“Jack! Jack they let me see the navigation room today! I got to touch one of the computers and actually talk to someone from another ship! It was amazing! They were, the member from the other ship I mean, they were so similar but Jack they looked so different! I wish you could learn all the things they’re teaching me Jack.”

“Is it really that interesting Collin? I mean, I’m content doing what I do. Never could stand all the talking necessary for peopling.” Collin laughed, reaching back to grab the brush from my hand, setting it on the table in front of him before turning around on the bed, eyes bright with wonder.

“Yes it is Jack! There are so many things my job involves and I love it! It suits me much more than being stuck in the grounds with all those smelly fish.” His nose scrunched up and I laughed, leaning my head against the wall next to the bed we were sitting on, eyes closed as I listened to the low hum of the ship.

“That little brother, is why you have that job. Nothing suits you more than dealing with other people, and nothing suits me more than working as far away from others as possible. Ma and Dad sure did have completely different kids didn’t they?” Collins sighed, and I felt the bed shift before the weight of his head pressed against my leg.

“They love us all the same. I wish they weren’t so busy. I know we all have important things to do but ever since we got our jobs well… I only see them in passing now and it’s so not enough. I miss them.” I nodded, running my fingers through his hair. We sat like that for a while, and the next thing I knew, I was being shaken awake.

“Jack! Jack wake up it’s time to go!” I opened my eyes to see Collins delicate face staring back at me, face split in a grin and hair pulled back in a tie. “Jack it’s time for school! Mommy made breakfast!” I groaned but slid out of bed, watching Collins grab out clothes for the both of us and turning as he started to get dressed, grabbing what he tossed on the bed and following suit.

The rest of the suite smelled richly of fresh meat, and my mouth watered instantly, excited for such a rare treat. I excitedly sat down at the table, bouncing slightly as Collin sat next to me, rolling his eyes at my excitement. I couldn’t care less though, since real meat was such a rare thing, and from the smell of it, what mom was cooking wasn’t the poultry or fish she would usually save up to get for us. No, whatever today's occasion was, it was special enough to earn red meat, and I couldn’t be more thrilled. Collins on the other hand, looked a little off put, though still excited. On his birthday, he and some friends had gotten the idea to find out more about the ships food store, and whatever they had learned had set his stomach off anything red. It’s not something I minded though, since he refused to tell me what it was and instead, earned me a larger portion since the meat was distributed between three instead of four.

“What’s the occasion mom?” I asked, voice cracking in the middle of me asking her, and Collins chuckled earning a glare from myself. “Oh what, you think you won’t deal with this too? Guess what little bro, you will and you’ll be just as ridiculous sounding; but you know what? At least it proved that I’m a man and you? You’re still a baby.” Collins pressed his lips together for a moment before he burst out laughing and I scowled. “Keep that up and you’ll go swimming.”

“You see,” Collins giggled, eyes bright with mirth and mischief, “that would be intimidating and all if one, I feared you would do it and two, you sounded like something other than a rusty cog under a little too much pressure.” He started laughing again and I reached over, trying to grab at his arm as he fought me off.

“Behave you too,” mom snapped, and both of us snapped upright in our seats, hands in our laps, though it didn’t stop me from glaring at Collins as he stuck his tongue out at me. Mom came over with the serving dishes, setting them and their steaming contents in the center of the table as dad brought the dining plates, handing both me and Collins one, and then setting one for mom and himself.

“So what is the occasion?” I asked again, and mom smiled at me, reaching over to ruffle my hair.

“What I can’t just do something nice?” She asked, and the rest of us, dad included, shook our heads. Mom laughed, the sound like music, and I couldn’t help but smile as she took her seat. “Alright fine I’ll spill, but I was supposed to save this meal for dinner. I just couldn’t wait though! It’s not every day you get to be the lead for your own son!” Collins took a few seconds less to understood what she meant and he started clapping as dad slapped me on the shoulder, pride bright in his features.

“Wait you mean,” I started, and mom nodded. “They’re letting me learn tech! I would have sworn they would have had me working the food store like dad! The inspectors were so adamant that I didn’t have the muscle mass for it. What changed their minds?” Mom shrugged but dad beamed, tapping at his temple. “If you know then spill!” I squeaked, and dad laughed, the sound deep.

“It’s your ears,” he stated, as if that would explain anything, but he said nothing more and simply started serving himself food. Mom encouraged us all to eat, and we all dug in, though I could only focus on the excitement. Soon after breakfast, I grabbed my stuff and opened the door, intent on meeting mom outside, though the only thing that awaited me was grass as far as the eye could see.

I turned back to the door, only to see that the burning hull of a ship stood in place of my apartment, screams coming from within. I ran to help but no matter how fast I went, I could never get any closer. A sharp pain blossomed at my hips and my legs gave out from under me, causing me to fall with a scream. I tried to stand again but every attempt was met with an indescribable amount of pain.

“Let me help,” an oddly familiar voice churned out, as if the sound itself was put through a mixer. A shadow passed overhead and when I looked up my eyes were met with the broken form of Collins.

I woke with a start, a scream stuck in a throat too dry to release sound and lips glued together from too little moisture. I forced my body into a sitting position, eyes flashing around the unfamiliar setting as a sharp panic blossomed from my stomach. What seemed like wires were wrapped around my legs and I leaned over, desperately pulling at them, though no matter how hard I tried, my fingers refused to find purchase.

There was a buzzing in my ears and the next thing I know there are arms pinning my hand down and a frighteningly familiar face in front of mine. The panic grew and I started struggling, finally working the smallest of shouts from my throat as the being held on to me, pressing their weight against my entire body, forcing me to lie back down, and their body on top of mine. My mind registered them a noise coming from them, recognized it as words, but refused to grasp the meaning of what was being said. The weight on my upper half lessened a bit and something wet and warm was pressed against my mouth. Color flooded my vision as I ceased fighting and threw open eyes that had previously been unregistered as closed, panic being replaced by confusion and a cold sense of fear as my brain worked on recognizing the face that hovered only inches from my own.

“Still,” the person said, the word not clicking at first against the dense unfamiliarity of the voice and accent that came with the speaker.

“Who,” I started, voice grounding and causing me to wince at the resulting pain in my throat.

"Still," the person repeated, and I groaned, squeezing my eyes shut.

"Look, I don't know who you are or what you want or expect from me, but whatever it is, I can't help. My legs are practically broken and,” I sighed, turning to look at the person. “What am I saying? Do you even understand me?” The person just stared at me for a few moments before shrugging. “That's what I thought. I'd have to be extremely lucky for that to have happened twice.”

The person looked like they were going to speak again, and then a panel in the wall opened up and a man marched through.

“Kuliheit xohandux nindu bon?” The person snapped, frame filling the entire entryway.

“Kereanda! Nindu vronierra nokim ati. Botequestia Ii. Basuheit gejlah.” The person already in the room held up my walking stick and I jolted, reaching for it.

“That’s mine!” I yelped, having to stabilize myself when the person jumped away in fright and my vision swam. “It was a gift, shit you don’t. Ugh, it uh, m-ma-mara, no mareato?” I hoped to see some form of recognition on someone’s face but the two people only looked at each other before the person in the doorway stepped forward, letting the panel close behind them.

“By chance do you mean metareo?”

“Yes! I think I mean, everything sounds so confusing and it’s hard to understand, or even learn the language. I know maybe three or four words.”

“Metareo means clean, but marteo means gift.”

“Really? Why are they so close toge-you’re speaking English.” The person smirked and nodded and I huffed, crossing my arms. “Then if you can understand me could you please tell me what’s going on?”

The two strangers talked back and forth for what felt like ages before both turning towards me, the one who knew English looking at me pointedly.

“Before I tell you anything, you must tell me things. Why are you here? How did you enter? Who and what are you? Also where did you receive this?” I looked at them baffled before rolling my eyes.

“How about one for one if we both have a lot of questions? That seems fair to me after all, my legs are pinned to a table.” I stressed the last part, and the original person stood taller, looking down their nose at me.

“Be careful,” they said, the words practiced and significantly more unnatural than the other did. “You are speaking with Kereanda.”

“Ya okay great,” I snorted. “Then Kerianda, what do you say? At least tell me where I am.”

“Ke-re-anda, not Ke-ri-anda, and it is not a name, but an honorific. I am Kereanda Eska, Ethbao de Wuhn and Hamanda de dirop, and you are trespassing in my home.”

I nodded, raising an eyebrow. “Lot of titles, you must be special. I’m Jack Hammond and I followed some guy with blue hair here. Ended up losing him in the halls and then ran into some scary looking person who I guess knocked me out? Now where exactly am I? Other than you’re home cuz that don’t tell me much.” Eska and the other shared a look before Eska sighed, looking annoyed.

“That would have probably been Itrianda, and you are in the infirmary at the Eskyae castle in Wuhn. I cannot be more specific than that. What are you? No, never mind you are human correct?” I nodded. “I believed such for you are certainly not Agrodlese and we intercepted transmissions.”

“You intercepted our communication?” Eska nodded. “That’s great! It mean that you can help contact my ship and-.”

“No.” I looked at Eska baffled before swallowing hard.

“But you said you-.”

“Just because we can hear the loud chatter from human ships does not mean we can communicate with such ships. There is not the technology for it.”

“T-that’s ridiculous. All you need is a basic set up and I know the transmission code to reach the ship. It should be easy, why not just help?”

“Simple Jack Hammond, we do not wish for your kind to be near our own. We do not need the sick you carry to bring to taint.”

“No you don’t understand. If I don’t get a message out a lot of people will be hurt!”

Eska stepped closer to me, resting a hand on my left thigh, before digging the equivalent of claws into my leg, and I gasped, gritting my teeth in pain as he broke skin. “Do you feel Jack Hammond? That is the pain you bring us now. That is the full pain your kind will bring us ever. You may think your kind can do more but it cannot. Now I must leave but you will stay until I decide what to do. Torip, you may fix, but leave the break. It will remind forever the mistake Jack Hammond has made.” Eska yanked his hand away, deepening the gashed and I hissed through gritted teeth, watching as he turned and left through the panel he entered in.

“That asshole!” I snapped, slamming my head back against the table I was on as I laid back. “My people aren’t the only ones who will be hurt. Is he always this rude?” I turned to look at Torip, who shrugged and held a glass out to me. “What is that? Water?” Torip nodded and I took the glass, drinking it greedily before handing Torip the glass back. “Seriously, who pulls all the stops when introducing themselves? He’s just such a prick and, using my name so much, what was, that about.” I yawned deep, my eyes growing heavy. “Torip that wasn’t water was it.”

Torip’s face came into view and they smiled, running a hand through my hair. “Sleep, makes easy.” I wanted to sit up and protest, or even just simply run, but I felt whatever drug I was given take hold and I was pulled back into sleep.