by Power, P. S.
The woman spoke in a very pleasant tone.
"Are you all ready to order?" She looked around the table, stopping on Tenet, who smiled back, and nodded.
"I know what I want. The fried chips and cheese sauce? You should all try it. Spicy, but good. This is the only place I've ever found it."
Taman asked for a salad, and Tess for a fish dish, but Dareg nodded and waved with a closed hand at Tenet.
"I'll try what he's having, please? A lot of it, if possible?" He didn't go into why that was, and Marisa just nodded, hurrying off. She didn't write anything down, but it wasn't that complex he didn't think.
Taman looked at him directly however.
"Building back up, after?"
"Right. I should be fine now, thanks to the healing earlier, but I'm at low ebb still. I have to get into training soon. After this I'm going off to Lairdgren to ask after that." He didn't say the name Remy, but Tess leaned in and touched his hand from across the table.
"Don't push too hard. This is for the adults to handle." Settling back, she kicked him in the shin under the table. Gently, but it was a sign that she wanted his attention. All of it. "So, I hear from a little bird that you and Karina are getting married? I notice that I haven't gotten an invitation yet? Hmmm? What's with that? We've known each other for, what is it, five minutes now?"
He blinked and nodded at her, getting the joking around, and that it was meant to put him at ease.
"We haven't set a date, and it's been closer to three minutes. Really, asking like that before half an hour is... Very low class. I'm a bit disappointed in you." He affected a head shake, trying to look sad, which was a bit too easy.
She actually went wide eyed over it.
"I'm sorry... I didn't mean..."
Tenet cleared his throat, and hid a smile with his left hand.
"Ah, Tess? He's kidding. I doubt we need begging for forgiveness yet." He seemed kind about the words, and even gentle.
His sister nodded after a few seconds.
"Oh, good. I was worried for a moment. I mean, that thirty minutes seems pretty close to correct, doesn't it?" She was playing again, and Taman shook her head a bit, but didn't add anything. It was the kind of stuff that people with siblings were probably used to, and that an only child like him would simply never understand really.
Instead of carrying on in that vein, Tam looked at him and took a deep breath.
"Did you manage to talk to Alice yet?"
That got the others to look at him, seriously.
"Yes. She has pilots already trained and is really looking forward to the Tam-Comps. I have sixty ships, jump craft, in the box here." He turned and patted the blond thing that was about two feet behind him, floating there still. For the others he explained the rest of it. "Magical cameras and satellites for Saturn, too. I'm planning on taking a team there in two days. Really, I should let them know about that soon. No one else has set an actual time for it."
Tenet whistled softly.
"Niiice. I saw the vid that Karina got a month ago or so. I should get you to take me with you. I want to do a carving of it for the museum." He stopped, and then shook his head. "I'm an artist. When I'm not being enlisted to build magics for my family. Carving, and light manipulation, mainly. I did most of the advertisements for the city here? The moving ones?"
Dare sat up and smiled then.
"Oh? Those are good. I almost had to run off and join space fleet earlier. You could do plays and things like that, right? In the walls?" It was a neat sounding idea to him, but Tess laughed a bit.
"They do that one already. Kinkaid Rue, out of Austra, is doing a comedy that's coming soon. "Boxed In" It's about Gerent and his pet box. If I understand the idea, the box is the hero of the piece. Deservingly so, too. Boxy is the best box ever, after all."
Dareg didn't know about any of that, but acted hurt and turned to pat the one behind him gently.
"Don't worry boy. She didn't mean it." That got another laugh from Tenet and a chuckle from Tam, with Tess seeming worried again.
Being mean, or at least too tired to care, he didn't explain it. The others seemed to think he was still playing around, by not doing that. He read it on their faces. That was better than the reality of what he was feeling, so he made himself smile a little bit.
"That sounds interesting. Is that kind of thing common? I've never even heard of a play inside a wall. I bet King Richard and Queen Constance would like that." He couldn't understand why they popped up right then, but Tenet smiled at him.
It was a warm and friendly thing, really.
"Do you think they would? I can get them a view screen for it. If no one else has already. We should set that up, so they don't think the only family members that care about them are Tor and Tim." He glanced at Taman and Tess, who both seemed unimpressed by the idea for some reason.
It seemed like a nice call to Dare.
"We can set that up. I need to get in touch with them. I've... Kind of been sleeping most of the time. As it stands I need a nap now." It was tempting to pull his communications device right then, but it was probably rude to do that kind of thing at a meal. Especially a special visit like this was.
It was Tam that went next, looking directly into his eyes from across the black covered table.
"That... Might be a good plan. We can work on that? I'll make something for them. We might want to go a bit grander than what people have in their front rooms. I'm on that. Dareg, can you get an audience for us set up? I'll need about four hours or so."
He nodded, even as he dreaded it. He'd been out of touch, so it was more than possible everyone there had simply forgotten about him already. Instead of just saying yes, Dare thought for a moment.
"I'll try to set up a meeting? For tomorrow, though? After I get these ships delivered and do that stuff, I'm probably going to be done for the day." Yawning again, he covered it and smiled as he patted his mouth. Then his stomach growled at him, even after all the protein drink he'd had just a few hours before. "If they want us at all. I mean you're all important, so it should work, but I'm just some kid."
Tess kicked him again, lightly. Her foot didn't linger at least, which would have been annoying at the moment, even if she was cute.
"That whole prince thing should get you in. If not, we can go and visit whenever they want. We should do it before you get off for a week with those Austran science types."
It made sense to him. So he smiled, and then looked at Tenet.
"So, are you free in two days? You can come with us, and help keep them in line. I'm sure they'll all demand we do strange science rituals or something. Like let all the air out twice a day, or whatever they require." That didn't make sense to him, but the others, clearly knowing more about how that kind of person worked all smiled, as if it were a joke.
Thankfully food came then, being pulled in on a shining silver cart. Marisa did it all on her own, and set three normal looking plates in front of the others, and a portion of strange triangles with melted cheese and other things on tops of it, in bright colors. There was a red sauce that seemed to have chunks of tomato and bits of green in it, as well as a pile of goopy green, and a pile of decorative white.
It looked interesting. The only thing that was off was that he'd been given a portion that took a platter, and turned it into a small mountain of food. Marisa smiled at him, her all black eyes shining a bit. Enough to make it seem like a joke. It probably was, since a normal person wouldn't be able to eat nearly that much at one sitting.
"If you need more, let me know?" She smiled hugely about it, but she always did, so it made her real feelings hard to parse.
"I will, thank you. This is a lot! It smells great." He wasn't certain how to eat it, but Tenet used one of the triangles, a chip, as a scoop, and took a bite. No one stared at his horrible manners, so that seemed to be the way it was done.
Copying that, and trying to be careful, Dareg dug in, eating about half of the food silently, while the others ate and talked
about small topics while they did it. No work was done, and they seemed to be mainly concerned with parties, more or less. At least until he finished the platter, and then stared at it, disbelieving. The food was all inside of him, and he felt over full, but it was gone, which was impressive.
Taman smiled at him then.
"Right. You have to be going into a heavy growth period. From your genetics my guess is that you'll end up being eight or nine feet tall, so you're going to be hungry for a few years. Ten or so."
That was news to him.
People had suggested that he might end up being on the large side, since Tor had really disliked being little, back when he had been. Since it had been his inner mind that set the parameters, that wasn't too bad, Dare guessed. A few had suggested it could be something insane, like fifteen feet or so.
"Ah? That's big. It will probably less than that, after this little set back. Not that it will matter that much."
Everyone seemed to pick up on what he meant, since functionally he'd been starving for a while, no matter how much he ate. There was no buffer of fat on his frame, though he hadn't lost all of the muscle he had yet. Some, since he'd mainly been sleeping for a long time, but less than he would have thought.
Marisa came back, her face still fixed into her single, if happy, expression.
"Dessert? I've been working with a lovely sponge cake." She sounded nearly hopeful, but he had to shake his head.
"After that? Not this time! That was good, by the way. Different. Thank you." He felt like there should be more than that, since she'd done all the real work. There was a chorus of thanks from around the table then, and the woman beamed at him, and then the others, as if it were a gift to merely be acknowledged for her efforts.
"Come again soon? Robert was..." She stopped and took a breath, as if stealing her nerves. "Would it be possible for him to visit his home? Austra? I know that his accent might throw you off, but he's from there." She glanced at the man that was near the front then.
Dare nodded, and stood up.
"That's my signal then, isn't it? I'm going to set up regular trips for everyone, with space fleet? Right... Now, actually. Then I'll see if King Richard wants to meet with us? Tenet, regardless, we'll need to have you get your schedule clear for the trip." He sounded tired to his own ears, but everyone nodded, and stood too, so that they could hug him. It was a bit different, since Marisa did it too, even though they weren't related.
So he patted her back a few times, politely, and looked at her when he stood back.
"You should come and visit soon? After the Saturn trip, unless you want to go with us? In that case set it up with Tenet. We'll have the room, so that won't be a problem." It was just making small talk, and she didn't say no, or yes, then stood back, smiling still.
After that he moved away, being followed to the door. In the main hallway, which was a lot brighter. Oddly enough it was Tess that grabbed him again, holding him tightly for a few seconds.
"Keep in touch? I mean daily, or at least once a week or so. The others, too, if you don't want us to all descend on your doorstep? Now that we know you don't hate us all, that's bound to happen." She winced a bit and let go, but didn't deny her words.
Then, when he looked around, Taman was staring at her with narrowed eyes, which he didn't get. Tenet pounded him on the back a few times. The giant man reaching down a lot to make that work.
"She isn't wrong on that score. Tam will get that screen going. Maybe something that plays in the air? Like a theater. Anyway, I'll make sure I have everything ready. I can bring people, right? Fifty or so? People are going to want to come along with us." He was, from his smile, joking.
Dareg knew that the man, no matter how gentle and sweet he seemed, was also a noble, so put his foot down. With his own tired, if pleased, expression.
"Two? Any more than that, and we'll need more people to crew for us. Plus, make sure they're the kind that gets along with others? We don't want big arguments the whole time."
That got a serious nod from the man, and a smaller one from both of the women, understanding what he meant.
Then, not looking back, he left. It was a bit of a trudge, getting back to the ship. On the good side he didn't have to chat with anyone to get free of the dock. It just kind of happened. The red tube disengaging as soon as the wall of his ship was put back into place. Then, the far wall, behind him, vanished. He had to spin the ship in place, but went very slowly, so no one would be hit, if they were in one of his many blind spots.
Ten minutes later he eased out of the docking bay, taking the ship into orbit rapidly. From there, he set up the jump he needed, which placed him outside of the atmosphere, but directly over Lairdgren. He thought that was the case, at any rate. It took a few minutes of watching to figure out where the space fleet school was there. Luckily for him, a large ship took off, so he could trace the movement back to the right spot. There was an orange glowing river around the place, so he headed that way, making sure he was a good ten miles to the east when he did it. That was the rule for the other space ports.
Thankfully so, given that as he moved toward the place, at a few thousand feet, another craft dropped directly down into the central landing area of the walled compound. It was a huge place, but there would have been a collision if he'd tried doing the same thing. His ship had been made relatively small, so he just landed in a field, not too far outside of the place, and then set the door so it was hidden. The idea that someone might be able to steal his ship went way up in that location, given how many pilots this place probably had.
That would be both funny and horrible, since he kind of needed it. Losing a ship would be a huge problem. So he protected it, as best he could for the time being.
It was a bit of a walk for him to get to the front gate of the place, his nice blond wood magical chest floating behind him. There were two black garbed guards on the door, but they just looked at him when he walked up. They were both women. One was very small however, and had the look of a commoner. She looked down, shyly, then forced her eyes back up, having a job to do.
The lady next to her looked at him more boldly. She was taller than he was, by about five inches, and seemed like a young noble, though both were dressed identically.
"Halt." It was the tall one that spoke, though her voice lacked command. He did it though, since fighting these two sounded like way too much work. Especially given he was just making a delivery.
So he said that.
"I have something for Alice Orange? Sixty jump ships, from Tim Baker. She's expecting them. On the Ranford? I need someone from here to take these up to her however." Then he waited, expecting a lot of trouble over the whole thing. He could call up Alice though and let her deal with these two, he decided, wondering if just getting that going was the right plan.
Instead there was just a smile from the tall girl, who looked about sixteen or so.
"You'll want the main command building. That's to the left. Second building over. Just walk in and they'll help you get set up. That's exciting, isn't it? Sixty ships? Is that for the new exploration fleet?" She seemed interested, so he answered her, making direct eye contact. That got a larger smile from her.
"These are slated for the new port duties. We're trying for daily trips to and from everywhere in the system. All the lands, the Moon, Mars, and so on. Space stations, too."
That got a nod, and she still seemed interested. At least she gave her name.
"I'm Lissa, and this is Narma. In case you have time later? We should get off in about an hour and have the evening free? We could go to the tavern?"
Her friend blushed, but didn't say no about it.
Honestly, is was kind of tempting, but he yawned.
"Sorry about that. I'm about to fall down again. Could we set something up for later? Tomorrow, maybe? If I don't end up having to go to the palace. I need to call them and see... Sorry." He shook his head, explaining. "Dareg Canton. Prince of Harmony, Countier Baker Seven, Countier Lair
dgren Thirteen. I think. So the stuff with the palace is real. I'm basically just playing secretary though, for some of my family. After tomorrow I'm going to be gone for a week or so. To Saturn? Say, you two can't get away for that, can you? I mean to work, but you're fleet, so that makes sense, right? You know not to vent all the air, right?"
They laughed, clearly thinking he was just putting them off, which, to be honest, he was. Not to be against them however. Both of the women seemed pleasant enough. They let him go then, and didn't make any plans with him, which was a bit off. Then, they probably figured he was either way above them in station, or was a liar.
Inside the wall, that had a river around it, floating in the air almost invisibly, except for the orange color of it, there were seven large palaces. They all looked the same, and of course, were pretty orange. A pumpkin tone, with brown highlights. Except for the one he wanted, which had a bright blue front to it. Keeping close to the wall, where there was a focus stone pathway, meant to keep you from being crushed by ships, he walked up the steps and into an office that was tiny, considering how huge the building itself was.
Inside the place there was an older man, who sat looking at a handheld, which was talking to him. Several voices were going, but he looked up and tapped the thing when Dare got in front of his counter. The whole thing looked like marble, and was polished to a shine. Being made of magic, that just meant it had been formed that way initially.
The man's voice was a bit clipped. Clearly being Austran.
"Ah. What can I do for you today? Come to join up?" His eyes went to the chest, which could have carried a lot of clothing in it, after all.
Shaking his head he patted the thing that was following right behind him.
"I have some ships. Jump ships. For Alice Orange? She's on the Ranford, I think? Um... O-Seventeen?" He didn't know what was needed, but the man pulled a focus stone sheet over, and tapped on it with a stylus that was also made of brown material. After a moment he looked up and smiled.
