In the evening after Ketis arrived at Diandi Base, Ves and his family accompanied and entertained the Swordmaiden mech designer.
Ketis impressed the children with her tales of adventure and her feats of swordsmanship. She also talked shop with Ves and Gloriana by talking about her ongoing work on the Stormblade Samurai Mark II.
It didn't look as if she was an old friend on a visit instead of going on a pure business trip.
As far as Ves was concerned, Ketis was part of the family. She was more than just another Larkinson. She was a trusted comrade in arms, a long-time collaborating mech designer and a powerful warrior in her own right. All of these reasons and more prompted Ves to treat her as a relative who was closer to him than many trueblood Larkinsons.
Once the evening dragged on, Ves and Gloriana patiently put their children to bed and kissed them good night in order to enjoy their sweet dreams.
