Free The Lost Prince by Saxon Andrew Page A

the position are given titles; their superior skills are what define them as being Royal.”
    Violet thought about it and said, “So I have the title because of my mind?”
    “Among other things.”
    “What other things?”
    “Your extremely fast reflexes, your physical speed, your ability to…”
    “Alright, that’s enough.”
    “Thank you, Your Highness.”
    Violet sighed, “E, please don’t use that honorific.”
    “You’re just like Ian. He doesn’t like it either.”
    “He doesn’t?”
    “No, he’s always preferred to be addressed as a normal citizen.”
    “Why is that?” Violet waited for an answer and said, “E, why is that?”
    “I have to speak for what I sense in myself, but I think he views the Monarchy as a prison sentence.” Violet was surprised at the comment. Then E said, “I’ve never seen him happier than he is here.”
    Ian entered the bridge and said, “What are you two up to.”
    Violet said, “Oh nothing. I’m going to gather some fruit for our stores.”
    “That’s a good idea. I’ll help you. There’s no telling when we can go back to the Union.”
    E said, “I have discovered something that might help us do that?”
    Ian looked at Violet and then said, “What is that?”
    “The second ship did not have a faster-than-light drive.”
    “What!?!”
    “It used another process that went around light speed.”
    Ian sat down and Violet remained standing. “What did it do?”
    “It used a system that exited space and took the ship to another location instantly.”
    “Something like those ancient warp drives they used to use in old science fiction stories?”
    “Something like that. I’m not clear on the principles that make it work but I do know how to operate the system.” Violet sat down.
    “How does that help us?”
    “There is a small box on that ship that controls the system. I suspect it’s located toward the rear of that ship.”
    “I’ve seen it. It had a small vibration when I touched it.”
    “That box can be relocated here and I think I can use it to bypass the Nebula’s patterns.”
    “How could we connect it? There’s no way we could move the controls off the ship.”
    “You won’t need to move the controls. I’ve traced the circuits and know how to send the right signals to it. We just need to bring it here, power it up, and connect a fifty wire cable to it. I’ll make the connections to the cable once you put it in one of my outlets.”
    Ian looked at Violet and saw she was bothered by what she was hearing. Ian said, “Do you know the voltage requirements?”
    “Oh please. That’s easy.”
    “How can we move that box here? It’s got to be heavy.”
    “Use the sled. You can winch it on and bring it here.”
    “Let me go back and take a look at it.”
    “Take the sled with you.”
    • • •
    Ian and Violet pulled the sled out of the landing bay and moved toward the alien ship. “What’s wrong Violet?”
    “I don’t want to leave here. This is the first time I’ve been happy in years.”
    Ian stopped walking and turned to her. “Violet, if we don’t warn the Union about these aliens, it could lead to future disaster.”
    “Let someone else do it.”
    Ian stared at her and took her in his arms. “It’s not this place that brings us happiness. It’s being together.”
    “If you go back, I’ll lose you.”
    Ian leaned back and looked in her eyes. “Now Violet, you know how to stop that.”
    “What do you mean!?!”
    “You’ve escaped once. You can show me how it’s done.”
    She looked in his eyes. “Ian, you have no choice but to do your duty.”
    “I’ll not do it without you.” She stared into his face and he said, “I mean it.”
    Violet sighed and said, “Well, let’s get on with it.”
    Ian pulled her close and said, “In a minute.”
    • • •
    E listened to their conversation and knew that the most closely monitored people in the Union were the Royal Family. Escaping from that particular cage was next