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With a tired sigh, I slip off my shoes and head to the kitchen fridge, taking out a cold bottle of iced tea. I gulp it down, quenching my thirst. This July heat has been scorching. Quickly, I tap the controls on my communicator to activate the cooling system, then head up the stairs to my bedroom for a quick shower.
Once I’m clean and refreshed, I amble down in my sweats to the kitchen to prepare my evening meal. I don’t have much of an appetite, so I make myself a chicken salad. Settled at the kitchen counter with my food, I tap my communicator to check for messages.
There’s the usual slew of work mail and social media notifications. I ignore them and select the pulsing icon with the name “Mel”. She has sent me a video communication, the second one since leaving Mars for Krovatia. I click on it and set my communicator to projection mode, so her video image is projected in 3D before me. She comes alive in front of me and starts to speak. The sweet sound of her voice acts like a balm to my tired, lonely, fractious self.
“Hi honey, I’ve finally made it here.” She stands and guides her camera around the room. I can see a large, low lying bed with a generous supply of plump, colorful cushions. The room is furnished in simple, clean lines. Apart from the bed, there’s some shelving and a work space on one side, and a large closet on the other. Overhead, a fan is whirring, giving an old-fashioned feel to the room.
“So, this is my new home. It’s a little rustic, but spacious and comfortable. All the amenities are there, except for a decent cooling system,” she says pointing with her chin towards the ceiling fan. “It’s not too bad though. The shutters keep the worst of the heat out and the walls are well insulated. Oh, and there’s also a shared central atrium with a cute little pool. Not suitable for swimming lengths, but great for a quick, cooling dip. Let me show you.”
For the next few minutes, she walks around her new home, showing me all the rooms and the pool. Then she’s back in her room and settling on the bed. She smiles her glorious, bright, heart-warming smile. “So, that’s your introduction to my new home. I hope it sets your mind at rest. I feel really safe here, so please don’t worry honey.”
She crosses her legs and leans back against the cushioned board at the top of her bed. “Let me tell you about the Krovatians. Well, as you know, they have gray skin, and yes they do go around wearing only loin cloths. And guess what? They have a tail! It’s quite long and swings back and forth as they walk, but I’ve noticed that it can twirl about when they get nervous or excited. How fun is that!”
“When we first arrived on Krovatia, we weren’t brought here but to some kind of secure place underground where they checked us out. Let me tell you, it was weird…”
I listen as she tells me about some strange ceremony with the head priest and how he sucked out the negative energy from her colleague, who apparently had been harboring festering jealousy towards her but is now a changed person. It all seems fantastical, exciting and a world away from my humdrum existence over here. For a moment, I feel a stab of envy. I’m the one who has always loved to immerse myself in science fiction novels, while her preference was more for historical fiction. And yet, it’s her that gets to go on this adventure to an alien planet, not me. A small, immature voice inside me screams, “It’s not fair!” Filled with self-loathing, I try to quash it.
I get to the end of her communication and sigh, remembering my brother’s crude words.Shit or get off the pot.
Fuck, he’s right. I’m not liking who I am these days—a cowardly, indecisive guy who’s envious of his ex-wife’s good fortune. Fuck that. I bang my fist on the table.Enough Wyatt! Get your shit together and stop being a fucking coward.
I stand and take a deep breath.Do it. Just fucking do it.I pick up my communicator and request an appointment with Dwight C. Josephs. And then, before I lose my nerve, I send another message, this time to the White House, for the attention of Peyton Miller.
Chapter 14
Kirimor
I have been summoned to Denishar’s palace to attend his first meeting with the leader of the newly arrived Humans. I am curious to properly meet the female who scrutinized me so curiously on the day I scanned them. I am also not a little intrigued as to why this female inspired such envy and jealousy in her fellow Human.
I land my drone and am shown to Denishar’s receiving chamber. I step toward him for the traditional greeting. We place hands on each other’s chests, then bow. “Denishar my friend, it is a pleasure to see you.”
“And you,” he responds. “Take a seat, please.”
We sit facing each other on decorative floor cushions placed in the center of the room. As Denishar pours me a glass ofnari,he remarks, “I invited you here today as a second set of eyes and ears for my first meeting with this representative from the planet Earth. You have already scanned them, I know, but I will be interested in your take on their prime motivations in coming here.”
“I will be glad to share my thoughts and impressions with you.”
“Kirimor, I supported you in your plan to open up our planet to greater dialogue with alien races. However, I must confess that I am not entirely comfortable with their presence here or devoid of suspicion.”
“That is natural, Denishar, since we have not been used to having foreigners in our midst. I do not believe these people pose a threat to us, though you are right to be cautious.”
“I have studied the information we have on them. Their race is not as technologically advanced as ours. However, there are parallels in our histories. They are facing great challenges in combatting the detrimental effects of harmful pollutants on their planet’s environment, just like our ancestors did.”
“As a spiritual man, I am interested in those parallels. Why is it that people, in worlds light years apart, can have so many things in common? It is one of the great mysteries of life.”
“Indeed.”
Denishar’s communicator buzzes with an incoming call from his aide. “Sir, the Human is here. Shall I show her in?”
“Please do.”
We stand as the door opens and the Human female walks in with a confident step, a warm smile on her face. “Denishar, it is a great pleasure to finally meet you in the flesh,” she says.
“The pleasure is mine.”
The female raises her hand and places it on Denishar’s chest, as he does so on hers. I am pleased to see she is acquainted with our mode of greeting. A moment later, she steps back and bows. Denishar then introduces me.
“This is the sicortar, the highest priest of Krovatia. I believe you have encountered each other before.”
