Hey I'm back! Finally! My time was getting tied up with finals to be done and everything. Oh well. But now with summer, I'll have a lot more time to work on stuff. Anyways, this chapter came out kind of short. I'll try to make the next one longer.
The examination had gone well, at least for the medics. Tallest Purple thought he would lose the circulation in his arm if the strange Irken boy hold onto him any tighter. The foundling simply refused to let go of the Irken leader while the medics examined his health. Purple could see that the boy was deathly afraid of the doctors, but he wondered why. The Tallest was glad when they were told that the stranger seemed to be in adequate health except for the terrible scars on his body and his bent antennae. They were soon allowed to leave. He was starting to feel the boy's claws poke into his skin.
Purple decided he wasn't going to get very far away from this kid, so he turned down the hall to the guest rooms that were a level below the Tallest's quarters. His original plan had been to send him to the Misplaced Persons Center back on Irk but now he was wondering if that was a good idea or not, or if it would even be possible. He didn't like the boy's behavior in the infirmary. He'd never seen anyone so afraid of something so common. The boy was tall enough that he could bury his face in Purple's shoulder whenever a doctor came near. It was possible that the boy was a defect but Purple thought that was unlikely. The medics would have given him that suggestion but they hadn't. No, there was genuine fear in the boy's eyes, and Purple thought there was also a glint that was close to sadness in them too. Something else was wrong, something that no one could yet explain, just like they couldn't explain the boy's lack of speech. Perhaps his scars and bruises were a dark clue. For a reason that he couldn't quite pinpoint, Purple knew it would be better to keep the boy close to him for a while, especially since he was the only one the adolescent seemed to trust.
The juvenile Irken finally decided it was safe enough to let go of his friend and was walking silently besides the violet Tallest. Purple could feel his hand again.
"You sure have quite a grip," Purple said flexing his fingers and smiling softly at the person walking next to him. He wasn't expecting a response and he wasn't surprised when he didn't get one. He looked ahead and continued their slow pace. The lack of noise almost made him uncomfortable. Even the Massive's ventilation shafts decided to stay quiet today. Purple was reminded of an old training mission before he had become Tallest. His team was on a practice reconnaissance mission against another team in the Alara Kan'e, the Silent Hills, deep in Irk's wilderness. That place was very well named. No animal cries, no wind blowing through trees-there were no trees. No sound at all, just a lot of rock and sand and silenceā¦
That's when the idea hit him. He stopped walking and looked over at the boy, who returned his gaze. Purple smiled.
"Since you're going to be staying with us," Purple cringed slightly when he thought what Red's reaction would be, "we need something to call you," he said. "And since we don't know your name and you're not saying anything, we'll give you a new name. How about we call you Kan, for 'silent?'"
The boy stared blankly at him for a moment as if taking in all his words. Then he smiled.
"So you like it? Well then, that's your name now. Kan."
They continued down the hall until they came to the guest quarters. Purple led Kan into one of the rooms. "This will be your room," he said. "Why don't you make yourself comfortable, and I'll be back later." Purple smiled and turned to go but was quickly halted when Kan grabbed him by the shoulder. Purple expected he would do something like this. He was hoping he wouldn't have to stay for too long, he had other business to attend to, like finding out where in the world Red was so they could get the fleet back on its way again.
He turned around to face the shorter Irken and smiled as kindly as he could. "I have to go now. Don't worry, you'll be safe here. I just have to take care of a few things and then I'll come back," said Purple, a little desperate. Kan's eyes were so pleading, he had to look away. "Look, I promise I'll come back for you."
Kan lowered his eyes to the floor and breathed out a very faint whimper. Purple was a little taken aback. It was the first sound he had heard issued from the boy's mouth.
He studied Kan carefully. He looked scared and sad, and Purple had a feeling Kan knew he couldn't come along. He sighed. "Kan, from the way you're looking right now, I think you may have been abandoned before."
Purple blinked in surprise when Kan slowly shook his head, no. "No? You weren't abandoned? Then what happened to you?"
Kan cast his violet eyes back to the floor and drew his arms, folding them close to his body. What spark that had been in his eyes was slowly fading. Purple thought he saw tears forming.
"Kan," Purple started as he gently lifted Kan's chin with one skinny finger, "what ever happened to you in the past, it's over now. You're here with us and no one is going to hurt you. You'll be taken care of here."
Kan lifted his head once more and stared at Purple.
"I promise I'll come back soon." Purple grasped his shoulder gently, letting Kan know he was leaving, and he turned and went out the door.
