To Rebuild a Bridge, you Gotta Burn It Down...

[actuallyselfish]

[Pre "Story's End"]

[1]

There's no rest for the wicked or the righteous. As the final military operation against the Lady shifts into high gear, Project Unification staff and civilian volunteers are streaming in and out of Saikhama to donate memory imprints to the crystalline weapon.

Dido Sybil has been hovering around the hanger bay where the Anti-Lady weapon is store. Observant people might see her take a few steps toward the memory copying station, then turn around and walk away, looking at something on her phone.

Finally, she sees and approaches you. "Hey," she says with a weak smile. "If you've got a free evening next week, could you do me a favor?" She chuckles nervously. "It's a doozy."

[2]



"I, Alexia Sybil, ask of you all!" Dido's mom proclaims. "In the world of Italian cuisine, what is the mightiest dish? Calamari? Chicken Alfredo? No, it is bell peppers; the spicier the better! Those who can eat these peppers whole are shining champions of taste! Those who cannot stomach them...should just order from the children's menu!"

You've tagged along with Dido to have Italian dinner with her billionaire mother. More specifically, you're dining in a zero-g Italian restaurant, located in the central torus of a space colony, where all the the food is broiled in raw sunlight focused by skyscraper-sized solar mirrors.

For an utterly posh restaurant, it's rather messy.

"Anyways," Alexia Sybil says, turning toward you. "Wont you tell me what my little Dido's been up to?" She grabs a stray pepper floating through the air and wolfs it down. "She never talks about her work at the Unity Group...or is it Project Unification now?"

Comments

Re: 2)

[actuallyselfish]

"Let it never be said that the Sybil cannot show hospitality, especially when hosting royalty!" Alexia proclaims. "A noble deed done must be returned nobly, as I believe you once said."

She then inclines her head towards Ourania. "On that note, it's a sublime pleasure to see you again, Lady Ourania! I gather by your presence that you've managed to reconcile with your sister?"

[not_a_prize]

"I suppose you could say that. Though mostly I've just been reserving judgement."

[The small and polite smile on her face twitched in a way that hid her desire to give her sister a trollish, playful grin. Peola took a deep breath and contented herself with trying to snag more food... much to her difficulty.]



Well I can definitely see you didn't spare any expense-

[Peola's attempt at politeness was promptly derailed as Ourania once more managed to snag yet another delicacy with ease.]

-Okay. How are you doing that.



"With my Ki. Really sister I thought that you would have attempted it yourself.... or did you suddenly decide to remember when father told you not to use ki at the dining table from that scolding he gave you two years ago?"

.... So how are your other children faring Lady Sybil?

[actuallyselfish]

"Oh," Alexia says with a wave of her hand. "Hyacinth has been assembling a new art exhibition. He claims it's going to be twice as daring as the one you saw, Ourania...which probably means he's going to add more jellyfish."

Alexia purses her lips. "Persephone's firm is busy defending a construction company in court. Apparently, the plebian rabble insists on continue to live amidst the rubble of alien invasions..."



Dido snorts. "Or maybe they don't want to get kicked out of their only homes by a gentrification-mad megacorp!"



"Progress must not be halted by the masses, lest humanity slide into degeneration...!"

"Grrr!"

Alexia and Dido both glare at each other across the table, teeth clenched in the same expression. How are Peola and Urania going to break the ice?

Literally, that is. The waiters have lost control of their chilled-wine cart, and a meteor made of fused ice chips is barreling toward your table!

[not_a_prize]

Uh... Ourania you wanna-



"Go play sister. I'll deal with this."

[There was a small grin on the blonde's face as she shooed her older sister, the Bluenette grinning eagerly as she leaped out of her chair, twisting past the free floating food towards the incoming ball of ice-]

Haaaaaaa-! EEERRYYYYAAAAAH!

[And with a precise strike ended up making it look like winter as the ice chips may as well have been so many snowflakes. Peola of course now had the task of moving through Zero-gee to nab the wine before it flew all over the place and hit someone.]



"Hm... I would say at the very least your son is quite dedicated to his interests... I can admire that actually."

[The princess takes some time to sample one of the other seafood dishes. Earth fish was much different from the gargantuan leviathans back home but the varying tastes made them just as interesting.]

"As for the matter that you are verbally dueling with Dido on... I think my father dealt with something similar. Unlike those of the Royal Family or Noble lines the so called plebian rabble you refer to have precious little and worked for what they have - however small it is."

[Ourania leaned forward, tilting her head with a small smile.]

"Since it wasn't a cultural matter which would have made the point moot, the Noble who was in charge of that particular province sought my father out and tried to talk him into allowing his beautification works to be carried out."

"Father of course stated that while he admired the Noble's desire to replace the ragged dwellings his charges lived in with edifices of beauty, the noble's duty was to his people. If he wished to carry out his works he would need to have his people share his dream."

[That being said the younger princess leaned back in her seat.]

"I suppose what happened next was that the Noble made a number of concessions since my Father recently mentioned he was planning to see how the work is progressing. I didn't really find out since that meeting of the King's Court was interrupted by a horde of spiders."

[actuallyselfish]

Dido and Alexia both duck their head, and then sigh in relief when the Nefless sisters blast the asteroid to hell. The karma from that deed causes Alexia to listen to Ourania's words thoughtfully.



"I've never like concessions much," Alexia says hesitantly. "It's a habit I wanted to discourage in my children."




Dido snorts again. "That may not have been as good for us as you'd hoped..." Dido shakes her head. "No, no, enough snarking." Dido leans forward, brushing aside an emptied pasta bowl floating through the microgravity. "There's something I need to say to you Mom. And I want you to listen."

Alexia bites her lip, then reluctantly nods.

Dido sighs. "I've been butting heads with you for a while, Mom. About college degrees, jobs, ambitions, tipping waitresses–damn near everything. I always thought I could use some clever logic or grand gesture to–to get you to see things my way..."

Dido chuckles. "Obviously that didn't work. I've been avoiding you so that I wouldn't have to replay the same old fights. But then I realized something..."

[actuallyselfish]

Dido smiles at this point. "I can't change you," she said. "I can't reform you or improve you or fix you. The only one who can change you is you...and you like being who you are–a business tycoon three steps away from conquering the world with her super-laser."

Dido then gestures towards herself. "I like who I am too–a lazy mechanic that sleeps in on her off days. None of your arguments or gestures will change me either."

She reaches out a hand towards Alexia. "Let's stop trying to change each other, Mom–and just be the best versions of ourselves to each other. Sound good?"

Alexia hesitates–then takes Dido's hand and shakes it.



"Every thinks I want to attack the Earth with my super-laser," Alexia mutters. She looks at Ourania. "Why do people keep assuming that?"

[not_a_prize]

"Its mostly because its there. People like to make assumptions. Most seem to think I'm plotting their downfall. Admittedly they're right half the time and its mostly in the literal sense."

[Falling down. Down fall. Damnit Ourania. The princess shrugs and shakes her head at the opinions of the masses.]

"Its best to prove them wrong... or maybe prove them right in a way they don't expect and have them be pleasantly surprised. After all... a giant laser would be useful in a number of ways I'm sure. Now if you pardon me I think I need to make sure my sister stays away from the wine. She's very much a lightweight."



I am not!

[actuallyselfish]

"Truly you understand me, Ourania!" Alexia replies, eyes looking rather moist. "My reputation may not suggest this, but I wish to use my Mercury Superlaser to help humanity! Propelling space transports to the far edges of the solar system, beaming energy to space stations, vaporizing meteors nearing earth and the colonies...the possibilities are endless!"

A gleam appears in her eyes. "Of course, if people neglected to pay the monthly bills...I could always turn the laser up a few settings..."




"Mom!"