Distant Lands

Considering what I have been through in Azure, life was much easier on Earth.

What the hell was I thinking about joining the Alien Military? I know it was my only choice, but at times I think that maybe it would have been better to turn myself into the Council and risk facing a death sentence.

I didn’t expect military training to be easy, but getting used to it is proving to be difficult. Running away did cross my mind many times. But I can’t. I don’t want to be known as the human who deserted Azure’s military. Also, Emerald watches me like a hawk.

I’ve been getting private lessons training with Ethan and Emerald. It would have been nice to train with fellow trainees, but I can’t train with other Lamia or Divus because Emerald says that they might accidentally kill me.

Emerald seems to be enjoying being my drill sergeant. She said that since I love to run so much, I would get up before sunrise to run every morning. That’s what I’ve been doing. She comes into my room every morning, scaring the soul out of me, yelling in my face to get up, get ready, and run.

At first, I struggled so much. I wanted to fight back a few times, but I was afraid to experience her wrath again. I had a hard time taking orders, and I had to get used to answering her with a Yes, Ma’am! Which felt very strange, and it made me laugh, but Emerald quickly put me in my place, making me do extra push-ups.

She would yell orders at me, and sometimes I didn’t understand what the hell she was saying, which made her angrier, causing her to yell louder at me. But then I realized what she was doing. She was teaching me discipline and how to follow orders quickly and think fast under pressure.

Running long distances was tough. I would stop many times, sometimes kneeling on the ground, and Emerald would stand there yelling in my face to keep going. I carried heavy dummies; I did sit-ups, push-ups, pull-ups, climbed up a rope from a tree, and slid down the rope. For my last exam, she took me to the Military obstacle course, she timed me, and everything that I had learned, I needed to apply there. Everything came together.

One big plus is that I now have killer abs, my body and my endurance have improved so much, and so have my fighting skills. I have enjoyed Ethan teaching me self-defense and how to use different types of weapons.

I lack body strength since I’m a human, but the tools I learned will help me in combat. I got my ass kicked so many times, but I feel like I can hold my own, and now I’m confident I can protect myself. At the same time, I continued with my studies. I studied like crazy, catching up on what I had missed. I didn’t pass with high grades; I just barely passed, but what matters is that I did.

I asked Emerald for a day off, and she flat-out said no. Even though I completed the military program, she still wants me to keep training. I know Emerald modified my military training for a human endurance level, but damn, I need time to relax, too, so today, I’m rewarding myself for doing so well. I got up much earlier than usual, sneaking out of the house.

Right now, I’m up in this tree. Since this morning, I’ve been up here hiding from my Alien stepmother. I saw her run out of the house this morning with a pissed-off look on her face; it instilled fear in me and made my heart pound. She scanned the area looking for me. When she didn’t find me, she jumped on her black motorcycle and sped off down the road and into the city.

I press on my sunglasses to activate them. I have, what I call, my smart sunglasses on. It’s like a computer you can wear on your face. They are also binoculars that allow me to see long distances and have night vision.

I’m watching the road and the house right now, just waiting for Emerald to come back from the city. After she looks for me there, I will be able to explore the city comfortably. She’s been gone for a while, so I’m sure she will be back any second now.

I scan the trees, and way off in the distance, her motorcycle returns. I feel the adrenaline rush through my veins; this is my chance. I quickly climb down the tree; I step down a tree branch, then another, and jump off, landing on my feet. I run behind the neighbor’s barn and into the open dirt field. I run as fast as I can until finally, I reach the cluster of bushes, helping me remain hidden. I look back to make sure nobody is following me—all clear.

Relieved, I happily walk up the road leading into the city. I walk down the street, looking back once in a while to make sure no one is coming. I begin to see the wooden buildings, it makes me very excited, and I jog to get there faster. Divus people are going about their day, strolling, shopping.

I walk by a clothing store and stop. I look through the window and see that it’s not busy. I used to love going shopping back on Earth, and I miss it. I excitedly open the door, making a bell sound as I walk in. The store is not that big, but there are a lot of racks with clothing. I browse, finding a lot of cute blouses and pants.

I grab a couple of them, move to a different rack, and spot a black leather jacket. I smile and go over to it, and I run my hand down the front of the jacket, feeling the soft black leather. It reminds me of my brothers. I look for one in a size that will fit me, and I put it on, it fits perfectly, and I don’t bother taking it off.

I take the rest of the items, go over to the register, and place my articles on the counter. I grab a necklace with an emerald rock from the small jewelry stand and add it to the pile. A lady notices me and comes over to the cash register.

“Hello,” I say.

“Hello,” she greets me but looks at me like I’m a bit weird looking. She stands there, not saying anything more or doing anything. I look at her, confused, wondering why she is not ringing up the items, and she looks at me, confused as well.

“How do I pay with this?” I show her Emerald’s watch on my right wrist. She grabs my hand and places my wrist above a scanner on the counter, and It makes a beep sound.

“There you go, thank you for coming,” she smiles.

“Thanks.” I take my items—what a friendly lady.