Chapter Four – Eyrl

Her hand was so tiny. Soft. Delicate. Hands weren't usually something he thought of. Then again, he didn't have much experience holding them. As a child, he had a nursemaid to cuddle with in order to receive the requisite chemical balance touch created, but as he grew up, he hadn't held hands with anybody. His official lovers he had sex with, his trainers he sparred with. The simple touch felt alien to him. Pleasant, but alien.

They stood before the various boards. Justice. Science. Architecture. Much more. The only board that has more dragons then dragonesses was the Justice Board. Being a warrior was best suited to the hot blood of males, or so it was thought. Even that small honor was a slap in the face.

“Boards of Bronæl,” he started. “You all know my plans to take a human as a mate. Just this week, my chosen arrived at our planet. Lily Hunter is my mate and future queen consort. From this day forward, I am hers to serve to my full capabilities."

There were nods all around the room. A few of the dragons and dragonesses actually smiled at him. Lily let out a soft breath and her grip on his hand loosened, but he squeezed hers, trying to let her know without words that it wasn't over yet. And sure enough, one of the dragonesses on the science board stood.

"What justifications do you have for bringing an outsider, an emotional human who doesn't know our culture, to Bronæl as queen consort? There are fertile dragonesses for you to create children with, and if genetics are worrying you, you could craft the DNA of your heir."

The lone dragon on the Science Board snorted at that. "Craft the DNA? Since when is an unborn child capable of consenting to have their genetics changed? Careful that you do not blaspheme against ethics."

The dragoness turned to him with a low hiss. "I did not mean to change the genetic code after the child was conceived, I meant to build the genetic code to create the child. We have the technology. It's not against ethics to create a new lifeform. Or we could call on our queen to send the human back to Earth and pick a proper mate for the prince."

Lily's grip tightened. When Eyrl glanced at her, though, she had her lips pressed together and a distant look in her eye, like she wasn't even paying attention to what was going on around her. He nudged her, but she didn't look at him. Instead, she closed her eyes and her lips moved silently. Praying?

Eyrl glanced back at the boards. They were all staring at Xæm after the dragoness's challenge. The queen's expression was, as always, ice cold. She had chosen to wear dark robes while he was still in his stupid white tunic and trousers. Efira stood by her side, as always. Eyrl refused to look at the lady-in-waiting. She'd no doubt have that triumphant sneer on her face.

"There are laws against compelling an individual to marry or take a mate," Xæm said eventually. "I will not break them. As far as this human . . . Efira has been working with her. What are your impressions of her thus far?"

Efira thrust her shoulders back and smiled. "She is human. Even if she was the best that Earth had to offer, could we really have her as a queen? She is far too emotional. She lacks basic scientific knowledge. Just look at her right now. Can you imagine a dragoness like her doing anything but spending our resources?"

"I'm not a dragoness," Lily said. Her voice came out little more than a whisper. "I'm a woman."

Eyrl tightened his hand in hers. The desire to protect her welled up in him and he couldn’t stop himself from speaking.

"Lily is human. We as a society are at risk of becoming stagnant. She might not have a strong scientific background, but there is more to life than science." His fires flared and he tasted smoke on his tongue, though none of it escaped his mouth. "We sneer at those who cling to religion but speak of blasphemy against science. Is not science our religion?"

"See? She's already making him more emotional than—"

"Enough, Efira." Xæm rose a hand. "The only one I see being emotional at this moment is you."

Efira looked like she had been slapped in the face.

The queen folded her hands on her knees. "My son has brought forward a good question. What is religion, and what is science? Perhaps a debate for the philosophers among us. But you, Efira, have asked us to look at this girl in this moment and condemn her abilities when you did not speak enough of them yourself."

The chiding surprised Eyrl. Efira bowed her head, but he didn't miss the way her fingers went rigid, as though fighting to stop them from curling in. He waited for his mother to continue speaking. Could it be that she was going to defend his choice? She had never done anything to indicate her approval in anything he did, and while he knew that he shouldn't need her approval, the thought of having her as an ally helped calm his fires.

"What is so horrible about emotion?" Lily said. She opened her eyes and straightened her shoulders. "All I've heard since I stepped onto this planet was that I have to be less emotional. But what harm comes from being happy? Laughter reduces stress hormones, helps normalize blood pressure . . . and there are other benefits but I don't quite remember them right now. It's true among humans, at least. By repressing emotion and pretending it isn't there, it's actually bad for a human's health."

Efira glanced up. "Can you say the same about all emotion?'

"My mother always says that moderation is the key to all things. From what I see, you practice extremes here. Too much or too little water will kill. Too much exercise puts a strain on the heart, as does too little." She released Eyrl's hand and, for a brief moment, he mourned the loss of her warmth. "Maybe you need a human as your queen consort because your people are taking humans as mates."

Lily paused. She glanced around, and then back to Eyrl. He nodded at her to encourage her to continue. He wanted to beam at her. She was making a good argument, even if she didn't have sources to back herself up. She flashed him a smile which twisted something inside of him.

"I have looked into your educational systems. They are far beyond what is on Earth, but they're still lacking."

The Educational Board looked scandalized.

"Your physical training allows no room for creativity, nor does it take into account individual needs of your children. I would like to request that my first act as the prince's consort is that I develop a program to implement strategies to improve the health of the children while giving them an outlet for fun. I am confident that with the right research to back it up, we can improve their quality of life and reduce mental stress."

Many of the dragons nodded. Even Xæm looked impressed. The queen stood. "Assemble your proposal, submit it to the necessary boards, and we will see. Now, we all have other matters to discuss. Eyrl, take your mate back to your chambers."

He bowed to her and took Lily's hand. As soon as they stepped from the room, she began to tremble, and Eyrl pulled her in close. He pressed a kiss to her cheek.

"You did marvelously."

She relaxed against him, smiling shyly.

Once they were back in his chambers, she kicked off her shoes and slumped into a chair. Eyrl poured them both a celebratory glass of wine and she took hers with a smile of thanks. Her smiles always came so easily. The twisting feeling inside of him got a little tighter. He wasn't entirely certain what it was. Arousal? He'd experienced that before. Nerves? Again, something he knew. This was some sort of strange mix of the two.

"That went well," he said as he joined her. "But it's far from over. The best way to ensure no more protests about our mating is for you to become pregnant."

Lily choked on her wine, spraying it all over him. "Pregnant ?"