Chapter Thirty-Seven

I looked up in surprise when Rel and Jysel walked into the cafe. With them, they carried a crate of dark blue-grey metal. Behind, Suisuni, Lynir, and Zafir followed.

“Where have you to been?!” I exclaimed, promptly moving over to block their path. “My neurochip was saying your chips had been destroyed! Casair said that, were that true, I would have felt—”

“Deep breaths.” Rel smiled, motioning in the direction of the crate with his head. “This is heavy. Let’s discuss this, and what needs to be done, in the sanctuary. Casair, Ciheri, Aldiner, you’re coming as well.”

“You’re both alright?” I asked, looking between the twins, watching as Rel’s smile turned into a smirk, and Jysel flushed a pretty shade of deep blue.

“We’re more than fine.”

“Talk can wait. Let’s get into the sanctuary.”

With that, we were all promptly shooed to a cargo transporter and taken back to the sanctuary. There, Rel and Jysel set the crate on a table in the main living room before stretching out.

“Elara, do you trust us?” Rel looked over to me, his expression and glow both unreadable.

“Yes? Why?” I raised an eyebrow.

“Because we need to remove and replace your neurochip.” Rel slid the crate open and withdrew a rather ornate box from within. “More accurately, we need to replace everyone’s chips. However, for structural reasons, we need to begin with you.”

“Okay…and why is this?” I asked, frowning. “My chip is already Syldran, isn’t it? In which case, what are—”

Rel and Jysel exchanged uneasy glances, but it was Jysel who spoke, “Elara… We appreciate that you’re curious. However, we need you to trust that it isn’t safe to discuss it yet. The soonest possible time would be once everyone’s chips have been upgraded. But…”

Rel continued, “We aren’t sure what the repercussions for telling you will be. Among other things, we want to be cautious because you don’t have full control over your power. If you feel any extreme emotion—”

“Right. Because somehow whatever it is you can’t tell me is more emotional or exciting than having you two lavishing me with attention until I pass out.” I crossed my arms and refused to budge, narrowing my eyes at the twins.

Casair snorted, a lopsided grin spreading across his face. “She’s got a point.”

“We still can’t discuss it here until everyone’s chip has been replaced.” Rel shook his head, his gaze firm.

Ciheri stepped over to me and pulled at my left arm, a pleading expression on his face. “Elara, I agree with them. It’s too big a risk. We need to guarantee everyone’s safety and privacy first.”

Privacy…? I stared at Ciheri for a moment. His expression changed from pleading to hopeful, his gaze flicking from my face to the box and back a few times. A matter of security, neurochips, privacy…

It took me a moment, then I looked at the twins again. “‘Clan security’ reasons?”

“In short, yes.” Rel nodded.

Jysel extended a hand to me. “Please… You said you trust us.”

And it was true. I did trust them. But where had they so suddenly procured the tech from, and in such quantities? Finally, I sighed and walked toward them, taking Jysel’s hand. “I’ll comply. My only stipulation is that you fill me in once those here have received their upgrades.”

“That’s…” Jysel’s gaze dropped to the floor.

“A fair suggestion,” Zafir spoke up pointedly. “She is, officially, no longer in service of the Creshe Empire and she’s already fully changed. There is no ‘furthering her transformation along.’ The only risks I see are accidental triggering of kuhir-dal or perhaps an emotional discharge.”

Jysel pulled me away from Rel and into a tight hug, resting his chin on top of my head and rubbing his cheek against one of my horns. “We’ll tell you. But, we need you to be calm and level.”

“The concern isn’t your elemental powers, it’s your Nys’raelyr ones,” Rel offered. “Jysel, I can’t replace her chip when you’re holding her like that. Cuddle Sal’aphel if you must.”

Instead, Jysel led me over to the table and kept his arms around my waist. He sunk down, peering over my shoulder at his twin. Rel flicked one of Jysel’s horns before levitating me right out of his twin’s grip and sitting me on the edge of the table.

“Will it help if I talk you through what I’m doing?” Rel asked, stepping in front of me, his body shifting briefly to nudge between my knees.

“If we’re replacing everyone’s chip, that means we need more people involved, right? Then, I should know how it works.” I nodded.

“For cultural reasons, you will not be helping upgrade citizens’ chips,” Rel informed me as he slid his fingers along the ornate box and pulled off the lid. Inside was a seemingly empty dish and some manner of long tool. “The neurochip is too small to see, but it is in the dish. The tool next to it will be used to first extract your existing chip, then to ‘inject’ the new one.

“The incision is so small that you won’t feel it. Both flesh and bone will recover quickly, even without the use of healing arts. Jysel, if you would…?”

Rel motioned toward the crate on the table, eliciting a grumble from his twin. Then, Jysel withdrew a piece of metal that looked vaguely like a pyramid. It opened soundlessly, a sphere floating out of it to hover above his other hand.

“With this, we’ll back up any information necessary from your chip and reupload it to the new one,” Jysel offered as I eyed the strange device. “It’s like…like upgrading those primitive communicators some of the humans still use.”

“Except in my head,” I pointed out dryly, before looking to Rel. “Well? anything else I should know?”

“Only that your neurochip is a bit…different. It is designed for a queen. There will likely be some differences between yours and mine. These chips are different per rank within the clan…and as such, we need to discuss the matter of your court. Soon. Preferably after we finish changing everyone’s chips and destroying the old…ones…”

Rel twitched as I traced my fingertips down his chest, abdomen, then over the front of his pants, just firmly enough to feel the outline of his slit. I gave him a playful smile. “I’m waiting. Do I need to lay back?”

“Behave. This may be a simple procedure, but it is delicate,” Rel chastised me. “Lie on your stomach.”

I did as he asked, crossing my arms to provide myself with a place to rest my chin. First, Jysel used the floating sphere to do a scan of my chip, causing the device to orbit my head for a few minutes. Then, he stepped away and allowed Rel to get to work. Rel brushed aside my hair, and pressed the cold, cylindrical device against the nape of my neck, working upward. A high hum filled the air as he stopped partway up the back of my head.

A moment later, he reached over my shoulder with one hand to set a tiny, sealed vial on the table. Then, I heard the faint flick of something being loaded. In mere seconds, he removed the device from my head entirely and stepped away.

Syldran text flooded my vision for a moment, before fading away to reveal the clan symbol and name I had chosen. Then, that too faded away…and some…person? Creature? Popped over the edge of the table to peer at me.

[Excellent!] The semi-synthetic, androgynous voice filled my head. [I’m so glad there were no complications! You can think of me as your… Friend! And assistant. I’ll help with anything I can!]

“Elara?” Rel waved a hand in front of my face. I looked at him, then back to the excited, smiling creature.

Looking back to Rel, I asked, “You mean to tell me you can’t see…” Pausing, I looked to the happy creature. “What’s your name?”

Rel frowned, perplexed, glancing from me to the vague area I was looking.

[I do not have one yet. I will only accept a name from you, my queen!] They squealed in excitement ant stepped closer, their fists clutched under their chin. [Only those with chips for Ter’suline or Ter’subyx can see me! Rel and Jysel have Rilini chips for now.]

“See…what?” Rel frowned at me. “Describe it.”

“Um…” I reached out, putting my hand level with where the thing’s head was. “They’re about this tall, humanoid…their skin and head adornments kind of look like they belong to some kind of ray, and their tendrils are tipped in glowy orbs. Their light seems to change like ours.

“Their eyes are like ours but their irises glow and shift like their other glowy parts. And, they seem like they’re walking on a starfield.”

“Of course…” Rel sighed and pressed his fingers to his temples. “Elara, you can communicate with them via your chip but please don’t pry too deeply until we’ve finished upgrading the chips.”

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Rel levitated me off the table, then shooed me over to a nearby sofa. The ray-creature-person followed along, skipping the whole way.

[My species only has one sex. You may name me as you wish. Please try to make it something nice. Perhaps poetic?] Their tendrils waved in excitement as they spoke, appearing to perch on the table in front of me.

[I mean no offense but…what are you? Naming you without having any idea what to expect seems wrong.] I peered at the odd being.

[I am… Ah! I belong to a species of intelligent, sentient, nomadic, space-faring fauna!] The string of descriptors they spit out made me stare at them in disbelief. [The form you see now is an avatar created for me so that I could interact with and understand you and your clan better. You could say that space is my species’ ocean.]

[What do you want to be called? Surely you have a name already?] I asked.

[I do, but can you refer to me as this?] They made a long series of sounds reminiscent of a whale, yet more layered and complex. The sound was hauntingly beautiful.

[No…no I cannot.]

[Then please give me a Syldran name to use when working with you and your clan.] They smiled at me.

After a few minutes of stewing on my thoughts, I offered, [Liir’sryn?]

Their eyes and parts of their body shimmered bright, yellow-green as an odd half-warbling, half-crooning sound emitted from them. [Yes! Yes! Liir’sryn! I am Liir’sryn!]

“What are you giggling about now?” Jysel leaned over the back of the couch to look down at me, bringing my attention to the fact that everyone appeared to be staring at me in confusion.

“Ah… Liir’sryn likes their name. A lot,” I answered with a smile, earning a disbelieving stare in response.

“You named them already?”

Rel laughed. “It’s a good name, with both good message and meaning. Perhaps we should have Elara read the full tale the name comes from?”

Jysel glanced away. “Or I could read it to her…”

[Read it to us both!] Liir’sryn exclaimed.

I tilted my head back to look at Jysel again, “Liir’sryn wants you to read it to us both.”

That caused him to flush so dark I had to wonder if I’d said something strange, he managed a quick, “A-after my duties are over, I’d be happy to…if you want to…”

“Sit tight, Elara. We will be finished soon. Then, I will answer your questions—and bring Suisuni up to speed as well.” Rel paused, hand on the crate. He waited for a long moment, but never lifted his hand to pull another set of equipment from the container. Instead, he looked at me again, a sheepish smile on his lips. “That’s right… We can’t proceed until we’ve discussed your Nys’tarene. If the rest of you could give us some privacy…?”

“I’ll keep them occupied,” Jysel offered, motioning to the group of men. “This way.”

I watched them file out, then turned my attention to Rel. He walked along the table, trailing his fingertips along the smooth edge of the crate. When he came to a stop, he returned the lid to the crate and locked it before moving to join me on the sofa.

“Your court…we need to discuss who will be a member of it,” Rel informed me, his voice level. “And it shouldn’t be confused with your constellation. Members of the constellation aren’t always suited to being courtiers.”

“What are the roles of court members?”

He released a heavy sigh and sunk back into the sofa. “Far too varied… Advisors for many matters—such as finance and war—are important, and commonplace. Beyond that, clans tend to be more…specialized, in their design.

“But you, Elara… I sense that you wish to treat this differently. As if you are constructing your own galactic power.”

I considered it for a moment, watching as Liir’sryn peered at a sculpture across the room. Finally, I looked to Rel with my answer. “Creating a specialized clan sounds like a surefire way to become just another Celestial House that won’t grow or become a power to incite change, let alone challenge Citomy. You want my honest, blunt expression of what I want to do with this clan, right?”

“Yes. Not just as a matter of trust…but because we may need to offer the V’shir the ability to leave.” Rel nodded at me, searching my face. “You are always asking what we want—you have yet to tell any of us what you want.”

I smiled a little at that. “Then I’ll tell you about my intentions for Sahjara-imlir. I intend to treat this clan—or grouping of clans, however large it becomes—as its own country or empire. We need to be self-sufficient, as well as capable and ready to provide for our people.

“If, for some reason, Syldra turns on us, I have every intention of seeking out some area of space that we can call our own and establish ourselves independently of Syldra. There’s only so much I’m willing to tolerate from Citomy and the Celestial Houses.”

“You’re not afraid of them?” Rel asked softly.

“I’d rather die free than return to a cage,” I answered, narrowing my eyes and leaning toward him. “Nor will I see any of you thrown into cages. Whether it takes ten years or ten thousand, I intend to take Syldra from Citomy. Preferably before she ruins it beyond saving.”

Rel lifted a hand to cup my face, his fingers gliding along my cheek, his expression full of adoration. When he spoke, his voice was a soft whisper, “And I am more than willing to stand by you in your endeavors. All of them. Whatever support I can lend you—even if it’s merely emotional—I give it freely.”

I hesitated, not entirely sure what was an appropriate way to reciprocate his touch. After consideration, I shifted so that I could close the distance and tuck myself against his side, resting my hand on his thigh. The gesture seemed to surprise him briefly, but he was quick to put his arm around me.

“With that settled…um… You were saying? About courts?” I murmured, feeling heat rising to my face. Touch was far easier to reciprocate than his words. Especially when his words were in reaction to what I said. I didn’t know if I needed to…dive deeper.

“Don’t overthink it.” Rel kissed the top of my head, chuckling. “As for your court, we will need many advisors. I would recommend bringing on the V’shir Elders to help fill some of these roles. Casair would make an excellent military advisor…but…”

“But?” I echoed.

“He is a bit…taken with you, and with the idea of serving you as closely as he has served us,” Rel answered slowly. “As such… I would recommend that, instead, you put him in charge of the royal guard. I will have to do some research and find the proper name, but it used to be common practice for Nys’raelyr and Ter’suline to have a dedicated private military, separate from the clan’s much larger force.

“We should consider training a proper royal guard, and I believe your existing royal guards will wish to test Casair, but I know he can do this.”

I nodded in agreement. “Mhm. Who else?”

“Suisuni and I for socio-political advisory… Jysel for military or war advisory. I recommend both Zafir and Ciheri for positions as researchers. Their focuses are different, but I believe they would work well in tandem.”

I raised an eyebrow at that. “Even though Ciheri and Suisuni are such ‘new’ additions to the clan?”

“Yes, I’m confident in their abilities. Lynir, of course, is an Elder and has expressed interest in being your ‘court tailor’ as well. That leaves… Aldiner.” Rel tapped his fingers against his leg. “If you had asked me a few months ago about Aldiner as a potential courtier, I would have laughed. But now… I can’t deny he’s proved himself to be quite stealthy. I wouldn’t recommend him as the master of espionage…. If he were to serve as your personal spy, however, you can get away with so much more.

“I think that will suffice for the moment. We can grow your Nys-tarene as necessary the more time progresses.” Rel started to stand, but I tightened my grip and pressed him back into the couch, shifting so I had him pinned. “Elara, we need…”

He trailed off as I pressed my finger against his lips.

“I want to know where you got all of this, Rel,” I kept my voice low. “And what are we doing with the old chips?”

[Destroying them. They’re insecure due to deliberate weaknesses left in place. We believe…] Rel twitched, back arching and his breath catching in his throat as I traced my finger over one of his nipples. He gave me a disgruntled glare, a light flush in his cheeks. [Stop that. We have work to focus on.]

[As you were saying?] I asked sweetly.

[Our new chips are…how should I say this… Liir’sryn? Are you listening?] Rel’s call made the creature’s tendrils twitch, before they darted over to peer at Rel.

[You may speak with me this time!] Liir’sryn declared, giving me the impression that the creature had some manner of control or influence over our chips. A little fact I wasn’t certain how to feel about. [Can I tell her? Pleeeease?]

Rel sighed heavily, resting his forearm over his eyes. [This is not a good idea…but fine. We can only dance around the topic for so long.]

[Elara, you and I came to this place together,] Liir’sryn stated, turning to peer up at me with hopeful eyes. [Creshe is my nursery! It was built to grow me. Mean people came later and thought it was a planet for the taking. You entrusted me with protecting you and storing your memories.]

I stared a Liir’sryn in disbelief. [If that’s true…then… Forgive my indelicacy, but what are you?]

[A living ship, grown around a city designed specifically for you,] Rel answered while Liir’sryn looked around bashfully. [Jysel’s team uncovered the entrance to where they’re being kept, and Ciheri uncovered the key to entering. We were…stunned, to say the least. Living ships are—]

[Let me speak!] Liir’sryn chastised. [I haven’t spoken with Elara in so long! What I am, is a species from the ‘Abyss.’ You and I were born there. My kind and some of yours have a mutual agreement for survival.]

Rel seemed to freeze in place for a moment, his jaw loosening ever-so-slightly, his eyes widening, irises ticking back and forth as if trying to process what he’d just learned. “I suspected…but…confirmation…”

[We chose each other as symbiotic partners. Things…things I don’t want to talk about happened. We ended up here, far from our home. I’ve been growing inside Creshe and protecting you in what ways I can…]

Rel shook off his stupor, his demeanor returning to once of intense solemnity. [They have everything we need to safely cut ourselves off from Syldra’s prying ears…but we have to be careful. Living ships are highly sought after. Even Citomy doesn’t have one—though she has ruined several by attempting to ‘hack’ their systems.]

I looked between them. [Then… How are we going to hide and protect Liir’sryn?]

[I am superior in design!] Liir’sryn protested. [But…hiding me is difficult, yes. Um… That is part of why the Y’serdyn called for a plasma storm. When I break free, most life in this system will be destroyed if not evacuated. I can hide long enough in the interference to restore my aether and cloak my presence. Syldran technology is…stagnated. They haven’t even noticed my scans yet.]

[Scans? You’re supposed to be careful…] Rel warned.

[I scanned your ship when you arrived too. You didn’t notice.]

[Hold on. I’m still stuck on the living ship part.] I rubbed my temples. [You’re telling me… A lot. That’s a lot. And, Rel, you’re trusting that this technology—supposedly designed for me—is superior and more secure than Syldran tech?]

[Yes. It’s hard for me to explain to you, but… If you think Syldran tech is more advanced than Creshian tech, we are looking at a much larger gap between your tech and Syldran tech.] Rel levitated me off his lap and got to his feet, then motioned toward the crate. [There are similarities of course, but some of the things I’ve seen are well beyond what Syldra’s self-imposed confines allow. I believe Liir’sryn when they say their neurochips are much safer.]

[I… I can prove it if I must…] Liir’sryn sniffled, shoulders slumping.

[Wha— No, no, don’t cry!] I exclaimed alarmed. Instinctively, I tried to reach out, but my hand went through the vision’s shoulder. Liir’sryn clutched their fists against their chest and peered up at me with watery eyes. [I just want to be sure everyone is safe, and this is…a lot of information to process. There are so many implications. If you and I are from the ‘Abyss’ and not here…]

[They said you were stolen and the retrieval failed,] Rel offered gently. [What we don’t know, is if their nursery was built by friend or—]

[Friend!] Liir’sryn nodded rapidly. [They made a safe place for us and built my nursery. Later clans couldn’t figure out how to interfere. Sealed me inside instead.]

[We should finish our business here,] Rel reminded us. [I want the clan upgraded before we evacuate, and we will already have to cut it close if we’re watching to make certain all life is evacuated from the system first.]

Rel strode off in the direction Jysel had taken the others, and I looked back to Liir’sryn.

[We can fly soon!] They exclaimed excitedly. [It’s been so long since we last flew! When we came here, I was small enough to fit in your room. Oh, I’m so excited!]

Liir’sryn twirled around the room, their avatar phasing through furniture.

[Ah, one last thing, Elara…] Rel called. [Do you agree with my suggestions for your court?]

[Oh, yes,] I answered distractedly. [I’m not entirely convinced about Aldiner, but I assume you want him to act as our eyes on the people and our connection to the Y’serdyn.]

[You are correct,] Rel answered. [You will need to bind each of them before I change their chips. We will be here for a while.]

[Okay…] I sighed. How tedious.