"This way, Miss Solodrey," Eric announced from the bottom of the metal staircase. "Stacy is on her way to the teleport to gather the rest of your belongings. You'll find them in your accommodation."
"Thank you," Monica exclaimed through her elegant smile as she approached the staircase to leave the spaceship.
Khan followed closely behind Monica, but the environment quickly captured his attention. The ship had finally landed in the Harbor, and Khan couldn't help but feel curious about his surroundings.
The network and Monica's notes had given Khan a vague idea of the Harbor. He had been busy during the landing, but he had still caught glimpses of the images captured by the external cameras, so he could somewhat understand the place's general layout.
From a distance, the Harbor shared many similarities with Milia 222. Its domes didn't expand inside the moon, but those structures had a lot in common with the asteroids.
However, getting closer to the moon revealed how the domes were uneven. They had many branches and channels that stretched past the districts or created a wide array of connections.
Of course, the transparent glass-like material enveloped any habitable area, but the buildings inside could change significantly according to their location.
Each dome marked a different district with a specific function. The Harbor had areas meant for producing essential resources, excavating important metals, landing spaceships, the actual embassy, and much more.
Surprisingly enough, the Harbor was almost self-sufficient. It needed deliveries to obtain some vital goods, but it still limited the arrival of cargo ships for safety reasons. The quadrant was peaceful, but the embassy's presence required additional care.
As for the actual location, the Global Army had chosen that moon for multiple reasons. The almost self-sufficiency came from the many resources in that solar system. The quadrant was also close to the territory of alien allies, which added value to its position.
The Harbor resembled Milia 222 on the outside, but its insides strongly reminded Khan of a space station. He was in a hangar that the ship had reached after crossing a short channel, and the area felt quite cramped. It was by no means small, but it couldn't compare to the asteroids' open spaces.
The hangar also existed on a single floor. Khan guessed that the Harbor had many of them, but that specific layout still made everything feel smaller and isolated, which resembled the other space stations visited in the past.
The corridors stretching past the hangar didn't help with that feeling. Khan could partially see and predict how cramped those channels would be. They weren't narrow, but they still carried a style he couldn't appreciate after his time on Milia 222.
An explanation quickly popped into Khan's mind. Milia 222 was a proper home, while the Harbor was a glorified space station. Their main purpose was different, and their layout reflected that.
Nevertheless, the Harbor beat Milia 222 in one field. The harmony seen from the outside was a nice detail, but Khan found something far more intriguing after descending the staircase and lifting his head.
The hangar had a relatively small dome, but its material remained transparent. Khan could see the universe when he lifted his gaze, and that dark spectacle added a mesmerizing vibe to the scene.
'How can I see the stars when the hangar is so bright?' Khan wondered, and the answer sounded obvious.
Pillar-like structures that radiated a white light filled the hangar, and the floor reflected that glow. The place was well-illuminated, but that didn't affect the scene past the dome. The glass-like material probably filtered the internal brightness to grant an almost natural image of the universe.
'Incredible,' Khan couldn't help but exclaim in his mind.
As for the synthetic mana, it was pretty plain. It didn't carry anything unusual, which led to a symphony that Khan had already gotten used to. Some colors were different, but they didn't change things enough to destabilize Khan's senses.
The hangar was strangely empty. Khan saw many ships when he managed to lower his gaze, but very few people roamed in that space. The place had a few guards and engineers busy checking the various vehicles, but nothing more.
Monica and Khan waited next to the ship while Eric handled the unloading process. The two pilots even left their cabin to help, and a couple of guards from the Harbor joined them to provide a floating cart.
The mesmerizing ceiling managed to keep Khan distracted during the wait, but captivating sensations often landed on him. Monica was still flushed, and it took her the entirety of her self-restraint to avoid reaching for Khan. Yet, she couldn't control her eyes, so meaningful stares shot out of her.
Khan was no better than Monica. He had experience in secret relationships, but he had just gotten out of two weeks of constant intimacy. Monica's stares easily rekindled his desire and made him meet her beautiful eyes to convey his thoughts.
The absurd size of Monica's luggage came in handy. Eric, the pilots, and the two guards were too busy unloading the ship to notice Khan and Monica's silent interactions, but their presence still limited their actions, and they both suffered under those restraints.
'I'm getting kicked out for sure,' Khan cursed, even if he couldn't feel too unlucky. The memories from the trip still warmed his mind. He could only hope to replicate them as soon as possible.
As the unloading process continued, Khan struggled to keep his mouth shut. The cart was big, but Monica's belongings seemed endless. The five men had to rearrange them often to make them fit on the floating platform, and they were only part of what Monica had sent to the Harbor.
"Monica, isn't that too much?" Khan eventually let out a joke. "The accommodations here should have laundry areas."
"It seems that the world of women still has some secret for you," Monica chuckled.
"Poor cart," Khan commented.
"The cart would understand if it knew how hard it is to have you at dinner," Monica joked.
"I promised I'd make up for it," Khan played along to keep the conversation alive. Nothing similar had happened, but talking in the open required some pretenses.
"I'm sure you'll make the wait worth it," Monica teased, and awkwardness fell on the scene. The five men could only remain silent since they couldn't join that conversation.
The issue didn't only come from Monica's past threat. Eric could try to enforce Monica's mother's authority in an isolated environment, but the area already had two guards from the Harbor. He couldn't argue or rebuke Monica in the open since it would make her lose face.
The same went for the pilots and the guards. They were in a heavily political environment where respect was paramount. They could gossip in private, but none could say a word when a wealthy descendant was on the scene.
Monica had explained that theory to Khan, so he felt pretty free in his replies. He couldn't interact with Monica as he wished, but he wouldn't have to watch his back from soldiers with a lower status as long as his interactions remained polite.
The five men took a while to load the cart, and only three led the way once everything was ready. The pilots remained behind since they lacked clearance, and Khan and Monica paid them no heed.
The group headed for one of the corridors, which confirmed Khan's predictions. The passage was big enough to fit four carts, but it still felt cramped. The absence of the transparent dome above also added a claustrophobic vibe to the scene.
That vibe was short-lived since the corridor soon opened into an immense area filled with relatively tall buildings. The transparent ceiling returned, and vast streets stretched left and right to divide the place into different blocks.
Most buildings shared identical features. They had the Global Army's iconic black metal and general modern style. The various streets also reminded Khan of a training camp, even if the place had white pillars instead of streetlights. The area resembled a residential district, and one of the guards quickly confirmed that feeling.
"Welcome to the seventh district, Miss Solodrey," The guard announced. "This is the largest residential area in the Harbor, and its services meet the highest standards. Though, I'm sure you'll opt for something closer to the embassy."
"Is the distance an issue?" Monica wondered, knowing that Khan would probably need that information.
"Not at all," The guard reassured while pointing to his left. "Each district has various kinds of transport. The trains are more popular, but we offer a cab service. You can also use your own vehicles as long as the regulations allow it."
"So, this district is no different from a city," Khan guessed.
"Indeed," The guard confirmed, even if his smile remained on Monica. "Prices can differ from Earth, and we might not have the same wide variety of services, but everything else is no different from a city."
'I'll need a map,' Khan thought before giving another look at the guards.
Eric had been openly rude to Khan, but the guards didn't share that attitude. Monica remained their focus, but that came from a difference in status. She was above Khan even after his achievements.
'No enmity from normal soldiers,' Khan thought. 'That's a decent start.'
The arrival of a luxurious vehicle claimed the group's attention and interrupted the conversation. Khan and the others were on the main street, so they couldn't miss the long limousine turning a corner to head in their direction.
Khan also didn't miss the trace of spite that appeared inside Monica. She felt tenser and irritated, but her face remained the embodiment of elegance.
The vehicle stopped by the sidewalk next to the group before its passengers' doors opened. Five young soldiers came out of them, three men and two women, and stepped off the street to gather in front of Monica.
"Monica, I almost couldn't believe when my father told me you were coming," The man in the lead of the newcomers, a blonde second-level warrior with emerald eyes, happily exclaimed.
"Lucian, it's a pleasure to meet you after so long," Monica wore a perfect fake smile. "I didn't expect this welcome."
"It's no bother," Lucian laughed. "The Harbor always feels overwhelming on your first day. We thought it could help to meet friendly faces."
The people behind Lucian smiled and nodded, and their elegant stances said more than enough to Khan. He inevitably thought about Luke and Bruce. Those men and women had to come from wealthy families.
"Though, how did you know about my arrival?" Monica wondered. "I'm not insinuating anything. I'm just curious. After all, we came by ship."
"Your mother shared your flight course with my father," Lucian revealed in a helpless tone. "You know how our parents are. Always plotting something."
"Their plotting put them where they are," Monica praised. "We will have to learn from them sooner or later."
"I'll go for later," Lucian winked, and Monica covered her mouth before giggling.
Khan used those seconds to inspect the group. A first-level warrior was among them, but the rest were on the second level. They were also wearing military uniforms, so he could see that all of them were mages. The stars on their left shoulders even matched those on their right.
The inspection came to an end after Monica's giggle. She had faked it, but she couldn't hide the meaning behind it. Lucian was being polite, and she had to play along due to their status.
Luckily for Khan, Monica used the silence that followed to take care of the faint jealousy growing inside him.
"Lucian, this is Lieutenant Khan," Monica exclaimed while pointing at Khan. "He will join me in the Harbor."
"Oh," Lucian voiced while frowning. He inspected Khan for a second, but his eyes eventually lit up, making him stretch his hand forward.
"You won Onia's tournament, am I right?" Lucian asked while waiting for Khan to shake his hand. "I'm Lucian Hencus. It's an honor to meet you. Monica got herself an exceptional guard."
Monica waited until Khan shook Lucian's hand to clarify the situation. "He is no guard. He'll be a trainee with us."
Surprise filled Lucian's face, which turned into hesitation before Khan's fake smile. The two were still shaking hands, and Khan did his best to sound polite. "I can't wait to be classmates."
"Class-," Lucian began to repeat before clearing his throat and retracting his hand. "I'm actually in advanced courses, but I'm sure you'll catch up in no time."
"I'll do my best," Khan promised. "It would be an insult to Monica if I wasted this chance."
Khan knew exactly what he was doing. He was also aware that avoiding using Monica's first name might have saved him some trouble. Yet, some basic form of jealousy pushed him to show that he was in the same field as everyone else.
The group obviously didn't fail to understand the meaning behind Khan's words, and their reactions revealed how well they could lie. Instead, Lucian seemed earnest, but something dark existed inside him, and Khan couldn't quite understand its nature.
The surprises didn't end there since another vehicle approached the area. The latter didn't use the street. Instead, it flew above the buildings and began its descent once it arrived within the sidewalk's range.
"Can we fly here?" Khan asked since he noticed the surprise experienced by Lucian and his friends.
"Only professors and other important figures can," The guard explained while the small ship landed behind the limousine.
The ship had a triangular shape, a single engine, and a small pilot's cabin covered by dark glass-like material. The latter released a whooshing sound when it opened, and a man in his thirties quickly jumped out of it.
The man wore casual clothes, but they were pretty messy. His brown trousers had marks and small stains, his jumper had holes, and the shirt underneath came out of it in random places. His black hair was also a mess, and the same went for his unkempt beard.
"Professor Nickton?" Lucian called.
"Oh, Lucian, I didn't see you," Professor Nickton casually said before walking past Lucian to stop in front of Khan. "Are you Lieutenant Khan?"
Khan saw far more than ordinary humans. He had immediately sensed that Professor Nickton was a third-level warrior, but his mana reeked of something odd. There was something alien in his presence, but his body wasn't the source of that feature.
"Yes, sir," Khan exclaimed while crossing his arms behind his back to perform a military salute.
"Did you write the report on the Tors on your own?" Professor Nickton continued.
"I did, sir," Khan revealed.
"Come with me then," Professor Nickton ordered while turning to approach his ship.
Khan couldn't help but glance at Monica at that unexpected development, but she was as lost as him. It took Lucian to give some clarity to the situation.
"He is assistant professor," Lucian revealed among the general confusion. "You should go."
Khan looked deep into Lucian's emerald eyes but found no lies. He could only glance at Monica again, and she didn't hesitate to reassure him. "Go. I'll handle your accommodation and luggage."
Khan nodded and forced himself to look at the floor to avoid throwing a warning glare at Lucian's group. He hurried toward the ship, and a leap brought him next to Professor Nickton's seat.
"Fasten your seatbelt," Professor Nickton ordered when Khan sat next to him.
Khan obliged, and the cabin closed. The Professor swiftly pulled the steering wheel to make the ship rise into the air, and a sharp acceleration unfolded once it crossed the buildings.
"I read your profile after your report fell into my hands," Professor Nickton explained while setting a course on the control desk and letting the ship go on auto-pilot. "You have amassed commendable achievements on top of alien knowledge."
"I like to remain open to alternative approaches to mana," Khan briefly summarized.
"You didn't make up what you wrote about the Tors, did you?" The Professor asked.
"No, sir," Khan denied. "I wouldn't dare."
"Good," Professor Nickton exclaimed. "A man with your expertise might be what I need."
The lack of clear explanations told Khan that Professor Nickton wouldn't say more than that. Yet, he had other doubts, and the course depicted on the control desk didn't seem short.
"Sir, how did you-?" Khan began to ask.
"Entering the Harbor is no easy feat," Professor Nickton interrupted. "I was notified about your presence as soon as the landing started."
"Did you pla-?" Khan tried to voice another question.
"No, I didn't plan on consulting you," Professor Nickton interrupted again. "Still, since you were here, I thought you might accelerate the process."
"What process?" Khan asked quickly, managing to finish his question before the Professor could interrupt him a third time.
"You'll see," Professor Nickton stated as his brown eyes remained on the path ahead.
The cabin was dark from the outside, but Khan could see everything while sitting inside it. The ship flew through the seventh district before entering a channel made entirely of the same transparent material as the dome.
Khan wanted to ask more questions, but Professor Nickton's last answer had said enough, so he remained silent and lost himself in the environment. The tunnel led to another district, but the ship eventually made a turn to enter another channel that brought it closer to the center of the Harbor.
The third district reached by ship was small and contained fewer buildings than the residential area. However, they were all taller and larger, and the vehicle soon descended toward one of them.
The dark window that enveloped the building side slid open to allow the ship's passage. The vehicle landed on the nineteenth floor, inside an empty room with glowing labels and reports on its walls. They didn't mean much to Khan, but he remained surprised to spot his essay on the Tors among them.
"Follow me," Professor Nickton ordered once the cabin opened.
The two stepped off the ship and headed for one of the two doors. After crossing that passage, a simple lab unfolded in Khan's vision, and the reason behind the strange mana on Professor Nickton immediately became clear.
The lab had three long desks, all of which had alien flesh resting on their surface. Some were inside transparent cases filled with interactive labels, while others had a prison of holograms around them.
"Here, in the back," Professor Nickton voiced while leading Khan to the back of the room.
The area had a series of locked cases that Professor Nickton opened by placing his thumb on their dark metal. A series of strange tools and more alien flesh appeared in Khan's vision, but his inspection was short since the Professor closed everything after retrieving an item.
The Professor then moved toward one of the interactive desks and swept part of it clean with a sharp movement of his arm. Flesh fell on the floor, releasing blood and leaving wet marks on the interactive surface, but Professor Nickton didn't care as he placed his item on it.
The item had captured Khan's attention even before that sharp gesture. It was a dark-blue tube bent in three different spots, each containing a specific type of mana. Moreover, openings existed on those corners, but Khan couldn't understand why.
"I'm trying to replicate a spell from an alien species," Professor Nickton explained as he crouched under the desk and opened a drawer to take out a rectangular case. "I just don't seem able to find the right combination of filters."
Professor Nickton opened the case to show a series of disks that carried different kinds of mana. All of them were unique, and their size seemed to suit the bent tube. They actually looked perfect for the openings in the corners.
"Do you want me to find the right combination?" Khan understood.
"Can you do it?" Professor Nickton asked while showing his eager face to Khan.
"I don't even know what I'm trying to replicate," Khan pointed out.
"Right," Professor Nickton exclaimed while smacking his forehead. "Give me a second."
Professor Nickton moved to the other side of the desk and repeated the sweeping gesture. More flesh fell to the floor while he began to tinker with the interactive menus, uncaring that his jumper had gotten wet and dirty.
Holograms soon came out of the desk and created a 3D picture of a strange animal. The creature had a dog's body, but a seemingly tough shell grew from its back and stretched until the base of its head. A forked tongue even hung from its mouth, and fur covered it.
The image also had many stats. The holograms overwhelmed Khan with information that he only partially understood. Some descriptions and numbers were beyond his expertise, while others almost made sense when he applied them to his experience.
'A monster,' Khan thought after gaining a vague grasp of the information.
The holograms moved after a few seconds. A metal spear flew at the monster and pierced its shell, forcing one of its legs onto the ground. The creature's tongue went straight, and its fur shook to release mana.
The energy fused and swirled until a blue flame appeared. The fire also expanded on the tongue, and the stats marked the lowering of the temperature.
"It's a cold fire," Professor Nickton explained once the holograms stopped moving, "A specific form of cold fire. I've tried to replicate it for months, but I don't seem to get the process right."
"What about the monster?" Khan questioned. The process would be far easier if he could look directly at the creature.
"Those butchers killed it," Professor Nickton cursed. "The specimen had a rare mutation, and replicating it in captivity is almost impossible without witnessing the transformation. I have its flesh and organs, but my studies aren't going anywhere."
Khan glanced at the bent tube before looking at the still holograms again. His eyes revealed a lot, but he could only see what the scanners had recorded, which might not be enough.
"How are you approaching the experiment?" Khan wondered, and Professor Nickton reached for another drawer to pull out a transparent container full of synthetic mana.
"Mana goes through the tube," Professor Nickton revealed while attaching the container to one end of the item, "And the filters change its composition to replicate this data."
Professor Nickton didn't hold back from giving a demonstration. He activated another series of holograms before pressing a key on the container. Some synthetic mana left it, and the tube sucked it to lead everything toward the filters.
Khan sensed how the synthetic mana gained new natures whenever it crossed a filter. The holograms also kept track of those changes, and a blue flame eventually came out of the tube.
Nevertheless, the blue fire created by the tube didn't reach the same low temperatures as the monster. According to the holograms, their compositions were identical, but the replica remained far weaker.
"Odd," Khan commented.
"Truly odd," Professor Nickton agreed before glancing at Khan. "So, do you have any idea? It's similar to what you described with the Tors, isn't it?"
'Similar in the creation, maybe,' Khan thought before looking at the hologram again. The tongue had clearly assembled different types of mana to generate the blue fire, but the Tors were a purely scientific species, while the creature was a monster driven by instincts.
"Can I?" Khan asked while pointing at the holograms.
"Do whatever you want," Professor Nickton announced while stepping aside. "Just fix it."
The interactive menu was relatively straightforward. Khan could make the holograms play the scene again before pressing on the container to activate the tube. The creation process was truly similar, almost identical, but he noticed a difference. The monster's expression gave away a detail he couldn't miss.
'Intensity,' Khan realized as his eyes snapped on the container. 'The synthetic mana can't match something produced inside the body of a monster, especially when in pain.'
Khan reached for the container before retracting his hand. His mana wasn't a viable option, and it wouldn't solve Professor Nickton's problem. He had to make the experiment work with synthetic energy, which meant the Nele's approach.
"The next thing might look strange," Khan warned while showing a helpless smile.
"Trust me," Professor Nickton stated. "You can't surprise me."
"Then, I need to open it," Khan revealed while pointing at the container.
"Just press the key on its side," Professor Nickton explained. "You have a couple of seconds before it disperses completely."
Khan nodded and reached for the container. Removing it from the tube was easy, and the same went for finding the intended key. Then, he closed his eyes, opened the item, and voiced a simple request.
"Live," Khan whispered while releasing a whiff of his mana.
The purple-red whiff entered the container before changing the behavior of the mana in its insides. That synthetic energy grew slightly wilder, but it retrieved its previous state after Khan closed the lid.
The holograms confirmed that the synthetic mana didn't change. It almost had the same composition as before. It only showed a trace of Khan's energy now, but that was barely noticeable.
Nevertheless, Khan reattached the container and activated the tube. The synthetic mana flowed through the filters before coming out in the shape of a blue fire that made Professor Nickton exclaim in excitement.
"It's possible!" Professor Nickton shouted when he looked at the data gathered by the desk. The blue flame wasn't as cold as the monster's attack, but it was far better than the previous experiments.
Professor Nickton stared at the flame until it exhausted its fuel and vanished. He moved to the holograms afterward but looking at the data only increased his confusion.
"What did you do?" Professor Nickton eventually asked while turning to face Khan. "The composition was almost identical. The differences shouldn't have been enough to cause such stronger effects."
'How do I explain this now?' Khan wondered until he came up with a vague explanation. "The mana in the environment is generally stronger. You should use that in your experiment."
"Mana in the environment?" Professor Nickton questioned. "Are you talking about its purity?"
"No, no," Khan denied. He fell into his thoughts for a bit, but he could only come up with an unreasonable explanation in that short time. "The mana is alive. You can't expect the same vitality from something created in a lab."
Professor Nickton appeared far from convinced. He diverted his gaze, and thoughts ran through his mind until his eyes lit up. Understanding dawned upon him, and he faced Khan about it.
"The creature was creating something while in pain," Professor Nickton explained. "Stronger, you say. It's not about density. It's about intensity. The scanners must not have picked that due to the various minute parts."
