Royal Request

Leon begrudgingly made his way through the doors, looking around seeing paintings of what could be past kings? He looked forward, seeing an older man slumped in his chair and a woman next to him. She gave a disappointed glance at the man, before giving Leon a welcoming smile.

Katrina nudged Leon forward as they walked roughly thirty feet because of the size of the room before she gave him a command.

"Kneel."

"Huh…? Yeah..not doing that. Ack…..!

Leon's body felt forced down against his will as he went down to a knee. "What the hell just happened?! Did I just get body snatched?!"

Amidst his own confusion the woman rose from her chair, almost floating down the steps that lead down to Katrina and Leon. She was wearing a long, blue, flowy dress that contrasted with her dark brown hair that laid just past her shoulder and crystal blue eyes that you could easily be lost within.

"Katrina. What did I tell you about being nicer to our guests? Especially since he's from so far away, we don't need to give a bad impression do we?"

Her voice is soft but stern. Leon looked up at her then at Katrina. "They look like sisters."

"Mother! He was being disrespectful to you both by not kneeling, I'm simply showing him what proper manners are. We aren't some pathetic Earth savages after all."

She shook her head. "You can be so difficult sometimes." She turned to Leon. "Please rise to your feet, and thank you for the compliment."

Leon's eyes widened as he got back to his feet. "What compli-...DID SHE READ MY MIND JUST NOW!!!!"

"Hello. Please forgive my daughter, she's heavy handed in how she perceives people should act. Welcome to the planet Zeleon. My name is Serena Shoud, the Queen of the people of Zeleon and the pouty gentleman over there is Atticus Shoud, King of the people of Zeleon. We're happy to have you here young sir."

Katrina and Atticus scoffed in unison, making Leon turn his attention towards them and shook his head. "More like you are happy to have me here Serena."

"Thank you Queen Serena. Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Leon Atkins from Earth. Though...on some level I feel like you knew that. Anyways...what's with the VIP treatment with the search party snatching me and now meeting with you, the likely most influential family on this planet."

Katrina walked over next to her father, an older portly man who wore deep blue garments with a golden trim, with a defined but trimmed white beard. Unlike Serena, he was wearing his crown. The pair just remained silent, giving Leon a dirty look.

"All will be explained shortly. Now follow me."

She smiled at him and gestured to follow her into a secret entrance on the right side of the room next to her throne.

Without much choice he fell in behind her, as the entrance closed behind them. They headed down several flights of stairs before heading down what looked to be an endless hallway, their footsteps echoed in the empty void.

"So. Are you telepathic?"

Serena giggled. "You caught on to that faster than I'd expected. Yes, Katrina and I both are. We both have varying degrees of telekinesis as well, hers being much stronger."

"Huh..do all people in Zeleon have a power like that, or are you two just an anomaly?"

"As far as I know, only the females in my family have such a gift. We think it's a sign of human evolution on Zeleon."

Leon upped his pace to get side by side with her. That explains a bit, I wonder why I'm here?"

"You'll find out here in mere moments Leon Atkins. We're almost to our destination."

"It's kinda weirding me out that I can't have a singular thought to myself."

Serena stayed silent to his words as they continued forward, the silence grew deafening with only their footsteps making noise. Leon pondered if he offended her by accident, saying what he said. As they arrived at a large metal door.

"I apologize for making you feel uncomfortable. Many know of my gift, thus it's natural for me to answer their thoughts. I never intended to make you feel like your mind space was invaded. I'll try my best to relent until you're used to it."

Leon was in shock after a long silence; her manners were that of a saint. "Now I feel bad dammit." She approached what looked like a retina scanner which made the door open up.

"Uhh. For a medieval type of vibe your technology seems highly advanced."

Serena entered through the door and gestured to Leon to follow her in, he heard what sounded like some sort of heavy machinery being used. He entered the room shocked by what he saw. His crewmates, the crashed ship, and all of their pods they escaped in.

"What...is this?"

Leon looked to Serena who seemed to have the faintest of smiles on her face.

"We are far more advanced than your planet. Medical technology, space travel, green energy, you name it and we probably do better. We build the way we do because it's proven to last, we use medieval weapons to show a display of skill, rather than shoot like a bunch of fools and let unnecessary death occur."

Her voice sounded resolute and even intimidating with how she spoke. Very different from her very calm, soft demeanor she'd shown initially.

"Sooo….stupid question. Am I here purposefully?"

Leon wasn't sure what else to say, so he went with an obvious question with an obvious answer.

"You are here purposefully. I wanted you here. The theatrics are something I wanted to avoid. However...I also wanted to get you here without suspicion being aroused."

Serena took a deep breath to relax herself, realizing the fiery nature of her voice.

"Well….I guess the last thing I can ask is… why did you want me to lie to an entire planet of people? What purpose am I here for?!

"Hmm. You chose to lie. But it was the only option you could take to get to this point. Besides, someone else would've lied to take credit for a spacecraft many years beyond what Earth has."

Leon looked down to the floor for a brief moment, before giving Serena his full attention once again.

"The reason you're here is because I believe you're a special sort Leon Atkins. You are a natural fighter, even if it's not refined, that can be worked on. But instinct cannot be replicated. I want you to train to be the next Guardian of the Zelonian humans."

"Wait...you want me to be some sort of protector? You must obviously have the wrong person. I'm nowhere near being that kind of person. Isn't there someone better suited? At all?"

Leon's tone got defensive in a hurry, he felt somewhat offended for a stranger to snatch him up and pull him into something like this.

"I know it may not seem fitting. But I promise you, you are. Zeleon needs a straightforward, nonjudgmental presence right now. I want to unify the planet. I believe you're our best bet in doing that. If you refuse to accept right now I understand. But please, mull it over during the night."

Serena's words were not of someone who was being insincere. Leon could pick up on that, with no retort that didn't sound completely rude, he backed off his apprehensive approach.

"I'll think it over."

"Thank you. Also, here's your bag of things that you brought with you."

She telekinetically moved the bag in the air right into his arms.

"I'll show you to your room now."

"I get the feeling things are going to get weirder for me somehow…."

She showed him out a different way than they came in. Going up a flight of stairs that connected into another part of the castle, linking with a break in staircases. They headed up to what looked to be the 3rd floor as Serena showed Leon into his room.

"I believe this should suffice."

The room wasn't large but had a homey feel to it, with a fully functioning restroom and shower connected to it, as well as a balcony outside. It also had dressers that were empty that he could put his things into.

"It's...very nice thank you."

"If you need anything. I'll probably be able to hear you anyway."

Leon made his way in and sat on the bed contemplating his situation and his options. He looked into his bag, while it's only been a few days since he looked in it, it felt like an eternity at the same time with all the craziness that happened. He found a voice recorder that his mom gave him, and he decided to use it, thinking it would be a good thing to record his experiences. He turned the recorder on and began speaking.

"Audio log number one. Today was definitely the craziest day of my life. I went on an intergalactic craft and crash landed on another planet somewhere in the Andromeda galaxy called Zeleon. Aliens are not really a thing, they're just humans like back on Earth. I met the royal family who are a bunch of snobs save for Serena. Katrina is hyper full of herself and her father, the King, didn't even look me in the eye.

Queen Serena brought me here through seriously unconventional means and asked to train to be a Guardian of the humans. I told her I'd mull it over...but, I'm not some elite protector or hero people could ever look up to. Hell, I'm not even a role model, so why me of all people? What does she see that I obviously can't? Ugh….I better stop before I think myself to death, I'm ready to face the music back home. I bet my mom is worried sick by now. This is Leon Atkins, over and out."

Leon clicked off the recorder as he softly sighed. He tossed it back in his bag, before he hopped into the shower after a long day.

He pondered the options before him while he cleaned the day off of himself, especially having been stuck in the spacesuit for most of it. He finished up and re-entered his room as he got dried and dressed in sweats and a t-shirt. He looked out on the balcony for a view of the city.

His breath was taken away, Serena wasn't lying; there were turbines and solar panels, greenhouses, and old style buildings that were meant to last.

"I think the only way I'll know if I'm cut out for this, is to see if this planet is worth protecting. If these people are worth protecting. I need to go exploring tomorrow."