The Dark Horse is not the only private yacht to dock at Aegis. Not even the only Khattan-registered one. Several civilian starships - almost all of them Belter run and owned - come and go in the complex traffic pattern. The port is close to the center of the hub, so rotational gravity effects are negligible.
Everyone is ready to disembark, wearing their dress uniforms. There's a bit of variation to them, from the 'junior' ones worn by Pheeny, Whisper and Tia, to the more elaborate ones worn by the senior crew and Tasha. The dragons have uniforms with outer cloaks that are almost like robes.
Tasha's own uniform is fancy, with gold trim and filigree-like designs, but lacks the direct indicators of her status on the crew. It looks important, and with her hair and body, helps assure the viewer she is, in fact, wealthy, important, but not too wealthy and important. One of, she hopes, a sea of important and wealthy people.
"Well, everyone ready? Looking sharp, by the way!" Tasha surveys her crew and nods. "Remember where we parked!"
"For those of you unused to micro-gravity, stick close to one of us," Gabriel says, indicating himself, Tasha, Lacci and Yue. "Try not to use your wings, even if your reflex is to spread them. Tia, I expect you to help shepherd stragglers. There will be some medical and customs details to deal with, but we've got express passes so those should be minimal."
"What's micro-gravity?" Whisper asks, before the dragons can, which leads to another brief science lesson.
"Extended lessons about space are part of the many dangers of space, along side the other many dangers of space. I know it's surprising, but the cold, airless vacuum-like infinite abyss is a bit unwelcoming sometimes," Tasha relates after the lecture, hands folded behind her back, bouncing ever so slightly on her hooves. "You'll get used to it, then you too can lecture people about micro-gravity and space safety."
The docking tube is padded in white, and brightly lit. There are hand-holds on the sides for convenience as well, and.. soft music is playing. Moving to the central hub is without incident, other than Whisper and Pheeny bouncing off the walls whenever possible. They medical and customs parts are fairly streamlined as well, thanks to cutting-edge Galactic tech. Eventually they all end up in the observation lounge. The wide windows show the central hub-transport that runs the length of the station, with spokes and connecting it to the landscape. And there is a lot of landscape! The far side of the cylinder is lost in the haze. There are clouds! The land is divided into strips between large transparent sections where the giant mirrors deliver constant sunlight. There is a circular sea near the midsection, the buildings and recreation areas are tiny from this vantage. There are suspended structures hanging at different levels as well, probably to provide different levels of gravity.
"Wow," says Tasha, who has walked to the window after nabbing both Pheeny and Whisper with both arms, one over each of the girl's shoulders, pulling them in close for a brief hug before saying "I knew these existed, but I've never seen the interior of one myself. It almost doesn't look real, does it? But it is, all made long ago. Well, not that long ago. Does anything out there look interesting to you two? Anywhere you want go?"
"Everywhere!" both girls declare.
"Everywhere it is, if we have the time." Tasha glances at the menu in her contact-created HUD, checking the station map for locations of interest that are close at hand. After all, if they're going everywhere, she's going to need to be efficient about it and that means minimizing travel times.
"There's a presentation on the local network about how this place was made," Katie notes, looking at her datapad. "They started with a long asteroid, and bored a tunnel through the center. They filled that up with ice, then closed the ends. They used motors to spin the asteroid around that axis, and used giant mirrors to melt the surface. Once it melted all the way through, the ice turned to steam and inflated it into shape."
Here at the cap, there are lots of low-gravity entertainment facilities, and also a spiral 'railway' that drops down to the surface.
"Huh, I wouldn't have thought of that. I figured it was made from a lot of plates and long, hard work," is Tasha's take on the creation of O'Neil Cylinder Aegis. "It also looks like there are low-gravity fun parks nearby; since the kids are already enjoying the gravity, I'm thinking of heading our group that way."
"Just remember that their anti-motion-sickness patches will wear off in a few hours," Gabriel warns. Several others in the group check their own patches. "But it seems too soon to split into our different groups." He looks over the list of activities. "Hmmm, wingsuit skydiving, sphere-ball, infinite trampoline, sky gardens.."
"No hunting," Wormwood notes. Although his alias is.. Johan Wormwood.
"Well these two energy balls need something active," Tasha tells Gabriel, squeezing the girls in another hug while making little growly-wolf noises, "If we have all of us going, I suggest sphere ball. It's group sport activity, and we'll have everyone on hand in case anyone has problems. It'll also help people adapt more to the micro-gravity in a safe environment with a competitive edge."
After negotiating the transport system, which is a series of moving belts with hand-holds, the group finds themselves at one of the sphere-ball courts. It is, unsurprisingly, a transparent sphere. There are colored circles with a basket in the center, and everyone is giving a colored team uniform. Because of the odd number, the two children are put into a team of five, with the other three teams having four people. To make it more fair, the inexperienced people are mixed in with experienced ones as much as possible. The goal is simple: get the ball into a different team's goal. The staff plays a demonstration round for them, even. There's a lot of pushing off from the curved walls to manage it, with wings bound to prevent tricky maneuvers and blocks.
"I call goalie," Shojo says for his team.
Tasha, who has sided with the kids in Team Five, says, "Gabe, want to handle goalie? We can't let Immovable Wall Shojo have his way, or we'll have to endure his silent stoic mockery and questionable foreign policies go unanswered." She rolls her shoulders, flexes her hands. "I'll take middle then, if you two girls want to take left and right? Then you can be up there in front and I'll be mid way in. Don't let Katie intimidate you. She seems scary and kind of domineering, and she is, but you have to be more scary and -- I don't think you know what domineering is yet..? -- um, call her doggie a lot. Or silver, because she'll never earn gold!" Tasha's cackle after that is, in a kind word, nostalgic.
To balance the two biggest people as goalies, the other two teams pick Tia and Lacci, who have the most experience in micro-gravity. The sphere is 30 meters across, to prevent collisions and also give the goalies fair warning. This doesn't mean there aren't people occasionally stranded floating around until a teammate rescues them.
Tasha, used to flight and micro-gravity, spends her time between playing and rescuing the girls as they over -- or under -- exert. Pheeny, being mild and gentle, she expects may have difficulty showing aggression and bravery, while Whisper, she suspects, will end up going full-in without a strong grasp of what exactly she's going all-in on. And as she, she readies and conducts her play to support them rather than focusing on winning or her own performance -- although she does try to win. At least with Gabriel behind them, she feels good about their defense, and she's well known for being offensive, in a variety of ways.
There is a lot of bouncing and floating and squealing and giggling (from the girls.. and Hakeber). Nobody actually scores, but it's a lot of fun. Even the usually dour dragons enjoy it. Gwyndrael even lets out whoops!
"And so the thousand seconds war ends in a stalemate, and peace, and prosperity for all," Tasha declares as the final match comes to a close. She doesn't get sweaty, at least not in her current body, but she can get worked up, and so she stands fanning herself and those near her with her wings. Stands, 'upside down', on the ball ceiling. "And now we rejoice! And seek refreshments. That's good. We should eat while we float."
"Eating is another learning experience," Gabriel warns. Indeed when they've returned to the lockers and swapped the team uniforms for their own clothes, they are pointed to one of the nearby cafes. And while the menu is extensive.. everything is either in solid bricks or packets with straws. The girls still find the 'ice cream' to a great treat, though. There aren't tables or chairs, just benches with sticky surfaces.
Tasha eats while, without explanation or reason and perhaps without concern for her fellows, eats while hopping and trying to do slow flips before landing. Her choice of food is three kinds of meat brick sandwiched together, and a drink which she lets go of, allows to fall, and raises back up every jump. "So what's next on the agenda?" And just in case no one has a suggestion, she checks the list again. Since they've gamed already, she considers descent. "How about sky diving? Take the lifts down is boring, I miss falling off high places."
"We can fall for nearly ten kilometers," Katie notes. "Which is.. tricky. Because of the size of the station, it doesn't have to rotate very fast to simulate one Terran gravity at the surface, but you don't actually experience that until you reach it if you're falling."
"I know how gradated gravity works," Tasha insists, wagging her tail. "That's why I was thinking of the wing suits. But we can stop by the gardens, first, if people need time to digest all that has happened hence." The last part is said rather ominously.
"It takes over an hour too," Gabriel says. "But there is tour guide that comes with us. And those of us with wings don't need the special suits."
"Exactly. And then if we're done up here after that, we can descend upon the world below," Tasha agrees, finishing her drink and then crumbling it in a hand. "Unless anyone else has a suggestion?" She drops bouncing, landing and taking a moment to smooth out her uniform and hair with a sudden change in respectability.
"I want the route that has the games," Hakeber says, as she looks through the options. "It stops at some of the floating gardens, and there are acrobatics courses and... more stuff!"
"I want the acrobatics route," Tasha chimes in, deciding now may be a good time for the kids to chose on their own, so that their mom, or mom-figure, isn't always there, and help foster independence. "We can meet up at each stop to enjoy the gardens together."
Tasha's group is unsurprisingly made up of winged people.. including people with mechanical wings. Vartans, Aquilans, Eeee and Korvs. The instructor-guide is an Eeee, even - which makes sense of acrobatics. The course involves following holographic paths at first, to get them used to moving in reduced gravity where 'lift' works very differently. It also comes with an amazing view of course. The first waypoint floating garden is a kilometer down.
Tasha takes stock of her fellows on the route, interested in the kind of people who travel to this world in the black, their personalities, and their interest in flight. The view is spectacular, too, and while she's used to flying well above things, it's a different experience to fly well above the land of a cylinder floating in the avoid. The sheer scale of the creation routinely strikes her, and although she's seen larger things by far, they've never been so large and Nora-familiar as this. She even learned they're relatively close to Terra, marking this the closest she's ever been to the TerraGens homeworld.
Only a few of the others in Tasha's group are familiar with the course. And Lacci is better than her or Vasha, naturally. Shojo lags behind a bit, and the Confederates take the lead, although the Aquilan in the group is just a little bit better than the Vartans. The Vartan that Tasha doesn't know is wearing a uniform that Lacci probably recognizes, and is clearly a spacer.
Tasha's learned she can't be the best at everything and, indeed, is not the best at a great many things, so it doesn't grate on her too much Lacci is ahead of her. And, it's a fun course, with a beautiful view and new people. She does give the Vartan spacer a wave as they pass close, in an effort to try and strike up some regard for after the land.
Once they reach the waypoint, which is more of a ball of vegetation around a core of wood, bringing back memories of Ymir, there is a chance to rest and connect up with the other groups, as well just mingle. Tasha is actually a bit tired, as maneuvering in the odd environment was more exhausting than expected.
Tasha comes in to land on the wood, touching down delicately, clip-clopping to a stop, wings still flapping to work out the stiffness. She wonders if the old witch who wanted her wings would have been prepared for just how little her real world experiences involve looking down on people, and how little aloofness there is in a massive city like this one. She is half surrounded by people better at flying than her. Of course, Tasha expects she wanted them just to hold them over her.
Once settled, she looks for the Vartan she saw, trying to see if they look interested in talking by their behavior.
The Vartan is keeping close to the one person that used mechanical wings: a Khattan woman dressed similarly, in the same sense that Tasha is dressed similarly to Gabriel. Lacci and Vasha are already gravitating towards him.
Tasha decides to join them, deciding it should be an interesting meeting, if they're on the same social stratum as they appear. If things go very strangely indeed, perhaps they'll be on the same social stratum as they don't appear. "Hello," she greets the two, inclining her head. "Enjoying the course?"
The Khattan's face lights up (literally, as she has some sort glowing tattoos under her fur that respond to.. something) when she sees Tasha. "Oh my, a Mezzode!" The Vartan nods back to the greeting. "It's great practice," he says.
"A Mezzode, indeed. I like your tattoos, and your wings." And so she smiles. "I agree about the practice, life on board a vessel, while rewarding, can be rather limited in the amount of sky it contains. And I am Aldara Tasha Argentine, this is Vasha Argentine," she gestures to the Vartan, "And Lacci of Erinyes," she gestures to the other Vartan.
"Erinyes?" the Vartan says. "A military clan. I'm V'Brosh, and I work for Lady K'tan'ya." He gestures to the Khattan woman.
"Well, he's my captain-pilot," the Khattan clarifies.
"I know the type, I, too, have a Captain-Pilot in my life. He's unfortunately wingless, but I forgive me." A slight, delicate laugh. "Off on another course, he is. Then should I infer you're not from a military clan, V'Brosh? May I ask what your business is? I'm happy enough to start off: we are a contract-yacht service. Lacci and my sister are crew, and I act as the owner-representative."
"I see the advantage of using a Mezzode in such a position," the Khattan notes. "Very memorable."
"I'm a civilian," V'Brosh says. "I'm surprised you have a member of the military among your crew."
"I'm on sabbatical," Lacci claims. "I'm a military historian, non-combatant."
"I appreciate being considered memorable," Tasha says, putting a hand to heart and bowing slightly. "And, it tells me it's working." And then she grins -- and winks. Straightening, she then explains, "Lacci is also gathering valuable experience. We have other junior members, skilled personnel, and so on, all vetted. A diverse group helps create a sense of openness and accessibility, and there for, opportunity."
"Diverse?" V'Brosh asks, looking at the two Vartans with Tasha. "You have a Khattan pilot then?"
"We have Lucky Kaa, the greatest pilot in the universe," Vasha says proudly.
"Oh don't mind them, it's just that the fliers took the flying intense course, as you might expect. Our wingless members took other routes and are surely conversing with new acquaintances just as we are now." That easy smile. "Well, not all the winged members, anyway. My Kujaku daughter and her friend wanted to go out on their own, and yes, Lucky Kaa, a Phin. Gabriel, our pilot-Captain, is a tremendous Karnor, where my brother Sasha is a smaller and cute sort of Karnor, and my other sister, Sharon, is Human. And so on, our crew."
"When you say brother and sister.. do you mean blood relations?" V'Brosh asks, while the Khattan's face glows green. "You have Terrans and Confederates in your crew?" she asks in either surprise or awe.
"What can I say, I'm immensely charming and a bridge between all species and factions," Tasha says with sing-song delight, clapping her hands soundlessly under her chin. "And yes, quite so! Terrans, Confederates, Khattans, we do lack for Celestials and Imperials but I'm sure I'll figure out something, sooner or later. You can't really rush these things. And, my brother and sister? Well, isn't it obvious? We all look so much alike. Right, Vasha?"
"Nearly identical from the waist down," Vasha claims.
"And the wings," Lacci points out.
"Oh, yeah, and the wings," Vasha corrects.
"But then you have Human in your blend?" K'tan'ya asks. "I didn't think that was.. allowed."
"I don't know how they managed it and I don't ask, but clearly they did, or else, well, what am I? A visitor from beyond, a fiction of spells and faeries, a single-example easily overlooked Galactic newcomer?" The smile becomes a little sharper in curve, and toothier. "Sharon is, of course, of that blend, or so I understand. I'm sure the story is quite something."
"And you seem to be the same age as your sister here," V'Brosh says. "I've never been clear on the ethics of Mezzode production."
"It's even more potentially alarming when you are one, I assure you. Although, speaking of unusual body types, I notice your tattoos glow with specific colors -- are they mood related, serve some function, both? Neither?" Tasha's ears perk up.
"Neural implants," the woman says, and her lights change colors so that it looks a rainbow is spreading out from the center of her face.
She also spreads her artificial wings without making any obvious motions.
"Exciting. I have a few myself, and I've been quite fond of implant technology. There's something reassuring about all that metal and wire, which I suppose is strange coming from a designer being such as myself, isn't it? Well, even we can aspire to change and novelty beyond what we are." Tasha smiles over at Vasha. "I imagien you'd love some, wouldn't you? One the wings, perhaps?"
"I already have wings," Vasha points out.
"I use a nano mesh network under my skin," the Khattan says. "So I can interact with anything that touches me."
"I meant the glowing tattoos you silly bird, although you could try for four wings," Tasha says, reaching over to try and lightly swat her sister on the beak. "And you see? nanotech interface. I bet Sasha would just love that." Looking back she nods. "Quite nice, quite nice. I use an older style neural interface myself. Although, it's rather specific in function. For the rest I just have Vasha press the button for me."
"There is a clinic that installs the mesh here on Aegis," K'tan'ya notes. "My family runs the franchise."
"Hmm, I just might have to stop by. What do you think, Vasha?" Tasha looks to her Vartan other self. "Won't Sasha just pout at us if we don't?"
"I have one as well, just not.. so visible," V'Brosh says, and exposes a palm which is covered with a tattoo of some sort of geometric interface. "I use it to interface with the navigational system of the ship."
"There you are," Gabriel calls as he floats over. The Khattan's tattoos glow pink when she sees the first-gen Karnor.
"That seems very useful. We've opted for older style interface, as something of a style point. Not always the most efficient choice, but there's something to be said for doing something yourself, with effort. And it really does enhance the ambiance of--" Tasha breaks off, turning to face Gabriel. "Here I am! This is Gabriel, our pilot-Captain and my mate. And, possibly, here to pilot me to our next destination before the kids make his fur fall out."
"He.. isn't a Mezzode?" the Khattan asks in confusion. After all, she'd never have seen a Karnor like Gabriel. V'Brosh nods to Gabriel. "A Breaker build."
"He's a Gabriel," Tasha says, reaching out to take his hand. "I suppose everyone's waiting for us, Gabe?"
"Yes, Tia has gathered everyone at the next debarkation point," Gabriel says. "Who are your new friends?"
"Well I'm not sure we're friends yet, more so exciting new faces I am once again confusing with my existence. This is K'tan'ya, whose family owns a local implants boutique -- you may note them on her person in fact -- and V'Brosh, civilian, pilot-Captain. I feel like you two may have much in common," Tasha answers, gesturing each in turn.
"Shoulder span, at least," V'Brosh says. He turns to his employer, and says, "We should head for the debarkation point as well, my lady."
"As should we, lets be off then." Tasha nods to Gabriel to lead on, and so the lot of them depart for the next adventure.
There are several more descent stages, each separated by themed floating gardens. The final one has a waterfall and several fountains that put the Coriolis force effects front and center, showing how things curve due to the rotation of the cylinder. The instructor explains how the last descent - and landing - will be affected by this, as the air will be thicker and moving faster, almost like riding down a flowing river. The landing zone is actually a giant net!
"For those of you with wings, you may find yourself trying to fight the current, but you should try not to," the guide explains. "Lift still won't behave as you expect it to, and you could end up flipping over or straying off course. Focus on keeping within the group, and don't worry about how fast the ground seems to be moving."
"I think my mother told me that a long time ago, when I first learned to fly. Well, not as eloquently," Tasha asides to her group. "This should be something new. How's everyone looking?"
"Great!" Whisper claims. "This makes up for me not having my godly powers of creation here!" Katie, oddly, is the only one who's had dizziness issues, while Hakeber is used to moving while dizzy. Gabriel is certainly enjoying himself. This sort of thing is nostalgic for the ancient wolf. The dragons find the whole thing quite novel, since they're used to wings. Even Tia seems enthusiastic.
Tasha sidles alongside Katherine as people line up to get ready, stepping aside with her. "Are you alright? And, I know it's not the best time, but are you mad at me?" She doesn't focus on Katie directly, instead smiling ahead as she looks down across the rotating landscape below, in this way trying to avoid the exchange form looking like a problem and not pleasant discussion of the day.
Katie blinks. "What? What gave you that idea?" she asks. "I'm just not used to flying out in the open like this. And the height is getting to me a bit too. Freefall in space is one thing, because you're inside a vehicle. But here... the scale of it..."
"Ah, I just thought with your remarks about my change in tastes and... Gwyndrael... I thought there might be some latent hostility. That's deserved." Tasha gives the others a wave as she talks. "Maybe I'm imagining it? It's just I've been thinking about Nora, but you two are alike in some ways. I'm never sure if she ever forgives me for my mistakes, and for, well, slights. Perceived or otherwise."
Katie gives Tasha an odd look. "How am I like Nora?" she asks.
"Competitive. Driven. But maybe not so much as she is, which I think is a good thing. Nora... I don't know. I had, well, we'll call it a nightmare about her. About her never forgiving me for being the angel who had the audacity to take the throne of god, in a sense, and for romantic choices. Slights, because clearly she thinks I'm inferior. Or that ghost-of-a-ghost of her did. That she's always been hounding me, trying to knock me off the 'throne' so she can 'win'." Tasha rubs her nose, turning to look out across the landscape. "I thought the fact we haven't been together as much and I've been more distance might have come across as a snub, and as a snub, a wound against that alpha-drive to be on top, the most wanted, the very best."
"I don't compete with friends," Nora points out. "I'm an Intelligence Officer that sings, for goodness sake. And I got to take a shower with Gwyndrael, so... as long as you're willing to share I'm good. Plus that whole mind swap thing still has me a little shaken up, and I'm working through it with Dr. Sen. But soon we'll be in my element, where I can put all my training to good use. Better use that touring around as a goodwill ambassador."
Tasha gives Katherine a salute. "I'm sorry for underestimating you. I don't like to talk about the pressure I'm under, but what happened with Galatea was disturbing for me, and my means of dealing with the consequences of pushing myself so hard to bring her back were unsettling. Not unexpected, but unsettling. And with tensions with Sam... I suppose I was seeing conflicts where they might not exist. Answers I didn't like. I'm not very good at highly emotional matters involving people close to me." And then she inclines her head. "I'm glad to hear you don't compete with friends and there isn't a problem. And as for body swapping... " A little grin comes to her face. "You know Sasha's been whining -- actually whining in a few cases -- how frustrating being around you can be. Oh, he's good, and he'll behave, you can trust him, but, well... He's had it hard in a lot of ways. I was thinking of letting him borrow my body, if you think that might be interesting for the two of you."
"Ah.. that wouldn't be the same," Katie says, diplomatically. "Besides, Gabriel would want a go in the same manner. I like both of them, love them even, but... not that way, especially in a borrowed body. I guess that makes me the prude of the bunch? But I've always been picky like that. I did have boyfriends growing up, you know. Dad made sure of that."
"I'm only attracted a bit by Sharon because it's a common fetish among Karnors," she adds.
Tasha holds up her hands in a gesture of surrender. "Well don't let me push anything you might not be in to. I admit after trying both Aaron and Liza's way of living, I've found the experience intriguing -- a learning experience and a novelty, an adventure. And you know me and adventure. I thought maybe it might also appeal to others. I'm just glad I didn't get myself pregnant, I could have given that a little more thought." She gives Katherine a big grin and a yes I did sort of suggestive head tip. "Aaron will never be the same. And you're right about Gabriel. I'll just forgot it, then. And I wouldn't call you prudish, just particular. We all have our interests. "
"Thanks for understanding," Katie says, and gives Tasha a kiss on the cheek. "It's our turn to jump off into the infinite sky.. where we'll actually be falling pretty soon."
"I'm glad I've started to get over my fear of inadequacy in things I always assumed I should be good at. Nothing quite like having a body like this to remind you." Tasha kisses right back, smiles, then turns to the ledge. See you in the net -- or in a tree!" And then she spreads her wings and heads for the edge.
The descent is a bit more thrilling than the previous ones, since the ground is close enough now to see it moving, and even details. They've covered quite a lot of horizontal distance by this point, and Tasha can see islands in the central sea.. one of which has a golden pyramid in the center, of all things. None of the buildings are very tall, and those that are don't look straight. Each time the landing target comes into view, it's much closer, and it really does seem like they're going to be hitting it at a hundred kilometers per hour.
Tasha trusts in the guide and in their advice. After all if tourists splattered themselves across the landscape daily, she doubts they're receive so many top reviews, at least not in a place as posh as this one. She could certainly see a tourist location where tourists routinely become crates entertaining some far flung spot in Darkside or the Night City. And so, she enjoys the speed and the view -- and the golden pyramid? It catches her eye every time she passes it, like the glint off the ancient Khattan frigate that brought her to what became known as Harmonia. As she descends she checks for any landing around it, expecting to need far more room if she plans to make a detour.
It's far out still, but it does have a slender bridge or similar structure connecting it to the mainland. It might be made of glass, or a similar transparent material (as surely whatever the longitudinal 'windows' are made from must be extremely durable). Soon the ground seems to be slowing down though as they all fall closer to it. The timing of their departure must have been very precise, as it looks like they're all going to reach the net at the same time. And they do! It's a gentler impact than Tasha expected.
Tasha hits, bounces, and splays her wings until she stops bouncing. "Whooooo, it's been a while," she says, vague to others, but for her, it's a about a flight that's unusual, and lands in a crash rather than a touch down. She hasn't need to fly in to a net in a long time, either. The Crew of The Rake would set them out back when she was first flying, to help her land -- and not just her. Nets like that had a name across ships like 'the drunkard's catch' 'knotted bed' 'captain's mitt' and 'vomit rigging', to name a few. "Everyone intact?"
Everyone is indeed intact. Attendants help anyone who got tangled up, and soon they're all on the ground. All of their clothes have been pre-shipped down to the locker rooms (for those who had to don wing-suits), which gives Tasha and the other flyers some time to wait. There are open-air cafes near the landing zone, including a coffee shop and a bar. There are also ground shuttles to various hotels on standby. Their lodgings have been prearranged by Mrs. Teatime, and the ID bracelets they were all given supposedly serve as keys, currency and other functions, such as indicating which hotel they're staying at.
Tasha takes a moment to take it all in as she waits, then she heads over towards the kids, who form the core of her group through their sheer energy and presence, expecting Gabriel to join them once he gets free of the net. "Having a fun time, you two?" She reaches to brush Pheeny's head feathers back, affectionately. It's so hard to resist hugging the girl every time she sees her, it feels like only yesterday she was born -- or reborn -- and it may as well be with how short a time she's been a mother. The desire to try to make up for it with intensity wars with her need to help Pheeny grow and face the challenges that surely await her.
"I never learned to fly properly," Pheeny says. "So this probably means I'll need extra lessons." It's said in a way that implies Tasha will be giving her the extra lessons.
"I'd be more than happy to, Pheeny." And Tasha's smile is warm and bright She keeps running her hand over the girl's feathers, lost for a moment in the wonder of her life's direction.
"I can teach you too," Vasha declares, not wanting to be left out of chick-raising activities. Shojo and Lacci stay out of it, and gravitate towards a coffee stand.
"Yes, Vasha can, too." Tasha slings an arm around her sister, takes her hand, and also puts it on Pheeny's head. "Would you all like some coffee? You've never had coffee, have you? Gabriel loves coffee."
The coffee stand actually has 'Koffee' for kids, which apparently is more chocolate than coffee, and gentler on their little brains. Plus Pheeny wants strawberry syrup with it anyway. The sheer number of coffee choices, however, are a challenge for Tasha. She isn't sure what blend is the one she's used to from the fancy machine on Dark Horse and the base.
Without clear direction, Tasha does what she always does in a situation with many choices: She goes towards what's shiny and interesting, to see and do something new. "I'd like something sweet, with a coffee base, and a rarefied blend. Use your experience, chose something you think I'd like," she tells the person at the counter.
The barista looks at Tasha, and asks, "Well, do you have a Karnor nose and tongue?"
"Lets find out." Tasha ducks down to examine herself in the reflection of a brass apparatus, tilt left, tilt right, then open mouth, and then up again. "Yes, it appears so," she says with a certain excessive formality, before winking.
The girl chuckles and gives Tasha a goofy smile, before she starts preparing the drink. This in itself is fascinating, as it involves entering strange codes into several machines, but also blending things by hand and using something like 'the machine' to finish it off. When Tasha finally gets it, there is a little bit art drawn with the froth, looking like a frontal view of a Karnor face.
"It's beautiful," Tasha says after a moment of investigating the cup, then she looks up and smiles. "Thank you for your hard work." She then looks to the two girls. "Pheeny, all set? Whisper, got what you wanted? You should try the scone, momma likes the scones." She looks back to the barista again. "Momma will have a scone, please."
Vasha chooses a muffin, and the girls get scones with blackcurrant jam. Then it's commandeering a cafe table while waiting for the others to get back from the changing rooms.
Tasha gets the same as the kids, never had a 'black current' but finding the name to be a surprisingly ominous name for a jam. She considers the food the cook back home, and if it ought to have more adventurous and doomsome names as she sits and listens to the kids gab about their day, ears forward, content to absorb their cheer until she notices Vasha. "How's things with Shojo and Lacci? You three having fun?"
"Shojo is quiet as usual," Vasha says, dropping crumbs everywhere. "He probably had an advantage since he doesn't have flight reflexes. Lacci did better than me, of course. Being in the exploration group with them and Thermo will hopefully let me get a bit closer, y'know?"
"But.. may run into that V'Brosh guy again.." Vasha says.
"Thermo?" Tasha chuckles. "I hadn't thought of that, but I suppose it does fit. Have an interest in the the Brosh? He's a big man, and his mistress is something, too. I'm going to have everyone who is interested swing by their shop. And did you see that pyramid? I'm going to that pyramid."
"If she wants to join in, I don't mind," Vasha says with a grin, completely forgetting about the two children with them. "Yeah, saw that. Looked ominous and out of place. Like a castle."
Tasha reaches over and gently smacks the end of Vasha's beak at the comment infront of the kids. As for the pyramid, "It reminds me of places I've been. Heavy places. I might visit on my own time, or with a few others. Heavy places have heavy residents."
Rubbing her beak, Vasha asks, "Heavy places.. hmm?" Gabriel also arrives then. "You aren't talking about me behind my back are you?" he asks, and steals a sip of Tasha's coffee.
"That's my special face coffee I made the barista laugh to get that, you know!" But Tasha does pat the chair beside her, and doens't try and get the coffee back -- yet. "We were talking about the pyramid, I was telling Vasha it gives me a certain feeling. Like Harmonia did. Like other places have. I can't say for sure there's anything there more than a tourist trap, but it feels worth checking out. But heavy places like that have heavy inhabitants, so maybe I'll ask Sharon to watch the kids and swing over with a small group. Or alone."
"I recommend looking it up first," Gabriel says. "It might be a casino or a private mansion or something. Things plated in gold usually are." He starts reaching for the rest of Tasha's scone now.
Tasha instead tries to feed the scone to Gabriel. "Good idea. I can't just kick the door in for every strange locale I come across. It's been a while since I was in civilized space with the usual rules." Tasha takes her free hand to pull out her data slate and start punching in a lookup, having to shift through the man, many locations in the gigantic cylinder. "Lets see, where is it.. "
Nothing comes up until she does a map search, where the pyramid (and island) are listed as a Private Residence, with no other data.
Tasha looks up and shares a glance between the two adults. "Lets just say it's piqued my interest all the more after the search. And I highly suspect my search just got some notice, but whether they'll reach out first or I'll be at the bridge first I'm not sure. I wonder if regular visitors even notice it." She arches a brow. "Anyway, it's just listed as a private residence. Nothing else."
"So some rich guy trying to compensate for something," Gabriel says. "Unless it's the owner of the station. Or some Khattan trade house embassy."
"Or someone hiding in plain sight, sending a clear message to those who know what to look for. Anyway, the worst they can do is shoo me away, and I am an expensive Mezzode representing a business, a Khattan won't fault me much for my good sense and anyone else will just find it an annoyance. I'll spin a good tale of business savvy if security comes about. If it's something else, well... Wouldn't be the first time." Taps taps her nose. "Best I go in a small group or alone, in case there's a problem. Can't have it seem like their residence has become my recreation."
"Mmmm, how would you respond to someone poking around the 'door' to our little haven?" Gabriel asks. "Big, flashy signs of wealth worry me."
"I'd intercept and investigate," Tasha replies. Then she pouts at Gabriel. "Are you suggesting I forgo checking it out?"
"I'm just saying what might happen," Gabriel says. "Our resources are not going to be a match for their's, so we need to be very careful."
"Maybe we get invited anyway," Vasha says. "We're interesting, Khatta girl said so."
"I guess we'll see," Tasha says, leaning back. "I have patience. I do. I'm a mother now. I can be patient." She does, however, stop relaxing to try and get her scone and coffee back.
Gabriel grumps but surrenders Tasha's coffee. The other begin to arrive, changed back into their uniforms. V'Brosh and K'tan'ya head off to the shuttles without stopping for drinks or snacks. Katie approaches, and says, "We're in separate hotels, based on our groups, apparently."
"Oh this will be good, so who gets what?" Tasha sits up and sips at her coffee, brow arched, picture of sophisticated intrigue. "Did anyone end up in the bad part of town? Put outside?"
"I don't think there is a bad side of town, but we're all on this side of the circle-sea," Katie says. "I don't think there are any tourist areas on the far side. We're spread out across this side though," she adds, pointing up along the curve. "Separated by the sun windows, five different regions."
"Hmm, spread out... Well, watch yourselves. This is a vacation, but we're never really far from danger and intrigue. You know the drill by now." Tasha presses the rest of her scone in to her mouth, eats it quickly lest it be seized again, and then tips back her coffee. "Ahh... Now then, off to our hotels, is it?"
"Is there anything you want me to look into while we have fun?" Katie asks. "I'm sure Gwyndreal will be fun, but she's still.. a lawyer.." she says with a smirk.
"Maybe get in to a legal disaster? I'm sure she'd enjoy our exotic laws," Tasha says with a laugh, then she grins, sits up, and cocks her head to the side. "Lets see... There are other Khattan houses here. Seeing what's trending, and politics, especially with Khomen, could be very useful. They may have contacts here as well, which could be a useful segway in to introductions without appearing out of the black. You know what we're about, so supporting that here and now is good practice. Maybe inserting our name, if you think it's useful."
"I'll look into the high-end social scene then," Katie says. "I'm good at maneuvering in that space. We've got a few names to drop, and Yue may be able to get us in touch with the TerraGens spy network. We can also stop taking our pheromone suppressors to see how that plays out. I know Kai can influence people's minds, not so sure about Tia though, if she'd even be amenable to something like that. Well.. actually she's done it before, to become invisible, hasn't she?"
"Lets give her some space. She's just started to want to reach out and participate, so, ask her, but if she turns it down, be gentle about accepting that. Me," Tasha glances at the children, "I might see about high end social venues for families with children. I'm here to show them the universe, after all. I consider that my main duty this time around, but I'll do what I can."
"I can stop taking my suppressors," Gabriel volunteers. "This is a heavily Terran population, and it will grease the wheels so to speak. We haven't tried to see if Sharon and Sasha react to it though. Yue could detect it since she'll be with Hakeber. She's been somewhat inoculated against the effect."
"Well this is going to get entertaining, and possibly jealousy-inducing," Tasha observes, raising an eyebrow. "I will remain my fabulous self, to lend a sense of importance and money to everything. If you need me to be around to act as a prop, let me know. Alternatively, I was considering letting some of the rest of me take some time as me. I've been considering a dodge against my nature, which is attracting attention: What if I and my brother and sisters are all remotely controlled, perhaps by an AI? It's not, in a sense, inaccurate. That may soothe some ruffled feathers over the gregarious trade violation that I am. You could see how disturbed they were by my existence."
"So.. pretend you're all Mezzodes?" Katie asks. "I assume they're all genetically the species they appear to be, but I don't know if we ever tested that. But some of their DNA will be identical to yours, I'm sure."
"Yeaaaaah maybe," Vasha says. "Wouldn't be surprised."
"Yeah, but maybe centrally controlled? So we're not, you know, normal living beings. I'm workshopping it. She seemed more disturbed than I hoped, and that concerns me," Tasha admits.
"Who would be the controller then?" Katie asks. "I don't know if the Khattans have actually worked out telepathy. You're the only one with an obvious transceiver in your head." Katie taps the side of her own head when she says this. "And it's made of something unknowable, combined with your Khattan BCI."
"Hmm, no good answers, then. I hope my presence out here doesn't start becoming a liability. I'm not sure how well they believed my 'I don't know how they made me and I don't ask' approach. What do you all think?" Tasha looks especially to Gabriel and Katherine.
"No reason for you to know how you were made," Katie says. "And there may be other Mezzodes here. Something I plan to look for."
"We can all pass as Mezzodes if we need to," Gabriel points out. "The Karnors are throwbacks that haven't existed for thousands of years. Vasha, Sharon and Sasha may show signs of artificiality. Who knows what Tia might represent. K'tan'ya was surprised about our mix, but having us all be created together would solve that. The dragons are wild cards though. We didn't really check how Human they really are. Shojo is a super-Vartan as well."
"I guess if it comes down to it, we have the resources to solve emergencies. It will just mean our life in the Galactic gets that much more complex -- although it would contribute greatly to our fame as something exotic and possibly dangerous. So we can use it if we have to." Tasha smiles, then nods, then stands. "Well, let's get to our hotels, then. Then each team can head out. Our main goal here is integration practice, building strength through relaxation, and exposure for those of us unfamiliar with this reality. For those already familiar, work on blending in, getting along, and managing inquiries and surprise."