Page 43 of Whoops-A-Mate From Outer Space
He blinked several times. “But the…” then the color drained from his face. “I forgot!”
“Forgot what?”
“My apologies, Gene,” he blabbered as he hustled to what looked like some sort of decorative column between the road and sidewalk. “It was my intention to add you to the visitor database yesterday, but…”
I caught up to him and put my hand on his shoulder. “Hey. It’s ok. You had other things on your mind.”
He turned to me with a gentle smile. “Still, it is something I should have done.”
“You’re not going to get in trouble, are you?”
He chuckled and shook his head. “Not at all. The visitor database is a courtesy. Stand here.”
I stood where he pointed, then held my hand out when asked.
His fingers flew across a holographic display that appeared above the column. After a moment, he nodded to himself.
“You have been added.”
“Ooook, and what does that do?”
“Oh!” he looked a bit flustered. “It scanned your biometrics and palm. I also set it to English as your language. Most people have implanted translators, so they will be able to converse. But this will tell visual displays how to adjust for you. There should be no issue, wherever you plan to go… though you will not know what the food options are. The system can help with that, though. It will not know Earth foods, but it will understand salty, sweet, savory, meat, vegetable, dessert, or compounds like caffeine or capsaicin, since I know some humans are partial to those. I also added enough credits from my account to make any kind of sightseeing easy, though I would not recommend… ummm… tokens to remember your trip?”
“Souvenirs?”
“Ah, yes. That is the word.”
“Didn’t add enough credits for that?” I jabbed with a laugh.
He bristled slightly. “Not at all! It is just… you may not be allowed to keep them.”
“Oh… yeah.” I deflated. Even if the Lyll government thought whatever I bought was safe, there was no guarantee that the US military wouldn’t take an interest in it.
“You didn’t have to give me money,” I said softly.
He smiled and settled a hand on my shoulder. “You are my friend, and my guest.” His cheeks deepened with a blush. “I did have to list you as my mate, though.”
“What?” I wheezed.
“The system for humans is quite limited, since technically you are not supposed to be here unless mated. You were granted special permission, but sponsor was not an available option.” He rubbed the back of his neck, clearly embarrassed.
I nodded. “I think I get it? But do all visitors have to have a sponsor?”
He shook his head. “No. Most use the visitor database for the courtesy it is, and many races use similar technology, so they are comfortable registering and using it themselves. But since you are human, and lack the implants we use, it is set up differently for you.”
“Oh.”
The column made a noise, and Eashai jumped.
“Ummm?” I asked.
He grabbed something out of an opening that appeared on the side. “Hold out your arm,” he instructed. “Like you are going to look at… the clock some wear on their wrist.”
“A watch?”
“Yes.”
I held my arm up as instructed, and his blue hand swept across the top of my wrist. In its wake, a series of lines appeared.
