The Glory Star Project

ELEVEN

Of course, Glory had been in the officer’s mess a few times despite the fact that Xav preferred to eat on the observation deck, but when she stepped into the place this time it was completely transformed.

The long wall that spanned the far end of the room was no longer a damask-colored panel, but instead had been transformed into a huge viewing screen, and it revealed glimpses into each of the other three ships’ mess halls.

Gone were the ten or twelve tables that usually spanned across the hall, and instead two long tables took their place – either that, or the same tables were now joined together. In either case, long white tablecloths covered them, and the swiveling, backless chairs spanned along either side of one table, but only along one side of the other, with the side by the wall left open. Funky centerpieces that looked like fake flowers covered with gold confetti were set strategically, and tall golden candles, also fake, were settled at similar distances between them.

Somehow, the whole effect meshed together to make it seem very much like they were all dining in one room, though Glory was certain the illusion would be shattered easily if she simply stepped up to the wall itself and ran a finger over the place where she knew it lay hidden. But really, where would be the fun in that?

"You're with us," said Kurana as she stepped to flank one side of her while Reagan appeared to flank the other. Wordlessly, Glory followed the pair to the captain’s table, and she was summarily delivered to Captain Richards as if she were truly made of gold.

Xav’s eyes drank in the dress she was wearing, and he cast her a warm smile. "These boys aren't going to know what hit them, Miss Star. Truthfully, I'm not sure you haven’t captivated me as well."

Glory giggled. "If I did, sir, I hardly think it was because of the dress."

He laughed. "Probably not," he agreed as he rose and captured one of her hands, drawing her closer to his side as they turned to face the three other captains who appeared to be staring at her too. Though they were holograms, they looked just as though they were seated in chairs directly across from them. Xav settled Glory in the chair to his right, and she was certain he’d done so by design.

"Gentlemen, may I present my new assistant, Miss Glory Star?"

Each captain grinned and gave her a little bow with their heads. Two were human males similar to Xavier himself, though one had jet black curly hair and a darker complexion, while the other seemed somewhat shorter and so pale that even his hair was white.

The third, though, was like nothing Glory had ever seen before. Being on the grid, she obviously was aware that there were aliens working with the humans here and there, but she’d always thought they were mostly much farther out in space. She hadn’t expected one of them to be quite so close to home.

"This tall drink of blarga is Andris Perry, a man from Gamlin Prime who I actually attended school with and later hired on. Captain Ares Fighter is from Delta Minor, and he worked directly with GalactiCorp for a good fifty years before he replaced one of my older flyers. He's only been with Richards Holdings about ten years, but he's a real asset. And I see you staring at Grip over there. Captain Fiko Grip, to be more precise. He's an Andorian. I realize you don't get many non-human types in the Regulus area, but don't worry. You'll get used to him soon enough. Besides, it'll be good training for Gamlin. We have so many species pass through the Gamlin Space Station I couldn't even begin to count them, but you're very likely to soon get a look at them all."

"Forgive me for staring, Captain Grip," said Glory, blushing. "We only had humans and mechanoids on Regulus Prime. I've never met any other life forms before. I did see a couple of non-humans from a distance on the moon, but I thought they must be tourists or something. I had no idea I was about to be working with one. But then again, I've never met the animated hologram form of anyone before either."

"Your apology is most assuredly accepted, sweet girl. I would never blame a young thing like you for being curious," he said, and a smile broke across his bluish face, wider than any human would have been able to achieve. His hair was a greenish color, and he had purple, slitted eyes, but other than that he looked much the same as any human male bodybuilder might, with the muscles all bulging in similar places.

Glory blushed slightly when she realized Grip was also staring at her, but not because he’d never seen a human female before. She got the sense that Xav was right about these men being interested in her, but the other two held their gazes in check, while the alien made certain she understood exactly what he thought of her.

She cleared her throat. "Anyway, the food looks great. Are we meant to do something ceremonious before we eat it? I hope not, since today I've been working rather hard. I'm starved."

Captain Andris snickered. "So Xav has you working hard already? Do tell."

Glory snorted. "On the holo computer, sir, in case I didn't make myself clear. I've been learning how to do an overview of all the systems, but most especially the cryotanks. I'm pretty sure you don't want me to be distracted while I'm checking their functionality."

"Feisty," commented Grip. "I like it."

"Hands off, Grippo, I saw her first," Xav commented dryly, winking at Glory in a teasing way that sent a little thrill somewhere it shouldn't be going in mixed company. Not that she would know, of course, since she still had yet to mix with anybody.

Captain Andris added, "Holograms are Gamlin tech, Miss Glory. Regulus would certainly not have the ability to generate them with their limited machinery."

"I feel quite privileged to be working with such sophisticated machinery," she agreed.

Xav said, "You'll probably discover a lot of things you’ve never seen before once we're actually on the other side of the wormhole. Things that have never left Gamlin Quadrant as yet. You know my people are nothing if not avid inventors. I think you're going to fit right in."

"I am curious, though, what it must have been like to grow up on a world without an atmosphere," Grip added, leaning forward and lifting one eyebrow in clear invitation for her to tell the tale. Glory remembered Xav's warning that anything she might say could be used against her later, yet what harm could there be in describing life on a barren world?

She shrugged. "I don't know that there's much to tell. We lived in domes, of course, and we got taught from a very early age that going outside without protective gear and breathing apparatuses would end in disaster. Still, Regulus is not entirely without an atmosphere. There's a little bit of gas surrounding the planet, but all very lightweight and floating much higher up than you'd find on a planet with breathable air. What little gas there was, though, was able to form the most beautiful borealis over the mountains."

"So, you are a lover of colors as well as technology?" he asked with an indulgent smirk.

"I—suppose every Regulan is," she stammered. "Our people even divided by colors. Gold is the color all techs wear, but people with other jobs have their colors too. I've never given much thought to it, really. It's just what I grew up with, I suppose. It might be weird in other cultures that an elite woman would have married a miner. I don't know, maybe it was even there, but it's still what happened with my mother and father."

Xav gave her knee a little squeeze under the table, and the smile he gave her held a slight warning. And while Glory might not be able to see how mentioning her parents might give a guy like Grip ammunition towards trying to attract her somehow, she was more than willing to trust his judgment.

"Well then, gentlemen, shall we all talk shop and give the poor girl time to actually eat her meal?" he suggested as he let her go. "We certainly don’t want her to starve."

All four men chuckled after that, and Glory's blush deepened redder than ever. She didn't know how she was supposed to eat amidst all the teasing, but she was willing to give it a try.