"Looking at the normal sky now is so weird." Irene mumbled as the plane started to descend, and the others couldn't help but agree.
After spending so long in Stellaris, which was in a perpetual state of nighttime, looking at the sky with the sun felt a bit alien to them. But it was also nostalgic.
As for why Mateo hadn't taken them over like last time? Well, he was busy.
Soon enough, the aircraft was above the Citadel, and it made its way towards the private airfield which was situated near the center, where the Citadel Lord's residence as well as the military bas was located.
"Everyone ready?" Osho asked with a small smile, and everyone nodded with anticipation.
They stood up in unison, all their luggage had been stored in spatial storages, and they waited for the craft to touch down.
Osho didn't wake up Gale. He simply cradled him in his arms as Bedrock stood and stretched his large arms.
'I finally get to see your home in person.' Bedrock spoke through their bond, his voice young but deep. But there was a touch of excitement in it. He hadn't been hatched by Osho within the Citadel, so he'd never experienced it himself, even though he'd seen what he could of it via Osho's memories.
'Indeed. It'll be fun.' Osho replied with a nod, wholly believing his words.
Soon enough, they landed, and it was such a smooth process that the only reason they noticed was because they saw it happen through the windows.
At that moment, a man wearing a suit came into the suite and said respectfully.
"We have arrived. Are you all prepared to step out?" Hearing this, the group voiced their affirmations, and he nodded.
"Follow me." And they did so.
He led them through the craft and to a staircase, which led down to the tarmac, and as soon as they exited, Ellie let out an excited squeal as she quite literally jumped from the top of the stairs into the arms of a man waiting at their bottom.
"Dad!" She called out happily as Stephen, her father, caught her easily and twirled her around, a rare smile on his usually stoic face.
Irene, Sam, and Kurt also went to meet their parents with excitement, leaving Osho to watch with a soft smile on his face.
'What a nice sight.' He thought as he descended unhurriedly, Bedrock trailing behind him.
When he reached the bottom, he looked up and saw some familiar faces.
Mrs Jane, Lady Haggai, Major Thompson, and a man he'd never seen before.
His eyes locked onto Mrs Jane, and his gaze softened.
The woman also looked at him with a soft smile, and she stepped forward before placing her hand on his shoulder.
"It's been a while, Osho." She gave his shoulder and faint squeeze, and Osho nodded, a warm feeling spreading in his heart.
Mrs Jane was the closest thing he had to a parent, both in this life and in his past life. She had done things for him that few could compare to, and to him, he owed her a lot. ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ꜰʀᴏᴍ Nov3lFɪre.ɴet
"Likewise, and it's nice to see you again." Osho nodded, and then was surprised when he found himself being pulled into a hug.
"You've grown nicely. It seems like Stellaris treated you well." She rubbed his back, and Osho was rigid for a moment before relaxing.
"Mm." He just hummed, allowing himself to enjoy the moment.
It was only after a few seconds that she pulled away and looked at him with her arms on his shoulders, and similarly, Osho looked at her.
... She looked exactly the same. Mature and beautiful. But it wasn't a surprise. Again, the stronger one became, the slower their aging was. Among the stronger beast tamers in the Blossom Citadel, Mrs Jane was the youngest, but even then, she was nearing her thirties despite looking like she'd just turned 20.
Osho finally looked around at the other two. Lady Haggai still her tablet in hand, and Major Thomspon stood like a statue, but he too looked younger.
'I guess he's been diligent.' Osho thought. After he evolved new beasts for the man to hatch and restart his journey as a beast tamer, it's clear that he hadn't been slacking off.
He was about to shift his gaze to the next man when his brain stuttered, and his eyes shot back to Lady Haggai.
Looking at her now, he noticed that her skin seemed more vibrant, and he hair was a lot more silky and rich, but that's not what caught his attention.
No, what did was her abdomen, and the way her stomach seemed to have taken on a somewhat large, round, and undeniably pregnant appearance.
He stared at it for a few seconds before staring at the man he'd never seen before, and his brain started to put two and two together, but a laugh cut his thoughts short.
He looked at Mrs Jane, who seemed adequately amused by the situation. It was strange, seeing her smile so much, but he just looked at her questioningly.
"Calm down. He's mine, and yes, she's pregnant, but it's Simon's." The words made Osho's eyes widened, his composed expression finally cracking and giving way to genuine shock.
"I'm right here." Haggai said impassively, clearly unpertubed. No, her attention was more focused on Bedrock, who stood behind Osho, her stylus inching towards her tablet.
Osho wanted to ask a question... or ten, but Jane just shook her head.
"I see that look in your eye, and trust me, we will fill you guys in. But you just landed, and while I'm sure that aircraft is probably more luxurious than whatever suite I could find, I suggest you guys get settled first." She said, a hint of her usual demeanor creeping back in, and Osho found himself nodding subconsciously.
The others spoke with the ones waiting for them, and then the group met up briefly to tell each other goodbye as they separated, with Osho going along with Mrs Jane and the others.
Since the airfield was within the military base, it was a short drive to a place they could settle down, and on the way, Osho couldn't stop sneaking glances at Lady Haggai and the person he'd never seen before.
'Hm. Now that i think about it, she and Simon did have some chemistry.' He mused. Actually, now that he thought about it, it made a LOT of sense.
Simon was one of the more active members of the Citadel's elites, and yet every time he was doing something with Lady Haggai, he almost always found the guy with her, even when the experiments she was conducting flew over his head entirely.
'With how oblivious I am. It's not odd that I didn't notice two other people having chemistry when I barely noticed mine. Still, knowing Lady Haggai, she also most likely needed someone to scream it to her face that someone liked her,' He scratched his head. 'Still, a baby? That's... I don't know if that's impressive or scary. Probably both.' Then he glanced at the other guy.
He was... pretty good looking actually, Osho couldn't lie.
He was on the buffer side, his physique similar to Kurt where he was clearly muscular, but not overly so. But his face seemed weirdly childish, and his air was messy, but it somehow worked. He was also tall, just a bit taller than Osho.
And yet, the look Osho got from him was... a lot of innocence, which was weird to see in a grown man.
'Gale?' He asked, and the bird who had woken up and had taken his place on Osho's head, looked at the guy and tilted his head.
'Purer than a clean lake.' He replied instantly, and Osho was even more surprised.
'How'd she find such an innocent guy???' He thought, and seeing as she seemed to speak with him with genuine excitement, it was ckear that some of that purity had rubbed off on her.
'No wonder she was so expressive. She spent a while with this guy.' Osho realized. Not that it was a bad thing. In fact, he was happy for her. A part of him always wished she was a bit more expressive, especially when he learned that her demeanor wasn't from any trauma but was simply how she was.
Soon enough, they reached a room which looked more like a lounge, and inside was a familiar figure.
Osho smiled as he and Principal Timothy locked eyes, and they nodded at each other.
"Osho, great to see you again." The older man who now only looked a few years Osho's senior said with genuine birth as he stood, and Osho's smile grew as they shook hands.
"It's great to see you again, sir." He said with genuine respect, and Timothy waved his hand.
"We are far past that point. Look at you, it's only been a year, but you've matured considerably. I'm glad, and I want to hear all about it." Timothy chuckled, sounding legitimately excited at the prospect at hearing what Osho had been up to.
However, before anyone could say anything more, another familiar figure entered the room, and Osho turned to see the person he actually needed to see.