When she woke again, Amelia realized she had left the Cobra-class Destroyer and returned to the room where she had lived for many years.
Warm, bright sunlight fell through the window. The cozy furnishings did much to ease her fatigue and unease, making it seem as if her desperate flight had all been a hallucination. Even the oversized Hogg body pillow beside her seemed just as real as ever.
But when Amelia got up and saw the glass ornament on her bedside table, she knew for certain that what had happened hadn't been a hallucination. Inside the little glass ball was the very Cobra-class Destroyer they had been aboard.
Amelia realized her memories must have been stolen. There was no other way to explain everything in the room. But just as she was about to take a closer look, the door opened from the outside, and a fair-skinned girl with a shimmering red-scaled serpent tail in place of her lower body walked in.
"Esteemed guest, I am the maid created especially for you. I hope you've been satisfied with our hospitality. Grand Duke Menethil would like to invite you to afternoon tea. Please follow me!"
"Who's Menethil?"
Perhaps offended by Amelia's question, the maid corrected her.
"She is Grand Duchess Sera Menethil, commander of the Federation's distant fleet, exterminator of Xenos, art collector, Creator of fantastical creatures, builder of the Men of Iron legions, and a woman of peerless wisdom who has surpassed the limits of mortal intellect!"
The girl's voice was graceful and clear. Combined with her shimmering silver hair and a face at least eighty percent like Hogg's, it made it hard for Amelia to refuse her request.
Without the slightest resistance, Amelia obediently followed her out. The moment she stepped outside, she was confronted with a scene