Quoted By:
<span class="mu-b">"Dad... how do you get a girl to like you?"</span>
"Ohh, so you are having girl troubles, Son? Haha. That's a tough one. See, I took the long road. I never really was good with girls until I met your mother..."
<span class="mu-b">"I don't understand? I thought you were a real lady's man, Dad."</span>
"Oh no Son. I was a total loser. Didn't you know? I was a common laborer, no wealth or status in the Hegemony. Alpha men that age and level in society don't have many long term prospects- I was patient. I was only that ship that discovered the liminals for the first time to help carry around moonrocks, or to act as security in case on of the crew members developed SPACE MADNESS, you know, that kind of thing. But then, I had my chance to shine and ended up getting promoted. I was given more training, people above noticed and rewarded me. Eventually, they introduced me to your mother from the indigo program and we hit it off- I had never been with a women until I was many times your age, my boy."
<span class="mu-b">"But I don't understand... Weren't there girls you liked? Not just, you know, <span class="mu-i">wanted</span> but actually really liked?"</span>
"Well, I guess there were, Son. But I couldn't really do anything about it. The Hegemony still supports the ideal of one man, one woman, for life relationships as being the best for society- even if the real world doesn't always work out that way. I let them pass me by. And a few years from now- girls the same age as you will go quick, Son. Let me give you some advice; if you really, really care about this girl- if you really truly think you can't focus on your career and life first and you absolutely think she's the one- then you need to make sure she knows how you feel and go for it. Don't wait, or else you'll live with regret."
<span class="mu-b">"Hmm. Alright, Thanks Dad. Come back in one piece."</span>
"I will. This I promise. Goodbye!"
You never knew that about your father. The way the Hegemony wants men to enter relationships- older, experienced men married off to young women. It makes more sense now when you consider it. But do you really want to wait until you are an old man? By then Kima will... be with someone else. You don't want that to happen. You need to take your chance.
Finally, you are back to being <span class="mu-i"><span class="mu-s">Kima Dulioan</span></span>.
Enduring the days of long training, the sores, and the little knicks and cuts- you have finally moved on to lethal strikes. In the Red Room, the AI referee can be turned on and uses a gravity-beam to stop a strike before it goes lethal- piercing the skin and bleeding. It's as close as a fight to the death as you can get. Its nerve wracking, even though you know it's perfectly safe...
Your much taller, stronger sparring partner sweeps his knife towards your face, which would angle into your eyesocket- if not for the instant the machine stops the blow.
<span class="mu-r">"Stop!"</span>
"Haha, I got you, girl!"
