Into the Lost Universe

Chapter 6 - Into the Fray

Chapter Six

The first thing I noticed was that the assistant's corner room was long and rectangular, with 15 different doors, and their respective attendants standing in front of each door, ready to assist at any notice. Then, I noticed the exohumans. I knew, theoretically, what exohumans were supposed to look like due to my education with Alina and the galactic web, but still, meeting them in person was another matter entirely. They look so alien but somehow still familiar. I suppose the Triangulum people look the most similar to Earth's humans, they are so pale and devoid of melanin that they basically look like people who live in the Arctic Circle. The Andromeda people, however, were one of the most alien, as their skin appeared in neon green, blue, and pink.

"Hello there," Alina stepped forward to greet them. "We're the assistants of the diplomats from Earth".

A girl spoke up. "Oh believe us, we know", she said with a tinge of distaste. She had blonde hair and matching golden eyes.

I narrowed my eyes. Ever since coming to the IGS, I've felt that something was odd, that there was a barrier between Earth and the other exohumans, which didn't exist amongst themselves.

Strange, most of the other assistants seem way older than our group. Do they not send younger children as we do? This is getting more bizarre by the moment.

I must have had a quizzical look on my face, as Omar elbowed me from the side. so I quickly rearranged my facial expression.

"So, is this your first time in the Intergalactic Space Station?" The girl inquired.

"Yes, it is," Alina replied.

Barely suppressed snorts came from her direction. I raised my eyebrows.

"And is there a problem with that?" Aimee challenged.

A faint trace of a sneer was visible on her face. "No, I suppose there is not. I've just forgotten that Earth sends newbies each time. We've done this for several years." She sighed like she was bored, and held her hand up in the light to glance at her nails.

I tilted my head in Omar's direction. "Hey Omar, where do you think she is from?"

"Definitely the Sleeping Beauty Galaxy. In an ironic twist of fate, a genetic mutation in that galaxy made all the humans there extremely good-looking."

I looked at the girl, more carefully this time. It's true, she would be considered a supermodel on Earth, her features were almost unnaturally pretty.

A beep sounded from above us. "The Sombrero Delegation is requesting beverages and aliments" The assistants from the Sombrero galaxy got up and left through an adjacent door, which opened and closed automatically.

A boy, who was standing next to the girl from the sleeping beauty galaxy, stood up and swept non-existent dust off his pants. He had bluish-white hair with the same colored eyes. "Forgive us, we've been rude." He nudged the girl on her shoulder, and she rolled her eyes. He extended his arm to us. "Greetings, my name is Cio, and this is Celia. We're siblings. This is our third year doing assistance." He smiled, but there was still a touch of frost.

I nodded. "Nice to meet you both, and the rest of your crew. May the Universe Lead You." I said, per protocol. Celia's eyes widened imperceptibly.

"May the Universe Lead You," she replied reluctantly.

"I hope you'll be able to help guide us, since you all are so experienced, and this is our first time. I mean, if there are any issues, it reflects badly on all of us, especially if it impacts the diplomats." I smiled sweetly.

"Of course," Cio replied. Celia was subtly glaring at me, and upon noticing, he frowned at her slightly and shook his head.

A beep sounded from above us again. "The SB delegation is requesting some tidy-up." Celia and the rest of their group got up, but before exiting through their door, she leaned in and whispered to my ear: "Better watch your back, earthling". She smirked and left.

Alina touched my shoulder in alarm. "What did she say to you?"

"Better watch your back, earthling." I repeated. Alina looked faintly sick, and the rest of our group were throwing around uneasy glances at each other. Before we could linger on it though, a beep sounded overhead. "The Milky Way galaxy is requesting aliments." The nearest door opened. We got in, and we were led to a long narrow hallway, which dipped down a little at the end. It was kind of like those passages you had to take to get on airplanes way back when. After walking for a minute or so, we got to a door, which opened automatically to an isolated chamber. We then saw our diplomats, who looked visibly distressed.

"Here you go, sir," I handed Mister Zhao some premade Beijing Roasted Duck rolls, his comfort food.

"Oh thank goodness." He took one from me and plucked it into his mouth.

"Is it just me who senses something is off?" The man who sat next to Omar spoke. "It seems like they know something we don't."

Mister Zhao nodded and narrowed his eyes. "Definitely not just you. I feel as if there is something amiss as well."

"I agree." The lady beside Lidia spoke. "It feels they are more familiar with each other than we are with them. Which makes no sense. The only time the delegations meet is now as we are all light-years apart from each other. Could it possibly be.."

"Enough." Meiyan, Ming's brother, snapped. I resisted the urge to flinch. "It does us no good to speculate. We can only try to do our jobs to the best of our abilities." A beep sounded from above us. She sighed. "Time to go into the fray again. Attendants dismissed."

We left, and made our way back to the hallway. I wondered, was our mission doomed to fail, no matter what we do? The other attendants seem similarly worried with the dead silence.