Sci-Fi Smack Down

Round 1: Goose Girl

“Run as much as you like, sweet schnuckelchen, I will find you,” Curdken hissed. Even his sweet words of endearment for her could not hide the bite of wrathful menace that tinged his every word.  

Krista held her breath underneath the valves which moved monotonously keeping the Royal airship afloat. Puffs of hot steam blew her golden hair with every movement of the steam engine. If Curdken found her he would rip her from limb to limb or worse.

She heard him moving towards the opposite end of the room. The only source of light was the kerosene lanterns which highlighted all the gleaming metal in the room a peculiar red. This combined with Curdken’s nimble footedness for a man his size made it harder for her to keep him in sight but consequently she was also hidden.

Her plain, worn, walking skirt rubbed against the oil slick floor as she took the chance to crawl up to another open door. It could trap her inside or be a cause for freedom but it was a risk she needed to take.

The room she ended up in was completely dark and a lot more frigid than the warm engine room. Krista curled up against what seemed to be a pile of cleaning rags and steel pails hoping against all hope that Curdken, the Prince’s henchman, would not venture any further.

In her clenched hands she held pieces of paper that marked great ruin for her country. She had found the marriage treaty between the two nations in which it was plainly stated that Prince Ansgar would be allowed full power to plunder the black forest in search of coal. It would mean the end of so many people who resided within the forest itself and all those who depended on it for their livelihoods. It would also mean the end of all the unique flora and fauna. Krista could not let the treaty be signed but how could she stop the Royal marriage which would combine the two nations.

Yet again she wondered what kind of Queen was the heartless Dagmar who would ruin her own people for a marriage alliance. Just thinking about her made her nauseous. It was so strange for her to think at some point in her life she had laid allegiance to this woman as her hand maiden. Maybe it was the previous Queen, mother of Dagmar, who inspired the loyalty. Some days Krista felt her past was so cloudy and vague. She could remember the Queen’s mother who was so kind and generous but could barely make out details about her own.

The fair haired handmaiden assumed this lack of clarity was because she had not taken her medicine for more hours than her doctor prescribed for her headaches. When she had her pills the world was so right. It was bright and carefree with her only thoughts on her work. Now it was gray and solemn. She could barely stand or even remember her own name beyond her throbbing head.    

A cold sweat formed on her forehead and goose bumps riddled her body. It had been many months since she had not had her medicine. The effects were inevitable.

It was then Krista heard a whisper.

It was so soft and muted it was a wonder she had heard it all. She wanted to ignore it for her body ached to lie on a smooth feather bed but in good conscience she could not.

“Please, please, release me from my bonds,” The teeny voice echoed in the large, empty room.

Krista turned over with a great huff and dragged her body towards the sound. She quietly placed her hands on another pile of decrepit junk and rummaged through it to find the source of the sounds. The girl found herself looking down at two gleaming blue eyes.  

“Do you not remember me?” The small machine with a humanoid body hummed, the voice sounded less human like this close.

“I am afraid my memory falters often,” Krista explained and wondered why she did not remember such a wondrous machine.