Surn was mostly covered by water, a blue planet wrapped in a garland of pearly-white clouds. What little land there was dotted the water’s surface, small, irregularly-shaped islands. Ellis watched through the tiny porthole as the planet got closer, seeming to swell until it blocked the sight of everything else.
Beside her, Logan was asleep, his head pillowed on her lap, his tail firmly wrapped around her leg. She tried to remain as still as possible because every time she moved, his eyes would fly open.
His wounds were healed courtesy of a doctor they had met in the city before heading to the spaceport. Mary had wrapped his wounds in cloth bandages after applying a layer of sticky tree sap that stopped the bleeding and would prevent infection.
She had refused to come with them, though they promised her protection from her mate and a home of her own on Zothea. "This is my home," she said. "And here I'll stay." She had also refused the gifts of money that th
Ellis found Nin in the children's room, bending over their nest, singing softly to the sleeping babies. Ellis stood there for a moment, gaping, before she was able to blurt, "Nin! What are you doing here? You're… dead!"She had a hard time saying that out loud.“Am I?” Nin responded with a raise of her brow. “In some ways, probably,” she said, “But I needed to see you one last time before I moved on.”"Are you really here, or is this a dream?" It had to be a dream, she concluded. They were in the palace, and she knew that was gone. Even the rubble had been removed for the construction of the memorial government buildings.“Can’t it be both?” Nin asked, tilting her head with a hint of a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth."Cryptic as always," Ellis laughed. "I miss you so much.""And I miss you, little queen, more than you can know.""I'm so sorry," Ellis said. "I distr
“Ellis…” Logan patted her cheeks. “Please, Ellis. Please wake up!”"I am, I am," she said woozily, trying to pry her lids open. The sight of his face jolted her into instant wakefulness. "What is it? What's wrong?""I couldn't wake you," he rasped. He stroked the tears from her cheeks. The poor man ... she must have been crying and babbling like a lunatic."I'm sorry," said Ellis. "I'm sorry I scared you. I'm sorry for many things."“You have no reason to be sorry,” he swore.“I do. I've neglected you and I've neglected the Empire.""Your heart aches," he said loyally, defending her even against herself.“As does yours,” Ellis replied. “And I have been so wrapped up in my own grief that I didn’t pay attention to you or yours.”He buried his face in her neck. “The doctor came by today… I don’t think you noticed. He said that he coul
Leo and Dorian paced the room where they were waiting for Laurel and the babies.Their trip to the space port to pick up the rest of the family turned into a parade because the people had somehow discovered that they were arriving home and had lined up on the streets they would be taking, to cheer as the royal family passed.They especially cheered for Leo, the hero of the Empire.Leo was overwhelmed by the attention, blinking and waving at the crowd with a dazed expression on his face. A woman ran up and jumped on the wagon.Leo, who was on the side, jumped in surprise.“First Prince Leo, are you single?” the woman asked. Leo’s eyes widened.“Why do you ask?”The female smiled. “Are you only able to have sex with your mate, or…” Leo fell into stunned silence until the wagon started up again.“What did she say?” Ellis asked. Leo had told the woman no and she had stepp
"Captain, you have a call from the Admiral," said the communications officer. "He says it's urgent and delicate, ma’am."“Send it to my room,” Christine responded curtly. “I will speak with him there.”“Understood,” the communications officer nodded.She got up from her chair on the bridge of the star ship. She nodded to her first officer to tell him she was leaving. He barely acknowledged her, but then again, he never did.She knew he was bitter about being passed over for the command of his own ship and under her leadership. Striding across the bridge, she used her thumb to open the door of her room, the office just off the bridge.Walking a little slower, she sat down at her desk and turned on the terminal. The waiting communiqué was blinking on the screen. Pressing the screen, she saw the face of her father appear. "Admiral?" she asked."I just received your report on the last mission we s
Smoothing her black uniform with a grey jacket and blue shirt underneath, she picked up her tablet from the desk in her quarters. Swiping her communicator from the edge of her nightstand and affixed to her jacket. As she was adjusting it, it chirped. "First Commander to Captain.""Captain here," Christine responded."Christine, I can't make it to the briefing at 0800. There was a coolant leak in the engineering department," he said."When can you make it?" she asked. "You are crucial to this mission. You have to be at the briefing.""I don't know. Two hours? I have to oversee repairs," he said. "Once I get through with that, I should be able to make it. I'm exhausted, though. Zero sleep over the past thirty-six hours. We need an administrator or one of those holographic AIs that the Fleet is constantly trying to install.""I thought you were against the holo people," Christine snickered."You try staying up for nearly two days and see how yo
Nearly two weeks later, they were in the orbit of C-space. It was a smaller planet that was mostly green and blue. It reminded them of a smaller version of Earth. She was waiting for the Empress in the transporter room along with another female staff member. The crew was nervous, always on the edge of the seat, and felt weird not being there to meet a traveling dignitary.“M’am, the C-space Council of Elders is hailing us," the Lieutenant said."On screen, Lieutenant," she replied, standing up. Three men were seated at a long table. The man in the middle had long black hair and a shrewd gleam in his neon yellow eyes. The man on his right had brown hair that was braided down his back and he looked bored, his blue eyes filled with zero emotion. The man on the left had short, cropped white hair with glowing pink eyes. "Greetings from the star ship. I'm Captain Christine Wright. On the other screen is my First Commander.""Thank you for making such a goo
The door chimed. The Empress walked to open it. She was greeted by a human female. "Greetings, Empress," Christine said gruffly. "I’ll be checking on you over the next few days. I have another officer who can take my place. I hope it doesn’t bother you.”Christine offered a polite smile. She was talking to an Empress after all."I'm fine, Captain.” The Empress smiled. "The accommodations are quite luxurious. I've never seen such a ship with rooms like these." She gestured for Christine to enter and she looked around the space with appraising eyes. "Is everything alright?""Sorry, Empress. It's in my nature to constantly look for a threat. We received explicit instructions that you are not to be harmed," Christine said, smiling sheepishly. "Empress? Are you okay? You look a little flushed."The Empress nodded. “It’s just a new space,” she said.“Empress…” Christine began.“You
Ellis was picking out clothes for the kids when she heard a commotion out in the hallway. Logan, who was lounging beside her with the babies on the couch sat up immediately. They looked at each other before depositing the babies in their nest and going to the door. The commotion was coming from the hallway, a woman’s voice yelling.They both darted to the door, Logan opening it a crack. Their new bodyguard, a male that looked like a dog stood in front of the doorway, prepared to battle whatever enemy tried to threaten the royal family.Logan could see over the bodyguard’s head but Ellis had to peek around the bodies.“I know my Constitutional rights!” the woman shouted. “If I am not under arrest, you have no right to detain me. I want a lawyer and my communication call right now!”“Sorry, you will not be able to contact anyone from your universe,” the person behind her said, sounding exasperated.&ldq