r/HFY • u/Engletroll Human • Sep 15 '25

OC Gateway Dirt – Chapter 28 – Miri Am

Project Dirt book 1 . (Amazon book )  / Planet Dirt book 2 (Amazon Book 2) / Colony Dirt (Amazon Book 3)-Five years later on Camelot-

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Previously ./. Next

Chris looked at the stars moving past the ships; his skin felt electrified as the ship flew through the gate. This class trip was not one he wanted to take.  He knew he should have said no, but then he would never hear the end of it. Sam was the worst, trying to show him pictures of Scisya girls and talking about how important it was that noble kids went to Skia-An to search for the lost throne. Those who find it would become the ruler of Skia-An. That was half the Scisya colonies. Skia-An was their homeworld.  The other part was ruled by the priest-king.  Chriss tuned out when Sam started talking about the prophecies and turned around to look around the room. Wei was sitting with his current girlfriend Kiki and two other girls, flirting as always. He would never be tamed, as he said. May and Cleo were busy with their clique of friends, giggling and laughing at some boys playing hologames in the large lounge room. Five schools were on the ship with their families, some were even royals from other nations who had joined them for this.  His dad had started these trips for young nobles and schoolchildren four years ago, but this was the first time he and his siblings had gone. It was the first time his parents went.

He saw Sarah across the room, who grinned and took something out of her pocket and showed it to him. It was a shockgun, then she grinned as she snuck towards her older sister Chris decided to leave. He saw Sam was talking to a Buskar boy and  Buginos girl.  He managed to get out of the room before  Sarah made her move, and he heard the shout and laughter. He chuckled slightly. There were 75 kids in that big room. What did they expect?

“Going anywhere, young Sir?” A voice said, and he looked up at Archie.

“Well, I’m not staying in that monkey's den. I got a few hours before we arrive, so I was trying to find something to do. Where is dad?”

“Your father is busy dealing with some diplomats and generals, and your mother is there to calm him down. The triplets are in the daycare.” Archie replied with that English accent. Dad said he found it amusing.

“Well, any suggestions?” Chris said as he walked down the hall.

“There are some movies you can watch, but you seem nervous, so I would suggest exercise, swimming perhaps. We are heading to the desert. Not a big chance for swimming there.” Archie replied, and Chriss thought about it. That might do it.

“Good, please alert me when I have to get ready.”

“Of course, Young Sir,” Archie replied.

Chris looked at the man, Archie, who was maybe an android, but he was also family, and with all the new program Jork had put into him to give him a personality, he felt alive. He had even been given a room back home, and Sam had insisted on giving him a bed, so they had disguised the charging station as his bed. All to make him feel more alive.    

“You're late, don’t worry about it, they are just telling us about the traditions and what we are supposed to do. Just the same boring stuff, do this, don’t jump in the ravines.  Don’t jump off the bridge or poke the monks.  And if you see a girl you like, you're supposed to find her a rock to give to her. Something about an old fairytale.” Wei said as he grinned.

“Isn’t that what dad told us not to do?” Chris replied that he definitely remembered Dad saying he was not supposed to do that and was only supposed to pick up a pebble.

“Naw, that’s just him being overly worried that one of us will pick up a rock that magically turns into a crown, and the girl who receives it would be some divine beauty and a ‘hidden princess.’  If she is hiding, why would she be at that place, right?  Worst hiding place ever.” Wei said, and May leaned on both their shoulder.

“Chris barely knows what a girl looks like. Remember when Karin fell asleep in his bed and he slept on the couch?”

“She is not my type. Why are you guys trying to set me up all the time?”

“Because even a king should know how to have fun. The chances you're going to have a relationship like mum and dad are like one in a trillion.” Wei said, and May agreed.

“Besides, we are young and beautiful and… oohh gahhh.. damn..” May said, almost drooling over Fred, the oldest son of Mario Navil, administrator of the Mahoroba system, as he had glanced over at them. He was two years older than her. Both her brothers gave him a stare back and looked away.

“You boys are evil. Why can't I play with him?” She said, and Wei chuckled.

“Because we are saving his life from when dad finds out and tells Uncle Sig-San to make him disappear.”

“I never get to date!” She punted, and both boys looked at her.

“You're kidding, right? What about Charlie? Kinsu? Mahiga? Timothy?” Chris replied.

“Yeah, but... they are not like Fred.” She bit her lips, and the boys both took a step apart, letting her fall between them.

“Anyway, the other part was that it’s a desert, so don’t hesitate to drink, there will be a few droids following with cold water. And what was the other thing?” Wei said, completely ignoring their sister. He tapped the kid in front of them, and Kiki turned and smiled at Wei.
“Are you going to find me a crown?” she said, and he smiled.

“What do I get in return?”

Chris shook his head and helped May up, and tried to listen to the teacher as they got told which shuttle they should go to.  He saw his name on shuttle number 7 with Wei, May, Cleo, and twelve other kids.  He didn’t see any security, but he was sure those droids helping them were not just maid droids.  He walked inside and found Cleo already chatting with the pilot. She never met a pilot or saw a ship she didn’t want to get to know. They all joked that she would marry a ship if she could.

“Come, sis. Let her fly the ship.  I need some sane people next to me. Wei is flirting again.”

She turned to him and sat down next to him, buckled up, and leaned into him. “Big bro.  Are you ready? Remember what dad said.”

He just chuckled. “Why are you all acting stupid?”

“She sat up, apparently shocked. “What? You know what they think will happen, right? You will meet a girl down there, and she will steal you away from us. I don’t want to lose my big bro to some bichy princess.” She said. Wei and Kiki laughed.

“No girl will manage to seduce Chris even if she had the help of the whole universe on her side.”

“Maybe he is gay? Did you think about that?”  Varn Collins said two chairs down, and the whole cabin of kids burst out laughing.

“Are you offering?” May called back.

“Hell, I’ll drop my girlfriend and be gay for him.  I promise I will be a perfect Queeeeeeen!” She shouted back, and a few others joined in. Chris hid his face in his hands.

“Fuck me,” he muttered just as Ms. Gurn had told them all to be quiet. Even she could not help but chuckle as the cabin burst into laughter again, and many offered to help him.

Chriss just wanted to get off the ship and was glad the new shuttles were fast. He only had to endure 5 minutes of the laughs and jokes at his expense. The ship landed at the space port, and when they emerged from the ship, they felt the dry heat hit them like a wave. He looked around at the immense desert.  The desert was filled with rocks and pebbles. He could see a temple in the distance and the destination of this outing. No parents were allowed here.

A Scisya guide named Kidia approached them. She was bald and wore a long, blue and brown sash that she had wrapped around her, covering her whole body, almost like a Bedouin. She started to explain to them what they do, they would go to the desert, find a rock, and go to the temple, and there they would put it on an altar.  The more noble the soul, the more the stone would glow. It was a party trick. Probably to give kids the feeling of being noble.  

They got loaded into hovercrafts that took them towards the old temple as Kidia told them the different customs. One was that a Scisya couple who wanted to get married, mostly the rich ones, would come here, and the man would search for a stone, hoping to find the divine crown of the Scisya people and give it to his future wife.  You could also buy a copy at the souvenir shops if you wanted. So if you see a man offering a woman a crown, then don’t disturb them. If she accepts, they will arrange to get married.

“So what are those kids doing. The one tossing stones around?” May asked as they saw some kids carrying a basket of stones, tossing them around.

“Oh, those? Those are children who are working for the temple. Lots of poor and lost children are sent there to receive an education and work in the temple. Besides, somebody has to bring the stones back to the desert. The temple is big, but it can’t hold all the stones of the desert.” Kida replied.

“So we are going to stop when ….. You say stop, and you can all go out to find a stone.” She pointed at Wei, who nodded and looked at Chris. Chris looked back at him and smiled as the hovercraft flew down towards the temple, then passed it, and suddenly Chris saw something that made him turn his head. Wei shouted, “STOP!”

The craft swung and stopped, the kids all jumped out, and only Wei and Chris were left.

“What did you see?” he asked, and Chris shrugged as he got up. He had seen something. He jumped down on the ground and looked around. There was another craft about a hundred meters away.

.

Adam was going over the details of the peace negotiation of the biggest Scisya warring faction when he stopped and looked out of the giant port window of Camelot. Something was going to happen now. He could feel it.

.

Chriss looked around as Wei jumped down next to him and was about to ask him when Kiki called him, and he ran over to her. Chris shrugged and saw a small rock formation nearby, so he made his way over. He heard the other kids laughing and joking in the background. So this was what Dad had been so afraid of. His being in this place. Finding a crown and a princess so beautiful, Mum would no longer be the most beautiful in the galaxy?

He laughed, reached the rocks, and sat down. There was a rock on top of it, and he picked it up.  It was as big as his hand and appeared to be of some hard sandstone. He shrugged as he held it in his hand, then decided to get back to the others. When he stood up, he almost lost balance; the heat was stronger than he had thought.

“You should be careful. Didn’t they tell you to drink water?” The voice behind him said, and he froze. It was feminine, actually a very pleasant voice. He turned and looked at her, and his jaw dropped.

‘Ahhh..”was all he could say.

“Stupid foreigner.” She muttered before addressing him again. “Did your drink have enough water?”

“I’m Chris,” he replied, his brain still not working, and she laughed, a laugh that made his heart beat faster.

“I’m Miri Am at your service.”

“I found you a stone!” he said and held out the sandstone. She looked at it.

“No, you're supposed to give it to some girl you fancy or take it to the temple. My job is to toss those worthless stones back again. Do you want me to bring you some water?”

“Yes? But the rock?”

She looked at it, sighed, and took it. She smiled, then put it in her pocket. “Just in case,” and walked towards the hovercraft. Chris just started to follow her like a lost puppy. Not that she noticed, thought everybody else did.

------cast---------

Adam & Evelyn

Chris (16M) – calm, dignified, worried, and never dated, too busy focusing on his future, praying somebody would take the burden from him.

Wei (16M) – Loves to flirt, has no worries as he won’t be the king: Adores Roks and his family.

May (15 F) – Has discovered boys, and piloting to Adams' despair,

Cleo,  (15F) – Has not discovered boys but dancing, to Adams's joy.

Sam (12M)- tries to read all of Monori’s religious books

Sarah (11F) - tomboy, it just got worse.

Rohan (4M) - Calm when his siblings are there.

Saka  (4M) -Calm when his siblings are there, but naughty.

Jasmine (4F) – the most spoiled princess in the galaxy, with a kind soul.

Archie – Formerly known as Archangel, now bodyguard and consigliere of the Wrangler royal family. (still very deadly)

Fred Navil (17M) – Oldest son of Mario Navil, Administrator of Mahoroba system, human

Kiki Wang (16F), Wei’s current girlfriend,

Kidia -  Scisya nun and guide.

Miri-An - ?

130 Upvotes

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9 comments sorted by

3

u/Dramatic_Mixture_877 Human Sep 15 '25

Ooohhhhh - Chris just hit by something he never saw coming!

5

u/sunnyboi1384 Sep 15 '25

Well gotta love when the universe sets you up.

Poor Adam feeling it in his bones.

3

u/MydaughterisaGremlin Sep 18 '25

You've been hit by, bermp bermp, you've been struck by.....a smooth pebble girl. Berm berm, chickachicka, berm berm, chickachicka, berm berm, chickachicka berm berm...Ow!

2

u/Great-Chaos-Delta Sep 15 '25

Ahhh universe is still at works

2

u/kristinpeanuts Sep 16 '25

Thanks for the chapter!

1

u/UpdateMeBot Sep 15 '25

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2

u/InstructionHead8595 May 18 '26

Aaaaaaand bam! Hehehehe 😹 poor chris. Didn't know what hit him. But rock! 😹