Dinner at The Amber Sea

②

Charcoal clouds melted into ink, raining from above. Onyx ramparts swirled in on his soul, coating it in oil. The faceless figures stared up at him in anticipation, awaiting his decision.

❈ Dinner at The Amber Sea ❈

Well, time to go, I thought, slipping on my himation. My aunt had invited me and my party to dinner at a place called The Amber Sea. "Where was it again?" I asked myself, scrolling through my map. Ah, here. Having found the place I was looking for, I zoomed in on a teleportation center nearby.

-Wzh-

The floor I happened to teleport to was completely devoid of other people. I must be high up, I thought, wind blowing in from the open balcony. And so, I began my descent down one of the many flights of stairs, sliding down the guard rails. There were elevators, but I hardly ever used them. They were too easy. I was also never one of those weirdos that chose to fly off the balcony. For one, I'd heard too many horror stories. Second, human flight was a terrible invention. It may sound like fun at first, but when you're actually in the air, moving at two-hundred kilometers per hour... It takes a special kind of tolerance.

"Oh, hey." I ran into Eura on the way down.

"Shall we go together?" I asked.

"...We're literally going to the same place." Unfriendly as always, I see.

I was surprised to see Eura copying my technique for sliding down the railing. The wise learn from the wise, I thought. The floors grew more crowded as we descended; this wasn't a bother, though, as hardly anyone uses the stairs. We passed only a handful of people on our way down. Eventually we reached the second floor from the bottom.

"Let's get off here," I said.

"Huh?"

"We can jump from the balcony here; don't worry, it's not high." I took her hand and guided to the balcony. We looked down at the mass of people squeezing out of the building from the main exit.

"Are you sure this is a good idea? We'll land on someone if we jump here."

"Not here," I said, taking her over to the side of the balcony. There was a large bluish shrub next to the building. I saw it while looking at the map. "We'll jump in the bushes!" She made a grumpy expression, but I just grinned at her. I loved putting her out of her comfort zone.

"Well, if it saves time, I guess it works."

We made the jump, crashing into the leaves.

"Not so bad, right?"

"Don't treat me like a kid." She rose from the bush, me following.

The city was a strange place. In the sky, giant stingrays and whales fly with colorful schools of fish. On the ground, people ride dinosaurs and wooly mammoths on the wide sidewalks. Despite all the colorful animals and constant construction, the streets remained so smooth and clean, most civilians didn't even wear shoes. The average citizen's attire was a skin-tight—usually black—thermal undergarment, with varying kinds and amounts of extravagant drapery pulled over. I would also throw in some jewelry, personally. For tonight, it was large ruby drop earrings, a silver choker, and gold hand chains. Eura, on the other hand... Tennis shoes, parachute pants, a tank top, and a baseball cap. I'll never understand why this girl chooses to wear such strange 21st century clothes...

"What?" she asked, noticing me shaking my head.

"It's nothing." I looked away. My gaze happened to shift onto a sculpture resembling a group of orange tiger lilies with many colorful vines encircling it. "By the way, what'd you do with Venny?"

"..."

I was taken off guard by the lack of immediate answer, so I looked over at her and... she was sweating. This can't be good.

"I'm keeping him."

"..."

"..." She looked down and blushed.

It's rare to see her so flustered about something. Perhaps I've discovered a new interest of hers? I'd love to be gracious and give her the go ahead, but—

"I'm certain you're aware that we are leaving, yes?"

"..."

"In two days."

"I read a bunch on the species. There are pills we can feed him so he doesn't grow. Some people keep them as pets already. And I have an idea on how to carry him with us too, he might even be useful, and—"

"Stop. I get it. You've clearly thought a lot about this, so I'll trust your judgement. However, if Venny ends up hindering our progress, we're abandoning him on the spot, understand?"

She gave a big beaming smile. "Yes! I'll keep him under control, I promise."

Her smile is a rare gift indeed. Let's just hope she keeps her promise... But never mind that—

"You said Venny is a he? So plants do have genders, I take it?"

"According to what I read, he actually doesn't count as a plant; he's a herbivorous animal. his species uses kleptoplasty to absorb chloroplasts from algae in the marsh, taking on the appearance of a plant. The species was actually created from a kind of sea slug that does the same thing."

"I guess that explains how slimy it was... So what's it called anyway?"

"Venusian Hydra."

"Woah, really?!" I was genuinely shocked.

"Ye- yeah, why are yo—"

"Yo, Daedalus!" a man shouted, waving, as him and one other rushed toward us.

"Kallius? Neilos? What are the chances?" Eura quickly slipped behind me as I greeted the two men.

"We were just on our way to pick up some colossus beetles," Kallius says.

"Yeah dude, we're gonna ride them drunk through the Dragontrap Bloodchasm!" Neilos adds.

"That sounds... challenging."

"It's not just gonna be us drunk though, we're gonna get the beetles drunk too!"

"We were thinking about getting a few more people and making it a race, you in?"

"You two do know I'm leaving the city the morning after tomorrow, yes?"

"Shit man, I totally forgot! Your party is tomorrow, right?!"

"Yeah. You guys gonna be there to see me off?"

"Uh... Yeah. Totally, dude. You're like my tenth-best friend dude, I wouldn't miss it for the world."

"Yeah man, I won't miss it either, you're like, my tenth-best friend too."

I definitely heard Eura snicker behind me, drawing the attention of Neilos.

"Oh hey, it's that weird girl! Didn't see you there, uh... Europa, right?"

"Ah—Um, hi!"

"So the rumors are true, huh," Kallius said, stroking his chin.

"Rumors?" I asked.

"You and Eureka are dating!"

"Wha—" Eura's jaw dropped.

"No... man... you've got it all wrong," I said, massaging my brow.

"Oh yeah? Then what are you two doing out here, all alone?" he asked with a smug grin.

"We're just going to dinner, that's all," I said, causing both men to erupt with laughter. "WITH MY AUNT," I added, somewhat embarrassed.

"Well, we probably shouldn't keep you, right? We gotta get these beetles! You two have fun on your date!"

"It's not a—" Eura failed to correct the mistake.

"Seeya at the party, Daedalus!" The two men yelled, while sauntering off.

Eura pulled her hat down, covering her eyes.

"We need to work on your social skills, Europa."

"Yeah, yeah..."

"Anyway, how does it feel to be everyone's 'tenth-best friend,'" Eura joked.

"How does it feel having no friends?" I fired back.

We continued joking with each other until we made it to a building made out of living coral.

❈ ❈ ❈

Doubtful Eura has ever been to a place like this, I thought. After all, it required a reservation, which probably sounded to this uncultured woman like a pointless hassle. 'why not just summon food at home...' I heard her voice in my head. Well, prepare to be amazed. I grinned at her.

As we approached the building, I noticed a silver-haired woman wearing headphones, sitting on a bench with her eyes closed, bobbing her head to music. It was Aunt Xenia, the woman who raised me.

"Hey! Xenia!" I shouted at her.

Xenia shot up with a smile. "There you are! Kept me waiting, didn't you?! Huh? Where's Chaos?!"

"He's not coming, he said he was busy assembling doomsday mechs or something," I answered.

"HUH?! What an ingrate! One of you gotta smack 'em for me!" she shouted. Will do, I thought, as we walked into the building.

As soon as we got in, a robot butler came to greet us. "Welcome, Xenia, Daedalus, Eurana. This way, please," he said, while leading us to a teleporter labeled number forty-two.

Immediately as we warped in, Eurana admitted: "Oh, this is pretty good." The whole room was a panorama of the beach at sunset, complete with the warm sand beneath your feet, cool wind blowing in, the crashing waves, and the salty scent of the ocean. It really felt like you were outside. In fact, I think you could actually play in the water, if I remember correctly.

Hmm, what should I have... I wondered, seating myself. The restaurants in the city always had a massive selection since they didn't have to prepare ingredients beforehand. The first time Xenia took me to a restaurant, it took me nearly ten minutes to figure out what I wanted. This time, I decided on the lobster risotto. Can't to go wrong with classics, I thought, summoning my appetizer.

"Hmm? You both got the same thing? How cute~" Xenia said, pouring herself a glass of wine.

"The wise learn from the wise," I said. She definitely got overwhelmed by the menu and copied me, I thought.

"N- no, I just like lobster," Eurana said.

As we began to eat, Xenia started firing off questions.

"So, how long have you two been dating?" She asked, sipping her wine. Eurana and I both nearly choked.

"How many times do I have to tell you? We aren't," I answered, Eurana nodding.

"Awfully defensive, aren't we?" Xenia's mouth curled up like a smug cat. "I've seen this kind of thing over and over~" she added, putting me in a sour mood.

"Can't you just leave it? If we were in a relationship it would jeopardize our team's stability!" I shouted, before hurriedly shoveling risotto into my mouth.

"Whatever you say, kid."

Xenia kept on teasing us as we ate our appetizers.

The creamy risotto had the consistency of lava, and coated my mouth with the salty, savory taste of the ocean. It didn't take long for me to devour the whole dish.

When the main courses came out, the conversation took a turn.

"So you're really leaving, huh?" Xenia asked. She was already on her third glass of wine, and her face was turning red. "It seems like just yesterday my sister was bragging about how she was gonna have a kid... That reminds me, have you told your parents yet?" she asked.

Eurana looked at me quizzically, munching her broiled lobster tail.

"No, not yet," I answered.

Who cares about them anyway? I thought. My biological parents had me on a whim, and then tried to throw me out as soon as they got bored of me. If it weren't for Xenia offering to adopt me, I'd have ended up in one of those giant childcare facilities in the education district. As far as I was concerned, Xenia was my only parent.

-hic- "Ah, well, if you don't want to that's fine—I'll let them know..." She downed the rest of her glass and poured another.

She's gonna pass out... I thought, picking out my dessert.

Hmm, how about... pots de crème.

After I picked out mine, I looked over to silently judge what Eura had picked. Lobster risotto first, then broiled lobster tail with a side of lobster salad, and finally lobster pudding for dessert. She's really committing to the bit, I thought, raising an eyebrow. That, or she actually just really likes lobster.

What about Xenia? I wondered, looking over.

-hic-

Oh dear.

"wHaddayou starin' at?" "soMethin' on my face?" -hic-

How did she drink two more glasses so fast?!

"we ShouLd sumon a lIon! -hic- tHad be REAL wild" -hic-

She went into her menu and began scrolling through a catalogue of lions.

"Hey, Eura? I think we ought to get her home."

"Um, okay... Should I come?"

"Up to you, she has an amazing view from her building, though," I said, while wrangling my drunken aunt from behind.

"hEY! geDoffA mE!" she shouted, kicking and flailing around.

Crap, she's fighting back!

"Actually Eura—a little help here!" I asked, summoning a cloth of chloroform to put over Xenia's mouth as she started swinging her fists behind her, striking my head.

Eura helped hold her in place, and eventually she passed out.

I submitted the bill, hoisted Xenia onto my back, and the three of us group-teleported to Xenia's apartment building.

❈ ❈ ❈

"So... You guys don't live together?" Eura asked, while we rode the elevator.

"No, I started living on my own about two years ago. Why?"

-Ding- The elevator door opened.

"Just wondering. Anyway, you said this place has a nice view?"

"Yeah, I'll show you once we get her in bed," I said, leading the way.

Once we reached her apartment, I inputted the passcode, and the door unlocked with a click.

"Ugh, this place is a mess!" I exclaimed, trudging through the strewn laundry and garbage. I guess this is what happens when I'm not here to do the cleaning...

"Pardon the intrusion..." Eura said, following me to Xenia's bedroom.

"daedalus... don't leave..." Xenia mumbled, half-awake, as I laid her down on her bed. I gave a slight smile, pulled her blanket over her, and brushed her hair out of her eyes.

"Let's go," I said softly, turning to Eura.

"..." She nodded.

❈ ❈ ❈

After a silent elevator ride up to the top floor, we got off and had to walk up the last flight of stairs to the roof. Opening the door, a gust of wind pulled us out due to the difference of air pressure. I led her over to the spot. It was a platform for flight, for people who wanted to take to the skies from the top floor. I walked over and sat down on the edge, dangling one leg over and crossing the other. Eura followed.

"This is it," I said.

"..." Eura sat down next to me, crossing her arms.

"Isn't it lovely? You can see everything from here." I said, gesturing to the lights below.

"..." Eura wasn't looking.

"Don't you think it's kinda cruel...?" she asked.

"Cruel?"

"To leave them behind... all the people who care about you." Eura sounded like she wanted to cry.

"I—what?" Where is this coming from?

"Why are you even doing this, anyway? Grandeur? Curiosity? Is it really worth it?"

"I could ask you the same thing..."

"No, you can't. You said it yourself. I don't have any friends," Eura said, standing up and stretching her arms. "Sorry. Thanks for showing me this." She teleported away.

"..." Am I wrong? I thought.

I looked down. Streams of colorful light intertwined with robust dark shapes. An ice cold breeze splashed me in the face, making me flinch and shut my eyes. Will Xenia be alright without me? Am I betraying her? Do I have a responsibility to this city, which gifted me my life? I could still call this all off... Then I looked up. The boundless black ocean had countless white stars poking through, promising endless intrigue and eternal mystery. Sigh. I could even see the arms of the galaxy. But why... Why can't we know what's out there? Why has humanity forsaken the outside world? Finally I looked out to the twilit horizon, beckoning me. No... I'm not wrong. I must know what's out there—I don't care if I'm throwing away my life. It's important. It's... important.