27th August 1999
7:23 GMT
"Will ye no' sit down?
"
The…
Short alien gestures to the human-scale chair opposite him as he takes a sip from his teacup. The table between us is similarly sized for humans, meaning that he's sitting on a wooden highchair.
I… Take a look around the interior of his home. It looks like… Like a country cottage from a century ago. A bookshelf covered in traditionally-bound books, heavy wooden furniture rather than modern chipboard flat packed stuff and… Jars of preserves.
It's not what I was expecting.
"Did ye drop something?
"
"No. Ah. Sir?"
This isn't how I thought this would… I give him an awkward smile and sit down in the chair. There's a slight
hiss of escaping air as the padding deflates and my weight pushes gas out through the seams in the leather.
"Last time I checked, aye. So. What does the
Triarchy want wi' the likes o'me?
"
I stare at him for a moment, and he stares back.
"Sir?"
"Is there some communication problem we be having?
"
"Sir, I just appeared in orbit with this ring. And then I asked it to take me to…" I gesture to him with both hands. "I… Don't know what the… Triarchy? Is?"
"Is that so? Hah!
" He looks away for a moment.
"And here's me thinking they'd tracked me down, begorrah!
"
That… Doesn't… Sound good. Um.
"Should..? They be tracking you down?"
"I don't see why they would. I like the simple life. And they don't. But sometimes they can't keep themselves to themselves and they stick their noses in for the sake o' it.
"
"Ah. No. I'm here for purely selfish reasons."
"Oh? Well. I suppose I am too, when you get down to it. So what'll ye be wanting?
"
"I-deally, a personal lantern."
"And what might one o'them be?
"
Oh.
"The charge unit? That goes with the ring?"
"I don't know anything about anything like that. Back when I left, those rings were for the weans, no' for aliens.
"
"For what?"
"Children. So I don't really understand how you got a hold of it.
"
"I would be happy to cooperate with you in investigating that." I sigh. "So you can't recharge it."
"Recharge it? O'
course I can recharge it. Let me see, now.
"
He closes his eyes for a moment and mutters something in a language I don't understand. The green power ring on my finger
can translate just about any language, but I turned everything off the moment I realised that I had no way to recharge it once I ran out of power.
"There we are."
A pale
green glow envelops his right hand, and a moment later the ring
starts glowing the same colour.
"It'll take a moment or two.
"
"Ah. Thank you, but… Ah."
"You'll be needing to be a little clearer than that.
"
"I… Sort of assumed that either you wanted me for something, or I could negotiate for a way to recharge with… With something I could carry with me. It doesn't seem… I mean, it isn't reasonable for me to expect you to just drop whatever you're doing when I get low on power."
"A lot o' that going around.
"
"A lot of..? What?"
"Assuming. So what were you thinking I was wanting?
"
"To… Recruit me to the Green Lantern Corps. For some reason."
"And what would that be?
"
"I'd… I'd like to say 'my fearlessness and resolution', but… I don't… I don't think I really stand out in either of those…"
"Ah, no. I mean to say, 'what is the Green Lantern Corps', when it's at home?
"
"I'm a little surprised that you don't know."
"I moved away from the rest o'mah kind when we still lived on Maltus. I don't know much about what the rest o'them have been doing since.
"
"Ah. Well, as far as I know, they've taken to outsourcing some things to people like me." I raise my right hand slightly, drawing attention to the ring. "We get these, and a lantern-shaped charge point."
"Lantern-shaped, y'say? I'm not used to the rest o' my kind respecting our traditions like that. Do you know where it comes from?
"
"A lantern is the traditional symbol for law enforcement amongst your people."
"It was a long time ago, when we still had a need for such things. So is that the sort o'work you'd be looking for, then?
"
"It's-. What I
assumed-. Yes? If that's what you want in exchange for recharging me. But if I'm honest, I'd rather have a charge point and be left to my own devices."
"Well, I don't really know about
that. As I say, when I left, we didn't go around handing them out to folk. And I haven't done anything with the glow meself for a long time. But if you're looking fo' work, I might have something for ye.
"
"… Yes..?"
"What sorta work did you do before this?
"
"I'm-. I
was an administrative assistant."
"Oh.
" He frowns.
"It's nothing at all like that.
"
"I don't need a power ring to be an administrative assistant."
"True enough. You see, I'm not the only alien on this world.
"
"I suspected, but didn't want to assume."
"I've been trying to keep an eye on the others. They're not all the sociable type, you understand. But I'm not so young as I was, and from the feel of it that ring o'yers can pack quite a punch.
"
"So you want me to..? Police them?"
"Something like that, lad. Why don't I bring you up to speed, so's you know what you're getting into.
"