A Most Unlikely Hero, Vol 3, page 3
“Ooohhh!” Gabrielle murmured as she and Alex sat down. “This is a really nice vehicle. It reminds me of the passenger shuttles Papa uses—except smaller… and it doesn’t have a bedroom, or a bathroom… or a hot spring.”
“Your father’s shuttle has a hot spring?” Alex asked, incredulous.
“Of course. Bathing is an important ritual on Angelisia. All of our ships have hot springs.”
Alex would have palmed his face at her words, but he was preoccupied by other matters.
Despite there being nearly two meters worth of sitting space, Gabrielle had plopped herself right next to him, holding his arm between her cleavage. He tried not to let it bother him. They were pretending to be a married couple, after all, so this was only natural. Even so, he couldn’t deny that having his arm squished between her breasts was distracting.
“We’ll be arriving at Master Nicolas’ mansion in just a few minutes,” Jessica called from the front. She was the one driving. His grandfather never hired men.
“Right…”
Alex tried to take several calming breaths. This was his punishment for causing so much property damage, and in truth, he was getting off lightly. Causing cracks in the dome was a huge offense. Were he anyone else, Alex would have been sent to prison or fined several billion credits. It wouldn’t be good if he got worked up.
“Alex?” Gabrielle asked.
“Yes?”
“How come you and your grandpa don’t live together?”
“Because I dislike my grandfather,” Alex admitted. “He’s a lecherous old man who spends more time sleeping with women than he did his own family. A man like him isn’t someone that I want my little sister growing up around.”
“Oh.” Gabrielle paused. “Is sleeping with women bad?”
Alex didn’t know how to answer that question, so he changed the subject. “Did you bring my crisis suit?”
Gabrielle perked up at the mention of his crisis suit. “Don’t worry. I’ve got everything needed to continue our projects packed away in my D-space. I can calibrate the suit tonight.”
At those words, Alex grinned. “You really are the best, you know that?”
The way Gabrielle’s cheeks pinkened at his compliment, the way her smile lit up the entire limo, was a memory that Alex would forever hold dear to his heart.
4
Mars Homespring was a resort dome. Built as a hot spring resort, it contained little in the way of modern architecture. Cobblestone streets wove through gently sloping hills and beautifully constructed buildings. A variety of genetically modified trees added a sense of natural aesthetics, which, when combined with the large columns and architrave roofs that were reminiscent to the ancient Greeks on Earth, created the wonderful contrast that made Mars Homespring Resort so popular.
There was a reason this dome was ranked number one in the popularity pole.
Nicolas’s home was located on a miniature mountain. It looked as if it had been carved into the very face of the mountain itself, a structure composed of Corinthian columns, glasteel panels, and glimmering durasteel walls. The mansion was the only structure that combined modern and ancient architectural styles. Everything else in this dome looked like it had been transported directly from Ancient Greece.
As the limo set down, the doors opened, and Alex and Gabrielle exited, stepping onto the pavement, which was shaped like a donut. A large fountain of a gorgeous naked woman with big breasts stood in the center of the donut, water pouring down her chest from a basin that she held above her head. As Alex grimaced at the decadent display, Jessica exited the vehicle.
She smiled at them. “If you would please follow me.”
They walked to the front door, a gargantuan slab of durasteel surrounded by smooth sediment. Jessica tapped on a keypad next to the door. A small slot opened in the door’s center, and a mechanical contraption that looked like an eye came through it. The machine, a simple AI, scanned Jessica’s retina, and then retracted, the slot closing behind it. After a five second pause, the doors slid open.
A man was waiting for them.
“Look who it is!” he exclaimed, grinning as Alex and Gabrielle were ushered inside by Jessica.
He was a tall man, easily looming over the three of them by a head or two. He wasn’t as tall as Azazel, but Alex still only reached up to his chest. Long white hair like that of a lion’s mane trailed down his back, while a pair of bangs framed his face. Despite being well into his 70s, the man’s face didn’t show a single sign of aging—not a wrinkle, crease, or sunspot. Even the way he stood, erect and confident, was more like someone three or four decades younger.
“Nicolas,” Alex said with a frown.
“What’s with the cold look, my boy?” Nicolas laughed as he slapped Alex’s back, causing him to stumble. “Don’t be so formal. I am your grandpa, after all. Just call me pops.”
“I’d rather not.”
“And you must be Gabrielle.”
Alex gnashed his teeth together when Nicolas, ignoring him, addressed Gabrielle.
“Hi!” Gabrielle beamed.
“Has anyone ever told you that you are gorgeous? You’re one of the most charming women I’ve ever laid eyes on.” Kneeling, Nicolas took one of Gabrielle’s hands in his and placed a kiss on her knuckles. “Truly, you must have been born from a star. The very heavens themselves are probably weeping in envy that they don’t have someone as pretty as you among them.”
“Thanks,” Gabrielle said. “But I wasn’t born from a star. I was born from Mama and Papa.”
Alex snorted when the old man stumbled as though thrown off his game. Served him right. The jerk.
“Erm, that’s… well, yes, I imagine you were. Anyway, allow my service droids to take your luggage while I give you the grand tour.”
Several humanoid droids that were nowhere near as complex as Madison entered the room. Their metallic frames and ovoid heads showed that they were older models. They were spindly, with long limbs composed of hydraulic joints, and their heads reminded him of a cylinder. Yellow photoreceptors shut periodically as they took the bags from Alex.
“I see you’re still using those old things,” Alex said.
Nicolas laughed. “Of course I am. Those are the first droids you ever built.”
“You built those?” Gabrielle turned to him.
“When I was five.” Alex tried not to let the heat in his cheeks spread to the rest of his face. “They’re not that good, I know.”
“What are you talking about?! They’re amazing!”
“Ah-ha-ha! I-is that so? W-well, they’re kind of outdated, and stuff.”
Gabrielle grabbed his arm. Her eyes were like a pair of stars. “Can we upgrade them?”
“I… guess we can.”
“Yay!”
“You two make quite the pair,” Nicolas said. He laughed when Alex gave him a stink eye. “Now, how about that tour?”
Nicolas’ mansion had 24 rooms. While that wasn’t large compared to the mansion that Jasmine and her brother lived in, it was still massive, especially when Alex considered how large some of those rooms were.
The floors were made of marble, polished to a shine. The ceilings, mosaics that differed depending on the room. Walls were lined with art, most of it erotic portraits of beautiful and naked women. Alex even thought he saw Jessica among the Guaviare shots. While there were four bedrooms and three showers, the other rooms were all different: a swimming pool, a gymnasium, a lavish office. They were luxurious rooms that showed off the owner’s personality.
“So, what do you two think?” Nicolas asked at the end of his tour.
Gabrielle hummed for a second before coming up with an answer. “It’s kind of small.”
Alex would never, in a million years, forget the crestfallen expression that Nicolas wore when she said that. The older man looked like someone had shot him in the stomach with a particle disruptor. He was going to cherish this memory for the rest of his life.
“S-small?!” Nicolas coughed into his hand. “W-well, I suppose for the princess of Angelisia, my abode would indeed seem small. I guess it can’t be helped.”
“So you do know about Gabrielle!” Alex accused.
“Ha-ha-ha! Of course I do! Don’t underestimate my spy network, brat. The great Nicolas, Spy Master Extraordinaire, never does things half-assed!”
“Don’t act so full of yourself,” Alex spat. “And don’t call what you have a spy network, you damn peeping Tom!”
“What’s a peeping Tom?” Gabrielle asked.
“It’s when an old fart well past his prime decides to—hmmpppphh!!”
“Hahahaha!” Nicolas laughed as he pressed a hand to Alex’s mouth. “It’s nothing important. Nothing important.”
Gabrielle just tilted her head.
Alex pried Nicolas’ hand off his mouth. He glared at the old man, but Nicolas brushed his look aside and clapped his hands once more.
“Now that the tour has concluded, why don’t we all freshen up before getting down to business? I have my own hot spring that you two can use, if you’d like.”
“A hot spring?” Gabrielle looked like someone had told her that Christmas, her birthday, and Mars Day would now happen every day. “I love hot springs!”
Nicolas guffawed. “I figured you would. Angelisians love their hot springs, or so I’m told.”
Alex didn’t know if he wanted Gabrielle using this man’s hot spring. Given Nicolas’ profession and propensity for perversion, it wouldn’t have surprised him to discover that there were several cameras hidden within the hot spring and changing room. Actually, it wouldn’t have surprised him if Nicolas tried to peep on Gabrielle through a hole in the wall while she was in the hot spring.
If he does anything to Gabrielle, I’ll kill him, Alex promised.
5
Hot springs were an ancient tradition that had existed since before humanity left Earth. According to Gabrielle, they were also really popular on Angelisia—so popular, in fact, that every ship within the Angelisian Army had its own hot spring.
It somewhat shocked Alex to learn about the parallels between human culture and angelisian culture. While there were a lot of differences, there were just as many similarities.
The hot springs on Mars were not natural. Mars might have had volcanic activity long ago, but any and all possibilities of a natural hot spring made from geothermal or volcanic heat had disappeared long before humans settled there. That didn’t make the hot spring that Alex was relaxing in any less impressive.
Steam rose from the water’s surface, clinging to his skin and entering his nose with every inhale. The scent of minerals relaxed his mind. Alex’s body was submerged to the shoulders as his back rested against a smooth rock that rose from the water’s surface. His body was so limp, he imagined that this was what a wet noodle felt like.
“You look pretty relaxed, brat,” a voice said.
Alex scowled as he opened his eyes. Nicolas was wading into the water, a towel wrapped around his waist. Even though he was old that didn’t seem to have affected his physique, which could have put athletes that participated in the Space Olympics to shame. Large pecs flexed as he walked, and Alex felt a hint of envy when he saw the abdominal muscles that lined the old man’s stomach.
That scar…
Situated in the center of Nicolas’ chest was a large scar. While it looked like it had healed, it still stood out starkly on his tanned skin—a series of jagged white lines that spread out from a single point. Alex didn’t remember him having that scar.
I wonder when he got it. It looks like something slashed his chest open. What kind of wound is that?
“What do you want?” Alex asked, his voice a grunt.
“I just wanted to see how you were doing,” Nicolas admitted as he sat down about one meter away. “I don’t get to see you very often, so it’s only natural that I’m gonna worry.”
“Don’t you have your ‘spy network’ keeping an eye on me?”
“They can only give me information and their own opinions. They can’t tell me how you actually feel,” Nicolas countered.
“I feel perfectly fine. I’ve been very happy with my sister and Gabrielle.”
“Have you? I heard that you were kicked out of the Mars Police Academy.”
Alex’s scowl became more fierce, and his cheeks lit up as he sank deeper into the water. He didn’t want to talk about how he’d been expelled from the Mars Police Academy yet again. He most certainly didn’t want to discuss that with Nicolas.
His ears perked up when a door on the other side of a large fence slid open with a loud bang! There was a splash, followed by what sounded like doggy paddling. Then…
“This is so nice! I love hot springs!”
Despite his anger at Nicolas, Alex smiled. “Having fun, Gabby?”
“Yes!” Gabrielle called back. “Though it would be more fun if you joined me over here!”
Alex had all but demanded that the hot spring, which technically had no barrier between the sexes, be separated into halves. His reasons for doing so were simple. He didn’t want to take a bath with Gabrielle, and he didn’t want Nicolas to see Gabrielle naked.
Nicolas guffawed while Alex choked on the water he’d accidentally inhaled. The grinning old man shouted, “The brat could definitely join you if you want, Gabrielle. This is my private hot spring, after all. There are no rules against mixed bathing.”
“Really?!” Gabrielle sounded ecstatic.
“Sure,” Nicolas said. “This wall is just a quick makeshift thing anyway. We can tear it down in seconds.”
“Absolutely not!” Alex shouted at the same time, leaping to his feet.
“Eh? But Alex,” Gabrielle whined.
“No means no. It’s not appropriate for two people who aren’t—” Alex stopped himself before he could continue.
“Aren’t what?” asked Gabrielle.
“It… it’s nothing. Anyway, don’t join me.”
“Awww…”
Alex sat back down. He’d been about say that only married couples could be in the hot springs together, but technically speaking, he and Gabrielle were married. Well, they were engaged. However, that was only a cover, a sham. He was pretending to be her fiancé so that she wouldn’t be married off to someone she didn’t love. Once she found someone she loved, their relationship would be over.
The thought depressed him.
“Has anyone ever told you that you think too much about matters where thought shouldn’t be required?” Nicolas asked.
“Has anyone ever told you that you’re a useless homewrecker?” Alex shot back.
“That’s a pretty harsh thing to say about your own grandfather,” Nicolas said.
“Don’t talk like you and I are actually related! You’re not my grandfather! You’re just some guy who happens to be related to my little sister!”
“Alex?” Gabrielle asked over the wall. “Are you okay?”
Nicolas ran a hand through his hair. “Are you still upset about what happened between me and your grandmother? There really was nothing to be done about that.”
Alex felt a moment of incredulity run through him. There was no way this man could be that ignorant. He must have been screwing with Alex. That had to be it.
“Are you fucking kidding me?” Alex growled. “I don’t give a damn about what happened between you and grandma! I’m not talking about that! Thanks to you, my father is dead! If you had just been there when he needed you! If you had… if… wait… what?”
Alex’s head spun, a dizzying sensation like the world around him was turning about like a pinwheel in his mind. Everything blurred in and out of focus. What had he been thinking about? His father. His father what? Something had happened… his father… what was it? Why couldn’t…
“Nnggg!”
Pain slammed into his head as images flashed through his mind. They moved too quickly for him to see more than brief flash. He bent over, holding his head, pressing his hands to his ears as an intense pressure threatened to make it pop. The warmth around him, once comforting, now made him want to throw up.
“Oh, shit! Alex!”
… Why can’t I remember?
The last thing Alex saw was the water rushing up to meet him.
6
Gabrielle held a portable version of Mr. Scanner, which she ran over Alex’s body, checking to see if he had any injuries. Mr. Scanner P-version was her latest invention. It worked on a system that combined sonar-based X-ray vision with precision laser technology to create a perfect map of the person it was scanning.
Alex was lying unconscious on a bed of red sheets and fluffy pillows. Nicolas said that he didn’t have a hospital, but there was a medical droid present, plus her own inventions, so she didn’t think it mattered. She doubted a hospital could help anyway.
“How is he?” Nicolas asked. He was sitting on the other side of the bed, biting his nails. His eyes had not left Alex since she started scanning him.
When Nicolas had panicked, Gabrielle had leapt over the fence and found the frantic old man holding his grandson. Her heart had leapt into her throat. It felt like a piece of her soul had shattered. She’d forced Nicolas to bring Alex to a bedroom and immediately began scanning him for injuries and using Mr. Healer to patch Alex up.
That had been one hour ago.
“His internal bleeding has stopped,” Gabrielle announced, now dressed in a simple pair of pajama pants and a shirt. “His body seems to be healing itself. We’re pretty lucky. He had some brain hemorrhaging.”
It was hard to describe the relief that she felt. While she was acting calm because she couldn’t help Alex if she panicked, Gabrielle had nearly had a panic attack when she’d found Alex, bleeding from his nose, mouth, and ears. She’d been so worried that Nicolas was now sporting a massive bruise from where she’d hit him in her rush to help Alex.
Fortunately, it seemed Alex was fine. His injuries were healing at a decent rate. None of them were life threatening either. She hadn’t even needed to do anything, though she’d sped along the process with Mr. Healer.
“That’s good.” Nicolas sighed in relief.
