The next two weeks were painful. While everyone else changed partners after a week, Lia had to continue to work with Rudehair. Eclaire never admitted that she was the instigator of those rumors, and told her to the face that even if she had, Lia had no evidence.
That Ludwig continued to rely on her mana just poured more oil onto the dumpsterfire that was Lia’s school life. At least he had helped her to finally tell all the different colors apart.
Though his reaction, when she finally told him about the gossip the students shared about her and him, all he said was "Nonsense!" He didn’t even see the problems these rumors caused her - or he didn’t want to see them. “Finding out what causes this zombie outbreak has a far higher priority than simple gossip.” Her attempts at suspending her meetings with him were shot down immediately. For a moment she hoped that he asking for her more privately would put a damper on the gossip, but of course the new behavior simply stoked the fire even more. Her reputation was in ruins, a smoldering pile of ashes that somehow still managed to fuel the fire that were these rumors.
Lia felt miserable. When she called her parents, she put on fake smiles and had to stave off her parent’s worries. There was no way she could explain to them what was happening, because she had to keep the tenth color a secret. She had no idea what would happen, if she told them about time mana, about what would happen to the station. Would they understand the need for secrecy? Lia was almost sure that she couldn’t tell them, even if she wanted. Not in a call. Of course her mother had to say: “You can tell us everything, honey.”
“It’s fine,” she had answered. “It’s just not as I imagined life at a magic academy to be.” It placated them for now, especially since it was true - she was just a donar. She couldn’t do anything on her own.
If just one of Ludwig’s investigations of possible futures had borne fruit, she probably could’ve stomached the treatment by her fellow students better. But he hadn’t gotten anything helpful at all from his visions of the future. No matter what actions or policy changes he or the principal had come up with, their enactment wouldn’t have changed anything. The zombie apocalypse was still on the horizon. And the worst thing of all was, that they didn't even know when it was going to happen.
Finally, on Scorpioday, Ludwig threw the proverbial towel. He told her that they wouldn’t meet for a while, since he had other things to prepare for. She felt glad, and hoped that this would finally allow the gossip to die down. Maybe it was a bit selfish of her, but her school-life was currently more important to her, than some zombie apocalypse in an unknown and maybe far-off future.
Orphelia kept working on her magic in secret during those two weeks. Lia couldn’t help being jealous at her progress and her ability. After a week the other girl was already able to form birds of fire from the simple lighter she always used. Next she managed to control the airflow in their room, creating a pleasant breeze.
When Orphelia went to sleep, Lia stared at the ceiling in the darkness of the room. At the end of those two weeks, she began to wonder whether she should have stayed back on Eo, back with her family.
She wasn’t even sure, whether she could’ve stayed away from the academy at all. Then she would’ve lived a normal normal life, like her parents. She would’ve gotten up early, and worked on the fields, just like them. She just would’ve kept dreaming of something that never had been reality at all.
Somehow she knew that she would’ve been forced to attend the school. As she turned to the side, to finally fall asleep, one last thought hounded her: If the authorities went and got her, then she would’ve had the excuse that it had never been her idea.
***
On Ariesday, Lia tried her best to stare at the dais, avoiding the gazes of her schoolmates. The weekend had allowed her to regain some of her composure. She tried not to hear the new gossip, but apparently she had had a falling out with Ludwig. The urge to just hammer her forehead onto the desk was almost overpowering.
“Just ignore them,” Orphelia advised her. Her friend’s talk was cheap. Although she had been in the same situation as her, Orphelia hadn’t become the center of everyone’s gossip. Lia just couldn’t grasp why she had been singled out.
“Your first field trip is coming up,” Ludwig announced as he stepped in front of the class. “During that trip you’ll get to see what mages are doing on space stations or ships. You’ll gather valuable experience and are expected to write a paper afterwards. We expect that you’ll take notes.”
Lia had to wonder what the donars were supposed to experience, especially since it seemed that their job descriptions would all just read “battery”.
“You will be split into groups of four. Each group will be accompanied by one of your teachers,” Ludwig continued. His announcement made her dread the makeup of the groups. She suspected that she would be in his group, and that would make all the rumors even worse.
“Orphelia Deimos, Robert Draco, Lia Eo and Eclaire Centauri will be accompanying me,” Ludwig called and looked at the students in order. Lia hung her head. At least there wasn’t gossip right away.
The sports teacher walked in front at the dais, and named four students.
Lia raised her head and glared at Ludwig. Why did he have to be the head of their group? Out of the corner of her eyes she noticed that Eclaire was glaring up at her, accusingly. Even if she hadn’t started the rumors, she believed in them.
“I guess it's because of ... that you know?” Orphelia whispered next to her. Her friend was probably right, but it didn't help the situation at all. Nothing was worse than getting special treatment from a teacher in school. Even if it was just perceived special treatment.
Lia didn’t pay any attention to the rest of the group announcements, and rested her head on her arms. When Orphelia poked her into the side, Lia looked back up. Ludwig was back in front.
“As for the details of this year's outing: We'll be boarding the star freighter ‘Aurelius’ which will bring us to Foresteri, a mining station at the edge of the empire's territory. There you'll see how mages support the station's operations. In groups you'll explore several different aspects of a mage's life at a station. After a week, we'll return to the crystal academy on board of the ‘Aptenodyte’.”
There was a long moment of silence. As Ludwig continued, he made a few steps to the side. “Make sure you pack enough academy clothes for the trip, and remember that you'll be representing the academy. So be sure to be on your best behavior!”
Ludwig fell silent once more, then turned and was stopped by one of the other teachers. Lia could see a few stern and cold stares resting on him. Finally he sighed and turned back to the students. “Any Questions?”
One of the Impero in the first row raised an arm and asked his question immediately: “What exactly will we be doing during out stay on the ships?” Lia was sure that he had worked with Orphelia last week.
“That will depend on your respective teacher,” Ludwig answered. “I am pretty sure, that Renard Elysia will be bringing his pupils into the engine room.”
“What will our group do?” Eclaire asked with a raised hand.
Stolen story; please report.
“We'll be on the bridge.” Ludwig's gaze seemed to have gotten colder. It was probably fortunate that there wasn’t a donar next to him. “The bridge usually needs a team of fast thinking imperi and high capacity donars,” he explained.
Lia got a lot of glares after that explanation. She didn't even want to know how the gossip would evolve from that announcement. Especially since she was officially ranked third in regards of her mana capacity. If that was the reason, then John should have gone to the bridge in her place.
Lia's head hit the desk with a loud thud. It was almost as if Ludwig wanted to make her life at the academy as unbearable as possible. It made her feel mentally exhausted.
She raised her head and contemplated magicide: Killing Ludwig by overwhelming him with all the mana she had. Especially since the crystal citadel wouldn't be able to protect him while they were on the field trip.
***
The consequences of the announcement became apparent during the rest of the week. The only one who stayed with her during breaks was Orphelia. Everyone else preferred to stay away from her, from the girl earning preferential treatment in class and during the upcoming field trip. The only thing she could really be glad about, was that her parents didn't hear about any of the rumors. Even if they weren't true, their existence alone hurt. And when their parents doubted her own word, because it was just one voice against many others ... her heart probably wouldn't have survived that.
Then the day of the field trip came. Lia stood with the rest of her group at the air lock, her bag with the academy clothes slung over her shoulder. She did her best to stand as far away from Ludwig as possible. She hoped that Eclaire could act as a shield for once. That, of course, didn't help, since the impera stepped aside.
Other than her tries to hide herself from Ludwig, they waited in silence. After what felt like an eternity, the air lock opened and people left the ship docked in front of them. One of the men approached Ludwig and they shook hands. “I am Captain Torr,” he introduced himself. “Are these thes pupils we'll take with us on the trip?”
“That's correct,” Ludwig agreed and nodded. “My group will accompany you to the bridge.”
“I see. I'll be looking forward to our collaboration.”
“Please recall that these are still students. They may be able to support you, but they can't replace any of your personnel.”
The captain laughed. “I know, I know. We've planned an interesting trip. I hope you're looking forward to it.”
“I am not looking forward to any unplanned surprises.” Ludwig looked at the captain as if his gaze was enough to stop the other man's plans.
“Don't worry, you're getting your money's worth.” The captain answered with a smile and turned away from Ludwig, watching is men while they unloaded the cargo. Only when there was a lull in activity he turned back to them: “Your group can board the ship now. Since you're new, I'll bring you to the bridge myself. The rest should know where to bring their respective groups.”
Lia was a bit perplexed. The students were all new, which meant that the captain was referring to Ludwig. Was this his first time accompanying students on a field trip?
“Very well. Lead the way, captain.” Ludwig followed him first, then came the rest of their group. Lia couldn't help but feel nervous when they walked through the corridor connecting the station to the ship.
The small corridors didn't end when they reached the other side, there were just a lot more of them, branching off in different directions. It was very different from the passenger shuttle she'd used to come to the Crystal Academy.
This ship was also far larger, and she was sure, that she'd lose her way, if she had to navigate through those corridors by her own. So she made sure to stay with the rest of the group as they went up a flight of stairs, took a few corridors and then ascended even more stairs.
“This is the bridge,” the captain announced as they stepped into a large room. While he pointed at something that looked like windows into nothingness, he explained: “Those are not windows by the way. Although technically they are, but you won’t find space on the other side of them. Instead we have HTV cameras mounted on the hull and behind those windows images from space are recreated. This will give the illusion of seeing space directly without the risk that would be attached to having real windows to the outside on the bridge.”
The captain fully turned around and looked at them while they took in the bridge itself. “We do have windows to the outside for emergencies, but they need to be shielded by a mage.” He winked at them. “That’s why we're only using them when absolutely necessary.” After his short speech, he walked to a chair that was slightly elevated above all the others in the room. Lia surmised that was because the captain had to be able to see as much of what was going on at the bridge at possible.
The captain suddenly leaned toward Ludwig and whispered: “If your students have learned any shielding techniques, they're free to visit where those windows are.”
“These are first years,” Ludwig answered with a sigh and pinched his nose. “Shielding techniques are part of the second year's curriculum.”
“Ah, that's too bad. Space is always a spectacular sight to see, especially if you can see it directly.” The captain shook his head and threw himself onto the elevated chair. “Now, as to the trip itself: You will stay behind me and observe from there. Usually there is not much to see. The actual weaving needed to enter hyper space is done in the engine room.”
“There is magic involved when entering hyperspace?” Robert asked.
“Only with vessels as large as ours. Entering hyperspace needs a combination of several elements, magic that's designed to keep the ship together and stave off the warping effect of entering higher dimensions.”
"Fire, metal and darkness mages work together," Ludwig added.
“I see we have some lovely company today.” A new voice drew their attention. A young man with blond hair stepped onto the bridge, wearing jeans and a shirt.
“Fritz.” Ludwig identified the man immediately his voice dripping with disdain. “You're still not adhering to proper etiquette.”
“Why should I wear a robe, when everyone on the ship knows that I am the head impero?” Fritz asked in return. He walked over to them and bowed in front of the girls. “Nice to meet you.”
“Uh ... likewise?” Eclaire answered. The impera looked slightly stiff.
“I'd prefer it if you wore the robe!” Ludwig threw his arm aside, flourishing his robes.
“And I'd prefer if you didn't. You look extremely stiff in them, brother. Although that could just be you.”
Lia looked at them with wide eyes. Those two were brothers? They had complete opposite personalities as far as she could tell!
“Well, ladies. I hope you have a nice stay on the Aurelius. All the cargo has been handled, and we'll be ready to depart soon.” Fritz suddenly changed who he addressed, first their group without Ludwig then the captain.
“Very good. Looks like we'll depart on time for once.” The captain smiled at Ludwig, who gave a stiff nod. Lia wondered for a moment whether his brother was correct in the assessment that the robes were at fault. Then she shrugged and dismissed the thought.
“If you'll excuse me for a moment, I need to supervise the preparations for our departure.” The captain pressed a few buttons on the armrest of his chair. An HTV in the center of the room displayed several different pictures. Lia guessed that those were different parts of the ship.
Their group watched in silence as the crew prepared for the ship's departure. During that time, other people set foot on the bridge. Each one of them greeted their group, telling them their name, their rank and what tasks they usually performed, then they took a seat in front of the fake windows. More and more displays came to life. Lia was impressed that the captain seemed to have an understanding of each of the crew member's stations as well.
“We're ready”, the captain finally announced. The black space behind the windows came to life. They were suddenly in a sea of stars, and the Crystal Citadel was visible off to the side. It was beautiful, even though Lia knew that those weren't the actual stars.
“Star Freighter Aurelius to CCC. We're ready to depart and will now separate from the station.” There was a small pause after the captain's announcement. “Thank you. Aurelius out.”
A moment later the stars around them began to move. Or rather their ship began to move. But Lia felt so little of the movement that it could've been the stars that suddenly decided they were collectively discontent with their position. Only when the stars changed their speed, did she feel a change in their momentum.
“Prepare for entry into hyperspace,” the captain instructed his crew. Despite that, several more minutes passed where nothing happened.
“We have clearance from Crystal Control,” one of the people on the bridge announced.
“Good. Let's get our guests to their destination. Start anti-distortion measures. Activate hyperspace engine.”
For a moment nothing happened. Suddenly the stars seemed to move in all directions at once, as if they were suddenly confused as to where they belonged. The image in front of the windows faded.
This was the first time Lia had seen a glimpse of hyperspace. The ship she’d been on to get to the Crystal Citadel had blackened the window far earlier. But this glimpse was enough for her to know that she didn't want to see it ever again. It looked like something that no human had any business trying to understand.
“Locate HSB A37-5JR-05A,” the captain instructed.
“Beacon located, ETA: half an hour,” one of his crew reported.
“Set course. Full speed ahead.” The captain smiled and turned to them once more. “And just like that, we're off.”