"Whoa wait!" Tereza exclaimed in surprise. "So humans have a hidden base just like Iredescents?! They send out ships to spy on our planet while we spy on theirs?"

"Possibly," said Raistin, watching the ship fly out of the hidden base disguised as a tennis court. "I'm not sure. But I know this is a hidden base of some sort because tennis courts are not usually built in forests; they are built in places like parks and recreation centers."

"And this is definitely not a park or recreation center," Tereza mused, angling her litayu for a closer view. "Should we go inside and check it out?"

"We'll regret it if we don't," Raistin responded, glancing at Tereza.

Tereza's litayu quietly slipped inside the hidden base before the tennis court folded in on itself and closed, hiding the base from view. Inside was brightly lit with white lighting, a hangar with multiple hundreds of silvery white ships. Tereza hovered the litayu near the ceiling, stunned by the sight of so many ships.

Raistin's eyes narrowed in concentration as he listened to the faraway sounds of people talking. His heightened hearing was able to pick up on the humans' discussion. It was spoken in the German language. Makes sense, since we're in Germany, Raistin thought.

"....White Dove just flew out. Crew of twenty this time. We're bringing....to combat the strange, mysterious spiral that tore the....and Sciattle Cleayr, the most....of all the things to happen, it would...."

Raistin strained to hear, but he was unable to hear the entire conversation. Tereza slowly brought the litayu closer to the meeting room where the discussion was coming from, parking it atop a rafter. Tereza touched Raisin to make sure he stayed invisible while keeping herself and the litayu invisible. Tereza and Raistin slowly opened the doors and stepped out of the litayu. Tereza carried Raistin as she flew silently towards the meeting room.

The voices were clearer now, spoken in determined tones. Tereza held Raistin close as she landed softly. Once she maintained firm footing, Tereza slowly lowered Raistin, allowing him to stand. Tereza surprised Raistin when she took his hand, holding it as she began to walk closer to the meeting room's door while keeping close to the wall.

Raistin kept quiet, saying close to Tereza while holding her hand. Tereza felt Raistin's natural warm body temperature warm her hand, adding to the warm cozy feeling inside. Tereza didn't want to let go, liking the feel of Raistin's hand in hers.

They both jumped in startlement when they heard a German official's voice crescendo in sudden exclamation.

"I told you, William Nieuten will absolutely not approve it. This is why we need to take this matter in our own hands, without his interference."

"And you think Sciattle Cleayr will approve it? Just because he took part in this mission doesn't mean he'll approve your ridiculous idea."

"My plan to evade the spiral is not ridiculous! Ten ships have fallen to the mysterious floating trash, and none of you have a solution for it. That is why I think the White Dove will be successful this time. Once the ship makes it safely past the spiral, even Golandren Shügwotten will be in full approval in the next part of my plan."

"And what plan would that be, Lieutenant Parmar Belenkoff?" A cold slithering voice spoke from another doorway.

Raistin and Tereza felt freezing ice cubes run down their spine just from the voice alone. They cracked open the meeting room door to see a tall figure walk into the room. They could tell he was of higher rank than the other men because of the red badges and insignia on his uniform. He had wavy coal black hair, steel blue eyes that always seemed to glitter for some reason, smooth skin with the appearance of glass, and a chilling demeanor. He seemed to have the ability to immediately drop the temperature in the room just from his presence, though the man was certainly not an Iredescent. He was human, as were all the men in the meeting room.

"I see you already launched the White Dove without my approval," he spoke, his voice as smooth as glaciers, yet as deadly as black ice, cutting through the air like a sharp knife. "Project Celestial is my idea. I should be made aware of everything that goes on. All of you are now demoted for failing to report this to me."

The men looked stunned. One of them stammered, "Demoted? But Sciattle Cleayr – "

Sciattle's eyes glittered menacingly despite being stunning as a predawn skyscraper sky. "There is an alien planet out there, and I want to be the one to make first contact with the alien lifeforms. We know there is life on that planet because of the ideal conditions needed to sustain life. What kind of life, we do not know, but I intend to know."

Raistin and Tereza glanced at each other in surprise, but they dared not say anything, remaining quiet and observant.

Sciattle went over to the launch panel, carefully looking over everything. He contacted the crew of the White Dove, the ship that presumably just left, saying in a clear-cut tone, "Sciattle Cleayr speaking, over. Since you already left Earth's atmosphere, continue your designated course. Ensure your mission doesn't end up as another failure."

"Captain Russet speaking, over. We certainly do not intend to be another failure."

"You launched without the upgrades I specifically requested. It is up to you to prove that those upgrades aren't needed." Sciattle disconnected the comm, walking away from the launch panel.

Captain Russet scowled, thinking Sciattle could be so controlling at times. I'll sure prove it, he thought, moving forward with his goal to be the first Earth spaceship to reach planet Iredescent.

The men carefully watched the ship's trajected path, Parmar supervising as the screen showed all was well so far. After a few minutes, Sciattle suddenly clapped his hands sharply, saying slightly sarcastically, "Planning on watching for several days? Work is over. Everyone head to the mess hall. We'll see in two days' time if their venture proves successful." It took an Earth ship two days to get to planet Iredescent.

"So bossy," one of the men murmured, just out of earshot, though the Phoenix and the Iredescent heard him. The men began filing out of the meeting room, causing Raistin and Tereza to quietly back out and return to the litayu.

"Now what?" Tereza asked Raistin, keeping her voice low. She figured he might have some answer on how to handle this new situation, since he was much older and would have more experience in dealing with uncertain situations.

Raistin was deep in thought, thinking of how Tereza held his hand. He could still feel the warmth of her hand, could still feel the comfort it gave him. Strange, he mused, how comforting an Iredescent touch can feel to me. It's been so long since I've even felt a simple touch.

"Raistin? Have you figured something out?" Tereza asked, slightly confused on why Raistin remained silent, not answering her question.

At her voice, Raistin was pulled back from his thoughts. He turned his face so Tereza wouldn't see it redden slightly. He responded back, saying, "We'll need to keep an eye on the ship that took off, see for ourselves whether it'll make it. I highly doubt it, though."

"What makes you say that?" Tereza asked.

Raistin turned to look at her, the slight blush faded from his face now that his thoughts returned to a more serious matter. "Has your kind ever seen an Earth ship actually succeed in getting to planet Iredescent?" he asked, his voice quiet with a solemn truth underneath his words.

Tereza realized at once what he meant. "No, never. They all got caught in the spiral Parmar was talking about. The spiraling whirlpool that hinders Earth spaceships from entering the portal to planet Iredescent."

"Do you know why such a spiral was devised? Or where it came from?" There was an unusually cold edge to Raistin's voice, a coldness that surprised Tereza.

"You," she breathed, not sure whether to feel horrified at the stunning truth. "You gathered the space trash, forming it into a spiral, and you placed it there....but why?" Tereza was shocked Raistin would be capable of such a thing.

"To protect Iredescent," Raistin said softly. "I really like your planet, and you, and I would hate for something to ever happen to your planet. I've seen what greed and pride does to people. I'm quite fond of Iredescent, and you, Tereza, so naturally I – " Raistin stopped himself, realizing he just confessed his feelings to Tereza. Twice, actually. All within the span of a paragraph.

Tereza stared at Raistin, her own face flushing bright pink with the knowledge that Raistin liked her.

Raistin suddenly reached over to move the litayu downward, igniting it to power. "We gotta get out of here while the men are still distracted," said Raistin, temporarily taking over in navigating the litayu. He waited for the opening to perform a routine check before flying the litayu out of the hidden base. He let out a sigh of relief and allowed Tereza to take control again, since he wasn't exactly sure of the directions back to the Iredescent base in England.

Tereza wordlessly flew the litayu, not saying anything further the entire ride home. Each were in their own thoughts, thinking over what Raistin had said.

I can't believe I told her I like her. What was I thinking? was going through Raistin's mind while Tereza's thoughts were on repeat, endlessly thinking, He likes me. He likes me. Wow. He just said he likes me. He likes me.

"We need to tell the Iredescent Ruler what we saw," Raistin told Tereza soon as they landed. "It's imperative for your crew to know about those Earth ships."

"Right," Tereza murmured. She handed her comect to Raistin, saying, "You make the call. I need to go to the bathroom."

Tereza dashed for the nearest bathroom, closing the door behind her as she took the time to process her thoughts. She looked at herself in the mirror, smoothing her hair while thinking of Raistin.

Raistin studied Tereza's comect, surprised she trusted him with it. He gathered the others in the conference room before Raistin called Irina on Tereza's comect, choosing to contact her the way Tereza intended.

Irina's hologram came up in real time, Raistin having activated the hologram settings on both ends. From planet Iredescent, Irina was able to see the Iredescents and Raistin in hologram form.

Raistin spoke first, saying, "Hello, Ruler of Iredescent. I'm Raistin Fenice, the Phoenix. I'm not sure if the Iredescents told you about me, but here I am. They allowed me to live in their base. I chose to ally myself with your planet. As such, I have something important to tell you.

"Tereza and I found a hidden base in Germany. It's located in a forest and is disguised as a tennis court. We went inside the base and discovered that humans have been sending Earth ships to try to reach planet Iredescent. A mysterious spiral, or swirling whirlpool as Iredescents call it, is hindering them from entering the portal to Iredescent."

Raistin paused in hesitation, as if deciding whether or not to withhold some information, then he admitted, "I'm the one who created the spiral and placed it there. I have no intention of removing it, even if you attempt to order me."

Vis, Kael, Rêver, and Niquead were all rendered speechless.

Irina was surprised to meet Raistin for the first time. She took in what he said, carefully thinking it over. Raistin patiently waited to hear what she would have to say.

"I won't order you to do anything but observe," Irina said in response. "I appreciate you informing me of this. May I ask why have you chosen to ally yourself with Iredescent?"

Raistin locked eyes with Irina, his gaze uncompromising. "Because it is a planet I feel the most at home with," he told her. "For entire millennia, I had no home. I stayed on planet Earth because I had nowhere to go after the loss of planet Vasya. Iredescent is a planet that I visit from time to time, but lately, after spending much time with your Iredescent people, I've come to realize that I finally found where my home might be. Why else would I keep returning to Iredescent, time after time? I kept telling myself it was just out of curiosity to see the next Black Rose, but it isn't curiosity that keeps drawing me in. I didn't even know what it was until it started becoming clear to me that I am destined for Iredescent."

Tereza walked into the room that moment, having finally composed herself. Raistin almost instinctively turned to look at Tereza, his eyes meeting hers. Tereza was unable to look away from his gaze, feeling much warmth and love from Raistin.

The Iredescents smiled as they watched Raistin and Tereza admire each other. It was obvious the two felt something for each other, something that would turn into a strong, beautiful love.

The magical moment was interrupted when out of the blue, Niquead asked, "So, uh, are you two gonna kiss or are you just gonna keep staring at each other?"

Tereza immediately blushed scarlet red while Raistin took up on the suggestion, saying, "Why not? I'm totally up for it, if my Terezy would want to."

There's that nickname again, Tereza thought, unsure why it made her feel as though butterflies were having a chariot race inside her chest every time Raistin called her Terezy. He even said "my Terezy" this time, further affirming his interest in her.

Tereza felt her heart rate increase as her palms began to sweat. Wanting to act before Raistin might actually kiss her, though she secretly wanted him to, half tempted by the sudden urge to seize Raistin in her arms and kiss him, Tereza quickly said in alarm, "Not in front of everyone! Seriously, ever hear of a thing called privacy, people?"

"She's got it bad," Kael said to Vis, smiling joyfully.

"I could say the same for you," Tereza unthinkingly said in retaliation.

Everyone turned to Kael, who stood speechless for a moment, before he glanced at Irina and decided to tell everyone their secret. "You got me, Tereza. Truth is, guys, Irina and I have been seeing each other since before we left Iredescent on this mission. Yup, you heard me: I am dating the Ruler of Iredescent."

Nobody appeared to be surprised. They looked at Kael completely unfazed, though Irina felt relieved it was finally out in the open.

"Yeah, we figured," said Rêver.

"It was so obvious the way you kept looking at Irina," said Niquead.

"All those times you stayed behind to check on 'technical stuff' and how you stayed in your room all the time," said Vis. "Tis only evidence of a man in love."

"Seriously?" Kael asked nobody in particular. "You guys knew this whole time?"

"Don't know why you even kept it a secret," Niquead told him. "There's no law or anything saying you can't date the Ruler of Iredescent."

"We're happy for you, though, and for Raistin and Tereza," said Rêver, smiling at the couples.

Kael turned to Irina, who gave him a look and said, "Told you, Kael. You were the one who wanted to keep our relationship a secret."

"Only because I didn't want the other pilots to think you chose me because of our relationship," Kael said back.

"You should know me better than that," Irina said in a slight icy tone. "I chose you not because you're my favorite pilot, but because you're my most trusted pilot. I needed a pilot for Tereza to rely on, and you are an air elemental that can manipulate things like air pressure to suit a ship's travel speed and such. That kind of thing is super important, especially when navigating through alien planets like Earth."

"Such an air-headed air elemental," Rêver murmured. "It's no wonder your head is always up in the clouds."

In response, Kael created an air current that swept Rêver off his feet, making him fall on the ground and slide several paces. In retaliation, Rêver used his water manipulation ability to summon water from a water faucet and splash it all over Kael.

Vis shook his head while Niquead snickered and Irina sighed. Raistin and Tereza smiled at each other, delighted by their antics. Tereza shyly looked away, but not before Raistin saw her face aglow and still smiling.

"Raistin Fenice," Irina spoke, redirecting the attention back to Raistin. "I want to thank you for the chance to finally meet you. I'd like to personally welcome you to our crew, and to planet Iredescent. We are honored to have you for our ally."

"And I am honored to be among your crew, as hapless as they can be at times," Raistin said in response, grinning cheerfully.

Irina smiled back, reaching to high-five Raistin, her hologram hand touching his physical hand. "As for those Earth ships, we'll just observe them for now. Definitely keep me updated if anything comes up. Otherwise, you all have a wonderful day. I'll see you later. Thousand Glitters, everyone."

"Thousand Glitters!" The Iredescents and Phoenix said in response, just before the call disconnected and Irina's hologram vanished.

Niquead immediately said, "Who's hungry? I want some pizza. Rêver, can you order some?"

"I'll order it," said Tereza, smiling as she went over to the bulletin board to look through coupons. Kael went to change out of his wet clothes while Rêver went with Tereza to get the pizza and Vis and Niquead gathered in the kitchen to wait on the pizza.

Raistin smiled to himself as he left the conference room, his heart uplifted and his thoughts focused on the most important thing he learned from the meeting: Tereza wanted to kiss him.

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Music:

"Automatic Love (Extra Terra Remix) [Instrumental]" by Fury Weekend

(that moment when Raistin says
he's destined for Iredescent ✨)

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Sciattle is not the only villain in this story. There is another villain called Borsok, the mastermind of the missions that even Sciattle doesn't know about, but William is the one who finds out and tells Raistin & Tereza who try to negotiate with Sciattle to try to stop him. The villain Borsok was comically named after the Russian word for socks which is nosok (singular) or nosochki (plural) and becomes a joke later on.

Sciattle's name is pronounced just like the city Seattle, just spelled in a cool way. He's definitely not from Seattle, though I do include lots of skyscraper city descriptions with his character. Yup, I actually wrote a character based off a skyscraper. So if you ever wonder how a skyscraper would look like in human form, it's Sciattle.
He reminds me of the villain Morgarath from Ranger's Apprentice, if Morgarath ever had a son. I'd say he came directly from the Mountains of Rain and Night :) Ranger's Apprentice is my favorite book series ever, with the Chronicles of Narnia as my second favorite. The original series with Halt, Will, and Tug will always be the best 📚

I named a character William, but not after Ranger's Apprentice Will. William is way older and is more like Ranger Crowley actually. My character William Nieuten is one of the good guys. He is a German official who becomes good friends with Raistin and Tereza. William is the one who manages things from the human side/perspective, while Irina Acai manages things from the Iredescent side/perspective.

If you can't tell, I've been reading the Ranger's Apprentice books 📖 I reread the entire series almost every year because I like them so much. Just perfectly captures medieval fantasy with plenty of humor and of course horses, castles, and adventure. Only thing is I definitely don't drink as much coffee as the Rangers do. I rarely drink coffee, actually. If I do drink coffee, it's usually a latte, since I consider coffee a "dessert" kind of drink. Tea is just so much better and truly makes my day an awesome one ☕️🫖 was nice when Horace got introduced to Japanese sencha green tea in the Nijon-ja book. I miss the Emperor Shigeru and Selethen and Erak. That was one of the best Ranger's Apprentice books ever when they all traveled to Japan.

By the way, Thousand Glitters is an Iredescent saying that means to sparkle on, to never let anyone dull your sparkle, to shine like gold and sparkle like glitter. I guess it's similar to Star Wars "May the Force be with you" since Iredescents sometimes say this in place of bye or see you later. The word goodbye or farewell is considered more formal than the casual Thousand Glitters.

Just some cool Iredescent culture :)

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