by Jake Bible
“Open up!” Alexis shouted as he looked about, ready for the next attack. His hand was at the small of Corbin’s back and he pushed the guard on, urging him to run faster. “Open the airlock now!”
They reached the castle wall and a face appeared in the thick glass porthole of the airlock door. Gatekeeper Clegg.
“Thank Helios!” Alexis yelled as the airlock opened and they rushed inside.
Or Corbin and Meredith rushed inside. Alexis’s path was blocked by the gatekeeper.
“Clegg? Move,” Alexis said then saw what the holy man held.
“I am truly sorry, your highness,” Clegg said as he thrust the blade into Alexis’s belly. “But I know you. You will change things in ways we cannot allow.”
Alexis fell to his knees, taking the blade with him. He looked up into the helmeted face of his former teacher and childhood mentor.
“Clegg…” he whispered.
“Hush now, young master,” Clegg said. “Let Helios take you. It will all be over so—”
The inside of his helmet’s visor was splattered with blood as Corbin shoved a blade through the back of the gatekeeper’s head. The guard shoved the traitor aside and dropped to the wounded master.
“Your highness? Oh, Helios, no,” Corbin said as he took Alexis in his arms. “No, this can’t be. I failed you.”
“Is she still alive?” Alexis grunted. “The minoress? Is she still alive?”
“Yes, your highness,” Corbin nodded. “But barely.”
“Make sure she doesn’t die and you will have not failed me,” Alexis said. “She has such a rich life to lead. Tell her that for me, will you?”
“Yes, your highness,” Corbin said, his eyes looking at the blade that protruded from his monarch’s belly. Then he looked at the bleeding man’s helmet and gasped at the glazed eyes. “Master Alexis? Master Alexis!”
Chapter Two
The long, sleek shuttle cut through the vacuum of space as it made its approach to the slowly spinning Station Aelon. Over four hundred feet long with a diameter of one hundred feet, the Thraenish shuttle adjusted its trajectory by firing Vape thrusters from coordinated jets so the nose pointed directly at the large shuttle dock port on the east side of the station.
“Prepare braking jets,” the captain said as he made several adjustments from his seat in the fore cockpit.
When the time came for the shuttle to leave the station the flight crew would take their places in an exact copy of the cockpit, but in the aft end of the shuttle since the massive vehicle was perfectly symmetrical. Unlike the shuttles that transported people, goods, and equipment from station to planet, the shuttles that travelled from station to station only needed simple thrusters and could be shaped as perfect cylinders, letting them dock and depart with ease.
“Approach trajectory locked,” the co-pilot announced. “Braking jets firing in three, two, one.”
Vape gas erupted in small bursts from the front of the shuttle, slowing its speed until it barely coasted towards the docking port that quickly irised open. The flight crew kept all eyes on the instruments, making sure no last second adjustments needed to be made the synchronized docking protocol. But, as was the case with the dozens of shuttles that came and went from station to station, not a problem was detected and the shuttle easily locked into place inside Station Aelon.
The captain looked over his shoulder at the grim faced guard that sat in one of the jump seats.
“Your master has been delivered home,” the captain said. “You are free to depart when he is ready. Will you need any of the crew’s assistance?”
“No, thank you,” Corbin said as he unbuckled and stood up from the seat. “I have this well in hand. Please let your crew know we appreciate their accommodating us, as I am sure you are not used to having royalty travel aboard the vessel.”
“Our pleasure,” the captain nodded. “Breaks up the monotony.”
Corbin didn’t respond, just nodded and left the cockpit to take his place as protector of the new Master of Station Aelon.
“Pleasant chap,” the co-pilot smirked. “He should be more serious about his job.”
“Couldn’t pay me to work directly with the royalty,” the captain replied. “Now, how about we shut down and go find a bar? I could use a bottle or two of gelberry wine.”
“Praise Helios to that,” the co-pilot laughed.
* * *
“Calm yourself, mistress,” Stewardess Lesha de Morlan said to the pacing Mistress Eliza. “The master will be fine. In your condition you cannot let yourself get upset.”
“But you saw him, Lesha,” Eliza frowned. “In the transmissions. He looked so pale and sickly.”
“That’s the transmissions, not the master,” Lesha sighed. “Everyone looks pale and sickly in those grainy pictures.”
“Well, you would think someone would fix that!” Eliza snapped. “We live in space, but we can’t communicate without static and interference? We are barbarians compared to our ancestors.”
“So much knowledge was lost when humanity was forced from the planet, mistress,” Lesha said. “We should be thankful to Helios that we survived as a people. Feel lucky the techs got the transmission to come through at all.”
“Survival is not life, Lesha,” Eliza frowned. “It is the postponement of death. I vow from this day forward that I will not be a survivor, but a liver.”
“A liver, your highness?” Lesha smiled. “Shall I fetch you a robe of caramelized onions?”
“Oh, shut up,” Eliza grinned. “You know what I mean.”
She winced and grabbed at her swollen belly, grunting as a sharp pain forced her to take a seat on her bed.
“Mistress? Eliza?” Lesha said, her worry pushing away all formality. “What is it? Is the baby alright?”
“Gas,” Eliza said. “That’s all. A gas pain. I haven’t voided in two days. It’s a wonder my pores aren’t seeping shit.”
“Mistress,” Lesha laughed. “As distressful as that sounds, you still have to keep your composure as mistress of the station. Pores seeping shit, is not something you want to share.”
“I’ll share every last shit seeping detail,” Eliza snapped. “I have the heir to the crown sitting on my bladder and kicking me in the lungs every five seconds. The station can kiss my backed up ass with their composure.”
Lesha sat next to the woman that was twenty years her junior and took her in her arms. “It will be over soon, your highness. The physicians will make you comfortable during labor and then you can cradle your newborn son in your arms and forget all about troubled bowels.”
“I’ll probably drop a crap as heavy as my son when the birthing starts,” Eliza said. “There’s no way one is coming out without the other.”
Lesha laughed heartily and kissed the young mistress on the forehead. “I do love you, your highness.”
“I love you too, Lesha,” Eliza said. “Now help me back up so I can be standing when my love walks through that door.”
No sooner had the mistress been helped to her feet than there was a chime at the entry door to the royal quarters. Even being four times the size of any other quarters within Castle Quent—the master’s and mistress’s main residence on the surface of station Aelon—it only took a brief few steps to reach the door. Station Aelon had still not caught up with the other stations’ trend of updating the surface castles and keeps into sumptuous manor houses and estate mansions.
It was something Alexis had promised his wife he would begin to correct upon his return from Helios, but that promise was delayed by months as the master convalesced on Station Thraen. Eliza wondered if her husband would have the strength to lead his people, let alone tackle something as superficial as the renovations of their various residences across the Surface of Station Aelon.
“Breathe, your highness,” Lesha whispered into her mistress’s ear. “He will be just as you remember him.”
The door to the quarters slid open and several royal guards stepped into the qu
arters, their eyes taking in every detail of the room.
“Are we safe, my lady?” Corbin asked as he took one step forward and addressed Stewardess de Morlan.
“We are safe, Mr. Breach,” Lesha replied.
“Your highness,” Corbin said to Eliza as he bowed low. “I am pleased to present your husband, Master of Station Aelon, Alexis the First.”
“Oh, move it, will you?” Eliza said as she hurried forward and shoved the head of the royal guard out of the way, patting her belly at the same time. “You don’t have to introduce me to the man that did this to my body. We are well acquainted, I assure you.”
“Of course, your highness,” Corbin said as he stumbled and was helped from falling by a steady hand from Stewardess de Morlan.
“Hello, my love,” Alexis said as he strode past the guards and took his wife into his arms. “Miss me?”
“Yes, I bloody well missed you, you stupid, heroic idiot!” Eliza cried, letting herself be wrapped inside the embrace of a man that stood almost two feet taller than she. They kissed long and hard before Eliza finally let their lips part and pressed her cheek to his chest. “I never feel whole without my Longshanks about.”
“Ugh,” Alexis groaned. “I hate that name.”
“Well, I love it,” Eliza said, her face buried in his chest. “My Longshanks. He stands above us all, but can never be apart.”
“Where did that come from?” Alexis frowned. “Is there already poetry about me?”
“My husband wrote it as part of the welcoming campaign,” Lesha said. “The people have been nervous with you gone and the coronation happening on a foreign station. There has been grumbling that you have forgotten the Aelish and become a supporter of Thraen.”
“A man gets stabbed in the belly by a traitor and this is the thanks I get?” Alexis laughed. “The people never cease to amaze me.”
“It is a small faction, your highness,” Corbin said. “The vast majority would never think such a thing.”
“But all it takes is a small faction to foment talks of rebellion,” Lesha countered. “Thus my husband’s plan to rebrand you as Longshanks, Alexis the First, Master of Station Aelon.”
“And not son of Henry III,” Alexis replied. “Which I think is Alasdair’s true goal. My father was a great man, but not a great master. I’m sure my supporters are looking for any way to distance me from the previous reign.”
“Well, they can’t distance you from your current brother,” Minor Derrick Teirmont laughed as he stood behind the row of guards blocking the door. “Even if I was your brother during the previous reign as well.” He looked at the guards then in at his brother. “Do you mind?”
“Please clear the way for my brother,” Alexis ordered. “And never block him from me again.”
“My apologies, your highness,” Corbin said, bowing his head. “I gave my men strict orders that no one was to be trusted no matter how close they are to you personally. I believe recent events have proven that to be a wise course of security.”
“I’ll have to make a list of exceptions,” Alexis nodded. “I can’t have my family barred from me every time I move to a new room.”
“Yes, your highness,” Corbin said. He looked at the faces of the royals then at his master. “I will leave you to your reunion. Guards will be posted outside your quarters, if you need them. I am only a call away, as always.”
“Thank you, Corbin,” Alexis said. “Go have your own reunion. Two days leave, and no argument, for those that were forced to stay with me on Station Thraen. You should all see your loved ones and get some rest.”
“None of us were forced, your highness,” Corbin replied. “It was our honor and duty.”
“Get,” Alexis said, waving the man off. “Now.”
Corbin bowed low and then turned and strode from the royal quarters, his men following in step.
“So, let’s see the scar,” Derrick smiled. “Can’t have a war wound and not show it off.”
“That would be my cue to leave,” Lesha said. She looked at the mistress who was still tightly wrapped about her husband. “You need to rest as well. Please take a nap as soon as you can.” Her eyes shifted to Alexis. “I trust you will see to that, your highness.”
“Yes, mum,” Alexis smiled.
“Don’t be cheeky,” Lesha smiled back. “I changed your diapers more than once.”
“As you have reminded me my entire life, Lesha,” Alexis nodded. “Please tell Alasdair I will come see him as soon as I can.”
“I will, your highness,” Lesha replied as she started to leave then paused. “It is good to have you back...Longshanks.”
“Go,” Alexis growled.
Lesha left with a chuckle, leaving Derrick to stand there and wait.
“What?” Alexis asked.
“The scar!” Derrick said. “Let’s see it!”
“Leave him alone, Rick,” Eliza snapped. “He’s just gotten home and you’re already pestering him.”
“Knock it off, you two,” Alexis said. “I’ll show you the scar, but then you leave me with my wife, alright?”
“Sure, kicking me out already,” Derrick grinned, clasping his brother on the shoulder. “It is good to see you home. I’d prefer not to be regent again. Can we have our dear sister, Melinda, do it next time? She is older than us both.”
“If the stewards won’t accept a woman as ruler of the station then they certainly won’t let her be regent,” Alexis said. “As much as I disagree with the notion.” He looked about the quarters and realized something was missing. “Where are the children?”
“With Melinda right now,” Eliza said. “She thought we’d want some time alone.”
“I get it, I get it,” Derrick replied, his hands up in surrender. “I’ll go.”
“Hold on,” Alexis said and gently removed himself from his wife. “Take a look at this.”
He pulled his tunic from his trousers and lifted it up over his abdomen. He peeled back the long, and soiled, bandage that was pasted just below his ribs. Both his wife and brother gasped involuntarily at the sight of the several inch long gash across his side and belly.
“Is it infected? It looks infected,” Eliza worried.
“It’s still draining,” Alexis said. “The physician said it could be weeks, maybe even months, before it stops doing that. I’m looking at a year of keeping it clean in order for it to heal up properly.”
“A year? Why so long?” Eliza asked.
“The Vape,” Derrick frowned. “Once that gets in there it’s near impossible to get clean air to the wound.”
“Exactly,” Alexis responded. “It’s why wars on the planet are so deadly. You know the saying—”
“You don’t have to kill ‘em, just wound ‘em,” Derrick finished.
“I know what you are thinking,” Alexis said, seeing the look on his wife’s face. “And not even the ones that came before us could heal this any faster. It’s why they left the planet to settle in space. The Vape always wins.”
“Well, I’ve had my gore for the day,” Derrick said, embracing his brother. “Get well, Al. Want me to have Melinda bring the kids?”
“No, we’ll fetch them,” Alexis said. “I think I’m going to clean up and have a nap. They’ll be fine until then.”
“Rest up, brother,” Derrick said then bowed low. “Or, I should say, rest up, my liege.”
“Kiss my ass,” Alexis said and feigned a kick at his brother.
“My mistress,” Derrick said to Eliza then slid the door open and left.
Once the door was closed again, Alexis took his wife up in his arms.
“Longshanks? Really? Is that truly catching on?”
“It’s always been there,” Eliza laughed as she was carried to the bed and set down softly on the breen comforter. “You know that. Even before we met I had heard of the tall young man called Longshanks.”
“Helios, have they been calling me that since then?” Alexis laughed. “We met when we were ten and wed a
t thirteen. I wasn’t that tall yet!”
“Yes, you were,” Eliza said as she slid her hands up under her maternity dress, coming away with her underpants. “You have always been my handsome, tall minor. Now my master.”
“And now you are my mistress,” Alexis smiled at her then looked at her belly. “What about the baby?”
“He can’t see us,” Eliza grinned, lust in her eyes. “And the midwife says it’s good for me. Helps prepare for an easier birth.”
“Well, if the midwife says so,” Alexis replied as he pulled his tunic off and quickly shimmied out of his trousers. He climbed onto the bed and his hands slid up her legs to the insides of her thighs. “Oh, how I have missed you.”
“Well, if you’d just stay here you wouldn’t have to miss me,” Eliza said as Alexis’s hands moved up higher. “Promise me we won’t part again.”
“You know I can’t make that promise,” Alexis said, his mouth going to her neck.
Eliza’s hand traced the outline of his abdomen, careful to avoid the bandage, and then trailed down to below. She gripped him hard and fast.
“Promise me,” she sneered.
“E! Ow!” he cried out.
There was instantly a knock at the door. “Are you alright, your highness?”
Eliza started to giggle, but didn’t let go. “Are you, my master?”
“Yes!” he called out. “I’m fine!”
“Yes, you are,” Eliza said as she rolled to her side and wrapped Alexis’s arms about her then pulled her dress all the way up. “Now make me fine, Master of Station Aelon. That’s your first official duty.”
“If it’s my duty then it’s my duty,” he laughed.
* * *
“Father!” a small girl of four shouted as the door slid open and in walked Alexis and Eliza, arm in arm. “You’re back!”
“I am, my little Bora,” Alexis said. “And I missed you.”
Two more children, a boy of three and girl of six, both blonde like their father, came running at him and he had to brace his legs to keep from being bowled over.