"Isn't it beautiful? Really makes you come to grips with how big the universe is and how comparatively insignificant we are, doesn't it?"
Out in the wastelands of central Texas, far from civilization, the night was black and the stars were bright. A sprightly, middle aged man stood roughly twenty feet from the nearby backroad and gazed upwards through a powerful telescope with an air of wonder. His teenage son, on the other hand, leaned against the car parked next to the road, strengthening his thumbs with a constant barrage of texts.
"Yeah, sure it is, really worth dragging me out here on a three day weekend... stupid meteor shower."
---------------------
Meanwhile, in the midst of said meteor shower, our young alien protagonist's vehicle is on its last legs. The gallant machine, paid for and kept functional with daddy's money, had done its best, but in the end the atmosphere of the blue planet would win the day. In a final act of chivalric sacrifice, it jettisoned its owner, shielding her in the armored bubble required by interplanetary safety laws.
Meitnerium continued her profanity filled plunge towards the planets surface, the friction causing her shielding to glow a merry red. Only minutes later, it hit the ground with an unceremonious "whump" and a cry far too obscene to be printed here.
---------------------
"Hmm... that's odd..." The amateur astronomer said, stroking his chin. "Looks like one of the meteors actually made it through the atmosphere. I do believe it landed quite close to our position!"
"Yeah, that's great dad, really."
"Come on, Tom, show some enthusiasm! Why, I remember when you were just a little boy, you used to love coming out on our stargazing trips!."
"Yeah, when I was eight. I'm nineteen, dad. I'm in college now. I don't like wasting my time on stupid little trips like this."
"Regardless, I'm gonna go get us a souvenir, whether you come with me or not, Tomcat."
Scowling, the young man stowed the cell phone away in his pocket.
"Fine, if it really means so much to you... and stop calling me that, it's annoying."
---------------------
Dazed and confused, Meitnerium struggled just to stand up without falling over. No signs remained of her car, the bulk of the machine being consumed by reentry and the protective shielding vanishing after it served its purpose. Due to an post-planetary environmentalist group without sufficient understanding as to exactly how vast the universe is, all such devices were not only bio degradable, but immediately consumed after use.
In such a state was the green skin lass discovered, sitting on a rock and clutching her throbbing head with both hands.
"Great Scott! It's a woman!"
"Yeah, dad, I can see that... you don't have to shout."
Picking there way carefully through the brush, by the time that they reached the alien, she was passed out, a pool of vomit next to her. Quite clearly, the trauma of the crash has led to some rather nasty physical injuries.
---------------------
"Um... are you sure this is such a good idea? I mean... she's not exactly... human... is she? Won't the government or something come after us now?" Said Tom, glancing nervously at the comatose girl stretched out in the back seat of the van.
"Hah, stop being so paranoid, Tommygun. Life isn't like those films on the silverscreen! We'll just take her back home, get her fixed up, and then we can tell someone about her. Besides, it just would be inhospitable not to take a victim in! Good Samaritan and all that."
Texas is big. Exceedingly so. Even given the vast amount of time consumed in the drive from central Texas to a small suburban community on the outskirts of Houston, Meitnerium only awoke after they had arrived at home.
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