Chapter Five

Embeth woke alone to the annoying beeping of the alarm she had programmed on her smartphone. Ysaak must have slipped out sometime in the early morning hours, and though she understood the need to be discreet, she still keenly felt his absence.

As she rolled out of bed, her head was swimming, and chills shook her. Her entire body ached, and it was like having the ‘flu and a migraine all at once. She barely made it to the en suite bathroom before she vomited, having to spend several minutes leaning against the toilet before she was certain she could stand up.

Falling ill was an unexpected turn of events, and she hoped she hadn’t picked up some dreadful alien virus for which she had no immunity, though she had learned during her research that Dazons rarely suffered from any illness, since most had been eliminated due to genetic manipulation and nanotechnology. More likely, it was something she’d picked up on Earth before her departure, and it had taken a few days to incubate.

A quick shower left her feeling just slightly better than death, and she managed to slip on a loose black dress that was appropriate for the morning meeting, but wasn’t too taxing to put on.

A glance in the mirror revealed her complexion was more gray than brown, and she looked awful. Though she lacked the energy to do it, she forced herself to apply enough makeup so that she didn’t look like she was about to keel over. She didn’t think she was critically ill, but she was definitely the sickest she’d ever been in her life. Not that she would allow that to keep her from hopefully getting a peaceful agreement settled with the emperor that day.

She had barely finished preparations when there was a chime at her door, and the hydraulic doors parted to reveal Damon standing there, with Ysaak a couple of feet behind him. “If you’re ready, Ambassador Williams, I’ll escort you to the meeting room,” said Damon.

“That won’t be necessary, Lieutenant Connors. I’ll take the ambassador.”

Damon seemed nonplussed by Ysaak’s words, but he inclined his head.

She fell into step beside Ysaak, leaning heavily against him for a moment as a wave of lightheadedness swept over her. She trembled from a chill, and his arm around her waist.

“Embeth? What’s wrong?”

She gave him a shaky smile and concentrated on walking forward. “I woke up feeling ill. I’m sure it will pass, and I’m certainly not delaying our talks because of a touch of the ‘flu.”

He looked concerned. “Why don’t I take you to the medical facility before the meeting?”

She shook her head, almost immediately regretting the motion because caused a wave of nausea to overtake her. “No, that won’t be necessary.” Since the Dazon relied heavily on nanotechnology for health, she assumed the solution offered to her would be in the form of nanotechnology.

She wasn’t opposed to the technology, per se, but she wasn’t about to undertake the treatment herself, and especially not on an alien planet where Jorvak Ha was the chief scientist and could take advantage of the opportunity to study her physiology as he had requested during the state dinner.

As they neared the meeting room, she forced herself to step away from Ysaak, straighten her shoulders, and walk through to meet the Emperor and First Prince on her own steam. She nodded to Ysaak when he held the chair for her, hoping no one else saw how heavily she collapsed into it.

It was a surprise when Ysaak sat beside her rather than taking the open chair beside his father, and she could see the Emperor was puzzled by his actions as well. Had she felt better, she might have tried to quietly encourage him to return to his usual post, but she was certain he was sitting beside her as a way to monitor her health, and she didn’t have it in her to fight him.

“Good morning, Emperor Talek and First Prince Aryk.” She barely darted her gaze in his direction as she spoke his name, mostly keeping her attention focused on the older man beside him.

“You don’t look well,” said Aryk with a smirk. “Would you like to postpone the meeting, Ambassador?”

She was surprised by his perceptiveness, assuming he had barely glanced at her before, and certainly not long enough to notice when she was in a state of health versus sickness, but she waved a hand and tried to appear unconcerned. “No, thank you. I’m certain I’ll be fine. It’s nothing a little rest can’t cure.”

Aryk’s smirk grew, but he simply shrugged his shoulders. “As you wish, Ambassador. For my part, there is no reason to drag out the meeting anyway.”

“Oh?” She forced herself to look at him, trying to hide her disdain. “What do you mean by that, First Prince?”

“I mean my position is well-established, and I consider these so-called peace talks a waste of time. Your planet has a resource we require, and we should simply take it. You’re a primitive species, and we owe you neither respect nor acknowledgement of equal status. You should be thankful we’re willing to take some of your primitive race and integrate it into our advanced civilization.”

Ysaak snorted. “How advanced could we be if we’re seriously considering stealing half the population from a planet and forcing the women to…what, be our breeding partners? Or perhaps you think our wives, and they’ll fall nicely in line with whatever we demand? Is that what you envision, brother?”

Aryk looked unconcerned. “Dr. Ha assures me there will be ways to deal with any rebellion. It’s a simple matter to withhold the nanotechnology that keeps the disease in check.”

Nausea surged in her gut, and she wasn’t certain if it was from disgust or her illness. “Yes, and then half the mothers die, as we’ve observed on Earth. Of the fourteen pregnancies that went to term, six of the Earth mothers died, leaving sixteen hybrid babies with no parents. If that’s your plan, you might as well just steal the eggs instead and continue to manufacture your children in breeding facilities instead of raising them as part of a family unit.”

Aryk shrugged again. “I have no objection to that plan. I see it as a fine idea, but there are those who wish to restore a more feminine balance to our society, and they must be appeased. Earth women will provide that, and then subsequent generations of human/Dazon-hybrid females will take over the role. Dr. Ha anticipates we can completely breed out the human genome from our species within five generations.”

Ysaak was clearly angry as he leaned across the table, glaring at his brother. “I told you it was dangerous to put that man in charge of anything, and when you decided to promote him to Chief Scientist, I registered my protests virulently. He’s bad for our empire and bad for relations with the humans. We should send that mad doctor back to Earth to face justice there.”

Aryk blinked, looking astonished. “You would hand over one of our brightest scientific minds to a bunch of barbarians? Some of their civilizations still practice the death penalty.”

“You make that sound like a bad thing,” said Ysaak with a sneer. “When it comes to criminals like Ha, I could fully support a return to the death penalty.”

Aryk glared at him. “It’s clear to me that you’re an Earth sympathizer, brother. When I’m Emperor, you will be relocated as ambassador to that backwater planet. You can oversee what’s left of the population after the culling.”

“Culling?” asked Embeth as a wave of dizziness passed over her. She was thankful for Ysaak’s support, because she wasn’t feeling up to verbal sparring with the First Prince.

“We’ll select the best stock for breeding, and the rest will be left behind. Should they offer resistance, they’ll be executed.”

She had to take several deep breaths to center herself and fight the pounding in her head. “You just demeaned my planet for having cultures where the death penalty is still used as justice and now speak of killing my people with ease? Doesn’t that seem hypocritical to you, Prince Aryk?”

She darted a glance at the Emperor, who had yet to speak a single word and seemed to be impassively viewing the proceedings as though it didn’t affect him at all. It was frustrating as hell, and she wanted to scream at the old man to settle this once and for all.

“You’re an inferior species, and sometimes animals must be put down. It’s as simple as that.”

Ysaak let out a low growl. “What kind of monster are you, Aryk? I never knew you could be so heartless and self-consumed with your own wants that it would blind you to doing the right thing.”

Aryk’s voice took on an angry edge too, and he was almost shouting when he replied, “It’s not self-consumed to worry about our race over that of the useless humans. They are a resource to be exploited and nothing more. If you elevate them to equal status, it obfuscates the issues at hand and simply complicates matters further.”

“It forces you to deal with us like we have feelings, opinions, and emotions,” said Embeth before clearing her scratchy throat. She greedily drank the water beside her in an attempt to rid herself of the irritation. “Of course you must disconnect or find a way to lessen us in order to enact the simplest, yet most brutal, solution available to you. I’m thankful you’re not yet Emperor, Aryk.”

“Not yet, but I will be soon, and whatever flimsy peace accord you reach with my father, I won’t guarantee I’ll support it. I have decided on a solution, and if my father delays progress, it’s nothing more than that—a delay.”

Suddenly, the Emperor spoke. His words were authoritative, though his voice was calm and almost without intonation. “That’s enough, Aryk. I’ve observed you both over the past few days and have seen the differences between you and your brother. I’ve watched how you would each handle the situation before us. I’ve spoken privately with the both of you, and though I knew your stances, I still had to see for myself how you would react when given a chance to make the right choice.”

Aryk’s lips tightened, and he looked at his father as he furrowed his brow ridge. “There’s only one right choice here, Father. I hope you’ll be wise enough to make it, but if you aren’t, whatever you do today can be undone when I ascend to Emperor.”

Talek looked sad as he shook his head. “That won’t happen now, Aryk. I’ll be amending the Articles of Succession so that Ysaak takes over for me upon my passing. That will happen at the next meeting of the High Council, and you’ll officially be removed as my heir. You’ll always be my son, but it’s clear to me that you’re not well suited for the position of Emperor.”

Aryk’s mud-brown eyes darkened, and flecks of black mixed in with an occasional flash of mustard-yellow seemed to suggest he was enraged, though it was difficult to tell for her, as a human, how to interpret his physiological changes.

“You can’t be serious, Father. Lines of succession are clearly delineated. The First Prince always becomes Emperor.”

“Except in the case where the First Prince is incapacitated, unsuited to lead, or dead. All those circumstances have occurred in the past, and the Second or Third Prince has always inherited, depending on who was left in the family.”

Aryk scowled. “Are you planning to kill me then, Father?”

“No, of course not. I’ll simply make it known you’re unfit for leadership. Ysaak has far more compassion and wisdom than you do, my son. It pains me to admit it, but it’s the truth. You’ve always been selfish and willful, and prone to take the easy path, but I’d hoped you would outgrow it as the planet-cycles passed. Sadly, it has become entrenched in you. They are sad traits to find in any Dazon, but particularly in one meant to lead the people.”

Aryk was clearly enraged as he stood up so quickly that his chair hit the orangestone floor and skidded across it several feet. “You won’t get away with this. I have supporters and friends. They won’t accept this, Father.”

Talek looked unconcerned. “They will, my son. There might be resistance, but they’ll fall in line, and all will do what’s right. They might be politicians, but many of them still have compassion and understand the need for a peaceful solution to our mutual problem with the humans. You will alienate them with your own beliefs, and there will be no meaningful resistance.”

Aryk didn’t speak as he stormed from the room, though his anger remained like a palpable cloud for a moment as it settled over the three of them like a gloomy shroud.

She cleared her throat after a moment’s silence. “I take it then, Emperor, you’re open to discussing a solution that’s beneficial for both Earth and the Dazon empire?”

“I am, Ambassador, and have been from the start. I’m particularly anxious to find a solution that doesn’t require my only daughter to enter the breeding center in two planet-cycles. I think we can find an accord that will be satisfying to both planets, but it’s clear to me that you’re in no state to do so at the moment.”

She wanted to protest, feeling the need to hammer out the details and get them cemented while the emperor was so amicable to cooperation, but a wave of fatigue swept over her, and she didn’t think she was successful in hiding it. Ysaak and Talek exchanged a quick look of concern that was evident on both their faces, and the emperor nodded his head toward the door.

“Ysaak, escort the ambassador to her quarters before returning to me. There are many details to address, and I feel the need to move with haste before Aryk can mobilize resistance.”

“But you said—” Ysaak began.

Talek waved a wrinkled hand. “Yes, and I believe most of the High Council will fall in line and understand, even accept, the wisdom of the General Council and my position on this matter, but I don’t want to underestimate greed and cronyism either. We must settle things quickly.” The emperor turned his gaze back to Embeth. “That, along with your own comfort, is why I hope you’ll feel up to finishing these talks tomorrow, Ambassador Williams.”

She inclined her head and gritted her teeth, determined she would be ready even if she had to wheel herself in on a gurney for the discussion ahead of them.

Shortly thereafter, Ysaak took her arm and led her from the meeting room. Her legs felt wobbly, almost like jelly, and they were less than half the distance to her chamber when they gave out completely. She would have fallen if Ysaak hadn’t scooped her into his warm embrace, holding her tightly against his chest as he strode down the hallway to her assigned suite of rooms.

For decorum’s sake, she should have told him to put her down, but she really was in no shape to walk on her own. She managed a feeble greeting for Damon, noting his alarmed expression and vaguely aware of Damon telling Ysaak he would fetch a medic from the landing team.

She was reassured at having an Earth medical officer rather than someone from Dazonia Major, and she relaxed against Ysaak as he carried her into the room to lay her on the bed. Embeth clung to his hand when he would have moved away, murmuring his name.

“I don’t wish to leave you, belisa, but you heard my father. Timing is crucial, but you won’t be alone. Your guard has gone to fetch a medic from the human team, and I’ll send in my sister Taleeza to watch after you.”

She wanted to be weak and beg him to stay, finding his presence the most soothing of anyone’s, but she forced herself to push past that urge and nod at him. She wasn’t normally such a baby when she was sick, and she would be just fine in the care of the human medic and his sister. Technically, she was certain she would be fine on her own, but she allowed herself a moment of weakness and admitted she didn’t want to be.

Somehow, she managed a shaky smile for him. “It’s all right. You have to do what you must. I’m just happy the emperor agrees with our position, and it’s vital to see everything put in place as quickly as possible. Don’t worry about me.”

He was holding her hand, and he brought it to his lips to partially kiss across her knuckles. “How can I not worry about the state of health of my mate? You’ll be heavily on my thoughts, and I’ll check in with you often through the communication system. I’ll return to you in person as quickly as I can, Embeth.”

She nodded, certainly not up for dissuading him from that. She yearned to call him back when he left her chambers a few moments later, but she resisted the impulse. She wasn’t alone for long, because a young Dazon female entered the room a few minutes later, followed shortly by Damon and Lieutenant Powell, who was a military officer and a trained medic.

Like Damon, he was from the Air Force and had been recruited for the assignment due to special skills and his interest in traveling to an alien planet. She briefly remembered the scramble in the Pentagon to figure out who had jurisdiction for her security when it came to an alien planet.

The lieutenant gave her as thorough an exam as possible with his limited equipment. “I think it’s just some kind of virus, Ambassador. It’s nothing I recognize or I could identify at this moment without cultures and a laboratory—and that’s not really my department anyway—but I’d say it’s just a simple virus. I imagine you’ll be back on your feet in no time.”

“I certainly feel like hell,” she admitted. “You’re certain it’s nothing serious?”

He gave her an un-reassuring shrug. “I don’t believe so. You’re running a low fever, which is suggestive of viral activity, and though I’m sure you feel awful, all your vital signs are normal. It’s something that must run its course, I’m afraid.”

She groaned. “Let me guess? Being viral, there’s nothing you can give me for it?”

The lieutenant gave her sympathetic smile. “Unfortunately, that’s exactly right. I have some analgesics for discomfort, and if you develop anything like a cough, I can address secondary issues, but I don’t have any antiviral medicine on me, and none of that stuff works all that well anyway, to be honest.”

She let out a soft sigh. “I was afraid you’d say that, Lieutenant. Thank you for your time.”

As he moved away, she listened to him speak with Damon for a few minutes, catching the gist of the conversation, which was he wanted the guard to keep a close eye on her and call him if there was any change in her status.

She was distracted from their conversation when the one she presumed must be Taleeza sat on the edge of her bed and placed a cool cloth on her forehead. She moaned her delight at the sensation. “Thank you. You’re an angel.” That reminded her of the mistranslation between angles and angels during her picnic with Ysaak, and she was amazed that had been only yesterday. It seemed like far more time had passed than that.

“I hope it soothes your illness, Ambassador Williams.” The girl was soft-spoken, and she looked young, but not twelve as Ysaak had stated yesterday. No…he’d said twelve planet-cycles. Since a planet-cycle was roughly fifteen months in Earth time, that put the girl closer to sixteen in human terms.

That seemed like a more appropriate age for her, since she had a womanly body, but a young face and shy demeanor—particularly when she looked in Damon’s direction. Her golden luminescence increased slightly, chiefly in the facial region and her brow ridge, suggesting she was blushing with embarrassment each time she looked at the lieutenant.

Even though she felt lousy, it made Embeth want to giggle at the hint of attraction in the girl’s eyes. She well remembered her first crushes, and she was happy the young woman had a chance to experience that feeling before being forced into a breeding facility. As Damon left the room, she asked Taleeza, “Do Dazon females feel it too?”

“Feel what, Ambassador?” asked Taleeza, her brow ridge wrinkling.

“The mating flare?”

Taleeza shrugged. “I don’t know, Ambassador. Surely you’ve heard it’s mostly just a myth or an old instinct that we’ve moved beyond?”

“That’s what your brother said too, until he felt it.” She closed her mouth abruptly, realizing she was giving away far too much information about her and Ysaak, even if it was to his younger sister. She had no idea which side Taleeza would align with, though surely it would be her father’s more reasonable stance. On the other hand, Aryk’s solution of stealing the women or their eggs would free Taleeza from a future as a breeding drone.

Taleeza’s brown eyes sparkled with interest. “How extraordinary. Ysaak has felt the mating flare?”

Embeth didn’t answer her, deciding it was a good time to take a rest and avoid further awkward topics that she had introduced. She closed her eyes, aware of Taleeza’s soothing voice washing over her as the other girl spoke.

“Truly, Ambassador, I don’t know if I have felt the mating flare. Women used to feel it, but the scientists have tampered so greatly with our genetics that I don’t think any feel it now. Of course, we’re hustled off to the breeding quarters as soon as we reach majority, and our contact with males is limited before then, so who can say for certain? Obviously, the government scientists don’t want the females to have a mating flare, or any of the males to feel it for a female, because it would lead to conflict and resistance.”

She opened her eyes again. “Because mates wouldn’t want to be separated?” asked Embeth.

“Precisely.” The cloth disappeared from her brow for a moment before returning with fresh cool water. “I’m certain my brother wouldn’t allow you to be stolen away from him and forced into the breeding facility, where your eggs are harvested every month in an accelerated fashion, and the best years of your life are wasted, while your future is stolen from you one egg at a time. Nor would you be anxious to part from him in order to become an egg factory to produce children you’ll never raise. Am I correct in that assumption, Ambassador?”

“Yes,” said Embeth quietly as slumber started to slip over her.

“It’s a future none of us want, which is why we’re all so hopeful about Earth and the Dazon Empire finding a solution. I’d very much like to have a life outside of breeding.”

Embeth thought she murmured an agreement, but she couldn’t seem to summon the energy to speak. Instead, she dozed and drifted somewhere between conscious and unconscious as Taleeza talked to her, and the time passed.

At some point, she was certain her fever had spiked, and she began to moan and thrash. Pain filled her, and her legs refused to move. She thought she heard Taleeza on the communication system calling for medical assistance.

It could have been moments or hours later when she heard the door open, and she managed to pry her eyes open slightly. She expected it to be Ysaak or Lieutenant Powell, so it was an unpleasant shock to see Jorvak Ha looming over her, flanked by three of his assistants. “No,” she rasped through her swollen throat.

“What are you doing here?” asked Taleeza, trying to insert herself between the doctor and Embeth, to Embeth’s gratitude. “I called for her medical person.”

“I’m far more qualified than he is. Step aside, young princess.”

Taleeza’s shoulders firmed, though it was difficult to make out any other details when Embeth’s vision blurred. “I won’t. You shouldn’t be here. You know the ambassador doesn’t want you here.”

Jorvak looked over Taleeza, who was at least six-feet tall, but still far shorter than the scientists. “Is that correct, Ambassador Williams? Would you prefer I leave?”

“Yes,” she said softly, unable to manage to project any volume.

“That’s unfortunate, because the only one leaving is the princess.” He angled his head toward the door, and two of his assistants began to drag Taleeza toward the exit. She tried to raise her voice to call out to Damon, but he wasn’t in sight when the hydraulic doors opened. Her heart thundered with fear, and she was certain the men in front of her were the reason Damon wasn’t at his post.

“What have you done to my guard?” she rasped.

“He’ll recover,” said Jorvak with a lack of concern. A moment later, he produced a cylinder, and she tried to scramble from the bed as he drew nearer. “Relax, ambassador. You’ll feel so much better after I administer the nanotechnology.”

She shook her head. “I don’t want that. Get it away from me.”

The doctor ignored her, and soon enough there was a sharp pressure against her arm as prongs at the end of the cylinder pressed something through her skin. She knew very well it had to be the nanotechnology and began to panic. She tried to hit out at the doctor, using what precious little energy she had, until she had worn herself out and collapsed against the bed. Her last memory was of Jorvak speaking over his shoulder to his assistant, who was reading data on some kind of tablet-like device. “Well?”

“The retrovirus appears effective.”

Before she could ask what that meant, she slipped into unconsciousness, all reserves of strength depleted; grateful to embrace the darkness and escape the sneering image of Jorvak Ha above her.