Fake-Sebastian stood quietly smiling at me in this frozen moment. This time, he was wearing fine golden robes, and was partially transparent. I now had a "sense" that time had paused, somehow. "Okay," I began. "Please stop messing with me. Who and what are you?"
"As I said before, Inheritor. I am an echo; I am an imprint from your many predecessors, and I wear many faces. This is simply the one you perceive me as, the most recent body that moved my will before." I watched as the face of the strange projection then flickered and cycled between a few different individuals. Paying attention, I was able to see a handsome man with long white hair and an evil smile, a scowling bald man that reminded me of Lex Luthor with metal implants on his face, and a smiling woman with dark braided hair and a knowing smile. Each had familiar bright gold eyes, and intuitively, I knew that these were past Inheritors.
"So, you're sort of the machine spirit of the Divine Retribution? Is that who you are?" I asked.
"If you like," fake-Sebastian remained smiling. "But I am more than a mere machine spirit as you know them to be, you see. Focus more on the 'Divine' part of what I am named, and you will be closer to an answer. While I am not what you would understand as a god, I am not a simple animating spirit. I exist beyond boundaries offered by words; I am not easy to define."
"You were made by the Old Ones," I said, watching this gold spirit, who simply smiled as if I was asking the most basic question in the world, but a question with an answer I could not possibly understand.
"The word 'made' implies that I had a proper beginning, which isn't objectively true. Do not trouble yourself on definitions on what I am, but only listen to my advice. I am here to help you along your development," he responded.
This was starting to make my head hurt. I decided to stop worrying about this holy spirit entity, and just listen instead. "So, what do you want? I'm already being chased around by Chaos powers, and now you?"
"I am not your enemy, Inheritor. I am only here to offer you help and advice as you grow in strength."
"Then tell me. What's your advice now?"
"You stand upon a dangerous world, but one filled with immense possibilities. The eyes of Infernal Powers fix greedily to this area, and they wait for you to cause change, disruption, pure chaos. This is, sadly, unavoidable, as you are who you are. I will tell you now to tread with caution, as your visit has been expected. Powerful individuals have divined your passage, and they know who and even what you are. Be cautious in revealing yourself to those unprepared for your light."
I crossed my arms in front of me. "Why the hell would I start telling these people what I am? They wouldn't believe me. They'd think I was crazy or possessed. Plus, I don't even want this stupid mantle anyway. I'm just trying to get back home."
Fake-Sebastian softly laughed like a patient parent trying to speak with a child having a tantrum. Real Sebastian was far too brooding and tortured by everything that had happened to him to laugh like that. He then said, "You will follow your imperative to great and staggering heights as you mature, just as each and every of your predecessors did along the epochs of history. With each soul you consume, your presence grows stronger. I wish to tell you that you have been anticipated here by many, but three significant parties shine brightly. They will all be each be revealed to you in turn. One heart yearns for the opportunity you bring, another heart sings burning jealousy in a wish to subdue you, and a third heart calls for murder. This is what has been witnessed by those who have foreseen you."
Wow, that sounded really terrible. "Okay, but I don't want to stick around here too long, so I don't think I have to worry too much about all this, but thanks," I replied, turning away. Instead, the spirit simply came into existence in front of me again.
"You will feast on those who would subdue you, Inheritor," he said, smiling a bit too widely. "That is who you are. That is your imperative. You are divine retribution, and thy will be done."
I blinked, and then, reality seized, and I found myself standing in front of the window of the Divine Retribution again as if no time had passed whatsoever. In my mind, I heard Virgil speak, Null will be distributing vox transmitters down near the primary entryway. Take your time. We will be here when you are ready.
Taking a few deep breaths, I forced myself to relax again. Feeling like all this was important, I mentally committed to memory the words spoken by fake-Sebastian. This was all very alarming, especially the one prediction about someone wanting to murder me. Were there Inquisitors lurking on this planet, or maybe hidden Chaos cultists of Am'Erika doing her evil will? Maybe they didn't get the memo that summoning daemons and being a crazy Chaos cultist was illegal, I thought with a cynical snort.
Speaking of daemons, Wolfie decided to poof back into existence beside me. Shit, I thought, petting the black ghost dog as he wagged his tail happily. I don't think customs would appreciate me bringing in a Warp beast into their planet when they had explicit rules against critters like him.
"Boy, I'm sorry, but stay in the Warp for me for a little more. This new place is no ghost dogs allowed. I promise to find something fun for you to attack soon, okay?" I said regretfully. The astral hound whined, and in a puff of smoke, he was gone again after only a few seconds back in the Materium.
After consciously dimming my halo again, I responded to Virgil that I would be there soon, and walked back to my quarters, hiding my disconcertment. There, I picked up my calming chain, and placed it around my neck. Immediately, I began to relax. I didn't want my Corona blazing out and scaring people on the street, so this would help. What else would I bring, I wondered, looking at all my goodies. Pulling out my rucksack, I packed Evanora's journal. It had been awhile since I had checked it, and she had suggested that maybe it would contain more writing as I grew in strength.
"What to bring, hmm," I hummed to myself. No weapons and major psychic powers means no dagger, and probably no force staff. But, did it have to mean no scissors? I picked up the Nemeses Argentum, and wondered if these could be interpreted as a weapon in their present state. Their length was a little concerning, but for the most part, they looked like normal scissors. I found myself wishing that they were a smaller size so they looked more innocent, and as I held them, I watched in amazement as they reconfigured themselves. The silver shears were now the size of my hands, and they even possessed a small tarnish on them, making them look very plain and normal.
My intuition informed me that the scissors would now be safe to carry, and I stuffed them into a side pocket in my rucksack. Looking over the rest of the possessions, I decided to leave the spirit stone and the Tesseract Labyrinth cube, as I couldn't think of an immediate use for them.
Wait...
I paused, and picked up the spirit stone, observing the swirling shapes and faint light of the little artifact. It was warm, as always. The hair on the back of my neck stood up, and I wondered why I felt this way.
"Maybe I should bring this..." I whispered, puzzled at where that intuition had come from as I held the sparkling ovoid object. I had no idea what I would need a spirit stone for, but it felt right for me to take this along.
Listen to your intuition, Inheritor, a whisper spoke through my mind. Okay, fine. No harm in taking this little thing along. I tried not to think about where that voice had come from, and bundled the rest of my clothes and things up, getting ready to go.
The spirit stone was placed in my front trouser pocket as I made my way to the Divine Retribution's entryway. It was currently sealed, and my crewmembers were waiting for me. Null was looking tidy, and his new gold arm was polished to a mirror finish. He held a large rectangular bag over his right shoulder filled with whatever things tech-priests usually take with them to worlds like this. Jiminy was peering out of a deep front pocket. I noticed that it appeared that he was declining to take any servitors with him. Null's new red robe was wrapped securely around his body, covering his glowing belt. I also noted that he seemed to now have a fourth mechadendrite that sprung from his back. I was glad to see that the tech-priest was bulking up again, and was no longer looking frail. The question of what exactly that mysterious Necron-made belt he wore could do was still on my mind, and I made a mental note to bring up my curiosity concerning that object later. At the very least, it really seemed to be fixing him up, and my intuition didn't sense anything terrible about it at the present.
Looking at my other crewmembers, Alberich's feather "hair" was combed and neatly parted. He held a battered canvas sack with him, which seemed to hold his clothes. The beastman had not brought Valkyrie along, which was probably for the best. The two witnesses were signing to themselves, and I could tell that they were excited about visiting a new future world. Virgil here too, even though he couldn't leave the vessel due to his holographic nature. Finally, I noticed that Lian was carrying the Lion Sword on his back, currently sheathed in its scabbard. He had no other luggage. His sword was as big as he was, and loomed over all of us. I still wasn't over the fact that he was in possession of that famous sword.
"I thought they said no weapons?" I wondered as I met with my compatriots.
"I have a permit for this. My order here will wish to reclaim this sacred weapon after Kolch's destruction," the Fallen rumbled as he reached behind to touch the hilt of his blade.
Null walked forward to me, and offered me a small metal device about the size of a pack of cards. On it, there was a square lit animated screen, and what appeared to be buttons. The tech-priest instructed me on its use, and I found that this machine was analogous to a dumbed down mobile phone. With a flick of a button, the screen displayed a series of numbers in sequence. Each one was assigned to one of us. I discovered that I was number "1". Null was "2", Alberich "3", Lian "4", Morai "5", and Ennoia "6". If we wanted to get in touch with one of our crewmembers, all we needed to do was to indicate which number we wanted to connect to, and press a button.
"What about me?" Virgil asked, his holographic form shimmering. "I know that I cannot leave this vessel, but I'd like to remain in contact just in case anything happens."
The tech-priest appeared momentarily annoyed, and with a snaking mechadendrite, he reached inside a metal box, and removed another transmitter. With a few inputs of his quick fingers, Null then gave the transmitter to Virgil. "There," the tech-priest said. "Your number is '00'. You should now all see Virgil's name on your devices."
I watched as Alberich studied his device, prodding at a couple of the buttons until Lian's "phone" began to beep. It made three short beeps. As if familiar with such technology, Lian took his device and effortlessly silenced the beastman's experimental dial. He did this even with his massive Space Marine armored hands, which was really impressive.
"Now that we're done experimenting, are we all ready to go?" Null raised his voice. Jiminy cheeped eagerly, and I saw that even the little drone had been polished and cleaned up.
"Looks like it, Null," I said, walking forward. "Divine Retribution, open up."
The gateway opened to a warm and breezy tarmac, and below, I saw a handful of uniformed men pushing a wheeled stairway our way from what appeared to be the terminal building. "Oh, we don't need that!" I called out from above. They stopped. "It has its own gangway," I informed them.
The men spoke a few words to each other, and began to slowly wheel the stairway back to the terminal. The Divine Retribution's gangway formed below us, solidifying impossibly out of liquid gold into a filigreed staircase of surprising strength. Peering outside, I could now see to our right two official looking people waiting for us as they stood attentively on the tarmac. A middle-aged woman wearing a smart emerald green suit made eye contact with me, and waved politely. Beside her, a man wearing what appeared to be a Vigaz PDF officer's uniform held a clipboard.
"Alright, here we go," I said, and I began to walk down the gangway, with Lian directly behind me.
Every place has its particular smell, and Evna was no different. While I could tell that this area was a warm, arid place, it didn't feel as dry as Kolch's desert. The scent of metal and electricity was carried through the breezy air, presumably coming from the Divine Retribution. Just beyond that, I could smell faint smoke, or perhaps combustive exhaust, like an airport back home. Looking around, it appeared that it was just about sunset, and the sky was a brilliant cherry red with purples and pinks decorating the wispy clouds above. It was quite beautiful.
About halfway down the gangway, my intuition prickled, and I felt the sensation of being watched by psychically bright souls. This did not come from the two greeters on the tarmac. After what fake-Sebastian had said about our visit being anticipated, this did not make me feel secure. Curious, I casually scanned my surroundings as I made my way further down the stairs, and my eyes caught a very tall, and very heavily built man wearing a mysterious grey hood leaning up against a shadowed craft parked adjacent to ours on another circular landing pad to our left. As soon as he realized I had seen him, he made a short gesture of scratching his chin, and turned around, disappearing behind the parked craft. To my right, I then spotted two more large shadowy figures, one of which my senses identified as a psyker. These large shrouded men were lurking near then entrance to what appeared to be the airport terminal, and one also seemed to be scratching his chin. Hmm.
"Welcome to Tar Vigaz, and to the capitol city of Evna! Since you are one of our priority guests, we would like to confirm your captain's identity before heading in to the terminal. In addition, a specialized party wishes to meet you." The officer said with a short professional grin.
"Are you Erika Romanov, captain and psyker pilot of the Divine Retribution?" the green-clad woman asked me as I stepped on the tarmac.
"Yeah, that's me. In the flesh."
The two individuals then spoke quietly to one another, and the man spoke to a com bead in his ear as he made a note on his clipboard. He then said, "Through one of your crewmembers, you have requested a Writ of Confidentiality, and it has been accepted. Your crewmember's associates wish to meet with him as a matter of urgency. The weapon on his back has already been cleared with us."
"Understood," Lian rumbled as stood by my side. As I waited for the rest of my crew to file off of the gangway, I could now see the two shadowy large men advancing toward us. Each wore dark grey shrouds, and heavy black clothes that looked somewhat menacing. One was slightly shorter and appeared less bulky than his companion. As they walked up to us, I could now tell that these men were Space Marines, but not in armor. The individual I had first seen was not with him.
Your brothers, Lian? I asked Lian in mind.
Yes, he responded curtly.
Wow, real life Fallen Dark Angels. These were the big scary renegade Space Marines that the Dark Angels are hunting. They certainly looked super mysterious and dangerous, but at the same time, I could not sense any Chaos corruption whatsoever. Behind me, I heard Null groan uncomfortably as he stepped onto the tarmac. No doubt the tech-priest did not approve of this meeting.
All of us were now standing on the tarmac as we waited for the two renegades to make their way here from the terminal. I turned around and confirmed again that we were all disembarked before saying, "Divine Retribution, lock up. We're going to be gone for a little while."
The Divine Retribution pulled its gangway up, and sealed itself, closing its eye windows and locking firmly in its standing position. I turned back around, and saw that the two renegade marines were now here. They were craning their necks upward, observing my eagle ship. I watched one Fallen drop his jaw, and his bright soul briefly rippled with a sense of awe. My ship was cool.
The Fallen Angels had stopped an arm's length away from us, and then, one of the mysterious men spoke to Lian in a voice of rich dark velvet, "Innocence, Once Lost, Can Never Be Regained."
"Darkness, Once Gazed Upon, Can Never Be Lost," Lian instantly responded. The marines before us nodded in acknowledgement.
The two new Fallen then briefly turned to me, their souls buzzing with excitement. I heard a faint mental whisper from the slighter of the two with the brighter soul. Finally, we see you at last. We will find and meet with you later, Inheritor. We are honored to finally witness you in our reality, oh fallen angel of heaven.
Before I could respond, the two new Fallen then briefly saluted me with their fists over their hearts, and nodded toward Lian, who then turned to us. "I must go with them, but I will return when I can. I will be in contact," Lian said to me, bowing his head. "All of my vows stand firm."
"Alright, Lian. Keep safe," I said.
What was that all about? I heard Alberich telepathically ask.
Don't worry about it, and don't talk about it until we're somewhere private, I informed the curious beastman. As I watched Lian walk away with the two new Fallen down the tarmac (It didn't seem as his destination was the terminal we were headed to), I turned to our greeters once again, who were also watching the shadowy marines leave, and I spied that the man in the suit was holding his breath. "Okay, what's next?" I asked.
"We will need to have your mutant crewmember undergo a cognition test in the terminal. Your Writ allows you certain privacies and privileges concerning what you bring into this world, but please, kindly do not abuse our graces. We have also been told you will have a driver and a guide awaiting you inside. Please follow." The two greeters then lightly bowed, and began to lead us across the tarmac and to the terminal.
"This is all normal," Null said, and sped up to walk alongside me. Jiminy was now riding on his shoulder. Would we get to meet Null's contact at some point, I wondered? "Evna will send greeters to meet unique or prominent guests. It is procedure."
"Where... Lian?" I heard Ennoia haltingly ask me in English.
I returned her inquiry in her language. "Lian is going to meet with some of his allies, but we'll meet with him later. He has to return the sacred weapon in his back, which he had a special permit to bring on to this world."
"Thank you," Ennoia thanked me in English. I was glad that they were learning our tongue.
With a swipe of a card key, a broad door opened up to a tall and wide escalator in a metal tunnel. My crewmembers and I stood on the escalator, and we were carried up a floor as we followed our greeters.
We were led to a square five meter room with a few leathery jewel-green French antique style sofas and a textured carpet of colorful paisley flowers. There were two doors on the right side of this room, and a large set of double doors stood in the center of the far wall. Display screens decorated the walls, showing off coming attractions and things to do in Evna. This city very much felt like Las Vegas. The greeters spoke up, "Since your mutant is just one individual, this will not take long. Please, have a seat and relax. What is your mutant's name?"
"Alberich," the beastman answered, irritated that the greeters were asking me and not him. "I'm quite sharp, mind you."
"Oh, it appears you are, and you speak so very well! Your captain must be proud," the woman said, wearing a saccharine smile. "Please, come with us, Alberich. This will only take about fifteen minutes, and after that, you'll be all ready to enjoy our fair city!"
Alberich grumbled as he followed the greeters through another door on the wall to the right side, no doubt irritated with being treated as a simpleton. Behind us, I could hear a door latch. They had locked the door behind them.
"So, we're on a planet with people on it. How fun!" I spoke to my companions, who were now standing around, not having much to do. Null busied himself with looking at the advertisements, and I offered a brief translation for Ennoia and Morai on what we were doing. A display on the walls advertised a lazy river waterpark ride with inner tubes around a spiky (and suspiciously Chaos-y) castle. Children cheered, and a soft voice-over spoke: "Come experience the spooky magic at Grisly Land, Where Dreams Come True!" A sparkling logo in the shape of a jagged castle appeared on the screen.
I began to laugh again. "Grisly Land," I laughed. "What a name! I wonder if that's a Chaos-themed Disney Land?"
"There probably isn't actually a Chaos-themed anything, let alone whatever land Disney is," Null spoke up behind me as he observed the advertisement. He pointed at the "Grisly Land" logo with his shiny new gold arm. That arm honestly looked fantastic, and I was constantly impressed by the things Null could do. "While this may look suspect, I believe the name is simply a marketing strategy. This world still forbids overt expression of religion, and when I was last here, they had zero tolerance for Chaotic shenanigans. On that, they are likely also quietly testing Alberich for taint. Independent worlds have to be voracious in their suppression of anything that could spawn Warp corruption."
"This place still feels suspicious, even though it looks fun," I said, walking along the video screens lining the walls. An advertisement for another Grisly Land amusement park attraction appeared, this one depicting an activity that looked almost like tiny rocket ships racing around a large track in the desert. The text overlay said, "This is where the fun begins!", which made me laugh again. Desert pod racing really did look fun, but it was probably a little too dangerous for my tastes. "We should still be on guard, but I guess that goes without saying here. When are you planning on meeting up with your contact? Do you know? We need to get those supplies."
"I have to see if she got my message, but it is highly likely that she's still here, as her creations patrol the streets. She is an excellent inventor, but sadly, innovation isn't all that accepted in my line of work."
After a few more minutes of random wandering and waiting in this square room filled with various video advertisements, one of the doors at the far end of the room opened, but not the one Alberich had come through. A handsome olive-skinned man wearing a plum and emerald suit strode with purpose into the waiting room. He removed his green top hat as his eyes caught mine, and swept into a dramatic bow. "Greetings, crew of the Divine Retribution. Apologies I could not be here earlier, but I came as quickly as I could. Your vessel is quite fast! Which one of you is Erika Romanov?"
I raised my hand hesitantly to this new weird guy. His foppish manner of dress reminded me of a munchkin from the Wizard of Oz movie. His suit was covered in bright purple and green velvet, and his smiling face adorned with a silly curled mustache.
"A pleasure to make your acquaintance, my lady. I am Talbot, your humble guide and arranger of fun here at Evna. I am here on personal request of the exalted Justinian Evring Sinclair the Second, and I will assist you in whatever you require!"
"Our guide?" Null asked, walking beside me with the two witnesses. "I'm certain we don't really need one."
"Such suspicion! I've simply been tasked to aid you here. VIPs associated with the Sinclair family all receive such aid, and I assure you that I will be a great use to you." Talbot then reached into his jacket, and Null immediately stepped in front of me protectively, moving with surprising quickness.
The strange velvet man paused as he held his hand inside his jacket, and slowly, he then revealed an envelope. "Ah! What a protective crew you have, my lady! I am also here to deliver to you your script card and your invitations to the fabulous 9th Sinclair Masquerade Ball at the Planetary Governor's palace in three days time." Talbot bowed again, and handed me the envelope.
"Oh," I breathed in relief.
"Let me open it, Scion," Null walked beside me, and offered one of his mechadendrites. Being cautious like this might be seen as rude, but this whole situation was suspicious so I was willing to risk a little rudeness, so I handed over the envelope to the tech-priest.
Null quickly scanned the envelope, and then, with a short blade produced by one of his fingers, opened the envelope as Talbot looked onward. Inside, there was a small black rectangle that resembled a credit card, and with it, two gold-embossed tickets. Null sighed, and handed these small items off to me.
"My lady, I sense your anxiety! You can let your worries fly away now that you are now on this planet. The galaxy is dark and filled with terrors, but Tar Vigaz is a bright spot of gold in a fire pit of ash."
"We've just been through a lot. Rough couple of weeks for us," I offered, briefly examining the party tickets. The gold calligraphy was beautifully embossed on the tickets, and there was an illustration of a laughing mask on the ticket's obverse. The words, "Costumes Required" were prominently marked, and below that, a list of scheduled musicians and entertainers was written. I was amused to see that a Harlequin Troupe performance was scheduled to perform. Seeing this, I started to get excited. Seeing a Harlequin troupe perform in real life sounded extremely interesting as long as they didn't start killing us at some point, which is what those aliens sometimes did in the lore for fun. The only obstacle really was finding a costume. "So, this is a masquerade ball, like it says? Where would I get a costume on short notice? The party is only in three days."
"Master Sinclair personally recommends Silk-Hand's Costumery, as he does excellent work. He may still have some spaces open, and you now hold in your hands the means to afford his sublime creations. I can arrange an appointment for you and your guest tomorrow if you should wish. Which one of your crewmembers will be escorting you?"
I was about to ask questions about the costumery when Alberich stepped out of back room. He did not look happy. The female greeter in the green suit was smiling. "He is indeed quite intelligent! And, quite charming, if I do say so myself. His exotic foreigner's accent makes his speech very pleasant to listen to. He has passed the cognition test perfectly."
Alberich still did not look happy, and said nothing, his ears down as if upset. There was a strange pause as the male officer walked out of the room. He spoke up upon seeing me. "He'll have to wear the clear mark for the duration of his visit."
"Clear mark?" Null asked.
Alberich wordlessly turned his head, and displayed that his left ear was now pierced with a small gold ring. They pierced my ear like I was cattle! he psychically barked to me.
"It is necessary, I am afraid, due to our recent mutant uprising. Mutants of the Tzaangor variety that do not pass are not permitted free passage at this time to keep our streets safe. The Mark on his ear lets all those who see Alberich here that he has been cleared with the authorities of Evna, and has been granted full and unfettered freedom as a welcome guest in this city."
"He's kinda not a Tzaangor anymore, though," I said, observing Alberich's white feathers and lack of horns.
"Ah, but he told us he was one, and his history. This is for his own safety, yes?"
Alberich walked over to me, still obviously upset. "So, we are off to our hotel now?" the beastman asked, touching the gold ring in his ear, and shifting his weight in distress.
Talbot answered, "Yes, of course, Alberich, and good to meet you. I've been assigned as your Captain's guide." He then turned back to me, curling his mustache. "So, one quick question. My Lady, I would like to make your appointment at the costumery as soon as possible as to give Silk-Hand enough time to construct your clothing. Who should I describe as your escort?" Talbot was eyeing both Null and Ennoia.
"I'm her escort," Alberich said, angling his beak upward with a sniff. Talbot seemed surprised, and then turned to me.
"It's true. He is. We decided on the ship," I said, feeling the tension in this room rise. It was beginning to sound that Evna, despite having actual laws against "racism", wasn't all that equitable toward things that weren't human. I then remembered that Alberich used to be a goddamn Nazi, so I instantly stopped feeling bad for him.
"Very well," Talbot said with another short bow toward us. "With that decided, I will now escort you to your transportation."
The two greeters now stood before the large central door, and with a swipe of their keycards, it opened. They remained in the square waiting room, and did not follow us.
Talbot led the way, and was now speaking into a small rectangular device similar to my vox transmitter. From what I could overhear, he was arranging the appointment at the costumery. We followed the colorful man in the green top hat as he walked ahead.
This area appeared to be a very classy private airport terminal with very expensive looking Victorian furniture, and very expensive looking people wearing arty clothes that would be at home in a steampunk convention. Soft synthy jazz played over an intercom, and these very well dressed individuals sat lounging, smoking, and talking with friends. A small bar in a corner served refreshments to patrons. As we walked by, I noticed that more than a few of these people were covertly observing us, and a few were even standing next to the window, looking outside with great interest. Turning around, I found that this particular area had a view right outside, and the Divine Retribution could be seen.
Reminds me of Berlin in the 1920's with all this strange dress, Alberich psychically observed. Almost like a futurist Bauhaus cabaret. Curious the clothes they wear.
As we walked, a small dark-haired boy of about two and dressed in a short red velvet jumper toddled up to us. "Gold bird?" he pipped adorably up at me. "Boo-ful gold lady!"
I stopped walking, which paused our entourage. I leaned down to say hi to the polite little man, who giggled shyly at my attention. Behind him, I spied a woman wearing a pantsuit of crushed red velvet approaching. She looked like his mother. "Oh, I'm so sorry. He's just at that age, you know?"
"Mama! Gold lady!" the boy said to me again, pointing at me with a tiny finger.
"Yes, sweetheart, I know. Gold lady," the mother said, smiling at me with tired eyes as she picked her boy up.
"Gold dream lady! Oz lady! Dorthy!"
"Oz lady?" I asked, very surprised. Did I just hear what I thought I heard?
"He's been learning his words, and he likes showing off to strangers that he makes up new words right now. I'm sorry to bother you," The mother held her boy in her arms as she watched me almost with suspicion.
"It's not a problem. He's very cute!" I said with a smile. The woman then unceremoniously turned around and walked to another part of the terminal with her little boy. Well, this was definitely an indication that I didn't have the Emperor's legendary charisma, I thought with a shrug. That little boy was very sweet, at least. We started walking through the terminal again.
I let Talbot lead us. I noticed that people seemed to recognize him, and polite waves and smiles appeared around us as we walked. One of these people, an older man with dark skin, salt and pepper hair, and wearing a gold vest and suit walked to me. "Excuse me, are you the captain of the gold eagle outside, madam?" he asked.
"Can I help you?" Null buzzed at this stranger from behind me.
I was still in a good mood, so I answered, "It's fine, Null. Yes, that's me. I'm the captain," as we all continued walking.
"Forgive my intrusion, but I was wondering if you'd consider selling that incredible ship? You appear to be quite busy, so here is my card. Contact me if you wish to meet at some point to discuss wealth beyond your imagining." The man walked beside me for a moment, and offered me a small gold business card, which I took.
"Thank you," I said warmly to be polite, but not intending to sell the Divine Retribution to anyone. The man smiled and briefly bowed before heading back into the terminal. I felt like a rock star here!
"Your ship is generating some attention!" Talbot said as we reached the large double doors of the terminal. "And I suspect it is now the talk of the town with your magnificent flyover. A little bird told me that Sinclair media is, at this moment, putting together a story for the evening news, but do not be concerned. Your privacy as the eagle's captain will be protected. The code behind the acquisition of your Writ was quite stringent with privacy, and we respect that."
The double doors to the terminal slid open to the warm outside air, just like in an airport's arrival terminal, and we now stood next to what appeared to be a parking bay lined with tall swaying palm trees. We waited only a few moments until a long black futuristic limousine appeared before us. The limo had clean lines of art deco, and decorative floral embellishments along its doors and hood. It had eight wheels, three doors on one side, and appeared to be very sturdy, as if it were reinforced.
Talbot opened one of the three doors before us. "After you, my lady," he said with a grin. My distrust in this planet reappeared, but I attempted to swallow it as I slid into the expensive limo. I took vague comfort that if anyone wanted to try anything funny with me now, that I was strong enough as a psyker that I could defend myself. Heck, I destroyed a Daemon Prince after I threw a tornado into some other Chaos jerks back on Nubua, so I really shouldn't be worrying about anything. I'm tough now, right? Null sat beside me, followed by Alberich. The two witnesses filed in, and they sat in the seats ahead of us. I found myself missing Lian already. Watching the Fallen fight Grikk'ahn with the Lion Sword demonstrated just how strong Lian was, and having him around would make me feel much more secure.
"Your appointment is at noon tomorrow, my lady," Talbot informed me as he settled into the limo with us. "If you require transportation from your hotel to the costumery, please do not hesitate to let us know."
"Okay," I responded.
Despite all the initial finery of this city, my intuition continued to whisper in the back of my mind. Maybe my paranoia was just a side effect of being traumatized by what had happened to me in the last few weeks. Fleeing constant danger and fighting Chaos Champions was bound to take its toll on the mind, and I tried to relax. This was futile, though, as I was reminded of fake-Sebastian's words once again. One heart yearns for the opportunity you bring, another heart sings burning jealousy in a wish to subdue you, and a third heart calls for murder, I recalled what I had been warned. So, one person here is an opportunist looking to use me, one is super jealous and wants to subvert me, and one wants to kill me. Great.
I was never going to get to properly relax, I sighed wearily to myself. In my mind, I heard Alberich ask me telepathically, All is well? as he probably sensed my disquiet.
Everything is fine, but we have a lot to talk about when we get to the hotel, I informed the beastman, who nodded.
Null turned to me, and shook his head. "I can never understand the fashion trends of fleshlings, honestly," the tech-priest said. "It has been many years since I've visited this world, and now, the style of dress is completely foreign! They dress as if at a silly party."
"Oh, lighten up, boomer," I said, leaning back in my chair as I also desperately tried to lighten up.
After we were all settled in, Talbot gave some indication to the driver to go as he sat with us. So far, my luck hadn't run out, so I was hoping that this planetary visit wouldn't be so bad. "May our luck never run out," I mumbled as I watched the world speed away as we made our way to our hotel.
"Grigori, we've picked them up. En route to the hotel," Talbot said into his small vox device.