"2569-52" - 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 Fifty Two "The `Queen of Dularn' is `good' in bed," Paul said, holding me. "She is also as `talented' as any slave girl," he added too! "There is a `knock' at the door," I interrupted him then. I barked an order to "enter", Karis stepping in, her eyes missing little, I supposed. Her opinion just then mattered little to me! During the voyage her hair had grown out a bit, leaving little doubt either as to what her true hair color actually was now too! "The storm seems to be letting up a bit, your majesty," she spoke, her eyes, almost the color of mine, now meeting my own. "I will come up shortly," I answered, dismissing her. "I plan to `use' the last of this wind to our advantage," I spoke, Karis Valdis nodding along with Diane Wells, who I think had also "found" herself out here on this voyage. I would need a bit of jib showing to bring the ship hard about, I told them. "Waves are still pretty big," Paul muttered softly then. "Have `confidence' in your wife," I grinned back at him. Part of my "reputation" as a captain is due to the fact that I insist upon a level of "seamanship" from my officers and crew that is generally unknown on most vessels. I do not "tolerate" the least bit of "slackness", or hesitation in obeying "orders". It is noteworthy here that Lorraine maintains the same standards on her own flagship, which is perhaps "why" she is what she is... On the other hand I don't insist on the "division" between offi- cers and "crew" that the Imperials do. I didn't envy Karis up there at the bow, or those with her, nor those now at the cap- stans drawing up the twin sea anchors under Diane's eye as the bow of the ship was still disappearing from time to time in the waves, the wind still driving the spray the length of the ship! "I will take the wheel," I spoke to the helmsman, who stepped back from the wheel, his eyes meeting mine for a moment. My hands taking the spokes, the ship like a living thing beneath my feet. "Don't let me down, old girl," I whispered to her then. ***************************************************************** "I still feel `guilty' for having `left' Maris out there," Darlanis ventured as she and Sharon shared their evening meal to- gether in the nicely furnished stern cabin of the lovely Astarte. "The Astarte could make it to Japan," Sharon smiled back. "With Lorraine as `captain'," the Empress grinned back. "My stepmother does have certain `talents'," Sharon agreed. ***************************************************************** "Was a bit `hairy' there for a moment," Paul said to me. A great wave had struck the North Star as she came about, tilting the ship over almost past "the point of no return", the starboard railing having been driven right under the surface of the sea... I remembered the terrified looks on the faces of the crew and that of Danny's as they clung to stays and anything else to keep from being thrown into the sea! I wondered how my own face had looked then? For an instant I had feared we would go completely over, only our lack of top masts having lightened the "top ham- per" of the ship enough that she came back up to an even keel!!! "`Maris Marn' got a bit `reckless'," I smiled, seeing him nod back. Now we were racing along, our sails hard with the wind as we headed towards the southeast, the wind and waves still be- ing a bit too hard for us to sail directly towards the east yet. It had been my own "over confidence" in my "abilities" at seaman- ship that had nearly gotten us all killed, I mused to myself... "My wife is `human'," my husband smiled back at me. "And sometimes `overconfident'," I added in a smile. "Come to due east," I snapped, the first officer barking out her commands as the crew dashed to reset the sails. We were, I calculated, almost parallel now to Dularn in latitude, although just how "far" to the west in longitude I had no way of knowing. "And just remember that not even your Queen is `infallible'," I then added, seeing her nod. I had been "careless" yesterday, in a way that could have resulted in the deaths of all of us. Too confident in my own abilities, in what I could do with the ship! "Only LYS is `infallible'," Karis smiled back at me then. "That jib needs to be `let out' a bit," I smiled back. ***************************************************************** "Do you `miss' Dularn?" Princess Tara asked, Mara nodding. Life was pleasant here in Mexico with the Princess, but she missed her northern homeland, that island off the coast of North America where she had been born, lived out her childhood years... "This is not my `land'," the Dularnian girl answered softly. "I am a `wanted criminal'..," Tara breathed out, her horri- bly scarred face "proof" of the weapon used by the Priestesses. "You said you have a `machine'," Mara answered, meeting the darkness of the former Bajan Princess' eyes as she stood there... "The one surviving electronic hypnosis machine," Tara spoke. Centuries old, but those of the 21st Century had built well too. Hidden away now where not even the Priestesses could find it in a cave off the sea, a few miles from La Paz, the capital of Baja. "I suppose it is `time' that I put it to use," she said to Mara. "Does it `hurt'?" Mara asked nervously, looking at Tara. "No," Tara answered, giving her a smile in reply then. ***************************************************************** "Everything looks `good'," I said, completing my inspection of the ship. While I had a good crew, officers, it is often wise for the captain upon occasion to make "inspections" of her own... We still had ample supplies of water, and our food was holding up well against the damp, the mold, and everything else that bothers the sailor at sea. I had not seen many rats, our two cats having done a good job of keeping them in check. The North Star still seemed as "sound" as the day she was first launched in 2565 there in the late fall, with Darl Jord standing there at my side when I broke the bottle of wine there against her bow so long ago now... Although there had been and are other "Norths", there has been, at least in my own eyes, only one ship that I have ever "loved". "The old girl's still pretty `ship shape'," Karis smiled. "And she shall be `kept' that way," I smiled back at her. ***************************************************************** "Sarn!" the lookout called down from the main topmast, his dizzy perch allowing him to see nine miles ahead of the Astarte. "A brief overnight stop and we shall be on our way," Darla- nis "smiled", Sharon nodding as she stood there against the rail. The Empress would take with her to Trella the child who someday would be known as "Domino Tremaine", the last Leaderess of 21st Century Earth. Darlanis wondered to herself about such things. The "mysteries" of time travel were beyond "understanding" in her eyes. The "fact" that she had held a child whose adult "remains" she would bury before the baby's birth were only another mystery. And if "people" like Bob and Carol could travel back and forth through time, why not others, the Empress mused to herself then? "The `world' is no longer the `same' now," Sharon smiled. "Once I thought I `knew' it `all'," Darlanis smiled back. "Now I doubt that any of us, including even Tais, really `know'." "You must have been a beautiful little girl," Sharon said, "admiring" the little blonde haired blue eyed girl sitting in her "mother's" lap, Darlanis being her "biological mother" if not her actual "physical" mother. Here in the 26th Century such things were not unknown, although they were not generally very "common". "She `is'," Darlanis spoke, giving Sharon a smile in reply. Darlanis had named the little girl "Artemis" shortly after her birth there in Nevada territory, her mother as noted having been the slave girl "Pussycat", who we've "met" in an earlier story... "Artemis" being one of the "names" by which LYS was known by.* * Primitive man worshiped a "Goddess", as is now known. (J.B.) "How `old' was Domino Tremaine when she died?" Sharon asked. "No one `knows'," Darlanis answered, recalling that Bob had once claimed that he and Carol met the woman in the 20th Century. As they had done so in 1990, and their description was that of an adult woman appearing to be in her thirties at least, there was no way of really telling just "old" Domino Tremaine had been! "And if Bob Simmons was `right', then nothing makes `sense' as she could not have lived as long as she did without `aging'," the Empress explained, it being known that the anti-aging serums were an invention of the 21st Century some years before its own "end". "We don't `know' that much about Martian technology, or that of the Priestesses of Lys," Sharon "pointed out" to the Empress, Darlanis "aware" from her own experience that the Priestesses of Lys possessed a "technology" far in advance of the rest of Man- kind, one even superior in many ways to that of the Lorr too... It was quite possible then that they might possess a more "ad- vanced" version of the anti-aging serums than did Mankind in gen- eral. It being often "rumored" that the Priestesses themselves had a much "longer" life span than did ordinary humans commonly. "I fear these are `questions' for which we will never know the `answer'," Darlanis smiled back, cuddling the little blonde haired girl who had been formed from one of her own royal ovums. 2569 A.D.! THE DULARNIAN QUEEN AN ADVENTURE IN THE SECOND DARK AGE OF MAN By Jerome B. Bigge Chapter Fifty Two "The `Queen of Dularn' is `good' in bed," Paul said, holding me. "She is also as `talented' as any slave girl," he added too! "There is a `knock' at the door," I interrupted him then. I barked an order to "enter", Karis stepping in, her eyes missing little, I supposed. Her opinion just then mattered little to me! During the voyage her hair had grown out a bit, leaving little doubt either as to what her true hair color actually was now too! "The storm seems to be letting up a bit, your majesty," she spoke, her eyes, almost the color of mine, now meeting my own. "I will come up shortly," I answered, dismissing her. "I plan to `use' the last of this wind to our advantage," I spoke, Karis Valdis nodding along with Diane Wells, who I think had also "found" herself out here on this voyage. I would need a bit of jib showing to bring the ship hard about, I told them. "Waves are still pretty big," Paul muttered softly then. "Have `confidence' in your wife," I grinned back at him. Part of my "reputation" as a captain is due to the fact that I insist upon a level of "seamanship" from my officers and crew that is generally unknown on most vessels. I do not "tolerate" the least bit of "slackness", or hesitation in obeying "orders". It is noteworthy here that Lorraine maintains the same standards on her own flagship, which is perhaps "why" she is what she is... On the other hand I don't insist on the "division" between offi- cers and "crew" that the Imperials do. I didn't envy Karis up there at the bow, or those with her, nor those now at the cap- stans drawing up the twin sea anchors under Diane's eye as the bow of the ship was still disappearing from time to time in the waves, the wind still driving the spray the length of the ship! "I will take the wheel," I spoke to the helmsman, who stepped back from the wheel, his eyes meeting mine for a moment. My hands taking the spokes, the ship like a living thing beneath my feet. "Don't let me down, old girl," I whispered to her then. ***************************************************************** "I still feel `guilty' for having `left' Maris out there," Darlanis ventured as she and Sharon shared their evening meal to- gether in the nicely furnished stern cabin of the lovely Astarte. "The Astarte could make it to Japan," Sharon smiled back. "With Lorraine as `captain'," the Empress grinned back. "My stepmother does have certain `talents'," Sharon agreed. ***************************************************************** "Was a bit `hairy' there for a moment," Paul said to me. A great wave had struck the North Star as she came about, tilting the ship over almost past "the point of no return", the starboard railing having been driven right under the surface of the sea... I remembered the terrified looks on the faces of the crew and that of Danny's as they clung to stays and anything else to keep from being thrown into the sea! I wondered how my own face had looked then? For an instant I had feared we would go completely over, only our lack of top masts having lightened the "top ham- per" of the ship enough that she came back up to an even keel!!! "`Maris Marn' got a bit `reckless'," I smiled, seeing him nod back. Now we were racing along, our sails hard with the wind as we headed towards the southeast, the wind and waves still be- ing a bit too hard for us to sail directly towards the east yet. It had been my own "over confidence" in my "abilities" at seaman- ship that had nearly gotten us all killed, I mused to myself... "My wife is `human'," my husband smiled back at me. "And sometimes `overconfident'," I added in a smile. "Come to due east," I snapped, the first officer barking out her commands as the crew dashed to reset the sails. We were, I calculated, almost parallel now to Dularn in latitude, although just how "far" to the west in longitude I had no way of knowing. "And just remember that not even your Queen is `infallible'," I then added, seeing her nod. I had been "careless" yesterday, in a way that could have resulted in the deaths of all of us. Too confident in my own abilities, in what I could do with the ship! "Only LYS is `infallible'," Karis smiled back at me then. "That jib needs to be `let out' a bit," I smiled back. ***************************************************************** "Do you `miss' Dularn?" Princess Tara asked, Mara nodding. Life was pleasant here in Mexico with the Princess, but she missed her northern homeland, that island off the coast of North America where she had been born, lived out her childhood years... "This is not my `land'," the Dularnian girl answered softly. "I am a `wanted criminal'..," Tara breathed out, her horri- bly scarred face "proof" of the weapon used by the Priestesses. "You said you have a `machine'," Mara answered, meeting the darkness of the former Bajan Princess' eyes as she stood there... "The one surviving electronic hypnosis machine," Tara spoke. Centuries old, but those of the 21st Century had built well too. Hidden away now where not even the Priestesses could find it in a cave off the sea, a few miles from La Paz, the capital of Baja. "I suppose it is `time' that I put it to use," she said to Mara. "Does it `hurt'?" Mara asked nervously, looking at Tara. "No," Tara answered, giving her a smile in reply then. ***************************************************************** "Everything looks `good'," I said, completing my inspection of the ship. While I had a good crew, officers, it is often wise for the captain upon occasion to make "inspections" of her own... We still had ample supplies of water, and our food was holding up well against the damp, the mold, and everything else that bothers the sailor at sea. I had not seen many rats, our two cats having done a good job of keeping them in check. The North Star still seemed as "sound" as the day she was first launched in 2565 there in the late fall, with Darl Jord standing there at my side when I broke the bottle of wine there against her bow so long ago now... Although there had been and are other "Norths", there has been, at least in my own eyes, only one ship that I have ever "loved". "The old girl's still pretty `ship shape'," Karis smiled. "And she shall be `kept' that way," I smiled back at her. ***************************************************************** "Sarn!" the lookout called down from the main topmast, his dizzy perch allowing him to see nine miles ahead of the Astarte. "A brief overnight stop and we shall be on our way," Darla- nis "smiled", Sharon nodding as she stood there against the rail. The Empress would take with her to Trella the child who someday would be known as "Domino Tremaine", the last Leaderess of 21st Century Earth. Darlanis wondered to herself about such things. The "mysteries" of time travel were beyond "understanding" in her eyes. The "fact" that she had held a child whose adult "remains" she would bury before the baby's birth were only another mystery. And if "people" like Bob and Carol could travel back and forth through time, why not others, the Empress mused to herself then? "The `world' is no longer the `same' now," Sharon smiled. "Once I thought I `knew' it `all'," Darlanis smiled back. "Now I doubt that any of us, including even Tais, really `know'." "You must have been a beautiful little girl," Sharon said, "admiring" the little blonde haired blue eyed girl sitting in her "mother's" lap, Darlanis being her "biological mother" if not her actual "physical" mother. Here in the 26th Century such things were not unknown, although they were not generally very "common". "She `is'," Darlanis spoke, giving Sharon a smile in reply. Darlanis had named the little girl "Artemis" shortly after her birth there in Nevada territory, her mother as noted having been the slave girl "Pussycat", who we've "met" in an earlier story... "Artemis" being one of the "names" by which LYS was known by.* * Primitive man worshiped a "Goddess", as is now known. (J.B.) "How `old' was Domino Tremaine when she died?" Sharon asked. "No one `knows'," Darlanis answered, recalling that Bob had once claimed that he and Carol met the woman in the 20th Century. As they had done so in 1990, and their description was that of an adult woman appearing to be in her thirties at least, there was no way of really telling just "old" Domino Tremaine had been! "And if Bob Simmons was `right', then nothing makes `sense' as she could not have lived as long as she did without `aging'," the Empress explained, it being known that the anti-aging serums were an invention of the 21st Century some years before its own "end". "We don't `know' that much about Martian technology, or that of the Priestesses of Lys," Sharon "pointed out" to the Empress, Darlanis "aware" from her own experience that the Priestesses of Lys possessed a "technology" far in advance of the rest of Man- kind, one even superior in many ways to that of the Lorr too... It was quite possible then that they might possess a more "ad- vanced" version of the anti-aging serums than did Mankind in gen- eral. It being often "rumored" that the Priestesses themselves had a much "longer" life span than did ordinary humans commonly. "I fear these are `questions' for which we will never know the `answer'," Darlanis smiled back, cuddling the little blonde haired girl who had been formed from one of her own royal ovums. |
|
|