StarShower

Six

The portal spit Neza out onto a path that seemed to be made out of an endless stretch of light grey stone. The sky was dark, and she was surprised to realize that it must be nighttime on Earth. Even so, bright lights, brighter than any lantern she had ever seen in Talion or any of the other cities she had ever seen back home, filled the darkness with an overwhelming radiance. There were buildings everywhere, each one as large as, or larger than a king's palace. Another, darker path stretched out beside the one on which she stood. Large devices, adorned with blinding lights, trailed past her with impossible speed. The sound they made was almost terrifying and it hurt her ears. She decided that Earth was a large, chaotic place. It seemed nearly impossible that she could find Vorr, or any of the assassins who could lead her to him.

She staggered back when she felt a weight upon her, almost dragging her to the ground. She glanced down to see Elle clinging to her as if for dear life. "What's your problem?" she barked, trying to pull herself free. "Let me go."

Elle tried to clutch tighter, but Neza proved stronger and the baker was forced to let go. "Look at this place!" she cried, her voice shaking. "What is all this?"

"What did you expect, coming to an alien planet?" Neza asked. "Nothing is going to be the same."

"Do you think they have pastries here?" Elle asked. "We will know it is a bad place if they don't have any bakeries."

"I don't even know if they eat the same food as us," Neza replied. "Or whether they eat all."

Elle gasped. "You're right!" she said. "We're going to die! How long can we survive without food? Three days? A week?"

"You girls having a problem?" an alien man asked as he trailed beside them on the stone pathway. "Is someone hurt?"

"Tell me," Elle said, clinging to the man's arm. "Do you eat here?"

The man glanced up and examined the building by which they stood. It displayed a large, flashing sign which read Sonny's. Below it, on the window, a smaller sign flashed Open.

"At Sonny's?" he asked. "I have once or twice. They aren't the best. I recommend going to Paul's Place. Much better food for a way better price."

"We'll do that," Neza said, pulling Elle away from the stranger. The man continued on his way, giving the girls an odd look before going back about his business.

"See," Neza went on, "they have food. You have got to quit freaking out...or else I might be forced to kill you. Got it?"

Elle nodded nervously. "Got it," she agreed. "But what are we supposed to do now?"

"We'll have to find some place to stay until we can get a lead on our target. Can you do divinations?"

"I can try," Elle replied. "I've never really done anything but bake. Besides what my father taught me when I was very young. But never divinations."

"Great," Neza said with a sigh. "Cookies and bread is what we have against 3,000 RAs. Come on, let's see if they have taverns around here." She turned and made her way into the building that flaunted the Sonny's sign.

The inside of the building looked like a large tavern in itself, but it had many more customers than any tavern she had seen in Talion. Soft music could be heard playing somewhere in the background, but no band seemed to be present. A woman carrying a stack of stiff-looking papers approached the girls and, after eyeing Neza curiously, offered them one of the papers.

"For two?" she asked.

"We just want to know where we can find a place to board," Neza replied, glancing at the paper and then back up at the woman. "Does this tavern have any rooms."

The woman frowned, then chuckled, replacing the paper in her stack. "This isn't a tavern, hon," she said. "Sonny's is a restaurant. I suggest going to a hotel. There's one just down the street. If you're looking for something more long-term, my friend Ms. Dawson on the outskirts of town is looking for a new tenant. Do you want her phone number?"

"What's that?" Neza asked.

"I can write it down," the woman said, reaching into her pocket.

"If you just tell me where we can find her," Neza said, "that will be fine."

The woman smiled as if she thought the girls to be rather strange. "She's not far from here," she said. "Just keep going east and you'll come to a yellow three-story house on the left side of the road, just across from Raimondi's Gas Station."

"What's Raimondi's Gas Station?" Neza asked. The landmark would be useless if she couldn't identify it.

"It's just like what it sounds," the woman spoke slowly, her frown deepening. "It's a gas station."

"Right," Neza said. "That makes sense." But she had as little understanding as she had a moment ago. "Will your friend accept gold as payment?"

The woman looked absolutely puzzled, but neither Neza nor Elle could understand why. Liius had assured them that gold was common currency on Earth.

"I-I suppose she might," the woman finally stammered. "I wouldn't know for sure. I doubt anyone's ever paid with gold before."

"What do they usually pay with?" Neza asked. "Where can we access this currency?"

"If you have gold, you can take it to the pawn shop," the woman said. "But it's closed up for the night. Go on to Ms. Dawson's and see if she'll do anything for you. Tell her that Marge sent you. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get back to work. Good luck." Even as she turned away, she continued to stare at Neza and Elle.

"I don't understand these people," Elle whispered. "They use the strangest words. What in the world is a gas station?"

"Not something in our world, that's for sure," Neza whispered back. "But we don't have time to worry about it. This place is called Sonny's and there is a sign that says so outside. Maybe the gas station will have one, too."

Elle stared at Neza with wide eyes. "You're so smart," she said. "No wonder you're so important!"

Neza snorted. "Important," she mocked incredulously. "Liius would never allow me to be anything like that. Let's get outta here. This knapsack is weighing me down." She didn't wait to see if Elle followed her as she trailed back out of the restaurant and turned left, headed in the direction Marge had pointed.