Here comes chapter 2!
Chapter 2: Meeting
Combat. Fighting. His comrades were being slain around him. Those damn monsters wouldn't stay down, and his allies were falling.
Blood. Everywhere. Arms were grabbing him from the blood pulling him under. His resistance was futile, he was drowning. He couldn't breathe. This was where he met his end.
"GAH!" He awoke, gasping for air. He was disoriented, but he was alive. Also confused…they don't take prisoners…
After catching his breath, he was able to examine where he was. He was clearly in a rather large purple bed, and the decor had a star motif with purple drapes. His first instinct was to get up, but his body felt tired and weak. He could only groan due to his discomfort.
"Oh! You're finally awake!" A high pitched voice squeaked.
Looking around the room, he tried to locate the source of the voice.
"Up here!"
Looking straight up, he spotted a small star shaped being with eyes.
"...am I...seeing things?" The man said with a scratchy, weary voice.
The small star floated closer to his face.
"Yes silly, you're seeing me!" It said cheerfully. "Stay here, I need to go let momma know you're up." With that, the star slew through out of the room. Because of the beds positioning, he couldn't see outside the room.
He lifted his right arm to rub his eyes. He was still exhausted. No telling how long he'd been out, but he had to try and stay awake. At least until he got some answers, like where he was, and where his armor suit went.
'That star thing said mom right? Guess I'll be seeing what a big version of those things are.' He thought as he waited. After a few minutes went by, the star flew back into the room.
"See momma, he's awake now."
He had some ideas of what to expect, who entered the room next was nothing like he expected. She was a tall, blond woman, wearing a light blue dress and a small crown on her head. Was she royalty of some sort? She came close to him, inspecting his face.
"Looks like you've woken from your slumber. Good thing this little one found you when he did, you were certainly in need of assistance." She gestured to the star as she spoke. "Allow me to introduce myself, I am Rosalina, and this is the observatory."
She paused, waiting for him to speak.
"My name…" his voice was very hoarse, likely from lack of use, or overuse due to screaming in pain before.
"Oh, I apologize," she interuppted, "I should have expected your voice to be hurt too. Please hold on a moment." She went to the opposite end of the room. There looked to be a small nightstand next to a door. She poured something into a cup and returned to him. "Here, drink this water slowly, I will assist you." He was in no position to argue. She helped him ease him up so his head was against the bed rest.
He slowly drank the water she provided him. He is throat still felt sore, but he forced himself to speak a short sentance.
"I'm Zion...thank you...for…saving…me." His voice was still weak. But he was feeling much more alert than before.
Rosalina smiled warmly at him "Zion, it's a pleasure to officially meet you. There's so much I'd like to discuss with you, but you must rest and recover your voice first. I'll be back soon with warm soup, that should help alleviate you throat." Zion's stomach let out a loud roar at the prospect of food.
"Sounds like your stomach likes the idea too." Rosalina smiled as she left the room.
Now that he was alone again, and sitting up slightly, Zion could better examined his body's condition. His right arm was hurting like hell, but nothing he couldn't recover from. Chest and back? Bandaged and bloodied, but he'd had worse, he'll live. Left leg, swollen and red, might be an infection. He would have to keep an eye on it.
'Man,' he thought to himself, 'what happened? Let's see… I remember getting beaten to hell and back, then being pulled towards a black hole. If what that woman, Rosalina, said was true, then that little star thing found me...but I've never seen or heard of any creature like that before...well, no use worrying about it at the moment. I should focus on what to do next.' He spent the next few moments gathering his thoughts.
'Ok, step one: recover, can't do anything when I'm this beat up. Step two: get my suit back, I had to have been wearing it until she found me or I'd be dead. Chances are she has it here. Speaking of, step three: find out where in the galaxy I am. Step four: find the nearest Terran base, I can't stay out of commission for too long, every soldier counts.'
He was roused from his thoughts when Rosalina returned. She was carrying a tray with a bowl of soup.
"I'm sure you're hungry. Eat as much as you'd like." She places the tray in front of him. Pain be damned, he was hungry. He started eating the soup, enjoying the warm broth easing his throat. No words were exchanged as he ate. Rosalina simply watched as he enjoyed the food.
After the meal was finished, he let out a relaxed sigh, his throat feeling close to normal "That was delicious, thank you very much Rosalina."
She smiled, "You're quite welcome. You certainly sound much better. Now then," she pulled out a wand, and with a simple wave, the remnants of the meal were moved to the nearby nightstand. Zion looked on in awe. "I'm sure we both have plenty of questions for each other, yes?"
Zion nodded cautiously, "Yeah, definitely."
Rosalina nodded, "Then I'll start by asking, where are you from?"
Zion answered, "KO-36 in the Sigma Quadrant, it's close to the Omega Sector."
...Rosalina was ready for almost any answer...that was not one of them. "I see," she replied, "it's only fair that you ask the next question. We can alternate that way."
"Sounds fair, so let's see...you said this place was the observatory, but what and where is this place exactly?"
"A two part question, I see. To answer what, the observatory is my home, and a sanctuary to all the lumas," she gestured to the one luma who followed her in, "as for where, we're currently just outside the Gold Leaf Galaxy."
Now it was Zions turn to be confused, "I've never heard of such a galaxy before."
Rosalina nodded, "As I haven't heard or your KO-36."
There was a moment of silence before Zion broke it with another question.
"How familiar are you with the universe?"
With serious eyes, Rosalina answered, "Very familiar." There was another pause as they digested the answers being shared. Eventually, Rosalina spoke again. "I know many things about this universe Zion, but nothing you said rings familiar to me. I have to ask, what was the last thing that happened to you before you woke here?"
Zion was beginning to understand her line of questioning, so he answered truthful, "I was fighting these beasts we call Horde. They're detestable creatures, but I'm getting off topic. I was fighting them, and I lost. Last thing I remember was being pulled towards a black hole before passing out."
Not only was the room now silent, there was a tension in the air that could be felt. Zion wasn't sure, but he HAD to ask this next question, "I'm not dead, right?"
Rosalina had already put two and two together, it was the only logical explanation, "You are indeed alive. However, I believe you are no longer in the same universe you once resided." She had to be blunt, there was no avoiding it.
Zion closed his eyes, inhaled, and exhaled before opening his eyes. He was staring blankly at the ceiling. "I...don't know if you're trying to pull my leg, or are genuinely serious. I was going straight towards a black hole, then I wake up here. I just… I don't know what to say or ask next."
There was another long moment of silence. Zion was unsure what to do next, and Rosalina wasn't going to ask a question out of turn...except,
"I think that should suffice for now, yes? You're still recovering from some rough injuries."
Zion looked reluctant, "I'm not sure. I understand I'm not in the best condition right now, but I can't tell if you're telling me the truth or not. I'm not that type that can rest easily without knowing what's going on."
They stared into each other's eyes. No words were spoken, yet they seemed to have a complete conversation, as Rosalina eventually said,
"I understand your reluctance, so let's make a deal. You rest for tonight, and tomorrow I will answer any questions you have, with some exceptions of course. I'll also take you out of this room so you can see for yourself."
Zion thought it over. Did he trust her? She did say that she saved him, and he couldn't deny he was alive. If she wanted him dead he would certainly already be dead. He nodded his head, "Alright Miss Rosalina, you've got a deal."
I snuck in a few references. Bonus points for those who find them.
Next chapter should come out soon!