The New Family

The rest of the dance was uneventful. Nick and Sandra met with their friends for lunch the next day, and then went to the football (soccer) game. It was a beautiful day, with the sun shining down. As they walked from Golden M to the playing field, Sensei contacted Nick: “You are Level Six. You may access two upgrades or add one of the options you passed on before - Advanced Sensor Array…”

Nick interrupted: “I don’t need the list - I do need to know how it will impact Sandra though.”

“Once you choose your options, she will have the choice of the upgrade you picked or Gargantua Mode. According to the files I just opened, at level ten you will now automatically gain Basic Star Sword and will be able to spend every third upgrade to improve it to Ultimate. You will also be able to add another recruit at ten, a third at fifteen and your final recruit at level twenty. If you had taken the Start Sword at 5, it would automatically upgrade every five levels and Recruitments Drive would be eligible for regular upgrades.”

“Interesting. Is this the same for recruits - do they get the choice?”

“I am uncertain, but I believe they each will gain a unique Star Weapon at level five and only you can Recruit others."

“Can I upgrade my power reserves?”

“Yes,” came the reply.

Nick nodded. Sandra touched his shoulder and heard his reply: “Improve flight maneuvering and power reserves, then.”

“Done,” Sensei announced.

Guide then intruded: “Sandra, you may pick the two upgrades Nick did, Garg…”

“I will take Gargantua Mode,” she said, cutting off the AI mid word. “I needed the flight last time but can see where it was essential too.”

“You may also upgrade one system,” Guide added. “Do you need a list of upgradable abilities?”

“Can I, ah, bank it and upgrade what I need when it comes up?”

“Yes," Guide replied.

“Then let’s do that “

“Done”

Their silent four-way discussion was suddenly interrupted by Dan’s exclamation: “Who is THAT?”

He was indicating the central figure in a group of three people entering the soccer field ahead of them.

The person he indicated was definitely striking - a young woman, maybe sixteen years old, with long silver-blonde hair, who wore a tight lavender top that left her right shoulder exposed and emphasized her full figure.  She also wore denim jeans and violet pumps. She kept glancing around, as if looking for someone, and these furtive glances revealed a stunningly pretty face, and a quick, charming smile.

“They must be new here,” Peter said. “I think both the girl and the man beside her would stand out anywhere.”

“I’ll say he would,” Sandra admitted - the man was tall, powerfully built, with thick, wavy black hair and a full mustache. He wore a light-weight gold-colored jacket, black denim pants, and a pair of black and gold tennis shoes. He was assisting an older woman who walked with a long wooden cane. The woman was dressed in a lacy black dress with a purple and gold shawl over her shoulders. While the girl kept looking around and smiling at people, aside from the few times one of them leaned close and said something quietly to each other, the man and the woman simply looked straight ahead until they were inside the stadium and found their seats. The girl made sure they were seated and ran off to the nearest concession stand. Dan and Nick also went there, but before they got to their seats, and were in line just ahead of her.

Dan turned to her: “Hi, I’m Daniel Conroy. Are you here with the visiting team?” He asked her.

In a musical, high pitched voice, she replied: “Oh no, we just transferred here after Dad died. Mom, Salvador - my brother - and me. I’m Trinity.”

“Nicholas Sato,” Nick said.

“You related to the Sato who named the Exerian creatures ‘Kaiju’?” she asked.

“His son, in fact,” Nick replied.

“Cool. Nice meeting you two!” she said.

At this point, the line had moved so that Nick and Peter were at the window. They placed their orders and then Dan turned to Trinity. “Well, if you have any questions, feel free to ask. And if you would like, there are usually two or three seats open in our section if your family can spare you.”

She smiled. “Thanks, I think I need to stick with them today, but I will definitely consider it next time. Are you coming tomorrow?”

“I’m actually playing tomorrow,” Dan boasted.

“Oooh! Well, I will be there to cheer you on!” she smiled brightly.

“Thanks, I appreciate that. Enjoy the game, and nice meeting you, Trinity,” Dan replied.

“Yeah, and welcome to New San Francisco,” Nick added.

The girl simply beamed at him and the two boys walked over to their group, their arms laden with junk food and drinks.

“Don’t tell Judy,” Dan said, “But I think I’m in love.”

“That’s what, the third time this year?” Nick teased.

Dan laughed. “Second unless you actually count Judy. I try not to. She’s cute, but so cloying…. And she hates sports.”

By the time the boys distributed the snacks to their friends and took their seats, chatter in the arena had already been dominated by two of the three newcomers - it seemed half the boys were at least as smitten with Trinity as Dan was, and most of the women - including a lot of the mothers of students - were just as strongly drawn to her older brother.

Things quieted down as the teams were led out onto the field. The crowd stopped talking and started cheering or jeering as each name was announced, and it was clear there were a few budding stars on both teams, as they got the loudest reactions.

Then the active players took their places on the field, and the reserves sat on the bench, the lead referee strode out onto the field holding a ball aloft briefly before tossing it straight up in the air and blowing a whistle while quickly moving away.

The game was on! Unlike the match Nick and Dan had been part of in their gym class, this was a very active, high-scoring game which kept the goalies diving and darting around for much of the event.

In the end, the home team won by a mere two points. The stadium erupted in wild applause as the two teams lined up to congratulate each other on a game well-played. There were clearly a few rivalries, but everyone remained polite, and the teams left the field to as much applause as they had come out to

As Nick and his friends were gathering up their stuff to head out, a sweet, musical voice called out: “Dan? Remember me? Trinity from the snack counter?”

Dan almost had whiplash turning around to reply. “Of course I do, Trinity. You are not an easy person to forget!”

She smiled at him

“Mom is not feeling well so Sal is taking her home. I was wondering if I could hang out with you guys for a while?” The pretty stranger asked.

Dan started to reply, checked himself and looked at the rest of the group. Nick and Peter Nodded, Carol frowned but said nothing, and Sandra shrugged. “Sure, we were just going to hit a sandwich shop down the street and hang out for about an hour or so before heading home.”

Nick leaned close and quietly asked: “maybe we should go somewhere else - isn’t Judy working today?”

Dan shrugged and moved over to the silver haired girl. “Follow me,” he told her. “Oh wait, you already know Nick and myself. That’s Pete - Peter Maxwell and his better half, Carol Lindgren. And Sandra Cummings is with Nick, there.”

“Trinity Gee,” she said, bowing slightly to the group. “An honor to meet you all!”