Chapter One: The Princess in the Tower

Somewhere in the far reaches of the Etherium a star fell.

Two wide, pale blue eyes locked on to that star and watched as it shot across the darkness, following its last plunge into nothingness. Those eyes were set in a face as pale as china, skin that had never been touched by the sun it seemed. Ringlets of copper-brown hair twirled down and framed that doll-face like ivy vines, tendrils that reached past her shoulders. She pressed one slender, frail hand to the enforced glass panes of her bedroom window and let out a barely audible sigh, a whispery sound that echoed all the longing of a bird in a cage. Light from the dimly-lit lamps and fiberglass chandelier shone around her, creating a golden halo around her silhouette, visible to only the keenest of eyes from below. Three stories below. This was no ordinary house-- it was a splendid mansion, one of the largest and most ornate in Montressor-- and the lonely young woman who knelt by her windowsill, her legs buried in a thick array of sheets, thermal blankets and expensive nightgown, was no ordinary girl. She kept her vision trained on the falling star until it winked out of existence, blasted by some weapon or consumed by some otherworldly atmosphere. She kept sitting on her bed and stared off into the distance, dreaming of the stars.

"Miss Maria," a somewhat flat, monotone female voice droned, and it sounded as if it came from the bottom of a well, "Keep away from the window, dearest- there's a slight draft. Your parents would not approve."

The girl did not budge, but slowly nodded her head, the languid movement of one who is lost in reverie.

"Miss Maria, you must move away from the window." the mechanical voice urged.

The girl sat back with a pouty sound, a small hmph! that was emphasized by slumped shoulders and a tilt of the head. "I know, I know. I could catch cold." She turned to face the person who had so rudely interrupted her daydreaming. "Bother you, A.N.N. You never let me have any time to myself. I'm not a little girl anymore and I certainly don't see the danger in looking out of a window."

"Hush now. It's past your bedtime and you know it. You need your rest." A.N.N., the household's Advanced Nanosensory Nanny scolded. She was as tall as a grown man, a gold and bronze plated android with female shape and two bright, piercing blue ocular lenses. She was extraordinarily bedecked with gizmos, gadgets and multifunctional appliances, all necessary for cleaning, cooking and keeping the property and its occupants protected. She flicked a metallic finger and the lights dimmed considerably. "Room perimeter lockdown will commence in five minutes."

"All right." The girl turned and hopped down from her bed. As she did so the right sleeve of her nightgown trailed in the air. It was empty. There was no flesh and blood arm there, just a shoulder. No scars either.

Maria Andromeda Trelawney climbed under her covers, pulled the thick blankets up to her chin, snuggled down, then watched with half-lidded eyes as A.N.N exited the room, her robot feet clacking on the tiles. The door swished shut. Minutes later a strange blue light washed over the door and over the four walls of her room, a sequenced series of cubes that formed a protective barrier, an energy shield of sorts. Nothing could get into this room...or out.

As soon as she was sure that her nanny was gone, the girl pushed off the covers and swung her legs down. She winced as the soles of her bare feet touched the cold floor. She tiptoed out of bed and went over to a small chest by her bureau, which was laden with dolls and educational computer screens now gone blank for the night. She squatted and tapped the stylized gold plate on the lid of the chest, a square about three inches high and five inches wide. It rose up to reveal a keypad. Using her only hand, the left, she typed in a short passcode and waited for the device to analyze it. Click. The chest unlocked and the lid lifted itself up. Maria reached into the chest and pulled out a battered, worn book, then quickly shut the chest and typed in her lock code. It snapped and would not open again unless she wanted it to.

Maria climbed back into bed, the book in the crook of her elbow. She settled herself down, leaned against her pillow, then opened the book. Holographic light flooded from the pages, reflecting off her wide eyes. An image came into focus, that of a stately fortress surrounded by green fields. A perfect blue sky filled with puffy clouds hovered over the fortress. It was a fairy tale, a childish one, and Maria was certainly too old for fairy tales. But the teenaged invalid stared hard at the unfolding story like a small child, her attention focused on what would happen next.

"Long ago, before anyone ever thought about flying anywhere and no worlds were connected, there was a distant, beautiful planet called Fantarica. The king and queen of this planet lived in a royal castle high in the mountains that sat atop the world. Atop this castle was a tower, and in this tower lived...a princess."

Maria flipped the page. Another image popped up, that of a lonely, towering spire with a small window in it. A girl stared out the window, her face sad but radiant and lovely.

"The princess was so beautiful that every man on the planet wanted to marry her, which caused a great deal of fighting. To quell the violence, the king had his daughter locked up in a tall tower, where she would live away from the world. No one could see her or be with her except the king, the queen, and a select few of the servants. The girl cried bitter tears night after night in her lonely abode, wishing on a far-off star for a better life. She had everything her heart desired...except a friend."

Next page. This time there was a unicorn bearing a slender rider in a dark cloak.

"The Princess soon grew weary of her lot in life and started wasting away, languishing in her bower. So her brother the Prince, seeing that his sister would soon die if she was not made happy, spirited her from her tower and gave her his finest steed so that she could attend the Crystal Star Ball. On she rode, her heart set on finding freedom."

Again Maria turned the page. This image showed a glasslike ballroom full of dancing couples.

"She arrived at the Crystal Star Ball and everyone praised her radiance, her beauty. As she basked in the glow of the crystal halls a young soldier asked her to dance. She danced with him and, as he was quite handsome and kind, fell in love with him before the night was through. But before he could ask her to marry him, a wicked dragon came and seized her, whisking her away to the Caverns of Fire."

The next scene was a battle. The handsome soldier fought against the evil dragon with a white laser sword while the Princess looked on, helpless.

"The soldier followed the evil dragon and challenged him to a fight, determined to reclaim his love. Back and forth they went, fire belching from the dragon's maw as the soldier heroically struck with his enchanted blade."

The last scene was a wedding day, the soldier and the Princess hand in hand.

"The dragon was killed by the brave soldier, who took his love back to the palace and asked her hand in marriage. The king and queen, now sorry for their mistake, consented, and the Princess was finally united with her one true love."

"And they all lived happily ever after." Maria said in unison with the book's automated voice. She flipped the book shut and let out a pitiful sigh. Starlight shone through the window, a faint light that bathed the room with a silvery glow. Maria gazed up at the far-off galaxies, her eyes wistful. She felt just like the princess in the story: trapped. Locked in. That was true, but the reason was different. The reason for Maria's "imprisonment" was this: she was "deformed". Imperfect. Flawed.

She rubbed the shoulder stump of her right arm ruefully. No horrible accident had mutilated her; it was a birth defect. The skin was smooth, a perfect place, no scars or stitches. She was simply unique, but her parents didn't think that way. To them she was a disgrace, a blight on their perfect pedigree of heritage, a genetic flub. So they hid her away in their huge house, keeping her from the world...hiding her from the world. They were ashamed of her and she knew it. They loved her, but they wouldn't anyone else love her.

I wish I had a handsome soldier. I wish I could break that window and fly into the Etherium. I wish...I wish I was free.

Maria tucked the book under her pillow and huddled down, letting her eyes drift shut. She had lived in this house all her life, sheltered and protected. It was a lovely house, furnished with the best things in Montressor, but to her it was a prison. She so desperately wanted out. To be free....

Princess Maria wished upon a star, praying for a guardian angel to show her the way...

"I wish my life could be a fairy tale." Maria whispered, a small drop of wetness escaping her eye. It ran down the side of her forehead and soaked into the pillow. "I wish I could have a happily ever after."

I wish I could be free!

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Montressor Spaceport. Nowhere near the Trelawney mansion.

A single dark shadow soared through the sky, speeding past houses and streets and open docking areas with deft skill that seemed to defy logic. At first it looked like a bird, a big oversized bird that must have had an engine stuck to its tail. Closer examination told a different story. It was a sleek solar surfer, a swift airborne craft big enough for one daredevil pilot. The rider of this surfer was a young man of about twenty, a slim but lean lad with brown hair and teal-blue eyes. He wore fine clothes but had on a long black overcoat over those, a patched and sorry garment more fit for a homeless bum. He didn't seem to care much about his appearance as he sped through the air, his knuckles white as he gripped the sail of his craft and dug his heels into the board. "Yeeeeeaaaaaaaahhhhhh!!!" he yelled, executing an almost impossible turn in midair that would have ripped a lesser surfer in half. On he flew, his adrenaline pumping in overdrive through his veins, his mind racing as he enjoyed the death-defying thrills of his favorite pastime. Everything else in the world blurred together and ceased to bother him when he did this.

A hawk in flight.

Jim Hawkins was the master of Montressor's skies.

Again and again he headed toward buildings, overhangs, passing ships, looking like a total kamikaze—then he pulled up and evaded death by a mere fraction of an inch. Once or twice the tail end of his surfer would scrape a line of sparks on some obstacle, but never did he fail. It was his talent. He nosedived and pulled up, then spiraled straight up into the air, both arms spread like wings as the wind roared and whipped around him. His long bangs streamed back, baring his handsome face to the elements. He closed his eyes and a grin split his face. Around and over he jerked, pulling stunts that put the best professional performers to shame. Then he rocketed downward, whooping with wild joy as the wind whistled past him. Nothing could stop him when he was in his element. Nothing.

Minutes or hours, he couldn't tell, but eventually he realized that he had a very pressing need to be elsewhere. Home.

The solar surfer blazed on, heading for a sleepy inn.

"James Pleiades Hawkins!?"

Sarah Hawkins, Jim's mother, crossed her arms and rolled her dark eyes as she assessed her grown son's windblown, disheveled appearance. "Your graduation is tomorrow and you have to dirty yourself up flying around, trying to get yourself killed! I doubt they'd hang your certificate on your coffin."

"Just a de-stresser, Mom. Hey, I know what I'm doing." Jim explained, combing through his messed-up hair with his fingers. He wriggled out of his shabby overcoat and wrinkled his nose as he picked off a bug that had been splattered in mid-flight. "Besides, it's what I do best when I'm bored."

"Still, it would be wise to sleep and rest up for tomorrow. You'll be standing there enduring hours of lectures, straight posture and discipline, and to get through that you're gonna need a lot of refreshing rest." Sarah's eyes narrowed as she noticed the stains on his cadet uniform. "Oh no. You wore your uniform? Do you want to look dirty and nasty in front of all those people? No! And there's not enough time to get it cleaned...Jim, the way you act, it's like you don't even want to graduate from the Academy!"

"I'll be fine, Mom. Really. It's just a few, um, well, no one's gonna care. Nobody's perfect." Jim protested, trying to hide the brown and black splotches that adorned his pants at the knees.

"The immortal excuse." Sarah sighed. She shook her head, a slight grin spreading across her face. "Well then, you'd best be off to bed. You have a long day ahead of you."

"Sure thing." Jim said, half of his words part of a yawn. He trudged up the stairs to his room, his shoes leaving dirt caked on the carpet. Sarah rolled her eyes again. "Manly of him." she said, then headed for her own room.

Jim flopped down on his bed and sighed. He kicked off his boots and folded his arms behind his head, staring up at the ceiling. His heart rate had finally slowed to near normal speed.

Graduation. Tomorrow.

He, Jim Hawkins, would finally move up in the world not twelve hours from now.

Training and schooling at the Interstellar Academy was hard work, but Jim was finally through. Now he could get a commission, a ship, a life. A life beyond Montressor and dirty dishes and absentee fathers.

Silver said I'd rattle the stars.

Well, time to get rattling.

Jim rolled over and picked up a worn-out data manual. He glanced at it then threw it aside; it was boring and totally not worth his attention. He needed something to do. His adrenaline was still going and it was going to be at least an hour till he actually got to sleep.

He flinched as something small, slimy and incredibly fast smacked into his back, pushing him down onto the bed. The swift little being whizzed around Jim's head like an electron orbiting a nucleus, all the while chattering nonsense. Jim reached out with one hand and caught the creature. "Gotcha." he muttered, smirking. Just as his fingers closed over it, it split into separate pieces and reappeared outside his hand. "Gotcha! Gotcha!" it chirped, swaying back and forth as it hovered in midair.

"Hiya, Morph." Jim said, stroking the blob's head. Morph made a purring noise and slithered around Jim's wrist. The cheery little amoeba-like creature had once belonged to the cyborg pirate John Silver, the man-- or mostly man-- who had turned Jim's life around. When Silver escaped, he had left Morph with Jim, a sort of gift. Since then Jim and Morph had become inseparable.

"I'm graduating tomorrow, Morph." Jim said, watching as the stars glittered high above. "I'm finally going to be my own man. Won't that be fun." Morph settled down next to Jim's shoulder. "I'll get a ship and a crew and explore places where no one's ever been...maybe I'll even find more treasure. Hopefully it'll be nothing like last time." Morph nodded in agreement. "Captain Jim Hawkins. That has a nice ring to it. Captain Hawkins. Yeah."

Silver would be proud.