Chapter Text
Earth. That’s the planet’s name. I could hide there, I've been analysing it for a few months now... I can land there, at the end of that street. I know what they look like, I can manipulate them, pretend to be one of them...I can make my ship look like their houses, and put a forcefeild around it to make it seem normal, like its always been there...
I suddenly hear the clap of gunshots in the distance...shit, they've found me! Time to go...
"Computer, head for Earth"
My name is Kartintina Crunnel. Nicknamed Kartin. I know, to you it’s a weird name. Not for me though, where I come from, it’s quite normal. My life has changed dramatically in the past few years. You see, I don't belong to this planet. It’s not my home, but I've been exiled from mine. But that’s not what this is about. You see, I'm hiding, on Earth, and if I'm discovered, Earth with be obliterated. Now, before you start hating me, don't get the wrong idea. I'm the good guy! I was just framed...
You don't believe me do you...well, that’s fine, you'll see...
"Kartin, hurry up man, we're going to be late"
That’s my best friend, Eric. We're supposed to be going to school... to be honest with you, I can't really be bothered. I have 2000 years on this planet, I don't need education!
But it's a good way to hide seeing as I'm disguised as a 16 year old boy. Yes, disguised. This isn't my real form. Obviously, or it'll be too easy for them to find me; Duh.
"Dude, move it!"
"I'm coming, hold up," I sigh.
"What were you doing?" My other, not-so-best-friend Alex asked. She's kind of annoying at times, not to mention the fact that she's totally crazy.
"I was buying a drink. Duh" I say, rolling my eyes at her.
"Be nice to the ladies!" the other, other not-so-best-friend-but-still-better-than-Alex friend Paul shouted, pouting playfully.
"Right, sorry..."
"Can we go now?" Eric mumbles, pushing his glasses up his nose.
"Yeah sure," Alex and Paul run off ahead...Playing tag or something. You wouldn't believe that this lovey-dovey pair is sixteen and seventeen would you....
"It's hard to believe there sixteen and seventeen isn't it..." Eric says, apparently reading my mind.
"Yeah..."
"Did you do your biology homework?" Typical, nerdy, always-on-time Eric...
"Yup,"
"are you lying...?"
"No!"
"Are you su-ALEX?" Eric shouts, rubbing the back of his head. I didn't even notice Alex and Paul sneaking up behind him to hit the back of his head with her bag...
I'm lying, of course I noticed.
"Shut up brain box, who cares about homework?" Paul grins.
"I do! I do actually want a future you know. I'm going to prove that extra terrestrials exist!"
Oh yeah, that’s why Eric's my best friend. He's an alien nut; like a huge alien nut. He's written stories about them, he draws them, he's read pretty much every alien book on this planet, and he's actually taught himself an alien language. Kind of creepy, huh?
After a horrifically gruelling walk to school, we finally end up in our tutor group five minutes late, much to Eric's disappointment.
"Sorry about that mate," Paul laughs as he and Alex head off to their own tutor group, Eric and I headding off to our own. "Never mind, eh, it’s just five minutes" I say, punching his shoulder gently.
"Mmmm...." he grumbles. Is he actually upset about being late....?
"Um...We'll be on time tomorrow OK?" Eric smiled.
"Yeah, sure....you're still wearing those gloves...it's not even winter, Kartin,
"I know,"
"So why do you wear them?" I stay silent. I don't know what to say. Eric keeps quiet too. He asks the same thing every term, but he never gets an answer.
In tutor, I take my usual place by the window, leaning agenised the wall with my feet up on the table, waiting for Mrs. Grudge (That’s not her real name, we just call her that because she's always in a bad mood) to take the register. Eric gets drawing, and I plug in my headphones and close my eyes, in my own world. Should I say again; back in my own world...?
No the people where dick heads there anyway.
Turning the volume up to full, I lose myself in the music. Until I feel Eric trying to pull off my gloves. My eyes instantly fly open and I leap up, flinching away from him. "No, no, no, no, no. Don't touch the gloves, do not remove them or consciences will be bad...”
Eric laughs. "I know, I know. I was just testing to see if you were awake."
Unlike him, I know that there actually are consciences for taking off the gloves...
Oh, I may have forgotten to mention something...
If I get my DNA on this earth, if my skin touches anything on this world, it will be immediately obliterated, hence why I wear the gloves.
It’s all really complicated... They have this computer system that can't track me, but can destroy anything my DNA touches. It's a weird but surprisingly effective system.
There’s more...
This counts for my footprint too. No matter what type of shoe, or whose shoe I'm wearing, the system knows, and tracks that footprint, scanning the universe for it, and destroying that thing if they find it. I have to hover ever so slightly above the ground to protect this world from becoming a pile of dust floating through space. My gloves are the only thing that allows me to touch anything. They completely alter the DNA in my hands. So technically, they aren’t my hands while I wear the gloves, keeping up so far? Good!
I landed on this Earth a year ago, on Bristol Street, right at the end, and disguised my ship as a house. Oh, and put a barrier round it so it's completely normal, Always been there! It so totally did not appear over night...
Everything in there, are things from my own planet, lots of computers and machines. It is still a ship remember? Food that I can eat, things I can touch without destroying the planet, my bed is a cocoon type...thing and the water is altered so I can drink that too. (Human water, including rain, burns my skin. I'm covered in scars from it; it’s the same on all planets. They've altered all water in the universe to melt me when it touches me, the purpose being that my skin would drip onto the floor, and they can vaporise that world. I think I blew up seven or eight planets before I realised this...
The windows in this house, now they're interesting. When I look out them, I can see you, but when you look in, it looks like a normal house, with a normal family living inside. You can't see me. Or what my house looks like. My ship is the only place I can be me, in my own body without having to worry about being killed...
But If I'm found out, I die.
And so does everyone and everything on this planet. No pressure right?