The Aliens of the Flaming Red Sun/8 Purple’s private apartment

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Purple’s private apartment
So Purple and Straight went together to Purple’s private apartment, there Straight sorted out the food dispenser first, sensitive tentacles explored inside ducts and valves, putting right what wasn’t working as it should. Straight showed Purple how to do that for himself as Purple was also an engineer and understood such things as tubes and pipes. Purple noted that Straight may be a bad timekeeper but understood his work and could explain engineering thus Purple began to respect his friend just that bit more. “Now it’s time to test the dispenser!” Straight announced putting eyestalks together conspiratorially, Straight put a computer card into the dispenser and out came beautiful slime worm with exquisite sauce. “Why that’s as good as what my last employer’s establishment gave to Patrician visitors!” Purple said with amazement when he’d dipped his tentacles into the bowl and tested the flavour. (This time Purple remembered that he shouldn’t mention his master’s mansion.) “With this card I can get the delicacies the Galaxy Shipping Company gives free to officers,” Straight commented and put his eyestalks together conspiratorially again, “they won’t notice just so long as we don’t do that too often.”

Next Straight tested the mudbath, Purple had been thrilled with it but Straight wagged tentacles disapprovingly, just like the fore-alien. “That’s all wrong, you can’t get creepy-crawlies to grow properly in a cold mudbath like that. Any Galaxy Shipping Company Engineering Rating should at least get a mudbath with the proper temperature.” Purple was used to getting mudbaths where he could and too often slaves had to make do with something like a muddy area round a broken pipe. Then when the masters sorted out any pollution in the water the chances were they’d mend the break so the slaves would have to look somewhere else. Well his mudbath should be even better, Purple was pleased.

Straight guided Purple’s tentacles through the inlet and outlet pipes to the mudbath again showing his friend how to troubleshoot it himself. Purple watched how Straight checked and reset the thermostat, later Purple dipped tentacles into the slippery, muddy water. “It’ll take time for everything to warm up properly but that mud will soon improve no end.” Straight told him. Straight and Purple pointed eyestalks at each other, would they soon be doing something special in that mudbath? “No!” Straight thought to himself, “I mustn’t give the wrong impression, I mustn’t let my new friend imagine that I jump right into a romantic mudbath with just about any Centaurian that I’ve hardly met!” “Later perhaps?” Straight asked. “Yes, later perhaps?” Purple replied. Tenderly holding just the tips of each other’s tentacles Straight and Purple left the apartment and returned to the others in the television lounge.

''' That’s as far as I’ve written the story up to now. If readers would like to find out how the story developed before this point please click on The Aliens of the Flaming Red Sun. There readers will find all the sections of the story in sequence. '''