//------------------------------// // Chapter 3: Questions.... // Story: Upgrade // by Cadet //------------------------------// Cadet was the first one to wake up from his slumber. He was kinda glad that he was the first one to wake, too. If the, what he had assumed was a human, woke up first… Cadet decided that now would be a good time to get a good, long look at his surroundings. He could tell he was in a bedroom, even if it was extremely alien to him. He looked out what looked like a window and saw a dark sky. Night time. He turned his attention back to the things in the room that he currently resided. The bed was about as tall as he was! What kind of a creature would need to ha--- Oh. He thought as he suddenly remembered the other unconscious resident of the room. He decided to hold off on exploring all of his surroundings to study the creature instead. It isn’t every day you discover a new sapient species. He was tall. Really tall. I wish I had my tools, He thought, Would’ve been cool to do measurements. Cadet sighed, and then looked up. He just felt...something. He didn’t know what it was, but it was becoming an urge, an itch. Something was urging him to look behind one of the three doors in the room. He got up and began to approach the closest door to him. His urge felt like it turned to the right, towards the second closest door. So, Cadet approached that door, but this time the urge didn’t “turn”. The urge grew even more as he came closer to the door, though. Cadet reached the door and stopped. Do I really want to do this? He asked himself worryingly. Eh, why not? It’s just a door. With that out of the way, Cadet grabbed the door’s handle and pulled it down. The door opened to reveal a small room full of clothes, a closet. Cadet looked around and wondered why he had an urge to look in the closet. He was about to leave as something caught his eye. He stared at it in wonder. It was his saddlebag...with all of his tools in it. Why was it here? How did it get here? He wanted to know, but he decided that he will have the time to find out later. Right now, he needs to record data. Cadet grabbed the saddlebag and left the closet. Cadet opened the saddlebag and retrieved the things he needed; measuring tape, his journal, and a feather and some ink. With that set, he proceeded to measure the creature in front of him. The creature was 6ft 1in. Cadet was about to weigh the creature when he realized that he couldn’t. The creature was laying down, and attempting to weigh it would probably wake it. He decided that maybe he could do it later. After gathering as much scientific data as he could, Cadet carefully placed everything back into his saddlebag and then tossed it on to his back. Now he could explore the massive home of the creature. He walked out of the bedroom and into another room. It felt like a kitchen, but there was so many things in it. He got distracted by some music and a voice coming from the other room. Cadet’s instincts kicked in, urging him to run away. His mind, however, told him to explore and discover. Cadet slowly walked over to the door that obstructed him from the voice and music. He opened it as quietly as possible and entered, and the music and voice stopped. He look around. He was the only living creature in the room. He was, again, about to leave and explore the rest of the house when the voice came back. This time, Cadet could clearly tell what it was saying. “...and hello again from Fox News in Washington. Well, it took awhile, but Donald Trump finally agreed to an interview on Fox News Sunday. I had asked him some tough questions…” … … … What. Cadet’s mind just broke. He tried to make sense of everything. What is a “Fox News” and who is Donald Trump? Why was there another one of those creatures in a really flat box? These creatures can’t fit into it; they are too big! Even more so, how can it be talking so quietly but so clearly? His train of thought derailed, flew off the bridge, smashed into the ground, and turned into a massive fireball when he heard rustling coming from the kitchen. Uh oh, He thought. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [POV: Jack] Jack awoke from his slumber really groggily. He felt like crap. He felt like how somebody should feel waking up on a Monday, even though it was a Sunday. Jack got up and remembered what had happened before. He had brought home a small horse...pony...after hitting it with his car. He came into his bedroom after hearing a yelp/shout resonate from it. The only other creature was the pony… which spoke… Jack’s head began to hurt, trying to make sense of it. Humans are the only species on Earth intelligent enough to develop and utilize language. So, why is a pony talking? He pondered. He looked around him and noticed that the pony wasn’t in the room. Must’ve woken up before me. Jack exited his bedroom and walked into the kitchen. He reached into the cabinet above the sink and dug around for some Excedrin. Having found the medicine for his newly developed headache, he took it. He’d have to wait awhile till it actually does something. He noticed the kitchen door was slightly opened, even though he had fully closed it before. Maybe the pony is in there. Jack pushed the door out of the way and walked into the front room. There, sitting in front of the T.V., was the pony. Jack stared at the pony as the pony stared back at him. Jack took a step closer. The pony, obviously frightened, got up and took a step away. Hmmmm…. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to hurt you” Jack said trying to calm the pony. Wait a minute… “.........Y-You aren’t?” the pony asked with a worrisome tone. Yep, there it is. Great mental preparation. Jack thought. “Yes, I-I am not going to harm you.” Jack said, with some of the words getting caught in his throat. The pony looked like it noticed the stutters. “Sorry, It’s just-. It’s just not everyday I get to talk to an intelligent creature besides another human.” “What do you mean by that?” the pony asked, still calming down. “Well, humans are the only intelligent creature on Earth” Jack replied. At this point, Jack noticed that the pony had calmed down enough, so he decided to ask for a title. “Oh, uhh, what should I call you?” “...Cadet. My name is Cadet.” “Cadet, huh? That’s a rather unusual name.” Jack stated, while he studied Cadet. Probably military? Jack was looking for something, a detail, a description, anything. His gut was telling him that he has made a huge mistake by taking in the pony. Eh, whatever. If something happens, he’ll just wing it like he usually does. “Unusual? Then what is your name?” Cadet said, tilting his head as if something didn't add up quite right. Jack took a couple of seconds, thinking if he should give his name to an alien creature. He decided to give it anyway, using the logic of “if stuff goes down, wing it.” “My name is Jack. ...Hey, are you hungry?” ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- After making some food, Jack placed two bowls of freshly cooked tomato soup on the table...or at least as fresh as he can make it, it was from a can. Jack grabbed two spoons and got the table set up before calling for Cadet. Cadet had taken the opportunity to completely tear apart the T.V. Every little piece was organized in an orderly fashion on the floor in front of Cadet. He really wanted to study this contraption, this illusion, and to try to make sense of it. How did it work? Jack told him that he is just seeing a moving image with sound, coming live from… Washington? Cadet had no clue what “Washington” is; maybe it's a place? He’ll have to ask next time he has the chance...