Chapter Text
Jisung wasn't much of an adventurer, yet his job required him to travel a lot. Everytime he had to travel outside the solar system of Earth, he questioned himself why exactly he decided to become a diplomat in the department of Extraterrestrial Relations, or why he just had to be so good at his job. He spoke multiple alien languages, and was fluent enough in most of them to charm them into good relations with Earth, letting the planet flourish once again.
It was safe to say he was good at what he did. Which meant he was sent out to pretty much any meeting they could send him to, including the one he was currently on his way towards. He sighed, tuning into the noises around him, the most prevalent one being the snoring of his seat partner. Even though he was an important diplomat, he preferred travelling by public space-transportation, as it usually eases his fear of crashing and heights, feeling comfort from the masses. He looked over to the snoring man on his right, surprised this man was so relaxed he could sit back, let his jaw go slack and drool in his sleep. Maybe Jisung should go back on his preference of public transportation. He peeled his eyes away from the man, letting his eyes follow the lines of the interior of the spaceship. He could count 4 pillars across the room, making it seem like the 4 tables in the middle were sectioned off. This little square was encased by even more of the exact same tables, all joined by 4 seats. In total there were about 16 tables in this section, coming in on a total of 64 seats. 63 other passengers to share the air with for 8 hours. He let out a deep, tense huff of air and wiped the sweat off of his hands, dragging his palms over the fabric of his pants. For some reason, he felt extremely nervous for this particular meeting. Some, if not most of the races invited were new to him, and he actually spoke none of their native languages. What if he embarrasses himself? What if they were hostile? He's only human, and frankly humans are fragile as fuck. If one of them decides he speaks out of turn, or he's below them, they could easily rip him apart. Frail little limb after limb, the vision of it making him shiver and sweat even more than before.
His eyes flit around again, all of the blue cushioned seats occupied. His eyes never stayed on one person for long, afraid of looking creepy. They were about to reach the part of the journey where they would leave their own solar system, which would temporarily deflate the oxygen, adjusting it to the new solar system before pumping it back into the cabins. This never took longer than a minute, but seemed like an hour in Jisungs anxious state. He knew what was happening, yet the anxiety combined with the loss of oxygen was bordering on shooting him right into a panic attack. With quick, trembling hands he retrieved his laptop case from under his seat. The trembling almost kept him from opening the compartment containing his relievers, making the panic rise, he could already feel salty tears burn in his water lines. He finally felt the cold plastic of the bottle, scrambling hastily to open it, in one quick movement popping one of the small pills in his mouth, swallowing it down. Not long after he could feel the calm rush over him. By then, the oxygen was back to normal and he took a deep breath. Once again he wiped his sweaty hands dry on his pants, closing his eyes. Maybe he should catch some sleep like his seatmate. He turned his face towards the ugly TL lighting and let it burn through his eyelids, focusing on the red patches it made. He crossed his arms, tuning out the noise and slowly slipped away.
--
"Welcome aboard, diplomat Han. Your quarters will be in the west wing, you'll share it with the representative of Pisica. I hope that's no problem for you."
"Thank you." Jisung gave them a small bow in return, following them to the west wing. After finally reaching the last stop in public transportation, he was quickly led to yet another spaceship, this one much larger, much more akin to a space station than an actual ship. He was the last one to arrive, so once he got on he could hear the speakers count down till take off. The alien leading him to his quarters seemed to be female-presenting and looked almost precisely like the human stereotype of an alien. Blue skin, three eyes and antennas with green tips. Her clothes were pearlescent white, moving around in what seemed like in-line skates. Jisung was much larger than her, the tips of her feelers reaching to his elbows. They stopped in front of a large, white screen that slid aside to reveal a mostly white-silverish interior, with blue details. He bowed one last time to his guide, before they skated off at a speed much faster than before.
The meeting was scheduled in about two hours, giving him some time to relax and prepare. Jisung decided to turn on the air conditioning, shrugging off his own white coat. He decided to stretch a bit first, feeling a slight numbness in his muscles from hours of sitting down. He rolled his neck, followed by his shoulders and lastly his wrists, dropping down into a lunge position. He stretched his legs out, finally feeling a bit more refreshed. He rolled his neck one last time and retrieved his laptop case, setting in on the table and turning it on. Maybe he could find some phrases or sayings in the languages of the species he was meeting, currently he only knew two are from the same solar system, one of them being the one he's sharing the wing with. Their solar system was one inhabited by beast-like humanoids, a product of humans meddling with the native aliens. The ratio of alien to human differs for everyone. Each planet had different inhabitants, one of the biggest planets being an avian planet. The prince of said avian planet was invited, and the other beastman was someone he never really heard of, his planet often being written off as savage and violent. He didn't know much about the rest, feeling some nerves come back up at the lack of his information on his part. He might as well give up on gathering information, instead working on his speech. Reading over it a couple more times, trying out different tones and intonations, settling on a more neutral approach. Clearly the safer option.
He heard a knock and once again the small, blue alien was there to guide him. They took him back to the entrance, taking a right into the north bridge. The north bridge led to the inner circle of the station, with in the middle the conference room.
Jisung was led straight on to said room, huge white doors coming into view. His guide skated off to a thin pedestal with a screen on it, that must be how the doors open. They typed in what was possibly a password, and then the doors opened with the sounds of gears working hard to pull those heavy weights apart. He entered by himself, looking back to give the small alien a bow of gratitude before turning back around and straightening out his back. He wasn't very tall, but he could still try to at least look the part. He pulled his shoulders back into a more confident stance and greeted the room. Once again, he was the last one to arrive. Right in front of him was one of the beast men, dead center as he happened to be of the highest position amongst all of them; said avian being the prince of his society. His wings were golden blond just like the wild, almost deliberately untamed-looking mop of hair atop his very human head. From what Jisung could see he was mostly human, save for the large wings being where the arms should be. The rest of the princes' body was obscured from view by a ridiculously large, thick robe that seemed to exist out of many, many layers of colourful fabric. It seemed hard to walk in, despite the beauty of the garment. Jisung walked to the middle of the room giving the prince a deep bow in respect, afterwards walking to the princes' left, where his spot seemed to be.
A blue alien sauntered to the middle, looking similar to his guide, but this one seemed more male, clothed in white robes. They were also considerably taller than Jisung's guide, the signature dark red hair in a bob, with the blue feelers poking through. They squatted down and pressed their three-fingered hand to a small, circular shape in the floor, pressing it down, making a clicking sound. The clicking sound was followed by the soft whirring of gears, just like the doors, making the circle push up to reveal a pedestal. Under the initial circle, which now more resembled a mushrooms' cap, a blue-ish light came to life. The alien pressed down once more on the pod, from which rapidly shot out a table-shaped hologram, in the same blue as the light. The overhead lights dimmed, the hologram table now more visible. It was somewhat of a control panel, having all kinds of buttons and slides. The most noticeable of the buttons to Jisung were the big, white ones, each one placed right in front of a representative, of which there were eight. Himself, both of the beastmen, another seemingly human who kept his eyes closed at all time, another humanoid-looking person in a skin tight suit, face obstructed by a large dome-shaped helmet, and three others he couldn't pay much attention to, as the alien in the middle started speaking.
"Welcome, all, aboard the Little Star 0325. A revolutionary new model among other Star space stations, one which is not only suited for research-focused stationary travels, but also long distance and light speed travelling," the alien explained. Jisung was impressed. He never heard of a space station being able to use light speed, or even fly around all by itself, without the current of space dragging it.
"Most of this ship is either made solely out of Altzairuan steel, or equipped with it. We are delighted to show you the benefits of an alliance with Altzairua, Which brings me to the first topic of discussion."
They let a pause fall, waiting for one of the representatives to take the word. Jisung expected it to be whoever it was from the planet just mentioned, and he was right. Or at least he thought he was, as he was quite unfamiliar with this planet and has only heard of this magical steel in passing. Really, he thought it was a myth.
A boy in white stepped up and pressed his button. Jisung was mildly surprised that almost everyone in the room seemed mostly humanoid, he kind of expected some more outlandish creatures like usual.
"Thank you," the boy nodded towards the alien and unfolded his hands, and then another pair of hands and another. "The station we're currently on is indeed equipped with around 70% Altzairuan steel, which is why this space station is able to enjoy functions you would usually only find in high-speed travel ships. Our steel is specific to our planet only, it is practically indestructible, in the sense it doesn't break up and crumble apart like basic steel. Which is usually what space stations are made with. We as a planet would be delighted to grant you the benefits of working with our steel."
The boy with multiple sets of arms explained. Jisung listened intently, he hadn't gotten much information on this mission, but what he was hearing right now could be ground-breaking for Earth. A resource that might just save their own ever-depleting resources. Jisungs mood lifted considerably. Yet, if he took their own resources and thought about their limitations, he couldn't help but let his mood down again. Resources run out, and surely so will this one. So, as much as it seemed alluring and definitely a welcome help, he had to inquire. He stepped up and pressed his own button. A small, airy tone rang through the room, directing everyone's attention to him.
"As much as that is a wonderful proposition to hear, I'm sure everyone would profit greatly from taking you up on that, representative Kim," he spoke, clearly and with his shoulders pulled back, keeping an open stance. "But what will happen when your supply runs out? That doesn't just get your allies in trouble, but yourself as well. How exactly does that work?"
The boy in white smiled. He clasped one pair of hands together and straightened up a little, "that is a very good question, representative Han. I'm glad you asked," representative Kim walked over and took something small and rectangular from the alien, a remote of sorts. He clicked the button and from the pod in the middle another hologram appeared. Jisung couldn't really place what he was looking at. It seemed to be just a rectangular block of pearlescent white, until it started moving. It started rolling like a wave, pulsing like breath. "When I say our steel is like nothing you've ever seen, I truly mean it. Our steel is in more understandable terms a combination of metal and organism." The hologram dispersed into a diagram, explaining the components of the steel. "It moves and grows like something organic would, but has the hardness and strength of a metal. That's how it doesn't crumble or break apart; it regrows itself and accommodates to its environment. Erosion and depletion isn't a problem because we don't dig it, we grow it." He clicked the button again and the hologram disappeared.
"I hope that answers your question, representative Han. I hope everything can at least take the offer into consideration and if anyone has any further questions I'll be glad to answer them." Representative Kim bowed, gave everyone a warm smile and moved back to his seat. Meanwhile, the moderator returned to their spot next to the pod. The holographic table by now had returned, accompanied by a hologram of a planet, spinning slowly. It was mostly green, with splashes of blue. It reminded Jisung of Earth, just less ocean, more green and no continents. The moderator cleared their throat.
"We have now arrived at our second and main topic, currently we are looking at a far-away view of Clé, a planet located in Bay 08," the hologram zoomed out showing a view of Bay 08, a galactic system surrounded by meteor showers with magnetic fields space stations so far have not been able to withstand. "Which we believe might be the 'key' to some of our housing problems; the planets inhabitable now are running out of space, surprisingly." The moderator chuckled, making the representatives chuckle with them out of courtesy. "Thanks to Altzairua we can finally make the journey towards Clé, and see it's condition. As you are all from planets from surrounding solar systems, we wanted you to be the first to see it. In about 4 hours we will reach Bay 08, we will open the blinds all over the outer ring, so you can see Clé from the comfort of your own room. It will then take us another hour to reach Clé itself, and you can see first-hand how the research is conducted, to report back to your respective planet. We hope you enjoy." The moderator smiled and bowed. The lights turned back on and everyone was free to go. The pod disappeared back into the floor seamlessly. Jisung walked over and took a look at it. It was really nowhere to be seen, not even when he crouched down.
When he came back up he could see the boy with the multiple arms talking to some of the other representatives, clearly with more questions regarding the proposition. Jisung himself thought it might be a good investment, but he'd first have to report back to HQ. Honestly, he expected this meeting to be much longer, but it ended up being way more interesting than any other meeting. He was going to be one of the first to see a whole new planet! The other representatives that weren't discussing propositions, all seemed to either be moving to their quarters or were already gone. Jisung decided to also go back to his own room and contact HQ, might as well get it over with as quickly as possible.
---
It was about half an hour before the scheduled viewing of Clé, Jisung had contacted HQ and let them know about representative Kim's proposition, almost blowing away his director. All they could say was that it seemed too good to be true and Jisung could only chuckle. It did sound too good to be true, but nothing in Kim's body language suggested ulterior motives. He did make up his mind to ask Kim some more questions next time he saw him, but first he was going to enjoy the view of Clé. He had taken off his white blouse and his white coat, that stretched almost uncomfortably around his biceps. It looked good, nicely accentuated his broad shoulders, but was a pain to move in. He exchanged them for a different type of white blouse, much looser, with a neckline that dipped a little lower than was appropriate if he were to step out now. He sat back in the cushions of his couch, conveniently placed in the direction of the windows. All he had to do now was crack a cold one open and wait.
And so he did, but his enjoyment turned to horror really quick the moment he heard a crack. It immediately reminded him of that one time his dad's car window cracked and it shot a cold shudder down his back. He put away his cold beer, striding over to the window to find the crack. He barely had any time to look to his right before he was knocked off his feet by the station jerking violently. It almost felt like they were under attack, but they were really just hit by meteors who strayed off track. How the hell did that happen? Jisung had landed somewhere next to his nightstand, luckily missing it with his head by a hair. He still made a pretty harsh smack on the floor, disorienting him a little. When he finally lifted his head again he could finally see the crack, mainly because it had roughly grown to the size of a walking cane. By then he could hear commotion outside of his quarters, people running haphazardly to and from, shouting and finally, a loud, insistent knocking on his own door. He tried to make his way over, stumbling and grabbing whatever he could, impaired by the harsh suctioning from the crack. He could feel the temperature in his room quickly drop, and his panic levels rise. He had a quick thought to try and scramble for his medicine, but was quickly brought out of that by another loud knock. He finally reached the door. He swung it open and was met with lots of blue aliens running around crazed, trying to inform everyone, or get them to safety.
Right then they were hit once more by a meteor, smacking Jisung flush with his doorpost. It was immediately followed by another hit, and from that point on it only got worse. The pause between each hit became shorter and shorter, making it impossible to take another step without getting thrown across the hall. Jisung decided he was better off staying inside the room, the crack in the window currently posing less of a risk than trying to get anywhere. He held onto a drawer as tight as he could, hoping it'll just be over soon. After what seemed like ages of just holding on, having the drawer dig in his hips with every shake and the deafening fear of death, the hits seemed to stop. He didn't hear any more footsteps, the rest of the passengers probably doing the same as he did, holding on for dear life. He stayed right where he was for a couple more moments, before letting go. Jisung carefully walked back to the door, he peeked out. He had been right, he could see clumps of blue near everything that could offer some stability, but none that seemed to resemble the beastmen. He took a step into the hall, opening his mouth to ask, getting only a squeak out when the biggest hit yet made him shut up. He felt his body get thrown down the hall, clumps of blue flashing by until he felt a sharp pain in the back of his head. He heard himself gasp loudly in his ears, loud enough for it to be the only thing he could feel when his eyes lost vision and his brain shut off.
---
When he came to the air was warm. Much warmer. Warm enough to be considered tropical, with the air being dense and wet. What really woke him up was the drop of sweat that trailed from his temple right into his eye. He groaned and dragged his hand over his face. Getting up proved difficult, he could still feel sharp pain in the back of his head, joined by dull aches all over his back and shoulders. Jisung seemed to have ended up all the way down the west wing hall, past his wing mate’s quarters, at the wall that separated west from north. He pushed himself up on his palms into a seating position, pushing up onto his legs with the help of said wall. He tried rolling his shoulders, managing it painfully. He trekked back to his own quarters, but when he got there a good chunk of the ship had broken off. He was surprised to see there was already wildlife growing all over it. He was not so surprised at some lifeless blue bodies strewn about. It filled him with a new type of dread, settling heavy in his stomach. He still went to check on all of them anyway, there still might be someone alive. He had a quick passing thought about his wingmate, but was interrupted by a clatter. Jisung’s head shot up and he looked around. He didn’t hear it again, but he could vaguely recall it coming from somewhere to his left. His eyes settled on a small, dark corner. He could see a crouched form hiding in it, so his mind immediately thought it had to be native and possibly...dangerous. He froze and just stared, waiting for it to jump out at him. It didn’t. It barely even moved at all. Maybe it needed help?
Jisung moved closer at a pace even a snail could best. Once he was about 2 meters away from it he reached out his hand, as a sign of no ill intent. He tried beckoning it over, but all he got in return was a snarl. It didn’t sound particularly hostile, it was more like...distressed. He had retracted his hand, but decided to try again. “Come on, I won’t hurt you. Really, it seems like we’re in the same boat instead…” He tried lightheartedly. It still didn’t move, but Jisung was determined. He left his hand in the air and tried to look as sympathetic as possible, which wasn’t that hard with his big round eyes and generally chubby cheeks. He worked out for sure, but the fat in his cheeks never seemed to go. It felt like an hour of his life passed before he saw a hand with small claws reach for his. It gently touched it’s fingertips on Jisung’s, reaching a foot out to come closer and slide its hand further into Jisung’s. Now out in the light Jisung could see who it was, his wingmate, representative Lee from Pisica.
“Representative Lee?” Jisung attempted. Lee didn’t respond, he just stared back at Jisung. He jerked his hand back and let out a small mewl. “Are you...okay, Mr. Lee? Hurt anywhere?” Jisung attempted again. Once more Lee didn’t say anything back, just mewled and hissed a bit. Lee opened his mouth looking like he was about to say something, but closed his mouth again. He did this several times, making him look a little bit like a fish gasping for air. He croaked, lifting a finger to point at his mouth, making a small cross with his index fingers after. He reached for Jisung’s forehead, who leaned away out of habit. Lee kept reaching, so Jisung ended up meeting him in the middle. Jisung wondered what his forehead had to do with Lee not being able to speak. He kept his eyes on Lee, hoping to see some sort of answer on his face, but Lee was looking at the spot between his eyebrows where his small claw was currently at. Jisung scrunched his eyes closed when he felt a small sting, which made his mind feel foggy, like a cloud of smoke got injected into his brain. It cleared right up when he heard a voice that wasn’t his own.
Can you hear me, representative Han? Nod if you can.
Jisung’s eyes shot open in shock. How was he hearing this voice in his head? He looked Lee in the eyes, just staring. Lee smiled at him with a curt nod, reminding him of what the voice just said. Right, it asked him to nod. Jisung nodded slowly.
Great! This must be really weird for you, my apologies. Our species just simply don’t have the vocal cords capable of speech, I can understand you just fine though. I’m usually accompanied by a translator, but there was no one available this time for some reason...
Huh. Okay. Jisung nodded again. “So...how exactly am I hearing you right now?” Lee went to sit down, Jisung copied him.
Well. To be honest, I’m not exactly sure either. It seems like nicking you with a claw on the forehead just does the trick.
He saw Lee raise a hand to scratch at his neck, with an apologetic smile. Well, okay. As a diplomat in the Extraterrestrial Relations department you should be prepared for anything. A mind-link was no different than human-sized insects, Jisung decided.
“So...what now?”
Jisung shrugged. “We could look for others?” He offered. He didn’t want to think about spending alone time with just Lee. One bad move and this distressed cat man could have his head, even if he just seemed scared and harmless. Lee jumped up and stood on his legs. From where Jisung sat he could see Lee’s build a bit better. While mostly human, Lee’s legs were built more resembling a cat. He had small, sharp claws on all 10 fingers. A long tail swung behind him, never letting the tip touch the ground. The ears on top of his head were the same shade of auburn as his hair and tail. His lips were full and his eyes expectant, waiting for Jisung to take the lead.
Jisung got to his feet, wiping his hands on his pants, straightening them out. He clapped his hands softly, thinking of which way to go. He shot a quick glance at Lee, who was still looking at him expectantly. "Right," He breathed out, "let's go north first?" This time Jisung looked at Lee expectantly, holding out his arm to the left, a non-verbal invitation for Lee to start walking first. Lee gave him a small nod and went first. The way he walked was only slightly different, he bounced a lot more than a human would. They didn’t walk very fast, constantly alert in case something jumped out at them. They walked through the inner circle towards the northern wing, hoping to find some of the other representatives.
When they reached it, it seemed mostly intact, not like their wing. It was silent and no one seemed around. Not even any blue aliens.
It was Lee who heard it first. Jisung only heard it when it got louder. It was someone crying for help. Lee was already on the move before it even reached Jisung, bouncing off in a quick pace towards the right side of the wing. There was one room open, leading to a room almost identical to Jisung’s, aside from the complimentary color here being wine red. Lee had already crouched next to a man holding a small child. It was the man who kept his eyes closed, right now half-lidded presumably to give more room to the tears running over his cheeks. Jisung quickly crouched down next to him, giving his attention to the small child. Her arm was bent in a weird way, and she had a big red bump on her forehead.
“Help, please,” he whimpered. “She ran out to the hall during the crash and got hurt. I don’t know what to do...”
Lee patted him on the arm.
We should take them to the med bay. Knowing Seungmin, and if we’re lucky; he might be there. He can help. And if not, we’ll still have access to supplies.
He nodded. “Okay. Let’s get her to the med bay, alright? We can fix this.” He gave the man a reassuring pat on the shoulder, shooting him a small smile. The man nodded and gathered what was most likely his daughter in his arms. Together they moved towards the medical wing, located under the conference room. To get there, they took the elevator to the lower deck. From the elevator it was only a short walk to the med bay.
Low and behold, Lee was right. Kim Seungmin sat right there next to one of the operating tables. Two sets of arms folded, while his top pair was busy scratching his chin in a thinking manner. He looked like he was thinking real hard and getting absolutely nowhere.
“Please help us,” the blind man choked out. Kim startled harshly, one pair of arms shooting up to clutch at his chest. He almost immediately understood, seeing the limp, little girl and motioned them to put her on the operating table. His lowest right hand reached out to pull out a control panel, tapping away, while his left hand hovered over the little girl. Somehow, through his hand, he located the problem. The control panel pulled up a x-ray scan, now it was visible to everyone what was wrong. It was her side, seemingly bruised and bleeding internally. Kim used his middle left hand to pull a small, metal plank towards him. It was attached to the ceiling and had a bunch of medical supplies on it. Kim reached for a scalpel, knowing where it was out of instinct. He jerked his head up when the blind man grabbed his wrist.
"What are you going to do with that?" He asked sharply. He didn't need to have his eyes open to give Seungmin an aggressive look.
"Saving her life," He retorted. "Let me go."
The blind man did as such, letting Kim return to his business. He made an incision right below her ribs, and the moment he did, she started bleeding profusely. Jisung had to turn his head, put off by the sight and smell. He could still hear the metal clinking of Seungmin putting back and picking up tools. At some point he had requested help, Lee seemingly being the only one who had the stomach for it. Jisung's discomfort grew enough for him to decide leaving the room. When he looked over to the blind man, he seemed to have an equally hard time, or even harder, as it was his child on the table. Jisung felt a pang in his heart. He wrapped his arms around the man's shoulders, softly urging him to follow him out the room. Jisung opted for rubbing his arms, as an attempt at comforting him. It seemed to work. He let out a deep sigh once they left the room. He shrugged Jisung off to slide down the wall, tugging his knees up to his chin. It simultaneously aged the man, while making him look so small and vulnerable.
"This sucks." He chuckled, nervously. He tried to lighten the mood clearly, but it fell flat because of his own unsure tone. "Yeah, it does," Jisung answered. "My worst fear pretty much came true, and now your..daughter.." He let his words die down at the end, hesitant in case he struck a nerve. The other just nodded.
"Her name is Zeta. She's 8 in human years.." He muttered.
"That's a wonderful name. It suits her." He gave a smile, and he meant it. It did suit the little girl, as far as he'd seen. She had the same dark brown hair as her dad, with vague freckles littered across her shoulders, elbows and face.
"It's her first time using a human vessel. I wish it was different. This was supposed to be fun for her." Jisung nodded, at a loss for words. It really was supposed to be different, as far as he knew he could've been back home by now, he thought. Snuggled up in his blankets and a good movie, with a good energy drink. Or a glass of wine. Literally anything other than being stranded. They sat in silence, Seungmin eventually emerging to call the man back in. He got up and followed Seungmin, turning in the doorway.
"My name is Christopher, by the way."
——
They collectively decided Christopher would stay with his daughter and Kim, while Jisung and Lee would go out and search for others. Lee, by then had giving him permission to address him by his first name, Minho. So now, he and Minho were on their way south. They decided to go south through the conference room. Minho stopped Jisung from entering.
Someone's here.
Minho pulled on his arm, going first. He put a clawed hand up to the permission pad, which ended up being broken. He then twirled around and gracefully put his claws up to Jisung's chest, pushing back and to the right, out of the way towards the door. Jisung was confused, until Minho took a stance. Like a housecat about to pounce on a bird...
But he was interrupted. Before Minho could take off, the door opened from the inside. Minho's eyes opened wide, almost comically. Out the door stepped none other than the prince himself, Jisung almost didn't recognize him either. He had shed the layers and layers of thick clothing, now being a fairly skinny man...with bird feet. About mid-thigh his human torso morphed into bird scales, angling out and down to clawed chicken feet, but much stronger. Like a bird of prey. His torso was wrapped in white, to protect his precious parts, with a see through tunic over it. It had no sleeves, giving his very large wings all the space they needed.
The prince's eyes were just as comically wide as Minho's, both beasts staring each other down. The avian was just surprised while Minho had arched his back and was ready to hiss at the prince. The prince didn't move, but Jisung saw him lower his chin, giving his face a challenging, cold look. Jisung saw him square his shoulders.
Maybe a perfect time to jump in between.
"Wow! Wow— guys, come on now." Jisung put his hands up defensively, turning to the prince and then Minho. He didn't get a reply from either, making Jisung feel like a small rodent about to be caught in the crossfire. They stared at each other, tension still rising, until it snapped. Minho put his right paw down and cast his gaze aside, sighing. He came up from his haunches and put his arms over each other.
The prince returned the gesture. Jisung released a relieved breath.
"Are you by yourself, your Majesty?" He asked, turning around to the avian. Said bird nodded. "You don't have to call me that you know," He said. "No one's around to bludgeon you for it." The prince laughed. His wings fluttered before he said; "I would give a hand, but that's a little impossible...My name is Felix."
Jisung thought he was about to get blinded by how wonderfully bright Felix was. Jisung had thought he would be as prim and proper as the robes he had worn. How wrong he was, the prince was chattery and spoke informal, like they had been friends for ages. Despite being ready to fight each other they took off talking, Felix more than Minho. Jisung had to run after them, not bothering to check the conference room...
But something else had definitely checked them.
——
Back at the medical bay both Christopher and Seungmin took deep bows the moment they clocked Felix, but Felix reassured them it wasn't necessary. He really didn't wish to be treated higher than them when they were all in the same predicament together. Seungmin had managed to stabilize Zeta, promising a steady recovery. He had Christopher help him take Zeta to one of the preservation pods, pods that would allow her to keep recovering, but also keep her protected in case no one was around. Seungmin invited everyone to sit at a nearby table.
"Have you seen anyone, Felix?"
"No...not even my wingmate. I'm sorry."
Seungmin nodded. "That's...unfortunate, I guess it really is just us, then."
Everyone nodded in silence. They all sipped the tea Christopher had prepared some time back. Maybe they could find something useful in...the control room...cockpit? Either way, it might be their next best option Jisung concluded.
I agree.
Jisung startled so hard, he almost choked on his tea, having forgotten about being able to hear Minho's voice in his head. He looked at Minho, cheeks red from the choking scare.
We should go to the control room. Maybe Felix knows what to do there...
Jisung stared at Minho. He wasn't sure what Felix was supposed to do there, or figure out there, until Minho flapped his hands like they were wings.
Ah. He coughed, turning his attention back to the table and offering his idea. Minho nodded first, which set off the rest, all agreeing. Christopher took everyone’s cups and left them on the counter he got them from. Seungmin, who had a hand in designing the ship, led them to the control room. They walked the corridors, left, left again, right, and up some stairs. Before the last pair of stairs, Jisung noticed a corridor, a badly-lit, eerie spot that made his hairs stand up in wariness. Especially when it seemed like he could see two glimmering lights….resembling eyes. It gave him a feeling that he somewhat felt before, he just didn’t remember when. Minho chittered at him, peeling his eyes away from the dark corridor.
The control room was...grand. As grand as the rest of the ship, and just as polished looking. Silver support beams ran up the walls, fitting exactly right with the white interior. Right across the door was the control panel itself. It ran all across the length of the wall, with buttons, sliders and lights taking up all the space. Surprisingly though, right in the middle was an ON-button. Everyone clocked it immediately, all turning to give Seungmin a look. He pulled only his shoulders up to shrug, but all 6 of his hands came up to give them a ‘it is what it is’ reaction.
“Now what?”
The attention turned to Felix. Everyone just stared at him. The look they shared together was one of ‘I Thought He Knew What To Do’, which was apparently the mutual idea.
Felix stared back and got the idea.
“Oh. So because I’m half bird you all think I know how to fly this thing?” He asked, folding his wings in a way similar to putting hands on his hips. Silence, just a couple of nods and awkward smiles, hoping they didn’t offend him.
“Well, you wouldn’t be wrong,” Felix smiled, breaking the tension after letting them suffer for a couple beats. “I do know a thing or two about space ships.” Jisung released a breath he didn’t realize he was holding, similarly with Christopher. Christopher smiled at him, sharing a chuckle. Felix in the meantime had taken a seat at the control panel, pushing down on the ON-button with…..fingers? Jisung joined the rest standing behind Felix to look closer. At the end of his wing, right above the longest feather, were two skin-colored appendages. You would assume they were fingers, but they had no nails and seemed to not have joints either. Just...two soft looking finger lookalikes. They were functional though, having enough strength to push the button down. What seemed to be just the window at first, was also the monitor. A menu popped up, just visible with the little juice whatever battery powered it had, Felix immediately noticing what was wrong. And there was a lot wrong. Even Jisung could see there was loads of damage.
“Okay, so it seems down in the engines the ship has a back-up generator, but something is blocking it from supplying the power,” Felix piped up. “We’ll have to go down there.”
“Clearly I’ll go.” Felix stated, turning in his chair, looking for volunteers. Jisung didn’t know what compelled him, it definitely wasn’t the cold fear sweat on his back, to offer himself up, but Felix shot him down near immediately. “No. You’re not going. I don’t know what’s out there and out of all of us, you’d be the first to die.”
Okay fair, but ouch. He was right though, Jisung was the only human and far more likely to break and die than any of the others. Minho then offered. Felix nodded, getting out of his chair. Minho stopped him and initiated the same process that he did when he first met Jisung. A sharp nail dug into Felix’s forehead, right between the eyes. A moment later, Felix shouted out, amazed. Clearly very impressed with Minho’s neat little trick.
“I didn’t know your people had a way of communicating,” he gasped. “You learn new things everyday, huh?” He smiled, leaving the control room with Minho. He trekked back down the same way they had come, with Minho on his tail, literally, somehow Minho managed to step on his tail feathers every couple meters. Eventually, Minho just decided to catch up with him and walk beside Felix. They reached the point from where they came, the infirmary, passing it and going down the stairs at the end of that hallway. Felix had memorized the way, confidently stepping down the stairs. It became a bit troublesome when it got too dark for Felix to see. He switched positions with Minho and had to let him lead while telling him the directions. Minho had given Felix his hand to hold on to, so they wouldn't get separated. Eventually, they reached a corridor with a red light shining at the end of it.
“There, that’s it.”
They approached quietly, Minho first and then Felix.
“Okay, the back-up generator is this large block on the left,” Felix started, “can you see it?”
Yes, I see it. What do I do with it?
“You have to open the small box attached to it, bottom-right corner. It opens with a button.”
To Felix, everything was dark, but he definitely heard the click of the lid opening.
It’s open.
“Good. Now if everything is as it should be you should be seeing eight switches, and of those you need to turn four of them on. If I remember this type of generator correctly, it should be the first and third one of the top row, and the second and fourth of the bottom row.”
Click, click, click and click. Four more clicks, and suddenly the lights turned on.
Minho turned and smiled at him, Felix returning the gesture. Felix took a breath to speak, but never actually got to the speaking part. A terrible, ear splitting hiss interrupted him, making both beasts turn their heads just to see a black shadow jump right off one of the main engines. It landed right on top of Felix, making him tumble down to the ground, his small appendages flew up to grasp at the claw currently wrapped around his throat. He looked up right into dark, crazy eyes and a terrifying smile filled with so. many. sharp teeth. He tried to kick, but something heavy was keeping his legs in place. It was cold, seemed almost slimy, and very, very strong. The thing had his other claw up in the air, ready to strike. It lifted it higher, ready to take a chunk right out of Felix’s face. The claw on his throat constricted. Felix tried to ask him to stop, but it was useless. He was locked in place.
Felix heard another hiss, this one more familiar. Minho flew right through his vision, taking the thing right off his body. It must’ve taken a lot of effort, because Minho slipped right off the thing after, clearly unable to overpower it. Felix, now free, could take a better look. He noticed it had a reasonably human body, safe for the large, shiny tail, sharp teeth and large claws. It recovered quickly, it stalked around Minho. It was so obviously much larger than Minho Felix almost feared they wouldn’t make it out alive. Minho was ready to defend, but clearly unnerved by the sneering, despicable smile it wore. Like it was having fun playing with it’s food. It bent down on its forearms, leaping right for Minho, and it was fast. Really fast. If Minho hadn’t been alert, he wouldn’t have been able to do anything. But he was, jumping out of range and landing himself on his back, kicking his back legs to the thing’s side, catching it off-guard and sending it a couple meters away. Minho recovered as quickly as he could, running over to jump on top and dig his own claws into the thing’s neck. Red-faced and sweating, he looked the thing in its eyes. His frown was met with a smile again, but a different one. This one seemed more playful, almost teasing. It lifted its hands in defeat.
“I’m Jeongin,” he uttered, voice silky smooth, and joined with, a fucking wink. “Nice to meet you.”