Ellie nodded. “I’ll do some research about you and your planet while I wait,” she said more calmly than she felt, her mind already racing about her new situation. She was glad she was going to be alone and have access to a computer. She needed to find out everything she could about Valentin and Reima Two to be able to make a good decision about whether she would accept his proposal. Good thing I have two weeks, she thought. And as Admiral Jei wasn’t chasing after her because he was busy with his religious thing, she was hoping he would accept her back into House Rega even if she didn’t accept Valentin. No matter what the House Rega High Council representative had said, the Empire needed women and for some reason, human women were better than Outcast women. Another thing she would have to get to the bottom of in the next two weeks.
Valentin wanted to kiss her before he left, but he could see her mind was already thinking about something else and their romantic moment was gone, so he pointed to the computer, breathing in her scent one last time before he went to the bridge, “Study me. It will help you to make a decision about whether or not you want to be married. In your wardrobe you’ll find a change of clothing and pajamas. Just so you know, you cannot wear pajamas to supper.”
Ellie smiled at the ridiculousness of his statement and thought, You must not wear pajamas at all. After she watched him go out the door and it closed automatically behind him, she sat down at the computer and looked at his house on the screen. She thought there must be some mistake as his house was a large Alliance style compound but only Alliance style by the way the buildings were set up, otherwise there was nothing Alliance about them at all. The buildings were colorful and decorative almost ornamental. Valentin’s Main House, where she supposed she would be staying was rust orange with light blue details which complemented the odd palm trees and dark blue skies. Had she not known this wasn’t Earth she would have guessed this house was in Italy. Then she wondered why more people didn’t just become an Outcast and move to Reima Two. The weather looked much better than any of the Alliance Planets that were darker and colder, but then she reminded herself, They like it dark and cold.
However, when she began digging deeper into the GC database, she discovered that Reima Two was not somewhere that anyone could just move to. It required a lot of documentation and UCs.
Reima Two Residency Requirements
The following documents must be submitted for each applicant when applying for Reima Two residency.
Valid Galaxy Court Identification
Record of Birth (No AI)
Record of Marriage(s)
Galaxy Court Death Certificate (if the applicant has a spouse who is deceased)
A Processing Fee of 5,000 UCs
A Guarantee to Pay the First Ten Years of Annual Tax After One Year Residency.
Ellie wondered how much the yearly tax was and it didn’t take searching through too many more documents to find that for this year the annual tax had been a whopping 2,000 UCs. The average salary for a maximum class woman in the Alliance was 50 UCs a month. And in the same article she found that the cost of living was obviously much more expensive on Reima Two than anywhere else in the galaxy, even more expensive than living expenses in the Empire. Then Ellie couldn’t help it, she was drawn into an article about Reima Two’s clothing fashions and she became so engrossed in Reima Two’s fashion and then gossip columns, noticing how alike the Empire it was in some ways, but completely the opposite in other ways. Then she remembered the clothing in her wardrobe.
Ellie got up from the desk and went to the small purple wardrobe and opened it. Inside were a few items of clothing. She immediately peeled off her sweaty pink dress and put on the underwear and bra she found there. Then she put on shiny silver trousers that were tight in all the right places with a complementing top. Both garments adjusted to her measurements in just the right way. Then she put on the shoes that also required no socks and immediately changed color and size to suit her and her clothing. She commanded the room’s mirror to open. Then she looked at herself and said out loud, “Well, I must be the best dressed 27th century human in the whole galaxy!” Ellie closed the mirror and looked through the other clothing but there was just another change of undergarments and some human cotton pajamas with little flowers on them. She recognized the pajamas as being from the Earth Store on the Capital Planet. She always wondered why these were the only ones they had.
Feeling more comfortable than she had in a year, she sat down in front of the computer again and began looking through Valentin’s file, but for some reason her mind kept trying to wander and she found herself unable to concentrate. She took a break, drank some water and when she came back to pick up where she left off reading, only a half hour passed before she had to stop because she had the start of a migraine. She called for a doctor over the ship’s internal communications. She wondered if it could be the Marriage Pause bracelets messing with her head.
In five minutes, a doctor was at her door. She was surprised that he was male. All doctors in the Empire on planet were women.
“We are Outcasts,” he informed her politely. “Men and women are equal here.”
It was obvious to Ellie, by the way he said the word, ‘Outcasts’ he was enormously proud of his status as one. “Sorry,” she said, moving aside to indicate he should come in. Of course, he can read my mind, she chided herself.
The doctor came into the sitting room, “Please have a seat Elloisa and I’ll give you a quick scan.”
Ellie sat down on the small twilight colored sofa and watched the middle-aged man take out a small device with a blue light. He held it in front of her while he looked into her eyes in a way only doctors can when they are looking for solutions to problems.
“You said the migraine began when you were reading?”
“Yes.”
“What were you reading?”
“About Reima Two and Valentin,” she answered feeling another wave of pain coming on.
The doctor placed his hands on her shoulders and said evenly, “Close your eyes.”
Ellie obeyed.
The doctor said quietly, “I’m just going to reach in and touch your mind. I’m not going to do anything but search for the problem.”
“Okay,” Ellie said feeling relaxed already. She knew he was using what was called ‘influence’ in the Empire, but she didn’t care. It felt good to be so at peace even if it was artificial and fleeting. It wasn’t long before he released her, and her headache was gone.
“Can I open my eyes now?”
“Yes. The headache is gone?” the doctor asked even though he could sense she didn’t feel any more pain.
Ellie took stock of her body, “Yes. Thank you.” Then she remembered, “Oh and the seat belt and I were at odds with one another on the way back. Do you mind seeing to these sore areas that will probably turn into bruises?” She had been knocked around inside the transport a little bit as they were attacked. She didn’t think Valentin would mind touching her discolored skin from the ordeal he put her through, but she still would rather not have them.
The doctor readjusted his device and then began scanning her, “Please stand.”
“Do you want me to take off my clothing?”