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.

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

Return of the Queen
by Terry Volkirch

CHAPTER 17

The queen popped back to the ridge at around midday to give Thelma and the others a quick update and let them know it was safe to approach the area. She then returned to her body, being safely guarded by Durgan and Thor, and shook herself awake. She grabbed her things, muttered under her breath about not having any water and looked for Thelma. At least she knew the mogron was safe to cuddle again so it didn't matter if Thelma got to Fritz first. The young animal was very weak but the metal doctor assured her that she would be healthy again after getting enough rest and food.

Thelma did move quickly ahead of the others, having left her pack with Louis. She slid down the ridge at a dangerous speed, hit the bottom at a jog and soon broke into a run. It wasn't long before she raced into the only building with an open door. She ran looking for Fritz and instead found an angry fae, buzzing just in front of her face.

"I don't like you, bitch," the fae snarled. "Just thought you'd like to know that." She followed with a fairly loud, echoing laugh that might have been called a cackle if her voice wasn't so high.

The redhead cringed back away from Trillian but didn't stop looking around. Nothing would stop her from finding Fritz. In her desperation, she even spoke to the scary fae. "Where's Fritz?" she asked in a small voice.

Trillian glared but she did point and Thelma ran in that direction. It wasn't long after that the fae got a sick look on her face from the sappy reunion of Fritz and her nemesis.

~o~O~o~

Gabrielle concentrated on reassuring everyone that the area was safe and the group followed behind Thelma at a much more sedate pace. They arrived at the building just as Trillian shot out the door.

"Trillian!" Gabrielle called, noticing the sour look on her face. "Are you okay?"

"What? Oh! Yeah. Sure! I'm fine," the fae said, quickly recovering. "Hiya everybody! Long time no see." She quickly added a giggle to make sure she stayed in character.

"Did Thelma find Fritz?" the queen asked.

"Oh, yeah," the fae replied, all smiles. "I think they're having a party or something. Go see for yourselves!"

The group left their supplies in the shade and filed into the building, following Gabrielle. A few of them realized they moved down a slight incline as they walked. The whole complex connected underground but it made sense to have several exits to the outside window for safety reasons. The short, round buildings made sense anyway. The tall skinny tower kept its own secrets. The group moved about a hundred paces before entering a room just large enough to hold the entire group, and there they saw a recovering young mogron and a very happy young woman.

Fritz was lying on her side and looked odd without her hair. Her skin was a little pale but the sores were completely healed. She'd be very weak and would have to be carefully nursed back to health, something that Thelma initially thought would be her responsibility... until she got a great idea.

"Louis?" she called. "Please go fetch a niggler for me. Carve it up into small strips first though. Okay? Please?"

"Sure!" he said as he rushed back up and out of the building. He didn't think about the hazards of feeding a dangerous animal. He only had visions of Thelma's beautiful green eyes and sweet lips making a very reasonable sounding request.

In the short time that Louis was gone, several people asked about Fritz's state of health and were assured all was safe and that the young mogron would be fine. She just needed food and rest. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

When he returned, he hurried towards Thelma but stopped when he heard a familiar though fairly weak sounding growl.

"Don't worry, Louis," Thelma said. "She's too weak to hurt you now. Please. Come closer and try feeding her. I think she'll be much more receptive now."

Though Fritz remained on her side and did look quite weak, the large man was intimidated by the large teeth being displayed as a warning that was directed solely at him. He tried moving forward but his feet wouldn't move. Thelma noticed and asked for one small piece of meat.

"Fritzie, be nice now. Here's a small sample of what Louis has for you." She fed the meat to the young animal and rubbed the side of her belly.

Fritz snapped up the meat and drooled a little as she looked up at her adopted mother for more.

"Now, Louis," Thelma whispered. "While she isn't looking, Quickly!"

Louis glided forward quickly and silently, swung a strip of meat into Fritz's mouth and took a step back.

Fritz chewed a couple times and swallowed the meat, not noticing where it came from, though she did notice a certain familiar scent tainting the meat. Her nostrils twitched in irritation but her gurgling stomach took priority.

"Again, Louis!" Thelma whispered. "Now!"

He stepped forward again and slung another piece of meat into the mogron's mouth, and again Fritz inhaled it after barely chewing. The feeding continued and involved much less stepping back by Louis after only a few bites. Fritz didn't really notice who was feeding her until the meat was almost gone. By then, she didn't care. She just wanted, and needed, more.

"Oh, Louis," Thelma gushed. "It's working. I knew it would. Now how about another two or three nigglers?"

"I only have five more left but I'll go get two of them. You'll have to figure out other feeding arrangements while I'm gone though. Fritz will certainly need more than five."

Thelma frowned and looked around. "Gabi? We have a problem!" she shouted.

~o~O~o~

After consulting with Trillian and checking out some of the technology, the group found access to a large enough supply of fresh water. They also found a limited source of food that could be manufactured into small chewy bars. The food had all of the essential nutrients but it wasn't very palatable.

Fritz had been well-fed by that time. She wouldn't need anything more for several hours at least but the young mogron still wouldn't turn down a treat if it was offered. That led Thelma to try giving her a food bar. Of course Fritz turned her nose up at it.

"She won't eat it!" Thelma whined, making everyone cringe.

"That's no surprise, Thelma," Gabi said. "She needs meat. You can have my dried meat if you like. If it's a little too tough for Fritz, you can chew it a little to soften it up."

"That's a great idea! Thanks, Gabi."

Most of the rest of the group offered at least some of their dried meat, enough to last until they could get Thelma, Fritz and Louis back to Roggzer assuming they could fly the great iron ship. They didn't really need the meat anyway. Their water skins had all been refilled and they had enough food bars to keep them going another couple weeks. They wouldn't have to restock at Roggzer. That would save precious time.

"Another crisis averted," Gabrielle said, smiling. "Now we just have a ship to fly," Gabrielle said. "Trillian?"

"Aye, aye, Captain!" the fae said, giving the queen the Prizzarian salute with a fist over her heart and then swinging her arm forward as she opened her hand, palm facing down. Then the fae flew over to a wall panel and pressed a small recessed part of the panel.

"Mister Computer?" she asked. "Are you awake?"

"I am always functional, Trillian," the computer replied in a clear tenor voice. "How are you today?"

"Oh! I'm fine. Thanks for asking." The fae tried following up with her usual giggling but was interrupted by an impatient queen.

"Trillian? Enough of the pleasantries please."

"Right you are, your Majesty!" She giggled and turned back to the panel. "Computer, we need access to your iron ship. We want to take it out for a spin. Can you help us? Please oh please oh please?"

"Do you have authorization?" the computer asked, causing Gabrielle to growl in frustration.

"You want authorization?" the queen asked. "We're the only people here. If you don't do it, we can smash everything except the ship until nothing works. How's that for authorization?"

"Destruction isn't necessary. Your point is taken." A rectangular area on the panel lit up, showing the ship's instrument panel. "Flying the ship requires knowledge of this panel. Do you need instruction?"

Gabrielle and Trillian looked hard at the display and couldn't understand most of it. Gabrielle could read most of the writing but it was all too technical for her. Trillian never did learn to read the local language so she was completely lost.

"Instruction would be nice," the queen said. "How long would it take to learn?"

"There's a ten day tutorial you could access," the computer offered.

"That would take too long. Isn't there anything simpler?"

"The ship is a very complicated vessel. I don't recommend anything less than ten days."

"I don't think I can wait ten days," Gabrielle muttered. "Mother Moon! Give me strength!"

Trillian rolled her eyes and addressed the computer. "Can you help us fly the ship? Or perhaps fly it for us?"

"Yes. My programming can be transferred to the ship. That's an acceptable alternative."

"Your Majesty?" Trillian asked.

"Make it so!" the queen said, a large silly smiled plastered on her face.

And made it so they did. At the computer's direction, the group left the room and walked down to a large room that gave access to the ship. Harsh blue-white lights switched on as they entered to reveal the middle and upper part of the shiny gray metal ship. The ship stood on end with its nose straight up in the air. As they got closer, a door silently slid open on the ship.

"Welcome aboard," the computer said from just inside as they started to enter one-by-one.

~o~O~o~

Once everyone was on the ship, the door closed and the computer directed everyone to various areas of the ship. Most of the group was divided up into small living quarters with instructions. Only Trillian, Thelma and Gabrielle went to the bridge, where they could participate in the flying of the ship.

By that time, Louis had gotten on Fritz's good side. The young mogron even let the man carry her to their quarters as long as he had plenty of meat snacks to keep her happy. Thelma hated to leave Fritz's side but the computer insisted on the redhead's presence, saying something about needing her for navigation.

The bridge was fairly small, only allowing enough room for two human sized occupants. Gabrielle and Thelma sat down with Trillian settling on the queen's left shoulder, away from Thelma but still bending forward occasionally to keep an eye on her nemesis.

The fae glared at Thelma whenever she got the chance and Thelma soon tired of the bad treatment. The redhead started fighting back by sticking out her tongue. The bad behavior didn't go unnoticed.

"That's enough you two," Gabrielle advised. "Thelma will be leaving quite soon so try to be civil."

"Mister Computer?" Trillian said. "We're ready to go!" She started to giggle and then stopped when she realized she didn't have to keep up her act in front of the only two who really knew better.

"Please state the destination," the computer said.

"Roggzer," Gabrielle said.

"Please be more specific," the computer added.

"Just a little east of Roggzer, out of sight of everyone in the city?"

"Please be more specific," the computer repeated.

Trillian interrupted. "Can you display an image of the area as we fly?"

"Yes, Trilian. Activating the forward display now."

A large rectangular panel light up in front of them, showing what looked to be an area above the top of the ship. More harsh lighting lined the rim of a large, round metal area. As they watched, the metal slowly slid to one side, revealing the bright glare of the sun.

"That is so cool!" the fae said. "Can you show other parts of this world... like parts that have some rain once in awhile?"

"That isn't possible. But rain is not uncommon here during the rainy season."

"I'm assuming that's not gonna happen for quite some time. Am I right?"

The computer paused before replying, "On average, the rainy season begins in fifty three days for this area."

Trillian sulked. "I'll never get to see one," she said.

"What are you referring to, Trillian?" the computer asked.

"I think I know," Gabrielle said, having remembered Trillian's strong reaction to a certain word. "I believe she's hoping to see... a rainbow."

The fae didn't say anything. She just lowered her head and gave a heavy sigh. Bowing her head hid the fierce blush on her face.

"I believe you are correct, your Majesty," the computer said. "Trillian has mentioned rainbows before."

"Please!" Trillian suddenly shouted, then whispered, "Please stop saying that word. I... I can't take it."

An awkward silence followed until the computer reminded them that they needed to specify a destination.

"Fly towards the area east of Roggzer," Gabrielle said, "just out of direct line of sight from everyone in the city. We'll direct you once we get closer."

"As you wish," the computer said, before a barely perceptible shudder ran through the ship. "Please forgive any vibration. Actual flying of this ship varies slightly from the simulations."

Gabrielle and Thelma sat wide-eyed as they watched the display view brighten. The ship slowly lifted up and out of the hangar into the bright sunlight. They were finally on their way.

~o~O~o~

After the ship had leveled off and flew towards Roggzer, Gabrielle was puzzled. Her position in her chair hadn't changed.

"Mister Computer?" she asked.

"Yes, your Majesty?" he replied.

"How is it our sense of up and down doesn't change as the ship tilts?"

"I have activated the ship's artificial gravity."

"Gravity? What's that?"

"Would you like a tutorial?"

"Never mind," the queen said, not even wanting to hear how long that would take. She preferred to leave the serious magic to those who studied it for a living.

Thelma sat rigid in her chair the whole time, her knuckles white as she firmly gripped the armrests.

"Hey. Relax, Thelma," Gabrielle said after having noticed.

"Boom!" Trillian suddenly shouted, purposely trying to rattle the redhead. It worked but she also startled and angered the queen, who swatted at her. Trillian avoided the queen's hand, flying up and forward to land on the dashboard of the ship. Gabrielle ended up slapping herself.

"Is the poor former man scared?" the fae continued.

"Trillian," Gabrielle warned. "She's suffering enough as it is. You don't have to add to it."

"Why is she even sitting up here with us?" the fae asked.

"Let's find out. Remember that Mister Computer requested her presence."

The computer had been listening in and volunteered the information right away. "I need to scan Thelma's brain. Her memories and residual traces of what you call magic will help me plot a course to your home world. Trillian told me how Thelma, also known as Farrott, also known as Scumbag, sent you all here from a planet called Kispri."

"Trillian," the queen growled.

"What?! I thought Mister Computer needed to know so I told him."

"When was this?"

"When everyone was splitting up. I had a private conversation. I think he's sweet on me." She couldn't help herself then. She giggled, and quickly followed with a frown.

Gabrielle smiled. "Old habits die hard, don't they."

The fae blushed but didn't say anything.

"Mister Computer? You might want to scan my brain as well. I accessed a portal and was able to direct it to send my mate to Kispri."

"That would suffice," the computer said. "Please turn and look into the small glass window to your left while you actively try to remember your experience with the portal. And hold very still. This won't hurt a bit."

Gabrielle did as asked, feeling a slight tingling but no real discomfort for a very brief time until the computer told her it was finished.

"Home world course plotted. When would you like to proceed?"

"Right after we drop off Louis, Thelma and Fritz."

"As you wish," the computer said.

~o~O~o~

The great iron ship flew at great speed, nearing its first stop in a very small fraction of a day. Thelma remained silent for the duration of the very short trip, leaving it up to Gabrielle to point out a landing site for the ship. They touched down and the redhead hurried to find Louis and Fritz so she could get off the ship as soon as possible.

Louis and his soon-to-be wife soon stood a good distance away from the ship, with Fritz fast asleep, lying in the cart that originally held the nigglers.

"Good bye, Gabi," said a tearful Thelma. "I'll miss you!"

Of the rest of the group that was going back to Kispri, only the queen remained outside the ship. She gave her friend a good long hug. "I'll miss you too, Thelma," she said. "I truly will. You've come a long way. I'm very proud of you."

They separated and Thelma's lower lip quivered. "Thanks, Gabi," she said. "I couldn't have done it without you."

The queen smiled, suppressing the reflex to tell her that it was her pleasure. It would've been a lie and she didn't like to lie. Initially, Thelma had been very difficult to deal with. It was only because of years of training that that Gabrielle was able to tolerate such a difficult situation. That and her strong sense of honor.

"I'll be back to check up on you, so be good," the queen added, implying that she'd be astrally traveling back to Roggzer.

"You better," Thelma said, smiling. "I want to show off my children." She turned and slipped an arm around Louis' waist.

Gabrielle nodded and smiled. Then she turned and walked back to the ship, which was settled with its nose in the air at the base of a large hill. Just beyond the hill, Roggzer waited for the redhead and her family.

A few steps before she arrived at the base of the ship, the bottom door panel slid open to reveal a very impatient fae, flying even with the queen's head.

"C'mon, Gabi! Time's a wastin'!" she said, barely suppressing a giggle after speaking.

Thelma and Louis still stood close enough to hear and see the exchange, and the redhead couldn't help herself. "Hey, Trillian!" she shouted in her original language. "I fart rainbows!" Then she laughed. So did Louis, though he didn't understand what was said.

The fae snarled at the insult and looked about ready to fly out and attack the redhead.

Luckily, Gabrielle noticed and reached out, grabbing and holding the tiny woman against her stomach. She turned once more to give a little finger wave and then disappeared into the belly of the great iron ship. The ship silently rose a short distance off the ground and slowly accelerated off to the east, away from Roggzer. Louis and Thelma watched it go until it suddenly shot up and away from Agrin.

"There they go," Thelma said quietly.

"Do you wish you could go with them?" Louis asked.

"No. Not really. I have no life back on my home world. My life is here, with you."

"And Fritz," he added.

"And Fritz," she agreed. "And speaking of Fritz, she'll need something to eat when she wakes up. I better get started."

"What? What do you mean?"

"I need to hunt down something to feed her."

Louis looked puzzled. "We can get her something in the market," he suggested. "We're not far from the city. It won't take very long. We'll take Fritz home, to our home, and I'll go get something while you watch over her."

"Really?"

"I wouldn't worry about it. We can certainly afford it. I wasn't paid much to guide your group but this might help." He pulled a pouch off his belt and dumped several large, gold coins into his hand.

Thelma's eyes went wide. "Where did you get that?" she said, her voice barely a whisper.

"It's a wedding gift. Your group gave us all of their leftover money. They can't use it back on your home world so they gave it to us. Wasn't that nice of them?"

Thelma playfully swatted her beloved's arm. "And you didn't tell me till now?!"

"It was supposed to be a surprise. Sorry about giving it away."

"That's okay. I forgive you." She stretched up on her tip-toes and invited him down for a kiss by parting her lips and closing her eyes. He quickly obliged.

It took a long while to break the kiss. It was only the heat of the day and the exertion of too much toe curling that caused them to separate.

"Shall we go then?" Louis said.

He started pulling the cart with Fritz and their remaining supplies and the two of them made their way around the base of the hill, on towards their happy home.

~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.