Empty Toward The Moon

Chapter Two

Yesterday went as well as I had expected. I didn't manage to get that extra ten minutes of manga-fest reading time as my assistant Lainey Newberry called me on my BrainComp to report on today's school senior's field trip to the First Museum of Briller Corp Planet. Hosted by yours truly. It took longer than my allotted time for free ranged study time, so I had to head to bed without reading.

This morning was quiet. Getting ready for the day, having breakfast, the usual. Then I spent the half hour flight into the city centre 'studying' materials... well I was reviewing material on my BrainComp. Just not any material provided Brilliant City First Private High School.

If you know back doors into the black web, you can find all sorts of stuff just waiting to be perused, including last night's fighter championship racing and marksmanship competition. Another, not-so-secret vice that my Grandfather may or may not know about. The officials of the unsanctioned race might or might not be sponsored by his very own office. We may never know. Not if he doesn't want us to know about it. And since it's good for the goosehog, is good for the ganderler.

Last night's race was particularly thrilling and, although I'd arrived at the museum, I quickly said a warm welcome to my fellow class mates, gathered up my usual entourage of beautiful rich little girls and headed into the large glass building. The race finished on my BrainComp just as we headed for the refresher on the first floor. I stood before the mirror along with the other seven young ladies, lamenting on the race that my favourite athlete had just lost, while I carefully applied another light layer of make up and adjusted my hair accessories.

Looking ones best is a must when on social outing – that's what my etiquette teacher always said. It is expected to refresh oneself before the engagement, if time permits. The words echoed through my brain, fighting for dominance with the end-of-race commentary. I sighed, then was rudely interrupted.

"Oooh, cherry scented. Can I please borrow your lip gloss?" I stood there, momentary stunned, watching the reflection in the refresher mirror, my signature scented cherry lip gloss phial paused mid air. Surprise and a bit of confusion filtering through my mind, wondering if I'd just heard heard the girl behind me correctly. It might be time to phase her our of my social grouping.

"Excuse me, please?" I asked in a delicate voice. Politeness was next to Goddessness, or so I'd been taught all my life.

"Your lip gloss, could I try it please. It smells so pretty." The young social climber giggled, like she'd not just violated four major social etiquettes and a few minor ones. Her eyes were clear, as clueless and excited as a snapple in the sun.

"You want to try my DNA calibrated cherry mint lip gloss from my own signature scent range? The one that my mother paid a fortune for Libae Contache to design specifically for my body composition?" I shook my lip gloss phial in the air, trying to draw attention to the printing on the side, 'Travicia Briller'. Never mind the bacteria and viral contaminants she would be leaving behind. Ew!

"Oh, ss-sorry, I didn't know." The sun went behind the clouds, and the metaphorical snapple fell flat on its face. This petite young girl in a Stanz Pini dress from last season, was a fellow Brilliant City débutante just like me, another rich girl who attended our private school for wealthy and elite families. And not just any wealthy elite families. Families who had been tied to this planetary sector since the expansion from Earth, nearly eight hundred years ago.

I frowned slightly, trying not to let disdain show on my beautiful face and I tucked a brown lock of my glorious hair behind my ear, drawing attention away from my eyes on purpose.

"Miss Briller, I didn't know, please, I'm ss-sorry." The young girl stammered, pressing shaking gem encrusted finger nails to her lips. When she looked like she was going to have a heart attack, I turn around and smile gently at her, giving her a kindly sort of look and patted her gently on the shoulder. Yes, it was definitely time to have her phased out of my group.

"It's OK, Marcien. You didn't know. You're new here, so grace will be extended. But please, don't let it happen again, OK?" New here, my big blue eyes. She'd been trying to climb into my social circle since the fifth grade, seven years ago. I clap my hands look at the rest of the girls.

"Now where were we?" I asked out loud, smiling at all the pretty faces surrounding me.

"Ten minutes until the class museum tour begins, Miss Briller," my helpful personal assistant replied. Lainey Newberry was a friend I'd had the pleasure of knowing for the last twelve years since we both started school together. Her father is my uncle's subordinate, and her golden blond locks and pretty face and personal wealth matched my own really well.

Smugly, I smile at her, but then silently checked the time with my own personal BrainComp implant, confirming Lainey's statement. Yes she was correct and yes we were going on tour - an actual physical class field trip today. The senior class social committee had organised it for our final senior excursion. I kept the kind and caring look on my face, hiding my negative thoughts for tour of our national museum that I'd been to so many times before, in virtual and in person.

"All right ladies, let's get moving." I waved with both arms, making sure to rattle the number of platinum designer bracelets on my wrists with a tinkling sound, and shooed the ten or so girls towards the refresher exit. I patted Marcien on the shoulder on the way pass, giving her a delicately, concerned face.

"Are you OK, Marcien?" I noted she'd already chewed the gems off one of her finger nails in the time it took since she shoved her metaphorical foot in her mouth, but I chose to ignore her nasty habit.

"Yes, thank you Miss Briller." She hummed, nodding her head. The sunshine came out from behind the clouds and all was right with her world again.

"That's good. Chin up, Buttercup. We've another three hours of museum tours to experience, come on lets go." Drawing on my inner cheerful leader, I gently took her hand and pulled her out of the refresher bay and into the wide open foyer of the First Museum of Briller Corp Planet.

The ground floor was a display of high end architectural glass and chrome, with a central indoor floor fountain that glowed with the company logo. It was a large, inviting, open space, white and light and airy. Behind glass walls, lights displayed sculptures, spacecraft materials and relics that arrived from old Earth. Many of these artefacts were worth more than the whole planet's GDP. Safe to say that security was extreme.

Turning to the gravlift behind the water features, I guided my group of ladies further into the museum, acting as the host for today's excursion.

"Come, everyone. I'll take you to my favourite floor display here in the Briller Museum, then when we've finished the tour, let's get lunch together across the street at Spendor Restaurant. How does that sound?"

"Oh my goodness, that sounds wonderful," another of the students and fellow debutant Heidisen Barlow replied, and all eight or so girls nodded their heads in agreement, and that was it.