The Prince and the Programmer

by Cassandra Pierce

  “Yes. It’s much better. Everyone says so. You’re a sort of hero down there at mealtime. I won’t deny that they gave me some of the credit, too.” Avo beamed. “Still, it’s not the same as a private chef, is it?”

  “I guess not.” Jasno typed in the code for more jixi nuts and pressed the formulate key. The synth unit hummed as a fresh piece of cake took shape in front of them. “Go ahead. Try it now.”

  Avo grabbed the cake from the slot as soon as it was finished. He took a bite and smacked his lips. “Perfect! But why don’t you try some, too? Don’t you like eating your own creations?”

  “Well, of course I sample most of them at some point, especially before I store the final formula. I have to admit, I look at meals a little differently now. When I’m eating, it’s like I’m still on duty.”

  “I guess that makes sense.” Grinning, Avo downed the rest of the cake. Jasno was glad that their friendship was growing steadily. He suspected that they could grow much closer, given time and a slight effort on Jasno’s part. At the same time, pursuing that angle would be unfair to Avo. Though he knew he was wasting his time and probably tormenting himself needlessly, when it came to romantic fantasies, Jasno could think only of Tergus. The irony was almost painful—while he worked on preparing a masterpiece of a menu that would win Darex over to a committed domestic life with Tergus, Jasno daydreamed constantly about fulfilling that role himself.

  “So, have you heard the news?” Avo asked, interrupting Jasno’s dark musings. He looked up from his programming screen, startled.

  “No. What?”

  “The prince has heard some good news. One of the other guards overheard him talking on the communications channel, and now it’s all over the ship. Odu Gillius has agreed to participate in the tournament Tergus is planning.”

  Jasno blinked. The words made no sense to him, but at least it wasn’t anything cringeworthy about Darex and Tergus getting back together. “Odu Gillius? Who is that?”

  “Well, in the quadrant you just left, Mal Jar the Master is considered the champion to beat in the antigrav ring. In Prince Tergus’s home quadrant, Odu Gillius is considered every bit as good. Some even consider him the superior competitor. Oddly, the two have never faced each other in the ring. Rumor has it that Mal Jar is afraid.”

  “Mal Jar, afraid? Impossible!” Jasno laughed.

  Avo shook his head. “You only say that because you’ve never seen Odu Gillius. He is fearsome. Trust me. Mal Jar may have brute strength, but Odu Gillius has a killer instinct plus the agility of a wild beast in its natural habitat.”

  “Hmmph. I don’t doubt he’s good, but Mal Jar is more than that. He’s…well, a legend.”

  “And Prince Darex backs him—I know. That’s the interesting part. Prince Tergus plans to sponsor Odu. So you see, Mal Jar cannot possibly pass up this challenge. We’ll all get to see him in person in the royal arena. I hope so, anyway. I plan to beg for guard duty during the match.”

  “Good thinking.” Jasno’s amusement withered a bit. If Mal Jar planned to attend the match, no doubt Darex would come too, meaning another part of Tergus’s plan had fallen into place. What Tergus would consider good news was terrible as far as he was concerned. He’d half hoped the idea of an antigrav tournament would fizzle due to Darex’s lack of interest. But he should not have underestimated the effect a royal summons would have on the athletes involved.

  “It’s going to be excellent.” Avo didn’t seem to notice his growing melancholy. “You’ll be planning the banquet, of course. Tergus will have to impress all the visiting dignitaries who show up to see the match. Mal Jar and Odu Gillius have huge followings among influential people. By the end of the meal, you might be as big a celebrity as Mal Jar and Odu Gillius themselves!”

  “I doubt that. Part of my job is to remain invisible. Their focus should remain on the food, not who programmed it.”

  “Well, don’t fool yourself. You’re not invisible as far as Prince Tergus is concerned. Even I can see that much when you bring him his meals in the evening.”

  “Don’t be ridiculous.” Jasno stifled a bitter laugh as he fed his newly mastered recipes into the food synth memory system. His movements were slow and unenthusiastic.

  Tergus saw him as a means to an end—that was the entire basis of his supposed interest. He was surprised Avo couldn’t see that, but then Avo hadn’t heard Tergus bemoaning his lost relationship with Darex over and over, at heartbreaking length.

  “Anyway, this tournament is going to something else! I can’t wait! Can you?” Avo went on.

  “No,” Jasno lied. “I can’t.”

  Jasno wasn’t surprised to find Tergus standing in front of his viewscreen, staring at a prerecorded antigrav match, when he arrived to serve his meals. Jasno took great care with his appearance now. He had many new outfits, thanks to Tergus’s generosity, and as usual, he had chosen carefully that evening, with a high-collared white shirt and a silver wraparound jacket over black-and-red striped pants. He still wore the same knee-high boots he’d been given on the cargo ship, however. He liked them and felt they gave him a flamboyant and somewhat adventurous appearance, much like his supposed pirate ancestors.

  Sadly, Tergus didn’t seem to notice. He was absorbed in the screen, where two nearly naked combatants struggled in mid-air, howling as they tried to force one another out of the gravity ring. The crowd surrounding them roared, urging them on.

  “My senior officers and council members are complaining that I never take my meals with them anymore,” he said in amusement, though he never looked around at Jasno, who waited by the door. “I don’t see how they can blame me. It’s so much more pleasant in here. And I don’t have to share either your wonderful food or your company.”

  “We’ll start with your spiced wine, my lord.” Jasno walked to the foodsynth unit, punched in the code he’d memorized, and handed a brimming goblet over.

  Barely turning from the match, Tergus took it from him, drank deeply, and smacked his lips in appreciation. Jasno was glad his jacket hung low enough in the front to conceal his body’s reaction when he watched the wine moisten that sweet, perfect mouth.

  “Perfection, as always. Now come and take a look at this.” Tergus stepped to one side and pointed to the screen. Jasno saw a thin but muscular man with fire-red skin and a shock of bristly white hair that rippled all the way down his back, somewhat like an Earth-horse’s mane, flying around the antigrav ring. His wiry frame moved quickly and easily, his jabs and blows easily besting his humanoid opponent. “Have you ever seen Odu Gillius fight?”

  “Indeed not. I never heard of him until—well, until recently.”

  “He is new and popular in my home quadrant. I think he can best Mal Jar, don’t you? He will be my sponsored champion—a special guest at my tournament. That will pique Mal Jar’s curiosity, for sure.”

  “I would think so. And with Mal Jar will come his own sponsor, I assume?”

  “Darex.” Tergus nodded, pleased with himself. “Yes. The match will be one for the ages. It’s perfect, don’t you agree?”

  “Yes, your Highness. A perfect plan.”

  “There! You see?” Tergus pointed to the screen. With a flip and a twist, Odu Gillius flung his opponent through the barrier and back into the gravity-ruled space. The hapless wrestler plummeted to the ground, groaning as his body struck the mats far below. Raising both arms into the air, Odu Gillius let out a howl of triumph as the officials declared him the winner. He did an aerial dance in the gravity-free zone, spinning in the air until his bright platinum hair whirled like a flash of light while the crowd screamed with admiration. Jasno noted that Odu was graceful in every way Mal Jar was solid and brutish. Reluctantly, he had to admit Tergus was right. There would be quite a match when the two finally met.

  “Time for the first course,” Jasno declared, eager to change the subject, though he feared Tergus would be equally eager to discuss the implications of the upcoming tournament for most of the evening. Tergus c
ontinued to stare at the screen while Jasno punched in the codes and unloaded each dish that came through the slot.

  As was now his custom, he stood beside Tergus’s daybed, his hands clasped behind his back, while Tergus consumed the carefully prepared meal from a tray. Halfway through, a uniformed aide arrived at the door and handed Tergus a communication on a small disk, which he popped into a reader on his chair arm. His broad smile made Jasno assume the message had something to do with the tournament, though he could not see it and did not dare to crane his neck to read it.

  “Things are looking up,” Tergus said mysteriously after a few moments. He seemed to be speaking to himself as much as addressing Jasno. “This tournament will be a great boost for Despina’s citizens, and a great cultural landmark.” He tapped the screen. “My father writes to say that even he is excited about it. He is having the arena refurbished and prepared even now. I have never heard him praise one of my ideas so enthusiastically. Usually he treats me like a slightly addled child.”

  Jasno couldn’t help but be moved by Tergus’s obvious pride. “Wonderful news, your Highness.”

  “Yes, isn’t it? It’s been a long time since my people have looked forward to anything this much. Seeing Odu Gillius would be overwhelming for some of them, but Mal Jar the Master as well? Awe-inspiring.”

  “You think Mal Jar will accept your invitation, then?”

  “Of course. Odu Gillius has issued a public challenge. He could hardly back down now. And his most prominent sponsor won’t, either.” His grin widened.

  After Tergus had eaten Jasno’s specially prepared dishes, he grew wistful.

  “That was another wonderful meal, Jasno. I don’t know how I subsisted without you. I might as well have been eating dirt scraped off the ground of my home planet. Hyrzon has a lot to answer for. Still, he is old—I won’t punish him, but I certainly won’t trust my stomach to him again.”

  “I am getting used to your tastes and favorites. I created all these dishes especially for you.”

  “Using your recipe book?” Tergus said the words carefully. The terms still rested awkwardly on his tongue, which Jasno found one of Tergus’s many endearing traits.

  “Yes, your Highness. I have adapted and improved some, but others I formulated just as they were originally written down.”

  “A true talent. I am in awe.” Tergus rose. “Come here. I want to show you something.”

  He pressed a button and a new image appeared on the enormous screen that had previously featured Odu Gillius’s match. This one featured a small gold and red planet whirling amid a bright scattering of silvery stars.

  “A simulation of my home planet,” he explained to Jasno. He pressed a few buttons on the remote and the focus of the living map zoomed in, showing rivers and mountains and large expanses of green forest. Jasno had never seen such a warm, inviting place. Nothing could have looked more different from the dull gray hues of Port Equinox, with its stained metal buildings and artificial structures covering every inch of its manmade surface. Tergus noticed his expression of rapture and nodded. “You can see that it is a comfortable planet, featuring a temperate climate, clean water to drink and swim in, and plenty of natural stone for building statues and magnificent palaces alike. My father’s is especially impressive.” He zoomed in further so that Jasno could see the outlines of a large building with towers, flags and courtyards. It might have been a small city by itself, but it seemed to be just one household—the royal one.

  “It both looks and sounds wonderful, your Highness.”

  “Our subjects seem happy enough. Personally, I consider myself fated to be a better ruler than my father. I am more modern in my approach. Does that sound arrogant?”

  “No, your Highness. That stands to reason. You are younger, after all. Therefore it makes sense you would be more in touch with newer methods of doing things.”

  “I try to keep up. I’ve also traveled more than my father ever cared to. I have seen many different styles of governing—for example, the sort practiced on Darex’s homeworld. His was a Terraformed society, you know—not one that evolved naturally, like my own.”

  “Indeed, your Highness?” Jasno had heard about Terraformed world from his days on Port Equinox. For the most part, they consisted of small uninhabited planets that had been claimed by the earliest Earth voyagers at the beginning of the 24th century, when space travel had finally become inexpensive enough for the masses to undertake. Various private companies had left Earth and created clones of their home planet, where they then set up governments of their own creation. Some were attempts at creating utopias, while others were even more experimental, and a few were corrupt and despotic. He wondered which sort Darex hailed from, though based on Darex’s title and behavior, he could hazard a guess.

  “He is not to be held responsible for the mistakes of his ancestors, of course, but I cannot help but believe that his heritage is to blame for the occasionally uncouth way he leads his life. It is said his world was settled by minor royals who were driven out of their home territories on Earth. Their own subjects could no longer abide their tyranny. This was the stock he came from. Looking back on it, it’s a wonder he turned out as well as he did, I suppose.” Tergus pressed the button again, and the focus zoomed in so deep that Jasno could see tiny moving specks on various parts of the living map. These, he guessed, were Tergus’s subjects.

  “Tomorrow we will dock,” Tergus went on. “You will accompany me to the palace as my new personal foodsynth coordinator.” He paused. “There was another word in your recipe book…?”

  “Chef,” Jasno said, lifting his head with a sudden rush of confidence. It was a title he had dreamed of owning all his life—or at least since he had found the antique book and learned what the ancient term meant. He did not think he could ever have the chance.

  “Chef—yes. I hope you will enjoy your place in my household. You will have a staff at your disposal as well as a new set of apartments.”

  Jasno was about to say that he didn’t want any of those things. He only wanted Tergus to acknowledge his love, even if he could never return it. Luckily, he bit back his embarrassing declaration in time for Tergus to continue his musings while he stared at the screen.

  “Once we are there, I want you to develop and serve the best dishes of your life. I want Darex to be so impressed that he’ll want to stay with us forever. I know him well enough to know that luxuries are the way to his heart. That includes food.” He tilted his head back, almost like someone enjoying a hot shower, and sighed. “After all, it worked on me. One taste and I could never part with you. I know he will feel the same.”

  “Yes, your Highness. I will do my best.”

  A dreamy look had come over Tergus’s face. “I think about him still, you know. Every night. All night. I dream of him resting in my arms. I dream of him staying here with me forever. When I wake up, it’s maddening. Do you know what that’s like? What torture it is, thinking of someone you cannot have?”

  Jasno’s throat tightened, and his heart began to thud wildly, but he forced himself to answer. “Yes, your Highness. I do.”

  Tergus was smiling when he straightened again. “I’m sorry to burden you with my problems. I feel I can talk to you—not like a servant, but a friend.”

  “My pleasure, your Highness. Perhaps…perhaps I had better go and start working on new recipes. As far as my staff…might I request that Avo be assigned to work with me? I find his company pleasant and his assistance invaluable.”

  “Of course. That would suit me very well. I want you to be happy.”

  Jasno bowed. “Thank you, my lord.”

  When he stood up again, a most astonishing thing happened. Tergus caught Jasno’s chin in his outstretched fingers, bent down, and kissed him. Fully. On the mouth. Jasno’s eyes widened in shock as he desperately tried to memorize every sensation that sparked through his body.

  Tergus’s eyes were warm and his smile even warmer when he broke away—all too soon, in J
asno’s opinion. “Your loyalty impresses me. And touches me.” He placed one hand over his heart. “I will never forget what you have done for me—and will do, if we succeed.”

  Jasno’s eyes burned in the lift, but he squeezed them shut. Wild, impossible thoughts raced through his mind. He wanted to design terrible, barely edible food for Darex. Maybe he could even make him ill. That would end the romance quickly enough. It would also most likely land Jasno in the brig for life—or worse.

  On the other hand, if he did his job well, as he had pledged to, Tergus and Darex would be together again in every way that mattered. He would be creating and serving delicious meals for them while they set up a cushy palace together. And if he didn’t succeed, Tergus would never forgive him.

  Chapter 6

  “So this is the new foodsynth wizard I have heard so much about.” Tergus’s father, King Ulphor, looked Jasno up and down with a mixture of wonder and skepticism. “Younger than I expected, certainly. He looks competent enough, though.”

  “He is not precisely what I expected, either.” Queen Vara squinted through a long, silver-stemmed lorgnette. Tergus resembled his mother more than his father, Jasno noticed, though his eyesight was thankfully better. “Are you from Earth, young man?”

  “I am of Earthen descent, your Majesties,” Jasno said nervously. He bowed after speaking, glad Avo had given him a crash course in royal protocol for when they entered the palace Tergus shared with his parents. He had been so dazzled he probably hadn’t heard all of the lessons, of course. The banquet hall where the guests would one day dine on his creations was nothing less than amazing. Glassed-in walls overlooked the mountains beyond, including a smooth blue lake that looked like a large polished stone. He felt entirely out of place among so much luxury, though Tergus took it all in stride and had even seemed a bit bored while showing Jasno around on their way to the reception room, where they now stood. “I have lived only on Port Equinox until recently, though.”