| |
(Jenny looked up from the journal with a start when she realized Lizziebot was turning on lights and closing the curtains in the living room and dining room.
She was almost surprised to find herself here, as absorbed as she had been in the beginning of the Alliance training that she had missed out on. It almost felt as if she were experiencing it alongside her aunt. If it hadn’t been for the death of Lizzie, followed swiftly by Miriha’s death and the drastic circumstances of the invasion of Earth, Jenny would have had podmates and training in these same Alliance training facilities.
“You haven’t eaten,” Lizziebot chided gently. “May I fix you something so you can continue to read?”
“Yes, please,” Jenny said. “I’m just starting to get to the good stuff.” And she read on...)
Lizzie walked next to Lall in a daze amidst a torrent of questions racing through her head. She suddenly felt like a freshman, unprepared and somewhat overwhelmed by the magnitude of what she had just committed to.
Even entering the university (what now seemed like eons ago instead of only a couple of years), she had not felt like this. She tended to be confident of her abilities to meet any challenge, but she was no longer quite so sure.
Lall stopped beside the door to the pod quarters and turned to face the administration building. Lizzie copied him and soon realized why he was facing this way and why they hadn’t gone inside. A musical tone sounded from the building, somewhat like a chord on a xylophone. Nearly immediately after came the sound of hundreds of feet and a stream of beings of various sizes and descriptions pouring from the building onto the walks surrounding the large field.
Lizzie worked hard at keeping her expression neutral. Even meeting the staff had not prepared her for the sheer number of varying shapes, sizes, and colors of the students of the agent training center. Some of the colors she couldn’t even put a name to, and only a relatively small number of them appeared to be even remotely humanoid.
Lall stood calmly by her side, seemingly unaffected. “You will notice that this school accommodates beings that some of us would have never imagined ourselves if we had not had the opportunity to be a part of the Alliance. Individual species and cultures often imagine themselves as the ultimate expression of intelligent life, but what you see represented here is only a small fraction of the beings you may ultimately interact with.
“I find it helpful for students to get over some of the shock of it before meeting their podmates. At that point, the differences don’t seem quite so insurmountable.” There was a humorous tone to this sending, although his face remained inscrutable.
Lizzie didn’t reply. She watched while the various beings sorted themselves into the barracks surrounding the field. Hers was at the far end of the compound, so she was able to see this from a curious perspective. She noticed that similar types of beings were grouped in pods, which ultimately made sense, as she assumed they all had differing needs where useful facilities for sleeping, bathing, and other hygiene requirements were concerned.
She found herself wondering about food. Her stomach reminded her that she hadn’t eaten since breakfast. Since the days here were quite a bit longer than those on Earth, she realized that meal schedules must be different also. Obviously, becoming an agent for the Dimensional Alliance would mean adapting to more than just different foods and how people looked and acted. Things like gravity, length of day, and seasons would also potentially take some getting used to.
Now coming closer and closer was a group of humanoids who appeared to be in mindspeech conversations, based on changing facial expressions and body language as they walked along.
There were ten of them. They halted just short of Lizzie and Lall and waited expectantly.
“Pod, I wish to introduce you to the final member of your pod for this term. This is Lizzie Japhet from the planet Earth in the Terran dimension. She has just come from her initial preparatory course at the Earth training center. Agent training is her first opportunity to meet beings from different dimensions. You all remember how that felt, so please help her to adapt.
“Lizzie, these are your podmates. Pods work as a team to aid one another in excelling in the coursework that will prepare you all to be agents of the Alliance. Let us retire to the training area inside so you can introduce yourselves.”
He nodded to Lizzie, gesturing for her to follow him into the barracks. He led her up to the front of the training area and pulled one of the chairs up to the front, aligning it with the chair that already faced the half circle of chairs, and motioned for her to sit.
The others took the facing chairs. She could now see why the chairs were varying types and sizes. Three of her podmates were very similar to overgrown linebackers, so large and muscular that one of the other chairs would not have supported them and would have been very uncomfortable.
Lall instructed, “Let’s go from left to right, starting with Negoth.”
Lizzie wouldn’t have been able to pick Negoth out of any crowd on Earth. He was tall, about six feet, but had no unusual features that she could discern: brown hair worn longer than most men would have in current cultures on Earth, brown eyes, large hands, and tanned skin.
“I am Negoth of Elarna,” he began in a soft, deep mind voice. “You look a lot like a cousin of mine, so I would guess we are very similar in many ways, although I am learning that outward appearances can be very deceptive.” He smiled and sat down.
Lall nodded to the next in line, who looked a lot like the receptionist at Alliance headquarters, also winged, but feathered in intense reds, oranges, and bright yellow, with a beak, and with slender, humanoid arms and delicate hands. Lizzie’s best guess was that this was female, which seemed to be confirmed by her soprano mind voice.
“Hello, Lizzie. I am Reanni, a Calyx from the planet Langtrey in the dimension, Alluvia. Our culture has long been a full member of the Alliance, and I have met other Earthlings. I am sure we can work well together.”
She nodded at Lizzie and sat down.
One by one the rest stood and introduced themselves:
Linlin was about the same height as Lizzie, equipped with four arms and long green hair that wiggled and squirmed Medusa-like. She designated herself as female from Glang of the Fleuvali dimension. Her mind voice was somewhat bland and unemotional, as was her facial expression. Her hair seemed to be the most expressive part of her.
Mang was from Gligingamandixx. Evidently, Mang was a nickname, as none of the others could pronounce his full name. He seemed okay with it. He looked a lot like what might have been called an elf on Earth, pointed ears and all, but his skin was a deep magenta in color and his eyes were catlike and green.
Feth was as dwarflike as Mang was elflike, with very pale, almost translucent skin and no beard. His head was bald, and both ears sported begemmed earrings that hung to the base of his square jaw. He was from the planet En from the Slysian dimension. His stalwart appearance was belied, however, by his somewhat squeaky mind voice and a humorous twist to his mouth.
Minth didn’t appear to be out of the ordinary, except he seemed to have rubber gloves on his hands, which he held up as he introduced himself. “I wear rubber gloves and shoes for your protection and mine. My species have a much more intense electrical charge than most other lifeforms, and we can be somewhat dangerous, especially when aroused with strong emotions, including humor, anger, and friendship. This works well on our planet, Wyle, but in other places we need to be careful. So, you will excuse me ahead of time for not shaking hands or engaging in any of the other touch-related gestures that are common among various cultures.
“My studies here are to prepare me to be an ambassador strictly to dimensions already enrolled as members of the Alliance. Obviously, I would have a difficult time camouflaging my true nature in an alien culture outside the Alliance. I will eventually serve as a liaison between the Alliance and my people.”
This was the longest introduction so far, but Lizzie could see why it was necessary.
Next came Gi. She explained that her name wasn’t short for anything. It was just Gi. Her appearance would have been pretty Earthlike, if it weren’t for the light green tint to her skin and her bright blue and yellow hair that stood out spikily from her head. She claimed the planet Finque from the dimension of Il with pride, and the tone of her mind voice was deep and silky.
Then, surprisingly, all three of the large beefy beings stood in unison. In a single mind voice that felt like a chorus, they sent, “Lizzie, we are Geln. We are a joined-mind entity with the convenience of three physical presences. You address us as a single being. We have the capability of acting individually but are directed by a single consciousness. We come from the planet Krix in the Bevial dimension.”
They sat down again and Lall stood. “I imagine you are probably hungry, Lizzie. I have set up a special meal for you and your podmates so you can get to know one another better. Normally we have four mealtimes daily, one at break of day, two what you would call lunches, and finally an evening meal.
“You will be dining with your podmates exclusively until the second stage of your training. By that time, you will have completed the first half of your ambassador etiquette training, and you will get the opportunity to practice what you have learned by dining with and mingling with fellow trainees in other pods from many different dimensions.
“After you have eaten, your podmates will escort you to your Alliance history class. You have about a week of catching up to do, so before bed each night one of your podmates, on a rotating schedule, will help you get up to speed for the next few weeks. Your lesson materials have been translated to your language and will load to your tablet the next time you open it.
“After classes today, Reanni will take you to the outfitter station, where they will add some essentials to your MDP, tools, clothing and other things you may decide you need.
“For now, just follow your podmates and do what they do. Any questions?”
Lizzie shook her head, her brain spinning. Always before, she was ahead of every one of her classmates in every subject. She didn’t know how to respond to not only being behind but feeling more than a little awed by the seeming vastness of the task in front of her.
“Then let’s go get some food and relax for a bit.”
As they all stood, Lall put a hand on Lizzie’s shoulder. “Lizzie, I know this may be a bit overwhelming at first, and we’re going to work you hard. Morning and evening physical workouts on top of all of the information and mental exercises you will be getting in all of your classes, not to mention self-defense training at midday. If at any time it seems a little too much, you can count on any of your instructors, including me, to help you reorganize and take any necessary steps to get you back on track.
“Eventually, you and your podmates will also discover you can count on one another, as if they were a part of your family. Much of your evaluation at the end of the certification process will depend on not only your personal achievements but how well you work with a team.”
Lizzie nodded once again. She had never found herself tongue-tied like this before. She always had an opinion and often annoyed both her instructors and the other students in her classes by her outspokenness, constant questions, and generally always having an answer when a professor asked a question of the class.
They headed for a path between the barracks units to a street of single-story buildings. They were plain, painted white with the now familiar huge doors in different colors. Lizzie had to assume this was so you could tell them apart.
“The green door is the dining hall,” Lall continued. “The red door is the outfitter station. I will leave you and your podmates to your meal.” And he walked away past the other buildings and disappeared around a corner.
“Come on, Lizzie,” sent Gi. “I imagine they have starved you since you came through the gate. I know by the time I went through my orientation I was ready to eat a full grown Glark.”
In mindspeech the concept of “Glark” came across as something large like an elephant with spines and six legs. She laughed, and that broke the tension that had been building up since she had walked through the Sanglarka gate.
The dining hall was set up in sections. She had expected this to be similar to the cafeteria at every school she had attended, but this was very different. It was a lot more like a restaurant, and she began to understand why as the meal progressed.
There was a long table at their section with appropriate seating all around it. She noticed there were twelve chairs. She assumed that was because Lall would join them from time to time for meals.
A humanoid being, tall, willowy, and gray-skinned, greeted them and one at a time asked for their orders. Lizzie didn’t recognize any of the dishes requested by her podmates. When the being turned to Lizzie, she introduced herself as Maun and explained that Earth dishes had been programmed into the menu at this point and appropriate foodstuffs had been imported to the pantry to allow her a wide selection. She asked Lizzie to pull her tablet out of her MDP to see the selection of dishes. Lizzie did so and asked for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and a glass of lemonade, which felt like the safest choice for now.
When the food was served from a rolling cart to each of them, they didn’t immediately begin to eat, so Lizzie waited as well. Negoth sent, “We begin each meal with a moment of silence to allow each of us to address the Creator of All Things in thanks in their own way. If this is not your custom, simply wait until all are finished, if you please.”
They each bowed their head, and it was quiet for a minute. Lizzie had been taught to say a blessing on her food, since she was very young, but was somewhat surprised to see that this practice was observed in this very alien environment.
One of her favorite aspects of mindspeech was that one could eat and talk at the same time. Lizzie ate without talking much, listening to the conversations going on around her with great interest.
“I hope the D.A. lesson today is a review,” sent LinLin, her hair waving softly around her face. “Lulindu seems to be bent on finishing the entire course in the first month. I’m having a hard time keeping up.”
“I’m sure this past week was just an overview,” assured Feth in his squeaky voice. “I had an apprentice master who was wont to do that with each new task. He would rapid fire information at you until you were overwhelmed and then go back through, step by step.”
“We think it will all be fine, but it’s etiquette that has us wondering,” Geln said, all three heads nodding. “So many things to remember, and how are we to know the customs of every culture we encounter? So far, we can’t even begin to understand how that works. Even on our planet there are so many cultures with so many different ways of doing things, and that is hard enough. Boggles our mind.”
“We’ve already had mental training this morning, with Liliath’s assistant,” Minth remarked to Lizzie. “You really haven’t missed as much as you might fear. And the Presentation professor is from your own planet, so that might make things a bit easier, although his line of thought has me more than a little concerned. Unpredictable.”
“I also know Meta,” Lizzie replied. “She began my tech training in Sanglarka before I came here. Evidently, she was doing double duty, gating back and forth between dimensions to see that I got my initial training. I can say I was surprised to see her here in my initial briefing at the admin building.”
And so, it went on, each putting in an opinion about their schoolwork. It was obvious to Lizzie that they had already begun to bond as a group, and they seemed welcoming enough to be going on with. This was a new way of thinking about education for her. It had always been mostly a solitary pursuit. It would all take some getting used to, notwithstanding the interesting differences in her podmates.
Mealtime seemed to fly by. In almost no time, there was nothing but crumbs on her plate and the lemonade was empty. Her podmates had also cleaned their various-sized plates. The server had rolled the cart back to the table and began to clear the plates and utensils.
They trooped out and headed back along the path between barracks to the main assembly area and into the school.
They went up three floors to the Dimensional Alliance Studies classroom. Professor Lulindu stood at the front. The room was lined with large windows on one side and surprisingly Earthlike desks and chairs in various sizes in a semicircle facing the instructor.
Located at the far right was a single seat that wasn’t taken by the other students. As Lizzie seated herself there, Professor Lulindu sent to her, “Please take your tablet out of your MDP and click on my face to access your course materials.”
Lizzie did so, still in awe of the technology that allowed such a thing. She remembered hauling a bag of heavy books from class to class at the university and was grateful to get beyond that.
Inside the digital folder for the class were a number of books, as well as a notes section and a folder with instructional videos and charts. In addition, there was a place for her to create and submit reports and essays to the instructor.
As it turned out, Feth had been right about the preceding week’s being an overview. Lulindu began at the beginning of the founding of the Dimensional Alliance today.
“The actual beginnings of the Alliance are not well documented, as any original records were lost over eons of time. Tradition tells us it began as the result of a multidimensional war that lasted thousands of years. One of the dimensions had taken to raiding other dimensions for resources. It wasn’t until the affected dimensions banded together to face their foe that they were successful in ending the threat.
“Once they had contained the offending dimension, it occurred to them that the naturally occurring gateways continued to be a threat as other dimensions discovered that they could be used in such a way. They combined their resources, and their scientists discovered a way to control access to incoming and outgoing traffic through the gates.
“We don’t know a lot about the science behind this, but once they had created monitored gates between the allied dimensions, it occurred to them that other dimensions without the benefit of this science were still at risk. Could they in any conscience continue in safety, knowing that others didn’t have that luxury?
“Also, they realized that there needed to be a central controller to the gate system, and that had to be done by agreement amongst the Alliance members.
“So, they took on a daunting, almost impossible task, on the one hand, seeking out naturally occurring dimensional portals in other dimensions and, on the other hand, developing a system of governance for the existing gate system to prevent corruption of the use of the gates.
“They decided that the guiding principle in all of this needed to be the guardianship of the right of each culture in each dimension to pursue their own destiny without interference from any other dimension.
“As long as no dimension interfered with any other dimension, they could choose their own path, whether others agreed with it or not.
“The temptation to meddle in the affairs of dimensions that might be pursuing a path to their own destruction was great, however. It was often argued that the Alliance could interfere if it was for the dimension’s ‘own good.’ But the few times that the Alliance did that, it ended in disaster, regardless of their best intentions. They discovered you cannot force a culture to do what is best for them.
“They also discovered to their horror that exposing cultures who were not advanced enough to receive technology beyond their normal development was also intrinsically a flawed concept. Thus, we developed a policy of non-interference; this meant that, although we protect every portal we discover with carefully selected native gate guardians, we do not offer Alliance membership to every dimension that has known gateways.
“These are the basics and foundational principles of what we will now learn by specific examples. This course of history is intended to reinforce the reasoning behind the whys and wherefores of our policies.
“We will begin by having each of you research the gate history of your own dimension and its connection to the Alliance. You will find those reference materials in folders labeled with the name of your own dimension. In two weeks, each of you will do a presentation of your personal dimensional history. Understood?”
There were nods of assent from each of the students. Mang asked, “Does this mean that students will be teaching the class?”
“Indeed. You will find that this is a standard teaching method during your agent training. We want the students to be invested in their education, and we want you to be able to relate strongly and personally to the principles we teach. In addition, research has shown that one of the best ways to internalize something is to teach it to someone else.
“For the coming few weeks, we will meet here in the classroom where you can ask questions and discuss what you are learning from your personal studies while you prepare your reports. After that, we will be taking some field trips to demonstrate more clearly what you are learning. For now, you are dismissed.”
There was a scraping of chairs as they rose.
“Now where?” Lizzie inquired of the group in general.
“Science,” sent Gi in her soft, deep, almost musical mind voice.
The laboratories took up the entire basement, segmented into the various disciplines of scientific study. Today, Meta would be teaching an overview of the background of gate science and some of the history of advances over the past couple thousand years. They would be exploring other Alliance technology over time, but this was the basis of everything they did.
As they proceeded through the lesson, Lizzie felt comforted by the fact that most of her podmates weren’t much better informed than she was, and that was actually quite common among the general populace of even the longest standing member dimensions throughout the Alliance.
It was a lot like the fact that most people on Earth had no idea how the lightbulb worked and only thought about it when it didn’t work. As long as the light went on every time you flipped the switch, why did you have to know the whys and wherefores?
In this class they would also be taking multiple field trips to gates around the Alliance planet, including to one that hovered in space not far from the star base that orbited the planet.
By the time they finished with the science class, Lizzie’s stomach was rumbling again. But evidently it wasn’t time for the second lunch break yet. The elongated days were definitely going to take some getting used to.
As they left the classroom, Negoth piped up with, “Etiquette next. Get ready for some eye-opening revelations. No reports or presentations to prepare here. It’s all hands-on labs and performance-based examination. Fin is easy going unless you decide to sluff off or fall asleep during one of his lectures.”
Lizzie smiled at him, and he smiled back. Then, as she entered the classroom at the top of the basement stairs, she stopped smiling, admittedly a bit confused.
The classroom was large, square, and divided into four areas. There were no desks. Instead, one area looked like the back room of a tailor’s shop. Another appeared to be a formal dining room. In the corner next to that was a cleared space with a shining marble floor. In the fourth corner was what might have been the inside of a tropical hut.
Fin greeted them at the door, waving them towards the dining area. There were placards in front of each of the chairs, and at each place was set a variety of different foods.
It was interesting to see the various characters written on each of the placards. Lizzie’s name was inscribed in calligraphy in English, but evidently each of them recognized their names and went straight to their places at the table, which sat a dozen people comfortably. Fin stood at the head of the table behind an ornate chair with gold scrollwork on the seat back.
“As you can see, we will be learning best practices when eating in a formal dining situation. As those of you know who have attended my classes this past week, the areas of this room change from time to time. We will be doing the eating etiquette module all this week. At the end of this section of your course, we will be presented with a feast, at which time your performance will be evaluated to determine if you will need any remedial instruction.
“On each of your place settings you will notice that there are foods you recognize and many you do not. I can assure you that all of the food choices presented are appropriate to your own constitution, and none of them will harm you in any way.
“In future modules, we will be learning how to test unknown foods and the most congenial way to refuse something that might harm you. In addition, we will be covering the supplies in your MDP of antidotes and medicines to rescue you if there are ever any delayed symptoms or reactions to something you have eaten.
“Most of the time, but not always, there will already have been research on the edibility of the native foods in any area you are assigned.
“But for today, we will be exploring the basics of common etiquette practices in your own planets, to demonstrate clearly what you are up against. Each of you will demonstrate as much as you know about common practices of formal dining where you live, with foods you are familiar with.
“The second half of the class will be devoted to having each of you try at least two foods you are unfamiliar with.
“So, let us begin.”
Lizzie felt a little panicked at this. She was used to trying new foods; her parents had insisted on their children having a wide variety of eating experiences from various cultures. But the idea of teaching the etiquette of Earth to her podmates was daunting. She had only had a very few experiences with formal dining and wasn’t at all confident about teaching it to anyone else.
However, it soon became evident that she wasn’t the only one who wasn’t confident about her prowess in this area. From the stricken looks on Gi’s and Feth’s faces, she could tell they were trying to figure out what they could possibly say on this topic.
Placed before her was a meal typical of what she would have been served in Sanglarka. A dinner salad, a hearty stew, a roll with a pat of butter on a bread plate, a glass of water, and a piece of apple pie. The setting included an array of silverware, a cloth napkin, and a small tray of what looked like hors d’oeuvres.
She paid strict attention as each of her podmates explained the meal that was set in front of them as well as the varying utensils. These ranged from variations on spoons and forks and chopsticks, as well as eating knives that served as forks as well. In some cases, the only utensils were their fingers.
Some of the dishes were meat heavy, and some were strictly various vegetables and fungi. In any case, by the time they got to Lizzie, who was extremely grateful she was saved for last, she had organized her thoughts and explained the various spoons and knives and the use of the napkin.
She had noticed that none of her podmates had mentioned the plate with bite-sized bits of food that evidently were not appetizers.
When she finished her explanation, Fin told them to go ahead and eat their meal, observing one another as they went. He also instructed that the little plates were “samples” of some foods they had probably never tasted before, assuring them once again that they were perfectly safe for them to try.
As they ate, Fin explained some of the different types of eating experiences they might have over their time as an agent, including everything from eating outside sitting on rock benches or the ground, to eating in the equivalent of restaurants and pubs or dining in banquets in palaces.
Lizzie found that as hungry as she had thought she had been before they started, she would probably not be able to finish the ample servings placed before her and felt she needed to place a priority on the sampler tray.
She picked up what looked like a slice of fruit. It was incredibly sour, but she tried hard not to pull a face or to pucker in response. Once the shock of its bitterness wore off, she realized that it might be nice if the juice was added to something else to dilute it down, but not for casual eating, as one would eat an apple or orange.
Some of the things she tried were extremely salty or sweet, but many had flavors she didn’t quite know how to describe. In all cases, she realized that sitting in a formal setting and showing distaste for what was set in front of you probably wouldn’t be considered good manners. If this was so complicated just dealing with something as simple as eating a meal, how was she ever going to master the rest?
Fin didn’t give any sign that he was evaluating their performance. He did, however, tell them that tomorrow they would get their first opportunity to eat in a completely foreign setting and promptly departed the class, not giving any indication whether they had done well or not.
They trooped out of the admin building to assemble on the turf in front of the pod. Lall was waiting there, feet planted shoulder width apart, arms folded across his burly chest.
“Staffs out!” he called out in the mental equivalent of what her dad would have called “parade ground voice.”
Lizzie surprised herself with her own immediate response to this command. Without her stopping to think, her staff had appeared in her hand from her MDP in guard position, almost like magic. She had groaned at the many times Oak had made her practice this. Like a swordsman sheathing and unsheathing a sword, Oak had explained that the ability to have the staff at hand in an unexpected attack could mean the difference between defeat and survival.
“Your new podmate makes your number uneven, so for now I shall pair with her, and we will switch off each day, rotating through until each of you have had the dubious opportunity to be my partner. For the next week we will be practicing the forms. Face your partner. On my count: one, two, three, and begin!”
At a measured pace they worked the forms that had become so familiar to Lizzie. She was now very grateful for the opportunity she had been given in Sanglarka to work with Oak. Although she was fairly sure she would never be a brilliant staff fighter, she could generally hold her own with only a few bruises to show for it.
The forms were much like a choreographed dance that moved forward and back, one on defense and one on the attack; the rhythmic “clack, clack, clack” of the staffs striking one another echoed off the walls of the facing pod buildings. It was almost hypnotic, and when the echoes of the final clack reverberated and faded, Lizzie almost felt bereft.
She realized she was sweating. How long had they been working? She hadn’t noticed the passage of time.
“Well done, one and all. You are dismissed until the stretching run. Second lunch now, and more classes on your schedule. See you this evening.” The dismissal was genial, and Lizzie felt she had acquitted herself well enough.
Ironically, it was now time for second lunch. Despite their workout, they all agreed that going to the dining hall after the meal in Fin’s class was unnecessary at this point, so they went to their pod instead.
Geln immediately collectively laid down on their individual beds with a choral sigh. The rest settled into the training area, tablets in hand, to go through their notes and begin on their report for Lulindu. Each of the chairs in the training area was equipped with a slide-out stand that could be adjusted to hold their tablets at the best optimum level for their individual use.
Instead of a physical keyboard, the tablet utilized a holographic keyboard, each designed for the individual being who used it. Meta had helped Lizzie customize hers to look a lot like the keyboard on her old typewriter at home. It was a little odd getting used to not having the feeling of touching the keys, and it was awkward in the beginning; but over time she was getting used to it. She had taken a “touch typing” course in college, so once she became accustomed to not having to feel the actual keys under her fingers, she had gained speed and accuracy.
Lizzie was beginning to relax somewhat in the company of her podmates. What she had observed in the first three classes and having dined with them twice so far was that they weren’t so far ahead that she couldn’t catch up, and none of them seemed to expect her to be any more than what she was.
“We have one more inside class today,” sent Linlin in her nearly monotone mind voice as she adjusted her tablet stand. “Baird is an interesting person. His instruction style is a bit flamboyant, but the information is well thought out, and he has the advantage of many years’ experience.”
“Thanks for the heads up,” Lizzie replied. “I find it interesting, the various teaching styles and the subjects they have chosen for us. Very different from anything in the universities on Earth. Is it the same for you?”
“Indeed. Sometimes some of the classes almost feel frivolous, but over time I think we will see the reasoning behind them. I admit I find myself poorly prepared for the scope of it all.”
“Really? I’m so glad I’m not the only one who feels that way. Is your planet an Alliance member?”
“Yes, but only for about the last hundred years. And you?”
“Earth is not a member of the Alliance, but we are a gateway planet for our dimension, so although there are Alliance Gate Guardians and, from time to time, agents are recruited from among us, the existence of the Alliance and the gateways is strictly guarded from the general populace.”
“Then I suppose this is even more daunting for you than for those of us from Alliance member dimensions. If you need any help, please let me know. I’m not as outgoing as many of our colleagues, but I am very interested in other cultures and societal structures.”
“Thank you,” Lizzie replied wholeheartedly. “I appreciate the support and look forward to exchanging information with all of you. It also helps a lot to know I’m not terribly behind everyone else.”
As Linlin had said, Baird was as unique as the other instructors had been in methodology as well as in energy and enthusiasm for his subject. As they entered the classroom, the layout once again was very different from the other classrooms.
Instead of the semicircle of chairs and desks or chairs sitting around a table, the desks in this room were laid out in a circle. Outside the circle facing inward were mirrors, so that one could see their own face reflected as well as the two sitting on either side of them. At any given time, individual trainees could see their own face, the faces of those facing them in the circle, and those sitting on either side of them.
It was a bit disconcerting at first, and Lizzie wasn’t the only one in the circle who tended to look down at their desk rather than out into the mirrors and the faces of those across the circle from them.
“It’s a habit you will lose over the course of this class,” Baird intoned with a chuckle, noting their downcast eyes. “Nearly every being has a hard time with the mirrors and a class where you are constantly looking into one another’s faces. But, over time, you will learn how to look yourself in the eye and all those you meet, with a very few culturally warranted exceptions.
“In this class you will learn to be honest with yourself and to govern your facial expressions and body language and to alter it at need. Diplomacy is not very effective when your body language and facial expressions belie your words. And it is much harder to blend in with others in an alien environment when you don’t know how to recognize common social behaviors. So, noticing and remembering what you see will be of prime importance.
“After this class, you will be put under the tender mercies of Lall, where you will no doubt face pain and fatigue of the body. But in this class, you will face pain and fatigue on a mental level. This is different from your mental discipline classes, as we are more concerned about what you show to those around you and not so much about what goes on inside.
“Lizzie, we welcome you to the class. I wish you to notice that although your podmates have been exposed to this discipline for a week now, they still struggle with the mirror exercise. Knowing what I know about the denizens of Earth, however, I have a feeling you will catch up soon enough.
“Now, on with it...
“Each of you please look up and into the mirror facing you. Although you will be able to also see your classmates, I wish you to look directly into your own eyes and note what you see.”
Lizzie looked up as instructed, but without enthusiasm. She didn’t care much for mirrors. She only ever looked into one when it was absolutely necessary. She kept her hair short for a reason. The less time spent in front of a mirror trying to get her hair to behave, the better she liked it.
So, she looked carefully and critically at her own face. At first it was all about the fact that her short auburn hair had been tousled by the slight breeze on the compound that day around her tanned face, and she looked more than a little tired. Her day had started early on Sanglarka; and since the days on this planet were so much longer than the usual 24 hours of Earth, she found her eyes to be a bit droopy, as her mom would have said.
She had never thought of herself as vain or absorbed with her appearance, but she had to admit to herself that she was somewhat plain; deliberately so, if she was honest. But as they continued to sit there staring uncomfortably at themselves, she began to notice some other things.
Looking into her own blue eyes that almost appeared violet was difficult. Especially since she could see beyond the face into her thoughts of insecurity and self-criticism. She never quite thought she was as capable or smart as she would have liked to have been. She put a good face on it to the outside world, but something inside her drove her to become more, to excel beyond her own perceived abilities, and she was generally harsh with herself when she fell short.
Now she asked herself, in context with Professor Baird’s remarks, what others saw when they looked at her. Did she come off as confident, or just arrogant? Did her lack of attention to her appearance show a lack of consideration for others’ opinions? Did she need to overhaul her attitude? Could it be that Miriha was mistaken in her confidence in her abilities?
She shook her head, losing confidence moment by moment. She risked a look out of the corner of her eye at her podmates. None of them appeared to be happy with this exercise. Gi actually had a tear glimmering in the corner of one eye. Evidently, Lizzie wasn’t alone in her personal assessment.
Then, Professor Baird interrupted her chain of thought with, “Very well. I can see you are all squirming. This is good. Now, I want each of you to look at one another. Not now. But throughout the coming day. Tomorrow we will be examining our thoughts and will be reporting on what we see in each other. I know none of you have known each other long,” he continued, holding up a hand to prevent comments or questions. “This exercise is about judgment, not criticism. Being able to judge a situation by observing those around you is an important skill. You are dismissed to the tender mercies of Lall.”
And at that, he strode out through the door.
For a moment, the entire pod sat there, somewhat stunned.
Then, with sheepish looks at one another, they rose and followed him out of the classroom door.
No one spoke as they trooped out to the commons. Sure enough, Lall was waiting at the edge of the large grassy training area between the rows of pod buildings. They halted before him, quietly awaiting his orders.
“After undergoing all of that intense stimulation of your brains, it is time to recharge your system. Today we will be running the aerobics course. In the morning we will run the stretching course. We will continue this pattern until I am confident you are ready to do both the morning and night exercises without stress.
“Your requirement as an Alliance Agent is to be fit physically as well as mentally. Not all of you will find yourself in situations that will require extreme physical exertion, but this also addresses your ongoing health and usefulness. A sick agent is not effective or useful. In your role as an Alliance Agent, strengthening the body is as vital to your success as strengthening your mind.
Now, follow me. Mang, please bring up the rear of the group and aid any who are having difficulty.”
Mang nodded curtly, almost as if he expected this.
And so, they ran. The aerobics course consisted of segments of about a five-minute run interspersed with various calisthenics intended to bring the heart rate up and strengthen various parts of the body.
Lizzie found she was now very glad for the initial training in Sanglarka. She was not the least capable of the pod, at any rate. Feth seemed to struggle the most with the various exercises due to his short legs, but he never complained. And as Lizzie had suspected, Mang didn’t even seem to be short of breath or sweating when they were done.
Geln, as bulky as they were, was her biggest surprise. They were more light-footed than she would have expected. Indeed, they were probably second only to Mang in making the run seem almost beneath their abilities.
For the rest of them it was a workout, to be sure, but not beyond any of their abilities. By the end of the course, all but Mang and Lall were panting, but none collapsed or complained. Lizzie knew they would all be grateful for a shower and bed, however.
