Page 4 of Star Prince

She could stay as she was and be safe. Ché Vedla was considered by many to be one of the most promising young princes of her generation. With him she would look forward to a luxurious—but anonymous—existence as a powerful man’s wife. But if she left the palace, she would face the unknown head-on.

She thought of her aunt from Earth. “Too many people never go after what they truly want out of life,” Jas once told her. When Tee’ah had asked why not, Jas had replied, “Because it’s easier not to.”

Only now did Tee’ah truly understand what heraunt meant. The paths forged on one’s own were the most difficult to travel. If she tried to make her own way, she might fail, spectacularly so, and hurt those she loved in the process. Or she might achieve everything of which she had dreamed. But if she stayed here, she would never find out, would she?

She walked away from the window. Wrung her hands. Walked back.

Outside, ocher plains stretched to the distant, gently bowed horizon, now smudged by blowing dust. TheTjhu’nami.When the dangerous winds arrived, no one would attempt flights in or out of Dar City. What if she were to leave tonight? Steal a star-speeder. Palace security wouldn’t risk going after her until the gale subsided to a safe level. Leaving just before the storm hit would give her a full standard day’s head start, would it not?

She wrung her hands harder. The plan was too rushed. She needed more time to think it over. There would be another storm later in the season. But if she were forbidden to fly, her piloting skills would have deteriorated by then, reducing her chances of success.

She dropped her hands. If she was going to leave, it had to be tonight—ifshe could find a starspeeder andifthe confusion of theTjhu’namiindeed cloaked her departure.

So many “ifs.” Doubt swamped her.

Her family didn’t deserve the pain her sudden departure would bring them. But if she stayed on in aculture that treated her as if she had no free will, no control over her destiny, nochoices,she would soon be as dry and empty as a seed husk in the autumn winds. Her body would live to a ripe old age, yes, but her spirit would be dead long before that.

Go.Follow your dreams.Yes, before they were lost to her forever. Her blood surged. This time when she turned away from the window, it was to gather the items she needed to facilitate her escape.

Chapter Two

Tee’ah usedthe waning hours before the storm to work on the mechanics of her plan. She packed a small satchel with credits to use for purchasing items. For clothing, she borrowed a few shirts and pairs of pants from her brother, taken from his quarters after she was sure he and his family had left for the dining hall. She requisitioned his plasma pistol too. He wouldn’t mind, she reasoned, once he realized she would need the weapon for protection. The letter she wrote her parents—a heartbreaking task—would not appear on their private comm channel until after she was gone.

The familiar sound of falling shields, thunderous explosions rumbling through the palace, signaled the imminent approach of theTjhu’nami.Designed as protection against the storm, the clear barriers slammed shut automatically over all windows when the wind reached a predetermined velocity. Whenthe last of the shields’ resounding booms faded, Tee’ah opened her bedroom door. She yanked the bill of her cargo pilot cap over her forehead and peered into a suddenly silent, deserted corridor. The ragged tufts tickling her jaw were all that remained after chopping off her thick, thigh-length hair.

The wind bombarded the shields, harder now. Her ears popped with the oscillating atmospheric pressure.

She clutched the doorjamb, unable to force herself forward—or back—caught between her future and her past, between a crazy wish and common sense. Her uneven breathing became a roar in her ears, amplifying her self-doubt, threatening her resolve. But if she wanted to escape to freedom and independence, she would have to overcome her childish fears, starting with her terror of the storm.

Go.She grabbed her satchel and propelled herself into a full-fledged run through a labyrinth of white polished-stone corridors she knew by heart. Her cargo pilot coverall allowed her a freedom of movement she never experienced in the ankle-length gowns she had worn all her life. Her lungs burned, her legs tightened, but the exertion brought her joy, as if her body were a fresh-from-the-shipyard starship experiencing light speed for the first time.

She skidded to a brisk walk as she entered the mezzanine of Mistraal’s spaceport. Cool, dry air and the resonance of the enormous chamber snapped her into instant alertness. From under her pilot cap,she gazed at the dust-glazed sky reflected in an immense but graceful passenger shuttle, newly arrived from the orbital space-city, and packed with hundreds of passengers eager to arrive before the storm.

Slashes of early-evening sunlight fanned over the marble floor, illuminating the travelers exiting the shuttle.Great Mother.She recognized half the people milling about—palace staff and workers…and several members of her father’s Security Council.

Praying she looked nothing like a princess, she rolled her shoulders back, swinging her arms in the cocky, casual stride used by the intersystem cargo pilots she always admired. And envied. Perspiration trickled down one cheek. Her flight suit clung to her damp skin as she pushed forward against the tide of travelers.

Faster. You must launch before the storm hits.

Eyes downcast, she left the mezzanine behind, walking as swiftly as she could without actually running. A locked door separated the shuttle bay from the passenger area. She shoved her left palm into a hand reader. The receptacle beeped and displayed ACCESS DENIED.

She steadied herself with a deep breath and again wedged her hand into the reader. STAND BY. An amber light blinked while the unit attempted to reconcile her sweaty, tense palm with what it “thought” her hand was supposed to look like.

Heartbeats ticked by. Tee’ah swore under her breath.

CHECKING…CHECKING…

You’ll never see your family again.Heavens, she loved her parents, her brothers, their wives and children. If she ran away she would cause them untold pain and worry. The muscles in her arm contracted and her fingers stiffened.

CHECKING…CHECKING…

She forcibly relaxed her hand, tamping down on her upsurge of guilt. She had to keep her mind clear, her thoughts rational. She mustn’t allow regret to distract her.

VERIFICATION COMPLETED.

The door slid open. Her breath hissed out. She dashed into the vast hangar, her boots thudding against the silver alloy flooring in lonely echoes. The area where the starspeeders were docked was predictably deserted. When she accessed the computer in her bedchamber, she had noted that only gates six and seven were scheduled to have a vessel occupying the bay. One…two…three— she counted the gates as she ran. All were vacant. Her stomach quivered with the unwelcome vision of finding six and seven empty too.

Four…five…There!She gave a silent cheer. The ship she had her eye on was safely docked at bay six to wait out the storm. It was the break she had counted on.

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