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The hover-vator vibrated to a stop, opening for me.
“That was fast,” I said to myself, stepping off. Yet another thing to get used to. Lifts back in New Toronto tended to be clunky and slow. Nothing like the smooth rocket of the station’s hover-vators.
I stepped out of the hover-vator onto the floor of level 1200. In front of me was an Old-Earth-style bookshop, with actual books. And there was the chocolaterie, with its ginormous golden pillars, wound around with burgundy velvet ribbons. I oriented myself quickly, realizing based on the businesses before me that I was on the opposite side of the level from my bakery. With the open column air and all the hover-vators pinging up and down, there was no way to cut straight across, so I’d have to walk around half the circumference of the ring.
Even at the early hour, just before 7:00am station time, this floor was abuzz with customers. I nodded to myself, satisfied to see it.Definitely gonna get some good foot traffic through here.
I forged forward, joining the crowds of shoppers and workers hurrying to and fro. I managed to keep my nerve and continue walking when a holographic advertisement appeared directly in front of my face. Sophie had warned me about those before my first visit here. She’d said the first time she’d seen one, she’d made a complete ass of herself by jumping back and taking down another person with her. Though I didn’t think myself quite as jumpy as Sophie, I was still glad for the warning. Having a bright, glowing rectangle appear out of nowhere in front of your face, singing the praises of the newest Etruvian advances in antennae tightening, could throw anybody off their game first thing in the morning.
The holographic ad dissipated into a glimmering spray of translucent pixels as I walked through it. Old-Earth Christmas carols bled through the conversations taking place all around me. People were speaking in so many different languages that my translator’s input just gave up, letting the sounds wash over me in a sea of alien syllables.
I liked it. I liked that all these different kinds of people, alien and human, had found their way here. Just like me.
I walked briskly, the hover-vator column to my right, the shops to my left. I passed the bookshop, admiring the golden pages and richly embossed covers of the books on display. I moved passed the chocolaterie a little more slowly, taking note of what they offered. Even though this shop was a good distance from my own, as another sweets shop it would offer some competition. I swallowed down a small knot of anxiety at that thought, letting my eyes sweep over their offerings.
The anxiety eased quickly. Almost everything looked to be chocolate of some kind. I certainly used chocolate and cacao from Terratribe 2, but that was usually in cakes, frostings, and ganache. I didn’t often make truffles or bars or things of that sort, and seeing how much this shop specialized in exactly that, I knew that I wouldn’t bother. The shop had chocolate shaped into every possible enticement – small Old-Earth animals, musical instruments, toys. Even little chocolate Christmas trees to match the giant deep green one that glistened with what looked like real needles. There were a few non-chocolate items – various bonbons and jellies in fantastical colours, also made into whimsical little shapes. Little gummy stars, planets, and starships glistened, fat and sugary and beautiful under the gleam of the shop’s lights.
Maybe I can buy some stuff there as a business expense. You know, sampling the local goods and getting inspiration.
Past the chocolaterie wasHallowed be thy Bean, Sophie and X’s coffee shop. There was already a line forming outside the little window, so I didn’t bother stopping in for now. Scents of espresso, peppermint, eggnog, and chocolate drifted from the shop’s window, and I caught a glimpse of Sophie’s shiny black hair and rosy cheeks between customers.
I continued on my way, absorbing the energy and good mood of everyone around me. It made sense, since this was a tourist hub, that lots of folks were here on vacation and therefore were feeling pretty good. That lightheartedness was contagious, and it urged my excitement about my own shop to new heights, filling my chest and making me practically float along the polished metal floors.
My steps faltered slightly, my brows rising, when I saw a huge, bulky man outside my shop. I squinted, pressing my lips together, telling my heart to kindly calm the fuck down.
And it did calm down, thankfully. But only after I realized that it was X outside my shop, not Archie.
As if Archie would be here this early! Unlike you, he didn’t have a nice cozy nap in here last night...
No, he’d been working up until closing hour at the pub, after which he’d come here and found me sleeping around 2am. He might not even show up today, idiot. He has a business to run, too.
My eyes slid over to the glossy black door of his pub. I noticed a sign that hadn’t been there last night. It read “closed” in dozens of languages, all written with gold ink.
That made sense. It was a pub, after all. Elora Station had rules about serving alcohol before 10am station time.
“Hey, X,” I said, nodding and smiling as I finally reached him. “You’re here early. Is that OK? Shop looked real busy just now.”
“Dave is there with Sophie. They’ve got it covered,” X said, fixing me with those unnervingly focused yellow eyes of his. After all the fluttery excitement and, frankly, goofiness I’d been feeling about Archie, having X here was like someone shoving a fistful of snow down the back of my jacket. Other than the fact that both he and Archie were giant and totally jacked, plus the fact they both shared skin tones in a greenish palette, the two couldn’t be more different. Where Archie was warm, grinning, and open, X was an icy, silent workhorse.
“We should get to it,” he said, turning to face the security forcefield in place in front of my shop.
X’s laser focus and almost obsessive need to work was good. It was helping me get my head on straight, helping to realign my own focus. All in all, I was pretty damn lucky my best friend had married a chimera who was willing to help me out. X had served in the Chimera Guard, the army of the Galkor Empire. He, like all chimeras, had been genetically modified to basically never tire and he craved hard work. The need to be productive was bred right into his near-unbreakable bones.
“Right. Let’s do it,” I said, tapping my data tablet to the security screen and dropping the forcefield.
We got to work quickly. X busied himself collecting all the larger pieces of rubbish to be taken away, including the boards and tops of the counters. I’d keep the bones of the counter structure, but I wanted the display area open for customers to see the baked goods. The closed-in counter wouldn’t work for my purposes. While X did that, often with the help of tools he’d brought, I picked up my broom and dustpan, sweeping up the dust and debris. It would be more efficient to use a robot for cleaning jobs like this, but I wanted to save money wherever I could. So old-school sweeping it was.
The hours passed quickly, and around 11am station time we’d stripped the counters down to the bare structure. X had piled all the boards and heavy stuff at the entrance to my shop.
I surveyed the space, resting my broom against a wall and swiping the back of my hand across my forehead.
“Awesome. Looking better already. We’re a little ahead of schedule. I’m going to go get the paint supplies,” I said. X gave a grunt of acknowledgement, dipping his head in a slight nod, his black horns slicing through the air.
“Do you want a break? You could go grab something to eat while I’m gone. I’ll put up the security forcefield,” I said, brushing my hands against my black leggings.
“No thanks,” was the only reply I got. I smirked.Figures. Not sure what other answer I expected.
“Alright, then. Thanks, X. I’ll be back.”
