Planatae

Meeting

Seen from above, the entire resort looked like a giant globe with its top flattened. Jasper, now on solid ground again, made his way around its circumference to reach one of the four main entryways, each one aligning with a cardinal direction. Joining the flow of the crowd, he found himself at the southernmost point. Adorned with plant decor and framed by elegant pillars, there would normally be resort staff there - usually locals - to greet guests and offer them an authentic, complimentary snack. But now, the doors were flung wide open, and people entered freely into the lobby beyond.

Although he saw his worry reflected in many of the faces around him, the flow of people was relatively calm. There were a few outliers, whoever, who seemed to find the situation more entertaining than anything else. He eyed a couple in expensive diving suits, still dripping water. They whispered to each other in thinly veiled excitement as he passed them, their attention focused on the firefight far above.

These people haven't seen war, the Old One spoke within him. Not like us.

That's what I'm worried about, he responded. From afar, the pleasure cruise had the illusion of something unreal, intangible. It was no wonder these coddled, rich travelers were unperturbed, secure. Still, it was better than sheer panic.

Inside the lobby now, Jasper crossed the polished marble flooring and skirted the impressive double-central staircase that led to both surrounding balconies above, and the sublevel floors below. While staff members ushered guests up and down the stairs, directing them to their rooms, Jasper headed deeper into the main level, rushing down a maze of hallways. The guests' residences, amenities, and restaurants were all situated right above and below this level. Most of the complex's sea deck was instead committed to administrative and guest services.

Checking his feed again brought up more private messages than the one earlier, directions for resort staff to gather for an emergency conference. Guided by the new alert, and the workers around him, Jasper eventually found himself in the sea seck's largest meeting space; the staff cafeteria.

"Oi, Jasper!" A voice called out. He scanned the room, spotting the burly frame of a man waving vigorously at him from a table. Returning the greeting, Jasper slid into the chair next to him with a sigh.

"Pleasant morning, eh?" The man, Arden, gave him a lopsided grin. "Something like that," Jasper responded, before greeting the two people sitting across from him. Helena was a cook in one of the resort's many restaurants, one that specialized in local seafood. The other was Edin, who, like his brother Arden, was a technician and maintenance worker for the resort. While the two men seemed unbothered, Helena smiled weakly. Her, skin, already paper-white, seemed even more devoid of color at the moment.

"Have you ever seen a dogfight like that before?" Jasper asked her. She shook her head and sighed, the slits along her neck opening slightly. Like all those born on Alto II, she possessed a set of gills - a very useful Factor for living on the waterlogged planet.

"We've never had violence like this before," she said, her accent thickening with emotion. "This is not a good sign."

"Well, I completely disagree!" Ardent grinned. "It means this place is getting pretty popular. People don't fight unless there's something they want out of it."

Helena scoffed at that. "We're on the edge of Standard space. What do they want - some fresh fish?"

"Look around," Edin spoke up, more solemn than his brother. This isn't the little retreat it was, anymore. The people that come here are filthy rich."

Jasper was about to respond, but his feed pinged for his attention, and then everyone's gaze was directed towards the front of the room.

There, standing within a flock of assistants, stood Annika Reyal, general manager of the Aquatime Resort. Instinctively, Jasper winced. There were few people in his life more oppressive than that woman - besides the second voice in his head, of course. But unlike the Old One, Reyal was a torment Aquatime's workforce could shoulder together.