The Elementalist

22. Aethercraft & Coquetry-2

She gulped.

He chuckled. “The only reason I know any of this is because my first wife is an emelesiac, you see.” He smiled as if reaffirming something that Voi didn’t understand right away.

Voi tilted her head, sifting through the vagueness of his meaning. She realized how he’d used the present tense, even though the wife in question was well-hidden from society. If she still existed at all. And how strange that he should phrase this declaration so specifically as though there were other wives left unmentioned, or perhaps others yet to come.

Though Voi found it impossible to tear her gaze away from the intriguing enigma, the implications also mortified her, as her wide eyes undoubtedly confirmed. Having spent the majority of her days lately in Apexia, it was easy to forget the Borellian’s rather unique sense, and definition, of fidelity.

Captain Neverri gave a boisterous laugh. “Well, for gods’ sakes, Miss Román, don’t look so guilty! I was merely making an observation.”

Voi allowed her shoulders to slouch. She attempted to laugh, despite feeling far from relaxed.

“Captain, is this really necessary?” Colonel Snipes drawled.

“Apologies, colonel. Ms. Furlan.” Neverri put on an affected smile then turned to Voi. “Of course, you aren’t even taking those pills right now, are you?” He gave a humorous sniff. “Hence the mydriasis.”

“Oh!” Her eyelashes fluttered in embarrassment, and she looked down. “I’m sorry, they must look terrifying.”

Captain Neverri leaned over to observe Voi, at which she glanced up. “They don’t look too bad at the moment, actually.”

She stared at him, stunned by his accepting tone.

“In any case,” he said, “I hear an emelesiac can learn to control this over time. No better place to practice than here, I suppose, in a relatively confidential environment. Don’t worry; your real secret is safe with me.” He winked—for the second time, Voi noted.

Her lips parted, though no reply came to her. After all, she wasn’t sure she liked this man knowing her ‘secret.’ Still, she couldn’t deny the relief she felt from knowing her condition wouldn’t be a deterrent, which ultimately made her smile.

The captain cleared his throat then patted the dolly. “Alright, well why don’t you lie back on this? That’s what the wheels are for, see. It eases you beneath.” He pushed and pulled the thing for show.

Voi hesitated before nodding. With the captain’s help, she eased herself onto the dolly.

Neverri hovered over her, making sure she was settled. “Comfortable?” he asked, his lapping breath warm against her face.

She forced down a developing lump in her throat. “Yes,” she lied, clutching the dolly with one hand.

“Right, then, here we go.” He leaned back onto the ground himself then shimmied beneath the aerocraft.

Voi followed, rolling beside him.

Neverri smiled at her in the dim privacy that the shelter of the MR-6’s belly and broad wingspan provided. “Here,” he said, handing her the flashlight.

She turned it on.

He reached over her, rotating a handle in the underside of the hull. Voi found herself subconsciously pushing her body into the dolly in attempt to keep herself out of his reach—useless as this was. Something above them clicked, and a large panel eased away. The captain carefully lowered it then set it aside, revealing the complex inner workings of the MR-6.

“Oh my,” said Voi.

“Yes. There’s a lot going on in there, I know. That’s the best I could place it all, unfortunately. A bit of an eyesore, isn’t it?”

She cringed, and he laughed.

“Now you see why I put so much effort into perfecting the body—overcompensation, perhaps.” He snorted, though Voi thought his comment to be only marginally humorous. “No,” he said, “the aerodynamic design was very much intentional, though I’d hate to say the extra effort wasn’t worth the results aesthetically. Would you agree?”

Perhaps it was the light of the flashlight or only Voi’s imagination, but something in his eye gave a timely twinkle. Her heartbeat hastened as the captain’s spicy cologne, mixed with his natural scent as well as the dirt and oil on the concrete beneath them, provided a strangely pleasant aroma—feral and refined all at once. It boggled her already erratic mind. To show that she wasn’t completely losing control of herself again, however, Voi made a faint noise, indicating her agreement.

Thankfully, the captain didn’t seem to notice her discomfort. “Alright, there. You see that thing in the center?” He pointed.

Gathering her wits, Voi fumbled as she aimed the flashlight in the indicated direction. Its beam refracted off a small crystalline object perched inside a gyroscopic mechanism within the core, surrounded by coils and other parts and apparatuses that Voi was unfamiliar with. “What’s that shiny thing?” she asked, grateful something less sensually seductive had captured her attention.

“That, Miss Román, is the crystal I was referring to earlier. Once stimulated, it interacts with all the equipment you see here to induce a self-contained gravitational field—a remarkable feature, as far as fuel efficiency goes. You see, when brought to a certain power level, it will continue to operate on the same level until otherwise commanded, and it only consumes fuel when the power level is changed, reserving fuel primarily for the turbine engine.

“Anyhow, it’s the combination of these processes which enables the continuous movement of aether to counter the planet’s gravitational field, granting this aerocraft the ability to hover without the turbine.”

Feeling like a scratched gramophone record, she ventured again, “Yes, but what is it, exactly? Some sort of energy source?”

“Mm… more like a conduit. Without the crystal, we’d have no way to access aetheric energy directly. Only certain crystals, you see, are capable of producing this effect—crystals which are quite rare. Luckily for the League, Borellia possesses the world’s only known supply.” Captain Neverri reached up and carefully removed the coveted object from the core. He then flipped onto his side to face Voi, using an arm to keep his head propped up.

With his free hand, the captain held the crystal before Voi’s wonder-filled eyes; it was about the size of a grapefruit. “There’s no scientific consensus yet on how this is even possible, but it’s through this tiny piece of quartz that we now have direct access to the seventh fundamental element: an exotic, interactive form of aetheric energy channeled through a crystal using an electrical machine, which can then be used to do work like manipulating gravity—and perhaps other aspects of the material universe, for all we know.” He smiled, looking into Voi’s eyes. “Remarkable, isn’t it?”

She laughed. “You mean the mythical stuff scholars believed the ancients once used in their own technology—that stuff from legend?”

“The stuff of legend, space and time. The very stuff of stuff.”

Voi fixed him with a skeptical look. “But it isn’t possible that a technologically viable aether could exist,” she said, more to convince herself than anything else. How could the ancients have had access to a mysterious substance which contemporary scholars and scientists, supported by hundreds of years of diligent study and exploration, had yet to discover?

…Or had they?

Captain Neverri laughed. “Well, I’m afraid you’re looking at it!” He handed the crystal to Voi.

Dumbfounded, she turned the multifaceted object over. Eventually, she was able to detect a subtle aura radiating from it. She furrowed her brow, mentally counting its faces. “Why is it a dodecahedron?”

“Ah! Quite the observation.” He took it back. “It just so happens that in order for this crystal’s aether-channeling ability to work with our technology, it must be cut in the form of a dodecahedron, all faces shaved as perfect pentagons—if not the more elongated form, which involves some hexagons and rhombi. You see, I happened to discover this one day due to some trial and error as well as a connection with an experienced jeweler.”

Captain Neverri grew pensive. “Of course, your fellow Apexian Marvin Rhys beat me to developing the first engine that could utilize aetheric crystals. Still, I maintain credit for the initial discovery of a ‘technologically viable aether,’ as you say.” He replaced the crystal in the heart of the aerocraft. “I did create the first successful electric interfacing device, after all.”

Voi’s eyes glossed over. It appeared the legends were true: an actual medium with aetheric properties had been discovered. The League was merely attempting to keep the mechanisms of it a secret, it seemed—the same way they’d managed to keep the knowledge of elementalism and the truth about emelesia from the world, Voi reflected with a pout.

Putting this discomforting thought aside, she said, “You know, Myrl Tytus once proposed that the universe was shaped as a dodecahedron.”

“Yes,” said Neverri, “his philosophies certainly occurred to me while I was investigating the aether, I confess. ‘Control the aether, and you control the universe.’” He chuckled. “Wasn’t that from one of his more esoteric journals?”

Unfamiliar with this particular quote, Voi studied the captain’s distant expression—wondering about the source of his occult knowledge and his role in the secrecy surrounding aetheric crystals. “Why haven’t I heard about any of this before?”

“Well, dear Voi, I suspect that’s because someone didn’t want you to know. The question is, why?” The corner of his mouth turned up conspiratorially as he nudged her chin, arching an eyebrow.

Voi swatted his hand away. “This is all some sort of ploy, isn’t it? You’re pulling my leg!”

“Oh, may I, Miss Román?” His gaze ventured down the length of her body.

“I beg your pardon!”

“Forgive me.” The mischievous light in his eyes faded. “My… impudence was uncalled for.”

Though secretly thrilled by his comment, Voi detested the idea of falling prey to her urges again. She stared at the captain with bulging eyes and flaring nostrils, aghast at his roguish behavior. At the same time, her heart drummed a primal rhythm between her ears.

“Well, then,” Captain Neverri said before she could protest any further, “I’ll just set this panel back into place.” Once finished, he scooted out from beneath the aerocraft, leaving Voi in a whirlwind of warring emotions.

The nerve of him! Seconds later, she wheeled herself out into the open, weathering the scrutinizing gazes of Milia and Colonel Snipes. Voi sat up, slowly becoming aware that her braided hair was now a scraggly, anarchic mess. As she attempted to pat and smooth herself back into a presentable state, she caught wind of Milia’s disapproving aura.

The woman folded her arms.

Colonel Snipes grunted. “The controls, captain—or should I tell the board you were too busy fraternizing with their pilot to make good on their contract?”

Captain Neverri frowned. “That won’t be necessary, colonel. We were just getting to the controls.” He turned and offered his hand to Voi.

She paused, giving him the once over, then outright rejected his offer. Instead, she stood up and dusted herself off, casting the engineer a skeptical look, from which he retreated.

Yes, thought Voi, pointing her nose into the air. Smarts, doesn’t it?