Chapter 2

Gifted A Queen

~ Valic ~

Talon frowned at his clan mate. “I cannot believe you allowed this. A drone does not have the authority to gift you with a queen. You are a smart drone. I expected better decision making from you.”

“I believe this drone is her only living relative. Arranged marriages are deeply entrenched in human tradition, and we are obligated to honor our queens traditions as we do our own, are we not?” They both knew honoring human cultural rules would be the only possible exception to the rule of queens choosing their own drones.

Talon looked conflicted. “You and Haroc are battalion leaders. More is expected of you because you are seen as role models for the drones you lead. Our clan is close to the throne. I have no wish for us to be embroiled in a scandal, nor do I wish us to disgrace ourselves before Queen Carolyn. She has gifted our clan with endless favors. I will not repay her by causing conflict with Earth.”

“Disgrace would be allowing a young flawless queen to die on the battlefield because we were more concerned about ourselves than a helpless queen.”

“Flawless, you say?”

When the little queen was first gifted to me, I thought she must be damaged in some way. Why else would her drone be so eager to see her fitted with a clan?”

Talon’s eyes flew open. “We do not judge queens for such things.”

Smiling slightly, Valic explained. “When we disrobed her in the medical unit, we discovered she is a flawless beauty. I have never seen such loveliness among all the human females we’ve encountered.”

Talon dug in his claws. “We cannot allow our attraction to her to undermine our good judgement.”

“Her brother called her Ember. It is the human word for fire. Her hair is red, like you always dreamed of having in a mate. The way it caught and reflected the light stole my breath away.”

Talon expression turned longing. “She sounds truly remarkable.”

“I believe her brother gave her to me with his dying breath because she refused to leave his side when he fell in battle.”

Talon sucked in a deep breath. “You think she is loyal. We wish a queen to stay with us for all times.”

“She is our one, Talon. I guarantee you will approve.”

Pausing to think the situation over, Talon sighed. “As leader of our clan, I give you permission to keep the beautiful queen with you. Tend to her needs and we will see if she is willing to stand by her brother’s wishes.”

“I will see that she is well cared for.”

“Where is Haroc?”

“Retrieving the body of her fallen family member. We are putting him in stasis. It is doubtful the drone can be revived, but human custom dictates she at least has a grave to visit if at all possible.”

“That was a smart decision. Do not tell her we have him in stasis. I have no wish for her to mourn him twice, since chances are slim that he can be revived.”

“I will see to it, Talon.”

“You have done well by our clan today, Valic. I am proud to have you in our family unit.”

“Kind of you to say, Talon. I will com you when she is awake and in some condition to dialogue with you about her wishes.”

“I will speak to Queen Carolyn today and let her know that we are proceeding with all due caution, to ensure our new queen’s rights are not violated.”

Valic looked down at his sleeping queen. Her long beautiful hair had been cleaned and brushed dry. Her pale skin was speckled with tiny dots colored to match her hair. Her large shockingly green eyes were a sharp contrast the dark eyes of his people. He pulled up the soft bedding to ensure she was kept warm and dimmed the lighting. Since they were all alone, he settled into a seat at her side rather than stand watch in the traditional manner along the wall.

Talon had put out feelers for a new clan member after two of his original clan had taken individual mates. The clever drone made it clear he wished the new clan members to be part of their home world’s first contact with Earth. Being tasked with investigating queens for their clan was what drawn him to Talon’s clan, and where he went Haroc followed.

Valic had needed to see the millions of Earth queens with his own eyes to believe there were so many of the lovely creatures existed. Since arriving, he had seen thousands of Earth queens with his own eyes and many millions on their data stream. Thought they came in slightly different colors and their hair could be any color imaginable, none came close to his new queen in beauty.

Human queens were sweet, accommodating creatures by everyone’s report. He’d spoken to some of the mated queens on his home world . They were smart, outgoing and made him smile. In fact, he had yet to meet an Earth queen he didn’t admire.

Still this one was nothing like the others to his mind. Would her exceptional beauty have affected her personality? He certainly hoped not.

She might object to having a clan. Many human queens wished for single males rather than small clans. The new Maruvian queen had reordered their society by having males separate themselves into small groups of three to five males. Valic had been raised on a huge battleship with one queen and no hope of every enjoying her company. The thought of sharing a queen with a small number of his brother was both terrifying and thrilling.

“You look deep in thought, Valic.”

“I am greatly concerned that our queen will wish only one drone.”

“That does seem to be the way with their kind.”

“Sharing a queen between the three of us is terrifying enough, I can’t imagine being responsible for the safety of a queen all by myself. I worry that if she does prefer a single drone she will select me. Then I worry that won’t, and I will be deserted by the lovely creature. Does that make any sense?”

Haroc dropped down on the side of the bed, careful not to disturb his queen. “It makes perfect sense. I had much the same thoughts in the beginning. After seeing my brothers interact with their mates, I now know human queens do not expect us to do everything for them. They take genuine pride in being independent. Arac’s mate mined her own gemstone.”

Trying to keep the smile from his face, Valic responded quietly. “I had heard about that. She is the only queen who insists upon working. It seems very strange to me that she bought a ship and now spends her time transporting people and supplies around the planet.”

“She does not do it all day every day, like a drone works. She comes when called upon. Normally, she helps my brother with the defense grid around our planet.”

Valic couldn’t get his head around her working one job, much less two.

Haroc added, “If it makes her happy, who are we to judge?”

Their new queen shifted in her sleep, muttering words they could barely understand. “She keeps saying something about the dark.”

Valic moved the other side of the bed. “I believe Dark is her fallen brother’s name. Come, let us enjoy the privilege of being gifted with a queen.”

Haroc turned shocked eyes upon him. “You mean to sleep with her unbidden?”

Shrugging, Valic began peeling off his clothing. “I mean to hold her and comfort her as she slumbers. It claws at my soul to see her tossing and turning as she relives her brother’s unfortunate end. She is hurting and it is our responsible to dare all to see her well again.”

Swallowing thickly, Haroc nodded.

It amused Valic that in their professional life Haroc was commanding and expected to be obeyed, but in their quest for a clan and a queen, he just opposite.

Once under the covers with her, they pressed themselves to each side of her.

“This is rather more intimate than I thought it would be.” Valic relaxed a little when his queen moved closer in her sleep. Looking down in awe, he heard Haroc gasp.

“You were right, she accepts your warmth.”

Taking a stuttering breath, Valic motioned Haroc closer. “You must cover her back with your warm body, so she is not chilled.”

“I am familiar with this technique. The human queens call it spooning. They demand it of my brothers all the time.”

Haroc slid is body flush with her back and relaxed slightly.

Their queen wiggled her body and sighed contentedly. Haroc and Valic smiled at each other. Knowing that Talon would be pleased, Valic grabbed a holographic ball from the table, activated the tiny device and threw it into the air. It floated around, capturing and streaming images to Talon. At least their leader could rest easy, knowing his new queen was as doing as well as possible under the circumstances.