Octavia was stewing in her tent all night and until the next morning when she woke up, still angry. She heard the sound of Dan outside her tent entrance and she grunted in the cold, moving around inside her sleeping bag to open the door.

“What is it?” she groaned, her breath puffing out in front of her as the cold air blew into her tent.

“You need to see this,” he said, his voice full of concern. He held out a big plastic square that had writing and drawing on it. She realized it was something like blueprints, except when Dan flicked part of the paper, it became holographic and three-dimensional.

“What is that?” she asked, her voice still horse and heavy.

“These are the Draconian plans for New York City,” Dan said.

Octavia looked more closely at the three-dimensional plans. The buildings were nondescript industrial blocks. They looked like prisons or tenements. There was no variety. No streets. No parks. Just rows and rows of these industrial blocks that went on for miles.

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” she said. “This is how they plan to redesign New York City?”

“I guess these are typical Draconian colonial housing. Which kind of makes sense. Seems we’re being colonized.”

“They expect us to live in these cell blocks?”

“There will be hot running water and food replicators, so everyone will be clean and well fed. It’s something. Better than what we have going on now.”

“This is unacceptable, Dan. We could’ve done something better than this.”

“I don’t know, Octavia. We don’t have any resources. We would’ve been nailing together salvaged materials from the wreckage. Who knows how long it would’ve taken us to even get running water?”

“Seriously, Dan?”

“I know it isn’t ideal. We were all hoping for more, some fantasy utopia. But this is reality. We have to take what we can get.”

“Maybe you have to take what you can get, but I’m not settling for this. I intend to give those Draconian assholes a piece of my mind. The world might’ve been screwed up before they arrived, but they’ve completely destroyed it now. If they want to breed with our women, then they can at least rebuild our cities in a way that’s suitable for human beings.”

“What are you going to do?” Dan asked, scratching his red beard.

“I haven’t decided yet. But I’m not to sit around here and do nothing. Can I borrow your car again?”

“Sure, what do you need it for?”

“Going back down to the consulate to yell at them until they listen to me.”

“I’m not sure that’s such a good idea,” he said, handing her the keys.

“Fine. I don’t care. Thanks for the keys.”

She brushed past him out of the tent and hurried toward the parking lot where his truck was parked. She wasn’t going to let the Draconians get away with this. Humans couldn’t live in cellblocks.

The worst part was that they intended to build right over Central Park. Not only were they going to give humans prison-like housing, they intended to destroy the one good thing left in the entire city.

Octavia screeched out of the parking lot and sped all the way to the consulate, where she hastily parked and ran up the front steps of the building. Inside, the same smug secretary sat at his desk. He looked up at her with a smile.

“Are you here to enter the mating lottery?” he asked.

“I’m here to speak with whomever is responsible for these designs,” she said, slapping the blueprint down on the desk in front of the secretary’s face.

“That would be the grand architect, Joss Noro. He arrived yesterday from Draconia. It is such an honor to have him here. He was sent directly by the president himself.”

“How long have you been on this planet?”

“I’ve been here since the mating armada arrived six years ago,” he said.

“And in all that time have you seen a single human city that looked anything like this?”

The secretary looked down at the blueprints and frowned. “No. But I’m sure the grand architect knows what he’s doing.”

“Are you kidding me?”

“Draconians respect their experts. We defer to their greater knowledge and skill. It is our custom. It is the reason we have survived for so many millions of years. Our society functions. Unlike yours.”

“Our society functioned just fine before you assholes arrived and ruined it,” she snapped.

“I apologize. We did interfere with a species at an inappropriate stage in your development. It was wrong, and we are committed to reparations. I will take your concern to my superior officer.”

“I want to speak to this Joss Noro guy myself,” she said, crossing her arms. She didn’t intend to leave until she got what she was asking for.

“That’s impossible. Grand Architect Noro does not take meetings with humans.”

“Is there any way that I could see this guy?”

“Perhaps if you are mated with a local Draconian on the civilian crew, you might see him socially. But the odds of that are…”

“So you’re saying the only way that I can talk to your grand architect is to enter the mating lottery and be mated with a local Draconian?” she asked sarcastically.

When she first said the words, it was because the idea was crazy. As soon as the words left her lips, she realized that if she was going to save her city from those ridiculous plans, she would have to enter the mating lottery. It was the only chance she had to convince this Joss Noro guy that his plans were all wrong.

“Yes. But there is no guarantee that you would ever have any interaction with the grand architect,” he said.

“But I would be mated with a Draconian. And you guys do talk to each other, right?”

“Yes.”

“Fine. Sign me up.”

“Miss, I can’t guarantee you that you will ever speak with Joss Noro. As soon as you provide me with your DNA, you will be obligated to take a Draconian as your mate. As soon as the computer identifies your mate, it will activate the male’s mating impulse. That impulse will become stronger and stronger until he claims you. If he is unable to claim his mate, he will eventually lose his mind. We Draconians consider this extremely sensitive, and we will not allow you to run away from your responsibility. You will be mated if you are matched. Do you understand?” His words were almost threatening, and she didn’t like his tone.

She met his intense stare with her own and crossed her arms over her chest, daring him to question her or threaten her more.

“I understand. I’m willing to put myself into this position just for the off chance that I can convince your idiot architect that this is not the way that humans are supposed to live. We’ve been through too much. It is about damn time that you Draconians started listening to us. Do you understand?”

“Have it your way. Please rub this swab on the inside of your cheek, and I will enter your DNA into the system. It will only take a moment to know if you are matched to any of the males in our database. If you are matched, you will be sent to your male immediately. If you are not matched, I ask that you leave the consulate and not return.”

She yanked the swab out of his hand and rubbed it on the inside of her cheek. When she was done, she thrust it into his face. He took the swab and put it into an open spot on the desk. It closed up and the swab disappeared. He hit a few spots on his holographic computer screen, his face unchanged. A moment later, he frowned and sat back in his chair, shaking his head.

“What?” she asked, tapping her foot and crossing her arms more tightly over her chest.

He looked up at her, still frowning. He leaned forward and rubbed his chin.

“This must be a mistake,” he said.

“Oh, so your advanced computers make mistakes?” she mocked.

“No. Never. It’s just…” He took a deep breath. “You’ve been matched with Joss Noro, the Grand Architect of Draconia.”