S1E2 - I Still Look Just Like Me

[AUDIO) We begin on a space station, hearing the hum of the slow turning engine. The room is large and nearly empty.

ARCHIVIST: Welcome to the Archives. Our record for review today will be from section 27: Historical Worlds. Today’s sample is from one of the oldest homes of the Collected Archives, the planet Vadd. For any visitors seeking the usual review of our last recorded session, the Archives must apologize. That recording was somehow damaged during transmission and is with our data specialists for repair. We will be advised as soon as it is once again available.

Please note that any opinions expressed in these samples belong solely to the speaker on record and do not reflect the views of this station, the archival union, or the Collected Archives itself. If anything in this review causes listener distress or confusion please report to the nearest attendant for assistance. Potential sources of distress include military service and battle. Please also note there will be time for questions and observations once the sample has concluded.

–

[AUDIO][At the sound of an electronic swoop, the sounds of the space station fade away. They are replaced by a fountain somewhere in the quiet part of a citadel. The burble of the fountain almost covers up the constant hum of a nearby power. Throughout the recording several plops can be heard, like the sound of pebbles hitting the water.

OROSH: Hi Mom. Hi Dad. It’s Orosh. If you’re wondering why there’s no video I promise the recorder you gave me works, but it turns out something in the soil here messes with the signal. If you really want to see me full of jagged lines and bright out of context pixels let me know for next time. It’s only been a week so I still look just like me.

I do wish you could see the place I’m sitting in though. It’s… There’s a fountain right next to me. Water comes up out of the top of a planet and flows down into sides intto the basin, and there are flowers and fish carved all over the edges. I’m sitting in one of the flowers. The fish… th- they- they have… eyes and it’s just a little creepy after a while. I’m still not sure how I feel about food that can see me?. Just.. just imagine it though. The water flows all the time. There’s another fountain closer to the center of the city, a bigger one with water coming out in three different places but I like it better here. It’s peaceful.

You were right about how loud it would be. At home we’re pretty far from the mines and the port traffic’s only a few times a day. Here there are ships coming and going all the time, and the ground-shuttle’s everywhere. The traffic never stops and the lights are always on. They put night-shields on our windows to help us sleep but it’s still brighter than my roommate and I are used to.

Oh! I- I think you’d like Rel. She’s from Aldeir, that planet we used to see sometimes early in the morning right near the horizon. She was studying to be a tech mechanic there so that’s probably where she’ll end up here too. She’s Definitely ahead of me in science but I think I have her beat in equations.

(Orosh cont.) First week lessons were a lot, but I can’t believe how much I didn’t know about our own history! Do you know how many worlds our people went through before they finally found the perfect home? Vadd’s the fifth central world. The other four just… we used them up I guess? Resources gone, water dried up, dusty and tired and only livable if you have domes like we do back home. I guess they started off nice enough but… well, Vadd’s lasted longer than any of the others by centuries! They say we got it right this time, and we’re on the forever-home.

Oh, I’m supposed to meet with one of the attendants tomorrow to talk about my placement. I thought we’d have a little more time before picking a specialty but that’s ok. They’ll talk to