Part 2
I edited a bit in Part 1 because my calculations was screwed up. I’ll just say it here. The lifespan of a Technople is 700 days not 100 days. I messed up since they gain adulthood at 240 days so how can they die after only a hundred days..! Sorry bout that.
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Earth
Jiwon didn’t know how long he was unconscious, but as soon as he opened his eyes, he felt the thick air around him. He propped himself up on his elbows, and slowly sat up as he looked around him.
The craft was a mess, but nothing was severely damaged inside. He’d have to check the outside as well, but for now…
Miraculously, his navigation system was still working. Peering into the screen, he noted where the dot was positioned, an indication of where he currently was.
Earth.
So this was Earth. He only heard stories about this planet. It was said that the people who live here looked much like them in many ways, except that they didn’t have hexagonal crystals lodged on their foreheads.
Jiwon knew that he have to adapt to this planet if he was to hide his presence. If they found out that he wasn’t from this world, him and his people would be in danger. He must learn to hide it.
Closing his eyes and concentrating, the crystal slowly dissolved and camouflaged itself into the color of his skin until it was unnoticeable.
Another thing, the air. The air around him was too thick. His lungs felt heavy whenever he drew a breath. Taking one small vial from his suit, he shook the green-hued liquid briefly, then waited while it turned clear before drinking it down in one gulp. The liquid inside equalizes their body chemistry to that of their surroundings so that they can adapt fairly quickly. It was often used by their military whenever a mission abounds which require them to leave the safety of Technopolis’ atmosphere. It sure comes in handy now.
Jiwon then inspected the craft. Nothing severely damaged inside. He pressed a button and the craft slowly opened a door with smoke billowing up in its wake.
Jiwon wandered outside, slowly inspecting the craft all around. Luckily, only one side of it seemed to have suffered damage. The crack was large, but repairable. In order for him to repair it, it’ll take him at most a day (in Technopolis, that is).
The imminent problem however, was food. He needed to sustain himself. He couldn’t use up all his energy from trying to repair the craft when he hasn’t fed himself properly. He looked around him, but nothing seemed edible. There were only grasses everywhere. Jiwon shook his head in frustration. He was alone, and he didn’t know what to do.
Getting back inside the craft, he tried the communications system if it was working, AND FORTUNATELY, it does but still he needed to configure it properly.
Its configurations were set from the distance between Saturn and Technopolis. He needed to establish contact with his chief guard, otherwise, his parents would worry. He set out to work, repairing the one thing that might save him.
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Technopolis
Jiyong and Jaejin paced simultaneously in the comm room, their worry imminent.
They knew his communication lines were open, if only Jiwon knew the exact configuration on how to establish contact with them. But as it is, he hasn’t and his parents were worried if he was injured. They prayed he was unharmed.
“Bang-goon… are you there?” Jiwon’s voice crackled over the speakers in the comm room as he called out his chief guardian’s name.
Jaejin and Jiyong’s sigh of relief were simultaneous, as Jiyong hurried over, followed by Jaejin, wanting to talk to him.
“Jiwon, are you all right?” Jiyong asked his son worriedly, while Jaejin stayed behind his mate with a hand on Jiyong’s shoulder in comfort.
“Fe-Father, is that you?” Jiwon’s voice was garbled, but he was understandable.
“I’m fine. But I don’t know where on Earth I am. And I’m hungry.”
Bang-goon came forward and pressed the button connecting their communication lines, “Your Highness, if you can wait a moment, we’ll just pinpoint your position through the navigation system so that we can direct you properly.”
“Okay.”
Bang-goon and his platoon set out to work, turning and pressing knobs and buttons until finally Jiwon’s exact location pinged on the screen, the small blue light twinkling rapidly. They zoomed in and found him in Nepal, a few miles away from Mt. Everest.
“Your Highness, you are currently in Nepal,” Bang-goon informed him while his platoon got busy extracting information about the place. “You are currently in a dense forest area, if you walk to your right a bit you’ll find a stream. It says it’s clean to drink, the water might taste different from what you’re used to, but it’s safe. Also have you drank the vial yet Your Highness?” he asked.
“I already did. The air was too heavy around me.” came Jiwon’s reply. “So water is no problem, but how do I find food here?”
“From what we gathered, there’ll be plenty of edible plants by the stream. It’s not clear what, but mushrooms and leafy ones do exist.”
“Okay, I can thrive on those.”
Their conversation was cut short when one of Bang-goon’s platoon leaders hurried over them delivering worse news.
“Sir, we just received word that another domain died out over the southern region.” he said stiffly, his head bowed low in front of his chief and the two royalties.
King Jaejin shook his head in dismay. “Another domain,” he said almost inaudibly.
Jiyong turned to him and hugged him quietly. But Jiwon heard it all.
“That means I have to repair the craft, find Ice and get back there within a day.”
He said with a voice full of frustration. “But Bang-goon, the damage to the craft would take a day at most to repair, and that is with the help of your platoon.
Alone it’ll take me 2 days at least, and I don’t know where the hell on Earth I can find Ice.”
“Jiwon, don’t push yourself.” Jaejin said, “It’s important that you get back safely.”
“There is still hope Your Highness,” said Bang-goon, addressing Jiwon politely as he scrolled over the data about Nepal, “the mountain there has Ice on its peak. It’s nearer your location.”
“If only I could fly the craft there…” said Jiwon frustratedly.
“There is a way, Your Royalness,” said the booming voice of the Oracle, who entered the comm room sweepingly.
Everyone looked towards the Oracle, and they all bowed in unison.
“Imminent One, to what do we owe your presence?” King Jaejin asked, standing up and facing the Oracle curiously.
The Oracle has not set foot outside the Archway since 1500 days ago, and he does so again today, as the drought continues to threaten the very existence of the Technople.
“Another domain dying out Your Royalness is a cause for concern. That is why I came here. But we still have hope. And it couldn’t be any more fortunate for us that His Highness landed on Earth. For Earth is a planet nearest to us in nature, and acquiring Ice from it would sustain our rivers far longer that Saturn’s ice.
It is because Earth has life they call humans and animals, so their surroundings are filled with ample resources to sustain those lives.”
“You mean it was better for Jiwon to land on Earth?” Jiyong asked the Oracle.
“Yes. The drought is a lot more severe than a thousand days ago, and we need a more stable form of Ice than before if we want to bring back the water. This planet will provide for it.”
“And how will Jiwon be able to do that if his craft is incapacitated?” King Jaejin asked in turn.
“You have to find his chromone and rescue Jiwon from that place.”
“What?”
The Oracle started to explain the complexity of a chromone.
“You see, the craft only recognizes Jiwon’s chromosome, but if you find his chromone, he can fly another craft towards Earth. You see the beauty of our crafts, just like our people, once 2 crafts are imbued with the same chromosome, they merge into one and allow chromones to fly together. Since His Highness’ craft is already on Earth, it wouldn’t take a day for his chromone to reach him. For a craft recognizes that of a chromone’s craft and works like a magnet towards each other. It is like it has it’s own navigation system and only follows that path until the two crafts merge. In merging, the better craft maintains all of its qualities, meaning the damage to His Highness’ craft need no repair if his chromone finds him.”
“So we need to find his chromone, is that what you’re saying Imminent One?”
“Yes.”
“But that would take longer.” King Jaejin nearly whined, knowing full well how vast Technopolis was.
The Oracle smiled in answer, “Your Royalness, you seem to have forgotten. Your mate was born into your Chief Guardian’s platoon remember? He was your Chief Guardian before he was your mate right? Those of royalty have their chromones born into the platoon of their Chief Guardian’s. It was made that way by the Ancient Ones, our Creator, so that the lineage shall continue without having the trouble of finding him from the thousands of domain Technople has.”
“You mean…”
“Yes. His Highness’ chromone is someone in Chief Guardian Bang-goon’s platoon right now. And you can find him with the help of this,” The Oracle lifted the chromine Jiwon used before. “Once his chromone laid his palm on this device, it’ll turn bright green, the same as His Highness’ did. If it isn’t him, it does no harm at all.”
“But a lot of the military already used that chromine.” Jiyong said, noting the time when he was still Jaejin’s Chief Guardian. They use that device to man their crafts.
“No, Your Fe-Royalness. The chromines used by Royalty are different from everyone else’s. Each one is different. You see that it is necessary in case one of the royalty fails to find his chromone before the age of 240 days. And His Highness’ has already reached adulthood has he not?”
King Jaejin nodded, finally comprehending. He looked at Jiyong and Bang-goon, a silent command.
Bang-goon nodded in understanding.
“Summon all of the platoon into the quadron right now!” he thundered the order.
His platoon scampered into action, while Jiyong commanded Jaejin’s Chief Guardian to take charge over the positions left by Bang-goon’s platoon.
Jaejin, on the other hand, addressed Jiwon, “You heard everything didn’t you, Son?”
“I did Father.”
“We’ll find your chromone for you. For now, sustain yourself. Find water and food. And keep yourself hidden.”
“Yes, Father.”
“And one more thing Your Highness..” The Oracle said addressing Jiwon as well.
“Yes, Imminent One?”
“The days on Earth pass by fairly quickly. You will have to wait till the sun has set and risen 7-10 times before your chromone finds you. And please remember that only your blood can be used for the Ice.While your chromone may have the same chromosome, the blood structure is different, do you understand?”
“Yes I understand.”
“Stay safe Son. We’ll find him for you as fast as we can.” King Jaejin assured Jiwon.
“I know Father. I’ll disconnect first. I have to find that stream.”
“Yes go ahead.”
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Earth
Jiwon disconnected as he stood up and pressed open the door. He needed to find that stream.
He set out towards his right, the direction Bang-goon told him to. Soon he heard the sound of rippling water, and he was amazed. In Technopolis, the river ran in a straight line, and the water neither had ripples nor rocks of any sort in it.
Beneath the rivers of Technopolis were a filter of sorts, one that rids their waters of any impurities. Here on Earth, the water was totally different.
“This is clean!?” Jiwon asked himself incredulously. “I just hope you’re right about this Bang-goon.”
If Jiwon wasn’t as hungry as he was, he wouldn’t even try drinking it. He moved to a cleaner part of the stream and tentatively tasted the water with a finger.
Nothing seemed wrong with it, and soon Jiwon was drinking ravenously, missing the feeling of quenching his thirst. Next he looked around, and saw a bunch of mushrooms on a tree nearby.
“Weird how even the mushrooms look the same here,” Jiwon said as he came close to the tree and picked out the bunch. He only needed a few to sustain himself, and the bunch would be enough until his chromone finds him. Since he had no container with him, he’d have to come back to drink. He shrugged. “As long as I stay away from this planet’s people, there is no need to worry.”
His craft, however, needed camouflage. Jiwon went back inside, deposited the mushrooms in a chamber, and pressed another button to hide the presence of his craft, taking on the color of its surroundings. He also activated the shield so that people stay away. His Father told him to stay safe and stay hidden and that’s what he will do.
So he began the waiting, hoping that the Ancient Ones guide his chromone rightfully to him.
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Technopolis
Bang-goon’s platoon, a total of 40 able Technople, were lined up neatly in the Quadron as the Oracle approached them one at a time, telling them to put their palms down on the chromine, while Bang-goon, Jaejin and Jiyong looked on.
Meanwhile, at the same time, King Jaejin had ordered another craft to be prepped while the search was ongoing just so they can save time. They waited with bated breaths as the Oracle tested each platoon member if they were Jiwon’s chromone.
They were nearly giving up since the Oracle was nearly finished testing, when the second to the last member laid his palm on the chromine and it glowed bright green in response, and everybody let out a sigh of relief. Bang-goon ordered the member to step out of formation towards them while telling the other members to go back to their posts.
The Oracle asked the member, “What is your name?”
“Sunghoon, Imminent One,” he said with a polite bow.
“Sunghoon, you were born to be the Royal Prince’s chromone, his lifetime mate, do you accept?” King Jaejin then addressed the member.
“It would be my greatest honor, Your Royalness,” Sunghoon answered, kneeling on one knee in front of King Jaejin and Jiyong in respect.
“Arise, His Highness’ chromone.”
Sunghoon arose and looked at the authoritative people in front of him. He tried to compose himself, but in reality he was over the moon. To think that he would be the Royal Prince’s chromone, he was born lucky.
“Sunghoon, Bang-goon will debrief you on what you need to do.” Jiyong said to him and Sunghoon acknowledged him with a polite bow as Bang-goon stepped forward and started briefing him about his mission.
After the debrief, and with the prepping of the craft done, the Oracle once again told Sunghoon to place his hand on a chromine different that what he had tested him with before, and it glowed green once more, this time, his chromosome being recognized by the spacecraft.
“The spacecraft now recognizes only your chromosome, and that of your chromone, the Royal Prince. Once your craft establishes contact with that of His Highness’ craft, a merging will take place. You need not worry about finding him, the navigation system will pave the path for you. Just make sure to keep your hand on the joystick at all times while you travel, do you understand?” The Oracle asked Sunghoon in earnest.
“Yes, Imminent One, I understand.”
“Then travel safe.”
King Jaejin came forward and placed a hand on Sunghoon’s shoulder, “Please bring my son back safely and make sure he completes his mission. You can do that right Sunghoon?”
“Yes Your Highness, as it is your wish, so is it my will to carry out.”
“Thank you, and come back safely, both of you.”
Finally, Sunghoon entered the craft. He seated himself, and placed his hand on the joystick, and immediately the craft flared to life. In seconds, he was flying and in minutes, he shot out of their atmosphere towards Earth, the navigation system guiding him. The craft barelled through the galaxy in a blurring speed, as if being pulled towards its destination and all the while, Sunghoon kept his hand on the joystick with a firm grip. He needed to maintain his course and his hand on the joystick will save both of then for sure.
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Earth
The bumpy ride started as soon as Sunghoon’s craft entered Earth’s atmosphere, and Sunghoon’s grip on the joystick tightened.
After what felt like hours, Sunghoon’s craft landed neatly on solid ground.
As soon as it landed, Jiwon’s craft shed off it’s camouflage and glowed a bright green, the same brightness Sunghoon’s craft was emitting.
In a flash, the crafts merged into one, now having 2 chairs with a joystick in between, Jiwon sitting on one of the chairs Sunghoon on the other.
Jiwon looked toward Sunghoon in awe, his senses still reeling from the craft merging.
“You found me..” Jiwon said in a whisper.
Sunghoon alighted from his chair, and kneeled in front of Jiwon.
“Your Highness, my name is Sunghoon. I have come to rescue you.”
“You’re my chromone.”
Sunghoon didn’t look up as he answered, “Yes Your Highness.”
“Arise Sunghoon, and never bow in front of me again.”
Sunghoon arose and looked at Jiwon in confusion. “Your Highness?”
Jiwon smiled, and noticed just now how beautiful Sunghoon’s features are.
“Sunghoon, a chromone does not distinguish between royalty and his subject. We are alike, therefore, we are equal, there will be no need to bow to me in the future.” Jiwon said, relieved that Sunghoon arrived quickly.
Jiwon had already counted 10 sunrises and sunsets, made the trip to the stream 30 times to relieve his thirst before he felt the craft rattle, a sign that his chromone’s craft was near. He quickly settled into the chair and placed his hand on the joystick, and waited until the two crafts merged.
Sunghoon smiled back at Jiwon, “Yes Your Highness, but I still have to get used to it. Everything was dropped to me within the day I’m still recovering from the shock.”
Jiwon chuckled, and placed a hand on Sunghoon’s shoulder, “we’ll chat all we can when we get back but for now, let’s finish the mission together, shall we?”
Sunghoon nodded once, “Yes Your Highness.”
Jiwon smiled at Sunghoon again, then they both settled into their chairs to carry out their mission.
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