Volume 1 Prologue:

The King of Science

“Welcome, Human,” said Thraxos in the most formal voice he could manage.

The Human—a dark-skinned male of around twenty Terran years—looked bewildered, but only for a moment. “Ah. Hello. I suppose I should have expected this.”

Not the response that Thraxos had anticipated. Most humans reacted with a mixture of shock, terror, and confusion upon meeting another intelligent species. But this human, after only a few seconds of having regained consciousness, already seemed right at home. “Expected what?” Thraxos asked instinctively.

The Human gestured at the inside the spaceship in which he now found himself. “An abduction.”

Thraxos scoffed in the Martian fashion, but of course his social cues were lost on the Human, so he had to voice his indignation. “Hardly an abduction. You asked to come here, if you’ll recall.”

“Yes, but I was rather hoping that you’d meet me on my planet, on my terms—after all, it is my planet that we’ve come here to discuss. Instead, you appear to have kidnapped me, sedated me, and wiped my memory, so that I can’t be sure of where I am, how I got here, or how long it’s been since I left.”

“Here” was a rather luxurious Martian sitting room. Near the center of the room were two chairs made out of pure xepoflerrothene—the most comfortable substance on Mars—upon which Thraxos and the Human were seated. Between them was a table with a built-in holographic display. To Thraxos’ left—the Human’s right—was a large window, providing a rather scenic view of the planet Terra from around three hundred human miles away.

The Human continued, “I understand that Terran-Martian relations are a bit tense right now, but surely even you must agree that my treatment thus far has been a little… rude.”

If Thraxos had had teeth, he would have surely been gritting them now. This human certainly had confidence, if nothing else. “You make it sound as if you are a guest,” he said after a moment.

The Human cocked an eyebrow. “Aren’t I? I successfully averted a diplomatic disaster of literally worldly proportions, after all. I’ve also made friends with quite a few Martians, most of whom I’m sure will vouch for me. And anyway, if I were a prisoner, I doubt that you would have gone through the trouble of providing all of this.” Once again he gestured, this time toward the table, which contained an assortment of Martian delicacies, including a freezing-hot, triple-brewed cup of Valderplaxtan Tea, which was possibly the most expensive thing in the room.

Without hesitating, the Human picked up the cup and took a sip. If the taste bothered him at all, it didn’t show on his face. “Thank you for preparing this food, by the way. I can’t be sure, but I think that I was quite hungry before I got abducted.” And he began digging in, without even waiting to be told that he could eat.

Thraxos was fuming. This was the representative for the human race? Thraxos didn’t claim to be an expert on human social etiquette, but by the standards of any species, the Human could only be called a jackass—a word which, on Mars, actually had seventeen different translations, each varying slightly in meaning and connotation. Thraxos thought that all of them would be fitting in this instance.

“Who are you, exactly?” Thraxos said a little more aggressively than he meant to.

The Human took another sip of the tea. “Mmm. Under the circumstances, don’t you think it would be more judicious to introduce yourself first? As a token of apology?”

Thraxos was flabbergasted. “Apology? For what?”