Chapter Three
My jail cell was a very nice room. There was a large, soft bed on top of a soft carpet. The walls had screens on the panel that I could program to be anything I wanted, a scenic mountain top, a beach or my personal favorite, the stars outside. I had my own bathroom and a closet full of clothes in the Dolcivs style.
I fell onto the bed, unsure of what else to do. If this was a trap, it was a hell of a strange one. No torture, no questioning, just an offer and a nice room. I wasn’t sure how to fight it. Strath hadn’t asked me anything. He had just given me orders. He hadn’t done anything, but already I was terrified of displeasing him.
I slept fitfully and was awakened by a guard after only a few hours. Strath wanted to see me for breakfast. I showered and dressed. The only clothes available to me were long Dolcivs togas. I picked a simple black one and wrapped it around myself. It was cut for a human my size, the soft fabric falling down my body to graze the floor. When I was ready, I was led back down the hallway to Strath’s quarters.
I needed to keep my wits about me. Strath wasn’t a violent or angry man. He wasn’t interested in torture, only information. I needed to be smart about this. I needed to give him just enough information to keep myself alive without giving so much away that it would ruin my career. It was a dangerous balance and even one small mistake could send me to my death.
The door to his bedroom was made of a dark, ancient wood. Brought from his ancestral home no doubt. My stomach clenched as I stood before it. In some strange way, the informality of our conversations was worse than interrogation. I didn’t know where I stood with Strath, I never knew what he might be thinking or planning.
His bedroom was brightly lit from one of the screens. I watched as this system’s pale, dying sun appeared on the horizon of the nameless gas giant. In the bright light, I could see the room in more detail. In addition to the great bed, there was a small table with a few chairs and a large desk in one corner where he worked.
Two Dolcivs women and one curvy raven-haired human woman slept in a pile on the bed. Their limbs were tangled up with each other. Their naked flesh pale against dark sheets. They were all still sleeping deeply and I could guess what had made them so tired.
It took me a moment to find Strath. He was sipping coffee on the same couch I had seen him on last night. There was a pad in one hand and he was quietly reviewing something.
“Come here,” he commanded without looking around.
I moved passed the great bed and trio of sleeping beauties. I noticed one of the Dolcivs women was awake. Her body remained still, but her eyes followed my progress through the room.
“My Lord,” I said, as I stood before him.
“Andromeda, did you sleep well last night?”
“Very well, thank you, My Lord.” Behind us, the human woman sat up and stretched, her buxom breasts moving freely. She stood up and unabashedly walked naked across the room. She was beautiful, her skin clear, her body tight and toned. I couldn’t help but stare at her.
“Do you like what you see?” Strath asked me. His voice was low and sultry and I could not look him in the eye. I shook my head, my eyes glued to the floor. “I thought I told you not to lie to me,” he said. A long awkward moment passed between us. He was watching me, trying to figure out from my expression what I was thinking.
“Come, sit, eat. They won’t bother you,” he said waving to the women behind him.
I sat down next to him. The Dolcivs were well known for their appetites and I could not resist a meal. The moment I sat down, several servants entered the room. They were all women and they were all naked from the waist up. I did my best not to stare.
Humans and Dolcivs had a shared ancestor. According to Dolcivs legend, an ancient race of aliens had found earth, with its simple hunter-gatherer humans. They took a large group of them to work as slaves on their ships and after a millennium of slavery, the Dolcivs rebelled. They killed all of their masters and had taken over the planet. No one had seen that ancient race in a millennium.
Dolcivs were cousins to humans. We could interbreed, there were children born of Dolcivs mothers and human fathers, but they were rare. Some Dolcivs men preferred human women and it looked like Strath was one of them.
The servants placed a huge bounty in front of me. Eggs, cured meats and fruits, everything was ripe and fresh. I imaged most were grown here on the ship, but I knew that Strath had several planets under his dominion where he could grow whatever he wanted.
“I have learned a little about you, Andromeda,” he said. “A human orphan born to a mother in a Regime jail. She had been caught trafficking in stolen weapons. Put to death the day after you were born. But what has happened to you since? After the age of six, you disappeared from Regime records. Where did you go at such a young age?”
“I was picked up by a band of humans traveling past the school where the Regime kept us. These people did not believe that human children should be raised by the Regime. So they liberated us.”
He chuckled quietly. “How I love your human words. Liberated. How powerful a word.”
“I was taken in by a couple who worked trading routes. As I got older I started taking more and more jobs on my own. I got my ship and everything was going smoothly, until this most recent development,” I said.
There was a lot left unsaid. I did not mention the fact that I was raised in the rebellion. Humans in the rebellion made a habit of reclaiming human children taken by the Dolcivs and raising them in the human way. The rebellion had trained me to fight, hide and steal from a young age. Smuggling was my cover, but my real work was with the rebellion.
“Have you ever been to Earth?”
“Yes, Sir, many times. It is the most beautiful place in all existence.” I could still see the rebel stronghold where I had been raised. It was tucked far back in the mountains. I awoke every morning to the sound of crickets in the air and the wind blowing through my hair. I missed Earth dearly.
“To me, it is the same with the Dolcivs home world. I miss it every day and it is a great sadness to know that I can only return there as a fugitive or a captive. This war has cost both sides a great deal.”
It was little comments like that, that made me question Strath. His love of human words and our arts and culture. His love of human women. That could be a weakness. He clearly had no sympathy or connection to his own people. Maybe there was some way I could bring him over to my side.
“I’ve torn your ship apart,” he said and I winced at the thought of my baby lying in the hangar in pieces. “The interior,” he continued. “It’s too good of a ship to junk. I believe my men have found most of your hiding places. Some of them are quite good. We’ve found five, how many are there?”
He was looking directly at me with a direct question. He would know if I was lying.
“There are ten hiding spots on the ship, Sir,” I answered.
He sat back, clearly impressed. “I shall tell my men to keep looking. This will be a good exercise for them.
“How many ships full of lumber did you move from the planet F454454?” Strath asked.
“Seven,” I replied. He looked less pleased at that. He shook his head in dismay and disgust. It wasn’t easy for him to hear exactly how much had been stolen from him. I focused on remaining as still as possible, answering as simply as I could.
Behind me, the three women began to move. I could hear the rustling of sheets as they stood and stretched. From the corner of my eye, I could see the Dolcivs women kissing each other, playing with their hair and giggling at some joke between them.
“This has been helpful. I’m sure it will be the beginning of many fruitful conversations between us. I’m having a gathering tomorrow, The Festival of Salt and Sea. It shall be a grand celebration. Have you ever been to a Dolcivs festival?”
“No, My Lord.”
“Then this shall be eye-opening. I will have a dress brought to your room. You should go and rest, for the celebration of Salt and Sea is a long one. You will need your strength.”