Prodigy Returns (book 3)

Chapter Eleven

Alex held her mouth agape, processing what she had just heard. Staring at her brother, she noticed the resemblance immediately. The handsome face of the clean-cut boy resembled a young Maxim Morrison.

"How do you know that name?" Kyodin asked, returning to his feet.

"He's... my father too," Alex said with reluctance.

"Impossible," the man protested.

"I'm not from here. I'm from a planet called Earth."

"Wait," Kyodin asked with astonishment. "Are you Alexandra?"

Alex was used to people knowing her name, but to travel to a distant planet many light-years away and be recognized was a whole other level of fame. Alex nodded and said, "Small universe."

"What do you mean?" the man asked. "The universe is anything but small."

"I just meant it as a figure of speech."

"What's a figure of speech?"

"It's a term or phrase that is used often to convey a commonly understood meaning among those who know it, but it's not meant to be taken literally. On Earth, if we bump into someone we know, perhaps in a different part of the world than where we're from, we might say, 'small world'. The world isn't actually small, but the chances of bumping into someone we know in a foreign place makes it feel small."

"Oh, I get it," the man laughed. "Small universe. That's funny!"

Alex gave an insincere smile as she was still in shock, but was starting to get used to all the surprises. Seeing her father as an old man was unexpected, but it made sense the more she thought about it. It stood to reason that a man of his age would start a new life and have another family.

"I'm so sorry, Alexandra, I didn't recognize you. Your hair and eyes are different than the images that I've seen of you."

"You can call me Alex."

"Wait, how old are you?" Kyodin asked. "From what father said, you should be an old lady by now."

"I'm twenty," Alex said. "Time on Earth has been moving much slower relative to this planet so I don't age as fast. On Earth, Maxim has only been gone for one year."

"One year!" Kyodin exclaimed. "No, he's been here for over sixty."

"I'm telling the truth. You can do a gencom with me."

"A what?"

"A genetic comparison."

"No, it's okay. I believe you."

"So, Kyodin, how old are you?"

"Eighteen."

"I'm sorry I attacked you," Alex said. "I hope you were not harmed."

"No, I'm fine."

"I was not expecting to see any other people in the jungle so it caught me off guard. Actually, I thought you were a killer robot."

"A killer robot!" Kyodin laughed. "There aren't any of those out here."

"That's a relief."

"So Alex, how did you get here?"

"I transported."

"Oh, I see. Did you come alone?"

"Yes."

"Well then, welcome to Titan," Kyodin said warmly.

"Titan?" Alex repeated.

"Yes, that's the name of this planet. Well, that's the name father came up with."

"In the solar system where I come from, there is a large planet called Saturn—"

"I like that name — Saturn," Kyodin interrupted. "I've never heard of it before... and what's a solar system?"

"A solar system just refers to objects that orbit around a star. So the solar system where I come from consists of a star called the Sun, which has eight planets that orbit it. There are an assortment of other objects, such as asteroids, comets, and moons, but planets are the main objects. One of those planets is Saturn, and orbiting Saturn is a moon called Titan."

"Why?"

"I'm not sure how it received its name," Alex said, unsure what his question referred to, but she took the liberty of answering it in her own way. "The Titans were a family of giants in Greek mythology. They were revered for their size and power so Titan is likely named after these divine beings. Saturn has six ellipsoidal moons and Titan is the largest. It is often described as a planet-like moon because of its size. Its diameter is 50% larger than Earth's and is the second-largest moon in the solar system, after Ganymede — the largest moon of Jupiter."

Kyodin had a blank look on his face as if Alex were speaking another language.

"Never mind," Alex said.

"I've heard so many great things about you," Kyodin said. "Is it true you are a super genius?"

"You shouldn't believe everything you hear," Alex said coyly.

"I shouldn't?"

In that two-word statement, Alex saw a naive innocence in her brother that was quite endearing. It was evident that he was mentally underdeveloped by comparison to others his age back on Earth. He had a childlike sense of wonder to him as a result of being shielded his whole life from concepts such as lying and deception, and was unspoiled by all the heinous atrocities that humans had committed throughout history. Alex had no experience with such innocence, and in many ways Kyodin was unrelatable to her.

Alex had a hunch that Kyodin didn't learn the same way she did and others back on Earth. He was a beta human — the kind that had existed for thousands of years up until brain implants became the norm. This made him rare and immediately captured Alex's interest. She was already excited about discovering she had a sibling, but with one so primitive, it was like laying her eyes upon a dinosaur.

Reflecting on how best to answer her brother's question, Alex was careful not to corrupt him. There may be a perfectly rational reason for his innocence and Alex wanted to preserve that.

"Everyone's different," Alex began, "and each person's experiences, education, and how their brains function are a lens through which they see the world. One person's view could be completely different than another, but both viewpoints can be equally valid."

Kyodin stared at Alex like a child learning something for the first time. He was absorbing the new information like a sponge.

"So sometimes you have to question whether or not the source of your information is reliable, and if someone is telling you something, you need to know what lens they view the world through. Does that make sense?"

Kyodin nodded, but looked even more confused.

"Don't worry about it," Alex said. "So, tell me about yourself."

"I'm a hunter," Kyodin said proudly, showing off his armour as if he had made it himself. "My job is to supply food for the camp."

"Camp?" Alex asked. She was interested in learning more about her brother, but first it might be helpful to know how many others lived on this planet, what their situation was like, and what the dangers were. There were so many questions to ask and it was hard for Alex to focus on just one without several others popping up in her mind.

"Yes," Kyodin said. "We have a small village, which is about two days walk away. Come on, I'll take you there. I think it's time you meet the rest of your family."