WEEK 3
2683.167 no weather in the space
Traveling is really troublesome.
I have been to the spaceport three years ago to see off a classmate who had transferred to Boarder World, so the shuttle trip to the spaceport is familiar. However, it was also the farthest I had ever traveled before. On the shuttle, Dad sat quietly in the corner, with the brim of his hat down, and didn't say a word. He was always shy around most humans.
But at the spaceport, there were more complications.
First there was the security check! We had to stand in line, take some of our belongings out separately for inspection, and take off our coats and hats. Well, it looks like Dad had already thought about having to take off his hat, so he made a special ponytail hairstyle. Fortunately, he didn't attract too much attention.
Second, the flight was late. I heard that there was a virtual battle with Confederation pilots nearby, but suddenly there jumped out some suspected “pirates”, so the alarm went off. But then it turned out to be a false alarm, the “pirates” are some overfed flight enthusiasts out for unannounced performance art.
In summary, we boarded the ship just before midnight.
The ship is now setting sail. For the first time, I am able to see this planet from space with my own eyes. Thirteen years ago, after wandering in galaxy for almost a year, it was this beautiful place that accepted Dad, Mom and my aunts, who had been refused by many planets, to have their new life. Looking out the porthole at the planet I was born and raised on, from a vast expanse of land, gradually revealing herself in all her fullness, and then, farther and farther away, I said inwardly:
"I love you, my home world. See you next month."
2683.168 Sunny
Wow, this is Planet Movie Studios!
After the last jump, the bustling planet came into view. There are many, many ships in the orbit - I know, not all of them were vehicles, but some of them were actually movie sets.
Some of those ships in these space studios are really special - they are giant one-to-one props recreating the exterior and partial interiors of some of the historic ships! At a glance, I saw "Tiger's Claw", "Victory". Actually, there is also a "KIS Hvar'kann", but I didn't see it just now. The real KIS Hvar'kann was the Crown Prince Thrakhath's command ship, and it was there that Lord Melek expressed willingness of surrendering to Colonel Blair. Many historical movie scenes were shot on this "KIS Hvar'kann". Well, I think a lot of scenes for this movie will be filmed there as well.
Seriously, there are some rumors about these giant props, especially the Kilrathi ship-style ones, that some of their parts are just removed from the real things. According to the Treaty of Torgo, after the war the Kilrathi Imperial fleets dismantled all the surviving warships, so perhaps some of the less military-worthy parts went to civilian industry. What Mom, Dad, and my aunts used to trade for civilian transport and cash was the corvette they fled Kilrah on. Hey, does that corvette have some parts here too?
The ship landed. As we disembarked, one of the crew stared at our suitcases for a long time - I knew he was looking at the claw marks on the suitcase. Those claw marks were made by Aunt Thelma when she had a quarrel with Dad six months ago. The people here are just so knowledgeable, hehe.
2683.169 Sunny
Okay, I admit the situation is a little more complicated than I thought.
I originally thought that with Dad's look, getting here would be a straightforward process of meeting with the producer, signing the contract, and then starting work with the crew. But... today, we found the place at the address Todd's father gave us, and the receptionist at the door just dropped a sentence:
"Auditioning for
Heart of Tiger, right? 1501 Conference Hall of the fifteenth floor."
She didn't even look us in the face! Not only that, but most of the staff here are like that. This is the first time I've encountered such situation! As I said before, most humans tremble, and some scream, when they first met Dad. Even a seasoned hero like Uncle Eisen was taken aback. But the people here...
However, I soon found out why.
We arrived at the 1501 conference hall and looked in through the door - there were dozens of “Crown Princes” lining up!
Most of these "Crown Princes" wore the famous Prince's robes, and some wore flight suits - of course, they were no match for Dad's real one. In fact, many of the costumes were so crude at first glance that they would have been a bargain among Halloween props. There were some good ones, but most of them looked like they were imitations of costumes from previous movies and lacked detail. As for the candidates themselves, they were of different sizes and temperaments, some of them obviously desperately trying to look like the Crown Prince’s face in the documentary through pure makeup. There was a muscular guy who looked like a bodybuilder, and wore only a T-shirt and jeans with the imperial emblem and sneakers to accentuate his muscles - but his tortoiseshell fur would have made the job very difficult for the makeup artist, obviously.
However, I soon realized something.
Probably all the same to humans, but to we Kilrathi sense of smell it was clear - most of the candidates in the room had a very strong odor - the smell of eating meat. Dad, however, is very used to being a vegetarian, and this morning he just had some bread and milk and a fruit salad that I made myself. So, we could be quite... different. I looked up at Dad and tried to say something to him, but seeing the brim of his hat, which was even lower than usual, I decided not to say anything.
After registering for the information, we waited in line for an hour and finally got in front of some examiners. To be honest, I was still a little nervous at this moment- there had been many candidates who had simply been declared ineligible, and I even once regretted not bringing Dad’s flight suit. There were a human, a Kilrathi, and a Firekann, three examiners. I observed that the main role of the Firekkan examiner during the test was to... tremble. The more pronounced the Firekkan's trembling was when each candidate made a low roar on demand, the more points the next human examiner gave in this category. Well, the movie industry is not all about directors and stars, and it's really hard for some of the junior staff.
Finally, it was Dad's turn. The human examiner first asked Dad to take off his hat, then scrutinized him attentively for a while, and then asked him to growl. However! Here was where it went wrong - Dad couldn't make the growl for seconds! This may be the result of our family's long-standing insistence on being polite to humans! But to be so polite at this point would be a trouble!
The Kilrathi examiner stepped forward to replace the human examiner, then looked Dad, locked eyes with him, and asked him the following question in Kilrah:
"You were in the army, right?"
After Dad answered in the affirmative, he continued:
"I was once squad's officer, and NOW you are my soldier! Answer my question truthfully: why do you insist on being a vegetarian when you know the mission you came here for?"
Dad didn't know how to answer. The examiner, seeing this, sneered and said, "Is having more daughters more important than our mission?"
Hearing this question, Dad was startled at first, then slowly raised his head, ears pinned back, with an amazing growl in his throat: "It's none of your business!"
The Firekkan examiner fell out of his chair and sat down on the floor with Dad‘s voice.
The human examiner made a big stroke on the tablet, "Well, not bad. Go back and prepare for the next round tomorrow."
Uh, so this is just the first round...?
On the way back to the hotel, Dad walked up to the fast food, hesitated for a moment, went in and bought three buckets of roast pork - then gave me the Coke and fries and left the meat for himself.
2683.170 Cloudy
Well, the three family buckets yesterday really caused us a lot of trouble.
First, I was the one who ended up tossing and turning last night unable to sleep because of three Cokes in a row and worrying about today's second round of auditioning.
And Dad... wasn't sure if it was the quality of the food or the fact that he hadn't eaten this much meat at one time for so long, but today he... wasn't feeling well. On the way to the studio, he had to go to the washroom again. I waited for him outside, looking at the hustle and bustle of people coming and going, and remembered the birdsong of my home farm, which had a special flavor.
"Excuse me..."
While I was distracted, a Kirah phrase brought me back to reality. It was an Kilrathi girl with an orange-brown fur, about three or four years older than me.
"Excuse me... May I ask where the
Heart of Tiger staff office is?"
Huh! Is she also going to the audition? I first told her that we were going there too, that it wasn't easy to find, and that we could go there together to avoid getting lost. But she politely declined.
Five minutes later, she came back - apparently lost.
She apologetically explained that she was accompanying his father, who was not too keen on contact with others, and that why she refused me just now.
Oh, that's certainly understandable. After all, my Dad is shy in front of most humans too. This time, I opened the holomap and explained to her in detail how to get there. She was grateful.
Suddenly, I realized that we might be competitors! I asked her very carefully, what was the role her father auditioning for? And her answer surprised me even more:
"Auditioning? Oh... no, we're not auditioning for... My father is just here to play... a small supporting role."
Her father isn't a candidate? So... is he a professional actor? No, how could a professional actor get lost on the way to the studio! I can't figure it out.
So, we exchanged our SNS IDs - her name is Laurel. Nice to meet her. I appreciate her encouragement for my Dad.
After this, it took another five minutes before Dad came out of the washroom. I told him what had just happened, but Dad seemed a little distracted.
2683.171 Cloudy
There's nothing going on today, so we had time to walk around the downtown.
Yesterday's second round of auditioning was mainly fitness tests and such stuff, which went relatively well. The fitness test was at the fitness club in the same building. I saw the tortoiseshell fur muscle guy again - wow, he really passed the first round! This guy is really a pro body builder - he was even doing cardio while waiting! The music playing in the the gym was the Kilrah cover of the works of the great Terran classical pop master Michael Jackson, a talented musician who was active shortly after the Terrans mastered sound recording technology 600 years ago. His works are also loved by many Kilrahi. However, when the song "Billie Jean" was played, or rather the line "… but the cub is not my son" was played, the tortoiseshell fur guy yelled out, his voice betraying sadness. I don't know what happened to him.
When we went out shopping today, Dad went to the washroom again. While I was waiting, I noticed there was a veterinary hospital right in front of me! When I saw the lovely Terran kitties and puppies inside, I couldn't help but push the door open and take a look.
The Veterinarian here was very enthusiastic and got to talking to me. He asked me if we Kilrathi people have also become interested in Terran pets in recent years. I said yes. Indeed, our former neighbor, Colonel Blair, Heart of the Tiger, had asked our family to take care of his cat and dog when he was recalled to active duty in 2673. The girls loved Dad, and Dad loved them so much.
Mr. Veterinarian mentioned that a few days ago he had a Kilrathi visitor whose couple of tortoiseshell Terran cat were expecting kittens and he wanted to ask him some questions. Mr. Vet said that he answered the questions and mentioned that male Terran domestic cats rarely have tortoiseshell fur, and that the very few male Terran tortoiseshell domestic cats are unlikely to have offspring due to genetic problems, so the kittens should not be the offspring of the visitor’s male cat, and then strangely, the visitor was stunned and then politely left, looking very strange.
Oh, those poor Terran tortoiseshell cats! Although tortoiseshell-fur males are also very rare among we Kilrathi, we don't have this genetic problem at all – yes, it's a small knowledge point that Kilrati civilian rarely concern, but it's well documented in the Imperial registry of soldiers, as I confirmed in the Imperial records Mom and my aunts brought back.
Mr. veterinarian then asked me if we Kilrathi people tend to keep Teran cats that are similar in fur color to our own. That visitor himself has tortoiseshell fur and very strong muscle, which impressed Mr. veterinarian so much.
Eh? As I write here, why do I feel something is wrong?
2683.172 Rainy
The judges haven't arrived yet, so I have time to record what just happened.
Today's third and final round of auditions will be a bit more serious, as the remaining six candidates will have to make a last-ditch effort for the chance to cast as Crown Prince. I'm told there are some big names on the panel of judges today.
To prevent any recurrence of washroom problems, Dad has been careful to go with a meat and vegetable menu since last night, and this morning he just ate a canned meat with bread, milk and salad. It works, and the odor of eating meat is not strong but noticeable. Accordingly, Dad felt comfortable all the way.
We arrived at our destination and waited in the room as required. To my surprise, the tortoiseshell fur muscle guy was one of the last six candidates! As mentioned before, he may have some misunderstandings with his lair-mate, so I decided to help him out.
But herein lies the dilemma: How can I explain to him that we Kilrathi don't have the Terran domestic cats’ "tortoiseshell male genetic problem"? If I directly persuade him, I would probably be recognized as trying to comfort him, not to mention that it would be very awkward for a stranger to bring up such a topic.
I leaned in and read the relevant scientific papers I had previously downloaded in front of him. But he didn't pay any attention to me. There was nothing I could do, so I clicked on the voice reading, but it made me the center of attention in the room at once, so I had to click stop.
Looks like it was the last straw! I dialed Stupid Todd's phone - well, the guy still seems to be sleeping in! When he picked it up, I, without missing a beat, started laughing at the fact that his male tortoiseshell cat couldn't have litters, and that we Kilrathi seem to think it's a joke that creatures of the earth have such color-related defects - of course, Todd's cat doesn't exist, and how could he, with his taste, be qualified to serve such a fine pet? That bird is just as stupid as Todd is - and then immediately ends the call.
The tortoiseshell fur muscle guy came up to me and said:
"Thank you, kind young lady with the gorgeous fur. I've got it all figured out. Don't worry, I'll love our cubs as much as my father loves me, and my grandfather loves my father."
Eek! Why does the situation seem to be getting more complicated?
However, to my surprise, something even amazing happened.
I was so disappointed that I confided in Dad about it. Hearing this, Dad looked up at the tortoiseshell fur muscle guy, smiled slightly, and first told me to stay here, then went up to him and spoke to him. Although I couldn't quite hear what they said, I was surprised when I saw the tortoiseshell fur muscle guy showing surprising, then seemed to understand something ultimately important and rushed out to make a call. I asked Dad, who was back by my side, what he said, but he simply told me that the matter was resolved and not to worry.
This was so strange.
Oh! Looks like the judges have arrived! The third round of destiny is about to begin! I stop here now, and I'll continue with today's diary tonight to properly document this auditioning! Sivar, please bless our family and our farm!
------
It's now 1:00 AM and Dad finally got our early morning tickets home. I can't sleep, so I'll just keep writing about today's events.
I knew there were big names on the jury this time, but I was still surprised when I actually saw "The Living Joor'rad" appeared. He's a famous Kilrathi actor, an extremely solid performer, who has played the Kilrathi Emperor in various serious historical dramas throughout the years. Not only that, but he lived a very modest life and rarely participated in public activities other than acting. I knew for a long time that he was certainly the actor of the Emperor in this movie, but I never thought I'd meet him today!
The way he walked in the doorway, the gait, the creepy look in his eyes, all looked exactly like the Kilrathi Emperor in the documentary. He hadn't been wearing the Emperor's robes and hadn’t wear the Emperor's prosthetic eye, or I might even have thought it was the Emperor coming.
More to the point, during the war, "The Living Joor'rad" was the emperor's stand-in (I think the "Emperor" in some of the documentary scenes was actually him). He was secretly sent away from Kilrah just before the history-defining battle, so luckily escaped. I remember one of his famous quotes: "The only reason I still have my body intact is that after I made my left eye and my left leg as if they did not exist, the Emperor, for some reason, thought it useful to keep them in my body".
And today, there is one important thing - yes, he must have known Dad, who was also an imperial stand in! The subtle change in his expression after the brief glance with Dad when he walked into the room also confirmed it for me.
As a fan, I really wanted to get his autograph or even a holo with him, but seeing that horrible face with the "Do Not Disturb" written all over it, I decided to wait for another time.
Another celebrity was Biff, the veteran actor who is playing Maniac, an actor who has a peculiar habit of living exactly as his character does once he's on set, until the end of the shoot. Today is no exception, as he appears as Maniac. And this is what caused the trouble later on.
Dad was the third of the six candidates to on stage, preceded by the tortoiseshell fur muscle guy.
The first candidate started out well, but when "The Living Joor'rad" came on to play against him, he obviously panicked. The famous line "Khasra! I've heard enough of Khasra!" just sent him sprawling to his knees.
The commentary on "The Living Joor'rad" sounded creepy as hell:
"Be thankful for this new era, young one. If you had been one of us back then, this performance would have you been eliminated on the spot - and by then you already know too many of the Emperor's little secrets, so what elimination means is self-explanatory."
The Tortoiseshell fur muscle guy came on stage... I don't know how to say this, but I always felt like he was completely out of rhythm. He looked more like... a guard at the side of royalty, which was especially evident when talking to "The Living Joor'rad". The judges laughed at first, but then came to accept the feeling, and some even applauded. Except for Biff, however, whose subsequent comments were simply unbearable.
"I wish this was Thrakhath, so the Confederation could have won the war forty years earlier."
"Fine, and don't waste your feelings here, come work as a guard at my house, 20 Credits a month - you pay me."
"We Terrans don't have such a rotten visual system, look at your fur, like an inked rag, myopic eyes can tell you're not Thrakhath from ten kilometers away without glasses."
And the most outrageous line of all: "You know what? A male Terran cat of this fur color can't have kittens."
First time I've ever met anyone more obnoxious than Stupid Todd!
Finally, it was Dad's turn. I gave Dad my encouragement, and then stood in the darkness in the corner, watching quietly.
Dad's performance was pretty steady. He delivered his lines and the like with ease, and his scenes opposite "The Living Joor'rad" were very smooth.
However, even I could tell that there was always something wrong. Yes, there was always something wrong.
"The Living Joor'rad" looked down, pondered for a long time, and waved his paw, indicating that he would let the other judges speak first.
The other judges first gave Dad good comments on his fluency, voice, and appearance, and then, politely, said that the fierceness and cruelty of the Crown Prince's bones were not reflected in Dad.
"The Living Joor'rad" added the following.
"A peaceful life and a happy family really changed… you."
If the critique of Dad had ended here, I might have expected lower scores from the remaining three candidates. But Biff's, or "Maniac's," speech led to an unexpected turn of events.
"Maniac" took the microphone, laughed for a moment, then pointed his finger at Dad's face and began his scathing remarks.
"Come on, Zeke, The Living Joor'rad just told me. yes, I know what you used to do.
"Normally someone like you don't have to go through the audition process, but just go through the recommendation process. But I'm really glad you went through the audition process, otherwise our acting director would have gone on strike with the studio afterwards."
"You know what? For the role of Thrakhath, your real strength is now this face - ONLY."
Then he uttered the most unbearable words.
"In fact, I think instead of reluctantly playing Thrakhath, you should just play his father. Anyway, there's only one scene in this movie about Gilkarg, where he is dragged before the Emperor and killed."
I really don't know how stupid a person has to be to say that in front of my Dad!
Dad's father was ordered by the Emperor to be... I know that it was the eternal nightmare in Dad's heart. But this "Maniac" opened his scars in public with a mocking tone!
And the next thing that happened was just as I feared.
Hearing that, Dad first froze, then his fur, together with his anger, erupted like a volcano! In front of a stunned crowd, Dad took steps closer to Biff - predator steps, grabbed him by the collar, lifted him high above the head!
"The Living Joor'rad" was the first to come to his senses, shouting, "NO!!!!!! My... Zeke! STOP!!!!!”
And I then yelled, "Dad! No!"
At the sound of my voice, gradually, Dad's fur smoothed out, and then, he put Biff down slowly.
Dad turned to me, took my paw, and said:
"Dorothy, let's go home."
…
Back at the hotel, Dad bought dinner for me, but he didn't eat anything himself. He sat in his room for a long time, not saying a word, and in the early hours of the morning, bought tickets for the early morning ship home.
I don't know what else to write about...
2683.173 Sunny
Life is funny. Sometimes, just when you're feeling confident that nothing is wrong, all sorts of difficulties can pop up in ways you never thought possible, and just when you're feeling discouraged, good news arrives.
Early this morning, Dad and I packed our bags and left the hotel to go to the spaceport for the spaceship for our flight home. We didn't tell our family what happened yesterday, which was so disappointing and better be explained face to face.
After the security check, I sat beside Dad, who was sullen and unhappy, and didn't say a word. Yes, how can we explain this when we get back? And, really thinking about moving, how do we coordinate with Uncle Eisen about the residence?
Seeing the wide variety of movie and TV accessories in the souvenir store across the hall, it occurred to me that Jedediah is a big fan of the classic Terran drama Star Wars. At least, we could buy him a gift.
Dad and I went into the store. Dad instructed me to pick something that Jedediah liked and he would just pay for it. But I also knew that this time the purchase should not be too expensive. I still turned my head silently as I saw the detail-filled model of the Millennium Falcon. Darth Vader's helmet mask... This thing didn't fit the face of we Kilrathi, so it's not worth the money if it can only be used as an ornament. In the end, I chose a Light Saber toy. It's a safe and reliable product that uses Holovid technology and can be played with for an hour on a ten-minute charge.
Dad paid for it. The audio announcements in the hall seemed to be looking for someone, and everyone at the boarding gate was already lined up.
At that moment, I saw a team of uniformed spaceport staff wandering around the lobby with information signs. Wow, that's funny, it's also bilingual for Terran Language and Kilrah.
Hmmm? The message board reads... "Mr. Zeke, you have an urgent message for someone who wants to speak to you. - It's for us!
I hurriedly explained to Dad, but he impatiently said that we would be boarding in about one eight minutes, and even if there were any items left at the hotel, we could just ask them to mail it home.
By this time, the staff member holding the sign had seen us - indeed, Dad's stature stood out among the passengers. He rushed over to us and said.
"Mr. Zeke, right? The people from the movie studio are looking for you on an urgent matter and they are waiting for you right now in the office on this floor. "
...
To my surprise, we were approached by one of the examiners for the first round, Mr. Haikri, the Firekkan "Trembler", and then by... the tortoiseshell fur muscle guy?
First, they asked why they never get through - well, Dad‘s phone was rejecting all unfamiliar calls - and then they told us – Yes! Thank Sivar! Dad is being Accepted!
I was jumping for joy and surprise, while my dad was acting much more calmly. First he sighed and wondered if it was too late to refund the tickets. After getting the answer from the staff, he mockingly suggested to Mr. Haikri that perhaps the Performance Director of the movie would have to work overtime.
To my amazement, Mr. Haikri's reply was that he would do what he was supposed to do, and that he would definitely try to make sure that Dad would be portraying a real Crown Prince on the holomovie - wow, Mr. Haikri is the Performance Director! Unbelievable!
Mr. Haikri said that he couldn't reach us by phone, and that he knew from the hotel that we had checked out, so he went straight to spaceport - and the tortoiseshell fur muscle guy volunteered to go with together, saying that he knew us well and could help - He was the one who recognized our odor at the security checkpoint and made sure we were waiting for our flight this floor.
It occurred to me that since Dad had passed the audition to play the role of Crown Prince in the movie, that meant the tortoiseshell fur muscle guy was out.
Out of courtesy, I apologized to him. But he was happy to tell me that although he didn't have a chance to play the Crown Prince, he got a contract for a small supporting role based on his solitary character performance! Wow! Congratulations to him!
At that moment, the tortoiseshell fur muscle guy's phone rang. On the other end of the line, an old, booming voice yelled angrily in Kilrah:
"You idiot! You were supposed to be there for casting as me and your father! Who asked you to audition for the role of Lord Prince! ... What? You went to the reception and she told you to… you follow an [the "a" word, which is a Kilrathi's impolite slang refers to Terran. I won’t write it here]’s order? And! How can you cast as Lord Prince? Is that something our family could do? Is your brain made of muscle?!!!!!!!!"
"And! How can you go to an [the "a" word again] clinic for your Lair-mate's prenatal consultation? Not to mention it's a veterinarian one!"
Hahahahahahahaha!
QUESTION OF WEEK 3:
More to the point, during the war, "The Living Joor'rad" was the emperor's stand-in (I think the "Emperor" in some of the documentary scenes was actually him). He was secretly sent away from Kilrah just before the history-defining battle, so luckily escaped. I remember one of his famous quotes: "The only reason I still have my body intact is that after I made my left eye and my left leg as if they did not exist, the Emperor, for some reason, thought it useful to keep them in my body".
WHAT COULD BE THAT REASON?
(If you know the answer and would like to write the answer here, please use the spoiler mark.)
Next, please read WEEK 4...