“Are you going to be alright?” Kiera asked, sitting on Emily’s bed. She was wearing a floor length red dress that showed off her shoulders but nothing else. Emily had panicked on the loop and crashed into it as she flew through it crashing into another mecha. Neither of them finished the race, and the other pilot lost his temper and tried to fight her, not caring she was a thirteen year old panicking girl. The race officials intervened before he was able to get her mecha opened.
“Yes, I’m just shaken up,” Emily said, “Embarrassed by panicking, frightened by that brute. Your brother is really nice. He came down and got me while watching your race. You did really good.”
“I screwed up a lot,” Kiera said, “I lost my temper twice and made a fool of myself. I am so glad that Jac registered me as K. Nova and not my real name.” A video of Kiera kicking the head of her opponent and then rolling over the finish line had been posted on the Imperial Virtual Network, or IVN and already had millions of views and tens of thousands of comments. Perkins told her not to read them. She saw on repost titled “Rookie Racer is on fire: stopping, dropping and rolling to the finish.”
“You go have fun at Jac’s ball tonight,” Emily said, “I just want a quiet night.”
“I would rather go to the festival with you,” Kiera took her hand, “But since Jac is insistent that I go to this party, Liri and Chalice are coming to take you to the festival.”
Emily sat up, “What? Kara…”
“You deserve a reward for all your hard work. I even got you a dress,” Kiera stood up and brought out a knee length blue dress, Emily’s favorite color, “Simple, just how you like it. No fancy ball gown or strange men to throw you around a dance floor.”
Emily smiled, the first once Kiera had seen all day, “There’s the missing smile!” A rapid knock came at the door, easily identified as Jac’s. “Go get dressed and tell me all about the festival!!” Kiera grinned, disappearing out the door.
The ball was on the moon at the fanciest mansion Kiera had ever seen. It was also the first mansion that Kiera had ever seen but she didn’t let that stop her from downplaying its fanciness. The front of the mansion was held up with black and white alternating marble pillars. Passing through them led to a hallway with various hanging plants that Kiera didn’t recognize and they were shown to a ballroom that took up three floors. The dance floor was on the bottom level, beneath the seating, and a floor with a skylight that gave an excellent view of the night sky. Each level was accessed via gravity lifts that changed directions with the press of a button and wouldn’t change if someone was already accessing it.
During their meal Jac took out a small blue pill and put it into Kiera’s hand, “Swallow that. If anyone asks you’re sixteen.”
Kiera narrowed her eyes, “This isn’t some kind of prank is it?”
Jac grinned, “Not on you.” Kiera swallowed the pill.
Dinner was incredible, Kiera had no idea what any of it was but enjoyed most of what was served. The appetizer was some kind of cheese dip served with bread. The salad was crisp and delightful. The first course was some kind of seared meat that was dry and tough, that neither of them cared for. When asked what it was, the waiter who cleared their plates said “Ankheg leg.”
Kiera still didn’t know what that was but Jac’s lip twitched, “Oh. Now I’m really going to enjoy this. We’re going to stay for an extra couple of days, Kara. Consider it part of your training.” Curiosity about what her brother was starting to change to concern.
The rest of the meal was wonderful, aside from the ankheg eggs that were served after the leg. Thankfully some kind of bird followed them and the chocolate cake was moist and delightful. Dancing followed; Kiera was more than happy to dance with her brother. The hour that followed had her dancing with dozens of men both young and old, including one old man that wouldn’t take his hand off her butt or his eyes off her bust. She was grateful when a tall scarred man cut in and danced her away from the pervert.
“Thanks, I’m Kiera,” she said to her rescuer, his skin was a deep purple, his hair and eyes an equally dark blue. He had a long scar on his forehead and another that crossed over his nose.
“Zax,” he said with a smile, “You ran a wonderful race, I do apologize but I was laughing the entire time that you were running down the track. Kicking that hothead to free yourself and then tumbling across the finish line. I haven’t had a laugh like that in years.”
Kiera’s face immediately turned red and she looked away, “Y-you…h-ow…?” she stammered.
“I was in the blackjack in your heat,” Zax explained, “The one that returned your good luck and helped you up? I recognized your voice. I won’t tell anyone.”
“T-thanks,” Kiera mumbled. Great, she meets a cute guy and he knows the most embarrassing thing that ever happened to her.
“I didn’t intend to embarrass you, and I apologize. It was very amusing and I needed something like that since the finals. I owe much to one of the pilots who was killed. She destabilized my engine enough that I was caught outside of the blast zone,” Zax said, “I wanted to thank you.”
Kiera looked up, meeting his eyes, “Sable Noir? What were you doing in a BJ? Your normal mecha is a Z-318 Spectre! You could have signed with a major team, or even a Premiere team! What are you doing trying to get into the minors!?”
“I quit my previous team because they used Scoresby mods, my Specter had them as well. They didn’t give me a good price for her, and few other organizations want a non-imperial such as myself flying for them. It also limited my buying options,” Zax said, “You’re obviously a fan. Want me to sign anything for you?” he wiggled his eyebrows.
Kiera rolled her eyes, “Second favorite pilot after Terabyte. I’d love to get a picture with you. I’ve never understood the appeal behind autographs, besides the innuendo. I’m a bit too young for you, anyway.”
Zax laughed, “I apologize, again. It’s hard for me not to flirt with radiant young women.”
Once the song ended Zax escorted Kiera back to her table. Jac took their picture, and apparently they knew each other, or at least, of each other. They spoke briefly and exchanged contact information, Jac needed Kiera for a meeting and whisked her away to the third floor.
“Do all racers know each other?” Kiera asked as they floated up the lift.
“This was the first time that I met him,” Jac said, “He’s a skilled racer, it would be a shame for him to leave the sport. Now, I’m going to introduce you to a lecherous drunk who keeps hitting on Liri. More importantly, he sent me six bottles of ankheg piss saying it was his new lightside blend. This is the prank. You’re going to out drink him.”
“What?” Kiera asked, “What in the galaxy is an ankheg?”
“It’s a giant tunneling bug that’s ten feet long and a pain in the butt to kill, and is a menace to the whisky production,” Jac said, “Ling’s big on not wasting things to keep the Preservation society off his ass. Serving Ankheg is just him being a jerk, though. He’s got a little club that requires you to be able to outdrink him. He won’t let Tama join.”
“Liri’s drunk Uncle Jassok under the table,” Kiera said, “Are you saying she can’t pass a drinking challenge?”
“He won’t let her try because “she’s an angel girl and everyone knows they can’t get drunk.” Which you know is a lie.”
“Yeah, that was a Reflection to remember,” Kiera giggled.
“So, I’m going to introduce my very legal eladrin, lightweight little sister. Charm him. That pill I gave you earlier is an antitoxin. You can’t get drunk tonight if you tried. At the most, you’ll get tipsy. If I tap any part of you once, that means yes,” Jac said.
He took Kiera over to a table where an older human man with almond shaped eyes and olive skin sat behind a table. He had a long mustache that dropped past his chin and a thin goatee that ended at his chest. He was dressed in black robes that had a golden hem. In front of him were three crystal bottles one labeled “Jinxing Xho Blonde” another labeled “Jinxing Xho Eclipse” and a third “Jinxing Xho Black.” He was talking to a couple other people at the table, and a man stood behind him.The man looked up as Jac and Kiera approached.
“Mister Pulsar! How is your dear sister?” he asked, standing and offering his hand.
“Mr. Ling, I insist you call me Jac, especially since you are a sponsor this year. Tamerial was planning on stopping at the after party. She had a previous engagement tonight. May I introduce you to my younger sister, Kiera Sol. Kiera, this is Wu Xing Ling, the genius behind Jinxing Xho Whisky,”
“Pleasure to meet you,” Kiera said, offering her hand.
“Just the genius who brought it to the market and made it the famous and valuable commodity it is, bringing Jinxing much popularity.” Ling took Kiera’s hand and kissed it, “Such lovely sisters you have, Jac. I have a son her age if she needs a husband. Tamariel is still single, yes?” It was irksome that he didn’t address her but spoke to her brother about her.
“Married,” Kiera said, “For thirteen years. I’ll be entering the service, no time for a husband.” She smiled and realized exactly who Jac was pranking, but still wasn’t sure what the prank was. Drinking this guy under the table?
“Bah, pretty girls don’t need to go into the military!” Ling scoffed, “They need to be married to men who can provide for them and produce good sons to inherit the company and daughters to be wed.
Kiera picked up a bottle of the Blonde, ignoring the misogynistic comments. That’s what the prank was, this man didn’t think highly of women and having one drink him under the table would put him in his place. It was less of a prank and more of a way to…cut down his ego? “This isn’t what we’ve been drinking tonight. What is it?”
Ling smirked, “Ah, that’s not a girl’s drink. That is Jinxing Xho blonde. Made from Xho grown on the moon’s lightside. This moon does not revolve, so one side is always light, one side always dark. Very exclusive. Distribution is only done to those members of a very exclusive club, and they are very particular about which kind of client gets to have a valued small drink.”
The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
“Good thing I’m a woman,” she said and winked, “This is the bottle Jinxing Xho comes in! They always hide it at the club, it mixes really well with Sunrise Dewdrop. We call it Jinxho Dew.”
Ling blinked and gave her a long look, his face aghast. Two men who were nursing snuffers also turned their heads, curiosity on their faces. Kiera put the bottle down and picked up the next one, “Eclipse, I haven’t had that one, can I try it?”
A heavyset man who’s belly hung over his belt and had a red, puffy face, and tiny eyes. laughed. “Look at this firebrand! That’s not a drink for petite young girls. Honeywine might be more your speed.”
“Afraid she might drink you under the table?” Zax asked, coming up behind them, “I’d pay to see that.”
“Mr. Zax, of the former AFR. Fantastic showing today. I’ll bet you a spot in my stable that I can out drink this girl.”
“I’ve already got my eye on him, Hector. But I’ll give you a different bet,” Jac said, “Give Kiera a shot at joining the Honeymooners. If my sister fails, I’ll drop to the majors and give my spot to a pilot of your choice. She wins, you give Tamariel membership.”
“Hector’s hasn’t been in the club to make that wager,” another man said. He seemed more refined with a well manicured salt and pepper beard, “But as Ling’s partner in Jinxing Xho I accept. I do want your sister at least somewhat sober tomorrow though. She made a good showing at the qualifier. I want to see her in two more heats.”
This was going beyond a prank. Did Jac know what a prank was? Getting her into the club would probably piss off the old man, and getting Liri in would make her happy; Liri loved whisky. What was Jac getting her into? It seemed this was a set up. Kiera just put the bottle of Eclipse down and picked up the bottle of Black. Using a pill to let her out drink a lecherous drunk who owned a whisky business in front of his friends would be humiliating. That would be a prank. Joining this club was something else altogether. Kiera wasn’t sure if she liked where this was going.
“You don’t have a mecha in this race, Frank. You sure?” Hector asked.
“I am. Jac’s spot to Hector against Tamarial Nova’s inclusion in the club. Wu Xing, pour this young lady a glass of each. We have three members of the club who are endorsing her.”
Ling fumed, “Whisky is not a woman’s drink! I am vetoing this decision!”
“Bierjin will be sorely disappointed to know that,” Frank said,
All color drained from Ling’s face, “You wouldn’t, you wouldn’t dare!” Frank tapped on his ID band. “Okay, okay! It’s not my fault if she gets alcohol poisoning!”
“Witnessed. I will act as Judicator,” the man who was standing behind Mr. Ling said.”
He took out six tumblers, the first two he filled with the Blonde, a rich golden color. The second he filled with the Eclipse, a light brown with hints of gold, and the final glass was the Dark, a rich brown color. Kiera, Jac, and Zax sat down.
“Let’s make this even more interesting. If this little girl can’t outdrink both me and Ling, you join my org Zax, and she has to go out on a date with Ling’s son.”
“Fine,” Kiera said, “But when I do you have to pull a racer from the Majors so Zax can take his place, and you have to send a bottle of Tamariel’s favorite whisky to her. The oldest one you have, even if it's from your personal stores.”
Zax whistled, “I’ll agree to those terms. Jac, I’m going to date your sister.”
“Then it’s a bet,” Hector said.
“Witnessed,” Frank said, “I’ll serve as the judicator of this bet, if that is okay with you, Mr. Lee?”
The Judicator bowed, “Of course, Mr. Gaitenvore.”
A waitress immediately appeared and asked what they wanted. Zax ordered Eclipse, both Jac and Hector ordered black and Frank ordered a rose blonde. Kiera waited until they were served; she had no idea how to drink this, but it didn’t seem like a good idea to just down it like a glass of water. She glanced at Jac for help but before he said anything, Ling did.
“This is a simple test. Prove to me that you can handle this whisky. If you can drink all three glasses and not pass out, then you can attempt the real tests,” Ling smirked, “Each of these glasses is two fingers. If you throw up at this table then you automatically lose.”
“Wu Xing,” Frank chided, “She’s also accepted if you pass out and she drinks at least as much as you do.
Ling glared but didn’t dispute it. A waitress came over and asked the other three men what they would like. The waitress returned with the drinks and a deck of cards. Then the challenge began. Ling lit up a cigar and dealt the cards; Kiera must have made the worst face imaginable because Frank asked Ling to switch seats with him. The waitress returned and switched the glasses. Apparently once you were served you only touched the glasses to drink.
Kiera liked the blonde, it had a nice rich caramel and butterscotch flavor and went down smoothly. She started to feel a buzz after the first few drinks but it slowly went away. She was feeling buzzed after the first glass and was more focused on trying to figure out the game then on the drink. They talked about the races and the season projections. Frank Gaitenvore was the Gladiatorial League commissioner and had nothing but good things to say about Kiera’s performance. The Eclipse was good, too. It had a smokey almost chocolate taste to it and a slight burn the blonde didn’t have. She couldn’t decide which one she liked more. Kiera hated the dark, she coughed a little after every sip, it had a smokey wood flavor and almost physically hurt as it passed down her throat. She started feeling sick halfway through it and wasn’t sure if she was going to be able to finish it.
She didn’t have to. Ling passed out without touching his dark. “Do I, do I…do I have to…to drink…” Kiera slurred, her head spinning. “He was…dri..drinkin..” Hector had likewise only lasted through two glasses before he passed out. None of the others drank more than one; it was potent
“No, your previous condition doesn’t matter and Ling is never sober after the sun sets on the capital,” Frank said. “Congratulations, you’ve passed the first test.”
-[]-
“There you go, Kara, just let it all out,” Tamariel said, holding Kiera’s hair, “I’m killing our brother by the way.”
“Wait until after my training is over,” Kiera moaned, letting her sister help her to her feet. A toothbrush was put in her hand.
“I could find someone just as good,” Tamariel scoffed, “A sponge pill. What was he thinking?”
“He said he wanted to prank Ling,” Kiera said, rinsing her mouth out, “This doesn’t seem like a prank.”
“Jacquin doesn’t know what a prank is,” Chalice scoffed, “He barely knows what a joke is. This is a revenge plot, pure and simple.” She crossed the room, her silver hair bouncing on her shoulders, “Ready for me to sober you the rest of the way up, dearest?”
Kiera gave her a thumbs up. Both Tamariel and Chalice were aasimar. They possessed beauty, grace, and halos that allowed them to heal injuries, cure poison, and treat diseases. Their healing was a skill like any other and they required time and effort to wield it with skill. The origins of the aasimar weren’t clear; some say they were descended from the Celestials who championed Cosmic Light, others say they were descended by Archons who were the descendants of Celestials. They were rarely born to the denizens of Elysium, with only one in a thousand in every generation born. The halo was the best way to identify them and appeared shortly after birth.
Kiera’s stomach settled, the dizziness abated, her head felt much better and even the fatigue she was feeling was swept away. Chalice was a fantastic healer and had been married to Tamarial for thirteen years. It was taboo on Elysium for aasimar to be in same gendered relationships. Tamarial’s mother, Gloriana. was furious when she found out and refused to give her blessing for a wedding, which was required by tradition. Amadeus disagreed with her. It caused such an issue Gloriana disowned her daughter, abdicated her position as a Royal consort and left Orlan. Elise had immediately supported the pair and helped them through the emotional turmoil and gave Tamariel her blessing as an adopted mother.
“Thanks, sis,” Kiera said. The only way she had ever known Chalice was as her sister and when she learned about the incident it only affirmed her beliefs that traditions were stupid if they got in the way of life
Chalice smiled, “Of course, darling.”
Kiera showered and changed and then followed the delicious smells that wafted in her bedrooms. They were staying with Ling in his mansion. Waking up with Tamariel, Emily, and Chalice in her rooms had been a surprise, but a very much welcome one. Her sisters waited for her and they all went to the dining room together where there was a spread of eggs, bacon, toast, and breakfast foods of all kinds. The men were already seated when they arrived. Ling sprang to his feet and shuffled over to Tamariel the moment he laid eyes on her.
“Tamariel! How lovely to see you as always!” he said, reaching for a hug, lips already coming together for a kiss.
“Mr. Ling,” Tamariel greeted, turning aside his hug, “Nice to see you again. You remember my wife, Chalice.”
“Ah. Yes,” Ling said, his bright tone and smile going dark, “You need a man, Tamariel! One to give you strong sons! Quit the Navy and come settle here with me!”
“I’m quite happily married and happy with my career” Tamariel said, finding a seat. Chalice gave her a kiss and sat down next to her. Kiera and Emily did the same. Tamariel had met the man when she was a Lieutenant stationed at Jinxing. He’d hounded her and proposed to her weekly before she was transferred.
Kiera eyed the eggs; the ones at the dinner had been served boiled in some kind of gravy that obscured their color. Jac hadn’t taken any and was sticking to the cakes, avoiding the sausage and bacon. She quietly whispered to Emily to avoid the meat, taking her cue from him.
After breakfast they adjourned to the fields, at least Kiera and the men did. Since the others weren’t members and weren’t attempting to join they weren’t allowed to come with them. The qualifiers weren’t until the afternoon before the Majors race. Kiera was interested in actually watching Zax race; Jac signed Zax to his team while they drank and made a few calls to his General manager to send the contracts and get everything signed. Hector complained loudly at breakfast when Frank .
The light side fields were filled with a tall pale orange plant with ribbons of yellow and white crossing through it. On the dark side the fields had the same plant, but it looked like it was a dark brown with rich ribbons of red and tans. There were men in the field using scythes and sickles to cut it while others were patrolling with plasma rifles in their hands. A few drones flew overhead, each one armed with a plasma cannon.
“This time of year is when the Ankhegs come out the most,” Ling explained, “Because that’s when our laphridurms are most active. They feed on the stalks of the Xho and a few weeks after the stalks are eaten it’s ready for harvest. The laphridurms are the Ankhegs favorite snack, and after they feed they sleep in the wimble trees that we have planted around the plantation. Most of the year they roost in the rock caves the ankhegs can’t get into and venture out to eat the wimble fruit. Without the laphridurms there is no whisky.
“Ankhegs burrow deep, making them hard to exterminate. Can’t use poisons cause that’ll ruin the soil and can’t put bounties on them cause then the Preservation Society gets on my ass. You want to enjoy the whisky whenever you’d like and at the lower price than distributors pay. Then you gotta defend them. Four heads. Hunt them in the tunnel or wait for them to surface. I don't care. You have a week to get it done cause at the end of the week I’ll have fields ready for harvest.”
Blaster fire filled the air as soon as Ling stopped talking, Kiera ran straight for it. The shell of an ankheg was tough and unless a plasma weapon was fully charged the giant bug ignored them. Firing a full blast charge threw off your shot terribly and could overload the weapon. A shot to the eyes was a sure way to kill them, but the only time most people saw them was when the thing surfaced or reared up to spray acid from its mandibles. The acid helped them burrow and pierced the carapace.
Two ankhegs were moving through the fields, one of them heading towards the men shooting them and the other towards a large tree with chrysalis as long as her arm. Was every bug on this planet huge? Kiera ran towards the one attacking the men, igniting the sword Tamariel had let her borrow. Her first blow struck I’ve ankheg’s back and it reared up with an ear splitting scream. Kiera gritted her teeth and struck it again and again; the shell may have held up against plasma, but the crystal enhanced laser of her energy sword cut right through it.
The ankheg fell. One down, three to go. Kiera decapitated it. Shouting caught her attention. The men that had been shooting at the ankheg were shouting at her to move. She turned her head long enough to see the other ankheg charging towards her. Its mandibles clamped onto her right leg, its acidic saliva burned her skin. Kiera screamed. She dropped her sword at the same time that it let go of her leg, its antenna blown off. Kiera dropped to the ground crying in pain and fear.
The ankheg turned its triangle shaped head towards her, acid dripping from serrated mandibles. She was going to die. Something inside of her wasn’t going to accept that. She grabbed her sword and swung it at the creature's face, slicing through one of its awful mandibles. The ankheg screamed and backed away, the next moment it burrowed into the ground destroying part of the crop.
Kiera passed out.