RHEN

by Charity Kelly

  Ignoring his father, Rhen stopped a few feet away from Andres’ chair and snorted, blowing out a blast of steam from his nose. He flopped down onto the floor behind Andres’ throne and stretched, arching his back.

  Bosternd and Nk hadn’t seen Rhen in the castle since his transformation. They had only ever seen him outside on the training fields or during battles. They watched his movements with surprise. He was acting like a pet.

  The Queen, who was bowing on the floor in the corner of the room, peeked through her grey hair to watch.

  Rhen rolled over onto his back, and with his legs in the air, wiggled back and forth to scratch his back against the stones. When he was finished, he flipped over onto his side, tucked his legs up into his body and rested his head on the foot of his father’s throne. A moment later, he closed his glowing, red eyes. It looked as if he were going to take a nap.

  Andres shook his head and turned back to the prisoners. “What do you think Aul?” he asked, breaking the silence. “Slaves or food?” Aul snapped to attention and approached the King to give his opinion.

  Bosternd and Nk were shocked. Andres should have asked Rhen that question. Rhen was his son, his heir. They knew Aul had been rising in power, but they hadn’t realized how far he had come.

  “Whatever you wish sire,” Aul said, with a bow.

  “I don’t really know,” Andres told him with disinterest. “We’ve had so many prisoners these last few months that our jails are overflowing. Why don’t you choose what to do with them for a change?”

  Aul smiled at Bosternd and Nk’s reaction. “These soldiers are weaker than those from System 27 and 28. I say we eat them.”

  “Yes,” Andres concurred. “Let’s eat them.” He glanced down at Rhen’s head, then leaned over to smack the flat part of the hilt of his sword onto Rhen’s reptilian snout.

  Rhen made a small sound of protest and growled before opening his eyes. He shook his head, before tilting it, to look up at his father. “Yes, your majesty?” he asked, sounding weary.

  “We’re eating this lot. Do you want to pick one out for dinner?”

  Rhen rolled away from the throne onto his other side. With the top of his head on the stone floor, he gazed upside down at the prisoners. “I’m so hungry I could eat all of them.”

  “Well, then, they’re yours, child,” Andres said. “Take them away quickly though. They’re beginning to stink.” A few of the prisoners had peed in their pants at the sight of Rhen.

  Rhen climbed to his feet and sauntered over towards the prisoners. “Come with me,” he told them. Bosternd and Nk moved behind the prisoners, following Rhen out of the room. The group walked towards Rhen’s bedroom, but Rhen made a sharp turn to his left and led them into the portal room instead. He paused in front of the portal and said, “Planet Elyk in Solar System 32.” Bosternd and Nk’s eyes widened as the portal opened and Rhen stepped away from it. Turning to Bosternd and Nk, Rhen said, “They’re not fat enough for me. Drive them home so they can fatten up. I’ll eat them later.”

  Bosternd’s eyebrows raised. Rhen was releasing them. The prisoners looked at him and Nk with apprehension. “Go,” Bosternd yelled at them. The men ran through the portal, back to their own solar system. When the portal closed, Bosternd and Nk turned towards Rhen.

  “Are you going to tell on me?” he asked. It was the second time that Rhen had disobeyed his father, but they knew not to get their hopes up.

  “That depends,” Bosternd said. “What’re you going to do now?”

  “Eat a cow,” Rhen said. He gave them a reptilian grin and started to walk away.

  “Rhen,” Bosternd called after him. “You can undermine your father all you want to in private, but unless he knows what you’re doing, it won’t make a difference. You need to confront him in public.”

  “Who said I wanted to confront him,” Rhen tossed back over his shoulder as he left the room.

  Bosternd and Nk reported the incident to the Leader of the Opposition Force, who commented that at least Rhen wasn’t completely Andres’ pawn.

  Five days later, Surpen conquered Solar System 37. The Zorthans were unsettled by this news, since they controlled Systems 38 and 39. On numerous occasions, they had tried to conquer System 37, but they’d never had any success. The King’s Guards on Solar System 37 had great powers. For Surpen to have overwhelmed them, in less than a day, was unthinkable. “They’re unstoppable,” the Zorthan General attending Thestran’s Council meeting said.

  The Vivist beside him clicked, “They’re like an amoeba moving from solar system to solar system, absorbing everything they touch.”

  “We must declare war on Surpen,” the Zorthan General urged.

  “No,” James told him.

  “If we act together, we can defeat them,” the General said.

  James shook his head. “Not yet.”

  After the meeting, the Zorthan General pulled some of his people aside. “Try to contact Surpen again. See if we can get through. If you do, ask Andres to confirm that he won’t be attacking his fellow Convention members.”

  “He won’t answer,” his aide informed him. “He won’t answer for anyone.”

  Back on Surpen, a group of generals stood beside a table covered with military plans outside the Surpen Castle’s walls, discussing the day’s events. Rhen had surprised them during battle. Solar System 37’s guards had fired their powers at Rhen repeatedly, but he hadn’t been affected by them. The guards’ blasts had hit Rhen’s hide without mercy to no avail. It appeared that Rhen was invincible to power blasts.

  Bosternd smiled, when he saw Rhen sauntering up to them with his reptilian gate. “Hey,” he greeted Rhen.

  “What?” Rhen asked, stopping in mid-stride. He had been thinking about something else and hadn’t heard Bosternd.

  “I just wanted to tell you that you did a nice job out there today.”

  Like a cat, Rhen swung his tail back and forth as he thought about Bosternd’s compliment. “Thanks,” he said, sitting down on his back haunches.

  It was unusual for Rhen to talk with them these days. Andres kept him busy with various duties, so he couldn’t mingle with his men as he had in the past. Bosternd knew it was a ploy to keep Rhen away from his friends and to curb his support among the men.

  Stepping closer to Rhen, Bosternd whispered, “Is it true you didn’t kill their King?” He’d heard from Ngi that Rhen had thrust the King of Solar System 37, along with his entire family, through their portal just before Andres had arrived.

  Rhen barred his five-inch long, sharp fangs in a gruesome looking smile. “Yes,” he admitted.

  “That will make your father angry.”

  “If he were to find out,” Rhen said. “Are you going to tell him?”

  Losing his temper, Bosternd yelled, “Why do you keep asking me if I’m going to tell on you! I’m your friend. You know I would never tell on you. None of us would.” He gestured towards the other generals standing around the table.

  Rhen shrugged his massive green shoulders in response.

  “Rhen,” Bosternd said, holding out his hand. “Why don’t you sit with us for a while? We haven’t had a chance to talk to you, since you became sick with that virus.”

  Rhen shuddered at the thought of his week-long bout in bed. It had been horrible. “I don’t have time,” he said. Closing his eyes, he turned away from the generals.

  “Rhen, why don’t you stop him? Why don’t you fight back? You know you could end this,” Bosternd asked.

  “What’s the point?” Rhen said. He gazed, through the dusty, dry air, at the Surpen palace’s stone walls.

  “It’s wrong and you know it,” Nk told him.

  Swinging his long neck around so he could see Nk, Rhen bared his fangs in another smile. “Careful Nk or we’ll be eating you for supper.” He laughed, accidentally spraying a jet of fire out of his mouth, which ignited the dry grass beside him. “Crap,” Rhen mumbled, moving over to stomp out the flames. When he was done, he turned and
walked off towards the castle.

  The generals remained silent, watching him. “Everything’s changed since Ceceta’s death,” General Ngi said. “He won’t talk to us anymore.”

  “Yes,” Bosternd said, lifting some papers off the table. “I was told by ‘our leader’ that we should reach out to the Thestrans. If we keep them informed of the situation, they may be able to help.”

  Nk scoffed, “You believe that?”

  Bosternd shrugged. “We’re running out of options. It’s worth a shot.”

  “How?” Ngi asked. “How can we possibly keep them in the loop?”

  “When I figure that out, I’ll let you know.”

  Chapter 29

  Surpen Military Headquarters

  “We’ve been summoned,” Bosternd told Nk a few weeks later. They arrived in the throne room, with a battalion of soldiers, to find the King of Solar System 25, along with his generals, bowing before Andres. Since they had yet to declare war on System 25, Bosternd and Nk were surprised to see its rulers pledging their allegiance to Andres. After a brief pause, the two men pushed their way past Solar System 25’s men, so they, too, could bow to Andres. When they lifted their heads, they were shocked to see Aul and Loreth sitting on thrones beside Andres while Rhen lay on the floor behind them like a filthy animal.

  They hadn’t seen Rhen since the battle for System 37, and they couldn’t believe the state he was in. Heavy metal chains had been hooked through his collar into rings that were embedded in the stone floor. The leathery skin around his neck was raw and oozing. He slept fitfully, snarling every now and then or lashing out in his dream with one of his taloned feet.

  Bosternd gave Nk a look. Someone must have caught Rhen disobeying and brought it to Andres’ attention.

  “Really, this is priceless, isn’t it,” Andres said. He glanced over at Loreth, who smiled in return. “So,” he said, turning back to stare at the King bowing before him. “Tell me. Why did you decide to surrender to us for no reason?”

  The King glanced past Andres to Rhen’s sleeping form. Following his gaze, Andres leaned over to look behind his chair. When he spotted Rhen, he laughed and settled back down on his throne. “You surrendered to us, because you were afraid of my pet?”

  “Your pet?” the King of System 25 asked, sounding confused. “No, not because of your pet, because of your son, Rhen, the Surpen God of War.”

  Andres chuckled. “No, not my son… my pet.” He pushed a button on the electronic controlling device that was resting on the arm of his throne. They heard a buzzing sound from Rhen’s collar a moment before Rhen howled out in pain and struggled to his feet. Rhen turned to gaze at his father with glowing, red eyes. When the collar had stopped buzzing, he snorted, blowing a blast of steam out of his nostrils. Rhen yawned and stretched out his front legs, arching his back and curling his shuddering tail behind him. After stretching, Rhen flexed his long claws, so they broke through the stones beneath him. The cracking sound they made caused everyone to shiver.

  “Stop doing that!” Andres yelled. He rose to his feet and turned to face Rhen. “I hate it when you do that. It’s driving me insane. How many times do I have to tell you to step lightly on the stones? Your claws are destroying the floors. I have an entire crew of slaves, working ceaselessly, just to clean up after you.” Andres grabbed his remote and lifted it to zap Rhen again, but stopped short, when Loreth cleared his throat. Turning towards his advisor, Andres saw Loreth pointing towards the rulers of System 25.

  Taking a deep breath, Andres dropped the remote onto the armrest of his throne and sat down. “Here, Rhen,” he ordered, pointing at the space on the floor next to his throne.

  Rhen swished his tail back and forth before walking towards his father, scratching the floor loudly with every step. By the time Rhen reached Andres’ throne, Andres was gripping the fabric of his chair with white knuckles and grinding his teeth. He turned and raised his hand to strike Rhen, but lowered it, when he saw Loreth glaring at him. There was a dangerous game of tug'o'war going on between him and Rhen and Loreth had agreed to stay with them to help Andres get Rhen back under control, so they could attack Thestran.

  Loreth rose to his feet and approached Andres. Rhen gave a slight shake of his head as his father’s advisor passed by, making the chains around his neck clank. Reaching down, Loreth picked up a jug, which had been on the floor beside Aul’s chair. He handed it to Andres. The Surpen King took another breath, to calm himself, then reached over to scratch Rhen’s head near his ears. Rhen seemed to like this, because he closed his eyes and pushed up against Andres’ hand with his head.

  “Have a drink,” Andres said. He lifted the pitcher up, over the armrest of his chair, and waited. Rhen lowered his head and tilted it sideways, so Andres could pour the black liquid into his mouth. As the cool, dark liquid hit his tongue, Rhen swallowed, his tail swished back and forth with pleasure. Rhen drank the mixture greedily, his long, black tongue darting into the pitcher for more. When the pitcher was empty, Andres handed it to Aul and scratched Rhen around his pointy ears. When Andres felt Rhen push up against his hand, he knew he was in control. “Do you know what my pet?” he asked his son.

  Rhen didn’t answer. He was content with the scratching. His hide itched all over. In the past, he had had the slaves scratch him, but after one of their fights, Andres had forbidden the slaves from coming near him. Now Rhen had to resort to rubbing himself against the stones, which wasn’t the same. He didn’t want to talk to Andres. He wanted itch relief. Rhen pushed up again on the King’s hand, asking for more. “These people have just given us their solar system because they don’t want to fight you,” Andres told Rhen, removing his hand from Rhen’s head.

  Rhen dropped his snout downward and opened his eyes. Scratch time was over. The King was finished with him. Tilting his head to see the prisoners, Rhen said, “They’re wise. I wouldn’t want to fight me either.” He turned and walked back behind the King’s throne, circling a spot on the ground several times, his chains protesting loudly, until he plopped back down on the floor.

  “No, no, my pet,” Andres chastised him. “Kill them.”

  The rulers of Solar System 25 began to protest, but they were silenced by Loreth’s powers.

  “Why?” Rhen asked his father, sounding lethargic.

  For a second, Andres looked lost. He hadn’t expected Rhen to question him. “You don’t need an answer. I asked you to kill them. That should be enough.”

  Rhen shook his head back and forth with vigor. The chains around his neck made a deafening, clanking sound. Bosternd was alarmed by his actions, but when Rhen reached up to scratch his nose with his claws, he realized Rhen only had an itch. When Rhen had finished scratching, he looked up at Andres and asked, “Why?”

  “Damn it child, because I asked you to. What the hell’s the matter with you? Are you losing your mind? Are you becoming as stupid as the Beasts?”

  Rhen ignored his father’s outburst. Surpen Beasts of War were rather smart, so Andres had given him a compliment. He yawned, making sure to show his father his sharp fangs and lay his head back down onto the stone floor. “They would make excellent slaves,” Rhen said. “They’ve already got a slave’s defeatist mentality and they’re strong. Why don’t you sell them to the Sastarians as slaves and use that money to give our soldiers the bonuses you’ve been promising them?” The room was silent as everyone stared at Rhen.

  Andres loved the idea, except for the part about giving his soldiers a bonus. He would put the profits in his own coffers. Andres glanced over at Loreth, to see what he thought about Rhen’s suggestion. When he saw Loreth smile, he said, “Aul, return to their solar system and sell their army to the Sastarians.”

  “Sell this lot to the Sastarians first,” Loreth told Aul. He liked the idea of a King being a slave. Aul searched Andres’ eyes for confirmation and found the approval he needed. Turning, he motioned for Nk and Bosternd to seize the prisoners and follow him. Bosternd and Nk glanced at each other. They cou
ldn’t believe that Rhen had just tricked Loreth and Andres into saving the lives of the rulers of Solar System 25. Rhen might be in danger, but he was still smarter than the rest of them, if only he would fight Andres.

  Several weeks later, the Thestran Royal Castle’s spacejet control tower notified James that an old Surpen spacejet, was requesting permission to land. James ordered his army to surround the jetport as he and his family went to greet their Surpen visitor.

  When the spacejet door opened, a young man, wearing civilian clothing from Solar System 41, crawled out of the cockpit. He saluted James and said, “I have been sent from the Surpen Opposition Force. They want you to review my memory of the evening after our loss. They asked me to inform you that they are working on Rhen. They hope to turn him to their side before any further damage is done.”

  James exhaled with relief at the news and called for an emergency Council meeting.

  When the Council had assembled, Kate put her hands on the man’s head. She closed her eyes and pushed her powers into his mind. The Delegates in the room felt a cool, swirling sensation in their minds. A moment later, they saw Bosternd, Nk, Ngi and Authe outside Surpen’s military headquarters, celebrating their victory over Solar System 41. It was evening and the generals were sitting in a circle on low chairs around a small fire. Nk and Authe were imbibing in a little Tgarus weed as Bosternd and Ngi recounted certain episodes of their day. They discussed Rhen’s amazing skills before turning to their growing problem with prisoner storage.

  Surpen had run out of room in its prisons, so Andres had set up large, outdoor pens, in which to keep prisoners. The idea had worked well at first, but now they had run out of room in their holding pens. As Bosternd and the others celebrated, they were watched by a group of prisoners, including the man who was sitting in Thestran’s Council Chamber. The prisoners were sitting on the desert sand. Their ankles and wrists were chained together. Buckets of water had been placed in random locations among them and platters, with the remains of their dinner of bread and fruit, sat between them collecting flies. Unsure of their fates, the men were silent as they watched the Surpens.