Atlas Life
> ”The wonders of the Atlas Sid or the excitement of blossoming love? It’s practically impossible to choose!” ~Frein Nivan, the Visitor
Kristel brought Frill to a special service facility, Atlas Life, that included a private bathhouse. A location within the Atlas Sid’s Central Navigation Spire that provided specialized amenities for the V.I.P.s of the grand carrier. Needless to say, a Princess such as her was automatically afforded the commodity. Her retainer quite possibly had forgotten about it, but she was also under that same list, and on the same highest tier of that list.
The receptionist of Atlas Life, a dwarf named Belldrin—as indicated by her nametag—welcomed them. She wore a fancy dress made of slick silver—a complement to her black, wavy hair—and high heels that could be the envy of some upper class citizens. The realization of who her next patrons were hit the poor woman a second too late, and she almost fainted.
The commotion quickly spread the news that the Princess and her celebrity idol retainer was in the facility. They were quickly surrounded by employees who wanted to gawk and admirers who wanted to take a peek.
While Kristel didn’t care, for the attention would get them speedier service than usual, Frill was struggling internally. She was good enough to hide it in public, but the Princess saw the clenched fist behind her back and the stiff shoulders trying to maintain control.
Kristel requested a private outdoor jacuzzi and a full-service relaxation package, as well as the best beauty make-over the facility could provide. She also asked for a catalogue of their fanciest summer clothes.
Frill grew more and more concerned with every piling request the Princess made. She spoke up after Belldrin wrote down two sets of the ‘Atlas Life Lunch Exquizette’ to be delivered by boat right on their jacuzzi.
“Isn’t that excessive?” she asked. Clearly, the three years they had spent in simplicity—if one could even call it that—had conditioned the Aria against such luxuries.
“Not for you, not today,” Kristel replied. “Today, you get the best of everything we can afford.” She pondered for a moment, finding a more fitting phrase to match her intentions. “The best that they can afford for us.”
“If you say so…”
It was no secret between the two of them, but neither had even the slightest experience in preparing for a date. So Kristel went with her instincts.
“For any special occasion, you must be free of any form of stress and be as presentable as you can to avoid as many mistakes as you can and minimize anything undesirable within your control. So we’ll get you relaxed and give you a beauty treatment and get you the best clothes for the occasion!”
“That’s right,” Katherine said, showing up suddenly between the two of them. Her abrupt appearance caused a new wave of commotion in the entire facility. The Princess noticed the significant increase of women suddenly showing up.
“Can you include me in whatever they’re having?” she told Belldrin.
The poor dwarf was struck with indecision. She couldn’t even say a single word, helplessly turning to the Princess for permission. Kristel nodded enthusiastically in response. Belldrin was subtle enough to hide her sigh of relief as she excused herself to deliver the orders to the staff.
“I thought you’re helping Xiv?” the Princess asked.
“Frein has him covered and sent me here,” Katherine replied. “Besides, I was worried. I wasn’t sure if either of you got into dates already. But it looks like you two are doing just fine. So I guess, I’m just tagging along to relax and unwind a little.”
Kristel observed Katherine and indeed saw that she was bothered somehow. She was restless, a little sweaty, and blushing.
With that observation, the Princess began to notice how she’d been able to discern these subtle signs. If she calmly and patiently looked for them, she could perceive telltales that would give her a gauge on the person’s current mindset. Nothing compared to Katherine’s Heart’s Will that allowed her to literally read thoughts, or Frein’s intuitive mind-reading senses that went on borderline prediction with the help of Siffera, but she felt more confident than ever in assessing another person.
“You alright?” she asked Katherine.
“That obvious, huh?”
“You seem restless.”
“Oh, don’t mind me, it’s nothing serious.” The Lady leaned in towards the two for a whisper, moving closer to Frill who couldn’t focus at all. “Frein’s intentionally keeping me on edge, if you know what I mean.”
Kristel knew exactly what she meant. She might be lacking in experience, but she wasn’t entirely that pure. Even Frill was jolted awake.
“Sex is rotting your brain, Kat,” said the Princess, trying not to cringe and whispering as low as she could. “There has to be a limit.”
“The fight with those three Forest Jaws awakened something in me, Kristel. I can’t get enough of Frein! I have to eat him! And he eats m—” Katherine caught herself and sighed, her frustrations getting the best of her. She backed off and smiled before she could say anything more that could risk tarnishing her public image. “Like I said, I’m here to unwind as much as I can. You two worry about tonight. And feel free to ask me if you need anything.”
Just in time, Belldrin called for their attention and ushered them to their private jacuzzi. It really didn’t take them that long to get things done.
The three were led to a floor just below their suites and into a narrow corridor designed with framed paintings. Numbered doors ran along even distances on one side and a long continuous window showed the landscape on the other.
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Belldrin opened the fifth door for them and the three went inside.
“Your snacks and drinks will be delivered in a few minutes via the floating toy boats beside your spa. Lunch will be for later at noon. Simply take the plates and glasses and pull the corresponding lever to allow the boats through the gates. Please enjoy and stay for as long as you like. We’ve taken the liberty to keep this room reserved for all of you for the duration of the entire flight.” Belldrin, after delivering her practiced speech, turned to the Princess and passed a small M.O.B.I.L.E.
“Princess Kristel, here’s the catalogue you requested.” She ended her sentences abruptly. Kristel had a good guess that the dwarf wanted to say more but was hesitant because of the intimidating company. She had an inkling of what the receptionist wanted, but it was better to urge her to speak rather than assume things for her.
“Go ahead, Belldrin,” she said.
The dwarf jumped at the permission and stuttered her speech. She cleared her throat and tried again. “If I may be so bold, Princess Kristel, Lady Katherine, Aria Frill, could I please get your autographs?”
“Sure,” said the Princess.
“Okay,” Frill said absentmindedly.
“Get me one of those catalogues while you’re at it,” Katherine said.
Belldrin used all of her professionalism to stop herself from jumping for joy and instead produced a pen and paper and another small M.O.B.I.L.E. The girls, then, took turns signing them with small messages.
Keep up the good work and don’t forget to have fun! Kristel wrote and gave her complete signature, not one of the initials only variety that she used to sign off documents.
Katherine and Frill wrote something similarly encouraging. Frill, in particular, turned on like a robot with a switch before writing her message, making sure she didn’t write anything bland or disappointing. Belldrin was over the moon after taking the combined autograph. She gave them the keys for the room and left them in peace with a fixed smile on her face.
Kristel locked the door and pulled Frill into the room. Katherine already vanished somewhere inside.
Their private bathroom was split in half. The inner half, the portion closer to the door, was an open rest area with three purposefully prepared sunbathing benches. There was a drink bar in the corner filled with a variety of cool drinks stored in a meiyal-crafted container and a panel to order fresh juice, spirits, and cocktails should they wish. It also led to an inner room with wardrobes to store clothes in case the potential tenant was unable to use Spatiera for one reason or another, and a washroom to cleanse themselves before proceeding to the jacuzzi.
The jacuzzi itself took the entire outer half. It waved and bubbled, inviting them to take the plunge and skipping any rituals they might have. On the left side was a small waterway sectioned off from the massive pool. A toy boat carrying a small pad of paper with a welcome message slowly floated from a small, gated tunnel. It reached another wooden barrier, causing the bell attached to it to produce a soft chime. Like Belldrin said, there was an intricately designed lever next to it.
> Welcome to Atlas Life.
> It’s our pleasure to be at your service.
>
> Please take this pad of paper and allow the boat to go through so we can be notified that you are ready for your snacks.
> You may also use the paper to send us any customized requests through the toy boat, or you may use the panel at the drink bar should you wish to skip this novelty.
>
> Thank you very much for your patronage.
Aside from the jacuzzi, the room’s pièce de résistance was the view of the entirety of the Atlas Sid outside. The clouds passing through and the sea at the horizon were still as breathtaking as Kristel remembered them. The entire wall was taken away, while the section that walled off the jacuzzi was replaced with a one-sided glass for them to view from, should the fancy nudge them.
Nothing was stopping anyone from leaning over or literally jumping off. For any other normal person, this setup could be a hazard, but none of the V.I.P.s of the Atlas Sid were ever considered normal in the first place. Besides, automated safety protocols were still installed to deal with accidents for after they fall from the ledge of the jacuzzi.
The best perk of it was the novelty of enjoying such a view while taking advantage of the height to hide themselves from any prying eyes. While flying vehicles and mounts were allowed on the Atlas Sid, the only moments they were permitted to fly as high and as close to the spire were in moments of crisis or when the grand carrier was currently docked, which meant that these facilities were either closed or the walls were sealed. It was written in law to prohibit such actions. Doing so would guarantee criminal offense for disrupting navigations and other necessary operations during flight.
“Hey, get over here already!” Katherine called out.
“Come on,” Kristel urged, pulling Frill, who helplessly allowed herself to be dragged around. The Princess stopped. Clearly there was something more going on in her retainer’s head than just figuring out how to do dates.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“Can I really go through with this?” she asked. “It feels like I don’t deserve to do something this exciting until we’re done with Liona’s Ritual of Peace. It doesn’t feel right. It feels like skipping a step.”
Kristel held both her hands and looked up to her. “Do you want to cancel it?” She didn’t wait for an answer. “I know you don’t need to hear me say this, but I’m sure Liona wouldn’t mind. Sure, we’re skipping a step, but we intend to backtrack. And she’d be happy to know that you’re interested in somebody and that you’re moving forward. Xiv’s a weird choice, if you ask me, but we can talk about that in the water.”
She tugged both hands, urging the Aria out of her indecision. “Just give it a try?”
Frill sighed, closed her eyes to consider, nodded, then smiled. While her retainer looked elegant in just about any expression, Kristel still preferred her to always smile. “Okay. Let’s go.”
The two entered the shower room to find a naked Katherine rinsing herself off.
“Oh, there you guys are. I went ahead and took a shower.” She had the mind to dry her hair with a towel while flaunting all her nakedness and the huge scar on her stomach. Not only that, but Kristel couldn’t possibly miss the ridiculous amount of bite marks on her skin. They were in extremely peculiar places as well.
“I don’t think I want Xiv biting me like that,” Frill commented, gawking at Katherine.
“You won’t know until you try, my innocent little Frill.” The Lady smiled knowingly at her and winked. “I can give you a taste if you like.”
“Seriously, why are you so hung up with sex lately?” Kristel demanded. “That has to be bad for you.”
Katherine shrugged as she walked past them. “It’s crazy amazing. I’ll try to hold back with my remarks as much as I can, but I can’t make any promises.” She stretched both hands above her head and leaned back, sighing with satisfaction before turning back to them. Everything that could bounce did so as soon as she finished her stretch with a strong release.
“Don’t keep me waiting long,” she said while letting herself fall into the jacuzzi. A bit of water caused by the splash got onto their clothes.
Kristel sighed and started undressing, turning to the wardrobe when something caught her mind. She tried to visualize her pattern for Spatiera. Interestingly enough, it took a depiction of a wardrobe itself. She hasn’t done anything significant with her Mind Palace yet, but Evanclad had told her about a few things he and Norazzel had cleaned up during the short time since they met.
She poured meiyal onto the pattern to Draw and tried to push her Worldspace open. A small section tore through space. It was the size of her fist, but that was enough for her to jump for joy. The spike in her concentration caused the Meiyal Art to fizzle out. She turned to Frill, eager to tell her all about it only to find her retainer looking the other way towards Katherine.
The Lady of the Void had both hands on the outer ledge while she rested her head on them. She was as relaxed as can be. Frill was looking at her hand and then back to Katherine.
“What’s wrong?” Kristel asked.
She had that dumb look, as if her mind was filled and overfilled to the point that all thought stopped except for one thing. Kristel saw a bite mark on the edge of the Aria’s palm. She sighed before Frill could even say her next words.
“I wonder if I taste good…”
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