Chapter 84: Surprises
Location: Magicon Empire; Valterion Duchy; Valterion System; Shuttle
Adrian stays true to his word and navigates us smoothly through the wormhole while I’m still recovering. An hour later, we enter the Valterion System after a month of absence. My eyes widen slightly when I see the Maxima only a bit ahead of us. I did not expect them to wait for us. Adrian just smiles and Reggie sets course for the ship.
Another thirty minutes later, the shuttle sets down in hangar bay 3. We step out of the ship and most of the officers I interacted with during our short trip stand there and cheer for my success. One of them though stares daggers at me. It’s Lieutenant Kira Lopes. Ah dang it, the news must have gotten around that I turned the open secret into no secret at all.
She immediately grabs me by the arm and leads me to the side where we can talk alone. “Why did you tell everyone?”
“Huh, I didn’t? I just told a single crewmate. And besides, it was an open secret anyway, I mean the crew and even the AIs had bets running on how long it takes until it gets out.”
Now it’s her turn to stare. “For real? And you just told a single one?”
“Yeah, but I guess he told everyone immediately… Probably because of the bets. Anyway, I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s okay, sorry for trying to blame this on you… It’s a relief actually… No more hiding.”
She half hugs me awkwardly and I pat her back. Looks like I didn’t ruin my relationship with Kira.
Now that I think of it, it must be a thing in my family… Adrian hiding his relationship with Kira, and Christopher with Aria Axtendus. And both of them are very bad at it. That makes me chuckle and Kira shoots me a questioning glance.
“Ah, just thinking about my family and how they are very bad at hiding relationships.”
Kira suddenly starts laughing. “Ah shit, we’re just as bad as Christopher and Aria, right?”
“Apparently, yeah. I haven’t met them yet, but from what my parents told me… It’s the same.”
“Oh my, Adrian is going to love this,” Kira snorts and we walk back to the others. Now that things are cleared up with Kira, the next steps happen fast. The Maxima starts accelerating toward the planet again, and the crew does a few drills. I relax in my cabin, it’s a twelve-hour flight after all. We could be faster, sure, but why hurry?
Lying in my bed, I try to call Mom with the Communication spell, but I can’t reach her. Looks like she isn’t here in the system at the moment. Same thing with Dad. I think my next goal should be learning the upgrade for that spell… The one that can cross system borders, or maybe even the Video Call one. I’m an Archmage after all. Let’s enjoy the benefits until I have to pose as a Junior or Senior at college.
I must have dozed off, because when I awake again, Clara tells me that we’re only three hours out from the Maxima’s destination. I get up and stretch. “Why didn’t you say planet?”
“Did no one tell you? The Maxima will dock at one of the military stations close to the second gas giant. So, if you want to go home, you have to ask for a shuttle or just teleport. Or you could stay and watch Mary get transferred to prison…”
“Oh wow, I thought we flew to the planet… Hmm, I don’t need to see Mary being transferred, so I guess it’s time to leave. I’ll say goodbye first, though.”
“Alright, Reggie tells me that Adrian and Kira are currently in Adrian’s cabin. I can give you the coordinates if you want to jump up.”
“Yeah, good idea. No, WAIT! What if they’re naked or doing something else?”
Hang on, I’m asking Reggie… Nope, you’re good. They’re eating breakfast at the moment. Reggie says you can join in.”
Pfew… That would have been awkward, just ewww. Anyway, I straighten my clothes and look in the mirror. Good enough! Then I use Clara’s coordinates and jump to Adrian’s cabin.
“Hey Sara, good morning!” Kira calls out immediately after my appearance, and Adrian gives me a lazy wave.
“Hey, you two, how are you doing?” I sit down with them at the table, and Adrian floats a plate over to me.
“We’re good, thanks,” Adrian replies. “You’re here to say goodbye?”
I nod and swallow down a bite of my breakfast roll. “Yeah, Clara just told me that we’re not going to the planet, so I’m taking the fast exit.”
Kira laughs. “You just want to escape our wrath for exposing our secret!”
I wink back at her. “Oh absolutely, you guys are Scary!”
That has us all laughing, and we continue with breakfast. Adrian tells me a bit about what will happen with Mary and what he and his crew will do shortly. In short, Mary will be put in prison and a judge will sentence her for a few more years. They will probably take her time in slavery into consideration, so there is a good chance she will be set free before she dies. I only shrug as a reply… I honestly don’t care what will happen to her. I’m way more interested in her mysterious contractor, but that’s a dead end for now. The Maxima will head back to the borders of The Empire and continue her patrols, which means I won’t see Adrian and Kira for quite a while.
After breakfast, I say my tearful goodbyes, and after a quick stop at the bridge to say bye to Commander Schmidt and the security officer, I ask Clara to give me the coordinates of home.
Location: Magicon Empire; Valterion Duchy; Valterion System; Nua; Alburgh; Valterion Mansion
When I reappear at home, I find it empty. S-57 grew up during that month though and greets me immediately. “Hello Sara, welcome back. I have a message from your mother, she says that she will be back in three days. You are to enjoy your free time depending on when you return. The message was from the day before yesterday. Do you want a hot bath?”
Huh, did he just transform into the perfect butler? “Yeah, thanks S-57, I’d like that.”
“Acknowledged, the bath is being readied now.”
He really transformed into a butler! Even if it’s still a bit rough. Mom’s message is from two days ago, so I have another day till she returns… Yep, I’m going to relax. “Lead the way, S-57!”
Arrows appear on my interface, and I’m led down some stairs into the basement. I didn’t know that there was a basement… Anyway, the stairs end, and my mouth drops open. It’s paradise! To the left are different saunas, to the right a gigantic rainfall shower, and right before me is a small landscape of different pools. From the 25-meter swimming lanes, over the normal pool, to the bubbling hot tub. Everything is there! The background is covered with screens that show green hills and forests. Beautiful!
I pick up my jaw from the ground and discover a locker next to the rainfall shower. Opening it, I find a simple bikini. Shrugging, I strip down to change and put it on. It immediately starts changing size until it fits me perfectly. Nice! Next, I put my clothes into the locker run to the hot tub, and jump in. Pure bliss! “Wake me in a few hours.” I close my eyes and just enjoy it.
Hours later, I exit the basement and decide to check on my friends in the guesthouse. Well, at least those who are still there. Maja, Simon, Thomas, and Shay are already with the military. I could ask S-57 if Jack, Alex, and Greg are still there, but I guess I’ll let myself be surprised one more time.
I knock at the door and Steven opens up as always. “Welcome back Miss Valterion. I take it you want to visit your friends.” When I confirm, he shakes his head. “They are out in the city at the moment. I can try to give them a call if you want?”
“No thanks, it’s fine, see you!” I turn around and walk back toward the mansion again. While walking, I cast the Communication spell and am able to connect to Lucy. “Hi Lucy,” I start but am immediately interrupted.
“SARA! You’re back. Finally. How was your trip? Did you catch her? What is your brother like? Is he cute?”
“Whoa, whoa, hold on, Lucy. Let’s meet up before I tell you, I missed you guys. Where are you?”
“Oh, right, sorry. We’re currently at the rooftop bar of Goodwing Tower. Let’s meet up there, the view is phenomenal.”
“Okay, see you soon.” I cut off the connection and let the spell fade. Then I shrug and teleport the last distance to the mansion and walk up to my room. I put on a nice green dress and after a bit of consideration add a pair of heels. Rooftop bar sounds fancy… I better look the part. I finish my outfit with some glittering earrings that go nicely with Clara’s AI chip. Speaking of Clara. “Hey Clara, uhh, how do I say this? We’re back now… Do you want to return?”
“No, I think I’ll stay with you for a while if you want me. But thanks for asking.”
I swallow a sigh of relief. Honestly returning to S-57 for navigation would have been horror. “That’s great, Clara, thank you. Do you know if we can teleport to Goodwing Tower?”
“Not directly to the tower, but there is a teleportation hub in the city center. From there we can take the subway to Goodwing Tower and then the elevator up to the rooftop.”
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“Alright, let’s do it that way. Whenever you’re ready.” A set of coordinates locks in and I trigger the spell. I reappear in a white room and a voice through a speaker asks me to leave as soon as possible. I comply and exit the room. Then I enter what I can only describe as a gigantic public transportation hub. It’s all underground, and there are so many people. Signs point in different directions and lead to various subway lines. Clara expertly leads me to the right one, and five minutes later, I sit down on the subway train. It’s nothing special, but it’s still a thousand times better than public transport on Acordus 3.
Due to many stops, I spend almost twenty minutes inside the subway until finally the speaker announces Goodwing Tower as the next stop. I step out of the train and head for the elevators. “Do you want to pay for the express option?”
What? “Express option?” I ask with a raised eyebrow.
“You can pay a fee, then the elevator will bring you to your destination without stops. I’d recommend it, especially as you want to go all the way to the top of the tower.”
Those people are crazy! They find ways to get money everywhere. Paying extra for an elevator… This is just exploitation. “Nah, I’m good, there are like fifty elevators down here. How bad can it be?” Clara just chuckles in my ear, and I press the button to call the elevator. It arrives shortly after, and I press the button for the rooftop bar. The doors close, and the elevator starts shooting upward… Just to stop after a few seconds and levels. A few people get in and I suppress a groan when I see them pressing all different buttons for different levels. The process repeats itself every few levels and after ten minutes and still only halfway up, I admit defeat.
“Pay it, Clara… I can’t take it anymore. It takes centuries!”
“Told ya. Payment is done, and the elevator won’t accept new passengers anymore, as soon as everyone is out, you’ve got a free ride.”
At least I don’t have to worry about money anymore, but this is still… No, I can’t accept it. Next time I just teleport and navigate with Space Sense. I’d rather pay the fee for breaking the rules than for an elevator.
The last person leaves, and my ride speeds up considerably. Just thirty seconds later, I reach the level of the rooftop bar. It’s not actually on the rooftop, but on the top level of the tower. The entire top level! Finally! I step out and sigh in relief. Good thing I put on something fancy. Otherwise, I would have stood out like a sore thumb. Everyone else wears fancy clothes as well, and the whole bar screams upper class. I think they wouldn’t even touch cheap booze with gloves. A waitress in a short black dress greets me upon entering the bar.
“Hello there and welcome. Do you have a reservation?”
“I… uh, no? I just spoke with my friend earlier and she told me they were already here, and I should just join.”
“Don’t worry,” she replies. “I’m just asking because it’s a busy day, and we’re quite booked today. But if your friend invited you, I guess they have an open seat at their table. Let me check if there were mentioned any late arrivals.”
Her gaze goes vacant, and she taps a few things in the air before her. A few seconds later, she focuses back on me. “Here we go, are you Sara?” I nod. “Perfect, your friend did tell us that you are coming. Follow me, I’ll bring you to them.”
“Perfect, thanks, Crystal,” I read from her nameplate and follow her through the bar.
We pass quite a few tables; the bar is enormous in size. Everywhere fancy-dressed people are sitting. I wonder if some of them are Nobles. It could be. I really should get Mom or Dad to give me a crash course in all things Nobility before I am off to college. I notice my hair and eyes catching a few looks, but either no one dares to stand up and ask if I’m a Valterion, or they all dismiss me as someone who just wants to look the part because I’m not yet famous or known as a Valterion at all. Also, here in The Empire there are way more redheads than in the Estriduros Republic.
I just shrug inwardly and continue to follow Crystal. It’s better that way. I suppose, I have to deal with such things soon enough, so let me just enjoy the peace and quiet as long as I can.
We finally reach a table next to a window, overlooking the city. At the table, Lydia and Lucy are sitting. Just the two of them. They haven’t noticed me yet, as they are both looking out the window. I thank Crystal, and she leaves. The others recognize my voice and turn around. “Sara!” Lydia cries out and jumps up to hug me.
Lucy is not far behind. “Welcome back!”
We exchange greetings and sit back down. They leave me alone until I’ve ordered something to drink. Then they pester me with questions about my trip back to the Estriduros Republic. I smile and start my short tale, while we enjoy our company, the drinks, and the view.
It takes a few hours, and we even watch the sunset from up here, then we start to leave, while I ask Clara to take care of the payment. The others protest, but I don’t give in. They have to save their money to enhance their cores in the future! They finally give in when Clara tells them that my family owns the bar anyway, and we all laugh a bit. I should have expected that.
I ask them if they want to teleport home, but they decline and say they’d rather take the normal way home and enjoy a bit more of the city with me. I happily agree and we leave the bar. This time I pay the fee right at the beginning of our descent and Lucy and Lydia stare in wonder at the smooth ride. When they ask how I did this, I just smirk. “Trade secret.” A rather aggressive tickling attack has me spilling the beans a few seconds later though.
After that, we take another subway back to the transportation hub, and instead of teleporting from there, Lucy calls a private shuttle, and we fly back toward the guesthouse.
“Did Jack and the others leave as well while I was away?”
Lydia answers. “Yeah, they left two weeks ago when your mom managed to loan them a relatively cheap freighter. Your mom’s AI Miranda helped them register the company, so the ship now officially runs under MARA Deliveries, and Greg, Jack, and Alex are currently fulfilling their first contracts. Last thing I heard last week is that they are back in the Axtendus Duchy and transporting goods to a new system that’s about to be colonized. A rather lucrative contract from what they told us.”
“Wow, that’s great. Can’t wait to hear their stories! Any words from the others?”
Lucy shrugs. “Nothing much… We got a notification that everyone arrived at their military school, but that’s it. I guess there is a communication blackout for fresh recruits or something.”
“There is,” Clara replies. “The first half year is Boot Camp, where they are completely isolated. After that, depending on their behavior, they are allowed a few calls per month.”
“Oh, thanks, Clara,” I repeat what she just said for the others’ benefit, and they nod in understanding.
“Thought so,” Lucy says. A while later, we arrive at the guesthouse, and as I’d be alone in the mansion, I just decide to stay with the others for the night. Mom should return sometime tomorrow. I wonder if she’s just coming home to chill, or if there is something more…
The next morning comes and goes and both Lucy and Lydia tell me that they are out for the day. Both of them work small jobs in the city to earn a bit of money. I tell them to have fun and slowly make my way back to the mansion. S-57 says hello, and I go to my room to grab some fresh and more comfortable clothes. Then I just sit down and practice a bit more magic while I wait for my mom.
It happens around noon, a flash of magic in the living room rips me out of my concentration, and I stand back up and walk down to the living room.
Down there, I find a smiling Mom… and Dad as well! They are both here and smile like they just won something. “Welcome back, Sara!” Mom catches me in a tight embrace and Dad joins in as well. “We’ve got a surprise for you,” she winks, “but first you have to tell me what happened to Clara.”
A surprise? I wonder what this is. So how do I explain this with Clara? Luckily, I don’t have to, as she answers for herself.
“I’m still there, Jasmine. I just decided that it’s time to get back into it… I’m with Sara now.”
Dad’s jaw drops. “You are? That’s great news! I’m happy for you.”
“Thanks, Aidan, it was time, I just noticed during the trip, how much I missed this… And how lost Sara is in all things magical.” That last sentence comes with an audible snort.
“Hey!” I exclaim weakly, but I know she’s right.
“That’s what college will be for,” Mom replies and pulls a piece of cloth out of her pocket. “Now for the surprise, come here.” She beckons me closer and when I comply, binds the cloth around my head to cover my eyes.
“What are you doing?”
“Well, we said surprise, right? So no peaking, and don’t resist the teleportation, we’re always with you and I promise you’re going to love it.”
“Okaaaay… Fine, I’m ready.”
Dad chuckles and puts an arm on my shoulder, then his magic envelopes me, and we teleport. We arrive somewhere else, and my parents slowly guide me somewhere. Then the piece of cloth gets removed from my eyes and I look through a window and see space beyond. I must be on a space station. Then my gaze turns a bit to the left, and my breath catches. It’s the Stargazer! But she’s gleaming in the distant sunlight, every surface looks polished and there is a whole new set of armor plating around the vessel. The guns also look brand new, and the magical guns look like they can rotate now!
“Is this…? Did you…? It’s beautiful!”
“Yeah, we did,” Dad replies. “Just a month to complete everything was quite hectic, but we managed. We know how much you love that ship, so we decided to give it an overhaul instead of gifting you a new ship for college.”
They wanted to gift me a whole ship if I hadn’t already had one? Crazy, but Dad’s right, keeping the Stargazer is way better. And now I have all the upgrades I wanted without even asking. Or have I? I hug both my parents again with a few tears of joy in my eyes. “Thank you! Can we go inside? I’ve always dreamt of having the ship renovated.”
“Then let’s get inside,” Mom laughs and tugs at my arm. Then we walk a bit and enter the ship through the airlock. I immediately notice the new shining floor, and before I notice something else, Mom suddenly transforms into a saleswoman.
“So here we have the new entrance area, you probably notice that we changed the floor layout and included additional safety doors to hinder possible intruders from immediately getting to the cargo section.”
She’s right, there is now a big secure door on both sides of the hallway connecting the airlocks. That does make sense.
“You’ll also notice shortly that we moved the airlocks a bit further to the front of the ship, to have a clear separation. To your right now are only two small storage rooms for your immediate supplies and also the elevators that lead to the living quarters of the ship. To your left now are the main cargo rooms and the hangar bay, which was made a bit smaller, to just accommodate your yacht and make space for another set of elevators in the back, that connect the cargo and the workrooms above.”
I just follow my parents in wonder. We turn right and take the elevator to the next deck. There, Mom shows me the new cabins which are bigger, but fewer in number, and the new communal area. Everywhere is new furniture, and I notice that pretty much everything has a gravity generator, and I can easily rearrange everything. When we finally reach the bridge, it has changed the most. Gone are the antique consoles and viewscreens, they make way for the modern and sleek consoles, I know from the Sulfira. Even those on the Maxima were already a little older. The most noticeable difference though are all the holographic representations over the consoles.
“As you can see, we completely overhauled the bridge. You now have holographic and hard light projectors instead of your old screens and the systems are way more intuitive and responsive. As you have Maja and now Clara as well, the ship has no dedicated AI, but either Maja or Clara can easily connect with the ship.”
“Absolutely true,” Clara replies through a hidden speaker. “The connection is completely smooth, and Jasmine, you are very bad, you kept the biggest things from Sara for now.”
Mom raises an eyebrow and Clara continues. “The holoprojectors are everywhere on the ship, not just the bridge, and you’ve got brand new engines which are way more powerful and efficient. And lastly, you’ve got the full-on Magitech suite for the whole ship, not just your cheap room cleaning solutions.”
I just stare open-mouthed. This is insane. “Thank you, Mom and Dad!” I cry out and hug them again. “This is perfect!”
“Glad you like it,” Dad chuckles, “wanna do a quick test run? I heard you can teleport without a wormhole now…”
“Oh absolutely! But you said teleporting from here is prohibited?”
“Sure is, but I’m also the Duke, so go ahead, I’ll have Arnold send the coordinates to Clara.”
She confirms the coordinates by locking them in and after a reassuring glance at Dad who nods, I focus on the Starship Jump spell. It’s still a bit harder than my other spells, but it should get better with practice, just like all the others. When I’m finished, I trigger the spell, and the Stargazer vanishes from the station with a purple flash.
When we arrive somewhere else, I take a step back in exhaustion. “How far was that?”
“Just about 600 light years,” Dad says.
600? Holy smokes, that’s almost double the distance I did last time. “Wow, where are we going anyway?”
Mom steps forward and in those few seconds, she does another jump with the ship. “We’re going to meet the Emperor, of course.”
I slowly nod. Yeah, those days are full of surprises…