The Ice Queen of Lessaenes (Book 5)

Journey

The lovely edit on this chapter is by @MagneticMelon.

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I slipped behind rows of various types of aircraft as I crept through the hovercraft hangar, trying not to attract attention. The place was swarming with Ice Guards, wheeling equipment around and repairing hovercrafts, and if any of them recognized me, my plan would be ruined. 

Scanning the hangar, I saw a solitary Ice Guard in the corner, stamping my insignia on a fresh batch of hovercrafts that had just arrived from the factory. Probably a new recruit, they always got the boring jobs. 

Tiptoeing over to him, I tapped him on the shoulder before quickly ducking behind a stack of hovercraft engines. He stood up, looking around confusedly. 

"Over here!" I whispered, quickly waving from my hiding spot. 

"Please make it quick," he sighed. "My captain will have me beaten if he sees me leave my post!"

"Are you so worried about your captain now?" I smirked, letting the hood fall off my head. 

The Ice Guard gasped. "Queen Sa-" 

"Shh!" I hissed. "Not so loud. I am leaving Glaisse, and no one can find out. By that, I mean no one. If you decide to tell someone, I will know, and you will regret it. Do you understand?" 

"Y...yes...Your Majesty," the Ice Guard stuttered, his eyes growing wide with fear. 

"Good. I need a high speed hovercraft without the royal insignia or any other markings. I want it blank, just the way you got it." 

"O...of course," he ran over to rows of brand new hovercrafts, grabbed one from the middle, and lugged it over to where I was standing. Unscrewing the top, he expertly fitted it with its engine and all other missing parts before stepping away. 

"That will be good," I said, glancing down at the hovercraft. "And remember, no one is to find out about this!" 

The Ice Guard continued to stare at me, speechless, as I got into the hovercraft, started it up, and flew out of the gigantic exit hole in the roof, trying to blend in with the groups of Ice Guards entering the city. After I was out of the hangar, I became part of regular Glaisse air traffic. No chance of being discovered there. 

After about twenty minutes of flying, I reached my destination. Arystenn Spaceport. However, it was even more crowded than usual.

Oh great, it was First Day. All the consultants would be flying out to their jobs on Kilaenas and Rhena. My chances of being spotted were almost twice as high. 

It took almost ten minutes, but I finally found an empty spot to park my hovercraft. By the time I was inside the Spaceport, I was very frustrated. I wasn't used to navigating through a crowd, people always made way for me. 

It must really suck to be a commoner. 

There were at least sixteen customer service windows open, but all of them had huge lines. I would be seen for sure. I needed a different plan...

Rushing into the nearest restroom, I entered the last stall. I flipped the toilet seat down and climbed onto it, almost falling off. 

Stupid glittery blue high heels. 

Thankfully, there was no one else in the restroom, so I could proceed with my hasty escape without worry. Reaching out with my right hand, I dug my fingernails into the ceiling and released a small burst of Aura, creating a hole just large for me to squeeze through. 

I shoved my arm into the hole, deepening it, until I finally stuck my head through, beginning a blind crawl through the ceiling of the spaceport. My crude tunnel smelled like burnt wood, and dozens of splinters were pushed into my bare hands as I climbed, but I ignored the pain. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, light began to shine through the top of the hole. 

Grabbing both sides of the tunnel, I pulled myself out onto the roof. One of my legs was stuck under the other for a second, and I winced at the sound of my tulle underskirt tearing. 

Not the best clothing for this. 

As I stood up, I realized I was just where I wanted to be: right above the airfield. Rows and rows of launching pads, some with spaceships and gigantic Aurascreens displaying where they were going, filled the huge, flat expanse. 

Leaping off the roof, I landed gracefully on all fours, running towards a ship with an Aurascreen that read "Wellae, Evergreen Province, Rhena."

Kicking off my high heels, and tucking them under my left shoulder, I began to run towards the shuttle. According to its Aurascreen, it was scheduled to depart in less than five minutes. 

"Boarding ended three minutes ago," the Ice Guard standing in front of the hatch sighed. "You'll have to catch the next ship." 

"I need to get on that ship now!" I fumed, once again removing my hood. 

"What on Lessae-" 

"Be quiet, I'm undercover. You better not tell anyone about me or you both die," I muttered. 

The Ice Guard nodded gravely, looking down at his feet. 

Note from Queen Saralee: The reason he wasn't very scared is I had only been ruling for about three years. People didn't know that I actually follow through with my death threats yet. 

"We only have one seat left...on Tier 3," the Ice Guard gave me a worried look. 

"Tier 3?" I gasped. There was no way I was cramming in the bottom of the ship with all those filthy commoners! "Can't you just kick someone out? I'm the Queen." 

"I would, Your Majesty, but wouldn't that...er...give you away?" 

He was right. 

"Fine," I said coldly, trying to conceal my discomfort and unease as I ducked through the narrow doorway into the ship, climbing down a rickety ladder to the bottom tier. 

It looked and smelled like Glaisse's Lekhone. Instead of seats, there were long, unpadded benches, and they were almost all filled, so it was easy to spot the one empty space in the back. I weaved through aisles of boisterous Rhenans, all packed in like sardines, before finally reaching it. 

Pulling my knees up to my chest, I sat down at the very end of the bench, trying not to think about the repulsive stains that covered both the wooden plank under me and the cloth straps holding me in. 

I started to gain a newfound respect for my friend Raliyel as the bulky Rhenan man to my right began to snore noisily, elbowing me in his sleep. 

I was miserable after a few hours, and she had to live like this for almost seventeen years...Perhaps her idea for a government funded Rhenan Relief and Outreach Program wasn't such a bad idea after all...

Quickly brushing the thought off, I shook my head. The humid air and the stench must've been getting to me, I wasn't thinking straight. 

I was no weakling, to be won over simply by being put in someone else's shoes.

I was a block of ice, with a heart of stone, and nothing in the universe could sway me. 

Well, maybe a certain irritatingly attractive Keeper could. No matter how much I tried to deny it, I knew it was true. 

I never would've agreed to go on this horrid journey for anybody or anything other than Fenorel Soren.