Beyond our Earth

9: Ablaze

I sat down on the bench and took deep breaths. This whole landing thing was really starting to freak me out. I hated flying. Back when I was living on earth I had sworn I'd never go on an airplane again. Humans weren't meant to fly. they just weren't. Damn it. Why'd they pick me?

The door to my room opened and the orange alien poked his head in. He was smiling from ear to ear. Clearly his feelings towards flying were a little different than mine.

"You alright darling?" He asked, coming into my room.

"Yep." I said.

"Listen, I didn't finish talking to you earlier, since, you know, you looked like you were about to collapse and all. There's probably a lot of things you're still wondering about." He said.

"What's your name?" I asked.

He laughed, "Okay that's one way of doing it. I thought you would ask more about the ship but um, my name's Althazar. Or so I've been told. We didn't do the whole naming system back on my old planet, but that's the name they gave me when I came in." he said.

"I'm Sara." I said.

"Sara, Sa-ra. That's lovely. Can't say I've heard anything like it." He said.   

"So you were okay with it, when they took you onto this ship?" I asked.

"Yes. Of course, it was easier for me. I'd seen other exodes before. I knew life existed outside our own planetary system. Being on this ship is like an adventure for me. I discover new thing everyday, meet new exodes. This must be quite a shock for you, though." He said.

"No kidding," I muttered. 

The ship rocked and I felt a slight sway. I wrapped my fingers around the edge of the bench and held on tightly.

 "I'm glad you're here Sara. It's nice having species that I can relate to." He started.

There was an abrupt shake. my grip tightened and Althezar stumbled to keep his balance.

"Look's like we've landed." He said.

"Where?" I asked.

He headed for the door and motioned for me to follow him.

"We're picking up a species called Solarius. Now darling, whenever we land on a planet I like to go outside, take a walk and explore the place a little. Zilortsium hates it, but hay, I know a way out that she still hasn't found yet." He explained as we walked through the hall. 

We were heading towards the terrarium, which I thought was odd. As far as I knew there were no "ways out" there.

 The door opened and I was surrounded by tropical heat. I fanned myself with my hand as we walked in.

"This way love, watch your step." He said as he lead me off the path.

We ducked under some greenery and stepped over a rocky area. I followed Althazar under the giant leaves of a tree. We were inside a little dome area, created by the umbrella effect of the leaves. It was dark inside. It was like a little tree fort. Althazar crouched down and started digging through the loose soil with his hands.

A few feet down, he came to a metal floor.

"And this is our doorway, darling" He said.

I watched him pry up a layer of the floor. The sheet of metal bent up, leaving a hole just big enough to fit through.

"This is the bottom of the ship" He said, patting the sheet metal that he held up. "It wasn't bolted down properly to begin with. It's one of the ship's only flaws. This drops right down to the ground. We're only a few feet above it. Shall we?" He asked.