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Bella has watched a simple, managed Martian ecosystem and a glitteringly colorful first city pour procedurally out from assorted points of origin on her computer with a variety of rand seeds, and picked the prettiest result.
She's standing on that ideal origin spot now - the top of Olympus Mons, under a blue-dyed sky and a breathable layer of atmosphere - holding her laptop which holds this specification under her left arm. All present to witness this moment are Alice, Libby, Lazarus, and Bridget.
She defangs a trio of stars: one for the terrain, one for the wildlife, one for the city of Olympus. To be dramatic, she squares them off her bandolier and holds them high in the air between the fingers of her right hand.
"Welcome to Mars," she says.
Wishwishwish.
Moss ripples out from under her feet and carpets the landscape, giving way to forest further downhill and, further away, to freshwater ocean. Birds, startled by their existence, take off. An instant later they're all standing at the foot of her crystalline tower that sits at the center, watching skyscrapers riddled with magical appliances sprout from the ground, and streets pave themselves with smooth tiles.
Bella defangs more stars and lays down what she's taken to calling Ground Rules with another gesture. Mars is going to be peaceful. Mars is going to be safe. Mars is going to watch its people and report to her.
Mars is going to be the seat of the Empire of the Stars.
(There's a flag, on the spire of her tower. It's sky blue, and there are half a dozen seven-pointed stars spangling it. It ripples in the breeze that's begun to waft in from the sea.)
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self_composed
self_composed
"I can, and I don't think the world is being run adequately, so I'm going to supply an alternative," Bella says, unfloating to sit on the steps and look up at the Earth.
edgeofyourseat
"That's nice of you," says Hilary. "So what kinds of things do your magical powers do besides levitation and moon palaces?"
self_composed
"Whatever I want," Bella says. "They are wish-oriented powers. Have any wishes?"
self_composed
"I'm still working out some details, but do you want to see Olympus? That's the city on Mars. I put it on Olympus Mons."
self_composed
Poof!
Bella lands them at tippy-top of her tower. "There's not a lot of differentiated stuff," she says. "People need to move in and make it less empty. But this's my tower, and those are apartment buildings with space for non-residential stuff on the first floors and in the basements, and there's the big park, and there are some smaller ones."
Bella lands them at tippy-top of her tower. "There's not a lot of differentiated stuff," she says. "People need to move in and make it less empty. But this's my tower, and those are apartment buildings with space for non-residential stuff on the first floors and in the basements, and there's the big park, and there are some smaller ones."
edgeofyourseat
"Whoa," says Hilary. "That's..."
She trails off, shakes her head, finishes: "Gorgeous."
She trails off, shakes her head, finishes: "Gorgeous."
self_composed
"Thank you," says Bella brightly. "The ecosystem's a little simple - I figured as long as I was designing it from scratch, I didn't need parasites or predators, just enough scavengers that I don't have to make all the animals sterile and immortal. And of course I don't know about all the plants and animals that exist. So between those factors there's only a few hundred kinds of them, and a comparable number of plants. But that's not something the human eye notices immediately, and I can add stuff later."
self_composed
"There are magical laws operational over the whole planet, preventing people from getting up to too much mischief, and notifying me if they get up to medium-sized amounts," Bella says. "Me and a friend of mine are working on a personnel layer between me and everybody else who'll move in so I'm not stretched too thin." Pause. "Why, do you want a job?"
self_composed
"Yes, but I don't know if housekeeping for Judith is what you want to do for the rest of your life," shrugs Bella. "If it is, more power to you."
self_composed
"I plan to pay people who work for me," says Bella indignantly. "Just, you know, in Imperial Asters." (She is designing these in her head. She is considering making coins be a thing just because they can be so pretty.)
self_composed
"Until there's enough in circulation and Mars is populated enough for me to decouple them, one to one for US dollars."
edgeofyourseat
"Well, that's not terrible, I guess. Want to take me back home before Judith has too many conniptions?"
self_composed
"Sure thing."
Poof!
Bella checks to see if Judith has fainted.
Poof!
Bella checks to see if Judith has fainted.
edgeofyourseat
Judith has not fainted. Actually she's looking much better.
"There's a moon palace," Hilary reports. "And a city on Mars. It's all very pretty."
"Well," says Judith. "Congratulations, your imperial majesty."
She is maybe a little amused. Which is better than stunned, at least.
"There's a moon palace," Hilary reports. "And a city on Mars. It's all very pretty."
"Well," says Judith. "Congratulations, your imperial majesty."
She is maybe a little amused. Which is better than stunned, at least.
self_composed
"Thank you," says Bella, dipping her head politely. "You can carry on calling me Bella if you prefer, though. Since you knew me before, and everything."
self_composed
"Also, unless you move to Mars, I am not your Empress particularly. I considered taking over the world, but this seemed less generally objectionable."
edgeofyourseat
"No," she agrees, "but all the same, being polite to empresses is a good habit to have. Don't you think?"
self_composed
"Yes, I suppose if I meet any others I'll try to be polite to them. I don't suppose you do want to move to Mars?"