Other than a few barely audible taps of styluses to vid-screens, my sitting room in the Palace on Parvac was blissfully quiet. Neema, my daughter, had been in a foul mood because of a particularly difficult tooth she was cutting. It had been a morning of war. She had aimed her toy blasters at her dolls, toy transports, and balls. Now, Neema, Niklos, and Peter were all asleep at my feet where they had worn themselves out playing. Neema was sleeping with her little bloomer-covered butt in the air and a larger than usual puddle of drool collecting on the plush white carpeting under her mouth. Terrified she would wake up if I were to move her, I left her and the boys alone hoping they would be in better moods after their naps.
Frowning down at the sketch I had made on my vid-pad, I erased it to start over. There were only so many ways to design rompers that would fit Eloneave females. Their patagium posed a design challenge. I tried again and sent my design to Violet, my royal attendant, who was seated across the room. She scrunched up her face at it and shook her head.
My mood wasn’t much better than Neema’s. My mother, Empress Neema, had learned of the contest I had devised to get potential suitors off my back, had thrown a very public and respectable fit over it, and had nullified the entire thing. Like Princess Neema with her tooth, I couldn’t do anything about it other than be in a temper. Papa had sided with Momma and so had the Parvacian reporters. They had laughed off my entire idea and quickly had changed their topics to the royal pageantry of decades past. It made me furious. Wisely, Yukihyo and Zared stayed out of it.
Annoyed with my sketches, I decided to read the news. I had plenty of time to fabricate clothing to trade on Talpa, not that Momma would approve of me going, not with Felix Jiri still on the loose. Aside from having Papa and me wrapped around her little finger, she had an army of socialites at her command. Momma was like Neema with her dolls. She had a pretty feminine army to do her bidding. Momma controlled Emperor Tavere Probus, and her friends controlled their own powerful, rich, and affluent husbands throughout the Parvac Empire. Slowly, I was beginning to understand the political and social climate of Parvac. It was an intricate web that would make the Silk spiders of Arachne envious.
Shrewdly, I observed Sparrow, lost in her own thoughts as she concentrated on selecting lab equipment. Her brown curls were a soft riot around her face. Sparrow, Xavier’s wife, was a brilliant weapons expert. Xavier had met her while on a mission, just as Jazon, his brother, had met his own wife. Tracy, Jazon’s wife, sat beside Sparrow and studied Parvac’s culture. Tracy, an Eriopis telepath from Aurilius, reminded me of Gina, Simon’s mother. She was smart, spunky, and would stand up to anyone for what she believed in. Her black hair, solid black eyes, and pale skin gave her the appearance of a delicate porcelain doll. Momma might have a cadre of socialites, but I had my own friends.
Inquisitor Drex Licinius, my newest husband, and Eli Beck, my personal Inquisitor, entered my sitting room. I shot them both looks warning of retribution should they wake my babies. Pierce and Lorca, my children’s nurses, carefully began to transfer Neema, Niklos, and Peter to the nursery. Silently, I motioned with my hands for Drex and Eli to sit. Of my husbands, Drex was my least favorite, but he was Momma’s favorite son-in-law. Empress Neema, in her heart, credited Drex as her rescuer from being held in stasis for two decades, most of my life. I had married him as part of a ruse during our rescue mission of Empress Neema. I kept him because he was amazing in bed.
Drex sat beside me, liberated the vid-pad from my hands, set it aside, and gave me an arrogant smile which he probably assumed I would find beguiling. Eli sat in a chair near the door and appeared to study each of us.
Drex waited until Otto and Rolf, my butlers, offered refreshments to speak. “Teagan, my dearest one, you present the perfect picture of femininity and motherhood here in your rooms with your ladies in attendance. If I could loiter in your presence each day without my duties compelling me, I would do so.”
“Loiter?” I thought to myself. I asked, “What tears you away from your important duties, Drex?”
He didn’t pick up on the sarcastic tone with which I had imbued my question. Sparrow didn’t either, but Violet and Tracy did.
Drex kissed my fingers and then lowered our hands to rest on my thigh, his hand covering my own. He answered, “Protecting the Empire and stunningly delicate creatures like you and your ladies is what I have been called to do. However, it is also an obligation of the experienced, such as myself and Inquisitor Beck, to share our tutelage with the young.”
I smiled at Drex and then turned my head to find both Tracy and Violet watching my husband with expressions which they tried to keep neutral. Drex might be a master spy, deadly, and dangerous, but social cues were not his forte. However, he excelled at self-congratulatory behavior.
“Oh, Drex, I’m so flattered that you sacrificed time out of your philanthropic educational duties to spend time with me.”
Eli’s eyes glittered with amusement from where he sat silently observing our exchange.
“For you, dearest one, no sacrifice is too great.”
I sighed. Drex interpreted my reaction as feminine swooning at his masculinity and kissed my cheek. I laughed. “So, what is the purpose of your visit?”
Drex had the smug demeanor of a male who believed he was sexy enough to get anything he wanted. Granted, he was very well-endowed and gave me a great deal of sexual satisfaction. It was one of the main reasons that I tolerated him.
“I must admit that we have come to beg a favor of our Imperial Princess,” Drex said with a smile.
“What favor does my husband ask of me?”
“As part of their training, young cadets within the Inquisitors’ Training Program must work in teams to prepare a stealth ship, man it, and arrive at their teams’ assigned planetary beacon all without being discovered. The members of the teams with the best times will earn the ranks of ensign. We have several promising young males who are participating. If our beautiful and ethereal Princess Teagan was to award the winners their rank insignias, it would be a grand gesture. However, being near you would be more of an award than any of them might have ever dreamed and might inspire them to strive harder to protect the frail beautiful ones of the Empire of which you are the most stunning.”
I felt my fancy artificial heart speeding up to match my anger. “So, you want me to smile and look pretty while giving big strong males medals?”
“It would only take a few moments of your time, but would live in their memories forever,” Drex said with sincerity.
Anger boiled within me. Even with all of the perks and privileges of my rank, I was viewed as nothing more than a pretty reward. My thoughts went to Neema and to Galena, my niece. I had a strong suspicion that Neema would be just as headstrong if not more so than her older Enyo cousin. Would either of them be satisfied living in an Empire where females were viewed as weak, pampered playthings? It would be years before either of the girls realized the true political power wielded by the Materfamilias Caste, the females of the Empire. Would the girls see me as weak and insipid? Was I not as capable as any Parvac male?
I smiled at Drex. It had the desired effect and put a healthy dose of fear into his eyes. “Are any females participating in this exercise?” I asked.
Drex sat up straighter. “Of course not, dearest one.”
“Why not?”
“Females are too valuable and scarce to be placed at risk and aren’t allowed to serve with the Warrior Caste.”
“What?” Tracy asked. “Aren’t allowed? Did I miss something in my reading? Don’t we have sentient status and citizenship?” Her eyes had gone solid black with anger.
“Of course, you do. Don’t be ridiculous,” Drex admonished.
“What if I wanted to compete in this contest?” I asked.
Drex looked at me and laughed. By now, I wasn’t alone in scowling at him. He had the attention of every woman in the room. “Teagan, you aren’t even a recruit of the Inquisitors Branch.”
“So, you’re saying that I wouldn’t be allowed to participate.”
Drex gave me a condescending smile and patted my hand. “Teagan, you are a beautiful woman and should behave like one. This contest is for boys. Let them enjoy it. This competition is a tradition, it and is hundreds of years old.”
“In hundreds of years, have any females ever been allowed to participate?” I asked.
Puzzled, Drex asked, “Why would they? They only would have made fools of themselves and would have brought disaster down upon whichever team had been burdened with the misfortune of having them.”
I thought Sparrow with her glare might make Drex explode into bloody chunks all over my white couch. I could almost swear that Eli watched our fight with a fanatical glee.
“Why would they be a burden?” I asked.
“Females would become tired from the mental and physical demands of the activity which would result in the males completing their assigned tasks for them. It wouldn’t be fair. In the field, an Inquisitor has only himself upon whom to rely. Coddling females during training, as males would feel inclined to do, would decrease the females’ abilities to survive actual missions. Besides, the Empire suffers from a shortage of females. To risk even one would be unconscionable.”
“Excuse me. Are you suggesting that females aren’t smart enough to complete this training exercise?” Tracy asked.
Sparrow said, “I think he meant females aren’t strong enough and also lack the intelligence to do the same work as males.”
“Oh, I thought he meant we need males to do everything for us because we are too helpless,” Violet said.
“Yes, we should just sit, be pretty, stay out of the way, and pin medals on the better sex,” I said.
Drex smiled and kissed my cheek. “Yes, precisely. I’m glad you understand. Shall I take it that you will preside over the ceremony?”
Tracy said, “I’ll tell you how you can take it.”
“Of course, Drex. However, who will award the rank of ensign to me and my team should we place in the top teams?”
“You? You can’t compete. You aren’t a recruit. You don’t have a crew, a stealth ship, or a commanding officer to serve as a facilitator.”
“I have a ship.”
“You have a warship. That isn’t fair. Nor is it fair to make a mockery of a contest steeped in tradition. Even if you were allowed to participate, you would only get in the way.”
“I can fly a stealth ship.”
Drex laughed at me. “You lack a crew. Where would you find a first officer, science officer, security officer, and an actual commanding officer with the rank of captain or higher to play along with your little charade?”
“I can blow the shit out of anything you want,” Sparrow offered.
Tracy said, “I have a degree in oceanography. I think that should qualify me to monitor a ship’s life support and environmental systems. I just need to do a little reading on the subject.”
Drex scoffed. “You have less than four hours to convince the Commanding Inquisitor to allow your participation. It will never happen.”
“Oh, who is in charge of this exercise?” I asked.
Drex sneered. “Inquisitor Cormac Gordian is, and he would never allow you to place yourself in any danger.”
I smiled at him. “I may as well ask. He can only say no. Ladies, will you keep an eye out for the children?”
“Sure will,” Tracy said.
“Thunderdrop, come with me.”
Thunderdrop, my bonded Arachnean Silk spider, hopped from his web to my shoulder. He wrapped his lower legs around my upper arm to anchor himself and put his head on my shoulder.
“Chitter chitter chitter.”
“I know, right?”
Drex and Eli stood. Drex called out, “But, dearest one!”
I kept walking.