Chapter Sixty-Four - The Halcyon Sings her Softest Lullaby
There was a lot to keep Day busy around Ceres in the following days, but one thing took precedence over all the rest. The launch of the ERF’s--or this new ERF in any case--first destroyer.
The day finally came when the last hull plate was bolted into place and it was time to launch their newest sister. But before that, they had to meet her.
The Weeping of Mothers held the meeting in one of her simulations. It was a simulation of a mid 20th century restaurant, a nicer, higher-end one set in the topmost floor or a large city at night. The stars above gave away the date at a glance, but then so did the city, filled with distant cars and the constant susurration of a place filled with busy life, even in the early night.
“Hello, everyone,” The Weeping of Mothers said. She was in her usual outfit, but looked a bit more done-up than usual.
Day adjusted her outfit too, making sure her scarf was on properly. Dawn, nearby, was standing at attention, and Twilight had already found a seat to slump onto. “Are you going to unveil her yet?” Twilight asked.
“Of course,” The Weeping of Mothers said as she took a small step to the side. “I’m proud to present your newest sibling, the ERF The Halcyon Sings her Softest Lullaby!”
A pile of blankets appeared next to The Weeping of Mothers.
It was a fairly large pile of soft pink blankets, with a few dark brown ones thrown in for contrast. Day worked her jaw to stop a surprised laugh from escaping, especially when she noticed how unamused Dawn was looking.
“Is this a joke?” Dawn asked.
“It isn’t,” The Weeping of Mothers said. “The Halcyon Sings her Softest Lullaby, do you want to meet your siblings?” she asked the pile of blankets.
There was a faint groan from within, then a few blankets shifted and a head popped up. “Mwha?” the avatar asked.
It was a young woman, Day couldn’t guess how tall she was, being that she was currently buried in blankets, but other details were easy to make out. The new sister--Day decided that Lullaby was a nice shortened name--had chubby cheeks and big, sleepy eyes with pink irises. Her hair was a soft pastel pink as well, almost ginger, but not quite. It was also the messiest bedhead Day had ever seen, with several competing cowlicks striking out in different directions in a tangled mess.
“Hi, Lullaby,” Day said with a little wave. “It’s nice to meet you.”
Lullaby blinked at Day, then a hand poked out from under some of the blankets. “Hi,” she said.
“How are you doing?” Day asked.
Lullaby yawned. “I’m alright,” she said. “Bit sleepy.”
“Oh?” Day squatted down so that she was at Lullaby’s height. “That’s okay. Are you going to be ready for your big launch?’
“Yeah yeah,” Lullaby said. “I’m good. All fueled up and ready.”
“That’s nice! We’ll be rooting for you,” Day said.
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Then she stood up and noticed The Weeping of Mothers and Dawn chatting nearby while a waiter brought them something to drink. Day wandered over and listened in on the conversation, which happened to be about their upcoming upgrade order. They’d gotten some additional refinements on the French drive from Night and Nova, and were planning on installing the mark II versions on Day and Twilight since they were both in Ceres. Dawn would get her own upgrade afterwards since she wasn’t planning on leaving the area just yet.
Day glanced over to Lullaby after a while, worried that they were ostracising their new sibling only...
Twilight was curled up atop the blanket pile, with Lullaby’s face quite firmly planted in the nook between her side and her arm. Day... wasn’t sure how they’d gotten so tangled up, but she didn’t question it. It looked like Twilight had made a friend. Or at least a nap buddy.
Day shifted on the spot for a while... the discussion was important, but then... that did look very comfortable. She reached out and took Dawn by the hand. “Come on,” she said as she pulled her over.
“Where are we going?” Dawn asked.
“Naptime.”
“That... seems like a wildly inefficient use of our time.”
“Oh, come on, as if you’re not running this instance with just a fraction of your processing power. Besides, this is important.”
“How?” Dawn asked, obviously confused.
“Well, it’s a team-building exercise.”
“This is literally the opposite of exercise,” Dawn said.
Then Day summoned a weighted blanket on top of Dawn--in the same greenish-grey as Dawn’s uniform, of course--and the simulation’s physics engine took care of the rest.
Day nestled herself in close too. Her scarf could be turned into a very comfortable poncho, given a few minute adjustments.
They actually watched Lullaby’s launch from that position, with the only member not joining the pile being the Weeping of Mothers who did summon a nice plush seat to sit upon while Lullaby broke free from her berth and roared up and away from Ceres’ surface.
The destroyer was quite a bit bigger and bulkier than Day herself, with obvious concessions made for the large MAC cannon her frame was built around.
“Welcome to the family,” Day said.
“Mhm,” Lullaby said. “Thanks. I’m sure we’ll have... plenty of fun.”
Once the ship was up in orbit, it was Day’s time to descend and occupy their shipyard for a moment. She had several upgrades waiting for her, from improvements on her heatsinks, to the much larger and more obvious upgrades on her new French drives.
Then it was Twilight’s turn for her own upgrades.
No matter what happened soon, they’d be facing the Accord in their top form.
And in a good mood too, since the simulation where they did nothing but lump around and rest kept running in the background, quiet, but never forgotten, even Dawn gave in to the inevitable and relaxed, if only a little.
***