Empyrean Iris Story Collection

Humans are Space Elves

They stood huddled together at the base of the soaring edifice. Lines of deep silver metal flowed towards the clouds and then curved down into darkness. The sky above was blanketed in a deep, impenetrable layer of clouds bringing the light to near twilight levels, casting everything into shadow, but somehow, the massive alien ship seemed to glow with a soft silver light. They waited at the bottom of the ramp unwilling to go up, but unwilling to go away.

Movement, just at the head of the ramp, and they looked up to see two absolutely towering figures looking down at them. Otherwise they were very still, standing like trees watchful glittering eyes staring down from the darkness. Even despite their glittering armor, they nearly blended into the background of the ship.

So, they were waiting, but no one was willing to move clustered together as they were.

They wouldn't have known what was coming next if they hadn't been looking. The footsteps were so quiet.

They seemed to glide from the interior of the ship on a wave of silence, their movements as lithe as dancers every foot placed perfectly. Their muscles waved and rolled in perfect lines of synchronization. Where those at the base of the ramp were short and stocky, these creatures were tall and willowy, with long legs, long arms and delicate hands alive with precise movement, and they were absolutely breathtakingly beautiful. Their faces angular, their eyes deep and haunting, one a deep amber, the other a stunning green.

There were two of them now, one a flawless ebony black like the most precious of stones, and the other an ethereal white like a polished crystal so clear it was almost translucent. They could see the delicate veins of blue running through its skin like veins run through marble. The wind picked up at that moment tugging at their statuesque bodies, rippling through hair like spun gold. The clothes they were rippled with the wind, perfectly tailored to their strange statuesque bodies.

Behind them other creatures came, most of them ugly, none with the superior grace and power of these. They shrunk closer together in fear. This was more than they could understand, than what they could take, not months before they had assumed they were the only ones alone in a deep blackness, that it was just their planet encircling their star, but come to learn there were eleven planets in their system, and billions of galaxies outside that, and hundreds and billions of other lifeforms. Some, watching from the distance and willing to save them from their own planets destruction, but these.... These creatures were the ones, just as perfect, as otherworldly as they had been described.

So perfect, so beautiful that it brought tears to their eyes collectively. None of them could help but weep throwing themselves to the ground at the feet of their saviors. No one spoke, finally being able to look up, they found the creatures staring at them, their faces masks of unreadable, unemotional stiffness. "You need not do such things, please, rise." The voice that spoke was chilling, hauntingly beautiful like a melody carried through the forest dazzling like a thousand winking stars. They could have danced to it, the rising and falling of his voice soaring high rolling deep with only its simple rhythm. They quickly scrambled to their feet. The creatures waited as they stood awkwardly at the base of the ramp, until a hand reached out beckoning them with a flowing sweeping motion.

"Come."

They did as they were told scrambling up the ramp, feeling so jerky and awkward as they moved slipping on the ramp, nearly falling sometimes as they reached the top. They looked up caught in the gaze of a single green eye. They could see better now, see the slight hitch in the creature's movement, see the blue metal on his feet, see the pain of ancient injuries.

What could have been so horrible, so terrible as to take grace from such a creature? It was so sad, so horrible. This time they wept for his pain, for the ruining of a perfect body. The only response of the creature was to raise an eyebrow over his single working eye. "Why do you weep?" He wondered melodic voice washing over them like a wave.