The Genesis Saga

Orryn, Cirrus, and Nessah got their first good look at Adrian when he entered the house. He gave them a curt nod of acknowledgement when he saw them. “You must be the General and the Elders,” he said. “It’s nice to finally meet you in person.”

Jyn made his appearance in the kitchen, tense. His hand never strayed too far from the weapon belted to him and he watched Adrian like a hawk in case anything happened.

Adrian looked over towards Jyn and shot him a glare. “I’m not going to do anything,” Adrian said. Walking around the table, he pulled out the chair and sat at the head, facing the Elders directly. “I hear you want something from me. What is it?” he asked bluntly. Reya sat down next to him.

Orryn spoke first, addressing the soldiers present. “Given how closely related you all are to the case I don’t think there’s any harm in you learning. Perhaps we’d best wait until everyone is gathered.” Jyn nodded and pinged the rest of the team. It wasn’t long before they were all assembled. Satisfied, Orryn continued and dropped the bomb. “We’ve recently come into contact with more beings that look like Adrian.”

Everyone in the room jolted at the news. Adrian was shocked. “How?” he asked. The others leaned forward, eager to learn of the answer.

“Contact,” Cirrus said, glaring at Orryn, “is a bit of a strong word. There was a change in one of the data terminals, and the soldier who investigated was taken by surprise by the sudden appearance of two people onscreen.”

“That person was Irric, right?” Tassie asked. She’d quickly deduced that he was the most probable person to have this happen to, given his proximity to the data terminals in the facility due to his work.

Orryn’s brows raised in surprise. “I do believe that was his name. General?” she turned, asking Nessah.

“It was Irric who made the discovery,” Nessah confirmed. “Given the suddenness of how it occurred, we’re lucky that he had the presence of mind to record the interaction.”

“Which is where you come in,” Orryn said to Adrian. “We’re unable to understand what the beings are saying. The language isn’t one we’ve come across before. We’d like for you to translate.”

Adrian’s brows furrowed. “I might not be able to. There are many languages where I’m from and I’m only versed in a few. There’s a very high chance I won’t be able to help. I’d have to see the video first.”

“We would appreciate any insight you may have on the matter.”

Adrian leaned forward. “Now then, let’s talk about compensation. Why should I help you?” Cirrus shot Orryn a smug look. A dark look overcame Jyn’s features as he watched Adrian and the Elders begin to haggle.

“We’ve already let you out of your cell. Surely, that’s enough of a compensation,” Cirrus said.

“And that’s the only reason I’m even considering helping you. It took you over three days to come to the decision, during which you didn’t feed me enough food. I’m sure that without Reya, I’d still be locked up for who knows how long.”

“We could always have you thrown back in,” Cirrus threatened.

“And you’d forever remain ignorant as to what the contents of the video are. Which I’m sure are very relevant to your ongoing operation regarding the facility. If you throw me back in there, I’m not going to help you.” Adrian made his stance on the matter clear.

“I think we’d all prefer it if that wasn’t the outcome,” Orryn said, calming the mounting tension. “What is it that you want in return for your help?”

Adrian looked around, considering the question. He met Jyn’s irritated stare and Reya’s encouraging one. His gaze snapped back to the Elders before him and a Cheshire grin crept up his face. “Make me a citizen of your faction.” There was an immediate uproar at the idea. Jyn was against it, while Reya supported Adrian’s wish. The Elders and Nessah were thrown for a loop by the request. Cirrus looked like she bitten into a lemon at the implications that came with being a citizen. “I don’t mean a citizen on paper. I mean a full citizen, with all the rights that affords me. I do believe there are laws regarding civilian and military interactions that would apply to me.”

“Do you even know what those rights are?” Cirrus asked.

“Not a clue,” Adrian replied. “But as it stands right now, I have no rights. That’s the price of me translating the video for you. You can either take it or leave it.”

“There isn’t anything else you want instead? You’re asking for a lot.”

“No, I’m not. I’m asking for basic rights. It’s a little bit of paperwork on your part and that’s it. Are you really so eager to deny me them so you can keep treating me the way you’ve been doing?”

“There’s more to being a citizen than rights. You’re asking us to essentially create immigration procedures and laws pertaining to your kind, forcing us to accept that you are, in fact, an alien that looks exactly like us. It means that we accept your claims and have to prepare first contact protocols for when our species do meet.”

“I doubt you’re going to be meeting more people from my planet anytime soon given that we don’t know where it is. If you have first contact protocols, why haven’t you applied them to me?”

“Because we still haven’t accepted your claim.”

“Can’t you just make me a citizen like a normal person without worrying about any of that?”

“That would mean that your claims are false and admitting that the gru’ul simply did an experiment on you that turned you that colour.”

Adrian frowned. “I’m not invalidating my claims. You’re making this more complicated than it needs to be.”

“That because it is complicated!” Cirrus threw her hands in the air. “Don’t you get it? We have to tread very carefully otherwise a bad precedence will be set.”

“I think we can all agree that these are extenuating circumstances that don’t necessarily need to be used for future cases. The price for my help is making me a citizen. That’s final.” Adrian stood his ground and reiterated his demands.

“This is going to take hours, days even, of debating with the rest of the Tribunal,” Cirrus growled. “Already, deciding whether or not to even compensate you for your help was painful. This is going to be a nightmare.”

Adrian felt not one ounce of pity for the woman. They’d left him to rot. Again. He was done being trapped at the whims of others. Reya had been right, this was the time to take advantage of the situation. This was his chance.

Reya smiled proudly at the exchange that was taking place, knowing that it was a step in the right direction for Adrian. While she hadn’t expected becoming a citizen to be his demand, it made sense when she thought about it. Given the discussion, the Elders were putting some serious thought into the matter if they were going to bring it up to the rest of the Tribunal.

“That’s not my problem,” Adrian said coolly. “Hopefully you come to a decision sooner rather than later.” Cirrus looked ready to pull her hair out. She shot him an irritated glare. Adrian ignored it. “When will you have your next meeting?”

“It’s scheduled for tomorrow morning. I have no doubt that it will last most, if not all of the day,” Orryn responded. “With such a controversial topic being brought up, it’s going to take time to sort out.”

The conversation lapsed into silence, neither party sure of what to say next. The Elders excused themselves back to their respective rooms, claiming that they still had work to do. The rest of the group broke up, returning back to their previous posts before being called in for the meeting, leaving Reya and Adrian alone in the kitchen.

“Think I can get something to eat?” Adrian asked, looking around. “I’m pretty hungry.” He hadn’t been fed enough food during his time in his cell and he was famished. Now that the difficult conversation was out of the way, it was time to address that.

Reya stood up and walked around the counter and began pulling ingredients out of the fridge. “I think I can manage something,” she said with a smile.

The new sleeping arrangements had been explained to him. Adrian was surprised, but didn’t protest. Jyn did but was rebuffed by the Elders. The situation was only for a few more days at most, while the Elders debated Adrian’s request. After that was settled, they would be leaving.

When it was time to turn in for the night, he and Reya went up together to prepare for bed. As he went up the stairs he realized that they would have to change separately. He doubted that Reya would be comfortable enough to change with him present inside the room with her.

Reya entered the room first, turning on the lights. The boxes of personal items she’d brought with her were side by side next to the closet against the wall, open. Several articles of clothing were visible, but not much else. Adrian walked over to withdraw his clothes from the closet, where they’d been left untouched since he’d last seen them several days before. He gave the boxes a quick glance before grabbing what he needed. Reya waited patiently for him to finish, sitting on the bed observing him.

He took his clothes to the bathroom to change, leaving the room to Reya so that she could do the same. When he was finished, he waited patiently outside the door before knocking on it and spoke loudly enough so that he was heard. Reya’s voice filtered through the door, telling him that it was fine for him to come in, so he entered. She was dressed in dark purple, checkered pajama pants and a white tank top. The scars on her arms were on full display for him to see.

For his part, Adrian wore long, black pants and a grey t-shirt, the scars on his arms similarly exposed. Reya’s eyes flicked towards them and she unapologetically stared, studying them once more now that she had the chance. Adrian didn’t mind.

The only source of light in the room was the lamp on the bedside table casting a dim, warm glow. Adrian walked towards the bedside table and picked up one of the small prescription pill bottles on top of it. He read the label, but put it back down and picked up the other one instead. He spent some time staring at it. Reya noticed and spoke up. “Are you worried about taking them?” she asked.

Adrian focused on her. “Yes,” he admitted. “I don’t know how comfortable I am having more drugs coursing through my system. It makes me feel vulnerable, knowing that I won’t be able to react to anything properly while I’m on them. Not to mention we have no idea if they’ll even work on me.”

“Nothing’s going to happen to you while you sleep. If anything does, that’s what the others are here for. They’re up protecting us so that we can sleep safely.”

Adrian chose not to say that it was Jyn he was worried about, rather than hostile enemies storming the house. He sighed. “I know that. It’s just that after all the experiments done on me, part of me feels like this is another one. It’s silly, I know. I don’t quite get it myself.”

“You don’t have to take them if you don’t want to, but wouldn’t you like to know if they work? They could really help if they do.”

Adrian popped off the cap and poured one of the small white pills into his free hand. “You’re right,” he said, studying it. “I can’t keep going as I’ve been. I need the sleep.” He never brought the pill to his mouth, a serious expression forming as he regarded it further.

“It’ll be ok,” Reya said reassuringly. Adrian finally took the pill. “Did Kell say how long it’s supposed to take to kick in?”

“No. He doesn’t know how it will interact with my system, so he wasn’t able to give me a proper estimate.” Adrian placed the small bottle back where he’d found it and walked away from the bed, confusing Reya. He sat down on the floor.

“What are you doing?” she asked.

“Getting ready to go to sleep. This is a good spot.”

“On the floor?” Reya asked, baffled. The bed was big enough for both of them. It wasn’t like there wasn’t enough room. The sentiment only grew when she saw Adrian lie down on the floor as if it were the most natural thing in the world. “Why?” she couldn’t help but ask, wondering if the thought of sharing a bed with her was truly so repulsive.

“I figured that you probably wouldn’t be comfortable sharing a bed with someone like me, and besides, I’m used to sleeping on the floor. The bed is too soft for me.”

“By the gods, Adrian, this is ridiculous. Come to bed already. I’m not going to have you sleep on the floor.” Reya browbeat Adrian into joining her, finding his insistence on not sharing a bed rather nonsensical. She stood up and pulled right up next to him, grabbed him and then dragged him towards the bed.

Adrian didn’t protest, taken aback by her insistence. He’d assumed that she would be uncomfortable sleeping in his presence and didn’t want to cause her any trouble. He was used to sleeping on the floor, so the idea didn’t bother him in the slightest. Evidently, it bothered Reya.

Reya climbed into bed first, taking the side next to the wall. Once she was settled, Adrian carefully got under the covers, not wanting to disturb her. He noted that both pillows were side by side, the bed not big enough to offer any distance between them.

“There, that wasn’t so bad, now was it?” Reya said, turning to face him from where she lay. Adrian turned to face her and smiled. Reya was suddenly very conscious of his proximity. She chased the thought away, refusing to let her nerves take hold.

“I guess it wasn’t. It’s been a long time since I’ve last slept with someone.” Reya raised a brow. “Wait, that came out wrong,” Adrian hastily corrected himself. “What I meant was, it’s been a long time since I’ve shared a bed with someone.”

“I understood what you meant the first time,” Reya giggled, amused. “So,” she said, “when was the last time you were with someone?”

Adrian blinked, the question catching him off guard. He thought for a moment. “I’m not entirely sure. I don’t know how long I was in that pod nor how long I was at the facility. If we go with the time before I was abducted, then a year or so.”

“Do you miss her?”

“This might sound a bit mean, but no. We ended our relationship on good terms and went our separate ways. We still ran into each other often enough, but that was it. It’s so far away now that I hardly remember the specifics, let alone still have any feelings for her.” Adrian went silent for several seconds, debating on whether he should ask her the same question or not. He made his decision. “How about you?”

“I haven’t really been in a relationship since entering the army. I’ve had a few flings here and there, but nothing beyond that. And now, well. Things happened.”

“How long were you enlisted for?” Adrian asked instead, sensing that he’d broached a sensitive topic.

“Almost eight years.”

Adrian was surprised by the number. “Have you known the others the whole time?” He’d noticed that the entire team was rather comfortable around one another. If they’d known each other that long, it explained quite a few things. There were many inside jokes that Adrian was not privy to, often leaving him lost when they came up in conversation.

“Pretty much. Our team was formed right out of Basic and we’ve done good work together, so they never changed it around. It’s not really the military’s style, breaking up bonds between soldiers. They know how important they are for morale. They’ve become like family to me. I don’t know what I’d do if I could never see them again.”

“That explains why you’re all so close. It’s something I’ve noticed with the way you interact with each other. Jyn aside.”

“Jyn aside,” Reya agreed. “That’s a whole other mess.” Neither of them expanded on the topic, not wanting to bring up something unpleasant. Reya shifted into a more comfortable position. “What were they like, your family?”

Adrian smiled softly. “They were the most important people in my life.” He proceeded to recount minute details about each one of them. Reya listened intently, learning a great deal. With how warmly Adrian spoke of his deceased family members, she understood further his desire for a family of his own. Reya asked more about his niece, Evelynn. Adrian had plenty of stories to tell about the little munchkin, making her smile.

Time flew by as they continued to speak, and all too soon their medication began to kick in. They tried fighting it, but neither could resist the effects of the drugs coursing through their bloodstream. Adrian reached over and turned off the lamp on the bedside table, plunging the room into darkness. With the warm glow of the light gone, Reya snuggled into her covers and wished Adrian a good night. He returned the sentiment and the pair lapsed into silence, both of them closing their eyes, settling in for the night.

After their conversation, Reya’s earlier trepidation about being so close to Adrian had vanished into thin air. Replacing it was a comforting feeling, leaving her completely at ease with sharing a bed with him. A small part of her wondered what her earlier concern had even been, but was hushed by the rest of her tired mind. The soul searching could wait until the morning.

Reya surrendered to the oblivion waiting for her. Adrian soon followed. For the first time in ages, they slept soundly, comforted by the presence beside them.