Rolling over, she saw Emily perched on a nearby chair. She wore a form suit with bugs embroidered all over the fabric. She had her legs crossed and Charlie was balanced on one knee. Her elbow rested on the bug’s tough tortoise-like shell and her chin rested in the palm of her hand. The little one gazed at her curiously.
“What are you doing here, Emily?” Hearing her own voice croaking out words was strange.
“Take a wild guess?”
Shaking her head, she sighed. “It’s something to do with bugs, I’m sure.”
“I want to talk to your bug.”
“He’s not mine and your dad would murderize me if I took you anywhere near an insectoid.”
“Ha, that’s not a word. We can’t let men run our lives. Jesus, I’m only ten and I know that. Grow a backbone, woman. I can’t stand knowing there is a bug out there that talks, and I can’t talk to it.”
Sitting up, she cleared her throat. “Screw it. You’re right, we can do whatever in the hell we want.”
“Damn straight.”
“You shouldn’t say damn.”
“You said hell first.”
“Fine, but no more cursing. I can stand catching heck for letting you talk to the bug, but I’d never feel good about myself if I teach you to curse.”
“That makes almost no sense. You need a misting and then some caffeine. When they catch us, you’ll need to think on your feet to talk us out of getting hauled before my dad.”
“Roger that. I can’t believe I’m getting led to the dark side by a ten-year-old.”
“I’m almost eleven, now get a move on.”
Rolling off the settee, Keiko made short work of getting ready for the day. Stepping out into the main room, Emily waited with a hot beverage.
“What is this stuff?”
“The closest thing the clones have to coffee. Come on, you can take it for the road.”
When they arrived at the cloning bay, they discovered the mimic sleeping on a recovery platform. Frowning, Emily said softly, “Let it sleep. The clones probably questioned it into the night.”
“I’m awake, young queen.” The creature sat up and threw his legs over the side of the platform.
“I’m not a queen.”
“All females are queens where I come from.”
“I love bugs and I want to ask you a bunch of questions. Are you up for that?”
“Queens demand obedience. They don’t ask.”
“Yea, I’ve been saying that girls rule forever. Yet, I get into ten kinds of trouble for being demanding. Go figure.”
“What do you wish me to figure?”
Keiko sat on one of the hovering recovery platforms and fantasized about falling asleep again. Blowing on her beverage, she watched how nervous the guards were to have Emily so close to the insectoid.
“That’s just a figure of speech. How old are you?”
“I was removed from the vat approximately three days ago.”
“Did you come out knowing everything you do now?”
“Mostly. My makers told me many things to pass along to the beings of this galaxy.”
“I don’t care about any of that. The grown-ups can deal with all that political stuff. I want to know all the really interesting stuff. What do you eat?”
“I’m uncertain. When I was with my people, they fed me pellets. They were difficult to consume.”
“Do you eat people?”
“Absolutely not.”
“Do you want to go to the dining hall and find out what kinds of food you like?”
“Yes, I hunger greatly.”
“Come.”
Keiko pointed to the bulky handheld device housing the language program. “You have to take that if you want to continue to talk.”
Grabbing it, she held it up to one of the guards. The man gave her a smirk and grabbed it from her. “Let’s get going. My dad will be here really quick, and I want to learn as much as I can before he drags me away.”
Bowing his head slightly, he responded submissively, “Yes, my queen.”
Sighing, she elected to forgo arguing with him about being a queen.
“Why don’t you have an exoskeleton?”
“I’m uncertain. My designers must not have thought I needed one.”
“Well, they were wrong. You don’t have any natural defenses besides hiding and you don’t do that particularly well.”
“I was designed to be a bridge between my people and yours, nothing more.”
“That’s freaking fascinating. Now, what is your poop like?”
Keiko sputtered her coffee back into her cup. “Emily, that’s very rude.”
Switching Charlie to the other hip, she grumbled, “It’s important information to know how efficient his body is at processing fuel. Fine, I won’t ask embarrassing questions. Can you taste the air with your antenna?”
“Yes.”
“You don’t have claws like the other insectoids, or sharp teeth. Why?”
“Perhaps it’s a design flaw or modeled after an insect that doesn’t possess those qualities.”
Keiko chimed in her own two cents worth, “It could be the others are carnivores, and they need sharp claws and teeth for tearing meat.”
Looking from one of them to the other, the mimic agreed, “This is very possible as well.”
“How does your kind reproduce, when you aren’t cloning?”
“I believe it’s slightly different with each species of insectoid. Mostly the males inseminate a queen and she spawns thousands of eggs in one sitting. Sometimes she’ll spawn the eggs and the male will saturate them with his seed to activate the growing process.”
“Does this happen in or out of water.”
“Usually in a liquid of some type.”
“Do you know your parents?”
“I’m unclear on this piece. No insectoid would want to know their queen. Perhaps they know their father if he’s assigned to work in the hatchery. I like to think that such is the case.”
“What you’re describing isn’t how most insects in our galaxy breed.”
“I do know how most breed. It wasn’t considered critical that I know such things to be an intermediary.”
“What do insectoids do for fun?”
“Emily Sue Jordan of the House of Koal. Get yourself over here right now, young lady.”
Freezing, Emily slowly turned to face her parents. Swallowing hard, she mumbled, “Gosh, you two got here a lot quicker than I thought you would.”
“I had my warriors track you. I knew having an insectoid capable of speaking would be too much for you to resist.”
Emily squirmed uncomfortably under his intense gaze.
“Daughter of my heart, you cannot allow your curiosity to draw you into danger.”
Snorting a laugh, she asked, “What danger? Charlie’s more dangerous than the mimic.” Glancing over her shoulder, she asked the insectoid, “Do you have a name?”
“There was no time. We were called by the number of our birth order. I’m three.”
“That’s a terrible name. I’ll call you Christopher until you figure out what you want to be called.”
Standing a little straighter, the insectoid’s antenna pivoted around. That coupled with his facial expression left Keiko with the impression he was thinking it over. “I like this new name. Christopher. It sounds very humanoid. I’ll keep it. May we eat now? I hunger.”
Turning to face her parents, Emily pleaded, “Can’t I stay long enough to show him around the dining area? Please. You can even come with us. Heck, you two couldn’t possibly have eaten this early.”
Sighing, her mother looked at Keiko. “I can’t imagine why you allowed her around an insectoid.”
Keiko shrugged. “In my opinion, he’s a clone with insectoid DNA and he’s our ally. I honestly don’t know why they still have guards on him.”
Shar Jalon’s voice joined the conversation as he walked up. “The guards remain until Prince Korban arrives and we determine
how to proceed. I’ll accompany you to the dining area. Koal and Elaine, you’re welcome to join us.”
Looking at the pleading look on Emily’s face, Koal capitulated, “We’ll join you. I wish to speak to this Christopher as well.”
“Christopher?” Shar’s brow creased as he looked around, presumably for a human male.
Emily pumped her fist in the air and danced a little victory jig. “I picked it out. He likes the name Christopher. Go ahead, ask him.”
Keiko seriously considered going back to her quarters but her stomach sent her a loud and clear message that it wanted food as well. Listening to the assembled group bombard the insectoid with questions got old after a while. Though Emily was simply curious, Shar and Koal were interested in ascertaining the potential threat he posed to their people.
Keiko couldn’t find it in her to care anymore. She was a person out of time, unneeded and unnecessary to the unfolding events. The princes would manage the situation appropriately, for they were experienced in such matters.
Slipping away, she headed to her room. What in the verse would she do with herself? Her door beeped and she voice prompted it open and watched Madison walk in.
“Are you following me?”
“Shar’s worried about you.”
“I suppose he sent you to talk to me, thinking human to human, you could get to the root of the problem?”
“I’m supposed to say no, but yea, he kind of did. Don’t be offended. Every time these guys run up against a brick wall regarding human women, they come to one of us. Honestly, it feels a bit like getting a pop quiz when they start with the questions.”
“I’m not interested in baring my soul to you so you can run back that set him straight on everything. That’s kind of childish. If and when I’m ready to talk to him, I will. Sorry, you made a wasted trip.”
Sighing, Madison’s shoulders slumped. “I’m not handling this very well. What I meant to say is, you can talk to me if you need a friend. I’m close to Shar but around these parts, women don’t stab each other in the back that way. Integrating with alien cultures is almost an impossible challenge on a good day. I’m willing to be your confidant if you need a friend.”
Tearing up, Keiko nodded. “I’m not going to mate with Shar. The problem is figuring out where to go and what to do with myself. I don’t know anyone here and I feel like I’m a burden.”
“You can come to the Sylon home world and help Lar and myself out in the cloning labs. You’re a natural when it comes to picking up cloning technology.”
“I don’t want to live in the same community as Shar. I need a break from him.”
Thinking for a moment, she suggested diplomatically, “The Krylon home world welcomes women as well.”
“I’m not interested in staring at Shar’s love interest every day, so that’s a no go.”
Madison drew in a deep breath. “What makes you think Shar’s still in love with Maiko?”
“He told me. I don’t want to get into all that. Are there any other options?”
“You could work aboard the Candorian freighters. They’re always looking for help with their medical units. You seem drawn to that kind of thing.”
“That might work out nicely. I always assumed I’d live on a planet though.”
“There are a lot of Krylon settlements. They’re clean, safe, and modern. You’d be welcome on any of them.”
“Maybe I could work on the freighters for a while, learn about this dimension, and save up money to buy property.”
“I hate for you to have to start from scratch that way. I feel certain the imperial family would sponsor you. I know Shar would make sure you were settled wherever you wanted. He’s kind that way.”
“I’d rather just do it myself. I’ve relied upon others enough in this place.”
“Would you like me to introduce you to Koal?”
“I’ll visit him and speak for myself.”
Madison reached out to grasp her hands. “Whatever you decide, I hope we can stay in touch.”
Keiko nodded, choking up again. “It’s nice to have a friend.”
“Girls gotta stick together around these parts.” Madison was good at keeping things light and playful, when the situation careened into overly emotional territory. For that, she was grateful.
Chapter 15
~ Shar Jalon ~
Keiko’s Music Mix Fifteen
Shar Jalon’s blood boiled, and it was all he could do to refrain from striking Koal and Korban. They were distrustful of the mimics and not only were they not agreeable to removing them from storage, they wanted them exterminated. It was understandable that they were worried about being double crossed by the creatures, but they allowed their fears to override logic.
The bottom line was, the mimics were cloned using ninety-two percent Shardon genetic material. That fact alone made them brothers. Shar Jalon’s ragged nerves were soothed by the fact that at least his Keiko understood. Even though she’d been angry with him for some reason, she was still quick to point out that the mimics were clones and appeared to be allies. Shar found it strange that his overly emotional female could reason when the normally level headed princes couldn’t.
Before making it to the bridge, his com sounded off. It was Prince Korban and he was absolutely furious. “Shar Jalon, be advised that we consider this an act of aggression against the Sylon home world and it will not go unanswered.”
Spinning on his heel to return to the conference room, he answered irritably, “You’re making no sense. We agreed on a cooling-off period. Why are you still arguing about this?”
“Don’t play stupid with me. While you’ve had us at each other’s throats, your woman stole not only the mimics but a Candorian speeder.”
Stalking back into the room, he shoved his com in his pocket. “Don’t be absurd. Why would she…”
Koal interrupted him, as he moved closer, “She’s also involved my daughter. They’re alone aboard one of our speeders with sixteen mimics.”
Shaking his head slightly, Shar tried to wrap his mind around what they were telling him. “I don’t understand what the females hope to gain by stealing your property and abducting clones.”
Korban shoved Koal aside and stared into his face. The scrutiny made Shar feel uncomfortable.
“You’re just as clueless as we are. Gods of chaos, why can’t you two control your women?”
Lar came in carrying a handheld device. “They were all in on it. Korban, your female apparently gave them the encryption protocols to use the jump portals.”
“Of course she did. Why do we keep pretending we rule anything? Can we at least talk to them on the com?”
“They’ve gone dark, sir.”
“Well, I can talk to the one they left behind.” Marching over to the holographic imager, he messaged his new wife.
Selene’s smiling face came up and she beamed at him. “How’s it hanging, big guy?”
“Don’t big guy me. You assisted two humans in absconding with the insectoid prisoners.”
Rolling her eyes, she shrugged. “They’re headed to the Shardon home world. I didn’t think you’d mind that they got an early start.”
Waving his hands melodramatically, he complained loudly, “So, this is what we’re doing now. Being dishonest as it suits us?”
Picking at one of her nails distractedly, she refused to make eye contact.
“I suppose if you insist on killing people indiscriminately, I won’t lose any sleep about doing my best to thwart your evil plans, nor do I feel any obligation to be honest about my choices.”
“You call trying to keep our galaxy safe an evil plan? I don’t want our females always looking over their shoulders, worried that an insectoid is trying to eat them.”
“One, the mimics don’t eat people. And two, did it ever occur to you to ask us if we felt threatened by them?”
“We rule…”
“Sylon. You rule one planet, among many. So how does that qualify you to make
decisions about eradicating an entire species?”
“So, every time you females don’t agree with our decisions, you’ll turn renegade?”
“We’ll probably reserve that for your more grievous sins.” Shooting Koal a curious look, she qualified her prior statement. “All of us except Elaine. I don’t know what’s going on with my mom, but she’s been drinking too much of the Candorian Kool-Aid. We didn’t bother to ask her; she’d have ratted us out for sure.” Just when Koal began to look smug, she smirked. “My sister doesn’t seem to suffer from Koalitis. She’s got a mind of her own and just so you know, she’s the one who got this whole ball rolling.”
“That girl is bug crazy. I can easily imagine how she cajoled you all into this absurd plan. The human princess is no better.”
“Yep, those two are crazy. I planned to hitch a ride in case things got dicey but they took off before I could leave our ship.”
“Don’t worry, we’ll find them.” Korban’s voice sounded rough and mean.
Selene folded her arms over her chest. “There’s one more thing I want to mention before I sign off. Your plan to eliminate an entire species from existence is kind of a deal breaker with me.” Korban’s head snapped up. “What you’re doing is wrong. Did it ever occur to you that once they’re gone, the Shardon will not only lose their brothers but access to the mimics’ ability to camouflage themselves? That would sure be a handy genetic trait to add to their species.”
“I hadn’t considered that,” he responded absently, before stepping closer to the screen. “Are you saying you’ll forsake me over my decision regarding this matter?”
Nodding, she sighed. “If you’re capable of hearing all sides of this situation and still think it’s a good idea to murder them all, then you’re not the person I thought you were. Look, I’m going to get off the line, and let you boys talk this over. I hope you make a choice we can all live with.”
Shar Jalon felt his chest constricting. All the human women were apparently on the side of the Shardon in this matter. They weren’t used to having anyone advocate for their needs. Quickly stepping up, he tried to smooth things over. “Human women are filled with compassion. It’s one of the qualities we find admirable. Might I offer a solution that will enable you to feel safe and preserve the lives of our newly cloned brothers?”
Celestial Mates Complete Series Box Set (Books 1-5) (Alien SciFi Romance) Page 51