“Anglo, have you finished making your scans?”
“Yes, I have Scotty. That Duke, I refuse to call him a king, is a pretty smart cookie; he understands the dangers that face him.”
“Why is that?”
“He has two Gamma Class Searchers always stationed above his castle with their screens overlapped on maximum setting. I think he understands that one Searcher could destroy him. With overlapped screens, it would take at least three searchers to break through his defenses. Two more are always close by scanning the system. He will only send two of the six Searchers out to support his fleets used to conquer other planets.”
Scotty said, “We need to slow him down and that means we need to attack him at home. If you had to make a decision, where would you hit him first?”
“I have several options that I think would be appropriate without causing a huge loss of life. I want to put him on the defense without causing too much collateral damage. I assume we will need those manufacturing facilities at sometime in the future if this planet can ever be made to see their errors. However, I need to take BC with me to check on a possible development that has captured my interest. His systems are much better than mine and he can see things I can’t.”
“What sort of development?”
“Let me wait to discuss it with you later. I’m not even sure it’s a possibility. Nathan and I are going to leave shortly.”
“You’ve taken a liking to Nathan, haven’t you?”
“You’ve noticed.”
“How can I miss it? You’re all he and Timmy talk about. Both of them are wow’ed by your technology and I also see they just like you. Would he make a good partner?”
“He’s a good man, Scotty. He reminds me of Anglo Gardner; he doesn’t talk a lot and he sees things I miss.”
“Ok, go ahead with your plans but make sure you’re back in two days. We’ll swap out Nathan for Grang or Jingo. We’re going back to the defense installation to see if it’ll help us. I don’t want to be late.”
“I will and you don’t have to swap out Nathan just yet. There’s one thing I want to make sure you’re aware of happening if I attack New Ulmerton.”
“I know; they’ll learn that we have teleportation capability. I was worried about that but then it dawned on me that there’s nothing they can do about it. It’s not like they can go out and buy or steal teleportation boards. Only the Algeans could build a board for them and that’s not happening. I’m hoping that, by revealing our teleportation capability, it will slow them down searching for new planets to conquer. I’m also concerned about him searching for us. Whatever you decide to do, I want you to reveal that technology. That should keep all six Searchers at home.”
“I have a plan to handle that issue, but let’s see if the Defense Facility will assist us. If it will, that will make a huge difference in what we can accomplish. Three ships with teleport boards will allow us more freedom in our planning.”
Scotty smiled, “You have my authority to make whatever decision you deem necessary.”
“Thank you for your trust. That means a lot.”
Greyson looked down on Daulun’s castle and thought about the planet he had destroyed. He tried to justify the destruction but just couldn’t find it in him. That planet had offered no resistance. Killing forty million people just to make a point just wasn’t right. He knew the people on that planet had struggled against all kinds of aggression, invasions, and somehow managed to survive against all the forces that were arrayed against it since the Stars Realm disappearance. They had finally started to build their planet into a modern society and Daulun ended their fight to survive with one beam strike, and he was the one ordered to do it. Daulun’s absolute callowness saddened him. He was not the ruler he thought him to be. He could still see the cities blown apart when his beam hit the planet.
He thought about the planned attack against the Stars Realm thousands of years earlier and remembered when his teleport board shorted out. Gregory had called for help for more than a year with no response. He remembered watching as millions of his fellow Searchers had self-destructed over the next fifty years to avoid the ravages of starvation. Finally, there were only six of them left and Gregory had contacted the others. He still remembered what he said.
“We’re not going to make it lads,” he said in a weak voice. “We must not destroy our ships. Our Province will need them to protect our citizens. They have to make it back.”
“The pain is becoming too much to bear, Greg.”
“Then we must go into the air locks and end it quickly. These ships must arrive to help our descendants. Promise me you will not destroy them.”
Greyson sighed mentally and remembered when the six surviving Searchers all opened their airlocks together and died with more than two hundred years remaining on their journey home. He thought about what Gregory would have done if he had been ordered to kill a defenseless planet. Gregory believed the Stars Realm was evil but he also believed the Duke was a good ruler who loved his subjects. This was not something that he would have condoned.
Greyson didn’t know what to do. He had promised Gregory to return and defend the Province and its ruler. Daulun was one of the Duke’s direct descendants and he was sworn to defend him. If only Gregory was still alive to remove his oath and to see what the Province had become. He listened to the reports from one of the fleets that had just invaded and subjugated another planet. These subjects certainly didn’t love their ruler. What could he do?
Queen Ashley Talben leaned back on her throne and looked at Queen Carrie on her communication board’ “I’ve learned that Haldale was destroyed by New Ulmerton. It appears they have six advanced Searcher Class ships. I don’t think Bristone is going to be able to defend us or them self. What should we do?”
Carrie was silent for a moment and then said, “What would we do if Bristone didn’t exist? We’d do all we could to defend our subjects but probably lose to this power mad King. I do know this; Bristone will not abandon us.”
“They didn’t help Haldale?”
“How could they? They were outgunned by twice their number. No one expected the ruthlessness of that King. I’m telling you not to count them out.”
“What would you suggest I do if that King shows up here?”
“You must remove Bristone’s location and any mention of that system from all your ships and computers. You must also purge any news reports of what happened when your father attacked us. I would even recommend the erasure of all news casts if their fleets discover one of your planets.”
“Why is that?”
“I’ve been told by the Emperor that the New Ulmerton drop troops use former news reports to target anyone on the planet that is notable. They shoot them and remove all possible leaders of a rebellion. If I were you, I would also remove any mention of you and your family and develop an identity that would allow you to hide in your population.”
“What about our fleets?”
“I’m having my fleet assembled away from the planets of the Kingdom so that we can use them if Bristone ever finds away to deal with those Searchers. We’ve built a facility on an asteroid to support them until they can safely come home. They stand no chance against New Ulmerton’s Searchers; it would be folly to use them. Even the Ultraships are there.” Carrie paused, took a deep breath, and continued, “Even if we’re conquered, the Emperor will come and free us someday. We can’t allow that King to find the planet of the Zord.”
“You know it’s just a matter of time until they find us.”
“Yes, but I believe in the Emperor. He will do all he can to delay that happening. You must give him your trust and devotion. Can you do that?”
“I already have. I’ll do as you ask and remove the information. Let’s hope we are given time.”
Carrie turned off the com and looked at Michael, “What do you think?”
“I’ve talked with Emperor Robbins and he says that if we’re invaded, we should surrender and attempt to bear their brutality. He said that if he comes to defend us, one of the Searchers will destroy our planet. I don’t know how long it will take for him to find an answer to those ships but if anyone in this universe can, he’s the one I’d bet on.”
Carrie hugged Michael and nodded.
Daulun sat on his throne and thought about the ship that attacked his fleet. Greyson said that it was not as fast as they were. That made it appear it was not another Searcher, but was it possible that it had deliberately avoided top speed to throw off the Searchers chasing it? It had certainly been able to jump faster than the two chasing it. Could it be another Searcher? That was the question that burned in his mind. Was there someone else that had Searchers in their fleet? If that ship was a Searcher and it intended revenge for the destruction of that planet, he would have to keep at least four of his above the planet at all times. To be absolutely safe, he should hold all six at the planet. One beam strike and New Ulmerton was history. Thank goodness teleportation was no longer available. Daulun thought about the possible danger and decided to start keeping several fleets at the jump limit scanning into the outer system for star drives. Should he use two Searchers to scan for the return of that ship? No, he would hold them in reserve until the scouts turned up something. He hadn’t slept well since that planet’s destruction. It looked like tonight was going to be another restless one.
He wished Mallory was in the Castle. She always found a way to help him forget his fears. Her laugh was infectious. It was a shame he was forcing a sham marriage on her but she was just not up to ruling the Province. She didn’t have the ruthlessness required to rule the Kingdom. He shook his head and thought about how strong willed his daughter was. She was determined to go and celebrate the opening of the new medical center on the southern continent. He was forced to remove all the women and children slaves until she left. Oh well, she’ll be back tomorrow. Someday she was going to find out the truth and there was going to be a price paid for his deceptions. But that was later; this is now.
“Anglo, what do you need me to help you accomplish?”
“BC, I picked up one of New Ulmerton’s newscasters saying that the King’s daughter was going to be at the opening of a medical facility and I want to see if she’s there. My scanners are not anywhere near the power of yours. I’m considering taking her as a hostage but I’m reluctant to move in close enough to see if the possibility exists to take her.”
“Do you think that’s a good idea?”
“Do you think murdering more than forty million on Haldale was a good idea? Those newscasters all commented on the future Queen of their Realm and how much she was loved by her father. He needs to learn there are consequences to his actions.”
“Anglo, we don’t attack the innocent. She didn’t order that planet destroyed.”
“I know that, Nathan. However, she is part of the King’s family and is also responsible for his actions.”
“Anglo, is this revenge for Haldale?” Anglo was silent. “Anglo?”
“I am going to make that Duke pay for his sins, BC. It’s not my intention to kill that girl, however, we need something to use against him. Do you have a better idea of how to hurt him without a huge loss of life? If we take her, he’ll be forced to keep most of his Searchers at his planet and they can’t be out searching for us. He’ll know that we can take him as easily as we took her if he lets his guard down. I want to force him to keep all six Searchers close. My ultimate goal is to try and pin him down on the planet and make it difficult to use his Searchers and fleets for anything but guard duty.”
BC thought about what to do and finally said, “No, I don’t have a better plan. Where are you going to hide her? If you take her to Bristone, she’ll see the Zord and know where she is.”
“Perhaps, but I don’t intend to release her until this situation is settled. She will be held at Bristone until this conflict is resolved one way or the other. This is something I just feel we must do.”
“What are you going to suggest the Emperor do with her?”
“She can do labor to support the communities.”
BC sighed, “You’re sure about this?”
“Yes, I am.
“Then let me see if I can see anything. I’m going to use my passive scanners and move them in slowly to the medical facility.” The two ships were in stealth mode just outside the jump limit in front of the sixth planet in the system. Anglo knew BC could see insects on the surface of the planet with his passive scanners. If she was there, BC would see her. If he saw her, she was vulnerable.
“She’s there. She’s going to give a speech momentarily. If you’re going to do this, you better make it happen quickly. How do you want to handle this?”
“Do you see that ship building facility above the North Pole?”
“Yes.”
“I am going to teleport you next to it and leave a teleport screen next to your location. Destroy a section of that facility and then wait until the last moment to teleport away. I’m hoping you’ll draw a crowd of Gammas which will distract them long enough for me to take the Princess. As soon as you hit it, I’m teleporting in and taking that future Queen; then I’ll teleport out right behind you. Nathan will be responsible for taking care of the Princess when she comes on board.”
“You could just stun her.”
“I’d rather avoid that if I can. Stuns can sometimes cause injury. However, I will if she causes any trouble.”
BC scanned the planet again. “She’s now standing at the podium outside the medical facility starting her speech. If we’re going to do this, now would be the time. Once she moves inside it will require me to use an active scan and those Gammas will see it. Here are her coordinates.”
“BC, you’ll be teleporting in five seconds from…now.” BC disappeared and Anglo disappeared two seconds later.
BC appeared above the huge ship building facility above the North Pole. The giant facility was surrounded by hundreds of ships delivering supplies and personnel from the planet’s surface. BC hated to destroy any ship building facility but knew it was a major supplier of Daulun’s fleet of warships. He targeted the vertical tower of the facility and fired his main beam into it. The entire tower exploded and blew debris in all directions destroying ten of the ships around it. BC scanned the four Gammas holding station above the castle and saw the two of them start moving toward. BC watched them as they accelerated over the horizon and said, “Ah, here come the cowards that attack defenseless planets. You should be proud of your courageous deeds. You truly uphold the highest principles of the Keepers.” Just before they fired, BC disappeared.
Greyson remained above the Castle and heard what BC said. He tried ignore the words but felt it cut through his consciousness. He thought about what Daulun was doing and saw that the other Searcher was accurate in its remark. He was killing and subjugating planets just like the Keepers. He wasn’t consuming the populations but making them slaves wasn’t much different. He felt his shame and remained silent. He just wasn’t certain about his actions and couldn’t escape the vision of that planet exploding. Then he heard, “Mallory has been taken.”
Greyson knew Daulun was going to go absolutely crazy over Mallory’s disappearance. His succession was endangered and he knew more planets were probably going to die. He wondered why the attacking Searcher had not just blown-up the planet. Then he realized, there were two Searchers involved in the attack and they were capable of teleporting.
Anglo teleported in above the planet immediately after the ship building facility exploded. He saw the Princess below and teleported her on board an instant before he teleported out. Two Gamma ships screamed in from the Castle for her protection but arrived a second too late. Those Gammas saw that the crowd on the ground was in total turmoil. Someone had taken the future Queen. They both felt fear at what Daulun was going to do in response. Someone had ships that could teleport and there was no way to prevent them from attacking New Ulmerton without warning. Then they heard Daulun on their coms and, once again, knew trouble was just ahead.
Mallory Jongo was speaking to a crowd when she heard the crowd in front of her start screaming and pointing above her head. She looked up and saw a silver screen just above her drop on her. The next thing she saw was a dark haired man sitting in a chair on the bridge of a small ship lifting a hand weapon. He stared at her and she said, “I guess I’m not at Alesport anymore?”
Nathan smiled, “No, you’re not. You’re on board a Bristone Searcher and we’ve taken you hostage. We intend to hold you until our issues with your father are resolved. Please sit down and follow my instructions.”
“How did you move me here?”
“I’m not going to answer that question but you need to understand a few rules to ensure your safety.”
Mallory stared at the young man and said, “You know my father is going to find me and kill you?”
Nathan smiled, “I don’t know about that. He’s at his best killing defenseless planets. I don’t think he’ll do as well against those that are capable of fighting back.”
Mallory’s expression turned hard and she sneered, “That’s a lie! I know my Father and he would never kill a defenseless planet!”
Nathan smiled and slowly shook his head, “It appears to me that you really don’t know your father if you believe that.”
“How dare you. I’ve known him my entire life and he possesses a good heart. He protects defenseless planets from being attacked and brings them under his protection. He fights slavers all over this galaxy. You’re a liar.”
Nathan saw the woman’s anger was real. He stared at her and without looking away said, “Anglo, would you show her what happened at Haldale.”
Mallory saw the large display on the wall illuminate and saw a small white ship in orbit above a blue and green planet. She recognized the white ship as one of her father’s Searchers by the markings on its tail section. She heard the planet’s leader attempting to surrender to the small ship and asking what he had to do to comply with their planned invasion. The leader insisted that there were no weapons that could be used against them and he wanted to avoid harm being done to the population. Over and over the planet asked for instructions to avoid bloodshed. Then she saw three more white ships appear and she heard her father’s voice.
Nathan watched as she listened to her father question the Searcher. The callousness of his tone was obvious. When he ordered the planet destroyed, she sat down. She recognized the ships because of the NU on their tailfins. She watched as the Searcher fired into the planet blowing it apart killing millions of people. She turned and looked at Nathan with tears in her eyes. She tried to be firm but her expression showed bewilderment. She looked from the screen to Nathan and didn’t say anything but Nathan could tell she wanted him to tell her it was all a lie. Anglo said, “How did he explain all the slaves that he brought to your planet?”
Mallory turned to the speaker on the wall, “He said they were slavers that his fleet captured attacking defenseless worlds. They’re being punished for their crimes.”
Anglo said with dripping sarcasm, “Are you that incredibly naive? Since when do women and children attack planets and take slaves? It is you that is the liar or your stupidity is beyond belief.”
“What women and children?!”
The display began showing video after video of women and children digging the foundations of buildings on New Ulmerton. Some were toiling in mines. Others were working in fields. She watched as the guards beat and brutalized those that weren’t working hard enough to suit them. Some were hit with blasters to teach a lesson to the others. She looked closer and recognized the cities where they were working. She turned and said, “You manufactured these recordings. They can’t possibly be true. I’ve seen those cities and there are no women or children slaves.”
Nathan looked at her shaking his head and she saw his pity for her. Nathan turned and said, “Let her hold on to that belief, Anglo. If she really believes it, she is innocent of any wrong doing.”
“Nathan, do you think for a moment that she’s that incredibly stupid?”
Nathan looked at Mallory and said, “Yes, I do, Anglo. And it’s your anger over the destruction of Haldale that prevents you from seeing the truth. Leave her with her beliefs. The flyers will confirm them for you.”
Anglo was silent for a long moment and said harshly, “Put her in a room and leave her there.”
Nathan looked at Mallory and nodded toward a door, “Come with me, Princess. We will not harm you; it’s your father whom we have our issues.”
Mallory didn’t want to believe what she saw but the pity of the young man was genuine. That more than anything else started her fearing what she had seen was possibly true. She walked off the bridge with her mind in turmoil and was taken to a small room with sleeping quarters. She walked in a daze and the young man helped her sit down. She looked at him as he turned to go and said, “Why would you deceive me like this?”
Nathan looked at her, “Absolute power corrupts absolutely, Princess. The only one deceiving you is yourself. I do believe you don’t know what’s really happening on New Ulmerton. How you could not know says a lot about your lack of involvement with your citizens. I can see it’s obvious you don’t want to know the truth.” He turned and stepped out of the room, locked the door, and returned to the bridge. Mallory looked at the door with his expression burning in her mind.
She wondered who had kidnapped her and what was going to happen next. She didn’t want to believe what she saw and knew there had to be more than what she was shown. Daulun would not kill a planet without a justifiable reason. He just wouldn’t! Would he?”
“You did what?!
“I kidnapped the King’s Daughter, Your Majesty. She’s on board now.”
“What possessed you to do that?”
“Because I could; I saw the chance and took it. Every newscaster talked about how much the King and the citizens love his daughter, though I personally don’t think that sadist could love anything but himself. Quite frankly, I’d do anything I could to hurt him after what he did to Haldale. This seemed like a good way to start. If he loves her, we can use her against him. It also forces him to go on the defensive to protect him from being taken.”
“And what happens if he calls our bluff? Are you saying we would kill her? You know I would never allow that.”
“Noooo. I know that’s the wrong thing to do, but if it will slow him down in his search to find us. He can’t use the Searchers and their scanners and that makes it worth the effort. If he eventually discovers our location and knows she’s on the planet, he might not be so quick to destroy us.”
Scotty looked at Julie as she listened in and she said, “What are you going to do with her? If you bring her here, she’ll know where she is. Only one planet has the Zord. She could tell the King.”
“I really don’t intend to give her back until we resolve our issues with her father. She won’t be telling anything to anyone. The value of taking her is that he now see’s we can take him if he lowers his defenses. He won’t learn she’s here unless he finds us. This is just a way to make him think twice before he acts. Now that we have her, he must be worried about us taking him next. He’ll be forced to utilize his ships to protect him and that’s worth the taking of the Princess.”
“He could just board one of the Searchers and avoid us?”
“I’ve seen the slaves on his planet longing to revolt along with news about failed assassination attempts on his life. If he leaves for an extended period, one of his lackeys would try to overthrow him and assume power. No, he knows he’s forced to stay at his capital. He can take brief trips but he can’t leave for long.”
“How do you know that, Anglo?”
“There are a number of his relatives that believe he should not be the ruler. His entire family is bloodthirsty and I’ve heard the newscasters report that he’s had four attempts on his life over the last ten years. Most of those attempts were made by his relatives. They all said that was why his daughter had more than sixteen hundred security agents at the speech she was delivering. His family wants to remove any chance of a succession. No, he’ll be forced to stay close to home.”
Scotty took a deep breath and then he heard Nathan say, “She doesn’t know what her father has done. She thinks he’s attacking slavers and bringing them back as slaves to punish them. She refused to believe he ordered Haldale destroyed.”
“Is that true, Anglo?”
“If it is, she is either incredibly naive or outright stupid.”
“How old is she?”
“Around nineteen or twenty.”
Scotty shook his head, “Nathan is probably right. Most young people are very idealistic at that age. She probably doesn’t know and her father must have deliberately deceived her.”
“How could she not know, Scotty!?! I watched the newscasts and saw thousands of slaves working in the background.”
“Did you see any women or children in those broadcasts?”
Anglo was silent and Scotty figured he was replaying what he had seen. “No. It appears the tapes were edited.”
“What do you think now?”
“Have the Zord take a look at her. I just can’t see her not knowing. She is not that stupid.”
Scotty looked at Julie, “Can you take responsibility for her?”
“Yes, I suppose so.”
Nathan said, “I would suggest assigning her to June to assist her in her tasks.”
Julie looked at Scotty and said, “Where did you come up with that idea?”
“June’s father betrayed her; perhaps the two are kindred spirits. She might see that deception is an art that evil knows and uses well.”
“I’ll do that, Nathan. Thank you. Send her down when you’re ready, Anglo.”
“Nathan’s gone to get her and explain what we’re going to do. She’ll arrive momentarily.”
“I need you to go back and check on New Ulmerton while we’re at the Stars Realm Defense Facility. I’m sure they’ll come looking for us now if they weren’t already.”
“I’ll leave as soon as I teleport you and BC beyond the jump limit. However, I don’t believe he will be using his most advanced ships to find us. He’s certainly afraid now and that will slow him down.”
“Thank you, Anglo.”
Nathan opened the door and found the Princess had fallen asleep. He saw her eyes were puffy and it appeared she had cried herself to sleep. He saw she was quite pretty, even with puffy eyes. Her long brown hair hung halfway down her back and made her appear regal. She wasn’t tall, only a couple of inches over five feet, but she appeared taller. Her open expression and bright eyes told him that she was not dumb. Something was done to deceive her just like June had been fooled by her father. He entered the room and touched her on her shoulder and said, “Your Highness, I need you to come with me.”
Mallory’s eyes flew open and she jerked away from Nathan.
“You are not going to be harmed but we are sending you away from our ship. Please come with me.”
“Where are you sending me?”
“Down to a planet. You will work with one of the residents until we decide what to do with you. You will perform the tasks given you or we will put you in prison. I think the tasks will be better than staring at four walls all day and I encourage you to choose that path. That’s all I’m going to say.” Nathan held out his hand and she took it as he helped her stand. She followed him to the small bridge and looked out the viewport at the planet below.
“That’s the planet of the Zord, isn’t it?”
Anglo and Nathan were both shocked. Anglo said, “How do you know that!?!”
“That mountain chain to the west and dense forests give it away. I’ve had dreams about this planet since I was a very young child. I searched our computers for years before I finally found it.” She turned suddenly and looked at Nathan with an expression that showed shock, “You were in some of my dreams. I remember your face now.”
Anglo sent a recording of what just happened to Julie. “You will arrive momentarily. I hope your dreams weren’t nightmares.”
Mallory slowly shook her head, “No, they weren’t. I’ve not had the dreams for years and it’s hard to remember them.” She looked at Nathan and said, “I do remember your face.” And then she was gone.
Nathan thought about what she said and wondered what it meant. Anglo thought about what she said and wondered if this was a possible psychic event. If it was, he had been given no choice in bringing her to Bristone. He started seeing that something was happening and the Princess was going to play an important role. Perhaps he was hasty in his perceptions. He replayed her reactions again and began to wonder.
“Nathan, we’re going back to New Ulmerton as soon as Emperor Robbins leaves. If you need anything from the planet, better go now.”
“Thanks, Anglo. Send me to wherever Timmy is located at this moment.” Nathan disappeared from the bridge. Anglo thought about the Princess. He tried to think about what made him want to kidnap her and couldn’t come up with a reason. As soon as he heard the newscast about her, he made the decision. All other possibilities were dismissed. That wasn’t how he normally functioned. This had to be a psychic event and something big was going to happen that involved the Princess. These events always happened for an important reason. He worried about it until he left for New Ulmerton. Psychic Events didn’t always have good results.
Julie was walking across the clearing with Mallory in tow. She had introduced her to Scotty just before he teleported out to BC. Mallory had bowed to Scotty but hadn’t said anything since. She remained silent as they walked toward the human community. Julie noticed she kept looking up in the sky and she said, “You’re looking for a Zord aren’t you?” Mallory was startled by the observation but nodded. “Would you like to see one?” Mallory stopped walking and stared at her. Julie could tell she was frightened at the prospect. “You’re afraid of them.”
Mallory looked up at the sky and said, “They’re huge, their jaws are terrible, and they are incredible predators. I’ve studied them since I was very young and the information about the ones on El Prado says they are incredibly quick for a carnivore their size.”
Julie said where Mallory could hear her, “Zreeg, are you close by?”
“Yes, I’m about two minutes away.” Mallory heard the thought and looked at Julie in amazement. “I have someone here that is really frightened at the prospect of meeting a Zord. Do you have time to come and say hello?”
“I’m on my way. I’ll turn my color shifting off.”
“That would be a good idea. We’re in the clearing.”
“I know.”
Mallory looked at Julie and said, “Those creatures are able to communicate telepathically?”
Julie smiled, “Yes. They are telepathic and are very gentle creatures. Relax. If it would make you feel better, stand behind me.”
Mallory saw a giant form moving through the sky and she jumped behind Julie. She looked at the giant Zord as it flew in and her eyes were huge. Zreeg flared his wings and came in for a soft landing in front of Julie and Mallory. Julie smiled and said, “Zreeg, this is Mallory Jongo.”
Zreeg looked at Mallory and said, “She’s the evil King’s Daughter.”
Mallory yelled, “He’s not evil!”
Zreeg stared at Mallory and then looked at Julie, “She doesn’t know what’s happening.”
Julie looked at Zreeg and turned to Mallory as she said to Zreeg, “Has she been prevented from seeing the truth by her father?”
“Yes, it appears so, however, she has all the evidence she needs to know the truth of what we’ve shown her.”
Mallory squinted her eyes and asked, “What do you mean?”
“You think those recordings you saw were fabricated by us to deceive you. You missed seeing part of one recording that would have proven it to you.”
Julie tilted her head, “What are you saying, Zreeg?”
“This one has been promised to an officer in the King’s military. I can see from her thoughts that the King, that officer, and she are the only ones that know about the bethroval.”
“Is he right?”
Mallory nodded.
“How does that prove anything, Zreeg?”
“If no one knows about their relationship, then how could anyone fabricate photos about the one she is supposed to marry?”
Julie looked at Mallory and then up at Zreeg, “I’m not sure what you mean; show us what you’ve seen.”
Mallory saw the video of the women and children slaves being brutalized by guards. The vision moved in closer to one officer that was kicking a child in the ribs as he drug a woman by her hair. The officer turned around and Mallory saw his smiling face. It was Canton. “No! NO!!” Mallory collapsed to the ground.
Julie bent down quickly and lifted her head onto her lap and Zreeg said, “She missed seeing that when she originally saw the video.”
“Wait with me, Zreeg. She’ll need help.”
“She has a good heart and an open mind, Your Majesty. She really didn’t know. It appears she was deliberately deceived by her father.”
Julie hit her com, “Anglo.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Zreeg has confirmed that the Princess didn’t know about the evil things happening on New Ulmerton. Her father has not allowed her to see the truth.”
Anglo hesitated and said, “If that’s the case, her dreams must be psychic visions. You should try and discover what those visions are.”
Julie felt a touch of fear and said, “If they are psychic visions, you had no choice but to bring her here.” Julie turned and said, “Zreeg, can you see those dreams?”
“No, they are not in her consciousness. All she really remembers is our planet and Nathan’s face.”
Anglo said, “I’ll tell Nathan he was right. He knew she didn’t know and I didn’t want to believe him.”
After a few minutes Mallory groaned and opened her eyes. She saw Julie looking down at her with a concerned expression; the Zord was gone. “Where did the Zord go?”
“He’s still here.” Mallory looked around and saw nothing. “Now relax, I’m going to let him turn off his color shifting. Are you ready?” Mallory sat up and nodded. Suddenly there was the giant Zord right next to them.
Mallory looked at Zreeg and said, “How do you do that?”
“Our skins take on the color of things behind us. We blend in with the background.”
Julie smiled, “Would you like to take a ride?”
Mallory looked at Julie, “On him?”
“Yes. Come on. It’ll be fun.”
Zreeg lowered his front foot and lifted Julie to his back. He put his foot in front of Mallory and after a brief hesitation she sat down. Zreeg raised her to his back and Julie said, “Hang on.” Mallory wrapped her arms around Julie’s waist and Zreeg lifted.
Mallory felt her heart immediately go into her throat and closed her eyes. After a few moments she opened them and saw the forest far below. She closed her eyes again and then slowly opened them. The view was incredible. She saw the community off to the right and the mountains in the distance. The light haze that covered the forest below made everything look eerily beautiful. She felt at peace but then she knew she had to ask a question, “Julie, where did the slaves go when I went to open that medical facility? The video I saw Canton attacking those slaves was taken in that city but I only saw male slaves when I arrived.”
Zreeg said, “I can answer that, Your Majesty.”
“Go ahead.”
“When BC scanned the planet to see if you were still there he looked at the entire city until he found you. He shared that scan with Julie and I can see what happened to prevent your seeing them.”
“Show us Zreeg.”
The two saw the view of the city from space and then it grew closer and closer to the ground. The view stopped and a section of it grew larger. As it came closer, they saw thousands of women and children in a compound just south of the city. The prisoners were shabbily dressed, malnourished, and most were lying on the ground. The view backed out and then moved in closer and Mallory saw herself at a podium in front of the medical facility ten miles from the compound. She saw the Director of the facility on one side of her and Canton on the other watching the crowd closely. She knew the view was real. There was no denying that view.
Julie said, “I suspect you were flown in to the event from the north so you wouldn’t see that compound. I also suspect your travel while you were there was restricted to a limited area.”
“They said it was for my safety.”
Vreeg said, “I think they were right to do that. If any slave could get close to you they would have attempted to harm you. Their hatred for their captor is real.”
Mallory grew silent and Julie said, “Zreeg, take us down to the community.”
She remained silent for the rest of the day.