下载掌阅APP，畅读海量书库
立即打开
T he rest of the journey was much improved.
Elara discovered that Knot was a lovely hostess. Absolutely charming. She was a young Grix from planet Grixicon in Sector 32—about as far away from Elara’s home in Sector 17 as you could travel without hitting unexplored space. Knot was planning on studying atmospheric manipulations.
“I’ve always liked things light and fluffy, like clouds. I used to stare at them all day.” Knot sipped her tea, while Elara helped herself to a third tiny lemon cake. “I figured why not study weather? Then it’s like looking at the clouds all the time, you know?”
“Mmf,” said Elara, her mouth filled with cake. “Hm-mpfh,” she added happily.
Outside, the stars had shifted back to green and were now well on their way to the final red shift that signaled the end of the long journey. The shuttle had added another two dozen cars by this point, and excited students rushed up and down the main hall of the train.
Elara hadn’t bothered stepping back out of the compartment. Knot was perfectly happy for the company and outraged when Elara opened up about her experience with Suue.
“Nonsense,” Knot said, finishing her cup. “You belong here just as much as anyone. Probably even more than them. You had to work your way here without any help. Besides, no reason for people to be rude. I mean, I get that we’re all strangers. But to be so cliquish on the first day?” The Grix daintily waved her massive slab of a hand in disgust. “Ugh. I have no patience for it!”
“I was just feeling a little overwhelmed,” Elara responded. “I’ve never been off-planet before. Until today, I never met someone who wasn’t a farmer or related to a farmer.”
Knot poured another tiny cup of tea, emptying the pot as she did. “And you met a bunch of snobby people on your first day out. Their loss, I’d say!”
Elara felt uncomfortable for a moment. “In all fairness, maybe I’m just as bad as them. When I first saw you, I thought... Well... I was nervous. I’ve never met anyone...”
“So gigantic and monster-like?” Knot said with an amused smile.
Elara felt her ears burn with shame. “I’m so sorry! I was just surprised, and... I know I need to not be prejudiced, but...”
“You saw me and thought I was a giant, scary monster.” With a massive shrug, Knot brushed off Elara’s protests. “It’s no big deal.”
“It... isn’t?” Elara was thoroughly confused. “Why isn’t it?”
“Well, because technically I am a giant scary monster.” Knot smiled. “On my world, the Grix are a savage race that terrorize the innocent and haunt the night.”
Knot took a bite of lemon cake before continuing.
“The Kix—they’re kinda-sorta like you, only smaller with a few more arms—they tell stories to their children about the Grix. Scary tales of how we like to eat them. You know the kind, I’m sure.”
“But... you’re not a monster. You’re really sweet. You gave me tea. And cakes!”
Knot sighed. “I know. I’m a terrible disappointment to my family. They howled and snarled every time I talked about the beautiful clouds and raindrops. They wanted to make a proper monster out of me, force me to give up my dreams. ‘Terrorize just one village!’ they would beg. ‘You’ll see how much you like it!’ they would say...”
Outside, the shuttle train began its final descent.
“Oh, look!” Knot said in her twinkly fairy voice as her massive hands clapped together. “We’re landing! I can’t wait! We’re going to have such fun times!”
Elara looked out the window and saw that the ship had dropped out of hyperspace. Below she could see a planet—a beautiful, massive gem of a planet, home to the Seven Systems School of Terraforming: Paragon.