The drive back to where Esong's space ship was parked seed to go by faster than she anticipated. Maybe it was because Esong was the one who drove the car and he was definitely speeding.
When he parked and she got out of the car, she saw pictures moving in the air, the sound of talking and so laughter. "Is that.." Sowhere in the back of her mind she knew that outdoor movies in the interstellar could be projected on to a transparent screen that appeared to be almost non existent. For this reason, whatever was being viewed would appear as if it was just there, in the open space.
"They are watching a movie, I guess they decided to invite all the citizens to the viewing. An outdoor movie viewing, it's not trendy anymore but people do it on dates apparently." Esong told her.
"Whose idea was it?" she asked.
She could see the children and adults were having a good ti. This was different from the usual norm of a bon fire, and watching soaps or news on personal terminals.
There were few entertainnt avenues on the blue star, in the blue star people had shopping malls, arenas where they watched cha fights, virtual idols who held concerts almost everyday, gaming consoles which connected them to the star network gaming world directly. Virtual reality was the best part because one could buy a gaming cabin and live in a virtual world, building an entire life in there.
The night life in the capital was definitely alive, they had bars, night clubs, flying car races, underground fight clubs and top star warrior challenges. The capital had it all, the blue star had nothing.
Ideally, nobody in their right mind would want to move to the blue star, it was boring, under developed and unattractive. Sotis when she closed her eyes at night she could vividly recall the scenes from when she had just arrived in this world and seen it. It was breath taking!!
She looked at the audience viewing the movie and saw her sister Carolyn sharing a table with prince Markey and she thought, "What are those two up to? Is she really going to date him, have they made progress already?"
They were sharing a packet of potato crisps as they watched the movie. Others were eating their dinner or chewing sothing. At least she thought, they had real food and the capital did not. Then again, it was not as if they were starving over there.
She sighed and followed into his space ship with her head bowed, looking down with a heavy heart. Would the day ever co when the blue star was just as beautiful and developed?
"Why are you downcast?" Esong asked her.
"I am thinking about how far we have to go and how hard we have to work to turn the blue star into a rival of the capital in terms of developnt. When I think about the capital and I compare it to our blue star I feel like an orphaned child, dressed in rags and begging for food along the side of the road. The capital is the rich child that lowers the car window and tosses a coin my way."
Esong found her apt descriptions to be amusing. As he pulled her by the hand and sat her down in the captain's seat he told her, "There are no beggars in the capital. The empire has a relief fund that is strictly managed by the proper authorities and every month they distribute supplies and star coins to the destitute."
No one on the blue star has ever received that relief, she thought.
"Welco back general." Jovi the ship AI greeted.
"Thank you Jovi." Esong sat in the co-captain's seat.
"I see a new face on board general, should I scan and store her information?"
"Yes please Jovi." Esong replied.
Scarlet already knew that artificial intelligence existed in the interstellar world, they had chas and robots so the talking voice in the space ship did not frighten her. It did make her curious however.
"Scan your finger prints here." Esong told her. "Your eyes here."
She did all that.
"Raise your hands and stand here."
He just kept moving her around like a doll until all of her features were scanned and recorded into the system. She even had to provide a hair sample for DNA. Just when she thought it was finished she had to walk so that her gait, posture and movents could be recorded.
"Ho, the great general of our empire is really well guarded." she comnted.
"Cloning is forbidden but so people still do it. What if soone that looks like you is sent aboard the ship to assasinate ? All of this is a preemptive asure that helps to keep and those on board safe."
She sat down again in the captains seat and swung herself from side to side slowly. "Are there a lot of people that want you dead?"
"The lunar federation, so noble families, space pirates, cha warriors who want my spot, criminals I have arrested and once upon a ti you."
She opened her mouth in shock. " ." she squealed in a high pitched voice and pointed at herself. "Why ever would I want you dead?" she asked.
Esong folded his arms and leaned back against his seat. "You want to tell that in all of these years it has not crossed your mind even once. We both know that you have so grudges against ."
"That's because you are very unlikeable." she blurted.
Now it was his turn to open his mouth in shock. "Now I know that you are lying because we are married as a result of your love for ."
"It was not love, it was obsession." she corrected him. "And I have not worked it, besides you can actually love soone without liking them. Trust , it happens."
"So you love but you don't like ." he said in a confused voice.
"I thought you said that there was no room for love in our relationship, why are you bring this up anyway. We are talking about all the people that want you dead now. In my case you are my billion star coin providing sugar daddy and the father of my child, I want you to live for a very long ti."
He chuckled, "What is a sugar daddy?"
"Soone that gives you things often in exchange for sothing. I give you food, you give money."
Esong tilted his head, "That doesn't sound right to ."
"It is what I say it is." she gave him a stubborn look, her eyes sparkling from this easy going banter.
Esong was relaxed and smiling. The atmosphere between it was just as it had been at the beginning of their date.
Suddenly he asked her, "Do you want to see my bedroom?"
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