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Prologue 2

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"You are not!" Exclaims the girl's voice.

"I am too. Right after Una gets in-front of that shot heading for Hoki." The boy responds indignantly.

The two youths of maybe 18 or so, sit in the shade of an old beech tree, on a worn old wooden bench, school bags on the ground by their feet. Near them, the greenery of a small park and the wafting smell of a fish & chip van make up their surroundings.

 On the far side of the van is a second bench where an older man and rather pretty looking woman sit talking, although far enough away that they are out of earshot.

The not-so-distant city skyline making for an urban backdrop to the two's conversation.

The girl - A slender brown haired figure, dressed like her friend in a plain black and brown school uniform - Lays a hand on her chin thoughtfully; "I thought you weren't interested in 'fiction' Dave. And you must be skim reading, no way you got that far so fast!"

'Dave' scrunched his face grumpily, speaking up in-between mouthfuls from a brown-paper bag of chips in his hand, "Look if you're gonna' be like that Kris..."

 He said turning his gaze away and causing his long dark dreadlock to swing in the air.

Kris laughed lightly before leaning forward and poking Dave softly - "Oh, I'm sorry I'm sure you're a great reader." Dave glared at her, to which she simply laughed more;

"So then what do you think, who you shipping with who?! Promise I won't spoil anything, honest."

Dave for his part reluctantly turned his head back to face the grinning girl;

 "The hecks shipping? No, but I actually did have a couple questions." He admitted almost meekly, which struck Kris as both cute and a little out of character for her usually boisterous childhood friend.

 "Oh, umm ok, sure ask away I guess."

"Why ain't 'they using nukes." Dave asked altogether too flatly.

Kris blinked repeatedly - "You what?"

"Nukes, nuclear missiles ya know? I mean they got all these wars and mechs and stuff but why doesn't one side just nuke the other? Is it like 'a cold war' or something?"

Kris sighed at the boys fixation on weaponry above all else - 'Should've guessed, boy's and their toys' - She mussed;

 "How should I know? Well I guess it is mentioned a bit in one of the appendices."

Dave's face brightened at this news, "Oh ya? Well what does it say?!"

"Now who's being a nerd," Kris sighed again - "Apparently it's because of the Magi."

"The Magi? Isn't that bit just a myth? Something Pierre Havelock added to leech off the Harry Potter market?" Dave asked back.

"Ku ku kuu!" Kris chimed, grinning her best 'evil antagonist' smile;

 "Seems you haven't read enough yet dear boy!"

"So what then? These Magi are real not just something the crew mentions every now and then?"

"Ha-ha, I'll have you know they're even in the third arc!"

"You said no spoilers Kris!" Dave shot back with actual upset in his voice.

Kris half-clasped her hands over her mouth, before laughing aloud in amusement at how serious her friend was treating the whole thing. Dave seemed to realise this too and blushed ruefully, casting his eyes downward;

 "Well that still doesn't explain nothin'."

"Look I don't know really, apparently the Magi used to be able to do all sorts of stuff - Like predict the weather or diseases and stuff--"

"Sounds useful for dodging homework assignments." Dave added snidely.

"--Yes well, apparently, if you must know - During that 'First War' thing, there was like a Cult of Magi who could change the course of meteorites, making them hit the Planet Bhaile. Better than any silly nuclear missile." Kris finished, her emphasis on specific terms from the book not being lost on Dave.

"Ok, I think I get ya. So every time a war starts, these 'Wizards' come up and ruin any plans the army has in some way - So they never bothered making nukes - Or somen' like that?" He finished, seemingly pleased with his hypothesis.

"Was that all your questions? Any that are maybe to do with something other than big guns?" Kris asked with an apparent lack of enthusiasm for the conversation - 'I thought the book might give us something fun to talk about, not stupid guns....'

"I do actually." Dave said, offering his bag of chips over to Kris in an attempt to bring her back around;

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 "Why does it focus on them? The Fluchtig's people I mean? Like I dunno' they don't really seem that important or somen'. Like they're fighting this invisible battleship but like who cares if they sink it ya know?"

"Warship." Kris corrected.

"You w'ut?"

"Warship, that's the blanket term for combat capable vessels - A battleship is a specific type, like the Fluchtig, but the submarine is an assault-carrier class ship not a batt--"

"Are you seriously lecturing me on battlesh--, sorry 'Warship' Terminology right now Kristen?"

Kris's visage caught a-flame with a bright blush of her own. She glanced away while trying to steer the conversation back on course, "The umm, Miss.Lawson said--"

"Miss Lawson? Wait you didn't actually talk to a teacher about your nerdy hobby?" Dave asked bursting into a fit of laughter at Kris's ever-more red face.

 To Kris's credit, Miss.Lawson was a physics teacher and very much so the sort who actually researched and kept up to date in her field - This information however, did not stop Dave from laughing.

 "Hmph, Well I hope that was your last question, 'cause I won't be answering anymore." Kris pouted.

Dave calmed himself down, appealing to his friend's forgiveness; "Alright, alright I'm sorry. But I really do want to know why the story follows Jar Jar Binks."

 Kris broke from her pouting to stare in confusion at Dave.

"Well, it is! You know, like if we saw Star-Wars from Jar-Jar's perspective. Like he does important stuff but he isn't exactly the protagonist of the story is he."

There was a moment of silence between the two youths before a shiver ran down their collective spines at the horrifying thought of the potential film Dave was describing - Before they both burst out laughing.

 "If he was protagonist think he'd get a lightsabre?" Kris snickered.

"Ha, he'd probably drop it on old Sheev by accident in the first movie if he did!" Dave chuckled back.

They continued like this for a bit, forgetting the novel they had originally been discussing - Until while scrunching up the now empty brown-paper bag and throwing it toward a nearby open-top dustbin - Dave remembered their early train of thought;

 "Oh right! So what did Miss.Lawson say?"

"Promise you won't start laughing again?" Kris replied, glaring through slit eyes at Dave. The young man threw up his hands in a sign of surrender.

"...She said to think about what the UnderCurrent's people would see if they could look back at us."

"Look back? I don't think I follow."

Kris grinned, nudging Dave in the shoulder lightly;

"Oh no? And here I thought you were finally getting into it." She jeered - "Alright, how about this - Who's 'The Protagonist' of our world?"

Dave mused on this for a few moments, "I guess Donald Trump? No wait maybe Vladimir Putin. Actually Kim-Jón-Un seems to get up to alot, good old Boris certainly does, and Elon owns like everything." Dave finished with a grin.

Kris shuddered at the cavalcade of controversial names but nodded her agreement;

 "Exactly, now imagine the people of the UnderCurrent had their own 'NTME', what's the chances they would see one of those people? In all likelihood the machine would lock onto one of the 8 billion or so other people in our world right?"

Dave's face lit up in an epiphany of sudden understanding - "Ohh-h, I guess that does make sense. We just got lucky it didn't lock onto someone really boring, like the UnderCurrent's version of Miss.Lawson and her daily life!"

Kris scowled a little at this slight against her favourite teacher but once again nodded her agreement;

 "In a way you could say they're boring, the pilots of the Fluchtig I mean. Essentially they are like, the middle management of an office-block but wrapped up in a massive space war - Ya know? Instead of the printer running out of paper, they worry about resources and invisible enemies."

"I guess that answers my questions, though did you really just try to compare soldiers to office clerks?"

Kris blushed again. Dave grinned; "Hey, speaking of Miss.Lawson I'm sure glad I finished that assignment ahead a' time for once yesterday."

A look of panic & fear swept across Kris's features."....Oh crap."

"On no way, you - You actually forgot to do your homework!? Ha-ha, all these years of me copying your work and finally you forgot, ha-ha-ha!" Dave said bursting into a whole new fit of laughter.

 Kris however was already on her feet, face now beetroot red - She grabbed at Dave's wrist;

 "Oh shut up and come on already, I've got to get home and do it quick!"

"Ya know I don't think I will." Dave sneered breaking her grip and putting both hands behind his head, "Think I'll just sit here, admire the scenery. Safe in the knowledge all my work is done."

Kris frowned and began to stride away; "Fine then you ass, do what you want!"

Dave quickly rose from the park bench and began to chase after his friend, "Hey wait up! I didn't mean it, t'was only a joke. Kris!!"

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