by Ashley West
"Kallel," she said. "Thank you for coming."
"Of course, Your Majesty," he said, inclining his head and wondering if he should have bowed before he sat down. Too late now, he supposed. "Thank you for allowing me to take this mission."
She smiled wider at him, and it showed that most of the lines on her face were smile or laugh lines, crinkling at the corners of her eyes and mouth. "It's I who should be thanking you, Kallel," she said. "I was not confident that anyone would even want to rise to the challenge of taking this on. As I'm sure you know, the Earth is not well loved this far out into the universe."
"I don't think it's the Earth people dislike, but the humans who live there," Kal ventured.
Kamina nodded, acknowledging that. "True, but the two cannot be separated. When people think of Horu, they think of the Hakkan and our trade. For hundreds of years it has been so, and even if we were to leave this planet or stop mining our gems, that is still what people would think of. It is the same for the Earth. And even if it weren't, it is the humans we must protect."
"Of course," Kal said again. "They don't deserve to be left to the mercy of the Alva."
"Indeed no one does." She leveled him with a serious look. "Nearly two decades ago, the Randoran came to our rescue. They did the same for the humans, but they cannot be the only ones helping. It would be shameful if we refused this. Or if we failed."
Kallel sat up in his seat, sensing that the important bits were coming now. "
"We have never been the best fighters or the strongest or the best at strategy," Kamina said. "The Hakkan are traders and have been for as far back as anyone can remember of our people. The warriors arose out of necessity, because the nature of our business is dangerous. People will expect us to fail at this, even now, because they see us as weak. When the Alva came, they didn't want gems or slaves, they wanted to destroy us because they could. Anything they gained from doing it was a fringe benefit. Over time, our forces have grown and strengthened, and we've made a name for ourselves in that regard as well. But there are those who will expect this to go poorly. It cannot. That will not be our legacy. Do you understand?"
All he could do was nod at the question, mouth dry. It was a lot of pressure to put on one person, even if that person was a warrior. He didn't know anything about the Earth aside from what every school aged person learned, and now he was expected to go and save them. Or at least to lay the foundation for saving them. And, to make matters more stressful, he had volunteered for the task.
"I don't mean to put undue pressure on you," the queen said, her gaze softening. "I know this will be far from easy. But do remember that you have the support of your people. I will send backup if you request it, and as soon as we know how best to act, you will have the might of our forces at your command."
Just like the Champion of the Randoran had when he'd done this, Kal remembered.
This was his chance.
By the time he was leaving the fortress, his head was spinning with information. The queen had shown him maps and reports of Alvan activity. She'd gone over information about Earth and humans and had given him a file to read before he left, making sure that he wouldn't be ignorant of Earth when he got there. There was another file now on the drive of his comm device, and it contained the full report of what had happened on Earth a year ago when the Randoran had gone to help, written by the Champion himself.
Kamina had explained that the governments of Earth were mostly all willing to work with 'extraterrestrials' as the humans called anyone not from their planet, with regards to keeping the people safe. That was something, at least. That they recognized that they weren't the best at everything and that some things they would need help with. Either way, they knew he was coming.
His shuttle was being prepped immediately, and he was scheduled to leave within a week's time. If he used the hyper drives and warp paths, then he'd arrive on Earth in another two weeks. So he had until then to make himself familiar with everything he needed to know to make sure this went off right.
Kal had been relieved of his regular duties for now, giving him more time to prepare, so he headed to his mother's home again, wanting to spend as much time with her and Kellan as he could before he left.
His mother seemed convinced that he might not come back if he left, and while Kallel didn't see why he wouldn't come back, he didn't want to mock her fears.
He had dinner with her and Kellan, told them all about his meeting with the queen and everything he had learned.
"Promise me that you'll be careful," his mother said, looking at him with wide, concerned eyes.
"Don't fret so much," Kellan said before Kal could reply. "He's a fully trained warrior. He can handle this. Besides it's just a scouting mission."
"To start," Kal interjected, feeling a bit slighted. "If it turns into a battle, I have to lead it."
Kellan smiled and inclined his head. "Right. Either way, he'll be fine."
"Promise me," their mother insisted.
"I promise, Mother," Kal said, knowing it was better to give her what she wanted than to argue about it. Both of his parents had the stubbornness trait, but it was hard to say which one of them had it the worst. He supposed that since their father was dead, his mother had to be stubborn enough for two.
Anticipation, and the sheer amount of stuff he had to do before he could leave made time fly, and before he knew it, a week had passed. His head was stuffed with information, his bags were packed. His brother and mother had come to see him off, along with half of the warrior forces, his friends, and the queen herself.
"The shuttle knows where to go, sir," said the tech who had programmed it with a salute. "Just launch it, and it'll do the rest."
"Thanks," Kal said, smiling as he stood on the platform.
This was it. This was the start of his adventure. He waved to everyone, bowed to the queen, and then turned to step onto the shuttle. It was time to embark.
Chapter Four: The Wild Unknown
Traveling, as it turned out, was not that exciting. There was only so much to see in deep space, and once he'd gotten over the novelty of the warp paths and star miles, it was mostly just a long journey by himself for two weeks. Outside the windows was mostly just darkness, with the occasional sight of a planet to break up the monotony. The shuttle itself was equipped to know how to handle everything from oncoming meteors and asteroids to deviations in the path, so all Kal had to do was sit back and relax, letting the ship handle navigating.
This was both a relief and a bother because he didn't really know how to steer one of these things, but he also would have been glad to have something else to do.
There was always the reading. It seemed nearly endless. Before he'd left Horu, he'd read over the material about Earth, wanting to save the Randoran Champion's report for the trip. For some reason it seemed exciting to him, reading about the journey made by someone he admired so much while he was making the same journey himself.
And really, the report didn't disappoint. It was clearly written by a soldier, someone who wasn't used to being fancy with words, but the subject matter more than made up for the lack of embellishments.
Kallel skipped over most of the stuff about them traveling to Earth, figuring he was going to experience all of that first hand anyway, and there were only so many times he could read 'smooth sailing ahead, all clear' before it started to lose all meaning in his head.
What fascinated him the most was reading about how the Champion described Earth when he got there. The Alva had done horrible things to the Earth where they had landed. The report talked of knocked down buildings, rubble everywhere, no one in the streets because they had all been taken or had fled. It sounded desolate and awful, and the more he read about the condition the humans had been found in, the worse it sounded.
Humans in cages, humans made to fight for the Alva. It was barbaric, something the Hakkan would never stand for, and Kallel's boredom started to lift as he imagined himself following in these footsteps. He
didn't think the Alva would be so stupid as to be repeating their previous mistakes, but if they were, and he was the one to put a stop to it, people would speak his name for ages. On Earth and Horu. Maybe the Randoran would be pleased with him, too.
It was nice to dream about, anyway.
Fame had never been his guiding motivation, really. Mostly he just wanted to see things, but if he had to do this, a little recognition wouldn't hurt.
He combed through the report once, and then read it again, reading his favorite parts slower. By the time the shuttle's navigation announced that they were approaching Earth, he had practically memorized certain sections of the report.
Kal didn't think he'd ever forget his first sight of Earth, though. It was hard to imagine what your own planet looked like when you were on it, harder still to imagine that every planet had a different look about them when you were far enough away to see it.
Earth was so very blue. Not the icy, cold blue that he imagined Horu would have from a distance, but a vibrant, alive blue that had him staring out the window, slack jawed as the shuttle approached.
White swirled in with the blue, clouds overhead, and when he got closer, the green and brown started to show up more. Kallel watched it all with wide eyes as the shuttle prepared for descent, taking back everything he had thought about this trip being boring just because of that sight. If he never got to see anything again, he thought he would be fine, just having seen that.
The shuttle made its way down and down and down, slipping through the Earth's atmosphere and streaking towards the ground quickly enough that Kal had to hold on tightly to the armrest of his seat. He was buckled in tightly, and the shuttle beeped constantly, announcing in the monotone voice that accompanied most of Hakkan tech how many meters until landing.
His fingers tightened on the arm rest, and he gritted his teeth as the ground rushed up to meet him, and then, almost miraculously, they leveled out and touched down gently.
"We have arrived on Earth," the shuttle console informed him. "This is the city of Chesley, population: 113,000, climate: moderate, current temperature: sixty four degrees, rain expected."
"Well thanks for that," Kal murmured to himself. "Sixty four degrees? In what?" He shook his head and gathered his things, peering out the window. The material he'd read about Earth had prepared him for how things would be, and Kamina had instructed him on what to do when he landed. First he needed to report in, let them know he'd made it safely. Then he needed to initiate the cloaking feature on the shuttle. The house that had been set aside for him was a two mile walk away, and he'd find everything he needed there. From there, it was up to him.
The shuttle had touched down in some sort of field, and he had to stare for a long moment. So much vegetation. So much sunshine. He'd never seen it so bright, unless it was shining on a patch of ice, but this seemed so natural, so beautiful.
He hit the buttons to cloak the shuttle and disembarked, inhaling deeply the second his feet touched dirt.
The air was warm and it smelled like...well, he couldn't place it. It wasn't clean air, to be sure, but it wasn't as dirty as he'd imagined. And the plant life was everywhere. All around him were trees and stalks of what he assumed was wheat and grass. Kal let his fingers trace over it, marveling that he was outside and not wrapped in furs. His pants and shirt were perfect for this weather, and he stretched languidly and looked up at the sky, marveling also at the clear blue color.
"Just amazing," he murmured to himself. When he turned around, the shuttle was seemingly gone, and he shrugged, knowing that he could make it come back from his comm device when he needed it. He punched his code into the device, and called home.
That same bored looking aide answered on the queen's side, at first seeming perturbed that he'd dare to call the queen's line. When he delivered his message, she promised to pass it on and then disconnected the call. Kallel rolled his eyes. He didn't have time to dwell on her being rude, though. Not when there was exploring to do.
He'd come here on a mission, yes, and he fully intended to see to it, but first, he wanted to see some things. Familiarizing himself with the area was important, wasn't it? It was part of the mission, really.
With a smile lighting up his face, he followed the path out of the field and then followed the directions that had been programmed into his comm device to the little house that he would be staying in while he was there.
It wasn't much to look at, just a small cottage, but Kallel liked it instantly. He spent the shortest amount of time possible getting his things put away and then he stepped out into the world again.
If he got lost, he was trusting that his comm device would be able to guide him back to the house, and he wasn't worried about the walk. Walking the walls back home was several miles a day, and this way he wouldn't get lazy without daily training to keep him occupied.
As populated as the walled city was, there were more people out and about than he was used to seeing at one time. They were all loud and absorbed in their own tasks, moving down streets and sidewalks with their eyes on little comm devices in their hands. And the vehicles! They were everywhere once he got out of the secluded little area his cottage was in. Horns blaring, music filling the air from open windows.
The streets were lined with buildings that seemed to be shops, selling everything from food to shiny baubles that had nothing on Horu gems. There were so many sounds, so many smells, so much commotion. Everything was so different from the relative quiet that usually blanketed Horu when you were a good enough distance away from the commotion of the mines. It was something of a sensory overload, and he had to sit down for a moment to take it all in.
The bench he found was low to the ground and warm from the sun, made of wood and metal. Kallel sat down heavily and had to stop looking around for a moment to put his head in his hands.
Deep breaths, he told himself, and he dragged in air that smelled like some strange mixture of fuel and baking bread.
For as much as he'd always wanted to explore and see what the universe had to offer him, Kal had never actually been anywhere before. This was the first time he'd stepped away from his comfort zone. The first time he'd ever been a stranger somewhere, and he told himself that it made sense that he'd have to get used to it.
"Are you okay?" someone asked, and Kal's head jerked up. He had to squint against the glare of the sun to see properly, but standing in front of him was a woman. A human woman. She was surprisingly pretty, if he was honest. Her skin was pale, but she had sun spots sprinkled over her nose and cheeks. Her hair was the color of the wheat that he'd landed in, wound up into a knot on top of her head. Blue eyes looked at him curiously, and Kallel had to blink to stop himself from staring. Even on Horu that was rude.
"I...yes," he said, almost clumsily, nerves making him shy. "I'm fine. This is just, a little much."
The woman glanced around and then looked back to him. "I guess so. But this is what midday in Chesley is always like. You must be new."
"New," he repeated. "Yes."
"Are you...lost?" She looked at her little device and then back to him. "I can give you directions if you want, but then I have to go."
Kallel shook his head. There was nowhere for her to direct him to, and really he just needed a moment. "No, no," he said, waving her offer away. "I'm alright. Just got dizzy for a moment, from all this. I can handle it." He was a warrior of the Hakkan, after all, and this was not enough to beat him.
"Okay," she said, and then turned to head up the street.
It was nice of her to stop, Kal mused as he watched her. She looked both ways and then dashed out across the street, going into a building on the other side. He couldn't tell what it was from where he was sitting, and he knew enough to know that following her would be seen as weird. Conventions on Horu weren't that different, and you couldn't just go following women around and not expect consequences. But he made note of the location, interested to see what that place was.
When he had himself under c
ontrol, he got back up. Steeling himself against all the stimuli around him, he started walking again, taking everything in.
Humans were a bright and varied bunch. Everywhere he looked, they were different colors, different sizes. They called to each other in different languages, even, and it was so odd to see so much diversity on one planet. In one city on one planet, even.
Back home, they all mostly looked the same. It was easy enough to tell if a person was a warrior, a mine worker, or a civilian. They all had pale skin and fiery hair in different shades, but compared to what he was seeing here, they may as well have all looked exactly the same.
The report he'd read on the journey over had talked about how desolate things had been, but there was no sign of it here. True, this wasn't the site of the Alvan invasion, according to what he'd read, that had happened a few kilometers to the west. Still, he'd expected to see some evidence of the invasion here, and it just wasn't the case. These people were thriving, and he wondered if a year had been enough time to turn things around for them, or if this Chesley place had really just been untouched by the chaos.
He wandered for what felt like hours before the tiredness hit him and he started to make his way back to the house. There was still so much to see, and he had almost forgotten about his purpose for being there while looking around.
When he got back to the house, he showered, changed clothes and then set about preparing a meal for himself, confused by the array of foods on offer, but figuring it out pretty quickly. The meat and vegetables might have been different, but they were still meat and vegetables, and his mother had shown him what to do with that years ago.
The food was simple and filling, and when he laid down to sleep that night, it was with excitement for the day ahead, something he hadn't felt in a long time, if he was being honest.
The next morning, Kallel was roused early by birdsong and the sound of someone knocking on the front door. The birds were strange enough to him. On Horu, the birds were large predators, hardened enough to survive the cold climate, which made them mean. The last thing you wanted to do was get on the bad side of a giant bird with a sharp beak and sharper talons. They were a problem for the warriors on the walls when they were hunting, and Kal had nearly been scalped by a bird more than once.