ACT 2, SECT 3: EMPLOYMENT
2.3.3 - ABSENCE FROM WORK
Unauthorized absence from work will not be tolerated.
Just over two years since the Poleepkwas had become the new resident of Johannesburg, Christopher was still considered too young to work, standing at about less than five feet (versus the full-grown seven feet), a bit more than half his father's height. But the food that the humans had provided didn't last forever, and if the aliens were to stay, arrangements were to be made.
The Poleepkwas understood the concept of a work-based society: you work, you get paid, you get fed, and you continue to work. A cycle that was usually understood to be beneficial to society.
MNU realized they had a new workforce. Poleepkwas realized they had to survive here.
Thomas Johnson went to work at an engineering plant. In the 80's, Aliens could find better gainful employment, but it was still hard, long labor. It paid decently, enough to pay for food. This was also before the full restaurant bans and confinement to District 9, before the slumlord's entry into their lives.
Christopher, though, was not left alone when his father went to work. Thomas left him with a friend, one he trusted well enough to watch his offspring, in a shack just a few down in the row, at the very end, somehow removed from the rest. Even now, they did not mind the shacks, they were still rather clean, even without plumbing or electricity, it was easy enough to survive, as Poleepkwas had work to do, and were content.
His father's friend, a very old Poleepkwa, was a stringy, short male. His shell was probably once a dark tan color, but was graying, a few small plates, in fact, missing from him, falling off occasionally from just pure age. His eyes were beginning to change color, from a valiant red to a misty pink, his vision was growing blurry and it became difficult for him to see very far. He was too old to work in any heavy labor, and in return for his child-watching services, Thomas paid him in food.
The old one was called Andrew. Christopher forgot his last name. Both, though, made an odd-looking appearance when put side by side, as both had extremely-disheveled looking shells, one from the grey coloring and missing plates, the other from shedding layers, covered in long, white flakes over his green shell.
Andrew was a smart, old alien, though. Very smart. His shack was filled with little bits of technology, some salvaged, some foreign to Christopher. Motherboards covered the walls; stripped wires followed the beams of the weak roof. Yet the dirt over the floor of his shack was very loose, and there was a large square plank of wood in the corner. Andrew warned him not to play near it, as it covered a stink-pit. (Christopher wasn't ready to test the validity of the statement. Stink pits were notorious from tales his father shared with him. It wasn't until later he'd realize that the phenomenon was not found on Earth, and that the so-called pit never once smelled foul.)
With little else to do, they talked. One day, mid-morning, while Thomas was at work, Andrew and Christopher both sat outside in the warm heat, yet under the shade of the shack's side, sitting against the wall.
":: You were born on the ship, so you've never seen our home planet, have you? ::" Andrew asked.
":: No. Haven't seen home. Only here. ::" Christopher replied, ":: Why do you ask? ::"
":: Did your father ever tell you about it? ::"
":: Yes! The planet has seven moons. ::"
":: That is right, youngling!::" Andrew said, rubbing the top of Christopher's head with his hand, a kind, playful ruffle until the youngling chirped and shooed away the elder's claws.
":: It's a shame you haven't seen it. It's really a great home… ::" the old Poleepkwa rumbled.
Christopher tilted his head, ":: Why did we leave? ::"
Andrew's antennae perked up on the top of his head, than fell again, lower than before, ":: Some things are very complicated, Christopher. Very complicated… Maybe when you are older, I'll tell you more about it.::"
":: I don't think we'll ever be able to go back, will we? ::" the youngling weakly warbled out.
Andrew looked to Christopher, still a child, still not ready to know.
" :: We'll see about that. ::"
The Evening hours came and went. Just as the sun was beginning to go down, Christopher began to grow anxious waiting for his father. He stared out of the window of Andrew's small home, watching down the makeshift street, Andrew meandered around, his old shell crackled when he turned too quickly, as he worked with the little portions of technology he had garnered, twisting wires and sorting chips. There was little light, save for a small lamp salvaged from somewhere set on the table.
Though tired and wishing to sleep, Christopher sat bleary-eyed at the window panes, waiting. Andrew had been showing him the pieces of computers he had put together throughout the day. The panels on the computers were dark, though. The systems were incomplete, but they'd put them together eventually. It was enthralling, the level of work that the old Poleepkwa put into the pieces of plastic and metal.
Christopher saw few Poleepkwas in the dark, and always they turned off, eventually. But finally, one dark, tall figure walked steadily towards their old shack.
":: Father's home, Andrew! ::" Christopher chirruped, heading toward the door of the shack, he opened it hurriedly, and burst outside, running toward the dark-shelled Poleepkwa.
Thomas looked very tired, but he had bee gone for so many hours, it was hard to blame him. Regardless, Thomas's faceplate crinkled in an obvious happy expression, and leaned down as Christopher came up to embrace him for a moment.
":: Let's head back to Andrew's for a while. I want to talk to him. ::" Thomas replied, letting got of his son to lead him back to the shack.
":: What took you so long? ::" Christopher asked as they both trekked back to where Andrew was waiting.
":: Things went on at work. I had to stay late. Sorry about that. ::"
":: Oh well. ::" The youngling dismissed it.
As they returned to the shack, Andrew let them back in. Thomas had hauled a bag of food with him. Raw meat chops of decent quality, bottles of water, and three cans of cat food. Cat food was a substance that was almost accidentally introduced to the Poleepkwas, as a few accidentally purchased some, and then proceeded to realize it was a very delicious substance. Word spread quickly about it, and soon all of them loved cat food- it was cheap and tasty.
Both of the older Poleepkwas sat down to talk at the table, and they all proceeded to eat. As there was no third chair, the youngling didn't mind sitting on an empty crate at the other end of the shack (which was about 9 feet away, no real distance at all.).
":: I can't believe that. ::" Christopher heard Andrew click away.
":: Well, they've already taken 4 rand out of my hourly pay, after working there for half a year; I don't make much to begin with. I don't get why they continue to make cuts now. ::" Thomas replied, managing to unscrew the cap off the water bottle, and guzzled down half of it.
":: But making you stay all those extra hours? ::"
":: They claimed they had a special shipment going. ::"
":: Did they pay you for all that time? ::"
":: Just regular hourly rates. I can't stay at work so long, it's so tiring. And the overseers are getting frustrated with us. We can't help it if we don't know how to use the human machinery yet! We can't grip things the same way they can. ::"
":: Well… ::" Andrew reiterated, "":: Calm down for now. And get some sleep back at your own home. It looks like you need it. ::"
":: What about the fluid collecting? ::"
":: It can wait. A lot of other did bring down a lot of equipment that the humans don't know about yet. We'll find it. ::"
":: … Alright. Sleep well, Andrew. ::" Thomas wearily replied.
Christopher's father stood, and called him over. As they left the small shack, Andrew waved them goodbye. For now, it was time to go home.
Author's Notes:
So it be known; ":: Poleepkwa Speech ::". Sorry it changed, but this seems to work better for me.
Also, I love the reviews so far. You guys are all wonderful! I hope you guys all like my foreshadowing here. More was promised, and more shall be written. Currently, I'm writing in a mostly chronological order, though I might deviate from this as I get more ideas. I'll make sure to let you be aware if there are any time-line deviations.
And as to the discussion of the alien reproduction: My fan-interpretation of the Poleepkwa reproduction system may not be fully correct (it's based upon what I've seen so far in both the movie and the websites), but I believe it works best. They can reproduce by themselves, without outside help or a partner, or with each other, as a way to diversify their gene pool.
Also, I'm not quite sure if Christopher's daughter, Shelly, will be a part of my stories. She was mentioned once in the MNU Spreads Lies blog, but not in the film. It's mildly confusing as to why that change occurred. So, she may or may not be a part of this. But Oliver definitely will (because he just such a little adorable thing!)