Chapter 16: Pressing matters

Amelia felt the shudder of the Trident as it dropped out of the jump, they had most likely arrived at Gawrn Prime. With a huff, Amelia got to her feet and made her way over to the tiny viewport to look at the planet they were rapidly approaching. It was a water world first and foremost, though she could see a large island on the surface, and judging by the course the Trident was taking, they were on their way towards it.

She closed her eyes and took a breath, despite her fear of what was to come she was happy for the distraction, being left with her thoughts had proven… rough. Her mind had continued to think about her recent failures, she had thought about Ina, she had thought about Bubba and she had thought about Watson, the manipulator. Ina had the location to R'lyeh, or at least she could, but now Watson had that information if Ina was tricked and gave it up.

Her hands balled into fists, she needed to find her. She needed the watch. She needed to get word to the council. She needed… Amelia scoffed, she needed a lot of things.

There was a knock on the door, which saved her from her endless thoughts, "C-come in."

The metal door moved upwards and allowed the commander of the Trident, Gawr Gura to enter her cell, behind her Amelia could see two guards flanking the doorway before the door slid back down. The blonde then turned her gaze to the commander, who had crossed her arms over her chest, and frowned, "We've arrived at Gawrn Prime."

"You don't sound happy about that," Amelia said.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm happy to be back, but there are some questions I have for you before we land," Gura said, "First off, what's your name, your real name."

"I told you-"

"I'm not stupid," Gura's frown deepened, "I know that Watoto is not your real name."

The blonde frowned, this could be bad. If she remembered her history right her grandfather had directly fought against Gura, or someone from her family, and had become something of a 'public enemy number one' for Atlantis, with how long Atlanteans lived it would make sense if they held grudges for just as long.

She let out a nervous sigh and rubbed the back of her neck, "My name is Bowson."

Gura studied her for a moment, but then sighed, "Fine, next question, what happened to New Troy?"

"Didn't Bloop tell you?" She frowned, "There was some sort of an explosion, I was too busy fighting off pirates to know what the source of it was."

"But you were at least on the planet at some point right?" Gura had a serious look on her face, but her eyes filled with worry, "Were there civilian casualties?"

Amelia was silent for a moment, why would an Atlantean care about that? Did she care? She shrugged, "When Ina and I were down there we didn't see any civilians, there were signs of fighting but no corpses or blood, it was weird. By the time I got off world the planet had begun to fall apart."

"Who is Ina?"

That question brought a frown to Amelia's lips, "She… she was my partner, we were investigating New Troy, and the Pirates took her after they beat the shit out of me."

"That explains the bruises at least," Gura's frown deepened, "Do you know where they were headed?"

"No," Amelia growled between clenched teeth, "We were just out of orbit, I was outnumbered and trying to disable the one that belonged to the person who took Ina, but before I could, Bloop arrived and I couldn't fight both at once… I surrendered."

"Interesting." Gura said, "Well, until later you'll be held on the island, I'll see what I can do regarding getting you a chance to return or at least look for your partner."

"Thanks," Amelia said, "I guess I follow you now?"

Gura nodded, "Yep, let's go."

Amelia followed the Commander to the airlock next to the entrance to the bridge, vaguely aware of the two Atlantean guards that were tailing them close enough to assist Gura if need be but far enough to give her some semblance of privacy with Gura, were they hoping she'd give more information while she was walking? Well, she wouldn't give them anything that could help guess her identity.

Ahead of her Gura glanced over her shoulder, a small smile present on her face before she moved her gaze back ahead of her and turned the corner, "So, tell me, where did you grow up?"

"I grew up in the Oort Cloud, on the edge of the Sol System," Amelia said, "I learned to pilot from my father while moving cargo between asteroids."

Gura nodded and made her way to an airlock and began to input a code, "What about combat, you mentioned that you were part of the Tempus Spacers Guild, they're fighting against pirates right?"

"The Oort cloud has pirates," Amelia shrugged, "It's kind of par for the course when you live there."

The airlock opened and revealed a tunnel that was most likely used to board and leave the vessel, and the large windows along the edges of the corridor suggested civilian use. At the behest of the guards behind her, Amelia made her way into the corridor and followed their commander toward the main building.

"Gawrn prime is the capital of Gawr space, which contains the nearby star systems which are mainly used for resources," Gura explained, "Since my family name is Gawr, I am a member of the local ruling family, but my father is the Magistrate of Gawrn space."

"Magistrate?" Amelia asked.

Gura glanced over her shoulder, "Think of Magistrate like a local governor, we all answer to the King of New Atlas, known to you as the King of Atlantis. Don't feel bad for not knowing, it's not like the magistrates are seen as nearly important as the King himself, hence why a civilian like yourself wouldn't be as aware as say a planetary official."

"I see."

This system was something Amelia knew decently well, it was similar to how Humanity operated. Space was large and thus, needed decisions made on a much more local area to be efficient and had smaller starzones answering to a local ruler. While Humanity had Governors, the Atlanteans had Magistrates, there were exceptions of course but those were just that, exceptions.

They continued to walk in silence and soon the corridor opened up to a large courtyard with a massive building that sat on a hill. That building was built with brick and stone and had many marble pillars supporting overarching roofs, the only exception to this was in the center where a fountain stood with an entryway into the building behind it. Flanking the fountain on either side was a street where hover trucks brought in cargo in one lane and brought it out, mostly mixed in another.

The Gawrn palace, Beautiful, isn't it?" Gura asked, breaking the silence that had persisted for a while now, "We gather all of the resources the planet produces in one place and divvy them out based on who needs what, though we like to make it look pretty."

Amelia shrugged at the explanation, but couldn't ignore the beauty of the building, "It's like something out of one of those old tourist postcards, it's a little weird to see something like this in person."

Gura chuckled for a moment, "Well be happy, you're the first human to be here since the war, our last visitors were less… peaceful matters?"

Amelia's eyebrows shot up, "Human forces got this far?"

The shark shrugged, "We're basically on the frontier of Atlantean space so the distance isn't that far to cross, it was just that the human admiral had attempted to bombard the planet before being forced to withdraw a week later."

Amelia frowned and glanced at the escorting guards around her, "Well… I'm sorry if anyone here lost anyone close, both sides lost a lot."

One of the guards behind her scoffed, "σαν να το εννοεί πραγματικά."

"Να είσαι καλά Θεάδη," Gura said with a scowl toward the guard who just spoke, "Είναι καλεσμένη μας, συμπεριφερθείτε την ως τέτοια."

The guard straightened their posture and nodded, "ναι διοικητή!"

The shark nodded toward the guard and turned back toward the palace in front of them, "I'm sure you have questions, feel free to ask them."

"The cell you're taking me to isn't a regular one, is it?" Amelia asked immediately.

"No," Gura confirmed with a frown and her usually strict tone was replaced by a lower one, "I got news before we arrived, so instead of a prisoner think of yourself as our guest for the time being."

Amelia raised an eyebrow in question but didn't say anything, she figured she'd be informed sooner than later. The Atlantean guided her through a labyrinth of corridors until she arrived at a bedroom of sorts. It was nothing more than the basics, a bed, dresser, and a small bookshelf with a few dozen books to keep her entertained.

Gura crossed her arms, "This will be your home for the immediate future, once I get everything squared away I'll let you go from our custody." She then let out a sigh, "However, I will have the two guards that have been tailing us watch the doorway, so don't try anything because If we watch you, you'll be put in a cell."

With that the shark turned on her heel and left the room to the blonde, she had business with the court doctor and it couldn't wait.

The halls of the palace proved to be both busy and almost empty at the same time. The majority of people were in the warehouses and taking inventory of what resources they had as well as already planning what they'd send where. As for those in the halls, they were most likely handling more royal decrees or filing important information.

Gura arrived at the door to the royal quarters and put her hand on the doorknob. For a moment she hesitated, what was beyond the door was something she had no desire to see. It was something that many had seen as inevitable after the war, but she wanted it to be untrue.

It seemed life had a different decision.

She took a breath and turned to the doorknob, facing her destiny she entered the room and made her way into his bedroom. There he was, laying in his back veins visible and sickly pale skin. At first glance, it didn't look like he was breathing, but that's what the breathing mask was for. On the opposite side of the bed from her was the doctor, he was a tall and lanky man in a doctor's uniform with tentacles for hair and eyes that glowed yellow as well as fangs that were visible even while he wasn't speaking. He glanced up from his clipboard for a moment, "Ah, princess, nice to see you've arrived."

"You know that I had to be here for this, doc." Gura said, "I would have been here sooner but ran into some trouble on the way back."

The doctor stilled and looked up from his clipboard once more, "Nothing too bad I hope."

She shrugged, "It's not important, the problem will be dealt with sooner than later."

He smiled at Gura before he looked back down at his clipboard for a moment, "It has become readily apparent that your father won't be able to survive any more treatment, if I had to give you a time frame it would probably be within the next few hours at least and tomorrow morning at most."

She huffed and crossed her arms, "I'm guessing the royal decrees are the stuff preparing for me to take the throne?"

The doctor nodded.

She took a breath, "Can you…"

The doctor nodded and made his way to the door, "I'll leave you two alone."

She waited a few moments after she heard the door shut, more to collect her thoughts than anything else. She had been a soldier all her life, she had been a captain during the unification wars and was made commander during the Atlas-Earth War after ambushing and subsequently destroying a major human fleet. Her whole life had been leading troops across the Empire, creating plans and strategies to defeat her enemies. She knows how to handle logistics, so keeping her people fed wouldn't be an issue. It was the political stuff she wasn't sure about, especially with how unpopular Gawrn had become in the royal court if her allies there were right.

She huffed, "Hey Dad…"

"It's… it's your daughter, Gura," She tried to smile, for him, "I remember all those years ago, when you took me out to practice flying… that look on your face when I almost crashed into the battleship."

She chuckled to herself, but it didn't last long, "I don't know If I'm cut out for this." She stared at her father for a moment longer, "But I'll try my best… I'll try and make you proud."

She sat there for a moment longer, but soon took a breath and made her way back to the door, and left. The doctor was waiting patiently outside and smiled when he saw her, it was a kind one. One that a parent used to tell their child they were proud of them. He made his way to her, "Did you say everything you wanted to?"

She nodded.

"Alright then," His smile dropped slightly, "I'll send the word for his body to be cremated with all the traditional ceremonies."

"Thank you, Doc." Gura nodded.

He dismissed it with a wave, but his smile returned, "So, what's this about a human on Gawrn?"

"Follow me and I'll introduce you."

While they walked Gura told the doctor about how she had met Bowson and what she was hoping to gain from her, he barely interrupted, the only times he did were to ask the occasional question about her but there wasn't much to say in the matter. They had only met each other a few days ago and even then Bowson and Gura had only interacted a handful of times, not anywhere close to an actual relationship.

Within a few minutes they arrived at the room the human was being kept in and the soon-to-be ruler of Gawrn knocked before she entered, "Doc, this is Bowson, Bowson this is Doc."

The human nodded and gave a quick wave, Doc replicated the gesture.

"So," Bowson said, her eyes on the doctor, "What's this about?"

"Doc is going to be testing your blood for any radiation or particularly weird anomalies," Gura explained, "Your proximity to New Troy when the incident occurred suggests that you could have been hit with anything and I want to make sure you're in peak condition for what's coming."

Bowson crossed her arms, "Should I be worried about what's coming?"

"Princess Gawr Gura of Gawrn is now Crown-Magistrate Gawr Gura of Gawrn," Doc said, "She will need to travel to New Atlas to be crowned by the King himself and take her rightful place on the throne, but she has told me that there is a reason for you to follow her on this trip."

Bowson turned her gaze to Gura, "I assume this has to do with Captain Bloop?"

"I want you to testify in front of the Royal Assembly," Gura explained, "With your eyewitness reports and my fleets records of encountering his fleet, which wasn't where it should have been, I can score a victory against Bloop and his family while proving myself a strong Magistrate."

Bowson's eyes widened for a moment before she shook her head, "Sorry, it's just weird for me to hear Magistrate speak like that."

The doctor tilted his head, "Really? What would you call a regional leader?"

"Normally a governor or minister," Bowson shrugged, "But let's get back to the task at hand."

"Of course," Gura said, "We'd be sure to pay you for your troubles and let you return to human space afterward."

"Can I choose the payment?" Bowson asked.

Gura glanced at Doc for a moment before she turned back to the blonde, "I… I don't see why not. What did you have in mind?"

"I want to see Edward Watson's watch, which was taken after the Battle of Luna," She gave Gura a small smile, "I want to see it in person."

"That might be tough but I'll see what I can do," Gura sighed, "I assume you have a follow-up?"

"I want you to search for and return my ship, which was lost just out of the orbit of New Troy,"

Bowson said, "I have sentimental value to that ship and want to see it again."

Gura glanced at the doctor for a moment then turned back to the blonde, "I'll need some time, but you got yourself a deal!"

The two shook on it.

Watson took the syringe out of the King's vein and watched as he slowly detached from the world around him and was taken by the high of the concoction, all while a smile pulled at her lips. After a moment he leaned forward and fell asleep atop the many decrees and documents she had just made him sign.

"Just let it take you, your majesty," She said with a comforting smile, "You deserve the rest for all your hard work."

She stayed there for a moment while the King slowly started to fall asleep and only once she was sure he wasn't going to wake up did she get out of her chair. She made her way over to the window and gave a sinister smile to the expansive Atlantean capital city below her, it didn't last long however, she pulled up her hood and took out her watch then took a step backward.

The sight from the window was replaced by a worn chamber, what were the remnants of a bomb shelter, with a dozen chairs and a long table in the center. Sitting around it were Argemen Bloop, Dido, and finally Calliope Mori and Takanashi Kiara, the two representatives of the Tori Migrant Fleet. Those two, in particular, were the newest members of their group and had already been promised a lot, only if they worked with her.

"I see everyone has been able to make it," Watson said with a smile, "Moriarty would be joining us but he's busy backing the interest of Watson Industries in the upcoming elections in the United Nations of Earth."

Dido scoffed but said nothing, as did the other members of the group.

"I want to hear a progress report on your respective missions," Watson said, her gaze turned to Dido, "Why don't you start us off."

"Since we last met my followers, with the help of Bloop and his cargo transports from his territories," She glanced to the shark in question and gave him a thankful nod, "Have begun to move the… specimens into Atlantean space, soon we'll have an army under their nose."

"How soon can they be ready?" Watson asked.

Dido leaned backward into the chair and her signature smirk returned, "All it would take is a signal from me and hundreds will be rampaging through the streets, it will be something the likes of which hasn't been seen in generations!"

Watson nodded and turned toward Bloop, "And as for you?"

"I captured that girl like you demanded and was going to hand her off to the Tori as you asked," He began with a glance to the two newest members, "However, during the boarding action, a Gawrn ship interfered, led by Gawr Gura herself."

That name brought a frown to Watson's lip, "I see."

"Knowing Gura she'll be bringing the girl to Atlas," He smiled, "We can deal with her there if things are timed right," He took a breath and held out a hand toward the two newest members, "If I could use these two-."

"No," Watson spoke and turned toward Calliope and gestured for her to speak.

Dido and Bloop glanced at each other for a split second but didn't dare interrupt. Meanwhile, the phoenix took a breath to calm herself and the Reaper stood up, "I received word from a few friends I have in the underworld, two members of the council had attempted to turn Thanatos to the council's side, they refused."

"Which leads me to my next mission for these two," Watson said, "I have felt the presence of a Council member, their leader Hakos Baelz to be exact, in Atlas."

"You're going to challenge the Harbinger of Chaos?" Bloop's eyes went wide in shock, "Do you have any-"

"I have a plan you idiot," The manipulator rolled her eyes, "It will be a hard fight regardless, but if it works we can launch a strike against the Council itself, with the help of a little owl I have begun to tame."

Bloop crossed his arms and sat back down.

Watson however chuckled, "Soon we will have our chance, the council has had their chance to

find me, that chance is now in the hands of Gawr Gura and out of reach for now," her chuckle turned into a laugh, "Now it's time for me to reveal myself and a few tricks I have under my sleeves."

—-

Time for some notes:

Sorry for the long wait, college has really been kicking my butt but demands my full attention! But I have been working on this nonetheless! Hopefully when summer comes around I'll be able to do more frequent updates.

I was originally wanting to have the governors of Atlantis to be called Tyrants, since in videos I had watched, that was what I had seen as the name for rulers of Greek City States, but I eventually did more research and decided that Magistrate was a better title.

Also, while Atlantis is still based on Greece, I decided to base a lot of the architecture of palaces and more official business on the Minoans, which is a group that we know very little of today! If you want to see more of them I suggest watching the video on the Minoans from Overly Sarcastic Productions who sum it up pretty well!

I have the next few chapters planned out so hopefully they get finished sooner than it took for this one!