“Finally home!”
Dan jumped from the scout ship, refreshed by Garnib’s cool air. More than a month had passed, but his gains had made the trip worth it. Three new species, powerful allies for the future, had, or would soon, join his cause. His plans to create a viable third faction to compete for galactic influence was well under way.
‘I wonder how May has been…’
Dan strode into the city, toward his shared home. May had split her time between the quest and her magic classes, but she’d seemed exhausted when they spoke each night.
“System, what is the completion level for the quest?” Dan hadn’t bothered to check, but since he was home it was better to know how much work remained.
[Quest has passed into compleatable levels. Eighty percent of Garnib’s population has a favourable impression of you and your family. Bonus rewards are still available for higher satisfaction levels.]
“Eighty percent!” Dan’s feet lagged behind his mind and he veered off course. “What has that woman been up to?”
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“Dan!” May jumped into his arms and wrapped him in a hug. “I thought you’d be another week, at least!”
“The seeding of the insect worlds went faster than I thought,” Dan held May close, nose pressed into her hair. He shifted his grip and planted a kiss on her forehead. “You’ve been busier than you let on, the quest is at eight percent complete.”
“I wanted to surprise you,” May stuck out her tongue, face scrunched into an impish grin. She pecked Dan on the nose, relaxed in his grip. “I’ve visited all the cities and most of the smaller settlements already.”
Bear and Stormy piled into the hug, a demand for attention. Dan laughed and settled one pet in each arm as May led him to a seat in the living chamber.
“The only people left are the nomadic tribes and a small population of Vernol on an isolated continent.” May snuggled beside him, his family complete as they gazed out the window, into the stars. “I tried to visit the lizard people before, but they turned me away every time.”
“Holdouts always exist,” Dan rested his head against his wife’s as he wrapped an arm around her. “We can try again, but in the end we might just have to accept they don’t want anything to do with us.”
Dan knew something about the Vernol. Their homeworld was destroyed by a pair of natural disasters. It left them with a paranoid, isolationist mindset, though they were generally peaceful when left alone.
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“I know,” May frowned and nibbled at her lip. “It’s just frustrating. All I want to do is give them some of our servant drones and extend an offer of friendship!”
“Some people like the way their life is, to the point they reject improvement,” Dan sighed. “It’s their choice, but I’ve never understood the worship of tradition.”
“I know that,” May flicked the tip of his nose, teeth bared in a wicked grin. “Sometimes I wish it wasn’t evil to just make people do what you want!”
“What has Merlyn been teaching you, devil woman!” Dan put on a mock look of shock and pinned May to the couch. “Such dark ambitions must be punished!”
Bear barked circles around his masters, while stormy simply pranced off to another room. Pet’s forgotten, Dan and May battled for control. One determined to deliver a righteous tickle, while the other howled with hand forced laughter.
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“You’re evil…” May rubbed her sides as they walked through the base. “I ban you from tickling me for a month, no… two!”
“Alright-alright,” Dan laughed as May dodged his grasp. “We’d better hurry, or we’ll be late for class.” He chased his wife down the hall, toward Merlyn’s room. “There’s a guest this time. If she behaves, she might be a permanent member of the group.”
They entered Merlyn’s huge study. Anakin was seated at a desk, surrounded by piled books and scrolls. His eyes held heavy bags, as if he hadn’t slept in weeks. A sleepy gaze drifted over them without recognition, before he returned to his task. Merlyn was occupied with a small group of Taurill, who’d begun to root around his collection.
“Blasted creatures! Winged apes of hell!” The Wizard swiped his staff at the nimble creatures without effect. “What cursed fool let these beasts free throughout the city!”
“That would be me,” Dan laughed as he pulled up a chair to watch the show. “The Taurill are harmless, they just want to learn… why not try and teach them some magic?”
“Teach them! These creatures are barely above animals, I…”
“They’re so cute!” May pushed her teacher aside and scooped a pair of grey furred sea-monkeys into her arms. “Where did you find them?”
“They’re a hive mind that has allied with our cause,” Dan laughed as a Tauril tried to pry open May’s mouth to look inside. “Ultron is ferrying a good number of their people here, as well as to our other base worlds. I’d expect that within the next month, their population will overtake the locals.”
May shooed the creature's fingers from her face and chuckled. She let the Taurill go and shook her head at Dan’s satisfied tone.
“That will certainly raise us past eighty percent for the quest, but I still don't like cheating!”
“It’s not cheating,” Dan waved her words away. “Nothing in the rules say anything about padding the population with yes men!”
The door opened and saved Dan from May’s next, logical point. Vergere glided in, a ghost in her Jedi robes. Merlyn rounded on the woman, the pressure of his aura a storm in the room.
“A Jedi… no that is but a mask,” The Wizard seemed to fill the space as he walked toward the Sith. “You have a darker flavour, more grey than anything else.”
“Dan was correct when he called you a master,” Vergere bowed as her eyes shifted to orange. “Not even Yoda can see past my disguise.”
Merlyn snorted and his pressure vanished. He returned to his desk and tossed the Sith a book. He rummaged for a piece of chalk and enchanted it to write on the blackboard at the front of the room.
“Read that tomb, Red-Mage, and we’ll see if you’re worth teaching, as for you…” He rounded on Dan, a black cloud over his head. “You are to stay in this room until you’ve caught up with the others!”
“That’s a bit…”
“I won’t hear it!” Merlyn slapped his hands on the desk, beard puffed up in rage. “These lessons will serve you for the rest of your life, and I won’t teach two different classes each day!”
“Fine…” Dan sighed and began to read the pile of notes on his desk, a gift from May to help him catch up. “But I’m still doing my daily spar with Etrigan, I think I might be able to surprise the demon in our next match!”
“As you wish, but remember,” Merlyn gave a sinister grin. “He hits exactly as hard as I tell him too!”