{"id":1163,"date":"2015-12-16T07:19:02","date_gmt":"2015-12-16T13:19:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ajscifistories.com\/?p=1163"},"modified":"2015-12-18T07:38:58","modified_gmt":"2015-12-18T13:38:58","slug":"the-cimalian-princess-clone-part-4","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/ajscifistories.com\/?p=1163","title":{"rendered":"The Cimalian Princess: Clone – Part 4"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Cimalian Princess: Clone<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

by AJ Marks<\/span><\/p>\n

Part 4<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Randy walked back onto the bridge of the Akagi knowing that the fleet would be exiting hyperspace soon. So far all ships had remained in position despite the long amount of travel time.\u00a0 They still had another jump to go before reaching the spot where the Endurance had disappeared.<\/p>\n

\u201cPreparing to exit hyperspace in ten minutes,\u201d he heard Aaron say to Kim.<\/p>\n

\u201cGood, get me the admiral,\u201d Kim said.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t bother, how are the other ships?\u201d Randy said walking over to where she sat.<\/p>\n

\u201cAh, I was about to call you,\u201d Kim said back to him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was keeping a watch on the clock,\u201d Randy said taking a look at the monitor. \u201cAre we in position for the next jump?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll run the calculations after we exit hyperspace,\u201d Aaron replied back to him.<\/p>\n

Randy acknowledge the statement knowing their position would be critical for the next jump in case they did run into Cimalian ships. He did not want to be caught by surprise like the Endurance might have been.\u00a0 He also knew not to expect a warm welcome by any Cimalian ships.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, what\u2019s the plan captain?\u201d Kim asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot sure about that,\u201d Randy answered honestly. \u201cIts something I\u2019ve been thinking about since we left.\u00a0 Really, our mission is to check out what happened to the endurance, beyond that, no idea.\u201d<\/p>\n

He looked around at the bridge crew, they all knew how serious this mission was. They all knew that an encounter with the Cimalians might be deadly for them and they probably would be outnumbered.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat about asking that girl, what\u2019s her name, May, Tina, something like that,\u201d Aaron asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou mean Meia,\u201d Kim answered for him, giving Aarong a glare.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, I hear she\u2019s on board, why not ask her, after all she\u2019s one of them,\u201d Aaron said. \u201cWhy not ask her.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve already asked her about it,\u201d Kim replied back to Aaron.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe wasn\u2019t an elite in their society so she doesn\u2019t know that much,\u201d Randy said. \u201cShe\u2019s told us as much as she could, but their class divisions is very strict.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s also the reason why we\u2019re still here, many of us trust her,\u201d Kim said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was only making a suggestion admiral,\u201d Aaron replied, looking around at the group. Everyone who served on board during the fighting had a similar opinion of Meia.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know, but understand that many on board don\u2019t see Meia as one of them, but a trusted crewmember. She\u2019s earned that respect.\u00a0 Tot eh crew, you\u2019re the outsider,\u201d Randy said to him.<\/p>\n

He knew Kim\u2019s defense of Meia came from her working with the young woman. Many on board did trust Meia, including many of the pilots and many of the crewmembers on the hanger, including Ben and his crew.\u00a0 Meia worked hard working with John and others to develop tactics to work against the Cimialan fighters and bombers.\u00a0 They had learned a lot over the past couple of months.\u00a0 From combat experience to what she said the military used that to help develop new upgrades for the fleet.<\/p>\n

Looking over at the new second in command of the Akagi Randy waited to see how Aaron would react. His words would carry a lot of weight in how others perceived him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI meant no disrespect admiral, she saved the Warspite as well, I only wanted to see if she might know something about how the Cimalians might deploy their fleet,\u201d Aaron replied. \u201cI don\u2019t like not having an advantage we can use.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know, but there are some things about Meia that many others, especially outside the crew, don\u2019t understand,\u201d Randy said. \u201cSo, we are a bit protective of her.\u201d<\/p>\n

He looked over at the crew seeing many were watching the interaction between Aaron, Randy and Kim with interest. He spotted Toni listening in as well, not having been part of the crew would she accept Meia?\u00a0 So many unanswered questions in his mind.<\/p>\n

\u201cSir, dropping out of hyperspace,\u201d Kim finally said.<\/p>\n

Randy turned looking down at the scanners watching as the three other ships of the task force dropped out behind the Akagi on schedule and in place. The whine of the normal engines filled the bridge as the engines provided power to the ship once more.<\/p>\n

\u201cInform the fleet on eighth burn on the engines, sent out a patrol to make sure we\u2019re alone,\u201d Randy said, the patrols would look for any Cimalian ships or nearby planets. He watched as the crew rushed around to carry out his orders.<\/p>\n

Aaron had returned to his spot on the bridge, working on carrying out the orders. Randy nodded in silent approval before turning towards Kim.\u00a0 They shared a glance before she returned to his station.\u00a0 He had a feeling Aaron would come around regarding Meia, but for now it would take time, especially considering the Cimalians had killed Aaron\u2019s parents on Dredius.<\/p>\n

\u201cAdmiral, the captain of the Sunray is on the line for you,\u201d Hans said.<\/p>\n

\u201cPut it though,\u201d Randy said, wondering what Captain Jacob Alterin wanted.<\/p>\n

\u201cAdmiral, my chief engineer informed me that the Sunray\u2019s hyperspace engines will require a bit longer to cool down. For some reason they are running hot and he\u2019d like some time to look into the problem.\u00a0 I\u2019ll report back in thirty minutes,\u201d Jacob said.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnderstood captain, I\u2019ll inform the fleet we\u2019re staying a bit longer,\u201d Randy said. \u201cKeep me informed of the situation.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes sir,\u201d Jacob said as the conversation ended.<\/p>\n

Randy turned to Hans. \u201cInform the fleet to be on alert, we may not be in enemy territory, but we\u2019re not safe either, and we\u2019ll be staying a bit longer for the Sunray.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes sir,\u201d Hans said, turning to relay the information.<\/p>\n

\u201cActivate weapon systems,\u201d Kim said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes captain,\u201d Toni said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHave a patrol launched as well, take a look around for anyone beyond our scanning range,\u201d Randy said.<\/p>\n

He watched as the crew went about their duties, and hoped the fleet did not encounter any Cimalian warships. For now, he would play a waiting game.<\/p>\n

*****<\/p>\n

Emperor Henry glanced at the report Admiral Jezic had given him. The long range patrols had picked up a small fleet of Alliance warships.\u00a0 Henry knew that Jezic did not understand why he allowed the Alliance such a close position to figure out where they were.\u00a0 The admiral did not have the intelligence Henry did, and how the Alliance military operated.<\/p>\n

\u201cIs this report accurate?\u201d Henry asked, looking up at Jezic.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes emperor.\u201d<\/p>\n

He watched the tall man adjust his eye-patch once more. It was something about the man he never understood, why he had not had his eye regrown.\u00a0 He said it reminded him of a lesson he learned, but Henry thought the man had yet to learn that lesson.\u00a0 Of course anyone below Henry still needed to learn lessons.<\/p>\n

He turned his attention back to the present and the report. His plan was almost ready to go, and only needed a little bit of information before resuming his course of action.\u00a0 He had to be right, but then again he had yet to be wrong and went ahead with his action.<\/p>\n

\u201cTell Admiral Floyd and Ammari to back off to the secondary launching point. I also want the reserved fleet to be removed from orbit and the defenses weakened significantly,\u201d he said to Jezic.\u00a0 Henry watched with interested as Jezic showed confusion at the order.<\/p>\n

\u201cSire, that would leave Cimalius unprotected with several Alliance ships nearby,\u201d Jezic protested.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know, you do not understand as I do, now either carry out my orders or I shall have you replaced with someone who knows not to question me,\u201d Henry replied in a stern voice. Jezic let out a breath before answering.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy your will emperor,\u201d Jezic said, a bit reluctantly. He left to carry out the orders.<\/p>\n

Henry looked over the report one last time. He knew Meia was on board, and this Alliance group would send someone down to get some information, and who better to send than his niece.\u00a0 Once she was down and back under his control he would have her again.\u00a0 All his work at training her would pay off, and the universe would be his again.\u00a0 He only had to reach out and take it.<\/p>\n

*****<\/p>\n

Meia climbed aboard her fighter, John had picked her and her wingmate for the patrol. She did not mind, and gave her some time to get away from prying eyes and questions about what they might expect.\u00a0 She had no idea about what type of defenses the homeworld might actually have.\u00a0 She never had that information because of her social standing.<\/p>\n

She thanked Ben as he handed her the flight interface helmet. The computer activated recognizing her.\u00a0 The flight path she would be taking was already imputed into the flight computer and she took a few seconds looking it over, comparing it to the one she was shown in pre-flight.\u00a0 It was a well-chosen path in her opinion.<\/p>\n

\u201cPatrol one, here,\u201d Meia said.<\/p>\n

\u201cPatrol one, report anything out of the ordinary. Scanners don\u2019t show anything but exercise caution,\u201d the reply came back to her from the bridge control.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnderstood control,\u201d Meia replied, she had no problem with not finding anything at all. Her fighter swung to the floor of the hanger, which opened.\u00a0 She was lowered into the launch space.\u00a0 She powered up her engines waiting for the clamps to release and the outer doors opened.<\/p>\n

\u201cPatrol one, cleared for launch.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPatrol one, acknowledge,\u201d Meia replied, as the doors opened allowing her to launch out of the ship followed closely by Victor.<\/p>\n

She looked at her scanner to figure out where Victor was and watched as his fighter formed up beside her. Turning her fighter away from the Akagi she set out on her patrol flight plan.\u00a0 She took a moment while looking at the scanner to figure out where she might hide some patrol craft, or fighters, or a trap.<\/p>\n

\u201cVictor, don\u2019t use the communicator unless you have to. The empire will use such transmissions to home in on us,\u201d Meia said, recalling that part of her training.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo problem,\u201d Victor replied back to her.<\/p>\n

Meia adjusted her throttle and headed out on her patrol. She hoped they would find nothing but a small part of her wanted answers to questions only her uncle, the emperor, had.\u00a0 She could still recall the first time she met him.<\/p>\n

*****<\/p>\n

Meia made her way down the hallway making sure no one noticed. It wasn\u2019t hard for her, a five year old her size helped tremendously and she learned she had a tremendous ability to hide around others.\u00a0 She fit easily in small places, behind fixtures that others never bothered to look at.\u00a0 She had wondered around at night hearing things she did not understand, and learned not to ask questions about.<\/p>\n

The clicking of heels on the polished floor gave her warning that someone was coming, and allowed her to quickly hide behind some tables and chairs. She could see the legs of the people walking down the hallway as their conversation echoed over to her.<\/p>\n

\u201cAre you sure about this?\u201d one voice asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course,\u201d another male voice answered.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s risky bro,\u201d the first voice said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHas to be done, you know that, besides the steps are already in place,\u201d the second voice said.<\/p>\n

\u201cKeeping Boris\u2019 daughter alive, I wouldn\u2019t do it,\u201d the first one said.<\/p>\n

Meia noticed a third pair of legs join the other two.<\/p>\n

\u201cSire?\u201d a third voice said which seemed recognizable to her.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s been a slight problem,\u201d the third voice said, as they started walking again.<\/p>\n

Meia was unable to hear anything else and continued on her exploration of the building. It was all a game to her, see how much she could see without being caught and return back to her bed.<\/p>\n

The next morning she was called into the head supervisor\u2019s office. She waited wondering what was going on as she was led into the room, pausing as she entered the room.\u00a0 A figure of a man she did not recognize and for some reason he scared her.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, you\u2019re Meia?\u201d the man asked, causing Meia to freeze when he spoke. She recognized his voice from last night.<\/p>\n

\u201cY-yes,\u201d she finally stammered wanting to run away.<\/p>\n

\u201cSuch a pretty name, did your mother give you that name?\u2019 the man asked. His voice was at odds with her instincts.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d Meia finally replied.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you know who I am?\u201d the man asked, leaning back a bit. He had hair color which seemed identical to his but finally shook her head no.\u00a0 \u201cI am Prince Henry, Empress Terresa\u2019s grandson.\u00a0 I\u2019m here to look at the next generation of pilots like you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meia swallowed as a slight shiver ran though her body at his voice.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou may go Meia, take this pass to class and show your teacher said handing a card to her. She walked out feeling relieved to be away from him.\u00a0 Quickly making her way down the hallway and back to her class.<\/p>\n

*****<\/p>\n

Meia shook her head of the memory of the day. She recently had begun remembering things about her past, especially memories from before she entered the academy.\u00a0 She assumed they began drugging her shortly after her entrance into the academy.<\/p>\n

Doctor Tommy Leaver thought the same thing and came to the conclusion the drug used effected memories and emotions while leaving her venerable to suggestions which might still be there.<\/p>\n

She had memories of people visiting her mother when she was young, did they know who Meia was? Was that the reason why they made so many visits, and why her mother seemed so sad afterwards?<\/p>\n

She glanced down at her scanner, spotting Victor flying behind her maintaining formation. He had been competent so far, despite they had not worked together in battle yet.\u00a0 She had been pleased that someone actually volunteered to be her wingmate.\u00a0 She feared no one wanting to be with her due to her backgrounds.<\/p>\n

She kept a close eye as they approached their first group of asteroids which could be used for hiding anything. As they got closer she kept an eye out for any energy readings no matter how small.\u00a0 Not seeing any she continued on to the next group of asteroids and sent a quick message to the Akagi that everything was clear so far.<\/p>\n

End part 4<\/p>\n

Continued in part 5<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Cimalian Princess: Clone by AJ Marks Part 4 Randy walked back onto the bridge of the Akagi knowing that the fleet would be exiting hyperspace soon. So far all ships had remained in position despite the long amount of travel time.\u00a0 They still had another jump to go before reaching the spot where the […]
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