In Service Of The Queen Ch 21

In Service of the Queen

by Davina Lee

An alternative future of women and their adventures

*

Author's Note

The end of the last chapter left Adelaide with a bit of a shock. First, on her way home, she runs into Group Captain Thorne at the downtown rail hub. Remember friends, this is the woman who always hits on Adelaide any chance she gets, and is not a welcome site, particularly after the day Adelaide had onboard Elysium.

Then, on top of her usually needling and innuendo, Thorne calls Adelaide out for smelling of marijuana. Finally, with Adelaide at her wit's end, Thorne, in no uncertain terms, informs Adelaide she knows of her involvement in the resistance.

But to confuse things even more, Thorne makes no further accusations and even offers to escort Adelaide so she won't be hassled at the military checkpoints on her way home.

Is this the same Group Captain Thorne we've come to loathe? What's going on, friends?

* * *

Chapter 21: A New Perspective

Adelaide stood at the kitchen counter, switching her hips and humming a little tune as she poured herself a cup of coffee. Still barefoot and fresh from the shower, the hem of her trousers dragged and swished on the kitchen floor as she moved, and her dripping hair painted temporary dark spots on her white cotton camisole.

"Addie?" Vivienne padded in, still rubbing sleep from her eyes and bundled in her terrycloth robe.

"Oh, hey, Viv." Adelaide swooped in to plant a quick peck on Vivienne's cheek. "Want some coffee?"

Vivienne stood fast. "Addie, are you okay?"

"Hmm?" Adelaide mumbled as she reached into the cupboard for a second mug. "Mm-hmm. Yeah, I'm good."

"It's Saturday."

"Yep." Adelaide set the mug on the counter and filled it a couple centimeters shy of the rim before pushing it over to Vivienne.

Vivienne stared at the steaming mug, saying nothing.

"Sorry," said Adelaide, twirling around Vivienne and heading to the refrigerator, "did I not leave enough room for cream?"

"Addie, it's Saturday."

"Yeah, we already covered that." Adelaide dropped a splash of cream in her own mug and set the carton on the counter in front of where Vivienne stood. "Have some coffee," said Adelaide, "your brain'll work better."

"You're dressed for work."

Adelaide picked up her mug and took a tentative sip. "Ooh, careful though. It's still pretty hot."

"Addie, it's Saturday and you're dressed for work."

"Yeah. No," said Adelaide, cradling her mug in her hands and blowing across the top. "I mean, it's Saturday, yes. And I am dressed for work. That's true."

Adelaide took a sip while Vivienne stood watching and saying nothing.

"But I'm not going to work," said Adelaide. "Well, not for the queen, anyway. Not today."

Vivienne picked up the carton of cream and managed to pour a bit into her mug without taking her eyes off Adelaide.

"I'm doing some work for Thorne. On the side." Adelaide took another small sip from her mug. "We have a breakfast meeting."

"Group Captain Thorne," said Vivienne matter-of-factly.

"Mm-hmm."

"That woman from the café?"

Adelaide held her lower lip in her teeth as she nodded.

Vivienne spun around without uttering another word. She faced the counter while Adelaide stood holding her breath.

"Well," said Vivienne, thrusting out a croissant as she turned to face Adelaide once again, "you should put something in your tummy besides coffee. I'm assuming the trolley's still out of service and you'll be walking to wherever it is you're going."

"You're... you're not going tell me what a bad idea it is to meet with her and spend the next thirty minutes trying to talk me out of it?"

"You're a big girl, Addie," Vivienne said, as she placed the croissant in Adelaide's hand and clasped Adelaide with both hands to close Adelaide's fingers around the croissant. "I'm sure you've thought this through."

"I... um... thanks for the croissant, Viv. And the vote of confidence."

"Try not to get crumbs on that nice top," said Vivienne, picking up her mug and shuffling out of the kitchen and into the hall. "And if you're looking for your shoes, they're in the front closet. I got tired of tripping over them."

"Um, sorry."

"I'll probably be at the café when you get home," said Vivienne, hollering down the hall as she turned the corner into the bathroom. "Stop by if you get hungry."

"Okay," said Adelaide.

The bathroom door clicked shut and Adelaide stood staring at the apartment's front door.

* * *

Air Self Defense headquarters, thirty minutes later

"There you are," said Thorne, sitting on the edge of her desk and drumming the fingers of her right hand on her knee. "I was beginning to wonder."

"It's a good thing I've had coffee," said Adelaide.

"Meaning?" offered Thorne as she stood up.

"Meaning, I started my day optimistic about this meeting after the things you told me last night. Now you're back to your usual self. It's still too early to deal with your bullsh--"

"You're awfully bold this morning," said Thorne.

"Sorry, I..."

Thorne smirked. "No, you're right. Sometimes I lay it on a bit thick."

"Sometimes?" Adelaide managed to keep a straight face for a few seconds before breaking into an impish grin herself.

"What do you say we start over?" suggested Thorne. "Would that be alright?"

Adelaide nodded. "I guess."

"She guesses." Thorne shook her head for a moment before sticking her elbow out in Adelaide's direction. "I only gave you the high-level stuff the other night. Come on, I'll explain the rest over breakfast."

Adelaide took a look at Thorne's elbow, pushed out to her side waiting for Adelaide to latch on, and curled her lip. "Seriously?"

"What?" said Thorne.

"The

take my arm

thing. You don't think... Hey! This better not be an overly elaborate plan to get me out on a date. Because you've already tried--"

"It's not a date, I assure you."

"Hmph. I'm not sure if I should be reassured or offended." Adelaide frowned as she said it. "Last night you told me this was about... you know..."

"La Résistance?" whispered Thorne.

Adelaide nodded. "Yeah."

"You're not very good at this, are you?"

"Alright, offended it is then," grumbled Adelaide. "Thanks for clearing that up for me."

"Let's go for a walk."

"Still trying for that date?"

Group Captain Thorne pushed her elbow out one more time, and when Adelaide once again refused to take it, Thorne put one foot in front of the other and strode for the door.

* * *

Outside the Air Defense Force administration building

"Wait up," said Adelaide as she hustled along behind Thorne. "Why are you being such a--"

The roar of a dirigible with its props feathered to idle drown out Adelaide's remaining words.

"It's my persona," said Thorne, still striding ahead and not bothering to look at Adelaide as she spoke. "It's what people have come to expect from me. A career obsessed officer with a soft spot for the latest pretty young thing to come through her revolving door wearing a short skirt. Or in your case, an attractive bespoke suit."

Adelaide blew out a noisy sigh, her heels clacking on the sidewalk as she caught up to match Thorne's pace.

"It's kind of like you," continued Thorne. "Getting all dressed up and pretending to be an accountant, all so you can get close to the queen and impress your merry little group of partisans."

"My what...?" Adelaide frowned. "Merry group of... Listen, I'm happy with my career path. I'll have you know I enrolled in accounting school before all this business started. I like accounting!"

Thorne stopped short, standing in the middle of the sidewalk to face Adelaide. "And I love the military, Friend Adelaide. I believe in the dream of Empyrea. I have respect and love for Empyrea's citizens. All Empyrea's citizens. And I would lay down my life to protect them."

Adelaide raised her eyes to Thorne, staring with her mouth agape. Behind her, a tender dirigible was settling toward its mooring.

"But you see me as a skirt chaser, climbing the ladder through the ranks, as I add notches to my bedpost. Isn't that right?"

"Well..." said Adelaide.

"Good. That's what I'm projecting." Thorne turned to face forward again and began walking, though at a pace slightly less rapid than what it was before. The tender dirigible in the distance was paying out its mooring line.

Adelaide grumbled as she hustled to catch up.

"Who do you think the queen fears, friend?" asked Thorne.

"Um, well..."

"La Résistance?" Thorne raised an eyebrow as she said it, though she continued looking straight ahead, not meeting Adelaide's gaze while waiting for a reply.

"Yeah," Adelaide said, finally.

"Let me put the cookies on the bottom shelf for you, friend," said Thorne. "Given the choice between La Résistance and her own military, who do you think the queen fears?"

"Well, I mean..."

"Who has the trained soldiers? Who has the dirigible fleet? The angel pilots? The officers, many of whom hold allegiance to Empyrea herself and not that woman floating overhead in Ellysium?"

"Um, well..."

Behind Adelaide, two women in Air Self-Defense jumpsuits ran out onto the field to take the mooring line in their grasp.

"I'd lay fifty-fifty odds the queen knows all about La Résistance and has the names of its top leadership."

"What? How?"

"Whether or not she knows your part in it, I'm not sure yet. I'm betting she doesn't. Or if she does, she has such a low opinion of your spycraft that she may not care."

The women holding the dirigible's mooring line pulled together as one, dragging the end of the line to the mooring tower to secure it on the winch. The dirigible cut its engines.

"And there you go insulting me again," grumbled Adelaide.

"Listen," said Thorne. "I like you. And before you even say it, no, this is not another attempt to get you on a date. I know you've got a girlfriend. Can't say I'm fond of her taste in music, but as a person she seems okay. She cares for you.

"And the others from the youth hostel. Empyrea was a better place when they were here. This situation with the queen. This mess we're in. It's been brewing for a long time."

Adelaide shook her head.

"What?" said Thorne.

"I don't understand you. I don't understand you at all."

"I'm trying to open up to you Friend Adelaide. It's taken me a long time to decide if I trusted you enough to do this. Please don't prove me wrong."

After the women at the mooring tower checked and rechecked the cable, the pair split up. One of them moved to the controls and moved the lever to activate the winch while the other kept her eyes on the dirigible being tugged ever closer.

Adelaide paid no mind to the dirigible being pulled in. Her gaze was focused on Thorne. "Why?" said Adelaide.

"Because you have access to the queen. As much as I hate to admit it, you've done something in a week that I've been trying to do for years."

"Get close to the queen?"

Thorne nodded.

"Aren't you...? Don't you have cabinet meetings or something? I'd think given your rank--"

"Of course. It's all very formal and regimented. Nothing is ever said that's not meant to be said."

"You're looking for someone on the inside."

Again, Thorne nodded. "I'm not the only one chasing skirts around Empyrea. It's just easier on the ground than having you harem shipped up in a tender. But then again... captive audience."

Adelaide chuckled briefly. "Tell me about it. That woman is pervy as... well, skirt chaser is just the beginning."

Behind where Adelaide and Thorne stood, eye to eye, the tender dirigible had been mated to its mooring mast and the two women on the ground were now opening the gate that secured the stairway.

"Gisella's been trying to catch her eye for months. Everyday she'd put on one of the slinkiest dresses from Suzuka's shop and take her place in the office pool queue. Finally, she got noticed. But she never made it past the supervisor's interview."

"Gisella?" said Adelaide. "Your girlfriend? She's with the... um... La Résistance?"

"Girlfriend is a strong word," said Thorne. "And we refer to it as

the realignment

. It's a realignment to the values that made Empyrea the utopia it is. Or was."

"You really are a skirt chaser. It's not an act."

"Huh?" Thorne stared. "I just told you--"

"Girlfriend is a strong word," Adelaide repeated, while shaking her head. "That's what you said. Do you have any respect for her at all?"

"Oh," said Thorne. "Oh, that. Listen, we should keep walking so we don't arouse suspicion. And keep your voice down now that the dirigible's shut off its engines. Here, take my arm."

"No," said Adelaide, planting her feet.

"Don't be such a child."

"Don't be such a womanizing piece of... I don't know what."

At the dirigible mooring, the passengers were beginning to disembark, coming down the stairs onto the airfield.

"She's my colleague, Friend Adelaide. Gisella and I have know each other on and off for years." Group Captain Thorne stuck her elbow out in Adelaide's direction again. "Now take my arm. We're not the only ones here at the airfield. And people are walking this way. We don't want to stand out."

"We'll fit right in. Isn't it obvious? We're having a lover's tiff."

Thorne blew out a breath. "You're impossible."

"See what I mean?" said Adelaide. "A tiff."

"This was a bad idea."

"Tell me about it."

A group of three young women in short skirts passed through the gate at the perimeter of the landing field and turned the corner onto the sidewalk. Their heels clicked out time as they walked in unison toward where Adelaide stood staring down Group Captain Thorne.

Thorne cast a quick eye toward the trio before turning back to Adelaide. "Friend Adelaide," she said. "You're not going to like this, but..."

"But what?" said Adelaide, just before Group Captain Thorne wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her in for a kiss, hard on the mouth.

Adelaide lurched from Thorne's grip and in a blur of movement, slapped her across the face. "For friend's sake," exclaimed Adelaide. "I've got a girlfriend. And so do you, whether you care to admit it or not!"

The three approaching women giggled under their breath and stole glances at Thorne and Adelaide as they passed by.

"Sorry," said Thorne, when they were gone.

"What was that!" hissed Adelaide.

"My persona."

"Your..." Adelaide paused, holding her lip in her teeth for a moment. "And I just played into it, didn't I?"

"You were brilliant," said Thorne, rubbing her cheek where Adelaide had slapped her.

"Oh, dear," said Adelaide. "I shouldn't have--"

"No," said Thorne. "It was perfect. Those three will be whispering to each other about the, uh, what did you call it earlier? Lover's tiff? They'll be whispering and gossiping about the Air Defense Force officer and her office pool girl who are stepping out on their respective lovers for a Saturday morning rendezvous. They'll get home and tell a friend or roommate."

"And we'll be the latest gossip around town."

"As hot headed lovers, yes," said Thorne. "As partners in a revolution? No. That's not what they'll remember. Not after that slap."

"Look," said Adelaide, "I'm really sorry about that. I've never... You have to believe me."

"Friend Adelaide. Don't apologize. I was the one who kissed you without your consent."

"Yeah, you did."

Thorne leaned in. "How much longer are we playing this lover's tiff?" she asked.

Adelaide grinned. "Where are we going anyway? The trolley's still out so wherever it is, I suppose we're walking."

"The officer's club. It's on base. Not far. No need to worry about any more schlepping around in those heels."

Adelaide cast her eyes to the sidewalk, momentarily peering at the toes of her pumps. As she looked back up, Group Captain Thorne was standing with her arm again pushed out toward Adelaide. And after meeting Thorne's gaze for a moment, Adelaide offered a shrug and slipped her hand into the crook of Thorne's elbow.

Thorne began walking, matching her pace to Adelaide's beside her.

"Sounds fancy," said Adelaide, leaning in to rest her head against Thorne's shoulder. "A club. I've never been to a club before."

"It's a safe place," said Thorne, as she continued with Adelaide at her side. "Lots of like-minded people. No need to hide in the shadows. But, I'd advise we keep our sensitive conversations at a low whisper nonetheless."

"Conversations about..." Adelaide lowered her voice. "La Résistance?"

"Realignment," said Thorne.

"The words don't matter so much," said Adelaide. "We both want the same thing."

"That we do, friend. That we do."

* * *

Afterword

Not the longest chapter in this saga, but oh, what a twist? Tell me? Did you see that coming, because I sure didn't. It sounds cliché, but sometimes the characters take on a life of their own. This is one of those cases.

Way back in Chapter 12, an anonymous person commented, "Now I'm hoping somehow Cordelia can come to the rescue, and maybe that butch angel pilot [Thorne] that likes Adelaide will help." I hadn't planned that. Not at all. But the more time I spent thinking about it, the better it sounded.

I'm hoping you'll agree.

The players are assembled. Friend Cosette leading La Résistance. Thorne and her fellow officers making plans for Empyrea's "realignment". Friends Vivienne, Beatrice, and Rebecca, the librarian with a penchant for revolution, all offering support. And let's not forget Tiara's bandmates and their off-grid farmhouse. It's coming together, friends.

And they've got their work cut out for them. There's a revolution to stage. Plans for a doomsday weapon that need to be thwarted. And a crumbling utopian society that needs rebuilding. Not to mention, a certain dirigible that needs to be permanently grounded.

See you in the next chapter!