It Was A School Day - 6. Heartaches

The next day Kismet woke entwined with Taloric. A flood of mixed emotions coursed through him as he realized it wasn’t Mia’s warm flesh encompassed in his arms. He slowly extracted himself and slid off the bed to get dressed, he had early kitchen duty.

“Do you want me to go with you?” Taloric asked as he began to sit up.

“No you have your own morning duties. I will be fine but I don’t understand a few things.”

“Such as?”

Kismet looked at the sheets.

“Oh. Uncle and I talked for quite a while after you went to medical and when I came back our sheets had been changed. The spares were the same. The ones we used before were for those assigned together; these are for those who choose to be together.”

“We didn’t exactly choose.”

“You didn’t withdraw your offer, Kismet. I could not withdraw it for you. I could only deny you as a suitor and that would say I found you unworthy and I do not.”

“And if I withdraw it now?”

“After sharing my sheets, it would mean you found me unworthy.”

“So that would embarrass you as much, if not more than Ravidik did.”

Taloric nodded.

“You understand I am committed to Mia?”

“I understand your belief in commitment.”

Kismet turned and opened the door, “So long as we understand each other.”

Later that day, he was taken to the communications room and introduced to some of the cousins who worked there.

“Since you have decided to take on new responsibilities you were given more responsibilities. One of them will be with us. I understand you have a brother? This is like a cousin in your culture?”

“Yes. A brother is similar to a cousin only our mothers and fathers are the same.”

The cousins looked at each other and made faces that Kismet had learned to indicate they had found something odd, funny, or beyond their understanding. He grinned. “I felt the same way about you all at first.”

“Uncle said you need to contact your brother to exchange information.”

“I do. I have a way to contact him, but I don’t know how your equipment works exactly.”

“Well, it’s a good thing we do,” the golden skinned alien grinned and motioned Kismet over.

It took a while, but they were finally able to raise Bobby on the frequency that Kismet had for him.

“Bobby?”

“Kismet? Where on earth are you?”

“Not on Earth! Travelling through free space as we speak.”

“Same here. Headed to the Zedek Center of Alien Disease Control, that’s where they’re still holding him.”

“What’s the plan?”

“Doctor Atoll is doing a comparative study. This is one of the patients he would like to study. Amberly and Brianna are going to check out those police and first responder reports. The idea is to find the species and discover what it is exactly that he has.”

The line started to crack.

“I think we are losing you.”

“We?”

“I’m not alone. I’m bringing the cavalry.”

“Who?”

“A bunch of cousins,” Kismet grinned and the cousins in the room grinned back as the line broke. “A bunch of cousins,” he said again as he began to tremble. Two cousins came closer touched him as the separation from his family became more real and the tears began to fall. He turned away from one only to turn into another. He pulled Kismet forward allowing Kismet to weep, comforted with the support of his cousins. When he was finished he was sent to the washroom and nothing was said of the incident. Everyone understood family.

The cousins taught Kismet how to use the ship’s intercom system and told him that would be his station. Now, instead of running the messages he would be relaying them via intercom. Kismet raised an eyebrow at this.

“You will not be saying the messages, only connecting the rooms, like this. Here is our room, you connect us to here, and you speak here. Press this button and ask for Uncle when someone answers. Tell him what your brother told you. That is your message to Uncle. Then if Uncle has a message for someone, he will ask you to connect him to them.”

“Isn’t there a computer that does this?”

The cousins grinned.

“There is a computer that does this.”

“There is, but what if the computer is damaged? At times of war, the computer can be very busy or it can be hacked. This is mechanical.”

Kismet grinned. “Hack proof. I like it.”

He did as he was asked and Uncle thanked him for the information. He did not have any further directions for him, but soon the switch board was busy. It was near the end of his shift when one of the cousins he was working with came and sat down next to him.

“Valdorn just confirmed he received our message about your destination. He is pleased you are adjusting well and he asked us for a strange set of papers. He said you would have pictures, full names, dates of birth and maybe other statistics so they wouldn’t be too far from the truth.”

“I’m sorry I don’t understand.”

“Of your family: mother, father, and sister. Those he is traveling with.”

“I have that information. What of Mia?”

“It seems there is a little complication.”

“Did he say what kind of complication? Why isn’t Mia coming?”

“Something about the government has not stopped looking for you. A general mix up in a background check and some other things. You can read it yourself. I’m not quite sure I understand. Your culture is confusing.”

Kismet was still staring at the screen when the next duty shift arrived. He had no sooner stepped outside the Communications Room door when another cousin he didn’t know by name approached him.

“I’ve been sent to retrieve you for combat practice, cousin. We were sure you wouldn’t have the appropriate clothing so these are now yours.” He held out his hand and in them were the oddest exercise clothing he had come across. It must have shown on his face. “Come to the washroom, I’ll show you.”

A few minutes later he emerged with his lower torso, groin, and upper thighs wrapped in a layer of black cloth and a light weight, flexible armor. The same armor covered his upper arms and his lower legs with it being a bit thicker in the back than the front which didn’t make much sense.

“It feels odd.”

“We had to guess at your sizes. If something binds, let Taloric know, others can be found. Most of us have several sets.” He said as they arrived.

To Kismet it seemed as if every cousin aboard the ship who was not standing duty was trying to cram into the room, but only Taloric, Ravidik and two others were on the mat with the instructor. Taloric waved him over and the instructor looked between Kismet and Ravidik and grunted.

They moved slowly through some exercises that were simple enough for Kismet to manage but then they did something that he was not physically capable of.

Ravidik sneered.

The instructor came over and studied Kismet for a moment shaking his head as he attempted to position Kismet’s body similarly.

“I’m sure he’s capable of doing things we are not, Cousin,” Taloric said from his place. “His body is built differently, he cannot be expected…”

“If he is to protect you he must learn these things.”

“Teach him how to use what he has to my best benefit. He shares my sheets already, but I’m sure everyone here knows that.”

“You’ve taught him to walk on the wild side?” one of side liners asked as those around him elbowed each other.

“Maybe he’s taught me.” Taloric said with a smile to his cousin then a nod and a wink to Kismet who smiled back and had the decency to blush slightly.

Ravidik let out a howl of rage and charged Kismet.

Kismet met him as he had been taught in previous self-defense training and rolled with him. Wrestling ensued. No one interfered while they worked out their differences because this was the place to physically do such things.

Eventually they parted. Both were bloody, but Kismet was the only one to walk away. Taloric stepped over to where Ravidik lay and looked at his cousin.

“Ravidik, twice you have embarrassed me. Your courtship is rejected.”

Taloric turned and walked back to face the instructor. Kismet limped back into line as well next to Taloric. As some cousins were helping Ravidik off the mat, Kismet whispered to Taloric, “I no longer have that other commitment to honor.”

Taloric couldn’t help but to grin although nothing else was said.

“Well, our new cousin does have teeth,” the instructor said, “let’s see if we can train him to bite.”