Cure for a Nation

Chapter Thirty

The Kraken was still in the morning. It's passengers were sound asleep. The Warriors were huddled in their robes and curled up on the big metal seats of the Walker. The air was chilly and dry. Dust motes floated through a ray of sunlight slipping through the slat of the shield covering the cockpit. Daniel was asleep at the helm, his chin in his collar and his arms folded as best he could around his armor. Joan was laying in the seat across the aisle from Claire, snoring quietly. A shaft of sunlight poured through a crack in the shielding over Claire's window, spilling over her soft features and pulling her gently from sleep's embrace. She opened her eyes and pulled herself off of the hull of the walker. She stretched and yawned before standing up in the aisle. She looked at Daniel and frowned. How long did he pilot this thing, Claire wondered. She smirked when she saw Joan drooling on herself. Claire yawned and shuffled to the ladder below the hatch. She grunted as she lifted her sleep laden leg onto the first rung and pulled herself up. She pushed the hatch open with a quiet squeak and she was suddenly grateful Daniel had spent time making sure everything was how it should be. She reached a hand up into the chilly autumn air and felt the wind weave between her fingertips. The sky was a brilliant blue above her and Claire paused to wave her fingers at it. She pulled herself up further and the warmth of the morning sun bathed her face. She smiled to herself as she stood up on the deck and closed her eyes, wanting her location to be a surprise. She took a deep breath through her nose, feeling the cool air tickle her chest. She could hear the wind whistling quietly and calmly through the railing and legs of the Kraken and felt it tousle her hair. She felt her skin tingle and rise with goosebumps as a gust blew up her sleeves. She opened her eyes slowly, teasing herself. She gasped. She saw the edge of the forest to her left, great towering trees stretching high up into the turquoise morning sky. It stretched on for forever in front of her and to her right was the immense ocean that was the grassland. The tall grass shimmered and waved in the wind. It rolled towards Claire, bristling and scratching against the legs of the Kraken. The horizon was clear on all sides, no signs of civilization anywhere apart from the wide dirt path the Walker had stopped on. She sighed and sat on the edge of the deck, resting her arms on the railing and laying her chin on the backs of her hands. She watched the grass, content with herself. She could faintly hear the distant trees and their hissing leaves that rubbed against each other. She was so enthralled by her simple view, she didn't hear Daniel behind her. He had climbed up the hatch and attached his helmet to his belt again. He stood there, surveying his surroundings with a tacticians eye and having satisfied himself by assuring everyone's safety, he let his eyes rest upon Claire. A slight smile broke his mask of a face and he sauntered next to her. He made her jump when he sat next to her and she smirked.
"Good morning," Daniel said, sleep still weighing his voice down. Claire shivered.
"Good morning, Danny," she said softly. They were silent as Daniel drank in the view.
"Peaceful, isn't it," Daniel said quietly.
"So very peaceful," Claire responded.
"A good place to take a break from all the fighting."
"Yeah.."
"You know, Your Highness, this is all technically yours. The rest of the world just doesn't know it yet." Claire sighed. She turned and looked at him suddenly.
"You know that sounds crazy, right?" She said, "Queen of Aurora. I'm fairly certain that's never happened before in the history of ever. Sure, the Imperium had Emperors but that's different. That was the Imperium. This is everyone. What if the people don't accept me as their queen?"
"What choice do they have?" Daniel countered. "You're it. There's no Imperium, no Warriors of Technology, there's only you and your kingdom. As long as you take care of Aurora, everything will be okay. Just you see. Now stop worrying about it. We still have work to do." With that final comment, Daniel stood and went to the back of the Walker where the engines were kept in a metallic cabin. Claire watched him go, squinting her eyes against the sun reflecting off of the insignia on his shoulder pad. She moved to stand but her hand glanced across something sturdy. It was Daniel's old gauntlet. It had been cleaned and repaired but there were still words carved into the plating. She thumbed the carvings absentmindedly and frowned. Something was different. She squinted and held the gauntlet to the light.
"For Aurora," she read aloud. Daniel had sanded down the word Imperium and carved the new word over it. She smirked and slipped the gauntlet on. The glove was smaller and slimmer and fit her hand almost perfectly. The plating was loose and she had to pull the straps as tight as she could before buckling them. She rotated her hand, marveling at how freely she could move it. Daniel had modified the glove to fit her perfectly.
"Big softy," she said to herself before stretching out on the deck.