"Are you going to fly after my car again?" Byrant yelled to surpass the cheering.
"Yes." Zell said back. Bryant got in his car and drove down to the space port. Zell followed closely behind him. Masses of people had lined the streets all waving and yelling out their praises to Zell, who had just saved their home, for not only them but for many more generations in the future.
Zell could not help but to blush at the outpouring of affection he was receiving from the citizens of this world. He wondered if this is how it felt to be a celebrity or famous person back on Earth. He smiled at the thought of his grandson seeing him like this and made a mental note to tell him when he got back.
It took ten minutes to reach the spaceport. Ten minutes of flying over the crowds, by the end Zell could not help himself but to smile and wave at his supporters. As Byrant parked his car Zell landed behind him with a massive smile on his face.
"Looks like someone changed their mind about the attention." Byrant said laughing. "It's okay, enjoy it, you have most certainly earned it."
Zell tried to suppress his motions and put on a more stoic face, but there was still a hint of a smile. "Right, well let's get on with this." He said in an attempt to change the subject. "Where can I find the captain that is going to take me to this alien world?"
"That would be me." A man yelled, giving a wave above his head. He was a man of a medium height of five foot nine inches with short cut black hair and brown eyes. He had olive skin and seemed to be in decent shape, although it was hard to tell through his outfit. He was wearing baggy pants that had several pockets, a loose-fitting t-shirt and an oversized black leather jacket. "The name is Skel; it is a pleasure to meet you, Mr. God hero."
"The pleasure is all mine." Zell said. "So, you are the captain that is going to take me to where I need to go?"
"That I am!" Skel said enthusiastically. "There is no better pilot in the whole of this system! I have the fastest ship this sector has ever seen, and I have never once failed a mission. There is no better person you could ask for than me."
"I am happy that the chief was able to procure you on such short notice." Zell said.
"It wouldn't have been hard." Byrant said. "Everything Skel said is true, but he is omitting an important fact. His license was suspended, and his ship impounded because his last so-called mission violated over a dozen intergalactic laws, and he started a war between two civilizations."
"Hey, that wasn't my fault!" Skel protested. "How was I supposed to know that cargo was stolen, and that woman was some kind of royal treasure. I took that job on good faith and nearly lost everything. Last time I fall for the sob story of a woman at a bar, let me tell you."
"Right." Zell said. "Sounds like a wonderful tale of intrigue and mystery, but we have plenty of time to hear it once we are on the way to the other planet, yes?"
"Of course." Skel said. "I am just happy the chief found the wisdom to trust me on this important task."
"There is no denying your skill and the hero deserves the best we can offer." Byrant said. "But please never do that again, also it would be best to stay out of that area of space. There is no telling what kind of bounty they have placed on you now."
"Right." Skel said. "I am not worried though, no one in the galaxy can catch my baby. Speaking of which, it is high time you get to meet her. Follow me god man."
Skel started walking through the port and Zell followed closely behind. The masses were contained outside of the port, but their cheers could still be heard. After a minute of walking, they came to a ship that was unlike any Zell had seen before. He watched the space shuttles launch and rockets launch back on Earth, but the design of this ship was totally alien to him.
It had five sides and small wings. On the back of the ship was a type of thruster but it did not appear to be one of fire that Zell was familiar with on Earth.
"Isn't she glorious?" Skel said. "Now come, let's get you inside."
They walked up a ramp and entered the inside of the ship. It was fairly roomy although at Zell's size it was not quite spacious enough. He stood just three inches from the ceiling, but at least he did not have to bend over. "It is a nice ship." Zell said.
"Yeah, best in the galaxy." Skel said, taking a deep breath. "God how I have missed the way she smells." He thought about what he had just said for a second. "By God, I don't mean you, it's just an expression."
"Welcome back captain." A computerized voice said over the income. The voice sounded female in nature. "I have missed having you ride me."
Skel cleared his throat loudly. "Yes darling!" He shouted. "This is God hero man; he is a very important VIP if you know what I mean."
"Yes captain." The voice said. "Welcome to my insides God Hero Man. I hope you find me an agreeable fit for you."
"My name is Zell." Zell said. "I am sorry I did not introduce myself earlier."
"Zell is a hell of a name." Skel said. "Almost sounds like mine."
"Right, about your computer…" Zell said.
"Veronica is an AI." Skel said. "I honestly have no idea why she chooses those specific word choices, but there is no better partner in the galaxy that I would after fly with."
"I am only speaking in the manner that provides you with the most joy, captain." Veronica said. "After all you are the one who has been with me since I was born, you raised me to be this way."
"Tour time!" Skel shouted out to change the subject. "If you would please follow me I will show you to your quarters." Skel walked over to the eastern side of the ship and opened an automated door. "In here are the guest quarters. It is fully equipped with all you could ever need on a fancy space voyage. We have a bed and a shower, although admittedly the shower will be a bit tight of a fit and so will the bed. Sorry about that. This ship was not built with people of your size in mind.
On average space travelers are smaller. I am considered tall in my profession if you can believe it. Basically, it stems from smaller people requiring less resources to survive so it lowers the overall cost of flying." Skel could tell he was losing Zell's interest. "Speaking of resources, I have already stocked your cabin with the finest Trolvallian whiskey money can buy. It is just like regular whiskey only has zero hang over. Stuff is amazing."
"Thanks." Zell said. "That is unnecessary though, I just need speedy transport."
"Right!" Skel said. "Speedy transport is what you shall get my man! I mean my god! My god man!"
"Just Zell is fine." Zell said.
"Of course." Skel said. "Veronica please set a course to Tilm."
"Tilm is home of the Tilites." Veronica said. "They do not like to be bothered by lesser life forms; it is a violation of intergalactic law to go there without a sufficient reason. Do you wish you continue?"
"Yes, we have a plenty good reason to go." Skel said.
"Setting course." Veronica said. "Estimated time of arrival is seven galactic units."
"Alright then let's get this show on the road." Skel said.
"How long is a galactic unit?" Zell asked.
"I really have no way of answering that." Skel said. "I don't know what unit of time you use, so I have no reference to base it off of. It is close to what we used to consider a day before we joined the intergalactic community. Turns out ninety percent of planets pass their time on their planet's rotation around their star and their day and night cycle. The intergalactic community got together and found the average time that takes across all known inhabited planets and came up with a galactic unit as a standard of time for the galaxy. Does that help?"
"So roughly seven days." Zell said.
"Right." Skel said. The ship began to shake as the clamps retracted beneath them and the ship began to fly. It effortlessly defied gravity and left the planet within seconds of lift off.. Zell was now on his way to meet the most advanced species in this highly advanced universe.