January 12, 2363 AIA

Rising’s Home Base

Jane had long ago finished her dissection and analysis of the young queen’s body. The result of her labor was a glut of questions for Alix to relay to Tennama. They had filled up screen after screen on Reyer’s tablet, but this didn’t change her routine in the slightest. She had already been interviewing him for over a week. Even when she could see the end of the list of questions, she never allowed herself to hope it would be over. If Jane didn’t add more, Vas or one of the generals would.

She had hated the interrogation room long before she’d been subjected to this new torture.

Days ago, Reyer had seen Tennama’s exhaustion and how the tedium was wearing him down. She’d ordered his cuffs to be removed and a more comfortable chair to be brought in. But it could only help so much.

“Tennama?”

The xeno roused himself. “I’m sorry, Miss Reyer.”

“You’re tired.”

“I haven’t been sleeping well.”

“The guards—have they been treating you well? Is your cell a problem?”

The xeno sighed. “I’d be lying if I said the bed was comfortable, but other than that, I have no complaints.”

Reyer almost asked him why he couldn’t sleep, but she stopped herself. She could see the dullness in his eyes; he’d buried whatever was bothering him, and she didn’t think he’d want it disturbed.

“Have you had any word?” he asked.

“No, not yet.”

Tennama pushed away from the table and leaned back in his chair.

“I told you, these things take time,” Reyer said. “The assembly is debating what to do—”

“Yes, they’re debating! The survival of their species is threatened, and they have to talk about it.”

“These things are complicated.”

Tennama stood up. The two bots guarding Reyer both shifted, but they shifted back when he started to pace behind his chair.

“Tennama.”

He stopped and turned to her.

“If you’re tired, we can stop for today.”

The way she looked at him was gentle and considerate. He’d never seen that expression on her before.

He returned to his seat. “I’ll be all right. Ask me your questions. Hopefully, we won’t be able to do this for much longer.”

“We don’t have to keep going.”

“What else am I going to do? At least this is something to relieve the monotony. I guess I’m not as patient as I used to be.”

“It’s called ‘youth,’ Mr. Tennama.” There was a trace of a smile on Reyer’s lips. “I don’t know if you’re familiar with it.”

There was no sound when Anthony laughed, but his chest shook slightly, and he turned his head away. He was still smiling when he looked back. “No, I guess I’m not familiar with it.”

Reyer hesitated, but then she realized her natural curiosity would be disguised by the circumstances. “Why is that?”

“Why what?”

“You were an older man. Did you have to take over the age?”

Tennama raised both hands in a shrug. “I don’t recall there being a deliberate choice, so I have to guess yes.”

“Why?”

“Well, it makes sense, doesn’t it? You’d want to have a body old enough to be able to defend itself or its territory.”

“You were a little past that.”

Anthony raised a finger. “First of all, I wasn’t that old. Tennama was healthy and strong. Second of all, we didn’t have a lot of choice. It worked out. Better than Harlan ever understood. With humans, physical ability is only part of it.” His eyes flickered to Reyer, but if he’d been thinking of saying something, he refrained. “There’s wisdom that comes from experience.”

“And patience?”

“Yes. And patience.” He ran both hands through his hair. “Your next question?”

Reyer looked at the tablet in front of her. She already knew what was on it, but she needed a moment to brace herself before she spoke.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

“Can you have sexual relations with a human?”

As the silence stretched on, Alix glanced up. Anthony was trying to hide a smile.

“Are you hitting on me, Miss Reyer?”

Alix dropped the tablet and moved her chair out. Before she could rise, Tennama put a hand on her arm. The touch startled her, but the bots made no move to stop him.

Half laughing, he said, “I’m sorry, Miss Reyer. Forgive me. I know that was fantastically inappropriate.”

She sat down. “It was.”

“It’s…it’s just, you’re joking with me. You’re getting angry. That shade of pink, by the way…”

“What?”

“Your cheeks. Not really your color, is it? Ah! That’s better. Red suits you more.”

“Tennama!”

“I’m sorry, Miss Reyer, but how many times have we done this? And you’re finally showing a little emotion. It’s almost like you’re human.”

“That’s hilarious coming from you.”

“It is, isn’t it?” He laughed his silent laugh again, then let out a sigh. “Relax, Miss Reyer. I’ll answer your questions, and I won’t even complain about sexual harassment.” He leaned back in his chair. “Yes, a human-xeno can have sex with a human.”

“Is it the same…”

Tennama watched Reyer struggle to find the words she needed, but then he decided to have mercy on her.

“For simple function, yes. We’re effectively humans after all. I doubt anyone would be able to tell the difference in our sexual relations until they examined the DNA in our sperm or egg.”

“It feels the same?”

“From all reports, yes.”

“From all reports? You mean—”

He couldn’t help her this time. He had no idea what she was trying to ask.

“Tennama, how long have you been a sentient human?”

“Fourteen, almost fifteen years.”

“And you’ve never had a relationship?”

“I did. I was married for twenty-six years.” When he spoke again, his voice was quiet. “He was married, I mean. She was already three years dead when I took over his body, but Tennama had”—this Tennama shook his head—“I don’t know how to explain it.” He tapped his chest. “He had a true heart. He could tell when other women were attractive, but he only wanted one. She used to tease me by saying the only reason I was faithful to her was because I was too busy with my job to notice anyone else. But that wasn’t it. All those years, I was never interested in another relationship. I kept waiting to fall in love, but I was old, busy…and never interested.”

“But that was him,” Alix said.

“I am him. I know—intellectually, I know—that she wasn’t really married to me, that those weren’t my nights with her, but you have the memories in your head and most of the same feelings, and that’s all my past is. That’s all your past is—memories and feelings. It’s as real to me as it is to you.”

Reyer didn’t like being drawn into it personally. She nodded toward him. “What about that body? Is he as monogamous?”

Tennama drew a breath in through his teeth. “Ahhh, no. He’s young and a little afraid of commitment. He’s also terrible at communication—a mess, really, when it comes to relationships. I almost wish I could’ve given him some advice.”

“That’d be a bit irrelevant at this point, don’t you think?”

“Yes. He’s got all the wisdom I could possibly give him now.”

“An old head on young shoulders?”

“I know you shouldn’t expect it, but I guess it can happen. Does that make me the perfect man?”

“Except for the fact you’re a body-stealing alien.”

Tennama shrugged. “So not perfect. Lord! Women really are picky.”

Reyer laughed. When she saw Tennama smiling at her, a tinge of unease crept through her. To avoid his gaze, she picked up the tablet. Once she’d finished waking it, she looked at the man in front of her.

“So you haven’t personally had sex as a human-xeno?”

“No. But we did talk to each other. Remember, Miss Reyer, sentience is new to us. We’re as curious about ourselves as you are about us.”

“And their descriptions?”

“They all tally with what I remember. Function. Pleasure. All of it. Those that had both memories and experiences said there was no difference.”

“Could you have a child with a human?”

Jane had written “create a viable zygote,” but Reyer wasn’t a biologist and didn’t feel like pretending to be one.

“No. Sad—well, no.”

“Sadly?”

Anthony’s eyes shifted over the room, then settled on one of the cameras. He forced himself to look away from it before he spoke. “We tried, Miss Reyer. We tried. We can’t have a child with a human. We can’t have children with each other. There’s only one way for xenos to have progeny. That’s why we were so desperate to find our home planet. We survive as a group.” His voice grew more strained and passionate as he continued. “We were so few—split up—kept apart from each other—scattered across the galaxy. We had no control over our fate. Obey or die. And whenever one of us was destroyed, our numbers dwindled with no way to replenish them.” Tennama stopped. After a breath, he said, “That’s us. That’s the xeno part of us.”

Reyer had been almost mesmerized by the gradual increase of his fervor. When he came back to himself, she was left adrift. She blinked and cleared her throat. “What do you mean?”

“Our instincts. I get these feelings. They don’t…tally with any of my memories. They’re not human, so I’ve assumed they’re ours.”

“We know what desperation is.”

“Not quite like this. We needed her to survive.” Tennama dropped his head into both hands and rubbed his face.

“Are you all right?”

“Not really, Miss Reyer, but would you expect me to be?”

“Probably not.”

A sympathetic phrase was straining at the tip of Alix’s tongue, but before she could decide whether or not to say it, Tennama spoke.

“I doubt ‘are you all right’ was one of your official questions.”

Reyer watched him for a second, then glanced down at the tablet. “Do you know why you weren’t able to reproduce?”

“We don’t know.” Tennama sat back. “I assume it’s because our DNA can’t create a human embryo, but we would’ve needed a fully trained scientist to answer that question. I was the only human-xeno with higher education, and my background wasn’t useful.”

“You went to college?”

“I couldn’t find a job in my field, but it was enough to get me a commission in the military.”

“What was your major?”

“History.”

Reyer covered her mouth with her hand, but Tennama had already seen her smile.

“It’s not polite to laugh at someone’s life choices, Miss Reyer.”

“I’m sorry, you paid someone for a degree in history?”

“History is important. I believed that then, and I believe it now. Why do you think I’m here?”

The seriousness of his tone drained away Reyer’s humor.

He set his clasped hands on the table between them and leaned forward. “For all you laugh at my useless degree, Miss Reyer, I know you read.”

“How—”

“Harlan told me.”

Alix’s hands started shaking as her mind drew the relevant connections. Before her rage and indignation could grow, he continued.

“You’re smart. So tell me, what do you think the humans will do when they learn about the queen’s plan? There’s only one way a xeno can take a human form. You’d be nothing but chattel.”

Tennama saw the horror steal into Reyer’s expression.

He went on, “She thinks she can win. She’s certain of it. But I know enough to know that she’s wrong. Once you humans learn you’re in danger, you’ll band together and utterly destroy her. Then what do you think they’ll do to my home world?”