The oatmeal was actually quite good. Of course Kalthara wasn't sure she was a proper authority on this kind of thing.

It wasn't that galra didn't have a sense of taste but rather that, culinarily speaking, they weren't exactly modern masters.

Over the centuries of being conquerors the galran culture had dwindled to what was considered 'strictly necessary'. Many of the old ways that had been considered too frivolous or otherwise unnecessary had been abandoned and long forgotten.

Music, cuisine, dance; anything that didn't directly assist the war effort was slowly and purposefully left to the sands of time. As a result her people had been left with none of the old things to remind them of the old ways.

The blades had their writings and records. But with planet Daibazaal long destroyed there was no hope of revitalizing any of the old things since all that had made them up had disappeared along with their home.

There were now none who had first hand memories of what the galra had been.

None but the emperor, that is.

Kalthara couldn't claim to hate Emperor Zarkon anymore than a person could really hate a force of nature or a disease. The empire's leader was simply some great power that opposed the blades and their generation spanning struggle. Once she couldn't quite see them ever overcoming.

She poked the earthen concoction absentmindedly and glanced at the opening in the ceiling. Now that she could see clearly how it functioned the mechanism was exceptionally simple.

There was a hidden latch in the ceiling that one merely had to push up to undo. From there the stairs would fold out, allowing entry to the upper level. So simple it was infuriating.

Why did he even require a second level? From what she had seen Austin lived alone out here, surrounded on all sides by desert. Was the second level a lookout or just some storage area?

Her curiosity pushed her to stand on the stair and poke her head through the opening to get a look.

If possible, this room was even smaller than the main floor. The ceiling was lower and slanted inconveniently toward the floor. There was only one window, making this areas use as a lookout nearly nonexistent.

There were flimsy containers piled in corners, and a small rectangular thing piled with blankets and pillows. Likely a cot of some kind. On the ceiling some fan like contraption moved in circular motions, moving the air around it and creating a cooling effect.

As her eyes scanned the area she caught sight of Austin. He sat facing away from her and digging through one of the containers that were strewn around the room.

Kalthara hunched down below the frame of the opening just enough to keep Austin visible but low enough that she could duck under if she even thought he was going to turn around.

He pulled out some flimsy piece of cloth from a box, looked it over, but then tossed it aside with a dismissive remark. Kal glanced at the thing and realized, through the dim light, that it was an article of clothing. Carefully, and making sure not to raise alarm, Kalthara rached her arm through the hole and dug the cloth towards her for closer inspection.

It didn't appear to be any form of armor. In fact, if she was any judge, the piece was flimsy and seemed to provide little to no protection at all. Not even from the elements. A cursory sniff of the garment almost made her gag and prompted her to toss it to the side and breath through her mouth for awhile.

If the garments intent was to defend its wearer by giving off a foul stench, it was certainly potent.

"Y'know some people would consider that rude."

Kalthara froze and looked back at Austin.

He still hadn't turned around.

"Look, if ya don't like stuff that smells, there's an outdoor shower out back. Lord knows you don't smell like a patch of fresh posies yourself. Try not to use all the water and be careful with yer arm."

Kalthara grit her teeth.

"How did you know I was here?"

"You've been snooping around my house all day. Call it a shot in the dark."

There was a pause.

"It's a turn of-"

"I KNOW it is a turn of phrase. I could glean that from the context!" Kalthara growled as she abandoned the human to whatever menial chore he was busying himself with and exited the dwelling.

The outdoor air was a bit of a relief after the stuffiness of the shack. There was a lingering day time warmth that clung to the wind even as the planet rotated slowly towards a nighttime cycle. Honestly, if she were of a more sentimental turn of mind, Kalthara would have called the slowly setting sun beautiful.

Turning away, Kalthara searched out the 'shower' Austin had mentioned. A quick wash might calm her mind and help to focus on the task at hand. Besides she was in dire need of some stress relief.

That comforting thought ended the moment Kalthara found the damn thing.

"What the quiznak is this?"

The only reason Kalthara succeeded in identifying the 'shower' was because the nozzle of the hose was slowly dripping water. The hose wasn't even properly restrained. It was just a long tube that extended from what she hoped was a heater, draped over the branch of a tree, and left to hang a few feet in the air. Poking at the nozzle, she watched in contempt as the 'shower' swayed from side to side like a waterlogged pendulum.

Taking a deep calming breath, Kalthara began to strip.

She was a blade. A warrior trained to fight against the most expansive empire in known history. She could handle a primitive cleansing instrument.

Now all she had to do was figure out how it worked.

Why am I even doing this? Austin couldn't help but ask himself as he inspected the oversized college jersey, wondering if it'd be big enough to fit his alien guest. It's not like she's even gonna care. Hell chances are she'll bitch about my 'primitive rags' or some such.

Deciding that, even if Kalthara tore apart the shirt, it wouldn't be much of a loss Austin set the jersey aside and began wondering what he was going to do about pants. Some kind of skit would make the most sense. Not much of a chance of a significantly long skirt failing to fit.

However he didn't HAVE a skirt. So they were going to have to improvise.

He stared at a pair of old worn out boxer shorts and wondered if giving an emissary of the stars his old underwear to wear would be considered a declaration of war. Then again, if he didn't mention what they were for, how would she even know? For that matter, did aliens even wear underwear? He couldn't see a reason why they would. Afterall, gravity probably rendered certain uses for undergarments a moot point.

Unless of course they had some kind of counteractive anti gravity shit going on. But even then, what were the chances that alien lifeforms had developed a culture of fashion that included underwear in the first place? Did Kal wear underwear? Her suit was so armored it hadn't even occurred to him to wonder that.

As he sat there, mulling over the pros and cons of asking Kalthara about whether or not aliens found a need for braziers, it occured to Austin that he had an alien in his house.

He had an alien.

Staying in his house.

Presumably taking a shower in his backyard.

It was funny how long it had taken to fully set in. Austin had heard about delayed realizations and shock, but had never truly experienced anything like it himself. Normally whatever he thought or felt would come on immediately and he'd just power through it.

This time though, the full weight of the situation hadn't fully settled in until now.

Allowing himself to lay down on the floor of the loft and closing his eyes, Austin reflected on what he had just accomplished.

He'd made first contact with alien life. Survived an attack by some mysterious entity from the stars. And touched, actually touched, an alien spacecraft with his own hand.

This was everything he'd ever wanted as a child. As a hidden away lonely kid with a working single mom and only the stars to keep him company at night. His dreams had been filled to the brim with faraway worlds he could drift off to and hide away in while the world around him fell to pieces.

Opening his eyes again, Austin watched as the fan on the ceiling made it repetitive circular motions. His eyes traced the rotation over and over and over. Until he had to close his eyes again.

He had an alien in his house.

What was he going to do about it?

She could fix this.

It wasn't as bad as it looked.

Sure, maybe she'd torn off one of the dials while attempting to figure out how to turn the thing one. And sure maybe in her frustration she had ripped the hose from the water heater, tearing the tube away from the containing, causing the precious liquid to begin going everywhere.

But that wasn't… irreversible.

Kalthara had at least managed to find the place where the tube needed to be connected. Unsurprisingly it was the hole where all the water was coming out. Go figure. However, she was having a little bit of trouble making the darn thing STAY.

She had tried just slipping it on, only for the force of the water to push the tube away. Then she had thought that perhaps she had not slipped it on far enough. Then that maybe she'd gone and pushed it too far in.

Everytime she failed she got a faceful of water for her efforts.

Kalthara roared in frustration.

"Stop this instant you annoying quiznaking-"

The flow of water suddenly laxed, weakened, and then stopped. Leaving nothing but a dripping hole and a whole lot of mud in its place.

She stared at the now very innocent looking socket and cleared her throat.

"Ah, yes. Very well then. Uhm… run diagnostics?"

There was the sound of someone very purposely clearing their throat louder than usual.

Turning, she saw Austin standing by the house. One hand was resting on a dial similar to the one she had broken, and the other…

"Why are you covering your eyes?"

"I have a better question." Austin said, eyes still covered. "How the hell did you manage," he gestured to the surrounding area. "THIS?"

Ears going slack in embarrassment, Kalthara didn't look him in the eye. Or rather she wouldn't have if his eyes were not already covered.

"There was a… Technical malfunction."

Austin took a deep breath. Then he let out a very long, very deep, very resigned sigh.

"Just… nevermind. Kind of my own fault for not showing supervisin."

Kalthara scowled.

"I do NOT need supervising."

Removing his hand from the dial, but still keeping the other over his eyes Austin began to blindly feel his way around the house.

"That's not really all that convincin in this situation." He said as he rounded the corner. "When yer done towelin off I've got some clothes you can try to wear. Just dont tract the mud into the house."

She watched him go with an odd mix of humiliation and confusion.

On the one hand, his attitude continued to infuriate her. Yet on the other he seemed to be acting differently than he had a mere varga before. It was… an unnatural change.

It does not matter. She told herself. His emotional state does not concern you so long as he fulfills his role. Still… it may be productive to inquire about it.

She waited a few minutes to round the house herself. Didn't need him thinking she was following on his coattails like an obedient little-

Kalthara stopped at the front door to find a pile of material folded and placed on the front stoop. Well, he HAD said he had found clothes for her to wear. None of it looked like it provided much in terms of defense.

However, it was becoming more and more clear to her that her presence on this planet was likely to be prolonged for an untold amount of time. If that was the case, then it was ideal for her to preserve her superior marmoran suit as best she could. She didn't need it having any defects once she was finally off this rock and into open space.

"Okay so," Austin's muffled voice came through behind the door. "First you towel off, and then you put the pants on first and-"

"I can dress myself!" Kalthara yelled pointedly through the door.

There was a pause.

"Are ya sure?"

"I was wearing clothes when I arrived was I not?!"

Another pause.

"You were also CLEAN when you got here. More or less. But then you broke my shower."

"That was-" she stopped, taking a moment to try and calm herself. These repetitive arguments were getting her nowhere.

Picking up the towel she responded much more evenly as she dried herself.

"That was a matter of technical difference. The cleaning quarters my people use are not so complicated."

"A hose over a tree branch is technologically complicated?"

"In the manner of all inferior technology? Yes."

There was a sigh heard behind the door.

"You know what? I'll take it. Was thinking about redoing that shower anyway. Once yer dressed, come inside. Need to figure out what to do next."

Kalthara grunted in response as she began to get dressed.

Austin didn't HAVE to go to jail.

Iverson knew that.

Some would argue leaving him to live the rest of his days alone in the desert with no hope of ever achieving a higher purpose would be punishment enough. Anything beyond that would seem almost cruel to set on a dying man. However, Iverson wasn't concerned with crime and punishment at the moment.

Right now, all he needed and all he wanted was to talk to Austin.

Though 'talk' may have been too kind of a word for what Iverson intended. Confront was a much more accurate a term. Intervene, if he was feeling generous.

His plan of attack was simple.

He'd corner Austin, present him with the evidence, and give him an ultimatum. He could either drop the drugs now, or the video would be handed over to the police. The garrison job was out of the question at this point.

That was all he could do for the man now. Offer him a choice. He could either die in jail or die as a free man.

It wasn't something Iverson wanted to do.

But he was going to anyway.

Revving the engine of his jeep, Iverson turned off the main road and down the path towards Austin's shack.

"What do you mean, 'how do I sleep'?"

Kalthara's voice was tinged with suspicion. The shards of the shattered plate lay spread out on the coffee table organized by size.

"I mean," Austin said trying to choose his words carefully. He did not want every discussion to turn into some kind of argument. They weren't getting anywhere that way. "That I don't exactly have a lot of space. So it's probably best if we figure out how sleeping is going to work. I mean, you do sleep right?"

"Of course I sleep! Everything sleeps!"

"Well it's not like I've ever met an alien before so can ya blame me for askin?"

Kalthara rolled her eyes before refocusing on her project. "I can sleep wherever I can fit. It is not a matter of great concern."

"Not for you no." Austin leaned on the coffee table, watching Kalthara inspect each individual shard. "But for me it's kind of a different story."

He watched as she held one of the tiniest shard up to her eye before comparing it to another.

"What are you doing anyway?"

"I am inspecting this ancient material. What does it look like I am doing?"

"Looks like yer playin around with shards of glass."

"It is not glass." She replied absently. "I thought so myself at first, but its not."

Austin looked down at the rest of the shards on the table. He had to admit that, while they did look like some kind of glass or crystal, they were neither. It was an otherworldly material, that Austin couldn't quite find a direct comparison to.

He fought the urge to look at the loose floorboard.

"Look if nothin else, you can sleep in the loft. At least that way if anyone shows up you can hide."

Kalthara stopped messing with the shards and looked at Austin.

"I mean it's not like a lot of people come out here." He said suddenly trying his best to sound reassuring. "But you never know."

"Would it really be that big of a deal?" she asked.

Austin blinked at the change in tone. Kalthara sounded genuinely confused.

"What d'ya mean?"

"Others." She stated. "Seeing me. Would it truly be that much of a problem?"

He opened his mouth to reply but stopped. How was he going to explain this?

Saying outright that there was a very real possibility of her being captured, locked up, and experimented on definitely set up the wrong picture of humanity. Though not an entirely inaccurate one. On the other hand, he couldn't exactly encourage her to run around in the open.

"It's… complicated." He finally said. "I mean, other humans can be kinda… nervy."

"Violent you mean?"

He swallowed.

"S-some…" he admitted. "But for the most part we're not."

"And yet you keep me hidden from 'the most part'?"

"You don't have to be a violent person to do violent things." he said pointedly. "Especially if you get scared."

"Oh," Her voice was filled with realization. "You think they would be afraid of me?"

"It's less think and more know if I'm bein honest."

"Oh."

Austin couldn't quite place the tone of her voice in that moment. It wasn't a surprised tone as much as a disappointingly resigned one.

"Does that…. Surprise you?" he asked.

"No, not really." She said absently as she returned to her work. "I really should have expected it actually."

"So, uh, you'd be okay with the loft?"

"Hmm?" Her attention was now almost entirely transfixed on the project at hand. "Oh, yes yes. Whatever you say."

"Oh. Well. Okay then."

Austin removed his arm from the table and just sat and watched Kalthara work.

Amazingly enough, the jersey and boxers he had dug out were just big enough to fit her. Though, it wasn't a perfect fit. If Kalthara ever raised her arms, Austin was sure he'd get a good look at her midriff. Even so it was better than letting her run around in that black suit in the middle of the desert.

A part of him wanted to ask her all about space. About what it was like. But after everything that happened Austin didn't think she'd ever give him a straight answer. Hell, he wasn't even confident she would bother paying him any mind.

After all if some shmuck had started incessantly asking him questions about where he was from and what they did there whilst he was stranded with no hope of rescue, he'd probably get annoyed too.

"So I'm… Just gonna hang out outside for a bit." He said as he stood up.

Kalthara didn't even look up. "You do that."

Austin took a deep breath as he stepped outside, letting the door swing closed behind him. The sun had just about set under the horizon now and night was slowly beginning to come on. He looked up at the ever familiar sight of an endless expanse of stars above him.

It was almost like he was looking at them for the first time.

Before each and every individual star had just been a sort of imaginary companion for his loneliness. But now, with an alien sitting on his couch doing tedious work, he was suddenly very much aware that every one of the stars he could see might have some kind of alien life form living near it. His mind should have been blown with the insane realization that mankind wasn't alone in the universe, but as it was, all he could feel was an overwhelming feeling of…. Obviousness?

Now that life beyond earth's solar system had more or less been confirmed, any deep philosophical discussion about the endless barren expanse of the universe seemed arbitrary at best. It was just something that WAS.

Frankly Austin wasn't sure mankind was ready for that kind of responsibility.

Earth breaking through and making contact with alien lifeforms now felt less like a great accomplishment and more like taking a toddler to a huge formal event. Sure, it might turn out well, but chances were by the end of the night someone was going home in tears.

He took another deep gulp of the cool oncoming night air.

There was nothing he could really do about that now. All he could really do was approach this whole thing one step at a time and hope it didn't end with him slipping and falling into a pit of spikes.

Leaning against one of the posts, Austin closed his eyes and listened to the sounds of the night time desert.

The wind.

The crickets.

The revving engine in the distance-

Austin's eyes shot open and turned, stiff as a board toward the horizon. Squinting through the gathering gloom, he could just make out the sight of a pair of headlights and an oncoming dust cloud.

He swallowed.

Iverson was coming to visit.