Veridis Quo

Chapter 3 - Me, Johnny. You, Miya

A collection of papers laid strewn across a one-man table, that man being me. The lines upon lines of gibberish stacked above one another were as unintelligible as they started to make sense day by day. The lettering was all... no! Just no. Whilst English was made with angles and some curves, whatever random content hidden within the papers was all curvy swirly twirly madness!

I released the anger, it was for nothing. Routine isn't something that is forged in the heat of the moment, it's like a habit that has to be ironed and chiseled into compliance. Similar to how a friend group of mine wanted to hop on a certain game, for how long didn't matter as much as having everyone present, the issue was in the latter and I am ashamed to admit that problem was me.

The pen fell from my grasp, hitting the pristine wood with a quiet clack. A pair of eyes snapped to the sound, a mumble followed by the creation of more unintelligible nonsense on the old chalkboard. Why use an antique piece? Hell if I know, perhaps technology has developed differently in their world. However, it wasn't their world, it was mine as well.

The shot had been a success, I assumed so with a certainty of ninety nine percent. Bless the doctor. Initially, I was excited, nay, overjoyed to finally interact with these aliens without the biohazard gear. Now, imagine my surprise when the doctor took off their helmet and revealed the head of a... ferret. I wasn't an expert on biology, I knew cat, dog, bug, bird, fish, and the rest of Old Macdonald's farm.

I don't want to think about that but I don't want to dwell on this study either. It was necessary, sure, I was making progress, double sure, but when there was a clock present above the only exit in the room? The air had to be playing tricks on me because every minute felt like I was back in the chamber!

I sighed, picking up the pen to start doodling a... crashing airplane, and a tornado. The aircraft was first as mentioned, the body a two dimensional cylinder with a cone in the front and back, a pair of wings that weren't in the correct angle from my point of view. The tornado turned out alright, it wasn't very tasking to swirl the pen around in circles whose diameters increased with the height of the storm.

A throat cleared loudly, a feathered hand landing on the current paper. Rubbing my arm up and down, I addressed the teacher out of the corner of my eye. She wasn't happy with me one bit, but she understood, most likely. Swiftly organizing the desk not unlike a hurricane, a number of neat stacks idle at the edges of the table, a particular one staring back at me near my chest. Upon closer inspection, it was the one I had started with before the train derailed, turned into a boat, into a plane and crashed on a remote island with nothing but an avian with a knack for scolding my disinterest.

And that she was, the friendly giant I'd come to appreciate. Since the shot worked there was no need for a physical barrier. Indeed, the doctor was a ferret of some sort by his looks, but the giant was something else. I was no fool to femininity and maturity, the tone of the giant's occasional chirps and dual protrusions in the chest area were enough to determine she was a, well, she. Didn't change what I felt about her.

In regards to species I was lost. A bird was a bird but she was... huge! Even as she turned back to continue the crude lesson, making sounds that rang English bells, I couldn't get my mind off what she was. An eagle felt as right as I was going to get at this stage. Appearance-wise, her legs had a zebra pattern which I had no idea of its finish, the most I saw of it was the space between the bottom of her pants and the top of her shoes. Wearing a v-neck shirt revealed a slick black plumage, the softness bordering on lethal. The feathers around her head were a deep gray, a permanent visage of wisdom most prominent in her gorgeous, sandy eyes. A few of the feathers behind her head erected a crown, a fitting cherry for a queen of the avian family. She was entirely alien, she was natural, she was amazing.