by Bailey Dark
I nodded. That was a relief. My father had finally, at the final hour, given in to my biggest request: that two of my most prized scientists, Cowrie and Murex come with me to Farian. They wouldn’t be destined to be there forever, but at least until the blue flu was taken care of from the Bristola Oceans. Then they would be free to return.
My gaze fell on Commander Axis. He was approaching us. I, on the other hand, would be forever tied to this man… I sighed… Nerite squeezed my hand under the table as the whimsical tune of the instruments changed to something romantic and nostalgic.
“Just one dance, Princess?” Axis asked, hand extended. I squeezed back my sister’s hand and then took my Commander’s hand. He led me to the dance floor and spun me into the flow of the crowd. However, as soon as we entered, the ushers signaled for everyone else to leave, and it was just myself and the Commander of the Seawards Special Operations Unit, Prince of Bristola dancing on the wide wood floor to a song about forlorn romance from centuries ago.
“I heard your scientists will be accompanying us.” He spun me out into a circle again, my aquamarine gown gracefully twirling against my heels and back to brush against his sparkle-to-shine boots. He was wearing a dark blue dress uniform, sword in a fancy scabbard just for such an occasion. I couldn’t help but admit he looked astonishingly handsome.
“Yes. It is huge that my father gave in to that request. It is what is best for Farian, and for Serpul, truly. They are brilliant scientists and I need them to help fight the blue flu.”
“That is why I insisted.”
I looked at him sharply, ground my teeth, and bit my tongue from my immediate reply. Be grateful… I commanded myself. I wanted to bite off his head. Again, people maneuvering my world outside my control… “You are the one that made that possible?”
“I heard it was your biggest request. All I want is for you to be happy, Princess. I know this situation is not ideal, but I really can be charming, and I think you will like Bristola. If I can do anything to make this transition easier—”
I knew my blue eyes were flashing anger and my grip on his back and hand tightened. He winced a little at the claw-like fingers digging into his skin. “Transition? Transition? How about upheaval? Turmoil? Tempest? Are those words more apt?”
“Think of all the animals you will save… Please… Think of that… You are going to do so much good on Farian—”
“Sounds like you have been speaking to my sister.”
“No,” he said, and it seemed sincere. “I just know how much you care and I want you to see that I care, too. You will be able to save so many. You may even be able to save me.”
I looked into his black eyes, aware it was a line he was spinning for my benefit. I let go him as he spun me again. “I’m not in the Curan saving business, Commander. That’s your job. I’ll see you in the morning. Thank you for the dance.”
I stomped away, tears starting to stream down my face, leaving the Serpul hall and all my world behind.
Five
Kajo
I bowed low over Princess Ceritha’s hand. She was quite a beauty, but her blue eyes sparked respect and a small bit of spirited resentment as she bowed before me. I pulled Daphne forward. “Welcome, Princess Ceritha. I would like to present Queen Daphne, and my son, Seanos.” Daphne smiled, that glowing smile that I loved and held our rather plump and incredibly strong son up for Ceritha to coo over. Axis bowed and then grabbed my arm in brotherly camaraderie as the women stepped to the side.
“Seanos looks well, my King.”
“Yes, thank you. He is quite accelerated, for a three-month-old.”
“How are you finding fatherhood?”
I tilted my head as I looked at my beloved Destin and our child, named for her step-brother back on Earth and smiled. “It’s something I never thought I would have…” I watched Axis as he looked at Ceritha and I was a bit puzzled by the shifting of expressions on his face. There was a bit of bewilderment, understanding, reluctance, hope, sadness, and then, perhaps, fear? Fear of what?
“And how about you, Commander Axis? How goes it so far, with the Princess?” I stepped aside further so we could be out of earshot of the women.
“There is something so enigmatic about her, but she is certainly, as you said, spirited and fun, my lord. It will take some convincing, but I am doing my best…”
“See that you do. We have word that the there will be troubles on your shores that not even Ceritha can fix. There should be harmony in your household on all sides when it comes to that.” I signaled for Jase to meet us as he and Vania entered the hall. Vania and Daphne embraced and Daphne took care of introductions of Ceritha to the other Earthling. I smiled at her across the distance: I can rely on my Queen for everything.
“Your majesty?” Jase said, bowing slightly. He shook Axis’s hand and tossed his head toward the women. “How goes it?”
“She is spirited, indeed.”
Jase laughed, short, but still full of mirth. “It will all work out, you’ll see.”
“All right,” I growled at them. Enough of the fun. “There is word that Captain Gorgin is amassing a navy. He is, at this time, setting his sights on the Bristola ports, however, that just paves the way to inland routes toward my throne.”
Axis furrowed his brow and shook his head. “We have heard these rumors, but surely the pirates will not allow themselves to be so organized. Pirate Captains do not fly under one flag, they fly under many.”
“The blue flu in the oceans is making it difficult for them to provide for their people. They are having to look at alternate options for sustenance right now.” I tried hard to not make the words an accusation but knew that Axis might take it as such. Protecting the crops that the oceans produced were part of his responsibility, his obligation. Granted, we were working through the process now, and Ceritha was his best bet, but the fact that the blue had gotten so out of hand and was leading troubles to my own hearth… A bit of righteous anger stirred within me, at both Jase and Axis. I tried to control my scowl, knowing how it made the scar over my eye quiver… Axis had been placing his alliances toward Jase, and not toward his own people or toward the great Farian Empire as a whole… Oh well. Time to fix it. Time for me, as always, to fix it.
“Two scientists have accompanied Princess Ceritha. We have a game plan for analyzing and curing the blue flu that should take a matter of weeks, a restoration process that will take mere months. I know that damage has been done, King Kajo, but we will fix it with as much exigency as possible.” Axis bowed slightly with his last words.
“I trust that you shall. In the meantime, we must worry that Gorgin and his troops will start attacking our ports. We must be ready for that, as well. There is also concern that he will capture Ceritha.”
Axis threw a sharp look toward his Princess. “What? What fr”
“Is it true that the Serpuls can communicate with the ocean animals? That they once used them for war steeds?”
“Yes.” Axis’s look was faraway as he answered. He rubbed his hands together, as if feeling something in his palm that we couldn’t see. “I have witnessed it.”
“Well, Gorgin seems to know it is true, too. He wants to use Ceritha to boost his navy’s ability to take over the Bristola Oceans. He will capture her and use her abilities. Or make her teach him how to use them. You must protect your Queen, before she is even yours.”
Axis nodded solemnly. “I will.”
“Good, then. I will send three of my Special Operations Twelve forces with you. Once you have word of pirate attacks, they can be in those particular port cities to bolster your defenses. I will have more on high alert, should you need them.”
“Thank you, your highness.”
“Protecting your lands is protecting mine, as well.” I looked back toward Daphne and Seanos. It was about protecting so much more than land for me, now. I hoped Axis would understand that one day, and, hopefully, soon feel that for Ceritha.
Six
Gorgin
“Ceritha. Her name Ceritha, Cap’n.”
“What she look like?” I squeezed the rest of the fruit into my cup and looked out at the rising sun. Hofer, my First Mate, handed me the whiskey bottle. He knew me too well.
“Red hair, blues eyes. Some say she damn fine-looking. She a Princess, sir. Course she fine.”
“Some Princesses ain’t. Just cuz you royalty don’t mean you fine. Don’t mean you noble, neither.”
“This’un is. This Princess… They say she saves animals. She passionate. She fiery and spirited. She never take a man before, Cap’n. Never. She all about saving the animals. All about the mission.”
“A do-gooder, huh?” I matched the amount of fruit juice with the amount of whiskey I poured into my daily sunrise drink. I wasn’t sure if that would make her easier or harder to break. She might be too passionate to her cause. Let herself burn at the stake. Might not have any weaknesses. Then again, maybe the animals themselves would be the weaknesses. She would have no ties to the Farian Curans. No loyalty to seeing them slaughtered. Maybe she would help us as long as we took good care of her animal friends. “When they get to Bristola?”
“Big party for her and Prince Axis today in Capital City. Suppose they be back in a day or two.”
“Have Ketchum keep his spies out in Bristola. I wanna know when they get back. We need her soon as we can get her. Also, send word to all the Cap’ns. It’s time we meet. I want to take on Bristola soon. I got me big plans, Hofer. I got me big plans.”
“Aye, Cap’n. I’m beside you. All the way.”
I downed the cup of fruit juice and whiskey and looked away as the sunset rose high in the West, like every morning. This morning just tasted a little bit more delicious.
Seven
Ceritha
I watched the sun slide into the Western waters and marveled at watching it disappear into the horizon I normally watched it surface from every morning. It was a bizarre feeling, made my world feel more backward than it already was.
The elaborate celebration in Capital City had been lovely. Vania and Daphne had been incredibly nice to me, if a little bit strange, being Earthlings and everything… Overall, I found them charming. Even all the Farian men and women were ultra-welcoming. When I had arrived in Bristola, a couple days later, there had been a small fanfare, but there would be a larger welcome in a week. I was mainly allowed to be to myself so far, which I appreciated. I had been wandering Bristola for a few days now. It seemed Axis could sense I had been overwhelmed by the ostentatious welcome in the Capital and needed a bit of time with myself and the ocean.
The gazebo from which I watched the sunset was at the end of a short dock, set back in the bay, where the ocean waves made gentle cascading sound against its buffer, but which rarely had the severe beat of wind or tough draw of storm surge. It was a lovely little place with draping vines and lights entwined in blue and white flowers I had never seen before but looked like little hearts. I sat and watched the starlight begin to peak out and wondered about learning the constellations. They were the same stars, we were in the same system, but they were all in different frame of reference positions here.
Silent tears trailed down my face and I started to shake. How was I going to do this? How was I going to be so far from home? For the rest of my life? I would be able to visit, occasionally, and there were holographic calls I could make home, calling upon Nerite more than she would like, I was sure, but… Cowrie and Murex would eventually go home and then I would be alone… So alone…
As I looked out to trace the moons treks across the surprisingly still bay waters with tear-glossed eyes, a firefin spun up into the air and splashed back down, flawless, beautiful, illuminated by the moonlight.
A smile crept to my lips, unbidden. My friends… I would always have these friends.
The firefin swam up to the dock, popping its head up out of the dark waters. It was a deep shade of scarlet, perhaps the night’s darkness or perhaps a different shade of their scales here on Farian that I would adjust to. He was a young one, only about ten feet long, out for a joy swim. He was curious of me, perhaps sensing my sadness. I was surprised he would come so close to a Curan, since they didn’t speak to animals here.
“Hello… I’m Ceritha… I’m new here… I am excited to meet you…” I pressed the intention of my words to him. The firefin stood up taller in the water, front set of fins spread wide, like wings in the air, a symbol of alarm. “It’s okay… It’s okay… I can speak to you…” I whispered calming Will, helping him feel comforted, helping him feel safe.
He was curious back, telling me his name was Rensi and he was stunned to have a Curan to talk to, that he didn’t think that was possible.
“I’m from Serpul…” I sent the impression of my other planet to him, showing him images of me playing with dolgons and firefins in waters much more turquoise than on Farian. “I'm here to help with the blue flu… I’m a scientist.” The impression of these last words sent quivering fear and anger rushing back toward me, images of Farian Curans in hazmat suits with sharp needles, tranquilizer guns, and nets. He rushed in circles, his anger pummeling my mind. I rushed soothing Will through him, trying to show him how I had treated my animals, with needles, but with their permission… To help them. He slowly calmed. “Can you tell others? Can you tell others that Ceritha from Serpul is here to help them?”
Rensi rose up into the air, this time, fluttering his wings, a symbol of joy, and did a backflip not far off from me, flicking me in the face with water droplets, then he swam away, with a whispered salutation of hope and welcome.
I hugged myself and looked up at the glittering starlight. “You won’t get me down,” I told the stars. “I have friends here.”
I stood up and nearly ran back to my room. It was late and I needed to get at least six hours of sleep. Tomorrow, I would start building the laboratory. Cowrie and Murex were ready to start doing the work. Cowrie was eager and willing, but Murex seemed a little upset about being on Farian. He wasn’t as happy to have been enlisted to this mission, even though he knew it was temporary for him. I hadn’t actually seen him for a couple days, but he disappeared occasionally on Serpul, too. He had probably found a campsite down along the beach. He knew I was building the lab tomorrow, and he would show up for that. They were my best two scientists, so I needed them with me. More than anything, they cared about the animals: just like me. We had started successfully treating the blue on Serpul, but we could only bet that it would be a bit different here, evolving with different bacteria, different conditions, a different strain. We weren’t even sure how it had gotten from one planet to the other. There was a lot of diagnostics to do before I could begin treatment.
But I had made an important first step: gaining the trust of my animal friends would not be easy here, and I would need that to be successful at it at all.
I slipped into the massive bed and admitted that it was quite comfortable, wondering when and if they would start forcing me to sleep in the same area as Axis. The wedding was set for a month away. Probably, then.
I had managed to avoid him most of the day. I felt bad for that. He was being nothing but helpful… But I was scared… I hadn’t wanted to admit it to myself, and definitely not to him, but that electricity that he seemed to feel when we had touched the firefin together on my sailboat a few days ago… I had never felt that before. That was amazing. It was mesmerizing. The fact that I had kissed him, allowed him to touch me… That it had felt so right…
And it had…
I settled back into the blankets and pillows, shimmying to shift myself in comfortably. I imagined Axis’s touch on my cheek, brushing my hair back, his black eyes looking deep into mine, deep wells, like the night with slight sparks of starlight shining from within the echoes of space. His hands were so large and strong and sure. They felt like the perfect fit on my ribs as he had lifted me up and back down, sliding down his bare chest…
I let my imagination take me away, as if I
hadn’t stopped him that evening in the sailboat, as if I hadn’t freaked out, but had let it continue…
I licked my lips as I imagined his lips brushing mine, his tongue flicking out to touch mine, inviting mine inside his mouth, playing around, battling for control. A battle it would be. He kissed the side of my mouth, then the other, then my nose, then my cheeks. He pulled back on my hair and kissed my exposed neck, tracing little kisses all along my jawline. I tangled my hands in his hair and wrapped my legs around his waist as he lifted me up and turned us around to place me in the bottom of the boat, his bare chest slick with the water we had been in moments before. He leaned forward to kiss me, my fingernails raking red lines down his back as the kiss drew deep and long, as if he were kissing my soul.
I slid my hand between my legs, under my panties, and began to play with myself as I dropped deeper into my imagination.
He pushed back from me and his eyes were laughing at me, taunting me in that way I secretly loved. He tapped his fingertips along my collarbone and gently tugged at the edge of my blouse. Then he gripped it tighter, stopping a moment, asking my permission. I nodded.
He ripped away my blouse. I gasped as the fabric gave way in an ephemeral tug, revealing my breasts for him to devour.
In a second, he had reached behind me and unsnapped my bra and flung it far away from the boat, the splash a sweet sound in the starlit night. His kisses traveled down my mouth, my jaw, my neck, till he reached my breasts, cradling each one in his hand before he gently teased the nipple with his teeth, swirled it around with his tongue, bit down harder, harder, while I gripped his waist with my legs and his hair with my hands, then he sucked on my nipple and massaged my breasts.
I gasped and called his name. “Axis!”
“Yes? Ceritha?”
I gasped for real, my eyes springing open in the dark room, the curtains of the open window fluttering, star and moonlight spilling in. I pulled my hand out of my panties, breathing heavily, heart beating fast, eyes wide, searching in the dark.