Part 7 of some new science fiction. If you're just tuning in, consider starting with part 1. The image above was created with stable diffusion.
Visitor Object U landed in the United States. Visitor Object K landed in Kazakhstan. It came to rest above a wheat field on the edge of a small city. The site was nowhere near the Baikonur Cosmodrome spaceport, but the Russians who leased the spaceport used their proximity to the Object and their military might to lay claim to the landing site. Rather than give over control of the site to the Russians under duress, Kazakhstan invited many nations to join them in welcoming the Visitors.
On the same day that James met Thubu, a different Thubu in Kazakhstan was inviting a villager named Adina Boyko onto their vessel. Like James, Adina eventually emerged from the Object, changed and with unusual new abilities. Reportedly, she could now speak any language, and she'd been photographed holding a Servant. Beyond that, the woman was a mystery.
"Adina Boyco wants to meet," said Yarn, James' new assistant. "She's willing to come to you. Tomorrow. She's at the United Nations today."
"Really?" said James. "Like, does she want to come over, or ... ?"
"You're both guests on a talk show," said Yarn. "We should talk about clothes."
"Please let's not," said James.
"Well, then, we should talk about you not putting so many people to sleep with your wand when you go out," said Yarn.
"Too many people make me feel unsafe," said James. "So I neutralize their aggression. What's wrong with that?"
"You're liable for any physical or psychological injury," said Yarn. "There's no law against using a sleep wand. Well, there might be, but no one's arrested you yet. That doesn't change the fact that any one of your victims could sue and probably win."
"What show?" asked James.
"Tough Talk with Lisa Cornish," said Yarn. "You'll meet Adina live on the air. The segment is twenty minutes. We want you to emphasize your civic pride and downplay your apathy."
"Downplay my apathy?" asked James.
"We were thinking sweater vest," said Yarn.
The next day, James was surprised by the fact of the television studio. He's assumed that big studios had all gone the way of Blockbuster. Not this one, apparently. There were no crowds outside to greet James as he arrived. Instead, there was a secure perimeter of armed guards.
Inside, James did as he was told until the moment came to walk onto set and take a seat. He stood again when Adina took the stage and sat down. Their host did introductions followed by a brief monologue about international unity. The studio audience fell silent as Lisa Cornish asked if there was anything that James and Adina wanted to say to each other.
James looked at his fellow abductee and felt an inappropriate question come to him.
"The physical examination," said Adina. "Parts of it seemed almost sexual, yes?"
"Almost?" said James. "Not weirdly deliberate and comprehensive?"
"I know one hundred languages and don't know any word for my experience of being examined by them," said Adina. "We understand something no one else can comprehend."
"No kidding," said James. "How are you doing afterwards? Now, with all of that?"
"Trying not to think about it, usually," said Adina. "I have good doctors urging me to be patient. At the same time, I'm sure the Visitors' motives weren't personal. But I am still troubled by what went on."
"Yes, you both underwent medical examinations involving some kind of nanomaterial, is that right?" asked Lisa.
"It was like gray slime, but alive," said James. "Whatever you're picturing, it was a hundred times weirder."
"Yes, very weird," said Adina. "I'm curious James, how is it for you, suddenly having so much power?"
"Honestly, it's a little surreal," said James. "For the first time in my life, no one can mess with me. And I'm just barely beginning to think about the good I might be able to do with my Artifacts."
"You received a wand," said Adina. "I received a ring that taught me languages and holds other secrets. For now, I consider the great responsibility that comes with power. I also use my Servant to materialize meals for the hungry whenever I can get away from official functions."
"There's an area where I understand you both to be very different," said Lisa. "James, you're something of a recluse, while Adina, you're becoming deeply involved in international politics."
"Politics is broken," said Adina. "I may not have the power to fix it, but I do have the power to try. And why else would the Visitors have chosen me, except to give me a chance to make a difference?"
"Did they tell you that that's why you were chosen?" asked James.
"I was chosen because I was inconsequential," said Adina. "The fourth daughter of a mid level bureaucrat. The Visitors wouldn't have given me these gifts if they didn't want me to use them. They want to see progress."
James chuckled involuntarily. "Sorry," he said, being mindful of his words. "I know the Visitors value progress and development above everything else, assuming they're telling the truth. But I don't think these things mean the same to us as they do to them. Like, to them, a house falling down is progress of the same importance as the house being built. They see progress in totally alien terms."
Adina frowned. "This does match my understanding of them," she said. "But then what am I supposed to do? What do they want?"
"Honestly?" said James. "I think they're just playing and we're their toys. They talked to me about how boring Earth had become. I think we're maybe just a part of them shaking things up."
"And perhaps this is only a story you tell to avoid becoming more responsible with your gifts," said Adina.
James hadn't considered that. "Could be," he admitted.
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