As the soldiers followed the mayor into his villa Russell's eyes widened in surprise. The elf waiting for them looked old, almost in his fifties, unlike Namos who barely looked thirty years old.<em>I guess elves actually do grow old,</em>he thought with bemusement. As Lt Black and Private Mitchells unbuckled and removed their combat helmets Russell did the same, running his fingers through his tousled hair. A moment later he blinked in surprise at the startled reactions of Namos and his butler.<em>What are they so spooked about?</em>the young Marine wondered. At the butler's words Russell tensed and gave him a vicious glare before taking a deep breath and reigning in his temper. "Poor and dirty, are we?" he muttered under his breath, taking care that he was speaking in English rather than in Gatespeak - being talked down to was something he didn't appreciate, but scuttling the mission with ill-chosen words wasn't something he would choose to do either.<br/><br/>Shifting his gaze to his commander Russell spoke quietly. "Lieutenant, they're curious about where we came from. Apparently we don't look like their kind. We don't have pointy ears and that kind of freaks them out." The intense young Marine cocked his head and listened to Namos' comment about Jessica's hair. "Looks like redheads are pretty rare around here, too." His icy blue eyes met Black's own gaze. "Sir, do we tell them about the Gates and the attack on our world? Or do we try to pass ourselves off as from another country on this planet?"<br/><br/>As the maids entered the room Russell let his eyes drift over to them and his eyes widened. The first maid was either the bunnygirl who had met them at the villa's front gate or her twin sister, but the second was a catgirl in a matching maid uniform. His first thought was one of appreciation of the view as the two maids moved with the speed of long practice to set down the trays and set the food and drink to their assigned places. Once that work had finished they moved off to the sides of the room, waiting to be called upon. Russell watched them move, trying to gauge from their body language and faces whether they were merely felt respect for the mayor of the town, or whether they were afraid of him.<br/><br/>