Chapter 17: Jason’s castle Gromelikine-Final Preparations

Greetings and welcome sire and your illustrious team. I see we have a Zaos, Lisirra, I believe and three of our old friends, the Ordreg. Welcome back to your home and your castle on Gromelikine. You are all looking well. I am Percival Jones the butler and factotum or some might call me the vizier of the palace. Sadly since your encounter with the Ghoul in the Azayal Palace, it has given Vizier a bad name. We have an extensive staff at your disposal. I suggest you make use of you time here to practice for the upcoming battles. I have arranged for the Gromelix to carry our Ordreg. Lisirra I believe you are already bonded.

“I have weapons labelled for your use on the tables. There is a new range, constructed to model the conditions you will face on the planet Grorkin and in the capital Reftufessel. Your AI will put up your missions on your display. I will show our Ordreg how to wait to be chosen. When ready mount up. I see most of you leap up using the knee of the Gromelix and you do not need the stairs. Porquenta and his team has been working with us on optimizing weapons for each of you. You will be trained on them overnight. They are modified forms of what you use now, but this fight is more at the telepathic than physical level. You need weapons that can do both. You have all day here tomorrow and tomorrow night. The fleets for the final assaults will be assembling from the morning of the day after tomorrow. You will be joined by the hounds and boars tomorrow morning. Jason your personal animals will be here on your return this evening.

“Tomorrow will be a full day of maneuvers and training. You start at dawn. You will spend a half an hour after dinner in the medical pods to prepare for biological attacks on you. Those of you who have AI bodies will be given some new modifications to reduce your vulnerability to chemical and cyber-attack.

Princess Lisirra, you will be fitted for your armor and so will the three Ordreg. We are checking all your armor and personal weapons prior to the battle. Dinner will be served in the Skylight dining room which we refurbished. You will be honored by the presence of the Gromelix Queen Elizaveta and Queen Lynas Parayekt of the Parzool. Your fleet from Bekta Delta will be here in the morning. Enjoy your flight.

Jason, dressed as Jones suggested, in a dark blue formal outfit and walked towards the portal to the Skylight Dining Room, with Razza, Perdita, Linda, Andrea, Perdita and Julia. His uniform had complex gold and silver embroidered three dimensional runes on the front which changed color with the light. The feel of the clothing was luxurious and it fitted Jason closely.

Razza ran her hand over the front of his jacket. “Mmm ... I like the cloth, it is soft and warm. I wonder how the dresser does it, Jason there is not a fastener of any kind I can see.” Razza felt his side and back.

“Jason you look great in that uniform. I like a man in uniform,” said Andrea hugging him from the other side. “I will suggest Jones dresses you more often. It is a suitable uniform for an Emperor.”

“Jones, has colored your hair and styled it in waves of shades of brown. You do look distinguished,” said Linda, “your boots are an unusual design with more runes on them. The runes look like they extend deep into your leg. I wonder what the runes mean?”

Jason’s shoulders rose to an arc over his shoulders and he had stripes along his upper arms in metallic colors. Around his neck he wore a chain of an unrecognizable metal with a large medallion that hung down to his lower chest. Despite his formal appearance he felt relaxed and rejuvenated after flying. Jason’s luxurious black boots rose to his upper calves and felt well worn. He carried a single ceremonial sword in a dark scabbard.

“Well ladies we are almost at the portal. The dogs and Aylot are here for a bit of attention. Why don’t you go ahead and I will join you guys in five minutes. The dogs and Aylot the boar were excited to see him. Jason spent several minutes with the dogs and boar as the others went ahead. He said he would call the animals to meet new friends later, then he passed through the portal.

Queen Lynas Parayekt was talking to Queen Elizaveta Epilex. Sheila, Claudette, Razza, Julia and Perdita were talking with the Ordreg. Jason walked leisurely around the room. The Skylight dining room was circular with floating tables and a transparent floor. He looked down. Earth was floating below. The sun was in the distance and he could see the moon and then the scene slowly changed to the view of Porquenta from space. At the window he looked at Gromelikine in the evening with the sun almost at the horizon. Above was the Milky Way slowly moving. The room was large enough to hold the largest Gromelix.

He spotted Percival Jones wearing similar but simplified clothing like Jason’s, as did the waiters.

Odd shaped and colored ornate decanters sat on the tables, accompanied by yellow crystal goblets, that glittered as they reflected the light and changed colors as he walked past. There was a wand sitting delicately on a holder at every place setting. There were small plates on the table and every table had a vase with unique flowers standing on the right side of every table.

A waiter handed Jason a drink in one of the yellow goblets. “Sire please taste this wine and tell me if it is to your satisfaction.” Jason looked at it and smelled it. It was a red wine and had a delicate unfamiliar smell. He tasted it and the flavor overwhelmed him. He had only been given a small amount. “This is something special,” said Jason.

“Indeed, it is sire. We will serve it with the dinner,” said the waiter smiling and moved on. The glass disappeared from the waiter’s hand.

Another waiter handed him a glass with a clear blue drink. “Sire, this one is nonalcoholic. Jones wants all of you on top of your form tomorrow. He informs me he wishes to talk with you after the dinner in the privacy of your chambers.

Jones wishes to know he is delighted to have found some entertainment for you after the main course. He hopes you will enjoy it. May I lead you to your place.

The waiter led Jason to a table with Queen Lynas Parayekt and Elizaveta, Ixal, Corvus, Lisirra, Razza, Julia and Perdita, Messmor Schmergal senior Admiral of the Schlogg, Greffecht Leptomor and surprisingly Marduk the Orc who hugged Jason tightly. “It is so good to see you Jason, we need to spend more time together when this nightmare has ended.”

“Marduk I am happy to see you on Gromelikine. I am pleasantly surprised. After the campaign why don’t you join me in this castle and enjoy a vacation, before we resume our busy lives.”

The waiter formally introduced all the people at the table to each other and another carried a tray of starters to the table.

A very large hologram formed in four locations in the room so everyone could conveniently see. The picture was absolutely clear and the instructions that followed were telepathic. The wand was a telekinetic eating implement that could cut food. It was an extraordinary device and very easily learned. The wand was a memento of the evening.

“Jason, this is a wonderful implement. It is so simple yet so effective,” said Lynas as she delicately cut a small piece of a seafood Jason could not recognize. “I will be delighted to show it off in my palace as an example of one of the important advances of the Uzliumbax Empire.

The food was delicious. The main course was several different spicy meats and vegetables. There were raw meats to be dipped in marinades and pushed briefly using the wand into a transparent vase which cooked the meat to perfection. It was then dipped in one of a selection of sauces. “Jason, this food is amazing. I love this cooking goodie on the table. It is not attached to anything, there is nothing in it, but it cooks the meat in an instant. This is a great device. Robert would give his left arm to get little ovens like this for the table and the recipes for the sauces,” said Razza.

“This wine is divine,” said Lisirra pleasantly. “I am so pleased I can eat in this form. The food in that awful dimension was disgusting. I love all this food.” Lisirra sat back and wiped her mouth with a cloth.

“My compliments to your chef, Jason. I too love this food and am so pleased to have this implement. Cooking is such a simple idea and it achieves so much from a taste point of view. I am surprised we missed the concept,” said Lynas. “This room is spectacular. I can’t wait to experience the entertainment.”

Percival Jones moved to an elaborate podium on the side of the room - “I am delighted to welcome you all to the summer castle of the Emperor in Gromelikine. We will hold a dinner after the final battle at one of our larger dining rooms in the castle for all the allies. It has been pleasure and a joy to open the castle once again to the Emperor and his visitors. We have suites for all of you overnight so you can relax and enjoy the evening,” said Jones.

“I was thinking about how we could provide you with a unique experience. I wanted something to surprise and astonish you. I have something the palace AI, Berit and I found that satisfies our criteria. Here is a scene from a long time ago on another happy occasion. The holograms showed a ballroom. A man looking like Jason dressed in the same clothes as he wore this evening entered the room. On his arm, he had a woman much like Philippa and another like Julia, while a woman much like Razza was behind him on the right laughing while another like Perdita was on the left. Behind him a woman identical to Lisirra could be clearly seen. Behind them followed a cohort of children who ran ahead to sit at the tables. The Ghoul Queen entered and hugged the Emperor. She talked with him briefly before she rushed off smiling. In came a large praying mantis, several Ordreg, who were obviously familiar to those present as they laughed and pointed and a very different looking Orc. There were a pair of warriors of the Apocalypse and a pair of Una. They all looked tired but happy. Finally, a pair of huge Tyrannosaurus Rexes entered followed by a pair of Gromelix in their smaller size.

“That was my father and mother,” said Lynas and Elizaveta together.

The Gromelix were followed by several elven humanoid creatures. One looked like Sheila. The other was male. Both were striking looking individuals. The tables were set as they were this evening. The holograms faded.

“That was my grandfather,” said Marduk with a tear in his eye. The noise level in the room rose to such a level Jason could barely think. Lisirra looked quite discomfited. Lynas and Elizaveta were elated. They both beamed at Jason. Ixal looked uncomfortable. “Jason, my mother was so happy then. She was clearly enjoying whatever she was doing. I never ever saw her look so happy in my whole life.”

“That was the greatest gift you could have ever given me Jason,” said Lynas. She moved over and hugged him and clung to him for a few moments. She then kissed his cheek. “You have a lot to live up to young man.”

“Friends, I hope you enjoyed that little show. Tonight, you enjoyed the same menu as they had on that night. The eating wands were used on that night. I have given you the wands used by your ancestors if they were present. Emperor I notice your taste remains remarkably consistent even though the origins of the women were different except for the great-grandmother of Princess Lisirra,” said Jones as the audience laughed.

“Please make your way to the portal which will take you on another journey to the past,” said Jones, “your final course will be served at your destination.”

Jason waited for his guests to pass through the portal ahead of him before he and his group followed them into circular room with tables laden with an elaborate feast of desserts. Waiters handed around small cups of accompanying drinks. The floor was of soft carpet but the room appeared to be dimmer and dimmer in the distance as it merged into blackness. Many moved around introducing themselves to those they did not know. Jason sat tiredly on one of the comfortable chairs placed around the room. As he sat he noticed some light from outside. He stood and moved to the window of the room to look outside. He saw a city below made of crystal slowly appearing. The lights in the buildings brightened to show a spectacular city with buildings towering many miles into the sky. Soon all his guests moved to look out. There were several exclamations at how beautiful it was. Slowly the sky became a lighter the lights in the buildings faded and a blue sun peeped over the horizon. Two moons could be seen one much larger than the other. In the distance stood an imposing mountain range.