Gun Princess Royale: Awakening the Princess, Book One

by Albert Ruckholdt

  There were eight reclining leather seats, with small holovid displays projecting above the armrests, providing either information or entertainment. Three of those seats were occupied, and upon our entrance, Clarisol, Felicia, and Shirohime swiveled around to look at us.

  In my absence they had all changed their clothes.

  Clarisol was dressed in an all-black affair that included tight trousers, and black leather boots. She wore a long duster over the ensemble, giving me the impression she was dressed for some action. Felicia was attired in an outfit similar to Angela’s with some notable differences such as the deep keyhole cleavage with thin black webbing over her exposed bosom, and the long sheathed knife at her hip instead of a whip. As for Class Rep, Shirohime had changed into denim pants, a denim shirt, and a leather coat. Black folded top pirate boots with a chunky heel completed her attire. Her school carry-bag hung from her seat, and she was reading something on a thin paperback sized tablet. When our eyes met, I projected animosity but she looked at me with disinterest, and then resumed reading the content displayed on her tablet. The desire to pound my fist into her face began to climb and I stepped down the aisle toward her, but was stopped by Clarisol who broke the silence with a snarky, “My oh my, don’t you look cute.”

  Angela hurriedly stepped before me and gave me subtle shake of her head while her eyes pleaded with me not to take the bait.

  “Just this once,” I whispered, and after forcing my clenched hands to relax, I took a seat far away from the trio, and then looked out the transparent canopy, pointedly ignoring Clarisol in the process.

  “How long before we get there?” Tobias asked, standing in the aisle but also keeping his distance from Clarisol.

  “A few minutes. We’ll need to land as we’re presently in flight above the ocean waves. It’s going to be bumpy landing.”

  “Is that the storm?” he asked while looking ahead at the rotating wall of clouds in the distance lying in the superyacht’s path.

  “Indeed, and it’s a very big storm. A grade six hurricane.” Clarisol clicked her tongue. “We’ve been flying since we left the harbor three hours ago at the Carnal Sin’s best speed, but we’ll barely arrive at the island before the storm does.” She clicked her tongue once more. “The weather is truly inconsiderate.”

  “Flying…?” I whispered, and looked out the canopy, observing that we were definitely travelling well above the water. I also noticed that the canopy was serving to amplify the ambient light, turning the night into a late afternoon such that we could see clearly for kilometers all around us.

  Clarisol heard me. “That’s right, little Princess. My boat is capable of travelling above, below, or on the surface of the water. Right now we’re flying at four hundred knots, and we’re farther than two thousand kilometers from Ar Telica. However, with the storm bearing down on the island, we’ll need to land first as flying in would be too dangerous even for this craft.” She turned in her seat to face me. “So I suggest buckling in, Third Princess.”

  Choosing not to argue with her, I fumbled a little with the safety harness while Tobias sat down in the seat beside mine.

  An awkward silence filled the passenger deck.

  I distracted myself by staring at the storm, watching it grow imperceptibly larger not because we were travelling slowly but due to its immense size. Beside me, Tobias had called up a navigational holovid display that floated over an armrest. Sharing it with me, I studied it for a long while, noting our position relative to Ar Telica to the southwest, the supersized storm dominating the east, and to the island we were rapidly approaching as the Carnal Sin flew seven hundred kilometers an hour a mere dozen meters above the ocean waves.

  Even if there wasn’t much surface traffic between the city-states or this far out into the ocean, I had to wonder about the chances of running over another boat, or crashing headlong into a freighter. At the speed we were moving, we would hardly have any warning. However, neither Tobias nor Clarisol appeared concerned by the fact the sleek trimaran superyacht was flying at subsonic speed in pitch darkness with all its running lights turned off.

  With the canopy offering a bright view of our surroundings, the mist that appeared above the water was easy to see. Within a half minute, it had grown to occupy much of the horizon, with the massive storm serving has a roiling, rotating backdrop of iron grey clouds rising thousands of meters high, occasionally lit by fleeting flashes of light.

  As the Carnal Sin raced toward the storm and the mist enshrouded island, Clarisol announced, “We’re here.”

  “Where is here?” I asked.

  “The proving grounds for House Alus Novis’ Gun Princesses,” she replied in a low, solemn voice.

  Seated beside me, Tobias shook his head gently. “Don’t you mean House Elsis Novis?”

  Notably, Clarisol replied with silence.

  I felt the floor shift slightly beneath my feet, and assumed the superyacht was slowing down, a fact confirmed a few seconds later when a warning sounded throughout the vessel, notifying all aboard that the Carnal Sin would be landing on water soon. I feared I should brace myself, but no one moved so I waited anxiously for touchdown, my hands clutching the armrests tightly. The water landing proved to be far smoother than I’d expected. The ship’s wing-like trimaran pontoons rotated down from their flight configuration and slipped easily into the water, and the rest of the hull splashed down a few moments later with a gentle lurch followed by a brief rocking motion.

  “Was that an inertial dampening field?” I asked.

  “Effect-field emitters are fitted throughout the ship,” Clarisol answered. “They make the ride smooth and uncomplicated. Welcome to the modern era, Princess.”

  “Didn’t you tell us it was going to be bumpy ride?”

  She looked at me over her shoulder. “And you believed me?”

  Bitch, I swore inwardly, then turned to Tobias. “Have you been here before?”

  Staring intently at the mist that now surrounded the superyacht, Tobias eventually nodded somberly. “Once. A few years ago when the first of my family’s Princesses were fielded. I watched them train.”

  “And?”

  He hesitated before adding, “It was a while ago. I don’t remember much.”

  I looked away, sounding dissatisfied. “Oh, is that so….” However, Tobias ignored the hint I was expressing through my displeasure and held his silence.

  The superyacht wasn’t flying anymore, yet still moving quickly, probably due to an effect field surrounding its submerged hull that reduced the drag between its body and the water molecules to near zero. Thus unimpeded by friction, the Carnal Sin achieved speeds with an efficiency that was unheard of centuries ago. Again, I envied Clarisol her boat.

  The sleek canopy doubled as a Heads-Up Display, and identified a land mass a couple of kilometers ahead of the superyacht, superimposing an outline around it. I read the numbers flashing up alongside the enhanced image, noting that its surface area was around thirty-six square kilometers, thus nine times larger than Telos Island. Artificial structures were highlighted with additional outlines, indicating a number of buildings standing tall above the island.

  Again, I felt a subtle shift in momentum as the yacht decelerated for a short while, levelling off at a speed of forty knots, and then executing a slight course correction that was followed by an announcement throughout the ship stating the vessel would arrive at the harbor in a couple of minutes.

  I continued looking out the canopy in search of the island, but the mist had become a thick fog that completely obscured it. If not for the HUD’s enhanced visuals indicating the island was out there, we would not have known it loomed invisibly large over the Carnal Sin. The superyacht continued toward a cliff wall that suddenly came into a frightening view when the vessel approached within a few hundred feet. The engines rumbled audibly and the ship trembled, fighting the current and large waves that threatened to push it off course from the cliff entrance steadily opening like a giant maw ready to s
wallow the Carnal Sin in its entirety. As I watched the entrance grow large before us, another announcement declared we were entering the safety of the enclosed dock.

  The interior of the dock resembled a giant cavern cut into the cliff rock, and large enough to moor a ship thrice the length of the Carnal Sin. Overhead gantries hung from the rock ceiling, forming a grid work lattice supporting dozens of powerful spotlights illuminating the dock’s interior. Through the transparent canopy, I saw a pier to starboard running the length of the dock, but the dockhands loitering about had no lines to throw across to the superyacht. Instead, a mooring arm descended from the cavern ceiling, and clamped onto the vessel’s ovoid main hull. The mechanical arm pulled the Carnal Sin close to the pier until the boat’s starboard pontoon made contact with a collection of fenders mounted to the structure. Held steady by the mooring arm, and floating in the calm waters of the dock, the vessel’s engines surged before growing quiet as they shut down.

  Clarisol unbuckled her safety harness, and the girls followed suit. After standing up and stretching her body, she took a deep breath and announced, “Let’s go. That storm won’t wait for us.”

  The hateful young woman, her pets, and the treacherous Second Princess vacated the passenger deck.

  Tobias touched my shoulder. “Cass….”

  My feelings were less than calm, but I gave him a nod as I unbuckled myself from the safety harness and waited a moment for the straps to retract into the seat.

  “Let’s get this over with.”

  Then I followed Clarisol and her entourage out of the passenger deck and into the depths of the superyacht.

  - V –

  Tobias followed me down the long corridor running the length of the vessel. Arriving at the stern, we stepped through the open rear doors and out onto the fantail that was reminiscent of a platypus tail. A boarding ramp bridged the distance from the pier to the superyacht’s tail, and armed guards awaited us at both ends. Their eyes regarded me coldly as I walked past them on my way to the pier, with Tobias following a short distance behind me.

  Once we’d all disembarked, a visibly impatient Clarisol once again led the way, first along the pier, then to the rear of the cavern where two high mobility vehicles sat, essentially armored boxes on wheels, surrounded by a handful of guards with snub rifles held in the standby position at an angle across their chests. I didn’t recognize the weapons since I wasn’t a gun buff but they looked dangerous, and it was enough to make my heart thump a little quicker, a little more anxiously, as thoughts of treachery crossed my mind.

  Clarisol was greeted by one of the guards, a large barrel-chested man with a balding pate, and they spoke with voices too low for me to hear.

  Our progress at a standstill, I took the opportunity to look around the cavernous dock.

  Storage crates were stacked high, and a number of forklifts and open topped quads were parked along one wall. I also noticed a couple of large metal doors at the far end of the dock, but I could only guess at what lay beyond, perhaps a tunnel or another room. Looking toward the ocean, I saw a permacrete gate sealing the dock from the outside elements, and it explained why the waters were calm within the enclosure.

  Having expressed urgency, I wondered why Clarisol was delaying and so I edged a little closer to her and the large guard who sounded concerned.

  “…are sure about this? The storm is less than an hour away….”

  “…we have no choice. Are provisions ready…?”

  “…everything you asked for….”

  “…good. Then we’ll take it from here….”

  I nonchalantly edged a couple of foot closer to the pair.

  The guard was looking uneasily at Clarisol. “We were told to provide you with an escort.”

  Clarisol sounded irritated. “There’s no need. Just tell me if she’s there already.”

  A hint of displeasure flashed across the man’s face. “She’s there. She called in when she arrived a few minutes ago…though we don’t know how she got there.”

  “It’s fine,” Clarisol stated. “That’s not a concern. As for the escort, that’s why I brought them along.”

  The guard glanced doubtfully at Angela and Felicia, his gaze running over their lithe, toned bodies clad in black. “You mean them?”

  “Trust me, Captain,” Clarisol said in a silky smooth voice. “There’s much more to them than meets the eye. Much, much more.” She half turned and called out to the girls. “Angie, Feli. We’re leaving.”

  Wordlessly, the two girls climbed into both the high mobility vehicles, otherwise still referred to as Humvees centuries later, and to my surprise they sat in the driver’s seats. Moments later, the engines thrummed to life, and Clarisol pointed at Tobias and I with a firm finger.

  “You two are with me. No arguments.”

  The tails of her duster fluttered around her like wings as she whirled away and strode to the lead Humvee, climbing into the front passenger seat and then slamming her door shut.

  I tried to hide my misgivings as I climbed into the boxy vehicle, scooting over to give Tobias room on the backseat, and then buckled up for the sake of safety.

  Despite Felicia occupying the driver’s seat, I’d initially assumed the vehicle was autonomous, namely controlled by an assisting intelligence. But when the girl began working the steering wheel and foot pedals, I realized she was actually going to drive the armored transporter, and I sat flummoxed in the backseat.

  “You can drive?” I breathed out, almost afraid to ask the question.

  “Of course I can.” Felicia sounded annoyed. “And I can do a lot more than just drive. What do you think we’ve been doing all through summer break? Playing on the beach? Chasing boys? Partying?” Felicia deftly steered the Humvee toward the large doors at the rear wall of the dock. “You have no idea what Angie and I have gone through these past two months.”

  I sat back and closed my mouth yet wondered how it was possible for either girl to have gained the skills to operate the boxy vehicles in a mere two months. I suspected their consciousness had been copied into their Simulacrum bodies around the same time, and perhaps Clarisol’s people possessed the technology to download knowledge and skills into a Simulacrum’s mind and body. However, while thinking this a little voice in the back of my mind told me not to provoke Felicia, not to question her, and as the saying goes ‘to let sleeping dogs lie’.

  The large gunmetal gray doors opened to the sounds of loud metallic clanking. Once they’d parted sufficiently, Felicia stepped on the accelerator and powered through into the wide tunnel that lay beyond the doors. With the vehicle’s headlights on high beam, I was able to see quite far into the tunnel from my position on the backseat. Looking out through the rear window, I saw the second Humvee trailing behind us, and its headlights illuminated the interior of our vehicle, drawing a harsh complaint from Felicia.

  “Damn it, Angela. I don’t need your high beams in my face.”

  After a moment, the lights from the second vehicle dipped lower, and I realized that both girls were in communication with each other, no doubt through the ear pieces they wore.

  Clarisol spoke in a soothing tone. “Feli, dear. Don’t drive angry.”

  I heard Felicia gasp softly and watched her duck her head slightly. “I—I’m sorry, Mistress.”

  Reaching over, Clarisol gently stroked the girl’s cheek for a few moments. “That’s my girl.”

  I wanted to reach forward and break the young woman’s arm at the elbow where it would suffer a permanent injury. Then again, joint reconstruction technology would have her arm back in working order in a few weeks, if not sooner. Boxing my desires to inflict harm, I turned away and looked out my window at the tunnel walls illuminated by the trailing Humvee. It was then I noticed we were travelling at an incline, and a minute or so later the vehicles emerged out of the tunnel and onto an open road running atop the island. The patter of rain sounded immediately on the roof of the Humvee and our windows were soon slick with rivu
lets of water streaking across them.

  “Damn it,” Felicia grumbled and pushed buttons on the center console, flicked a lever to start the wipers, then flicked another switch that activated night-vision mode and brightened the windscreen and side windows with a clear view of the surrounding island. “Angie, not so close. Give me some room.”

  With my fate temporarily in the hands of a girl proving to be equally as surprising as Tobias, I found myself gripping the armrest by the door, wondering what Felicia and Angela had endured during the two months of summer break. However, my attention was soon drawn to dark pyramidal structures towering in the distance and canvased by the storm clouds. Finding them worryingly familiar, I pointed at them by tapping my window. “What’s that over there? Is that a city?”

  Clarisol glanced out my side of the Humvee. “That’s the urban training environment. It’s only as a large as a city district.”

  “What? A whole district?”

  “Why do you sound so surprised?” She looked at me around her shoulder. “Where do you think your trial took place?”

  I heard myself swallow loudly. “The trial? You mean The Game?”

  “Game. Trial. Call it what you want.” A sneer marred her features. “It had to take place somewhere.”

  I remembered what Ghost had told me about the nature of The Game. “You’re telling me I’ve been here before.”

  “That’s right, Third Princess.” She turned away to look out the windscreen. “Although you were hardly as cute as you are now.”

  “So why not transport me here like you did before? That’s what you did, wasn’t it? You used something to teleport me from Ar Telica to this island. Was it an Artifact?”

  Clarisol threw me a dark look, then twisted in her seat to glare accusingly at Tobias. “You have loose lips, brother dear.”