Chapter 4: The Resort Planet Cierra III

Chapter 4:
The Resort Planet Cierra III

 

AFTER TAKING DOWN our pursuers, we were on a descent trajectory to Cierra III: our vacation destination.

“These resort planets really do have tough security systems,” I noted. “I’m not gonna kill us by landing, am I?”

Their positron AI, or whatever it was, controlled an auto-interception system. If you got too close, your ship could get shot down, and you’d be screwed.

“It’ll be fine,” Elma assured me. “Once we access the resort planet’s AI and put in our security code, the defense system will put us on a whitelist and defend us instead of attacking us.”

“What a well-made system…” Mimi said in admiration.

I glanced over at Chris, who was totally listless after the stress of battle. Was Mimi like this after her first battle? I kind of remember her having a little more dignity, but it’s different for everyone. Ah, well.

There was another boom as the ship left FTL drive. Onscreen, we saw Cierra III, fully covered in water.

“How do we access the management AI?” I asked.

“It’s the same as when you land at a colony. Mimi; open the comms list. Cierra III’s management AI should be on it.”

“Okay. Hmm… Oh, there it is! I’ll connect now.” Mimi worked the console and accessed the planet’s AI. After a few exchanges between her and Elma, we were given permission to land.

“Oh, yeah!” Elma exclaimed. “I’m pretty sure I’ve used auto-docking to land effortlessly before.”

“Really? Then let’s do that.” I activated the auto-docking function, and the ship began to automatically adjust its entry angle and speed of descent to land safely at our destination. Easy peasy.

Before long, we reached the atmosphere. There was a rumbling noise as the Krishna started shaking, which grew more intense until finally, the scenery outside of the cockpit’s window turned red.

“Whoa, so this is atmospheric entry. Is that the shield turning red-hot or what?” I asked.

Elma shrugged. “Even I don’t know.”

The ship’s body shouldn’t be touching the atmosphere directly, thanks to the shields, so we won’t burn up in here, right…? Or maybe the shields are just turning red due to some reaction with the atmosphere? I couldn’t tell, but the feeling of entering the atmosphere was truly unique.

“A-are we in danger?” Mimi asked.

“The Krishna itself shouldn’t face any trouble. The shields are a bit weakened, but the ship is undamaged so far.”

Suddenly, Chris screamed. “Whaaaat?!”

“Whoa?!” Wh-what the heck?! I looked over, and she was covering her mouth with both hands and blushing. Why was she acting so weird?

“Oh!” Mimi gasped. “Umm, Chris seems to be having some trouble. I will take her to the med bay.”

“Uh…? Okay.”

She jumped out of the operator’s seat and helped the slouching Chris out of the cockpit. Chris didn’t look too good.

“Think she’s okay?” I asked Elma.

“It’s nothing.” She looked at me and shrugged again.

What? I can’t help but feel like I’m the only one out of the loop.

Fwooooom! I heard something that sounded like friction between the Krishna and the atmosphere. The vibration has finally slowed down, at least. But hmm… Oh, that’s it! “Did she wet herself?” I asked.

“You’re supposed to pretend it didn’t happen!”

“I can’t help that I noticed, but I do have the sense to not say it to her face.”

Chris was a noble girl, but she was still a normal person. When she saw flesh-melting lasers coming her way, she was probably terrified. The Krishna’s thick shields wouldn’t let enemy laser fire through that easily, but it was still scary when they hit. And I couldn’t just evade them all, given how fast they went.

“Anyway, wow. This is my first planetary landing since I came to this universe. It’s pretty hype,” I said, changing the subject.

I worked my console to display the Krishna’s photosensor readings on the main monitor. Cierra III’s surface was over 80 percent water, and its atmosphere and ocean’s chemical compositions were terraformed to be optimal for life. It was a bit smaller than Earth. The photosensor’s readings were all ocean, as far as the eye could see, minus a few islands dotting the water. Apart from the excitement of my first landing, it was a really great sight.

Mimi returned with Chris in tow. Chris seemed calmer now, but her face was still flushed.

I’ll pretend I didn’t notice.

“Are you okay? Your first fight must have been rough.”

“I-I’m fine. I had a drink in the cafeteria, and now I’ve calmed down.”

“Good.” I grinned at her. “Mimi, thanks for looking after her.”

“Of course!” Mimi smiled broadly at my praise. If she had a tail, it would be wagging like mad.

“Mimi, is this your first time on a planet?” I asked.

“Yes! I’ve lived on a colony or ship all my life. This is wonderful. I’m not sure whether to call it big or…magnificently vast. Even the image in the sensor looks so open.”

“From my point of view, in this universe—ahem, uh, colonies are stranger than planets.”

“Do you come from a planet, Hiro?” Chris cocked her head.

I threw out a vague answer. “Yeah, kinda. Uhh… Yeah. Complex circumstances, y’know.” I’d almost revealed my perspective on “this universe.” I didn’t want anyone unnecessary knowing that I came from another universe. I liked not being a guinea pig, thank you.

“I see. But if you’ve lived on a planet, does that not make you nobility?”

“I don’t think so. But either way, I’ve kinda left my past behind me.”

“Oh, okay.” Chris seemed disappointed for some reason. What was that supposed to mean?

“By the way, what is this resort facility like?” I asked. “I’ve left it all to you girls, so I don’t know much about it.”

“That is true,” said Mimi. “It seems we have some time until we arrive, so I’ll explain.”

“Yes, please.”

“Leave it to me,” Mimi brought up a bird’s-eye view of the resort on the cockpit’s monitor. She scaled it down, showing that it wasn’t a very big island. You could probably walk from one end to another in under an hour.

“It’s surprisingly small,” I mused.

“Yes, it’s a facility for family use, and we have it all to ourselves!”

“Really? The whole island?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Well, hey, that’s big enough.”

“Agreed.”

We were paying 560,000 Ener for four people to stay for two weeks. That meant 140,000 Ener per person, making 10,000 Ener per day. That would be 1,000,000 yen in modern currency… But maybe that was cheap to have all your needs met and meals prepared?

“The main facility is, naturally, the seaside lodge where we’ll stay. The beach in front of it is perfect for taking a dip. There are also tennis courts, a personal gym, sports and recreational facilities, and a shopping mall just for us. There are also hiking trails for us to enjoy the nature of the island.”

“A mall…?” Putting a shopping mall out just for one family was insane. How could that possibly make a profit? Truly, rich people in science-fiction universes had it all.

“Yes, a mall. We can buy clothes and the like there.”

“Wow, neat!” Elma piped up. “Maybe we could dress up for once.”

“Sorry. I’ve got zero fashion sense,” I said.

“If you’d like, I could pick out the perfect outfit for you,” Mimi offered.

“Ooh! I want to try too!” Chris added.

“Sounds like fun,” Elma said.

Why do I feel like I’m about to be treated like a mannequin? Meh, future Hiro can deal with it. I’ll just be quiet, as long as it’s nothing super crazy. It’s not a good idea to defy women at times like this.

“Whoops, we’re about to land,” I announced. “We’ll probably be fine, but brace for impact just in case.”

As the Krishna descended further, the world around us started to look like the island Mimi had put on screen. Part of the island was a bay, where the waves were gentle. The water was perfectly clear, and the white sand was almost blinding. It was a tropical resort right out of the movies. Our lodge was visible, close to the beach. Next to it was a huge area that looked like a heliport. Was that our landing pad? In the center of the island were golf courses, tennis courts, and other structures. Is that the shopping mall over there?

“Chris, was your last vacation like this?” I asked.

“Yes, though the island was a touch larger.” That was nobility for you—her family must have rented out an even more luxurious island.

The Krishna smoothly and automatically lowered onto the landing pad. Thump! The ship shook as it touched ground. Ah, auto-docking, you are the best. Even when there’s higher gravity to worry about, you never fail to make a soft landing.

“We have landed!” I declared. “Boy, am I tired.”

We’d managed to get through the fight without the Krishna getting damaged, but our pursuers were more trained and better equipped than space pirates. They really had come for blood at the start too. The Federation scuffle might have been an easier time, after all.

“I’m sure you are, after putting in all that work,” Elma said.

Mimi nodded. “Great job today. Get some good sleep tonight.”

“Thank you for protecting me, Hiro,” Chris added.

Ha ha ha! Selfish as it may be, I don’t mind doing all that work; with you cuties around, my fatigue just melts away. They knew exactly how to make me happy.

“C’mon, keep that up and I’ll be grinning like an idiot.” I blushed. “Let’s go ahead and stretch our legs. Do we need to take anything out of the ship?”

“Hmm…” Elma thought it over. “I think we’ll be fine. But if you want to be prepared for attacks, we could take the weapons and power armor with us.”

“That’s a bit loud for carry-on luggage…” Mimi winced. It was rare for Elma to miss the mark.

Maybe she was right, though? We ought to check out the island’s security and consider bringing our own weapons and armor. If the enemy knew where we were staying, there wouldn’t be much point in coming down and fighting. Instead, they’d likely use an asteroid or something to bombard us from orbit.

Could they do it with a laser cannon? I figure the atmosphere would reduce its power… Nah. In this universe, laser cannons must be strong enough to cut right through the atmosphere. After all, even handguns can kill people with ease.

“He seems to be thinking about it…” Mimi observed.

“I meant that as a joke,” Elma said.

“Did you? I thought you were serious…”

“If they threw a reactive weapon down here, we and the Krishna would be gone in a snap,” I said. “Power armor won’t save you from that.”

“How blunt,” Elma muttered.

“I don’t want to imagine that.” Mimi grimaced. I was probably making the same face. Even Chris went pale.

Regardless, I didn’t know what to take with me, so I just wore what I usually wore into colonies and left the ship. All I carried was my handheld tablet and laser gun. Elma did the same, while Mimi had a shoulder bag with her tablet in it. Chris was empty-handed.

Should I let her borrow my tablet so that she can message us?

We threw open the Krishna’s airlock and went down the accommodation ladder.

“Mmm,” I moaned. “The air is nice, and the sea smells great.”

“It feels so much freer on the surface,” Elma said.

“Wooow…” Mimi looked up at the sky with stars in her eyes. She must have been fascinated by the sky after spending her whole life under a ceiling.

Chris closed her eyes as the wind caressed her cheeks, possibly lost in memories of vacationing with her parents.

While we were all enjoying ourselves, something came flying out of the lodge. What is that, a robot? It was a metallic mass the size of a volleyball. The mysterious thing stopped in front of us and began emitting light, scanning us.

“Dear guests, allow me to be the first to welcome you. I am Cierra III’s management AI, Milo. I take care of all who stay on this planet. It is good to meet you.” The thing floated in midair as it spoke. It had an androgynous voice.

Is this basically like a terminal to access the planet’s AI?

“Nice to meet you, Milo. I’m Elma.”

“Um, hello. My name is Mimi.”

“I am Christina.”

“And I’m Hiro, this ship’s captain.”

“Yes. Ms. Elma, Ms. Mimi, Ms. Christina, and Mr. Hiro. I am pleased to make your acquaintance.” It bobbed up and down, as if bowing its head. How meticulously made. “If you have any questions, I can answer them now. Otherwise, I would like to show you around the lodge. Will that do?”

 

***

 

I was the first to ask Milo a question. “Should we bring anything from our ship?”

“Yes. We have all sorts of amenities available to make your stay comfortable, but some customers have specific preferences; if you do, you will have to supply your own items. Also, in the case you decide to use our extra services that are not included in the base price, you should carry your terminals with you in order to process the transactions involved.”

“Gotcha. Do we need changes of underwear?”

“No, we will prepare new clothing for you. But again, we understand that people have their own preferences. If necessary, we suggest you bring your own. However, we do have boutiques and the like that you are free to make use of. They carry not just underwear and everyday clothing, but also lovely swimsuits for pleasure and excitement.”

“Okay, cool. That’s all I wanted to ask.” I glanced over at the girls, but they shook their heads to signal that they had no questions. Maybe all of this was in the brochures? I didn’t exactly read them carefully.

“Then let us proceed to the lodge. Come right this way.” Milo turned around in midair and floated along the path. We followed behind.

“Wow, wow! Look at those plants!” Mimi pulled at my arm, pointing at the flowers and trees along the path. As the only plants we’d seen in colonies were potted ones for decoration, this must have been Mimi’s first time seeing such lush vegetation.

“Yeah, it’s awesome. You can really feel the life of the vegetation here. Hey, Mimi. Did you know that plants are so strong that their roots can break right through asphalt and concrete? It’s crazy how life perseveres,” I said.

“Those are materials used to pave and build buildings, correct? Incredible…” The rest of us looked on disinterestedly as Mimi admired the sights, but she didn’t notice us. It was adorable how she reacted to her first true taste of nature.

“We have arrived,” Milo said. “Allow me to show you around.” A slender arm emerged from Milo’s spherical form and opened the door to the lodge.

How does that fit in its little round body? Is there anything else in there?

The lodge was like a log cabin, and the inside was very spacious. There was a vast common area that functioned as a living room, dining room, and kitchen. A big wooden coffee table was up front, with a soft-looking couch surrounding the low surface. To the left was the big kitchen space and dining table. The kitchen had not just an automatic cooker, but also a normal range and oven. If we wanted, we could do real cooking.

Behind the low table and sofa was a lawn, and beyond that, a gorgeous sandy beach. There were beach chairs by the window, perfect for sunbathing. To the right was a wooden staircase that went up to the second floor. There was also a hallway leading to other rooms on the main floor.

The interior design of the cabin had a tropical theme, right down to tiki-esque statues. There were also wooden bows and such on the walls. Since this planet had been developed by terraforming, I couldn’t imagine they’d ever needed weapons like those.

“Love how spacious it is,” Elma said. “The wood is luxurious too.”

Mimi was oddly scared. “I-Is this wood? Eep…”

“Those of us who live on planets are used to seeing it, but wood is a very rare material on colonies,” Chris explained.

“Interesting…” I said.

Taking wood into space did sound like a poor bang for your buck, especially if plant material wouldn’t last long out there. You might as well just use whatever ore could be mined in space. Although I had to wonder if you couldn’t culture plants in a universe this advanced. Would it be easier to create substitutes at that point? Lumber was easy to work with and took little effort over time. If someone were to use a synthetic alternative, plastic might be the cheaper option.

While I thought to myself, the girls finished their inspection of the common area. They looked awfully satisfied, and for good reason; the place was much bigger and more luxurious than the Krishna. I especially liked the sense of spaciousness caused by the big windows and high ceilings. What a lovely building.

“The current time on this island is 11:14 a.m.,” Milo informed us. “If you all would like, I can prepare lunch for you at noon. Is that an acceptable time?”

“Sounds good to me. Girls?”

“Fine with me.”

“I don’t mind.”

“That time works for me too.”

“There you have it. Noon, please,” I told Milo.

“Very well. At noon, I will prepare lunch. Until then, I hope you enjoy yourselves.” Milo flew over to a pedestal in the corner of the room and slipped into it. It was no longer active and moving, but I knew it would respond if I called its name.

“Let’s rest until then, ladies. I’ll grab a drink and hang out on the couch.”

“I think I will too,” Elma said.

“Excuse me?” Mimi chimed in. “May I walk around outside?”

“Go ahead. I think it’s fine, but do be careful. Don’t go scavenging either.”

“I won’t! I’m not that much of a glutton!” She puffed out her cheeks, miffed.

Ha ha ha! You’re cute even when you’re mad.

“How about you, Chris?” I asked.

“Umm… I will go with Mimi.”

“Are you sure? Don’t push yourself.”

“I’ll be fine, thank you. Do not worry.” Chris smiled elegantly.

Yep, there’s that air of nobility—you can tell her background with ease. Meanwhile, look at this damn elf over here, stretching out on the couch. Not a lick of refinement there.

After seeing Mimi and Chris off, I called out, “Milo?”

“Yes, Captain Hiro? What can I do for you?” The robot rose up from its spot and flew toward me.

So it is listening! “I’m thirsty. Do you have drinks available, or are we supposed to order them?”

“Yes, sir. We have all of the standard drinks in the refrigerator. The stock within is based on the service plan you’ve purchased, but we are able to procure other drinks for a fee.”

“Huh. Do you have carbonated beverages?”

“Yes. However, we do not have them in the refrigerator, as they are not often requested.”

I almost jumped for joy on the spot. Soda might not have been a standard drink, but Milo knew what it was, which meant…

“So I can order it?”

“Yes. I can certainly bring it to you. What flavor would you like?”

“Sweet, brown soda that washes over your throat like nectar. I want soda. I wanna drown myself in soda. Hell, fill the whole fridge with soda, if you want. That’s how bad I want it. Feel me? Give. Me. The. Soda.”

“Your request has been received. Please release Unit 006.”

At some point, I had grabbed Milo with both hands. Oops! I kinda went crazy there. It’s just because I’ve been away from my beloved soda for so long.

“What size would you like? We have 1.5-liter and 500-milliliter options.”

“I’ll take twenty of the 500-milliliter ones.”

“Understood. It will be a short while until your order arrives. As for payment—”

“Take it.” I pointed my terminal at Milo. It began to flash again, before making a ba-ding! noise. What a cute little transaction. “Heh heh heh… I’m so excited, I’m practically shaking!”

Elma shot me a look. “Is it that big of a deal? I thought your carbonated drinks or whatever weren’t real, but if Milo knows about them, they must exist after all.”

“Of course they’re real! Soda cannot be vanquished! Even in post-apocalyptic worlds, it clings to life!” Even if it did make your pee a weird color.

“I can’t keep up with your hype, but okay. I’ll be excited with you. You’ll let me have some, right?”

“Absolutely. Then you too shall be eternally taken in by the charms of soda.”

“Now it’s starting to sound scary.” Elma frowned, but I ignored her and continued to wait impatiently.

C’mon, hurry! Come and satisfy me!

 

***

 

“P-pardon?” Mimi said timidly. “Why does he look so…dead inside?”

“I dunno,” Elma replied. “He ordered these drinks from Milo, took a sip, and then he screamed, ‘It tastes like almond tofu, smells like a wet compress… This is Dr. Peter!’ He’s been like that ever since.”

Hi, Hiro again. Even if Dr. Peter wasn’t my favorite, I’d guzzled it down with joy. I hadn’t specified the brand of soda, so I hadn’t gotten Caca-Cola, which was my number one. Peppi wasn’t bad, but Caca-Cola was the best.

“I’ve never seen a drink like this,” Chris muttered, looking at the case of soda.

Is it that obscure? Well, I’m not surprised. Nobody else knew what it was until I asked Milo.

“Wanna try it?” I offered. “It’s kind of a divisive drink, though.”

“Is it good?”

“It’s pretty good. Let’s crack open a new one.”

“Oh, no. I might not be able to drink the whole thing…” Chris glanced at the bottle I was holding.

Uhh, okay? I guess I don’t care.

“Should a noble girl be drinking this?”

“One mustn’t worry about every little thing.” Chris smiled at me as I handed her the bottle of soda.

“Here’s the deal,” I explained. “Drink it a little bit at a time, because it really stings the back of your throat the first time. Some people choke on it.”

“Understood… Mmph?!” The Dr. Peter—called Mr. Pepperoni in this world—startled Chris, and her eyes went wide the moment it hit her tongue. Her first experience with carbonation seemed to be going well. “It’s sweet, and very…fizzy,” she noted. “The scent bears a resemblance to medicine.”

“As far as I know, drinks like this have a long history,” I said. “I think it was some kind of herbal drink, made from mixing a bunch of medicines together? But just doing that makes it hard to drink, so they added some kind of sweet syrup. Then they added carbonation to make it nice and refreshing, and it resulted in this.” I wasn’t sure about the history of soda in this universe, but that was more or less how it went on Earth. “Hey, Milo?”

“Yes. How may I help you?”

“I want stuff similar…well, maybe not similar to this. One of every soda you have in stock, please. Non-alcoholic.”

“Understood. According to your specifications, we have four other varieties available.”

“One of each works. If I like one, I’ll definitely buy more.”

“Understood.”

I turned to find Chris handing the bottle of Mr. P to Mimi. Her eyes went wide when she drank it too. You little cuties. It’s poor manners to pass one drink around, though, isn’t it?

“Isn’t it a strange drink?” Chris asked Mimi.

“Why is it so fizzy?” Mimi looked at me with great interest.

I dug deep into my memories and said, “They put carbon dioxide in it to carbonate it, which makes it fizzy. Sodas don’t work out so well in outer space, though, so I guess they only sell them on planets.”

“Is this fizzy feeling carbon dioxide, then?” Chris asked.

“Yeah.”

“Wow… I do agree that it doesn’t seem to be suited for orbital colonies. Is the drink pressurized?”

“Yep. If you shake it when the lid is on, and then open it, it’ll explode everywhere.”

Chris nodded to herself, satisfied with my answer.

It would be difficult to drink soft drinks on orbital colonies or in outer space—anywhere there wasn’t consistent gravity or atmospheric pressure. Maybe when humans had first struck out into space, they hadn’t had artificial gravity devices that would allow soda to stay fizzy, and by the time they were invented, maybe soda had been long forgotten. Or maybe there was some incident that had thrown soda into obscurity all at once. To me, it was almost unnatural how obscure it was in this universe.

“I’ve heard enough about that weird drink,” Elma butted in. “What should we do after lunch? I kinda want to go to the boutique.”

“Oh? You’re always dressed in mercenary gear, and now you want to get all dolled up?”

I didn’t like her calling soda a “weird drink,” but I was more interested in hearing Elma talk about wearing normal clothes. Mimi occasionally wore the subdued, classic lolita clothes I got her, along with the punky everyday wear she bought with her own money, but Elma was literally always wearing the same clothes. It wasn’t like she had no money, so it was probably down to taste or practicality.

“Dolled up? Jeez. I know when the time calls for new clothes, y’know,” she huffed.

“Apparently not well enough. You don’t have to be in casual merc gear when we’re just lazing around the ship. Feel free to dress up.”

“I mean… Okay. If you say so, I’ll think about it.” Elma furrowed her brow in discontent, but she was blushing, so I knew she wasn’t totally against the idea.

Good. Show me as many outfits as you want.

“By the way, you should find some clothes and other stuff for Chris. You can take it out of my account.”

“Y-you don’t need to—” Chris began, but I interrupted.

“Nah, you need it.”

“He’s right, you know,” Elma said.

Mimi agreed too. “He is.”

Chris fell silent, overwhelmed by our three-pronged attack.

“It’s okay.” I smiled. “We’ll be sure to get that money back from your gramps too.”

“I-I’m not sure that—”

“Don’t worry about it. You’re stressed, right? It might be difficult, but try to cut loose.”

She might have looked fine, but Chris had lost her parents, woken up in a strange place after surviving an attack, and witnessed a violent space battle. Though she had been tense since waking up, I hoped she would loosen up while we were on Cierra III. If we could relieve some of her pent-up stress, the burden on her would be a lot lighter. Or so I hoped, anyway. Frankly, getting her some new clothes and taking care of her was the most I could do. Our backgrounds were way too different, so getting close to her was a hard no. Given their similarities, Mimi would be the better candidate for friendship.

“Milo?”

“Yes, Captain Hiro?”

“Can we swim in the ocean here?”

“Yes. The seawater on this planet is optimized for swimming. Rescue bots are on standby in the water, ready to save you if anything goes awry. This facility also has quality medical care, should you need it. You are in excellent hands.”

“I see. I don’t have a swimsuit, so I’ll have to go buy one. Can we fish here too?”

“Yes. The ocean is well-stocked, and an optimal ecosystem has been created. I can show you the best fishing spots, if you’d like.”

“That’s fantastic. I’m glad there’s so much to do.” I looked over to the girls, who were all watching me with mouths agape for some reason.

“Dude… Seriously.” Elma looked at me pointedly, as if scolding me for my carelessness.

“Y-you seem awfully used to all that…” Mimi seemed amazed.

I turned to Chris to figure out why, but she looked just as amazed.

“You’re quite used to swimming, fishing, and nature, aren’t you?” she asked.

“Uh? Yeah, duh.”

At that moment, I realized people who lived in colonies probably never fished or swam in an ocean. In orbital colonies, water was a precious thing and strictly regulated for drinking and cleaning, and fishing had no reason to exist on an orbital colony. Some who lived on residential planets might have fished, but many probably didn’t even know fishing was a thing.

“There’s a lot of stuff you can do on planets that you can’t do in space.” I couldn’t tell Chris about my origins, so I tried to change the subject. It was totally possible she wasn’t taking this very well, but it was better than telling her I came from another universe and having her think I was insane.

“The food is ready,” Milo announced. “Please head to the dining room.”

“Oops! Uh, time for grub! Let’s eat. Gee, I sure wonder what it’ll be!”

“You’re too obvious.”

I ignored Elma’s jab and took a seat in the dining room. Milo said our food was ready, but the table was empty. Was Milo going to have it delivered by drone like the Mr. P?

I then recalled that the Mr. P had been delivered to the front door by drone.

I asked Milo how the deliveries worked. Apparently, there was an Accumulation and Assembly Site somewhere along the equator. They used a mass driver to launch containers of stuff into the atmosphere, where they turned into solar-powered container drones midair and then descended to their destination. It was a rather brute-force method, but since the surface was mostly water, it would be too expensive to build a planetary rail or tunnel system, and delivery by boat or submarine would take forever. Aerial shipping drones had been considered at first, but in order for that to work, multiple places to collect resources would be needed to reduce shipping times, which would cut down on space available for resorts. Thus, they’d come up with the mass driver method. When someone ordered items, they’d pack it, launch it, and use suborbital flight to get it to the buyer fast. After that, the container drone used solar power to slowly shuttle itself back home to the mass driver.

From my point of view, it seemed crazy, but it seemed to be working just fine. Truly, technology was incredible.

While I was thinking, the door opened and someone came into the lodge. She was a maid! A maid with mechanical parts attached to her ears—a robot maid. Wow! Do they actually use these?! And there wasn’t just one. Five identical maids were pushing a cart toward us.

“We have brought your lunch.” The maid robots bowed and began dishing out food. Their dexterity was incredible, and their motions were neither jerky nor mechanical.

Damn, these things are awesome. I want one of those!

As if she’d read my mind, Elma glared daggers at me. “Why do you look like you want one of those?”

Mimi jumped out of her chair and almost snarled. “Master Hiro! I’m willing to take care of your needs; you don’t need a Maidroid!”

Oh, so they’re called Maidroids and not just robots?

“Maid robots are what every man dreams of,” I declared.

“I am sorry, but Unit S-048 is not for sale. Also, I am not a robot. I am an android.” Even the maid robot was clowning on me. How had it come to this? “However, similar models can be bought from Oriental Industries. If you would like, I can send a catalog to your handheld terminal.”

“Yes, please.”

“Nooo!” Mimi screamed.

Ha ha ha! What’s wrong with just enjoying the view? I’m not seriously going to buy it. Or I might, I dunno. Did Cranky Mimi not like the Maidroid for some reason? I decided to ask her later.

Anyway, forget the Maidroid for now. It was time for some grub.

 

***

 

The food brought in was truly the bounty of the sea. There were four-pincered lobsters that’d been boiled and cut in half, spit-roasted and peeled shellfish-like creatures, a huge whole-cooked fish that looked like a sea bream, assorted sashimi, seafood pilaf, a fruit basket, seaweed salad, and a whole bunch more. It all looked lovely.

Mimi stared at the food, stunned. The bisected lobster and whole-cooked fish seemed especially shocking. “M-Master Hiro, erm…” She pointed at them, pale-faced.

“This seafood looks delicious, right?”

“Huh?!” She looked horrified and betrayed.

Sorry, babe. As an Earthling, I find this food totally normal.

Mimi had never looked so perturbed by food, apart from the weird, fleshy tentacles from the cultured meat plant. This universe’s people, minus the rich ones, all seemed to live their daily lives eating food cartridge–based meals. I checked on Elma and Chris, who didn’t seem as shocked as Mimi. Not shocked at all, in fact. Chris’s nonchalance seemed obvious, given her background, but why was Elma so okay? Had she experienced all of this in her long life as a mercenary, or…?

Forget it; she’s not a child, so if she wants to talk about it, she will.

“Are we free to just take whichever dishes we want?” I asked.

“Yes,” a Maidroid responded. “We can also plate the food for you, if you wish.”

“That sounds good. Lobster is fine, but seafood needs to be divvied out carefully. Plus, fish can have little bones in it.”

“Understood.” One of the Maidroids took a fork and knife and began dishing the fish onto our plates. Other Maidroids divided up the other dishes and acted as waitresses.

“Let’s eat up, then. A toast…to safety!” I said. Once everyone had their food, I lifted my glass and took a drink. Mine was filled with non-alcoholic grape juice.

I decided to set upon the lobster-like creature first. It was dressed in a brown sauce. I stabbed a piece with my fork and popped it into my mouth.

“Mmm!” It was so good that I had to moan. Its flesh was chewier than expected, but it was soft and juicy, and satisfyingly chewy. The sauce was rich, savory, and an excellent complement to the meat. It tasted uncannily like miso.

Next, I tried popping a piece of sea bream in my mouth. The seasoning was just simple salt, but the flavor was perfectly balanced.

“We recommend sprinkling it with some of this.”

“Oh?” I took the advice of the Maidroid next to me and put some of the offered liquid on the fish, before taking another bite. The pungent stench of it pierced my nose.

Was this made from wringing sudachi fruit or what? The trademark smell of citrus overpowered the remaining fishy stench, its sourness turning the simple flavor into something more. The other entrées were fantastic too.

Although Mimi had been startled at first, she fell in love at first bite. Her eyes sparkled as she shoveled it all into her waiting gullet.

Absolutely wonderful. It’s foolish to judge a book by its cover; we learned that when we ate that facehugger-like thing.

As for me, I was rather surprised that there were no surprises here. I had been almost terrified they’d give us food I’d never seen nor heard of.

“Who makes this food, and where?” I asked.

“The food is automatically cooked by a specialized machine at the Accumulation and Assembly Site. Then it is packaged, delivered by the mass driver, received by us Maidroids, and presented to you.”

“I see. So the fishing, cooking, shipping, and presentation is all automated?”

How much did all of that cost? I couldn’t imagine it was efficient; why not have it cooked here by the Maidroids instead? Guess there’s no point in thinking about it. I gave up on figuring out the impossible and went back to chowing down. Man, I love grilled seafood skewers.