Chapter Six
Kest and I walk down the ramp, him leading the way while holding onto my leash. As we descend, I turn back to look at the ship I’ve spent more than a day traveling within. I never got to see it back on Earth, and now I can’t say I’m too impressed. Though bigger than I would have guessed, it seems very plain and utilitarian; like a gray brick with rounded edges, it doesn’t even have wings. Yet, I suppose with their level of technology, they don’t even need them.
I’m brought back into the moment by the telerings around my wrists, which pull suddenly, forcing my hands together behind me.
“Is that really necessary?” I ask.
Kest turns to give me a quick look that’s half-apology, half-leer. “For the sake of your presentation, it is. And also, I enjoy it.”
“Asshole,” I mutter, though my pussy clenches hungrily.
As we walk, I notice that some of Kest’s people watch as we go by, but some don’t seem to care. Those who do are definitely paying more attention to me than him, but then I suppose they see more humans than… than…
“Kest, what are your people called?” I ask.
“Dominars.”
I snort. “Seriously?”
“Yes,” he says, giving my leash a slight yank. “We’re the masters of the galaxy. We call ourselves whatever we wish.”
“But who decided you’re the masters of the galaxy?” He can pull my leash all he wants, I’m not letting this go.
“Time did,” Kest snaps. “Thousands of civilizations have risen and fallen. We’re the ones who remain, and who have emerged victorious from countless conflicts.” He speaks with pride in his voice, as if he’s been party to the whole of this illustrious history.
Maybe he has: the further we go into the space station, the more people nod at Kest and offer short greetings. I try to slow down, to look at everyone and everything around me, but if I delay too much I get another tug.
“Are we in some kind of hurry?” I ask, not disguising my annoyance.
He might be used to visiting an alien space station, but there’s so much I want to see! The main corridor is wide and beautiful, with intricate, sculpted stone and metal surfaces. Massive windows give views into other docking bays, where dozens of incredible, unique ships are parked. I smirk, noting that they all look a lot nicer than Kest’s. I wonder why that is, but don’t ask.
“We’re expected,” Kest replies at last. “As a matter of fact…”
He turns toward an alien woman heading straight for us. Strikingly beautiful, she stands a foot taller than me, with long blonde hair that shines brilliantly against her pale blue skin. Kest grins as she gets close, and she returns the smile, showing perfect white teeth. She’s dressed in a form-fitting gray singlet with a thick navy stripe across the waist; it hugs her ample chest and thin figure, accentuating just how perfect she appears. My fists clench behind my back, and my lips tighten in a grimace.
Kest and the woman speed up their pace, dragging me along until they’re close enough to embrace. They speak in his language quickly, laughing as they pat each other’s backs and then break off. I’ve got a lot of questions, and an anger I refuse to admit is jealousy, so I stay quiet until they finish.
Kest turns toward me, says something to the woman, then the two of them press their index fingers together. After a moment, she breaks off the touch. “Does this sound right?” she says in English. “A little clunky, but it’s pretty.”
“Yeah, definitely complicated,” Kest agrees. “And it’s still changing. You know how it is with young races.”
“Right right,” she says. Turning to me, she adds, “Hi, Haley, I’m Briette.”
“Nice to meet you,” I reply, trying not to sound too icy.
“Briette is a childhood friend of mine,” Kest explains. “We go back a long ways.”
She smirks. “A very long ways.”
“Oh,” I say, feeling better. I even laugh, finding it difficult to imagine Kest as a child.
“Were you envious, pet?” Kest taunts, bringing a fresh rush of blood to my cheeks. “You have nothing to worry about. Briette may as well be my sister.”
“It’s true,” she adds. “Plus, I only consort with warriors.”
My eyes widen in shock; Kest is a solid block of muscle! “You’re not a warrior?”
He shakes his head. “I was, a long time ago. Now I’m an agent, though I think of myself more as a scout.”
A scout?
I laugh, picturing him in a Boy Scout uniform, with patches, neckerchief, and all.
“Why a scout?” I ask, not hiding the amusement from my voice.
Kest pulls the leash, forcing me close enough to spank my bottom. He gives each cheek a pair of slaps, alternating between the two. Even through my skirt, which is far more smooth than his hands, the spanking hurts. I yelp, straining against the leash, but I cannot escape. I try to hide my embarrassment, shocked at being treated this way right in front of another person. Briette, to her credit, turns away, though her expression is one of amusement more than sympathy.
“As you’re going to find out, my work is a higher calling than prancing around in battle armor and shooting blanks at holograms,” says Kest.
Briette snorts. “Don’t be petty. You know better.”
He sighs. “Yeah, yeah, I know.”
She shakes her head, then straightens up and dons a more official expression. “So, what brings you back from your mission so soon? You weren’t expected for another hundred years.”
A hundred years? How old is he? And how long has he been gone?
“My findings are dire,” he says. “I thought it best to alert the Council immediately.”
“I see.”
Though I’m curious about what Kest means, there’s something else I’ve been wondering about. “Briette, how is it you’re speaking English?”
She smiles at me like I’m a clueless child; it would annoy me if I didn’t feel like one.
“When Kest and I pressed our fingers together, we exchanged nanites through the skin. They gave me his knowledge of Earth’s languages.”
“Nanites?”
Briette’s jaw drops a little. “You didn’t tell her?” she asks Kest. “How did you explain everything?”
He shrugs. “I didn’t. I figured it would upset her. Nanotechnology is still a fledgling field back on Earth.”
“Nanotechnology? In your fingers?” I ask.
“Throughout our entire bodies,” Briette clarifies. “All of our people have them. They serve a nearly infinite number of functions. Transmitting information, regulating bodily functions, communicating with computers and machines… So much more.”
“Most important, they arrest our aging process,” adds Kest. “They make us practically immortal. It’s the technology that has allowed us to dominate the galaxy for eons.”
Wow.
Immortal? Can it be true?
“I can’t believe you’ve been speaking English with her this whole time,” says Briette.
Kest shrugs. “I’ve gotten used to it.”
“You haven’t given her any nanites?” she asks, glancing at me with pity.
“Maybe I don’t want any,” I say, wanting to smack her pretty blue face. “Why would I want machines inside me?”
“They come in handy,” says Kest. The telerings suddenly move, forcing me to turn in a full circle.
I growl, angry at being toyed with.
“Think about it, pet,” he says. “I can’t give you nanites able to do everything, but they’d teach you our language instantly, among other things.”
“I’ll pass,” I growl. “Stay out of my head.”
Briette laughs. “Are all humans as smart as this one?”
“No,” says Kest. “Haley’s exceptional in many, many ways.”
“Then she’s a good choice.” Briette winks at me. “Come, let’s not keep the Council waiting.”
The Council?
Kest nods, his expression souring. He allows the telerings binding my wrists to widen apart, easing the strain on my body, but he doesn’t free me entirely. “Haley, I expect you to be silent while I give my report. I can’t even begin to express how important this meeting is, and how many lives count on it. Understood?”
“Yes, sir,” I say, appreciating the seriousness and enormity of his warning.
Briette leads us through the station toward a tram. At first I feel a downward momentum, but after a time it changes, and I realize we’re moving laterally. The transition was so smooth, I barely felt it. A holographic display shows us our position on the Dominus, and from it I sort out where we are and where we’re going. Despite the station’s immense size, we’re apparently moving very, very quickly. Along the way, Kest gives me a short briefing on the Council, and how it offers representation to Dominars throughout the galaxy’s many regions.
Soon we reach the station’s central orb, and exit the tram into a small anteroom. Lined with cream-colored couches that look as comfortable as they are modern, the room is empty save for a series of displays. Briette rushes us past them, taking us straight to our destination: the Council chamber.
Shaped like a massive bowl, the chamber has seating for thousands. Surrounding a central podium in concentric rings, the seats span the color spectrum. However, right now only a small fraction of them are filled: a single group, located at the front of the podium in a specially separated section.
I count eighteen individuals as we get close; composed of both men and women, they’re all as perfect as Kest and Briette. Their dress would make Earth fashionistas collapse in pure bliss; impossibly chic, flattering, and unique, they look like a royal procession, from kings and queens to sultans and emperors. They watch us approach with an intensity that makes my bones tingle; there’s a disdain on their pursed lips, like they’ve been greatly inconvenienced by this whole ordeal.
Hey, at least you’re not prisoners.
Kest presses his finger to a panel on the podium; the Council members do the same. Lord knows how much knowledge has just passed between them, but it seems significant.
“Esteemed Councilors, thank you for answering my call for an emergency convention,” Kest begins in English. “I assure you, I would not have made the request were the need not immediate.”
“We understand,” says one of the Council members, a woman with bright pink coloring, from her skin to her short ombre hair.
“I thank you for speaking in Earth’s most common language, for the sake of our specimen,” Kest continues, indicating me. “We both appreciate the gesture.”
I nod deferentially, remaining quiet despite my repulsion at being called a specimen. Even Chadwick Thorpe’s attempt on my life was less insulting.
“I come before you today, far ahead of my scheduled return, with unfortunate findings. The planet Earth is on the verge of collapse. Environmental degradation, political instability, and social strife have all reached dangerous, unprecedented levels. I nearly ended my mission decades sooner, during a period of global conflict in which nuclear armaments were used, but the species recovered. However, I now fear the relative peace is coming to an end, and this time it will not return. Should the situation go unchecked much longer, I fear a total loss in our investment.”
Investment?
Is that how the Dominars see Earth, or is he referring to something else?
“What about the Conra Filter?” asks another Council member. “Have you calculated their chances of passing through?”
Kest nods. “I have,” he replies, voice grave. “It’s now less than twenty percent. I kept hoping for a reversal, but it’s declined steadily throughout the past half-century. And it was only fifty-five percent at its zenith.”
I have no idea what he’s talking about, but whatever it is, it can’t be good: the Council members shake their heads, scowling and blanching at the news.
Kest waits for them to process his findings, then concludes, “For this reason, I recommend an immediate planetary intervention, to guide Earth through its turbulent times and set it on a course for prolonged stability.”
The Council members turn inward, speaking among themselves.
Kest turns to me and flashes me a weak smile. “Speaking personally,” he continues after they quiet down. “I enjoyed much of my time on Earth, and would like to see it saved. It is my belief, and hope, that it can be accomplished with minimal human bloodshed.”
As soon as he says it, my stomach lurches, threatening to spill. Following his report has taken so much concentration that I never considered what ‘intervention’ would really mean, but now it clicks.
They’re talking about an invasion.