CHAPTER 3 #2
After following Pyo inside, Eleri took the time to peer around the cool, darkened main room of the domicile.
The floors were spotless and free of dust, which made her conscious of traipsing it in from the outside.
She glanced up at Pyo, but he gave no indication that she should remove her boots.
He strode inside without removing his own, so it seemed like the best course was to follow his lead.
Eleri tapped them off as best as she could in the entryway and then followed further inside.
Black and white swirling murals decorated the walls and there were storage bins hanging around the peak of the domed ceiling.
All of them were far above where she would be able to reach, despite her considerable height for a human woman.
However, for the winged kyrot it must be sensible to store things at such a height.
“Myla?” Pyo called to no response. He waited for another long moment while Eleri tried to make herself small behind her suitcase.
When no one answered, Pyo shrugged, seeming unsurprised, and beckoned Eleri to follow him deeper into the dwelling.
He led her to a small, spare room with a hammock-style bed hanging from the ceiling.
Eleri judged the distance from the floor and determined she’d be able to clamber in with a bit of jump force.
“It’s not much, but we’ll get you a bed covering, and you can stay until we get you another living situation. Once you’re working at the clinic, you’ll start earning your own credits too.”
“It’s perfect.” Eleri rolled her ancient suitcase beneath the hammock, conscious of all the blue dust she had trailed in on its wheels. “I’ll make myself useful as long as I’m staying here.”
“Don’t tell that to Myla.” Pyo made a low chuffing sound that Eleri interpreted as laughter.
“Let’s just plan to have you help out in my fields while you get your bearings.
Once you know what you want to do around here, then just let me know and we’ll figure out how to get you situated.
” There was an expectant pause at the end of his statement.
“I’d like to work at the clinic if Aglao was serious about training me. I still have a lot of studying to do before I qualify as a healer, but I’m willing to divide my time so I can still work in your fields.”
“I think that can be arranged. It’s a lot more valuable to us to have another healer than another farmer.”
“Thank you again. I’ll work hard to earn my keep here.
I know you didn’t have to take me in.” Eleri bowed her head in appreciation.
There were several kyrot living on Gaia, so she knew this was an appropriate gesture at least. Pyo returned the courtesy by dipping his wings forward.
He left her then to get settled and told her they usually had two meals a day, but she was welcome to eat any other food in their pantry if she was hungry outside of mealtimes.
Eleri unpacked her meager belongings into some hanging baskets.
She guessed she was home, for the moment anyway.
Her stomach rumbled again under the taut fabric of her bodysuit.
They’d cautioned her not to eat too much in the twenty-four hours after exiting the luxportal.
But surely something small couldn’t hurt.
She wasn’t sure she’d be able to sleep on a completely empty stomach.
A knock on the door startled her from her thoughts.
A female kyrot peered inside, her eyes following the tip of her brown snout.
She entered the room without giving Eleri a chance to invite her inside.
Smaller than her mate and her brother, this must be Myla.
Although Pyo was likely around fifty standard years or older, Eleri was surprised to find Myla couldn’t be more than a few years older than her.
“I’m so sorry I wasn’t here to greet you earlier.
My friend just whelped, so I was visiting with her and the pup.
It will be lovely to have another female around this dusty old place.
” Myla entered the room entirely now. Her wings were folded neatly against her back to give her enough space to clear the doorway.
Unlike Pyo whose fur was streaked with silver, hers was brushed with swirls of peridot green.
Eleri smiled, unsure of the level of enthusiasm and still trying to push past the growing headache pounding between her brows. “Thank you for letting me stay here.”
“Of course! Pyo told me what happened. It’s terrible, isn’t it?
I can’t imagine coming all the way across two galactic sectors only to be rejected.
Disgraceful.” She made a clicking noise with her tongue.
“But we’ll be so glad to have another healer around here.
Aglao is helpful and everything, but they can’t manage everything on their own, and it’s so hard to be seen sometimes.
Besides they can’t leave the clinic with their sensitivity to heat.
You could be out and about helping people, really making a difference. ”
“I hope I can. As soon as I finish my training.” Eleri paused in her unpacking to give her full attention to the conversation.
“Well, of course. Pyo told me you’ll helping in our fields in the mornings and then training in the afternoons.” Myla beamed at her. “Now come, tell me everything about your journey here. My home karst is on Brasnia Prime, but I’ve heard so many fantastical things about Earth.”
“Oh, I’m not from Earth. I’m from Gaia, one of Earth’s colonies.”
“Gaia?” Myla paused. “I can’t say I’ve ever heard of it. Another Tier III planet then?”
“Tier II.”
“Well, have you been to Earth then?”
“No, never.”
“Such a shame. I was hoping to learn more about the visa process. They’re so picky about off-worlders. I once met a scion of House Dai Cho at a festival in Prime Central, but I was absolutely flying on kvost and didn’t have a chance to ask for any favors.”
“I’m sorry I’ve never had a chance to visit.”
“Yes, well it’s hardly your fault.” Myla passed a critical eye over her greasy hair and sweat-stained jumpsuit.
“Then let me get your opinion on some other things instead. And I’m sure you’re famished after your trip here.
We’ll have to see you fed, and then we can discuss the other eligible males in this waste of a town. ”
Eleri maintained a friendly expression even though the onslaught of questions made her want to crawl out of her skin.
The last thing she wanted to do was think about another romantic partner after her first attempt at a match had failed so spectacularly.
But Myla was nothing if not insistent. She tried her best to answer everything and was rewarded with further lines of questioning about everything from her favorite music idols to the fashion trends on Gaia.
Once satisfied by the extent of the conversation, Myla offered some unfamiliar fruits and some sort of squishy pale pink bread after Eleri got a word in edgewise about her dietary restrictions. From there she ate quietly while Myla told her everything about Laurus and its residents.
“S’samph has always been a strange one. I’d go so far as to say he’s rude. I’m surprised you chose him.” She paused as if trying to test Eleri’s reaction to her words. “Why did you accept his application? Surely there were better candidates.”
Because he looked as sad as I did. And he seemed like he wasn’t trying to impress anyone.
Stupidly, I thought we might have something in common.
But she swallowed the true answer as she tried to find an acceptably bland substitute.
“I was hoping to come somewhere quiet. Laurus seemed like a good match.”
“Quiet is one way to describe this place, I suppose.” Myla tapped one of her claws on the tabletop.
“Laurus is quite dull compared to other places I’ve lived.
If you want a little more excitement, you could always go with my brother Minio to Abwele.
There are some good restaurants there and some reasonable shopping.
He’s about your age in standard years, so the two of you might make a good match.
” She left the subtext of the sentence hanging in the air between them.
Eleri had no intention of thinking about any other male until her pride recovered from what had happened with S’samph.
She had met Minio earlier, and the likelihood of him being a good match seemed slim.
“Do you like living in Laurus?” Eleri asked, diving far away from the obvious attempt at connecting her with Minio. From the short time she spent with him, she got enough of an impression to be disinterested.
“Stars, no. I grew up on Brasnia Prime. But Pyo and I were betrothed from a young age, so when he moved here to build up Laurus, I came along a few solar cycles later. I told him he could just take a job in my family’s factory, but he insisted we break ground here for some reason.
Looking for adventure. Perhaps my karst was too harsh on him; my dam never liked him much. ”
“Brasnia Prime must have been an exciting place to live,” Eleri commented as a way to keep the conversation focused on anything other than herself.
“Well of course. Coming from a Tier II colony planet I’m sure it’s well beyond the scope of your experiences.”
“I would imagine so.” Eleri took another tentative bite of fruit even though her stomach churned in protest. Myla continued with her stories about living on one of the biggest trading planets in the sector.
She was recounting something about the luxurious shopping districts in the capital city of Prime Central when a knock on the door of the dwelling interrupted them.
“Now who could that be? I’m not expecting anyone,” Myla said as she rose from the table. “Just wait here. I’ll see who it is. I’m sure it’s just someone wanting to meet you since you’ve just arrived.”