Trance stopped and looked out at the craft that was going to take him, his family, and his team to the tournaments. It was gleaming in the morning light, and looked incredibly sleek and shiny. As he carefully looked over the craft his eye fell on the name written in impressive letters, Scorpio. He then looked around the concourse and spotted a group of people congregating and recognized many of them. There were several of his teammates as well as a number of the Lady Gray Mountain Warriors including Corena. To his amazement, in the center of the group of people were King Maximus and Queen Kayna, Corena’s parents.
King Maximus and Queen Kayna looked and talked to everyone as if they were ordinary people. The main difference between them and everyone else were the royal and rather expensive looking clothes and their crowns. King Maximus wore his with an expression that at times said that he’d just as soon have his crown put in a museum and locked away. Trance had overheard him say, “I really wish they would pass a law that said that the king didn’t have to wear this thing anymore.”
Apparently there was an ancient law that said that the royal ruling family, the king and queen, must wear their crown when they went anywhere in public and especially when they were at the capital making judgments and signing laws. Under his crown Maximus had a full head of brown hair and very keen blue eyes. He had a rather young looking face and his eyes shone with pride as he watched over his wife and children. It was well known that he enjoyed a good joke and had a very generous heart.
Queen Kayna was a beautiful woman. It was clear where Corena got her beauty. She was an excellent cross of her rather handsome father and her beautiful mother. Kayna wasn’t beautiful like a model; rather she seemed to have a beauty that shone from within. She had reddish brown hair and brown eyes. She was stately and kind. She greeted and talked to people whoever they might be and listened to them as they talked to her. One of her best qualities was that she treated everyone that she met as if they were very important to her.
Beside the King and Queen was a young boy wearing rumpled royal clothes and a small crown. He was Mixim, Corena’s brother, who was four years younger than her. He stood five feet seven inches and had the promise of growing more. He had light brown hair, brown eyes, and freckles. According to Corena he was also a brat and a half. He was rather impatient to be grown up and be like his father. Occasionally he would strut around and show off his crown, making sure everyone around noticed him.
Corena was standing beside her mother as people came past to greet the royal family. She stood there wearing more ordinary clothes though they were still rather expensive and high quality, and her own crown. Her eyes strained while looking for Trance. She had been anxious to see him from the time she had gotten up and dressed that morning. She had been watching the clock and knew that he should be coming soon.
She had greeted many of her teammates and their families as well as many of the boys and their families. As she met each person who approached her she looked past him or her to see if Trance was coming. Her nerves were starting to tingle as she waited for him to arrive. Finally, she saw him and he had the same look in his eye. She could tell that he had been looking for her as much as she had been waiting for him.
“Hi Trance, I’m glad you made it,” she said, her eyes and smile brightening as he came striding toward her his smile shining just as much.
“Hello Corena, how are you this morning?” Trance asked excitedly as he quickly walked up to her.
“I’m wonderful now that you’re here,” she replied blushing slightly. They looked into each other’s eyes and quickly leaned close and kissed. It was a rather quick kiss, but very pleasant to both. They knew that they would probably cause a stir and heard some whispers so they stood together and talked.
“Are you ready to go to the tournament?” Corena asked him.
“I’m as ready as I can be. I understand that there will be a lot of schools represented at these tournaments, ten from here and ten from several other worlds. It’ll be interesting to meet people from other worlds. In a way I really can’t wait to get there and see what happens. With that many schools we might not get to win anything, but I’ll do my very best.”
“I’m sure you will,” she replied. “I have my lady knights ready. This will be my last time to lead my team at the tournaments. I hope to win a couple events. After school I’m heading to the training camp to be a lady Golden Griffin.”
Trance’s family caught up to him and was greeted by King Maximus. “Dr. Sonderson, it’s a pleasure to see you again.”
Dr. Sonderson shook the King’s hand and they stood and chatted for a few minutes. Eileen Sonderson was equally greeted by Queen Kayna and they also visited for a few minutes while Prince Mixim started to look bored but was suddenly distracted by Heather and Sammy Sonderson. Finally some kids his age that he could talk and play with.
Trance continued to talk to Corena pleasantly but they began to get interrupted as some of Corena’s teammates came over to visit as well as some of Trance’s. Zam and Gracer in particular came over and started talking to Trance about the tournaments and how they’re organized. All of them were excited and ready to leave and get to the tournaments. They had been working toward this event for most of the year and now they were about to find out how good they were. This was especially important to the boys and girls that were going to graduate this year because there would be more armed service recruiters here at this tournament and those that wanted to join wanted to make a really good impression so that they might get chosen by the best division.
As Trance talked with Corena and his teammates and friends he looked around and recognized several armed knights that were gathered there. They were the group of Golden Griffins that Trance had met the summer before when he had left the Markem’s farm. He spotted Major Marlett and approached him and asked him why his division was there.
“Well, we’re here for a bodyguard to protect everyone on this flight. We will be mainly protecting the royal family on the trip to the tournaments, as well as provide security there for them and all of you. And then we will escort you all back here safe and sound,” Marlett replied.
Trance asked him, “So how is your division doing? Is everyone still okay?” He hadn’t seen Zak and Bear yet.
“Well,” Marlett hesitated; he didn’t like telling anyone about the soldiers that were lost under his command. “Most everyone that you met is still with us. However, we lost a few guys in a battle thirty miles north of the capital two months ago. By the way I’ll be watching your performance during the tournaments. I don’t have much say so, but I may be able to pick some new men to join my division,” he winked at Trance and walked over to speak to the King and also with the head of security for the spaceport.
Trance turned his head and to his very happy surprise saw Zak and Bear standing a few feet away in conversation. He wondered whether he might go over and talk with them before they all had to board the space ship and begin their journey to Caldar. As he stepped in their direction Kyle came up and got their attention. Zak and Bear greeted Kyle very enthusiastically and at that moment spotted Trance and all four were soon in a very energetic conversation. The four talked so intently that they didn’t notice the time slipping by. Soon they’d have to board the ship and start on their way.
“It’s really cool seeing you guys again,” Trance said rather happily.
“We’re happy to be here too,” said Zak. “I think that Marlett has another reason for being here, but he’s not telling us why he volunteered us to be the bodyguard.”
“Yeah, this is going to be an entertaining mission,” said Bear. “I haven’t been to the tournaments for a few years and it’ll be nice to see what takes place and how you do.”
“Well, I’m going to do the best I can and see how far I can lead my team. I hope we can win at least one event, but with so many teams competing against us we’ll have a hard time winning any,” said Trance mode
stly.
“I’m sure you’ll win at least one event,” said Zak, “Especially after the way you had defended yourself before we found you last summer.”
“I agree,” said a sweet female voice. The four young men turned around and were delighted to see Corena. “I think that Trance will lead his team to probably several titles.”
“Thank you for saying so,” said Trance, blushing as she approached. Corena joined in their conversation and raved about how brave and noble she thought Trance was. She also talked about how well he had captained his team this year and got them in very good position to go into the end of year tournaments.
“Attention all passengers, we will be boarding in five minutes,” came a brisk female voice over the intercom system. Trance found his family, which seemed very close to the royal family, as everyone started making their way near the loading gate. Trance could feel the anticipation in the air as he exchanged glances with Corena and also watched the faces of his teammates and family. Soon they would be boarding the stellar ship and blasting off for Caldar and the end of year tournaments.
The five minutes seemed to jet by and now it was boarding time. The royal family went first, followed by the Golden Griffins, then both coaches and their families, and then by the Sondersons. Dr. Sonderson took care of the tickets and gave his family their boarding passes.
They walked through the boarding tunnel toward the ship and stepped inside and gasped. The interior of the ship was very much like an airliner as the seats were in rows of twelve. There were four seats together near the right side of the ship with an aisle and then four in the middle of the ship, another aisle and the four seats on the left. Trance looked amazed to see that there were sixty-five rows of seats. Near the front were the first fifteen rows of royal class and then the remaining fifty rows for ordinary passengers.
Trance looked at his ticket and was rather taken aback because it looked like he might be in royal class. He nudged his dad to see where the rest of the family was going to sit and was slightly surprised that it didn’t seem that he would be sitting with his family. They would be just two rows behind him. Still puzzled he headed toward the front of the ship while his family moved toward their seats. Finally he arrived at his seat and at once felt his face flush and smiled broadly.
“Hi sweetheart,” he said gazing down at Corena.
“I thought you might want to sit with me for our trip to the tournaments, dad arranged it,” she said rather slyly.
“You are so wonderful!” he said and leaned over and kissed her. He sat back in his seat and fastened his seat belt. As he smiled and tried to relax he thought about the last time he’d boarded a spaceship. That time he had boarded a rocket ship he and his family were in white suits and placed in the deep sleep chambers for the trip through space to arrive here on Althora. Now he was wearing more normal clothes and sitting next to his girlfriend, a very beautiful princess even, and they were sitting like they were on an ordinary plane and about to go to another planet. He knew that the planet Caldar was very close and that the trip wouldn’t take long.
Trance tried to relax more and he held Corena’s hand as they continued to chat and waited for their trip to begin. Suddenly the ship’s captain spoke through the intercom system. “Ladies and Gentlemen, We will be starting our engines and starting for the runway in ten minutes. Please relax, the Ships Aides will be by to ensure your comfort and take care of any of your needs.”
Trance glanced down the aisle and saw a number of ladies and a couple men in rather neat and crisp blue uniforms go about assisting passengers with drinks, pillows, blankets, and helping passengers fasten their seat belts. They were very responsive to every request and swiftly had everyone at ease and ready for takeoff. One Ships Aide came up and inquired if Corena needed anything and then turned to Trance and asked him.
“We’ll have a couple glasses of water, thank you,” said Corena courteously. She seemed to be in her element as Princess at the moment. She knew what she wanted and knew how to act as a member of the royal house. When giving commands or requesting something, she was always courteous and yet direct. Her voice, which was always sweet and loving when she talked to her family and especially to Trance, could command anyone to obey her wishes. She didn’t demand a lot and it seemed that everyone obeyed her because they loved her and the royal family.
In just a few minutes the Aide was back with their water glasses. Trance drank the cool water and leaned back, trying to calm his nerves again. He remembered his very old fear of flying and there were moments when he’d had second thoughts about flying to the end of year tournaments. He felt Corena take his hand and he turned and gazed into those beautiful brown eyes of hers and felt himself relax. She seemed to always have a way of calming him. He smiled as she leaned close to him and touched her head to his shoulder. With her beside him he felt he could do anything, go anywhere, endure anything, and accomplish whatever he needed to do.
The ten minutes were just about up when the ship’s captain once again addressed the passengers, “Ladies and gentlemen we’re about to get underway. Make sure you and your belongings are stored and fastened correctly. The Aides will assist you.”
A moment later the great engines were fired, the boarding tunnel was moved away from the ship and the doors were securely closed and sealed. Rather slowly at first the ship started to move away from its station and started moving toward the line of ships waiting to take off.
Trance sat back in his seat and tried his best to concentrate on Corena, who was rather relaxed and ready to fly. He trusted her and knew that nothing could or should go wrong. His nerves quieted and he took the time to look out the window and took in all of the sights he could see from where he sat. Then four minutes later he heard and felt the engines really start to wind up.
“Ladies and gentlemen, we are next to take off,” spoke the captain’s voice.
It seemed a very long minute before the ship moved again and then stopped. The engines were definitely roaring now. Trance felt the ship start to accelerate down the runway and very suddenly leave the ground behind. He felt himself pushed back in his seat and his heart seemed to be racing the ship as it started to make an incredible climb. He noticed the ship’s cabin conditions change very slightly. There seemed to be more air pumping into the cabin where the passengers sat and his feet felt weightless only momentarily before the ship’s gravity system activated and everything felt like normal again.
The ship continued to gather speed as it climbed accelerating to escape velocity and in a few minutes was leaving the planet and starting its journey through space. It took a few more minutes for Trance to calm his heart rate enough to look around and see that everything was just fine. Three minutes later the Aides began going down the aisles again and taking care of the passengers. Trance took another glass of water, drained it in one gulp and immediately asked for another one.
Corena smiled at him and held his hand reassuringly, “How are you doing? Look out there, there’s another ship heading in the same direction as we are. They’re probably heading to the end of year tournaments also.”
Trance looked out the window and was stunned to see one of the other ships flying in formation with their ship. As he looked out further he caught sight of one of the great battleships flying through space defending their progress. He easily imagined that there were other battleships in the area to protect this particular ship. Suddenly he saw something that caught his attention. He was almost sure that he had imagined what he’d seen until he saw the flying object again.
Flying fairly close to the Scorpio was a very striking winged robot horse. The horse seemed to be rather more heavily armored and sleeker than any robot horse that he’d ever seen. The knight riding the horse was also more armored than what he’d seen before. The armor was thicker and a bit sleeker and it was evident that the helmet was completely sealed to the rest of the armor and had a built-in conduit for air fo
r the knight. The helmet’s faceplate was also rather large for the knight to give him a wider view of his surroundings. As he watched in wonder he saw six more winged horses and knights riding them in formation near the ship.
“Hey Corena, look at them,” Trance said amazed at the knights on their winged horses flying in space.
“Oh, those must be a group of space knights,” Corena said in a knowing voice. “They are very specialized knights that train to fly their special horses in space to help protect our space battleships. There are seven groups of those knights assigned to a space battleship. Their horse’s weapons are specially designed to fire and be effective in space against enemy knights and other enemy space vessels.”
“Wow!” replied Trance. He was becoming more amazed with his new home world and military. “Are they more elite?” he asked curiously.
“A little,” she replied, “They’re more specialized you might say. The most elite armed forces are still the Golden Griffins. As one you’ll have to learn how to be a knight and be able to defend Althora in every arena. You’ll learn to ride and battle on foot and on horseback. You’ll also learn to use a winged horse or your own horse with its flight pack for either normal flying or being like one of them and flying and doing battle in space.”
Trance was stunned and took a deep breath. He really wanted to be a Golden Griffin and knew he’d be able to fight on foot as well as horseback; however, he didn’t know that he’d also learn to fly his horse in space. “Is there a flight pack that would enable Odin to fly in space like those horses?” he asked.
“I think so,” Corena answered, “I know that you have a regular flight pack for Odin, but I haven’t seen one that might fit Odin so he could fly you in space. I’m sure that as resourceful as you are that you could find one that would work.” She smiled and leaned over and kissed him again.
Hours passed and the couple talked on some more. Eventually they fell asleep still holding hands. Trance was the first to awake and he carefully withdrew his hand and reached into his carry-on bag for his book and read for a while. After reading for an hour he got a little bored so he replaced his book in the bag and pulled out a rather old magnetic travel chess game. He set down his tray and set up the game and started to play himself.
Space Knights: The Arrival Page 21
