Chapter 4
Raista, 36 Shiaa, 4400 Orthodox Calendar
Wednesday, 10 December 2013, Terran Standard Calendar
Raista, 36 Shiaa, year 1326 of the 97th Generation, Karinne Historical Reference Calendar
Foxwood East, Karsa, Karis
There had to be something in the water.
In just two days, four of the strip kids had expressed. Danelle had been first, and later that night, the strip rang with the joy coming from Min that Jora had expressed that same night. Yesterday, right about the time the Makati were putting Kumi's house back, Zachary secured himself from any teasing from the rest of his siblings by expressing at breakfast. Not two hours later, Lyn announced happily that her son, Jenn, had also expressed. Jason wasn't surprised, for the other members of the squad who had children by others all had children by Generation men. So, next week, they were going to have three passing parties, on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, to give Surin and the mothers time to plan them.
There had been other good news. Rahne had finally been released by Cybi to join the rest of the Karinnes. She had re-educated Rahne by communion, and since she had no family or friends, Jason put her in his guest house until she decided where she wanted to live. Rahne was the same personality wise, but she was much more confident now, engaged, and was very personable. She wasn't sure what she wanted to do in the house, but the idea of going to the Academy intrigued her… and she actually needed to go, for knowledge gained via telepathy or communion would fade if it wasn't reinforced. So continuing her education was actually necessary or she'd slowly lose all the knowledge she gained from Cybi. She wasn't mechanically adept, but she was good at math. She was personable and friendly, and she was a good judge of a person. Jason rather thought she'd be good working with Kumi, that her qualities would make her good at business. But he'd leave it to her to decide
Last night, after the remote commune sensor network was activated, Jason took Kyri aside and tried to teach her how it was done. He had been honestly shocked in how fast Kyri picked it up. Just as Jason and Myleena had seemed to instinctually be able to grasp the aspect of communion and perform it almost perfectly, Kyri too had managed to embrace the idea of it within ten minutes. He had never tried to directly commune with her before, but when he did, and explained it was a different texture of sending, she was able to do it, and do it perfectly, on her very first try. Jason seriously thought, after that, that communion just might be an instinctive ability in Generations, since he had not met a single Generation that could not commune within ten minutes of being taught how it was done. Their race was engineered, and it was no stretch to consider that the ability to commune was a programmed instinctive ability.
That was unleashing a floodgate. After that, Kyri no longer talked or sent to her father, she always communed with him, because it was much faster and much purer than sending. She also was introduced to Cybi in a way she'd never been before, and she was absolutely fascinated by it. She also was introduced to the first major responsibility of a Generation, absolute secrecy. The only ones that knew about the ability to commune were the Generations and the women in the strip. Jason also explained what a gestalt was, and naturally, she wanted one. "Not until you're older," he told her firmly, "because a gestalt would allow you to cheat in your lessons, and we won't allow that."
[But I can cheat now if I want, Cybi can help me!]
[No, Cybi will not help you,] Cybi replied firmly. [You will receive your first gestalt when you graduate from primary school, young lady, and not a moment before.]
[Awww!] she protested, but she didn't try to wheedle. She knew that when her father said no, he meant it.
Unleashing Kyri on the Generations might not have been a good idea, because she was a virus. That morning, to Jason and Myleena's utter shock, Kyri taught Rann how to commune. All by herself, she explained what Jason had told her, and tried to commune with him. Rann was able to commune back within three tries, and that was because he was still learning the basics of sending where Kyri was already a master of sending at the tender age of five. Rann's ability to commune wasn't as good as the others, since he was still learning how to send. His communion was slower, and it lacked the same bandwidth as the adults and Kyri. But those were things he would learn with time and practice. Jason had to intervene when she tried to teach Sora how to commune, since Sora was still learning the basics of sending. She didn't need the additional burden of trying to learn how to commune at the same time. Jason was a bit irked at Kyri for teaching Rann, since Jason had to sit down with him for nearly an hour and explain the difference, and tell him to focus on learning sending first, and that learning sending would help him master communion as well.
It was then, Jason saw, that Rann realized that he was different from other humans and Faey, when he explained that Jyslin wouldn't be able to hear communion. Your mommy wasn't born a Karinne, little man. I was. And only Karinnes born in a certain family are able to commune or be able to hear communion. So remember that you have to send to Mommy, but you can commune with me. But I'd rather you send when talking to both of us. We don't want your mommy to feel left out, do we?
[No.] No, I don't, Daddy, he sent in correction. Is our family really big?
It's pretty big, but if you look at the whole planet, it's not really that big at all. Most all of us are right here in Karsa. The family doesn't really live anywhere else.
So, which of Danny's parents is in our family?
Aunt Myleena, he answered.
Does that make Danny my cousin?
No, the relationship is much more distant than that. She's like a fifth cousin. The two of you could get married when you're older, if you weren't already going to be married to Shya.
I can't wait to see her! he sent excitedly.
You really like her, don't you?
Yeah, she's lots of fun! And she's smart, and she really likes me. I just hope you're right that I'll think private time isn't icky when I grow up, he sent seriously, which made Jason laugh.
Trust me. In about eight years, your opinion of private time will change completely.
Daddy, is it true that I'll be able to move things without my hands the way you and Kyri and Aunt Myli can?
You should be able to, he answered. Have you ever tried?
Not really. Can you teach me?
I might be able to, but you may not be ready yet, he answered, scratching his cheek in thought. Doing that is different from sending. It wakes up on its own, and yours might not be awake yet. But, we can always try. You'll have to wait until we come back from Draconis, though. Are you all packed?
Uh-huh, he nodded. It's gonna be a little scary being there without you and Mommy.
We'll be there, you're just going to stay with Shya, and remember, Shya lives with her nanna, not with her mommy. She'll live with her mommy when she turns ten. Then, when she's fifteen, she'll come to Karis and live with us until you two get married. Think of it like a sleepover, except instead of going to Aunt Maya or Aunt Zora or Aunt Sheleese's house, you're going to Empress Dahnai's house, and it'll just be you and Shya. And we'll be close enough for you to reach us with sending, so we're just a call away, he assured his son with a smile, tapping him lightly on the nose. Now enough worrying, kidlet. We're gonna miss Danny's party!
They attended Danelle's passing party, and had a great deal of fun. Danelle opted for a much less complicated party, without huge rides, but just as big as Sora's, and she too wanted Kyva to come with her Gladiator and give her a ride. Danelle got a huge number of presents, and Jason wasn't the only one feeling the pinch of having to buy so many passing party gifts so close together. And they all knew that there were three more parties coming next week, for Jora, Zachary, and Jenn. Jason and Kyva stood by the rail and watched the kids running around in a game on the beach, as Aya prepared for their trip to Draconis, and Symone was running late at Songa's for her checkup to see if she was pregnant, something he was anxious to find out. He rather missed Symone, and a week without her had been almost like forced abstinence in a way. "So, like the new patch?" he asked Kyva with a smile.
She laughed, looking at her right shoulder, where a patch with a silhouette of a nude Faey woman holding a sword in her hands was framed by the letters KBB, in a semicircle underneath her. The letters stood for Karinne's Baddest Bitches, or just the Bitches for short. Jason had carried through with his idea to build a squad of the six best Gladiator pilots and put them in a special elite squad commanded by Kyva. They were his delta force, his best fighters, the women who could get the job done. "Yes, I do, as a matter of fact," she answered. "And I told you that it was a bad idea."
"So, whose butt did you have to kick?"
She laughed. "All five of them," she answered. "At once. We had a free for all to see who's the best. I won."
"Ouch. Spanked," he said, making a face.
"Just about," she grinned. "But, after we got the pissing contest out of the way, we found out we actually like each other. So, we're starting to get used to working together. I don't really like command very much, but at least the girls I'm commanding know what the hell to do, so I don't have to tell them much. I just decide which tactic to use, and we go do it without me having to hold their hands."
"Sounds good. Oh, yeah. Mika! Mike!" he called. "Come meet someone!" When they came over, Mike holding his son and Latoiya chasing Jora clumsily near the table, he motioned to Kyva. "This is Lieutenant Kyva Karinne, my champion."
"Champion?" Kyva laughed.
"You pilot my personal Gladiator, that makes you my champion," he winked.
"Well, then I'm your champion, your Grace," she winked back.
"Kyva, this is Temika and Mike Colbert. They've just come back from the Academy."
"Oh, congratulations!" Kyva said, shaking their hands. "What courses did you take?"
"Business management," Temika told her.
"Plasma systems," Mike added. "Nice to meet the woman behind the face in the viddies."
Kyva laughed ruefully. "I was so mad when they let that camera follow me around for a week!" she admitted. "They didn't ask me about it at all, I was ordered to do it!"
"It's good for morale, and you're already famous," Jason teased. "They just got to see the woman inside the machine. You are the only Karinne with these," he said lightly, touching the gold crests outside each of her solid Lieutenant's diamonds. "And that's also why you're my champion. Winners of the Dukal Medal of the Champion have that official title, you know," he winked.
"Can I give it back?" she asked plaintively. "It's been more trouble than it's worth!"
Jason laughed. "No, you're my poster girl now, no give-backs!"
"What's it like to pilot that robot?"
"It's not that hard," she answered. "It's like controlling your own body, because of the interface."
"That's my Gladiator pilots are the best in the galaxy," Jason said proudly. "They can outfight anyone, anywhere, any time."
[Jason,] Cybi called, [Siyhaa needs to speak to you.]
"Give me a few minutes, guys, Cybi's calling me." [Can you patch me in?] he asked, putting a finger to his gestalt.
[Certainly. Go ahead, Mahja,] Cybi called, using Siyhaa's title.
[Your Grace,] Siyhaa's deep bass voice called. [I finished the computer analysis you ordered for the enemy ship.]
[Well done, Mahja. What did you find?]
[The computer itself is beyond any hope of reconstruction,] she began. [The damage to its components is too extensive. However, I believe we can build a replacement system using biogenic modules that can effectively control the vessel, and allow the ship to be converted to interface control. As to the software, we've managed to recover about twenty-six percent of the data contained in the computer. Much of it is fractured and disjointed, and it is encrypted, but there's enough of it there for us to break their computer language and encryption and analyze the data we did recover. I have my team working on that now, and since I feel that is the most important thing to do, I'm working on it personally.]
[Outstanding, Mahja!] he replied with honest joy. [When they said you were the best in the business, it was no idle boast!]
[I do try, your Grace,] she said with a bad attempt at humility. [Breaking a computer language and encryption is not an exact process, your Grace, so I cannot give you a timetable. I can just give you an estimate.]
[I know you loathe such inexactness, but give me your best estimate,] he told her seriously.
[My best estimate is three to five weeks to break their computer language and convert the data into a format our computers can understand. Their algorithms are surprisingly advanced for a lesser race. They impress me.]
[I think that's a fair estimate, Mahja, for if they impress you, then they must be quite advanced indeed. I know I will receive your best effort. Send Miaari daily reports on your progress.]
[My best effort is yours, your Grace,] she pledged. [At our usual bonus.]
[You will earn an extra five percent bonus, Mahja,] he told her. [You have exceeded my expectations, and you deserve a bonus for having to deal with the Kimdori more than usual.]
[Thank Szhraa you understand, your Grace,] she told him seriously, which almost made him chuckle. Miaari and Siyhaa respected each other greatly, but there was an ancient rivalry between their races that made it hard for them to like each other. Miaari irritated Siyhaa, and Siyhaa was much too serious for Miaari… but that was what Moridon were like. Not a single Moridon on Karis had even the most remote sense of humor. [Again, you honor our decision to work for you.]
[Thank you. Now get to work, Mahja. Our success will depend on your success.]
[My will is your will. May your horns stay sharp and your hooves unsplit, your Grace.]
[Fire of Szhraa warm you, Mahja Siyhaa.]
The big grin on Jason's face got their attention. "Whut?" Temika asked.
"Siyhaa said she can break the Consortium's encryption and computer language," he said with a gleeful expression. "She said it'll take a while, but she can do it."
"Well, that's good news," Mike said.
"That's fantastic news," Jason said happily. "She could only recover about a quarter of the data in the ship's computer, but that means we'll be able to use that information. And there might be base locations, long-term plans, recent orders, fleet sizes, all kinds of useful data in there that will help us."
"I didn't think of that."
"We could use an advantage," Kyva grunted. "I hate having an enemy we can't find, but knows exactly where we are."
"Fuckin' A," Temika said in English.
The kids all moved down to the beach as Jason had a quick conference with Miaari and Myri. They discussed Siyhaa's information, and they adjusted their plans to take it into account. "With the interdictor being moved up to three days, that'll let us hunker down in our bunker and take our time planning our response," Myri said.
"Yes, at least a year, if they decide to launch a fleet at light speed and can circumvent the relativity principle," Miaari agreed. "If they cannot, then we might have as much as three to four years to prepare for them."
"Relativity? I thought that only applied to hyperspace," Myri said.
She shook her head. "Anything that has mass that moves at light speed suffers from relativity, an alteration of time," she explained. "To them, it would take but a year, but in reality, it would take them centuries, maybe even millennia to get here. The fastest a ship of large mass can go without suffering a large dichotomy of relativity is one third the speed of light. Any faster than that, and it will take it longer to get here. Since the interdictor will protect us out to a light year, then we will have three years if they cannot manipulate relativity. If they can manipulate relativity, then we have a year."
"Can they manipulate time backwards to get here faster?"
"Nothing can make time go backwards," Miaari said immediately. "It is something that has been tried for millennia, but no one, not a single race or scientist, has ever found a way without killing himself and dealing catastrophic damage to his world. The best any has ever accomplished is to stop time… and it is never done because of the dangers involved. Devices that cause the manipulation of time from the inside cannot stop time because of a principle called spatial torsion. The aggravated dissimilarity of time and space inside the effect and space outside torques the space inside the effect in such a way that matter within cannot follow its contours, which deals out physical damage and destroys the device. The Torsion Principle is the fundamental principle behind Consortium torsion weapons and our own torsion shockwave generators. These devices don't manipulate space so much as they manipulate time, then they shape the area of effect into either an expanding sphere or a line of singularity that travels away from the devices. Both of them operate externally, creating the effect from outside of the area of effect. These devices that create the effect from the outside, however, are not exposed to the torsion effect themselves, but they cause an entirely different effect that is actually much more dangerous. When an external devices succeeds in stopping time in an area of space, that space hardens, to use a term, and becomes absolute. When that happens, the space loses all velocity and motion and stops, it becomes anchored to the fabric of reality itself. Now mind that at all times, everything is moving, Myri. Right now, this planet is rotating about an axis, and moves around the sun, and the sun itself moves in the galaxy, and the galaxy moves within the universe. When a device that causes the effect from the outside causes a piece of space to become absolute, that absolute space stops all motion, and therefore it is ripped away from the device that caused it to freeze because that device is within space that is moving. And naturally, since it is no longer affected by the device, it unsticks. The problem with that, though, is that the separation of the absolute space from normal space rips the fabric of space, since you have just caused a section of space to stop moving while all other space around it continues to move. These spatial rifts cause untold havoc, and thus the experiments that create them are banned by most sentient races."
"I never thought of that," Myri said in contemplation.
"The same fundamental principle that prevents anything from exceeding the speed of light also prevents time from moving backwards," she explained. "Once you reach that critical point where time stops within your temporal frame, then nothing more can be done either forwards or backwards to either push you beyond the speed of light or backwards through time."
"What happened to those who made things blow up?"
"They succeeded," she said.
"Huh? You said it was impossible!"
"There is one principle that deals with space-time that seems theoretically possible to reverse time," she explained. "It is theorized that instead of trying to reverse time with speed or direct manipulation, it might be possible to reverse time by manipulating space, manipulating it in a way that forces time to react to space rather than space reacting to time. It deals with causing space to become backwards yet still moving within the reference of normal space, reversing the polarity of space from positive to negative so to speak, which would mean that anything that moved through this negative space would actually move backwards in time rather than forwards, because its relative velocity would actually be negative, which is absolutely impossible within normal space. Now, many races, including the Faey, are quite adept at manipulating space, so this theory inevitably comes up, and some scientist attempts to either prove or disprove it. The problem with the theory and the experiment to prove it is that when you reverse the polarity of space, when you create negative space, it also creates reverse forms of energy and matter within it. It creates anti-energy and antimatter, which is not contained within the inverted space, it is more than capable of leaving it and interacting with positive energy and matter. As positive force can enter the inverted space, so negative force can leave it. So, when you take a test vehicle composed of positive matter and using positive energy and send it into an area filled with anti-energy and antimatter, and if the experiment inverts enough space that creates enough negative force, it can create apocalyptic explosions, powerful enough to destroy entire star systems if the inverted space is big enough. So, those who have tried to prove the theory end up creating cataclysmic explosions when the negative force generated by the experiment makes contact with the positive force either within or surrounding the test area, destroying everything. An inverted area of space this big," she said, holding her finger and thumb about an inch apart, "would create an explosion big enough to level Karsa. Now imagine creating an area of inverted space big enough for a test object to move a great enough distance to prove that it moved backwards in time."
"Couldn't they do it in a vacuum?"
"The problem is not what's there, it is with what is created when space is inverted," she said. "The anti-energy and antimatter are created as a matter of course within the area of inverted space. The amount created depends on the size of the area of space inverted; the more space inverted, the more negative force is created. Mind that any form of positive matter or energy can induce an explosion when it contacts either negative energy or matter. Solar wind passing through the inverted space can trigger an explosion. Even light can cause an explosion, for it is composed of positive energy. So, Myri, it might be theoretically possible to reverse time, but as yet, there has been no way to prove it without creating explosions that make a plasma torpedo look tame by comparison. The restrictions that would be in place to try to prove the theory are ridiculous and not worth the effort in light of the incredible danger such an experiment poses."
"That fits with everything I know about spatial technologies," Jason mused. "Time inside an area of manipulated space is different from time outside due to a change in relative velocity, but the difference is so infinitesimal that it doesn't even matter. The time delay as plasma flows out of a PPG bubble is measured in a fraction of a picosecond, and the temporal shift caused by the change in relative velocity between the entry and exit points of a Stargate is measured in picoseconds, where the ship inherits the same relative velocity as the gate it leaves, violating the old human physical theory of conservation of energy. In each case, space is linked to time and velocity, but velocity can change independent of space, which also can alter time."
"Yes. Time and space are linked, but it is space that is linked to time, which can be affected by velocity. Velocity itself is a relative variable and can be easily altered independently of both space and time. Time can be altered in a proportion based on relative velocity independently of space up until time and velocity become zero, which creates absolute space, but space cannot be manipulated outside of time aside from the unproved theory of inverting the polarity of space."
"I feel like I'm back in school," Myri chuckled. "I wonder if we could develop that idea into a weapon."
"No. The amount of power and preparation required would be prohibitive," she answered. "The spatial warping device that would create an inverted space the size of a marble would have to be the size of the engines on the Aegis. Space will allow itself to be folded and manipulated, but it strongly resists any attempt to invert it. If you want to create a device to destroy things, you could achieve the same result with a plasma torpedo or a pulse weapon, which requires much less equipment and preparation. The idea has been tried, by races long before the Faey."
"Where did you learn all this, Miaari?" Myri laughed. "You know more than most astrophysicists!"
"I am a Handmaiden," she said simply. "It is my duty to learn everything I can, for there is no telling what I may be required to know in order to perform my duties to both my people and to Karinne."
"If you really want to make your head explode, go ask Myleena why our ships move through hyperspace in real time," Jason laughed. "It goes way beyond three dimensional space-time relativity and goes into an entirely different set of laws. It's way beyond me. Myli's much smarter than I am."
"More of a smartass too," Myri laughed.
"True," he agreed, looking down at her as she helped the kids get a kite high into the air, no doubt explaining the physics of it to them. "So, we have a year?"
"At the least. Three years at the most."
"I wonder how ready we can get in a year," Jason grunted. "Given that cranking out interdictors will be our primary goal."
"You might need to rely on us more for shipbuilding operations, or have us build interdictors," Miaari told him. "Denmother is ready for either eventuality."
"Actually, I think I'd rather have her build the cruisers and larger ships, and give us a chance to build something different."
"What?"
"Kosigi," Myri answered. "There's so much open space in there. If we could focus on building docks and facilities instead of ships, and finish the new doors so we can build the big ships, we could increase our own ability to build."
Jason nodded. It's a short term loss for a long term gain. If we can just build ten more docks, we'll be able to produce more ships in the long run."
"I'm sure Denmother would be willing to help, if she forgives my arrogance to presume to think for her," Miaari said.
"She'll forgive you, Miaari," Jason chuckled. "But that's enough talk about business when we're supposed to be having fun."
"Flying kites isn't my idea of fun," Myri noted. "I'll be engaging in my idea of fun as soon as this party is over."
"And what is that?"
She just smiled. "I bought my potassium tablets, and I have a lunch date with Erinn."
"Oh boy," Jason sighed. "Dealing with one pregnant woman is bad enough, but when there's like ten of them all having hormone attacks at the same time, it makes us guys want to move back to Terra for a while."
"Isn't he a bit young, Myri?" Miaari asked. "He's not even out of the Academy yet!"
"That just means he has stamina," she grinned.
"A Kimdori is berating someone else about age?" Jason laughed. "How old was your mate the last time your father gave you permission to have a child?"
"Kimdori are different," she said primly.
"Humans have a saying, Miaari. People who live in glass houses should not throw stones."
"Yes, and it only applies to you humans," she said haughtily, sauntering off with her tail swishing behind her, which made both Jason and Myri chuckle.
When the party wound down, another celebration began. Symone landed in a small hovercar and was sending riotously. I'm pregnant, I'm pregnant! she sent over and over and over as they approached, and when they landed, Symone and Tim were swarmed over in hugs Jason gave her a huge hug and a kiss, then hugged Tim. It's a girl! Symone sent happily.
I'm so happy for you, Symone! Jyslin sent, kissing her. How long?
Four days, and Songa said there's almost no chance I'll lose it. It's already securely attached to my uterus, and both the egg and I am perfectly healthy. So, we're back, babies, she grinned wolfishly at them. And what a way to celebrate, going to Draconis and fucking the shit out of Dahnai and Kellin!
That's not why we're going, Symone, Jason told her. Officially, we're bringing Rann to see Shya.
It's why I'm going, she answered with a huge grin.
We have got to find you a hobby, girl, Jyslin laughed.
Jason was honestly overjoyed that Symone was finally pregnant. In about nine months, she'd have a baby of her own, and she and Tim would know the joys of being a parent… and would probably be running to Jason and Jyslin every ten minutes for advice.
They returned to their houses and got ready to go. Myleena was going to take Danelle with her to Kosigi for the next couple of weeks so she could teach Danelle about closing her mind and sending, so they wouldn't have to worry about her. They were only going to be there for two nights, so Jason packed two changes of clothes, his court robes, and his personal effects Jyslin mirrored him, and they warned Tim and Symone to only bring what they needed, that they could wear borrowed court robes at the palace if they attended court. Aya, Ryn, Shen, and Suri would be accompanying them, leaving Dera in command of the Dukal Guard, and Shen and Suri would be attached personally to Rann.
Symone was all but dancing around when they met at the dropship that would take them up to the Trelle's Gift, which was fully repaired and looking brand new, and would be the flagship of the task force of 14 ships bringing the Grand Duke Karinne to Draconis for an official visit between Heir Apparent Duke Rann Karinne and High Princess Shya Merrane. Jason was willing to risk himself in the Scimitar, but he'd be damned if he protected his wife, children, and amu dozei with anything less than overwhelming, unstoppable force. She could barely sit still as Jason piloted the dropship up to the massive battleship, surrounded by the heavy cruiser Abarax, 4 cruisers, and 8 destroyers, all completely repaired and formidable-looking. Would you calm down? You're making me dizzy! he ordered as they prepared to land in the landing bay.
I can't help it, I'm just too happy! she answered. I'm pregnant, Jayce! Pregnant!
Criminy, I need to unleash you on Dahnai and Kellin just to calm you down, he chided, which made Jyslin and Tim explode into laughter.
Unleash? Rann asked.
Don't worry about it, kidlet, Symone told him with a grin. It's a private joke between your parents and me.
Oh. Okay.
The captain of Trelle's Gift was actually an admiral, Joint Admiral Jaiya Karinne, the lowest of the four admiral ranks, but she was still called captain on her ship. The captains of the three battleships and the Aegis were all at least Joint Admiral in rank. She was a tall and rather buxom Faey with her long, straw-straight blond hair tied back in a thick ponytail that dangled almost to her knees, knotted with rubber bands at regular intervals. She was wearing her dress uniform, as was the entire complement of crew that had been assembled in the landing bay for his arrival, both the ribbons she won in the Imperial Navy as an enlisted woman who had earned a commission and rose to the rank of Lieutenant Commander before being lured to the Karinnes, and the ribbons representing the medals and awards she'd won in the KMS decorating her left breast almost up to her collarbone. She saluted him sharply when he exited the dropship, then laughed and gave him a fond hug when he smiled and opened his arms to her. "Hey there, Miss I Just Had to Have One More Medal," he teased. "You look good as new!"
"Nothing two weeks in the hospital couldn't fix, your Grace," she told him with a laugh. Jaiya had been one of the captains that had been wounded during the battle. She had had a small shard of bulkhead actually penetrate her armor when a torsion blast went right through the bridge, which had miraculously went right between the captain's chair and the navigation console without hitting either crewman. It impaled her low in the left side, hitting in the only real vulnerable part of the Crusader armor, the mesh-like series of overlapping plates on the lower torso that allowed the torso to bend. A redesign was already on the board to thicken the armor in that area, for most of the injuries had been suffered in breaches of the armor in the lower stomach, lower back, and joints, where the need to allow movement required thinner or pieces of flexible armor rather than solid plates. "I'm good as new and ready to go, and happy to be back on my ship!" she said, patting her left lower stomach. "We were both released from our respective hospitals nearly on the same day," she winked.
"Is he fully repaired?"
"As good as the day he was christened," she said confidently. "Would you like to inspect the crew before we go?"
"Well, real quick," he said.
Jason's inspections weren't really all that serious. He walked up and down the rows, and instead of looking for anything out of place, he spent most of his time shaking hands and talking with the crew. He didn't shake every hand or talk to every one, he'd just stop randomly and do so, often at crewmen or women that caught his attention. The Makati wearing the double-diamond of a Lieutenant Commander caught his attention, and remembered that this was the head of engineering on the ship, though he couldn't remember the Makati's name. They even had a Kizzik on board, a Kizzik noble wearing KMS rank, whom he had to stop to meet. "I'm surprised to see you serving on a ship," he said, looking up at her compound eyes. She was nearly a foot taller than he was, and she was nearly seven feet long. She was very large, even for a Kizzik.
"Temporarily, revered Hive-Leader," the Kizzik replied, her interface unit resting on her shoulder translating her scent language into mechanical-sounding Faey, and Jason knew that her interface also translated his words into her scent-language, which was why it was located on her shoulder rather than her head. Kizzik didn't have windpipes, they instead had small aspiration holes along their backs and thoraxes that led to a series of many small lungs, each one acting independently and also each capable of detecting odors. Her interface was most likely affixed directly over a few of her aspiration holes, which gave her an almost direct connection to the device's ability to transmit scents to her. "I am learning about ship operations with the engineers, so we might test bringing drones aboard ship."
"Have you been able to move about the ship without trouble?"
"Yes. The crew has been patient with me, and I fit in most of the elevators. Thank you for your concern, revered Hive-Leader."
"No need to thank me, your well being is my responsibility as the Hive-Leader," he answered.
"Wow, a Kizzik!" Rann said excitedly, coming up to him.
"Rann, introduce yourself," Jason told him.
He was quiet a moment, thinking, then he put his feet together, crossed his arms before himself, and bowed to her. "I am Rann Karinne, humble son of the Hive-Leader," he said, repeating what he'd been taught to say. "I greet an honored daughter of the Hive."
She mirrored his movement, crossing her blade-arms as her hand-arms rested at her sides, bending at her waist since everything below that was a four-legged thorax with small chitinous wings folded on top. Kizzik were like insectoid centaurs in that regard. "I am Kt'Thr'Kxt, humble daughter of the Karinne-Hive. I greet the son-Prince of the revered Hive-Leader," she returned.
Did I do it right, Papa?
Exactly right, well done, little man, he smiled in reply.
Why didn't you greet her?
I'm higher rank. I don't have to, he answered simply. And I spoke to her before she could greet me, which released her from the responsibility of a formal greeting.
Oh. Do I really have to learn all this stuff? he complained.
Afraid so, little man. It's part of what being the Grand Duke is all about.
Nuts.
After the inspection, Jaiya settled them into a guest cabin. Aya helped them strap in as the task force headed out away from the planet, to reach space not warped by the planet's gravity well so they could make their hyperspace jump. Symone was giddy, and Rann was a little nervous. "I don't like hyperspace," he said as Aya secured him.
"Me either, kidlet," Symone agreed as Ryn helped her strap in. "I just close my eyes and recite Trelle's poem until it's over."
Jumping to Draconis wasn't bad as jumps go. It was a very short jump, and his travel to Exile and back had toughened him up a little bit. He wasn't as bothered as usual with the wild sensory input, and then it was over. Draconis loomed through the forward window, and the sections were already reporting in that jump checks were commencing. Jaiya, when will we get there? Jason asked.
In about thirty minutes, she answered.
Call ahead and warn Empress Dahnai we're on our way.
They already called us, as soon as we jumped in, she answered.
Well, I guess that works.
Thirty minutes wasn't long, really. By the time they unstrapped and had something to drink, and they went down to the landing bay, they were nearly in orbit. There would be ten Raptor fighters escorting them down, ten of his best fighter pilots… and one of them wasn't typical for a Faey military outfit. His tenth pilot was a human male, one of the telepathic Karinne humans, who had been a fighter pilot in the Navy before the subjugation. He was 34 years old, had been a Lieutenant Commander back in the Navy, and had had quite a fight on his hands when a man entered what most Faey women considered to be no place for a man. Jason didn't permit discrimination, so Commander Justin Taggart had passed the tests and earned his position as a fighter pilot, especially since he was a telepath and was capable of the telepathic attacks required of a Faey fighter pilot. He was unusually strong for a man, but where women were able to eclipse him in talent, he generally whooped their asses in dogfighting. Taggart had adapted to vector-based zero-G combat quickly, and he had one of the most impressive run of scores for fighter pilots in the KMS because he was very consistent in either atmosphere or space combat.
Faey women were generally easy to get along with, but the one button most of them had was for a man to be in combat. Thousands of years of tradition were at war with Karinne policy there. They had accepted men on Naval vessels because there was some measure of safety in a ship, that they had a better chance of survival. But a male fighter pilot was alone and at high risk, and the women absolutely hated it, because they saw it as their duty to protect him from harm. Taggart's main problem hadn't been proving he could fight, or dealing with rampant sexism, it had been making the women stop trying to protect him, which often put them at great personal risk. The fact that he was an amazing fighter pilot certainly helped. He had more experience than most of his fighter pilots, was a squadron commander that commanded the 76th Carrier Squadron currently attached to the battleship Dreamer. Taggart was one of 18 squadron commanders of fighters and Gladiator squadrons on the battleship, but he was one of only 38 male fighter pilots in the KMS, one of only four human male pilots, and was the only male in a command position.
In the KMS, being a squadron commander was not a desk job. Taggart flew combat sorties right along with the rest of the squadron.
It was a problem he had the most issues with in the Marines and Army rather than the Navy. Jason employed infantry and Gladiator riggers of both sexes and of every race in Karinne; he even had Makati infantry, and had a special division of them who called themselves the Hammers, who specialized in tunnel and subterranean combat. The Faey women who constituted 72% of his infantry and ground units had not been too willing to integrate, because of traditional views that men should not fight, and men should be protected. They were most objectionable to men serving as line infantry, and their objections lessened the higher one went, where the women felt the men had more protection. They had fewer problems with them in support roles like medics, even if those were on the battlefield, and were a bit more accepting of the male Gladiator riggers, since they were in the mecha and surrounded by heavy armor. Generally, the "safer" the combat position, the less resistant the women had been to men serving in it.
But, after 4 years, the women had finally come to accept men in combat, and Jason found it amusing that they didn't mind having men in the unit at all after a couple of weeks of exercises. So long as there wasn't any actual fighting going on, the women loved having men around, especially since there was no division of sexes in the KMS, a fact that Jason had to be talked into by Myri and the generals. Men and women could and did share rooms, they shared bathrooms, they shared everything. There were no "men's rooms and women's rooms" out in the field or on KMS ships, so they weren't trained any differently than how they would have to operate. It had caused some problems at first, mainly from the human men and women who had joined the KMS who had been raised to believe in division of sexes in some regards, but they'd had four years to adapt to it. He could imagine some humans having issues using the bathroom in a unisex latrine, or showering in a public shower with both sexes, but that was something they were fully warned about before they signed up.
As soon as they were in stable orbit, they launched. A squadron of Imperial Raptors joined the 10 Raptors escorting the Dukal dropship, with Jason himself piloting the dropship, and they made a slow, easy descent to the planet. Jason flew over Dracora with Jyslin in the copilot's seat and Rann on her lap, looking out the window excitedly, and they landed lightly on the main landing pad, where Jason saw the entire Imperial Family along with half the Siann, waiting for them. It was almost unheard of to see the entire Imperial family together in one place at one time, and it was a reminder that Dahnai had three children, not just Shya. Dahnai and Kellin stood with Dahnai's three children with them, and thankfully, none of them were wearing official court robes. They, like the Karinnes, were wearing nice "casual attire." Dahnai was wearing a simple sleeveless vest and a pair of sleek trousers, almost looking like workout clothes, and Kellin was wearing a simple wrap that had no sleeves and ended at his thighs, which showed off his muscular legs.
The Crown Princess Sirri Merrane stood at her mother's right hand, wearing a simple red pair of pants that ended at her knees, which were a little scabbed, and nothing else, leaving her topless, which actually was not unusual for little girls in Faey society. Young girls were much more apt to go topless than boys, but boys were much more apt to go bottomless, which was reflected in Kellin's choice of clothing. Girls liked to show off above the waist, boys below. She was 8 now, and had inherited both her mother's bronze hair and her handsome face. She still lived away from her mother, for it was tradition that she enter her mother's household at the age of ten. She was very tall and serious-looking, the picture of a proper Crown Princess, the heir to the Imperial throne
High Prince Maer Merrane Doyalle, her oldest child and ten year old son, stood in front of Kellin, Kellin's hands on his shoulders, wearing a soft brown robe with the right sleeve so long and baggy it completely hid his hand and the left ending at his elbow. Maer was tall for a boy, tall and gangly, and he had dark chestnut brown hair that marked him as very attractive among the Faey. He was rarely seen outside the palace, and was by far the child of the Empress the press and the people had the least interest in. Not only was he a boy, he was also already betrothed, betrothed before birth, so there was little news about him on INN or Courtwatch. They wouldn't really care about Maer until he was 15 years old. He was betrothed to the fourth daughter of the Grand Duchess, a 10 year old girl named Alii Doyalle. Maer had been living with Dahnai for about two months, and Dahnai was very excited about it, because she knew she would only have him for five years. Noble men in Faey society were surrendered to the bride's house at the age of 15, and they would raise him and prepare him for marriage to Alii, which would take place as soon as Alii was declared fit for marriage. To be declared fit for marriage, she had to be sexually mature and physically capable of giving birth, which was usually around the age of 17, and her talent had to be trained to the level of an adult, which was usually done long before a noble girl reached sexual maturity because telepathic skill was much more important for nobles than for commoners. This was much different from commoner marriage, which wasn't permitted until both spouses were at least 20 years of age, had parental consent if they were under 25, and graduated from primary school, which was the Faey equivalent of high school. Most Faey didn't graduate from primary school until the age of 23 and weren't considered adults with full legal privileges until age 25, so marriages before then were extremely rare.
High Princess Duchess Consort Shya Merrane Karinne was being held by her mother, wearing only a pair of black shorts, leaving her topless as well, not even wearing shoes. Her light hair had been pulled back from her face and held there with a pair of combs, and she looked extremely excited, fidgeting and squirming in her mother's arms. Dahnai held her firmly until the dropship and the fighters had landed, and only then did she put Shya down… probably to keep her from charging the dropship and getting crushed when it landed on her. She did hurry forward once the dropship was down, well in front of her family, and Jason called for Aya to open the hatch so the poor girl didn't have to wait outside like a punished puppy, which no doubt would have been played for many laughs on INN in the evening broadcast. Shya climbed in just in time to meet Rann, who had climbed down from Jyslin's lap, and they hugged each happily other right at the hatch opening, and no doubt in full view of the cameras behind the Imperial family. "Ranny, Ranny, Ranny! I'm so happy to see you!" she said jubilantly.
"Shya!" he said with equal joy, kissing her on the cheek. "I told you we'd come!"
"That was never in doubt, you silly boy," Jyslin laughed, kneeling down and hugging Shya and Rann both, since Shya refused to let go of Rann. "Now go take Rann to see your mother, Shya," she smiled.
"Okay!" she said with an exuberant nod, and led him down the stairs of the dropship by the hand. Shen and Suri went out with them, and Jason joined Jyslin at the hatch, took his wife's hand, and led her out into the shark-infested waters of public court, with Tim and Symone right behind them. Aya and Ryn escorted Jason and Jyslin out, and they watched Dahnai pick up Rann and hold him high over her head, laughing as Rann sent to Dahnai in excitement. Empress Dahnai! I missed you!
"Speak, honey, speak! It's custom to speak to the Empress unless I tell you to send or send to you first," she told him with a bright smile. "But I must say, you send very well, little spunky! You've been practicing!"
That sent a few twitters through the Siann. They had no idea that the Grand Duke Karinne's five year old son had expressed.
"Mommy and Daddy make me practice every day," he answered as Dahnai passed Rann to Kellin, who kissed him on the cheek. "Hi Prince Kellin! You been okay?"
"I've been very good, little spunky," he said, kissing Rann on the cheek before setting him down, where Shya took custody of him again. She introduced him to her brother and sister as her husband, who had never met Rann before.
"Maer, Sirri, this is my hubby Ranny," she said, wrapping her arms around him.
"You have funny colored skin, like the Terrans, but you have nice ears," Sirri told him, looking at Rann's pointed ears.
"Daddy says I'll turn blue if I stay outside here," Rann answered.
"Good! Then you'll look proper!" Maer told him.
Dahnai gave Jason a warm hug when they reached them, and Jyslin embraced Kellin. "We early or late?" Jason asked her.
She laughed. "Right on time," she answered, then she hugged Jyslin. Tim and Symone reached them, and Dahnai reached out her hands to them. Symone took her hands, and the Tim, as she greeted them in turn, as Kellin did the same. "I'm glad Jason brought his whole family," she smiled. "Finally, Jason's amu dozei is introduced to court."
"Jason always says they're not ready for me," Symone said with a wicked smile.
"I'm inclined to agree, which is why I've canceled court during your visit," Dahnai said dryly, which made Symone laugh. "But, you can't ever get out of it completely, so let's at least do the introductions now, while my servants take your bags."
As cameras rolled, Dahnai first introduced her older children to Jason's family, which only Jason had met. Dahnai did not as a matter of custom introduce her children to outsiders until they were ten or unless they were relatives, and Jyslin had not been to court since Rann was betrothed to Shya, which made them relatives of the Imperial family by marriage; a betrothal was considered an official tie of marriage despite the marriage having yet to take place, and this was the first official meeting between the full families of both betrothed children. Had Dahnai been greeting some other Dukal family, she would not have brought her children. Maer had been officially introduced to court on his tenth birthday, and had vanished from the public eye since then, for he was not the heir. It would be Sirri that would attend court with her mother starting on her tenth birthday, standing at the right hand of the throne, but wearing a robe with no left sleeve to give her mother ample room to touch her and thereby send privately to her. After the two older children met Jason, Jyslin, Tim, and Symone, the three of them were introduced around the present members of the Siann in a receiving line right there on the landing pad. This told Jason much about Dahnai's intent to get the public niceties out of the way so the private visit could begin. Jason was blessedly exempt from the introductions, so he spent most of his time with the children. Rann was more than comfortable talking with Maer and Sirri as Shya clung to him, as Jason knelt among them and listened with amusement as Sirri tried to be regal without being smarmy. She didn't do a very good job of it. She knew she was the Crown Princess, but she was still an 8 year old girl who liked to play, and the scabbed condition of her knees proved it. "Can you really send?" Sirri asked Rann in curiosity.
"Uh-huh," he nodded. "And someday I'll do te-kisis like Daddy too!"
"Telekinesis, little man," Jason chuckled.
"Wow, I've never heard of being able to send so young," Sirri said, a little jealously. "You must have really walked through Trelle's hair."
"My sister Kyri could do it when she was born," Rann said with a slight frown. "She makes fun of me and says I send like a baby. All of my brothers and sisters can do it now, though. My brother Zach just woke up yesterday!"
Jason would have preferred him not to say that. Rann, remember your lessons about speaking to strangers. Remember, Empress Dahnai's family are still outsiders, even if you're gonna marry Shya, he cautioned.
Sorry, Papa, he answered contritely. Since he was still learning the trick of private sending, his sending was open, but very low power, barely going five feet.
"You can really do telekinesis?" Maer asked.
"Daddy says I will someday," Rann told him, a bit more carefully. "It runs in the family, he says."
Rann made no more mistakes, but he also managed to befriend Sirri and Maer in short order. That was good, because Rann was going to be staying with Shya's foster family during their stay, and they were in guest quarters in the palace.
After about an hour, the introductions were coming to a close, and Jason noticed that Rann's skin was already taking on a slightly bluish hue from exposure to the blue sun of the Draconis system. He held up his own hand and saw that he too was starting to take on a dusky undertone that he knew was the herald of himself turning blue. Rann seemed more vulnerable to the effect than Jason, probably because his mother was Faey. Maer noticed it too. "Look at your arm, Ranny! You really are turning blue!" he declared.
"I am? Wow!" he said, then he laughed.
"I think it looks funny," Shya complained.
"It fades over time, Shya," Jason assured her with a chuckle. "So if you don't like him blue, just keep him out of the sun here on Draconis, and it'll fade away."
"Good," she declared. "I like my Ranny just the way he is."
After the introductions and smalltalk, Dahnai took possession of them. She separated them from the Siann and from the cameras by taking them back to her private apartments. She had a second couch brought in to accommodate the extra people, and the guards and servants helped them settle in. Dahnai's apartment hadn't changed much since Maer had come to live with Dahnai, but some of her habits had. She still refused to engage in sex with her guards in the apartment, but didn't make Maer leave. But he knew that when his mother ordered the guards out, he needed to stay in his room. He knew she and Kellin were having sex, be it in their bedroom or in the living room, and she really didn't like to be interrupted or disturbed while doing so. Maer was fully aware what sex was, like any ten year old Faey child would, and while Dahnai didn't hide sex from her son, she did maintain her desire not to have sex in front of those not engaged in it. In many Faey households, parents would have no qualms about having sex with their children in the same room, maybe even in the same bed, but Dahnai was much more conservative in her views because of her Imperial upbringing. Dahnai's entire life was watched by others. She couldn't even go to the bathroom without a guard there watching her wipe herself. She kept her sex life as the one thing she had to herself, her one true privacy, and she defended it like a wolverine.
Maer dragged all the kids into his room to show them around, allowing the adults to sit down. "So," Symone said, looking around. "Are there any doors at all in here?"
"None," Dahnai answered. "My guards think doors are obstacles. The only doors in my apartment are safety doors that shut in case of an attack. This apartment is probably the most heavily armored part of the palace," she noted, waving her arm towards the wall.
"I kinda like that idea," she noted, looking at Tim.
"Since when do we ever close the doors at home?" he asked.
"I'm surprised you didn't come in that command ship you have, Jayce," Dahnai told him.
"It's doing something else right now," he answered.
"Being repaired?"
He nodded. "The Consortium focused on it during the battle. It'll be back in service by Maista."
"Well, that's good news. Now, let's talk about this summit you're calling. I don't want any surprises."
"It's pretty straightforward, Dahnai," he answered. Symone, who wasn't usually interested in politics, got up and wandered into Maer's room. "I'm going to propose an agreement of sorts that has us all share our information about the Consortium. So, for example, if the Alliance gets intelligence about a base they discover, they warn everyone else. I'm not going to ask for any military alliances or anything official, just what you might call an informal agreement to pool our information. They'll know I mean it because tomorrow, the cooperative research unit is opening at the Academy, and they start going over the Consortium data. My main goal of the summit is to get everyone to agree that the Consortium is a threat to all of us, because I seriously doubt that the Alliance or the Skaa are going to enter into any agreements with them, not after what they did to the Urumi."
"Well, that's not too bad," Dahnai noted, tapping her chin lightly.
"The High Staff has already agreed to help," he said. "He promised to pass any sensor intelligence his government finds to the Academy. That's what I'm looking for. I want to know what the Consortium are doing, and it's easiest if everyone is keeping their eyes open. They'll help me find them and keep an eye on them, and that'll let me and Sk'Vrae deal with them," he said in a grating voice.
"And me," Dahnai said. "They attacked a house of my Imperium and tried to get another house to betray us, and I will not let that go unpunished. Even if it wasn't you, Jayce, the Consortium is just too dangerous to us to leave alone. They've attacked the Imperium, and the Imperium will respond. When it comes to war, the Imperium will be there."
"Since when did you say no to a war, Dahnai?" he challenged.
"Hmm… never," she winked.
"That's really all I'm trying to get," Jason said. "And I think it's important for the leaders to be there rather than just ambassadors, so they can listen and see the recordings and understand what happened personally. I was going to ask you to host the summit."
"Me? Why not you? It's your summit."
"I'm not a ruler," he said simply. "I've asked for the summit, and I'm providing the location for it, but since you're my Empress, you're the one that should be the official host. It would disrespect you not to be hosting a summit being held on one of the planets in your own empire."
"I'm so glad you remember that when it suits you," she said archly.
"When it suits me," Jason said with a straight face. "I had enough clout to ask for the summit and invite the rulers because of my neutral status, but I shouldn't be the one hosting it. They'll listen to me as a Karinne, but they won't respect me as a host. After all, they all outrank me, and that matters in a summit where emperors, kings, and leaders of governments are rubbing shoulders."
Dahnai gave him a critical look. "You really have learned how to play the game," she told him. "I can smell Zaa all over you."
"She does give me advice from time to time," he admitted blandly.
"So, your ultimate goal is cooperation?"
"Don't you think it's a good idea?" he asked simply. "If we're going to war with the Consortium, doesn't it behoove us to have our neighbors helping us find them and keeping us informed about them?"
"I think it's a great idea, but I'm surprised you didn't try to get allies."
"I hope that they will eventually, but I'm not going to push," Jason said. "Once I get the interdictors up and running, I'll feel more secure, and we'll have more time to get ready for them."
"Where's that contract you promised me?"
"You'll get it as soon as I'm sure the interdictor works," he answered. "But, I'm also here to talk to you about a little bit of business."
"Oh? What business is that?"
"How would 2M like to lease and operate Stargates outside of the Imperium?"
She gave him a hard look. "Let our greatest advantage outside our borders? Are you fucking nuts? The Stargates are the main reason why the other governments leave us alone! They know I can deploy my entire fleet to any system inside an hour, so they won't dare attack us!"
"Think about this, then, Dahnai," he said, leaning back. "The other governments might be so afraid of the Imperium that they'll see the interdictors and beg for them. I might be inclined to lease interdictors out, but how will they move their goods in and out of those interdicted systems? No other government has Stargate technology but us, and I won't supply them without your permission because it's not Karinne technology, it's proprietary Imperium technology. So, the government has a quandary, the only way they can protect themselves is to isolate their systems from interstellar travel. Well, you and me make a deal about that. I lease a Stargate to them, with ironclad clauses about allowing Karinne ships and automated defenses to guard them and whatnot, and offer them a very small fee per ship to use them, much cheaper than the standard fees for using Stargates inside the Imperium, which I give to you. We link that Stargate to a central hub inside the Imperium, like, say, a recognized neutral planet like Terra, and not only does that allow you to profit from all traffic outside the Imperium that uses your Stargates, it also sends all ships to Terra, which becomes the trading hub of the sector. Since that's where everyone's going to be, that's where the businessmen are going to flock. And I'm sure I could be persuaded to give you some sweetheart deals to let Merrane companies move in and corner those new markets. 2M, MAS, Merrane Consolidated, they could make a killing off ship repair services… and that's just one aspect of the new business opportunities."
Dahnai gave him a long, narrow-eyed look, then she laughed suddenly. "Good Trelle, Jayce, you are just too fuckin' cunning! And let me guess, you earn a little too because Terra is a Karinne planet?"
"I'm not too proud to admit that it'll earn Karinne some money," he shrugged. "I just think it's a good idea to shut down the entire sector to the Consortium, and we can do that by making it impossible for them to jump hyperspace through friendly territory. Every interdictor up and running in the sector is another obstacle the Consortium has to overcome. We can build a system that majorly disrupts any attempt to jump hyperspace within our sector, and that gives us an inside track to earning some money in addition to increasing overall security. And most importantly to me, it brings us all together in one place and lets us get to know each other a little better, so maybe we don't get into stupid wars." He leaned back and put his arm around Jyslin. "It won't happen immediately, though," he said. "The other governments won't trust the Imperium to gain total control over their trade, because no matter how neutral I am, they know that Karinne is still part of the Imperium. So we'll have to build trust first, and then, when they trust us enough, we offer them that deal. I think they'll take it. They'll definitely take it if the Consortium comes back in force. And when they do, we profit."
Kellin looked at her. "It seems to have some merit, love," he said.
"Some," she nodded. "But there's something hiding in there. I know there is, Jayce, you're too smart and this is a little too obvious. The profit's just there to lure me into taking it. I can't see what it is, but I'm sure there's some secret objective this fulfills."
He just smiled slightly.
"I knew it!" she said victoriously, pointing at him. "But, I can't see anything wrong with it on its face, and it does do everything you say it does."
"Well, from the way I see it," Tim said, his eyes thoughtful, "it really benefits everyone. Think about it. Other governments have access to Stargates all over the sector. They can move trade goods from the back end of the Alliance to the Nine Colonies in one day, hell, in two hours, when it would take weeks of going through trade customs of the Imperium and the Collective to get their goods from one side to the other. Trade would explode in the sector. The Imperium's revenue would skyrocket because the governments will see the benefit and start using the Stargates as trade portals. Each government would probably leave one system without an interdictor so they could explore or do secret things, but the main thing would be that it would seriously increase trade revenue for every government, not just us."
"The problem is Terra in that case," Jyslin said. "If it becomes the transport hub of the sector, it becomes the first target. Take out Terra, and you force everyone to shut down their interdictors."
"Yes… unless it's also protected by an interdictor," Jason smiled. "Which would spur governments to take our offer, else they have to rely on an outside government just to get to Terra and the Academy, where all the action is. I'm within my rights to defend Terra, and that's something I'm going to impress upon the leaders at the summit, that I'm worried about Terra because it's vulnerable to Consortium attack, but take no action and make no declarations. It's my planet, and the Consortium attacked House Karinne, so I have to take reasonable steps to defend Karinne holdings."
"Devious!" Kellin laughed. "You're going to force them!"
"No, not force. Not force at all," Jason said. "When I put up the interdictor, I'm going to open a Stargate out in the neutral space just past Terra, about halfway between Sol and Alpha Centauri, and defend the holy fuck out of it. I'll allow everyone to jump to that gate and then use it to get to Terra. I'm not going to rob anyone of access to Terra, but I'm hoping that after they see the neutral gate in action, they start seeing how much of an advantage it could be to have an interdictor and Stargate of their own. They'll see that the only way into their territory is through the most heavily defended system in the sector, which gives them one hell of a front door to their house. They just have to trust someone with the key, and that's going to take time."
"I have to admit, that's not a bad idea," Dahnai said after a moment. "It solves the problem of how to defend Terra, and it gives them a taste of what we're offering. I'll really have to think about that, babe. I think it has some potential."
"That's all I can really ask," he said. "Symone! We're finished with politics!" he shouted, which made the others laugh.
"Thank Trelle! Turn on the viddy, and let's watch Bounty Hunter!" she answered, coming in carrying a giggling Sirri and Rann, with Maer and Shya hanging off her legs.
It was a nice couple of hours. Dahnai's older children and the Karinnes got to know each other, and Dahnai and Kellin got to know Tim and Symone maybe a little better than they had during their visit. After watching the viddy, Dahnai had a very nice dinner sent to he apartment, and they all sat on couches and chair enjoying warm cheese-tasting vegetables in a buttery sauce, white pork-like meat in a tangy gravy, and sliced oye fruit. After dinner, the kids sat in the middle of the floor playing Seven Circles while the adults enjoyed glasses of Terran wine. But, Symone being Symone, she also wasn't forgetting her ultimate motive for coming along. After the wine, when they returned to conversation as the kids played, she sat by Kellin and she took some pretty outrageous liberties with him. She put her hands all over him, made sure to press her breasts against his side, made a suggestive comment about every fifteen seconds, and Jason counted six times he could see that she slid her hand up under his short robe. Kellin certainly didn't seem to mind at all, for he stole several feels of Symone's breasts, and when he commented that Symone looked like she'd gotten a tan since the last time he saw her, he dared to muse if she had any tan lines.
She made sure to show him. She slid back a bit and pulled her shirt off, and proudly proclaimed that she was line free. She then stood up and pulled her shorts down, letting him stare at her blond pubic hair for a moment before bending down to step out of them. She then sat back down beside him, slid a hand under his robe to slide along his chest, and whispered something in his ear just before licking the outside edge, from lobe to tip.
Jason could see where this was going. Symone had found a reason to get naked, and she wasn't going to stop. And from the look of it, Kellin wasn't going to either, for he slid his hand down her stomach and fondled her genitals. Dahnai, he warned.
Bria, why don't you take the kids on a tour of the palace, and then take them to the entertainment arcade? And I think all the guards in the room can go with you, she sent meaningfully.
Bria gave her a slight smile and nodded. "Kids, do you want to go tour the palace and go to the entertainment arcade before dinner?"
"Sure!" Maer and Sirri said in unison.
"What's the arcade?" Rann asked.
"A play place for us!" Maer said happily. "There's rides and games and climbing maze and all sorts of neat things to do!"
"Oooh, can I go, please?" he asked his parents.
"Surely you can, my little man," Jyslin smiled, kissing him on the cheek when he came over to her. "Now, after you go have fun, the guards are going to take you to Shya's foster parents' house for the night. So, you be good for them and behave, okay?"
"I will, I promise," he nodded.
"Maer, dove, did you pack your bag for your sleepover?" Dahnai told him.
"Yes, Mother," he answered. "It'll be weird being back with Nanna and Panna, but it'll be like a slumber party this time!"
"Nanna and Panna invited some other children over too, so it will be a slumber party," Dahnai told him, holding her arms out. Maer came up to her, and she kissed him on the cheek. "Now you be good."
"I will," he promised.
Dahnai and Kellin said goodnight to their kids, as did everyone else, and they watched the eight guards in the room file out with them, leaving them alone. When the door shut and the red light noting it was locked winked on, Symone blew out her breath and immediately started untying Kellin's robe. "Thank Trelle!" she said, almost trembling with excitement. "Now we get to have that orgy Dahnai promised us! And I've been wanting a shot at this monster since I saw it swinging on the beach back home!" she declared, pulling Kellin's robe open and yanking his shorts down, exposing his penis. Symone wasted no time grabbing it and fondling it, giving Kellin a huge grin. "Now we see who wins the bet about how big you are hard," she said with an eager glow in her eyes. "And I hope you have good stamina, Kellin. Me and Jys are gonna take turns with you."
"I hope he's agreed to it," Tim laughed.
"What? You think I'd pass up an invitation from ladies as sexy as Symone and Jyslin? Please," he laughed. "I've been looking forward to this."
"Trelle, has he," Dahnai chuckled, standing up and crossing over to Tim's couch, then pulling her shirt off in front of him to free her impressive breasts. "And so have I," she said, looking right in Tim's eyes. "I've been looking forward to wrapping my legs around you, Tim."
"I'm honored, Dahnai," Tim smiled, sitting up, reaching over, and grabbing the waist of her sleek trousers, and pulling them down.
"I'd rather you be horny."
"That's not a problem," he chuckled, running his hands up her sides before cupping her breasts.
That was about everything he expected it could be.
It was intense. It was highly erotic. It was both new and familiar, but above all, it had been satisfying.
Tim was much braver than Jason, and always had been, so he had absolutely no hesitation about having sex with Dahnai in front of the other four, and Symone about defined fearlessness. Jason and Jyslin, however, had to kind of work themselves into the idea of it. They had no trouble having sex with Tim and Symone, and Jason was a long-time partner with Dahnai, but Kellin was a new and different presence, one to which Jason and Jyslin had to grow accustomed. Once they did, however, it became a night of shared pleasure. It wasn't the deep and intimate sessions Jason and Jyslin enjoyed with Tim and Symone. It was compartmentalized, with defined couples or trios, not interacting with each other. But despite the lack of interaction, they also managed about every combination of lovers, so that everyone there had managed to experience all the options available.
Jason had enjoyed sex with each of his loves by herself, and then shared them with each of the other men. He had had two of them at a time in all three combinations, and he had, at one point, had brief fun with all three women at once. But Tim and Kellin got the same treatment he did, and Symone had also been something of a wild card. Where Jyslin and Symone were lovers—and indeed, they drove Kellin wild at one point because he had never threesomed with women who were lovers—Symone was willing to engage in sex with Dahnai where Jyslin was not. Dahnai still wouldn't return the favor, but it created a couple of scenarios of couples and partners that kept things very interesting. It was truly a group experience that lasted all night.
Before he had deepened his bond with Tim and Symone to where they shared the same bed, he would have been way too nervous to be part of three couples having sex in the same room, but he figured that his conversion to a Faey mentality was complete. After he and Jyslin got over their initial inhibitions, they had been just as eager and enthusiastic as Symone. He had shared his wife with the husband of his amu dorai, and had done so willingly, because she was sexually curious about him, and for no other reason. He had handed his wife off to someone other than Tim, and done it happily, just as she had often told him she was more than willing to let him experience other women. And he did it without blinking, because he knew she loved him, and he knew she would come home to him. So, he was more than happy to give her his blessing and send her to Kellin, because it would make her happy, and she would come home to him and share her experience with him in a way that only a telepath could accomplish.
When he woke up, he was in bed with Dahnai. From what he recalled, Tim was in bed with Jyslin, and he was certain that Kellin was again with Symone, because they were having sex in the living room, Symone's panting and low moans audible to him.
"Trelle, does she ever get tired?" Dahnai complained blearily, pushing herself up on her hands and looking towards the living room, where Symone's legs were visible over the back of the couch where she and Kellin were entertaining themselves.
"She's a morning girl, and she's been so excited about this little idea of yours, I'm sure she'll spend all day today with her legs wrapped around someone," he answered her. "And if you don't like it, remember, that's your fault," he noted, pointing at the living room.
She laughed ruefully. "I guess it was," she admitted. "But fuck, that was a very fun night. My mother used to like group sex, she'd bring like ten people into her apartment every Brista, but I never quite understood why until last night. I had a man handy whenever I wanted one, I could just sit and watch my husband and amu dorai fuck the shit out of another woman, and if all you boys were busy or I was in the mood for it, Symone was always there and ready to give me head."
Jason laughed. "I thought Kellin was going to swallow his tongue when Jyslin and Symone started on each other."
"Symone's a lot better at eating pussy now," she said with a little chuckle. "Jys has given her plenty of practice."
"She does," Jason chuckled. "Jys is completely into Symone now, there's no hesitation or inhibition like there was when you were on Karis."
"I noticed," Dahnai said lightly, watching Symone's legs sway rhythmically. "No wonder she's so addicted to sex, with you and Tim around. Trelle's garland, can that man fuck," she said with a satisfied little sigh. "He's almost as good as you and Kel. I'll get a better measure of him tonight, he's spending tonight with me."
"What? Not another orgy in the living room?" he asked with a wink.
"Well, we might play around a little bit tonight, but I'm planning a little less crowded night with Tim. The group thing was fun, new, and exciting, but tonight I want to experience Tim the same way I have you and Kel, one on one, right here in this bed," she said, patting the bed. "Tim satisfied my every expectation out there on the couch, but I want to experience him without anyone competing with me or him for attention."
"Well, Symone will be disappointed, but she'll get over it," he chuckled. "I just hope she gets this out of her system," Jason noted, returning to watching Symone's legs wave in the air with Dahnai. "I'd like to bring her to Draconis and not have to deal with a one-track mind."
"She seems to have nothing but a one track mind," Dahnai said.
"Not usually," he defended. "She's usually not quite so obsessed with sex. She just doesn't have much to do at home, and she has lots of playmates in Tim, me, and Jys, well, that and her collection of porn she loves to watch, and you sure as hell didn't help by putting this idea in her head," he accused. "Usually, she's a sweet, charming, charismatic, lovely girl who's got a wicked sense of humor and a big heart."
"But she loves sex."
"So do you," he pointed out.
"True," she admitted with a rueful smile. "And I can't deny I that I have my own porn collection, I think every Faey woman does. I'm sure as hell not sorry we did this, though. Tim was awesome, and I got so turned on with you and Tim, knowing that Kel was watching us, that I almost creamed myself before we even got started."
"Don't feel bad. The first time I had sex with Jys and Symone when they'd touch each other, I barely managed to get it into Symone before coming. And you're lucky, if you come early, you don't have to wait before you can go again. That just means you get an extra orgasm."
"That's a woman's payment for having to carry the baby," she grinned at him. "We get multiple orgasms."
"It's so unfair," he teased lightly, slapping her on the hip.
"What's unfair is that you're on Karis," she told him. "And I had to threaten you to get you to come see me."
"It was necessary. And I'm here now," he said, running a hand up her side, the cupping her breast.
"You know you shouldn't do that unless you're prepared to deal with the consequences," she teased.
"I should when I want the consequences," he purred, leaning over and kissing her neck. "Want to give Kellin and Symone something to watch?"
"Let's put them to shame," she said breathlessly, pushing him back down onto the bed.
In honestly, that night did do a great deal to get it out of Symone's system… somewhat. Symone didn't want to spend the entire day in the apartment reveling in her day of total debauchery, but she was also quite demanding. Symone wasn't usually a nymphomaniac, but Dahnai had done much to instill the idea of this "sex holiday" into her head, and she meant to enjoy every minute of it, both in and out of bed. Symone calmed down quite a bit when they collected up their kids around 10:00, which was 10 hours into the 30 hour day, and Dahnai had some full family entertainments planned for them. They went to a bachi game first, which was about two hours in the late morning, which Jason found to be very fun. He'd never attended a live bachi game before, and it was high energy and fast-paced. The Dracora Avengers, the home town professional bachi team, beat the Jovara Swords 21-19 in a very competitive and physical game that included two players being carted off on flying platforms and an ejection when the Jovara striker broke her bachi stick over the head of the Dracora center defender. The presence of the Empress seemed to spur both sides on and play with a focus and aggression not usually seen in bachi.
Symone revved back up, though, when they got back to the palace, though she also realized that she couldn't do anything about it, because Dahnai had planned more public activities for them. So, she decided to take a page out of her playbook way back when she first met Jason and Tim, and she tormented Kellin mercilessly. She couldn't touch him or act in an improper manner because they were in public and cameras were watching them, but she could send without the cameras catching it, and that was how she tormented him. She sent dirty thoughts, images, observations, memories of sensations, she made all kinds of comparisons, she even asked how he gave oral sex to Dahnai so she could improve her technique. Kellin had never experienced that kind of badgering before, and Symone got to him… and the more she got to him, the more gleefully she dug her claws in deeper. Kellin had trouble sitting still on the rides at the entertainment arcade, which was literally an amusement park only for the children of the Empress and their guests. Despite that, the park was often filled with the children of the Siann who used it to keep their young ones entertained when they were brought to court, and the Empress often opened it to commoner children for school field trips and on certain days of the year. There were 24 rides, a small zoo, games and other activities, a pool with water slides, an extensive hands-on learning museum, and even a performing arts/hologram center where the children could see opera, concerts, plays, and holographic movies. Symone attached herself to Kellin so that she might more easily torture him, and the poor man probably had a continual erection for about four hours, which mercifully was hidden under his rather baggy pants. Dahnai had found it rather amusing for a while, at least until she realized that she could do her own torturing on Jason in her own special way. She demanded they go for a swim at the park's pool, and she demanded Karis rules.
They actually weren't much out of place as far as that went. Jason wasn't too happy about the idea of having to expose himself to the Draconis sun, but the smug look on Dahnai's face told him exactly why she wanted it. She liked seeing him blue, so she was going to do everything she could to expose as much of him as possible to the sun of Draconis. When they reached the pool, they found that the majority of Faey there, of all ages, had forgone bathing suits. Most nobles didn't bring a suit from their personal houses in Dracora because it was a long standing custom that nobles could bring only what they personally carried to the palace, which came into being to prevent servants from carrying bombs or weapons into the palace grounds for their employers. So when the nobles wanted to partake of the arcade's pool when they didn't plan for it, they simply removed their robes and swam or sunbathed nude.
Jason glared at Dahnai the entire time they undressed in the changing room, as servants took their clothes and carefully hung them up, and she pulled him out onto the pool's elaborate deck by the hands, dragging him into the sun. Rann, Maer, and Sirri jumped right into the pool, but Shya sat on the edge. Because they lived in an area where every house had its own pool and the ocean was barely 100 feet from the back deck, Rann already knew how to swim. But Shya hadn't learned yet, so she was reluctant to get into the water where Rann and her siblings were, over her head, but not wanting to be alone in the shallow end either. And Jason was sure that every camera zooming in on them from far beyond the grounds was catching Rann urge Shya into the pool at the shallow end, offering to teach her how to swim. Jason figured Dahnai was going to make him bask on the sunning chairs and turn himself blue, but she had another thing coming. He sought the protective solace of the pool, where the water would greatly dilute the sun's radiation and dramatically slow down the process. He played with the kids for a while, getting Maer and Sirri to the point that they jabbered at him with the same smiles and enthusiasm they did their mother and foster parents, then he braved the sun to take the kids to the smaller of the two slides, the kiddie slide, standing in a shaded area by the slide created by the bigger slide above to cheer them as they slid down, then ran laughing back up to get back in line. Dahnai and Tim joined him at the slide after a while, as Tim looked nervously at his own arm, which was taking a decidedly bluish undertone to it.
"See?" Jason chuckled. "Why do you think I've been avoiding the sun, Tim?"
Tim laughed, looking down at his penis. "I almost look like I have some kind of venereal disease," he said. "Leprosy!" he said in English.
"What is this leprosy?" Dahnai asked.
"A disease cured long ago that makes body parts fall off," Jason chuckled.
"I don't think you want to lose that, Tim. You're going to be using it tonight," she told him calmly.
Tim laughed again, then waved as Rann came down the slide. "I'm glad I got a second audition," he told her.
Dahnai chuckled, leaning against the rail herself. "I hope you'll forgive me for getting Symone so hyper."
"Eh, I like her hyper, and it's not all you. I don't know if Jason told you, but Symone found out she's pregnant yesterday morning. So she's been bouncing off the walls for two reasons."
"Really? Congratulations!" she said with an honest smile, patting him on the shoulder. "Jason didn't tell me, as a matter of fact," she added, giving him a cool look.
"It wasn't my news to give," he shrugged. "I'm shocked Symone didn't blurt it out last night on the landing pad. I guess she had something else on her mind," he said with a rueful chuckle.
"We're gonna have a daughter," Tim said. "My first child, and hers too."
"You'll find a child will complete your lives, Tim," Dahnai told him. "I'd feel like my life wasn't worth living if I didn't have my babies." She waved to Maer as he came hurtling down the slide, then stopped Rann as he hurried towards the steps of the slide, dropping down on one knee to look at him. "You're looking a bit blue there, little Rann," she said with a laugh.
"I know, isn't it cool?" he said brightly. "I wanna go home as blue as Danny!"
"You need to convince your dad to do the same," Dahnai said with a little smile. "He looks much more handsome with blue skin."
"That's your opinion," he said archly.
"I'm not turning blue everywhere, though," he said, holding up the bottom of his foot to show them.
"After you finish swimming, just lay down on a deck chair for a while, then turn over, and you'll turn a nice shade of blue," Dahnai instructed.
"But then I can't swim," he protested.
"We're here as long as you want to stay, Ranny, so don't worry," she winked. "Now go before Maer gets in front of you!" she urged, then she sent him on his way with a fond smack to his bare bottom. Maer almost did, running by them, but Rann just barely beat him to the stairs, nearly running into the seven or eight year old girl in front of them.
Shya came up to them and patted her mother on the thigh, which made her bend down again. "Yes, sweetling?" she asked.
"I can't swim yet," she complained. "Can you take me on the slide, Mommy?"
"Of course I can!" she said with a bright smile, standing up and taking her daughter's hand. "Come on, before we lose our place!"
It was nice to see Dahnai like that. She was the Empress, and had to show her royal, noble side to the world, which often had to be the appearance of ruthless strength and implacable resolve. But she was also a mother, and she loved her children very much, so it was a joy to see her acting the role of the tender, loving mother, there for her children, making the most of the cruelty of her people's tradition that separated her from her own children for the first ten years of their lives. She absolutely adored all of her children, but she only got to keep them for one day in ten, and it was considered beyond the bounds of tradition for her to see them outside of that except for exceptional circumstances. He knew she talked to them on the vidlink every day, but seeing your child on a video screen was a pale imitation of being able to hold and kiss her children. If Jason was separated from Rann like that, he'd go insane with worry. So it was an honest smile and hearty wave that graced Dahnai and Shya as they came down the water slide together moments later, Shya wrapped in her mother's arms.
She really is something special, isn't she? Tim noted as the two of them splashed into the shallow pool at the foot of the slide, Shya laughing as Dahnai picked her up and swung her around in a circle.
She's everything I said she was, isn't she?
Oh yes, both in and out of bed, he noted with a sly smile.
Well, she certainly liked you. She said you met her every expectation, he sent with an audible chuckle. And she's claiming you for her bedroom tonight. Jyslin is going to spend tonight with Kellin, and I guess I get Symone.
That's such a chore, Tim teased.
Everyone else gets something new and exciting except for me. You get Dahnai. Jyslin gets Kellin. I just get same old, same old, he said with an insincere sigh, which made Tim burst into laughter.
Don't ever let her catch you saying that, he warned with a bright-eyed grin.
I'm not that stupid, Jason laughed. Besides, she's too busy right now, Jason chuckled, pointing to the pool. Kellin and Symone were in the pool, water up to their waists, and she was hanging off of him with one hand while the other was suspiciously under the water. Judging from Kellin's expression, Jason had a pretty good idea where she had her hand.
She's being shameless, Jyslin noted with an amused tilt to her thoughts as she joined them in the shadow. But she's also having fun, so who are we to take her chaba pod?
Poor Kellin, Tim laughed. She's going to drive him crazy before dinnertime.
If she were human, I'd be nervous, Jason noted.
Well, she only gets her shot at Kellin and Dahnai while we're here, so it's pretty clear where she's focusing her effort, Tim said dismissively.
Jyslin looked down. You're looking a little… gray, Tim. Your dick looks like a week old steak.
Guess all us human telepaths have the same vulnerability to the Draconis sun, Tim laughed. I guess I should lay down and flip it over so it can tan evenly on both sides.
Jyslin laughed, reached down, and checked the underside of his penis. Yup, nice and pink. I think you're right.
Such a flirt, Tim accused with a laugh.
No, that's flirting, she said, pointing at Kellin and Symone. Symone was now sitting on the edge of the pool, and she had her legs spread wide enough to give Kellin an unrestricted view without being overt about it. One thing Jason had learned over the years was that Symone was a master of Faey flirting, and what she was doing was a tried and true flirtation among a species that considered nudity a proper thing. She was displaying her charms in a seductive, sexual manner without being blatantly sexual about it. Kellin waded up to stand inside her spread legs, his hands on her thighs as he looked up at her, and she laughed delightedly at something he said before sliding off the pool and into his arms. But I'm not here to watch my amu dozei flirt with a guy. I'm here to see if your balls are as big as my ovaries, she sent teasingly, pointing up at the top slide.
I accept your challenge, wench! Tim sent in reply as Sirri ran by them, giggling.
The top slide was a twisty, curvy, very high-speed slide that was restricted only to those tall enough to be able to use it safely. They climbed up nearly a hundred feet to get to the entry, where a nude male lifeguard who was generously endowed, wearing nothing but a comm microphone and earpiece, smiled and helped them get ready. He explained the rules of the slide to them in about ten seconds. "Just keep your feet forward and stay on your back, my Lady, my Lords, if you please," he said, offering his hand to Jyslin. "May I help you into the slide, my Lady?"
"Such a polite young man," she smiled at him. "I hope you two are paying attention!" she barked teasingly at them as he helped her sit in the water jets at the top of the slide that sent water splashing down the length. He gave her a gentle urging push on her shoulders to let her know she could go, and she let go of the handles and picked up amazing speed before disappearing around a curve, her scream of delight chasing back up to them.
Jason went next. The guard helped him to sit in the water, which was warm, and he held the grips. The slide was made of a plastic-like material that felt cool and smooth under his backside, which alleviated the worry of getting a friction burn in a few very sensitive spots. The guard pushed gently on his shoulder, and Jason obligingly released the grips and let the water carry him out onto the slide. Almost immediately, he felt like he was free-falling. His stomach dropped out as he rocketed down the slide at amazing speed, sliding high up on the sides with the curves, even doing a barrel roll and sliding over the ceiling of the slide in one particularly twisty section. He found the slide to be exhilarating, and he was laughing with delight as he hurtled down to the bottom. He saw the frothy boundary where the slide emptied into the deeper side of the receiving pool, and he almost skidded over the surface of the water before sinking down. He got his feet under him and rose up out of the water, shaking the water out as Jyslin pulled her wet hair back and over her shoulders, and she was still laughing. "Demir's sword, that was fun!" she proclaimed. "We have to build one of these, Jayce! Let's do it again!"
Jason waded over to her as Tim raced out of the mouth of the slide, turning sideways, then sinking into the water with a splash that cascaded over both of them. He rose up out of the water and spat a stream of water out, which made Jason and Jyslin laugh brightly. "Damn, that rocks!" Tim agreed. "Let's go again!"
"We were saying the same thing," Jyslin grinned brightly. Symone! Kellin! Come on the slide with us! she called.
Sure! Be right there! Symone answered.
Aww, no fair! I wanna go on the big slide! Rann protested, who had just come down the small slide and was in the wading pool, wading into the deeper water towards them.
You aren't tall enough, sweetie, I'm sorry, Jyslin told him with empathy in her thoughts, comforting him even as she broke the bad news to him.
Why does that matter?
It has a twist in it that would hurt you if you're too small, Jason told him. Just be patient, Rann, you'll get to slide on the big slide when you're older.
It's always when I'm older! he protested, which made the three of them laugh.
You'd better get back to the side before you lose your place in line, Jyslin warned, which spurred their son to half swim, half run to the steps, then run around the side of the splash pool towards the stairs.
Symone and Kellin joined them as they went up the slide, then they sent Symone down first. She made a wonderful scream as she started down the slide, that went on for about ten seconds before she finally took a breath. Kellin had ridden the slide before, so he was more than eager to go next, and he made no sound at all. Jason went after Kellin, and again thoroughly enjoyed the twisting, turning slide, navigating the splash pool with much more grace the second time, able to skim the surface and sink down without going completely under this time, making a controlled entry. He got his feet under him easily, and saw Symone laughing richly between coughs just a bit ahead of him with Kellin slapping her lightly on the back. "I was so busy screaming I didn't see the bottom, and tried to inhale the pool!" she admitted with a self-deprecating laugh. "I think you'd get better results if you slapped my front, Kel," she winked, thrusting her wet, bare breasts out at him.
"No, you make different sounds when I do that," he said urbanely, which made her laugh and wink at him.
"If you feel like pounding something else, let me know," she said, giving him a sultry look. "I'd be happy to go into the bathroom with you and bend over."
"Not in public, Symone, or there'll be pictures of me coming out of the pool with an erection running in every magazine on Draconis for a month," he said lightly, which made her laugh.
Jason was about to urge them to the stairs again, but a communion brought him up short. [Jason,] Cybi's voice touched him. [Jason.]
[Yes, Cybi?]
[There has been an… incident back home,] she told him. [It involves the Exiled.]
[What? What happened?]
[Some of them used one of their ships to cross to the mainland. There, they damaged several homes, assaulted some people, and attacked a Kizzik drone.]
[Oh, no,] he communed, fear rising up in him. [How many did it kill?]
[One, and severely injured four others,] she answered. [The drone was injured, but survived. The Exiled are in a state of extreme agitation because of the death. Aura requests you return to Karis to settle things down. The Exiled are on the verge of open rebellion.]
[Fuck,] Jason growled. [I'm on my way,] he sighed.
[I am sorry, Jason. I know you were much looking forward to your trip.]
[It's not your fault, my friend. Tell the twins I'll be there as soon as I can.]
[I will. I will also inform Admiral Jaiya you are returning to Karis, so she is ready to jump back as soon as you arrive.]
[Thanks.] Aya, he called, a powerful sending that rippled across the palace, but also private.
Yes, your Grace?
There's big trouble back home. I have to get back to Karis fast. Meet me at the dropship, but only bring enough to guard me. I don't want my family here without protection. But stop by Dahnai's apartment and pick up my court robes. I'm going to need them.
I'll take care of it, your Grace.
[Rann. Answer me this way.]
[Yes, Papa?]
[There's something very, very important I have to do back home. There's a problem with the Exiled so big that I have to go take care of it myself. Tell your mommy that I should be back as soon as I can. Do not send when you tell her this. Speak to her, and only do it when you're alone. Can you do that for me, little man?]
[I can, Papa. Do you really have to go?]
[Afraid so, kidlet. Miss Aura said it's really important that I come back, and she wouldn't ask me to do it if she didn't really need me there.]
Jason hurriedly waded out of the pool, as the others looked at him in curiosity in Kellin's case, concern on the others. Dahnai, he called openly, I have to go home. There's an emergency.
No! she protested suddenly and heatedly. No, you can't leave now! You've not even been here a full day!
Would you keep playing when your people needed you, Dahnai? he sent, a bit chidingly. And only I am going back. Everyone else is staying, and if things go well, I might make it back here by tonight.
Well… in that case, I guess I can permit it, she sent, but she was bitterly disappointed, and it bled into her thought.
I'll be back as soon as I can, he promised, breaking into a run as soon as he was out of the pool.
He didn't have time to dress. He just grabbed his clothes, wrapped a towel around himself, and startled quite a few Faey as he barreled across the grounds, running around the side of the palace grounds in a rarely-traveled area to get to the main landing pad, where his dropship would be waiting. Aya was waiting for him on the pad, with his court robe garment bag over her armored shoulder. Let's go, he told her urgently, hurrying up the steps. Is it just you and me?
I'm all you'll need until we get wherever we're going. I've already called back to Karis and I have a dropship with a full squad of Dukal Guard ready to escort us wherever we're going.
We're going to talk about that once we're out of range of Dahnai's listeners.
Wise.
Jason explained it to her on the way up to the Trelle's Gift with four fighter escorts, and Aya frowned when she heard what happened. What insanity would possess Exiled to sail to Embraijn and commit acts of violence?
I have no idea, but they were utter idiots to attack a Kizzik drone, he sent darkly. They should know what Kizzik are, they had information on all the races of the Imperium from their history!
I think the Kizzik joined the Imperium after the Third Civil War, Aya sent speculatively. But still, I would be a fool to attack a nine shakra tall insect with razor-sharp blades for arms. Would they not think that the insect would fight back if they attacked it?
I have no idea, but I'm gonna be so busy deciding whose ass to kick first that I'll probably stand there like an idiot for a good minute, he sent with a growl.
Jaiya had been prepared, and the ship left orbit with two escort ships as soon as the dropship and Raptors were in the bay and a second dropship took off to replace it on the ground. The ships set out at flank speed, 120% maximum engine output, which would get them to jump distance in about 9 minutes because of the exponential acceleration aspect of gravometric engines when they were shifted out of space translation mode and into a mode of operation similar to Imperium gravometric engines. Ships had to scramble out of their way as they raced away from the planet, gaining velocity at a frightening rate, and then starting to decelerate so they could be at jump speed the instant they were far enough away to jump safely. Jason allowed Aya to help dry him as he downloaded video of the attack in Embraijn, and he was disgusted. The Exiled had sailed off to the south on their ship, circled very wide of the island, then came back and landed at the marina of Embraijn. Marina workers came out to help them, and were pelted with rocks. About 14 youths, 9 girls and 5 boys, then flooded into Embraijn carrying shoulder-slung pouches filled with rocks. They threw them at pedestrians. They threw them through windows. They tore down plas-pole signs. One young woman hit a child in the head with a rock, and the child had to be taken to the hospital. Then, came the attack. A group of 7 Exiled came around a corner and encountered a lone Kizzik drone helping two Makati at an unearthed trench, where they were installing a new spur line for the water system. The 7 Exiled assaulted the three of them with rocks, and where the Makati dove into the trench, the Kizzik turned and attacked. It all but tore the lone fatality in half with its sword arms, and inflicted multiple wounds on the terrified teens before the KMS finally responded. They held off the Kizzik using their armor, not attacking it, and it had injured itself trying to attack the armored soldiers. The noble finally came to calm it down.
There was some blame on both sides, he saw. The youths certainly carried the majority of the blame for doing something so stupid, but the KMS had failed to respond quickly. Jason counted a 5 minute delay from the initial contact at the marina until the KMS finally got on the scene, and that had been just long enough to get one of the Exiled killed.
After they jumped back, he scrambled into his court robes as they raced towards Karis, not having enough time to dress properly. He forewent the underclothes and just had Aya help him get the outer robe on, which looked a little baggy on him without the inner robe to go with it. Jaiya relayed his instructions to Karis as they approached, and there were quite a few of them. He didn't fly down in a dropship, he flew down in a two-seater Raptor trainer they sent up for him when they reached orbit. The dropship holding the other Dukal guards joined him about ten miles out from Exile, and they landed to an ugly scene. KMS infantry and two Gladiators were on the island, facing a shouting, angry crowd of Exiled that were gathered in the open square area just by the docks where their sailing vessels were tied up. He saw one young male Exiled rush forward and throw something at an armored KMS infantry soldier, which bounced harmlessly off her armor.
ENOUGH! Jason's savage sending rocked across the island, making several Exiled almost fall to their knees. Jason used his absolute, gestalt-boosted power, and with the gestalt, Jason had tremendous power. I want the Council, the Chieftess, Meya, Myra, and the Exiled who sailed to the mainland in front of my ship the instant I land! he thundered as the Raptor made a slow descent behind another dropship. He saw in his mind's eye the smaller dropship that would be carrying the Kizzik noble to which the drone from Embraijn was attached.
He landed and opened the canopy, then swung over and dropped to the ground. Without his armor, it was quite a jump, and the robe billowed up to show the whole town of Exiled that he wasn't wearing anything underneath it. Aura, the Council, the twins, and six young Exiled women padded hesitantly towards him, and he marched resolutely towards them. They stopped, he stopped, and he cast a scathing glare across the entire host. Now, someone explain to me what the hell happened.
One of your monsters killed Hayr Zevarre! one of the young women sent angrily. It killed a young man!
Really? And exactly why was he on the mainland? Jason asked, giving the woman who sent a withering stare.
She was guiltily silent.
Thought you'd jaunt over to the mainland, terrorize a few locals, deface a few signs, and make a nuisance of yourself so you could impress the boys you took with you, did you? Jason asked scathingly. Strike a blow for the Exiled and their unjust imprisonment on this god-forsaken rock?
The teenager flushed and looked away awkwardly. No doubt, Jason had nailed exactly why they did it.
But then you had the utter lack of sense to harass a nine shakra tall insect with SWORD BLADES ON ITS ARMS? he raged, which made her shrink back from him fearfully.
It attacked us! one of the others sent in defense.
Of course it did! If someone threw a rock at me, I'd do something about it too!
It tried to kill us! another sent in outrage.
Yes, it did, Jason sent bluntly. What you decided to annoy is called a Kizzik. "Kizzik," he said aloud. Kizzik come in two varieties, nobles and drones. You encountered a drone. Drones are stupid and react on instinct when faced with a situation they can't understand. You acted in a way it construed to be an attack, and it attacked back. The difference is, a Kizzik attacks for one reason and one reason only.
To kill, Meya sent gravely.
So, your merry little excursion to strike a blow for the Exiled against your evil captors GOT SOMEONE KILLED! he blasted. You cost a young man his life!
It wasn't our fault, it tried to kill us!
It wouldn't have touched you if you'd HAVE STAYED ON THE ISLAND! he raged immediately in response. Did you think I put you here because I wanted you to feel trapped? Did you think I put you here to make this a prison? No! I put you here because there are things out there you do not understand, and on this planet, what you do not understand CAN KILL YOU! he sent savagely, glaring at the young women. I thought that you, my own people, would have the sense to not do something so stupid! And for such a childish reason! I saw the reports, and I watched the recording of your little stunt over in Embraijn. Breaking windows? Throwing rocks at residents and tearing down signs? You sailed across the strait to act like common vandals and thugs! What explanation do you have for such outrageous behavior?
You keep us as prisoners! the tallest of the young women challenged. You tore us from our homes without justification, and now you imprison us on this island! It's a captive's right to try to escape!
Escape? Escape? Jason sent incredulously. If you were trying to escape, why did you make sure to terrorize the village across the strait and attract so much attention to yourselves? he asked scathingly. Why didn't you sneak off into the mainland? As I recall, we have a forest reclamation project just beyond the town. He looked out over the strait pointedly. Yup, I can see the trees from here. Why didn't you land on the coast by the trees and slink off into the forest? No, you didn't do that. I have some interesting video of you mooring at a dock at Embraijn, and when a couple of people came out to see what you needed, you threw rocks at them! I should give you some points for preparedness, since you brought your own rocks! he snapped. Then there's this lovely footage of you running down the street with your pouches of rocks, throwing them at anything that moved, breaking windows, and hurting people. Did you have fun? And which of you mighty warriors was the one that hit the four year old boy in the head with a rock and sent him to the hospital? Huh? he demanded hotly.
You did this? Aura demanded with sudden anger. You attacked a child?
The young women were very silent, and fear was just starting to creep into their expressions.
The other dropship landed, and the young women, Aura, the council, and many of the Exiled gasped and shrank back when a Kizzik noble. She scrabbled up to him, crossed her blade arms before her, and bowed at the waist to him. "I am Sk'Kr'Skt, humble daughter of the Karinne-Hive. I greet the revered Hive-Leader," the interface on her shoulder translated monotonously into Faey.
"I greet the honored daughter of the Hive," Jason returned. The Grand Duke, or Hive-Leader in this case, did not bow or make any motion of humility to one of lower rank. "I will speak so she may understand, since she cannot send, nor hear our sending," Jason said, using archaic Faey that they would comprehend. "What you have done is absolutely inexcusable!" he said hotly. "If I could throw you in prison for causing the death of Hayr, I would! But unfortunately, stupidity is not a criminal offense, and I follow the rule of law, not the rule of my own whim!" he said, looking scathingly at them. "I will instead leave this matter in the hands of the council and your Chieftess, and allow them to dispense judgment upon you by the rules of justice of your own people. But from this point on, nobody will leave this island without permission, and you will not be so childish! If you have a problem with the rules I have set and the place I have given you, then take it up with me. Do not sail to the mainland and throw rocks at innocent Karinnes who had nothing to do with your situation! You talk to the Chieftess, and she will summon me. Then you can throw rocks at me rather than being stupid infants!" He glared at them a moment. "Aura, remove them. They are yours to judge and punish by the laws and customs of your people."
Aura, a bit pale, nodded and had the council remove the young women.
"Honored daughter, I have summoned you here to help me with a different matter," he said. "I think it is wise to introduce the Exiled to the Kizzik."
"I am honored to be of assistance, Hive-Leader. What of my drone?"
"Was he badly injured?"
"No."
"Then we will tend his needs and return him to you well and whole."
"That is satisfactory."
"What name do the Karinnes use to address you, honored daughter?"
"They refer to me as Skrit," she answered.
"May I use this name for you?"
"As it pleases you, revered Hive-Leader."
Jason marched up to face the angry crowd, moving past the KMS guards, standing there in his ill-fitting court robe, and his face was filled with grim resolve. "People of Exile," he boomed, "I bring before you a creature of the same species as the one whom your teens attacked, so you may hear from her why her drone reacted as it did. I offer this in no way as any form of defense. I only wish you to understand the full truth of this matter, and then judge for yourself. Skrit," he urged, motioning behind himself to her.
Skrit ambled up past Jason on her four legs, then took a place in front of him, addressing the crowd of Exiled.
"As you might notice, I do not speak. I use this device of the Karinnes to translate the intent of my words in a way you can understand. Nor do I have the sense that you call hearing. I cannot hear the words you speak, instead this device hears your words for me and then translates it into what I may comprehend. So understand that I will speak to you with this device standing between the truth of my intent and what you might here. There may be… incorrectness in this translation, for this machine cannot understand the intent of the words I speak, it can only struggle to try to shape my intent into words you can understand," she began, looking at the crowd, then she turned and beckoned towards the dropship. Jason looked, and saw two Kizzik drones amble out, their chitinous legs clacking on the ramp of the dropship as they clattered up to the noble. The Exiled shrank back a little as the two hulking brutes took up positions behind the noble. "These are my drones," she explained. "They are my workers and my protectors. They are the hands and swords of the hive, where I am the mind of the hive. This is what your pupae attacked."
Her word pupae means teenagers, adolescents. She has no corresponding word in our language, and the device she wears translates her words literally, he sent quickly to explain.
"Among my species, there are two branches of Kizzik. There are the drones, and then there are we nobles. My drones are not very intelligent," she told them. "They are workers and defenders. They allow us to do their thinking for them, and in return, we work with them to make the hive prosper. When left alone, my drones will do as I told them to do, but if they encounter something which they do not understand, they will react on instinct. If your pupae threatened them, then they would react by meeting that threat. And my drones do not understand the concept of a fight where they do not battle to kill. They do not understand your ways. Most Karinnes understand this about our drones, and treat them with peace and kindness. When you treat them with respect and kindness, they are gentle and helpful. But when you threaten them with violence, they respond with violence. A drone will treat you as you treat it. Your pupae reacted to them with violence, and they responded in kind. I would admit that part of the blame for this lies with me, for I should not have left my drone unattended at his task. But I did not foresee the possibility that Exiled would cross the water in a boat against the wishes of the Hive-Leader and accost my drone."
"Thank you, Skrit. You may return to your duties. The gratitude of the Hive-Leader goes with you."
She crossed her sword-arms in front of herself and bowed, then ambled back towards the dropship with her drones following her.
So, now you know both sides of it, Jason sent to the Exiled. Remember that you're here for your own safety as much as to give you a place of your own while you either work to integrate into House Karinne or await the opportunity to return to your planet. I didn't think I'd need to do something as simple as tell you not to go to the mainland, but I see I was in grave error. So, from this point on, no Exiled ship will be allowed to come within two kathra of the mainland. You will stay on the island, where you may feel more safe, and where you can't get into any more trouble, he sent, with a bit of a dangerous tone. You will stay on the island until you prove that you will not allow another instance like this to happen again.
What of my son? An angry, mourning sending sizzled through the air accusingly. What of my Hayr! What will bring that monster to justice for killing my son?
Your son died not because of the Kizzik, but because he allowed himself to be talked into doing something foolish, Jason sent in reply, using a gentle and reasonable tone. He was firm, but his sending also conveyed his feeling of responsibility and the sense of loss, with a hint of anger that this had happened. You do not blame the well when a child ignores the rope around it and climbs over it, then promptly falls down into it. The Kizzik was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and your son's friends made a costly mistake in throwing rocks at it, which it interpreted as an attack. If you do not believe my words, I will make available a viddy recording of your youths running amok in Embraijn, the attack on the Kizzik, and the Kizzzik's retaliation, which were also recorded. This, though, will not be available for the entire village to view, for it captured the death of Hayr, and I would not subject the Exiled to that image. That somber recording will only be made available to the Chieftess, the council, and to the family of Hayr should they wish to view it, so they may see the truth of what happened.
The Chieftess and your council have the authority to mete out whatever justice they feel is necessary in the matter, and so I will allow them to do so. But I implore you, in the strongest possible terms, to listen to the decision of the Chieftess and view the evidence I present before you before you condemn me or the house for this incident. As I said, I will not accuse or pass judgment here, I will leave that to you. But I want you to understand that I'm not trying to keep you prisoner here. I'm not trying to be a tyrant. I need to keep you here where you're safe from the things you haven't yet had the opportunity to learn about and understand. Had you time to learn of Karis, then you would have been taught about the Kizzik and introduced to them in an entirely different way, for the Kizzik are actually a peaceful and intelligent race, who fight only when they feel threatened. Had your youths learned about the other races on Karis, they would have known better than to attack a Kizzik drone. That is why I see this as a tragic and foolish accident, and not an act of aggression. Because I do understand the Kizzik, and I know that a drone would never attack without provocation. I provided you this island so you might feel comfortable and safe while you either learn about Karis or wait to return to Exile, not feel violated upon by Karinnes. I did not place you here so you would feel like I have imprisoned you.
He plucked at his robes. This is how important I felt it was to address you. I was on Draconis, at court, when word reached me of this, and I rushed home to straighten this out. I didn't exactly have enough time to look the part of the Grand Duke for you, he sent ruefully, lifting the robe enough to expose his bare legs, which produced a few twitters of laughter. I was attending a party the Empress was hosting honoring my son Rann's first visit to court and his first official state visit to his betrothed wife, Shya Merrane, the Empress' younger daughter. Empress Dahnai was holding the party at her swimming facility, to provide entertainment to the children present. And we don't exactly wear court robes to swim. So, next time I come to Exile, please make it a pleasant visit where I might come among you and learn about you, celebrate with you, and come to feel closer to you, not when I get summoned back to deal with a tragedy that could have been prevented.
He turned without another word and stalked back towards his dropship, but he pointed at the twins. Come with me, he sent darkly. They followed along behind him in trepidation, and as soon as they got back to the Raptor, he turned and gave them both a hard look. "How the fuck did this happen?" he demanded. "Five minutes! Five minutes the Exiled were running wild in Embraijn!"
"We never thought to put military units in the town," Myra said contritely. "They don't really have the facilities. And when it happened, when the surveillance warned us that they were approaching the town, we didn't have any dropships on the island. The one we usually keep here was ferrying a child with a compound fracture he suffered in a fall to Karsa, we didn't have the facilities to repair that kind of damage."
"We also don't keep any KMS here on the island, Jayce, you know that," Meya said defensively. "You made the order yourself, to prevent the Exiled from feeling they're under military occupation. So there was no one here who had armor or any antigrav that could cross the strait quickly to head it off. All we had was a single Raptor pilot with armor in the area, and when she tried to stop the gang, it just split up on her and made it impossible for her to stop them all. They had to scramble a response team from Treya, and that's fifty kathra away. We called it in as soon as we saw the Exiled sloop approaching Embraijn, and it took them nearly fifteen minutes to get troops here. They didn't think it was very important until the Exiled landed at the marina and started assaulting citizens."
Jason frowned, but he could see that it wasn't really their fault. If anything, it was his. He should have put a garrison in Embraijn, and he remembered thinking about doing just that. But he'd never got around to making the order. "Alright," he sighed. "I'll make sure that never happens again."
"So, you don't blame us?" Myra asked.
"I guess not," he told them. "As far as the lack of response goes, I think it's my fault more than anyone else's. I never dreamed they'd do something like that. I've been trying to see them as us so hard, I blinded myself to the truth that they are not us. At least not all of them, and not yet. I promise I'll fix that. From now on, you'll be two minutes from armed intervention if it's needed." He glanced to where the council and Aura were, dressing down the seven young ladies. Jason noted that the young men weren't there. "Cybi," he said aloud, accessing his gestalt and communing in unison with his words.
"Yes, Jason?" came an audible reply, as he put Cybi's communion on the speaker of his gestalt so the twins could hear.
"Relay this command to Central. I want a temporary garrison of fifty infantry in Embraijn set up by the end of the day. I want them armed with gear to subdue a possible riot without any harm to the rioters."
"I will relay the order," she promised. "Shall I make it a direct command, or a guideline from which they can alter the order as they see fit?"
"They can adjust the order as they see fit, but remind them that we're not imprisoning the Exiled on the island. So I don't want to see any armed patrols, no force fields, no Raptors or Gladiators hovering threateningly over the island. If they want to station some mecha here, that's fine, but they don't make an issue out of being visible as some kind of threat to the Exiled. Just make the preparations and keep them low-key."
"Very well."
"There, problem solved," Jason sighed. "But I see another couple of hours here coming," he added when Aura hurried up to him.
Your Grace, we wish you to attend our discussion about this incident, before we take up the matter with the children.
That's fine. But I can't stay here for days, the Empress is expecting me to return to Draconis.
We only wish you attend the initial conference so we might understand the full truth of the matter. After we know, then we would not wish to delay you any longer.
Good. So, let's get this going.
They retreated to a council chamber, and Jason spent nearly two hours with them. He showed them the video surveillance of Embraijn, and after warning them of the graphic and disturbing nature of the attack on the Kizzik, he showed that to them as well. After that, they discussed the attack, the repercussions, and the unrest the death had caused on the island. The council was worried, but not because the Exiled might rebel. They were more worried about bad feelings festering, and that it would cause most of the Exiled to return to their planet when Jason claimed it.
He couldn't refute that… and maybe, he started to realize, that was best. He had falsely embraced the idea that the Exiled would want to come home, would happily return to Karis… and many of them would. But the circumstances of having to move and the restriction of being put here were too much for them, and they were angry and resentful.
Perhaps it would be best to keep the peace on Karis to get them off the planet as soon as possible.
Jason took a moment as one of the council debated how to keep order and accessed his gestalt and had it check the schedules. The interdictor would be finished in three days. And what was more important, the next interdictor would be finished in about ten days. As they completed the first interdictor, all the workers just didn't have the room to work on it, so those who no longer had room to work on the first interdictor had started a second. And the second and subsequent interdictors had the advantage of now having a system of construction in place. They had available parts, they had assembly protocols, and they had the experience of having done it before. Myleena estimated that they'd be able to build an interdictor every 10 days once they got into full production. So, that put reclaiming Exile two weeks out. There was still the need to put a Stargate there, but he could manage that. He was the amu dorai of the Empress, and it was about time to abuse that relationship. He would beg a Stargate from Dahnai, then claim Exile… and in so doing, he would send the Exiled that wanted to go home back.
Jason stood up abruptly. Tell your people that in two takirs, we can start taking them back to Exile, he announced. By then, I should have the interdictor and Stargate we need to defend the system from the Consortium. The interdictor needed for Exile will be finished in a takir and four days. We have to take it to Exile and turn it on, and it will take it two days to fully activate. This incident reminds me that there are people on Karis who do not want to be here, and that goes against the entire ideal of this planet. I will allow all who wish to leave to return to Exile, and return to the original plan of opening ties to Exile for those who wish to remain, so they enjoy our assistance without having to live on Karis. Those who wish to stay on Karis will be welcomed, with the understanding that those who remain here must stay here until such time that I am absolutely sure that we can hold Exile from the Consortium. I will not release those with intimate knowledge of the house into a position where they can be captured.
Aura stood up, her face somber. I intend to stay here, she announced. So those who wish to return need to declare themselves and choose a new council and a new Chieftess to lead them.
Leave that to your own devices, Jason warned. I was hoping that by bringing you home, you might at least enjoy all we had to offer, but I see that some are so bitter over taking them from Exile that they will refuse any kindness we offer. So, I'm changing our plans and securing Exile early, and then I'll send those who wish to return back to the planet. Those that wish to stay, may stay. Those that wish to go, may go. Now, if there's nothing else you need me for, I'll excuse myself and return to Draconis.
Your Grace, please, remain, Aura sent to him privately. I need to talk to you after this conference.
Only if it won't take too long.
Our tradition is to hold councils of trial three days after the complaint is brought forth, so that everyone may prepare. So after this council is done, we will adjourn. You may wait in my home if you wish.
Alright, but I'll only wait an hour, he warned, then he sent openly. Good day to you, he said in farewell, then Aya escorted him from the room. "What a mess," he sighed as they left the building.
Is it wise to waste resources on Exile when we need them for the Imperium?
I wanted the planet anyway, he answered her. And since it's already verdant, we could get to work farming there quickly. I meant to go secure it after getting some defenses in place in the Imperium, but I also have a duty to my people. A duty more important than a duty to the Imperium. They've made it clear that they're not happy here, and so I will allow them to go back to Exile if they want. Dahnai will just have to wait a couple of extra weeks.
A risk.
No more than losing another innocent life here, he answered her. And I won't allow that.
Jason waited in Aura's living room with Aya and four other Dukal Guard standing silent guard with him. He had them bring him some clothes from home, and Aya helped him remove his robe without tearing the cords. Jason had wanted to look like he had been rushed to get here to create just that image, that he had dropped everything and came running when he heard what happened… which was the truth. But seeing it was much different than them just hearing him say it. But now that it was over, he wanted to get out of his court robe before he tore it or stained it. It hadn't been cheap, it had been personally tailored just for him, and a good court robe was hard to make. Jason was so used to Aya, and had become so used to Faey customs, that he really didn't even think twice about standing naked in front his guards.
Aura naturally chose that moment to enter, and he saw her eyes take him in from across the room, lingering on his lower half brazenly… or at least brazenly to a human. Despite a thousand years of isolation, the Exiled had the same basic Faey concepts of propriety when it came to such things. They too saw the nude form as beauty, saw nothing wrong with admiring a nude body, and her admiration of him was an entirely proper thing. To pretend not to admire him could be construed as insulting.
Enjoying the view? he asked idly as Aya carefully folded his robe for him, and Maena offered him a pair of underwear.
You are very handsome, your Grace, she answered, and to Jason's surprise, there was a hint of sexual desire lurking under her thoughts, almost unconsciously. He had seen her admiring him before, but he'd never detected any amorous currents in her thought before. Since he had an attraction to her because she reminded him of Dahnai, it seemed to catch his attention in a manner that wasn't entirely proper. She was interested in him, and interested sexually. And Jyslin had already given him permission to sample Aura if the opportunity ever showed itself…
He blinked and looked away from her, then took his briefs from Maena with a nod of thanks. Not now. He was expected back on Draconis, and he didn't really have time. He knew she was attracted to him now. If he invited her to his bed, she very well may accept. But when he came back, he was of a mind to summon Aura to some neutral location, take those clothes off of her, and find out just how much like Dahnai she really was.
If you can't wait to get back, you may use my house, your Grace.
Huh?
Her eyes drifted down, and he looked down to see that his penis was erect. His musing of Aura had caused his body to respond.
Oh, he sent, flushing slightly as Aya smiled at him. Sorry about that.
No need to apologize to me, your Grace, Aura told him. You have honored me by giving me insight into your private life, and I understand you are going to return to your wife and both your amu dorai. No doubt you're anxious to return to the arms of a lover, as any virile young man would be. If you can't wait that long, though, you may take whichever guard who serves as your consort up to my room.
Jason accessed the time on his gestalt. It was 1917 hours on Draconis, and that was about midafternoon on Draconis, since days there were 30.04 hours long, and days on Karis were 28.92 hours long. That was about five hours before sunset, and since Dahnai usually retired to her apartment for personal time with her family at 2300 hours and started court at around 0900 hours, that left a sizable window.
He had an hour or so before time really pressed on him to return to Draconis. And he already had permission to pursue Aura if he so wished.
I think I will use your bedroom, Aura, Jason sent, pushing the briefs back at Maena. He stepped up to Aura and grabbed her hand. Interested?
She gave him a surprised look, then her cheeks stained a lovely shade of violet. I would be honored, your Grace.
I'd rather you be willing.
Oh, yes, I am most willing! she agreed with an excited smile.
Then let's go. I don't have much time, so I apologize in advance that this must be quick. If that doesn't bother you, that is.
Aura almost dislocated his shoulder as she rushed towards the stairs.
Wow.
Aura had been very satisfying, and he did not regret having sex with her in the slightest. She was almost as enthusiastic about sex with him as his loves, and since they didn't have time to really enjoy it the way Jason was used to, she made up for it with vigor and passion. She gave him a wild, hot, highly erotic ride, even when she was on her back and with her legs high in the air. She too was a prolific sender during sex, but she wasn't as invasive as Dahnai, more content to broadcast her pleasure to him without trying to push herself into the private domain reserved for Jyslin and Symone. She was much more demure, and despite her strong body and tall frame, she was submissive, letting him do whatever he wanted, which was diametrically different from Dahnai, who liked to dominate even during sex. Her body was sweet and erotic to him, but that was Dahnai's fault, since her body had made him attracted to women with a little muscle on them, and Aura was certainly well built with both strong muscle and feminine curves. That was what had caused his initial attraction to Aura in the first place, her muscular, tight little body.
It took him a few minutes to regain his breath after they had shared an intense climax together, and Aura lay under him, her hands stroking his sides, shoulders and chest sensually, looking up at him with her striking golden eyes. Did I please you, your Grace?
Aura. We just had sex. I think that gives you the right to call me Jason now.
She laughed delightfully and pulled him down into a kiss. Did I please you, Jason? she asked even as she kissed him.
Didn't I just pump about a gallon of come into you?
I believe you did, she sent impishly. I thought it was wonderful, she sent in satisfaction. Ever since my husband and child died, I've not shared in the joys of sex as much as others, nor as much as it has been offered to me. It reminded me too much of my beloved Trannan. But I'm glad I gave myself to you. You were both gentle and strong, and you reminded me of the ecstasy I can find in the arms of a man I find beautiful. She laughed. I just hope your wife and amu dorai aren't angry with me. I'm not the consort they usually entrust to satisfy your appetite when they're not with you.
Jyslin gave me permission, he assured her. I've been attracted to you since I went to Exile and we bathed together. Your body reminded me of Dahnai, and I'm very attracted to Dahnai, so I became physically attracted to you. I hide nothing from my wife, and I told her about it. She already gave me permission to have sex with you if I had the opportunity. And she's the only one that really matters. Symone wouldn't care either way, and Dahnai doesn't really have the right to tell me who I can sleep with. When I sensed your desire when you were staring at my dick, I decided to act on it.
I've never been happier to make a mistake, she laughed. I was trying very hard to keep that out of my thoughts.
I'm glad too. You're the equal of any of my women in bed, Aura.
The result of months of abstinence, she admitted with a smile. You took a woman to bed who hasn't had an orgasm in months.
Well, your hunger made it very intense, he sent with a teasing smile. But now I have to get back to Draconis. My wife and amu are waiting for me, and I'm sure I'll be spending a while tonight telling them all about my sexual adventure with you. They love to hear it when I'm acting naughty. They actually encourage me to sleep around, because they love the idea that I'm embracing Faey values more and more.
If you ever wish to be naughty again, I am always available, your Grace, she told him with a bright-eyed smile, taking one of his hands and placing it on her full breast, urging him to fondle her. He did so, enjoying the feel of her full, responsive breast, then he leaned down and kissed her nipple, which made her sigh in pleasure and slide the inside of her thigh along his hip and leg.
"Sneaky girl, you're not baiting me into another session when I'm going to be scolded for being late as it is," he teased aloud, bending down and kissing her nipple, then rising up off of her, which caused their genitals to separate from their sexual joining. But there will be other opportunities, he promised, patting her on her lower belly, then running his fingers through her trimmed golden pubic hair. I can't offer you a relationship or regularity. Our sexual relationship will be a casual one, Aura, but there will be one. I do have a wife and an amu dozei, and they keep me satisfied. But, on those days when you're in the mood and I'm available, I'll be happy to pay you a little visit, he told her, sliding his fingers below her golden pubic hair to grope her in a most intimate manner. I found you to be a vigorous and exceptionally passionate lover, and I'll happily kneel between your open legs and fuck this gorgeous pussy, he finished, assaulting her with graphic thoughts, images, and impulses as he stared right at her vulva
You mean man, telling me there's no time, yet fondling me in such an intimate manner while sending such erotic thoughts! she accused with a lovely smile. I should demand satisfaction for that!
Now that's what I want, he sent. I'm not just the Grand Duke, Aura, I'm also a man. So if you start thinking of me as an institution instead of a person again, I'm gonna spank you… and not the fun way. The next time you call me your Grace when we're in private, I'll do much worse to you, and then leave you hanging. And trust me, I know how to leave you hanging in a way that makes you run out and rape the first man you come across. I have practice in it.
She laughed helplessly, then sat up and gave him a lingering kiss. It's not easy, but I'll try, she told him. And you owe me for that!
Then you'll have to come collect some day, he smiled, leaning down and kissing her. But I have to get dressed and get back to Draconis now.
Jason, if you had interest in me, why did you wait until now to act on it? she asked as they both got out of her bed, and Aya came in with a smug little smile, holding his clothes. Surely you know that I would have submitted to you no matter what. You are my Grand Duke, it would have been a matchless honor for you to be sexually attracted to me. I would never deny your advances.
That's one reason why, he told her, taking his clothes from Aya with a nod of thanks. I don't have sex with women who consider it a duty, only those who come to my bed because they're sexually attracted to me. I never use my position to browbeat women into sex. If I want sex, I have a wife and an amu dozei to give me all the sex I want, he declared. I also gave you space because I wasn't sure how your people would react to finding out you were having sex with me. It might have undermined your position of authority. But now that I've made it public that your people may return to Exile if they want, that's a moot point.
I doubt that would have mattered to my people, Jason. Sex is not something one does in public space, but that doesn't mean we don't enjoy it and celebrate the beauty of it. One sign of friendship between a man and a woman is them exploring their sexual attraction to each other. They would probably have seen it in a positive light, she told him. If we had a sexual liaison, then they'd feel that you were closer to us because you found one of us attractive and desirable. Your alien nature puts many of my people off, Jason. But now, when I go out there and reveal we've had sex because we share a mutual attraction, it will Faeyize you in their eyes. They will see that I am your friend now, and that might make them more at ease.
I didn't think of that, Jason admitted as he pulled his shirt on. I'm still feeling out just how similar the Exiled are to other Faey. Pretty similar, I'm coming to discover.
I'm happy to hear that, she said, her eyes locked on his body as he dressed, watching him. I'll do what I can to prepare both those staying and those returning to be ready when the time comes, Jason.
Good. Work with Meya and Myra, they'll help you in any way they can, he said as he sat on the bed and slipped on a pair of soft moccasin-like shoes he preferred to wear without socks. He put his arms around her and gave her another kiss, making sure to grab her backside with both hands while doing so. Thanks for a fantastic hour, Aura, he sent impishly. It was worth the scolding I'll get when I get back.
I'm happy to have made you happy, Jason, she answered. And as soon as we both have the time, we must meet again when we have more time to enjoy it.
That we will, he promised. Oh.
What?
What was it you wanted to talk to me about? I don't think I let you get that far.
She laughed. Well, I wanted to offer a personal apology to you.
Well, I'd say I've forgiven you, and you've forgiven me, he sent dryly.
I'd have to agree, she laughed audibly in reply.
He left her in the bedroom, as Aya and Maena walked with him out of the house. Meya and Myra were standing in the square nearby, and they hurried up to him. "Whatever were you doing in there for so long, Jayce?" Meya asked, her eyes dancing.
"And what were those sounds I heard? It sounded like 'Oh! Oh! Ohhhhh, Trelle, yes!'" Myra called, doing a good job at really hamming up her moaning.
"Me and Aura had a private conference," Jason said dryly as they fell into step with him, heading for the ships.
"Private, eh? I didn't know that all of your private conferences involved banging the dignitary. I guess those private conferences you had with the Urumi Brood Princesses had to be… bony," Meya noted.
"Stop being nasty," Jason chided.
"May as well ask the sun to go out, Jayce," Myra teased with a wink. "So, was she good?"
"Was she worth the hell you'll catch when you have to explain to the Empress why you were here so long?" Meya added.
"She's better than either of you," he retorted.
"We've never had sex before," Myra protested.
"Thus she's better than you," he told them. "At least she got me horny enough to do her. What have you two done for me lately?"
They laughed. "Why Jason, are you propositioning us?" Myra grinned.
"No. I'll forever leave you two untouched, so I can always tease you about how much better other women are compared to you without ever having to prove it."
They exploded into laughter.
He knew Symone and Jyslin wouldn't mind if he was a couple of hours late because he was fucking Aura, something they actively encouraged, but there was no telling how Dahnai was going to react. She was very jealous of the rare time she got to spend with him, and he wasn't sure how she was going to see it when he admitted he was an hour late because he was screwing some unknown woman back on Karis. But there wasn't much he could do about it other than offer to give her time in compensation. He'd just have to be honest about it.
Aya was almost insufferable, and he had no idea why. She just kept smiling and grinning at him, so much so that he started blushing every time he looked at her. "What?" he finally asked, a bit testily, as they approached Draconis in Trelle's Gift, already in the dropship and waiting to be given permission to launch.
My, my, my, are you in trouble, she sent with a sly smile. The Empress is going to skin you, your Grace.
I know, I'm already working out how to make it up to her, he replied. I guess I'll plead temporary insanity and throw myself at the mercy of the court.
Empress Dahnai isn't known for mercy, Aya sent teasingly.
I have an advantage over most others. I can offer sex as an apology and have a moderate chance of it being accepted.
Aya laughed soundlessly.
When he got back to the palace at 2437, he was directed back to Dahnai's apartment. Aya escorted him back, and then gave him a teasing smile when they reached the door, which opened for him. Good luck, she sent lightly as she sent him into the apartment, and then the doors were closed behind him. Everyone was in the living room, he saw. Dahnai was sitting with her legs draped over Tim's lap, sitting sideways on the couch. Symone and Jyslin were sitting on the floor with Kellin and the four children, playing a Terran board game, Monopoly, with Maer and Sirri, while Rann and Shya played with several dolls just past them. "It's about time," Dahnai said sharply, looking up from her handpanel. "What happened?"
"We had a… problem," he said, blowing out his breath. "I'm afraid I can't really explain it to you unless you swear yourself to secrecy. Actually," he frowned. "I need to tell you anyway, because I'm going to be asking you for a huge favor."
"Oh really?" she asked, putting the panel aside as he came and sat on the other couch.
"It's your turn, Aunt Jyslin," Sirri prompted.
"Oh? Fine," she smiled, picking up the dice and rolling them.
"Well, you know I'm not going to tell anyone, babe," Dahnai told him. "So what happened?"
"Remember when I told you I was gathering all the Karinnes? Well, I found some descendents of the original house," he began. "They call themselves the Exiled, and they fled the Imperium and hid out on a planet halfway across the galaxy."
"Woah!" Dahnai gasped.
He nodded. "To make a long story short, the Consortium must have followed us when we went to go see them, so I had to collect them up and bring them back to Karis. But they're not… happy," he sighed. "I had to go back because there was a fatality among the Exiled. Some of their disgruntled youths went to a neighboring town and were harassing people by throwing rocks. Well, one of them threw a rock at a Kizzik drone."
Dahnai winced. "Not smart."
"They had no idea what it was, and naturally it attacked them. You just don't do that to a drone."
"No doubt."
"So, I had to run back and put out the fire when the Exiled threatened to form a mob over the death of one of their own. They've proven to be a headache to me, so I'm going to do something about it." He looked at her. "I want to buy two Stargates from you, Dahnai, but I can't pay for them right now. I have to get them on credit. Would you lean on 2M for me?"
"You're going to put them back on the planet where you found them?"
He nodded. "The ones that want to go. Oh, I'm not going to abandon them, I'll use them to establish a Karinne colony on the planet. I was actually planning to claim the planet from the start. It's arable, Dahnai, and since Karinne literally has to buy its own food, since Karis is still mostly barren and we leased out Terra to the Surrales, we need a farming planet of our own. I could really turn it into a farming powerhouse, but it's literally halfway across the galaxy. That's too far away for me to defend, and since the Consortium already knows about it, I can't very well just put them back or claim the planet without defending it. They're my people. So, I'm going to put an interdictor there. But, to do that, I need a Stargate. Once I get it set up, I'll allow the Exiled to return to their home planet, and I'll also move in and claim the planet. But I need Stargates, and I can't pay for them right now."
"Well, it seems that I have something you need," she said with a growing smile. "And that means you have to give me something I want."
"Dahnai," he warned.
"I want a piece of that planet, Jayce," she told him bluntly. "Merrane needs house farming reserves. We're actually in the same fix you are the house consumes more food that it produces. We need a secure and stable source of food. So, you have a planet you can't defend or reach, I need a food supply exclusive to the house. Agree to share the planet, and we can reach an agreement over your Stargates."
"Unacceptable," Jason said immediately. "There's a primitive indigenous race on the planet, and I'm not going to let the Merranes do to them what the Trillanes did to us. I'm going to claim the planet, but I'm not going to conquer it. I'll make contact with that race and try to bargain an agreement with them, and if they refuse, I'll move in and set up farming colonies in areas where they don't live, respecting their territory. If I give you access to the planet, you'll just move in and enslave them."
"Well then, I guess you don't want those Stargates, babes," she said bluntly. "This isn't an offer up for negotiation."
"Yes it is," he said. "If you just want a secure source of food, then I'd be happy to arrange an exclusive deal with you for food we produce on that planet. But the planet is mine."
She glared at him a moment, then she took on a thoughtful look. "Exclusive?"
"Exclusive. And I'll make it very cheap. Basically just pay what it costs to produce the food, and it's yours."
"Half the output?"
"Half sounds fair to me," he said immediately.
"One more thing," she said. "I want access to the planet."
"No. You—"
"I said access," she cut him off. "If it's halfway across the galaxy, then that means there might be some expansion opportunities," she told him. "I want permission to put up a second Stargate there at a later time that will let us use it as a base to explore."
"That might be hard, with the interdictor up," he said. "You won't be able to jump out to set up a second Stargate."
"Well, we'll find a solution to that problem when the times comes. If worse comes to worst, I'll have it sent out sub-light and it just takes it a couple of years to get out to where we can use it. But I want passage rights through the system, and the opportunity to colonize any other planets in the system for Merrane."
"That's fine with me."
"Then it's a deal!" she said quickly. "You'll have your two Stargates in two days. That's a promise. Now, when am I going to sign that agreement for interdictors?"
"As soon as I know they work," he answered. "The first one will be finished and tested in two days. If it works, then we're in business. The second one goes to Exile, and after that, I set up to mass produce them and we start making the Imperium impenetrable to the Consortium."
"The sooner the better," she said in agreement.
"Now, is it too late for me to buy into this game?" Jason asked with a smile, sliding down to sit with the others at the game board.
They spent about two hours together with the kids, playing the game out, then watching the viddy until Shya and Rann were both asleep on one of the couches. Dahnai had servants carry the children off to Shya's foster parents to go to bed, and Dahnai and the others said goodnight to Maer and Sirri, sending them off as well, all the guards in the apartment filing out with them. And as soon as the last guard was out and the door was closed and locked, Symone immediately started stripping off her clothes. "Now the real fun begins," she said, giving Kellin a leer. She was only wearing a haltar and a pair of shorts, so she managed to shed them in about two seconds, and knelt on the couch by Kellin and reached for the waistband of his shorts.
"Hold it," Jyslin said, "he's mine tonight. You had him last night."
"We both had him last night," Symone grinned.
"You also hogged him this morning, so find someone else," she said, standing up and pulling her shorts down, basically sticking her shapely backside in Jason and Dahnai's faces while she bent down to step out of them, then she walked over to the other couch, where Kellin and Symone were.
"Ladies, ladies, I'm more than willing to share," Kellin said with a bright smile as Symone pulled his shorts down to expose his penis, and Jyslin wasted no time sinking her head into his lap.
"Bitch, that was mine!" Symone protested.
Too late, Jyslin taunted as Kellin put a hand on Jyslin's head, lacing her red hair between his fingers.
"Don't you dare make him come!" Symone warned as she got on her knees on the floor in front of the couch, sliding her hand down and masturbating Jyslin expertly, which was in full view of the three on the other couch.
Tim, who was sitting on the far side of Dahnai, reached over and pulled her tank top up to reveal her breasts, then bent down to kiss and suck on them. Mind a little company tonight, Dahnai? he asked.
So kind of you to remember to ask after you start sucking on my tits there, Tim. I'll make sure to ask you if you're in the mood after I already start fucking you next time.
He laughed against her breasts. Well, I kinda thought I already knew the answer, he admitted.
Well, looks like Kellin's going to play with your lesbo wives, so I guess I'll solace myself by getting rocked between my human boytoys, Dahnai sent naughtily, pulling her tank top off. After we have a little fun together, we can split up and spend the night alone. I want to experience you the same way I've experienced Jason and Kellin, Tim. Alone, in bed, and all night.
I'm at your service, Dahnai.
You'd better be. I'm the Empress.
I would be even if you weren't, Tim sent lightly.
Jason realized that he hadn't made his confession, and it might be a little too late to do it. Jyslin, Symone, and Kellin were already hot and heavy into it, and Tim had Dahnai pretty much distracted with his mouth on her impressive breasts and a hand moving rhythmically in her shorts as it explored her nether regions. But, he also knew that if he didn't come clean, he might have hell to pay later, when Dahnai finally found out.
Dahnai.
Mmm? she sent absently, the pleasure that Tim's mouth and hand were giving her already bleeding into her thought.
I was later than I had to be, he admitted. I got a little sidetracked back home.
What possible difference does that make right now?
Well… he sent, then trailed off. I was obeying one of Jyslin's prior orders.
Stop being roundabout and get to the fucking point, she told him, a bit tartly as she squirmed out of her shorts and opened her legs to give Tim's hand total access to what he was exploring.
Jyslin told me that if I had an opportunity with someone back home, I should take it.
Jyslin looked back at him from Kellin's lap, then laughed brightly. You fucked Aura, didn't you? she sent impishly, then she had to push Symone off to keep her from taking Jyslin's place in Kellin's lap.
What? You were late getting back here because you were busy plowing some nameless woman's pussy? Dahnai demanded, giving him a hot stare. When you have three women here waiting for you?
It wasn't planned. It was something of a moment of passion, he sent, a bit contritely.
Aura. Is that the gold-haired bitch I've been seeing flitting through your thoughts? The one that's built like me?
Well, you're the reason I'm attracted to her, he sent, a bit defensively. Thanks to you, I'm attracted to buff girls with big tits. After I had to straighten out the Exiled she was there, and, well, it happened. He relayed a memory of the scene in her house. I was standing there with a fuckin' hard-on, I had a little extra time, and she wanted it. So I spent an hour with her.
Was she good? Symone asked, giving him a lascivious smile.
Pretty good, he admitted. It was a fun hour, I can't lie about that.
About time, Jyslin sent in satisfaction. I thought I was going to have to lock you in a room with her or something. I knew she had the hots for you, I could tell just by how she looks at you.
Well, I guess I can forgive you for it, Dahnai told him, looking him in the eye. You did restrict it to an hour, and you made a lucrative deal with me.
Too bad I didn't plan it that way, he admitted with a laugh as Tim slid down, settled himself between Dahnai's spread legs, and lowered his head down to her give her oral sex It made Dahnai hum in pleasure and put a gentle hand in his hair.
You're gonna have to make it up to me, though… and you can start by giving me something to kiss.
He smiled, leaned over, and kissed her, making sure to get a healthy handful of her breast while doing so.
That's not what I want to kiss, you silly boy, she told him with hungry eyes.
He laughed and stood up, then pulled his pants down to show her what she'd seen many times before.
That's more like it. Now get naked and come stand over here on the couch so I don't have to disturb Tim's excellent job of giving me head.
Sleeping in Dahnai's guest room, the future room of Sirri, was a weird experience.
Jason woke up early, and he had to push Symone off his back enough to get out from under her to go to the bathroom, nearly turning the wrong way and walking into a wall because he was so used to going from Dahnai's room. He passed through the living room, where Jyslin and Kellin had slept on a gel mattress they'd brought out, never making it to the guest room that would eventually be Shya's room, having fallen asleep on one of the three "fun beds" that Dahnai had had brought into the apartment so they had soft mattresses to lay on to have sex in the large living room… though they'd spent most of their time on the couches before splitting up to spend the night as three couples. They were awake now, though, and Jyslin was proving that she was also a morning girl. She was straddling Kellin, sitting on top of him as she had sex with him, and she smiled and blew him a kiss as he padded through the living room and returned to the guest room. Kellin certainly seemed to be enjoying it, from the grip he had on Jyslin's breasts, kneading them roughly as she bounced up and down atop him. She was closed off to him, giving Kellin the "personal" experience of just him and her, what Dahnai had wanted from Tim, and what Kellin had had with Symone the night before.
Symone grunted as he slipped back into bed with her, then she sat up. "What time is it?" she asked blearily.
"Does it matter?" he asked simply as he laid back down.
"Guess not," she said with a chuckle as she slid a leg over him and settled on top of him, looking down with a smile. "It's morning," she purred.
"It might be. It might just be an hour after we went to sleep," he answered. "Don't you ever get tired?"
She laughed. "Would you want me to?" she winked.
"Well, when you put it that way," he said, which made her giggle like a little girl. "You need to learn to share, young lady. You could have really pissed Dahnai off."
She laughed ruefully. "I didn't draw blood," she said quickly.
"Kellin certainly didn't find it very pleasant. I know I wouldn't if you bit my dick. That is not the way you keep Jyslin from giving him head."
"Well, I'll apologize later," she said with a hungry smile. "I am so getting my mouth on Dahnai's pussy at least one more time before we leave. And what about you, you horny slut?" she grinned. "Banging Aura like a Barkan whore and making us wait for you!"
"It was a moment of weakness," he said dryly, which made her laugh.
"How was it? I want to full description, not just she was good. Is she a squealer? How tight is she? Is she a kinkmistress? What does she taste like?"
"No, pretty tight, no, and I didn't have time to go down on her," he answered.
"Men who don't go down on girls get friction burn," she winked.
"She was pretty much well ready to go, so no friction burn here," he replied lightly.
She rose upon her knees, scooted back a little, and inspected him carefully with both her eyes and hands. "I do believe you're right," she grinned.
He laughed. "Such a tease," he accused, reaching out and putting his hands on her belly, rubbing it gently. "Gotten used to the idea of it yet?"
"No, I still get a little thrill down my spine every time I think about it," she answered, putting her hands over his on her flat stomach. "I have a baby in here," she said with a dreamy smile. "Me and Tim are going to have a baby. Isn't it wonderful?"
"It's absolutely fantastic," he told her with a gentle smile. "Soon Rann's gonna have another playmate. And if we're lucky, Jyslin will give your daughter someone her own age to play with too."
"I think she will," Symone smiled. "The potassium worked like Aris' breath for me, it'll work for Jys too. We'll be pregnant together. I hope we have the same cravings," she laughed.
"I just hope you don't lose your sex drive like Jyslin did," he grinned. "I'll be hurting if my amu dozei and my wife both don't feel like it when I'm looking for a playmate."
"There's always Tim," she winked.
"No thanks," Jason said simply. "I love him like a brother, but there's just no fire there, love. I'll just have to move in with Dahnai," he smiled. "She has a couple of spare bedrooms in here, after all."
"Oh no, you belong at home," she giggled, pushing at his chest with both hands. "You'll just have to live with blowjobs til we get over it. I don't have to be in the mood to blow you."
"Yeah, I got a lot of those when Jyslin went through that phase," he recalled. "Did you enjoy your sex vacation?"
She laughed. "That's about what it was," she winked down at him. "And yes, I loved it. Kellin is a very sexy man, and he's more than attracted to both of us. He'll be a wonderful playmate for us when you come to see Dahnai. He even gets along very well with you and Tim. He's more than worthy of being our amu dorai," she told him. "Who knows, maybe after we really get to know Kellin and Dahnai, maybe we can all be amu dozei," she mused. "The orgy Dahnai promised was more than worth it, but that's not what we were really here to do. We were here to scope out Kellin," she winked.
"And?"
"Big dick, lots of stamina, well trained by Dahnai," she grinned. "He can make me come inside five minutes when he's serious about it. He passes my hot guy test."
"And Jys?"
"Can't you hear her moaning?" Symone said with a wolfish smile. "But sex aside, he's a kind, compassionate, very intelligent man. If he got me pregnant, I'd be honored to carry his child."
"So he passes."
"Oh yes he does," she nodded. "Jys likes him too."
"I hope this doesn't mean I'm about to be divorced."
Symone laughed. "Don't be a goof," she teased. "We think we could have him be an amu dorai. You can't have all the fun, you know," she winked. "You fuck Dahnai, it's only fair we get to fuck Kellin."
"That's fair," he said seriously, but he was smiling. "But I love Dahnai. That's why she's my amu dorai, and not just some friend I'm bed buddies with."
"I think I could come to love Kellin," she grinned. "We'll see. For now, he's just buddy sex. But maybe later, we'll be something more."
"Fair enough," he told her, then he sighed. "Enjoy it while you can, love," he told her. "When we go back, there's going to be a lot of work to do. This is just the calm before our storm of activity. This really has been a vacation for me, a couple of days to relax, have fun, renew my passion for Dahnai, and introduce my girls to a new man whom they seem to really like," he grinned. "We have interdictor tests tomorrow, then the summit next week, then we bust our asses claiming Exile, mass producing interdictors, and gearing up for the return of the Consortium."
"You really believe they're coming back?" she asked, a little fearfully.
"I know so," he said grimly. "They didn't come all the way from Andromeda to run away after one battle. They've just pulled back to lick their wounds and come up with a new strategy, and we have to be ready for them. The interdictors will really screw them up, and that'll give us plenty of time to get ready. If we're lucky, and I mean miraculously lucky, we'll always be so well prepared for them that they're too afraid to attack. But I don't really believe that's going to happen. There's going to be a war, Symone. It's going to get ugly, but in the end, we'll beat them back."
"Of course we will, we're the Karinnes. We're the meanest, baddest, roughest, toughest house on the block," she said with an impish smile.
"I'd rather be the smartest and strongest house on the block," he told her.
"That too," she smiled, leaning down and kissing him. "Jayce."
"Yes, love?"
"I think it's morning," she said, licking the tip of his nose playfully.
He laughed, wrapping her in his arms. "Well, little miss morning girl, let's give you what you want," he purred as he rolled her over on her back so he could make love to her.
entertainment?" he asked, which made Jyslin and Miaari erupt into helpless laughter.