Thank you so much for the review! And no, I am not the type of person who quits on a story, especially if it's good. I know exactly where this one is going, as do I with The Purest of Heart, and I am fully committed to writing great these stories. The only things that really get in the way are other unfinished stories and schoolwork. Both this one and the Purest of Heart should be finished sometime during the summer. Anyway… I had such a hard time coming up with the details for this chapter and how to write them! Aargh! o Any-hoo…this one should be cute and funny. Please send me a review! Enjoy!
Chapter Three: Dinner Under the Star Lilies
It was about 15 minutes to 7:00 pm, the time B.E.N. would be picking up Luna5. But B.E.N. wasn't quite ready yet. In fact, he was a bit anxious about the whole thing. He had planned to do something special for her. Actually, he was advised. Basically, the whole thing was planned for him, since he was so new to dating. After all, this was his very first night on a date with a girl he had only just met today, on his first day of operation, and this night had to be perfect.
B.E.N. was standing in front of his full-view mirror in his room, checking himself over for any flaws or overlooked details that needed attending to. Olivia was there to help him out. He wore a blue tuxedo with a white flower and a bowtie, all of which had been made for him prior to his first day of life by Martin's wife, whom B.E.N. had not at all seen yet.
Anxious about his first night out, the emotional robot was beginning to panic, constantly worrying about the impression he was going to be making on Luna5. "How do I look? Is my tie on straight? Did I use enough buffing liquid on my metal?"
"Relax…relax…" replied Olivia. "Trust me…you're perfect. You're a regular babe magnet."
B.E.N. grinned, flattered. "Really? Uh…what's a babe magnet?"
"Never mind. Now, remember to smile when you see her," Olivia told him, giving him a list of tips. "Stand up straight, be proper and polite, and try not to be so…ya know, jumpy. Oh, and one thing you always wanna do for a girl is to sweet-talk her and she'll be all over you. But don't overdo it. And once you get to the restaurant, start with small talk. You know, talk with her. It's always good to do when you're having dinner."
"Right. Um…what's small talk?"
"You know! It's when you talk about the weather and stuff like that."
"Ah…um…okay. Gotcha! I think…"
"And don't forget to greet her with a nice 'Good evening.'" The young girl then handed B.E.N. a bouquet of exotic flowers and pushed him out to the front door. "And remember: no jitters. Now, go to that hospital and work your magic."
—
It wasn't long before B.E.N. arrived at the hospice, bouquet in hand. Approaching the door to Luna5's living quarters, the robot repeated to himself, "Don't panic, breathing in, breathing out." Truly anxious to no end, he swallowed down a gulp and slowly…very slowly…wincing and bracing himself for the worst, looking away from the door…knocked…three times.
He could feel the lovesickness coming on strong this time. His knees were weak and trembling, his heart was pounding hard and fast behind his chest, and his stomach was doing twists and summersaults inside. He could easily compare this feeling to the uncomfortable and frightening anticipation of waiting your turn to go on a flying roller coaster ride. But he had to remind himself not to panic and that everything would be just fine.
"Oh, what if she laughs at me? Come on, Benny-boy. Get it together now! You'll be fine! I mean what are you worried about? It's just one little date, right?"
"I'm coming," Luna5's voice called out. B.E.N. cried out with a start at the sound of her voice…that sweet…gentle…angelic voice that just made him want to smile and stare lovingly into space… "Yes?" Luna5 said, opening the door. "Oh, good evening, B.E.N."
"Ah! Oh! Uh…good evening, Luna5," B.E.N. greeted hurriedly. He held out the bouquet of sunny flowers, shyly presenting them to the android. "Um…these are for you."
Luna5 beamed and happily accepted the bouquet from him. "Oh, flowers! Oh, you shouldn't have. These are just lovely!" She took a sniff at the flower pedals. "Mmm…they smell nice, too. I'll put these in some water." Setting the bouquet in a water-filled vase, she continued, "Thank you kindly, B.E.N. Very thoughtful of you."
"You…you like them?"
"Of course, I do. How did you know I liked Proteus flixies?" (That would be the name of the flowers.)
"Oh, heh, lucky guess. Heh-heh. Uh…" The robot cleared his throat and became more of a gentleman. "My lady, your carriage awaits."
"We have a carriage, too? Oh, you're so sweet."
"I am? I mean—sure I am! Sweet. That's me!"
In a minute, B.E.N. escorted Luna5 outside the hospice and up to a carriage that she seemed to recognize. The carriage itself was traditional and was floating in midair, as do all carriages. A large creature was attached to it, appearing to be responsible for pulling the carriage. The creature was a bit horse-like, somewhat amphibious, and stood on two legs, which were its only limbs. This particular creature, as B.E.N. was told, was called a bullyadous.
B.E.N. quickly stopped at the carriage's step, stood to the side to allow Luna5 passage onto the bullyadous-drawn vehicle. "Heh-heh…after you."
"Why thank you, B.E.N."
"Oh, it's…heh…really no big deal."
He then climbed into the carriage after her and the two sat side by side in the seat as the carriage pulled off, placidly traveling down the road. To be frank, B.E.N. had quite forgotten the words to tell Luna5 how much he liked her. Then his memory circuits retrieved a mental file of his, recalling that he had written it all down.
"Oh!" the robot exclaimed nervously. "I-I-I-I just re-remembered, uh, something."
Luna5 turned to him with a look of anticipation in her eyes. "Yes? What is it?"
"I, um…I…I wrote something for you!"
"You did?"
"Eh, y-yeah! I-it's-it's, um, it's…it's a poem!"
"You wrote a poem? Oh, how wonderful!" Luna5 was utterly joyful to hear this and smiled at B.E.N. "Let's hear it."
"Um…heh-heh…" B.E.N. cleared his throat and pulled out a little sheet of paper from the inside of his tux. The words were written in his own, neat, playful handwriting. He recited the poem in a dramatic and very passionate manner. "What soft, gracefulness presents thyself in my eager eye? She is playing with my heart, teasing it to no end. And yet…I cannot help myself! Her beautiful, moonlit face entices me like no other I have ever seen. Though I am only a day old, I would only ask for just one kiss. Just one kiss. That's all I ask! Please? Just one, from her sparkling blue lips. My heart would never stop singing after that one kiss." Luna5 was almost speechless, but her face was beaming brightly. B.E.N. asked her apprehensively, "Well? Did ya like it?"
"No…I loved it!" Luna5 replied with much glee. "Oh, B.E.N.! That was beautiful!"
"You…you think so?"
"Of course! I had no idea you were that creative…and…deep."
"Oh, well, heh-heh…"
At last, the carriage pulled to a halt in front of a high-class, swanky building, a restaurant of some kind. The double-door entrance had a lovely, artsy signage above the threshold. The sign had an image of a large, glowing, blue manta bird in flight. B.E.N. and Luna5 gazed upon it with awe, but Luna5 seemed to recognize it.
"The Blue Manta?" the android said, identifying the building by name.
"Wow. Isn't it lovely?" B.E.N. added.
"I've always wanted to come here, but I never had the time to get reservations."
"Really? Well, let's go in!"
The two stepped down from the carriage and approached the threshold of the restaurant. At the very entrance was a man with a large mustache under his nose and a clipboard in his hand. His demeanor was very stiff, as if he would accept only the wealthy to step inside. When he referred to B.E.N. and Luna5, the man spoke with a thick French accent.
"Your names, monsieur and madame?"
"Uh…" said B.E.N., a little unsure of this, since it was very new to him. "B.E.N., Bio-Electronic Navigator…"
"And Luna5," Luna5 finished.
The man looked at them with a suspicious look in his eye. "Hmmm…name of creator?" he reached.
"Martin Trohs."
"Oh! Oui! Professor Trohs! We all know of him!" the man replied excitedly. "Right zis way." And he led the two inside the blue-themed Old English eatery where a strings instrumental was playing peacefully in the background. In a minute, they were seated at a two-person table right outside, under the stars. The table was fixed with a silky, white cloth and a small, lit candle in the center. Glowing fixtures and decorations hung over the tables. "And, eh, what will be your pleasure zis fine evening?" he wanted to know.
"Could you give us a minute to look over the menu, sir?" Luna5 requested.
"Oui, oui, madame." And the man left them alone together at the table.
"Menu?" B.E.N. questioned. "What's a menu?"
"It's a list of the food concoctions they have here," Luna5 explained, picking up a menu. "You choose what you would like to have to eat and they prepare it and bring it to you."
"Wow. Really? Ooh! Lemme try!" He picked up the menu in front of him and began to look it over. He soon found something to his liking. "Ooh, the Tin Foil Pasta? That sounds appetizing."
Just then, the man returned to their table. "'Ave you decided?"
"Yes," answered Luna5. "We'll have a large bowl of the Tin Foil Pasta, for both of us to share."
"Oui. You're dinner will be out shortly."
The man then took their menus and walked towards the kitchen.
Then B.E.N. remembered what Olivia had told him. He was supposed to use small talk, near as he could figure. Talk about the weather and stuff like that. That was what she'd said to do. So, B.E.N. gave it a try, clearing his throat be fore speaking:
"So, uh…the, uh, weather's been nice…"
"Yes, it has," was Luna5's response.
"Uh, heh-heh, yeah, that sky, huh? Talk about blue!" Luna5 cocked an eyebrow at B.E.N. "I mean it probably couldn't be any bluer than that, could it?"
"Are you using small talk?"
"Uh…I, uh…sure! At least, I think so. I mean I should be. Honestly," he said, nervously rubbing the back of his neck, "this really isn't easy for me. But ya think it'll rain?"
"I'm not sure," Luna5 chortled. "I supposed this is your first time using small talk?"
"Eh…yes…as a matter of fact." He grinned uneasily. This was extremely uncomfortable for him. He didn't feel much like using small talk anymore, but Olivia had advised him to do so if that's what he was supposed to do.
"You really don't need to use small talk," said Luna5, finally lifting the burden from B.E.N.'s shoulders. That made him feel much better.
In a mere 20 minutes, B.E.N. and Luna5's order was brought out to them. The entire dish consisted of softened tin foil in the form of a pile of noodles. The pile was doused with a thick petroleum sauce and topped with a bunch of small titanium spheres, like meatballs.
B.E.N. grinned at the dish. "Wow. So that's the Tin Foil Pasta! Um…how do you eat it?"
Luna5 demonstrated by picking up one of the noodles with her eating utensil. "You just take one noodle with your fork, bring the end of it to your mouth, and…"—she then slurped on the noodle, the entire thing disappearing into her mouth and down her throat—"…slurp it down."
"Oh! That looks like fun. Lemme try!" Eager, B.E.N. began to mimic what Luna5 had showed him and slurped on the tin noodle. But the sauce splattered in his face when he reached the end of it. He blinked with a start from the sudden splatter and chuckled bashfully. "Oops!"
Luna5 chortled. "That's okay. Try again."
He did. The sauce came to the point where it didn't splatter as much in his face, but almost every time he slurped on a noodle, he had to wipe his face with a napkin to clean of however much of the sauce did splatter. "This is delicious!" the robot commented, satisfied.
He continued to slurp on the noodles with Luna5, eating the titanium spheres on the side. About half of the noodle pile was gone in some time. At one point, the two droids picked up a noodle at the same time and slurped on it as they had done all the others. The more they slurped, the closer they came together. It didn't occur to them that they had picked up the same noodle…until their lips touched.
There was a short pause as the two stared at one another and then…pulled away from one another.
Both B.E.N. and Luna5 felt sheepish about what had just happened. It was a total accident, a huge fluke. They hadn't meant to pick up the exact same noodle and slurp on it until their lips touched the way they did…and yet…strangely enough…they liked it. It was different from one of Luna5's little friendly pecks. They had merely been to show a small amount of affection.
Hoping to make up for the whole thing that had happened, B.E.N. bashfully pushed one of the titanium spheres with his fork over to Luna5's side of the bowl. "Oh, thank you, B.E.N.," Luna5 said to him with a smile. She popped the sphere into her mouth.
Some time went by. That time was spent with the two robots gazing out at the etherium sky, which was filled with dozens upon dozens of tiny, diamond-like stars. A pair of large, bright, white moons slowly crept their way above the horizon and into the view of those on the dark side of the planet that could see them. They were like giant, shining orbs that refracted the light of the sun, directing the light at the very earth.
"Gee, this sure is fun, isn't it?" said B.E.N. cheerfully. "You and me, together at this restaurant, sitting under the pretty stars? I just feel like dancing!"
"Well, you're in luck," said Luna5, pointing out. "People are getting up to dance."
"Oh!" With much enthusiasm, he rose from his chair, beginning to move to join the other dancers. "Come on, Luna5! Let's dance!" Turning to her, he stopped when he noticed that she wasn't joining him. "Uh…what's the matter? This is gonna be fun!"
"I know," Luna5 replied, looking down as she sat there in her chair. "But the thing is…I've never danced a day in my life, granted I was first brought to life five months ago."
B.E.N. laughed gently. "Aw, is that all?" He then bent towards the android held out a hand.
"And you need to properly ask me first." She smirked playfully.
"Uh…right. Eh, what am I supposed to say again?"
"You say my name and then say, 'Would you care for a dance?'"
"Ohhh! Right! Um…Luna5, would you care for a dance?"
"Why, I would love to."
Luna5 put her own hand into B.E.N.'s and allowed him to gracefully direct her into the crowd of dancers. The music changed from a slow, peaceful melody to more of an upbeat tune, something everyone could dance to. (Imagine something similar to that of the party music near the end of the movie.) The whole crowd had really gotten into it, creating a synchronized dancing pattern with one another and clapping in rhythm to the music.
In a short moment, it seemed as though B.E.N.'s feet had minds of their own; he was dancing for the first time, but he was doing it very well, like he'd been doing it all his life. Both he and Luna5 were quite surprised to see this. "I had no idea I was this good!"
"I suppose dancing is one of your many given talents," said Luna5.
"Look at you! You're not doing so bad yourself!"
B.E.N. and Luna5, as it turned out, were the most lively dance couple in the entire crowd. In response to this, the crowd moved to create an open circle, watching them with delight and enjoyment at their performance, particularly B.E.N.'s.
"They like the way you dance," Luna5 explained. "That's why they gave us room like this."
"Really?"
It was as though the music had the desire to test B.E.N.'s skills because it suddenly grew a little bit faster. But B.E.N. went along with it. He was enjoying this so much; he was beginning to create his own style, spinning, twirling, and moving his arms and body in a small wave. In the midst of this, the manager of the restaurant happened to be hearing the cheering of the crowd and decided to investigate. Pushing through the crowd, the manager happened upon the dancing B.E.N. At the same moment, a waiter with a huge cake on a platter was walking by. B.E.N. became so into it that he soon became unaware of his surroundings. He ended his impressive jig with a disco move known as "pointing to the stars." And unfortunately, his hand ended up smacking the platter, which in turn, caused the cake to splatter into the manager's face.
At this, everything froze.
The crowd, the music, everything. Everyone stopped at stared.
B.E.N. glance about in utter puzzlement. "Uh…what went on? Wh-what's the matter with—" He stopped in his turn when he met the sight of the manger, who was now drenched in the formerly beautiful cake. The waiter with the platter was now glaring at him. "Oh. Um…hi there."
"Zat is it!" the waiter growled angrily, upset that he had just made a mess of both the manager and the cake. "I quit!" And the man stormed off. The crowd parted, allowing the waiter to make his leave.
"Huh? Wh-what did I do?"
"You! Robot!" splutter the manager in a French accent from behind his face full of cake as he wiped away what remained of it. "You 'ave just cost me my best chef!"
"Me?" B.E.N. pointed to himself in question.
"And you!" The manager pointed at Luna5. "You 'elped out!"
"But it was an accident," Luna5 added in, on the defensive.
"That's right!" B.E.N. agreed, though he was still confused as to what had happened. "What she said."
However, the manager was unconvinced. In an instant, he took B.E.N. by the neck and middle and tossed the poor robot out through the main entrance of the building. Luna5 soon followed, landing on top of B.E.N. in the dirty street.
"And stay out!" the manager snarled, enraged, slamming the doors to the entrance and leaving the two lying on the street.
Luna5 realized that she was on top of B.E.N. Knowing she outweighed him, she was quick to get to her feet and help him up while he groaned. "Sorry. Are you all right, B.E.N.?"
"Who? Me? Well, uh, I've felt better."
"I'm sorry. I never told you that the manager had a bad temper."
"You? Oh, that's okay. But I think it was kinda my fault that we got thrown out …I think."
"I see. You're thinking that because you were treating me to this fancy restaurant you were the one at fault. I suppose you were a little," she admitted, "but we both know that it was all a freak accident."
"Yeah, I guess you're right. But something's telling me I should make it up to you. I know!" B.E.N. was hit by an idea. "Do you wanna go anywhere special?"
"Well, it's really not necessary, but I suppose we could go down to the beach."
"The beach? You mean where that huge puddle of water is?"
"Yes. You mean the ocean."
With that, B.E.N. and Luna5 strolled down the rough street of town. Up ahead was the view of the ocean, shimmering with the reflection of the two moons as they were rising up from behind the horizon. It was one of the most peaceful sights B.E.N. had ever laid eyes on. In a few short minutes, the two arrived at the small sandy shore where waves of salty water lapped up to lick the boarder between land and sea. B.E.N. could feel the gentle ocean spray in his face. The smell of the salt was at its strongest here. Manta birds had come to play, cawing out to one another in song.
"I like to come out here as often as I can," said Luna5 distantly, "to dip my feet in the water."
B.E.N. blinked. "Really? How come?"
"Because it makes me feel completely at peace." She slowly approached the water's edge and allowed the water to lap and splash small surfs at her feet. She exhaled, "Ahh…there's just something about the ocean that brings you closer to nature and makes you think about things, you know?"
"Yeah…heh..." B.E.N. couldn't help smiling, gazing longingly at Luna5 as she twirled her long dress, presenting much of her true beauty. "That's deep…real deep."
"Isn't it?" She turned back to him. "Here, you try it."
"Okay." Eagerly, he joined her just as the water inhaled and pulled away from land for a moment's time. The tiny waves came rushing back and the water splashed at his feet. But it sent a stingingly chilling sensation all up his legs and left him shivering. It was a feeling he'd never known before. "Ooowow! I-i-i-i-i-i-it's f-f-freezing!"
"It's supposed to be. Don't worry, you'll get used to it."
"Whoo!" And he immediately high-tailed it out of the water. "Uh, maybe later."
"Oh, there's something I want you to see."
Luna5 grabbed B.E.N. by the arm and pulled him over to the stone wall where the town began. Some sort of plant growth was up against the wall. It was a shrub full of flowers. They were slightly different than the Proteus flixies he had given her at the start of their date. These flowers were the color of fire, red, orange, and yellow and they seemed to be closed up in buds.
"These are fire lilies," Luna5 explained. "These only bloom during the day when they can soak up the sun's energy. And they resemble the sun when they're in full bloom."
"Wow. They look beautiful! Even though they're closed up."
"This species has a life cycle of up to five years."
"Five years?"
"Yes. They are the only flowers that live for that long. And they won't die, not matter what, even if they're picked, not until they've reached the end of their cycle. But when they do reach it, that's the time when they send out their seedy pollen to plant new fire lilies. So, these particular flowers are pretty much the rarest of all. They're so rare, in fact, that people are willing to make money off of them, which is why the people of this planet are preserving them here. Now, there's something else I want you to see. This is the main reason why I like to come here at night."
She then took B.E.N. to the opposite side of the beach. On this side was the exact same thing. However, it wasn't fire lilies they were now looking at. These flowers were completely white in color and had five open pedals in the shape of stars.
"Well, would you look at these!" he exclaimed with a grin.
"These are called star lilies. They are exactly like fire lilies, except that star lilies only bloom during the night and fire lilies have twice as many pedals."
"Wow…how gorgeous! I can kinda see where they get the name 'star lily.'"
"Yes. These are my absolute favorite flowers. So gentle and soft…and when the light of the twin moons hits them just right…"—suddenly, the pedals of the star lilies gave off a timid, white glow as if refracting the light—"…they shine like the moons themselves."
"Awww," B.E.N. cooed, utterly moved by all of this. "That's so beautiful." Just then, he felt something in his eye and realized that it was a tear. Appropriately, the tear was thin and oily, but it still possessed the emotion he was feeling right now. Then, he was hit by another idea. "Hey, I know!" He picked one of the star lilies and he and Luna5 faced each other. "I bet you'd look great with this!" And he fixed the flower into her blue hair, on her right side. "Ahh, beautiful."
Luna5 gave a shy expression while she smiled gratefully. "Thank you, B.E.N.," she said, flipping a bit of her hair.
A little later, B.E.N. dropped off Luna5 at her room in the hospice. Before closing the door, she turned to him one last time, saying, "Thank you again, B.E.N. I had a wonderful time."
"Really? Me, too."
"Would you like to do this again?"
"Oh, would I ever!"
"Shh! Try to keep it down."
"Oh! Uh, sorry. Sorry." He lowered his voice. "Um…how does next week sound?"
"Sounds fun. Well, we'd better turn in for the night, you know, get some sleep. I'll see you again next week."
"Gotcha."
"Good night, B.E.N." And Luna5 came up and planted a long, passionate kiss on B.E.N.'s metal cheek, closing the door behind her.
B.E.N. was left with a huge, smiling grin on his face and a pair of pink hearts in his eyes, tingling all over, literally feeling light and fluttery inside. "Ahh…Luna5…what an angel…" he sighed long and lovingly, rubbing the place on his cheek where Luna5 had left her blue lipstick marks. Overcome with the lovesickness again, he felt that it was stronger than ever before. It overpowered him greatly, and he collapsed with a clatter of his limbs, passed out on the floor.
—
Three weeks had gone by, and B.E.N. and Luna5 began seeing a little more of each other. On their second date, they went to a better restaurant than the Blue Manta. And on their third date, they went to see a live, theatrical performance.
But not once did he openly proclaim his love to the android. It just wasn't the right time yet, as he'd been told. Of course, knowing this did not interfere with his time with her.
The night of their third date ended wonderfully. B.E.N. came through the front doors of his home with a big smile on his face, twirling and dancing, Luna5 running through his love struck mind. Martin Trohs took note of this.
"I take it your date went well?" he asked.
"Ohhh, what a day it has been, what a rare mood I'm in," B.E.N. was singing to himself, all the while dancing through the foyer, "Why, it's almost like bein' in love…"
"I'll take that as a yes."
It was during those three weeks that B.E.N. learned so much about the world and the people in it. He still had a lot to learn about the universe, but he knew enough already, having to ask fewer questions the more he learned. Unfortunately, he was about to learn a life lesson that everyone naturally would resent: life is never really fair, especially when you're engaged in strict business.
Smithers McDermin-Hagen made that lesson perfectly clear tonight after B.E.N. had arrived home. "Mr. Navigator," he addressed toward the robot with a serious tone, snapping B.E.N. to his senses. B.E.N. stopped short in mid-step. "I hate to interrupt your lovely dance routine, but I have come here strictly on business."
B.E.N. straightened himself. "Oh, hi there, Smithy. Um…when you say you've come here strictly on business, what do you mean by that…exactly…uh, sir?" he wanted to know.
"It's a serious thing," Martin explained.
McDermin-Hagen continued. "Since coming to observe your presentation three weeks ago, I have discussed with the Board of Interplanetary Trade about appointing you as official navigator of the Interplanetary Trading Company. And the board has come to a decision…" A pause…as McDermin-Hagen prepared to give the news. "Mr. Bio-Electronic Navigator…the Board of Interplanetary Trade has appointed you as official navigator for the Interplanetary Trading Company."
"It's been decided as of two weeks ago," said Martin truthfully. "We didn't want to tell you right away since you were still being introduced to new things."
"Oh," replied B.E.N., somewhat puzzled.
"This will give you the opportunity to see even more than just this one planet. You'll be able to learn so much more, seeing the entire universal empire."
The robot smiled at the thought of that. "Really? Oh, that's fantastic! Luna5 go, too? Can she? Huh? Can she? Oh, how wonderful would that be! We get to see the entire universal empire—!"
"Uh, B.E.N.…there's something else." Martin was sounding a bit more serious.
"Huh?"
"Mr. Navigator," said McDermin-Hagen, "I'm afraid you're little girlfriend cannot join you."
"Why not?"
"Only those official crew members may ride the merchant ships. And seeing as Luna5 has duties of her own here, on the planet Solietune, her company is just simply out of the question."
B.E.N. was struck painfully in the chest by this information, and his smile vanished. "But…but, eh…that's…that's not…th-that's not fair."
"I'm sorry, B.E.N. But we promise that you and Luna5 will still have the chance to see one another from time to time."
The smile returned and B.E.N. was able to relax. "Oh, good. I've never really navigated before. It might be fun."
"That's the spirit."
—
Another week went by.
B.E.N. packed his bags and was soon on his way. He made fast friends with the crew of the merchant ship called the S.S. Venture. She was a magnificent galleon, able to carry hundreds of tons of goods without being strained from all the weight. So far, she had been to and from almost every planet in the galaxy with little maintenance. Her captain was a female felinid named Starling, whose first mate was a tall, bulky alien named Nebula. The lookout was referred to as Mr. Crow because he spent so much time in the crow's nest.
As the S.S. Venture flew out from the shrinking spaceport that neighbored Solietune, B.E.N. could barely make out a tiny, blue-haired figure he immediately recognized. He was already missing Luna5…terribly. And he was sure that she was missing him.
The journey would be long and hard, but B.E.N. was confident that they would see each other again…and that he would find his way back home.
To be continued…
—
You have no idea what I went through to find the perfect concept for this chapter…It took me so long to come up with…But…I had fun… By the way, the name of B.E.N.'s home planet, Solietune, comes from the French words soliel et lune, which literally means "sun and moon", to show the close relationship between B.E.N. and Luna5. I think B.E.N. is like the sun and Luna5 is like the moon. Like yin and yang, they go hand in hand.
So? What do you think? I hugely appreciate the reviews! Thanks!
