Chapter Twenty-seven

Zoe

 

“This is it. Are you ready? You certainly look ready. You look gorgeous.”

I looked Sellah up and down, completely in awe of how royal she looked. Al had really outdone himself with the clothing synthesizer this time. Sellah looked like the queen she was in the long red gown and white fur cape he had made for her. The red of her dress brought out the creamy tones of her brown skin, making her look absolutely regal and beautiful. Her dark hair was loose and flowed over her shoulders in glossy profusion that made me jealous—why couldn’t my hair behave like that?

For me, Al had made a similar gown but in blue instead of red. The cape I was wearing was black and not as long. In fact, it was more like a half-cape and I thought it looked kind of weird but Al assured me that it was the latest in Eloim fashion. At least the dress was pretty—the deep blue material was cut low in the front and dipped in to hug my curves and show off my hourglass shape. The shoes that went with it were sort of like a cross between clogs and flip-flops with tall wooden heels and a jeweled thong that went between my toes. They were surprisingly comfortable.

“I think we both look ready. That color of blue really brings out your eyes.” Sellah smiled at me. “Blue is such an exotic color for eyes.”

I laughed. “Says the girl with gorgeous golden peepers.”

She made a face. “Everyone on Eloim has golden eyes and dark hair. Believe me, Zoe, they’re going to take one look at your beautiful red hair and blue eyes and fall madly in love with you. Especially when they hear you’re a La-ti-zal.”

“Well, they’re not going to be focusing on me—it’s you we want to highlight,” I pointed out.

“I know.” She shrugged her slim shoulders. “I’m just saying that having you as a bonded mate may go a long way towards making Sarden more…respectable. It’s a known fact that not just any male can secure a La-ti-zal as a mate. Having you at his side will make him appear more legitimate in the eyes of the people.”

“Well, if you say so.” I shrugged. “I mean, I’m happy to help but he and I still haven’t really figured out—”

“Figured out what?” Sarden suddenly appeared in my doorway with Grav right behind him. Both of them were dressed in black, straight-legged trousers with short, tight, long-sleeved jackets to match. Sarden’s jacket was pure white and Grav’s was crimson. The Eloim male equivalent of fancy dress clothes reminded me a little of a matador’s outfit, although their trouser legs were tucked into tall, shiny black boots instead of ending at the knee.

“Haven’t quite figured out how to wear my hair yet,” I said quickly, when Sellah looked like she might say something. “What do you think—up or down?” I gathered my red curls in a chignon at the nape of my neck to demonstrate.

“Down,” he said at once. “Your hair is too beautiful to hide.”

“Thank you.” I could feel myself blushing and also, now that he was in close proximity, I could feel the need to be close to him. To be touching him.

Whoa, girl—rein it in, I told myself sternly. It’s a chemical reaction and until you figure out exactly what’s going on, you need to keep a lid on it.

Which was easier said than done—especially when Sarden was eating me up with his eyes.

“Um…are we all ready to go?” I asked, trying and failing not to lust after him. He looked really hot in fancy dress clothes. The fitted jacket seemed to emphasize his broad shoulders and the snug trousers showed off his perfect ass.

“Tellum is preparing the shuttle—we’ll go directly to the palace,” Sarden said. “We should be just in time to catch the last bit of Grievance Day.” He looked at Sellah. “You look lovely, little sister. Are you ready?”

She took a deep breath. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

He nodded briefly. “Then let’s go.”

 

* * * * *

The atmosphere of Eloim was surprisingly Earth-like with blue skies and green grass and vegetation—well, greenish anyway. It was more turquoise than what I would call actual grass-green. Still, it looked close enough to home to make me happy.

The royal palace, however, wasn’t what I had expected. But of course, what I had expected was Cinderella’s Castle from Disney World. I don’t know why—because that’s what comes to mind when I think of palaces and kings and queens and fairy tales, I guess. But the palace of Eloim wasn’t like that—there were no soaring buttresses or high turrets or tall towers. In fact, it wasn’t very vertical at all—I think the whole structure was no more than one story high.

But what a story. It was a long, low, gray stone complex that seemed to stretch for miles. In fact, I thought it looked more like a small city than a dwelling place for a royal family.

“These halls we’re passing through are behind the common areas,” Sellah explained in an undertone as we made our way through what seemed like miles of echoing stone corridors. “This is where the lower couriers and servants live—the footmen, the maids, the—”

“The muck workers?” I suggested, grinning.

She smiled. “Yes, them too, I suppose. We’ll be coming to the more restricted area soon.”

“Will we be able to get in?” I asked. We were traveling by hidden routes through the palace as much as possible. Also, Sellah was wearing an opaque black veil that hid her face. We didn’t want Hurxx alerted until the moment we stepped foot into the throne room.

“There will be guards posted at the doors of the throne room. I suppose we’ll find out if they’re loyal to Hurxx or Sellah,” Sarden said grimly.

“Doesn’t matter.” Despite his fancy clothes, Grav looked positively menacing. “They’ll get out of the way if they know what’s good for them.”

“Please—no violence.” Tellum sounded nervous. “We cannot appear to be a gang of thugs pushing our way into the throne room.” He gave Grav a nervous, sidelong glance which the other male returned with a wild, white grin. Clearly Grav was spoiling for a fight—I wondered if he would get one.

“We’ll rein it in as much as possible,” Sarden promised. “But one way or another, Sellah has to be seen—and not just by the Council—by the common folk as well. They love her.”

“They loved me, you mean.” Sellah sounded unhappy. “I’ve been gone for months.”

“They’ll remember you,” Sarden said reassuringly. “In fact—”

But just then we turned the corner and found ourselves facing a broad, arched wooden door bound with golden hinges. And standing on either side of the door were two Eloim guards. They were wearing scarlet and gold uniforms and holding some nasty looking weapons that looked like a cross between a spear and a pickaxe.

They turned at once and one said,

“Halt. None may enter the throne room without a pass.”

“And even if you’ve got one,” the other guard said. “Grievance Day is almost over. You’d do better to return on the next one.”

“We’re not going back.” Grav stepped up to face them, a low growl rising in his throat.

I saw the guards go pale but they stood their ground, leveling their pickaxe-spears at the huge alien.

“This isn’t necessary,” Sarden said. He looked at the guards sternly. “Open in the name of the Ria.”

Sellah stepped up and lifted her veil to let the two of them see her face.

At once, the two of them fell to their knees.

“My lady! Forgive us! We didn’t know!”

“That’s all right,” Sellah said gently, smiling at them. “Just open the doors—quietly if you please—and let us pass.”

They fell over themselves doing it and soon the arched door was swinging quietly open, allowing us to enter the throne room.

We came in from the side, with the throne on our left and stopped just inside the doorway. There was a kind of shadowy alcove there where we were able to stand unnoticed.

I noticed at once that the people in the room seemed to be divided into different groups. The ones at the back of the room, farthest from the throne, must be the common people, I thought. They were dressed in simple clothes and seemed to be waiting patiently. Closer to the throne, the clothing got dressier and dressier—these must be the nobles and couriers, I supposed. Standing right near the throne I saw a group of older Eloim males, all wearing long, sober black robes. Tellum was dressed the same so I assumed these were the members of the Council of the People, which appeared to be sort of like a Parliament that kept the Rae and Ria in check.

The throne itself was a long golden chair, almost like a fancy bench with a high back. It had two crimson cushions on it and was clearly meant for two people to sit on. However, it had a single occupant now.

A large, rather flabby-looking Eloim male with a long, luxuriant curling mane of black hair was lounging on it so that he took up both cushions. He was dressed in a gold brocade jacket which was too small to contain his gut. It spilled out under the jacket and over his tight gold trousers, resulting in a pronounced potbelly. The crimson satin-like material of his shirt was stretched tight over it in a ridiculous and not-very-attractive way.

That has to be Hurxx, I thought, eyeing the lounging Eloim with distaste. On his head he wore a golden circlet with a single, luminous blue-green jewel set right in the middle, like a diadem. The jewel seemed to pulse with some kind of energy. Though his hair flopped when he turned his head, the crown—which had to be the Star of Wisdom—stayed very firmly in place and didn’t move so much as a millimeter. Around his neck he wore a gaudy gold chain set with jewels of the same color.

“There he is—the bastard,” I heard Sarden growl.

He started to go towards the throne but Tellum put a restraining hand on his arm and pulled him back to the shadowy alcove we were standing in.

“Be patient. Let me pick the moment to reveal the Ria,” he said in a low voice.

Sarden subsided, still growling, but I could feel his anger and frustration through the link we now shared. I couldn’t say that I blamed him, either. Hurxx had sold his sister into slavery just to get rid of her and he didn’t look like he felt guilty for it one bit.

Asshole.

“What’s that necklace he’s wearing?” I murmured to Sellah—for some reason the gold chain with its blue-green stones kept drawing my eyes. “Is it official court jewelry—like the Star of Wisdom?”

“No.” She shook her head. “Or at least, it wasn’t official before Hurxx had it commissioned. He had it made before we were crowned to wear to the coronation and he’s never taken it off since. He wears it everywhere, whether it matches his outfit or not.”

I made a face. “Doesn’t look like it would match any outfit.”

“I thought not too,” she murmured. “But he loves it for some reason.”

“And now,” one of the Council members said, stepping forward. “Before this Grievance Day is ended, we have one more matter to put before the Council and the Court.” He glanced back at Hurxx who made a languid gesture with one hand and nodded for him to go on.

“That’s Yancy—one of the Council that’s in Hurxx’s pocket,” murmured Tellum. “You can be sure that anything he says comes straight from the mouth of the Rae himself.”

“Let’s hear what he has to say, then,” Sarden growled.

“As we all know,” Yancy, the Councilor continued in a loud voice, “Our beloved Ria was taken from us by shameless ruffians many solar months ago.”

There was a murmuring in the crowd and I saw several of the common women dabbing at their eyes. Sarden must be right then—Sellah was loved and missed.

“Our ships pursued these pirates tirelessly,” Yancy continued. “But alas, we were too late to save our Ria. It is my sad duty to tell all who are gathered here today that she is dead.”

There were more murmurs from the crowd—some sad and some shocked. Most of the couriers and nobles looked upset as well.

“That bastard!” Sarden started forward again but again, Tellum held him back.

“Wait,” he said simply. “Let Hurxx dig a deep enough hole to bury himself.”

I personally thought he already had but since Sarden apparently decided to stay put, I stayed too.

“For proof of our Ria’s sad and untimely demise, I offer you this—the single object recovered from her captors.”

Yancy clapped his hands and a courier wearing scarlet hurried forward, carrying a jeweled case in one hand. He opened it and Yancy reached in to pick up what was inside. Then he held it up—showing the crowd, who oohed and ahed over it.

It was a crown, much like the one that Hurxx wore on his head. Only in this one the circlet was silver instead of gold and the glowing jewel set in the center was a slightly different color—pinkish-purple instead of blue-green.

“As you know, there is no other female of the blood to be Ria to our esteemed Rae,” Yancy continued. “And even if there was, our Rae would not wish to replace such a beloved Ria so soon. In fact…” He paused dramatically. “He does not wish to replace her at all.”

There was a louder murmur coming from the crowd now and some of the Councilors were visibly upset.

“What are you saying, Yancy?” one of them called. “How can Eloim retain its balance without both a Ria and Rae to rule it?”

“Why, in the same way it has always retained its balance,” Yancy said smoothly. “Through the use of both the Star of Wisdom, and the Star of Compassion.”

“What? But if there is no Ria, who is to wear the Star of Compassion?” another Councilor protested.

For the first time, Hurxx spoke.

“I shall,” he said, at last sitting up straighter on the throne. He had a high, nasally voice that grated on my nerves. “I shall wear both of the Stars at once and they shall guide me.”

The murmurs of the crowd were so loud this time that the Councilor who had been objecting had to shout to make himself heard.

“Impossible!” he exclaimed. “No one person can wear both Stars at once.”

“Why don’t we let the Stars themselves decide that—shall we?” Hurxx purred. Leaning forward, he motioned to Yancy. “Yancy—the Star of Compassion.”

Stepping forward, Yancy held out the silver circlet with its purple-pink stone and Hurxx took it carefully, holding it with his fingertips as though it was hot.

Just as he was about to place the silver crown on his head, on top of the gold crown he already wore, Tellum murmured,

“Now!”

Sellah stepped forward, out of the shadowy alcove we’d been keeping to. The rest of us followed her and Sarden shouted,

“Stop!”

“What?” Hurxx paused, frowning. “Why, Sarden, my royal cousin, whatever are you doing here?”

“Stopping you from taking over all of Eloim, cousin,” Sarden growled.

“How? Do you plan to take the throne yourself, half-breed?” Hurxx sneered.

“I didn’t say that, but there is someone here who has a claim to it.” Sarden motioned to Sellah, who once more threw her black veil back to reveal her face.

“Hello, cousin,” she said in a low, carrying voice. “As you can see I am not dead at all but very much alive. And I do not approve of you wearing my crown as well as your own.”

The murmuring from the crowd was absolutely deafening then—it was really more of a roar. Many of the common people were surging forward but the palace guards held them back, keeping us from being overwhelmed. There were shouts of,

“Sellah! The lady, Sellah has returned!”

“The Goddess of Mercy be praised!”

“The Ria! I knew she wasn’t dead!”

But mixed in with the shouts for Sellah, there was a surprising amount of commotion for Sarden.

“Lord Sarden has brought our Ria back!”

“Mayhap they will rule together—as is proper and right.”

“Lord Sarden has returned—now all shall be set right.”

I even heard some things about myself. People wondering who I was and if I was with Sarden. I blushed and made sure not to meet anyone’s eyes. Let them think what they wanted. But it was clear to me from what the crowd was murmuring, that Sarden wasn’t regarded as an interloper or an intruder, despite the fact that he looked more Vorn than Eloim.

Despite the shouting at her back, Sellah kept her face towards the throne. She and Hurxx seemed to be having some kind of a staring contest but at last he spoke.

“Well, cousin,” he remarked. “So you return. I am so glad you are well—we feared you dead.”

“You feared no such thing,” Sellah said in a low, carrying voice. “For you are the one who plotted to have me kidnapped and sold into slavery in the first place!”

“I?” Hurxx put one hand to his chest and made an offended face, though I noticed he kept a tight grip on the Star of Compassion with the other hand. “Surely you must be mistaken.”

“There is no mistake,” Tellum said, stepping forward. “For I heard you and Yancy speaking of the plan—which is why I went to find the Ria myself. She was put up for auction to be sold to the highest bidder—that was your doing, Hurxx.”

“Blasphemy!” Yancy gasped, retreating to stand beside the throne. “How dare you speak such lies in the presence of the Rae, Tellum?”

“He only speaks the truth,” Sarden growled, stepping forward. “Put the Star of Compassion down, Hurxx—and while you’re at it, you can take off the Star of Wisdom too. You obviously don’t deserve to wear it.”

“Is that what you think?” Hurxx sneered at him, his pouting upper lip curling up belligerently. “Well, I say we let the Stars decide who is the rightful ruler here—shall we?”

And before Sarden could stop him, he placed the Star of Compassion on top of his head, just over the Star of Wisdom. For a moment, I thought he seemed to be having a hard time keeping the second crown in place—it was almost like he was fighting with it to wrestle it down onto his head. But then the slim circlet seemed to snap into place somehow and then it stayed where it was, the pinkish-purple stone winking and glowing just above the greenish-blue one.

I felt a disturbance in the air as the second crown snapped into place—a strange ripple of something I can only describe as wrongness. It was an almost palpable feeling—like I was on the beach and had been slapped in the face by a cold, salty wave. The intensity of the feeling made me gasp and I looked around, wondering if anyone else had felt it. But everyone seemed to be watching Hurxx.

He removed his hands from his head, holding them up to show that they were empty and both crowns were staying on his head without help from him.

“Do you see?” he called, looking imperiously down his nose at Sarden.

An audible gasp came from the crowd.

“Is it not clear?” Yancy declared loudly. “Would the Stars of Wisdom and Compassion stay in place on my Lord Rae’s head if they were not meant to be there? If they did not deem him a worthy ruler?”

“It must be true,” someone whispered. “Lord Hurxx must be the true and ordained ruler of Eloim.” Soon other people in the crowd were saying the same thing—although I could tell they weren’t happy about it.

“There’s something wrong,” I whispered to Sarden. “Can’t you feel it?”

He gave me a shrewd look, his eyes narrowed in concentration. “I don’t feel it myself but I can tell you do—I feel it through you.”

“He’s keeping those crowns on his head in some way,” I said. “Confront him—tell him to take them off.”

“Or let someone else try to take them off,” Grav muttered.

“There is always the Challenge of the Stars,” Sellah murmured to Sarden.

“The what?” I asked. It sounded like some kind of celebrity dance show but I was pretty sure challenging Hurxx to a dance-off wouldn’t prove anything.

“It’s where you challenge the ruling Rae or Ria to allow someone to try to remove the Star they are wearing,” Sellah explained. “In the history of Eloim, there has never been a successful challenge because the Stars stay firmly on the head of the rightful rulers and refuse to be removed.”

“That’s right—they’re supposed to fly off on their own if they don’t like the person wearing them,” I said, remembering. “But what if Hurxx has them fixed in place somehow? We have to try and get them off.”

“The Challenge of the Stars is risky—too risky,” Tellum objected. “If we try and fail to get the crowns off, Hurxx’s claim to the throne will be irrefutable and we’ll never be able to challenge him again. Also, if we lose, he can claim anything he wants of us as tribute—to recompense the insult we have offered by challenging his legitimate right to the throne.”

“He knows it’s risky for us—look at him, the smug bastard,” Sarden growled. He looked at me. “Zoe?”

I knew what he was asking and I nodded, the feeling of wrongness churning in my gut.

“There’s something not right—we have to challenge, no matter how risky it is.”

“Zoe is right,” Sellah said in a low voice. “I say we challenge too.”

Sarden looked at Grav, who nodded.

“I’m with you all the way. Not gonna take a backseat while that bastard tries to steal your blood-sister’s throne.”

“Then it’s decided,” Sarden said firmly. “We challenge.”

“I take it by all this whispering together that you’re thinking of challenging my claim,” Hurxx said, raising his voice to be heard over the murmuring of the crowd. “Is that not right, my royal cousins?”

“That’s exactly fucking right,” Sarden snarled. “We don’t believe you have the right to wear either Star—let alone both.”

“Well then—let us put it to a test, shall we?” Hurxx motioned to his pet Councilor. “Yancy—come and make the test.”

“With pleasure, my Lord Rae.” Coming to Hurxx’s side, Yancy made a big show of pulling on the crowns Hurxx was wearing in his long, floppy hair. Of course, neither one of them budged. Then Yancy stepped back, holding up his hands. “The Challenge has been met and defeated! Though I tried with all my might, neither the Star of Wisdom nor the Star of Compassion would come off my Lord Rae’s head.”

“That doesn’t prove anything!” I exclaimed. The feeling of wrongness was growing in me and I was getting really and truly pissed off now. “Yancy was just pretending to try and take off the crowns.”

“Do you say so? And who might you be, my dear?” Hurxx raised an eyebrow at me.

I stepped forward and heard the crowd murmur as they looked me over.

“This is Zoe—a female of pure descent from a closed Planet,” Sarden said loudly. He gave me a look from the corner of his eye. “She is my bonded mate.”

“A Pure One? Lord Sarden has mated a Pure One?” I heard the crowd murmuring and a great wave of longing came over me. I wanted to be his bonded mate in more than just name only. I gave him a look from the corner of my eye, wondering if it would ever happen, wishing I could be in his arms someplace private, showing him how I really felt.

But there was no time for hanky-panky. I lifted my chin and looked at Hurxx.

“Lord Sarden is correct—I am his,” I said clearly. “And I am from a closed planet.”

“A Pure One, eh?” Hurxx eyed me hungrily. “Well, my little Pure One, why do you not come and make the test yourself, if you doubt my Councilor?” He beckoned to me languidly, his dark eyes gleaming in a way I didn’t like in the least.

“All right—I will.” I stepped forward but Sarden put a hand on my arm.

“Zoe, I don’t like this,” he growled. “Hurxx is a slippery son-of-a-bitch. I don’t want you getting too close to him.”

“Let me do this,” I told him in a low voice. “I’m the only one who can fix this.” I didn’t know how I knew that—I just did. It was as clear to me as the feeling of wrongness which kept growing every minute. I wondered for a moment what was happening to me but there was no time to question my certainty—I had to go with it. “I can take care of myself,” I told Sarden.

Reluctantly, he nodded and released my arm.

“All right. But if that bastard lays one finger on you—”

“I’ll bite it off,” I said coolly and gave him a smile.

He shook his head and smiled back.

“Zoe, you never cease to amaze me. Go.”

I went, approaching the double throne with my head held high and my back straight. I was very aware that everyone in the room was watching me and I didn’t want to disgrace myself or Sellah and Sarden either.

Calm, aloof ice-princess, I told myself, moving with a slow, measured pace. You’re a calm, aloof ice-princess and nothing can melt you.

I hoped, anyway.

At last I was standing right in front of Hurxx, who was still lounging on the throne with a little grin on his doughy face.

“Well, well, my dear,” he murmured as I came to a stop in front of him. “Aren’t you a pretty one? So exotic with your pale skin and your big blue eyes.”

“Thanks,” I muttered. Up close I found him completely repulsive from his floppy hair down to the dainty gold ankle boots he wore on his small feet. The gaudy blue and green stones of the thick gold chain he wore around his neck seemed to wink at me—especially the one in the middle, which was a large, raised oval as big as an egg. What was the deal with him anyway? He looked like he’d been raiding Elton John’s closet but only taking the ugly stuff.

“I’ve never had a Pure One before,” Hurxx remarked, looking me up and down in a way that made me want to cover up. “Perhaps after this little charade is over you and I can go someplace private and get better acquainted.”

“I’d rather have a double root canal,” I told him flatly. “That’s a really unpleasant and painful dental procedure in case you don’t get my reference.”

“Well! How dare you speak to the Rae in such a way?” Yancy, who was still standing nearby demanded.

“Because he’s not the rightful Rae—and I’m going to prove it,” I said loudly, hoping like crazy I actually could prove it. I looked at Hurxx. “I don’t want anything to do with you—I’m only here to remove those crowns. You shouldn’t be wearing either of them and you know it.”

His self-satisfied smile slipped a little but he only gestured at me.

“Very well, Pure One,” he said in a loud voice. “Commence the Challenge of the Stars and removed them from my head if you can.”

“All right.” The feeling of wrongness coming from him was so strong now that it almost made me sick to my stomach. I didn’t know what this weird sixth sense I seemed to have somehow developed was trying to tell me, but it was really loud. Almost like someone shouting in my ear that this situation was broken and I had to fix it.

Feeling like I would scream if I couldn’t set things right, I reached up and placed my fingers on the silver circlet of the Star of Compassion. The crown hummed and vibrated violently under my fingertips, reminding me of an animal caught in a trap.

Help, a tiny voice whispered in my head. Help us—he holds us captive! Help, La-ti-zal! Only you can release us!

I was so startled by the tiny voice—which was definitely not just me talking to myself—that I nearly jerked my hands away. Was that the crown itself talking to me? I remembered Sellah saying it had spoken to her when she first put it on and that there was an entity living in the jewels of both crowns.

“Well?” Hurxx looked up at me from under his ridiculous, floppy hair. “Try to remove it. You can’t, can you?”

I took a firmer hold on the silver circlet and pulled. But though it vibrated harder than ever in my hands, I couldn’t budge it so much as a millimeter. It was the same with the golden circlet of the Star of Wisdom, which also begged for my help in a deeper, more masculine voice when I pulled at it.

La-ti-zal, it called. Only you can help us. Release us from this prison. Please!

But though I tugged and tugged—and wasn’t very careful about pulling Hurxx’s ridiculous hair either—neither crown would come off. Something was holding them in place. But what?

“And there you have it,” Yancy announced to the crowd, which was watching in hushed silence. “Even a Pure One cannot remove the Stars from my Lord Hurxx’s head—which means he must be the one true rightful ruler of our fair planet!”

“This can’t be,” I muttered through gritted teeth. “This isn’t right!”

“Ah, but it appears right, my dear—and that’s all that matters.” Hurxx smiled up at me. “Now please remove your hands from the royal person.”

Reluctantly, I took my hands off the crowns. Something was going on, but for the life of me, I couldn’t figure it out.

Hurxx stood up from the throne and raised his arms. Though he wasn’t nearly as tall as Sarden, he was still much taller than me. The large, oval stone in his tacky necklace winked in the light and nearly blinded me as he brushed me aside.

“My people!” he shouted, in his high, nasally voice. “I think you can see that I am your true ruler—I have undergone the Challenge of the Stars and neither Star has chosen to leave my head. As such, I proclaim myself both the rightful Rae and the rightful Ria of Eloim. And for my tribute, to recompense me for the wrongful claim brought against me, I claim this Pure One.”

He grabbed me suddenly around the waist, crushing me against the side of his scratchy gold brocade jacket.

“No!” Sarden roared, surging forward. Grav came with him but there was suddenly a line of guards, all holding those deadly looking pickaxe-spears in their faces.

I looked at Sarden quickly and shook my head— although it was clear he was willing to run through an army of spears to get to me, I didn’t want him getting killed on my account.

“Zoe!” This time I swore the voice in my head was Sarden’s. Could we read each other’s thoughts now? Was that part of the bond too?

“Sit tight,” I sent back to him, thinking as hard as I could. “I’ll think of something.”

He nodded grimly, although he looked really, really unhappy about it. I was glad he was trusting my judgment although to be honest, I wasn’t sure I trusted my judgment. I mean, what in the hell was I going to do now?

The jewel, I heard both little voices saying in my head. This time it was definitely the Stars and not Sarden. I had a moment to think I might be going crazy—wasn’t hearing voices in your head a pretty definite sign? And then they called to me again. The jewel! It holds us—it holds us captive to the one who is not right!

The jewel? Frowning I looked up at Hurxx—I had a really close look since he was crushing me against him, under his rather smelly armpit. How could anyone with hair that floppy and shiny smell like they hadn’t taken a bath in a month? And what jewel were the Stars talking about?

Suddenly the egg-shaped greenish-blue jewel in the center of his necklace caught my eye again and an idea began to form in my mind.

“Oh, Lord Hurxx,” I purred, looking up at him. “Do you really claim me as your rightful tribute?”

He looked down at me in apparent surprise.

“I certainly do, little Pure One. It is my right and duty to claim what is mine as the rightful Rae of Eloim.”

“I see that now.” I fluttered my lashes at him, trying to flirt even though being so close to him and the wrongness he was putting out in waves made me sick. “You’re so powerful…so rich.”

“Well yes I am.” He wore a self-satisfied smirk on his pudgy face. “I have all the wealth of Eloim at my fingertips, after all.”

“I could tell that just by looking at you,” I said, smiling in what I hoped was a bewitching way. “By the fashionable clothing and jewelry you wear.” I let my fingers creep up his chest to the gold chain around his neck. “This especially—we have nothing so fine on my planet. Was it made just for you?”

I saw Yancy’s eyes widen as he saw where my fingers were going and he stepped forward and muttered something to Hurxx under his breath.

“Don’t be such a worrier, Yancy,” Hurxx answered, making a shooing gesture at his Councilor with his free hand, the one that wasn’t currently crushing me to him. “You know perfectly well it’s keyed only to me.”

“But, my Lord—”

“I especially like this jewel,” I said, my fingers creeping to the oval blue-green jewel. “It’s so special.”

The moment I touched the jewel, I knew it was the source of the wrongness. My fingertips stung and my eyes watered as I fought to keep from throwing up. Wrong! Wrong, wrong, WRONG! screamed the Stars’ voices inside my head. I wanted to yank my fingers away and go be sick in the corner somewhere.

Instead, I placed my palm firmly in the center of the egg-shaped stone and pushed in as hard as I could.

There was a loud crack and a flash, as though a bolt of lightening had suddenly struck down right in the middle of the throne room.

“What? How—?” Hurxx gasped and staggered back, dragging me with him. Since I was still pinned to his side, I was in just the right position to see it when the gaudy gold chain he was wearing suddenly fell off his neck and clattered to the marble floor.

And as soon as it did, both the Star of Wisdom and the Star of Compassion flew off Hurxx’s floppy-haired head and went whizzing up into the air to hover over the awe-struck crowd.

“No! No!” Hurxx finally let go of me, fumbling on his now-bare head desperately. “No, you little bitch!”

He grabbed me by the throat and squeezed. I gasped and tried to push his hands away but they were too big and he was too strong for me. I kicked instead, aiming for his balls in the ridiculously tight gold brocade trousers.

I think I might have caught him a glancing blow, because he howled and his fingers loosened just enough for me to take a small sip of air. But then he squeezed again, his eyes filled with rage.

Great—all I had done was piss him off even more.

I kicked again but missed him entirely this time. Brilliant white and red stars exploded before my eyes and I could hear myself gasping for air—air I couldn’t get because he was choking me…killing me…

“Get your hands off my mate, you fuck!”

Suddenly a big, red fist plowed into Hurxx’s nose. Blood flew and the horribly strong hands finally released me. I staggered backwards and Sellah caught me.

“Zoe? Are you all right?”

“I…I think I’m fine.” My voice came out in a thin little whisper and I coughed, trying to get my breath back. My vision was still fading in and out and I had to lean on Sellah’s arm to stay upright.

Beside the throne, Hurxx and Sarden were still fighting. Although Hurxx wasn’t really putting up much of a fight. Sarden was raining down blows on him, his face a mask of savage, possessive fury and Hurxx was cowering and trying to get away.

“Have mercy—have mercy!” he cried, trying to shield his face, which was covered in blood, from Sarden’s fists. Some of the palace guards tried to interfere but Grav held them back. He had gotten one of the axe-spears from one of them and was waving it menacingly. From the look on his face, he wanted to go after Hurxx himself but clearly he knew he had to leave him to Sarden.

“Why should anyone have mercy on you?” Tellum shouted at Hurxx, stepping forward to make himself heard over the excited babble of the crowd. “You who profaned our most sacred rites and rituals with evil and deceit? How did you do it? How did you compel the Stars to stay with you when you had such wicked intent?”

“The chain…” I coughed and pointed to the broken gold chain lying on the floor before the throne. The oval shaped stone in the center had shattered and a black, noxious smoke was rising from it. “I don’t know what it is but it was…was holding them in place.”

“How else was I to take the throne?” Hurxx whined, still trying to shield himself from Sarden’s fists. “The Star of Wisdom didn’t want me—it only wanted Sarden! I couldn’t let a half-breed rule Eloim, could I?”

“What?” Sarden stopped in mid-punch and took a step back, eyeing his cousin warily. “What did you say?”

“You heard me.” Hurxx straightened up a little, his flattened nose streaming with blood. “From the first moment I touched the Star of Wisdom, at the pre-coronation ceremony, it never wanted me. It asked for you.” He spat. “But I was damned if I’d give the throne to a filthy half-Vorn bastard.”

“The Star wanted Sarden—which was why you had to construct a device strong enough to hold it in place on your head,” Sellah said, lifting her chin. “Because you knew you weren’t the rightful Rae. I wondered why you had that ugly necklace commissioned. Now we know.”

“I only did what any true patriot of Eloim would have done.” Hurxx sounded sulky. “In order to keep a half-breed off the throne.”

“It was not for you to decide who was or was not worthy to wear the Star of Wisdom,” Tellum thundered, glaring at the deposed Rae. “Only the Star itself can make that determination.”

As if the Stars—which were still hovering high above the crowds—had heard his voice, they both came whizzing down.

The Star of Wisdom paused for a moment, then settled itself firmly on Sarden’s head.

“What?” He reached up to touch the gold circlet hesitantly…carefully as though he might be burned. I felt, rather than heard, the Star asking him questions through our link. After a moment he nodded. “Yes,” he said in a low voice. “Yes, I swear it.”

The crowd murmured in surprise but I didn’t hear or see anyone who sounded unhappy. Well, except for Yancy and a few of the other Councilors who were obviously loyal to the deposed Rae. They were starting to sneak to one side of the throne and I saw Hurxx sidling that way himself—clearly they were trying to take the back way out.

Grav saw it the same time I did and motioned to the guards.

“Keep them here,” he growled. “Nobody leaves until this is over.”

Most of the guards seemed to understand what was going on. They ran to surround the would-be escaping Councilors and the ex-Rae. A few of the crowd murmured but most were still watching Sarden to see what he would do.

“People of Eloim,” he said, stepping forward and addressing the crowd. “The Star of Wisdom has come to me. Though I am a half-breed, I was raised among you and I have only Eloim’s best interests at heart. I will rule with your blessing and that of the Star’s—but only with the right female beside me as my Ria.”

A cheer went up from the crowd and some of them called, “Long live the Rae! Long live Lord Sarden!”

Sarden made a motion with his hands and they quieted down. All eyes went up to the ceiling, where the silver circlet of the Star of Compassion was hovering uncertainly.

At last it came down and positioned itself over Sellah’s head. She looked up at it and I saw the sorrow and resignation in her eyes.

“All right,” she said softly. “I’ll do it if there’s no other way. But please, Star, if you can find anyone else—anyone you think is worthy—then please choose them instead. Please.”

The slim silver crown seemed to understand. It rose again and came to settle…

Directly on my head.