#tuhp part 16

[eruden-writes]

The Unexpected Human Problem - Part 16 (Yautja x Human)

Part 1 | Part 2| Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5| Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 (coming soon)

CHAPTER CW: Awkward tension. Discussion of forced surgery.

Tag list: @ajarofpickledtears, @boogeysmoth

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The remainder of the cycle was the absolute worst. Tai'dqei busied himself with maintenance. Mostly he sought out the old safety belt buckles he had stored somewhere in the larger cargo hold, then he replaced his pilot belt with the old one. That gave Rayelle a spot, equipped with the newer safer belt, not in his lap if they encountered enemies again.

Rayelle faintly wondered when yautja slept, how long they slept, as she listened to his footfalls around the ship. That thought brought other considerations to her mind, considering she now knew his bedroom layout. She shook those thoughts away, returning to her book or watching a vid on her arm gauntlet. Staying to her room seemed the kindest course of action.

The two tried to forget the other existed in their small space of the universe. For hours.

Without incident, they arrived at TAC S7B. The S7B, Rayelle learned, meant Sector 7 of the universe. What that meant, she wasn't exactly sure. The B was also a mystery.

TAC S7B was a manufactured planet, teal green in color with silvery wisps of clouds when viewed from space. After consultation at the main office - which was at the uppermost pole of the planet - Tai'dqei had to ferry Rayelle to another part of the planet.

For Rayelle's own understanding, she thought of the world in the same terms of continents, countries, and cities. Each continent had a headquarters that specialized in a particular planet, which was further segmented by eras - centuries, for humans - via massive countries, which were then further divided into city-like areas. For Earth, the cities themselves were parsed into decades.

It wasn't just paperwork or files. It was everything. The layouts, the food, clothes, stylistically. Rayelle assumed, being the authority on time, this meant some of the employees of TAC actually traveled to their assigned periods. Whether to suss out crimes or, as the alien at the HQ explained, to examine the weight her own missing case had on the world.

Essentially, understanding how the day-to-day worked for the ancient Earth time of 2022 made sense. Even if a bitter voice in Rayelle's head kept wondering why they couldn't just send her back. She still couldn't imagine her case having any bearing on anything or anyone. Well, other than her kids.

A dual sense of comfort and wariness etched into Rayelle's very bones as she walked through 2022 Earth City. As accurate as the city was to her own time, it also felt like a farce. A movie set that, while it certainly had working restaurants and clothing stores and who-knew-what-else, had none of the feel of the 2020s.

"Are you doing alright?" Tai'dqei's sudden question drew Rayelle from her thoughts and observations of the city.

The two of them were sitting on a bench inside the city's "town hall." Basically an area where detectives and staff worked to deal with 2022 problems. Their bench sat outside the office of Detective Gorgiel, with enough space between them for another person.

At least, according to what her earworm had translated, it was Detective Gorgiel. She wasn't sure if aliens used a term like 'detective' and she aggravatingly couldn't read the odd alien text on the walls and doors. However, as par for the course of replicas, they did have signs that rotated out different Earth languages on a screen.

"I'm fine," Rayelle answered, without looking up at the yautja. Today, he'd chosen to actually wear his mask and heavier armor. It was useless for her to suss out his feelings through visual cues, though. After the scene she caused at the mall, and the following pursuit through space, she presumed he was just being prepared for anything by wearing it.

Which was true. He considered the possibilities of Zav, or any other contender vying to possess Ryalle, attacking once they got to TAC S7B. Landing on one's destination tended to bring guards down. He didn't know what TAC security measures were like, like if they could be overwhelmed with a contingent of attackers.

He doubted it, but it paid to be careful.

As much as Tai'dqei had been operating on auto-pilot since landing, simply going through the motions while speaking with TAC officers, a part of his faculties kept an eye on Rayelle. Ever since they had agreed to keep their distance, things had been tense. Understandably.

Or maybe that was simply his interpretation. There was always an itch to touch her at his skin. At random, thoughts of their moment in the cockpit would skitter across his thoughts. Actively fighting against his wayward body and mind made him less than enjoyable company. Still, he wanted to make sure Rayelle was doing okay, so he pressed further, "Are you certain?"

"Yes." She inclined her head to him, exasperation evident in her voice. Part of her wished he hadn't worn the mask today. Though she struggled with his facial tells and tics, she found herself wanting to see his face.

That thought made her stomach lurch and she looked away from Tai'dqei, hurriedly. Her eyes returned to the far wall, staring at the bulletin board on the other side. She wondered if it was simply a prop. Something to add to the immersion of this whole place. It was hard to imagine any actual important information still being in a hard format. It had been the same in her time, as well.

Tai'dqei fell silent for a moment, his mandibles writhing under his mask. His leg began to joggle, considering what he should do or say. When he stumbled on something, the question blurted out of him, "Is the city at all like your time?"

This time, Rayelle inhaled deeply at his question, her eyes closing. She had actually been avoiding that thought. When her eyes split open again, her head turning toward Tai'dqei, an angry and brittle smile curved at her lips. "On the surface, yes. Deeper down, it's missing the constant dread of pandemics and mass shootings and government corruption and police brutality that kind of coated my time."

Silently, Tai'dqei stared at her face, feeling he had again made a mistake. He didn't know what to say to anything she had said. In theory, he knew it was all terrible. But he hadn't experienced any of it himself, so what could he say?

"It's fine. It doesn't matter now." The angry tension in Rayelle's shoulders eased with defeat. She sighed, her eyes tilting away from him again. "It's all in the past."

Another quiet fell between them. Tai'dqei felt as if the divide between them had grown even further. Far off, in other offices, he could hear others talking. His mask picked up several heat sources elsewhere in the building. But, all that ambient sound didn't seem to puncture the bubble around himself and Rayelle.

"Maybe we should get some food after this," he heard himself say, needing something to fill the silence. Though added distractedly, "If they don't assign you to a handler."

Rayelle grunted an empty acknowledgement. A handler. She hadn't even thought she'd be trading in one alien for another. The thought just enhanced her desire to see Tai'dqei's face again, just in case they were separated indefinitely soon.

"I don't want someone new," Rayelle was on the verge of saying, before she stopped herself. She and Tai'dqei had been avoiding each other up until this point. Though she told herself it wasn't true, part of her felt certain this whole ordeal was becoming too much for him. He should be able to wash his hands of her, without guilt. It wasn't like he signed up for assisting a lost-in-space-and-time human nor all of her baggage, anyway.

Instead, Rayelle gave a one-shouldered shrug to Tai'dqei's suggestion. "Yeah, maybe we can."

Luckily, it was at that moment that the door to Detective Gorgiel's office fell open. Both Rayelle and Tai'dqei sat straighter on the bench, eyes turned expectantly to the doorway.

"Rayelle Carter?" The non-human that turned to them was bone-white, with blue etchings on their skin. Their eyes - three of them, Rayelle noted - were the color of crystal and their mouth appeared like a jagged crevice in their face. Faintly, she wondered if the rock-like appearance was an evolutionary mimic or if this alien - presumably Detective Gorgiel - was genuinely made of rock. Their button-up shirt and slacks looked so out of place on their body.

"Yes," she responded, getting to her feet.

"I am Detective Gorgiel. Come this way," the rock alien said with a nod, standing to the side and motioning toward their office door. Rayelle was over the threshold when she heard the detective add to Tai'dqei, "You may come, as well. Any information will help."

"Of course," Tai'dqei grunted, getting to his feet and following at a safe distance behind Rayelle.

Inside, it looked like any other office Rayelle could recall being in. Two plush chairs sat across a desk from a single, larger, plusher chair. Papers riddled the desk, along with a familiar-looking computer. Rayelle assumed it was actually far higher tech than what she realized, though.

Delicately, she settled into one of the chairs. Tai'dqei dropped into the other. He crossed his arms, sitting ramrod straight. As Detective Gorgiel rounded the office to take his seat, Rayelle edged her own chair closer to the desk. She idly reached out to fiddle with a pen and, after that, a business card from a holder.

The interview took far longer than Rayelle anticipated. Detective Gorgiel squeezed every last drop of information from her. What year, exactly, did she come from? Who was president? What was her full address? Her full name? Her full maiden name? Children's names, her ex's full name, her parents, any pets she had, any possessions in her name, her friends, her kids' friends, her friends' kids, her hometown, and so on.

Though, the worst was once again going over the events of The Night. When she was kidnapped, then abducted. A blunt pain edged through her retelling and brought on a sudden wave of exhaustion. She actually resorted to pulling out the fidget cube she had brought with her, expelling her nervous energy as she retold her story.

Tai'dqei noticed her distress and stepped in at one point, citing the alien races involved - which he had dispatched - and forwarding Rayelle's medical records to the detective. The diversion gave her a little breather. He also explained to Gorgiel how the Straux earworm was his own doing, so they could communicate. Though, Rayelle noticed he didn't discuss other things that were his doing. Just scant facts of finding her, who was with her, and the records.

She supposed their personal interactions didn't have any bearing on her situation. His mistakes, her mistakes. It was like they existed in their own pocket of reality, totally separate from what was currently happening. Which was another wobbly thought that made her head swim.

"Well, Miss Brooks - you prefer Brooks, correct?" Detective Gorgiel surprised Rayelle with their intuitive assessment. Maybe even compassionate.

She nodded, still feeling a little woozy. "Yes, Brooks is my preferred surname."

"Miss Brooks, I know this wasn't easy for you. Even in less harrowing circumstances, the trauma of time travel and space travel, for those unready, is difficult." Detective Gorgiel reached across their desk, gently patting her hand. She knew it was supposed to be comforting, but the minute way Tai'dqei tensed in his chair was honestly more gratifying. "That said, it will regrettably take some time for us to investigate your case."

Rayelle blinked at that, her eyebrows furrowing. "Can't you just take all the time you need and then come back to this exact moment with the findings?"

A fleeting smile curled at Gorgiel's hard lips as they pulled their hand away. "This planet was specifically designed to halt temporal anomalies. Which means duplicates of ourselves, which would happen if a future me arrived here now, are not allowed."

"What about forwarding the information to someone else and have them do it?" She knew she was pressing a topic she had little knowledge of. It just didn't make sense to her, though. If the Time Authority Council could travel through time, they could pop in and out whenever they wanted to. If staggered correctly, she thought it could be instantaneous.

"Rest assured, there will be many of us working on your case. But it will take time." To his credit, Detective Gorgiel didn't balk at her insistence.

She supposed he had been asked these things many times over. Still, Rayelle couldn't keep the disappointment from her tone as she gave a skeptical, "Hm."

Now, Detective Gorgiel heaved a sigh, their shoulders rising and falling with the breath. "We will need time to investigate and untangle the web of contacts through the years. Direct, secondary, tertiary, and so on. Sometimes, we discover avenues we hadn't thought of before."

A part of Rayelle knew that. She could mentally imagine her connection to her kids, to Evan, to her family, to what few friends she had. But there'd be police officers and detectives and true crime bloggers. Her friend's families and their friends. People who stumbled on her case, completely detached from anything associated to her. Unraveling that web couldn't be easy and it couldn't be quick.

As if further sense was needed, the detective added, as gently as they could, "Please remember, you're not our only case, Miss Brooks."

"Right, right. Sorry." Rayelle hung her head, feeling her cheeks heat with embarrassment. Asking for more than they could give wasn't going to get her home any sooner. Ironically, if she just waited, she might get home sooner.

"It's perfectly fine. You're in a complicated situation and I'm sure you're looking forward to going home," "If that is possible."

Rayelle gave a weak nod and a hum of acknowledgement, but couldn't bring herself to say anything nor look up at the detective. If that is possible. Those words clanged around her head, making her stomach cramp unhappily.

"While you wait for our assessment, there is a resort we have set up on Rerli 3." Thankfully, Detective Gorgiel turned their gaze from her and, she assumed, addressed Tai'dqei. "I can provide coordinates, if you could take her. We will provide compensation, of course."

"I can do that," Tai'dqei answered, meeting the detective's gaze. From the corner of his eye, he kept an eye on Rayelle. She slumped in her chair, hands drawn into her lap. A part of him was shamefully happy her hands weren't in reaching distance of the detective any longer. Another part of him worried she was mentally withdrawing. "What's this resort like?"

At Tai'dqei's question, Rayelle peeked up again. First, to the yautja who'd asked a question she really should have; then to Detective Gorgiel.

"It's relatively new, with a handful of humans there already. All from around Miss Brooks's time period." Whether the detective thought it was strange Tai'dqei asked the question, they made no indication. Instead, they pulled a pamphlet out from their desk, sliding it across to Rayelle. "Entertainment, such as books and movies and art supplies, are provided. Cooking implements from the time period and kitchens. A pool, a gym, a spa. Anything and everything to keep a human busy."

Rayelle hummed an acknowledgement once more as she tentatively grabbed the pamphlet. She didn't want to say she had no clue what was typical for a resort, having never been to one herself. But the front page looked vaguely like what she expected. A large white building with bright adornments in a rainbow of colors, big windows, an abundance of flora - similar to Earth - and a blue ocean.

Once again, Tai'dqei watched Rayelle. He couldn't tell if she was excited for the resort or not. She just heavily scrutinized the front, but leafed no further into the pamphlet. Maybe she was saving it for later, considering how tired she looked.

"But first, the medical side of things." Detective Gorgiel pulled up the files Tai'dqei had sent them. There was a long moment of them eyeballing the alien words, nodding quietly to themself, until they looked up at Rayelle and Tai'dqei. "We see these particular alterations a lot. Our clinic can reverse them, if desired. Miss Brooks can discuss more with one of our physicians."

That made Rayelle's eyebrows shoot up. They'd reverse the changes if she desired. Were there humans that wanted to keep the changes? Things that had been done against their will? She supposed there had to be. Vaguely, she started to wonder if there was more done to her than becoming a 'revitalized' baby machine. As she considered the possibilities, and decided to discuss it more with the physicians, Detective Gorgiel and Tai'dqei hashed out the rest of the details. Coordinates and funding was exchanged. A few side questions answered.

Finally, Detective Gorgiel stood from their desk, skirting around to be on the same side as Tai'dqei and Rayelle.

"Well, if you have any questions, I've also sent my contact information to your gauntlets." As if on cue, Rayelle and Tai'dqei's gauntlets chimed with an incoming message. Not to be distracted themself, Detective Gorgiel opened the door, letting it swing open. They stood beside it, obviously expecting the two to leave. "Until we find out more, take care."

And like that, Tai'dqei and Rayelle found themselves hurried from the office. The walk through the halls was quiet as she mentally gnawed on the new information given to her, the pamphlet to the resort clutched in hand.

Once they breached the threshold, out into the air of TAC S7B, and wandered down the sidewalk a bit, Tai'dqei broke the silence, "So, do you want to get something to eat? Or go to the clinic?"

At his question, Rayelle paused on the walkway. Her gaze flickered around their surroundings. There was an eerie sense of division to it all. The clothes, the vehicles, the signage. It was all familiar. But there were non-humans milling about, with familiar styles of dress tailored to their size or extra limbs.

It was also a lot cleaner and quieter, she realized. There was no litter blowing about the streets and, though dressed like gas guzzling cars, the vehicles didn't make any sound. No far-off trains or the sounds of planes, though spaceships whizzing through the air gave a slight hum all the same. No sirens of police cars or ambulances. No construction.

It was a facsimile of her time. A farce. Much like other things around her. Her eyes returned to Tai'dqei, her lips pressed tight together in thought. His emotionless masked face stared back at her, patiently waiting for her decision. A nauseous feeling swam through her stomach, wondering where Tai'dqei truly fell on the gradient of genuine to false.

"The clinic," Rayelle finally said, heading to the garage where he had landed his ship. She straightened her spine and set her shoulders, the resort pamphlet crinkling in her fisted hand. "I want to get this over with already."

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