remote station

[synchrosyntheses]

Teytis tel Jobont is not living up to her lantelis.

She had been en route to her usual position after a rest-and-resupply period. Instead of the expected uneventful trip, somehow she loses her anchors, falls through a bizarrely shaped storm, then finds herself impossibly over land instead of water and with her upper antennas chopped off like they were never there.

She was able to stabilize with only minor damage to the uninhabited land, but she cannot hear a single intelligible signal, and a hundred other things add up to this is no place anyone has ever seen before. Or rather, reported seeing before.

So here she sits in the sky, relaying nothing, thinking about everything.

Comments

[calescent]

"Welce, near my house."

[synchrosyntheses]

“Welce is in where?”

[calescent]

"Welce is a country in the continent of Tocira."

[synchrosyntheses]

It makes a simple globe, probably colored blue for water, white for land, and black for borders. “Welce is in where?”

The continents and other markings are completely unfamiliar.

[calescent]

"Not here," says Kiri, squinting at the globe, making sure it's not just upside-down. She gestures at it: "We are not here."

[synchrosyntheses]

“I came here how? I could leave here how?”

[calescent]

"I don't know. People don't come here from there except you."

[synchrosyntheses]

“I learn to leave after. I learn now. I do what now?”

[calescent]

"I don't understand."

[synchrosyntheses]

“I will know what in this place? I will do what in this place?”

[calescent]

"Well, I would like to know more about how your telekinesis and shapeshifting work, if you can tell me."

[synchrosyntheses]

“I do not complete understand. I more learn language? I moveto more good place before?”

[calescent]

"I can teach you more language. Your large floating part is... okay where it is... but if your small talking part wants to come to my house, it can."

[synchrosyntheses]

“My — puramem, my” — it runs out of vocabulary and makes a human figure — “come to your house to learn, it can?”

[calescent]

"Yes."

[synchrosyntheses]

A less cartoonish human figure descends, by no visible vehicle or path, from the central part of the floating thing.

As she gets closer, a haze around her proves to be some kind of elaborate structure, very detailed construction in glass and wood and less identifiable materials, forming a complete cylinder around her; the top and bottom are more opaque and thick. She floats in the middle, making occasional motions that seem purposeless and habitual. Her clothes appear to be well-made of cloth, but have only hems and neither seams nor fasteners.

She is followed by another latticework box which has some protrusions like those on the talking-sphere. The two merge together.

She approaches Kiribel, at the same height without the benefit of horse.

[calescent]

"...Hello."

[synchrosyntheses]

“Hello.

I — say how — it is good for me that you help me. I go with you.”

[calescent]

"Okay. Do you need all that stuff?"

[synchrosyntheses]

She seems upset, or afraid, at the question.

“This place is strange. I separate now; I do not separate all now.”

[calescent]

"...I don't understand, but if you want the stuff, you can bring it. My house is this way." She turns her horse. Aleko scrambles on to his to follow.

[synchrosyntheses]

She follows behind Aleko, as close as does not alarm the horses.

[calescent]

The ride takes about twenty minutes - they speed up a bit once they're out of the wheat, assuming Teytis can keep up.

The house is big and fancy and low-tech.

[synchrosyntheses]

Teytis has no trouble moving at any speed that might be required of her.

She seems to find the details of the house interesting but does not volunteer any thoughts on it.

[calescent]

Aleko puts the horses away and Kiri invites Teytis and all her stuff inside.