A warrior queen with an unusual talent is magically marooned on another planet and tries to use another type of magic, the magic of technology, to get home.

Please forgive this humble attempt at writing a crazy story.

NOTE: Comments have been disabled for this story to protect my fragile ego.

This is a complete story of twenty chapters and I'll post two chapters every weekend.

Return of the Queen
by Terry Volkirch

CHAPTER 11

The group took a few short breaks for Durgan to make leashes but they still made good time walking through the night. The sky was clear and the two dim moons continued to provide enough light to see by.

After the third leash was destroyed, Durgan gave up on his idea. He tried walking the young mogron close to Thelma, but wild animals weren't meant to be leashed. The mogron chewed through each leash in short order, but at least she continued to walk close to Thelma. The frustrated man tried some extra cord from his backpack first, followed by a strip of leather. He didn't have the materials to waste so he even tried some vines. Nothing stopped Fritz from freeing herself.

"It's just as well," Durgan told the queen. "She needs to hunt anyway."

They hung back from the mogron and watched her trot behind Thelma.

"True. But what do we do when we get to Roggzer? It might be best if we just put her down ourselves. At least we'd be sure that her death would be quick and painless."

Durgan shuddered but had to agree. "If it comes to that, I'll do it. It's my fault that she's following us."

"Yours and Thelma's." Gabrielle winked.

"Hey!" Thelma turned around and squawked. "I heard that!"

The group all shushed the redhead and went back to their own thoughts. It would be another long, mostly quiet night.

~o~O~o~

Morning seemed to take a long time to arrive that day but the tired group had made good progress on their march. After setting up camp and distracting Fritz with some jerky to give Thelma some space to fall asleep, the young mogron snuggled up beside the redhead and soon fell asleep.

The queen and Danelle walked over to a small stream, taking a little time to refill their water skins and indulge in some conversation.

"They're so cute together," Gabrielle remarked after a big yawn.

"I don't know," the young woman said. "I don't trust that mogron. Wild animals scare me."

"I think we'll be safe for the short trip to Roggzer. She's still very young and she seems to have adopted Thelma as her mother. I wonder if it's one of the orphans of the mother mogron that I killed."

"Are you sure she'll behave?" Danelle didn't look convinced.

"I'm sure. But if you like, you can sleep on the opposite side of me."

"Thanks."

They settled down then, with Durgan taking the first watch as usual.

~o~O~o~

The queen didn't want to try explaining astral travel to the group. She didn't really feel the need to involve anyone else anyway. She had her hands full enough with Thelma. She still owed the redhead more astral trips and meant to repay her debt as soon as possible. She separated from her physical body and moved over to her companion.

'Wake up, Thelma. It's time to hunt for technology again.'

Thelma didn't respond right away after her astral body manifested next to Gabrielle. Instead she looked down and mentally yelped as she saw Fritz curled up next to her physical body.

'I'll never get used to that... creature! Why does it like me so much?! What did I ever do to deserve this?!'

'Please, Thelma. Stop shouting.'

'But why?!'

Gabrielle sighed. 'Her mother probably died and she thinks you're her mother. It's as simple as that.'

'How would you know?' Thelma sent waves of doubt and disgust in equal measure, almost overwhelming the queen.

'I'm fairly sure I killed her mother on my trip to Marzelle and she seems young enough to still want a mother. Why don't you try taking some pity on the poor animal?'

'Are you kidding?!'

'No! You told me your mother died when you were young and I'm very sorry about that. But think about what it might have meant to you if some other nice woman adopted you and took care of you. Think how nice that would be. Please try to show Fritz a little compassion.'

'Oh.' Thelma got very quiet. 'I guess I didn't think of that.'

'Well now you are thinking about it and I hope it helps. So can we get going now, please?'

'Sure. Yeah.'

~o~O~o~

Two astral women flew in parallel once again, but much farther apart. Thelma finally started getting more comfortable being on her own. She continued to mentally shout at the queen but at least she was farther away so it didn't seem as loud.

'See anything yet, Thelma?'

'Nope! I've got nothin' but a few glowin' spots. Doesn't look good!'

'I want to speed up to cover more ground. Is that okay?'

Thelma thought for a short time and realized it would be okay so the two of them increased their speed. It helped make up for their zigzag flying pattern that they hoped would make it more likely to find something.

It wasn't long before a tall, narrow tower appeared, along with several smaller round buildings and a very large, flat rectangular area with a metallic surface. Gabrielle noticed it just after she cleared a short ridge. She called to Thelma and they went to check it out. It looked promising.

~o~O~o~

After a good look underground, the queen felt sure that she found exactly what she needed. An iron ship stood on a platform in a huge rectangular cavern. Metal, glass and blinking colored lights were everywhere. The place reeked of technology.

'Come on, Thelma. Let's get you back to your body. I want to go back to Kispri right away. I finally have some good news to report back home!'

It was the most excited the redhead had ever seen Gabrielle. The sight of all the magic of technology drew both women in like a moth to a flame but Thelma couldn't deny her companion and protector the joy of reporting good news.

At least it was good news for the victims of her former male self. Thelma couldn't work up much excitement for it though. She wasn't going back to Kispri with the others. She really would rather stay on Agrin. She liked the much warmer climate and loved the food. There was so much more variety than there was back on her home world.

And then there were those new feelings that kept surprising her, feelings that blossomed into such wonderful, sensual experiences. She found herself increasingly attracted to the men of Agrin and it no longer bothered her at all. Lately, her attraction had even started to fuel fantasies about the men, and those fantasies led to what had to be sexual arousal. She really wasn't sure what was going on with her body but she planned to experiment at her earliest opportunity.

The ground flew by in a blur as the two women raced back to their sleeping bodies, and during the trip, Thelma finally realized how much better her life had become. Just before moving back into her sleeping body, she couldn't help taking a look at Fritz. The young mogron actually looked kind of cute as it nuzzled against her, and she decided then and there that she'd try to show it a little kindness. It might be good practice after all. The curvy redhead placed her hands over her womb and decided she might even like to try her hand at motherhood. The thought didn't bother her in the least as she merged with her physical body. Her astral body drifted off to sleep and she began the most amazing dream.

~o~O~o~

"What?! Really?!" Muriel was flabbergasted by the news. "You found an iron ship?!"

The two handmaidens were more relieved than happy, but Marie was positively giddy with joy. She bounced up and down in her chair and quickly clapped her hands together several times. Her face beamed with the brightest smile that Gabrielle had ever seen.

Heloise snorted at the display. "Oh, please. There is no way you were ever a man," she accused the petite woman.

Marie just continued to smile.

"It was kind of hard to tell," the queen said. "but the iron ship seemed more than large enough to carry a few dozen people. I'm going try to find more of Farrott's victims and bring them home. It'll be wonderful!"

Normally, Muriel wouldn't have agreed to taking more time. She wanted the queen to get home as soon as possible. But she surprised everyone with some good news of her own.

"I think that will work out fine," the old woman said, with a few jaws falling slack. "Since you've been sleeping during the day on your trek through the desert, you've been visiting here much earlier than usual and it's caused an interesting new rumor to start. You might be pleased to hear that with your lighter duties and irregular schedule, people are beginning to wonder if you might be pregnant."

"What?!" Gabrielle took a turn at being surprised.

Marie laughed and turned to Muriel. "I must be a well-kept secret then. Good. But why did you say it'll work out fine if Gabi stays a little longer on Agrin?"

"Because, my good woman," the advisor smiled. "If the queen is thought to be pregnant, it could explain away the odd behavior. People will forget the other rumors about an imposter taking her place and the barbarian hordes will be held off that much longer. They'll once again be concerned about losing their manhood."

Gabrielle shook her head and moaned.

"Of course you know what this means, right, your Majesty?" Muriel continued with a gleam in her eye.

Gabrielle nodded. "We'll have to encourage the rumors of my pregnancy. And I'll likely have to continue my odd sleeping schedule after I reach Roggzer."

"Correct, your Majesty." Muriel's smile broadened. She reached over to pat the queen's stomach and added, "I'd like to cultivate this little rumor and see it grow."

"Careful, Muriel. You're having a little too much fun with this."

~o~O~o~

The queen stood in her royal bedchambers along with Marie and Muriel. She didn't mind trying on a baggy tunic but she didn't like her advisor's suggestion for a new accessory.

"Do I have to stuff my tunic with a pillow?! I feel ridiculous!" Gabrielle was made to look to be three or four moons pregnant and neither she nor Marie were comfortable with the new look.

Marie stifled a few giggles until she realized that she could get pregnant. After that, she soon fell into lapses of daydreams involving pregnancy and caring for babies. Suddenly, the idea didn't seem humorous at all. Instead, she felt scared and excited, and she felt a strange longing that perplexed her. She'd never felt anything like it.

If the two of them wanted to raise children, they might find an orphan or two, but having their own seemed like a better idea. Even though it meant sharing a bed with a man, even if she herself were to be the one to carry the child, she couldn't get the idea out of her head.

"Gabi?" Marie said. "I think motherhood suits you. Please don't carry on so." With that said, the small woman went over to hug the queen and all complaints were forgotten... for the moment. The two women separated and stared into each others eyes.

"You want a child now," Gabrielle told her mate.

Marie simply nodded and then quickly looked at the floor, blushing.

"It's okay, my Love. I think it's a good idea too, actually. And I could use an heir to the throne."

"Does that mean you'd be the one to get pregnant?"

"Just me? That wouldn't be fair to either of us. You might be a bit envious and I'd have a more difficult time getting around. I'd like to share the experience with you if that's okay with you."

"Both of us?" Marie squeaked.

The queen smiled and nodded.

"Okay," Marie said quietly. She gave her mate a tentative smile and the two of them hugged to seal the agreement.

The rest of the Gabrielle's time that day was spent on planning a royal nursery. They had various vendors visit for quotes of materials and remodeling, and they gave the visitors good glances at the apparently pregnant queen to strengthen the rumor.

~o~O~o~

The queen and her mate sat on the royal bed, having a little quiet moment after a very busy day.

"I have to leave soon, Marie. I can feel my body calling me. Sorry."

Marie sniffed but kept herself from crying any more. It had been a very emotional day for her, in a good way though. She smiled and shyly looked up through her eye lashes at her mate. "When do you want to... you know?"

"Start?"

Marie nodded.

"You don't have to wait for me to get back. Even if we started trying at the same time, there's no guarantee we'd both get pregnant at the same time. It might take me several months to get pregnant. With all of the exercise and stress I've had lately, I've been irregular."

"Oh, Gabi. I'm sorry."

"It's okay, my brave little flower. I'll be okay. I just didn't want you to get your hopes up of getting pregnant at exactly the same time."

"But if it'll likely take you longer, shouldn't I wait?"

"Yes, I suppose that would be a good idea. I'd like you to consider cutting back or even quitting your alcohol consumption too, just to get used to it. No more getting drunk, please. It's not good for the fetus."

Marie's eyes widened.

"Truly. Our birth specialists have determined that to be a fact — sadly by trial and error."

"Okay, Gabi. I'll be good."

Gabrielle smiled and got a faraway look in her eye. "I know you will," she murmured, just before fading out and returning to her physical body.

~o~O~o~

The queen returned to an amazing sight. There, before her, sat Thelma, cooing to and even petting Fritz! But her royal training kicked in and she made sure not to show her surprise.

"You're up early, Thelma."

"Not really. You just slept a little late. You also muttered a little about babies just before you woke up, but I'll keep it to myself. No one else heard."

"Thank you, Thelma. That's very considerate of you. But there's nothing at all wrong with babies."

"Oh! I agree. But you mentioned something about getting pregnant. I thought you might want to keep that part a secret."

Gabrielle blushed a little and mentally chastised herself for staying so long in Kispri. She hated the idea of accidentally giving away any royal secrets in her sleep. She didn't want to ruin her good mood though, so she changed the subject.

"I see our earlier talk did some good. Fritz seems very happy."

"Oh. Yeah. I decided you were right. She's very docile with me, at least so far. I'm not sure what to do if she gets playful though. She could tear me to bits if she wanted to."

"I don't think that'll happen but do be careful. You'll want to make sure she's always well-fed before handling her. And speaking of that, has she been fed yet since you got up?"

"I gave her some of my jerky but she probably needs a lot more."

"Yes, she does. You'll need to shoo her away so she'll go hunting."

"Are you sure?" Thelma looked a little apprehensive.

"Yes, just do it. She needs to hunt to get enough food. Now come on and be a good mother. Shoo your child off to hunt."

Thelma raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything.

The queen was impressed by Thelma's silence, but the same couldn't be said for the woman's parenting skills. Thelma pushed and prodded but Fritz wouldn't budge.

"Shoo! Shoo!!" The redhead resorted to shouting and waving her arms over her head but Fritz still wouldn't leave. She just sat at Thelma's feet and whimpered.

"Okay. Enough, Thelma. You'll attract an adult mogron with that. Then we'll all be in trouble."

"But she won't leave!"

"Please, Thelma. Stop shouting. You'll just have to go hunting with Fritz."

"What?!"

"Thelma!"

The rest of the group shushed the two loud women and they both quickly stopped. Gabrielle took a couple of deep breaths and continued.

"I'll follow behind you and Fritz at a discreet distance. I won't let you get into any trouble."

Thelma got a very distressed look on her face, looking just like any worried mother. "But I don't know how to hunt. I don't know what to do."

"I'll direct you with hand signals. We'll figure something out."

The two women worked out a set of signals and then Thelma jogged off in the direction that Gabrielle indicated with Fritz right at her heels. There were some promising tracks in the dirt that should lead to a niggler burrow, something that both Thelma and Fritz could easily handle.

~o~O~o~

A very happy young mogron trotted back into camp followed by the two women. Thelma's face and bare arms were smeared with niggler blood and from the sour look on her face, it was clear that she wasn't happy. Gabrielle, on the other hand, shared Fritz's good mood. In fact, the queen snickered whenever she looked over at the redhead.

"Okay," Durgan said when he saw them return. "I have to hear this story."

"No," Thelma said quietly. "You do not."

"Come on," Durgan pleaded. "I packed up your things for you so we could leave right away when you got back. Let's hear it."

"I said, no," Thelma growled.

Fritz started growling too, following her adopted mother's lead, and Durgan stopped asking. "Ungrateful creatures," he muttered before turning and leading the group onward to Roggzer.

~o~O~o~

 © 2012 by Terry Volkirch. This work may not be replicated in whole or in part by any means electronic or otherwise without the express consent of the Author (copyright holder). All Rights Reserved. This is a work of Fiction. All the characters and events portrayed in this book are fictional and any resemblance to real people or incidents past, present or future is purely coincidental.