Waiting Shapeless

Chapter 3. Junit

** Merry Christmas guys :)  **

Tyler: Human

"...He is definitely very muscular, so that's one wish come true." Said the large lizard EkirBai as she scooped up a bite of her meal with one of her four arms.

Her and Tyler decided to go out to eat after the meeting, and were now sitting out on a restaurant's extravagant patio, breathing in the flower scented air and staring out onto beautiful fields of vineyards.

Tyler had discovered the restaurant the last time she was on Junit, but hadn't had the chance to try it out until now.

The place served native Junit food mixed with other popular alien delicacies. This was an interesting concept because before Junit was colonized and bought by the wealthy, the natives were very primitive and lived naked in a sort of 'Garden of Eden' paradise.

Out of curiosity, Tyler had ordered one of the native dishes that the waiter said was popular. It seemed to be a thin slab of meat that somehow had a strange fruit growing in the center of it. The fruit was sweet and incredibly juicy, and the meat was tender and flavorful. Tyler found it surprisingly satisfying.

"But," said Tyler sarcastically, "unfortunately he's not a Quibeek." Referring back to the large Kelpar that had just become the team's new first mate.

"You know I've never been too fond of the Retriplis aliens." Continued Bai with a frown, twisting her food around her plate. She was referring to the universe the purple alien originated from. "Always seemed too dark. This Jirabi guy seems cool though. May need to relax a bit. He's been spending a little too much time around old Hizejak if you ask me."

"You know, I always thought that MY universe's aliens were dark. That's why I don't live in the Seroah universe anymore." Tyler said as she sipped her drink.

"No darling, Seroah aliens aren't dark." Said Bai, taking another mouthful of her food, "They're creepy and ugly. Especially the Humans." Bai muttered quietly as she put her drink to her mouth.

"Excuse me?" Tyler tried to hold a strait face as she glared at the Quibeek.

Bai snort-laughed, spraying her drink across Tyler's plate.

"Oh come on, Bai! I was still eating!"

"I'm sorry dear," Bai chuckled. She made an attempt to wipe up the liquid from the table. "Hey! Have you heard about the Aiters recently?"

Tyler pushed her wet plate away from her and shook her head. She was a little disappointed she couldn't finish her meal, she was really enjoying it. Oh well. She was feeling full anyway.

"They're attacking other beings! They've gone crazy!"

"What??" Spat Tyler. She was not expecting that.

As the Circuits were the first gift of the Holy Ruolten, the Aiters were the third—given to the Gallidon universe. They were a species of artificial intelligence that were known for being extraordinarily peaceful, so hearing that they were exhibiting violence came as a huge shock.

"That's what the news is all about now dear! The PFP has quarantined them off on their home planet, and has started fighting against them in some places. How have you not heard of this?"

Tyler was flabbergasted. "All of the Aiters are acting violent?"

"No, no. Just some of them. At the moment they think it's some sort of contagious disease, because its only happens in specific places and it seems to spread. Very odd if you ask me."

Unlike the Circuits, Tyler had met many Aiters. They weren't uncommon throughout the Gallidon universe; most beings enjoyed their presence because of their endlessly friendly demeanor.

"Let me show you." Said Bai, noticing Tyler's perplexed face.

She drew a screen up with her fingers on the table. "Show us a news cast of the Aiter attacks." She said to the table.

Tyler got up and sat next to Bai so that she could get a good look at the screen. The screen loaded for a moment and then pulled up a video of a tall, beautiful female Pardos standing on a civilized looking landscape. Tyler could only assume that she was on the Aiter home planet, Pareyline. She could see a group of PPF agents marching faintly in the background.

Tyler moved in closer to get a better look.

"I'm standing now" said the busty Pardos with a concerned look, "in a Pentaverse Police Force camp that has been recently set up on Pareyline, the home planet of the Aiters, a species well known in the Gallidon universe.

"As most of the Beings of this universe know, the Aiters have always been a species of peace." She continued. "But shockingly, there have been multiple reports in the past week of Aiters showing extreme forms of hostility towards other species. Here is Head Officer Lliui Iuill Lliui to answer a few questions concerning the attacks."

A Stram adorned in thick protective armor stepped into the picture. The being was a lot shorter than the beautiful Pardos, but that wasn't surprising. The Pardos were all tall.

The Stram species on the other hand came in all shapes and sizes; this one was fairly stocky. Its head resembled a deadly shark with rows and rows of jagged teeth, and a sharp nose that pointed in the air. The officer's six eyes were displaying an emotion of strained patience, as if he had much better things to be doing at the moment.

"Officer, thank you for joining us today." The Pardos smiled.

"My pleasure." Said the Stram a bit too sarcastically. He quickly inhaled through his nose staunchly.

The Pardos pretended to not notice the Stram's distain. "Now, in what way are these deranged Aiters acting hostile?"

The Officer took a deep breath and paused a bit before answering the question. "So far, all of the incidents have been physical attacks. Fortunately there haven't been any casualties, though quite a few species have been injured."

"Uh-huh" inserted the news female, "and is there an explainable cause for these random attacks?"

"No. We're still trying to get things figured out. This is still a recent issue, we've got lab workers and specialists on it—we still need some time. But we will get this taken care of." Explained the Stram.

"Is there any advice you have for the beings of Gallidon that associate with Aiters?"

"Yes. Don't be racist. Really. So far all the attacks have happened here on Pareyline, so if you have a coworker or a friend who is Aiter, you are perfectly safe as far as we can tell. Just stay informed on our progress. And if you are a Aiter, stay away from infected areas or other Aiters who might be experiencing strange symptoms." The Officer's patience seemed to be waning thin, and the Pardos could tell.

"Thank you Officer, for your time." Smiled the Pardos. Her gleaming smile was stunning.

The Stram nodded slightly and walked off.

"And there you have it! Stay friendly but aware of Aiters in your daily interactions, and keep a look out for our next update on the issue!" The smiling Pardos disappeared and Bai's screen went black.

Tyler sat back in her seat. This was troubling.

"Well," said Bai as the dark screen disappeared, "that was a lot shorter than the one I saw, but it got the point across."

Suddenly the screen opened up above the table again. A being made of pinkish crystals with multiple eyes formed above the screen. It was Captain Byralnus, the team seven Captain.

"EkirBai, Jacobs," Byralnus said fairly urgently. "A recent report indicates that the Circuit population had a decrease of over a million just in the past 24 hours."

Tyler and Bai glanced at each other.

Byralnus sighed quietly. "Plans have changed, we're leaving for Gnumus now."