Distant Lands
First Day

Ivan told me to stay in my room, get some rest, and will meet with me today to explain what I have to do. I walk over to my window and see people walking toward the property in the distance. They must be the students arriving. What is taking Ivan so long? I walk out of my room and go into the empty dining room.

I look out of the large windows, and I see some people walking around in the fields. They look like they’re inspecting the area, writing something down on their clipboards.

“Elizabeth, please come to my office,” Ivan says behind me. He turns and starts walking towards his office. I catch up to him, “Oh, I feel nervous, like I’m meeting with the school principal, and it’s my first day of school.”

“Well, today is your first day of classes,” he says, opening the door for me.

“Oh, right.” I take a seat on the chair in front of his desk. He sits, takes out a file from his desk drawer, and places it in front of me.

“Elizabeth, this is your identity while living here in Azure.” he opens the file. I lean forward to look at it, curious to know my new name and the backstory Ivan created for me.

“Wait, my name is the same?”

“Yes, I didn’t want to change your name. I just put you in the system to show that you exist. It’s important to prove that you have been living your life here.”

I keep reading the file: Parents unknown. I reside in Boulder City. Live with a woman named Emerald. I moved here to attend the Academy. The following paper is my fake birth certificate.

“Do you think this story is believable?” I ask, feeling doubtful.

“Yes, Emerald is Ethan’s sister. She agreed to adopt you. She is a lovely person.”

“What?” I suppress a smile, “Ethan’s sister? Wait, did she legally adopt me?”

“Yes, she’s your legal adoptive mother in Azure. She doesn’t have children, and she was more than happy to adopt you.”

“Does she know I’m human?”

“Yes. Emerald is aware of everything.”

“This feels so strange. I’m an adult who just got adopted. I hope this works,” I say. The door opens, and Ethan comes into the room; he smiles at me.

“Does she know?” Ethan asks, and Ivan nods. Ethan comes into the room, excited, “Hello, my beautiful niece,” he says, sitting down in the chair next to me.

“My family is so honored you are part of our family now. My sister Emerald can’t wait to meet her daughter,” Ethan says, then leans in to hug me. I smile at him, not knowing what to say to him. I turn to see a smiling Ivan; he is enjoying watching Ethan.

“Call me uncle Ethan. Oh, your mother and I expect you to do well in the Academy, and I will be watching you. I got to go, but I’ll see you later,” Ethan says, giving me another quick hug. He gets up and walks to the door. He turns back to look at me, smiling, then exits the room.

“Okay... now I have an Alien mother and an Alien uncle and nephew. This just keeps getting weirder and weirder.”

“They are very nice people. You’re going to love them,” Ivan says and takes out a piece of paper from the file, “This is your schedule. Please don’t be late,” he hands it to me. I have two classes. Thank god. I thought I was going to have a ton of classes.

“Earth science and plant biology?” I ask.

“Yes, it should be interesting to learn about your home more in-depth. Don’t you think so?”

“Yes, it should be interesting. I’m very excited,” I say unconvincingly.

“Come on, Elizabeth, you are going to do great. Anyway, you won’t be alone. The girls are going to be in the same class as you.”

Knowing I won’t be alone makes me feel a bit better, but also knowing Lamia and Divus students will surround me is intimidating.

I look nervously at Ivan and give a nervous laugh, “Can I just go be one of the chief’s wives instead? I ask jokingly. Ivan narrows his eyes at me, not finding the joke funny. He shakes his head and crosses his arms.

“I’m joking. . . Okay, I will try to be a good student. I’m just nervous.”

He stares towards the window, just thinking. “That was a close one. I almost got killed, and you almost got wed. Your dog saved us,” he says.

“Yes. If it weren’t for Orion, we would be dead. Are those people a different species?”

“No, they are Divus as well. Their tribe comes from an ancient line of native peoples. They chose to avoid modernization, city life, technology, and Lamia. They chose to keep their traditions alive.”

“Do they fear wolves?”

“They respect wolves. They believe they are sacred animals. They also believe that their ancestors reincarnate as wolves to protect the tribe.”

“And now they think I’m a wolf priestess,” I say.

“He let you go because he respects that you can communicate with wolves. But if you return, he might try to convince you to stay,” he warns.

I wish to return one day to visit Orion. I would have to be careful not to enter the tribe’s territory. Ivan gets up and grabs a black backpack from behind him.

“These are all the supplies you will need. The girls will be waiting for you in the living room. Classes start soon. Let me know if you need anything.” He smiles and hands the bag to me. I stand and put the bag over my shoulder.

I mirror his smile but don’t feel happy, “Thank you, I will. I hope the instructors are nice,” I say, and he gives me another smile. I walk out of the room and walk toward the living room. Everything is happening so fast. I’m nervous as hell, but my life here is just a cover story. Just go with the flow, and everything will be alright.

I see the girls sitting down on the couch, talking and laughing. Isa and Nina spot me, and their eyes light up. They get up and run towards me.

“Elizabeth! We’re so happy to see you again,” Isa says. Both hug me.

“It’s so great to see you guys, too,” My heart fills with joy being able to see their faces again.

“You were gone for so long. We were worried about you,” Nina shows concern.

“Yeah, it was tough living alone, but now I’m glad to be back." I look at Adira sitting on the couch, just looking at me. She stands up and comes closer to me, and I smile, “Hi, Adira. It’s nice to see you too.”

She looks me up and down, “Hey...What happened to you? Why do you look so skinny and weak?” she asks. Adira doesn’t wait for me to answer. She puts on her backpack and leaves the room.

“Please excuse Adira. She is trying to be more friendly, but sometimes she has trouble expressing herself,” Isa says.

“How are you, Elizabeth? It does look like you weren’t eating too well. Wasn’t Ivan sending you food?” Nina asks.

“Do I seriously look different? Damon was sending me food and supplies. I guess isolation got to me. Sometimes I just didn’t have an appetite.” Isa places an arm over my shoulders, moving us along.

“Well, we’re happy you’re back, and we’ll make sure you eat well,” Isa says.

“We also need to prepare you for what is coming,” Nina says, holding my arm. We walk towards a hallway.

“As you know, the Lamia also attend here at the Ranch. Well, a group of them sticks together,” Isa says.

“Yes, you need to avoid them, especially because of...who you are,” Nina says, almost whispering.

“Oh, and there’s a girl named Lenna; she is a Divus. It would be best if you also tried to avoid her. She and her group think they are the most beautiful, most popular, and smartest group in the Academy,” Isa says.

“Yes, she always finds someone new to pick on. It’s like her favorite thing to do,” Nina says.

I stop. I look at Isa and Nina, and I start laughing. Their confused faces made me laugh even more. They both look at me like I’ve lost my mind.

“What’s so funny? We’re serious. Lenna can be ruthless,” Nina says.

“I’m sorry. It’s just that; it’s funny that you have to deal with the same problems in school as we do. This is the Alien version of mean girls,” I say, making me laugh again. Both of them are confused at my reference, I guess they haven’t seen that movie, but my laughter makes Nina and Isa chuckle. Nina looks at her watch.

“We need to go to class; the professor hates it when students are late,” Nina says, pushing us forward. We walk up a hallway, and I notice no other students around. Then I realize that they are already in the classroom, waiting in their seats.

Oh great. That is the worst time to enter a classroom as a new student. I have to blend in. Maybe they won’t even notice me.

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