Consortium's Decision, Running from Their Law, And the Unnamed Empress

About a week ago I received a transmission from the Consortium while I happened to be visiting family in Primline.  In short, my year's probation to prove myself had been revoked. due to "Undeniable,  irrefutable evidence of your actions." It went on to say "You are taking an active role in the shaping of Universe 18 by creating off-shooting universes there and also in 19.  You are in direct violation of our first rule for Travelers which is not to interfere with the universes they visit.  The data you have collected has been made unusable and destroyed.  You're tendency to destroy what would generally be left as orphaned universes to explore amounts to mass murder on a scale we have rarely seen..  You're Allowance of Travel has been revoked you are to stay on Prime and go immediately to the Consortium offices hidden beneath the His Holy Emperor's palace. Your arrival is expected in no longer then one hour.

"Due to the excellence of your previous work and the poor education you received as an apprentice you will not be put to death.  You will be imprisoned for a period of no more or less then fifteen years and then released,  however you are never to travel from Earth Prime or Primeline again.  Any violation of this order will not only put you on our Kill On Sight list, it will put you on the very top of that list.  We await your arrival and have an appropriately comfortable cell ready for you."

So, what can a woman do under such circumstances?  I quickly said goodbye to my family, packed as much of my equipment and personal effects as I could fit into my space-folding laboratory and immediately jumped to Universe 2. From there it was easy to arrange for a "faked death" with a simple jump forward and back to kill my other self.  This should throw the Consortium's Officers of Travel and Morality for about three days; once they report my death they'll surely be informed that I kill pre-travel selves frequently.

So, I universe jump, hop, run and avoid the Officers of Travel and Morality like the instant death they would surely give me.  They are generally easy to spot, being unfamiliar with any set of Universes beyond the first 5, they stand out like lunatics.  I have even met several other Jumpers (that's what the Consortium calls us) and we have Traveled together for a time as long as it was safe to stay together.  At this point in time I have found myself a lovely posting on the Aetherial Airship Storm Rider; the crew is lovely and they move around enough that I stay ahead of the Officers with little effort; my skills are well used and I'm quite happy.  Additionally the Captain seems more then happy to stay away from 1-5, which is where I'm at most risk and any non approved Traveler (like his whole ship) get's the K.O.S.  Some Jumpers have been known to visit this lovely ship, letting the Captain decide the course which is a relief to the constant stress of being on the run.

But I have not given up on beloved 18-1.  

Amusing story, I had everything set up so most of the members of the United Nations would be willing to accept me as the Earth's Empress.  I bragged about this in a tavern of all places and found myself in a mental institution for 10 days!  Thank goodness this happened in 2010 and not 1880 or it would have been a FAR less pleasant stay.  In order to get out I had to convince them I was just trying to impress a good looking man, and yes, now I know that that indicates poor social skills etc, etc.

It will take several more attempts I fear, before I get things properly set to be acknowledged as Empress.  However, as it stands I pull enough strings of political and artistic leaders that I am running many parts of Earth in 18-1.  So today I reintroduce myself to you as Miss Anne Thrope, Unnamed Empress of Earth 18.