Zeo was pushing her ship as hard as she could, she was trying to beat the two punks to the orbital station base and be the first to tell Kenna the good news. But they were proving hard to shake. By The time she received her landing clearance, they were still coming into the hangar with her. She shook her head, knowing they would have to tell Kenna together. She landed the ship shortly later and started running through the shut-down checklist as quickly as she could before getting up and leaving the cockpit. As she stepped out of her ship, she noticed the boys doing the same and quickened her pace, but a look of confusion crossed her face when she saw they were not trying to get to Kenna in any sense of a hurry. Instead, they were talking to each other while leisurely strolling across the hanger, Zeo scoffed and walked over to Kenna.

“Hello Kenna, how are you doing? Oh, want to tell me why the big bad carrier is getting all pissy on the channels before I tell you my good news?”

Kenna mumbled something as she looked down at the deck and shuffled her feet before looking back up at her.

“Pardon? I didn't catch that”

“I got excited to see you three and hung up on her, I have been a little scared to answer her hails since then.”

Zeo blinked a few times and then pinched her thigh to keep herself from bursting into laughter at the absurdity of a Guild Mistress being afraid to tell a captain to shut up and stay out of their territory until she was ready for the captain. The two boys behind her didn't have as much success, and Zeo could hear them snickering.

“Uh, that is okay, Kenna. We can deal with the scary captain together, after we get to your guild hall. I will also tell you my good news there.”

The two girls walked out of the hanger into a corridor that led through a few more and finally out into the huge parking lot. Zeo could hear the boys following behind her whispering to each other, but she ignored them as she couldn't hear what they were saying anyway. However, when she stepped out into the parking lot area, she stopped dead and her mouth fell open.

“Where the fuck is your city?” She screamed.

*******

I winced as I heard the scream echo around the city-less City.

“Wasn't included?”

I watched Zeo slowly turn to me, her eyes wide with shock. I could also see the boys behind her standing frozen in shock too.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

“I know it wasn't included, by the wording you said the administrator used. That is why each of us brought a gift in the cargo holds of our ships, so you could build a mining barge from each of us. We also brought enough resources to build four mining barges for our own, we will pay your dry dock construction fees, of course. And we each have a request for a mining contract. Anyway, I thought your celestial clan would be rich enough to build up a city, even if it is located so far from everything.”

“Uh, Zeo, my clan just jumped from Planetary Baron-Tak to a Solar Tak when I accepted the administrators' deal.”

I watched Zeo stumble back a few steps like she had just experienced a physical blow, and the two boys were staring at me with wide eyes like they couldn't believe what they had just heard either.

“W…What?” she stammered as she stared at me.

“My clan just jum-”

“I heard what you bloody said! I just can't believe it! How the hell is a planetary baron-Tak so good at piloting, let alone found in a boot camp for celestial clan training”

“Uh, well, I grew up in the air, flying Cessna’s and other planes so when I got to boot camp it was just… the same only I didn't have to worry about crashing into the ground. As for how I got into that boot camp, I don’t know the answer. I do know, a recruitment officer assigned me to a boot camp and told me I had ten minutes to connect to it.”

“Okay, putting aside the fact I have no idea what a Cessna is, and I'll assume a plane is a ship that only flies inside the atmosphere, but what the hell do you mean a recruitment officer only gave you ten minutes to uplink to boot camp?”

I put on a mocking tone as I remembered back to what the recruitment officer had said and used all the acting skills I didn't really have to pretend to be him.

“Your paperwork has been submitted, filed and forwarded to your drill instructor. You will have ten minutes of home world time to get your mundane primitive neanderthal affairs in order before you are ordered to report to boot camp.” I said, as I even did a face to put emphasis on how annoying I had found the man.

“That's outrageous, even for a planetary noble to be only given ten minutes. Law states a recruit be given at least twenty-four hours!” Zeo screamed.

“Wait, do you happen to remember his name and what ship he was on?” Travis asked as he slowly walked over to us, followed by Brendan.

“I think his name tag said Sut… something… Suto… Sutori! Yea, it was Sutori, and he said he was on GFA… seventeen… uh, …oh! GFA1752.”

I watched all three of them wince slightly and then give me a look of sympathy before Zeo motioned with her hand for us to start walking towards the guild tower. As I walked next to Zeo, I could hear Brendan and Travis talking behind us.

“Jeez, Trav, she was boned from day one, they really had it out for her, didn't they”

“Unfortunately it seems so, yes. However, she did lead our team to an astonishing victory that has written our military ticket, so to speak. So, I guess we do owe her a little.”

I turned to look over my shoulder at them, and they stopped talking instantly and gave me a sympathetic smile, before my attention was drawn back to the front by Zeo.

“I should treat you with cold disdain, that is what is expected of a celestial when they encounter a mere solar. I should dissolve my friendship With you and leave immediately, and the law even encourages me to fine you, maybe even throw in a little jail time, for leading me to believe you were a celestial. However, your placement in that boot camp was not your fault and we did make the assumption. And as much as I am loath to say it, the loudmouth behind us is right. You did lead us to a historical victory that has greatly helped us in our military careers…”

I watched her glance back at the two boys. They both gave her a thumbs up and a big grin. I heard her let out a sigh before turning back to look at me.

“Alright, fine. Kenna, I am going to treat you like you are one of us and like you did belong in that camp even though you were put there to wash out repeatedly. That would have been three times before you would have received a stain on your record as incompetent and, you would not have been offered a military position anywhere after that.”

She let out a huff and gave me a look before she turned to look at the boys again who were both nodding and smiling, she then turned back to me and continued.

“Alright, since I am going to pretend you are one of us, I'm going to help you a bit to at least make sure what you do have isn't usurped, which it can be.