Finn
Athena refused to be left behind at the school when I went to the Gray Mansion early in the morning. “I want to help,” she insisted. Even though I wasn’t really sure what she could do, it suited me fine since I didn’t feel comfortable leaving her out of my sight.
“Thank Mother Nature that you’re here,” Pearl exclaimed when I introduced Athena to her. “This room is packed with wolves, and your wisdom and peacemaking skills are a welcome reinforcement to this group.”
“I’m so pleased to meet you again,” Athena said and bowed her head to Pearl. “When we passed each other at the border I was burdened over you taking my place as a hostage.”
Pearl took Athena’s hands and gave her a warm smile. “It worked out well in the end.” Her eyes drifted to me and back to Athena. “I see that you and Finn made friends despite his role in the whole affair.”
Athena’s smile was soft. “Forgive your enemy and all that.”
“Yes, I know what you mean,” Pearl said and shot a glance in Khan’s direction.
The two women’s bubble of budding friendship was rudely broken when Magni pointed to Athena. “She can’t be in here.” Magni swung his head to give me a blame-filled glance. “It’s enough that Pearl gets a say. Why did you have to bring her?”
“I’m only here to help,” Athena angled her head. “Whatever is decided in this room will have consequences for the rest of the world.”
“But you’re on their side,” Magni accused her. “It’s like inviting a spy to sit at our table.”
“I’m not a spy, and the only side I am on is the side of humanity.”
“Yeah, yeah, spare me your pacifistic bullshit,” he retorted. “You can’t be in here, end of story.”
“Don’t talk to her that way,” I said and stepped in front of Magni with a hard stare. “Athena is under my protection and you will be nice to her.”
It was a rare occasion when I reprimanded Magni, and he had never been good at receiving criticism. Turning to Khan he sputtered, “Aren’t you going to say anything? Since when do we invite women to have an opinion on anything? They don’t understand the ways of our culture.”
Khan stood at the end of the table with a stern and thoughtful expression on his face. “True, but they understand the culture of the Motherlands, which gives us inside information that can be useful.”
“What the hell is this?” Magni threw his hands in the air and snorted. “Bring your wife to work day?”
Instead of getting offended, Pearl tilted her head and smiled at him. “I like how you think.” In a quick movement, she got up and left the room.
“Where the fuck is she going?” Magni rubbed his face with frustration and muttered low. “She’d better not be doing what I think she’s doing.”
His deep groan when Pearl returned with Laura confirmed that Pearl had done exactly what he didn’t want her to do.
“Is it true?” Laura was looking at Magni with skepticism. “Pearl said that you wanted me here.”
His chest rose in the deep intake of air before he exhaled, and opened his mouth to speak. “Actually…”
“Let’s get the meeting started,” Khan interrupted. “And just so we’re clear, I make all final decisions. You’re all here as advisers, nothing more and nothing less.”
We all sat down. Pearl was on Khan’s right side, Magni on his left, followed by Alexander Boulder, Athena, me, and Laura, who sat between me and Pearl.
“The Council of the Motherlands has officially requested our help in keeping people away from the border. They estimate they can have the border repaired within four to six weeks. I have made them aware that I’ll need a long list of reasons why we should help them instead of taking what has been denied us for centuries.
“Pearl has advised them to take our demands seriously, and not underestimate the desperation of our men.”
Magni leaned in, his eyes burning. “And I have advised you to take the fucking chance and go for it. We’ve been waiting for something like this to happen. Our father would’ve already been gathering our forces, and going for the kill.”
“True.” Khan was surprisingly calm, “but our father hadn’t begun the integration process like we have. There’s a reason I’m a better chess player than you are, brother. You think with your emotions, and you let yourself be blinded by your pride and desire for immediate results.”
“Because I’m fucking good at getting immediate results,” Magni grunted.
“Yes, well, the difference between us at this point is that I am willing to lure the Motherlands to me with patience, by taming them and earning their trust, while you are ready to rape them into submission.”
Magni banged his fist down on the table, his neck and cheeks red with fury. “I’ve never raped a woman in my life.” He was stabbing his finger at Khan. “There’s nothing wrong with women being submissive, and maybe it’s time you remember that real men take what they want. They don’t fucking ask for permission.”
“Calm down, will you?” Boulder said. “Nobody wants to go to war, and you know damn well that while you might not be a rapist, we’ve got about one million men out there who are desperate to be with a woman. You really want to set them loose on the Motherlands?”
“They are desperate because we’ve been forced to live like this by the she-devils who run the world,” Magni hissed.
Athena sat pale and shocked.
“You are right.” Khan was looking straight at Magni while leaning back and crossing his arms. “And you speak for our people. I have no doubt that if I asked random Nmen, they would tell me the same thing. But don’t forget that until yesterday, Laura was in the Motherlands too. Let’s pretend, for one second, that Laura was still in the Motherlands and you didn’t know where. If I gave the order to invade, would you still trust your fellow countrymen not to hurt her?” Magni’s fist tightened and his jaw hardened.
“Hmm,” Khan said. “And let’s not forget all the little Milas who would be tempting to the sickos. I wonder if a girl her size would even survive being raped by a large Nman.”
Magni stiffened like a gargoyle, and with his eyes narrowed he gave Khan a low warning growl.
“Yes,” Khan said and raised his eyebrows while drawing in a deep breath. “It changes everything when it’s not some faceless she-devils that will be hurt, but someone you love, doesn’t it?”
“Should we focus on the list?” Pearl suggested in a soft tone. With a slight nod from Magni, we went to work.
Almost an hour we discussed it back and forth, and the list kept growing.
“Be reasonable,” Pearl said at some point. “Even if they accept putting men on the Council, it will take at least eight years before one can be appointed.”
“One?” Boulder scowled. “We said fifty. We want half of the seats in that Council.”
“What Pearl is trying to explain to you,” Athena said gently, “is that Council members are selected as children. What you can ask for is that boys be selected too, and then eventually some of those boys will be chosen for the Council when they reach maturity.”
“Okay, but we want the same amount of boys as girls,” Boulder demanded.
Pearl leaned toward Khan and lowered her voice. “You want to go high to low on this one.”
He nodded.
This wasn’t the first time the two of them seemed to have their own secret language, and I was curious. “What are you two talking about when you whisper about high to low and low to high, or what was it you said before?” I tried to remember. “Something about reciprocation.”
“It’s nothing, we’re just discussing what strategy to use in the negotiations.”
I raised an eyebrow. “And?”
“Well, in this case I’m recommending that Khan starts out with an unrealistic high demand, which the Council of course will refuse.”
Khan nodded. “I’ll tell them that I want seventy-five percent males in the Council by the end of this year to balance out all the years that men have been denied power, and I’ll shock them by insisting that half of those men have to be Northlanders.”
“The Council is going to explain to Khan how the democratic system works and how his demands are unrealistic. It’s going to look like Khan is compromising when he agrees to the men being only Motlander men that will be chosen as children. And he’ll settle for twenty-five percent males within the next ten years,” Pearl added.
Khan scratched his cheek and looked at me. “Which is a pretty good start, wouldn’t you say?”
“Yeah, for sure, but what about low to high?” I asked.
“We’re going to use that tactic when it comes to Nmen being allowed to live in the Motherlands. We’re asking for a modest number to begin with, simply because the thought of giving permanent residency to Nmen is going to freak out the Council members. We’ll start out by saying that this year ten men should be allowed to move to the Motherlands.”
I smiled, because that suggestion had been mine. Athena had made it clear to me that she couldn’t leave the Motherlands so my only chance of being with her was to move there. “Don’t forget that those men should be allowed to consume alcohol and meat,” I said.
Khan nodded. “Once they accept that idea, the door is opened for men to live there, and we can increase the numbers over the next years. I’m thinking ten the first year, ninety the second year. Two hundred the third year, three hundred the fourth, and four hundred the fifth year.”
Pearl nodded. “At least this way we can do a background check and pick out the men who qualify to live among the women,” she said. “And the reciprocation part is just playing with psychology. We’ll give them something they want badly, just before we ask for what we want. It’ll make it harder for them to refuse since we have already been generous.”
“I swear.” I pointed to Khan and Pearl with a grin. “You two are so alike that it’s scary. Do you ever say anything without having an agenda?”
They smiled at each other and something passed between them, too private to share.
“There is no way the Motherlands can give you everything on that list,” Laura pointed out and moved in her seat.
“They’d better, if they don’t want us to invade,” Magni stated.
“I’m sorry to break this to you,” Laura said and looked straight at him. “But the women in the Motherlands aren’t submissive by nature, and they’ll have no problem standing up to you.” The way she raised her chin with defiance had me almost gaping. Before Laura ran away to the Motherlands, she had been a prime example of a quiet, sweet, submissive Northlander wife. The woman who had returned was showing teeth.
Magni’s scowl deepened and he leaned across the table, pinning her with his eyes. “Don’t worry, honey, I love a good challenge.” The air was sizzling with electricity and Athena looked at me with large eyes, expressing concern.
I knew Laura had practiced martial arts in the Motherlands and that she was stronger and more confident than ever, but provoking the best warrior in the world was never wise. Especially when that warrior had a lot of built-up anger toward her.
“Ahem.” Clearing his throat, Khan brought the attention back to him. “Okay, let me summarize the top priorities on my list then.” He read from the list that hung projected above the table for everyone to see.
“1: Complete equality on the Council of the Motherlands within the next ten years. If we land on twenty-five percent that’s a good start.
“2: Permanent residency in the Motherlands for one thousand Nmen over the next five years.”
“Remember the meat and alcohol,” I interjected.
Khan looked at me, signaling that he had heard me, before he moved on.
“3: Free entry to the Northlands for every female who wishes to live here.”
“Yes,” Pearl nodded her head. “This is where you should be willing to compromise. The Council is going to want the women to have rights. Tell them that you’re willing to let the women work, and that they will be allowed to choose their own partners.”
“I still say we should have tournaments,” Magni exclaimed, but Pearl ignored him.
“Offer to create a system where every male looking for a female can register. That way the women can make an informed choice.”
“That would never work,” Magni objected. “What if the women choose some weaklings that can’t protect them? With tournaments, at least we know that the husband is strong and capable.”
Athena coughed.
“What?” Magni asked her as if she had argued against him.
“Nothing, I’m just excited that the Motlander women might nurture some of the less violent traits in you Nmen. It should be interesting to see the men impress women with more than just their muscles.”
Magni narrowed his eyes. “Yeah, I’m sure you’d like to see us write love poems and jump around and do ballet and shit, but if I were you, I wouldn’t hold my breath.”
“Love poems sound nice,” Laura said. “An Nman expressing his feelings would be very refreshing.”
Magni’s foot was tapping under the table and he looked like he wanted to drag Laura to their room and discipline her for speaking against him.
“What about the males that are looking for a male?” Athena asked, resulting in all heads turning to look at her.
“Ehm…” Khan looked at me, Boulder, and Magni.
“Love is love,” Athena stated. “And surely with so many males living together, homosexuality must flourish here.”
Khan looked down and took time before he answered. “It’s not something we usually discuss.”
“Is there some kind of rule against homosexuality?”
“No, it happens, but most men would rather be with female sex-bots than…” Khan trailed off. “It’s hard to imagine that anyone would want to be with a man if they had access to women.”
Athena smiled and folded her hands in front of her. “Statistics show that about ten percent of men are gay. It’s probably always been that way. In the Motherlands, it’s not unusual for our men to choose male sex-bots in the pleasure parlors, even when they could be with a female one.”
“We don’t have any male sex-bots.” Boulder looked at Khan. “Do we?”
“No, not from what I know.” He made a dismissive hand signal toward Athena. “If it makes you happy, we can add the option of choosing a male to the system, but I doubt anyone will use it. Nmen prefer women.”
Athena’s smile hinted at doubt, but she didn’t pursue the subject further.
“4: Ten more mixed schools with children from both sides of the border,” Khan read from the list.
“Yes.” Pearl closed her eyes and rubbed the bridge of her nose. “Now with this one, it will give you goodwill if you mention that it’s also an opportunity for the Northlander girls to attend school instead of being homeschooled. The Council will like that detail.”
“Got it!” Khan said. “I have another ten points on the list, but those four are the major ones.”
“Who will do the negotiations alongside you?” I asked Khan.
“I will,” Pearl said and gave Magni a challenging glance when he scowled at her. “It’s better that way, Magni, because I speak their language.”
Magni threw his hands in the air. “What the fuck is that supposed to mean? They speak English just like we do.”
“Yes, but a loud, angry voice, or the use of curse words, can be very distracting to a Motlander. They will focus on that instead of hearing your actual words.”
“There’s going to be a whole bunch of them,” Boulder said. “Didn’t you say you were meeting with a delegation? Maybe you should bring me or Finn.”
Crossing his arms, and leaning back in his chair, Khan tapped his fingers on his arm, looking thoughtful. “I want Magni there.”
Magni squared his shoulders, and Khan continued. “His presence will feel threatening to them and he’ll be a reminder to the Council members about everything they want to keep out of the Motherlands.”
“And why they should accept our terms,” Magni added.
“Yes,” Khan agreed and looked at the rest of us, his eyes resting on Athena. “Tell me why you are here?”
Athena looked to me. “Because I was hurt, and Finn came to check up on me and…”
Khan interrupted her. “That’s not what I meant. I’m trying to determine what your interest in this is.” He angled his head as if trying to read her mind.
I placed my hand on top of Athena’s on the table. “Athena and I love each other and we’re going to be together. With her position in the Motherlands the best solution for us would be to live there. You can trust that she’s interested in making the Council consent to that part.”
Khan thought about it before consulting Pearl. “What do you think?”
Pearl skewed her mouth to one side and looked thoughtful as well. “Athena’s presence will calm them down. She represents peace and wisdom to them, and in my assessment her words will matter in a way yours never can.” Again, Pearl and Khan exchanged a long look that made me think they were having a silent conversation.
Khan pointed to Athena. “You will come with us, and when I ask for the seventy-five percent men on the Council you will speak against me. It will make them feel like you’re on their side and that you’re not being controlled by me.” He leaned forward. “However, when I ask for the thousand Nmen living in the Motherlands over the next five years, you’ll support the idea. Do you understand?”
Pearl followed up with a soft smile. “Remember, Athena, we’re not doing this to trick the Council, but to push the integration process along faster, and avoid a potential war. This way everything will happen in a controlled way with support from both sides of the border, and no one has to die.” Pearl paused a moment. “I know it sounds scary with men on the Council, but if they are chosen for their pacifistic nature and high integrity like I was, then history shouldn’t repeat itself.
Athena sighed. “I know, and I’ll do as you ask.”