Post by Gelus on Jul 21, 2023 2:34:00 GMT -5
Gelus sat in the private observation deck of his father's massive cruiser. They were enroute to Earth on a mission of utmost importance to his father's company, Arcose Ice Services. He was enjoying a fine glass of cognac to stifle the nerves as he looked out at the dark expanse of space. Tilting the short-stemmed brandy glass towards his nose, he took a long, pleasurable smell before imbibing the last fourth of the glass. The Arcosian didn't normally drink on the job, but he was under immense pressure to complete his task in a timely manner, under threat of losing the life of luxury he had earned. As President of Arcose Ice Services and his father's second in command, Gelus was oftentimes put into the position of negotiating business deals with the various companies and governments that they dealt with. One such business deal, one that would have been the biggest in the company’s history, would end in disaster when Gelus let slip a bit of information that led to the whole thing falling through. His father was furious. Now his only way out of this mess was to establish the Earth subsidiary of the company and push the competitor out of business. If he couldn’t do it and do it fast, he would be cut off from his title, his money, and his clan. Failure was not an option. Then again, to Gelus, it never was.
“Sir.”
As Gelus set his brandy glass on the arm of the chair, a gruff voice addressed him as they entered through the sliding doors. “We are in Earth’s orbit and have received clearance to land. The flight crew awaits your orders.” From the bar in the corner of the room, a floating spherical robot with two spindly arms brought over an old-looking bottle of cognac, filling Gelus’s glass halfway before the Arcosian businessman gestured for it to stop, the robot servant floating over to the bar before retracting its arms and settling into some sort of charging station. Taking another long sniff of the expensive brandy, he turned his chair around to face the man. It was the ship’s Captain. What his name was, Gelus did not know or care.
“Land directly on the frozen wastes of Earth’s north. We will be setting up there.” Standing from his chair, he approached the Captain. He was an Earthling, surprisingly. How amusing. Gelus didn’t have too many of those working for him. “Here, I don’t want this.” He gave the glass to the man, who had no choice but to accept it.
“Sir, i’m sorry, but I don’t drink when i’m–”
“Oh, don’t be such a child.” Gelus walked through the doors leading to the ship’s hallways. As he departed, he spoke to the Captain one final time. “Careful with that brandy. It’s worth more than your entire salary.” Leaving the observation deck, he briskly walked down the halls towards the flight deck. As he entered, the Captain followed in from behind him.
“President on deck!” Immediately, the entire flight crew stood from their posts and gave Gelus a respectful bow, waiting until their boss gave them leave to return to their posts with the wave of a hand. The Arcosian kept a straight face, but had a huge grin on the inside. This was the kind of respect only money could buy. “We land immediately! President’s orders!” As the Captain relayed Gelus’s commands, landing procedures began. Before long, they had touched down on the frozen, icy ground of Earth’s northernmost region. Once the procedure was finished, one of the flight crew ascended the stairs to address Gelus. He was an alien of some sort. Mostly Earthling-like with strangely colored hair and pointy ears. Again, Gelus couldn’t think of his name if he even cared to.
“Landing was successful, sir. You may depart at your leisure.”
“Begin unloading. I want this ship on the way back to Arcose within the hour.” With that simple command, the Arcosian descended from his perch as the ship’s main exit opened. Being the first to step onto the alien soil, he immediately began surveying the icy landscape. The rest of the crew departed, beginning to unload several large metal crates from the cargo hold as they shivered incessantly. While the temperatures here were easily arctic, they did not bother Gelus in the slightest. He found Arcose’s frozen moons were far colder. He had even seen a man frozen solid in minutes in a storm. The temperatures here, comparatively, were mild. In spite of that, the ice here seemed good. As the businessman gently floated through the air, he noted its appealing color and apparent age. Stopping at a good spot, he touched down on the ground, placing his palm down on a section that had a light dusting of snow. With a grunt of effort, he punched next to his hand using his other fist. The ice cracked and split, whole sections around the man that were acres in size rising like great frozen skyscrapers. Gelus smirked. The ice was strong, too. He picked the perfect spot. Flying back to the ship, he noticed the crew scurrying to meet their boss’s tight timeframe for getting the ship unloaded. Looking around at the over a dozen metal crates in the area, he imagined the great ice mine that he would turn them into. Soon, his bodyguard, Namoldin will arrive with more workers. That was when the real work would begin. His imagination was interrupted by the voice of the ship’s Captain calling from him.
“Sir, transmission is incoming! It’s from Mr. Ais.” His father. Hearing this, Gelus quickly made his way back to the ship, where a large screen showing his father’s face waited for him.
“Ah, my son. I take it the Revenger got you to Earth safe and sound?” Gelus stood at attention and gave his father a respectful bow.
“Father. Lovely to hear from you.” As he rose once more, he addressed the long-horned, royal blue Arcosian on-screen. “Yes, the voyage was pleasant. The crew could be better.” The communications officer that was present kept his head down, ignoring the insult.
“Ah, forgive me, child. I shall have them replaced.”
“No need. They’re the best of a legion of fools. They will do.” Looking intently at the image of his father, he held back a barely repressed sneer. “Though I take it you did not take time out of your busy day to merely check on my well-being?”
“Indeed, I did not. In fact, I called to give you your first directive.”
“Tsk.” Already!? He had barely touched down on this godforsaken rock twenty minutes ago and his father already had a new job for him. The nerve…
“The President of Earth. He will be a grand ally in our business interests on this planet. Find out how to get in contact. Befriend him. Find out what it would take for Earth Ice Services to receive exclusive mining rights in the north and give it to him. Whatever it is. Our vengeance against Arctic Ice Inc. must be swift and sure. Others will learn what it is to defy us.”
“Anything else?” Gelus asked with a hint of annoyance. His father smiled.
“No, for now. Best of luck, my son.” The transmission ended. The Arcosian grit his teeth. The fact that he needed to please this man had just recently begun to get on his nerves. The thought that he could ruin him with one fell swoop made him uneasy. One day, he hoped, his fate would be in his own hands. Little did he know, as he departed the ship and it flew into the sky, back to Arcose, that this journey would be the perfect opportunity to do just that.
“Sir.”
As Gelus set his brandy glass on the arm of the chair, a gruff voice addressed him as they entered through the sliding doors. “We are in Earth’s orbit and have received clearance to land. The flight crew awaits your orders.” From the bar in the corner of the room, a floating spherical robot with two spindly arms brought over an old-looking bottle of cognac, filling Gelus’s glass halfway before the Arcosian businessman gestured for it to stop, the robot servant floating over to the bar before retracting its arms and settling into some sort of charging station. Taking another long sniff of the expensive brandy, he turned his chair around to face the man. It was the ship’s Captain. What his name was, Gelus did not know or care.
“Land directly on the frozen wastes of Earth’s north. We will be setting up there.” Standing from his chair, he approached the Captain. He was an Earthling, surprisingly. How amusing. Gelus didn’t have too many of those working for him. “Here, I don’t want this.” He gave the glass to the man, who had no choice but to accept it.
“Sir, i’m sorry, but I don’t drink when i’m–”
“Oh, don’t be such a child.” Gelus walked through the doors leading to the ship’s hallways. As he departed, he spoke to the Captain one final time. “Careful with that brandy. It’s worth more than your entire salary.” Leaving the observation deck, he briskly walked down the halls towards the flight deck. As he entered, the Captain followed in from behind him.
“President on deck!” Immediately, the entire flight crew stood from their posts and gave Gelus a respectful bow, waiting until their boss gave them leave to return to their posts with the wave of a hand. The Arcosian kept a straight face, but had a huge grin on the inside. This was the kind of respect only money could buy. “We land immediately! President’s orders!” As the Captain relayed Gelus’s commands, landing procedures began. Before long, they had touched down on the frozen, icy ground of Earth’s northernmost region. Once the procedure was finished, one of the flight crew ascended the stairs to address Gelus. He was an alien of some sort. Mostly Earthling-like with strangely colored hair and pointy ears. Again, Gelus couldn’t think of his name if he even cared to.
“Landing was successful, sir. You may depart at your leisure.”
“Begin unloading. I want this ship on the way back to Arcose within the hour.” With that simple command, the Arcosian descended from his perch as the ship’s main exit opened. Being the first to step onto the alien soil, he immediately began surveying the icy landscape. The rest of the crew departed, beginning to unload several large metal crates from the cargo hold as they shivered incessantly. While the temperatures here were easily arctic, they did not bother Gelus in the slightest. He found Arcose’s frozen moons were far colder. He had even seen a man frozen solid in minutes in a storm. The temperatures here, comparatively, were mild. In spite of that, the ice here seemed good. As the businessman gently floated through the air, he noted its appealing color and apparent age. Stopping at a good spot, he touched down on the ground, placing his palm down on a section that had a light dusting of snow. With a grunt of effort, he punched next to his hand using his other fist. The ice cracked and split, whole sections around the man that were acres in size rising like great frozen skyscrapers. Gelus smirked. The ice was strong, too. He picked the perfect spot. Flying back to the ship, he noticed the crew scurrying to meet their boss’s tight timeframe for getting the ship unloaded. Looking around at the over a dozen metal crates in the area, he imagined the great ice mine that he would turn them into. Soon, his bodyguard, Namoldin will arrive with more workers. That was when the real work would begin. His imagination was interrupted by the voice of the ship’s Captain calling from him.
“Sir, transmission is incoming! It’s from Mr. Ais.” His father. Hearing this, Gelus quickly made his way back to the ship, where a large screen showing his father’s face waited for him.
“Ah, my son. I take it the Revenger got you to Earth safe and sound?” Gelus stood at attention and gave his father a respectful bow.
“Father. Lovely to hear from you.” As he rose once more, he addressed the long-horned, royal blue Arcosian on-screen. “Yes, the voyage was pleasant. The crew could be better.” The communications officer that was present kept his head down, ignoring the insult.
“Ah, forgive me, child. I shall have them replaced.”
“No need. They’re the best of a legion of fools. They will do.” Looking intently at the image of his father, he held back a barely repressed sneer. “Though I take it you did not take time out of your busy day to merely check on my well-being?”
“Indeed, I did not. In fact, I called to give you your first directive.”
“Tsk.” Already!? He had barely touched down on this godforsaken rock twenty minutes ago and his father already had a new job for him. The nerve…
“The President of Earth. He will be a grand ally in our business interests on this planet. Find out how to get in contact. Befriend him. Find out what it would take for Earth Ice Services to receive exclusive mining rights in the north and give it to him. Whatever it is. Our vengeance against Arctic Ice Inc. must be swift and sure. Others will learn what it is to defy us.”
“Anything else?” Gelus asked with a hint of annoyance. His father smiled.
“No, for now. Best of luck, my son.” The transmission ended. The Arcosian grit his teeth. The fact that he needed to please this man had just recently begun to get on his nerves. The thought that he could ruin him with one fell swoop made him uneasy. One day, he hoped, his fate would be in his own hands. Little did he know, as he departed the ship and it flew into the sky, back to Arcose, that this journey would be the perfect opportunity to do just that.
WC: 1321