The Dreamer

@sorcaugur

In maybe the stupidest way possible. Okay, maybe not. Those old survival shows were kinda stupid now that he remembers them. They were clutter around the actual environmental related things he liked watching. What a nerd, right? 

Mars has no trees and Hell, well, didn’t really have trees per se. Or any green greenery, alive or otherwise. Memories of Earth? Well, those were distant. 

But, no time to be sad. He deserves to party hard when he can. And that means climbing this goddamn tree like a rebellious teenager. There’s probably some rule about this. He finds it hard to care right now. 

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand he’s at the top!

“FUCK YEAAAAAOOOOHHH SHIT–” 

The burly marine was a bit too heavy for a branch another leg balanced on. Falling through he’s hit by several other branches before finally grabbing onto a more solid branch near the end of it. He dangles in front of someone else, who possibly almost got kicked in the face from the momentum. 

So that’s what she did now.

Delicate fingers removed tight gloves with practised ease, pale skin held out in the sun. She hesitated, then laid here palm on the bark. Life.

What could have possible been a serene moment in this bizarre prison was interrupted as a rather loud profanity burst from the tree. No, not from the tree, above-

She barely had time to step back before a swinging form almost crashed its boot into her face. A moment to appraise the situation and a thin eyebrow was raised quizzically.

“I should think so.” Her voice sang in melodic tones, almost echoing with itself.

“Sometimes our station is affected by goings-on outside, but normally we just set up a small shelter and medical aid for those who need it. We won’t be getting involved in any conflicts or arguments.” A neutral zone run by the people for the people.

Shaking her hand felt odd due to the gauntlet rubbing against his skin. Outside of work he wouldn’t do this kind of thing but they needed to foster an environment of respect. Little gestures like this went a long way for relations.

“If this isn’t too much of a personal question, may I ask about the technology from your world? We work with equipment from roughly about this time period, but some aren’t used to this kind of thing. Coming from the past or the present could need more help in transitioning.

His grip was firm, yet far from uncomfortable, nothing at all like those armoured behemoths. And indeed he did seem respectful, it was all quite a refreshing experience. She had gathered that his stay here had been rather extensive, far beyond either of her spells at least. Perhaps he had gotten used to the city, perhaps he was simply from a better time. 

“It is not. Xenos is a term uttered with much malice in my galaxy, though I am what you would call an alien. My world is not Earth, Terra or any celestial planet, rather a great space vessel known as a Craftworld. Craftworld Ulthwé is my home, there are several others, but our numbers are a far cry from ages past.” 

Was that too much? Or not enough. It’s not like she needed to be guarded here, but some things ingrained were hard to overcome. She supposed she should be conscious of boring him.

“Though that doesn’t answer your question. I suppose when may be more pertinent that where; in the time I am from humanity marks their calendars as the forty first millennium.” She paused, considering her words for a few moments. “But their technology and advancement has stagnated in the last ten thousand years. We, the Eldar, have existed for some time longer.”

“It is true that many regard our technology with great wonder, and many more Eldar regard humanity’s as crude... But it is merely, different.” Her gaze returned to his. “I am sure there is much you can teach me, and I have little doubt I may need it.”

She nodded, mostly satisfied with her explanation, vague as it was.

“I look forward to meeting them, I doubt there will be trouble. If someone from my own world appears, I am sure you will find out soon enough.” But with the number of undesirables far outweighing any she’d like to see, she almost hoped she’d remain here alone. 

Recently, another hiring drive had taken place. One of the people chosen had been a woman called Taldeer. Being a host Flammelle would need to help them get through the job at first. Seemed like their experience was bare, but plentiful in other fields.

The boss had just finished a coffee break and was walking around when approached by an unfamiliar woman. As soon as she spoke he noticed a unique quality in her voice. Now that would be useful. A large part of the job was sounding comforting or unique so listeners would tune in again.

“You’ve found the right man. I’m Flammelle, and you’ll be working under me at this station. I hope you’ll be able to work here well, both with me and the other members of staff.”

Instead of a bow, he would reach out his right hand for a handshake. Normally he wasn’t so serious with introductions like this but they were at work.

“I hope so too.” Now that was an alien sentiment “I look forward to returning to some more peaceful work.”

She studied his hand for a moment. Of course, a gesture of theirs. One she recognised too, yet the last time it had been offered to her she’d ignored it with an air of no small self importance. A delicate hand took his in tight gauntlets, shaking it slowly.

“I mean, it doesn’t take a lot so don’t worry about your hours! Mostly uh, gathering cases for us, maybe helping me search and investigate stuff. But it’s mostly on your time!” 

“Well it sounds simple enough, I can be quite adept at gathering information.”

“The radio is infrequent and scheduled, I should be able to work around that with ease. Should I assume then, that pay will be on a case by case basis?” There were certainly aspects to it that were appealing, but she was rarely in the mood to work for free.

“『.. So do you like videogames? I like videogames.』”

Send an emoji to learn how good/bad my muse is at that particular skill!

💋 — kissing

💄 — makeup

👾 — video games

🎵 — singing

💃 — dancing

🎹 — playing an instrument

🌷 — taking care of living things

🌲 — surviving in the wilderness

👊 — fighting

😇 — following rules

🍳 — cooking

🍼 — taking care of children

🎁 — giving presents to others

🎉 — hosting parties

💌 — romance/flirting

🎨 — art

🍀 — luck

⚽️  — sports

🏊 — swimming

🚗 — driving

🔮 — magic

🔎 — investigating

🔫 — long range weapons

💣 — explosives

🔪 — melee weapons

🔬 — scientific pursuits

🚿 — hygiene

💰 — finance

🌍 — knowledge of the world

👻 — communing with the paranormal

📚 — reading

🔧 — engineering/mechanics

⌛️ — time management

📥 — organization

🍺 — alcohol tolerance

🚴 — riding a bike

🎭 — performance art/acting

⚓️ — sailing

She looked familiar- like a certain ghost from home, but she wasn’t hollering about granting wishes or revenge, which was a good sign upfront. She also wasn’t a sickly shade of barf green which was another reassuring factor. But really, he never knew. Always had the worst luck to start with, anyway.

“Yes?”

He tried to look and sound cheery, professional. 

“Well I can manage that much.” She looked down at this... Bird, as she spoke. He was trying, at least. And who was she to assume how proficient he was? That surreal feeling was always lurking in this place.