Adamarus
Imperial Airship of Prince Michael
Population 351
Prince Michael sits on a golden red padded chair within his cabin as he stares at a world map that stretches wide across nearly the entirety of the thirty foot wall. Islands of varying shapes and sizes with accompanying names and population numbers adorn the vast emptiness of bone white parchment. The Mystralwing sigil is stamped in blue over no less than twenty islands of the several hundred both large and small marking the Empires' expanding control. A red light behind the map marks the location of his vessel which currently nears the large island nation of Enaia.
A steel and stone fireplace crackles with the sounds of burning wood behind him as he slowly taps his finger upon the armrest with his right hand. From his right, a firm knock at the guilded door and a brunette young woman in a black uniform with gold buttons and silver trim steps inside holding a stack of files and folders to her stomach. "Prince Michael, three minutes" she says with a bow. After a brief passage of silence, Michael jestures for her to approach but does not avert his gaze from the map.
She straightens herself and walks to his side, her mirror-shine black high heels clacking as she strides and bows again as she reaches him.
"Helen."
"Your Highness."
"How are you finding your new role" he asks, his eyes shifting from island to island on the great map.
"I am honored Your Highness, and I am greatful beyond measure" she replies, holding her bow.
"I'm sure you are, but it seems you have not answered my question. In the future, I expect answers to my questions when I ask them."
"Yes, Your Highness, my apologies. I am still getting accustomed to it, but I believe I have what it takes."
"To think that you lied your way into the service of a Royal. The audacity."
Helen looks up at him in silence as her eyes widen and her lips part.
"Do you know what the punishment is for falsifying your lineage" he asks as his finger tapping ceases. Helen begins to tremble with her chest growing heavier with each passing moment. "Your Highness, I-"
"You may have managed to hide your origins from the palace, but you cannot hide it from me. A vagrant of Alusia. A commoner of birth, an orphan no less. A starling of the gutters" Michael waves his hand at which point Helen rises from her shakey bow wincing at the derogatory identification placed upon her and those like her.
"None last long in your position. And I have grown weary of the revolving door of potentials that have stood where you are now; seventeen have preceeded you. Seventeen lords and ladies who could not fulfill all the duties my shadow requires."
Helen bows her head in acknowledgement, "Yes, Your Highness, I understand. I will be your last."
Michael's eyes are finally drawn away from the map and lock onto her face as he examines her features. Her shoulder length hair wrapped in a bun with two bronze pins crossing each other through it shines as the light of the flickering flames dances across the wrapped strands. Her smooth mocha colored skin and dark eyes were such a contrast to his own pale figure, yet fit so perfectly in her fitted imperial uniform. The golden buttons down her coat had a mirror shine that would put some within the imperial palace to shame. She certainly took to her training, this he was certain.
He turns his gaze back to the map. The red light moves closer to Enaia ever so slowly.
"The palace may have selected you on behalf of the royal family, but you serve me. You do not serve my father. You do not serve my mother. You do not serve my brothers. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Your Highness" she replies affirmatively.
"I hope you do. I have high hopes for you. I need someone who is loyal to me, and me alone. Not another imperial lackey trying to make a name for themselves." He places both hands on the arm rests and pushes himself up out of the chair with an almost surreal elegance that causes Helen's brow to raise slightly in awe. Michael turns to face her, his eyes bluer and deeper than the endless skies. "You are my shadow; when you speak, you speak with my authority. The actions you take are my actions, your thoughts are my thoughts. You are an extension of myself to the world."
"Y-yes... Your Highness..." she responds timidly under the weight and power of his words.
"Good. You will learn, in time, to know what I am thinking and what I want said or done, in any situation. Now then, I believe we have an appointment to keep. Let us not be late" Michael says calmly, walking out the door with an interally panicking Helen following close behind. For the two minutes that they spend walking through the corridors of the vessel, Helen struggles to contain the trembling that permeates her body and the shallow breathes she hides between her loud footsteps. She had been caught, and so easily. Her fate was sealed; one wrong move and she would lose everything.
Into the early sunrise they step forth through the exit onto the large open deck of the Adamarus. Helen briefly shields her eyes from the suns sudden bright exposure. Twelve men and women in military dress and wielding automatic rifles stand before four who kneel upon the spotless, shimmering deck panels. Three men and one woman, all of whom wear torn and tattered grey and brown garb and each looking haggard with the filth that adorns their faces. Michael takes his place before them showing no emotion in his face or figure. Helen takes her place at his side though unlike the prince, puts up the fiction of authority in herself.
One after another the four look up into the eyes of Michael who studies them carefully. "Guilliman, Ardenis, Yugaren, Belford; you have served the empire with honor and distinction. That you should falter now, that you should bring yourselves low after all you have accomplished" Michael begins to say, shaking his head in dissaproval. Belford, the short haired auburn haired man, youngest of the group is the first to lower his head in sadness. The dark haired Ardenis, the sole woman of the group tries to stand but is shoved back to her knees by the guards behind her.
"Prince Michael, you murdered an entire population! Your abominable powers destroyed a civilization! And all for what? That they wanted to remain free? The empire is supposed to be the beacon of light in the world, not its darkness! The Emperor would never have authorized such an action!" she shouts angrily in defiance, spittle erupting from her mouth.
Michael steps directly in front of her, staring down with an empty gaze. "So you thought that you knew better than your prince, and sought to bring me to justice, is that it?"
She stares back at him with anger and pain in her eyes, but no tears to be shed for they have long since run out in her captivity. Guilliman, another dark haired man speaks up in her silence, "we all took an oath the serve the empire. To uphold its ideals and to defend it from all enemies, not to slaughter the innocent." Michael turns his head to look upon the man who joins his compatriot. It is clear that these four have found negelct in their treatment as prisoners aboard his ship for the man wielded several bruises and cuts all over the exposed parts of his body.
"And your response to his actions was to try and start a rebellion? An uprising against royalty?" Helen suddenly interjected, surprising Michael who smiles while his eyes are still locked onto Guilliman's. "What choice did we have? Protocol dictates action. Prince Michael must face justice before the emperor" she replies defiantly.
Michael's tilts his head slightly, glancing toward Belford and Yugaren and then back to Aldenis. "In 1887, a man, an engineer named Edwic Marcell from the little village of Hujar built his own single seat airship. It was designed to... Soar through the flare. To dive the depths of the unkown. Can you imagine? Knowing that he would likely never come back but still driven to see what lies below... Determined to catch a glimpse of... He of course never returned, though pieces of his airship did eventually rise within a year, scorched and warped to extremes. Hurricane winds likely tore his frame apart before he even had a chance to see anything but darkness. He was brave" Michael says looking at each one of them, "but foolish."
He turns and walks back toward Helen's side and continues, "Your allegiance to the empire is commendable, but you seem to forget your place. Loyalty is all I require from you. Not your judgement of me nor your questioning of my decisions. Here I offer you an opportunity, a single chance to redeem yourselves and erase your transgressions against me and return to your lives as honorable soldiers. What say you?"
"You can't be serious" Aldenis speaks again in utter disbelief. Guilliman turns to look at the defiant woman beside him yet remains silent as he considers the offer being made. Belford on the other hand raises his head and announces with determination, "I choose to serve Prince Michael. I offer my loyalty and beg forgiveness for my actions!"
"No! He can't get away with this!" Aldenis shouts at him before turning her attention to the rest of the soldiers behind them. "What about you guys?! How can you condone such an atrocity by anyone, let alone a prince of our empire?!" A response never comes however as they all stand silent and resolute in their guardianship over the prisoners. Guilliman on the other hand finally speaks as he has made his decision, "I serve Prince Michael and offer my complete loyalty now and forever!"
"You can't-" Aldenis begins to shout before being cut off as the soldier behind her grabs her by the back of her shirt dragging her to the edge of the ship and tossing her off, her screams quickly fading beneath them. The three other prisoners stare in shock while Michael turns around and starts his walk back inside followed closely by Helen who is just as shocked but trying to keep herself together.
"The world is changing ladies and gentlemen" Michael calls out for all to hear. "It fast approaches and we are not prepared for what is to come." A guardsman opens the door and the two pass through with the door closing behind them. Helen covers her chest, afraid her pounding heartbeat will be heard by the Prince. What has she gotten herself into? But it is too late. He knows her secret, and even if she could make it out alive, she could never go back to being a gutter starling. She was somebody now. By the grace of Prince Michael, she was somebody.
----
Wind. Wind and rain unlike Kira has ever known. The Vilkis has somehow found itself trapped within a hurricane, unable to escape as it is tossed and spun along the treacherous currents. Kira struggles to keep her grip on the rail just outside their cabin after many failed attempts to reach the door and make it safely inside. The hull shudders as a wired beam topside gets torn from its emplacement and slams down on top of several crew members fighting to secure the ship.
A massive gust slams against the port side bow and spins the ship rapidly, forcing Kira against the rails from the sheer force. She looks up to the nearest stair well just in time to see Euphy reaching her hand out and shouting, though the winds are roaring too loud for Kira to hear what it is. And then, silence. A deafening silence Kira has never experienced before and yet the storm rages on. The ship begins to fall without warning, cutting through the sky as she tosses and turns. Closer and closer the flare approaches and Kira watches Euphy get thrown from the ship and carried away into the storm.
Kira's grip finally fails her and she too is torn away from the ship flailing her arms and legs in fear. Her breath is gone, her voice. She is numb to everything now, everything but the rushing wind and stabbing rain drops.
Kira's eyes fly open as sweat trails down her face and down through her soaked shirt, exemplified by her deep panicked breaths.
"A dream... Only a dream" she whispers to herself in an attempt to calm down. It doesn't seem to be helping. That fall felt all too real and her body knew it.
She sits up in bed to find the newly shared cabin empty aside from her, and a mess of it it is. Her small pile of belongings still clutter the floor. Dirty dishes fill the sink and counter around it, as well as a good portion of the table. The cupboards are ajar and, by the looks of it, in need of replenishment. Even the walls have a small coat of… something. Probably from the fall the day before, or... She sighs, taking in all the little things she knows she needs to start doing. It’s time she starts earning her keep.
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
“I can do this” she says to herself, working on the nerve to begin. She walks to the sink, carefully examining the pile of dishes. While most aren’t too bad and won’t take much effort in scrubbing, the noodle pots from the cart might prove to be a small workout. She turns back to the mess upon the floor. It might be faster to do that first. She still needs to clear her bags and start making this a home rather than a temporary room at some inn somewhere.
It’s just a shame they have to share a cabin meant for one. Cozy, for sure, but not much space to begin with. She picks up the first bag from the floor and places it on the bed. It’s still open from when she went rummaging through them during the night, but that doesn’t really matter. She pulls a small hand sized, hand sewn, heavily worn teddy bear from the top of the pile inside and places it on the nightstand beside the bed next to one of Euphy’s silver pocket watches which hangs from a small lamp.
One by one she empties the contents of her belongings from all her bags, placing them carefully in spots she thinks they would fit into Euphy's decor. She folds her small collection of clothes and places them on the top of Euphy's foot locker rather than in it. Best not to expect to use it without permission. The sunlight starts to creep in through the window curtains beside the door and she glances up as its light overtakes the incandescent bulb above her. A brief bout of minor turbulence and Kira is gripping the bed for dear life. It finally dawns on her, that dream affected her and she will never be the same again.
She will never get to ignore the subtle trembles of the wind on the hull as she once had. Never be blissfully unaware of the dangers of air travel. From now on, she will be haunted by the very idea of falling from the sky she calls home. And that thought brings tears to her eyes and white to her knuckles, still desperately clinging to the bed despite the tremor long since passed.
No, this was her life now, for better or worse.
Euphemia pulls hard on her wrench, tightening the bolt on a beat up steam pipe and wipes the sweat from her brow. The sun rises over the flare horizon and brings with it a warm breeze. She closes her eyes and takes in the suns rays and calm winds. Birds chirp and fly circles around the ship in a beautiful chorus of sounds. In the distant skyline, a floating land draws near; Enaia. With any luck, enough supplies to repair or replace failing equipment on the Vilkis lay in wait with the merchants of that fair land. It’s not the friendliest of islands, but a heavy coin purse can change the attitudes of even the most sour of peoples.
A large ship like the Vilkis, housing several hundred people is a rare sight among the more average ships that frequent the islands which hold a fraction of that and always draws a crowd when she approaches. While not the largest of vessels ever seen, the Vilkis is still a sight to behold for the citizens of Enaia, most of whom have never been on a ship of any shape or size.
Euphy pulls out a small notebook from the pouch on her hip and opens it to reveal a handwritten checklist and small pen, which she uses to cross off this latest task. One of thirteen, with four already crossed off. Up next, a broken sink pipe in Leonard’s quarters. She taps the pen against her temple as she reads the list. Most of these mundane repairs would have been given to Kira to do, but until they find their new mechanic, it’s up to her.
The ship unexpectedly starts dropping beneath them, enough so that she temporarily floats above it for no less than three seconds before it pulls back up. Euphy finds herself on her back staring at the dimming stars of the sunrise sky, letting out a grunt of pain ash she rolls over and stands up before sluggishly getting up and dashing toward the stairs nearby and descending them rapidly. Shortly thereafter, she and many of the mechanics stand around the sunspark chambers.
"That just doesn’t make sense" Euphemia says walking around the chambers.
"I don't know what to tell you. There was not a single breach and yet for five seconds we lost all flight. I was right here watching everything when it happened. The only explanation is that the sunspark somehow lost its unique property during that time" Isaac explains as they all just stare at the chambers.
Euphy rubs her temple and shakes her head in disbelief, "whatever is happening, it isn't good. What if this is happening to others? We don't have the technology, let alone the facilities to keep these ships flying on anything other than sunspark. Shit, what about the islands? If their sunspark fails the same way- gods, all those people..." Isaac's face pales and he turns to Euphy. "You don't think... Last year?"
Euphemia turns to him in silence. "No... It couldn't have been... Could it? I mean, there should have been more warning. A slower descent. There should have been time to recover" she thinks to herself. It makes perfect sense, but how and why?
"He's got a point", one of the other mechanics says, breaking the silence. "The Lyrion fell way too quick. Even if they had one or two chambers rupture, the others would have had some effect on the rate of their descent. This whole thing is just wrong."
“I couldn’t agree more”, the captain says as he steps through the door. “Captain” all but Euphemia say in acknowledgement. “We’ve just heard from our sister ship, the Antares. Two more ships experienced the exact same thing we did, and at the exact same time no less”, he announces solemnly.
“There’s no way in hell that that’s a coincidence” Euphy says, placing her hand on the nearest sunspark chamber. “No” the captain replies. “We need to figure this out, and soon. Chief, do whatever you have to do to solve this problem” he finishes before turning around and leaving. “Aye captain” she replies, staring at her hand on the chamber, feeling the pulsing of the sunspark within.
As the sun crests gently over the black clouds of the flare and into the morning sky, Euphemia is taking her morning stroll along the surface deck. A new day and she is once again happily dressed in her favorite mars red blouse with silver and gold trim with an eclipse emblem at its center. A rough pair of blue jeans cover her from the waist down and of course, her crusted leather boots adorn her feet. A jade incrested gold inverted triangle is fielded as her black leather belt buckle while a pipe wrench is held in place by a second belt wrapped around her left leg.
With the light of the sun quickly pouring over the ship, she can more clearly examine all the minor details of the state of the hull and ancillary pieces that may have been missed by her subordinates. Overall, the Vilkis is a pretty worn and rusted ship with patchwork fixes all over the place. But this morning is a good one, for thus far she has not found any new issues.
She places her hand on the deck and closes her eyes, feeling and listening to the gentle vibrations of the ship. It purrs to her like a kitten and she smiles. The gentle wind blows over her body and through her silky black hair. From the depths of the suns golden rays on the horizon another ship emerges, though still a ways off.
The ring of a bell and the shout of the man from the Vilkis’ watchtower “The Lyrion approaches!” breaks the serene calm of the morning. Euphy walks to the edge of the deck and leans back against the railing while keeping an eye on the ship.
“I wonder what this is about” she thinks to herself.
Within minutes, the Lyrion is stationary alongside the Vilkis and both people and goods are moving between them. The captains of the two ships greet one another on Vilkis' deck while the Lyrion's chief mechanic, Auguzt, walks toward Euphy with a smile upon his face. "Hey there Euph," he says warmly.
"Aug, what's up? What's all this?" She asks politely. Auguzt shakes her hand firmly and points to the captains. "You'll see. Come on." He says walking toward the captains who have already begun heading inside. Euphy’s brow raises inquisitively and she follows closely behind.
It doesn’t take long at all for everyone of importance to gather in the small but somehow not cramped bridge of the Vilkis. The two captains, their staff, and chief mechanics Euphemia and Auguzt encircle the large wooden table at its center where one of Lyrion’s staff places down three different rolled pages as the crowd continues to murmur.
“Alright ladies and gentlemen, let us get to it. Why have you gathered us here today, and so early to boot?” Vilkis’ captain asks, raising his hand to quell the chatter. A woman with short auburn hair raises her own hand and begins to speak, “Yes, thank you captain. For the few new faces around here, my name is Elisa Rowe, first officer of the Lyrion. There are a couple of things on the agenda for our meeting, both good news and bad” she says, unraveling the first of the pages before her.
She uses four weighted objects from the table to hold the corners down. It’s not much, just a pretty large and empty map of the skies, showing every island large and small.
Elise points her finger down on the island Mystral and turns her eyes up to the crowd. “House Mystralus’ forces have just conquered ports Un’ur, Filkor, and Turis” she proclaims, placing her finger on each one as she names it. “And, ports Jivheu and Chor have already begun talks to join Mystralus' growing empire willingly. Their forces grow by the day."
The group begins to whisper quietly among themselves with shock and confusion being the primary emotions. Vilkis’ captain, Reynolds, speaks up, “All those ports? That’s nearly a third of all ports on this side of the world. Not to mention two of the three most prosperous ones at that.”
Euphy watches everything unfold, silent and reserved as she takes everything into consideration. Elise continues, “not to mention the largest iron mine this side of the world." “Continue,” the Lyrion’s captain says, nodding to Elise.
"In the southern hemisphere, House Emberthal has been making similar moves. After three hundred years, it seems the last two great houses are getting ready to settle things once and for all."
“What about their sunspark supplies?” Auguzt asks politely. “Wouldn’t they run out when the harvesters stop bringing them if they continue to subjugate settlements?” Elise glances his way and shakes her head. “No, I’m afraid not. Most harvesters aren’t large vessels. They can’t afford to make the dangerous crossings between the north and south ports to get away from the brewing conflict. Hell, even the Lyrion and Vilkis would not be able to safely cross the expanse safely.”
“Well, we aren't tied to either house. As long as we can remain independant we should be alright” Captain Reynolds says. “That’s not the only thing we will be thinking about” Elise interjects as she grabs the second roll of paper and opens it on top of the map. “Chief, you’re up” she finishes pointing toward Auguzt.
“Yeah, alright. For those who haven't been taught the basics, we know sunspark is a unique form of energy, electricity that only comes from the flare. We still don’t know how or why, or what it even really is, but we do know it’s different from normal electrical discharge. We also know that it makes metals that come in contact with it float, and that with the right elements, can be contained. It can only be harvested from metal scrap that comes out of the flare that recently and to our detriment, has been growing fewer each year.”
Everyone nods in agreement, with a few talking to each other quietly in the background. “While most of these scraps that float up out of the flare are remnants of lost skyships which we use to repair our own, I have come to the conclusion that a small portion are not” Auguzt finishes.
Euphy gently pushes her way to the front of the group, apologizing along the way. “I’m sorry, what do you mean that some of them aren’t” she asks. Auguzt reaches into his knapsack and pulls out an object wrapped within a length of cloth and unravels it upon the table. What lies within is a small piece of metal unlike anything anyone has ever seen. Thicker than any beam, heavier than a brick and blacker than flare.
The crowd marvels as it is picked up and passed around the room. “I believe a long lost civilization exists below the flare. And bits and pieces are being pulled up with the sunspark” Auguzt announces firmly. The crowd bursts into laughter. “Good one” An old man responds. “Now I’ve heard it all!” Another quips hysterically.
The Lyrion’s captain frowns at Aug, “listen chief, everyone knows there’s nothing beneath the flare but the planet's core. Mankind has always existed in the sky, just as the flare has always existed beneath us. Now this piece of metal is unique, there’s no question about it, but it’s more likely a forger made it using some new method.”
“We could not have come from the sky” Auguzt replies, annoyed he has to explain this to anyone. And with that comment, the entire room erupts in a debate on ancient history and the preposterousness of it all. While the crowd grows louder and louder, Euphy notices the piece of metal has been placed on the table by the last person to hold it.
She reaches over and picks it up. “It’s so light…” she whispers to herself.
“Getting back on topic, we should decide here and now if we are going to join this new empire, or if we should make the eight month journey to the still free skies of the meridian.” Lyrion's captain announces to the room. “I am a citizen of Vilkis. Wherever it goes, so shall I.” Euphy proclaims. Auguzt nods in agreement as the conversation takes hold.
“We will reconvene in an hour, after gathering our people and discussing it with them.” Captain Reynolds announces. The group nods in agreement and exit swiftly while Auguzt walks over and stands next to her shifting his gaze between her and the metal. “Say, Euph, in the event we all decide to leave together… What do you say to you and I shacking up together?”
Euphemia snaps out of her empty daze and looks at him in surprise. “What?” He simply smiles and takes her hand. “Euphy, I like you. I’ve liked you for a long time and I hope you like me as well. We’ve known each other for years now. I really want to be with you.” Euphy blinks but doesn’t speak. This is certainly the last thing she had expected to come out today.
“I uh-I like you too. But- what about the Lyrion? You’re the chief mechanic over there and they need you. I’m not saying no, but I’m not saying yes either…"
He simply shrugs and looks back at the metal. “This is assuming we all go together of course, but it will be nothing to hop from ship to ship from time to time. We’ll still be together, and I can train my replacement in the meantime.” Euphy purses her lips and looks back at the metal indecisively.
“Come on, let’s head out. I need to go find out what my people are going to be saying anyway. We can study your new found ability later” he says to her, trying to not sound overly worried. She simply nods and follows him out. Already the people of the ships are coming out from their homes and workplaces as they gather on their surface decks.
“I guess I’ll meet you in an hour” he says, placing his hand on her shoulder briefly before walking off toward his vessel. She nods even though by now he can’t see her response.
Sure enough, an hour later Auguzt walks onto one ofthe bridges that links the two ships as Euphy approaches. “Well, it’s official. The Lyrion is headed for the meridian” he says as the crowd disperses from the Lyrion’s deck. Euphemia smiles. “Yes, as is the Vilkis. We need to stop at port to take on supplies of course, but it won’t be long.”
Euphy glances over his shoulder and notices Julia, the Vilkis' resident tailor walking toward them. “Oh, where’d you run off to?” she asks as Julia stops next to Aug. Julia smiles and shrugs and continues walking back across toward the Vilkis. A rumble stops her dead in her tracks as the bridge shutters beneath her and Aug. Without warning, the Lyrion just drops out of the air and sends all connecting bridges tumbling through the sky.
Euphy's quick reflexes catch Julia’s hands the moment she fell, the weight pulling her down onto her stomach as she desperately fights to keep her grip. She watches Julia squirm and desperately scream in terror as well as watching a frightened stare from Auguzt as he and the screams of the Lyrion people disappear down into the flare, fading into silence.
A large group of people come to help pull Julia back up onto the ship as well as a couple of others who were on some other bridges further away. Euphy just stares down into the tumultuous flare as Julia sits crying next to her, her heart pounding out of her chest. Seeing Julia and Euphy are okay, most move on to the other survivors, some of whom have large wounds to tend to. Euphy just lies there, shaking her head slowly as she stares down into the black abyss unable to comprehend what has just transpired.
