The vehicle landed in the center of the square, facing the large building at the end. The door opened. There was no pressure difference since the vehicle had been gradually increasing the atmosphere inside during the trip but the level of humidity outside almost choked Jake. The smell was not unpleasant, but it was certainly alien.
Instructed by Ming, the Attendants got out one by one. They formed a line in the front of the vehicle. Jake and Ming got out and as they did, they saw a group of Replini walking quickly up to meet them. Jake and Ming stood in the middle of the row of attendants as the Replini approached. Jake was surprised that there were only five of them. One of them had a set of clothing much more elaborate than the rest, and tail-horns that were covered in what appeared to be gold. That one came forward and began speaking in a series of rapid clicks.
“I am Nolraitru (an arbitrary translation chosen by the headband), Emperor of the Black Kingdom (a translation chosen by Jang). We are extremely pleased to greet you. To my left is Skepre, High Minister of Science and to my right is Zdane’i, High Minister of the Interior. Beside Skepre is my Prime, Pamoi, and beside Zdane’i is my linguist, Tance.”
In Tance’s left hand was a device that looked like a smart phone. The smooth, almost suctioncup-like, pads of his (best we can do since there is no gender among Replini) soft fingers moved rapidly across the screen. He came forward and began to speak. The smart phone began to generate Lajbon as he spoke in clicks:
“Please come with us, we have prepared a feast to celebrate your arrival. We don't know if the food we have prepared is acceptable for your consumption but we would be most pleased if there was something you could eat. We would take it as a sign of great friendship and a shared destiny between our two peoples. We are aware you are weary from your journey so we have provided you a place to rest afterwards."
Ming pulled out an orb which began to click. “We are honored. Please lead us to the feast.”
With that, the quintet began to walk back toward the building. The Replini gait reminded Jake of chickens; their heads bobbed forward and back in a similar way. He was surprised at the fact that the Black Emperor brought no military or guards out to greet them. He guessed that they figured there was no use in bringing defenses against a technologically superior alien invader. The thought was funny since he never expected to be the first man to set foot on another planet let alone make contact with an alien race that would think of him as superior.
They walked up a series of steps into the closest building and had two of the Attendants follow them. They entered the room where the feast was. It was better lit than outside and the walls were painted bright yellow-orange with vertical stripes. At one end of the room there was a large screen displaying a video. The color in the video would have been surprising to someone not already familiar to their TV programs; it didn’t look remotely life like. It seemed to have very limited colors: yellow, red, black and every possible shade of orange. It showed what must have been a news cast with a Replini commentator speaking and then clips of inscrutable events and textual commentary flashing at the bottom.
The feast was not what Jake expected either. There was a table with empty bowls on it; set for seven. In each bowl was a spoon, as well as two short rods. Lining the outside of the room was a buffet of dozens of different dishes, each filled mysterious substances. The Emperor grabbed a bowl and went to the buffet and started filling it with items. The next to go was Pamoi followed by Skepre, Zdane’i, and finally Tance. Jake stood in wonder. He had no idea what the etiquette was. Finally Tance gestured to Ming and Jake to go. Ming took an orb out of his pocket and began to move it over the dishes one by one. The orb showed a chemical analysis to both of them. Most of the dishes had highly toxic chemicals in them. Others would have tasted terrible but were not dangerous. One that looked like a stew of brown goo registered as safe and edible. Jake and Ming filled up their bowls.
Jake looked back at the Emperor sitting at the table. He saw as the Emperor’s smooth, almost glossy, skin changed color from dark maroon to yellowish. Very quickly the others turned yellowish also. Jake had known that the Replini could change color and that they could make patterns in their skin but he hadn’t expected it to happen so quickly and obviously.
He was acquainted from his childhood with the little Western Fence Lizards that lived in home’s yard and served as his first pets. One of which was tragically run over by his father’s car. Those lizards could change color from gray-brown to black but they would never seem to do it in front of those watching.
The “chairs” at the table were obviously for Replini physiology, not humans. The Replini sat resting on their bellies with their legs hanging off each side barely resting on the floor. Extensions in the front and back supported their necks and tails while their arms were free to use the utensils. Again, their positions reminded Jake of the lazy little lizards relaxing on the concrete walls outside his home as the hot Los Angeles sun set in the west.
Jake wanted to ask a question. He looked at Tance and sent the question to the headband. He had been given an orb which he pulled out. It began to click. “What is the reason that you all changed color?” Tance’s color changed to an even brighter yellow and he looked at the Emperor. He then responded with the smart phone: “We thought it was very humorous that the only food you picked is the cheap food that the common people eat. We provided many rare delicacies and that is the only one you selected. We wonder if this is an indicator of destiny.”
Jake realized that the color changes in the Replini were mood indicators and that they added information to their communication. He also thought it was interesting that the Replini had any sense of humor; he hadn’t really expected that from aliens.
The brown goo was edible but not tasty; it reminded him of salty tofu. He ate it with the spoon. The Replini ate with the spoon in one hand and the short rods in the other. It was apparent that the rods were used as chopsticks and that the Replini were completely ambidextrous.
Considering the quality of the food, it was good that they had brought snacks along. The meal seemed surprisingly informal and quiet. As soon as they were done eating, the Emperor and the Prime left. Tance and Skepre lead them out of the banquet room and down some drab but well lit corridors into another large room. In the room were two mats that they were supposed to sleep on, as well as shelves to store their possessions. Skepre, who had apparently been reading Jake’s materials on human biology, showed them several basins filled with water for washing. There were also empty basins into which they were supposed to “excrete metabolic byproducts,” in Skepre’s translated words. Additionally, Skepre expected them to sleep on the mats for the next 8-12 hours. The Replini’s own dormancy cycle wouldn’t begin for another 24 hours or so.
