The Alien's Veterinarian

Chapter 1

1

SAHRAMost of space travel was about efficiency, direct routes, and functionality. Getting from A to Z in the fastest way possible. Nobody ever took the scenic route.

For the life of me, I couldn’t figure out why. I could never get enough of the beautiful star clusters, the ever-changing solar systems, the vast galaxies without a defined end or beginning.

With my face glued against the window of the Orang-0, I admired the passing sights. The universe had never before looked like this and it would never look like this again. That was the nature of the system.

“What’s that planet?” I asked Blesse, a friend of a friend of an acquaintance of an… It didn’t really matter. She was the pilot of the ship taking me to Planet #47283 or as my sister-in-law called it, Earth.

“That’s…” She paused to check the large yellow planet I was pointing at. “Minati. It has three suns and twenty-four moons. Terribly hot and the coffee is awful.”

“Wow. What about that one?” I inquired, locking onto a purple giant.

She sighed. “That’s Ga’on.”

“That’s Ga’on? Wow, it’s so much bigger than I thought.”

“That’s what everybody says,” she joked. “It’s a nice place but the people aren’t very friendly.”

I gazed at Blesse, jealousy and admiration warring within me. “You’ve been everywhere.”

“Perks of being a pilot. So what brings you to Planet #47283?”

“I’m picking up some goods,” I answered, not able to take my eyes off the passing universe.

Blesse clicked a couple of buttons and hummed. “You’re not a Smuggler, are you?”

“No, no. I’m helping out my sister and her mate. We own a wildlife park. We’re looking for a special kind of healer and specific supplies. It’s all above board.”

At least, I assumed so. According to Tilly, her home planet still thought they were the only sentient race in the universe, so officially, we weren’t allowed to make contact with them. Abductions were frowned upon too, at least according to her, but a legally binding contract was within the laws of the Galactic Union.

I checked the note Valla and Tilly wrote for me. It had a whole list of specific medicine for our pregnant leopard and the type of healer I was supposed to find. “Vet… Vetrita… Vetrinitriarian…”

Despite having practised the language the Earthlings spoke, the sounds were hard to replicate and very different from our clicking.

“Vet-er-i-na-ri-an,” I read again, dividing up the word in smaller pieces. I had no idea what the word meant, but it was some kind of animal healer. One I could only find on Earth.

“You might want to recharge,” Blesse said from the cockpit. “It’s still quite a few light-years until we arrive.”

I glanced at the rows of rectangular, white pods that were meant to keep the passengers comfortable during prolonged space flights. They were stacked on top of each other, some of the sizes varying to accommodate all types of sentients.

I leaned back and shook my head. “I’m enjoying the view.”

"Suit yourself," Blesse said. “We’ve got plenty of energy for now but you might need to recharge on the way back.”

She was the only other Kyven on board. The other four passengers came from other planets and none of them was particularly interested in talking to me. One, a burly Lilypian, had spent most of the journey so far in their pod, struck down with space sickness. It was common among Kyvenoid species to experience at least some discomfort during their first time in space. The constant vibrations of the spaceship combined with breathing nothing but recycled air took a while to get used to. My stomach clenched as I remembered my own first bout of space sickness. I'd travelled to space station GY-28 for an awards ceremony. I'd cracked a puzzle only 0.2 per cent of the galaxy's sentient races could solve. My parents had been so proud. My sisters, Bavalla and Tamsia, hadn't really understood how impressive my achievement had been, but they'd enjoyed their first ride on a spaceship. Neither of them got sick. I was always the unlucky one.

I watched as we flew towards a colourful nebula. My brain started calculating the ratios of gases that created the colours - hydrogen for blue, magenta and red; oxygen for teal, cyan, green, and so on - and I had to force myself to simply enjoy the view. Sometimes, being clever really got in the way of appreciating the moment.

On the way home, I'd have a ve-ter-whatever to look after, so this was my only chance to really take in the galactic scenery. Luckily, this was the longest I'd ever travelled on a spaceship, so I had plenty of time to soak it all in.

I leaned back and tried to relax, ignoring the stream of data flowing through the back of my mind.

By the time we entered the orbit of Planet #47283, I couldn't wait to feel solid ground again. Blesse insisted that I shouldn't be able to feel a difference between artificial and real gravity, but she was wrong.

We'd dropped off the other passengers at planets and space stations on the way and taken on cargo in return. Blesse was impatient for me to get my human so she could continue on. I'd not told her that I didn't know who I was going to bring on board. Nor did I know how to persuade them to come with me. I'd made several plans, but I wasn't satisfied with any of them. Luckily, Tilly had made a list with four potential animal healers that she knew from her work as a zookeeper. One of my plans relied on them recognising her name.

Blesse programmed a little shuttle to take me to the surface of the planet. I could have probably figured out the programming myself, but I didn't want to show off. The Captain didn't know that I had several university degrees in artificial intelligence and quantnet programming.

When I took a seat in the MANDAR-IIN’s passenger suite, the AI assistant appeared as a golden hologram. "Where on Planet #47283 would you like to land?"

I looked at my list of names. They were all more or less located in the same area. "Chester."

"Do you mean, Chester, England, United Kingdom, European Continent?"

Tilly hadn't added any of that information. I groaned. "How many Chesters are there?"

"Chester, Little Chester, Chesterfield, Chesterford, Chester-"

"The first one," I interrupted. "And land with camouflage shields engaged. The natives are very primitive."

"Primitive planet mode engaged," the AI chimed. "Our local transportation shall appear to them like one of their traditional vehicles. It is called a horse cart."

“Excellent.” I thought about it for a moment. “What’s a horse?”

The flashing circle told me the conversation was over, but that was alright. I’d figure it out. Earth was a gravity-based planet so all vehicles operated on the same principles. Back, forth, left, right. Depending on the type, up, down. I’d figure it out.

The airlock hissed and the ramp lowered slowly, giving me access to the next part where a strange animal with a strong neck and surprisingly nimble legs was waiting. The animal vaguely looked like the matrans in the park, except for the weird hooves and the lack of colourful coat patterns. This… horse was just brown and white, not nearly as beautiful.

Almost ready to depart. I twisted the purple ring around my third finger, engaging the LightScreen technology to mask my skin colour. The device couldn’t change any of my other features but luckily, the pale locals were Kyvenoid so I’d blend right in. I’d wrapped a scarf around my neck to hide my gills. If anyone noticed my six fingers, I’d explain it away as a genetic defect.

I climbed into the cart with large spoked wheels and a thin roof, surprised by how spacious it was. It didn’t look that way from the outside.

Another airlock released and steam framed the exit to my very first trip to Earth. I waited in the carriage for it to move, only to realise that without a driver, it seemed unlikely I’d get anywhere.

I changed position, climbing up to the front of the cart and taking the reins. With a lot of clickity clopping, the horse set in motion and took me out of the ship. The immediate smell of burned fuel and exhaust gasses hit my senses as I took in my surroundings. It looked like we’d landed right in the middle of town and with one look at the native inhabitants, I knew I was in the right place. Their pale pinkish complexions and lack of pointed ears matched Tilly’s. While I didn’t find my sister’s mate particularly attractive, I could see the appeal in general. These humans had similar features and their rounded ear shells were kind of cute.

It was a shame I was in somewhat of a time rush or I could’ve really taken my time appreciating the local architecture. The white buildings and wooden beams gave a pleasant feel to the town and even though it was a little mismatched, I liked it.

I checked the address Tilly had written down for me and directed my carriage along the paved streets. I could feel people looking at me and I worried that the LightScreen wasn’t quite working.

As I was driving through town, a giddy excitement filled me that I hadn’t felt in a long time. Every sight was so foreign and different from what I was used to. I could tell this world seemed to operate under similar principles as Kyven, which made it easier to navigate. I just wished my understanding of their local dialect was better. My crash course of British English was quite limited and Tilly hadn’t been much help. It would’ve been handy if I could’ve used my diaccent implant to help me translate, but the language wasn’t available.

I’d manage. If only my sister-in-law’s notes on the addresses were clearer. All the symbols looked the same and there didn’t seem to be any kind of navigation system on my cart. How was I supposed to find anything here?

I kept driving around, trying to make sense of the many signs and boards. The foreign environment was more overwhelming than I expected it to be and I was attracting quite a bit of attention. Maybe because none of the other vehicles looked like my cart. Once I was back on the ship, I’d see if I could input a projection of their four-wheeled metal machines to update the system.

I passed a building and a familiar mewl caught my ear. While it was a bit weaker than Sapphire’s meowing, I was sure it was the same kind. Good fortunes to me!

Not sure what to do with my horse cart, I left it parked outside the building. At the entrance, I saw posters and drawings that confirmed that I was in the right place. Those creatures looked like mini leopards, or maybe cubs, just in different colours. A distinct smell hung on the premise as well, which I could only describe as… musky cat.

After waiting for a bit, a woman noticed me and came in my direction. Her curly hair reached almost to her hips and swept behind her like a cloak. “Hey, can I help you?”

“Yes. I’m looking for a…” I did my best to pronounce the word properly. “Vetranian… vetririnian… an animal healer.”

The woman chuckled. “Animal healer? That’s a fun way to put it. Oh, I like that.”

“I need help. Our…” I couldn’t remember what the translation for leopard was again. “Cat is having… smaller cats.”

“Ahh, I see. Well, pregnant cats are my speciality. “The woman held out her hand. “I’m Abby.”

Right, that was a greeting. Tilly told me about this Earth custom. I quickly extended my hand, surprised at how warm her skin felt against mine. “Sahra.”

“Well, Sahra, you’ve come to the right place. Let me see what I can do for you.”

Pride welled up in me. I knew Valla and Tilly had some reservations about me stacking up on the supplies and finding someone to help Sapphire, but I did it.

“You have a lovely accent,” the woman said as she rummaged through her workbench. “Where are you from?”

“Kyven,” I answered truthfully. I knew I wasn't technically allowed to reveal the existence of sentient life beyond their atmosphere but if everything went to plan, I'd get to show her Kyven anyway.

“Oh, where’s that? Is it near the Baltics?”

I smiled. "No."

“Geography has never been my strong suit, but I suppose it doesn’t matter. Let’s have a look at that cat of yours. Did you bring it with you?”

“No. She is too…” What was the word? Ugh, I was rubbish at languages. “Too non-small to take with me. And too far.”

The female gave me a curious look. “Your cat is too big to transport? What is she, a Siberian? A ragamuffin? Maine Coon?”

None of those words made any sense. “I don’t know. She belongs to my sister.”

“Ah, you’re doing this for your sister? That’s very nice of you.”

I grinned with pride. This female had no idea that I’d flown across the galaxy to help Bavalla and her mate.

“I usually insist that people bring their pets to my clinic,” Abby continued. “But I suppose I can make an exception. I just had a cancellation, so I could come with you right now, if that suits you.”

Oh yes. That suited me just fine.