New chapter, just for now, will check it out to see spelling etc, later..

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The planet was seriously strange.

For one thing, it was big, too big for the gravity described. It had a one perfect gravity, but its size was totally out of bonds. Then there was the continents, tectonic plates moving could not be the sole reason for their arrangement. Whoever had heard of one hemisphere arranged as a constant? It was Jeff’ suit that saw that first, and if now a suit could become too full of itself, then surely his suit had become the very epitome of that.

“Yes, of course a Royal is useful, at some things. But after all, old knowledge dies hard.” It smugly commented.

“So, you think someone made it?”

The suit became silent as it cogitated. Jeff could almost hear those cogs turning as he waited.

“Not enough data.” It finally answered.

“Yes, it could.” Came another voice. It had to be the Royal. “My esteemed colleague may be right in that old knowledge never dies. But there is actually new too. Terraforming has taken giant steps since the portals closed. Not that we are anywhere near this size of accomplishment, but yes. It could very well be.”

“There are too many discrepancies to explain it otherwise. Still, we haven’t decided which set of constants exist here yet, it may be that we are inside a portal.” Jeff knew of constants, and portals. Somewhat like a set of magical numbers they were, constants, defining the borders of a universe. Like ‘c’ was, lights speed in a vacuum. And he also, at least vaguely, could understand that if those were slightly different there should be repercussions, changing the face of that universe. Portals he had never seen though, only learnt about from the ships library.

“Did you confirm the speed of light?” He asked, feeling quite accomplished. That might teach this son of a gun that a human could know something too..

“Yes, we found no discrepancies with old values. Then again, how I wish we had a Emperor suit here.” If a suit could sigh this one surely did. “The very best database there is, the knowledge of a solarsystem in its innards.”

“Bah, old knowledge still help.” Muttered Jeff’s suit. “Emperors here and Emperors there, is that all you can process?”

Now the suits became silent and Jeff could feel a furious debate starting, ending the uncomfortable silence he asked.

“Would it be possible to talk with her Highness?”

“Yes.” Came a curt reply from the Royal. “But please, do not bother us further, we are in the middle of a scientific inquiry, our processing power at full capacity for several millisecond’s.”

Apparently they did not define time the same as Jeff, but he let it pass. ‘They're becoming awfully stuffy though,’ he thought as he cleared his voice. “Your Highness? My lady, I hope you had a pleasant sleep?”

“Ooh, Jeff?”

“Yea, you okay? Your highness I mean.”

He heard her sigh and then came her voice.

“Not really Jeff, I try, and Royal has done his best to cheer me up.”

She had lost everything she knew, her mother and father most probably dead. And then she had slept through most of what happened after it. To her it had to be as if they died just a moment ago he guessed.

“I’m sorry My Lady, and I sympathize. Maybe it will be better if I let you be?”

“No Jeff, it’s nice hearing a human voice. But I miss them, so badly.”

Desperately wanting to change the subject Jeff went on to discuss the planet, and as Janelle seemed to have a extensive knowledge of local fauna, no doubt inherited from her mother, they both agreed on trying to persuade the suits to land, as soon as possible. Jeff having a distinct feeling that she needed more than his voice to help her trough her sorrow.

“Suit Royal.” She said imperially.

“Yes Ma’am.” He heard it answer.

“Is it possible to land?”

“Unfulfilled data acquisition Ma’am.”

“Yes, I know that Royal, but can we live on that surface?”

The suit was quiet for almost a minute, which to it had to be a immense time.

“Yes, Ma’am. It seems so, using what telemetry we collected so far. But I would like to invoke a Survival mode for the nearest days. Your safety comes first Ma'am, and there are still unknown variables.”

“Royal, you will take us down, at your convenience.” If Jeff ever had heard a Imperial decree, then that was it.

There was a momentary silence. “Ma’am, under the circumstances I must beg you to stay inside. We will descend but we still have to take atmospheric samples, and we do not know the local microbiology. Let us take soil samples and test the water. It can only take a day or two?”

Janelle knew when she had forced her suit to its limit, she had grown up with it, and her father had been very insistent in her spending time inside it.

“Every suit has its own quirks Janelle.” She could remember him saying. “The more advanced, the more quirks. Yours is as advanced as we could make it. It contains the keys to your heritage, as well as command codes controlling your inheritance. Treat it well, and listen to it.”

“Thank you Royal, you’ve always been a true friend to me.” She whispered to it, faintly smiling for the first time in a long while.

“Jeff, we will descend soon, and please, you can stop calling me Highness. Janelle will do fine here.”

“Thank you your Highness, Janelle, I meant.” He felt definitely uncomfortable calling her Janelle. To do so on the ship would have been breaking its code of conduct, and probably earned him a really good, well deserved, dressing down by the brig. And then, there was this feeling of unconditional awe? He wasn’t sure if it was conditioned by his Argel, or natural, but he found himself increasingly impressed by her unselfishness and common sense. All combined with that immense hurt he knew she had to feel, it was all too easy for him to see that, after all, he too had lost his parents.

“Where will we land.” He asked at last.

“We are searching.”

“We need to find a temperate place, free from big animals, near water and preferably on high ground.” Royal condescendingly explained. “It will take us several revolutions to decide a optimal landing zone.”

“How long will that be?” asked Janelle sharply, who silently had listened in. Jeff didn’t know, but Janelle had full access to his module, including tri-D and telemetry, but as her father had explained. “Some things are for you to know Janelle, no matter how much you trust someone.” And this was one of them.

“Four hours My Lady.”

“Good, let it be so.”

‘Another imperial decree’ Jeff thought smugly, ‘serves him right, the pompous bastard.’

“Thank you Royal., and you too suit” He said.

“You’re welcome.” His suit answered.

The hours went by with Janelle getting updated by Jeff on what had happened while she slept. Checking his story with Royal, and her command table she saw that he downplayed his own efforts, maybe because he felt awkward about it? It was refreshing change to the court she knew, where everyone tried to play up their own prowess, to the extent of almost becoming supermen, while at the same time sucking up to her in the most unashamed fashion. She knew that she had liked him from the first moment, and was pleased to see that his succeeding behavior confirmed her feelings. That was another thing her Father had told her.

“Look for the men that don’t try to impress themselves on you Janelle, but still stay by your side. They will be the ones worth cultivating, worthy of your attention.”

In Jeff she thought she had found one such.