"2569-33" - читать интересную книгу автора (Jerome Bigge - Warlady 7 - The Dularnian Queen)2569 A.D.! THE DULARNIAN QUEEN AN ADVENTURE IN THE SECOND DARK AGE OF MAN By Jerome B. Bigge Chapter Thirty Three "Storm's over," Lorraine spoke some time later, the rain now just rain, the sky still yet overcast, the air chill and "damp", but no longer a threat to this almost "magic" metal "bird" of the Queen of Trelandar. I thought of what we had spoke of, of "what" even Nancy had "offered" once Lorraine had drawn her out a bit... This "ultimate war" against the "ultimate enemy" of all Mankind!! What Lorraine had called a "jihad", a "holy war" of men against women where one side saw the other as being the ultimate "evil"! "Can we make it to Sarn now?" I asked, the afternoon late. "Shouldn't be any trouble," the Warlady smiled back then. "I was thinking of something," Lorraine said to me then as we saw the lovely city of Sarn there in the distance, the sun now low in the west. "There was a `prediction' made one time that we'd eventually have to `fight' the `Queen of Darkness', and we all thought that would be Princess Tara," the Warlady explained. "And she's dead now," I answered, believing that she was... "Queen Valeris' people practice `hypnosis'." Lorraine said. They were utter enemies of the Priestesses of Lys, I knew too... The only "society" that I knew of who had managed to "stand up" against the all powerful Priestesses, although the "truth" was here that the Priestesses had no desire to "impose" their own teachings upon the "Free Women" by force of arms as would have been necessary, the Priestesses themselves having little military power in the sense of having armies or navies at their "command". While the Priestesses had shown their "power" in the destruction of Tara's ship, such did not indicate that they would have been too effective against scattered peoples hiding inside deep woods. Lorraine had said that their "ship" was probably little different from the "Starfire" which was possessed by the Women of Mars... That it might even have been a craft constructed from parts left over when the Lorr and the Women had abandoned Leith in 2566 A.D. "And she could `seek' allies from the `other side'," I said, recalling what had "happened" there in my own palace thanks to Darl Jord's arcane "experiments" which had eventually required the "help" of First Priestess Tais to rid my palace of the EVIL!! "The Priestesses of Lys use an advanced form of `hypnosis', and if Valeris can `do' the same...," Lorraine added, seeing me nod in reply. This could be indeed a "war between good and evil" in the full sense of the term. Tais had believed from what Lor- raine had told me once that Princess Tara was the "Queen of Dark- ness", but Tara was only a "Princess", whereas Valeris was a "Queen"... Could it be that Valeris was the one we should fear? "Valeris will `fight' if attacked," I nodded, thinking now. "And `time' is not as `fixed' as we used to believe," she answered back. Judging from what Tais had "admitted", apparently one could not accurately predict the future, even with the power of the Priestesses to travel through time. "There could be al- ternative `futures', and we have no idea which will be `ours'..." ***************************************************************** "There is much `talk' of war with the `Free Women'," the old woman said to the badly burned former Bajan Princess as Tara nod- ded in reply, most of the discomfort from her burns now eased by the medicines that the old woman had brought from Sana. "Men now speak of a `final war' that will `settle' things," she added too. Such had been overheard when she'd bought the medicines in Sana. "Queen Valeris is an `enemy' of the Priestesses of Lys," the badly burned former Princess answered, her eyes meeting those of the old woman and her teenage daughter. "One who stands against those who are the true `rulers' of our world, not these kings and queens that parade around thinking they really `rule' things..." "You mentioned a letter you wanted to send to the Priestess- es," the old woman answered, looking into the dark eyes of Tara. "You would not `understand', but perhaps they would," Tara answered, wondering why it "mattered" any more WHO ruled Earth... ***************************************************************** "Let's just hope Darlanis is `home'," Lorraine smiled at me as she circled the Imperial Palace in preparation for a landing. The last rays of a setting sun turning everything a bloody red. "Seems `odd' being `on the same side' this time," I smiled. Dularn and the Empire of California were bitter enemies, and had been ever since Darlanis had ascended the throne as Queen of Sarn even before I was born. I did not "hate" the Empress, but I did- n't "trust" her, nor did I "trust" Lorraine completely either... "It may end up `women' against `men'," Lorraine answered, bringing the airplane down for a landing there in front of the Imperial palace. "The `ultimate battle of the sexes'," she grinned, her dark eyes, a rich dark brown, then meeting my green. "You shouldn't be flying about as `pregnant' as you are," the Imperial Empress smiled, embracing her Imperial Warlady as I and Nancy stood back. The Warrioresses of Darlanis' Imperial Guard regarding me with the attitude they might have towards one like Queen Freydis, who is in most respects a true "barbarian"... On the other hand I've seen prostitutes in Arsana who wore "more" than Darlanis did, although right now she wore a heavy cloak over her brief golden mesh against the "chill" of the early evening. "I hope I won't have to anymore," Lorraine answered back. Darlanis' husband, Prince Serak of the Nevadas, giving me a grin. "Have there ever been any `societies' like Valeris' before?" I asked as we shared a pleasant dinner and drinks, Lorraine care- ful not to drink heavily due to the harm it might do to her baby. "There are `myths' and `legends' of `Amazons' living in the time of the early Greeks," Lorraine answered as she sat across the table from me, Darlanis' slave girls quick to be of service. "It is likely that their social order was much like Valeris' is." Prince Serak having noted the "pleasures" of dining with three women as "lovely" as us. His own slave girl, the exotic Pussy- cat, dark haired, dusky skinned, one of the those now serving us. "There is no historical evidence that they ever existed," I heard Darlanis say, giving Lorraine a smile as the Warlady nodded back. "On the other hand we know `less' of the past than you do," she added, Lorraine having been quite helpful in this issue. "They `existed', but `men' rewrote the history books so to make it appear that they were only a `legend'," Lorraine smiled. "One thing that we must also realize here is that any truly `feminist' society must be militarily `superior' to its surround- ing male dominated societies or it will be quickly destroyed." Serak nodding, giving me a smile as I sat there. I was well aware of the "decision" that the Nevadas had made about Valeris. The warriors were being called to ride in their thousands now... "Valeris is not `superior' in her weaponry," I smiled then. "She has her wolves, which give her an advantage," Lorraine answered. "There is also Talon, which is completely `controlled' by women, who are in possession of a `superior weapon' against which no one has a defense," the Imperial Warlady observed then. "Talon is not a `feminist' society," I pointed out to her. I thought Lorraine's reasoning here was a bit "faulty" in this. "It is `run' by women to a far greater extent than is Cali- fornia, Trelandar, or Dularn," Lorraine retorted right back then. "And it has a `weapon' which only women may use," she added now. "The Tarls of Talon can only carry a woman due to weight limits". "Why do you `care' what happens to Valeris?" Darlanis asked. "She is merely a `barbarian' with `radical' ideas," she added... I'd met the woman "once". I hadn't been very "impressed" either! Dularn would be better off without this "threat" from the north, a Queen who hated men much as Nazis of the past had "hated" Jews. "If `men' can crush Valeris, then how long will it be before they will start to `question' whether or not any of us can be `trusted'?" Lorraine answered. "Don't forget that there was a time, and not that long ago in human history, that women were for all practical purposes the `property' of men to `use' as they so wished." The Warlady's eyes meeting mine as I nodded in reply. "The `concept' of `sexual equality' that we so take for `granted' now was a `product' of the Twentieth Century, and women did not obtain full `equality' with men until the time of Janet Rogers." "`Who' you were `responsible' for," Darlanis answered back, sipping thoughtfully at her wine as she sat there now listening, her eyes meeting those of her husband as he nodded back in reply. "Just as Maris is `responsible' for Queen Pharis, the `source' of our problems right now," the Imperial Warlady spoke. Lorraine having said before that if I hadn't sent Pharis, at the time a high born Dularnian noblewoman, to the Wyomings, we would- n't be in the "trouble" that we were now about Queen Valeris... It was "true" that I'd sent Pharis to the Wyomings as my own per- sonal representative, but you must remember at the time that a state of war existed between Dularn and Imperial California, and I was merely carrying out my "duties" as the Queen of Dularn to see to the "safety" and protection of my country from the Empire! Pharis had also done much to see to the increased military power of the Wyomings, which in turn had kept the Nevadas from making trouble for Dularn as they would have done without the Wyomings!! "If we are going to passing `blame' around, let me suggest here," I spoke up, "That had the Empire of California not sought a `military alliance' with Queen Valeris that she would not have become a military threat to those `south' of her." It had been Bob Simmons and the Diana which had put a halt to Darlanis' own activities there in the north, which I was sure they both knew!!! "Shall we `bury the sword' here?" Darlanis smiled at us two. "Accusing each other of past mistakes is not going to `solve' the problem we now face, nor do we wish to see what will `happen' if there is a `war' between men and women as is quite likely here." "Withdraw Imperial `support' from Valeris and I will do what I can to see that the Federation leaves her `alone'," I spoke up. Just "what" I'd do about my mother in law I didn't know as yet... The thought going through my mind that it would have saved me and everyone else a lot of "trouble" if Lorraine had killed her then! "You're going to have your `hands full' with Pharis," Lor- raine smiled at me. "Why" Pharis had taken the "tack" she had was something that puzzled me, as the woman had been something of a "political radical" in Arsana, which is one of the reasons why I had sent her as ambassador to the Wyomings in the first place! "I wonder if Princess Tara is really dead," Darlanis spoke. "I assure you that she is," I smiled back at the Empress. "Her `organization' is still functioning," Darlanis said. "Like a fish out of water, it won't `die' immediately," I smiled back. With Darl Jord gone, and Tara dead, I didn't think we really had anything to "worry" about from her "underground"... "Was Darl Jord `acquainted' with Pharis?" Lorraine asked me. "She probably `knew' him," I smiled, wondering why the War- lady had spoken as she had. Pharis had been a "troublemaker" for me, heading up a "fraction" that did nothing but constantly crit- icize me for everything that I did. She hadn't seemed to have any political agenda of her own, except to constantly "hound" me! What my late husband thought of her I hadn't noted, as Darl and I were never "close", and I tried to avoid him as much as I could. "Consider the `possibility' that this is all an attempt to `discredit' you, to cause the Senate to replace you with another Queen more willing to be `reasonable'," Darlanis ventured then... "No doubt California would be happy to see someone else than me on the throne of Dularn," I "smiled" back at the Imperial rul- er. Lorraine there taking this all in, and "smiling" to herself. Prince Serak keeping his thoughts to himself, Pussycat kneeling at his side, allowing him to feed her while she held her hands behind herself as is common among slave girls with the Nevadas... "You are a `good Queen' for Dularn, one of the best that Du- larn has ever had," Darlanis answered. "A bit of a `hot head' at times, but you've taken `moral stands' that I respect you for..." 2569 A.D.! THE DULARNIAN QUEEN AN ADVENTURE IN THE SECOND DARK AGE OF MAN By Jerome B. Bigge Chapter Thirty Three "Storm's over," Lorraine spoke some time later, the rain now just rain, the sky still yet overcast, the air chill and "damp", but no longer a threat to this almost "magic" metal "bird" of the Queen of Trelandar. I thought of what we had spoke of, of "what" even Nancy had "offered" once Lorraine had drawn her out a bit... This "ultimate war" against the "ultimate enemy" of all Mankind!! What Lorraine had called a "jihad", a "holy war" of men against women where one side saw the other as being the ultimate "evil"! "Can we make it to Sarn now?" I asked, the afternoon late. "Shouldn't be any trouble," the Warlady smiled back then. "I was thinking of something," Lorraine said to me then as we saw the lovely city of Sarn there in the distance, the sun now low in the west. "There was a `prediction' made one time that we'd eventually have to `fight' the `Queen of Darkness', and we all thought that would be Princess Tara," the Warlady explained. "And she's dead now," I answered, believing that she was... "Queen Valeris' people practice `hypnosis'." Lorraine said. They were utter enemies of the Priestesses of Lys, I knew too... The only "society" that I knew of who had managed to "stand up" against the all powerful Priestesses, although the "truth" was here that the Priestesses had no desire to "impose" their own teachings upon the "Free Women" by force of arms as would have been necessary, the Priestesses themselves having little military power in the sense of having armies or navies at their "command". While the Priestesses had shown their "power" in the destruction of Tara's ship, such did not indicate that they would have been too effective against scattered peoples hiding inside deep woods. Lorraine had said that their "ship" was probably little different from the "Starfire" which was possessed by the Women of Mars... That it might even have been a craft constructed from parts left over when the Lorr and the Women had abandoned Leith in 2566 A.D. "And she could `seek' allies from the `other side'," I said, recalling what had "happened" there in my own palace thanks to Darl Jord's arcane "experiments" which had eventually required the "help" of First Priestess Tais to rid my palace of the EVIL!! "The Priestesses of Lys use an advanced form of `hypnosis', and if Valeris can `do' the same...," Lorraine added, seeing me nod in reply. This could be indeed a "war between good and evil" in the full sense of the term. Tais had believed from what Lor- raine had told me once that Princess Tara was the "Queen of Dark- ness", but Tara was only a "Princess", whereas Valeris was a "Queen"... Could it be that Valeris was the one we should fear? "Valeris will `fight' if attacked," I nodded, thinking now. "And `time' is not as `fixed' as we used to believe," she answered back. Judging from what Tais had "admitted", apparently one could not accurately predict the future, even with the power of the Priestesses to travel through time. "There could be al- ternative `futures', and we have no idea which will be `ours'..." ***************************************************************** "There is much `talk' of war with the `Free Women'," the old woman said to the badly burned former Bajan Princess as Tara nod- ded in reply, most of the discomfort from her burns now eased by the medicines that the old woman had brought from Sana. "Men now speak of a `final war' that will `settle' things," she added too. Such had been overheard when she'd bought the medicines in Sana. "Queen Valeris is an `enemy' of the Priestesses of Lys," the badly burned former Princess answered, her eyes meeting those of the old woman and her teenage daughter. "One who stands against those who are the true `rulers' of our world, not these kings and queens that parade around thinking they really `rule' things..." "You mentioned a letter you wanted to send to the Priestess- es," the old woman answered, looking into the dark eyes of Tara. "You would not `understand', but perhaps they would," Tara answered, wondering why it "mattered" any more WHO ruled Earth... ***************************************************************** "Let's just hope Darlanis is `home'," Lorraine smiled at me as she circled the Imperial Palace in preparation for a landing. The last rays of a setting sun turning everything a bloody red. "Seems `odd' being `on the same side' this time," I smiled. Dularn and the Empire of California were bitter enemies, and had been ever since Darlanis had ascended the throne as Queen of Sarn even before I was born. I did not "hate" the Empress, but I did- n't "trust" her, nor did I "trust" Lorraine completely either... "It may end up `women' against `men'," Lorraine answered, bringing the airplane down for a landing there in front of the Imperial palace. "The `ultimate battle of the sexes'," she grinned, her dark eyes, a rich dark brown, then meeting my green. "You shouldn't be flying about as `pregnant' as you are," the Imperial Empress smiled, embracing her Imperial Warlady as I and Nancy stood back. The Warrioresses of Darlanis' Imperial Guard regarding me with the attitude they might have towards one like Queen Freydis, who is in most respects a true "barbarian"... On the other hand I've seen prostitutes in Arsana who wore "more" than Darlanis did, although right now she wore a heavy cloak over her brief golden mesh against the "chill" of the early evening. "I hope I won't have to anymore," Lorraine answered back. Darlanis' husband, Prince Serak of the Nevadas, giving me a grin. "Have there ever been any `societies' like Valeris' before?" I asked as we shared a pleasant dinner and drinks, Lorraine care- ful not to drink heavily due to the harm it might do to her baby. "There are `myths' and `legends' of `Amazons' living in the time of the early Greeks," Lorraine answered as she sat across the table from me, Darlanis' slave girls quick to be of service. "It is likely that their social order was much like Valeris' is." Prince Serak having noted the "pleasures" of dining with three women as "lovely" as us. His own slave girl, the exotic Pussy- cat, dark haired, dusky skinned, one of the those now serving us. "There is no historical evidence that they ever existed," I heard Darlanis say, giving Lorraine a smile as the Warlady nodded back. "On the other hand we know `less' of the past than you do," she added, Lorraine having been quite helpful in this issue. "They `existed', but `men' rewrote the history books so to make it appear that they were only a `legend'," Lorraine smiled. "One thing that we must also realize here is that any truly `feminist' society must be militarily `superior' to its surround- ing male dominated societies or it will be quickly destroyed." Serak nodding, giving me a smile as I sat there. I was well aware of the "decision" that the Nevadas had made about Valeris. The warriors were being called to ride in their thousands now... "Valeris is not `superior' in her weaponry," I smiled then. "She has her wolves, which give her an advantage," Lorraine answered. "There is also Talon, which is completely `controlled' by women, who are in possession of a `superior weapon' against which no one has a defense," the Imperial Warlady observed then. "Talon is not a `feminist' society," I pointed out to her. I thought Lorraine's reasoning here was a bit "faulty" in this. "It is `run' by women to a far greater extent than is Cali- fornia, Trelandar, or Dularn," Lorraine retorted right back then. "And it has a `weapon' which only women may use," she added now. "The Tarls of Talon can only carry a woman due to weight limits". "Why do you `care' what happens to Valeris?" Darlanis asked. "She is merely a `barbarian' with `radical' ideas," she added... I'd met the woman "once". I hadn't been very "impressed" either! Dularn would be better off without this "threat" from the north, a Queen who hated men much as Nazis of the past had "hated" Jews. "If `men' can crush Valeris, then how long will it be before they will start to `question' whether or not any of us can be `trusted'?" Lorraine answered. "Don't forget that there was a time, and not that long ago in human history, that women were for all practical purposes the `property' of men to `use' as they so wished." The Warlady's eyes meeting mine as I nodded in reply. "The `concept' of `sexual equality' that we so take for `granted' now was a `product' of the Twentieth Century, and women did not obtain full `equality' with men until the time of Janet Rogers." "`Who' you were `responsible' for," Darlanis answered back, sipping thoughtfully at her wine as she sat there now listening, her eyes meeting those of her husband as he nodded back in reply. "Just as Maris is `responsible' for Queen Pharis, the `source' of our problems right now," the Imperial Warlady spoke. Lorraine having said before that if I hadn't sent Pharis, at the time a high born Dularnian noblewoman, to the Wyomings, we would- n't be in the "trouble" that we were now about Queen Valeris... It was "true" that I'd sent Pharis to the Wyomings as my own per- sonal representative, but you must remember at the time that a state of war existed between Dularn and Imperial California, and I was merely carrying out my "duties" as the Queen of Dularn to see to the "safety" and protection of my country from the Empire! Pharis had also done much to see to the increased military power of the Wyomings, which in turn had kept the Nevadas from making trouble for Dularn as they would have done without the Wyomings!! "If we are going to passing `blame' around, let me suggest here," I spoke up, "That had the Empire of California not sought a `military alliance' with Queen Valeris that she would not have become a military threat to those `south' of her." It had been Bob Simmons and the Diana which had put a halt to Darlanis' own activities there in the north, which I was sure they both knew!!! "Shall we `bury the sword' here?" Darlanis smiled at us two. "Accusing each other of past mistakes is not going to `solve' the problem we now face, nor do we wish to see what will `happen' if there is a `war' between men and women as is quite likely here." "Withdraw Imperial `support' from Valeris and I will do what I can to see that the Federation leaves her `alone'," I spoke up. Just "what" I'd do about my mother in law I didn't know as yet... The thought going through my mind that it would have saved me and everyone else a lot of "trouble" if Lorraine had killed her then! "You're going to have your `hands full' with Pharis," Lor- raine smiled at me. "Why" Pharis had taken the "tack" she had was something that puzzled me, as the woman had been something of a "political radical" in Arsana, which is one of the reasons why I had sent her as ambassador to the Wyomings in the first place! "I wonder if Princess Tara is really dead," Darlanis spoke. "I assure you that she is," I smiled back at the Empress. "Her `organization' is still functioning," Darlanis said. "Like a fish out of water, it won't `die' immediately," I smiled back. With Darl Jord gone, and Tara dead, I didn't think we really had anything to "worry" about from her "underground"... "Was Darl Jord `acquainted' with Pharis?" Lorraine asked me. "She probably `knew' him," I smiled, wondering why the War- lady had spoken as she had. Pharis had been a "troublemaker" for me, heading up a "fraction" that did nothing but constantly crit- icize me for everything that I did. She hadn't seemed to have any political agenda of her own, except to constantly "hound" me! What my late husband thought of her I hadn't noted, as Darl and I were never "close", and I tried to avoid him as much as I could. "Consider the `possibility' that this is all an attempt to `discredit' you, to cause the Senate to replace you with another Queen more willing to be `reasonable'," Darlanis ventured then... "No doubt California would be happy to see someone else than me on the throne of Dularn," I "smiled" back at the Imperial rul- er. Lorraine there taking this all in, and "smiling" to herself. Prince Serak keeping his thoughts to himself, Pussycat kneeling at his side, allowing him to feed her while she held her hands behind herself as is common among slave girls with the Nevadas... "You are a `good Queen' for Dularn, one of the best that Du- larn has ever had," Darlanis answered. "A bit of a `hot head' at times, but you've taken `moral stands' that I respect you for..." |
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