Gemini the Heir

by Kristen DaRay

  Aaronmon then left the podium, and I took his place. The orbs circled around me, getting good angles. I breathed deeply, seeing the great size of the crowd.

  “Thank you, citizens, for your concern during my sickness,” I began. “Your prayers helped me to hold on. I’m thankful to have people like you to take care of me. That being said, there is one person to whom I owe my life. I would like to thank him publicly and present him with a medal of gratitude,” I said, smiling.

  The door opened on my left. Two guards entered, followed by Kyle. Many of the orb cameras immediately left me and hovered around him. As he approached, he gave me a weak smile. I smiled back. The guards kept close to him once he reached the podium. From my skirt pocket I produced the box that carried the medal made of ecliptin, the same stone as my ring. I took it out of the box and stepped toward Kyle, my empathy detecting tension from the room as I did. They wanted to make sure he didn’t do anything to harm me. I stopped for a moment and composed myself. I didn’t want them to fear for me. I wanted them to feel that I was strong, like my father was. Besides my black belt, Aaronmon had been training me in Emréian-style fighting, though a lot of it used active powers that I didn’t have. I felt that I was more than capable of taking care of myself, especially when it came to Kyle.

  “Kyle, Morgon from planet Earth, I give this gift to commemorate the risk you took not only to save my life, but the lives of hundreds who had or would have fallen to the virus sent by the Bremoir,” I said in Emréian, then translated it into English.

  I pinned the medal on the right side of his chest. The closer I got to him, the more his emotions heightened with anticipation and love. Using my empathy, I searched for other feelings, finding comfort in some of the journalists’ excitement.

  “You have done our planet and Earth a great service. Thank you,” I said.

  Then he was escorted off the stage. I turned to the crowd who had started asking questions about Kyle being guarded. “I would like to thank you for witnessing the gratitude given to the man who saved our loved ones. Our guest is still assisting authorities with their enquiries and so is still guarded. We will not be taking any further questions about Kyle, but all the information needed is in the packets that were given to you on your arrival. There is one last thing I want to announce that is not mentioned in your packets.”

  I could feel Aaronmon tense. I guess he truly did not believe I would announce the ceremony. My mother and he both stood up, as was the custom in announcing the ceremony.

  “As the world knows, I have been betrothed to be bonded to Aaronmon. The ceremony was put on hold as I learned more about my heritage and home.”

  The crowd became silent, hoping they knew where this was leading. The cameras flew around me and circled Aaronmon and my mother.

  “I would like to announce that the timeframe for the ceremony has been decided. We will hold the event in three Hurmon moons. An exact day has not been settled on yet, but we will let the world know as soon as it is. We will be welcoming citizens to the festivities that will take place at the capitol.” When I finished, the journalists bowed their heads as a sign of respect and acceptance. For the journalists, this was a grand story. Everyone had been waiting for the ceremony details, and now for the next three Hurmon moons, that would be the main story.

  Aaronmon stayed next to me as we received the journalist’s congratulations. I felt his hand close around mine. His feelings swept over mine, and his anger had dissipated. Aaronmon, no matter what, was always by my side. I truly was happy that I could have a bonding partner like him. I shared my happiness with Aaronmon, to ease any doubts he had. I may not have loved him, but I knew he was a man I could come to love. Our bond was proof of that.

  When we returned home, I needed to talk to Kyle. I waited in the entry hallway for his ship to arrive. As they came in, the guards and Kyle were all surprised by my unexpected presence.

  “Lenai.” The guards bowed their heads. Kyle stood next to them awkwardly with his hands bound by Emréian cuffs—lightweight metal arm bands around each wrist were held together by powerful magnetization. Only programmed abulas could remove them.

  “I’m not sure if I should bow or not,” Kyle said, smiling uncomfortably.

  Kyle had spoken in English, and even though the guards didn’t know what he’d said, one nudged him. “You shouldn’t address the Lenai.”

  “It’s fine,” I assured them. “He saved me, remember.”

  “Sorry, Lenai,” he said, and lowered his head.

  “I would like to speak to Kyle in the garden.”

  “Lenai, Krea Mannannala ordered us to take him to his cell.”

  “It will only be for a few minutes, and then you can return him to his room,” I said sternly and turned toward the garden. I could hear them all following me.

  I was happy to find the rain had stopped for a few hours, allowing us to talk beneath the evening sky. The peaceful sanctuary of the garden helped me control my empathy.

  I turned and faced the guards. “I would like to speak to him alone.”

  “We should be here to protect you,” the bigger one said.

  “I’ll be fine. You can stand at the door and watch, but remember that like all Elaeye, I have been trained to take care of myself.”

  They both gave in and reluctantly returned to the door. Kyle gave me a quick smile and followed me as I down the path.

  “You really are royalty,” Kyle said.

  I narrowed my eyes. “You know that I didn’t grow up as royalty.”

  “Then I guess it means you’re a natural. It’s in your blood.”

  I nodded.

  “So, um, I heard your engagement plans.” Kyle placed his bound hands on top of his head.

  I ignored his words and took out my abula. I found the application that could control the bands, punched in my code, and they released.

  “Thanks,” he said. “So are you really going to bond with him?”

  I knew I couldn’t pretend that I didn’t hear him that time. “In three Hurmon moons.”

  “I should congratulate you, but I guess that would be awkward.”

  “It’s only awkward if you make it so,” I said, irritated.

  “So, I guess I’m just supposed to forget that I love you? Forget what we had?”

  “Yes,” I told him. “You should forget about it.”

  Kyle stared into my eyes before relaxing. “You’re right,” he said. I felt the mood change. It was bitter, but releasing. “I knew this day was coming. I guess I just didn’t think I would be here seeing it.”

  “I never thought you would, either. I mean, I thought you died,” I said sarcastically. We both laughed. It really was crazy.

  “I never thought I would actually get to see a planet other than Earth,” Kyle admitted.

  “Well, at least you knew for sure there was something out here.”

  My dad had always talked about it, but I never truly believed him. Even though I would heal overnight and had seen all the technology, it never quite sank it.

  “Were there any others in Alice?” I asked him. “I mean, I know that Principal Wilken wasn’t from Earth, and now you.”

  “I honestly can’t tell you. There are a lot of aliens on many different planets. The ones on Earth went there for various reasons. But because none of them knew who were aliens and who weren’t, they just didn’t say anything. The ones who look different don’t stay on Earth though, obviously. Some have tried, and that is where we get the bogeyman and folk tales. The Tenid race had no business thinking they could fit in.”

  I looked at him quizzically. I had heard of the Tenid race that lived on Talen, and in my abula it had shown a tall, fat, hairy man-beast.

  “Bigfoot.” Kyle explained.

  “Oh.” I bit my lip and looked away. It was weird having Kyle know about all these alien races, and I knew only what I had studied in the past year.

  “You know, you may still be learning,” Kyle said as if he had read my thoughts
, “but you will make a great ruler.”

  I took a seat on a large boulder under a tree. “You’re not the first to tell me that. And I still don’t believe it.”

  “When my father told me they were taking you back, I was angry. I felt protective of you. I wanted to tell you everything so you would stay with me.”

  “Then why didn’t you?”

  “I realized that you had a calling. I believed you would do great things, and I still do. I may not have superpowers like the Emréians, or your empathy, but I know when I see a strong person, physically and mentally. You have always been strong. That’s why I broke up with you—you needed to handle things on your own. You didn’t need one more secret sitting in your lap.”

  I could feel his emotions rip open and flood me as he continued, “I knew that you had a bond with Aaronmon. I also knew that you would have a bonding ceremony to seal it and that I didn’t want. It was necessary, though. I will always regret giving you up. If I hadn’t, I would keep you from being who you truly are. I let you go, but that doesn’t mean that I quit loving you for even a second.”

  Waves of emotions took hold of my heart and began to crush it. A heavy weight settled on my chest, stilling my breath. It was a pain I hadn’t felt in over a year, and I realized it didn’t come from him, but from me. I looked away, and a tear fell down my cheek. I did not want him to see me crying, but I would allow that one tear to honor the love we gave up.

  The guards came to take Kyle back to his cell. Before he left I promised that I would give him his freedom and move him to a normal guest room that wasn’t locked.

  “The cell isn’t that bad.” He said, smiling. “If Emréiana treated all the prisoners with nice food and room, then I wouldn’t mind living a life of crime.”

  I laughed. “I’m sure if you didn’t just save lives then it wouldn’t be as nice.”

  The guards gave me a quick bow before leaving with Kyle.

  I set off to find Aaronmon, hoping that we could talk alone. I had only asked a few maids before I found that he was in his chambers. I was soon knocking on his door.

  “Hello,” he said, opening his door.

  “Can I come in?”

  Aaronmon stepped aside. I entered quietly, and he shut the door behind me. I took a seat on his bed and noticed he was watching the recording of the conference earlier. He reached for his abula and cut it off.

  “I guess everyone is gossiping about the ceremony now,” I said.

  “It will be the event of the year.” He took a seat next to me.

  “I just wanted to say that I am sorry about earlier. I don’t want us to fight.”

  “There were a lot of things said,” he agreed. “But there are still some that need to be out in the open.”

  In my confusion, I felt my composure weakening.

  “I really do care about you,” Aaronmon started. “And I know that ending this war means the most to you. You have to go through with the ceremony to establish your place in the Elaeye as Krea. I will always be by your side—you know that. But I don’t want you to lie to me about your feelings for me. I know that Kyle’s return is awkward for you and hard to handle.”

  I couldn’t argue with him, so I didn’t. My body itched with emotions, both his and mine.

  “So,” he continued, “we will go through with the ceremony, and you will become Krea. But if you prefer to be with Kyle, you will do that and not become Krea.” He was giving me an ultimatum.

  “I know very well that I can’t have both. You don’t have to tell me.”

  He stayed calm. “I know that, and I’m not telling you that to put you in a bad mood. I just want you to know that it is okay if you don’t want to be Krea. I’m sure we could find a way for someone else to rule other than Colomous.”

  I bit my lip and turned away. I couldn’t take that risk. Last amona, I could have decided to step down and he would have taken the throne. It never had to be me. But after the Bremoir attack and Kyle’s supposed death, I made the decision to bring the Bremoir down and save other people from going through what I did. Since then, I had never thought about giving up the crown. How could I trust anyone else to end the war? How could I trust that they wouldn’t have similar views to Colomous? I turned back to Aaronmon and looked him straight in the eyes.

  “The decision I made a year ago still stands. I want to end this war. Kyle was only a small fraction of that decision. No one else should have to suffer. In the past year, I have moved on from Kyle. The fact that he’s alive doesn’t mean that everything I started to feel for you just went away when he came back.”

  As I said those words, I could feel our bond strengthen. “I don’t know if it is love or the bond, but it’s something that I don’t want to lose.” I knew the words were true when they left my mouth, and I allowed my empathy to share those feelings with him.

  Our bond grew, and his sweet scent became overwhelming. Aaronmon cupped his hand around my cheek and pulled me closer to him. My stomach fluttered as his breath brushed my lips. He tilted his head, his forehead resting on mine, and our noses met.

  “Please, just kiss me,” I said passionately, yearning for each breath on my lips to be his mouth.

  He leaned my head back, allowing my lips to unite with his. I opened wider, letting his tongue push through. The taste of warm honeysuckle filled my mouth. My heart pounded in my chest. One of his hands moved down to my neck while the other wrapped around my waist lightly, sending chills nipping down my spine. My senses heightened. Every touch made my body shudder with ecstasy while I delighted in every taste, and I moaned. My body grew warm, and yearned for more. Aaronmon leaned in, laying us down on the bed. I could feel him beneath me, and my body ached with excitement. His energy entwined with mine, giving my empathy more depth. I could feel his wants—his needs.

  My hands found his shirt and started tugging. Suddenly, Aaronmon’s elation calmed; his lips left my mouth, leaving me feeling empty. He pushed himself up, his eyes staying on me only for a second before he looked away and groaned.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked. The space between us felt large and cold.

  He rubbed his head. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for the bond to take over like that.”

  “You’re not seriously apologizing, are you?” I sputtered.

  “No… yes.” His embarrassment flashed through me. “I’ve wanted to kiss you for a long time. And that was…”

  “Wow.” I filled in for him. An awkward feeling crept between us. Still there was a sense of want lingering in the air.

  “I almost didn’t stop.”

  I sat up silently. I wanted to ask why he had, but was afraid.

  “I love you, Carsona. I would love to give in to this bond, but I want all of you,” he said, answering my thoughts. “I know you care about me, but I want you to love me, even without the bond. If we had gone too far today, I would never know.”

  I nodded, still not saying anything. Resigned to the situation, I stood up, removing myself from his bed.

  “You know, every man I have ever kissed has been a gentleman.” I laughed uneasily.

  Aaronmon smiled weakly and stood up, putting his hands on my shoulders.

  “It’s not easy, I promise you.” Aaronmon said and kissed my forehead.

  He saw me to the door. I had a hard time denying the pull of the bond. My empathy also noted Aaronmon’s struggles to fight it. I realized he was getting me out of his room before he changed his mind. As his scent lingered, taunting me, I knew he was right to do so.

  “Good night,” he said soothingly.

  “Good night,” I replied before the door shut.

  I returned quietly to my chambers. I started to suffer from withdrawal. Every gratifying touch, light breath, and warm kiss lingered on my skin. I wanted to turn around, but fought the urge. This was what they meant by the bond. As much as I loved Kyle, I had never felt more exhilarated and needed anything more badly than Aaronmon, right now. But Aaronmon had fought it. He didn’t want onl
y the power of the bond; he wanted my heart. When the time came, I just hoped that I could tell the difference between the two.

  CHAPTER TEN

  As music played, a group of six Aríenoms danced in front of Aaronmon and me as we sat in two large chairs in the middle of the city. While they danced, beautiful plants bloomed and came to life as if they were dancing themselves. Vines swayed back and forth as purple and blue flowers blossomed on them and quickly fell off. More flowers formed, this time turning pink and yellow. The dance continued, and three women clapped. Magically, rain fell from the sky but only drenched the performers. The audience cheered the dancers on and I clapped in amazement. One Aríenom brought over a giant crystal pot full of soil. He placed it in the middle of the group then pulled out a sack and reached inside, revealing seeds. The other dancers continued to perform around him, swaying back and forth in a march. He planted a seed in the pot then joined the others. They slowed down and put their hands in the air. The rain started to subside, and the sun started to shine on the Aríenoms and the pot. They got down on their knees and bowed. The music stopped. At first I didn’t see anything, but when I looked closer, I realized that a small plant had sprouted. The Aríenoms stayed in position as the sprout grew into a budding flower. The flower opened into a beautiful white and light pink color. I sighed in amazement. The awe of the audience gripped my emotions.

  The Aríenoms stood up and moved toward their creation. They bent and picked the pot up, carrying it closer to us. They placed the gift at mine and Aaronmon’s feet then lowered their heads. The short, balding man, who had planted the seed, stepped out from the rest.

  “Please accept this gift as a token of our happiness on your bonding ceremony,” he said, smiling.

  “Thank you. Your gift is beautiful,” Aaronmon told him.

  “Yes, I have never seen such a beautiful gesture,” I added. “What type of plant is it?”

  “We call it marnia. It’s the plant of love,” he said with a glint in his eye. “We know that bonding is a beautiful process, and we want you two to enjoy it.”