“I feel close to you, Adia. You have my shortname, and I feel wrong that you ne have one. Yet, she would be so short, perhaps you ne wish one.”

I paused with two cylinders in my hands. Smiled. “Happy you want to give me one. You called me Ay in a dream.”

“Then you shall be my Ay.”

I trembled. “Is this a Courtship Petition?”

He oranged. “Ne. I hope you ne feel that I slight your tender feelings—”

“Not at all! I do have feelings for you, and I should be honest about that. The moment our eyes met in your presentation, I felt I knew you.”

“Ea, I felt same. Perhaps I should ne touch you as I do. O, Fa?”

I felt his father’s presence in our minds. Dear bae! You found your maiden?

Ea, and I ne wish to dishonor us. Have you advice?

Avoid the touch of hands, Bae. May you bring her to us after your work, that we may meet?

If you wish, Ay. I heard his triple heartbeat!

I would like that, if I can get permission.

O, I send my diplomats now to negotiate it!

I appeared in jewel city Oshfah. Ryee’s father took my hand and bowed low, almost a split! Then he came up easily. Welcome to us! I am Eanne~, Elder King of Ye~.

Elder King?

Ryee asked to share our Reign, so I became Elder King and he is King. Here is Pa’isha, Queen of Ye~, who shall be Elder Queen when my bae marries.

She also bowed, so I tried. I used the Old Forms. Their shock came to me.

You know much of us! His mother’s delight tingled on me.

I looked down at my feet, in purple stockings. My dress, the same as I wore in the lab. I do not know much. But Ryee does.

She frowned at Ryee. Should you spend so much time in her mind?

We run a chaperon. I waved up the record.

Her whole attitude changed, seeing my decision to run it. O, you are wise! I apologize.

I may have to show this to my father, if he is angry with me.

Do you hide this fact from him?

Mea, we can ne contact him. It is ne allowed during working hours, and we must sleep here in a chamber of beds. Director Pragate said it. Her parents also must work such, for all scientists on the Eicken Project are researching fuels or those disciplines related to them.

Rumbles startled me. Such uncomfortable beds! Have you bruises?

I laughed—but I did.

Ryee thought to take my hand and send healing, but stopped. Oranged.

Ne forget, my son. You may ne heal when there is love. I will teach both of you caution. Ne touch when emotion is high. Ne look long into the eyes. And you must ne heal her.

Fa, she had grave peril when we met. If I ne healed her, Areonians can ne ask for one! She held regen!

They both gasped.

He showed them how he brought Pas to heal Derees. Their shudders brought rumbles.

Pas appeared next to us. You must bring him to me. Promise that you will.

I will ask him to bring his family. His wife is Elshar and had torture from Kajarian devices.

Pas gasped. The children will all need genetic mods. All surely have pains. If I bring their Elshar portion dominant, they will have health.

Ryee’s sadness rumbled on me.

Those poor children! And Derees said Tasia is cruel to them.

All of them heard that, and my face burned.

Torture has effects. She loses self control, perhaps. I wish to try to heal her. There are many Elshar herbs to help her in this, if she is willing. Be~saech wrote progs to help our Elshar friends who live here. Some ask for these progs though they ne need them, for fear that they harm their children.

Ask of M’Naga if you need these herbs, or others.

Ea yeo, I will. His happiness tingled on me.

They will supply herbs and progs to people who are not even Yeff? Genetic mods are terribly expensive. I knew how much so from Mama’s frequent complaints that her department could afford the ones she needed for simulants, but she had to spend trade for them.

I made enough trade from my journal holos to help her, until I had to spend so much for those irradiation chambers Ossy got. He thought of many of them who were unable to work after slavery, and they support them all.

My set did not have good results. How am I to find this new fuel if I cannot see a path?

O, wish you for my Science Council to help you? Ryee’s father virtually hugged me.

I returned it.

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Fa, they do, but there is ne help. Ay knows this research, and perhaps she is the only scientist who can accomplish it. Many tried. Most who choose science on Areon wish ne to choose such danger in their work.

Danger? His mother’s worry shook me.

I worried that no one else would continue my work, after I am—

She studies ANW, a substance which is very unstable. He showed them my explosion and all of the things that happened, including the Prog One tampering.

His father’s anger rumbled on me. I shall contact Governor Schwer—

You must nae. I travel to Areon soon, to address this. We gather evidence.

Cev, must I wait? I fear to lose my bae and his maiden.

If you speak to him and he ends trade, will this help young Madame Rayaline or her family? I am nae prepared to help them, but I plan it now. Many on Ishah collect testimony from Areonians in Nesh Havhana and other provs. Others are in many colonies’ healer facilities. Our evidence grows.

There is more. See these memories. He showed them the premonitions I had about Natamian and MarKu, Elshar Zheiea, and Earth and the Ring.

His father gasped. Thought of my visit with Peri. Is she The One then, who shall end the War? Most of this was news to him.

Ry’nao shall come and determine. I can nae comment.

Ryee led me to a cot. Ne think, Ay. Sleep.

End the War that spans thirteen galaxies? Me? I have no weapons, no ships, no armies!

He sat on the cold floor beside me. I see sweat-powder on you. Ne think. Sleep.

What about my sets?

I am most sorry. Results are mixed.

Our 6th day went uneventfully until early afternoon. Set after set after set. Mixed results. I felt impatient. Restless.

My work went on, with waking dreams about warning people in the Link. Destruction of their colonies. Important treaties at stake. Vital trades. I wondered if my very sanity was dwindling.

Oft, I asked Ryee to tell me if I dreamed or if it really happened. Listened, and promised to make sure the people involved knew.

He put a platter in my hand. “You must eat, Ay.”

“I need to finish this set.”

“You must eat. See your hand, how thin she is.”

My hand had wrinkles like Aunt Sia’s. Jarring! I ate one, to please him.

Since his father advised us not to use telepathy as much, I felt exhausted. As if Ryee’s mind was my strength, and now I could not feel any.

Why does it matter? He is a king, and I am not a princess. We could not marry, even if—

Ryee laid in the sleeping compartment, a dent in the green hull of his ship. I felt despair. He had bruises on his face, deep red on pallor. I took a red pyramid and stroked it. White foam came from the top. Tenderly, I smoothed it over his cheek and swelling vanished. “Oh, dear husband, we are married 11 days. If only I could see your golden eyes again.”

I blinked. Gasped! Sobbed.

In the chair beside me, Ryee startled. “Ay, what frightens?”

I grabbed the white counter and a chipped place dug into my palm.

“Oh, she looks upset. What did you say to her, Zheien?”

The platter slipped from my other hand, but Ryee caught it.

Vonn had a holo of my father up. He saw me. Frowned.

Ossy jumped up and ran over there. “You should do something, Joleon. They talk using telepathy. See how upset she is? I know he said upsetting things—”

“And why should I believe you, Koch? Go back to your area. Vonn, would you walk to Adia’s area, please?”

Vonn did, and waved a privacy screen so Papa saw. I tried to straighten up. “Adia, what is wrong? Is this true, you use telepathy?”

My throat closed up. “Only during work. Alliance Science Service does this. Unified—"

“We are on Areon. Vonn, do you do this?”

“Yes. Tanda tells me her husband works in the Council and they use it.”

He frowned and I sobbed again. “I will have to think about this. Adia, what is wrong? What upset you so?”

I looked at Ryee. Anguish, in his face. Papa. Worry, not anger. “You will think me crazy!”

“Tell me what is wrong, Zucker.”

I waved up the chaperon. He studied it. Smiled. “You are careful, yes? But that is not what has you upset, is it?”

“I dreamed—he got hurt!” I sobbed harder.

“A nightmare? I have those sometimes. They can be terrifying. Be calm. It is gone. So it is not anything he said to you?”

“Ryee is always polite. You have nightmares, Papa?”

“Ja, often. Be calm. I am not angry.”

“Danke, Papa.”

“Work helps. How goes it?”

I waved up my latest sets with no promising results. Looked down.

“Sometimes it is that way. Do not worry, Adia. Keep trying. Ask Vonn to call me if you need me, yes?”

“Danke, Papa. I love you!”

Vonn walked back to his area as they continued talking.

I struggled to calm myself. But, Derees came and hugged me. It was not him. Cevit Ion put me on his lap. What is it, Madame Rayaline?

Derees dropped me on my feet! I looked up into Papa’s angry face. “You should be ashamed of yourself, Derees Jons! A married man, holding my daughter in his arms!”

“I would never be unfaithful! She is as a child to me, and she needs comfort!” He picked me up again. “I love my dear wife, and would not ever dishonor our marriage! But I cannot leave her in this condition. You do know she saved us all when her experiment exploded?”

Papa still looked very angry. Speechless.

Vonn took me. “Derees, go. Joleon, be reasonable—”

“Reasonable? This is worse because you are both single! Holos are recorded of all of this, later to embarrass our entire family!”

Of course, we could not tell him that we disabled recording, or about the Diplomatic Link.

Vonn put me back in my chair and took the one next to it. “May I at least hold the hand?”

“Ja.” He sounded exasperated!

But, I felt Cevit Ion’s mind. I can help you. Be calm. Warmth flowed up my arm and I stopped sobbing.

“You must not ever sit in a man’s lap, unless you get married to him. How will we live this down? Vonn, let us speak later.” His holo faded.

Ossy and Citsa laughed behind me. They saw?

Cevit Ion poured strength into me. Nae listen. Cruel ones think that hurting others helps them, but they only have harm. I apologize, Maiden. Show me what you saw, if it will help you.

I did, and added where we were. Earth. No healers. Strangers. No TS, DS, Healer Colony Service, none of the usual help for an injured diplomat. His injuries, torture by Eriganh himself! My heart skipped! More details showed to Cevit Ion than the last time I shared this memory. He wept also, but helped me calm.

Ryee shared memories of his home to distract our friends.

Tanda smiled. What do children do there? She wanted children, but Kol felt his work to be too dangerous.

We saw children playing. Singing, dancing games. A very fast ball game with a geometric solid. Walking with tutors. No classrooms? Everyone looked happy! But I saw a very few children. Are the others in school?