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Chapter 6 – The Navigation Ball

Arles took Karen upstairs to the room he was staying in at her parents' house. Like Karen's room, it was on the third floor, too. Right next to her room. The horizontal boards were painted blue with white trim and large windows. The room was clean and in a corner sat Karen and Samuel's luggage they had taken with them to New York. The black jacket that went with his tux, lay on top of everything. The beautiful gown she had worn, hung on the closet door.

"I didn't know when you would want to see any of this. Your Mom came up and got most of your things already to do the washing."

Karen picked up the jacket that Samuel had worn that night. Tears filled her eyes. "This is heavy."

Arles picked it up and weighed it with his arm. "Yeah, it is."

He checked the inside pockets and found Samuel's wallet and a small navigation ball. Arles smiled. "That's clever. He never carries his wallet in his jacket. He knew they would have taken it from him. Or the trousers' pockets were too small. Hmmm." He handed it to her. "You should keep up with that, unless you want me to."

She looked at it and willed herself not to cry.

He watched her. "Okay?"

She nodded her head and wiped her eyes.

He held up the small, black ball and smiled at it. "I remember when he got this."

"What is that?"

"He didn't show you this?"

She smiled, "Well, no."

"Then, allow me." He turned and pulled the drapes closed and closed the bedroom door. "He said that you liked astronomy. And that was before you knew anything about our Dad being from out of town and us growing up on a space ship."

She smiled. "It's interesting."

"Yeah, I suppose. Well, this is a Navigation Ball. It's small so you can plug it in to your ship, or…." He tossed it in the air and it hovered two feet above Arles' hand. Karen jumped in surprise when a map of the galaxy shot out of it in a burst of light. She felt as though she was in a planetarium as the planets and stars zoomed by her. Arles put his hand on her back to keep her from falling. The entire thing made her a bit motion sick.

He looked back at as the scene stopped at Earth and a red dot blinked their current location. "Alright?"

She covered her mouth. "That is nothing what I would have expected."

"Yeah, it makes me sick when it comes on, too." He pointed up at it, "See, this is where we are, currently. But, say I wanted to take you….to…..ummmm…the homeworld. Where Papa is from."

Karen pat his arm. "This isn't going to make me sick is it?"

He smiled, "There are two, no three settings. I'll keep it mild for you."

"Good. Because I'm not over it yet."

He smiled at her. "Show me the Quauhtin homeworld."

The ball blinked and she saw the planet fade into another planet. As it spun, she saw a long line from a blast that marked one side of it. "Wow. Is that it?"

He nodded, "That's it. That is a scorch mark from a battle. Famous battle that killed a King."

"Do people still live there? I mean….well…."

He laughed under his breath. "You can say it. Quauhtin. Yes, there are many cities and even smaller towns. The castle is there, and it's tradition that the ruling King lives there. But, never the heir."

"Why?"

"It's safer. All heirs live off of the homeworld. There are a lot of colonies they can pick, or they are welcome to create their own."

She looked up shook her head. "That's amazing."

"This is my favorite. Show me the Fox Fur Nebula."

The image faded and Karen could have sworn she was standing in the middle of space. She grabbed Arles' arm instinctively and held on tightly.

He chuckled, "You're safe. The fox doesn't bite."

She looked at what he was pointing at and within the pink clouds that moved slowly about, she saw the clouds that formed the image of a fox.

"That's beautiful." She said quietly.

"See, it looks like a fox, that's the reason it's called that. All of the stars around it are young so, the gas and dust give it a lot of light. The blue glow there, is the dust reflecting light from that star. That red and black bits are cosmic dust and ionized hydrogen gas. You can refuel a ship there. I have several times."

"Arles, that's beautiful."

He chuckled and snapped his fingers. The ball powered down and slowly floated into Arles' hand. He offered it to her. "Here. I'm sure he was going to give it you."

She looked at it. "I have no idea how to use it. Would you keep it for me?"

"Until you learn to use it. When you want it, just let me know." He agreed and sipped it into his pocket.

He pulled back open the drapes and opened the door to let the bright, Florida sunshine back into the room. He rubbed his eyes. "And I need some sunglasses. Geez."

Karen looked at the wallet she held in her hands. "Umm….class?"

"We can pop there together, just before class. I'll remain with you through class along with a few agents, and Varro will be there with us."

She sighed.

"What's wrong?"

"This isn't going to work. You have to begin teaching soon-"

"Don't worry about that. What class is this?"

"History." She told him.

He sighed. "Well, alright. I'm going to get educated today. It's in three hours?"

She nodded. "Yeah, afternoon class. Just a lecture, so it's….."

He pointed at her bag, "And your books. You probably need those."

She watched him pick them up. She smiled as he carried them into her bedroom for her.

"So, umm…. Do you need anything?"

She looked up from Samuel's wallet that she held in her hands still. "No. That Navigation Ball made me a bit queasy."

"Okay. Well, you have time for a lie down. Do you need something cool for your head?"

She smiled. "I'm alright. I'll just…be here."

"Alright. Well, if you need me, I'll be with Henry. We're learning to play fetch. He almost has me trained."

"Thank you, Arles."

He pat the side of the door and walked out.

She sat on her bed and looked at Samuel's wallet. She opened it and immediately saw a picture of him and five others. She recognized Arles and Genie immediately, but had no idea who the others were. They were all dressed sharply and all seemed to be hugging one another at once.

She touched Samuel's face. He was so happy. She slipped the photo back in the wallet and looked through it. She found the usual things that she had expected: a drivers license, a card documenting him as a British citizen, another card documenting him as an American citizen, a few credit cards and the money she had won from the bet at Tony's.

She saw a few bits of paper that had been folded and put in with the cash. She pulled it out and saw that it was a letter from Samuel, to Samuel.

"The first few days were rough, yeah. But, then I met someone who became very special to me. I'm not sure if you have met her yet or not, so I won't say anything except you'll know who she is. From the very first time that she touches you, a spark will tell you that she's the one. Someone you can trust with anything, and will love you in a way you can never imagine. Someone, you will decide is worth remaining in the past for. Take care of her and keep her safe. Always. She is simply amazing beyond what she even knows."

She covered her mouth and sobbed. She knew it was talking about her. The very first time she had touched Samuel, a spark had popped them both.

She turned over the paper and saw the numbers written all over the page.

Two more pages were folded together. She wiped her eyes and decided that she didn't want to pry anymore. She felt guilty for having read the letter that Samuel had written to himself. Even if it was almost as if she had heard from him. She put his wallet back together and put it safely away in the top drawer of her dresser.

She wiped her eyes and sat on the side of the bed and cried silently. So much for pulling herself together.

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