The bus ride to school was wet, rainy and cold. The rain drops splashed against my window making it almost impossible to see out. My tears threatened to make their way out and despite me trying to keep them in, one made its way down and splashed onto my cheek. I rested my head against the cold window. The cold made my cheek go numb and I wished it could do the same thing to my heart. I was just starting my first year in highschool on a new planet far from the one I used to live on. Ever since my parents went missing over the summer on a top secret space mission for the ESD (Exploration Space Division). I went to live with my grandmother and grandfather (on my dad's side) on Counter Earth. I sent countless mails to the ESD since then begging them to tell me what happened to my parents.
Where they were when they vanished, and each time I got the same answer. "We are sorry but the information is classified. We will get more information as soon as possible sincerely ESD" Each time I got that same mail I wanted to throw my PA (Personal assistant) across the room. I leaned back against my seat and pulled my jacket tightly around me. I felt the bus land on the ground and I watched as more kids got on. A girl wearing a designer jacket and her hair in a high pony plopped down next to me.
"Have you heard the news!" I looked up from staring at my bag to look at her. She was looking at me, her eyes filled with excitement.
"Heard what?" Her eyes went wide filled with shock
"You don't know they sent out an mail telling everyone at the school" I shook my head no, I had gotten an mail telling me to log into the school portal to get mails about upcoming events. I still have yet to do it. Her eyes went from shock to understanding.
"Ah you must be the new kid everyone has been talking about or so I assume since you never got the mail''
"Yup that's me" I wanted to roll my eyes but stopped myself in time
She looked down than back up "I'm sorry for what happened to your parents, my brother was on that ship as well I tried sending them an mail but I just got a mail back sayin.." I interrupted her.
"Sorry this information is classified?" I did nothing to keep the bitterness out of my voice. She nodded her head.
"I guess you sent an mail too"
"More than one" I crossed my arms as the bus lifted off again "So what is this news? I have not heard" As soon as those words left my mouth her eyes got that sparkle in them again.
"An Admiral is coming to the school today to see if he can find some kids to join ESD Academy!" I stared at her and I sat up a little bit taller. Admirals don't come to highschools that often and when they do it's to find kids to go to one of a few select academies. But the nice thing is with the Admirals code we can bypass the whole submission form and just head straight into the academy.
"So that means if the Admiral gives us his code we can get into a few select academies with out having to submit anything?" She nodded her head.
"Yes! Isn't that amazing! If I can get into the Academy maybe I can find out what happened to my brother"
"Not just your brother what happened to the ship, a whole ship just does not vanish without raising alarm from the people"
"Well yes but I bet the families who loved ones where on the ship got the same mail but at least we have a chance to figuring it out"
I felt the pain in my heart lessen as hope soon took its place. If I could find out what happened to the Explore I could find my parents and finally unravel the mystery of its disappearance. And maybe we could move back to Earth and back into our house. Grandma and Grandpa were good people and they tried the best to make me feel welcomed and I did love them. But I wanted it to be how it was before the mission. Eating dinner together whether on the ship or around our table in our home just as long as we were together.
"My name's Andali but you can call me Andi for short" Andi held out her hand at me. I looked at it then stuck my hand in it and a smile spread across my face.
"You can call me Janae '' We shook hands then I sat back content to go the remainder of the bus ride in silence but Andi had other plans.
"So you're half Zendas?" I looked back at her. I usually get asked that I looked human but my white hair and purple eyes and pointed ears usually gave it away.
"Yeah my mother is Zendas" I looked down knowing that what question came next I just decided to say it "And yes I can beat everybody at this school in an arm wrestling match and yes I do have a stubborn streak and yes I do get mad quickly but I have been working on it" I crossed my arms and leaned back I got asked a lot if I had trouble controlling my anger because my species was known for there quick temper. Andi was silent for a while then she spoke again.
"You have to look out for two bullies in this school Ollie and Varmen" Andi leaned back to her blond hair mixing with my white hair.
"Varmen is Ollie 's little puppet thankfully they both walk to school so we won't see them on the bus they refuse to sit with 'lower class people'" Andi made a funny face "I bet they will be soaking wet by the time they get to school I guess that's the price you pay for thinking your cooler than everyone else" Andi said as she laughed her laugh was a bubbly laugh that made you want smile whenever you hear it. I smiled big.
"I would rather be dry and in a crowded bus than wet and cold outside" Andi smiled and I smiled back. I sat up as the bus landed in another complex of houses. Only one boy walked on, his hair was deep brown and was cut short. His eyes looked gray as he walked up to us and looking down at Andi, he said.
"Move on over" Andi looked at me and rolled her eyes. I moved closer to the window and Andi moved closer to me to where are knees brushed everytime we moved. Andi looked at me.
"Janae this is my cousin Leo, Leo this is Janae my new friend" I smiled as he looked at me and nodded his head in greeting. Now that he was closer I could see that his eyes had a slight tint of green in them.
"Hey nice to meet you" his voice was low but not that deep it was like a river after a rain shower. I realized I had been staring but not saying anything.
"Nice to meet you too" He gave me a crooked smile that only made him look more handsome.
"I heard your parents were on the ship Explore when it went missing…I'm sorry" I leaned back and stared at the back of the seat.
"Looks like everyone heard about that"
"Well your father was the captain and your mother was first officer…so I guess people talk about their daughter" Andi piped in.
"Yeah I guess" I did nothing to keep the gloom out of my voice. I slumped down and just wished that everyone would stop thinking of me as the captain's daughter. I loved my father. I just wanted to make a name for myself and not have this captain's daughter. "We expect much from you." Andi looked down and said nothing for a while.
"Your hair is a mess" I looked up to see Andi looking at my hair. I had not done anything with it but put it back in a ponytail. I had woken up late so I did not have time to even brush it.
"I ran out of time to fix it so I threw it back into a ponytail" I shrugged Andi kept looking at it then she started digging through her bag.
"Well I can help you with that, the bus ride is almost over but we still have time to do something with it besides an Adramial is coming and we want to make a good first expression" Andi took some rubber bands and a hair brush out of her bag.
"You keep a hairbrush in your bag?"
"Incase of an emergency yes" Leo rolled his eyes
"That is why I like having short hair. You don't have to worry about brushing it or taking care of it really," Andi glared at him.
"Well you can't do anything with short hair and girls like long hair" Andi stood up "switch seats I will use the light from the window" I switched seats with her and she forced me to sit facing Leo.
"Don't step on my bag!" Andi quickly picked her foot up and stepped over it.
"Sorry!" I felt Andi take my rubber band "Do you ever brush your hair?"
"I told you I did not have time to brush it"
"It's really knotted"
"Well she could get short hair like me if she wakes up late all the time" Leo shrugged at me.
"I don't wake up late all the time and no I don't want short hair thank you very much" Leo brought his hands up
"Ok but it is easier" I rolled my eyes than something donned on me Andi had been stroking my hair for some time and it seemed like she was done brushing it.
"Umm Andi…Is something wrong with my hair?"
"What umm no why?"
"You seem to be petting it like I am so sort of Doliyo"
"Oh sorry, it's just your hair is so soft!"
"What's a Doli.. Doil-"
"Doliyo?" I cut Leo off must humans found it hard to pronounce
"Yeah what is it?"
"Well it's kind of like a dog but not its about as tall as you are and every Zendas get's one when they turn twelve"
"As tall as me? Really?" I nodded my head
"You know how tall I am right"
"You're around five' six right?"
"Yes"
"Than yes they are about as tall as you"
I felt the bus land and looking out the window Andi had long since finished my hair as was reading something on her PA. I read the sign next to the window Welcome To SaltGreen High School. I sighed and sling my bag strap over my shoulder. I stood up and headed out with the crowd of kids that shoved and nudged to make their way to friends or to the school.
"Who's your homeroom teacher?"
"Miss. Dune" Andi face fell into a pout
"Sad I have Miss. Heyvoy what other class do you have?" I pulled my PA out and turned it on. I pulled up my schedule.
"I have Math with Mr. Duck, then English with Miss. Rudd History with Row and Science with Miss. Delango and than Homeroom again than Library and study time"
"Sweet! I have Math with Miss. James but then we have class together for the rest of the day! Looks like you have the same schedule as Leo so at least you will have a familiar face for the first two periods" I smiled at Andi. I felt something warm on my back and looked up to see that the sun was making its way past the clouds. Most of the clouds had parted meaning the end of the rain. I made my way inside and after getting lost I found the right room. Class did not start for another ten minutes so sitting down in the back I pulled my PA out of my bag and pulled up my mail. I got another mail from ESD. I pulled it open expecting to read the same thing. "We have gotten some more information that has been approved to send to you at this time. Your parents were sent to scan and scout out a new storm where the storm was and why they were sent is classified at this time sincerely ESD" I read the email over and again what was so important about a storm that they had to send their best exploration ship the Explore to investigate? I looked up when I heard someone knocking on my desk. Leo stood there.
"Hate to be a bother but Miss. Dune rule is to fill the seats up front first and we don't have enough people in this class to fill all the way to the back row. Come on I saved you a seat" I sighed inwardly and picking my bag up I followed Leo to two seats right in front.
"Really right up front seats? There is a whole other row. Why not let other people take these?"
"Because Ollie and Varmen sit in the middle row so if we sit here they won't bother us for now" Leo looked towards the door and mumbled under his breath "speaking of Varmen here come two rats right now" I watched as two boys wearing leather jackets and jeans with holes came walking in they walked to the row behind us and looked at two boys sitting at a desk.
"Hey you scram! This is my seat" The boys walked away to sit in the next seat over.
Leo looked over at me "And that is why we sit in the front"
"They can't do that they got there first"
"Yeah good luck telling them that the last person to try to stop them got a bloody nose and a week in detention for starting a fight" Leo looked back to look at the two bullies who were busy rummaging through someone's lunch box.
"Can I have everyone's attention up here please" I looked up to see a Daryovs sliding in her pale green skin and blue eyes kind of reminded me of a lily pad with blue flowers on it if a lily pad had eyes sticking out of the top of its head like sticks.
"For those of you who are new to my class my name is Miss. Dune" Miss. Dune turned and wrote on the board her name. I looked towards the door to see a trail of slime leading out and possibly down the hall. Well I guess that's what you get for having a Daryovs as a teacher. I looked back at Miss. Dune the only outfit she was wearing was a shirt and that was it. That was really all they needed to wear anyways. The Daryovs where found by the ESD when the ESD government was just forming and in the book you can get that talks about the first species to be a part of the forming government it list there species and the description of what they look like if you never seen one was
"Overgrown slug" which was not far off of what they did look like.
"Class we have a new student here with us this semester please stand up here and introduce yourself" One thing I hated about being a new student was having to stand up in front of the whole class and tell everyone who I was. I did not get the whole point of it. I mean why tell someone who you are if you are bound to not speak or see those people again when the semester is over? I stood up and walked to the front of the class.
"Please say your name, species and where you're from and one hobby of yours" Again useless detail if they are likely to forget all of it in a couple of weeks.
"Hi my name is Janae Snit I am more Zendas than human. I am from earth and a hobby of mine is drawing. '' Miss Dune nodded or so I thought it was hard to tell whether she did or did not. I turned to sit back down but Miss Dune stopped me.
"Just a minute Janae" She turned to look at the class "Any one have any questions they would like to ask Janae?" I turned to look back at the class. I scanned the people in the far back row. They had their heads down probably on their PA. The third row was mainly quiet except for Victor and Varmen. The first row had their eyes fixed on Miss Dune; the farthest back row was completely empty just like Loe said it would be. A hand shot up from the second row it was only in till I saw who's hand it was that made my stomach turn. Ollie sat leaning back, his hand idly hanging in the air. I looked at Leo. He turned and looked at me then back at Ollie I knew there was nothing he could do. Maybe Ollie was not all that bad as Andi made him up to be.
"Ollie what is your question please try to keep it on topic this time" Ollie stood up and crossed his arms a evil grin placed on his face.
"Is it true that Zendas have a hard time controlling their anger? And if so does that mean you get angry easily? Or does it not affect you because you're somewhat human?" I stand correct he is as bad as he is made out to be. If this was some ploy to get me mad about the question of my anger I was not going to fall for it. Every human knows that Zendas gets mad when they get asked about their anger issues. I stood up taller and looked Ollie right in the face. One thing that humans tend to miss is that Zendas are great at keeping the emotion they have in place. That is all but their anger. Making sure to keep my voice level I answered him back.
"That is correct, my species does have a hard time controlling their anger. But it's also true that my species have learned how to control their anger which is something that I have learned to do so to answer your question no I don't lose control of my anger" I narrowed my eyes at him not to the point of glaring Ollie gave another one of his evil grins and I could see him thinking, he was up to something but what? Another thing we Zendas don't like to put out there is that hearing is incredible. We could hear a pen drop in a room full of people talking. Ollie slumped in his chair. I could feel him glaring at me as I sat down I heard him say.
"Well see about that" I wanted to turn around and look at him but Miss Dune was already talking about today's shortened schedule due to the Admiral coming to the school. Whatever Ollie was up to it was nothing good. As Miss Dune went on about the schedule for the day I thought about the mail I had received from ESD. Why had they sent the Explore to go look at a storm? What was so special about it? And was it worth all those lives aboard? I felt like there was more to the story than ESD was letting out. Now I had two mysteries on my hands. What was Ollie and his puppet up to? And what happened to the Explore. I had a feeling I was going to figure one out sooner than the other one. I leaned back in my chair as Miss Dune began a long lecture about the importance of making a good first impression. Today was going to be a very long day.