Kringl (Rescued by the Alien)

Chapter 10

Chapter

Ten

J oy stood beside Zaan as he aimed his blaster at the ice door, the high-pitched screech of the weapon filling the air along with the sound of every other blaster held by the rest of the Valorian rescue party. The ice began to drip, steam rising in thick plumes and puddles forming at the base of the door. Then she could see glimpses of Kringl as the beams melted through the thick ice. When the last of the barrier gave way, Kringl stumbled out, his gait uneven.

Zaan gave a curt bow to his prince. “I am glad to see you're unharmed, Your Highness." He glanced over his shoulder, his shoulders stiff. "I need to go after the girl and ensure she isn't caught by the guards. The rest of our team is going to return to defend the ship so we can leave.” He tossed a blaster to Kringl. "Can you and Joy make it back to the ship on your own?"

Kringl caught the weapon and drew himself up to his full height. "We can. What of the others who were at the banquet with me?"

“They were left on the ice but woke and returned to our ship. I suppose their leader felt it was only important to lock up ours.”

Kringl released a breath. Then he locked eyes with his first officer. “If we do not make it, and the ship is in danger of being taken, you should leave without us. Get a message to Earth.”

Zaan opened his mouth, but Kringl held up a hand to silence his protests. “That is an order. You can return for us, but we cannot let the ship be taken.” Kringl then told him who to contact on Earth and what to say.

Zaan did not appear pleased by the order, but he nodded before running off toward the trees.

As soon as Zaan darted away, Kringl sagged, nearly collapsing. Joy rushed to catch him, surprised by how weak he seemed. The cold had clearly taken its toll, making his drugged body even more sluggish. He had put up a brave front in front of his crew, but he was not in good shape.

Joy cursed under her breath. Why did males have to be so stubborn? Why were they so crap at admitting weakness? There was nothing to do about it now but get him back to the ship without being caught, since she doubted he would be able to fight off a cadre of angry elves. She shuddered. There was nothing worse than an angry elf.

"We should find a place to hide before attempting the trek back to the ship.”

“I do not need a rest,” Kringl said even as he leaned on her.

“Oh yeah?” She looked up and narrowed her gaze at him. “What happens if I let go of you?”

He frowned and then released a sigh of exasperation. “Fine. We will stop before returning to the ship.”

They moved through the forest, the snow crunching softly beneath their feet. Shouts and blaster fire sounded in the distance, but Joy assured herself that it was the elves screaming. Not the aliens and not Tami.

As they approached the village outskirts, Joy guided them alongside the back of a long, low building. "This is the workshop.”

Kringl's cocked his head. "Workshop?"

Joy almost laughed, realizing how much context he was missing. "On Earth, Santa Claus has a workshop where elves make toys for children. Santa delivers these presents to good children on Christmas Eve."

“Elves make toys that are delivered to every good child on your planet in one night?”

Joy supposed that the Christmas traditions sounded odd even with context. “Don’t think about it too hard. It all unravels.”

“The elves who were guarding me are toy makers?”

Joy huffed out a breath. “Not on this planet. If there are toys made in this workshop, none of the children here have ever seen them. No one goes in except the elves and Velsnickel. I suspect it’s the reason no communications can escape the atmosphere.”

They skirted around the workshop that wasn’t actually a workshop, finally reaching a small house on the edge. Joy carefully opened the back door, ushering Kringl inside.

He paused inside the threshold. “Is this your dwelling?”

Joy bobbed her head up and down, taking in her home with fresh eyes. It was only two rooms and a bathroom, but it was enough for her. A tiny kitchen occupied one corner and held a round table and two chairs, while a small living area with a fireplace dominated the space. A pair of overstuffed chairs faced the hearth and the single, red-and-green striped stocking hanging over the mantle. In the corner next to the fire stood a decorated Christmas tree draped with sparkly garland and topped with a star. A door across from the kitchen table led to a room that held a bed covered with a colorful quilt and little else.

Joy flinched at the sight of her name on the perpetually empty stocking, memories of her parents—whose stockings no longer hung beside hers—suddenly surfacing. It had been so long that she’d become accustomed to her lonely stocking, but she wondered what the alien prince thought. The simple house would hardly compare to the palace waiting for him on his home world.

“It’s nothing much, but it will keep us warm.” She released her grip on his side. “We can’t light the fire or turn on lights in case the elves see.”

“It is not nothing much. It is very nice.”

Joy shrugged off the compliment. "It must be nothing compared to your palace."

A strange expression crossed Kringl's face. "To be honest, I've never felt truly comfortable in a palace. I've never felt fully comfortable being a prince."

He pressed his lips together as if realizing what he’d said.

“It can’t be that bad.”

“Of course, it isn’t.” The regal composure had returned. “It is an honor to serve my people.”

His knees wobbled. Joy reached for him, slipping her arms around his waist again and guiding him to her bed. He sank down and allowed her to guide him into a prone position even though his feet hung off the end of the human-sized bed.

“You should rest,” she told him as she stepped back. “The drugs aren’t out of your system yet.”

He closed his eyes, mumbling something about preferring her home to the palace on Valoria.

She backed from the bedroom, putting more distance between her and the prince. No matter what he’d said under the lingering influence of the drugs, he was still a prince, and she was a nobody. It didn’t matter how much he liked her home or how polite he was being. It didn’t even matter that holding him upright had made her body tingle or that she loved the look of him in her bed. The only thing that mattered was getting them both off the planet and getting help for the rest of the village.

As Kringl drifted into sleep, Joy stood vigil by the bed, her mind crowded with worry. Did Tami get away? Was the crew back at the ship or had they been taken by elves? Would she and Kringl make it back to the ship in time?

She was so preoccupied running through all possible catastrophic scenarios in her head that she barely noticed the creak of the back door. She went rigid, terror coursing through her veins. Had they already been discovered? Were the elves coming to drag Kringl back to the ice huts and her with him?

Joy held her breath, her hand inching towards the blaster Kringl had set on the table. Whatever came through that door, she was determined to keep it from taking her and Kringl even if that meant blasting an entire horde of elves.