“Would you like a glass of wine?” she offered, pulling out a bottle and placing it on a gleaming counter.
His translator indicated an offer of alcohol. “While the offer is kind, I should return to the ship that you might rest.”
“Surely you can stay for one glass.” She held up a pair of strangely shaped cups perched on a long stem and waggled them.
Given her insistence, it would be rude of him to refuse. “Very well. As you wish.” He accepted and then stood awkwardly, unsure of how to act. He’d only rarely ever found himself alone with the opposite sex, and usually because he’d paid them to be there.
Beta must have been monitoring and sensed his discomfort because his communicator conveyed a message. “Relax. The human is harmless.”
He didn’t fear her injuring him, more that he would do or say the wrong thing.
“Why is it you look like you want to run away?” the woman asked as she headed for him, extending a fluted glass full of a red liquid.
“This type of mission is new to me,” he admitted as he took the beverage.
“What kind of missions do you usually go on?”
He clutched the glass but didn’t immediately drink. “The kind where I’m not usually required to talk.” He quickly took a sip of the strange liquid. Tart, but not overly so. Definitely nothing like the grog offered on most space stations.
She snorted. “Solo missions sound divine. I’m not big on the whole social thing, either. How is it you got stuck coming here, where you had to deal with people?”
“The Oracle ordered me to.”
“And do you and the other Xanadus always do what this Oracle says?”
He almost corrected her mispronunciation but, given the mood, decided against it. “Yes. She is our guide.”
“Seems like you put an awful lot of trust in her. What if she’s wrong?”
The blasphemy almost popped his eyes out of his head. “The Oracle is always right.”
“If you say so,” the woman sang before taking another sip and wandering over to the windows. “How do you like Earth so far?”
“This is my first time on its surface.”
She whirled. “You came all this way and didn’t teleport down until now?”
His shoulders rolled. “Exploring wasn’t part of the mission, and we do stand out among your kind.”
“Didn’t seem to bother Cade.”
“Because he is brash,” his retort.
“Aren’t you curious?”
“Yes. I’ve been studying human history and social norms on the ship.” He took another sip and noticed this time that it appeared to be spreading warmth through his body. Had the female lied about the contents in his glass and fed him poison?
Nosy Beta sensed his trepidation and replied, “It is alcohol and is quite potent. Be wary of your consumption.”
“Studying isn’t the same as experiencing, though. Whenever I expand the company into a new region, one of the things I like to do before I start work on the marketing campaigns is to go native and immerse myself for a few weeks to get a feel for the people and their culture.”
“How does that help you to pair people?” he blurted.
“Because social norms vary amongst groups. For example, a dating app based in the USA can have sexualized images and texts without issue. However, a much more conservative and religious place, like the Middle East, requires more circumspection.”
Jaspar swallowed yet more wine as he digested her words. “That makes sense. It’s much like a military maneuver. You surveil the terrain and plan your attack.”
“Exactly.”
