A Starship Called Starsong

Chapter 71

I glanced down at my uniform to make sure it was spotless. I was procrastinating, and I knew it. I was about to be the hostess for half a dozen of the most influential and powerful people in explored space. And I had only had a day's notice to prepare for it. I was rather thankful for the support of my crew as they each did their own small part to make it flow together in an almost effortless fashion.

"You are mistaken. The Starships and their Captains hold the title for the most influential and powerful. This group just hasn't realized it yet."

If that wasn't an attempt to boost my ego and my confidence, then I didn't know what was. I was still anxious, although I was hiding my true emotions as easily as I did in university. I took a deep breath to settle my nerves before taking the last step that would activate the main access door.

A group of eighteen people was just approaching the base of the ramp. Six were from the Intergalactic Space Commission, and the other twelve came from various groups on this planet who were somehow involved in yesterday's events. Representatives from Space Enforcement, Planetary Defenses, the docking station, and the city were present, along with the two Captains from the Elite Destroyers. One man from the Deviant Monitoring Group was also present.

I walked down the ramp in a dignified and welcoming fashion before greeting them once I was within speaking distance. "Thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedules to come. Please, be welcome on Starsong and join me for an evening meal."

One of the men in front responded, "Thank you for your hospitality. We are pleased to be your guests."

I guided them to the fanciest meeting room we had as we made small talk about their trip up here. The seats already had plates and the proper cutlery in front of them. The table was arranged in a square with an opening in the middle, allowing us to see everyone else. This also meant that there was no 'head' of the table, which made all seats equal.

They all chose a seat and had barely sat down when small sections of the table slid open to allow platters of food to rise up from a hidden conveyer belt below. There was a nearly invisible track on the inner edge of the center hollow that allowed the food to slowly circle around the entire table in front of everyone, letting them take portions of what they wanted and put it into their own plate. No other people had to enter the room to take food orders or deliver the meals.

They had not expected such a level of sophistication on a spaceship. The six men from the Intergalactic Space Commission would have seen such a system in some of the more extravagant places, but the others were staring at the circling food in wonder.

We all helped ourselves to the appetizers and various dishes as the main course circled around. Talk was of relatively minor and unimportant topics; they were clearly waiting until after the meal to get down to the serious business.

The Cooking Overseer had gone full-out again, and it was entertaining to watch the men as the desserts appeared. They only took one or two things to sample at first, but after the first bite, they tried a bit of everything – and then went back for seconds, or even thirds, of their favorite desserts.

I was pleasantly full and took care to avoid passing that point despite the delicacies which kept passing right in front of me. I had no idea where the others managed to put that much food... And they had clearly approved of it all judging from how often they had taken seconds or thirds during the entire meal.

One man finished his last bite of some sort of creamy square with a satiated sigh. "It has been a long time since I have had food this good. Please send my compliments to the chef. But in the meantime, I believe we should address the reason as to why we have gathered for this excellent meal."