New Discoveries

    When I signed up to be a pilot for Earth, this isn’t what I expected. My supervisors decided to assign me to a galactic outpost, the Atlantica, settled on the edge of our space. My job assignments mean I get to work with diplomats and leaders. Alongside that, I get to defend the station and accompany research vessels.

    “Red, you need to get up!” a crewmate, who we call Plushie, shouts.

    “I’m up,” I groan.

    “You better be,” Plushie states.

    “And why’s that?” I question.

    “‘Cause we only have ten minutes before we’re expected in the mess hall,” retorts Plushie. I sling myself onto my feet, and hobble my way to my dresser. Wheeling open my uniform drawer, I snatch a random uniform and throw it on. Grabbing and attaching my personal intercommunicator to my belt, I shuffle my belt through the belt loops. Once my belt is equipped, I scramble to locate my boots.

    “They’re under your bed, dingus,” mutters Plushie. Lifting up my blanket, my battle worn boots lay halfway under my bed frame. Rushing to shove my humongous feet into my boots, I hop in an attempt to get my feet in. Once my feet are within the confines of my boots, I dust myself off.

    “Hey Plushie,” I say loudly. “Let’s go you slowpoke!” Charging out of the bathroom, Plushie dashes towards the door. With the same bolt of speed, I ran to the mess hall.

    We arrive moments before Colonel Jackson turns the corner. Shuffling into line, Colonel Jackson eyes us down as we go. All of the other pilots follow us with their eyes.

    “Can either of you explain why you’re late?” questions Colonel Jackson.

    “It’s my fault, sir,” Plushie responds. “I wasn’t holding my team accountable.”

    “Why is that, Private McDonald?” Colonel Jackson asks.

    “I got distracted,” responds Plushie.

    “You got distracted?” repeats Colonel Jackson. “Do you know what could happen when you ‘get distracted’?”

    “Yes sir,” answers Plushie. Looking up Plushie’s tree body to look at his face, I notice tears forming on his eyelashes.

    “Tell them to me then,” Colonel Jackson bellows.

    “In flight, an enemy could accomplish a sneak attack,” Plushie stutters.

    “What else?” probes Colonel Jackson.

    “A pilot could crash and burn,” Plushie said quickly.

    “What else is there?” Colonel Jackson questions.

    “I-I don’t remember, sir,” answer’s Plushie.

    “Don’t remember?” bellows Colonel Jackson. “Alright Private McDonald, I’ve had enough of you’re tomfoolery. You and your flight squadrant will have to do something to pay it off.”

    “What will we need to do, sir?” I ask.

    “I’m so glad you asked,” Colonel Jackson snarls. “Let’s see, what can I make you do… I know! You two, alongside your eight other flight mates will do community service.”

    “Community service?” I ask.

    “Yes, community service,” answers Colonel Jackson. “Go pack your bags, and you’ll get your assignment in two hours.” Plushie, my other flight mates, and I shuffle back towards our dorm. We march in solemn silence. Only the rubber soles scuffing the ground can be heard. The hallways stretch and bend, giving us time to regret our life choices.

    “Where do you think we’ll be assigned?” another girl, Lotus, pondered.

    “Wherever it is, we’ll probably be there a while,” responds Cross.

    “I just hope it’s not extremely hot,” I murmur.

    “Or too cold,” adds Dew. Murmurs of agreement arise as we turn the final corner. We let out a collective breath and Plushie removes his room key from a leg pocket.

    “Hey Plushie,” I whisper. “Can I speak with you for a moment?” Plushie pushes the door open before turning around.

    “Sure. Everyone else, go ahead and start packing,” states Plushie. Everyone else shuffles in, leaving Plushie and I standing outside the dorm.

    “Thank you,” I say.

    “For what?” Plushie asks.

    “For saving my tail back there. You didn’t have to do that for me,” I answer.

    “Red, you’re like a sister to me, I’d do anything to protect you,” responds Plushie.

    “So now you’ve gone soft on me?” I ask, punching Plushie on the arm. I stalk into the dorms, wondering what the others are thinking. Plushie follows shortly behind, not missing out on anything. I notice Lotus has her back turned to me, her short curly afro diminishing my chances of figuring out how she’s feeling. As I pass her, my ears catch her breathing speeding up.

    “Lotus, are you alright?” I ask.

    “No, I’m not alright,” responds Lotus. “I’m not supposed to be here.”

    “What do you mean?” I question.

    “I really don’t think I belong here,” answers Lotus. “It doesn’t sit right with me that I’m here.”

    “If it’s because you’re a woman, it’s alright. You’re not the only woman here,” I say.

    “It’s not that I’m one of the only women, it’s that I’m the only black woman,” remarks Lotus. She turns to face me, and only now can I see the tears gushing down her cheeks. I raise my hand up to try to attempt to calm her tears, only to slam it against my torso.

    “You know, I’ve never felt like I deserve to be here,” I mention. Lotus looks into my eyes, her camel jasper orbs breaking into my emotions. Leopard, another crew member, steps forward and makes eye contact with Lotus.

    “You know Lotus, you’re one of the bravest people I know,” Leopard announces. “I’ve seen you do things I would never dream of even trying. You’ve told off Colonel Jackson for using a slur. Not everyone can say they’ve told off that mean jerk.” Lotus smiles, her eyes shimmering with joy. Before we can control ourselves, we’re all listing positive things about Lotus. Dew mentions how Lotus out cooks anyone who dares oppose her. Cross mentions how they look to Lotus for guidance when no one else knows what to do. Angel talks about how no one can say anything bad about Lotus. Going around the rest of the group, we all list something uniquely special about her.

    “Guys, just so you know, we only have about thirty minutes before we get our assignment,” Plushie announces.

    “Oh shot, I still haven’t packed my stuff,” I observe. Grabbing my suitcases, I stuff as much of my clothes as I can fit in the suitcases. Once all of my clothes are packed, I scramble to decide which of my books I should take with me.

    “Come one Red, just grab two,” murmurs Cross. I throw one of my socks at their head, missing them and ending up on the other side of them. They turn around, picking it up for me.

    “Maybe you should keep this door closed,” Cross states. They smile, chucking my sock back at me. I catch my sock and stuff it back in the suitcase I grabbed it from. Leopard comes up from behind Cross, her knees bent to surprise Cross.

    “You better watch it, before Loot comes and grabs you,” I state.

    “Boo!” Leopard shouts. Cross jumps out of their skin and flails their arms.

    “Leopard, you scared me!” yells Cross. The front door rings, telling us there is someone at our door. I grab my filled suitcases, Cross and Leopard accompany me into the main living space. Plushie is standing at the front door, speaking to one of Colonel Jackson’s assistants.

    “Alright, thank you. I’ll be sure to tell them,” says Plushie. “Alright you guys, our assignment is to a planet called Bonjay.”

    “Bonjay?” asks Dew. “I’ve never heard of that planet.”

    “This will be a big surprise then,” murmurs Angel. “You’re the one who knows every known planet. If you don’t know it, then nobody in the Republic of Planets knows the planet.”

    “Does it say anything else?” I ask.

    “Says here that we need to grab our bags and be in the departure wing by one o’clock,” declares Plushie.

    “We better get going then,” I retort. Everyone grabs their items and we saunter down the halls to the departure wing. Our dorm isn’t the farthest one from the departure wing, so our walk isn’t all too long.

    Once we arrive, assistants and lower crew members move out of our way. Colonel Jackson is waiting for us at a small departure craft. He nods to us, telling us we need to approach him. We gather around, waiting for Colonel Jackson to speak.

    “Since everybody’s here, we’ll get started. You’re going to spend a year on the planet Bonjay, sending back reports every month. Try to get along with the natives, do I make myself clear?” Colonel Jackson asks. We nod, shifting around on our heels. Colonel Jackson takes one step to the left, so we start getting settled in. Our bags are placed in moving compartments and we strap ourselves in for the ride. Whenever a flight crew has to do ground work, another crew is assigned to escort them.

    “I wonder who’s going to escort us,” Angel hums.

    “It could be anyone,” I muse. Angel glances at me, before looking towards the cockpit. The shuttlecraft’s door wheezes to a shut, beeping as it locks when it’s entirely closed. Moments later, the shuttlecraft rumbles to a start and we take off towards our landing port.

    “What do you think the people will look like?” Loot asks.

    “I guess we won’t know until we get there,” Plushie answers. A silence envelops us, greeting us as we wait for our docking. Along the ride, we try to keep ourselves entertained, each attempt failing.

    When we arrive, the shuttlecraft grumbles to a halt. The door beeps, lights flashing across the edge. Following the safety procedures, the door rolls open to reveal our new terrain. Similar to Earth, emerald green plants engulf the land. What I can guess to be trees spring up along the hills and the landing plate sticks out like a sore thumb.

    “Man, the landing plate sticks out like a liberal at a Trump rally,” Loot mumbles.

    “Now now Loot,” snaps Dew. “We all know Trump wasn’t the greatest president in history, but you don’t need to talk about him like that.”

    “Dew, I’m going to talk about him however I like. I never enjoyed the section covering the rise and fall of America anyway,” Loot retorts. Without a peep, the rest of us grab our bags and strut towards the unknown.

    “Before we jump in, can we say our pledge?” Lotus queries.

    “Sure, everyone ready to recite our pledge?” asks Dew.

    In unison, we chant, “When in need, the Raven crew will answer. No one gets left behind, forgotten, or left behind. Now and forever, the Raven’s will stand strong against the trails of time.” Upon the final word, we cheer and holler. Eventually, we tire of being vocal and head towards the outside landscape. As the last of us walks off the door, the shuttlecraft takes off to return to Atlantica.

    “Now what?” asks Cross.

    “Now we try to find other humanoids,” answers Plushie. One by one, we stumble into the forest in hopes of finding life.

    Following what feels like ages, we make our way onto what looks like a city. Passing no one, we walk into the city further. Eventually, Cross bumps into another being.

    “Excuse me,” Cross says. The figure turns around revealing a Craren, a well known species. In primary school, we would talk about how the horns a top every Craren’s head could be for communication.

    “Can you help us?” asked Dew. “We’re a little lost.”

    In a rough voice, the Craren answers, “I can help you, but you’ll need to come with me to the marketplace.” Dew nods as the Craren turns back around. They lead us down the streets, guiding us through the city. As we walk, I notice the change from metal buildings to wood buildings.

    “We’re almost there,” mutters the Craren. Suddenly, we’re surrounded by booths and other Craren. Along with Crarens, there’s also Plantens and Montens. They hustle around, scurrying from booth to booth. I bounce around, trying to peek at what is being sold. I spot a multitude of items I don’t recognize, so I rush to rejoin the group.

    After the Craren leading us has finished their shopping, they lead us out of the marketplace. Following them, we break off from the community.

    “What did you think of that marketplace?” the Craren questioned.

    “It looks like a lot of work to keep going,” Loot answers.

    “That marketplace is one of the smaller ones,” states the Craren.

    “That’s one of the smaller ones?” Lotus asks.

    “Yes, but you’ll see them the longer you stay here,” announces the Craren.