My Human

Chapter 7

"I don't know about this," I whined as Xan looked at me impatiently.

He had landed the spaceship in what looked like a parking lot for other spaceships, but they all looked so different. Some looked like fighter jets while others looked like tiny little pods for one person which was a little too claustrophobic for my liking.

Surrounding the lot were giant trees that reached up so far into the clouds, you could hardly see the traces of the violet sky above.

"I promise, you won't choke. There's plenty of oxygen here. You can't walk around with that mask. You might as well carry around a giant sign that says 'I'm an alien, capture me and dissect me'."

My mouth was wide open. I couldn't believe that was his way of comforting me. That in no way made me feel better.

"It was a joke," he defended.

"An awful joke!" I hissed.

"Aeris."

He said it so firm and assuring that it silenced me. Like when I heard it in my dream.

"Trust me and take off the mask," he said.

I nodded slowly before shakily grabbing the mask and pulling it off my face.

Xan watched me carefully, waiting for a reaction. His brow furrowed in irritation. "Don't hold your breath, that defeats the purpose!"

He reaction surprised me and I accidentally lost my focus and took a gasp of air. To my surprise, I didn't cough or heave or choke. I could breathe easily and freely. I grinned at Xan and he merely rolled his eyes.

"Were all Earthlings as dramatic as you?"

I shrugged with a mischievous smile until I saw him heading for the door. It slid open and he stepped outside, looking back at me expectantly.

"Are you coming?" he asked.

I froze. How did I know that giant red sun wasn't going to burn my fragile Earth skin? He said it himself, I was probably the only other Earthling to ever leave the planet. I wasn't intelligence level supreme like the "Galatic Elders". This whole process was trial and error and error would result in life-threatening possibilities.

"You are definitely overreacting," Xan said once I shared my fears.

I crept up to the door and peered hesitantly from inside.

Xan sighed. He held out his hand while a gentle blue aura engulfed him. "May I?" he asked.

I looked at him sheepishly and agreed. Being calm could only help me.

He stepped back inside and drew close to me. I looked up at him shyly while he not only placed his hand on my forehead but also his other hand gently cupped my cheek. My heart started to race and I watched the smile draw across his face.

"You really are a skittish creature," he commented in amusement and I huffed, hating that I was such a source of entertainment for him.

It only took a moment for my nerves to ease and the peaceful aura to start to wash over me.

"Are you ready now?" he asked and I nodded, feeling a soothing trance encompass over me.

He took my hand, still an azure glow, and pulled me towards the door. I followed him while he led me outside and down the ramp. Finally, at the edge of the ramp, I placed my foot in the green grass and I took a deep breath.

"I guess my hypothesis was correct," Xan commented with satisfaction while he crossed his arms and my eyes shot open in rage.

"Hypothesis?" I growled, "Like you weren't sure everything was going to be alright?"

He grinned. "Relax, I strategically planned out our destination based on your limitations. There was no way anything was going to go wro-"

I suddenly started coughing and heaving, falling on the ground.

Xan quickly grabbed my shoulders and pushed me up. "What's wrong?" he asked urgently as my cough turned into a laugh and I smirked.

"Got you," I laughed.

His eyes shown yellow and he glared at me. "That's not funny!" he hissed, fuming as he turned his back to me.

I stood up and grinned. He was so smug, it felt kind of good putting him in his place a little. "It's a little funny."

He looked at me again but the yellow was already starting to return to silver. He took a deep breath and looked at me sternly. "You had your fun," he began while I nodded enthusiastically, "But no more games now. I want you to stay close to me, don't look anyone in the eye, and make sure no one hears you speak."

I nodded, serious now. I knew how important it was to follow these rules. He gently straightened my raven hair and made sure it draped it over my ears. Surely so no one would notice the buds in my ears.

"Follow me," he said, heading toward the woodline.

The trees here were so tall and thick, it felt like we were in the middle of a lush rain forest. When we finally reached the trees, there was a gate made of twisted branches and vines. It was open, welcoming visitors in. We passed through on a dirt path but as we walked in further, I started to see giant flowers, like purples daisies that were so big, at least 5 people could sit on them They lined the path until we entered a clearing.

Here it was where we found what looked like a forest city! Houses and buildings were constructed out of twisted roots and vines like the gate. The people were like Xan said they would be, with pale sage colored skin and their eyes were golden. So many had vibrantly colored hair, just like the various flowers sprinkled about the ground.

Suddenly, I hard a loud caw that shook the ground. My eyes immediately drew to the sound above where I saw what looked like 5 giant falcons with blue feathers and eyes like diamonds.

With eyes wide, I clutched Xan's arm like a scared child. I felt his curious gaze fall on me, but I couldn't take my eyes off the creatures above.

On their backs, they wore wooden seats where people sat down. Once the seats were taken, the bird flew off, its wings so massive it threw a gust of wind to everyone below. I gasped slightly startled by it all.

"This is all very normal," Xan reassured with a comforting smile.

I took a deep breath.

Normal was getting to be a pretty relative term.