The conversation with the Headmistress had left a few topics open. She didn't say much about Mister Chares and Wayne Mauder, and her plan to use Khan lacked many details. Still, he couldn't think about that right now. A very different job was calling for him.
A sigh of relief escaped Khan's mouth when he saw the empty sidewalk. Everyone was too busy absorbing the interview to give in to their excitement, which worked in Khan's favor, granting him an uneventful return to his flat.
The scene that welcomed Khan into the flat differed from the peaceful sidewalk. The symphony carried clear clues, and the loud voices that reached the elevator explained what was happening.
"Mom, I swear," Anita shouted. "I had no idea they were that close."
"Dad, can't we do this tomorrow?" George groaned. "It's not like we can do anything about it until the situation calms down."
Anita and George were so busy with the respective calls that they almost missed Khan's arrival in the flat's main hall. However, seeing him forced them to put down their phones.
"I'll get back to you in a minute," Anita stated, closing the call to face Khan. "I had no idea she would have gone on record. I would have stopped her otherwise."
"Dad, I'll shut down my phone until tomorrow," George said, also closing the call to address Khan. "Man, your woman made a mess. My father thinks the Solodrey family is sending a ship as we speak."
Khan raised his hand to stop following words before asking what truly mattered to him. "Where is she?"
"She's in the bedroom," Anita explained, nodding in the direction of one of the corridors, "But her mother called her a few minutes ago. I don't think they are done."
Khan barely let Anita finish speaking before heading toward the corridor. Monica had locked the bedroom, but Khan could override those directives, and an admonishing tone reached his ears as soon as he opened it.
"Do you have any idea of the shame you brought to our family?" Madam Solodrey's voice came out of a screen on the wall that featured her angry face. "We could have handled everything silently, but you had to go on record saying all kinds of lies."
"They weren't lies!" Monica cried from the bed's edge.
"I don't care what they were," Madam Solodrey uttered. "You are lucky that your father is busy with-."
"Good evening, Madam Solodrey," Khan interrupted, sitting at Monica's side to appear in the video call.
"There you are," Madam Solodrey exclaimed. "Once I'm done with my dear daughter, I'll turn you-."
"Goodbye, Madam Solodrey," Khan interrupted again, reaching for the phone in Monica's hands to close the call.
The screen disappeared, bringing some darkness into the room that didn't hide Monica's teary face. She glanced at Khan in shock before trying to restart the call, but he seized her phone to prevent that.
"Give me that," Monica gasped. "My mother-."
"Will still be angry at you tomorrow," Khan stated, hiding the phone behind his back and taking Monica's cheek into his hand as soon as she leaned toward him.
Monica felt able to forget about her mother in front of that loving face, but other problems appeared in her mind and forced her to speak. "Khan, I'm sorry. By the time Anita left the room, I was already contacting the reporters."
"It's fine," Khan reassured, using his thumb to wipe some of Monica's tears. "It's my fault for not expecting this. I knew you would have tried to protect me."
"But I did something-," Monica whined.
"Crazy," Khan laughed, interrupting Monica again. "That's just how you are. I wouldn't love you so much otherwise."
"Khan," Monica gave in, diving into Khan's chest to let some sobs come out. She had been so stressed that tears fell from her eyes as soon as she found some peace.
"There, there," Khan reassured, caressing Monica's hair while the desire to tease her overtook him. "I'm actually surprised you could keep a straight face during the interview. Some of the things you said were pretty embarrassing."
"Don't mention that now," Monica complained, lifting her face to show her shyness.
"What was it?" Khan pressed on while diverting his gaze. "It was hard to leave after the first night. Captain Khan has a way of making himself addictive."
"Stop it!" Monica shouted, pushing Khan down and climbing on him. "This isn't the time to joke about that."
"I know," Khan uttered as his expression grew serious. "They could take you away at any moment, so don't even think about sleeping tonight."
Just like Monica did in the past, Khan was giving her a chance to ignore all the outside world's problems and focus on what she liked. She also found it impossible to ignore Khan in her stressed state, so her head soon dived into his lips.
In the meantime, George and Anita had remained in the main hall, wondering what to do next. Khan's sudden entrance didn't help either since he disappeared without giving directives. Yet, the moan that eventually reached them brought an unsettling realization.
"What?" Anita gasped while turning in the direction of the corridor.
"They forgot to close the door," George explained, nodding in approval at that development. He shook his head and wore an admonishing expression as soon as Anita glared at him, but the arrival of a second moan forced the two to look for more private areas.
.
.
.
The days that followed Monica's interview were as chaotic as everyone expected. The network never went silent, and countless articles appeared. Reporters interviewed all kinds of people connected to Khan or Monica, increasing the number of rumors about the topic and spotting the truth quite often.
Monica couldn't hide from her family, but waiting one night led to calmer tones in the calls that followed. The situation remained serious, but the overwhelming positive PR generated during her family's silence delayed possible harsh reactions. She still received orders to stay put, but her presence in the Harbor wasn't currently at risk.
Anita and George opted for a similar approach. They avoided showing their faces in the open while waiting for the situation to calm down. Luckily for them, it was the weekend, so no duty required their attention.
Things were quite different for Khan. He had businesses to attend to, so he couldn't wait for the storm to calm down in the safety of his flat. He had to show his face, which gave him a vague understanding of the consequences of the interview.
Fame obviously was the first and most glaring consequence. The Headmistress could keep crowds away from the second district, but the areas outside the hangars were a different issue. Those places were the homes of workers, simple soldiers, or poorer descendants, and the Harbor didn't have the manpower to stop them.
The second consequence carried some positive aspects. Monica's explicit involvement in the relationship forced Khan's boldest fans to stand down. It was one thing to risk enraging a relatively famous figure with no background, but Monica's presence added the weight of her family, scaring away the most aggressive supporters.
Monica's involvement also put an end to the flirtatious behavior that usually reached Khan. No woman wanted to get in her way. He became more than taken, according to public opinion.
The third consequence involved the families interested in the event. Jenny felt forced to send daily reports to keep Khan updated about the many offers that reached her office, but he avoided addressing them for the time being.
That chaos added five hours to Khan's last mandatory flight. The Harbor's soldiers spent half of that clearing a path for his cab and finding a hangar that could safely allow the unfolding of that procedure. Khan then needed the rest of that time to leave, turning a relatively short task into something that made him waste an entire day.
The experience helped the Headmistress create countermeasures. Her influence forced Lieutenant Shurpard to have all of Khan's tests on the last day of the week and even provided enough manpower to keep the involved areas clear.
First, Khan demonstrated mastery of the pilot's techniques in a null-gravity area. Scanners studied him the whole time to confirm the excellent execution of those skills, and his training during his solo flights made him pass with flying colors.
The practical flight followed, and Khan had no problems there either. He had long since memorized the test's route, allowing him to complete every task perfectly. The external inspector who joined Lieutenant Shurpard never found the chance to note down mistakes due to Khan's good performance.
Completing the theoretical test forced Khan to wait for the results in one of the offices among the hangars, with multiple soldiers acting as guards. Lieutenant Shurpard was the only familiar face in the area, but his presence didn't affect the tense silence.
"I passed," Khan eventually stated without breaking his military salute.
"Captain, I'm sure that your test went well," Lieutenant Shurpard laughed to hide his awkwardness, "But we must wait for the results before giving you the license."
"No," Khan corrected, nodding toward one of the empty corridors stretching from the office. "I passed."
Lieutenant Shurpard followed Khan's gaze and frowned seeing the empty corridor. However, a figure suddenly turned the corner to appear in his view, and his hurried pace hinted at the positive message he carried.
"Sir, sir!" The soldier called, rushing through the corridor to reach the office. "The results of Captain Khan's theoretical tests are out."
The soldier handed the screen in his hands to Lieutenant Shurpard, and the latter turned it on to check its contents. A list of all the correct answers and the overall score lit up, confirming that Khan had passed the test.
Lieutenant Shurpard couldn't help but glance at Khan in shock. He had read about his senses, but that felt inhuman. Ordinary soldiers would have required techniques to achieve similar results, but he had only needed a look to understand what was about to happen.
Nevertheless, the Headmistress had given specific directives. Everything had to unfold swiftly and quickly since she couldn't enforce peace for too long, so Lieutenant Shurpard cleared his throat and performed a military salute.
"Congratulations on passing the theoretical test, Captain," Lieutenant Shurpard announced. "Please, follow me inside to obtain your license."
Khan limited himself to a nod and entered the office to stand in front of the interactive desk. Meanwhile, Lieutenant Shurpard tinkered with the various menus and even connected the device to insert the last authorization that the process required.
A whooshing noise soon followed. A rectangular piece of the interactive desk caved in to allow the arrival of a metal card that carried Khan's name, picture, and other information. Lieutenant Shurpard picked it up, and an explanation followed when he handed it to Khan.
"This is your license, sir," Lieutenant Shurpard stated. "It will keep track of your infractions and feats, but you won't need it to prove your status. I've already sent an update to the network. To the Global Army, you are already a pilot."
"I'll try to remember to write praises about you," Khan promised, seizing the license to store it in his pocket. "You have been good to me, Lieutenant."
"I'm not worthy, Captain," Lieutenant Shurpard laughed. "If I may, my superiors have requested to meet you in the event of a positive outcome. What should I tell them?"
"Have them set an appointment through the Headmistress," Khan said while turning. "I'm sorry, but I don't have time today."
"Someone escort the Captain outside!" Lieutenant Shurpard ordered as soon as Khan began to leave. A few guards immediately followed him, but he barely looked at them while heading toward the closest hangar.
A cheering crowd welcomed Khan's arrival at the hangar. The soldiers there had created a metal barrier to keep those people away from the ship, but that didn't stop them from filling the area with shouts.
The shouts grew louder when Khan appeared, and many of the questions he had heard the previous day reached his ears. He usually ignored all that, but his fame had to increase, so he took out his license and waved it at the crowd.
The crowd's excitement skyrocketed, forcing more soldiers to approach the metal barrier to keep it steady. Some even drew tasers to stop people from attempting to jump toward Khan.
Khan disregarded the chaos to get on with his day, but the appearance of a familiar aura in the symphony forced him to approach the metal barrier. The rumors had spread so much that the crowd went silent when it understood what was happening. Everyone wanted to hear what Khan and Wayne would say to each other on their second encounter.
"Congratulations, Captain Khan!" Wayne exclaimed in his usual happy tone as soon as Khan reached the metal barrier. "I knew you would pass the tests."
"How did you know Monica was on birth control?" Khan went straight to the point, uncaring of the people around him.
"I didn't," Wayne revealed. "I was as surprised as the others."
Khan inspected Wayne from head to toe but found no trace of lies in his behavior or mana. That smiling man was the embodiment of honesty.
"So, are we going to fight now?" Wayne wondered. "We came pretty close to that last time."
"I can't waste time on you," Khan sighed. That was the truth. He had to prioritize the Headmistress' assignment to uncover the real culprits behind that ploy. Besides, he couldn't feel angry at someone with no bad intentions.
"Of course!" Wayne laughed. "I guess we'll get to know each other in class."
"Why are you interested in me?" Khan couldn't help but ask. "Who sent you?"
"I can't reveal that," Wayne openly stated. "They only told me to get close to you, which I would have done anyway."
"Why?" Khan questioned.
"Because we are like brothers from different families," Wayne laughed again. "However, you got to grow in the light while I was raised in darkness."
Khan instinctively fell silent as his eyes darted among the crowd. That statement didn't have any specific meaning, especially to random people, but Khan understood something that couldn't be discussed in the open.
'Fame first,' Khan cursed in his mind before resuming his walk outside the hangar. A car was already waiting for him, and his pensive state almost made him miss its set-off. His interest in Wayne had grown greatly during that interaction, but other priorities called for his attention.
The car didn't head for the second district. Getting the pilot license was a big deal that required celebrations and interviews, but Khan had to complete another task first, and the embassy was the only place with enough privacy.
The long ride toward the embassy allowed Khan to replace those messy thoughts with resolve. By the time he reached a private training hall inside the immense triangular structure, only one goal had survived in his mind.
'I can't postpone this any further,' Khan thought while sealing himself inside the training hall and approaching the huge cage at its center. 'I must be at my best before diving into Professor Parver's tasks.'
Tapping on the cage made one of its surfaces open. Freezing air blew on Khan's face while that metal layer rose, and an awful smell followed. Still, he wore a confident smile when he checked its insides. The powerful Radola was a gory mess, but the long wait in that container didn't worsen its state.
