CHAPTER 3

Arrival

Bags in hand, the pair stepped into a dim, empty, colorless hallway with their escort close by their side. Reza led them to an elevator like those at the launch station. This elevator, however, was much less grand. Self-healing, mycelial walls and physical buttons betrayed the age of the structure. This was clearly one of the first things built on the ship. Scuffs had been made and grown over enough times the floor had become bumpy and rigid, lacking the spongy, cork-like texture those living floors were known for. At the end of the descent, the elevator whined and shuddered. Reza offered an apologetic smile to his party as the doors slowly opened.

When the doors did finally open, the view beyond them was startling. A large, airy receiving area beckoned the little group out of the old metal box they arrived in. Glossy, colorful screens covered the walls. When the three of them stepped out of the elevator, a green path lit up the ground beneath their feet and wound around long lines of people waiting to be checked-in, ending in front of a set of glass doors on the far side of the terminal. Reza allowed Emly and Yaro a moment to take everything in before he urged them on. Most of the walls and floor were a frosty white with soft, slowly pulsing colors, and the ceiling a bright sky blue. Beneath the feet of every person in the room a vibrant path much like their own lead to the appropriate checkpoint. As new people stepped off the elevators, their path would shoot off toward the glass doors or the long, winding queue. The queue's floor was a solid bright blue under the feet of all the tired passengers ready to get to their Quarters and get settled into their new homes. 

As Reza, Emly, and Yaro made their way across the terminal, their path faded behind them, flickering off when they reached the doors.  

"After you," Reza said as he opened the door. 

On the other side, the floors were smooth, black stone. The walls were real ebony, a rarity and most likely salvaged, since the last large trees were choked out by pea vines decades ago. Despite the dark décor, a soft, illuminated ceiling that mimicked an autumn sky made the cozy lobby feel more like a shaded glen than a high-end waiting room. Reza indicated a set of chairs that seemed carved out of the wall itself for the pair to sit in while he got the check-in process rolling. 

"Ladies," he said, beckoning them to an inky blue desk manned by a serious woman in a faintly glowing, gray bodysuit that fit her curves so closely, it must have been painted on. From the tips of her shoulders down to her feet, only the pads of her fingers were exposed. A wide boat neck skirted her collarbone, its edges curled into narrow frills of differently colored layers of impossibly thin fabric. She smiled politely and took Emly's hand into her own, then pressed it firmly against a glowing white circle on the desk. 

Emly looked down at the smooth, gray hand holding her own in wonder. The soft, velvety fabric blended seamlessly into the bare pads of the woman's fingers, like charcoal rubbed into her skin. Yaro stared openly at the frills that lay against her chest. When it was her turn, she noticed that what appeared to be a single, uniform field of gray was made up of panels of some sort of film that contoured her muscles, cinching in her already slim waist and streamlining her bust into two smooth curves. The woman, accustomed to this type of attention, casually read off their information to confirm its accuracy before asking Emly to tap the white circle with her index finger. 

"Thank you. You're now a citizen," the woman stated in a clipped German accent. 

Reza turned to the two bewildered creatures beside him. "Congratulations," he said, cheerfully puncturing the dead silence of the room. 

A little hesitantly, the two followed their escort past the desk to a brightly lit, wide corridor. The color of the floor and walls gradually lightened as they passed several offices until it was a warm, inviting peach like polished maple. Turning the corner, they entered a large open atrium with clear glass doors along one side, and white-enameled doors along another. 

"This is where things get interesting," Reza said, as he stopped to explain the location. 

"This is the main hall. Your orientation will be here tomorrow, as well as some of the other major gatherings. This is also how you get from the Residential Hub to the Gardens." Reza nodded toward the glass doors. 

Emly and Yaro gasped as they realized what lay beyond them; bright sunlight shone on large, concrete steps leading down to a lush, green courtyard. Fully grown cherry trees lined a drive which wound around a grassy hill and disappeared from view.  They looked to Reza in amazement, who smiled back at them before leading them to the enameled doors ahead. 

"This is the way to the Residential Hub. The Observation Deck is here, as well as a medical complex, churches, government…basically, this is like your downtown. It's completely public; anyone can go through there and into the main hall." 

Pushing through the doors, Reza continued to explain the layout of the ship to the pair in dizzying detail. One section after another, he left nothing out. He took them through hallways and elevators, stairways and streets, showing them the town-like Hub before finally ending at the tube that would lead them to their new home. 

"Alright. Thank you for bearing with me ladies, you're probably tired and overwhelmed and don't remember a quarter of that, but I promise you'll be better for it. Now, Yaro, have you ever ridden the tube down on Earth?" 

Yaro shook her head. 

"You're in for a treat. This will take you anywhere you want to go. You can go from Quarter to Quarter, to the Hub, the Gardens, with the right clearance you can even go to the military bases clear on the other side of our little world." 

Yaro stared, her brain so full of information she felt her head could barely contain it. 

"Anyway, just step on this little plate here," Reza pointed to one of a long row of metal plates on the floor in front of the large alcove before them, "and a tube should come along for you." 

Yaro stepped up onto the plate gingerly. A large 7 was etched into its surface. After a moment, a soothing voice requested that all passengers for vessel 7 step onto the plate. Emly and Reza joined Yaro and waited. Another moment went by before a hatch slid open in the ceiling above, making way for a white, lightly scuffed, cylindrical capsule to descend slowly and hover just above the floor of the alcove. 

Emly took her daughter's hand and led her into the capsule. Its walls were transparent from the inside and lined with soft vinyl seats. After they stowed their luggage, they strapped themselves into the padded restraints. Reza called out their destination, and the capsule popped up through the ceiling into a long, colorfully lit tunnel. 

Murals painted with swirling light passed by in a blur, until the vessel popped up through another opening. It stopped in a glass-walled structure in the middle of a grassy divider on an idyllic little street. Young fruit trees dotted the island of grass and cut short their view of the smooth stone street beyond. 

"Your new neighborhood," Reza said as they stepped off the capsule onto the grass below. "We're almost home." 

Reza led them down a narrow street lined with coffee shops, clothing stores, and restaurants. The buildings around them raised several stories, but what got Yaro and Emly’s attention was the sky above. High above the buildings, a translucent, pale blue ceiling mimicked the sky on Earth. Hyper-realistic clouds passed leisurely overhead in time with a light breeze in the air. If they hadn't known better, Emly and Yaro would have sworn they were down on the planet they'd left behind, in some small mountain town on the East Coast. Even as tired as they were, they were almost disappointed when they reached the door to their new house too soon to absorb the sight. 

"Welcome home," Reza said, as he handed Emly two round white plastic keys with "Brandt" scribbled on the front. "Do you two have any other questions before I let you get settled?" 

Emly stared blankly at the escort. "I'm not sure I can think of anything right now…It's a lot to take in." 

"Of course," Reza said. "Here, take my card in case you have any questions later or just want a tour around town." 

Reza handed her a small card with his name and a red circle printed side by side on the front. 

"Don’t forget: your orientation is tomorrow, 10am. Breakfast will be provided, but I'd recommend getting something local. The food at those things isn't usually too enticing."