Plutonian

Chapter 8

"Guess what girls, I've gotten three proposals since last night," Stela smiles a cat like smile and stuffs a piece of gargan meat down her throat.

After a full day of activities Casandra, Stela and I met in the recreation room for an evening meal but because the spread was so generous we piled up our plates with all the various delicacies we haven't had before.

I stick my fork into a piece as well and swallow it whole. Gargan meat is something none of us have ever had but we have all heard about how delicious it is. They look like large birds about the size of geese on Earth and are found in abundance here in the North where it's warmer.

Aside from that my plate is filled to the brim with seasoned algae, rhye rolls, various pieces of fruit and desert I've never seen before. I'm enjoying the food too much to respond and it seems Casandra is as well.

She closes her eyes and sighs when she bites on a cream roll. I smile when I see the icing roll down her chin and Stela scowls at the two of us.

"You two are disgusting," She says even though she has piled her plate like ours.

"How was training today?" Casandra asks me. Her bright red hair is styled in a side braid, interwoven with gold ribbons. Even Stela's hair looks fuller than usual and both girls have a rosy glow on their faces, their make-up done to perfection.

As paramours, I wonder if they have stylists to dress them up on a daily basis.

I on the other hand have sweaty hair that clings to my forehead, no make-up and am wearing the standard training outfits all the fighters are given.

"It was fun," I reply whole heartedly to which Casandra smiles. "I learnt how to use laser poles today."

Asta had come in from the army training ground and she taught me how to handle a laser pole which are thin sticks about four feet long that emit a high heat laser frequency from both ends on impact.

It had taken a while for me to get used to the speed and agility needed to handle such a flimsy yet deadly weapon but once I got the hang of it, Asta and I fought for hours in an isolated training room with walls that absorb the heat from the laser tips.

After we were done, I was sore from over exertion and my stomach hurt from the fight with Michael but it was a satisfying soreness. I was also slightly proud when the other fighters stared in shock when Asta had come to find me.

Apparently the army officials hardly ever trained with the fighters and when the others saw Asta approach, their expressions were filled with both awe and jealousy.

However, it was only when we finished training did I realize her true intentions.

"I don't know how you did it but I trust you will be joining Master Lucian X for dinner tonight," She had stated it more as a fact than a question and it had shocked me that she knew about his invitation. "Sergeant Atmos says it is imperative that you do if you hope to join the army."

Of course I had said yes. After what happened at the introductory dinner last night with Lazarus, I was more than cautious about angering another Plutonian. But that didn't mean the thought of being alone in a room with a Plutonian didn't frighten me to the bone.

The thought of dinner tonight with Lucian makes me nauseous and suddenly the cream rolls don't look so appetizing.

"What did you two do today?" I ask Stela and Casandra, eager to distract myself from the inevitable.

Stela runs a hand through her shiny blonde hair and I notice her fingernails are painted dark blue.

"We did some sculpting exercises in the morning and then we met up with our stylists after," Stela shoots me a lazy smile that shows how content she is with this life style but we all know that comfort here is only temporary. For a paramour it will only last with the affections of a suitor.