The first few from the newly arrived vessel disembarked, attracting a small amount of attention from the gathered Paparazzi, and then carried on toward the Absolution's staff, who were waiting to bring them to their rooms to get settled in.
Then the groom to be, the playboy trillionaire's heir, stepped out into the reception area, and Max had to smile at the level of effort he had put into his appearance for this moment.
His skin lightly sparkled with a glitter infused oil, his wings' feathers were dusted with water to give them a glowing ambience in the ship's natural lighting, and his outfit was immaculately pressed.
"Welcome to Absolution. I am Commander Keres Max and these are the Generals Tennant and Yaakov, now both retired and working with the Reaver Council." Max introduced them.
"Generals, it is a pleasure to meet you in person. I have spoken to you on conference calls before. Commander Max, it is an honour to be here aboard your vessel. If there is time later in my stay, I would like to speak with you about commissioning a new flagship for my family's Galactic Defence Force." He replied.
Max smiled and shook his hand. "That is the specialty of the Terminus Trading Company. Just let me know what time will be good for you, and we can make arrangements to have it made exactly to your requirements."
That exchange of pleasantries alone would normally be enough to make headlines for a week. The Crown Prince of Salumat commissioning a potential World Ship class vessel from the Terminus Trading Company was huge news, especially given that the Terminus vessels that were already in existence were known as the height of luxury and entertainment.
The highest of VIP classes couldn't even compare to the areas where commoners like them were allowed to be. There was an entire private island for them on the second level when they visited, and it was off limits to all other travel.
That was mostly to eliminate the headaches of paparazzi for the dignitaries, but making the public appearances also mattered, so it wasn't far from the unofficial party capital of the second level, Innuvia Resort and Casino.
Close enough that if it weren't for the distortion barrier preventing anything from being seen clearly, the two could actually watch each other party on the beaches if they used binoculars.
The rumours about the private island were even more crazy than the reality, which was luxurious enough that even the VIP guests had a habit of stopping to take photos, and not just for social media clout.
The Crown Prince stepped forward to greet the reporters, while his entourage moved to secure the area, which was already carefully locked down by Felicity's android security officers, and then the bride to be, the daughter of the Valkia President, walked out.
Unlike almost all the other Valkia Max had seen, her wings were snow-white, as was her skin, while her hair was a shockingly gold blonde that Max was certainly came from a salon. She was stunning in a gold dress and sandals, dressed for an outing at a beach resort, and half the cameras had already forgotten that the Crown Prince was right in front of them.
The President's daughter smiled at Max as she walked up, and spoke in a whisper. "Thank you for the ideas, I sincerely appreciate it. There is a proper formal announcement event tomorrow, and I do hope that we have received your RSVP."
Max nodded. "Indeed you have. It's a pleasure to meet you, and I am absolutely certain that we will speak again soon. Now, go have fun."
She gave a slight curtsy to Max's polite bow, and then ran over in a carefully choreographed moment of joy to wrap her arms around her fiancé and lead him out of the landing bay to a more photogenic spot, deliberately created for just this type of situation.
They held the pose for a full second as they embraced before moving to the reception area to speak to the cameras.
As they left, and their staff followed the baggage out of the area, only Max and the Generals were left in the room. No, that wasn't quite right, there was one Innu with a camera and a reporter's badge still giving them adoring looks.
"Were you hoping for an interview, Miss Reporter?" Max asked.
She couldn't be from one of the major outlets, or she would have had a proper camera person with her, but the level of starstruck in her mind was enough that it was clear that she was here for him.
"Yes, please Commander. I am Destiny from the Mecha Life and Development Podcast, and if you have even a few seconds, I would appreciate it." She replied.
A podcast? That was surprising, she really was thinking like a reporter. But then, the Tech Nomads did podcasts as well, it was just part of Innu culture. Plus, if she got a reporter badge, her reach had to be a hundred million daily viewers, so her podcast group was not a small one.
"Follow us right this way, and we can answer some questions while the others go insane outside. We wouldn't want to interfere with their moment in the spotlight." Max instructed, and led the reporter down a service corridor and into a sitting room that was intended for staff meetings.
The reporter clapped her hands, and the backpack she was wearing expanded into a full photo set backdrop, holographically projected on the room, plus four chairs and a small banner with the name of the podcast.
It was like sitting at the announcer's table for a sporting event with the way the camera was positioned, so she would be intending to treat this as a panel discussion.
"Good morning and thank you all so much for taking time out of your busy schedule. Viewers, we have a real treat for you today, Commander Keres Max of the Terminus Trading Company, and the war hero Generals Tennant and Yaakov, both legendary Phalanx Class Mecha Pilots of the previous generation.
You are all in for a real treat today."
The Generals looked at Max and tried to keep a professional expression. What had he gotten them into with this obvious Mecha fangirl?
