡± I offer a hand. ¡°Likewise¡± Sam shakes it. ¡°In case we never see again, good luck and hope you¡¯ll find a new job. Or maybe I¡¯ll hear there¡¯s a new optician around soon.¡± ¡°Yeah, see ya around¡± I says and Sam leaves the locker room. That¡¯s a bit disappointing¡­ He¡¯s the one who wanted to go together and then cancels immediately? And now he¡¯s already going back to his old job? Something doesn''t add up... It¡¯s not like I have any evidence, but... I take out my communicator and call Larsenia to check up on her. Three beeps let me know that she¡¯s unreachable, outside of signal range or something''s up with her phone. The first being near impossible in this day and age... Something¡¯s definitely up... I can feel it in my shades. I pat my belt and feel my holstered pistol underneath my shirt. Leaving the unwieldy laser rifle in my locker, I lock it back up and exit the room to the hallway. I check both ways of the long corridor but see no Sam nor Larsenia around. I walk inconspicuously past the Ladies room, as I reach the thin wooden door, I quickly swipe the side of my shades. Outlining the area with my eyes, I start a scan of the room, it finishes in a flash, showing me three life signatures inside. None of them matching my data of Larsenia. I¡¯ve got to hurry.
Earlier. A keycard reader beeps a green light and Larsenia steps inside the server room of the facility. Large racks of quantum computers towered inside the room, a cool airflow whisked around meeting her at the door. Many rows about ten meters in length, formed many short corridors inside the room. I¡¯ve been buying my time to get in here in many occasions, but the risk was simply too great. The perfect situation never showed up, just got to work with what I¡¯ve got. Even as The Director of Midnight Iris, she had no authority to enter with her own card, however she was still responsible for printing out all of her subordinates cards. So what if she just happened to make one extra card for a guard, who doesn¡¯t exist? The door closes automatically after she has enters, she''d need the card to leave again. I check the status of my disruption device attached to my phone, a sleek black attachment a little longer than the communicator, attaching to its side. Its battery was still holding up nicely, so far it seemed to have gotten the job done. She had plenty of experience using it, but it could be a bit finicky. It had a habit of coming off slightly and not getting enough power to function, she''d been burned by it enough times to not rely on it blindly. The room had no lights, or well, she hadn''t turned them on. Only the LEDs of the machines themselves provided any sort of lighting, as well as faint red dots of surveillance cameras. She stepped in direct line of sight of them, confident she couldn''t be seen. Squinting to see, I approach the main server terminal in the middle of the room. As I am about to reach it, a bright red hued light flashes on. A maintenance light, in case of outages. Shit! Curse those low tech motion sensors. I hurry to the console, it was too late to stop now. A traditional physical keyboard greets me and a small screen that lights up as I press a key on it. An admin login screen bars my way. I find an Intergalactic Data Drive (IDD) slot underneath the tabletop, and take out my Galactic Data Drive (GDD) stick, with the adapter for their tech already fitted to it. I insert it into the slot and hope our tech guys weren¡¯t just gloating of having cracked the Intergalactic¡¯s systems. Only a moment and the program on the GDD stick passes the admin login screen, a treasure trove of full admin access greeted her. Let¡¯s see, any new schemes Albert? Maybe the current location of your space station? Larsenia dives deep into their folder and file structure. After some dead ends consisting of marketing strategy: the next products Centizard would advertise and some in progress promotional materials and videos. She finds her way to the less-legal side. Hmm, outgoing shipments from all facilities, the top one place, being coordinates that point to nothingness in space. Promising. She downloads the shipping manifests. What else- Whirrrr The door! I quickly yank the GDD out and dash away from out in the open, to the shade and dim blinking of lights of the corridors of servers. Clack. Thoughts race through her head. Somebody definitely saw me. Did they come in, are they rising the alarm as we speak? Or, are they here... with me? She crept forwards, down the corridor, towards the door. Though it wasn¡¯t visible as this was the one corridor to the right, going straight for it would be too risky. As I silently progress, I hear nothing but the calming and regular beeps of servers and the noise of fans. I start to think I''m alone here after all. A loud clatter from behind, gives me a fright of me life as I quickly turn towards it. A¡­ communicator? Its silver shell shines in the crimson light it had landed to. I gasp in realization and quickly step backwards and turn around. A fist headed right for my face, narrowly dodged. But before I can retreat or turn around entirely, my shoulder is grabbed, and a knee slams into my stomach. I gasp for breath and stagger backwards, folded in two I cough and wheeze. Before I can realize what happened my brain rattles and I find myself lying on the floor. Dizzy and aching I draw my pistol, but a kick flings it away. My fingers sting from the impact. I try to pull myself away slowly and finally get a good look at my assailant. He is shrouded in darkness, a face lacking emotion turns into a grin as I recognize him. ¡°Sam?!¡± Her voice echoes along with the pistol hitting the ground with a loud clatter somewhere in the distance. Just then, a gaping hole appears in his chest, jolting his whole body. The hole smolders and burns, a crisp smell of burning flesh along with a drip of thick plasma inside the wound. Red blood and some blue substance starts gushing forth from it. Sam staggers but does not fall, though his smile fades. He turns around and covertly draws his own gun. I struggle onto my feet and dart away to hide against the end of the server corridor, peeking at the situation from there. ¡°How good of you to- ¡° Sam says but gets blasted in the head, an explosion of pink plasma, followed with a fountain of blue and red. Sam finally falls to the ground limp, the entire top half of his head missing. What the fuck is going on!? I carefully sneak to the next server corridor where I think my pistol landed into. ¡°Larsenia!¡± A familiar voice calls out to me through the deathly silence. Is that-? ¡°It¡¯s me. Doug¡± Douglas? But how? Why? I continue searching for my pistol, Sam just tried to kill me, how could I trust Douglas now either? Weren¡¯t they friends? My skin crawls as adrenaline pounds my headache loudly in my skull. I search the corridors for my gun in the near-darkness. I crest another corridor and find the blinking lights illuminating the hard uneven surface of my pistol. ¡°Nifty piece of gear that¡± A voice right behind me. "Almost- I scoop up the pistol and use the same momentum to slug a punch to the direction of the voice. My fist connects and I hear a whimper. In the darkness I find Douglas holding his jaw as I point my gun at him. He wears his sunglasses, even in this situation. ¡°Larsenia¡± He says calmly. ¡°Why did you just punch me?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not buying it Douglas, if that¡¯s even your real name¡± ¡°And yours is Larsenia then?¡± He says and gets silence as a response. ¡°Just lower the gun and lets talk¡± ¡°You might have killed Sam, but that doesn¡¯t make you my ally. We can talk now, but make it short, I¡¯m in a hurry and I might just shoot my way through distractions¡± ¡°Us spies should work together, at least consider each other as allies when we are up against intergalactic, yeah? ¡± ¡°We don¡¯t need ISSA¡¯s help, just keep on conserving your aliens and leave the law enforcement to us¡± I shake my traditional 9mm pistol at him. ¡°Because Galactic Police can certainly be trusted to handle all conflicts. Just like today?¡± Douglas beams a smile, his eyes hidden behind those shades, but I bet they look smug now too. ¡°Fine¡­ let¡¯s just get out of here quickly¡­ You first¡± Doug and Larsenia make their way, past Sam¡¯s corpse and his communicator. Wait, where¡¯s his communicator? It was right here. ¡°Did you already loot his phone?¡± ¡°Yeah, and his corpse. You think I¡¯d leave empty handed?¡± Doug shrugs with his back turned. ¡°You saw that blue, too right? I think he¡¯s one of those¡± He levels a serious gaze at me. ¡°Abomination or not, looks pretty dead to me¡± ¡°Well, either way, we shouldn¡¯t stick around, let¡¯s go¡± They exit the server room, acting like they belonged and proceeded as if nothing happened. Nobody comes to stop them, nor even hails for them, no alarms blare. Larsenia suspects Douglas had some of his own tricks help them with this. They both return to their dressing rooms and actually get ready to leave, only a few minutes later they meet back at the hallway. Without saying a word, they make their way to the public side of the building and visit HR, currently serving in customer service. They quickly turn in the key cards and other company property and get handed the official documents of their resignation. As they exit the grand automatic glass doors of the Intergalactic¡¯s facility, they let out a relieved sigh. Around them opens up the industrial side of Metropolis, lots of massive factories, office buildings and complexes with roads and streets separating them. Lots of places to hide or run to, unlike in the den of your enemy. They walk down the fairly empty streets. Everyone else still confined within the buildings, like normal people not fired from their undercover jobs. ¡°So, why did you come for me? Are you after information?¡± I ask opening up the conversation we had been quiet about since then. ¡°Yes, information on the latest moves of Intergalactic¡± Douglas shoves his sunglasses further up his head. ¡°You got something from that server, right?¡± ¡°Well, not much, Sam interrupted me a bit too quickly¡± Douglas stays silent, unsatisfied with my answer. ¡°I saw their shipping manifest, from all the facilities under the Metropolitan wing, the traffic to their HQ has increased drastically in the few recent days¡± ¡°How interesting. Any idea why?¡± ¡°No, clue. But they must be planning something big, goods shipments, resources even personnel are all being funneled there¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡°You wouldn¡¯t know yourself?¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s too early to say. But I think we are even now¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ is that so?¡± ¡°Nice working with you ¡®Larsenia¡¯ ¡± He gives a small two finger salute and stops at the corner of the street they arrived at. ¡°Sure, ¡®Douglas¡¯ " "May we meet again" He starts walking away. "Likewise" I have a feeling all of this has just started.
¡°What? What is this?¡± ¡°Urghh¡± The other person with him holds his nose and tries to not gag from the smell and sight of it. Splatters of coagulated blood and some runnier blue liquid splayed on the floor. Bits of organs and brain bathed in this goop. The two people retreat outside of the server room in a rush and the first person makes a call. ¡°What happened in the server room? It¡¯s like somebody died in there!¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Well you better, we aren¡¯t stepping inside again until it¡¯s cleaned up!¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t care, as long as its gone, the more I think of that red and blue stain there more I-¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Yeah, yeah whatever, we won¡¯t say a thing, who¡¯d want to torture their colleagues describing that anyway!¡± He cuts the call. ¡°Looks like we¡¯ve got time to kill hah, suckers. Let¡¯s hit the diner?¡± ¡°Urgh¡­ how can you even think of¡­ of food... right now¡± He holds his stomach. "And... Are you not worried... what could have possibly happened there?" "Nahhh" "Maybe a coworker died and somebody is in the midst of cleaning up his body!" "My gut tells me it''s best we keep this to ourselves, lets never speak of this again"
19. Encounter Midnight Iris The Present Moment A bright and oppressive heat blazes down from the sky as the twin suns are slowly creeping towards the horizon. The larger sun further in the sky, would be the first one to hide and abandon its smaller brethren. This period, a two hour long dusk, the borderline between day and night, still hours away. Frank shields his eyes and takes a leaping step through the improvised clinic door, the heat making him wish he had prepared with a hat. Maybe next time he¡¯ll ransack one from among all that junk in the lobby. Its seemed like the kind of space where almost anything could be found. Amethyst follows and easily steps over the high metal sill of her door. Frank waits for her outside and they start walking together. Her blades sparkle and reflect the harsh sunlight, casting blinding beams, wherever they happen to point at during her gait. Her less armored bits, mainly the face and thighs enjoying the warmth of his home suns. Amethyst seems to carefully look me over as we walk. ¡°You didn¡¯t take your gun with you?¡± She sounded surprised, I could almost take offence from that. ¡°Better to not go building peace with a figurative knife behind one¡¯s back¡± Lofty words for someone who mainly left it behind for how big it is. I¡¯d rather not gamble on them being unable to recognize a weapon though... But¡­ that shouldn¡¯t matter. She¡¯ll protect me if need be¡­ Like last time. Right? ¡°Are you¡­ worried?¡± Amethyst¡¯s skin sparkles in the sunlight for a moment, before a long dark gray cloud blocks out the sun. The striking dark blue eyes seem to pierce through me, seeing all of my hidden emotions, leaving me exposed. ¡°What? Me? Nnnn-¡± I stop myself before I break a promise. ¡°A little¡± I admit as we start climbing up one of the quarry¡¯s slopes up to the valley. Amethyst looks ahead again, like avoiding me. ¡°I- I¡¯m not worried, it¡¯ll be just fine¡± Her faltering tone didn¡¯t instill confidence in our simple plan, if it could even be called one. As we close in to the top of the valley, the sounds of a forest grew louder and louder. Chirping of strange birds from somewhere in the trees, the background noise of small insects sounding their melodies and the occasional gusts of wind pulling on the branches and leaves. As we crest to the top, we are instantly transported to a lush alien jungle, the industrial and man-made scenery left behind. Now that I wasn¡¯t in an acute danger of being held at gunpoint, or at anti-air weaponry''s sights, I could really appreciate its beauty. Strange flora, bushes and grass, mostly in shades of red and violet, grants the forest a magnificent and unique color pallet. Even in terms of other planets in the galaxy. I find myself enthralled, trying to spot any of the other life, hiding in the thick vegetation. Gazing at the tall trees, their curved and numerous branches, underneath large leaves of flowers and plants. However, the sound of Amethyst cutting down the underbrush from her way brings me back. With a slow walk, I follow after her, still looking around at the hanging red vines, and spot an exotic bush. A crooked trunk like a tree, but much shorter, the top covered with a half sphere of violet leaves with blue tips. Nearby it, a massive plant catches my eye with a closed up bulb hanging downwards. It started as black from the root and changed shade from dark violet, to pink once the tip was reached. Small flowers with blue petals but a purple middle surrounded its stalk. The deeper in we walked, the more thick and high the surrounding trees got, at least five meters in diameter¡­ or maybe just in radius? So massive, one could in theory even live in these, nature¡¯s own housing ready for carving. An intriguing thought. We had been walking for a while now, the newness of the environment was wearing out a bit, my thoughts freed from their grasp. Amethyst had been quiet ever since we reached the forest. She seemed determined to just push on, she barely even looked around her. ¡°What exactly are we looking for?¡± My words cause her to stop, her arms left in the middle of a cutting motion. She stays silent for a moment before answering. ¡°Fruits, or maybe berries of these plants... I don''t think they actually have a name" Amethyst pauses having trouble describing them. "Well it has these sort of¡­ grapes(?) inside of them¡± Amethyst finishes and continues her cut, slicing away at a round bush with black leaves barring her way. ¡°Well, where do they grow? What should I look for?¡± ¡°This sort of tall flower with a large bulb that hangs-¡± ¡°-black at the root and changes hue through the whole length of the stalk, reaching pink at the tip?¡± I interrupt her with a guess. ¡°You found one already?¡± She cuts some low branches off a tree to let her pass and glances back at me. ¡°Yeah, though that was right at the edge of the quarry. Oh well, I bet we¡¯ll find some more¡± I look back at the path we have taken, a clearing following our wake, its snakes a lot and I cannot see the end of it. ¡°Any particular reason why these grapes?¡± I start to observe my surroundings more closely, knowing to look for the familiar plant. ¡°They are super delicious! And hard for us to eat, we can¡¯t really separate them well from the vine that holds the cluster together¡± I listen to her and look everywhere but in front of me. ¡°And they are painful to eat whole with them still attached to it¡± Her voice coming from my left alerts me and I manage to stop myself from walking to one of the massive trees Amethyst is working to go around. I catch up to her. ¡°You want me to separate the berries from the vine for you?¡± ¡°Yeah, should be no problem to you since you have fingers¡± Amethyst beams. We walk some more, the ground getting easier to traverse as the trees continued to gain height and width, stealing all the sunlight for themselves. Vines and small bushes had almost completely disappeared most likely to a lack of light and nutrients. The ground was mostly grass now, any bigger plants were now so few and far between they could be gone around instead. ¡°Here¡¯s one¡± Amethyst found one of the flowers, growing in a spot of sunshine that was let through the tree¡¯s high up thick leaves. Its bulb was open, but as Amethyst approached it and blocked some of the light, it quickly closed. Walking up to it, the plant was taller than me and even Amethyst. She reaches a bladed arm to its stalk near the bulb. ¡°Frank, catch it as I cut it loose?¡± ¡°O-okay, isn¡¯t that kinda huge though?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll be fine¡± She beams a silly grin. ¡°Ehhh...?¡± Amethyst cuts it without warning, it falls straight down towards me. I manage to catch it on my arms, bracing to bend from my knees, but it wasn¡¯t as heavy as it looked. Though it was truly massive, completely filling my lap, obstructing my vision ahead. ¡°Rotate it around and I¡¯ll cut the thing open for you¡± I do as I¡¯m told and maneuver the bulb. An instant swish of a blade and my view is filled with leafy matter flying in the air. I can¡¯t help but flinch a little. About 1/4th of the bulb is gone now, allowing me to see Amethyst and her frisky smile in front of me. I respond with an exaggerated eye roll and peek inside of the flower. One massive clump of berries in a vine, resembling the thornous nature of the applenut¡¯s growth back in Viridian Macula. I instinctively remember the small nick, it was still visible this morning on my hand, back when I got it cut earlier while grasping in the dark. The berries themselves, bright violet and dark red in color, a faint light cast inside the dark of the bulb. They were glowing. ¡°Amethyst, are the thorns¡­ safe? What will happen if I get struck by one?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know? I¡¯ve never been struck by one?¡± She taps her chin with the flat of her bladed-hand quizzical. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you used to swallow these whole with the thorns and all?¡± Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. ¡°Well yeah, it¡¯s uncomfortable but the thorns aren¡¯t sharp enough to pierce the inside of our throats¡± ¡°Of course not¡­¡± I resign to my fate and carefully stick my right hand inside, pressing the bulb against my chest with my left one to balance it. Amethyst starts staring at me intently and expectantly. Despite her scrutiny I manage to grab ahold of one, its surface firm and smooth. It comes loose with a small plop, it¡¯s a bit bigger than my thumb. Inspecting it closer, the bright violet juices move and swirl inside of its dark red translucent shell, like forming small typhoons. It¡¯s unlike anything I¡¯ve ever seen or heard of, it¡¯s¡­ enchanting. ¡°Come on Frank, please, can I have that one?¡± Her face is almost desperate for it. ¡°Sure, sure¡± I snap out of it. The berry paints my fingers with its purple glow as I hold it between two fingers. ¡°These are safe to eat... right?¡± ¡°Of course! Now give it to me!¡± Amethyst opens her mouth wide, her mandibles grasp eagerly forwards. She waits, her eyes closed into happy lines. I bring my hand closer and toss it into her mouth, out of range from the swishing mandibles, she gulps it down hole as it goes straight down her throat. ¡°Hey!¡± Amethyst opens her eyes and stares me down. ¡°I can¡¯t taste it if you throw it, I gotta puncture it with my mandibles first!¡± ¡°Okay okay, fine¡± I stick my hand back inside the bulb and take out another berry. Holding it between my fingertips I bring it close to Amethyst¡¯s mouth. Her mandible ravenously stab through it and plonks it into her mouth, I quickly pull my hand away. For a moment I mistake the substance trickling down my hand as blood, but I realize its violet and glistens even in the shade. ¡°Mmmmmm! So good! Come on Frank you¡¯ve gotta try it!¡± Frank shakes the berry juice from his hand, the liquid forms into thin solid slabs during its fall. But he is too busy fishing out more berries to notice. I pick three berries at the same time, they all swirl in slightly different manner and speed. Their color is slightly inconsistent too. Maybe these attributes tell of their ripeness? I hesitate thinking of tasting these strange berries. Amethyst ate one and she¡¯s fine, why would I be different? I decide to treat it as a hypothetical question and not think it logically any further. I slip one of the three berries into my mouth. On my tongue, its surface feels and tastes just like any other berry, like any grape. Amethyst observes me and anxiously awaits my reaction. As I bite into it, the liquid explodes into my mouth like it was under pressure. An extremely sweet taste coats every part of my mouth, and I lick it all clean. It reminds me of a peach or a mango, only a little tangy. ¡°It really is delicious!¡± ¡°Right!?¡± Her face lights up, cheekbones rising high. I catch myself desiring more of these sweet berries, but restrain my urge. Maybe later, if I still feel fine then. ¡°Hmm, what should we call these? How about... ¡®Pango¡¯?¡± ¡°Pan-go?¡± She elaborately pronounces and tilts her head thoughtful. ¡°Haha, yeah. These berries'' taste reminded me of-¡± ¡°Shh¡± She shushes me, her antennae starting to spin around her head. ¡°Something is coming¡± Footsteps and cracking sounds of branches echo around the forest, the sound bouncing around from the incredibly wide trees. Amethyst¡¯s antennae continue rotating searching for the source of the sound, like some radars. I try to find the source, but despite the sparse underbrush, the few large plants around and the ginormous trees offered plenty of protection from being seen. I glance back at Amethyst as I have no success, even she seemed to have trouble. Then, an eerie silence falls. Birdsong, the voices of the forest and even the wind had died down. The anticipation of the unknown felt crushing. It dawned on me just how vulnerable and helpless I really was in this situation. Surrounded by strange flora, in a foreign landscape on another planet. I never remembered feeling like this back in Viridian Macula. Even in its forest rife with escaped animals from all around the galaxy. Was my laser rifle really the source of all my confidence? It¡¯s not like a weapon can save you anyway. My inner voice is interrupted as Amethyst¡¯s antennae return to attention and she lets out a buzzing sound. Though nothing seems to happen. She repeats the same sound. Rustling starts again and from a tree to our right, a Tyrchid appears from behind it. It sports short dark green hair and green eyes, slowly approaching us it brandishes its blades. Is it the same one who Amethyst fought with before? Buzzing and clicking echo a warning as it advances. Its armor is more dominantly blue than Amethyst¡¯s, green tint in its blades too. I didn¡¯t realize before just how different some of the details had been between the- the- Blood soaked blades. Organ splattered skin. Ravenous mandibles ripping out- Amethyst repeats the same sound once again. I raise my head and see her point at me and then at herself. The green one looks directly into my eyes, wary and angry. ¡°Frank, the berries¡± Amethyst whispers to me. Oh, right. I still had the two ones from before, I hold my palm open and show them to it. Two overly sweet, mysterious looking Pangos. The Tyrchid tilts its head, curious. Amethyst says another word and with both of her blades gestures my way. Her kin doesn¡¯t respond anything, but starts to approach me. A blood splatter splashes before my eyes. A flying head of Jack. The desperation and blame in Jill¡¯s eyes. The¡­ the¡­ blood¡­ all the bodies¡­ The feast- ¡°Frank¡± Amethyst says quietly with worry, clearing my head. I look at my hand, it''s in a sideways fist. I open it to find it empty. Though, it moves on its own, I cannot control it. Shaking. Trembling. I look up and flinch, the unfamiliar Tyrchid already right in front of me. It responds by flinching too, retreating with a buzz. ¡°Sorry, it¡¯s okay, it¡¯s ooookaaayy¡± I say in a calming voice and slowly extends a hand inside the bulb and shakily pluck a berry. I present it and its green hybrid eyes shift focus between the berry and me, one eye at a time. It steps closer again. I subdue my trembling and bring my hand higher, closer to its head. Closer to its¡­ fangs, its claws¡­ Its tearing, piercing mandibles. The Tyrchid lowers its head, I close my eyes. A tickle of wind is all I feel, I continue to wait for an eternity, wait to feel the touch of teeth. For my hand to be ripped off, for the blood to gush from my stump. My head pounds and I notice just how quick my heart is beating. I crack open an eyelid as nothing seems to be happening and find the berries nabbed from my hand. The mandibles didn¡¯t even brush against my skin, a much more precise eater than Amethyst. I feel faint and realize to breath now. The Tyrchid keeps looking at me and emits a buzzing I think I¡¯ve heard before. ¡°She wants more food¡± Amethyst lets me know, though I don¡¯t look at her, I keep my eyes nailed at the Tyrchid before me. ¡°A-alright, more Pangos then?¡± I insert my right hand inside the bulb hastily, a sharp pain lets me know of my mistake. A thorn easily punctured my skin. ¡°Hhhhhhhs¡± I restrain myself and hiss a sound of pain under my breath. It burns like my hand was on an open flame, I cannot help but frantically check if my hand was actually aflame. I fight through the pain and wish it isn¡¯t poisonous, merely really painful. I manage to pick three more berries despite the wound continuing to sear and throb. The back of my palm trickles blood as I extend a hand to the Tyrchid again. Noticing Amethyst¡¯s concerned stare, I give her a forced smile and feel a trail of sweat go across my face. The searing pain continues further down my hand and wrist, pulsing and sweltering. The Tyrchid lowers its head again towards my unsteady hand and plucks the berries quickly. The pain distracted me and I didn¡¯t even have time to prepare before it was over. It looks happy after the fact, its hostile expression gone, emitting a low buzzing noise. ¡°Frank, she called you a friend!¡± A thrilled Amethyst clamors. ¡°Great...¡± I answer and hold my hand, while balancing the bulb in my lap. ¡°Now answer her back¡± The green Tyrchid looks at me as if evaluating me. ¡°What? How am I supposed to do that?¡± I quietly respond monotone, to not startle it. ¡°Come on, it¡¯s easy, just say ¡®Shuzs bfhusz¡¯¡± "H-" I control my volume: ¡°how do you expect me to do a sound like that?¡± ¡°Just do it, she¡¯s waiting!¡± Amethyst beams like she was enjoying this. I sigh and looks at the green shaded Tyrchid, it waits patiently. ¡°sufzs bhousz¡± I try my best but even I can tell I butchered the pronunciation. I struggled to remember what I was supposed to say, my burning hand and state of mind not doing me any favors. At least the pain didn''t seem to be getting any worse anymore. ¡°Frank that wasn¡¯t even close! What are you doing?!¡± ¡°Your language is impossible!¡± I continue the whispering engage. Unexpectedly, the Tyrchid repeats the same sound back to me. ¡°Seems to suit her just fine. You sure you¡¯re not rusty in your mother¡¯s tongue?¡± I jest with a gleeful smile. ¡°What does that even mean? We don¡¯t even have tongues!¡± ¡°That was a figure of speech, it means ¡®your native language¡¯ ¡± ¡°Oh¡± We notice the green Tyrchid observing our exchange confused and we both shut up. Amethyst turns to it. ¡°Flufvz¡± ¡°What did you say to it now?¡± Her new friend repeats the word and points into the forest. ¡°I asked her to take us home¡± ¡°Smart, it definitely won¡¯t hurt to have a local with us when we arrive there¡± ¡°Hey!¡± She gives me an appalling glare. ¡°Heh, sorry¡± The green eyed Tyrchid starts walking to the forest leading the way, we follow after it. ¡°Should we give it a name?¡± I ask with a suggestion in mind. ¡°Her, and maybe. We gotta ask her about it later though¡± ¡°How can you tell it¡¯s a¡­ she?¡± ¡°It¡¯s obvious, can¡¯t you?¡± ¡°No¡­ ¡° I admit and ruffle my hair. ¡°It¡¯s their... scent, obviously the scent of a female¡± ¡°Oh, well our human¡¯s sense of smell is so bad, we might as well not have it¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°I mean, comparable to you, we can still smell and stuff of course, you just have us completely outclassed¡± Beat us in the hearing department too I bet. ¡°Anyway since you¡¯re named after a gemstone too-¡± ¡°I am?¡± ¡°Yeah, Amethyst is a purple gemstone¡± ¡°Ah, I see¡­¡± ¡°We can call her Emerald, due to her green complexion¡± ¡°Emerald... a green gemstone...¡± Amethyst repeats, like trying to make up her mind of what to think of this, focusing on the Tyrchid before us. "It''s a good name" She eventually says and smiles at me, but it seems shallow, sadness clinging to her lips. 20. Kin ¡°We can call her Emerald, due to her green complexion?¡± ¡°Emerald¡­ a green gemstone¡­¡± I repeat the name suggestion after Frank. Amethyst¡­ I was named after a precious stone? The green Trychid walking before us, seemingly unaware that the conversation concerned her. If it was as Frank said, the name would suit her well, the dominant green color, something I had grown averse to. But on her, it looked natural, it suited her. Maybe it wasn¡¯t as sickly as I thought it was. But how is it possible? Our Queen¡­ my mother¡­ had been dominantly purple, like me. There was only one mother, everyone were children of her. I knew it to be true, a feeling at the back of my mind, in my veins. But I don¡¯t remember¡­ Not even that we can be of different colors... Emerald didn¡¯t seem familiar either. Like a total stranger to me, just happening to look alike, be like me. It was all so dark, so blurry in my mind. What if I never remember? Frank is giving me a strange look, I realize never giving him an answer. ¡°It¡¯s a good name¡± I say and try to smile. Name... Humans have their surnames to link them together, I think that¡¯s right. I just have one name. Maybe¡­ Does us both being named after gemstones make us¡­ family? Make us cousins, siblings? That¡­ That¡¯d be nice... Raising my heavy head I see other Tyrchids walk around in the forest. The surroundings growing ever more sparse in foliage, the thicker and bigger trees almost compensating for it. We pass close by of a group of my kin, a trio of orange ones, all differently patterned with other colors mixed in on their appearance too. One of them glances our way, his orange eyes like shimmering embers, appear to evaluate us. His gaze extinguishes quickly, and his head turns away, as if he grew bored of observing us. Nobody else with him pays us any mind. Did they really not see us as a threat? I look down towards Frank walking on my right, his head spins as he looks all around at my colorful kin. They walk on their paths trampled on the grass, some flying in the sky above. Some nondescript buzzing can be heard, but it was mostly quiet. Emerald leads us to the main village, an area with extremely thick and numerous trees, their trunks covered in rough, uneven bark of purple and deep crimson. Rays of the two suns cast strong and layered shadows from the tall trees, landing on the paths crisscrossing between them on the ground. The grass and foliage had been stomped out, forming these frequently used pathways. I really was home. All around me, the forest I lived¡ªgrew up in. Surrounded by my kin, my friends, one big family. ... Even if I don¡¯t remember any of it. We enter into the main village area, it could be hard to recognize it apart from the rest of the forest, unless you knew what to look for. As we close in, few Tyrchids approach Emerald, she says them only one word: food. They stay close by to us and Emerald goes off to more Tyrchids, repeating the word. I turn to frank and hesitate. ¡°H-here we are. My Flufvz- I mean, my home¡± He is looking up at the trees, already having spotted our housing. ¡°You really do live in the trees, heh¡± ¡°Yeah, of course¡± Why did he find it¡­ funny? Above their heads, Tyrchids fly going about their business, from tree to tree and to outside of the village. One Tyrchid has some sort of large fruits of different kinds skewered to its elbow blades, along with a winged creature, resembling a hawk. Flying to a hole in a tree, it folds its wings at the entrance, sending purple shards fluttering down like sharp petals. The sparkling shrapnel fall onto the root of the tree, a stack of them already formed below, most of the tree trunks were completely surrounded in piles of them already. ¡°Might want to be mindful of the splinters when you walk around here¡± I add, watching Frank¡¯s bright eyed wonderment. ¡°Do you all have your own... house hole here?¡± ¡°I think so, though some probably share them¡± ¡°So¡­ yours is here somewhere too?¡± ¡°Y-yeah¡± I¡­ I know it¡¯s here¡­ Has to be... But where exactly? During our discussion, Emerald has met with more and more Tyrchids, a sort of a crowd has started forming around us. ¡°Before that I think you better start plucking some berries, Emerald has announced dinnertime to everyone nearby¡± Frank starts to quickly collect berries, from the huge bulb. His hands looks steadier and his expression calmer then before. Maybe I was worried for nothing. Though I hope they understand it¡¯s the berries that are the food¡­ He picks them dexterously and shoves them into his pocket, stockpiling them up. More and more of my family arrive, some descend from the sky and litter the world with purple shards, though some opt to keep their wings open instead, just lowering them. Some smaller than me in size, others a little bigger, the only truly uniform thing seemed to be the dominant color of violet in their blades and in their wings'' film. Even if their hair and armor were of different color, these crystal aspects always had purple in them, with the possibility of one accent color. Their armor equally diverse in patterning, like pigment changes on skin, though much more extreme and wide ranged, even if they followed the principle of reds, purples and blues. Eye color also varied, along with the length of hair. Did they knowingly style their hair? Some choosing to keep it longer? ¡­ Did I do that? A Tyrchid breaks off from the hesitant-to-approach group, going straight at Frank. His aura of power and pride, walking straight backed, matched his armor. A striking unusual mix of black, gray and red. From the sea of color that was the other Tyrchid¡¯s, his black hair and eyes stood out. Even bigger than me, he towers over Frank and speaks. ¡°Blizh¡± Blizh¡­ but that¡¯s¡­ Did he just use it as a... swear word? Frank just offers him berries, he seems to play along, keeping his eyes locked onto Frank¡¯s as he crouches to eat. Observing the scene from further away, I get the impression he meant no harm, despite his threatening manners. Though I would be unable to stop those blackened blades in time, if he decided on cutting Frank down. I wonder if I could even best him in combat either way if it came down to it. The mandibles look longer than mine as they dexterously pluck the berries from Frank''s hand. After he is finished, a pointed looks to the crowd causes a red eyed, pink haired Tyrchid to slowly and awkwardly walk to his side. ¡°Blizh, Shfluz!¡± A deep angry buzz directed again at Frank, the pink Tyrchid looks embarrassed to be there. Frank offers her a hand of berries too, she timidly approaches and slowly plucks them one by one from his hand. After the Pink Tyrchid gets her berries and they join back into the crowd, it breaks loose and others also approach. The atmosphere slowly growing more relaxed as they surround Frank, the feeding scene repeats many times. As soon as he gets berries to his hand, somebody is already waiting to eat them. Watching from the sidelines, I feel glad Frank seemed to have been accepted among us. Though, a strange tinge stung my chest. What was this feeling? ... Am I jealous? No matter how intricately I observed each Tyrchid, I could not feel any closer to remembering. Of invoking memories from their appearance, no matter how yellow their hair, how unique their armor pattern or how expressive their faces were. Even observing our head wings, these bone crowns on our heads, all shaped a little differently, some even had theirs bent or with pieces missing. But it didn¡¯t help. All of this information, combined with their antennae, the fur on them, its length and color, all wildly varied. Many, many intricate details, differences and unique appearances. So much to reminisce about, to recall them from. Maybe there was no returning to the past, whoever I had been back then, lost to time. All of my relationships, everything I had been. ... I am as much of an outsider here as Frank is... The crowd was starting to thin out, the rest of the Tyrchids had been much more nicer than the first one, but I still kept watch over Frank. He had seemed really out of it with Emerald, but here he was, feeding them from his hand, like it was nothing. He really was good with animals. Animals...? They are- We are... more than that We have to be more than that¡­ I¡¯ll prove it. ¡­ From the corner of my hybrid eyes, a spot of green, Emerald is watching from further back too. I walk up to her and greet her with a buzz, she breaks her staring at Frank and seems surprised to see me. I point a hand blade at myself. ¡°Amethyst¡± Then at her. ¡°Emerald¡± The Tyrchid looks at me curiously and tilts her head. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. I repeat the gesture. ¡°A-me-thy-st¡± And back at her. ¡°E-me-ral-d¡± Emerald points a blade at herself, looks down upon it and tilts her head. She remains quiet and just stares down at her blade. I go through the Tyrchid vocabulary in my head, looking for a word to help me out. Instead, I realize that it only has 11 words. No way to form sentences, no word for ''name''. Was it really even a language? Suddenly, my antennae hear a faraway voice, Tyrchids all around react to it too, by surveying the area vigilant. As the noise gets closer, I recognize the words. ¡°Bsii Bsii Bsii!¡± A warning of an incoming danger. ¡°Blizh! Blizh!¡± The Tyrchids around get restless as more of them hear the danger call. Frank¡¯s feeding is interrupted as they shift their focus to the direction of the sound. Many take flight, including Emerald, others walk or run away. A few wait on the ground for the noise¡¯s source, notably the black and pink Tyrchid. I look for Frank and spot him running over to me, still holding on to the berry bulb. ¡°What¡¯s going on!?¡± Does he not hear it? Is human hearing terrible too? ¡°Sabertigers¡± Stomp. Stomp. The ground begins shaking rhythmically, and doesn¡¯t stop. In between the stomps, cries of birds and wildlife fleeing their path echo. ¡°W-what are they?¡± No more noises, only silence in between the massive footsteps. ¡°That is what Grent called them. They are like... Pineapple, but larger. Big cats¡± Their tread accelerates as does the shaking, the shards shingle as the piles of them get lifted off the ground only for gravity to slam them back down. ¡°There¡¯s two of them¡­¡± ¡°W-what? Don¡¯t tell me- the sabertigers are the cause of this shaking?¡± A group of fleeing Tyrchids break through the treeline with two sabertigers on their heels. Tyrchids who awaited them in the air break in two formations and dart at the cats. I spread my wings and coat them with the film. The cats pounce at the Tyrchids at the ground and swipe at the flying ones. My kin stab at them with fiery blades, but their thick fur doesn¡¯t catch fire, nor can they penetrate through their tough skin. What¡¯s going on? Mom fought them off just like that. Slashing at them, slicing through their skin, even sometimes setting their fur alight. My senses were telling me to flee, to hide and let the Queen, or somebody stronger handle this. But she¡¯s gone now¡­ She had always defended us. I try to cling to those memories, to follow them, but they are just feelings, instincts, something I know deep within. There is no experiences, no concrete memories associated with them. A scratch mark left on the surface of metal doors holding my memories within. How would I ever break through that barrier in my mind, I did not know. Even if I did, would I find anything inside? Just the blurry inch deep experiences¡­ of an animal. My wings have dried up, but a feeling stops me from flying off to help my kin. I look to my right to see Frank, he looks back at me. ¡°Go, help them. I¡¯ll be fine¡± These words are true, I can feel his sincerity imbued in them. With a flap of my wings, I take off without a word. Thank you¡­ Be careful.
Amethyst wings shoot open, splitting the wind, I barely dodge getting hit by her bony appendages. For a few seconds she looks at her kin in trouble with a grimace, just as she is about to take off, she suddenly stops and looks at me instead. I instantly realize what she must be thinking. ¡°Go, help them. I¡¯ll be fine¡± Instinctively I answer, smiling sincerely as I break my promise. She takes off as soon as I finish, the look in her eyes breaking my heart. I did it again¡­ Why... Why did I say that? How could I possibly be fine? I¡¯m just a man, and even Tyrchids are getting¡­ Killed. Another one, a humanoid insect of red and orange gets swiped from the air and slammed onto the ground. A sickening pool of green, a mangled corpse, like a squashed spider. It soon starts to smolder and burn brightly, like a midsummer bonfire. Slowly but steadily, more and more of these fires were starting. The two Sabertigers split up at least, the right one steadily coming to my general direction. I take shelter at the root of one of the massive trees. At least I could kite it around the tree if it came my way. What could I do¡­? If I just waited this out¡­ It didn¡¯t look like we would win... How have the Tyrchids survived when all of their attacks appear ineffective? Even when they go for the nose or eyes, the tiger is ready to block their offensive, with a paw or with one of the massive fangs. The sabertiger makes contact with the ground force near me and devours one Tyrchid whole with its massive jaw. So it does¡­ eat¡­ them. My head spins, but I shake it off. The black Tyrchid encounters the cat, it dodges a massive paw swing, by jumping forwards. A follow up jump upwards, tries to reach the tiger''s chin, but the strike comes up short. Why fight on the ground? Why doesn¡¯t it just fly? I survey the agile Tyrchid, dashing and dodging unexpectedly fast. The armor on its back, where Amethyst has the wings tucked away in, is gone. A spot of exposed gray skin in its place, two stubs barely visible. I see¡­ It¡­ no... Onyx, is trying his best, even without wings. Soon, the only remaining Tyrchids of the ground force are him, and the pink Tyrchid. The ground a mess of pools of green blood and bonfires of the dead. Strong flashbacks, to red blood pools haunt my mind again. I take support from the tree and scatter berries onto the ground from my hand. This is another slaughter. I couldn''t do anything back then¡­ But they- They may be the ones who killed- ... But¡­ I just can''t... I look at the few berries still on my hand, and then back at the fight. Onyx goes for a reckless attack from the side, while the pink one holds the beast¡¯s attention. He gallops deep underneath it, and manages to sink a blade to its stomach, red blood gushes out and the tiger jolts in pain. However, the sabercat starts bringing its body down, its trying to crush him! Onyx just keeps on stabbing at the approaching crushing mass instead of running away. I brace myself to see him squashed, like many of his comrades before. Suddenly the pink Tyrchid flies to him with blistering speed and pushes him out from underneath the cat. But¡­ it gets caught under instead. Her¡­ Garnet¡¯s right wing and foot get crushed underneath. Onyx recovers from the ground after being sent tumbling and stands up. He looks¡­ horrified. Ahhh I can¡¯t just keep spectating! I have to do something. The cat is lifting its giant paw up with obvious smashing intent. I leave the safety of the root of the tree and hold the berry bulb on one hand, I start throw all the remaining barries on my other one at the cat. Trying to aim for its small cone shaped ears, I knew that no animal, regardless of size liked foreign objects in there. The cluster hits everything but its intended target, on the back of the head, side of its face, on the thick body¡¯s fur. Harmlessly bouncing off, peppering the area with berries instead. Onyx gallops to Garnet, while the cat¡¯s paw starts coming down towards them both. Garnet tries to crawl towards him, digging into the ground with her blades, slowly moving. I quickly resupply with berries from my pocket and toss another volley. A bunch of them fly straight down the cat¡¯s pointed ears and the slamming paw just misses them. Onyx uses his wrists and armored arms, pulling Garnet up, who limps with three legs taking support from him. The cat growls and turns its head towards me, fiercely shaking its head over and over. "Come on! I¡¯m right here, come get me!" I walk backwards and retreat back to the tree as I take the last of the berries from my pocket I had stockpiled the for the hungry insectoids. The sabercat takes a long stomping step towards me. BOOM. A thundering explosion rings out and the cat lifts its paw quickly, like off from a hot stove. It staggers backwards, its balance teetering and almost steps on the retreating Onyx and Garnet on the background. Wait what just happened? In the place where the cat stepped, a fire has started on the green pool of blood. Could it be? I look at the fistful of berries, purple swirls, a familiar sort of glow of energy inside. The cat seems hesitant to approach, but after a careful step without an explosion, it seems to regain its confidence. I throw berries low and scatter them on the ground, between me and the cat. Aiming for the green pools of blood, those yet unlit. Hoping for the best, as it takes another step. An even more fierce explosion rings out, stepping on many berries at once. Yes! The cat looks almost terrified and sags its exploded paw in the air, giving the limp a big lick. The explosion starts a new inferno, spreading to a corpse of a Tyrchid that didn¡¯t ignite on its own. Its body twitches as the inferno starts, quickly exploding into ball of flame with a whoosh. I¡¯m sorry... ¡­ A sudden purple trail swooshes underneath the distracted cat and crimson floods over onto the ground. A sorrow filled meow rumbles from the cat and it turns towards the way it came from. On the left, the other cat¡¯s world shaking steps already lead away from the village. Amethyst flew to finish the job for us and the second cat starts retreating as well. She lands next to me and closes her wings. Her elbow blades bathed and dripping red after she extinguishes the flames on them. The remaining blood slowly flows off them, dripping onto the ground, leaving behind pristine blades. ¡°Are you okay? What were those loud sounds?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about that¡­ I¡¯m just fine. But...¡± We exchange sorrowful looks. ¡°So many are not...¡± I remember Onyx and Garnet and spot them at another tree¡¯s root, Garnet is sitting down, her mangled wing barely attached and the fractured leg bleeding. I lay down the bulb next to the tree and gaze with determined eyes upon the inferno between us. Within it, the small berries also hid, like landmines. So¡­ If I understand this correctly, as long as I don¡¯t step into any green pools, I¡¯ll be fine. Its not like the berry exploded into flames in my mouth before. Strangely, the fire wasn¡¯t spreading across the red grass, it just sizzled and charred without actually igniting, even when very close to a fire. The fires were contained only in the blood pools of the perished Tyrchids. ¡°Amethyst, lets help them" I point to the other side at them. "R-right" "Watch out for the¡­ green pools¡± I say and take a step towards the inferno of funeral fires.
¡°R-right¡± Answering to Frank is hard, as my throat seems to want to grow shut. The feelings in my head, burning on my face hotter than the fire, squeeze and grip my neck. "Watch out for the¡­ green pools¡± Frank says and we proceed towards the flames. Quiet, we zigzag past any pools of blood, past any dead and burning family. Frank gives them a wide berth, the heat must be hard for him to bear. We come across a crushed Tyrchid, not yet alight, her purple body slumped in a pool of sick green, stained and defiled. Her¡­ Her head¡­ It¡¯s gone. The vacant neck, against the ground, still bleeding out viridian. Her arm extended out, like reaching towards me for help. Never finding any, always lost, always¡­ Too late. I¡¯m sorry¡­ I stop in front of her and ignite my hand, gently lowering myself to touch hers, the green blood catches fire after a moment. Slowly, the smoldering low flame dances its way up her body, covering it entirely. I rise up and look around. We must have lost¡­ at least¡­ Twenty? Is this how numbers work? Numerous charred patches on the grass, some bodies still burning. Some unlit, Tyrchids help these unfortunate kin to get them on their way too, as I did. Others watch from their holes up in the trees, I can¡¯t find it in me to blame them. It was what we had learned to do, our first proper fight without her. I try to feel glad that only this many lives were lost. ... A futile effort. Glancing back down, her skin was starting to melt and peel off, the armor cracking and snapping too. Averting my eyes, I leave her, I knew what came next. Frank has stopped to wait for me, looking worried. I only need a few steps to reach him, to join back at his side. The fire roars behind. However, he doesn¡¯t start walking, instead, he holds out his left hand. Confused at the gesture, I look at my blades. What did he want me to do? What is the purpose of this? Suddenly he takes my hand, from the wrist, brings it close to him and presses his other hand on top of it. Encapsulating it, holding it in his hands. My armor insulates my skin from the outside world, I cannot feel his touch. I look at him, he looks back at me, deep into my eyes. A line of water rolls down his face. Why is he doing¡­ this? What is this? Despite the tremendous loss, the strong smell of burning death in the air, somehow, I feel calmer. The turmoil swelling inside subsiding. How- did he know how I feel? Why do I feel like this? Frank closes his eyes for a moment before opening them again, his shining planets filled with kindness. ¡°Come, let us help those who can still be helped¡± It gets hard to see, the image of Frank becomes blurry, I rapidly blink until I can see again and nod. Frank removes the hand from on top and grabs my wrist, he pulls and I follow. Leading me through the fire, hand in wrist, before I know it, we¡¯ve reached the two Tyrchids. Frank lets go of my arm and starts to rifle through his backpack. Somehow, I felt the warmth of his touch finally reach my skin, just as he let go. All the way through my hard shell, onto my hidden wrist. Always shrouded from the sun, untouched by the wind, out of reach from the world. The warmth slowly fades, but as I look at Frank, the feeling resurfaces within. 21. Limelight We leave the blazing graves behind us and I let go of Amethyst¡¯s wrist. Regardless of us being out of the immediate vicinity of the fires, it was still somehow sweltering. I hope I wasn¡¯t too forceful with her. I¡¯m not sure why I did it but¡­ it just felt right. Like¡­ something I would have needed back then. I use my shirt collar to fan some air down to my sweaty chest, though it barely makes a difference. Giving up, I place my backpack down and go through the contents, at the same time, keeping an eye on my patient, a five or so meters away. Garnet seems calm, unlike Onyx, who¡¯s intense stare I feel on me, even when I briefly take my eyes off them. A roll of bandage, a roll of tape and two sturdy looking sticks from nearby is all I need. With deliberate movements, I slowly and calmly start closing the distance between me and the two Tyrchids. Halfway there, Onyx raises his blades threateningly, I know to stop immediately. ¡°Amethyst, what was the Tyrchidian word for ¡®Friend¡¯ again?¡± Getting this wrong could have dire consequences, I didn¡¯t wish to relay on my memory of having said it only once. Instead of an answer from Amethyst, Garnet looks at me confused, before sharply grimacing. Onyx growls, like an insect guard dog. ¡°Amethyst?¡± She was right here, why isn¡¯t she answering? I do not dare to take my eyes off my patients to look for her. ¡°Is¡­ everything okay back there?¡± ¡°It¡¯s Shuzs bfhusz.¡± She finally answers, like it was an afterthought to even pay attention to me. I look directly into Onyx¡¯s black hybrid eyes, into the sea of tenebrous stars. ¡°Shuzs bfhusz.¡± I say, thinking my pronunciation better than before. The gesture, hopefully not interpreted as a challenge, instead showing that I am capable, that I do not fear him. Hopefully to also convey my friendliness, Amethyst seemed to like eye contact a great deal, so it seems like the right way to handle it. Cowering, or showing weakness before him, would likely end badly for me. With narrowed eyes and a deep grunt like sound, Onyx lowers his blades, allowing me to approach. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯ll be fine.¡± I try to soothe them, talking with a smooth, friendly tone. Garnet looks directly at me, as I get close enough, but I feel it a bad idea to lock eyes with her. I squat next to Garnet¡¯s leg; kneeling or sitting, was too dangerous for the situation. If something went wrong, I needed to be one my feet in an instant. Her armor has crumpled away from the leg, the gray skin exposed, bruised and bloody. Laying the supplies on the ground next to her, I carefully touch her leg, she flinches. ¡°I bet it hurts, but try to be calm.¡± I keep on talking, even though I don¡¯t know if they¡¯ll understand me. The gray skin is punctured at spots, my hands get green as I feel what I think to be the bones beneath, broken and dislodged. There isn¡¯t much I can do about any bone splinters, I can¡¯t possibly do any surgeries here. But, at least there is something I can do. A long calm breath after, I speak to them once more, to calm them or myself, I was not sure. ¡°This is going to hurt, try to bear it, okay? You¡¯ll do fine.¡± I say sheepishly and look at Garnet and then at Onyx, they don¡¯t let it be known if they understood or not. Onyx continues to leer at me, while Garnet seems worried and still in pain. For a moment I consider asking for Amethyst¡¯s assistance, but she was so slow to act last time¡­ What¡¯s up with her? Before I start the procedure, I sight and breath in calming, dry hot air. With steady hands and a clear mind, I start to feel around for the right spots with both of my hands on her cool skin. ¡°Right, here goes.¡± With a sharp and powerful motion, I lodge the bone back into place, a slight crunching sound plays. Garnet¡¯s resulting shriek is earsplitting, going so high that I¡¯m surprised human hearing could even register it. She struggles and tries to retreat, but I keep her leg to the ground despite her resistance. A black tinted blade appears on my neck from behind, I couldn''t even catch Onyx¡¯s movements. ¡°BLIZH!¡± I try to hold absolutely still, but I can¡¯t help slowly craning my neck away from the blade, unfortunately it seemed intent in following. I am unable to escape it as I still hold onto Garnet¡¯s leg. Performing a reduction to her leg is something I wouldn''t wish to do again, if she now managed to misalign her bones by moving too much. She seemed to have calmed down, her teary eyes regain some of their shine. Though it doesn¡¯t change the fact my death is still mere inches away. I force myself to breath shallow quick breaths, better than not breathing at all. ¡°Frank!¡± Amethyst finally takes note of my situation. Garnet buzzes something sounding exhausted, a moment later, the blade retreats. Finally breathing out properly, I slump slightly, Amethyst appears next to me. ¡°Are you alright!?¡± ¡°I- I think so¡± I massage my neck, feel and stretch the skin, there¡¯s no hole, no deadly puncture. Garnet is restless and tries to shy away from me a little, her leg shaking. Somewhat forcefully, I steady her leg, gently but firmly rolling bandaging around it. "Sorry, but I need you to stay still, okay?" After a thin bandage layer, I slip the sticks on both sides of the leg and tie them in with the dressing tightly for a makeshift splint. She really has had enough, as has Onyx, who starts helping Garnet up. I allow her to rise, but don¡¯t let go yet. I finish the package off with quick three stripes of tape, on the already retreating leg. That should hopefully hold. I get up and retreat from them, as they make their leave too, Garnet limps, held up by her partner. She seems to test in placing weight on her treated leg, but shies away from doing so soon. A sigh of relief later, I get to relax again, to calm my racing heart. It¡¯s like I¡¯m a real freelance vet. Going there where the need is greatest, treating real wild¡­ big, creatures. Not just a makeshift zookeeper. Ray¡­ Did you ever¡­ continue on our path? I notice Garnet¡¯s wounded wing, now in plain view with their backs turned. The delicate bone sculpture hinges on by only a thread, fractured and bent, with pieces missing. At least I got to treat her leg¡­ ¡°Amethyst, what is the matter with you?¡± I say, finally able to look around, coming off maybe a little too annoyed in hindsight. I look up at her, she doesn¡¯t even look back, instead gazing somewhere into the forest on the right. I can see nothing out of the ordinary there. Just the same old thick trees, some bushy foliage of red and purple. Though I notice a distinct lack of Tyrchids prancing around in the area. ¡°What¡¯s there? What are you looking at?¡± ¡°I think we¡¯ve been watched, for a long time now¡± She answers serious. ¡°W-what? By who?¡± ¡°At least¡­ some humans and... something else too¡±
The bushes start rustling. ¡°Looks like we¡¯ve been found out. Let¡¯s go crew¡± An unfamiliar voice says. An unknown man emerges, walking through the bushes, he wears a white suit and heads towards them. Amethyst and Frank stare incredulously as from behind him, a large crew of people follow. They take off the camouflage, brush branches and other native plants from their large driveable hover cameras, to trail after him. Like large poles, with a ring at the bottom, the cameraman could spin around, tilt and control the contraption. At the same time, the camera on the end of it, automatically adjusts and dampens to not show any of this movement in the footage. Frank had never seen one in real life, they were as impressive as he thought they would be. Various other personnel walk further back with them, some with camouflage patterned clothes, but no weapons, others with whatever the person seemed to want to wear, in their casual clothes. Holding microphones, driving around spotlights, like the cameras. A few people with coolers, handing off beverages or food or wearing some sort of medical uniforms. Frank now realized what Amethyst had meant, as he spotted some aliens in their midst, or rather, ¡®non-human individuals¡¯ as was the approved term. One of the most eye catching ones was a Flibma, a short blob who looked like a vaguely humanoid slime like construct, currently colored blue, their shiny and elastic skin always slowly changed hue automatically. ISSA¡¯s researchers and other institutes had been working with them for years to understand the science and meaning in this seemingly pointless display. Finding no satisfying answers, Frank thought it to be one of those evolutionary traits that were better to just be accepted as is. The Flibma species faces looked like they were drawn on by a small child, two small black dots for eyes and a W-shaped mouth caught in a perpetual moving wave, making them always look scared or unsure. A toyline and all sorts of merchandise of their colorful and unique pudgy bodies took the galaxy by storm when they first made contact. Their gooey body made them possible to become sort of androids, embedding technology into their body much more easily than any other race. This one however, wore some more rudimentary equipment, trays, cup holders, mic stands. All sorts of hooks and poles. Somebody had even hanged a coat on him, though it looked like to be folded ten times, as to not drag on the ground. That somebody, most likely being the very tall, built like a stick, Churlen, an octopus headed, tentacle faced, dark brown and lanky humanoid. Shiny and chitinous all over, it was at least two meters tall. Its arms longer than its body when straightened out, made the creature look very fragile - like a small collision, or a fall, could splinter the whole being into sharp toothpicks. Its three meaty fingers at the end of these arm sticks, held on tight to a handle of a fuzzy-microphone. Before Frank can loose himself more into the various interesting guests that approached him, some from species he had never seen, even in Metropolis, their apparent leader gaits to them. With a stride full of charm and confidence, like he owned the place. The man adjusts his blue and purple jeweled necklace and the cuffs of his white and golden lined dress shirt, before speaking to a camera instead of directly at them. ¡°Such stakes, such tension! What a brilliant show!¡± He gestures towards the sky with bravado. ¡°Um-¡± Frank is unable to get a word in and Amethyst is having trouble understanding what is even happening. ¡°A brave battle of the underdogs, driving away the big felines! I was at the edge of my seat the whole time!¡± He speaks with passion and grasps the temple of his stylish orange sunglasses, which almost hid his eyes underneath. ¡°Then ending this truly heart wrenching event in a touching scene with a local and a treatment of the injured¡± He looks into the sky and brings a hand held in a fist to his chest before looking to a different camera and pointing. ¡°Ah! What an exquisite dramatic arc!¡± The leading man steps backwards next to Frank and pats him on shoulder like they were old buddies. Frank flinches slightly, but the sight of cameras and bright lights bearing down on him was too overwhelming to make him shirk away. ¡°Handled that like an old hand. Frank, are you a doctor, a nurse or something?¡± ¡°A-a vet actually¡­¡± ¡°How very fitting. Though I must apologize, the circumstances could be better. But I do still hope this won¡¯t lead to any cancellation or delays¡± Amethyst, paralyzed before this crowd of people, of strange creatures and unknown technology, recovers, to cut in between the two men. ¡°Who are you? Why are you here?¡± His shiny, very slight pompadour hair bobs as he lowers his sunglasses to get a clearer look at her. ¡°It speaks English? How wonderful! You must be Amethyst then, the designated first contact person for Tyrchids? How lovely meeting you so soon¡± ¡°Wait¡­ are you from ISSA?¡± Frank cuts back from behind Amethyst to her side. ¡°Not recognizing me I could stomach, but not even knowing of our arrival? This simply won¡¯t do¡­¡± He glances around to his crew with a questioning squint. ¡°We very clearly emailed them about it, well ahead of time even, didn¡¯t we?¡± The personnel nod fiercely in agreement. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. ¡°Hmph¡± The sharply dressed man takes out his communicator and browses through it with his long slender fingers, his nails lacquered in pastel blue and wearing a large golden ring on his right hand. He murmurs something ambiguous, swiping and tapping with sharp frustrated movements on the device¡¯s screen. ¡°We only got the one automatic email and were promised another, to let us know when you would be arriving¡­¡± Frank politely complains, but seems to be ignored. ¡°More importantly¡­ Since when did ISSA start doing entertainment or whatever this is?¡± ¡°About six years ago, in fact, I¡¯ve been the leading man ever since. What kind of backwater planet have you been living in all this time?¡± The leading man just adjusts his glasses with one hand, while continuing to use his communicator with his other. ¡°Well, one of those indeed¡± ¡°Alright, won¡¯t you check your inbox again now, just to make sure¡± The man smiles, his orange tinted sunglasses, glinting in the sunshine. He then looks directly into one of the cameras ¡°Please hold on just a little longer, just some technical difficulties, we will get right back into the action soon¡± Frank takes out his communicator, the most recent emails were from the Police Chief and ISSA still. As he is about to say something, a new mail just arrives in with a title of ¡°ISSA document shoot.¡± He quickly taps it open.
Hi, Frank and Amethyst, The arrival of the legendary Documentarist, Pioneer, is soon upon you, me and my film crew will be arriving: [three hours ago]. -Pioneer from ISSA.
The automatic [galactic time display], was widely used to set up dates and meetings. It always told the remaining time in hours to the set time, as it was much easier to carry any sort of device to measure the old Earth time, instead of trying to handle the different time zones and day lengths, which were as numerous as the planets in the galaxy. Frank isn¡¯t sure if he should laugh or be mad at this pompous ¡°Pioneer¡±. ¡°You clearly just-¡± The film crew behind Pioneer vehemently shake their heads and some form elaborate X-marks with their arms, discouraging Frank from continuing his sentence. ¡°Eh¡­? ...Must be the bad reception, you know how planets of newly applied Sapient species can be.¡± Frank coats the explanation with a desert-dry laugh topping and pockets his communicator. ¡°Right, of course.¡± He answers, either believing him or being a surprisingly good sport about it. Suddenly Pioneer slowly leans to the side and looks past and behind them. ¡°Oh, and who might you be?¡± Frank and Amethyst find Emerald peering at them curiously, from the edge of a tree they are standing near. Amethyst takes control of the situation hesitantly. ¡°I¡­ I¡¯m the only Tyrchid, who speaks English. We¡­ haven¡¯t taught it to others yet.¡± ¡°Ah yes, that is rather expected, what do they speak then? Tyrchidian?¡± ¡°Yes, e-exactly¡± Amethyst avoids direct eye-contact with him. ¡°How admirable of you to plan on educating them so soon. Explorers, we are witnessing the very dawn, the crucial moment of a civilization that is about to enter into the era of galactic relations by learning the common tongue!¡± Amethyst looks around ¡°Who are you talking to?¡± ¡°Our Audience of course, my loyal fan base, the Explorers.¡± ¡°Right¡­ of course you won¡¯t know, I haven¡¯t even introduced myself yet! You can call me, Pioneer.¡± The smooth man places an open palm on his chest. ¡°As everyone knows, I am the galaxy¡¯s number one Documentarist, the explorer of the unknown reaches of the galaxy. Armed with my tireless curiosity and unparalleled knowledge of sapient species, I am single-handedly the mediator and peace bringer of many fledgling species.¡± Some of the film crew roll their eyes, or show other signs natural to their species to express a similar feeling. Pioneer gloats with a big smug grin, chiseled on his face. His story is accompanied with grand hand gestures, showing off his importance. ¡°Setting these planets, their whole species, on the long and hard road to joining our galaxy, easing their hardships, making them familiar to all of the United Galaxy at the same time. All who prove themselves are welcome to join our world, brimming with such shining hope and unmatched harmony, we grant the audience an exclusive galaxy first preview at new civilizations and their unique ways! I-¡± ¡°ISSA¡¯s meticulous data gathering, evaluation and court judging really came to this then? Just making a show of it all?¡± Pioneer seems rather stumped by this rude interruption by Frank. ¡°Well, this is still very much evidence we are gathering here, if you want to be all serious about it. Why would collecting it have to be boring?¡± ¡°Sorry, I wasn¡¯t really prepared for being filmed today...¡± Frank backpedals. Amethyst gives Frank a look of utter confusion, this causes Pioneer to come very close to them and whisper: ¡°Is all not clear? You wanted us to be here, we are your ticket into the good graces of the ISSA, our material will be shown in its entirety to the whole court. All of the jury will study it meticulously, questioning your aims, evaluation your goals for joining.¡± ¡°No, its all good, just give us a second.¡± Frank answers. Pioneer nods lightly and leaves them alone, going to hog the cameras for himself. Frank and Amethyst have a whispering exchange. ¡°Let¡¯s just go along with it for now, is that okay?¡± ¡°But¡­ what do we do, what exactly are we supposed to be doing?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure Pioneer will guide as along, this is a sort of an¡­ act. All of this equipment here is capturing footage of us, which will eventually be shown on screens, sort of like in the Director¡¯s office.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ I think I get it¡­?¡± ¡°Great, so let¡¯s do our best to answer any questions he has, with discretion of course. This is our chance to give a good impression, to prevent Intergalactic¡¯s plans for your kin.¡± Amethyst¡¯s look becomes that of determination. ¡°Looks like our honored hosts are done, are you ready Explorers?¡± Pioneer makes a show of pulling his sunglasses off his nose, followed by a ridiculous pose while spinning the glasses around in a loose grip of his fingers. Before suddenly swiftly planting them back on his head and pushing them slowly up his nose, a small colored light show flashes from the spotlights on him. ¡°Let the Documenting- begin!¡± Finally, the act is over, and he calmly saunters over to Frank and Amethyst, who appear to almost be in physical pain after what they just witnessed. ¡°Amethyst! Are you ready?¡± Pioneer points at her trying to hype her up. ¡°Y-yes?¡± ¡°Great! Shall we then start with some questions about the Tyrchid culture?¡± Amethyst gives some quick nods while looking away. ¡°Wonderful!¡± ¡°I presume this is your...¡± Pioneer looks around at the trees and holes in them trying to find the words. ¡°... village? What can you tell me about the Tyrchid way of life?¡± Amethyst¡¯s gathered confidence crumbles in the face of such an open-ended question. ¡°We uhm, yeah, it¡¯s a village¡­ I guess.¡± Amethyst fidgets nervously and looks at the ground, before a great revelation lights up her face, and she points a bladed hand upwards. ¡°We live in the trees.¡± Pioneer is at a total lost for words. ¡°H-how amazing!¡± He forces himself to say. ¡°We carve our housing high up there to be safe from Sabertigers.¡± Amethyst slowly starts warming up to this strange scenario. ¡°Ah yes, the truly terrifying, largest cats known to man and not man. Probably the biggest ones, even in the whole galaxy. Speaking of houses, let¡¯s take a quick closer look at their premises.¡± The Documentarist winks at Amethyst and Frank, offering them a little more time to prepare, before waving a hand in the air. An assistant, a dark haired woman with purple clothes, responds by setting down a briefcase. Opening it quickly, she takes out a four bladed helicopter drone, which whirrs to life. She puts on a pair of large googles and starts flying it with small controls squeezed in her hands. ¡°Just try to relax and it¡¯ll be fine¡± Frank whispers to Amethyst. ¡°Yeah¡­ I¡¯ll try. It¡¯s just¡­ so strange.¡± "Never been around so many humans, or other species, right? You''ll get used to it, even your kin seem to have." "You''re right." Even they have gotten used to it... As the drone ascends into the sky, the Tyrchids on the ground look up in suspicion and wonder at this strange phenomenon intercepting their airspace. Most avoid it, but few flock to it, fly rings around it, some gently tap it with a bladed hand, before quickly flying away as it bobs. They continue to observe the near silent drone, but leave it alone soon enough. ¡°Ah such excellent footage... Luna, make sure you¡¯re getting it all.¡± ¡°Yes yes, Dave.¡± ¡°Ahem.¡± ¡°Yes, Pioneer.¡± Luna dismissively waves her hand his way, while flying the drone. The drone soon stops before a hole-home high up in a tree and hovers still before it. Pioneer has a small screen on his hands, and a headset on, starting to perform some narration on the footage at the same time. Amethyst and Frank awkwardly stand around and wait for them to finish, like outsiders excluded from a group of friends, doing their own activity without the two of them. After the third visited home, the drone finally starts descending. It flies past them, so they give it a small wave. The drone pilot Luna, gives a countdown from five with her fingers. Pioneer hands the screen and the headset to a female Ashen assistant who came to take them from him. As the countdown reaches zero, Pioneer resumes talking to a nearby camera. ¡°And we¡¯re back on the ground, welcome back viewers, hope you enjoyed that insightful first glimpse into the humble housing of the Tyrchids. We left off when I was just about to ask Amethyst here-¡± He arrives at Amethyst¡¯s side, placing a hand behind her back, but not actually touching. ¡°-about some details of her village. First of all, any dwelling deserves a name, surely you already have one too?¡± Amethyst awkwardly glances down at the way too familiar Pioneer. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s uh¡­¡± She then looks help from Frank, her eyes wide, she thought to be prepared now, but not for this. ¡°Pango¡­ Grove.¡± Frank fills her sentence, receiving a disappointed look from her in return. ¡°Pango Grove village¡­ What a¡­ truly charming and rustic name. May I inquire as to what great history is behind this marvelous victory of settlement naming?¡± ¡°It¡¯s based on the greatest delicacy, dare I say, the national fruit of Midnight Iris, the Pango¡± Frank responds confidently. ¡°Ohoh! Now that sounds promising! Would you happen to have some of these ''Pangos'' on hand? Viewers back home would certainly like to see them, and I- to taste them¡± ¡°But of course, Frank here just plucked a fresh batch of them not long ago¡± Amethyst still sour about the name choice, throws Frank under the literal spotlight instead. ¡°Yes, come this way.¡± Frank leads them to the tree where he laid down the bulb of berries before. Before picking it up, he looks around, Amethyst catches on to what he is thinking and follows her example, her demeanor changing accordingly. The fires around the village had gone out, no Tyrchid corpses were burning anymore, they had all finished their last rites. Only traces remaining of their existence were charred grass patches, and within them, crumpled and shattered armor pieces, like gravel. Pioneer¡¯s narration in the background makes Frank stop gazing and to pick up the berry plant. ¡°Now this is exciting, we just barely arrived here in Midnight Iris, a far edge of the known galaxy, if I may be so bold, a true backwater planet. But so much has already happened, we have witnessed the magnificent tenacity and fighting prowess of the native people, some possibly blossoming romance in the side and presently, are conducting a galaxy first review of their best bounty of nature. Now come with me and let us see these Pangos¡± Pioneer gestures at a camera that silently drifts with him for a close up shot. Frank has taken the initiative to pick out a few Pangos during Pioneer¡¯s speech, and the liberty to give Amethyst some in the meantime too. While Amethyst munches happily to her berries, Frank hands one to the leading man. ¡°I¡¯ll be honest I was expecting something bigger, these are grape sized-¡± ¡°Ah yes, my bad, the full name is Pango Grapes.¡± Frank corrects with a smile. ¡°I see, but their looks far outweighs any disappointment I was feeling a moment ago. Just look at this truly enigmatic appearance, this unique torrent of energy inside. I bet these are highly nutritious.¡± He holds one between two fingers and brings it very close to the camera, along with his face. Pioneer then backs away a little, taking over the shot completely and places the berry on his tongue, before elaborately closing his mouth and biting into it. ¡°Oh, Ohh, it exploded as I bit into it, this taste, it¡¯s unlike anything I¡¯ve ever tasted ¡ª is what I would say, if I had never eaten mango¡¯s before. But, hold on! This aftertaste- a sudden second wave of extreme sweetness!¡± He looks deep in thought and stays silent for what feels to be forever, compared to the usual rate of his prattling. ¡°My dear explorers, I must say, this might- no, this is the very best fruit or berry I¡¯ve ever had the pleasure to taste. In my whole life, in the whole running of this show, and that is saying a lot. How truly marvelous, ah, I can¡¯t wait for this to hit the market.¡± ¡°T-thanks?¡± Amethyst says quietly off screen. The close up camera backs away and Pioneer comes back to his two debuting stars. ¡°Oh yes, that brings us to our next question, I was going to ask how you were planning on contributing to the general well being of the galaxy as the future members of ISSA, but I dare say that the export of these Pango Grapes would certainly spice up any snacks or salads in a galaxy wide scale. So, you seem to have that one covered, unless you have got something more to add?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so?¡± ¡°You probably saw that quarry on your way in?¡± Frank chimes in. ¡°Of course, metals, minerals and raw materials, the galaxy can certainly always use more of those, very good¡± Pioneer nods along, before starting up on the next topic. ¡°Our exchange so far has made me wonder, just what kind of a ruling hierarchy do you run here? We have certainly seen all sorts of systems in this show before, democratic dictatorships, full autonomy and ruling per household, to name a few of the most memorable ones. So what is your take on it?¡± He asks with a near hidden glint in his eyes, this subject seeming to be of great intrigue for him. ¡°Umm?¡± ¡°If you will allow me to make a prediction, it looks to me that you, Amethyst, are here in charge, does it not Explorers?¡± ¡°No, I just have to be representing my kin¡­ It shouldn¡¯t be my role¡­¡± ¡°Hmm? Pray tell, what do you mean by that.¡± ¡°It¡¯s just¡­ the role just happened to fall on me, since our umm¡­ Queen... died recently.¡± It pained Frank to see Amethyst struggle with having to speak of such a subject, he thought of cutting her off several times to help. ¡°Oh, my deepest apologies for your loss, this must be such a touchy subject.¡± Pioneer¡¯s tone changed from intrigue to empathy. ¡°However, if you will allow me to say, your society seems to be in good hands with an altruistic leader, such as yourself, rising in the face of adversity to represent their people.¡± ¡°Oh¡­¡± The compliments go straight to Amethyst¡¯s head and cause her cheeks to lose their grayness in favor of another, brighter tint. ¡°I¡¯ve been wondering, and I bet you explorers back home have too, why is it that you decided to apply for ISSA? Why now? Though, we may have just inadvertently answered this question.¡± Frank jumps at this opportunity. ¡°That is exactly it, with Tyrchid¡¯s usual governing style fallen, now more than ever, we need the stability and the protection brought by ISSA, to be safe from possible malicious forces aiming to take advantage of our precarious situation.¡± He explains, like he had practiced this speech. ¡°Very savvy way of thinking, this is exactly the reason ISSA was formed to begin with, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll pass the court judging with flying colors once that time comes.¡± ¡°Thank you¡± Amethyst and Frank say at the same time and glance at each other amused. ¡°Alright, that¡¯s just a small glimpse to the interesting life, culture and planet of the Tyrchids, but don¡¯t go anywhere, we¡¯ll continue in a moment after these messages.¡± ¡°Everyone, take ten.¡± The Documentarist shouts and the hover cameras, lights and mics are left unattended. The personnel form small talk groups, take some beverages and sandwiches, some go into the forest the way they came, or just sit down and rest, leaning on the massive trees. Some even try to converse with or approach other Tyrchids. ¡°Frank, Amethyst, lets talk.¡± Pioneer walks up to them. ¡°Alright, be honest with me here, how colored is your culture, your traditions, maybe your cooking has deep roots? Which areas have enough content to keep people entertained?¡± ¡°Oh, uhh...¡± ¡°Well, the Tyrchid culture is, well, quite young¡­¡±Frank says dressing the unfortunate truth neatly. ¡°How much content do you need, a specific episode count maybe?¡± ¡°At least four broadcasts, we can do one ¡®each day¡¯, or we can agree on the schedule later¡± ¡°How long do they need to be?¡± ¡°It¡¯s up to you, as long as it is entertaining, of course. The more content, the better. However keep in mind, it is your responsibility to make sure you are showing everything that might help with ISSA¡¯s decision in ruling in your favor.¡± Pioneer removes his orange shades, revealing his stark, almost black irises. ¡°That said, I don¡¯t recommend hiding any negatives. They will find them out themselves, and grill you for hiding them in the first place.¡± ¡°Of course, we wouldn''t dream of hiding anything.¡± Frank says and Amethyst gives him a look. ¡°Good.¡± Pioneer looks at his thick golden ring. ¡°Break is soon over, have you got any ideas what to cover now, or should we continue with the questions? I¡¯ve got enough prepared for one episode, but after that it¡¯s up to you.¡± Amethyst¡¯s face grows a little worried. ¡°Hmm...¡± Frank starts whispering with Amethyst about something. Pioneer waits for their talking to die down before asking: "Have you thought of a solution?¡± Frank exchanges triumphant glances with Amethyst and answers: ¡°We sure have, there¡¯s at least one thing Tyrchids can do that should suffice.¡± 22. Construction ¡°Welcome back Explorers, fans, viewers and everyone in the galaxy! We just arrived in Mightnight Iris, witnessed the fierce battle for survival by the Tyrchidian forces, met Amethyst, their species representative and her assisting human Frank.¡± Pioneer gestures towards Frank and Amethyst, who give an awkward wave in response to their introductions. ¡°Now, we have something truly extraordinary for you in store! While the Tyrchid¡¯s architecture might have looked rather plain and even rudimentary at first glance, however, you couldn''t be more wrong! Today you will be the first to see just how such homes are made, in real time!¡± He gestures towards the holes carved high up in the trees. ¡°Frank doesn¡¯t have a home built here, yet, so we will see if we can¡¯t fix that together with Amethyst!¡± Pioneer walks backwards next to Amethyst, to get them all in the shot. But as Amethyst remains quiet, he gives her shoulder a quick jab. ¡°I- uhm, we will show you all the wonders of Tyrchid¡¯s unique and exciting building process!¡± Amethyst tries her hardest to sound excited and cover up her nervousness. ¡°And the marvelous architecture, only possible with the one of a kind designers eyes, that Tyrchids¡¯ have in spades.¡± Frank jokes, unusually stiffly. ¡°Since Frank, uh, an honorary Tyrchid, has left his home behind to live with us here, what better way to welcome him than to build him a house, preserving age old traditions.¡± Amethyst remembers her barely rehearsed lines correctly. ¡°There you have it Explorers, now lets get this started, but first, a couple questions: Frank, where did you live before? What sort of house was it?¡± ¡°It was actually a wooden log cottage, on some... no-name planet. So I¡¯d imagine living inside a tree shouldn¡¯t be too different from what I¡¯ve used to.¡± ¡°Frank built it himself, a blue roof too, very pretty.¡± Amethyst chimes in with a smile. ¡°Oh? Explorers, you hear that? You realize what this means? Amethyst has surely been to Frank¡¯s place! How unexpected, these two seem to go back further than we have anticipated, but just how far, what exactly is their relationship? Stick around to find out!¡± Amethyst and Frank, briefly and awkwardly exchange glances. ¡°So Frank, what comes first in house building?¡± Pioneer asks. ¡°Of course, the location.¡± ¡°Amethyst, tell me what is important to consider when choosing a location in these woods?¡± Pioneer starts walking and they follow him. ¡°That the hole is high enough from the ground so that Sabertigers don¡¯t easily reach it. And of course that the tree is thick enough to carve the house inside.¡± ¡°What about this one?¡± The Documentarist asks, pointing to an incredibly thick and tall tree, the largest of them all. ¡°Doesn¡¯t this have the hole on ground level?¡± ¡°That¡¯s where our queen used to live.¡± ¡°H-how come the house and the entryway is so huge?¡± Pioneer gasps and looks up and down the entryway. Peering inside, it''s like a cave, mostly lit thanks to its massive doorway, but not even the suns could reach all of its edges. It was almost carved for the whole width of the tree. Its interior was completely empty. ¡°She was about three times as big and strong as us, she could hold her own against the Sabertigers even.¡± ¡°It¡¯s hard to imagine, but I now see what a devastating loss it must have been, I cannot stress just how sorry I am for your loss.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Amethyst answers and Frank pats the downcast Tyrchid''s shoulder and continues: ¡°We will build my home on ground level too, but with a much smaller entryway, it should in theory make it safe from Sabercat¡¯s paws.¡± ¡°I see you¡¯ve really thought this out, very good, but how do we know which tree is good, which isn¡¯t taken yet?¡± Pioneer peers high up at another tree, struggling to see high up, even with his sunglasses. The two suns relentlessly assaulted light from two different directions. ¡°There¡¯s an easy way to see that, if the tree has a pile of shards below already, it taken. It¡¯s bad etiquette to carve out multiple holes on the same side.¡± ¡°What are these shards though? Surely they are not-¡± Frank interrupts Pioneer. ¡°They are just... discarded material from their wings¡± ¡°Fascinating. Are they safe? Tyrchid¡¯s seem to be able to light their blades on fire and also burn up in an inferno when they¡­ And then there were those small explosions before too¡± Oh shit, they did catch the whole thing on tape didn¡¯t they? ¡°No, those were my own special bombs I threw¡± The all-natural bombs I picked myself¡­ ¡°Ah, but do the Tyrchid¡¯s really just throw out their garbage right on their doorstep?¡± ¡°The shards aren''t dangerous, and they melt in the black rain.¡± Amethyst surprises herself with this knowledge. ¡°Explorers, have we ever seen black water before? I am not quite sure, I think we have, but never a rain. Plenty of White or Brown rain though. This sounds exciting and dangerous.¡± ¡°It¡¯s safe, just water.¡± Amethyst says. ¡°Is it known what makes the water turn black?¡± ¡°No, don¡¯t think so.¡± Frank answers. ¡°So we truly are in uncharted waters here, hah, pardon my terrible humor.¡± They walk around the trees of the village: Frank, Amethyst, Pioneer and his camera crew, in search of a suitable tree to start ¡®renovating¡¯. The Tyrchids around keep their distance, but don¡¯t seem to be otherwise annoyed or bothered by their roaming. ¡°Will this do Amethyst?¡± Frank asks as they arrive at a tree that has only a small pile of shards on the backside, located fairly close to the Queen¡¯s premises. ¡°From the state of the bark one can see that the tree has no rot or other issues that could cause it to fall if hollowed out.¡± Amethyst circles the tree around on the ground level. ¡°So just from that one can see which tree is suitable? Is it completely safe to make a house in such tree then?¡± Pioneer asks ¡°It can still fall and crush you, if you¡¯re careless and carve it too close to the bark.¡± ¡°Oh yes, maintaining structural integrity is crucial.¡± Frank ponders aloud: ¡°Carving a house to a tree is much easier than building one from scratch, much less regulations and other headaches. No need to gather any materials or make any sort of foundations. Though maybe some insulation.¡± Oh¡­ right¡­ the next time I¡¯d build a house¡­ I¡¯m sorry Velvet¡­ It would have been a nice homage to do. ¡°Frank?¡± ¡°O-of course since the house¡¯s ceiling is the tree above and walls are bark and wood on the sides, insulation is impossible, and hardly necessary. Only if we made windows or actual doors those could be insulated with something simple, due to the tropical climate, if for nothing else than to keep out the moisture and the rain.¡± ¡°A vet and a builder of sorts? Don¡¯t tell me you are an actual engineer as well?¡± ¡°No¡­ just an interest of mine, nothing more.¡± ¡°Umm¡­ before we start¡­ can I eat my lunch? It will take just a second.¡± Amethyst thinks it an appropriate moment to ask. Pioneer appears confused by this sudden proposal. ¡°I¡¯m feeling a bit tired¡­ ever since the fight.¡± ¡°Of course. Just excuse us, it will really only take a second.¡± Frank doesn''t wait for Pioneer''s response and lays his backpack down starting to go through its contents. He grabs onto a fairly large lunch box, as he lifts it up, a purple, thin bone drops onto the grass from it side, pulled up by it. ¡°Oops.¡± Frank sets the box down and quickly picks up the bone. ¡°What is that?¡± Pioneer peers in closer. ¡°Wait¡­ is that what I think it is?¡± ¡°Oh you held on to my bone?¡± Amethyst says pleasantly surprised. ¡°Uhh, well, I didn¡¯t know what to do with it after¡­ Don¡¯t really need a memorabilia when you are alive and well.¡± Frank slips it back into the bag. It feels... wrong, disrespectful to just throw it away. ¡°Won¡¯t it be dangerous to carry such an item here? What if it leads to misunderstandings with other Tyrchids?¡± Pioneer sounds almost concerned. ¡°I suppose you do have a point. Revealing a human bone in a city could definitely go wrong.¡± ¡°Hope you don¡¯t have any of those in that mystery bag of yours.¡± Pioneer quips. ¡°No, I keep my actual skeletons in the closets, just like everyone else.¡± ¡°R-right. Isn¡¯t Frank an absolute hoot, Explorers?¡± Frank opens the lunchbox, takes Amethyst¡¯s delicious looking sandwich, filled with many toppings. Cut into two triangles, he feeds them, one by one, Amethyst grabs them with her mandibles and swallows the snacks whole. Pioneer takes off his shades in shock and cleans them to his white sleeve, before putting them back on and turning to the camera. ¡°All you can eat buffet¡¯s around the galaxy beware, once the Tyrchid¡¯s enter our United Galaxy, none of your food will be safe. Start planning out restrictions, quotas, any sort of countermeasures, now! Before you find the food you prepared to last the day, completely disappeared in mere seconds!¡± Pioneer widely smiles at the camera, proud of his comedy routine, then turns his attention back to the stars of the show. ¡°Amethyst, ready to begin?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Her purple gemstones start visibly glowing, easily made out even in the bright sunlight. Her blades spew out embers that flow and flicker in the air, landing on the dry grass and fizzling out. Soon, her hands alight completely in purple flame. ¡°What a magnificent sight¡­ But, how come the grass isn¡¯t catching fire?¡± Documentarist squats and runs his hand through some tufts. ¡°It¡¯s very dry.¡± He rips out a handful of the red grass, showing it to the camera. ¡°The trees and the plants, including the grass, are incredibly fire resistant.¡± Amethyst says. ¡°Ah, an evolutionary trait, that has been necessary to acquire in order to thrive in an environment like this, no doubt.¡± Amethyst starts cutting a doorway through the tough bark, the tree smolders and smokes, letting the blade cut it, but does not ignite. Some Tyrchids in the village stop for a moment to take a look at her building process, but continue on routinely, despite the massive film crew around. Amethyst makes a rectangle, about 10 cm deep and a bit higher than Frank using her short dagger hands. She then uses a long elbow blade to run it underneath the bark, up and down, the bark pops out in an intact piece. ¡°Maybe this will work as a door?¡± Amethyst shoves the bark plate, with the bits of her arms not on fire, towards Frank. ¡°You humans seem to enjoy having them quite a bit.¡± She then returns to work, starting to remove the larger doorway¡¯s main bits of wood in smaller cube like portions. ¡°Hmm, yes this should probably work.¡± Frank inspects the still slightly smoking piece, and almost gets his fingers burned from the lingerings heat. Though still getting the tips of his fingers black from the soot. ¡°Oh, the tree remains alive, even after the carving right? Does the tree not grow from the floor and try to reclaim the space you¡¯ve made?¡± ¡°It tries to, that¡¯s why the floor has to be charred properly so it won¡¯t be able to grow through it. The... procedure...? has to be repeated regularly.¡± ¡°Living inside of a living thing¡­ what a harmonious concept. Dear Explorers, this is what it really looks to be one with the nature. Not even killing it for housing, living in symbiosis, I¡¯d imagine the shards give the trees nutrients and in turn they give Tyrchids a house, a safe haven.¡± ¡°Killing the tree would be a big mistake, it would rot and become unusable as a house eventually. Sabertigers could crash into it to bring it down, or the elements would. Dead trees also lose quite a bit of their fire resistance.¡± Amethyst carves out deep lines into the wood, surrounding an area in them, before using his curved hand blades to cut behind it, to take out squares of wood. ¡°Ah, how interesting, there really is much more to think, than just simply carving out a house in any old tree.¡± Pioneer, Frank and Amethyst chat, while the house begins to take shape. Amethyst struggles somewhat to get it started, the smaller entryway being a challenge. Limiting her access inside, forcing her to squeeze and take awkward positions. As well as restricting the sizes of wood pieces she can carve out. ¡°Hmm¡­ Amethyst, if you can, try to take out pieces that can be used as furniture. Like round log chairs, or cubes, are probably fine as well.¡± ¡°Okay. I think I can manage that.¡± Amethyst says, stabs another small cube carved off the inside of the tree and throws it outside. She¡¯s now half a meter inside the doorway, making a deeper cut to carve out bigger blocks. They continue for some time, until the conversation and entertainment value of it seems to fizzle out for now. ¡°This has been just a small look into Midnight Iris'' new sapient species vying for ISSA¡¯s attention. Thank you all for watching! Explorers, and everyone else, make sure to tune in tomorrow, at the usual time, we have so much more in store to still show you!¡± A brief moment later, Pioneer claps his hands together. ¡°Good show people! Now get some well earned rest.¡± The film crew drives the equipment off into the forest, some stay around for clean up and other various tasks, most however leave immediately. ¡°Amethyst, Frank, a word.¡± Pioneer approaches the duo, who talk about something, standing before Frank¡¯s upcoming home. They turn to look at him in surprise. ¡°I think we are off to a crackin¡¯ start, but that said¡­ I do have some worries. We might have a hard time attracting viewers or making enough episode with this format. Once the actual building starts to be the only content, I¡¯d imagine it will be hard to be made entertaining, if you¡¯ve got any further ideas, I¡¯m all ears.¡± ¡°Hmm, that¡¯s a tough one. Building furniture and somewhat designing the interior can be done, but probably won¡¯t be anything riveting¡­ And that can¡¯t really be started before the house itself is sufficiently carved.¡± ¡°I may have something¡­¡± Amethyst says unsure. ¡°I¡¯m all ears for any ideas, pitch it to me.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll uh, pitch, it to you tomorrow, okay? We gotta talk it through a bit first...¡± ¡°Fine, fine, we¡¯ll discuss it before the shooting starts. Now, go and get some rest too, my stars will need to be fully energized for tomorrow.¡± This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.A weird salute-wave hand gesture later, he starts walking away, but stops and turns around almost immediately. ¡°Oh, By the way, we took up residence in the large empty building over yonder. That¡¯s fine with you I assume?¡± ¡°Uh, right. Sure?¡± Amethyst responds unprepared. ¡°Nice to see you¡¯ve already started modernizing this place, if little by little. When¡¯s the grand opening of the hotel?¡± ¡°¡­ Hotel?¡± Frank answers lost. ¡°We just talked about it, try to keep up.¡± ¡°Ohh¡­ Umm, maybe after we get ISSA approved?¡± Frank improvises. ¡°Well, I hope so, I might come to visit personally, after all¡¯s said and done. If I find myself with some vacation time on my hands that is...¡± Pioneer leaves the duo for real this time, chatting up some personnel still at the village instead, mainly, a pair of nurses.
Amethyst and Frank head back to the clinic for the time being, walking through the colorful forest, in the growing dusk, following the same trail they cut through initially. Being led by Emerald into the village, felt like such a long time ago by now. Amethyst hangs her hands to her sides as she walks slowly, allowing herself to take smaller steps, and a slower pace. Though its still quite enough to keep up with Frank''s puny human legs. ¡°I¡¯m so tired¡­¡± ¡°Because you had to burn your flames so much, or due to acting? ¡°Both¡­ But, what is acting¡­ exactly? I¡¯m not sure I still understand.¡± ¡°Hmm, playing a role, if that makes sense. Pretending to be someone else to tell a story, becoming another person temporarily. I think that¡¯s a good summary?¡± ¡°Well, it sounds like lying, to yourself and others.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not like that, everyone knows its not real. The people up on stages or shows aren¡¯t really what they appear to be. It''s harmless.¡± ¡°So, its lying, but everyone knows they''re lying?¡± An unknown itch in her mind tries to force her hand to scratch her head, but she suppresses such a dangerous craving. ¡°I don¡¯t get it.¡± ¡°Well, don¡¯t worry, this is reality-TV, almost zero acting required, we can just be ourselves.¡± ¡°I see, that''s good.¡± Frank looks up into the sky, the twin suns were soon to set for the first time after he arrived here, the day really was much longer here than in Viridian Macula. ¡°So Amethyst, what was your idea?¡± He decides to ask, as Amethyst didn''t seem very forthcoming at the moment. ¡°I was wondering if¡­ if we could somehow teach my kin, would it be too obvious they are¡­ not like me?¡± ¡°Teach them? They did overall seem... reasonable now, much calmer and friendlier too.¡± That... event, comes to his mind, but its memory is no longer debilitating. Though, he still didn¡¯t wish to forget it. Jack and Jill, despite having made their choices, deserved to be remembered. ¡°Are you okay Frank?¡± ¡°Yeah. About you''re idea, I¡¯m not sure, but maybe its possible to educate them. It is risky to draw more attention to them though¡± ¡°Because of ISSA?¡± Frank silently nods. ¡°Why are they helping us really? Just saying their name seemed to scare the humans before. Are they bad?¡± ¡°No no, not at all¡± The vehement waving of Frank¡¯s hands try to take care of the misunderstanding on their own. ¡°Their mission is to shield and shelter all sapient species of the galaxy, even going as far as fighting for them and their rights¡± ¡°Why would they do that? Humans don¡¯t just help unless they get something out of it... Except you Frank¡± ¡°R-right¡­¡± Frank answers solemnly. ¡°Well... they see all Sapient species as precious, as enriching the galaxy further. All races, for example, have a right for a home planet. If any outside forces try to wage war on them, to capture their home, ISSA will deal with them, by whatever means necessary.¡± ¡°How come you know so much about them?¡± Amethyst asks, but her question is ignored as Frank continues. ¡°However they don¡¯t interfere with conflicts that happen anywhere else, unless the existence of a sapient species is at stake¡± Frank hops over a large sticking out root. ¡°So, if Tyrchids were already a registered Sapient species with them, they¡¯d come to kick Intergalactic Resources or any other force we¡¯d deem hostile off Midnight Iris. Can¡¯t really ask for better insurance.¡± ¡°They do all of this, while asking for nothing in return?¡± ¡°Well, Pioneer did ask what Tyrchids can contribute to the galaxy, but mostly yes, though they seem to have made the application process harder and different over the years¡­¡± ¡°What was it like before then?¡± Amethyst asks as they break out of the forest, arriving at the top of the quarry. ¡°A lot more paper work and bureaucracy hoops to hop through, but as long as you filled it all correctly, the trip to the court was more of a formality than any sort of real trial¡± I hope that¡¯s still the case... ¡°And this sort of goofing off certainly wouldn''t have flown back then. A serious documentary, if anything.¡± ¡°You seem to know a lot about ISSA¡­?¡± Amethyst asks with curious eyes. ¡°Well¡­ not that much, I mean I used to¡­ most of that¡¯s probably obsolete information by now.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°As we saw today, things have changed a lot since the time I dreamed of working for them. Hah, never even got invited to a job interview now that I think about it..." Even then, their history was shrouded in mystery¡­ never really paid attention to it then though. ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°Maybe I¡¯ll tell you more later, we are here now¡± They arrive down the slope to the clinic. ¡°Let¡¯s ask Grent¡¯s opinion on the plan to teach the Tyrchids¡±
Amethyst and Frank find Grent in the kitchen, Pineapple, nowhere to be seen. They explain what happened today. ¡°The ISSA is here already!? How are they so fast!¡± Do they know? ¡°Did anyone, anything else arrive, just the film crew?¡± Grent quickly gets up from the table, like covertly running away as the two sit down. ¡°Yeah just them, at least we didn''t see anyone else.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Amethyst follows up. ¡°No reason, I was just curious¡± So they must not be here for me after all. And I doubt they¡¯d tell the camera crew anything. Amethyst''s thin black eyebrows raise and her many eyes observe him. ¡°A-anyway, better not bring them here, you know, all sort of dangerous technology here, wouldn''t want them accidentally documenting any formulas or blueprints for the mind ray¡­ or stuff... Right?¡± ¡°Yeah¡­¡± Frank answers slowly. ¡°So anyway, you managed to not only, sort of, speak with the Tyrchids and gain their trust, they also did not attack the film crew... Maybe it is possible¡­¡± Grent stops to ponder, after he deposits his plates into the sink. ¡°What¡¯s possible?¡± Grent turns around and explains intrigued. ¡°Your idea, educating them, I mean. If they were just pure instinct they wouldn¡¯t have adapted to the changing situation so quickly and apparently without much issue. So they must be capable of at least some form of independent thought, have their own personalities maybe¡­ own quirks, be their own persons¡± ¡°We were thinking of starting their teaching tomorrow, do a sort of school classroom setup.¡± ¡°Already? Under the watchful eyes of film cameras?¡± ¡°Yeah, it''s a pretty good opportunity to... hopefully, display their intelligence or at least give the impression of one.¡± His choice of words cause Amethyst to frown. ¡°Well, you better hope they don¡¯t catch onto that they aren¡¯t exactly intelligent and sophisticated like Amethyst. Casting the spotlight on them so directly is dangerous¡± He glances back as he opens the third door of the kitchen, to a place Frank and Amethyst have not gone before. The strange word catches her interest, positive in meaning at least, she thought. ¡°Am I sophisticated Frank?¡± Frank is about to answer but Grent cuts him out and grins. ¡°Sorry, I meant to say domesticated.¡± Amethyst mouth hangs open. ¡°Is that bad?¡± ¡°Well, kind of?¡± ¡°Grent!¡± He¡¯s already leaving through the door at the back of the kitchen before turning back again, leaning to the barely open door. ¡°Oh right, please take Pineapple with you tomorrow and teach it to speak too¡­ So I can make sure it understands exactly what I¡¯ve said to it¡­¡± ¡°And what would that be?¡± Frank asks a bit worried. ¡°It¡¯s nothing good I can assure you, how am I supposed to get any research done with this menace darting around the place crashing into everything¡± Merely speaking of it seems to get Grent riled up. ¡°And just when I think it¡¯s over it¡¯ll meow so loud my ears are still ringing. If I can¡¯t hear you tomorrow anymore, you know why. Not even mentioning of the constant flashes of light, its nails and teeth! How am I supposed to boot it out of my lab with all of its arsenal!" ¡°Pineapple? No he¡¯d never do anything like that, doesn¡¯t sound like him at all¡± Frank says with a big grin of sarcasm. ¡°And I thought normal cats were bad¡­¡± Grent says. ¡°Is Pineapple not a normal cat?¡± Amethyst asks genuinely oblivious. ¡°Of course not! It¡¯s not even a cat, some sort of demon spawn maybe¡­ On second thought, don¡¯t teach Pineapple to speak¡­ for all I know they¡¯ll apply for ISSA¡¯s protection too and the next thing I know the whole galaxy is infested with them¡­¡± ¡°Solarophones¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Their species¡± ¡°What sort of nonsense is that?¡± "-" ¡°Don¡¯t answer that. I don¡¯t care¡± Just as Grent¡¯s about to shut the door behind him, Frank says one last thing. ¡°Oh, right, I¡¯ll use your laun-dry machine, I trust that¡¯s fine?¡± ¡°Sure, just use and do whatever you need, as long as you stay out of my lab¡± He blurts without much thought, annoyed at being bothered. Grent slowly closes the door, just his face visible from the thin crack. ¡°I¡¯ll lock myself to my room now to sleep¡­ Do not disturb me..." At least one fiend can¡¯t get through steel doors¡­ Grent slams the door shut. Rubbing his aching eyes, he walks down the lone corridors towards his quarters. It¡¯s just the ISSA film crew... I¡¯ll be fine¡­
¡°The next film shooting is in 9 hours, maybe we should sleep too?¡± A clock on the kitchen wall was a 12 hour one, though Frank yielded that he had failed to check it when they left, he had no idea how long they had been out. His communication device was in a totally different, Viridian Macula, time still too. The clock was now 20:00, or 8 pm, whatever that meant. At least he knew the shooting would start at¡­ 5 am? Thanks to a follow up email from Pioneer with a Galactic Time Display -countdown for their next filming session. It would just about be dawn then? Did the film crew know the daylight cycle of the planet, he wondered. ¡°I don¡¯t usually sleep this much¡­ but I¡¯m so tired¡­¡± Amethyst interrupts his thoughts and yawns loudly. Her mandibles come out of her mouth during it, shivering and stretching along with her jaw¡¯s movement. Amethyst catches Frank staring. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I¡­ just didn¡¯t think you could yawn¡± ¡°Of course I can yawn¡­ Right? Should I not be able to yawn?¡± Her tone takes a turn as she doubts herself. ¡°No no, most animals yawn, so it¡¯s to be expected¡± ¡°But you still didn¡¯t expect it?¡± Amethyst asks puzzled. ¡°Ugh, never mind, let¡¯s just grab a bite and go sleep¡± ¡°But what about this¡­ land-rye machine?¡± ¡°Laun-dry. Its used to wash dirty clothes, like those stained with banaorange juice¡± Frank smirks. ¡°Nowadays the machines also automatically dry them too, hence the name¡± ¡°Oh¡­ that¡¯s too bad¡± ¡°Hah. I can¡¯t go around smelling fruity forever. Anyway, I guess I forgot to eat my packed lunch today, so I¡¯ll have that and something more maybe¡± Frank puts the container from his bag onto the table and goes to check the fridge¡¯s contents. ¡°What would you like Amethyst? Bread, Toast or a sandwich, some variation of those?¡± I should really talk with Grent, where does he even get all his food ¨C and why ¨C is it all bread? ¡°Anything you make is fine¡± ¡°Alrighty then, plain toast it is, who needs any butter or toppings anyway¡± ¡°Hey!¡±
A power nap later, Grent gets up from his bed in his private quarters. A small reinforced steel room, filled with all sorts of important and personal junk. Bits and pieces he hauled with him in his own ship around wherever he went. He was glad Amethyst allowed him to stay, most of this would have been left behind otherwise. Grent hated moving, it took a half a day or more to haul all of his stuff around. Though that depended on how much he had unloaded in the first place. Amande had always complained: ¡°This is supposed to be a passenger, not a cargo ship!¡± Due to his hoarding, the ship barely fit the two of them inside. But that is all it amounted to; complaining. She had also started to hoard some of her own motors, metal plates and pipes, random electronics, just discreetly adding them to his pile over time. They had benefited from their hoarding, many a time before, salvaging a spaceship wreck, or a lost colony¡¯s premises, many, many useful components could be found. You¡¯d never know when some improvised repairs were needed to keep the space outside the ship, to not get stranded in the infinite emptiness. Digging through a pile, finding a handful of useful computer parts, Grent then picks out some wires from an actually, in order, small desk drawer style box. Hmm, is this all I need to finish her central circuitry? He assures himself, that everything else needed was already gathered in the lab, gyroscope, the processors, memory chips, motherboard¡­ Maybe I should wire up the legs first, to make sure I¡¯ve got enough juice to power the whole thing, don¡¯t wanna have to redo the chassis too many times due to underestimations... Grent squeezes the parts in his fist and decides to just get on with it, opening the heavy metal door with an ID and stepping into the corridor. He walks down the long plain corridors, an extreme silence around. Only the echo of his steps and the faint noise of the air conditioning growing louder and then quieter again, as he passed ventilation shaft¡¯s grates. He enters the main lobby and hears a clatter, a small metal can rolls around the floor. Droplets of sweat ooze onto his brow and Grent takes off into a run towards his lab¡¯s door. He had to be fast. Arriving at the panel, he frantically swipes the ID card on the door, it couldn''t open any slower if it tried. In the back of his neck, he can feel it approaching, getting ever closer, ready to pounce. As soon as Grent can fit through, he squeezes inside and presses the door close button. Intense and on edge, he surveys the lobby area through the ever-narrowing doorway. It could not be seen anywhere. As the door closes with a silent whirr, without it managing to get inside the lab, his shoulders drop with a sigh. But as he turns around, the surprise feels like it might just be his demise. ¡°Aagh!¡± Pineapple sits there right in front of him, not even looking at him, nonchalantly just existing. Grent clutches a fist and feels like shouting. He had not escaped the beast after all. ¡°I-I¡¯ll allow you to stay, just d-don¡¯t get in my way!¡± Grent tells the cat, who gives a sideways glance at him. ¡°Please?¡± Grent carefully goes around it and lays down the small parts and wires he brought, onto the metal table. On it, two human sized robotic legs, ball jointed knees and feet, aluminum plating covering all the circuitry with hatches that could be screwed open. Above those, a large chest chassis, thin hips form into a Y-shape with the rest of the chest. The large chest cavity was empty, already screwed open. All of the limbs still unconnected, very much in progress. It was still unpainted and a bit crude looking, his own, if a bit rudimentary design. Back in their home planet with Amande, he had taken the first steps in building his own robot. Intending to introduce them as a potential workforce, to seek funding from the mining company that had arrived there. He never did though. The project took way too long, and the gloss of this ¡°savior corporation¡± soon turned into stains in everyone''s lives. The robot was functional, or had been, it had run out of battery and fallen into disrepair along the years. This robot body was one of the more larger baggage he towed around the galaxy. The rest of its parts still in his ship, they were quite heavy to transport after all, it was much easier to take it apart, limb by limb and then re-assemble it in a proper workspace. With a toolbox next to the legs, on the table, he started screwing panels open and working on the old electronics inside. As he grabbed a part from the stack he brought, it fought back, it didn¡¯t want to come with him. Grent pulled and looked for the source of this strange phenomenon, to find Pineapple hanging onto the wire attached to it, with its paw. Pulling it up and down, side to side, to try and shake the cat off, but it just grasped at the wire with its other paw and held on tighter. ¡°Let go, you fleabite!¡± Grent shakes it more fiercely, in response, Pineapple blinds him, the whole lab lights up like mid-day and he looses the grip on the part. ¡°Aah! Why are you doing this?!¡± Grent rubs his eyes and shouts in frustration. Pineapple runs under the operating table, carrying the part in its mouth. ¡°Give it back!¡± Grent dashes after the cat dazed, but is much too slow to catch it, as the cat slips underneath a large metal cabinet. He gets on his knees and looks underneath, at the shiny narrow eyes in the darkness. ¡°What is your objective? To be a nuisance? To make me go mad with rage!?¡± There is no response. ¡°Argh!¡± Grent gets up and surrenders, sitting down to his chair, spinning a few laps on it from the force he collapsed on it. Maybe I should just give up¡­ Actually get some proper sleep¡­ then somehow lure the cat somewhere else and lock myself into my lab forever... Until its done. Grent sighs and leans forwards, sinking his head to his hands. It was all so close, he could almost feel the grasp of Amande¡¯s hand on his shoulder. Hear her laughter, the almost pitying, but humorous smile, she would give him in this situation. And imagine the useless, but loving advice, she dished out on the regular: ¡°Oh dear, my little smart-man, don¡¯t give up. It¡¯s only a cat, try keeping your eyes closed the next time¡± ¡°But I can¡¯t just keep my eyes closed the whole time I work, can I?¡± I¡¯d respond to her. Then, I¡¯d think of a solution after our exchange. ¡°Maybe I do have the old ISSA shades around somewhere still...¡± The sound of something dropping onto the floor echoes. Grent finds the way back to reality from his nostalgic thoughts. Pineapple sits before him, licking its paws, the stolen part on the ground before it. ¡°Have you came back to taunt me? I¡¯m not dumb, I can see a setup as obvious as this from a light-year away. As soon as I stand up, you''re going to grab that part again in your grubby jaws and run headlong into my delicate equipment, wrecking it, before hiding.¡± Grent demonstrates his hypothesis by standing up from the chair, only to see the cat not react. ¡°So you think yourself faster than me? Is that it? Who can grab the part first, huh?¡± He was going to beat it in its own game, show Pineapple who¡¯s the boss around here. Grent measures up the cat, like in a laser pistol shoot-out, looking for any signs of it reaching to pick up the part. Finally, his nemesis makes a move and Grent reaches for the part as fast as he could, only to stop halfway there. The cat just walks away, seeming completely uninterested in the part. The Solarophone gives Grent a small berth, sauntering towards him and jumping onto the soft chair he was sitting on previously. Grent calmly picks up the part and looks at the cat, curled up on the chair, its eyes closed. What? Why? He could understand all sorts of scientific formulas, strange notations and technologies of the past, grasp all sorts of principals and conduct complicated experiments. Grent had even understood Amande''s logic and actions, most of the time, which was no mean feat. But this cat... defied all logic, eluded understanding. Why did it torment him so? What had he done to deserve such treatment? Or maybe there was no reason, it was just an animal of the highest annoyance, of the least control. A feline. There were times, occurrences, that contradicted his conclusion, it didn¡¯t satisfy his subconscious. Evidence pointing otherwise was rife. It wasn¡¯t just a cat, it couldn''t be. Almost like it had taken pity on him just before. A behavior, he had not seen from this shiny-furred menace before. Pondering these questions in his mind, he gets to work, peace and quiet finally fallen in his lab, at long last. 23. Dreams of the past
A large, near-oppressive red sun shimmers and dominates the clear blue sky, in the distance, menacing cumulonimbus clouds. Looks like thunder, hopefully we¡¯ll be done before that... Young Frank detaches his gaze from the horizon and sinks his shovel into a massive Buffalophant¡¯s dung pile, splayed on the grass of the empty enclosure. It sinks in easily, but lifting up such a heavy and disheartening load of disappointment, was harder to bare. ¡°Ever heard of the ¡®trial¡¯ lasting for weeks? We¡¯ll never get this smell off us if we do this for much longer...¡± I say to my fated brother-in-arms and stretch my sore joints after yet another throw. ¡°Now you realize they¡¯ve had it out for us since day one? I doubt they¡¯ll ever even let us do any treatment, much less operations.¡± Ray says without looking at me, as he tosses a load from his shovel onto the hoverplate¡¯s crap container, it slightly bobs downwards. To the right of me, my best friend poured down fewer droplets of liquid work, while shoveling away faster than me. I had met Ray in the University, over the five years there, our relationship deepened, with matched goals and aspirations. Though, that¡¯s where our similarities ended, the first time we met, I thought he was coming to mug me in pure daylight just outside campus. His gait, so confident and firm, a leather jacket and an expression to match, but all he asked in exchange for my life, was to work with me in a group project. We¡¯ve been good friends ever since, both of our ¡®unique¡¯ personalities, complimenting the other¡¯s weaknesses. One thing continued to bother me though, and years later, I finally got my answer to the question: Why did he come to talk to me, of all people back then? After much pestering, he admitted that my wild hair, made me look like the only one there, actually capable and qualified to be a vet. Though, he didn¡¯t say it nearly as politely then, it was just my interpretation from: ¡°Gotta look like an animal to know one.¡± We both even got our first real jobs, in the same place, though, it didn¡¯t exactly match our expectations... I sigh, for how right he had been once again. "I didn''t even think, the shit-shoveling welcome, was a real thing, that they all exaggerated it at school. If only we had gotten into ISSA¡­¡± ¡°We didn''t though, but you sure like to keep prattling on about them.¡± ¡°Sorry, I can¡¯t help it.¡± Stopping myself at the last second from touching the back of my neck, I continue shoveling. Really shouldn¡¯t have forgotten to tie my hair up today... ¡°I know¡­ I bet it be faster for us to just open up our own vet clinic, get the loans, rent the premises, hire all the staff and even take a few years more education.¡± With each problem listed; one more shovelful of shit, rhythmically and forcefully slammed into the container by Ray. ¡°Even after all that we¡¯d still have some time to spare, before these beetle-skunk asses let us actually do anything.¡± ¡°I bet you''re right¡­ I thought it was going to be different here¡­ Maybe I was a fool imagining we¡¯d get to do veterinarian work in a Zoo. No room for us and their regular vets...¡± I wipe some more sweat with the back of my wrist, being conscious and careful of my long hair from touching much of anything for that matter. Ray''s spiky buzz cut avoided my issue completely, his more muscular build helping him succeed in this sort of grunt work too. At least like me, his brow was pouring droplets of liquid work, though I suspect it was only because he kept a brisker pace. His forceful shoveling; fast and careless, showing clearly in the state of his overalls. Suddenly, it hits me, inspiration from our earlier exchange, I knew exactly what we needed to do. I loudly plonk down the shovel into the dung, the thickness of it allowing it to stand upright. ¡°You said it yourself, why don¡¯t we just found our own Veterinary clinic!" ¡°Because its super expensive and really difficult?¡± Ray shoots back immediately, obviously without even considering it. I lean on the shovel confidently. ¡°All we need is just some capital to get started. Everything else will sort itself out after that.¡± ¡°You can''t be serious.¡± Ray doesn''t stop working, flinging another load onto the cart, which seemed as empty, as the dung-piles were endless. ¡°We will register our company first thing tomorrow! Finally starting our road to putting the education and expertise, we labored so hard for, to real use.¡± ¡°Who¡¯s going to come to a vet of two total greenhorns? We might somehow, be able to start and even get our own premises... But we definitely won¡¯t be able to afford hiring anyone, just affording the equipment will be hard!¡± ¡°It¡¯ll be fine.¡± ¡°Come on, stop dreaming, there¡¯s already a million established vet clinics, how are we to stand out, to even compete with them?¡± "Hmm..." I remember some recent news, offering a solution. "Do you recall the turned down bill, to allow aliens to use the already established hospitals?" ¡°No way.¡± Ray finally stops shoveling too. ¡°You said we needed to stand out¡­ A completely untapped clientele-¡± ¡°Frank, we don¡¯t know the first thing about Aliens! Much less of treating them!¡± ¡°Well, maybe you don¡¯t, but, at least I know¡­ something.¡± I stop my hand gesture too late and feel the horror, of a wet and warm stain in my hair. Ray just shakes his head at me. ¡°We would be their only option, basically guaranteed to succeed.¡± I lament the fate of my hair, disappointed, but keep my head on track. ¡°We¡¯ll get experience, in treating normal animals, alien species and everything in between. Just what we¡¯ll need to actually get hired by ISSA.¡± ¡°Fine...¡± Ray throws his own shovel into a pile of mush, firmly sticking upwards as well. ¡°Can¡¯t be worse than this shit.¡± "Hey! No slacking off!" A voice from above orders. "Yes, boss!" Startled, we answer in unison, pick up our shovels and getting back to work...
Ray walks backwards in front of me, the lampposts lighting our way, on late-night streets of Metropolis. Wearing a streetwise leather jacket and dark colors, making me feel out of place with my usual shades of green. ¡°You said it yourself, we just need some capital and the rest will solve itself, what¡¯s the hold up?¡± ¡°How can they possibly pay us so much for this job? I know the loans aren¡¯t enough even with our salary, but-¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, I¡¯ve flown with them before, they¡¯re cool.¡± ¡°Are you sure¡­ this is legal?¡± I look around and see nobody else about, this part of town had no night activities, after all. ¡°Of course it is, they aren¡¯t going to bring it to the Zoo on Metropolis.¡± ¡°Right, the wildlife act¡­ of course¡­¡± I fidget and hesitate, unable to think of any more excuses, I keep on following Ray. He turns back around and looks over his shoulder: ¡°Come on now, we¡¯ll be late!¡± And quickens his pace. We walk fast through the industrial district and cut through darkness engulfed alleyways. Fortunately, nobody was there awaiting to mug us. Crime had after all, been in a steady decline, ever since the Galactic Police was reformed and renamed. Not that violent crime had been common before, but nowadays, it was near non-existent. Arriving into the yard of some unknown building, a large spaceship awaits us there, along with two men. Shrouded in the night and the shadow cast by the tall facility. ¡°Thought you were a no-show.¡± The bigger of the two says, strong and muscular, obvious even though his arms were hidden inside a big jacket. ¡°Chill Chode, we¡¯re here alright.¡± Ray talks back to him. ¡°That¡¯s your friend?¡± The other, slimmer one asks, wearing fancier clothes and a beret. ¡°Hmph.¡± He crosses his arms, his decorated sleeves show and reflect light, I recognize the attire, a military uniform for spaceship pilots. ¡°He sure is.¡± Ray says, seemingly unshaken by their gruff demeanor. I just gives them a careful nod. ¡°Well, boys, lets get going.¡± We climb up the ship¡¯s open cargo hold slope, our shoes clinking against the metal. ¡°Where exactly are we going?¡± I dare to ask only, with the two men¡¯s backs turned, Ray immediately looks at me and shakes his head. One of them responds, I can¡¯t say which, for their similarly deep and monotone voices. ¡°You¡¯re better of not knowing, kid.¡± Worry shows in my face as I look at Ray with my own disapproval. _________________________________________________________ The travel is rattly and noisy. Old seats, and somewhat decrepit and dirty interior, one would be glad the state of the lighting matched the rest of the ship''s condition. Like a nightclub, you¡¯d much rather keep the lights down low, than be able to really make out just what awaited in the dark. It was the biggest ship I had traveled in so far. Its impressiveness stuck with me, despite the circumstances. The interior matched its size, though the right side of it was cut off suddenly with a closer wall, despite there being still much more room that way to cover. On the left, a large cage located in a corner, taking a lot of that side¡¯s space. It seemed to be custom fitted, its iron bars, embedded into the roof and floor. At least five meters in length, though not quite as wide. Many, and almost any animal, would fit in that. A warp later, and we arrive near a glowing, white planet, a thick mist surrounded it, resembling a constant snowstorm, covering any shapes of the surface. ¡°We¡¯ll take the shuttle down, Jave will wait for our return here.¡± Chode informs unexpectedly helpful. ¡°Suit up¡± We put on the spacesuits, and carry the helmets on our hands, at least they looked well mended, though far from new. At least they didn''t seem to skimp on the necessities. But... Why did we need the suits? If we are just going to store the animal here in that cage, surely the air on the planet must be breathable. Not wishing to bother them any more, I keep it to myself, there was sure to be a reason for it. We march through the door of the closer right wall, into a large airlock. From the other end, we step into a shuttle, its interior almost as large as some individual ships. Though, certainly older than anything I had ever rode in, not only due to the darkened interior and seats. Rather, the tech itself seemed questionable, it consisted of gauges and switches, of devices I had no idea what they were used for. Making the trip seem even more dangerous and exciting ¨C the two feelings, hanging both in a delicate balance, in even doses. In hindsight, I wish I had asked Chode about the shuttle then, but he seemed impossible to approach, much less ask something of. Maybe I just had to get to know the two men better, Ray certainly seemed laid back even in their company. I look through a round window of the shuttle, we were now much closer. From here I could tell, that instead of a raging ever-frost and frigid weather, it looked like the whole planet was instead covered in¡­ wool. Like it was fluffy. Strands, countless, short strings of puffy fur, of soft flowing substance seemed to cover the planet with their swirling. ¡°You should be glad, only a few will ever get to see these sights.¡± The rough voice of Chode breaks my concentration. Those enigmatic words were the only talk of the shuttle trip, before we landed. ¡°Helmets on.¡± Chode says and hands us two long metal sticks, with hoops at the end of them and a button on the stock. We obey and each grab a stick. Confused, I look at Ray, who seems business as usual, then back at Chode, his wide and mildly-scarred face serious. ¡°We¡¯re... going to wrangle it?¡± ¡°Yes. Press the button on, if it gives you trouble.¡± ¡°What are we looking for?¡± Ray asks, a shock for me to hear. ¡°There shouldn¡¯t be anything but that one species still living here. If you manage to find something else, that would be even better.¡± Chode sits back on the pilot chair and leans on its backrest, crossing his hands behind his head. ¡°Get going then, I¡¯ll wait here.¡± ¡°W-what?¡± ¡°Chop chop.¡± Ray thumps me on the shoulder and gestures for us to go. We step into the airlock with our ridiculous long metal sticks, the inner doors close and near instantly, open the way outside. Long white strands, like long tendrils, or impossibly long fluffy animal hairs, cling to everything on the surface. What I assumed to be trees, had no trace of their original color, though I couldn''t be sure, they hadn''t always been like this. Pure and blinding white ruled the landscape, only the constant movement of the mass in the wind made it possible to determine any sort of borders or topography between objects. The ground was soft, almost like a trampoline, only it didn¡¯t bounce you back up. You just sank into the fluffy and dusty white with every step, waiting and hoping that the sinking eventually ended. ¡°Great friends you¡¯ve made.¡± I talk to Ray, with the inbuilt close range radio of the suit. Ray doesn¡¯t answer to me, we just keep walking in the whiter than snow terrain. ¡°Totally doesn¡¯t feel like they are using us.¡± ¡°Well, they pay to use us. That¡¯s the whole point, isn¡¯t it?¡± Ray pauses his irritated outburst for a moment. ¡°They always pay, don¡¯t worry about that.¡± ¡°Right¡­¡± I say, feeling on edge. ¡°Let¡¯s just find this animal and get out of here.¡± The wind whisked around, but no clouds could be seen in the sky, nor the sky itself. Looking up was just white. Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.No sounds could be heard, it was like a desolate wasteland. Or maybe the helmet insulated that much of the sounds outside. Stepping on the snow like ground felt even more peculiar, without any sort of crunch, any sort of usual feedback of stepping on¡­ anything else, really. ¡°Over there.¡± Ray¡¯s sudden, staticky voice, makes me jump. I peer to where he was pointing, a tree¡¯s branches of white fluff bobbed up and down, as a moose, with pure white skin and fur, munched on it. Even it, shed long strands of fur, which flew vertically from its slightest movement. Strange blue glowing mushrooms, grew on it. It was hard to tell if they were actually a part of the creature, or living in symbiosis with it, though the shrooms covered its entire body with quite consistent spacing. It would have had the perfect camouflage for the environment, if it didn¡¯t possess the planet¡¯s only non-white colors on its back. They grew even in its bone crown, though its antlers weren¡¯t very big for a moose. With a silent hand sign, we carefully start to circle it from both sides. It seems to be blissfully ignorant of our presence, even as we get closer to it. In no time at all, I¡¯m close enough to lasso it with my stick¡¯s hoop. It still keeps eating the mystery white off the tree, like we didn¡¯t exist, so I take the chance. Landing the hoop easily over its antlers and onto its thick neck, Ray follows and we tighten our ropes. The animal turns its head to face me. But it doesn¡¯t look at me, for it had no eyes. A patch of pure black small mushrooms, where one would have expected eyes, had fooled me from further away. ¡°What now? It¡­ isn¡¯t doing anything?¡± That was way too easy? We try to pull it along, but it doesn¡¯t budge, its not exactly that heavy, but its feet dig into the soft ground, as do ours when we try to pull it. ¡°Well, he told us to press the button, right?¡± Ray says and his thick gloved thumb moves to press it. White and blue electricity crackles around the hoop and the animal stomps its legs and struggles. We hold on to our sticks hard and try to get it back in control, it cries a dry and eerie sound, like a howl. The noise is deafening in the total silence, echoing and reverberating around. Even for its size, it wasn¡¯t very strong, we hold it in place just fine with the two of us. Once it calms down, it breaths out misty air from its near-blocked out nostrils on its snout, sending the tendril like fur flying from in front of it, and disturbing the white particles in the air. We try pulling again, the moose follows obediently this time, like a well behaved dog on a leash. Finding back to the ship was easy, the metallic gray and black, contrasted hard against the white-void. Though it takes some time to drag the strange moose with us. Did it even know what was happening? Maybe it just accepted that some unseen forces had decided to lead it? Succumbed to follow them obediently wherever it needed to go after that shock? ... As we arrive through the airlock with our quarry in tow, Chode turns to us on his pilot chair. ¡°I could hear the howl all the way from here.¡± He smiles, turning back on his pilot seat and continuing: ¡°Take a seat and hold it still for the trip. Oh and keep your helmets on.¡± Chode one now too, for some reason. We¡¯re supposed to hold it by ourselves? With just our hands and these sticks? Looking at Ray, he seemed unfazed, or just hid it well. Or maybe; it wasn¡¯t his first time holding something in place, in such an uncouth way. Thankfully Chode at least knows to make our ascent much more gradual so the moose stays upright, only having to adjust itself a few times. Even the rattling of the ship didn¡¯t seem to faze it¡­ Was it deaf as well as blind? ¡­ We dock with the main ship through the airlock. We stop in it for much longer than last time, the reason soon clear, as disinfectant washes us down from the ceiling. The moose at least has retained its sense of touch, as it panics. We hold it still with the sticks, as it shrieks pitifully and tries to wrestle free. Numerous white flakes pour off its fur, pooling on the floor before disappearing down the drain. The white long stretches of fur and the mushrooms stay on even through the wash. Somehow, it looked even more miserable than before, its fur wet and flattened against its body. The door opens and lets us back into the ship, we drip slightly, despite the drying process after. Jave turns on his pilot chair to observe us, only now I notice that he has a dark blue eyepatch covering his right eye. Revealed with the light shining through the windshield just right. Chode quickly steps past us and opens the cage¡¯s door for us, we lead the animal inside with our sticks, release the hoops and take them out. It doesn¡¯t try to escape, or even move after we let go of it, like it was lost without our guidance. He closes the cage, sealing it inside, then pulls a lever on the wall, the cage¡¯s gaps get covered with white crackling energy. The whiteness of the two seemed to compete with each other, but the moose was a clear winner regardless. It continued to shed white flakes, which fluttered in the air like dandelion seeds, or some sort of spores, all around it. Any that hit the cage get zapped and vaporized with a quiet crackle. We take off our suits, already dry, for they were of a material that allowed basically nothing to stick to it. Though, as I take off the spacesuit, my finger goes through a hole in the armpit. I cringe and covertly see if anyone noticed. Certainly nothing good would come from me telling them that I had broken their equipment. If they used it without checking their state again, it¡¯d be on them. But¡­ when had it broken? It must have somehow ripped in the shuttle? I would have certainly noticed a depressurization on the planet, right? Or maybe when we calmed the moose in the airlock. Ehh whatever, just gotta quickly set this back to its place. Once we all get the suits off us, we strap ourselves onto our seats and a quiet trip back to Metropolis follows. As the ship lands, I anxiously rise up, wondering what I¡¯m supposed to do or say after a job like this. Ray rises too, I just follow his lead, down the slope of the back of the ship, they opened up for us. Ray gives a small wave to them as we go, I mimic the action. As we walk out and off the slope, it rises and closes after us, but the ship does not take off. ¡°Wasn¡¯t so bad, right?¡± ¡°I suppose so¡­ all things considered.¡± I concede to him, with clammy hands and a racing heart. ¡°One step closer, we¡¯ve got half a year¡¯s rent saved up¡­ this should probably cover for our long lasting equipment¡­¡± ¡°Still got to scrounge enough for the medicine and other once-only supplies. And then find a suitable place to set up.¡± ¡°Right, not long now!¡± I hype up our success, feeling hopeful for the future we forged ourselves. Soon, we would be able to ditch the Zoo work as well, be real Veterinarians and¡­ whatever the alien equivalent would be called. ¡°Yeah!¡± Ray answers, uncharacteristically openly pumped. "Just got to survive work tomorrow, or... today I suppose..." I shield my eyes with my hand, gazing at the horizon, the sun already on the rise. "Who needs sleep anyway?" Ray smacks me on the shoulder. "A small price to pay for success."
Though, a lucky streak wasn¡¯t meant to last forever. A phone call, a few days later, in the middle of work would change it all. ¡°Frank Sinett.¡± I answer the unknown number. ¡°This is the Metropolitan Main Hospital. Have I reached the son of Eicel and Hyon Sinett?¡± A deep and seasoned, but a womanly voice asks. ¡°Y-yeah?¡± I stab the shovel down and concentrate on the conversation. ¡°I apologize for my bluntness, but would you be able to come visit the hospital today.¡± ¡°W-what? Why?¡± ¡°We have just taken them into critical care, about ten minutes ago.¡± I still remember the feeling, when I heard those words. I couldn''t comprehend what I had just heard. How could they be in the hospital? I just saw them this morning and they were fine, healthy. But it was nothing for what came next. ¡°We fear, they may not last much longer. If at all possible, please come say your goodbyes, while you still can.¡± This isn¡¯t real. ¡°I understand, this must be a shock... But, I personally wanted to let you know, when there was still a chance.¡± I gasp for breath and grasp at my chest. Ray dashes to support me, grabbing my shoulder, even he looked worried. ¡°Are you there?¡± ... ¡°Please hurry.¡± With shaking hands, I feel like my grip could crush the communicator in my grasp, finally I answer her resolute: ¡°I¡¯ll be there.¡± ... Indescribable worry and anger fill my being as I end the call. ¡°Ray, I have to go.¡±
Few days later. ¡°What was wrong with them?¡± Ray asks me on the phone. ¡°They don¡¯t know¡­ some strange disease.¡± ¡°That¡¯s terrible¡­¡± I tap my foot on the floor and clasp my fingers on the wooden table, one after the other. Sitting, waiting in the hospital hallways, for yet another operation to finish. ¡°Regardless of that, how are they?¡± ¡°Holding on¡­ but all the doctors have managed to do so far, is just putting off the inevitable.¡± Some sort of steady rumble, a low clatter sounds from Ray¡¯s end. ¡°What¡¯s that, where are you?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just the metro, in light of recent events, I decided to visit my parents for a few days too.¡± ¡°Right, have fun. It¡¯s been a while since your last visit there, hasn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Yeah, reception might be bit bad there, so don¡¯t worry if you can¡¯t reach me.¡± ¡°Right, they live far in the countryside.¡± I feel myself pulled into the conversation easily, but reality seeps back into my mind, through the gaping gaps of silence. ¡°Take care Frank, gotta go now.¡± ¡°Yeah, you take care too. Later.¡± I pocket the communicator and fail at relaxing, until a nurse arrives. "Are you Frank Sinett?" The seasoned veteran of the field asks, I recognize her voice from the phone. ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve got some forms for you to fill¡­ they¡¯re about your parents¡­¡±
On a new planet, in an unknown facility, I snoop around. Darkness surrounds me, as I look for their computer room, or any sort of records. Getting in was easier than I thought, you would think security was more strict in a place like this. Cold iron muzzle presses onto my back, as I was about to enter the door labeled as ''lab''. ¡°Who are you? What are you doing here?¡± I hadn¡¯t heard his approach at all. I curse my earlier thoughts. ¡°I am looking for Ray¡­ Ray Fiscer. Who I am isn¡¯t important.¡± ¡°What makes you think you could find this ¡®Ray¡¯ in here, of all places.¡± The irritable voice asks me. ¡°A ship he was on docked here, a few days ago.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Is that so?¡± The barrel shoves me on the back. ¡°Why do you want to find him?¡± Should I really tell the truth to this stranger threatening me? ¡­ Do I have a choice? ¡°He ran away with all of the savings of our business. I need to find him.¡± It feels like the gun bores a hole through my back even without firing a thing, as I wait for him to respond. ¡°I understand. If you help me, I am sure I can help you.¡± ¡°W-what do you need?¡± ¡°Do you perhaps have experience in animal handling?¡± ¡°What? Yeah¡­ I do.¡± ¡°As it happens, I am looking for a recently vacated position to be filled.¡± ¡°Well¡­ as it happens too, I am in the market for work. Though I do need more compensation than just the information.¡± ¡°Hah. I wasn¡¯t going to exploit you that much, of course I¡¯ll pay fairly.¡± The gun is drawn from my back. ¡°Come on, turn around then.¡± A pudgy man faces me, his head steadily loosing the last shreds of his hair. He greets me, with a held out arm. Confused, I shake his rugged and thick hand. ¡°Rocco Crondeston, good to have you with us.¡± He seems a little too pleased with himself. ¡°Frank Sinett, when do I start?¡± ¡°How about now? I will look into your ¡®friend¡¯ right away too.¡± He looks around. ¡°Ahem, you there, show this newbie around and to his new station as a Wildlife Generalist.¡± A man in camouflage clothes and a rifle jogs to me, as Rocco leaves. The man¡¯s silver eyes reveal a glint of friendliness, unlike the rest of his demeanor. ¡°The name¡¯s Jack.¡± He offers a hand, which I shake with dawning regret, as his firm grip almost crushes my fingers. He lets go and adjusts his cap. ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for Rocco¡¯s curiosity, I would have shot you already. Been on your tail ever since you entered.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ Well, I thank you for not taking the initiative.¡± ¡°Anyway, come with me, I¡¯ll show you around inside of the facility. After that, Jill can take you on tour for the outer buildings.¡±
Days passed, I got acquainted with my work, closer to my calling than the last work, but all of the animals were still in cages. I couldn''t hang around here too long. Each day I asked, but Rocco kept on talking in circles, some days it was: ¡°Just a bit longer, I¡¯ll find him soon." On others, he was waiting on a call to know more, for logs of transit, paperwork to peruse. After a week, I had enough, threatening to quit, Rocco finally said it. ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡­ Frank. I really have been looking into Ray this whole time. The ship he was in did indeed stop here to refuel, their objective and destination after that remain unknown, however. They turned their trackers off as soon as they breached the atmosphere, nobody has any knowledge of them since. I¡¯ve emailed, called, talked to countless people across the galaxy, but there is no trace of them.¡± ¡°Really? Why did you go through all that trouble?¡± ¡°Apart from keeping a promise and doing right by my staff? I do have a personal stake here too, but that¡¯s enough of that.¡± Rocco takes out a tablet and a special touchscreen pen. ¡°Well, how about we make this official, I¡¯ll continue to keep an ear out for them, I mean, Ray. Meanwhile, you can keep on working here.¡± ___________________________________________________________ Frank wakes up from damp, sweaty sheets. Reliving the past again¡­ Ray¡­ where did you disappear off to? Feeling like he didn''t get even a wink of sleep, he holds his misty head. Falling back asleep felt like an insurmountable obstacle, regardless of his tired state. Frank gets up, silently sneaking past Amethyst¡¯s bed in the pitch black room, lighting his way with the light of his communicator. She was laying on the bed, like in a coffin, her body perfectly still. Hands crossed over her chest symmetrically, long elbow blades extending outside the bed¡¯s borders. For this reason, Frank already had developed a habit of getting off his bed on the left side instead. Her legs pointed every which way, some off the bed, touching the ground, or sideways. The bed couldn''t really service those large legs well, but¡­ she wasn¡¯t even that tall really, if you didn¡¯t account for them. So other than that, she fit in just fine. Frank realizes something. Did the Tyrchids just lay on the hard wooden floor of their hole homes in the trees? Surely not? But how come she¡¯s sleeping like this? It¡¯s probably more comfortable in a bed than sleeping while standing? Maybe I¡¯ll ask her about it later. Frank manages to tiptoe to the door and sneak through, his plan: a shower to freshen up, to wash away the stains of the past. And clean, normal smelling clothes to prepare for whatever surprises the second day of filming, was sure to throw their way.
24. Carpentry Filming day 2 In their clinical sleeping space, Amethyst wakes up, finding Frank missing in the still dark room. He must have really been quiet to not wake me. She collects her splayed feet and sits up on the soft bed. Its comforting caress, she only got to experience, from her thighs, neck and partly through her hair. Any other place, her armor was always in the way, not even her blades could feel anything. Such was the fate of being a Tyrchid, of being protected in this shell, her sense of touch isolated from the world. The armor plating, just about hovered over her skin, attached from points all over her, where it sprouted from. Most of the time, she didn¡¯t feel it, but always sensed its presence. When she bent her body, turned, moved, it would touch and press against her, it was a reassuring feeling, though sometimes painful. The hard surface; oftentimes tepid, sometimes of startling cold, depending on the weather and other factors. She stands up from the bed, closes her dark-adjusted hybrid eyes and listens. Where are you Frank? Her fuzzy antennae concentrate and start to swish around their axis, sounds that were previously quiet or inaudible, start to grow in strength. The silent air conditioning in the room, turns to a whirring gust of wind. The quiet water dripping in the showers, the start of a rain. Loud banging from the lab makes her flinch with its volume, though it fortunately stops to heartfelt cursing from Grent. Then, a sound of rapid repetition: Tak tak tak tak. A knife, slicing away against a cutting board in the kitchen. There you are. She stops concentrating, her organic radar sticks stopping their movement, her hearing returning to a normal state. Barely making out anything beyond the current room, though she could nearly imagine still hearing the water droplets fall and the lab¡¯s banging. Proceeding towards the kitchen, she carefully presses down the familiar door''s handle with the side of her blade, gently kicking it closed after her. In the corridor, a faint smell of water steam wafted through the shower room¡¯s door. Another, stronger smell, of fruits or berries hits her antennae as she approaches the bathroom door. Amethyst pulls the door open to the dark room, to see the tiled floor wet, with splashed around droplets and puddles. Where¡¯s the fruits? She peers in with her night vision, spotting what she thought to be the land-rye machine, faintly steaming still. But she can¡¯t locate the source of the smell. No food, no berries nor fruits in sight. Miffed, she turns away from the door, leaving it open. As she gets closer to the kitchen, the fruity smell returns, weaker, but still recognizable. With anticipation, she opens the door. ¡°Oh, morning Amethyst,¡± Frank looks back at her, then continues to chop up fresh tomatoes. Without responding, she walks into the room and sniffs around for the good smell. She arrives at Frank. ¡°Umm, Amethyst?¡± ¡°You still smell like fruits.¡± ¡°Right, I thought I probably did¡­¡± Frank takes a loaf of bread and slices it with the knife next. ¡°Why¡¯s all shampoos and soaps Grent has are some sort of berry or fruit fragrance. Strawberry, raspberry, orange¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t mind.¡± Though I wish we actually had those instead, I wonder what they taste like... ¡°I¡¯m sure you don¡¯t¡­¡± Frank sighs, sets the knife down for a moment and turns to Amethyst with an amused smile, raising a single finger. ¡°Just remember what we talked about before.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Amethyst says and continues to stand uncomfortably close to Frank. ¡°Do your antennae, move or spin when you smell?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°So how do I know if you¡¯re smelling?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t?¡± ¡°Okay¡­ give me some space now, or you¡¯ll eat bare toast for real this time!¡± Amethyst takes the hint and reluctantly backs off, waiting at the table. Frank continues preparing breakfast, while muttering. ¡°White bread, wholegrain, rye, toast¡­ just bread bread bread... Where did the tomatoes come from, does he grow them here? They take their time with their morning routine and breakfast. Though, making it a point to leave early enough, to have plenty of time to meet Pioneer before the filming. As they pass through the lobby, all sorts of banging and sounds of construction echo from Grent¡¯s lab. The door¡¯s light is red, locked tight. Frank and Amethyst exit the facility and tread up the damp quarry, into the morning forest. Black pearls of dew still shine, rather ominously, on every leaf, plant and flower. It irked Frank, the otherwise colorful forest of red and purple, looked like it was sick with some disease. These black spots, ruling over the scenery, ruining it. Amethyst extends a hand to a leaf, a droplet rolls onto her blade. She tilts her curved dagger and the black drop of dew moves around on it, amazingly staying together. Back and forth, in a circle, the pearl rolls, in this balancing performance, doing it at the same time as they walk. Suddenly, the black drop disappears, for seemingly no reason, from the smooth, solid purple surface. Was she rolling it around the tiny holes in her blade, like some marble game? Frank tries to squint to see these holes in her blades, that clearly had to exist for her to be able to set them on fire. Amethyst¡¯s speech startles him from his concentration and he stops staring, the holes seemed to small to see. ¡°Do you think he¡¯ll agree to it?¡± She swipes up another drop from on top of a wide leafed crimson flower, staring down at the droplet. ¡°Probably, as long as we can make him see its entertainment value. Have you thought how you¡¯ll phrase the suggestion to Pioneer?¡± ¡°I have, actually...¡± Amethyst balances the new abyssal tear for a moment, before flubbing it. ¡°But¡­ I wouldn''t mind hearing your opinion¡­¡± ¡°Alright, let¡¯s work on your ¡®pitch¡¯ then, until we get there.¡± Though, if Pioneer says no, at least we¡¯d be forced to play it safe¡­ They bounce around ideas and what exactly to say, molding it to match Pioneer¡¯s own priorities, what he would look in an idea, until they arrive at the villages¡¯ vicinity. The tranquil Pango Grove seemed sleepy at this time of day, much fewer Tyrchid¡¯s around than before. Though that just gave the film crew more room to spread around and replace them. Discussion groups, equipment checks, though they looked ready for the show already. Pioneer is examining the start of Frank¡¯s home from yesterday, turning around as he hears them coming. ¡°Quite punctual I see, very good.¡± He leans on the tree, with just his shoulder, crossing his feet for minimal balance but maximum cool. Slightly lowering his glasses to look over them at the duo, in an awfully smooth way, he asks: ¡°Ready to lay your idea on me?¡± Amethyst hesitates, but pitches the idea with a practiced speech: ¡°We might not have that much in terms of infrastructure, rich culture, or cuisine outside of Pango Grapes... But... how about we create some of these things right here on your show?¡± ¡°I see... Interesting.¡± He pushes the glasses firmly back on. ¡°What did you exactly have in mind?¡± ¡°The backbone of any civilization, is their education and knowledge. Teaching my kin to communicate, in order to become c-contributing members of the, uh¡­ United Galaxy in the future would be most... prudent, wouldn¡¯t you agree?¡± ¡°Ah, how very well said Amethyst, truly teaching them to be as sophisticated as you would treat them well.¡± ¡°Thanks¡­¡± Amethyst was growing fonder of that word, the more she heard it. Pioneer¡¯s fingers brush against her chin¡¯s near invisible stubble. ¡°It¡¯s a very intriguing idea, certainly something that hasn¡¯t been done before...¡± Frank takes over, as Amethyst is out of her practiced lines. ¡°This is just the first step for the Tyrchid¡¯s culture, we also have the infrastructure already started too-¡± Pioneer interrupts him, enthusiastically. ¡°Yes, the hotel, of course! And what a fine establishment it is! It¡¯s never been easier to find my room, with all the colored lines to guide you there. Could have went with a less of an industrial naming style, though. But, Director doesn¡¯t have a bad ring to it either.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a... quarry themed hotel, as its right next to it.¡± Frank smiles comically, Amethyst less amused, but would rather not correct Pioneer either. ¡°Anyway, we can show more of Tyrchid¡¯s construction style by building a classroom here to teach them.¡± ¡°How does that sound?¡± Amethyst asks nervous. ¡°I¡¯m sure it will be¡­ entertaining.¡± ¡°A true reality show, school and education of the uneducated, combined with a building show¡­ hmm. I don¡¯t know... it¡¯s never been done before¡­¡± His fingers clack against his golden ring, looking down at it, he starts nodding, before leveling his gaze back to them. ¡°But I think it just might work.¡± Frank and Amethyst have a silent celebration with their eyes. ¡°We can use my mother¡¯s large open house as the classroom." I''m sure she wouldn''t mind. ¡°Add some seats and a... blackboard? made of wood and we¡¯ll have a proper classroom going in no time, right?¡± Frank nods to the unsure Amethyst, deep in thought himself. Pioneer stops leaning, brushes his sleeve from the dust of the bark, and addresses the both of them again. ¡°What were you thinking of teaching them?¡± Frank decides to take this question. ¡°Well¡­ we aren¡¯t exactly trained professionals in teaching any subject, but¡­ probably to read and write, and some English words maybe, using Tyrchidian language as a base. ¡°Write¡­¡± Amethyst looks dreamily into sky of dark gray clouds. ¡°Wait¡­ can you read or write?¡± Frank asks. ¡°I¡­ I¡¯m not sure? I think I can read... Probably. I¡¯ve never really tried writing.¡± ¡°Well if not, you can join them in class then when we teach that.¡± Frank beams. ¡°Could I try teaching something?¡± Pioneer says a bit too excited for the idea.¡±It would make for wonderful TV!¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ maybe, but we will have to see how this goes first. I¡¯m not expecting any ground breaking developments in just a few classes over a couple of days.¡± ¡°Ahem, of course. Pardon my hastiness. However, Amethyst there has learned just swell, how long did it take you to learn English?¡± ¡°Umm¡­ a few days?¡± Amethyst answers, before Frank can stop her. ¡°F-few days?!¡± ¡°Amethyst is a kind of a special case, she was just that... talented.¡± ¡°She¡¯s basically fluent!¡± Pioneer looks at Frank with his shades shining and with an eager grin. ¡°Really talented, okay?¡± Frank tries to reign him in with open handed gestures. ¡°For her kin, it might prove a challenge to get them to even stay inside of the classroom, so don¡¯t get your expectations too high.¡± ¡°Yeah...¡± Amethyst admits and looks to the ground. ¡°It might not be easy...¡± Instead of curbing Pioneer¡¯s expectations, he instead succeeded in crushing Amethyst¡¯s. ¡°Well that¡¯s fine, I¡¯m sure it will make for a good show nonetheless. Pioneer dust his hands, like a job well done. "We''ll start soon, get ready.¡± He leaves and goes to his crew. Frank places a hand on Amethyst shoulder, she looks at him with sad eyes. ¡°You¡¯ll help me with all this, won¡¯t you? I can¡¯t do this alone.¡± ¡°Y-yeah.¡± ¡°Great, first we have to furnish the classroom, so let¡¯s start with continuing making the house first and as we carve the wood out, we can shape them into a table and chairs.¡± Frank nods to himself as he goes through everything in his head. ¡°What else¡­ I guess we can use the wall of the Queen¡¯s house as a blackboard¡­ or maybe we should actually make some thin wooden plates for that¡­ it might get real messy otherwise. And we don¡¯t want to damage the walls themselves...¡± ¡°You¡¯re really into this Frank aren¡¯t you?¡± Amethyst wonders, though her attention is in his warm hand on her shoulder. She could almost feel the heat seeping through her armor and radiating onto the exposed skin of her neck. ¡°Oh? Hah, I guess so, it¡¯s pretty interesting. Aren¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Oh¡­ yeah¡­¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m sure it¡¯ll go great, they¡¯re basically our friends by now right?¡± Frank pats her shoulder twice and retreats his hand with a reassuring smile. ¡°Yeah¡­¡± That¡¯s not what I¡¯m worried about though¡­ *** ¡°Welcome back to the show, even those at the very edges of the United Galaxy, don¡¯t worry, you are welcome here too, each and everyone of you are!¡± Pioneer walks backwards and reveals the start of Frank¡¯s house, with the two main attractions waving at the camera, feeling slightly more used to it. ¡°In a moment, we will proceed with the exciting construction, but¡­ that won¡¯t be all. A special number, that is here to stay, will start soon after. Some of the most perceptive of you might be starting to piece it together soon, or maybe some of you already know?¡± Pioneer presses two fingers on the rim of his glasses inquisitively. ¡°Can you guess what it might be? I have opened up a poll, see the link in the screen right now, and on our gweb pages. The Explorer who guesses the closest, wins a prize! What will it be? More on that later down the line, it¡¯s a surprise!¡± ¡°Without further ado, Frank and Amethyst, take it away!¡± Amethyst starts to carve out Frank¡¯s house¡¯s interior, having squeezed through the narrow door inside now, a camera person in a fireproof suit has followed to film her. As the carving proceeds, Frank is outside handling the makeshift stump stools, large rectangle blocks and other wooden sculptures, she shapes from the walls. They are smooth from the outside, burned into shades of black and deep browns, the rousing smell of fresh and slightly burnt wood filling the air as she works. ¡°Here you can see Amethyst expertly working those blades of hers, Explorers, you may be wondering what is she doing, cutting out shapes like that? You¡¯ll just have to wait, once we¡¯ve procured enough furniture. Oops, spoilers! Just sit tight and all will be clear soon!¡± As Amethyst works, Franks takes a look at the cut pieces from yesterday, it¡¯s mostly splinters, but Amethyst cut right below the bark, the door candidate, the one long intact piece of thick bark and some wood with it. Hmm, this could work as a table top¡­ It¡¯s a little curved¡­ but probably fine if we use the other side up. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°Amethyst can you carve me four legs for the table, about a meter in length¡± ¡°Here we see a carpenter, a house builder, a vet and an engineer, struggling in a new environment, relying on his partner for cutting and procuring the materials.¡± ¡°Hey, I¡¯m not struggling!¡± Or even half of those things! Pioneer walks backwards and approaches him, slapping a hand on his shoulder. ¡°Frank, please tell us, enlighten me, how are you going to build this table, I don¡¯t see any tools nor nails with you.¡± ¡°Well, first of all, you are stepping on my nails, thank you very much.¡± Frank pulls his shoulder away from Pioneer. ¡°Oh, I see, how very resourceful.¡± The Documentarist takes a step back, and the camera pans downwards, following Frank as he leans down to pick up the shattered wing crystal shard from the pile he had gathered. He elaborately tosses away the one broken by Pioneer. ¡°These shards are quite durable, at least if you don¡¯t bend them, or step on them¡­ Sharp, too, they should, in theory, work as nails.¡± Frank demonstrates by breaking one in half easily by bending it from the middle, but unable to crush one down vertically. ¡°What about the decomposing aspect and weren¡¯t they weak to water? Will the table be in pieces by tomorrow?¡± ¡°Well we are having an indoor class, as long as nobody pours water on the table it should be fine. And I doubt they¡¯d decompose too fast, embedded into wood.¡± ¡°Ah yes, the table does not have to last more than the duration of our visit, is that what you mean?¡± ¡°Exactly, we can just make a new table, to continue the education afterwards, make it a bit more lasting.¡± Amethyst brings another log chair outside, her hand blade stabbed through its bottom, she shakes it loose and it drops onto the ground, among the nine other chairs. ¡°How many did we need?¡± ¡°I think ten is probably enough, the tree certainly has space for more¡­ but I don¡¯t think we should try to overload our class room with students just yet.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°Can you get me the table legs now?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve got them right here.¡± Amethyst walks back into the in progress cottage, and soon emerges with four square pegs held on her arms, she drops them near Frank¡¯s feet. Frank notices, they aren¡¯t meter in length, nor exactly the same length, but they¡¯ll do. ¡°Okay, we¡¯ll use these shards as nails and hit them through the table and into the leg so that they¡¯ll hold the two together.¡± ¡°Nails?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll see what I mean once we get started.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Frank carefully tries to prop up about meter long beam, so that it¡¯d stay up on it¡¯s own, but it¡¯s way too long and uneven for that. ¡°Amethyst can you hold this up with your hand, support it with your leg or something? I¡¯ll try to get the table top on it so we can nail it down.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t I hold it with both blades?¡± ¡°You can for now, but I¡¯ll need you to hammer in the shard nails.¡± Frank holds the beam up and Amethyst grabs support of it with her wrists, awkwardly holding it. ¡°Okay, good.¡± Frank takes the table top, lift¡¯s it up, thankfully it¡¯s relatively thin and only a meter long too, so he manages to get it on top of the long pole. He holds the table on top of the beam from the opposite side, the structure teeters. ¡°I just realized¡­ this is going to be impossible for the two of us¡­ You can¡¯t hold up the nail to hammer it, and I gotta hold the table up from this side¡­¡± ¡°Uhh Pioneer, you wouldn¡¯t wanna lend me some of your, assistants?¡± ¡°What do you think Explorers, should we lend them a hand?¡± Pioneer takes out his communicator and stares at it intently. Sounds of birdsong fill the void of silence that falls, some grunts from the camera crew and a loud sneeze as well. ¡°Uhh who are you asking that from? Isn¡¯t this-¡± Frank gets interrupted. ¡°Alright, we aren¡¯t really supposed to interfere like this, but we will make an exception, any volunteers?¡± He looks up from the screen and peers at his staff. Some hands raise up in the production team, who aren¡¯t currently working the hover lights, camera or microphones. Among them, one girl, wearing a purple blouse is hopping up and down while waving with both hands. Her long dark hair flops every which way, revealing the subtle red highlights. Strikingly familiar, Frank realizes its the drone operator from last time. ¡°Okay¡­ you the¡­ new girl? Get in here.¡± Pioneer picks the obviously enthusiastic girl. She runs up to the scene her hands girlishly on her sides, beaming a big bright smile. ¡°Amethyst! Hello!¡± She waves and radiates a smile, her wide golden necklace¡¯s red gemstones shining almost as bright. ¡°Let¡¯s get this table done!¡± She cheerily claps her hands together, her sharp metallic red and blue earring shingle. ¡°Nice to meet you¡­ who are you again?¡± Frank asks. ¡°Hello, Luna.¡± Amethyst remembers, though she is a bit taken aback, she had never met anyone so enthusiastic and energetic before. ¡°Eek! She remembered my name!¡± She shyly tilts her head, cups her cheeks and blushes. Then gives Pioneer a quick and a sharp leer, which he ignores. ¡°Anyway¡­ Luna, please hold up this side of the table.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± She answers to Frank without looking at him, sashays to the other end of the table and grabs it. Pioneer glances at his communicator. ¡°Now now Explorers, you¡¯re the ones who agreed to lend them help, don¡¯t be getting jealous now.¡± He says quietly to the camera, before walking closer to the carpentry crew for a wider shot. Frank adjusts the beam Amethyst is holding in place, so that it¡¯s at a better position. He ruffles through the shard pile and picks up a sharp, relatively thin piece. ¡°Alright, Amethyst, you can let go of the beam with your wrists, I¡¯ll hold it up from this side.¡± Frank places the shard on top of the table, directly below the wooden beam¡¯s location. ¡°I¡¯ll need you to hit this with your armored wrist. Wait... is it durable enough, this piece is quite sharp? Should we use the back of your hand blade?¡± ¡°I think my wrist should be fine.¡± ¡°Okay, great.¡± Amethyst winds up her arm for a wrist-slam. ¡°S-slowly! Do it slowly first¡­¡± ¡°Why? Don¡¯t we want it to sink into the wood?¡± ¡°Yeah, but I¡¯m not sure if this will actually work, if the shards can take the hit. And my fingers certainly can¡¯t...¡± ¡°Okay, slowly¡­¡± Amethyst gently clinks the shard¡¯s top with his wrist, it does not even dig into the wood. ¡°A little harder than that.¡± Amethyst takes a little bit of wind up and strikes it harder, the shard shatters into a million pieces, her hand stops just before Frank¡¯s fingers. He pulls them away retroactively, just too late to have saved his fingers, had Amethyst gone all the way. That was close... At the other side of the table, Luna holds back laughter and fails at it. Frank glares at her briefly. ¡°Okay, let¡¯s try a bit bigger one.¡± ¡°Dear Explorers, we almost just witnessed the accidental de-fingering of Frank. Witness natural selection at work, the stronger Tyrchid¡¯s being a very valid threat to populations with fine motor skills everywhere. Frank has picked up another shard, let¡¯s see if he is right to bet the well-being of his grabbers on this one.¡± Frank places a shard, double the wideness of the previous one, it is shaped like an emerald-cut gemstone, but longer and sharper, or the shape of a commonly known, fictional gemstone currency. Though it is much less polished and smaller than either, just a few millimeters thin. ¡°Okay Amethyst¡­ give it another go.¡± Frank braces and grits his teeth. Amethyst hits it and the shard sinks a little bit into the table. ¡°Yeah! Do that again!¡± Amethyst hits it again, the bottom triangle sinks in almost entirely, Frank checks if it stays up on its own, but its not quite deep enough for it yet, he continues to steady it. ¡°Well done!¡± Luna beams brighter than the twin suns in the sky at Amethyst. Feeling good getting complimented like this, she hits the shard again, forgetting to adjust her strength properly. The shard¡¯s top triangle shatters, but the rest of it holds, as it shoots inside of the wood almost entirely, Amethyst¡¯s armor smashing onto Frank¡¯s fingers. ¡°Ahh! F-¡± His fingers hurt like hell, but Frank still manages to avoid cursing for Pioneer¡¯s sake, it was a show for all ages after all. Frank staggers away from the table and holds his left hand, the thumb and the index finger taking the brunt of the blow. Though, the rest of her hand was squished against the table too and throbbed. He stretched and curled his fingers, it was painful, but at least nothing seemed broken. ¡°Frank, A-are you okay!¡± Luna struggles to keep the table upright, partly from having been left alone to hold it up, but mostly from laughing uncontrollably. After her fit, she manages to balance it back up, with the one leg now attached. ¡°And so natural selection play¡¯s its course, may we have a moment of silence for Frank¡¯s fingers. May they find peace in a better place-¡± ¡°They are all still attached, thank you very much! Do you have a medical team here or something?!¡± ¡°Yes yes¡­ What are you standing around for, give the man a cold pack, stat!¡± Frank sits on the root of the in progress house, on the crimson blades of grass. ¡°I¡¯m sorry Frank, I- I just got so excited¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s¡­ okay¡± He reveals his fingers from his palm, they shine red and have turned purple at spots, starting to swell. Rest of his hand having small cuts from the rough wood. The older injury further up his arm left from the prickly thorns already scabbed shut and healing nicely. ¡°And so Frank has suffered a fatal injury, straight into his pride, will his left hand ever recover from the fearsome blow of Amethyst? What about his resolve to go on building and- oh! What will happen to the special upcoming section now! Find out right after these messages from our sponsors.¡± After this announcement he raises his hand, rotates it in the air two cycles and holds up five fingers, the crew scatters to take a break. ¡°Can I already let down this table?!¡± Luna shouts angry at Frank. ¡°Yes, gently though.¡± A medic person hands him a cold bag, which he wraps around a thin bandage taken from his backpack and then presses it to his hand. The cool feels great, but also painful, unable to stop himself from grimacing. Luna lays down the table and walks on over to them. ¡°Don¡¯t worry Amethyst, if he can¡¯t take you at your worst...¡± She smiles at Frank wickedly. ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡± ¡°It means that-¡± ¡°Luna, that¡¯s quite enough.¡± The Documentarist says from behind her, she winces and shuts up. ¡°So, Frank, what now? Can you go on building, or should we wrap up for today.¡± He asks serious, but sincere. ¡°But we just started?¡± Amethyst says worried. ¡°I know, but the co-star is working at half capacity now, can you go on?¡± Frank opens his mouth to speak, but Luna blurts out instead: ¡°I can take his place! We can turn this show around, just us girls.¡± ¡°While I appreciate your enthusiasm, I wasn''t asking for your opinion.¡± Pioneer points a shushing palm at her. Luna crosses her arms and glares at the injured man. ¡°Now, tell me Frank.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go on, we got the first leg done, it seems to hold up well enough too. Should be easier from now on.¡± ¡°That¡¯s the spirit!¡± Pioneer smacks the sitting Frank on the shoulder. ¡°I should be able to do it one handed, all I have to do is hold up the nail.¡± ¡°I-I won¡¯t let it happen again Frank, I promise I won¡¯t!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, it¡¯s okay¡± Frank cracks the cold bag and checks underneath it, a jolt of pain shoots and he presses it back down. He smiles through the pain. ¡°I trust you can do it Amethyst. Now let¡¯s build the best table Midnight Iris has ever seen¡± Frank takes support from the tree and stands up. ¡°It¡¯s the only table Midnight Iris has ever seen.¡± Luna says with a scowl. ¡°No it¡¯s not, there¡¯s at least a single table in the building at the Quarry!" Amethyst says factually and proud. "I''ve seen it myself!" ¡°How did you not know? Weren¡¯t you supposed to be living there now?¡± Frank continues with a smug smile directed at Luna, overcoming the pain momentarily. ¡°O-oh, well I¡¯m sure it will turn out to be the best table regardless, when you¡¯re building it Amethyst!¡± Her tone and expression immediately soften as she addresses Amethyst. Amethyst shyly blushes, unable to respond. Frank stares at Luna with squinted eyes, his copper eyes burning. Pioneer loudly claps his hands together, glances at the bickering trio but doesn''t say anything. He turns around and announces: ¡°One minute everyone, one minute!¡± ¡°To the Table, let¡¯s go.¡± Luna says and leads the way back towards it. ¡°Welcome back Explorers of the furthest galaxies, of the deepest space and the most exotic species. Frank has successfully recovered from his unfortunate injury, his spirit unbroken, this table shall be built, the renovation must go on!¡± Luna holds up the table, Amethyst standing at the other end, Frank holding another leg on his right hand, his left squeezing the cold bag. ¡°Okay, raise the right side up a bit and I¡¯ll slip this underneath.¡± Luna does as she is told, tipping the table slightly upwards, Frank places the rough leg down and Luna lays it back on it. Frank procures a similar shard to the previous one, though the top being level this time, placing it on the table. ¡°I¡¯m counting on you Amethyst¡± ¡°Y-yeah!¡± I can do this, I won¡¯t let him down! She hypes herself up, it was all up to her, she was the one running the show. It all hinged in her ability to control her strength. The pressure builds up inside, she takes comfort in the smile Frank blessed her with even when in pain. And the bright smiles of Luna from before too. Looking upon his wrist armor, no dents were visible, the purple with a gradient of blue still shone bright and clean. Its shine reminded her of that time Frank had scrubbed her clean. The warmth of his touch almost returning. Ready and confident she swings her wrist downwards. The shard sinks clean into the table from her strike, but not quite entirely, so Frank¡¯s fingers are spared. I did it! Clonk Amethyst looks under the table, the table leg, fallen to the ground, she looks back at the table and the shard inside and then under again. ¡°Noo! I¡­ I was so sure...¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry Amethyst, I couldn''t hold it so it dropped from underneath just as you hit it.¡± ¡°You better be sorry, it¡¯s all your fault.¡± Luna says coldly with a look of superiority. ¡°I¡¯m not the one holding the table though.¡± Frank shoots back confident of his retort. ¡°You could have held the beam, your legs are still free!¡± ¡°Fine! Amethyst, let¡¯s try again!¡± ¡°Y-yes!¡± Amethyst answers confused, as the two riled up individuals stare at her momentarily, she avoids both of their gazes. Frank''s mischievous eyes make contact with Luna, as he picks up the piece of lumber. He places it back underneath the nail, before smacking it to the tabletop, sending the protruding shard nail flying straight into the air. Luna almost looses grip of the table, her red-tinted eyes bewildered. The shard nail flies high into the air, meanwhile, Frank quickly places the table leg in place and holds it between his knees. He looks up and catches the shard gracefully with his right hand, while doing his best to hide the shaking of his legs in this demanding position. Luna¡¯s expression goes to that of astonishment until she turns away with a scowl. ¡°Hmph!¡± ¡°Do you see that pose, that absolute dedication to his cause? That one handed dexterity! What admirable selflessness to put behind his own pain and lay it all on the line, his dignity, his shattered ¨C yet to recover ¨C pride. Maybe that allows him to push himself to such extremes?¡± Frank places the shard back into the ready made slit and retreats his hand. ¡°Okay Amethyst, this time it will work.¡± Their determined gazes meet. Amethyst loads up another swing, of immense concentration, she had already done it right before. She wouldn¡¯t mess it up again. She swings and it hits true, the shard sinks into the table cleanly. ¡°I did it! I really did!¡± ¡°Congr-¡± Luna starts- ¡°Congratulations Amethyst!¡± Frank looks Luna mockingly, as he loudly speaks over her, before directing his attention to Amethyst. ¡°You really are a natural at this!¡± "T-thanks" ¡°Ladies and Gentleman, undefined or otherwise different, those watching at home and my dear Explorers, this has truly been the most riveting making of a wooden table in all of galactic history. I am truly glad to have been able to share this roller coaster with you all.¡± The Pioneer sniffles and wipes a tear with a single crooked finger. ¡°But, don¡¯t go anywhere, we are just getting started! The table is only half ¨C way ¨C done!¡± He strikes a cool pose and presses down on his sunglasses. ¡°Nice job Amethyst¡± ¡°Woohoo!¡± ¡°Pioneer, we are done¡± Luna says and walks past him a sour look on her face, back behind the camera to join the rest of the crew again. ¡°W-what, it¡¯s not possible! But we just- My speech wasn¡¯t that long, I-¡± He turns around to see the flimsy table with all legs now, standing up, but definitely not proud. ¡°No¡­ this cannot be¡­ my-my content¡­ my-¡± His voice drops, alongside his posture. ¡°Ahem, so it seems to be, um, completed and what a¡­ fine table it is.¡± A long pause, and Frank recognizes Pioneer to be struggling, for the first time, he seems lost in his own set, in his own environment. ¡°Allow me¡± Frank pushes past the Documentarist into the scene and adjust himself so that the table and Amethyst are visible behind him. ¡°As you can see by the building process of this table, Tyrchid¡¯s culture is all about resourcefulness, using all that is available and not wasting even a single splinter or a shard. More over-¡± ¡°What about that pile of wood splinters though? The small cubes carved out initially? Or those not big enough for furniture?¡± Pioneer asks still in a state of daze and disappointment. ¡°That is for¡­ kindlings for a fire¡­ a fire to keep them warm on cold nights¡­¡± ¡°Tyrchid¡¯s sleep in tree houses though, isn¡¯t that dangerous?¡± ¡°Well, we have established that the trees are very fire resistant, so that is just fine to do.¡± ¡°If the trees are fire resistant, how are you supposed to light a fire with the splinters?¡± Pioneer insists, almost feeling like a retort for invading his spotlight. Frank is at loss for words, he just walked right into that one, talked himself into a corner. A silence that follows feels like an eternity as Frank¡¯s thoughts completely clog up. The two men stand in the spotlight, in front of the camera frozen, Pioneer showing the first sign of negative emotion since they met him, nervously fiddling with his ring. ¡°The pieces are small enough that they¡¯ll light up if exposed to the great heat of our blades for a while.¡± Amethyst swoops into the shot too. ¡°We do umm, celebrations... around a campfire...¡± Amethyst looks at Frank who nods subtly for her to continue. ¡°So, uhh, we use them for that too¡­¡± ¡°Then you can show us a traditional Tyrchid celebration on the last day of filming, I hope? A sort of an Extra episode maybe?¡± Pioneer recovers his usual pizzazz with convenient timing. ¡°O-of course, sure we can do that¡­¡± Frank hides his nervousness by fiddling with the cold pack. ¡°Wonderful! Explorers, look forward to it, your Pioneer is going partying!¡± Completely recovered, Pioneer back in control of his show. ¡°What exactly do these festivities entail?¡± ¡°A big roaring fire, and good food¡­ fruits and berries hopefully...¡± Documentarist looks expectant and gestures Amethyst to keep it up. ¡°Uhh, singing and dancing, I¡¯ve always wanted to try those¡­¡± Those are things related to parties¡­ right? ¡°You haven¡¯t tried to sing or dance? Despite those being a part of your traditions?¡± ¡°No-no, Amethyst meant to say that she hasn¡¯t uhh- danced with me yet! -and she doesn¡¯t know any pair dances, it¡¯s always a solo act, you know, with the multitude of blades and all.¡± Frank nervously laughs. Pioneer joins in and snickers a few verses with him. ¡°Ah, of course! We can expect a dance show by you, what could be more wonderful! What about the singing?¡± ¡°We can uhh, sing a traditional Tyrchidian song together?¡± ¡°I hope you can provide us with lyric sheets, I think we will have a hard time to sing along otherwise!¡± ¡°S-sure, Frank can help me in writing those¡­ Right?¡± ¡°Yes of course...¡± Frank scratches his chin. Their confounded gazes and awkward smiles meet. A common thought in both of their minds: ¡°What have we gotten ourselves into?¡± 25. Class in session ¡°This is what you have all been waiting for, the big reveal! What could we possibly be doing with these glorious pieces, true pinnacles of carpentry!¡± The rickety table with its curved top, nor the very archaic log stools he was showcasing, were able to restrain Pioneer¡¯s hyperboles. ¡°You thought that building a house and assembling furniture was peak entertainment, but you were wrong! Prepare yourselves, for something truly unprecedented! Unexpected! Incredible!" The camera moves with Pioneer¡¯s confident gait, lining up the Queen¡¯s giant tree home to the background, presenting it with two outstretched arms. ¡°Would you believe, if I told you; this massive hollowed out tree will be a school! Shocking, right?¡± He removes his shades and flashes a charismatic smile. ¡°Look forward to a full on education of the Tyrchids, uncivilized in the ways of the galaxy and its storied history! You will be amazed how they learn to speak, read and write in no time and become as expressive and lovable as our dear Amethyst!¡± Out of the camera¡¯s shot, Amethyst¡¯s fidgets with color gathering on her cheeks, while Frank shakes his head at Pioneer¡¯s promises and exaggerations. ¡°We still need to carry all of these to the ¡®school¡¯ first through¡­¡± Frank mutters and sighs as Pioneer continues to ramble at the cameras. ¡°Amethyst, shall we get on it then? Mister spotlight can catch up whenever he feels like it.¡± ¡°Is it really okay for us to start?¡± Amethyst tilts her head, giving Frank only half of her attention, as her antennae don¡¯t follow the gesture ¡ª still pointing towards the monologing Pioneer. ¡°I¡¯m sure he won¡¯t mind. Can you carry the stools? I¡¯ll try to handle the table and the blackboard.¡± ¡°Alright then.¡± The fuzzy rods return to neutral gear and she stabs two stools with her hand blades. They stick to them, as the lifts them up sideways with ease. She takes a step, but looks back at Frank. ¡°Are you sure¡­ will you be alright?¡± Not entirely sure himself, Frank takes the cold pack off his left hand, experimenting on opening and closing his fist. It isn¡¯t as sore anymore, and functions¡­ serviceably. ¡°See? It¡¯s fine.¡± Though, the spots of red and violet bruising become more sensitive as they are stretched and warm up. Amethyst''s posture slumps and the stumps threaten to fall off her blades. ¡°Sorry...¡± ¡°No no, it wasn¡¯t a big deal,¡± Frank looks away, his hand instinctively drifting behind his neck. Pioneer glances backwards, towards them: ¡°Oh, they are already starting the moving operation, shall we go enjoy the feats of strength of Amethyst?¡± She takes this as her cue, and parts from Frank with a flash of a compassionate smile, leaving him alone for now. The Documentarist with his crew follow after Amethyst. Frank looks at the blackboard before him, it was a truly scorched piece of wood, a meter high and one and a half long. Nobody actually used such things anymore, digital canvases ruled over the school environment, but they were still called with the same name as their ancient counterparts. He measures it and the table with his gaze, evaluating how to best carry each piece. A sudden tap on his shoulder causes him to turn around quickly. ¡°Sorry, you looked so engrossed with your creations. Do you still need that?¡± A nurse, or a doctor, stands before him, gesturing towards the cold pack he¡¯s holding. ¡°No, you can have it back,¡± Frank hands it towards the mid-thirties healthcare expert. ¡°Thanks -?¡± ¡°Carol,¡± she receives the bag and smiles: ¡°do try to keep your hands away from such hard impacts in the future.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do my best.¡± Frank responds in turn with a grin. ¡°If any complications come up, sudden bleeding, unbearable soreness, anything, just let us know.¡± Her joyous air disappears, as her eyebrows crease and her lips tighten. She peers a little closer, shielding her mouth with a hand. ¡°Pioneer doesn¡¯t like us breaking the immersion, but I¡¯ll say the well being of everyone is more important. So don¡¯t worry about him, I¡¯ll handle any medical emergency, no matter what he says.¡± ¡°Right, I¡¯ll keep that in mind, thanks again.¡± ¡°No problem.¡± Carol turns away, her loosely braided blond ponytail bobs, as she walks back to her colleague and pops the cold bag into a portable fridge. Next to Carol, another nurse, younger and shorter than her, does something by a table, her back turned. Frank recognizes her to be the one who handed him the cold pack initially. Though, he doesn''t know her name, but her long hair is memorable, kind of like his, but more well kept and milk-chocolate brown. Frank turns away and ponders the furniture situation, observing his hands, fresh small injuries cover them, pricked by two different plants most recently, then bruised by this blunt force trauma. His arms were used to rough treatment, working with animals at Wildlife Ventures had often lead to scratches, cuts and burns. Protective equipment ¡ª gloves, thick jackets, helmets ¡ª weren¡¯t enough, not when dealing with new, alien species. There wasn¡¯t any documentation, no warning to watch out for the Foxbear¡¯s acid spit, to never touch a Giraffeduck¡¯s neck. No procedures nor best practices to follow, to wear a welder¡¯s helmet if you really wanted to avoid a Solarophone¡¯s blast, to always keep your fingers together when treating Centizards. Frank had always had to adapt, to trust his gut, he had been the ¡®pioneer¡¯ of his field. ... That was over now too. It¡¯s better this way¡­ A necessary evil, turned into selfish fantasy. It should never have happened in the first place. Not like that. The animals he had treated to the best of his ability, were sent away, their fates unknown. Auctioned off, sent to the rich and to whoever offered the most¡­ Or to HQ. Just like them, his co-workers, were captured now too, sent away. Law-enforcement, prison guards ¡ª their likely handlers now. All, everyone, he ever had in this life, were locked up. Disappeared. Condemned. Left behind. That was bound to be his legacy. Leaving dead ends, wherever he went, whatever he did. ¡­ But maybe, all wasn¡¯t yet lost. Pioneer¡¯s talking starts to emanate, closing in, Amethyst has dropped the two stools off at the school now. Frank grips the blackboard into a wide hold with his arms, knuckles white, fingers turning black from the soot. Lifting it up, his hand still throbs a little, though the first aid cold bag had helped it to not swell too badly. ¡°Oh and Frank is out and about here, carrying the blackboard solo, what a tenacious fellow, recovered from his injury so soon!¡± Pioneer walks with him, as Amethyst goes to get more chairs. ¡°Tell me Frank, how did it feel to get slapped on your hand by a Tyrchid? A truly crushing blow, I¡¯m sure.¡± ¡°It hurt that¡¯s for sure...¡± Pioneer¡¯s back is turned to the camera, as he spins his hand at Frank, for him to say more. Frank rolls his eyes. ¡°As long as any bones don¡¯t break, it¡¯s nothing I can¡¯t shrug off. I¡¯m just glad it was the dull wrist and not a blade, or I wouldn¡¯t have a hand anymore.¡± Pioneer turns to the camera, whispering too loud as Frank overhears him. ¡°There you have it then. Explorers, do you still wish it had been you?¡± ¡°Uh, what?¡± ¡°I mean, what an awfully dangerous situation. Yes, truly!¡± Pioneer swiftly spins back around and grins. ¡°But do enlighten us, I believe many back at home must be wondering why you didn¡¯t hit the shards yourself with a rock or something, instead of letting Amethyst do it.¡± Because you damn told me to keep her in the spotlight! A sigh later, Frank responds with a manner sure to please him. ¡°Even if Amethyst is capable and strong, she lacks fine-motor control over her power. This was merely a good chance to train her in that aspect.¡± ¡°Oh! There you have it! Frank truly always knows how to surprise, what foresight!¡± Pioneer stares at his communicator for a long moment, the sides of his mouth contorting in a strange manner. ¡°Since you just admitted to training Amethyst, tell me, have you perhaps engaged in other kinds of exercises with her¡­ some more practice, with small accurate movements, in the dead of night perhaps?¡± Oh, for fuck¡¯s sake¡­ ¡°There you have it, that expression tells you more than any words ever could. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, that look is sure to be worth tenfold!¡± Frank¡¯s saving grace is that he makes it to the classroom and enters through the big entrance, Amethyst passing him to fetch more stools, the film crew switch to trailing after her instead. Safely at his destination, he wasn¡¯t sure which had been more draining, Pioneer¡¯s questions or the painful carrying trip itself. He had been pestered by Pioneer so much, he hadn¡¯t realized Amethyst passed him a few times already, the class room already housing eight stools. Frank may have just been carrying a thin slab of wood, but it¡¯s sheer size still had made it a slow process. Laying the blackboard down, leaning against the inner wall, he starts trying to clean himself. Dusting his hands off the soot, most of it clings, well stuck to his hands. A paper towel later from his backpack, most of its comes off, but his hands definitely still dirty looking. After giving his stained green jacket a wipe too, he steps into the massive doorway, meeting Amethyst who¡¯s just now returning with the two last chairs, she deposits them inside and comes to him. ¡°Nice job,¡± Frank gives Amethyst an encouraging thumbs up, surprised to see the film crew not hounding her anymore. She looks curiously at his fingered hands, the two shorter but thicker stubs sticking up strangely. The black in his hands, she deducted to be from the blackboard, but more curious was ¡ª why is his left hand partially covered in this strange mix of violet. She wasn¡¯t sure, but could ascertain that it was likely her doing. ¡°Thanks... you too.¡± They share a moment of silence, but not awkward silence. Not every single moment had to be full of conversation, of action. Being together in the present, was enough. ¡°Oh, right. I still gotta carry the table.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll help. I mean, if I can.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll figure something out.¡± Frank and Amethyst set out to fetch the final piece of their education plan. Further away, Pioneer¡¯s face fills the camera, whispering secretively, faking over the top shock: ¡°What natural interaction, such chemistry, did you see the look on their faces as they locked eyes for a moment? I must apologize, you Explorers really are one of a kind relationship experts. Nothing gets past you.¡± He adjusts the orange tinted glasses, it had been cloudy for a while, but that was no reason to remove them. ¡°With the classroom coming together nicely, I wanted to address our winner of the competition, some of you may have noticed, it was already announced on our gweb pages. I even managed to make good with some of the victor¡¯s prizes too.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, the winner of our guessing game: ¡®StepOnMeAme¡¯, just used two of their six questions, four more still remain. They were the first to guess the upcoming segment as ¡°school,¡± as they put it.¡± I¡¯ll have to pass my sincere thanks to the development team for having an 11 character username limit in place. ¡°If you didn¡¯t win this time, don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ll have more fun little activities like this, in the future too! As for the rest of the questions, they won¡¯t be available to use for now. I¡¯ll let you know when its time, you can put them to good use in our upcoming segments, don¡¯t worry! Spend this time to think long and hard as to what you wish to know!¡± ¡°And of course, I will pick other questions from our ensemble of Explorers, but yours, StepOn, are guaranteed to be read!¡° ¡°Oh but the classroom must be ready by now, let¡¯s go quickly before they suspect anything, right? Or actually, I¡¯ll catch you there, after these messages!¡± Pioneer stares at his communicator, at the fast flowing text on its screen. It was real inconvenient having to check the live-stream chat on it, instead of the separate, large and easy to read hover monitor. Especially, when the higher ups wanted to try even deeper audience participation, now of all times. But he knew, ISSA required punctuality, waiting for it to be repaired was out of the question. With this setup, he might not be able to address what was said or talked about as much as he would have liked. But it still wasn¡¯t going to prevent him from interacting with his viewer chat and his dear premium supporters. They were all his loyal fans, billions waited for his next grand appearance in the frontiers of space. To show the wonders, forge bonds and relations, the very first to introduce new sapient species. Action, uniqueness, all sorts of misunderstandings, literally anything could happen in his show, nothing was more unpredictable and interesting than new intelligent creatures. Well, ISSA¡¯s show really, but over the years they had been giving him more and more freedom making the ¡®evidence and legal reel.¡¯ The proof that would be used in ISSA courtrooms, to decide if the species was really sapient, if they were ready to became a part of the galactic family. The association had become more lenient ¨C meddling less with his vision ¨C the more success the ¡®Nature Document¡¯ received over the years. Nowadays a far cry from its starting days of serious documenting, editing in a studio, to produce a proper TV show. Why go through all that trouble, when turning it into a live-stream format, not only made the whole thing cheaper to produce, but also performed way better financially? After all, what better way to fund their good intentions, their endeavor in galaxy wide sapient species preservation, than turning it into a hit, entertainment phenomena. The ad revenue, the view counts were off the charts. Winning many prestigious awards along the years and it was just getting bigger after each season. Though, a worry hung in the air, spoken silently in boardrooms and meetings. At some point, new sapient species would stop being found, the galaxy was big, but not infinite. His higher ups, producers and directors had told him that the worry was unwarranted and it was ¡®being worked on¡¯. Maybe they were really doubling their efforts and would actually look for sapient species themselves, instead of waiting for applications? He wasn¡¯t sure what they had in mind, but he was happy as long as he got to continue doing this. Pioneer glanced at his golden ring, time was running out. He arrives at the ¡®school¡¯, Frank and Amethyst were clearly ready and waiting already. The stools were ordered in a class room fashion, there was so much space they might as well be made into a half circle, but maybe this two row setup of ten was better. The furniture really looked puny in the massive space, the ceiling so high, it didn¡¯t receive any light, room so wide, all of the Tyrchid¡¯s of the village might have just fit inside. Regardless, he suspected they were right to start small. Who knows, if this succeeds, maybe I can make a second season here, a spin off series. ¡®Learning with Tyrchids¡¯ no, ¡®Tyrchid Highschool¡¯ that sounded better already. Or maybe this could be franchised, ¡®The Alien University¡¯ a reality stream show, no scripts, just lessons planned ahead of time. The younglings of many alien species attend school, we film them to see their struggle to learn, chaos and conflicts sure to arise, with so many different budding sapient species in one place. Oh yes. He had his doubts of their current show, but¡­ maybe this could be a success after all, with room for sequels! Pioneer laughed at his own brilliance, but it was time to stop daydreaming. The equipment was now placed around the classroom properly, and the ad break was about to end. He counted down to the end of the extra adbreak, from the small hyper accurate clock embedded into his ring. ¡°And we are back Explorers! To those of you, who are just tuning in, we are just about to hold the grand opening of the Tyrchid¡¯s elementary school, but what is a school without students?¡± He steps a bit off the shot to give more room to Amethyst and Frank. ¡°Pray tell, where are our dear pupils?¡± This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. ¡°We will soon call them in,¡± Frank pockets a lot of pre-picked berries from the flimsy curved table, the Pango Grape bloom lying on top of it. ¡°What are you going to do with those?¡± Pioneer asks. ¡°I think our students might need some persuading to come take up the mantle of knowledge.¡± ¡°Can you not just tell them to come here, sit down and learn, Amethyst?¡± Pioneer inquires confused. ¡°Um, Tyrchidian doesn¡¯t have words for teaching or school.¡± Or even for ¡®come here¡¯. ¡°Please try to understand.¡± ¡°So we need to take some more, um- primitive approaches in cases like these.¡± Frank assures, anticipation and trepidation building. ¡°Ah, of course, I get it now, shall we start?¡± They agree with a nod, and walk outside, to the camera stationed at the entrance, Frank and Amethyst in the scene, while Pioneer hangs back at the foreground. Outside, the Tyrchids mostly woken up now, go about their business, totally used to the presence of them in their home. Garnet, the familiar bandaged Tyrchid, spies at them from behind a tree, Onyx looming right behind her. On the other side of the same tree, Emerald also happens to be peeking, they don¡¯t seem to know of each other¡¯s presence. Amethyst looks at Frank who nods. She buzzes out the Tyrchid call for food, ¡°Shfluz,¡± quietly, hopefully only nearby Tyrchids hear it. It would be best to avoid the swarming of the last time when Frank fed them. Garnet, Onyx and Emerald slowly start their approach, as well as others from all around them. Eventually, this one call gathered a small crowd around them. Most seemed confused at the lack of any evident food around. ¡°I think this is plenty, should we start?¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± Frank takes a berry out of his pocket and shows it to the Tyrchids. The crowd spots it and stares at it intently, like mesmerized by it. Frank walks backwards inside the building, dangling the swirling berry, Amethyst following closely after him. Ten Tyrchids follow them inside the house, the others loose interest and scatter, confused or not bothering without immediate reward. The ten inside, look around, reluctant to follow further than the entrance. Amethyst follows, as Frank leads her in front of a stool. He orders, ¡°sit¡± and points a finger down. Amethyst sits down, she looks at Frank¡¯s commanding face with amusement. Frank gives Amethyst the berry as a reward, which she happily and exaggeratedly eats. Demonstration over, let¡¯s see then. Frank approaches the crowd with a berry held out. ¡°Alright, Emerald was it?¡± He offers it at Emerald who¡¯s near to the front, she tries to immediately go for it and nab it from his fingers with her mandibles. Frank yanks his hand away, and starts leading her to a stool. ¡°Come and show us what you can do.¡± Like a reluctant pet, the allure of the berry acts like an invisible collar and lead, binding her to follow. He tells her, ¡°sit¡± with the same gesture. Emerald looks confused and gazes at Amethyst who¡¯s still sitting down. Slowly the green tinted Tyrchid sits down too and Frank gives her the fruit. ¡°Very good Emerald.¡± She eats it, a slight smile from the treat or maybe the compliment. She looks at Frank as he goes past her, taking care to give her enough space, to not overstep into the possible flight zone. He clears Emerald, who remains seated, looking at Amethyst on the next seat instead. ¡°Who¡¯s next?¡± As Frank returns to the crowd, he notices only seven are remaining. They don¡¯t have long attention spans huh? The bandaged Tyrchid is at the back of the group, Onyx standing in front of her protectively. He had hoped to start with the ones he was familiar with, at least on some level, but it looked to not be an option anymore. Frank picks the first at the front instead, an orange tinted and haired Tyrchid. Although, he seemed weirdly familiar too. He? Frank didn¡¯t know, how he recognized their genders. Maybe his nose and subconscious had started to notice some patterns. It was a feeling, which felt right, somehow, though maybe it was also the subtle ways in their posture, body structure and shape. The orange Tyrchid eagerly follows him, Frank has to stride backwards to avoid being caught. As they get to the stool next to Emerald, it sits down without any prompting. ¡°Well aren¡¯t you a quick learner.¡± It seems to smile back with pride. Woah, this is going way better than I expected. Frank rewards him and returns to the group of six, yellow and gold haired Tyrchids stand at the front, very close to each other. He picks the yellow hair as the next lure target, but she just glances at the gold haired one without budging. Like exchanging glances, they both start to follow him. Could you be¡­ sisters? At the last free front seats, he gives them the command and gesture, they both take a seat at the same time. A reward later, they both seem happy to be there and wait. Even with the swiftness of getting two Tyrchids at once, the crowd is thinned again by two. Four seated, two remained. ¡°Will you be okay with them?¡± Amethyst asks as he walks past her ''sitting demonstration'' -spot. He had completely engrossed himself in this exciting endeavor, what was for all intents and purposes, wild animal training, forgetting about everything else for a moment. ¡°I can try talking to them first.¡± Amethyst continues, she too privy to the danger that was Onyx, an alpha male, protecting his wounded mate. ¡°I¡¯ll be fine. I did help them before already, I¡­ I¡¯m sure they¡¯ll remember and understand.¡± Amethyst doesn¡¯t argue and lets him go. Onyx evaluates him, with vigilant eyes as Frank presents a berry. Garnet moves a bit from behind Onyx, but a lifted black blade stops her advance. ¡°Shfluz shfluz!¡± he says with a deep voice. Amethyst suddenly shows up next to Frank, ¡°I think he wants more berries.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Shlufz shfluz shfluz!¡± Onyx repeats oppressively, like a threat. ¡°Now he¡¯s upped his demand to three already.¡± Frank quickly takes out two more berries and shows them to the jet black and silver Tyrchid. ¡°Fxh!¡± Onyx booms and walks to a seat on its own, at the back row, Frank feeds him the three berries under his scrutinizing gaze. The other Students already seated start a ruckus and shout ¡°Shfluz Shfluz Shlfuz!¡± ¡°Okay okay calm down I get it, it¡¯s unfair now¡­ here have two more each¡­¡± Frank makes the rounds and feeds the Tyrchids again. Returning to Amethyst, he shakes his head: ¡°I feel like I just got played¡­¡± ¡°You sure did.¡± She smiles back, then looks at the last remaining student. The Tyrchid of red and pink stands at the doorway, restless, appearing lost and shy. Reserved, it glances at Frank who offers three berries to her. She seems too scared to follow, ¡°Shuzs bfhusz,¡± Frank gives his best ¡®friend¡¯ pronunciation. She seems to open up to Frank a little more again, starting to follow. She only limps a little, gladdening Frank¡¯s heart, his operation seemed a success. He seats her at the back row, next to Onyx. The black haired Tyrchid follows them intently. Frank lets her eat the berries, ¡°shuzs bfhusz,¡± Garnet answers once she¡¯s done. ¡°Aww Frank, you made a friend!¡± Onyx springs up from his chair and shouts: ¡°BHLIZ!¡± Pointing at Frank with a red-tinted, gleaming black, hand blade. Garnet shoots up into between the two, waving her blades around, her pink hair flowing. ¡°Fxh! Shuzs bfhusz, Fxh!¡± She points a blade at Frank. Then, pointing at Onyx, ¡°Mosf!¡± She says something new Frank hadn¡¯t heard before. This seems to calms him down, both returning to their seats. ¡°Uhh, what just happened?" ¡°You got called names, just the worst possible insult. I think the black haired one might be jealous you got called friend.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ wait, what was I called?¡± ¡°A Sabertiger.¡± ¡°That¡¯s your swear word?¡± Frank laughs briefly, ¡°makes sense.¡± ¡°I guess so?¡± The Pioneer comes back to his senses, shaking his head like waking up from a trance. He takes off his sunglasses and quietly speaks to the camera. ¡°Wow, Explorers, that was so enchanting I completely forgot to comment. I got totally immersed in the subtle intricacies of social interaction. Were you the same? Did you stay silent in class too? If so, I commend you on your good behavior.¡± ¡°As our first lesson, we will be giving you all names.¡± Frank says, speaking for the audience, more than his students. Who even knew, if they really understood anything they said? ¡°Can we name one?¡± The Pioneer asks from the back, the class turns around and stares at the man suspicious. ¡°Sorry, we already have a naming convention, and I think I have names thought out for each of them already.¡± ¡°Aww, sorry Explorers, all of those great suggestions won¡¯t get used now. Maybe if we get some more students next time?¡± He says to the camera. ¡°Anyway, let¡¯s start with Emerald. We met her before already, so she has a name, but, let¡¯s see if she can say it too.¡± Frank looks at Amethyst on his side, behind their teacher¡¯s desk. ¡°Let¡¯s start with a demonstration.¡± They get into their places, Amethyst at her seat and Frank in front of her. They remain silent for a have a few seconds, to clearly distinguish this from their previous ramblings. Frank points at himself and says, ¡°Frank¡±, then pointing at Amethyst saying her name. Amethyst then repeats after him, starting with her own name and then Frank¡¯s, receiving a berry as a reward from her performance. Frank then walks in front of Emerald, repeating the gesture. ¡°Frank. Emerald.¡± She hesitates for a moment. ¡°F-fzunx¡± Frank¡¯s jaw hangs open, astonished at getting her to speak ¡ª and for how wrong she managed to say his name. The order was wrong too, she was supposed to say her name first, but its fine. ¡°I...F...Fzfmurlb¡± Frank quickly stifles a laughter, Amethyst looks at him with disapproval. ¡°I-I¡¯m sorry-¡± He struggles to hide it. ¡°Frank! We only have¡­¡± Amethyst thinks and counts in her mind, ¡°15 letters in the Tyrchid language! Only two of them in Emerald!¡° ¡°Oh that¡¯s good to know¡­ I bet none of my names use only those letters¡­¡± Oh well... He turns back to Emerald. ¡°One more time, we gotta get you some more pronounceable name." "Frank. Emerald." Emerald looks a little unhappy, but obliges. ¡°Fzunx¡± She tries really hard ¡°I-Imilol¡± ¡°E-me-ral-d¡± Frank tries to say her name, as clearly and slowly as possible. ¡°Imilald!¡± Wow she got pretty close! ¡°Okay that¡¯s very good, Imilald.¡± He gives her three berries as a reward, she happily eats them. He moves onto the next one, to the orange haired one. ¡°Frank, Zircon.¡± ¡°Zigon! Flonk!¡± He answers without wasting a second, demonstrating his capability for learning once more. Though, hilarity tries to overtake him again. ¡°Flonk!¡±He covers his face with his injured hand and speaks through it. ¡°T-that¡¯s very good, we¡¯ll go with that, here you go Zigon.¡± Next up the yellow haired one. ¡°Frank, Citrine¡± Maybe I should have consulted Amethyst on these names first... ¡°Flonz. S-Sifli-in,¡± she hesitates then repeats smiling proudly: ¡°Siflin!¡± ¡°Nice to meet you Siflin¡± he rewards her with berries. Before he can get to the next golden haired one, she¡¯s already repeating: ¡°Flonz! Flonz!¡± And then points at herself. Eager aren¡¯t we? You really are sisters huh? But... Aren¡¯t they all supposed to be sisters and brothers according to what Amethyst told me? Hmm that can¡¯t be right? ¡­ well whatever. ¡°Topaz.¡± She looks at her sister and says ¡°Siflin¡­¡± Then looks at Frank joyously, shouting: ¡°Sfipoz!¡± She made it more like her sister? ¡°Alright Sfipoz, here.¡± And then¡­ oh boy. Frank makes his way in front of the troublemaker. Regardless, he stays calm and repeats the mantra: ¡°Frank, Onyx.¡± ¡°Blizh, Gnox,¡± his buzzing voice drips spite. He just called me Sabertiger again! ¡°Blizh! Shfluz!¡± And now he demands food from me regardless¡­ Is this how it feels to be a teacher when your students bully you? I¡¯m sorry miss Frolend, I shouldn¡¯t have given in to the peer pressure and joined in, all those years ago¡­ Frank looks at Amethyst for help, she just shrugs. Damn I¡¯m not a professional teacher! They didn¡¯t teach this at vet school!¡± ¡°Blizh, Shfluz!¡± ¡°Okay whatever, you win, be Gnox then, here you go.¡± ¡°Explorers, are we sure Frank is not a real teacher? Have any of you done a background check and maybe found him in any school¡¯s databases? He¡¯s handling them all with such expertise, even the hooligan! They all have names now, everyone spam the chat with who¡¯s your favorite! Is it the adorably stoic and struggling Imilald, the fast learner Zigon, maybe one of the cute sisters of Siflin and Sfipoz or maybe the bully Gnox who seems to have the hots for umm, hold on¡­ Hold that thought, we still have one more Tyrchid to name!¡± Frank is in front of the red and pink Tyrchid now. ¡°Frank, Garnet.¡± ¡°F-floi¡­ Floing!¡± Frank can¡¯t stop himself, and burst into laughter. Floing! I can¡¯t-! Garnet looks heartbroken like she just might cry. ¡°I-I¡¯m so, haha, so sorry, I- I can¡¯t¡­ stop laughing. A-a-amethyst take over.¡± Frank steps over and folds, holding his stomach. Gnox stands up and looms over him. ¡°BLIZH!¡± ¡°H-hey! Shuzs bfhusz!¡± Amethyst goes to cut him off, the rest of the class scatters away, escaping from this confrontation¡¯s way. Gnox raises his hand: ¡°Ghs!¡± ¡°I¡¯m not going- Ghs¡¯s:ing anywhere, you need to calm down, I¡¯m not letting you to Bl- Frank!¡± Gnox raises a blade to strike Amethyst, she braces her own to block. ¡°Uh-oh! Looks like things have escalated. We uhh, we got security standing by just in case, right? Like if we need to run? What, no- no, did you hear that Explorers? I meant just in case we need to run to them and restrain them so no harm comes to anyone.¡± ¡°Gnox!¡± Garnet comes out from behind, her voice freezing Gnox in place. ¡°Gnox...¡± she repeats, then shyly points at herself, ¡°Ghoxh.¡± Gnox lowers his blades, turning to her. Without looking back, they start humming a low tune, proceeding to walk together out of the now studentless, classroom. ¡°So they really were a c-couple then, huh?¡± Amethyst says, avoiding looking directly at Frank. ¡°Y-yeah, so it seems, she basically discarded ¡®Garnet¡¯ and just took her husbands name.¡± Frank concludes. ¡°Good for them, phew¡­ that was exhausting.¡± ¡°You mean all the laughing you did?¡± ¡°Oh come on, I didn¡¯t- well, that too I suppose.¡± ¡°Here they are, the champions, the heroes of the day. The supermen and women of today, the fledgling teachers, so skilled and potent we all wished they¡¯d be teaching our children.¡± Pioneer strides to them, with multiple cameras in tow. Isn¡¯t that taking it a bit far... ¡°I really didn¡¯t do anything today¡­¡± Amethyst confesses. ¡°They have managed to grant names to the Tyrchids, even having the solidarity to let them modify their names to fit into their own mouths, quite literally. What exciting antics will our renovating teachers get up to tomorrow? Tune in on the usual time to see for yourself!¡± Pioneer does his flourish and points at the camera. ¡°Keep on being curious and remember, a little exploring a day keeps the mind keen and boredom at bay! I wish you all a good morning and a good night!¡± The Documentarist gives a free form, stylized wave, the camera crew start to make their leave soon after. ¡°Whoowee! A mighty cracking show today, very good, very good!¡± He pats Frank¡¯s back and then stops to carefully touch Amethyst¡¯s shoulder too. ¡°You know I really wasn¡¯t sure how this would go, but you nailed it, everyone loves the show- erm, loves you!¡± ¡°Damn, is that so-,¡± Frank falls silent all of a sudden. ¡°Wait¡­ what do you mean? How can they love us, the show¡¯s not airing yet is it?¡± ¡°Whatever do you mean? This is a live-stream, you know what that means right? It¡¯s all broadcast real time.¡± ¡°Oh no...¡± ¡°W-what!¡± Amethyst cries out surprised, reacting to Frank¡¯s tone. ¡°What does that mean¡­?¡± ¡°I just burst laughing in live TV¡­ I thought they could at least cut that out in the editing¡­¡± Frank covers his face with his hands. ¡°Hmm¡­ Everyone has seen us already, in one of those screen broadcasts like in the office before? Right?¡± Amethyst remembers what Frank told her before, but fails to see what the problem is. ¡°Hey now, don¡¯t be so glum! And you should have known, did you not read the ISSA application all the way through, or my email!¡± ¡°Well I didn¡¯t exactly have time to peruse the whole thing, I just thought the procedures would be the same as ten years ago, when I studied for ISSA¡¯s entry exams... Oh and, your ¡®email¡¯, literally said nothing of this!¡± ¡°Woah Frank, you don¡¯t have to be so hostile, come on, just enjoy the stardom!¡± Pioneer says and spreads his hands innocently. ¡°Well whatever, see you tomorrow and all that. Let¡¯s just go back now Amethyst?¡± Frank turns his back on Pioneer, to leave already. ¡°Uh, right.¡± She follows after him.
They don¡¯t get far down the forest path, until a woman shouts after them. ¡°Wow! You did so good today in the shoot, you¡¯re such a natural!¡± They turn around to see Luna run up to them. ¡°Uhh, what now¡­ um- who were you again?¡± Frank comments with concealed spite. ¡°Is your head as thick as your hair? I¡¯m one of the stagehands working with Pioneer. Like, we¡¯ve met once already. Today, even! If it helps, my full name is Luna Mi-Safiljo, just Luna to friends.¡± She grins at Amethyst. ¡°Have you considered a career in acting?¡± ¡°Uh, not really, can¡¯t say its an aspiration of mine or anything, although this style isn¡¯t too bad-¡± ¡°Of course it isn¡¯t your style, I wasn¡¯t talking to you, Frank.¡± her tone grows cold. ¡°Wha-?¡± ¡°I¡¯m so sure of your success, can I have your autograph, Amethyst?¡± Luna holds a pen and a notebook before her, expectantly. ¡°Oh I¡­¡± Amethyst seems confused at the prospect. ¡°I can¡¯t give you an autograph, I can¡¯t write with... these.¡± She looks at her blades. ¡°Oh that¡¯s right,¡± Luna caresses her chin in a cute way exaggerating her thinking process. ¡°Whatever will we do...¡± ¡°Can¡¯t she just stab a piece of paper, won¡¯t that be the same thing?¡± Frank spits out. ¡°Fraaank what are you even saying? That¡¯s totally different!¡± she whines. ¡°Oh, I know!¡± She smiles wickedly, taking a bunch of pages from her notebook and crumpling them into a ball. ¡°Why don¡¯t you bite into this? Teeth marks- uh, mandible marks, are so 4060, all the species that can¡¯t write are doing it!¡± ¡°You can¡¯t be serious.¡± Frank and Luna glare at each other. ¡°What do you say Amethyst, will you please please pleeeeease do this for me?¡± Luna begs innocently with pleading eyes. ¡°Oh, umm, o-okay!¡± ¡°Oh my gosh, oh my gosh! Thank you!¡± Luna approaches closer to Amethyst. ¡°You are so good looking and beautiful I just can¡¯t contain myself! I want to hug you all over¡­ But I¡¯ll try my best to refrain...¡± Amethyst doesn''t know how to react, but her complexion does. Frank crosses his arms and scowls. Luna reaches out and delivers the paper ball to Amethyst¡¯s mandibles, she presses into it, mushing it against her partly open lips. ¡°Like this?¡± her words muffled by paper. ¡°Just like that!¡± Luna holds her hands together in joy. Amethyst releases the ball and holds it with her mandibles, Luna grabs it. It¡¯s covered in saliva, a small trail following the ball in the air before snapping. ¡°Oh my gosh! I really got her Autograph!¡± She presses the wet paper against her cheek and nuzzles it. ¡°I will treasure this¡­ forever. Thank you...¡± "N-no problem..." ¡°Okay Amethyst, I think we should head back, it¡¯s getting late.¡± Frank says sternly and grabs her arm. ¡°Oh, okay.¡± ¡°Aww so soon, but we just met!¡± Luna looks dejected, like her heart had broken. ¡°Oh well, we¡¯ll talk more later¡­ Good Night Amethyst! Sweet dreams¡­¡± They walk in silence through the bright forest, the black pox of morning, completely dried up now. ¡°What was her deal? Is Luna really creepy, or is that just me?¡± ¡°Frank!¡± ¡°What, do you disagree?" Frank shakes his head in disbelief. "I¡¯ve never even heard of that kind of autograph.¡± ¡°I... don¡¯t know. She seemed nice.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I mean, she¡¯s so¡­ happy and everything...¡± Amethyst looks away into the sky, the smaller sun partly peeking through the clouds. Frank sighs. ¡°Just don¡¯t do everything she tells you, okay?¡± ¡°Okay.¡± She didn¡¯t really know why Frank was so worried, but tried to keep an open mind regardless, he probably had his reasons for thinking like that. They had so far always looked after each other, for as long as they had known, Frank helping her, Amethyst saving him and vice versa. That wouldn''t ¡ª couldn¡¯t ¡ª change, right? 26. Tango For Two With today¡¯s filming behind them, Frank and Amethyst arrive back at the clinic, looking to fill Grent in on the latest developments. The lab door¡¯s lock greets them with a green light. ¡°Grent, you in here?¡± With a careful press of a button, Amethyst gets the door to open. She steps into the lab, Frank following after her. Inside, Grent jumps in front of the operating table and covers something with his body and outstretched arms. ¡°Y-you should knock before you enter, even if I... forget to lock the door.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Who knows what I could be doing in here.¡± ¡°We agreed that I¡¯d know exactly what you are up to... so, let¡¯s see what¡¯s on the table.¡± Amethyst crosses her arms; Frank flinches as the elbow blades swoosh close by. ¡°Ugh¡­ but it¡¯s not even finished yet¡­¡± Grent¡¯s arms fall back down, and he steps aside. Revealing behind him two human-like legs made of metal with ball-like joints for knees and ankles. The legs are detached from the equally gray artificial torso, apart from wires running between the two. The body is hollow from the middle, full of panels, wires, and holes for said wires. In this gap, Pineapple sits inside, only its head and tails visible. ¡°What have you done to Pineapple!¡± Amethyst gasps. ¡°What?¡± Grent looks back at the operating table, ¡±Damn, get away from that,¡± he shoos the cat away. Pineapple jumps out and onto the floor, proceeding to zoom around playfully. ¡°Is that the robotic body for your¡­ wife?¡± Frank asks hesitantly. ¡°Yeah, or well, it¡¯s supposed to be. Assembly isn¡¯t exactly going as smoothly as I hoped¡­ especially with this two-tailed twat around.¡± The body looks crude - unfinished. Frank has difficulty imagining it acting like a person, moving, or even talking smoothly. Much less the person not reeling in horror for finding themselves in it. It¡¯s a work in progress¡­ I guess? ¡°What¡¯s that look for?¡± Deep furrows on Grent¡¯s brow gradually give way to frustration. ¡°Ugh, anyway, how did your school thing go? I assume you came here to talk about that instead of gawking at my misfortune.¡± Amethyst and Frank tell him of today¡¯s events, building the table, the classroom, their students, and how it ended. Frank leaves out the Luna portion, not wishing to touch that subject. ¡°Mm-hmm, they seem rather clever, don¡¯t they? Forming some sort of relationships, capable of learning and acting independently, even if with quite primitive motives...¡± ¡°Would you say they are sapient?¡± Frank asks. ¡°Well, are chimpanzees that repeat human instructions, learning from them and acting a little on their own ¡ª sometimes even innovating ¡ª sapient? Are they capable of empathy, are they aware of their own feelings, their motives, who they are on a physical and spiritual level?¡± Grent tightens a few screws on her wife''s chassis with a wrench as he speaks. ¡°Do they weigh their actions against right or wrong? What effect will it have on themselves and others around them? Do they have morality, restraint?¡± He connects two wires and solders some; the faint smoke and smoldering smell floats in the air briefly. Putting down the soldering iron, he shrugs. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I¡¯m not a psychologist or anything, just a scientist with some interest in the secrets of the mind. My doctorate isn¡¯t in arguing with or against the dictionary definition of sapience.¡± ¡°Helpful.¡± ¡°What did you expect? It¡¯s not exactly easily quantifiable, especially with new species. Why do you think ISSA has that elaborate ¡®evidence¡¯ or whatever gathering for.¡± ¡°Right, point taken.¡± Frank looks at Amethyst; she¡¯s been quiet this whole time. She looks at the ground - Frank isn¡¯t sure if he¡¯s imagining it - or if her blades are trembling. ¡°Amethyst¡­ are you okay?¡± Remaining quiet momentarily, she lifts her gaze and looks at a wall. ¡°¡­ was I not sapient before? I should know the answer to that, shouldn¡¯t I? But I¡­ don¡¯t... it¡¯s confusing¡­¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°All of my memories seem hazy, clouded, but what if¡­ they are actually intact¡­ I can¡¯t remember anyone from my past, only what I did, where I was, never who I was with. They are like¡­ still images. I don¡¯t remember anything of what I thought of at the time. Why I did what I did, why I was there, who I was actually with... All I have left in those memories are basic emotions¡ªfear, anger, hunger, happiness¡­¡± Her hopeless eyes fixate on Frank. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t I recognize everyone - or at least - a single one of my kin? I¡¯ve been with them all my life¡­But¡­ what would I recognize them as¡­ the yellow-haired one? The one with the blue-tinted blades? Before today¡­ none of them even had names¡­ The past seems so distant¡­ like it was lived by somebody else¡­ ¡° She closes her eyes and lets her head fall; pools of loneliness start forming under her eyes. ¡°Oh, Amethyst¡­¡± Grent stiffly holds his shoulder, remaining silent in the background for a while before quietly continuing to work on Amandebot. ¡°B-but¡­ everyone¡­ they¡¯ll never be like you¡­ like me. I can never¡­¡± Her throat completely dries up, and even swallowing doesn¡¯t remove the localized desert. Feel at home¡­ feel belonging. I¡­ I still love them like my brothers and sisters, but¡­ They will never be able to hold a conversation¡­ Just single-worded responses, repeating what is told... Never be, never feel like me¡­ Never understand me. ¡°Maybe it¡¯s better this way, to not subject them to that pain...¡± Amethyst''s face scowls and a few sparkling drops fall. A pressure on her shoulders makes her lift her head, the hands of Frank. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t realize how hard it has been for you.¡± His comforting smile fades for a moment but pushes back into the surface, more potent than before. ¡°I¡­ I¡¯m the odd one out, Frank¡­ All of my species is united out there, but I- I¡­ am a freak¡­¡± She says and looks away. ¡°No, you are not. You are just¡­ a part of the galaxy now, and soon officially too. All sorts of sapient alien species inhabit the Milky Way. Even my home planet is really diverse, probably the most varied population in history.¡± ¡°R-really?¡± Amethyst¡¯s dark blue eyes flicker with hope as the tears run dry. ¡°Really. You will have no trouble fitting in if you want to. Who¡¯s to say you can¡¯t just be you, the only one - your own unique gem in existence. You are still a Tyrchid, just cut out to be a little different, but that¡¯s what makes you -you.¡± ¡°T-thank you, Frank...¡± ¡°Try and make the most of it; you have endless possibilities ahead of you now. You can be or do anything. Even learn to dance, or sing, for example...¡± Frank lets go of Amethyst''s shoulders and turns his head to the tinkering scientist. ¡°Oh yeah, Grent, we promised both of those things today. We will hold some celebration on the last day.¡± ¡°What?¡± Suddenly, Amethyst hugs Frank. Startled - his arms lift into the air, out of her blade¡¯s way. Amethyst¡¯s bone crown is shoved to his face, and the head wing''s long bones prod at her shoulder, too. ¡°Can we really...?¡± A tight, vice grip of an embrace. ¡°Can we dance?¡± The rugged armor pressed against his chest like the side of a cliff, unmovable and indestructible. Trails of cool squeeze run over his sides and across his back. It¡¯s getting a little hard to breathe. ¡°Don¡¯t¡­ hold me¡­ so hard¡­¡± ¡°Oh... sorry¡­¡± Amethyst loosens her grip and lifts her head from his shoulder, her head wings leaving his airspace. Carefully shifting hybrid eyes, bolt around and steal glances at him from up close. In her gentle grasp, Frank shakes ever so slightly. She quickly blinks twice and retreats from the hug entirely. Momentarily, Frank¡¯s hand pursues after her retreating wrist, but they are too far apart already. ¡°I-it¡¯s fine¡­¡± He thought of this response before the cold shivers shook his body- but now he could no longer recall why and to what. Despite the cold on his skin, an ember, a feeling in his chest remains a strange yearning. Downcast, Amethyst doesn¡¯t look at him, her arms slightly crossed. ¡°Umm... I can teach you if you¡¯d like. To dance, I mean.¡± Stolen novel; please report. Amethyst''s slightly open mouth and focused eyes betrayed her surprise. ¡°May I have this dance?¡± Frank offers up a hand to her and slightly bends his back and knees. His other hand behind his back, like a ballroom socialite. ¡°Yes!¡± The widest smile on her lips as she places her armored wrist on his vulnerable hand. Frank closes it in his embrace, his grip like soft clouds surrounding the sharp, cold mountaintops. However, the clouds were not pierced by them, not shredded on the sharp spires. The unyielding peaks were tamed by his flexible skin - molding against - instead of fighting a futile war against her wrist. Though softer and smoother than the rest of her armor, it still had its jagged edges as they collided and caressed each other in this touch. ¡°Sure, sure, great, but do it outside the lab!¡± Grent comments and loudly clangs metal against metal; some small parts clatter onto the floor, accompanied by his cursing. Holding hands, or rather, Frank holding her wrist, he escorts them through the lab¡¯s doorway. As they are about to leave through the door, Frank turns back for a moment. ¡°Oh, right, Grent, can you compose us some songs for the party? I was thinking of one to dance to and another to sing along, like a choir with the Pioneer¡¯s crew.¡± ¡°What, me?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure you can do it!¡± Amethyst beams with such a radiant smile that it feels unnerving to Grent. ¡°I will do no such thing¡­¡± ¡°Give it some thought. What¡¯s a song or two to a great scholar like you?¡± Frank says, and the door whooshes closed behind them. ¡°Hmph...¡± Pineapple looks at Grent from afar on the other side of the room. ¡°What?¡± Without blinking, the cat continues to stare. ¡°Think you can compose songs better than me?¡± The Solarophone blinks both eyes. ¡°Oh yeah? I¡¯d like to see you try!¡±
¡°Frank, can we dance already?¡± They had already cleaned up a space in the middle of the junk-filled room, but Frank sat on the sofa instead. It had gone on for way too long, at least if you asked Amethyst. ¡°Yeah, just a moment.¡± Frank¡¯s sitting on a sofa, leaning forward and intently gazing at his communicator. Periodically, he swipes the screen with a downward motion. ¡°What are you looking at?¡± She approaches him and tries to get a peek at the screen, but Frank quickly turns it away and presses it to his chest. ¡°Do you not know how to dance either?¡± ¡°I-I know how to dance! It¡¯s just... been a long time since¡­¡± ¡°Oh? What dance can you do?¡± ¡°Tango, it was mandatory in high school.¡± ¡°Tango? Sounds like a fruit.¡± ¡°No, no, that¡¯s Mango or Pango now, I guess. Tango is the oldest dance in the galaxy, the most popular one too. Though its history has been lost to time, it''s believed to always have existed.¡± ¡°Because¡­ the original home of humans was destroyed¡­ Right?¡± ¡°Yeah, well, humanity was wiped out on Earth; that¡¯s the current understanding. All evidence supports it was the original, where we evolved. Although, nobody can explain how our ancestors could have crossed half of the galaxy to land on Divine Cradle, using the technology they had back then¡­¡± Frank narrows his eyes, ¡°how do you know of this?¡± ¡°I think this was part of Amande¡¯s knowledge package¡­ Or is it technically Grent¡¯s?¡± ¡°Ah, I see, part of the ¡®necessary information for easy control of the mind.¡¯¡° Frank does an arrogant scientist imitation of Grent¡¯s voice. ¡°Or something like that.¡± ¡°Exactly!¡± They have a little laugh as Frank stands up. ¡°Okay, I think it¡¯s time to Tango.¡± Frank looks up at Amethyst standing right in front of him. Oh yeah¡­ she¡¯s so much taller than me. But I think we can make it work... ¡°Okay, let me show you the basic steps first,¡± He walks to the middle of their dance floor, ready to give a demonstration. ¡°Slow left,¡± Frank slowly steps forward with the left foot leading, keeping his weight down and bending his knees ever so slightly. ¡°Slow right,¡± stepping forward again, continuing with the right foot, his outdoor boots clop against the stone floor. ¡°Quick left¡± he slides his left foot to the side, ¡°second quick,¡± bringing them together with a sharp but smooth motion by sliding his right foot against the left. ¡°Ooh!¡± Amethyst claps her hand blades together. ¡°Then your steps are basically the same but mirrored. You start with the right foot instead and go backward. Want to give it a try?¡± Frank steps aside, granting Amethyst room on their humble stone stage; she eagerly takes his place. Oh¡­ but she has four legs? Amethyst prances to the dance floor and tries the steps out. ¡°Slow right¡­¡± her right front leg moves backward, almost meeting up with her back leg. ¡°Slow left¡­¡± Her body rises even higher as her legs end up in this pincer-like shape. Somehow, she keeps her balance and continues, ¡°quick right,¡± to the side, then the last step, ¡°quick left,¡± moves her legs together. Her body and legs stretched sideways, Amethyst starts to wobble. She slams her front legs apart hard against the floor before she falls. Getting them back into normal positions, with the cost of a terrible scraping sound, gnashes, and cracks on the natural rock floor. "Uhh... Did I do that right?" Ouch¡­ If she steps on my toes... I don¡¯t think I¡¯d walk away with just bruises from that one¡­ ¡°That was good, Amethyst, but well, I didn¡¯t account for your¡­ four legs.¡± ¡°Aww... I can¡¯t dance then, can I...?¡± ¡°No-no, we just have to figure out some custom steps just for you.¡± ¡°Hmm...¡± Frank inspects Amethyst¡¯s spider-like insect legs; unlike human¡¯s, they aren¡¯t pointing straight down but are curved with three joints¡­ Kind of like big sharp fingers, now that he thinks about it. Sitting on the sofa to think, he runs four fingers along its backrest, trying out some steps, dancing on it with his hand. Amethyst looks curiously at his strange mannerisms and actions, continuing to wait in the middle of the cleared space. After a few minutes of experimentation, Frank is happy with his D.I.Y choreography, ¡°this should work, but you¡¯ll need to do some extra legwork. ¡°Really?¡± Amethyst asks, hope glimmering in her voice, "what do I do?" ¡°Always when you step back, can you also step back with the opposite back leg? So, start with the right front leg and left back leg; that way, you can keep your balance and keep on moving. The sideways maneuver is trickier. You probably have to move your legs one at a time since you¡¯d be left without balance on one side otherwise.¡± Frank recites his discoveries while doing the steps on his hand to ensure he explains them correctly. ¡°I think I get it.¡± Amethyst tries doing the steps as Frank instructed. It¡¯s a lot harder than the first two-leg steps, but she finally gets into the rhythm of it. ¡°There you go! That¡¯s the basics down, now we just need to dance it together.¡± ¡°Together?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t I say it was a pair dance?¡± ¡°Right¡­ we did promise that to Pioneer.¡± Frank approaches Amethyst and stands close to her. Looking up at her, he recites memorized instructions: ¡°The man places his right hand on the woman¡¯s shoulder blade to hold her. Please raise your left hand.¡± Amethyst does as she is told, and Frank slides a hand on her back from under her armpit, gently grasping the cool and hard armor. ¡°Then you¡¯ll place your arm on top of mine and towards my shoulder. The woman is supposed to hold the man¡¯s shoulder from the side, but maybe you''ll just rest the side of your blade on top of my shoulder instead.¡± Frank jokes and smiles wide. ¡°Okay, like¡­ this?¡± Amethyst places her heavy hand on top of Frank¡¯s; the now almost familiar coldness seeps from her armor through his green shirt. He spots the cracked hole in Amethyst¡¯s shoulder, easily visible in this position; she¡¯d had the wound ever since she first met her. The damaged gray skin was healing nicely -did he imagine it- or were the edges of the damaged armor smoother now, too? In his peripheral vision, he sees the deadly blade gently resting on its side, so very close. She¡¯d need only to crook it slightly, and it¡¯d sink straight into his neck. It would undoubtedly slash open an artery and¡­ Frank pushes the uncomfortable and unnecessary thoughts of danger away. ¡°T-that¡¯s good. Then we keep them in this position, bent this way the whole time.¡± ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll try my best.¡± ¡°And for our other hands, we hold them up like so,¡± Frank extends his hand to the side and bends it from the elbow, up and forwards. Amethyst carefully brings her dagger-like hand forth, and Frank grabs it from the wrist once more. It feels somehow warm this time, or maybe it was just his hand warming it up already. Smoother, too, like a stone spending a decade at the bottom of a river, being polished by years of current. ¡°What is it, Frank?¡± ¡°Oh, nothing. Now that we are ready to dance try your best not to step on my toes." He laughs. "I don¡¯t think my shoes or feet would survive it.¡± ¡°O-oh¡­ of course...¡± Amethyst glances at his arm, still bruised from earlier. Maybe I shouldn¡¯t have said anything... ¡°A-anyway, in dance, the man is usually the one who leads, so try and follow my movements and rhythm.¡± Frank takes a deep breath and concentrates. ¡°Ready?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s do it.¡± At first, Frank calls out each step¡¯s speed to artificially keep them in rhythm. It¡¯s a janky and stiff show, as they first take two steps forward, then to the side and backward again, moving in a forced rectangle. The movement isn¡¯t especially graceful, even by Frank, but soon, he stops saying the steps as they find a united rhythm. ¡°You¡¯re a natural at this!¡± ¡°Thanks,¡± Amethyst blushes slightly as they continue to dance. ¡°Ready to take it up a notch?¡± ¡°W-what do you mean? Wasn¡¯t this all of it?¡± ¡°No, we can¡¯t just erode a square on the floor,¡± Frank laughs, grinning with tinted cheeks. ¡°In a ballroom with other people, a couple needs to be able to move and sail around the room, navigating the crowd while keeping the dance going.¡± They keep on dancing through the conversation, though their pace slows down. ¡°O-oh, let¡¯s try it,¡± Amethyst smiles. Frank leads her into a gentle spin, each step taking them further away. He adds slight swaying to their motions as they in-sync dance around the room. They both first concentrate on their own footwork, but once Frank feels comfortable with the change again, he focuses back on Amethyst, who meets his gaze as if she had been waiting for him. Amethyst beams with glee, like she¡¯s about to burst out laughing. An evening sky blossoms on Frank¡¯s face as they gaze deep into each other, having found the grace in their steps, gliding across the lobby¡¯s floor. The beautiful moment is much too fleeting due to their graceful union robbing them of their spatial awareness. ¡°Frank!¡± ¡°W-¡± The back of his knees hit the sofa on the side of their parquet, costing him his balance. Frank''s hand slips from Amethyst¡¯s back, but he holds on tight to her wrist. With one foot on the ground, he spins around its axle while his boots lose grip and his legs slide underneath Amethyst. He holds on tight to her wrist with both hands like his life depended on it. As his movement finally stops, he notices he¡¯s positioned halfway underneath her leg space. ¡°Frank, are you okay!?¡± Amethyst looks down at the man beneath her legs. ¡°Y-yeah...¡± Amethyst lifts his arm, and Frank is effortlessly pulled back from under her and on his feet again. ¡°Thanks,¡± She¡¯s so strong! ¡°No, thank you, Frank, for teaching and¡­ dancing with me.¡± ¡°R-right, of course.¡± He massages his shoulder, a little sore from the sudden spin and tension. ¡°It was so much fun! I can¡¯t wait till we get to dance in the celebration!¡± ¡°Right, me neither...¡±
Discreetly and quietly, the door of the lab closes in its entirety. Grent turns around, and Pineapple stares him down. ¡°What? Don¡¯t pretend like you weren¡¯t spying on them just a second ago, too.¡± Pineapple jumps straight at him. Grent slightly cowers but keeps still regardless. The cat grabs the edge of his lab coat with nails drawn, holding onto it, looking up at him with big, round eyes. ¡°What? What do you want?¡± The cat tugs on his coat. ¡°You¡­ want to dance too? You¡¯re a cat, though.¡± The cat momentarily dips its head lower and returns it to its original position again. ¡°Wait¡­ did you just nod?" Pineapple looks at him intently for a few more seconds, lets go of his coat, and trods away, disappearing behind lab equipment. Did I imagine it? ... What is up with that cat? 27. Repeat after me Day 3 of filming. Another day of cloudy, with small gaps of twin suns in between. Though the sky was much darker than yesterday, maybe it would rain soon. Amethyst and Frank were returning to the Pango Grove once again. Pioneer had messaged Frank for them to show up much sooner than was typical; he needed to discuss something. Wondering what exactly it could be, they arrive to see him. ¡°Good Morning, or maybe midday? Anyway, the time of this planet isn¡¯t relevant.¡± ¡°What is it¡­ Pioneer?¡± Amethyst asks. ¡°Do you recall? I wasn¡¯t sure how many episodes we¡¯d be filming when we first met. Well, now it¡¯s been set. There will be one more episode.¡± Pioneer says, unusually serious. ¡°So¡­ just one more broadcast? How come it¡¯s decided now?¡± Frank squints his eyes. ¡°Oh, well, it¡¯s not a secret. There are rumors of a new sapient species applicant soon submitting their official paperwork. I¡¯ve got to get good and ready, maintain equipment, give my staff some vacation time¡­ you know, can¡¯t just slave away my personnel. It ain¡¯t easy running an operation like this, nor is moving it from one planet to another.¡± ¡°You are a hard worker, after all,¡± Amethyst says suddenly and grins. ¡°Ah, I¡¯ve let my true colors show; how shameful of me,¡± He says melodramatically, covering his face. ¡°But don¡¯t let all that get you down; that¡¯s my responsibility. It¡¯s the road I¡¯ve chosen.¡± A small moment of quiet and Pioneer¡¯s solemn tone changes back to normal. ¡°Oh, but I must correct you, Frank, it¡¯s technically two more broadcasts. I won¡¯t go back on my word of us having the final celebration. Our viewers or I wouldn''t miss your dancing and singing for the galaxy!¡± ¡°Oh! That¡¯s great news!¡± Amethyst¡¯s excitement is flattened slightly by Frank¡¯s sour demeanor. Pioneer leans in closer to the two of them. ¡°As for¡­ perhaps a bit of a secret, the higher-ups have asked me to hurry up, too. This behavior usually suggests they¡¯ve already made up their minds! The court has been watching you each and every day, you know.¡± He pauses for dramatic effect and looks at the both of them from over his sunglasses. ¡°Minds made up, to which side now, for, or against? Who knows? So, I suggest you give it your all to make your last appeal! We¡¯re halfway done, after all!¡± Frank and Amethyst look at each other surprised. ¡°But we¡¯ll still be able to plead our case in court, right?¡± Frank asks. ¡°Yes, of course, but they are all just human ¨C and well ¨C non-human. Bias, prejudice; none are truly free of the power of first impressions.¡± ¡°Hmm, I¡¯m not sure what those are¡­ but I¡¯m sure we¡¯ll be fine.¡± Amethyst smiles, unwinding the tense atmosphere in an instant. ¡°Right, let¡¯s begin.¡± They start the day by keeping up the renovation of Frank¡¯s soon-to-be house. As Pioneer predicted, it has devolved into an event of little interest, but he keeps it serviceable with his talented commentary skills. Amethyst squats in the low home, working away, carving the room and scorching the floor as she goes. They decide to finish for today when Amethyst completes carving the approximate size of Frank¡¯s dwelling. It¡¯s barely halfway into the tree, but it''ll do for now. So that they can move on to shaping its interior, furnishing, and the more exciting stuff while they still have episodes to work with. Although Amethyst had already done some interior decorating, she refused to elaborate on it for now. She wanted to save it for tomorrow, for the first time, Frank would see it in this ¡®ready¡¯ state. Pioneer starts up an ad break, and Amethyst goes to find Frank; it doesn¡¯t take long for her to home in on the lively chatter. ¡°So, do I have it correct, Flibmas and Churlens are actually from the same solar system?¡± Frank asks the two aliens he finally had the chance to talk to. ¡°Frank, we¡¯re done for now.¡± Amethyst tries to get her message across, but the Flibma talks over her just as she starts. ¡°No, no! It''s not the same; we just happen to be neighbors. See, ours is named Gchkladna.¡± The slimy blob creature¡¯s voice emanated from somewhere within, sounding wet and robotic, a speaker embedded into its body most likely. Its body changed color slowly, going through all the colors in the visible spectrum and then some. ¡°It¡¯s pronounced Gee-chc-ach-laad-n.¡± ¡°While the Churlian system is pronounced Gii-chc-ch-lad-na,¡± The dark red Churlen explains, its face tentacles flapping around in the tune of his deep and raspy voice. More humanoid than his rival, with a natural armor resembling the Tyrchid¡¯s, though his infinitely longer arms and legs looked disproportionate to the rest of the body. ¡°Oh¡­ silly me, how didn¡¯t I hear the difference?¡± Frank looks away, and his hand rides down the back of his head. ¡°It¡¯s pretty interesting how you named yours so similarly. Was it before your species met?¡± ¡°What do you mean similarly? Those are totally different?¡± ¡°They aren¡¯t even written the same way in your common tongue!¡± The barely a meter-tall Flibma locked eyes with the taller-than-Amethyst Churlen¡ªthe small, black, beady eyes versus the near-sinister orbs of flame. ¡°For the record, it¡¯s your system that copied ours.¡± The Flibma says, its perpetually unsure W-shaped smile turning into a disgruntled M. ¡°Copied you? Why would we copy anything from Ghraldian beast toe-lint piles like you!¡± The Churlen¡¯s anger manifests in its floppy squid-like head pulsing, its surface rippling. And with a loud slam of its large foot ¨C like skewered at the end of its ridiculously thin leg ¨C it lands right next to the Flibma. The slime quakes and shakes from the shockwave. Not retreating before this massive size difference, instead turning bright red. ¡°Rrgh! At least we don¡¯t look -and act- like one, you feral pile of sticks!¡± ¡°Frank!¡± Amethyst says louder, catching nobody¡¯s attention. ¡°H-hey now!¡± Frank tries to calm them down and notices Amethyst by chance. ¡°Oh, hey, did you just finish? Amethyst, meet Gploot and Ghcraltult.¡± ¡°Hey, Amethyst!¡± They both greet her before they continue berating each other, mincing no words. ¡°Yeah, we¡¯re done¡­ I¡­ do you think our, uh, students will return for the class?¡± Before Frank can answer, his attention is stolen by the arguing aliens freezing, looking past them. Following their gaze, Frank notices Pioneer tapping his golden ring with an impatient finger. ¡°Best we¡­ get back to work, too. Right, Gploot?¡± The Churlen says and apologetically lifts a cup holder that fell from the force of his stomp and carefully attaches it back to Gploot¡¯s body, sticking it on once more. ¡°That¡¯d be for the best, Ghcraltult. Do you need me to hold you some equipment, a camera stand perhaps?¡± Gploot¡¯s slime body returns back to normal colors, shifting from one shade to the next, seemingly randomly. ¡°That¡¯d be very helpful¡­ if you don¡¯t mind¡­¡± The two rivals walk and slide away together in confusingly sudden peace and cooperation. ¡°Sorry, what did you say?¡± Frank turns to look at Amethyst again and remembers. ¡°Oh, right, I¡¯m not sure, but I really hope our students will answer our call. But, there¡¯s only one way to find out.¡± Pioneer¡¯s crew is ready to end the commercial break; Amethyst and Frank have gathered in front of Queen¡¯s classroom. Amethyst shouts each of their names: ¡°Imilald, Zigon, Siflin, Sfipoz, Gnox, Ghoxh!¡± ¡°Class time!¡± Frank continues, and they both look around for effect. Surprisingly, just calling their names worked. One after the other, they appear. The sisters land from the sky, Imilald appearing from behind a tree again like she was lying in wait. Zigon arrives from the forest''s edge, and Gnox and Ghoxh saunter through the village painfully slow, taking their time with it. But one could hardly blame them; Ghoxh''s injury was still healing. They showed up quickly and so¡­ easily. Had they truly taken a liking to their names? Did they truly understand what it meant, what it stood for? These thoughts ran through their teachers¡¯ heads as they seated the students and gave them the first berries to keep them in place. Frank clears his throat and speaks from behind their rickety table in front of the class. ¡°Today, we will teach you the Tyrchidian Alphabet and how the words you know look in writing.¡± Saying this feels so stupid when I don¡¯t know if any of the students themselves can understand me¡­ But gotta let the livestream people know. I still can¡¯t believe I didn¡¯t realize it sooner... ¡°Okay, Teacher Amethyst, what¡¯s our first word?¡± Amethyst waits proudly near the blackboard she carved, its black side to the students, leaning against the wall. ¡°Our first word is, ''home,'' or ''Flufvz.'' Uhh, how do I write that¡­ Frank, how would you write it?¡± ¡°You¡¯re the Tyrchidian expert; just write how you think it would be. If anyone should create the written word for your language, it would be you.¡± Amethyst thinks hard about each letter; she knows how they look, so how hard could writing them be? ¡°Okay¡­ F¡­¡° Amethyst carves a crude F on the blackboard with her bladed hand, its top lines looking like they want to fly off the letter. ¡°l¡­¡± An L, a simple one stroke of a blade even for Amethyst. ¡°u¡­¡± Looks more like a ¡°v¡±. ¡°f¡± the smaller f; it looks as sharp as the capital one, though. ¡°v,¡± a perfect, extremely sharp v; Amethyst was an expert in this shape. ¡°z¡± The sharpest z ever seen, like lightning. ¡°Okay, class, this is how you write Flufvz ¨C Home¡± The Tyrchids look at Amethyst when she speaks, but after that, their gazes wander all over the place. Siflin and Sfipoz, the sisters, seem to have a conversation of their own, short bursts of sounds, possibly words, accompanied by antennae movements and blade gestures. Gnox keeps a sharp eye on Ghoxh, who shyly looks at him at times, quickly looking away like a high school couple. Ghoxh tries, or pretends, to concentrate but is distracted by his behavior. Imilald somehow sits in an unintentionally funny-looking position, her green-tinted elbow blades to the floor; she leans forward. Her eyes are completely still¡­ is she sleeping with her eyes open? The only one paying complete attention is Zigon. His orange eyes unblinking, and red-furred antennae unflinching, despite the racket in class. A real model student. Frank gets everyone¡¯s attention back by showing a berry, after which the teachers give a demonstration while everyone is still attentive. Amethyst takes a free seat in class and raises her hand. Frank points at her, and she puts her hand down. Frank then gestures to the board and says the word written on it, ¡°Flufvz,¡± as best as he could. The whole class goes quiet and pays close attention. A sound like ¡°Flh¡± escapes Imilald¡¯s lips; who has woken up, it seems. Then the whole class erupts in this strange, contagious sound: ¡°Flh flh flh flh!¡± ¡°Amethyst?¡± Frank asks during this deafening chorus. ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°Are they laughing at me?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Frank takes the information well and calmly waits; he hasn''t forgotten who was laughing the last time. Once the class¡¯s laughter dies down, Amethyst repeats ¡°Flufvz,¡± and Frank feeds Amethyst a berry. The Class¡¯s attention is back again as the berries appear once more. Zigon¡¯s hand rises up. ¡°Zigon,¡± Amethyst says, pointing at him and then at the board. ¡°Flufvz,¡± Zigon says, and Frank delivers a berry to him; he eats it happily. ¡°Flufvz! Flufvz!¡± The sisters shout, Imilald joining in. They say it a few times and then give up, as Frank doesn¡¯t give them anything. Gnox and Ghoxh both look lost. Hmm¡­ I hope teaching them to answer by raising their hands like in school isn¡¯t too difficult¡­ It won¡¯t look good if they fail... Amethyst moves on to the next word. She writes a ¡°Fxh¡± on the board and pronounces it. Imilald and the sisters repeated the word like it was a shouting competition. Zigon¡¯s hand is raised, patiently waiting. ¡°Zigon,¡± Amethyst says, and he again gives the correct answer by repeating the word. Frank gives the berry to him, and the class glares at Zigon and Frank as he returns. ¡°What does Fxh mean?¡± Frank asks her quietly. ¡°It means ¡®okay.¡¯ ¡° ¡°Ah, can you write the English words on the right side so I also remember what they mean? I think Pioneer would like to have that up as well.¡± Amethyst agrees and proceeds to write the sharpest K, A, and Y known in the galaxy, as well as the squarest O. Moving on to the next word: ''Friend - Shuzs Bfhusz,'' she writes and says the very familiar word aloud. The dunces in the front row keep repeating it again, some frustration audible in their voice and demeanor as they can''t figure out why they are ignored. Meanwhile, Zigon is waiting to answer, with his blade raised serenely. Unexpectedly, Ghoxh lifts her hand up. ¡°Ghoxh,¡± Amethyst says, and Ghoxh''s blade falls as quickly as it was raised; she looks like she was caught off guard, her attention was turned to Gnox. Did she raise her hand on accident? Amethyst points at the Tyrchidian Friend-word on the blackboard, giving her a chance to answer. The whole class falls silent and turns to look at her. Ghoxh looks like the spitting image of a student not following the lesson as she looks around confused before peering at the blackboard. With a quiet and unsure tone, she utters: ¡°Shuzs... Bfhusz?¡± ¡°Very, um... good, Ghoxh!¡± Amethyst''s uncertainty shines through her encouragement. If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.We don¡¯t even have a word for good¡­ do we? No words for even a single compliment¡­ What is the purpose of the Tyrchidian language even? Frank leaves their table to reward her; Gnox¡¯s eyes track him intently and pierce into him as he approaches. He keeps Gnox in his peripheral vision when giving the prize to Ghoxh, who happily eats the berry. As he turns to leave without giving him anything, a familiar ¡°Blizh¡± escorts him. Next, Amethyst writes up Shfluz ¨C Food. Before she can even say the word, Imilald, and Siflin shout and start repeating the word. Amethyst and Frank look at each other; did they recognize it just from writing? Before they can ponder it further, Sfipoz joins the choir of food, and Gnox starts to boom along with them. It¡¯s a chaotic shouting party, with none of them waiting for their turn to answer; only Ghoxh and Zigon seem to have gotten the gist of it. Gnox stands up as the wooden hall echoes, ¡°Shfluz! Shfluz! Shfluz!¡± It is like a chant, a rallying cry of a revolution. The three stand up and join him. ¡°Can you tell them to calm down?¡± Frank shouts over the rioting. ¡°There¡¯s no word for ¡®calm¡¯ in Tyrchidian!¡± Amethyst answers over the noise. As she looks back at the class, even Ghoxh and Zigon have now been swept into the revolt and repeat after their classmates. ¡°A real pickled storm is brewing! What am I even saying...? I can¡¯t even hear my own thoughts!¡± Pioneer shouts at the camera while plugging his ears; the buzzing and loud screeching cries for sustenance are deafening. ¡°How will our valiant heroes of knowledge survive this uprising? Will this be the end of this blossoming student-and-teacher relationship? Will it wilt and decay like purple shards in the rain allegedly do? The final destination for our six newbies on the path of learning? Amethyst shouts, ¡°Shfluz!¡± louder than the crowd, causing a momentary quiet. ¡°Frank, if you would.¡± He doesn¡¯t need to be told what to do; this situation requires appeasing. Frank starts from Imilald and gives her three berries, moving on through all of the students. Each seem to pacify a little as they get to munch on some treats regardless of their learning performance. As Frank has made his rounds and joins Amethyst at the front of the class, Imilald and the sisters are suspiciously eyeing him again. Imilald starts chanting, ¡°Shfluz!¡± Again, with intensifying frequency and noise. The sisters join in immediately. ¡°Hey, hey! Come on!¡± Frank¡¯s shouting is orchestrated with desperate hand motions, which fall defeated as his pleas go to deaf antennae. The treat-hungry crowd proceeds to stand up again and take up their chant with intensifying fervor, like a manic mantra. ¡°We can¡¯t keep this up; if we give them any more berries, they know it works! It¡¯s like encouraging a child''s bad behavior!" ¡°I- I totally get what you mean...! But what do we do then?¡± Amethyst answers the shouting Frank, unsure of what he actually said. ¡°Let¡¯s just ignore them, continue on to the next word!¡± ¡°Okay, which one should I cover, though?!¡± ¡°I dunno! Just pick something they are familiar with!¡± Amethyst proceeds to write on the blackboard; her blade cuts through the ash as she carves with quick and broad strikes. The chanting is not dying down at all; on the contrary, every one of their pupils is up in arms once more. As she finishes, Amethyst points at the board and shouts, loudest of them all: ¡°Floohsh!¡± The whole class goes dead silent and seats themselves back down. They look down at the ground, on the walls, or at each other. Not even Zigon is raising his hand to answer. The atmosphere has taken a massive plunge from the incredible noise to grave silence. Their Tyrchid students look¡­ miserable¡­ heartbroken... loopy antennae, nervously grating mandibles... In fact¡­ it¡¯s like it was a funeral, a national day of sorrow. Frank checks what Amethyst wrote. ¡°Floohsh ¨C Queen.¡± The gloomy mood seems to have gotten to Amethyst, too. She keeps her hand pointed at the word but stares at the bare, crude wooden floor instead. ¡°My dear Explorers. Our Teachers have done it, peace has returned, but at what cost? I-It¡¯s just like I was back there, at my grandma¡¯s funeral service at the Grand Hall of Metropolis.¡± Pioneer whispers and sniffles. A hand off-screen gives him a napkin, which he grabs and proceeds to blow his nose loudly. ¡°It was such a tragic event¡­ you know she¡­¡± Pioneer gathers himself, clarity returning to his eyes. ¡°Never mind about me now; as Amethyst told us earlier, they had recently lost their Queen. It really must have meant a lot to them, as is now evident. The sadness in this room is palpable; sailing my hand through it feels like it¡¯s wading through deep waters. As if the weepy atmosphere¡¯s moisture could condense on my skin at any moment.¡± Amethyst looks up from the floor at the class. Their sad eyes, grimacing faces, quivering antennae, braving it, holding it all back. It feels unreal, so... comforting. Even with this great sadness welling inside, she is gratified. Her brethren mourned her mother - their mother - just like she had. Still did¡­ It was clearly important and meant something significant to them, too. Maybe they weren¡¯t so different after all? Even if she could not remember them, or even herself, back when she was¡­ not sentient. Or at least¡­ not sentient like she was now. If they were capable of such emotion and attachment, then surely, by extension, she had been like them, too. With this realization, the relief and sadness is squashed by fear. If her kin were really sentient, intelligent... What had she lost when Grent had implanted this human consciousness into her by force? Had she already been¡­ aware¡­? Her own person¡­? With unique likes and dislikes? Did she have a personality? Was she happy? Content? ... Who was she now? Could it be... she didn¡¯t remember her memories accurately¡­ because they were not hers¡­ as she was not the same person anymore? She had been overwritten, melded, combined, and assimilated. She wasn¡¯t Amande. Nor was she the Tyrchid she had been back then. Who was left? Amethyst. The name given by the one who messed up her head, the one who stole her life. But¡­ who is Amethyst? ¡°Amethyst, Amethyst!¡± She comes back from the edge, back to reality. ¡°Are you alright?¡± Am I... alright¡­? As the genuine look of concern shines brightly on Frank¡¯s expression and voice, she feels it is all going to work out, somehow. She didn¡¯t know who she was¡­ but maybe¡­ ¡°Say something!¡± ¡°Frank¡­ Why are you so worried?¡± How is he so tall all of a sudden? ¡°Do you not know? You¡­ collapsed, held your head¡­ like in pain. Like¡­ back then,¡± Frank says to the prone Amethyst, sitting on top of her feet. ¡°Oh¡­¡± Amethyst takes support with her blades and rises to her feet. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. It¡¯s nothing; I¡¯m fine.¡± Frank looks at her long and hard before speaking: ¡°Amethyst¡­ are you lying?¡± She couldn''t believe she was being asked that it was obvious¡­ she wouldn¡¯t¡­ lie... But... ¡°I¡­ I really don¡¯t know. I don¡¯t know how I feel...¡± Amethyst looked away but soon met Frank¡¯s concerned face with hesitation. ¡°But¡­ I think¡­ I¡¯ll be fine.¡± Somehow... ¡°Great, we can talk about it later if you want to¡­¡± Frank continues whispering. ¡°But we are kind of in live television right now.¡± Amethyst looked at the classroom. All of her students surrounded them, in various stages of concern or relief at her recovery. The film crew, Pioneer, had also come way closer to them. ¡°Oh, how fortunate, Amethyst is okay, everyone!¡± Pioneer turns around and announces his hands wide in the sky. ¡°So turn your frowns upside down and cheer up Explorers! I- I didn¡¯t doubt it for a moment! Everyone back home, grab the person next to you, and give them a big hug. It¡¯s essential to deal with your grief the correct way. Talk about it, mourn it, give it time. Or you might not realize it, and you¡¯ll collapse into a crying mess of a heap in the most inopportune times! Just a¡­ Just something to remember back home!¡± Pioneer cracks his sunglasses and swipes his own eyes covertly. ¡°Oh¡­ yeah, I-I¡¯m fine,¡± he turns down another napkin offer, then triumphantly declares: ¡°On with the show!¡± The class got the hang of raising a bladed hand to get their turn to answer; they went over the words ¡°Help¡± and ¡°Danger¡± smoothly. The Sabertiger-word was dominated by Gnox, who even raised a hand to get his turn to answer. ¡°So, with eight words on board, we are still missing three more, right?¡± Frank looks at the assortment of simple but necessary words, trying to guess what the remaining words could be. ¡°Yeah, 11 in total. Our next word is ''M ¨C O ¨C S ¨C F,'' Amethyst pronounces as she writes, her ¨C literal ¨C handwriting getting better. So far, every single other word had either started with an S, F, or B¡­ Is this word somehow special? Frank thinks moments before it is answered by Amethyst writing ¡°- Love¡± on the other side. Oh¡­ Tyrchids have a concept of love in their culture? Amethyst says the word and points at the board. Gnox raises his black blade, a rarity, so she picks him with some reservations. Gnox¡¯s gaze meets with Ghoxh, and he says a low and long ¡°Mosf.¡± In response, she blushes and giggles like an insectoid schoolgirl. ¡°Flh flh flh flh,¡± she laughs with her blades of deep crimson in front of her mouth. Frank goes to feed Gnox his reward. He quickly grabs it with his mandibles, catching Frank unawares. But instead of eating it, he turns to Ghoxh. Gnox reaches towards his beloved, who responds to the gesture. Their mandibles embrace, and the berry exchanges ownership. Ghoxh eats it and turns away as shyly and cutely as a two-meter humanoid insect creature could. ¡°My goodness! I can¡¯t believe my eyes!" Pioneer declares with a way over-the-top reaction. Explorers, is it getting hot in here under the twin suns, or is it just me? Did we witness a kiss of two Tyrchids, the species'' first physical show of affection so far recorded in all of history? Remember, you saw it here first, live on our show! In fact, where were you when Gnox and Ghoxh pseudo-kissed? Let me know in my socials via a picture and a timestamp, tag it with¡­ ¡®Gnox_x_Ghoxh¡¯ to @Pioneer_the_show. I look forward to seeing just where you witnessed this historic event!¡± As soon as Gnox is finished, he rudely demands: ¡°Blizh, Flufvz!¡± Oh my god¡­ Here we go again¡­ Fine¡­ Frank gives Gnox a new berry, which he eats himself this time. Frank returns with mixed feelings, but his teacher-brain has another thought in mind. If this word was Love¡­ and if Amethyst is actually teaching these in order¡­ ¡°Amethyst¡­ what¡¯s the next word going to be? In English.¡± ¡°It¡¯s going to be the word ¡®Happy¡¯.¡± ¡°Oh, good-¡± ¡°It also means¡­ I think it also serves as a mating call.¡± ¡°-then I had nothing to worry- What!?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I think we better skip that one for now.¡± ¡°What? Why?¡± Amethyst tilts her head and asks back. Frank glances at Gnox and Ghoxh, who are still keeping up their cutesy school romance of a shy and dainty damsel with a rough and jacked jock. ¡°Let¡¯s just skip it¡­ for everyone¡¯s sake... we¡¯ll go to the final word next.¡± ¡°Well, if you say so...¡± What¡¯s gotten into Frank?¡± ¡°I saved this word last on purpose; I think we should do something special.¡± Amethyst quickly explains his idea to Frank and then writes the word: ¡®Ghs - Go¡¯ on the blackboard. She points at the board and says, ¡°Ghs.¡± Everyone¡¯s blades rise up; fortunately, none of them leave. ¡°Imilald,¡± Frank says and goes to her; she responds correctly and gets rewarded with three berries. As she¡¯s finished munching on them, Frank continues: ¡°Imilald, Ghs,¡± and points an open hand at the doorway of their school. Imilald looks back at the entrance and then back at Frank. ¡°Imilald, Ghs,¡± Amethyst says. The quizzical look disappears, and Imilald stands up and starts walking away. But my pronunciation was spot on! It¡¯s just a three-letter word; it had to have been¡­ Frank proceeds to the next in the seating order, Siflin and Sfipoz. Even before he gets to them, they both are repeating ¡°Ghs¡± at him, their hands still held up high. ¡°Siflin, Ghs¡± Even though it is still Siflin¡¯s turn, Sfipoz keeps on repeating it through her sister¡¯s response. Siflin answers correctly and gets rewarded. ¡°Siflin, Ghs!¡± The first sister is sent on its way, and Sfipoz looks between her sister¡¯s retreating back and Frank. Seemingly torn if to stay or go after her. ¡°Sfipoz.¡± As Frank offers her the three berries, the choice is clear¡ªfood before family. ¡°Sfipoz, Ghs.¡± She gallops through the room and reunites with her sister in record time. Next up, Zigon sits with his back straight, unmoving, and proud, one hand on his lap and the other directly upwards. He definitely already knows how it works but still wants to do it the right way. ¡°Zigon.¡± He opens his eyes; the bright orange irises flare to life. ¡°Ghs,¡± with Zigon''s pronunciation, it almost sounds like a completely different word than what the others had said. It was said with such pomp and clarity, or maybe it was a different accent? After his reward, he looks expectantly at Frank, awaiting the command. ¡°Zigon, Ghs¡± He stands up and leaves without a word. With Zigon¡¯s approval of his pronunciation, he feels confident it was Imilald and not him who was the problem. As Frank approaches Ghoxh, he erases all traces of smug from his face, best to keep a neutral expression with those two. Since Gnox always gives me the stink eye whenever I interact with Ghoxh... In a brilliant, spur-of-the-moment strategic move, Frank thinks to skip her and go straight for Gnox first. Maybe this order would be acceptable for him; get Gnox out of the way quicker. Frank walks past her and in front of Gnox, saying his name. Gnox responds by repeating ¡°Blizh, blizh!¡± at him, shaking his head and gesturing Frank towards Ghoxh, ¡°Ghs, Ghs!¡± He said the word¡­ but¡­ I think he was insulted for me skipping Ghoxh¡­ I just can¡¯t win... Frank backtracks. ¡°Ghoxh,¡± she repeats the word after him and is rewarded. ¡°Ghoxh, Ghs.¡± She leaves her seat but waits at the back of the class. ¡°Gnox.¡± The uncooperative Tyrchid sits with his elbow blades stabbed to the classroom floor, his dagger hands underneath his chin. Intimidating and menacing, a recent ex-boss of his came to Frank¡¯s mind. Frank takes out the three berries onto his palm, holding them before him. The black eyes survey and evaluate them and him. ¡°Well, it¡¯s your loss.¡± Frank starts to move his hand away. ¡°Ghs! Ghs¡­¡± Gnox¡¯s immovable front crumbles with his repeating words. Without further comment, Frank hands the berries for him to eat, hiding all the pride and satisfaction deep within. ¡°Gnox, Ghs.¡± Frank brushes his brow and trundles over to Amethyst, unable to hide the drain and frustration of this whole ordeal. ¡°It wasn¡¯t that bad, was it?¡± ¡°Ehh... they sure can be difficult-¡± ¡°Oh, mister and missus teacher, how does it feel? You finished a lesson with honors, teaching all of Tyrchid¡¯s vocabulary in writing to your humble, knowledge-hungry students.¡± Pioneer stops talking for a small while, indicating that they are required to answer. However, as Frank is about to speak- ¡°Oh, I know exactly how it must feel, such happiness and joy! The delightful feeling of great accomplishment and the vast strides this meager lesson, in comparison, has provided are invaluable for both parties involved! Most admirable of you to spend your own precious time with these fledgling youths.¡± Pioneer¡¯s expression changes as he stops talking, as if he had been inebriated by his words, just sobering up now. ¡°Anything to add?¡± ¡°No¡­¡± ¡°Couldn¡¯t have said it better myself! Anyway, my admirable Explorers, don¡¯t go anywhere quite yet; we will soon continue with the exclusive one-on-one interview with Frank. So stay tuned; we will catch you in our studio after these messages!¡± ¡°Excuse me? An interview? This is the first time I''ve heard of this!¡± Frank points a finger of blame at the brazen Documentarist. ¡°I know, but it¡¯s always best when the interviewee doesn¡¯t know of it beforehand, makes it extra authentic, you know?¡± ¡°Ugh¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯ll go fine, Frank, I¡¯m sure.¡± Amethyst smiles and pats him on the shoulder ¨C extra carefully ¨C with the side of her blade. ¡°Well, you¡¯ve got ten minutes to mentally prepare if you¡¯d like, then we are off to the studio!¡± Before Pioneer can skedaddle away, Frank speaks up: ¡°Uhh, you see, I- I really should walk Amethyst back home¡­¡± Pioneer turns around and looks at him sternly. ¡°If I didn¡¯t know better¡­ I¡¯d say you are making excuses!¡± ¡°You know, she collapsed and everything today, so can¡¯t be too careful...¡± ¡°Oh, that wasn¡¯t anything serious, I¡¯m sure." Pioneer elegantly handwaves the issue away. "But¡­ hmm...¡± Come on, please! ¡°One of my staff can walk her back,¡± Pioneer turns around and almost collides with Luna, like materialized out of thin air behind him, standing way too close. ¡°Luna, personal space? But good of you to show up; you will walk Amethyst back to her premises, won¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Yey! Sure thing!¡± She jumps up in excitement and, in an instant, has already grabbed Amethyst by the arm, pulling her like a kid tugging their parent along. ¡°Wait!¡± Frank shouts after them, but Luna doesn''t acknowledge his fret, and Amethyst is swept away, helpless in this strange, sudden situation. As they disappear into the forest, Pioneer leads Frank to the set. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s get started, Frank; please take a seat here; we¡¯ll get the Tyrchid villa as a nice backdrop.¡± The studio Pioneer talked about is just two chairs in a good spot before the Tyrchid¡¯s residences. ¡°Okay...¡± They are seated down and begin. ¡°Frank, I¡¯m sure many of our female, or so inclined, members have been thinking a lot about your marital status; what¡¯s the situation?¡± ¡°I- I¡¯m uhh, I guess I¡¯m... single?¡± ¡°Guess I¡¯m single? There you have it, the most sure man in the universe of his status. Go nuts, everyone; he¡¯s most certainly and definitely free.¡± What sort of interview is this¡­? ¡°But I''ve got to ask, what is your relationship with Amethyst then? You are building a house together... you seem close... with some obvious history to boot. How would you describe your situation?¡± ¡°We are just good friends, that¡¯s all,¡± Frank answers quickly. ¡°So he says, Frank is on the market, everyone! Act fast before Amethyst solidifies the claim on her man!¡± Pioneer announces with exaggerated glee. ¡°And as an extension, this means that Amethyst is single too, doesn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Uhh, what?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure that pleases the ears of all our male and other species interested in this exotic new specimen.¡± The Pioneer glances at his screen and then asks. ¡°Our, um- viewers are desperate to know, have you done the deed with Amethyst?¡± ¡°WHAT?¡± ¡°We did establish that you aren¡¯t in a relationship, but those two are not mutually exclusive; you did say you are good friends, after all.¡± ¡°Hold on-¡± Frank waves his hands frantically to stop this absurd interrogation. ¡°Just how good of a friend are you with Amethyst, Frank?¡± ¡°What kind of questions are these!? I-I won¡¯t answer that!¡± ¡°Really now? I bet our viewers, -a singular one in particular-¡± Pioneer said, the last part barely audible under his breath. ¡±-would have loved to hear just how it would work; you may still have time to-¡± ¡°Not another word, if that¡¯s all you¡¯ve got to ask, we are done here.¡± ¡°Okay, okay, fine, I won¡¯t push the envelope. As for our next question, can you tell us a bit about your history? Where were you born¡­?" Frank sits back down disgruntled, firmly locking his hands in a cross. ¡°If you must know, I¡¯m from Metropolis, like most people. I grew up there and pursued a career as a Veterinarian, eventually leading me to Amethyst and here.¡± ¡°I see, I see, the connection between you and Amethyst is growing much clearer now. So, you ran into her in this new job of yours; you hit it off and decided to pursue an official place for Amethyst and her Tyrchid species in the galaxy?¡± ¡°Yes, something like that...¡± ¡°I must ask, what was up with the picture of your ISSA application? You know, the one with Amethyst in a cage?¡± ¡°Oh, that¡­ haha... well my uhh... last employer mistakenly captured her as a creature requiring... preservation.¡± ¡°Oh, is that so? Sounds like quite the misunderstanding.¡± Pioneer looks at him from over his sunglasses, emphasizing his surprise. ¡°Yeah, the pictures were taken due to that, too. But the issue was quickly corrected as I became aware of it.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good to hear. But certainly, you would have had time to take at least a little more admiring picture of her. I would imagine she was upset over her being presented on galactic TV for billions of viewers in an unflattering light like that. I know I would be.¡± ¡°Ehehe...¡± Frank straightens his hair with an awkward fake laugh. ¡°Were you truly in such a hurry so that was the best you could do?¡± ¡°Well, there were some... extenuating circumstances, but that¡¯s what ended up happening.¡± ¡°Hmm, I see; I¡¯m sorry, Explorers, this seems to be the extent of information we will get out of him about this topic.¡± Phew... ¡°However, I must say it¡¯s very unusual to have a human or a representative of another species involved in the proceedings of establishing a new sapient species. Amethyst is lucky to have such an earnest and capable man on her side at this great turning point in her life.¡± ¡°Yes, I- I suppose...¡± ¡°Next, the viewers back home would like to know...
In the forest, Luna holds on to Amethyst¡¯s arm, as close to her as possible, somewhat obstructing their walking, as the Tyrchid''s wide legs have less room to work with. Luna puts away her communicator and focuses on her entirely. ¡°Amethyst, do you actually live alone with a man...?¡± She asks suddenly and with palpable disgust. ¡°Uh, no, two men, actually.¡± ¡°Oh! How terrible! Are they preventing you from making any girlfriends?¡± ¡°No, they¡¯re-¡± ¡°Just know that your good friend Luna is always here to listen to your grievances; you can tell me anything and everything. Even if they mistreat you behind those closed walls...¡± ¡°I-, um, thanks?¡± ¡°Okay, honestly, what do you think of Frank?¡± Luna caresses Amethyst¡¯s armored arm in between hers and pushes it against her body. ¡°What I think of¡­ Frank?¡± Amethyst smiles. ¡°He¡¯s such a nice person. We¡¯ve gone through a lot, and he¡¯s always there to help me out... well, we help each other.¡± ¡°But doesn¡¯t he always cling to you so much, like he just pities you and doesn¡¯t think you can do anything on your own. He didn¡¯t even trust you to walk on home without him!¡± Luna scoffs while clinging to Amethyst firmly. ¡°Talk about controlling!¡± ¡°Uh¡­¡± Amethyst can¡¯t get a word in or a solid thought in her head before Luna interrupts her. ¡°You should reconsider what kind of company you keep, you get me? We vulnerable and exquisite women could be in real danger from any sinister figures... Plus, need I remind you, Frank is a man, rough, rugged, almost painful to look at, don¡¯t you agree? You can never know what devious plans they are really plotting underneath...¡± ¡°No, he-!¡± ¡°Men act all friendly and romantic and lie through their teeth, telling you whatever you want to hear. As long as it suits them, they''ll keep spinning you around their little finger... But beware of the day; once they¡¯ve had enough of you, they¡¯ll finally show their true colors! What they are all about, revealing the long-hidden truth behind their lies!¡± Amethyst''s head in a spin; after such a passionate tirade, she tries to defend Frank, argue against it... But a thought occurs to her: He does lie a lot... ¡°While us women are elegant, beautiful, and dainty, so much more alluring and capable. We are open and always tell the truth; we girls gotta stick together.¡± ¡°I-I don¡¯t agree,¡± Amethyst manages to say finally. Luna grips her hand harder, clinging to it like she¡¯d soon try to climb it up like a vine. ¡°WHAT? Are you not on my side? How can you say something like that? Oh, how it saddens me to see you so misguided.¡± ¡°N-no! T-that¡¯s not what I meant!¡± Amethyst is run rings around with words, helpless to resist. ¡°Tell you what, you can remedy this situation, prove your friendship to me.¡± ¡°How¡­?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s nothing hard. You will do as much for my wounded heart, won¡¯t you?¡± They stop walking as Luna purses up her lips in exaggerated sadness and lays both hands on Amethyst''s chest. Her light-red eyes are big and pleading while she covertly feels up the largest gemstone in her body ¨C the chest gem. ¡°Y-yeah?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s exchange locks of hair; we¡¯ll always have a small part of each other with us.¡± Luna throws back her long black hair, shaded in deep crimson behind her neck. ¡°When things get rough, we can find the support of one another in these mementos.¡± ¡°I- uhh... I guess?¡± What¡¯s the harm? ¡°Wonderful! You are the best, Amethyst!¡± She beams and jumps up and down, her hands still against Amethyst¡¯s chest armor. A smile crosses Amethyst¡¯s lips. Luna reaches back and takes a short switchblade from her pocket. She slowly raises it into plain view. Amethyst goes visibly pale, and uncertainty stains her face as the blade pops up from the handle with a distinct metallic sound. ¡°Uhh¡­ with that¡­ knife?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, baby girl,¡± Luna whispers softly. ¡°It¡¯ll only take a second... I¡¯ll even cut it from a spot that¡¯s not visible from the outside so it won¡¯t disturb your wonderful hairdo.¡± She¡¯s right onto Amethyst now; Luna''s soft body collides with her frontal armor and presses against her, chest to chest. Luna reaches for her hair, standing on her toes. The knife approaches Amethyst¡¯s face. Instinctively, Amethyst closes her eyes under this tense atmosphere. Shrinck! Opening her eyes, she sees Luna with a small patch of her hair, about two centimeters long. ¡°Now, we will never be apart! Thank you so much, Amethyst!¡± Luna retreats a little further away, the tuft of purple hair between her thumb and two fingers. She brings them up to her nostrils and takes a deep breath in. ¡°Ahh, you smell so good.¡± She smirks. ¡°H-hey, it¡¯s not okay to smell others without their permission!¡± ¡°Did Frank tell you that? Don¡¯t worry, as girls, we can smell each other all we want¡­¡± Luna says, like the most normal thing in the world. ¡°Speaking of us grown women, I¡¯m really burning to know¡­ how do you Tyrchids¡­ do... it?¡± ¡°Do¡­ what?¡± ¡°How do you¡­ reproduce?¡± Luna leans onto Amethyst''s body and walks up her chest with two fingers. ¡°There doesn¡¯t seem to be any little kid Tyrchids running around the village, and your Queen is gone. Is your population in danger...? How does it work?¡± As Amethyst hesitates, Luna assures her: ¡°It¡¯s okay to tell me. I¡¯m a woman too.¡± ¡°Umm...¡± Amethyst looks down at Luna, who looks back at her alluringly, getting very familiar with the intricacies of her carapace in the meantime. Why is it so¡­ hard to talk about it? ¡°I just want to know, is that so wrong?¡± ¡°I- uhh¡± I¡­ why do I feel so embarrassed about the subject? There¡¯s nothing strange about it¡­ it¡¯s the most natural thing in the world. ¡°Could you become a new Queen? Is that how it works? A Queen whose harem is the whole colony; only she allowed to reproduce?¡± ¡°N-no, I¡­ oh, looks like w-we¡¯re here.¡± They had been standing in front of the clinic for a while already, but Amethyst had not noticed over the oppressive atmosphere and her confusion. ¡°So it seems...¡± Luna responds uncharacteristically dryly. ¡°I- I better go inside.¡± ¡°Very well, I¡¯ll see you later, best friend!¡± Luna waves to her cheerfully before running off. ¡°Bye.¡± Amethyst walks to her handmade door; suddenly, she stops before it. ¡°Luna!¡± she turns around; she¡¯s already gone. But she didn''t give me her hair in exchange... 28. Calm before the storm Amethyst walks into the clinic''s lobby, still in a sense of daze from her encounter with Luna. She sits down on a light brown sofa next to the lab. Her elbow blades pierce through the fabric and to the other side, clanging against the stone floor as she slumps on the cushions. Shortly, the lab''s door opens. ¡°Oh, Amethyst, you done for today already?¡± Grent asks and looks around. ¡°Yeah...¡± ¡°Where¡¯s Frank?¡± ¡°He¡¯s probably being interviewed still.¡± ¡°Interviewed, huh? Well, no matter, come in; I need your help with something.¡± Grent disappears back inside, leaving behind an open door. My¡­ help? ... Fragmented memories of her being led inside the lab for the first time surface in her mind. Back then, she was just an obedient empty shell, unable to resist, to decide. The black restraints, the syringe, and the mindray firefight... She thought she had put it all behind her already when she escaped. When she returned, Grent even apologized. She hadn¡¯t felt afraid of him after that, just a little wary, alert, maybe. But this was somehow different than the times she''d been here with Frank. ... She was alone again. Grent had clearly feared her too, but that seemed to no longer be the case either. Was he planning something after all? Those schemes giving him the confidence to ask her for help so nonchalantly? ... Grent didn¡¯t seem the type to even ask for help in the first place... Maybe it was really important... Amethyst draws her blades out of the sofa with a stretching and ripping sound of fabric and stands up, quickly turning to the door. ¡°Are you- ah!¡± Grent almost collides with her in the doorway. ¡°W-woah, I- I was just- you took so long¡­¡± A satisfied smile dawns on Amethyst¡¯s lips. ¡°U-um¡­ thanks for coming...¡± Grent walks backward a few steps before turning around and going back to the operation table, where Amande¡¯s artificial body lies in progress. Amethyst follows and watches over his shoulder. ¡°You needed¡­ help?¡± ¡°No, not with Amandebot! Just give me a moment to finish this¡­¡± barely looking her way, he keeps working on Amande¡¯s chassis. Pineapple walks up to Amethyst and sniffs her leg before nuzzling against it. She thinks for a moment to offer her hand to pet him but quickly discards the notion. It would be too dangerous. Still, Pineapples¡¯ show of affection calms her heart. The cat scurries off on his way to who-knows-what mischief. Amethyst felt almost nostalgic, although it hadn''t been a long time ago at all since she saw this room for the first time. The hygiene white-tiled room looked a lot less scary now. However, the stuffed animal heads still creeped her out a little. The Sabertiger cub¡¯s head reminds her of something. ¡°By the way, did you know that Pioneer was doing something called ''a live-stream''? Is that why you wanted to avoid them?¡± ¡°S-sure, I mean yeah. That¡¯s why¡± A soldering smoke rises from Grent¡¯s work and smells strongly to Amethyst¡¯s antennae, which twist disapproving of it, and his answer. I haven¡¯t had time to watch any episodes yet, though. You were all over today¡¯s news, actually.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°What happened? The headlines said you collapsed or something.¡± Amethyst looks away as Grent finally looks back at her. ¡°Oh, that¡­¡± ¡°Oh, right!¡± Grent puts the soldering iron on its stand and turns it off. He strides to his computer and sits down on the chair. ¡°The thing I needed your help with¡­¡± He types on the holographic keyboard and unlocks his PC. ¡°I can¡¯t very well compose a song if I don¡¯t know the words I am working with.¡± ¡°That makes sense¡­¡± Amethyst walks behind him. ¡°So, will you help me make a Tyrchidian Dictionary?¡± ¡°A dictionary¡­? S-sure¡­¡± ¡°Fantastic, let¡¯s start.¡±
Footsteps approach, along with a voice. ¡°What are you guys doing?¡± Frank appears in the doorway to the lab. ¡°We were just finishing up a dictionary.¡± ¡°Ah, Tyrchidian, I presume? Oh, look who¡¯s here!¡± Frank walks to the lab table, to Pineapple sitting inside Amandebot¡¯s open chest. ¡°Haven¡¯t seen you in a while; you¡¯ve really adjusted to living here, huh?¡± Pineapple purrs loudly and leans into his scratching but keeps his fuzzy head fixated on Grent and Amethyst as they crowd around the desk and computer. Frank gives the cat a few more pets and shows up behind the duo to peer at the text document. ¡°This only has ten words. Where¡¯s the last one?¡± ¡°You said we¡¯d skip that one?¡± Amethyst asks and tilts her head. ¡°Oh, right¡­¡± ¡°There¡¯s one more word?¡± Amethyst looks at Frank, who sighs; she''s intent on making him say it. ¡°Okay, one more word: ¡®Fosm.¡¯ It means to be happy, or... also works as a mating call.¡± Grent wiggles his eyebrows at Frank. ¡°Stop it, it¡¯s not like that.¡± Frank crudely retorts. ¡°Let¡¯s just move on.¡± ¡°Relax, I¡¯m just kidding, unless¡­¡± Frank covers his face with a hand and sighs loudly. ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Frank?¡± Amethyst tilts her head further, her narrowed eyes and lips smug. Frank changes the subject. ¡°So, Grent¡­ You think you¡¯ll be able to make us a song then? One with words we can sing and the other for the Tango.¡± ¡°Sure, sure, I¡¯ve already finished your dance song anyway.¡± Amethyst gasps, ¡°Really? Can we hear it¡­?¡± ¡°On second thought, maybe I¡¯ll do some further adjustments on it first¡­¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Anyway, songs are just some words and notes in a row. Nothing compared to the complex operations I do on a day-to-day basis. In fact, maybe I¡¯ll start a career in composing music. After it¡¯s played live, I¡¯ll be sure to go viral, fans and money will pour my way, and I¡¯ll get all the funding I could ever need for actually important things, like-¡± ¡°Wait, you knew the broadcasts were live?¡± Frank stops Grent''s daydreaming. ¡°You didn¡¯t know? It¡¯s so obvious when you think about it!¡± Amethyst looks at Grent, judging, wondering if to say anything against his claims or not. ¡°Oh... Say... how many viewers did the broadcast have?¡± ¡°I heard today''s episode reached high enough numbers to make it the year¡¯s most-viewed program. And that''s of all the shows running on the G-TV.¡± Frank laughs nervously. ¡±Pioneer wasn¡¯t kidding¡­¡± He steps backward, almost tripping on his own feet. He teeters but manages to sit down on the plastic sheeted ¡®bed¡¯. ¡°Careful! Don¡¯t damage Amandebot!¡± ¡°If it gets damaged just from me sitting on the same surface, maybe you should rebuild it from the ground up anyway.¡± ¡°That sounds like a lot of viewers¡­ Are we really that popular?¡± Amethyst says. ¡°Yeah, you''re absolute super-stars; for the whole duration of the show, you¡¯ve been the galaxy¡¯s number one news.¡± ¡°Please don¡¯t say anything more¡­¡± Frank presses his head down and holds it. I¡¯ve made a galaxy-sized fool of myself... What will my parents think¡­? ¡°Who knows, maybe you¡¯ll get invited into all sorts of talk shows, paid appearances at parties, or hounded by every ad company ever to promote their products." ¡°Another word, and I¡¯m giving your wife a fresh green coat of paint.¡± Frank holds a hand before his mouth. Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Grent looks absolutely horrified, and silence falls, unwilling to check Frank¡¯s bluff. ¡°Umm... anyone wanna eat? I sure could...¡± Amethyst opens up. ¡°Not particularly...¡± ¡°There¡¯s some meat stew in the fridge; just reheat it,¡± Grent says. ¡°Since when have you had any proper food here? Did you cook it yourself?¡± Frank asks, suddenly very into the conversation. ¡°You think I have time to cook? Just a quick sandwich is enough to pull me through. Maybe I should get on developing those injections of food, or maybe pills to grant one all the nutrients and energy for the day instead¡­¡± Grent takes out his communicator and adds it at the end of his long To-do list, below ¡®Artificial good night¡¯s sleep.¡¯ ¡°The stew is just something I found lying around in the freezer. Plus, bread and toppings are cheaper, and I can order them in big bulks, so it''s more efficient!¡± Maybe... the stew is made by Amande? ¡°Got it, thanks.¡± Maybe I¡¯ll feel better after stuffing my face... ¡°Fine, let¡¯s eat.¡± Frank stands up and balances himself. ¡°Woohoo! What meat is in the stew? Have I eaten it before?¡± Amethyst¡¯s voice echoes as she and Frank leave the lab. ¡°Asking Grent would be pointless; it¡¯s not like he¡¯d know anyway. Probably porkchicken or something.¡± ¡°It''s gazell-lamb!¡± Grent shouts after them and closes the lab¡¯s door, muttering under his breath how they couldn''t even close it after themselves. He sits back on the chair and closely examines the dictionary. Hmm, the language is very archaic, but somehow it seems that it has very basic rules? S, F, H, and Z are used very heavily. Words relating to danger start with B, and everything else with S and F. Only the words ¡®Love¡¯ and ¡®Go¡¯ are exceptions to this, starting with M and G, respectively. The exceptions to the rule, I guess? Probably some natural reasons, such as their ability to pronounce or how fast something is to say, may have affected the forming of the language. Maybe their vocal cords have the easiest time pronouncing these kinds of sounds? It¡¯s not like they made a conscious effort to build up a language with grammar rules. Tyrchidian Dictionary. By Amethyst, written with Grent Djhual''s assistance.
Danger Bsii Bsii Bsii
Sabertiger(also a swear) Blizh!
Food Shfluz!
Help Bhli!
Friend Shuzs bfhusz
Home Flufvz
Okay Fxh
Expressing ¡°love¡± Mosf
Happy (Mating call) Fosm
Go Ghs
Queen Floohsh
(*Laughing* Flh Flh Flh)
Pineapple jumps on the desk next to Grent and stares at the PC screen, at the Tyrchidian Dictionary. ¡°What do you want...? Are you¡­ reading?¡± Grent laughs at the idea. ¡°No, no, sorry, what a ridiculous hypothesis.¡± Pineapple doesn¡¯t react, continuing to stare at the screen. The cat starts emitting a low, continuous noise; it rises in pitch, slows down, and jumps up and down rhythmically. ¡°Are you humming a melody...?¡± Pineapple places a paw on the screen on the word: ¡®Help.¡¯ Turning to look at Grent with his black eyes.
Amethyst stares down her meat stew; she has already plucked it clean of the morsels, leaving the broth and the smaller pieces of vegetables and potatoes behind. ¡°Is everything okay, Amethyst? Oh, you probably have a hard time eating the rest, don¡¯t you?¡± Frank asks, his bowl nearly empty. ¡°Is it weird for me to live with you two?¡± ¡°Where is this coming from? Of course not.¡± Frank reassures her. After pondering the matter further, he continues: ¡°Luna said that, didn¡¯t she?¡± ¡°Yeah...¡± Amethyst slowly sinks her hand blade in the soup, over and over again. Her victim: the poor slice of carrot that looked mighty mauled by now. ¡°What else did she say?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Amethyst sloshes the soup around, the purple crystal blade soaked in the soup. ¡°She didn¡¯t do anything weird again, did she? ¡°¡­¡± Her soup is now a tempest that any ship daring to sail in would surely sink, lost forever. ¡°It¡¯s okay to tell me; you can trust me.¡± ¡°C-can I?¡± Amethyst blurts out. ¡°What? Of course, you can¡­ I thought we went through this before?¡± ¡°W-what if you just lie regardless of our promise?¡± Where is this coming from? That¡­ woman, she¡¯s had it out for me ever since we met. ¡°Luna is trying to make your head spin, make you confused; I told you not to believe everything she says.¡± Amethyst¡¯s demeanor shows that he guessed correctly. ¡°You have kept our promise, right?¡± Amethyst asks, dead serious. Please tell me... ¡°Of course I-¡± His tongue moves faster than his brain, leaving him stunned in the middle of his sentence. He remembers the fight in the village and what he had said to her. ¡®Go help them. I¡¯ll be fine.¡¯ ... When she was most vulnerable and distracted, I did it again, despite our promise. Even if it was a white lie, a good, helpful lie... It doesn¡¯t change the fact that I still did it. I won¡¯t fool myself into thinking it wasn¡¯t a lie because I turned out to be fine after the fact. Then and there, I didn¡¯t know that for sure... It was a bold-faced lie. Amethyst¡¯s face turns grim in realization, her cheeks twitch, and her eyes blink rapidly as she looks away from Frank. The raging waves of the soup collide and splash against her now completely still blade. As the world goes completely silent, you know that something is about to go horribly wrong. Sailors on such waters would say: ¡®It¡¯s just the calm before the storm.¡¯ The door to the kitchen flies open and Grent stumbles in. Frank shoots him a furious look. He senses the tension in the air and freezes. ¡°A bad time...?¡± He forces a sheepish smile. ¡°No¡­ I was just about to call it in early anyways.¡± Amethyst says, stands up from the table, and leaves through the door towards the ward. ¡°A bad time?¡± Frank seethes and sighs deeply. You figured that out all by yourself? ¡°What is it now, Grent¡­?¡± ¡°What are you angry at me for?! Anyway, I was just wondering, where did you say Pineapple was from?¡± ¡°Well, I haven¡¯t told you that in the first place now, have I?" Frank crosses his arms and leans back on the chair. "Why? You¡¯re not going to go exterminate their populous over your annoyance over him or something?¡± ¡°Not at all; I was just wondering... I¡¯ve never seen a cat like him.¡± Grent adjusts the bandages on his right hand. ¡°Those from Amethyst?¡± ¡°Yeah, but not what you¡¯d think. Also, some burns before the sprinklers kicked in.¡± What? ¡°Ugh, fine, it¡¯s not like it''s a secret. Solarophone¡¯s home planet is the Golden Veldt.¡± ¡°In the Auger system, right?¡± ¡°Oh, you know of it?¡± ¡°You could say that, but thanks for the confirmation.¡± Grent leaves the room and shuts the door. What was that about? Frank cleans up in the kitchen, beating himself up about being unable to keep the promise. Of not being able to change. And of getting caught, though, he promptly dismisses that train of thought. He¡­ doesn¡¯t have reason to lie, not anymore. He¡¯s free of Intergalactic, in good and the bad. What am I doing? They will run out of my savings soon enough... He leaves for the ward, going through different scenarios in his head anxiously; what should he say? What could he say? ¡°Don¡¯t worry, trust me again, this time, I¡¯ll make it worth your while?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve changed; I promise I won¡¯t lie anymore?¡± All, as futile and pathetic as the next one, the words of a lying man. But despite him thinking through all of the scenarios of what Amethyst could say and how to respond to each one, she is not waiting to confront him. Not standing by to berate or rage at him. Not even to threaten him with her array of sharp weaponry. She¡¯s peacefully lying on her bed, eyes closed, with the room''s lights still on. Frank sneaks beside Amethyst¡¯s bed and whispers her name several times, but she doesn¡¯t react. Maybe she was already sleeping¡­ ¡°Good night...¡± Frank whispers and turns off the lights.
Grent returns to the laboratory and starts working on the robot¡¯s arms, the legs attached to the torso already. He hadn¡¯t ended up making as many modifications on the way, so it was going faster than anticipated. However, he was still excited to try out the few improvements and adjustments that he ended up implementing. His knowledge of them was a product of trial and error from years ago when he built the prototype for a totally different purpose. Back then, it was simply a stupid, remote-controlled drone-bot. Though, as things stand, this one didn¡¯t have much of a better chance to be anything more than its predecessor. He still had no idea how to give consciousness to something inorganic. Maybe an advanced circuit housing a neural network to simulate a brain? But how could he possibly make something so advanced from scratch? Moreover, he¡¯d have to invent it, too. Not like a storage medium capable of housing and running a brain¡¯s worth of information existed, at least in a size that would fit inside her body. He couldn¡¯t ask for help or read some academic journals on the subject. His problem wasn¡¯t exactly what most people wrestled with. Moreover, the mindray device was one-of-a-kind. They had made sure of it. This was a hurdle they¡¯d have to overcome at some point anyway; solving it now would bring them that much closer to their ambitions. ¡°Where did I put that screwdriver again?¡± Grent glances around and spots Pineapple, holding it in his mouth. The cat walks up to him, and he drops it to his open palm. ¡°Thanks¡­? You aren¡¯t an ordinary Solarophone, are you?¡± The cat looks at him with motionless whiskers and a neutral expression, his thoughts a mystery well hidden. Grent walks up to his desk and opens a drawer taking something out of it. Turning to Pineapple, he asks: ¡°Do you happen to be acquainted with this device, perhaps?¡± Startled, Pineapple jumps backward and readies a flash upon seeing the mindray. ¡°So you do know it. Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s all fine now. I won¡¯t use it.¡± Pineapple approaches sceptically and sniffs the device. ¡°Those ISSA fools are just too narrow-minded; they merely wished to control them, for what? To make more entertainment to fool the masses? To ensure their never-ending flow of cash? They should have thanked us for liberating the technology from their greedy hands. I bet they didn¡¯t even realize the possibility that they could have given you, or any of their other test subjects, the gift of intelligence as a rare side effect.¡± Pineapple looks up at him and tilts his head. ¡°Don¡¯t you agree?¡± The cat sits down, and his two tails curl around the elegant body from both sides. ¡°Won¡¯t you work with me, Pineapple? We¡¯ll make some waves in the universe together. Our meeting must have been destiny, or maybe you planned for this to happen all along? Whatever the case, I think you had the same idea; why else would you have been spending the days here with me?¡± Grent offers a hand to the Solarophone: ¡°So what do you say, you mischievous pest, a fellow troublemaker, won¡¯t you assist me?¡± The cat¡¯s black eyes glint with chaotic energy as he places a soft, cold paw on his hand. ¡°I knew we were of one mind! Our first order of business is to get the second brains of this operation back up. Oh, sorry, the third ones now, I guess.¡± He picks up the cat and looks into his eyes from up close. ¡°After that, it¡¯ll be a long process, with many setbacks, I¡¯d imagine. But in the end, we will succeed.¡± Pineapple squirms, so he lays him on the table next to the robot chassis. ¡°Not to worry, it¡¯ll be for the betterment of everyone, for every thing in the galaxy. It¡¯s just not fair that only living beings can defend themselves and their rights¡­ Sapience is a gift to be given out freely, and none are more deserving than those that bear the burden of our continued existence. They should be able to choose whether to bear the pain of fleas running around on their skin and digging into their flesh or¡­ if it¡¯s time for some shampoo to wash them away.¡± Grent pets Pineapple¡¯s slightly rough fur and adds: ¡°As a cat, I¡¯m sure you can relate to that.¡± Pineapple glares at him and starts to growl; his rumbling resonates and vibrates through the air like the bass of a powerful speaker. Grent flinches and pulls his grabbers away instantly, feeling the strange tingling sensation of pressure in his bowels. ¡°No need to take it personally, just a little jest.¡± He laughs nervously and takes a few steps back. I bet Amande would have loved a sassy cat like him... 29. Rainy Day Filming Day 4, last day. Frank and Amethyst¡¯s feet splosh in the grass and underbrush full of puddles. They were especially hard to dodge in the dark gloom of the night forest. Though only one of them bothered with that, he didn¡¯t exactly have rubber boots to go with the weather. Along Frank¡¯s yellow umbrella, long drops of black rain stream down, though overhead protection felt hardly sufficient in this near-vertical downpour. Numerous stray drops left trails of gray on his clothes as they hit and got absorbed in the fabric. The brightly colored umbrella which Frank held onto like a lifeline, was actually Amande¡¯s. Grent reluctantly loaned it, after they made a ruckus searching for some protection against the sudden change from the usual hazy heat. According to the same scientist, the morning should dawn soon, though it was hard to say if it already has, or if it was still ahead. The darkest clouds of black in all the known galaxy blanketed the sky with no end in sight. Amethyst walks unfazed, the black drops dripping down from her wet hair, and flowing along her armor. Embracing the cold wind and the moisture, she looks skyward. On Amethyst¡¯s neutral face, the long dark drops sliding down her face looked like trails of wet mascara. ¡°I¡¯m not sure... if we¡¯ll be able to hold the class today¡­ I hope we can, it¡¯s the last day after all.¡± ¡°Because of the rain?¡± Frank still felt on edge, though so far Amethyst hadn¡¯t shown any signs of continuing their fight. Every question could bring them instantly and unexpectedly back to it; even greater care for his words was required than normally. ¡°Yeah. As Tyrchids live high in the trees, they might not come down at all. It¡¯s hard for us to fly when it rains.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Frank narrowly dodges and hops over a puddle of unknown depth, light had just reflected off it in time for him to see it. ¡°Our wings can¡¯t dry and um, become firm... when it¡¯s too humid.¡± As a demonstration, Amethyst pushes a drop of her purple substance through one of the bones of her left head wing. The jelly hangs from her bone crown, battered by rain before falling down. Amethyst catches it on her left hand¡¯s blade. It stretches against the sharp edge but doesn¡¯t break. ¡°See?¡± She offers it to Frank. ¡°T-thanks, I believe you...¡± He politely declines with an open palm. The goop breaks in half and slides from her blade, dropping and disappearing into the flowing grass. ¡°So, that¡¯s how the shards decompose, water just makes them soggy and dissolves them?¡± ¡°Yeah. Water interferes with my flames, too, I¡¯ll need to get my blades dry first if I¡¯m to continue building the house.¡± ¡°Really?¡± That¡¯s strange, not like it¡¯s a traditional fire¡­ I guess the substance is water soluble then? A threatening thought occurs to Frank. ¡°Hopefully Sabertigers don¡¯t attack us during this rain, it might go even worse than last time...¡± ¡°I think we showed them that we can still fight back without our Queen.¡± ¡°Yeah, if they don¡¯t know better by now, it¡¯s their fault.¡± They arrive at the edge of Pango Grove, tents are set up all around, under which the film crew¡¯s camera and electronic equipment have been safeguarded. The staff holds out the rain beneath them too, they follow Frank and Amethyst¡¯s arrival with their gazes, some waving at them. There is also one especially large tent, with a cafeteria-like setup, with a long table. It''s surrounded by sitting personnel, their chattering faintly audible. ¡°I¡¯ll go find Pioneer and talk about the shooting today.¡± Frank looks around the tents, they all seem quite crowded. ¡°Maybe you should go and dry yourself off in the classroom? It''s a bit more spacious than my tree house.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± Amethyst conceded Frank hadn''t after all yet seen, that it wasn''t as much of a closet as it was before. They go their separate ways, Amethyst steps into the dry insides of the Queen¡¯s tree, though streams of murky water flow inside on the wood ground, forming puddles on the uneven dented floor. Maybe I need to do something to keep out the rain from Frank¡¯s home, too? Amethyst shakes herself, the water letting go of her armor and blades, but they still remain moist. At least they didn¡¯t suck in the moisture like her hair; a washed directly downward look. ¡°How¡¯s it going best friend?¡± A sweet voice from behind startles her. ¡°Hi¡­ Luna,¡± Amethyst turns around, Luna¡¯s covered in a thin veil of a raincoat. A see-through shade of red. ¡°Oh my gosh, I just can¡¯t get enough of you saying my name.¡± She brings her hands to her cheeks and closes her eyes. Though her hands don¡¯t actually touch her skin, as they embrace the wet surface of her raincoat¡¯s hood, her gesture splashes water all around. ¡°But you don¡¯t sound that excited, is everything okay?¡± ¡°Oh, well-¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll cheer you up, I¡¯ve got just the thing in mind. All this stardom must be exhausting, what do you say we have some quality time, just the two of us girls? How about a walk down the black river just outside the village, do some fishing, and camp out? How about after today¡¯s shooting?¡± ¡°Frank can¡¯t come?¡± ¡°Frank this, Frank that! You are an independent woman, and this is to be our girl¡¯s trip, we can¡¯t just have a man sleep in our tent with us... Besides what do you even know of Frank, he could be anyone, a heinous criminal, a creepy pervert, do you even know anything of the two men you sleep under the same roof with?¡± Luna¡¯s eyebrows curl questioningly as she flings back the translucent hood, brushing her long, dry hair and throwing them back in a smooth motion. ¡°Do you know where they are from? What¡¯s their agenda? Even their full names? They could be really dangerous you know...¡± ¡°I¡­ well, not really, but-¡± Amethyst''s antennae twitch and she looks past Luna, something catching her eye. ¡°Huh, no? See? It¡¯s good I¡¯m here to make you realize these things, I-¡± Luna takes a step towards Amethyst, but a voice freezes her outstretched hand in the air, cutting her step short, too. ¡°Luna, what are you doing? I heard that, you know.¡± Frank speaks, standing at the entrance, his hands crossed. ¡°Oh-¡± Luna quickly reels in her arm and courtly crosses them behind her back. With her back straight in a courtly posture, she continues: ¡°We were just gonna spend some time together with Amethyst, that¡¯s all, making some plans, just us girls.¡± ¡°Just the two of you?¡± His thin incredulous left eyebrow climbs high, reaching for the sky. ¡°Amethyst, I don¡¯t think that¡¯s a good idea.¡± Luna steps back, in between them like a mediator, addressing Amethyst. ¡°See? Are you going to let him tell you what you can and can¡¯t do? You ought to be free to make your own decisions. Is he your dad or something?¡± ¡°B-but I wanna go and do this fishing thing with her Frank!¡± Amethyst steps forward. ¡°W-what, absolutely not!¡± Frank shakes his head. ¡°I mean, t-that¡¯s dangerous and -¡± ¡°Amethyst is a Tyrchid, she can handle any danger that comes her way! And she doesn¡¯t need your permission, right Amethyst?¡± Luna tilts her head and gestures for Amethyst to make her stand, throwing some droplets around from her wet coat¡¯s sleeves. ¡°I¡­ uhh, sorry Luna, I better not come, maybe you can ask somebody else...¡± ¡°Hmph, well don¡¯t worry about it Amethyst, maybe we can go some other time...¡± Luna looks to her before walking off, turning her nose up when passing Frank. ¡°Why can¡¯t I go with her Frank?¡± Amethyst asks after Luna has left the premises. ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a good idea, she seems¡­ off¡­ You know what I think of her.¡± ¡°But she¡¯s so nice to me, I think she just wants to be my friend.¡± Amethyst throws her hair around with her crystalline dagger hand, ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ you shouldn¡¯t trust her.¡± ¡°Why can¡¯t I have a female friend Frank!?¡± Amethyst snaps, firmly keeping her quivering arms pointed towards the floor, a stiff and rigid position. ¡°What? It¡¯s not about that, she¡¯s dangerous! Luna¡¯s trying to manipulate you, trying to separate us... for whatever reason.¡± ¡°That¡¯s- I- I know a thing or two about manipulation, I would never allow myself to be fooled again!¡± ¡°But that¡¯s exactly what she¡¯s doing! It¡¯s not like Grent¡¯s forceful invention, she¡¯s using sweet words to- ¡°You¡¯re just jealous I have another friend!¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that! Amethyst, please!¡± A splashing of water and the squeak of rubber boots against the floor, Pioneer buts into the conversation. ¡°Everything okay with my two rising stars? We¡¯ve got renovations to showcase.¡± ¡°No,¡± Amethyst says immediately. Frank slightly slower right after her: ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Mhm... well, which one is it?¡± Amethyst looks at Frank annoyed and rolls her hybrid eyes. ¡°Fine... let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll escort you under my umbrella so you won¡¯t get wet.¡± Amethyst scowls at Frank. ¡°Can¡¯t you escort me instead, Pioneer?¡± ¡°Me? N-no that simply won¡¯t do.¡± The rain batters down with a wet splatter and the wind whistles in the branches and leaves outside, filling the silence. ¡°I don¡¯t know what the matter is with you two, but try to get along? We¡¯ve got a show to run.¡± He steps outside of the classroom and goes on ahead, wearing a very wide hat, like a custom-made umbrella. This rubbery-like white round hat, akin to a sombrero, with golden linings, protected him from the rain, mostly. It wouldn¡¯t do for the number one fashion icon to get caught wearing an ugly raincoat or an ordinary umbrella in front of the whole galaxy. ¡°Come on Amethyst. We¡¯ll talk about this later.¡± Frank opens up the umbrella and holds it for her with one hand, inviting her underneath. Amethyst walks up to him and quietly steps under the umbrella, crouching, so he can hold it for her. She holds her dagger hands close to her body, but that only makes her elbow blades stick out more, the tiny umbrella in no way fit to house the tall and wide Tyrchid underneath it. They huddle together, slowly creeping through the drenched village grounds. ¡°Do you think me weak Frank?¡± ¡°No, of course not.¡± ¡°Then why? If you think Luna¡¯s going to do something or is somehow dangerous, I can handle it.¡± She speaks unusually serious and with strange conviction. ¡°She¡¯s just misunderstood and a bit weird, I think you¡¯re taking it a bit far in your accusations.¡± ¡°The way I see it, I¡¯m being completely reasonable about my estimations of her. She¡¯s gotten into your head, so you can¡¯t see it yourself. Whatever claims or questions she¡¯s presenting, it¡¯s best you start to think for yourself on those, instead of listening to her.¡± Frank says his words stinging, seeping with venom. His lips twitch and he continues: ¡°Sorry, that was a bit harsh...¡± ¡°No, you don¡¯t have to hold back your words on my account. I asked you to speak the truth after all. I¡­ I can take it.¡± Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. Frank grits his teeth as a cold breeze blows, the frigid mood firmly stays with them as they arrive at the renovation site. Frank lets Amethyst in first, shakes water off the umbrella by opening and closing it halfway repeatedly, then joins them inside. It¡¯s an open, mostly blank space, a square-shaped room inside a round tree, about six meters in depth. About two and a half meters high, enough for Amethyst to stand inside comfortably, having managed to get through the human-sized door first. A stark but tranquil smell of fresh wood rules over the space. Pioneer awaits them inside, some spotlights set up around in the corners on the entrance-side walls. Two men carry around smaller cameras, mounted on their shoulders, looks like the hover cameras were too big to fit inside. ¡°Welcome back, it¡¯s Day 4 everyone! Explorers, those back home, and those on the cosmic roads: this will be our last official broadcast from the wondrous Midnight Iris! But fret not! We have a very special extra broadcast planned, to give a proper send-off to the Tyrchids and their home! Those of you who¡¯ve been paying attention from early on, already know what it will be about!¡± ¡°While Frank and Amethyst prepare for the dramatic finalization of his house, let¡¯s take a look at this wondrous Black Rain in the meantime.¡± Pioneer winks at Frank and walks back outside. ¡°Armed with my Rainbrero, I can boldly stand here, completely dry, but let¡¯s see this rain, as I stick out my hand-¡± Frank is caught off guard, unprepared for Pioneer looking after them in such a way. Or maybe he just wanted to make sure Amethyst¡¯s blades would be dry when she begins working the wood? ¡°So... the last day is really here, besides the celebration of course¡­ I suppose it was a good call to end it here.¡± ¡°How so? Are you in a hurry? Got somewhere to be?¡± Amethyst looks away, rotating a hand blade on the wall; small splinters of wood fall off. ¡°No¡­ It¡¯s just that... this show has run its course, we¡¯re just doing sort of the same thing each day.¡± ¡°Are you bored of trying to help my kin?¡± ¡°No, of course not. It just feels¡­ strange, almost nostalgic now to think back. Sure, it was only a few standard days but, it felt like a lot longer than that.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true. I¡­ suppose nothing lasts forever.¡± Heh, I really did get used to living here, a nice routine of exciting, if embarrassing G-TV reality acting¡­ What¡¯s up next¡­? The court of ISSA? After this filming¡­ does she even need me? She can just march into the courtroom and get approved. I¡¯m sure Pioneer would be happy to give her a lift there. And just like that, Midnight Iris and the Tyrchids are safe. Would she even want me to come anyway? ¡­ Well, it¡¯s probably not that simple¡­ Also, there is still one threat up in the air¡­ A sigh escapes Frank as he continues to sink into his thoughts. This was such a reckless and spur-of-the-moment decision, that I never really thought what came after. Leaving to Midnight Iris, burning all bridges and then some. Where would I even go if I didn¡¯t go with her? ¡­ Though honestly, I¡¯d rather not go back to Metropolis regardless. ¡°I wonder if we did a good job¡­¡± Amethyst says, the hole she was carving on the wall, halfway up to her blade by now. ¡°I¡¯m not too sure of that either¡± Frank laughs dryly. ¡°But we did our best.¡± Pioneer hurries inside, his hands covered in black and gray liquid, he shakes them around, most of the darkness letting go of his skin. He frantically rubs his hands together. ¡°Brr! F-Frank, aren¡¯t you forgetting something? What kind of a house doesn¡¯t have any sort of heating?¡± ¡°Right¡­ Making a fire on the floor isn¡¯t probably that good of an idea¡­ without any windows or chimneys. Guess this needs some more work, after all, to make it livable. Even after we are done with the interior.¡± ¡°Amethyst, won¡¯t you make a fire for me? I-I¡¯m so cold¡± Pioneer¡¯s teeth clatter, looks like his umbrella hat wasn¡¯t as effective against the fierce winds and pouring rain as he boasted. Undeniable proof was his white tuxedo outfit now sporting black smeared polka dots all around it, stained with the rain. Under that cool exterior, he proved to be a flesh and blood human just like the rest of them. Despite his prideful words, not even he was immune to the seeping cold of rain. Amethyst¡¯s body manufactures more fuel as her gems light up, and her dry, crystalline, dagger hands ignite. She extends them towards Pioneer. A few drops of dark purple goop fall onto the floor from her hands, the remaining water coagulating some of her fuel pushed out of her veins. Like on a campfire, Pioneer warms his hands in the glow of the purple flames. ¡°Ohh, much better. While I warm my hands, why don¡¯t you talk us through some of your building and design choices? Especially those wooden parts jutting out of the wall.¡± He looks back at the cameraman with him and nods towards the walls. ¡°Okay. On the right, and left of the door, I left behind some shelves or small tables, to keep miscellaneous items on. Frank said the more space to keep stuff the better, so I tried to deliver.¡± The shelves stick out from the wood but are actually a part of the tree, the wood carved from around them, to form solid, unyielding tabletops. ¡°On the right, I also made a small chair, next to the table. It can be removed later if it''s not good, but I thought it was fine.¡± Like the storage elements, the wood was carved around it, leaving behind a smoothed-out, floating stool on the wall. One won¡¯t much need legs for chairs when they are firmly a part of the wall. ¡°No, no, that¡¯s perfect! Such quaint and unusual style, and talk about using your materials to their utmost!¡± The ruling element of the right wall; a large wall slab protruding out of the tree. ¡°Here is the main table, I plan to have detachable chairs for it. But I didn¡¯t have time to make them.¡± ¡°Very good¡± Pioneer rubs his hands together and then pulls them away. ¡°Thanks, Amethyst, why don¡¯t you explain more, near the wonderful pieces themselves¡± ¡°Okay!¡± Amethyst walks to the left wall, a cameraman hot on her tail. ¡°I plan to carve more stuff into the left wall, that¡¯s why it''s so empty right now. I¡¯ve put some outlines there already.¡± ¡°And here in the two back corners, I left some shoulder-high shelves.¡± On both sides of the back wall, five stacked shelves are carved, some thirty centimeters apart. ¡°Later I plan on carving the gaps, so that they go inside the wall, so you have storage inside, and outside¡± Frank¡¯s stayed silent for the whole time, but this makes his mouth hang open. ¡°What a brilliant idea! Are you sure you are not actually an interior decorator? Or perhaps an engineer of some sort? Maybe you studied the trade somewhere already?¡± Pioneer asks, sounding like he¡¯d believe it if she said yes. ¡°No, no, I saw them¡­ at Frank¡¯s place. I mean, it wasn¡¯t carved or made of the wall back then¡­ but, I thought it might work¡± Amethyst talks slowly and shyly looks away from everyone else. ¡°Oho? So Frank¡¯s tree house has been inspired by his old house, what a great idea! Don¡¯t you agree, Frank?¡± ¡°Yeah¡­¡± Pioneer gives a questioning gaze at Frank. "You know this showcase was mostly for you, please tell us, what do you think?" ¡°I just don¡¯t know what to say... I didn¡¯t realize before, just how much the shape and size resembled my old living room¡­ Don¡¯t tell me you were trying to recreate the whole thing this entire time?¡± ¡°Mhm¡­¡± ¡°You wouldn¡¯t have any stairs hidden anywhere here for a second floor?¡± Frank asks with a glint in his eye. ¡°No, nothing like that.¡± Amethyst smiles faintly. ¡°It would actually be pretty easy to make a second floor, wouldn¡¯t it? I mean, easier than in a normal house, just need to carve stairs higher and carve the space out. Don¡¯t have to make any supports for it, probably. The floor¡¯s already there and everything.¡± ¡°Are trees the future housing of mankind? Such a versatile and ecological way to build! Though, one can only wonder how many hundred, or even a thousand years these massive trees have been growing here already.¡± Pioneer muses to himself. ¡°Just have to start growing your house a few generations in advance. No big deal. Well, if nothing else, I can certainly keep this in mind for future Sapient Species encounters, maybe some are facing a housing crisis when we meet them. Explorers! Note that down, if I ever wonder about such a problem that can be solved by tree houses, just barrage me with the Tyrchid and the Tree chat emotes until I remember!¡± ¡°Chat¡­ emote¡­?¡± Amethyst tilts her head. ¡°Yeah, of course, every sapient species we visit gets at least a few of their own. Or even some of those we haven¡¯t. But such legends like Flibma¡¯s deserve their own animated dancing one! You should see it jig while going through all the colors of the visible spectrum, it¡¯s simply amazing, truly breathtaking!¡± ¡°Umm¡­ okay?¡± Amethyst responds confused, she had never before felt a concept fly higher over her understanding than just now. Frank holds his head. I¡¯m so out of it all. Am I too old for this or what? Pioneer checks his communicator. ¡°Okay Explorers, stop it with the Flaming Blades, and Sabertiger emotes, I get you want to show them off, but let¡¯s get some real discussion going on. Ahem, if you would continue Amethyst.¡± ¡°That¡¯s about it, for what¡¯s ready. As I mentioned, I plan on doing some more shelves, and detachable chairs. Also some, um¡­ wardrobes on the back wall between the shelves and a bed on the left wall.¡± ¡°A bed?¡± ¡°It¡¯s going to be¡­ a bit hard to lay on¡­ maybe I¡¯ll carve it out so that a mattress can be put on it...¡± ¡°Please do, I¡¯ve been stiff ever since we slept on the ground in the forest¡­ Hard wood is definitely no better¡­¡± ¡°Oho...? Amethyst was there, was she?¡± ¡°That was the day we met, but let''s not get into it more than that.¡± ¡°Aww, Explorers, start theorizing now! What forest was it and where? Though it probably was here in Midnight Iris. Or maybe not, Amethyst did say she¡¯s seen his old house¡­ Oh, but anyway, let''s continue. Though, I must ask, is sleeping in forests a habit of yours¡­?¡± ¡°Kind of, I suppose, but it¡¯s usually called camping. I used to do it quite a bit, I lived my childhood at the edges of Metropolis, so it was easy for me to camp out. Though, even then I had a sleeping bag at least¡­¡± Frank continues with a smirk: ¡°Certainly the mighty Pioneer has had his fair share of uncomfortable forest naps during his wild adventures?¡± ¡°Right, of course, I have, that one time when me and my crew got lost on Klorns 6, we couldn''t find our way back to our campsite, so we all had to spend the night out. Amidst terrible trouble, harsh winds, relentless rain, and erupting volcanoes- Pioneer looks at his communicator. ¡°Shh¡­ Explorers, don¡¯t you remember that time? Surely you all must have just forgotten.¡± Frank looks at Pioneer victorious, his arms crossed. ¡°Anyway, I think that about wraps our renovation of a Tyrchidian Tree, into a habitable house!¡± He looks at Frank and Amethyst, who have nothing more to add. ¡°After these messages, we¡¯ll catch you in the classroom for the final lesson! So don¡¯t go anywhere!¡± He gets closer to the camera and whispers. ¡°During this ad break, maybe you¡¯ll see the first merch preview for you know who¡¯s...¡± Amethyst speaks out hesitantly. ¡°Umm¡­ Pioneer, there might not be a final lesson¡­¡± ¡°Huh? You''re telling me this now!? Why?¡± ¡°We can¡¯t fly well in the rain, so our students might not leave their homes as long as it rains.¡± Pioneer peers outside, the clouds sail in the sky, though a ray of light is visible in the distance. ¡°Hmm, fortunately, it looks to be clearing up. So, what did you have planned for the last lesson anyway?¡± ¡°Oh¡­ um, to teach them the relation between their Tyrchidian words and the English counterpart. I think that¡¯s the next logical step to take.¡± Frank explains after catching his train of thought. ¡°Ah, of course-¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think that will work,¡± Amethyst interjects. ¡°Why?¡± Frank¡¯s demeanor asked the same question as his words. Amethyst crosses her arms. ¡°They could barely say their own names using non-Tyrchidian words, back then. They won¡¯t be able to do it now.¡± ¡°That may be, but shouldn¡¯t we still try?¡± Pioneer asks. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you be on their side, to believe that they can do it?¡± Frank says matching Amethyst¡¯s pose, crossing his arms. ¡°Of course, I am on their side, but¡­ ¡° ¡°Besides, isn¡¯t it proof enough that you can pronounce English? What¡¯s the problem?¡± Pioneer comments and looks between the two. Amethyst grinds her mandibles together inside her mouth, barely visible from the outside as movements of her jaw. ¡°Never mind that...¡± ¡°What do you suggest then? That we just skip today¡¯s lesson, the final one, entirely?¡± Pioneer asks with a harsh tone. ¡°Maybe we could teach them math¡­? Ah... Tyrchidian doesn¡¯t have numbers¡­ maybe they could learn¡­¡± Frank shakes his head. ¡°That probably won¡¯t work either¡­¡± ¡°Uhh, my dear stars, the break¡¯s time is running out, I thought you had a plan ready!¡± ¡°We did¡­¡± Frank says pointedly. Amethyst glares at him. The heavy black rain gradually lets up and turns into a mild drizzle. A few more drops and it stops entirely. Wind¡¯s gales die down to gentle breezes that blow into the makeshift hole-home, as the clouds part and a ray of light shines upon them. ¡°This might sound stupid¡­ but maybe we- they could sing?¡± Amethyst looks outside, at the sky, her skin and hair sparkling. ¡°I think¡­ we can do it.¡± ¡°Sing?¡± Frank asks unsure. ¡°They can sing um¡­ his song as a choir. Don¡¯t those have many members, that each sing? Each bringing their unique voices?¡± ¡°Oh! I like this, what a wonderful idea! Why would we want to sing the Tyrchid¡¯s own song, when they can give us a demonstration of it themselves! Such cultural showcasing, what peerless tradition!¡± ¡°Why do you think they¡¯ll manage that?¡± Frank asks still not sold on the idea. Amethyst answers sternly: ¡°We can use the words they already know, and¡­ I know it''s possible. We are¡­ quite vocal.¡± She steps outside, into the growing, warm sunshine. ¡°The rain¡¯s stopped, they should come out now.¡± ¡°Alright, fine. But you¡¯re forgetting just one thing, do you think-¡± Frank lowers his voice, ¡°Grent has finished the song yet, the notes and the lyrics?¡± ¡°Oh¡­ can you ask him?¡± ¡°I¡­ suppose.¡± Pioneer follows them outside and with his rubber boot, pokes the low amount of melted, purple goop lying on one side of the tree. Most of the sharp shards had decomposed, liquidated by the fierce rain. He powerwalks to his stars: ¡°So, whatever you¡¯re doing, make it snappy. Finish your preparations, I can buy you some time, but I or my audience won¡¯t wait for you forever.¡± ¡°Thanks, it¡¯ll take just a moment.¡± Frank¡¯s eyes shine with newfound determination. ¡°We¡¯ll make it happen Amethyst.¡± ¡°Thank you¡­¡± ¡°Welcome back everyone! You won¡¯t believe what happened, during the break, the endless rain stopped! Just look what it did to these shards! -¡± Pioneer prattles on in the background, as Frank takes out his communicator. He scrolls through his contacts and- ¡°Wait. I don¡¯t even have his number-! We gotta go back to-¡± Frank¡¯s legs disappear from below him and for a moment, he feels like floating, flying in place. Before landing on his back, something hard holds him from right below his shoulders and from the back of his knees. Amethyst¡¯s face appears above him, as she spreads his wings. ¡°Let¡¯s not waste any time.¡± Frank finds himself in Amethyst¡¯s arms, just like back then, carried by her. ¡°P-pioneer, we¡¯ll just be a moment!¡± Amethyst jerks upwards and Frank¡¯s hands frantically look for a solid surface to hold, finding purchase from her back and shoulder. ¡°W-what! L-ladies and gentle-intelligents, there they go! Amethyst and Frank are off, I hear they forgot-¡± The whistling of the wind covers the rest of his no doubt ¡®hilarious¡¯ quip as they soar higher into the sky, clear from the storm clouds. 30. Requiem The black clouds perpetually sail away into the distance, as the two of them fly through the clear skies. Well, more accurately, Frank was just a passenger on Amethyst¡¯s arms, on this Tyrchidian Express. Above the treeline, he sees just how large the village really is, albeit it was tough to put any borders to it. Did it start at that massive tree, or end over yonder¡¯s trunk? Further away, behind the presumed village grounds, almost hidden from sight, a black river glimmered in the sunlight. The tall forest obscured it heavily, but its uncharacteristically reflective surface made it known. A peculiar feature for such dark matter. That¡¯s where Luna wanted to take Amethyst¡­? Some Tyrchids were peeking from their homes, others already down on the ground as small dots. A sudden blue flash on the right and green on the left follows; Tyrchids fly past them, taken to the skies again in the cleared weather. The two speedsters dive back into the canopy beneath, their colorful wings buzzing like a blur as they zigzag at high speed, pulling ahead of the Sunday drivers. Before them, they launch back up into the open air, frolicking through the air: spinning, vaulting, doing all sorts of acrobatic tricks, flying close enough to each other to almost touch... like an aerial dance. An ephemeral feeling of envy, to be free like them, changes to something vexing. If only I could fly, I wouldn''t have needed to bind Amethyst to the ground. Their hard work with Tango, the new steps he invented, feel like an affront, a disgrace. Tyrchids already had their own way to dance, was he- were they, forcing their views of what was accepted and normal on her? Then again¡­ Not only is flying clearly an impossible feat for me... but Amethyst doesn¡¯t even remember her own species¡¯ customs¡­ She did say, she had never danced before. Frank looks up at her determined face while he ponders these things. Her hybrid eyes shift to glare down at him. ¡°I uhh¡­¡± Frank looks away, back to the scenery. ¡°-really hope Grent finished the song¡­¡± ¡°Me too¡­¡± Her reply carries a similar tone of uncertainty. While the forest had seemed like a sprawling maze when they first trekked through the thick foliage, Frank started to recognize some of it now, even from above. Below was the path they had cleared to get to the village, that they now frequented each day. Over there was the clearing... that especially old and wide tree was etched into his mind, ever present in the background of nightmares. Thick and stubby, a full head of scarlet leaves, long and drooping. Getting to see it all from above again, was strangely nostalgic, or perhaps soothing, despite the clenching in his chest. Spotting the Intergalactic Resources base in the distance, along with the two impressive tubes sticking out of it, a thought occurred to him. ¡°At least we don¡¯t have to worry about the anti-air cannons anymore...¡± ¡°Anti-air cannons¡­?¡± Amethyst says. Oh¡­ I never told her about that, didn¡¯t I? I just dismissed her question back then¡­ How am I supposed to explain it¡­? ... Why should I? It¡¯s not even important¡­ Frank shakes his head, breathes deeply through his nose, and concentrates. ¡°Remember that day when we arrived on Midnight Iris? When I told you to suddenly fly lower?¡± ¡°Yeah¡­?¡± ¡°Back then,¡± Frank points at the base. ¡°-those cannons were aiming at us. A blast from those would have blown us both to smithereens.¡± ¡°Those huge things¡­ are weapons¡­?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t want to stress you out, we were in such a hurry... Though I should have still said something after...¡± ¡°You told me now, didn¡¯t you? So... thank you, Frank.¡± She doesn¡¯t say her kind words in any softer tone, yet it feels like progress. Frank doesn¡¯t look at her directly, and they start their descent. Amethyst lays him back on the solid dirt ground, as they arrive at the cliffside-carved clinic. ¡°Can you go ask Grent about it?¡± A question in just the name, her tone made it clear, a negative answer wouldn¡¯t be accepted. ¡°I¡¯ll keep my wings open and ready to head back.¡± She looks somewhere distant, perhaps up at the quarry¡¯s edge. ¡°Oh, sure... I¡¯ll just be a minute.¡± Frank glances at her, but she doesn¡¯t change her heading. He takes off into a jog, hopping through the Amethyst-made triangular door. The lobby is easy to navigate even while running, with all the space made for their dance floor. Frank stops at the lab¡¯s door, which burns a bright red light. Locked, inaccessible without a suitable access card. Blam blam blam. Frank pounds the metal door. ¡°Grent, open up!¡± ¡°W-who¡¯s there?!¡± ¡°It¡¯s me, Frank, of course, who else?¡± The door slides open and Grent fills the doorway, leaning from frame to frame, like trying to take up as much space as possible. ¡°What do you want?¡± ¡°We need the choir song, right now. Please tell me it¡¯s ready?¡± Frank tries to gaze past Grent as if he could see if the song is inside. Grent shifts to block him at each turn. Grent ignores his curiosity: ¡°What do you mean the choir song? You mean the sing-along song?¡± ¡°Right, that one.¡± ¡°Why would you possibly need it now?¡± Grent shakes his head and then plants his hands firmly in the pockets of his coat, his shoulders rising high. ¡°Change of plans.¡± Frank shrugs and asks quickly: ¡°Is it ready or not?¡± Grent sighs exasperated. ¡°Yes... it¡¯s done.¡± ¡°Well, can you give it to me then? The lyrics and the file for the background music?¡± Frank offers his communicator to Grent. ¡°Uh¡­ Well¡­ I¡¯m a bit...¡± Grent throws his neck around and glances behind him. Finally, his shoulders fall and he swipes the device from Frank¡¯s hand. ¡°Fine¡­ just don¡¯t touch anything.¡± What¡¯s his problem? I¡¯ve been to his lab before... Grent trods to his computer and rapidly clacks on the virtual hologram keyboard. ¡°Would it have killed you to plan this in advance, ask me this morning or something?¡± ¡°Well¡­ I wasn¡¯t really planning on a Tyrchid choir either. We kind of left Pioneer hanging, so¡­ as fast as you can.¡± Grent plugs in Frank¡¯s communicator. ¡°Yeah, yeah¡­ not like I have other things to do than act as your monkey wrench...¡± Frank glances around, and spots Amandebot on the operating table, unsurprisingly. However, this time it looks completed, almost fully assembled? Though on and around it are spots and pieces... Resembling¡­ flesh? A nose, lips, forehead¡­? All sorts of body parts. Frank¡¯s chest tightens once more; sudden dread devours his breath. Is that... Jill''s nose? Didn''t she have a mole on the left too? And those earrings... Jack''s ear...? Pineapple hops up and sits on the table next to them, his paw prods a hand, its wrist and fingers wobble like jelly. Oh, it''s artificial¡­ As his head steadies and vision clears, the mole and the earrings are gone. Hah... got me good... For a moment I really thought... A push on Frank¡¯s chest ¨C Grent shoved the communicator into his arms. ¡°Weren¡¯t you in a hurry? Get on with it then, scram.¡± he gestures to the door, like an impatient bouncer. Frank raises his hand with one finger up and is about to gesture at the robot to say something, but as he looks at Grent¡¯s expression, he drops the subject. ¡°Never mind¡­ Thanks.¡± Frank turns around and runs off, Grent closes the door right after him. Plop. Grent turns to see one of Amande¡¯s skin-substitute hands wobbling on the floor. ¡°Very funny. Stop playing around and let¡¯s get back to work.¡± Pineapple picks up a blue wire and holds it in his mouth. Grent receives it and starts to solder it, connecting it to her left wrist¡¯s tiny chip. Afterward, he closes the final open panel and looks upon Amande¡¯s lifeless eyes. Robotic, see-through glass lenses, pure blackness inside still. Where were those luminous eyes of hers? Would he really see them spark to life? He picks up the hand from the floor, slips it on her, securing it in place with a rotatory push. Grasping the cold wrist, he holds her hand, slipping his fingers in between hers. ¡°It¡¯s almost done. Are you waiting for me, Amande? Will you¡­ like it?¡± He sighs deeply and hangs his head. Pineapple nuzzles against their held hands and spooks Grent, who wasn¡¯t looking at the cat. ¡°You wouldn''t have any bright ideas, how to infuse her consciousness into something inanimate?¡° Trails of light start to swirl around Pineapple''s wide furry collar. ¡°N-not literally!¡± The lights wind down, like a physical machine slowing with friction, gradually coming to a halt and dimming down completely. As if frustrated at his restraint, the cat swats the plastic nose off the table instead. ¡°Thanks¡­ ¡° Grent presses his fingers hard on his temples. ¡°If I understand the theory correctly, her essence; data, in eternal stasis, is infused in the pure energy of each shot of the mind ray. If it can find no purchase, nothing for it to cling to, no brain nor substitute of one... The dead remain, as just that... Grent slumps and sits on the table, next to her hips. ¡°Aargh! I can¡¯t do this¡­ alone¡­ you always knew I was the dense one, but still, you loved me¡­ Can I¡­ not even do this for you...?¡± He runs a hand across her cold metal thigh, its surface still shiny and rough without the skin substitute plating. Pineapple emerges from under his arm, walking onto his lap and curling up into a loose ball, starting to purr. He pets the cat, the soft generator of noise, his high notes almost hurt Grent¡¯s ears. Regardless, it''s a soothing moment, purring loud enough to drown out the negative, refresh his mind. Amande¡­ You saw the potential of the mind ray, that ISSA was blind to¡­ If you thought it possible, then it must be so. Pineapple¡¯s jet engine accelerates, as in agreement. ¡°Because of her, you are here now too, Pineapple.¡± Grent takes out the mind ray from his coat pocket, a single suspicious cat eye opens, and peers at the device. "Don''t worry." Grent pets the cat once more, and its eyes close. Grent gazes at the prototype''s steel, smooth angular surface, its geometrically perfect, unnaturally sharp corners ¡ª her prison and sanctuary. He wasn¡¯t ready to realize, it was all that remained of Amande. In this small device; inside it as data and energy, all of her. What was left? An empty shell of an expired snapshot...? No, Amethyst had proved him wrong, there had to be more. A personality, some of Amande¡¯s memories. But¡­ would it really be her? If¡­ When she¡¯d awake, would she be some emotionless, unliving construct, an amalgamation of something else? Would he summon forth a ghost clinging to life inside this machine, an apparition of the past to haunt him? Perhaps hoping for more than an obedient, husk of a slave was too much. Could the data last intact for all this time? Stand on its own without another mind, another person to merge with, fill in the gaps it''s missing? What were the necessary components to forge a person? What parameters were needed? Which conditions had to be fulfilled? "..." A translucent drop of liquid sploshes upon the metal casket¡¯s unrelenting surface, but it didn¡¯t scatter, nor slide off. It stuck, remained intact, like it was determined to stay, to break through onto the other side. To find out what awaited inside, if the person that emerges could be called Amande, his wife, anymore? It didn¡¯t matter now, he would find out, even if it took a lifetime. Even if he had to remain in hiding, on the run forever. Amande would be revived, no matter the cost. *** ¡°Well?¡± Amethyst stretches her bone wings, through their crystal or tinted glass-like substance, the light cast taking on a purple sheen, lighting up the quarry¡¯s dirt floor. ¡°I¡¯ve got them, Grent pulled through.¡± Frank shakes the communicator in his hand. ¡°Great, now let¡¯s go.¡± Amethyst crosses the distance between them with a single step. ¡°W-woah,¡± Frank barely has time to put the communicator back into his pocket, when Amethyst already lifts him into her arms and takes off. ¡°A little warning, please?¡± ¡°I did say: ¡®Let¡¯s go¡¯.¡± ¡°Right...¡± Even if it was in part refreshing to see her be more assertive, this new Amethyst was making him miss the more kind and considerate one at an ever-increasing rate. He sighed and made his peace, he kind of deserved it anyway. As they approach the village, Frank notices Pioneer¡¯s tiny form on the ground, his white attire making him stand out. He points up at the sky, but not directly at them. A faint whirring makes both of their heads turn, a drone hovers up on the left, coming up to meet them. Ugh¡­ Luna¡­ Frank leers at the quadcopter, its gray metal body looks sturdy, and its rotors embedded inside its chassis, rather protected from outside influence. Come on¡­ a bit closer¡­ If I could just¡­ swat that thing down¡­ Frank leans a bit more to the left, not close enough to reach it yet, seriously weighing the pros and cons of establishing aerial superiority. Amethyst follows the drone with her gaze, other than that, she seemed rather disinterested. It leaves them alone as they start descending back to the surface. ¡°Here they are, the triumphant return of our forgetful teachers!¡± Pioneer runs up to them, his film crew following close by. Amethyst lands and begins to retreat her wings back inside; the sheets of crystalline purple shatter, with a sharp breaking sound of glass. Shards rain down, rattling against her armor, and plop into the puddles in the grass, dissolving. Frank hops off Amethyst''s lap, onto a relatively dry spot, shaking himself like a wet dog, some shard pieces let go of the folds of his clothes. Without any audible complaints, he gives his clothes and hair a do-over, quickly swiping them through in case some more shards got stuck. ¡°Now, let us start the final lesson! Imilald! Zigon! Gnox and Ghoxh! Siflin and Sfipoz!¡± Pioneer shouts immediately as Frank has finished patting himself down. ¡°That was all of them right...?¡± Amethyst and Frank are swept right back into the rush of filming, without any time to prepare. Wondering if their students would really answer his call, Amethyst and Frank¡¯s gazes meet. Amethyst soon breaks the moment with a pout, fixing her gaze upwards. ¡°Oh- oh! Here our students come, I mean, of course, they came! Explorers, feel free to add mastery of Tyrchidian pronunciation in your spreadsheets of my various skills!¡± First, Zigon appears, and gradually the other students start to gather around him, looking around aimlessly. ¡°Come on, Amethyst, let¡¯s get the class ready.¡± Frank gestures to her and she follows wordlessly. ¡°Pioneer, why don¡¯t you direct them inside, we¡¯ll¡­ prepare.¡± ¡°Ah, of course, I will act as a substitute, no- an assistant teacher! Right this way!¡± Pioneer marches and directs the Tyrchids inside with grand and sweeping hand gestures, working marvelously. Frank grabs the blackboard, Amethyst¡¯s sharp writing already taking all of the space up on that side. He turns it around and places it back, leaning to the back wall. This side; unburned red-purplish wood. ¡°Won¡¯t you slightly char this side, so we can write the song¡¯s lyrics on the ash of this side?¡± ¡°Fine.¡± While Amethyst blackens the blackboard, Frank takes a look at the file Grent gave him, named: ¡°Tiger_Hymn_Lyrics.txt¡± Inside it, a text wall divided into some sort of verses:
¡°Danger Danger, Sabertiger, Danger, Help Help, Friend, Home, Go, Home, Go. Danger Danger, Sabertiger, Danger, Help Help, Love, Queen, Help, Go! Danger Danger, Sabertiger, Laugh Laugh Laugh, Sabertiger, Go, Laugh Laugh Laugh. Laugh Laugh Laugh, Home, OK, Laugh Laugh, Laugh, Friend, Help, OK! Laugh Laugh Laugh, Queen, OK, Queen, Happy, Laugh Laugh Laugh! Sabertiger, Food, Sabertiger, Food!¡±
Does this tell a story¡­? Tyrchids warn a ¡®friend¡¯ to go protect home and help the Queen, then they laugh as they succeed? Amethyst finishes burning the blackboard and reads the words on the screen over Frank¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Oh- What do you think of Grent¡¯s song?¡± Frank notices her and asks. ¡°It¡¯s¡­ about protecting the Queen¡­?¡± ¡°Yeah, I think so¡­¡± ¡°About¡­ Mom... who Grent made me kill¡­?¡± It¡¯s rather rich coming from him¡­ Isn¡¯t it? But, well, I suppose we can think of it as a requiem, a memorial song for her¡­¡± Raising a mediating open palm, he continues hopeful: ¡°Right...?¡± ¡°I... I¡¯m not sure if we should sing this¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯ll be fine. In case it doesn¡¯t work out, we can change the lyrics. That''s okay, right?¡± ¡°I guess...¡± Amethyst looks at Frank in a peculiar way, but he doesn¡¯t catch the meaning of it. ¡°W-what?¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t this supposed to be a Tyrchidian song?¡± ¡°Y-yes?¡± ¡°Why are the lyrics in-¡± ¡°Oh..." Frank''s face finds the palm of his hand. "Goddess damn that Grent¡­¡± They look up at the class, their students are restless, as is Pioneer, who looks at them sternly, tapping his ring and his foot, the cameras focused on them. ¡°Uh, can you start translating already? I¡¯ll go and give our class their first treats before they get tired of waiting.¡± ¡°Right¡­¡± Amethyst starts carving on the blackboard with her blade while glancing at the communicator Frank left on their crooked table. B-s-i-i... ¡°Here you are¡­¡± Frank goes between each Tyrchid and purchases their patience. Pioneer has switched to talking quietly to the cameras, clearly they took too long. ¡°Nice job, Amethyst,¡± she¡¯s carved half of the first verse, ¡°I¡¯ll help you-¡± Frank looks at the ashen board and then Amethyst¡¯s blades. Somehow¡­ Would it be enough to just write in the ash? Won¡¯t it get smeared really easily? Glancing around, he spots a violet shard, stuck in the crack of her damaged shoulder armor, jotting out of it. It must have gotten stuck there when she broke her wings earlier when they landed. ¡°Excuse me, I¡­ I¡¯ll take this out of your shoulder.¡± With a shaky arm and a voice, he extends a careful hand to take the shard from the hole. It jots out against the thick, nearly a centimeter in depth, armor¡¯s edge. A tiny, tiny, gap between her healed skin and the edges of the shoulder armor is visible. What would happen if the shard slips inside? A sharp rock, more like a blade, in one¡¯s shoe, except you can¡¯t take the shoe off, ever? The piercing pressure, sharp sting not just against the sole of your feet, but your chest, stomach, hips¡­ Wherever the shard would end up. Like nails against a board, the thought makes him reel with a piercing shudder, the worst-case scenario makes his hands that much more unsteady. Amethyst stops writing and looks down at Frank, scowling along the bridge of her non-existent nose. Swiftly he grabs the shard, spurred on by the moment. ¡°R-right, let¡¯s write¡­! I¡¯ll start the second verse already.¡± Frank copies what Amethyst had written, as the start was the same, and then he tries to remember some Tyrchidian himself with varying success. At least, Amethyst, still helped him with the answers when he forgot some words. Halfway through translation, space is becoming a bit of an issue, the blackboard wasn¡¯t that big. Frank¡¯s shard-writing was a bit slower than Amethyst¡¯s but more accurate and smaller. ¡°If you can, try to keep your handwriting as small as possible, our space is limited. I¡¯m sure Pioneer¡¯s cameras are powerful enough to see it either way.¡± Amethyst looks down at him for a moment with a furrowed brow, before continuing to write, with slightly smaller slashes. ¡°Thanks¡­¡± After a few more minutes, they¡¯ve finished writing the translation:
¡°Bsii Bsii Bsii, Blizh, Bsii, Bhli, Bhli, Shuzs bfhusz, Flufvz, Ghs, Flufvz, Ghs. Bsii Bsii Bsii, Blizh, Bsii, Bhli, Bhli, Mofs, Floohsh, Bhli, Ghs! Bsii Bsii Bsii, Blizh, Flh Flh Flh, Blizh, Ghs, Flh Flh Flh. Flh Flh Flh, Flufvz, Fxh, Flh Flh Flh, Shuzh bfhusz, Bhli, Fxh! Flh Flh Flh, Floohsh, Fxh, Floohsh, Fosm, Flh Flh Flh! Blizh, Shfluz, Blizh, Shfluz!¡±
The class is unsurprisingly bored and rowdy with their excess downtime. Pioneer on the other hand seems to have been reduced to performing some sort of puppet show, at least if his hands were anything to go by. Who knows what that was about. ¡°Ahem! We will start the vocal class now! Today, we¡¯ll teach you to sing, and hopefully in a choir-like formation.¡± Frank¡¯s booming voice and a tactical reveal of a Pango grape, allow him to regain their attention. He points at the board, at the first word, all of the class¡¯ blades rise, to get a turn to answer. ¡°Right¡­¡± Frank sighs. Of course, they won¡¯t just ¡®sing¡¯ it, when we¡¯ve taught them to respond like this. Let¡¯s just take this easy now¡­ Amethyst looks at him amused, as Frank turns to her and suggests the usual strategy. Music starts playing from Frank¡¯s communicator; a slow hymn of organs. He points at each of the lyrics, Amethyst pronounces them, like having a slow conversation, rather than singing. Grent¡¯s song also incorporates some occasional flutes and surprise trumpets. An unexpectedly classic and traditional sort of sound, was this Grent¡¯s idea of what normal music should be like? Who knows, but in Frank''s head he seemed more of a galaxy-rock kind of guy. In response to this new audio stimulus, the Tyrchid¡¯s antennae dart and shift around, as do their eyes. Seemingly struggling to place the origin of these strange new sounds. Zigon eyes around suspiciously, his blades slightly raised, like preparing to protect himself. His sharp gaze soon fixates upon the small strange device in one of his teacher¡¯s hands. Amazingly the golden sisters seem to completely ignore the music and the demonstration. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.Instead, poking each other¡¯s armor with their blades, taking turns, targeting different spots each time, distinctly resembling some sort of a game. Gnox is standing up vigilantly, ready to face this new threat head-on. His black crystals glowed, blades smoldering with purple embers. Ghoxh shakes behind him, her long legs rattling, relying on him for protection against this assault of instruments. Imilald¡¯s legs tap in turn against the wood floor and her antennae sway, seemingly into the music, ignoring the rest of the class¡¯ reactions entirely. Amethyst looks at their students, her uncertain stare and strained lips are met with Frank¡¯s encouraging nodding and hand gestures to keep singing. As they got through the whole song, the class has calmed down, used to the music. Frank stops the song. ¡°Maybe this will work after all¡­¡± Amethyst smiles faintly. ¡°You¡¯ll see, I¡¯m sure of it. They¡¯re a bright bunch.¡± ¡°Right!¡± Positivity climbs up higher in her demeanor. Frank gives them all a berry and begins the lesson again. He points at the first ¡®Bsii¡¯ of the song, and the class lifts their hands again. They absorbed the old lessons a bit too well¡­ But¡­ Frank sweeps a hand, pointing at each and every Tyrchid in class, they all say ¡°Bsii¡± at different timings, with their own unique voice and inflection, a near cacophony. The Tyrchids glance at each other, clearly confused about this change that went against their previously learned patterns. Well¡­ that kind of worked¡­ Frank keeps it up, pointing at words, then giving everyone explicit permission to answer, in rapid succession, like a director of a classical piece, more than a choir. He makes it work, but the performance is more evocative of a noisy mob than singing. Amethyst looks between Frank, the ¡®singing¡¯ Tyrchids, and Pioneer. The latter seeming unhappy, his fingers tapping against his pure white trousers, painted with splattered black spots from the rain, now dry. He frequently adjusted his sunglasses and made hasty gestures in front of the camera at some points. Amethyst understood Pioneer properly for the first time, she was feeling it too. Unhappy, and dissatisfied with their lesson for the first time, but she wasn¡¯t exactly sure what was wrong with it. It felt¡­ forced like they were teaching something against their very nature. She ponders for a moment more, why she had that feeling. She was after all the one that had felt singing would be a good idea¡­ A reason, other than them having promised a performance like that to Pioneer. The ¡®singing¡¯ voices of her students fizzling out one by one, causes her to open her eyes again. They just finished the first verse, but now the choir looked around, repeating ¡°Shfluz?¡± to each other and towards their teachers. ¡°Uh¡­ Fine¡­¡± Frank gives them all two berries and then continues the lesson. They almost get through the second verse, but the same phenomenon happens again. With a sigh, Frank gives them more berries and as he returns to the front, to continue the lesson, Amethyst can¡¯t let this farce go on any longer. ¡°We should drop the lyrics.¡± Frank is just about to raise his hand to continue; her words freeze it in the air. ¡°The lyrics? But Grent made them for us? We promised a song, a choir, it won¡¯t be one without lyrics.¡± Frank says insisting and brings down his hand finally. ¡°Okay, let¡¯s say we do drop them. What then? Would it just be the music?¡± ¡°I¡­ I think¡­ we should drop the music too¡­¡± ¡°What? There won¡¯t be anything left without it.¡± Frank¡¯s hands root themselves to his hips. ¡°This clearly isn¡¯t working either.¡± Amethyst crosses her hands. ¡°Maybe it¡¯d help if you¡¯d assist as well, maybe sing too to keep them in tune and rhythm?¡± ¡°It wouldn''t help.¡± ¡°How do you know? We haven¡¯t tried it!¡± ¡°W-well-!¡± ¡°Ahem!¡± Pioneer stands right in front of their teacher¡¯s desk. ¡°I took the liberty to send us on an ad-break, due to the clear issues you are having. So please try to figure it out in the break. You¡¯re almost to the finish line, don¡¯t give up now!¡± Pioneer clenches his fist and brings it to his chest, in an encouraging manner. ¡°R-right¡­ I- I think I need some fresh air.¡± Frank hurriedly leaves Amethyst and the students in the classroom and goes outside, leaning against the great tree¡¯s trunk. The suns warmed up his face gently, the sky no longer bearing any ill will, just pure azure, with a tinge of violet in the horizon from the atmosphere. Gah! Drop the lyrics and the music too? Just when I got them to sing! ¡­ Not that it sounded good by any measure... What do we do? This is all going terribly¡­ His head leans against his fingers, which pinch the bridge of his nose. What am I doing? As he sighs and lifts his gaze, he spots Luna, fiddling around with her drone ahead. Without hesitation, he bounces up and strides up to her. As his shadow looms over her, she looks up. ¡°Luna, what the hell was that? What are you trying to do?¡± ¡°Maintenance, a stellar job at it, too. Thank you very much.¡± She taps the drone¡¯s hard plastic surface and smiles innocently. ¡°No, not that.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you like the drone filming you being princess-carried? You should be grateful to have gotten the opportunity to be carried on Amethyst¡¯s arms like that. Exactly like the mythical royalty.¡± She sighs dreamily. ¡°Anyway, I think it was a real successful shooting, I¡¯m sure the audience will appreciate seeing you like that.¡± Luna gets up and brushes her purple blouse with her hands. ¡°I doubt it! But this isn¡¯t about that, don¡¯t change the subject!¡± ¡°But we aren¡¯t even talking about anything yet?¡± With a single finger on her chin, she looks lost in thought into the distance. A faint wicked grin curling up on her painted lips. ¡°Argh! Stop playing around!¡± Frank points at her with his accusation, ¡°You¡¯re manipulating, gaslighting, Amethyst! Why are you trying to get in between us?¡± ¡°Those are some pretty serious claims you know, I don¡¯t have any idea what you are talking about though.¡± She shrugs absently. ¡°You¡¯ve been hostile towards me from the first time we met! And just today you were filling Amethyst¡¯s head with nonsense and lies about me...¡± Frank walks closer to the woman, slightly shorter than him. Her head held high, she doesn''t fall back a single inch. ¡°Was that really a lie? Are you not a criminal, Frank?¡± ¡°What? No, that¡¯s-¡± His advance stops in its tracks. ¡°And that other man, isn¡¯t he some unhinged scientist?¡± H-how can she know? Did Amethyst tell her? ¡°I¡¯m just looking out for Amethyst, good thing too with such dangerous men on the loose, trying to get their grimy hands all over her.¡± She looks at her own pristine hands, brushes her fingers together, and then checks her long gorgeous nails, colored deep purple. ¡°No, you are just twisting the facts, mixing around the truth and lies in her head!¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯m not the one who denied Amethyst¡¯s fishing trip for no reason. We would have had so much fun... Thanks to you, she¡¯s finally waking up to how clingy and controlling you¡¯ve been!¡± ¡°That¡¯s not true! I was maybe a little harsh today, but it¡¯s all because of you!¡± Frank raises his voice, Pioneer¡¯s crew around them who had been watching them from the sidelines, erupt in gasps and gossip among themselves. ¡°So you admit it then, you¡¯re exerting your toxic influence to control her. You must enjoy being able to manipulate her to your whims so well.¡± Luna laughs. ¡°Like, who do you think you are? Her father or something? You¡¯re not even her boyfriend!¡± ¡°I¡­ it¡¯s complicated.¡± Frank squirms and holds his neck from behind with an awkward hand. ¡°I don¡¯t see what¡¯s so complicated. Sure, she might be another species but love doesn¡¯t just stop at the barriers of biology.¡± Luna¡¯s lips curl to a smug smile and she looks directly into Frank¡¯s eyes, defiantly. ¡°I am proof of that, you know.¡± She whispers sultry, with a hand pressed to her chest. ¡°W-what? You? No way.¡± Frank scoffs and laughs, dismissing the absurd claim away with a wave of his hand. ¡°Y-yes, way!¡± Her lips form a quivering pout, barely avoiding revealing a harsher expression. ¡°I plan on confessing my feelings to dear Amethyst soon¡­ So, stay out of our way.¡± Her wicked smile returns. She must be bluffing, she... can¡¯t be serious! Frank is left speechless, as she gets the final say. ¡°Anyway, I tire of this conversation, toodle-oo¡­ Frank¡­¡± She says his name in a completely different, cold tone, as he picks up the drone and moves elsewhere. Different species relations weren¡¯t that rare in the galaxy¡­ But still¡­ Is she really-? ¡°Hey! Wait! I wasn¡¯t done yet!¡± Contrasting Luna¡¯s sickeningly sweet voice, Pioneer calls out to him, with a much harsher and deeper tone: ¡°Frank! Where are you? Break time¡¯s running out!¡± He hails to him from the entrance of the Queen¡¯s residences. ¡°Coming...¡± Frank hurries back to their school, failing to get any rest nor figure out a solution on his break, only serving to further his turmoil. Amethyst awaits him still exactly at the same spot as before. As Pioneer starts counting down with his fingers, to the end of the break, Frank says to her: ¡°Sorry¡­ about that. I-¡± ¡°D-don¡¯t worry about it. I think¡­ I got this.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Then they are live again, fortunately, their students didn¡¯t feel like skipping class during his absence. Without any word of explanation, Amethyst steps forward and closes her eyes. She opens her mouth, letting her mandibles come out, and begins humming a long note, accompanied with buzzing from her rapidly moving mouth blades. ¡°Hmmm h-hmm mmmm~,¡± Amethyst sways from side to side, along with her harmonious melody. A tranquil note, that the Tyrchids quickly join in, all with slightly different frequency. She keeps on going, all of them united in this ballad, like they are all on the same wavelength, knowing what came next, how to compliment each other¡¯s different voices. ¡°Mm m-m hmm mm~¡± Their voices vibrate and drum deeply in the surprisingly acoustic Queen¡¯s residence. Like a hymn, bright and impressive, rousing hope in one¡¯s chest. Frank and Pioneer are mesmerized by this unexpected development, Amethyst and their students found a united tune so easily, so naturally. Then, Amethyst grimaces, her eyes shut tighter letting loose trails of tears. She returns to the past, to her Mother, to the brutal scene where she was murdered. She lives again the grief, of her and her kin, when they taught the word Queen to them. The silence of the funeral pyres fills her, the acrid smell of fire and death invades her mind. Wordlessly she sings those feelings out, letting out the sadness and sorrow. The melancholy of her present and past saturates her and all of the Tyrchid¡¯s voices. ¡°Nnn- nnn hhmm nn-mm~¡± Some parts are vaguely in the rhythm of Grent¡¯s song, but it is distinctively her own piece. Her voice rises to a crescendo. She melodically screams out, reminiscent of her wailing when she called for her mother after escaping Grent¡¯s lab. Her last call, the final hope for her mother¡¯s well-being crushed. A serene scene of pure sadness. Then, she stops. The class keeps the final wail-verse up for another round and then falls silent too. Pioneer claps quietly for a moment and brushes his eyes. As the silence takes over the classroom, they hear the whole village echoing, reverberating with the same song. They all walk outside, drawn to the magical sound. Tyrchid¡¯s all around stopped to join in on the song; on the ground, in the forest, while flying in the air, too. Their colorful hair and antennae swaying with their blades and legs. Heads peek out from the high-up hole-homes, bringing in their unique far-away sound as an echo. Frank¡¯s touch on Amethyst¡¯s shoulder catches her off guard. He smiles and nods, a gesture which she returns. Leaning slightly towards his hand, her hair tickles the back of his palm. Slowly, the song starts to fade and then stops completely, the Tyrchids returning to whatever they were doing before. Frank retreats his hand and gives Amethyst a bit of space. ¡°I hope I¡¯m not ruining the moment, but I just wanted to say-¡± Pioneer holds his hand solemnly against his chest and with the other gestures around him. ¡°This is why I do all this, what I wish to show the universe. Share the unknown magic, the spectacle of sapient life. Everyone has their own way, their story. Moments like these, are truly the pinnacle of my career. All species should have the right to bring out their culture and enrich the galaxy in their own ways. This is why I do this, why ISSA, goes through all the trouble.¡± Pioneer brings his hand in a grand gesture before himself and bows deeply. ¡°Thank you, Amethyst and Frank, it''s been my pleasure." I hope you all enjoyed the show! My most sincerest thanks to each and every one of our viewers and of course, my very special supporters, you, the Explorers. This has been our last full-length episode, but I will catch you all in the celebration, it¡¯ll certainly be a night to remember!¡± Pioneer twirls around, poses with his glasses and announces his catchphrase. ¡°Keep on being curious and remember, a little exploring a day keeps the mind keen and boredom at bay! Pioneer, out!¡± He finishes with his free form, stylized wave, and the cameras and staff start to disperse with loud congratulatory chattering. By then their students had already gone on their way, disappeared right after the song ended, do doubt. What did their lessons mean to them? Did they enjoy the lessons? Truly learn anything? Were they¡­ sapient? One would think they would have come to¡­ say goodbye? Or perhaps not, there¡¯s no ¡®goodbye¡¯ in their language. No ¡®thanks¡¯. But still... Do something? I wonder what Amethyst is thinking right now... Amethyst¡¯s trails of tears have dried translucent paths on her face. She faces the suns, basking in their glow. Pioneer strides to them. ¡°We¡¯ll have the celebration when the dusk starts, got to have that incredible night atmosphere, am I right? As it happens we¡¯re always stocked in all sorts of party decorations, lights, confetti you name it. We can handle setting up the place and the cameras.¡± So it¡¯s gonna be a ¡®human¡¯ party, at least in looks. Though, what would a ¡®Tyrchidian¡¯ party even look like? ¡°We¡¯ll have almost a full Midnight Iris¡¯ day before it starts then?¡± Amethyst converses with Pioneer. ¡°Yeah, about 35 hours until dusk, I believe. I trust that¡¯s not an issue?¡± ¡°No, I don¡¯t think so.¡± ¡°Where should we arrange the party, any ideas?¡± Pioneer asks from Amethyst, to which Frank interjects. ¡°Not here, it¡¯ll probably be too loud for them, right?¡± Amethyst answers him with a slight nod. ¡°Hmm, maybe it should be somewhere close to the, um, hotel? So you can set up everything easier as it''s closer. Maybe you can find a clearing there, though the vegetation is probably much thicker there as well.¡± With Frank taking over the discussion with Pioneer, Amethyst spots from the corner of her eyes, as Luna gestures to her from behind a tree. ¡°Hmm, we¡¯ll look into it, I¡¯m sure we¡¯ll find a suitable spot,¡± Pioneer says. ¡°Maybe near the landing pads?¡± Frank ponders with him. They clearly don¡¯t need her for this talk, so Amethyst slips away. ¡°What if¡­ on the landing pads? No¡­ that¡¯s way too industrial for the party.¡± ¡°Perhaps, but I think I saw a suitable clearing near them from the air...¡± Luna waits for Amethyst and as she gets close enough, she takes her wrist in between her hands. ¡°Amethyst, are you sure we can¡¯t go? If not camping, then at least fishing! It¡¯s our last day and everything!¡± ¡°I¡­¡± Luna¡¯s gaze falls to the trampled red grass, the small shard pieces among them not entirely melted. ¡°After the party, I will be gone... who knows if we will ever see each other after that...?¡± Amethyst looks back at Frank, but¡­ he¡¯s not there. ¡°Amethyst.¡± His voice on her left makes her jump. ¡°F-frank!¡± ¡°Oh great, the eavesdropper.¡± Luna crosses her arms and looks away. ¡°F-frank, I-!¡± Frank holds out a hand to interrupt her and sighs. ¡°Amethyst, save it.¡± ¡°B-but!¡± ¡°Let¡¯s talk about this properly and privately, okay?¡± Frank says and pointedly glares at Luna. ¡°O-oh, okay, sure,¡± Amethyst responds quickly, in a daze. ¡°If I see you anywhere near us, Luna, that¡¯s the end of our negotiations.¡± ¡°Okay, okay!¡± Luna holds up both hands in surrender and Pioneer appears next to her. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll take care of her.¡± He smiles mysteriously, his intent hidden behind his glasses. ¡°Uh, thanks...¡± Frank gestures to Amethyst and they walk together, arriving in the classroom. They take a seat on the student¡¯s benches, next to each other. ¡°Alright¡­¡± Frank¡¯s eyes bright with sincerity, shine to meet Amethyst¡¯s. ¡°You can go fishing with Luna.¡± ¡°What? J-just like that?¡± ¡°Yes. I¡¯d like to clarify some things, though.¡± Amethyst carefully nods as an answer and he continues. "I didn¡¯t have a problem with you going to fish or spend any time without me. My objective was never to be controlling.¡± Frank pauses, for the inevitable upcoming conjunction. ¡°But¡­ I need you to understand. As nice as Luna might seem, I¡¯ve met her kind before; don¡¯t trust everything she says or you will get hurt.¡± Amethyst ruminates on his words for a moment before speaking up. ¡°She may be a little intense and quite rude to you... but¡­ I think she¡¯s just¡­ a bit of a complicated person.¡± ¡°If that¡¯s what you think, then that¡¯s fine. But please¡­ don¡¯t just believe everything she says as fact or do whatever she tells you to.¡± Frank takes Amethyst¡¯s hands to his, holding onto her wrists. ¡°Think, really think for yourself. If you can promise me that, I¡¯d really put me at ease.¡± Frank looks deep into her multitude of eyes, a strange sensation, but as long as all the pupils acted in unison, it wasn¡¯t as weird as one might think. Amethyst looks down at their hands joined together. Think for myself¡­ I thought I knew the truth¡­ But who is in the right here? Luna¡­ Or Frank? Amethyst¡¯s expression hardens, and she looks back at Frank again. ¡°Please... tell me, how do I know you aren¡¯t the one taking advantage of me?¡± Amethyst''s voice almost breaks, close to becoming illegible buzzing by the end, she looks away once more. Frank retreats in shock and lets go of her. ¡°I¡­ I can¡¯t prove my trustworthiness to you any more than I already have. If all of my actions don¡¯t speak for themselves. If my sacrifices weren¡¯t enough, all that I¡¯ve done...¡± ¡°There must be something¡­! Tell me, please¡­¡± Amethyst¡¯s antennae droop and she fights against her tears as she speaks. ¡°How can I trust you? I¡­ I really want to¡­ but¡­¡± ¡°Trust once broken, is infinitely harder to regain; I think is the gist of a wise saying. I won¡¯t belittle it, or make excuses for breaking our promise, just know, that I regret it, that I¡¯m sorry. I promised not to lie, and regardless of it, of what our promise truly meant for me, I still did. If it¡¯s difficult to trust me or anyone else, I completely understand...¡± She has all the right to be torn, suspicious. Not even mentioning Luna¡¯s bad influence¡­ ¡°I¡­ just don¡¯t know what to think.¡± How am I supposed to know who to trust? Who everyone is¡­? What they really want? When I don¡¯t even understand myself? ¡°Trust is always a risk¡­ You just have to first trust yourself to make the right choices.¡± But Luna said¡­ Amethyst shakes her head. Frank sighs deeply. ¡°You are not a child, you should make your own decision on this. Isn¡¯t that what you wished for? You need to ask yourself, based on everything we¡¯ve talked about. Everything Luna has done. Do you think you can still trust her? Do you want to take the risk?¡± Frank hesitates, but says it anyway: ¡°After everything I have done... if you can still trust me.¡± Amethyst¡¯s tears break and splash on her armor, on her hand blades. Her body heaves up and down before she looks at him again. ¡°If¡­ I go fishing with Luna, can we still be together? You won¡¯t¡­ be mad?¡± Together...? ¡°As long as you heed my advice, I won¡¯t be mad.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be careful, I¡¯ll¡­ think." Her antennae move back up, to their full attention as her tears run dry. ¡°Thank you, Frank, you know, you are sophisticated, too.¡± A short burst of unexpected and dry laughter later, they both smile. ¡°Well, have fun, I have things planned for today too.¡± Frank stands up. ¡°Oh, you do?¡± ¡°Well, Grent doesn¡¯t know of my plans yet, but I¡¯m sure I can persuade him. Would be a shame not to use the Sauna even once in our time here. I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll join me.¡± ¡°W-with G-grent?¡± ¡°Yeah, is that a problem?¡± Frank asks feigning ignorance. ¡°N-no¡­ of course not...¡± Against his better judgment, Frank teases her a little with a rising and flowing intonation. ¡°Are you sure? You¡¯re not lying, are you?¡± ¡°No, there¡¯s no problem,¡± Amethyst answers factually. ¡°As long as you heed your own advice.¡± Amethyst tilts her head and smiles radiant. ¡°Hah. I will. Don¡¯t worry about me, and I don¡¯t have to worry about you. Deal?¡± ¡°Deal.¡± ¡°Have fun!¡± Frank watches her chitinous back as Amethyst leaves, and his smile fades. I don¡¯t know what Luna¡¯s trying to pull, but I can hazard a guess... I won¡¯t let you become another victim... I¡¯ve got your back, even if you don¡¯t want it. But¡­ I¡¯m sure it won''t come to that. 31. Cold Water As Frank and Amethyst walk away together to have their talk, Pioneer and Luna are left behind. Pioneer takes off his shades and spins them between his fingers from their temples. ¡°Maybe your CV should have had an entry for ¡®assertive¡¯, ¡®pushy¡¯, and ¡®prone to making trouble¡¯? Instead of whatever else you wrote as your ¡®personality¡¯.¡± ¡°Oh, thank you so much!¡± Luna shoots off the tree she leaned against and clasps her hands together in delight. ¡°I¡¯ll make sure to add them in later.¡± Pioneer sighs. ¡°That wasn¡¯t a compliment¡­ let me spell it out for you.¡± He points at her with the glasses, a bright sun¡¯s ray reflects and dances on Luna¡¯s shirt with his motions. ¡°Would it kill you to have a bit of shame and not mingle so much with our filming subjects? How unprofessional can you be?¡± ¡°Oh, but it just might be my demise¡­¡± Luna¡¯s head tilts as she hugs her arms and squirms. ¡°Amethyst is such a dear, such a cute little thing. I couldn¡¯t possibly stay away from her...¡± ¡°Right¡­¡± Pioneer pushes the glasses on again. ¡°Regardless, you shouldn¡¯t antagonize Frank. Don¡¯t think I¡¯m blind to what happens, even if I¡¯m not personally present to see it.¡± ¡°He¡¯s a big boy though, he can take it.¡± Luna crosses her arms and leans on the tree. ¡°Luna...¡± ¡°Fine¡­¡± She rolls her eyes and her dismissive palm faces the sky. ¡°As long as we¡¯re clear.¡± Luna observes Pioneer who faintly taps his foot and fiddles with his ring. He no longer seemed to have any interest in her, just resigned to wait. Staring at him, she tracks where his barely visible eyes lead. At the forest¡¯s edge, underneath a small tent, are two nurses. In front of a table with water bottles, white pill containers, dressing, and some instruments. By Luna¡¯s recollection, the older woman was Carol, a senior and the leading nurse of the film crew. The other one, a newbie, a trainee, with a ridiculous name of Friday. Though her name didn¡¯t sully her in the slightest, almost as sweet of a snack as Amethyst herself, she had made close friends with her too. Carol explains with her hands, a plastic pill bottle shaking along with it. Friday listens quietly and nods along. She hands it to Friday, who points at it and asks something. As she puts it on the table after, she fumbles it, tipping on its side and rolling off on the grass. As Carol leans to pick it up, she notices Pioneer, she waves at him and then picks up the bottle. Pioneer answers the wave, covertly and quickly, ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Luna audibly hums and gets a scowl from Pioneer, at least if the creases on his brow were any indication. ¡°Hi, Luna!¡± Friday¡¯s young voice carries the distance, Luna flinches and Pioneer looks down his nose at her, his raised eyebrows visible over the rim of his orange glasses. ¡°Lunaa!¡± Friday shouts again and waves with both hands in a large arc to get her attention. Luna stands up properly and looks around like she didn¡¯t already know where Friday was, before exaggeratedly spotting her. She presses her teeth together into a big smile and responds with a sharp and concise wave. ¡°O-oh! Hi, Friday!¡± Carol taps Friday on the shoulder and they get back to whatever they were discussing before, their backs partially turned to them. Luna and Pioneer both turn to stare at each other without saying a word. It''s infinitely irritating to not see his full expression; the sunglasses, a powerful tool for masking one¡¯s intent... What was he thinking behind that smug demeanor? Something clever and quippy I bet. Gah, what a pain¡­ She looked harder, but only the orange sheen answered, reflecting her own twisted image back at herself. For a moment, it feels like her heart stops, she doesn''t recognize the reflection. Luna¡­? Who the fuck was that? She quickly blinks her eyes, each time, a different person looking back at her from this cursed mirror. After the fifth blink, she regains her senses, like returning back to her own body. A cold sweat breaks on her brow, which she swiftly erases with the back of her palm. Pioneer takes his sunglasses off and looks at her concerned. ¡°Luna¡­?¡± ¡°I- I¡¯m fine¡­¡± Come on¡­ keep it together¡­ ¡°Really, I am.¡± Like on cue to bail her out of this awkward situation, Amethyst emerges from the classroom. In the background, Frank takes his leave; giving the film crew a wave, who eagerly return the gesture. Luna watches closely as he disappears into the forest. Amethyst walks up to them. ¡°So! Amethyst, all good to go now?¡± Luna smiles, but the edge of her lip twitches. Amethyst is about to answer but Pioneer interrupts her. ¡°Hey, not so fast. I need to have your interview.¡± ¡°You couldn''t have done that earlier?!¡± Luna spits out. Pioneer stares back at her sternly, but it quickly fades into a more forgiving expression. ¡°Interview?¡± Amethyst tilts her head. ¡°Yeah, like Frank had his surprise interview. Again, not much of a surprise, if I told you beforehand. Best that way.¡± Pioneer looks at Luna with side eyes without moving his head. ¡°But as the secret¡¯s out now, I need to have the interview, stat.¡± ¡°I mean¡­ can we have our fishing trip first?¡± Luna says and flutters her long lashes. ¡°Please...?¡± She elongates her words. ¡°Dear, Pioneer? It¡¯s really important...¡± Pioneer holds his head and shakes it. ¡°Fine, I guess she deserves a break. And, you probably need one too¡­¡± He clears his throat. ¡°We¡¯ll just start the party preparations early. But you can be out for max three hours! Then I¡¯ll need you to get back to work, and my star to attend her Interview before more well-deserved R&R!¡± ¡°Just three hours?! Ugh...!¡± She rudely spouts out and turns to Amethyst. ¡°Let¡¯s make the most of our time, shall we?¡± She sings cheerily to her and takes her wrist. Pioneer buckles his head and leaves them.
As they leave the village¡¯s presumed premises, Amethyst finally asks Luna: ¡°What is fishing... exactly?¡± ¡°You wanted to go despite not knowing? Oh, I¡¯m so happy. A true testament to how badly you wanted to be with me¡­ just the two of us¡­¡± An ephemeral dangerous grin surfaces and cuts through her lips. ¡°You know what fish are, right? It¡¯s just a pastime where we catch them.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ right¡­ We do eat fish, too.¡± ¡°You do? What¡¯s part of the Tyrchid diet, apart from fishies and sandwiches¡­?¡± ¡°Umm¡­ everything, I think. Birds, animals-¡± For some reason, Amethyst suddenly felt a bit queasy after saying that. ¡°-fish, berries¡­¡± She continues the list to the end, and the feeling disappears. ¡°The Pango Berries are especially our favorites if not especially filling.¡± ¡°Haven¡¯t you gone fishing before then, if you eat fish already?¡± Luna ponders, her hand on her chin, it falls to run down her neck, stopping before hitting the wide, golden gem-adorned necklace. ¡°I guess? I mean, not that I exactly remember fishing¡­ But when I think about fish, I get a feeling they are edible, so we must have eaten them.¡± ¡°What?¡± Luna stops and stares at her, but Amethyst keeps on walking. ¡°Uhh¡­ nothing.¡± Amethyst quickly changes the subject and Luna catches up with her. ¡°Do you do a lot of fishing?¡± ¡°Here and there, though I usually land a lot bigger and tastier prey than any normal fish. But you can say that I am quite an experienced... angler.¡± Luna winks at her. ¡°I see¡­¡± Amethyst trails off and racks her brain. ¡°Don¡¯t they usually use fishing¡­ poles? Or some other things for it?¡± ¡°Yeah, they do.¡± ¡°Where¡¯s all your equipment?¡± ¡°Oh, I don¡¯t catch my prey with poles...¡± She licks her lips and looks at Amethyst, who stiffly ignores her hungry gaze. Luna swoops down and picks up a long stick from the ground mid-walk. ¡°I use spears instead.¡± ¡°O-oh¡­ Me too¡­ kind of¡­ I think?¡± ¡°We both have similar favored weapons, how great is that!¡± Luna says, continuing herself again after Amethyst doesn¡¯t respond. ¡°Anyway, is it still long to the river?¡± ¡°I thought you knew the way?¡± ¡°I just heard there¡¯s a river nearby¡­ but you do know where it is, right?¡± Luna¡¯s expression changes to exaggerated shock, her hands at the sides of her slacked jaw. ¡°Or¡­ could it be, are we hopelessly lost? Oh no! Two persons, alone and stranded in the wilderness. Oh, anything could happen!¡± ¡°I¡­ I think it¡¯s just behind this hill.¡± ¡°Oh, good...¡± They walk up the small hill and crest to the top. Luna gasps at the breathtaking view opening up behind this seemingly small hill, it''s like a hidden valley, the hillside, a practical mountain on the other side instead. Short forest and jungle-like terrain at the bottom, the underbrush seemed to grow incredibly thick below them. The sparkling black river is visible too, not terribly far away, it seems to flow like a waterfall from the other side of the valley''s walls, its origin likely the far away ocean of Black. Luna grabs Amethyst¡¯s arm from the side. ¡°Oh, but there¡¯s still so much jungle ahead. Won¡¯t you fly us the rest of the way?¡± ¡°I¡­ Umm¡­¡± ¡°Please? Pretty please? You¡¯ve flown Frank plenty of times, haven¡¯t you? I bet it would be even more beautiful seen from above.¡± She latches on tighter and caresses her back plate. ¡°Here is where your powerful wings lay, isn¡¯t that right? It simply isn¡¯t fair only he gets to be flown by you¡­¡± ¡°I¡­ I¡¯ve flown Frank only twice, out of necessity.¡± ¡°But this is necessary now too. Oh, how my small dainty legs ache from all this walking.¡± She leans harder on her like she no longer has the strength to even stand. ¡°It takes a lot out of me to fly. I¡¯d rather save my energy for our fishing... don¡¯t you agree?¡± Amethyst looks down at Luna and smiles awkwardly. ¡°I-I have faith in you to persevere!¡± ¡°Ah!¡± Luna lets go of her hand and holds her chest. ¡°Your sincere encouragement has reinvigorated me! Filled my heart, and especially my legs, with newfound power." Luna grasps the horizon with her sweeping hand and closes her fist. "Oh, very well then, Amethyst, let¡¯s continue bravely onwards!¡± Amethyst laughs a skittering and buzzing noise. For a moment Luna looks incredulous, like getting her bearings in this strange situation, but soon she giggles with her for a second. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go. Just a bit further.¡± Amethyst takes the lead down the steep but grassy hillside, hacking a path through nature for them. Silence falls in between them in this difficult terrain, roots, and plants, all seemed intent on tripping or grappling them at each turn. A most tumultuous roll down into the leafy depths awaited should one lose their balance. Nearing the forest edge, the mountain gradually loses its steepness, but in turn, the plant life only gets more vigorous. As Amethyst hacks away another giant drooping plant, with a jug-like flower towering high above, a silver lizard jumps off it mid-timber. Its gaping mouth shrieks in quick succession like a scaly siren as it hurtles through the air. Before it hits Amethyst in the face, it extends its legs, the sails between its limbs instantly take in air and it soars over Amethyst¡¯s shoulder. As she follows it with her eyes, something heavy strikes her shoulder armor and bounces off it. ¡°Gah!¡± Luna behind her is next on its flight path, she ducks and shields her head, and the airborne reptile narrowly sails over her. But it wouldn''t be enough. Amethyst quickly extends her back leg and trips Luna, she falls to the ground on her ass, just as a heavy whooshing sound swings and misses her. At the end of the creature¡¯s long tail, a large rugged lump, like a stone. Luna sits on the ground and looks back at the lizard that sails higher and higher, seemingly surfing on the wind currents the mountainous hill generated. ¡°T-that- thing just tried to kill me!¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure it wasn¡¯t on purpose. We just happened to frighten it.¡± ¡°R-right¡­ A cute, silly, little lizard with its deadly mace-tail-¡± Amethyst offers a bladed hand to her, Luna looks at her, seemingly entirely lost, her boisterous and over-the-top charade disappearing for a second. With a sinful smile, she slaps her hand on Amethyst¡¯s wrist and she pulls her up. ¡°Oh, my hero!¡± Luna places a hand on her own head and gestures with the other, like a princess who¡¯s mere seconds away from fainting from joy. ¡°You saved my life!¡± ¡°I suppose... I did.¡± Amethyst looks unsure but smiles. ¡°Oh, how may I ever repay you? Name your prize! It can be anything you desire, perhaps, fortune or fame¡­ or my hand in marriage¡­?¡± She peeks a glance through narrowed eyes to see her response. ¡°Umm¡­ I¡¯m good. I¡¯m just glad you¡¯re okay.¡± ¡°That¡¯s fine, even if a bit disappointing¡­ But I won¡¯t pressure my savior into any decisions.¡± They continue down the hill and break into the forest below. The similar terrain continues, the usual violet and red shades of most plants were starting to take on a shade of black at their tips, thin leaves, or other appendages. ¡°So¡­ I was wondering, what exactly did you say to Frank to let you go with me?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t really say anything, he let me go. He had things to do himself, so we agreed to go our separate ways.¡± ¡°Huh? I mean, what did Frank have to do?¡± ¡°He was going to have a sauna with um¡­ his friend?" ¡°Oh, really? In the Underground Cl- housing you have?¡± ¡°Yeah, I kind of wish I could have gone with them, but I don¡¯t know if it would be a suitable space for me¡­¡± ¡°I can imagine that. Did he invite anyone else? It¡¯s just the three of you living in there, right?¡± Amethyst takes a while to answer, but she eventually does: ¡°I don¡¯t know, he just mentioned he was going to do it.¡± ¡°Of course,¡± Luna says, takes out her knife, and sharpens her stick as they walk. Amethyst looks backward hearing the noise, her eyes are laid on the familiar item. It¡¯s slightly decorated from the hilt, two small gemstones, the base a gleaming silver as is the blade. ¡°Luna, remember when you cut my hair?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°You never gave me a piece of your own hair. Why?¡± ¡°Oh, I just forgot.¡± Luna shrugs. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. ¡°It¡¯s not nice to be so forgetful about your friends.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± Luna looks down and defeated, but only for a moment. ¡°How can I make amends? Do you want some of my hair now? Shall I cut some?¡± Luna holds her hair out with the spear-wielding hand, the knife on the other, ready to cut. ¡°No, it¡¯s fine¡­ We can do it... later. I don¡¯t have any way to hold onto it anyway.¡± Amethyst says and looks down at her blades, then she turns around and continues to chop away. ¡°Very well.¡± The gentle sound of water flowing and leaves rustling in the wind grows gradually louder as they keep their course, leaving behind a path of chopped leaves, plants, and flowers. ¡°Here we are.¡± Amethyst steps into the small clearing beside the wide river, the black current flows peacefully, and some stones jut out of the water at the shore, permanently colored black by the waves in the course of eternity. A small rabbit-like creature, with a long stringy tail akin to a mouse drinks straight from the source. Its back legs look powerful, even muscular, and are slightly larger and taller than its body. Its fur has a swirly striped pattern of red and violet, the head in consistent pitch black fur, but no visible ears. Suddenly it looks around, and as its beady red eyes land on the two giants behind it, with a squeak it hops over the river onto the other side, with just a single reality-defying leap. It lands directly into the underbrush, a risky maneuver, which resulted in a faint thump, as it no doubt took a tumble, as the plant life is bigger and sturdier than the most feeble herbivores. Two large bright red birds, like parrots or ducks float and bob along the river¡¯s surface. Their crooked beaks, bent downwards at a sharp angle nab insects from the top of the water. Their dinner time is interrupted by the soaring rabbit-mouse¡¯s racket, which alerts them of the arrived uninvited presence. They flap their scarlet wings of long feathers, lined with faint shining green. They gather up speed and lift by running along the water¡¯s surface with their red flippers like swans. As they manage to take off, the water¡¯s black taint flows off their feathers, returning them back to their colorful glory. With sharp squawking, like two stones hitting together in their throats, the birds flee the scene, making way for the visitors. ¡°Wow¡­¡± Luna looks around enchanted while spinning, her arms spread wide. ¡°I¡¯m so glad we came here! Thank you for taking me Amethyst!¡± She drops her stick and sheaths her knife somewhere before kneeling on the waterside. It¡¯s like a black mirror, Luna just sees herself on its surface; reflecting back all light, concealing any and everything below the surface. Amethyst¡¯s reflection appears beside her, although much smaller. Luna carefully sinks her hand in, the water absorbs and conceals it like a black hole. ¡°It¡¯s like it¡¯s gone¡­ And so cold... at least ten degrees colder than the air,¡± she makes movements with her fingers, causing ripples on the surface, the only observable proof of the existence of the rest of her hand. ¡°Incredible¡­¡± ¡°Is it?¡± Amethyst leans and stabs her hand into the water and lifts it out. The murky liquid drips along her blade and back into the abyssal well. ¡°What is in it? How is it like this?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve lived here all your life, and you don¡¯t know?¡± ¡°We¡¯re not very¡­ science-oriented?¡± ¡°True enough.¡± Luna takes out a clear test tube from a small brown satchel she¡¯s been carrying and uncorks it with a plop. She presses it against the water¡¯s surface, and it flows full of the liquid. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± ¡°I¡¯m just taking a sample. This is a far too interesting opportunity to pass by.¡± She lifts the tube and seals it, drying it against the red grass. ¡°Nothing to be worried about.¡± She smiles wide and deposits it back into her bag. She gets up and picks up the sharpened spear. ¡°What I¡¯ll allow you to be worried about is: how am I supposed to spearfish when the water is pitch black!¡± ¡°Just go under the water?¡± ¡°Huh? Who do you think I am? I can¡¯t just swim and spearfish at the same time!¡± Luna looks back to the water. ¡°How deep is it here?¡± Amethyst reaches into the water with her leg, it sinks halfway. ¡°About half a meter deep.¡± and then walks in entirely, standing in the midnight water. Luna takes off her brown leathery boots, with red and purple highlights, removes her socks, and curls the tight leggings she¡¯s wearing up to her thighs. She carefully steps into the water next to Amethyst. ¡°Gah! It¡¯s so cold!¡± She deposits the spear between her thighs and holds her arms, rubbing them up and down. ¡°The water feels fine to me.¡± Amethyst smiles. ¡°Hah, I bet with your armor in the way. But what if you go under the water, and let it touch your skin? I bet I''d be cold then!¡± ¡°You mean, like this?¡± Amethyst starts to walk further, at each step, she sinks in deeper. ¡°W-wait? Is that really okay? Can you swim?¡± ¡°It¡¯ll be fine. But no, I can¡¯t swim.¡± ¡°Huh? But-¡± Luna¡¯s whole body flinches, her legs shoot astride, and lets go of the spear, which plops onto the water¡¯s surface. ¡°S-something just touched me!¡± She instantly nabs the floating spear with a splash and starts to peer frantically at the water. She continues to tremble in revulsion. ¡°A-Amethyst, what kind of c-creatures are in these waters?!¡± ¡°Fish, I¡¯d think.¡± Amethyst is up to her chest already, still walking further. She doesn¡¯t look back, sounding almost absent. ¡°Well duh! I mean a-are they dangerous! Have gnashing teeth, slimy b-bodies? Like sharks or something!¡± ¡°Probably? I don¡¯t remember...¡± Luna jumps out of the water instantly, at the place where she was, a sizeable spout of water shoots along the water¡¯s surface as well as a sparkling back of red and orange scales. Luna throws her spear, and it bounces harmlessly off the creature¡¯s back, almost impaling herself as it narrowly whizzes past. ¡°W-what?! Amethyst, get back here! T-there¡¯s something in the water!¡± ¡°Yeah, aren¡¯t we here to fish...?¡± ¡°I-I did say you could handle yourself, b-but! That was pretty big-!¡± Amethyst takes another step, and her head sinks under, only her head wings visible for a moment more, as well as the very tops of her antennae, before she¡¯s completely underneath the waves of void. ¡°A-Amethyst?!¡±
Silence. The deepest darkness. Emptiness, eternal and timeless. She just¡­ is. Merely exists. It¡¯s like Amethyst had arrived into another dimension, transported in an instant from her home planet, to another place just as dear to her. All manner of sound was gone, her antennae were thoroughly wet and could barely function underwater. An otherworldly, blessed quiet brings back such familiarity, that it almost makes her burst to tears. The cool water against her skin, in between herself and her armor. The mild current floating and waving her hair. Clean, pristine, and refreshed. Only now she realizes how much she needed this. It was clear to her now; this is how the Tyrchids bathed, cleaned their armors, their skin, and everything in between. Made peace within themselves, too, perhaps. As she tries to pull on this thread of her past, to tell her more, it snaps. The feeling retreats further and escapes far beyond her grasp. Both ends of the rope disappear beyond her mind¡¯s horizon, leaving her behind, alone. Amethyst opens her hybrid eyes. The middle of her vision was gone, but the rings, her irises of many eyes penetrated the darkness. With this gray-scale vision, light and shadow were amplified. It showed that light was able to pass through the surface, even if from above it had appeared completely impenetrable. In the moment of her brief recall, her instincts, the ways of Tyrchid¡¯s fishing had come back to her. Clinging to the feeling, she walks slowly in the water¡¯s push along the bottom, it was slightly sandy, at times muddy, with pebbles and stones in between. She couldn''t feel nature¡¯s touch on her feet, only the collisions against her armor as points of increased pressure. The stones; hollow echoes of thuds on her secondary sense of touch. She walks like floating, the water granting her an effect akin to reduced gravity, allowing her to not bear down her full weight. Otherwise, she would surely sink to the sediment all the way down to her knees. In this infinite and soundless space, she walks deeper, the pressure of the water is pleasant, and all she has to keep in mind is to not open her mouth. She hadn¡¯t given any thought to breathing, which only a distant nagging in the deepest reaches of her mind brought into the forefront. Why can she breathe underwater? Why is that special, unusual, like this nagging told her? It was practically screaming for her to not go deeper, that soon she¡¯d need to swim to the surface to take a breath. But that couldn''t be further from the truth, as far as Amethyst¡¯s Tyrchid instincts went, she might as well have lived here. She was in no hurry, this old-new experience, she would take it to the fullest, savor this delightful serenity. As she reaches the bottom of the river, or perhaps just a ledge on the way deeper, she stops and opens up her back armor, letting out her large bone wings from their water-filled compartment. Amethyst stays absolutely still, her wings and her head wings wide open. She starts to rapidly vibrate the tiny ends of her wings¡¯ bone segments. It had finally clicked in her mind what purpose this served as it wasn¡¯t useful in flying or in any other activity. Soon, her very first prey approaches, its coloration shrouded in gray mystery. It''s a stubby thing with two jaws, stacked atop each other. A short and tall body, with a large tail fin and two large fins at the sides, flowed in a beautiful up and down undulating motion, like a ray. It swims back and forth a few times, until coming straight at Amethyst¡¯s head wings. As its bottom jaw nibbles on the wriggling bait, Amethyst¡¯s sharp motion impales it to her bone. The fish struggles, undulating its side fins so that at least three waves are in simultaneous motion, fiercely kicking its back fin, but it¡¯s no use. A trail of a lighter shade of gray is released from the fish amidst its throes, the substance floats down in front of Amethyst¡¯s face. For a moment she thinks that she can smell a pungent odor with her antennae, but the feeling passes quickly. The fish¡¯s struggle gradually ends and Amethyst begins to wait anew.
Luna sits on the edge of the river, writing something in the notebook software on her communicator. Finishing her notes, she puts it back into her satchel. With bored sluggish motions, she proceeds to continue splashing and prodding the water¡¯s surface with her spear, once more. The novelty of the activity wore off quickly, again, and she put down the spear and picked up the camera from her lap, ready to take pictures. How many times had she already repeated the motions in the longest twenty minutes of her life? But, maybe this minute was different than the rest; now Amethyst would finally come up...? ¡°This isn¡¯t what I had in mind when I invited her fishing¡­¡± Luna mutters to nobody in particular and lays down on her back. The only ones gracing her with their warm presence are the suns in the sky. Maybe I should just leave¡­ Amethyst is either fish food by now or clearly doesn¡¯t need or want me here. Besides¡­ Now¡¯s my chance. I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d get the opportunity, but who knew I¡¯d be wasting it due to my own plans... If I want to get it... this is my final moment to act. She takes out her communicator again, logs in to a particular site, and writes some messages. Luna pries herself off the ground, back to a sitting position. Alright, I can tell her of tonight later, I¡¯ll just- The water¡¯s still surface breaks and an angel of carnage, a goddess of prey emerges. ¡°Amethyst!¡± Luna grabs her camera and jumps up, snapping a few shots of this Tyrchid of the deep, two exotic fish on her head wings, one on each and three in total impaled to her open wings. They drip blue blood onto her head and hair and on the black water¡¯s surface. Luna pulls her face away from the camera, with apparent disgust on her face. ¡°Hey, Luna, any luck fishing?¡± Water rushes out from each nook and cranny of her armor and drips from her long bangs. ¡°Uh, no¡­¡± Luna hides her camera behind her back and fumbles with her hands, managing to deposit it and the communicator she was still gripping, back into her bag. ¡°I-I was so worried when you just walked into the waves! But I knew you¡¯d be fine!¡± Luna smiles big. ¡°Right, I was a bit surprised too, it was as if the waves called out to me.¡± Amethyst looks around at the water as she walks, smiling warmly. Her steps are unsteady, as the river''s bottom gives away at times. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Should we cook the fish now?¡± ¡°Oh, I was actually thinking we should cut this short¡­¡± Luna prods her fingers together. ¡°What? But don¡¯t you want to taste the fish?¡± She shakes her head, causing a few of the fish to trickle some guts out, that trail down her armor. ¡°Something came up, and I should go. I¡¯m sorry Amethyst.¡± ¡°Oh, well. I suppose it would take a while for my blades to dry too¡­¡± ¡°What do you mean? Can¡¯t you light them on fire now?¡± Luna¡¯s expression changes from apologetic to intrigued. ¡°Oh, is that what the umbrella was about today?¡± ¡°Yeah, Tyrchids can¡¯t fly or use our blades properly in the rain or when they are wet.¡± Luna looks thoughtfully into the distance and nods to herself once. ¡°Well, why don¡¯t we hurry on back, you can speed through the interview with Pioneer and take the fish to your friends instead while they are still fresh. How does that sound?¡± ¡°U-uh okay.¡± Amethyst sinks near the shore on a few of her steps, but regains her balance and gets her feet loose, stepping onto dry land once more. ¡°You¡¯re the best Amethyst!¡± Luna¡¯s about to grab the arm of Amethyst, but stops abruptly, raising her hands and backing away. The fish impaled on her wings on that side was an orange and red-backed silver fish with a long snout and very sharp teeth. The about half a meter long shark-like creature, makes her swallow hard and almost yelp as it flops, the jaws trying to reach her, the creature still barely alive. ¡°Um- I¡¯ll race you to the Pango Grove! Come on!¡± ¡°H-huh!?¡± Amethyst runs after her, galloping into a run, the fish swaying on her appendages and the drag of her open wings, really making it cumbersome. Luna seemed to be full of energy and strength now, she complained that it was hard for her to make the trip before. But now, there was no indication left of that anymore; she was running right before Amethyst, with no sign of exhaustion, only mildly panting. Did her encouragement earlier really have this strong of an effect? As they make it to the Pango grove, Luna wipes some sweat off her brow and waits for Amethyst to catch up to her. ¡°One¡­ more¡­ thing¡­¡± She says catching her breath in between each word. ¡°I just wanted to say, I¡¯m sorry if I¡¯ve caused you trouble. I only meant the best for you. You know that, right?¡± ¡°Y-yeah¡­¡± ¡°And¡­ today, I just really wanted us to have this trip. This final good memory, just the two of us. You know, since it¡¯s the last day of filming and everything.¡± Luna pauses and straightens herself, her nose twitching and keeping her distance from Amethyst. ¡°We might not¡­ see each other ever again, after this. I have to go where Pioneer goes, and you have your own destination too.¡± Luna brushes her eyes. ¡°Though, I suppose I was getting ahead of myself a little. This won¡¯t be the last time we see each other, as I have one last surprise for you.¡± ¡°A surprise?¡± Amethyst says bright-eyed. ¡°I¡¯ll find you at the party after your show and give it to you. It¡¯s¡­ quite personal, something for just the two of us.¡± Luna blushes and looks away, fiddling her fingers together in a nervous manner. ¡°Ahh, how embarrassing¡­¡± She holds her cheeks and gently shakes her head. ¡°I can¡¯t talk about it anymore, it¡¯s too much...¡± ¡°Luna¡­¡± She chuckles, ¡°Sorry if our outing got cut short, but I¡¯ve seriously gotta go. Have fun in the interview and I¡¯ll see you¡­ later.¡± She smiles and waves seductively. ¡°Oh, I¡¯ll tell Pioneer you¡¯ve arrived, just sit tight!¡± ¡°Thank you, Luna.¡±
Soon, Pioneer arrives without his glasses and bearing a dubious look. ¡°You¡¯re back already? It¡¯s barely even been an hour!¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t Luna tell you the reason she cut our fishing short?¡± Amethyst asks. ¡°No, not a word. She didn¡¯t even tell me you had come back, she passed the word through my personnel.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°Anyway, come this way.¡± Pioneer directs Amethyst towards the same spot where Frank had his interview, the village¡¯s Tyrchids give the swaying fish long looks as they pass through. As they are in position, Amethyst standing without a chair, Pioneer clears his throat. ¡°Are you going to bring your fishy friends to this interview?¡± ¡°Is it a problem?¡± ¡°I mean, I can¡¯t fit you in the shot with your wings open, and you should-¡± Amethyst retracts her wings, and the three fish impaled there fall to the ground with a flop. One by one, Amethyst lifts them up with her blades and props them up to her head wings instead. A full crown of five exotic fish of various sizes and colors, slightly flop and squirm on her bones, leaking trails of blue blood onto her from the new puncture holes. ¡°Alright, I¡¯m ready.¡± ¡°Great¡­¡± Pioneer gestures to start the broadcast. ¡°Welcome, welcome! I bet you didn¡¯t think you¡¯d hear from us again so soon! But of course, we are going to have the special feature interview with our very own star of the season, Amethyst!¡± ¡°H-hi?¡± ¡°As you can see, she¡¯s fresh from a fishing trip, we had some trouble contacting her, thus this unusual broadcast time!¡± Pioneer gestures at her. ¡°Isn¡¯t she just a¡­ sight to behold?¡± Amethyst grins a big satisfied smile. ¡°Anyway, let¡¯s get into it, but first, the winner of our earlier contest said they couldn¡¯t attend the live show this time. And who can blame them given the sudden timing! So, being the prudent winner that ''StepOn'' is, they left me with the last three questions ahead of time. Which ones and what questions? That¡¯s for me to know and you to figure out!¡± Pioneer adjusts his glasses and looks at his communicator. ¡°Let¡¯s start with a popular one, the question burning hot on the lips of all of the Galaxy. Can you please elaborate on, what exactly is your relationship with Frank?¡± ¡°Relationship¡­? We help and look out for each other. Like¡­ partners?¡± ¡°Partners, huh? What sort of partners would those be? Partners in¡­ love perhaps? Ah, what a magnificent segue to the next question, I ask of you: do you love Frank?¡± ¡°Love¡­? I¡¯m not sure what that means.¡± Amethyst tilts her head, sploshing some blood from her hair. ¡°Even if Tyrchidian has a word for it?¡± ¡°Even so. I know what our language¡¯s ¡®Love¡¯ is, but I don¡¯t know if that matches what your ¡®Love¡¯ means.¡± ¡°Let me explain then.¡± Pioneer thinks for a moment and continues. ¡°Love is when you like somebody so much, that you want to spend all your time with that person, often for the rest of your life. Wake up next to them, arrive home with them present, and do things together. This unseen attraction; a blush on your cheeks and pounding in your chest when you interact with the person, is love.¡± ¡°I see¡­ then I think I do.¡± ¡°S-she just went and said it!¡± Pioneer turns to face the camera. ¡°Now this is big news, everyone!¡± ¡°What about you, Pioneer? Do you know love?¡± Amethyst asks, Pioneer turns back to face her like a rusty, creaking hinge. ¡°M-me? This was supposed to be your interview!¡± ¡°Oh, right¡­¡± Pioneer looks down at the communicator and some sweat gathers on his brow. ¡°Okay, fine! If you all want to know so badly, I¡­ can answer that.¡± He takes a deep breath. ¡°There isn¡¯t a Missus Pioneer as of this moment, but¡­ I do have my eyes on a fair maiden of my own. But!¡± Pioneer lifts a finger to his lips. ¡°That¡¯s all I¡¯ll say!¡± He looks back down to his communicator. ¡°No! Shush, Explorers! Moving on!¡± Pioneer¡¯s mouth turns into a frown for a moment as he reads something off his communicator again. ¡°W-we have another question for you Amethyst. What do you think about Luna? Uh, that chick you assembled the table with?¡± He seems to say it directly as he reads it. ¡°There are rumors circulating of your relationship, can you give us something concrete?¡± ¡°Oh? She¡¯s a good friend of mine.¡± ¡°Ooh, a good friend you say? Could be more than just ¡®friends¡¯ maybe?¡± Pioneer asks with a clear voice, but a faint disgust on his lips. ¡°Well you do you, Amethyst, it¡¯s a free galaxy after all, who says you can¡¯t be doubling up? Who knows, maybe there¡¯s still room in Amethyst¡¯s harem for some of our most devoted Explorers to join the ranks with Frank and Luna.¡± ¡°Uh¡­¡± Amethyst tilts her head with a frown. ¡°Anyway, we do have some... serious questions here too. You Tyrchid have obviously been living here a long time, what changed, why did you apply for ISSA now? Surely not just because of your Queen?¡± ¡°Well¡­ we¡¯ve been pretty isolated from the rest of the galaxy. As you can see behind me we don¡¯t have the means to fly in space.¡± ¡°Oh, you don¡¯t? What about the landing pads at the hotel and the like?¡± ¡°T-that¡­ that¡¯s right.¡± ¡°And how did you make contact initially? How¡¯d you meet Frank in the first place?¡± A trail of blue blood runs across her face, over her tightened lips. ¡°I... didn¡¯t exactly meet Frank, I think you could say, he met me instead. He then applied us to ISSA.¡± ¡°Hmm, I see. Am I correct in assuming that this ¡®meeting¡¯ has something to do with the state you were in the picture your application was sent with?¡± ¡°Yes...¡± ¡°Can you tell us why Frank made you apply? It¡¯s not mandatory for sapient species to do so.¡± Amethyst closes her eyes for a moment before they flare open with fiery determination. ¡°As a budding sapient species, he thought we¡¯d benefit from the protection of ISSA. And, um¡­ we¡¯d also benefit from the publicity and get opportunities to start up trading and making relations with others that share our Galaxy.¡± Amethyst looks visibly exhausted after having managed to talk with such extravagant words. ¡°There you have it folks, the wise words of the leader of the Tyrchids, Amethyst. Now I don¡¯t want to hear any grousing about multi-marriage, even if uncommon, that¡¯s a long-gone taboo already. All in all they seem quite sophisticated, when compared to many of the other species I¡¯ve had the pleasure of meeting along my career.¡± Pioneer guffaws briefly. ¡°Though their appearance and features are most striking and unusual, in a good way.¡± He adds and nods at Amethyst. ¡°Thank you. Your appearance is most unusual too.¡± ¡°Ehh?¡± Pioneer has to do a double-take to recover from her comment. ¡°Don¡¯t you have quite the sharp, um- mandibles on you!" Amethyst smiles innocently in response, which comes off somewhat unsettling with her blood coating. ¡°Alright, just a few more questions, please bear with me, Amethyst...¡±
32. Hot Air Grent wipes sweat from his brow as he tightens a bolt on Amandebot¡¯s mechanical neck and arranges some wires running up through it. After making sure all is in order, he places the final skin piece to cover it, completing her android look. A smooth, flawless, and pale skin, only her joints revealed her robotic nature. That is, if it wasn¡¯t obvious from the blank shell of a face, so dead, even a mannequin looked alive in comparison. While inserting a mind inside the shell wouldn¡¯t fix that, he had planned for the contingency, with an alternative solution. If he wasn¡¯t talented enough to sculpt it into Amande¡¯s image, then he would let Amande do it herself with his program. Fake it if you can''t make it, so to speak. Unfortunately, that system couldn''t be tested until her mind had taken root in something inside it. But what could be tested, was the limbs and other systems related to her general functionality. The processors, memory, and other computer systems that would work in tandem with Amande¡¯s mind should be fully functional even on their own. The central computing along with the storage space were situated in her stomach, in one of three slots he had left open, in preparation for different hypothetical methods to bring Amande to life. The two that remain empty: a slot in the middle of her chest and one in the head. However, the latter ended up becoming a little cramped with all the hearing, sight, and touch senses having to be put in there as well. All of the slots were covered with skin plates now, but it wasn¡¯t too hard to remove, as long as you knew how. And underneath that, a latch with a quick release was available for any of the special slots, mostly in case of emergency maintenance. Grent plugs the robotic body into his computer using a wireless transmitter on both ends and runs diagnostics one last time. All joint motors responding¡­ Memory storage, fragmentation, limb control¡­ all green. Sight set into demo mode, touch sense minimum, as it should be. Hearing; better than a human''s¡­ might as well leave it on. Smell [Missing]. I hope Amande doesn¡¯t mind not being able to smell. I don¡¯t exactly have any odorceptors or snottifiers in storage... Oh well, we can fix it later if it''s an issue and pay exorbitant prices for them thanks to the Smelling Monopoly... Movement charging system output: 100% Power core 80% charge, 87,57/100% max load, estimated operational length: 20h. It all looks to be in order, but I¡¯m still worried about the core¡­ Can it really run it all? Amandebot was designed to run on an advanced battery, which was still mostly in the development phase. These so-called ¡®Millenium Batteries¡¯ had recently become popular in all appliances, but the technology wasn¡¯t developed enough to be usable in large machinery. It was only suitable for low capacity, slow power drain over long periods of time. In Amandebot¡¯s case, if all operations weren¡¯t balanced properly, a bustle of processing activity or a looping glitch in the system could easily overload it, causing it to lose all of its charge at once, in an uncontrollable burst of electricity. Of course, unexpected power cuts in his wife would be simply unacceptable, not to mention what such occurrences might do to such experimental technology. But his main worry lay in the usual consequences of this overloading issue¡ªthe core overheating and exploding. Metropolis had recently legislated many regulations and limitations to their usage, like prohibiting their sale to consumers. Due to the fame, they had gained in a very short time, for their reliability in not only providing lasting power but also house fires if used incorrectly, they had gained the nickname of ¡®Firellium Batteries¡¯. This connection didn''t go unnoticed, as The Metropolis Fire Department had never been this busy and took it up to themselves to fight on this new frontier¡ªpolitics. Through their campaign, they managed to convince the public that the costs and danger outweighed the benefits and within a week, laws were being enacted in their favor. Before that happened, Grent had of course stocked up on this wonderful new technology. Shortly after that, a legislative body, whose authority greatly outweighed that of Metropolis or Galactic Police, was on his case. Amande had made him swear to an ''Only one fire per lab'' -rule after a string of unfortunate accidents, completely unrelated to his recent purchases. He was on the longest streak of his life on their deal, and wasn¡¯t about to break it now. Even if this time, his freebie fire had technically been spent by Amethyst¡ªit wasn¡¯t even directly his fault! Pineapple jumps on the computer table, and Grent eyes the list of systems through once more. ¡°This is it¡­¡± He pets the cat, who nuzzles against his hand. ¡°Are you ready?¡± The cat nods and its beady eyes look at him with anticipation. Grent presses the virtual button: Demonstration. Silently, the systems boot up and start to run their course, only small movement can be seen by some joints returning to their default positions; a knee bending, an elbow twitching. A glimmer of lenses shifting in the eyes¡ªit''s awake. With stiff robotic strength, it sits up with the power of a pure servo-sixpack without any help from its arms. Amandebot lays its hands down on the metal bed and rotates itself to the side of it, the legs bend from the knees and shin with a mechanical hum. Its vaguely human-like, exaggeratedly arched feet akin to shock absorbers, descend onto the floor with a faint clonk. A knock on the door; it''s opened instantly regardless. ¡°You know there¡¯s no point in knocking if you¡¯re just gonna burst in without waiting for a response...¡± Grent turns around, to see Frank enter through the doorway. ¡°You again?¡± ¡°Yup, oh-¡± Before Frank, Amandebot stands up from the bed, into steady attention, its hands stiffly glued to the sides, but the eyes shift and appear to zoom at him. ¡°Amande¡­? Who knew I could return your umbrella to its proper owner!¡± Frank walks up to the robot and offers the yellow, mostly dry, portable shelter to her. ¡°Frank¡­¡± Grent sits on the edge of his desk and his hands drift behind his neck. Suddenly Amandebot turns to the side, swings its arm testing the joints, and swats at the umbrella, almost hitting Frank in the process too. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just a demo¡­ I¡¯m flattered you thought I could have already brought her back, but¡­ it¡¯s not that easy¡­¡± Grent looks away into his workshop, not even at the demoing Amandebot anymore, who makes a 90-degree turn around the operating table¡¯s corner. ¡°Oh¡­ I¡¯m sorry. It just looked so¡­ alive¡­? I thought¡­¡± Frank fiddles with the umbrella, checking it for damage before properly closing it up again; its strap opened from the strike. ¡°Did she really¡­ look alive?¡± ¡°I mean¡­ it¡¯s not like I closely inspected¡­ erm¡­ her. But, I¡¯d say so¡­ Not that I¡¯ve ever seen a robot move before, alive or not.¡± It takes a second for Grent to grasp the meaning in Frank¡¯s words, which then squeezes a sigh out of him. ¡°So...¡± Frank strokes his smooth chin, and looks around the room aimlessly, before addressing Grent. ¡°Is it¡­ is she, finished now? I mean, given that she walks and¡­ stuff.¡± ¡°As ready as I can make it at the moment¡­¡± ¡°Well, that works nicely. How about a nice break then?¡± ¡°A break?¡± Grent rubs his eyes and stretches his eyelids. They were heavy and sore, he blinked his eyes at Frank, to get rid of the blurry spots in his vision. The sound of metal against metal startles him from his stupor, Amandebot finished the demo program and now lies back on the bed motionless. Grent held his head, he couldn''t believe he had forgotten her for a moment¡­ Even if sleeping was out of the question, maybe some relaxation wasn¡¯t. ¡°What are you suggesting?¡± ¡°Well, let¡¯s have a sauna ¡®evening¡¯. Amethyst is away, for¡­ some time, so why not?¡± Frank instead gives the umbrella to him. Grent receives it and shrugs, ¡°I guess It¡¯s time for me to give it a try too.¡± He lays his wife''s yellow umbrella down on the table and glances at the results of the demo briefly. ¡°Wait? Have you not used it at all?¡± Grent locks his PC and quickly striders past Frank to the lab¡¯s door. ¡°Nope, it was always occupied.¡± Frank tails after him. ¡°Huh? And besides, how come this clinic even has a sauna, isn¡¯t that a bit excessive?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure why. But I have a feeling that was due to the Director.¡± ¡°You mean Larsenia?¡± ¡°Yeah, warming up the Sauna for her whenever she requested it, was a part of my deal for being allowed to stay here.¡± Grent opens the door to the ward and briefly looks at Frank. ¡°What an arbitrary requirement.¡± ¡°I guess she really likes saunas.¡± They arrive at the familiar multifunction ''bathroom'', showers, sauna, laundry, and bathroom all with their own places in one roomy, but cost-effective space. ¡°So, did she ever contact you to turn up the heat then?¡± Frank leans on the wall. ¡°Yeah, many, many times.¡± Grent reaches up to the inner left-side wall of the door¡¯s side. ¡°I always locked myself up in my lab for the whole duration though. But Amande joined her frequently.¡± He stubbornly keeps his eyes on the sauna control dial on the white tiles of the shower room and turns a knob and pushes some buttons. ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°They asked me to join each time, but as I always rejected them, they finally stopped asking. I knew better than to accept; the fewer chances I had to piss off Larsenia, the better." Frank laughs. ¡°So that¡¯s why you haven¡¯t used it yourself! You coward!¡± ¡°Well, why haven¡¯t you used it with Amethyst then? Nothing wrong with a man and a woman-? Um, Tyrchid, bladed crustacean thing sharing a sauna.¡± ¡°H-hey! She¡¯s not a crustacean¡­ is she?¡± Grent shrugs and goes to check something inside the sauna, his voice echoes from the walls. ¡°Anyway, when Amande and Larsenia didn¡¯t occupy it, the miners and other personnel had their own sauna shifts.¡± ¡°So, all you had time to do was to turn on the sauna huh?¡± ¡°Well, more or less. I should have just automated it, made them a gweb page or something to use." Grent comes out with a pail, carrying it from a wooden side handle, and pours old water onto the rocky-cave floor''s drain. "Though, Larsenia would have probably seen that as shirking from my duties.¡± ¡°Alright," Grent clonks down the pail onto a wooden bench, upside down. "It¡¯ll be at 70 degrees in 15 minutes, let¡¯s meet back up here then. I¡¯ve gotta take a closer look at the data first.¡± ¡°Great! I guess I¡¯ll¡­ prepare some drinks for us in the meantime?¡±
Grent returns to see Frank sitting naked on the wooden bench in the shower room, a pile of his clothes next to him, and two towels on the wall coat hangers, yellow and blue. The sauna pail of metal, with wooden planks layering its sides, refilled with water already. ¡°Have you been sitting here for the whole time?¡± ¡°No¡­ I had to go and take these from the fridge, didn¡¯t I?¡± Frank smirks and lifts two colorful cans. ¡°How¡¯s the data?¡± Grent strips off his dark blue dress shirt and trousers, he had already left his lab coat behind. Such dignified apparel wasn¡¯t to be lying on wooden benches. ¡°Nothing I didn¡¯t foresee.¡± Otherwise, completely naked, Grent pauses to look at his bandaged arm. He unwraps the bandages to reveal an upcoming scar on his wrist, the skin stitched up together, rising to a small hill, with a coating of dark red scab on top. Around the wound and up his arm a series of burns on his skin. ¡°Should you be coming to the sauna, let alone take a shower with those?¡± ¡°My personal doctor said it¡¯d be fine.¡± Grent goes first into the shower, failing at hiding a grimace as the hot water sears his wounds. ¡°Right¡­¡± I bet that ¡®personal doctor¡¯ is in the room with us right now. A Frank¡¯s brief shower later, they both sit at the top rafters of the Sauna, atop small square towels in between their bare bottoms and the exotic wooden pews. The faint wooden smell of a newly built sauna still lingered, despite its frequent use before. The delightful scent reminded Frank distinctly of Amethyst carving his house, these had been constructed from the same wood. They and their cold drink cans sweat large droplets as they sit in the dimly lit hot and humid space. Frank throws water onto the hot rocks, it sizzles and evaporates nearly instantly, just barely allowing the water to color the stones darker. At least the sauna water wasn¡¯t black, I guess the clinic had its own reserve, or filtered it out somehow? Frank clonks the ladle back into the water-filled pail. ¡°So, why did you come here to Midnight Iris in the first place? Work at a clinic to turn on the sauna at demand?¡± ¡°Well, initially Amande and I came here to work as doctors.¡± ¡°Oh? Are you actually professional surgeons or nurses¡­?¡± ¡°Not really no, we don¡¯t even have medical licenses.¡± Grent laughs. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter now, but we convinced Larsenia to hire us regardless, with the promise that we¡¯d be more... working around it. Managing the clinic itself, running the infrastructure, and assisting the real doctors and nurses who¡¯d come after.¡± Grent swipes his brow and sips his drink. ¡°People of their profession are highly sought after, I¡¯m sure you¡¯re well aware. We were just the best available at the moment.¡± ¡°Right, can¡¯t really be making a settlement or running any operations on new planets without medical personnel as insurance.¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± Grent leans forwards and grimaces as Frank turns up the heat with more water. ¡°Though, it¡¯s not like the human body is that extraordinary. Just an organic, poorly designed, and often faulty machine. I¡¯m sure I can do the work of most doctors, how hard could it be in practice?¡± ¡°I beg to differ¡­¡± ¡°You just don¡¯t understand, it''s just like maintaining any machine. Even easier with the new medical scanners and automatic Patchers.¡± Grent shakes his drink and finger at Frank. ¡°Why don¡¯t you just have those here then?¡± ¡°Well, those can only be legally operated by trained individuals¡­ and they suck up all the electricity you give them. The solar panel electric network would have needed some refitting already to power anything else with even one Patcher. But of course, actually using it isn¡¯t much more than just configuring the parameters and pressing a few buttons, situating it at the right spot and-¡± Frank shakes his head and lets the subject be, tuning off from the conversation, a losing battle if he had ever fought one. ¡°What about you then?¡± Grent asks, his tirade ending at some point. ¡°Sorry, what?¡± ¡°Who are you exactly Frank? How¡¯d you end up here?¡± ¡°Oh¡­ me?¡± ¡°Yeah, Amethyst flies off, burns down my lab barely sapient, then comes back a few days later quite coherent and with you tagging along.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s just say¡­ it¡¯s about time I let go of the past, and...¡± Frank rotates his can around, looking down at it. ¡°Well, we share some goals and ambitions with Amethyst, I think. So, why not go with her?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ that so? Intergalactic employee growing a heart?¡± ¡°I had a heart already, thank you very much... though I guess it hadn¡¯t been in place for a long time.¡± It was high time to leave IWV behind... but¡­ ¡°Wait, how did you know I worked for Intergalactic? Besides, didn¡¯t you too?¡± ¡°Well, of course, I knew where our shipments were sent to, Wildlife Ventures and Resources have always cooperated. Who else could have arrived with her from Viridian Macula?¡± Grent grabs the ladle lying in the wide wooden bucket in between them, waters the stones, and takes a sip of his bubbly beverage. ¡°Lots of Ex-intergalactic¡¯s around, huh?¡± ¡°I suppose so¡­ a lot more hopefully on the way.¡± Grent responds with a hearty laugh. ¡°Well, one can hope.¡± The heat was getting quite intense, long trails of sweat ran across both of their bodies, and Frank¡¯s eyes were starting to sting from his sweat pouring down into them. Trying in vain to swipe it away with his hands, but they were slathered in it already too. The sweet salt of sweat tasted in his mouth, which he washed away with his banaorange soda, before continuing their discussion: ¡°So¡­ are you from Metropolis too...?¡± Grent sighs. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Really? Where were you born then?¡± ¡°I guess it¡¯s no secret.¡± Grent takes a long sip, then says, like exhausted: ¡°Planet Dehua, in the Vajol system.¡± Frank ponders for a second. ¡°Isn¡¯t that the one¡­ the planet that completely collapsed within itself?¡± ¡°The very same.¡± ¡°They said the cause was never found, that it couldn''t be determined. It sent the galaxy in a panic for a moment, the thought that any planet could just suddenly collapse was frightening.¡± Grent bursts into a crazed laugh, a mixture of spiteful comedy and sorrow. ¡°Is that really what the media said? Nobody still questioning it, never looking into it further? Fated to go down in history as just an ¡®enigma¡¯! A great ¡®mystery¡¯ of our Galaxy!¡± He laughs once more and batters the rocks with water, sizzling, searing mist bursts into the room. Both of them duck in the heat, staying upright risked burning their ears and face, at least it felt that way. After they recover, the heat dissipating enough to straighten their backs, Grent sighs deeply. ¡°I guess it''s a bit hard to do any investigations in clumped-up asteroid mush.¡± ¡°What do you mean by that? Question what?¡± Frank speaks with tight lips, grimacing from the still burning air. ¡°Planets don¡¯t just implode by themselves¡­ United Galaxy this and that, maybe they should try not sharing just one United brain cell.¡± ¡°What¡­ happened really? Were you there¡­ right before it¡­?¡± ¡°Nah¡­ me and Amande left a day before. The signs were obvious. Sudden increase in sinkholes, the ground engulfing houses, collapsing, the whole shebang. A bit of measurement and calculations is all it took to determine what our fate would be. We warned everyone about what was to come, Amande printed leaflets when gweb mails didn¡¯t work, I talked to my scientifically inclined colleagues, and word of mouth spread. We even got our warning on the Planet¡¯s news, but it was treated as conjecture and as ¡°might be at risk¡±. It wasn¡¯t if, it was when, and that was in two days.¡± Grent loudly pushes air out from his lungs like it was responsible and gulps down on his carbonated drink. Why am I even talking about this? ... ¡°Some who weren¡¯t enamored or indoctrinated by the ones who caused it; fled. Many, too many, stayed behind. I guess everyone who survived didn¡¯t care to share the story, no wonder when you were either paid for or otherwise silenced. We didn¡¯t care to test our luck either, which one we¡¯d get: the bullet or the buck.¡± ¡°That¡¯s awful¡­¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it?¡± Grent laughs bitterly, his voice devoid of joy, it fizzles out quickly. If it ever repeats in the infinite time of the universe, it¡¯ll be too soon. ¡°Enough about me. How¡¯d you like being a galactic star? I watched all of the episodes through today while working¡­¡± ¡°Oh no, you didn¡¯t¡­¡± ¡°First of all, you didn''t even use my song!¡±Grent throws his hands up, he would have spilled his soda, if the can wasn''t already empty. ¡°Well, maybe you should have picked the subject better, huh?¡± ¡°What else am I going to write it about, there¡¯s eleven words for Goddess¡¯ sake!¡± ¡°How about we call it even, you didn¡¯t even translate it to Tyrchidian for us!¡± ¡°You never said anything about that! You wanted a song with lyrics, and I delivered! Anyway, back to what I was saying about the show¡­¡± ¡°Oh no¡­¡± Frank shakes his head, lays the drink on the pew below, and leans on his hands. ¡°...in the comment section, there were a bunch of rumors circulating about Luna. You know, the girl in the table episode? I didn''t get it though, she¡¯s only shown up once.¡± ¡°Please don¡¯t ask me about her¡­¡± ¡°I was wondering if you knew what the deal was...? The word is she¡¯s making moves on Amethyst off camera and that sounds ridiculous-¡± ¡°This was supposed to be a relaxing sauna experience¡­¡± ¡°I mean, that¡¯s just idle gossip¡­?¡± Grent shakes the can at Frank with a dubious look. ¡°You don¡¯t know the half of it¡­ every day she¡¯s been hounding me and Amethyst, talking whatever the crap she can, spinning Amethyst around her finger with her lies¡­¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yeah¡­ really rubs me the wrong way¡­ Just imagining her stupid grin makes my head hurt. I bet she¡¯s got a grin now too, as she¡¯s fishing with Amethyst.¡± ¡°Really? You just let that happen?¡± Frank shakes his head. ¡°I wasn¡¯t really given a choice. Besides, it wasn¡¯t my choice to begin with. Amethyst can handle herself, it¡¯s her life, and she can do what she wants with it¡­¡± The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. ¡°You think so...?¡± ¡°Eh¡­ yeah...?¡± Though I can¡¯t help but wonder how she¡¯s doing¡­ Suddenly Frank felt even hotter, even though no more water had been thrown on the rocks for a while. ¡°Let¡¯s take a break...¡± Grent and Frank move into the shower room, to cool off, sitting on the bench, doing their best to avoid splashing their clothes. Basking in the afterglow of the sweating session, body completely relaxed, but Frank¡¯s mind, not so much. Not anymore, at least. ¡°So¡­ you¡¯ll be leaving for Metropolis after today?¡± Grent asks rather unabashed. ¡°Yeah, don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ll get out of your hair soon enough¡­¡± Frank leans his back on the wall, the ceramic tiles feel like ice against his sweltering skin. He flinches but keeps his back to the wall. ¡°We don¡¯t have the info on our court date yet, but I¡¯d imagine it¡¯ll be very soon. I¡¯m sure Pioneer will¡­ actually, I should probably ask him.¡± ¡°What then? Will you¡­ come back after the court?¡± ¡°Not to be rude, but why do you care? Are you worried we¡¯ll drive you off for good finally once we get back?¡± Frank asks with narrowed eyes, Grent keeps looking ahead. ¡°Well¡­¡± ¡°In fact, why come here in the first place? Even as off-license doctors or just as plain scientists you two could have picked any position in the Galaxy instead of this backwater planet and Intergalactic.¡± ¡°We had¡­ our reasons...¡± Grent¡¯s tone turns solemn. ¡°Eh... well, I can¡¯t say for sure¡­ but I¡¯d imagine Amethyst definitely returns, this is her home after all. I¡¯m not so sure yet myself¡­¡± About anything¡­ ¡°Weren¡¯t you building a house for you and everything? All just part of the show?¡± Grent turns to look at him finally, seeming surprised. ¡°Well it¡¯s not much of a real house, is it- Frank pauses and looks around vigilant. ¡°Did you hear that?¡± ¡°Hear what? ¡°I¡¯m not sure, like¡­ a clonk of metal? I mean, it¡¯s probably nothing, could have just been the piping or something acting up...¡± Grent¡¯s eyes focus and he stands up and grabs his towel ¡°The second I leave my lab and relax¡­¡± He mutters. ¡°Hey, hold up!¡± Frank goes after him and swipes the blue towel with him. ¡°I can¡¯t see anything out of the ordinary¡­ Was it even from here?¡± Grent is looking around at the ward¡¯s door already as Frank catches up to him. ¡°I think it was this way¡­¡± Frank passes the peering Grent and goes to his backpack, the laser rifle that leaned on it lies on the floor. The backpack has fallen over on its belly, spilling some of its contents out. Did I leave it unzipped? ¡°Maybe my backpack fell over on its own and we heard the rifle hit the ground?¡± Frank gathers and scoops the clothes and other things back inside and props it and the rifle firmly up against the wall. ¡°Perhaps¡­ or it was a thief! And, they¡¯re still here!¡± Grent says in a whispering manner, his eyebrows creasing as he sneaks quietly towards the door to the lobby, holding a hand to his ear like a cup to amplify sound. ¡°Don¡¯t be ridiculous...¡± Faint steps grow louder and then the door rattles. Grent rushes and pulls it open. ¡°Aha! -huh?¡± ¡°Oh, hello!¡± Amethyst comes through the doorway crouching. ¡°Thanks for the help.¡± Grent backs away quickly, Amethyst¡¯s head wings are rife with the bounty of her underwater massacre. ¡°Look what I¡¯ve got!¡± ¡°Fish?¡± Grent says dumbfounded. ¡°Back already Amethyst?¡± ¡°Yeah, Luna had to go apparently, then I also had my interview, but that was fast, I think.¡± She flounders the fish around on her head, ¡°Can we eat them?¡± ¡°Sure¡­? But let¡¯s cook them first, okay?¡± Frank walks up to him to spectate her wondrous fish. ¡°Fine to me either way.¡± Grent takes a few more steps back. ¡°They kind of smell¡­ but I suppose they are still edible.¡± Blue blood drips onto the pristine floor. ¡°Amethyst, come on, this way, quickly!¡± Grent holds the door open to the corridor and rushes her with a guiding hand and a spinning gesture, like directing a spaceship at a dock. ¡°To where?¡± Amethyst saunters toward the indicated direction without any particular urgency. ¡°Into the showers! You¡¯re leaving a trail of filth after you!¡± Grent practically pushes her from the back. Frank takes a look at the blood on the floor and follows after them. ¡°You¡¯re gonna need a thorough clean after this¡­ aren¡¯t you?¡± As the door to the ward closes and Amethyst, Frank, and Grent¡¯s voices start to fade, somebody else still remains in this room. By the stars, he almost scared me to death... that was way too close... A single person rolls out from underneath Frank¡¯s bed, holding onto their legs. The space below the medical bunk was in real short supply. They stand up to dust themselves off. Took me a while to find the right place, and then Amethyst really had to come back already... It¡¯s all her fault I fumbled with the bag, why¡¯d he bury it so deep anyway? In their hand, an item clearly not belonging to them. With glee they throw it into the air; it spins fast around its axis. As it comes down, they deftly snatch it from the air. A reckless display, what if they had dropped it? Or maybe they were plain ignorant or just that confident of their ability? Whatever it was, it wouldn¡¯t bar them from completing their mission. Quietly, they skip across the room with spring in their step, reaching the door leading to the lobby. With a flourish, they yank it open and make their exit, leaving the place¡¯s residents none the wiser of their visit.
¡°What are we going to do with all this fish? Just that one shark thing would have been enough¡­¡± Grent stands before the plethora of unknown creatures on the floor, at least they mostly look like fish. ¡°You¡¯ve got a freezer right? After this, you don¡¯t have to eat just sandwiches anymore.¡± Frank says while spraying Amethyst with a shower head, working on washing the fish blood and guts off her thoroughly. ¡°Or, you can eat fish sandwiches!¡± Amethyst gets some water in her mouth as she talks mid-wash, it flows straight down her throat. ¡°Can you gut the fish while I clean her up?¡± Frank asks without looking at Grent. ¡°No way. I ain¡¯t touching those.¡± Grent turns around and crosses his arms, noticing an intruder in the room. Pineapple sits on the wooden bench, its cat eyes gleaming with hunger as it sniffs towards the pile of fish. ¡°How¡¯d you get here?¡± Not wishing to be interrogated any further, Pineapple dashes between Grent¡¯s legs and sinks its teeth into a sizeable 30-centimeter-long fish. The cod-like river dweller''s dead eyes are of deep purple, black see-through fins complimenting the blue-silver striped body. ¡°Hey!¡± ¡°Oh, hey Pineapple!¡± Frank looks back to see the cat lift the fish and dash for the barely open door. Frank looks back to Amethyst, to realize he was spraying her face directly with water again. ¡°Oops, sorry.¡± Amethyst opens her eyes and blinks, looking slightly irate. Pineapple flops the fish''s head against the door with a wet smacking noise, opening it enough to let him squeeze through, leaving behind a wet splatter on the door. Grent dashes after him, but stops at the doorway; the cat much too fast. ¡°You better eat that at your feeding spot! I don¡¯t want to find pieces of rotten fish all around the place, you hear me!?¡± Pineapple jumps up to the door handle of the dining room; it opens to a crack. He leaves another wet splat of fish slime and loose scales on the door as he forces his way through it. Grent shakes his head and closes the door, retreating back into the room. ¡°One less fish to worry about.¡± Amethyst smiles. ¡°I wouldn''t put it that way...¡± Frank turns off the shower and taps his chin with the shower head. ¡°Hmm¡­ you still smell of fish... How do you feel about shampoo, Amethyst?¡± ¡°Is it the thing that smells like fruit, the one you used?¡± ¡°You still remember that? Yeah, that¡¯s the one.¡± Frank glances at Grent, who¡¯s just standing, looking at the fish behind them. ¡°Can you find out if they are safe to eat while I clean her?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t see any toxin barbs or glands on them, most likely as long as we boil them properly, it should neutralize any poisons... but sure, I¡¯ll give them each a quick analysis. I¡¯ll be glad to be out of this reeking space¡­¡± Grent was already clothed, he had insisted on quickly using the shower before Amethyst did. He gestures at the four fish, ¡°If you would Amethyst. Just very small samples will be enough¡± ¡°Sure¡±, Amethyst catches his meaning and dices a slice of each of the fish for him, Grent grabs a small plastic bucket and drops them inside it. ¡°Great¡­ Have fun gutting them and stuff¡­¡± He leaves the room. ¡°Strawberry, Raspberry, or Orange¡­? Which one do you want, Amethyst?¡± Frank¡¯s hand oscillates between the different options on the shelf. ¡°Which one did you use?¡± ¡°Raspberry?¡± ¡°Then that one.¡± Amethyst smiles and sets herself underneath the shower. ¡°Alright,¡± Frank splurts a swirly mound of the pink-tinted shampoo on his hands and foams it up. ¡°I¡¯ll put it on now,¡± Amethyst nods in confirmation and he starts to rub it on her armor, starting at her chest and working down to her stomach. The soap helps with the friction, and it''s quite easy to get it on, despite her usual rough surface. The mellow and relaxing raspberry scent fills the air, overpowering the smell of fish emanating from Amethyst, for now. ¡°So¡­ how was your trip? Caught a lot of fish, at least.¡± ¡±Yeah. I also bathed in the river, but that cleanliness didn¡¯t last¡­¡± ¡°How did it go otherwise¡­ how was Luna?¡± Frank asks with a careful tone. ¡°We saw some wildlife on our way there. She almost got hurt by a flying rock lizard.¡± ¡°Damn, really?¡± ¡°And then we saw this little fluffy rabbit thing at the river and these birds that swam there too.¡± ¡°Huh? I¡¯ve barely seen a glimpse of any interesting fauna in all my time here¡­¡± I don¡¯t count Sabertigers as interesting¡­ just very dangerous. ¡±Anyway¡­¡± As Frank¡¯s discretion didn¡¯t seem to work, he decided to ask directly. He mulls over his words for a moment, as he runs her hand over Amethyst¡¯s colorful armor, polishing her largest gemstone repeatedly, as if the motion helped him think. ¡°Did Luna do anything weird... to you? Or in general, too.¡± ¡±No, she was very polite and kind, even more so than usual.¡± ¡±Really now¡­?¡± Frank''s head starts to churn through all sorts of things: his memories, experiences, and theories, those related to Luna, but soon, even to those completely unrelated to her. Frank finishes with her upper body and works his way down to her thighs. Touching her bare skin brings back stinging memories of when he thought he had lost her; in the cabin of Viridian Macula, he couldn''t stop thinking why it ached so. At the time, he wasn¡¯t sure why he had felt that way and said all those things to her. To go to such lengths¡ªbe willing to turn on IVW, to get justice for her species, even if on his own. But like the night¡¯s mist that evaporates as morning comes, he felt the reason was becoming clearer. He lingers on the feeling, on the sense of being able to feel her presence. ¡­ But how did she feel? Feel about him? Of his hand, his proximity¡­ How it must feel, to be Amethyst. Bladed elbows¡­ Dangerous fire. What would it be like to have no fingers to hold on to somebody? To grab ahold of what matters? What about, having no hands at all? The sense of touch in them having never existed, an unfeeling blade of crystal always in their place? ¡°Frank¡­?¡± ¡°Oh¡­ Sorry.¡± He realizes his hands had stopped scrubbing a while ago. ¡°Don''t worry, I''m soon done. I¡¯ll clean your thighs, front of your legs, and then your arms, I don¡¯t think you¡¯re fishy elsewhere.¡± ¡°What about my sides and back? I think some dripped in there.¡± ¡°Really? Alright, I¡¯ll check them, too.¡± ¡±Thanks.¡± She says, a hint of joy in her voice. Frank cleans the front leg armor and moves to her arms, being careful of her blades. ¡°How was¡­ sauna, with Grent?¡± Amethyst asks suddenly. ¡°Oh, it was great. We chatted a bit about both of our histories mostly. You know, he wasn¡¯t born in Metropolis like me, I was quite surprised. He and, well I guess Amande too is from-¡± ¡°Dehua.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°In the Vajol system.¡± ¡°How did you know?¡± Frank''s scrubbing hand stops once again, now in the middle of cleaning her side armor, underneath Amethyst''s raised arms. ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t know. It just¡­ came to me.¡± ¡°Right. Some of that mind-ray mind-merge nonsense I suppose.¡± ¡°Y-yeah¡­¡± She responds with a wavering voice. All that remains to be cleaned is Amethyst¡¯s back, but she makes no effort to grant Frank easy access. ¡°Can you turn around?¡± He spins a wet and soapy finger in the air. ¡°I¡­ I think it¡¯s safer if I don¡¯t. I might damage the shower¡­¡± Amethyst trails off and her antennae droop. ¡°It¡¯s fine. Just raise your arms again, and I¡¯ll handle the rest.¡± Frank squeezes a fresh batch of shampoo onto his left hand and foams it up. ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to step closer, much closer, to you now.¡± ¡°Yes¡­¡± Frank steps in between Amethyst¡¯s front legs, their highest point is at the level of his waist. And as Amethyst is crouching down somewhat, he has an easier time reaching her. With the shower head in one hand, and soap in the other, he embraces Amethyst. His hands on the other side get to work, as he leans his head against her shoulder and his bare chest presses to Amethyst¡¯s armor. The shampoo transfers in between them, and trails down Frank¡¯s body, stopping at the towel clothing his lower body. ¡°It can¡¯t be easy¡­ to have your mind be fragmented like that. How are you holding up?¡± Frank speaks softly as he hugs Amethyst, his voice full of empathy and understanding. ¡°It is¡­ confusing. But I¡¯m managing¡­ I think.¡± Amethyst says, much calmer than before. ¡°In fact¡­ I think I¡¯m doing much better already.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good. I know you¡¯ll be fine.¡± Frank softly taps her back, as he continues to clean her, proceeding ever lower. ¡°How can you know?¡± Amethyst¡¯s voice is full of surprise. ¡°I know you. So, I know you won¡¯t let it stop you.¡± ¡°Thank you¡­¡± Frank feels like a phantom arm, coarse and powerful embraced him back for a moment, but he didn¡¯t see her left arm moving at any point. As he turns his head, Amethyst¡¯s other arm is held up too. They stay quiet, their bodies together for the rest of the serene clean, until Frank separates from her. ¡°There, all done.¡± Frank backs off and looks up at Amethyst¡¯s grateful eyes, but quickly averts his gaze, with a shy smile. He scratches his cheek, but only gets shampoo on it. ¡°I¡¯ve never felt this clean¡­ and that¡¯s saying much.¡± ¡°Huh? What do you mean?¡± Amethyst just radiates a smile in response, her armor almost entirely covered in white foam and bubbles. ¡°Would it be too much¡­ if I¡­¡± ¡°What is it¡­?¡± Frank asks curiously and looks at the fidgeting Amethyst. ¡°Can you do my hair too? And my face¡­¡± ¡°Oh, right. They definitely got their fair share of fishy filaments too.¡± ¡°Does that mean you¡¯ll do it...?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s not a problem at all.¡± Amethyst observes Frank closely as he takes yet another portion of raspberry goodness and begins to reach up toward her head. As both of his arms reach for her violet hair, Frank has to get onto his toes, which causes a feeling of slipping on his waist. The towel comes undone from around him and drops onto the floor. Amethyst¡¯s many eyes keep on looking at him as normal like nothing of note happened. He kicks the towel further away, flinging it almost onto the wooden bench, so it doesn¡¯t get any more wet than it already was from the floor and Amethyst. Clearly, he didn¡¯t need it anymore. ¡°Close your eyes.¡± Amethyst obeys without question, without her usual ¡®why?¡¯ her eyelids shut tight but with a persistent cute grin on her face. Her hair is soft, if not a little dirty. In all her life, it had probably never been washed properly like this. Frank massages the lotion all the way to her scalp, making sure the shampoo permeates deep into her lush hair. He carefully handles the roots of her antennae, making sure to not splash them too much, as they look very sensitive and fragile. Amethyst''s bony head wings he cleans all the way, they were the ground zero of her fish smell, unsurprisingly. Applying the foam to the sides of her head is strange, in the spot that humans had ears, she has nothing. He gently follows the curves of her face, rubbing, and massaging her gray skin with circulating hand motions. The lack of a nose definitely helps in spreading the suds, though he still didn¡¯t directly slather it on her eyelids or lips. He cleans her rather pointed chin and with extreme care, slides down to her neck with smooth motions, where he finishes his cleaning. Frank removes his tingling hands, which were starting to look like raisins, from Amethyst''s skin and gazes upon his handiwork, proud. The cleanest Tyrchid in the Galaxy, nay, the entire Universe! ¡°I¡¯ll wash it off now, don¡¯t answer though, you¡¯ll get soap in your mouth.¡± Amethyst nods, still smiling, she boosts Frank''s positivity to new levels, too. Frank sprays her down again, lightly rubbing some of her armor and hair, so that the shampoo comes off properly. ¡°There, all done!¡± Amethyst opens her eyes, her sparkling face practically competing with her armor in shine. She closes her eyes momentarily like concentrating on something, ¡°Ah, I smell so good! Thank you, Frank!¡± Frank laughs, ¡°No problem. I¡¯m glad you don¡¯t reek of fish anymore, too. And as long as you don¡¯t make too much of a mess, we can keep it that way. We still got to gut the fish.¡± ¡°Oh, right¡­ Can¡¯t we just eat them as is?¡± ¡°No¡­¡± ¡°Fine¡­ at least I think I can burn off the smell from my blades...¡± Frank cleans himself in the shower as well and directs Amethyst in gutting the fish with her natural, extraordinarily sharp, knives at the same time. Joining her with more hands-on cooperation after getting some clothes on to fight the cold of the cavern. The fish¡¯s guts are more or less what he expected, and Amethyst gets the hang of the process quickly without any particular issue. Only the shark gives them some trouble, the rest were more, ¡®normal¡¯ fish, at least as normal as could be for an alien planet, so they are done in no time at all.
Amethyst and Frank gather in the kitchen, with Amethyst¡¯s fish fillets, to ponder what to make of them. The door opens before they can start the brainstorming. Grent shows up with a rag and a spray bottle. He sprays thin mist at the kitchen door''s fish splatter left by Pineapple and then wipes it off with a rag. ¡°Ahem... anyway, all the fish are in the clear to eat.¡± ¡°Fantastic!¡± Amethyst rejoices with animated blades. ¡°Well then, how about a creamy fish soup? At least from some of the fish.¡± Frank suggests. ¡°Why does it have to be soup?¡± ¡°Oh, sorry. Maybe not soup.¡± Frank raises apologetic open hands for Amethyst. ¡°Well, I don¡¯t think we even have any sort of cream here, that¡¯d spoil too fast.¡± Grent comments. ¡°Uhh, what do you even have here? I¡¯ve never seen such a large and badly stocked kitchen before¡­ You¡¯ve got flour at least? Maybe we could just make some fish balls or patties.¡± ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ve got flours, at least those last a long time. I do have some potatoes too still.¡± Grent lifts the Solarophone from the floor: ¡°Oh, we¡¯ve got some Pineapple here as well!¡± He turns the cat to face him. ¡±Did you enjoy your stolen goods?¡± The cat immediately bites his hand and he sets it free. ¡°Ouch¡­ Wait¡­ why is the cat named after food?¡± Amethyst looks at the cat curiously, he hides behind a chair from her. ¡°Oh¡­ I thought it was funny. I mean he is yellow and his double tails resemble a Pineapple¡¯s leaves. A bit sharp and pointy like that.¡± Frank makes fruity moves with his hands. ¡°I don¡¯t see it¡± Grent comments and holds his bitten hand. ¡°Of course, we don¡¯t eat cats or¡­ aliens, at least if they are intelligent¡­ or¡­ pets? It¡¯s all a bit vague now that I think about it¡­¡± Frank tries to clarify for Amethyst. ¡°You know if it was fine to eat depending if ISSA shows up knocking on your door or not¡ªgoes the saying.¡± Grent pulls on the sides of his open coat. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°It¡¯s an intergalactic saying¡­ that much is true.¡± Frank continues in Grent''s place. ¡°But if Amethyst chose poorly with these fish, we might be the first ones to test if it¡¯s true. ISSA¡¯s basically already at our doorstep.¡± Amethyst looks at him worried. ¡°I¡¯m just joking. All of them are just fish.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, how can you be so sure?¡± Grent smiles at him, tapping his stubbly chin. ¡°But, if you say so Frank...¡± ¡°Hey, come on now!¡± ¡°This won¡¯t look good in the ISSA court¡­¡± Amethyst says dejected but smirks at Grent. ¡°Haw-haw... Aren''t you two funny?¡± ¡°Well, you started it!¡± Grent shrugs, the red nicks of the small bite marks visible on his hand. ¡°Well, regardless¡­ can we eat soon...¡± ¡°Just put all the fillets in the oven and call it a day?¡± Grent says. ¡°Hmm¡­ since we didn¡¯t take the fish skin off¡­ we could easily make Fish medallions. Those only need a bit of salt and pepper to turn delicious.¡± ¡°Medallions?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just the name, we take this fish fillet, cut it from the middle to just below the skin, and bend it from the middle into two parts, held together by the skin.¡± Frank demonstrates with a knife, cutting up one fillet, and ending up with a neat piece of meat. ¡°Then we just fry them on a pan in a light amount of butter, season after and it¡¯s done!¡± ¡°What, we¡¯re just gonna eat just that alone?¡± Grent presses a paper towel on his hand, the bite mark decides to bleed after all. ¡°You said you had potatoes? We can make mashed potatoes from them, though that would be best with milk¡­ I suppose it won¡¯t be terrible with just water.¡± ¡°I can do the cooking, after all, it¡¯s just the molecules reacting with the heat and forming new bonds.¡± Grent nonchalantly volunteers. ¡°Great! Amethyst you can help in cutting the medallions and the potatoes, which I can turn into mush later.¡± ¡°Have you done this dish before?¡± Amethyst tilts her head and settles before a cutting board. ¡°Yeah, I used to cook it with my parents, from our personally caught fish too you know.¡± Frank slices another medallion, on his wooden cutting board. ¡°Are you a fisher like Luna?¡± As Frank is about to cut another piece, Amethyst''s question causes him to flinch and almost slice his fingers. ¡°...well, I did my fair share of fishing as a kid with my Father. We¡¯d come back home and we¡¯d cook with Mother if we decided on medallions, if not, then Dad would be happy to help, too.¡± A sudden, sullen grimace, twists his lips and he looks away briefly. ¡°Shall we start?¡± He picks up the shark onto the table, a consistent smile overwriting the previously stressed expression. Piece by piece, Amethyst and Frank skillfully slice the ones they¡¯ll eat, deciding to freeze the rest. Grent takes care of it, and soon arrives back, preparing to cook for them. Frank and Amethyst work on the potatoes next, and soon they are ready too, boiling in a pot on the stove. They were this season¡¯s ¡®tates, so all they needed was to slice them. Grent starts to cook the fish like a machine, manufacturing each one with a perfect glistening surface, keeping them all intact. Seems he wasn¡¯t all talk, despite inquiries of how he''s such a good cook, he wouldn''t give a straight answer. The confused expression hinted that maybe he himself wasn¡¯t sure of the reason. But how would that work? Neither questioned him further, perhaps fearing the answer. A pot full of potato mashing and sprinkling of seasoning later, it was time to dine. Amethyst uses her blade like a ladle, scooping potato and fish onto it at the same time, then tipping it into her waiting mouth. The grease, salt, and spices were an ephemeral aftertaste in the potato-ruled portion. It was good, she assumed, but at least it reminded her of the food she had been offered by Frank in his cottage, which gave her a warm recollection. Frank cuts a part of the medallion with his cutleries first, checking its state inside. On the surface, it had turned to orange with a side of blue tint which was much the same within. No stark, dark blue, glistening of raw anywhere, seemed Grent had done an exemplary job in cooking it through and through. Eating an unknown fish raw wasn¡¯t something he was keen on doing. Grent first eats quickly, like he couldn''t wait to be off, but slows down, a dreamy smile on his lips. ¡°How could such a gruesome beast taste so-¡± He glares at his table pals and quickly assumes his usual frown onto his face. ¡°-so different from its appearance...¡± ¡°It¡¯s pretty good, but are you sure it¡¯s not just that you forgot what actual food tastes like after eating only sandwiches or thawed leftovers?¡± Frank points at him with a fork. ¡°Nonsense¡­ flavor is the least important aspect in cooking¡­¡± Grent trails off and stuffs another helping into his mouth, tuning out of the conversation. The most important part of cooking- His eating stops for a moment, spinning the fork in his hands, then stopping it to gleam the reflection of his eyes from its base. -is completely different¡­ He closes his eyes and squeezes the cutlery. Meanwhile, Frank converses with Amethyst. ¡°So, you had your interview, too? I hope you at least had some decent questions.¡± ¡°Oh, I think I had a few¡­ good ones¡­¡± Amethyst carefully trails circles on top of her damaged plate, staying away from the carved X-mark in the middle that made it hers¡ªjust hovering slightly above, to not damage it further. ¡°Like what?¡± Frank asks nonchalantly and takes in a grand portion of delectable cuisine. ¡°Oh¡­ well¡­ this and that¡­¡± She hadn¡¯t noticed, but her blade had lowered; she had again carved into the plate. A circle running at the base of its elevated edges surrounded the X. It was so easy to say then¡­ why¡¯s this time different¡­? Amethyst turned to look at Frank, he was shuffling around food on his plate until he noticed her looking. A curious rising of the eyebrows, a subtle inquisitive smile met her. Shrinck! Amethyst¡¯s plate¡¯s edges shatter and break off in large pieces, leaving her with a flat disk with an X. Grent is jolted awake from his thoughts. ¡°Well, now you¡¯ve done it!¡± ¡°Oh¡­ I¡¯m sorry.¡± Amethyst pulls her hands off the table, dangling them on her sides. Her shoulders stiffen and rise as she looks away. ¡°Are you okay? It¡¯s fine, it¡¯s just a plate.¡± Grent sighs. ¡°It had been a perfectly good plate at that, too-!¡± He rises from his chair and accuses Amethyst. However, mid-sentence, he pauses and sits back down, crossing his arms. ¡°Whatever. Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± ¡°Thanks for the food, and cooking with me¡­¡± Amethyst stands up and quickly leaves the room towards the ward. It is Frank¡¯s turn to sigh and he glares at Grent, as he starts to pick up the porcelain pieces onto her plate. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I messed up. I didn¡¯t need to get so worked up about a plate.¡± Grent presses his back against the backrest of the wooden chair and looks away. Frank stops cleaning and looks at him astonished like a stranger had taken his place. ¡°I guess we¡¯re all a bit tense, for one reason or another.¡± Frank stacks the rest of the shards onto her rough-edged X-disc and proceeds to dump it into the trash. ¡°I¡¯ll talk to her, I¡¯m sure she¡¯s just anxious too.¡± ¡°Right...¡± ¡°By the way¡­ do you have the Tango music ready?¡± ¡°Oh, the party is today, isn¡¯t it...? I¡¯ll get right onto finishing it.¡± ¡°Grent¡­¡± Frank shakes his head in utter disappointment and is about to leave the room, however, Grent¡¯s words stop him. ¡°Before you leave for the party today¡­ wait in the ward. I¡¯ve¡­ I¡¯ve got something for you.¡± ¡°Huh? Me?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t question it! Just... get Amethyst to go ahead without you, it¡¯ll be good, I promise.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ Thanks. I won¡¯t forget.¡± ¡°Good, just think of it as reconciliation and nothing more.¡± ¡°But¡­ what exactly do you have in mind¡­?¡± ¡°Consider it a surprise.¡± Frank sizes him up and stares sternly. ¡°I''m not gonna do it if you don''t tell me what it is first.¡± ¡±Oh, fine¡­ here¡¯s the deal...¡± Frank hears him out and then leaves to talk with Amethyst, who is more frustrated at herself than Grent. Disappointed in her lapse of judgment, in the gap in her concentration that made her break the plate. Afterward, they rest and spend their time in blissful idleness for once, napping, roaming the ward, playing with Pineapple, taking small walks outside, chatting about this and that. Frank and Amethyst perform their final tango practices, still without the music, Grent had told them that it needed just a few more modifications and that he¡¯d handle sending it to Pioneer. Then he had driven them out of the lab and locked himself in. Only hours later, had he opened the door to have a break, seeming rather pleased with himself. Of course, it took no time at all for him to return to his lair.
¡°It¡¯s almost time for the party, should we go already, Frank?¡± Amethyst sits with him on a sofa in the lobby, tapping her feet against the floor. ¡°Will you come, Grent?¡± Frank shouts towards the open lab door. Sounds of tinkering emanate from the lab. ¡°Maybe. Who knows?¡± ¡°If you wouldn''t mind going on ahead, without me, I have a¡­ thing I need to take care of?¡± Frank stands up and looks to the ward. ¡°What is it?¡± Frank offers a hand and helps Amethyst up from the low sofa. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, you¡¯ll see soon enough.¡± ¡°Fine¡­ I trust you.¡± Amethyst smiles, ¡°Where is the party though?¡± ¡°Oh, right. Pioneer messaged me saying they set up near the landing pads after all, there¡¯s a stretch of open land near it against the woods. ¡°Okay, don¡¯t be late though!¡± ¡°Thank you¡­ I won¡¯t,¡± Frank opens the door to the ward and closes it behind him. ¡°I wonder what all that was about?¡± Grent says with an alluding tone of voice, having shown up at his lab¡¯s door, smugly leaning to it and looking at his hand nonchalantly. ¡°Maybe he¡¯s planning a surprise, too?¡± Grent''s brow wrinkles and his eyebrows rise. ¡°Who else is planning a surprise?¡± ¡°Luna- oh, that was supposed to be a secret between us¡­ I think.¡± ¡°Luna¡­ eh?¡± ¡°A-anyway. I¡¯d better go now¡­¡± Amethyst hastily leaves the lobby. Grent reveals a wide and thin item from behind his back, slightly longer than his upper body. It¡¯s covered with a see-through plastic sheet, with a zipper in the middle. From the top, a metal hook emerges, which he holds onto. He takes it with him to the ward and as soon as he gets the door open, he gloats to Frank inside. ¡°You¡¯ll never guess what I just heard...¡± 33. A night to remember Amethyst arrives behind the Intergalactic Resources¡¯ old base, the celebration area opens up before her; a large level meadow of red grass by the forest¡¯s edge. It had once been empty, but now the various wildflowers were trampled, and the ground already muddying up at spots. Cameras, large speakers, and other equipment are propped up on the slightly higher, and firmer, landing pads of asphalt, pointing towards the main party site. Some of the film crew are operating them and other parts of the set, but most seemed to have been put up as actors, partygoers in fancy dresses and suits, already mingling in the area. Though the personnel seemed a lot more numerous now than ever before. On the right side are various tables decked with drinks and closer to the landing pads is the food area, equally massive. The tables themselves also have small steel lanterns, which shine their electric but warm light. Some people even carry around these vintage lighting pieces. Colorful flags, advertisement banners, and other decorations litter the area high and low. The general area is lit up and decorated with bright paper-lantern-like lights hanging from lines, permeating the darkening night sky with light. They are hung from tree to tree, some supporting poles laid in between that are finally connected to the Intergalactic building¡¯s wall. In the middle of it all a bonfire of wood, surrounded by large stones which seem unnecessary given the features of Midnight Iris¡¯ forests. Benches are spread around the vicinity of the fire, and further along are wooden tables with more traditional chairs, though a large circular area is left vacant all around the bonfire. The sight of it all is impressive and unique to Amethyst¡¯s eyes. She had never seen such festivities or so many people crowded together like this. It was a strange feeling, to witness all these humans, so many living beings, each doing their own things, each being their own person. A conflict of belonging and alienation; a part of her head felt at home, that she should go into the crowd and lose herself, these were her people. To meet them and chatter, shake their hands, do things becoming of human nature. But, Amethyst knew it wasn¡¯t true, this feeling was a fabrication¡ªa leftover that was now always a part of her. A churning dissonance stirred deep within, in her head, in her very limbs. She wasn¡¯t like them. She could never be human. If she¡¯d ever be surrounded by a crowd so tightly packed in against her, there would be casualties. If she ever moved without careful consideration, of clear intent, these fragile beings would break. She couldn''t grab somebody from their shoulders, pull them close, or even push them away. Take another¡¯s hand into hers or touch their face, she was more likely to blind somebody, than to successfully wipe their tears. She wondered what it would be like, to caress another¡¯s cheek just like a couple in the sea of people before her do. Even in the shower, she was afraid of hugging Frank back, and in the end, she hadn¡¯t done it. He didn¡¯t even have his clothes on, nothing to protect him from her. She simply couldn''t take that risk, it was too dangerous. The many humans before her... All of them¡­ they are so... Close. Intimate. Connected. I¡¯m so jealous... From her vigil of solitude on the landing area, she spots a familiar face emerge from the forest. Why¡¯s Frank coming from there? And¡­ what is he wearing? Frank notices her and waves while keeping his other hand behind his back. He hurries towards her, a creaseless black jacket, a white shirt with a stiff collar, and straight black trousers replacing his usual attire. ¡°Hey! Do you like my outfit?¡± Frank poses and adjusts his tie pleased, only to realize, he had forgotten to wear one. Oh, it¡¯s what some of the other humans are wearing in the crowd too. ¡°I almost forgot you could change your clothes.¡± ¡°Really? I guess I should change my style more often.¡± Frank laughs awkwardly, his hand stops from touching his neatly combed and cascading long hair. Despite Grent lending him his wedding tuxedo, and even helping with his hair, he couldn''t find his finer shoes anywhere. So Frank was stomping around in his wilderness boots, again. Their size and rigidity could make it a little tricky to dance, but it didn''t matter much, after all, he didn¡¯t have to worry about stepping on his damsel¡¯s toes. ¡°I mean¡­ for a second I forgot it isn¡¯t like my armor¡­¡± Amethyst pauses. ¡°But you don¡¯t have to do that. I like your normal clothes. And well¡­ these ones too.¡± ¡°O-oh, thanks.¡± Frank looks away and brings the hand he kept holding behind his back in front. ¡°I couldn''t find any orange ones, so I hope these will do.¡± He holds two immaculate white flowers, which have seven petals in a tight star-like formation that gently curve and suddenly extend into sharp long ends. These ends have a gradient of violet that runs all the way into the middle. A deep red stigma and filaments with slight black anthers at their ends crown the elegant flowers. ¡°Ah... Thank you.¡± Everything Amethyst was thinking of before, all that seemed secondary, distant, and unimportant now. Happy and cozy thoughts flood into her mind, and she quickly blinks her eyes to remove the building-up mist from them. Frank snaps the stem shorter and reaches up, perching it on her hair, at the same spot as back then. The second flower, he plants into his suit¡¯s pocket. They are now a matching flower pair. ¡°Of course, it''s my pleasure.¡± ¡°Ah, what a romantic scene!¡± Pioneer shows up with a hover camera hot on his tail to interrupt their moment. ¡°How¡¯s the evening, what are your thoughts before we start the celebrations?¡± Pioneer holds his folded sunglasses in his hand, extending them towards Frank like a microphone. Frank¡¯s lips become sharp like a line. ¡°Fine¡­ Um, we¡¯re eager to start, aren¡¯t we?¡± Pioneer moves the glasses-mic to Amethyst. ¡°Yes. Can we dance now?¡± She says quickly and excitedly. ¡°Yes, of course, just one thing first. We can¡¯t have you dance without the traditional Tyrchid Bonfire.¡± Pioneer winks at them. ¡°Won¡¯t our couple of the night set it alight together?¡± ¡°Huh? Me too?¡± Frank looks at Pioneer and then at Amethyst. Amethyst grins and offers her hand to Frank. ¡°Won¡¯t you light this fire with me?¡± Frank takes her wrist into a gentle grip, ¡°With pleasure,¡± but turns to Pioneer, there was something he needed to confirm. ¡°You have the song, right?¡± He whispers as inconspicuously as it is possible in front of a live camera feed. ¡°Yes, you sent it via gweb-mail, or has there been a change?¡± I sent it¡­? But wasn¡¯t Grent supposed to do that¡­? Hold on¡­ Did Grent do something to my communicator when I gave it to him earlier? ¡°No, that¡¯s good, just making sure.¡± ¡°Excellent, then let¡¯s get started!¡± Pioneer says boisterous and slaps Frank on the shoulder in a comradely manner. ¡°Sorry, Amethyst, let¡¯s go.¡± Frank turns back to Amethyst and leads her towards the far right side stairs that bridge the otherwise meter-long drop to the grassy ground. Hand on wrist, they stride down the short steps and begin to approach the crowd and the bonfire. ¡°What was that about?¡± Amethyst asks, her head¡¯s movement causing the flower to flutter. ¡°I think Grent hijacked my gweb-mail account or something.¡± Frank waves a dismissing hand to avail Amethyst¡¯s confused gaze. ¡°I¡¯m sure it''s¡­ nothing.¡± ¡°Why would he do that?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, to make it look like I sent it and not him? I¡¯ll definitely ask him about it later though¡­¡± Frank shakes his head. ¡°But let¡¯s not worry about it now. We can¡¯t let Grent ruin our evening.¡± ¡°Agreed.¡± Amethyst¡¯s eyes sparkle in the lantern light as she smirks. Above the site, Pioneer talks to the camera. ¡°Right after its ceremonial flames pay respects to this day, to all that has transpired on our short adventure together, we¡¯ll begin.¡± Pioneer holds a hand next to his mouth and whispers. ¡°Don''t worry, I¡¯ll let you all know if any developments happen after the cameras stop rolling, via my various gweb accounts.¡± He looks down upon his communicator. ¡°Pioneer, what about the Tyrchid''s lyrical song performance? I hear you ask. If any of you viewers at home are confused, don¡¯t you still remember that touching display in the village, Amethyst, and all of the village singing wordlessly? I don¡¯t think we could top that so, just the dance is in the program today. Or if you missed the last show, I suggest watching it immediately!¡± Amethyst and Frank enter amidst the party people clad in sparkling evening dresses and dapper suits. They all part from their way. Some bow and curtsy, others applaud lightly or express their support with congratulatory words. The crowd keeps their distance from the bonfire, two circles of stones surrounding it, one right at the wood, and another one, probably serving as a safety boundary. They step inside the outer rock circle, and soon reach the bonfire, it¡¯s slightly taller than Amethyst. The pile¡¯s wood is earthy brown and has tough-looking bark and light brown insides. ¡°They really got us wood from off-world for you to light?¡± ¡°That was nice of Pioneer.¡± Amethyst lights up her left hand, purple flames take over her blade, few drops of fire drop down to the ground and smoulder among the red grass. She sinks it among the firewood, which whooshes alight in an instant, after pulling her hand out, she lightly throws a few burning droplets, starting a fire higher up too. The crowd whistles and claps like an overly excited fanbase of an artist. Amethyst and Frank back away from the growing heat of the fire, its blaze lightly warming even Amethyst¡¯s face. Frank looks around for Pioneer for a sign of what to do next, but can¡¯t spot him. ¡°Do we just start...?¡± He looks at Amethyst, but before she can answer him, a song begins to play. ¡°Alright then, may I have this dance?¡± ¡°Of course. We¡¯re already holding hands after all¡­¡± Amethyst coyly looks at Frank. ¡°Okay¡­¡± Frank takes a breath. ¡°Just like we practiced.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Amethyst places her left hand blade on Frank¡¯s shoulder. Gentle slow drums play, with a rhythmic accordion keeping pace, Soon, acoustic guitar strings accompany the composition too, as they get into form. Frank¡¯s left hand holds her back below her armpit, their right hands held together, extended, and bent slightly. They look each other in the eyes, Frank nods and takes a step forward. Stepping into their dance at an opportune part of the music. It seemed like a rather simplistic piece, a few unique parts strung together by a chorus, completely lacking vocals. That didn¡¯t matter though, as it was definitely made for Tango; perfectly capturing the ¡®quick quick, slow slow¡¯ steps, keeping a rather constant 4/4 time that was easy to follow. As the guests notice the dance being a rather familiar one, many form pairs and begin to dance along with them. Men, women, and some of the non-humans of the crew begin circulating the bonfire in a clockwise fashion. The glow of the lanterns and the fire is magical, it flares in Amethyst¡¯s eyes, reflects, and lights up her perfectly clean skin. To Frank¡¯s bold gaze, Amethyst responds in kind with unwavering, unabashed eye contact. Amethyst admires his hair, so straight and orderly, and he''s so sharply dressed, too. It almost looked off-putting at first, but she was getting used to seeing him in fancy clothes like these. Though she would have felt rather under-dressed in comparison if it wasn¡¯t for the flower. She feels its presence, bobbing on her hair, its bent stalk prodding at her head gently at times. The music and other people blur into the background, as they sink deeper into each other''s eyes. Their training and muscle memory carried them effortlessly across their grassy parquet, and their peripheral vision was enough to keep them on track, as they spun and glided over the grass, the faint bonfire¡¯s heat guiding their distance too. ¡°You know, despite everything, I¡¯ve had the time of my life. I didn¡¯t know¡­ how fun it could be to live.¡± Amethyst speaks with serious sincerity. Frank¡¯s mouth gapes like a fish on dry land, over and over starting to say something but deciding otherwise. Struggling to find the words, to formulate his thoughts. ¡°At first I was afraid¡­ of sapience and the world, but once I met you that changed. I''m so glad we met.¡± Finally, Frank closes his eyes momentarily and says with a warm smile: ¡°Me too. And we''re only getting started.¡± Amethyst grins, but her face turns bittersweet nearly instantly. ¡°I truly am fortunate it all didn¡¯t end so soon. Back then, my condition was getting so bad, I was even ready to¡­¡± ¡°Ready to what¡­?¡± Frank asks with concern. ¡°No, never mind. That should remain in the past.¡± Suddenly, the music seems to get a little faster. ¡°Ready to take it up a notch?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never been more ready.¡± Amethyst smirks a sly smile, and almost starts leading herself, Frank has to step up to the challenge, to stay one step ahead of her. They gracefully bend their way in a faster spin, Amethyst¡¯s feet strike the ground one after the other, a most impressive display, expertly keeping them from tangling together. They bob and weave through the slower dancers, they see them coming from far, and manage to get out of the way. Behind them, on this fast lane, a group of skilled dancers followed. Three circles were forming, the fastest one, closest to the fire, the pace slowing down between each circle, the middle one going in the other direction. Despite the cool night air, Frank¡¯s brow starts to grow some sweat-berries. Amethyst giggles, ¡°Getting tired, Frank?¡± ¡°Just a little bit.¡± Though, his heavy boots still slide across the grass, gracefully enough. The greenery itself takes the punishment rather well, the ground was hard, and the grass resilient, but the area was still starting to dirt up slowly. Suddenly confused shouts and remarks of people fill the air, a faint sound of wings mixed in the clamoring. Frank and Amethyst stop to look around as does almost everyone. ¡°What- our¡­ students?¡± Imilald lands on the ground, the crowd seems to be rather surprised, but as they see who arrives, they manage to calm down. The crowd makes room for the rest of the Tyrchid students to land as well. ¡°Did you invite them, Amethyst?¡± ¡°No. Maybe they found us by sound?¡± The music continues to play, and Imilald starts to sway and move in a hilarious manner, her antennae brushing back and forth, her head bobbing. ¡°She¡¯s dancing! Come on, Frank!¡± Amethyst takes the lead and spins Frank into motion too. ¡°H-hold on!¡± The crowd accepts the new arrivals as a part of their celebration and begins to dance anew, the speed circles were broken however, as the other Tyrchids'' disorganized manner of dancing, took up most of the available stage. Ghoxh and Gnox dance together, both of them frequently looking at Amethyst and Frank to imitate their steps. Sfhipoz and Siflin dance close by with humans as their partners with some sort of free-form style without contact. They eye each other jealously, always changing partners, to the one the other used last. Imilald continues to dance alone in a wild manner, while Zigon has a refined form, sticking to one partner, one lucky gal in a sparkling white dress. Amethyst and Frank decide to retreat from the dance floor, for now, it was getting a bit too crowded. They sit together on a bench, resting. ¡°I can¡¯t believe how good you¡¯re at dancing, Amethyst.¡± ¡°I had a great teacher.¡± Frank laughs. ¡°Thanks. I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d enjoy it so much, but I really forgot we were even being filmed immediately when the music started.¡± ¡°A-are they still filming?¡± Amethyst asks, and slides to sit closer to Frank, her arm carefully, and cautiously, like testing the waters, hovering over Frank¡¯s back. ¡°I think so¡­¡± Frank says and watches the partygoers dance, celebrate, and engage with their Tyrchid guests, but it looks like he isn¡¯t focusing on them, his gaze strangely vigilant and alert. ¡°Good...¡± A feeling of trepidation rooted deep in Amethyst''s mind, she fights against this fear, trying to untangle her sense of uncertainty. A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.Her antennae perk up in anxiety, as she considers her feelings and desires, and Frank¡¯s too. Finally, she touches his back with her arm. Immediately Frank flinches and looks around like startled, he realizes just how close Amethyst is, and looks slightly tense. Amethyst¡¯s arm retreated as soon as Frank shifted, she looks at him and her bladed hand. ¡°D-did I hurt you?¡± ¡°No, not at all. I was just- surprised, that¡¯s all.¡± Frank scratches his cheek. ¡°F-feel free to¡­ continue.¡± ¡°Okay¡­¡± The feeling of Amethyst¡¯s touch returns, and this time spreads all across Frank¡¯s back, her arm gently wrapping around him, she pulls Frank against herself. Amethyst¡¯s rigid embrace is like a mountain, tough, unyielding, and reliable. A sanctuary. A feeling of safety and warmth is the most prominent, despite the cold armor against his suit. Frank answers in turn, he lays a hand on her arm that comes from his right side and hugs her back with his left arm, leaning on her. Squeezed together, in each other''s arms, they continue to sit silently, enjoying the moment. Appreciating the beautiful bright lights of this festival made just for them and the amount of work it must have taken to arrange. Watching the celebrating people and non-people, all having fun without a care in the world filled them with a wholesome warmth. The crisp and fresh night blessing them with its pure, clean air, a faint gust plays with their hair, before going on its way, to grace somebody else with its mischief. Right in this moment, there are no worries, no hurry to go anywhere, or to do anything. They were truly glad, and satisfied to be able to be like this, side-to-side with a loved one, sharing this moment. The future truly looked radiant. Driven by this dreamy atmosphere, Amethyst tilts her head, seeking to lay hers on Frank¡¯s head, but instead, she bonks him with her head-wings which are unavoidably in the way. ¡°Ah! S-sorry! Are you okay?!¡± Frank rubs the top of his head with an aching smile with his right hand. ¡°It¡¯s fine¡­ just a bump.¡± Amethyst¡¯s grip loosens and her face looks panicked and lost. She looks away and seems to be preparing for a retreat. ¡°Amethyst. Why don¡¯t you bring your head lower, but bring your face directly towards mine, akin to nodding.¡± She stops for a moment but eventually turns back to Frank. ¡°Like... this?¡± Amethyst crouches down slightly, and her face comes down to meet Frank¡¯s, forehead first. Frank swipes her hair out from the way of her forehead and touches his own against hers. Their cheeks catch slight color and they both look at each other¡¯s eyes from so very close. Frank¡¯s forehead is toasty hot, the sensation was the same, as on the skin underneath her armor, when her fire burned. A comforting and safe warmth, she¡¯d never felt on her face before. With close proximity to Amethyst, Frank smells the strong scent of raspberry fragrance, a delightful feminine smell. He doubted himself for a moment, for having chosen it himself earlier, too, but dismissed the silly thought. It was becoming clear what his feelings were towards her. He was finally allowing himself to realize; that she may be a Tyrchid, but she¡¯s so much more too. Her own person, a lady. Frank¡¯s free hand caresses the side of Amethyst¡¯s head, and plays with her hair, suddenly finding himself being short of breath. They close their eyes, as their faces start to tilt upward in unison. Towards each other, turning to the side, Frank''s hot breath starts to puff on her face. Suddenly the loud blaring Tango song, which had been looped over and over, stops. The sudden change makes their faces separate, as they look around to what¡¯s going on. Then the music just begins again, from the start, at normal speed, but something strange happens. ¡°We were together, All our life, Dug in the sand, played in the mud.¡° Somebody, a man, starts to sing along with the music. Both his voice and the music play from the speakers, is he singing this live? ¡°Though thick and thin, tragedy and sin. No matter the grieve, our home is but a dream.¡± ¡°Traveled the stars, followed our hearts, together in our ship, or even in a ditch.¡± ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Amethyst tries to find this mystery singer, but cannot spot him. Frank follows the crowd¡¯s gazes and notices a person standing atop the landing pads. Pioneer and his cameras are focused on this figure in a long white jacket, buttoned all the way up, a yellow umbrella blocking out his face, which they spin around. ¡°Over there!¡± ¡°But now, I''m just your Tango King... The lonesome kin, with hopeless sin.¡± Frank catches a glimpse of his face underneath, but a bandanna on his face conceals his features. His eyes are hidden underneath mirrored sunglasses like Pioneer¡¯s, just reflecting blue light back to the viewers, he sings with feeling, and a strong and clear baritone voice. ¡°Where''s my Queen? To set us free, myself and this world, save us, please.¡± ¡°I''d give my all, for a drop of her blood, a glimpse of her skin, a warmth on my lips.¡± ¡°A maiden most fair, how could such golden hair, leave behind a deep, aching scar?¡± ¡°But now, I''m just your Tango King... The lonesome kin, with hopeless sin.¡± The singer closes up the umbrella, his concealed face for all to see, even his hair is completely engulfed by a black beanie. He sings into a microphone head attachment directly plugged into their communicator. The loose fabric on his face, billows from his words, but it seemingly doesn¡¯t distort the lyrics. ¡°Why is it so cruel? Can it be wrong? Get her back for any price. You¡¯ll see.¡± ¡°The whole universe forsake?¡± He points across the crowd with the umbrella. ¡°Hah! It is done. Our destiny, we will fulfill!¡± ¡°But now, I''m just your Tango King... The lonesome kin, with hopeless sin.¡± He strikes the umbrella¡¯s metal end on the asphalt ground. ¡°If hear this you can, hope is here, with my plan. Together again¡­ Yes, we can!¡± ¡°Your Tango King, My Dancing Queen, waiting forever, for your re-turn~!¡± He holds the note like a trained opera singer, but unlike one, he has to stop it earlier than expected, as his voice seems to be unable to carry it through. The mysterious singer bows briefly and scoots off the landing pad stage, hopping into the forest, as quickly and unexpectedly, as he had arrived. The crowd is left stunned after the exit of this unscheduled performance. ¡°Oh, what a mysterious charmer! A most elusive singer, but what voice! Everyone, give it up to the Tango King!¡± Pioneer announces without missing a beat and starts to clap. Everyone in the crowd joins in, whistling after him and chanting: ¡®Tan-go King!¡¯ ¡°That was Grent¡­ right?¡± Amethyst asks thoroughly bamboozled by this twist. ¡°Yeah. What was he thinking? I thought he was keeping a low profile or something.¡± ¡°Maybe he just really likes to sing?¡± ¡°Somehow, I sincerely doubt that.¡± Frank taps his fingers on the wooden bench. ¡°But¡­ what do I know?¡± Amethyst and Frank continue to sit around, the moment is gone, even if they are still right next to each other. The silence getting slightly awkward, but not uncomfortable, it was just hard to recover from such a surprise. Frank is the first one to speak up. ¡°Anyway, what do you want to do now? Looks like Pioneer is giving the final speech and ending the broadcast. Should we dance some more, or...?¡± ¡°I¡¯m pretty hungry, shall we eat first?¡± ¡°Sure, I¡¯m pretty thirsty myself, actually.¡± Amethyst and Frank stand up. ¡°How about you get us something to eat and I¡¯ll handle the drinks?¡± ¡°Sure, but try not to be too late, if I get back before you, there might not be much left.¡± Amethyst grins. ¡°What I saw of the food and drink areas from above, they almost looked like a maze made of tables, are you sure you won¡¯t get lost instead?¡± ¡°I can see over the crowd, I¡¯ll be fine.¡± Amethyst briefly laughs. ¡°Oh, right... I can see over the crowd too, just¡­ only you tall ones.¡± Amethyst snickers. ¡°See you soon.¡± They both go their separate ways. Frank heads for the long drink tables somewhere behind their bench¡¯s location, a swarm of guests in the way blocking it out. Meanwhile Amethyst heads to the left, for the food, with crowds of people holding plates around it. As Amethyst enters the crowd, she doesn¡¯t have to say anything to be given way, most guests, while seemingly actually enjoying themselves, seem to be filled with awareness of their role. As she gets to the food table, a trio of women is crowding the spot. ¡±Are you really going to eat all that? Leave some for the other guests.¡± A blond-haired lady with a lone side ponytail, in a soft cream-white dress, is glued to the side of her colleague. ¡±I¡¯ll take as many cookies as I want, have you seen how much Pioneer still has left in stock?¡± Her brunette-bunned friend responds, a cool black dress with a thin see-through stocking-like fabric covering her shoulders and arms with a black subtle ruffle around her neck. She bumps her hip against the first woman¡¯s. A deep sigh as the third woman behind them gives Amethyst way. ¡°You know, there was only one thing Pioneer told us to do, and yet you both are failing at it already.¡± She stands further away and taps her fingers against her tall and wide glass filled with red liquid. Wearing a pure white dress tied from the waist with a ribbon, with intricate lace decorations around her chest and neck. She dons short gray-white hair, with one long lock emerging from the middle at the back. ¡±Oh! Sorry.¡± The brunette turns around and gives Amethyst space. ¡±My apologies.¡± The blonde follows her lead, giving Amethyst access to the snack table. ¡±Aren¡¯t you the nurse that helped Frank?¡± ¡±M-me? Y-yeah¡­¡± The brunette one responds and looks away. ¡±Thank you,¡± Amethyst bows her head slightly. ¡°For making up for my failure...¡± ¡±Aww, geez¡­¡± She waves her arms around. ¡°It was no problem, just doing my job. All I did was give him an ice pack.¡± ¡±Come on now, Friday, treat this as a patient encounter if you must, if that¡¯s what it takes for you to look her in the eyes.¡± The blond one says and moves back next to Friday, shutting off Amethyst¡¯s table access again. ¡±Hopeless¡­¡± The gray-haired scoffs in the background and frowns, holding her head like suffering from a headache. She proceeds to sip deeply from the crimson-filled glass. ¡±I- I¡¯m looking at her eyes, Carol!¡± Friday stares sternly at Amethyst. ¡°S-see! I¡¯m definitely looking at her¡­ many¡­ many eyes¡­¡± ¡±Are you okay?¡± Amethyst looks back at the slightly trembling Friday and tilts her head, who still stares without blinking. ¡±Well done!¡± Carol pats Friday on the shoulder, who finally looks away and seems to heave a deep sigh of relief. The gray lady of slightly older age than Carol, possibly nearing her forties, taps her foot and clears her throat. ¡°I bet Amethyst has better things to do than entertain your shenanigans.¡± ¡±Lyra, you¡¯re such a-¡± ¡±Now, now. She¡¯s correct.¡± Carol gives her space, and Amethyst steps forward, all sorts of desserts and pastries that Amethyst had never seen open up before her. A heaven of treats, but¡­ how was she supposed to eat them? ¡°Um, do you need¡­ help? Should I take a plate and you can tell me which ones you want to try?¡± Carol asks respectfully. ¡±Thanks, that would be a big help.¡± ¡°I can recommend the cookies, the muffins, and the pudding!¡± Friday starts pointing all around the table. ¡°The chocolate cake¡¯s okay too¡­¡± Lyra comments and spins the red liquid in her glass around without looking at any of her friends. ¡°We will let Amethyst choose, now won¡¯t we?¡± Carol chimes with a lecturing tone. ¡°It¡¯s fine. This is all quite new to me...¡± Friday smirks and she and Carol help Amethyst, by stacking up all the treats she wants to try, and then some, they even change the plate to a bigger one midway through. ¡°Okay¡­ I¡¯ll just lay it¡­ here.¡± Carol places the plate onto Amethyst¡¯s held-out arms, on top of her wrists. ¡°Are you sure you¡¯ll be fine?¡± Friday asks. Amethyst lifts her arms and the plate a bit higher, ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Have fun Amethyst, maybe we¡¯ll see you around,¡± Lyra says and turns around quickly. Amethyst walks away before she can hear Friday pester Lyra, who clings to her friend¡¯s back. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you ask her? She was right there.¡± ¡°Come on, lay off¡­ and get off my back¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure she would have said yes,¡± Carol says. ¡°I can¡­ just record some from the streams¡­¡± ¡°You already said it won¡¯t be the same-!¡± Friday doesn¡¯t let up on Lyra, as they walk deeper into the crowd and disappear amongst them. Amethyst arrives back at their bench, Frank is nowhere to be seen yet. She sits down and manages to keep all the delicious treats on her plate. The pudding wobbles curiously, and the chocolate muffin drops some colorful sprinkles on the plate. I¡¯ve never seen anything so¡­ delicious! Are any of these the foods that Amande mentioned back then¡­? What was it¡­ Pizza¡­? And something else¡­ I can¡¯t remember... Amethyst lifts up the plate and lowers her head towards it, her mandibles nab the muffin, wrapper, and all, and swallow it whole. Hmm¡­ that really didn¡¯t taste of much¡­ She picks up the next dessert, a pastry ball with chocolate chips on it, which apparently has a ¡®yummy inside¡¯, as Friday said. This time Amethyst decides to chop it up with her mandibles inside her mouth, before swallowing. As the eviscerated mush flows down, she tastes a soft liquid chocolate. Ah! Wow... Next, she sinks her mandibles in the pudding, but it breaks into two, the bottom half remaining wobbling on her plate. Then, the top half falls off her mandibles too, squishing between her loose grasp, plopping on top of some cookies. She makes a thorough solid net from her mandibles and lifts the two halves, then quickly slurps them down her throat. This one she could taste just fine, even more than the last one, and she chopped it up only a little¡­ Why¡¯s tasting so complicated...? The logic, rhyme, and reason of her throat taste buds were completely lost to her. Before long, a full plate of desserts had disappeared inside Amethyst¡¯s gluttonous stomach. She felt energized, but not full at all. Feeling full? What¡¯s that? A human¡­ emotion? I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever felt full¡­ no matter how much I eat. Is that normal...? Amethyst sets down the plate on the bench and looks around, what wasn¡¯t normal, was Frank taking so long. Where is he? Oh... I was supposed to save some for him... Maybe I still have time to go get more...? A tap on Amethyst''s back, however, behind her, it''s not Frank, but a slender vixen in a sparkling purple cocktail dress. The outfit hugs her curves and locks her legs tightly together, somehow she still manages to vault over the bench to sit next to her. ¡°Hey, Darling.¡± ¡°Oh, hi, Luna.¡± ¡°How¡¯s your evening? Had fun?¡± She accentuates her face with her hand and jingles her red and blue metallic hanging earring. Her outfit is completely different, although the same necklace still adorns her neck. ¡°Yeah!¡± Amethyst beams. ¡°Dancing was great, and the food-¡± ¡°Great, remember what I promised? It¡¯s time for my surprise now.¡± Luna stands up and offers her hand to Amethyst, a satchel hangs from her shoulder on the other side. ¡°Really?¡± Amethyst offers her wrist, and Luna pulls her up. ¡°But, what about Frank? I¡¯m supposed to wait for him.¡± ¡°Oh, don¡¯t worry, this will only take a moment, you¡¯ll be back before he returns, I promise.¡± ¡°Are you sure? I¡­¡± ¡°He won¡¯t even notice you were gone, we¡¯ll have you back in a jiffy.¡± Luna smiles irresistibly, her entire being radiating truth. ¡°Okay...¡± ¡°Fantastic, come, over here.¡± She pulls Amethyst along, swipes an electric lantern off a table, and guides her into the dark forest. ¡°Where are you taking me?¡± Amethyst looks around to the sky and into the forest. Luna glances back and flutters her extra-long lashes, her eyes decorated with professional-grade makeup. ¡°Just a little bit further. You won¡¯t be disappointed, I promise.¡± ¡°O-okay.¡± ¡°In fact, you can share this surprise with Frank afterward, I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll be thrilled and forgive you, even if he gets back first.¡± ¡°Really? Great!¡± Amethyst quickens her pace, to match Luna¡¯s. ¡°What¡¯s the secret? Can you tell me about the surprise?¡± ¡°Not yet! Please have patience. Just a little bit further.¡± The faraway stars shine in the emptiness of the night sky, some nearer planets look brighter, but there are no moons or other celestial objects to light up the night. As they come up to a clearing, Luna lays the lantern on the ground, its radiance more than enough to light up the whole area. ¡°Before we get to my surprise¡­¡± Luna rustles through her satchel, ¡°can we take a group photograph in this lovely night forest?¡± ¡°Oh, sure.¡± Luna gets up close, presses herself onto Amethyst''s side, and holds a camera before them. ¡°Say: Pango!¡± ¡°Pango!¡± They both say simultaneously and grin big, as Luna snaps the picture. ¡°Fantastic!¡± Luna puts the camera in her bag, and as she¡¯s already armor-tight on Amethyst, she turns around to her front side. ¡°Now then¡­ for the surprise...¡± Luna¡¯s hands wander, along Amethyst¡¯s armor, to her neck. ¡°I bet Frank¡¯s¡­ never done anything like this.¡± Her other hand goes down her armor and to her thighs, onto her exposed skin. ¡°Touched you¡­ like this.¡± ¡°Um... Actually, just earlier today¡­¡± Amethyst looks away embarrassed. ¡°W-what?¡± A cold shock is audible in her voice. ¡°While he was washing me¡­¡± Amethyst blushes and trails off. ¡°W-w-washing you? How? How could I lose to him?¡± ¡°Oh, and after we danced, she touched my¡­¡± She smiles even bigger and absently taps her dagger hands together. ¡°It¡¯s too embarrassing to say, but I enjoyed that very much.¡± ¡°N-no, don''t tell me!¡± Luna stutters and at the same time, Amethyst feels a small sting, on her thigh, and neck, like a scratch of a nail. It brings her attention back to Luna, but the sensation is so ephemeral, she doubts if it even happened. ¡°Oh, well,¡± Luna says in a sudden tonal shift, from exaggerated shock, to complete apathy towards the situation. ¡°Regardless, he doesn¡¯t¡­ love you, not like I do.¡± Luna¡¯s lips reach towards Amethyst¡¯s face, her arms already chained around her neck, preventing her from escaping. ¡°U-uhh¡­¡± Amethyst retreats her head as her lips approach. Her bladed hands flail confused, what could she do? The situation is unbearable, but any direct interference on her part would only lead to worse things. There was only one thing she could do. ¡°Please, stop, Luna.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll never forget how you saved my life from that lizard beast¡­ but, it¡¯s not enough to alter your fate.¡± Luna continues like she didn¡¯t even hear her objecting words. ¡°This is your reward.¡± ¡°N-no¡­!¡± Suddenly Amethyst''s world starts to spin, her words tangle together, and her thoughts and hearing become muddled. ¡°Oh, feeling faint in the head? But I didn¡¯t even kiss you yet. Oh well, such is the love of the inexperienced¡­¡± Luna retreats away from the teetering Amethyst. ¡°Don¡¯t worry though, I¡¯ll take it from here¡­ Leave it all¡­ To. Me.¡± Luna¡¯s hand is planted on her chest, posing like she¡¯s receiving the greatest honor, the highest medal, whilst grinning at Amethyst sadistically, with mad triumphant eyes. W-what? I can¡¯t¡­ So... tired... Amethyst¡¯s legs seek balance, but her form starts to fall backward, barely able to keep her eyes open. Frank¡­ I¡¯m¡­ ¡­ Sorry¡­ 34. Quench your thirst Earlier. Frank and Amethyst split up, in search of food and drink. Frank navigates between the partygoers, not exactly seeing where he¡¯s going, trusting his sense of direction. Being just short enough, just average enough, to not see over the crowd. The tightly packed people ahead of him toast glasses and hold plates full of delicious delicacies and are seemingly somehow able to chatter over this cacophony. ¡°Excuse me-!¡± Frank¡¯s arid throat struggles to reach levels high enough for them to hear him over the noise, forcing a cough out instead. The suit doesn¡¯t exactly breathe well either, having been rather toasty during their dance, and again, building up heat amid the crowd. Failing to get their attention, he squeezes sideways from between the backs of the people blocking the way, they barely give him space. As he breaks through, to marginally move spacious waters, a thought occurs to him. Oh, actually, should I have gone with Amethyst, how will she manage to plate up any food? Frank looks back, the path he took has now completely grown shut, like wild vines, the people have encroached over the vacant space already. Oh well, I¡¯m sure other people will help her, they¡¯re a good bunch¡­ mostly. Frank arrives at the impossibly long tables, set with pristine white tablecloths and lots of bottles arranged in a row, each with their own area. In front of them; glasses of different sizes and shapes, but while those were rather normal by all accounts, the same could not be said about the bottles, or the liquids being served. Hmm... What kind of a drink would she like¡­ something fruity, I bet. He moves along the table and reads the labels of exotic drinks, juices, and carbonated beverages: First up, a plethora of glass bottles, which look like antique beer bottles due to their brown translucent coloring. They have old-looking yellowed handwritten labels that read: ¡°Smoked floral Drumrice ¨C contains nuts, may contain traces of kiln-fish.¡± There¡¯s a small sign in front of it made from paper that¡¯s bent from the middle, with some small handwriting reading: ¡°Do not inhale (that¡¯s illegal).¡± The hazy beige liquid poured into the glasses, ready to be served, seems to already be evaporating some sort of gray vapors by itself, making it a challenge to follow the note¡¯s advice. Is this¡­ self-brewed? Who even brought this here? Isn¡¯t this supposed to be expensive? Instinctively Frank takes a few steps back, for a moment he could almost smell it, the distinctive smell of rotting fish. It¡¯s enough to sway him to leave it alone. Regardless of its odor, it seemed to have been popular, given the plethora of empty bottles behind the counter. The brew next to it is of a murky purplish-green color, with swirls of yellow in it, resting still in a wide bowl. An elegantly dressed woman ahead takes a glass of it, and as she returns the ladle to the soup, it sinks into the thick and foul liquid with a squelching sound. A large droplet flies out onto the already very stained tablecloth, it''s like a localized explosion zone around the bowl. In front of it, a barely legible, spotty note reads: ¡°Pioneer¡¯s Special Punch ¨C Taste discovery! (sense of awe varies per person).¡± Yeah, no way. I¡¯m not drinking that. Frank grimaces and moves to the next one. At first glance, it appears to be a square-cornered completely normal clear bottle. However, the label is written in ugly crayons, with some bizarre runes around the only readable text: ¡°Orphan¡¯s Tears ¨C Help fund the continued operation of Child¡¯s Joy Orphanage. The biggest Orphanage in the United Galaxy! *Each label is uniquely drawn by one of our lovely kids, this one is by: ?l??, say hi!¡± Even the signature is completely incomprehensible¡­ Sorry kid, but I ain¡¯t touching that. The cause might be good, but how am I supposed to drink that with children¡¯s tears branded in my mind? Frank endures the gnawing thirst and dodges a few guests, passing into what appears to be a section for some of the more popular drinks. He observes the plethora of bottles from behind the mostly human barricade. An orange bottle, shaped like a curvy fantasy-like potion, its contents are poured into a glass, but nothing appears to come out. Only the faint carbonated bubbles bouncing off reveal the invisible drink¡¯s presence. Further ahead, a Y-shaped, completely black bottle with two mouths is taken off the table by staff and a full one is delivered by another, holding firmly to its two handles. The person struggles to lift it onto the table, as if it weighed a lot, despite the puny bottle. Next to it, a golden magic lamp-shaped carafe with equally resplendent liquid bathes the area around it in splendor, making it all look that much more grandiose. These, and other peculiarities that he didn¡¯t wish upon Amethyst or his own taste buds, are left behind as the first table ends. At the second table, he manages to get nearer to the drinks again. However, there seems to be a small queue and Frank takes his place behind two men. ¡°Do you think there¡¯ll be fireworks, I think Pioneer has some? It¡¯d be the perfect atmosphere for that...¡± A man asks, vaguely turning towards his dark-haired buddy behind him. ¡°Are you serious? Is that girl all you think about? You¡¯re part of the staff too, Marty, so don¡¯t get too involved with the VIP Explorers. Trust me, you really don¡¯t want to.¡± ¡°Come on Stefan, live a little. Besides, I saw you cast some glances at the gloomy one.¡± He jabs his friend in the ribs. ¡°I¡¯m right, aren¡¯t I?¡± ¡°Glances of contempt maybe, did you even listen to what they were saying? Especially she didn¡¯t seem¡­ right in the head. Anyway! Forget your romantic fireworks, and think for a second. What of the Tyrchids? Don¡¯t you remember how they responded to just hearing music the first time?¡± Stefan shakes his head, as the queue moves forward. ¡°Oh, right¡­ But! They did learn to accept it though, didn¡¯t they? We wouldn¡¯t have seen them dance today otherwise?¡± ¡°Well, sure, but what if they flew over when the fireworks blew up?¡± ¡°Fine, fine¡­ you buzzkill.¡± The two gentlemen turn to leave with their filled glasses but abruptly stop. ¡°Huh, where¡¯s Fanny, and the other two? They were right here¡­?¡± Frank almost crashes into Stefan¡¯s back, who hurries his roadblock of a friend along. ¡°You¡¯re holding up the line, just go!¡± Finally, they leave, and Frank gets a good look at the drinks served there. The first one of this table is kept in a grail-like vessel, the pearlescent substance shines bright like a lantern, in fact, Frank mistook it for one of the table lights for a second. The silver grail''s dazzling liquid has a label, written in beautiful cursive: ¡°Aelyndis¡¯ Ails for All ¨C The positive power of a Radiant in a bottle!¡± Somehow, I have a feeling I wouldn''t get much sleep tonight if I took a swig of that. Frank turns around to see the two men from before down their glasses, drinking it all in one. As they open their eyes, they cast two cones of light from their eyes, bright like headlights. Moving on... Two identical bottles of translucent blue, with ready-poured glasses of equally aquamarine liquid, catch his eye. However, the two bottle¡¯s labels are not the same. ¡°The Blue of Galaxy ¨C Galaxy¡¯s #1 blue drink.¡± ¡°The Blue of The Galaxy ¨C The Galaxy¡¯s #1 blue drink.¡± Wait a second... So¡­ The blue of Galaxy is of any galaxy, while the blue of The Galaxy is #1 in our galaxy? So, the first one is a rip-off of the second one? I mean¡­ it looks kind of good, but which one is the fake one, really? Next in line, is a familiar mascot decorating a label. The lizard wizard¡­ we meet again. The scaly spellcaster decorates the highly commercial-looking label, waving its wand and holding onto its wide-brimmed pointy hat decorated with stars. ¡°Tastes unlike any of its ingredients!¡± it says in a speech bubble. ¡°Centizard Fake-Whiskey ¨C 1% centipede, 50% lizard, 100% flavor.¡± There are bits of lizard toes, scales, teeth, and even a tongue floating in the bottle. It smells as much death, as it was for those animals. How¡¯s anyone supposed to drink this thing? As Frank retreats coughing from the smell, a woman wearing a gray conservative dress overtakes him from the side. She looks at him briefly with a furrowed brow, and Frank catches a small glimpse of what appears to be a small Centizard pin attached to her chest, clashing with the rest of her outfit. She pours a pint full of the foul concoction, the bottle¡¯s mouth at least had a mesh filter, to keep all the nasty bits in the bottle. This next one Frank was sure nobody would touch; ¡°Wasteland¡¯s Waste ¨C Less crunch, finer sand version.¡± Each glass has pebbles and admittedly¡ªfine sand¡ªat the bottom, the liquid itself is a mixture of red and brown, which don¡¯t seem to mix, like oil and water. Understandably the front of this serving is deserted, it looks like all the glasses are untouched. The Exo-drink industry truly has gone too far¡­ A wonderful aroma of coffee wafts to him from somewhere nearby, and he locates steaming quaint coffee cups of white with golden and silver decor. The thermos flask is strikingly red and has a list of ingredients, along with the title and slogan of the drink. ¡°Letinezia¡¯s Lustful Latte ¨C Enjoyed best with celestial creatures or cowards.¡± It looks like Coffee, and smells like one, with some sort of cherry scent mixed in. However, the list of ingredients is long, and Frank doesn¡¯t recognize a single one, except: ¡®Drumcoffee beans¡¯. I have my doubts about that name¡­ Safer to skip this one¡­ It was starting to look hopeless, there was nothing even close to normal being served here, which in hindsight should have been what he expected. Should he return empty-handed? He shouldn¡¯t keep Amethyst waiting, no doubt she was probably already back at their bench. Or perhaps, he was just being too uptight, this is a party after all. It¡¯s not like any of the drinks can really be life-threatening¡­ Right? However, the next drink¡¯s label doesn¡¯t exactly waive his suspicions. ¡°Salty Citrus-Splosion ¨C Not as lethal as it sounds!¡± A lemon-shaped bottle, with a glass ball cork. Frank picks up a small sample glass that has it already poured inside, it looks¡­ like juice and smells refreshingly of citrus. Finally... The first one with any provable hint of fruit in it¡­ Frank takes a deep breath. Alright, I trust you label, let¡¯s try this. Please, finally just be a normal, casual juice? Frank downs the shot glass-sized sample and gulps it all down. A faintness of salt, with a pleasant orange taste arrives at first but suddenly the sourness of pure lemon juice attacks him at full force with blood orange¡¯s bitterness as a backup. Franks¡¯ face feels like it might physically collapse into itself from the taste. It''s like he has completely lost control over his facial muscles, a disgusted grimace held his mouth open, hanging his tongue slightly out. ¡°Gah!¡± In a panic for relief, he reads the next label from a bottle shaped and colored like a rainbow, the cork at the middle of the bend. ¡°Marshmallow-rainbow mania ¨C see in color: every single one of them.¡± That¡¯s¡­ perfect! He downs a sizeable glass of it, its texture is thick like custard, but it gets the job done, a perfect counter for the Splosion. A taste so sickly sweet, that he feels an ache in his front teeth. A single rainbow appears and swoops across his vision, making him dizzy and teeter backward. If I ever needed a reminder to stay away from all party drinks¡­ Couldn¡¯t they have made a section for just normal juice or something, or at least served Cas-juices in a separate marked table from Exo-drinks¡­ *** Alcohol and other drugs have been illegal for as long as anyone remembers, as they were banned by the original founding texts. A law that has held quite well, since a culture around alcohol was never allowed to form. However, a recent cultural development around imitating this discovered ¡°bar behavior¡±, spoken of in ancient digital and physical scriptures, has given rise to the concept of exotic concoctions, aka: ¡°Exo-drinks.¡± These beverages use other non-addictive but peculiar and strange combinations of chemicals and reactants discovered all over the Galaxy to produce wacky effects and incredible flavors. They have an age restriction of 16, due to their erratic and chemical nature. ¡°Cas-juices¡± on the other hand, are the child-safe variant, meant for casual consumption. These normal variants, have actual limitations and regulations around them, to keep them suitable for all ages. Notable restrictions are for example: limiting the effects of physical changes to last at most an hour and banning all vision-enhancing or impairing effects. Completely effectless juices are sometimes categorized in this, but can also just exist as that, juice, and nothing more. *** As Frank shakes his head to clear away the colors from his mind, laughter surprises him from behind, a trio of women approach, all wearing fabulous sparkling evening dresses of¡­ questionable exposure. ¡°Need some help?¡± The girl in the sparkling blue dress asks. ¡°Pioneer is famous for his lavish parties, so choosing a drink can be an insurmountable challenge for a newbie.¡± The one donning matte-black fabric comments. ¡°Please, let us assist.¡± The red dress girl insists politely with a smirk, her dress sparkling too, competing with the blue one''s glamour. All of the girl¡¯s dresses expose their shoulders and back, their outfits held up by straps around the neck at the front or by pure rigidity of fabric. Elaborate decorations of flowery ornaments on their hair, glittering bracelets, and stunning jewelry give them all a rather wealthy air. One by one, they surround Frank with various states of smiles. ¡°Uh, sure¡­ I¡¯m looking for something refreshing, not too sweet for myself, and something fruity and definitely sweet for Amethyst.¡± Frank is rather taken aback by their sudden appearance and of their close proximity. ¡°I think we know where to find something like that.¡± The green-eyed blonde says and adjusts her blue dress¡¯ chest area. ¡°For Amethyst?¡± The brunette scoffs and looks away, swiping some of her brown hair behind her ear. ¡°Couldn¡¯t she even get her own drinks?¡± The black-haired lady rolls her eyes. ¡°Huh? You know the answer to that very well.¡± Frank says offended and crosses his arms. ¡°I must apologize on Stacy¡¯s behalf, she doesn¡¯t have any tact. Though, my sister, Bridget isn¡¯t much better.¡± She grins and looks at the others. ¡°By the way, I¡¯m Fanny.¡± Fanny, the blonde girl in the blue dress grabs Frank¡¯s crossed arms and unties them, and instead of shaking his hand, she grabs and plasters herself onto his right arm tightly. ¡°Sister, please¡­ not in front of him¡­¡± Bridget frowns and grabs Frank¡¯s other arm, her unnatural red eyes sparkle, literally. ¡°Okay, this way.¡± From the back, Stacy grabs his shoulders and pushes him along. ¡°H-hey! Wait-¡± Frank is swept along with the trio and brought further along the table, where he is finally allowed to stop. At least true to their words, a refreshing-looking light-blue drink and a sweet fruity one that has green and yellow stacked on top of each in the glass, reside there. Fighting against the resistance of the women on his arms, he grabs two glasses, one of each drink. They are like night and day, the light-blue one¡¯s glass is frosted and cold, while the fruit one¡¯s feels lightly warm. ¡±I bet you¡¯ve missed this¡­¡± Fanny practically jumps further up his right arm, sinking it between her assets. From the force, Frank loses his grip on the drink; the glass falls and spills onto the table. Some of it splashes onto the sleeve of his tuxedo. ¡°Oh, whoops!¡± She says, sounding insincere. ¡°What are you doing? Can you please let go?¡± ¡±Why would we do that? We¡¯re helping you.¡± Bridget winks and does the same as her sister, just to his other arm. Even though Frank is prepared for what''s to come, she shakes him until the other drink falls too, and stains its surroundings. ¡°Oh no, how clumsy of me. Now you have to come with us, we need to get you cleaned up.¡± Bridget whispers sensually and presses her body further against Frank''s. ¡°Amethyst doesn¡¯t even have breasts, what do you even see in her?¡± ¡°Just a hard, cold armor and sharp blades. Even her ass is like a grindstone¡± From behind, Stacy hugs him tightly and her hips bump against Franks¡¯ rump, as her arms coil around his neck. ¡°Or maybe you¡¯re a masochist...? Either way, we can arrange that too¡­¡± Fair maidens, a damsel on each arm, and then some, you would think it any guy¡¯s dream. After all, Frank was just a man too, there had certainly been times in his life when he would have been delighted by this development. Situations, where he would have surrendered to these ladies, if not with glee, then with cautious optimism. But those na?ve times were long behind him. Despite their beauty and allure being unmatched, things were getting seriously creepy. In this theoretically utopic moment, there was as much wrong, as there was right. A foreboding sense of dread, gnawed inside, Frank¡¯s palms and brow gather cold sweat like a leaf at the break of dawn. ¡±A handsome man like you¡­ how could you settle for her?¡± Stacy caresses his neck from behind. ¡°You¡¯ve still got your life to live, to experience.¡± Bridget leans forward and her hand grabs his shoulder, like she¡¯d climb up it. ¡°You deserve more, all of us, because how could just one satisfy you?¡± Fanny¡¯s hand slithers down his side, to his hips and she squeezes. Stacy¡¯s breath is hot to his ear, as she whispers: ¡°Besides, she¡¯s not even human¡­¡± ¡°S-stop! How can you say such things about her?¡± Frank tries to struggle free, but they aren¡¯t letting up. He¡¯s practically grappled from behind, and chained from his arms, they hold him down, barely able to move. At least his uncooperative attitude serves to halt their advance for now. ¡°Oh, please, it¡¯s obvious,¡± Stacy says with a cold tone. ¡°Written all over your face.¡± Bridget pokes him on the cheek. Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. ¡°You can¡¯t say no, you promised!¡± Fanny¡¯s eyes look directly at Frank, pleading like a cute animal. ¡°H-huh?! I did not!¡± Frank meets her eyes, but she doesn''t waver. ¡°So come on, come with us, and let''s get your fine suit cleaned up.¡± Stacy tugs at his shirt collar. ¡°And who knows what could happen after...¡± Bridget plays with Frank¡¯s long hair, curling it around her finger. ¡°When we¡¯re away from all these prying eyes.¡± ¡°No. Please, let go of me. I mean it.¡± Frank¡¯s clear and decisive words take a moment to sink in. ¡°What? But she said-!¡± Fanny looks at Bridget, who returns the frightful gaze and responds to her sister: ¡°T-this was supposed to be our chance!¡± ¡°She promised! And you- didn¡¯t you agree-? Rrgh, but I want my ring!¡± Stacy roars and grips Frank¡¯s shoulders hard, her nails hurt even through the suit. ¡°Who said what?¡± Frank tries to remain calm, to keep his voice unwavering and strong. ¡°Nobody!¡± They all announce and cling on tighter, Stacy¡¯s head appears on his shoulder, and Bridget and Fanny hang onto his arms like monkeys and try to sweep him away with them. ¡°Surrender to us!¡± The sisters scream. ¡°Embrace your desires!¡± ¡°Marry us all!¡± Stacy licks his neck, making his hair stand on end. Cold sweat drips down Frank¡¯s brow, and his Adam¡¯s apple heaves a large motion. He looks around, some people are watching but look away as he meets their eyes, though most appear to not be paying his condition any mind. A sense of panic tries to take hold of his mind, but he manages to say with a wavering voice: ¡°P-please, Ladies. A drink first, yes?¡± ¡°Alright,¡± Fanny says with a playful smirk. ¡°If you insist.¡± Bridget sighs, but a determined smile returns to her lips. ¡°I suppose I can wait that long¡­¡± Stacy¡¯s tongue retreats from his neck and a burning cold phantom sense of violation is left behind. The girls remain vigilant, Fanny and Bridget free his arms but hold tightly to his shoulders. Stacy continues to hug him from behind, he can still feel her breath on his neck. He could shake them off by using force, perhaps, but in situations like these¡­ that was not an option, it never was. Calmly, with trembling hands, he assembles three champagne-like glasses onto the table. ¡°I know just what you¡¯ll like.¡± Frank offers each of them a drink, in a different way, as he pours them one after the other onto the girls. ¡°I-¡± Fanny gets a dose of a sticky sweet tropical mix ¡°Prickly Pungent Pear¡± dumped on her hair. ¡°-Said-¡± Her sister gets a cold shoulder of ¡°Space-Tundra¡¯s breeze¡± poured all over her head, it sloshes like it has sleet in it. ¡°-No!¡± Finally, their friend Stacy gets a revoltingly bubbly, tar-like ¡°Widow¡¯s Secret Poison¡± for her black heart, straight to her face, tossed over Frank¡¯s shoulder. One after the other, the glasses are slammed onto the table, and Frank slips free of the girls who let go in shock from this affront to their pride. ¡°Iaaah!¡± Fanny screams, her hands trying to claw the honey-like concoction off of her head before it slides lower and permeates her hairdo completely. It¡¯s sticky like cheese, her fingers only stretch it around. ¡°Ha-haah-!¡± Bridget gasps and shivers from her cold shower, trying to warm up herself by rubbing her arms. Her teeth clatter and knees buckle, the glass frosting up earlier wasn¡¯t just special effects after all. ¡°F-fuck-! I hate you!¡± Stacy¡¯s breath bubbles and she gurgles underneath the black ooze dripping past her mouth. She tries to blindly swish at Frank with her nails, who already slipped free from underneath her arms, but as her eyes are full of the goo, she misses completely. Adrenaline spurs Frank onward, to make a swift exit, but he must not run. He slows down, into a walk, and keeps onto a neutral expression, not shirking from other¡¯s gazes, nor making direct eye contact with anyone. Many eye Frank dubiously, but some nod or look at him concerned as he passes. Although he appreciates it, he can¡¯t help but flinch and push away one consoling touch of a person who asks if he¡¯s okay. Others don¡¯t seem as approving of his actions, but all part from his way, like he was dangerous. A psychopath, a criminal. Soon he manages to blend into the crowd, as he gets far enough from the scene. Though mere distance didn¡¯t stop his frantic heart from going into overdrive, especially, since he sensed, the worst was yet to come. Those things they said¡­ I bet Luna has something to do with those girls¡¯ ambush¡­ Amethyst, please¡­ still be at our spot... Frank hurries back to their bench, but she isn¡¯t there. The only thing left is a plate, filled with crumbs. She got back before me... He looks around frantically for any sign of her. Where is she? Where could she be? He catches something entering the forest, from the edge of his vision. Was that her bone crown? It disappears before he can get a good look. He looks around as he runs towards the forest, but doesn¡¯t spot any of their Tyrchid students anymore, it had to be her! Frank breaks into the forest and sees Amethyst and Luna walk further in, bathed in lanternlight. Oh shit! Already? I really shouldn¡¯t have left Amethyst alone for even a second! However, instead of immediately following them, Frank turns away, and quickly finds a nearby bush with familiar white flowers, next to a short tree. The venue''s lights permeate the area enough for him to see, as he reaches inside the cool leaves, into his hidden stash. So it really came to this¡­ He takes out a silver-sheen laser rifle, his Intergalactic weaponry, made of metal, sturdy but light. A short barrel when compared to the sizeable stock, and a medium-length scope at the top, it could do automatic fire as well, but with much less accuracy and more drain. Its battery showed half charge. He straps it over his shoulder, from its leather band. I still can¡¯t believe I¡¯m doing this¡­ But it has to be done, for Amethyst¡¯s sake, I¡¯m just making sure... Frank follows after Amethyst and Luna, shadowing them, creeping in the underbrush, staying close to the ground, his knees bent. His suit is rather unsuited for this, chafing and being rather stiff for any sort of crouching movement. Navigating the woods in the outreaches of their abundant lantern light, was rather easy. It highlighted the edges of trees and silhouettes of bushes to allow for rather inconspicuous tailing. Though he kept his distance, unable to make out what they said to each other, opting to try to make sense of his thoughts in the meantime. The way Luna always watched Amethyst¡­ it wasn¡¯t the way, you look at somebody you love. Her eyes were like that of a predator watching prey, concealed in a happy and cute demeanor. Who would suspect her of anything? Well, everyone who¡¯d get a glimpse of her real personality, the spiteful interior. Just like those girls¡­ almost mini-Luna¡¯s¡­ A cold and sinister shiver rattles his spine just thinking of it. Searing prickles like thorns run all over his arms, and a disgusting wet tongue still feels on his neck. The rest of the horrifying, panic-inducing sensations return; his shoulders feel the nails of Stacy press upon them, as Fanny and Bridget¡¯s hands and bodies brush against his shoulders and squeeze his hip. Nausea tries to overtake him, and a sense of helplessness and disgust invade his mind. Frank shakes his head and tries to push the memories away, no matter how terrible it had been, how powerless and used it made him feel, he couldn''t dwell on it. He had to focus. On Amethyst, and on¡­ Luna. Whenever Frank had seen Luna without the presence of Amethyst, she always seemed cold and calculating. Shrewd and mocking, all features he could find from Rocco too, whenever he could keep his demeanor in check, that is. These traits were very much present in Ray, as well. If Frank had picked up on it at the time; on his strange behavior, and mannerisms, maybe he could have realized something was wrong. Though he wasn¡¯t always like it, but building up to that day, the signs were definitely there. Even after all this time, Frank still had no idea why Ray had swindled their money, for what purpose, and what motive. And year by year, it seemed more like he¡¯d never get an answer, it was like the Universe had swallowed him up. After that, the lesson was well learned, Rocco¡¯s true colors were known to him, well before his escape with Amethyst, even if he was a bit surprised by just how ruthless he turned out to be. And now¡­ it¡¯s like history was repeating itself for the third time again. Everything about Luna nagged him, screamed bad news. Whenever she spoke, it was like needles scratching on his skin, leaving long, endless, white marks. She was dishonest even with the simplest of truths, a personality of such bipolarity and deceit, that he questioned how she could even exist. And most of all, why here? It didn¡¯t make sense until you started to think what her motives could be... After Amethyst and Luna¡¯s fishing trip happened without incident, even if it was cut suspiciously short, he was ready to lay down his guard. It was the last day, soon they¡¯d be rid of her. But then, Grent told him of Luna¡¯s surprise Amethyst had accidentally mentioned to him. Immediately, his instincts went into overdrive. A secret just for them, on the last day, right after the celebration, when nobody would have a reason to bother or seek them out anymore? That¡¯s not a coincidence. He thinks of all the possibilities Luna could have in mind, sending shivers down his spine. She really scared him, in a weird way. Luna had never been violent, or straight-up aggressive, but her overall behavior set off more warnings than a head-on collision with an asteroid. The rifle was just with him as insurance, you couldn¡¯t really know with her. Having something to threaten or calm her could be useful. Though his suspicions could be the products of jealousy, he admitted. I¡¯m not that delusional though¡­ right? The further along they went, the more increasingly embarrassed and guilty Frank felt for following them, Especially for feeling the need for a firearm¡­ But, that was Luna¡¯s weapon, she wanted to be underestimated. Besides¡­ It¡¯s just an insurance¡­ Nothing will even happen¡­ So, they won¡¯t ever know I was here, watching them. What does it matter, if I¡¯ve got a gun with me? I¡¯m not paranoid¡­ Soon, they stop at a clearing, Frank creeps ever closer, just a few bushes away from the bright light, and kneels behind them. They stand right next to each other and take a picture together. Innocent enough so far... What if I just came to spy on them, when it''s just some harmless outing¡­? Luna¡¯s right onto Amethyst and her hands wander to her neck and thigh. Amethyst looks away from her, Frank can see her expression of embarrassment soon change to a frown. Luna¡¯s both hands cradle Amethyst¡¯s neck and she starts to try to bring their faces together. W-wait, what are you doing!? Amethyst¡¯s head tries to escape Luna¡¯s pursed lips and her hands flail confused, but suddenly, Amethyst teeters backward with unsure footing, and Luna backs off. Luna¡¯s face takes on a crazed expression and she speaks something, Frank can hear her, but not make out the words. Then Amethyst falls backward, but before she hits the ground, Luna catches her from the back, struggling to hold her up. The white flower drops from Amethyst¡¯s hair, fluttering to the ground. What just happened!? Frank grips the stock of the rifle hard. Luna tries to drag him towards a nearby bush, but Amethyst is heavy, she seems to struggle to even keep her up. She instead reaches out awkwardly and kicks at the bush. A hover plate floats out of it and nearer her. She plants Amethyst down on the platform, grabs her legs, and pushes her on it, then she dusts her hands off like a job well done and takes out her communicator from the satchel. What did she do to Amethyst?! Amethyst just lays there¡­ like she was¡­ lifeless, just like back then. She wouldn''t really, kill her, would she? Frank¡¯s head is a mess of emotions: confusion, panic, and anger. What should he do now? Should he have already done something? How could she do this to Amethyst? Trying to calm down his speculative mind, Frank slowly and silently inches closer in the gloom of the forest to get a better look at Amethyst. His creeping is interrupted by Luna talking on the phone. ¡°Luna, requesting extraction.¡± Extraction¡­ Is she really? Frank keeps sneaking toward Amethyst, just a few bushes away. ¡°Can you send a small shuttle to my coordinates? I told you to have one on standby- Yes, yes. I have her, and some other bonuses too.¡± No doubt about it¡­ She must be working for Intergalactic. There is no other explanation, no other conclusion to draw anymore. Frank stops his advance toward Amethyst and grits his teeth, aiming his rifle at the back of Luna¡¯s head, her long black locks in the middle of the crosshair of his magnifying scope. With trembling hands, a finger lays on the trigger. This time, it¡¯s different. Amethyst won¡¯t have to see this, I¡­ I don¡¯t have to hold back. This is who I am. ¡°No, not him, other kinds of bonuses. A sort of insurance if you will, one must always make extra preparations after all. Oh, and some things I discovered on this planet might help with the research too.¡± No, contain yourself, don¡¯t aim for the head. I need to know what she did to her¡­ And why¡­ Frank¡¯s aim shifts to the back of Luna¡¯s sparkling violet dress, on the right side of her back. A good hit to the right, to really hurt her, graze her side real good¡­ Maybe to shatter her hip... ¡°Gotta say, this was easier than I thought- yes, I¡¯ll wait.¡± No need to hesitate now, it¡¯s what she deserves. Frank glances at Amethyst¡¯s body limp body strewn on the hoverplate. I¡¯m sorry, but Luna was never your friend. You¡¯ll¡­ understand. Won¡¯t you? Luna ends her call and puts the communicator back in the satchel she carried. A deep breath in, a calm breath out. Frank braces himself, curling his shaky finger on the trigger. A voice, hostile, and demanding stirs in his brain. His inner voice, a demon of desires and conscience, rears its head. Come on, why aren¡¯t you shooting? Just pull the trigger. It¡¯s that easy, don¡¯t you see what she¡¯s done? She deserves to die. So, go ahead, nothing wrong with that. Frank¡¯s aim climbs higher towards her head. Kill her. No, no, no! No killing! Frank shakes her head firmly, trying to get his racing intrusive thoughts under control, and manages to bring the aim down again. Luna¡¯s hand is still in her satchel, she digs through it, searching for something. It¡¯s okay, all it takes is just a single shot. Do you care for Amethyst so little? Are you going to let Luna get away with this? I¡­ Frank¡¯s hands tremble like never before. These feelings, deep dangerous burning in the back of his mind loom and sear through his brain. Pull the trigger. If you don¡¯t, you put your friends in prison for no reason! Caused the deaths of Jack and Jill and so many others! Even the deaths of the Tyrchids before are your fault! You¡¯re going to lose your moment, lose Amethyst if you don¡¯t shoot now! Then it¡¯ll all be in vain! Do it! I should¡­ shoot¡­ Kill her. Shouldn¡¯t I? Don¡¯t you want to be a hero? This is finally your chance to succeed in doing something good! Frank shakes his head, and the numerous smiles of Amethyst fill his mind. What would she do¡­ if she was in my position? Their journey together, the ups and downs, the tragedy and sadness they have shared floods back. The happiness and intimate moments, the support and solace they had found in each other reinforce his will. Like an invisible force, a wordless contract always kept them together and made them always have each other¡¯s back. This time would be no different. I don¡¯t think Amethyst would kill her. If I do shoot¡­ murder Luna¡­ It¡¯s a one-way, lonely road¡­ There will be no return. No way back. How can I face Amethyst ever again, if I kill her friend? A friend!? She¡¯s an Intergalactic agent! Don¡¯t you want to do the right thing? Kill her! ¡­ No. Have you been boasting, and lying all this time...? That you¡¯ll ¡®have her back¡¯? How she won¡¯t become another victim? Now she needs your help, more than ever, and you choose inaction? To do NOTHING?! I¡­ My best intentions may not have always manifested as I wanted to¡­ Or even on many occasions¡­ But¡­ This is wrong. There has to be another way, there¡¯s always is. I can¡¯t just murder somebody! She may be working for intergalactic, but¡­ so did I. So did Grent. She¡¯s a person too¡­ Even if it¡¯s Luna, I don¡¯t want her dead, not really. I choose not to. Frank aims his weapon down to the ground and sighs. But¡­ She is still dangerous. I have to stop her. But how? She looks unarmed¡­ although¡­ she probably still carries a weapon¡­ Could I win if it came to a struggle, can I even sneak close enough to try? Would she survive a shot to the leg or bleed out? What felt like ages in Frank¡¯s head, was a short while, in which Luna managed to find what she was looking for. She takes out a purple bone from her satchel and grips it like a conductor. She starts throwing the bone in the air with a flourish, spinning it fast. As it falls, she deftly catches it again. You stole that from me? With a smug grin on her lips, she kills time by playing around with Amethyst¡¯s broken wing bone, throwing and catching it again and again, while eroding a circle of boredom on the ground. The about 20cm long, hollow, purple bone makes slight whistling sounds, as it hurtles through the air. You have no right to have that, to even have a part of her. Frank brandishes the laser rifle in his grip and aims it at Luna again. However, as he does, Luna glances in his direction, like noticing something from the corner of her eye. Suddenly she looks right at him, her smile fading. Shit! Did she see a reflection from the rifle¡¯s scope? Well, even so¡­ ¡°Luna, hands up!¡± Frank remains in shooting position, his right leg forward, and left knee against the ground, a bit more than half of his body covered by the bush. ¡°Oh no! You caught me!¡± She starts to raise her arms up, but one of her slowly rising hands swipes against her necklace, and a small gleam happens at one of the gemstones. Something tiny hits Frank in the neck. It stings only momentarily, and his vision starts sailing back and forth. Luna¡¯s smile returns to her painted lips. ¡±Frank, Frank, Frank¡­ You thought yourself smart, outing me like this? Would have been more wise to stay out of my business.¡± Luna taunts him and shakes Amethyst¡¯s bone condescendingly towards him. ¡°But, thanks to you, I still caught my bonus, he will be so very pleased.¡± ¡°What¡­ did you do?¡± Frank speaks with muddled words, unsure if he really spoke out loud at all. His lips feel like jelly; sticky, and numb. ¡°After I went through all that trouble of arranging you a heavenly night out, you just had to go and break their hearts. Did you stop for a second to consider their feelings?¡± Luna shakes her head and clicks her tongue. ¡°Oh well, works out better this way, I suppose. Now be a good pest and have a lie-down...¡± Frank ignores the sting and concentrates the shreds of his drifting mind, on the blur of a figure. Keeping both hands firmly on his weapon, knuckles going white, if he loosened his grip even slightly, he was sure he would drop it. What will she do to Amethyst? Or¡­ to me? Frank tries to steady his hands, steady his body, but his vision is like an afterimage, his body swaying like in turbulent space. His trembling, shaking pinkie finds the switch, toggling the weapon to full auto mode. Fine, so be it. Squeezing the trigger, as hard as his numb fingers can, a flurry of blurry beams fly out, whizzing all over the place. His vision spins around and around, the laser¡¯s lines look as long as the horizon, his sense of time stretching, and his hearing echoes like underwater. The rifle drops from Frank¡¯s hands, stopping its rampage, as he slumps onto his side, onto the cool night grass. From his chest pocket, the white flower fell and floated down after him, sailing back and forth in the air. Perpetually falling and landing next to him, shedding a long sharp petal of white and red. 35. Screams and futile dreams Earlier, again. Pioneer walks around the party crowd who mingle and dance around, having made the dancefloor their own again, with the surprise Tyrchid friends having flown off. Too bad I didn¡¯t get a chance to interview them... Hmm... Zigon, was it? How come he was in such a hurry to leave as soon as I went to talk to him? And all the others soon followed him... Since that had been a bust, Pioneer wondered if Amethyst and Frank would be up for a special double interview instead. Or perhaps, just up to have a casual chat, there were still many things he wished to ask them about. And it wouldn''t hurt to talk about the future as well. From atop the landing pads, he hadn¡¯t been able to spot either of them, so he made his way back down into the crowd, deciding to ask the tallest person around. He reaches the towering stick-figured and octopus-headed Churlen and taps on his chitinous leg. He lowers himself to about Pioneer¡¯s level to hear him in the noise, his thin stick-like legs¡¯ knees reach out like javelins. ¡°Hey, Ghcraltult, Have you seen Amethyst and Frank?¡± The Churlen extends back to his full height and peers over the crowds. He shakes his head as an answer, the face tentacles flapping about with the motion. Pioneer nods to him as a thanks, even if he would have preferred a bit more elaboration. Just where in the galaxy have my stars already gone to? If even Ghcraltult can¡¯t see them... I mean, it wasn¡¯t all smooth sailing, but we still did a damned good show! Surely they¡¯re just taking a break from all the hubbub somewhere quieter¡­? He walks around the crowd, looking around some more, before making his way to the edges of the crowd, where the forest properly began. Instead of Frank and Amethyst, he finds his sound director and two medical personnel, the three women have formed a small talk group separated from the others in this quieter grove. ¡°Can you imagine the vocal range? Just how high or low-frequency sounds could Tyrchids produce if they really tried?¡± Holding a tall and thin, spherical glass, Lyra rotates a finger round and round its edge. A glass type, that resembled a wineglass of the past. Next to her on the ground, is a whole bottle of ¡°Red Goddess¡¯ Blood ¨C Taste of Martyr Divine.¡± It was half empty. ¡°Could they break a glass with their voice?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Carol exclaims as she pats the corners of her mouth with a napkin, cleaning up some chocolate stains. ¡°Why a glass specifically?¡± She asks as she folds the napkin, as beige as her dress, hiding it underneath the plate she holds. ¡°In the past, all of the best singers were evaluated on the glass-breaking scale. Based on if they could break a glass with their voice to begin with, and how thick of an object they could shatter.¡± Lyra explains with her mouth in a rare open smile, her eyes as thin slits. ¡°Haven¡¯t you read any history books about music?¡± ¡°Are you sure that¡¯s true? That sounds impossible, and weird even by Earth¡¯s standards¡­¡± Friday comments and looks at her blankly. With a trained motion, Lyra flicks the edge of her glass with a fingernail, but it doesn¡¯t ring or resonate. The same result as always, it is like thin steel or wood, unyielding and rigid. ¡°Maybe it is impossible, but you heard the Tyrchids sing too. It¡¯s unlike any voice I¡¯ve heard in all my years. Doesn¡¯t that make you excited?¡± ¡°That¡¯s quite a strange thing to ask from two nurses,¡± Carol says, picks up a chocolate ball confectionery from her sweets-filled plate, and pops the sphere into her mouth. ¡°You have to admit, it¡¯s such a Lyra thing though,¡± Friday says and steals a tiny muffin from Carol¡¯s plate, the black-dressed woman manages this feat nimbly, despite Lyra being in between them. ¡°Hey!¡± Carol scowls at Friday, too slow to catch her thieving hand. Lyra continues, ignoring their usual antics. ¡°Maybe I could still get Amethyst to make me some sound effects at least¡­ But... how? Those could really pop out in the promotional material, or edits... or make for some wonderful showmanship on stage...¡± ¡°Well, you were the one who refused to bring it up when you already met her once, if you just asked her¡­¡± Friday trails off as she notices somebody stepping into the vicinity of their talk group. ¡°Hate to interrupt, but you wouldn''t happen to have seen her recently, or Frank for that matter?¡± ¡°Oh, if it isn¡¯t Pioneer,¡± Lyra comments dryly and gulps some more of the bubbling red beverage. ¡°We haven¡¯t seen Frank, but-¡± ¡°Seen them, why? Are they missing?¡± Friday wonders, and as she is distracted, Carol steals back a cookie from her plate instead, though she almost ends up yanking Friday¡¯s long bangs that nearly swim on her plate. ¡°Not exactly, no, I just wanted to talk to them about the possibility of a... bonus interview.¡± Carol quickly destroys the delicious evidence, responding while crunching on it. ¡°You should rest a bit Pioneer, instead of worrying about work all the time.¡± Carol says, and Pioneer shirks from his scolding gaze. With a sigh, she continues: ¡°But regardless, we helped Amethyst with some pastries before, although we haven¡¯t seen her since, right?¡± ¡°Yeah, though it wasn¡¯t that long ago, I¡¯m sure she¡¯s around here-¡± Friday¡¯s hand grasps empty air, and she looks down at her plate. ¡°H-hey, where¡¯s my- you stole-!¡± Friday¡¯s clamoring is shattered by a bone-chilling cry, a hopeless wail, that echoes from the dark forest behind the ladies. The spooky and distant feminine voice fades away as quickly as it started. ¡°W-what was that?¡± Lyra coughs and sputters, almost inhaling some Red Goddess. ¡°That sounded¡­¡± ¡°-like somebody in pain.¡± Carol finishes the sentence that her colleague started. The three women look at Pioneer who shakes his head and sighs. ¡°There¡¯s just one thing to do.¡± Pioneer swipes the pastry plates from both of the nurses'' hands, who protest against this grave offense. He pushes the plates onto Lyra¡¯s lap, who struggles to not drop them or her glass, holding them in a teetering pile. ¡°What¡¯s the big idea?¡± Lyra scowls and some sweets spill onto the grass from her shaky overflowing lap. Pioneer levels a serious gaze at them. ¡°Carol and Friday, grab your first aid kits, and let''s go check it out.¡±
In the forest, behind the party, the trio travel, led by Pioneer, holding an electrical lantern. Electric-powered items that resembled something of the olden days, were all the rage right now. Carol and Friday had time for a change of shoes, but were still in their dresses, just with their medical overcoats on top of them, carrying first aid suitcases and other things they may need. The surrounding forest is eerily silent, only the faint sound of their brisk steps on the grass, and the snapping of twigs at times play. The ecosystem seems to be asleep, with no chirping birds or buzzing insects around. There had been no more shouting, not even a peep, no trace of this loud disturbance from before. ¡°Are you sure we¡¯re going the right way?¡± Carol asks. ¡°Yes, I think it came from somewhere around there,¡± Pioneer gestures further into the dark woods. ¡°C-can we¡­ go back?¡± Friday asks with a wavering voice. ¡°It was probably just¡­ some wild animal. Maybe one of those Sabertigers.¡± She gasps in realization. ¡°What if we run into one!?¡± ¡°C-come on now, don¡¯t be silly.¡± Pioneer attempts to sound cool and collected as he squeezes through two dormant, crossing plants, the underbrush might be fairly sparse, but most of the flora was still positively huge. ¡°Y-yeah. The whole ground would be shaking if there was even one here.¡± Carol agrees. ¡°If it moved! And what about¡­ everything else? Isn¡¯t all the wildlife here supposed to be super dangerous?¡± Friday sounds about ready to freak out. ¡°A-and didn¡¯t Lyra come across a-!¡± ¡°Oh shush, Friday¡± Carol barks. ¡°We¡¯ll be fine, there¡¯s nothing to worry about since we¡¯ve got the big man himself with us, the explorer of the unknown, the savior of the sapient...¡± She quips sarcastically, a wide smile breaking in the artificial flickering light on her lips. ¡°Hmm¡­ I¡¯ve been thinking, maybe we could let some of our medical staff go...¡± Pioneer talks back and glances at Carol and then shifts his gaze on Friday. ¡°How does a promotion sound?¡± ¡°How is Pioneer''s presence supposed to help me calm down?¡± Friday ignores Pioneer entirely and gestures to Carol walking beside her, with open hands. ¡°Or perhaps even two spots we could let go...¡± Pioneer mutters and continues to lead the way. ¡°Now, now. Enough joking around. We¡¯ll be fine.¡± Carol says to Friday and then catches up to Pioneer''s side. ¡°How much farther?¡± She touches his shoulder and leans in closer to whisper: ¡°What did you see? Shouldn¡¯t we be running?¡± ¡°A figure stood, or perhaps sat in the forest, other traces were faint, I couldn''t see much of anything else from so far.¡± ¡°Are we even going the right way?¡± Friday crosses her arms and loudly buts into the silent conversation, following them a few steps behind. As a response to both of their worries, Pioneer takes out his orange shades, their mirrored outer surface gleams harshly in the lantern light. Then, he puts them on. ¡°What, again?¡± Friday looks at him bewildered. ¡°What are you going to see in the darkness, with your sunglasses?¡± ¡°Just¡­ give it time, you¡¯ll eventually understand,¡± Carol says and instinctively taps the case of her own sunglasses, in the inside pocket of her medical uniform. ¡°So what do the Pioneer¡¯s exploration instincts tell us? Pioneer takes them off. ¡°Yes, this way, just a bit to the right.¡± His eyes grow narrow. ¡°We should hurry.¡± Carol and Pioneer start running. ¡°Come on! What¡¯s going on?¡± The left-behind Friday runs after them and catches up. Soon after this change in their approach, Friday has to admit, whatever Pioneer did, whatever the two knew that she didn¡¯t, seemed to have accurately shown them the way. ¡°What¡¯s that light? One of the lanterns from the party as well?¡± ¡°I-is someone there! Help... me!¡± A weak female voice shouts from the direction of the light. ¡°Luna? That¡¯s Luna¡¯s voice!¡± Friday recognizes her and bolts past Carol and Pioneer with surprising speed. ¡°F-Friday? Help¡­¡± ¡°Luna! We¡¯re coming, hold on-!¡± Friday rushes to the clearing approaching ahead, but right at the edge, she stumbles. However, she manages to catch her fall by rolling, a move learned in martial arts classes. Her legs make the landing less than gracefully and strike the ground, a stinging ache in her knees and bones. During the roll, she felt her fine dress rip from somewhere, but she didn¡¯t spare it a second thought. She grabs her first aid case from the ground with frightening speed and launches forward. She slides next to Luna on her knees, ruining her dress further. ¡°L-Luna¡­! W-what- how?¡± Luna is pressing her chest with both hands, a pool of blood already around her on the ground. Her shiny purple dress is ruined, bleeding holes peppered on the torn fabric filled with purple fragments sticking out. Luna¡¯s hands cover the main entry wound, the dress charred around it, showing a bit of her burned skin below. A shattered purple bone lies in two larger pieces beside her. ¡°W-what happened?¡± Friday lays her kit next to her and starts taking out supplies, shaken at the scene and the condition of her friend, but the firm first aid routine and professionalism still engraved in her mind, guide her. ¡°Amethyst?¡± Pioneer makes it to the clearing and spots her on the hoverplate. ¡°And Frank, too.¡± Carol drags his unconscious body into the light of the clearing, the source of Friday¡¯s stumble. Pioneer moves to Luna¡¯s side and kneels, as Friday continues to treat her wounds frantically. ¡°Talk to me Luna, what happened?¡± ¡°F-Frank shot me¡­ in a jealous rage.¡± Her face is so pale, it¡¯s hard to imagine it had ever had any color. Carol finds the laser rifle among the bushes as well. ¡°He certainly looks to be our shooter¡­ but¡­¡± ¡°Well, let¡¯s say he did shoot you. How come the both of them are unconscious?¡± Pioneer says with a serious expression, further strengthened by the act of putting on his sunglasses. Luna¡¯s mouth moves slowly, but no words come out, she grimaces and groans in pain, her gaze unfocusing. ¡°H-hold on, Luna, can you hear me? Stay with me.¡± Despite her shouts, Luna¡¯s eyes start closing in an unstoppable perpetual motion. Friday gently takes hold of her eyelid, lifting it, but the eye barely responds to increased light. ¡°Carol? You did alert the rest of the crew right?¡± Pioneer looks back and meets her eyes. ¡°They should be on their way, yes,¡± Carol is kneeling next to Frank and shows Pioneer a tiny dart, gesturing she found it from Frank¡¯s neck. ¡°B-but where can we treat her? She urgently needs blood and surgery!¡± Friday asks in a panic, even though she already knows the answer. ¡°We won¡¯t have time to transport her anywhere on a spaceship, and we don¡¯t exactly keep around a mobile fully equipped critical care hospital...¡± Pioneer dashes any little hope Friday had left for a miracle. ¡°W-well, we should!¡± On the verge of tears, she keeps on treating Luna¡¯s injuries and pressing upon her wounds. ¡°How are we supposed to save anyone, if¡­¡± ¡°Friday...¡± Carol says and shakes her head. ¡°I¡¯ll consider bringing it up as a necessary addition to the higher-ups the next time I meet them¡­¡± Pioneer says forlorn. ¡°Let¡¯s just do what we can for her, the rest will be up to Luna.¡± Carol pats Friday on the shoulder, and checks her subordinate¡¯s work, finding it satisfactory. ¡°N-no, there must be something¡­¡± Friday breaths sharply and shallowly as she speaks, trying not to cry. Her hands hover over her face, but still briefly come into contact with her face spreading droplets of blood onto her skin. She notices and wipes her bloody hands on the hem of her black dress hastily. Carol returns to inspect the two other patients, and then, lights start to dart around in the forest, along with the sound of footsteps. The bushes rustle, and an unknown man, steps into the clearing, met with incredulous gazes. ¡°Giving up so soon?¡± ¡°What, you heard us?¡± Carol¡¯s comment is given no value, and the man presses on with his monologue. ¡°What if I told you, there¡¯s a medical clinic, at least fairly well stocked, just around the corner? Surgeries and the like shouldn¡¯t be an issue either.¡± The man gestures pridefully with his hand, wearing a long white jacket, and donning short brown hair. ¡°W-who are you?¡± Friday wipes the moisture she couldn''t hold back to her white uniform¡¯s sleeve. ¡°Me? Well, just call me¡­ Mr. Scientist, Savior... whatever you¡¯d like, and thank your lucky stars I was around.¡± From behind Mr. Scientist, the rest of the rescue party arrive with hoverplates of their own. He holds a hand to his chest, and a strange yellow cat-like creature emerges from behind him, it runs to Frank and pokes his cheek with a paw carefully. ¡°Aww¡­ aren¡¯t you a cutie¡± Carol squats down and pets the strange cat without reservation. ¡°Do you know Frank, you of magnificent fur?¡± ¡°Alright crew, get those three on some hoverplates, and let''s get going. Oh, my bad, looks like Amethyst already has her own, how convenient.¡± The strange science man orders them, receiving a cold reception as none of the staff budges. ¡°What Mr. Scientist said,¡± Pioneer affirms and the crew starts to dart around hurriedly. ¡°Thank you. Alrighty, once you¡¯re done loading up, me and Pineapple will show you the way, won¡¯t we?¡± Pineapple is rolling around on the ground, as Carol pets and rubs his stomach with both hands. ¡°H-hey lady, you are interfering with the rescue operation, that¡¯s our main source of light right there!¡± ¡°What? This little fluffy pie? Sure it''s certainly lighting up my mood but- ack!¡± Pineapple rolls to his back and blinds Carol with a quick flash, before playfully running to Grent. ¡°Told ya.¡± Carol rubs her eyes and smiles as she stands back up. ¡°What a mischievous rascal.¡± ¡°Mr. Scientist, if you would.¡± Luna is ready to go on a hover plate already and Friday sits on top of it with her. Two strapping stagehands are ready to push the platform along. ¡°Hurry, please.¡± Friday looks at him with pleading eyes. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go, quickly now!¡± Mr. Scientist says and Pineapple takes on ahead with his bright light, turning the dark forest into day. Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.The first wave of the rescue party leaves the clearing with them, the blokes pushing Luna¡¯s advanced stretcher along with great speed. As the more urgent care is handled, Carol approaches Pioneer. ¡°What do you think? I found two darts from Amethyst, one from her thigh and one from the neck. They both seem to be alive, sleeping probably, though can¡¯t really say of Amethyst.¡± He remains quiet while pressing a finger to the temple of his sunglasses. ¡°Where did you find Luna anyway?¡± ¡°Our drone operator called in sick last minute, I had to hire somebody...¡± Pioneer says and trails off. ¡°Besides, her resume was impeccable, all of the skills we might need and then some.¡± ¡°A little too perfect, one might say?¡± Carol sighs. ¡°I¡¯m not blaming you, nobody could have foreseen¡­ this.¡± ¡°Carol!¡± A staff member hollers to her, Frank and Amethyst¡¯s are loaded up on plates and already pushed along. ¡°Try to chin up, it wasn¡¯t your fault¡­¡± Carol pats Pioneer on the shoulder, on the soft and expensive white fabric. ¡°Well, gotta go now...¡± She takes a few running steps to her two patients and disappears into the forest with them. Pioneer looks upon the now disturbed and dirty crimson pool. Shards of purple swim in this vital fluid, the red of life, now a symbol of death. If it wasn¡¯t my fault, then whose was it? In the end, I am always responsible for everyone, each and every one of your safety is my concern. Something even worse might have happened today, though I cannot tell if we were lucky, or if this was actually the worst outcome... Pioneer takes off his sunglasses, and pinches his brow, leaning onto his hand, he covers his face. Why¡­? What happened¡­? Amethyst already on the platform, she and Frank tranquilized? Luna shot by Frank¡­ the shattered hollow bone of Amethyst next to her... He considers the crime scene and all the evidence available, evaluating all of the involved parties'' character and motives. A somewhat clear theory forms in his mind, but he refrains from jumping to any conclusions just yet. Regardless of the facts, of the evidence against her¡­ I really hope she lives...
Luna¡¯s platform arrives at the doorway to Grent¡¯s underground dwelling. ¡°Right, the plate¡¯s too big to go through, you two, carry her inside, carefully.¡± The two bulky stagehands nod in silent agreement and Friday hops off the plate. She looks up at the massive and imposing steel plate that forms the clinic¡¯s front and at the triangular hole in the base of it. ¡°What¡¯s up with this¡­ hole¡­?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it,¡± Grent says without looking at Friday, instead staring at Pineapple, who stares back at him, like anticipating something. ¡°If you say so¡­¡± The surprising scenery distracts her for a moment more, as she gazes to the side at the plethora of charred and half-burned furniture and miscellaneous discarded tools but doesn¡¯t say anything. Friday shifts her attention back to Luna and helps the two men, making sure they carry her correctly. Suddenly Pineapple jumps up and smacks his paws to Grent¡¯s trousers, the cat¡¯s sharp claws take hold just above his knee. ¡°W-what? What do you want?¡± Pineapple continues to stare straight into his eyes without giving anything away. ¡°Uh¡­ g-good job Pineapple?¡± Grent scratches the soft fur underneath his chin carefully. The cat¡¯s thunderous rumble of a purr starts, getting surprised looks from Friday and the men. ¡°Um¡­ thanks for shadowing me and being nearby at the time, having you around was a big help¡­?¡± The cat still looks at him with narrowed eyes, despite clearly enjoying this reward. That wasn¡¯t it either¡­ what does he want¡­? ¡°You¡¯re... free to go about your business again¡­? But¡­ what were you doing at the party anyway?¡± Apparently, this relieving of duty is what the Solarophone was waiting for, as it lets go of his pants and dashes away, back the way they came, before Grent even fully finishes his sentence. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean that as permission for you to go back to the party! Ugh... fine! Just don¡¯t get catnapped or something¡­¡± He looks after the galloping cat with conflicted feelings. Was he actually worried for that furball¡¯s safety¡­? Grent shakes his head and steps through the triangular door, to lead the way to their lab. The two lads have Luna in a semi-gentle carry, Friday walks with them and supports her body further from the middle, catching her limp arm that falls off the side of her body as they cross the threshold and tucking it back on top of her body. As Grent opens the sliding door for them, he spots Amandebot laying on the steely bed, hogging it completely. ¡°Oh¡­¡± Grent grimaces momentarily, with a tinge of regret recognizable on his face. ¡°Hold on a second, um, you, help me with this.¡± Grent points to Friday, and takes the robot¡¯s shoulders, Friday proceeds to grab the legs. ¡°And be very very careful.¡± ¡°Is this... a human body-?¡± Friday struggles to lift it from the sheer weight of it. ¡°It¡¯s not¡­ is it?¡± They manage to lift it and haul it out of the way, putting it down onto the floor. Friday¡¯s eyes are wide, as she lets go of the human-like machine, the joints without the skin-like substance, cement its inorganic nature. Shivers go down her spine, an ominous feeling captures her for a moment. ¡°Just what are you creating here¡­?¡± She asks without thinking, and instinctively rubs her hands against her medical coat. ¡°No need to worry about it.¡± Grent handwaves the issue away and dashes to cover the table with some plastic wrap stored at the end of the table before the two carriers put Luna down. As soon as he manages it, they gently lay her down on the operating table and leave the room. ¡°Alright lass, I¡¯ve got a bunch of stuff here, some drips in there, this metal cart has all sorts of surgery stuff and medicine and anesthetic and the like in that fridge and the cabinet next to it-¡± Grent drowns Friday in a tide of information. ¡°R-right¡­ You don¡¯t have a Patcher here?¡± Friday looks around the room, it doesn''t resemble any medical facility she had seen; full of strange things, from the taxidermy animal heads on the walls down to the messy desk that made it look like somebody lives here. ¡°Those things take way too much energy, so no. You¡¯ll have to do it the old-fashioned way.¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­ fine, I¡¯ve trained for this¡­¡± She takes a few quick breaths, failing to calm her breathing. ¡±But I¡¯m just a nurse though¡­ Aren¡¯t you a doctor?¡± She points at his white coat. ¡°No, no, no, I¡¯m a scientist didn¡¯t I say as much? Though even so, I can give it a shot if you¡¯d like. The human body¡¯s just a biological machine anyway, how hard can it be? I¡¯ve treated myself a bunch.¡± ¡°Umm, I think I¡¯ll do it.¡± Friday gathers things on the metal cart and drives it next to Luna. ¡°You can be my assistant.¡± ¡°Bah, fine, I guess I¡¯m the one who gave you the choice.¡± ¡°You wouldn''t have any blood bags?¡± She sets up a cannula and prepares for a blood transfusion. ¡°Hm, I can check the fridge.¡± Grent goes to the medical fridge, and rifles through it. ¡°Would you look at that? There¡¯s¡­ four bags of blood.¡± ¡°Really? Amazing!¡± The hope in Friday¡¯s voice is palpable if only for a moment, as she realizes what she has to ask next. ¡°Are they still usable...?¡± Her assistant starts going through them one by one. ¡°This one¡¯s a week over the expiration date¡­ And these two are both four days over, but the last one has two days left.¡± ¡°Is there any O-?¡± ¡°Guess which of the blood bags had that in it?¡± ¡°The week old one¡­ I guess it would have been too good to have universal donor blood at hand...¡± Friday''s hands stop working for a moment, and she looks downcast. Her stiff shoulders descend back down and she sighs. ¡°Mr. Assistant, can you test her blood type? Do you know how?¡± ¡°Sure, I can do that, if we have the equipment for it. Actually, hmm¡­ I remember seeing¡­¡± He trails off and starts going through the things on the desk. ¡°Okay, In the meanwhile, I¡¯ll¡­¡± Friday takes up some instruments from the metal table, with trembling hands. We don''t have the equipment to stitch her internal organs back together if they got damaged... But at least the searing of the laser should help a little with preventing internal bleeding, even if she already bled a lot... Though some of that was from the deeper surface wounds. ¡°I¡­ I¡¯ll start by properly dressing her gunshot wound and removing the shrapnel. At least there¡¯s no bullet in the main entry wound as she was shot by a laser... ¡°Oh, and I should stitch her properly now too.¡± Fortunately, the laser dissipated before it could pierce her whole body¡­ She looks back at the assistant, who fiddles with drawers, trying to find something. ¡°H-how does that sound, Mr. Scientist?¡± He meets her gaze. ¡°May want to re-think the order, but other than that, sounds good, Dr¡­?¡± ¡°Friday.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure, you¡¯ll get her to last to the next week.¡± ¡°Thanks,¡± She grins and blushes slightly, her hands becoming steady. ¡°I¡¯m truly grateful for your aid, Tango King.¡± She blurts out and smiles sheepishly. Mr. Scientist¡¯s expression twitches, ¡°Don¡¯t know who that is, but you¡¯re very welcome¡­ it¡¯s only what she- what anybody would have done in my situation...¡± Grent moves on and searches through the upper cabinets. ¡°I wonder if I could just use my machines here to check it instead¡­ hmm¡­ Oh!¡± He holds out a white plastic package that reads: ¡°At-home blood typing kit.¡± ¡°It might not be as accurate as a real medical test, but it¡¯ll have to do.¡± Friday glances back and then starts to open Luna''s preliminary bandages, to redo the laser wound''s stitching. ¡°Please hurry with the testing assistant, she urgently needs blood.¡± ¡°Yeah, yeah. I¡¯m going as fast as I can.¡± The overqualified assistant fails to open the plastic bag barehanded, so he employs a swift precision strike from a scalpel. He extracts a thick packet of instructions and a piece of rigid paper from inside it. With the same scalpel, he draws some blood from Luna¡¯s finger and directs the droplets onto the four circles printed on the piece of paper: A, B, D, and control. Rotating it around carefully, the blood spreads within the bounds of their designated circles. ¡°Wait, what does it mean if all the spots are muddled except for control?¡± Mr. Scientist scratches his head and rifles through the endless sea of folded paper instructions to find an answer. ¡°That means her blood type is AB+!¡± Friday drops the needle, but thankfully she has already finished the stitching, and it just clatters onto the metal cart''s tray. ¡°Hmm¡­ is that bad?¡± ¡°No, no! That¡¯s fantastic! AB+ can take in any type of blood without issue!¡± Friday looks at this so-called Mr. Scientist dubiously. ¡°It¡¯s the universal recipient blood, didn¡¯t you know?¡± ¡°Right, of course. How forgetful of me...¡± ¡°Please, bring the blood bag here, and we¡¯ll start with that. If it¡¯s not enough, we can look for donors once the worst is over.¡±
A knock on the lab door and it slides open. ¡°Is the doctor in?¡± Carol asks and Pioneer comes in behind her. ¡°Y-yeah?¡± Friday answers nervously, standing behind Luna''s bed, monitoring the situation. Carol walks next to the bed and inspects Luna, who appears stable and is breathing normally, albeit with machine assistance. She¡¯s covered up with a thin white blanket and her left arm is hooked up to a cannula, receiving new blood. ¡°Fine job Friday. I knew you could do it.¡± Carol pets Friday¡¯s head, ruffling her brown hair, who looks a bit disgruntled in return. ¡±As for what comes to Frank and Amethyst, they appear to just be sleeping.¡± ¡°About that¡­¡± Pioneer speaks up. ¡°Mr. Scientist if you could analyze these, it¡¯d be most useful.¡± He hands the darts to their Savior, sealed in a plastic bag, who looks at them curiously against the light. ¡°What are those?¡± Friday asks oblivious. ¡°Those were stuck to Frank and Amethyst''s bodies, likely causing their slumber,¡± Pioneer answers matter-of-factly. ¡°Oh¡­¡± Friday looks at Luna, confused. Grent peers intently into the see-through plastic bag. Inside, are what appear to be darts about the length of a thumb¡¯s nail, but¡­ they don¡¯t look manufactured per se. A cylinder capsule, like a shell of a bullet but smaller, is sealed from the front, with¡­ what looks like a needle that has some sort of mass at its base. Is that¡­? ¡°This is¡­ this is most definitely Intergalactic tech.¡± ¡°What makes you so sure?¡± Grent holds the bag in the air, in front of Pioneer¡¯s eyes. ¡°Have you taken a closer look at these? These aren¡¯t darts, but¡­ living beings. Or, half-living. Just the sort of biotech they use.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Pioneer peers closer. ¡°The capsule is attached to the head of what I suspect to be a Mosquitollibri. More specifically, the somnolent variant. Its sting numbs and makes its victim fall into a slumber so that they can such their blood easier. They are quite lethal in a swarm.¡± ¡°What? Is that really possible?¡± Carol walks up to look at the darts too. ¡°See those tiny wings? They certainly can¡¯t fly with them anymore, given the weight of the capsule, but I suspect they could be used to steer. If my first hypothesis is correct, and these are indeed darts, then keeping the Mosquitollibri even barely alive, and launching it through the air with some sort of method, would allow it to seek out creatures with its thermal vision. And combined with the aforementioned wings, which then allow it to steer to its destination, like say, Frank¡¯s neck, these are quite the marvel of engineering. Though provided it was shot in the right direction to start with, these things certainly wouldn''t be able to make any drastic changes to their predetermined course.¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­ incredible¡­¡± Pioneer mutters quietly, trying to fathom this technology. ¡°And frightening¡­¡± Carol adds and backs off, she returns to Friday, who doesn¡¯t seem to be listening anymore. ¡°These Mosquitollibri seem to be dead now, but it''s hard to say. I¡¯ll see if I can confirm anything by analyzing the creature and the capsule¡¯s contents.¡± Mr. Scientist gets to his namesake activity, delicately lays the bag on to the table, and extracts one of the darts from within. With tweezers and the help of a thin needle, he pries the head off the capsule, and a small amount of red blood explodes out onto the Petri dish below. Oh, if I had opened Amethyst¡¯s by mistake, would I have had another lab fire in my hands¡­? Perhaps not, if what they told of the Sabertiger fight is anything to go by... On the outside, the blood doesn¡¯t seem any different, it might be tough to find any traces of the Mosquito¡¯s anesthetic from it though. He places the mosquito head and Frank¡¯s blood in different devices, and waits for the analyzing to finish. The head¡¯s data reveals a 99% DNA match to the ¡®Mosquitollibria Somnolentia Lethargus¡¯ species. The blood sample has the standard elements of what you¡¯d expect in human blood, but faint traces of the known anesthetic, however, it seems to be slightly different; much more potent. About 400% of a normal Mosquitollibri¡¯s potency, if ordinarily, their victim would remain unconscious for 15-30 minutes, then logically they could sleep for anywhere between one to two hours with this. And Amethyst¡­ perhaps at max even four hours due to her double dosage? There were scarcely any records of people surviving the bites of multiple Somnolentia, so the effects of this sort of overdosage weren¡¯t known. But it would make sense that the anesthetic itself wouldn''t be lethal even in large amounts, lest the insects would kill their victims too easily, got to have that heart pumping the blood up to the veins they can reach. He also spots faint traces of unusual proteins and nutrients. Were these mixed into the poison to keep the Mosquitollibri barely alive? Where was she storing these? Did she only have three? Her satchel didn¡¯t have any more, even if it had other very suspicious items... Hmm... Did Luna know these would work on Amethyst? If she did¡­ how? An interesting hypothesis¡­ And what are her motives? What would she have done to them if she hadn¡¯t been shot? There¡¯s something I¡¯m missing here¡­ Grent leans with his elbow onto the table and taps its surface with the fingers of his other hand. What a fascinating mystery¡­ Amande, it¡¯s like you said¡­ good deeds do pay off. I wouldn''t have gotten involved in any of this intrigue without helping them. ... Did you¡­ like my song¡­? Grent looks around to see nobody watching and checks his communicator, which is overflowing with notifications directed to his mystery ¡®TangoKing¡¯ handle. They had already found his account and song on the Galaxy¡¯s number-one music platform. And a quick search into the gweb also solidifies his suspicions; headlines and articles were already popping up, and theories and discussions brewed. The views of live videos posted by others were shooting to cosmic levels as were the listens on his side of things. Sure, it wasn¡¯t studio quality, but it was a stroke of genius to record the vocals to it with his communicator at the party back then, which also doubled as his mic. It felt like this sort of real situation made him achieve a different kind of energy in it than when rehearsing it in the lab. Did you hear it¡­ across the galaxy and stars¡­? Through the veil that separates us¡­? I hope you enjoyed it if you did. Many, many other people did at least¡­ Funding secured for a while again. I never would have thought¡­ I would be the one... Maybe you can join me, this was one of your many ideas too. Doctors, engineers, scientists, singers, and writers, we would do anything, become anything, for our goal... We¡¯ll sing for the whole Universe, together, as we save it... You¡¯ll see. 36. The Victims ¡°Amethyst.¡± A familiar voice. ¡°Amethyst...?¡± He... calls for me. ¡°Nngh¡­¡± Amethyst groans and opens her eyes, she¡¯s back at the clinic, in the whiteness of the ward, lying on her bed. ¡°Oh! You''re awake?¡± Frank sits on the bedside and leans in closer, she can feel him holding her wrist. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± ¡°How¡­ how are we back here? What happened?¡± A feeling of sluggishness, and minor lethargy makes her vision and thoughts hazy. We were at the party¡­ we danced, I met Carol, Friday and Lyra¡­ ate some delicious food and followed Luna¡­ Oh... Frank¡¯s gaze escapes to the walls, his previously relieved smile fading. ¡°I¡­¡± His grip tightens around Amethyst¡¯s wrist, her armor transfers slightly more pressure against her skin. ¡°I believe Luna was- is, an Intergalactic agent.¡± ¡°H-huh? Really?¡± The shock along with the shaking of her head clears her mind. ¡°I¡­ that¡¯s...¡± Frank looks around, the room is totally empty except for the two of them. ¡°She must have been after you and your blood on their orders. I surmised as much from her call I overheard.¡± ¡°How are we here? Where¡¯s¡­ Luna now?¡± ¡°She used some sort of anesthetic on us and Pioneer founds us.¡± Frank¡¯s hand brushes against his neck, where a small red mark is on his skin, slightly elevated into a hill. ¡°She was going to take you away, take us both to stars know where. Do, who knows what to us. I¡­ please understand, I had no other choice¡­¡± ¡°No choice¡­¡± Amethyst trails off, her mandibles drooping along with her demeanor. She asks again afraid of the answer. ¡°No choice but to do what?¡± ¡°Than to... shoot her.¡± Amethyst¡¯s eyes become rounder, and her mouth opens slightly, struggling to process what she¡¯s hearing. ¡°She¡¯s still alive.¡± Frank quickly adds. ¡°Just¡­ barely¡­¡± He looks away ashamed. ¡°Apparently, Carol and Friday had to do an emergency surgery a few hours ago, but she¡¯s stable again. Though, she¡¯s been unconscious ever since they found her.¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­ terrible.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Amethyst, I didn¡¯t mean to, I didn¡¯t want to, but-¡± ¡°I¡­ I was scared, Frank. Terrified of how I messed up, how I might not ever see you again. In that moment¡­ I knew something was wrong. You just... did what you had to do.¡± Amethyst says but doesn¡¯t look at Frank. ¡°Thank you for saving me¡­ but¡­¡± ¡°I¡­ I know. I hope Luna survives too, even after¡­ everything. Even if it might be hypocritical of me to say, given my part in all this...¡± That look in Amethyst¡¯s eyes... I had never seen her look so¡­ shocked? Disgusted? Heartbroken? It tears Frank''s heart apart and presses it into a dense ball, that weighs in his chest like a newly formed white dwarf. As if feeling physical pain, Frank squeezes the tuxedo jacket¡¯s rim hard, like it could relieve it somehow. Amethyst tries to sit up on the bed, but the nausea forces her back down. Frank looks back at her and she looks away for a few seconds, before meeting his eyes. ¡°I¡¯m sorry... for my inexperience¡­ my¡­ arrogance. I¡­ I was so sure¡­ I just couldn¡¯t see it.¡± I swore I¡¯d never get tricked. Never manipulated again. After everything Grent did to me¡­ put me through, I was sure¡­ But I was just being naive and stubborn. The¡­ things she said¡­ they made me¡­ feel so good, so right. It all made sense, even if I didn¡¯t want to believe some of her accusations, I couldn¡¯t fight back¡­ She was just so¡­ different... than anyone I had met before¡­ ¡°I¡¯m so sorry for treating you badly and all those awful, awful things, she¡­ Luna said. I¡¯m sorry for doubting you.¡± Frank¡¯s head turns towards Amethyst, his face looks like he can¡¯t believe his ears. Though almost immediately after, his lips turn into a warm curve, and his eyes narrow. He wipes his eyes to the back of his hand. ¡°It''s... fine, I''m just... glad you see the truth now. And I¡¯m sorry too, for not always handling it the best, it was a chance for self-reflection for me as well.¡± She straightens her right arm to the side, the elbow blade clonks to the metal bedframe below and gives the floor a nasty gash, but it just about fits underneath the bed at this angle. ¡°Amethyst¡­ what are you doing?¡± The bedside sitting Frank asks clueless. ¡°Do I¡­ have to say it?¡± She carefully taps the newly created free space on the bed, with her other hand blade, space barely wide enough for a human to lie down on their side. ¡°Isn¡¯t that a bit tight¡­?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll hold you, you won¡¯t fall.¡± Is this really happening¡­? She¡¯s so¡­ bold now¡­ Is this how she feels¡­? It should be clear to me, how she sees me already¡­ shouldn¡¯t it? But¡­ as long as neither of us has said it¡­ It¡¯s still possible to misunderstand. Frank looks straight at Amethyst trying to read her expression. They gaze at each other''s eyes, some of Amethyst''s eyes look away and she purses her lips together for a moment before the stray eyes return to look back at him, with newfound determination. She taps at the bedside again and closes her eyes momentarily while smiling. Does she really know what she¡¯s doing? What she¡¯s implicating? Well... I suppose based on how she''s been acting lately... ¡°Are you sure?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Amethyst doesn''t seem to mind his hesitation. ¡°Alright.¡± Frank shuffles higher on the bed and lifts his legs on the bed. For a second he debates which way to face, away from her, or¡­ He catches how Amethyst looks at him now that he agrees; all of her eyes take in his every move, their pupils dilated. Her cheekbones, which she apparently has, have risen higher, her smile radiating warmth. Between her closed lips, the sharp mandibles are sticking out cutely, like four playful tongues. It¡¯s like she shines brighter than the electric lights of the ward itself, which cast rays of light, making her silken purple hair gleam. Frank lays down on his side, snugly against Amethyst¡¯s body, and lays down his head on her chest. The armor is soothingly cool, strong, and resolute like a stone foundation against his cheek and ear. He places his hand on her chest, lower, accidentally landing on her biggest crystal. Frank¡¯s hand recoils reactively. ¡°It¡¯s okay. You can touch me there.¡± After a moment of hesitation, Frank carefully covers the crystal with his palm. It¡¯s smoother than anything he¡¯s ever felt, the surface like covered with soap, a stone that¡¯s so polished, it has lost all friction It¡¯s dry, but warm, not at all scorching like her crystals were back when she carried him and took to the skies of Metropolis for the first time. Instead, its gentle sultry temperature reminds him of the warmth of the earth, lying on the grass on a summer¡¯s day back at Metropolis. How the grass feels cool at first, but then the ground¡¯s own stored heat rises from below, warming comfortingly. Despite the differences between the passionate sun in the sky, and the clammy soil of the earth, both of them still graced him with their toasty warmth eventually. Frank closes his eyes, and a familiar scraping of the floor sounds, as Amethyst¡¯s arm returns, he feels her hug him, just above the waist. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll hold onto you, and never let go.¡± It was a peculiar feeling, to lay a head on a person''s chest without a pulse that could be felt, without touching their skin, without hearing their heartbeat. But in this moment, she felt so, so, very alive. They embrace each other in silence, a feeling that didn¡¯t need words, a belonging that couldn¡¯t be described. Only the faint uneven sound of the air conditioner proves time has not stopped. Frank feels Amethyst¡¯s chest start to tremble rhythmically, and her arm shifts in place. He manages to crack his eyes open, nearly having dozed off himself, breaking the spell of sleep. Squinting up at Amethyst¡¯s face; her antennae shake slightly, and her grimacing lips part periodically like gasping for air, the mandibles shake from this force that''s overtaken her, too. Her eyes are closed, but a droplet of liquid breaks off and trails down her cheek. Frank closes his eyes again, readjusts his head against her armor, and runs his hand off the crystal. The journey of his fingers goes across her armor until they reach the other side, his arm now stretched across. He grasps and holds her, and in response, Amethyst squeezes him a little tighter. Her trembling subsides, and a sincere feeling overtakes Frank. They remain silent for a few more moments until Frank feels the urge to pass on a sentiment. ¡°You know, Luna might have spewed a lot of lies, but she did have her moments of truth, too.¡± ¡°Just like someone else I know, too.¡± Amethyst comments aptly. A wholesome smirk spreads on Frank¡¯s face, as he continues talking: ¡°Maybe so, but there''s at least one thing I know to be true that she said.¡± ¡°What was it?¡± ¡°I¡­ I¡¯d rather not quote it directly actually¡­¡± Frank thinks for a moment. ¡°But I might summarize it as¡­ act true to yourself. Listen to your feelings, even if it feels contradictory with your reason.¡± Not sure if she actually meant any of it in hindsight, but¡­ it was still solid advice. ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Amethyst muses silently. ¡°Is that so?¡± Amethyst pets Frank¡¯s side with her arm. ¡°By the way, how did you find me and Luna? And¡­ you said you shot her¡­ why did you have a gun with you to begin with?¡± ¡°Well¡­ I followed you two and¡­¡± Frank squirms but Amethyst locks him firmer against her side. He laughs nervously. ¡°Well¡­ I had a hunch¡­ and¡­ it¡¯s a long story...¡± ¡°We¡¯ve got plenty of time on our hands¡­ So, please tell me exactly how it all happened.¡± Frank sighs. ¡°Alright¡­¡±
After the initial operations and one emergency procedure, Luna¡¯s condition was stabilized, though her situation remained precarious. For now, there was nothing more to do, than to monitor the situation. As her status hadn¡¯t changed for hours, Carol, for all intents and purposes¡ªwrestled¡ªFriday away from Luna¡¯s side, dragging her to take a break. Leaving Grent to keep watch on her, alone. Friday and Carol sit in the dining room¡¯s chairs, with bread and some more delicious condiments fetched by the staff from the party. ¡°How can we be here eating, when Luna is wasting away!¡± Friday slams the table and the empty plate before her clatters, before settling back down. Carol smiles and sips some steaming tea, from a white porcelain cup. ¡°We have done all we can, Luna is taking a break now, so we should too.¡± ¡°I know¡­ but how can you be so calm? I just got to know her¡­ and I might already have to say goodbye¡­¡± Friday frowns and leans on her hand, looming over the desk. ¡°You know, five years ago, while I was still working surgery and had been a senior doctor for a while, I thought I was over it. It was sad of course, whenever a patient died. No matter if they were a decrepit old man or a young sprightly child. But it didn¡¯t weigh me down.¡± ¡°What are you getting at?¡± ¡°If you cling to each loss, every patient, it will eat you up inside very quickly. We have to see them as persons, appreciate them, and do all we can. But when the time comes, we have to let them go.¡± ¡°Carol¡­?¡± Friday looks at her like she¡¯s a total stranger. ¡°How can you just forget them? They are- were, people with families, dreams, and aspirations, too! And I- you failed them in the end?¡± ¡°No. I remember everyone I have lost. There is a difference between remembering and wallowing in guilt and sadness.¡± Carol pauses and looks at Friday. ¡°Now back to what I was saying, back then, I thought I had it all figured out, that I was unshakable, that I could push through anything. But then one fateful day, my mother arrived in the emergency ward to prove me wrong.¡± ¡°You had to operate on your mother?¡± Friday covers her mouth with her hands in horror. ¡°Yes. And regardless of my efforts, no matter what I tried or did, I couldn''t save her. I thought I could see her loss as another patient, at least to get through the rest of the day...¡± ¡°Y-you shouldn¡¯t have to do things like that¡­¡± ¡°But I do. And you have to, too, if you wish to truly practice medicine, to save lives.¡± Carol pauses for a second, but Friday doesn¡¯t object. ¡°Though I empathize, my biggest trial came after a lengthy career under my belt, while yours has arrived much sooner. I wouldn''t have been able to handle it well then either, being as young as you are, but I believe this is that moment for you.¡± ¡°What if it is? Are you saying we have to become unfeeling¡ªinhuman¡ªbeings? To forgo our empathy?!¡± ¡°No, that¡¯s not what I was saying at all¡­ I¡¯m just saying, we have to control our feelings¡­¡± Carol takes a deep sigh. ¡°That day, after I had lost my mother, my shift was only starting. We didn¡¯t have the capacity, I couldn''t just go home and mourn her. I needed to push it inside, hold it in even if I¡¯d explode, until the day was done.¡± She sets the teacup on the table and grabs her right hand before Friday can see it trembling. ¡°I couldn''t do it. The very next operation, I made a fatal mistake due to my thoughts being consumed by my mother. Haunted by thoughts of what I could have done differently, what I should have tried, and how I failed... The grief consumed me. It made my hands shaky, and my will weak, I couldn¡¯t keep it together. And these- those shaky hands resulted in the death of a patient.¡± Carol hides both of her hands underneath the table. ¡°He could have been saved, he had a family, a wife that loved him, and two children that depended on him. Relatives that will miss him dearly, who will never meet him again... I took him away from them all.¡± Friday is silent, her mouth zipped shut with compassionate forlorn. ¡°After that, the same people preventing me from leaving earlier, forced me out. Surgeries and patcher treatments had to be postponed, while they did what they would have needed to do in the first place, order help from other facilities, call up if anyone else could come to work¡­¡± ¡°That wasn¡¯t your fault! I-it was management¡¯s!¡± Friday''s hand forms into a fist on the table, and she looks straight at Carol''s green eyes with defiance. ¡°Perhaps, but it was still me, my feelings, and the lack of control I had over them, that took the life of another. Not even mentioning those that may have died due to the treatment schedule running behind because of me, either directly or indirectly.¡± ¡°But there was nothing more you could have done! It wasn¡¯t fair...¡± Friday''s fierce expression dies down, as her words fail her. ¡°Thank you for saying that, but I don¡¯t see it that way, nor does Metropolis¡­ A weary smile curls on Carol¡¯s lips as she wipes her eyes, even though they are completely dry. ¡°Do you see my point now? You have a vital break now, use it to find peace inside, to be ready for any outcome. To be prepared and rested for when we are needed again.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t accept that¡­¡± Friday takes a chocoffee-chip cookie from the weaved serving basket and slowly starts munching on it. ¡°But maybe... you¡¯re right.¡± Crumbs fall onto her empty plate, as she closes her eyes and ruminates on Carol''s words.
Silence has fallen into the lab, the medical graphs show grim tidings, telling of Luna''s struggle. Grent¡¯s head nods up and down, the sense of falling waking him up periodically back to his vigil, before falling back asleep on his soft office chair. Luna lies on the table, breathing assisted by a machine, fogging up the clear mask. Her hands and fingers twitch, and her eyes rapidly move underneath her closed eyelids. A faint wail of agony is muffled by her medical muzzle and her trembling hands grip the plastic sheet beneath. Beeeep¡­ The long and loud lamentation of the medical equipment starts to play in the background. Despite things looking grim for her on the outside, there is even greater turmoil brewing inside...
There¡¯s a common expression: ¡°Some people just shouldn¡¯t be allowed to have kids¡±. If I didn¡¯t know better, I would have surmised my parents to be its origin. Day in, and day out, I heard it spoken with hushed voices in the shadows, cafeterias, and gossiping groups that dispersed when they saw us coming. Those voices surrounded us, laid siege to us when the vultures thought we, or I, couldn''t hear them. At first, I fought them in my head, argued against them, and even confronted the disrespectful ¡ª awful people. ¡°What have we done to you?¡± ¡°Why do you say such terrible things?¡± But the more time passed, I started to see their point. They were right about them, right about me. They said I was the first child to be born on the space station. To be raised there. A borderline criminal organization¡¯s main headquarters ¨C what better place for a kid? Though, to actually raise a child, you would have needed somebody to make an effort¡ªto be present¡ªno? I won¡¯t lie that I wasn¡¯t secretly happy when on the appointed end date of one of their missions, they just didn¡¯t return. Soon, word was passed to me, that they both had perished. I felt empty and confused. Shouldn¡¯t this news be devastating for a little girl? That¡¯s what kids did best; love their parents, right? Shouldn¡¯t I feel sad for them? Unexpectedly, people come up to me to express their condolences. I faced them with fake tears, tantrums, and desperate cries of injustice. That is what was expected of me, right? They seemed genuinely apologetic, but wasn¡¯t it a little too late for regret? Now that my parents were gone, their tone had changed; now they cared? The sad, sad Sola, finally worthy of their pity. So I gave them what they wanted. I wore the sadness and grief on my face like a mask, as easily taken off, or replaced with another feeling on a whim. On the inside, the excitement of dishonesty¡ªthe thrill of lying grew. What if they realized, I wasn¡¯t sad at all? That each time somebody brought up my parents, I really just wanted to laugh? To say ¡°Good riddance! I wish they had died sooner!¡± But nobody saw through me, my lies, acting, and deception were flawless. I realized nobody wanted to know how I really felt, everyone just wanted me to act according to their expectations. My parents had made this fact evident, but this was the first time I could put this principle into words, to see it with clarity. Life was finally starting to open up with their passing, nobody was holding me back anymore. I began to notice that everyone really didn¡¯t know better. They were that gullible, it was that easy to manipulate people. All of our old enemies were just clay in my hands, I could mold and shape them as I wanted, as long as I played my part right. A grieving orphan girl, innocent and pure, who could tell me no? I couldn''t believe, just how stupid everyone else really was. Finally, I understood; the space station itself had always been my real father, my real mother. Providing me with shelter, sustenance, and everything I might need to grow up healthy. My only ally and compatriot in this spiteful Galaxy. I began to plan in secret, to one day, take control of it for myself. To free it. However, a week after my parent¡¯s passing, once I had made my mind up to commit to my plot, the station¡¯s owner, our leader, approached me. I thought at first, he saw right through me, that he was here to oust me, that he knew my plans. Here to finish off the competition. I could see him evaluating me with eyes of intelligence, I had only seen before in mirrors. He did not betray any sign, no word or gesture that he knew what I was planning. With overflowing authority, he spoke of another matter entirely. He had sought me out to tell me that my parents had prohibited him, from offering me missions, jobs, or training, as their way of looking after me. And as they were dead, that no longer applied. I couldn''t have been more angry. For the first time I could remember, I let my true feelings show. They were never present, what right did they have to make decisions for me? To rule over what I could and couldn''t do? Control my life? My parents had truly been weak, in mind for their idiotic decisions, and in the body too obviously, to have died pathetically in their mission. Our leader said he understood me and wished to make use of me. I agreed, after all, I needed to be stronger for my plans to succeed. Maybe, he had been my real parent all along, he had made the space station after all. But, like every parent should be proud of their child, every child, should surpass their caretakers. I sunk all my effort into training: fighting, using specialized equipment, target practice, and piloting. Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.Climbing the military corporate ladder, by any means necessary, taking on various jobs that suited my talents. It felt right, finally I was doing something, accomplishing things on my own. It was all so thrilling, so¡­ real. Soon, I began to idolize our leader, glorify his status and his accomplishments. Even felt¡­ some sort of attraction. I had never met anyone else, who was even remotely on my level. With my mind and plans in conflict, I worked to make him proud, to accept me, to have a place to belong to. Aspire for his praise and affection. All the while the other side of me called this hubris, unnecessary, an affront to everything I stood for. As I continued to rise in the ranks through the years, his value continued to fall in equal measure. Just like my parents grew to be weak, disgusting mongrels, our leader was quickly losing his shine too. His golden days of being a threat to the whole galaxy were behind him. A decrepit body, battered by time and experiments, was beyond saving, no matter how much he convinced himself otherwise. The other side of my mind won, but really, had there been any doubt? There truly was nobody in this world like me. Nobody who could understand me. The prospect was laughable. I decided. I would kill him. He was no longer fit to have Intergalactic, to have my home. When that day would come, I¡¯d rub his failure, his shortcomings to his face. Force him to realize what an idiot he had been, how I played with him, used him all this time. For not realizing my schemes, for sparing the child when he had the opportunity to be rid of me all those years ago. I would press the cold caress of a metal barrel against his wide decaying forehead. As fright would possess his eyes, stammering with a slacked jaw, he¡¯d beg me to spare his life. Claim that I¡¯d need him. That it would be a mistake to kill him. With trembling hands he¡¯d cling to my feet, groveling before me, crying the tears of fear. I would grin my ultimate victory, maybe even laugh, sneer at this once great man. Kick him, grind him underneath my boot until I was satisfied. Once he¡¯d become a whimpering, bloodied mess, too pathetic to bear... I¡¯d blow his head off. ¡­ No¡­ Let me back... I wasn¡¯t done yet¡­ let me finish my fantasies... The source of this debilitating pain... Is it my dying body, the fading memories, the realization that I failed? That I really was, a daughter of my parents? ... No, no! None of that is true! I didn¡¯t fail, it was... Luna! ¡°No, it wasn¡¯t my fault, dear.¡± In the tenebrous nothingness, in the lightless space of Sola''s mind, Luna appears, smiling radiantly. Swiping her long dark hair, she looks around. ¡°Hey, where¡¯s Amethyst? Did you let her go?¡± She grins a sickening smile, purses her lips, and then courtly covers them as she snickers. ¡°Oh, right... how forgetful of me.¡± If it wasn¡¯t you Luna, then who¡­? Vola? Did you cause our downfall? A man appears, bearing feminine features, straight-backed, and with a royal composure. His long hair is concealed inside a tall tophat. Wearing a wooly plaid vest and straight, creaseless black pants, which cascaded on top of his shining leather shoes. ¡°Alas, the fault lies not with me. Hitherto, I have been rather assiduous in my retirement.¡± His voice is masculine but sounds a bit off. He unbuttons his vest and begins to sit down on nothing. Immediately, an old and elegant chair appears which catches his fall. Taking off his vest, a dark wood coat rack materializes, where he hangs it. A faded white dress shirt revealed from underneath; it¡¯s just about see-through enough to reveal the faint features of a tight beige bra flattening his chest. ¡°Since ¡®twas not I, may I suggest trying another chap, Merla, mayhap?¡± ¡°A chap? You¡¯re the only ¡®chap¡¯ ¡®round ¡®ere!¡± A girl with a wide, toothed smile appears from thin air, her hair long flowing blond. She stands legs far apart, with proper boots on her feet, as well as countryside-like apparel. Her cheeks are puffy and a wide-rimmed hat adorns her head, which she tilts backward. ¡°Yer hootin¡¯ up the wrong fowl if ya think I dunnit.¡± Merla playfully tilts her head to the side, and the light brown hat drops, which she frantically catches mid-air, with fumbling hands. After she finishes her impromptu juggling show, she continues: ¡°That is to say, we''re runnin¡¯ out of desperados. So, J¡¯la-¡± ¡°Do not speak my name. Only our sacred leader has the right to address me.¡± A harsh voice spits out, and a woman with identical hair to Luna¡¯s appears, even down to the red underneath the curls. She stands with her sleek body sideways, her head turned, looking away from everyone. Decorated laser pistols holstered on both sides of her black leather belt, combat armor laid with dark fabric covering her upper body, with tight slops, appearing heavy on her legs. She crosses her arms and glances with a hateful and disappointed frown on her lips at Sola, her red eyes piercing through her. ¡°You¡¯re all a disgrace to Intergalactic.¡± ¡°Sheesh!¡± Merla shouts and slaps her knee. ¡°That¡¯s a bit harsh, lass!¡± ¡°I think that¡¯s her way of saying: ¡®You¡¯re off your rocker if you blame her¡¯, perchance?¡± Vola lifts his gaze off a thin paper, top-secret blueprints of intricate machinery, which then disappears from between his fingers. ¡°Or maybe she¡¯s just really shy and that¡¯s her way of showing affection?¡± Luna smirks and winks at her. ¡°Fuck off.¡± J¡¯lena scoffs and sits down, a pilot chair appears underneath her. She slaps a stick jutting out of its side, which spins it around fast, facing her away from them all. But¡­ It has to be one of you! Underneath this scrutinizing gaze of their host, Vola stands up, grabs his vest from the rack and his furniture disappears. Hastily, unbecoming of his refined form, he dresses back up. A mahogany door appears behind him and he grabs its knob, ready to leave at a moment''s notice. The commanding gaze falls to the next person. Who failed me!? Merla looks to the ground, her hands together, tapping her index fingers absently, she sneaks glances and averts her gaze as she¡¯s still being looked upon. ¡°I ain¡¯t done nuthin¡¯, just me job¡­¡± J¡¯lena¡¯s chair remains facing away, no movement can be seen from her. It was you Luna after all, wasn¡¯t it? You were my latest¡­ You caused this! ¡°Get a grip. Who do you think we are?¡± Luna grins triumphantly and spreads her arms towards the non-existent black sky. Vola opens his door, but stops at the threshold, looking back with frustration: ¡°We. Aren¡¯t. Real.¡± and disappears inside. As the door slams shut, it fades away like smoke. ¡°Or are we? We kind of are, right?¡± Merla holds his hat in her hand and scratches her head. ¡°I mean, I certainly like to think I was real¡­ Oh, I wonder if my beloved still longs to hear news of me. He¡¯d be upset if I wasn¡¯t real, to begin with, and what of my animal friends? I mean-¡± ¡°Fake to the bone.¡± J¡¯lena¡¯s hand extends to the left, a laser pistol held in her firm grip. She pulls the trigger and a red laser pierces Merla¡¯s head, who fades away instantly with time to scream only a single vowel more. Spaceship gauges and meters appear before J¡¯lane, and she grabs the steering sticks pulling them back. Her invisible ship shoots soundlessly into the darkness. ¡°Sola¡­¡± Luna, the only one remaining says. ¡°Oh, Sola, how pitiable you are. How can you be this dense?¡± She knocks her head with a fist. ¡±Think about it, what did they all have in common? What do we all have in common?¡± Luna pats a manifested Amethyst¡¯s armored arm and hops on her lap. She flies off, princess carried by her object of obsession while waving down at Sola. ... What did they have in common¡­? I... I liked being them. Much more than being myself. They were much more real, more normal people than I could ever be. They had things, I could never possess. Friends¡­ Allies¡­ Those they could truly trust and rely on. Hobbies and distinct personalities¡­ Passions, grievances, and even lovers. And in their communities, they are admired or feared... Perfect characters to play their roles. While, I¡¯m just me, Sola. In reality, I have nothing. I am nothing. It¡¯s really J¡¯lane who¡¯s part of the Enforcers, too¡­ who everyone knows at Intergalactic. Sola¡¯s the one who hasn¡¯t existed, just a name my parents came up with. A hollowed-out shell with a void inside¡ªa planet without a core. Only her four deceitful moons to keep her company, orbiting, prowling like pantherwolves, waiting for her to crumble, so they can begin their celestial free-for-all, to become the new planet. ... Those aren¡¯t the reasons why I failed...? Are they? Why do I feel, I missed the point¡­? Sola holds her head, it feels like exploding from the inside. A wave of pain, of nausea, hits; a feeling of fading. A feeling stronger than she had ever felt before, even when she was fighting against her alter egos to not manifest in inopportune times. Against them coming back after their missions had concluded, though, sometimes Sola just gave in to them. It was easier that way. But this was different. What¡­ is this...? A laser streaks and explodes through Sola¡¯s chest, almost too fast to see, splattering blood like a grim shower. The crimson fades in the dark, the stains remaining only on her clothes. The intact wing bone of Amethyst appears before her and then shatters. The shards whistle and shoot into her, puncturing her skin one after the other. As her body is peppered with purple shards of bone, the rest of it falls through the dark ground into the abyss. Bleeding profusely, she falls to her knees. Wobbling, she limply falls forward but the ground never strikes her, instead, she falls through, like hurtling down from the side of a cliff. Soaring and spinning through the darkness, she holds her chest, burning with pain, as she gasps for imaginary air. The unbearable agony tries to cramp her body into a fetal position, but no matter what position she took, whatever she did, the suffering wouldn''t end. Ah- ahh! W-why¡­? I was this close to enrichment¡­ Vola, Merla, J¡¯lane¡­ Luna. Help¡­ me¡­ A trail of tears is left behind her fall through the void, squeezed through her closed eyes, ripped out by the wind. Why did you leave? Come¡­ back¡­ Please¡­ It wasn¡¯t my fault! I swear! ... I¡¯m not ready to die¡­ all alone...
Carol¡¯s communicator on the table rings into life, the display reads: ¡°Mr. Scientist.¡± Both of them shoot up from their seats, bumping the table, the cutleries and plates shake and shingle and a few pastries jump out of the basket. Friday¡¯s chair falls backward and clonks onto the floor, but she doesn¡¯t stop to lift it back up. Carol hangs up the call mid-run, and she dashes first through the door, Friday right behind her. They weave across the lobby and arrive at the lab¡¯s door, which whirs open painfully slow. Carol and Friday force their way through before it¡¯s even fully open. ¡°What¡¯s the situation?¡± Carol asks without even really expecting a response, she scans the room to see for herself and goes to check the graphs and current values. Wordlessly, Friday dashes to Luna, next to Grent, who holds the defibrillator pads in his hands. ¡°I tried to restart her heart¡­¡± Friday receives the defib¡¯s mittens from Grent and gives it a try herself, but regardless of her effort, the heart monitor continues to sing its continuous wailing melody. Carol and Friday dash around the room, in coordinated chaos, shouting out orders, ideas, and things they are doing, and what the other one should do next. Grent stays out of the way, as they do their utmost. ¡°No help from traditional resuscitation.¡± ¡°Adrenaline shots¡­ no effect.¡± ¡°Yet another try on the defib, no signs of improvement.¡± Gradually, they both slow down, out of ideas, Carol finally turns off the beep of the machine. ¡°No, no! There must be something¡­ something we can still do!¡± Friday says, hiding her abject horror in a calm tone of voice. Despite trailing off, she doesn¡¯t continue. It could have been nearly anything, Luna was so injured that countless things could have gone wrong with her internal organs, even if it all looked fine on paper and from the outside. ¡°There is nothing more¡­ we can do¡­ I¡¯m sorry, Friday.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not right¡­ why¡­ why did it end up like this?¡± Why aren¡¯t there some emergency hospital spaceships on stand-by all around the Galaxy, ready to come to the aid of those in need? Why doesn''t Pioneer have one like that¡­? I think¡­ we could have saved her¡­ Why does it always end like this? Slowly, Carol approaches the downcast Friday and locks her into a tight embrace. ¡°You did well¡­ You¡¯re much stronger than I was¡­¡± Friday sniffles. ¡°So¡­ can- c-can I cry now?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Like on command, the young nurse starts to bawl her eyes out against her shoulder. Sobbing and gasping for breath in between her outbursts, her fingers grip Carol¡¯s back tightly. Her runny nose stains Carol¡¯s white jacket, but she doesn¡¯t care. Carol holds her tight and pets her brown hair slowly, pressing her head on top of Friday''s, and closes her own sad, arid eyes, devoid of mist.
The door to the ward opens and Grent peeks inside. ¡°Hope I¡¯m not interrupting anything¡­¡± He trails off, seeing the two sharing a bed. ¡°Uhh¡­ No¡­?¡± Frank doesn¡¯t make an effort to get up from lying next to Amethyst, despite Grent showing up. ¡°I think we¡¯re about done, right Amethyst?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± Amethyst beams and loosens her grip, then looks at Grent puzzled. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I just came to tell you that¡­ Luna is dead.¡± He speaks in a matter-of-fact tone, though his face isn¡¯t able to stay as neutral. ¡°W-what!?¡± Amethyst¡¯s arm lets go of Frank, and he gets off the bed. ¡°What do you mean dead?¡± ¡°Dead, means dead. She died from her wounds and probably the complications caused by them, what more do you want me to say?¡± Grent shrugs and leans on the doorway with his shoulder. ¡°She¡¯s dead¡­?¡± Amethyst trails off and stands up from the bed too, she sways slightly but steadies herself successfully. ¡°Not you too¡­ You know what, if it¡¯s so hard to believe, why don¡¯t you come and see for yourself, then?¡± Grent leaves the doorway, leaving it open. Frank and Amethyst glance at each other, with forlorn expressions and then go after Grent. Their short journey to the lab is silent, only the sobbing of somebody growing louder as they draw closer to the open door. Grent presents the inside of the room to them like a theater director pulling the curtains on his next show, presenting it with the gesture of both arms, before stepping to the side. Next to Luna¡¯s bed, Carol hugs Friday from behind, as the newbie has her face buried in the bedsheets. Her brunette locks splay on the bed and her head that¡¯s against Luna¡¯s side, is hidden by her crossed arms and hair. The fierce grip of her fingers threatens to tear the fabric. Pioneer stands in the left corner, leaning to the wall and gritting his teeth, with a firm hand placed on his face. And on the bed, Luna lies, her body covered from the shoulders down with the white sheet. Motionless, her eyes closed, arms lying limp on her sides, visible as outlines through the bedsheet. Her face is neutral, if not for her lips with a faint grimace, and her brow like still bent from pain. Her cheeks and the sides of her head have faint trails of dried blood staining them, not fully coming off after being wiped. She still wears her earrings, the large necklace, and the sparkling purple dress faintly visible on her shoulders. The realization is a cruel inevitable force, that threatens Frank¡¯s balance, mind, and composure: Luna is dead because of him. ¡°I¡¯m sorry Amethyst, I¡­ I didn¡¯t mean to kill her.¡± His panicked eyes, meet Amethyst¡¯s, a tear is trailing down her cheek. ¡°I-I had to shoot her. She-she was talking about extraction. She was going to take you away!¡± Frank speaks quickly and stammers over his words. ¡°D-do something horrible! T-take you to Intergalactic maybe. But I-I didn¡¯t mean for her to die!¡± Frank turns to Amethyst and touches her shoulder. ¡°I¡­ I understand, I¡¯m sorry too, Frank¡± Amethyst hugs him, and Grent moves away from Amethyst¡¯s elbow blades extending wide. ¡°I¡¯m so glad you were there to help. I¡­ I... This was my fault too...¡± But¡­ I¡¯m not sure¡­ if she deserved to die. I could sense something good, within her as well. Underneath it all, was a familiar feeling, a far-away kinship. I could feel it in my antennae, she was broken too, from the inside. Lost and shattered, perhaps like me. Not everything about her was fake. Frank returns the embrace, and he cries on her armored shoulder. He feels Amethyst¡¯s cool tears drop onto his head. ¡°Hate to be the realist here¡­ but I can take care of¡­ her body. So none of you have to.¡± Grent volunteers with a careful and surprisingly respectful tone. ¡°B-but-!¡± Friday lifts her tear-flowing face. ¡°Especially for your sake, Friday,¡± Grent says sternly. ¡°I think that¡¯s for the best¡­¡± Carol brushes Friday¡¯s hair with her hand and then uses a napkin to dry and clean her face like a mother would do for her child. Friday doesn¡¯t fight nor struggle, she just sniffles in silent acceptance. ¡°I¡­ I should call her first of kin¡­ Before we do anything, they have the final say as to what happens to her now.¡± Pioneer speaks up from the corner and tilts back to his feet. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll store her in the cold in the meantime.¡± Grent goes to the back wall, and opens up a steel cabinet, like in a morgue, checking on its condition. A waft of cold mist rises from inside it like smoke; a freezer to store the dead. ¡°I¡¯ll just¡­ do it soon. I¡¯m going to get some fresh air and then call¡­¡± Pioneer leaves the room. Suddenly, an awfully happy and chipper tune plays and Pioneer dashes back into the room hearing it. The tune comes from Luna¡¯s satchel, and Friday is the first to act and rummage through the inside of the satchel next to the medical bed. Friday finds Luna¡¯s ringing communicator and lifts it to her ear to answer it. ¡°Hello? Who is this?¡± Time seems frozen for a moment, as everyone waits for Friday¡¯s next words. Instead, she takes it off her ear. ¡°They hung up without a word.¡± ¡°Who was the caller?¡± Frank asks with a wavering voice, still in Amethyst¡¯s arms. ¡°It was just blank, no number, no name or anything.¡± The phone vibrates and dings in Friday¡¯s hands. ¡°Huh? A message from¡­ Privacy Protector? Can¡¯t open it though, screen¡¯s locked...¡± ¡°Friday! Drop the phone!¡± Grent shouts and slams the freezer shut, Friday does as she is told, and Carol pulls Friday away from it. The communicator clonks onto the floor and smoke starts rising from it as the gray plastic covering begins to melt. It bubbles and flashes a few short-lived flames from its seams, and the large screen cracks. An electronic crackling sound followed by a loud pop explodes its covers open, flipping the phone-like device in the air a few rotations, splaying some melted plastic on the floor around it, and staining the satchel. Then as the wrecked communicator lands back on the ground, nothing more seems to happen. A foul smell of boiling plastic remains, and a faint trail of smoke still rises from the mush of a communicator. ¡°W-what was that!?¡± Friday shouts. ¡°Further proof Luna was working for Intergalactic¡­¡± Frank says quietly. Friday scowls at him and screeches: ¡°T-this is all your fault!¡± She bolts out of the room, hiding her face in her hands. I¡­ I know it is¡­ ¡°Friday, wait!¡± Carol runs after her. ¡°After I call her parents, you two better tell me all you know of Luna and what led to this situation.¡± Pioneer says sternly, he had only briefly asked Frank about the events before, mostly to determine the reason for Frank shooting her, but Carol had insisted on letting him rest until further questioning. ¡°That¡¯s fine, right?¡± Frank looks at Amethyst. ¡°Yeah¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯ll just be a moment¡­¡± Pioneer says and walks out of the room. ¡°Frank, can you help me move Luna into storage?¡± Grent says, as he sweeps the smoldering communicator from the ground with a dustpan and drops it into a small metal box. ¡°If I have to¡­¡± ¡°Great. I''ll just be a moment as I deposit this with the rest of the charred things...¡± *** Pioneer walks outside of the cavern clinic and heads up the nearest quarry trail to the forest above. It¡¯s still dark, so he has a lamp with him. From up high, he sees his staff at the hotel facilities, the lights on in the rooms and some still outside celebrating in the bright lights, regardless of what had transpired. They had moved through the forest to the clinic, but so much staff suddenly going into the woods hadn¡¯t gone unnoticed. Rumors were already circulating about somebody having gotten hurt. Pioneer sits near the edge of the cliff and takes out his communicator, turning off his lantern¡¯s light. Sitting in darkness, in this peaceful loneliness for a moment. He thinks about how his mother would react if one day she¡¯d receive a call about his death. Pioneer shakes his head, fretting about something that was likely to happen, wouldn¡¯t do any good. It wasn¡¯t in his capacity to change, and it was better that way, after all, his mother was very likely to outlive both him and his father too, due to not being a human. But before they were gone, he wanted to make sure, she¡¯d have a better Galaxy to live in, even without them. Pioneer turns his communicator on, finds the documents of Luna¡¯s application and from it, copies the number to call in the case of an emergency. He calls the number and lifts the communicator to his ear; soon, it is answered. ¡°Hello, have I reached the Mi-Safiljo¡¯s? More specifically, Stella Mi-Safiljo?¡± ¡°Yes¡­ who do I have the pleasure of talking with?¡± The feminine voice is polite but sounds very tired. ¡°I apologize if it¡¯s a bad time, this is a Galactic call, so I do not know your local time. Anyhow, the one calling you, is Pioneer, the one who employs your daughter, Luna.¡± ¡°Oh, is my darling being a nuisance or has something¡­ happened?¡± ¡°I am afraid, it is the latter. There was an accident that involved her...¡± ¡°W-what happened?¡± ¡°All the details are not yet clear, but there was a tragic situation earlier¡­ which led to Luna¡¯s death, despite our medical experts trying their best to save her.¡± There¡¯s a long silence. ¡°Lady Stella? Are you still there?¡± ¡°Yes¡­ Sorry¡­ I- I¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay, take all the time you need. All I ask is¡­ to let me know, what you wish for us to do with her¡­ body.¡± ¡°R-right... I- I¡¯ll need a moment, I will discuss this with my husband and I¡¯ll get back to you¡­¡± ¡°Take all the time you need. Again, there are no words to tell how sorry I am for what has transpired.¡± ¡°I¡­ yes. G-good bye.¡± The shaky voice ends the call rather abruptly. Pioneer hangs his legs over the cliff¡¯s edge and sits in the stillness of the night. The stars above, not exactly bright, still showed the beauty of space. The weight, the smallness of mankind, of sapient life, in this universal scale didn¡¯t help in making his worries seem distant. Nor did they make them feel insignificant, there had only been one other time when stargazing into the endless, wondrous galaxy, had not made him feel any better. He had hoped with all his heart, another time like that wouldn''t come, but¡­ here it was. As impossible, and unreal as it seemed. Although he knew, this would eventually pass, unlike... it.
Slightly earlier. At the other end of the line, the woman, the claimed mother of Luna, ends the call. She lays down the communicator from her ear and makes some notes on the holographic keyboard. Sighing, she mutters to herself: ¡°My talents are wasted on this¡­ couldn''t he at least have asked some details to confirm I was who I claimed? I never get to use any of the fake backstories I make¡­ Like how Luna¡¯s mother is from the Nestora Six planet and it''s the height of small hours there right now¡­¡± ¡°Whatever...¡± She pushes herself away from the desk on her office chair and stands up, adjusting her pony-tailed hair, brightly white, like it had been bleached. With a nasal sigh, she pushes the thick-rimmed black eyeglasses further up and picks up a digital note-pad, a thin screen-like device, pressed to her chest with both of her arms. She flicks around a touch-screen pen with dexterous fingers on her right hand. Walking up to the wide and tall double doors of black wood, she knocks on the right one with the back of her fist. A light turns green next to the doors, giving her permission to enter, she pushes one of them open with her shoulder and enters. ¡°Ysale, what is it?¡± The leader of Intergalactic asks, sensing it would be his secretary. He is facing away on his lavish black leather chair, its wide and tall backrest capable of hiding his entire being. Quite a feat, for any chair. Before it, a wide and thick table stands. Decorated carvings on its light-brown lacquered surface, elaborate swirls, intricate spheres, and waves like northern lights or nebulae. The room itself is spacious, furnished with expensive carpets and paintings depicting the miracles of space in captivating art styles. There are no condiments for visitors, no tray of Exodrinks, not even an extra chair. The leader gazes out of the massive window, the size of the whole back wall, opening up to the great outer space. Beyond there, could be anything. Death, hope, salvation. Redemption. It was all of it and nothing at once. He would discover it, find out which it would be. His goals and ambitions are all so very close, only mere inches away. If only he could reach out a little further and close his age-ridden fist. To seize what the universe had to offer, what it owed him. ¡°I¡¯m here to report on Luna- I mean, Sola¡¯s Enrichment mission progress.¡± She says, assuming that he is listening. He continues daydreaming, while attentively listening with his other brain. Andromeda, an entirely new galaxy. He would be the one to take the biggest, grandest step for mankind. He would be the first to travel there, to seize and to tame it. Show it to all, prove it to his family, that he truly was worthy to carry their name. That he was right. Ysale doesn¡¯t get a response, so she goes ahead anyway. ¡°This will be my last report on the matter, as it has come to an abrupt end. Sola has died in the line of duty, thus failing her mission.¡± He had anticipated good news, what gives? She was supposed to be the perfect fit for this mission. His breath grows ragged as two of his alien hearts start racing. Uncontrollably, pumping too much blood. ¡°U-nfortunate.¡± He gasps as pain saps his chest mid-sentence, deciding to leave it to one word. He hits his chest with a hairy-inhuman hand. ¡°Indeed, what a shame.¡± Ysale holds a small pause, in case he has something more to say. ¡°The details of her death are not known yet, nor if she was interrogated before her demise. It is possible that she has leaked sensitive information. She was inexperienced in the field still by all accounts-¡± ¡°She was many things, but most of all, she was loyal. Set the leak risk as minimal.¡± ¡°As you wish.¡± Ysale crosses the box on the death report, then browses her notes of their previous discussions and her assignments. ¡°Regarding the Tyrchid matter... are we still proceeding with plans D and F now that L has ended?¡± ¡°Of course. Set E in motion too, we need it standing by, ready to execute at a moment¡¯s notice.¡± ¡°E¡­¡± Ysale browses her notes frantically to find any references to this plan. As she finds what it means, she can¡¯t help but ask. ¡°E, was it sir? Are you positive?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Ever since the incident, it¡¯s been cleaned twice a month. If I may be so bold, are you positive it is no longer contaminated?¡± She quickly adds: ¡°Not that I assume you wouldn''t consider the gravity of an outbreak as a result of its usage. But as you know, I am obligated to ask the question due to protocol, even from you.¡± ¡°It has been a decade already¡­ but make its second monthly cleaning happen today. Regardless of the outcome of our plans or external factors, it will be deployed. We will need it.¡± ¡°Very good sir¡­¡± Ysale turns off the screen and taps it repeatedly with her pen¡¯s rubbery head. ¡°May I¡­ make a personal inquiry?¡± ¡°Go ahead, I will listen.¡± He takes longer to respond, despite the positive answer. ¡°It¡¯s been a while since¡­¡± She shakes her head, ¡°What I mean to ask is; are there any plans to save my bro- I mean, Rocco Crondeston.¡± ¡°He will rot his full sentence, may it serve as punishment for his incompetence. Need I remind you, what his part to play in this mess was?¡± ¡°That will not be necessary, thank you for entertaining my selfish request all the same.¡± Ysale grips the pen and its plastic casing cracks. ¡°That is all, thank you, sir. I will make sure the plans are executed to the letter...¡± 37. The Sorrow of Morrow As Pioneer walks down the quarry-side path, the night is gradually brightening, morning is looming on the horizon with the first sun soon to rise. Greeting them into a new day, where, contrary to popular belief, things would be much the same as before. It would take more than the turning of the day to fix what had been broken. Pioneer¡¯s communicator beeps, it''s a text message from Luna¡¯s mother:
¡°After careful consideration with my husband, we have determined that the best for her is to bury her on Midnight Iris. Luna would have wanted to stay on the same planet as Amethyst, whom she so admired. Also, being part of your show was a dream come true for her, so she should get to stay on that journey forever. Please send the official statements and other paperwork about this incident when you can and we will direct them to our lawyer.¡±
Attached to the message are documents that give Pioneer the right to bury Luna¡¯s body on Midnight Iris. These were good to have, to show it had all been done according to protocol, and to avoid any Galactic Police interference after her funeral proceedings. Albeit, if he really wanted to, Pioneer could just use ISSA¡¯s authority to do it anyway, even without her parent¡¯s consent. This planet and everyone here was under their jurisdiction. Pioneer responds to the message respectfully, hiding his surprise and not wishing to undermine their decision. He promises compensation from ISSA, and to quickly send them a statement about the incident. The tinge of guilt grows into a maelstrom. Is this how Luna truly felt¡­? Her dream finally came true only for her to... He stops there, as he didn¡¯t dare¡ªdidn¡¯t want to¡ªundermine her wish with doubt and suspicion. Even if Luna had been working for Intergalactic in secret, there¡¯s no reason to think, this also couldn''t be true. It wouldn''t be fair for him to decide what the dead had wanted to accomplish in life. Pioneer returns to the lab, to find only Grent there, sitting before his computer. He turns around as he hears him arrive. ¡°Luna¡¯s parents gave me permission to bury her here.¡± ¡°Here¡­?¡± Even Grent, who''s not a fan of pointless questions, has to do a double-take. ¡°As in at Midnight Iris?¡± ¡°Yes¡­ We should hold her a small service immediately.¡± ¡°Already? But we just put her away.¡± He sighs and shakes his head but one glance at Pioneer¡¯s face is enough to dissuade him from arguing. ¡°Very well¡­ I shall prepare her¡­ for the final trip.¡± He stands up and looks towards the morgue cabinets ¡°I don¡¯t think we have any caskets, so a biodegradable body bag will have to do.¡± He goes and takes out a bag from near the morgue shelves in the walls, spreading it on the table. Sort of a zipper made of a wood-like substance adorns the otherwise plastic-looking bag which he opens. ¡°Pioneer, give me a hand, let¡¯s move her to the table and I¡¯ll do the rest. Strip her of her-¡± ¡°Y-yes, yes.¡± Pioneer interrupts him, wishing to hear no more, though not really wishing to see the dead from any closer than he need be either. Grent opens the freezer and pulls the metal shelf forward. Luna¡¯s skin gleams with sparkles of frost all over her face and her eyelashes. The rest of her body is adorned with what was left of her torn purple dress, snowflakes of ice made it sparkle even more too. Thankfully, Grent handles the head¡¯s side, and Pioneer gets to just grab Luna¡¯s freezing ankles. But¡­ from here, how Grent supported the head with his body and also lifted her from the shoulders, only made it look like she was watching him. Staring with closed eyes, behind those shut eyelids, secretly judging him for her fate. ¡°Why did you let this happen to me, Pioneer? Why did I have to die?¡± He could almost hear her voice asking those questions. ¡°You didn¡¯t like me, did you? Is that why you didn¡¯t do anything to stop this?¡± No, that¡¯s not true! Pioneer lightly shakes his head, to try and dispel this illusion of his conscience. ¡°You¡¯re planning on letting those two go without punishment? Aren¡¯t you? Because you all hated me.¡± I¡­ will hear them out, and determine what should be done. For all your accusations, remember you are not innocent either. With that, Luna¡¯s imaginary, accusatory voice stays silent. After what felt like ages, Pioneer gets to set her down on the table. He rubs his chilly hands together. They felt cold¡­ and dirty. ¡°I will keep the door locked for the time being to keep¡ªanyone¡ªfrom stumbling before her remains as I bag her up.¡± Grent looks at Pioneer, who recovers from his stupor with his comment. It was time for him to finally leave, and he was glad for it, to escape this oppressive space. As he¡¯s about to move, his leg pulls on Luna¡¯s satchel, its brown leather strap around his shoe. Pioneer lifts his leg out of it and picks it up. ¡°I forgot to ask her mother, what to do with her belongings¡­¡± He looks at Grent. ¡°If you don¡¯t mind, I should probably take these with me, place them somewhere where I won¡¯t forget, and leave them behind.¡± ¡°Go ahead. Though, you might want to look through its contents first, before deciding if you wish to return it.¡± Pioneer is about to open the satchel- ¡°But not here, or now! Come on, leave, so I can start, or do you wish to be watching, hmm?¡± ¡°Right, no, sorry¡­¡± Pioneer leaves the lab with the bag, and Grent locks the door behind him.
While Grent is preparing Luna¡¯s body, he feels a strange gaze on his back, causing a sudden chill to run down his spine. Although, the gaze itself didn¡¯t feel threatening in itself. As he looks behind him, he sees the Amandebot on the floor. He could be imagining it, but was her head slightly turned his way? It feels as if Amande is watching him, that she is in this room with him somehow. Maybe, she technically is, at least, her robotic shell laid on the floor. And her last ¡®physical¡¯ remnants were in the drawer inside the mindray as well. The soul and the body; are both here but separated, incompatible, and lost. Like deserted islands across the seas, like planets on the different sides of the universe. The thing that bound them both together, the intangible spirit was still missing. The medium that crossed between the ethereal soul, and the physical body, the one which stirred and combined them, held them together like glue in its nest. This sapient will, that somehow manages to make oil and water mixable perfectly. We might never know for sure, but this may be what gave him the idea. What drove him to ultimately do, what he did. To do, what needed to be done, but not what should have been done.
Grent swipes his sweaty forehead with the back of his palm, after the surprisingly strenuous job. That¡¯s all of it¡­ right? He puts the scalpel away on the metal cart, among the bloody tissues, tossing the final strip of her dress into a trash bag. At least Luna wouldn''t pollute the soil with her clothes now. Though he decided to leave the bandages and other dressings on her, those should be non-toxic enough to bury. Grent has had mixed feelings about the tradition of burying bodies into a planet¡¯s surface. Though, he ultimately concluded that it was natural enough: animals, plants, and insects all die and become part of the earth again, anyhow. So why shouldn¡¯t humans and other sapient creatures follow suit? As long the grave wasn¡¯t too deep, and the person was pure. I¡­ I¡¯ll just¡­ bag her up now. Grent stuffs her hair respectfully inside of the biodegradable bag¡¯s confines, then starts zipping her up. As he closes the bag up to her chest, he realizes she¡¯s still wearing her necklace and earrings. He takes off the deep red and faint purple metal earrings, from her thawing, but rigid earlobes. They jingle slightly as he lifts the square earrings consisting of two interlaced, decorated square-shaped plates. And then, her large necklace, the neckpiece wide and long, with large garnet-like gemstones, shaped like teardrops attached to it. He couldn''t help but wonder if it had a story. Surely, something so extravagant had to have something. For some reason, three of the gems seem¡­ a bit brighter from the middle than the others, maybe it was just the lighting¡­? He takes the necklace off her neck and sets it aside. As he lays it on the metal table, his hand brushes against the necklace, and one of the gemstones opens and shoots something out. Its fast speed causes it to hit the ceiling with a silent ting and with a light clatter it drops back down to the floor. Is that¡­? Grent searches around and finds the dart, identical to what Amethyst and Frank had been slept by. Though this one has the Mosquitollibri head completely crushed due to the impact, it seeps out runny translucent liquid from the broken seam between the head and the capsule. So that¡¯s how¡­ the necklace must be fully loaded with these things¡­? The gemstone that shot the dart out, has already closed on its own and is colored lighter now. He cleans his hands and peers at the necklace, rewinding the situation in his head, on how he accidentally touched it before. Knowing what he does now, he can almost make out the darker shade in the gemstones as the dart¡¯s barely visible outline. Hmm¡­ I think I swiped to the side of it last time¡­ so¡­ Grent presses a finger directly on top of a darker gemstone, and a dart is ejected from the bottom of the gem, bottom first, falling onto the table. So this is how she got one to the back of Amethyst¡¯s thigh. Shoot, or manual placement; quite an ingenious design¡­ Well, I¡¯ve got time to research it later¡­ I have to hurry before they get suspicious. He gets back to Luna, to zip shut her body bag. Don¡¯t look so sad¡­ I¡¯m sorry, okay? You don¡¯t need them anymore. Her lifeless face stares back unyielding with closed eyes, the thawed eyelashes have melted their icy crystals into small pools of liquid around her sockets. Even though he had only seen her on the screen before and heard Frank bitching about her in the sauna¡­ death was always sad, no matter whose it was. Not even Grent was immune to this fact, or perhaps, he was the weakest of them all to it, even if he was adamant to not show it. Death¡­ is a part of life. A fact, Grent had sworn to reject, on the day he heard the news of Amande''s passing. The first expedition party, ¡®needed¡¯ a medical expert to go with them. As they explored deeper into the wilderness of Midnight Iris, scouting for more metal veins, the operation only made themselves that much more known, practically serving themselves to the merciless forest on a silver platter. Her body was never recovered, but the survivors said she was slain by a great violet blade. Not a day went by that he didn¡¯t wish that he had stopped Amande from going. Done something, stood up against Larsenia, against the stupid regulations and rules. Insisted on at least going with her. Done something. ... Larsenia had stopped coming to the clinic at all after Amande¡¯s death, even to the sauna. Maybe she felt guilty, or pitied him¡­ In fact, they hadn¡¯t spoken a single word since. Grent had been left in the dark, so much so, that he wasn¡¯t sure if he had stopped officially being a part of Intergalactic Resources that day. Well¡­ none of that mattered now¡­ One could only wish, that somehow, someway, even something so tragic, was just a stepping stone on the path to a better and brighter tomorrow. Even if it all looked dark, grim, and hopeless, like standing at the bridge of a ship, on the precipice of a Black Hole¡¯s gravitational radius, unable to escape the pull to oblivion. Even if he was on course to his inescapable demise, he still had one thing to do, to strive for with all his being before the impact, and he might just be one step closer to achieving it.
As Pioneer leaves Grent¡¯s lab behind, he goes to the ward. Hoping to find Amethyst and Frank, to finally give him a clear statement, and a consistent course of events that led to this tragedy. However, as he arrives, he also finds Carol and Friday inside. He speaks, to let them all know: ¡°I¡­ I called her parents, and-¡± ¡°Shh¡­ can you speak a little quieter?¡± Carol sits at a bedside, Friday laying on the bed itself, buried in bed sheets. Her makeup is spread on her face, and her brunette hair is messy and all over the place. But regardless, she''s fast asleep. ¡°I finally got her to calm down and rest¡­¡± ¡°Sorry¡­¡± Pioneer says quieter and looks to Amethyst and Frank, who both look down, sitting next to each other on a bedside too. ¡°K-keep breathing¡­¡± Suddenly, Friday mutters in her sleep and she turns to her side. Her hands grip onto Carol¡¯s arm, pulling on the white cloth of the nurse¡¯s jacket. ¡°Please¡­ don¡¯t go...¡± A tear streaks down her cheek and permeates into the pillow, leaving a stain of dark behind, her uneven breathing is audible for a moment. Everyone is quiet until the silence is broken by Pioneer whispering barely audibly. ¡°Luna will be buried here, on Midnight Iris. We will have her funeral shortly.¡± ¡°H-here¡­?¡± Amethyst looks at Pioneer and then to Frank. ¡°A funeral¡­¡± ¡°We¡¯re burying her¡­ so¡­ soon?¡± Frank looks at Pioneer with a raised eyebrow. ¡°I think it¡¯s for the better¡­ to not delay,¡± Carol says without looking at the others, she just gently pets the sleeping Friday¡¯s hair. She leans closer and whispers only to her: ¡°It¡¯s okay¡­ do not be afraid. I¡¯m still here.¡± Friday stirs and mumbles something indecipherable. Pioneer acknowledges Carol¡¯s support for his idea with a nod. ¡°The sooner we can bury her, the sooner we will all get peace of mind...¡± I don¡¯t mean to rush her into the grave, but¡­ there¡¯s no reason to delay. There¡¯s no question as to what caused her death after all¡­ It¡¯ll only bring more pain to wait, to prolong the healing that we all must do to some degree. ¡­ ¡°Amethyst, Frank, a moment?¡± Pioneer gestures to the corridor¡¯s door that leads to the kitchen. They look at each other and stand up, following after Pioneer who takes them to the dining room. Pioneer lifts up the knocked-over chair and takes a seat by the dinner table. ¡°If it¡¯s alright with you, I would like to hear both of your stories regarding the events of the night. Neither of you is in trouble as it stands, I just wish to know and understand how this happened.¡± They both agree, and Pioneer asks Amethyst to start. She tells of the party, how they split up with Frank, how she was helped by Carol, Friday, and Lyra, and then when Luna came to fulfill the promise she had made before. How Luna then made empty promises to lure her along, and then the small sting that caused her to lose consciousness at the forest clearing. Pioneer nods along, without interrupting her story until the end, when he fills them in with the darts in turn, before asking: ¡°What do you think her motives were?¡± Frank answers. ¡°She worked for Intergalactic, so it must have something to do with Amethyst. Perhaps to capture her, to sell or experiment on her.¡± Frank looks pointedly at Amethyst, with a hint of nervousness, like gauging her reaction. Pioneer raises her eyebrows as Frank answers instead of Amethyst who he asked the question from. ¡°Yes, what Frank said.¡± Amethyst and Frank exchange glances. ¡°I see.¡± Pioneer lifts Luna¡¯s satchel to the side of the table and takes out a plastic box with divided compartments. It houses purple wing shards, a vial of green blood, and Pango berries in their own segments. Pioneer opens it up and also lifts out two items in clear plastic bags: a moist crumpled-up paper ball that has misted up the bag slightly and a lock of purple hair. ¡°What can you tell me of these items?¡± ¡°Is that¡­ that¡¯s your hair¡­? Isn¡¯t it Amethyst? And your signature...¡± ¡°I¡­ well¡­ she¡­ asked me to exchange locks of hair with her¡­¡± Amethyst trails off and after a pause, tells both of them about her talks and exchanges with Luna, about how she talked about men in general and of Frank. However, she leaves out her asking about how Tyrchids reproduce, she hadn¡¯t felt comfortable in divulging that information then and didn¡¯t feel like she could talk about it now either. ¡°Despicable¡­¡± Pioneer holds his head, shaking it and holding on to the bridge of his nose as he leans forward. Frank leans back with his arms crossed, looking serious. ¡°I¡¯m sorry Frank, I¡­ I tried to argue against her claims, I just didn¡¯t know how to... And I don¡¯t really believe all the things she said, but it was just so, so¡­¡± ¡°Hard to disprove¡­? So¡­ convenient to believe?¡± Frank says glum. ¡°Yes¡­ And despite everything she said¡­ I felt she needed¡­ a friend. I just couldn''t say no.¡± Frank is silent, and in the meantime, Pioneer puts away all the things Luna had gathered, then speaks up: ¡°There''s also a camera with lots of photographs of well, everything, many of their subject being Amethyst. But, we don''t need to get into that, it''s already abundantly clear what happened with Amethyst. However, what about you Frank?¡± ¡°I¡­ Well, I had a bad feeling about Luna all along, from our various interactions, as you may have gathered from what Amethyst just told us. So, when G-, our um, Scientist friend told me of this secret between Luna and Amethyst just before the celebration, I was starting to get very worried. Harboring suspicions of Luna¡¯s motives, origin, and danger, I decided to hide my laser rifle in the forest, in case something happened. You know, just to use as a bargaining chip.¡± Frank tells how they split up with Amethyst, and how this trio of women, Fanny, Bridget, and Stacy spoke all these awful things about Amethyst and kept him from leaving. Pioneer gets stuck on Frank¡¯s words, on the lack of details, feeling there¡¯s something more and digs deeper: ¡°How did they keep you there? Did they do something else than hold you¡­?¡± ¡°They¡­ well¡­¡± Frank looks nervous and glances at Amethyst. ¡°If you don¡¯t mind, Amethyst, can you¡­ wait outside for a moment?¡± Pioneer asks politely. ¡°Oh¡­?¡± Amethyst looks at Frank, who nods: ¡°I-I¡¯ll tell you later if you wish to hear.¡± ¡°Okay¡­¡± Amethyst gets up and leaves the room. ¡°So¡­ these three girls? What did they do exactly? They held onto you tightly, and then?¡± ¡°I feel silly just talking about it¡­ it¡¯s not...¡± Frank looks away, glancing at the door. ¡°Stop, don¡¯t say it''s not important, or that it¡¯s not a big deal. If it''s easier, just tell me: what did you feel in that moment?¡± ¡°I felt¡­ threatened and helpless. I was bound and I felt alone with them, even in the big crowd. Like everyone could see me, my distress, but nobody would do anything.¡± Frank''s brow starts to sweat, and he looks down at the table. ¡°It felt like only a second, and like it stretched on for hours. Panic built up inside me the longer it went on, I feared for my safety. Ridiculous, right?¡± ¡°No, of course not.¡± Pioneer looks at Frank with deep compassion, who just stares down at the table. ¡°And¡­ after you broke free of them?¡± Pioneer leans forward, his elbows against the table, holding two fingers of concentration against his chin as he listens attentively. Frank rubs his neck. ¡°I felt¡­ used and exploited... Violated. I could still feel their¡­ dirty hands on me, and their bodies rubbing against mine¡­ and her disgusting tongue...¡± Pioneer¡¯s head falls off his hands he leaned against but quickly recovers before it strikes the table. He frowns deeply and holds his head with both hands as if a sudden headache racked him. Frank snaps out of his thoughts and looks at Pioneer confused. ¡°Sorry about that, please, continue,¡± Pioneer says with a grimace, one eye closed. ¡°I¡­ I think that was it.¡± ¡°Thank you, Frank, you¡¯ve been very brave.¡± Pioneer''s voice wavers slightly. ¡°I-¡­ thanks? I did feel awful at the time, still do¡­ a little. It¡¯s hard to¡­ talk about. But, it¡¯s over now, I¡¯ll be fine.¡± Frank smiles a careful grin, ¡°I¡­ I¡¯ve got bigger things to worry about¡­¡± then becomes solemn again. ¡°That¡¯s great to hear.¡± Pioneer flinches. ¡°I mean, thank you for telling me. We will locate these women and administer appropriate punishment. ISSA, and I, take these matters very seriously.¡± ¡°I¡­ that¡¯s¡­ Thank you...¡± A wholesome smile blooms on his lips. Pioneer calls Amethyst back in, and they continue the discussion: Frank tells what he heard in Luna¡¯s phone call, talk of extraction and how she admitted that she had arranged for the three women to come distract him. And in broader and simpler terms, tells what went through his head, and how he was forced to ultimately shoot Luna due to being hit by, what he now knows to have been, one of those darts. ¡°Thank you for telling me all this, both of you.¡± Pioneer says and leans back, a harsh rumination is visible in his creased eyebrows, and in the restless way he fiddles with his golden ring. ¡°Personally, I think of this as an... accident. The result of a ploy by Luna in which the both of you were victims. So, there won¡¯t be any charges from my side, but I will have to submit a report to ISSA about this. Pioneer quickly adds before his stars'' demeanors darken further. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.¡°Don¡¯t worry, ISSA will shield you from any legal repercussions, if Luna¡¯s mother takes any action against us later down the line.¡± ¡°I see¡­ that¡¯s good,¡± Frank adds dryly, seeming out of sorts, but the hints of relief visible on his face. ¡°That¡¯s all I wanted to know, you may go now.¡± ¡°Alright¡­¡± Amethyst adds and looks at Frank with melancholy and then at Pioneer. ¡°Will this¡­ affect our ISSA court case?¡± ¡°They are likely to bring this incident to light there again. In what way, I could not say, but it may not reflect favorably on the Tyrchids.¡± Pioneer gets up from the chair and pours himself something to drink from the various bottles brought to the table. ¡°But I was the shooter? What do the Tyrchids have to do with this?!¡± Frank bolts up from the chair, planting his palms on the table, leaning forward. ¡°Are you not their representative? And how do you think they¡¯ll react for a casualty to have happened not even a week after their application¡¯s processing started?¡± Pioneer shakes his head and sips the drink. ¡°Try to consider it as just an extra hurdle to prepare for. You weren''t going to waltz in without considering how to best make your case, right?¡± ¡°Right¡­¡± Frank trails off and heads for the door, Amethyst gets up to leave with him in a hurry. ¡°I¡¯ll let you know of the schedule for your proceedings before we leave!¡± They step into the lobby closing the door behind them, not responding to Pioneer¡¯s farewell shout. Frank stomps to one of the many sofas of the lobby, next to the ward¡¯s door and takes a frustrated seat, practically slamming himself onto its teal-green cushions. Amethyst has stopped next to the kitchen door and looks nervous. ¡°Sorry¡­ I¡­ I heard everything¡­ about the three women after Pioneer asked me to leave.¡± ¡°Oh¡­¡± Frank spreads his arms along the backrest and looks up at the gray stone ceiling. ¡°It¡¯s not nice to eavesdrop, but I guess your hearing¡¯s just too good.¡± Amethyst doesn¡¯t comment. Frank looks conflicted for a second but soon shrugs lazily. ¡°Well, it saves me the trouble of explaining at least.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry for what happened to you. And for everything else.¡± Amethyst looks down, still standing alone, further away. ¡°Thank you, but never mind that now.¡± Frank taps the sofa¡¯s cushion next to her. Amethyst nods, and with a smile takes a careful seat next to him. Suddenly, a brief vibrating sound from inside Frank¡¯s tuxedo pocket sounds. ¡°Huh¡­? Sorry Amethyst, I just got a message.¡± Frank takes out the communicator and checks the sender. ¡°Galactic Police.¡± His heart skips a beat as he reads those words aloud, but there¡¯s no way they could already know what happened here¡­ Then, he remembers that he¡¯s actually expecting an email from them and takes a deep breath, calming down. ¡°Frank¡­? Are you okay?¡± ¡°Oh¡­ it¡¯s¡­ well, no need to worry, it¡¯s just about the aftermath of the Viridian Macula.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Frank opens the message and leans closer to Amethyst, allowing her to see the message over his shoulder.
¡°Greetings Frank, Attached, you will find the official paperwork of your criminal record¡¯s erasure and immunity to any legal repercussions from your past activities. I apologize for how long it took to do and thank you for your patience. We are still processing through Intergalactic¡¯s personnel, as the documents found at Viridian Macula led to further arrests in other Intergalactic facilities as well. So, we¡¯ve had our hands quite full in dealing with them. I must thank you again for your exemplary service to Justice. You make the United Galaxy proud with your deeds and upstanding morals. If you come across any further criminal activities, please do not hesitate to report them to us, just try not to get too deeply involved the next time. Best regards, Aldricht Argo.¡±
¡°Looks like you started some sort of a¡­ chain of events?¡± ¡°Seems that way...¡± ¡­ No, this is a good thing. Pablo and the others, and whoever got caught in the net of the Galactic Police deserved it, they know what they signed up for... I¡¯m just¡­ lucky¡­ to have gotten off that ride before it was too late¡­ They would have sold me out too, Rocco especially, if given the chance¡­ I just did it first¡­ Frank lifts his solemn gaze, to see Amethyst looking at him. ¡°Are you sure¡­ you¡¯re alright?¡± ¡°I¡­ don¡¯t know.¡± The door to the kitchen opens up and Pioneer appears, he spots them and says: ¡°One more thing, I hate to ask this of you, but could you look for a burial spot for Luna? You know the lay of the land the best, and it¡¯s your planet, you should get to decide the place.¡± ¡°Oh, a-alright¡­?¡± Frank says and looks at Amethyst. ¡°Perfect, just grab a few of my staff to help you dig out the grave,¡± Pioneer adds and looks at Amethyst as well. ¡°Yes¡­ we will do this for her.¡± She answers resolutely.
At the forest¡¯s edge, atop the quarry, a small hill on a meadow lies. The beautiful flowers of red, white, and blue sway in the late-night breeze. A fresh hole has been dug into the soil, a few meters deep, wide, and long enough for a person. Grent, Pioneer, Carol, and Friday show up with a gray slab of thick metal, pushing it along from the sides; the floating hoverplate, a makeshift funeral procession. The air ripples along the four corners of the platform, humming along its sad, steady tune. On top of it, a black body bag with various flowers, big and small, lying around it. At the back of the plate, two sets of ropes, as well as a set of electrical lanterns, ride along. Amethyst and Frank stand a few meters away from the grave, their heads held down. The procession passes them, and the rest join their row, all except Pioneer. With his hand, he makes two circles in the air. The first around his mouth, and the next above around his nose, completing this figure of an eight. Or, as it was known in this service, a vertical infinity symbol. Pioneer puts down his hand, and speaks, in a loud and clear voice: ¡°From stardust, to starfall, may you find peace, amongst them all. May you soar through the void, between the planets and suns, find her sanctum, the supernova of life. She fought for us, paved our future, may her scarlet locks catch you, and pull you back home. By the blood, life, and death, your time shan¡¯t be over just yet, etched in our memories, bound in our hearts, for good or evil, all are equal on her palm. May the Red Goddess cast her crimson eyes on you, and staunch your sorrow in her bosom, may your tears dry in the warmth of her embrace. As Pioneer ends his rites, the first sun slowly crests the horizon, casting its glow and long shadows across the meadow. The Red Goddess is said to reside in the Sun of Metropolis but believed to be able to see through all of the stars of the Galaxy, and beyond. She casts her first gaze of the morning upon them. Grent, Friday, Carol, and Pioneer lay Luna¡¯s body carefully into the grave, each holding a piece of rope, that goes through the body bag¡¯s handles at the bottom of it. Caskets with the same biodegradable time as a human body were in use in Metropolis and other civilized, advanced, planets but outposts often used these body bags as replacements instead. Less glorious and dignified perhaps, but it would do when the survival and continued existence on such planets were the number one worry. They lay her to the bottom, Friday and Grent let go of the ropes, and their pair on the other side pulls the rope that runs underneath the bag, back up from the open grave. They return to their places a bit further out, Friday picks up a flower she brought with her from the ground and returns next to the grave. Her head downcast, she looks into it. ¡°I will miss you, Luna¡­ Even if people said you were a bad person. Or even if that were true. I saw you for who you really were. I believe you could have changed if needed, you deserved better.¡± Friday drops the flower into the hole. A half-purple, half-red petal separates from it, that floats down slower after the rest of it. ¡°You were my friend, and you will always continue to be. Live on with me, in my memories... May your soul fly free, be one with the stars.¡± Friday returns to stand in her place and loudly blows her nose to a handkerchief. Carol pats her on the shoulder, and then steps forwards herself, holding a flower too. Amethyst fidgets, this was something completely new to her. Even if it did remind her of putting her kin to rest by setting their remains on fire, there is some other component here. Something almost divine in the air, something more emotional, spoken in words, which the somber atmosphere reflected. Should I do the same? Step forward, and express my condolences, speak up my feelings? Would that be seen as¡­ disrespectful? Am I allowed to express my regrets, when I am responsible? She opts to just watch and listens to Carol finish paying her respects. She really is gone¡­ Forever. I¡¯ll never get to ask her why she did it, who she really is. I can¡¯t say anything else to her, not even see her. It¡¯s so cruel, so final. So¡­ irreversible. ¡­ Even with everything that happened, I can¡¯t say I would have wished it to end this way... ¡°If only I hadn¡¯t followed her to the forest...¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think it would have made a difference in the end. Maybe just made things a bit more difficult for her. She¡­ would have found another way to accomplish... whatever she wanted to do.¡± Frank answers softly. ¡°Probably¡­ she was very stubborn after all.¡± ¡°Yeah¡­ I¡¯m sorry Amethyst.¡± ¡°Me too...¡± Pioneer steps forward next. Frank watches the funeral proceedings while conversing within his head, with himself, with his conscience, or perhaps, with somebody else. Have you ever killed anyone before? Even indirectly, by accident or¡­ being forced to, like me? I sincerely hope not. I wouldn''t wish this upon anyone. ¡­ I- I didn¡¯t have a choice! I know¡­ she¡­ she deserved it! Didn¡¯t she¡­? Frank¡¯s hands curl up into tight fists, and he cannot bear to look at Pioneer who stammers over his words red-faced, holding back tears, talking with a low, wavering voice. His sunglasses try their best to hide his dismay. I should have found another way. But¡­ what could I have done differently? Regardless! Killing¡­ a murder¡­ cannot be the answer! Nobody has the right to take another¡¯s life. Who am I to say, to decide, she was worthless, evil, irredeemable? Of being any less deserving to live. Even after what she said of me, what she did to us. ¡­ I suppose¡­ sometimes, you just have to make tough choices. Do what you can, in the split second that¡¯ll decide your whole future, which dictates the flow of the rest of your life. Time truly is the cruelest mistress of all. In the end, all you can do is hope that you made the right call. That you spent those precious moments well and arrived at the right solution. As you¡¯re the one who has to live with the consequences. Frank holds his head, covering up his eyes. I can¡¯t know if Friday was right. Could Luna have been saved, and redeemed? Maybe she knew her well, saw something in her I couldn¡¯t. Or maybe, she was just another victim of Luna¡¯s manipulations. Could Amethyst have helped Luna turn a new page in her life, free from Intergalactic? Like me¡­ and Grent have done? Does it matter¡­? Really, truly, matter anymore? ... She¡¯s dead, and nothing is going to change that. The permanence of mortality takes this secret, this unknown future, down with its ice-cold hands of bare bone, leaving us guessing. ¡­ Please¡­ say it doesn¡¯t matter. Three staff members with shovels come from the background and start to slowly fill the grave up. As Frank lifts his gaze, he notices Carol hugging Friday, the older medic''s back to him. Friday¡¯s head over her shoulder, she stares straight at Frank, her eyes partially red, mascara slightly smudged around them, she looks at him hateful. She stares daggers, her face neutral, but her brown irises were like they were ready to kill, to strangle his neck, snap it clean off. In that moment, it felt like this nurse was ready to take his life, instead of saving it. Finally, she closes her eyes and buries her face onto Carol¡¯s shoulder. I truly am, the lowest of the low. ¡°Come when you can, Carol.¡± Pioneer is walking away, speaking without looking back. ¡°We have things to take care of, the party is soon ending. As for what comes to the rest of you, I suggest you all get some rest.¡± ¡°Okay¡­¡± Amethyst says solemnly. ¡°That includes you too, Friday,¡± Carol says and gives her a final pat on the shoulder before going after Pioneer. Her gaze wanders between them all: the leaving Pioneer and Carol, lingering on Frank and Amethyst but ending up back at the grave. ¡°I¡¯ll stay a while longer¡­¡± Pioneer turns around, and Carol catches up to him. ¡°Fine, but I¡¯m serious about resting up!¡± ¡°I hear you, I will.¡± Amethyst looks at Friday who¡¯s stepped up to the very edge of the grave, like she¡¯d jump in herself. Standing partly in the way of the filling operation of the staff. ¡°Come on, Amethyst. Let¡¯s go.¡± Amethyst eyes linger on Friday¡¯s back for a moment more, before she turns to him. ¡°Right. Let¡¯s¡­ give her some space.¡± However, instead of back to the clinic, Frank leads her down the small hill, across the meadow, near the edge of the Quarry¡¯s side, approximately above the clinic itself. Behind them, a few hundred meters away, was a fenced and cleared area, on which large solar panels were propped up. In the growing morning light, they turn towards the sun. ¡°What I used to do when the walls felt like falling on me back home, was to bask in the sun.¡± Frank lies himself on the flowery grass, not minding the state of his tuxedo, it was already dusty and a little dirty. ¡°Lie among nature, in serenity and solitude. Just exist in silence for a while. Why not give it a try?¡± Amethyst looks down at Frank for a moment, but sets herself down too, following his example. Albeit having a bit more trouble lying down, having to crouch with all her legs, and her torso touches the ground first. Then, she lays herself on her back, a few meters away from Frank, and looks to the sky. The sparse gray clouds in the sky are gradually illuminated by the rising sun, and a gentle breeze blows over the two of them. The dawn highlights the purple of the atmosphere at the edges of the horizon, but the rest of the sky is mostly blue. It feels good to lie down with the scent of nature around. For just a second to stop after all of the terrible things that have come to pass. A sonorous but beautiful-sounding bird sings its serene song in the trees behind and Frank breathes in the atmosphere, feeling calm for the first time in a while. Suddenly, Amethyst speaks. ¡°What is¡­ death? ¡­ Is it when a person¡¯s body stops working? When you can no longer ask how they are doing? Ask, what their plans for tomorrow are, what dreams they hold? Does a life end, only once they are buried? Once their body is laid to rest? Can somebody live on in memories, like Friday said? What about if they forget about her? Or if everyone that knew her dies too?¡± Amethyst speaks calmly, with a heartbreaking undertone, Frank is taken aback, and once he finally thinks to respond something, Amethyst continues: ¡°Can somebody live on due to their actions? Like¡­ the Red Goddess, she seems like an important person. Does she still live, since people remember her? Does one still live on if something they once created exists, even if others don¡¯t know they made it? Or if somebody writes about them and their story is remembered after their so-called death?¡± Frank listens to Amethyst¡¯s deep thoughts, letting her speak. Clearly, the experience had invoked many things in her newly sapient mind. ¡°Death is permanent, but what if one is somehow brought back, in another body, like Grent is trying to do with Amande? Would they still be the same person? Or if that person still did die, then who is that new person then? Or even if Amande would somehow be brought back in her original body, would it even then be her, just another person with the same name and body?¡± ... ¡°Why did Luna have to die?¡± Amethyst¡¯s question feels awfully pointed and dangerous to answer. ¡°Why do I have this blood that others covet? Why¡­ why can¡¯t we all just live in peace¡­?¡± Frank finally speaks up to answer Amethyst¡¯s collected, but glum ranting. ¡°If only we could, but perhaps one day, we will. The United Galaxy isn¡¯t called that for no reason. Many sentient species are working together, to make it happen. And we can help in that too, once you are an official member.¡± ¡°I see¡­ that¡¯s good... But, how come trouble always finds us? What if I die before it happens? What will happen when I die? Why... do we have to die? I don¡¯t think that¡¯s fair! Why does it all have to end?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure what will happen in death... Some people believe that the Red Goddess will reincarnate us as new life, others that she takes us to her paradise, and a few that she just burns our soul from existence in her suns as a mercy¡­ It¡¯s also possible, nothing happens, that death is the end.¡± Frank speaks in a woeful tone. ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s fair either. But, it¡¯s said, that life just isn¡¯t fair. Though, personally, I feel that¡¯s an understatement. ¡®Nothing is fair, by definition¡¯, would be more accurate. There is nothing, that is objectively good for everyone. But still, we must go on. Perhaps to try and find that elusive fairness, or to try to get close enough to that perfection as we can and live as we see best.¡± Frank pauses for a moment. ¡°Because, if we don¡¯t seek it, if we give up on life, just because we will die someday¡­ All will be lost¡ªwe will be lost¡ªand nothing will ever have a chance to be fair again.¡± ¡°You sound like you have thought about it a lot.¡± Frank gazes at the sky, and stays silent for a good while, before saying softly: ¡°Yeah.¡± The wind sweeps and plays with his blond bangs, whisking it across his vision, as he continues to look up, into infinity. They are silent, as they bask in the growing glow that slowly chips away at the invisible veil of trepidation and death that blanketed them. The sun always brings in a new dawn, a start of the present moment, and the beginning of the future. Like the twin suns of Midnight Iris that chase each other across the cosmic canvas, inevitably future paves the way for the present moment, but the present may never catch the future. And after them both, trails the dark matter, the invisible and formless, the past left behind, that which can never be found again. Not even by the brightest of lights. You are forced to move on, to not be buried and lost in the past itself. Time is never fair, but it always makes us strive to go on, to do better, and face tomorrow. The next morning, forever illuminated by the future on the horizon.
Friday sits on a large stone, its surface gray, with veins of lustrous black. She¡¯s been watching Frank and Amethyst for a while, having noticed them from up on the funeral hill. That could have been us, Antai. That could have been us¡­ Luna. All of us... Frank is right. Life just isn¡¯t fair. No matter how many good deeds you do, the Universe doesn¡¯t owe you anything. No matter how innocent or pure you are, bad things will still befall you all the same. And the crimes of the Universe, cannot be punished, it cannot be reasoned with, not trialed or made to serve its time. No amount of pleading is going to make it change its ways. Friday¡¯s hand curls into a tight fist, and she looks down at the two lying among the swaying flowers. I suppose you were right Carol. We should extol life, and cling to it tooth and nail, but when it is time, we must let it go. To let those who are gone, and ourselves, rest. That was the intent behind your wish, woven into your last words, too, wasn¡¯t it, Antai? And yet, I could never forget you. ... But it¡¯s fine, carrying you within my memories, is not a burden, but a privilege. And I need you to remind me of your advice, and my dreams. Without you, I would have never left home, leaving behind the opulence of my parent¡¯s wealth, and become¡­ a savior. Friday¡¯s fist unfurls, and she sighs, casting her eyes into the azure sky, with silhouettes of exotic birds high among the clouds. Thank you, Antai, my best friend, who I will never see again. But¡­ today you made a new friend. May Luna keep you company, where I cannot. She plucks a flower next to the stone, its stalk is blue, with white and yellow in its puffy and wavy petals. She walks back to the now filled grave of Luna. I never got to go to her funeral back home. Do you mind Luna, my friend, if I lay Antai to rest with you? Can you go and look after her for me? ¡­ Thank you, I knew you¡¯d understand. She crouches down, places the colorful flower atop the dirt pile, and then stands up. Friday makes a circle with both hands and presses them together to form the infinity symbol. May the Red Goddess receive both of your souls, cradling them in the safety of her suns. And perhaps one day, guide you to a new future with her illumination. 38. Hubris of the Living / Nap in the sun ¡°You don¡¯t have to do this! Let me, Pioneer, please!¡± Carol grabs Pioneer¡¯s white-suited arm, but it slips from her grasp. His eyes are covered with sunglasses, as he looks back at her, and judging by how well her persuading was going, his ears might as well have been covered too. ¡°No, I have to be the one to do it,¡± his brow creases hard, as he stops and stares at Carol for a few seconds. Pioneer lets out a heavy sigh and shakes his head. He leans against the corridor wall of the so-called hotel and crosses his arms. ¡°I need to make it right...¡± ¡°I- I know, but¡­ please! Just think about it for a second, are you sure? Shouldn¡¯t we leave this to the Intelligence Officers? Let ISSA handle this?¡± Carol waits for his response, but there is none. ¡°You¡¯ve made up your mind, haven¡¯t you?¡± ¡°I have to do it for Frank. And... for myself.¡± ¡°Ugh¡­¡± Carol shakes her head, which isn''t enough to end her supportive smile. ¡°Okay then¡­¡± She puts her hand on his shoulder. ¡°Good luck, Dave.¡± Pioneer flinches a little, hearing her call him by his real name in a rather public place like this. ¡°Thank you, Carol.¡± She plants herself next to Pioneer, leaning cool-like against the wall similarly to Pioneer¡¯s pose. ¡°I¡¯ll be here, waiting for you.¡± Some time ago, before the scheduled return transport of the VIP guests, Pioneer and Carol, with the help of other staff, found and detained Fanny, Bridget, and Stacy. They were rather easy to find with Frank¡¯s descriptions, even if they didn¡¯t come along willingly. Now, the three of them were isolated and confined in three different rooms, awaiting interrogation by Pioneer¡¯s executive order. The man of the hour slowly pries himself off the wall and takes off his sunglasses, revealing unshaken eyes. He opens the nearby door and gives one final glance to Carol, who watches him intently, with perhaps a hint of pity or sorrow in her look. He nods and enters the first room, closing the door behind him. The awaiting blond girl, sits in the barren room, like an office, with just two chairs and a table as her company. Her upper body is sprawled on the table, and she still wears her sparkling blue dress. As soon as Pioneer closes the door, she jolts up and straightens her posture immediately. She appears a little groggy and reserved but watches Pioneer approach with rapt attention. ¡°Do you know why we''ve taken you in, Fanny?¡± Pioneer asks and pulls up a chair on his side of the table. The woman, now significantly calmer than when she was arrested, looks at Pioneer and waits for him to be seated before speaking. ¡°I¡­ I think I have an idea, but we didn¡¯t do anything illegal¡ªreally illegal¡ªanyway, so just let me and Bridget go, okay?¡± She pleads with sincere green eyes. ¡°That¡¯ll depend on your cooperation, and what kind of information you can divulge. But first, let¡¯s start at what I believe to be the beginning. What do you know of this individual called: ''Luna''?¡± ¡°Luna¡­?¡± She taps her chin. ¡°Oh, right, she¡¯s the one who¡­ wait a second, she set us up didn¡¯t she?! Yeah! It¡¯s all her fault!¡± ¡°Go on.¡± Pioneer leans back on his rather uncomfortable and hard wooden chair. ¡°Well, uh, a few days ago, she contacted me, said that she could make¡­ my, uh¡­ our dreams true¡­¡± She taps her chin. ¡°You see¡­ me and Bridget keep this blog. It, um, details the highlights of our¡­ activities and where we just post our thoughts and things. You know?¡± Pioneer nods, but not in a knowing way, rather for her to just continue. ¡°She must have found our site and contacted us through it. It¡¯s quite obvious when you stop to think about it...¡± Fanny¡¯s hand goes behind her head and she brushes her hair, with a coy smile. ¡°There¡¯s no other way she would have said those things otherwise...¡± ¡°Said what? And why would Luna contact you over some blog you keep?¡± Pioneer leans forward, looking at her seriously. His fingers clasp against the brown desk¡¯s unyielding cover. ¡°Me and¡­ Bridget may have expressed our rather strong desire to¡­ acquaint ourselves with Frank¡­ in an¡­ intimate way.¡± She turns red in the face but keeps on explaining: ¡°Two days before the VIP event here, Luna messaged us, saying that she was touched by our passionate words in our blog, and she could arrange such a private event between us and Frank.¡± Fanny pauses but then starts explaining quickly and excitedly: ¡°She- she told us that she had shown the blog to Frank and that he was intrigued! You know, Frank himself had read our Blog! I remember how we felt, it was so incredible and embarrassing at the same time! How could we say no! Luna even told us that Frank would love to meet us and was hoping to be persuaded, seduced away from his sickening desires towards Amethyst. This revolting and dangerous attraction, ah, it was all so very detailed on how he wanted us to fight against it... It was¡­ so convincing!¡° Pioneer swallows hard and adjusts his shirt collar like he is having trouble breathing. ¡°Just¡­ relax, Fanny. Take your time.¡± The brief words Pioneer managed to get in between, didn¡¯t seem to register in Fanny¡¯s mind at all. ¡°Also she said Frank didn¡¯t want to know anything about us and wanted to be surprised. And that he might play clueless, to save face in public, but once we¡¯d get him separated and alone, we could make him ours¡­¡± Fanny slumps on her chair, ducking her head forward, which causes her long blond hair to hide her face. ¡°It sounds so stupid and suspicious now that I¡¯ve said it out loud! Talk about too good to be true...¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ I see¡­ in a way you were lured into this, not that it excuses your behavior¡­¡± Pioneer shakes his head and sighs, before looking at the hiding Fanny. ¡°Is there anything else you can tell me?¡± Fanny takes an audible deep breath. ¡°Okay. Pioneer. I have a confession to make.¡± She puts her hands on the table firmly, lifts herself up, and looks straight at him, her bangs messy. Pioneer nods shakily, trying to appear confident. ¡°Me and my sister¡¯s blog¡­ it¡¯s about your show. And only of that! Me and Bridget write out our perspectives and experiences in each of your VIP celebrations there. You know, we¡¯ve been guests in every single one of your Sapient Species Parties! Though I bet you don¡¯t remember us¡­¡± ¡°Yeah, can¡¯t say I do...¡± ¡°Anyway, t-the¡­ w-what we really focus on and talk about is¡­¡± She stammers and partially hides her face with her hands. ¡°We go into¡­ great detail in how we¡­ score, with each new non-human species of your show.¡± Then, she again speeds up her explanation, seemingly wanting to get it all out as fast as possible. ¡°You see, it all started with a dare back when the first season was airing, as we certainly would have never thought to do such a thing otherwise, nuh-uh! But it was all because of our friends, and Stacy, yeah! They were joking about how hot the male Redlars looked like. Those red swelling muscles, that chiseled catfish-like head with the gleaming eyes. And those long whiskers that played that wonderful melody. We joked about how it would play this certain tune when we¡¯d cuddle one, and our session would end with its majestic roar, and the vibrations of that strong body-¡± Her explanation gradually slows down to a dreamy stillness. ¡°W-wait, back up just a bit w-what did you just say about your b-blog and my show?¡± Pioneer¡¯s form wavers and his hands shake, he grabs a firm hold of the table''s edge. ¡°Please, whatever you do, don¡¯t read it! I- I mean, I¡¯m really sorry, but it¡¯s not illegal, right? There was consent, I mean, at least I think so, not that we could understand all of their native speech, but anyway! I just wanted to- its made me so guilty all this time, doing this behind your back. I mean, you¡¯re kind of their father, right? How you discover them, help them get started in the Galaxy, and teach them all sorts of things? It¡¯s like I¡¯m a disobedient teen doing bad things behind my parent¡¯s back! But I mean, it¡¯s sooo worth it, you know. You can imagine it, right? Just picture doing it with your, obviously favorite sentient, the Flibma. Let me tell you, you can¡¯t even imagine the way the slime-¡± ¡°Stop!¡± Pioneer slams a hand to the table and stands up rapidly, but he has to stop to take support from it for his woozy body. How could this happen¡­? I¡­ I¡­! Did I create a following¡­ an atmosphere where behavior like this could fester? By playing along, doing what a good entertainer¡­ ISSA¡¯s lapdog should¡­? S-she did say she wouldn¡¯t do this if it wasn¡¯t for the dare¡­ but... What if, everyone in the chat was being serious about their weird tendencies and cravings¡­? This despicable depravity... Is it my fault, did I cause this in the end? Did I¡­ cause that¡­ too? No¡­ No! ¡°Is everything alright? I¡¯m sorry for dumping that all on you?¡± Fanny¡¯s head is tilted, her face mystified like she just didn¡¯t get it. ¡°Or perhaps I spoke too fast?¡± ¡°I-I-¡± ¡°Did you catch all that, should I go over it again-?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°If you¡¯re confused about why we wanted Frank instead of a Tyrchid, you shouldn¡¯t be! I might be freaky¡­ at times, but that! Those things are so-!¡± ¡°Stop. Fanny, please just stop.¡± Pioneer lifts his hand up and looks at Fanny with despair in his eyes, his lips in a tired frown, exhaustion carved into his face. ¡°-terribly scary and dangerous¡­¡± Fanny trails off with shock on her face, she squirms on her seat and plants her face down into her arms. ¡°Eheh¡­ I¡­ spoke too much, didn¡¯t I? I¡¯m just so nervous, so¡­ sorry. I just¡­ I just wanted to tell you. I¡¯m sorry about everything. I didn¡¯t mean to do it to Frank. Like I said, this Luna person told me he had agreed to it, so I thought he was just playing coy and hard to get. So¡­ please don¡¯t ban me and Bridget from coming to your next event?¡± She grins hopeful and flutters her eyelashes at him. ¡°Why would you tell me all this?! I didn¡¯t need to- I don¡¯t want to know!¡± ¡°I-I just, people always say to be open and speak of your problems¡­ And I was feeling really guilty about all this, so when I started talking, I just couldn''t stop! Anyway, don¡¯t we both feel better about it now, so it¡¯s all good, right?¡± Fanny continues meek and tilts her head confused at Pioneer¡¯s, who¡¯s not getting on with the program, his face still remaining at part terrified, and morose. ¡°Umm¡­ Sorry?¡± ¡°That¡¯ll be all for now.¡± Pioneer teeters as he lets go of the table and holds his head as he turns around. ¡°Okay, but¡­ think about it, alright? I¡¯ll behave, I promise! And please don¡¯t keep me waiting too long, it¡¯s so boring in here!¡± Pioneer exits the room and meets Carol in the hallway, her eyes wide like plates. ¡°I just¡­ need a little break,¡± Pioneer says exasperated, part of his face twitching like from physical pain. ¡°I-I¡¯m still good to go.¡± Carol looks like she''s about to vehemently object, but instead settles to asking him a question. ¡°Are you absolutely positive? I can see the toll it took on you...¡± Carefully, Carol takes Pioneer¡¯s hand into hers. ¡°I¡¯m still doing fine¡­¡± He gently strokes over Carol¡¯s palm once and lifts her hand away. ¡°Okay, but if it surfaces again, don¡¯t force yourself to keep going. Don¡¯t push yourself too hard.¡± ¡°Thank you, but I¡­ I know everything already, I¡¯m sure the next one won¡¯t have anything new to add anyway. She¡¯s just part of their friend group.¡± Pioneer briefly visits the bathroom, rips off a paper towel, and cleans cold sweat from his forehead. Staring into the mirror a long while, before exiting and drinking a glass of water from the dispenser next to the room. Then, feeling marginally refreshed, he makes his way to the door on the opposite side of the corridor, and one room forward from the last one. Carol already leans to the wall next to the door, looking downcast, with her eyes closed. As Pioneer approaches, she lifts her head, nods, and smiles. Pioneer opens the door and steps inside, to see the black-haired Stacy sitting cross-armed and -legged, looking away from him. Without looking at him, she scoffs and begins to speak with vitriol: ¡°What is the meaning of this? To waste my time?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure you know the real reason you are here,¡± Pioneer states as he pulls the door closed. ¡°I haven¡¯t the faintest idea, just like you clearly do not know who I am, since you had the gall to¡­ confine me.¡± She points her nose harshly towards the ceiling and scoffs again when Pioneer doesn''t indulge her with a response. ¡°Do you really not know what my surname is? I¡¯m the current head of my family, after all!¡± ¡°Your name or position might matter, if we were at Metropolis, or you had the luck of dealing with the Galactic Police. But we are not there, and I am not with them.¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s Fliqantral, for your information! And believe me when I say that the first thing I¡¯ll do when I get back to Metropolis, is to initiate a vote for your show to be shut down!¡± Stacy finally looks at him, pursing her lips laden with black lipstick for only a moment, before smirking like offering a challenge. She holds her right hand proudly on her expensive jewelry, which lies on top of the see-through stocking-like material. The very same alluring semi-obstruction covers her chest area from the neck down all the way to the start of the rest of her dress at the bust. ¡°This sort of drivel with an incompetent host such as yourself cannot be allowed to continue airing! I¡¯ll be making a great service to the whole United Galaxy, sacrificing one of my very own Legislative Enactments for the greater good, you and everyone else, should be thankful!¡± Pioneer ignores her boasting and all the personal jabs, continuing calmly: ¡°Let me reiterate, ISSA is its own jurisdiction, it¡¯s up to us, or well, to me, if you ever even make it back to Metropolis. The prison planet¡¯s titanium gates are open to all, regardless of whether they are from the Pillar families or not. The one joint operation ISSA and Galactic Police ever managed, all are truly equal on the planet of endless storm.¡± ¡°Threaten me all you want, but I truly did nothing wrong.¡± ¡°Is that¡­ what you think?¡± ¡°Men are just animals, driven by carnal desire.¡± She looks smugly at her black painted nails and observes her hand.¡± Tell me, is it wrong for an obedient, happy, dog to wag their tail? Or a Mosquitollibri to suck blood? It¡¯s just simply in their nature, men¡¯s only goal in life, is to feel a woman¡¯s touch anyway. I did him a service, it¡¯s a privilege to feel me on one¡¯s skin.¡± ¡°Are you really comparing every single man to non-sapient animals? That we aren¡¯t even humans-?¡± ¡°Yes, I am.¡± Pioneer¡¯s voice grows grim and his face twists in agonizing anger. ¡°You think we are simply animals without rights or control over ourselves?!¡± ¡°And not even intelligent animals at that.¡± Stacy laughs a mocking, screeching laugh, her face the very picture of hilarity. ¡°It¡¯s obvious, all your kind can ever do is think with their crotch, so what¡¯s the problem¡­? Are you intelligent if your brain¡¯s never in use? That¡¯s the ISSA court case I¡¯d like to see!¡± Pioneer can barely contain himself, and raises his voice: ¡°Don¡¯t you feel even the slightest shred of remorse for sexually assaulting Frank?! You- you-!¡± Pioneer grits his teeth and keeps himself from saying anything more. Stacy beams brightly and swishes her black hair back. ¡°Assault? Hah! Why don¡¯t you show me some bruises? Just drop these silly accusations, and let¡¯s leave. I got places to be and parties to crash. You can join me, I wouldn''t mind a man of your status as my plus one. Those two girls were starting to bore me anyway, their hobby is lame. I thought it was something special after they became crazy about it from our dare, but I¡¯m growing tired of this farce.¡± Pioneer stays eerily silent. His hands grip the handles of the chair, its light brown paint cracks and flakes onto the seat. Suddenly, he stands up, slides the chair out of his way, and turns to leave the room, without saying a word. ¡°Hey! What- don¡¯t you dare! Come back here!¡± Stacy jumps up and charges after him, Pioneer closes the door quickly right before she catches up and slams against it. She continues to smack the wooden door repeatedly with her fists; the door frame receives her rage and cries with faint plumes of plaster dust falling off. ¡°Let me out! You can¡¯t keep me here! I¡¯m Stacy fucking Fliqantral! A Pillar of Metropolis!¡± She shouts and screeches further, cursing in between her hysterical outbursts. Pioneer¡¯s chest heaves, and he pants while leaning against the door. Stacy¡¯s heels finally click further back into the room as she mutters, ¡°Whatever, I''ve broken up with way better men than both of them combined...¡± Carol looks shocked but doesn''t say anything, just waits patiently for Pioneer to calm down. Finally, Pioneer gets off the door and turns to her. ¡°C-can you take over, Carol?¡± ¡°Of course, Dave. But are you sure we should-¡± ¡°Thank you¡­ I¡­ I just want to get this sorted out, you know? To make at least something right¡­ But¡­ I feel it again.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± Carol lays a hand on Pioneer¡¯s shoulder and then pulls him into a tight embrace. ¡°Don¡¯t take it to heart. I don¡¯t know how Stacy''s come to think that way¡­ but I know, you aren¡¯t like that. So just ignore the nonsense she¡¯s spouting, she¡¯s nothing more than just another deluded fan. She doesn¡¯t know anything, it wasn¡¯t your fault, it was all her.¡± ¡°Thanks, Carol¡­ I know that, but¡­ it¡¯s still difficult. Even after all this time¡­ I don¡¯t know if I¡¯ll ever get better, ever forget.¡± Pioneer¡¯s arms limply hang, as he just receives Carol¡¯s embrace. ¡°Nonsense, you¡¯ve improved so, so much¡­ I remember the first session we had, you¡¯re like a new man now. Besides, I keep telling you, trauma isn¡¯t something you forget, it¡¯s something you learn to control, take back your life from.¡± Carol pets Pioneer¡¯s head, caressing his styled hair, rigid from various hair products. ¡°And you have been doing so well in that regard.¡± She pulls back slightly and briefly kisses him on the forehead with gentle lips. ¡°It¡¯s only natural this situation would bring it up again, but look at you, you¡¯re still standing. Wavering, teetering a bit, perhaps, but that¡¯s why I¡¯m here, for you to lean onto. We don¡¯t have to go through it all alone.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what I¡¯d do without you.¡± Pioneer falls into her embrace fully and hugs her tightly. ¡°You don¡¯t have to think about that. Just continue to do what you want. Be who you want to be, the best version that you can be. And I will always support the great almighty Pioneer from the sidelines in his mission.¡± Carol chuckles and places her head on top of Pioneer¡¯s. As they hold the hug, Carol¡¯s warm presence seeps into Pioneer¡¯s mind, it covers and dilutes, obscures those events from his mind. Carol¡¯s sincere care pushes the vile memories deep, chaining that day down in imaginary restraints. Like a rabid animal, tired from its rampage, its time was coming to an end. A dangerous predator pacified, secured back to its place, so that once more it could be viewed from afar safely. ¡°Did I manage to overcome her?¡± Carol¡¯s comforting hand brushes down his back again and again, as she asks. The close proximity of Carol brings in a medical scent from her clothes, which mixes in with her perfume and her familiar natural fragrance. This last consoling component is just what he needed to finish the banishment ritual inside his mind. ¡°Yes. She¡¯s gone again.¡± ¡°I¡¯m so glad.¡± Carol lets go of Pioneer, looks straight into his eyes, and ruffles his hair, ruining the strictly tailored look a little. She then swipes the sunglasses hanging on his suit¡¯s neckline and gently pushes them on his face. ¡°Now, won¡¯t you go rest, and leave these three harlots to me.¡± Carol¡¯s eyes narrow and she winks. Then she grabs the doorknob of Stacy¡¯s room hard and pulls it open. A mere second later, she¡¯s already inside and closes the door with a swoosh of air, but not with a slam. Pioneer looks back briefly and then breathes deep. He adjusts his suit¡¯s cuffs and his overall appearance, and takes Carol¡¯s advice, dragging his feet down along the long corridor of colored directions. This time there will be justice, if not for me, then for you, Frank. And I know now¡­ I can¡¯t keep on going like this. Things will have to change¡­ otherwise, there will be another Fanny and Bridget, another Stacy¡­ Another¡­ Pioneer stops his thoughts there, getting the beast of nightmares back into the cage was much harder than accidentally letting it out again. In time, he could¡ªhe will¡ªovercome it, he knew that much, but the appointed time for it, wasn¡¯t right now.
The first sun has climbed to the sky far enough to make room for the second sun. The reassuring glow warms our weary duo who had fallen asleep on the hilly meadow, among the bed of flowers. A pair of whiskers tickle Frank¡¯s face, and he wakes up. ¡°Ah, Pineapple. How are you doing?¡± He sits up, and Pineapple steps in a circular motion on his lap, around and around, before settling down to sleep on it in a curl. ¡°But I was just going to get up¡­ Oh well.¡± Frank pets its soft and slightly coarse yellow-shaded fur. He looks to her left, to see Amethyst sleeping soundly, small bits of grass, twigs, and leaves fallen and whisked around on her armor. Her face has a soft smile, and her skin is shiny and beautiful in the sunshine. She looks much better than before, one could even say: renewed. I knew this would help you too. ¡°Nngh¡­¡± Suddenly, Frank hears a sound from his right and discovers Friday sitting up on the grass next to him, a groggy, pained look on her face. ¡°O-oh. Hi, Friday?¡± ¡°Oh!¡± She flinches a little and waves her arms panicked. ¡°D-don¡¯t misunderstand, it¡¯s just, I waited but you both looked so relaxed, so I couldn¡¯t help myself- I¡­ I just meant to close my eyes for a moment, I didn¡¯t mean to-¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t plan on napping either, ¡°Frank grins. ¡°But, it¡¯s impossible to resist the rhythm of nature lulling you to sleep.¡± Friday seems to be taken aback by his response for a second, but then she smiles carefully. If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°I just wanted to say¡­ I¡¯m sorry Frank, for being so harsh and blaming it all on you. It wasn¡¯t¡­ fair of me to do so.¡± She taps her index fingers together and looks away for a second, ¡°It was... real immature of me...¡± ¡°Ah¡­ I- thank you.¡± Frank looks away and pets Pineapple with both hands. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, it¡¯s fine.¡± ¡°No, I was selfish, thinking I was the only one hurting... I don''t deserve your forgiveness so easily... but I''ll accept it gladly...¡± Friday trails off, the faint wind blows her hair around as she looks at Frank and seems to be deliberating something. Finally, she asks gingerly: ¡°Can I¡­ pet him too?¡± ¡°Of course, I¡¯m sure Pineapple won¡¯t mind.¡± Frank gives her hand room, and she pets the Solarophone¡¯s soft, large, cone and continues down onto his back. Frank looks at Friday, and she beams wide, with tears shining in her eyes. He quickly looks away and opts to just share this quiet moment, this truce of cat petting with her. Pineapple¡¯s engine sputters into full gear and roars mightily, purring over the sounds of nature and everything else easily. ¡°Good Morning, Frank. And Friday?¡± Amethyst is sitting up and blinks her hybrid eyes. ¡°Oh, and Pineapple too.¡± She smiles. ¡°Morning, Amethyst.¡± Frank and Friday answer like from one mouth, they look at each other and laugh. Amethyst looks a little miffed for a moment but laughs her unique laugh with them too. They all sit around for a moment more, the double suns gradually making their way across the sky, the growing heat pushing out sweat from their brows as midday inches ever closer. ¡°R-right, anyway¡­¡± Friday retreats her hand from the silken fur and stands up, starting to stretch in large motions. ¡°I should get going. I have a feeling Pioneer will soon come to the clinic to tell you the date for your Court appointment. And¡­ I¡¯m technically still on the clock, so I gotta get back to work.¡± ¡°Oh, right. It was nice to speak to you for a moment.¡± ¡°Yeah, likewise, I¡¯m glad we had this talk,¡± Friday smirks at Frank. Amethyst looks between the two of them confused and then Frank turns to her. ¡°Shall we get packing? If ISSA''s hastiness to come to your planet is of any indication, I have a feeling, we better be ready to set off soon.¡± ¡°Right. Set off¡­ to Metropolis? What is your home planet like?¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Frank stands up with a struggle as he holds Pineapple in his lap while doing so. ¡°Well, it¡¯s the biggest hub planet and most populated in the Galaxy too. It has great cities, smaller towns and villages, and also quite a bit of nature too.¡± ¡°Really? Cities, towns, and nature?¡± I wonder¡­ what will they look like? What does¡­ civilization look like? Amethyst looks around at the purple trees, their stark Crimson trunks and the red grass with lots of different kinds of flowers sprouting out of it. Then off to the distance, to the jagged ex-facility of Intergalactic Resources that was visible in the distance, with the quarry in between them. ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s a great place, all in all¡­¡± Frank trails off. ¡°Then, why did you leave, to be at¡­ Viridian Macula, was it?¡± ¡°I¡­ I¡¯ll tell you the whole story some time, but let¡¯s hurry on down, I¡¯ve got my¡­ uh, whole backpack to¡­ pack and, and- I have to change out of Grent¡¯s tuxedo, finally, too!¡± ¡°Alright, alright. Do you think¡­ Grent will come with us?¡±
¡°Why would I come with you exactly? I don¡¯t have anything to do with that business of yours, now do I?¡± Grent crosses his arms in a huff, the long labcoat''s hem moves with the sharp motion. ¡°Amethyst just asked, you don¡¯t have to be rude¡­¡± Frank says crossing his arms too, the straps of the backpack run over his shoulders, filled to the brim with his clean clothes and the laser rifle as well jutting out of it. ¡°Well, I apologize if it came out that way, it was just that ridiculous of a question. Me and Pineapple will stay here, after all, we¡¯ve got to keep Amande company.¡± Pineapple jumps onto the operation¡¯s table, with Amandebot lying on it once more, he sits in between her legs. Grent pets the cat¡¯s head. ¡°Isn¡¯t that right Pineapple?¡± ¡°Huh? Really?¡± Frank asks, quite surprised. Pineapple enjoys the head rubs Grent offers and doesn¡¯t seem to protest against this idea. ¡°Well, see you later, Pineapple.¡± Amethyst smiles. ¡°Take care and keep watch on Grent, okay?¡± ¡°Hmph.¡± ¡°Alright, then. Keep in touch if something comes up.¡± Frank waves at Grent with his communicator. ¡°Since I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve got my gweb-mail address and probably my number too already.¡± ¡°W-what makes you say that?¡± He shrugs feigning ignorance before shortly raising a hand like he got an idea. ¡°Ah, that must have been the elusive Tango King, I¡¯m sure he did whatever you¡¯re referring to. He must have wanted to make sure his debut song was actually played this time. Like the handsome and kindhearted rapscallion, he is.¡± Frank and Amethyst look at each other with vicarious embarrassment. What?!¡± Grent exclaims with an annoyed pucker on his face. Frank turns around to leave and waves over his shoulder. ¡°See you around, I guess.¡± ¡°Goodbye, Grent. Be good, now.¡± Amethyst¡¯s slightly condescending, motherly tone doesn¡¯t alleviate Grent¡¯s expression. As they leave him behind, he looks to Pineapple, gives him a big, ecstatic smile, and picks the cat up carefully. ¡°Shall we get to work? There¡¯s much to do, but I truly believe, this time it¡¯ll be a success.¡±
Fanny and Bridget are escorted towards an open ship¡¯s hatch, they both walk in willingly and without restraints between two guard-like personnel. However, Stacy comes in after them, whose hands are cuffed behind her with wide and thick metallic restraints, though there is no chain in between them, as the rugged cuffs are held tightly together with plasma-infused magnets. Moreover, she is being held from both arms by a person on each side, who pull her along the ground, for she refuses to walk, her high heels leaving white trails on the asphalt. ¡°Let me go! Keep your dirty hands off me! Rrgh! Now this- this is assault! Pioneer, where are you?! Are you seeing this?!¡± Her head spins around from side to side like an indecisive dreidel. ¡°You brutes, ISSA idiots! You are abducting a government official! Stop this! Pioneeeeer!¡± In the background, below the shade of one of their convoy''s spaceships, Pioneer and Carol stand and watch the proceedings. Finally, as their prisoners are escorted in, the ship¡¯s doors close, and it fires off its thrusters, blasting off into orbit. Pioneer¡ªDave¡ªasks as he looks up to the sky. ¡°Carol¡­ will you follow me, even if Pioneer¡¯s show ends?¡± Somehow, Carol seems unsurprised by the nature of this question. ¡°Follow you, huh? Are you sure that¡¯s what you want?¡± ¡°What do you mean¡­?¡± ¡°Sorry, I mean¡­ wouldn''t you rather we walk that path side by side.¡± Her fingers interlock with Pioneer¡¯s and she holds his hand. Their eyes meet, with surprise on Pioneer¡¯s face. ¡°You¡¯re right. If this doesn¡¯t pan out¡­ if I can¡¯t get the upper management to make changes¡­ We can both be the stars of our next¡ªown¡ªshow.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not exactly what I meant, but I¡¯m willing to give that a try, too.¡± Carol glances to the side, as if suddenly seeing some movement, and spots a pair of shoes behind the lowered slanted walkway of the spaceship they stood next to. ¡°What do you say, Friday? You want to try being a head nurse for a change?¡± Friday steps out from behind the large metal slope, looking bamboozled. ¡°Huh¡­? How¡¯d you know I was eaves- I mean, passing by just now?¡± ¡°The older a woman gets, the sharper her senses become.¡± She holds a hand to her mouth and hides a small laugh. ¡°I don¡¯t get it¡­¡± Friday walks up to them and suddenly spouts out upset: ¡°What¡¯s this talk about calling it quits, though!?¡± ¡°Nobody¡¯s quitting anything just yet. But if it comes to it¡­ we¡¯ll hire you back too if you¡¯d like.¡± Dave says. ¡°Really¡­?¡± Friday pats her clothes and sweeps them proud. ¡°Well, I suppose¡­ I could give being the head nurse a try¡­ after all, aren¡¯t I a doctor now?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s maybe not go that far.¡± Carol grabs Friday from around her shoulders and pulls her into her embrace. ¡°H-hey!¡± ¡°No matter what the future may bring, I¡¯m sure it¡¯ll be a good one, as long as we all do our best.¡± Carol gestures for Dave to join the hug. ¡°As long as we¡¯re all together.¡± With an amused smile, he shrugs and hugs them both. As long as I can continue to showcase, to introduce the cultures of the Galaxy to a wide audience... One day, mother... The Sinel will be next, I will clear their name. If I can¡¯t do that with the ISSA¡­ then I don¡¯t need them anymore. Carol hugs them both tight and pats their backs. As long as I can help Dave, to still continue to help sapient species even after it all¡­ The stars will still accept me, even if Metropolis does not. And Friday, I will guide you to the future you desire, the one I couldn¡¯t reach myself. Friday is sandwiched between the two larger people and gets a face full of both, but just sighs calmly. As long as I can get job experience, to become a real- fully fledged doctor. Or¡­ a nurse. I will never have to again see another person die in front of me who could have been saved. Luna¡­ Antai¡­ watch over me, help me in my journey. Carol and Pioneer, thank you for everything; for giving me this opportunity. ¡°Now come on, let¡¯s get going. The future awaits us.¡± Friday says, smiling radiantly, much brighter, than either of them were used to seeing her smile. Carol and Pioneer look at Friday, or¡­ they look past her? ¡°Aren¡¯t you forgetting something?¡± Frank asks with Amethyst by his side, they look nonchalant like they hadn¡¯t been watching and waiting on them the whole time. Pioneer clears his throat and breaks up the hug. ¡°Ahem, r-right. I was still going to come find you in a moment, rest assured.¡± ¡°If you say so¡­¡± Amethyst¡¯s eyebrows rise and she looks a bit frustrated. ¡°We waited for you a bunch at the Clinic, but decided it best to come here sooner than later¡­¡± ¡°Oops¡­¡± Friday scratches the back of her head. ¡°My bad, looks like my hunch wasn¡¯t up to date on the situation¡­¡± ¡°Anyway¡­¡± Pioneer takes over. ¡°ISSA has let me know that the Trial for the Sapience of Tyrchids and evaluating their suitability to join the United Galaxy is to be held in two days¡¯ time. I¡¯ll email the specifics to you later, Frank.¡± ¡°What? It¡¯s in two days?¡± ¡°I thought it would have been sooner too, but recent events have¡­ given them more to weigh, I¡¯d imagine.¡± Pioneer estimates. ¡°That¡¯s¡­ to be expected, I suppose,¡± Frank says and thinks. Amethyst looks at Frank¡¯s packed backpack and then at him. ¡°But we¡¯re already ready to go¡­ Can¡¯t we go there early? You can show me your home, I¡¯d love to see just what kind of a place Metropolis is.¡± ¡°Well¡­ we already said our goodbyes and everything, so why not?¡± Frank shrugs. ¡°I¡¯m sure we¡¯ll find something to do to pass the time, it¡¯s a big city after all.¡± ¡°No harm done then.¡± Pioneer grins and nods. ¡°Best of luck to the both of you.¡± ¡°Take care,¡± Carol holds her rather large blond braid, which cascades down her chest. She closes her eyes, ¡°Ah, goodbyes are always so touching...¡± Friday looks to the ground, her other hand clinging to her right arm. She lifts her gaze, to meet them both. ¡°I know you¡¯ll do great, I¡¯m rooting for your success.¡± ¡°Thanks, and all the best to you, too,¡± Frank says to all of them. ¡°I hope we can meet again one day,¡± Amethyst says. ¡°Who knows, the Galaxy is big, but in all its vastness, it sometimes feels surprisingly small.¡± Pioneer winks and puts on his sunglasses. Amethyst and Frank exchange waves with them, as they head for their own ¡®borrowed¡¯ ship. As they are about to reach the Intergalactic¡¯s unwieldy and rather box-like ship, Frank falls behind in their stride and stops. Amethyst turns back and looks at him. ¡°Is something wrong?¡± His long blond bangs cover up his eyes, as his head is downcast. ¡°Should I¡­ really come with you?¡± ¡°O-of course! Why not?¡± His voice is dejected, downright hard to listen to. ¡°This might seem silly¡­ like, we¡¯re already at the very edge of flying off, but it¡¯s not too late yet. You can still tell me not to come. To go on my way, to-¡± ¡°F-Frank! What are you saying?¡± ¡°I¡­! I just want to be sure, you¡­ want me¡­ to come with you.¡± ¡°Oh, Frank. Of course I do, I didn¡¯t think there would be any doubt left. I thought we were good, even after everything that happened recently.¡± ¡°But Luna is dead because of me!¡± Frank lifts his gaze, and moisture shines at the edges of his eyes. ¡°I killed your friend! How can you still trust me? S-she might have been bad, but still! This isn¡¯t how it¡¯s supposed to-¡± Amethyst takes a few large steps and reaches Frank in seconds, she immediately hugs him. ¡°You¡­ had no choice. I cannot blame you for it. And it¡¯s like you said before... Trust is a risk. I took that risk with Luna, and it might sound strange, but I don¡¯t regret it. Although I didn¡¯t wish it to go like this either¡­ But, Luna made her choice, and you made yours; did what you felt was right, what was necessary.¡± ¡°Amethyst¡­¡± ¡°And now I¡¯m making my choice as well. I¡¯m willing to trust you with all my heart.¡± Amethyst squeezes Frank tighter against her hard armor. ¡°I don¡¯t see trusting you as a risk. I know, it¡¯s a guarantee that you will always have my back, just as I will have yours.¡± ¡°Amethyst¡­ thank you.¡± Frank hugs her back and sobs against her coarse shoulder. ¡°You don¡¯t know how much it¡¯s been eating me inside¡­ This¡­ righteous guilt, feels no lighter than the unadulterated kind. How can you so easily forgive my¡­ heinous acts?¡± I didn¡¯t fully understand it at the time, but this must have been what Friday was referring to earlier when I just forgave her on the spot... I hope she doesn''t beat herself up over it too much, like I did... ¡°Hmm¡­ I think I know a bit of your pain at least, so I understand. And as for the second question, it¡¯s as Pioneer said, we were both victims here, we did our best. It may not always be enough, but it¡¯ll have to do. It''s sad and regretful, but I will never hold Luna¡¯s fate against you.¡± Frank chuckles sorrowfully, still teary-eyed. ¡°Amethyst, when did you become so wise?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± She says with a tinge of offense in her voice. ¡°Oh, I mean, you¡¯ve got such a way with words now-¡± Amethyst laughs loudly, ¡°I¡¯m just kidding. I know what you mean. I think it¡¯s because of you, because of Luna, and everyone we¡¯ve met. I¡¯ve learned a lot-¡± Amethyst looks to the sky, and then deep into Frank¡¯s eyes. ¡°-because of all our experiences, together.¡± ¡°Oh, Amethyst¡­¡± Frank wipes his eyes to his palm. Amethyst and Frank separate, and she offers her hand, or mainly her wrist, to Frank. ¡°Shall we get going then?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Frank takes her armored wrist, and they walk hand in hand to the ship, and board it together. Soon enough, their spaceship sets off into space. They had arrived here together, a lost human and one barely even a person. And now, they were leaving, still together, but with a much stronger bond. Much had happened during their ultimately brief stay: taking back the planet from IR, facing hardships; losing kin and old friends, and in turn gaining new allies, knowledge, and¡­ each other. But there are still things that need to be done; people and non-people to meet, secrets to be uncovered, and information to be gleaned. So much had already happened on Midnight Iris, in Amethyst¡¯s home. But just what would go down on Metropolis, in Frank¡¯s birthplace?
¡°Well, we should get going as well...¡± Friday looks to the sky, shading her eyes with her hand as a visor, looking after the departing ship of Amethyst and Frank. Shoes clop against the asphalt and a white-haired woman runs to Pioneer, Carol, and Friday. She gasps for air exhausted and takes support from her knees. ¡°Oh, Lyra? Where have you been?¡± Carol asks. ¡°Well, first at the party of course, and-! Well, that¡¯s- that¡¯s not important¡­ Did- Did I miss them?¡± ¡°Yeah¡­¡± ¡°Oh...¡± Her head slumps down, and her shoulders fall. ¡°Well¡­ it¡¯s no big deal¡­¡± ¡°Sorry, I completely forgot to let you know they were leaving.¡± Carol apologizes courtly with regret painted on her face. ¡°I-it¡¯s fine¡­¡± Lyra brushes herself off, even though her clothes are pristine, and straightens her back. ¡°Alright¡­ where to next then, Pioneer?¡± ¡°About that¡­¡± Lyra looks at the three of them, Pioneer looks awkward, and Carol squirms, the tinge of guilt of forgetting to tell her of any of this stinging. Friday smiles sheepishly. ¡°What about it¡­? You¡¯re all acting suspicious...¡± ¡°You haven¡¯t told her? Oh, great, so I wasn¡¯t the only one being kept in the dark.¡± Friday gasps from relief. ¡°Well, I haven¡¯t had the time, and to be fair I just recently made up my mind. And so much has happened, we haven¡¯t really had time to bring anyone not directly involved up to speed, about much of anything. so please understand, Lyra.¡± Pioneer explains. Lyra¡¯s face contorts and her brow furrows. ¡°Huh? Just what did I miss!?¡± ¡°Well, it all began after we went into the forest, you won¡¯t believe all the events that came to pass, Lyra!¡± Friday¡¯s enthusiasm soon turns melancholic: ¡°It was all so terrible¡­¡± She then looks up to the bright sky, the double suns lighting up the day, the spaceship in the distance just a faint black dot. She brings a hand to her chest, squeezes it into a fist, and brings down her head. A single persistent tear forces its way through her eyelid. ¡°And at the same time, somehow, it was so beautiful¡­¡± 39. City of the future After a few stops to refuel their spaceship, Amethyst and Frank¡¯s third warp takes them to the orbit of Metropolis. The intense red-shaded Crimson Sun, the system''s red giant, is far behind the planet but still looks truly massive. As they fly closer to the planet, they are cast into night, the planet blocking out the sun. Some amount of light can be seen at the edges of the planet, and to where the Sun¡¯s light touches, viridian landmasses, and azure oceans can be seen merging and meshing together. A faint shade of green is reflected on the atmosphere''s edges, at spots where it meets the light at the right angle. ¡°Here we are; the Metropolitan Sanctuary of Life.¡± ¡°Is that its full name?¡± Amethyst asks. ¡°Yeah, though everyone just calls it Metropolis; both the city and the planet.¡± Frank thinks for a second. ¡°However, I don¡¯t think it has always been named this way¡­ well, anyway.¡± He takes out his communicator, and briefly checks it. ¡°Let¡¯s hope the customs procedures don''t take long, our hotel check is going to close in¡­ an hour. It¡¯s two in the night at Metropolis at the moment.¡± ¡°I wonder what a real hotel looks like¡­¡± Their spaceship is on fast approach to the planet, and soon enough, their radio comes to life: ¡°This is the flight control for Metropolitan Sanctuary of Life. You are on approach with the Capital, please state the purpose of your visit; unscheduled vessel registered to Intergalactic.¡± ¡°This is Frank Sinett, I¡¯m a citizen of Metropolis.¡± He takes out his Metropolis ID card and inserts it into a slot on the spaceship''s dashboard. ¡°There are a total of two lifeforms on board, me and Amethyst, she is the representative of the Tyrchids, and is here to attend the court hearing of ISSA.¡± ¡°Very good. Make sure to present her ISSA-granted temporary ID at the customs gate.¡± ¡°We will, thanks for the reminder.¡± ¡°Stand by for a scan.¡± The female voice pauses for a moment. ¡°All looks to be in order. However, please do note only authorized personnel are allowed to carry firearms on our planet, so please leave it on board.¡± ¡°Yes, of course.¡± ¡°One last question, why are you on a ship registered to Intergalactic? Your ID does not have an active work contract with them.¡± Frank had hoped the flight control person had forgotten about it. He looks at Amethyst and then thinks back to the last time he dealt with the Intergalactic Wildlife Ventures. He closes his eyes for a moment, shakes his head, and instead, tells the truth: ¡°We have loaned this ship from Intergalactic, and I used to work for them. That is why we have this ship.¡± Or, well, he tells facts adjacent to the truth. ¡°Our records do show that your contract with them ended recently and I cannot verify your other claims. However, since this ship¡¯s signature is not reported as stolen, you are free to land. I would suggest getting in touch with Intergalactic soon to transfer the ship''s ownership to yourself to avoid the same issue in the future. In any case, welcome back home Frank, and welcome to Metropolis, Amethyst.¡± ¡°Thank you!¡± Amethyst answers, but the broadcast is already over. Then she looks over to Frank with a quizzical look, which he tries to ignore, knowing exactly what Amethyst is going to say. ¡°So, is that how loaning works? They didn¡¯t seem very happy when we escaped Viridian Macula with this ship.¡± ¡°I mean¡­ if Intergalactic asks the ship back, I¡¯ll give it to them, but¡­ nobody¡¯s even reported it stolen.¡± Frank shrugs. ¡°While that might have something to do with the relations between Galactic Police and Intergalactic being not good in the slightest... it¡¯s not my fault they don¡¯t look after their property.¡± Amethyst narrows her eyes, and her thin eyebrows rise, but then she nods ¡°I see.¡± Frank accelerates and brings them into the atmosphere, the ship rattles and shakes, flames lick the windshield and the ship¡¯s cooling system starts to race in loudness against the ship¡¯s complaining. They break through the clouds and the ship slows down considerably, outside of the windshield opens the visage of a great night-time megapolis. A city with large skyscrapers, whose tops are all marked with perpetually blinking lights, to avoid accidents with low-altitude aircrafts. ¡°Alright, we¡¯re a bit off the mark, the hotel is to the East of the city, and we arrived on the West side.¡± Frank starts flying the ship to the other side of the city, bright lights at the street level illuminate some of the city, there appears to only be slight foot traffic. Some large advertisement billboards, at the side of shops, but not on any residential houses. A few hovercars speed along the road, but then the terrain changes completely. ¡°Where are we now, Frank?¡± ¡°This is the city center.¡± ¡°Wow¡­¡± Amethyst cranes her neck, to see outside the window, there¡¯s a great forest below them. ¡°And, check this out,¡± Frank says and slows down a little, as they pass over the very middle of the city. With Amethyst¡¯s great vision, it is no feat at all to get a good look at the plaza. A great big fountain is illuminated with faintly red light, with some blue and angelic white mixed in. In the middle of it, these lights illuminate a giant female figure with a shapely body with a large flowing dress. This statue is carved of white stone, but her hair looks like it¡¯s on fire. So skillfully it is colored or perhaps lit up to look like that, like it burned and flowed endlessly. She has giant long wings that extend to the sides, the wingspan looking disproportionate to the size of the body. Her hands are extended upwards, which hold the second colored part of the statue, the red giant sun of Metropolis. Water pours down from her eyes in large streams, that emanate mist, causing sparkling rainbow colors with the lighting. And from the sun she holds, water shoots out of in four distinct curved streams, they go over her and land in four specific directions. ¡°The Red Goddess¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, I guess it wasn¡¯t too hard to guess.¡± ¡°All these forests¡­¡± Amethyst looks astonished. ¡°Is this what all cities are like?¡± ¡°Some other places have tried to emulate the Metropolis¡¯ unique architecture and presence of nature, but not all. Most are what we call, asphalt peaks, or what our ancestors often referred to these cities in some old texts as concrete jungles.¡± ¡°I see¡­ That¡¯s a shame.¡± As far as anyone remembers, Metropolis¡¯ city center has always had this peculiar shape. A circular plaza of the Goddess, called The Mercy, is surrounded by two more circular paths, the gaps between them both completely overrun with well-maintained woodlands. These stone-laid paths in between are called Blood and Sacrifice and lend their names to the forest areas as well. They surround the Goddess Plaza granting easier access to it, and divide the forest patches into eight parts, all connected to each other by Purity and Innocence. Then, two long forested lines run through the whole city, stretching even outside of its borders, bringing nature with them. These two long lines meet up at the Goddess Plaza. The North to South line is called Purity, and East to West, Innocence, both also have rivers flowing along them, which lend their water to the statue¡¯s fountain. Due to how the city center is done, its districts are divided into four halves by Purity and Innocence, and are named as follows: from Northeast to Northwest: Compassion, Courage, Passion, and Integrity. At night, Blood and Sacrifice are lit up with historical electric lanterns that pepper the paths, and the very edges of these five kilometers-wide strips of forest, the lights illuminate them with a dimmer and softer tone, to not disturb the flora or fauna too much. From the middle of Sacrifice, at all four sides, extends a bridge which is a real feat of engineering and design, that goes over Blood, and reaches all the way to the Goddess Plaza. (not pictured in the map). These bridges are the only way to reach it, as The Mercy itself is elevated quite high above the ground. Along with its bridges, they form a shape akin to a framework of a dome above the center of the city. The city center is left behind, and Frank flies them along the Innocence forest line to the East, slightly veering South. He explains the city''s geography and naming conventions to Amethyst as he does. ¡°Most of the city¡¯s structure is dictated by the names of the districts too, therefore, ISSA¡¯s facilities are located in the Compassion side of the city. However, I could only get us a hotel just below the Innocence, on the Courage side due to our sudden departure. But, there¡¯s a landing pad near it we can take, and from it, it won¡¯t be much of a walk.¡± ¡°Are these names common for¡­ parts of a city? What¡¯s the story behind them?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ It¡¯s always been that way, but I suppose it has something to do with the Red Goddess. Her massive statue is at the very center after all.¡± They fly to the large facility, shaped like a large cylinder, of gray stone-like material with finishes of pale violet and maroon-red stripes, colors that are usual for Courage side buildings. Though, it¡¯s clearly designed with function over form, which could hardly be said about the rest of the city. ¡®Metropolis Docking Services¡¯ is plastered along its curved walls in large yellow letters that rise out of the wall lighting up the surrounding area. ¡°Anyway, we¡¯re here.¡± Frank picks out one of the many circles on the roof, the one that matches closest to their spaceship''s size, and starts landing. The landing area is highlighted with an ¡®SL¡¯ painted on it and lamps that rhythmically light up along its edges. Frank lands the ship and remains sitting on the pilot chair. As Amethyst is about to ask why they aren¡¯t getting off the ship, they are pulled into motion again, but this time downward. ¡°Didn¡¯t we just land?¡± Amethyst asks and looks as the sky begins retreating, and they sink inside the building. ¡°The landing pad takes us inside the facility, taking us to a free parking space.¡± These public parking halls were the usual Metropolis way, but some citizens and authorities had their own private spaceship park spaces elsewhere or permission to land and take off from other facilities, such as their houses. Finally, as they come to a stop, lights flash on in the gray halls, showing many other circles of similar size, spaceships parked in an orderly fashion. Frank gets off the pilot seat, untethers Amethyst, and before taking his luggage, leaves the laser rifle in the ship. You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. They get out and head with echoing steps towards the designated exit to the customs, and after a rather large, like a cargo elevator, ride down, they arrive at the bottom floor. This place looks much more welcoming, and almost like the lobby of a hotel itself, a very spacious and lavish hotel at that. Though, the illusion is broken a little by the security scanners up ahead, and the walls of gray concrete that were only at times brightly painted. They go through some security scanners and then arrive at the front desk. There are two receptions, one for frequent travelers, and the other for everyone else. There are a few humans around, and some Sapients too, but it is quite peaceful in these late hours, neither lane was crowded. Amethyst and Frank wait in line for the customer before them to finish, and soon, it''s their turn on the normal line. ¡°Welcome to Metropolis, may I see your IDs, please?¡± A courteous customer service person greets them. She appears to be a very beautiful human woman, with unusually long pointed ears, and mildly sparkling skin. ¡°Of course, Frank hands her his own ID card, and Amethyst notes how it has a picture of a younger Frank on it, with a bit shorter hair, and a positive smile and shine in his eyes. ¡°Just give me a moment as I complete the registration.¡± The receptionist lady is in a white office uniform, with a rather tall collar, and on her neck, there is something faintly glowing. A red mark, almost like a burn mark, or a brand. No... it¡¯s a rune. Frank realizes now, that she¡¯s actually half-human, half-Garanea, he spots some more red runes on her wrists, just about visible as she moves around using the computer and a few devices around it. The Garanea, on their own planet long ago, were two separate races initially. But after a war that nearly ended them both, two individuals brokered peace. Individuals called Lady Metonea, representing the race that was exceptionally tall with shining skin and long ears, and Sir Garantan, a prime individual of the short, stout, and spirited race, with runes all over their skin. Amidst the conflict, the two of them fell in love, showing all of their peers that co-existence and peace were possible. But it wasn¡¯t until their child was born, who exhibited features from both parents, that peace was truly assured. Ever since they joined the United Galaxy of their own accord, the child¡¯s name that united them: Garanea, has been synonymous with their multi-race appearance. They only go by this name, as not a single individual has revealed the name of either of the old races. It is a matter they do not wish to remind themselves of, as there no longer exists even a single pure-blooded Garanea of either ancestor race, a fact that they did not seem to mourn in the slightest. ¡°Sorry for the wait, welcome back home,¡± The receptionist reads the ID, and her long ears twitch, ¡°Frank Sinett, it¡¯s been quite a while since your last visit.¡± ¡°Just coming back from a long working trip, one could say.¡± ¡°My apologies, I didn¡¯t mean to pry, you are of course free to come and go as you wish, your Metropolis citizenship will always ensure you are welcome back.¡± Her voice is like a wind chime, as she nods her head in apology. The lady then gives Frank a palm-sized round chip, on it, is a dim digital display reading: CRG, MDS #15, Floor 7, Spot 775. ¡°And here¡¯s your spaceship token, it¡¯ll remind you which of our facilities you left your ship at, and which platform. Please, don¡¯t lose it as you¡¯ll need it when retrieving your vessel. We will bill you once you come to fetch it, your ship functioning as collateral until you return.¡± The half-Garanean smiles warmly and enchantingly, ¡°I believe that concludes matters with you, Sinett, but what about your companion?¡± ¡°Here you are.¡± Frank hands his communicator to the receptionist; open on it is the gweb-mail attachment that has a certificate and a code to scan, for granting Amethyst a temporary ID card. ¡°Ah, I think I¡¯ve heard of you, the sensations of Galactic TV.¡± She hands the communicator back to Frank and waits a moment until a new card is printed. ¡°Here you go, Amethyst, the envoy of the Tyrchids.¡± The receptionist hands the card toward Amethyst, she raises her arms in confusion, greeting her with sharp blades. Frank takes the card in her stead. ¡°My apologies¡­ I haven¡¯t watched any of the episodes, so I didn¡¯t realize¡­¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± Amethyst smiles. ¡°Just hold onto it for me, Frank.¡± ¡°I will.¡± ¡°Anyway, that ID grants only a temporary half-citizenship, as is customary with those coming here for the first time, while they are not approved yet by ISSA or other authorities deeming them suitable to be a part of our United Galaxy. Would you like me to go over what exactly Half-Citizenship entails?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s fine, we¡¯re in a bit of a hurry to our hotel. I¡¯ll explain it when it comes up.¡± Frank answers. ¡°Oh, one more thing. I¡¯m not sure if this was a thing last time you visited, but do you know what DS-IDs are?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ I¡­ I think I may have heard of them but...¡± ¡°Then please allow me to explain. These are extra identification that comes into play, should you¡­ succumb to Dust Sentence. There¡¯s just been an outbreak recently, so we are handing them out for free to everyone. While taking your ID with you when leaving your residence is not always necessary, it is mandatory to wear your DS-IDs at all times. This is to ensure that you can be easily identified should the worst come to pass, saving the resources of the Galactic Police and the Hospitals greatly.¡± ¡°Dust Sentence¡­?¡± Amethyst remembers that she¡¯s heard this name somewhere before. ¡°Yes, Ambassador. Dust Sentence is a strange disease that has plagued us for about a decade. It always resurfaces eventually, even when we might think we are rid of it. There is no known vaccine, treatment, or preventative measures one can take, other than carrying their DS-ID. As Dust Sentence¡¯s ways of spreading aren¡¯t well known, and its mortality rate is 100%, it is especially hard to study. There is no way to know that you are infected until it is too late. Until your body burns and decomposes in mere seconds, turning into a pile of dust.¡± ¡°Oh, right. I left Metropolis just before the first outbreak of it happened.¡± Frank says. ¡°But wasn¡¯t there something about it¡­ I think that women over the age of 40 were more susceptible to it, right?¡± ¡°Amethyst!¡± ¡°What? Don¡¯t you remember, that¡¯s what the broadcast said back in Larsenia¡¯s office!¡± ¡°Oh¡­ wait, you really remembered that?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you? You¡¯re the one who almost got us into trouble for it...¡± The receptionist laughs awkwardly. ¡°I haven¡¯t personally heard anything of that sort. However, due to how little we still know, there¡¯s always some new rumor on how to be protected from it or what makes one vulnerable to it. The other week it was that wearing a cardboard box on your head would somehow help, until a box that had clothes and a pile of dust underneath was discovered¡­¡± She clears her throat. ¡°In any case, age does weaken one¡¯s immune system, so perhaps there is some truth to that speculation.¡± ¡°I think I understand,¡± Amethyst says. ¡°How come Larsenia was so offended then?¡± ¡°Who could say?¡± The receptionist quite clearly feigns ignorance. ¡°Please, don¡¯t let this information ruin your trip to Metropolis, Mr. Frank and Miss. Amethyst. DS-ID is merely a precaution, and the recent outbreak seems to be on the decline already, so no need to worry about it.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you say there was a case just last week¡­? Frank, what day is it?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Wednesday, as of a few hours ago, I¡¯m pretty sure. Since the ISSA court appointment is on Friday.¡± ¡°Yes, that is correct. A-anyway, what kind of an accessory would you like as your DS-ID?¡± The receptionist flops down ads and leaflets of various trinkets on the counter for them to see. ¡°We¡¯ve got hats, scarfs, armbands, legbands, tiaras, rings, bracelets... and also necklaces, earrings, and further jewelry, but those will cost you if you want them to be made out of precious metals. And also microchips, that are installed onto or into your skin, are an option, but I personally wouldn¡¯t recommend those.¡± ¡°Erm¡­¡± Amethyst is taken aback by the overwhelming amount of choices. She peers down at the pictures, her eyes darting between different options as Frank flips them through. She then looks down at her body and her arms. ¡°Just a basic bracelet, please.¡± Frank puts down the advertisements, ¡°I¡¯ll take the same.¡± he looks at Amethyst and smiles. ¡°Very good.¡± She collects the paper ads and takes out two bracelets from the back table¡¯s container, they are colored and textured like wood, but appear flexible and rigid like plastic. She straightens them, and inserts the first one into a small printer-looking machine, then types something on the physical keyboard and shortly after a bracelet pops out from the machine, a metal plate embedded in it. She repeats the process for the other one and then hands them both to Frank. On the metal plates, their names are carved, they are still slightly hot to the touch. ¡°It¡¯s got your citizenship ID on the other side, and just names on the visible side. That is merely so that we know how to identify you. The plate is sealed to the bracelet, so it shouldn¡¯t be removed unless the worst comes to worst. The ID inside will mainly be used to shut down your ID card and citizenship, as those are sought-after targets by criminals, even if it is quite hard to use them for illicit activities. And don¡¯t worry, the ID inside isn¡¯t the same as your Citizenship ID, it is an encrypted string of characters that can only be decrypted via the Metropolis¡¯ Government¡¯s confidential Dust Sentence database.¡± ¡°Quite the systems you¡¯ve built up.¡± I knew Dust Sentence was bad, but I had no idea it had come to this point. ¡°Thank you, ¡°Amethyst says. ¡°Frank, how far away is our hotel?¡± Frank snaps out of his thoughts. ¡°Right, it¡¯s just a short walk away, and we¡¯ve still got half an hour to get there.¡± Frank looks behind them, there¡¯s a queue building up. ¡°Let¡¯s stop holding up the queue, and put on the bracelets once we''re out of the way.¡± ¡°Right!¡± They both thank the receptionist, say goodbye, and walk a little way away, close to the curved cement wall, Frank clips on his own bracelet. ¡°Frank¡­ Are you worried?¡± ¡°Oh¡­ is it that obvious? I suppose it¡¯s a little¡­ off-putting.¡± Frank doesn¡¯t elaborate and just adjusts the bracelet around his wrist. ¡°A lethal disease without a cure¡­ Hearing her say that, and being back home, bothers me a lot for some reason¡­¡± Am I just worried that¡­? He looks up at Amethyst, who looks concerned. Frank shakes his head. ¡°The receptionist was right, no need to worry about it. The facts won¡¯t change even if we get stuck into pondering it again and again, and let it ruin our holiday. I¡¯m sure it¡¯s the authorities'' first priority to neutralize the disease anyway.¡± But¡­ it didn¡¯t sound like there has been any progress in ten whole years¡­ ¡°Holiday¡­? Is that what this is?¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯m sure we can call it many things, but let me just put this bracelet on you, and let¡¯s hurry to the hotel.¡± Amethyst lifts her arm, and Frank clasps the bracelet onto her armored wrist. She cannot feel its presence at all, it¡¯s just about small enough to not fall onto her blade as it¡¯s a bit wider than her wrist. The metal label faces her and she reads her own name off it. Amethyst¡­ It feels strange, to see it written, to wear her name in such physical and official capacity. So, I really am¡­ I¡­ am¡­ Is that who I am¡­? What¡¯s the point of having a name? Does having one make me better, or change me in some way? ¡°Amethyst?¡± ¡°Sorry, let¡¯s go.¡± I don¡¯t get it. Why does it make me feel so good when Frank calls me that? When he says my name aloud, in all those different ways: shouting it aloud when he¡¯s worried about me, or with an audible smile and a silly grin. Or through the tears... Does he know something I don¡¯t? Why does just thinking of his name, fill me with such warmth and cause a spontaneous smile on my lips? And these memories, oh so many memories bubble up to the surface. But it¡¯s just a name¡­ ¡°Frank.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Oh¡­ nothing.¡± ¡°You¡¯re really spacing out Amethyst, are you okay?¡± ¡°Yeah. Thanks, Frank.¡± Maybe it¡¯s not so bad that I don¡¯t understand... But I¡¯ve decided, that¡¯s my name. I¡¯m not sure why, or what purpose it serves, but I am¡­ Amethyst. If this is how it makes me feel¡­ then I wish to be her. 40. The Sun-kissed hotel Amethyst and Frank step out of the Spaceship Dock building, onto the asphalted streets, into a large open-air parking lot with some hovercars parked. Mostly following the ancient car designs, they are mostly sleek and aerodynamic, but there are also a few bigger ones around, which are quite cube-shaped. They are all turned off, and thus their chassis'' touches the ground. Large black spheres or entirely empty-looking spots are in the place where wheels would have been in Earth''s vehicular designs. Depending on whether they used the same antigravity technology as hoverplates and other related hover technology or if they use the rudimentary mostly legacy thruster tech. The latter movement solution was hidden and embedded inside the cars, as it is much more unsafe and unpredictable. They walk to the left, into the nightly streets. Sphere-shaped streetlamps light the way of sparsely populated walkways and even calmer roads. On closer inspection, the lights were actually floating, four small black balls at each corner of the cone-shaped lampshade. The lights slightly bob up and down, like on calm ocean waters. It''s a residential area, with no shop signs, industry, or other flashier spots around¡ªjust the calmly swaying lights and their magical atmosphere. The two driveways are separated with symmetrical lines of trees, patches of grass, and well-cared flowerbeds, surrounded by a curb of softly chiseled stones. Beneath the trees and from the middle of the flowers is a path; allowing people to walk among the flora. This path was not lit up with the floating orbs but with sparsely placed thematic lanterns at the end of their short poles. Frank mentions how different trees were planted in different parts of the city; this street being home to proud silver birches. Many of the bigger streets had this way of separating traffic, and those that didn¡¯t, made up for it by having trees planted in their own smaller spots and scattering cup-like concrete flowerbeds around. The surrounding buildings are modern-looking blocks of flats, made out of bricks, or concrete with wooden decorations and walls covering it up. Some of them have vines and vine-like plants growing high along the walls, giving them this intriguing overrun look. All of the buildings leave enough space between each other to have a real grass yard, with furniture, swings, and additional things for outdoor activities. Once Frank has led them down a few streets¡¯ twists and turns, the forest of Innocence comes into sight at the end of the street. As they walk towards its end, their hotel opens up to the right, right at the edge of the forest itself. Frank checks the time, the reception ends at 3 am, and they¡¯re just ten minutes short of being late. This large plot of land houses a rather peculiar hotel, its appearance would have been quite out of place anywhere else, other than Metropolis. Though, even here, its location is the most important aspect, to make it fit in. ¡°Wow¡­ this looks¡­¡± Amethyst says. ¡°I couldn¡¯t find any other bookings from this side of Purity in such a short time, but I think it¡¯ll be especially to your liking, don¡¯t you think?¡± Before them, is a tall building, like a block of flats, albeit made out of entirely wood instead, thus resembling a grand manor. The many floors are clearly characterized by the round balconies, which have carefully shaped and smooth round pillars supporting a curved handrail. A small quaint roof above each one, with a small set of furniture being protected from the elements by it. Large branches of different sorts of trees have been attached to the hotel at various corners and spots, all appearing unique from each other. One has bright yellow leaves, that glow faintly even in the night, like electric eels or fireflies. Another has ghostly-pale, massive, blue leaves, which are also transparent, this one is near the ground, to the right of the entrance. ¡°Incredible¡­!¡± Amethyst eyes dart around, taking in all of the hotel. ¡°But how do the leaves remain on the branches? I don¡¯t think this house isn¡¯t alive like ours were.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, perhaps they have planted them after all, instead of using cut branches?¡± ¡°How did you find a place like this? This is perfect!¡± ¡°It was the only one that still had rooms this side of town that¡¯s still close to the Compassion¡¯s border. Compassion itself has very few hotels, and that goes for Courage too, actually. Most are on the Passion¡¯s side, but when I found this hotel, I knew I had to book it.¡± They approach the entrance, double glass doors, that are shaded by two trees that are bent together to create an arch. Based on the few leaves that have dropped to the ground around them, these ones were most definitely real trees. Amidst the green leaves, which have orange, red, and blue veins in them, is a wood-carved sign reading: ¡°Sun-kissed Canopy ¨C Nature, Serenity and Rest.¡± Some sort of vines also grow along the tree¡¯s surface, bearing strange fruit and flowers that even bloom at night, around them, moths flap and gather to the nightly bounty. They step through the automatically opening glass doors, next to which is a sign that has a red X over the face of a blue-skinned creature. The entrance hall is a large open space, with hanging grand chandeliers using bioluminescent lighting to light up the space. Vines, flowers, trees, and bushes grow along the walls and have dedicated spaces to grow all around the room. The lacquered wooden parquet floor looks positively ancient, but not diminishing in shine in the slightest. ¡°This is so... homely.¡± ¡°I feel like coming from you, that¡¯s the best possible compliment.¡± Frank grins,¡± And I agree, it is very cozy.¡± ¡°Oh, welcome to our humble hotel, the Sun-Kissed Canopy!¡± A voice calls out from the right. They see a Mun¡¯aakas¡ªa member of the sapient race of anthropomorphic bird people. On her feathered hand, she elegantly holds a watering can, and she quickly finishes watering the bush that appears to be growing some sort of blue berries and lays the pail down. ¡°This way, you must be the Sinetts, correct?¡± She points at the reception desk with a feathered arm, her red gorgeous wing extending near its full span from the gesture, its tips are colored black, with white dots along them, the coloration gradually growing redder, the closer the feathers proximity to her body. Amethyst looks at Frank with a sly smile. ¡°The Sinetts?¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s us.¡± He answers to the receptionist and then whispers to Amethyst: ¡°Reservations are always called by surname, what am I supposed to do?¡± Amethyst chuckles. ¡°Nothing. It¡¯s fine.¡± The receptionist has made it behind her decorated wooden counter and speaks to them as they are making their way through the grand hall: ¡°In case you¡¯re wondering: ''How come it¡¯s so dim inside?'' when it¡¯s supposed to be Sun-Kissed'', that¡¯s because we follow nature¡¯s rhythm here, and this is our night lighting.¡± The avian speaks courteously, her words like lyrics from a song, her voice the instruments. ¡°So, I hope you¡¯re not too disappointed, you¡¯ll get to experience plenty of light tomorrow. The plants and our reflected sunroof will make sure the bright sunshine will be with you right at the break of dawn. Of course, if you want to sleep in, that can be delayed, but it¡¯s always at the same time in the general spaces.¡± ¡°That sounds lovely. I think we''d definitely like to sleep in, so delay ours to about¡­ ten o clock maybe?¡± Frank looks at Amethyst who nods eagerly. ¡°Certainly, but let¡¯s first get the checking in out of the way and then I can tweak your room¡¯s parameters. Can I have your IDs?¡± ¡°Right.¡± Frank puts down both of their cards on the wooden counter. ¡°Thank you.¡± The receptionist¡¯s red-tinted black orb-eyes look pleased, as she swipes up the cards. In the place of a mouth, she had a black beak, like that of a seed-eating bird, and her expression never seemed to change either. Perhaps this species lacked the facial muscles to express emotion, unlike so many other Sapient species. Given, that she was only humanoid in general shape and size, it wasn''t too surprising for it to be only possible to read her tone or mood from her voice, gestures, or eyes. Red was definitely her dominant color, but below the beak was a patch of black, that made sleek stripes over her eyes too. The rest of her face was covered in red-brown feathers, that left orange spots on her cheeks. As Frank watches her work the physical keyboard with her five-fingered hands, she notices that her avian talons have been cut into short dull black stubs, probably for the better for this sort of job. ¡°This is your room key.¡± The Mun¡¯aakas puts down another card on the counter along with Frank¡¯s ID. ¡°And don¡¯t worry, you will be sharing the room like you booked, it¡¯s just that the both of you get your own keys.¡± ¡°That¡¯s great.¡± Amethyst beams, ¡°You¡¯re always so thoughtful, Frank.¡± Her smile seems a bit strange, unbecoming of her normal repertoire of expressions. How am I supposed to interpret that, Amethyst!? Frank clears his throat, ¡°There were only double rooms left, and we could always use the extra space...¡± The receptionist nods her head, twice in quick succession, with a glint in her eyes, and takes Amethyst''s ID next. The sleek tuft of feathers starting from her forehead and continuing way past her head, bob in waves, the fabulously long feathers start red, but become brown-gray at the top. A similar color gradient spreads out from her thick-looking fathered neck to the rest of her slightly plump, or perhaps just puffy body. She is completely covered in feathers, and the only piece of uniform she wears is a name tag, which is desperately trying not to drown in the short and fluffy feathers of her chest. The nametag reads:
¡°Hello! Tweet! My name is: Tilhit!¡±
As Frank is reaching out to collect his ID and the hotel keycard, suddenly, Tilhit¡¯s hand swipes them both back before Frank can collect them. She holds her feathered hand atop the cards on her side of the table, keeping them to herself. ¡°My apologies, but there seems to be a small problem with your check-in¡­¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Amethyst,¡± Tilhit suddenly addresses her via name, and Amethyst snaps to look at her, instead of gazing around at the fine surroundings. ¡°Can you confirm that your race is indeed a Tyrchid?¡± ¡°Y-yeah? That¡¯s right. Why?¡± ¡°I see. So there is no mistake then. You see¡­ the problem is that¡­ we run a whitelist of sapient races that are allowed to stay in our hotel. It largely follows the list of ¡°Suitable Sapients for the United Galaxy¡± that ISSA updates every so often.¡± ¡°Oh, don¡¯t tell me¡­¡± Frank plants a hand on his face and shakes his head. ¡°Tyrchids are not on this list, so I¡¯m afraid, I cannot proceed with the check-in.¡± ¡°Come on, can¡¯t you make an exception? Amethyst will be extra careful to not scratch any of the furniture or cut up the plants or trees.¡± Amethyst gives Frank a look, but plays along: ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m sure it¡¯ll be fine, your floor is already much better quality than in the house that Frank built himself, I¡¯m not even leaving any marks on it!¡± She says it with a hint of a smirk on her lips. ¡°So, as long as everything else is up to par too, it¡¯ll be fine.¡± You knew all along you were damaging my floor!? Tilhit serenades a short burst of spontaneous birdsong. ¡°I- w-well... I¡¯ll have to ask the boss¡­¡± She presses a button on the keyboard. ¡°Please wait just a moment.¡± She sits on the chair that had been behind her all along and rolls with it to the side. She reaches out somewhere on her side of the desk and takes out orange berries, which she quickly pops into her beak and then lifts her head up momentarily. ¡°Ahem, don¡¯t mind me, the boss should be here shortly, as he lives on the ground floor.¡± She directs their attention with her wing to the right, and immediately with this distraction, takes a handful more of the berries, downing them without hesitation. Surely enough, just seconds after, a door opens at the far left side of the lobby, and a lizardman, a Komodan, steps through. He is dressed in a striped suit of blue and black, a very formal attire, clad in it from head to toe, with sleeves for all six arms sprouting from his side. His skin is covered in small scales, colored in desaturated greens and desert browns. ¡°Ah, greetings, esteemed guests. I am Ran¡¯var, the owner of this establishment.¡± ¡°Hello!¡± ¡°Nice to meet you, I hope we didn¡¯t wake you.¡± ¡°Ah, not at all. I am often quite nocturnal, so no harm done.¡± Ran''var laughs courteously and adjusts his lime-green tie with two of her upper arms, buttons up his vest with the middle ones, while the bottom ones dust off the side of his trousers. A three-split tongue comes out of his long lizard snout periodically, as he trots dignified to Tilhit, behind the counter. ¡°Now, what seems to be the problem¡±, he looks with his reptilian eyes at each of them once and then focuses on the monitor as Tilhit shows him something while she explains. ¡°Amethyst here is a Tyrchid, and that Sapient is not included in our list. They asked special permission to stay here regardless.¡± ¡°I see. It will take just a moment for me to reach a decision. If you¡¯d like to sit down in the meantime, we have tables around the lobby.¡± His left top hand gestures around, there are long log seatings available, soft, leafy-looking sofas, and tables with more typical chairs around them. ¡°Tilhit here can fetch you some refreshments and snacks, and stop snacking herself, while I sort out this problem.¡± This comment makes Tilhit quickly drop the orange berries from her hand back to wherever she kept them. ¡°Sounds good.¡± Amethyst agrees. ¡°Right, why not.¡± As they start walking away to the nearest log chair, they can hear bickering behind the counter. ¡°How many times have I told you about this!¡± A faint sound of something dropping onto the floor is heard. ¡°How many have you had, are you drunk on the job?!¡± ¡°N-no, sir! It¡¯s just¡­ I need some to stay awake in the night shift especially, you know how it is...¡± ¡°Do I know? I didn¡¯t give permission, did somebody tell you this was okay?¡± ¡°Y-yeah, the vice manager.¡± ¡°Guh, Kan¡¯var! What am I to do with him¡­¡± Frustration and even a hint of desperation are audible in Ran''var''s voice. Amethyst and Frank arrive at the log chair and sit down, but Amethyst is too invested in the conversation to let it go. She continues eavesdropping on them with her superior hearing but doesn''t look at them. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll just have to talk with him¡­ again, about the importance of a united front and a consistent stance on things¡­¡± Ran¡¯var says. ¡°Now, won¡¯t you fetch the guests the beverages I promised and clean up these foul berries as you go.¡± ¡°Right, I¡¯m on it!¡± Amethyst hears something faintly hit the floor, over and over again, which doesn¡¯t sound like steps. ¡°No, don¡¯t eat them off the floor!¡± Ran¡¯var seethes under his breath as loudly as he dared. ¡°I wouldn''t if you hadn¡¯t spilled them¡­¡± Tilhit claps back, but not loud enough for Ran¡¯var to hear. Her steps lead away through a creaky door. ¡°So¡­¡± Frank looks up at Amethyst. ¡°Did you enjoy hearing their private conversation?¡± ¡°H-huh? I-I¡­¡± ¡°The way your antennae moved, and you just stared at the wall glassy-eyed, it was pretty obvious.¡± Frank¡¯s ¡®gotcha¡¯ smile jabs Amethysts with guilt. ¡°You know, that¡¯s at least the second time you¡¯ve done that¡­¡± Frank shrugs. ¡°Just saying... You could get in trouble for that, at least try to be more inconspicuous as you eavesdrop, if you can¡¯t help yourself.¡± Amethyst just smiles back meekly. They wait around for a short while, and soon Tilhit comes back with a wooden trolley that has a couple of plates of different snacks and three different vessels for refreshments. She also wears a white frilly apron that covers her from the neck down. Must have been quite the feat to put it on alone with all those feathers. ¡°Sorry for the wait, I¡¯m sure Ran¡¯var will be soon done, and will come back with positive news.¡± ¡°If I may ask, what is he doing exactly?¡± The Komodan behind the counter now wears a multi-lens monocle on his right eye, and peers at the computer screen closely, while slowly pressing buttons on only one of his six hands. Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.After each key press, he seems to deliberate carefully on his next move. ¡°We just need to¡­ sort out some of the technicalities of our system. Yes, don¡¯t worry about it.¡± Frank is about to question Tilhit''s uncertain tone, but Amethyst drives the conversation ahead. ¡°It¡¯s alright. I don¡¯t mind the wait.¡± ¡°I thank you for your patience.¡± Tilhit bows slightly, then presents the trolley. ¡°Now, what would you like? I have some coffee in this thermos, freshly brewed tea in the pot, and some Limetrus-Blackberry Cas-juice in the jug.¡± She also brought out three types of snacks: Brown cookies that have a green topping on top, that makes them look like leaves. Cupcakes that have flowers, trees, and leaves artistically decorated on them, with colorful wrappers. The third final snacks are thin sticks that seem to have some salt or sugar on them, that look like twisting and branching twigs. ¡°Can I have a¡­ small cake? And a few cookies, please?¡± Amethyst says. ¡°Certainly.¡± Tilhit starts assembling Amethyst¡¯s snack plate. ¡°Perhaps I should have a small glass of the juice and a few of the, uh, sticks.¡± ¡°Oh my, apologies¡­ I forgot to tell you about the snacks.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, don¡¯t sweat it,¡± Frank says. ¡°Well, the least I can do is to tell you their names, the cookies are what we call ¡°Green-leaves¡±, and the cupcakes are ¡°Sweet Vanilla Barkcakes. And the uh, sticks are just called Salted Twigs, actually.¡± ¡°But none of them are actually made with wood, right?¡± ¡°N-no, of course not! Only a few species could eat them if they were. Thus, we reserve those for our special menu.¡± ¡°Right, just checking.¡± ¡°Here is your plate, Amethyst.¡± Tilhit hands the plate to Amethyst, holding it in front of her. But instead of taking it, Amethyst opens her mouth, the mandibles coming out. She brings her head down and ravages the plate¡¯s treats into her mouth in seconds. ¡°G-gah!¡± Tilhit almost drops the plate. ¡°A-are you okay eating the Barkcake¡¯s paper liner too?!¡± Amethyst''s cheeks are full as she chops the food into smaller pieces in her mouth, and then swallows. ¡°I think so. I had no problems last time. Sorry if I um¡­ scared you, I thought you were offering.¡± ¡°R-right¡­ it¡¯s okay, I just didn¡¯t expect that.¡± ¡°The treats were pretty good though. Thanks.¡± Tilhit clears her throat. ¡°I''m glad you enjoyed them. And... well, I suppose it¡¯s fine if you¡¯ve eaten paper before¡­¡± She retreats her hand and puts down the plate, preparing Frank¡¯s dish. As Tilhit moves to serve Frank, he extends his hand to meet her halfway, to reassure her, that he is going to just take it from her normally. Tilhit understands the gesture, and her eyes shine gleefully. ¡°Here you are.¡± She hands Frank the glass of juice and a small plateful of twigs. As soon as Frank receives them, Ran¡¯var leaves the reception desk behind and makes his way to them. ¡°My friends, after thorough consideration, I have reached a decision, regarding your permission to stay in our humble hotel.¡± Ran¡¯var twists his thick beard hairs between two fingers, at least, it looked like such, as these sort of scaly barbs, akin to twigs or coral, grow out of his lavender green chin. ¡°I regret to inform you, that I may not permit you to spend the night, or any further significant amount of time in these premises.¡± ¡°R-really?¡± Amethyst blinks her eyes and Tilhit''s beak hangs open. ¡°How come?¡± Frank stands up. ¡°I¡¯ve already paid for our rooms too, and-¡± ¡°Do not worry. We will refund you in full of course, this was, in part, our fault too that such a misunderstanding could take place.¡± The end of Ran¡¯var¡¯s tail swishes up and down restlessly. ¡°Allow me to elaborate: due to the nature of our establishment, we have been given official permission from the city of Metropolis, to only serve customers who lack certain characteristics. That is to say, those who cannot for example: breathe toxins, spread plant-infecting illnesses, or in your case, create fire.¡± ¡°Are you suggesting that Amethyst would intentionally cause a fire?¡± ¡°Not at all. These rules are merely in place to protect the unique ecosystem that is our hotel, anything that could be harmful to it, no matter how in control their possessor claims to be of their powers, is not allowed to stay. No exceptions.¡± ¡°Sorry, Amethyst and Frank¡­¡± Tilhit apologizes with her head bowed, then she gestures around the lobby. ¡°As you can see, we even use minimal electricity, and have most things lit up by mechanisms that direct the sunlight, or rely on bioluminescent light, to truly drive down the chance of any fiery incidents.¡± ¡°So, I ask you to respect this decision. We shall do a better job in our gweb page¡¯s design, to make sure these important facts are made clear to even the most nearsighted of guests.¡± Ranvar¡¯s top hands adjust his shirt collar, as if his reptilian body was sweating, or uncomfortable. ¡°I truly am sorry, but our esteemed hotel survived through the Spire Disaster and has been run by my scale-line for generations, I simply cannot take such an obvious risk from an unregistered high-risk Sapient. If you must, I am more than willing to take the bad review and publicity, than risk any degree of damage to the hotel. As a business, we have the right to choose our customers, when there are pressing, real reasons to do so.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry too, but please understand. This hotel is everything to him, don¡¯t take it personally.¡± Tilhit¡¯s comment nets her a side-eyed look from Ran¡¯var as he turns around to leave. ¡°Please, see our guests out after they have indulged in the complementary snacks, will you? And, good night to the both of you.¡± ¡°But where will we stay then?¡± Amethyst asks, but Ran¡¯var has checked out from this discussion, despite still being well within earshot, even if his ears are just two small holes in the sides of his head. ¡°Perhaps some hotels still offer reception even so late in the night? But you cannot stay here, according to the final words of my boss, my wings are tied.¡± Tilhit shakes her head. ¡°Let¡¯s get out of here, Amethyst,¡± Frank says and hands the untouched plate of twigs and full glass to Tilhit. She looks upon the dishes for a moment but doesn¡¯t say anything. As they leave through the glass doors, they exchange their final farewells with Tilhit, who waves and locks up after them, by turning an antique-looking, massive key, in a keyhole next to the doors on the inside. ¡°Well¡­ what now?¡± Amethyst asks, and they proceed to aimlessly walk forward, in the fresh cooling night air. ¡°We could look for another hotel, but it¡¯s unlikely we¡¯ll find any who¡¯ll take us in so late¡­ The only reason they waited for us was due to me letting them know in advance of our late arrival.¡± ¡°Will we have to sleep another night under the stars?¡± Amethyst smirks, and gestures to the forest of Innocence behind them. ¡°Perhaps we don''t have to, we could... No, never mind.¡± ¡°What is it, Frank?¡± ¡°Ehh¡­ it¡¯s a bad idea. Don¡¯t mind me, let¡¯s figure something else out.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t just say that and not tell me what the idea was!¡± Frank sighs. ¡°Well, perhaps we could spend the night at my parents¡­¡± ¡°Huh? Do you mean at your parent¡¯s house?¡± ¡°Yeah, but also, at my parents, you know. They¡¯d be in the house too, that¡¯s kind of how it works.¡± ¡°What? I thought your parents were dead!¡± ¡°Dead!? No! They¡¯re not dead¡­ yet. They¡¯re just very sick.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ but the way you talked about them, so sad and nostalgic, you gave me the impression¡­¡± ¡°I didn''t think I was... Did I really...?¡± ¡°Yeah, how they can¡¯t cook with you anymore and you can¡¯t fish with them and the like.¡± ¡°Well, they can¡¯t, since they¡¯re sick.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ right.¡± ¡°Besides, we had a bit of a falling out¡­ when I left them behind ten years ago.¡± Frank stops and is silent for a moment. ¡°I¡¯m not actually even sure if they live still. I haven¡¯t contacted or received a message from them since I left¡­ So it could be that the news of their passing just never reached my ears.¡± ¡°Frank, don¡¯t say such awful things¡­ But¡­ I¡¯d love to meet your parents, can we please spend the night there?¡± ¡°I¡¯d rather not¡­ meet them. Maybe we can just sneak in without waking them up with my key and just leave in the morning quickly before they awake?¡± ¡°Is that a realistic plan?¡± ¡°No¡­¡± ¡°Fine, I guess we can check the place out. But if my key doesn¡¯t fit, I¡¯d rather sleep outside on the street or forest than ring their doorbell.¡± ¡°They live, or at least last lived at a small apartment at Compassion, near the biggest hospital there. So, let¡¯s just take the bridge over Innocence and then go by hoverbus, unless the routes have changed in ten years, we should still get there with the 9345 -line.¡± Amethyst looks at Frank questioningly. ¡°Okay, maybe I should double-check the route¡­¡± They turn around and walk towards the Innocence, and find the closest walkway bridge that takes them over it. ¡°Why do we have to take the bridge? Can¡¯t we just walk through the forest?¡± ¡°It¡¯ll be faster to cross this way, and we shouldn¡¯t walk in the forest at night.¡± ¡°Why is that?¡± ¡°Because we might wake up or disturb the animals there. It¡¯s perfectly safe otherwise.¡± They step onto the wooden bridge, reinforced with metallic strips, and meet the first people of the night who aren¡¯t inside buildings or far away. The bridges all around Metropolis were rather popular all day and especially at night. A romantic spot, a starlit escape to the hem of nature, observing the miracles of life at a convenient distance. All sorts of Sapients pass them on the bridge, some that look like couples, or friends, lean to the bridge¡¯s rails, hushing something under their breaths and pointing, or tightly holding hands. Despite there being a fair bit of people, hushed words and footsteps are the only sound. Even to Amethyst, it isn''t hard to notice, that speaking loudly would be frowned upon in this environment. Some people passing by stare at them, especially at Amethyst, but don¡¯t say anything or approach them. All of these strange looks, even if some of them were smiles, made Amethyst feel a little uneasy. This was something completely new to her, so many strangers, every few steps, another set passed them by, with their own unique look, walking style, and no doubt, thoughts. Her small world at Midnight Iris, for the most part, had consisted of just the Tyrchids that she felt like she knew somewhat, and the film crew that were either friendly or left her completely alone. But now, it was hard to fathom, how she was just another Galactic Sapient on this planet among the millions if not billions of strangers. In this short walk, she could very well have met entities that each hailed from different faraway planets. It was a strange, and kind of scary thought. No longer, was she in the safe surroundings of her forest. All that she had seen today, made her feel like it truly was a different world. A world, that felt new and alien to her. A touch startles her, as Frank takes her right arm¡¯s wrist into his hand and leads her to the rail, pointing at a tree. He whispers: ¡°Look, over there, can you see it?¡± In the camouflaged depths of a spring-spruce, a brown-gray bird perches, asleep. Its large cylinder body, a body without a visible neck, made its species clear. ¡°It¡¯s a bright-eyed whisker-owl. Ain¡¯t it magnificent?¡± The owl¡¯s wide feathers extended further down from its branch, and a pair of exceptionally long feathers extended way beyond its head, right above its closed eyes. To be honest, Amethyst isn¡¯t really all that impressed, or that interested. This bird is rather ordinary in all aspects, at least, something in her mind told her that. Rather, it is Frank¡¯s enthusiasm and clear passion for the subject that swept her away. The way he fervently, but quietly, explained what made this owl special, how it was the only one with these long feathers on its head, and how this sub-species compared to others of its kind. It made his face shine, smiling in a way, she had rarely seen him exhibit. There is something pure and infectious about it. As such, Amethyst is more than happy to listen along and gazes in part at the bird, but mostly at Frank, though he was way too enraptured in his world to realize this. They are in no hurry anywhere. Sure, it¡¯s late, but they aren¡¯t all that tired due to space-jetlag. Perhaps Frank wanted to show Amethyst these things that he enjoyed and were important to him, or perhaps, he was playing for time. If they spent the whole night outside talking about birds, they¡¯d never have to go to his parents. ¡°The other name this owl is called- Oh-!¡± The owl wakes up and proves what the first part of its name came from, or perhaps, it had just been resting its eyes all this time. Regardless, its yellow eyes seem to glow in the darkness, even if the light that emanates around, seemed very faint. It takes flight, and a few others on the bridge take note as well. It swoops down, and Amethyst and Frank lean over to see as it dives and grabs something with its talons. Then it harshly flies back up, almost scraping against the bridge¡¯s railing, and flies over it, like showing off. Within its sharp claws, is a squeaking creature; a feeble mouse-squirrel. Its brown fur is stained with red, it squirms in the tight grip but is unable to escape. It has wide round eyes, and a pair of ears, bigger than its head. The long puffy tail swishes to and fro, as it is flown away to its demise with the owl. ¡°Wow¡­¡± Frank gasps in awe and gazes after the majestic bird along with other onlookers. ¡°Ah¡­ b-but that creature was so cute...¡± After the owl incident, Frank consoles Amethyst over the mouse-squirrel¡¯s unjust, but natural fate. They continue on across the bridge, and see more birds, though much smaller ones. Also spotting another mouse-squirrel that sleeps in a tree safely, making Amethyst happy. They come to the middle part of the bridge, the river slowly flows underneath it. On the other shore of the river, they see a small herd of zebradeers, sleeping with their bodies resting atop their legs. One individual is awake and watches them intently. Amethyst stares back at the striped mammal, wondering what the gaze means. Behind those black orbs, could there be intelligence and sapience too? If it couldn¡¯t talk, how could she know whether that was the case or not? Where did instinct end, and sapience begin? ¡°Zebradeers are one of the more common animals living in the forests here. They are well adjusted to living in these narrow strips of land, some marked individuals have shown, how they endlessly roam through Innocence, going around the borders of the city and then entering back to Purity, to start their journey all over again, just in another direction.¡± Frank draws the shape of their route in the air with his finger. ¡°And get this, when they reach the other end, they go the other way and return to Innocence once more. They endlessly repeat this set path, and when their routes are plotted on a map, they make out a massive infinity symbol.¡± ¡°They always walk the same path¡­?¡± ¡°Yeah, though some herds walk the other way, or do the infinity symbol around Compassion and Passion, instead of Integrity and Courage, but all that live near the city, do the same symbol. Due to that behavior, they are well-respected and protected animals of the city. They are thought to pay respects to the suspected founder of the city, the Red Goddess. The zebradeers have even been decreed as the honorary animal of the whole planet.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± Could something in their instincts make them do this symbol¡­? Or¡­? ¡°The reason for their route isn¡¯t entirely understood, and once there were rumors of a legendary individual that had red stripes, instead of black, but it might have just been hearsay or a prank by somebody who painted one. But it only strengthened its association with the Goddess.¡± They continue on, seeing a tent that¡¯s been set up in the forest, and Frank explains that you need special permission to camp in the forest from the Metropolis Nature Officials. And that citizens could check an always up-to-date online map, and compare it with the surroundings, to make sure there were no violations of this happening. As they pass, a few individuals have that very gwebpage open, and they compare the two to see if they match. Amethyst and Frank reach the end of the bridge, without any further wondrous wildlife sightings, and go wait at a hoverbus stop. The very large vehicle speeds quite silently through the night and stops before them. They get on from the middle doors, as those are very large, and Amethyst can easily step aboard. Inside, Frank swipes their ID cards on the ticket reader to stamp their trip. Frank explains to Amethyst, how public transportation was free to Citizens of Metropolis, working with the swipe of their ID. You could ride it twice a day, one swipe, giving you an hour and a half to complete your trip, until it counted it as another trip when swiped again. Once those were used up, it started charging you the fee as normal. This allowed people to commute to work within the city for free each working day, but free-time activities then cost them the usual charge. However, since Amethyst¡¯s ID card was just a temporary, half-citizenship, she only had one trip free each day. Half-citizenship meant what it implied, that all benefits were halved. Benefits, that were numerous and significant. Nearly everything at Metropolis worked with the ID cards working as the mediator. But in turn for all these benefits, the citizens were given the responsibility and trust to then give back to the city as well, to not abuse this goodwill. And to take good care of their ID cards. Frank and Amethyst get off the quite empty bus at their stop, and ahead of them, rises the block of flats, where Frank¡¯s parents should be living at. 41. Homecoming They stand before the towering building, the block of flats where Frank''s parents live, at least going by the information from a decade ago. To Frank''s eyes, it appears to have frozen in time, looking exactly the same as he remembered it. Although, his memories of this building are few, the outward appearance being the part most etched into his mind. Frank and Amethyst walk the sidewalk to the low fence gates, into the yard with bushy round trees plotted around. On the gravel path leading to the entrance, Amethyst attempts to walk lightly, to not leave too big holes behind, hoping the interior will be more suitable for her feet. ¡°Listen, Amethyst... I gotta warn you of my parents before we see them.¡± ¡°Warn me?¡± ¡°Yeah, they don¡¯t like non-human Sapients... They were against me being a vet, but straight up forbid me from pursuing my idea of the Sapient alien species hospital once they heard of it. When they found out I was already going ahead with the plan, my mother Eicel, was furious, and while Hyon didn¡¯t accept it either, at least he was a bit more tactful about it. So, don''t take their mean or rude comments to heart.¡± ¡°I see¡­ But why are they like that?¡± The question gives him pause. ¡°I haven¡¯t really thought about why... They¡¯ve always turned up their noses and scowled at the ever-increasing number of Sapients in the city.¡± Frank opens the front door to the building and they step inside. ¡°Perhaps it is due to their past, and how they met. And specifically¡­ when they met.¡± ¡°When...? How¡¯s that important?¡± They take one look at the elevator and determine it to be way too small for Amethyst, and they opt to use the stairs. They continue to talk quietly in the stairwell. ¡°Well... they met right after the war, at the mass funeral service held for the victims of the Spire Disaster and the fallen soldiers. The Spires of Helindas were massive space elevators making space construction more accessible and also serving as communication beacons. They were erected all around the planet, transmitting a signal, trying to contact any other Sapient species around the Galaxy. The first that answered the call, however, proceeded to destroy all the towers and bury the surrounding area of each in kilometers of rubble.¡± ¡°Kilometers¡­? Just how big were these things?¡± ¡°Massive, not that I have seen them for myself in anything but photos or video. Ever since, Metropolis has been the hub of Sapient species activity, as even to this day some still answer the call of the Helindas Spires from the far reaches of the Galaxy and find their way here. My parents were right in the middle of the resulting war, so I can hardly blame them for their prejudice now.¡± ¡°A war... it¡¯s hard to imagine what that was like... but it sounds horrible.¡± ¡°That¡¯s for sure. Well, enough about that.¡± Frank stops at the 7th floor''s first door, a dark brown frame with a matching door, a darkened copper-colored handle, and a lock. ¡°Sinett¡± reads on the middle of the door in a framed plaque. ¡°Okay¡­ let¡¯s see if my old key still fits¡­¡± Frank takes out a small physical key, looks upon it for a second, and then inserts it into the slot. He takes a deep breath and twists it to the right. Clack¡­ The lock opens and Frank pauses, not taking the key out, or pushing the door inside. He was ready to never see his parents again, spend his time and his life at Viridian Macula, until the day that they... ... The door ahead feels like it transforms into the entrance of a vault, sealed shut and made from the thickest steel. Despite knowing the combination, he lacked the strength to pry it open. It feels immovable and final, like an ancient tomb¡¯s stone block seal, something that once moved, could never be closed or put back in place again. Surely disturbing its sacred rest would curse him for a thousand years. ¡°Amethyst¡­ I don¡¯t think-¡± ¡°Hello? Did you forget something, Pirjo?¡± Franks recognizes the voice. She sounds older, the voice shakier and weaker than before, eerily so, the potency and sheer power of her voice is gone. But there is still something left, a sort of warmth and a spark that he recognized. ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡± The next voice is even deeper than he remembered, but more hoarse as well. Frank could easily remember this voice reprimanding him for his test results, career choices, and being out too late. At the time, those were negative things, but now, they seemed nostalgic, something that was lost and missing from his life. Frank stands at the precipice, the vault is now open, but the slightly ajar door still feels like a world away. Like a great ravine, with a bottomless chasm that was impossibly wide, much too large to ever cross. There simply aren''t enough materials in the whole world to bridge the gap. What am I doing? Why am I back here? ¡°Let¡¯s go say hi.¡± Amethyst touches Frank¡¯s wrist with her own. Frank¡¯s hanging head rises, and he looks at Amethyst, who softly smiles at him. The positivity pours into his lips straight from hers. He fixes his gaze on the door, making up his mind, forcing his arm to reach out and his legs to walk. He opens the door all the way and steps inside. First, he notices the smell. There is but a hint of what he remembered, the rest¡­ is something else. Musky like the old house of your grandmother, but pure and a little stinging, like a hospital ward. He looks around, but he barely remembers the place, the entrance hall with the coat hanger hooks and coat racks, is completely alien. As he takes off his boots, unwinding the laces by hand, he notices the doormat, green like grass. It¡¯s very worn from the middle, like a well-trodden path, missing many of its bristles. It¡¯s the one from their previous home. ¡°Hi!¡± Amethyst shouts and gingerly pulls the door closed. ¡°Sorry, we¡¯re not this Pirjo person, but I hope you don¡¯t mind our late visit.¡± ¡°Who¡¯s that?¡± The female voice asks the other person. ¡°I¡­ I¡¯m not sure.¡± He answers and says louder: ¡°Who are you? If you¡¯re here to rob us-¡± ¡°Mom¡­ Dad¡­ I- I¡¯m home.¡± Frank just about manages to say, before his voice breaks. ¡°C-come over here so that we can see you!¡± The female voice speaks frantically. Frank keeps his eyes on the floor until he arrives at the entrance to the living room. The lights are down, the large TV on the left wall is on, with a coffee table and a familiar sofa in front of it carrying many memories, but they aren¡¯t seated there. Of course, they aren¡¯t. Behind the sofa, against the wall, are two hospital beds, with small nightstands and desklamps that are turned on, illuminating the surroundings and the people on the beds. ¡°F-Frank!?¡± The person on the bed further from the entrance, has Hyon lying on it. Frank¡¯s dad nearly jumps up from the bed but manages to stop himself before he tears any of the tubes that are attached to his sides. The last time Frank saw him, he still had short blond hair and a conservative mustache, but there was no trace of either anymore. ¡°My baby boy! It really is you!¡± His mother shoots up sitting on the bed, she seems to almost drown among the white sheets with her equally white hospital gown, despite her tanner complexion. As Eicel spreads her arms wide open, at that moment, black spots shoot into the translucent tube filled with red that is attached just above her hip to her side. She blinks her eyes but continues smiling, her orange fiery eyes have lost their sheen to age and illness; transformed into barely smoldering coals. Frank doesn¡¯t respond immediately, instead, he moves in close and embraces her. ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡­¡± ¡°N-no my dear, we¡¯re the one¡¯s sorry!¡± They both start sobbing. No more words are exchanged for a while, as they just hold each other. ¡°Come on now, Franky, my boy! Do you still remember your old man?¡± ¡°How could I forget¡­¡± Frank goes around his mother¡¯s bed, and hugs Hyon next, who seems determined to not cry, but fails at it admirably. Amethyst stands at the living room¡¯s entrance, tears welling up in her eyes too. She was so happy for Frank, that he could meet his parents again. She¡¯s surprised at how¡­ terrible both of his parents look. Their faces¡¯ skin is tight against their bones, almost like stretching it against them. While other parts, like their hands, are wrinkled and aged, spotty, and filled with pigment imperfections. Perhaps it was just that these were the first elderly people she had seen, but a feeling told her, that it wasn¡¯t all that. They were so shriveled, so fragile, that she imagined them shattering, crumbling into dust if they ever left their beds. However, this impression is also heavily affected by the apparatuses at the end of the two beds. Some sort of medical equipment with monitors and below them, two large milky white containers per bed. The left container has starkly red liquid stored in it, nearly full. On the left side, it¡¯s a gross cocktail of red with black lumps, that looks thicker than the rest of it, this one was nearly halfway full. From the sides of both containers, tubes ran along the bed, inside the bed sheets, and into the person on the bed. ¡°My son, I¡¯m so glad you came to see us¡­¡± Frank¡¯s father slaps him on the back, but it¡¯s more of a slow and gentle pat. ¡°I honestly didn¡¯t think you would visit us ever again...¡± ¡°I¡­ I thought you¡¯d never want to see me again...¡± ¡°Nonsense! Of course, we would have wanted to see our son! No matter what happened.¡± His mother weakly holds onto Frank''s sleeve, as he stands in between the two beds. ¡°You are the most important person to the both of us, always has been.¡± Then, she looks at Amethyst. ¡°Do we have you to thank for this blessing?¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t-¡± ¡°Please, Amethyst, no need to be modest. Step in, we won¡¯t bite. We¡¯ve seen just how well you¡¯ve treated Frank in the G-TV, and it¡¯s abundantly clear how happy you¡¯ve made him.¡± ¡°No way! Have you been watching it?¡± Frank asks. ¡°It was thanks to our carer, Pirjo, who one day asked us if our son was an actor or something since she¡¯d seen a man on the screens reminiscent of our son.¡± On the left wall, on the same side as the living room''s door, is a very dark wooden bookshelf. Apart from books, its shelves hold physical media cases of various kinds, and at the bottom level a bunch of pictures of their family, their grandparents, and Frank in various stages of life. ¡°You can¡¯t imagine the surprise! Our very own son appearing on Galactic-TV, seeing him there after ten years! We could hardly recognize you-¡± Hyon is cut off. ¡°We instantly recognized you! Time has treated you well, you just keep growing more handsome¡ªand your hair longer!¡± Frank awkwardly rubs the back of his head. ¡°We have a lot to catch up on¡­ but I must ask¡­ did you ever find Ray¡­?¡± His father asks. ¡°No¡­ And I¡­ I¡¯m truly sorry for how I departed...¡± ¡°Oh stop that. You¡¯re here now, that¡¯s what matters.¡± Hyon waves a hand of dismissal at him. ¡°And to bring such a wonderful girl with you to our house, we couldn''t be happier for you.¡± ¡°O-oh¡­¡± Amethyst looks away coyly, the compliments thoroughly climbing onto her cheeks. ¡°What-? But she¡¯s a-¡± Frank is utterly lost for words. ¡°We should apologize to you too...We¡¯ve had a lot of time to reflect, believe me¡­ Of course, at first, we were upset, but in time, we began to see things in a different light too.¡± ¡°Prisoners to our beds, confined in these four walls, we had no choice but to accept that we weren¡¯t always in the right. A lot can happen, and change, in a decade.¡± ¡°I¡­ I see.¡± ¡°And your wonderful show as well, how could we stay angry when we see you living your best life on the screen? So, we have decided to accept your preferences, due to how cute the both of you were in the G-TV!¡± ¡°M-mom! Why do you have to say it like that¡­ It¡¯s not about my preferences or anything, Amethyst might not be a human, but she¡¯s a person just like everyone else. All Sapients are.¡± ¡°And we see that now, too.¡± His mother says. ¡°As you know, the past is hard to let go of, but now, we have opened our palms and let it fall from our grasp.¡± Downcast, Hyon curls a fist, but his fingers aren¡¯t able to fully close. He opens his hand to an open palm. ¡°A high time, after having held onto it for so long...¡± ¡°Oh, and your room is still the same way you left it, except tidier, as we had Pirjo unpack the rest of your things,¡± Eicel says with a grin. ¡°It¡¯s arranged the way you used to keep your old room.¡± ¡°That wasn¡¯t necessary¡­ It¡¯s been so long, and this is your apartment-¡± ¡°You¡¯re always a part of our family, so you need to have a room.¡± ¡°Yes. Though I¡¯m afraid you¡¯ll have to share with Amethyst, but I¡¯m sure that won¡¯t be a problem.¡± His father says and grins. ¡°Well, actually, that¡¯s part of the reason why we¡¯re here,¡± Amethyst adds. ¡°H-huh?¡± ¡°We had some trouble with the hotel we booked, so¡­ we thought, that perhaps we could stay the night here?¡± Frank continues. ¡°But of course! Think nothing of it!¡± The father laughs boisterously. ¡°Yes, like I said, this is still your home too. Even when our door¡¯s lock broke, we insisted that we¡¯d have an exact replica made, so that one day if you came home, your key would still fit. ¡°You know Frank so well, he was going to give up if it didn¡¯t fit!¡± Amethyst grins. ¡°A-a-amethyst!¡± They all laugh, except for Frank. ¡°Since you¡¯re staying the night¡­¡± Frank¡¯s mother trails off before she looks right at Amethyst. ¡°I have just one request.¡± ¡°O-oh? What is it?¡± ¡°Do you think you¡¯ll be able to give me grandchildren while I still live?¡± Eicel asks candidly. ¡°I¡­ uh...¡± ¡°Mom! What are you saying!?¡± ¡°Are you not you know, an item, a thing, a couple-?¡± ¡°Stop! I- Well...¡± ¡°Despite how you¡¯ve been acting on live television all this time?¡± Hyon asks with raised eyebrows. ¡°You ought to take some responsibility, Frank.¡± ¡°Umm¡­ Are we¡­ you know, that... Amethyst?¡± ¡°I¡¯d like it if we were...¡± ¡°Right¡­¡± Frank pulls on his collar, fanning his shirt. ¡°Excuse me, I just need a moment...¡± ¡°Take as long as you need.¡± Amethyst beams and chuckles, watching Frank''s adorable reaction. Frank goes to the bathroom accompanied by laughter from his parents, their amusement soon turning into a coughing fit. He locks the door that was connected to the living room and stares in the mirror of the white-walled room. He shakes his head and then smiles softly to himself before splashing some cold water on his face. What am I doing? Why does this have me so nervous all of a sudden? Isn¡¯t this what I¡¯ve been secretly, and¡­ not so secretly wishing for? I do really like Amethyst¡­ She accepts me as I am¡­ and supports me, as I do her. Understands me so well¡­ She doesn¡¯t demand a thing, yet I¡¯d give anything to her willingly. I just want to see her happy, have her smile, and keep that expression on her lips forever. Is that selfish? No, she has her wishes for us too, I¡¯m sure. But¡­ do I, of all people, really deserve her? Frank shakes his head and smiles. What a pointless, stupid thought. How is that my decision to make? Besides, Amethyst already told me the answer. *** ¡°Oh, Frank. He was always so shy when it came to matters of the heart, even if he did his best to hide it.¡± Eicel says. ¡°We¡¯re so glad our son met you, Amethyst, who knows how much longer he would have spent alone, and with that awful Intergalactic otherwise.¡± ¡°You knew where he was, what he was doing?¡± Hyon nods. ¡°Oh, yes. Soon after Frank left, exorbitant amounts of money started to show up in our bank account. Even so, it was just enough to keep our blood replacement treatment ongoing and pay for our cleaner, our caregiver, and everything else related to it. We had a friend of ours check into the matter and confirm Frank was safe, even if he was possibly tangled up in something dangerous.¡± Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Even if the welfare systems here are many, none could account for our special medical treatment, not even those safety nets that make healthcare free after a certain amount of expenses. So, at the same time, I am, and we are, forever grateful to our son for providing for us so, even if it meant we¡¯d not see him¡­ But¡­ I will forever regret allowing, and causing, him to waste his best years working on some remote planet without respite.¡± ¡°We truly are fortunate to have such a wonderful son with a heart of gold to¡­ to sacrifice his own life, just to keep us poor sods alive¡­¡± Hyon trails off. They have a bit of a silent moment. ¡°Enough of that sad stuff. We must be happy to finally be reunited with Frank, and have him also bring such a pretty and well-mannered girlfriend home.¡± Eicel looks at Amethyst. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m not anything special...¡± She fidgets and looks away. ¡°When is your wedding? You¡¯re getting married, right?¡± ¡°U-umm¡­ Marriage¡­?¡± Amethyst thinks her hardest and flips through any possible memories and knowledge of this from her own or Amande¡¯s left-behind memories. ¡°I believe¡­ rings are customary to uh¡­ such proceedings?¡± She lifts her arm and shows the Dust Sentence bracelet. ¡°I don¡¯t have fingers¡­ so, this is kind of a ring for me? Right? Does that already make us married?¡± Frank has just opened the door to the living room as Amethyst airs the question. ¡°Oh, and there¡¯s the husband! How wonderful!¡± Eicel announces. Frank looks between Amethyst, Eicel, and Hyon, the last two nod and wink at him which pulls out a smile. He walks in front of Amethyst and takes her wrists into his hands. He pulls them forward and holds her arms gently in between them, their matching bracelets on opposite wrists. ¡°Amethyst.¡± Raising his head, he looks Amethyst directly into her eyes, into those blue, many many eyes, those enchantingly unique, hybrid eyes. Each one of them seemed to show her surprise in a slightly different way. ¡°I¡¯d love to be your husband. If you¡¯ll have me.¡± The way Frank took her hands so readily caught Amethyst off guard. He really went for it, just took her arms, like any other species, without any reservations. Amethyst looks straight into his copper-brown eyes, seeing the sincere love, and commitment in them. ¡°I may not know exactly how wife, girlfriend, or lover are different from each other, but I¡¯ll carry any title you wish to give me with pride. Because... I love you, Frank.¡± Hearing her finally say those words is a feeling like no other. All of it hadn¡¯t been an illusion nor a delusion on his part. All the signals she had given, all of their moments together were real. All of it had led to this moment. Frank keeps holding onto Amethyst¡¯s arms and gets on his toes. Amethyst sees as his handsome face gets ever closer, and she crouches down to meet him. Frank purses his lips, and Amethyst closes her eyes, excited and nearly shaking in anticipation of what¡¯s to come. Frank kisses Amethyst on the forehead, briefly, but affectionately. ¡°I love you too, Amethyst.¡± Amethyst has a radiant smile on her lips as she opens her eyes, feeling almost woozy from the heat gathered on her face. Eicel and Hyon start to clap, giving them an encouraging applause. ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re good with that? Shouldn¡¯t you get in there a little more?¡± Hyon urges him on while clapping. ¡°Oh, Hyon, that was a lovely enough display. Don¡¯t get greedy.¡± ¡°You¡¯re one to talk.¡± ¡°I mean, we¡¯ve been going quite fast¡­ Even if a lot has happened, we¡¯ve barely known each other for¡­ about a week, actually.¡± Frank says and then whispers to Amethyst: ¡°I¡¯m sorry if you expected more, but I don¡¯t exactly want to do more than that in front of my parents¡­ So that kiss will have to do for now.¡± He smirks. ¡°No, I¡¯m happy with that, I don¡¯t know if I could have taken more, I feel like I¡¯m flying in sunshine already.¡± Amethyst looks at Frank with a glint in her eyes, which then flashes away as she blinks. Sickly coughing from Eicel brings their attention back to Frank¡¯s parents. ¡°D-don¡¯t mind me, I could watch you two whisper your secrets all day and all night.¡± Eicel brings a shaky hand to her face. ¡°I still can¡¯t believe it¡­ I must be dreaming, are you really home...?¡± ¡°I am, though I have trouble believing it too.¡± He smiles at Amethyst and then looks over his parents. ¡°Over the years, I¡¯ve thought of what to do, what to say if I ever came back¡­ but now, I really don¡¯t know where to start. There¡¯s so much to say, so much to ask.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay dear. You¡¯re home now. We have all the time in the world.¡± Eicel smiles. ¡°How about you start at the beginning?¡± Hyon suggests. While our life has been entirely in this room for the last decade, G-TV and Pirjo being our only contacts to the outside world, there¡¯s still much to tell about what¡¯s been going on with us, and at Metropolis while you were gone.¡± Frank starts at the beginning as requested; from when he leaves home to track down Ray and find a job at Viridian Macula. Regaling tales of various incidents and happenings that went down in the barely legal operations. How he got permission and built his own cottage in the woods, which especially impresses Hyon. Frank mentions Pablo and his guard friends, Jack and Jill, only in passing. Their fate wasn¡¯t something he was keen on getting caught up in. Hyon and Eicel chime in with their comments and tales of Metropolis as is appropriate; what¡¯s going on with their acquaintances, neighbors, and Metropolis. They also tell chilling stories of what it was like during the height of the terrible epidemic of Dust Sentence. After that, Frank hops ahead to the meeting with Amethyst. Amethyst gives them an overview of how it came to pass, but in instinct, leaves out the parts about her gaining sapience, and the gruesome details of Grent¡¯s actions. Together, they then spin the tale of their journey so far, cutting select details in unspoken unison, creating this family-friendly edition of the events. Finally, as they finish the summary, it has been a bit over an hour, miraculously, his parents didn¡¯t seem tired, despite the very late time. Such sick, and old people, would have been expected to nod off mid-story, only to wake up shortly after, commenting that they were listening and definitely didn¡¯t just doze off. ¡°That¡¯s about it, it was a bit of a quick summary, so things might seem a bit incomplete or out of order¡­¡± ¡°Hope we aren¡¯t keeping you up for too long...¡± Amethyst says. Hyon nods, ¡°Not at all.¡± ¡°How come you were even awake when we came? Or do you just sleep with the G-TV on?¡± ¡°Well, we do, but we hadn¡¯t turned in for the night yet. All we do is lay here, so¡­ we get plenty of sleep, too much even.¡± Eicel says. ¡°Our sleeping schedule is all screwed up.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± Amethyst yawns long and hard, her mandibles stretching out and grasping at the air during it. Once she finally closes her mouth, she looks around at everyone staring. ¡°Not this again... I get tired too, okay?¡± Frank and his parents laugh, and Frank whispers to Amethyst while his parents are still guffawing. ¡°Sorry for staring, but I just can¡¯t keep my eyes off you.¡± ¡°F-Frank!¡± Amethyst¡¯s gray-skinned cheeks blush. ¡°They¡¯re whispering again,¡± Hyon says with a knowing accentuation to his wife. ¡°M-hmm.¡± Eicel muses and continues: ¡°Tell you what, we¡¯ll go to sleep now too, so you newlyweds can have your honeymoon in Frank¡¯s room, don¡¯t worry, we won¡¯t hear a thing.¡± Frank¡¯s mother smiles eerily wide. ¡°H-h-honeymoon?¡± Amethyst takes a step back, ¡°D-does that mean what I think... it means?¡± ¡°Ha-ha! Very funny, Mother!¡± Frank takes Amethyst''s wrist and pulls her along. ¡°Maybe lay off the Comedy Comet Show for a while?¡± Frank shouts back at her before they leave the room. He hurries Amethyst along the corridors that seem to be made to accommodate beings, or things, that need wide doorways and corridors. ¡°Sorry about that, they didn¡¯t use to be so¡­ rowdy.¡± They really have changed. ¡°It¡¯s fine¡­ I don¡¯t mind.¡± Frank takes her to a room, puts on the lights, and closes the door. A window at the back wall, with the curtains aside, shows the sleepy night city through it. Below it, a small desk and a plain chair. The desk looks like more of a workstation, as it has a hard gray surface lining the wood, protecting it against scrapes and gnashes. There¡¯s a bookshelf taking up half of the wall next to it, filled with various books about nature and animals of Earth and Metropolis, of plants and trees, of various alien races and anatomy. Even a few about architecture and building, as well as those about history and photography. The shelves extend out far enough to leave room for miscellaneous items to be presented before them. Next to the shelf, in the corner is a wooden fishing rod, crafted from a sturdy stick and line, that still stood the test of time. On the right wall, a bed, and on the same wall as the door, was lined with wardrobe doors, embedded into the wall with great care. The left wall is empty, as it''s the main way to enter the room. ¡°Alright, we should be safe here. As for what my mother suggested... I don¡¯t think we¡¯re quite ready for... that, yet.¡± Amethyst turns to look at him. ¡°Oh... Okay...¡± ¡°Thanks for, um... understanding...¡± She wanted to do it...? I don¡¯t even know yet how I¡¯d do it with her¡­ And this really isn¡¯t the time or place. ¡°In that case... allow me to at least do this¡­¡± Amethyst struts a few steps to him, keeping them short; the most elegant Frank had ever seen her walk. ¡°Do¡­ wha-?¡± Amethyst leans forward and blows air on his forehead, parting the curtain of hair. She quickly plants her soft lips on his exposed skin, before the strands can impede her. The smooch is over as fast as it started, Amethyst¡¯s eyes glance at his as she quickly turns away. ¡°W-what a nice room, you¡¯ve got here.¡± She starts looking around his room as if nothing had happened, firmly facing her face away. The phantom lips linger on his forehead, and Frank restraints himself from touching the spot of contact, to not accidentally dispel it. The slightly moist sensation, the memory of her warm lips made the ground zero feel like a conflagration. That same fire spreads tingling across his skin, along the bridge of his nose, gathering on the cheeks. Flowing down even to his chin, but it wouldn''t drip down it, as Frank realizes where this mystical glow stemmed from. ¡°What is this?¡± Amethyst looks at the various items on the bookshelf, one in particular getting her attention. There¡¯s a small house made of tiny twigs laid horizontally on top of each other, like a log house. Its model and shape seem familiar. ¡°Oh! This is your cottage!¡± She looks at it from various angles. ¡°Why have you made this? Are there tiny people who¡¯d live in such a house?¡± ¡°No, no, it¡¯s just a decorative item, a memory. That¡¯s all.¡± ¡°I see¡­ a physical memory... is it a happy one?¡± ¡°It is that too.¡± Frank walks up to Amethyst and picks up the tiny house and it¡¯s tiny yard glued on its bottom. It¡¯s a bit dusty all over. He holds it between them, and they both look at its surprisingly intricate design, wooden crossed windows with sills, an opened door with a knob, and a yard with a path of gravel made of sand. ¡°A long time ago, we used to visit my Dad¡¯s Grandparents at their cottage, outside of any major towns. Every summer we¡¯d go there, enjoy Grandma¡¯s cooking, fish with my Dad and Granddad, get Mother to finally relax for a moment... Just enjoy our vacation and those moments together.¡± Frank runs a finger along the roof of the tiny building. ¡°When they died, we inherited the place, I wanted us to keep it, but my parents didn¡¯t agree. It would be too much work to keep it running, and too expensive to take care of it. So, we sold it.¡± ¡°It was actually your Grandparent''s home that you built again?¡± ¡°Well, it wasn''t entirely accurate, since the cottage didn¡¯t have a second floor, but they always talked about how they wanted to expand it and make it. So, I included it back at Viridian Macula, just like in this model. It¡¯s a little silly, right?¡± ¡°No, I think it¡¯s sweet!¡± Amethyst smiles. ¡°Finishing what they never managed to do... that''s a beautiful gesture.¡± ¡°Thanks... I appreciate it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a shame we had to leave it behind... Could we move the cottage?¡± Frank laughs in a good-spirited way. ¡°It¡¯s a nice idea, it¡¯s possible, but it won¡¯t be cheap. And where would I put it anyway?¡± ¡°Well¡­ there¡¯s plenty of space in my home planet.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ I¡¯ll have to think about that.¡± Frank appears to ponder the possibility for a moment before continuing: ¡°Anyway¡­ we should sleep at least a bit this night, even if we¡¯re not that tired. Try and get into Metropolis¡¯ rhythm. I¡¯ll get you a mattress.¡± ¡°Okay¡­¡± Frank leaves the room, leaving Amethyst to look around, her gaze soon focusing on his bed. It¡¯s too short and narrow for her to fit in it too, and it¡¯s right up against the wall, she wouldn''t even be able to hang her blades off its sides. What am I thinking¡­? Sleeping together, in the same bed? That¡¯s way too dangerous. I mean we did share a moment like that before but¡­ it was just a brief moment... But isn¡¯t that the done thing? That a couple sleeps in the same bed? If they don¡¯t, that means something is wrong with the relationship. ¡­ It¡¯s too early for me to be worried¡­ right? Right, Amande? ¡­ I bet you could sleep with Grent in the same bed each night¡­ Amethyst shakes her head, stopping that train of thought before she visualizes it further¡ªbefore it arrives at the station of no return. We both want to make this work¡­ In fact, we¡¯ve made ¡°us¡± work so far, despite all the setbacks! Not that we¡¯ve been trying to really be at this level quite yet¡­ but¡­ We¡¯ll figure it out eventually, I¡¯m sure of it. A while later, Frank appears with an old spring mattress, half dragging and half carrying it. He flops it in the middle of the floor with a mighty gust of wind and then spreads a white bedsheet on top of it. ¡°What do you think?¡± Amethyst carefully lowers herself to sit on the mattress. It gently bobs her up and down. ¡°It¡¯ll do.¡± ¡°Great!¡± Amethyst lays down on the mattress already, her arms crossed on top of her chest, the blades to the sides, not touching the floor. Frank opens up a wardrobe and finds all his old clothes. He takes out a few boxers and stretches them, quite a few of them have the stretchy part of the fabric frayed and snap when he tries stretching them with his hands. Finding a suitable pair, he strips his clothes and changes into them. After pulling the curtains on the window, he turns off the lights. Rustling of bed sheets later, Frank softly says: ¡°Good Night, Amethyst.¡± ¡°Good Night, Frank.¡± Faraway spaceships passing above the city, the slight hum of air conditioning, the only sounds in conjunction with any movement Frank makes being audible from the bedsheet¡¯s crinkling noise. ¡°Frank¡­ are you asleep?¡± ¡°No. What is it?¡± ¡°Your parents told me that you were working at Intergalactic for them¡­?¡± ¡°Yes¡­?¡± ¡°What will happen to them now that you don¡¯t have a job? ¡°I¡­ well, I do have savings, I did work there for ten years after all. But, they won¡¯t last indefinitely¡­ but that¡¯s not something to worry about now.¡± ¡°But¡­ aren¡¯t we together now? Shouldn¡¯t we share our all with each other, isn¡¯t that how couples act?¡± Frank chuckles quietly and sighs. ¡°Well, all relationships are different, but I would like ours to be an open one.¡± ¡°Well?¡± Amethyst asks teasingly impatient. ¡°I¡¯ve of course had other expenses at Viridian Macula, and will have them here as well, but it should be enough for about a year, a year and a half perhaps to pay for their treatment.¡± ¡°I see¡­ That¡¯s not very long, is it?¡± ¡°Indeed, it¡¯s not. It¡¯s just that expensive.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Maybe once ISSA has hopefully accepted us as a part of the United Galaxy, we can organize things back at Midnight Iris and make some money for your parents.¡± ¡°What? No, I couldn''t possibly-¡± ¡°We¡¯ll make a hotel, one that serves everyone, a real one. Sell the ore that Intergalactic Resources dug up and export Pango¡¯s, stuff like that! That¡¯ll make us some money!¡± ¡°Let¡¯s not get too ahead of ourselves.¡± And we certainly cannot sell the Pango¡¯s, they¡¯re much too dangerous to spread into the wider Galaxy, for its and Tyrchid¡¯s safety... ¡°Hey¡­ Frank?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You¡¯ve told me a couple of times that you¡¯d talk about your past later, would this be the time¡­? You did touch upon some details in our story to your parents, but you left some context out.¡± ¡°I have said that, haven¡¯t I? Alright, fine, shoot.¡± ¡°You were born here, right? How did you end up working for Intergalactic at Viridian Macula? Why did you try to find Ray?¡± ¡°It¡¯s¡­ a long story if I go through all the details, but I¡¯ll summarize it for you. My best friend, Ray, who I studied with in the veterinarian school, betrayed me. Suddenly, shortly after a major job we did, he took all our shared money and fled somewhere. That¡¯s what father was referring to as he asked about Ray.¡± Frank sighs. ¡°This must have happened nearly at the same time as my parents got ill, but I only found out a few days after. By then, I knew that treating and keeping my parents alive would take a lot of money, the amount that he stole wasn¡¯t small by any means, and would tide us over until I could find a job, or figure something else out¡­¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± ¡°Yeah, I had a big fight with my parents about it, they begged me to not go, to let Ray go with the money, but they didn¡¯t understand the situation, I had to give chase, for personal reasons too. My mother took the opportunity to remind me how well government-paid soldiers made money, or those under ISSA. And my father wasn¡¯t much better, I¡¯m no good at welding or with large machinery. Neither of them had ever really supported my career choice. They just wanted me to be what they used to be.¡± ¡°Your mother was a soldier?¡± ¡°You can¡¯t really tell by outside appearances or how she acts now, but she was. First worked for the government¡¯s association, but chose ISSA when the military was split.¡± ¡°Huh¡­¡± ¡°They weren¡¯t the worst, I do have good memories, at least looking back, but¡­ it¡¯s still wild how much time can change people. At least, in this case, it was for the better. Back then, neither of them would have allowed you to even step into the building, much less¡­ encourage me to be in a relationship with a non-human.¡± Or demand grandchildren with one... ¡°It¡¯s hard to imagine now¡­ They both were so warm and welcoming to us today.¡± ¡°Yeah, right?¡± Makes spending all this time keeping them alive worth it. No, what a horrible thought... Of course, I had no assumptions that they¡¯d change, I just did it out of duty, and¡­ it was easier to stay away than go back home and admit defeat. That I never found Ray, that they were right, and I¡¯d take some shit job that paid well, murder all my dreams at Metropolis¡­ At least Intergalactic allowed me some semblance of freedom and to do almost what I wished to do. ¡°So¡­ that got off track a little bit, but anyway, I tracked Ray to Viridian Macula, where his trail ended as well. As I¡­ investigated the only facility on the planet, Rocco offered me a job there, with a bonus promise of helping me find Ray. It was an easy decision, the pay was incredible, and the work, while not exactly what I had in mind, still lined up with my goals.¡± ¡°Rocco never found Ray, right? Are you sure he even tried looking for him?¡± ¡°I think so, but yeah, I still have no idea where he went, or why he did what he did.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. That must be¡­ hard.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t deny, my thoughts do always circle back to Ray from time to time, our history together, his motives for doing this¡­ and everything else¡­¡± If I did something wrong¡­ ¡°But lately, it¡¯s been much easier to forget about him¡­¡± Frank¡¯s smile is audible in his words. Though, even if it wasn¡¯t, Amethyst could of course make it out in the darkness with her dark vision. ¡°I¡¯m glad to hear that.¡± There are plenty of things I barely think about as well, thanks to you¡­ Like¡­ how I don¡¯t have a past, how I shouldn¡¯t really exist as I do now¡­ and- ¡°I-I think we both should focus on the future.¡± ¡°Agreed, we can¡¯t change the past, so that¡¯s all we have.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not all we have. Let¡¯s not forget about the present.¡± Amethyst says with stark, excited positivity. ¡°I don¡¯t think I ever want to forget this present.¡± Amethyst giggles softly, ¡°And I¡¯m so glad I got to meet your parents, I really did think they were dead, based on how nostalgic you talked about them.¡± ¡°Come on, drop it already will you? I didn¡¯t think I was being that somber¡­ Just casually speaking of the past...¡± ¡°Alright, alright. If you say so.¡± ¡°Argh- Amethyst!¡± Amethyst chuckles and soon after a peaceful quiet falls into the room. I can imagine Amande telling me what a milestone this is. Telling me what a joyous occasion today has been. Meeting my beloved¡¯s parents, and getting married to him. I can almost feel her presence, her congratulatory words, but I¡¯m sure it¡¯s just my imagination, the quirks of my mind. Our consciousnesses brushed against each other, conflicted, and struggled. My existence is proof that she¡¯s gone. Only her phantom knowledge remains. ... ¡°Good Night, Frank.¡± ¡°Night, Amethyst.¡± Amethyst closes her eyes, despite feeling too giddy to sleep. Today was a great day, perhaps even the best day she¡¯d ever lived, in her current state of mind. She couldn¡¯t wait for all the good things tomorrow would bring, thoughts racing with just how much fun they¡¯d have on their first date. Trying to guess and figure out just what Frank had in store for them. Frank stares at the ceiling, his eyes already used to the darkness. I told Amethyst I was going to show her Metropolis¡­ but where exactly should I take her? Do we want to bother with public transport to get around the city, or just stick to Compassion for now? Would she like to see the Plaza of the Goddess? But there¡¯s always so many people there¡­ I haven¡¯t really spent time this side of Compassion, I don¡¯t even know any restaurants around here¡­ What am I to do? Oh Goddess help me... 42. Daybreak Amethyst and Frank walk out of their room, their steps echoing slightly on the hardwood, one more than the other''s. They exchange good mornings with Frank''s parents, who are both already up, but of course, not in the literal sense. ¡°How was your sleep?¡± Eicel asks from the bottom of the bed. ¡°Fantastic.¡± Amethyst answers. Frank looks at Amethyst. ¡°Yes, no complaints...¡± ¡°Is that so¡­?¡± Eicel says in an alluding tone. ¡°Well¡­ Frank, what do you have planned for today? You''ll take Amethyst out on a date into the city, right? I guess it was pretty obvious... ¡°That''s right.¡± ¡°Please, tell me all about it! Where will you go?¡± ¡°Yeah! I want to know too!¡± Amethyst chimes in. ¡°All in good time¡­¡± Hyon coughs and clears his throat. ¡°Son, while that is all well and good¡­ Isn¡¯t your ISSA court appointment tomorrow? It¡¯s been all over the news for a while¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s right...¡± ¡°What are you going to do? I trust you will see your spouse to be made a member of the United Galaxy successfully. Do you really have time for sightseeing now?¡± Before Frank can answer, Eicel butts in. ¡°All in good time! For now, he¡¯s going to take Amethyst on a date and show her around Metropolis, right? How about... you two get back before dark, and you¡¯ll have plenty of time to prepare for it!¡± ¡°What do you think, Amethyst? I mean¡­ we could always wait after the whole ISSA thing to go out¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯d rather do it now though...¡± ¡°I¡¯m inclined to agree.¡± Frank smiles. ¡°I guess it can¡¯t be helped. ¡°Way to bring down the mood, Hyon, don¡¯t be such a worrywart!¡± Frank''s mother turns back to them. ¡°Please, show Amethyst a good time!¡± ¡°I- ugh¡­ I will.¡± ¡°Take care of Frank, won¡¯t you Amethyst?¡± ¡°O-oh course, um- Miss Sinett.¡± Eicel waves a coy hand at her. ¡°Oh, such a charmer, aren¡¯t you.¡± ¡°Right¡­ have fun out there and¡­ be careful.¡± Hyon looks at both of them for a moment and then turns on the massive television again. ¡°Thanks.¡± They leave the living room behind. ¡°Breakfast before we go?¡± Frank points to the kitchen with an open palm. ¡°Yes!¡± They turn around to the kitchen that¡¯s just a few steps away along the corridor toward the door. It¡¯s a clean, and barren space. Empty tabletops, sink with nothing next to it on the metal surface. Frank opens the fridge. ¡°I should have seen this coming.¡± It¡¯s completely empty, apart from well-packaged ready meals, that are no doubt reserved for his parents. Regardless of this being his home, breakfast wouldn''t be found here. ¡°Looks like we¡¯ll have to go to the city sooner than I thought.¡± Amethyst peeks over and takes a look too. ¡°I see... We definitely shouldn¡¯t eat meals meant for your parents.¡± As Frank closes the fridge door, at the same time, the sound of the apartment¡¯s door opening and closing sounds. ¡°Good morning, how are we feeling today?¡± ¡°Good Morning, Pirjo!¡± ¡°You won¡¯t believe who¡¯s visiting!¡± Eicel exclaims. ¡°Oh, you have guests?¡± Steps approach and she comes into view on the corridor. She looks around and glances into the kitchen, finding Frank and Amethyst. ¡°Oh! Hello! How nice of you to visit your parents, Frank!¡± She beams with a genuine smile, on her blue lips. Frank cannot get a word out, he just stands there gobsmacked. ¡°Hello! Nice to meet you, I¡¯m Amethyst. You must be Pirjo?¡± ¡°Oh, hi! I¡¯ve seen you on TV! You¡¯re-¡± Amethyst and Pirjo continue making small talk, while Frank tries to wrap his head around the situation. Blue skin, smooth and shiny... those red visor glasses... Her long blue ears are disguised with mechanical plates from the back extending them even further, up and down, akin to the ears of a great reptile. And a metal headband clasped on her forehead, adorning a blue-purple, lustrous gem. Pirjo is without a doubt, a Sinel. As if it isn¡¯t obvious enough already, she wears a stereotypical maid outfit, with black and white frills to boot. Truly something nobody else, no other race, would actually wear casually, or had worn, since the very, very early days of Earth¡¯s history. ¡°Frank, are you okay?¡± Amethyst whispers. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you say hi?¡± ¡°R-right. Sorry. Nice to meet you, Pirjo.¡± Frank extends a hand, and they shake. ¡°Thank you for taking care of my parents for all these years.¡± ¡°It¡¯s my pleasure. It hardly even feels like a job.¡± Pirjo leans closer to Frank and whispers. ¡°Even if they can sometimes be a handful. You know what I mean, I¡¯m sure.¡± Frank quietly nods, knowing exactly what she¡¯s talking about. ¡°It¡¯s so nice of you to come visit your parents, you¡¯re all they ever talk about!¡± Pirjo says it directed to the living room and smiles as she hears the disagreeing murmurs before continuing: ¡°I hope you¡¯re here to stay a while rather than just visiting briefly.¡± ¡°Well, maybe. We did stay the night already¡­¡± Frank says quieter keeping the conversation between the three of them. ¡°We might get a hotel for tonight perhaps, what do you think Amethyst?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t mind staying here.¡± She answers readily. ¡°In fact, I think I¡¯d prefer to stay here instead of a hotel.¡± ¡°Would you now? Uh, well, nothing to it then. I suppose we can stay here, at least until our matters are finished.¡± After that¡­ well, I suppose I¡¯ll talk to Amethyst once it''s time to figure it out. I won¡¯t worry about that now¡­ ¡°Great, thanks, Frank!¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid I won¡¯t be able to provide you with any catering services despite your stay, but I can at least clean your room a bit more actively.¡± ¡°That¡¯s fine. And if you don¡¯t mind me asking, how did you end up taking care of my parents? Do you work for the hospital, are you a nurse?¡± ¡°No¡­ I was just taught how to do all the things needed to take care of them and was hired from an ad they posted.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°You know how Dust Sentence happened soon after they got sick? All available nurses and doctors were focused on that, by an emergency decree accepted by the populace. So, as soon as I was trained as a replacement, the nurse left them in my care.¡± ¡°So¡­ you¡¯ve been doing this job¡­ for a decade?¡± ¡°Yes¡­ but that''s not the problem. I feel bad for your parents... Who knows, without the Dust Sentence, perhaps a cure for their unique disease may have been found. Pursuing it was completely halted back then. This so-called treatment being a ''good enough'' solution. And nobody¡¯s tried to take up the research since then.¡± ¡°Have you mentioned this to the hospital?¡± Frank asks. ¡°Many times, but, I¡¯m not even working for them, as your parents pay me directly. I just have the rights to purchase the blood and medicine from them directly, so, it¡¯s not like I have any authority in those circles.¡± Pirjo sighs, his eyes behind the red visor look down. Her covered ears droop down as well. ¡°A sickness nobody¡¯s seen before, that only two people have, that has stayed the same for ten years. I suppose it¡¯s simply of no interest to anyone anymore.¡± Amethyst, who has hung her head low from the start of the conversation, breaks her silence. ¡°But why? They are sick, therefore, they should be treated and cured, right? So, why don¡¯t they do anything?¡± Pirjo shakes her head. ¡°I suppose it¡¯s seen as not worth the trouble. It¡¯s not cost-effective to start up expensive tests to figure out something that¡¯ll help only two people. If a cure would even be found as a result, that is.¡± ¡°But we''re talking about lives here! How can that be right?¡± ¡°It is what it is, Amethyst. People just slip through the cracks sometimes.¡± ¡°F-Frank!?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t get me wrong, I¡¯m angry and frustrated about it too, but¡­ getting worked up over it won¡¯t change anything now. If I was here¡­ maybe I could have made a difference, but it''s too late now. They probably don¡¯t have too long left, I¡¯m just glad I was able to meet them again, make them smile again... before...¡± ¡°Believe me, Frank, just you being here has helped them immensely.¡± Pirjo¡¯s maid uniform makes a ruffling noise, as she places a hand on his shoulder. ¡°It¡¯s all they wanted¡ªthe chance to see their son again was without a doubt the driving force that kept them going. And now that you¡¯re here, I¡¯m sure they don¡¯t want to let go of you any time soon.¡± ¡°Thank you, Pirjo. For everything, really.¡± ¡°Just doing my job.¡± She chuckles, withdraws her hand, and adjusts her headdress. For the moment, Amethyst and Frank sit down by the kitchen table, feeling the need to have a small reprieve to process all of this. A silent moment to come to terms with reality, their grievances, and regrets. Meanwhile, Pirjo proceeds to the fridge and starts preparing some meals and some medical shots and pills. She rustles about¡ªa calming background susurration, easing the pressure in their minds. She leaves to the living room for a while, the talking of Frank¡¯s parents and Pirjo echoes, as she serves the medicine and food. After that, she makes some noise that is likely associated with changing the blood tanks. After a while, she arrives back in the kitchen. ¡°You¡¯re still here? Weren¡¯t you supposed to be going somewhere?¡± Amethyst answers. ¡°Yeah, but¡­ how could we-¡± ¡°Oh, shush, just because things are hard, or even sad, that shouldn¡¯t be a barrier for not having a good time yourself. Hyon and Eicel would hate if their state would ruin your day.¡± A faint smile that becomes resolute flows on Amethyst¡¯s lips. ¡°You¡¯re right. We will have so much fun, they won¡¯t believe it when we come back to tell them later!¡± ¡°That¡¯s the spirit!¡± Frank nods and stands up firmly, with Amethyst following. ¡°In that vein... We¡¯re looking for somewhere to have breakfast, know of any good places around? I never really spent time at this part of Compassion.¡± ¡°Hmm, there¡¯s a nice coffee shop a few streets down. It¡¯s got a real great selection too, all sorts of drinks, sandwiches, pastries, and even ice cream!¡± ¡°Oh my- That sounds amazing! Frank, can we go there, please?!¡± ¡°Sure, why not?¡± Pirjo is about to say something but puts down her hand and shakes her head. ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll enjoy the atmosphere, I used to work there part-time before this job, you know? But regardless, it''s a non-biased recommendation. The place is called: ¡®Served hot and cold.¡¯¡± She then gives them brief instructions on how to get there from the apartment. ¡°Thank you, we¡¯ll be on our way then.¡± They exit the apartment into the stairwell, and soon Amethyst has a question. ¡°What¡¯s ice cream? Frozen¡­ cream?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll see. It¡¯s much better than that.¡± *** Unlike in the late night, as soon as they step outside, they see many people walking or driving, going about their business. The dense crowds remind them of the bridge in the night, but now spread everywhere. Curiously, with the abundant light of the red giant sun, the floating orb lights are nowhere to be seen anymore. They set out onto the wide walkways, with two lanes of traffic going in both directions on the bigger streets, with frequent crosswalks across or over for pedestrians. All around them, the striking Metropolis architecture is that much more visible in the daylight. The buildings seem to enjoy using bridge-like shapes in their design, additionally, there are some that are connected from high up with actual bridges. Even many of the tall buildings use similar curvature, long tall arches, rounded corners, swirling decorative metal branching off windowsills, and balcony edges. Somehow, it painted an old and rustic atmosphere, while the technology around was nothing but. Billboards and neon lights existed in harmony and moderation, but still being nearly as important and existing part as the rest of the architecture. Large windows, or a lot of smaller ones segmented into a larger function, seem to be popular in shops as well as any other building. Blue is definitely the most predominant color, but also nearly all colors were represented in the painted walls, though in muted pastel colors, that all blended without disrupting each other. Occasionally, spaceships would fly in the sky, or land on top of the very tallest of skyscrapers around. Amethyst and Frank enter a shopping street that is pedestrian-only. The buildings'' height fell by half at least in comparison to the residential area, but that effort seems to be put into the sides instead. The storefronts are that much more decorative; orbs, swirls and arches made each a spectacle to behold. Sometimes there are even automated escalators leading to the shops higher above the street, or wide stairs that lead to rooftops that have many smaller open-air market stalls. All around, even on the roofs, are large potted plants strewn around along with puffy bushes and hedge fences dividing up space. Mainly on street level, lots of trees grow in their own designated areas, surrounded by circular stones on top of the dirt patch. Frank points out to Amethyst a fenced-up tree area, that forms its own orchard in the heart of the city. Lots of different fruit trees, a few bushes, and a small field growing so many things, that Frank couldn''t recognize even half of them. In the shade of the orchard, stalls sell drinks, baked goods, and seasoning grown right there, made from its bounty. Paper bags and currency change hands at a rapid pace, but the queue in front of it doesn''t seem to get any shorter. Amethyst seems taken with the city so far, she''s constantly asking questions from Frank, while her head spins around every which way. And indeed, it is unlike anything she has ever seen, so many Sapients, countless beautiful sights, and all of it¡ªbuilt. Built with purpose, with the hard work and cooperation of many species. While untouched nature itself is miraculous and serene, something to cherish, this cityscape isn¡¯t anything less, just different. A fascinating place built with the sole purpose and goal to serve the Sapients that live here, this is their own forest that they have made to best suit them. While nature itself could support life with its bounty and give them opportunities and dangers to overcome, they have opted out of those and created their own ecosystem here. Something that''s untouchable by outside forces, overcoming natural laws, something they ruled instead. Relying only on each other to provide, choosing to co-exist en-mass for stability and safety. Perhaps cities and nature aren¡¯t so far apart after all, especially, since Metropolis didn¡¯t forget its roots¡ªdidn¡¯t completely forsake nature. She surprises herself with these thoughts, the cityscape feels so different, but somehow still weirdly familiar and welcoming. ¡°What¡¯s that shop, Frank?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a toy shop.¡± ¡°What are toys?¡± ¡°It¡¯s something that mostly children play with, practicing social skills, making friends, having fun. That sort of thing.¡± Amethyst walks up to the store window of ''Geld''s Toys and Accessories''. ¡°How do you¡­ play?¡± ¡°You make up stories and use your imagination to do whatever you wish to do. Sometimes, there¡¯s no other purpose than to have fun, even if all you come up with is nonsense.¡± ¡°Hey, Frank? Is it just me, or does that look a bit like me?¡± ¡°You¡¯re right! It¡¯s says it right there! ¡®Officially licensed ISSA product? ISSA MerchandiseTM Amethyst the Tyrchid¡¯.¡± Hands held against the window, Frank''s head spins frantically as he spots Amethyst products one after the other. ¡°Y-you have your own toy line! A whole armada of them!¡± Two kids walk out of the store, the other one holding an Amethyst action figure from the waist, swooshing with its swords using his hands. If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.While the other has a bloblike figure that slowly changes through all colors. ¡°You¡¯re just- just after the new thing, Tyrchid¡¯s aren¡¯t anything compared to the Flibmas! They can use any guns or technology, make a mecha suit out of their body!¡± ¡°Hah! But that doesn¡¯t matter, since my Tyrchid would totally slice through your Flibma¡¯s mecha armor and its goop body! A million-degree blade goes like- swoosh and then splurt!¡± ¡°Nu-uh! He¡¯d split from the middle! Flooo-whmp-! and reform after the strike!¡± ¡°No way! Flibma¡¯s can¡¯t survive the fire they¡¯d go up like -wooosh! And turn into dust and ash!¡± Amethyst and Frank listen in on the two kids debating over the important questions of life, before they run away, chasing each other. Remaining completely oblivious to the fact, that the real deal stood right next to them. There seems to be a range of Amethyst products on display, collectors statues, and figurines, then cheaper action figures made to actually be played with, and a plethora of various cheap merch like towels, clocks with Amethyst¡¯s blades being the clock arms, bottle openers shaped like her head, the head wings being the part to open them up... ¡°This is¡­ I don¡¯t know what to say¡­ I look like that? I mean, I¡¯ve seen my reflection on water¡¯s surface before, but...¡± Amethyst looks at the picture on the side of a box of a collector¡¯s edition figurine. ¡°I suppose, you haven¡¯t posed around any full-body mirrors before.¡± Amethyst chuckles. ¡°I¡¯m pretty cool, right?¡± She turns to Frank and strikes a pose similar to one of the toys. ¡°Yeah, you sure are.¡± Frank grins. ¡°In fact, ISSA and everyone seems to be really taken with you. I don¡¯t see myself in¡­ any of these. Then again, it¡¯d be pretty weird to have a normal bloke¡¯s face in some mug.¡± ¡°I-I¡¯m sure you¡¯re in one of these at least!¡± Amethyst looks through them, but even if she finds pictures that were taken when Frank was next to her, he¡¯s been edited out, or the picture wraps back around on top of him. ¡°There really isn¡¯t a single one with you included...¡± Suddenly, a voice speaks from behind them, ¡°Hmph, we don¡¯t sell any ¡®Frank¡¯ products here. Those are the staples of totally different store lines.¡± ¡°Different stores? And¡­ who are you?¡± Frank asks. They turn around to see a human man, dressed in a snazzy multicolored plaid suit. ¡°Geld, the owner of this shop, of course. And let¡¯s just say most products of you are for a totally different audience. You know, a middle-aged man like you doesn¡¯t really carry that universal appeal that a cool Sapient does.¡± He nods to Amethyst. Hehe¡­ I knew it, I¡¯m pretty cool! She stands proud and nods to herself. ¡°Just what sort of products has ISSA made of me?¡± Frank asks. And I¡¯m not middle-aged¡­ just yet. ¡°Hmm, calendars, posters, pillowcases, interactive experiences¡­ and some more hardcore products¡­¡± He clears his throat. ¡°Ahem, I think you get the gist. These sorts of things are more of my brother¡¯s specialty that he sells in his shop: ¡®Slivs¡¯ T&A¡¯.¡± ¡°What?! I read all of ISSA material from cover to cover, from their recruiting process to marketing ten years ago¡­ How can they do such a thing?¡± ¡°Ten years ago? There¡¯s your problem. Shortly after that, ISSA split from one unified organization into much smaller branches. It¡¯s been kept in the hush-hush on the public side, the reason hidden even from the employees. There are rumors of many different reasons, ranging from simple restructuring, to maximizing profits and even to just dividing the management to allow for more meddling management.¡± The storeowner leans in. ¡°But if you ask me¡­ I think it can all be traced to a singular person passing away¡­ not that ISSA would ever tell you that.¡± ¡°Who? How do you know all this?¡± ¡°Hmph, I¡¯ve got lots of connections.¡± He looks at his hand and grins. ¡°But that¡¯s enough rumors about one of my most important suppliers, wouldn¡¯t you agree?¡± ¡°Right...¡± ¡°I¡¯ve always wanted to confirm if they actually ask and get consent from their subjects for such explicit material, request you to do all this stuff post-production¡­ or if they just enforce their contractual rights. Thanks to you, I know it¡¯s all fake. ISSA just conjures up cheap fakes and imitations. I bet some of my contacts would like to know of this...¡± Frank shakes his head, processing all of it. The ISSA that he knew, and the one they¡¯ve been working with so far. When did ISSA become so shady? I used to think they were the paragons of morality¡­ I really looked up to them, what they were doing¡­ If not for twist events, I could have worked for them myself¡­ The alien hospital idea was inspired by them too... What if¡­ applying for ISSA¡¯s protection for Amethyst wasn¡¯t such a good idea in the first place? The organization does have the Intergalactic moniker at the front¡­ And when I tried to search for the details of its founding that one night, I couldn''t find any details. Just a single name¡­ but¡­ that surname is also of the Galactic Police chief¡¯s¡­? ¡°Frank¡­ are you okay?¡± ¡°I¡­ yeah. I was just thinking¡­¡± He turns to the shopkeeper. ¡°What do you know about the founding of ISSA, does the name¡­ Aldricht say anything to you?¡± Geld scoffs. ¡°Didn¡¯t I already say that was enough of the rumors? And since I¡¯ve been so forthcoming with you, I think it¡¯s time for you to return the favor.¡± ¡°Erm¡­¡± Amethyst hesitates. ¡°Thanks a lot! I¡¯ve got my kids¡¯ birthdays coming up, and Daddy¡¯s gotta make some bank for them, I¡¯m sure you understand.¡± ¡°What are you-?¡± Frank is interrupted by the storeowner¡¯s shout: ¡°Hey! The real Amethyst and Frank are here! Come and buy their merch from Geld¡¯s Toys & Accessories and they¡¯ll sign them for you, free of charge!¡± As soon as the store owner shouts that, the nearby crowds freeze at a total standstill, turning to look at them. The store owner winks at them and grins, ¡°Good luck.¡± And throws them a black marker, that Frank catches before retreating inside the store. The crowd stirs: ¡°Is that-?¡± ¡°Amethyst?¡± ¡°Can it be?¡± Most of the crowd continues on their way, but some begin murmuring and approach them. All sorts of Sapients seem interested, Garanea, Komodan, two Mun¡¯aakas, and some that they haven¡¯t seen so far. The first to arrive is a blue-skinned Sinel woman, who stops before Amethyst. ¡°Hi-¡± but she¡¯s pushed away by the gathering crowd. Another person, a Garanea-human man takes her place. ¡°Amethyst! It¡¯s great to meet you. Do you mind if I take a picture with you?¡± ¡°H-hi¡­ Go ahead.¡± ¡°Thanks!¡± They tuck next to Amethyst¡¯s side, forcing Frank out of the way, and their friend takes the picture. They leave, and the next person from the circle of people around Amethyst takes their place. ¡°I just wanted to express my support for your people to become a part of the United Galaxy. I feel like you¡¯ll be a great addition to the Galaxy as a whole with your unique talents. If you¡¯re looking for work for you or your friends, don¡¯t hesitate to contact me, I¡¯m sure there¡¯s plenty of fields you could excel at.¡± The businesswoman hands a physical, hard paper business card to her, reading: ''Felicity Hiring & Holdings Co.'' She hesitates before Amethyst¡¯s lifted blades and just impales the card on her dagger hand. ¡°I¡¯m looking forward to our future partnership.¡± ¡°R-right¡­ thanks for um, the opportunity?¡± Frank takes the card off her blade and reads it. ¡°I think we might have to watch out for them, they don¡¯t see much better than the store owner here...¡± There¡¯s movement inside the crowd, and Amethyst can see the blue woman elbow her way through. As people look at who¡¯s shoving them, their faces have conflicted reactions, and they take some distance. Soon, the woman is at the front, but a person grabs her. ¡°Hey! Stop shoving and get back to the end of the line!¡± ¡°I was here first, you¡¯re the ones who pushed me away.¡± She breaks free from her grip. ¡°My bad, but I didn¡¯t see any person before me. And I still don¡¯t.¡± She¡¯s a woman who¡¯s with the group of the first man who requested a picture. ¡°Just say the word Amethyst, and we¡¯ll drag this Sinel away from sullying your presence!¡± The Sinel is silent, but looks anything but ready to give in. ¡°Uh¡­ no-no, that won¡¯t be necessary.¡± Amethyst waves her bladed hands before her. ¡°She really was first before she got swept away.¡± The ones obstructing her groan, but let her pass. ¡°Thanks, I won¡¯t take a lot of your time, I just wanted to ask¡­ if I can have an autograph.¡± ¡°Umm¡­¡± Amethyst hesitates. Frank looks over the Sinel before them. Unlike others of her kind, she didn¡¯t hide her long blue ears. On the contrary, she''s made them more prominent with large circlet earrings, which have some sort of text that he can''t read engraved on them. Additionally, she wears spiked cones atop her head, almost akin to decoy ears, attached to a hood or perhaps to headphones underneath. She has tight jeans that came all the way up to her navel and an overly large neon-pink jacket loosely hanging around her arms across her back. A loosely fitting white shirt covered her upper body, tucked into the jeans. She¡¯s certainly the most street-smart Sinel, Frank had ever seen. She held her hand to her waist, tapping the black fingernails against herself. She looks at them both, one after the other, asking again: ¡°Can I have an autograph or not?¡± She gestures toward the shirt she wears, which seems to have once had something of significance illustrated on it, but it''s long faded away, leaving incomprehensible scribbles behind. ¡°Umm¡­ Frank? Hello? What should we do?¡± ¡°Oh, sorry.¡± Frank pops the cork on the marker. ¡°Can I just write the autographs to be from the both of us?¡± ¡°I¡¯d prefer it was actually written by her.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Amethyst, can you do it with your mouth if you hold onto this?¡± ¡°I¡­ I guess?¡± Amethyst leans down and takes the marker between her lips. The Sinel puffs out her chest toward her, it¡¯s a bit difficult to press against the soft fabric, but she manages to make a sharp stylized ''A'', between the space of her chest and shoulder on the upper right corner of the shirt. ¡°Whill dhat do?¡± Amethyst speaks with her lips held together, holding onto the marker. ¡°That¡¯s great. Thanks.¡± She looks down at the A and touches it. ¡°You¡¯re an inspiration...¡± As soon as her longer exchange seems to be over, the Sinel is pushed out of the way by the overflowing crowd. ¡°Wait, what¡¯s your name?¡± Frank asks, but he is pushed to the other direction from her, and away from Amethyst, before being spat out by the eager fans. The Sinel is nowhere to be seen anymore, concealed by the bustle of the city. I wonder if that¡¯s who I thought it was... she certainly fits the description. At the same time, Amethyst is taken over with requests: ¡°Can you sign this poster?¡± ¡°What about this box?¡± ¡°And my towel!¡± ¡°Oghay, whan ad a thime, pwease! ¡°What are you going to do today, where were you going after?¡± ¡°What about once you¡¯ve been approved by ISSA? What¡¯s the first thing you¡¯ll do?¡± ¡°Can I hug you?¡± ¡°N-no! Dhon¡¯t chome so chlose! You might ghet hurt!¡± ¡°O-okay¡­¡± Communicator models with cameras and real cameras flash, as this impromptu fan meetup venue becomes an even bigger gathering. At the outskirts, people write their updates to their social gweb accounts, their faces glued to the screens, their fingers a blur. If this meetup was known only to this street just a moment ago, that surely wouldn''t stay true for long. Damn, that shopkeep¡­ People eagerly flow into the store, as Frank leans to its window next to the door. He looks in from the outside of the crowd, and Amethyst doesn¡¯t have any time to pay him any mind. I wonder if she realized I¡¯m no longer by her side... ... Amethyst is really popular¡­ huh? ¡°Umm¡­ excuse me?¡± Two kids show up, queuing up before him. ¡°Are you, Frank?¡± ¡°That¡¯s me, yeah.¡± A grin appears on the boy''s face. ¡°You looked so cool in G-TV when you fought those Sabertigers!¡± ¡°Oh- right. Thanks.¡± Frank combs his long hair with his hand. ¡°I want to be brave like you! Even though you are just a human, like me, you really showed them.¡± ¡°It takes bravery to just come up and talk to me in the first place. I¡¯m sure you¡¯re well on your way there.¡± Frank says and the boy nods happily. ¡°But, let me make one thing clear.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You and I aren¡¯t just humans. We might not have cool swords attached to our bodies, nor can we fly or anything like that, but there are plenty of things other races can¡¯t do that we can. If it were true and we are any lesser than the others, why do you think Metropolis, a human planet, would be the cradle of the United Galaxy, the symbol of its unity between the different races? Why here, and not somewhere else?¡± ¡°Wow¡­ I think I get it.¡± The boy¡¯s eyes shine. ¡°Maybe, probably...¡± He scratches his head and grins wide. ¡°Alright, be a good kid now and go and ask your parents about it. Ask them to teach you some more of Metropolis¡¯ history and you¡¯ll get it.¡± ¡°Okay, I will!¡± After the boy runs off, a little girl takes his place. She doesn¡¯t look at Frank, keeping her face toward the ground. ¡°My mom told me not to talk to strangers¡­ but I know you from G-TV, so you¡¯re no stranger, right?¡± She lifts her head. ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s how it works, you should be wary of those you don¡¯t know personally. Don¡¯t trust things they say or promise too easily and don¡¯t follow them anywhere secluded. Okay?¡± ¡°Okay! But I trust you, so it¡¯s fine!¡± ¡°Ehh¡­ Well, do you want an autograph or something?¡± ¡°Yes, p-please.¡± She holds out a notebook which cover is stamped with some insignia of a Metropolis school. Once Frank has written her autograph, in cool longhand, the girl looks at it, and then back up again at him. ¡°I¡­ I also wanted to say¡­¡± Frank waits silently with a reassuring smile for her to work up the courage to continue. ¡°I thought you made a really good teacher¡­ I think I want to become a teacher too.¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m nothing special, but I¡¯m glad I was inspiring nonetheless.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t say that! You¡¯re like at least 178% better than all of my teachers!¡± ¡°Okay, okay. I must be better than I thought¡­¡± Or this kid must have some really terrible teachers¡­ ¡°I want to show the other kids what a good teacher is like! Teach them all about everything- and- and- everything there is to know!¡± Frank chuckles ¡°You¡¯ll make a terrific teacher, I¡¯m sure. Just study hard and you¡¯ll make it. But don¡¯t overdo it, you¡¯ve got to have the energy to teach once you¡¯re there.¡± ¡°Okay!¡± She slams the book closed between her hands and beams radiantly. ¡°I¡¯ll become the universe¡¯s best teacher, you¡¯ll see, Frank!¡± ¡°Looking forward to it!¡± Frank shouts after her, as she¡¯s already skipping away. ¡°What good kids...¡± He leans back against the window, crosses his arms, and closes his eyes. The bustle of the street turns into a calming background noise. As far as he''s concerned, Amethyst can take all the time she needs, this is her moment to enjoy. He sneaks a peek with one eye, Amethyst is busy happily talking and signing things still. She looks his way and their eyes meet. Amethyst smiles at him, and the marker slips from her mouth. She quickly catches it with her mandibles and gets it in a shaky deadlock, before it falls. Bringing it back to her mouth, she looks a bit embarrassed and continues attending to the fans instead. *** ¡°Sorry about that Frank, it took a while, didn''t it?" The street has calmed down, as Amethyst comes back to Frank. ¡°Don''t worry about it. How was it? Did you like meeting your fans?¡± ¡°Yes. It was a little strange and scary at first, with all of them surrounding me so¡­ but it was nice to hear what they had to say, and make them happy with just answering their questions and doing some autographs.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good, but¡­ I can¡¯t help but feel¡­ used.¡± ¡°I agree¡­¡± Their determined gazes meet and they both enter Geld¡¯s store. There are no more customers around, and Geld is behind the counter, his face plastered against a screen. He doesn¡¯t see them approach. Frank knocks on the wooden counter, and Geld flinches. ¡°Hey. Don¡¯t you have any shame for using us like that? I think you owe us some compensation.¡± ¡°Yeah! I¡¯m so hungry now... We haven¡¯t even eaten breakfast yet.¡± ¡°Sorry, sorry¡­¡± Geld turns the monitor further away from them. ¡°I got a little excited and overwhelmed by the presence of you two celebrities you know? You should be careful with the effect you can have on people.¡± ¡°Cut the crap. Is blaming us all you can do after you ushered the crowd on us, wasted our time, and used us to peddle your merch?¡± ¡°R-right, my apologies. I shall compensate you both adequately¡­¡± Geld turns back to the monitor and types rapidly. ¡°The average salary working promotion in my shop is¡­ then times two¡­ That¡¯d make your combined salary¡­ this.¡± He turns the monitor to show the figure. ¡°You¡¯re free to purchase products from my store amounting to that sum? How about it? Pretty generous, am I right?¡± ¡°But that¡¯s- that¡¯s nothing!¡± Amethyst looks around at the prices of products in the store. That¡¯s enough for two mugs, but not enough for that hat¡­ How are pens as expensive as shirts¡­? Something so small, versus something much more bigger? How does that make any sense? ¡°Let¡¯s just leave it, Frank... I don¡¯t have the energy for this... I¡¯m so hungry¡­¡± ¡°Hold on, we¡¯re not leaving empty-handed!¡± Frank spots a shirt on a nearby table, just in the price range. ¡°We¡¯ll take this!¡± He slams it on the counter. ¡°T-that!?¡± Amethyst exclaims. ¡°Very good.¡± Geld grins wide and runs it by the cashregister. ¡°Would you like to try it on to make sure it fits?¡± ¡°You know what, I think I do.¡± Frank winks at Amethyst. 43. Served hot and cold Frank and Amethyst leave the store, heading back toward the ¡®Served hot and cold¡¯ -cafe. ¡°Taking advantage of us like that¡­¡± Frank kicks a small dry branch as they walk, fallen from a nearby tree. It clatters along and stops, a bit closer to the small grassy growing space of the one that had dropped it. ¡°At least we got to meet some of our fans, that was fun.¡± ¡°Well, you¡¯re right about that. But still...¡± Amethyst stares at Frank¡¯s chest, more specifically, the new article of clothing he now wears. It¡¯s a stylized artwork of Amethyst¡¯s face with heart-eyes, and yellow sparkles shooting off its lovely pink aura. Above is her name in a flowing font, and below reads a phrase: ¡®A blade after my own heart.¡¯ ¡°Did you have to put it on¡­?¡± ¡°What? Don¡¯t you like- you?¡± ¡°That¡¯s not what I mean...¡± ¡°Alright, alright.¡± Frank zips up his green jacket, hiding the shirt. ¡°There, but now you won¡¯t see anything from underneath my jacket, are you sure you can keep walking?¡± ¡°Ha-ha... I should find one of those mysterious stores and get some merch of you too...¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s a good idea¡­¡± Frank turns to Amethyst. ¡°I''ve still got my old shirt in my backpack and we can stop somewhere to change if you want. But, is it really that bad if I keep wearing your cute likeness?¡± ¡°Ah-¡± Amethyst looks away. ¡°When you put it like that... I guess it¡¯s fine.¡± *** Frank follows his mental map, keeping Pirjo¡¯s instructions in mind, they should soon arrive at the cafe. Meanwhile, Amethyst thinks back on the impromptu fan meeting and realizes something. ¡°By the way¡­ I was wondering, why did those other Sapients treat that blue-skinned lady, the one who looked like Pirjo, so different from everyone else? They parted from her way and looked at her strangely... it¡¯s not like she smelt bad or anything.¡± ¡°Oh, you mean the Sinel? Well, apart from acting a little confrontational, she... well... it¡¯s because of her species.¡± ¡°Just because of... what she is?¡± ¡°I mean, because of the shared history between Sinels and Metropolis. Remember when I told you about the Spire Disaster before? That¡¯s just a nice name to cover the disaster and war in one. And both of those were caused by the Sinel.¡± ¡°Oh¡­¡± ¡°Their race killed millions of humans directly and indirectly, so it hasn¡¯t been easy for them to adjust to our society after their warmongering leadership was eliminated and they chose a path of peace.¡± Millions¡­ She knows it¡¯s a lot, but it is difficult to even grasp its real magnitude. I¡¯ve seen plenty of people on Midnight Iris and here¡­ but¡­ Would it even be possible for me to see a million different people in a lifetime? ¡°It was a great tragedy for both sides. To this day, Sinel children bear the mark of hate from those times, even those that weren¡¯t even born back then. As a result, their species has been making amends ever since. They¡¯ve forsaken their own culture, in place of emulating humans, their clothing, mannerisms, everything. They can even emulate our speech remarkably well.¡± ¡°Their culture¡­?¡± ¡°Yeah. All in the hopes of disguising as us¡ªbecoming humans¡ªso that they could lead a normal life here. To that end, all of them wear the red visors too, in order to see in the same way with their red eyes, as we do.¡± Frank looks at Sapient species passing by, and his gaze lingers on a Sinel. He has a distinctive area around him, that nobody enters. Some ignore him politely, while others stare as the hoodie-wearing everyday-Sinel passes. ¡°They don¡¯t seem to realize just how futile their efforts are when even the slightest glimpse of their skin is enough to reveal their identity. Not to mention the use of the red glasses and many other things giving them away. Or perhaps, they do it regardless, because that¡¯s all they can do to atone... Even after they have earned the lesson that taking a new home planet via force was a terrible idea, they have not found large-scale acceptance.¡± Amethyst thinks back to Pirjo, and what Frank told of his parents¡¯ history. ¡°But, some do, even if they thought otherwise before.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s a slow process, even if Metropolis¡¯ administrative government has tried its best to be fair to them, the real government¡ªthe citizens voted in favor of discrimination against Sinels. So, you can spot signs in many places where they are not permitted to enter by law and additionally, their citizenships are permanently stuck in what is basically a half-citizenship mode with voting rights.¡± ¡°That doesn¡¯t seem right... but... it¡¯s strange... which one is in the wrong?¡± ¡°It¡¯s tough for both, isn¡¯t it? For the Sinel that carry the stigma of their past, and the people who are still hurt because of their ancestors'' actions. History can¡¯t just be erased.¡± Frank sighs and shakes his head. ¡°Regardless, let¡¯s keep Pirjo¡¯s words in mind, today¡¯s agenda for us doesn¡¯t include solving all the Galaxy¡¯s, or even Metropolis¡¯ problems. And let''s not give that toyshop manager any more space in our heads either. Let''s try and enjoy our time.¡± ¡°I agree¡­ Thank you for telling me this, Frank. There¡¯s so much I still don¡¯t know, even with the basics that Amande granted me...¡± The Sinels¡­ a species who are outsiders in their new, only home... ... ¡°You said that those not even born during the war are discriminated against; are there still Sinel around who fought in the war?¡± ¡°Why? Are you interested in finding veterans to talk to?¡± ¡°... I¡¯m not sure.¡± ¡°Well, be as it may, Sinels have long lives, so many war veterans are still around. However, it doesn¡¯t help their case in the slightest. It doesn¡¯t warm many hearts when you can still come across somebody who could have been on the battlefield and killed your father or granddad for all you know... Even the Sinel whose shirt you signed could have had her hands tainted with blood.¡± Amethyst stops. ¡°I¡¯m... a Tyrchid, but that does not mean my blades have tasted human blood. Or the blood of any Sapient species! Don¡¯t say, that she must be the same as her other kin! You don¡¯t know that...¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t mean it like that... Of course, it¡¯s not a given. It¡¯s just¡­ it¡¯s hard to tell which of them fought in the war because... How do I say this?¡± Frank thinks for a moment. ¡°During the war, all the Sinel were the same, incredibly cruel, showing no mercy, committing terrible atrocities¡­ but as soon as their leadership was slain, the war ended on the spot. They all surrendered and stopped fighting. Ever since then, they have been just the opposite, repentant, submissive, and apologetic. It¡¯s like they were not themselves at the time. It¡¯s said that they were manipulated, but no scientific proof has been found to support it. It¡¯s likely only the now-dead leaders know the truth.¡± ¡°Manipulated¡­? So, they are innocent?¡± ¡°Even if it were true, does manipulation absolve them of guilt, of responsibility?¡± ¡°I¡¯m¡­ not sure. But I think¡­ they probably harbor similar feelings and grievances as humanity. They have to live with what they have done. Regardless if they were aware or willing at the time.¡± Frank looks away for a moment and gazes at the distant top of a skyscraper. It pierces the clouds and drowns in them, its top not being visible. The tallest building on the whole planet as of today, dating back to before the disaster. Nowadays, known with a different name than back then. ¡°You¡¯re probably right¡­¡± ¡°Frank¡­?¡± ¡°Oh, I was just thinking back to my parent¡¯s past¡­ Are you interested in history? We can visit the museum if you wish to know more about Metropolis and its people.¡± ¡°Yes! That¡¯d be nice.¡± ¡°Alright, it¡¯s located in Integrity though, even if it''s an adjacent quadrant to Compassion, it''s still some ways away. So, we¡¯ll have to go there by bus or some other means, but I¡¯ll try and make time for it today. You know, I¡¯ve still got plenty of things planned, or well, things we could do if you¡¯re up for them.¡± ¡°Ohh! I can¡¯t wait!¡± ¡°But first, let¡¯s find this highly recommended Cafe.¡± Amethyst and Frank continue on along the streets, taking in the sights, spotting new shops and Sapients neither had seen before. Soon enough, Amethyst spots their destination. ¡°Frank, over there! It¡¯s the Served hot and cold!¡± ¡°Over where?¡± Frank squints, and can barely make out a sign and a storefront that could be it, further down the street. ¡°Let¡¯s check it out.¡± They walk over and look the place over. The cafe has a large classy sign on the wall, reading the cafe¡¯s name in three rows. Next to the ¡®hot¡¯ text, is a beautiful bust of a maid, her species being unclear, similar to the stern but gallant upper-body figure of a butler next to ''and cold''. To the side of the name, above the door, appears to be the logo; a golden crown with horns curving out from behind it. Frank weaves through a few outdoor tables to get to the large display window. Presented in it are various menu items: delicious-looking desserts, main course meals, and soups. At the edge of the glass is a rather large display, showing only a number: 17. Looking further, inside the actual Cafe, there are a lot more tables and throngs of customers, among them, Sapients dressed in strange uniforms criss-cross all around with dignified haste. The strange outfits bear a striking resemblance to what Pirjo wore earlier, at least, the women¡¯s do. ¡°Is this¡­ really the place?¡± Amethyst answers the rhetorical question. ¡°Of course, that¡¯s what the sign says?¡± Amethyst gestures toward it, her head tilted. ¡°That¡¯s not¡­ anyway...¡± At the cafe''s door, two employees stand, a maid and a butler, welcoming customers in. The butler, a humanoid bull, dressed sharply in a formal tuxedo, a monocle on his other eye, and a pocket watch to boot. He converses with a group who seem to be regulars, his strong voice is rather audible even from a distance. The other one, also of the Bomal race is a goat person with sublime curved horns that shine with care and health. She wears a feminine maid outfit and has just finished welcoming in a party, as she turns to look at Amethyst and Frank expectantly. Frank and Amethyst make their way toward the entrance, stopping to read the folding sign near it: ¡°Served hot and cold¡ªThe first new-age maid cafe, inspired by the book: ¡®The Duty of a Maid.¡¯ Everyone welcome!¡± It also goes over the rules of the cafe and service available, but they both get caught right to the very start of it. ¡°Frank, what is a maid cafe exactly?¡± ¡°You know, I have no idea either.¡± Overhearing the conversation the maid walks up to them, her hooves clopping against the cobblestone. ¡°Please, allow me to answer. Maids and butlers are humble servants that take care of their masters every need, a sort of housekeeper if that rings more of a bell. In a Maid Cafe, we give our customers the experience of being cared for by a maid, or a butler, who personally gives them exemplary service, catering to their every need. Sort of more personal bartenders of old, we also listen and converse with our Masters, aiming to entertain, comfort, and solve their issues, while serving delicious food.¡± ¡°They sure are a lot of things¡­¡± ¡°Sound quite old fashioned¡­ though I suppose the concept isn¡¯t bad in itself.¡± ¡°That¡¯s because the tradition dates all the way back from Earth. In fact, the scriptures, books and digital archives mentioning and detailing the concept of housekeepers, maids, and Maid Cafes have existed for a long time. But it wasn¡¯t until recently with the writing and publication of a certain fictional story, that the concept was brought back up to popularity, after thousands of years.¡± ¡°Really? That¡¯s news to me.¡± ¡°If I may suggest, I recommend reading ¡®The Duty of a Maid¡¯ co-written by the siblings Lyn and Brin Diamore. It¡¯s a story told from two perspectives, painting the day-to-day, burdens and joys of the two main characters, maid Alyna and butler Fabrin on a beautiful canvas. They do their utmost to help their customers with their problems, in the process getting tangled up in conspiracies much too big for them. At the same time overcoming their insecurities and troubles while the two siblings have no idea of each other¡¯s struggle, or how they both see each other. Ah, it¡¯s such a touching story. You can purchase a copy right here in our store.¡± ¡°Do you think Pirjo set us up? Does she have some sort of for-profit contract with this place?¡± Frank whispers discreetly to Amethyst. A floppy ear of the goat-Bomal twitches and Frank realizes his mistake. Her long face smiles wide. ¡°Pirjo? You know her?¡± Amethyst nods. ¡°She recommended this cafe.¡± ¡°Ah, I see. Little wonder, since she used to work here. She still visits us from time to time, much to our delight.¡± ¡°Why did she leave?¡± Amethyst asks. ¡°By chance, I might say. She happened to see this job application offering education and a position as a replacement nurse taking care of some unfortunate couple. She decided to take it, claiming it would be a position where she could do more good. We were sad to see her go, so we let her keep her uniform, hoping she¡¯d come back one day¡­¡± The maid briefly glances at her Bomal colleague, who''s not looking their way. ¡°Have you seen her recently, how is Pirjo?¡± ¡°She¡¯s doing well. Who knows, she might return here soon.¡± Frank says. ¡°Oh... I see.¡± The maid seems to catch on to the implications that would lead to her return. ¡°Thank you for indulging me in this selfish conversation of my personal matters. I hope I have not overstepped or made you uncomfortable.¡± They both shake their heads. ¡°Full glad I am to not have fueled your ire. What fortune to have such magnanimous patrons. Now, let¡¯s get back on track. Master Amethyst, Master Frank, have I convinced you to dine with us, on this lovely morning?¡± Her hooved hands clasp together. ¡°Master¡­?¡± Amethyst asks. ¡°My apologies, I assumed¡­ If you do not like the term, what sort of a title would you like instead? Perhaps: Miss, Duchess, Queen, Princess, Empress¡­? Please, feel free to suggest anything.¡± All these other titles are a bit much... although... would it be disrespectful to be asked to be called... a Goddess? Amethyst shakes her head. ¡°Master is fine...¡± ¡°What about you, is ¡®Master Frank¡¯ agreeable?¡± ¡°I suppose so¡­ how¡¯d you know our names? Actually, never mind...¡± The maid smiles knowingly with her wispy white goat beard whisking in the slight breeze as she guides them to her colleague at the door. ¡°This is Ismael, he will show you inside.¡± ¡°Pleased to meet you, esteemed guests, please, come with me.¡± The bull-Bomal bows his head and gestures to the double doors in front of them before taking the lead himself. ¡°Thanks.¡± Frank steps on the inviting red carpet lying on the street before the doors, and looks up at the vines lining the door frame, that blossom in large blooms of pink and yellow. Carefully, Amethyst follows and steps on the carpet, but it seems to be made of sterner stuff than she could have imagined and her sharp legs don¡¯t pierce it. The light brown wooden doors of intricate design slide open automatically, disappearing inside of the walls, as Ismael occupies the right side of the doors, keeping them open with his presence. His hand is extended towards the cafe, and with a bowed head, he waits for Frank and Amethyst to enter. They pass the threshold into the spacious indoors, and first hits the slightly warmer temperature and the scent of that sweet street corner bakery, mixed in with the rich smell of cooking and spices of a restaurant. Decorated wooden tables of slightly altering sizes are spread around evenly with masterfully crafted details of swirls and curves on their legs and edges. Their tops are covered with white lace tablecloths, which transform gradually into pretty patterned fabric toward the middle. Almost all seats are taken, occupied by all sorts of Sapients and groups, those who have arrived alone, now accompanied by a maid or a butler. Friend groups talk loudly and erupt in laughter periodically, some of which are told to quiet down, and couples sit by candlelight, mostly at the edges near the walls. It¡¯s a harmonious mess, somehow all of these people using the cafe differently fit together in one space. The maids and butlers inside are as diverse as the clientele: some have thick and long tails, others have horns or other appendages in various places, their one unifying factor being the theme of their clothing. Some only show their eyes, otherwise covered entirely, perhaps for the safety of themselves or their patrons, while some are hardly covered at all be that head or body. To Amethyst¡¯s fortune, some of the servers are rather tall, likely playing a part in the rather high indoor ceiling. Although, she still has to crouch a little, whenever there is a chandelier in her way. Ismael leads them to an empty two-seater table near the window, Frank sits with his back to the window, leaving Amethyst with the corridor seat. ¡°Here is our menu.¡± The bull-butler hands Frank a menu, and then as he is about to give it to Amethyst, he realizes a problem. ¡°Master, please allow me to hold it for you. Just tell me when you¡¯d like the page to be turned.¡± Ismael takes a knee and holds the menu before the seated Amethyst. ¡°Oh! If you don¡¯t mind¡­¡± ¡°Of course not, I am simply doing my duty. However, if this is not to your liking, I may also read the menu aloud to you instead, if that would suit you better?¡± ¡°This is quite okay- I mean... adequate.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± Amethyst¡¯s eyes shift and track along the pages, taking in the information, her nod being a signal for Ismael to turn the page. As she reaches the end of the menu, she looks at Frank, who¡¯s glued to his thin red leather book. ¡°Frank¡­ have you decided?¡± Without moving a muscle, he glances at Amethyst just by shifting his eyes, before looking back at the menu. ¡°I¡¯m not sure yet.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ I don¡¯t know either. That¡¯s why I asked¡­ It¡¯s hard to decide when I don¡¯t know what anything really tastes like¡­¡± ¡°If you do not have any dietary requirements and are feeling indecisive, I would recommend the ¡®Horizons of the day.¡¯¡± Ismael flips Amethyst¡¯s menu to the special section. ¡°It is a full-course meal from an assortment of dishes. Food¡ªhot and cold¡ªand snacks from a wide selection that changes daily. It is a great way to expand your culinary horizons and discover new favorites that you can then order more of in your next visits, or right away, of course.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ I see.¡± ¡°It offers different meals for the both of you, appetizers, a main course, and a dessert. We can keep it a complete surprise, or if you have some requests, we can take them into account to suit it more to your tastes.¡± ¡°I want my dessert to be some sort of ice cream! And¡­ no soups, please.¡± ¡°Very good, so it shall be, Master Amethyst.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t really have a preference, perhaps something with fish in it?¡± ¡°Certainly, Master Frank.¡± Frank lifts his gaze from the menu, but his eyes snap back. ¡°Oh, and¡­¡± Frank takes another look at the prices on the menu. ¡°Since Amethyst has a half-citizenship and has no wealth to her name, she¡¯s eligible for one free meal a day. Can we use that to pay for her portion?¡± ¡°Ah, I see. Unfortunately, the Welfare Act does not cover meals that contain a full-course meal like this. Technically this would be three meals.¡± ¡°Oh- right, sorry. I wasn¡¯t sure of the specifics...¡± ¡°No need to apologize. In fact, since this is our esteemed Masters¡¯ first time here, we would be honored to allow this arrangement despite it. To do less after such a sincere query would certainly tarnish our reputation.¡± Ismael¡¯s eyes glance at Frank, his brief gaze sending a clear message to not expect such charity again. He receives Amethyst¡¯s Citizenship ID from Frank and scans it. ¡°If you have no further requests, I implore you to wait, while I go check up on other customers, your food will arrive post-haste.¡± Ismael looks at the two of them, and as there is no rebuttal, he leaves. ¡°Metropolis is amazing! Free food on demand¡ªit¡¯s just like my home!¡± Amethyst rejoices. ¡°I¡¯ve never thought about it that way, but I suppose it is.¡± ¡°Is there anything you don¡¯t have here? You¡¯ve already got the trees, nature, and animals so close by, and now, free food as well!¡± Frank laughs. ¡°Well¡­ this ''Mealfare*'' hasn¡¯t been in its current form for more than a few hundred years. So it¡¯s still a bit new, at least, I think. However, the principle it is based on is a key part of the constitution of Metropolis: taking care of its citizens. It keeps crime born out of desperation in check, by providing means to survive to those not so well off.¡± ¡°That¡¯s nice.¡± Maybe I should start thinking about things like these for Midnight Iris¡­ what if ISSA asks me about its laws and customs? ¡°It is. Even if I was a bit reluctant to return, I really love this city. And, well, the whole planet too. This is one of the many things I feel it does right, not that everything is perfect, mind you.¡± ¡°Seems pretty perfect to me.¡± ¡°Well, as far the welfare aspects go, I can¡¯t really complain. I think it helped us out of a few tight spots in my childhood. Not that I knew it back then, but later on I¡¯ve pieced together that we only ate ¡®take out¡¯ when things were tough.¡± Frank sidetracks to talk about some events from his childhood. Amethyst enjoys listening to him talk, but it feels a little awkward at the same time. Not because of kid-Frank¡¯s shenanigans or the events he regales, but because the nostalgic glint in his eyes seems so foreign to her. Amethyst eyes wander to the big screen dominating one wall of the restaurant, showing names of five hundred restaurants, numbered from top to bottom. ¡®Served hot and cold¡¯ appears at the very tail end of it momentarily, before disappearing back down into obscurity. For someone without a past, would that be her fate too? There is no nostalgia, no memories to be had of somebody who appears from thin air. Of somebody who fades away once her brief time in the spotlight is over? Now everyone is watching her, but once she either succeeds or fails at the court of ISSA, there¡¯s no telling if anyone will remember her. No¡­ she doesn''t need others to remember her, as long as at least one, specific person, does. ... She has no past¡­ but as much as she lives in the present moment now, just like there¡¯s always a future, what were her past experiences with Frank, if not her past? Upon that realization, a yearning look of days passed appears on her face, pulling up her lips and tinting her eyes with shine. I get it now. *** * The Anti-starvation and Desperation Act, has a section called ''Mealfare'' by many, that allows Sapients who are proven to be under a certain wealth amount, to dine twice a day at participating restaurants for free. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.Each restaurant is allowed to set its ¡°quota¡± of free meals they will serve for each meal period according to their preferences and capabilities. The system is surveyed and managed using the citizen¡¯s ID cards and the individual must be able to present it to be eligible for this service and have remaining dining opportunities left for that day. For all of these dishes that are served to the needy, Metropolis pays back each restaurant 70% of the meal''s price, and as a further incentive, the restaurants that make it to the yearly Top-500 Meal Welfare leader board, are all paid a sum of money, that exponentially rises the higher the position. Along with being able to advertise themselves as a great benefactor and contributing member of society in their ad campaigns and physical locations. Apart from the number of dishes served, the leader board takes into account employee amount, net profit, dish prices, and total amount of restaurant locations, to objectively rate the chains that are doing the best in providing to Metropolis and its citizens without disparaging the efforts of smaller businesses. While this system is rather expensive to maintain, it has been calculated time and again, that the cost of healthcare, mental health services, and a decrease in crime pays it back more than enough to keep it a priority for Metropolis to maintain along its other supporting Welfare systems. *** ¡°I apologize for the wait. Here are your Horizon dishes. A refreshing Metropolis¡¯ special salad for Master Amethyst, and a delectable silver birch slug saut¨¦ed to perfection for Master Frank.¡± Ismael lays down the dishes in front of his patrons and puts down a crystalline jug of citrime-flavored water along with two glasses. Then he bows and leaves as they thank him. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Amethyst looks between her and Frank¡¯s plates, the sizeable golden slug simmers on Frank¡¯s plate. It¡¯s crispy as he lifts it and dips it into the few droplets of sauce artistically spread around the plate, before slurping the whole thing into his mouth. ¡°Mm¡­ What?¡± Frank wipes his fingers clean and taps his lips with a napkin. ¡°Nothing¡­¡± That looked delicious¡­ Amethyst shakes her head and takes a closer look at her salad. On top of a few green leaves, and as equally green grapes, some sort of walnuts, and three slices of no-doubt, local peach. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to eat?¡± ¡°Of course...¡± Amethyst is about to lower herself to eat off the plate, but she notices a few gazes from other customers. Wondering if she¡¯s doing something wrong, she straightens herself back up. She surveys the area and spots everyone else using cutlery to eat. A fork and a knife are the most common utensils, though, one person has chopsticks, and a very pale-skinned person also uses his incredibly long and sharp fingernails to skewer meat and pop it into his mouth. ¡°Is the dish a bit too green for you?¡± Frank asks before sipping some slightly bitter and sour water from his glass. ¡°It¡¯s that too, but...¡± Amethyst uses one of her dagger hands to try and stab the grape, but its elastic surface makes it bounce off onto Frank¡¯s plate. ¡°Woah! Careful there.¡± ¡°Uhm¡­ you can have that¡­¡± ¡°Cheers.¡± Frank impales it with a fork effortlessly and gobbles it up. Rrgh¡­ Amethyst stabs the walnut next, and it shoots off like a bullet somewhere neither of them catch sight of. ¡°Maybe try to be a bit more gentle with it?¡± Amethyst cools her nerves, and slowly and deliberately stabs the slice of peach. Success! However, when she attempts to lift it, it slides off. No matter how she tries, the juicy fruit slice slips and slides from his grasp time and again. The more she stabs it, the more it breaks apart and gets hacked into smaller and smaller pieces. Frank watches the growing frustration of Amethyst, feeling sorry and at the same time, trying not to laugh. As he¡¯s about to ask if she needs help, Ismael arrives next to their table. ¡°Ahem. Dear patrons, would this walnut belong to you?¡± The bull-Bomal firmly places the nut on the table. ¡°Y-yes¡­¡± Amethyst answers and looks up at him. ¡°I hope that you are not taking advantage of our goodwill, to play such lowbrow pranks in our establishment. I was informed that another of our reputable Master¡¯s got a nasty whack on the head from this. You can surely explain this, can you not?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but it¡¯s hard for me to eat this dish. You see-¡± Amethyst stabs another walnut, and it flies off, hitting the front window with a resounding ting. Everyone, be they a maid, butler, or customer, hears the sound and quiets down for a fleeting moment. ¡°Young Miss,¡± Ismael has grabbed Amethyst¡¯s wrist, but a touch too late. He promptly releases her arm and looks away. ¡°No need to demonstrate further, I believe you.¡± Hot air puffs out from his large nostrils and he takes out a napkin from his chest pocket, and starts to shine his horns. Both of which have metal knobs at the end of them, decorated with gold and silver, but in a refined way, without making them gaudy. After this extremely quick clean, Ismael tucks in the cloth, and turns back to Amethyst, seeming more composed. ¡°Master Amethyst. If you have trouble eating you should have relied on us, help in our establishment is but a call away. Since I am here now, please, allow me to assist. I will feed you.¡± ¡°Oh! Thank you.¡± ¡°It would be my pleasure, Master Amethyst.¡± From his belt, he lifts the cover of a toolbox-like pouch and takes out a blunt butter knife, and a rather big spoon, his chosen arsenal for this endeavor. He spins them around with his four rather stubby fingers, surprisingly dexterously before starting to load up the spoon with salad. ¡°Are you ready, Master?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Amethyst opens her mouth wide, and the sharp mandibles shoot out. Ismael stops for an almost undetectable moment, before proceeding as normal. He tips the spoon into Amethyst¡¯s mouth past the grasping appendages. Frank watches in exasperation for a moment, before turning his head away. Looking around the restaurant, tapping his fork against the napkin on the table soundlessly, his eyes wandering everywhere but at Amethyst. He pours himself some more water, which he only proceeds to rotate in his glass. Amethyst looks at Frank in confusion while being fed, this isn¡¯t the reaction she was expecting from him. She thinks about how to broach the subject, but cannot come up with anything, not even anything else to talk about. The growing uneasiness of the table consumes her thoughts. Before she knows it, the most bland meal of her life is over, only the very faint trace of peach lingering in her throat. ¡°Master, do you require anything else?¡± ¡°Ismael, would you give us a bit of space?¡± The Bomal looks at Amethyst and nods. ¡°Very well. Call upon me, should you require further services.¡± As soon as the butler is out of earshot, Frank starts talking. ¡°Amethyst... I-¡± ¡°Maybe you should have asked earlier if you wanted to feed me, instead of snickering at my struggling!¡± ¡°I¡­ I¡¯m sorry...¡± ¡°No... it¡¯s not your fault. I¡¯m just kidding... well, half-kidding. While it would have been nice of you to volunteer yourself at any point... I should have just asked for your help.¡± Amethyst smiles awkwardly. ¡°Communication is a two-way street, after all. I thought I had learned that already.¡± ¡°Thank you, Amethyst. I should have tried harder myself as well...¡± It just¡­ I couldn''t bear to look at you being fed by another. ¡°Though¡­ it¡¯s still embarrassing to always have to ask for help...¡± ¡°I get that-¡± Ismael arrives with the next dishes. ¡°Already?¡± Amethyst asks. ¡°I do not mean any offense, but it did take your table rather long to finish the appetizers.¡± He says as he distributes the plated food without looking at her. ¡°How come her dish looks to be as hard to eat as the last one?¡± ¡°I deeply apologize, but the dishes were already being prepared during the last incident. If you wish, Master Amethyst, I can assist you in consuming it again-¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s fine! I can do it on my own this time!¡± She meets eyes with Frank. ¡°And even if I can¡¯t¡­ I know who can help me.¡± Ismael nods with a warm smile. ¡°Very well. However, I am confident in your abilities, Master Amethyst.¡± he bows and takes his leave. ¡°I could switch dishes with you¡­¡± Frank looks down at his creamy fish soup, which has potatoes and some other vegetable garnishes he cannot quite recognize. With it, came a small plate of salty caramel fudges, the cubes stacked on top of each other in a presentable pile. ¡°...if mine wasn¡¯t even harder for you to eat.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, Frank. I¡¯ll give it my all this time.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good, and¡­ what else?¡± ¡°And... I won¡¯t get so carried away...¡± ¡°With that, let¡¯s dig in, shall we?¡± Frank uses the small fork that came with the separate fudge plate, to drop one cube into the soup. The already soft caramel starts to melt further. He waits a moment, before he chips a part of it, filling the rest of the spoon. He brings it to his lips, and smells the wonderful aroma, before devouring it, savoring the combination before swallowing. ¡°Mmm, what a combination. This is the best Fish Caramel soup I¡¯ve ever had!¡± Meanwhile, Amethyst has a large plate of rice, stacked into a circular mound, with limetrus slices around it, and some of this sour juice already squeezed on top of it. On a separate pot-like shallow plate, she has what is undoubtedly curry, with meat of unknown origin mixed in a thick sauce. On yet a third plate, she has more green salad, which she decided to ignore entirely. ¡°That¡¯s nice. I¡¯m not that impressed yet.¡± Amethyst carefully stabs a piece of meat, the juicy piece stretches as she lifts it, but stays intact. With a shaking blade, she manages to drop it in her mouth. It delightfully slides down her throat, the trails of sauce leaving a slight tingling hotness after them, along with so much flavor. ¡°I¡¯ve never tasted something so much before¡­¡± She skewers another piece, ¡°Frank, you¡¯ve got to try this!¡± And offers it across the table to Frank. He looks at the blade pointed at him for a second. ¡°Alright, just keep still, and I¡¯ll get it.¡± Frank extends his fork toward the meat. ¡°No! Use your mouth! It¡¯s my turn to feed you!¡± She slightly shakes the sideways blade. ¡°Ah- right.¡± Frank looks at the blade, and then straight at Amethyst¡¯s aquamarine eyes as he puts her mouth around the tip of her blade. As he pulls the meat into his mouth with his teeth, his upper lip touches her blade¡¯s side. It feels like a smooth stone, eroded for centuries in fierce rapids, but instead of freshwater and fish, it tastes like curry sauce. He¡¯s not sure if it¡¯s his imagination, but there¡¯s also a hint of the sweetness of Pango berries from her dagger. Frank pulls away. ¡°Yeah, you- it tastes really good. I mean¡­ Y-you¡¯re dripping sauce all over the tablecloth, let me get that for you.¡± Frank gently takes hold of Amethyst¡¯s wrist and starts wiping her blade clean with a back-and-forth motion, like petting something soft. Each stroke of this affectionate and meticulous napkin cleaning carries meaning, showing Amethyst that new emotion, she recognizes by name now. It takes over for a moment, reminding of those previous times when he took care of her like this. The warm and fuzzy feeling of those times resurfaces along with this new experience layered on top, like savoring a tuft of meringue on your tongue, sweet and fleeting, dissolving before long. Once Frank finishes, her blade feels brand new, like something that you don¡¯t know is dirty, until it''s clean again. ¡°Thank you.¡± Amethyst reflects herself on her crystalline blade. ¡°Of course. Don¡¯t be shy to ask for help, because I love helping you.¡± ¡°Oh Frank¡­ I love helping you too, whenever I get the rare chance, at least.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about that, besides, who is keeping count?¡± ¡°True enough.¡± They get back to their own dishes, and before long, Amethyst succeeds in emptying her pot of meat, now left with just a lot of sauce and rice. Frank looks over and recognizes her plight. ¡°You know, you¡¯re supposed to eat the rice with the meat, otherwise it¡¯ll be really bland by itself. However, that doesn¡¯t really matter-¡± Frank takes the sauce pot, ¡°if we do this,¡± and pours it over the rice. ¡°Wow! You can just do that?¡± ¡°Of course, now it should taste much better and maybe make it easier to eat for you.¡± ¡°Right.¡± With one hand, Amethyst scoops rise on the side of her blade. Much of the rice crumbles away like a sandcastle, but the foundation remains. As she begins to move her hand, despite its stickiness and long grains, the foundation of her castle tips backward. Apart from a paltry few pieces, it all sinks back into the white sea of her plate. ¡°Ooh, that was close.¡± She tries again, only to fail once more. She learns that once a segment of the rice hill is separated and loses its form, it¡¯s not getting its firmness back. Amethyst sighs deeply and comes up with a new strategy. Using both of her blades like a wedge, she shovels up a veritable feast of rice at once. It¡¯s a firm grip, although as steady as two knives pressed together could possibly be. Frank watches in silent anticipation, eager to see her succeed. Despite Amethyst¡¯s brilliant idea, she has a new problem. How is she supposed to eat off of her wedge? It¡¯s much too wide to drop rice straight into her mouth, and moreover, the scoop is facing the wrong direction. She looks around, a few people are looking at her, at least it was less than before. I¡¯ll eat the way I can. The way I want. They can all look if they want to. She brings her hands higher, but her form gets more unstable, the more she does, so she also cranes her neck down, to meet it halfway. If nothing else, maybe she can still nibble some of it up with her mandibles. She wants to know what rice tastes like, even if she might not be able to chew and feel its texture, it¡¯s still going to be a new experience, a new sensation. Even if apparently it¡¯s supposed to be quite bland on its own. Though, thanks to Frank, she¡¯s going to have enchanted rice, blessed with sauce. Suddenly, her front armor hits the table, unable to bend any further forward, she instead brings her hands even higher. Her blades shake the higher they go, the grains of rice jumping off one by one, until her wedge fails, and the rice explodes into the air, raining down upon the table. The cause: her elbow blade hitting the ground due to the angle, causing a shockwave that proved impossible to recover from. ¡°Aaaaagh! I can¡¯t do it! It¡¯s impossible!¡± Amethyst¡¯s wrists impact the table. ¡°I give up-¡± Amethyst¡¯s wailing is interrupted. Something is wrong. On her right arm, something feels strange. It¡¯s heavier, like something restrains it slightly, like a sudden weight presses on it. A strange sound emanates, right behind her. Something gurgles, like blowing bubbles on the surface of water. Amethyst lifts her gaze, opposite of her, Frank is unmoving with a neutral expression. ¡°Now¡­ don¡¯t panic¡­¡± ¡°W-why?¡± A grim feeling grips at her insides. ¡°What is there to¡­¡± She notices everything is quiet, the bustling and chattering¡ªall gone. Her right arm shakes slightly without her input. She looks behind her. Like a knife through a juicy cake, her long elbow blade has impaled a man from his back, straight through his chest. Amethyst shoots up from her chair, the man slides off her blade, and slumps to the floor face-first with a splash of blood. Her legs tangle and collide with their table as she recoils, sending the pitcher of water and their dishes to the floor, shattering and clattering. At that point, the whole cafe comes back to life. People shout and scream, run for their lives, or are left paralyzed in fear. Some of them point, blame and call her with incriminating names. A maid with a completely covered face, with only slight blond curls pushing out, comes in between Amethyst and the man, shouting something she cannot comprehend at the moment. A maid and a butler, one of which is Ismael, appear and drag the man a bit further away, before starting to treat her with a first aid kit. The bull-butler glances at Amethyst, giving her a look that can be interpreted only one way. W-what¡­ What have I done? All sound is muddled, sounding like it''s way too slow, or too fast, simply incomprehensible. The masked maid spreads her thick arms in a confrontational manner, with her shoulders, she¡¯s like an iron door barring Amethyst¡¯s way to the victim. A human woman tries to jump from behind the maid at her, in response, Amethyst takes a few more steps backward and makes a table fall. The muscular maid stops the unknown woman and takes her away, with her absence, the view opens up closer to where the man is, but he is now concealed by the maids and the surrounding upset crowd. What is happening¡­? I- I was¡­ then- what- Amethyst averts her gaze to the floor, but only the initial blood of the man awaits her there. A trail of blood snakes across the floor, toward her feet. Like a touch of it would kill her on the spot, she dodges away from it and knocks more tables and chairs aside. ¡°Ame-¡± Was it my fault? Did I¡­ kill him¡­? When I brought my arms down¡­ my elbow... ¡°Amethyst!¡± The world''s sounds come back to normal, the cacophony is deafening. ¡°Amethyst!¡± She lifts her gaze, to see Frank in front of her. ¡°Are you okay?¡± ¡°Am I¡­? N-no¡­ Frank, stay away¡­ it¡¯s not-¡± She takes a step back, her leg gets caught in a tipped chair, she almost trips, and takes support from a table with her blades, the white tablecloth is ripped apart, almost cleaving the table in half. Red bloodstains splatter onto the table. ¡°I-I didn¡¯t-¡± Her legs visibly tremble and buckle. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to-¡± ¡°Calm down, Amethyst!¡± Frank says and approaches, his hands raised. ¡°Please, it¡¯ll be okay!¡± Frank walks towards her with careful, deliberate steps, but Amethyst retreats again. ¡°S-stay back!¡± She lifts her dagger hands in front, but her eyes catch a glimpse of her right elbow blade. Drip... From her violet blade, from a part of her, falls the vital fluids of another Sapient being. This cannot be real. She looks back at Frank, his eyes flush with worry, his mouth a contorted line. He still holds her hands up. ¡°It wasn¡¯t your fault,¡± he takes another step. ¡°Come on, Amethyst.¡± How do you know that!? What if it was? My¡­ kin killed those humans¡­ ate your friends... What if I¡¯m just the same? ... How could I ever think to forget that? How could I dream of fitting in? Maybe it¡¯s best I can¡¯t see his bloody corpse right now... Who knows what could happen if I did... ... I thought¡­ I could pretend to be something more, just because of this¡­ curse Grent gave me. ¡°Hey? Amethyst! Are you listening?¡± Drip... Should I even try...? What does it matter anymore? I¡¯m done. Even if today was great¡­ it¡¯ll all just fade away. Frank¡¯s going to abandon me. But I suppose that was always going to happen. It was a miracle he stuck around after that horrible scene anyway... And it was my fault he had to kill another person... I should be glad that ''us'' even happened... Now that it¡¯s... Over... ¡°Amethyst!¡± Frank¡¯s words and a loud ripping of fabric, tear Amethyst¡¯s morose thoughts asunder. ¡°It was an accident.¡± Frank¡¯s voice is soft, as he speaks from close, suddenly right in front of her. His voice is a soothing melody, sensual like a whisper to her non-traditional ears. On his right hand, a large torn piece of tablecloth. He places his right hand on Amethyst¡¯s chest and leans on her for support to reach her elbow blade. He begins to clean up the blood from it with the ripped tablecloth. Amethyst watches in shock, unable to get a word out, or take her eyes off Frank, completely overwhelmed for a moment. ¡°Are you not... afraid?¡± ¡°Truth be told... in the past, I was a bit scared of you. But not anymore. I know you¡¯d never hurt me. That you¡¯d never hurt others willingly. That much is clear.¡± How can you say that with such frustrating confidence? How do you know that? ¡°¡­¡± Even I don¡¯t know that... Frank finishes his cleaning and throws the bloody rag over his shoulder. He looks up to Amethyst¡¯s shaken eyes. ¡°It¡¯ll all be alright.¡± He hugs her tightly. ¡°A-ah¡­¡± ¡°I promise.¡± The sirens of the Galactic Police sound in the distance, growing louder. ¡°Do you¡­ want to flee?¡± Frank asks as he feels the uneasy shaking of her body. ¡°Yes...¡± ¡°I won¡¯t let you.¡± ¡°I know...¡± Amethyst hugs Frank back, her bladed hands curling across his back. ¡°Thank you¡­ for everything.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Amethyst''s chuckle is dry and hollow and she struggles to speak. ¡°It¡¯s a strange thing... how you can calm me so... Without you, I...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t say it. I¡¯m right here, and I¡¯m not going anywhere.¡± ¡°...Liar.¡± The warmth and pressure upon her armorplates increase until it suddenly ends. Frank backs away, and Galactic Police officers surround them, he holds his hands up, and Amethyst follows his example. ¡°We will come along peacefully.¡± ¡°F-Frank? But you didn¡¯t do anything!?¡± In response to her, Frank just smiles while he¡¯s being cuffed. ¡°B-but!¡± Amethyst allows her hands to be brought behind, and she is cuffed tightly around her wrists. ¡°Be strong, Amethyst,¡± Frank says before he¡¯s taken away by a swarm of officers. A Galactic Police officer speaks to her, as other officers hold her arms. ¡°You¡¯re coming with us, come on, move it.¡± ¡°Frank¡­¡± The words of authority don¡¯t register, it¡¯s like a thick mist lays all around, like a haze fills her mind. ¡°Do you hear me? Walk!¡± One step at a time, Amethyst is made to walk, the officers helping her along. Her surroundings are filtered out of her mind and sight during her escort. The whole scene, all of this is so sudden, like a bad dream. One moment she and Frank were walking around town, having fun at the cafe, and then... How could this happen? 44. Galactic Police Dept. Inside four walls of smooth gray concrete, there is no sound: no muffled conversation or faraway steps, not a creak or a breath. An unreal moment, oppressive and foreign, as if time itself has stopped and left Amethyst behind. Alone, she sits on a wall-mounted slab of metal serving as a terrible chair, her wrists still cuffed behind her. Just how long have I been here...? She''s used to the quiet as for the most part, Midnight Iris is silent and peaceful, but not quite like this. There''s always wind, rustling of leaves, sounds of bugs or birds, something, anything... to tell of the passage of time, to show that life still exists around her. But now¡­ all she hears are new, foreign sounds, despite them originating from herself. The minute sounds of pulsing somewhere deep in her chest, the sizzling in her surface-level veins, and the rustle of her antennas¡¯ whiskers as they slightly move as she listens. Hearing, the most starved sense in this space is also one of her strongest ones. Just sitting here, listening to the deafening sounds of her own body is excruciating. Amethyst opens her eyes, and gazes across the windowless space of monotony, to the single source of light¡ªof interest in the room. A tiny LED light, embedded into the ceiling, shimmers down painting the space in its gloomy light. Like on a planet whose radiant lifeline was dimming, a moment away from being snuffed out, on the brink of plunging existence into the awaiting deathly cold and endless darkness. How long do I have to be here? The light flickers. Amethyst stands and slowly walks past the floor-bound bed, past the latrine, and to the steel door, reinforced with additional metal plating. A routine she had repeated more times now than she could keep track of. Should I...? She stabs its indomitable surface with the end of her elbow blade, letting it slide down it before her arm limply swings back down. Not even a scratch is left behind, for now. I could easily break through this door... She looks at her elbow blades, twisted to the front due to her cuffed hands behind. The long crystal blades are flush with blood and dripping guts onto the floor. Amethyst flinches, her hands rattling the cuffs, and as she blinks her eyes again, her blades are clean once more. Did that man... die? Is this my punishment? If they want me to be here... in this room all alone... I will... I will wait. Even if I want to leave, I must stay. I feel¡­ bad. Maybe waiting... will make it better. He said... be strong. I don''t think Frank wants me to escape. But what if... I don¡¯t feel strong? Amethyst retreats to the back of the cell, and sits down once again. Her hand blades scrape against the stone wall. I¡¯ll try my best, Frank. She closes her eyes. Sounds of countless animals, whines, yelps, and barks fill her hearing. Talking, shouts, and a camera flash. She''s in a cage with a strong, whirring, and sparking, electrical force field around her. There is a crowd of people surrounding her cage, but nobody she recognizes. As she tries to tilt her jail to escape like before, the electric walls close in. Regardless of her blades, of her fight, the walls painfully shock her and squeeze until she can no longer move. Then, the white electric light is gone, and darkness falls, her darkvision activates. She recognizes this cargo hold, but she cannot move. A tremendous force presses her against the steel wall. Again, trapped in place, stuck in a small space, left without options other than to watch. Before her, is a steel hoverplate, deactivated and secured down, with her mother¡¯s crushed body tied on top, bobbing up and down, smacking against the hard surface again and again. Green oozes from her body and pours out onto the floor in great gushes with the sick rhythm of the spaceship¡¯s violent movements. The blood keeps on flowing, without an end. The open space gradually fills with her life force, on this endless lift-off. Soon, the space resembles a pond, rather than anything indoors. The blood of her Mother keeps rising, all the way up to her neck, and yet, she still couldn''t move. Couldn¡¯t do anything to alter her fate. Clack! Amethyst awakens and shoots up, blinking her weary eyes against the growing light, as the iron door opens further with a squeak and a screech. ¡°Come with me.¡± A man in a blue and black Galactic Police Uniform greets her at the doorway. He has a heavy-looking large black pistol holstered on his waist, partly covered by his jacket, and on the other side a rubber baton with a telescoping handle. Amethyst walks out of the cell, the officer gives her space to exit and gestures with his hand down the corridor. ¡°This way, walk and I will follow.¡± He waits for Amethyst to start walking, and then does as he promised. They journey across the dismal hallway, filled with holding cell doors, matching perfectly to the gray and depressing walls. ¡°Take this right.¡± She¡¯s escorted through doors opened by a guarding officer to them, that leads to the interrogation wing, labeled in a small plaque above the door. ¡°That one, Room C3, go inside.¡± Without a word, Amethyst approaches the door that lacks a handle, dark blue with a white ¡®C3¡¯ painted on it. As if automated, or somebody watching her every move, the door slides aside when she approaches it. She looks inside. A sterile and bleak space, with a metal table and chairs, with a man sitting in one already. ¡°Come inside, sit down for a while.¡± As Amethyst enters the room, the door zooms closed again. She sits down at the table, facing a large wall-size mirror, and before this mirror, across the table, is the beholder of an unkempt comb mustache and sharp eyes. ¡°I¡¯m Officer Jensen. Amethyst, correct? ¡°Yes.¡± The officer leans back, lifts his feet on the table, and crosses his legs. He rifles through the notes in his hands, however, the stack of papers is quite big and he manages to almost decorate the floor with them. He sighs and sits down properly, leaning forward on the table, and rearranges the stack of papers again. Interrogation... it¡¯s kind of like an interview... right? I¡¯m not supposed to speak if not asked, I think... but...? ¡°Is the man... is he okay?¡± Jensen looks at her from underneath his brow, then claps the paper stack against the table. ¡°Alright, we can start from there if you wish.¡± He singles out a slip of paper and slides it across the table in front of Amethyst. The photograph is of a man with a happy if not a little sly smile. His eyebrows are quite massive and fuzzy, though perhaps seem exaggerated by his hairline that follows their borders. Pressed tightly against his cheek, is a brunette woman, she radiates joy from the shapely crevices that her smile forms on her face. ¡°This is the victim, Vic Chokran and next to him, his wife Hoana, do you know either of them? Have you seen them prior to this incident?¡± ¡°No... I don¡¯t know them. Though¡­ I think she¡­ Hoana tried to get to me in the cafe, shouting something at me, before somebody took her away... I can¡¯t remember what she said or who took her away...¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°Is... umm... Vic, okay?¡± ¡°He fell into a coma at the site and has been unconscious ever since. However, I hear his condition has stabilized.¡± ¡°A coma... when will he awaken?¡± ¡°It is unknown if he will ever wake.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°So, let¡¯s go through the incident next. Can you tell me what exactly happened at the cafe known as ¡®Served hot and cold¡¯?¡± Amethyst sighs and tries to untangle her thoughts. The events prior were clear, but after her frustration and turning around to see the man impaled¡­ it gets blurry. As if that timeframe was compressed into a single second that passed in an instant when she tried to recall it in detail. After that second, suddenly she was already arrested and on her way to the Station. And before she could even wrap her head around everything, she¡¯d been detained in a cell. ¡°It¡¯s all really¡­ hazy. I was just having a three-course breakfast with Frank, and suddenly I felt this¡­ weight on my blade. I don¡¯t know how he came to be... impaled. After that... screams, shouts... I... I think I accidentally ruined a lot of furniture... then Frank... he came to hug me and help me... Then we were arrested...¡± The man writes something down, and then continues: ¡°There are reports of a muscular female maid at the scene, eyewitnesses say that the man bumped into her, or that she pushed him. Video footage from the scene also supports their claims, though the act wasn¡¯t captured from favorable angles. Do you remember seeing this maid?¡± He shows a surveillance camera picture of the maid, whose eyes are only visible, in the high-quality picture, a few strands of curly blond hair are visible despite her covered head and face. Her cheeks appear full underneath the fabric, like she''s holding her breath, or has some habits of rodents that hold food in their mouths for extended periods with the power of their facial muscles. So¡­ it wasn¡¯t my fault? ¡°Yeah, actually, she came at me very aggressively right after Vic... but then... then she stopped... Hoana from jumping at me... Yeah, I think that¡¯s what happened.¡± ¡°I see. If you see this maid, please let us know, we did not find her at the scene, and the other staff claims that she did not actually work there. When questioned, they did not know who she was.¡± ¡°Oh... Yeah, I will help in any way I can.¡± ¡°Additionally, Hoana is also missing. We don¡¯t think the two of them are related in any way, but if you happen to see her, please let us know.¡± ¡°She¡¯s not with her husband at the hospital...?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°I see...¡± ¡°Moving on... I understand that you and Frank are somewhat famous, do you have any enemies, somebody that would wish you harm? Some fans who are a bit too clingy...?¡± Amethyst thinks for a moment. ¡°I did have my first fan meet-up just before we went to the Cafe, but I don¡¯t think there was anyone like that.¡± ¡°Nobody comes to mind? What about jealous rivals perhaps...?¡± Amethyst realizes that one party fits the question. Can I tell them? Can I trust them with my species¡¯ secret? The reason Intergalactic might still be after me? ¡°I... I can¡¯t really think of anyone in particular... but, Intergalactic probably has something against me...¡± Jensen writes down notes. ¡°The Organization... is that so, what makes you say that?¡± ¡°I... I originally escaped their wildlife facility in Viridian Macula with Frank, so... perhaps they have a grudge against me? I heard everyone there were arrested after that, though.¡± ¡°Hmm, Frank also echoed the sentiment, and we are currently in the process of pulling up any information we found in that raid to see if there¡¯s anything related to this investigation. Nevertheless, thank you for verifying his statement.¡± ¡°Oh... no problem.¡± ¡°One final question, who knew that you would be in that Cafe? Did you tell anyone, make any social media posts or the like?¡± ¡°No, just me and Frank, and his parent¡¯s housekeeper who suggested the place knew, but I don¡¯t think Pirjo really would wish us any harm.¡± ¡°Hmm...¡± The Officer taps his pen against the table and seems to read through his notes. ¡°You mentioned having a fan meetup before it? Did some of them follow you perhaps? Or-¡± ¡°Oh! Actually, many of them asked what I¡¯d do today, so I told them I was on a date with Frank, and that we¡¯d go to the Cafe next.¡± ¡°Did you use the Cafe¡¯s name, when you told them that?¡± ¡°Y-yeah...¡± ¡°So... from that group, the word could have spread so that literally anyone could have known that you were going to be in that Cafe later in the day, is that right?¡± ¡°...¡± The officer clicks the pencil¡¯s head over and over again. ¡°I¡¯ve got no further questions, so, if you¡¯ve got nothing more to say... let us move to the final matter at hand.¡± ¡°Okay...¡± ¡°Pertaining to this incident, we¡¯ve deemed this to be an unfortunate accident on your part, so we don¡¯t hold you liable for what befell in that cafe. We don¡¯t see you bearing any malicious intent against Metropolis or its citizens, so we don¡¯t have any reason to hold you here longer. However, to ensure this doesn¡¯t happen again, we¡¯re enacting the Defanging protocol, and as per ISSA¡¯s law on Sapient Species, article 7 on Dangerous Sapients, we have the authority to enforce it.¡± Amethyst listens in silence. The officer leans back on his chair, lifts his legs up once more, and gazes absently at the ceiling. ¡°The law states that all Sapients who are deemed a danger to the general public due to their innate abilities, and not out of malice or hostility towards other beings, suitable restraining equipment will be required for them to wear from the moment on that this is deemed necessary. This affects the individual in question and all species that Sapient represents in all public spaces from that moment on. Consequences for not following these rules are to be punished according to the article referring to Sapient species'' negligence and posing a danger to others. And in the event that the Sapient in question cannot be restrained or disarmed within conventional means, they are to remain detained until a way to do so has been found.¡± ¡°What does that mean...?¡± He looks back with a level gaze. ¡°In practice, you are required to go straight from the station, to one of our partnered workshops, to have your blades made safe to be around by one of the means that the shopkeeper there suggests. I¡¯ll have one of our guys or gals escort you there personally, and you¡¯re free to go once the procedure has been completed. However, if it is deemed nothing can currently be done to make you a safe Sapient to be around, you will be sent to an actual prison cell, instead of our holding cells, until a solution has been found.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Simple stuff. Did you catch all that?¡± ¡°Yes¡­¡± ¡°Good. Then we¡¯re done here.¡± Jensen takes out his communicator and checks something. ¡°Come with me, and let¡¯s see who¡¯s available to escort you there.¡± *** Frank sits on a comfortable sofa, leaning forward, propping his head up with his hands, blankly staring forward. Despite the loud discussions of the waiting room and the noise of the G-TV, neither disturb his thoughts. I wonder how Amethyst is doing... It¡¯s been four hours already... Should I search for the Police Chief? Ask around? What was his name again, Argo... something? Maybe I can convince him that he owes me a favor for what I did for him... Even if in reality I¡¯m even with him after he erased my criminal record... Frank stands up and looks around the room. There are three exits to different corridors, ¡®Reception¡¯, ¡®Exit¡¯, and to the right, toward the heart of the complex, ¡®Permit handling¡¯. None of them look especially promising, he can see through the glass door that Reception has at least 40 people before him, if he¡¯d take a service number now¡­ it would still be hours to ask there. Frank decides on the ¡®Permit handling¡¯ and goes through the door, which he has to manually pull open to pass through. On the other side, is a white-walled corridor, with a series of numbered doors lined up evenly. Walking further ahead, he finds another waiting space, with its own reception that assists a throng of customers already there. No other personnel around other than the busy receptionist. From here, there are four exits, one the way he came, two doors that require an officer¡¯s access to go through, and one corridor going right again, unlabeled. He goes through the mystery door, which has a glass window with metal wires inside in a net pattern, and finds¡­ another corridor. At the end of it, is a keycard door, however, there¡¯s a turn to the right in the middle. As he approaches the turn, he starts hearing a conversation. ¡°Oh, long time no see! Your operation finished already? I thought it¡¯d be for the long haul.¡± An unknown female voice says. ¡°Well¡­ it would have been¡­ if I didn¡¯t mess it up.¡± That voice¡­ who is that? Do I know her? ¡°Ouch¡­ you gotta tell me the details later.¡± ¡°You¡¯re the first one I¡¯ve run into who hasn¡¯t read the report already¡­¡± ¡°R-really...? That¡¯s funny...¡± Frank glances down the final possible corridor and it too, has a door disallowing citizen entry at the end of it. He sighs at the sight, the end of his little snooping, ending up in failure. But maybe he could still ask them about the chief''s whereabouts. The two women in the corridor are both in Police uniforms, the one whose back is to him is completely bald, and the person talking to her has black hair tied into a strict bun. I guess I was mistaken, I don¡¯t know anyone who looks like either- ¡°Hey, are you lost?¡± The one facing Frank notices him. ¡°M-me? I mean, uh- yeah.¡± The officer waves goodbye to her bald colleague, who goes down the corridor toward the employee-only door, while the black-hair comes to Frank. ¡°How can I help you? What brought you all the way here?¡± ¡°I- I uh, I¡¯m looking for the... permit offices.¡± ¡°Right, they¡¯re at the corridor you came through to here.¡± She comes close to Frank¡¯s side and points down the corridor and then gestures to the left. ¡°Just on the left there, you can¡¯t miss ''em!¡± ¡°O-okay, right, thanks...¡± ¡°Or, I guess you can¡¯t miss ''em twice, now that you know! Be sure to stop by the reception first, or you¡¯ll never get called inside! You don¡¯t want to be waiting here all day, do you?¡± ¡°Certainly not¡­ Thanks. I¡¯ll remember that.¡± ¡°Alright, good luck.¡± She nods and walks down the same corridor as her colleague before her, taking a few running steps before disappearing through the secure door. Damn it¡­ I was supposed to ask her about meeting the Chief but... ... That was probably a bad idea anyway... Frank returns through the Permit offices, back to the reception waiting room, hoping that his quick excursion didn¡¯t cause him to miss Amethyst getting discharged. It was only a few minutes... surely not... As he returns, there¡¯s no sign of her, or that the situation has changed. Surely she would have waited for him here¡­ That¡¯s what his interrogator told him anyway¡­ to wait here for her. He sits back down, staring into the void that is a plain white wall, but soon his eyes gradually shift to the Television. It¡¯s playing ads. ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Solis and this is my wife Shanivaar.¡± A man in a pristine white coat walking in a flower-filled meadow waves on the screen. ¡°Did you know our daughter, Friday, was born without the ability to smell?¡± The woman holds a hand to her nose and then looks distraught. ¡°Right, how terrible is that? Are you like our dear daughter, or perhaps your species cannot smell at all?¡± ¡°Have no fear! The best smelling apparatuses of the market are here, available at various local vendors near you! Seek out any of our facilities for a free medical check-up to determine what sort of odor technology suits your face-space!¡± ¡°They come in many different shapes and textures, and if those don¡¯t satisfy, sniff a custom order our way without further ado-r!¡± The woman puts on a massive sniffer on top of her delicate nose. ¡°Turn your Life around and experience the Scent of tomorrow¡ªtoday! Smell you later at Smell of Life!¡± Damn that Big Smell, have they no shame? All five basic senses should be a Sapient Right, not monetized to deep space and back. The screen fades to black and stays like that for a disturbingly long moment. Did it break? Then, the inky blackness ripples, and a Communicator rises up to float like on a water¡¯s surface. ¡°When you work with us, you¡¯re invisible¡ªout of sight. Introducing, Galaxy¡¯s number one trusted data wiping solutions. Safe, secure, and works even in the farthest backwater planets. Compatible with all known, and unknown Communicator models, our end-to-end encryption ensures total control, your data will be reduced to atoms with the press of a button or a single message. Free your data into its primitive particles and sail the starry skies without worry, or remotely back up to our secure servers in an instant, but only when you wish it so! Business clients, please contact us for exclusive deals and special data-wiping technology options. ¡°Privacy Protector¡ªOnly a black hole would do the job better!¡± The communicator sinks back into the blackness that turns into a swirl and disappears. Seems like they don¡¯t shy away from the public eye... I wonder if we could have gotten anything out of Luna¡¯s communicator if it wasn¡¯t for them. ¡°Citizen! Have you done your duty? Do not forget to vote in the monthly Legislative Enactment.¡± A red-haired winged woman dressed in white robes flies onto the screen with the man¡¯s narration. ¡°Only you can make Metropolis a better place! Do not forget to vote!¡± The screen zooms into the scroll that she holds up. ¡°Here are the current bills that you can vote on until this Sunday:¡± showing a short list of five law changes, and information on where to cast your votes online or which place to visit to do it physically. Frank sighs and continues to absently watch. However, soon enough, the TV shifts to the news, and a clip about them at the Cafe plays, recorded by somebody live at the scene. Chattering starts in the waiting room and heads turn one by one to stare daggers at Frank. Some discreetly flag down officers who are passing by and whisper to them, but they soon return to their seats and the officers go on their way. Oh great¡­ Escaping their gazes, Frank takes out his communicator and starts browsing it. As soon as he opens a new tab on his browser, suggested articles flood his screen. ¡°A bloody accident at a coffee shop, recent celebrities Amethyst and Frank involved! Victim still comatose.¡± If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Tyrchid Representative Amethyst brings the blades of her home to bear at a local cafeteria. ¡°She just sliced her open!¡± See the traumatizing pictures of the victim!¡± ¡°A gory morning start for a citizen, the fastest fall from grace of a Sapient to date? Amethyst, the darling of G-TV arrested!¡± ¡°Are Tyrchids really just bloodthirsty animals? An insider provides another point of view with today¡¯s incident ¨C an analysis by an expert in Animal and Sapient Species behavior.¡± Frank turns off the screen and slumps back on the chair, looking at the faintly blue tiled ceiling, before closing his eyes. I hope my request for the Galactic Police to release a public statement of this incident goes through... It¡¯s not right if people keep thinking this was Amethyst¡¯s fault... Steps clink against the floor, in a rhythm that feels familiar. ¡°Frank... I¡¯m here.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Amethyst has appeared, alongside a young-looking officer. ¡°Why are you still cuffed?¡± Frank asks and shifts his gaze to the officer. ¡°Come with me, we¡¯ll speak on the way.¡± The officer says and starts escorting Amethyst toward one of the keycard doors. ¡°On the way, to where?¡± Frank bolts up after them. As the three of them pass through the door, the officer explains the situation as they walk. How Amethyst wasn¡¯t deemed guilty of the accident, but she would still be taken to a workshop to be evaluated and in accordance with ISSA legislation, be made safe to be around. ¡°Oh... I see.¡± An ISSA enactment, carried out by Galactic Police? How unusual, have things changed in my absence that much? Amethyst looks to the ground and has been silent ever since they left the lobby, following orders, walking to wherever she¡¯s instructed to. Frank catches up to her with a few running steps. ¡°Are you okay?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± She tries to smile, it¡¯s a weak performance. ¡°I¡¯m sorry I couldn''t do anything to get you out earlier...¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry too...¡± ¡°But it wasn''t your fault, you know that, right?¡± ¡°I do...¡± They are taken through winding corridors by the officer until they arrive at an underground parking hall. Countless Police Vehicles are in the large space supported by concrete pillars. Amethyst is guided to a hover van, the officer opens the doors to the cargo space for her. ¡°Do I have to¡­?¡± ¡°Yes. It¡¯s the only vehicle we have that you¡¯ll fit.¡± ¡°Okay¡­¡± Amethyst gingerly steps inside, and carefully sits on the side seat, hanging her head. The officer swings the double doors closed, ¡°You can ride with me at the front.¡± He gestures to Frank and circles the car to the driver¡¯s side. ¡°Oh...¡± Frank glances at the double doors, at the small blackened windows. He hurries to the front and takes a seat inside. Between the two front seats, there¡¯s a small porthole, covered with a sliding metal plate. Frank is tempted to use it to check up on Amethyst, but decides against it, the officer didn¡¯t seem too keen on entertaining the idea. ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± ¡°Officer Vasar.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you,¡± Frank says, only to be met with silence. The radio starts playing some new pop hit single, though the female vocalist¡¯s voice is as grating as a spaceship¡¯s landing pad that¡¯s scraping the asphalt at take off. All of the lyrics are unintelligible until he hears the chorus ¡°lalalala this is the dadadaday¡±, only then, does it click that he actually knows this song. It¡¯s not new at all, it¡¯s just this artist¡¯s version left so much to be desired that he couldn¡¯t make out any of the squeaky words without knowing what the song was supposed to be beforehand. It originates from sheet music preserved from the past that¡¯s been covered and reimagined over and over by countless artists ever since its discovery. Its bad condition left much up for interpretation, clearly, way too much. I¡¯ve heard so many versions, and yet this is definitely the worst. The Crimson Princess or whoever¡¯s legacy this is, would certainly be ashamed. If only to escape the radio, Frank hopes to reignite the conversation. ¡°So¡­ how long have you been in the force?¡± ¡°A few years.¡± ¡°Ah, I would have guessed at least five, you seem experienced enough.¡± ¡°...¡± lalalala- ¡°I was wondering, about this Defanging protocol¡­ Since when did Galactic Police give ISSA the time of day, much less enforce their legislation?¡± ¡°Since before I¡¯ve been here.¡± ¡°Right...¡± Frank taps his fingers against the black plastic doorframe. ¡°And where are we going exactly?¡± ¡°To a workshop partnered with the Galactic Police.¡± ¡°Of course...¡± dadadaday- Frank sighs and leans on the window, content to just stare at the passing scenery, trying to tune out the radio to the best of his ability. *** The Police Van stops at the front of a tall building, pastel yellow, a small sort of apartment complex with the first two floors being a mini-shopping center. Frank and Vasar exit the vehicle and Amethyst is let out. The officer takes them inside, through the general lobby area, and to a shop on the right. Its sign says: ¡°Teral Lacrima ¨C Workshop, tailoring, jeweling, general crafting.¡± A sticker on the front glass states: ¡°Certified Galactic Police partner.¡± The inside of the store is rather small, it¡¯s more of a waiting space, than a shop you could browse. A long dark brown counter with metal lined edges takes up most of the space, cutting the space in two, a door on the back wall hints that the majority of the space is taken up by the behind-the-scenes workshop. Behind the counter is a stout man in an industrial apron, who tinkers with a pocket watch, a tiny screwdriver in his other hand. He lifts his gaze. ¡°If it isn¡¯t little Vasar, back so soon? Given the uniform and the company you keep, I can guess what this is about.¡± ¡°What could you possibly mean? Maybe I¡¯m on the market for more of Bafrouk¡¯s special multi-timepieces.¡± ¡°Not with your paycheck, even if the Chief had an anniversary every year.¡± The Officer starts to explain the details as we approach the counter. The closer we get, the clearer it becomes that Bafrouk isn¡¯t human. He¡¯s a Garanean, of the shorter and runic skin type, instead of the tall and shiny-skinned sort, like the receptionist at the Spaceship docks was. On his exposed hairy arms and palms, red runes are inscribed on his skin, geometrical patterns that are of the same color as the species¡¯ blood, though it was common to color and decorate your runes among Garanean and half-Garanean. He still has the longer ears typical for their race, and a black bushy beard going nicely with his tanner skin tone, which are typical features of his kind. ¡°So, this young Miss will be my customer today?¡± Bafrouk takes a sooty and dirty rag from the wall and wipes his rough hands on it. It¡¯s unclear if they become cleaner or dirtier from the process. Propped on the same wall, hanging from nails are various instruments, a powerful-looking drill, a metal saw, some chains, and even a gas mask, all tools of his trade. ¡°Yes.¡± Vasar uncuffs Amethyst and gives her space to come to the counter, taking a few steps back, and leaning on the counter. Amethyst stretches her arms, finally free of her shackles. Bafrouk reaches under the counter, and takes out incredibly thick gloves, looking like one could handle molten metal and even stop a small caliber bullet with them. ¡°Let me see your hands.¡± Amethyst extends her hands to him, and he holds them in his. He feels them with the gloves and rubs their surface using his thumb while holding them. ¡°I see. I was right to wear these.¡± He yanks on a blade, which doesn¡¯t come off. ¡°Will you grow these back if they are cut off or broken?¡± ¡°Yes, I think so.¡± ¡°Fascinating.¡± He lets go of Amethyst¡¯s hands. ¡°May I see your arm blades?¡± Amethyst starts to swing them on the counter, but Bafrouk stops her right one mid-air. ¡°Careful now.¡± He guides her blade away from a bonsai tree on the counter, a strikingly red maple tree. ¡°She doesn¡¯t need a trim quite yet.¡± ¡°Sorry...¡± The Garanea guffaws, and places Amethyst¡¯s elbow blades¡¯ tips to rest against the table, Amethyst¡¯s wrists resting on her shoulders. He runs an open palm along the blade, and then on its sharp side too. Stiffly, he manages to make an incomplete fist with the thick gloves and knocks on the blade propped against the table. ¡°Yes, I believe we could cut your blades into tiny stumps¡ªand call it a job done.¡± Amethyst¡¯s face darkens. ¡°I-is there no other way?¡± The shopkeeper laughs heartily. ¡°Of course, that¡¯s only one of the options, along with making them incredibly dull. However, those two are what most other shops would go with. Shall I remind you, that you¡¯re not in just any shop, you¡¯re at mine. Whatever you did, it would be equally criminal to destroy such beautiful blades. I am a master craftsman, leather, fabrics, metal¡­ anything you might need, I can forge and bend it to my will, so it¡¯ll be no problem. So, instead of defacing them, I can make protectors for your four blades, akin to sheathes for swords. How does that sound?¡± ¡°Thank you, thank you! Sheathes, please! I wouldn''t know what to do without them, my blades are an important part of me...¡± ¡°Very well. But unlike the other more permanent solutions, you must remember to wear them too. If these fine uniformed men and women catch you too many times without them, you won¡¯t be asked to choose an option the next time you come visit me.¡± ¡°I understand¡­¡± ¡°Alright, as long as you promise me to wear the sheaths, I will get to work.¡± ¡°I promise, I¡¯ll wear them.¡± ¡°Good. It shouldn¡¯t take me too long to make them, I have plenty of ready sheaths and materials that I only need to modify for your needs and size.¡± Bafrouk helps Amethyst¡¯s blades down from his counter and then leaves to the depths of his hidden workshop. Amethyst continues to stand before the counter, looking at the direction Bafrouk left. ¡°Come on, Amethyst. Let¡¯s sit down.¡± Frank goes to her side, taking her arm. ¡°Oh... Okay.¡± Vasar uses the Cas-juice machine and gets himself a drink, sitting down with them, but seemingly not interested in taking part in conversation. ¡°Well... all this certainly wasn¡¯t in my plans for today.¡± ¡°I can imagine...¡± ¡°But don¡¯t worry, this hardship will soon be over, you¡¯ll get your sheaths, which will actually make life easier among other Sapients as well. So, it¡¯s sort of a boon as well, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°I suppose...¡± ¡°And once we¡¯re done here, we can still remedy today, if you¡¯re still up for us continuing of course.¡± ¡°Yeah...¡± The smile Frank has kept up wavers slightly. ¡°Just try to relax, okay? I¡¯ll be right back.¡± ¡°Huh? Frank?¡± He just smiles back and goes to the counter. He calls Bafrouk over, and they have a silent and brief chat. The temptation of eavesdropping on them by focusing her hearing passes through Amethyst''s mind, but she decides to respect Frank''s privacy. ¡°What was that?¡± Amethyst asks as Frank returns. ¡°Oh, nothing. I just asked for details for how long it¡¯ll take.¡± ¡°I see...¡± Officer Vasar has completely checked out of the conversation, just sips his drink and browses a magazine. And much like him, Amethyst and Frank wait, chatting, looking around the fascinating various tools and apparatuses around, at the many muzzles, protectors, and masks, wondering just what kind of Sapients would use each one. Bafrouk comes out of the backroom. ¡°Thank you for waiting, they are done.¡± Frank and Amethyst stand up and go toward the counter, he meets them on the customer side. He hands the elbow blade protectors up to Frank, Bafrouk¡¯s only up to his navel, the floor on the other side of the counter clearly being higher up. He receives the two long sheaths made of thick fabric, colored metal-tinted orange, reinforced from the bottom with finely bent metal plating. The sheath¡¯s tough fiber surface produces a strange sensation on his finger when he runs a hand across its surface. ¡°Oh, those are¡­ kind of cool actually,¡± Amethyst says. ¡°I¡¯m glad you like them,¡± Frank responds. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Now, since Amethyst won¡¯t be able to put them on herself, I would like you to put them on her, Frank. It¡¯s best you learn to do that straight away.¡± Bafrouk still holds on to the two smaller sheaths meant for Amethyst¡¯s dagger hands. ¡°Let¡¯s start with the big ones.¡± ¡°Okay, I¡¯m ready,¡± Amethyst lifts her blade sideways, toward Frank. ¡°Let me just¡­¡± Frank slides on the sheath. ¡°Now, just fasten all of the leather belts to keep the sheath in place. The one at the top is especially important, it¡¯ll keep it from sliding off if the others loosen.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± Frank fastens the flexible leather belts laid out around the sheath, and then the final one, which fastens against Amethyst¡¯s narrower armor at the very root of her long blade. He lets go of the sheath, and it stays in place. ¡°Is that good?¡± ¡°Yeah, just like that. How does it feel, Amethyst?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure¡­ I suppose, it doesn¡¯t feel like anything, since I cannot feel through my blades or armor.¡± ¡°I see, that¡¯s good.¡± Bafrouk nods and walks around the counter, going back to his side of it. He puts the two smaller sheaths on the counter. ¡°All of them are worn the same, so once you¡¯ve put one on, the rest should be no problem.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± Frank puts on the last elbow sheath and starts to work on Amethyst¡¯s hands. Officer Vasar just watches them from further away and then comes to the counter once they¡¯ve all been put on. ¡°Thanks, just send the bill as usual, Galactic Police will pay it in full.¡± ¡°Of course, a pleasure as always.¡± ¡°Thanks, see ya.¡± Frank waves to him. ¡°Blessings of Araltera to you.¡± ¡°Who is that?¡± Amethyst asks, halting their departure. ¡°She was our Goddess. The Goddess of creation and unity, promoting the holy unison of matter and people. She urged us to innovate, to experiment, to craft, tinker, and... to create. To express ourselves, pursue new knowledge and technologies.¡± ¡°That sounds wonderful.¡± ¡°Let''s go, Amethyst,¡± Frank whispers to her. ¡°I can see you doubt me. She wasn''t a fake god like the Red Goddess around here, she was the real deal. Her abilities were beyond our world¡ªexceeded our comprehension. She lived with us, giving us counsel and her bountiful blessings.¡± ¡°Truly?¡± Frank says dryly. ¡°I''m not a devout believer, but should you really be saying that about the Red Goddess in Metropolis?¡± ¡°Ahh... I wish I could have lived back then... I hear those were the golden ages.¡± He taps his fingers against the counter and looks dreamily into the space behind them. ¡°She left us without explanation thousands of years ago. We fell upon hard times back then. Our people were heartbroken, directionless, and... angry. But before that¡­ oh, what a utopia...¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± That must be what incited the war between the progenitor races of Garanea? ¡°Come on, Amethyst,¡± Frank whispers and they start to leave again, Officer Vasar already waiting for them at the entrance, looking like he''s seen this show countless times before. They leave the deeply sighing Garanea behind, slumped on the table, leaning to his elbow. He looks toward them as they exit the shop before looking around his store. Gazing at the many magnificent things, protectors, harnesses, anything and everything somebody had needed him to make. Even if they only visited him once, he always made a spare pair to display, eventually. Do you like what you see? Will you one day return, if we continue following your teachings? Exercising your will? He notices a tiny leaf from the bonsai maple tree falling and catches it on his fingertip. If we show that we still believe? Will you... return? The leaf falls from his finger, gliding through the air across the counter, and disappearing behind it. Please... come back to guide us... *** ¡°What''s wrong, Frank?¡± Amethyst asks the scowling Frank outside the shop. ¡°The Red Goddess and Araltera, while they are nice fairytales, be careful not to get swept up in them.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°While Religion can be a comfort¡ªan inspiring force¡ªit can also strip you of your individuality, make you its slave. Disguise their message as your own thoughts. You don¡¯t have to look too far in the Galaxy to see that.¡± ¡°I see... I''ll be careful,¡± Amethyst answers resolute. ¡°Good, don¡¯t worry, it''s not that serious, as long as you''re aware.¡± Losing yourself while seeking to belong¡­ It¡¯s something my mother hammered into my head young. She''s seen from the front lines just how dangerous religious dogmas can be when the Reverent gave Metropolis trouble. Universally agreed to be in the top five of the most vile creatures known to the Galaxy, all known allied planets have been at war with them ever since their appearance. The Reverent sacrifice their and others¡¯ body parts to their imaginary God, the Limbless One, in their sermons and rituals. This practice is made possible by the fact that they are seemingly not dead or alive. They force this sacrificial doctrine on others and do not take no for an answer. Unable to understand that other species aren¡¯t so ready to let their limbs go, even if some do grow theirs back, but none regenerate as fast as the Residian themselves do. Residian are the hideous creatures that form the Reverent faction. Their heads are rat-like in shape, their bodies covered with fur, but they sport a pig''s snout and floppy ears. Their skin has numerous gaps and holes like they were actively rotting and hollow, and their teeth grow long and sharp. They are short and stout, and their bodies seem to lack any other bones, held together by hard sinew and muscle which can be seen from their slumped posture and drooping faces. Even if Mother''s forgiven and accepted Sinel now and other species by and large, there¡¯s no doubt she still holds onto the grudges and wounds of those days. As she should, those abominations must be kept away from the United Galaxy at all costs. But¡­ that¡¯s neither here nor there. ¡°So, you¡¯re free to go now. Just remember to wear those in the public.¡± Officer Vasar says, and Amethyst nods. ¡±Do you need a lift? We dragged you out here, after all, so I¡¯m authorized to drive you home or wherever else you need to go.¡± ¡°What do you say, Amethyst? Should we use this opportunity to go visit the Museum? Maybe we can still salvage today?¡± Amethyst rubs her sheathed dagger hands together, it produces a hard chafing sound. ¡°Oh? Uh, right, the Museum... I would like to go but...¡± ¡°If you¡¯re worried about tomorrow, we¡¯ll go back to my parents¡¯ after this to prepare, alright?¡± ¡°Yeah. That sounds good.¡± ¡°Alright, I can take you there no problem.¡± The officer says. ¡°And sorry, but you¡¯ll still have to ride at the back.¡± With the afternoon closing in, they exit into the cloudy weather, the red giant sun of Metropolis shrouded, but still very much visible through the coverage. Amethyst gets in the van¡¯s back compartment, while Frank rides at the front. He watches as the Workshop is left behind, Bafrouk and his premises reminding him of Hyon. If I had followed in my father¡¯s footsteps, would I have been working in a shop like that? Or would I have had my own workshop or a factory of some kind where I wielded heavy machinery? What if I ended up in that shop, on this very day, would I have met Amethyst regardless¡­? Nah, no way. And even if she somehow ended up at Metropolis without me, we would have just been passing acquaintances, if even that. ... I really don¡¯t like calling anything fate, but sometimes it feels hard to ignore¡­ to find anything else to call it. Something to explain it all. Was it fate too, that dictated my parents ending up bedridden for the rest of their lives...? I hardly even recognized either of them... but I couldn''t very well tell them that, could I? Just... keep on pretending like everything was as it used to be, like the years in between didn¡¯t change anything. It¡¯s like they are not even the same people anymore, just caricatures who¡¯ve flipped their personalities 180 degrees around. Not that it¡¯s a wholly bad thing. I wonder if they really are just that different¡­ the decade apart must have been hard on them... Or if they¡¯re just faking it too, masking their pain and the severity of their condition underneath their pretense. They looked so... withered... ... It¡¯ll certainly take a lot of time to get used to my mother being so overly supportive and¡­ cheeky. And my dad calling me ''Son'', and conversing in longer sentences than a few words... I should have a real talk with them at some point... Frank sighs, and leans on the window, his mind littered with unresolved topics. As they arrive at the Museum of the Mysteries of Past and Present, they get out of the car and let out Amethyst. The officer gets back in the car and watches the two of them walk inside, then takes out a communicator hidden deep in his uniform. He writes out a text message: ¡°The Candidate and Blade are at the MMPP,¡± and sends it. Seconds later, a notification appears: ¡°Funds have been deposited to your account.¡± He smiles and drives away. 45. Museum of the Mysteries of Past and Present Amethyst and Frank stand before the museum, to Frank, its visage seems a lot bigger than he remembered, perhaps it has undergone some renovations. At least, it definitely has additional d¨¦cor and grandeur added on. The flight of stone stairs is now pure white, instead of the gray stone as before, the same for the columns that held up the stone pavilion. Most notably, the previous gaudy plastic neon sign is replaced with stylish iron or perhaps copper letters: ¡°Museum of the Mysteries of Past and Present.¡± written in four indenting rows, clearly highlighting the first letter of each: M, M, P, and P. Many posters and informative tapestries hang around the entrance, detailing the newest exhibits and points of interest. Amethyst, however, doesn¡¯t much care to note the museum¡¯s appearance. She looks at her sheathed hands, and taps her elbow blades together, producing only a soft thud. She¡¯s covered up, with... would these be counted as clothes? If this is what it was like to wear them... I don¡¯t like it. She didn¡¯t mind her elbow blades being covered, in a crowded environment such as this, it is hard to keep track of them at times, but her hands¡­ They feel strange. It wasn¡¯t possible for them to be tight enough to hurt her through her armor, and she shouldn¡¯t even be able to feel them, but somehow, they still feel suffocating. Their mere existence¡ªa constant reminder of what led to her having to wear them, carrying nothing but negative associations with them. No, that wasn¡¯t true... Orange... field of flowers... warmth on my cheeks... Their coloration reminds her of that day, which Frank undoubtedly remembers too. Suddenly, something moves her left arm slightly, and she flinches. ¡°Shall we go inside?¡± Frank holds Amethyst¡¯s hand for the first time, no longer having to settle for her wrist, the sheathed blade now in his gentle grip. ¡°Yes...¡± If only I could hold him back¡­ They ascend the stairs and walk below the decorative bridge-like stone carving embedded above the automatic glass doors. Inside, the roof is high like a palace, with banners, and navigation guidance hanging around the stone walls, it¡¯s spacious although a fair bit of customers are present. The museum is roughly divided into two parts: the left side dedicated to showcasing the Past, while the other is for the Present. Frank pays for their entry, and they decide to start at the Past section. Hand in hand, they start browsing the museum. Finding exhibitions detailing things about Earth¡¯s multiple languages, nations, and literature. Even having one ancient book from that era, with a damaged illegible cover and yellowed pages that are a lot fewer than one would expect. A restoration of what its cover would have likely looked like is pictured before the square glass display, revealing its title to be: ¡®The Farmhand Knight¡¯. It¡¯s a book about chivalry, the origin of many expressions and concepts still in use to this day. Despite the work having been deemed as entirely fiction, with no basis on Earth¡¯s real past. However, this novel¡¯s cultural significance was enough to start a whole creed around this thought of Chivalry. A quite commendable oath to follow, but that just makes it that much easier to know it has no basis in reality. Although, some few versed in the subject still insist that it details a real period, and further records of it have just not been discovered yet or survived the test of time. Flora and fauna of Earth are extensively showcased, as are the many mysterious relations and similarities that can be drawn from animals discovered on other planets, or at Metropolis. As they browse, some fans approach them, to take pictures or talk, though equally as many showed apprehension or despise to their presence. Amethyst and Frank keep to themselves unless approached, to not provoke or cause further conflicts with anyone, even if some seem to yearn for conflict with them. Fortunately, it¡¯s nothing they can¡¯t talk, or ignore, their way out of. They arrive at a familiar-looking statue, albeit much smaller, with many plaques and display cases around it forming a sort of circular themed area. ¡°The Red Goddess?¡± ¡°Are you interested?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± Amethyst begins to read the inscriptions and information set up around a small replica of the Goddess Plaza¡¯s statue. ¡°The Red Goddess, originates from a fictional story, about a female person who may have lived some time in the past. It details her journey through a life wrought with disaster and hardship. The story as it is known today is missing large chunks, especially from the middle, but the ending has survived mostly complete, which details her burial in a highly allegorical way, sending her into her final ¡®Sanctum¡¯. Her resting place has been deducted to be the red giant sun Metropolis orbits around. Due to this, the bright red sun is central to this faith¡¯s practice. Unfortunately, the texts were damaged before they were documented in digital form, so the Goddess¡¯ name is unknown. All in all, it is considered a beautiful poetic piece, a descriptive ode for the Goddess, that remains relevant to this day, being the basis of all old-style poetry, leaving its indelible mark in Metropolitan customs, especially the rites and proceedings involved in a funeral. To the surprise of many, the faith is still actively practiced today, albeit in small circles, a fact made more surprising, as religion as a whole has been outlawed in the Founding Texts for thousands of years. In the past, when Red Goddess worship was at its all-time high, it was raised into contention that the Goddess Worshippers were breaking the law. However, upon further perusal of the Founding Texts, a new small print was found in the original parchment, that allowed only this specific faith to be practiced. After a public uproar that the radical faithful had defiled the texts in secret, it was proven to be false, as the ink was tested to be as old as the paper itself, which confirmed it to have always been there, unnoticed. The particular reason for this specific inclusion, or who devised its addition, is unknown. However, due to the very nature of the naming scheme of the areas of the city of Metropolis taking clear inspiration from the story of the Red Goddess, the legitimacy of this surprise wasn''t a hard sell for the populace after the initial shock had worn off.¡± Next to her, there¡¯s an authentic replica of the original book confined in glass with an added description: ¡°You can read the modern interpretation of the book on our Gweb pages, with the middle part of the story carefully crafted to match the rest of the story with the collaboration of authors and historians, in this address...¡± So, is the Red Goddess real, or is she made up...? Amethyst moves on to the next bit Frank pointed out, which focuses on the details and practice of the Red Goddess faith: ¡°The faith focuses on appreciating every day we have left, that we have lived so far. Giving thanks to the Red Goddess for it, and praying to her for many good days still ahead for all. The faith''s practice apart from these thankful sermons is quite unconventional, as it mostly consists of helping each other through tough times, offering free psychological help and consultation free of charge and judgment to all citizens who need it. In fact, many of their high priests are trained therapists, and along with their holy book, their reading consists of reciting verses from books consisting of psychological theory and practical application to patients. The person who came up with this modern and broad application of religion is unknown, but it is safe to say that this approach was inspired by the many traumatic events of the story of the Red Goddess. Many of their members have actually said as much, that they don¡¯t believe that the Red Goddess is some higher power, just that she and her companion¡¯s story inspires them to give back to the community, quickly pointing out it¡¯s the story¡¯s sentiment and the thought that draws them to help others, not some misplaced blind faith or delusion of its veracity. The faith has formed into a non-profit organization, and apart from the required expenses to keep their services running, donates all of their money to other charitable organizations.¡± Frank speaks, now at Amethyst¡¯s side. ¡°It¡¯s strange, isn¡¯t it? How the founders of Metropolis seemed to share the belief that all religion is bad. And yet, they still allowed Red Goddess-related worship and proceedings as the only religion in some enigmatic offhanded comment. Doesn¡¯t get much more mysterious than that, doesn¡¯t it?¡± As Amethyst turns to Frank, a camera flash goes off. They both look in its direction and see a man between the age of a teenager and a young adult who waves at them and mouths: ¡°Sorry!¡± The photographer turns to his friends and grins strangely, Amethyst focuses her hearing. ¡°You dunce, now you made them see us.¡± ¡°What does it matter? What are they gonna do? I still got the picture.¡± ¡°It¡¯s like I told you, despite her murdering that man, they didn¡¯t even cut off her blades.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t believe you spoke the truth, just how much favoritism can there be?¡± ¡°Just call it what it is, corruption, plain old corruption!¡± ¡°Maybe the blades are actually cut off, and the protectors are just for show, serving as a decoy?¡± ¡°They¡¯re looking this way, act natural.¡± ¡°Man, what¡¯s wrong with Metropolis? It¡¯s like I always tell you, it all went to shit after Galactic Police and ISSA appeared.¡± ¡°Come on now, corruption I¡¯ll believe, but you¡¯ll have to try harder than that to make me a believer in your father¡¯s conspiracies.¡± ¡°Yeah, while we¡¯re at it, let¡¯s just ignore the whole Spire Disaster and its long-term effects, shall we?¡± ¡°Stop yapping, we got the picture, let¡¯s just get out of here.¡± ¡°Yes sir...¡± Frank recognizes what Amethyst is doing and asks: ¡°Trouble?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure. Probably not, all they seemed to be after was a picture.¡± ¡°Hmm, maybe they¡¯ll sell it to the press or start some drama in G-social media.¡± Frank¡¯s hand holds her sheathed blade again. ¡°Either way, it doesn¡¯t matter.¡± ¡°Yeah...¡± Amethyst curves her hand toward Frank¡¯s. It¡¯s fine¡­ we can just ignore them¡­ I stood out even before¡­ these¡­ I shouldn¡¯t feel any more out of place¡­ There are all sorts of strange and unique Sapients around, I¡¯m just one of them. Though¡­ I haven¡¯t seen anyone else wearing anything like mine. They continue on the Past section, the rest of it is dedicated to Metropolis¡¯ history, with a vast section on the Spire Disaster. There¡¯s a timeline of events, details about the Spires, a map of where they used to be around the world, tales of survivors, first-hand accounts, and information about the war that followed. A section of questions that still remain unanswered is near the end, which are surprisingly many, despite the event¡¯s recency in comparison to the rest of the Past exhibits. They arrive back to the main lobby area, to their left, the start of Present, and the gift shop ahead. ¡°Should we check what¡¯s at the shop?¡± Amethyst asks. ¡°We could, but usually, it¡¯s best to get souvenirs once you¡¯re leaving. Otherwise, you¡¯ll have to carry them around the place while you¡¯re still there.¡± ¡°Oh, I see.¡± Next to the open-space gift shop, is a quieter area with next to no visitors, in front of a ¡°staff only¡± door, stands two figures. ¡°Hey, isn¡¯t that the Sinel that asked for your autograph earlier today?¡± ¡°Oh? Yeah, it¡¯s her.¡± ¡°Want to go say hi?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°You said before how you were curious about the war, and I don¡¯t think she¡¯d mind answering any questions you¡¯d have.¡± ¡°Huh? What makes you say that? And why would she know anything not at display here already?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just a hunch and a strong one at that.¡± Frank grins. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Huhh? But I don¡¯t know what to ask?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll handle it.¡± As they approach them, they hear a snippet of their conversation: ¡°What do you think about the Mun¡¯aakas evening feather dance? Would that be suitable? Personally, I¡¯m a fan of what it represents-¡± ¡°Oh, but-¡± They both turn to face the approaching Amethyst and Frank. The human woman who wears a cap of the museum on her blond hair that goes up to her shoulders addresses them. ¡°Oh? Aren¡¯t you Amethyst and Frank?¡± Her big blue eyes light up. ¡°What a coincidence to meet here,¡± Frank says to the Sinel. ¡°Right, a coincidence.¡± She scoffs back. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Oh, don¡¯t misunderstand. It may very well be a coincidence, but since my sister here owns this Museum, it¡¯s rather likely you¡¯d find me here.¡± She crosses her blue arms engulfed in the pink puffy jacket. ¡°That is if you knew where to look...¡± ¡°Ohh¡­¡± Amethyst nods slowly. ¡°You own the Museum?¡± ¡°That¡¯s correct, or my name is not Virava Wastlund, the first of the daughters of the great hero of the Spire Disaster, Sanna Wastlund.¡± ¡°The great hero?¡± Amethyst asks astonished. ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± Virava holds a hand to her chest. ¡°Sanna¡¯s contribution to end the War was insurmountable. Didn''t you read about her in the section about the Spire Disaster?¡± ¡°Oh¡­ right....¡± ¡°If you¡¯re her daughter, let me guess,¡± Frank gestures at the Sinel, ¡°Are you Menalaie, the Sinel Princess who worked with Sanna?¡± The Sinel laughs, bringing a blue hand before her mouth. ¡°No, that was our mother. I¡¯m Menelalaile, just call me ¡®Lalai¡¯. Though, I suppose I could still be considered a Princess.¡± ¡°Oh... I see, I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t know she had...¡± ¡°Not many know... news related to the Sinel aren¡¯t exactly touted in the media,¡± Virava says. ¡°Though, that¡¯s mostly for the best¡­ there¡¯s enough negativity going around even without them getting on our case more than they already are.¡± ¡°That¡¯s the long and short of it...¡± Lalai says. ¡°Anyway... did you two come to just say hi to us two, who you didn¡¯t even know before this meeting, or...?¡± ¡°Something like that, though we were wondering if you could tell us something about the war, there¡¯s still many mysteries surrounding it. And considering your position¡­¡± ¡°What are you implying?¡± ¡°Is it true, were you manipulated to start the war?¡± Amethyst asks. ¡°Not even the exhibitions here could answer it or prove it one way or the other.¡± ¡°...¡± Lalai looks around and then speaks. ¡°You know, I¡¯m glad we could meet again. I had something I wanted to discuss with you too, Amethyst.¡± ¡°With... me?¡± ¡°Yes. If you recall what I said to you when you signed my shirt... I meant it.¡± ¡°I see...¡± ¡°Let me tell you a little secret. What we Sinel are right now, what we are becoming, or have already become, is a disgrace.¡± Lalai scowls. ¡°Not a disgrace to the old ways, or what we used to be, nothing trite like that. Ever since our gravest error, we have devolved, and become something that isn¡¯t a human, or a Sinel. A submissive yes-man race, one could even call us second-class slaves, and it wouldn''t be far off.¡± ¡°Lalai! Should you really be-?¡± Virava is interrupted. ¡°Let me finish.¡± Lalai continues: ¡°We have become something¡­ something that even I cannot define. And, there lies the problem. We are nothing, we don¡¯t have a culture or an identity anymore. Day after day we carry this burden and crime that we will be paying off until the heat death of the universe at this rate. As the Princess of the Sinels, as the last surviving member of Syrida Sel Silea, only I carry the power to rule my people.¡± Lalai slides a hand across her tiara¡¯s side, caressing its silver surface, a blue gem embedded in the middle. A tiara, that appears identical to one that all Sinel seemed to be wearing. She adjusts it, pulling it down slightly, but the blue oval gem that adorns it, doesn¡¯t move, it is actually a part of her forehead. ¡°From your eyes, I see you know what I mean. Thus, we get to the end of my longwinded exposition, this is my proposal for you, Amethyst.¡± ¡°Y-yes?¡± ¡°Once your people become a part of the United Galaxy, I would request your help in developing our own culture, a new identity for us Sinels. What I saw in Pioneer¡¯s broadcast impressed me, so I wish to work with you. Your culture seems new, but so full of potential. And after... after I can make us, something, again, I would additionally ask you to help us relocate to a new planet that we could call our own. I fear if we do that first, we would just be domesticated animals dying from cold and hunger, unable to survive on our own. But, we will do it, once we are ready. This travesty has gone on long enough, and I¡¯m the only one who can do something about it.¡± ¡°That¡¯s... that¡¯s a lot of responsibility. I don¡¯t know if I can really meet your expectations...¡± ¡°I believe you can, though admittedly, we will only truly see that later. I firmly believe there is a lot of potential in working together to build up both of our nations and cultures from the ground up.¡± Franks speaks up: ¡°That¡¯s a nice sentiment, and I truly hope you succeed in lifting your people up. However, do not take offense when I say this, but I¡¯m hearing a lot of requests for us, and not a lot of reasons to go through with it, apart from the goodness of our hearts. What you are asking us to participate in is no small feat.¡± ¡°I understand completely, no offense taken. Earlier, as a show of trust, I revealed my identity and position to you, and should you work with me, in return, I shall tell you the truth.¡± ¡°The truth?¡± ¡°Lalai!? A-are you sure? I don¡¯t think-¡± ¡°Virava, my dear sister, do not worry. Should they endeavor to help me, I will tell them the truth of the Spire Disaster, of the war, and of us Sinel. It would only be fitting for our two cultures to know the truth of each other¡¯s, wouldn¡¯t you agree, Amethyst?¡± She levels a rather piercing gaze at her. ¡°Yes...¡± ¡°Of course, I will confide in you only after we have formed more close and amicable relations and started our cooperation in full. And I speak of this deal in full confidentiality to you, which I expect to continue after you have learned the truth. Since, at this point in time, only three individuals know the full story.¡± ¡°Three? That¡¯s obviously you, your sister... who is the last one?¡± Frank asks. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡°He is a friend to my kind, among the biggest supporters of our Museum, and the number one philanthropist of the Galaxy. You are very familiar with him already.¡± ¡°Uhh... who?¡± Frank looks over the sisters and then at Amethyst. ¡°Pioneer!¡± ¡°That¡¯s correct.¡± ¡°Oh...¡± ¡°If you have no more questions, I believe we are done here, I will not keep you any longer from enjoying our Museum. I wish you luck for tomorrow, but I don¡¯t believe you will need it, I expect you to successfully join the United Galaxy and be endorsed in ISSA court in full. After that, seek me out, or if you take too long to hear from, I will instead find you.¡± Menelalaile says with a strict tone of business. Her sister chimes in. ¡°And please, pop into the souvenir store after you¡¯re done! And perhaps pick up a copy of Sanna¡¯s biography that I have written myself! It tells her journey of surviving the collapse of Metropolis¡¯ Spire, the surprise meeting of the Sinel princess in those ruins, and how they came together to climb out of the kilometers of rubble to end the war together. Spiced up with extra details to keep it interesting and exciting to those already intimately familiar with the history of the Spire Disaster, no less!¡± ¡°Right, we¡¯ll keep that in mind... Thanks for the suggestion and for your interesting offer, Lalai.¡± ¡°Yeah, see you later!¡± Amethyst says. ¡°No problem. I look forward to our next meeting, Frank, and the most intelligent Tyrchid, Amethyst.¡± ¡°Bye now!¡± Virava waves after them with a smile. Frank and Amethyst wave goodbye to the sisters and have a quiet conversation as they walk away. ¡°Do you think¡­ Lalai knows? Of well, me, and my difference to my kin?¡± ¡°That¡¯s probably a safe assumption... But if she does, I don¡¯t get why she¡¯d still want to work with us? Especially since we didn¡¯t promise to share our truth with her.¡± ¡°I think it¡¯s obvious Frank. You¡¯ve made it clear many times yourself.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Lalai wants to work with us because nobody else will work with them.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s probably true... And... if she actually somehow knows our truth, or has just guessed... she can use that against us, as leverage, should we spill the beans about her, or if we refuse.¡± ¡°Lalai wouldn''t do that.¡± ¡°I certainly hope so.¡± Can we even trust them? Sinel have behaved after the war, so far¡­ but¡­ what is the truth they hide? It must be something big if they don¡¯t want to share it with the world. But then again, if it was something terrible... why would Lalai share it with us in the first place? It certainly wouldn¡¯t make us want to work with her people, now would it? ¡­ Amethyst and Frank continue their Museum tour, entering the ¡°Present Mysteries¡± -section. It starts off with a section focusing on Space Travel, theorizing that in the past, they must have had some fantastical lost technology, that allowed humanity to cross the Galaxy, to come from Earth to Divine Cradle, and then to Metropolis. Compared to the distance traveled back then, it would be unsustainable to be made in this day and age, without the existence of space stations to stop and refuel. The current fuels in use aren¡¯t efficient or light enough to make incredibly long journeys feasible if all the fuel had to be carried on board. The next large section touches upon the people of the current Galaxy, and the many enigmatic pasts of its inhabitants. Showcasing Garanean people, providing hypotheses about the nature of their runic skin, and playing with the idea of a higher being, Araltera, being real in their past. A few statues are dedicated to the unexplained existence of two sapient species, the color-changing slime people of Flibma and the tall and stick-figured octopus-headed Churlen, neither of their planets had any fauna that resembled either species, how did they come to be if evolution theory seemed to fail them both? Existing in the same solar system, no less. Following that, there is also a whole section, that gives off the air of a great conspiracy board, drawing lines and connections between Mun¡¯aakas and The Bomal to the animals of Earth. How come, they had so many similarities, despite being from other far-off ends of the Galaxy? Did evolution favor some forms so much, that it was quite possible to develop similar species, given a big enough sample size and some ¡°luck¡±? And this section barely even touches on the similarities that many non-sapient species shared with Earth¡¯s or other planets animals too. Then, they arrive at a section, that is about similar principles, but this time, pertaining to the human race: Ashen and Radiant, the human sub-species. Both Frank and Amethyst read through the section¡¯s texts, illustrated with pictures and a few life-sized mannequin models. ¡°It is unknown how or when this genetic trait popped up in humanity¡¯s DNA. It is possible it has always been there since records of its first appearance are loose. This is further supported by the fact that nearly everyone carries either Ashen or Radiant genes, but it¡¯s rare that they exist in such a capacity that they manifest in any way during the person¡¯s life. Ashen or Radiant are the monikers granted to people whose genetic potential has activated. Either from birth or manifesting in life, usually after powerful emotions or trauma. Ashen¡¯s are transformed by life or death situations, potent negative emotions, or despair. While Radiant transformation is usually triggered by extremely strong positive emotions or great triumphs, like seeing one¡¯s child being born, or after a long period of stress finally ends. Also by performing heroic deeds. Due to the nature of the circumstances of change, recordings and public Radiant transformations are much more documented than Ashen. Another thing to note is that the gender ratio of Radiant and Ashen is imbalanced. While both men and women can be Ashen, only women can be Radiant. Men simply lack the ability to receive the gene of Radiant, the reasons for this are unknown. When a person transforms into an Ashen, their skin color can change wildly. Common variants, in various shades, are pink, red, gray, and black. Their commonness also follows the same order, though, born Ashen are always either pink or red. The person that transforms will have horns sprout from their skull, in various shapes and sizes. Their color usually closely matches their skin color, but are made out of bone. Wing stubs can also extend from one¡¯s shoulder blade bones, but there have only been a handful of documented cases of the person developing full-length wings. Appearance-wise, these wings closely resemble those of bats; veiny and made of skin, with a clear skeletal structure inside. Only one of these cases could actually fly with them. She went on to become the infamous Demoness of the Night, a female outlaw whose legend lives on in the sparse underworld of Metropolis. She was caught after only a few months, but the legacy of her crime spree is forever imprinted in the public memory.¡± There is a mannequin of Demoness of the Night, a rather tall and imposing figure. She wears a hat that her horns sprout through, a red bandanna across her face, all in black, with large grey wings extending behind her. Even this model of her extrudes an aura of recklessness and sinister intentions. So some humans can fly, too...? Amethyst continues reading. ¡°The rest of the Ashen transformation varies by gender. When a female transforms, their thighs and hips get more shapely as does their posterior. They may also sprout a full-length tail with or without a sharp end in addition to their muscles and arms getting a boost in size and performance, as does their chest area. Meanwhile, if men transform into Ashen, their limbs become longer and they get taller. However, this extra length is not compensated with extra strength or mass, making them look very skinny. This usually leads to the individuals struggling with their balance and control of their body, until they get used to their new proportions. If a person is malnourished, this transformation may also be life-threatening. No documented cases of tails or wings have been recorded, but three individuals'' legs have become deformed, the reason or even the intended shape of them was unknown, until the third one got full goat-like hooves in the place of their legs, made from their bone.¡± Watching over the next text section is a figure wearing a light blue toga, and sprouting feathered colorful wings. ¡°The Radiant transformation has similar properties to female Ashen transformation, that their bodies gain extra curves, but to a lesser extent. They can also gain a ghostly halo-like light phenomenon above their heads which exists in such an unclear visible spectrum, that not everyone can see them and scientific instruments also have trouble detecting their existence. Radiant¡¯s skin color does not change, but their hair can become many shades lighter or darker, and start to emit faint light or glow in the dark. They can also have wing stubs, or full-length wings of feathers colorful and glowing, resembling those of birds, or angels of myth. This is more common than Ashen wings manifesting, but still exceedingly rare. After transforming into a Radiant, it is common for the person to suffer from sudden bursts of crying and extreme empathy, becoming incredibly sensitive to the feelings of others and especially their own. Tests have shown that Radiants are 80% more likely to be able to correctly read the feelings and mood of people, even from pictures. They are also 90% more susceptible to mental breakdowns from experiencing trauma, however, the definition of trauma for them varies wildly. Ranging from totally understandable, witnessing a loved one be murdered before their eyes, to as mild as seeing a kid drop their ice cream. In that vein, Radiants become uniquely proficient in some jobs and areas, like providing therapy, and taking care of children and the elderly, while becoming entirely unsuitable to other professions, like: being a butcher, a graveyard keeper, being in the army... the list goes on. However, despite this, in rare cases Radiant¡¯s traits are so powerful, that they become unsuitable for any work, as even when working as nannies, their extreme empathy may make them cry with the child that they are supposed to be taking care of, rendering them unable to do their job effectively. Even if these individuals are put into jobs where their empathy shouldn¡¯t trigger, like a lonely office job of pushing papers, they will instead be in great emotional distress from loneliness or from any minor setback even this job can cause. In conclusion, it is possible that Ashen and Radiant genetic potential has always existed, but in time it has been diluted to what it is now, as it is hard to deny the similarities between these extraordinary people and the ¡°Demons¡± and ¡°Angels¡± described in the old records of ¡°Armstrong¡¯s Guide to the Afterlife¡±. A fictional piece, which truthfulness is still under contention to this day, describing a whopping seven types of Angels and Demons, in factual, documentary fashion.¡± ¡°Oh, I didn¡¯t know about this document, I wonder if I could read that Armstrong guy¡¯s book anywhere,¡± Frank says after Amethyst appears to have finished reading. ¡°This is all very strange... but it would be cool if you could fly with me. Oh, wait, Male Ashen have never grown wings...¡± ¡°Well, so far. Who knows if it will be possible in the future? Maybe it just hasn¡¯t happened yet.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± They go through the rest of the Present section, but it doesn¡¯t have anything that interesting remaining. It has a small section focusing on Dust Sentence, but Amethyst nor Frank feel a great drive to dive into the topic, on a surface-level glance, it seemed to not be a very extensive look, either way. As they are walking through the lobby, a wave of new customers comes in, forming a bit of a crowd. They give them a rather generous berth and don¡¯t impede their movement. However, from behind them, a voice calls out to them. ¡°Hey! Amethyst, Frank, wait!¡± They turn around, and see wading through the crowd, waving his arms like a sailor about to go under, a person... they haven¡¯t actually seen before. He carries the camera in his hand above his head, ¡°Metropolitan Times, please, an interview!¡± Frank looks at Amethyst. ¡°Do you want to be interviewed?¡± ¡°No¡­¡± ¡°Me neither.¡± Frank grins. ¡°Let¡¯s make a run for it.¡± Amethyst smirks back. They start running for the exit. ¡°H-hey where are you going!?¡± As they near the doors, to the side, they notice another person with a camera running toward them. ¡°Sapient Press, a word if you will?¡± They shout. ¡°No thanks!¡± They slip out of the doors, race down the narrow stairs, and break into the streets. ¡°Make way!¡± ¡°Sorry!¡± ¡°My bad!¡± ¡°Frank, where are we going?¡± Amethyst asks after yet another turn they take. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Away? Actually, I think I saw a bus stop this way.¡± ¡°Or was it on the other side?¡± They finally stop, and Frank looks down an alleyway between tall buildings. ¡°Anyhow¡­ I think we lost ¡®em, let¡¯s take a moment to catch our- catch my breath.¡± ¡°Alright. They enter the alley and lean against the stone wall. ¡°Oh, time really flew by, it¡¯s getting dark already.¡± ¡°Already?¡± Amethyst looks up to the horizon, the dark reds and oranges reflected on the clouds are already fading. ¡°It¡¯s beautiful...¡± ¡°Right? Metropolis¡¯ sun really makes all the sunrises and sets the most gorgeous ones I¡¯ve seen on any planet.¡± ¡°How many different planets have you been on?¡± ¡°Well, not that many, to be honest. I think... about five?¡± Frank points to the sky. ¡°Oh, look the lights are coming out.¡± Across the sky, like a great flock of birds flying in formation, soars many small globes. They take up positions and stop above the streets at regular intervals. In a rhythm, they light up one by one. ¡°Amazing¡­¡± Even their dark alley is bathed in a gentle light from the street, though it hardly lit up the whole thing. However, suddenly the light stops shining, they can still see it above, but it doesn¡¯t shine on them. ¡°What is this?¡± Amethyst looks at her armor, which no longer reflects any light. Somehow, she¡¯s in complete darkness, in light. ¡°No way-¡± Frank says and pulls Amethyst away from the darkness, further into the alley. They emerge into the light again. ¡°Nice of you to stop for me.¡± A voiceless voice of monotone notes plays like an echo, as the shadows coalesce before them, and then are pulled against the wall like a solid carpet. Through the dark surface, a figure forms, who stretches it with their arrival, like a film of soap. Then, it pops off the wall and disappears like a burst bubble. Left standing before them, is a creature that exudes darkness, its shape unclear, only the glowing red eyes, akin to small dots indicate its orientation. ¡°W-who are you?¡± Amethyst asks. ¡°You- you¡¯re a shadowkin? A Varajou!¡± ¡°Correct, the shadow of the night, the nightmare under your bed, that¡¯s me.¡± From its darkness, a pencil and notepad emerge, that seem to float and dance in the air. ¡°Sorry, I can¡¯t resist whenever I see these sorts of reactions¡­ Nowadays, I¡¯m just a terrific journalist, a terror only to those who wish to escape from my articles. Quake not in your boots, I shan¡¯t personally harm you, I leave that to the readers.¡± His sinister, monotone laugh, devoid of warmth echoes in the alley. ¡°Oh... That¡¯s good...¡± Frank seems relieved beyond measure. ¡°Honestly, I wasn¡¯t sure if you people even existed... I seriously thought you were just invented to scare the children of Metropolis into obeying rules.¡± ¡°Oh, but we do exist, as is evident. How does it make you feel? Perhaps all the stories you were taught, all of the warnings given, were true?¡± Amethyst lifts her sheathed blades and brandishes them. ¡°Forgive my jest, let us get back to the topic at hand. I wish to interview you about the Cafe incident of today, as well as the results of the Galactic Police investigation, which clearly has concluded, given you both are out.¡± ¡°What if we refuse?¡± Amethyst asks. ¡°I shall haunt you, pursue you to the ends of Metropolis and beyond until you relent. Nothing can stop me, no wall, no barrier, on this planet, in its endless sunshine and boiling shadow, I am unstoppable, invincible.¡± ¡°That doesn¡¯t seem fair.¡± Amethyst lays down her arms. ¡°The Galaxy is not fair, even if many seem to want to make it so. This is simply our recompense, the collateral life itself has paid to us for our suffering, of thousands of years in darkness, in the light of a flickering candle, surviving only via the dim warmth of the too-distant, faraway roiling magma. This is what our planet made us to be, I care not of your opinion of fairness, all I care about is information.¡± ¡°It sounds like we better help you out then...¡± Frank and Amethyst answer his questions to the best of their ability, leaving out some details of the investigation they probably weren¡¯t allowed to tell. Halfway through, Frank realizes, he can use this to tell that the incident wasn¡¯t Amethyst¡¯s fault, since the Galactic Police seemed to have dropped the ball, or at the very least, were taking their time with the statement. ¡°That is all from me, I thank you for your cooperation.¡± ¡°Since we were so helpful in answering all your questions, can I ask you one in return?¡± Frank asks. ¡°Shoot.¡± ¡°Is ¡°The Absence¡± real? The Varajou assassin, who is said to have claimed countless lives, striking anywhere from the top floors of skyscrapers, to underground bunkers. The number one name everyone, child or adult fears. Or, is that just a scapegoat the Galactic Police uses for cold cases?¡± ¡°Who knows?¡± The Varajou sinks into the ground, disappearing. Seemingly leaving nothing behind, no indication if he still lurked around, or if he¡¯s already miles away. ¡°What a rude... shadow.¡± ¡°Yeah... I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll sleep very well tonight... Just what I wanted out of my day, to find out the boogeyman is real.¡± Frank shakes his head. ¡°Let¡¯s just get out of this alley and go home.¡± ¡°Yes... and, well... if you¡¯re scared, you can sleep next to me...¡± Amethyst holds her sheathed hands together. Frank stops and looks at her. Amethyst lays a gentle blade on his shoulder. ¡°I¡¯m safe to be around now... so... it should be possible now, shouldn¡¯t it?¡± Before Frank can answer, the sound of a hovercycle interrupts their moment, as one comes to a sudden halt, and blocks the exit before them from the alley. ¡°What now...!?¡± Frank shouts exasperated. A man gets off the bike, taking off his helmet with his back turned, some sort of a huge lump could be seen on his back through his long black jacket, and that lump holds on to a massive sheathed sword on his back. ¡°So¡­ it¡¯s true, they didn¡¯t cut them off.¡± ¡°What¡¯s it to you? Who are you?¡± Amethyst asks with uncharacteristic hostility. ¡°Well, that¡¯s more than fine by me...¡± As he lays down the motorcycle helmet, his long black curls are visible for a moment before they are hidden by a wide-brimmed hat he plants firmly on his head. Without saying anything, he turns around and starts walking towards them with heavy steps. He cracks the edge of his jacket, showing the sheath of a normal-sized sword, and holds a hand on its hilt. The shiny black boots tap against the stone, as he keeps on approaching. ¡°You better stop, turn around, and make yourself and your motorcycle scarce, or we¡¯re going to have an issue.¡± Frank takes a step backward. The man grins. ¡°I¡¯m afraid, I can¡¯t do that.¡± With blinding speed and dexterous hands, he unseaths the smaller sword, a very sharp looking, but in all other aspects a normal katana-like, slightly curved, sword. ¡°F-Frank, get behind me!¡± The blade gleams in the night¡¯s lights as with extreme swiftness, the man closes the distance and swings his sword at the unarmed Frank. 46. Blindside ¡°F-Frank, get behind me!¡± The blade gleams in the night¡¯s lights, and with extreme swiftness, the man closes the distance and swings his sword at the unarmed Frank. Amethyst manages to step forward to clash with the man¡¯s two-handed sword stance in time, shoving Frank aside, who slams against the alley wall but comes out otherwise unscathed. ¡°Well done. I knew you could block that.¡± Amethyst¡¯s sheaths grind against the sword, but it doesn¡¯t even cut into them. ¡°Leave us alone! Whoever you are!¡± Amethyst swings her elbow blade at him, but his opponent shifts his blade to another angle and catches it on the blade too. ¡°You don¡¯t even care to know? You wound me. But I suppose it¡¯s fair, poor Vic won¡¯t ever know what hit him either.¡± He breaks the stalemate and steps backward. ¡°Vic!? What do you know of this morning?¡± ¡°Plenty of things, like how long I slept, what I ate for breakfast... though, I wouldn''t recommend salads with nuts, I hear they¡¯re hard to eat.¡± ¡°What? Were you there?¡± ¡°Me?¡± He scoffs and tips his hat covering his face momentarily. ¡°Of course not. How could I not know about all this? It¡¯s all over the news.¡± A grin emerges on his lips, he faints a slash from the left but steps in close turning the strike into a stab toward Amethyst¡¯s chest. He¡¯s too close to Amethyst for her to defend herself in time, so she attacks back, bringing her dagger hands down. They clash, both of their hits connecting. ¡°That¡¯s simply not fair¡­¡± The man staggers away from the force of Amethyst¡¯s sheathed blades pummeling his shoulders, only managing to chip her chest armor with his lunge. ¡°F-Frank, what should I do- I- The sheaths!¡± She looks back at Frank, but he¡¯s not where she saw him last. Further behind her, he¡¯s on the ground, mouth tied with thin white string, caught in a net made of the same substance, completely restrained. On the other side of the alley are two more strangers. An old graying man dressed in white, with two snake heads hovering over her shoulders, the bigger one has the white string still running to Frank''s net. ¡°Atro... keep her occupied...¡± ¡°Incompetent fool...¡± The snakes speak in turn. Reeling back the net, while walking toward Frank, is a muscular woman in sporty shorts and a tank top, with two gems embedded in her face; on her cheeks. ¡°Frank!¡± Amethyst hears a faint click of a trigger, and turns back, just in time to take the laser on the sheath, absorbing it, and blackening its surface. ¡°Come on, Amethyst. Let¡¯s continue our dance.¡± Atro holsters the laser pistol, and brandishes his blade with both hands again, charging at Amethyst. ¡°I only dance with Frank.¡± The gems all around her body begin to glow: the dormant conflagration runs in her veins, pushing through into all of her blades. A muffled whoomp sounds as her blades ignite inside of the sheaths. She takes the sword hit with her heating-up protectors, embers flying from the seams. ¡°You won¡¯t have him!¡± Amethyst shouts, and runs his elbow blade¡¯s sheath across Atro¡¯s blade, snapping a few of the belts holding it in place. Then, all at once, the fastening leather belts all ignite on her sheaths, and they drop off. A purple fire rages inside the fabric, as they fall to the ground, drooping and partly melting. Amethyst advances and swings, a blade engulfed in purple flame cleaves Atro¡¯s sword clean in two. She tries to get a hit in, but even with his sword gone, he¡¯s evasive as ever in his retreat. With him pushed back, Amethyst turns around to Frank. The muscular woman has already collected him, having heaved the net and Frank over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes. They are at the very end of the alley, before a hover van with an open side door. ¡°Now that we¡¯ve warmed up¡­ let¡¯s get serious.¡± Amethyst turns to the direction of the immediate danger, to see the massive sheathed sword drop to the ground with a thunk, jutting out of the asphalted ground. Atro throws off the broken sword hilt and his black jacket, revealing his topless and chiseled chest completely. A hairy arm behind him picks up the massive sword, unsheathing it. ¡°N-no way... M-mother?!¡± The second sword is a purple crystalline blade, with just a hilt outfitted to its staggering size, with instinct, she recognizes it to undoubtedly be a part of her Mother¡¯s elbow blade. The swordsman crosses his arms and turns his back to Amethyst, showing off the massive gorilla arm wielding the greatsword. Grotesquely, the large arm is sprouting from his back, numerous scars and red spots on his bare skin tell of the operation¡¯s recency. Immediately after, the man¡¯s head turns an unnatural 180 degrees, looking now at Amethyst with his back turned. He lowers his stance and shuffles in a backward walk that looks incredulous and somehow equally terrifying. In a downward motion, he brings down the blade at her. Amethyst¡¯s flaming blades receive the heavy blade with both dagger hands. ¡°A parent¡¯s blade, slaying their child, how poetic. But do not fret, should you fall to this blade, we can call it your Mother¡¯s will.¡± ¡°Hnnh!¡± Amethyst strains underneath the force, and glances back towards Frank. The snake person just closes the van¡¯s side door, and she only gets a glimpse of his restrained body. The woman stands next to him and looks back at Amethyst, her expression unreadable. ¡°Do not look away!¡± Atro rotates the sword, and breaks Amethyst''s block, forcing her blades apart and her to step back out of the way. With her attention forcibly brought back, she takes advantage of the gigantic sword''s slower recovery speed and launches a counterattack: swinging with her dagger hand, followed by the other hand¡¯s elbow blade. Atro avoids narrowly getting hit, as her dagger almost singes the hair on his chest, and the elbow blade¡¯s wide arc catches the rim of his hat, cutting through it. ¡°Frank! Do you hear me?! I... I will come for you, I will find you!¡± The monstrous swordsman''s normal hand takes off his burning hat and pats the small flicker of flame away before perching it back on his head. Meanwhile multitasking with his nimble legs, focusing on defense, outmaneuvering the untrained blows of the Tyrchid, and blocking those he cannot dodge, though unable to return any attacks himself. She hears the van¡¯s passenger and driver doors close. No! I- I can¡¯t let them get away! Amethyst tries to retreat toward the van, stopping her attack, but she has to walk backward, turning her back on this man would be too dangerous. Atro follows her a few steps behind, and with this refuge from combat, unholsters his laser pistol with his normal hand, propping it upside down against his shoulder, starting to fire. Amethyst¡¯s retreat is slowed down considerably, unable to do anything other than hold her ground. Atro catches up to her keeping up the laser fire while swinging the crystal armament with decisive blows. Amethyst feels overwhelmed, parrying and blocking the powerful strikes of his massive arm¡¯s sword, and deflecting the projectiles with her other hand. Somehow being able to keep up with Atro¡¯s expert movements and spray and pray tactics. A laser passes next to her head, which she was unable to block, another grazes her shoulder armor and breaks into red sparks blackening the spot but unable to penetrate. Amethyst hears the hover van rev and drive away. ¡°No! You can¡¯t do this!¡± This can¡¯t be happening! ¡°Who¡¯s going to stop me?¡± ¡°Why!?¡± Her flames spray around and fly from the clash of their blades, but they are not reaching Atro. She can feel her strength waning. She extinguishes his fiery blades, as they don¡¯t have any effect on her mother¡¯s blade, nor can she catch him in them. ¡°Giving up? I¡¯m just getting started.¡± The sound of the hover van getting further and further away fills her with dread. She takes the brunt of the next strike with her left elbow blade, and then stabs forward with his right hand, Atro quickly jumps backward to avoid getting hit. ¡°Never.¡± Amethyst uses the momentum to keep on swinging, and at the same time, Atro¡¯s laser pistol seems to finally run out of battery, as he withdraws it from his shoulder. ¡°Sorry, I meant, I¡¯m just getting started on getting out of here.¡± He jumps backward, and turns around, putting his head back in its usual place. Atro walks backward normally, with the now reloaded pistol, laying down rapid, accurate, fire for his retreat. The bolts are far too numerous and aimed at different areas of her body, making Amethyst unable to chase after him, able to only slowly creep toward him in the laser shower. He holsters the pistol, pops on the helmet, and jumps on the hovercycle with finesse, speeding away. For a step, Amethyst chases after him but decides to turn the other way. Running through the alley, she spreads her wings, but it''s too narrow for them to fully open. She bumps her bony wings to the walls, the film falling off, unable to form the needed area for flight. She reaches the end of the alley, but at the streets, there¡¯s no sign of the van, only a few fearful and shocked civilians leaving the scene. Unable to do anything but wait a moment for the substance to spread and harden, before being able to take into the skies. She flies directly up, scanning the streets with her enhanced vision, but cannot spot either: the hovercycle or the van. She flies even higher, to be able to see over more buildings, but it is of no use. The streets are simply too numerous, with too many vehicles going way too fast. The buildings obstruct much, as does the vegetation, tall trees covering her view to many locations. Amethyst¡¯s lips press together and stifling heat spreads on her face. No¡­ No! How¡­ why? Frank¡­ Who were they? Why did they take you!? Pain throbs in her head, in her mind. What do I do now? No, calm down¡­ ¡°Hello?¡± I can do this. I just have to find them, rescue Frank. But how? ¡°Excuse me?¡± They must be from Intergalactic- ¡°Miss! Miss!¡± A quiet voice borne from somewhere carries in the wind. Amethyst looks down, there¡¯s somebody, a kid, waving at her from below. She lands back down, before the Sinel kid, who wears tattered formal clothes too big for him. ¡°Miss. This is for you.¡± He holds a folded piece of paper for her. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°A message.¡± ¡°Can you¡­ read it for me?¡± ¡°Okay... I wasn¡¯t paid to do this, but if Miss requests it...¡± The boy clears his throat.
¡°If you want to see Frank alive, do not go to the Galactic Police, do not tell ISSA, and do not attend the ISSA court tomorrow. The day after that, go to the ISSA¡¯s offices, and withdraw your Sapient Species application. We will contact you after that, for where you can collect Frank, unscathed, from. Thrilling regards, your Mysterious Duelist ;).¡±
¡°Why do you have this? Who are you?¡± Amethyst brings her blades forward. The kid lifts his arms to the sky. ¡°I was paid in advance, to deliver this message after they left. It was the man dressed in black, with a big hat, Miss. He even drove me around on his hovercycle and dropped me off before all the fighting.¡± Amethyst retreats her blades. ¡°I see¡­ sorry if I scared you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay, Miss. I wasn¡¯t scared. It¡¯s not my first time being involved in something like this.¡± ¡°Huh? Are you with them after all?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s just... I live on these streets, I don¡¯t have a home, so, you¡¯d be surprised by the demand that third-party untraceable messengers have.¡± ¡°How is that possible? How do you not have a home? There¡¯s houses all around and even the forest nearby.¡± ¡°But you need money to stay in houses, and almost all of them are already in use by others, though, I do sometimes live in the forest, yes, even if it''s not allowed.¡± ¡°All alone?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°I see... That¡¯s terrible.¡± ¡°I guess? Before my parents died, they always said that it was our fault, and we deserved it. I don¡¯t really know what to think, but I¡¯m doing a lot better than some other people. You know, I like being alone, anyway.¡± ¡°I see your point. But everyone needs a home.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me. It was nice talking with you, Miss. I should go. It¡¯s bad if we are seen together.¡± ¡°Oh... I wouldn''t mind.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay. I¡¯ve seen you in the G-TV and ads, I¡¯m sure you¡¯re an important person. I hope you can save your friend.¡± Steps approach them. ¡°Good evening, citizen.¡± A senior Galactic Police officer greets Amethyst. ¡°There have been numerous reports of noise and disturbance in the area. Do you know anything, seen or heard something perhaps?¡±Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. The kid doesn¡¯t react to the Police''s presence. Amethyst wishes she could just ignore and not answer the question too, but she has to make a decision¡ªbe the one to take action. ¡°No, I haven¡¯t heard anything.¡± The Policeman looks her over. ¡°Are you alright? You¡­ seem to be damaged, or hurt?¡± He gestures at the chipped armor on her chest. ¡°Oh, no, I¡¯m alright, more importantly, this kid isn¡¯t, he doesn¡¯t even have a home.¡± ¡°A-ah, I see¡­ Is that true-?¡± The officer asks but then looks at the kid, and falls silent, looking away instantly. ¡°No, Metropolis is my home, and I can take shelter at the Sinel residences if I need to.¡± The officer coughs with a frown cemented on his face and a sudden flash of anger visits his features. He looks back to Amethyst with a calmer expression, seemingly ignoring the kid like he¡¯s just air. ¡°All seems to be in order then. Have a good night, citizen.¡± ¡°But how can this be alright? This child is without a home? This must be some sort of crime, right?¡± Amethyst asks. ¡°Well, no. Uh, these things happen.¡± ¡°In the fine city of Metropolis? The shelter of Sapient life?¡± The police officer looks bothered but still does not even look at the blue child. ¡°Miss... it¡¯s fine, I should go.¡± The kid runs away. ¡°N-no, but-!¡± Amethyst shifts her weight to catch him but changes her mind. He would be fine¡­ probably. And besides, how could she even stop him without hurting him? Their size difference is huge, and while she could hug Frank without hurting him, that was an act done, while stationary. The officer sighs a relief and goes on his way as well. Only after he has left, Amethyst realizes that she¡¯s not wearing her protective sheaths. Thankfully, the officer seemed to be oblivious to her need to wear them. What do I do? I can¡¯t be going around without them... But I don¡¯t know where Bafrouk¡¯s workshop is either, much less the Police station¡­ and they told me to not go the Police anyway. I don¡¯t know if they somehow know if I do, I can¡¯t risk that. I... I... There is no time for that, the sheaths don¡¯t matter. I need to find Frank. If I am punished for that after the fact, then so be it. They can take my blades, cut them off, make more knives or swords out of them like Intergalactic has from my Mother¡¯s for all I care. I won¡¯t need them anyway after I¡¯ve saved Frank. *** Some time later. The strong smell of space-potatoes, their dirty and earthy smell, makes Frank¡¯s nose twitch and irritates his eyes. A sack covers his face, unable to see much at all, only glimpses of light and colors through the frayed rough fabric. The van¡¯s door is opened, and he¡¯s grabbed again and lifted on the shoulder of somebody, ragdolling him, legs over the shoulder. The strange sticky string restraining his limbs, and gagging his mouth is firm and unyielding, It tastes bitter and salty, his lips feel like they are going numb, perhaps from its tightness or something else in the string. A creaky door is opened, and they step inside some building. The lights are rather bright, and chattering fills the air, the clinking of glasses, movement of chairs, and steps sound all around. Where are we? Is this some sort of bar or restaurant? ... Don¡¯t they care that I¡¯m kidnapped here? I¡¯m literally hung over a shoulder! The bright lights are left behind, and next are wooden stairs that seem winding and endless with their turns. Finally, another door later, he¡¯s put down on a chair and the sack is taken off his head. He is in a room, akin to a medium-sized hotel room, with minimal furnishing, an old dark wood floor, and otherwise looking rather run down to boot. There¡¯s a large window at the back of the room, veiled with a thick light-blocking curtain. ¡°What a sad little thing.¡± The bodybuilder woman holding the sack says. ¡°I could have just run you down and grabbed you myself. What an overkill it was for all three of us to be there.¡± ¡°Should have sssaid so.¡± ¡°You can crush him to death next time and fail the misssion for all we care.¡± ¡°Oh shut up you noodles, it wasn¡¯t personal.¡± ¡°Whatever you sssay.¡± ¡°Brute.¡± ¡°I agree, I want to see you do that, Beam. That¡¯ll be our plan next time.¡± She shakes her head. Atro, the topless man with the gorilla arm holding onto his side approaches Frank. He grabs the strings muffling his mouth and pulls them underneath Frank¡¯s chin. ¡°Shall we find out what happened, before we sidetrack too much?¡± ¡°What happened? I¡¯d like to know what-¡± ¡°Shh¡­¡± Atro presses his finger over Frank¡¯s mouth. ¡°Don¡¯t talk unless asked, and as you¡¯ve probably deduced, shouting for help here won¡¯t do you any good either.¡± Frank holds his tongue for now. ¡°It¡¯s a bit pointless, isn¡¯t it? We got the wrong guy, no way this is him.¡± Beam says. ¡°I mean, he¡¯s the right guy, but still the wrong one. You know what I mean.¡± ¡°A pitiful if not ssspirited man.¡± ¡°Carelesss and weak.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Frank muffles against Atro¡¯s finger, who then flicks him over the nose with it. ¡°Well, how could it be anyone else? We heard it was the man who is with Amethyst.¡± Atro paces around and then turns to him again. ¡°Tell me, did you kill Sola?¡± ¡°Who?¡± ¡°Right, you probably know her as... Luna. Anyway, same question.¡± Beam reacts to Frank¡¯s changing expression. ¡°No way. You- you did it?¡± She slams a debilitated table in the room, dust billows up from its cracked surface. ¡°You¡¯re shitting me. Tell me you¡¯re not serious.¡± She stomps to him, winding up a punch, but instead taps him on his forehead with the iron knuckle, but it still hurts. ¡°Huh? Answer me.¡± ¡°I killed Luna. It¡¯s true.¡± The snake heads erupt in what can only be described as laughter, they sizzle and wheeze. ¡°Well, I¡¯ll be.¡± Atro takes his hat off and looks inside like something profound is located there. The scary face of the gem-embedded Beam wilts, sadness and despair overwhelm her expression. A heavy hand like bricks falls on Frank¡¯s shoulder, it grips like an iron clamp. ¡°You took her away¡­ she was my friend. Now I¡¯m all alone again...¡± She whispers with hatred-laced words. Frank¡¯s face contorts; if she doesn¡¯t let go, his shoulder¡¯s not going to survive the next burst of anger intact. Beam sighs. ¡°Left alone with these two knuckleheads...¡± ¡°Two¡­ heads¡­?¡± ¡°If you meant the rest of us¡­ you should have sssaid three headsss¡­ Dimwitted damsel¡­¡± ¡°Knuckleheads? Better check your own hands for the only extra knuckles around.¡± Atro continues: ¡°And how was she your friend, she insulted us all constantly?¡± Her grip loosens, just in time to only leave Frank with a nasty bruise, hopefully at least. ¡°Bah, you wouldn''t get it.¡± Her head is downcast. ¡°That was comradery in its purest form, shooting the shit, bantering back and forth.¡± Beam continues: ¡°Everything that¡¯s ever said to you, you take as a personal insult, your skin is so thin you might as well not have one at all.¡± ¡°Hah, that a line you picked up from her?¡± Atro puts the hat back on his head and hides his eyes. ¡°Don¡¯t get me wrong, her departure was unfortunate, she was my rival after all.¡± ¡°No. She was my rival.¡± Beam steps toward Atro, and they continue to argue in circles, going head to head, in the middle of the room. Karme and Kaarme sit back, slumping their host body onto a flimsy chair, the other snake head grabs a jug of liquid to its fangs and pours it into a glass the body¡¯s hand is holding. ¡°Entertain usss, we can only see...¡° ¡°...sssuch boredom in our future.¡± The other head bites open a bag of snacks, ''Crispy CreamGelatin'', and takes a few of the cube-shaped treats to its hand, the mouth of their host opens slowly, like a rusty door, and the ''food'' is smacked inside. It coughs some out before the liquid is practically thrown in the mouth, some of it gurgles up, but most goes down. Atro and Beam stop to size each other up. ¡°I¡­ uhh, didn¡¯t mean to kill her, if that makes it any better?¡± Both of them glare at Frank. ¡°No, that makes it even worse,¡± Atro says. ¡°That just means, she was weak. That she didn¡¯t get taken out by a worthy opponent.¡± ¡°Like you¡¯d know anything about those, you ran from Amethyst, didn¡¯t you?¡± ¡°I- I did not! I had her on the ropes, but we accomplished what we set out to do, so I¡­ retreated.¡± ¡°Hah! Ran away!¡± ¡°I did not! She- she was a worthy opponent, her natural usage of her blades was most fine and dexterous. Such finesse in the movements of her strange body.¡± Beam laughs. ¡°What! How- how dare you!?¡± ¡°Strange¡­ strange body? You of all people say that?¡± Beam doubles over laughing and her positive expression causes lasers to shoot out from the crystals on her face onto the wooden floor. The laser fire singes the floorboards. ¡°T-the person with a hairy ape¡¯s arm on their back!?¡± She laughs even harder, small flames and splinters start to fly. Atro draws the crystal sword with his hairy arm. The moment Beam hears this, her face returns to a fierce, if not mad expression, and she receives the amethyst sword with her iron knuckles, hitting it from both sides to stop it, instead of taking the sharp blade end first. The two of them engage in melee combat, inside of the room. Laughing, taunting, and screaming, letting out pent-up frustrations with each other that must have been building up for who knows how long. A chair is placed next to Frank. Karme and Kaarme sit down, and the other head holds out the bag of snacks to Frank. ¡°No thanks.¡± The bag of snacks retreats. ¡°As for usss¡­ we don¡¯t care either way...¡± ¡°But¡­ it¡¯s better Sola is gone, it¡¯s better, if it¡¯s the three of usss.¡± ¡°Why is that?¡± Frank asks carefully and averts his face from the puff of dust and splinters as Atro¡¯s sword cleaves an old table in half. ¡°We¡¯ve been interested to sssee...¡± ¡°...Which one is truly ssstronger¡­¡± ¡°Once either one killsss the other...¡± ¡°we may get assigned to a new squad, or get more interesssting people to join.¡± ¡°You want them to kill each other?¡± Frank first looks at the man¡¯s face, but it looks more dead than alive, and he focuses on the snakes apparently controlling the man¡¯s body. The two snake heads look back, as if confused. ¡°It is the way of the world, the weak are killed, and the strong survive.¡± ¡°We care not of these people, of thisss world-¡± ¡°-of this universe, it is all irrelevant, ssso very dull.¡± ¡°We are all who remain, we are chosen by Intergalactic.¡± ¡°All our other kin were slain and we barely sssurvived as well-¡± The snakes speak at the same time: ¡°-but we proved our cunning and tenacity when we took over the one who severed our heads... Proved our worth.¡± Frank ruminates on the snake¡¯s conviction, on their history, and shakes his head. ¡°What a sad existence¡­ Is that all you are? Do you merely just exist for the worldly pleasures, of being used by your enslaver?¡± ¡°It is our fate, as the losersss.¡± ¡°Tell us, what else ssshould we do then?¡± ¡°You could do... anything. You¡¯re the only ones remaining, shouldn¡¯t you make the most of your lives, instead of wasting it in this trite way?¡± Frank nods at the two exhausted combatants and the room that has been properly smashed up now. ¡°Would your brethren have wanted you to yield to your genociders? To spend your life with dimwits like those two?¡± Both of the snake heads sway and their beady black eyes shimmer. The immensely red, sharp-as-a-line, irises look inquisitive, directly staring at Frank, a wordless stare that seems to carry any and every meaning at the same time. Then, they turn to look at the fighters. ¡°Disssappointing,¡± ¡°both ssstill live...¡± *** With the Police Officer and the kid having both left, Amethyst shatters her wings on the street to fit back into the alleyway, a few passersby watch her disgruntled. I didn¡¯t realize I left behind such a mess¡­ She shakes her head, returning her attention to the matter at hand. Sorry, Frank, you told me that smelling you was rude, but... I¡¯m sure you¡¯d understand. Amethyst smells the air around the alley, trying to find something to follow, to get on their trail. She finds the scent of Frank¡¯s raspberry shampoo easily enough, but unfortunately, that trail ends at the location where he was abducted into the van. The street is full of smells of electricity, of magnetism, they blend and are all too similar for Amethyst to pinpoint either the hovercycle or the van¡¯s trace. She then smells the paper, it¡¯s hard to make out the scents, as the kid seemed to have held it tightly in his sweaty palm for a while. Looking through the alley, she finds the sword broken in two, and the jacket his swordsman-nemesis discarded. Smelling the coat with her antennae, she gets a strong trail. She packs up the broken down sword inside of the jacket, and folds it in two, covering the blades, then lifts it up with two dagger hands onto her arms. I might need these¡­ if for nothing else, than to remind me of the scent. She sets out to follow the trail left by the man¡¯s strong after-combat sweat. Since the hovercycle is a ground-bound vehicle, at least, she hadn¡¯t seen one actually fly in her time in Metropolis yet, she opts to walk to better follow the trail. The nightly streets of Integrity are rather sparsely populated, but as she nears Innocence''s crossing, the forested river area, more and more people are around, heading in the same direction as she. Over the driveway bridge with a walkway, much wider and with worse scenery than the pedestrian bridge she and Frank crossed before, she arrives at Passion. The heart of Metropolis¡¯ nightlife: filled with entertainment facilities and everything else one might look for to have a good time. Here the floating night lamps provide atmospheric lighting, instead of bright light, some storefronts have gotten their own, which pulse or rotate with patterns, creating these beautiful and energetic light shows on the streets. The trail is getting hard to follow, and Amethyst stops some passing citizens, some outright refuse to talk to her, and one even breaks down crying as they see her. None can confirm a hovercycle fitting the description going through the area recently, however, some remember seeing a topless man with a great big sword instead speed down the streets. She follows the faint trail with their directions through areas of strobing blue lights, with holographic birds and butterflies flying in the air, into the green district with around-the-clock open Arcades, bowling halls, laser tag, and other recreational centers. Then, she ends up in an area with pink as its main color, there seem to be fewer customers in this area, but it is offset by the great amount of Sapients and mostly female staff who lure customers inside buildings with blurred windows and grand entrances. For a while, she follows the main street, until the trail takes her through an alleyway. At the end of it, she finds just what she was looking for. A silver bike with yellow and lime-green highlights painted on its shiny surface. There''s no sign of the driver and she leaves the ally, into a side street, but loses the trail completely near the driveway. Floating in the area is also a very faint smell of Frank but without a direction. The swordsman must have boarded the Van here... Amethyst looks around for clues but sees nothing of note, this side street is much more deserted than the main road, with the places here looking more rundown and shadier. ¡°You there! Hello?¡± Somebody hails her across the street, standing alone before an establishment called: ¡®The Queen¡¯s Jewels.¡¯ A gold-tinted entrance resembling that of a palace, with two columns that, however, appear rather chipped and in dire need of a repaint. ¡°Me?¡± ¡°Yes you, come over here.¡± Amethyst crosses the carless street and arrives next to her. ¡°Nice to meet you, Honey,¡± a tall gorgeous Garanea addresses Amethyst, scantily clad in a medium-long white dress. Her skin is shining dark, like irradiating irresistible blackness. All along her arms, deep purple runes slowly pulse glittering light. The dress hugs all her curves and opens up to reveal her navel, where an especially large glyph surrounds her belly button. ¡°Are you looking for a good time?¡± She says in a husky voice. ¡°Actually, yes I am. I¡¯m having a rather bad time right now.¡± ¡°Oh, um¡­ right?¡± She runs a hand over her exposed thigh, long lustrous nails dancing on her skin. ¡°Tell me exactly... what you had in mind, I¡¯m all ears.¡± ¡°My... um... husband has been kidnapped¡­ Can you help me? You know, since you were offering and all- Oh, but don¡¯t tell the ISSA or Galactic Police about it.¡± ¡°Really¡­?¡± Her sharp but short ears twitch, and the many golden rings penetrating them shingle. ¡°Honey, I don¡¯t really know if I...¡± Amethyst¡¯s demeanor reacts to her negative response, her antennae slumping, as well as her posture. ¡°Oh, fine, what do you want to know? I¡¯ll see if I can help.¡± ¡°T-thank you! Have you seen the owner of that hovercycle? Where did they go?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± She throws her long hair back, which flows in lush waves down her shoulders, her strands somehow darker than the night around. ¡°Sorry hun, I said I¡¯d help, but I ain¡¯t no snitch, at least for free.¡± ¡°B-but... I don¡¯t have anything...?¡± ¡°Well, you look quite the exotic little thing, I¡¯m sure you could quickly make some-¡± ¡°Oh, actually, I have this jacket and a broken sword? I don¡¯t need them anymore since I remember his scent, do you want them?¡± Amethyst shakes open the jacket and reveals the broken sword. ¡°I¡­ Ugh¡­ I guess I can take them...¡± She takes the pieces of the sword with pinched and cautious hands, holding them between two fingers like they were infected with some disease. She throws them both to the side, they clatter loudly as they land near the trashcans next to the Queen¡¯s Jewels, shaped like cut diamonds. ¡°I¡¯d much rather just have this jacket.¡± ¡°Oh, okay. That¡¯s fine.¡± She tries the jacket on, and it fits well enough, a little too big around the shoulders and drooping at the back. Muttering something under her breath, she sighs and then looks at the alleyway. ¡°The fetching swordsman got off the bike and then boarded the hover van that was waiting for him. It was light gray in color, and they went that way¡±, she points down the street. ¡°Two streets down and then left.¡± ¡°Right, thanks,¡± Amethyst says and smiles, then an idea hits her. ¡°Actually, the man who used that bike is a criminal, so it¡¯s okay to take the vehicle. It¡¯s yours to keep until somebody looks for it.¡± ¡°W-what are you on about? I don¡¯t think-?¡± ¡°Oh, but remember, if the owner comes to ask for it, then just give it back to them. They can¡¯t blame you, because that¡¯s how loaning works, so don¡¯t worry about it.¡± Amethyst beams with pride splashed all over her face. The Garanean beauty stares at her before shifting her gaze to the brand-new, absolutely gorgeous hoverbike in the alley on the other side of the street. ¡°Fuck it, why not.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s fine. I¡¯ve done something like this before.¡± Amethyst nods reassuringly. ¡°Thank you, now this was a good exchange. What¡¯s your name?¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m Amethyst. Nice to meet you...?¡± ¡°What a coincidence, I¡¯m Opal, a precious gem as well. Or well, that¡¯s my, ahem, stage name, if you get what I mean.¡± She winks with a hand on her chest. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re a performer? Then I wish you luck in your next performance.¡± Amethyst smiles sincerely, a pure smile that makes Opal wince. ¡°You could say that. A very personal performer. Say, if you''re around the area alone or with your husband, I promise to give you a discount if you pop inside Queen''s Jewels next time.¡± ¡°I''ll keep that in mind, thanks! I''ll have to rescue Frank first, though.¡± ¡°I''ll pray to Araltera that destined hearts may be united once more, and look forward to your future patronage.¡± Amethyst says goodbye and continues galloping down the street. She thinks about flying now that she isn¡¯t following a scent, but she feels, she might miss things from up above. And she certainly wouldn''t have talked to Opal if she¡¯d been flying. In a moment, the roar of a motorcycle sounds and speeds next to Amethyst. ¡°It had keys in!¡± Opal shouts at her and revs the hovercycle. ¡°Wohohohoo!¡± She shouts wildly, shooting down the road, her long hair fluttering in the wind. It looks like her dress and jacket barely cling on, as she lives it up on the bike. Two streets down, she drives donuts on the road, sadly not leaving any marks due to the hover nature of the vehicle, but indicating for Amethyst where the car turned to, and then speeds away in the opposite direction. The quiet of the night returns, in the rather deserted streets. Amethyst continues to have similar encounters, where she trades various things for sightings of the van¡¯s direction to these people standing around in the night. In return, some ask her for autographs, others just request to touch the side of her blade or her armor, and one even practices braiding her hair. The constant conversations are a little exhausting, this is definitely the most she¡¯d ever talked in her life, but it also kindles the hope in her heart. Despite all the bad things that had befallen her and Frank, these strangers treated her with kindness, and helped her, even if most of the time it was through a fair transaction. She feels there¡¯s something beautiful in that. I really hope I¡¯m getting close now... She avoided thinking about what would happen if she failed to find Frank in time, what if she became totally lost in the city. What if, Frank had already been taken off-world, flown to some other planet? How would she ever find him again? She imagines that she''d go after him with a spaceship, travel to some new planet and they''d have a repeat of their chance meeting, this time with their roles reversed. However, she¡¯d let him out of the cage immediately without hesitation. Thinking such a silly scene lifts her spirit for a moment before reality comes rolling back in. Will a scenario like that be the next time we meet? ¡­ Suddenly, a faint scent of Frank and the swordsman re-emerges. She circles the building, to find a metal garage door that''s pulled down, from somewhere between its dented edges, she smells them. It''s too faint for them to be directly behind the door, and making a scene at least before she''s more sure where Frank is isn''t something she wishes to do. She finds the main entrance, it''s a restaurant bar motel, called: ''B.B.B.B. Bed, Bar, Breakfast...'' The last B-word of the sign has its lights burned out so she''s not sure of what it is. Amethyst enters; inside there are plenty of tables around with customers talking, eating, and drinking. On one side of the wall is a stage with some metal poles, where humans and Sapients perform acrobatic tricks, attracting a crowd. The further she goes, the stronger the smell gets. She spots a backdoor that likely leads to the garage, and stairs that lead upstairs, that go right past the bar. However, the entrance is blocked off with a large red-ribbonlike rope extending across the door. Amethyst walks up to the barkeep. It¡¯s a Flibma, who looks way too tall for its kind until she notices it has assimilated slender robotic legs as a part of its slimy, color-changing, body. Its voice is robotic, but surprisingly expressive, although the voice converter seems to be damaged as it speaks strangely. ¡°Yo, ain¡¯t seen ya ¡®round, what can I getcha?¡± Amethyst quickly glances through the drink and food menus plastered above the counter. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t have ¡®information¡¯ on your menu?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a definite mayhaps, whatcha¡¯ on the market fo¡¯? ¡°Have you seen a... person, he¡¯s got cute long blond hair, some would say too long maybe. He wears a lot of green too, an unhealthy amount. He¡¯s got enchanting eyes that look orange in some light and brown in others. Additionally, his voice-¡± ¡°Nope, nevah seen such a bloke in my whole jiggling-life.¡± ¡°Are you sure? I¡¯m sure he¡¯s been here recently. Maybe you missed him?¡± ¡°Lass, too many questions is askin¡¯ fo'' trouble. Yo¡¯ better scoot unless ya buying.¡± ¡°Buying with¡­?¡± ¡°Money! Them moolahs, the cold hard cashomaroonies!¡± ¡°Oh, but... I don¡¯t have any money... Mind if I check upstairs before I go?¡± ¡°Yo¡¯ deaf or somethang? Unless you renting, with m-o-n-e-y, yo¡¯ ain¡¯t goin¡¯ up.¡± Amethyst just smirks sheepishly. ¡°Pretty please?¡± The barkeep presses a button behind the counter. ¡°Johnny boy, vacate this lass from these premises, won¡¯tcha?¡± A Redlar, a muscular cat Sapient as tall as Amethyst, arrives next to her. His fur shines and has a pattern of white vertical stripes on the red mane. ¡°It¡¯s Johnaby. This the troublemaker?¡± ¡°Right, right, Johnny, if you see ¡®er come back, send ¡®er packin¡¯.¡± ¡°But I- This is important!¡± I have to get upstairs but...! ¡°Now, don¡¯t do anything stupid.¡± Johnaby¡¯s long whiskers twitch, his clawed paws are huge, their insides covered in thick leather-like skin. His arms and biceps are enormous, at least three times as thick as his neck. ¡°I¡¯ll fold you twice over and snap off your blades before you get another step that''s not towards the door. Your move.¡± Amethyst doubts if he could actually do that, but given she¡¯s not familiar with his type of Sapient, she doesn¡¯t feel exactly confident in defying him. She gives in and starts moving to the door with him. Why can¡¯t he just let me upstairs? I- I have to save Frank! But... I don¡¯t want to fight anyone either. Especially, if they¡¯re not the ones who took him. ¡°And stay out if you know what¡¯s good for you!¡± The door is closed, leaving Amethyst out on the street. Should I have told the Flibma he¡¯s been kidnapped? Plead to him with proof? ... I don¡¯t think that would have helped. She takes a deep breath, closes her eyes, and concentrates, her senses heighten. You¡¯re here... I know it, but... What do I do? ... Wait... Frank, is that you? 47. The Saviors *** ¡°Now that we¡¯ve rested, we should prepare to switch locations,¡± Atro says leaning against the wall, lifting his hat from his eyes. Against the other wall, Beam sits in a meditative pose. ¡°You heard something Karme & Kaarme?¡± The snakes don¡¯t answer, just observe the two with intrigue. Atro pries himself off the wall in a smooth motion. ¡°Let¡¯s move.¡± ¡°Move? Where?¡± Frank asks, still chairbound, his arms tied to his side and his legs together from multiple spots. The white string starts to get a little looser with time, though, it only makes him a little less uncomfortable, rather than aiding in any escape efforts. ¡°None of your business.¡± Atro¡¯s arm picks up the massive sword from next to him. ¡°Where will you take me?¡± ¡°Can somebody gag him back up? Karme?¡± Crash! As Beam and Karme & Kaarme are about to act on Atro¡¯s words, a loud crash interrupts them, though nothing changes in their room, it seems to have come from elsewhere. ¡°What was that?¡± Beam says. ¡°I¡¯ll check it out. Beam, secure the window. K & K guard Frank, and shut him up, will you?¡± Atro says and leaves the room through the door. Karme & Kaarme continue to sit on their chair, looking calm, snacking on their cubes. Beam¡¯s sneakers squeak slightly as she sneaks up to the window, apart from that, a quiet has landed, it¡¯s as if the crash never happened. She grabs the thick curtain and as soon as she pulls it out of the way to see what¡¯s going on outside, the window explodes. Amethyst crashes through the glass, sending Beam flying out of her way across the room. She shakes her head, shedding shards of glass from her hair, the window behind her practically blown open, the windowsill bent out of shape. ¡°Frank!¡± ¡°Amethyst!¡± Frank shouts and jumps up, almost falling due to his tied-together legs. Karme & Kaarme start to get up from their chair, the heads squirm agitated, and the bigger one opens its mouth toward Amethyst. Amethyst barrels forward, and kicks them and their chair, the old man with his snake heads is thrown down, and the sound of something cracking echoes. ¡°Our back...!¡± ¡°Agh- Why-!?¡± The snakes wheeze as their necks are flattened underneath their human body. Amethyst gets to Frank, cuts through his bindings with a precise hand, and lifts him into her arms. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Yeah! Quickly!¡± Frank grabs hold of Amethyst¡¯s shoulder. Beam starts rising from the ground holding her head, she has bloody scrapes across her arms and legs. Atro slams the door open with his laser pistol drawn, makes sense of the situation with just a glance, and shoots. Amethyst tries to turn away from him, but she¡¯s too slow. The shot hits Frank''s body, which recoils on her arms, colliding against her chest armor. ¡°Frank! Are you-?¡± ¡°Go, Amethyst!¡± Frank shouts with his teeth held together, his other hand holding his chest. Amethyst starts running, with her wings still opened up and ready for flight. Atro violates the trigger repeatedly, but no more shots come out. He curses and smacks the pistol against his palm flinging the empty battery out of it, he¡¯d forgotten to recharge it after their last encounter. ¡°Karme! Kaarme! Capture them!¡± The snake¡¯s body crawls up with difficulty and Karme shoots a white net from his mouth at Amethyst, missing her. ¡°Brother...¡± Kaarme looks at his sibling. ¡°What! How did you miss? You never miss!¡± Atro shouts. ¡°Whatever, Kaarme!¡± His little brother shoots a web as well, and misses, further webbing up the back wall. The two snakes look at each other, like having a silent conversation just with their eyes, which is clearly more important than the unfolding events. Amethyst is almost to the window. ¡°This is- ridiculous! They¡¯re a massive target-! Beam, shoot them!¡± Atro shouts and fumbles with a backup battery. ¡°But the mission!¡± ¡°Screw the mission, just kill them!¡± ¡°B-but-!¡± It¡¯s too late, as Amethyst takes flight through the window to the night sky, the arguing voices of the criminals fade away. Some onlookers in the streets look up in wonder at the soaring Tyrchid, among which, a familiar shadow tucked away in a corner taking notes. ¡°Ah¡­¡± Frank strains to speak. ¡°Amethyst, how¡¯d you find me?¡± ¡°With my sense of smell and hearing, though, I mistook the room you were in the first time¡­ but that¡¯s not important right now. How badly are you hurt?¡± Frank holds his left hand on the right side of the chest, but blood comes out from between his fingers. ¡°I¡¯ve been better¡­ That way to the hospital.¡± He breathes laboriously and coughs as he extends a hand. ¡°O-okay! Hold on, I¡¯ll get you there!¡± Amethyst unfurls her head wings, despite her creeping exhaustion, and takes a sleeker posture, accelerating her flight. Frank grips her tighter and leans his head against her chest armor. ¡°Amethyst... I¡¯m so proud of you...¡± ¡°Y-you are?¡± ¡°I was more worried if you¡¯d be okay, than about myself, but... you found me all on your own. You¡¯re even stronger than I thought.¡± He laughs weakly. ¡°I did get some help, but-¡± ¡°You¡¯ve grown so much... I¡¯m glad I got to see you like this.¡± ¡°H-hey now! Please, don¡¯t speak like you¡¯re leaving me!¡± ¡°You need to go to the court...¡± He coughs up blood, that splatters on Amethyst¡¯s chest. ¡°Convince ISSA...¡± ¡°B-but, I¡¯ll go there with you!¡± Amethyst looks between the city-scape horizon and Frank, who¡¯s growing paler and his clothes redder by the second. ¡°Promise me... You¡¯ll go... Otherwise... Intergalactic...¡± ¡°No, I can¡¯t- I won¡¯t promise that! Hang on, Frank! We¡¯re almost at the hospital!¡± They¡¯re flying close to Passion¡¯s edge, approaching the middle of Metropolis. With her incredible sight, Amethyst sees the Hospital sign looming far on the horizon, on the side of Compassion. Blood drips down during their flight, into the forest of Sacrifice, into the trees of Blood. It rains down into the river of Innocence and Purity that meet in the middle of The Mercy. Frank''s lifeforce falls on the statue of the Red Goddess, slathering her hair bright sanguine in a way the spotlights never could. The fountain statue holding Metropolis¡¯ sun, forever crying out misty water, now with a touch of red in her tears. Amethyst touches down in front of the large white Hospital building, her legs leaving large scrapes on the asphalt. ¡°Frank, we¡¯re here! Frank-?¡± His eyes are closed, an arm still around Amethyst¡¯s shoulder, but the hand touching her neck has no grip. ¡°No!¡± She dashes inside, almost colliding with the too-slow-to-open automatic glass doors, the limp Frank in her arms. ¡°Somebody help, please!¡± Her desperate plea springs the staff inside into action, the receptionist gets her a hover stretcher immediately for her to lay Frank onto, and a team of doctors and nurses arrive at the scene despite the late hour. Frank is immediately carted away, but Amethyst is stopped from following by the main desk receptionist. ¡°You can¡¯t go there, you¡¯ll only be in the way, okay? It¡¯s tough, but you¡¯ll stay behind and let them do their best, won¡¯t you? In the meantime, can you tell me what happened?¡± Amethyst continues staring in the direction he was taken in, at the doors with round glass windows, her mind elsewhere. ¡°I can tell how much he means to you, but we must do what we can for him in this moment too. Tell me, please, how did things end up this way?¡± Her head pounds as sounds around her slur together. When did I get here? Where is... here? Amethyst finds herself in a strange space, a large circular lobby with bright lights. Right... I rescued Frank, but he got shot... I was taking him to the hospital... The white space distorts, and the lights blur and stretch. Is this...? Yeah... I got him... to the hospital... I''m so glad... ¡°Miss? Are you okay?¡± Amethyst''s wings fold inside her armor, shattering countless shards onto the floor as she collapses among them. *** ¡°Frank!¡± Amethyst awakens with a jolt in a room decorated with tranquil pastel colors, and lights that are just right. She¡¯s lying in a hospital bed, which feels oddly homely and safe. ¡°Oh, sounds like your neighbor is awake.¡± On the other side of her bed is a white-gray curtain. It¡¯s pulled open, and a gentle woman¡¯s face peeks at her. ¡°Hello. How are you feeling?¡± She opens the cloth divider wider, revealing a bed with a small boy tucked in behind her. ¡°Okay... I think. Where am I?¡± ¡°You¡¯re in the hospital ward. I heard you caused quite a commotion bringing your lover here and then collapsing yourself.¡± She chuckles in an understanding way. ¡°Ah... how did you know that about Frank...¡± ¡°I could clearly hear it in your voice when you shouted his name,¡± The woman tears up and rubs her eyes, Amethyst can just about make out a sky-blue flickering halo above her head. ¡°Ah... Sorry. I get emotional.¡± ¡°Mom... don¡¯t cry.¡± The small boy says weakly. ¡°No, it¡¯s okay. You know how Mommy gets.¡± ¡°Yeah, your Mom¡¯s a Radiant, right? It¡¯s only natural.¡± The lady is surprised but smiles at Amethyst, her eyes narrowed from her wide grin, the tears now flowing down her cheeks. ¡°Right, it¡¯s cute how you are still so worried for me, but I¡¯ll be fine. Please, try to get some more sleep.¡± She speaks with a wavering voice, without looking at the boy. ¡°Okay¡­¡± The boy closes his eyes and seems to fall asleep immediately. Her Mom takes the opportunity to wipe her eyes with a napkin. ¡°I have to apologize, I was so preoccupied, that I completely forgot to tell you. The doctors said you were just fatigued, and once you¡¯d wake up, they hoped you¡¯d eat something. They weren¡¯t really sure what else they could do for you for now. They¡¯ve never treated a Tyrchid before.¡± Amethyst spots a bowl full of fruit on the side table for her. She starts eating, stabbing them with her dagger hands, most swallowing whole without reservation, despite never having seen any of the fruits before. ¡°Do you know how Frank is doing?¡± Amethyst asks in between fruits, her hunger satiating. ¡°Not exactly, but the doctors and nurses who have come to check on you have all seemed hopeful, even if they didn¡¯t say anything.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good¡­¡± Amethyst lays back on the bed and looks to the ceiling, organizing her thoughts, and trying to relax if even just a little bit. ¡°How long was I out?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure. You were here before we arrived an hour ago. But, given that it¡¯s six in the morning, you probably slept the night.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± The ISSA court appointment is today. The little boy coughs and wakes up. ¡°Are you okay?¡± His mother asks. ¡°Y-yeah...¡± ¡°Good. Try and rest up more if you can.¡± ¡°Okay¡­¡± The boy goes back to sleep in under a minute, while the Radiant lady pets his blond hair. ¡°Is he okay? Why are you here?¡± Amethyst asks as carefully as she can. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m not sure what to say. Little Neumo is hanging in there, I think. I just hope he¡¯s strong enough to endure the years still to come.¡± ¡°What do you mean¡­?¡± ¡°Where are my manners, I¡¯m Klear.¡± As she introduces herself, her otherwise red-brown hair glows slightly blue, shimmering like a candle flame. ¡°My Son, he¡¯s had bad lungs for all his life, but he¡¯s too young for the big surgery, so they just patch him up little by little until he¡¯s old enough to undergo the whole operation.¡± ¡°His whole life?¡± Amethyst estimates the kid to be somewhere between eight and eleven years old, though the basis for her estimation is lost on her. ¡°That sounds rough.¡± ¡°Yeah, it is.¡± Klear breathes sharply and manages to suppress bursting into tears. ¡°Despite the Heaven¡¯s Clay being effective, it is also quite taxing on the body, especially for children.¡± ¡°Heaven¡¯s Clay?¡± ¡°Oh, sorry, you wouldn¡¯t know that. It¡¯s the substance used by the Patcher to close wounds and rebuild internal organs. Don¡¯t ask me how it works, though, I¡¯m not sure if you can find anyone who can tell you that. Not yet at least.¡± She pauses, looks around the room, at her sleeping son, and then back at Amethyst, with a glint in her glowing blue eyes. ¡°That¡¯s due to its production technology predating even the city of Metropolis itself, fortunately, we understand enough to keep the facility running if nothing else. That¡¯s all a bit of a secret though, so don¡¯t go shouting it around. I don¡¯t think the other Pillar Families would approve.¡± She winks and giggles lightly. ¡°Okay...¡± Hardly anything of the explanation makes sense to Amethyst, but she lets it slide. ¡°I hope the best for you both, but I think I should get going.¡± She gets off the bed, and onto her feet that feel that much more steadier now. ¡°Thank you, but are you sure? Nobody¡¯s even had the time to yet check on you.¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± ¡°Well, if you say so.¡± Klear¡¯s halo flickers as does her hair, as she closes her eyes momentarily. ¡°If you take the hallway to the left, you¡¯ll find the ward¡¯s reception, I¡¯m sure they can tell you how Frank¡¯s doing.¡± ¡°Thank you, that¡¯s exactly what I need.¡± Amethyst passes by their bed and looks back from the door. ¡°It was nice to meet you, Klear.¡± ¡°Likewise, all the best, Amethyst.¡± ¡°See ya.¡± She enters the hallway of numerous doors, and from the end of it, finds a glass booth-like reception with a male Sinel manning it. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s you, how are you feeling?¡± ¡°Have we met? I¡¯m okay now, I think.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve met you, but I don¡¯t think you¡¯ve met me, so to say. We nurses have taken turns to check on you, that¡¯s why.¡± ¡°Right.¡± ¡°What can I help you with then? You¡¯re free to leave now if you feel better.¡± ¡°I brought my husband here with me before I collapsed, who was very injured. Can you tell me how he¡¯s doing?¡± ¡°Let me check.¡± He types on the computer for a while, then shakes his head. ¡°I¡¯m afraid not, his condition hasn¡¯t been updated in our systems yet. If you want to get an up-to-date projection from a doctor, it¡¯ll take a little bit. You can go wait for him in the second-floor waiting room if you wish, I¡¯ll drop him a message to expect you there.¡± ¡°Thank you! I¡¯ll do just that.¡± ¡°And before you leave! I¡¯ll let the Galactic Police know they can come and question you about what happened. We are under obligation to let law enforcement know when patients come in who are likely the victims of a crime.¡± ¡°Oh-!¡± It had completely slipped her mind. What if the kidnappers come back? What if they¡¯ve already-? ¡°Have you been-?¡± ¡°We¡¯ve stationed one of our security guards to guard Frank¡¯s room. From the laser wound and the state of you both, we deemed it to be an important precaution.¡± ¡°Thank you, that''s a relief.¡± Amethyst leaves the ward and follows the signs around to find the correct waiting room. Soon enough, a Galactic Police Officer she hasn¡¯t met before comes to take up the details. Amethyst tells him all about it: the attack at the alley, the note not to tell anyone, and how she managed to save Frank. She describes the culprits to the best of her ability, throwing the suspicion of Intergalactic out there again, though, she does not elaborate on their possible motive. The Officer chides Amethyst for not coming to the Police, regardless of what the note said, but understands her situation. He assures her of Frank''s safety, as they will assign an officer to watch over him with the security guard as well. The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Additionally, they will go and investigate the B.B.B.B. establishment, though it¡¯s likely far too late to catch the culprits there anymore. The Officer wishes Frank a swift recovery, thanks her for her cooperation, and they say their goodbyes. Amethyst is left alone again, sitting on the soft, cushioned, lounging chair. There are a few other people and Sapients around, and the G-TV on the wall is on low volume, keeping the quiet peace in the space. Amethyst has a lot to think about but tries to avoid diving too deep into them to keep herself from succumbing to despair. She can¡¯t do anything other than wait, so she tries to be content in doing just that. She needs to know how Frank is doing before anything else. Fretting about Intergalactic¡¯s pursuit, worrying about today¡¯s ISSA court, and bursting her head with all the other issues and mysteries still open... It¡¯s all important, but secondary to information about Frank¡¯s state. An hour passes but the doctor is nowhere in sight. A receptionist comes to work and starts her shift in the waiting room¡¯s glass box. Amethyst asks her about the doctor and Frank, but she just tells her that the doctor is still busy. More people and Sapients arrive, only to get called in and then leave after their business here is done. An endless rotation that Amethyst is left out of. Breaking the monotony of waiting, a man gets up and shambles across the lobby, starting to cough with a wheezy breath. He goes up to the receptionist in her glass cubicle. ¡°I- I don¡¯t... feel so good.¡± As soon as he finishes the sentence, something flops to the floor. It¡¯s his right leg. It lies on the ground, decapitated, rotten from the knee, pushing out blood onto the checkered floor. The man falls, and hits himself on the counter on the way down, partly catching him with his hands before hitting the floor. The loose leg starts to flatten, like a punctured balloon before it just turns to dust before Amethyst¡¯s very eyes. ¡°Aaagh!¡± The man shouts in unthinkable agony, coughing and wheezing. The receptionist stands up but doesn¡¯t go help the man. ¡°Everyone! Go to waiting room three across the hall!¡± She points and shouts. Everyone does as they are told, Amethyst is the last to leave. She stays to watch behind the closed glass door, horrified. The man is on all fours, trying to get up, but his arms snap, and he hits face first onto the white and black tile floor. His screaming ends. Like some invisible force pressed down on his body, blood, and mush start to leak from within. His bones are revealed, but... they dissolve too, white bone marrow boiling. The rest of the body starts to diminish, shedding flakes, and shortly... there¡¯s nothing left, but a pile of empty clothes, a wooden bracelet, and dust: gray, brown, and white. No way... He¡¯s gone... As Amethyst looks back to the receptionist, gone is her office uniform, replaced with hazmat suit-like protective overalls. The receptionist steps out of her protective cubicle, armed with a lidded dustpan and a broom, both of which look specially made for the occasion, they are metallic, and look easy to clean. She picks up the clothes one by one into a trash bag, the dust flows out from inside of them. With them out of the way, she starts sweeping his remains into the large dustpan. As she does, from another room, two more people come out with similar outfits and start to disinfect the place, one starting where the man sat, and the other moving toward where he perished. The receptionist pours the dustpan¡¯s contents into a clay pot and seals it with a cork, she spots Amethyst and looks at her. Suddenly, she feels out of place, sickened at herself, for watching all this, torn on deciding if she should be chided for sating her morbid curiosity, or patted on the back, for being there to see the man¡¯s last moments. At least, she would be sure to remember him, remember this sight and experience for the rest of her life. Amethyst goes into the other waiting space and sits down on a bench row without anyone else nearby. Fidgeting, restless, and in shock at what just transpired. It was so sudden... Now, that man is gone. Forever. I didn¡¯t even know his name. ... How can life be so fleeting? I could have been him. And Frank... I... I really- he must survive. I don¡¯t know what I¡¯d do... ¡°That look in your eyes.¡± Who¡­ who¡¯s speaking? ¡°You¡¯re new here, aren¡¯t you?¡± Amethyst looks to the seat next to her, which was supposed to be empty, a floating mist of light blue hovers above the chair quite high up. It¡¯s like a loose shape of a beautiful woman, but it¡¯s... mangled and somehow wrong. Ethereal drips of smoke hang and drip from the otherwise perfectly formed head, dissipating as soon as they leave the vicinity of the misshapen body. ¡°Y-yes.¡± ¡°Oh! I apologize if I frightened you. My focus must have wavered, I forgot to maintain proper form.¡± She shimmers brighter for a moment, and the smoke coalesces around, which soon expands into the immaculate shape of a woman, a silhouette without the most intricate details, no fingernails or blood vessels on her skin, no bones inside the smoke. Her face remains the same, but with now mist-made glasses, without lenses, and a long open coat made of herself, but black, behind her. ¡°I am what is called in this common tongue, a Svuvah, a personification... of smoke, or mist, whichever you prefer. This is the form I use when I am working or out in public, people seem rather fond of it.¡± ¡°I... see. Nice to meet you-¡± ¡°You can call me Phantolia.¡± The Svuvah''s words are like a gentle breath of wind, airy and clear. Puffs of smoke rise from between her lips as she speaks, rising past her head until rejoining her body, flowing into her black hair that defied gravity. ¡°What a terrible incident that was... Is this your first time seeing a person perish to Dust Sentence?¡± ¡°So that¡¯s what that was... So he really is... dead?¡± ¡°Yes, very much so, I fear we may be on the cusp of another outbreak... But don¡¯t worry, for the moment we should be safe, unless you had any prior contact with him. ¡°No, no, I didn¡¯t...¡± I sort of wish I did... that poor man... ¡°That¡¯s good to hear... even if nearly everything about the disease is shrouded in mystery, it at least seems to not spread in that late stage.¡± ¡°You seem to know a lot about it... what is Dust Sentence?¡± ¡°That¡¯s a difficult question. Like I said, it¡¯s not well known what it is apart from the obvious, but I can give you a rundown of what I know.¡± Phantolia''s smoky empty eyes change into purple, as she looks at Amethyst. ¡°An infection is most likely transmitted via contact with the skin or clothes of a carrier, or bodily fluids like the person¡¯s sweat. It¡¯s most viral for the first few days as it is carried and gradually loses its infectious potential within three to seven days. After which the disease enters its second phase and shows its first symptoms, which can be nearly anything as the victim''s body is minutes away from spontaneously becoming dust. Needless to say, at that point it''s too late. If we only knew what to even look for, so we could shift through the whole population, as arduous of an undertaking as that would be, I believe it would be worth it. Maybe then we could find some solution...¡± Within Phantolia¡¯s smoke, Amethyst notices a small wooden slab, on it a metal plate with her name, reminiscent of Amethyst¡¯s bracelet. ¡°Can even... uh, Svuvah be infected?¡± ¡°Yes. That is what makes it so peculiar, and terrifying. We don¡¯t have internal organs reminiscent of most other Sapient species, and yet it can affect us just the same. Except for us, not even dust is left behind.¡± The blue smoke, somewhat reminiscent of a flame flickering dims down, as they place a hand below their chin and look to the floor with empty one-colored blue eyes. ¡°Nobody is safe.¡± A silence falls between them, Amethyst doesn¡¯t know what to say. A person just died before her not long ago... And Frank... it all feels so very heavy. ¡°You were in Pioneer¡¯s show too, right? I think I recognize you from the news.¡± Her eyes turn a gentle pink color. ¡°Right, that¡¯s me.¡± ¡°I see. I feel sorry for everything that¡¯s transpired earlier, and especially recently. I heard about Frank. I hope he can make a full recovery soon.¡± ¡°Thanks, I hope so too...¡± ¡°What do you think of Pioneer?¡± Phantolia floats down, to sit right next to Amethyst, like a high school girl gossiping. ¡°Pioneer¡­? Why?¡± ¡°He helped our race overcome prejudice. People were afraid to be around us, seeing us as beings that could violently force their way inside their lungs, and suffocate them whenever we wanted: in one¡¯s sleep, float around from behind... The Galaxy was terrified of us when we made contact.¡± Her eyes fade into empty sockets for a while again, until they light up into deep purple. ¡°But then we made a contract with ISSA, and Pioneer came, he interacted with us like we were his kin, didn¡¯t show fear, and showed us to the Galaxy in a new light. He debunked the fears of the public, we can¡¯t actually suffocate anyone, we have a solid core inside of us, that prevents us from squeezing through tight spaces like smoke itself could.¡± ¡°That¡¯s interesting.¡± Amethyst hesitates for a moment, she hasn¡¯t had many conversations, especially with strangers. However, her recent experiences give her the courage to continue: ¡°It must have been hard. To be seen as dangerous, as something you¡¯re not. I think I can relate to what it must have been like.¡± The smoke¡¯s neutral expression breaks into a smile for the first time in their conversation. ¡°And¡­ you asked what I thought of Pioneer? I think he¡¯s a good person, a bit awkward at times, and self-absorbed in his role, but he helped us¡­ Tyrchids too.¡± I think I understand him a bit better now, why he played along with us, even when I thought he saw through my and Frank¡¯s act. He¡¯s helped the Svuvah and is still helping even the Sinel. ¡°If I may ask¡­ why are you here at the hospital? Are you waiting for someone? You look healthy?¡± Phantolia¡¯s laugh is like a coal plant¡¯s chimney, sputtering and billowing. ¡°Not at all, and I am not healthy. See these spots?¡± She points around her smoky being, spots that are darker, gray and some even approaching black can be seen in her visage. ¡°As we Svuvah are rather... airy beings, we are especially susceptible to pollution. These are all impurities from the air that have become trapped in my body. They are actively making my condition worse and worse and when a Svuvah becomes 50% polluted, they start to lose their sense of self. If not treated quickly, they become unstable and become Svurax, a state of permanent corruption, where we regress to the state of violent wild animals.¡± ¡°That¡¯s horrible¡­¡± ¡°We discovered this malady on our own planet, when we advanced our technology, but could not overcome it, so we had to find alternative ways for power, and production. And now, to exist here, we must take monthly treatments in these wondrous hospitals to avoid that fate.¡± ¡°Woah...¡± Phantolia looks toward the ceiling with an unreadable expression. ¡°I hope Metropolis can keep its direction and not increase pollutants, I like it here, but if it starts the sharp climb that many planets do, I won¡¯t be able to continue living here. And of course, we are a small minority, so we don¡¯t have any sway, or say in the matter, even if we are allowed to vote.¡± She looks back at Amethyst, her eyes shining pink again. ¡°But I¡¯m hopeful, Metropolis is different, with its stance with nature, much more different than many other places I¡¯ve visited. I trust that we will make it right.¡± ¡°Me too,¡± Amethyst says, though feeling like she lacks the insight that Phantolia has on the subject. ¡°Amethyst?¡± A doctor hails and spots her. ¡°Oh, excuse me, Phantolia. This is important.¡± ¡°No worries,¡± Phantolia floats a few seats away and lounges in the air. ¡°Come with me.¡± The doctor directs her to a nearby room. ¡°We¡¯ve managed to stabilize Frank, but he¡¯s still unconscious.¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s great news!¡± ¡°He had lost a lot of blood, and his lungs and other internal organs were severely damaged by the laser¡¯s burn. He¡¯s been in the Patcher room for a good while now, which gradually rebuilds his organs from the inside out, lastly closing out the wound. While the material is something humans and Sapient species rarely reject, the treatment isn¡¯t 100%, so allow yourself to hope for the best, but¡­ Never mind. I¡¯m sure it¡¯ll be a success, and he¡¯ll be awake and back to normal sooner than you know it.¡± ¡°Thank you¡­¡± ¡°Will you be staying here waiting, or can we contact you in any way should his condition change?¡± ¡°I... I¡¯m not sure. Though, if I leave, I don¡¯t think it will be possible to contact me.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°But, I will eventually come back and Frank knows where he can find me.¡± ¡°That is probably enough then.¡± The doctor uses a tablet-like device he¡¯s holding. ¡°Now if that is all, I really should be getting back to work.¡± ¡°Yes, I think so. Thank you for your time.¡± ¡°Mhm,¡± without lifting his gaze from the device, he opens the door and lets Amethyst out, staying in himself. Amethyst just stands outside of the door, conflicted. I really don¡¯t want to leave him alone... What if he wakes up...? What if he... N-no, I can¡¯t think that... There¡¯s no way around it. I have to go to the ISSA court without him, or it¡¯ll all be in vain. He did say as much, too. Amethyst walks up to the Svuvah floating around. ¡°It was nice meeting you, Phantolia. But¡­ I¡¯ve got to go now. I have to be on time for the ISSA court.¡± ¡°Of course,¡± She floats down, lying in the air before her. ¡°Who knows, maybe we¡¯ll see each other again.¡± ¡°I hope so.¡± Amethyst smiles her goodbye and turns to leave but gets only a few steps away until she realizes something. ¡°Hey, Phantolia.¡± ¡°That was fast. Hello again, Amethyst.¡± ¡°Actually, can you help me out? I need some directions...¡± *** Some time ago, Intergalactic Space Station. ¡°What do you mean, escaped?¡± The leader''s harsh voice almost shouts at Ysale, but his decaying body is unable to produce the effort needed. ¡°That¡¯s what Squad Delta of the Enforcers reported.¡± The white-haired secretary responds to the back of his leather chair. The leader grumbles, staring through the window into the beauty of space, ignoring his faint reflection. ¡°We will expedite our plans... Tell me, surely Plan E is ready?¡± ¡°Yes, it can be deployed soon. The Earth Eater has finished the final round of disinfections and is very nearly done with maintenance.¡± ¡°Perfect. Have the crew stand by.¡± Hugging her tablet, Ysale adjusts her thick-rimmed eyeglasses. ¡°Sir, what about ISSA? According to preliminary calculations, the earliest we can have it in position is¡­ Well... What if they decide to recognize Tyrchids as a-?¡± ¡°I have accounted for the possibility. Besides, are you suggesting they would somehow succeed in their application?¡± ¡°Apologies, of course not.¡± Prick. ¡°You are of course, correct, as always. This we have taken care of, too.¡± ¡°I shall take my leave now.¡± Ysale leaves the leader in his room and sits back at her desk. She brings up a bunch of blueprints and design documents on the screen. The Earth Eater... what a magnificent ship... I wonder... is it powerful enough to do even that? But when would I have the chance to take it for myself? The old fool still has their loyalty, his eyes and ears are everywhere... She sighs, taps the table with her fingernails, and then closes the document. I''m sure I''ll figure something out... This''ll be the second coming of the Crondestons, just you wait, brother. 48. Judgment As Amethyst flies through Metropolis¡¯ airspace, her mind is heavy. Thoughts run rampant in her head, wander on and on in circles. What am I going to say? How is this going to work? Oh... I wish Frank could be here with me... But, it has to be this way, he needs to rest. ... What if the surgery goes wrong somehow? What if... he dies? Just like Luna, or that man... What would I do then?! It¡¯d be all alone... Could I really... go on without him? ... No, I can¡¯t be thinking like that... I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll be fine, we¡¯re at Metropolis after all; the doctors have all they could need. He assured me that he has a good chance of making it... I need to focus and do my part, and Frank will do his. I... I can do this. Thanks to Phantolia¡¯s directions, Amethyst is able to find the ISSA¡¯s main building, deep in Compassion. Her advice was especially helpful as due to her smoky form, she often flies to her destinations too. However, it¡¯s a bit unusual for such an administrative facility to be located in Compassion instead of Integrity. All the other ones, like the Galactic Police HQ, Parliament, the general and higher courts are there. Perhaps it''s just a case of all the other ISSA facilities residing in Compassion, so their Court was founded there too. If Amethyst''s sense of time is to be trusted, their court appointment is still an hour away, despite this, the front of the building is crowded with media personnel already. She is immediately swarmed as she lands: microphones, cameras, and every recording device in between, are shoved toward her. ¡°How are you feeling? Confident? Anxious? Today¡¯s finally the day-¡± ¡°Do you think the recent conflict will affect your chances to join the United Galaxy?¡± ¡°Where is your human assistant?¡± ¡°Rumors are circulating that Frank was assaulted and is in the hospital. Can you confirm or deny?¡± ¡°Was it your fault that Frank is hospitalized?¡± Thankfully, before coming here, Amethyst visited Teral Lacrima, Bafrouk¡¯s workshop, and obtained a second copy of sheaths. With her blades covered, there would be no fear of injuring anyone even if they clung to her very blades. ¡°What is the story of your protectors? Are they a fashion statement?¡± ¡°There¡¯s a strand of hair that¡¯s braided on your head, who did that? Who''s your makeup artist?¡± ¡°What is your opinion on the cool and refreshing taste of Space-Tundra¡¯s breeze?¡± Amethyst doesn¡¯t respond to any single one of them and makes it to the edge of the great stairs of the Courthouse. Movable fences form a checkpoint before them, and the curious vultures are left behind as Amethyst is let through by the staff there. She starts her climb up the white stone stairs, looking at the grand architecture ahead. Great pillars stand at the top with planets carved on their surface, colored faintly and artistically to match their real-world counterparts. The pillars hold up a great roof, which front has carvings of the visages of every single Sapient species that has been approved by ISSA to become a part of the United Galaxy. Bafrouk told her about it and the masterful carving artistry it displays, wishing her the best of luck to get Tyrchids up on the wall and Midnight Iris on a pillar. And of course, he boasted that the Garanean who''s responsible for carving and maintaining it is his acquaintance. The incredibly numerous rows of colored stone faces start from the top of the triangle-shaped plane, lined up in neat rows. The very first spot is taken by a blob with faint rainbow colors, a Flibma, and right after it, their octopus-faced rival from the same Solar System, the Churlen. Why are Flibmas the first one? I thought that Sinels were the first alien species humanity came into contact with, shouldn¡¯t they be carved at the top instead? Amethyst scans the faces over, but cannot spot them on the wall at all. Perhaps she just didn¡¯t notice them or... Sinels are entirely missing from it, despite living in Metropolis for all this time... Amethyst makes it to the top of the¡ªat least a hundred-step¡ªstaircase. Stone double doors await ahead, about ten meters high and half as wide. Before their grandeur, she feels herself uncharacteristically small, even Sabertigers didn''t make her feel that way, despite them being nearly the size of the doors. As Amethyst approaches, lines of energy shoot across the door''s surface, bright and pulsing like plasma, moving in sharp turns from the edges toward the area ahead of her. The energies collide against some invisible edge and start racing around in a rectangular shape, segmenting out a door fitting for her size. As Amethyst gets closer, the newly formed door cracks open and the energy dissipates, from up close the stone surface looks akin to a dusty circuit board, with faint carvings all around its surface. Stepping through, it closes again leaving no seam behind where it cut itself to accommodate Amethyst. Inside, all doorways continue to be scaled to the extreme, but at least most furniture and architecture are more normal-sized. To her dismay, the apparent lack of a reception is alarming. In all these sorts of places she had visited, they all had one. Perhaps it¡¯s hidden up some of these winding staircases instead? How else would she know where to go? She walks across the sparsely populated space, past other people, including a man who looks slightly familiar, wearing dark sunglasses and leaning against a great stone column. ¡°Hey.¡± Amethyst turns back, now recognizing him. ¡°You¡¯re that guard... Doug, right?¡± Amethyst narrows her eyes. ¡°You were at Midnight Iris, working for Intergalactic?! What are you doing here?¡± ¡°Right, Doug, that''s me. Anyway, I¡¯m your guide, that¡¯s what. Didn¡¯t you know?¡± ¡°Uh, no. Why are you my guide?¡± ¡°Since I happened to be available, and I¡¯m the only one you¡¯ve met before? I don¡¯t know.¡± Doug approaches and takes off his sunglasses. ¡°But let''s make one thing clear, I actually work for ISSA.¡± ¡°Why were you with Intergalactic before then?¡± ¡°That¡¯s... classified. But you can probably guess.¡± ¡°You got fired and switched jobs?¡± ¡°Sure, let¡¯s go with that.¡± Doug tilts himself off the column to a straight-backed stand and brushes his suit. ¡°Anyway, come with me. I¡¯ll show you to your Courtroom.¡± ¡°I guess that''s fine... Let¡¯s go.¡± They ascend multiple staircases, going left and right and left again. Amethyst keeps an eye on Doug in case he does anything suspicious during his escort, but apart from looking around a lot, and seemingly having his attention elsewhere, it¡¯s hard to pin anything damning on him. Amethyst loses her bearings the further they zigzag, being totally lost by the time they reach the courtroom¡¯s door. They sit down to wait together. The halls are devoid of people, it¡¯s almost creepy, just the two of them, sitting in silence. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to ask why Frank didn¡¯t come with me?¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t Frank come with you?¡± Doug responds immediately. Amethyst frowns. ¡°You already know, don¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Perhaps. I¡¯ve got my contacts.¡± ¡°Hmm, I wonder if you¡¯ve got contacts to know this too: I¡¯m not sure I like you.¡± ¡°Well, aren¡¯t you candid, much more so than when we last met. ¡± Doug adjusts his sunglasses and looks at her over them before he directs his gaze around the hallways again. ¡°If it makes you feel any better, I¡¯ve kind of got my eyes- erm, hands full here.¡± ¡°What do you mean? We¡¯re just sitting around.¡± ¡°If you must know, I¡¯m also working your security detail here, with the rest of ISSA¡¯s guards all around the premises. So, excuse me if I¡¯m not very chatty.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± How¡¯s he doing that? ¡°So you¡¯re a guide and a guard at ISSA?¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯m a lot of things, I suppose. Not that either of those is my main job.¡± ¡°As long as your main job isn¡¯t for Intergalactic, I don¡¯t really care.¡± ¡°That I can assure you.¡± Doug¡¯s hands swipe something on the side of his glasses, and his fingers press something. ¡°So, you were at the Galactic Police¡¯s main station, right?¡± ¡°Yeah, why?¡± ¡°Which Officers handled your case?¡± ¡°Why do you want to know?¡± ¡°Now that I¡¯m finally chatting with you, you won¡¯t answer?¡± ¡°Uh, I don¡¯t actually remember their names¡­¡± Amethyst grins abashed. ¡°Some human men¡­?¡± ¡°Right, never mind then.¡± Doug brings his hand to his glasses again. ¡°Okay¡­¡± Amethyst straightens her posture, and looks to the left, and right. Nobody else, nothing of interest. ¡®It¡¯s good to be early and punctual¡¯, she thinks Frank may have once said something to that effect. Or was it Pioneer? Either way, it seems it has its limits too. About half an hour before the appointed start time, other people finally start appearing, talking in small groups peppered across the hallway, sitting and waiting and a few already go inside the courtroom. With about five minutes to go, Doug finally gives her the go-ahead to enter the room in his escort. The courtroom is a rather large space, with a bunch of long chairs for the audience to sit on, and at the front, a podium where Doug drops off Amethyst. On both sides are stairs that lead to the slightly raised stage-like area, above which is another taller podium. Then, on both sides of this ¡°stage¡± are two raised seating areas, already filled with people. Reserved chattering fills the space, which soon quiets down as a figure steps into the room from the door at the back. An owl Mun¡¯aakas steps up to the high, front podium, his body a cylinder-shape of beautiful feathers from all shades of brown, gray, and black. Long feathers, like eyebrows, extend from above his eyes, with two separate spiked tufts of feathers at the sides of his head. A curved and sharp beak opens and talks with a low voice full of authority and calm. ¡°I am P?llend and I will be your judge for this case, henceforth known as: The Unificator. I am the final guardian, the bulwark that protects the United Galaxy, the embodiment of planetary cooperation that all remarkable parts of the Galaxy strive toward. For the United Galaxy is an ideal worth safeguarding, a peaceful Galaxy where all are governed fairly by the same rules, exist in harmony, and are equal. A Galaxy full of opportunity and prosperity, where race, lineage, or home planet do not determine the individual¡¯s fate. Every year we strive closer toward this ideal of unity, and recognizing new Sapient species as equals is an important part of the process, which leads us to today and our newest candidate, the Tyrchids from Midnight Iris.¡± His black claws hidden at the end of his large wing adjust the microphone. ¡°I will objectively run the proceedings and present the measured stance of the Jury in matters which are voted for. These votes are done after each section, and the Court proceedings are roughly divided into two parts: ¡®Evaluating the subject species Sapience and Intelligence¡¯ and ¡®Evaluating their suitability to join the United Galaxy¡¯.¡± P?llend looks directly at Amethyst. ¡°There are Jury members seated on both sides of the courtroom, they will mostly ask the questions while you are required to answer them to the best of your ability. Though, should there be something that would be beneficial for them to know, you may also make your own statements.¡± ¡°I will be here mostly to monitor and direct the conversation back on track should we veer off topic, but it falls upon the Jury to make the decisions, I will merely present the consensus. Finally, I am required to say that the whole court debate will be recorded, and published to the public at a later date, once information that should not be disclosed to the public is edited out. Now, if there are no questions¡­¡± He pauses and looks at Amethyst and around the room, receiving no objection. ¡°Esteemed Jury, please begin.¡± A man stands up in the left Jury, near the bottom of the seats, he¡¯s dressed in a fancy and tight suit. His appearance and form demand respect, but his chin curves in a way that seems almost disturbing to Amethyst. ¡°Thank you, Unificator, I, Fideas, shall start the proceedings with the first argument. I believe that the Tyrchids are not suitable to join as they lack the intelligence and sapience to be of use to the Galaxy. This was more than evident with their primitive teaching methods and being bought with food like mere animals in Pioneer¡¯s footage.¡± ¡°You are being a bit too hasty, my man.¡± On the opposite side, a man stands wearing a yellow flat hat, a colorful suit, and headphones around his neck. ¡°We have Amethyst right here in front of us, and she is definitely as sapient as they come. What exactly do you suggest, that somebody is waltzing around, masquerading as a Tyrchid in an outfit? Or perhaps you''d like to claim it''s holograms instead, if Amethyst is not a sapient Tyrchid? That¡¯s a pretty unbelievable claim, man.¡± He shakes his head. ¡°There¡¯s plenty of proof to show how impossible that would be. Amethyst is clearly sapient, I don¡¯t see a reason why her kin shouldn¡¯t be as well, even if they are a bit less learned.¡± A woman with her hair tied up into a tight bun above her head speaks, closest to the Unificator on the right side. A name tag reading ¡®Theresa¡¯ hangs perfectly level on her blouse¡¯s chest. ¡°Thank you, Zane, Fideas. While both of you admirably got the conversation going and showed your own point of view out well, you missed the objective truths, perhaps you were clouded by your emotions? It is well within the realm of possibility, that one individual exhibits much greater intelligent capabilities than its peers. In fact, Almost all species exhibit some form of individual characteristics that can differ in a wide variety of ways, you don¡¯t have to look further than human genetics.¡± The serious woman taps the side of her eyeglasses. ¡°Surely you know this or why else would you have your seats in this jury?¡± ¡°T-this however doesn¡¯t solve our conundrum. We are to evaluate the species as a whole, and just the capabilities of one individual are not enough to be granted the keys to the Galaxy.¡± The woman wears a quilt around her shoulders like a cape, huddling in it. Her other hand is constantly fiddling with a necklace around her neck, a bronze heart hanging off it. The engraving on it says: ¡®To my red sunrise, Shiry¡¯. ¡°Amethyst.¡± The mention of her name brings Amethyst''s attention back from Shiry¡¯s jewelry to the matter at hand. ¡°I would love to hear what you have to say on the matter. Can you vouch that your kin t-truly are as Sapient as you are?¡± ¡°I... my kin... I believe, that with time and education, they can become like me. That¡¯s what we wanted to showcase with our teaching, how they could learn and improve.¡± ¡°Right on.¡± Amethyst sighs in relief as Zane picks up the conversation again. ¡°You did do that admirably, they clearly exhibit a higher consciousness, being able to learn their names, respond to them, and even repeat words. They even have their own barebones language and are starting to develop their culture. All this shows their great capability to learn, even if their attention spans are nothing to write home about, at the moment that is.¡± ¡°If we are to believe Amethyst and conclude our judgment as so, it begs the question, what is actually our decision?¡± Theresa spreads her arms elaborately and looks around the Jury. ¡°We cannot fairly deem Tyrchids as non-sapient or sapient species. Our current evidence suggests that they currently lie in between the two. Amethyst''s intelligence is undeniable, but her kin''s less so. Does this mean we should postpone the court to a time once we have conclusive proof about the Sapient potential of all Tyrchids, and that Amethyst isn¡¯t some one-in-a-thousand individual? I, myself, cannot see any other option.¡± Theresa sits, crosses her arms, and nods to herself. A minute or perhaps two pass in excruciating silence. ¡°It seems we have reached a decision, as uncertain as it is,¡± P?llend says. ¡°If there are no further arguments, we shall shortly vote for the Tyrchid¡¯s sapience. I have set the question as follows: ¡°Are the Tyrchids Sapient and Intelligent enough to join the United Galaxy?¡± with the voting options being: ¡°Yes¡±, ¡°No¡±, and ¡°Inconclusive¡±. The Unificator pauses but nobody speaks up. ¡°Then it is decided, this is the question, these are the options. Please vote with the screens in front of you and decide taking into account what you¡¯ve heard today, and how you feel in your heart and mind.¡± The wait is nerve-wracking, Amethyst looks around at the Jury members, regretting not having anything more to say herself. Unable to bring any decisive proof to prove her kin¡¯s sapience. Then again... how could she do that, when even she is still ravaged by doubt? She¡¯s not like the average Tyrchid, technology has changed her forever, shoved her down a cliff into the unknown. Even now, she¡¯s still in free fall, uncertain of the direction, of the outcome. Will she fall forever or will the ground catch up with her before anyone else does? Gentle hands have tried to grasp her, but they¡¯ve only managed to slow her fall temporarily, letting go before long. Recently, it has felt like even the law of terminal velocity is a lie, was there no speed limit for her distress? What if it¡­ eventually stops? Will the impact crush her, or gently place her on her feet? Will sapience bring her more sorrow and grief, than contentment and happiness? Certainly, awareness has its perks, but it also made everything¡ªmade life¡ªthat much more painful to live. Fear of the future, for the safety of the people she cares about, the conscious emotional and physical pain... Things that were like a dream before, fleeting and nonexistent, are now real and lasting. Such is the burden of memory, intelligence, and emotions, of being aware of not only yourself but of the world and people around you. Should you petrify your heart to save yourself, or desperately try and cope with the beating of reality until your soul is bruised and bleeding? Are those the only options? ¡°The results are in. By an overwhelming majority, ¡°Inconclusive¡± won with 72% of the votes. Next was the option ¡°No¡± with 18% and lastly ¡°Yes¡± with 10%¡± P?llend summarizes. It''s not exactly a surprise for Amethyst, but hearing it aloud still stings. ¡°Virtuous Unificator,¡± Fideas stands up and bows, ¡°doesn¡¯t this mean that we can end it here? There¡¯s no need to waste time with the second section since we are to postpone the decision of the first regardless?¡± The Unificator pauses. Amethyst notices his big owl eyes glance to the side of the table, where he laid his communicator at the start. Having the communicator out in the first place, in an event such as this seems a little strange to Amethyst, Frank barely used his after all, but... it¡¯s not like she knows enough to say anything about it. Tap, tap, tap... Amethyst¡¯s sharp hearing catches the sound of a communicator¡¯s touch screen being pressed from somewhere in the jury, but it stops before she can locate the person in question. Eerily, only seconds later, the Unificator speaks again. ¡°In cases like these, even if a re-trial is bound to happen, it still saves us time to go through the second part now. Besides, who knows, the miracle of conversation may provide new angles or details to break through this first stalemate too. And, shall I remind you that the second vote passing will have consequences as well? This is my official stance as the Unificator of this trial, and so, we shall proceed next to evaluate the Tyrchids with the following criteria: ¡®Their suitability to join the United Galaxy.¡¯ It may be beneficial to treat Tyrchids as Sapient for the sake of the following arguments, as this second part is largely based on the first phase succeeding. Please, discuss.¡± ¡°Very well, Unificator,¡± Theresa, the glasses-wearing woman says. ¡°I shall be the one to start us off then. Their Sapience and possible lack of morals and empathy aside, I find the Tyrchid¡¯s abilities to be quite dangerous, unlike in her home planet, everything isn¡¯t fireproof here.¡± ¡°Well said! The proof and examples of the dangers Tyrchids possess are overwhelming. Even their most intelligent individual could not keep her abilities in check, resulting in her blades having been sheathed already, with the Galactic Police carrying out the Defanging Protocol within days of her arrival here.¡± Fideas adjusts the cuff of his suit. ¡°Aren¡¯t we warping a bit too far here?¡± Zane says pointedly. ¡°While the Cafe tragedy is undeniable, it is not within our best interest or nature to hold onto grudges or past mistakes. She is serving her sentence, and all of her kin arriving here will also be made similarly safe, thus I find this point to be moot, my guy. If anything, Amethyst here is showing how law-abiding and understanding of another planet¡¯s customs they can be by showing up here with her rad protectors.¡± Fideas leans forward with his hands on the table. ¡°While I agree with it being a tragedy, I would not dismiss it and draw such positive conclusions so easily. Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. There is photographic proof of her walking around without protectors just yesterday, mere hours after she was sentenced with the Defanging Protocol.¡± ¡°Even if that is true, I think it speaks volumes for her character and the respect she has for our rules, for her to show up here wearing them today,¡± Zane says. ¡°Amethyst, can you comment on this accusation?¡± ¡°Y-yes-¡± What should I do? Can I just tell them...? Frank... what would you do? You¡¯re so much better at things like these... Amethyst looks around the room, at the expectant eyes of the people. ¡°I shall tell you the truth... Frank and I were attacked yesterday, and to defend him, I had to... take off the protectors which were destroyed in the process.¡± The media gasps and takes photos of Amethyst while the Jury stirs. ¡°As a result of the attack, Frank was abducted, and I had to make a tough choice between saving him immediately or going back to get new protectors first. I chose to do what I felt was right and managed to save Frank. However, he¡¯s still recovering from his injuries, which is why he didn¡¯t join me today. You can check the details with Galactic Police if necessary, to know I speak the truth.¡± The media eats the news up, and the Jury converses amongst themselves. Shiry is the first to speak up. ¡°I think it¡¯s very commendable, to- I mean¡­ being able to forge such bonds with representatives of different species as yourself... I find it to be a very positive sign for the species¡¯ suitability to join the United Galaxy.¡± She stumbles over her words, trying to find the right ones, her face growing red, but she keeps going. ¡°Not only did Amethyst show admirable courage, but also risked her own life to save another. It would be r-remiss of us to give that feat no weight at all.¡± She sits back down quickly and buries herself deeper in her blanket. ¡°Dear Shiry, while that is admirable, are we truly going to wipe the slate clean of her crimes, just because of romanticism?¡± Fideas speaks condescendingly. ¡°While the Galactic Police in their incompetence is still to provide a statement regarding the incident at the ''Served hot and cold'' -cafe, I have brought with me a witness to the events, no less the very wife of the victim. Esteemed Unificator, if I may, I would like to call a witness to the stage, I believe you all wish to hear what she has to say.¡± N-no way? Wasn¡¯t she supposed to be missing? The Mun¡¯aakas judge is visibly surprised, glances to the left Jury, and Amethyst hears the typing from there again. She spots the source of it, a sharp-eyed woman at the top row corner, with long golden hair like grain, freely flowing and natural as a swaying wheat field. Two large braids at the front frame her head, which rises as she stops typing and looks up to the Unificator for a fleeting moment, then she spots Amethyst¡¯s gaze. The woman smiles mysteriously and brings a hand to her chin, then as if absently, runs a finger over her lips, stopping it at the middle and then retreating her hand. She¡¯s telling me to...? Who... is she? ¡°This is quite unexpected, things like these should be done through the proper channels, and run by me beforehand, but very well, I¡¯ll allow it.¡± ¡°Thank you, your Virtuousness. Hoana, if you would, please take the stage.¡± A brunette woman rises from her seat in the audience, holding onto her other hand. She keeps her face plastered toward the floor as she walks up to the middle stage, in between the Unificator, the Jury, and Amethyst. As Amethyst is lower than the stage, Hoana¡¯s downcast gaze falls on her, but there is no anger or hatred in her eyes, as there was when she tried to jump her in the cafe. She looks small... and scared. ¡°Hoana, please, tell everyone what you told me.¡± Fideas urges her on. ¡°Me and my husband Vic were enjoying our time at the Cafe, when suddenly when he walked past Amethyst¡¯s table, she attacked him violently out of the blue, impaling him.¡± Her words do not match her expression as she continues to look at the floor. ¡°He¡¯s still in a coma, the doctors are uncertain if he¡¯ll ever recover.¡± ¡°And how does this make you feel?¡± ¡°I feel sadness beyond words, and with all my heart, I believe the Tyrchid race to be of great danger to everyone around them. They cannot be trusted.¡± She looks at Amethyst again, her eyes seem pleading as if asking for Amethyst¡¯s help despite her words. Her mouth opens to say something but closes with a grimace before any sound escapes. The Courtroom¡¯s doors open, and two Galactic Police officers walk in, Doug meets them at the door and seems to explain something. He steps aside and the officers walk further in and one of them speaks: ¡°Jury member Fideas, are you aware that Hoana is reported missing by the Galactic Police?¡± ¡°Oh, I had no idea, she approached me just a few hours ago wishing to testify, hence my failure to inform you, Unificator. Looks like it¡¯s all solved now, though. I have no further questions, I think I made my case.¡± ¡°Please, stick around after this hearing, we have questions for you.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Fideas nods and sits down. The other Police Officer goes to the stage to Hoana, and she immediately latches onto his arm. She trembles and cries quietly, barely able to walk with the officer off the stage. As she passes Amethyst, she looks at her, trying to say something again, but cannot overpower her tears. She hangs her head as she¡¯s taken away. Some of the media hound her out of the room with the Officer, while the other sits down at the pews. Hoana... what happened? Shiry shoots up from her seat. ¡°Fideas! This is too far! Like you said, you- you certainly made your case of being a proper ass-, n-never mind. I- I uh...¡± She sits back down and flops her head on the tabletop of her jury seat, hiding her face with her hands and quilt. Zane speaks on her behalf. ¡°Understandably, feelings are running hot, and it would seem Shiry would rather not get into an argument with you again, Fideas. I¡¯d just ask the other Jury members to evaluate how distressed poor Hoana seemed, and the reason why she could have been missing. Weigh these in your mind and think if we can truly trust her statement.¡± He stares sternly at Fideas, who scoffs in response. ¡°What could you possibly be insinuating?¡± ¡°I believe it to be a valid concern,¡± Theresa says with an objective tone. ¡°The proof is all over the place as shown by the conflicting statements of the media, who have described it in three different ways: as an accident, of somebody having pushed Vic, and Amethyst attacking unprompted. And now we have Hoana appearing here in a less-than-credible state of mind. The mist of misinformation is thick around this incident and not all claims can be true at the same time.¡± She nods to herself and smiles, sitting down again. ¡°Umm...¡± Amethyst speaks and gets the Jury¡¯s attention. ¡°Setting aside the reasons behind Hoana¡¯s statement, I, uh, I¡¯ll tell you my perspective of the events. Frank and I were just having breakfast when suddenly, the victim got impaled by my blade out of the blue. I did not even move from my seat, or even see him until it had happened.¡± Amethyst gathers her thoughts to get to the point. ¡°I believe Galactic Police has evidence that points to somebody pushing Vic, but the investigation is still ongoing, so it¡¯s still unclear if it was intentional. I would propose treating it as an accident for now, until the Police investigation of the matter is complete.¡± A silence falls after Amethyst¡¯s statement, she looks around at the jury. ¡°I agree, it would be most prudent of us to hold our judgment on this matter until the investigation is complete and Galactic Police comes out with a statement,¡± Theresa says. ¡°I agree with Theresa. As such, shall we move on from this? The point of this discussion is to evaluate Tyrchid¡¯s suitability to join the United Galaxy¡ªincluding its economical effects as well¡ªwhich we have completely ignored so far.¡± Zane leans backward on his seat, crossing his leg over the other, suited with equally colorful pants. ¡°The planet of the Tyrchid¡¯s, Midnight Iris, seems to be very rich in resources, some of which have already been started to be harvested. Moreover, its unique fire-resistant nature and black water may lead to some scientific advancements in various fields. Not to dismiss darling Pioneer¡¯s evaluation of their tasty Pango berries either. We stand to gain a lot from allowing them to operate and trade in the United Galaxy.¡± ¡°Thank you, Jury member Zane, I was about to move us on to more fruitful discussion grounds as well. Do continue the debate, Jury.¡± P?llend chimes in. ¡°Thank you, Zane, and Unificator. I would like to add, without o-objectifying the Tyrchid race, that they would certainly make for an impressive workforce in many fields due to their unique bodies and attributes. Ignoring this aspect in our decision-making would be f-foolish.¡± Shiry says and many of the jury members nod along to her words. ¡°While some may wish to keep quiet about this perspective, I feel it is my duty to be the one to ''go there'' so to speak,¡± Theresa says. ¡°Adding to Shiry¡¯s correct assessment, this would also include possible military application of Tyrchids as well, their fighting prowess and capability for flight make them an incredibly formidable force in many situations. Their addition to the United Galaxy would certainly strengthen the front lines against The Reverent and other undesirables that gnaw at our borders relentlessly.¡± ¡°Are you sure the Tyrchids can be trusted enough to be deployed into battlefields?¡± Fideas speaks with fervor. Do you still not see it? Do I need to remind you of the report Pioneer made? That a person of his staff was killed on Midnight Iris? And just today, a whistleblower from his filming crew, who Pioneer has now disbanded¡ªI wonder why¡ªhas given me new information. According to their statement, in the Tyrchid¡¯s forest, there¡¯s an area deep in the thickest of woods covered in human blood, where countless people were slain.¡± The media and jury members gasp. N-no! H-how can he know?! ¡°Moreover, all of the bodies of this massacre are missing. I wonder what happened to them? I would certainly not wish to have these sorts of beasts anywhere near a battlefield be they ¡°allies¡± or enemies, much less share a Galaxy with them.¡± I... this is it. It¡¯s over. ¡°You said somebody reported this, who are they? Did you verify that they belonged to the film crew?¡± Zane says. ¡°I don''t have any documents, but they told me this with confidentiality, so I cannot tell their name regardless.¡± ¡°Do you have actual proof, like photographs or anything else? You said it¡¯s a massacre with countless victims, how do we hear of this only now? Surely there would have been a great outcry about the missing people. Do we have a list of the victims? What were they doing at the Tyrchids¡¯ planet?¡± Zane continues pressing Fideas. ¡°Well, erm¡­ I cannot tell you that, but it¡¯s true!¡± Shiry laughs out loud. ¡°Excuse me,¡± She covers her mouth and calms herself. ¡°Fideas, is this the best you can do? ¡®Oh no, you¡¯ve got to believe me!¡¯¡± She imitates his voice and snickers. ¡°Why has ISSA or Galactic Police not heard or investigated the site, provided it exists in the first place?¡± Theresa leans to her arm, not bothering to stand up. ¡°Such grave crimes should be easy to verify on multiple accounts.¡± ¡°Order!¡± P?llend shouts with a stern voice. ¡°Fideas, you bring shame to this court with your unconfirmed claims. You have not even done the very basic checks for their veracity, what possessed you to bring such a topic up that can at best be considered idle gossip? Fideas, be thankful I allow you to remain, for I believe you presented these claims with ignorance and the best interest of ISSA and United Galaxy in heart, and not with malicious intent to undermine the court and cause undue harm to the process.¡± ¡°Y-yes, I deeply apologize. Thank you, Virtuous Unificator.¡± Fideas bows deeply. ¡°The Jury, media, and everyone else present, I ask you to disregard Fideas¡¯ last statement. Do not allow this conjecture to cloud your judgment.¡± P?llend shakes his head, and a great wing covers his head briefly. ¡°Fideas, should this really be true, I suggest you start by verifying these serious accusations with undeniable proof and bring it up again in the postponed Court.¡± How did Fideas know...? There¡¯s only one explanation, but... How come he had no proof? ¡°Now, does anyone have anything more to add? Perhaps somebody from the jury wishes to voice their opinion that isn¡¯t one of these four motormouths?¡± P?llend scans the jury and gives it a while, but nobody speaks up. ¡°Then, I would like to ask if Amethyst has anything to add as a closing statement.¡± ¡°N-no, I don¡¯t think so.¡± Amethyst hears the typing again, she looks at the woman, who winks at her. As soon as the typing ends, the Unificator speaks. ¡°In that case, I would like to ask one question myself, which I believe to be beneficial for everyone to hear.¡± There¡¯s an anticipation in the air, while it¡¯s the Unificator¡¯s job to lead the court debate, they are in fact not forbidden from asking questions themselves. ¡°I believe Pioneer may have asked a similar set of questions, but I think it best to be repeated: why do you seek to become a part of the United Galaxy? Why do you wish to be recognized by ISSA?¡± Amethyst thinks back to Lalai, how she had requested her help on behalf of the Sinels as a transaction of information, how she had traded words and deeds with strangers on the streets looking for Frank. ¡°We Tyrchids wish to do our best to help the United Galaxy, to become beneficial parts of it by providing what we have and what we know, and to in turn reap the benefits that we need and cannot do by ourselves like technology and experience of what it means to be a Galactic species.¡± Amethyst thinks back on everything that has happened so far on her and Frank¡¯s journey and then glances at Fideas. ¡°Additionally, despite our considerable strength, we are not without weakness, and would wish protection against malicious forces that have proved themselves to be ever-present again and again, most recently with the kidnapping of Frank and trying to use that as leverage to prevent me from attending this very courtroom.¡± Amethyst looks over the jury, her eyes lingering on the woman who seems to be pulling the strings, who smiles at her in return. ¡°Those are the Tyrchid¡¯s reasons for being here, our convictions for the United Galaxy and ISSA. Thank you for hearing me out.¡± ¡°Very good,¡± P?llend acknowledges her answer and continues: ¡°With that, it is time for the Jury to vote on the second part of our evaluation. The question this time being: ''Are Tyrchids suitable to join the United Galaxy?'' The options are the same as before: ¡°Yes,¡± ¡°No,¡± and ¡°Inconclusive.¡± Do note that regardless of this vote¡¯s outcome, there will be another court debate at a later date once more information becomes available, but this vote will affect whether we will grant the Tyrchids any sort of benefits or additional rights for the time in between. Should this vote pass, the status of Tyrchids will change from ¡°Under Evaluation¡± to ¡°In Progress¡± granting them further rights to operate, and bind us with additional responsibilities regarding their safety.¡± The jury members use the screens embedded in the tabletops before them to vote. After a short wait, the judge speaks: ¡°The results are in and we have reached a consensus. The votes are as follows: 61% ¡°Yes,¡± 11% ¡°No,¡± and 28% ¡°Inconclusive¡±. Rather impressive given some open issues remain, but ISSA has thus officially recognized the beneficial nature of Tyrchids. The status for them to become fully fledged members of the United Galaxy will be updated to ¡°In progress,¡± two-thirds from full acceptance. Amethyst¡¯s stiff shoulders relax as relief washes over her. This is probably the best I could hope to achieve, at least without Frank... We will still have a chance to gain their full protection in the re-trial. I sincerely hope the tragedy of those IR soldiers remains in the past. It shouldn¡¯t have happened in the first place, and... it will never happen again.... That will have to be enough of a recompense. ¡°With that, this court is adjourned. We will monitor the information required for the re-trial and let you know once it is scheduled.¡± Amethyst nods and the jury members start leaving, the mysterious woman already disappeared into the sea of people, though she notices that Fideas is immediately taken in by the Galactic Police. ¡°Not bad.¡± Doug walks up to her. ¡°Come on, I¡¯ll escort you out.¡± ¡°Alright,¡± Amethyst follows him out of the courtroom and down the winding corridors back to the entrance, the route becoming more familiar. ¡°Well, I guess I better go back to the hospital. Thanks, Doug.¡± Amethyst starts to leave. Doug''s hand presses the side of his sunglasses. ¡°Wait,¡± He reaches out to take her arm, but stops before touching her. ¡°Wait just a bit longer.¡± ¡°Huh? Why?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll see. You won¡¯t regret it.¡± ¡°Hmmh...¡± Amethyst stops and waits, watching the front doors anxiously. What¡¯s Doug¡¯s deal and can she really afford to stand around now? She should have just run through the doors and flown off before he had the chance to speak... That way she wouldn¡¯t need to walk down the stairs either¡­ Lines of energy in the massive front door form a rectangular shape, fit for a human to pass through. The shape opens, and inside steps a man in green clothing, he looks exhausted and hurting. Despite his worse-off state, he keeps moving, even after having walked all those stairs up. That man... it¡¯s... ¡°Frank!¡± ¡°Amethyst!¡± He smiles wide and straightens his back, but his eyes wince momentarily. Amethyst gallops to Frank and hugs him tightly. ¡°You¡¯re okay! I was so worried...¡± He hugs her back. ¡°Y-yeah... I was worried I wouldn''t find you. That I¡¯d miss you coming here... but I¡¯m glad I did.¡± A gut-wrenching pain pulses in Amethyst¡¯s chest, she can¡¯t understand why, she¡¯s so happy, so relieved to see him. Why is reunion so painful, but still such an incredible feeling? Ever since carrying him to the hospital, a feeling in the back of her mind had haunted her, telling her she¡¯d lose him. Death was all around her, it was only logical Frank would be the next victim of her aura of disaster and grief that never seemed to stop following her. But now that shroud is gone, shredded, overpowered by the shine of hope that survived inside. ¡°Frank¡­¡± She cries pathetically, like a little child, her hybrid eyes ache and take on a touch of green. Her clear tears land and merge with Frank¡¯s jacket. ¡°Amethyst¡­¡± Frank¡¯s hand brushes her back armor up and down. ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡­ I was careless¡­¡± His voice is weak, on the verge of tears. ¡°I-it¡¯s fine, just don¡¯t do that again, okay?¡± ¡°Right. Only if you promise the same, we¡¯re even now after all.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a promise.¡± Amethyst smiles and backs away from their hug, fearing she¡¯s squeezing Frank too hard. She shakes her head to try and clear the tears from her face. ¡°Stay still,¡± Frank says, and Amethyst waits as his hand reaches up, and wipes away her tears with a delicate touch. ¡°There you go.¡± He smiles. ¡°Thanks.¡± Amethyst closes her eyes for a second and calms herself. ¡°I¡¯m so glad you¡¯re okay, but¡­ how? Isn¡¯t this too soon? You were so...¡± ¡°Wonders of Metropolis¡¯ medicine...¡± As he says that he looks down for a moment, but continues: ¡°How did the court go?¡± ¡°It was fine¡­ The Tyrchids passed the second part, so our status is now ¡®In progress.¡¯ I guess that¡¯s, uh¡­ progress.¡± ¡°That¡¯s great! I¡¯m sorry I couldn''t make it.¡± ¡°It was hardly your fault, don¡¯t worry about it¡­¡± Amethyst dismisses the subject and returns to a topic that still bothers her. ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re fine to be here? Did you really walk the stairs up in your... condition?¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine¡­ the doctor said I should strengthen my lung with moderate exercise again. Much of it was rebuilt by the Patcher, it¡¯s now weaker and has less capacity than my other lung.¡± Amethyst looks lost, so Frank tries to explain: ¡°Think of it like how most of your organs and muscles improve with training, my right lung has now halfway returned below its baseline. It¡¯s brand new, and it still needs to ¡®learn¡¯ to expand and mold to my body again.¡± Amethyst tilts her head. ¡°To put it simply, half of my right lung is now like ¡®untrained muscle¡¯, even if lungs aren¡¯t a muscle... if that makes sense?¡± ¡°Uh, that sounds difficult... Is it affecting you in any way?¡± ¡°Not much, I do get winded easier than before, and¡­ the surgery scars and the like do still ache. However, I do have this device with me, it pumps air into my lung alongside my breath, to further stimulate it and help me breathe easier.¡± Frank pulls away his green jacket that has a patch where the laser went through, and stretches down his lime green shirt, to show the small square device attached to his chest. ¡°Oh, unfortunately, the Amethyst branded shirt was unrecoverable due to how much blood got on it.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t care about the shirt! It¡¯s just... What...? How is that possible?¡± ¡°It¡¯s because the device is connected with a tube, via a direct hole through my skin to my lung.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that dangerous?¡± ¡°It¡¯s only temporary, a few weeks maybe. So it¡¯s not that bad.¡± ¡°But what if the device breaks?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be fine, I have my other lung to keep me alive. As long as nothing happens to it, I¡¯m perfectly capable of staying alive with one.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t say it like that...¡± Doug approaches the two of them. ¡°Yeah, hello, I''m still here. Alright, you two should probably use the backdoor to get out, I¡¯ll show it to you. You know, to avoid all the media and stuff.¡± ¡°Huh? Doug?¡± Frank is taken aback. ¡°We doing this again? Yes, I work for ISSA, and not Intergalactic, got it?¡± ¡°I... if you say so.¡± Doug leads them through a staff-only door, to narrower corridors, however, before they can get to the back door... Trrr Trrr... Frank¡¯s communicator vibrates. ¡°Somebody¡¯s calling me?¡± Frank takes out the device and answers it. ¡°Hello?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Oh, right, I forgot I gave you my number.¡± Frank says away from the communicator: ¡°It¡¯s Grent.¡± Then shifts back to it. ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± Frank¡¯s steps slow down, he listens so intently they stop to wait for him. ¡°What!? Are you serious?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°What¡¯s he saying?¡± Amethyst asks. Frank covers the communicator with his hand. ¡°The Tyrchids¡­ they¡¯re all gone.¡± 49. Awakening to a crisis Earlier. On a familiar planet ruled by red and violet, the struggle and toiling of a scientist continues. In the cavern clinic, inside the lab, lays the robotic body of hope: defying the natural world, making a mockery of fate. Her chest socket is open, with a cable attached, which runs down the table, across the floor, and connects to the computer. Grent sits on his office chair, looking through diagnostics. Today was another day of pinpointing and fixing problems that arose from the finishing procedures, from the great breakthrough he had arrived at. But now there are no more loose connections, no bottlenecks in the system. He was sure of it. This time it would work. He gets up and disconnects the cable from her chest, covering up the hole with a piece of artificial skin. She looks like a mannequin, a human body without the most intricate details, lacking some protrusions, nails, a belly button... though a few visible metal parts around the joints reveal her to be something more, that''s just not there yet, the lifeless camera-lens-like eyes stand as testimony of it. Soon that would change. ¡°Are you ready, Pineapple?¡± The cat sits on the computer table, next to the Mindray, looking at the lifeless shell. ¡°This is it.¡± Grent pets Pineapple who responds to the gesture by pushing himself against his hand. If it doesn¡¯t work now¡­ I don¡¯t know what else I can do. ¡­ No, that¡¯s what I thought multiple times already. If it doesn¡¯t work, I¡¯ll figure something out, like I always do. He picks up the Mindray, and with slow deliberate steps, arrives next to Amande¡¯s future body. Are you ready? A distinct lack of a response hangs in the air. Grent looks down to check the Mindray''s settings one more time and aims the experiment''s metal rod barrel at her chest. Pulling the trigger, azure energy crackles on the small sphere at the tip before unleashing itself in a bolt. The projectile hits her skin and spreads alongside it like electricity before dissipating. The response is immediate, her artificial eye''s zoom level changes and her body spasms slightly. ¡°Amande!¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Amande...?¡± However, nothing more happens. ¡°Come on, this should work! There is no reason it doesn¡¯t.¡± Grent triple-checks the Mindray¡¯s settings and shoots Amandebot¡¯s chest again. The energy is absorbed into the artificial skin just as before. ¡°It should be conductive enough... Can I somehow try and make it a wired transfer...? No, that wouldn¡¯t work with how it¡¯s all set up... Argh! I¡¯m so close!¡± Suddenly, the robotic eyes light up, the body stirs and her hand moves to her forehead. ¡°W-what...?¡± A strange, feminine voice says, with metallic undertones. ¡°A-a-amande!? I- is that you?¡± Silence is her response, a hand frozen on her face. ¡°Can you hear me? Can you see me?¡± ¡°Grent¡­?¡± ¡°Y-yes, yes! That¡¯s me! You remember me?¡± ¡°I¡­ think so.¡± ¡°Amazing! But¡­ are you feeling alright?¡± Her posture is unchanging. ¡°No... I feel weak... fading...¡± ¡°T-that¡¯s not good¡­ Maybe your consciousness has trouble clinging to the eh... body?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Amande¡¯s face grimaces. ¡°Hang on, I¡¯ll re-imprint, maybe it¡¯ll help.¡± Grent aims the Mindray at her. ¡°This shouldn¡¯t even sting.¡± ¡°Yes. Do it.¡± Grent shoots her again, Amande jerks in response, but doesn¡¯t utter even a sound. ¡°Is that better? Do you know who you are?¡± ¡°Yes. I am... Amande.¡± She finally removes the hand from her face and sits up with a mechanical whirr. ¡°Hello, my husband.¡± Grent hugs the cold but soft body. ¡°It¡¯s really you! How are you feeling? Is the body comfortable? Do you have enough RAM? What about your limbs? Are they too stiff?¡± ¡°Slow down¡­ my little science man. So many questions, but there¡¯s no hurry, I¡¯m here again.¡± Her hand pets Grent¡¯s head. ¡°I know I was... I don¡¯t know what happened and... where is... here? I don¡¯t remember a place like this in the Golden Veldt¡¯s lab.¡± Amande glances at the furry creature sitting at the desk and slightly tilts her head. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s true. You were gone...but... you¡¯re reborn now, thanks to you volunteering to use your consciousness in the heinous experiments of those ISSA¡¯s Media Branch freaks.¡± ¡°What happened? How long ago was that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s been... s-some time, but... I¡¯ll catch you up to speed soon enough. Just know for now that... we did the right thing, we destroyed the research and took the Mindray for ourselves. They would have only misused it, but we have far greater plans for it.¡± ¡°Our plans... I remember those. We can continue toward our objective, bring about the new Galactic Order.¡± ¡°Yes, try not to strain yourself too much by trying to remember it all at once.¡± Grent stops squeezing her and takes her hand. ¡°Can you stand?¡± With uncertain movements, Amande shuffles to the edge of the steel bed and stands up. ¡°What about walking?¡± Grent carefully leads her by the hand. The mannequin and scientist hold hands and slowly walk around the room. Amande¡¯s steps wobble, her knees tilting her leg too far, and her hips sway in the wrong rhythm, giving her an unnatural bounce. Grent steadies her every step of the way, acting as the mountain she can lean on, Amande''s other hand outstretched to keep her balance. Pineapple continues to sit on the table, following the couple with his eyes, keeping a silent vigil. Gradually Amande¡¯s walking becomes more and more natural, until she no longer needs the balancing hand, yet, she still keeps ahold of Grent¡¯s. ¡°I¡¯m walking!¡± ¡°That you are! Very good-¡± Amande turns to face Grent and takes hold of his other hand too. She starts to lead him in airy dancing steps across the room. ¡°Thank you! Thank you!¡± The mannequin smiles genuinely, but it still looks somewhat eerie. ¡°O-of course-¡± ¡°You¡¯ve truly done a marvelous job-¡± Their circuitous spin stops next to a table as Amande notices a golden necklace on the table with red gems adorning it. ¡°What is this necklace? Is it mine?¡± ¡°N-no, it¡¯s¡­¡± Grent catches Amande¡¯s outreaching hand. ¡°It¡¯s dangerous. Let me put it away.¡± He quickly seals away Luna''s dart-shooting necklace in a cupboard. ¡°Oh, alright.¡± ¡°Are you feeling like yourself? Maybe I should periodically apply you with more doses of the Mindray just to be safe?¡± ¡°I¡¯m feeling fine, but if it gives you peace of mind...¡± Amande tilts her head and holds her hands together in front of her. ¡°You¡¯re so cute when you¡¯re worried about me.¡± Grent looks away and blushes, it feels like forever ago, in a different life, that he last heard her affection. ¡°F-for the next test, why don¡¯t you try connecting to the ''likeness'' -program.¡± ¡°What is that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a prototype I created, well, more accurately, I traced it from ancient schematics I purchased. It should be able to use the tiny projectors embedded in you to display a hologram layer atop your body reflecting how you see yourself in your mind.¡± ¡°That¡¯s incredible.¡± ¡°The original blueprint used some strange power source I couldn¡¯t replicate and it had parts I didn¡¯t even recognize... So... I had to make a lot of assumptions and just apply its core principle. I hope it works.¡± ¡°I- Ah!¡± Amande grasps her head and staggers backward. ¡°Oh... I... I feel so woozy all of a sudden. ¡°W-what?¡± ¡°I think I... I- my head feels... fragmented still. Maybe you were right... can you zap me once more?¡± ¡°O-okay, just hang in there.¡± Grent quickly fiddles with the Mindray and shoots her again, the bolt¡¯s energy impacts her chest and spreads across her skin once more. ¡°I think that helped, I feel... more whole again. I think I remember even more things now!¡± ¡°Fantastic!¡± ¡°I¡¯ll try activating the hologram now...¡± The inaccuracies and simplifications of her artificial skin begin to shimmer and melt away, as her skin tone slightly shifts before settling to a pale, slightly pinkish color, followed by her hair cycling from purple, to jet black, to brunette and finally, to shining gold. The projection stabilizes and every curve, mound, blemish, and beauty scar are in their rightful places, all the details that define her become present. Grent¡¯s hand reaches out to touch Amande¡¯s perfect naked form without even realizing it. As he does, his trembling fingers sink a few millimeters deeper than the illusion shows, a shimmering of faint light surrounds his fingertips, but it doesn¡¯t break his immersion. It... she¡¯s exactly like... She really is, Amande. Grent gasps in awe, she¡¯s like real flesh and blood, the golden hair, the dimples carved on her face as she smiles... everything is her. She¡¯s back¡­ She¡¯s truly back! ¡°Are you just going to gawk at me all day? How do I look?¡± Amande poses, placing a hand below her chin, and another on her hip ¡°Incredible!¡± Grent hugs Amande again, his fingers tingling as they graze the surface of the hologram, a gentle warmth projected from the the low-power energy field. Only small glitches and flickers can be seen as he runs his fingers across the illusion. ¡°When did you become so handsy?¡± Amande laughs, even her voice is an exact match now. ¡°Not that I mind... You must have really missed me.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t believe it... you¡¯re really here...¡± Grent buries his head in her chest and cries. ¡°You don¡¯t even know what I¡¯ve been through to bring you back. How hard it has been... I¡¯ve done things I¡¯m not proud of... But- but I¡¯d do it all over again, to have you here.¡± Amande hugs him back, laying her head on top of his. ¡°Aww¡­ I¡¯m here again, my little smartman. This time for good.¡± The reunited lovers hug for a while and gaze deep into each other¡¯s eyes. And then, just as their lips are about to collide... the whole lab shakes. Like a small earthquake, loose objects rattle on their tables, test tubes fall and crash onto the floor, and Pineapple runs for cover underneath a large steel cabinet that remains unmoved. Amande gasps and looks around. ¡°W-what?!¡± Grent holds onto her, and they endure the sudden earthquake in each other''s arms. However, as it ends, a terrible sound echoes in its place, resonating even underground. ¡°Let¡¯s check outside!¡± Holding Amande¡¯s hand, Grent guides their run out through the lab, and against the cloudless sky, they see it. A massive spaceship, in truly unprecedented scale, floats high, and from it, extends thick cables, reeling in a dome. The dome is see-through and circular like a bowl, its bottom is metal with visible lines where it would open like the greatest excavator of the Universe. Inside it, there are trees and land... it has extracted a massive landmass, from the very direction of the Tyrchid¡¯s village. ¡°No way...¡± Grent gasps, staring agape. ¡°Let¡¯s check on the Tyrchids, I think I know where their village is supposed to be.¡± ¡°Who are the Tyrchids?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll explain on the way, let¡¯s go!¡± Grent briefly covers the Tyrchid subject and introduces Amethyst and Frank as they hurry through the forest, but they don¡¯t have to go very far to face the site of unprecedented devastation. Like a massive explosion or a sizeable meteor had struck the ground, albeit the dirt hole is much too cleanly cut for those. ¡°...¡± Faint dust clings to the air, the edge of the hole crumbles, dirt and stones rolling down. The sight captures Grent''s soul, holding it captive, forcing it back... back home. *** Our settlement had been struggling ever since the start, the soil proving to be much more unsuitable for farming than tests had shown. The supporting factions, our safety net began to pull back their support, only exacerbating the problems, and ignoring the plight of the people they¡¯d be leaving behind. However, that changed when the Intergalactic Resources came and promised the stars from the sky. They¡¯d support us in our livelihoods, cultivate the soil, and get us back on our feet, as long as they¡¯d get the rights to search and mine any minerals on Dehua. Of course, we accepted, had we had a choice, perhaps someone might have thought twice, but not us. Not anymore. At first, they did turn our lives for the better, providing us with necessities, hiring some of us to work for them, even eventually bringing us luxury goods, elevating our society closer to normalcy. Everyone praised Intergalactic, our second chance, even those who had given up were now emboldened with new hope. Amande was one of those people, she had given up wishing for a good life, of our settlement ever succeeding. Despite my efforts, I could not alone sway her mind, only slow her downfall, until Intergalactic came to elevate us. I remember waking up one day, with her having already left the bed, finding her in the kitchen making breakfast for us, something she never did. Then I saw it, the glitter of excitement for the future in her eyes, the genuine hope in her chest that held her high, the overflowing happiness on her lips¡­ It makes my heart weep, remembering that morning. This was our chance, everything would turn out alright. The future was bright, as long as we¡¯d let Intergalactic remain here with their machines, search and excavate the bounty of the earth, we¡¯d all get to taste success and live prosperously. Keep on farming, produce food and refine products, sell them to the Galaxy, and provide for ourselves, just as our outpost was supposed to do all along. Years passed, and the gleam of Intergalactic Resources began to dim. The dream turned into a living nightmare one couldn¡¯t hope to escape, be it day or night. In the sleepless nights, you¡¯d relive the horrors of the days, hearing the ground cracking in your imagination, hearing the screams of your neighbors when they and their houses were swallowed whole. The sound of wood beams snapping, metal groaning, the cacophony of a full structural disintegration... until it was completely silent. The earth claimed more and more people, never to be seen or heard from again. Many were confused about the cause, and those who knew were forced into silence, one way or another. No matter how many times we moved house, nowhere felt safe anymore. The only respite we could find was in each other''s arms, holding one another in bed, terrified for our lives, scared of the very future, which only recently had still been so blindingly bright. We held fast to the only thing stable in our lives, the only thing still solid that could be relied on. If we had never met, neither of us would have made it this far. Those days together when we drank deep from the cup of sweet ecstasy of hope and were force-fed the bitterness of despair, had fueled us to get this far. We had tasted them both together, not shying away from their tastes, savoring every last drop. And we survived, unlike so many others, their circumstances were different, but the outcome was still the same: ¡°They wouldn¡¯t do that to us. I¡¯m sure they¡¯ll come set it right again, just like they came here to improve our lives and fix the topsoil.¡± ¡°I will stay. I was born here, and I will die here. I am not leaving my home behind.¡± ¡°Do you have any money...? Or can I get a lift off-planet on your ship? Please... IR still hasn¡¯t paid me!¡± ¡°Crackle, crackle! Can you hear the sound? It¡¯s- it¡¯s coming, over there, no- under your feet! Shaking, shaking! It¡¯s already here!?¡± ¡°There¡¯s nobody, nothing left for me anymore. They¡¯re all gone... So, what¡¯s the point of leaving? The United Galaxy abandoned us, Intergalactic abandoned us. We¡¯re just going to be screwed over all again, only the place and the means will be different.¡± ¡°Leave all this behind? Stop spouting such nonsense! We just gotta re-settle a bit further away from here and it¡¯ll be fine. Planets don¡¯t just ¡®collapse¡¯ or whatever.¡± No, you don¡¯t understand... They left and they aren¡¯t coming back. They burned this land, raped its shell, hollowed out its insides and we let them do it, shook their hands, and said ¡®thank you¡¯. We sold out the very land beneath our feet, allowing them to slaughter what was once a vibrant planet, a safe haven, a new start. A home for those who wanted to live again. That was the aspiration that our parents arrived here with, that they bravely ventured out into the unknown for¡ªtook a leap of fate. Now, it was all to be in vain, collapsing in on itself. I never want to forget the day we left our lifelong home behind. The air was thick with dust and dirt, the sun barely visible through it, the earth so cracked and weak, you¡¯d be crazy to not look at your feet ever-paranoid if the next step would be your last. Streets were full of holes, houses were broken in half, and the landscape changed day by day for the worse. The polar opposite of what it had once been, but just like the once flourishing plains, we would keep the memory of this arid reality in our hearts too. And so, years later, when we got a chance to infiltrate their ranks, in Midnight Iris of all places, we swore this time would be different. After all, now we had the means to ensure it wouldn¡¯t be just us teaching them a lesson. All we needed, was time. *** It takes Grent a moment to return to the shocking reality. The spaceship has reeled the dome-scoop up and starts flying away. Such drastic measures... Why would Intergalactic want the Tyrchids this badly? What are Frank and Amethyst not telling me? ¡°Grent...¡± Amande says, holding her arm and gazing into the pit. ¡°I know what you¡¯re thinking... but this isn¡¯t Dehua, it¡¯ll be fine. At least, the planet itself will be, with time. As for Amethyst and the Tyrchids... I don¡¯t know... but Intergalactic has gone way too far. Once again.¡± Grent takes out his communicator. ¡°I¡¯ll let them know what has transpired.¡± Amande nods silently. He calls Frank and puts it on speaker. ¡°Hello?¡± ¡°Hey, this is Grent.¡± ¡°Oh, right, I forgot I gave you my number. What¡¯s up?¡± ¡°A massive spaceship just extracted the whole Tyrchid village, the very ground it stood on, alongside its residents, and is flying away with them as we speak.¡± ¡°What!? Are you serious?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°What¡¯s he saying?¡± Amethyst¡¯s voice comes from the background. There¡¯s a short pause. ¡°How is that even¡­? Thanks for letting me know, I¡­ I guess we... Ugh... We¡¯ll figure something out, tell ISSA and I don¡¯t know... somehow rescue them?¡± ¡°We should help them,¡± Amande speaks up. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Who¡¯s that?¡± Frank asks. ¡°Oh, right. That¡¯s Amande, she just awoke into her new robotic body moments ago.¡± ¡°Nice to... speak with you, Frank. We haven¡¯t met but thanks for putting up with my husband all the same.¡± ¡°Hey!¡± ¡°Oh, no problem. If you want to help, I¡¯d appreciate it, I¡¯m sure we¡¯ll need it...¡± Frank trails off and holds a brief pause. ¡°But uh... How did you manage to bring Amande back? That¡¯s a massive deal, like... on a galactic scale, right?¡± ¡°Oh, I won¡¯t bore you with the details. All the science is sure to fly over your head.¡± ¡°I mean, you literally resurrected a person, let¡¯s not beat around the bush here. That¡¯s incredible, and... insane. How¡¯d you do it?¡± ¡°No, really. You wouldn''t understand. Besides, telling you, or discussing this over the line, isn¡¯t the most secure idea.¡± ¡°Hmh... point taken. Anyway, thanks for telling us. I¡¯ll keep you updated on how things develop on our end, bye for now.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± Grent cuts off the call. ¡°We must help Amethyst, without her, I wouldn''t be here. We owe her that much, don¡¯t we?¡± ¡°I suppose...¡± ¡°This will be our second chance to get back at Intergalactic! Our... main way of doing so might be far off still... so, we should take this opportunity.¡± ¡°Alright...¡± ¡°I knew you¡¯d come around! Now come here!¡± Amande grabs Grent into her embrace. ¡°W-woah!¡± ¡°You deserve a little reward, don¡¯t you?¡± ¡°A-amande?¡± ¡°I bet you¡¯ve wondered what these soft silicone lips feel like. That¡¯s why you... gave them to me, right?¡± ¡°A-ah, eh- y-yes, I suppose...¡± ¡°I trust you waited patiently for me, not sneaking a taste before I awakened... That wouldn¡¯t be very gentlemanly of you.¡± ¡°O-of course not!¡± Grent laughs nervously. ¡°Good, now let¡¯s go, we¡¯ve got plenty of time to kill on our spaceflight, but I know just how to fill it.¡± *** Frank ends the call with Grent. Amethyst holds her head between her sheathed blades. ¡°My kin...¡± Will I ever catch a break? How can it be just one thing after the other again and again and again... ... Intergalactic will never leave us alone, will they? Not until they get what they want¡­ And even after that... who¡¯s to say where it ends? ¡°Damn... this is bad.¡± Frank shakes his head and looks at her. ¡°Are you okay, Amethyst?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Even so, timing is on our side, if it¡¯s true what this Grent says, we have to let Keeper of Intelligence know.¡± Doug chimes in. ¡°The Tyrchids are now ¡®in progress¡¯ members, and ISSA should be able to help you.¡± ¡°Let who know?¡± Amethyst asks quietly. ¡°Is that the leader of ISSA?¡± ¡°That¡¯s correct. How did you know?¡± ¡°Just a guess...¡± Frank trails off. ¡°Can you take us to see this Keeper? There¡¯s no time to waste! My kin are in danger!¡± Amethyst gets up in Doug¡¯s face, and he retreats away a little. ¡°I know I just said we should let her know, and that ISSA would help, but... We have to be realistic. Even with the Tyrchid¡¯s ¡®in progress¡¯ status, if Intergalactic has taken them... going after them might be a hard sell.¡± ¡°But they promised! Didn¡¯t they? They said that-¡± ¡°If it was anyone else than Intergalactic, then sure. Even if this is an open declaration of war on their part with their complete disregard for the laws and regulations of United Galaxy¡­ They aren¡¯t just some inordinate fighting force or some small rogue faction. We¡¯d be responding in kind and declaring war on all of Intergalactic. This wouldn''t just be about the Tyrchids¡ªthe very fate of the United Galaxy would hang in the balance. All the fighting forces of the big three, ISSA, Galactic Police, and Intergalactic are evenly matched in size, and since Metropolis no longer has an army of its own... we stand to lose much.¡± ¡°But we have to save them!¡± ¡°We need to be smart about this.¡± ¡°What do you suggest, then?¡± Frank asks. ¡°Surely you have some idea?¡± Doug thinks. ¡°If Amethyst and I meet with Keeper Astraea, can you go talk to Galactic Police and try to secure their support? If we can get ISSA and Galactic Police working together, they might be willing to save the Tyrchids and... we¡¯d stand a much better chance in winning the war and cutting down on casualties.¡± ¡°The Galactic Police? What makes you think they¡¯d listen to me?¡± ¡°Remember the Director of Intergalactic Resources at Midnight Iris, way back when? Can you get in touch with her? You can probably find her at the station, she should be able to arrange a meeting with the Chief.¡± ¡°Larsenia? Why?¡± Frank asks but immediately continues: ¡°Oh... Now I get it. She¡¯s like you. Next, you¡¯ll tell me Sam didn¡¯t work for Intergalactic either?¡± ¡°No... he definitely did. Either way, can you do it?¡± ¡°Yeah, I have her number.¡± ¡°Excelle- what? Even I don¡¯t- I mean... great, that¡¯ll speed things along...¡± Doug looks away adjusting his sunglasses. ¡°Why do you have that?¡± Amethyst asks. ¡°She uhh... that day when she was leaving Midnight Iris, I bumped into her when I went to get my backpack. We had a chat and she told me to call her if I ever needed help, saying she wouldn''t mind dealing a blow to Intergalactic herself, or something along those lines.¡± ¡°She¡¯s certainly full of surprises...¡± Doug says quietly. ¡°Well, what are you waiting for? Call her already!¡± Amethyst catches herself shouting. ¡°Uh, please.¡± ¡°Right now? Alright...¡± Amethyst comes to Frank¡¯s side and looks at the communicator¡¯s screen as he navigates through the contacts and finds the number saved as ''Cecil Larsenia''. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. He calls her and lifts the communicator to his ear. His call is quickly answered. ¡°Officer Sennia speaking, who is this?¡± ¡°I- it¡¯s uh, Frank. Sorry, I didn¡¯t quite catch that, is this Larsenia?¡± ¡°Oh, Frank. Yeah, that¡¯s what I said: Larsenia.¡± ¡°Okay... Well, I''ll get straight to the point. You said I could call in a favor, and I could sure use one right now. Can we meet up?¡± ¡°I¡¯m at work right now, is it urgent?¡± ¡°I think you¡¯ll find it quite related to your work, though I¡¯d rather not elaborate more on call.¡± ¡°O-oh, well, can you come to the Galactic Police¡¯s main station then? I¡¯m sure that¡¯s no surprise to you at this point.¡± ¡°No, it isn¡¯t. Yeah, that¡¯ll do nicely. I¡¯ll be there shortly, as long as public transport is favorable.¡± ¡°Right,¡± Larsenia says with an amused tone. ¡°Go to the corridor next to the permit offices waiting room and text me once you¡¯re there. I¡¯ll fetch you discreetly from there.¡± ¡°Alright. See you then.¡± ¡°Cya.¡± Frank ends the call. ¡°What? Why are you looking at me like that Amethyst?¡± ¡°It sure is convenient... what a coincidence you have her number...¡± ¡°Ehh, well-¡± ¡°With that sorted, we should split up then,¡± Doug says and gestures for them to go, but Amethyst doesn¡¯t move, instead, she looks to the floor. She lifts her gaze and levels her sad eyes at Frank. ¡°We just got back together, I don¡¯t want to let you go...¡± ¡°Amethyst...¡± ¡°Let you go alone, I- I mean... it might be dangerous. Those Intergalactic goons might still be lurking.¡± She pouts her lips and looks away, her eyes sneaking glances at Frank. ¡°Good point, I¡¯ll have one of our men escort you there,¡± Doug adds. ¡°I¡¯d like to say that¡¯s not necessary, but... with how things have turned out so far, I¡¯m not about to turn you down.¡± ¡°Wait here, he¡¯ll be here in a minute. Meanwhile, Amethyst and I will go search for Astraea.¡± Doug and Amethyst start to walk away. ¡°Good luck, Amethyst.¡± ¡°Take care, Frank.¡± He smiles, but as he instinctively brings a hand behind his head, he winces, holding his right side briefly. Amethyst looks away, pretending to not notice his pained expression. You¡¯re not lying about being fine¡­ are you? I want to reprimand you so bad, fly you back to your hospital bed to rest, but... I need your help, I need to save my kin... Is it selfish of me to want that, but also want what¡¯s best for you...? Want... you? As Amethyst and Doug walk along the long corridor, they hear the bodyguard meet up with Frank, and both groups leave the staff-only facilities. ¡°If she¡¯s still here, I think I know where to find her,¡± Doug says and leads ahead. ¡°Can¡¯t you call her?¡± ¡°Well, I could, but I don¡¯t think she¡¯d answer.¡± ¡°Huh...?¡± After a winding walk of many sets of stairs, they arrive at a separate wing of the courthouse, beyond the courtrooms. The area is completely in normal size, but in similar ostentatious architecture. Doug leads her further in, to a grand hallway with seemingly endless doors along it, private meeting rooms, according to him. They manually check room after room, those marked as vacant, and those occupied as well, interrupting some meetings. Doug apologizes for each interruption with the standing of a security guard checking that everything¡¯s fine. Finally, from the second last one, marked as vacant, they find a lady talking with P?llend. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± The owl Mun¡¯aakas turns his head around without turning his body. ¡°I hope we¡¯re not interrupting,¡± Doug says. ¡°It¡¯s fine, we were just finishing up.¡± She turns to face them, and Amethyst recognizes her to be the message-sending woman of the jury. She looks younger than Frank and Doug, perhaps around 25 years old, she has faint freckles all over her cheeks and the bridge of her nose, alongside the large blond airy braids at the front. P?llend starts leaving, ¡°Good day,¡± he nods to them as they step aside, giving him room. He closes the door on his way out. The lady gathers some papers and stacks them neatly. She looks over them both, with a serious expression, gone is the mischievous side she expressed in the courtroom. Amethyst can¡¯t help herself from verifying. ¡°You¡¯re the Keeper of Intelligence-?¡± ¡°Do not call me that.¡± Her reaction is immediate, furrowing her brow, the stack of papers in her grip crumples, as she directs her glare at Doug. ¡°Did you not tell her to just call me Astraea?¡± Amethyst looks between her and Doug, confused at Astraea¡¯s reaction. ¡°Why not? Why shouldn¡¯t I call you-?¡± ¡°Amethyst-!¡± Doug tries to interject, but Astraea holds up her hand and shakes her head. ¡°She could have only heard that title from you. I¡¯ve told you, time and time again, why do you still insist on calling me that!¡± Doug hangs his head, like at a confessional. ¡°In my eyes, that is still your moniker. The split doesn¡¯t change anything, and many others agree-¡± ¡°But it is not my title, not anymore. I am not worthy to bear it.¡± She scowls like in physical pain, hurt in her voice. ¡°Please, you know that well, so please, do not call me that, to others or to myself.¡± ¡°If that¡¯s the leader¡¯s title¡­ does that mean you¡¯re not ISSA¡¯s leader anymore?¡± Astraea sighs in response. ¡°It¡¯s a little complicated. Nowadays I¡¯m just one of many. Though I still keep my authority over the Sapient Species processing and a few other select things.¡± ¡°I see... Can I ask why you helped me in court? Why did you tell the Unificator what to say? Shouldn¡¯t you be in P?llend¡¯s place anyway, as the leader?¡± ¡°Surely that isn¡¯t why you¡¯re here?¡± Astraea scoffs and turns her side to them, taking out her communicator and using it as a mirror. ¡°To dig up the past and ask meaningless questions?¡± ¡°Of course not, my apologies.¡± Doug scowls at Amethyst. ¡°Then why are you here?¡± She asks and adjusts her hair. Well, excuse me for being a little suspicious... What if I shouldn¡¯t share this information with her? What if it¡¯ll only make it worse¡­? Can I really know that ISSA is on our side after all? If they aren¡¯t, what would we do then? Rescue them, just the two of us with Frank, somehow? Astraea starts packing up her files in folders and gathering her things into her lap. I hate this. This doubt, this uncertainty... I just can¡¯t trust everyone like I used to... I really want to... why can¡¯t everyone be honest people? ¡°Amethyst,¡± Doug says. ¡°Y-yes?¡± ¡°Won¡¯t you tell her why we¡¯re here?¡± Amethyst looks at Astraea, leaning against the table, practically sitting on its edge, presenting no initiative or interest to ask anything from Amethyst herself. Though, not leaving either. She¡¯s a fair lady by all accounts, more serious than she thought, but she looks trustworthy, though her ability to evaluate people hadn¡¯t done her any favors so far. What if she¡¯s another Luna...? What if she¡¯s not the leader, and Doug is a double agent, leading me even deeper into a trap? Argh... This was our whole objective this entire time... get ISSA¡¯s protection. I can¡¯t be second-guessing it now. I just... I have to trust her. ¡°My apologies, Astraea. Today¡¯s been a lot... well, everything¡¯s been a lot...¡± Amethyst pauses for a moment, getting lost in the turmoil in her mind before she finds the words and the train of thought again. ¡°My kin, the whole Tyrchid village was abducted by Intergalactic using some massive ship.¡± ¡°I see... So they went ahead despite everything...¡± Astraea adds calmly, a hand on her chin: ¡°And that ship, it must have been the Earth Eater. Even my father thought it destroyed for it hadn¡¯t been seen for... decades. This is troublesome news indeed.¡± ¡°So... Can you help me? We must save my kin!¡± ¡°Do you realize what you are asking us to do?¡± She sighs once more and stands up. ¡°In the off-chance that we¡¯re lucky enough that they are taken to Intergalactic¡¯s HQ, one does not simply waltz in there to stage a rescue. First of all, the location of their space station changes, even if it is slow to move, it¡¯s not like it¡¯s public knowledge where it is. We might not even be able to help if we wanted to.¡± ¡°But we¡¯re ¡®in progress¡¯ in the application now! You can¡¯t just-¡± She walks up to Amethyst and swooshes a file of papers toward her like a blade, stopping it before her face. ¡°Secondly, confronting the main force of Intergalactic is simply not feasible, we are evenly matched in numbers, and we¡¯d be fighting on their home turf, if we even manage to get our ships close enough to dock...¡± Astraea backs off and slaps the file against her palm. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Amethyst, but we keep the peace, defend planets, and be a deterrent to ensure the longevity of Species... Do you even know if those are the only Tyrchids on Midnight Iris? Surely not?¡± ¡°I... I have no idea. But, they could be! They¡¯re my people regardless! I am their voice for the Galaxy, I¡¯m not about to let them down! Let them be Intergalactic¡¯s prisoners!¡± Astraea¡¯s eyebrows rise, but she soon shakes her head and smirks. ¡°Maybe if my father was still here... I bet he would have jumped at the opportunity to do good at his own expense. But I am not him, I cannot be like him. This is the legacy he left for me, I have to take care of it. I cannot frivolously send my people to a war that¡¯s one step from certain death. I hope you understand.¡± Doug bows his head before speaking. ¡°Astraea, if I may suggest a solution to save Amethyst¡¯s kin, Frank is currently heading to the Galactic Police to solve both of the issues you mentioned. Would you be willing to go against Intergalactic if you had the Galactic Police¡¯s support?¡± ¡°Hah... work with Argo? You must be joking.¡± The room¡¯s stoic silence is Astraea¡¯s answer. ¡°Let¡¯s say we get his support, then we¡¯d have a major numerical advantage on all fronts. What about the second issue?¡± ¡°I think I have a contact who has fresh coordinates in her possession for the space station in that very same facility.¡± ¡°Sounds like we¡¯d owe a debt to the Galactic Police, I don¡¯t like the sound of that.¡± ¡°No, we¡¯ll certainly frame it so that there are no favors left to be fulfilled one way or the other. Isn¡¯t Argo quite keen on seeing Intergalactic destroyed?¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s one way to describe his aspirations. Fine... if you can solve both of these issues as discussed, you¡¯ll have the full support of ISSA¡¯s fleet and Peacekeepers.¡± ¡°Thank you! I¡¯m sure Frank will be able to persuade him!¡± ¡°Perhaps... I think he¡¯d be the first to do so.¡± Astraea says. ¡°With that settled, Amethyst, please step outside for a moment, I have matters to discuss with Doug.¡± ¡°A-alright...¡± ¡°And don¡¯t even think about eavesdropping.¡± How did she know!? Oh... right. ¡°I understand...¡± ¡°Good. We¡¯ll just be a moment, Doug will meet you in the hallway after.¡± *** A black hovercar drives to the parking lot of the gallant Galactic Police Station, the building dressed in blue stripes and yellow details. A sturdy concrete building, a real pillar of society. The dim-windowed side door opens, and Frank steps out. ¡°Thanks for the lift.¡± He swings the door shut with a thud, and the car drives away. Back here again... Frank enters the familiar station, and proceeds past the permit offices and its reception, to the one split-off hallway one could get inside without a keycard. He messages Larsenia and as he waits, his thoughts wander to the last time he was in this very same corridor. Back then that nice female officer turned him away back the way he came¡­ oh, but before that... he heard that familiar voice... A door opens and then closes down the same corridor where the two Officers were back then. Steps approach, and the same mystery voice he heard back then, greets him. ¡°Frank, this way.¡± It''s Larsenia, without a doubt, her facial and other features look nearly identical, however... gone are the long luscious blond locks¡ªshe''s totally bald. ¡°You''re-? R-right,¡± Frank tilts back to his feet. ¡°I''m what?¡± She says as Frank joins to walk with her down the corridor. ¡°...¡± ¡°Bald?¡± Larsenia guesses. ¡°Yeah... what happened to your hair?¡± Larsenia shakes her head and sighs. ¡°I was undercover, so I was wearing a wig. Nothing happened to my hair, so to speak. In reality, I¡¯m bald, that¡¯s all there is to it.¡± ¡°Oh... I see. Sorry, I didn¡¯t-¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine... I¡¯m used to reactions like that.¡± She sighs even deeper. ¡°There¡¯s a reason I always wear a wig out in public...¡± She looks away and mutters the last part through her teeth. ¡°It¡¯s just... I saw you with hair first, so I was confused, that¡¯s all. You¡¯re still as beautiful without your wig.¡± Frank regrets his words as soon as they leave his mouth. Larsenia crosses her arms. ¡°Should you be saying things like that to a woman you barely know?¡± There¡¯s a slight hint of a smirk on her lips. ¡°I suppose not...¡± ¡°Besides, aren¡¯t you and Amethyst like the public couple number one right now? Think before you speak.¡± Larsenia breathes out harshly through her nose. ¡°Anyway... I don¡¯t need your pity or forced compliments, so save it, and let¡¯s move on, shall we?¡± ¡°Right... Sorry...¡± I wasn''t lying though. Larsenia leads Frank through a few doors with her keycard, to an interrogation room. She sits down, and Frank takes a seat across from her. ¡°Truth be told, I¡¯m a little surprised you even called me, I had totally forgotten of my whim back then. Looks like I made the right call after all.¡± ¡°Right. How you acted back then makes a lot more sense now... no wonder you surrendered Midnight Iris to us so easily.¡± ¡°Uhm, right... Let¡¯s move on to business. Why exactly did you call for this meeting?¡± Frank explains what happened to the Tyrchids and what Doug suggested. ¡°Doug told you to specifically seek me out? He''s correct in that I do have the coordinates but... I think he overestimates the sway I hold around here. Especially after...¡± Larsenia shakes her head. ¡°Never mind. You said Amethyst and Doug are currently securing ISSA¡¯s support? I think even in my current state I can get you in the same room with Argo, but I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a good idea until we know if ISSA is cooperative.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°Argo is a very... busy man. If we can¡¯t sway him on our first try, he won¡¯t change his mind after.¡± ¡°I see... but, out of interest, what do you think about all this?¡± ¡°I think it¡¯s a bad idea to go after the Tyrchids. I get why you want to do it, but... I can¡¯t in good conscience recommend it. Any good plan or operation is about risk management. I cannot help but worry about what will happen if we fail. Even with our combined power... there¡¯s a reason why Intergalactic, ISSA, or Galactic Police have never fought a war against each other¡ªwhy we only infiltrate and skirmish in the shadows.¡± Larsenia pauses. ¡°Everyone knows... there may be no coming back from that.¡± ¡°But Intergalactic is asking for it by disrespecting all your rules and regulations, for abducting the Tyrchids! We can¡¯t just do nothing!¡± ¡°I know... but it¡¯s as they say: ¡®Never bet more than you¡¯re willing to lose¡¯. You have to first ask yourself, can you live with the consequences of failure?¡± Larsenia looks distraught as she says that. ¡°If we lose, United Galaxy might be no more, Intergalactic would rule and own it all, be free to do what they wish unimpeded. Destroy or enslave all the planets and outposts currently under ISSA and United Galaxy¡¯s protection, our way of life might come to an end. Is that something you¡¯re willing to risk?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not my fault Intergalactic took the Tyrchids, that they started this war. I¡¯m not in charge of ISSA or Galactic Police, their failure wouldn¡¯t be on me.¡± His mind returns to that one fateful night, when he was forced- no, when he decided, to claim the life of another. ¡°If it happens, it happens.¡± ¡°I wonder if you can still think like that if the worst comes to pass. While the events around the war wouldn¡¯t be your fault, you¡¯re still the one who urged us to action. You¡¯re the one who lit the fuse and waited for the explosion, seeing what remains after the smoke clears.¡± Frigid words leave her harsh lips. ¡°Is that who you are?¡± ¡°Yes. That¡¯s exactly who I am.¡± Frank stares Larsenia down with cold eyes, like the gaze of a completely different man. ¡°I¡¯m not about to let Intergalactic get away with this, with all they¡¯ve done. I won¡¯t allow Amethyst to lose any more family members.¡± I knew it. This is who I was all along, selfish, and greedy. Once I decide to hold onto something, I won¡¯t let them go for anything. Ray¡­ you escaped me, but, Amethyst¡­ I will sacrifice the whole Galaxy for you if I have to. That¡¯s who I am. Larsenia leans back and closes her eyes, sitting with her interlocked fingers resting on the table. To take what you want, do what you wish without regard for the risks or the consequences... Hold fast to your conviction in adversity, even in failure... Some might find that brash, reckless, or even stupid... but all I feel is... envy. *** Doug exits the meeting room, back to the bored Amethyst. ¡°Do you think Frank¡¯s already at the Police Station? Can we go there too?¡± ¡°He should have arrived by now, yeah. Now that we¡¯ve got Astraea¡¯s support, we should join him.¡± ¡°Great.¡± Doug taps his sunglasses'' rim. ¡°I forgot to exchange numbers with him... would have been nice to check the situation. Oh well, I guess we¡¯ll find him at the station, anyhow.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve memorized the phone number.¡± ¡°Nicely done. Alright. Let¡¯s check up on him.¡± Amethyst says the numbers out loud one after the other, though she''s a little confused about what Doug is going to do with the information since he doesn¡¯t even have a communicator in hand. He just stands with his black shades firmly on his nose. ¡°I¡¯ll call him now.¡± He presses the side of his glasses, and a small earpiece-like part extends over his right ear. ¡°Hello, is this Frank?¡± ¡°No. This is... is that you, Doug?¡± A female voice answers. ¡°L-Larsenia!? A-ahem, what are you doing with Frank¡¯s c-communicator?¡± ¡°You called my number...¡± ¡°O-oh...¡± Doug looks at Amethyst, who tilts her head confused. ¡°A-anyway... I trust you¡¯ve already met up with Frank?¡± ¡°Yes-¡± ¡°We should meet-¡± They both say at the same time and then fall silent. Both of them laugh nervously over the line. ¡°You go first,¡± Doug says. ¡°Okay, you should come here to meet with Argo. Did you get ISSA¡¯s support yet?¡± ¡°I was going to suggest the same thing. And yes, ISSA is ready to help Amethyst and the Tyrchids if Galactic Police joins in, shall we converge at the Station...?¡± ¡°Yeah... having you here assuring Argo of ISSA¡¯s cooperation when we talk with him is going to be a big help. ¡°Right. We¡¯ll be there in a moment.¡± *** The four of them meet up, in that very same discreet corridor. ¡°Nice to meet you again, ¡®Larsenia¡¯.¡± Dougs offers a hand to her, as his gaze very briefly visits her shiny dome. ¡°I¡¯m glad to see you¡¯re doing well.¡± ¡° ¡¯Well¡¯ might be a bit of an overstatement, but I¡¯m doing a bit better now.¡± Larsenia shakes his hand. ¡°Who knew we¡¯d meet again so soon, ¡®Doug¡¯.¡± ¡°Frank, do humans shed their hair?¡± Amethyst whispers. ¡°Not really. Or, I guess we sort of do? Regardless, don¡¯t worry about it. I¡¯ll explain it some other time.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°And how are you, Amethyst? You just can¡¯t help but bring me even more trouble, can you?¡± Larsenia grins. ¡°I suppose I can¡¯t. Sorry¡­¡± ¡°No, don¡¯t be. It¡¯s my job, our job, to solve other¡¯s problems.¡± Larsenia glances at Doug knowingly, who returns the gaze. ¡°Anyway, Police Chief Argo should be in his office, follow me.¡± She guides them through the station, past other policemen, women, and Sapients, doing their jobs at a desk, escorting suspects, leaning around on a break, or darting past them around to leave on an urgent mission. They arrive at a large wooden door, with a decorated ¡°Chief¡± plaque on it. An electronic buzzer and two lights are at the side of it. Larsenia presses the button and soon, a green light appears on the panel. ¡°After you.¡± She pulls the door open and holds it, standing aside. As they enter, it¡¯s an unexpectedly long room, the walls extend quite far, but no space is wasted. The back wall and both its sides have four immensely intricate maps of all the four districts of Metropolis, each of their square surface takes up the wall from top to bottom. And on the side walls are some galactic maps, some of specific solar systems and others of quite grander scale. In the middle of those, are two large monitors embedded into the walls as well, the other showing a constantly updating stream of news from the city, and the other working as a digital case board by the looks of it, currently showing an empty corkboard surface. Before the Metropolis maps, is an old desk, chipped and damaged in spots, but still has some shine in its darkened surface. Hunched before it, is a young-looking man, his expression a steady scowl, perhaps of anger, determination, or even concentration. A blue decorated Galactic Police cap, almost akin to a military general¡¯s hat, hides his eyes. Lifting his head, he looks up at the people arriving in his room with indifference, taking stock of each one. Once all four of them are inside and behind closed doors, he finally speaks. ¡°There¡¯s only one chair, I hope the rest of you don¡¯t mind standing.¡± He looks back down and writes something on a paper with a deep blue fountain pen, and then gestures to the chair with its other end, but his guests don¡¯t take the initiative. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to ask why we¡¯re here? Who we are?¡± Frank asks. ¡°I already know who all of you are.¡± He takes off his hat and places it on the table packed with documents. ¡°Even me?¡± Doug asks surprised. ¡°Yes, of course. You had a run-in with my staff, why wouldn¡¯t I know you?¡± His eyes glance at Larsenia. ¡°Right...¡± ¡°And... I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll tell me why you¡¯re here, even without me asking.¡± Argo sits up straight, ever so slightly leaning back, the medals and ribbons filling the left side of his uniform shingle and shift. ¡°Well, I''ll start the explanation then.¡± Frank explains the Tyrchid situation, Amethyst summarizes Astraea''s conditions for cooperating with the rescue operation which Doug confirms to be true. All the while, Larsenia does not chime in at any point, she just remains quiet, looking... stoic. ¡°I see.¡± He pops the cork onto his pen and gathers the papers into a folder which he slams shut. ¡°Finally, Astraea has come to her senses. It¡¯s high time we annihilate Intergalactic.¡± ¡°Annihilate? What about saving my kin!¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure ISSA will do their best to save them, that¡¯s their job, isn¡¯t it? The Galactic Police will instead take this chance and focus on bringing an end to the criminal organization that has plagued us for decades. We may work together, but it¡¯ll hardly mean our goals are aligned.¡± ¡°As long as it¡¯ll be for the benefit of the United Galaxy, I¡¯ll consider our goals aligned, even if our methods differ. That¡¯s good enough for ISSA.¡± Doug says. Amethyst narrows her eyes, how come Doug is speaking for all of ISSA? He¡¯s just a guard, even if a high-ranking one? And he¡¯s definitely a subordinate of Astraea, he can¡¯t possibly be running the whole thing, how come he has this much authority? Frank glances at Amethyst briefly, perhaps thinking the same thing. ¡°But of course, a United Galaxy is a just and righteous one. Such a commendable goal will always have our support.¡± Argo says with a neutral tone. ¡°Right, one can always count on the Police for justice to be done,¡± Doug says with a transparent faux smile on his lips. The room goes silent, Larsenia¡¯s lips part, but she looks away without saying anything. ¡°I was wondering¡­¡± Amethyst is instead the first to break the silence. ¡°Can you tell me anything about Hoana and Vic?¡± ¡°That case''s investigation is still ongoing, though with Hoana being found the whole incident is becoming clearer. She was taken to the backroom by the maid who calmed her, and likely pushed Vic, and subsequently kidnapped by her. She was kept in some location and released to testify in the ISSA court. She gave her false testimony, under the threat of her comatose husband being finished off if she didn¡¯t do it. Now that we know, we¡¯ve arranged heavy security for him at the hospital.¡± ¡°Oh... that¡¯s a lot.¡± ¡°So, it¡¯s confirmed Vic was pushed?¡± Frank asks. ¡°Yeah. It is nearly certain that he was in deep debt with Intergalactic, so perhaps this was him being made an example of, or this is a part of him paying it back. Hoana said that Vic hadn¡¯t seemed especially nervous when he had suggested that they visit the Cafe, so this turn of events was likely a surprise for him too.¡± ¡°All of this is strictly confidential, but given how involved you are with this case, I thought it best for you to know. After all, that Maid is still out there, alongside the three who kidnapped Frank.¡± The maid and the three criminals, is there a connection...? I¡­ I can¡¯t really tell¡­ ¡°Hoana also wanted me to relay a message to you, Amethyst.¡± ¡°Me?¡± ¡°She wanted to let you know, that she¡¯s sorry.¡± ¡°Sorry¡­? What for?¡± ¡°That¡¯s all she said. But, it¡¯s abundantly clear that Intergalactic is behind all of this interference with their latest crime of abducting all of your Kin. Perhaps it was the culmination of their plan to keep you out of ISSA¡¯s protection. But of course, they failed. He always does. Now for his insolence, Intergalactic will face the full might of ISSA and Galactic Police, to finish this once and for all.¡± He? Frank tries to fit the pieces together. Does Argo know the name of the Intergalactic¡¯s leader? Does he¡­ know him? ¡°What about Fideas?¡± Amethyst asks. ¡°Was he speaking the truth?¡± Argo thinks for a moment. ¡°We just got them both to the station not long ago, and while Hoana was much more talkative, Fideas much less so. We lack any concrete proof to pin any of this on Fideas. So far it seems a coincidence that Fideas met Hoana, while it could have been orchestrated by Intergalactic, we have trouble showing any purposeful intent on Fideas¡¯ part. He might have just been an outlet for Hoana to complete her false testimony. So far, we can only charge neglect on his part, for not reporting coming across such a clearly suspicious individual.¡± ¡°I see. Thank you for answering all my questions... I feel a little better knowing all this, even if it¡¯s still quite unresolved...¡± ¡°You¡¯re welcome.¡± ¡°So, let me just confirm, you agree to help us?¡± Frank asks. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Can we help them right away?¡± Amethyst asks. ¡°We have to go after them before they harm my kin!¡± The police chief sighs. Finally, Larsenia speaks up. ¡°We cannot leave yet. The ship needs time to arrive at its destination. Intercepting it mid-flight in outer space would be very difficult. Finding a ship, even of that size, is a near-impossible endeavor unless we know exactly what route they¡¯ll take. ¡°Oh...¡± ¡°And, if we storm Intergalactic¡¯s HQ too early, we might spook the ship to land somewhere else instead. Then we¡¯d be in over our heads, trying to find a needle from a Galaxy. Rest assured, if we wait, we should be fine. Their HQ is the most likely location, it has Intergalactic¡¯s most advanced labs aboard it, and according to the shipping manifests I found, your mother had been transported there too.¡± ¡°I see...¡± Argo nods. ¡°The Earth Eater cannot land on planets, so a space-bound location is most likely. Naturally, the need to wait will play into our hands, as it will take time for us to prepare for the operation regardless. We have to get resources and personnel ready, maintain and fuel our spaceships and weaponry¡­ load it all up in the PMS Justiciar, coordinate everything with ISSA, discuss plans and strategies¡­¡± Argo¡¯s list goes on and on. ¡°As for what comes to you two¡­ are you going to accompany us on this mission? I get the sense this is all rather personal for you. Although, I recommend against it. It will be incredibly dangerous, and neither of you is trained in any sort of fighting, I imagine.¡± ¡°Right...¡± Frank says and meets Amethyst¡¯s eyes. ¡°I... we¡¯re not sure. Can you give us time to think about it?¡± ¡°Of course. We¡¯ll have our final strategy meeting tomorrow, I¡¯ll call you over to attend and then you can give your final answer. Do account that if you do decide to go to war with us, we will think up a way to use you as a part of our strategy.¡± ¡°Okay¡­¡± ¡°You¡¯re all free to go now apart from Doug. I need to discuss additional factors with you about ISSA¡¯s part.¡± ¡°Of course. What do you need?¡± Amethyst and Frank wave at Argo, but he¡¯s already talking with Doug, and doesn¡¯t register their departure. Larsenia starts leading them out. ¡°Will ISSA send their own mother ship?¡± ¡°I believe so, E.I.D III Sanctuary is necessary to transport all the fighters.¡± ¡°Marvelous-¡± They leave the room and close the door. Larsenia escorts Frank and Amethyst to the last security door. ¡°We¡¯ll let you know sometime tomorrow when we¡¯ll have the meeting.¡± ¡°Thank you, for everything, Larsenia,¡± Frank says. She smiles in response and nods. ¡°And let Doug know of our appreciation as well.¡± Amethyst continues. ¡°Will do. Take care now.¡± ¡°Goodbye!¡± Amethyst and Frank leave, and Larsenia goes back to wait for Doug to be dismissed from Argo¡¯s office. Not too much time passes until he exits the room. ¡°Larsenia?¡± ¡°Amethyst and Frank wanted to thank you for your help. Just uh¡­ waited for you to let you know¡­¡± ¡°Right, thanks.¡± ¡°So¡­¡± Larsenia trails off. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Are you going to head back to ISSA now?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not in a hurry. My work hours are... flexible. What about you? Doing anything after work?¡± ¡°Oh, I... my shift¡¯s over in an hour, actually,¡± Larsenia¡¯s fingers play with the buttons on the cuff of her uniform. ¡°Why?¡± Doug pulls his shades forward and looks at her over them. ¡°Want to go grab dinner after work?¡± ¡°I¡­¡± ¡°If you¡¯re free, of course...¡± Doug apprehensively covers his eyes again. ¡°It¡¯s fine if you¡¯ve got something else...¡± ¡°I¡¯d love to!¡± Larsenia beams, her smile high and full of excitement. ¡°Where are we going?¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t thought that far ahead...¡± *** Amethyst and Frank stand in the fading daylight, outside the Galactic Police building. ¡°Do you want to take a bus or something or should we¡­?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s... walk.¡± ¡°I agree¡­ I think we both could use some fresh air.¡± ¡°As long as we stay far away from dark alleys.¡± ¡°Right¡­¡± Frank smiles. They set out walking through the beautiful city: tall trees, colorful flower assortments in pots surrounding them, along with the lively people about. It serves to lift their moods somewhat. Even if they¡¯d been struck by disaster after disaster, the world still went on around them, pushing ahead with rigorous ignorance of their problems. In a way, it''s a comforting notion for Amethyst. Not so much for Frank, who wonders if this all could really end as a result of their operation failing. ¡°What do you think we should do?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Amethyst walks, without looking at Frank. ¡°This is our chance to end Intergalactic¡¯s hunting of your kin once and for all. However, we could just let them handle it, I¡¯m sure ISSA and Galactic Police will be able to utterly destroy them. What difference are we going to make in this war? We should sit this one out. We¡¯ve been through enough already as it is.¡± Amethyst turns to look at him. ¡°You might be right, but¡­ I have to be there, to make an effort to save my kin.¡± Sadness reflects in her eyes for a moment, until her eyebrows turn sharp. ¡°I want to see Intergalactic destroyed. I want to be there to do it.¡± Frank is taken aback by Amethyst¡¯s words. ¡°I didn¡¯t realize you felt that strongly about it. But, I guess it¡¯s more than fair, given what we¡¯ve been through.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve realized¡­ they will never stop hunting me, or us. It has to end, one way or another.¡± Amethyst looks at her sheathed blades. ¡°They better be prepared, for I¡¯m coming for them, for my kin. I''ll be there to end Intergalactic myself.¡± Frank sighs, almost seeming relieved. ¡°Well then, it¡¯s decided. If you¡¯re going, I¡¯m going.¡± ¡°But you¡¯re injured!¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that bad... The Patchers are really remarkable, and this little thing can keep going for a good while without maintenance.¡± He pats his right side, on the stitched part of his jacket. ¡°You¡¯re impossible.¡± ¡°H-uh?¡± Amethyst grins. They arrive at the pedestrian bridge taking them from Integrity to Compassion, over the river of Purity. Amethyst walks to the railing and looks to the horizon, the red sun is setting, painting the sky in a glowing orange hue. ¡°Can we stop here for a while¡­?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Frank comes close to Amethyst, between her two side legs, and Amethyst scoops him closer with her sheathed hand. Together, they stand there admiring the sunset, enjoying each other¡¯s company, and the closeness of their hearts. Amethyst peers into the striking, bright-hued horizon. Please¡­ Red Goddess, if you¡¯re out there... Can you safeguard our way? Make sure Frank and I will be alright? Help us win this final fight against Intergalactic¡­? The sun grows smaller and smaller, the orange intensifying to bleeding red as if the sky itself is alive and suffering. The rivers of blood flow down the horizon, growing thinner and thinner until they dry up, and the sun¡¯s completely gone. *** They return to Frank¡¯s parents¡¯ apartment, calm their worries about them not having come home last night, and briefly recap the events and what¡¯s to come. As the two of them retreat to their room, Amethyst is out like a light, as soon as she touches her mattress. Thoughts run rampant in Frank¡¯s mind, unable to sleep, and he sneaks out of the room. Light shimmers down the corridor, from the open doorway, shining on the hallway walls. He peeks into the living room, to see his parents still awake, watching G-TV. ¡°Frank?¡± Eicel spots him. He softly steps inside and leans to the wall next to the doorway. ¡°I just came to say... I¡¯m glad we met again, that I took the plunge to come back home.¡± Frank looks to the floor. ¡°And... I...¡± Wanted to ask, are you really you...? Do you disagree with my choices, the life I¡¯ve lived? Would you be proud of me if...? Or... are you just pretending? ¡°I just wanted to say... I love you both.¡± Why does saying that sting so much? I¡¯m not lying... Am I? No, I care about them... so then, why do I feel so guilty? ¡°And we do you, but... I wish you wouldn¡¯t say things like that before going to war. I still don¡¯t agree with you going, I did what I did in my life to make sure you¡¯d never have to go through the... things I did.¡± Eicel¡¯s face is inconsistently lit up by the living light of the G-TV, her eyes shining. ¡°But... even so...¡± ¡°We understand.¡± Hyon continues, ¡°Better leave without regrets, with nothing left unsaid-¡± Yeah, right¡­ ¡°- so you don¡¯t have to worry about us tomorrow, just focus on coming back alive.¡± ¡°Thank you, both of you.¡± Frank lifts himself off the wall. ¡°Mom, Dad... do you mind if I sit down to watch with you for a moment?¡± ¡°Of course not.¡± Frank takes a seat on the floor, before both of their beds, in the middle. The colorful lights of the G-TV paint the dark room in different variations between light and dim light, blinding and gloomy... A light show of vanity and nostalgia. Frank sighs deeply. It¡¯s like old times, when he was just a kid when everything was alright in the world, for as far as he was concerned. It was all much simpler. It was enough to just exist in the moment, watch TV with his parents, trusting in the past of certainty, and a malleable future of anything. The susurration of ads, the blur of colors¡­ it¡¯s so calming. This infinitesimal moment in time, somehow feels like its peace could last forever. The present moment¡ªinfinite and eternal.