I see. So it is in reference to our own current situation here, a most colorful description.
[ But then Travis Touchdown is a colorful man. It adds up.
He looks up when his companion questions the waitress so thoughtfully on his behalf, almost finding himself wishing for a moment that he might be able to entertain said kindness. However, he is all too aware of the possible danger of processed sugar being involved in such faux items, a risk upon which he cannot yet elaborate because that reveal is in a future thread. ]
It seems also that they have salad ingredients, so perhaps I can order such items as singles. Miss– [ he intones politely enough, head lifting to make eye contact with her. ]
I wish to order a tomato and a collection of vegetable leaves. [ "... a whole tomato?" ] Indeed, and an apple in addition.
[ A pregnant pause follows before she offers to speak with her manager, quietly excusing herself with a less than impressed air. ]
... it would have been preferable if she had first also taken your order. Unfortunate.
[Travis stares blankly at Spock like he's an alien.
Well. He is an alien. But: he's staring nonetheless.]
A whole... [He shakes his head, as if literally shaking the questions he's about to ask off. Weirder things have probably happened here: he's done his share of food service work, after all. At least nobody's throwing sharp objects or the like.]
Hey, maybe it's for the better. We can always go somewhere else if you have, uh, dietary restrictions?
[Is he space-allergic to things? Is that how that works?]
There is no logical need to do so. We are here primarily to engage in discussion, not to eat. As I have potentially found a solution to a secondary problem, we should remain to see if it is valid. If it is not, we may still achieve our chief goal and I may satisfy my nutritional needs at a later time.
[ Perfect. He stares him down beneath the warm light of a beak-shaped bulb, head tilting ever-so-slightly to the side. ]
It would be helpful if you were to describe your world, and in particular your exact point of extraction, in greater detail.
[Maybe they should've just gotten coffee or something. Travis casts a brief plaintive look in the direction of the employee only area of the restaurant: now that Spock's settled, he really does wanna get his stupid sandwich ordered after all.]
Like I said, I'm from the year 2019. I live in Texas. I guess it's a pretty normal Earth? As far as I know, it's the same as the one in your world. I dunno when the "official" first contact with life from other planets happened, or if it's formally happened already. Which... leads me to how I got here.
[Travis glances away from Spock, piecing out the most coherent and least incriminating details...]
You know how I mentioned those guys who knew where and when I was? That's not the only weird thing that happened before I got here. A friend of mine and I got ambushed by these dudes who, like, beamed themselves into the dojo she teaches at, somehow. They claimed they were aliens and were gonna take over the planet. Didn't even try to fight us for real before they had to clear out for some reason, though. They were going on about some prince, so maybe he called 'em back.
[Travis takes a quick swig of his water, letting those details marinate.]
I woke up on this planet a week or so after all that went down.
First, the fact that Travis is unsure whether or not formal first contact has occurred between humans and members of another alien species. It is possible he is speaking in relation to Spock's own lived experience and timeline, but it manages to dig a rare furrow in his brow nevertheless.
Perhaps the fact that he lived through multiple unusual events in the same single week timeframe has led him to believe that contact was made at some point in that period of chaos, without his awareness. That would be the more logical conclusion and the one he chooses to believe. However... he was unfamiliar with other large segments of Earth history in detail... ]
Did they seem familiar with Earth culture and your species? Did they include a list of demands or did they simply state their intent? Is your friend, the martial arts instructor, of significant enough status that she would be a logical point of contact for invading outsiders?
[ This is all very strange, even for someone like him, though over the years he has formed something of a process for categorizing such phenomena. ]
Nah. No demands, other than showing up to invade, and they didn't stay long enough for me to figure out how much they knew about Earth.
[they're gonna have such a fun conversation after he gets canon updated]
Well... [Shinobu's even more secretive about her status than he is, so that's another thing he can't be up front about.] She's a pretty renowed martial artist on the Asian circuit, sure, but even she thought I was the one attracting them somehow. I dunno what aliens would want with me, though, not like I've got any kind of real authority on Earth.
[ There doesn't seem to be any need to try to argue with Travis for the sake of protecting the man's pride – to be important enough to be intentionally sought out by aliens as a first contact is a tall order for anyone. And a renowned martial artist? Well, it's impossible to say without meeting the extra-terrestrials in question, but Spock harbors his own silent doubts. ]
The most logical outcome then is that you were an unintentional target or that they have observed you from afar, likely by chance, and thus felt compelled to speak to you first. [ Here he straightens out of his lean forward, respecting the approaching waitress who informs him somewhat beleagueredly that yes, she can in fact ring up a whole tomato, apple, and assorted leaves but that they will show up as "miscellaneous charges". ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
[ But then Travis Touchdown is a colorful man. It adds up.
He looks up when his companion questions the waitress so thoughtfully on his behalf, almost finding himself wishing for a moment that he might be able to entertain said kindness. However, he is all too aware of the possible danger of processed sugar being involved in such faux items, a risk upon which he cannot yet elaborate because that reveal is in a future thread. ]
It seems also that they have salad ingredients, so perhaps I can order such items as singles. Miss– [ he intones politely enough, head lifting to make eye contact with her. ]
I wish to order a tomato and a collection of vegetable leaves. [ "... a whole tomato?" ] Indeed, and an apple in addition.
[ A pregnant pause follows before she offers to speak with her manager, quietly excusing herself with a less than impressed air. ]
... it would have been preferable if she had first also taken your order. Unfortunate.
no subject
Well. He is an alien. But: he's staring nonetheless.]
A whole... [He shakes his head, as if literally shaking the questions he's about to ask off. Weirder things have probably happened here: he's done his share of food service work, after all. At least nobody's throwing sharp objects or the like.]
Hey, maybe it's for the better. We can always go somewhere else if you have, uh, dietary restrictions?
[Is he space-allergic to things? Is that how that works?]
no subject
There is no logical need to do so. We are here primarily to engage in discussion, not to eat. As I have potentially found a solution to a secondary problem, we should remain to see if it is valid. If it is not, we may still achieve our chief goal and I may satisfy my nutritional needs at a later time.
[ Perfect. He stares him down beneath the warm light of a beak-shaped bulb, head tilting ever-so-slightly to the side. ]
It would be helpful if you were to describe your world, and in particular your exact point of extraction, in greater detail.
no subject
[Maybe they should've just gotten coffee or something. Travis casts a brief plaintive look in the direction of the employee only area of the restaurant: now that Spock's settled, he really does wanna get his stupid sandwich ordered after all.]
Like I said, I'm from the year 2019. I live in Texas. I guess it's a pretty normal Earth? As far as I know, it's the same as the one in your world. I dunno when the "official" first contact with life from other planets happened, or if it's formally happened already. Which... leads me to how I got here.
[Travis glances away from Spock, piecing out the most coherent and least incriminating details...]
You know how I mentioned those guys who knew where and when I was? That's not the only weird thing that happened before I got here. A friend of mine and I got ambushed by these dudes who, like, beamed themselves into the dojo she teaches at, somehow. They claimed they were aliens and were gonna take over the planet. Didn't even try to fight us for real before they had to clear out for some reason, though. They were going on about some prince, so maybe he called 'em back.
[Travis takes a quick swig of his water, letting those details marinate.]
I woke up on this planet a week or so after all that went down.
no subject
First, the fact that Travis is unsure whether or not formal first contact has occurred between humans and members of another alien species. It is possible he is speaking in relation to Spock's own lived experience and timeline, but it manages to dig a rare furrow in his brow nevertheless.
Perhaps the fact that he lived through multiple unusual events in the same single week timeframe has led him to believe that contact was made at some point in that period of chaos, without his awareness. That would be the more logical conclusion and the one he chooses to believe. However... he was unfamiliar with other large segments of Earth history in detail... ]
Did they seem familiar with Earth culture and your species? Did they include a list of demands or did they simply state their intent? Is your friend, the martial arts instructor, of significant enough status that she would be a logical point of contact for invading outsiders?
[ This is all very strange, even for someone like him, though over the years he has formed something of a process for categorizing such phenomena. ]
no subject
Nah. No demands, other than showing up to invade, and they didn't stay long enough for me to figure out how much they knew about Earth.
[they're gonna have such a fun conversation after he gets canon updated]
Well... [Shinobu's even more secretive about her status than he is, so that's another thing he can't be up front about.] She's a pretty renowed martial artist on the Asian circuit, sure, but even she thought I was the one attracting them somehow. I dunno what aliens would want with me, though, not like I've got any kind of real authority on Earth.
[besides the assassin thing, anyway.]
no subject
[ There doesn't seem to be any need to try to argue with Travis for the sake of protecting the man's pride – to be important enough to be intentionally sought out by aliens as a first contact is a tall order for anyone. And a renowned martial artist? Well, it's impossible to say without meeting the extra-terrestrials in question, but Spock harbors his own silent doubts. ]
The most logical outcome then is that you were an unintentional target or that they have observed you from afar, likely by chance, and thus felt compelled to speak to you first. [ Here he straightens out of his lean forward, respecting the approaching waitress who informs him somewhat beleagueredly that yes, she can in fact ring up a whole tomato, apple, and assorted leaves but that they will show up as "miscellaneous charges". ]
That is acceptable to me, thank you.