"Our Grandfathers are brothers.
There were seven of them, who had a son or daughter of their own.
Every single one of them went on to birth their own children.
Just like our parents, only a single child was born.
While my grandfather was the youngest out of his siblings, I am the eldest among us cousins." Zaro smiled as he turned to look at the other six members of his extended family that came along to the Space.
Esmond immediately noticed the five heads looking up for a second, only to return to their food moments later.
He noted them all down as people of interest that he had to reach out to while they remained in the Space.
Even though he wasn't enthusiastic about hosting nobles and citizens of the Atlaesus Empire, Esmond wanted to relate with his cousins in some aspect or another.
Afraid of what would happen if his mother heard he mistreated family, Esmond decided to accept them for now, unless their personalities didn't mix well.
Zaro appeared to be quite a jumpy and active personality that felt highly extrovert and willing to understand what others might consider troublesome or time-consuming effort.
Esmond didn't mind this at all and believed they might get along with one another fairly well, but the person that attracted his attention the most was someone who wasn't considered a noble among the group.
Vos Albequin, a citizen of the Atlaesus Empire, and descendent from House Caesares, had a Bloodline ability unlike the others and more in line with the core beliefs of House Caesares.
Esmond's enhanced senses helped him understand Vos had an aura of a leader and the mindset of a statesmen that could be interchanged for management.
While Vos aura was suppressed right now, Esmond felt it was paper thin and only becoming more prominent the further he ate.
Making a mental note to help recruit Vos to his side, Esmond focused on the other people who were his cousins.
There were 3 boys and 4 girls, who were all over the age of 21 and considered the heirs of their Houses.
As the third generation to inherit a Branch House of the Atlaesus meant they were the last to rule, with their children either able to take a citizen status or establish their own noble House.
Depending on their efforts leading up to 21 and what they could achieve up until 25 would dictate their noble status.
Only a few bothered with this because focusing on civil matters was a duty of the Atlaesus House, which most people weren't keen on performing for their entire life.
Esmond believed this was a brash system that only worked because the citizens who left the Atlaesus Empire for the freeworld, still worked as operatives and agents of the Empire in some manner or another.
They had a strong allegiance to their homeland and above all else they wanted nothing to ever harm its prestige that made it invincible.
Thinking ahead of time, Esmond wondered if he could utilise the Atlaesus citizens out in the free world of Earth.
This could only happen after Atlaesus joined the Space entirely and removed itself from Earth, which according to Carter was a thin line of itself.
He didn't say anything more on the subject since Carter wanted Esmond to experience the majesty of the Empire through his own eyes.
.
"Well… Cousin.
This place… the Space is my home and to all of those who live within it, regardless of their species race.
Everyone here serves the Space and its welfare, in which helps my growth outside the Spatial Ark Star World on Earth and beyond.
Let me show you what I mean."
Esmond directed everyone's attention to the large screen T.V that was measured in metres rather than Inches.
A video that showed the changes of Mars from the establishment of the underground laboratory and bunker to the sprouting of fungus, vegetation and eventually jungles that littered across the planet with massive oceans.
Life from the Space had proliferated the planet, such as the Veveliaans, Zadrisians, Thazukraans, Yautja and Great Warring Clans.
The Arch Primordial Elves that wanted to head over first took on the task of managing the Extension Branch of the World Tree.
Most of the High Dwarves went over to help the construction of cities and towns across the planet.
Seeing it all left the Atlaesus Group completely out of breath.
They'd already met with the Elves and Dwarves earlier in the Space since the Dragons always got snacks from the two races when they visited.
The girls weren't going to introduce them to anything too overwhelming, but the two cheeky Dragons had their own plans that left Amelia whining and miserable that her strength wasn't comparable to either Dragon.
She understood they would be stronger because they mostly fought all day long in the toughest regions of both Stovi and Astelan, while bringing their hunted creatures back to the Space, only to increase their power further.
Amelia estimated previously that they weren't too far ahead of her but after seeing how they went out their own way of introducing their home, Amelia and the girls could only watch helplessly right then.
.
"… I didn't believe Grandma when she said you'd taken Mars…
I stand corrected." Geneviève Atlaesus'Kryn of House Atlaeskryn said, with her silvery coloured eyes that were shaded with a slight tinge of gold.
She was a warrior above all else but seeing the untouched beauty of Mars sculpted daily into a land of abundance and freedom.
Geneviève thought she might be able to score herself a deployment to Mars, but she understood Esmond wasn't one to help those who he knew nothing about.
Zaro tried to bridge the gap, but it would take time and require patience.
"So, the Old Man is spreading the news around to others…" Esmond said, only to notice the contorted faces of all the Atlaesus group members.
"Cousin… I understand things might not be well between the Empire and yourself, but you shouldn't address the Emperor in such manner.
He is your grandfather after all." Zaro tried to help Esmond understand why they all looked a little annoyed and bothered by what was said, but Esmond said nothing back.
Staring back at each of the Atlaesus group members, Esmond finally sighed before getting up and asking Carter to move them all to the newly built and unused gaming lounge.
A section of the Cabin Home was set up to include dozens upon dozens of Full Body Dive Gears which surprised the Atlaesus group after they were told how it worked.
Thinking of somewhat to better understand his cousins and the others of the Atlaesus Group, Esmond decided playing Stellar Wars together or one of the other projects he developed in his free time.
After everyone set themselves up with the help of the maids and butlers, Esmond told them all to prepare themselves for the journey of a lifetime as they all dove into the Virtual World.
Esmond left the choice of the game to Geneviève, only to find out she selected Stellar Wars, so he asked Carter to contact Felix and Louis to join in as well.
Leaving the Atlaesus Group to make their own choices in the game for now, Esmond watched how the girls progressed for the time being since they hadn't played the game up until now.
Igdra also joined the game after returning from Atlaesus once Carter informed her about their plans.
She had to go through the same process as the others as a new player, which left Esmond, Carter, and Echo with some time to spare as they waited for Louis and Felix to join.
.
"This is insane!!" screamed Geneviève as she finished the tutorial which lasted for several days in game, but it was nothing more than several minutes in the Spatial Ark Star World.
Over the several days she spent learning about the galactic world from her 'homeland' which were preselected so everyone would spawn close by one another.
Geneviève found nobody during her tutorial phase but up until now she couldn't care since she had too much fun meeting new people, even if they were NPCs, they all behaved like actual people.
You couldn't distinct them real or fake which was the real immersive factor for Geneviève that she absolutely loved about the game.
So far, she'd come across several dozen or so NPCs that all aligned themselves with her to create a small mercenary organisation to fight planetary based wars.
She wanted to lead their mercenary organisation to become an interplanetary force that could change the tide of wars through their force.
Bloodlines could also be adapted into the game according to Carter but for now Esmond wanted to see how everyone would fair without access to their hidden abilities.
Surprisingly, everyone fared well after some time passed.
Zaro found himself creating a merchant organisation that quickly found itself as a leading figure across his 'home world' but unlike Geneviève, Zaro focused on taking hold of the planet, so he had a strong foundation for his organisation.
Vos created his own mercenary force, much like Geneviève but he came across the son of a provincial region on the outskirt of the Star System.
After finishing the tutorial, Vos left with his new friend and forces to start his new career, utterly curious to see and experience the world of Stellar Wars.
So far, they heard nothing from Esmond, but after settling in for roughly 1 month in game time, they eventually heard from him.
"Kristoff, we need to leave now!"
"Just a minute…"
"No!
We leave NOW!!"
Ingrid couldn't help but curse at Kristoff once she grabbed a hold of this arm and dragged him away from the wrecked spaceships planet side.
Kristoff Alexi Romanov, a scientist and engineer who preferred to get his hands dirty instead of relying on others.
After being notified about a wreck on the outskirts of the city, Kristoff took Ingrid, an NPC he'd come across during the tutorial phase and recruited to his side.
She also happened to be a Warrior which greatly helped Kristoff stay safe during his wild outings, but it didn't always go as either wanted.
This time round, Kristoff found some data in one of the ships that produced an 'ancient' A.I System, but due to the damage of the data, it required extensive repair work before being useable.
Looking over the data, one line at a time to check for any indecencies, Kristoff was dragged along by Ingrid while they dodged the incoming laser shots and missiles.
The two of them were an Adventurer duo who decided to create their own spaceship instead of buying one.
According to Kristoff, it was smarter and a better decision overall for their future plans and decisions, as it would ensure their ability to survive in the middle of battles and wars.
Being hacked, leading to their ships being unable to defend themselves was a real possibility within Stellar Wars, especially with the number of enemies always chasing them.
Out of sheer luck, Kristoff came across a Legacy that changed his basic Class to an Engineer, and one that could work across several fields and subjects without conflicting against their core style and design beliefs.
Once they got away from the shipwrecks, Ingrid felt like it was time to discuss plans to further expand their group of two, but before that an invitation was sent Kristoff, asking him to accept immediately as it came directly from Esmond.
Seeing no harm, Kristoff accepted and disappeared along with Ingrid from their spawned Homeworld and appeared on Esmond's flagship, Ark Ship that was roughly 10km long and around 4km wide.
The two found themselves spawning alongside the other Atlaesus Group members including their recruited NPCs.
Zaro was the only one to find a Virtual Profile Intelligence playing the game, who also happened to spawn on the same planet.
Recruiting the V.P Intelligence when they eventually came across each other, Zaro asked Snake Charm, the V.P Intelligence to take over their espionage and information division within the merchant organisation.
.
Everyone connected to a member of the Atlaesus Group who'd started playing were either left behind if they were to low of a level or brought along to the extravagant Ark Ship, leaving them all surprised at the sheer strength within Esmond's grasp.
"Welcome to the Ark Class Starship, Le'Gandri!
Please follow the Starship Staff members to the Reception Hall.
Lord Esmond will be with you shortly…"