Alutia Rising

by Craig Gerttula

  Years passed as Trent worked in drudgery, staying in contact with his family while keeping a safe distance from his coworkers. He was content, living in the shadows, in isolation, away from those who would harm him. But this wouldn't last, his life changing forever when he met a beautiful young female coworker named Samantha. She'd been strangely fascinated by him, like he was an exotic animal in the zoo that you couldn't help but want to pet. Trent recalled trying to ignore her advances, but that seemed to embolden her, and she would intensify her assault. Baffled beyond belief at why anybody would try to pursue him, the aura of isolation usually being enough to keep people away, Trent had finally agreed to a date in the hopes that after she learned more about his distrust of others and socialization...or lack of personality as most people saw it...she would leave him alone. Unfortunately, his plan backfired and Samantha grasped at his distrust, turning it to her advantage, making him feel as if she was the only person in the world who understood him. Eventually they started dating, Trent's resistance crumbling before her continued siege, and she gradually began to crack his iron covered heart.

  They dated like any other couple, or so Trent thought, his own experience in the field of love filled with despair and betrayal. He would bring her out after work each night, to dine and explore the popular corporate night life of the city, but she was nonexistent during the weekends. He found this odd, but never pushed her, knowing in the back of his mind that he really didn't want to know. His love for her continued to grow and his shell of isolation began to vanish, gradually falling to pieces. Trent was happy for the first time he could remember...but of course, this would not last.

  On a Friday like any other, he met Samantha after work, having finally decided it was time to take the next step. When he asked her to move in with him, she smiled, saying it was too early and they still needed time to get to know each other better. Trent was saddened, but able to hide it behind a kind smile, finding her explanation strangely logical. So they finished their meal and said their goodbyes, but as he watched her leave, still unable to believe that someone like himself could end up with such a beautiful woman, he caught sight of a small pink cylinder peeking from under her discarded napkin. To his surprise, he found it to be Samantha's mobile communication device, or MCD, lying forgotten on the table.

  He recalled thinking how much she loved the device, even more than him, so he decided to rush after her. But before he could catch her, the city streets packed to bursting, a small vibration signaled that a message had been received. Unable to control his curiosity, Trent expanded the viewscreen and peeked at the message...which was still burnt clearly into his mind's eye.

  "Hey Sam...I'm waiting at the usual place. Are you done with your work meeting? I miss you. I wish we could meet more often during the week! Only seeing you on the weekend isn't enough! Love your fiancé, Connor." It took a few seconds for his mind to completely comprehend the words...and their meaning. But when it did, his heart dropped in disbelief. He'd been betrayed. Once again he'd opened himself to the world, and, as had happened repeatedly in the past, he'd been hurt...deceived by those he thought loved him.

  Trent buried his head in his hands, falling to his knees, ignoring the whispers of those passing by on the crowded sidewalk. But a gentle voice rose above the rest, asking him what was wrong...Samantha's voice. He'd looked up at her face ...a face that he suddenly knew was forced, faked by a woman with no heart. He handed her the MCD, still showing the message from her fiancé, unable to control his trembling. A short gasp was all the verification that he required.

  He ran...ran from her...ran from her betrayal...but also from himself, from the pit of despair that broke open at that moment...pushing through the crowd while ignoring Samantha's frantic shouts from behind. When he finally ran out of breath, he found himself in front of a seedy looking bar. He proceeded inside and the next few months became a blur.

  Eventually he lost his job, but the reason behind it escaped him, having been suddenly escorted out of the corporate offices by tight lipped security guards. He moved back in with his parents and was promptly, and forcibly, kicked out when they received a strange letter from his company the day before. He guessed he had done something really bad, but he couldn't remember what for the life of him. So he used an easy excuse, blaming it on his drinking, finding it the only logical explanation as to why his parent's would hate him so.

  With no other options, Trent moved on, living in a cheap pod hotel, making halfhearted attempts to regain employment with little success, his applications immediately denied without reason. Eventually he gave up entirely, having depleted his savings, and started roaming around drunk, begging money, food, and booze, until he was finally unable to keep up his buzz. Realizing his choices were limited, he collected a carbon rod and a small bag, packing his meager belongings, before finding an old railroad track out-of-town, and started his journey...the journey of a hobo.

  That was three days prior, or so Trent guessed, and almost immediately he happened upon an old bottle of whiskey next to the bones of what must have been a brother of the tracks. It took him all of three days to fully enjoy its aged taste, and he was now feeling the full aftereffects as he recovered his feet and shuffled into the warming breeze, covering his eyes from the full onslaught of the summer sun.

  After studying the unfamiliar landscape, he realized he'd finally reached the edge of the industrial district the night before, meadows of green and yellow grass extending into the distance, only broken by small clumps of trees and bushes. A glint caught his eye, born from a small spring that had formed off the far side of the tracks, across from the warehouse, surrounded by tall swaying grass and weeds. He called it a spring, but it was more likely the result of a leak in an old abandoned water system...but he could care less. Trent drank heavily and couldn't help studying his reflection, which he no longer recognized.

  He was an average looking man, his face one of hard curves and a pronounced jaw, covered in a layer of grim. His dirty brown hair had started to recede and his once envied curls were full of dirt, twigs, and other substances best left to the imagination. The bloodshot eyes that stared back at him stood out the most, a perfect hazel green that was his most prominent eye colored. Trent slapped the water, rippling away the image that caused him to cringe, then quickly splashed the cool water over his face, filled his water bottles and stood, grabbing a small piece of jerky, his only food for the day, and started walking...the walk of the hobo.

  *********

  The view from top floor of the biological castle was stunning as Sasha, the third princess of the 189th galaxy of the New Universal Empirical Human Alliance, leaned over the railing lining her private balcony, allowing the grandeur of Planet Tidelia to wash over her. It was a majestic sight, one that could only be witnessed by those nobles blessed to live on paradise worlds, they being few, only a couple found in each colonized galaxy, with never changing weather and an environment ideal for human habitation.

  Her eyes scanned to the left, falling on the rolling forests of leafy trees, a perpetual milky mist rising from its depths, their surfaces flecked with a multitude of vibrant colors. Pristine meadows, blanketed with flowers and plants of rainbow colors, crept from the forest edge, outlining Tileenia, the city that grew before Tidelia Castle, and intermingled seamlessly with the local flora. Sasha took a deep breath, letting the clean, sweet smelling air fill her lungs as she extended her bare arms, fully enjoying the gentle caress of warm sunlight on her skin, thanks to one of Tidelia's binary stars.

  The positioning of the planets orbit, directly between the two slowly orbiting, yellow-white suns, allowed for constant, even sunlight to cover both hemispheres of the planet during the day. This created almost identical temperatures over the entire planet, except in the mountainous regions, and allowed the local plant life to thrive. This also kept most weather systems from forming, which would be fatal for life on most planets. But Tidelia had a unique feature. The outer crust of the planet was at most 20
meters thick and floated over hundreds of thousands of kilometers of fresh, nutrient rich water. The larger plants root systems, including the biological buildings grown to limit human influence on the environment, extended thousands of meters into the fresh water, sucking up the life giving substance and providing stability for their massive growth. It was also the origin of the mist that helped keep the temperature stable, burning off in the sunlight as it crested the forests, providing much needed humidity while not lasting long enough to form into major weather systems.

  Sasha turned her gaze longingly out over the horizon and the teal blue sky, knowing that the view before her would soon become a distant memory, before turning with a sigh. She slowly walked back into her bedchamber, enjoying the cool breeze of mist that joined her, and sent a request through her biological communication node, or BC node for short, to her local biological access point, or BAP.

  Humanity had made a few improvements to their genes and genetics over the tens of thousands of years they'd spent spreading throughout the universe. One such improvement was a biological communication node, grown within the brain, that allowed for the transmission and deciphering of a special type of wireless signal. This provided Sasha the ability to easily connect, with her mind, to a biological access point hidden within the wall, compose a message to Tiana, her lady-in-waiting, all while walking across the room to her dressing area. There were side effects of course. It was mostly impossible to talk when using, except with decades, if not century's, of training, and the process required a type of concentration that seemed to show the same way on everyone's face...a distant, tense look. The door chimed.

  "Enter." Sasha commanded in her kind, feminine soprano. One never knew who may be at the door, she knew, so it was always a good idea to answer with dignity appropriate of one's station. The door slid open to admit her guest.

  A short, attractive young lady entered the room, wearing a scandalously thin, wispy green dress that hung from a single transparent strap, hugging every curve and ending barely halfway down the thigh. Sasha wasn't fond of the look herself, but it was currently popular with all the noble ladies of Tidelia. She had to admit, it did look stunning on the beautiful girl who stood 30 centimeters shorter than the 183 centimeter tall Sasha, with creamy blond hair, in contrast to the Princess's jet black, and bronzed complexion, in opposite to the princess's powder white skin. Both Sasha and her lady-in-waiting, Tiana, were extremely attractive in the modern sense, with the slender, hourglass figures that had become popular over the more robust ladies of the past.

  "My lady, you called for me?" Tiana curtsied with a trained grace, allowing a small smirk to spread across her perfectly sculpted appearance. Slyly smiling back, Sasha realized the game was once again in motion.

  "Yes...and you need to remember to arrive as soon you receive my summons! I get ever so lonely, and having to wait an eternity for you breaks my ever so weak heart." Sasha's exaggerated gestures of being heartbroken brought a slight giggle to the younger woman's lips.

  "My Princess! Should my behavior offend, I shall take any punishment you deem fit!" Tiana said mockingly as she turned her rear towards the princess, allowing Sasha to playfully pat her good friends behind, causing both to start laughing gaily.

  "What would I do without you, Tiana? You make this boring life just barely palatable." exhaled Sasha as she started towards her dressing area on the far side of her luxurious bedchamber.

  "With all the stiff old fogies around here, it is the only thing I can do for you, Your Highness." Another smirk rounded Tiana's face as she bowed. Sasha threw a forced fiery glare at her good friend.

  "Enough with the, your highnesses and my ladies! We are alone. There is no need for formalities." Tiana's face showed feigned shock, like Sasha had just slapped her.

  "But...but, Your Majesty, I would never be so bold as to not show the proper respect that your title deserves...and with your new post as Grand Duchess of Alutia, I would be lucky to keep my head if any disrespect was given!" The smirk on Tiana's lips grew to a full blown smile. Sasha turned her back and responded while flipping through a row of dresses in the closet that appeared before her, previously hidden within the far wall.

  "You win, Tiana, you win..."

  "Do I not always, my Royal Highness?" Once again Tiana curtsied in her response. Deciding the game had come to an end, Sasha started holding up dresses for Tiana to judge.

  "What should I wear for the trip? I was thinking that the current style may not be appropriate for space travel. I was considering something a little more robust..." Sasha lightly placed the thin dresses back in the closet, which vanished, the wall becoming solid as she stepped away.

  "Yes, Your Highness. I thought the same thing and had a special outfit prepared for this occasion." Tiana showed the slight distant expression that was common when using ones BC node. A few minutes later one of the castle servants arrived with a sealed bundle. To Sasha's surprise, the outfit was not a dress, but a military style uniform commonly worn by NHA Fleet personnel, ornately decorated of course, but a uniform none the less. Sasha looked at Tiana with a raised eyebrow.

  "I asked around and since you are officially the highest ranking member of the ABF battle group that will be escorting us to the Alutia Duchy...it is appropriate for you to look the part...or so I've been told. You will be able to change into a proper dress before we arrive for the official transfer ceremony...of course." Tiana was wiping nonexistent dust from the uniform as she explained her reasoning.

  Sasha once again looked at this young woman, 10 years her junior at 16, but with the intelligence and worldliness of someone well beyond her tender age. Suddenly, one of the words that Tiana had just spoken caught her interest, causing her tone to darken slightly.

  "We? Since when did I decide that you would accompany me?" questioned Sasha with a slight tremble, unable to hide her surprise and sudden annoyance. Tiana smirked once again, but with less of the usual mirth.

  "My mother is very good friends with Queen Vahna, as you know, and they both decided it was good for me to continue being your lady-in-waiting, and allow you to assign me an earldom or mark in your duchy when I reach the appropriate age...of course." Tiana's tone was matter-of-fact, which as she probably planned, caused Sasha a great amount of irritation.

  "What right do my parents have to decide who I assign posts within my duchy! Do they think I am incompetent before I have even started! First they do not give me a choice in the matter! Then they start telling me how I am supposed to rule!" Sasha knew she was starting to act childish, but it was all too much. Just yesterday she was a pampered third princess living on one of the most beautiful planets in the New Universal Empirical Human Alliance. Now, she was preparing to leave and become a Grand Duchess of a new duchy on the other side of the galaxy! Of course she knew the noble title was very prestigious, but when her father's decision had reached her ears, she had been ill prepared and still found herself in shock.

  From what information she could glean from her tight lipped parents, it seemed her father was irritated at her lack of interested suitors. There were a few, of course, and she did enjoy a couple of relationships she thought would last forever in her teenage years. Except all of the men turned out to be pompous asses, including her last boyfriend, who had scarred her deeply. Most of her more recent suitors were little different, being arrogant traditionalists whose interest would wane after realizing a third princess would not inherit the throne and had no land claims. She wished they would conduct the proper research before wasting her time, instead of assuming that since the royal family ruled everything in the galaxy, she would inherit at least part of the claim. But only the crowned prince or princess had that privilege, and her elder brother, Prince Kohan, currently held that honor.

  But her issues, along with that of her elder sister, were unique, since children of royal families were usually in high demand, being easily married off to ruling nobles for strategic or trade alliances. Fortunately, or unfortunately depending o
n your viewpoint, Sasha's great-great grandfather, King Tolhan Vn'Oco, had decreed that his heirs should marry who they want, and not be bound by the decision of the parents, which were usually swayed by politics. This was in response to his own sister being married off to a man who thought women were play things, and ended up killing her in one of his more disgusting sex games. Many stories had been written about King Tolhan's grief, having loved his sister dearly, along with the fate of his brother-in-law, whose family was rumored to have met a most gruesome end.

  So to avoid such a thing happening again, a Royal Decree was issued for NHA galaxy 189, and signed by the NHA Emperor of the time so no future king could overturn it. The decree stated that all sons and daughters shall be removed, except the crowned prince or princess, from the king and queen at birth, to be raised, in guardianship, by a noble family. Contact was allowed, but limited to a few times a year, while the only direct influence was as royalty to noble, not parents to child.

  Still feeling her blood simmering, Sasha looked at her lady-in-waiting and froze. Tiana's face was one of stone, tiny tears escaping from the edge of her fluttering eyes. The rage melted away and regret took its place. Sasha rushed to her friend's side.

  "Oh, Tiana! I'm so very sorry... I didn't mean to hurt you! I would love for you to accompany me and of course you will have whatever you want when you reach the proper age!" Sasha apologized with haste, trying to stem the tears of her suddenly teenage again lady-in-waiting. Tiana looked into her eyes and Sasha realized, at that moment, that Tiana was also being forced to do something against her will. Who would want to be shipped away from friends and family to live in a new duchy, in the unknown.