by Juliet Sem
Dinus chose to return foodstuffs as his gift to Shatopa, presenting the senator with a sample case of cans of a common Autocracy root crop that could be opened, heated, and served as a vegetable right out of the can or mashed and mixed with flour and made into a flatbread popular throughout the Autocracy.
He gave the senator of Chtawlikt a tall table in a lovely green wood that he assured her was the wood's natural cured color. She stood next to the table and saw that it was the perfect height for her to use without having to either stoop down or look up at it. Her antennae quivered and bobbled in pleasure, and her pincer-jaws remained politely immobile as she thanked Dinus for the table.
The gift exchange over, Keestu and the others were dismissed and went up to the royal family's rooms on the third floor, while the king, queen, senators, and Prince Dinus retired to the first floor drawing room for a private meeting.
Chapter six
Several days later, the details of Keestu's visit to the Autocracy were decided. Keestu would take two suitcases of clothing, while Rue would take four large suitcases. Another suitcase carried grooming equipment for both the young women, and Mewa additionally insisted they take a suitcase of prepackaged food.
They would take Sandar's Jewel, one of the royal family's space liners, and accompany Prince Dinus's ship first to the Union's space station the Hub before going on to Autocracy Station via a pass-through of the Rillul system. After they arrived at Autocracy Station, they were assured an Autocracy vessel appropriate to the Crown Princess's station would be put at her disposal. As Vahin had told Keestu, Tenget was to guard Keestu, Gontu to guard Rue, and Vahin would go as Rue's adviser, but no others were to go, a show of the confidence King Ismer had in both his daughter and her companions, and his trust in their soon to be trading partners.
Sandar's Jewel had landed in the clear zone outside the palace walls since the palace's landing pad was filled by Prince Dinus's ship and Sandar's Star. The small crew stood at rigid attention while Prince Dinus escorted Rue to the Jewel. He explained he wanted to give the Autocracy's communication frequency information to the Jewel's captain himself before being escorted to his own ship.
Keestu noted as she left the palace grounds that many of the nobles who lived nearby had come out to see what was going on after hearing or seeing the Jewel land in the clear zone. They were talking amongst themselves and some waved vigorously and cheered on seeing King Ismer and Queen Mewa, who smiled and waved back. Since no formal announcement had been given to the infocom, Keestu noted the lack of any recording devices, which was a good thing, since questions regarding why her handmaiden was being given such deference could be awkward at this point. There was also no need for a large guard contingent, so the four squads that always accompanied King Ismer were deemed adequate protection for everyone, though Keestu knew the man in charge of her father's security would not have agreed to such an exposure if not for the heavy gun emplacement that was entrenched in the cliff face that rose behind the palace.
Both Ismer and Mewa embraced Rue, who tried her best to make it look natural, though Keestu noted her eyes looked wider than usual. Her parents turned to her. Her father clasped her hands and regarded her fondly but seriously. "I trust you to make the right choices in accompanying your charge on this trip," he said. "Guard her interests well."
When he released her, Keestu remembered to curtsy. "I will, Your Majesty," she replied.
Turning to her mother, Keestu saw her eyes beginning to fill with tears. Mewa, abandoning decorum, threw her arms around her daughter, releasing her when she saw Prince Dinus staring at her display of affection. "You're like a daughter to us, too," Mewa managed to say, stifling any further show of emotion. "Have a safe trip."
Keestu tried not to let tears well up in her own eyes, but her voice was strained when she answered. "Thank you. I'll try my best, Your Grace."
King Ismer, Queen Mewa and the guard squads turned away, ushering Prince Dinus towards his own vessel, leaving Korin to say his own goodbyes. He gently hugged Rue for appearance's sake and turned to Keestu. His eyes sparkled at her fondly as he wrapped his arms around her. "Look at you, Keestu, all grown up" he whispered into her ear. "I know you'll do fine. Ismer asked me to tell you Shina's expecting you and knows what's up. See you at next break."
"Thanks again for the lovely pearls," she murmured back. "I hope I get to wear them soon. Give my love to Nahtua, and remember to send a video of the baby as soon as he or she is born."
Hugging her uncle, eyes now definitely stinging, she looked at her brothers and sister. They had said goodbye to Rue and now faced her. Since they weren't expected to be affectionate with a handmaiden, they could dispense with such displays.
"Try not to botch it up and start an interstellar war," Skomer advised her, grinning wickedly.
Keestu rolled her eyes. "I'll do my best," she said. "Don't stage a military coup while I'm gone, okay?"
Skomer, dropping his tough guy act for a moment, leaned in and whispered at her, "See about getting any military information you can on them for me, 'kay?"
Keestu nodded, grinning at her brother for his enthusiasm for all things military.
Kang gave her a solemn handshake. "It's acceptable anywhere in the Union to shake hands if you're unsure how to greet or say goodbye to someone not royalty. I hope it's the same in the Autocracy," he advised her.
"I'll let you know if it's not as soon as I get home," Keestu promised.
Hemda bounced up, looking furtively around before giving her a big hug. "Lucky ew, gettin' ta fly off like this. You see any younger princes, you tell em I wanna hear fum em soon's they've got time."
Keestu chucked her sister under the chin. "Don't try and grow up too fast, sis," she said, "Mom says it goes too fast as it is."
"I know, and I have to get mine b'fore someone else does! Sides, I heard in class it's good for 'lliances."
"There's more to marriage than just making good alliances, Hemda," Keestu said, frowning slightly.
"I know that," Hemda protested, "S'why I need to hear fum the princes now, get to know em so I can pick a good un!"
Keestu smiled at her younger sister's unexpected maturity, seeing her brothers' surprise as they considered this angle.
"Actually," Kang said, "She's not wrong. If you hear of any princesses my age who are not promised..."
"Okay, I get it," Keestu laughed. "I'll let you all know everything I can learn about the younger foreign royals!"
On that positive note, she waved cheerfully at the still watching nobles, turned, and boarded the ship.
Rue, Gontu, and Tenget were already settled into seats overlooking the bridge. Keestu found an empty seat and began strapping herself in as Captain Nebo came to report.
"King Ismer informed us already of the covert nature of your trip. We hope not to make any mistakes in deferring to Rue as if she were you until we release you on Autocracy Station," he said, his heavily lined face sincere.
Keestu smiled and replied, "I know it's been a while since you were in Covert Ops, Captain, but surely not long enough that you'd be in danger of breaking my cover."
Captain Nebo grinned back at her. "No, Your Highness, I guess not."
He turned to his First Mate. "Do we have clearance to leave yet, Paxi?"
Paxi was a youthful, short, thin, and pale woman who had been in space nearly all her life. She looked up from the com board. "Not yet, Captain. Sandar's Star just took off, and the Autocracy ship has been told to hold while a flitter clears the area."
Nebo went to his own board, checking the situation. "Well, let's all strap in for pre flight anyway."
"Aye," Paxi replied, patting the com officer on the shoulder before going to her own station.
Nebo keyed up the sequence on his own board. "Hatches?"
"Sealed," was the reply.
"Environmental?"
"One hundred percent."
"Engines?"
"No malfunctions, mains on standby, ready for full VTOL t
hrust on your mark."
"Guests?"
Keestu looked around, realizing it was up to her to reply. "Accounted for and secure, Captain," she said hastily.
"Crew?"
"First Mate secure."
"Com officer secure."
"Security secure."
Nebo checked his own harness. "And Captain secure."
The com officer checked his board, and then confirmed, "All other shipboard stations have reported in secure, Captain. The ship is ready for takeoff." He recorded this information in the ship's log.
The forward screens suddenly lit up, showing the Autocracy ship smoothly rising into the sky. In a matter of moments, it vanished from view.
"Autocracy ship has cleared the atmospheric zone," the com office reported a minute later. "We have our clearance to go any time in the next five minutes following our submitted flight plan."
Nebo bent over his board, keying in a sequence as he reported in to CeCe Flight Control. "This is Captain Nebo of Sandar's Jewel. Thank you for clearance. We have already completed our pre flight and are proceeding with takeoff on my mark. Now!"
At his "Now!" Paxi's hands moved over her board. The ship's vertical thrusters kicked on full, and the screens showed the great stone cliff the palace nestled into suddenly under them and shrinking to an indistinguishable blur in moments, but the dampers kept Keestu from feeling the full impact of the effects of liftoff. She sat still, though, knowing that any malfunction in the equipment could change that, which was why it was standard Sandarian procedure that no one was out of their seats either during takeoff or landing since any sudden yawing of the ship could injure or kill an unsecured person.
They swiftly rose above the clouds as the sky darkened through shades of blue and finally to black, Sandar's sun shrinking from a warm blazing yellow-orange ball in a blue sky to a bright white star in the blackness of space on the view screen.
The slight pressure of liftoff left them, and Keestu knew they were in space moments before Captain Nebo announced it.
"CeCe Control," the com officer then said into his board. "We have cleared the atmosphere and are approaching the outbound military ring on schedule."
"Copy that," came the electronically distorted reply. "Sandar's Star is on final approach now, and the Autocracy ship is entering the queue now, so they will go next, and then you're cleared for your entry, so we are shunting you over to Ring Control now. Have a good flight."
"Thanks, CeCe, see you for downside return. Jewel out."
The com immediately chimed softly for attention. "Sandar's Jewel, this is Ring Control. CeCe Flight Control has released you to us. We have you on approach. Maintain present course. Sandar's Star has exited the system, and the Autocracy ship is next, with you right behind them in the queue. You will see on your screen the regular Uriel dispatch, but they are in a holding pattern until you are gone, as you've been given a higher priority exit to keep up with the Autocracy ship."
"Copy that, Ring Control," the com officer replied. "Captain?"
"Copy that, Com," Captain Nebo said.
Paxi spoke up. "I see the Uriel dispatch on the screen and confirm they are already in holding pattern twenty thousand off the ring."
Keestu looked at the view screen, but saw nothing from this distance. She wished she had her own board to check in-system activity. She could see now why the space fleet held so much interest for Skomer. It had been years since she'd been offworld, and the excitement was making her stomach knot up a little bit.
She looked over at Rue, to see her leaning forward, also paying rapt attention to activity on the bridge.
"Look," Rue breathed, pointing.
Keestu turned back to the screen, finally seeing the ring, a tiny round circle of red lights easily seen against the starlit blackness of space that quickly expanded as they approached at speed. They overtook and passed the large Uriel dispatch going in the opposite direction. This one was a massive barge. It was circling back around in order to get its own run at the outbound ring, which would boost them into hyperspace towards the Hub.
"Sandar's Jewel, this is Ring Control," a male voice called out as they approached the ring. It quickly expanded to fill the edges of the screen, nearly disappearing from view as they flew towards it. "Autocracy ship has cleared, and the outbound military ring is confirmed still set for the Hub. Enter when ready and have a good trip."
"Copy that, Ring Control," the com officer replied. "See you on downside return, Adar."
"Stop in on station next time if you get a chance, Sturra," was the reply.
Nebo was busy at his board, as was Paxi. "We are at maximum speed now, Your Highness," Nebo announced as the last edges of the ring vanished from the screen. "Entering the ring, mark!"
The image on the screen dissolved into chaos, making Keestu queasy before it went dark.
Keestu knew the rings were used to create wormholes through space, so rather than flying to any nearby star straight, which would take many subjective years, travel to any planet within the Union would take only a subjective day at most from leaving your planet, to reorienting at the Hub, to arriving at your destination.
How the rings had been set up originally, or by whom, she didn't remember. They just were, and were a very important part of the Union. Without them, interstellar trade would be impossible. No, she thought to herself, the Union itself would be impossible. Leaders could retire or die before ships could get from one planet to the other with contracts and treaties if the rings weren't in place. While direct travel between planets was possible using the rings, by treaty, they all passed through the Hub first, which not only maintained order in Union travel, but it also served as a point where every planet could have a place to trade without going all the way to other Union planets to secure popular trade goods.
The Hub was located slightly below the galactic plane, making it centrally located for all Union planets, making for short space trips and negating the need for bisphosphonates, since there was no extended time spent in zero gravity situations to weaken the bones of space travelers.
However, since they would be traveling outside the Union, it would take time for their flight to be coordinated, so they would be spending two Union days at the Hub while synchronization of the Union's rings with those of the Rillul system and Autocracy Station took place.
Rue was looking at Keestu. "Captain Nebo has cleared us to move around the cabin. We have several subjective hours before we emerge at the Hub."
Keestu nodded, releasing her harness. "I was just thinking about the Hub. It's been years since I've been there, and now we get to spend a couple of days there with Aunt Shina to show us around!"
Rue grinned. "I've never been off Sandar myself," she admitted.
Keestu was taken aback at learning something new about her friend.
"Not even once?"
"Never had a reason. Thought I might make it into the exchange student program and go to Kielra, but my dad started that temporary job helping update the palace's hydroponics, and I met you when I was helping him so I could learn about hydroponics since my father was interested in growing certain luxury foods on our farm to boost our income, and of course we became friends, and I became your handmaiden so I stayed on Sandar."
"I didn't know that," Keestu said. "You should have said something!"
"Why? I love being at the palace."
"Yeah, but you've never been away from home!"
"Like I said, there has never been a need before. But you're right; this is going to be fun. I can see new fashions coming from the Union before they are shown on the shopping channel of the infocom or show up at stores in the Market."
"We'll likely to see more Shatopa while at the Hub," Keestu said. "Wasn't that dinner something else?"
"I know, I thought Prince Dinus was going to challenge the senator of Chtawlikt to a duel the way he was facing off with her."
"You, too?" Keestu was amazed at how informed and worldly her friend seemed, and yet she ha
d apparently never even been inside an interstellar spaceship before this morning. She certainly had more poise than Keestu felt she possessed if she could sit through takeoff and going through the ring and still banally talk about sightseeing at the Hub!
Rue laughed. "I don't know whom I'd have bet on if it had come to it, really," she said.
Tenget finally spoke up. "My bet would be on Chtawlikt. She's got superior balance with four legs, and those pincer-jaws of hers could snap his hand off at the wrist before it ever hit her."
Gontu nodded agreement, and then added, "However, with his entourage, I think he'd have a fighting chance against her alone. I didn't think her followers would so much as tilt their antennae in Prince Dinus's direction without her say so."
Vahin rolled his eyes. "I'm glad intership com channels don't work in the wormholes. I'd hate to have the Autocracy hear you taking sides on who would have won a fight at a peaceful dinner!"
"But, Vahin," Keestu said, "I got the impression from the outset that they expect those types of confrontations in the Autocracy. Father said challenges happen on a monthly basis."
Vahin frowned. "Yes, peculiar behavior if you ask me."
"I'm sure the Autocracy would beg to differ," Keestu countered, unable to resist baiting her stuffy protocol adviser. "After all, it's a culture very foreign to our own, so I'm sure some of our customs must appear unthinkable to them, like how our planetary King or Queen inherits their position and rules for life."
"Well," Vahin said. "I really don't know what to make of them at this point. I suppose I'll learn more when we see more of their culture in person."
"I'm sure we'll all do fine," Keestu repeated. "Prince Dinus seems nice enough, despite being on what must have been for him quite a strange trip."
"Right, but don't forget part of our mission is to see if the rest of the Autocracy seems as open to trade as Prince Dinus and his father are."