Nico was overjoyed to get to decorate their new Captains. She was so happy, in fact, that she brought the Tech Adept Harness and a toolkit in case Marcus wanted a makeover of his cyborg shell.
Unfortunately for her, he wasn't that brave, and the makeover ended with just a fashion adjustnt, the Reaver version of having a new suit tailored.
"There we go. I could do better if you'd just let tweak that outer shell. Even Luke let do his nails and eyeliner." Nico reminded Marcus as she finished.
"He actually makes a good Captain Harkness, though. I prefer my natural looks."
Nico raised an eyebrow and waved a hand in his general direction, reminding him that he was just as artificial as she was, though not nearly as high-tech, so his best argunt for not letting her program tattoos and a tan into his synthetic skin was just that, an excuse.
"You've had your fun. Thanks for the help, Nico. They should go visit their crew before we get too busy." Max thanked her, then shooed the two relieved Captains out of the office.
"You're no fun. But I do have fun things for you to do today. We've just received an advance arrival for the registration process. So crazy Mushroom Guy nad Ahd. He's a riot to talk to, but everyone keeps bowing to him, so I think he's properly important and not just wealthy." Nico inford him.
Max searched the thoughts on board Terminus until he found the man in question. Ahd Bin Saladin was a Myceloid Emperor in charge of over a hundred populated planets, all from the sa base genetic stock as his family's spores. Emperor was more of a nickna than a position, though. The wealthiest Myceloid preferred to be referred to as businessn, or heads of family, even if their family was billions of people.
They had originally populated planets much like the Klem by blowing spores into space, but the Myceloid weren't hostile or violent and simply adapted their own spores to their new ho where possible or faded into either extinction or obscurity if it wasn't.
These days they had the full suite of terraforming available to them, so they did like every other civilized culture when they wanted to inhabit a new planet, which made an entire population from one base stock a rare thing, showing the age and power of their family.
He was with a younger version of himself in the gardens by the World Tree. Not really a child, per se, but a cutting, or a clone, the way you would do with a plant. From what Max could glean from his bodyguards' thoughts, that was the common way to pass down an inheritance in their culture. However, by Alliance law, the clone was considered an entirely new person, so they needed education and background to prove themselves to society.
The process also built another layer of expertise on what they had and helped keep them current with new technologies and cultural developnts so that they didn't lose touch with the younger generations by living and cloning themselves in safety and seclusion.
Ahd, in both versions of himself, preferred to be addressed by his bare na and got mildly annoyed with all the bowing and sucking up that people did when they recognized him, so Max led Nico to the front of the ship while briefing her on the situation.
Max kept listening as they walked and learned one more important fact about Ahd. He identified as male, despite the species reproducing asexually through self-germinating spores.
The fact that everyone was avoiding getting in his way beca clear when Max found the pair and their guards at the ice cream stand in the garden, which was usually packed full of people at every hour of the day and night, all alone in a bubble of calm.
He walked right up and extended his hand to greet the Myceloid dignitary with a smile.
"Welco to Terminus. My na is Keres Max, and I am told you are here to determine if you wish to enroll in the Academy."
The Myceloid gave him an intrigued look and slightly awkwardly matched the handshake gesture. It was a custom among the species, but his station ant that everyone bowed to him, and nobody would dare attempt to touch him, so Ahd had beco a bit rusty with the process.
"Headmistress dusa is an old friend of mine. When she was still in school, she won a contest to design a governnt building on one of the planets I own." He explained.
"Then you are guaranteed to start the sester with at least one friend on board, and she will have all the insider knowledge you could want," Max replied with a chuckle.
There was a lot more to their friendship being replayed in the man's mories, most of it very boring and professional, but it seed that they actually worked together a lot. Most of her reputation in the Alliance for brilliant architecture had been bankrolled by Ahd and sold to interested parties all over the Alliance after it was constructed.
A mutual benefit to both of them, though Max would usually call that a Business Partner and not a friend.
"Would you like a tour? The teachers only arrived today, so they're not prepared for visitors yet, but there is no reason I couldn't show you around. I did give the final approval for the design, so I know where everything is." Max offered.
"How many revisions did dusa go through on this one?" Ahd asked curiously.
"At least six before she presented it to the first ti, and I don't know how many more before she actually built it. I picked my favorite color sche and left the rest to her." Max explained.
"That's the best way when dealing with an artist. If you interfere too much, it never feels right, like it was forced or limited. The artistry and life of it get lost sowhere along the way." The oligarch agreed.
Reviews
All reviews (0)