Beauty and the Space Beast: A Space Age Fairy Tale (Star-Crossed Tales)

by J. M. Page

  “All done,” Scorpia said, breaking Celine out of her trance.

  Her eyes flew open. “Already?”

  “It’s been hours,” Scorpia said, patting her shoulder.

  Celine winced, and then, bolted upright realizing which arm had hurt.

  She held both arms in front of her, turning them over in the dim light — they looked identical.

  “How does it match so perfectly?”

  Scorpia’s shoulders lifted in a shrug. “Lucky?”

  Celine clenched and unclenched her fist. “And it works!”

  Scorpia nodded. “Yes, but remember what I said. Don’t try anything too dextrous or complicated. Your new limb doesn’t have much practice yet.”

  Celine nodded, bringing her fingertips up to her eyes, looking for fingerprints. She overestimated the distance and wound up poking her eye.

  “Ow!” She snatched her hand back and glared at it like it had done it on purpose.

  Scorpia let out a paper-thin laugh with a round of clicking. “I warned you. It needs time to learn.”

  Celine frowned, flexing her hand again, this time far from her face. “Okay, well, let’s get learning.”

  And with that, she booted Rufus back up and set off for the walled city where she’d left Ben. There wasn’t so much of a plan in her mind, but fierce determination and an unwillingness to give up now.

  Nothing would stand in her way, especially not some silly walls.

  Chapter Six

  Ben

  It was over an hour later when a different medic came in, a massive violet shaggy dog on a leash at her side. Bora herself gave a resounding bark and lunged for Ben, straining the leash. The poor girl holding the leash lost her grip and Bora went flying, all fur and slobber, onto Ben’s lap.

  “Haha, yes, I’m happy to see you too,” he said, scratching the dog behind her floppy ears as she covered his face and ears with kisses. Her heavy tail thwacked the side rails, making the whole bed shake.

  “You’re too big to be a lap dog, you know,” he muttered into her colorful coat. Pets weren’t terribly common in Terranys. Goods were already hard to come by in between shipments and most people didn’t see the point. But not Ben. He’d seen Bora, short for Borealis, when she was just a pup, three solar systems away on a diplomatic mission. Ben himself had only been a kid, not even in flight training yet, but he begged his parents and they saw no harm in the Prince having a furry friend.

  They’d been nigh inseparable ever since.

  The female medic in the doorway watched on with a mixed expression, sending frequent looks over her shoulder. Many Terrans reacted that way to Bora. She was big and bouncy and a little intimidating if one didn’t know her.

  But she was really just a big cuddly fluffball.

  “You can leave,” Ben said to the medic as Bora settled in with her big front paws on his chest.

  She looked behind her again, then to the dog and decided to take him up on his offer, scurrying off down the hall.

  Bora was content to just lay there with her master, but Ben had other plans. He waited until the shift changed and a new crop of medics came to the hospital ward. While they were busy going over charts and medications, he found his clothes and got dressed, saying a silent thanks for small miracles — the teranite was still there.

  He took Bora by the leash and headed down the hallway out, away from all the medics and their watchful eyes. Ben had a good feeling they were under strict orders from his father not to let him out of their sight.

  At the first set of double doors, his suspicions were confirmed.

  “I’m sorry, Your Highness, we’re not to let you leave this ward,” a younger man said. He looked barely older than a boy, still round-faced and bright-eyed.

  Ben scratched Bora behind the ears and she gave a booming woof that echoed and made the kid wince.

  “I understand, but Bora here needs a walk. Are you going to do that for me?”

  The kid looked uncertain as Ben offered him the leash. He looked at the thin cord like it might wrap around his neck and strangle him.

  “Umm…”

  “It’s not hard,” Ben continued, cheery as ever. “Just walk her around until she does her business. You’ll want a bag to pick it up with. A big bag. And be sure not to touch it with your bare hands, it can burn pretty bad.” Okay, so that last part wasn’t exactly true, but he couldn’t take any chances.

  The guy eyed the door again and the big scruffy dog dancing on her paws. Bora barked again and jumped up at the poor kid, nearly knocking him down. The guard backed away, palms out trying to fend off the terrifying creature.

  “No, no, that’s alright. Just don’t go too far,” he said.

  Ben shrugged. “Just as far as it takes for her to go,” he said.

  The guard seemed satisfied, but more than that, he seemed relieved to see Ben walk away with Bora in tow.

  Once they were out of the hospital, and his soles hit the street, Ben let himself sigh.

  “Well, that went better than expected,” he said.

  Bora wagged her tail.

  “You want to go see Uncle Alex?” he asked the dog. Her tail thwacked him in the knees and Ben set off toward his friend’s house.

  When they arrived, he knocked once and waited, Bora anxiously scratching at the door.

  The door swung open and Ben saw Alex for a nanosecond before a mass of purple flew through the doorway and tackled him to the ground.

  “Oof! Hi, Bori,” Alex said, scratching her behind the ears while the dog licked his neck.

  Ben smirked and closed the door, side-stepping around them.

  “That’s enough,” he said to Bora, issuing a command in another language. She obeyed, laying down at Ben’s feet, her chin on her paws, tail still thumping.

  “A little help?” Alex asked from the floor. Ben offered his arm and Alex gripped his forearm tight, heaving himself up to his feet with great effort. Once he was back on his feet, Ben saw how pale his friend was and the sweat beading on his forehead.

  “How’s the leg?” he asked.

  Alex shrugged. “Same as usual. You didn’t come here to talk about my leg though, did you? I can’t believe you actually did it, you lunatic. You actually went into the Wastelands. It’s all they’re talking about on TNN, you know. The Daredevil Prince, the Royal Rebel. It’s crazy.”

  Ben rolled his eyes. “That explains why my father tried to have me held prisoner in the hospital. But I brought you a souvenir,” he said, reaching into his pockets. He produced handfuls of the chalky red substance and offered it to Alex, who’s eyes had gone wide.

  “Is that—”

  “I didn’t figure anyone else was going to get it and you need it,” Ben said, starting to feel self-conscious about his good deed.

  “You’re even crazier than I thought. I thought you were just out there looking for monsters and you…” Alex shook his head, taking the teranite from Ben. “Thanks. Really, thanks.”

  “Take it,” Ben said with a nod toward the kitchen.

  Alex hobbled there, crushing the teranite into a fine powder before mixing it into a drink.

  “That should be enough to last you a little while, right? Hopefully long enough for them to figure out this Grounding nonsense.”

  Alex nodded, but his face wasn’t as happy as Ben expected.

  “What is it?”

  Alex turned the rocks over in his fingers. “I shouldn’t keep this all for myself. There are others that could use this, too.”

  “The others didn’t save my hide in battle in the Farellan Asteroid Belt. Keep it,” Ben said, drawing on some of that regal authority he’d been coached on as a younger man.

  Alex let out a sigh, but nodded. They’d been friends too long. Each of them knew a fight the other wouldn’t give up.

  Silence stretched for a long minute and finally Alex narrowed his eyes at Ben, seeing something he hadn’t before.

  “What else did you find out there?” he asked.

&
nbsp; Ben’s heart jumped as if he’d been electrocuted. “What?”

  “I see it written all over your face. I’ve been a bartender too long to not know when someone has something they wanna talk about.”

  His pulse raced. Alex was his best friend. If he could tell anyone about the modder girl, it would be him. But could he tell him?

  He shook his head. “You’d never believe me.”

  Alex laughed. “After everything we’ve been through and seen together? Unlikely. What, did you find Ern’s modders out there?” He chuckled again, but Ben didn’t laugh along. He didn’t even crack a smile. Slowly, Alex’s laughter faded and his expression fell.

  “No…” he whispered. “You can’t be serious. Did you?”

  Ben just nodded. “Well, I think so. The memories are kind of hazy… But she saved me. I was a gonner. Crashed in the sand, didn’t know which way was up.” He dropped his head to his hands and raked his palms over a day’s old stubble.

  “I sound insane, don’t I?”

  Alex sucking in a breath. “No! Well… If it was anyone else, yeah, but I know you wouldn’t make something like that up. So… It was a girl, eh?” Alex said suggestively.

  Ben finally laughed. “Yeah,” he sighed.

  “Oh, it was a girl,” Alex emphasized. He looked thoughtful for a moment. “Let me guess, you want to find her?”

  “Am I that predictable?”

  His best friend shrugged. “Not always, but I do know you. You’re not going to let a mystery sit unsolved. Especially not one this big. So what are you going to do?”

  “I don’t know,” Ben admitted. “I haven’t thought that far.”

  Alex nodded and clapped him on the shoulder. “If you need the help of a guy with only one good leg, you know where to find me.”

  Ben gave him an exasperated look and nodded, getting the idea that his friend was dismissing him. He headed toward the door, Bora following in his shadow. “Take your medicine,” he said before leaving.

  He walked with his furry companion, not thinking about where his feet took him. He’d been single-minded about getting out of the hospital to find that girl, but what was the plan, really? She was out in the Wastelands somewhere. Beyond the walls. Beyond the forcefield. He’d barely survived that trip once and he couldn’t have done it without her. Did he really want to risk it again?

  They walked around the perimeter of the wall and Bora whined at the roar of dust beyond. Ben squinted up, his eyes straining to see the top of the wall, but all he saw in his mind were those eyes. The vibrant green that arrested his heart and plagued his thoughts.

  Was she even real?

  “You’re crazy!” someone said.

  “Not possible.”

  “I’m telling you! Look!”

  Five or more voices melded together in a heated discussion down the wall. The men in their khaki suits huddled together, arguing over something.

  “There’s no way. Turn it off.”

  “We can’t just—”

  “I said turn it off.” The stern command made Ben narrow his eyes. There was something else lurking under that authoritative tone: uncertainty. He’d heard it countless times, men giving orders they didn’t agree with or weren’t sure of.

  He tried to appear nonchalant as he practically jogged over to them.

  “What’s going on?” he asked.

  “Nothing,” the stern one said.

  “Your Highness!” Someone recognized him, of course. Someone always did. So much for being incognito, though he figured running up to a group of Royal Guardsmen probably abolished any hope of being subtle, anyway.

  “There’s a woman at the wall,” one said.

  “Claims to have crashed,” said another.

  “Should we let her in?”

  Ben frowned, trying to process all the information at once.

  “A woman?” he asked.

  “Yes, sir.” One of the guards offered a tablet attached to the surveillance camera perched on the wall. He’d forgotten about those cameras when he’d gone on his little joy ride.

  It was difficult to tell if it was indeed a woman. She was wrapped in loose flowing fabric, only giving the barest hint of her feminine curves. Her head was tilted down so that the only thing Ben saw was a curtain of shiny black hair.

  “Says she crashed?” he asked, feeling like a recording, repeating everything they’d already said.

  But how was that possible? All flights in and out were grounded. That didn’t stop Ben from going out and crashing in the Wastelands, but he was the Prince. It was a little different. If his stunt prompted civilians to try the same, he’d never hear the end of it from his father.

  And then there was the more pressing question. If she crashed, how the hell had she survived the Wastelands?

  “Are you hurt?” he asked. Regardless of who she was or how she’d gotten there, if she needed medical attention they were honor-bound to give it to her.

  The woman lifted her head and looked directly into the camera. Electricity struck his heart, in that moment, freezing time. Those eyes. Seeing them again took his breath away.

  Ben looked around at the other men, hoping none of them noticed his sudden and bizarre change of behavior.

  She shook her head. “I am uninjured,” she said, “but tired. I’ve traveled quite far.”

  There was more murmuring from the Guardsmen, but Ben passed the screen off and brushed his hands together.

  “Let her in.”

  One of the guards looked like he wanted to argue, but took one look at Ben’s stony expression and thought better of it.

  “You heard the Prince. Mills, go fetch her and bring her back here,” the guard said.

  Ben and Bora followed the group to the break in the wall and waited. His blood oscillated between boiling and ice. He didn’t know what to think about this. He’d planned on finding her, but had she found him first?

  After what seemed like a wait that would never end, Bora barked, jumping in excitement. Some of the Royal Guard backed away from the dog, eyeing her with suspicion.

  Mills got out of the hoverspeeder first and then helped the young woman out after him.

  Ben’s heart thumped an erratic rhythm and he stepped toward her, his mouth drier than when he’d first woken up. The Royal Guard stood at his back and Mills broke away from the girl to join their ranks. Ben looked her up and down, admiring the elfish shape of her face, the slight slant to her exotic eyes. And then he looked at her arms, covered in fabric.

  “What is your name and where are you from?” the highest-ranking Guardsmen present said.

  “My name is Celine,” she said, her voice soft and familiar to Ben. She faltered on the other half of the question and Ben stepped in to her rescue.

  “You’ve been in the Wastelands. I know you say you’re uninjured, but our medics should look you over. Exposure can be deadly if untreated.”

  He thought she laughed, but then she was coughing and he couldn’t see if that twinkle in her eyes was real or a figment of his imagination.

  “Yes, of course. I appreciate it,” she said.

  “Er… Your Highness?” one of the Guards said, looking at Celine with uncertainty. “Would you like an escort?”

  Ben rolled his eyes. “No, go back to whatever it was you were doing before she appeared. I can handle this from here.” He turned to Celine, a smile teasing his lips. “You’re not going to assassinate me or my father, are you?”

  Her eyes went wide, her mouth forming a shocked oval as she shook her head, silky hair flowing around her shoulders. “No!”

  “Didn’t think so, let’s go.” He and Bora set the pace, not wasting any time in getting away from the guards. When he looked to his side, Celine fell into step beside him, fidgeting with her fingers.

  “So, how about the truth now?” he asked, hoping his suspicions were right.

  She stopped, tripping over her feet with the suddenness. “The truth?”

  Bora sniffed all around Celine’
s feet, her tail whacking Ben in the knees. Celine didn’t seem frightened of the dog like most Terrans. In fact, she reached down and gave Bora’s shaggy head a hearty scratch.

  “You couldn’t have crashed. There are no flights on or off the planet right now,” he said.

  Her eyes widened again and Ben thought for sure he’d caught her in a lie.

  “There are no flights? I can’t leave?”

  He frowned. “None of us can until the government sorts itself out. So I’ll ask again, where did you come from?”

  Celine looked down, not meeting his gaze, focused instead on Bora who’d taken to licking her palm. “I must have veered off-course,” she said simply.

  Bora licked one of Celine’s hands, but Ben noticed how the other hung at her side awkwardly.

  “Are you sure you’re not hurt?” he asked, reaching for her forgotten hand, expecting it to be made of metal. Hoping, more than expecting.

  But when his fingers closed around her wrist and brought her hand up, it was as fleshy and human as any other part of her. He frowned.

  “No, I’m alright,” she insisted, pulling her hand back.

  “You’re not her,” he said under his breath, more a disappointed sigh to himself.

  “Who?”

  Ben shook his head. “No one. Let’s get you to the palace.”

  She followed along in silence and Ben tried to reconcile the things he thought he knew with the evidence before him. Was it all a dream? A coincidence? Something bigger he couldn’t explain?

  And what about the spell her eyes cast upon him? The undeniable tug he felt to be near her even though he didn’t know the first thing about her? Or the fact that Bora seemed to have made a new best friend.

  There was something more at play. He couldn’t put his finger on it, couldn’t identify just what was off, but he wouldn’t rest until he could. He’d find out who this woman was and what, if any, connection she had to his rescuer.

  Chapter Seven

  Celine

  “Here you are,” he said, gesturing to the open door he’d just thrown open.