Into That Wild Blue Yonder

13. First Impressions

Idara stuck to Ulan that night and snuggled up next to him while Colm remained on the floor. He ended up lying back on the carpet between his bed and the window, beneath the climate control unit and out of sight. When the morning sun shone through the window, Idara was the first one begrudgingly up and groggily sat up to start her morning routine.

When she sat up, she realized Colm was nowhere in sight, bed still made, and hopped out of bed to figure out where he was. When she moved to his side of the room, she spotted his feet on the floor and frowned as she moved to see the rest of him on the floor. He had several empties next to him under the bed. Idara sighed and kicked his feet.

"You good?" she asked loudly, jolting Colm awake.

"Huh- wha- I'm up?" Colm frantically tried to take in his surroundings, his gaze settling on Idara standing over him. "What do you want?"

"Breakfast," Idara said. She lowered herself and sat on her heels. "Did you sleep there all night?"

"Yeah," Colm said in a gravelly voice. He rubbed his face with both hands. "You didn't take the bed?"

"No, I just leaned against Ulan," Idara replied. She cocked her head sideways and a playful smile splashed across her face. "Awwww, did you leave the mattress just for me?" She went to reach for Colm's head but he brushed her hand away.

"Eugh." Colm dragged himself to his feet against the bed. "We got separate rooms for a reason."

"We were team bonding, though!"

Colm grunted and went to the bathroom to wash his face and change into fresh clothes. While he washed up, Idara and Ulan went into her room to leave him to his own devices. Once he was cleaned up and dressed, Colm sat on his bed and started stretching out while he waited for them to come back. Sleeping on the floor had him as stiff as the boards he spent the night on.

Before long, Idara and Ulan strutted back in, both in semi-formal clothes for the meeting. Idara wore the new blouse Ulan bought her tucked into a pair of dark khaki pants and low-heeled shoes. Ulan wore his usual trousers and an upper-body vest with what must have been a dozen pockets. Idara probably needed him to have extra pockets since hers were useless.

The trio left the hotel and walked toward the mountain to the mines. They were set to meet Anselm at his office close to the mine they were going to be offering to take care of. They still didn't have the details of what was wrong, or even if Anselm would really be inclined to accept their help. Colm silently hoped he would tell them to get lost, and that would be the end of it.

They left the touristy, shopping section of town and approached the residential and labor sectors that defined the true nature of life in Stiftung. Gutter water ran from the rooftops down onto the ground, leaving drainage water puddled throughout the streets for rodents to bathe in. The road consisted mainly of gravel from the rock detritus that fell from mining carts, and dust covered nearly every surface.

Colm couldn't read the graffiti on the walls in the alleys as they passed, but based on the few people he saw painting, he could tell they were territory marks. Kids born into a life underground digging up stones for rich people they would never meet had little else to do in a place like this while their parents worked the day away. They reminded Colm a bit of himself, in a way.

Colm kept his hands in his pockets while he trailed behind in case any nimble-fingered kids tried to poach his coin and looked up at the mountain. He hadn't asked anyone the name, but he had to guess it would be something related to how absurdly tall and singular it was. He could just make out the top, but incoming overcast skies would soon keep it well-hidden behind a ceiling of gray befitting the town atmosphere.