Lightship Chronicles Chapter 3 : The Fruity Dance

by Florin Nicoara

itself. His face is squinting and teeth grinding, from the anticipation of the electric shock... but it never comes.

  The rider spins his hover-ped towards the fence. Andee realizing he's still alive and okay, looks up at the approaching rider, and then scuttles up over the top as quickly as he can leaping next to Nayaa. The two take off like bandits towards dome rock.

  After running for as long as they can at full speed Andee slows down and looks back. The fence is no longer visible. The faint lights on the posts are still off. He comes to a quick stop. Nayaa halts next to him. Both squat down and scan the area where they had their had their quick escape.

  "Do you see the guy on his tin-can alcama anywhere?" Nayaa asks between breaths.

  "No, I don't think they're following us." Andee answers squinting, staring hard into the distance. "I can't even see the fence. You must've damaged it when you pushed that thing into it. Good work girl." Andee looks at her with a smirk.

  Nayaa rolls her eyes. "Yeah, and if this... young woman... hadn't done that, you would have been killed... I guess." Nayaa retorts and Andee looks at her nodding his head in agreement.

  "Lets go. We're almost there." Nayaa jumps to her feet eager.

  "Really, you're still in the mood? I just want to head home. This day's been crazy."

  "What? No way. After all that? Nope, no way. I'm going to make it to this darned prave even if it kills me."

  "Fine, then lets get there already."

  They start jogging the rest of the way. As they come around dome rock they can feel the music like a living tingle in their skin, while the beat is reverberating like a second heart in their chest. With two of their senses overloaded a third is about to be blown out. Beyond the shrinking edge of the stone dome, as they come around it, a bright glow of light unveils before them a kaleidoscope of fluttering shapes that light up their eyes with awe and excitement. Ahead of them now, next to the wall of stone, is a large glossy black building. It is a simple octagon, nothing exciting, except for the light. It is lit up from all angles, especially from inside with light emanating outward from its top. But in front, in front is the most shocking sight of all. In front of the building there are several lightships. Andee stops in his tracks and stares with childlike awe.

  "Come on." Nayaa looks back at him inpatient.

  "Can you see this? I' mean..." Andee is besides himself. Several lightships right there, right in front of him. He starts approaching the closest one. It's white, rounded in the front and sleek. Smaller than the racers, but more elegant and even more mesmerizing, and with a much bigger bubble, yet smaller body.

  "Wow, look at this, but it's different. I've never seen one like this in the races." Andee mostly talking to himself muses as he approaches the ship. Nayaa is nowhere near as fascinated. Her eyes are on the building, specifically, the entrance which is swarming with people. She leaves Andee to gawk at the ship while she approaches the club.

  Andee gets within a meter of the lightship and reaches out to touch it.

  "That's close enough?" A voice startles him and he takes a step back.

  "Is this yours?" Andee asks nervously looking around trying to figure out where the voice came.

  "No. My employer." The voice answers.

  "Ah." Is all Andee says as he focuses into the darkness on the other side of the lightship. He finally sees a shadow of man just standing there. He looks at the other lightships, and then beyond them, into the darkness. There is a whole row of men in black standing guard. Partially hidden in the dark they look like shadows. Andee walks to the next ship. He stops to inspect this completely different lightship. It is sky-blue and has an open bubble. No top at all, just glass in the front and around the sides. He looks inside at the beautiful interior. It has two seats up front, and a horse-shoe couch in the back, all the way around from the back of the passenger seat to the back of the drivers seat. Every centimeter of this ship is shiny, smooth, and looks brand new, both inside and out. The interior is a at a level of luxury that Andee can not even comprehend. He stares at the intricately textured white leather on the dashboard, on the seats, and on the hand rests. At the shiny and textured chrome fixtures, buttons, and panels. This ship's classic beauty is beyond anything Andee has ever seen. In fact these lightships make Hektor's champion racer look like a bucket of junk.

  While Andee is drooling over the ships, Nayaa is heading for the front door, but a scuffle a bit past the entrance catches her ear, than eye. She walks closer, than stops, and sees two adults arguing with a couple of teenage girls, just two lightships away.

  "In the ship right now!" Yells the woman at one of the teenage girls.

  "Mom, why?" The girl dressed in a sexy moon-fairy outfit complains.

  "We're not discussing this. You're seventeen, you don't even have a licensee to pilot this thing." The mom yells back.

  "You're so unfair. You did this when you were my age, hypocrite."

  "That's enough!" The man yells at the girl. The other girl is quiet. "Get in, you're grounded until you're 25, you hear me? And if you steal my ship again I'll banish you down to the township. You want that? You want to live down here permanently?"

  "Yeah, maybe. You're so unfair, you're the worst parents ever. I hate you!" The sexy fairy princes stomps her feet in absolute frustration with her parents.

  "You stole my ship?" The father interjects.

  "Don't you understand that?" Mom adds, looking at her baffled. "And you didn't tell us where you were going. We were worried sick. You know how long it took us to figure out where you were?"

  "That's why I didn't tell you. I'm staying. I don't want to go."

  "You're under age. They're not going to let you in, especially with me standing next to you." The dad responds pleading to her common sense.

  "I hate you! Go away. Leave me here. I'm never going home again... with you. You're so unfair..."

  "Enough! Get in the ship now! Now young lady!" The father yells. The girl begrudgingly jumps in the lightship. Her friend follows quietly.

  "Unbelievable this girl." The man shakes his head at his wife who is now at the controls. "Take them home. I'll be right behind you." Then slams the door closed and walks up to the next ship.

  Nayaa is frozen on the spot. She stared at the whole scene and is still staring as if it has not ended. She looks absolutely stunned, mesmerized, lost in another dimension. Andee walks up to her. Stops and looks her up and down. Waits a moment for her to notice him. Nothing. She's frozen like a statue staring into empty space. He bumps her arm with his elbow.

  "Hey, reality to Nayaa, are you still in this world?"

  She snaps as if from a dream, and immediately smiles. "You gawked at these things enough? Come on, we finally made it. It took us a whole day to get here... but we're finally here!" Nayaa instantly changes moods, her excitement growing. She grabs Andee by the hand and drags him. She shuffles through the crowd to the entrance bypassing the line. The door is guarded by two men, one standing, and the burlier of the two sitting on a stool. As she approaches the burly man on the stool lifts up his palm stopping her in her tracks. He looks her up and down for a second then zones in on her eyes.

  "Hey, misty green eyes, you might be pretty but you still got to wait in line." Pointing down through the hectic crowd to the end of the long line.

  "Oh, I'm sorry sir, but the line's so long, and I have credits." She lifts up her fold with a toothy smile.

  "You old enough to be in here?" The bouncer on the other side of the door asks.

  "Of course. Look at me, I can't even stand still." She flicks her wavy black hair and starts twisting, shaking her hips at the sitting bouncer who seems friendlier, giving him a taste of her dancing skills.

  "You can dance, no doubt. But a line's a line." The burly bouncer answers unperturbed.

  "Oh, but I'm craving to be praveing. My hips are shaking, and I'm not faking. I need to dance. I need to dance now." And she energizes her twists tapping the bouncer's thigh with her hip.
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  "Ohw, here-here now, we got a party girl on our hands." The burly man sinkers amused and fist bumps his partner on the other side of the entrance.

  "You got the prave, I bringing the party." She continues still dancing in place.

  "I like your style. What's your name?" The burly bouncer asks.

  Nayaa leans in to him. "The mist of your wondering thoughts." She answers raising her nose up in the air with mock cockiness.

  "Lol, what?" The man laughs and slaps his knee. "For real girl, what's your name?"

  "Just call me mist, cuz I'm the girl you want, but... mi-i-i-st." She elongates her last word accented with a big toothy grin of a smile.

  "You one crazy funky chick, and that body, awww... forget this party, I want to take you home." The burly man changes the subject as he looks Nayaa up and down. She continues to dance and twirl her hips.

  "You'd be taking a 15 year old home. Watch out." Andee interjects.

  "Wow damn, 15?" The bouncer jerks his head back clearly surprised. "Hey, as long as I don't know her daddy, I don't care." Then laughs out loud and fist bumps his partner again.

  "Wow, maybe we should leave. I don't think it's safe for you here." Andee responds clearly uncomfortable.

  "This is my grandpapy. He worries about me." Nayaa counters with a dismissive flick of her wrist towards Andee. The bouncer laughs slapping his thighs. With a pout towards Andee; "Don't worry grandpapy, I'm a big girl now." And continues rocking her hips to the beat, now