The city didn’t look like a city at all. From their approach, it was invisible, blending seamlessly into the surrounding mountains. Not giant rocky mountains, but gentle, smooth mountains covered in various greens. They brought about a comforting feeling the way they were lit in the sun. The humans clumped to stare out the front of the ship but saw nothing more than landscape when Jeff told them the city was just ahead.

Jeff slowed the ship as they approached, but was still traveling fast. He chuckled hysterically to himself when he blasted straight through the side of one mountain, everyone in the ship but him screaming in fear as they cruised straight at the green slope. Then suddenly, they went silent at having warped through some kind of visual shield. They stared now at a sprawling green city that gleamed as though the entire thing were a natural formation and not a constructed one. Covered in plants, with tree’s all about, natural toned buildings rose above the ground. None was too tall, to feel it didn’t belong. Jeff piloted slower now, coasting over marked paths toward what looked like the center of the city, as other traffic of different shapes and sizes zoomed along around them.

“This is incredible. It looks like they grew the city!” Phil gushed as they passed a wide rolling river. The sky was clear and unobstructed, the view of the mountains undisturbed, and apart from the planned arrangement of buildings, the roadway and bridges, it didn’t look like any city Phil had ever visited. “I used to watch them print new cities on Earth, but it always tore up the environment completely and laid everything down on top of it. I thought they were nice cities too, they had lots of green and they were clean. This is crazy. This looks like the planet made it.” He said, running his fingers through his hair in shock and appreciation. Jeff turned to give him an understanding smile at that description. Chip and Henry pressed against the windows, staring. Adrienne sat in her seat gazing out, searching as if she would see Allen walking along somewhere.

A few more minutes led them into the base of a building and the ship lowered on an elevator platform.

“When we get in, we will give you quarters, get you new clothing, and you will have time to rest and recover before meeting anyone official. Each of you will have an escort take you to your quarters. We will keep you all close together. This building is the center of our scientific research facilities for the Valderian nation. The biggest work is done here, and if not, it is decided here. Your escorts will meet you here and take you to the building your quarters will be in. We will meet with the advisor’s team tomorrow and discuss how we might help, and what we should do moving forward. The Valderians are a good people. I told you how they took me in without question. They will do the same for you. You do not have to worry.”

“What about my brother?” Adrienne asked.

“He is in a nearby hospital. You may visit him. In your room you will find an information panel. Just ask it where to go and it will give you the name and location of the facility. We have teleporter’s on every floor, you may use them to get to the building easily…”

“TELEPORTERS??” Phil yelped, interrupting Jeff. Darek was right behind him, wide-eyed.

“Yes? This excites you?” Jeff looked confused.

“We don’t have teleporter’s. Oh, now I’m really excited.” Phil rubbed his hands together.

“They can take you anywhere in the city. You cannot leave the city in them; you will need a craft for that. But, for now at least, you must stay here. We ask that you wait until meeting with the advisors before you go anywhere, the public does not know about you yet. Please Adrienne, wait until after we meet the advisors tomorrow. Your brother is cared for, you do not have to worry.”

She squeezed a smile. Phil knew it was a disappointed smile. She wanted to go now.

The transport glided through what seemed to be a well-lit garage. They passed a variety of transports in bays off to the sides, some looking the same as the one they were in, some clearly for specific purposes. When theirs finally came to rest in its own bay, it lowered with a thunk that shook the vehicle like a stopping elevator.

“We can go now. I will bring you to your escorts and they will get you to your quarters. I have to go attend to some business.” Jeff pressed the door release and the side of the ship opened, revealing the sounds of the outside. It was hollow and echoed, reminding them of the hangar on the moon base. The air smelled clean, skirted by notes of electric heat. “This way.” Jeff led them off.

After a few minutes’ walk, they entered a clean, gray-stone room with several doors side by side on one wall - each appeared to be an elevator. The visitors all hesitated at seeing the Valderian escorts. They looked familiar, but were clearly not human. Jeff addressed them as they approached the party warmly. Their clothes were close fitting uniform suits of tan or gray. All of them were shorter than the humans. Immediately, Darek tapped Phil with his “I need to say a thing that’s hysterical, but I can’t say it right now” urgency. Phil knew exactly why. As the escorts approached, he was surprised at how beautiful the females were. They matched Jeff’s description, but their wide, slightly squared jaws had an appealing strength. The shocking thing though was the males. As they walked, long beards glided with them, hanging in beautiful locks from their jaws and ending at just about their chests. Their heads were covered in dense wiry hair, shaped uniquely – one trimmed close, one squared off and flat at the top, the other tight around the sides and carved into polygonal angles at the top.

Darek tapped Phil again as they got closer. “I know, I know.” Phil tried to grunt in a whisper, fighting back the urge to laugh.

“Hair beards!” Darek squeaked into Phil’s side before they came within earshot of the escorts and exchanged pleasantries. Introducing themselves, Phil struggled to listen to the details and keep his eyes on anything but the flowing hairlike beards that shook with their speech. It was the exact opposite of a human man’s head hair – the beard was on top of their heads and the head hair was in the beard spot. Every time they turned or moved their head, the straight locks bounced or flowed with them, hanging loose and gleaming. It was hard not to laugh, his imagination drifting to Earth girls hanging their heads backward and swinging their hair. Phil noticed even Adrienne was glancing at them often. The Valderians clearly had no idea this was out of the ordinary, though they had to have noticed that Phil and Darek were sporting a good layer of dense, unflowing facial hairs.

“Okay, I leave you now. Your escorts will take care of you. If you need to speak with me today, just ask your information panel for me. Jeff Taharian.” As if in answer to Phil and Darek’s twisted faces, he explained. “Tahar means ‘from the heavens’ in Valderian language. Taharian means I am a Valderian come from the heavens.”

“Hm, cool.” Darek said as Phil nodded agreement. “I didn’t even think to ask if you had a last name.”

“You may go now; I will meet you in the morning. Your escorts will explain your quarters to you and will be available whenever you may need them. They will give you all the details you need. Go, rest, eat, relax. We are happy to have you.” Jeff smiled and bowed himself out with a wave, heading back to the hangar.

They all spoke their thanks as he stepped away. The smiling escorts gestured them toward the elevators and led the way.

“What are you gonna do first?” Darek asked Phil. Phil watched Adrienne, trying to read her feelings.

“Shower and figure out clean clothes. I feel disgusting.”

“MMMhm. Me too. Then food. You wanna chill later?”

“Yeah, that’s cool. I want to check on Adrienne too, though. I’ll let you know when I’m ready?”

“Coo man, coo.” Darek was full of joyful energy, soaking in the surrounding newness. “Hey Chip, Henry, you guys have any more of that plant you shared when we met?”

The look on their faces answered without need of the translator. Chip slowly shook his ‘no’ that they now knew meant ‘yes’ through a sly smile.

Darek’s eyes flashed, “you want to come hang with me and Phil later? Maybe have some more of that and talk?”

“That would be fun, yes.” Chip responded and Henry nodded approval, a sudden pep entering their steps.

“Adrienne?” Darek offered. She shrugged the offer off without words.

Phil was excited too, but it was muted by his concern for Adrienne, whose relative silence and physical distance from them screamed she was stuck in her head, feeling the tides and fighting the storm again. He knew he had to help.