Alekzandur
Legacy Name: Alekzandur

"Ad Astra Per Aspera"
A Rough Road Leads to the Stars.

When he looks out his bedroom window, it almost seems like he could reach out and take the stars in his hands.

Alekzandur often takes for granted how fortunate he is to live in StarFrost Village. Not every Subetan has access to a private lake with crystal clear water or a wall-sized display screen that can imitate scenery from every land. He never needs to worry about locking his doors at night as the gated community boasts nothing but living areas with the highest quality styles and features. Any thief able to somehow outsmart the patrol montres would find themselves in deep trouble as lasers with the genetic material of all residents saved to their memories trained on the intruder. There has never been a successful robbery committed in this village where only top executives of SAI and their families are allowed to dwell.

The villagers have a view of the air field where plane-loads of temporary workers from the mainland fly in for their week-long shifts. These mainlanders are given clearance only after they have suffered a rigorous process of intelligence exams designed to weed out the average from those worthy to work at SAI. Even so, they are required to wear special passes at all times, color-coded with a bar that reveals their clearance level. The airport also gets the occasional Subeta Airlines flight. These are used exclusively to transport supplies.

Alek sips his coffee as he watches from his balcony as a plane takes flight, thoughts wandering to the family he rarely sees. Mom and Dad are still employed by SAI despite their advancing age. He is grateful to them for his childhood among the privileged and for Mom putting in a good word at the Observatory. Alek is not ashamed that he had a little help in gaining his first job and in securing a gorgeous apartment. There is no one who can deny he earned the rank of second in command on his own with his innovative ideas and keen eye for new stellar wonders.

He really only sees his parents on the holidays now. His siblings visit even less frequently. Two brothers also live in the village and work for SAI though Cosmo is merely an Intelligence Analyst trying to work his way up to Logistics Specialist. Aster is the ultimate genius of the family, enjoying a position as a Deputy Director beneath their father.

He's honestly not sure where his sister Nova ended up though he has heard rumors of two little tigreans that share the family name. Where his brother Galax is sleeping tonight is a mystery not even the wise Oracle could guess at. He always was a bit of an oddball. Perhaps he finally made it to Merana's lair and got himself that hydrus coat he always dreamed about. How a tigrean raised by brilliant scientific minds could take an interest in the ocean over space baffled them all. At least he hadn't gone the way of Drunk Carl. They hoped.

The little rocket-shaped clock - one of the few items he kept from his childhood - in the bedroom chimes, alerting him that it is time to go to work. Auroris, the Revontuli, glows for just a moment, creating a brilliant aurora of blue and green. It is his form of farewell as minions are not allowed on the Observatory floor. Far too many expensive telescopes had been smashed in the early days by frightened shebbits running from the grin of a Mr. Snugglekins.

Alek goes straight to his post before the telescope, putting his eye to the glass to track the progress of X4954, the nebulae he's been watching all week. There are a few tiny branches jutting from the interstellar cloud that have formed slowly over the course of many months. To most, this is no more exciting than watching a fluffy white cloud disintegrate for lack of moisture that would cause it to rain. To Alek, every subtle difference in size, shape and color is fascinating. These are the clouds from which stars are born.

He notes his latest batch of observations before glancing at the red digital clock on the wall. A small gasp escapes him as he realizes the time. He's supposed to be coordinating team projects in five minutes!

The employees are well into the coffee pot when he enters the room. He sees a few familiar faces, space enthusiasts like himself who will be eager to get to work. It is always harder to tell the quality of volunteers. Some have a genuine interest in Subeta's space programs but many are just looking to fill community service hours for their Subeta Scout troops.

"Alright, let's get down to business everyone. First of all, for those of you who worked on the Black Hole Bulletin, excellent job. As you know, the Observatory prides itself on preparing educational materials that are sold in the various shops and provided free to children in schools all across Subeta. This next project is one we're calling Awesome Asteroids and Cool Comets. Do I have any volunteers for the layout?"

Paws, fins, and wings go into the air readily enough. Layout is always a popular assignment.

"What about articles? Who wants to see their name in print?"

He runs through his list, finding no shortage of volunteers until he comes to proofreader. Fortunately, one dour old warador agrees to take the task after shooting the chosen writers a few dirty looks.

Alek dismisses the group after another hour of discussion. He whistles a happy little tune as he goes to get his lunch bag from his locker. Working with enthusiasts always puts him in a good mood.

The sandwich is nice but it is the orange that really makes him eager to eat. He loves cheery, bright oranges which he likes to think of as nutritional little suns. Though they must be imported all the way from Omen Islands, he is not the least bit concerned over their cost. He takes the time to peel each section away, chewing slowly to savor the flavor.

"Hey, Super Star. A little lain told me you didn't have any plans tonight."

Quin is by no means the boldest of his suitors but she is a runner-up for most persistent. Alek is in such a good mood from his recent discoveries that he offers her a smile. "It would be a nice night for a walk down Borea Pass, wouldn't it?"

Quin's grin is so wide it nearly reaches her ears. "I'll meet you out front during the shift change."

Alek was only a little late. At first he does well at keeping up with Quin's chatter about working in the research lab and trying to keep up with a mischievous minion at home. He does enjoy her company but that is not enough to distract him from the glory of the stars above. He feels just a little guilty when he leaves her at the gates, giving her an extra-sweet kiss to make up for his inattentiveness.

"So how about tomorrow night? We could go down and watch the wild swans on the lake." Quin looked at him hopefully.

The answer to the equation he has been trying to solve all week pops into his head suddenly. "I had a wonderful time but I have to go now. Good night, Quin."

He takes no notice of Quin's frown as a muscular montre gives her a warning look. He is already halfway home, his mind blossoming with the possibilities of what this solution could mean for the new telescope model his department has been working on.

He works through the hours of dawn despite his exhaustion, scribbling numbers and erasing them again until he is sure he has solved as much of the problem as his tired brain can comprehend. Despite his desire for sleep, he lays awake to watch the last few stars fade to daylight.

Auroris knows his owner all too well. He sits on the table beside his bed, forming auroras in soothing shades of blue and purple until his eyes slip shut. There are those scientists who would scream that the natural abilities of his minion are at odds with the electromagnetic origins of the true Aurora Borealis. Alek will gladly tell them all that the true beauty of Science is in what cannot yet and may never be explained.

Credits

Profile Code by: Ringo
Edited by: Chrysariel
Story by Pureflower
Overlay by: emphasismine
Overlay Recolor by: Chrysariel
Overlay Edited by: dalice
Background by: LiveInternet
Nebula by: fpvforums.org
Name Art by: Chrysariel


Thanks to Gold for letting me adopt him~ <3