The Arcadia Chronicles

The party had been over for some time and most of the dignitaries and other guests had said their goodbyes and returned to their respective homes. Arcadia had been sitting out on the balcony watching the world go by, as she tried to decide what she was going to do about Andromeda. Zac had joined her earlier. They were sitting side by side a drink in their hands in a comfortable silence. That was one of the things that she loved most about Zac, he didn’t always treat her like a Princess or try to impress her all the time. They could just sit there quietly for hours and be a complete comfort to each other.

Arcadia and Zac were still dressed in all their finery.

Zac broke the silence, “What are you thinking about Princess?”

Arcadia gathered her wandering thoughts and returned to the present. “I’m just wishing that Leia would hurry back. I know its stupid but I am still hoping that we can leave for Andromeda tonight.”

Zac smiled, “Somehow I don’t think that’s going to happen Cadi. Your parents were pretty adamant about that.”

Arcadia looked resigned, “I know but there’s no harm in a little optimism. It’s been such a perfect day, it seems like such a shame to ruin it.”

Zac nodded. “Talking about perfect, have a look at that sunset. Is it just me or is it exquisite this evening?”

Arcadia looked across the horizon at the captivating colours that lined the sky. Zac was right the sunset did look magnificent. It was like the sun had decided to put on a show of brilliance for Arcadia’s birthday. They sat in silence and watched the spectacle, marvelling at the beauty of nature.

“That was gorgeous.” Arcadia stood up and walked to the railing, leaning on it she looked down at the twinkling city lights below her then up at the first stars above. The gentle breeze started to take on a frosty edge and Arcadia shivered.
“Come on Princess, we had better get back inside. It will be time for dinner soon and I want to get out of these clothes and into something more comfortable.”

Zac held his hand out to her. She surveyed the darkening sky once more before turning and taking his hand. Zac studied her face for a moment. The serenity of her beauty was marred by a hint of resignation in her eyes. He realised that she had accepted the fact that she wouldn’t be going out tonight and was dealing with it as best she could.

“Don’t worry about it Cadi. You’ve got your whole life ahead of you. There will be plenty of opening nights and excitement in your life.” The look she gave him made him add, “Trust me. I’ll make sure of it.”

She gave him a grateful smile and snuggled up into his arm. “Thank you Zac. I don’t know what I would do without you.”


Zac led Arcadia through the almost deserted corridors of the palace. The staff were busy making preparations for the evening meal. “Guess who asked if he could kiss me today?” Zac’s head shot up as Arcadia’s words registered.

“What? Who?” A foreboding feeling rose within him.

Arcadia smiled at his reaction, “Prince Isodor.”

Zac’s eyes widened, “You kissed Prince Is a Dork?”

Arcadia laughed, “I didn’t say that Zac. I said he asked if he could kiss me.”

Zac was still stunned, a knot forming in the pit of his stomach. “What did you say to him?”

She looked down at the floor then back up at Zac shyly, “I told him that I didn’t think it was such a good idea, especially since he has a thing for Leia.”

Zac’s laughter was full of relief. “That’s telling him. You should have told me sooner, I would have sorted him out.”

Arcadia gave Zac a considering look, “My Zac, if I didn’t know better I would say that you were jealous.”

Zac’s mouth hung open, “What? Me jealous? Of Prince Is a Dork? I don’t think so.”

The Princess realised that she had hit a nerve and decided to play up to it, “Still he is kind of cute, maybe I should have let him kiss me. I wonder if he is still here. Zac be a dear and go check for me.”

“Check for you?” The jealousy rising within Zac reached fever pitch. He looked up and down the corridor to ensure that no one was watching then pushed the Princess into an alcove and up against the wall. “Let me tell you something Princess, your first kiss isn’t going to be from some dork you hardly even know.”

A rush of heat filled the Princess as she looked into Zac’s smouldering green eyes. “Oh really?” she whispered.

Zac moved closer pinning her to the wall, “Really,” he replied.

“Then who?” her voice trembled.

Zac could feel the soft warmth of her pressed up against him, her body trembling in anticipation. She moistened her lips and looked deep into his eyes, her soul begging him to kiss her. Zac took a deep breath to steady himself; he ran his thumb along her cheek then cupped her head in his hand. Slowly his lips moved towards hers.

Arcadia’s heart was pounding in her chest. He pressed his lips gently on hers then pulled back slightly to look in her eyes. She returned his gaze, her brown eyes darkening. This time he didn’t hesitate. He pressed his lips on hers in a long probing kiss. She melted into him moaning softly. They held hands, fingers intertwined as they moved against each other. Zac pulled her arms up above her head, pinning her to the spot. He looked down at her and thought “Why didn’t I do this sooner?” He kissed her down the side of her neck. Her breath was coming in shallow gasps, her breasts heaving. It was a good thing that Zac had her pinned up against the wall, as her legs had turned to jelly.

Zac ran his tongue from the hollow of her neck up to her ear. Arcadia’s body trembled at his touch. He pulled back and looked into her eyes again. Releasing her hand from his grip, she pulled his head back in towards her, crushing her lips on his. She ran her fingers through his hair as they kissed, his hands exploring her body.

Suddenly the corridor adjacent to them was filled with the noise of hurrying feet. Zac and Arcadia froze, a slight panic filling the Princess. “Sh.” Zac pushed the Princess deeper into the alcove as the feet entered the room next to them.

“What’s going on?” Her father’s voice filled the silence. Zac and Arcadia exchanged a glance but didn’t move.

“Bail, what’s happened?” Cassandra’s voice was full of concern.

“I was just about to find out Cassandra.”

There was an awkward pause, “Your highnesses, I’m afraid that I have some bad news.” The controller’s voice trembled.

“Out with it man!” Bail’s patience was wearing thin.

“We received a distress call from the Princess’s ship. That was ten minutes ago but we have failed to make contact with them since. I believe that their communications have been jammed.”

“Try again.” Cassandra’s voice was commanding.

“Yes ma’am.”

The feeling of dread that rose within Arcadia was palpable. Zac could see the fear in her eyes as she pulled away from him and strode to the door of the communications room. Zac followed, the same sense of dread growing in the pit of his stomach. She stood in the doorway staring at the screen as the controller attempted to contact her sister’s ship again. Suddenly the screen came alive with the face of an imperial officer.

“This is Captain Verada of the Imperial Starfleet. We intercepted a distress call from a galactic cruiser. On arrival at their broadcast coordinates, we found the remains of the star ship. The cruiser’s markings contain the system crest of Alderaan. It appears to have encountered an unexpected meteorite cluster that it could not avoid. Readings indicated that the shift shields were overridden and the ship was hulled to the point of vacating ninety-five percent of its atmosphere. I’m afraid there were no survivors.”

“No!” The heartfelt scream that erupted from deep within Arcadia reverberated through the room. Everyone turned to see the Princess standing in the doorway. Her face filled with horror.

“Arcadia!” Her mother took a step towards her.

The Princess slowly shook her head, her eyes welling with tears. “No!” she sobbed then turned and ran from the room.

“Arcadia!” Her father yelled after her but she disappeared around a corner too distressed to hear anything.

“I’ll go after her.”

The Queen nodded her arms wrapped across her chest, “Thanks Zac,” her own eyes filling with tears. Zac turned and ran after the Princess.

The horror that filled Arcadia threatened to overwhelm her. She ran blindly through the palace bumping into walls and pushing past staff members. The palace staff jostled by the Princess stared after her in stunned disbelief. They knew that something was wrong, their beloved Princess never behaved in this way.

The burning tears stung her eyes and the bitter emotions choked her. She didn’t stop, trying desperately to outrun the feelings that welled up inside her. Trying to outrun the images forming in her mind, the unbelievable fact that her sister was dead. “No!” The scream echoed through her mind. She leaned up against a wall, her body heaving for breath, her lungs burning, the tears stinging her eyes. “Leia!” She sobbed and slid down the wall, collapsing in a heap on the floor, the pain too much to bear.

Zac ran through the corridors looking for the Princess. She wasn’t hard to track; the evidence of her passing was everywhere. The corridors were dotted with staff members looking perplexed, some picking themselves up off the floor, others collecting lost articles that were knocked out of their grasp in the Princess’s passing. He caught sight of her at the end of a long corridor and picked up the pace trying to catch her. As he ran, he struggled with his own feelings. Although not as close as Arcadia, Leia was still an important part of his life. At least she was. He fought back the tears, knowing that he would have to be strong for her. He reached the end of the corridor and found himself in the hanger bay. He looked around the enormous room and spotted Arcadia running up the ramp to her ship. He leaned against the wall, trying to catch his breath then started to walk towards her.

Arcadia looked up between her sobs and slowly began to realise where she was. She pulled herself up off the floor and stumbled to the cockpit. Sitting down in the pilots seat, she strapped herself in. Angrily brushing the tears away, she fired up the engines. Her fingers worked across the console bringing the vessel to life as panel after panel lit up before her. In no time the ship was ready for takeoff. Just as the Princess was about to launch the monitor lit up and a controller appeared on the screen.

“I’m sorry your highness, but you are not cleared for take off.”

Arcadia glared at the woman who dared to question her. “Do I look like I care?”

The woman flinched, unaccustomed to the Princess’s abrupt manner.

“I have a direct order from Queen Cassandra not to allow you to leave. I am sorry Princess Arcadia but I have my orders.”

The anger welled up within her.

“Well then, you will just have to shoot me out of the sky.” She punched the end key and turned to the console. The ship’s engine roared as it rose from its perch. The landing gear retracted and the ship floated out of the hanger and into the sky.

Zac looked up as the engines on Arcadia’s ship ignited.

“Damn it Cadi, what are you doing?”

He ran towards her ship but the ramp retracted and the ship lifted off before he could get close. He stood there for a moment and watched Arcadia float out of the hanger and speed off into the night. Turning, he ran towards his X-Wing fighter and climbed aboard, punching in the ignition sequence as he strapped himself in.

“This is Zac Terran, I need immediate clearance to leave. Please track the Princess’s ship and have the information fed to my onboard computer.” Zac pulled on his helmet and ran through his flight check.

“Captain Terran, this is control. You have clearance for take off. The information you requested is being transmitted to your computer.”

Zac pulled the hatch closed. “Thanks control.” The fighter lifted up and glided out of the hanger.

“Zac, can you hear me?”

Zac checked the information on his computer, “Yes your highness, loud and clear.”

“Bring her back to me Zac. I can’t bear to lose another daughter today.”

Zac closed his eyes for a moment, “I will bring her back my Queen. I promise.”

Zac’s X-Wing rose into the night sky, the engines roaring as it accelerated after the Princess. The planet’s surface blurred beneath him then quickly disappeared. It only took a few moments before the fighter shot into the vacuum of space. Zac consulted his computer and was on the Princess’s trail in no time. He switched on the communicator and punched in Arcadia’s private frequency.

“Princess Arcadia, this is Zac Terran, do you copy?” His enquiry was met with static. After a brief pause he tried again.
“Princess Arcadia, this is Zac, do you read me?” The static seemed louder this time.
“Damn it Arcadia, I know you can hear me, pick up!”

Arcadia looked down at the communicator as Zac’s voice emanated from the speaker. She pursed her lips angrily at the tone in his voice and contemplated ignoring him again. She wasn’t in any mood to talk. All she wanted to do was fly away from Alderaan, speed away from the memory of the imperial officer on the screen. Maybe if she got far enough away, the pain might stop, the reality of the situation may fade and her life may go back to normal. Maybe if she kept flying out amongst the stars she might discover that it was all a lie, that her sister was really alive, that it was some horrible, dreadful mistake. A lie.

“Cadi, please.”

Zac’s pleading voice interrupted her thoughts. She took a deep breath then pressed the answer key. “Go away Zac. Leave me alone.”

Zac closed his eyes and smiled to himself. Thank you.

“You know I can’t do that Princess.”

There was a brief pause. “Your relieved of duty Captain Zac Terran. You’re no longer my bodyguard. Now go away.”

He looked down at the communicator and shook his head. “You can fire me all you like Cadi. That’s not going to change the way I feel about you. I am not leaving.”

There was a long silence. Zac looked at his computer and realised that he was coming up behind the Princess’s ship. He was surprised that he had caught up to her already.

“Cadi, talk to me.”

The communicator was silent. Zac flew his fighter up next to Arcadia’s ship. He looked across into the cockpit and saw the Princess in the pilots seat. She looked up at him, the tears streaming down her face.

“Zac, I’m really scared.”

Zac struggled with his own feelings, “I know babe, so am I.” Their eyes locked across the vacuum of space. “Cadi, we are coming up to a habitable planet. Let’s land there and talk about it.”

Arcadia nodded her assent. The fighter formed up beside the Princess’s ship and together they made their way to the small planet on the outskirts of the Alderaan system. Zac scanned the surface looking for a clearing to land on. They flew over large amounts of tropical jungle then across the top of some sheer cliffs. Finally, Zac decided that the long stretch of sand beneath the cliffs offered them the best protection. The two ships slowly hovered over the soft sand then came to a halt on the beach, the engines blowing up clouds of sand in their wake.

Zac pulled back the hatch of his fighter and climbed out. He made his way over to the Princess’s ship. The ramp slowly lowered and came to rest in the sand with a thud. Zac climbed up the ramp and pressed the hatch release. The door slid open silently. He walked into the ship expecting to see the Princess waiting for him just inside the door but she was not there. He went to the cockpit. Arcadia was still sitting in the pilot’s seat, her head in her hands, the sobs racking her body. Zac stood in the doorway, the sight of the Princess wrenching at his heart. His own turbulent emotions threatened to choke him.

“Cadi,” his voice was barely a whisper.

Arcadia turned and looked at him for a moment. The tears started to well in his eyes.

“Oh Zac,” she climbed out of her seat and stumbled into his arms, sobbing uncontrollably.

Zac held her close stroking her hair, his own feelings mirroring hers. The tears streamed down his face as he shared her pain for the loss of her sister, the loss of his friend.

Suddenly the communicator came alive. The images of Arcadia’s parents appeared on the screen.

“Arcadia, you’re all right. Where are you?”

Both Zac and Arcadia looked up at the screen.

“Mum?”

Bail and Cassandra looked scared. They were holding each other. In the background, people were running around in a panic.

“Arcadia, listen to me. This is very important. Are you on Alderaan?”

Zac and Arcadia exchanged a glance. “Mum, what’s going on?”

Bail looked pointedly at his daughter. “Arcadia, answer the question. Are you on Alderaan?”

A cold shiver ran up her spine. “No Dad, we’re not. We’re on Romulus.”

Bail and Cassandra gave a collective sigh of relief.

“Good baby. Now listen to me, you need to get as far away from Alderaan as possible. Don’t go to Coruscant. Don’t trust anyone. Especially the Imperials.”

Arcadia grabbed hold of Zac, the fear rising within her. “Daddy? What’s going on?”

Bail and Cassandra looked at each other, “Cadi you need to go into hiding. Your life is in great danger. Promise me you will do that, Arcadia. Promise.” The fear was now palpable.

“Yes Mum, I promise.”

Both Bail and Cassandra were visibly relieved. “Good baby. Now listen carefully. An Imperial space station has just moved into orbit around Alderaan. We do not know their intentions but they can’t be good. I want you and Zac to get into your ships and fly as far away from here as possible. No matter what happens, don’t come back. If we can, we will come and find you. Is that understood Cadi?”

Arcadia nodded, “Yes Mum.”

Cassandra smiled and turned her attention to Zac, “Zac, take care of my baby.”

Zac held Arcadia close, “I will your highness, I promise.”

Bail looked deep into his daughter’s eyes, “We love you Arcadia. Always remember that.”

The tears rolled down Arcadia’s face, “I love you too. Both of you.”

Her parents smiled at her then were startled by something; they both looked up and were consumed by a bright light. The screen went dead.

“Mum?”

The sky suddenly lit up in a huge explosion.

“What the?”

Zac and Arcadia ran outside and stared at the spot in the distance were Alderaan had once been.

“No! It can’t be! Zac tell me that isn’t Alderaan!”

Zac stared at the bright ball of light in disbelief. Arcadia turned to him and started pounding at his chest.

“It can’t be. That’s impossible. That kind of fire power, it just doesn’t exist!”

He looked down at her then pulled her into his arms. In a whispered voice he said, “Yes it does.”

Arcadia pulled back and looked incredulously into his face.

“What?”

He knew that he had to tell her everything about her family’s involvement in the rebellion. It was the only way that she would ever understand.

“The Empire has built a huge space station, the Death Star. It has the capability to destroy a planet. They just proved that.”

Arcadia shook her head, the enormity of the situation still not sinking in. “But why Alderaan? We are a peaceful planet. We have no links to the rebellion.”

“Actually Cadi, that’s not entirely true. Your family has strong links with the Alliance. That’s what Leia was working on today. She was picking up the technical readouts of that battle station.”

Arcadia was stunned, “She told me she was meeting Obi Wan Kenobi.”

Zac nodded, “she was doing that too.”

He sat the Princess down in the warm sand and began to tell her all he knew about the rebellion against the Empire and the pivotal role that the Organa family had in forming and sustaining the Alliance. Arcadia listened intently, stunned by the enormity of the secret that her family had kept from her. Although she finally understood her family’s position, she still couldn’t comprehend why the Empire would destroy her home world. An entire planet blown into oblivion. Billions of innocent people, animals, plants all killed on the whim of one man. The anger boiled within her and to her surprise she found herself thinking about the little girl that she had made so happy only hours before.

Arcadia’s emotions were frayed. She still couldn’t believe that in one day she could go from having a wonderful family and beautiful home to being an orphan and never seeing Alderaan again. The denial turned to anger then to unbelievable pain and sorrow and then finally into a hollow emptiness. Zac’s pain was just as acute as the Princess’s. He had been welcomed into the royal family with open arms and loved each and every one of them unconditionally. They had become his family too, he had finally found a place where he felt that he belonged and to have all that taken away with one blinding flash was just unbearable.

The Princess and her bodyguard sat on that beach staring up at the glowing ball of debris for some time each of them lost in desperate despair, teetering on the brink of the abyss that threatened to consume them. The agony and horror of the situation tearing apart their very souls. They clung to each other, seeking comfort in the only thing that was left to them, the only thing familiar, their friendship. At that defining moment, their bond was sealed. Zac swore that he would never let anything happen to her, that he would defend her with his life. Her protection was now his life mission. She looked so young, so lost, and so alone. The beautiful confident young woman that he had escorted only hours before had metamorphosised into an emotional wreck. Zac was sure that only her inherited inner strength managed to keep her from tumbling into the darkness of an emotional meltdown.

They stayed in each other’s arms for some time, trying desperately to console each other. When the tears finally subsided, they were both physically and emotionally drained. Arcadia fell asleep in Zac’s arms. He held her close as she slept, thinking that no sixteen year old should ever have to endure what she just went through.