"So, yeah, that's the gist of it," Nadine finished her retelling of the events of last night. When she was done, Githaiy needed to process everything she had just heard. There were a million questions in her head, reaching all the way from the girl's well-being to the fallout of her actions.

"The ambassador... is she..?"

"What? No! Why would you- okay, I can see why you would think that. But no, she's alive. She's currently being detained in one of the guest rooms, I think. The Captain said he'd get your colleague to check up on her. Once she wakes up, she'll probably get interrogated and brought down here, and then your name should be cleared."

That was good. Even if the ambassador was likely to be executed for her crimes, Nadine could've been in trouble if she had killed her before the hearing.

"And what about you? How do you feel?"

Her head slumped a bit.

"Not great, but honestly better than I thought I would. I killed this guy without a second thought, and yet... I mean, he had a weapon and did try to kill me but... it was just so easy. To be honest, it's a bit scary."

That made Githaiy think back to how Nadine was when she had first arrived on Hohmiy. Back when the doctor had foolishly assumed that a bit of research was all she needed to help the girl. Once she was out of her cell, she needed to find a better way to evaluate her. But for now...

"I would love to say that I know what you are going through. Unfortunately, I can't. I have a long way in front of me to understand everything about you. But I promise that I will not leave you alone in this. I might not yet have found a way to truly help you, but know that I am here for you. Know that you can always come to me with your sorrows, that you can always talk to me. And I am sure that, if Her Highness were with us right now, I guarantee you that she would tell you the same."

A glistening wetness started to appear in the small alien's eyes and made the light dance off of them. She swallowed heavily before answering.

"Thanks, Doc. And... and I promise that I will no longer bottle things up like I did. Both you and Her Highness-"

"Lady Nadine!"

A call from the entrance interrupted the two. Both turned their head and found a panting Mhita standing at the door frame, seemingly having given up on maintaining the strict dignified form the head maid usually insisted on keeping up.

"I didn't... know you... had returned!"

"Oh, sorry, should I have said something? Once I told everything to Kessga I came down here right away. What's going on? Did something happen?"

"Yes! Her Highness is awake!"

Nadine's eyes opened so wide that they seemed to almost double in size. She threw an apologetic gaze to the doctor who simply chuckled, both from relief and her reaction.

"Just go to her, I'll be fine. As you said, things will sort themselves out from here on."

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The front end of Silgvani's sickbed had been raised to allow her to sit. Doctor Jarkiyna had told her that she needed more time to recover and therefore shouldn't leave the bed yet. Said doctor was currently poking one of the fingers on her lower-left arm with an apparatus that had a thin rod sticking out of it.

The princess's lower pair of arms was currently resting in a noose that was fixed to her shoulders, each forearm tightly fixed in a splint to keep them straight while the corresponding hands were hanging down limply.

"Can you feel this?" he asked as a slight electrical impulse was discharged into her joint.

"Numbly."

"That's probably from the pain medication. But you do feel the touch and the electricity, yes?"

"I do. Slight prickle."

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"Can you move the finger?"

"No."

He then tapped the stick against a finger on her other hand.

"What about this one?"

"Same. Dull feeling, but I can't move it."

Next was her left wrist.

"The same here as well?"

"Yes."

He nodded and put the apparatus away.

"As I feared, complete fracture. The wound was closed and splinted well, but you'll have to learn to live with two arms for the foreseeable future. Until your next melt-molting, do not, under any circumstance, attempt to use your lower arms. If the new shell breaks while it is still being formed, you'll have to wait for another molting cycle for them to heal."

"Understood. Do you-"

She interrupted herself as a figure appeared in the broken doorframe. Even though she had only been awake for maybe half a day, it felt like ages since the last time she had seen the human girl. As the two locked eyes, a moment in silence followed during which they simply looked at each other. Or maybe it wasn't complete silence. Maybe Doctor Jarkiyna was still talking to her. If so, she didn't notice.

"Doctor?" she finally addressed him, not knowing or caring whether or not she was interrupting him. "Is there something else you need to do?"

"Well, I wanted to do some more tests-"

"Do they need to happen now?"

"Not necessarily, no."

"Then please leave us alone for now."

He hesitated shortly, but then bowed and left. As soon as he was gone, Nadine dropped all formal etiquette and sprinted to the bed, making Silgvani almost flinch.

"Good morning, Nadine. ...is it morning already?"

"It is," she answered with a smile. "I... you are... it is... how are feeling?"

"Well, I'm alive. Thanks to you, as I heard."

"Me and Doc."

"For sure. Mhita told me that Githaiy is in a bit of a predicament right now."

The small alien shook her head.

"Don't worry, it's about to be sorted out."

"Oh? That sounds like you have a story to tell."

She most certainly had. Silgvani had only heard a rough retelling from Mhita, so she appreciated that Nadine started her explanation the night she collapsed. She told her how she had broken her out of her room, how she and the doctor had desperately tried to save her - and broken her arms in the process. She talked about the staged suicide, the failed attempt on Nadine's life, and finally the chase through the city.

"That is definitely enough to bring her to justice," Silgvani commented once Nadine was done.

"But not the end of it," the small alien reminded her. "Someone brought that poisoned drink to me - or poisoned the fruits. Someone used Doc's license. She can't have done all of that on her own."

"I doubt that she would cover for her accomplices now her deeds have been revealed. But you are right, we will have to conduct a thorough weeding."

She leaned back in her bed.

"But others will do that. You have done more than enough. If you want, I can try to mask the incident and silence those who saw-"

"No, I am done hiding. I appreciate that you kept my existence a secret for my sake, but this can't go on forever. I chose to take on an active role, and I stand by that."

"Very well," Silgvani chuckled. "To be honest, I am glad you chose so. Because otherwise, I couldn't have given you more than a mere thank you."

Nadine blinked a few times.

"Wait, you're not planning to give me some award, are you?"

"Why not? People have been awarded for way less than what you did."

"But I won't have to hold a speech, right? I'm not good at speaking in front of many people!"

With this, Silgvani became unable to contain her laughter. Laughing hurt a bit, but she couldn't help it.

"That's what you are concerned about? Well, I guess that can be arranged. But you won't get around meeting my parents, so better prepare for that!"

"Oh yeah?" she retorted with a grin. "Then you better also prepare to meet my father once we..."

Her gaze fell as her voice died mid-sentence.

"Nadine..."

"No, it... it's fine."

Silgvani took a deep breath.

"They are out there," she finally assured Nadine, "somewhere. I'm sure of it. Think about how resilient you are, then imagine what an entire ship of your kind can do. Who knows, maybe they already met another member of the Alliance. Word travels slowly beyond the hyperlanes. When this ordeal is over, I will send word to all members, I promise."

The words hung in the air for a while, but in the end, Nadine seemed to reignite her determination.

"Your Highness-"

"Sil."

"... I'm sorry, what?"

"That's what my family calls me in private," Silgvani explained slightly sheepishly. "And sometimes not just in private."

"But... I'm not your family, I couldn't..."

"Not? And here I remembered you saying that I'm like a big sister to you - despite being not even half your age."

"Th-That was just... I was..."

"Don't you want us to be like sisters anymore?"

She knew she was teasing, but she couldn't help it when she saw the alien's face turning a deep red.

"O-of course, but... are you sure that this is okay? I mean, you're a princess, and I... I'm just someone."

"You may have been when we met. But not anymore, not to me. And that's ignoring the fact that you saved my life."

"After being the reason it was in danger in the first place."

"And then saved it again."

"You were the one who allowed me to carry on, saving you a thousand times could not compensate for all the things you did for me!"

"You also averted what could have escalated into the biggest disaster of our world since the Alliance War."

"Okay, now you are just making shit up!"

"You underestimate political chain reactions."

For a moment, both just looked at each other equally defiantly, but in the end, they shared a heartfelt laughter.

"How about this," Silgvani proposed in the end. "We stop trying to calculate each other's owes, debts, and favors, and just say that sisters look out for each other."

Nadine gave her a warm smile and nodded. It was a fine solution.

That was something both the princess and the human could agree on.

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End of book 1