Solacium

Ch 19: Vorian

At first, I wasn't even sure if I would be able to walk away. Everything that I had been looking and hoping for was staring at me right in the face and now, I had to leave her.

I had to leave Blake.

I thought about staying. I thought about telling her that I didn't care about finding my ship, but I couldn't. I signed an oath. As commander, I had a duty to my people above all, which meant that I needed to find my ship and figure out a way to contact my fleet. I had to let them know that all was not lost. That I was standing right in front of our salvation, my fiery Terran.

I had no choice.

Staring into her green eyes, I forced myself to look away and walk off. Every step felt like a stab to the heart, but I told myself I would find her again after I located and repaired my ship. That this may be goodbye for Blake, but for me, this was just the beginning.

With that thought, I was able to continue on my trek through the strange environment toward the city.

As I neared, I could finally see what Blake was talking about. Unlike the wet plant-covered ground of Blake's forest, the "city" was something else entirely. In the distance, I could see large rectangular structures all bunched together in an endless grid-like format.

So this was a city, I mused as I approached the edge of the forest. The buildings were a lot more colorful than the dull browns and greens of the plant life I had walked through, making it contrast sharply with the planet's environment.

Eventually, the ground grew hard beneath my feet as the grass gave way to a solid black substance that lined the new surface of the city. It was like entering a whole other world.

Towering rectangular structures with endless square viewing panels lined the city streets. Yet it seemed as though something was off about these structures. The ones that were still standing were either boarded up or had broken-in windows. The rest had either collapsed into rubble or were burned to ash. It was obvious that these structures were no longer used for anything, regardless of their original purposes. In fact, the city looked – for the most part – abandoned.

Blake was indeed not lying about the dire state of her world. I thought as my eyes glazed over the broken windows and rubble that lined the empty path.

Even with the chaos, I could see similarities between my planet and the layout of this city. It was clear this was once a great society, thriving with many citizens. For this level of abandonment, something big must have happened.

But what? I wondered aloud, glancing around me as I walked further into the city. My eyes eventually settled on a small sign dangling off a large silver pole at the end of a crossroads that read:

6th Street

So this was a street. I looked down the dark path forming a gap between the towering structures. Making my way down the street, my curiosity led me to glance around each of the structures. Piece by piece, I learned more about a world that once existed.

Blake's world.

My eyes searched everything around me, soaking in all I could. It felt like the more I learned about Earth, the more I learned about Blake. Every new piece of information was another step closer to her.

I didn't admit it to myself, but deep down, I knew the only reason I was so desperate to learn her ways was for her to see me as something other than an alien. I knew the first moment our eyes met that she saw me as an outsider, an alien.

Yet, when I put on her Terran clothes, Blake began acting less hostile around me. It gave me hope that one day she could see me differently.

My roaming eyes eventually landed upon a large poster pasted on the side of one of the large structures. It was dirty and the colors were slightly faded, but I could still see the images clearly. It featured a male and female Terran smiling in front of their two younglings. Underneath there were words printed that read: