Review – Gilded Cage

Gilded Cage came about because I needed to bridge a gap between Together and Temper on the other side of the pond. For a prompt about being trapped, I decided to write about a Mirror Universe trap.

Background

Hall of Mirrors

The most likely candidate for being trapped, who would also (in some ways) be a sympathetic character, was Aidan MacKenzie.

Plot

On January 7, 2161, in the Mirror Universe, the Empress confines Aidan to quarters. So it’s just before Temper, and the Empress Hoshi Sato is looking to get her act in gear and start pushing to get more advanced ships like the ISS Defiant. And she can tell that the star ship will not last forever. As she contemplates her next move, Aidan has had enough. Furthermore, five children already exist. And Hoshi is pregnant with Izo, the last one. And so Aidan then complains that he can’t keep up with it all, and makes the mistake of referring to Hoshi by her first name. However, this simply will not do. The Empress will not stand for it. Angrily, she demands that she only be referred to by her title by him, the Royal Babysitter.

So in a move toward independence, Aidan picks up Kira (who he refers to as Kirin) and threatens to leave, telling her that he’s quitting. As the Ready Room door opens, Shelby Pike, Chip Masterson, and Lucy Stone give him quick sympathetic glances; however, Travis Mayweather and Gary Hodgkins do not. And then Hoshi orders Josh Rosen and Tristan Curtis up, to move the bassinets into her quarters, as Aidan and the royal children will be confined there.

Yet Aidan goes willingly, as he has no choice in order to assure that his toddler son will not be harmed.

Story Postings

• Gilded Cage original post
• Gilded Cage on Fanfiction.net
• Also, Gilded Cage on Fictionpad
• Gilded Cage on Wattpad
• In addition, Gilded Cage on the G & T Show forums
• and Gilded Cage in In Between Days context
• Gilded Cage in Hall of Mirrors context

Rating

The story is rated K.