We leave the blazing graves behind us and I let go of Amethyst’s wrist.
Regardless of us being out of the immediate vicinity of the fires, it was still somehow sweltering.
I hope I wasn’t too forceful with her. I’m not sure why I did it but… it just felt right.
Like… something I would have needed back then.
I use my shirt collar to fan some air down to my sweaty chest, though it barely makes a difference.
Giving up, I place my backpack down and go through the contents, at the same time, keeping an eye on my patient, a five or so meters away.
Garnet seems calm, unlike Onyx, who’s intense stare I feel on me, even when I briefly take my eyes off them.
A roll of bandage, a roll of tape and two sturdy looking sticks from nearby is all I need.
With deliberate movements, I slowly and calmly start closing the distance between me and the two Tyrchids.
Halfway there, Onyx raises his blades threateningly, I know to stop immediately.
“Amethyst, what was the Tyrchidian word for ‘Friend’ again?”
Getting this wrong could have dire consequences, I didn’t wish to relay on my memory of having said it only once.
Instead of an answer from Amethyst, Garnet looks at me confused, before sharply grimacing.
Onyx growls, like an insect guard dog.
“Amethyst?”
She was right here, why isn’t she answering?
I do not dare to take my eyes off my patients to look for her.
“Is… everything okay back there?”
“It’s Shuzs bfhusz.”
She finally answers, like it was an afterthought to even pay attention to me.
I look directly into Onyx’s black hybrid eyes, into the sea of tenebrous stars.
“Shuzs bfhusz.” I say, thinking my pronunciation better than before.
The gesture, hopefully not interpreted as a challenge, instead showing that I am capable, that I do not fear him.
Hopefully to also convey my friendliness, Amethyst seemed to like eye contact a great deal, so it seems like the right way to handle it.
Cowering, or showing weakness before him, would likely end badly for me.
With narrowed eyes and a deep grunt like sound, Onyx lowers his blades, allowing me to approach.
“Don’t worry, it’ll be fine.” I try to soothe them, talking with a smooth, friendly tone.
Garnet looks directly at me, as I get close enough, but I feel it a bad idea to lock eyes with her.
I squat next to Garnet’s leg; kneeling or sitting, was too dangerous for the situation.
If something went wrong, I needed to be one my feet in an instant.
Her armor has crumpled away from the leg, the gray skin exposed, bruised and bloody.
Laying the supplies on the ground next to her, I carefully touch her leg, she flinches.
“I bet it hurts, but try to be calm.” I keep on talking, even though I don’t know if they’ll understand me.
The gray skin is punctured at spots, my hands get green as I feel what I think to be the bones beneath, broken and dislodged.
There isn’t much I can do about any bone splinters, I can’t possibly do any surgeries here.
But, at least there is something I can do.
A long calm breath after, I speak to them once more, to calm them or myself, I was not sure.
“This is going to hurt, try to bear it, okay? You’ll do fine.” I say sheepishly and look at Garnet and then at Onyx, they don’t let it be known if they understood or not.
Onyx continues to leer at me, while Garnet seems worried and still in pain.
For a moment I consider asking for Amethyst’s assistance, but she was so slow to act last time…
What’s up with her?
Before I start the procedure, I sight and breath in calming, dry hot air. With steady hands and a clear mind, I start to feel around for the right spots with both of my hands on her cool skin.
“Right, here goes.”
With a sharp and powerful motion, I lodge the bone back into place, a slight crunching sound plays.
Garnet’s resulting shriek is earsplitting, going so high that I’m surprised human hearing could even register it.
She struggles and tries to retreat, but I keep her leg to the ground despite her resistance.
A black tinted blade appears on my neck from behind, I couldn't even catch Onyx’s movements.
“BLIZH!”
I try to hold absolutely still, but I can’t help slowly craning my neck away from the blade, unfortunately it seemed intent in following. I am unable to escape it as I still hold onto Garnet’s leg.
Performing a reduction to her leg is something I wouldn't wish to do again, if she now managed to misalign her bones by moving too much.
She seemed to have calmed down, her teary eyes regain some of their shine.
Though it doesn’t change the fact my death is still mere inches away.
I force myself to breath shallow quick breaths, better than not breathing at all.
“Frank!” Amethyst finally takes note of my situation.
Garnet buzzes something sounding exhausted, a moment later, the blade retreats.
Finally breathing out properly, I slump slightly, Amethyst appears next to me.
“Are you alright!?”
“I- I think so”
I massage my neck, feel and stretch the skin, there’s no hole, no deadly puncture.
Garnet is restless and tries to shy away from me a little, her leg shaking.
Somewhat forcefully, I steady her leg, gently but firmly rolling bandaging around it.
"Sorry, but I need you to stay still, okay?"
After a thin bandage layer, I slip the sticks on both sides of the leg and tie them in with the dressing tightly for a makeshift splint.
She really has had enough, as has Onyx, who starts helping Garnet up. I allow her to rise, but don’t let go yet.
I finish the package off with quick three stripes of tape, on the already retreating leg.
That should hopefully hold.
I get up and retreat from them, as they make their leave too, Garnet limps, held up by her partner. She seems to test in placing weight on her treated leg, but shies away from doing so soon.
A sigh of relief later, I get to relax again, to calm my racing heart.
It’s like I’m a real freelance vet.
Going there where the need is greatest, treating real wild… big, creatures.
Not just a makeshift zookeeper.
Ray…
Did you ever… continue on our path?
I notice Garnet’s wounded wing, now in plain view with their backs turned.
The delicate bone sculpture hinges on by only a thread, fractured and bent, with pieces missing.
At least I got to treat her leg…
“Amethyst, what is the matter with you?” I say, finally able to look around, coming off maybe a little too annoyed in hindsight.
I look up at her, she doesn’t even look back, instead gazing somewhere into the forest on the right.
I can see nothing out of the ordinary there. Just the same old thick trees, some bushy foliage of red and purple. Though I notice a distinct lack of Tyrchids prancing around in the area.
“What’s there? What are you looking at?”
“I think we’ve been watched, for a long time now” She answers serious.
“W-what? By who?”
“At least… some humans and... something else too”
----------------------------------------
The bushes start rustling.
“Looks like we’ve been found out. Let’s go crew” An unfamiliar voice says.
An unknown man emerges, walking through the bushes, he wears a white suit and heads towards them.
Amethyst and Frank stare incredulously as from behind him, a large crew of people follow.
They take off the camouflage, brush branches and other native plants from their large driveable hover cameras, to trail after him.
Like large poles, with a ring at the bottom, the cameraman could spin around, tilt and control the contraption.
At the same time, the camera on the end of it, automatically adjusts and dampens to not show any of this movement in the footage.
Frank had never seen one in real life, they were as impressive as he thought they would be.
Various other personnel walk further back with them, some with camouflage patterned clothes, but no weapons, others with whatever the person seemed to want to wear, in their casual clothes. Holding microphones, driving around spotlights, like the cameras. A few people with coolers, handing off beverages or food or wearing some sort of medical uniforms.
Frank now realized what Amethyst had meant, as he spotted some aliens in their midst, or rather, ‘non-human individuals’ as was the approved term.
One of the most eye catching ones was a Flibma, a short blob who looked like a vaguely humanoid slime like construct, currently colored blue, their shiny and elastic skin always slowly changed hue automatically.
ISSA’s researchers and other institutes had been working with them for years to understand the science and meaning in this seemingly pointless display.
Finding no satisfying answers, Frank thought it to be one of those evolutionary traits that were better to just be accepted as is.
The Flibma species faces looked like they were drawn on by a small child, two small black dots for eyes and a W-shaped mouth caught in a perpetual moving wave, making them always look scared or unsure.
A toyline and all sorts of merchandise of their colorful and unique pudgy bodies took the galaxy by storm when they first made contact.
Their gooey body made them possible to become sort of androids, embedding technology into their body much more easily than any other race.
This one however, wore some more rudimentary equipment, trays, cup holders, mic stands. All sorts of hooks and poles. Somebody had even hanged a coat on him, though it looked like to be folded ten times, as to not drag on the ground.
That somebody, most likely being the very tall, built like a stick, Churlen, an octopus headed, tentacle faced, dark brown and lanky humanoid.
Shiny and chitinous all over, it was at least two meters tall.
Its arms longer than its body when straightened out, made the creature look very fragile - like a small collision, or a fall, could splinter the whole being into sharp toothpicks.
Its three meaty fingers at the end of these arm sticks, held on tight to a handle of a fuzzy-microphone.
Before Frank can loose himself more into the various interesting guests that approached him, some from species he had never seen, even in Metropolis, their apparent leader gaits to them.
With a stride full of charm and confidence, like he owned the place.
The man adjusts his blue and purple jeweled necklace and the cuffs of his white and golden lined dress shirt, before speaking to a camera instead of directly at them.
[https://i.imgur.com/4KzUboA.png]
“Such stakes, such tension! What a brilliant show!” He gestures towards the sky with bravado.
“Um-” Frank is unable to get a word in and Amethyst is having trouble understanding what is even happening.
“A brave battle of the underdogs, driving away the big felines! I was at the edge of my seat the whole time!”
He speaks with passion and grasps the temple of his stylish orange sunglasses, which almost hid his eyes underneath.
“Then ending this truly heart wrenching event in a touching scene with a local and a treatment of the injured”
He looks into the sky and brings a hand held in a fist to his chest before looking to a different camera and pointing.
“Ah! What an exquisite dramatic arc!”
The leading man steps backwards next to Frank and pats him on shoulder like they were old buddies.
Frank flinches slightly, but the sight of cameras and bright lights bearing down on him was too overwhelming to make him shirk away.
“Handled that like an old hand. Frank, are you a doctor, a nurse or something?”
“A-a vet actually…”
“How very fitting. Though I must apologize, the circumstances could be better. But I do still hope this won’t lead to any cancellation or delays”
Amethyst, paralyzed before this crowd of people, of strange creatures and unknown technology, recovers, to cut in between the two men.
“Who are you? Why are you here?”
His shiny, very slight pompadour hair bobs as he lowers his sunglasses to get a clearer look at her.
“It speaks English? How wonderful! You must be Amethyst then, the designated first contact person for Tyrchids? How lovely meeting you so soon”
“Wait… are you from ISSA?” Frank cuts back from behind Amethyst to her side.
“Not recognizing me I could stomach, but not even knowing of our arrival? This simply won’t do…” He glances around to his crew with a questioning squint.
“We very clearly emailed them about it, well ahead of time even, didn’t we?”
The personnel nod fiercely in agreement.
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.
“Hmph”
The sharply dressed man takes out his communicator and browses through it with his long slender fingers, his nails lacquered in pastel blue and wearing a large golden ring on his right hand.
He murmurs something ambiguous, swiping and tapping with sharp frustrated movements on the device’s screen.
“We only got the one automatic email and were promised another, to let us know when you would be arriving…” Frank politely complains, but seems to be ignored.
“More importantly… Since when did ISSA start doing entertainment or whatever this is?”
“About six years ago, in fact, I’ve been the leading man ever since. What kind of backwater planet have you been living in all this time?”
The leading man just adjusts his glasses with one hand, while continuing to use his communicator with his other.
“Well, one of those indeed”
“Alright, won’t you check your inbox again now, just to make sure” The man smiles, his orange tinted sunglasses, glinting in the sunshine.
He then looks directly into one of the cameras “Please hold on just a little longer, just some technical difficulties, we will get right back into the action soon”
Frank takes out his communicator, the most recent emails were from the Police Chief and ISSA still.
As he is about to say something, a new mail just arrives in with a title of “ISSA document shoot.” He quickly taps it open.
> Hi, Frank and Amethyst,
>
>
>
> The arrival of the legendary Documentarist, Pioneer, is soon upon you,
>
> me and my film crew will be arriving: [three hours ago].
>
>
>
> -Pioneer from ISSA.
The automatic [galactic time display], was widely used to set up dates and meetings.
It always told the remaining time in hours to the set time, as it was much easier to carry any sort of device to measure the old Earth time, instead of trying to handle the different time zones and day lengths, which were as numerous as the planets in the galaxy.
Frank isn’t sure if he should laugh or be mad at this pompous “Pioneer”.
“You clearly just-”
The film crew behind Pioneer vehemently shake their heads and some form elaborate X-marks with their arms, discouraging Frank from continuing his sentence.
“Eh…?
...Must be the bad reception, you know how planets of newly applied Sapient species can be.”
Frank coats the explanation with a desert-dry laugh topping and pockets his communicator.
“Right, of course.” He answers, either believing him or being a surprisingly good sport about it.
Suddenly Pioneer slowly leans to the side and looks past and behind them.
“Oh, and who might you be?”
Frank and Amethyst find Emerald peering at them curiously, from the edge of a tree they are standing near.
Amethyst takes control of the situation hesitantly.
“I… I’m the only Tyrchid, who speaks English. We… haven’t taught it to others yet.”
“Ah yes, that is rather expected, what do they speak then? Tyrchidian?”
“Yes, e-exactly” Amethyst avoids direct eye-contact with him.
“How admirable of you to plan on educating them so soon.
Explorers, we are witnessing the very dawn, the crucial moment of a civilization that is about to enter into the era of galactic relations by learning the common tongue!”
Amethyst looks around “Who are you talking to?”
“Our Audience of course, my loyal fan base, the Explorers.”
“Right… of course you won’t know, I haven’t even introduced myself yet!
You can call me, Pioneer.” The smooth man places an open palm on his chest.
“As everyone knows, I am the galaxy’s number one Documentarist, the explorer of the unknown reaches of the galaxy.
Armed with my tireless curiosity and unparalleled knowledge of sapient species, I am single-handedly the mediator and peace bringer of many fledgling species.”
Some of the film crew roll their eyes, or show other signs natural to their species to express a similar feeling.
Pioneer gloats with a big smug grin, chiseled on his face.
His story is accompanied with grand hand gestures, showing off his importance.
“Setting these planets, their whole species, on the long and hard road to joining our galaxy, easing their hardships, making them familiar to all of the United Galaxy at the same time.
All who prove themselves are welcome to join our world, brimming with such shining hope and unmatched harmony, we grant the audience an exclusive galaxy first preview at new civilizations and their unique ways!
I-”
“ISSA’s meticulous data gathering, evaluation and court judging really came to this then? Just making a show of it all?”
Pioneer seems rather stumped by this rude interruption by Frank.
“Well, this is still very much evidence we are gathering here, if you want to be all serious about it. Why would collecting it have to be boring?”
“Sorry, I wasn’t really prepared for being filmed today...” Frank backpedals.
Amethyst gives Frank a look of utter confusion, this causes Pioneer to come very close to them and whisper:
“Is all not clear? You wanted us to be here, we are your ticket into the good graces of the ISSA, our material will be shown in its entirety to the whole court.
All of the jury will study it meticulously, questioning your aims, evaluation your goals for joining.”
“No, its all good, just give us a second.” Frank answers.
Pioneer nods lightly and leaves them alone, going to hog the cameras for himself.
Frank and Amethyst have a whispering exchange.
“Let’s just go along with it for now, is that okay?”
“But… what do we do, what exactly are we supposed to be doing?”
“I’m sure Pioneer will guide as along, this is a sort of an… act. All of this equipment here is capturing footage of us, which will eventually be shown on screens, sort of like in the Director’s office.”
“Oh… I think I get it…?”
“Great, so let’s do our best to answer any questions he has, with discretion of course. This is our chance to give a good impression, to prevent Intergalactic’s plans for your kin.”
Amethyst’s look becomes that of determination.
“Looks like our honored hosts are done, are you ready Explorers?”
Pioneer makes a show of pulling his sunglasses off his nose, followed by a ridiculous pose while spinning the glasses around in a loose grip of his fingers.
Before suddenly swiftly planting them back on his head and pushing them slowly up his nose, a small colored light show flashes from the spotlights on him.
“Let the Documenting- begin!”
Finally, the act is over, and he calmly saunters over to Frank and Amethyst, who appear to almost be in physical pain after what they just witnessed.
“Amethyst! Are you ready?” Pioneer points at her trying to hype her up.
“Y-yes?”
“Great! Shall we then start with some questions about the Tyrchid culture?”
Amethyst gives some quick nods while looking away.
“Wonderful!”
“I presume this is your...” Pioneer looks around at the trees and holes in them trying to find the words.
“... village?
What can you tell me about the Tyrchid way of life?”
Amethyst’s gathered confidence crumbles in the face of such an open-ended question.
“We uhm, yeah, it’s a village… I guess.” Amethyst fidgets nervously and looks at the ground, before a great revelation lights up her face, and she points a bladed hand upwards.
“We live in the trees.”
Pioneer is at a total lost for words.
“H-how amazing!” He forces himself to say.
“We carve our housing high up there to be safe from Sabertigers.” Amethyst slowly starts warming up to this strange scenario.
“Ah yes, the truly terrifying, largest cats known to man and not man. Probably the biggest ones, even in the whole galaxy.
Speaking of houses, let’s take a quick closer look at their premises.”
The Documentarist winks at Amethyst and Frank, offering them a little more time to prepare, before waving a hand in the air.
An assistant, a dark haired woman with purple clothes, responds by setting down a briefcase.
Opening it quickly, she takes out a four bladed helicopter drone, which whirrs to life.
She puts on a pair of large googles and starts flying it with small controls squeezed in her hands.
“Just try to relax and it’ll be fine” Frank whispers to Amethyst.
“Yeah… I’ll try. It’s just… so strange.”
"Never been around so many humans, or other species, right? You'll get used to it, even your kin seem to have."
"You're right."
Even they have gotten used to it...
As the drone ascends into the sky, the Tyrchids on the ground look up in suspicion and wonder at this strange phenomenon intercepting their airspace.
Most avoid it, but few flock to it, fly rings around it, some gently tap it with a bladed hand, before quickly flying away as it bobs.
They continue to observe the near silent drone, but leave it alone soon enough.
“Ah such excellent footage... Luna, make sure you’re getting it all.”
“Yes yes, Dave.”
“Ahem.”
“Yes, Pioneer.”
Luna dismissively waves her hand his way, while flying the drone.
The drone soon stops before a hole-home high up in a tree and hovers still before it.
Pioneer has a small screen on his hands, and a headset on, starting to perform some narration on the footage at the same time.
Amethyst and Frank awkwardly stand around and wait for them to finish, like outsiders excluded from a group of friends, doing their own activity without the two of them.
After the third visited home, the drone finally starts descending. It flies past them, so they give it a small wave.
The drone pilot Luna, gives a countdown from five with her fingers. Pioneer hands the screen and the headset to a female Ashen assistant who came to take them from him.
As the countdown reaches zero, Pioneer resumes talking to a nearby camera.
“And we’re back on the ground, welcome back viewers, hope you enjoyed that insightful first glimpse into the humble housing of the Tyrchids.
We left off when I was just about to ask Amethyst here-”
He arrives at Amethyst’s side, placing a hand behind her back, but not actually touching.
“-about some details of her village. First of all, any dwelling deserves a name, surely you already have one too?”
Amethyst awkwardly glances down at the way too familiar Pioneer.
“Yes, it’s uh…”
She then looks help from Frank, her eyes wide, she thought to be prepared now, but not for this.
“Pango… Grove.” Frank fills her sentence, receiving a disappointed look from her in return.
“Pango Grove village… What a… truly charming and rustic name. May I inquire as to what great history is behind this marvelous victory of settlement naming?”
“It’s based on the greatest delicacy, dare I say, the national fruit of Midnight Iris, the Pango” Frank responds confidently.
“Ohoh! Now that sounds promising! Would you happen to have some of these 'Pangos' on hand? Viewers back home would certainly like to see them, and I- to taste them”
“But of course, Frank here just plucked a fresh batch of them not long ago” Amethyst still sour about the name choice, throws Frank under the literal spotlight instead.
“Yes, come this way.” Frank leads them to the tree where he laid down the bulb of berries before.
Before picking it up, he looks around, Amethyst catches on to what he is thinking and follows her example, her demeanor changing accordingly.
The fires around the village had gone out, no Tyrchid corpses were burning anymore, they had all finished their last rites.
Only traces remaining of their existence were charred grass patches, and within them, crumpled and shattered armor pieces, like gravel.
Pioneer’s narration in the background makes Frank stop gazing and to pick up the berry plant.
“Now this is exciting, we just barely arrived here in Midnight Iris, a far edge of the known galaxy, if I may be so bold, a true backwater planet.
But so much has already happened, we have witnessed the magnificent tenacity and fighting prowess of the native people, some possibly blossoming romance in the side and presently, are conducting a galaxy first review of their best bounty of nature.
Now come with me and let us see these Pangos” Pioneer gestures at a camera that silently drifts with him for a close up shot.
Frank has taken the initiative to pick out a few Pangos during Pioneer’s speech, and the liberty to give Amethyst some in the meantime too.
While Amethyst munches happily to her berries, Frank hands one to the leading man.
“I’ll be honest I was expecting something bigger, these are grape sized-”
“Ah yes, my bad, the full name is Pango Grapes.” Frank corrects with a smile.
“I see, but their looks far outweighs any disappointment I was feeling a moment ago. Just look at this truly enigmatic appearance, this unique torrent of energy inside.
I bet these are highly nutritious.”
He holds one between two fingers and brings it very close to the camera, along with his face.
Pioneer then backs away a little, taking over the shot completely and places the berry on his tongue, before elaborately closing his mouth and biting into it.
“Oh, Ohh, it exploded as I bit into it, this taste, it’s unlike anything I’ve ever tasted — is what I would say, if I had never eaten mango’s before.
But, hold on! This aftertaste- a sudden second wave of extreme sweetness!”
He looks deep in thought and stays silent for what feels to be forever, compared to the usual rate of his prattling.
“My dear explorers, I must say, this might- no, this is the very best fruit or berry I’ve ever had the pleasure to taste.
In my whole life, in the whole running of this show, and that is saying a lot. How truly marvelous, ah, I can’t wait for this to hit the market.”
“T-thanks?” Amethyst says quietly off screen.
The close up camera backs away and Pioneer comes back to his two debuting stars.
“Oh yes, that brings us to our next question, I was going to ask how you were planning on contributing to the general well being of the galaxy as the future members of ISSA,
but I dare say that the export of these Pango Grapes would certainly spice up any snacks or salads in a galaxy wide scale.
So, you seem to have that one covered, unless you have got something more to add?”
“I don’t think so?”
“You probably saw that quarry on your way in?” Frank chimes in.
“Of course, metals, minerals and raw materials, the galaxy can certainly always use more of those, very good”
Pioneer nods along, before starting up on the next topic.
“Our exchange so far has made me wonder, just what kind of a ruling hierarchy do you run here?
We have certainly seen all sorts of systems in this show before, democratic dictatorships, full autonomy and ruling per household, to name a few of the most memorable ones.
So what is your take on it?” He asks with a near hidden glint in his eyes, this subject seeming to be of great intrigue for him.
“Umm?”
“If you will allow me to make a prediction, it looks to me that you, Amethyst, are here in charge, does it not Explorers?”
“No, I just have to be representing my kin… It shouldn’t be my role…”
“Hmm? Pray tell, what do you mean by that.”
“It’s just… the role just happened to fall on me, since our umm… Queen... died recently.”
It pained Frank to see Amethyst struggle with having to speak of such a subject, he thought of cutting her off several times to help.
“Oh, my deepest apologies for your loss, this must be such a touchy subject.” Pioneer’s tone changed from intrigue to empathy.
“However, if you will allow me to say, your society seems to be in good hands with an altruistic leader, such as yourself, rising in the face of adversity to represent their people.”
“Oh…” The compliments go straight to Amethyst’s head and cause her cheeks to lose their grayness in favor of another, brighter tint.
“I’ve been wondering, and I bet you explorers back home have too, why is it that you decided to apply for ISSA? Why now? Though, we may have just inadvertently answered this question.”
Frank jumps at this opportunity.
“That is exactly it, with Tyrchid’s usual governing style fallen, now more than ever, we need the stability and the protection brought by ISSA,
to be safe from possible malicious forces aiming to take advantage of our precarious situation.”
He explains, like he had practiced this speech.
“Very savvy way of thinking, this is exactly the reason ISSA was formed to begin with, I’m sure you’ll pass the court judging with flying colors once that time comes.”
“Thank you” Amethyst and Frank say at the same time and glance at each other amused.
“Alright, that’s just a small glimpse to the interesting life, culture and planet of the Tyrchids, but don’t go anywhere, we’ll continue in a moment after these messages.”
“Everyone, take ten.” The Documentarist shouts and the hover cameras, lights and mics are left unattended.
The personnel form small talk groups, take some beverages and sandwiches, some go into the forest the way they came, or just sit down and rest, leaning on the massive trees.
Some even try to converse with or approach other Tyrchids.
“Frank, Amethyst, lets talk.”
Pioneer walks up to them.
“Alright, be honest with me here, how colored is your culture, your traditions, maybe your cooking has deep roots? Which areas have enough content to keep people entertained?”
“Oh, uhh...”
“Well, the Tyrchid culture is, well, quite young…”Frank says dressing the unfortunate truth neatly.
“How much content do you need, a specific episode count maybe?”
“At least four broadcasts, we can do one ‘each day’, or we can agree on the schedule later”
“How long do they need to be?”
“It’s up to you, as long as it is entertaining, of course. The more content, the better.
However keep in mind, it is your responsibility to make sure you are showing everything that might help with ISSA’s decision in ruling in your favor.”
Pioneer removes his orange shades, revealing his stark, almost black irises.
“That said, I don’t recommend hiding any negatives. They will find them out themselves, and grill you for hiding them in the first place.”
“Of course, we wouldn't dream of hiding anything.” Frank says and Amethyst gives him a look.
“Good.” Pioneer looks at his thick golden ring.
“Break is soon over, have you got any ideas what to cover now, or should we continue with the questions? I’ve got enough prepared for one episode, but after that it’s up to you.”
Amethyst’s face grows a little worried.
“Hmm...”
Frank starts whispering with Amethyst about something.
Pioneer waits for their talking to die down before asking:
"Have you thought of a solution?”
Frank exchanges triumphant glances with Amethyst and answers:
“We sure have, there’s at least one thing Tyrchids can do that should suffice.”