by Kyle Larson
Holloway and Captain Ali bowed their heads.
“My time is short and I imagine yours is as well. Holloway informed us the fifteen ships pursuing you are possibly under the command of the Colonel,” Queen Eleyn said.
“I…I wasn’t aware of that,” Captain Ali said.
“Ma’am, I’m sorry. I was preparing to brief you when the queen requested communications. My report’s in your inbox,” Holloway said, feeling bad this was how the news was delivered. The news that Captain Ali would be going up against fifteen ships was nerve-racking enough, now it was possible she’d be facing off against their leader.
“It’s not important now, Holloway,” the Queen said. “Before I say what I have to say, let me tell you I fought for you not because I thought your crew isn’t prepared, but because I don’t want to put one ship in harm’s way. I’m ready to defend Earth, but it was not my wish to go to war. The Venusians don’t want us in orbit of their planet, and I don’t blame them.”
Holloway braced herself. Captain Ali began to see what was coming.
“What I order you to do now, I do so because the people of Earth ask it of their navy,” the queen said. Her posture grew stiff, but she still looked reluctant. “The Royal Council and Earth Navy have ordered you to turn around and go back to Venus. Fifty-ships are departing as we speak, headed for Venus as well. I’m sure I don’t have to tell you that represents the bulk of Earth Navy. You are to engage the Wanderers and are authorized to use all means necessary to defend the Monarch and citizens of Earth, especially Lieutenant Chapman and Prince Sellwood. Is that all clear?”
Captain Ali didn’t respond immediately. Holloway averted her eyes from Eleyn. She did not approve of the Royal Council advocating the Monarch lead the engagement against the Wanderers. They might be able to do it, but it was much riskier without the support of the Earth Navy. They’d have to get past fifteen ships that were headed for them before they even made it to Venus. It made more sense to Holloway for them to increase to full speed and rendezvous with the fifty ships headed for Earth. It would be weeks either way before they could make it to Venus. The shuttle Kelvin stole was small and fast, which is why it had only taken him days. It didn’t make any sense to her that the Monarch would have to take on these ships alone.
“Yes, your majesty,” Captain Ali finally said. “Our star diver squads are prepared. Our weapons are ready. This crew has been training for exactly what you and Earth ask of us. We will engage the fifteen ships, and when we’re past them, we’ll defend the Earth citizens on Venus.”
“If you can, try to avoid the engagement of the fifteen until then. All of Earth’s strength and hope goes with you. Our fleet will get there as soon as it can. We are using faster engines, developed by the Lunar Guardians. We won’t know until they are past the magnetosphere, but it will probably take them weeks to get to you.”
“I’m afraid that won’t be possible, your majesty,” Holloway said. “They’re headed right for us. We have days before they reach us. The rest of the fleet needs to go as fast as they can, your majesty. We will be lucky if we can take on fifteen ships.” Holloway knew she spoke out of turn, but she couldn’t help herself. What she didn’t expect was the outrage in her tone. It was hard to hide how bad an plan Holloway considered the orders Eleyn relayed to them.
“Commander,” Captain Ali whispered, in a disapproving tone. The captain was shocked by Holloway’s tone.
“No, she’s right, captain,” Eleyn said. “Holloway, I have assurances from Fleet Commander Renner they are going as fast as they can.”
“I meant no disrespect, your majesty. We don’t take protecting Kelvin and Amelia lightly,” Holloway said. “They’re like our family. I’m sure you understand.”
The queen smiled at that.
“That I do. As his mother, you have my undying thanks. I will contact Venus after this call with you. Queen Tendai is not going to be happy about this. I don’t expect the Gravity Warriors are going to be very happy about it. I’ve tried to get Erelm to contact her since he’s known for the last thirty years…” Eleyn’s voice trailed off as if she’d said too much.
“Your majesty, should we expect the Lunar Guardians, as well? Their ship saved us in the Antioch Belt,” Holloway said.
Queen Eleyn shook her head. “Unfortunately, you will not. The Lunar Gale is still under repair, and the Lunar Guardians have lost a lot of their people to the Wanderers. The Lunar Guardians are in no position to help us. Lord Rewill and Lord Raige don’t even live on the moon. My brother is the only Lunar Guardian that maintains the moon. They left it all for him to deal with while they relax on Earth,” Eleyn said. The irritation in her tone was notable and she wished she’d done a better job of hiding it. All her brother had wanted since she could remember was to return to Earth. After the Antioch Belt, he was allowed but barely had any time now that he was the sole Lunar Guardian and trying to keep his people together. The other Lunar Guardians had essentially abandoned him. Earlos had spent three nights on Earth since he’d been allowed to return. Eleyn didn’t think it was fair.
“It’s fine, your majesty. The Monarch is strong. Earth Navy is strong.”
“No, captain. None of this is fine. Don’t ever forget that,” Queen Eleyn said. “Godspeed to you and your crew.”
The queen’s projection vanished.
“I’m sorry, captain,” Holloway said. It had been very disrespectful to Captain Ali for Holloway to speak out like that to the queen. The conversation should have only been between Captain Ali and the queen. Holloway was only there as an adviser if they had any questions, since she’d been working hard to monitor the Wanderers well encrypted transmissions.
Captain Ali was furious. She constantly felt like people were testing her. She always felt they wanted her to prove something. Holloway’s insubordination and the intelligence about the Colonel being in command of the fifteen ship fleet headed for them were especially not helpful for her. They was the last straws. The exhaustion and frustration had turned into a slow boil of anger inside of her.
“You could have told me about the Colonel before we came in here, commander. We walked here together. You sent me in here without the crucial knowledge and made me look like a fool in front of the queen. What were you thinking? Did you think I couldn’t handle it?” Captain Ali said the anger in her voice was sharp.
“No, captain, I’m sorry, I was just–”
“Nervous? Were you nervous, commander? We’ve all been nervous since the Antioch Belt, but all of us still manage to do our jobs. You don’t ever send a report to the queen and the Royal Council without me looking over it first. Your work represents me and the rest of this ship! You got that?”
Holloway glared back in anger at her captain. She respected Ali but was in no mood to be dressed down and spoken to that way. The bond of frustration they shared in that moment was not a good thing.
“Captain, I’m sorry. I wanted to brief you myself.”
“That’s not the point. The point is you are on my ship, so any work you do on my ship goes through me. I’m sick and tired of this crew treating me like I’m their big sister,” Captain Ali said. She made a conscious effort to bring the volume of her voice back down. Ali could see from Holloway’s face the officer had gotten the message. “From now on please keep me posted, commander. Please finish up whatever you were currently working on and then report to your workstation on the bridge. I think Lieutenant Werner is almost ready for his shift change.”
Holloway relaxed her face and took a breath.
“I’ll head up there now.”
Queen Eleyn looked out into the darkness of Earth’s night. There was a single window in the projection room. It was a clear night and the stars were bright. The view from her home atop the tallest structure on Earth never ceased to amaze her. She poured herself a cold glass of water and activated the control panel on the projection transmitter. The queen had just ordered the Monarch to battle, and she did not feel good about it. The perso
n on the other end of the projection transmitter was someone she was not looking forward to speaking with.
Queen Tendai appeared in front of her, in an almost flawless projection. It was still apparent it was a hologram, but the signal strength was remarkable. If it had been slightly stronger, it would have appeared as if Queen Tendai actually stood in the room.
“My lady Queen Eleyn, I presume you would like an update on your son’s whereabouts? Lieutenant Chapman, as well,” Queen Tendai said.
It was an unexpected and welcome greeting for Queen Eleyn. Queen Tendai was not known for her pleasantries and was usually quite cold when she addressed other monarchs.
“Why, yes, your majesty, I’d appreciate that.”
“Your son and Lieutenant Chapman are with my son, Prince Teve, in our most remote Archive. Archives are sacred places and right now it is the safest place on Venus. Your son and the lieutenant are being trained as Gravity Warriors. That is what I tasked your son with for his Tradition of Service. It is a gift to the people of Earth. Perhaps our lessons in defense will be helpful to him when the Wanderers make their way to Earth.”
The news was mixed for Eleyn. She was happy Kelvin was safe but didn’t know what she thought about him being trained to be a warrior. The last thing she’d want was Kelvin fighting anything, but any parent would say that. Eleyn was sure the parents of the people she’d just ordered to fight the Wanderers wouldn’t like them fighting. It was out of her hands, anyway. Kelvin was free to do what he wanted when it came to the Traditions of Service, and he was always quick to remind her of that. Eleyn had given up trying to tell him what to do and his act of defiance in going to Venus reminded her how useless it was.
“Thank you, your majesty. Thank you for taking them in. I know I speak for Taija and Benito Chapman, as well,” Queen Eleyn said. “Another reason I’ve contacted you is to formally announce that our Royal Council and Earth Navy have moved their positions. We are going to actively engage the Wanderers, and we have dispatched our fleet.”
“Good hunting to you!” Queen Tendai said. “We have intelligence that there is still a large amount of their fleet in the Antioch Belt, rebuilding. We would be happy to share that with you, along with our charts of how to navigate the belt. No offense to the people of Mercury, but our flight paths are a lot smoother and more direct.”
“No, your majesty, we are going to engage fifteen ships that seem to have broken off from the ones headed your way. The Monarch has just reversed course to engage them. We are confident in Captain Ali and the crew. By the time we’ve disabled and arrested all their crew, the rest of the fleet should be caught up with them. It will then be our intention to proceed to Venus, and do the same to whatever remains of their fleet face you.”
Queen Tendai forcefully shook her head.
“You will do no such thing, Eleyn,” Tendai said. The Queen Tendai that Eleyn expected seemed to appear in that moment. “Let’s cut this nonsense. The only time people call me queen is when I talked to other kingdoms. I’m a woman and a Gravity Warrior. You’re a leader and mother. Why don’t we talk from our hearts? I don’t want your fleet coming to my planet. This situation is volatile enough. Trust me when I tell you that Venus will defend itself. We will keep your children safe. If you bring your fleet here, you will only be endangering the lives of my people, and I cannot allow that.”
“Why would it endanger your people?”
“Because, Eleyn, we would not only be protecting your son and the Chapman daughter, we would be forced to protect Earth’s entire fleet. It is very foolish for you to do this. I understand your desire, but we have not requested this and I am telling you that you better not send one ship into our orbit until I tell you that you can. Don’t test Venus, Eleyn.”
Eleyn was shaken for a few seconds, but she understood. This wasn’t what she wanted either, but she couldn’t say that. She didn’t have that luxury as a leader. She couldn’t take down her title the way Tendai could. The Royal Council would watch this transmission, and it would be disrespectful of Eleyn to disagree with her people because Tendai wanted to talk with her on a more informal level. Eleyn wanted that very bad, but she maintained the formality.
“We will reassess the situation once we are finished and if you have dealt with them, then the fleet will turn to the Antioch Belt. If not, we will finish it, your majesty. Whether it’s in your orbit or not,” Eleyn said.
Tendai tightened her jaw.
“If one Venusian life is lost protecting your people, we will hold Earth responsible forever. This is your last warning. Don’t come here.”
Eleyn and Tendai stared back at each other in silence. There was really nothing else either could say. Eleyn wished she could tell Tendai this was not what she wanted.
“I hope one day you understand, your majesty,” were the only words Eleyn felt could convey her regret and the fact that she was bound by duty. Tendai made no indication that she picked up on it.
“If that is all, my lady, I am very busy. We will keep you updated on the progress of your son’s training. My son is an excellent teacher,” Tendai said, her voice reverted back to a more formal tone. “Please give my best to Erelm and the Chapman family, as well as your brother.”
There was no goodbye. The transmission ended and the floating pixels that composed Tendai fizzled away into nothing. Eleyn stood alone in the projection room.
“I wish I could say I feel bad for you, but I can’t,” Erelm’s voice said, over the same audio system that carried Tendai’s voice.
The king had monitored the transmission, just as the Royal Council had. Eleyn was irritated that Erelm observed her without her knowing and that his voice started her as much as it did. The mental and physical fatigue, coupled with the dire state of the Nine Kingdoms, made Eleyn and everyone else responsible for difficult decisions very jumpy.
The king had been very far from Eleyn’s mind in recent weeks. As the debate over whether the Earth Navy should engage the Wanderers continued to escalate in the Royal Council, Eleyn’s concern for her husband’s well-being was the smallest one. Erelm’s withdrawal and inability to serve the basic functions of his duty grew tiresome for Eleyn and had letdown many on the Royal Council. Eleyn, out of protection for the Sellwood family name and her son’s claim to the throne, pretended as if she spoke for both herself and Erelm. No one on the Royal Council believed her, but they had little choice other than to accept her word. Her authority was just as strong as the king’s, and they trusted her far more than they did him. Ten years of absence did not bode well for any leadership, and they had given up on Erelm.
Eleyn was not far from that place of surrender herself. The memories of the strong man she married were decades removed and the burden she had to bear for the Sellwood name was something she resented him for. Eleyn not only resented him, but she also resented herself for being the protector of a man who had given up on everything. She felt the same grief over Aren’s betrayal and the danger Kelvin faced, only she had to wake up every day to show strength to the people of Earth. Unrest stirred the Nine Kingdoms, and Eleyn was determined to keep the people of Earth calm.
Erelm’s nonexistence in the day-to-day of the crisis facing the Nine Kingdoms angered Eleyn. Eleyn saw no use confronting her husband. It would be a waste of her energy and she had little to spare from the demands of helping govern an entire planet. She had a job to do, but at this moment where Erelm stepped in to criticize her, Eleyn had it.
“You haven’t said much of anything at all, Erelm. Why start now?”
It was a warning. The nerve of Erelm to casually drop in on a very difficult moment and offer criticism instead of support was infuriating to Eleyn. She waited for the king’s response, but there was none, so she continued.
“Any advice you would offer in dealing with your old friends on Venus, as well as handling a Royal Council that has just sent this planet’s navy to war, would be most welcome, Erelm? Or are you too busy today, sitting in your dark throne room and watch
ing Tube? We all deal with our stress in different ways, I suppose.”
The king’s activities were known to her and a few of the staff that helped keep their residence in order. There were two cooks and one assistant that kept their home organized. They were the only ones who knew the king kept himself confined in the throne room, on a diet of steady broadcasts from around the Nine Kingdoms. The excuse she had given the Royal Council and the command of the Earth Navy was health reasons, not the self-surrender Erelm succumbed to.
“The Royal Council have betrayed our family,” Erelm finally said. “Benito, Taija…they forget their daughter is out there, too.”
“Have you really fallen so far out of touch that you believe their decision to be a betrayal? They are loyal to and serve the people of Earth, just like we do. The people of Earth don’t want to hide behind castle walls. They have chosen to do something about the Wanderers. While I’m not in agreement with sending our people into harm's way, I understand and respect their decision. Perhaps you’ve forgotten that’s what being a leader is. Leaders must make decisions for the betterment of their people.”
Eleyn’s anger was pushed even further, now that she had to defend a decision she disagreed with to her husband’s illogical statements. The king had every luxury during this crisis, including being able to sit back and criticize her. The role of a queen and king was not to rule with absolute authority, it was to facilitate debates between elected officials on the Royal Council and help come to a decision that was best for Earth, as well as the Nine Kingdoms. Erelm started to sound like the authoritarian kings of ancient Earth, who would launch wars to distract from their own shortcomings or poor decisions.
“They forget all the sacrifices the Sellwood family made for this planet. That’s why we lead them, that’s why we sit in the Royal Palace,” Erelm said. “They were supposed to be our friends and allies.”