After the Dust Has Settled
written by Ella Lehane
Vivian hadn't had a visitor in a long time, at least not until Andy and Aquila crash-landed outside of her father's estate. Though she's busy trying to fill her parents' shoes as host the best she can, they are both much more interested in finding out her life's secrets... secrets she might not want to know herself. (Original short-ish story)
Last Updated
05/31/21
Chapters
8
Reads
511
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
She woke up early the next day. As she had her own breakfast, (oatmeal, again) she wondered if they had had breakfast yet. Lysander would have probably taken some up, or set something up downstairs.
There was a crashing and a banging, which surprised her so much that the tray fell out of her hands, the oatmeal sliding to the ground with a wet smack. She got up, evading the oatmeal, wrapped a coat around herself, and ran downstairs. The dolls were still where she had left them the night before, both smiling their blank smiles, but no one else was. Not seeing anything out of order downstairs, she opened the front door tentatively.
She rarely went outside; it made her feel uneasy. Still, a good host had to make sure her guests were okay. Walking outside, she shielded her eyes from the brightness. As soon as her eyes adjusted, she saw Andy waving at her. She was standing next to a small plane. The back was all shiny, smooth copper, sleek and streamlined, while the front, which seemed to have been what struck the ground, was spread out, with pieces of curled metal reaching out in all directions, like an exotic flower. Aquila was next to it, pliers in one hand, peering into what seemed to be the remains of the engine. Andy waved her over.
“Sorry about the noise. Wolf tried to turn on the engine, and it didn’t exactly work. Still, isn’t she pretty? Her name’s the Ashy Phoenix, so named because she’s made out of a bunch of other planes that got burnt up in… in the war.” She seemed to hesitate in the last part, and then said it very quickly. Vivian didn’t really understand why, everyone had heard about the war.
“Oh, that must have been so much work! All of those pieces, from so far away!” she answered.
Andy frowned at that part, and even Aquila looked up. They glanced at each other, then nodded.
“A lot of work. But worth it,” said Aquila. Andy looked over the wreckage, and frowned. “Though you wouldn’t know it at the moment.” She knelt down next to Aquila, and took out some pliers from her pocket. “Still, I’m sure we can fix it. We will need some materials though. Do you know where we would be able to find any spare metal? Wolf knows what we need; he can go with you.”
Vivian nodded, and took him to the storage shed. In it were metallic torsos, legs, arms, and more. Aquila whistled. He picked up one arm and bent it back and forth. “High quality material. Why is it here?”
“Father. He builds these robots, you know. Well, not him, obviously,” she said, laughing. “He owned the company that built them, Moonbeam Industries. “Building the future today” was their motto. You might have heard of them.”
“Your father is Cain Grantham.”
Vivian nodded. “I thought I’d mentioned it before. Do you know him? You don’t really look like one of his friends though.” She looked him over critically. “You aren’t nearly shiny enough. They were always gleaming, covered in medals and ribbons. You’re too dusty. And your hair is too long.”
“I’ve never met Cain Grantham, but I have heard of his… accomplishments. He was very involved with the war, as was I.”
Vivian stared at him. “You’re a soldier? Is that why you travel so much? Is Andromeda a solider too?”
“No. Yes. Sort of. What do you know about the war?”
“It’s being fought by brave men and women to protect their rights from the dirty, greedy monsters who want to ruin everything for everyone,” recited Vivian. “My brother is off fighting there, for us, and so are my two sisters. As soon as I’m sixteen, I’m going to go fight with them as well!”
Aquila sighed. He set the arm he had been holding down slowly on a table, and sat down on the floor. “I have something to tell you. I’m afraid this might come as a shock to you, but I think you should hear this.”
Vivian brushed off the ground as best as she could, and sat down. Normally, she wouldn’t, but his tone made her anxious, and she would rather get it over with.
He looked into her eyes and spoke. “I want you to listen to me as best as you can, and even though you might find some things hard to believe, do your best not to interrupt. Do you promise?”
Vivian nodded, an uncomfortable knot building in her stomach.
“The war is over, Vivian. It has been over for almost ten years. And your father’s side lost. There were very few survivors on either side. And it wasn’t monsters who fought against his side. It was his workers, human… and metallic.”
There was a crashing and a banging, which surprised her so much that the tray fell out of her hands, the oatmeal sliding to the ground with a wet smack. She got up, evading the oatmeal, wrapped a coat around herself, and ran downstairs. The dolls were still where she had left them the night before, both smiling their blank smiles, but no one else was. Not seeing anything out of order downstairs, she opened the front door tentatively.
She rarely went outside; it made her feel uneasy. Still, a good host had to make sure her guests were okay. Walking outside, she shielded her eyes from the brightness. As soon as her eyes adjusted, she saw Andy waving at her. She was standing next to a small plane. The back was all shiny, smooth copper, sleek and streamlined, while the front, which seemed to have been what struck the ground, was spread out, with pieces of curled metal reaching out in all directions, like an exotic flower. Aquila was next to it, pliers in one hand, peering into what seemed to be the remains of the engine. Andy waved her over.
“Sorry about the noise. Wolf tried to turn on the engine, and it didn’t exactly work. Still, isn’t she pretty? Her name’s the Ashy Phoenix, so named because she’s made out of a bunch of other planes that got burnt up in… in the war.” She seemed to hesitate in the last part, and then said it very quickly. Vivian didn’t really understand why, everyone had heard about the war.
“Oh, that must have been so much work! All of those pieces, from so far away!” she answered.
Andy frowned at that part, and even Aquila looked up. They glanced at each other, then nodded.
“A lot of work. But worth it,” said Aquila. Andy looked over the wreckage, and frowned. “Though you wouldn’t know it at the moment.” She knelt down next to Aquila, and took out some pliers from her pocket. “Still, I’m sure we can fix it. We will need some materials though. Do you know where we would be able to find any spare metal? Wolf knows what we need; he can go with you.”
Vivian nodded, and took him to the storage shed. In it were metallic torsos, legs, arms, and more. Aquila whistled. He picked up one arm and bent it back and forth. “High quality material. Why is it here?”
“Father. He builds these robots, you know. Well, not him, obviously,” she said, laughing. “He owned the company that built them, Moonbeam Industries. “Building the future today” was their motto. You might have heard of them.”
“Your father is Cain Grantham.”
Vivian nodded. “I thought I’d mentioned it before. Do you know him? You don’t really look like one of his friends though.” She looked him over critically. “You aren’t nearly shiny enough. They were always gleaming, covered in medals and ribbons. You’re too dusty. And your hair is too long.”
“I’ve never met Cain Grantham, but I have heard of his… accomplishments. He was very involved with the war, as was I.”
Vivian stared at him. “You’re a soldier? Is that why you travel so much? Is Andromeda a solider too?”
“No. Yes. Sort of. What do you know about the war?”
“It’s being fought by brave men and women to protect their rights from the dirty, greedy monsters who want to ruin everything for everyone,” recited Vivian. “My brother is off fighting there, for us, and so are my two sisters. As soon as I’m sixteen, I’m going to go fight with them as well!”
Aquila sighed. He set the arm he had been holding down slowly on a table, and sat down on the floor. “I have something to tell you. I’m afraid this might come as a shock to you, but I think you should hear this.”
Vivian brushed off the ground as best as she could, and sat down. Normally, she wouldn’t, but his tone made her anxious, and she would rather get it over with.
He looked into her eyes and spoke. “I want you to listen to me as best as you can, and even though you might find some things hard to believe, do your best not to interrupt. Do you promise?”
Vivian nodded, an uncomfortable knot building in her stomach.
“The war is over, Vivian. It has been over for almost ten years. And your father’s side lost. There were very few survivors on either side. And it wasn’t monsters who fought against his side. It was his workers, human… and metallic.”
