House Vallian Pt. 1

They encountered the first of House Valliant's military patrols, a few hours before they arrived at the planet.

After their first Pirate encounter, there had been no more sightings of any kind up until this point still, Jack was glad to have some additional safety around.

The tier 4 Trading pass let them pass all checks but the ones directly on the planet without anyone ever entering the ship or scanning the cargo. Jack had helped the Nobles of House Valliant on multiple occasions so he had a good reputation with the faction.

Before entering the Massive commercial Spaceport, he had already contacted a few people on the planet. As a result, he didn't have to wait for some administrative official to assign him a pier and could fly straight into one of the premium docks to finish upgrading the ship.

As soon as the docking process was finished, invitations from various nobles, merchants and other important people came in. Jack was a little overwhelmed with the amount, but remembering this evolved from a game, it made somewhat sense. Vallia was his home or starting planet so there were bound to be people interested in him here.

The difficult thing was now to answer them in the right order. Everyone had a rank in the Factions Political system and visiting someone of a lower standing first could have grave consequences.

Luckily there was an invitation from the Crown Prince of the Vallian families. He was an easy first visit and listening in to the rumours at his court would help Jack determine whom he had to visit next. As for the merchants, he could simply choose which ones he wanted to deal with. They were all businessmen and would trade with him no matter what.

He send a confirmation to the crown prince and after that contacted one of the food traders, he knew from the game to sell the fresh goods they had brought from Mykena.

He would have liked to finish the customisation of the ship immediately, but the appointment with the prince could not be postponed.

Remembering his intention to involve Maya seriously in his work, he told her to get ready and meet him in front of the ship.

Then he picked out his best captain's uniform. Rummaging around, he found some medals that had been given as mission rewards. Without giving it much thought, he put them on as well.

In his old life, he had never met real royals, but when they appeared on television there were always people with medals, so it seemed right to him.

He was a little surprised when, a short time later, a slightly jittery Maya stood in front of his door. She had, at least it looked like to him, her entire wardrobe under her arm.

"Dad, I need your help."

With these words, she marched into his cabin and began to spread various items of clothing over every available surface.

Jack had never been in a similar situation before, so he couldn't access her monologue as she began to explain the pros and cons of different options.

After a few minutes, she seemed to notice his dilemma and stopped holding different pieces of clothing in front of her body.

"oh yeah right, what do you think about that?"

"I uh, well you know"

Jack scratched the back of his head sheepishly but couldn't think of a good explanation for his lack of opinion.

"Since you're accompanying me as an officer, maybe you should just wear your uniform, that' s what I'm doing."

Maya looked at him with narrowed eyes suspiciously for a moment, then nodded slowly.

"I guess I'll do that."

As they left the spaceship a luxurious black limousine was already waiting for them. Palace guards flanked the vehicle on both sides and an escort guard was also standing by.

Jack swallowed and could feel his nerves getting the better of him. The reality of meeting a real prince was dawning on him. After sorting out his thoughts, he straightened up with a nod and walked towards the vehicle, hoping he had understood the situation correctly.

The guards stood at attention as Jack and Maya walked through between them and one of them stepped forward to open the door of the vehicle as they approached.

Jack breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the soldiers' reaction. From the corner of his eye, he could see that Maya was moving unusually stiff. She also appeared a little paler than usual.

He understood her excitement well, after all, he wasn't feeling much better himself. That's why he tried to get in quickly to give them both a little respite before the storm.

Jack helped Maya into the car and was surprised to see another passenger. He had no idea who the man was, but that would not last long.

"Jack, it's so good you're here."

The man leaned forward and hugged Jack warmly, while his thoughts jumped to the state of exception. His brain registered the voice as Crown Prince Janus Vallain. Immediately, despite his surprise, he forced himself to return the hug briefly. In the game he had had the maximum number of reputation points with the man, apparently, the effect here was much stronger than implied in the game.

"Your Highness, what an honour to meet you here already."

The man let go of Jack and looked at him with mock indignation.

"Why so formal when we have known each other for so long."

Then the prince's gaze fell on Maya and a flash of understanding passed through his eyes.

"Ah, the next generation of Voidfarers must be trained, of course."

He also straightened and all at once he had the royal aura befitting a prince.

"I am Janus Primus Vallia Vallian, Crown Prince of Vallia and heir to House Vallian. May I have your honourable name, my lady?"

Maya froze in her seat and turned bright red.

"My, uh, name is..."

She was so quiet that even Jack, sitting next to her, barely understood her. With his brain still in a state of emergency, he managed to get an answer out before the situation became even more uncomfortable for Maya.

"This is Maya Halo, my daughter and security officer on my ship. She is accompanying me for the first time on one of these meetings, so I ask you to overlook any misbehaviour."

The prince looked at him for a moment, then couldn't hold back the laughter.

"I don't think we've spoken to each other in such a lofty way for ages."

Jack nodded thoughtfully. It would be best if he made a list of all his contacts so he could keep track of relationships and quests completed.

"I think it's okay if we both continue to be casual, though it's not bad practice for my daughter to talk to you differently."

"yes yes, always a goal in mind, it must have been difficult growing up with him."

"Your Highness, I don't know what to say."

"Don't worry, as my good friend's daughter, no one will blame you even if you are rude."

The prince gave Maya a friendly nod, then his expression suddenly turned serious.

"But I am not here just to greet you, old friend. I also come here on an unpleasant matter. I'm sure you already know that my little half-sister has been kidnapped."

Jack looked at the other man and nodded slowly.

"I heard about it when my ship was searched before we left. Terrible thing."

Outwardly he seemed perfectly calm, but secretly his heart was pounding in his throat.

"Hic"

Both men turned to Maya in surprise. She had put both hands in front of her mouth and was trying to suppress a hiccup.

The prince grinned wryly.

"It's been a while since I've had that effect on women."

Maya managed to turn even redder and desperately wished she could sink into the soft cushion of the limousine seat.

"Actually, I had planned to show her something of the world, but if you two are already getting along so well..."

Jack left the sentence unfinished and watched with interest as Maya froze in her seat again. Her eyes darted back and forth between her father and the prince until they both couldn't keep from laughing.

Maya punched her father's arm a few times in frustration while he and the prince lay in each other's arms with tears in their eyes, laughing.