The Solar Flare (12 page)

     “The last time I got a good look at him he had closely shaved platinum blonde hair. He has dark gray eyes and a scar near his right eyebrow from one of our previous fights.” Ava began to have a concerned look on her face. Wesley continued
, “he’s about my height and build. Ava . . . what is it?” He asked as he saw the grave expression on her face.

     “I think I saw him.” She looked directly at him.

     “Where, when?” The obvious concern in his voice came through.

     “On Orionis. I
t was just before you came back, right before the explosion. I was taking one of the lifts down and he was standing behind me. I didn’t talk to him, but I could feel him, like I feel you and the others. It was energy, but it felt darker somehow. I think he was watching me, it really creeped me out.”

   
“Did he do anything to you? Did he touch you?” Wesley took a deep breath, shocked that Ava had been so close to his worst enemy.

     “No. He was with someone else. They were both dressed like technicians. I think the other man was an Asterion also. I could feel their eyes on me though.”

     “He may have sensed the energy transferred to you by Justin. Ava, why didn’t you tell me this?”

     “I’m sorry. With everything that’s happened, I just forgot about it.”

     “I am so thankful that he did not harm you. He could have easily. . .” He drew her near on the sofa, close enough for her to rest her head on his chest.

     “It’s okay. I was in the elevator with several other people.”

     “He must never find out about you Ava. We will find a way to stop him.” Wesley’s eyes burned with contempt for his enemy as he rested his head on hers.

    
The next few days passed in a blur for Ava. The Principia was taken on several more test flights at Wesley’s request that the ship be fully functional within the next few weeks. He and Andre had barely slept from the grueling schedule. Wesley usually came home after Ava had gone to bed and rose again and was gone before she woke. His concern for Ava’s safety had grown by leaps and bounds after hearing her near miss situation with Kaden on Orionis. Rowan drove Ava around town to complete her pre-work physical and complete some of the other various training modules needed. She would start work the following Monday. Naomi, Justin, Ash, and Mia took the Andromeda back to the known galaxy for a short mission to Antares in order to collect a few items needed on Kyanos and to attempt to track down both Xavier and Kaden’s whereabouts.

     Ava had barely seen Wesley all week and was surprised that he slept in a little with her on Friday. She showered first and he joined her at the breakfast table after he had also showered and dressed. She noticed he was wearing his typical piloting gear, getting ready to head out the door.

    “Are you working on the Principia again today?”

     “Yes. I’m sorry, but it looks like it
’s going to be another long day,” he sighed.

   
“It’s okay. I know how important this is for all of us.” She smiled supportively at him.

     Before he left he
came to stand behind her chair and put his arms around her shoulders and leaned down to kiss her sweetly on the cheek before asking softly, “Ava, will you do something for me today?”

      “Of course, anything,” s
he replied, wondering what it could be that he needed.

     “I haven’t spent much time with you this week and I want to make it up to you. I have a special evening planned for us tomorrow night. I want you to go out today and find a beautiful dress to wear.”

     A grand smile flashed across Ava’s face. “What kind of an evening do you have planned?”

     “It’s a surprise,” h
e kissed her again and headed for the door.

     “But, how will I know what kind of dress to buy?” 

     “Buy whatever feels right.” He grinned at her and then was gone.

     Ava occupied herself by doing an online training manual for her new job for a few hours before calling Rowan to ask her to take her shopping.  Rowan was happy to oblige.

     “So, what is this special dress for?” Rowan teased Ava as she stepped in the courier.

     “I was kind of hoping you could tell me?”  Ava replied. “Do you know what he has planned?”

     “No, but even if I did, I still wouldn’t tell you.” Rowan quipped back. Both women laughed. “I’m no Naomi when it comes to shopping, but I’ll do my best to help you,” she joked as they drove off in the direction of the shopping district.

     “I guess you haven’t heard from them since they left then?”

     “No, but that’s not unusual. We have no communication with the known galaxy from here. They have to be within a certain range to send and receive transmissions from us.”

     “Did they say when they were coming back?”

     “Possibly on Sunday. They are going to try and locate Kaden’s ship, the Draconis. The sooner we destroy Kaden, the safer we will all be, and the people of Kyanos can live in peace, without fear.”

     “Why is this Kaden such a bad person? Did something happen to him?”

    “We don’t know much about him. He is an Asterion. I think it’s just in his nature to be reckless and do harm to others. Some people’s experiences shape them that way, some are born that way, not that Kaden was actually born but you know what I mean.” Rowan shrugged. Changing the subject, she said, “here we are, let’s see what this place has,” as she glided into a nearby parking spot.

    
The two women walked up the paved steps to the beautifully created stone front of the store. The air conditioning cooled them as they entered, looking around at the clothes. There were actually only a few short formal dresses in the store, but none that looked appealing to Ava. After a few minutes the two women walked out and down the pedestrian avenue paved with red and tan bricks leading up to a central fountain.

     “This is so beautiful
,” Ava exclaimed walking up to the edge of the fountain, listening to the splashing water and watching the water spurting up in crisscrossing arcs. She was still getting used to seeing large amounts of water and still could not break the habit of taking two minute showers, as was the law on the space stations. “Does the fountain have a purpose?” Ava wondered to Rowan.

     “No. It’s just for decoration. Before the Great Impact on Earth, fountains like this could be found everywhere.
We wanted to re-create some of the common things as best we could here. I miss living on Earth. The soil was so rich; it was much easier to grow produce and many different flowers there.”

     “I never saw the Earth that
way; I lived underground my whole life, up until I went to Orionis. It feels strange to me to be outside in this heat and sunshine, but I love it!”

     “It’s the way that it’s supposed to be Ava.” Rowan gave her a reassuring smile as they walked down
towards another store and entered it.

     The boutique, called “Lotus Blossom” seemed to have much more to offer than the previous one. The sales attendant pleasantly showed the women to the back of the store where the formal gowns were kept. The population on Kyanos was small in comparison to the stations so most of the stores only kept a few fancy dresses for the occasional wedding or celebration, at least, this is what the saleswoman said.

     “What kind of dress are you looking for, what is the occasion?” The saleswoman asked Ava.

     Ava smiled. “Well, I’m not really sure, but it’s for a fun night out.”

     “Would you like something long or shorter?”

     Ava, used to wearing longer attire, felt more comfortable wearing something
that didn’t rise above her knees just yet. “Longer please.”

     The saleslady s
howed them to some of the evening gowns, mostly of thin, flowing sheer material in various colors.

     “How about this one Ava?” Rowan pulled out a bright red long gown that had thin straps above the bodice, which was
a darker red that faded out to shades of orange and then yellow flowing at the bottom. “You’d definitely have his attention.”

     “I’m not sure that’s me, it kind of looks like a flame
,” Ava laughed as she continued her search. She sifted through the racks and came to a simple long strapless black gown. It had a sheer fitted bodice with ruching which opened into a long flowing skirt with a saucy yet tasteful slit up to the mid thigh on one side. “Can I try this one on?” Ava asked the saleswoman, who happily showed her to a dressing room. Ava slid into the gown easily; it seemed to be the perfect size for her and stepped out to the trio of mirrors to show Rowan.

     “What do you think?” Ava walked over to the mirrors to take a look.

     “It’s beautiful Ava, very elegant,” Rowan complimented.

    “Seems to be a bit long though
,” Ava bent down to look at the hem.

     “Try these on
,” Rowan said with a smile as she handed Ava a pair of black strappy tall heels.

     The shoes definitely made
a difference, however, Ava was not used to walking or balancing in tall heels. “I’m petite, trust me, I wear heels all the time. You will catch on quickly. I’ll bet if you practice today you’ll have no trouble tomorrow.”

     “Okay. I think this is it.” Ava glanced at herself one more time before heading back to the dressing room to change back into her previous outfit. After purchasing the dress, a small evening bag, and
the shoes the two women walked back out to Rowan’s courier.

     “What are you going to do with your hair?” Rowan asked.

     “I’m not sure, what do you think? Should I wear it up or down?”

     “It’s going to be hot tomorrow, I’d wear it up. Do you have any jewelry?”

     Ava touched her earrings and the gold locket around her neck, “Just these,” she said.

     “Hmm, I have the perfect things to compliment this dress. Let’s go back to my house and we can practice with your hair and I’ll loan you some jewelry.” Rowan fired up the small vehicle and the two women were off.

     Wesley spent another long day working with the engineers on the Principia and arrived home after Ava went to bed and was out the door before she rose on Saturday morning. When Ava made her way downstairs to make breakfast, the light on her PCD blinked, indicating he had left her a message. It read “Good morning Ava, I hope you are looking forward to this evening. I’ll be home at six to pick you up. Love you, W.”

     Despite not having much to do, the day passed quickly for Ava. She took Rowan’s advice and practiced walking around in her new high heeled shoes as she explored the contents of the library upstairs. She decided to fit in a quick workout at Wesley’s gym
to burn off some of her borrowed excess energy and showered to prepare to start getting ready a little after four. No matter how she tried with her hair, she could not get her elegant bun as perfect Rowan had made it. After several attempts she decided to go with it, although it looked softer and slightly more relaxed that what she originally had in mind. Ava applied her makeup and slipped into her new dress and shoes. Finally she put on Rowan’s sparkling diamond earrings and matching necklace. She paused before the mirror to examine herself one last time and felt pleased with what she saw. This would never be possible for me on Earth, or on Orionis, she thought. Ava grabbed her small black evening purse and walked out of the bedroom in time to hear the door open. She stopped in her tracks when she saw Wesley paused at the bottom of the stairs looking up on her, smiling widely.

       Ava had no idea what to expect, given what lit
tle information he had divulged to her about the evening but she could not have expected this. She had never seen him dressed so formally in a black suit, holding a bouquet of beautiful red roses. She could feel his elevated energy enveloping her as she carefully descended the stairs. He embraced her and they kissed softly a few times before he pulled back and handed her the roses.

     “These are beautiful! I’ve never had more than one or two at a time, there has to be at least two dozen of them here.” She raised them to her nose and inhaled deeply. “Thank you Wesley.”

     “You’re welcome.  You look so beautiful this evening Ava.”

     “Thank you.
You too, you look so very handsome tonight,” she half whispered unable to take her eyes off of him. “Where did you get ready at?”

     “Rowan and Justin’s place. It’s on the way here.”

     Ava nodded.  “Let me put the flowers in a vase.” He followed her into the kitchen while she settled the flowers and then he took her hand.

    “I hope you a
re hungry,” he hinted cheerfully.

     “Where are we going?”

     “You’ll see.” He led her out to the waiting courier. They headed back towards town to the commerce district by the lake front. They pulled into the underground parking of the commerce building and to the passageway leading to the lifts. There weren’t many people in the lobby as they approached the lift. Ava wondered what they were doing at such a deserted building. Once inside the lift Wesley pressed the button to the top level, which Ava discovered was actually a restaurant called “Astrea” which Wesley explained to her meant “star.”