Allison rushed to her room and started pulling off the dress. She was done with this place. She had the legs of her Atlantean armor on when her grandfather walked in. She narrowed her eyes at him.

“I’m leaving before I say or do anything I will regret. You’re not going to be able to convince me to stay.”

Amani spoke.

“Little Simba, I know you’re angry but let me explain.”

Allison looked up from the seam of her armor.

“There is no explanation that could possibly make this make any sense. And don’t you Little Simba me Babu.”

He kept trying but Allison may as well have been a wall at this point.

“We were both mourning the loss of our daughters, one thing led to another, and it happened. Then we found out she was having my baby, and I had to do the right thing.”

Allison had given up on her armor which was like a wetsuit only half on. She was stuffing her meager belongings in her secure case. She turned to him.

“She baby trapped you! There is no way that shriveled up old sociopath got knocked up without help from BMC.”

Her Babu was getting angry now.

“Allison, you need to be more respectful, she is my wife.”

Allison spun around again.

“I am being respectful; I’m leaving because I don’t have anything nice to say.”

He moved closer.

“Allison, you need to stay and keep the peace, not only is she family now, but she is also our ally.”

Allison stepped away from him.

“We shouldn’t even be here. We have no place being anywhere near a society that allows one half of their society to abuse the other half openly. This is disgusting. I want no part of it. I am leaving.”

He moved closer and touched her arm. Allison ripped her arm away from him.

“Allison, don’t make me make it official.”

Allison poked him in the chest.

“You wouldn’t do that to me.”

He sighed.

“Allison I am giving you a dir-”

Allison shook her head.

“Don’t you dare.”

“Allison I am order-”

She cut him off again.

“I swear to God Babu if you finish that sentence, I will never speak to you again.”

He went and did it.

“Allison you are ordered to stay here, be on your best behavior, and keep the Empress happy.”

Her eyes went wide. He actually did it. He actually pulled rank on her. Frost entered her heart she answered him through clenched teeth. Tears dripped from her eyes.

“Yes sir, I understand sir.”

She saw regret on his face, but some things couldn’t be taken back. He tried to touch her arms again.

“Allison, this is for your own good, just try to see reason.”

Allison didn’t look at him directly.

“Fleet Admiral, I am tired and need sleep, so I can fulfill your orders. If you will excuse me, sir.”

He stopped trying to approach her and left her room. She cried herself to sleep. Staying wasn’t what bothered her. What she felt was her grandfather’s betrayal of their relationship is what had done it. She woke up in the morning. She was quiet and withdrawn. Any shred of hope the Alliance Board and the empress had of her ever agreeing to the proposal was gone. Allison had several stages of anger. There was the initial shouting. Then there was the stubborn refusal. Finally, there was the cold fury. Cold because she showed no outward signs that she was angry at all. When she got to this point, she was just quiet, woe to the person who mistook her calm demeanor for submissiveness, or an acceptance of defeat. She went through the motions of getting dressed into whatever the servants had given her. She attended breakfast with the empress on the terrace.

Allison spoke very little as the empress described the history of the palace and the capital. It would be a mistake to see her quiet demeanor for calmness. She would nod as appropriate. There were a few times she caught herself looking at the empress’s jugular and wondering what it would feel like to drain her dry. The empress discussed how nice it was that Allison had let her grandfather catch up with her the evening before. How he’d been worried about how she would react to the news.

“I am glad you decided to stay. I had thought you were quite angry after our last conversation. Your grandfather assured me he could convince you to stay. I was skeptical of course, a man convincing a woman to do anything, it’s almost laughable. He continues to impress me. Perhaps there is something to be said for giving some capable men autonomy.”

Allison nodded. The empress seemed content to speak for the both of them.

“How did he do such a thing?”

Allison was forced to actually answer so she used the most diplomatic version she could think of.

“He reminded me of my duty.”

The empress dipped her toast in the yoke of an over easy egg. Allison was a bit surprised to see that it was an actual chicken egg. Her grandfather must have spoiled the empress. Of course he did.

“That is something I appreciate about your attitude. You have a sense of duty to those you are responsible for. It is why you will make a good empress. Too many think the position is about prestige and power. Such as my cousin who wishes to marry Vaedrick. She sees this as an accessory, a way to make people adore her. She does not understand the responsibility involved. Governance isn’t an honor; It is a responsibility. You understand this, which is why you have been so resistant to the idea. Even coming from such humble origins, you understand with privilege comes duty.”

Allison didn’t correct the empress. Her orders were to keep her happy. So, she was more than happy to let the empress keep the illusion she was all on board with whatever she wanted. She only had to deal with this for three more days.

“Shall we announce the engagement today then?”

Allison wasn’t quite ready to go that far. She was more than happy to let everyone assume whatever they wanted, but she would be damned if she would confirm it with any words or actions. Thankfully she had been a quick study under Queen Aryna, she put that education to use.

“I believe it will be premature. I understand you are eager to calm the fears of your subjects, but if perhaps such an announcement was to be delayed, your rivals, and your cousin may reveal their machinations in eagerness to call your bluff. Surely my presence here, as your guest, will show them that the negotiations are serious. Especially since I am here for an extended stay. It will be ten years before I would even be comfortable considering getting married. By that time you may have decided you’d rather have your daughter declared your heir. I would not want to be complicit in painting you into a corner.”

The empress looked Allison up and down.

“It would seem you are still not convinced that marriage to my son is the only path ahead for you.”

Allison adjusted herself in her seat. She did what she had been trained to do on any mission involving deception. She committed to her legend. In this case it was the experienced courtier. A cagy power-hungry woman. Part vampire, part Queen Aryna.

“I would be a fool to commit to anything prematurely. You are making a decision in haste, out of desperation. How long before you have time to think and decide I am a roadblock instead of savior? Why risk making you an enemy? You are a fool for making this decision in haste. You still do not know the extent of the forces arrayed against you. Yes, you know the supplies are coming from the League, yes you know who they are working with within the Rebels, but who are they working with from within your own court. You should be using the time your deceptions about how close we are in reaching a betrothal to seek those out and buying time for your daughter to be born. Not worrying about the betrothal. I will happily help you maintain the illusion you’ve created. You maintain your autonomy from the Board and our President, and you keep the sharks circling you at bay.”

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The empress folded her napkin and pondered Allison’s words.

“I may have underestimated you. What do you get out of this?”

Allison gave a small shrug.

“I keep my Aunt and the Board happy. I keep the council which I will rule over one day happy because I have not committed to anything. If we can hold out until your child is of age, I do not have to marry someone I find uninteresting. I can avoid dealing with claims of legitimacy and future noble uprisings.”

Allison was happily letting herself be the legend she was creating. It was a neat way to avoid feeling what she was feeling, because her legend wouldn’t be upset, that is just how business works. It gave her actual self distance from the situation.

“You might consider sending your daughter to the System’s Alliance for her own safety once she is born. As heartless as it seems, there is a reason your daughter was targeted, and it was likely not because the Rebels thought it would break you. It was a self-destructive act. Any chances they had of concessions from you would be destroyed by that act. If someone killed my child, I would follow the example of my biological mother, and I would turn the surface of their planet to glass so anyone else who had an idea they could hurt me or mine would understand the cost of such a choice. Win one battle decisively and brutally, you win all other battles because your enemy will refuse to fight.”

The empress smiled at Allison and she didn’t like that smile. It was like instead of turning the empress off with her brutality she had just enticed her.

“Your biological mother sounds like a decisive woman. It seems you take after her. Just how would I prepare my daughter to rule the empire if she were there and I were here.”

Allison smiled.

“You would not. Queen Aryna and I would guide her.”

The empress raised her eyebrow.

“I suspect I would not appreciate the lessons taught to her. You seemed rather petulant and disgusted by our society last night after our meal. I do not believe that has changed.”

Allison nodded.

“I apologize for my behavior. It was the act of an exhausted teenage girl who wished to hurt her grandfather for something that has nothing to do with your world. Of course, she would see a world where men and women are equal. She, like myself will understand that Ratoan society is the way it is for a reason and that too much harm would come from trying to change it.”

Allison pointed to a small scar on her face near her chin.

“Women in your society do not know the fear of being alone with an angry man who thinks he is better than you. We do. This is from a former boyfriend who told me I needed to learn my place. That fear will give her an appreciation for your society and how safe women feel here. A harsh lesson but one she will not learn here. If you see men as passive and non-threatening you can easily consider loosening restrictions, if you have seen them angry and unstable it is easy to agree to keep them on a tighter leash.”

The empress stood up and approached Allison she took a closer look at the scar.

“A man dared do this to you? Was he executed?”

“No, I dealt with him myself.”

The empress looked disgusted.

“It is offensive to me that it happened at all, that you had to deal with it yourself as a child is governmental negligence. No man dare lay a hand on a woman here. The punishment is extreme but necessary. I do see your point.”

With that Allison had ended pressure on her to make any commitments on her visit. There was blissfully no attempts on her life, which she feared. The empress paraded her around. Ensured there were a lot of public appearances. A few visits to all girls schools so they could see the all mighty Battlelord. The one visit she had actually shown some of her true self was to the sick kid’s hospital.

Allison was walking into the hanger that had housed Bit during her visit when she noticed her Babu was waiting for her. He wasn’t in uniform, and neither was she. So, she did what any well-adjusted extremely angry teenage girl would do. She ignored his existence. She followed his orders to the letter. They did not include speaking to him. He did their traditional wave as she rolled out of the hanger, and she looked right at him as if to acknowledge his wave and she did not return it.

Amani and Apiyo were likely the only two humans alive that could decipher Allison’s mood when she was angry. He realized in that moment how truly angry she was with him. They had their differences over the years, no matter how angry she was, she never failed to hug him, say I love you, and wave. The wave is what broke his heart. It was their thing. Now it would seem he had totally lost her.

*****

Allison held up her arm so her holo-phone could record a message to Dhark. She was at a beach on Ratoa. She was wearing a one-piece bathing suit. She waved.

“Hey! So, I’m still on Ratoa. It has been absolute hell. It is summer here in the capital. I have four servants they do everything for me. Absolute torture. Oh, I’m sorry I know how horrific seeing my furless skin is for you. I had to shave on account I’m well half-naked but don’t worry it will grow back. Look at this beach not a single boy here. Because who wants to go to a beach to appreciate the male form? I’ve put together some holos of my time here so far. I can’t wait to hear from you!”

*****

Dhark laughed until he coughed when Allison brought up their inside joke about her lack of fur. He was getting over that particular difference though. Fur sometimes made it hard to see the curves, with these humans, he could see everything. It was more than that though, something about her smile was infectious and warmed his heart. He noticed something behind her eyes. He didn’t know her well, but something felt off. He did a tour of the station. Pointing out the various rooms that looked identical and talking about how special each was.

“Hey there. Thanks for the message. It looks beautiful there. You really need to get some fur. Maybe we could find some we could glue on you? Head to toe? I’m sure there’s an injection you can take. You looked awful. Just disgusting. I’ve seen monsters in horror movies that looked less horrific. I know you can’t help it but do you have to flaunt it like that? Hey… umm, are you alright? You seemed kind of sad.”

*****

Allison laughed at Dhark’s message. She was preparing for a charity event while she watched his message. The dress was overly complicated so took a while to get on. Her servants didn’t pay her laughter much mind. Once she was dressed they moved off leaving her alone for a few minutes. Allison lifted up her arm to take another holo.

“I’m fine, really, just tired. There have been a lot of events I needed to attend. Look, covered from neck to toe. I figured this would offend your sensibilities less. I’ve been thinking, why do I need to grow fur? Why can’t you just shave yours off? We have this stuff; You rub it on your hair and you rub cloth over it. Hair gone instantly. It’s amazing stuff. I could send you some. We simply aren’t going to work out if I get fur in my mouth every time we make out. I’m recording this before the charity event, it’s at an art museum, I know how much you love art. I’ll send you a virtual tour.”

She bit her lower lip before saving it. Why was she flirting with him? It was not fair to Tyler.

*****

Dhark traced Allison’s dress on the holo-message she’d sent him. He had nothing in common with the girl, yet he couldn’t help being attracted to her. There was this personal magnetism about her that just made him feel alive when he was talking to her or just seeing her holos. She was true to her word and had somehow managed to get him a full tour of the art exhibits. He admired the beautiful paintings. There was one wall entirely covered in charcoal sketches that formed one huge portrait of a woman. Each in a glass frame. Somehow Allison had given him super close ups of everything, even things so tall they covered the wall floor to ceiling. He’d never been to an art museum, so the experience was profound for him even when he walked through it in virtual reality. She’d given him a whole building full of art to look at whenever he wanted. The best present he’d ever received in his life.

“Thank you so much for covering all that bald skin. I wish you’d had a veil for your face, then I could at least pretend you have fur. Seriously though? Thanks for the art museum tour. It is the best present anyone has ever given me. How did you get such good images? It was like you flew up to the ceiling. I guess you’re heading home soon?”

*****

Allison smiled at Dhark’s message. She sent her response just before she headed to the airport. This time she sent a tour of the palace’s expansive gardens.

“Well maybe next time I will just use a filter to make myself look furry. I’m glad you enjoyed the museum. I’m sending you the gardens now. I’ll send another message when I get home. On that one I’ll show you what it looks like to go through a wormhole and land on a planet. Eden Prime is so beautiful. I can’t wait to show it to you. I know you have trouble sleeping so I included a few songs in this message, Fear not this Night, Into the West and Into Dust. They’re the first three songs on my I can’t sleep playlist.

*****

The empress was pulling on her robe after a check up on the baby’s progress when Amani walked into the room they shared when he was on Ratoa. He felt hollow. The empress smiled at him.

“I trust Allison got off the ground without issue. I believe we made a lot of progress this weekend.”

He nodded. She stood up and touched his arm.

“Amani, what is the matter?”

He sighed.

“No, I made a mistake.”

The empress walked behind him and slid her fingers along his neck gently.

“She seemed compliant and did everything I asked of her. What makes you think she is anything but happy?”

He leaned back into her fingers.

“Allison does this thing when she gets angry, she will be yelling, animated, but when you push her too far, she just gets very quiet, when she gets quiet smart people avoid her. I was such an idiot. She was packing to leave, and I pulled rank and ordered her to stay. I should have seen it; she got really quiet afterwards. I should have just called her mother. Apiyo is the only one who can control her.”

The empress continued caressing his neck.

“Surely it cannot be that bad, she was very well behaved.”

Then tension started to leave his shoulders.

“Last summer, she finished basic training and was going to flight school her boyfriend at the time confronted her. Told her that she needed to stop. Told her she needed to know her place, girls don’t belong in cockpits, or the military. They had a shouting match. He ended up punching her. She got really quiet and told him to leave. He grabbed her. When she was finally pulled off of him by some soldiers that happened by, she’d nearly beaten him to death with her bare hands. It was all recorded.”

She put her hand on his cheek.

“And what happened to the boy? Was he punished?”

He shook his head.

“No, my son and I were trying to figure out how to get Allison out of the mess, when all the evidence just vanished. The boyfriend’s parents were pressing for her to be arrested and charged with attempted murder, and suddenly, they said no harm, no fowl, kids will be kids.”

The empress kissed his cheek.

“Perhaps her bodyguard. I made inquiries with your government to try to reach out to thank her, but the only response I received was that there are no citizens with that name or description. I have people like that to take care of… certain discrete situations. She is a teenage girl; They are a temperamental lot. She will get over it. If push comes to shove you can always address the situation with her mother.”

He sighed.

“It might be too far gone this time. I shouldn’t have done it.”