"What's with your obsession with bowties?" Michael asked me.

"What's up with Brits always asking for help in war?" I retorted. He opened his mouth to respond, but quickly closed it and shook his head. I snickered at his lack of a response.

I was standing in front of the mirror in his room looking at my reflection. His butler had fetched me a tailored and red three-piece suit. I was beginning to put on my black bowtie.

"You can only wear a bowtie for a certain amount of years before it looks weird. I'm just making the most of it while I still can," I said as I made some micro-adjustments to it. Once I was satisfied with it, I put in my pocket square and turned around to face Michael.

"I can't believe you're wearing red to a war meeting," He said as he shook his head on his hands.

"Why? You think God will smite us down for my insensitivity?" I asked chuckling at my own joke. "Besides, I'm tired of wearing black."

He frowned. "A red suit is for festive occasions, not one about death."

"I can make any color suits work," I declared confidently. "Well, except pink."

"You better not wear pink to a war meeting," He said, somewhat believing that I would. To be fair to him though, it would be something that I would do.

I took the watch off of his table and brought it into the air. I inspected it from every angle, fully respecting and appreciating the craftsmanship.

The watch was a gold color from the 18-carat gold it contained. The bezel of the watch was set with multicolored gemstones that resembled a rainbow. As I moved it around, I saw that there was no glare whatsoever.

"It's been years since I've seen a good and modern watch," I said as I began putting it on my wrist just above my cuffs. "I think I'm keeping this."

"Pardon?" He asked as he rose from his chair. "Don't steal mine!"

"Relax, if we fail, you'll be too dead to care." I said giving off an amused chuckle.

"And what exactly is your plan?" He asked with narrowed eyes. "You've only alluded to it."

"Shhh, I'll get to it. I just need to make sure it's possible."

"Possible?" He asked in exacerbation. "Your plan has a chance of being impossible?"

"Let's not get too caught up in small details," I dismissed his concern.

"Small? My concern is a bit bigger than that!" Michael exclaimed. I just rolled my eyes as I began walking to the door. "We have a meeting that we should be getting to. You know, the one that'll decide the fate of your country."

"I'm well aware of that meeting!" He yelled out as he ran to catch up to me.

We walked into his grand hall and navigated our way to the entrance door. A car was parked on the big driveway. A chauffeur was already standing by the doors and was looking at us. When we got close to the car, he opened the door and we both stepped in. The driver walked to the driver seat before we began to take off.

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In front of us stood a tall, brown building. To its side was several were two smaller buildings. Although there were windows, they had a black tint that didn't allow anyone on the outside to see.

Standing in the middle of the two bases was a flagpole. Raised high in the sky was England's flag. A white background with a red cross.

On the outside it was empty, but there were noises in the other buildings. It was a barrack for soldiers who were receiving their training. In thirty minutes, they would have to rise up and begin their long and arduous day.

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Not what you were expecting?" Michael asked when he noticed my eyes surveying the whole base.

"To be honest, when you said meeting I thought we were going to somewhere like the White House," I told him.

"This meeting requires discretion. There are probably dozens of spies in Parliament, virtually none in a random military base." He began walking forward onto the building on the right.

"I guess that's fair." We walked over to the door. There were two guards waiting on the side. Upon seeing Michael, the two guards stood up straight and saluted.

"Your highness!" They called out together.

"Don't indulge him," I told the guards with an amused smile.

They both stared at me with outrage. "You dare speak to the king in that manner?"

Michael raised his hand up to dismiss them. "Guards, this idiotic bloke is my friend so please excuse his behavior."

"Idiotic?" I asked in a voice with mock outrage. "You asked me for help!"

"Idiots come up with the worst solutions," He said. "But solutions nonetheless."

He took out an ID card and held it against the door. A click was heard as he turned on the handle and opened it. We both walked in and headed to another door. This one looked more secure. It was made of a thick metal with no handles.

He put his ID next to a scanner. I heard wheels began to spin and mechanical whirling as the door slowly opened. The room revealed had a circular table in the center. To the side were several screens displaying maps, intels, and other data.

Sitting at the table were people in military uniform. They ranged from male to female and young to old. Two of them had white hair growing.

Everyone's head snapped to the door as it opened. I felt their scrutinizing gaze on me. But this was no time to show weakness. I started to manage all my micro-expressions, thinking about them before I show it. Instead of putting on a guarded expression, I put on an exuberant one with a slight hint of mischief.

"This is the pilot?" One of the generals asked.

"Everyone, meet Zackary Zephyr," Michael introduced.

"Hola mis amigos y amigas," I said while waving. They all turned to each other as if having a silent discussion about me. "I speak English too."

"Not very well," One of the generals said. He didn't even avert his gaze from the others.

"Fuck off you twat," I retorted in a British accent. "My accent is better than yours."

"Is that what they're teaching in Spain?" He asked. This time, he turned to face me. His eyes were defiant, not ready to back down. "They're making a mockery of our culture."

I chucked slightly. "I did not learn English in Spain, colonel, but I assure you that my English is authentic to where I learned it from."

"It's general, not colonel!" He yelled aggressively. Honestly, I didn't expect him to get so worked up.

"Not anymore," I sang out. "I'm backed by fucking Michael himself to command operations here. You work under me now, colonel."

All eyes turned to Michael seeking answers. "Is this true?"

He sighed as he approached the table. I was tagging along at his pace, not falling behind. "It is."

All their voices suddenly broke out. It ranged from outrage to accusations of being a spy.

"You can't trust him!" Several of them called out. All their comments were aimed towards me.

"Silence!" Michael ordered in a commanding voice. "This gentleman here is not a spy. He is not part of the Eastern bloc. He is a trusted adviser from Avalon."

Their eyebrows furrowed in response to his words. "Avalon? That's outside Atlantis!"

"It is," Michael said. "But he is the son of the best warrior there and a genius tactician. He'll be advising us on our military operations."

"I heard some rumors," One of the generals said. "Is it true he doesn't have any mana?"

Michael looked to me, encouraging me to speak. I took a deep breath in and sighed before I began.

"Those rumors are true, but-" I began as I reached into my pocket and pulled out a small device. "Mana is created by nature and thus nature has placed limitations on it."

I put the device on the floor and tapped on it. Instantly, holograms began to appear around us showing the blueprints of the jet's design, several simulations, equations, every component, every piece of work related to it appeared around us.

"Technology was created by humans to push the boundaries of nature. To change the fundamental rules of the universe," I said. "As such, it is bound to very little limitations."

All of them watched the holograms flip through with curious eyes filled with awe. The blue light of the holograms reflected off their cornea.

"It's like a race, except mana starts 50 meters ahead and technology is the world's best sprinter."

"Holographic technology," One of them muttered in a voice filled with awe. "This technology isn't even theoretical."

"I may have no mana, but I have something even better," I said. I began to laugh watching their attitudes towards me do a complete 180.

"So, if anyone has any complaints, speak up now." I challenged, my voice leaving no doubt of my seriousness.

No one dared to speak up. Their eyes kept switching from the hologram to me. I tapped on the device again as all the holograms appeared to collapse into the tiny, circular device. I put it back in my pocket.

"Great!" I exclaimed cheerfully. "Now with that out of the way, please brief me on the war situation."

I took a nearby chair and sat. I put my arm on the table and rested my chin on the back of my hand.