applepie

Well, finally the brain is starting to function and I'm working to make some time to write. This is just a start to the first chapter, but hey it is better than nothing. Feel free to leave any feedback here or as a PM. I'm off to bed before I drop to sleep at the computer. Enjoy:) :) :)

~Meg~

Chapter 1

Arabella surveyed her appearance in the mirror as she began to tuck one last curl into the tight knot at the back of her head. She was a lovely girl with black hair that cascaded to her waist in curls when left unbound. She had a heart shaped face with a pert nose, but her lips were just a little too full for her face to be truly stunning. The most unique thing about her appearance was the large aquamarine eyes that stared out at you as if they could look right to your soul. Without such unique eyes, fringed by thick black lashes Arabella would have been merely attractive, but those eyes made anyone who looked upon her think she was a great beauty.
With her hair firmly secured Arabella turned to collect her travel bag. As she did so it was impossible to miss the bareness of the room. Not three days before the room had been filled with ornate furniture and tokens of her life. Now, the large canopy bed that had been draped in silk the color of the night sky had been tucked away in a storage unit with all her other worldly belongings to await her return. The few personal items of importance, like the picture of her parents, sister, and niece were already stowed aboard the shuttle so as not to be forgotten at departure.
This would be Arabella’s last journey the duration of which was expected to last six months. The company for which she worked had made it possible for an early retirement at the very young age of twenty five. It helped that the last seven years of Arabella’s life had been devoted to the design and manufacture of spacecraft that were at the leading edge of technology. Not only was Arabella a gifted engineer, but she was also well skilled in the programming of onboard computers as well as piloting deep-space craft. Today was actually the final step in the design process for the newest Ara space craft, a line fully engineered and tested by Arabella. The newest model was the Ara X. The craft was capable of reaching the closest galaxy in only a single week. Other spacecraft models required at least a month to travel the same distance. Arabella had managed to cut the time that it would take to make the same journey by devising a way to actually create small tunnels through space. The Ara X would actually move through a series of these tunnels, from one visible landmark to another at four times the speed the shuttle would normally fly. In laboratory tests the technology had been perfected and now all that was left to do is test the working equipment in the spacecraft.
Without a backward glance, Arabella walked out the door to a waiting cab. There was a nervous energy about her as she instructed the driver to take her to the Orion Station. The Orion Station was the main hub for space travel in the area and it was from there that she would be departing on her journey. She turned her head to the window of the cab and proceeded to watch the passing skyline. It crossed her mind that it was going to be quite a long period of time before she returned to her home in Miami, Florida. She might as well look her fill before boarding the Ara X so that there are no lingering thoughts or regrets that she didn’t look at the city one last time before leaving. Miami had been her home for the past seven years, ever since she left home and joined the ranks of prodigies at VegaTech.