Jake Barry
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Chapter 42
🕑 Added 2023-05-24 22:21:19 +0000 UTC"Lou, are you okay in there? Do you need any help?"
"No. I'm okay!" He calls out to me from inside the stall. I can hear him snickering on the other side of the door. What a silly boy! I wonder what he finds so amusing.
"Alright, dear. I am outside should you need me."
I step away from the door and let him be. While waiting for him to finish changing into his swimsuit, I decide to look myself over in the of mirror by the sinks. Upon viewing my reflection, a blush appears on my cheeks.
"Oh, Ori. What were you thinking…" I softly mumble.
I am dressed in a white, two-piece swimsuit with red and orange floral patterns. It is one I designed as part of my clothing store's summer collection. I would have purchased something more modest, if Aurelia hadn't bought it for me as a gift. I twist back and forth, adjusting the bottoms in a futile attempt to cover up some skin. I then turn my attention to the top. It is the right size, hugging my chest comfortably, but it leaves little to the imagination…
"Hmm…"
I touch my chest, tracing the large, hideous scar I usually keep hidden. I frown, realizing how unsightly it looks. Am I comfortable with others seeing it? Other than Louis and Aurelia, no one ever has. Is it too late to change into a one-piece?
"Oh my! Someone looks really good in her new swimsuit." Aurelia suddenly says, startling me. She laughs. "Whoever bought it for her has amazing taste."
I roll my eyes at her. "It was a wonderful gift, but I am not sure I have the confidence to go out like this."
"Is this really a matter of confidence?" She approaches me and places a finger on my scar. Her touch is light, as if she worries that touching it might hurt me. The shorter woman looks me right in the eyes, providing me a good look. "Or is it this? No one is going to judge you for it, I assure you of that."
"I would not be so sure..." I look away from her.
"Well, I am." She says, her sudden change in tone bringing my gaze back. "Honestly, Ori… Someone as gorgeous as you has no reason to feel so self conscious! People will be staring, just not for the reason you're worried about."
"A-Aurelia!" I gasp, my blush returning with a vengeance. A cheeky smile forms across my lips despite my best attempts to suppress it.
"Haha! I love that look! She laughs, stepping back. We both hear a click before Louis runs out of one of the stalls to join us. She holds her arms out and gives him her warmest smile. "Oh! I didn't know Louis was here too. Come give auntie Aurelia a hug!"
Louis stops in his tracks, staring at me with wide eyes and jaw agape. He completely ignores Aurelia, which is very unlike him. She is one of his favorite people in the world. Instead, his attention is focused wholly on me.
"Lou? What has gotten into you?"
"Wooooow!" He gasps. "You look so pretty, Ori!"
"Doesn't she?" Aurelia encourages him. "Who do you think looks better, me or her?"
"Ori!" He smiles from ear to ear.
"Well, there you have it. Kids don't know how to hold back. That's how you know he's being honest."
"I see…" I say, leaning over to kiss his forehead. I extend a hand which he happily takes in his. "I suppose I can bear it for one day."
The three of us gather our belongings and leave the changing room. We find Sam waiting outside with their baby, Jane. He hands her off to her mother and greets Louis and I.
"Hey, you two! Are you ready for the grand opening?"
"Super ready!" Lou cheers.
"Same here, bud." He nods twice. "Let's move. The ceremony is about to begin.
Our group moves to the gates, where a large mass of people have gathered. I say ‘large' but it could easily be half of the city. If not for the limited capacity, I am certain Magna Gratia would be empty.
"I hope everyone gets a chance to come here, eventually." I think aloud.
"Have you seen the waitlist?" Sam chuckles. "It might be a while."
"I know! I couldn't believe it when I heard we made it. And on opening day!" Aurelia bounces in place excitedly, causing baby Jane to laugh. "Do you think Nick had something to do with it?"
"Possibly. It sounds just like him."
"What's this about me?" I suddenly hear Nick say from behind us.
We turn to face him as he comes to join the group. The young man leans on a crutch, keeping weight off his leg. A thick cast covers it from his thigh down to his toes. He seems to be in pain, but is smiling anyway. His eyes are tired, as if he has not slept in days.
"Nick! What happened to you?!"
"Oh, this? Nothing serious. They told me it'll heal fine." He brushes me off, waving a hand. "Broke it in three places. Typical work casualty. Mean old lady got me good."
"That is terrible. I am sorry."
"Pfft. Don't worry about it. Today is a special day! We're about to open our new vacation spot. One that you, Orina, proposed and named. Focus on that, not me. Anyways, you all look great! Go have fun for me."
I look to the others who seem equally concerned. Since he will not explain, I am tempted to call Jeannine right this second. However, I refrain from doing so. If he does not wish to talk about it, I will not push. He is clearly trying not to spoil our moods. To that end, I give him a knowing smile and put my worries aside.
"Thank you, Nick. We will. Right, everyone?"
"Absolutely. You rest up now, you hear?" Sam tells him.
"Yes, please." Aurelia pleads. "You'd better join next time!"
"Yes, sir. Yes, ma'am. I promise." He sighs. "You know, I am going to be joining. I just can't go in the water."
"Oh! Then surely you won't mind watching Jane for us?" Aurelia looks at him with puppy dog eyes.
"Sure… I guess." He groans.
Our conversation is cut short as the noise from the crowd dies down. Up ahead, I see that Mayor Rin has arrived with Daedalus, Icarus, and several others in tow. They line up behind her, near the gates. She stands at a podium and takes the microphone in her hand.
"Welcome, citizens of Magna Gratia! In just a few minutes, Elysium will be open to the public. Before that, you will be hearing from the great minds that made this possible. Please give a warm welcome to our cities lead engineers, Daedalus and Icarus, and their teams."
A round of applause follows. The Mayor then hands the mic to Daedalus. The older gentleman steps up after her.
"Thank you, Mayor. It's a pleasure to be here today with y'all. I see many faces. Some familiar, some not. Friends and families are here together. That's how it's supposed to be, I reckon. The best times are shared with those we care about. That's why we build this resort with both comfort and safety in mind."
He gestures for us to look up. Our gazes climb to the transparent, glass-like dome in the sky. It has large hexagons all over it. To our surprise, we see Jeannine beyond it, looking in from outside. How long has she been kneeling there? I had not noticed her! That is odd, considering someone as enormous as her should be making noise as she comes and goes. She gives a wave and mouths something inaudible.
"To all of those wondering, Jeannine joined us as Mayor Rin was handing me the microphone. You can't hear her because of the biosphere. It keeps noise out, otherwise y'all would be hearing a lot more. Namely, the traffic below her balcony."
Jeannine then presses a button on her earpiece and repeats what she said. This time, her voice plays on the same speakers Daedalus is using. "Hello everyone! I wish I could be in there with you, it looks so nice! Hopefully it is not as cold as it is out here?"
"That brings me to the biosphere's second function, temperature regulation. It's the reason we're all so warm in the middle of the Winter months. No matter when y'all visit, the atmosphere in Elysium will always be pleasant."
He hands the mic to Icarus who steps up to speak next.
"As my father explained, the biosphere is what makes everything possible. I won't bore you with the details, but just know that it took a lot of work to develop and build. Onto its third purpose, protection. The ‘glass' dome you see up above is actually a highly durable material we developed in our lab. Being outside of our lovely land lady's room means exposing ourselves to the elements. The Brob world is inhospitable for Lillis like you and I. That is why we had to be absolutely sure it could withstand some punishment. Now, watch this."
He sends some sort of signal to Jeannine, which prompts her to raise her hand. In it, we see a... A hammer?! She raises the huge tool above the dome and rather forcefully brings it down on it. The impact is felt rather than heard. The entire structure shakes, but does not deform or crack, nor does the shock reach the ground below our feet. It does not give in, even against a Brob's natural strength! I doubt Jeannine put her full strength into that, but it is no less impressive.
"As you can see, our barrier can handle a hammer strike from a Brob. Things such as insects, rain, hail, or other things will not be an issue. And for the record, we tested the hammer on it over thirty times before any of you got here. There was never any risk involved."
"I was against the idea, but he insisted. I apologize if I scared anyone." Jeannine lowers her head.
Icarus hands the mic back to Mayor Rin and she returns to the podium.
"Well, then. I was not informed that we would be having a live demonstration…" She glares at Icarus, and so does his father. "In any case, please give their teams another round of applause. They have done a wonderful job."
The crowd claps louder than before, showing appreciation as they head through the gates ahead of the general public to attend to matters inside. Final preparations, if I were to take a guess.
Mayor Rin steps away, giving the podium to a man I do not recognize. He introduces himself as Yazan, one of the engineers on the design team. He proceeds to outline the rules and regulations of Elysium. They include things such as "no running around the pools", "obeying the lifeguards' whistles", and "washing feet when leaving the beach". I make sure that Lou hears and understands all of this, especially the first rule. The last thing I want is for him to slip and hurt himself. Engineer Yazan finishes his speech, handing the microphone back to the Mayor as she takes the podium for the last time today.
"This concludes our introduction. In a moment, the gates to Elysium will open. Please proceed inside in a calm and orderly fashion. I sincerely wish you all a wonderful time at Magna Gratia's premier vacation spot." She then turns her attention upward. "Jeannine, do you have anything you would like to add?"
The giantess nods her head. A finger moves to press the button on her earpiece.
"I hope that everyone has a fun time. You all deserve it." She leans a little closer. "And to Ori, my dear friend, wherever you are in that crowd, I thank you for giving us this idea."
Several heads then turn to look at me. I am met with countless smiling faces, as well as a round of applause and cheers. I tense up, not used to being the center of attention, least of all when I am dressed like this. It is quite overwhelming! I try to look away, but I am in the middle of the crowd. No matter where I look, there are other looking back. I force a smile and wave to them. Thankfully, the crowd's focus is drawn away as the gates to the resort slowly open. Thank goodness! Another second and I might have gone and fainted...
"L-Let us head inside..." I say, stumbling over my words. This causes the others to chuckle, including Lou. My little traitor...
The six of us, including baby Jane follow the mass of people inside. The crowd thins out as everyone heads in different directions, each to a different attraction. There are so many things to do that I am not sure where to begin.
"Does anyone have a map?" I ask.
"I do." Aurelia takes one out from the backpack Sam is wearing and unfolds it. I step closer to her for a better look. "Let's see here..."
Elysium appears to be divided into quadrants. Three are approximately the same size, while one is noticeably larger. The largest one is the artificial beach. There are umbrellas and a sizeable coastline by a very deep pool of saltwater, no different than a real beach. At least, that is what they claim. The water is deep enough for diving, and wave machines create waves despite the lack of a breeze. The other three quadrants contain the pools and slides, the restaurants, and the hotel. There are pools for adults, children, or both. The restaurants range from those found in the city to special, 'five star experiences'. I wonder what a 'five star' restaurant is. I assume it is a good thing. And apparently, 'hot tubs' can be found inside the hotel, along with something called a 'spa'. I have never used either of those, but they sound interesting! All of it sounds interesting!
"Personally, I would like to see the beach first. It is the main attraction here, after all."
"I agree." Sam says. "Does anyone have a problem with that?"
Nobody speaks up. It appears that we all have the same idea in mind.
"To the beach!" Lou cheers, grabbing my hand and leading me forward.
As we make our way over, my focus is drawn to the decorated archway that we are passing under. It is decorated with flowers. No, not just any flowers. I stop walking to inspect them, keeping Lou's hand in mine.
"Something wrong?" Aurelia asks, wondering why I am paying such close attention to these seemingly random flowers.
"These flowers... Tell me, Aurelia, do you recognize them?"
"I'm familiar with crops and livestock, not flowers." She shrugs. "Why? Are they special?"
"They are more special than anything else in this park..." I close my eyes and take a moment to smell them. Their unique aroma confirms my suspicions. "These are Lilliputian orchids. These only grow in our land, particularly, what remains of it. I have not laid eyes on such gorgeous flowers since...I was a girl. They remind me of my childhood home."
"I'm glad you noticed." Nick moves to stand beside me. "Those shades of deep red and gentle purple are indeed Lilli Orchids. Jeannine suggested we get some. I wasn't going to argue, since she was the one that went out of her way to acquire them. Getting Lilli flowers is one thing, but getting those is another entirely."
"Bless her heart. They are wonderful."
"I think so too. We'd never be able to have them back in the city, but the climate in here is perfect for them. They really give this place a 'Lilli' vibe."
"Absolutely. I will have to thank her later." I look at Lou, who appears quite impatient. How terrible of me to make him wait just a few seconds. Oh, how will he ever cope? "Let us continue to the beach. Lou seems quite eager."
A few minutes later, our group arrives at our destination. To say that we are shocked is an understatement. I have never in my life seen so much water in one place! It is so blue. I have never seen anything like it. There is so much sand! I cannot take it all in from where I am standing. While I never visited a beach before, this is just like the pictures. The only thing missing is the horizon, but I suppose that would be asking for too much. We already receive a lot of natural sunlight from the outside. Jeannine made certain to place the pot in a sunny spot.
We find an unoccupied space and set our things down. Nick settles himself on a towel, taking baby Jane from Aurelia so she can enjoy the water with her husband.
"Go on. Little Jane and I will hang out here while you all enjoy yourselves."
Aurelia does not waste a second, grabbing Sam by the hand and dragging him straight to the water. Meanwhile, Louis and I follow suit after we have both applied sunscreen. The two of us then head to the water's edge, at which point Lou stops dead in his tracks. A small wave pushes the water up to his feet, which causes him to quickly step away. Is he afraid? That would be very unlike him. I lean over, placing my hands on my knees and look at him.
"What is the matter, Lou?"
"..."
"I thought you wanted to see the beach? Have you changed your mind?"
He silently shakes his head. "I don't know how to swim."
My expression softens as I stand up straight and take his hand. "Is that all? Well, I suppose I will have to teach you."
Slowly, as not to scare him, I lead him into the water. We start slowly, going in up to our ankles. He does not seem as afraid now that I am beside him. We then go in up to our knees, and then our waists. The water is a bit cold, but we quickly adjust to it. The two of us gradually move in until the water it up to chest, which is already too deep for him to stand in. I carry him in my arms and hug him close to my body.
"There is nothing to be afraid of. I can touch the bottom, see? Hold onto me and dip your head underwater. Close your eyes, hold your breath, and try to slowly blow out some bubbles."
Despite being nervous, he lets me lower him until only the top of his head is left unsubmerged. This is the best way to get him used to the water. Before we can do any swimming, he must first become comfortable with being underwater. Holding one's breath is important. He can only do it for a few seconds now, but with some practice, that will improve. I can hold mine for about one minute.
His head pops out of the water with a splash, getting salty water in my eyes. I squint, not particularly minding the sting. I am too pleased with him to be annoyed. "Great job! Was that fun?"
"Yeah! It's fun!"
"Alright, let us try something else. Keep holding onto me and try to kick your legs."
Lou lets go of me, placing his hands in mine. I support him, keeping his head well above water. He half-floats and half-pulls on me as he tries to kick the water.
"Try kicking a little faster. See if you can 'push' yourself up without using your arms, or mine."
The young boy does as I tell him, managing to keep himself afloat for a few seconds before leaning on my arms again. He is doing well! I am pleasantly surprised for someone who has never been swimming before. He does not speak, focusing hard on his movements. The only sounds that come from him are the splashing of water and his quiet panting.
"Amazing, Lou! I am so proud of you."
He smiles back at me, kicking even harder as if to impress me. It does the trick, as he now treads the water well enough that he no longer uses me for support, only balance. I take one of his hands and remove it from my arm.
"Now try to move you arm to steady yourself."
I watch him struggle a bit, before finding a rhythm. I allow him to practice this for a few minutes before I let go of him completely. I stay close, in case I will need to help him. He gives me a nervous look that quickly fades as he manages to keep his head above water. He is up to his chin, craning his head back, but it is a start! I count ten seconds before he starts to tire out. I pull him in and let him rest before he can sink. He wraps his arms around my neck and I carry him in place, giving him time to rest.
"See? Swimming is not scary. You are a natural, my brave, little fish."
It is so peaceful. Being here with Lou, and our friends. The weather is perfect, the water feels heavenly, and I could not be happier.
Again, I find myself wishing that everyone in MG could be here. I am sure they will all get their turns. We are lucky to have been the first.
"So lucky..." I mutter under my breath.
Despite this wonderful experience, I begin to feel a tad guilty. Just one year ago, the thought of being in so splendid a place was the stuff of dreams. I did not earn my place here. If not for being bought by Jeannine, I might still be in that nightmare of a terrarium at the pet shop. I am sure that the owner must have restocked after my sale. The reality that I am here, enjoying life while others waste away, saddens me. I do not let it show on my face, but the thought remains in the back of my mind. There must be something I can do, or perhaps Jeannine? I know that we will never live in a world free of these terrible things, but I would sleep better knowing that the pet shop that once enslaved me was shut down. Maybe someday...
"Ori, I'm cold."
"Let me put you in the sun. You can play in the sand for a bit while I sit with Nick. I heard that some people like building 'sandcastles'. Would you like to try that?"
"Mhm!"
"Alright then. No playing in the water unless I am with you. Am I clear?"
"Yes, Ori."
I carry Lou out with me and set him down so he can walk on his own. He immediately finds a spot he likes and begins building sand hills and digging holes. I leave him to it. Seeing him so cheerful and energetic is enough to clear my head.
"Enjoy the moment, Ori. You have all the time in the world to worry, just not today."
Comments
Jake Barry
Thank you!
G
I know right in one year they are already a big very advanced city
G
Nice work Jake always great to see Ori Sam and Aurelia having a baby was sweet and Nick being the chill uncle was just awesome and Louis is always a pleasure to see him again. When Ori thinks about the other lilies at that pet I sense some forshadowing there but who knows either way great chapter and see again in July Jake take all the time you need
Acrophite
Such a beautiful chapter. Really helps to have that after the last few chapters. Elysium is such a neat place. Incredible how they went from a small village of ten to this.
