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“Sure, that would be fun.” I climb into the seat next to him, and he shows me how to strap in. Next, he walks me through some of the basic controls. I can hear other passengers taking their seats behind me, but I’m focused on what Bubby is showing me. It actually looks fairly basic. There’s a wheel yoke you use just like a steering wheel, but if you push it forward, the shuttle will go down, and you pull it back to make it ascend. There are also accelerator and brake pedals just like an Earth car.
“This button here is for cloaking—we don’t need to use it very often—and this one here is for communications. Any messages will sound a short alert before the message plays. To respond, you push the blue button here. This is the internal comm system if you need to make announcements to our passengers. I think that’s as much as you need to know for now.”
“Don’t forget to show her how to arm the shields. I’d like to survive this trip home to see my family.” The grumpy voice has me turning in my seat. Standing there is Tirrian. For the first time since I met him, he’s not in half form. His scales and wings are hidden, and he looks like a human apart from his unusual skin color. My body itches, and I scratch at my arms. Bubby must notice, because he jumps up and puts his body between Tirrian and me, and the itch subsides.
“You idiot. You were told that if you wanted to be on this flight, you had to assume your human glamour. Lila can’t be mimicking you. It’s dangerous for her and the babies,” he snaps at the dragon, and I hear another growl.
“You fucking asshole.” Caspian sounds livid. “You deliberately changed between outside and here. Do you want my mate to lose our babies? Are you still punishing her for your idiot cousin? I ought to throw you out of the airlock. You need to get your shit together, otherwise I will speak to Will and Eric about not letting you back into the show, and I am sure your father will not be happy about that. He values his relationship with the Galaxy Circus. Maybe it’s time one of your female relatives joins us. I will send him a message. You have a sister, don’t you? I’m sure she is more than capable, and we can rework the act once more,” Caspian threatens.
“Seriously, Tirrian, man! What is your problem with Lila? She hasn’t done anything to you,” Silac berates his friend. There’s a tussle, and I can’t see what’s happening because Bubby’s big body is still in the way, but a few moments later, he’s climbing back into the seat next to me, and Tirrian is nowhere to be seen. Caspian is seated where I was, and next to him is Silac in his human glamour—not a bit of green and orange scales to be seen. The man is smoking hot, and I need to clamp down on my fuck me vibes, lest my kraken decides to add one more to my lineup.
“Thank you. I know it’s not fair for you all to have to do this, but I appreciate it,” I tell him. “My mimic powers are wonky. They were urging me to shift my skin color to match Tirrian’s, or that’s what I’m assuming the itch meant. Once the babies are here, I’m going to work hard on trying to figure out these abilities.”
“It’s no problem at all,” he assures me with a smile. He’s gorgeous, but there’s something about him in his real form that’s just more.
“I know it’s uncomfortable for you, so I appreciate it.”
He shrugs. “The flight isn’t long, so I can deal with it for a few hours.”
“Captain, everyone is seated. I’m about to close the hatch, and then we can prepare for departure,” a female voice calls down the aisle from the back of the ship.
“Thank you, Cerise,” Bubby replies, and I turn around to focus on what Bubby is doing.
“Okay. This is the start button, Lila. Would you like to do the honors?” Bubby points out a round button in the middle of the console. It’s backlit with a red glow and says “start.”
Taking a breath, I lean forward and push the button. There’s a loud whirring sound, and the shuttle shakes for a moment before the engines catch, smooth out, and fall silent. There’s a slight vibration, but apart from that, it doesn’t feel much different.
Bubby presses the button for the internal comm system. “Good afternoon, this is your captain speaking. This shuttle is bound for Fluxx. If this is not your intended destination, please speak up now.” He pauses. When no one does, he continues. “Please ensure you are strapped in at all times unless you need to use the restrooms. Cerise will be bringing around refreshments once we leave Skarrian orbit. The flight is expected to take three hours. Your inflight entertainment system is loaded with some of the newest releases from Skarr and Fluxx to help you pass your time. We hope you enjoy your flight, and if you have any problems, don’t hesitate to press the button, and Cerise will see to your needs.”
He turns off the internal comm system and presses the button for the outgoing one. “Control tower, this is Captain Broderick Potter. Skarr shuttle sixty-nine requesting clearance for takeoff. We are bound for Fluxx, and have twenty-three passengers aboard today.” He releases the button, and there’s a moment of silence.
“Roger that, Captain Potter. Skarr shuttle sixty-nine is cleared for takeoff. Please sound your warning to alert anyone nearby in the shuttle bay. You may proceed to the launch track. Wishing you a safe flight.”
“Thank you, control,” Bubby responds, and then he pushes another button. Outside the window, I can see red flashing lights on the front of the shuttle.
“The ship is covered in red warning lights, and although we can’t hear it in here, there is a warning siren giving three blasts for people to clear our space.” I watch as a couple of people wearing blue jumpsuits with high visibility stripes on them rush out of the way. Broderick moves the control throttle forward, and I watch as he lightly pushes down on the accelerator and guides the ship through the hangar. I can see crowds of people on the sides of the hangar, but no one is close enough or distinctive enough to trigger my mimic abilities.
The hangar opens, and beyond the opening is the darkness of space. “Okay, here we go,” he says to me. The shuttle speeds up as we get closer to the large opening, and then suddenly, we’re out, and I gasp as lights disappear and we are once again moving through the immense, never-ending expanse of space.
My mouth drops open, and I’m sure I am the picture of wide-eyed wonder, but I swear I’ll never get used to this.
“Okay, Lila, this is the navigation system. All we need to do now that we’ve left the hangar is input our destination into it.” I watch as he types Fluxx into the destination section. “Once we’ve done that, it will work out the quickest route, avoiding any known space hazards like asteroid fields or black holes, and when that’s locked in, we just hit this button here.” He points to yet another button. I need to take a photo of the console with my phone and then label everything as a reminder. “That is the autopilot. We will jump into hyperspeed and then sit back and relax while the shuttle does most of the work. It’s only once we reach Fluxx’s orbit and leave hyperspeed that I need to take over again.”
“That seems simple enough,” I lie prettily, and he just chuckles and pats my hand.
“Okay, let’s make the jump. Hold on tight.”
* * *
The jump to hyperspeed was smooth and uneventful, unlike the big ship. Bubby explained it has to do with the size of the ship. This one is small and streamlined, so it’s easier.
The space hostess brings around refreshments, and after that, I get up and swap seats with Silac so I can snuggle with Cas for a little while.
“What are your parents’ names?” I ask him, wanting to know more about the couple I’m about to meet.
“My mother is Mira, and my father is Murphy.”
“Okay, cool, that will be easy to remember.” I sigh with relief.
