She watched General Murray. He was careful not to project acceptance or defiance as the new king walked the steps in front of him. When Lyrek reached the stage, he turned and took a knee. On one side of him was Jaydel as his second in command. Next to Jaydel was Norquay, their historian. He was instrumental in setting up today’s services making them as close to the originals as possible.
In front of Lyrek stood their version of a priest. He would bless them both individually and jointly as a couple. This part of the service took place in their language. Lyrek made sure that the humans coming would know what was happening, but he was unwilling to switch the language to English.
When he rose, the crown was placed upon his head and a scepter in his hands. Once he sat on the throne it lit with an internal fire taking the breath away from everyone watching. It was the lighting of the scepter that sealed the kingship. The room went wild as the Porcoyan’s were finally given another king.
‘The longest journey is from commoner to queen.’ Lyrek whispered those words in her ears before he left her with her guards. Now she knew what he meant. She would have to walk the same aisle that seemed never-ending to face his world and hers to become a queen.
Her guard flanked her four on each side. She would walk through them to begin her slow journey down the aisle. As she watched, her soon to be people would judge her on everything or nothing. She was wearing a silver dress accented in royal blue that was dripping with jewels she didn’t need. The dress reminded her of the perfect love scene in a winter romance.
She stood with her guards in front of her as she waited for the loud blast to come. It reminded her of horns with bell-like undertones.
“The queen in waiting, Jade Steele,” Jaydel announced to the room.
She made sure she was smiling as she took one slow step that became two. Her eyes were locked on Lyrek’s there was nothing in this room as important as her soon to be husband and king.
The whispers around her were almost impossible to ignore. She understood most of them with her translator. There were those that were excited about this new chapter in their lives, but there were just as many who were not. The bright smile on her face didn’t drop, her feet kept that pace like a dance instructor was calling out the beat in her head.
Norquay spent hour after hour drilling into her head why this walk was important. It was in a sense a royal F you to all those who doubted her ability to rule. It was also her giving support to those who backed her when it was announced that she would be the next queen. Her fulfilling her role would send a signal to her supporters that they chose wisely. Watching signals like that play out in her own government made her determined to get it right.
A few males that she made note of whispered things about Lyrek that were meant to make her miss a step. When she was queen, she would watch them closely. Now Lyrek’s smile was lighting a fire deep within her. The closer she got the more certain she and her byema were that this was all they could ever want.
She stopped when she got to the steps. In front of her was a stool for kneeling. She picked the side of her dress up as her train was spread out behind her. Lyrek came down the steps and stood next to her.
There was a preacher sitting on the side he stood and walked to the top of the stage.
“Greetings all,” he flashed a smile as wrinkle lines appeared in his dark face.
“I have been asked to come and bless the union between Lyrek Rycol, the king of the Porcoyan’s and Jade Steel, human and soon to be the queen of the Porcoyan’s. The human wedding ceremony is not binding on Lyrek because he is not a citizen of earth, the words are still binding in both his heart and soul.
“Lyrek, son of a different star, do you willingly choose to bind yourself to Jade?”
“I do.”
“Jade, daughter of the star we circle, do you willingly choose to bind yourself to Lyrek?”
“I do.”
“Lyrek.”
He turned and went down to one knee. The males around him gasped. He took Jade’s hand with a smile.
“Jade, my beautiful wife, and queen. A male in his zenith is one that understands that he will be alone and lonely for eternity. You came with sunshine and roses and beautiful brown gems for eyes. I was left gasping at both your beauty and your bravery. Before me was the question could this female who seems too frail be the one that I have waited a lifetime for? Would you be able to tame the wildness within? You answered that question as you walked through every trial that came our way with bravery, grace, dignity, and beauty. I find myself overwhelmed with joy that you would choose one so unworthy to build your life with.”
She didn’t mean to cry. The tears started, and she was sure that her makeup was ruined. Lyrek reached out and mopped up the tears for her while proclaiming she was beautiful.
“Jade,” the preacher said her name.
“Lyrek, the male I have come to love with every bit of my being. Before I met you, I knew my future was to be alone and lonely. I no longer fought it I simply accepted the inevitability of it all. When I met you, I felt a shift deep in my soul, I would not give up. Every trial and tribulation brought me closer to you and the love I have for you. I will fight for us and continue to fight. When our lives are finally done, they will be well served because we loved each other.”
A blissful sigh covered the room and several delicate feminine sniffles could be heard.
“Today I bring the son and the daughter of two different suns together and pronounce them as male and female in front of the God of the universe. You may kiss the bride.”
Lyrek pulled her close to kiss her before standing and once again climbing the steps to sit on his throne.
When the preacher traded places with the priest she stood. They decided not to trade rings. That wasn’t going to make their byema’s happy when they tried to shift. There were other options and they would look at them later but for now, she didn’t need a ring, she was getting a crown.
With a nod of the priests head, she ascended the stairs until she was standing in front of her husband and king. She went into a deep curtsey to show respect before she stood and turned around. Then she went back to her knees this time facing those that were assembled.
“May I present to the court as well as the assembly Jade Steele. She has come before us with the belief that she is worthy to be crowned Queen of the Porcoyan people. The king has chosen her as his lifemate and now believes she deserves to rise to the second highest seat in our nation.”
This was where she needed to breathe deeply. Not every mate became king or queen. It was rare, but it did happen. Not everyone was worthy of becoming royalty. Not every royal was worthy of the crown.
“The right to choose is no longer in our hands. Our ancestors will decide if the queen in waiting who was born human is worthy of ascending our sacred throne. If any abject to the ancestors let it be recorded.”
The room was quiet. To openly abject to the ancestors was like painting a target on your back.
“Then it is decided we will allow the ancestors to judge her worthiness. Jade as a daughter of a different world you must swear your allegiance to the Porcoyan and their way of life.”
“I swear.”
“As a daughter who will constantly be pulled between the worlds, you must swear never to do anything to hurt the world of the people you preside over.”
“I swear.”
“The original oath the queen took will have no meaning under the circumstances.”
“If I may?” Jade asked.
“The floor is yours.”
She stood up to take a long slow look at everyone who assembled to see her.
“I swear with an oath that is rooted in my soul, fed by my blood, and sustained by the love I have for my king to put my people the people of Porcoyan before both myself and my king. I swear to always put the wellbeing of my king before myself. I will serve my people and my planet every day I draw breath. I will be the peace that binds us together as long as we reside on
this planet. When it is time to leave, I will go gladly with my head held high. You will be my people and I will be your queen. Together we will do amazing things.”
The room was so silent that for a moment none drew a breath. Then there was a thundering of applause with cheers that followed behind it.
The priest stood quietly until the room once again became quiet.
“I accept the oath that you have given to the Porcoyan people, those that came before, those that are present, and those still to come.”
The priest picked up her crown and kissed it before placing it on her head. Jade walked to Lyrek once again she gave him a curtsy before sitting on her throne. The scepter was taken out and held high above to show that there was no light in or around it.
“General Murray,” the priest called him up. “If you will present this to the queen in waiting.” He handed him the scepter.
This was another way to show them uniting human and Porcoyan.
The general walked over and laid the scepter in her hands. “May the ancestors bless you.”
He stood back as everyone craned their head to see what the ancestors thought about Jade. The scepter in her hand lit within. A cheer rang out. The Porcoyan’s had a new royal family. The first step to opening the door of their third form had come to past.
Jade was a queen, their queen.
Chapter Twenty-four
The receiving line lasted for hours. It felt like she met every surviving Porcoyan. That was impossible but tell that to her feet. After that was a very formal dinner. Normally she would have been bored but between Em and Red, she was entertained the whole time. Should she find joy in her friends suffering? Only when it came to males.
Em spent the whole dinner shooting eye daggers into Jaydel’s back. He spent the dinner charming her. Which led her to think maybe Em wasn’t as mad as she was pretending, but how would that work out? Then there was Red, she was definitely eye fucking someone. Red, on the other hand, operated undercover. No matter how Jade tried to spot the target of her eyes she missed. There were several suspects, but she wasn’t sure enough to interrogate them. When Red winked at her, she knew the woman was playing this close to her chest for a reason.
So she was going to be one of those queens the kind that snooped around. Sigh.
When they announced the first dance would be the king and queen, she was ready to stretch her legs. This was the formal dance that would allow the Porcoyan’s to celebrate the new royal couple all night if they desire.
The music that played was sedate. It allowed Lyrek to hold her in his arms as he whisked her around the room. There were pictures as well as people still shouting out congratulations. Nothing would top this except the opening of the door for the third form or a child.
“Queen Jade.” Lyrek bent and kissed her. “You taste as good as when you were just my Jade.”
“I am just your Jade. The others share me now and then but I only belong to you.”
“What do you think?”
“I was nervous, sure I couldn’t handle what was coming my way. Now I’m fine. I know that together we have this.”
“You don’t only have me. You have the people. They love you, Jade, there are a few to keep an eye on, but today you proved yourself to be queen. Turns out your people like to bet. My people cleaned up.”
“My original people betted against. Why am I not surprised?”
“Not General Murray, he is walking out considerably wealthier.”
“Him we will have to watch. He is no one’s fool.”
“He sees the potential in you that even I am only starting to see. Quick one more kiss before the masses demand to dance with you.”
He twirled her into his arms for a deep kiss before the music stopped. Then like the king he is, he gave her another twirl sending her off to the next dancer on her card.
Jade danced the night away fielding political questions from the humans and when they could look for their own abraza’s from the Porcoyan’s. That left her wondering how to introduce the males to eligible women and did all the males want females? It didn’t work that way on earth. Why should it work that way in the rest of the galaxy?
“May I have this dance, my queen?”
She was pleasantly surprised to look up and find Norquay standing in front of her.
“You may.”
He swept her into his arms doing circles around the dance floor. He was as polished as the other males before him.
“My queen, now that you house the light within are there any questions you would like to ask?”
The light is what lit the scepter it must come from within.
“We haven’t unlocked the door to your third form.”
“I believe it will come. Each step must be taken.”
“Becoming queen was a step.”
“An important one. Has anyone told you why the Hydal seek to erase us?”
“I got the cliff notes. There was an amazingly beautiful woman and two kings wished to make her theirs—.”
Norquay rolled his eyes, she was so impressed she stopped talking.
“Yes, they gave you the Pretty Woman update.”
She gave a bark of genuine laughter at his reference to an American movie.
“Historian,” he pointed to himself. She laughed at the thought of movies making it into history and then stopped. History was filled with movies why should Pretty Woman be any different?
“Is there a different version I should know about?”
“Let’s go back to when the Porcoyan’s followed the stars in the night sky and preferred the skin of the beast to that of the male. This is when time had no beginning or ending. When life would always be – a seer much like one of your guards stepped forward. His words changed our world. ‘When one becomes two and the people combine, the galaxy will open wide like a seed. Woe to her that betrayed us.’”
“That is…”
“Each generation looks at prophecy and tries to make it fit in with what they know. Unfortunately, no matter how you twist it will only happen when the time is right.”
“You think the time is now?”
He shook his head. “I am no seer I am only a historian. I can tell you what was recorded but I cannot interpret for you.”
“I’m going to let you in on a little secret. There were times when I was running my company that I thought my head would explode with all I had to do. That was child’s play. Now that I am a queen what I have to do doesn’t compare.”
“In this case, maybe your job got you ready for your life.” He gave her a smile before he passed her off to the king.
“Norquay is usually a male of few words.”
“He told me of a prophecy that happened long ago.”
“I haven’t thought of that prophecy since I was a child. It takes on a more sinister connotation now that we have no home.”
“It does. We may have to revisit it soon. But for now, I’d like some time in the arms of the king. Do you think you could arrange that? I’ve heard the queen is jealous and unstable, I’d like to divert his interest.”
“The king is nothing if not faithful, but he is also a simple male. If you flash your brown eyes at him—he seems to have a weakness for them—he may be willing to follow where you lead.”
“I do like a male that follows.” She buried herself in his arms as they made one more sweep around the dance floor. Soon they were bidding everyone goodnight. Tomorrow she’d worry about being queen. Tonight, she wanted to be wife.
The guards walked them back to the suite before bidding them goodnight.
Jade stopped to kick off her shoes when the door closed. She laughed as she watched them bounce against the wall. Some things in her life hadn’t changed.
“Now all I need is the dress off and for the girls to fly free.”
“Mmm I love when the girls fly free.” His fingers went to the cleverly hidden zipper in the back of the dress. When they asked her if she wanted buttons, she had laughed so long she fe
ared she hurt her designers’ feelings. She stepped out of the dress acknowledging again what a wondrous creation it was.
“I think we are supposed to give it away now.”
“Shut your mouth.” She reached for her dress. “I know really rich people with no need for half their money don’t believe in wearing clothes a second time, but that’s not me. Besides, there’s no way we can be really rich until we have a planet all our own.”
He stopped moving. “I have come across several that we can—.”
She placed a finger over his mouth. “That was not a criticism. A planet is a long way off. Before we find one we have to find women that are willing to move there with us. We still have a door to open.”
“I know you’re right.” He took her dress from her hand and laid it across an empty chair. “The girls are begging for freedom.”
“Then you should mount a rescue mission.” She giggled like she was fourteen, but it was okay this was her wedding night.
He bent picking her up. He carried her to the bedroom before laying her on the bed.
“One rescue attempt coming up.” He made quick work of the bra freeing her breasts to his loving lips and hands.
With a long sigh of pleasure, Jade started working on her first child.
*~*~*~*~*
Jade stretched before she ran the arch of her foot up one of Lyrek’s calves.
“We should go on a honeymoon.”
“Honeymoon?”
“That’s where you go someplace for a week or two where nobody knows who you are. Then you eat, have wild sex, and do other things that no one will ever hear of. All the while paying no attention to what’s going on back at home.”
“We found this pretty planet where the water is silver and the fish are colorful.”
“Whoa, big guy. As much as I like the thought, I was thinking something on this planet, like Hawaii. I’m not ready to be that far away from the children.”
“Are you more worried about the Porcoyan’s or what General Murray will have them agreeing to do if we’re not around?”
“General Murray. Let’s wait awhile for that honeymoon. We’ll just lock the door here and not let anyone in.”
Melody Embraced Page 15