Zai and Tim Pt. 03 by BigMadStork,BigMadStork

JoAnn says to her crew, “One percent.”

The ship makes an eerie sound of distress. They’re crushing my ship like a beer can.

Karen sounds distressed, “The force field holding us in position and our ship has been reduced by one percent.”

Mary stands in front of me, “How the fuck do you do this?”

Is she expecting an answer? I can’t talk.

JoAnn asks, “How far must I crush your ship before you stop stressing my princess?”

Mary is irritated, “Fine. I have some passengers for you. Pull along the side and set up a protected walkway. You can take them home; I am taking my ship and leaving them. I don’t need this hassle. You’ve got five minutes, or they’re walking home. Out.”

Mary looks at us but says to Zai, “Leave them restrained until the portal opens. Then I want you to throw them in the walkway. I have had enough of this shit. I want their luggage brought to the portal door. I don’t want their crap with me one minute longer.”

Zai took her time parading the royal party and their luggage to the portal door.

Mary instructs Zai, “Only when the door opens and they’re ready to leave, may you release them. I want a force field between them and me. I don’t want one of their protective yahoos shooting me.”

It’s only a minute before the portal opens, and one of my assassins walks through the door with a pistol in hand.

Mary’s only comment is, “OH fuck,” as a bullet goes through her heart. All of us are released. I help easy Mary’s body to the floor. I still love her.

Carla asks my family, “Are any of you surprised by this?”

Trudy has her mouth hanging open before she says, “How?”

Mom fills in for her daughter quite accurately, I might add, “Don’t you think Tim saw this as a possibility? This one wasn’t so hard to see. She was a mean woman.”

She asks me, “Did Mary ever really have control of the ship?”

I reply, “Oh yes.” I pause. “To a point.” They all grin. “I told Zai to allow Mary to go wild. My jaw was free; I could have talked. I wanted to know her limits. I knew they were monitoring Carla, and I wanted my assassin to kill her rather than me doing it.”

Sally, the assassin, says, “Everyone hated the bitch. Good riddance if you ask me. That is one death that won’t bother me at all. I will clean this up. You all need showers and to get dressed after you eat. Hurry up; you only have two hours before we dock.”

I smile as I say, “Zai, back to the luxury ship. The food was much better.”

I was up for fun in the shower. Carla stopped that idea cold. She needs to have a clear head, not high and distracted by our time in the shower. Yeah, it probably is the best decision.

Chapter 15 — Explaining

The last hour goes smoothly. Several of mom’s warships join us as soon as we exit worm drive. They escort us the last thirty minutes to the space docks. As we leave the ship, there are many people to greet us. Some of mom oldest friends are there for a crying fest. I understand; a lot of their mutual friends are dead.

Behind them is the palace security forces. There are many of them, and they’re off to one side. On the opposite side are many people on their knees, in a classic submissive position. Their hands and ankles are bound. They’re all dressed in trendy and expensive dresses. These women have money. Behind each one of those people is a younger-looking, yet just as well dressed business executive.

Behind that layer are my assassins. They are the largest group, I would guess roughly fifty fit, young women. One of the women steps out in front of the group to make her statement.

Vanessa says loud enough for all to hear, “The first group of executives did almost nothing to cover their tracks; they were easy to discover. Sixty of them died. Sixty more take their place. Forty of them decide to stay with their previous plan. They die; forty more replace them. These twenty-seven didn’t learn a thing. You guessed it, they wanted to stay with the plan. The next twenty-seven are here, so they can learn.”

Vanessa is looking at me, “Do we spare these twenty-seven or make an example of them?”

Mom thought she was making this decision.

She says in a louder than usual voice, so all can hear, “If they were willing to continue to move towards war and have me killed, they need to die. Kill them.”

They don’t move a hair.

I nod my head, and twenty-seven young executives are shot in the back of the head. They drop forward, dead.

I step forward, looking at the twenty-seven young executives that are next in line to lead their corporations, “This is your Queen. How can you casually call for her death and start a war where billions of people will die? Have you people no heart? Do you care so little for the lives of other people? For the next ten years, your companies will be non-profit. If you make money, it all goes to help the poor. Each one of you will volunteer a day a week at a shelter, food kitchen, or free food pantry.”

“I don’t think I need to suggest that you better take this seriously, do I? My guess is that half of you would be dead now if not for this demonstration. Take this as a life lesson. The life you save may well be your own.”

I step back, behind mom.

Mom continues, “You will now spend one week in solitary confinement. I want you to think long and hard about your life and the actions you may or may not have taken.”

Four of the palace security force lead the remaining twenty-seven stunned prisoners away.

I call Vanessa over. She comes over, looking excited. She gets a big hug from me.

I hand her a small data chip, “This is a video I recorded last night. Share it with everyone; it’s my story so far. You all get big bonuses for a job well done. I will be busy here for a while; send a courier if I’m needed.”

Each one hugs me as they leave. Their ship is in the dock, ready to go back home.

The security group escorts us to the palace. They look nervous, like something might pop out. Nothing will; everyone is dead. I like that they’re on edge, though. It means they are on high alert, and we can’t be safe enough.

*****

I thought Monica’s palace was impressive. Mom puts hers to shame. It’s square but tall, with round towers on all four corners and the center of each section between the corners. Each tower on the corners has a cute red sloped pyramid-style roof. The other towers have railings, allowing outdoor access for the royal family. As we get closer, there are acres of flowers in every color, with sculpted bushes around the edges.

The two palaces are similar yet not on par with each other. Inside of the walls is a fairy-tail princess castle. Think of every old ornate castle picture you have seen. Now make it twice as ornate and spectacular. That’s what this palace is like. Even Carla is impressed. There’s even a tiny rain forest of lush gardens of trees and bushes. No grass, but it’s the type of place that feels warm and comforting.

The front entrance is like the old Las Vegas hotels from the ancient past, with bright lights, and it’s all covered to keep the rain and snow out. I mentioned Las Vegas from Ancient Earth. That might seem odd that 2000 years later, we are referencing those times. Each planet is different. Monica’s home planet had a slight green hue to the sky. I didn’t notice it until now. This planet has a perfectly blue sky.

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