Chapter 24

'The Master Builder'

'Pardon Me Boy, Is This the Grand Lnteel Station?'

'A Kiss to Build a Dream On'

The line for the shuttle is long. Dantius looks around for Sigrid, patrolling frantically up and down the queue while carrying the huge bouquet and other items. A few people take notice and give Dantius suspicious glances as he cranes his neck looking for Sigrid. He tries to catch his breath as puffs of frosty vapor escape from his mouth as a blast of cool air swirls through the great archways leading to the series of boarding gates.

His worst fear takes hold of him. Dantius looks at the large abstract-looking clock over the archway. There is a platinum plaque imbedded directly under the clock. He does not take the time to read it. He has missed the shuttle! Sigrid must have left without him. He angrily stamps his foot on the granite floor. The sound echoes throughout the domed terminal. This is the continuance of a disastrous day. He gets in the queue hoping that his efforts are not in vain and wonders what great misfortune will come to him next. He hates this place already.

"Waiting for someone?"

Dantius turns slowly. Sigrid is standing off to the side behind him. Finally! A familiar voice. Dantius breathes a sigh of relief.

"Oh god! I'm sorry for being late. I thought I was going to be stuck waiting in this ridiculous-looking ice fortress." He glances up at the terminal skylight with a contemptuous expression.

"You're cutting it close with the time, Dani, and you're in the wrong line to boot!"

He steps out of the line to greet her. There is a passenger standing behind him, a businessman from Coruscant moves up in the line. The man seems annoyed that Dantius has been darting around like a nervous tauntaun and mutters something when Dantius finally leaves the line. Dantius is oblivious to the man's irritation. He responds to Sigrid's remark.

"Oh…really?"

"Yes. You were supposed to meet me at the terminal, not get in a queue. To be such a smart guy, you sure don't follow instructions well. You don't even have a ticket."

"Uhm…no…I don't. I was hoping to purchase one after I boarded."

Dantius has just had a long morning of being berated by his father but he revels in the insults hurled at him by Sigrid.

"That's the wrong shuttle anyway. You have no idea where you're going, do you?"

Dantius stops for a moment to think. He smiles. He has made a fool of himself but he does not care.

"I'm so stupid. Can we get tickets now?"

"No."

"Why?"

"We already have tickets." She holds up a pair of round trip tickets to Lnteel, a town just on the opposite side of the North Ridge Mountain range.

Lnteel is a small remote village in the Lnteelfjord valley inhabited mostly by artists and literati. Although the winters are harsh, the lakes glisten like jewels and are teeming with fish and birds. The local schools are small and none go higher than 12th levels. Sigrid, like all of the youth growing up in Lnteelfjord leave town to attend boarding school. Whether wealthy or from modest means, the children are encouraged to explore the galaxy to learn about different cultures.

Lnteel, known for its carefree way of life protect it fiercely. Not many outsiders visit this Hoth winter paradise. Tourists are welcome but never encouraged to stay for more than a few days at a time. Many locals are quick to point out their distain for commercialism: 'Hoth is not Coruscant, and Lnteel is not Galactic City'. They were quite proud of this fact. The humorous part of their credo is that inhabitants of Lnteelfjord do a lot of pleasure traveling. Coruscant is one of the most frequent tourist locales for the residents of Lnteel. Tourist cruisers are packed with them, which hints at their sentiment of, 'Don't come to us, we'll visit you.'

As Hoth natives, however, they are fiercely proud of their ski resorts and look forward to the steady influx of vacation seekers and students on semester break…as long as they stay on that side of the mountain ridge in their valley. Students and the wealthy enjoy what the resorts have to offer. 80 percent of Hoth's revenue comes from ski and spa tourism. The well-heeled travelers enjoy the healthy lifestyle of Hoth's residents.

Citizens will tolerate the occasional scientist. Researchers and naturalists find Hoth in general, and Lnteelfjord, specifically, a source of abundant natural treasures, from its wildlife to the millions of rock and ice formations.

Dantius is eager to see the place where Sigrid grew up. She pokes him in the arm.

"Ready?"

Dantius is beginning to calm down now. He had gotten himself worked into a frenzy for no reason.

"Yes…I am."

Sigrid leads him across the terminal to a different boarding gate. Dantius is relieved. Only a small number of people are waiting. They are boarded immediately. The shuttle is small but beautiful inside. Gray-blue plush seating is the same throughout the cabin. An attractive shuttle attendant greets them and leads them to their seats. They are in the front row of this luxurious transport vehicle. She is an attractive woman, possibly in her late twenties or early thirties. She greets each passenger in the cabin. Her sleek uniform matches the seat coloring. Her blonde hair is in an up-swept chignon and a garrison-type attendant's hat sits neatly atop her head. Her male counterpart services the passengers in the south end of the shuttle. The male attendant is similarly attired but he resembles a Republic naval officer rather than a shuttle attendant.

The shuttle attendant reaches for the bouquet.

"I can take that for you until the end of the trip."

She speaks in a soft and melodic Hoth accent like Sigrid but this is not enough to persuade him. Dantius is compelled to guard the bouquet with his life.

"No, it's fine"

Sigrid reaches over and touches his hand. He immediately calms down.

"It's okay. There is a flower storage case in the galley. We can pick them up when we arrive at our destination."

"Ohhhh…"

Dantius allows the shuttle attendant to take the flowers. He manages to sit back and relax. The shuttle moves along a single pneumatic track making the ride smooth and virtually soundproof. Sigrid leans over in her seat until a lock of her blonde hair nearly touches his face. She is smiling

"You don't always have to be in control, Dani. Are you relaxed now?"

"Yes."

"You're really stressed today."

He is starting to feel better. He pushes his woes of the last 24 hours as far back in the recesses of his mind as possible. He does not want to think about his GPA dropping to a 3.0 because he flunked his philosophy class. His father was right. It was a subject he should have easily aced. It was not a required course. His fate was sealed…or was it? He would not get into graduate school with that big fat 'F' on his transcript. Dantius took the grade as a 'revenge 'F'. What had crawled up this professor's ass to punish him like this? Dantius had all sorts of crazy notions in his head trying to figure out why he 'earned' the 'F' is on his academic record. Was it because he confused the Jafan Coed Dormitory for Jafan Hall Philosophy Department? Maybe. Did he fail to make friends with the Munn student population? Okay, that was true. If cornered, he could not recall the name of any of the Munn students in that class or anywhere on campus for that matter. Dantius is certain that he was not alone. He challenged anyone on campus to name one Muun student. Who cares? They kept to themselves anyway. To hell with all of them!

The more Dantius thought about it, the angrier he became so he had to suppress it...for now. His future depended upon it. This trip with Sigrid was the perfect remedy. He is slowly beginning to relax. He looks into her beautiful grey eyes.

"I'm okay now....I am. I'll repay you. Thank you for this." He waves his hand to indicate the shuttle ride and accommodations.

Sigrid does not see this as a big deal.

"The tickets? Oh, it's nothing."

"Not just that; Thank you for inviting me to your home."

"Well, don't thank me yet." She playfully shifts her eyebrows then places her head against the headrest of her seat.

Dantius is curious.

"Why do you say that?"

"You're going to meet my father."

Dantius gives her a blank look. He is worried but also intrigued. He is eager to make a good impression and he wants to meet the man who raised such a beautiful and charming daughter. He musters enough nerve to ask Sigrid about her father.

"What's he like? Your father…"

Sigrid sighs then smiles. She seems to ponder a moment to decide what she is going to say. Dantius waits patiently after her long pause.

"He's a fascinating man."

Dantius wonders if is this is a euphemism for 'difficult'. He already has to deal with 'difficult' back home with his father and others who impede his self-esteem.

"What does that mean?"

"Oh, don't worry. He's a lovely man. He'll like you. You don't talk too much."

"You're making me nervous. Why are you laughing?"

"Don't be nervous. He's a sweet man."

'Okay,' He thinks to himself. 'This is one test you cannot fail.'

He makes sure that he listens to everything Sigrid tells him. She fills him in on life in the village where she grew up. Dantius tries to imagine Sigrid as a young child running barefoot along the lake during the spring thaw. Her perfect feet feeling the grass wet from the melting glaciers. She is a blithe spirit frolicking with her playmates. He learns about her first ski lesson, her cross-country ski treks with her father, and her last day of school before leaving Hoth for university.

Dantius wishes his life were as uncomplicated. He is almost jealous.

The shuttle attendant walks through the cabin steering a cart filled with light snacks and beverages. The timing is perfect because Dantius is starving. The snacks consist of a variety of cheeses, fruit, waferbrot, and nuts. It did not look like much but it was filling. The service is more than just a way to stave off hunger until the end of the journey; it is almost Zen-like the way the food is served. The fragrant hand and face cloths refresh and revitalize making the meal more enjoyable.

The meal is followed by a live travelogue of the magnificent fjords as the passengers watch from the floor to ceiling panoramic windows. The clear lakes are more beautiful than the lakes of Naboo. It is a serene beauty as boats move effortlessly through the fjord. A Hoth whale, something he had heard about but had never seen before, breeches the water before disappearing beneath the massive chunks of glacier ice floating on the surface. Sigrid watches the expression on Dantius' face. He is actually smiling like a child observing the world for the first time. She gently slips her arm in his and they look up as the behemoth rears its head again. It immediately crashes back into the water sending chunks of ice into the air. It showers down as the whale plunges beneath the surface. Sigrid and Dantius cheer as a spray of water bursts through its blowhole. Dantius turns to look at Sigrid. This is more than he could have ever imagined. Caught up in the moment he draws his face close and breathes in the sweet smell of her skin. Just as he is about to touch his lips to hers, an announcement come over the shuttles Com system:

"Attention passengers, the shuttle will arrive at Lnteel Terminal in ten minutes."