Chapitre 2: New Family
Thabo opened his eyes, regaining his vision. "It feels weird. Am I a baby?" he wondered aloud. "I don't think newborns can experience this level of awareness, removing my matured consciousness," he added, trying to make sense of his situation. "I can see too..." His tone dropped as he saw the person currently holding him. "Golden skin color?" he thought, trying to identify the race.
Little by little, his hearing became clearer. "...ready as soon as possible. But to think he inherited more from you than from me, his father," the man holding Thabo said.
"This man is my... I'm an alien," Thabo gasped, shocked by this development. Lost in his thoughts, he was brought back to reality when his father handed him to his mother.
"I want the best for Fred, and I believe Earth will provide a good environment for him. Besides, my parents are here too," the woman said.
"Haa, fine. Since your parents are both retired Plumbers, I trust they'll be able to protect our Clement," the man said, giving up the debate.
[A/N: I literally wasn't paying attention when naming him as Fredrick and how it rhymes with Ben and Gwen, it a complete coincidence 😅]
"So my names are Fred and Clement, huh? And judging by what my 'father' said about me taking after my mother, then I'm black still," Thabo noted. "My grandparents are Plumbers, huh? Must mean my mother's one too. It's obvious with my alien dad," Fred thought as he listened to his new parents' conversation until the nurse took him away.
"Arg, I fell asleep. Being a baby sucks," Fred ranted, realizing he had dozed off from tiredness and woken up later. But it wasn't like he was in a hurry. "Okay, now to address the floating screen that seems only I can see," he noted. The screen had been there ever since he became aware of his surroundings.
"Quick note from the manager: your powers won't manifest until you meet a specific condition. But don't worry, I've set things in motion so you'll meet them easily without effort. As for an explanation for your powers, you're technically a hybrid of Osmosian, human, and another species called Meeks. Your father is actually a half-Osmosian. What a twist, right? Anyway, don't worry about it. They're rare and it's not relevant to your powers, but they'll think so in your world. Best," the screen noted. As Fred finished reading the note, the screen disappeared.
Lying there, Fred contemplated what the conditions might be. Though his face didn't display it, he was furious at the anonymity of it all. He remembered perfectly that the manager said it was for his entertainment, meaning this was completely unnecessary. Knowing there was nothing he could do about it, he sighed deeply. "Haa, he did say he set things up, so I guess it'll work out," he muttered, trying to calm his frustration. Being part Osmosian by birth was something he hadn't expected, even though he could probably turn into one once he got the fullness of his powers. But he wasn't in a rush.
"Fred, hurry up! We're going to be late!" his mother cried. It had been five years, and Fred had adjusted to his new life. His parents didn't keep it much of a secret that they were Plumbers, even though they didn't bother to tell him directly. They did notice some things about Fred regarding his character. Having lived until twenty-eight in his past life, he showed signs of being more mature and smarter than other children his age. This, coupled with his curiosity and the discovery of a plasma gun—which he did fire—made his parents realize they needed to explain his alien heritage. They were surprised to see him understand and accept their explanations. This all happened on his fifth birthday, two months back on the twentieth of May.
"Are we going to visit Grandpa and Grandma today?" Fred asked as he came downstairs, his eyes wide with curiosity.
"Haha, not quite. Today we're going somewhere special," his mother chuckled, her eyes twinkling with excitement.
"Okay, Rodwells, let's go," Fred's dad said, seeing Fred and his mother ready to go. After a long drive, they arrived at a private hangar. Fred couldn't understand why, but he was filled with anticipation. Stopping by the gate, Fred's dad entered a pin to open it.
"A Plumber base, maybe?" Fred thought as they drove in slowly. They entered the very last hangar in the row. As the door opened, the hangar was empty inside. After coming to a stop, the floor lit up as a ring of light formed on it.
"So, are you excited?" his dad asked, looking at him in the backseat. Fred nodded, unable to hide his anticipation. The section of the floor inside the glowing circle started moving downwards at an angle, slowly until it came to a stop. The basement lit up, and Fred was amazed by what he saw—about twelve Plumber ships.
"Amazing," he noted, his voice filled with awe. "Wait, are you guys going to give me a tour?" he asked excitedly.
"Just wait and see," his mother said as they got out of the car. His father took out his Plumber badge, which lit up a nearby ship in response.
"That right there is our ship. Your mother and I work together, you see, and the division we work for deals with matters mostly in space," his dad explained as they walked to the ship.
"Come on, today we'll give you an exclusive tour of our ship. We've gone through a lot of paperwork for this little excursion," his mother said with a smile, holding his hand and ushering him into the ship. What followed was a detailed tour inside their Plumber ship. After a few hours, they sat in the cockpit, with Fred enjoying his time. He did miss his past family from time to time, but throughout these five years, his parents treated him with more than enough love for him to get attached to them.
"So, are you ready for the main course?" his father asked as he buckled his seatbelt, a mischievous grin on his face.
"Do you mean..." Fred said, his eyes gleaming with happiness and excitement.
"Yes, of course, sweetheart. That's why we brought you here," his mother said, buckling him up as his father turned on the ship's engines and prepped the ship to leave the hangar.
The base moved to a position where it could leave the underground ship hangar. The roof opened up as Fred's mother pressed some buttons, while his father focused on piloting the ship.
"The cloaking device is on," she said, her voice steady and reassuring. The ship lifted off quickly, leaving the hangar and soaring through the skies. It climbed higher and higher until—
"Woah," Fred's eyes widened in awe. The sight of being in space amazed him. He couldn't believe it, but it was true.
"Yep, that's why we organized this trip," his parents said lovingly, their voices filled with warmth and pride.
Fred couldn't help but feel a surge of gratitude towards his parents for this wonderful experience. As they flew around the solar system, he took in the breathtaking views, each moment more incredible than the last. This was truly a memorable day for him, one he would cherish forever.
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone