The procession of jeeps carrying Vezna, Xeight and Elder Vthree entered a mountain tunnel after heading eastwards from a stop at the Bonneville Salt Flats.
Along the journey, they made many stops and Xeight came to experience many different environments on Earth, which amazed him to no end. He had believed the EFSF would fight to the very end to ensure control of the belt. Now, he truly felt like he understood their desire to not overly industrialize Earth, which should at least be one of James MacLeod’s motives.
If there was one thing that he disliked, that would be the temperature and air itself-- he rather preferred the controlled environment of the T3ST colony and the coolness of space.
The jeeps entered an expansive elevator that began lifting them upwards. Xeight found it an amazing engineering feat. The elevator continued upwards for well over fifteen minutes, and must have carried them to heights unknown.
“We’re here. The Yellowstone Kasvallian Complex. Powered by the super volcano. Excess energy used to produce e-cubes.” Vezna announced as they climbed down from their vehicle.
“While here, you can go by Wright and Vee, and will be my special guests.” Vezna then smiled mysteriously. “And there’s someone I think you might wish to meet.”
A receptionist designated them as special guests on tags and Xeight was prepared to be amazed again.
When he passed through the entryway, Xeight found his gaze resting upon a similar aesthetic to that of Vezna’s superyacht, the Amymone. Nearly all the surfaces were made from a black marble with dancing gold patterns. Tarnished silver metal beams provided much needed support to the structure of the complex as well as framing aesthetics.
If it was only these two combinations, the interior would be rather dark and even gloomy. To offset this, the interior furniture was mostly of bright, vibrant colors, and stood out distinctly against the mostly black tinged with gold and silver background. Soft light-colored rows of wooden poles served to screen off different areas.
And of course. One could not ignore the picture windows that stretched unendingly, providing a complete panoramic view down and around the mountain peak.
Vezna led them to a side-room and Xeight sat himself down on a rich red sofa seat while Elder Vthree rested into a bright green seat.
“Do give me some time. I need to welcome other guests first. Food will be brought here in the meantime, and there is quite some entertainment here as well.” Vezna said before leaving to attend to his duty as host.
In a dining hall where many elites sat around many circular black marble tables covered with a vibrant mono-colored cloth.
James MacLeod found himself relieved that Athena had ceased her patrol and now sat beside him. He would feel rather guilty if Athena could not take the time to relax, particularly with him enjoying the luxuries.
As for Olivia and Cyrus? They were already lieutenants and had been in the EFSF far longer. Athena was still an ensign in terms of rank, and had recently graduated. As a result, he felt compelled to ensure her wellbeing. Especially after their recent disaster.
He certainly hoped the other team of their two-headed snake--Will Kyle, Liu Long and Arianna Bellucci-- were in a better state in comparison to them. To James’ knowledge, those three along with the EFSF fleet should be attempting to take back some of the primary resource hubs in the belt right now.
“Sorry for the wait! Vezna de Lerna has arrived!” announced a black-suited woman.
“Thank you. Thank you all for coming on such short notice!” Vezna beamed at all those seated as he amplified his voice in the dining hall through his neuro circlet.
Vezna de Lerna… James still very much remembered their first meeting as children. They could be counted as more than acquaintances and had met many times through the social events. A mutual respect but nothing close to true friendship despite their close-ranged age.
As for why? James MacLeod wasn’t sure himself. Vezna always felt distant to him, and James felt like Vezna’s mind was always contemplating something esoteric whenever they sat or stood next to each other.
“This year started off rough for us all. Mars’ declaration of war. The destruction of Warsaw. The supply chain issues of the belt due to the conflict. Colony protests. All this led to price hikes. Inflation.” Vezna sipped red wine from his glass.
“But this is humankind. The nature of humanity. We grow and thrive when pressured. When pushed, we take innovative risks and the rare few that succeed carry us into an unknown future of endless possibilities.”
“And so it is that I bid you all. To remember the core of your human nature. To not rest assured in your comforts. To constantly place yourself at a cliff’s ledge, the edge of survival, such that humanity may rise to ever greater heights!”
Applause sounded out at his words, then he raised a glass to all the elites that had come and they clinked their glasses against one another.
“To the restless human spirit!” Vezna’s words led many to knock their glasses against one another again.
The guests were all served naturally-sourced foods, a luxury in the current world of printed food.
After a sumptuous dinner that James had to admit, he rather missed after taking charge of the EFNSF, James was surprised to see Vezna approaching him.
“It’s been a while, MacLeod,” Vezna greeted him before giving a nod of acknowledgement to Athena to the side, who he had met in flattened Warsaw. Athena responded with a tip of the head.
“Yes… when was the last time…? Christmas, was it?” With the hectic events of this year, it felt like an eternity ago to James. That party was hosted by James himself, and the attendees were all forty or younger belonging to the major shareholder families of all fortune 100 companies. A rather massive event.
“Well. Follow me,” Vezna beckoned with what James interpreted as a sort of restrained devious smile. James sighed. He had been on the end of quite a few of Vezna’s trickery way back when they were still teens.
“Very well. Lead on.” James and Athena followed the silver-haired man to a doorway.
“Here we are,” Vezna announced and then swung open the door. James’ eyes bulged and very nearly dropped out of their sockets when he recognized Xeight curiously slurping up a strand of spaghetti carbonara with a curious face.
Athena had never met members of the T3ST colonies before, so she only quizzically examined her special lieutenant's expression, attempting to glean some clues as to who the two inside the room were.
“You’re mad.” James flatly lambasted Vezna. To house T3ST colony members in their complex. Vezna had crossed a line
“Am I?” Vezna bubbled with mirth. “I remember you speaking of this individual whenever we conversed about your visits to the T3ST colony. Our families certainly have a kind of unbreakable bond! You know. I quite like him. He’s an expert on excavating asteroids. A boon to humanity.”
When Xeight noticed James at the doorway, he only froze for a half-second, then continued consuming this dish that he never had the chance of experiencing back in the T3ST colony. It was a simple enough dish, but for reasons unknown to him, it had never been an option.
One might think that the two would be at each other’s throats by now. But neither are such individuals. James himself understood his choice of action. He could guess that the pilot of the bull unit must have passed away. It was a natural course of war for the T3ST unit to act rather viciously in response.
As for Xeight? He had volunteered for the mission to Earth precisely in desire to understand James MacLeod’s motivations.
James entered and occupied a rich navy blue seat, and Athena followed onto another.
“Enjoy yourselves.” Vezna cheekily said as he closed the door and secured the room.
Elder Vthree silently observed from the side. She had knowledge of James MacLeod’s visits to the T3ST colony.
“Earth is even more breathtaking and tasty than you told me from all your visits,” Xeight commented before he returned to chewing his pasta.
“You should not be here. We are at war.”
“You’ve visited me many times in the T3ST colony. I believe it necessary for me to see Earth at least once.”
That was the moment of comprehension and Athena reflexively stood as she pointed the barrel of her pistol directly at Xeight’s head, the veins in her eyes popping with rage.
“Stand down, ensign,” ordered James firmly.
“Sir! He must be the culprit for the deaths of David and Igor. Clio might never recover! We--”
“Stand down, Watanabe,” James sighed. “This is just… war. We were the first to take one of their heads.”
“My grandfather,” Xeight muttered with a low voice in deep sorrow.
Athena widened her eyes. She had been struggling to come to terms with the loss of her comrades and yet here, she had to tolerate this… Xeight’s grief? Her hand shuddered but James relieved her by gently removing the pistol from her grasp.
“Sit down, Ensign. This is not the time for war.” James gave her a nudge and she robotically found her bum back on a soft and comforting seat. Her mind gradually entered a trance due to their current situation, as if nothing before her eyes was real.
“Grand Elder Zseven, was it? I remember him.” James only commented briefly, not wishing to dwell on the fact that he had met this kindly senior quite a number of times on his visits.
“Xeight. I will have to apologize. I will not be able to welcome you to Earth the same way you have welcomed me on the T3ST colony. But, as recompense, I will allow your presence here to remain a secret.” Though James had decided on such a course of action, he had to wonder-- Vezna had brought Xeight here. What was Vezna playing at this time? Even if he did attempt to capture Xeight… perhaps Vezna already knew he would not choose such a course of action!
A tense silence persisted for a minute.
“Why?” Xeight had to ask now that he was given the chance. “Why did you choose the battlefield?”
Earth is a wondrous place, yes, but it would be far simpler for James to sit back just as his MacLeod family preferred.
“You, the T3ST colony, is a… mistake of ours, the MacLeods,” replied James steadily with no regrets. “The others.. They may prefer to stay away from this… self-made problem, but I am different. Your participation and influence in this war is our problem. My problem. That is the way I see it. It is my duty to rectify it.”
A wholly unsatisfactory answer to Xeight. After all, if it wasn’t for James MacLeod taking his grandfather’s life, he would not have seriously entered the fray.
Still, he had at least gotten an answer, despite his chagrin at James’ course of action.
A short awkward pause later.
“How’s… how’s the supposed ‘fake’ Jen?” James had to choose such words because Commander Zulu had brought back words of Jen MacLeod’s presence on Starship Oneiroi after her prisoner exchange.
“Fake…?” Xeight had absolutely no idea why James chose such a word, but he shrugged it off as nothing but some funny joke. “I don’t know. I always thought all this war stuff was pointless. Initially, she wanted to put me in a nexarm and now… well, before I came to Earth, she did not seem all that happy that I was in one.”
In her haze, Athena found herself blinking rapidly when she heard Xeight disregarding the current war between Earth and Mars, and even his very own involvement in it.
“My cousin…” James sighed. “My aunt had always had her hands full dealing with her antics. Jen… she did everything to avoid socializing with the other kids of family friends. Intentionally pretending to be sick, forcing herself to vomit to prove such sickness when a doctor was sent to diagnose her. She just stuck to her own Neurorave toys. My aunt even built a small personal lab for her, and only then was she a tad bit more cooperative.”
“Mmmm…” Xeight wondered blankly. “She never told me about such events.”
“Promise me you’ll take care of her if you survive this war,” James muttered. “Not that I will hold back on the battlefield.”
“Why?” Xeight had to admit he was increasingly baffled by James’ nature and words.
“I would be a fool to not realize that she’d find much more joy not having to involve herself in our family politics.”
“Mmmm…” Xeight faintly recalled James having spoken of a few ridiculous internal tug-o-war scenarios within the MacLeod family. Not that he remembered any of them to any degree of detail.
Their conversation meandered onto a few other topics, such as Xeight’s jeep trip to Grand Teton Peak.
“Don’t die, Xeight.”
“Don’t fall too easily, James MacLeod.”
These were the words of the two men fated to clash once again. Neither of them could find it in themselves to strongly hate each other despite each other’s actions. James understood MacLeod's role in creating the T3ST colony. He saw it as his duty to clean up the mess that is the T3ST colony’s genes and guarantee Earth’s continued access to the belt’s bounty.
Yet, he had come to like Xeight, a man who very much preferred excavating asteroids all day long. He also knew Jen would live a far happier life away from Earth. James chortled at himself. He knew his own motivations were varied in absolutely entangled strands of fate.
Xeight, after having visited Earth, understood its allure. He was, however, not hypnotized or seduced by Earth. Mining asteroids in the serene and vast expanse of space that might be eerie to others, but he certainly reveled in that.
Xeight did feel slightly different to James. Xeight’s ire simmered underneath the surface. In his heart, he believed that James should have just let the T3ST colony be, seeing as the MacLeods’ ancestors’ actions had already been the source of the colony’s suffering over the years.
James dragged a somewhat dazed Athena out of the room and was deep in thought as he began returning to his temporary residence within the Kasvallian Yellowstone Complex, when Olivia’s communication came through.
“Special Lieutenant. A riot has started in LA. The population remains unfazed despite my presence in a nexarm. Please give your orders.”
Not a moment later and another communication came through the Neurorave.
“Special Lieutenant.” This was Cyrus’ voice. “A riot has started here in Seattle and surrounding regions as well…”
James took a second to think and made his decision. He would join Cyrus and Athena was to support Olivia. Athena got along rather well with Olivia, so it would probably be a better partnership.
“Watanabe. You will be--” Only now did James finally notice that the woman’s eyes appeared unfocused, lost in a daze.
“Watanabe! Athena!” James shook her shoulders as he strengthened his voice.
Athena’s ears were ringing as she was still lost in a fog of having met with Xeight of the T3ST colony.
“Athena!”
Finally, the ringing in her ears quietened down as she found her commanding officer’s concerned face right before her eyes.
“Are you alright?”
“I…” she blinked and scrunched her eyelids for a second to clear her mind. “Yes, sir, I was just lost in thought.”
“Watanabe. Gonzalez needs your help. Head to LA. I will provide assistance to Amiri.”
“Yes, sir!”
