Star Knight: A Space Opera Fantasy by Douglas Michaels

Author:Douglas Michaels [Michaels, Douglas]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-01-10T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 9

We got to the end of the hallway, and Mahler flung the door open. I was hit with a wall of heat from all the festivities inside and the hustle and bustle of the other knights.

“Mind if I make an announcement?” Mahler asked. “A day like you’ve had deserves recognition.”

“Uh, I don’t know,” I stammered as I clambered through the door.

I’d never been sung to in a restaurant on my birthday or anything like that, and the idea of a whole group of people suddenly turning their attention to me scared the living daylights out of me.

“Good enough,” he said with a laugh and then turned to the gathered crowd. “Can I please have everyone’s attention? I have a very important announcement.”

“Oh, goodness me,” Gwen muttered. “He does love fanfare. Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Guess I’ll have to be,” I said as the entire crowd turned to face the eager Mahler.

“Today, our newest recruit, Jacob the earthling, was almost attacked by a group of Lys fighters,” he said.

The entire crowd gasped, and I felt like I was in some kind of nativity play.

“However,” the proud knight continued, “he held his own on his very first flight. He had never even flown in a ship before, let alone one of our great fighters, but he handled it like a true knight. Let’s all drink to Jacob!”

“To Jacob!” a chorus of knights clad in silver suits exclaimed.

The knights then turned to each other and clinked their mugs. They slapped each other on the back and waved their fists in the air, and when the crowd started to chant my name, I felt like I was the most popular guy in the world.

But that feeling was cut short when I saw a mysterious figure cut through the crowd. It took me a moment to recognize Doctor Lowena, since she wore a form-fitting white gown. She beckoned to me slowly with one long finger, and I could feel her green eyes as they drilled into me.

“You should probably follow her,” Gwen sighed. “They’ll want to do the next round of implants.”

“You mean I won’t have to give a big speech?” I said and laughed. “I can live with that.”

“Mahler was just looking for an excuse to drink beer anyway,” Gwen said with a grin. “And he can tell your story whether you’re here or not. Besides, this way, he won’t have to share any of the beers with you.”

“Well, I’m not sure I like that,” I said. “But I am curious about the next implants.”

“Have fun,” Gwen called out.

I waved to the strawberry-blonde as I started to make my way through the knights. There were fist bumps and hard pounding on the shoulder, but I finally reached Doctor Lowena with only a few new bruises.

“Congratulations on a successful first flight,” she said in her cool, clinical voice. “And don’t worry, I won’t keep you away from your fans for very long.”

“Thanks,” I said.

There were a few more thumps on the shoulder and plenty of people calling my name as we headed toward the medical wing.

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