Adventures of Tash and John Ch. 04

The terminal was packed. Tashaiea figured that there must be hundreds of people around them. The vast majority being Kai'ani. However the young woman did notice a family of Voss, some Lohi and even a lone Siven among others. John seemed to be the only Human though. Tash couldn't help but wonder if (or when) that would ever change. It wasn't long after that the couple arrived at the planet bound shuttle gates. The only thing left between them and the planet now was the Kai Security Customs checkpoint. The line wasn't very long thankfully, Tash thought and breathed a small sigh of relief. She really just wanted to get home already.

"Identification, please." The middle aged Security Customs Agent said, an undertone of relative boredom in her voice.

Tash fished in her pocket for a moment before retrieving her old Kai citizenship card. It had seen a fair bit of use over the past few months traveling around with John and some wear was beginning to show. The Security Customs Agent took the card from her and ran it through her computer system, studying whatever information it revealed to her for a moment before returning her attention to Tashaiea.

"Vakal K'Shon Tashaiea?" The agent asked, although it felt more like a statement than a question.

"Yes." Tash replied, opting to keep her answers short.

"It seems you've been away for a while." The agent read on her screen before once again returning her attention to Tashaiea. The agent gave her a smile and handed her back her card. "Welcome back."

Tashaiea thanked her and retrieved her card, swiftly re-pocketing it and stepping off to the side to allow John to step up to the agent.

"Identification." The Customs agent said once again.

John had already removed his own card and handed it to the woman. The agent took the card and gave it a curious look. She gave John a once over before returning to her screen and running his ID.

"Hmm." The agent began, removing John's card and setting it on the counter between them. "My system doesn't seem to be able to access your identification. We'll have to fill out a form before you're allowed down to Kai. Do you consent?" The woman asked, suddenly seeming a little more interested in her job.

"Yes I consent." John replied, nodding his head slightly. "Will it take long?"

"Not at all." The woman responded, tapping a few commands on her screen. "Now, please state your full name without titles or honorifics."

"John Henry Baird." John said as clearly as he could.

The agent tapped another command. "Now please state any titles or honorifics you may have." She said.

"Well," John began. "Possibly soon to be Harseb."

That really peaked the woman's interest. A look of amusement and almost disbelief seemed to fall over her face. Tash walked up a little closer to John and took his hand, making sure to give the woman as confident as smile as she could. The agent made a 'huh' sound before continuing with her questions.

"I see." She said. "Please state your species, age and place of birth."

"I'm Human, twenty-six in Earth years. I'm not sure what that translates to in the Kai'ani timescale." John stated.

"That's fine." The agent replied. "Your place of birth?"

"City of Breckenridge, Republic of Texas, Earth, Sol System."

The agent tapped her screen once more. "Occupation?"

"Retired soldier of the Republic of Texas Army. No current occupation."

"Have you been exposed to the Cholwlara virus?"

"Not to my knowledge."

"Do you have any criminal history and would you consent to an investigative background search?"

"No, and yes I will consent."

"Good." The woman replied, tapping a few more commands. "We're almost done here, just a few more questions."

John nodded.

"Do you have any political affiliations within Kai or it's territories?"

"No."

"Do you carry any weapons for either ceremonial or practical purposes?"

"Yes."

"Please produce them and set them on the counter." The agent said. Not really demanding it of John, but not really requesting it either.

John opened his jacket and one by one removed and laid his knives on the counter. He then slipped off his backpack and removed his pistol. He had decided not to wear it in the terminal just in case the starport's security got a little nervous and jumpy. So far they very rarely had to check his pistol anywhere, but since Kai was a major planet, they hadn't wanted to take any chances. The agent took a decent sized hand held device and slowly waved it over each one of John's produced items. Every so often she would check her computer screen and tap a command. Once she got to the pistol she spoke.

"Is this a firearm?" The Customs agent inquired, locking her eyes onto his.

"Yes, it was my issued sidearm." John explained. "It's a 5.7 millimeter personal defense pistol which holds twenty rounds of ammunition in its magazine."

The agent scanned over the pistol one more time before putting the handheld device away.

"Do you carry it for ceremonial or practical purposes?" The woman asked, now looking over the pistol with a curiosity that Tash found quite amusing. She was almost treating it like it was some kind of sacred warriors artifact to John. Which Tash admitted that for all she knew it could be.

"Both." John responded. "The galaxy can be a dangerous place. I prefer to remain armed with a weapon I have been trained to use to defend myself if need be."

"Understood." The agent said, clearing her throat an returning her attention to the Human in front of her. "Under Kai law you are allowed to carry a ceremonial weapon in public, and it can be used for self defense if needed. However you are not allowed to give access to that weapon to anyone other than yourself. If you commit any crime with that weapon, or if you give access to it and a crime is committed with it, you will be held responsible and face indefinite imprisonment. Do you understand?"

"Yes I understand." John said back.

"Good, last question." The agent said. "Do you have someone who will vouch for you for the remainder of your time on Kai?"

"He does." Tashaiea spoke up. "I, Vakal K'Shon Tashaiea of Khazon country, will testify for John Henry Baird. He will be my responsibility for the remainder of his time on Kai."

The agent cracked a small smile and tapped a few more commands. When she was done two lighted boxes appeared on the surface of the counter, still partly obscured by John's various weapons.

"Both of you, please place your left hand on the boxes." The agent commanded.

John quickly picked up and replaced his things and placed his hand down on the closest box to him. Tash joined him shortly after.

"Please spread your fingers and keep them still." The agent commanded again.

There was a dull flash and the boxes disappeared. The agent gave a fairly cheery smile to John and Tash.

"Congratulations John Henry Baird, you are now authorized to set foot on Kai for a period not exceeding one year." The agent said and handed John a palm sized card. "This is your visitor identification card, please display it upon request for verification. Enjoy your stay on Kai."

The couple thanked the agent and quickly walked away from the checkpoint and towards the shuttle gates.

"That didn't seem too bad." John remarked, finding a fairly secluded row of chairs in the waiting area for the couple to sit on.

"I hope you realize what I just did." Tashaiea said in a calm but fairly stern tone, taking a seat beside John and laying her head on his shoulder.

"I think I understand, yes." John replied and began to stroke the young Kai'ani's soft brown hair.

"Good." She said and let out a small sigh. "Don't break any laws. I'm just as responsible as you are now."

John nodded. A gesture that Tash couldn't see but felt. The couple sat there for a few minutes before John spoke up again.

"What would have happened if you didn't 'vouch' for me?" He asked.

"They might not have let you down to the planet." Tash responded, closing her eyes as she did so and let out a contented sigh as John continued to stroke her head. "Kai is a little different than other places. There's not a lot of aliens on the planet. My people are a little more," She paused for a moment to consult her translator for a word. When she retrieved it she continued. "'Isolationist', than other species. We tend to prefer to be around our own species more than we do others."

"Huh, so I guess you're the odd one out then, hmm?" John said and reached around her back to pull her in tight against him.

'Yeah, no kidding.' Tash said to herself. On the outside she just nodded.

They waited for a good quarter of an hour before the shuttle to Khazon arrived. The shuttle was part of a commuter service which serviced many different cities and towns throughout Tash's home country. The young couple boarded and took their seats. The shuttle was filled with about fifty other people (all Kai'ani). As usual Tash could see them giving odd looks at John. She had never actually talked to John about if it bothered him that so many other species, including her own, seemed to take such an interest in him. If it did, he never showed it. A few minutes after the last passengers boarded they got underway. The trip through the atmosphere was fairly uneventful. They hit a small pocket of turbulence but for the most part it was smooth. Tash spent the time laying her head on John and staring out the window.

The cloud cover was fairly dense today so it took a few minutes before the ground was finally visible and she was greeted with the first views of the home she had left all those years ago. The massive skyscrapers of Hokam, the Khazon capital city, seemed to stretch on for as far as the eye could see. Tashaiea wasn't from Hokam, but that didn't seem to matter to her heart, which seemed to skip a beat at the sight. She had spent quite a bit of time in the Khazon capital in her youth. The city was the cultural and financial heart of the whole region. If there was anything she couldn't get in her hometown, you could sure bet that you could find it in Hokam. Tash let out a small sigh. She would definitely have to take John to see the Khazon Natural History Museum before they left.

Over the next hour the shuttle landed and delivered people to Hokam itself and three other districts. According to the flight schedule, the next stop would be theirs. It didn't take long before Tash was able to catch a glimpse of the iconic rolling hills and valleys that made up the outskirts of her hometown. Vakal-Hess was a decent sized town. About 100 000 people lived and worked here. From what Tash could see from the window, the town hadn't changed all that much. There were a couple of buildings that she didn't recognize, but no major landmarks seemed to have been changed. The shuttle touched down at the commuter station and the couple disembarked, along with two other older Kai'ani that Tashaiea didn't recognize. The ground was wet. It had most likely just finished raining. Not an uncommon sight for her hometown. It almost seemed like it rained more than half the year around here.

The weather was cool and the air smelled of the rolling forests to the north and east of the town. It was a smell that brought quite a few memories flooding back to her. Tashaiea couldn't help but crack a smile. She took John's hand and led them through the small station. Her childhood home was on the north side of the town. It was a good distance away from the commuter station so she led them to a public transit vehicle which would be making a scheduled stop nearby.

"You seem pretty happy to be here." John said as they found an empty seat. "I told you it wasn't going to be that bad."

"Being back in my town and you meeting my family is two very different things." Tash made sure to point out.

"I know." John replied while fiddling with some of their luggage so it would stay secure during their trip. "Just remember what I said. If things don't work out with your family, I'll find us a place to stay. I want to make sure that you coming back here is as nice and relaxing as we can make it."

"I know." Tashaiea said, giving John as warm a smile as she could muster. "I'm just worrying."

John finished with the luggage and turned to face the young Kai'ani. He brought up his hand and gently stroked one of her cheeks, pulling her in for a kiss after a few moments. It was a short kiss, but enough to cause Tashaiea to feel herself physically calm down. John locked his eyes on hers and continued.

"Try not to worry too much please?" He said in a soothing voice while smiling at her. "Everything will be alright, alright?"

"Okay." Tash responded, returning John's smile.

The 'bus' trip (as John called it. He said that the layout of the public transit vehicle was very similar to what they called a 'bus' on Earth. With a few differences of course) was only a few minutes long. They were soon just around the corner from her old neighborhood. It was on a hill, overlooking a good portion of the town and the valley to the north. They got off at a commercial zone only a few minutes walk from her home. The zone hadn't changed much, Tashaiea noticed. There were a couple new shops and it seemed like they had recently redone the landscaping. But other than that, nothing majorly different. They walked along the commercial zone's courtyard path, her parents house was just on the east side of the zone. In the middle of the courtyard was the local Solarium to the Light Giver, a large and powerful looking building that commanded one's attention with it's intricate wall carvings and swirls of whites and blues.

It had been a very long time since Tashaiea had set foot inside a Solarium. Back when she was living here she would come with her family at least once a month to show appreciation to the Light Giver of Kai's star. It was a tradition, one that had been very important to her mother, and eventually to Tashaiea herself. It didn't feel right just walking by after being gone for so long. She had never told John about her faith. Simply because it had just never come up. John had never talked about his faith either and Tashaiea had to admit she was curious about what he would think of it. She knew some basics about the different faiths of Earth, but nothing really concrete. Mostly just in passing from different Human entertainment programs. Tash figured that now might as well be as good of a time as any to show John a little more of her culture. She stopped and turned to face him, still holding his hand.

"I want to go in there." She said, pointing at the Solarium.

"Hmm? Why? What's in there?" John asked quizzically, scanning the building up and down.

"It's the local Solarium to the Light Giver." Tash spoke in her native language. She'd figure out the translation another time. "I want to give appreciation to the Light Giver."

"Wait, what do you want to do?" Her male said, seemingly just as confused as before.

Tashaeia smiled and tugged on his hand. "Come on, I'll show you."

Tash guided them to one of the entrances of the Solarium. The building had four large doorways that each pointed to one of the cardinal directions. The large doors were wide open and would normally stay open so that anyone could come and go as they pleased. They would only close and seal the doors when there was an emergency of some kind, and even then the Solarium was to act as an organizational center in such an event. Tash had only ever seen the doors closed once. It was after a rather large and dangerous electrical storm had swept over the area and caused severe damage to the town. A brief hallway lead directly to the center of the Solarium. The entire top of the room was transparent, using a kind of reinforced glass ceiling that was not visible from outside the room. A large circle of (normally) glowing crystal was suspended from the roof. It would track the movement of the sun, causing the crystals to glow as they absorbed the sunlight.

It was overcast today however. The circle still tracked the sun, just without it's normal glowing. The walls of the room were smooth, white stone with an occasional design breaking up the aesthetic. In the center of the room was an arch which prominently displayed the position of the sun in relation to Kai itself. Around the arch were rows of benches that spiraled out and ended at the walls of the room. As far as Tash could see, there wasn't anyone inside right now. She found herself almost dragging John right to the center of the room. Only once she was right next to the arch did she slow down and let go of him.

"What is this place?" John asked, taking a few moments to look around the large room she had dragged him into.

"It's a Solarium of the Light Giver." Tash found herself answering, almost patronizingly.

"Okay, but what does that mean?" John asked again, now focusing on her with a look of curiosity on his face.

"Here is a place where some of my people show appreciation to the Light Giver." She continued to explain.

"Who is the 'Light Giver'." John replied, seemingly just as confused as he was before.

Of course John wouldn't know who the Light Giver was, Tash thought. It was silly of her to assume that he did. She realized she would need to explain in more detail.

"The Light Giver is the one who lives in Kai's star, Seya." Tash began. "It created Seya to give warmth and life to Kai. It watches over us and continues to give the light and warmth necessary to allow life on Kai to flourish. Without the Light Giver, there would be no Kai and no Kai'ani to inhabit it."

John seemed to mull over the information his girlfriend had just shared with him. Speaking up after a moment of contemplation.

"So you worship the sun?" He finally asked.

Tashaiea felt a little pang in her chest. She wondered if maybe she wasn't explaining it correctly.

"No, not worship the sun." She attempted again. "We show appreciation to the Light Giver. No worship, just thanks. We don't give gifts, just time to appreciate."

"Huh, okay." John said, visibly processing the new information. "How do you give thanks then?"

"I'll show you." Tash replied, a smile forming from her words at her boyfriend not completely dismissing her as a crazy alien or something... at least not yet.

She beckoned John to sit beside her. "Raise your hands like this with palms out." She waited for him to do so. Once he did, she continued. "Now close eyes and look to the sun."

"It's overcast though." John said with a hint of playful sarcasm in his voice.

Tash giggled. "Just look up then."

She watched as her Human closed his eyes and looked up. She followed suit shortly after.

"What now? Is there something special we say?" He asked.

Tashaiea shook her head, a gesture she realized he wouldn't have seen. "No." She spoke up. "You don't need to speak, just think. The Light Giver will hear you."

The two sat in silence. Tashaiea ran through her normal appreciation thoughts. She made sure to add in an apology for not having shown her appreciation for several years. Tashaiea hoped that the Light Giver would understand that she had been far away from Kai. After about a minute or so she could hear John speak up in a hushed voice.

"How long are we supposed to show appreciation for?"

Tash chuckled. "I'm done if you're done. The Light Giver knows we have other things to do and understands. It appreciates the time we take out of our lives for it and does not frown upon it." Tashaiea lowered her hands and opened her eyes. She looked over at John, who had now just done the same. She gave him a warm smile when he looked over. "Thank you for doing this with me."

"No need to thank me. If it's important to you, it's important to me." John replied, taking a second to stretch before standing back up. "I just didn't realize you were religious."