The first time I met Irina, I was blown away by how beautiful she was. The purple-and-green-tinted crystalline clusters of her body glittered in the auditorium's ever-flowing fireworks. Two of her six multifaceted eyes were silver, and four were gold, a mark of great passion and intelligence. Even her parasites had a special look about them as they danced around her body, multicolored tongues of flame weaving in and out of her vent slits.
I was never the same after that first glimpse of her. I had never seen anyone so beautiful in all my life.
"I believe we can help the humans." Those were the first words I heard her say. "I believe our way of life can change their world for the better and make them civilized enough to be welcomed into the community of worlds."
This was one of our
