"'Mornin'" she managed to groan."'Mornin'" she managed to groan. "Hi!" he responded, walking over and hugging her close. "How are you?" "Tired," she admitted. "I just realized that this is the first time you've ever seen me wake up; usually I'm awake a long time before you are. Now you get to see how grumpy I am." She blinked her eyes and looked up at him. He laughed and kissed her. "Ugh," she said. "Morning breath." "Mine?" he asked. "No, mine," she replied. "I don't care. I still love you." "Love you too, silly." She wandered over to the bar and said, "I'll have what he had." After breakfast, she said, "So, let's go get some food and head out." "Are you ready for this?" he asked. "Kolya, I used to wander around the sands of Egypt for hours, days on end. I think I can handle a walk down the road." "Okay. Let's go." They grabbed their packs and wandered out, thanking Tacha for his kindness as they left. They hit a small General Market before heading for the edge of town furthest from the lake. "What is this road?" he asked. "This?" she asked. "This road is called the Spinward March. Nobody really knows why; Shardik said it was a joke. It runs all the way from Shardik Castle to Tangent Arcology." "Five million kilometres?" he asked. "Something like that," she said. "Anybody ever travelled the whole thing?" "Every fifty years they hold a vehicle race. The rules are simple. It has to be an internal combustion vehicle, it has to have an organic driver, although drive by wire is permitted, and it has to cross the finish line with one component the same as when it began." "Sounds crazy." "I'm told it is. It took two years last time to run the race." "Two years?" "Lotta klicks," she said as they walked. "Furry?" he asked quietly, "What was that your father said about you learning the SDisk system early in life?" She blushed, gently. He thought it was the cutest thing he'd seen in a long time. "When I was three, I figured out how SDisks worked and began SDisk-tripping. Dad hadn't asked the AI's to restrict my usage since he didn't think I knew how to use them. |