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Starbase #00026, corner of 40th and Allen, Midtown, Freedom City, 2nd of April, Saturday, 2016, 50 revolutions since last long-range inspection by the Lor Republic Folding down his holocor screen, Dol-Druth glanced around at the world that would be his home for the foreseeable future. It was warmer here than when he'd arrived on the exceptionals' Lighthouse. The northern hemisphere was tilting back towards SL-43, blazing gold in the faintly nauseating blue-hued sky. A slender sliver of silver was visible through the squat canyons of Midtown's buildings, a daily reminder to the planet inspector that he could be somewhere civilized right now, and not need to leave the system to do it. With a grumbling noise at the back of his throat, the bureaucrat leaned back in the chair of metal mesh, feeling it waver slightly under his hundred-odd kilograms, glancing at his fellow patrons, most of whom either gawked openly or surreptitiously. It was the same with the steady stream of humans going up and down the street, either on foot, on bi-wheeled contraptions of remarkable ingenuity, or in groundcars that roared and rumbled like something out of the Khanate arenas. He'd endured plenty of stares, but for the most part this settlement seemed fairly used to people with unusual appearances, so the stares were pretty much it. It was cutting into his data-gathering, especially since those that did pause mostly just took pictures, giggled, or asked him incredibly stupid questions like- "Are you an alien?" A very large, wholly bald white-skinned man in a shifting suit of iridescent beige swiveled around, levelling a pair of slender antennae and a pair of large, black eyes set in a humourless face at the human pupa who'd spoken, a female with a cloud of kinked black hair, clothed in vivid colours that made the inspector's gut clench. For a second, but only one, Dol-Druth considered saying "No." But he wasn't here to lie to children, he was here to find out what these children were thinking and were going to become. With a forbidding scowl he replied "Yes. I am Planet Inspector Dol-Druth, Speaking for Dotrae, the Lor of the Manymind and the Lost Planet. I wish to learn about your world and-" The girl was already dashing to her very embarrassed-looking dam "MOM, MOM, I JUST MET AN ALIEN!" she all but screamed, which got her a stern lecture that carried on to around the block and out of the Civic Rotundan's sight. Dol-Druth glared at the cup of vegetable-strained water and the clump of sweetened grains in front of him. The Grue Pseudo had told him that coffee shops were common places for humans to congregate and meet new people. Had this all been an elaborate joke at his expense? "I wouldn't expect much more of a shifter, even if he is severed from the Meta-Mind" the insectile Lor muttered, taking a ginger sip of his coffee. It hadn't gotten any better after it cooled down. Settling back into his chair, he checked the holographic sign. It at least was working as intended, saying in bright letters of soft light INTERVIEWEES WANTED FOR INTERTERRESTRIAL CIVIC PROGRAMME Perfectly clear. Joke or not, this place was at least where people were. All he had to do was wait. Something he was going to have to get used to sooner or later. Again. 'Bird Galactic, I hate my job'