The Number One Star in the Interstellar Era

Chapter 722: ARRIVING ONCE AGAIN AS FS08

ASTRID filled Kiran and Snowʼs cups with tea as they took a short break from studying. The three of them nibbled on snacks Astrid had made earlier, enjoying the quiet moment.

Kiran sighed happily after taking a sip. ”This tea is amazing. Itʼs crazy that people canʼt buy this everywhere. Seriously, Aster, you should talk your parents into growing more of this stuff. Their tea could be huge if they expanded the business.”

Snow nodded in agreement. ”If investment is the issue, I can have my father partner with your parents. He loves tea. If he tastes this, he wouldnʼt hesitate to become a major distributor.”

Astrid smiled at them and shook his head. ”My parents arenʼt interested in expanding. Theyʼre happy just supplying our farmʼs goods to Delryria and the neighboring planets.”

”Thatʼs too bad. I really wanted to buy a bunch of this and drink it every morning,” Kiran said, pouting slightly.𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Snow stayed quiet, but his face showed he agreed. Astrid chuckled at their reactions.

”I think my parents might make an exception for you two,” he said. ”Iʼll tell them you want to buy boxes of our tea. Iʼm sure they wouldnʼt mind selling some to you.”

He could just give it to them for free, but he knew these two would think that was too much. Especially Kiran. Just as he expected, both their faces lit up at his offer.

”That would be amazing!” Kiran said.

Snow cleared his throat. ”If itʼs not too much trouble, Iʼd like a whole crate.” Astrid and Kiran both turned to stare at him like heʼd just sprouted a second head. The corner of his mouth twitched upward. ”Iʼm just joking.”

The three of them broke into laughter. Astrid grinned as he watched them, the sound of their amusement filling the apartment.

***

The week moved along steadily as they focused on studying for their upcoming finals. They spent their days reviewing materials, with little time for much else. The two days of finals came and went without much fanfare.

Astrid spent the weekend after finals just relaxing. He wasnʼt particularly worried about his exam results. Even if he didnʼt do well on the written tests, his practical exam scores would still pull his grades up. So he passed the time lounging in bed, reading through his script for [The Shadow Within].

Then, the next week arrived, marking the start of his new schedule. Most of his time would now be spent filming his new movie.

***

Astrid currently sat in a space shuttle on his way to FS08, the film studio planet where they would be filming [The Shadow Within]. Ellis naturally came along with him.𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Heʼd been buzzing with excitement since morning. Part of it was because he missed being on set, but mostly he just couldnʼt wait to start working on this particular movie.

Not to be biased, but [The Shadow Within] was exactly the type of story he loved. Thatʼs why he couldnʼt help feeling excited. After all, heʼd personally chosen this role for himself. Something told him heʼd enjoy playing Dr. Stevens immensely. The character had so many layers that a bad performance could ruin the entire movieʼs interpretation. And if that happened, it would mess up the sequel they had planned to do.

Astridʼs thoughts were cut off when a voice announced they were about to enter FS08ʼs atmosphere and all passengers should fasten their seatbelts. The shuttle shuddered slightly as it passed through the artificial planetʼs atmospheric barrier, a sensation like driving over rough pavement. A short while later, the same voice informed them they had landed. He and Ellis got up immediately when a flight attendant appeared, directing everyone toward the exit.

”I already arranged for our ride,” Ellis said as they walked. ”Thereʼll be a driver waiting for us outside the spaceport.”

Astrid nodded. Since this film wasnʼt a big-budget production, the crew was kept small to save costs. Most were provided by IndieFlix Studioʼs resources. With such a tight crew, every person would be working double duty. Sending someone to fetch them from the spaceport would be an unnecessary drain on their already stretched-thin staff, the kind of diva move that could breed resentment on a modest production like this.

After stepping off the shuttle, Ellis guided him to the spaceportʼs parking area where rows of identical-looking land vehicles were lined up. She scanned the license plates until stopping in front of one.

”This is ours,” she said, then moved to the driverʼs side and typed a code into the keypad on the door.

The driverʼs door slid open and Ellis climbed in. Astrid followed, opening the passenger side and settling into his seat.

Ellis entered their destination into the navigation system, and the land vehicle began moving automatically.

Astrid stared out the window. This was only his second time on FS08 since filming that special episode for [Blind Justice]. It felt like so long ago, even though it hadnʼt even been a year since. Then again, with everything that happened since he and Reas arrived in the capital, it made sense why he felt that way.

”By the way, Sister Ellis, did Director McCann managed to get enough extras?” he asked after a while.

This was one issue heʼd been concerned about. They needed a good number of extras for the movie, but budget constraints made it tricky. Even background actors without lines still cost money - something their production team didnʼt have much of to spare.

”I wouldnʼt say ʼenoughʼ, but itʼll do,” Ellis replied. ”As long as the director knows how to use the same people for different scenes without it being obvious.”

Meaning theyʼd have to carefully reuse extras across multiple shots.

Director McCann could likely handle it, so he shouldnʼt worry too much. But if they needed more extras, should he put in more money himself? Maybe he could ask if anyone wanted to invest in the film. If it came down to it, he still had some funds left in his account. And as a last resort, he could probably borrow from the Grimaldis - though theyʼd most likely just give him the money outright. That was something heʼd prefer to avoid.

As he was still mulling over that, they finally arrived at their destination.