Beep! Beep!! Beep!!! Clank!
A finger with a golden ring on it turned off the beeping coffee maker. The owner of the finger, a young man with shimmering golden hair grabbed the cup of coffee and took a sip, the little action revealing the glimmer of gold between the young man's tooth.
Beep!
The man looked at his phone.
"Lucy?"
The young man left the poorly lit room, presumably a kitchen considering the coffee maker. He walked towards another room, this one was lit up.
Bam!
"Ow!! Ouch! This is why I said to fix the freaking lights. Ow! Ow!"
A few steps to the other room he had hit his foot on something. Limping into the brightly lit room, his golden hair shined every more brightly. He was a young man in his early twenties. He had a handsome face and a slightly thin but muscular body which was complimented by his glittering golden hair and eyes. He had on, a gold watch, gold glasses and his black waist coat was inlaid with gold chains. His body screamed 'I'm rich!'.
He tapped on his phone with one hand while rubbing his foot with the other. Soon a male voice sounded from the other end.
"Gold? Wow! Very nice of you to call me." The voice said in a sarcastic tone.
"Shut up and listen. I found Lucy." Gold said still annoyed about hurting his foot.
The voice went silent for a few seconds.
"Where?"
"I sensed the book"
"Chronicles?"
"Yah, it was for a split second but I definitely sensed it."
"I'm coming to you"
"Relax and listen to me" Gold hissed.
"What happened to you?" The voice asked.
"I stubbed my toe..."
"..."
"You stubbed your toe?"
"What's with that condescending tone?"
"You can sense the aura of a sacred treasure from far away but you can't see the table in front of you." The voice answered, it's irritation was clear as day.
"When did you become so sarcastic berry?"
"Tell me where you sensed the book"
"No, Let me look into it first. "
"You think I'm going to leave this important matter to you? A phoenix that stubs his toe?"
"Can we stop talking about that? I'm going off now"
"Gold! Hey!" The voice soon became more solemn " How many years as it been?"
"I lost count. A couple hundred... probably" Gold answered.
"We've looked for him for so long..."
"Don't worry berry. We'll find him."
"Maybe I should call Hale---"
"No! I'll check it out myself... Bye"
CLICK!
Gold stared at his phone for a good while. "Where are you?"
---------------------------------------------
An outdoor party outside a large mansion. lots of men and women dressed in fancy clothes. Laughter filled the field. In a corner of the party, a very beautiful woman dressed in a black gown sat alone staring at the starry sky in which two moons hung. Her long hair was white and tied behind her head in a loose bun but even tied, strands of her long hair Cascaded down her neck and her dress. She looked like a painting. People around her kept sneaking glances.
"Twinkle twinkle little star,
How I wonder ...
...'where' you are"
"Beautiful poem Lady Anna. Though it would have meant nothing if it wasn't my lady herself that sang it."
The white haired lady removed her gaze from the sky and turned it towards the man that had just spoken.
Standing across her table was a man in a fancy black suit, holding a cup of wine with a confident smile on his face. He had a neat beard underneath his chin and an also neatly shaved moustache. He looked like a man in his early thirties but in the cosmos, looks can be deceiving. Species and races that can live for hundreds of years are as the stars in the sky. Even humans are not bound by the limitations of age anymore.
The man, seeing her look at him placed his wine on the table and stretched his palm towards her, bowing slightly. "Mr Sullivan" the man introduced himself.
This gesture was usually followed by the lady placing her hand in the man's palm, who then kisses it. It was a well known form of greeting but she didn't take his hands.
The man stood there staring at her until an aged voice interrupted.
"I'm sorry Mr. Sullivan but Milady does not accept these... forms of greetings".
Sullivan could hear the murmurs and giggles from the other people in the party. He looked at the source of the voice and saw a fairly aged man in a black waist coat, white shirt and black trousers. He stood in a straight posture behind the beautiful lady. He also had white hair but it was obvious his was from old age. It is was obvious who this man was, a butler.
The corners of Sullivan's mouth twitched as an annoyed look flashed across his face before completely disappearing replaced by his smile. It was obvious that this butler was powerful considering that he had not noticed him standing there until now. That level of power to be able to completely mask yourself.
"Oh forgive me Lady Anna, I did not realize that our cultures were so different. On my planet, this gesture is widely known". Sullivan said as he professionally retrieved his hand.
" Mr. Sullivan, Please kindly refrain from calling the lady Annabelle by that name as she's the lady of a house. Please refer to her as Lady Star-Heart. Calling her by a Nickname may cause misunderstandings and may give people false impressions ". The old butler said again. Sullivan frowned at the butler. 'This butler is getting on my nerves already'
"Lady of a house? But It's widely known that the lady Anna... belle is not married yet" Sullivan said with mild annoyance.
Lady of a house is a term used to describe married women, wives or ladies that already belonged to a family. It's a form of address for ladies that should not be courted, mostly to avoid scandals as most already have husbands or are betrothed to someone. The old butler answered again with his gentle voice. "Lady Annabelle is Matriarch of the Star-heart family"
Sullivan frowned again, Annabelle had not even spoken to him since he got here. She had let her butler do all the talking. He followed her gaze and looked at the sky too.
'The family elders asked me to develop a good relationship with her. Apparently the house she represents is highly respected and she's the Mistress?. She looks so young. Seeing as no one approached her, either she's a fearful lady of they're just scared to meet her. I'll take my chances.' Sullivan thought to himself.
"The 3 moons of Multimdor are a splendid sight indeed, perfect for kindred spirits to share the night together, don't you think Lady Annabelle." The old butler had a slight frown on his face as he looked at Sullivan. Everyone could instantly tell the meaning behind those words.
'He's not even trying to hid his intentions any longer. If this gets out the lady's reputation might be affected.'
"If you're free, I'll like to invite you to my mansion just a few buildings from here. Perhaps we could watch the moons together."
"Mr. Sullivan, That is not appropria-"
"A mere butler shouldn't be interrupting. I was speaking to your Lady."
"Smith... Speaks for me. Insulting him is insulting me." A little voice sounded breaking the tension that was building. Annabelle looked at the black haired man in front of her.
"I am the lady of a house Mr. Sullivan, and I have children. Do not disrespect me. Leave. " She said flatly.
"Lady Annabelle you're still so young and beautiful, besides there are rumors that your so called children are not exactly you- "
Boom!
A sudden pressure landed on the open field. Sullivan quickly grabbed the table to prevent himself from falling, spilling his wine in the process. He looked at Lady Annabelle and though her beautiful face still held no emotions, Sullivan felt that her eyes were like a predator looking at prey. He staggered backwards, then he noticed. The pressure wasn't coming from her. Behind Lady Annabelle stood the old butler unmoving, his hands were clasped behind his back but his silence made Sullivan feel like he was looking at something he shouldn't. He quickly averted his gaze and looked around, he was the only one been affected by the sudden pressure. Everyone in the party were now looking at him.
"Eh?"
The pressure died down instantly as a playful voice entered Sullivan's ears. Everyone turned to look at the source of the sound.
Hovering above the field, bathed in moonlight was a tall young man in a black double-breasted suit, black trousers and equally black shoes. He had his two hands in his pockets as he looked down on the poeple with an amused smile on his face. His eyes darted around as if looking for something before settling on the beautiful white haired lady. The smile on his face widen instantly.
Swoosh!
"Milady?"
Sullivan's hairs stood on end as he heard a voice beside him. He quickly turned around as a shocking sight met him. The young man in the sky moments ago was now on one knee in front of Lady Annabelle, his black and white hair flailing in the wind. He had his palm stretched out to her, the same way Sullivan had done.
Sullivan's eyes almost dropped out of their sockets as lady Annabelle gently placed her hand in the young man's palm.
"You have such beautiful hands m'lady." The young man said in a dramatic way as he placed his other hand on hers but did not kiss it.
The entire field had gone silent. The young man turned his head to the staring crowd and flashed a smile. "Hah. Don't mind me. You can continue with what you were doing."
"What are doing here Luther?" Annabelle's voice sounded.
"You sound like you don't want me here"
"Tch..."
The smile on Luther's face grew. He bowed his head placing the fair lady's hand on his forehead as he began another round of dramatic action.
"Hah.. Even my own mother doesn't want me anymore. It's over. I should just die"
"Young Master, we're at a public event. Please mind your character." Smith the old butler said helplessly.
"Eh? Old Smith is here too?"
"Nice to see you again too, young Master"
Sullivan could not believe his eyes. 'He is her son?' he thought.
Truly he had heard rumors about Lady Annabelle having children but with how fair and young the lady looked, he had thought they were false rumors. Even his comment about her children was just him trying to play along with her, or so he thought.
Sullivan stared at the back of the young man who was now rubbing Lady Annabelle's hand on his cheek while shedding 'fake' tears.
'He is her son? This handsome young man? the rumours were not just rumours? Shit!. How is she still this young, if she already has a son this old.'
"Lady Annabelle!!" A huge man shouted as he walked across the field towards the party. The man was wrapped in expensive clothing and jewelry. Behind were guards and servants it was obvious he was someone important.
Murmurs started in the crowd again. "It's the duke" "Why is the Duke here?"
"Duke? Duke!" Luther looked up and shouted back to the man that was approaching , a large smile on his face.
"Oh? Is that Luther? Hahaha long time no see."
Luther walked to the man, pulling him into a hug and slapping his back.
"Dukie!! Haha"
Slap! Slap! Slap!
The mouth of everyone in the party including the guards twitched.
The young man was literally hitting the Lord of the city, yet the Duke kept smiling. And Dukie? Did he just give the Duke a pet name? Sullivan was the even more sure, this man was not ordinarily.
"Lady Star-Heart, you never told me Luther would come with you."
"He didn't. He just showed up." She said without looking at him.
"Isn't she behaving a little rude to the Duke?"
"She didn't even look at him." "She must come from a high ranking family"
"The butler said she's the lady of a house".
"A house even higher than the Duke?"
"He called her Lady Star-Heart. It can't be those Hearts right?"
"How can there be two Star-Hearts"
"What Star-Heart? Oh shit, the branch of that family? No way. It can't be. Does that mean that guy is also from 'that' family? Why would someone from 'that' family come here?"
The whispers and murmurs from the crown intensified Sullivan's fears.
Luther moved closer to the he Duke and whispered in his ear.
"She's pouting because I haven't visited her in a while."
"Tsk"
Annabelle clicked her tongue.
"Oh I almost forgot. Why is my mother getting harassed in your party?"
The emphasis on the 'your party' was apparent.
A frown appeared on the Duke's face. "Harassed?" He looked around before his eye stopped on Sullivan.
"Your Excellency, i-i can assure you this is a misunderstanding. I noticed lady Annabelle's interest in the moons and just wanted t- "
Something flashed across the Duke's face, shock? Fear? Anger?
"Lady Annabelle? Did you just refer to Lady Star-Heart by her first name? Utter disrespect!!"
Sullivan was stunned, 'Why is the Duke so angry over how a lady of a house was been addressed. Wait, is there something between them? Do they have an affair? Hold on, Since the Duke got here, he never addressed her by her first name!'
"Someone get him out of here!!" The duke roared.
"Duke Amaran. This is an open event. People are allowed to hold conversations freely, but you chasing this young man out for talking to that lady, it may generate... bad rumors that would affect your reputation. Is she by chance your mistress?" Everyone looked at the fat man who had just spoken. Normally these words would have made the Duke very annoyed as his integrity was being challenged but everyone were surprised as a look of panic flashed across the Duke's face.
"Luther wai-"
'Boom!'
Luther appeared in front of the fat man who had just spoken, he grabbed his collar and lifted him effortlessly above the ground. He still kept his smile on his face.
"What is your name?" He asked.
The man who had just spoken felt his knee buckle under tremendous the pressure he was feeling.
"Roudolf Trest"
"Alright. I'll remember it."
The Duke immediately turned to his aide. "Cut off all ties with the Trest family, immediately.
lady Annabelle looked up.
"Luther." She called.
"Yeeees!!"
Boom!
Once again Luther was back on one knee in front of Lady Annabelle with the smile on his face even wider,
As if bathed in cold water everyone fell out of their daze. Without needing anyone to tell them, they all scattered in different directions.
The Duke turned to Annabelle.
"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."
"I don't go to this sort of gatherings but I made an exception because of you, Amaran. Tell me what's so important that I had to come get it myself?"
"The family head."
Luther who was busy playing with Annabelle's hand stopped.
"Gramps?"
Duke Amaran looked at Luther and nodded.
"He's coming out of seclusion."
------------
"My body aches, I need sleep."
A white haired man with dark circles and blood shot eyes, a clear sign of lacking sleep, stood in front of a shop.
"I really need sleep." Lukas stared at his reflection in the glass of the fashion shop. He put his hand in his pocket pulling out a gold-rimmed glasses and putting it on. He looked around taking in his environment. He was standing on the sidewalk of a busy street. High tech Cars and bikes zoomed past. The sidewalk was mildly crowded with people and robots going back and forth on hover boards. Across the sky snaking between tall, high-rise buildings and floating bridges was a glowing train. On the side of the train, typed in huge Letters were the words "Hub Train - the 21st"