Total pages in book: 44
Estimated words: 40274 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 201(@200wpm)___ 161(@250wpm)___ 134(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 40274 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 201(@200wpm)___ 161(@250wpm)___ 134(@300wpm)
I guess when I thought about what an alien spacecraft would look like, I expected a poky little white space box, like the ones we see beamed to us from floating astronauts on the ISS. This is not that. This is not even a little that.
It’s like a big glowing glass bowl, but stylish. If I worked here, I could be a fish in a bowl. A very happy little fish in a very big bowl. The capsule opens and I breathe deeply, sucking in perfumed air scented lightly with all the most soothing scents. Cinnamon, peppermint, ginger, lavender, warmth and coziness envelop my senses and the hidden fear I tried to avoid expressing starts to seep away.
I am in a paradise of technology and abundance, a place so perfect I can barely believe it. The moment I arrive, the thought of leaving becomes anathema to me.
“Welcome to Eros Station.”
I am greeted by a beautiful creature. A tall, handsome, rock-jawed, bright-eyed entity who could never be mistaken for human, though he basically looks exactly like a larger human. His skin has a light scaled translucence to it, like thousands of lustrous pearls are shimmering across the scalloped edges of his body. His hair is a dark cascade of thick black locks half-tied behind his head. He is wearing a white uniform of sorts with shining buttons, one that makes him look like a captain on a cruise ship, though I am sure that’s not his role. He smiles at me welcomingly, and I feel a suffusion of warmth cascading through me. I know immediately that I am in the presence of a benevolent, loving creature who makes me love myself on, like, a chemical level. It’s so intense I end up just standing and staring at him for a long moment.
“Are you feeling alright?” He asks the question kindly.
“You're the prettiest thing I ever saw,” I breathe. “You’re like if a rainbow was a man.”
“Thank you,” he smiles. “That’s very kind of you.”
I have never felt so very made of simple, mundane meat before. What are humans even? We’re like the most budget canned flesh option compared to these creatures. The sexiest supermodel on the planet wouldn’t hold a candle to this guy. He’s not just hot. He’s transcendent.
He’s also not the only one here. I seem to have arrived in a lobby of sorts, and plenty of other aliens are traveling back and forth with elegant gaits that make them look to humans what giraffes are to rhinoceroses. Their long limbs sort of flow, making their movement seem slow when it’s actually quite fast and hard to keep up with. I am left to clunk along beside him in what feels like a very graceless way.
“I am Arlo,” he introduces himself. “I am one of the assistants to Cir Fabian. If you would like to come this way…”
Arlo makes a gesture for me to follow him. I basically have to trot in order to stay level with him because his legs are so much longer than mine. We pass more of the Cupid along the way, most of them paying very little attention to me. I feel like a fly on the wall, somehow irrelevant.
These aliens are stunningly beautiful, every single one of them. I wonder why they have hidden themselves. They would be wildly popular down on earth for being attractive, rich, and powerful. None of us would want to be human anymore.
“You know why I’m here?” I ask the question with a slight panting breath.
“Yes,” Arlo says, with a sort of knowing smile that seems to imply he knows everything.
“I’m here for the human liaison position,” I say, redundantly. “I’m very excited to interview today. It would be such an honor to be able to work with your kind. You’ve already done so much for us all.”
Arlo looks at me and seems to notice the little things. That I am out of breath, that I am thirsty, that I am stressed. He takes me on what feels like a detour, stopping at a small machine set into a wall. I stand beside him while he fiddles with it briefly, before a flask of golden beverage appears in an instant.
He hands me the vessel. This must be for the alien boss. Here we go. The errands are beginning. That’s good, actually. I can carry cups of liquid like a fucking pro. I thought this was going to be a difficult interview, but if all I have to do is carry items, it might be within my abilities after all.
“You want me to bring him his coffee?”
“No, that’s for you,” he smiles. “Take a sip. Some people find the taste quite pleasant. Others are overwhelmed, but I think this will help you settle your nerves.”
I take a sip as instructed. The liquid is gorgeous and the moment it flows over my tongue it feels as though every single one of my taste buds is being individually tended to. It tastes like a little bit of everything. A little sweet, a little sour, rich and full bodied and delicious.