Rynn sat at his dining room table, his head buried in his hands.
I wouldn't have come if I'd have known things would be this difficult here...
Since arriving on Edanith, Rynn had actively been looking for a job as a foreign language teacher at nearly every school he could find. The first problem he faced, was the lack of schools in the area. All of which were very small and were too under-funded to afford any more teachers. Secondly, was the lack of student interest in the languages he could teach. He was fluent in six languages besides Stykohrian and Edani- all of which were uncommon in the galaxy and not very useful.
As Rynn sat at the table, he couldn't help but feel that coming to Edanith was the worst decision he had ever made. It was too late to relocate to one of the megacities, as he had spent all of his money on building materials for his house. He wouldn't be able to afford even the cheapest, most run down apartment in any city. He was undoubtedly stuck here. Despite being poor as dirt, he managed to feed himself well. He'd obtained a hunting license as soon as he arrived, and hunted daily in the sparse woods near his home. Forests on Edanith were not common, and he had been smart to settle near one. Rabbits were a common animal here, despite the fact that they were not native. He suspected that the first rabbits in the area were once pets, who either escaped or were released into the wild. Rynn ate well, and had a relatively decent home, but he had nothing to do. He had no friends or family here, and even after a year, he still wasn't totally sure about the locations of cities or settlements. There were a few neighbors around, but none had bothered to ever say a word to him. He figured it was simply the way things worked on the frontier, and chose to stray from social opportunities.
The sun was going to go down soon. It had been an unusually hot day, and even as Rynn sat immobile in his chair, he could feel sweat beading on the back of his neck. Looking out at the setting sun, he groaned and stood up. It was a good time to check the garden. He pushed the chair in, and walked outside. The dry, red soil produced dust as he walked, and added to the drab feeling of the surrounding landscape. Behind his house, Rynn had a large garden. It needed watering constantly, and anything he planted would wither within a day if he forgot. He had a large barrel of water sitting next to the house, which he used as an overall water supply. He filled a watering can, and nearly drenched his tiny plants with water. He knew they'd be alright, even if he over-watered them. Water soaked into the ground quickly, meaning the plants actually soaked up less than half of what he gave them. He sat down on the ground, his back supported by the side of his house. He stared at his garden and talked out loud, as he often did.
"Grow. I need something more than rabbits to live on. Just do the thing. Duplicate your cells. If I could manipulate time, I would, just so that something-anything-would happen. I need someone to talk to. I can't keep talking to you. I can't keep talking to plants for the rest of my life."