Chapter 9

Once settled down, Dallas addressed the next issue.

“So, how long will it take to do the mods on your ship, Zeke?”

“Two days at most with your help. Once we get the parts in place, they are easy to attach. We’ll then shift half the stores and my stuff to Freya.”

“Freya?” Paul asked with a raised eyebrow.

Zeke shrugged and smiled, “What? It’s a good name for a magical ship owned by a Lord Wizard.”

The boys snickered but refrained from further comments.

Zeke continued, “Then, while you boys shift Bella back to the delivery docks and unload her, I’ll finish the reprogramming of Freya.”

“Do you both have shipments to take to Mars?” Art asked.

“I have one for the boys. Some of it is from here, and the rest is on Morpheus. They will have to restore their supplies, too. They will have access to an account they will have to manage. I hope they taught you that at your fancy school.”

The three young men rolled their eyes while Art sniggered.

“Meanwhile, I’m waiting for Raul to get back to me. If he is successful, I’ll fly out to meet him and pick up the load. Then I’ll come back here to deliver it.”

“What will you be picking up? If you don’t mind me asking?” asked Art.

Zeke grinned, “Space junk.”

“Who on Luna buys space junk?” Joey asked, perplexed.

“No one that I know of. It won’t be junk when I deliver it.”

Art clicked his fingers, “You’re going to recycle it and sell the elements!”

“Yes and no. Most of the elements will become my new products. I already have a distributor lined up for the Pedz and Padz. He’ll get the first shipment when the boys deliver them in a couple of days. My second shipment, made from the junk, will be sent to Terra.”

“Who is delivering that?” Art asked.

Zeke shrugged, “I’m not sure who Arthur Rose uses.”

Art grinned, “Me.”

“Well, that is handy. We might want to upgrade the ship you plan to use with one of my shields. I’ve heard rumours that pirates are working that route.”

Art frowned, “I was going to send Joey with the new ship. However, I think it might be better if he comes with me. Mind you, the Indiza could use a new shield,” Art mused.

Joey made a rude noise. “Amongst other things,” he derided.

“Hey, she is a good ship!” Art interjected.

“If you’re going to use her, you do have a couple of weeks to get her up to scratch. Give me a couple of weeks to get back here, and I’ll have a look at her. I want to put a safe room on her where you two can practise your magic. I’ll have to put one on Bella for the boys too.”

“Do you have an R&R unit on Indiza?” Zeke then asked.

Art shook his head, “I was thinking of putting that one I now have on her if I was going to keep her in service.”

“Hum, if I give Burnie a scoop kit and a shield generator, he can get his boys to install all three. Do you wish to organise the dock time with him?”

“Sounds like a plan. I’ll have to reorganise my schedule. What are you planning for the rest of the day, Joey?”

“Um, can I stay here and help Zeke?”

“We shouldn’t impose,” Art started saying.

Zeke waved him off, “We’ll put him to work.”

Joey and the twins grinned.

Art had calls to make, so he took his leave.

Zeke got the boys to tidy the galley.

He disappeared to do some things like create a safe room on Bella and make a few things. When they were finished, he took the boys to the hold.

Zeke said, “Your first lesson is levitation.” He grinned at their eager faces. “On second thoughts,” he watched their faces fall, “You first need to learn how to draw in magical energy.”

They were shocked to see a magical satchel, like Lee’s, appear slung over his shoulder. Zeke opened the flap and withdrew three sachets. They looked like small zip-lock sandwich bags but were made of thick, dark green plastic. He handed one to each of the boys.

“In each of those is a small fortune. While the crystals have a lot of different uses, for us, they store magical energy.”

He removed three new dark brown satchels, like his, from his satchel. He handed the men one each.

“I took the liberty of placing your magical boxes in the bags. Like your magical boxes, the bag can hold a lot more than you expect.”

“Oh, they are like the rooms you made!” Dallas remarked happily.

“Correct. As well as the crystals, you should always keep at least three days’ worth of meals and water in them. I have included food preservation boxes and water bottles. I also keep a heap of snacks for quick energy and several replacement sachets of food and water for my space suit.”

The boys were nodding in agreement as Zeke listed off these basic requirements.