Chapter Thirty-Three
To my displeasure, I awoke cold and alone. I felt the mattress around me, confirming that any heat left by my partners was fully dissipated. A quick glance around the room revealed Sal’aphel asleep on an even larger bed. It was richly embroidered and had raised walls around much of it, giving the nyndsh~r a cozy place to nest in. Near him, he had fresh water, and a bowl of food that I suspected Rel or Jysel had made for him.
Eesh… He’s got better care than most people do. I arched an eyebrow at the spoiled creature, then took a moment to check if any messages had been sent to me while I was asleep.
Nothing.
Sighing, I pulled myself out of bed and summoned something sleek and comfortable to wear, gave the sleeping Sal’aphel a few head scratches, then went off in search of the transporter that would take me outside. It didn’t seem…normal, for both Jysel and Rel to leave without some sort of message. Not after the night we’d spent together, or the care they’d seemed to take after the fact. An amused giggle escaped me when I thought back to their sleeping faces.
I had to admit I could get used to the affection and attention they seemed so keen on giving me.
When I arrived outdoors, I immediately noticed something seemed wrong. There were no civilians in the streets, only V’shir soldiers. One of which who hurried over to me the moment she spotted me.
“There you are, Thyp-cylk Elara! Thank goodness. Elder Lynir has been waiting for you. Please, this way,” she beckoned me, her expression full of concern.
“What happened?” I asked, immediately shifting to a more serious demeanor.
“Lynir will explain everything,” she answered, her voice shaking nearly as much as her hands.
I nodded and clenched my jaw, hurrying after her and toward a plaza deeper within the Syldrari Sector. Lynir rushed over the moment he spotted me. If it’s so serious, why didn’t they come wake me up?
“Elara! Thank goodness,” Lynir exclaimed, taking both my hands the moment he reached me. “We are out of time. Citomy’s soldiers captured Rel and Jysel last night when they replied to reports of criminals in the city. She is demanding to speak with you and refuses to converse with any of the V’shir Elders.”
For a moment, I thought my heart was going to boil in my chest. I took a steadying breath, forcing myself to remain calm. The last thing they needed was for me to lose control while Citomy had their leaders.
“Where does she want to talk?” I asked levelly.
“She left a shuttle and an escort to bring you to her ship,” Lynir answered, pulling me toward a side street. Once I started following, he let go and dropped his voice. “Like I said, we are out of time. I don’t know where she heard this, but she believes Rel and Jysel have been consorting with a Depthwalker clan. If you don’t do something…”
His glow flickered and then turned ‘off’ for a moment, then he gave me a pointed look. I got the message, though I wasn’t sure why he refused to relay it aloud. Were we being watched, or was speaking of death or execution frowned upon in their culture?
“I want you and the others to stay here while I meet with Citomy. Prepare the…sector? Ship? To make for uncharted space if she turns against us. Prioritize the lives on board,” I instructed, causing Lynir’s eyes to widen. “Just a precaution, Lynir. I don’t trust any part of this mess.”
“…understood. I am relieved you understand the situation.” He bowed the best he could while walking, then side-eyed me. “I recommend something formal. You need to make an impression on Citomy and her allied queens. How about the ensemble I named, ‘the flower that blooms in the abyss?’”
He winked at me, clearly thinking he was making some clever play on words. I hesitated a moment before deciding to entertain him and, with a quick thought toward my wardrobe module, switched to precisely what he recommended. The opalescent black fabric twisted around my body in shapes reminiscent of kelp and fused with intricately crafted pieces of carved shell that shone a color akin to hematite. The long, flowing cape-thing separated into tendrils of fabric that seemed to flow unnaturally around me, as if I were moving through water and they were an octopod’s appendages.
“Excellent. If I may…?” Lynir motioned at my hair.
“Very well.” I nodded, and he ran some device by my head, causing it to be pulled into an ornamented up-do. “Thank you. Anything else?”
“Be careful,” Lynir offered. “Be honest and be yourself, but…skirt the line. Citomy’s allies are often less tolerant of challenge than she is.”
With that, he led me the rest of the way to the shuttle. To my surprise, the waiting escort practically groveled before me, and insisted on giving me a hand into the craft. Each one wore what appeared to be a ceremonial dress uniform with varying numbers of ornate pins on the front. Once inside, they didn’t sit until I explicitly gave them permission to do so.
“You serve Jalan-ki Citomy, don’t you?” I inquired with a slight frown. “Is it alright for you to show me so much respect?”
The question seemed to surprise them, but the most decorated soldier was the one to answer, “Our orders are to treat all queens with utmost respect. We serve Citomy, but it is our honor to protect her Ar’seri guests.”
Keeping my expression neutral, I quickly searched for the new word, finding it loosely translated to ‘celestial.’ With that context, I had to assume it was related to the Celestial Houses. Wonderful.
“I see…” I murmured, my gaze flicking to the window. “Can you tell me anything about why she wishes to speak with me?”
“She has graciously informed us that she has a new offer for you. We know nothing beyond that.”
Another round of bows, and I decided to keep my mouth shut for the remainder of the flight. The Syldran shuttle reached speeds much faster than any Creshe craft I’d ridden, resulting in us arriving at our destination in mere minutes.
When the shuttle docked, the soldiers exited first to make certain there were no ‘threats,’ then escorted me into the cityship proper.
The entry hallway that encircled the city ‘hub’ was made of a glass ceiling and walls mounted to a marble-esque half wall and floor. Through the glass, a dome filled to the brim with water contained an impressive city built into what appeared to be a concave ‘bowl.’ Large stretches of…land? Gardens? Filled the spaces between entirely alien buildings. The blue-green metal glistened with the light provided by numerous bioluminescent plants within. Odd little vehicles sped throughout the city, though I also spotted some Syldrari swimming on their own.
“Jalan-ki Citomy’s residence is there,” one of my escorts offered, pointing to a second ‘bubble’ set toward the back of the ship. “That is where your meeting will be held. If you would please follow us…”
We ended up boarding some manner of in-ship transit system akin to a private monorail, which took us directly beneath Citomy’s residence. While I’d expected a palace or castle, or at least a manor, it was instead a second, smaller, city.
A city for the elite, I was told. It was for Citomy, her spouses, her court, and any chefs, merchants, artists, scientists, or tradesmen that had earned the right to be there. The main city was for the ‘commonfolk.’
The notion made my stomach turn. I kept my expression and body language neutral as I followed the escort into a large room with a throne of all things in the back. The throne, however, was empty, as Citomy paced before bound, bloodied, kneeling Lun’iri.
My Lun’iri…and another, who I was surprised to see. Suisuni looked to be in even worse shape.
Were they tortured… I felt a storm rising within me, …or are these wounds from their hunt?
“Jalan-ki Citomy, we have brought your guest,” the lead soldier announced as he and his fellows promptly dropped to their knees and touched their heads to the floors.
Nearby, waiting queens turned to glower in my direction. Nearly a dozen of them, and I spotted Xilen in their ranks—though she appeared preoccupied.
“Ah, Elara!” Citomy promptly twirled to face me, her expression brightening the moment she saw me. Her sons and husband, however, all tensed. “I was worried you might not wish to hear what the mother of these criminals has to say!”
“Criminals…?” I murmured with concern as she approached me.
Her eyes widened and she looked to her soldiers, “My! Did no one with Clan V’shir tell her?”
“We do not know, my queen. They refused to linger near our transport,” their leader reported.
“Oh, you poor dear!” Citomy slid an arm around my shoulders in a motherly fashion. “You see, we discovered that my idiot sons and imbecile of an ex-husband here were coordinating with a clan of Depthwalkers of all people!”
You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.
“I’m afraid I don’t quite understand… A ‘clan’ of Depthwalkers?” I frowned deeper, and gave her my best wide-eyed, ‘I have no idea what you’re talking about’ look. “Forgive me, I’m still trying to catch up on all that I’ve lost. I’ve barely heard mention of ‘Depthwalkers’ before.”
Citomy blinked at me for a moment. “My… I must apologize, dear. It is a very long story. Depthwalkers were once revered explorers, but they grew mad. They worship a,” she paused, her face momentarily twisting with disgust as she spat the next word, “Ter’taswor giving up their life pursuits and lives to follow…stories.
“It was one of them who saved you. That has earned one of them, at least, a merciful death. It is so rare to find Depthwalkers who still know how to respect a queen.”
I swallowed my annoyance for the moment at her choice to use a slur for Ter’suline, for the moment. We had bigger issues to deal with in the present; I would have to punish her behavior later, when it was safe to.
“I see… Then what is it you wished to speak with me about, Citomy? I imagine it wasn’t quite the Depthwalkers you wished to discuss.” I gave her an inquisitive, perplexed glance, doing my best to maintain the image of an innocent, inquisitive amnesiac.
“How dare you refer to the Jalan-ki by—” An unfamiliar queen with brick red skin began to snarl, but Citomy raised a hand.
“I gave dear Elara permission to call me by name some time ago, fear not,” Citomy reassured them with a charming smile. “Given my intentions, it’s only right for her to be familiar with me!”
“And your intentions are…?” I asked, letting an edge slip into my tone. I didn’t like being yanked around in political games.
“That is simple!” Citomy twirled over to her sons and grabbed them both by their hair, lifting their hung heads. “You will bind my sons to you and your clan, and fix their behavior. Otherwise, I will execute them for treason.” She glanced at Suisuni next. “Oh, and you can take this one too. He clearly likes you better than me—ah, and I’ve already seen to it that his apology ‘gift’ to you will be sent to the correct place, as I have gifts of my own to give you.”
She would…? I forced my anger down. Kuhir-dal was not an option. Not here, not in this mess. “There is one issue, one I think you would know how to deal with since you’re a queen yourself…”
“Hmm?” She tilted her head at me. “That wasn’t the ‘no’ I expected.”
“I would love to make them mine,” I answered, allowing a possessive growl to enter my voice, and watching as Jysel subtly squirmed in response. Rel, by contrast, shot me a deliciously challenging look. “However, I have no clan or fleet, nor the knowledge on how to make either.”
“Is that all? You could have said so sooner!” Citomy exclaimed in delight. She turned, clapping her hands twice. “Come, this way—guards, bring them with us.” Citomy grasped me by the hand, past her confused elite, and led me out into the hall, practically skipping. “Oh! And don’t worry, dear. There’s no charge. With you taking my sons, it’s like I’m getting the daughter I never had!”
To that, I wasn’t quite sure what to say, and instead made a show of gawking at my surroundings—that, at least, wasn’t something I had to feign much. It was truly impressive, after all. The palace was covered with stones, fabrics, and other materials I had no name for, materials that were clearly acquired somewhere far beyond Creshe. Many items on pedestals and in frames were so foreign to me, I had no idea if they were instruments, ceremonial tools, or weapons.
“Where are we going?” I finally asked.
Citomy beamed, pulling me through an ornate pair of double doors. “Here you are, dear! The instruments for founding your clan are in this room.”
Behind us, guards dragged Rel, Jysel, and Suisuni into the room and forced them to their knees once more. Further behind them, members of Citomy’s entourage looked on with displeased expressions upon their faces.
Citomy guided me over to a pedestal with intricate sensory instruments atop it and instructed me to place my hands on it. When I did so, heat, followed by a chill, ran through me, every inch of skin vibrating with an unfamiliar sensation. What I could see of my skin through my clothes had all turned blue, but I couldn’t spot any reflective surfaces to confirm the change with. If I wanted to know how far it had spread, I would have to check later.
“Um… Now what?” I inquired.
“Interface with the directory,” she answered with a cheerful smile. “It will help you name your clan, create its mark, and fill in all relevant information.
Name it…? With no input from Rel or Jysel? I looked back at Citomy. “Even though Clan V’shir…?”
“It is customary for a clan to receive a new name and crest when it changes hands,” Citomy informed me. Behind her, the twins nodded subtly from where they knelt.
If they’re certain… I took a deep breath, then concentrated on the device in front of me. It whirred to life, speaking rapidly in Syldran, before adjusting to translate its UI visually.
[Nys’raelyr Elara, identified. Initializing assistance protocols.] The mechanized voice whirred inside my head, popping up several forms that auto-filled with information as I looked at them. With those out of the way, it gave me an option to name my clan.
I wracked through my brain for what little Syldran I knew, going as far as to bring up what few things I could browse in the language. After several minutes of searching, and many names already being taken by other clans, words that resonated with me came to mind. Sahjara-imlir. A quick search revealed that it was the shortened name of a Syldran hunting poem about the beauty beheld in the cycle of the lives and deaths of Syldra’s most dangerous beasts. The writer spoke of how privileged they felt to be alive to witness such beauty, and to share it and its lessons with their constellation.
Lastly, it was a promise to their constellation and themselves. A promise to take those lessons, that beauty, and harness it into the power to rise from the depths and conquer.
[Sahjara-imlir, accepted. Please design a clan mark.]
That…was a little more difficult. The longer I thought, the more I felt as if my consciousness was slipping away from itself. As if my attention was splitting in two, but I was only present for one. When my perception became clear again, I was faced with an accepted clan mark I didn’t remember designing.
“Ahhh, I knew you were a much better choice than Xilen or those other Iri!” Citomy declared, her eyes on the clan name I’d chosen. “All they care for is mercantilism, visual and performing arts, science…no one appreciates battle or the hunt anymore!”
“I can’t claim to know why they think that way. Perhaps…they feel there are no new frontiers in the known universe? Hmmm…” I murmured, pondering it. It did strike me as strange, though Citomy wasn’t quite the individual I wanted to discuss the topic with.
“Now then, you will take the three of them as your husbands, yes?” Citomy prompted.
Three…? I eyed Suisuni, whose gaze remained fixated on the ground. He had the look of a man crushed. I turned to look at Citomy. “May I ask a question?”
“Of course, anything! It’s my pleasure to teach you.” She smiled.
“I barely know Suisuni, I’ve only met him in passing. While I find him an interesting individual, I’m not comfortable with agreeing to take him as a husband,” I began, earning a blank stare from Citomy. “While I would be happy to accept him into my clan, rushing into that manner of arrangement with someone who is practically a stranger…. I confess, it is a foreign concept to me.”
Citomy raised a hand to her mouth. “Oh my! I didn’t consider that it may be strange to you. Of course, dear. The three of them are yours to do with as you will—so long as you correct their behavior.
“I would prefer you make Rel and Jysel your first husbands, or at least one of them…” Citony strode over to the twins, looking between the pair. “They’ve always been so troublesome, tricking people into thinking one is the other, wielding unnatural powers, aging into Lun’iri… I must wonder which one truly threatened Creshe. Jysel was always my favorite, you see. He was always the most obedient. Perhaps Rel threatened the empire while pretending to be his brother…? Hmmm…”
Their own mother can’t tell them apart? I bristled internally. “Do you want me to bind them now?”
“Ah!” She pivoted to shoot me a hollow smile. “Yes, please. Whichever level of bond you wish to grace them with.”
Would a court-level bond first be…or… I struggled with myself as I approached them. A spousal bond was tempting, but it seemed like it would be a form of betrayal to do so without their spoken consent. I placed a hand on each of the twins’ heads and closed my eyes. We’re starting somewhere safe. Please play along.
I concentrated as they taught me, this time with an actual clan to my name. Power hummed around us, then I felt the odd aetheric slide that indicated my task was done. Then, I turned to look at Suisuni. The broken man met my eyes for a fraction of a second, then dropped his gaze to the floor.
I stewed over what to do with him for a moment. Not only did I sense a resistance toward a deeper bond, but I felt uncomfortable with it as well. There was no need to push either of us unnecessarily. Regardless, I knew he had valuable experience we could draw on…once his pain was dealt with. Courtier seemed most appropriate, under such circumstances.
“Wonderful!” Citomy cheered, turning to look at another set of approaching guards. “Escort Elara and her new pets to a shuttle, she has oh-so-much work to do with her new clan! Ah…but first… I must ask, are my sons truly so displeasing? I thought you would certainly make them your husbands.”
I shot her my best sadistic smile. “Well, I quite simply need more time to decide the details of their use. I dislike updating things repeatedly. And I figure…a few ‘test runs’ may be in order.”
Citomy grinned. “Of course! One should always do their due diligence and make certain their Lun’iri are good at what they do. I’m sure poor Jysel could use more training. Be hard on him.”
This fucking bitch. I smiled at her, then took my leave. Once outside with the guards and my men, I asked, “Can the three of you walk? I’d prefer you didn’t crawl.”
A soldier bowed to me. “With your permission, we will remove their restraints.”
“Do so.” I shot him a chilling glare. I’m glad to see you two as well, but we should maintain appearances until we’re off this fucking ship.
Rel and Jysel exchanged an unreadable look, then simply did as I suggested without a word.
When we arrived in the docking bay, a different shuttle awaited us, and Lynir waited with it. He narrowed his eyes at me as we approached, then spotted the state the twins and Suisuni were in.
“What…” Lynir gasped.
“I’ll brief you on the way back,” I answered, walking straight up the ramp and into the shuttle. “How did you get clearance to come here?”
“Xilen called me to pick you up. I didn’t think…” Lynir looked at our passengers worriedly as they plunked into seats. Then, he looked at the V’shir soldiers. “You know what to do. Search them.”
While any listening devices or other shenanigans were destroyed, I rested across from the three of them. I waited until we were breaking atmosphere to begin briefing Lynir on my ‘visit’ with Citomy, the founding of my clan, and how she’d given me a horrid ultimatum.
“We’re lucky the clan already likes you…” Lynir groaned as he guided the shuttle to a landing area in the sector. “I’ll take Suisuni under my wing while you sort out the twins. Is there anything—”
“Nys’raelyr Elara….do you not find me…pleasing?” Suisuni murmured, pained, his expression lost. “I can be very…”
“It has nothing to do with whether you’re ‘pleasing,’ Suisuni,” I stated, stepping toward him. He looked up in response to his name, meeting my gaze in surprise. “I don’t like forcing people into anything. My preference is for you to have the opportunity to be your own person and pursue whatever career path Citomy stole from you. There are matters you can certainly help us with due to your experience with the Celestial Houses, but your mental and physical health are my primary concern. Lynir?”
“Put simply, Elara, their combined fortunes, properties, and belongings are now yours…” Lynir spoke carefully. “Meaning, you have more than enough sway to make certain anyone in your clan receives proper care, if you so wish it. Anything these three own is yours. Anything they make or discover from now on shall be credited to you, and—”
“What do you mean? Shouldn’t their creations and discoveries be attributed to them?” I stared at Lynir in disbelief.
“No… I can explain it later. Care for these three comes first. Might I leave Rel and Jysel in your care?” Lynir frowned at me.
I nodded in response. “Ah! But first, could you teleport us back to the sanctuary? I don’t know how.”
Lynir tossed me a small device and winked, then gently guided Suisuni away. Rel and Jysel both slumped against me from either side.
“I need a bath…”
“…and some food.”