Page 13 of Uprooted
“Those fuckers are so dumb. I swear I heard one of them say, ‘All Blue No Hue…mans.’”
We cut off our laughter before Rialto hears us. His office is just around the corner. He can’t catch us having too much fun or he’ll find more work for us.
“Are you doing Transpo tomorrow?” I ask.
“Yeah, don’t remind me. Where will you be?”
“I’ll be here at the cargo bay making sure it all goes smoothly. Don’t be a grumpy asshole when you pick them up tomorrow. It’s not their fault you don’t like to work,” I tell him. “If you show up with a porter full of terrified humans, I’m pulling rank and demoting you.”
We walk together to find the cleaning bot in question. I locate it by sound. The cleaning bot has jammed itself between the bed and desk of one of the sleeping units. I crouch down and gently pull it out. These little guys break easily, and it’s worth being careful with them so I don’t find myself on mopping duty in the future.
“I’m fine with them being here. I don’t see why we need to go to all this trouble. It’s annoying.”
“Let me get this straight. You're throwing a fit because it’s an inconvenience for you?”
“When you put it that way…” Tai fades off. He watches over my shoulder while I test out the omni-wheel on the bot. It’s not moving as smoothly as I’d like. The bot chirps and beeps happily while I slide open the shell to look inside.
“Just toss that one. I can go grab another from storage,” Tai says and moves towards the door. I pull out the carpet fibers that had jammed the brush roll and close it back up. I pat the bot’s lid and send it on its way.
“No need. It’s still good.”
10
Elowen
It starts out as a small vibration under my feet. The air gradually thickens as the shaking builds. By the time we are deep into the atmosphere, everything is rattling. I keep my eyes glued shut and let the heavy pressure of the descent push me against my seat.
I hate landing. I have trust issues when it comes to being in a situation where I can easily be engulfed in a giant ball of flame. There are too many things that can go wrong. It would be a shame to blow up into a million pieces right before we reach our destination.
I focus on my breathing and chance a look at Bri once the vibrating stops. She’s retching into an emesis bag. I should have warned her against eating breakfast this morning. Andi passed out from the descent, her head hanging awkwardly to the side. The rest of the crew seems to be handling it pretty well.
We hover for a few minutes while the landing gear extends and I know the worst is over. There is a collective sigh of relief when we gently touch down on solid ground for the first time in six Earth months. Bri already looks better—now that we are on solid ground.
My entire body’s shivering from the adrenaline. I wish my hands would stop shaking so I can get out of this harness. j'Tilak is just beyond the hatch and I cannot wait to see it. My legs feel like jelly when I stand up. I grab onto the overhead rail while I find my balance. After months of very little physical activity, they aren’t used to supporting my full weight. My feet tingle with pins and needles with my first few unstable steps.
The hatch to the lander opens up and I’m blinded by the bright light of two suns. Someone casts a tall shadow in front of me and I can finally see.
It’s a giant blue alien with a yuriOS and a stern look.
“Your transport’s this way,” he grumbles, waving a shining silver prosthetic arm across the base.
“Nice to meet you too,” Bri mutters under her breath as she brushes past me down the ramp. She’s holding onto her used puke bag as she slowly exits. I’m following close behind and bump into her back when she comes to an abrupt stop to take in our new surroundings.
The sudden shift from the quiet of space to the chaotic military base is disorienting. I gasp when two porters zip around us and narrowly miss each other at top speed. Grumpy Pants rolls his eyes at my sharp intake of breath. He’s subject to the names I make up for him until he introduces himself.
We have to jog to catch up to our guide. His long strides coupled with our atrophied leg muscles lengthen the distance between us. Eventually he turns back and realizes we have fallen behind. He impatiently swipes his yuriOS while waiting for us to catch up.
“A souvenir?” he asks, nodding at the bag Bri filled up during the landing.
“Very funny. Where can I dump this?” She holds out the bag, but he’s already walked away. She looks at me. “No, seriously—where can I put this?”
“No clue.”
The same type of spherical porters as we use on Earth glide to a stop in front of our small group. The doors slide open and I eagerly climb into the closest one, ready to sit down after the short but strenuous walk. I should have done the recommended exercises on the shuttle over. I’m regretting my decision not to.
Pouty McPoutface climbs in and starts up the porter without a word. Still holding the used bag in her lap, Bri mutters, “Great.”
“Maybe he’s just shy?” I whisper.
