[Sabin]

I am concentrating on creating more "emotion" and "atmosphere" in my work. This chapter is one such work attempting to use those elements.

SPACE EMPIRES VOLUME I: Space Empire
Chapter VIII: The Future of Nananki
Stardate: 2450.02


(The Space Station Atlas)
She felt nervous. This was her first time being in space, or in this case, a space station. She felt slightly dizzy, despite the few hours she already spent in space. She shrugged the sensation off, and concentrated on getting to her destination. She was to meet Grand Master Sabin. The area around her was a lobbey that lead to the inside of Atlas. She began her journey down the sterile and brightly lit hall, following the electronic guiding lights that assisted persons who were new to the station to their destinations. The yellow line led her through many areas, eventually to the brain of Atlas: The command center, where the command personal carried out their tasks with the assistance of the super computer that most space vehicles were equipped with. A man strode up to her, and asked a question. "You are miss Nananki?" She replied "Yes." He smiled and continued to speak "Please follow me, the Grand Master awaits." She followed him. The room they traveled through had many voices and sounds occur, ranging from the common to the exotic, many of which belonged to various person who wore their uniforms, that were usually blue or white. The man stopped in front of a door. "Please enter and stay there. The Grand Master shall arrive shortly."

The door opened for her, and she entered a room that had no one in it, not even a guard. The door closed behind her with a whisper. She looked about the room. It had a conference table with many chairs, ornate pictures and other artistic items, and so on. She walked towards a mirror, and stepped in front of it. She examined of image, and adjusted her clothing yet again. She cleared her mind, she felt that meeting the head of the Space Empire would be one of the most important events in her life, especially considering that this is her first time. She heard a door slide open, and she turned to where the sound originated, her mind ready to meet him. She saw a large man in a white robe. She decided he was not the Grand Master, since his looks suggested that he was a minor person in the scheme of things. He queried her, asking "Who are you, miss?" She decided to be civil and reply to him. "I am Mirai Nananki." He nodded. "Please follow me, we have much to discuss." She let out a slight gasp, and felt her face heating up in embarassment and asked "You are the Grand Master?" He turned around and replied "Yes." She was set on edge by her gaffe, and followed him. Her mind was already trying to think of way to say sorry to him about her disrespect, the methods ranging from the mudane to the exotic. She quickly reduced her choices down to a single one, and got prepared to ask for forgiveness.

They entered a room, and within it, she was suprised by the contents. She realized that it was unlike any room she has ever seen for an executive officer to have. It had many electronic posters of various giant robots, a bunk-bed, computer, closet and some other such items. The room was highly personalized to the occupant's tastes indeed. She always thought that a great official, especially the head of an empire, would have many artifacts, treasures, and the like. Apparantly, she was wrong-again. He guided her to another door, and within it she saw a well-furnished dining room. He turned to her and said, "Feel free to explore this room and the other one for the next 15 or so minutes, while I complete the final preparations." He turned and walked through a different enterance, and when the door closed behind him, she sighed with relief. She expected anything but this, thus far. Deciding to accept his invitation, she walked about the room that had the posters. The first item that caught her attention was a bookshelf. She examined it, and quickly discovered that it only held ADs, or Advanced Disks. Advanced Disks can hold any sort of media, and they could hold over many videogames, e-books, videos, and so on. Each disk was used for a specific purpose, according to the labeling for each box. One for example was about "Mecha", another about "The History Channel Complete", and so on.

She explored the rest of the room and soon returned to the dining room. The door that the Grand Master entered, opened. Through it came a cart pushed by the Grand Master himself. He placed the contents of the cart on the dining table, and returned to the kitchen. After repeating the process several times, he eventually stopped and prepared the table. When he felt he had prepared it sufficiently, he picked up the lid of a dish. The food revealed made Mirai realize she was quite hungery. He gave her permission to eat, and let her enjoy herself. After few moments, he coughed slightly. Having caught her attention, he began to speak. "Miss Mirai Nananki, you no doubt wonder why I have summoned you to Atlas." He continued. "I have made arrangements for you to be the Head of Intelligence aboard the new Space Palace. She nearly choked on her food, and then stared at him, as he continued to speak. "Furthermore, you have been assigned a berth aboard the Atlas so that you may become familar with the general layout and conduct that is used on a space station." He got out of his chair, and began walking towards his bedroom. "I will handle the leftovers when you leave, so just enjoy yourself until you are content."

She mulled over what he had said, and promptly opened a bottle of apple cider so that she may be distracted by the taste of the excellent beverage. However, she still couldn't think very well about the situation yet. She knew that her abilities at intelligence activities were great, but to the extent that she was considered that important? She thought back to what she may lose: her scientific career on Earth...but it already was lost, it seemed. She decided that she couldn't refute the Grand Master's decision. She soon left the room, forgetting to ask about where she is to be placed aboard the station as of now. Fortunately for her, a woman was waiting for her. The lady began to speak "Miss Nananki, your room is right over there." The lady pointed a finger towards a door down the hall. Apparantly, the higher staff of the Space Empire resided in this hall, not just the Grand Master. Many hours later, Nananki got ready to go somewhere else. More specifically, a party/press conference that would tell the public and the rest of the staff of the position she recieved. She looked at the dresser mirror, looking at her new uniform. It was a fairly standard white uniform designed for woman. It for the most part was white and had occaisional grey and gold designs, along with a patch that indicated her position as the head intelligence officer. She could also wear a number of optional items, including a baret, cloak, white gloves/boots, and pantyhose. However, they usually were only used for special occaisions, and thus she was now wearing all of the items. The uniform itself was a tough item, being made for the duel purpose of being functional and decorative, like most uniforms.

She left her suite, and soon arrived at the command center once more. She was quickly lead to a platform where she was supposed to conduct her speech...