The Chronicles of Gaia

Darkness. It is all the Prince knows right now. His thoughts are swimming as he lingers in the state between unconsciousness and consciousness. At first, images. The face of his beloved fiancée, smiling, looking into his eyes, but then she is gone. He can see the King, his father, but he is younger. He looks like he did when the Prince was a child. The same stern look on his face, but lighter somehow. Then he is gone. "What happened?" thinks the Prince, to himself. "Where am I?" "Where is Katherine?"

It's getting louder. The voices, the noise, the screaming, the crying, the sound of explosions in the distance.

The building shakes violently, and then subsides in regular intervals.

Doctor: "Move them over there! Nurse, get me this man's chart!"

The doctor quickly tears the chart from the nurses hand, and flips through it. An astonished look emerges on his face. The Prince was hardly recognizable with the bandages wrapped around his head and the side of his face. But his identification code is unmistakable.

Doctor: Nurse, are there any private rooms available?

An explosion shakes the building and debris falls from the ceiling. More screaming.

Nurse: No, sir. They are all full.

The doctor leans over, and whispers into the nurse's ear.

Doctor: Well, get one ready because this man is none other than Prince Caleb.

The nurse's eyes widen, and her mouth drops a little. She then quickly goes to prepare a room while the doctor takes stock of the Prince's injuries. The nurse comes back after a few minutes.

Nurse: Doctor, the room is ready.

Doctor: Thank you.

The doctor pushes the Prince's bed down the crowded hall to the private room. The hallway is full of dead and dying people, seeking refuge from the attack. Gaia has never known an attack of this magnitude before. The doctor tries not to look at them, as he rolls the Prince's bed into the small dimly lit room. The lights pulse on and off, they have been running on the back up generator for about 8 hours now. It is only a matter of time before the entire hospital is enveloped in darkness. "This must be what hell is like," whispers the doctor to himself.

Prince Caleb slowly sat up in his hospital bed. The royal cabinet, what was left of it anyway, gathered around him as he prepared to speak. His injuries were rather minor considering the devastated state of the royal palace. A deep gash ran its way down his forehead ending at his cheekbone. His arm was in a sling, broken in three places, and apparently the doctors needed to completely reconstruct his left leg. The Prince had never really believed in the healing power of the Gaian jungle, but he did now. Because of the plethora of medical plants available Gaia had some of the best hospitals in the galaxy.
There the cabinet stood. Only four out of the ten cabinet members survived the initial attack. Sergeant Dak Raxter was at the Prince’s left, a crutch in one hand, a holopad in the other. To his left were the Minister of Defense, Alarinus Severan and the Minister of Internal Affairs, Pelaria Aregi. At the Prince’s right stood Baron Manny DeSilvia, interim Lord Protector of the Gaian Kingdom.

Prince Caleb: Gentlemen, I need to know what happened and what we need to do next. Is there anybody here that has that information?”

Sergeant Raxter speaks up.

Sgt. Raxter: Sir, Gaia and at least three of the other colonies were attacked with devastating force. The technology employed by the invaders is something we have never seen before or ever knew even existed until now. Their fleet was massive, our intelligence operatives weren’t even able to get a clear number on how many ships until it was too late.

PC: Why didn’t our sensors pick up an incoming attack?

Alarinus: Majesty, they FTL jumped so close to our atmosphere we had no time to react. Unfortunately, our fleets were immediately disoriented and scattered and stood no chance against the opposing forces.

PC: Who are these people, and why did they attack us?

SR: Sir, we do not know the motives for their attack however, we do know the Commander at the head of the attack is called Sofia.

PC: Sofia? Why does that name sound so familiar? (Blurred images flash across the Prince’s mind)

SR: Sir?

The Prince’s eyes snap back to reality. He is clearly disturbed.

PC: Ladies and gentlemen, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Gaia will not soon forget the great service you have done and are yet to do. You are dismissed. (The cabinet goes to exit the room) Baron DeSilvia please stay a moment.
Baron DeSilvia comes closer to the Prince’s side.

PC: (Whispering.) Manny, what news of my father and the Lady Katherine? Have they been found alive?

BD: Katherine is safe. A private vessel took her and her family to the royal grounds on the colony of Hemera. Your father on the other hand is still missing. It is believed he was in the east wing of the palace during the attack. The rescue crews are still searching through the rubble.

The Prince’s eyes moisten. He chokes back a few tears.

BD: Take heart my young friend. You must be strong for your kingdom. Your father wouldn’t have had it any other way, for you are no longer a prince…

The Prince stares into the eyes of his friend.

BD:…But a King.

Brethren of the VnV Nation,

I bring you tidings of great joy and sadness. I am alive and recovering well, but my heart is deeply grieved by my father's passing. Gaia will mourn for him for seven days and remember the legacy he left. Since the events that devastated my kingdom we have begun to rebuild and the process is going rather well. Our factories have been working around the clock to bring our the Gaian fleet up to full strength, and it has surpassed my expectations. Once again, I am eternally grateful for your support.

In Peace,

Brethren,

I apologize for the recent absence of communication. Planning a royal wedding is taxing. Apart from that I have great news. The Gaian scientists have just discovered a moon has formed around the Gaian colony of Typhon. We are extremely excited to see what new possibilities can be explored with this magnificent discovery.

Regards,