During the flight back to the palace, Princess Cintrel provided Will and Debra an itinerary of the celebrations planned for them. The public celebration was planned for the day after tomorrow. However, prior to that would be a more intimate ceremony where the King would make them citizens of Celentus.
The sun was just starting to set as the hoverjet landed on the roof of the palace. Two maids waited nearby as the four of them exited the hoverjet. They were the same young women who’d taken care of Will and Debra on their last visit. They wore ruffled white blouses with long red skirts around which a white apron was tied. One of the women has short blond hair while other had black hair which cascaded off her shoulders. They bowed to the group.
“Please see to our guests,” ordered Princess Cintrel.
“Yes, your Highness,” they replied with another bow. They stepped over to Will and Debra. “Please follow us,” said the brunette wrinkling her nose slightly
Walking quickly, they led them downstairs to the main hallway which stretched the length of the palace. Gone were they chunks of stone which had once littered the floors of the palace. All was now clean and shining. Although significant progress had been made on the palace repairs, the presence of ladders, tarps, lumber, and bags of concrete showed there was still more work to do.
The women led Will and Debra to the same bedroom at the far end of the hallway where they’d stayed the last time. Reaching the room, they opened the door and waved them inside before following them in.
As on their last visit, dining table was covered with plates of fruit and pastry along with an assortment of beverages sitting in ice. Oversized pillows and thick comforters covered the bed.
The blond maid started walking over to the washroom.
“That’s okay,” offered Will. “We remember from last time.”
“She nodded, but seemed a little disappointed.
The other maid gestured to the closet. “Please help yourself to whatever clothing pleases you,” she said. “Before tomorrow’s ceremony we will come get you to help dress you.”
“Oh, I doubt that will be necessary,” replied Debra.
A slight giggle escaped the blond maid, but she quickly controlled it. “My lady,” she said. “The ceremonial clothing goes back hundreds of years and it was designed for elegance, not practicality.”
“Great,” muttered Debra to herself.
The two maids walked back to the door and bowed. “If there is anything you need just pull this cord,” said the brunette, gesturing at a rope hanging from the ceiling, “to summon us.”
“Thank you,” said Will as they left the room.
“Oh it’s probably some hideous gown,” groaned Debra. “I’m gonna look like a blimp from the Middle Ages.”
“They didn’t have blimps in the Middle Ages,” laughed Will. “Besides, I’m sure you’ll look great.”
Debra just shook her head, but suddenly she gave an evil grin. “You know Will,” she said sweetly. “It’s likely that they’ll have to help you dress too.” Her smile grew wider. “Perhaps they’ll even let me help.”
Will’s face grew white. “No, they must have male attendants for that.”
Debra walked over to the closet and began going through the clothes. “Must have missed that part when they said they’d help us get dressed,” she called as she pulled out a robe and nightgown.
Heading for the bathroom, she stopped and wrapped her arms around his neck. “You know that offer still stands if you want to scrub my back,” she said in a low voice.
Will’s only reply was a slight choking sound as he tried to catch his breath.
Debra released her hold on him, and headed to the bathroom. “Your loss,” she said as she closed the door behind her.
Will sat on the couch and just shook his head. While waiting, he concentrated on trying to find some way to get Grandle. However, nothing came to him.
It took a while, but Debra finally came out of the bathroom, her robe draped around her and her hair wrapped in a towel. “All yours,” she called.
Getting up from the couch, he grabbed some clothes from the closet and headed to the bathroom.
“Anything wrong?” asked Debra.
“Just frustrated about not figuring out what to do about Grandle.”
“A good night’s sleep might help,” suggested Debra.
“Sure hope so,” said Will closing the bathroom door.
Coming out, he saw Debra was already in bed. Walking softly he headed over to the closet to get a blanket and pillows for the couch.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.
“You know, this bed’s big enough for the both of us,” called out Debra. “There’s no need for you to sleep on the couch.”
Will paused. They’d been through this before and every time he’d insisted on sleeping on the couch. Maybe it was being with her in the control section of the ship for the past four days, but sleeping on the couch didn’t seem so important anymore.
“Okay,” he answered. “What side of the bed do you want?”
“Right side,” said Debra scooting over to make room for Will. Taking off his robe, he walked over to the bed. “Nice pajamas,” joked Debra at the sight of the shorts and t-shirt he was wearing.
“They’re comfortable, all right,” he retorted jovially.
Climbing into bed, he got under the covers and punched his pillow a few times before lying on his back. “Good night, Debra.” Almost instantly, he was asleep.
“Good night you overgrown boy scout,” whispered Debra as she rolled over and was soon asleep as well.
In the morning, Will was surprised to see Debra lying on her back beside him, the covers kicked off her legs and one of her arms lying on his chest. Hearing her soft snores, Will carefully picked up her arm off his chest and laid it beside her as he got out of bed. “Hey,” muttered Debra opening her eyes.
“Good morning,” said Will.
Debra sat up and looked at the messy bed around her. “Sorry, Will. I should have warned you that I tend to move a lot in my sleep.”
“It’s okay.”
Both of them quickly washed and got dressed. Debra was able to find a shirt and a pair of pants which fit her. As they finished getting dressed, there was a knock at the door.
“Come in,” called Will, expecting it to be the maids bringing breakfast.
However, when the door opened, a military officer was standing there. He gave a crisp salute. “Captain Power and Miss Debra,” he announced. “The King wishes you to join him for breakfast.”
“We’d be happy to join him,” answered Debra.
“Please follow me.”
The officer led Will and Debra down the hall to a doorway which opened to a large balcony overlooking the capital. At the far end was a table where King Raphul and Princess Cintrel were waiting for them. The officer took them over. Debra had to remind herself not to bow.
“Thank you, Captain,” said the King as the officer walked away. He looked over at Will and Debra. “Please have a seat.”
“Thank you, your Majesty,” said Will as they sat down.
Immediately, servants began bringing out platters and placing food on the plates in front of them. After four days of nothing but nutrient bars and water, the aroma made Will’s and Debra’s mouths water.
“I trust you both slept well,” suggested Princess Cintrel.
“Oh very well,” replied Debra after quickly swallowing some food she was chewing. “It was wonderful to be able to sleep in a real bed again.”
“Commander Stelia informed me of the condition of your ship,” said the King. “I’ve already ordered the repairs to be begun on it.”
“Thank you, sire,” replied Will.
“You’ll have to tell us all about what happened. I’m sure it’s quite a tale,” noted the King. “Unfortunately that will have to wait as there’s still much to be done to prepare for the today’s ceremony and tomorrow’s celebration for you and Debra.”
After they’d finished eating, the military officer returned to escort Will and Debra back to their room. They’d barely had time to rest their full stomachs when there was a knock at the door. Getting up to answer it, Will found the two maids who bowed to him.
“Sir,” said the dark haired maid, “we’ve come to dress you and Miss Debra for the ceremony. Please come with us.”
The maids led them downstairs to a large room just off the main entrance. On either side of the room were two partitions. By one of them stood two male servants. Will smirked at Debra and gave her a wink. He headed over to them while the maids took Debra to the other partition.
Rounding the corner, Debra realized her worst clothing nightmare. Hanging there was a gown. It was white and lined with gold. The top had large shoulders and long sleeves, but at least she liked the low cut bodice. However, the lower part was a stiff skirt that extended out about two feet in all directions. She had no idea how she was supposed to get around in that thing.
With a sigh, Debra got undressed and stood in front of the full length mirror as the maids set to work. Once she stepped into the skirt, the maids began tightening straps and buttoning buttons. Looking at herself, Debra was surprised to see she didn’t look half bad, well except for the skirt.
After half an hour, they stood back and admired their work. However, they weren’t quite done. There was still a jeweled belt which was wrapped around Debra’s waist and a delicate sparkling headdress which they attached to the top of her head.
“You look beautiful,” said the blond maid when they’d finished.
“Thank you,” answered Debra.
She walked carefully as they led her from behind the partition. Will had already been dressed and was waiting for her. Her wore a loose fitting top with large gold buttons down the front, bulbous shoulders, and long loose sleeves. Wrapped around his waist was a heavy belt from which hung a cutlass encrusted in jewels. The pants looked like pantaloons which only reached his mid-calf with tight fitting purple stockings extending down to his shiny black shoes.
He just stared at her for a moment. “Wow,” he said.
Debra was tempted to do a spin, but was too afraid of falling. “You look pretty wow yourself,” she answered.
The maids led them out of the room. Debra was glad for the wide doorways. Waiting outside were two military officers dressed in uniforms similar in style to what Will and Debra were wearing. They had swords strapped to their belts and came to attention when Will and Debra appeared. “Please follow us.”
They led Will and Debra to the large doorway which led to the palace’s great hall. They opened the door and gestured for Will and Debra to step inside. The room was wide and long with a red carpet that extended from the door to the throne where King Raphul sat dressed in his magnificent royal robes. By him stood Princess Cintrel who was dressed in an outfit similar to Debra’s. The rest of the room was filled with spectators all dressed in splendid cloths and uniforms. They turned to face Will and Debra as they entered the room.
The King stood up. “Will Power and Debra Corlander,” he announced in a formal tone. “You are most welcome here. Please approach the throne.”
The ceremony lasted over an hour. It some ways it was similar to a wedding, but instead of being married to each other, Will and Debra were in essence being married to Celentus. As the King finished declaring them citizens of Celentus, the assembled audience stood up and applauded.
Afterwards there was a grand feast. Fortunately, Will and Debra were able to change into more suitable clothes with the undressing process going much more quickly. They lost track of how many times they had to tell what had happened to them since they left Celentus. It was late in the evening by the time the festivities had finished. Returning to their room, Will and Debra collapsed on the couch.
She leaned her head on Will’s shoulder. “Now that was a celebration.”
“Yeah, it beats getting a ten credit medal any day,” he answered with a laugh.
There was a knock at the door. “Come in,” called Will.
A military officer stepped inside looking nervous. “I’m sorry to disturb you,” she said. “The King sent me to inform you that long range sensors have detected an Earth vessel approaching the planet.”