CHAPTER TWO

 

Married to not one but two aliens, Mindrin thought as she stepped back from the pashrondal stone. Her life had veered off into the inescapable gravity of a black hole. This morning she had woken up alone in her bunk. Tomorrow morning she would wake up in bed with these two males she’d not yet even spoken to directly. Because what happened after a wedding feast but the bedding?

Her stomach fluttered nervously, but she also couldn’t deny the way her core tightened and her pussy grew wet at the thought of being the focus of attention from two princes who looked as if they’d stepped straight from some private pleasure holovid.

Even her body’s reaction was crazy. One day she’d expected to find the right man, marry him, and live happily ever after. It was on her life’s To-Do list, along with creating a repair bot/toaster oven hybrid, and traveling backward through time. She’d expected to carefully plan out her ceremony, pick the most beautiful dress she could afford, have everything as perfect as she could manage while accounting for random bad luck and time and cost pressures. Nothing unique or extravagant. Simple. Heartfelt. Memorable.

Now she’d just married two alien princes in her work uniform. She was being watched, right now, by untold millions of planets. All those trillions of people believed she was actually someone named Lady Ishtali Shanel. And she’d been forced to do it all in the name of continuing galactic peace.

Her head began to swim, and she was breathing too fast, almost hyperventilating. If she didn’t get a hold of herself, she was going to fall over. With her current luck, she’d topple over the platform’s railing and drown in the water far below. She had to get out of here. Right now.

Despite her urgency, she felt as if she were floating as she walked back to her lift. There was nothing remotely pleasant about the sensation. She felt trapped in her own head, only along for the ride as she drifted back to the lift. Her hand still tingled from touching the pashrondal stone, and her heart seemed to be thudding against her chest like a hammer.

She stood there awkwardly as her two new mates, both of them watching her, descended on their lifts, heading down to their delegations in the understage area. She didn’t want them to see her have to fix the lift because that would raise uncomfortable questions…although she wasn’t sure why she was worried. It wasn’t as if all these people and cameras would miss seeing her pick up a scanner and begin repairing the lift. She was wearing her technician’s work uniform for the sake of the stars.

“Stay calm, Mindrin Zeras, we have techs repairing the lift now,” Dolzen’s voice sounded over her earpiece. Prince Valdur and Prince Tyal’s lifts had lowered out of sight and their hatches had closed, leaving her alone. Well, alone with a priest, at least a thousand strangers in the stands, who were all still watching her, and not to mention the untold numbers watching her over the subspace broadcasts. Oh stars, she was going to be sick. “That went better than I’d hoped, considering. You did a very brave thing.”

“I’m glad someone’s happy,” she replied. “Of course it wasn’t your life you just set on fire.”

“Fair enough. I’m told we’ll have the lift fixed in a few seconds. Relax for the moment.”

“All the meds in sick bay couldn’t help me relax right now. And if someone doesn’t get this lift working, I’m going to throw myself over the edge and hope for the best!”

The priest heard her and glanced her way. “Are you well, Lady Ishtali?”

She wasn’t even on the same moon as “well,” but she couldn’t exactly announce that now. If she’d had a jetpack, she would’ve rocketed off the platform and escaped through one of the channel flows where seawater rushed off the ledges and made the waterfalls the temple was famous for.

She tried a smile, painfully aware her every move was still being broadcast to the entire known universe. “I’m fine. A bit…overwhelmed at the moment.”

The understatement of the millennia.

The priest nodded kindly. “That is because you carry a sacred trust of hope and peace for the galaxy. But your spirit and your heart are enough to see this through. You will be happy, and that happiness will lift the hearts of untold millions.”

She almost laughed. She might have, if she hadn’t been choking at the moment. Or if she’d been certain that once she started laughing, she could stop before someone locked her away for a psych evaluation.

Instead she kept the smile frozen on her face. Dramatic instrumental music was still playing. Galactic news reporters shouted questions at her across the gulf separating the platform from the tiered seating. Most of the questions she caught revolved around the way she was dressed. She tried not to feel humiliated as she stood there, praying that one of her coworkers would hurry up and fix the cursed, minjee-loving lift. The void-cursed elevator lift that had exploded her life into a trillion flaming shards.

Without warning, the rails shot up around her, making her flinch and startling an undignified scream from her. The lift began to descend quickly. When the hatch finally closed above her, all the remaining strength seemed to rush out of her. She sat down on her butt with an “Oof” and had no desire to ever stand up again. Maybe she could be floated to medical on a hover stretcher. Then maybe she could steal a shuttle and escape to the outer galactic rim and join a pirate crew.

Her lift finished descending and settled into its dock in the understage area used by the Terras Alliance. A huge crowd of humans were there, forming an impenetrable wall. They were all staring at her. She began to blush as the lift railing lowered and she heaved herself back to her feet again. The only familiar faces she could see were Danzin and Teka’s, her coworkers who’d been busy working on the lift while she’d been busy being married. He gave her an “Oh shit” look that did nothing to calm her nerves. Teka gave her a hug, with tears in her eyes.

Front and center was a man in a military uniform, standing next to the real Lady Ishtali. None of them appeared happy. She had a hard time sympathizing. The silence in the room was so thick it felt choking, like smoke.

She licked her lips and tried to grin. “What? No congratulations?”

No one laughed. The man in the military uniform stepped toward her, along with a dozen or so security guards. His expression was dead serious. “I’m Commander Dolzen. Please come with me.”

The guards formed up around her the moment she stepped off the lift. She was hustled through the whispering crowd, into one of the service tunnels, and from there into one of the dozens of pump rooms located throughout this level of the temple. Most of the guards waited outside, while two of them took up positions at the door…almost as if stopping her from fleeing.

Administrator Merkan, who oversaw the Falling Water Temple and was her boss, entered the room. Along with him came the real Lady Ishtali and other people she thought might be aides. Commander Dolzen seemed to be in charge though.

Dolzen, a no-nonsense-looking man with graying hair and a short beard, ran a hand across his angular face. He walked to the machinery and electronics clustered around the clear ocean water pipes, each spanning three meters across. Mindrin wondered if she should apologize, especially to the bride she’d impersonated and stolen both husband from. Then again, she hadn’t asked for this insane catastrophe to happen. Someone should be apologizing to her.

“You said the vows, Mindrin,” Dolzen said, turning to look her right in the eyes. “But the Alliance can’t force you into this. Or I should say, we won’t. This is your choice, but I will not lie to you either. There is so much more than simply your happiness at stake here. I did not exaggerate when I said the continuing peace of the galaxy is on the line.”

She shook her head. “I didn’t activate that lift. There was a feedback loop in—”

Dolzen waved a dismissive hand. “We know. We’ve been briefed. Nothing you could’ve done. It was some kind of programming corruption from one of the GRX-D robots. That’s in the past. I’m only interested in what happens now. Now that you’ve said the vows on the pashrondal stone, both the mar’don and celestri empires will expect you to uphold them. Especially as you now represent the entire Terras Alliance.”

If she was the one responsible for representing the Terras Alliance, they were all screwed. “I don’t know much about this treaty. Or even politics in general. I focus on systems design and maintenance bots.”

Everyone stared at her as if she’d morphed into an alien right then herself, but she lifted her chin and glared back defiantly. Just because she found politics repulsive, illogical, and crazy, didn’t mean they could make her feel weird or self-conscious about it.

“I’ll give you the short and sweet version,” Dolzen said. She tried not to feel irked at the note of condescension that had seeped into his voice. “Seventy galactic-standard years ago, the mar’don empire and the celestri dominion were fighting a brutal war. The Terras Alliance was able to broker a peace treaty between them by having princes from both royal families marry a human woman, who was seen as the neutral party, the peacemaker, in other words. Most academics were skeptical, but the marriage worked and the treaty held. By all historical accounts, the three of them were wonderfully happy. Trade opened up. Galactic tourism flourished. Peace, love, and understanding spread across the systems. All because of three people and how they behaved toward one another.”

Mindrin was unable to keep from glancing at Ishtali. That was what she’d signed up for, the hope of peace and true love, like the first three had experienced together. Great. Now Mindrin felt guilty for taking that away from her, especially when she hadn’t been chasing it in the first place.

“Unfortunately,” Dolzen continued, “Lady Rikari passed away three years ago. In the time since, tensions have increased along the borders of both dominions. The current leaders of both empires have only heterosexual male heirs, so again there cannot be a direct marriage between mar’don and celestri. Delegates from both empires approached the Alliance about renewing the marriage to ensure stability. We happily agreed. And here we are.”

“So…Ishtali was specially chosen for this?” she asked quietly. She wondered all the trials and preparation this woman had gone through, only to have everything stolen away from her at literally the last minute. She suddenly felt an ache of deep sympathy for her. Mindrin wasn’t the only one whose world had imploded today.

“Yes. A specialized quantum supercomputer chose her out of trillions of possible human females.”

“Ishtali was the best woman in the galaxy for my…husbands?” Husbands. Stars, she was already referring to two alien males she didn’t know as her husbands. Her head might just explode any second now.

“According to the most powerful computer in the Alliance…yes.”

“If that’s the case, why didn’t you call the ceremony off once you knew she couldn’t reach the platform? Why didn’t you kill the power to the entire temple? Evacuate it? I don’t know. Anything.”

“That’s a very good question. Unfortunately, no one imagined this happening. We were all caught off guard. Everything about Ishtali has been kept highly secret from the time she was chosen to the moment she arrived in the understage area, ready to ascend for the ceremony, and security had been flawless. Remember, this entire elaborate even was spelled out in exacting detail per the original Andurian Accords. Both princes had to see their bride at the same time. Both would learn her name, given by a priest. Neither was allowed to leave the platform until the vows were sworn. The priest didn’t know what Ishtali looked like, the media didn’t know, and remained a mystery to the public. So if we had delayed the ceremony, there was an unacceptable chance at destroying the treaty and sowing distrust between all three civilizations. If the peace accords do not stand, I’m afraid we face the very real chance of war in the future. These three-way bindings are immensely popular with both the nobles and the public, but they serve a more basic purpose. They help keep the cultures together, promoting understanding and acceptance. Nothing is more important to the Terras Alliance than peace and prosperity for all races in the universe. Now, through no fault of you own, you are vital to that as well.”

The weight on her shoulders was crushing. But she still turned to Ishtali and held her gaze. “I’m sorry,” she said, and meant it.

Ishtali nodded. “I know you didn’t mean for this to happen. I really do.” A tight smile crossed her lips. “But if I’m perfectly honest, part of me wants to strangle you anyway.”

“Why be honest now?” Mindrin shot back. “I have to pretend to be Lady Ishtali Shanel for the rest of my life…or for however long this insanity goes on. Who I was, everything about me, is going to vanish. All my friends and family might as well have just died. I think both of us are getting screwed.”

The other woman snorted. “Maybe. But you’re the one who’s going to enjoy it. Especially tonight.”

That sudden change in subject caught her completely off guard. “What do you mean?” Although as soon as the words left her lips, she realized how foolish and naive they sounded.

Commander Dolzen winced and cleared his throat. “There are rumors both princes are quite virile lovers. Part of Ishtali’s…training, I suppose one might say, was in how to keep pace with them.”

Mindrin felt her cheeks begin to flame. She’d been so focused on all the other crazy things happening to her so fast that she’d momentarily forgotten that after tonight’s feast she would be sharing a bed with her new husbands. She wasn’t exactly kinky or very adventurous, and the wildest fling she’d ever indulged was a scorching-hot week spent on the Ios Von space station with a Terras fighter pilot. She’d enjoyed every hour of the blazing hot sex, but they’d gone their separate ways. And even though she thought fondly of him from time to time, she hadn’t exactly wanted to marry him. Now she had to please two virile husbands at once? Stealing a shuttle was sounding better and better.

“But what about Ishtali?” she persisted. “What happens to her now?” She’d just ruined this woman’s life. The guilt would probably haunt her forever.

“Ishtali will be generously taken care of by the Terras Alliance. Trust me, she will want for nothing.”

That was a bit of a relief. She glanced at Ishtali again, but the woman’s expression was hard to read, so Mindrin had difficulty gauging exactly how upset she was. Because if Ishtali had been looking forward to marrying into royalty, she was probably going to send an assassin robot after Mindrin as soon as they left this room.

Marrying royalty… Mindrin had just married into royalty. A nobody tech from a plain, boring background who’d been perfectly happy with her job fixing stuff and working with robots. She had zero idea how royals were expected to behave, and she had zero time to learn…

“So what happens now?” Mindrin asked quietly. A dim, ever-shrinking part of her still expected to wake up at any moment and this dream-nightmare-craziness would disappear.

“Hopefully, we move forward. We prepare you for tonight. Should everything go as planned, the terms of the accords will be fulfilled by tomorrow at dawn. You begin a new life with no one the wiser. Or at least with no one able to endanger the peace accords.”

“What about all the people here who know who I am? The people I work with? This charade isn’t going to last an hour, much less until tomorrow morning.”

Her boss, Administrator Merkan, finally spoke up. “The Terras Alliance is being very, very generous to the Falling Water Temple and to each and every worker here in return for their aid in keeping this out of the media.”

At least her coworkers would get something out of this insanity as well. Although they weren’t the ones who’d just watched their lives evaporate in the name of galactic stability.

“We’re handling everything,” Commander Dolzen assured her. “Including assuring the temple staff and your coworkers keep the secret. Once the final parts of the ceremony are complete—the feast and…um, certain physical intimacies, I mean—you’ll be moving into the palace on Tritona, a neutral planet under joint jurisdiction of all three governments.”

“Even if everyone here keeps quiet,” she said, “this won’t stay secret forever.”

“Secrets never do,” he replied. “We just need time to smooth things over. Make sure that when this gets out, it doesn’t destroy the peace accords. Leave those worries to us. That’s our job.”

“My family—”

“I promise. Once the dust settles, you will be able to see them again. We just need you to help buy us time to make this work.” He met her gaze. “Now that you know everything, will you help us?”

When it came right down to it, what choice did she have? She couldn’t be so selfish as to put the galaxy on the path to war. How could she live with herself after that? And this couldn’t be all bad, could it? Did being married to dual princes suddenly make her a super princess? That might be fun. Although pretending to be someone she wasn’t would get old fast. And leaving her family and friends behind… How could she endure that? Even though he promised she’d be able to see them again, did she trust him? She wouldn’t have to work another day in her life, although she’d miss the Falling Water Temple. But she had no idea what she would do with her life, now that she had been hurled into the middle of a political crisis with all these complications and intrigue.

Everyone in the room was watching her in silence. The pressure on her was so intense she felt like she might implode.

She took a deep breath. “I said I would, and I will.”

Relief crossed on every face…except Ishtali’s. Her face was still grim and her eyes still sharp. Mindrin knew she hadn’t made a friend today, but she couldn’t exactly blame the woman for hating her guts.

“I’m glad to hear it,” Commander Dolzen said. “Because you have a lot to learn before the feast tonight if we’re going to pull this off. This feast is a mar’don tradition, and is an important way for them to honor the peace accords. Luckily, that tradition gives us a little time. After saying mating vows, a mar’don warrior is expected to cleanse his mind and soul of any other love and commitments that may come between him and his new bride. That’s the reason the three of you are not together at the moment, but that works out perfectly for us.”

She nodded, the stress and tension returning stronger than ever. From here on out, she could kiss her freedom good-bye. She would be some kind of pampered bird in a cage. But this was far bigger than her needs and wants, she had to keep remembering that.

She had no choice but to kiss her old life good-bye…

 

* * *

 

Valdur made certain he was the first to arrive at their suite of rooms near the top of the temple. He needed to check the rooms and ensure they were safe and secure for his two mates. One of the primary duties of a mar’don male was to protect those dear to him at all costs.

He left his bodyguards and attendants behind in the hall corridor. The bodyguards were mostly a formality anyway. All mar’don nobles were tested warriors, skilled with a variety of weapons, and he was no different. Besides, the attendants annoyed him at the best of times. He disliked having servants fluttering about, fetching things and eagerly hovering, waiting for commands. Right now he wanted peace and a moment to himself.

The first thing he’d done after stepping off the lift had been to buckle on his weapons again. He didn’t like to be without his kardev blade for long. Although he was skilled at unarmed combat, the blade was symbolic in addition to being practical. He needed it with him as he performed the cleansing ceremony before the feast.

Carefully, he walked the grand suite that had been prepared for their stay. He kept one hand on the hilt of his blade, his eyes scanning for hidden threats. He stalked through the rooms, searching for threats or spies and found nothing. Eventually he was satisfied the rooms were safe enough for his mates, as long as he was present.

The temple suite was suitably impressive in size and luxury, although by now he wasn’t surprised that water played a central role in the room’s design. The central feature of the rooms was a large fountain. The salt water didn’t jet upward but was pumped over from the top to run in cascading waterfalls along the artful sculpture. The sound of falling water was musical and soothing. The water filled a wide basin, and then poured over the side into a larger pool. From there, the water flowed into four channels, similar to what had been on the amphitheater platform where he’d just be wed. The channels carried the water in four different directions, out onto four different balconies. From there, the water rushed over the sides of the temple. Aquariums with exotic sea life filled the walls. Fancy crystal lamps, expensive derevahna floor patterns, and ocean colors made up much of the décor.

He did not require luxury rooms in order to be content, but he hoped Ishtali enjoyed it. The sound of falling water created a soothing atmosphere that would help him meditate and might help with some of her stress.

Behind him, the suite’s main doors swung open. Valdur whirled around, reaching for his blade. He relaxed when Prince Tyal stepped inside, still wearing his overly fancy clothing. The celestri loved to wear extravagant clothing and expensive baubles. Mar’don had little time for such nonsense, but Valdur held his tongue. He needed to cultivate patience for the ways of his new mates. It was one of the things he would be focused on during his cleansing ceremony before the feast, and after, when intimacy would be the culmination of their binding.

Tyal spotted him and bowed. A smile haunted his lips. Valdur didn’t know if he had come to trust that smile yet. Another thing about the celestri and the humans: they both smiled far too often to be healthy.

“It is good to see you, Valdur,” Tyal said, his smile widening. “I hoped to catch you before you began the diaser ritual. I’m surprised to find you here. I thought you’d prefer to be outside for the meditation.”

Valdur folded his arms and grunted. It seemed Tyal had done at least a little homework if he knew the name of the mar’don ritual, or more likely, he had efficient aides who fed him the information he needed. “I needed to make certain our rooms are secure. Ishtali’s fate is in our hands. My sacred word means my mate must be protected at all times.”

Tyal nodded. “I agree wholeheartedly.” Then his expression became amused. “Tell me, am I included in your protective urges, mate?”

Valdur eyed him, wondering what he was getting at. “You are included. Those were the vows. I will stand beside you, keep your secrets, and guard your back.”

The sincerity of his words seemed to throw the celestri prince off balance somewhat, but he recovered almost immediately and with an enviable grace. “The same goes for me.” He thrust his arm toward Valdur, his palm open and empty. Valdur clasped Tyal’s forearm in the traditional greeting between warriors. His respect for Tyal grew.

After the greeting, Tyal moved to stand beside the fountain. He stared at the flowing water and the waving fronts of the brightly colored sea plants. “What do you think of our human bride? I found her most attractive…but strange.”

Valdur frowned at him, waiting for him to elaborate before he decided to agree or disagree.

Tyal didn’t make him wait long. “Did you find her clothing odd?”

He snorted. “I find much odd about humans. Celestri as well.”

“Fair enough,” Tyal replied with a laugh. “But I know for a certainty that is not traditional wedding garb for any Terras star systems I’ve ever heard of.”

Valdur hated word games. When something needed to be said, he came out and said it. “Either speak plainly or keep whatever you’re implying to yourself. I prefer blunt talk.”

Tyal cocked his head to the side and gave him a piercing look. “Our human mate was wearing the uniform of a technician from this temple. I know, because I noticed. Strange for someone with the title of ‘lady,’ is it not?”

“No. It’s not.”

That seemed to catch the celestri off guard. “Perhaps you care to explain yourself?”

“Part of the legend around the marriage of Prince Zagar, Prince Sygen, and Lady Rikari was how the Terras Alliance used their most advanced supercomputers to match the perfect human female to the princes. I don’t trust computers, but the humans certainly do.”

Tyal’s expression turned thoughtful. “I’d heard a supercomputer was involved in choosing Lady Rikari, but wasn’t certain of the extent. It would be a monumental challenge matching a female to one male of another culture, species, and world, much less two. So you’re suggesting their computers found the best female working at the Falling Water Temple, and that’s why they suggested the ceremony be held here… Interesting.”

“I don’t see why it matters to us now. Lady Rikari wasn’t of royal blood either, but making the bond as strong as possible to solidify the peace was all that mattered. The depth of the bond between them is well known.”

“That bond was often spoken about with pride and envy by members of the celestri court,” Tyal said, nodding slowly. “So the humans bet on love again. And yet it worked in the past, despite the odds.” He smiled again. “The bravery of the mar’don is well known, but I must admit you’ve impressed me with the clarity of your thinking.”

Valdur shrugged his big shoulders. It would be weak to admit Tyal’s words had pleased him, even though they had. “Our duty is to ensure the continued peace.”

“That is one way to look at it. But I intend to enjoy this as well, because life is too short not to enjoy our time here.” Tyal moved to one of the big aquariums and stared at one of the strangely shaped fish circling inside. “I find myself quite intrigued by our mysterious bride. She seemed so frightened. So unsure of herself.”

“Perhaps she is not used to half the galaxy staring at her.” The sharpness in his tone surprised him, but he felt the need to defend her. He wouldn’t mention his earlier concern that his new bride wasn’t as fearless as he preferred. But if that were the case, it was even more important that he protect and support her, that he be her strength.

“You seem to have all the answers, my friend,” Tyal said, again sounding amused. “I’m merely curious, because the human was always the x-factor in this equation, and I cannot resist a mystery.” He walked back to the fountain, reached out and let the water run over his hand. “There are still many unanswered questions. I simply hope none of those questions endanger the peace accords we all sacrificed so much for.”

“If we are true to her, she will be true to us,” Valdur said as he headed toward the nearest balcony. He always preferred to meditate outside, in the fresh air, whenever possible. “Now, I must begin diaser ritual in preparation for the feast.”

Tyal bowed. “I look forward to seeing you and Lady Ishtali at the feast. This promises to be a most interesting night.”

With that, he turned and left again. Valdur was left to gather his thoughts, focus on his duty, and clear away any entanglements of the past, romantic or otherwise, that might come between him and fulfilling his obligations to the empire.