Lys stared at her reflection in the mirror.
She was now a 12-year-old alien.
Well, by her birth year, she is technically 42, but when she fell into a coma, her body was frozen at its current age. It was suggested and put into place for coma patients so that they would not have to face the disconnect of her mental age and that of their physical body.
That was good, imagine going through puberty when unconscious and waking up to raging hormones! Urgh! But that also meant that she had to go through puberty again in a few years. Yuck.
And aliens? Well, humans had genetically modified their bodies with the genes of different aliens in the galaxy. They now could live hundreds of years (averaged at about 200-500 depending on their abilities ranking) as compared to the normal 70-80 years of the past. They had now settled outside of earth (which was a protected planet), of which they had to leave when they had consumed most of its resources. They were part of the Nibilian Empire, where the people with more powerful abilities reigned supreme.
She had tried to find out more, but her parents had looked at her strangely, so she stopped. She would have to find out more from this world's version of the web in the future. Or just pay attention in history class.
Regardless, she was no longer an orphan and had a pair of loving parents, and 2 (younger) brothers.
Why (younger)? Apparently, they had grown older than her when she was in a coma, so now she was the youngest.
Her parents were quite reputable in this world. Her father was one of the few S-Ranked warriors and top Generals of the Empire. He disappeared from time to time whenever there were invasions, attacks, or secret "missions". There were always some aggressive alien species in the galaxy that tries from time to time to "conquer" the "humans". All these aliens were apparently into the whole "dominance over all beings" thing...
Well... Some were nice, at least...
Her mother was an A ranked warrior, but she didn't like the training at all and left the military to continue her parents' legacy which was owning and operating some of the top entertainment companies. Known as the Media Queen, she was feared in both the entertainment world (for her ruthlessness) and in the streets for her strong ability.
The ranking of powers in this world ranked from F to S. Most of the population was endowed with one or more "abilities" or superpowers as some called them. Others have also called it being a mutant side effect. It occurred as a side effect from the genetic experiments that humans performed on themselves when trying to make themselves stronger when facing the aliens in the vast galaxy.
(please see author's note for ranks explanation)
People below the age of 25 were usually unranked (unless they showed great promise or have already displayed their abilities before then) and were considered minors. They were not ranked and not discriminated against as they were usually considered full of potential; they had equal opportunity to advance to different ranks based on their abilities. One's level of abilities was not determined by the abilities of the parents, just their own affinity to the elements.
Her brothers were following her father's footsteps and were doing well in the army. One was doing well in the intelligence department and the other was having fun with programming and technology. Both were ranked at A+.
Her parents delighted in filling her up with information about all the friends she had growing up. They showed her picture after picture using a weird holographic device while bragging about their accomplishments, regaling her with tale after tale of escapades, awards and triumphs her peers had done during her coma. They went on and on, not noticing she curled up more and more as time went by.
How was she going to survive in this world? She was definitely not the same person as the one that was on the plane back in 2019!
Her baby brothers had grown up. Her old friends were all working and in relationships. They wouldn't want to talk to her anymore. Who would want to be friends with an old kid? She would be accused of trying to "act like an adult" if she tried to fit in (with her kid stature) and she would stick out like a sore thumb if she hung out with the kids "of her age".
People who knew her would all judge how she acted and behaved.
While it may be good that she had been diagnosed with amnesia and would have some leeway with gathering information on how to survive, she would have to be sneaky on how she did it. I mean it is a highly advanced society and they should be surveilling everyone. Not to mention she had a brother in intelligence...
It was hard enough to get away with all that as an adult, not to mention that She. Was. Stuck. As. A. Kid.
How fun.