Chapter 22: Grand opening!

On a sunny autumn day, dozens of people dressed to the nines were gathering at a luxury townhouse in the upper east side of Manhattan. A building that now stood out like a sore thumb considering there was a spaceship parked on the spacious rooftop.

This luxury townhouse was chosen by the US Government as the embassy for Noah. Susan, who showed the group around explained that the 9-bedroom building was chosen to ensure that, should Noah bring any alien friends to Earth, they would have a safe and comfortable location to rest. Susan, being a scientist at heart, wasn’t really trying to hide the fact that the US government were splurging on this $40m purchase to butter them up. Noah was surprised to find out they had already completed renovations to ensure Noah’s ship could be parked on the roof without causing any damage. Though Noah could have just left the gravity engine running if he needed to, he appreciated the foresight.

Before Noah even had a chance to look through all the rooms, he was thrust into work ensuring the release of the first batch of rejuvenating gel went well. With the three pools of gel, which were each about half the volume of an Olympic swimming pool, they were able to produce about 5.5 million samples of 100ml each. The party today was planned by Gaia as a celebration for the release. Though only 500,000 would be sold today due to supply chain limitations.

Regardless, police had to block off the entire street due to the swarm of people who wanted to get a look at Noah, his spaceship, Gaia, or Pip. When Noah looked at the crowd as he greeted guests entering through the large double doors, a good 1/5th of the crowd seemed to only be interested in Pip who was making cute bobs as she attempted to bow politely to the incoming guests. An action that would soon be plastered over twitch chats across the world. The media was also soaking up the ratings explosion as they interviewed the high profile politicians, socialites and businesspeople walking along the golden carpet, something Gaia insisted on as a kind of motif for the event.

While Gaia and Pip were enjoying themselves and the attention, Noah was anxious. The 500,000 samples being released today were global, but they wouldn’t get market feedback from the Asia pacific until late at night due to distance and time zones.

Gary walked over to Noah and hesitantly put a hand on his shoulder. He could tell Noah was nervous, but they hadn’t known each other long enough to be so casual in their interactions. “Hey Noah, everything okay?”

Noah smiled and let out a breath. “Yeah, I’m just nervous, I really want this launch to go well is all, making a good first impression is important after all.”

Gary had a wry smile on his face as he pinched the bridge of his nose. “Noah, C’mon, half the planet thinks you’re an angel sent by god, the other half just want to get their hands on cool alien products, you could sell your own poop and people would bend over backwards to buy it.”

“Well, I am a celestial after all.” Noah said with a wink as he turned and walked towards Gaia who was rapidly transforming her outfits in public as a side show while floated baby castella’s into her mouth.

“Uhh, wait, hold on a sec you can’t just leave me with that cliff hanger!” Gary called out in a confused panic before locking eyes with Susan. After pausing for a moment, Gary’s mind shifted towards his co-worker’s outfit, where he then nodded with a serious expression, causing Susan to tilt her head in confusion.

A projector was displaying multiple news feeds which were covering the product launch, as well as social media. Gaia, who was connected to the ship’s computer blinked her eyes before she clinked a fork on her champaign glass, gathering the rooms attention.

“Ladies, gentlemen, Earthlings, I’d like to gather your attention to the projection at the front here. It would appear the first deliveries have been made.

<><><><><><>

Stephanie Meyers, a nineteen-year-old girl living in New York for college was pacing around her small one bedroom apartment restlessly. She had been on the bus the day Noah’s ship arrived on Earth. At first, like many, she didn’t believe what the media had been saying in the days prior, that aliens had been discovered and they were coming to Earth. Until she heard the engines of fighter jets screaming over the city. Looking out through the bus window, she saw the massive alien ship flying effortlessly along the East River towards the U.N building. Ever since, she had been following all the news religiously, even joining an online forum and discussing with other people about the event daily.

When she was browsing the U.N website one morning for any new information, she happened to be one of the first to see the signup page for the rejuvenating gel sample and without even noticing the $500 price, instantly filled in her details. Once she got the confirmation email, she was excited to find out she would be one of the first to receive the gel, due to her close proximity to the manufacturing plant. She screamed, calling her friends and family to tell them the good news. Some of her relatives even asked to buy the gel from her at double the price. Once word got out, she was even offered $50,000 for her sample from a wealthy New York businessman whose daughter had missed out. But she couldn’t give it up. Partly because she was hoping the gel would cure her eczema, which had been the root cause of her body confidence issues throughout high school, and because she knew having one of the first samples of an alien product would be much more valuable in the future.

Stephanie was brought out of her delusions when the sound of her doorbell filled the room. Her heart tightened as she nervously opened the door, to see a crowd of reporters standing in front of her door. A man walked up and handed her a box after confirming her identity. The reporters asked her to open the box right then and there as the U.N and Eden were apparently watching her at this very moment. Stephanie’s face went beet red as she thought of the possibility she was being watched by the alien she had been cyber stalking for the last two weeks.

After removing the cardboard box, she pulled out… Pip? It was a miniature Pip made of glass. The pearlescent gel let of a jewel like reflection when hit with the morning light. Reporters cameras started flashing and one reporter congratulated her on getting one of the 1000 limited edition samples.

Stephanie ignored the reporters as she opened the lid, her fingers touched the cool gel before she quickly spread it across her face. The reporters fell into silence as they watched her eczema scars heal in front of them, her dry skin regaining a youthful glow. It was only when one reporter mumbled “holy shit it really does work”, did the camera flashes return.

Overwhelmed, Stephanie quickly closed the door and ran into her bathroom. She looked at herself in the mirror before her eyes began to water, her hands ran over her smooth skin and lips before she began crying and laughing. To some, this was just advanced makeup, but for Stephanie, this was the first time she was able to see herself as beautiful. Her self-esteem issues caused her to hide herself, unable to accept herself for who she was. But the gel doesn’t make someone beautiful, it doesn’t turn you into a different person. All it does is heal, bringing out one’s inherent natural beauty.

<><><><><><>

Noah breathed a sigh of relief as the crowd applauded the video of the young girl whose skin healed right in front of the cameras for millions to see. Soon, similar videos were spread across the world as more and more people received their gel, and even if there wasn’t media around for all of them, many decided to post pictures and videos on their own showing the gel working. It was a global phenomenon. People with skin conditions and burns showed noticeable improvement despite only using the high-end cosmetic grade gel and not the medical grade gel, while elderly people regained their youthfulness and hair lines.

The room broke into cheers at the successful first day, representatives from countries and businesses who have secured their investment share were also visibly relieved. Many people gave their congratulations to Noah’s group, and everyone enjoyed themselves until late in the night, celebrating again when positive word came from Asia and Europe. Noah spent his time entertaining the guests and building relationships with other important people. He even took a group of people on a tour through his ship, which certainly impressed the silicon valley guys. When asked if he intended to open up flights to space and other planets for a pretty penny, Noah decided to keep it vague for now. While he wasn't apposed to the idea, with the income from the gel samples alone, Eden wouldn't have to worry about funding issues in the short term, especially when considering the added income from the initial IPO currently being discussed.

Everything was going well until Noah received a message through the Void.

[Hey Noah, It’s Eva. I’m going to need you to come to my world. The Dragon, she’s awake, and she wants to talk to you]

“Of course the dragon’s awake now...” Noah groaned before he chugged down a glass of whiskey in one go.

“Hey, what’s there to complain about. You get to see your girlfriend again.” Gaia snickered before receiving an elbow to the stomach from Noah, which didn’t hurt her, but she pretended it did.

“What’s there to complain about? I beat up a dragon and I’m supposed to believe it doesn’t want to eat me after that?” Noah shot back.

“Well, if you are eaten, I’ll ask how you taste before I disappear. Not a bad way to go.” Gaia said with a smirk plastered across her face.

“You’re insufferable.”

“I love you too Noah.”