Elendir finished packing. Heading through the main corridors of the palace, he reached the transportation bay that connected the palace with the rest of Hejing. A guard wearing the standard white wool-like tunic embroidered with silver piping recognized Elendir and bowed, “Lord Knight Elendir! I have been expecting you. We’ve prepared a low altitude shuttle for you…if you will come with me!” Nodding, Elendir followed him to a small craft, it’s green trapezoidal windshield dominating it’s highly angular surfaces. This low altitude shuttle, at least in general appearance, strongly resembled the small interplanetary space craft preferred by House Gurun, a design used preferentially within that house for hundreds of yentars. Some designs were classic! As Elendir opened the door to sit down, he noticed the control panel was radically simpler than the space craft he piloted during his training exercises; any similarity between the low altitude craft used for long distance travel along the planet surface and those used to travel at superlight speeds between planets and even between galaxies was strictly cosmetic, mostly on the outside of the craft. For this surface craft, the controls were radically simpler. The interior of the Gurun craft tended towards luxury with plush seats and a focus on comfort controls.
This was a nice shuttle he was being loaned by the palace! Sitting down, Elendir touched a few of these comfort controls, adjusting the temperature, the contours of the seat, and of course, the interior lighting. Satisfied at last, he pressed the blue button that closed the shuttle door. The craft began to hover. With one hand on a crystalline lever, he carefully pulled the craft forward, out of the bay…and into the skyways above!
The Lost Tales Page 17
