Into The Aether

Chapter Nine: Women Are a Strange Breed

Richtofen sat quietly in his office as he had spent most of the day working. Night had fallen on the facility as his room was now being illuminated by the light of the lantern which sat on his desk. He heard the crunching of gravel outside as it made a crescendo towards him and sent him running to the window. Looking down, he could see Dempsey and Kiana making their way to the watchpost; he eyed the woman cautiously as she stopped. She instinctively looked up at the window where the doctor stood. He sucked in a breath and slowly backed up into the shadows before returning to watch her - this time concealed.

She was still gazing up before she shook her head and ran to catch up with Dempsey. Her ponytail swished from side to side as she made steady strides towards him. Richtofen seemed to watch her in a daze until both of them were finally out of sight. He then returned to his desk and produced a diary from one of the drawers. It was kept hidden in a secret drawer which was guarded by a combination. A very important date.

He carefully traced the spine before opening the book; his fingers expertly slicked through the pages as he took in its contents. He had decided on his plan back in Shi No Numa when he returned to collect his diary but every night he enjoyed going over the pages to mull over it. The anticipation was becoming increasingly more exciting as he felt so close now.

He was almost ready to input the coordinates that would take him back to the Moon. Just a few more confirmatory calculations were required to rule out any errors - not that he ever made any. The mere thought of it caused him to shake slightly; he had longed for the day when he would confront that little brat Samantha and take what was rightfully his.

"Und vhat vill it change, Teddy?" A child's voice echoed in his mind.

"Shut up, Samanzha!" He yelled.

"Vill it really make everyzhing better? Vill it atone for jour shortcomings? Jour inability to be... loved?" She squealed as she struck his weak spot.

"Nein! Shut UP!" He shouted as he slammed his fists on the desk.

"Do jou ever vish she vould love jou?" Samantha giggled childishly as she revelled in Richtofen's anguish.

"Leave me be!" He cried before getting up to leave his office.

He made his way down the stairwell and through the foyer before bursting through the door and taking in the cool air. After a deep breath, he decided on a walk to clear his head. He treaded quietly as he made his way around the watchpost where Kiana lay alseep amongst the blankets.

The dimly lit lights from the buildings strained to properly illuminate the grounds. But Richtofen watched her from a far as he noticed Dempsey was still awake. He was the last person he wanted to see right now so the doctor made his way to the catwalk in the STG room.

Richtofen felt solace in the concealment of the shadows as he sat down to look out at the ruins of what was once a great scientific facility. He thought about how it looked before it plunged into chaos. Dr Schuster would be running around always stressing over deadlines. Dr Groph would visit periodically as he split his time between here and the base on the Moon. And Dr Maxis... he went from a scientist with a noble cause to a bootlicker. He was so desperate to please the custodians of the Third Reich and obtain as much grant money from the Führer as possible. Money that never funded any research of merit, Richtofen scoffed.

"Und zhat schtupid Sophia..." Richtofen growled under his breath.

He always held it against her as if she was the sole reason for Maxis' downfall. In his eyes, she was, as all women were mere distractions. Something that should be kept out of the lab - especially when great men were at work.

He felt a sudden sharp throb in his heart. Though he had never felt the way a man should feel about a woman - a thought so alien to him - he nonetheless felt a deep nagging in his very being... whenever he thought about that woman. How she had just appeared out of nowhere and thrown off his plans. Plus, he doubted she would just let him carry out his grand scheme. She no doubt knew about it - despite always playing dumb.

She was highly intelligent and that was something unexpected given his prior interactions with women. They always spoke down to him or eyed him with disgust but they never had anything of substance about them. Their vanity seemed to take pride of place in their empty minds. And thankfully, aside from auxiliary staff, Sophia was the only other female at the facility.

They never saw eye to eye but Maxis saw no fault in her. No matter how many mistakes were made, no matter how many miscalculations occurred - Maxis would still keep her around. Despite all the vehement protests from Richtofen.

It was clear the feelings were mutual as Maxis had grown accustomed to her presence. Since Samantha's mother died, he had promised to remain faithful to his work - he had an heir after all. Why would he need to seek another woman? But, nonetheless, Sophia attracted him. Her ditsy bumbling behaviour and accident prone mishaps charmed him. She always looked lost and he had longed to be the one she would look to.

Richtofen tried to think back to his own dealings with prospective females - a pursuit he had long since abandoned. The females in his village were usually found swooning over the crass, loud idiots. The kind of men who could simply flex a bicep and have flocks of females come running. Much like Dempsey.

Richtofen opted to avoid the banality of his peers by tucking himself away in one of the various hiding places he made. Sometimes, he would read under the shade of a willow tree to watch these strange scenes unfold - though, only out of pure morbid curiosity. He wanted to be known for his brain, not braun, yet a simple minded farmhand seemed more appealing than him to these strange female creatures.

His childhood and adolescence was spent devoid of any friendship - let alone romance. Thus, he never got to experience his first kiss or any of the other drivel that is constantly portrayed in movies. He appeared not let it bother him but, deep down, he yearned for these moments of intimacy.

These many failed attempts reinforced the belief that he would never find a partner let alone anyone who could ever live up to his lofty ideals. He had long since resigned himself to bachelorhood but he also could not see himself playing the role of 'husband' either. The thought of marriage was a strange one and it baffled him how quickly those around him paired up for it.

Imagine, coming home from work every day to be met by a wife who was more akin to a servant. One whose job was to maintain the dwelling, cook the meals and entertain through fornication. Lather, rinse, repeat.

Where was the intellectual debate? The long evenings spent pondering the complexities of life? Indeed, no one was ever good enough to truly entertain and stimulate him. He had never thought too deeply about it before since those who did try to initiate simple conversation were inevitably scared off long before that point. Suddenly, a small thought erupted in his mind:

But Kiana was not scared.

He chastised himself for allowing her to creep up in his thoughts again.

But she was always on his mind.

End of part nine...