Princess Grace of Earth

by A K Lambert

  Gordon had recovered the cannon and with the Zerot now away from the captives, began firing. But its shield held firm.

  Grace was losing. Her psyche was slipping away. She was falling into a well, and the light above her was getting smaller and smaller and smaller. Until…

  * * *

  “Stay with me, sister.”

  * * *

  She felt a new energy, recognising the voice from her training session with the troll. An energy that joined with hers, helping to pull her back to the top of the well.

  * * *

  “Now work with me.”

  * * *

  Her will, combined with the stranger’s, was a brake on the Zerot’s influence. The balance between the two began to equalise, then, slowly at first, they began forcing it back. Grace felt the panic in her adversary’s mind, now doubting its abilities. The gentle strength of the stranger held Grace steady. The creature’s concentration was failing, the two-pronged attack too much, and suddenly its control of the protective shield failed, and it blinked off.

  The laser cannon now only had flesh and bones in the path of its beam—no match for it at all.

  Janet looked around at the carnage in the room. She had never experienced anything remotely like this.

  The Zerot lay dead on the floor.

  So did Kurt.

  Gordon had William’s head in his lap, watching his friend’s life ebbing away.

  Grace had collapsed, exhausted. No, more than exhausted. A limping Krankel nuzzled her. When she didn’t move, he lay down next to her.

  Oscar had cut the captives free. Mandy and Jon both ran to Grace’s side.

  Rob, holding his broken arm, wandered around in a daze, as did Sam, his injured hand tucked under his arm.

  She even saw what appeared to be the skin of a human woman lying on the floor.

  It was chaos.

  How could a single being cause so much devastation? Janet hadn’t even fired her gun, though not because she didn’t try. The captives prevented her getting a clear shot at the creature. She didn’t know what to do. For probably the first time in her life, she didn’t know what to do. She could only stare through tearstained eyes.

  She heard a noise behind her and looked. More people were entering the room. Five hazy blue shapes were hurrying to assist the injured. Janet rubbed the moisture from her eyes so she could focus. Vercetians, but none she recognised from Cork.

  Two went straight to Grace and two to Gordon and William. There was a frenzied exchange between Gordon and the two new arrivals, in an incomprehensible language. The taller of the two, a female, seemed to be giving instructions to Gordon. He deactivated his brooch and gave it to her, reverting to his true form, and helped the other Vercetian pick up William, and immediately carried him outside.

  The tall female turned her attention to Grace and the male Vercetian examining her. They conferred, then he picked Grace up and carried her outside. Krankel got up to follow, but the tall female spoke firmly to him, and he cowered back, ears flat, and lay next to Jon.

  Jon and Mandy had already stepped back, hoping that Grace would now receive the care they were unable to give. Mandy was looking at Jon’s missing finger. The loss of blood was starting to take its toll on him and he dropped into a chair. The fifth Vercetian—who looked to be an elderly male—having stemmed the bleeding of Sam’s finger, began attending to Jon.

  The tall female was talking to Rob. She held him by his good arm and led him out of the building.

  Janet and Oscar followed.

  What they saw outside stopped them dead in their tracks.

  Before them, hovering about six feet off the ground, was what Janet assumed to be a spaceship. A dark silver, forty foot diameter sphere, with a heat haze around it. What else could it be? she admonished herself. Two Venetians were carrying a motionless William up a floating ramp, followed by the male carrying Grace, and finally, the tall female escorting the Trun.

  Janet shouted over the low hum of the ship, ‘Where are you going?’

  The tall female turned and looked back at her for a moment, attempted to say something, then carried on into the ship.

  A few minutes later, she returned. At the bottom of the ramp, she passed the remaining Vercetian who had finished treating Jon, and they exchanged words. The elderly male shuffled up the ramp which retreated after him. The tall female approached Janet, and looking down at her, raised one finger while fiddling with Gordon’s brooch.

  Wait, one something or another unit of time, thought Janet. Apparently a universal symbol. The Vercetian activated the holographic image converter and changed into the most stunning human woman Janet had ever seen. Six feet, two inches, and flawless. She turned to Oscar; his jaw had dropped.

  She spoke, her soft deep voice again seeming perfect. ‘My apologies. Without the image converter, I was unable to access the speech translator. My name is Dom Kobios. I’m the Chief of Security of the vessel that you see here. It is preparing to take off. I suggest we step back into the building.’ The three of them re-entered the hotel as the noise from the Sphere began to increase.

  Inside, Janet asked, ‘Where are you taking Grace, Gordon and William?’

  ‘Those names mean nothing to me,’ replied Kobios. ‘If you mean Princess Tauriar, Seca Mika and Dom Seca, to another of our ships here on your planet, where there is medical help.’

  ‘To Douglas, sorry, Prime, in Ireland?’ Janet asked.

  Kobios cocked her head to the side. ‘How do you know about Bala Prime?’

  ‘I’ve met all of the Life Team in Cork. I know all about the plight of your people, and the war with your neighbours. Your princess is Grace to us. Gordon was attending to your dead comrade William.’

  ‘Dom Seca—William— is not dead yet. He is on the edge of death, but is now in stasis in our sphere, until our medic can assess his condition.’

  ‘Why have you remained?’

  ‘We have no pilot. Seca Mika is infinitely superior to me, and I need to find my young Prince. We dropped him off about forty miles away. I need transportation to get me there.’

  ‘Oscar will drive you,’ Janet offered. ‘What do I do with the alien—the weird looking one?’

  ‘The what?’ replied Kobios.

  ‘That!’ Janet pointed at the dead creature still on the conference room floor.

  ‘What is it?’

  ‘I don’t know,’ said Janet.

  Amanda joined them. ‘It called itself a Zerot. They’re in the process of taking over your home world. They intend to destroy Earth as well if she,’ she pointed at what was left of Sonia, ‘is to be believed.’

  Kobios looked at them, then at the Zerot, then back to them again. She shook her head as if trying to shake her brain into comprehending what was going on. All she managed to do was shake the strange hair into her eyes. She awkwardly pushed the strands away and said, ‘This will have to wait until my team return for me. I need to get my Prince.’

  ‘I need to go with Grace. Back to Ireland. My mother and father are there with Prime.’ Amanda was looking up at the Vercetian security chief. ‘I need to go on your ship, now. Check with Gordon—Seca—he’ll vouch for me.’

  Kobios concentrated, looking at nothing for a moment, in communication Mandy assumed, then she replied, ‘Go. The ramp is back down for you.’

  Mandy nodded in thanks to her before turning to Jon. ‘I’ll be back for you as soon as I can.’ Jon nodded to her and smiled. She leant forward and kissed him on the cheek. Lingering, she whispered in his ear, ‘I love you.’ She stepped away, her eyes locked on his, then she turned and walked outside, the others following her.

  Kobios made sure Mandy was safely on the sphere before turning back to Oscar. ‘Come then.’ She walked toward the only object that could be a vehicle, then turned back to Janet. ‘You need to get back inside.’ Her tone changed from instructional to questioning, ‘Is this human form an acceptable one for me to integrate into your species?’

  Janet repl
ied, ‘Yes, no one will give you a second look, you should blend in nicely.’ She turned to Oscar, closed his jaw with two fingers and with her other hand, gently pushed him off after her.

  Chapter 42

  The Reunion

  Earth - The Republic of Ireland - 2013, Tuesday

  * * *

  Gordon gingerly raised the sphere off the ground, using only thrusters. He was the reserve pilot for his Life Team but hadn’t had any flight time since their arrival on Earth. Even before that, Peter would rarely give up the helm.

  To avoid detection, he kept the vessel within a few feet of the ground, ramping up the speed as his confidence grew. The route he plotted to Ireland would give the African locals a fantastic view of this exotic mode of transport.

  At his shoulder, Stevos was fussing about and helping where she could. ‘Can we make contact with Prime yet?’ she asked him.

  ‘Not advisable, Madame.’ Gordon couldn’t bring himself to be any less formal with this legendary Life Team leader. ‘You may need to wait until you are in telepathic range.’

  ‘Understood.’

  ‘Any improvement in Princess Tauriar’s condition?’ he asked, knowing it had been precious little time since he had placed her on the recovery bed.

  ‘None,’ Stevos replied. ‘Hondry will inform me of any changes.’

  They had his security chief and friend William in stasis. His life was in the balance but suspended until James would be able to assess him. Gordon hoped he would be at the Hall and not in Cork. He could not park the sphere outside of the busy city residence.

  Stevos, looking at the landmass flashing by below them, said, ‘What are the chances of the Trun picking us up?’

  ‘If we stay this low, with shields on, we should avoid detection,’ Gordon replied. ‘It’s when we move higher. That’s when they can find us.’

  Two hours later they were over the south coast of Ireland. Stevos was concentrating hard, apparently now close enough to be in contact with Prime. Gordon was still just feet above the ground and had slowed down to less than one hundred miles per hour. The sight of the sphere gave the locals of Ireland a visual treat. If the last few days or so hadn’t quite convinced the population of Earth of the existence of extraterrestrial beings, he was indeed reinforcing that fact now. He smiled to himself at the frenzy there would be on social media in the next few hours.

  Stevos had finished with his leader. ‘Prime wants us to head for Harewood Hall, your country residence, I think he called it.’

  ‘Yes, Madame.’

  ‘Does sound a lot nicer than our rudimentary, unfurnished monastery,’ She looked directly at him for the first time during the journey, and couldn’t hide the hint of a smile.

  Chapter 43

  Mancer's Fighters

  Earth - 2013, Tuesday

  * * *

  Flight Commander Armoury reported back to Rapha. ‘No sign of the sphere, sir, but we have picked up two Vercetian signatures at the stop they made forty miles back.’

  ‘Send Lampard down to investigate, Commander, and you keep an eye out for any signs of the sphere.’

  ‘Yes, sir.’

  Flight Commander Lampard landed his 3W fighter on the African plain, a hundred feet from the two figures trudging north. He jumped out of the cockpit and loped over to them. An adult female and an adolescent male. The woman was brandishing a weapon that the boy immediately took from her and threw to one side. He could make out a dust plume from a land vehicle heading for them—probably still two to three miles away.

  ‘Names please?’ he snapped. Not trying to frighten them, but conscious of the vehicle heading towards them.

  ‘Prince Ventar of Verceti,’ the Prince said, taking charge. ‘And this is my mother, Maot.’

  Lampard spoke quickly and excitedly into his lapel communicator. The reply was instant.

  ‘Come with me now.’ Lampard had his weapon in his hand. Ventar stepped forward obediently.

  ‘You have to take me as well,’ said Maot.

  ‘I can’t,’ he replied, feeling a certain guilt. ‘There are only two seats.’

  ‘But you don’t understand,’ Maot pleaded, ‘I’m a Tr..’

  ‘Mother!’ Ventar shouted.

  She stared at him, eyes wide and begging.

  His voice softened. ‘I’ll be all right, mother. Kobios will be with you in a couple of minutes. I must do this.’ He smiled at her and silently said, ‘I love you.’

  They boarded the fighter and lifted off just as the Earth vehicle arrived.

  ‘Have you got the prince?’ asked Rapha.

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Then get back here, immediately,’ he said. ‘You too, Armoury.’

  ‘Understood.’

  Chapter 44

  Grace’s Sphere

  Earth - The Republic of Ireland - 2013, Wednesday

  * * *

  On the edge of the lake on the grounds of Harewood Hall, the escapees were shuttling down to Grace’s sphere in pairs via the entry bubble. Douglas and Gwyneth went first, followed by Gordon supporting Grace. Next were Grace’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Shaw, Amanda, and finally, Helen escorting Rob.

  But they weren’t able to go anywhere just yet. They were waiting for Peter, who had still to leave the Hall.

  He jumped on his bike and raced down to the lake. On arrival, he summoned an entry bubble, transferred through the sphere airlock and sealed it behind him. He strapped himself into the pilot’s seat and slipped his feet and hands into the controllers.

  He concentrated, ignoring everything around him. He hadn’t flown a sphere in years, and this needed to be perfect. Just one shot at this, they depend on you, he told himself.

  He set the vibration mechanism. He had lake silt to shake free of before going anywhere. Once free, the sphere bobbed up, breaching the surface of the lake. He activated the navigational drive, hoping for the best. It started the first time. Vertical thrusters slowly raised the ship out of the water. Once clear, he was able to engage the drive and moved swiftly to about 50,000 ft. He held it there while he plotted his escape arc out of the Earth’s atmosphere. He needed a steady and gradual ascent if he was going to avoid detection for as long as possible. The drive kicked in, and four vessels appeared on his monitor, assuming a standard attack formation.

  Captain Vincent Hardy eased his Typhoon into position and waited for a few moments for his team to do the same.

  ‘Attack formation Delta 7. You’re first, Simon,’

  The first of the Typhoons moved in and released two Meteor air-to-air missiles. Lieutenant Simon Jenkins watched them track seamlessly towards the spherical alien vessel before he veered away to make way for his team members. Vince was the last to fire his missiles, hoping he would have more success than the others before him.

  ‘Okay, chaps. Let’s back off and let the Yanks have a go at this tricky bastard.’

  Peter felt the missiles detonate harmlessly on his shield. His monitor showed six more Earth aircraft about to engage him. His shield could take this assault from their military, but it would be a beacon for the Trun cruiser.

  Safely through the next onslaught, he had reached an altitude at which the Earth aircraft couldn’t follow. A few minutes later and he’d escaped the clutches of planet Earth and was in space. He enabled his star drive and set a course for the nearest wormhole. At maximum speed, he would be there in forty-five minutes. All he could do now was hope.

  Ten minutes into the dash to safety, his screen showed four more small dots rapidly closing in on him. These weren’t Earth vessels though. These were Trun 3W fighters, followed closely by the battle cruiser.

  The fighters took turns sweeping in on the delta sphere, attacking its shield with concentrated ionised particle beams.

  Peter was doing the maths. At this rate, his shields would fail two minutes out from the wormhole. He wondered if his attackers were aware of this. Nothing he could do but keep heading towards the wormhole and hoping.

  He needed to get t
here first.

  Mancer stood directly behind his captain, watching the images relayed by the fighters.

  ‘The sphere’s shields are critically low. Failure is imminent.’ Captain Rapha was giving him a dispassionate, running commentary.

  ‘Time to wormhole?’ Mancer asked.

  ‘Three minutes, sir.’ Rapha waited a few more seconds. ‘Shields are down.’

  ‘Tell the fighters to stand down.’ Mancer instructed. ‘Let’s give them a moment to consider their options.’

  They watched in silence as the sphere headed doggedly towards the wormhole.

  Rapha broke the silence. ‘The orbiting surveillance drone has confirmed detection of Vercetian life forms entering the water in transit bubbles. A female of the Princess’s age amongst them. According to its flight path, this sphere left from that location.’

  ‘Understood.’ replied Mancer. ‘They’re not going to stop, and we can’t follow,’ he muttered under his breath.

  ‘Thirty seconds, sir.’

  ‘Resume attack and destroy it.’ Mancer turned and walked away from his captain, cursing the Vercetians stubbornness.

  The first fighter strike disabled the sphere, taking out part of its lower hull, sending the vessel spinning off course with chunks of hull drifting outwards. It would never reach its destination now. The second strike targeted the drive system and fuel cells. The result was the complete destruction of the ship, with fragments radiating out in every direction.

  Mancer had turned around to watch this second strike, wincing at the spectacular light display. He’d seen a lot of death in his long military career, but he would never get used to the senseless loss of life.