Aeon Legion: Labyrinth

by Beaubien, J. P.

  Terra touched the holoface which made the tip of her finger tingle. “Huh,” she said after seeing one of the categories expand to show her even more choices. Terra then touched one of the buttons on the edge and found she could drag the holoface around to wherever she wished. Then she touched the opposite edges with both her hands and discovered she could scale the holoface's size.

  After a moment of shifting through menus, Terra touched one of the options. A holographic image of a dish of food appeared in front of the holoface vertical to Terra. She touched it again and a ring appeared. It circled around the holoface, forming the dish exactly as the hologram had appeared. But, the plate dropped to the table and shattered after forming.

  Terra cringed. “Is there a trashcan here?”

  “Trashcan?”

  Terra gestured to the broken plate. “To clean that up.”

  Delphia moved her shieldwatch hand above the plate. A small transparent sphere flickered briefly around the plate as it reformed.

  “How did you do that?”

  “The shieldwatch is singularity technology. I just moved the plate back in time before it broke. Don't worry about discarding refuse here. The City's hands erase unwanted items from the city every hour.”

  “How does food appear out of nowhere though?”

  “A shieldwatch can take a single instance of time and save it in a state. It can then recall that state whenever needed. In more simple terms, the shieldwatch rolls back time until when the food was near it. This allows a shieldwatch to replicate most things using time. Your shieldwatch has many such items saved into its states directory.”

  Terra stared at the plate, thinking. No wonder they had no concept of money here.

  Delphia pointed to the large metal structure overhead that passed over them. “This is the minute hand. It passes over the entire city once every hour, cleaning as it goes. The second hand moves over the city once every minute and sends information back to the other hands. The hour hand passes over the city twice a day and makes any major changes to the city to return it to normal such as Restoring a collapsed building.”

  Terra stared at the titanic metal structure that moved over the city. She pointed to the bright orb in the center of the city that glowed blue in the distance. “What's that?”

  Delphia looked at the light. “That is the Temporal Singularity. It powers the city and its technology.”

  Terra scratched her head. “I... have no idea what any of that is.”

  “You should ask Minerva, the Saturn City's artificial intelligence, about it. She would have more technical and historic details. Though I doubt you would find such a thing interesting. Temporal immigrants seldom care for long, boring histories or science,” Delphia said, averting her eyes.

  Terra shook her head. “Oh no! I love boring history. Hard to bore someone who digs up rocks for a hobby.”

  Delphia turned to Terra with a slight smile.

  “Why are you smiling?”

  Delphia still spoke in an aloof tone, “It's just, I rarely find those who genuinely listen to what I have to say. For someone to take me seriously is an uncommon enjoyment for me.”

  Terra smiled. Had she made a friend? “So where is the Academy?”

  “The Aevum Academy is in zone eleven. Many citizens and time travelers take classes at the Academy. I start classes there soon myself since my boring hobby is astronomy.”

  “Astronomy?”

  “I love the stars and the sun. Light in the dark. Things of beauty and power.”

  A young silver haired woman approached them. She waved at Delphia.

  Delphia waved back. “Mother!”

  She smiled and sat with them. She wore a shawl in similar coloring and style to Delphia, though hers was far more revealing. The shawl fit over a short, form fitting dress that showed off much of her well toned body. A gold flower ornament held a loose bun of silver hair in place with a single lock falling to the left side of her face.

  “Terra,” Delphia said, gesturing to the woman. “This is Vita, my mother. Vita, this is Terra. She's trying to join the Legion.”

  “Good ages, Dhimmi Terra,” Vita said in a friendly tone. Like other silver haired Saturnians Terra had met, she appeared youthful. In fact Terra could have mistaken this woman for Delphia's sister.

  “Hi,” Terra said, feeling awkward at her own ignorance of what the proper greeting was in the city.

  Vita looked Terra over. “Apologies, but you certainly look like a newtimer if ever I have seen one.”

  “I just got here today, actually,” Terra said, trying to appear natural.

  Vita looked at Delphia. “And you didn't even offer to get her new clothes? Manners Delphia. How could you let the poor lady wander our city without at least offering her the option of trying our fashions?”

  Delphia glared at Vita. “Crashing End Mother! I did tr–”

  Vita waved a finger at Delphia. “Watch your language, child.”

  Delphia stiffened, glaring at Vita. Her normal aloof tone changed into a low growl. “I am not a child. I am twenty one–“

  Vita sighed. “I doubt you even offered to help this poor girl.”

  Delphia's face turned red as she stomped off, tears forming in her eyes.

  Terra raised an eyebrow as Delphia left. She cries too easily, she thought. Terra would never run away from arguing with her mother.

  Vita sighed. “Youth. Much like the Oracles of Yakarl, they take everything too seriously.”

  “Actually,” Terra said. “She offered to help. She said I could ask you if I could stay in your guest room. I was abandoned at the timeport so I am in a bind.”

  Vita nodded. “Not many legionnaires take a direct interest their squires now. They know we Saturnians will take care of them. If you wish, you may stay at my home until the training starts at the Academy. We haven't used the guest room in some time and you wouldn't impose for very long since recruits are required to move into the Academy's dorms for the training.

  “Thank you so much!” Terra said, grateful that she solved at least one problem today.

  Vita smiled before sitting at the table. She then slid close to Terra. “Well then. If this is your first time to the city, then let me be the first Saturnian to offer you a drink. What do you wish?” Vita said looking at a holoface she called up with her shieldwatch. It had a lengthy list of drinks displayed on it. “Do you like wine, mixed drinks, or liquor?”

  “What? No! I'm not even twenty one yet.”

  Vita stared, expressionless, at Terra for a moment before laughing. “We don't have a legal drinking age here. Go ahead and pick something. Anything you desire.”

  Terra shook her head. “No thanks.”

  “You sure? Don't worry about a hangover. Just use your shieldwatch to Restore yourself in the morning.”

  Terra scratched her head, wondering what a Restore was.

  “Well just tell me if you change your mind,” Vita said before replicating herself a drink.

  Terra narrowed her gaze at Vita. “Is everyone always so friendly to time travelers here?”

  “Of course. The Sybil would have you arrested before you caused trouble. Besides, I have had the same company for nearly a thousand years. It would be nice to converse with someone new for a change.”

  Terra blinked. “A thousand years? You're that old?”

  Vita sighed. “Why do they always find that surprising?”

  Terra knew the Saturnians were older than they appeared, but she had no idea they were that old.

  Vita pointed to her shieldwatch. “We can just restore our bodies with a shieldwatch indefinitely. A fountain of youth on our wrist.” She paused. “Sorry. I doubt you understand that reference.”

  “No. I got that one,” she said before looking at her own shieldwatch. “How many centuries old is Delphia?”

  “Delphia? She's only twenty one. That's why her hair isn't silver. I was lucky to win the baby lottery and have her.”

  “What's with the silv
er hair?”

  “It's a tradition. For every lifetime a citizen of the city lives, they dye a lock of their hair silver.”

  Terra scanned the crowd. Almost everyone had a full head of silver hair. “What's to stop someone from just dying their hair even if they are young?”

  Vita chuckled. “We would know. Youth is like a nostalgic aroma. We can smell it on you. Even if you dyed your hair, your actions give you away,” Vita said as she drew out a small container. She opened it to reveal several colorful pills. “Want one?”

  Terra stared at the small colorful spheres. “Candy?”

  Vita grinned. “Oh nothing that dull. Take a green one if you want to feel good, red gives you a lot of energy, blue calms your nerves, yellow gives you visions, and the purple ones make sex amazing.”

  Terra blushed at the mention of the last one. “Um. No thanks. I don't want to get addicted to drugs.”

  “Addicted?” Vita said, rolling her eyes. “You are as bad as the Trivian Purifiers. Just use a Restore on the shieldwatch. You temporal immigrants. Always so obsessed with consequences.”

  “I am still getting used to the city. I feel like Alice down the rabbit hole.”

  “Lewis Carroll, 1865 Continuum Iota. Though I think he used a pen name. It has been a while since I read it.”

  “You've read that?”

  “You read a lot when you're immortal. Regardless, I wouldn't worry about being new to the city. You are welcome to stay in my home until the training starts. Poor thing. You must still be reeling from future shock,” she said as her shieldwatch beeped. Vita then typed on a holographic keypad, responding to a message she had received. “Oh. I better add you to my friend's circle on the shieldwatch contact list.”

  Terra narrowed her gaze, watching many of the natives stare at their shieldwatch face. “Actually, a few things here seem rather familiar.”

  As Vita finished typing on a holoface, a silver haired man approached. He had the same tan skin as the others Terra had seen though he wore no shirt over his muscular chest which the shawl only partially covered. He slid close to Vita.

  “Vita,” he said in a conspiratorial tone, “Be wary.”

  “What is it, Adel?” Vita asked in an excited tone.

  Adel glanced behind him before turning back to Vita. “Varius spoke to me a moment ago.”

  Vita titled her head. “The high timeborn running for city council again?”

  “He talked about reform,” Adel said, rolling his eyes.

  “Again?” Vita asked in an indignant tone.

  Adel shook his head. “I know. Such a brazen show of ambition. One could almost forget that he is a first generation Saturnian and mistake him for a dustrunner.”

  Vita tensed, turning to Terra with a wide gaze.

  Terra just looked confused.

  Adel then turned to Terra and paled. “Dhimmi!” he said in an awkward, surprised tone. “Infinite apologies! I should really watch my language around mixed company.”

  Terra raised an eyebrow. “I'm confused.”

  Vita relaxed. “I don't think she understands that term yet.”

  Adel sighed. “Infinite apologies again, dhimmi. You see, dustrunner is an offensive slang term for well... you.”

  Terra frowned. She didn't like being so ignorant that others had to explain to her when she was supposed to be offended. “And what does dhimmi mean?”

  Vita smiled. “That is an honorific for a time traveler. That one is not offensive.”

  Adel stood. “Well regardless, may we go now? I am quite eager tonight.”

  Vita faced Terra. “Delphia should be along shortly. She can show you the way back home.”

  Adel narrowed his gaze on another man nearby. He chatted with a nearby couple, talking about ways to improve the city.

  “Shameful,” Adel said, shaking his head, “showing such ambition. It's important that we maintain traditional Saturnian values.”

  Vita nodded.

  Adel then turned to Vita. “Well would you like to go have sex now?”

  “I was the one waiting on you to stop rambling about politics,” Vita said, taking out a purple pill before swallowing it down with the rest of her drink.

  Terra sat, red faced, while Vita took Adel's arm and they strolled off into the crowd.

  Moments later, Delphia returned with another gorgeous man in tow. “Where is mother?”

  Terra gestured to the crowd. “She took a purple pill and went off with some guy.”

  Delphia cringed as she sat next to Terra. “I did not wish to know that. So did mother give her approval?”

  Terra nodded.

  Delphia smiled. “Good. It will be nice to have the company.”

  Terra glanced to the young man. He was like the last one, gorgeous and looking good in a uniform. She wondered if she should even bother to remember his name.

  Delphia's usual aloof air vanished as she leaned forward, smiling. “I just heard an interesting rumor! Alya Silverwind was spotted at the timeport today.”

  The handsome man leaned forward. “I heard she discovers the best squires.”

  Delphia nodded. “They say she had someone with her. A youth about the right age for a squire.”

  He nodded. “How interesting. I may train alongside Silverwind's Squire. What an honor! I wonder what he's like?”

  Terra sighed. “Assuming she even makes it in.”

  The young man rolled his eyes. “He will be accepted. I'd guess he would be admitted without delay. I mean he is Silverwind's squire after all and she's a Legendary Blade.”

  Terra looked at Delphia. “Okay. I have got to ask. Who are these Legendary Blades I keep hearing about?”

  “They are the greatest heroes and heroines of the Aeon Legion,” Delphia said. “The most skilled of the Legion become Legendary Blades and only twelve of them exist at one time. The only way to become a Legendary Blade is the defeat a current member in a Trial of Blades.”

  Terra's brow lowered as she struggled to understand all these new terms. “So they are the leaders of the Legion?”

  Delphia shook her head. “No. Not really. They are the best soldiers of the Legion. Some have a high rank like Consul Prometheus. Silverwind is a centurion though. A middle rank.”

  Terra thought about Alya. She certainly wouldn't be a good leader given what Terra had saw of her flippant attitude.

  Delphia and her boyfriend finished a few more drinks before heading back. Once they left the Convivium, she dumped the man like the last one. Terra grimaced. Delphia discarded two boyfriends in one day while Terra had yet to experience her first kiss.

  They traveled to a place called Dār al-salām labeled with the numeral V which Delphia explained was a tier two residential area. Spotless pearl white towers crowded this zone. These tall, flat skyscrapers stood straight save for small angular sections cut out of the sides and each reached hundreds of stories into the air. Large glowing glass orbs dotted the structure while wide open seams ran horizontal along the sides. Vegetation grew in the seams which were wide enough to allow a person to walk on. Some of the towers were divided into sections that floated above one another connected by a blue beam of light.

  Terra followed Delphia to a tower that hovered above, seemingly connected only by a beam of light that shot up to it.

  Delphia walked into a beam of light. She floated upward at a steady pace while Terra followed. Terra glanced down to her feet while she felt herself lighten. She felt as though she were swimming in light. They floated through a translucent field before drifting down on top of the field like it was a floor.

  Terra followed Delphia down a long hallway with a row of arches on the walls, each inscribed with a numeral. Delphia approached one arch as the wall behind it faded and they entered.

  “Do you not have normal doors? What about a key to get in?” Terra asked.

  Delphia shrugged. “You mean the fadedoors? They just fade when you near them. Why would it need a key?”

  “To lock it?”
>
  Delphia raised an eyebrow while taking Terra's bag. “Why would you lock a door to a home? Locks are for prisons, not homes. Here. Let me show you to the guest room.”

  Terra followed Delphia into her immaculately clean home. Holofaces glowed a faint blue on the walls which took the place of pictures. Many of the holofaces showed pictures of Delphia and Vita. Others depicted great works of art that faded into a new picture or painting after a few moments. Delphia gestured to an empty room. “What's your favorite color?” Delphia asked.

  “Um. Blue I guess,” Terra said, wondering where she would sleep.

  Delphia touched a holoface on her Shieldwatch. A grid of light beams passed from the ceiling to the floor, changing the room into a full guest room complete with a bed and furnishings all with a blue tint.

  Terra might had been more surprised if she hadn't spent the rest of the day being surprised. She looked at a holoface projected on the wall. The poster sized holoface showed a picture of a young woman. Terra noted that the girl looked a little like her, though thinner with a well toned body. Still the girl's hair and eyes matched Terra's as did her height. The girl wore Legion armor like Alya's and led several other legionnaires.

  Terra pointed to the picture. “Who's that?”

  “Oh that girl?” Delphia said, looking at the picture. “That's Kairos. She is Silverwind's most famous squire. Well she was until she vanished.”

  “Oh,” Terra said, still staring at the picture. She then sat down, taking off her shoes to rub her aching feet. In a single day, she had walked more than she had all year.

  Delphia gestured for Terra to follow. Terra followed Delphia onto the patio garden. She stepped out and sighed at being able to tread on the grass and dirt again. Standing grounded on the soil felt good on her feet. When Terra looked to Delphia, she saw Delphia staring at the sky. Terra looked up to the stars. Just like when she had first time traveled, the stars seemed beyond number. Even the city lights were not enough to blot them out.