A NEW Beginning - Book 3

Chapter 8 - Day 1 - Allura - Altea

I paced my rooms, waiting for Coran to call me to board. Ailis and Eavan had helped me pack, and taken my luggage, along with theirs, to the ship. Shiro and Curtis's gifts had been loaded, and the painting for Lance now sat, wrapped in protective layers, in the hangar. I had made Coran take it on and off the ship so many times now, he had stopped listening to me.

I decided I needed to keep myself busy.

I left my rooms and walked down the hall. I wandered aimlessly for a while, making random turns, going up and down narrow staircases, until I found myself in front of the library.

I hadn't been in here for almost 2 years now. Anytime I needed something, Coran would always get it for me, quite often before I had even asked. Lance must have been at the front of my mind at the moment, and I felt drawn to the memories of him.

I pushed the doors open, and the scent of old books filled my nose as I breathed in deep. I looked around, taking in the rows of big sturdy bookshelves, and the lounges spread throughout the room.

I was walking down the large staircase when I realised I had startled a young Altean who was studying there. He had been sitting right at the large table in front of the window Lance used to sit at.

"Oh, hello there!" I greeted them.

"Oh, ah, I was just leaving!" he said, as he jumped up and began to put his books away.

"Oh, no, please don't!" I said placing a hand on his shoulder, "I'm glad to see someone using this space." I gave him a friendly smile. "What's your name, young one?" I asked.

He stood slightly shorter than me, with dark hair, stormy eyes, and azure altean marks. The way he spoke and moved reminded me of Lance. 'What was with this day?' I asked myself with slight exasperation.

"Ah, Taalib?" he responded, but the way he said it was like he was unsure of the answer.

"Nice to meet you, Taalib," I said, looking at the many papers spread across the table, "And what are you doing?"

"Coran gave me permission!" he gulped.

"That's perfectly fine," I smiled, "Nobody should ever get in trouble for being in a library, as long as they were using it appropriately."

"Well," he started, looking down at his feet, "When Lance was still here, he would come down to my parents bakery, and he would sit down at the counter, and talk to me and my sister about Earth, and he would show us the things he had found on his adventures. He told us he was making a book, and he would write about everything he found in it."

He got more confident as he continued, "He wanted to know everything about Altea, so when he found something new, he would ask Coran, or my Father, and make notes. Here, see?" he picked up a piece of paper that had a small sketch of Luedoc tree, with field notes printed in Lance's handwriting next to it.

"When Lance left, we missed him and his stories, so my sister and I started venturing outside the city, and decided to keep going with Lance's work," he said, handing me another piece of paper. This time the writing wasn't as neat, but the sketch of the Seldet flowers was absolutely stunning.

"You drew this?" I asked.

"No, my sister did," he admits, "But I did all the research, and the writing."

"It's all very amazing. I'm sure Lance will be so proud you chose to continue his work, Taalib. I shall tell him of this when I see him."

"Really?" he asked, "Wow!"

"Of course!" I smiled, "Actually, do you mind if I take some of this and show him?" I said gesturing to the table.

"That would be really great!" he exclaimed, and began sweeping up all the papers on the table, putting them into a neat pile. He put them all into a large envelope made of fabric, tied it up with string, and handed it to me. "Thank you, Princess," he said, beaming.

"No problemo!" I said, which got a laugh from the boy.

"Lance used to say that!" he chuckled, as he made his way to the door.

"He did too!" I realised, laughing myself, and following after him. "Now you make sure to come back here anytime you want, I want to see any notes you've made when I get back. Run along now!" I said, closing the door behind us.

"Thank you, Princess!" he called, as he ran off down the hall.

~

After that, I decided to visit the council rooms, on the bottom floor of the castle.

"How are things, Princess? Are you ready for your trip?" Asked Keilee, my head advisor.

"I believe so," I replied, "Can you give me a rundown of security again?" I asked.

Keilee nodded, and ran through it again, without hesitation, giving me times from the last test run, and reminding me of all the military we had on standby if things went wrong. All things Coran had said to me hours before, but it somehow felt more reassuring this time.

"Thank you Keilee, I know I must be driving you a little crazy!"