Page 19 of Whoops-A-Mate From Outer Space
He laughed. “That is correct.”
“Eashai,” a voice floated across the grass.
Both he and I turned to see a man with mint green skin striding toward us.
The man called out again in a lilting language I didn’t recognize, and Eashai responded in kind.
He stood. “Excuse me, Gene. One of my superiors wishes to speak with me.”
I nodded. “Ok.”
He started to turn, then paused. “Will you be able to find your way back to the lab or your room?”
I smiled, noticing how the sunlight danced across his blue skin. “I think so.”
He nodded. “Then I shall see you later.”
“Later,” I echoed.
He strode off and into the building.
I turned around so I could lean back against the table and stare at the sky. Things were starting to make sense, and after talking with Eashai, I was more comfortable that I was a good fit for what they needed.
However, I also had the feeling that I wouldn’t be leaving the base as soon as I’d intended.
Chapter 4
The lab was quiet as we waited for the computer to finish an analysis. The military scientists had all gone out for physical training rather than wait around, leaving only Eashai and I to make sure there were no errors that needed to be addressed.
He was perched on a stool, his back resting against a gray counter as he gazed at what appeared to be a piece of glass—his world’s version of a tablet. At some point, a smile had spread across his face.
I—on the other hand—was bored out of my mind. I’d been on the base for three days, and while I’d been able to jump right into working with the team, my personal devices hadn’t been cleared yet, so I didn’t have as much as a book to pass the time.
I kept reaching for my reading glasses—just to fidget with them—and had to keep stopping myself. The last thing I needed was to drop them and not be able to replace them quickly.
“I can stay if you would like to take a break,” Eashai said without looking up. “I have become accustomed to the monotony.”
I blinked. “Do you want me to leave?” I grumbled.
His head popped up, and a frown spread across his face as he turned toward me. “Apologies. That was not my intent.”
I shook my head. “Sorry. I must have misunderstood.” I paused, then sighed. “No… I apologize. I was rude. I’m just… bored. And for some reason, my brain thought you didn’t want me around.”
He tapped the corner of the glass-looking tablet and it rolled up into something the size of an ink pen that he placed on the counter.
I stared at it for a second. “Damn. I thought that was some sort of glass.”
He glanced at it and chuckled. “It is not my area of expertise, but I believe the translation would be ‘smart polymer.’”
“Where’s the battery?”
“It does not use one. If I recall, it is powered by a combination of light, kinetic energy, and body heat.”
“And the storage?”
He shrugged. “It uses quantum storage.”
I blew out a long breath and shook my head. “Our tech companies would fight to have access to something like that.”
