Turquoise.
That is all the Minor of Aelon Station, Alexis Teirmont, could see as he stared up at the sky above him. His eyes were dazzled by the cloudless sky that only appeared above The Way Prime, while the rest of the planet was covered in Vape clouds so thick that barely anything besides breen crops could grow.
Helios.
A planet ripped apart by the Cataclysm, sending its inhabitants fleeing to orbiting stations, artificial planets in of themselves, so many millennia before.
A planet that leaked Vape—a gas that fueled everything from the shuttles that launched from The Way Prime to the very rotational drives that kept the stations spinning with artificial gravity.
The planet had once been covered by a pristine ocean with one central continent, but after the Cataclysm became a world of boiling, poisonous seas and fractured land masses known as the primes.
Helios.
A star. The Star.
Helios.
A solar system. The System.
Helios.
A god. The God.
Everything Alexis had learned through his young life on Station Aelon, and occasionally down on Aelon Prime, whirled through his head as he stared at that impossible turquoise. That color held him, spoke to him, taunted him. It was a color he had fought for, but in the end realized it was too much and had to give in, just as the other stations gave in when The Way finally triumphed and ordered a truce.
A truce he would have to sign despite his feelings about corruption of The Way’s High Guardian and gatekeepers. Those men and women may have controlled the only way on and off the planet, and used that control, along with the power of Helios, to maintain a religious hold on the stations, but they could not use it to control the essence and spirit of each individual.
Alexis had fought for that spirit; fought with men around him, men he led, men that looked to him as their minor, the heir to the crown of Station Aelon; fought and watched those men die by the hundreds and hundreds as The Way’s Burdened mowed them down with superiorly fueled vehicles and weapons.
In the end, it was The Way’s mastery of Vape that decided the outcome of the war, not their mastery of the people they purported to represent spiritually in this life and the next.
Alexis flinched as he felt his fingernails dig into his palms, the fire and anger still so fresh.
“Your highness?” a voice spoke softly behind him. “I apologize for interrupting.”
Alexis turned and beheld the diminutive figure of Gatekeeper Clegg and smiled. He shoved all thoughts of aggression away and looked on a man who had known him almost all his life.
“Clegg,” Alexis greeted the holy man of The Way. “What a treat. I wasn’t expecting you to be here on the surface.”
Clegg, a man twenty years Alexis’s elder, smiled softly and nodded to the young minor and heir. He drew back the dark grey hood of the obligatory robe all gatekeepers of The Way wore and stood tall, which still put him a good foot shorter than Alexis’s nearly seven foot height.
“Greetings, your highness,” Clegg said. “It has been a long time since I have set foot down on The Way Prime. I must admit I enjoy the station life much more. The gravity on the planet can feel so oppressive.”
“Yet it builds one’s strength, don’t you think?” Alexis grinned, puffing out his chest. “Once I return to the artificial gravity of the station I’ll feel like a god. My muscles won’t know what to do with the slightly lesser weight of space.”
“Yes,” Clegg nodded. “I see your point. Although it borders on blasphemy.”
The gatekeeper looked into Alexis’s eyes for a long few seconds, making the minor a tad uncomfortable. It was not polite to stare at an heir to a station’s mastership. Nor was it prudent to stare at a Teirmont, many of which had been known throughout history for their volatile tempers.
“You have something on your mind, Clegg.” Alexis frowned. “Unburden yourself, old friend. You know we can always speak as equals when alone. You helped raise me almost as much as Father did.”
“Yes, your father was a great parent as well as master of station,” Clegg replied. “He will be forever loved.”
“I think you exaggerate about his role as master of station,” Alexis laughed. “While it is true he has been a loyal and loving parent, his leadership as Master of Station Aelon has left a lot to be desired.” Alexis spread his arms. “Otherwise I would not be down here signing the Treaty of the Primes. But, again to my father’s credit, he does know how to delegate. It has given some too much power on Station Aelon, but it has also allowed me to learn the duties of master well before I am forced into the role.”
Gatekeeper Clegg did not respond, but only frowned deeper. He swallowed hard, looked about the sparse quarters The Way had assigned to Minor Alexis, found the water pitcher, and quickly hurried over to pour a glass. Alexis watched him with amusement, well used to the gatekeeper’s penchant for melodrama. The older man gulped at the water as if he hadn’t had a drop in ages and Alexis had to cover a condescending grin with his hand.
“Speak your mind, Clegg,” Alexis said. “Unless it is to tell me that the High Guardian has negated the truce and Aelon is at war once again. But who will we fight this time? Not The Way, since your burdened handed us our helmets. Station Thraen? Haven’t they played us against each other enough? Talks have been solid regarding our lease holdings on their prime, so I do not think it is them. What, gatekeeper? What is the trouble?”
“Your highness,” Clegg began then stopped as he poured another glass.
Alexis strode to the holy man and gripped him gently by the wrist.
“Out with it, Clegg, now,” Alexis said. “I think you have primed the pump enough. And Helios knows that once primed, that pump needs no more encouragement.”
“True indeed,” Clegg smiled weakly. “I have been known to prattle on once I get going.”
“Then prattle,” Alexis prodded. “Spill what it is you must say.”
The gatekeeper motioned for Alexis to sit on one of the few luxuries in the quarters, a high-backed chair, fully upholstered in breen fabric and stuffed with spun breen fiber. It was not adorned with patterns such as the furnishings on Aelon Station, but it did allow Alexis the illusion of the small comforts of home.
Once seated, Gatekeeper Clegg continued to stall, his eyes roaming the quarters, taking in the plain grey metal walls, the skylight above, the less than simple furnishings. He looked at the dark grey metal chest of clothing the minor had brought down to the planet. It held trousers and thick tunics, undershirts, and socks, several pairs of heavy breen gloves and an assortment of caps. To the side were the minor’s weapons—a long blade, two short blades, and a handheld sling with packets of sharp flechettes stacked next to it.
Alexis sighed loudly and sat back in his chair, crossing his long, muscular legs that gave him the nickname the entire Station Aelon knew him by—Longshanks. Alexis was not a fan of the name.
“Clegg,” Alexis barked, his patience gone. “I said out with it and I mean out with it.”
The gatekeeper turned his attention back to the young royal and sighed.
“Your father has died, your highness,” Clegg said quickly. “You are being recalled for your coronation as the new Master of Station Aelon. The master is dead, long live the master.”
Clegg took a knee and lowered his head, showing the shaved X on top of his scalp. Alexis’s eyes focused on the shorn pattern of the X as a million thoughts ran through his head.
“That’s why you addressed me as ‘your highness,’” Alexis said finally. “I caught the mistake, but didn’t say anything as I know you get your titles mixed up at times. I was just happy you hadn’t said it in front of Father, as you know how he gets so angry at the misuse of titles.”
Gatekeeper Clegg looked up and furrowed his brow.
“I am sorry for your loss, your highness,” Clegg said. “It must come as a shocking blow.”
“It does and it doesn’t,” Alexis said. “How did he pass? No, let me guess. He was crushed by a beam as he insisted on helping one of his construction crews rebuild yet another deck.”
“He passed in his sleep, your highness,” Clegg replied. “A peaceful way was his end.”
“Ha,” Alexis laughed. “I know that must have sent his ghost into such a rage!”
Clegg tried to smile, but couldn’t, his mind not understanding the young minor’s, and suddenly master’s, reaction. Alexis saw the look on the gatekeeper’s face and dropped the smile, his hand reaching out and patting the holy man on the shoulder.
“Forgive me, Clegg,” Alexis says. “Helios must think I am a monster to react such a way to the news of my father’s passing.”
“Helios does not judge those that are pure of heart,” Clegg responded. “Judgment is for the wicked and evil of intention.”
“I thank you for that reminder,” Alexis said. “And as explanation, I knew Father wasn’t going to be long for this system. His servants have been keeping me informed of his failing health for many months now.”
“They have sent you word? Even down here on the planet?” Clegg asked, surprised by the information. “What else have they told you, your highness?”
“Nothing of station importance,” Alexis replied. “Those secrets of station are not for my ears. Although, I guess they are now.” Alexis waved his hand. “But never mind about the servants. They only told me of my family’s health, especially my father’s and Eliza’s. I shall be adding another heir to the Teirmont line soon. Or, Eliza shall be, since I have already done my part.”
“Yes, your highness, congratulations,” Clegg said and stood. He glanced back at the chest of clothes and stack of weapons. “Will you need assistance with packing?”
“Assistance?” Alexis said. “Not yet, no. Once the Treaty of Primes is signed and business is concluded then I’ll be ready to depart. Thank you for being the one to tell me, Clegg. I do appreciate that.”
Alexis stood and clasped the gatekeeper on the shoulders then brought him in for a strong embrace, pressing the older man’s cheek into his chest. He slapped the man’s back twice then pushed him away, nodding at him in gratitude.
The gatekeeper frowned deeply and his brow furrowed even more until it looked as if the holy man’s face would split in two.
“I am sorry, your highness, but you do not understand,” Clegg said. “You are to return to Station Aelon today while the planetary rotation is in synch. To delay would mean a full rotation before you could leave the planet. I can assist you with the packing, but we must depart the Way Prime within the hour.”
Alexis took a step back and watched the old gatekeeper. The minor’s generally easy, affable nature was quickly replaced by a look that those close to the Teirmonts knew all too well.
“I have to sign the treaty first, Clegg,” Alexis said. “Otherwise so many hundreds of loyal Aelons will have died for nothing. This treaty establishes the first hard and fast rules of trade between the stations, their primes, as well as the planetary regulating nature of The Way beyond spiritual guidance and shuttle launches.”
“But, your highness, your father has died,” Clegg said. “Surely that is of greater importance than—”
“If I am to be the new Master of Station Aelon then I cannot let my personal grief overpower my duty,” Alexis said. “I will mourn my father, and prepare for my coronation, as soon as the treaty is signed and I know the future of all Aelish people is secured.”
A twitch at the corner of Clegg’s left eye caught Alexis’s attention, but he said nothing.
“Your highness, I must protest—” Clegg began.
“Protest away, gatekeeper,” Alexis interrupted. “But it will not change my mind. I sign the treaty with the other delegates and then I return to Station Aelon. I know it means another week here on the planet, but that will give me time to return to Aelon Prime and see the homeland before I return to the station and my blood duty. Once I am master, Helios knows when I can return to the planet and Aelon Prime again. The delay before rotational synch couldn’t be more perfect.”
“Yes...of course, your highness,” Clegg replied, bowing slightly as he backed towards the door. “As you see fit.”
“Oh, knock it off, Clegg,” Alexis grimaced. “No need to kowtow to me. You’ve seen me standing in a station passageway with my trousers soiled with my own urine after my uncle nearly shot me with a sling. You were even the one to clean me up. And not just on that occasion.”
The gatekeeper winced as if the memory caused him physical pain.
“But those days have passed, your highness,” Clegg responded. “Whatever history we have shared is no more. You will be crowned Master of Station Aelon and Gatekeeper Lewis will be the new representative from The Way.” He sighed and reached back, grasping the metal handle of the door. His fingers curled tightly around the pocked and pitted surface of the metal loop. “I will inform the delegation that there will be no delay despite the unfortunate circumstances. The signing will remain on schedule as planned.”
“Yes, it will,” Alexis nodded. “I will be there at seventeen-hundred with everyone else and will conduct business just like everyone else. Please inform Gatekeeper Lewis of my intentions and to spread the word that I expect the treaty to be signed before any ceremonies of condolence commence. Can you do that for me, Clegg?”
“Gladly,” Clegg replied as he pulled the door open and stepped into the passageway. “Until then, your highness.”
The holy man bowed once more and backed from the quarters, shutting the door in his wake.
Alexis waited for several minutes before turning his eyes back to the skylight and the sky beyond. He watched the clearness and shook his head back and forth, stunned by its beauty. He knew once he left The Way Prime to travel to Aelon Prime for a last look at the ancestral lands, he would see only Vape clouds and murky oceans. He knew he had to enjoy the wonder above him while he had the chance. His whole world had changed in the blink of an eye.
As if in answer to that thought, he suddenly had to struggle to blink back tears that filled his eyes. The large, heavy drops could not be stopped and they rolled down his ruddy cheeks to his chin where they hesitated, then fell so many feet to the hammered metal floor of his quarters.
* * *
“You’re standing on the hem of my dress,” the girl snapped, her brown eyes glaring daggers up at Alexis. “Move it.”
“Sorry about that,” Alexis laughed, taking an exaggerated jump to the side. “Being as tall as I am, I sometimes forget to look down at where I’m walking.”
“Being as old as you are, you’d think you’d have learned by now,” the girl responded.
“Ha!” Alexis laughed again and knelt by the girl. “I’m only twenty-three, you know. Still young.”
“I’m eight,” the girl smirked. “And you are going to die way before me, so that makes you old.”
“Meredith!” a woman screeched as she wove and diplomatically shoved her way through the throng of envoys, representatives, royalty, and nobility representing the six stations of Helios and their planetary primes. “There you are! I have warned you about letting go of my hand while on the planet!”
“Your hand is sweaty and stinks of breen oil,” the girl, Meredith, barked. “I don’t need a nurse anymore. I’m eight.” She looked over at Alexis and turned up her nose. “But you can get rid of this old geezer. He’s bothering me and was rude.”
“Sir!” the nurse exclaimed as she came upon the two. “Do you know who you are addressing? This is Meredith Herlect, third daughter of the Master of Station Thraen, Paul the Third.”
“That’s a lot of thirds,” Alexis said as he stood up, instantly towering over the woman. “My father is...was a third, as well. But I guess I’ll be a first once I return home.”
The nurse stared at Alexis for a split second then immediately dropped to a knee, her eyes cast down, her voice trembling as she said, “My apologies, your highness. I was not aware it was you. Please forgive me for not realizing it instantly, Master Alexis.”
“Get up, nurse,” Alexis laughed. “There are so many pompous faces around here, mine included. I would expect them to all start being a blur. You’ve done no offense. In fact, you and your ward here have reminded me just what a puffed up show this all is.”
He glanced over at a group of stewards from Station Ploerv. They stood in a tight knit circle, their eyes narrowed and lips curled up at those not from their Station. Alexis looked down at the Minoress Meredith.
“Looks like they are trying to figure out which one farted,” he said, giving the girl a wink.
No matter the intention of her demeanor, an eight year old girl was an eight year old girl, and Meredith couldn’t help but giggle at the word “fart.”
“My lady, it is time for business to start,” the nurse said, hiding her own smile. “I’ll take you to your quarters now.”
“I want to stay,” Meredith snapped.
“And one day you will,” Alexis responded. “Just not today. I had to wait my turn when I was your age. Waiting is not fun.” He leaned down and put his hand to his mouth in exaggerated conspiracy. “And neither are these things, really. I’d rather be out on a cutter, racing towards my prime than stuck in a meeting hall like this.”
“I as well,” a man said, coming up behind Alexis. “Perhaps after the signing I can invite you onto my personal cutter? We are taking a tour of the west coast of Thraen Prime.”
“Minor Paul.” Alexis nodded. “Good to see you. And I will take you up on that offer since I’m missing my rotational synch launch and cannot return to Station Aelon for another week.”
“Why would you return so soon?” asked Minor Paul Herlect, first son and heir of Paul III, Master of Station Thraen. “I’m never in a hurry to return to those floating cans. Even with the Vape ready to cook your insides, I much prefer planetary life on the prime than station life. The day I am forced to stay up there in space will be a sad day indeed.”
“Then enjoy the days you have,” Alexis said, grasping Paul by the shoulder. “They disappear faster than you think.”
“More reason to join me on my cutter,” Paul said.
“So true,” Alexis replied. “But only if your spirited sister will be there.”
“Watch me try to hold her back,” Paul laughed as a bell rang out, signaling the start of the treaty signing. “But, first, duty calls.”
“As it always does,” Alexis smiled as the minor bowed slightly and walked to his delegation’s table.
“I hope to see you later, minoress,” Alexis said, then looked to the nurse. “How is it you know of my father’s passing, and my becoming a master, but his highness does not? Or I assume he does not. If he does then that conversation was more than weird.”
“News travels fast with passengers, your highness,” the nurse responded. “We have less to talk and worry about than the royalty.”
“Well, I’m not so sure about that,” Alexis laughed. “But maybe news means more to passengers since the slightest shift in power can upset a passenger’s life, while the royalty insists on finishing lunch first before being bothered with anything.”
Again the nurse had to hide her smile. She curtsied low and then took Meredith’s hand before making her way from the grand hall.
“My lord? I, uh, mean, your highness? Shall we take our seats?” a short, well-fed man asked, his hands clasped across his stout belly.
The man waved his hand towards a row of chairs where the Aelon delegation waited, standing at attention until their monarch was seated.
“Of course, Alasdair,” Alexis nodded.
“Your highness, it would be more appropriate to address me as Steward de Morlan,” de Morlan said as he directed the new master to his seat. “The familiar can upset some of our more formal cousins.”
“Almost everything upsets many of our more formal cousins here.” Alexis frowned as he took his seat.
The Aelish delegation immediately sat down once the master’s chair had been pushed to the table. Alexis looked left then right and nodded and smiled as expected despite his misgivings about most of the other members of the delegation.
Being the new master meant he could clean house and reassign some key posts. He knew he’d have to discuss it all with Eliza once he returned. As long as she was up to the task and not too exhausted from her pregnancy.
Alexis leaned over to de Morlan and whispered, “You have informed the gatekeepers that I want no mention of my father’s death until after the treaty is signed, correct?”
“I did, your highness,” de Morlan replied. “I was assured that the High Guardian would be told of your wishes.”
“Good. Thank you, Alasdair,” Alexis nodded, ignoring the man’s eye roll at his use of the familiar name once again.
Chimes sounded and Alexis found himself back on his feet as High Guardian of The Way, Benedict XI, walked into the room, followed by a train of gatekeepers that looked as if it would never stop. The pontiff limped his way to his chair, which was more ornate and larger than any of the other seats in the room, stood for a moment then almost collapsed into the breen cushions.
He waved a hand and everyone took their seats once again.
“Welcome,” Benedict said. “All thank Helios for the grace of life and gift of our souls.”
“All thank Helios,” the room intoned.
The High Guardian took a deep breath and then began his speech, one he had said a thousand times before many an official occasion.
“Helios—the One True System,” he began. “Planet, Star, System, Deity. Helios is all. Helios is our God and Protector. The Dear Parent who watches over us, watches over our primes, watches over our very souls. Helios, giver of the Vape and grower of breen. Helios—the One True System. May we praise the Dear Parent and all that Helios provides.”
“Praise to the Dear Parent and all that Helios provides,” the room repeated.
“So long ago, our ancestors believed in many gods and goddesses,” Benedict recited from memory. Half the room had to bite their tongues to keep from groaning. “Their belief in those false gods was what led to the Cataclysm; an event so violent that it ripped a continent apart into the primes, sent vast amounts of gas that would be known as Vape into the atmosphere, and forced all of humanity to flee to the safety of the stations and their orbits about the planet.”
He nodded his head six times and everyone in the room did the same.
“Almost all of the knowledge of those first peoples has been lost, but we fear not because Helios provided us with a better understanding of the universe,” Benedict said. “The Dear Parent gave us The Way.”
“The Way,” the room replied.
“Ordaining the gatekeepers as the moral and spiritual guides of all, Helios proved his intentions by allowing The Way Prime to have a clear path on and off the planet. It is the holy miracle that parts the Vape clouds only over this piece of land that shows all the ordained nature of The Way and the gatekeepers. Praise be to the men and women that keep you from sliding into evil and dying in the atmosphere.”
“Praise be to the gatekeepers,” the room droned.
“Helios,” Benedict said quickly, ignoring the lack of enthusiasm. He raised his arms above his head and let his long sleeves slide down to his bony and age-spotted elbows. “By your mercy we live.”
“Helios,” the room said. “By your mercy we live.”
A low noise was heard as everyone present finished the prayer by humming the deepest note they could. The sound was discordant and slightly off putting due to the differences in range, but no one cared as they knew it meant the end of the invocation.
“Thank you. I know we have important business, but first we must all bow our heads in silence for the passing of one of Helios’s chosen,” Benedict sighed. “Henry III, Master of Station Aelon, is no longer with us on this plane and has moved on to travel the System, his corporeal being of no use to him any longer.”
Fists clenched, Alexis kept his anger under control, making sure his face was passive and open as the entire room looked to him. He gave perfunctory nods to those of stations that were once only hours before close to his rank as minor then lowered his head in silence as a set of bells rang six times. There was a long pause and then a final ring to symbolize the singularity of The Way in the eyes of Helios.
“Although you have not been crowned as of yet, Master Alexis,” Benedict said once the last tones of the bells faded away. “I believe, as the only master amongst us, you should open these proceedings with some words of encouragement and wisdom.”
A couple of muffled snickers could be heard, but Alexis couldn’t find the sources. Again, he kept his anger in check and looked about the room.
“Thank you, your holiness,” Alexis said. “I do not have any words planned, and the news of my father’s passing has only reached my ears this hour, so I will keep it brief.”
He took a deep breath and gathered his thoughts for a moment.
“As many of you know firsthand, my father was not a leader of any extraordinary measure,” Alexis said. More muffled snickers. “He was brash, fiscally irresponsible, and aloof to many of the basic needs of being a master. His passion was for architecture and engineering, not leadership of an entire station and people.”
“Helios praise his soul,” de Morlan said.
“Yes, Helios praise his soul,” Alexis nodded. “He will be traveling the System, I’m sure, looking for new ways to combine the molecules that bind us all.”
There was some genuine laughter and Alexis smiled.
“May I propose we postpone the signing?” Minor Paul said, standing from his seat across the room from Alexis. “Your grief must be overwhelming and we would not want you to sign out of duty or duress. You were instructed as to what the parameters of the treaty must be by your father, but now you are master and can make your own decisions.”
The room was silent at the interruption; all eyes moved back and forth from Alexis to Paul.
“While I thank the minor for his sentiments,” Alexis said, nodding to Paul. “I do not believe any delay is needed. Despite my admissions to my father’s failings, his wishes as to the future of the primes match mine in almost every way. I will gladly sign the treaty we have agreed upon, as former minor and as newly risen Master of Station Aelon. Having the prime lands on this planet secured and trade agreements in place would be the highest honor I could give my father’s memory.”
He waited for a response from Paul, but the minor merely bowed and took his seat.
“High Guardian?” Alexis said. “May we proceed with the signing?”
“We may,” Benedict nodded, motioning for the gatekeepers in the room to move forward and provide copies of the treaty to each of the head delegates. “Please take your time to read the documents before you. Make sure the wording is as was agreed upon. If it is to your satisfaction then please adorn them with your signature and pass your document to the right. Once all copies are signed then this meeting will be adjourned and we can welcome in a new age to relations between the stations and their primes, as well as between the monarchies and The Way.”
The delegates settled into their seats and began to read the many-paged documents before them.
It would be a long evening.
* * *
“Ahhh, free!” Paul cheered, raising his arms into the air as the royal cutter sped across the steaming ocean of Helios.
Mist rose and curled into streaks, running across the thick glass and polybreen dome that kept the occupants of the cutter from being suffocated and blistered by the planet’s inhospitable atmosphere. The cutter was close to twenty feet long, with a hull that began narrow in the bow and spread into wide, arching wings that glided across the surface of the water towards the stern.
“Relax, Master Alexis,” Paul said, motioning towards an empty cushioned bench across from his own. He glanced over at the small group of Aelish royal guards that stood uncomfortably across from the large contingent of Thraenish royal guards. “And tell your men to relax, as well. They make me nervous. Enjoy the sight of the Vape at night, Alexis. It is a wonder to behold.” He clapped his hands together. “Tell the pilot to cut the ship’s lights. We cannot enjoy the night if all we see are reflections.”
“But, my lord, we would be sailing blind,” a man said from off to Paul’s side. “It would not be safe.”
“We are in the middle of a vast ocean,” Paul snapped. “What could we possibly run into? Tell the pilot now!”
“No need to put us at risk or give the pilot added stress,” Alexis said as he sat down and gave a quick, reassuring nod to his guards. “I’m enjoying the ride as it is.”
“You’re enjoying nothing,” Paul said. “Look at you. I’ve seen passengers with the weeping sickness have more fun than you do now.”
“My father did just pass,” Alexis said, taking a glass of brown liquor from a tray offered to him by one of the ever present servants. “Thank you.”
Paul frowned and waved the servant away then leaned forward, his forearms resting on his knees. Dressed in a tunic of blue breen material tucked into a pair of dark green breen trousers, Paul tried to give the air of a casual commoner and not the next in line for the mastership of Station Thraen. He would have pulled it off if not for the amount of jewelry and precious metals he wore about his neck, wrists, and fingers.
“My apologies, Master Alexis,” Paul said. “I forget myself when I am out on the water. I’ve always believed that open water is the great equalizer. It doesn’t matter what our place is in the hierarchy of the stations, the waters of Helios could give a shit. If this cutter were to capsize, then we’d all boil and die in seconds, just like the servants around us. Crowned or not, we are flesh and bone.”
There was a sharp hiss and then intake of breath from the corner of the dome and Alexis smiled as he saw the figure of Gatekeeper Clegg tense up. Paul heard it as well and turned to follow Alexis’s gaze.
“Have I offended your sensibilities, gatekeeper? Was my use of such crude language too much for your sheltered ears?” Paul laughed.
“The gatekeeper has heard worse, trust me,” Alexis said. “I believe his less than subtle objection was to your lumping royalty with commoners.”
“Yes, your highness,” Gatekeeper Clegg said quietly. “The hierarchy is important to the stability of the stations. Saying anything less puts the royalty, the nobility, as well as those of us of The Way, at risk for rebellion.”
Paul grimaced in exaggeration and waved his hands about. “Well, we can’t have that, can we?” He laughed heartily and rolled his eyes. “Not that the passengers or any denizens of our Lower Decks will ever rise up against the status quo. They’d have to learn to think first.”
“You underestimate your people, minor,” Alexis replied. “Societal class hardly dictates a person’s intelligence. I highly doubt I am the smartest person on Station Aelon, and I am almost certain there are passengers living below the station’s surface that could outthink the majority of the stewards, sector wardens, and deck bosses that cling to their supremacy.”
“Ha! Alexis! You surprise me, sir. Do I detect the hint of a revolutionary hiding behind a regal facade?”
“No, Paul, you do not,” Alexis replied. “I don’t believe revolution will help anyone. Helios knows democracy was tried millennia ago and all it did was lead to corruption and slaughter of innocents. No, the monarchy works and it should stay in place.” Alexis leaned forward, matching Paul’s pose. “But maybe we should take advantage of the assets we have in our stations, and down here on the primes, and allow passengers a seat at the table. The voice of the people should be heard, at least.”
“Ah...a populist then.”
“Perhaps,” Alexis nodded.
Minor Paul watched the young master closely, his eyes revealing nothing of his thoughts.
“Yes...perhaps,” Paul responded finally. “But I’ll let you be the one to tread those waters first. Thraen is stable and happy as it is.”
“Of course,” Alexis nodded and took a sip of his drink. “So is Aelon. But for how long?”
“Forever,” Paul replied. “Helios willing.”
“Praise the Dear Parent,” Clegg murmured.
“Praise the Dear Parent!” Paul echoed loudly.
Alexis turned his attention to the gatekeeper then looked about the dome at the Thraenish servants, guards and dignitaries.
“No gatekeeper of your own?” Alexis asked. “It is my understanding that all ships that traverse the ocean must have a gatekeeper to bless their way.”
“What? Oh, no, not this trip,” Paul said. “I hate traveling with the robes. All that hissing and murmuring.” He turned and smiled at Clegg. “I joke, gatekeeper. No disrespect meant. No, the truth is Gatekeeper Schoul was under the weather. A touch of the planetary trots, if you catch my drift. Your gatekeeper was kind enough to volunteer to accompany us. Although I suspect it was more to keep an eye on you than as a kind gesture to Thraen.”
“Is that so?” Alexis smiled. “How nice of Gatekeeper Clegg.”
The master and the holy man locked eyes for a brief second before their attention was turned to a porter ringing a bell by one of the dome entrances.
“We are approaching Thraen Prime,” the porter announced. “We will be docking shortly. Please prepare to depart on the hallowed grounds of Thraen Prime. Praise the Dear Parent.”
“Praise the Dear Parent,” everyone present repeated.
“Hallowed grounds,” Paul snorted as he stood and stretched. “My father would abandon the prime in a heartbeat if it stopped producing Vape and breen. He hates the planet that much. A station man through and through is Paul III. I, of course, love it here. No intrigue, no politics, no worthless society balls and banquets. Just Vape mining and breen harvesting. Jobs to be done and work to complete, that’s what matters on the prime.”
“I’d almost agree with you there,” Alexis said, “if Station Aelon didn’t house my family which includes my wife, children, and unborn child.”
“That’s right!” Paul exclaimed. “You’re about to have another heir! Congratulations!”
“Thank you.”
“Boy or girl? Do you know?”
“A boy,” Alexis smiled.
“Your first?”
“Second,” Alexis replied.
“Very good,” Paul nodded. “Get that succession lined up and secured straight off. I feel sorry for Master Franz of Station Ploerv. All daughters. His brothers are circling the crown like swamp sharks, hoping to put one of their sons into the mastership when the old man finally kicks the bucket.”
“You forget yourself, Minor Paul!” Clegg snapped. “The Mistress Eliza is one of Ploerv’s daughters! You not only insult the Station Ploerv, but you insult the Station Aelon which she married into!”
“Calm down, Clegg,” Alexis laughed. “Minor Paul didn’t mean offense. He was just stating what everyone thinks.”
“It’s a talent of mine,” Paul smiled then stumbled as the cutter lurched to the side. “What was that?”
“Felt like a rough docking,” Alexis said.
The porter quickly returned to the dome, his face red with anxiety and embarrassment.
“I must apologize, my lords and ladies, but there has been a mishap,” he gulped. “The dock appears to have been damaged by the latest Vape storm. We are not able to be pulled into the hangar properly. The pilot insists that we will need to don our environmental suits and walk the distance to the Thraen Prime castle.”
The dignitaries protested and grumbled their dissatisfaction at the indignity of donning the polybreen environmental suits like common prime workers and being forced to risk exposure to the toxic air of the planet. Paul silenced the protests quickly with a wave of his hand.
“Excellent,” he said. “I haven’t had a walk outside the castle in ages. It’ll do us all good to remember the power Helios has over us. Don’t you think, gatekeeper?”
Clegg’s eyes were focused on the sight through the dome of the castle lights far off in the distance. Paul snapped his fingers, bringing the holy man’s attention to him immediately.
“My apologies, my lord, you were saying?” Clegg responded.
“It doesn’t matter,” Paul said. “Maybe you could broadcast a sermon in our helmets while we walk to the castle?”
“I would be honored to—”
“I was joking, of course,” Paul interrupted instantly. “No one wants to be preached at while they worry about whether or not their environmental suit was inspected properly and they could be seconds away from a gruesome death, now do they?”
“No, I suppose not,” Clegg replied, his voice ice and barbed wire.
“I think I have upset your gatekeeper,” Paul whispered as he walked to Alexis and took his elbow. “Now, help me fetch my sister from the bridge, will you? She has always been fascinated by ships and refuses to ride anywhere but up front.”
“I’d be glad to,” Alexis smiled, looking over his shoulder at the fuming gatekeeper. “Lead the way.”
* * *
“I know how to fasten it properly!” Meredith scowled as the nurse fumbled at the clasp seals around her boots. “Get off!”
“Here, let me help,” Alexis said as he knelt down before the minoress. “I have a daughter about your age and I do this for her all the time.”
“I said I can do it!” Meredith snapped. “You’re as bad as my brother. Never letting me do things myself.”
“That’s what my daughter tells me,” Alexis laughed and stood up. He nodded at her boots and smiled as he grabbed his gloves from his belt. “Go ahead. Show me you can do it.”
Meredith scowled even harder and struggled with the clasps. Finally, after having to chastise the nurse again, she got the clasps sealed properly and an audible hiss of compression could be heard from her suit.
“See?” she sneered. “Done.”
“Not quite,” Alexis said, already dressed in his own suit. He grabbed a small helmet from a shelf and handed it to her. “You still have to get that settled.”
Meredith looked at the bulky helmet then up at Alexis. The master tried not to smile, but he couldn’t help it as he watched realization dawn on the girl’s face.
“Want help with that?” he asked.
“No,” she said quickly.
“Ready?” Paul asked as he came up to the two, his own helmet tucked under one arm. “Ahh, right. The helmet stage.”
“You’re a jerk,” Meredith growled.
“A jerk that can put his own helmet on,” Paul grinned. “Come on, Master Alexis; let us leave her care to the nurse. We need to chat about the lease holdings on the coast of Thraen prime.”
“You mean the lease holdings that are now part of the treaty we just signed a couple hours ago?” Alexis asked.
“Yes, those,” Paul said, stepping to the airlock that was surrounded by Thraenish guards. He pulled his helmet on and snapped it into place. A hiss was heard then a small internal light came on, signaling a full seal. “Ready?”
“Yes, of course,” Alexis said as he situated his own helmet and spoke through the communications system.
The two royals stood by the airlock as they waited for the guards to make sure the external chamber was clear of any danger. After a couple of seconds they were ushered into the secondary chamber, but not before a quarter of the delegation, along with Minoress Meredith, joined them. Paul rolled his eyes at Alexis and turned a dial on his wrist. He tapped at the dial and indicated for Alexis to follow.
“Can you hear me?” Paul asked.
“I can,” Alexis replied. “I assume this is your personal channel?”
“It is,” Paul replied. “And if anyone dared to eavesdrop they would be stripped and left to the Vape without a moment’s hesitation.”
Alexis looked about at the group, wondering if anyone was eavesdropping, but he saw no change in conversations, reactions, or body language. Yet he didn’t kid himself that their conversation was completely private. Nothing in royal life was completely private. Ever.
Claxons rang out and the outer door slid aside. Guards moved out quickly and established a secure lane for the party to walk along as they made their way across the scrim grass and gas puddles that covered the barren shoreline. They’d gone several yards before Paul spoke again.
“My father never wanted the treaty signed,” Paul admitted. “He thought we were conceding too much by leasing Station Aelon mining rights to the coast of our prime.”
“And what do you think?” Alexis asked. “Are you in agreement with your father?”
“Of course,” Paul nodded. “A dutiful son always agrees with his father. Especially when that father is master of station.”
“I didn’t always agree with my father,” Alexis said.
“And did you ever admit that while he was alive?” Paul asked then backtracked immediately. “My apologies. That was rude.”
“But apt,” Alexis replied. “The answer is no. I never publicly disagreed with him.”
“Then you know my answer,” Paul smiled behind his helmet’s mist coated visor.
“So...why tell me this?”
“Because I want you to be prepared when the Thraen Ambassador calls on you next month,” Paul responded. “He’s been dispatched to Station Aelon for your father’s funeral and is waiting for the official mourning period to end. I can bet he’s already on the top of the diplomatic audience list. Get used to it, the man is persistent.”
“That still doesn’t answer why you are telling me this,” Alexis said. “What do you want?”
“I want the income those leases will produce,” Paul said. “Your father nearly emptied the treasury with all of his remodeling of your station, while mine has spent it on bribes and liquor. Sometimes both at the same time. At least you have a remodeled station to show for it.”
“And Thraen doesn’t have indebted connections with those bribes?”
“Of course, of course, but for how long? The problem with using bribes as a tactic is that anyone you bribe is dishonest enough to be bought by your enemies as well,” Paul laughed. “You are buying deceit, not trust.”
“I’ll keep that in mind once I am crowned,” Alexis said.
“Is that all you talk about? Boring stuff?” Meredith asked from only a couple feet behind them.
“Is she to be stripped and left to the Vape for eavesdropping?” Alexis smiled.
“Unfortunately, no,” Paul responded. “That is out of my power.” He turned quickly and grabbed his sister by the arms. “When father hears you were listening in on official business, he is going to be more than just a little cross with you.”
“Father’s always cross with me,” Meredith replied. “That’s why he sent me here with you. He didn’t want me on Station Thraen mucking it all up.”
“You’re how old?” Alexis laughed. “What could you possibly muck up?”
“You’d be surprised,” Paul snorted. “Now, get off this channel and leave us alone, little girl.”
“Fine,” Meredith growled. “You two are boring anyway.”
Paul and Alexis watched as the girl turned and stalked back to her nurse, her suit crinkling in the night air, sending sparks here and there from the static electricity the scrim grass and Vape created.
“Where were we?” Paul asked.
“The leases,” Alexis said. “I do have to bring up that Station Thraen benefits just as much from the trade agreement we have set with the Flaenish and their breen processing factories. The payments for those mine leases are not just in credits, but in tons of finished breen as well.”
“Oh, I know, I know,” Paul said. “And that is the only reason my father didn’t outright balk at the deal.” He spread his hands. “Thraen Prime is rich with Vape mines, but unlike your prime, we do not have enough good soil to grow the breen we need. It’s a shame since if we could accomplish that we wouldn’t need any of the other stations at all.”
“But then we couldn’t go on cutter rides together,” Alexis grinned.
“Very true,” Paul nodded. “But, let’s move on from—”
He stopped talking and grabbed Alexis by the arm as two of the guards in front of them collapsed to the ground. Alexis instantly went to draw his long sword, but realized it was back at The Way Prime in his quarters with his other weapons. He could have kicked himself for the mistake.
“Down!” Alexis yelled as he tackled Paul to the ground.
A slight tink sounded and he realized a flechette had hit his helmet’s visor. Someone was shooting a sling at them!
“Are you hit?” Alexis asked.
“No. You?” Paul replied.
“No, I’m fine,” Alexis said.
Then a scream filled their ears and Alexis looked over to see Meredith crumple to the dirt.
“My lord, you have to come with us now!” a Thraen guard shouted at Paul as half a dozen men surrounded him.
“My sister! The minoress!” Paul yelled, but he was swept away by his security detail.
Others in the delegation began to panic and stampede towards the waiting airlock of Thraen Prime Castle, ignoring the collapsed royal at their feet.
“I have her!” Alexis yelled and sprinted towards the fallen girl.
He raced to Meredith, fighting against the flow of the frightened crowd. Alexis fell to his knees and tried to find where she had been hit. He quickly saw the oxygen flowing out of a hole in her suit near her shoulder. He could already see the small sparks of combustion from the mixture of oxygen and Vape and knew he didn’t have long to get her to safety before her environmental suit filled with flames.
“Move!” Alexis yelled as he lifted the girl up in his arms. But the crowd was deaf, hearing only their own fear and self preservation.
He was jostled from side to side, shoved this way and that, no one caring about the Aelish royal seal emblazoned on his suit. But the crowd’s disregard for his status was what saved him as he was knocked to one knee just as a long blade came towards the place his head had been a split second before.
Alexis looked up in time to see the second strike come at him and he rolled to the side, his body protecting the young minoress, from the long blade that imbedded itself in the scrim grass by his head. The new master didn’t recognize the cut of the breen suit the attacker wore, but did recognize the style of the blade.
The Burdened.
The elite guard of The Way and only members of the religious order sanctified to kill without fear of eternal damnation at the center of the Helios sun.
Alexis barely had time to register that revelation before the blade came at him again. He lashed out with a hard kick to the man’s knee and the blade missed its mark once more as the assassin fell to the grass. Very aware of the minoress’s distress, Alexis leapt onto the man and dug his fingers up under the clasps sealing the helmet to the suit. With one tremendous yank, Alexis ripped the helmet off, exposing the man to the atmosphere of Helios and the deadly Vape.
The face he saw bubbling and blistering before him was not one he recognized and gave Alexis no clue as to who might have ordered the attack.
“Who sent you?” Alexis yelled, but the dying man couldn’t hear him without the communication system in his helmet. “Tell me who ordered this!”
The man struggled under Alexis’s grip and clawed at the master’s hands that held him to the scrim grass. Scrim grass that was quickly covered with the liquefied skin and muscle that sloughed off the assassin. Bright purple sparks flitted around the man’s eyes, mouth and nostrils as the oxygen in the blood that leaked out was ignited by Vape.
Hands grabbed at Alexis as his personal contingent of guards were finally able to fight through the crowd to get to him. They pulled him to his feet as the assassin took his last breath and his chest cavity burst open, spewing tissue and blood across the ground. Alexis raised a boot and let it fall hard on the man’s skull, crushing the bone into the grass.
“The minoress!” Alexis yelled at his men. “Take her and hurry!”
“Your safety comes first, your highness!” a guard named Corbin Breach shouted.
“To Helios with my safety!” Alexis yelled. “She’s dying!”
Corbin nodded and quickly lifted the girl up. “Cover him the whole way!” he ordered the other guards then took off running towards the airlock.
The Aelish Royal Guard looked at each other then at the master and closed ranks, making sure no one could get through to their monarch. They moved forward quickly, eyes cast about the area, ready for the next strike.
The night was a haze of Vape fog and mist rising from the scrim grass at their feet, making it almost impossible to discern shapes smaller than the castle ahead of them. The guards pushed the master along, never letting him slow even as he stumbled over clumps of grass and dirt. They held him by his arms and kept him on his feet, but soon half of them were no longer on theirs.
Guards fell left and right as their suits were ripped open by a flurry of flechettes. Alexis watched in horror as his men died horrible, Vape deaths. Flames filled suits as the Vape seeped in and mixed with the oxygen. The men’s screams were soon nothing but gurgles from charred and roasted throats.
Two shapes came at Alexis from the fog and he reached down and picked up a dropped long blade and then a short blade. He raised the long blade just as one of the shapes rushed him, meeting his metal with more metal. The hollow clang of the blades colliding could be heard even through Alexis’s helmet. He felt the impact up his arm, but didn’t let the jarring pain slow him.
With one fluid movement, Alexis ducked low and jammed the short blade into the attacker’s gut. The man shuddered as blood gushed and sparked from the wound. Alexis pulled the blade free then shoved the man to the side as he brought down his long blade. The helmet, with head still inside, flew from the man’s shoulders and tumbled through the air.
The second attacker paused, seeing what had befallen his comrade. That was pause was his undoing as Alexis flipped his short blade in his hand, gripped it blade first, and threw. The weapon flew end over end at the second man and pierced the man’s visor before he could think of sidestepping.
Alexis didn’t wait for the man to fall to the ground before he took off towards the castle. He could see Corbin’s shrouded back several yards ahead, but could also see shadows off to each side closing in on him. Long blade still in hand, Alexis dug deep and pushed himself as he sprinted towards his guard and the wounded minoress.
“Down!” Alexis roared.
Corbin hesitated, but then saw he was penned in and quickly skidded to a halt, dropping to both knees while keeping the minoress secure in his arms. Alexis reached the man just as the attackers from each side did. They turned to face the master, but neither was fast enough as Alexis lashed out, severing two heads with one swipe of his long blade.
“Get up,” Alexis cried as he pulled at Corbin’s upper arm. “We’re almost there.”
Corbin didn’t say a word, too stunned to have been rescued by the man he was sworn to protect. Alexis yanked him to his feet and shoved him towards the airlock.
“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!”