Chapter 15: Chapter 15

ISABELLE

“I will show you and the princes to your rooms. Silian will guide Amy to hers,” Mikhlas said, coming to stand in front of them.

“Yeah, okay,” Izzy said, still focused on the feelings that made her uneasy and sad about leaving.

~I have no idea what to expect. We will all have to relearn everything. Something as simple as how long the days are could be different.~

~How am I supposed to take on the role of a leader in a place and with people I know nothing about?~ she wondered as they walked off the bridge with James and Lucas running up to her.

“Mom, this is the coolest thing ever!” Lucas said, looking a little too excited about all of it. Izzy wished she could share his amazement, but they still didn’t know anything about what awaited them.

She would have to speak to them soon. They needed to know everything before they left. It would be unfair to them, otherwise.

“It sure is. But, guys, we need to talk about all this a bit more,” she said.

“Sure, Mom,” James said. “Can we explore the ship?”

Izzy wasn’t sure how she felt about her sons running off around a strange alien spaceship on their own, getting into trouble.

“Umm,” she said, looking toward Mikhlas.

“They are in no danger here. Prime keeps an eye on everything at all times. You have nothing to fear about their safety aboard this ship,” he said.

“Still, you don’t know them. I ended up with an orange toilet once,” she said.

Mikhlas laughed. “Prime, morph a simulacrum to follow the boys around and keep them from causing any mischief.”

“Yes, Captain.” The voice of Prime echoed around them before part of the wall next to her boys bulged and a two-foot matte-black doll, looking like a ninja Barbie, stepped out and gazed up at her boys.

“Cool! Take us to the engine room,” Lucas said, and the small Prime took off running up the corridor with her gleeful boys chasing her.

“Come find me when you get hungry!” Izzy called out to them. They turned the corner and when they were out of sight, she let out her breath.

“Your heart is racing again,” Mikhlas said, coming to stand very close to her.

“Yeah. I know.”

“Do you wish to talk about why?”

“I’m scared,” she said, her footfalls on the metal deck loud enough to mask her admission.

“Prime will watch them, and if at any point you want to see what they are doing, simply ask Prime for a visual. None of you have anything to fear on this ship,” he said.

He stopped and looked into her eyes. “You truly don’t know how precious you are…to everyone here.”

“I don’t know anything, Mikhlas. Nothing. Not one thing about your world. How am I supposed to rule over it all?”

“You will learn what you need to know. You will have good people around you, helping you find your way.”

“Like you?”

“Izzy, I am just a captain. I don’t know anything about the inner workings of the Crown. I would be of no use to you.”

“So, about as much use as I will be, then,” she said, twisting her lips into a sarcastic line.

“Forgive me. I realize you are in the same predicament, but my skills are limited to things that don’t fit in the Palace. Things that…are a little too brutal for a place like that.”

“Mikhlas, at this point, I only know you and Silian from the Realm. How am I meant to trust anyone else at this point? I don’t even know who to trust. I won’t be able to do this alone,” she said.

“We can spend tonight talking about the Realm. How things work and what you might expect.”

“Yeah, that would be helpful. Thanks.”

“Let me show you to your quarters so you can rest.” He turned and gestured for her to walk first.

They arrived at a door on the same level as the bridge. As she stepped forward, the door slid to the side and Izzy saw her room.

The walls, floor, and ceiling were a uniform white, but thin strips of deep red picked out a simple design that reminded her of something Aztec, straight lines and squares.

The motif continued across the floor, although it looked soft and luxurious, made of something other than bare metal.

A dim light illuminated the space and on the far wall stood another large window, looking out at the Moon.

A small table stood bolted to the floor, but there didn’t appear to be anything to sit on, just a round circular band of what looked like plastic around it.

“Where do you sit?” she said.

“There are many different species aboard this ship,” the voice of Prime echoed in the room. “I make furnishings to fit each crew member as needed.”

“Oh…um, thanks, Prime.”

Izzy stepped inside and crossed to the window. She looked out with wide-mouthed amazement. ~The Moon is so beautiful.~ She could see a small crater in the distance.

“This is incredible,” she whispered to herself. She put her hand on the window to feel the cold metal.

“The princes are across the hall. Amy is above you. If you want stairs in the room leading up, just ask Prime to make them for you.

“If you need anything else, please don’t hesitate to ask me. I’ll let you settle in,” Mikhlas said from the door and walked off.

The door closed, and she looked around the luxurious room, feeling alone. A door to her left cycled open, revealing a similar level of luxury in the bedroom.

A large king-size bed with black pillows and shining covers starkly contrasted with the white walls. The entire wall in the bedroom was the same large window as she stood in front of now.

She went in and saw another door open, which led to a bathroom. Izzy was relieved to see a large bathtub, and a toilet, although a small square glass box mystified her.

A small basin and mirror stood behind the door, and she took a moment to wash her face and hands before returning to the lounge area and looking out the window.

The way the sunlight made the Moon glow from this angle was breathtaking. She smiled to herself. ~Now, this isn’t so bad. Like being in a Vegas hotel.~

Maybe everything that lay ahead of her would be like this. A scary, wonderful amazement. The possibilities for what she might see and learn and do were endless.

She moved to one of those rectangles on the floor that looked designed to create a seat from which to look out the window. “Prime? Would you mind making me a sofa, please?” she asked.

“Certainly, Dakira.”

A white-and-red leather sofa built up from the floor, and she sat, staring out the window to collect her thoughts. She remembered Mikhlas’s offer to tell her about the Realm.

She would need to think of a few things to ask about, but the idea of spending the evening alone and talking with him caused butterflies to gallop around inside her.

She still didn’t know how to feel about him, but every time he showed her his caring side, she remembered that first kiss. And if she was honest with herself, she wanted him to do it again.

“You seem troubled, Dakira. Is there anything I can do to help?” the disembodied voice of Prime asked.

“I’m just feeling a bit overwhelmed is all, Prime. This is the first moment I’ve had to myself to think about things.”

“I understand. What is your most immediate question?” the AI asked.

~What is my most immediate question?~ she thought before an idea surfaced. “I guess it is why me, Prime? Why did the Sentinels pick someone outside their own culture? I mean I’m not even the same species.”

“The Alpha Primordial Sentinel Being is the one responsible for locating a candidate for the throne with guidance from the other Sentinels.

“Your selection would be based upon a number of factors, resulting in a multivariable search parameter.

“Traditionally, the candidates possess a high degree of nurturing characteristics, coupled with high determination factors and a willingness to be self-sacrificing as befits the service role represented by the mantle of Monarch.”

~Am I those things?~ Izzy wondered, doubts creeping in.

“In addition to this, candidates should ideally possess the duex fardi. If you possess the duex fardi, it would have been a very high selection criterion.

“The previous Monarch, King Grumth, known by all as the Dark King, did not.

“He was chosen on the basis of other factors, which ultimately proved to the Sentinels that selecting an individual within the Realm without the duex fardi is inherently flawed.”

“What’s that? I don’t think the translators picked that word up.”

“In simple terms, it is a genetic predisposition that enables the individual to not only survive the ascension process, but also to communicate directly to the Sentinels at a higher state of awareness.

“It is a rare genetic mutation occurring in less than zero point zero, zero, zero, zero, zero—”

“I get it. But there are hundreds of billions of people in the Realm. Some must have those characteristics. Why select someone from outside?”

“I can only speculate. Perhaps a fresh perspective, not burdened with the societal conditioning of the previous Monarchy was deemed a high selection criterion, leading to your being chosen.

“There must have been some event in your recent past that attracted the Alpha Primordial and other Sentinels, and which displayed the necessary characteristics.”

~When I thought Peter would kill me. Is that what did it?~ The thought snuck into her mind and she looked back to the lunar landscape, biting her lip and turning her thoughts to more practical matters.

If they weren’t leaving Earth yet, maybe she would have time to speak to the boys tomorrow. Learn what she could about where they are going so she could answer more of their questions.

The other option was to have Mikhlas sit with her while she spoke with them.

~He will be able to tell them what they want to know better than I can.~ She stared into the night sky outside, alone with her thoughts for what seemed like hours. A knock on the door broke her stare.

“Come in,” she said. The door opened, and Lucas and James rushed in, followed by two of the little Prime dolls, which bowed to her before morphing with the wall.

“Did you guys have fun? Are you hungry?” she asked.

“We saw two aliens!” Lucas said, throwing himself onto the couch next to her. “And yeah, starving!”

“I thought perhaps we could eat with Amy too. You guys okay with that?” At nods from each of them, she asked Prime to contact Amy.

“Hey, Izzy,” Amy said. ~She sounds distracted. I wonder what she’s doing?~

“Want to come down and join me and the boys for a meal?” Izzy asked.

“Can’t. In the zone. Talk later.”

~Huh, oh well, it will be nice if it is just me and the boys.~

“So, tell me about these aliens you met,” she said, pulling Lucas in for a cuddle and wondering how something as prosaic as food happened on the ship.

Lucas stretched his legs out on the sofa, and James sat on the soft floor, smiling at his brother.

“The first one we met is called Sus. He’s down in the engine room,” Lucas said, reaching into his jeans pocket. “He gave me this.”

He handed her a small golden band about twice the size of a wedding ring. Intricate markings decorated the metal, but it didn’t look like jewelry. The inside of the band felt like sandpaper under her fingertips.

“What’s it for?” she asked.

“Don’t know,” Lucas shrugged, his bony elbow digging into her as he gestured. “It fell off him and he gave it to me.”

“What?”

“Oh yeah, he’s a cyborg, like, half of him is this weird purple color all knobbly and stuff, and the other half is metal. Can we eat now?”

While she tried to process the image of a purple and metal alien, she spoke to Prime.

“Prime, how do we go about getting something to eat?”

“What would you like to eat?” Prime’s voice echoed in the room.

“McDonald’s!” Lucas said,

“I don’t think—”

“There are one hundred and forty-five menu items listed at the restaurant known as McDonald’s. Which items would you like?”

As Lucas opened his mouth, Izzy gave him a little squeeze. “You can do that, Prime?”

“Yes, Dakira, this close to the planet, I can simply teleport any food item you want onto the ship. I will take a sample and then be able to replicate it from my storage of base materials in the hold.”

While the idea of ordering takeout, especially a plate of truffle spaghetti from the Italian Kitchen, made her mouth water, she couldn’t just steal food.

“I could go for some McDonald’s, Mom,” James said.

“We can’t steal food, James. It wouldn’t be right.”

“But they make like a million burgers a day. They won’t miss a few,” Lucas said.

“We don’t steal, Lucas, but…” She wondered where her suitcase had gone to. “If I have the cash, can you swap it, Prime?”

“I can easily access your bank accounts, Dakira,” Prime responded.

James looked at her with a hopeful expression. ~Why not? Let’s treat ourselves. Who knows when we will get the chance again?~

“All right, boys, order whatever you want. Prime, I will have a serving of truffle spaghetti from the Italian Kitchen on, um, Burrard Street, I think it is.”

“You’re the best, Mom! Double cheeseburger value meal with a Coke and chocolate sundae, please, Prime,” Lucas said.

“What about you, James?” Izzy asked.

“I’ll have a Big Mac meal with the large fries and Coke, and a hot apple pie too,” James said.

“Let’s go to the table, and you can tell me about the second alien you met,” Izzy said.

With a series of flashes, the food appeared on the white table, filling the room with the aroma of French fries and truffles.

“The Zaxary, they’re really weird,” James said as chairs, looking just like those from the cabin, built from the floor.

“They? I thought you said you only met one other,” she said sitting down. A napkin and a set of cutlery appeared in front of her and a small pile of paper napkins in front of the boys.

“He’s a blob monster,” Lucas said, stuffing his mouth full of French fries.

“That’s not fair. He called himself a hierarchical colony organism,” James said. “I thought he was quite nice.”

“He still looks like Bob from ~Aliens vs. Monsters~, ‘cept he’s yellow,” Lucas replied.

“What does he do on the ship?” Izzy asked, twirling some pasta around a fork before taking a bite.

“May’ tenshe,” Lucas mumbled through a mouthful of burger.

“He’s like the janitor, cleans up any mess,” James said.

“But he can split into lots of bodies and reform. We found two of them on the lower decks near the storage holds. When we were talking to him, he answered from both bodies at the same time.”

“Were you scared?” she asked them.

“Nah,” James said after a huge swallow. “He told us a joke.”

“Hey, Mom, how many xufti fruit grow on a tree?” Lucas grinned.

“Err…”

“All of them,” Lucas said.

“That’s terrible,” she said, taking another bite of delicious pasta. Despite the conversation, talking about aliens, and not just the ones in movies, Izzy felt herself relax.

~A meal from home, so familiar and normal, and just me with the boys. I needed this, and I’m glad they seem to be taking to the ship like ducks to water.~