I couldn’t stop a grin from playing across my lips as I watched Jennifer begin to relax in the seat next to me. She was amazing! Fearless and strong, I had no doubt that she could hold her own in a fight. It would take us the afternoon to get to the downed pod and I planned on taking advantage of the time with Jennifer. It was an enigma that a human could hold my attention when I’d known all sorts of lovers.

“You know living out here, you learn to watch your back. Is there a reason you are staring at me?”

I laughed, she was so perceptive. “You continue to amaze me. How did you come to be here?”

“On the planet? Or do you mean in an existential sense?” she played.

“I just want to know more about you. You are the first humanoid that I’ve spent any time with. I can’t help it if you intrigue me.”

Her cheeks flushed a deep red, driving my desire into a frenzy. I had to be patient with her. She was different than the other women I’d taken to my bed. I wanted more from her but I had to remember my purpose for being here, to save my brothers. Jennifer would be a welcomed distraction in between though. She vibrated with a passion that I wanted to taste.

“So? Do you have family here or a husband perhaps?”

“Don’t you think if I had a husband, you would have met him at my apartment.”

“Well, it’s my understanding that this planet doesn’t offer much for outpost employment. I thought that perhaps he was away working. A woman as beautiful as you surely can’t be alone.”

She laughed, “You aren’t very perceptive. Don’t you think that if I had a husband my neighbor you met earlier would have said something? No, I don’t have a husband. I didn’t move to Vaxivia to follow some lost love or my family. I moved to help the people.”

“Couldn’t you do that somewhere a little less,” I chose my words carefully. “Desolate?”

“Sure, I could, but then they probably would be dying in droves because no other help would come. I don’t care about the circumstances; I care about the people.”

“That’s very admirable,” I said softly. “So, you don’t have any family?”

“You sound like a serial killer.”

“And you seem to be dodging every question I ask you. This is going to be a long trip, I thought it would be nice to get to know you a little bit.”

She shifted uncomfortably, “I don’t have any family. My parents died when I was little and I never knew them. I grew up in homes for girls. I ran away at ten and vowed to help anyone who needed me.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” I said.

I slid my hand a little closer to hers. She moved away and I withdrew from her. She still didn’t trust me, but at least I was starting to understand her reasoning. My life had been so charmed compared to what she had endured. Exile was even created to be an easy step. Of course, that was before my ship was shot from space.

“I think what you do for your community is wonderful. To make such an impact on the lives of others must be a great feeling.”

She shrugged, “They need me and I need them. You asked if I had family here and I do. Everyone in that town is my family and I’ve seen the destruction that outsiders can bring with them.”

“They can’t all be bad though. Hasn’t anything good ever come from aliens?” I asked, looking for any way to connect with her.

“Sure,” said Jennifer absentmindedly.

I sighed, “Fine. I guess we will just ride all day in silence. Since that’s what you want.”

Her eyes darted over to me, a fire lighting inside of them. “Wow. You aren't used to being rejected, are you?”

“Of course, I am, I’m not the snob that you think I am.”

“Really?” she asked. “Then why are you over there pouting because I’m not falling into your arms like some damsel in distress.”

My heart started to race as my mouth fell open, “On my planet, no one would dare speak to me that way.”

“Well you aren’t on your planet anymore and I’m not under your rule. So, I suggest you get used to not getting your own way. Otherwise, this is going to be one long trek.”

“You know, my life isn’t all fun and games. I have suffered through loss too. My father has been dead less than a month, yet I can’t mourn him. A life in exile, knowing that you are condemned to be cast aside, it’s not a great life all the time.”

“Why do they do that? Send everyone away?” she asked softly. “It doesn’t seem right. If you have a family, you should get to be with them.”

I straightened a little, “I don’t believe I’ve ever explained our customs to an outsider.”

“Is it forbidden?” she asked.

I shook my head, “No, not at all. I’ve just never been around anyone long enough to share.”

“Well,” she said with a smile. “Like you said, we have a long drive together and it would be a lot more fun if it wasn’t silent.”

“Very well, but you have to share with me too. Is that a deal?” I asked.

She nodded, “But you have to go first. Why are you banished from your home?”

“Because Dragselians didn’t always get along with each other. There were wars and factions that would strike before a king was even dead. They would poison and plant spies to try and gain control of the next king. Of course, brothers would turn against each other and war would follow.”

“That sounds terrible,” Jennifer whispered.

“It was. Or at least that’s what I was told. My grandfather was the first to enact the Right of Exile. He cast his brothers from Dragselia as soon as he took the throne. Both of his younger siblings were weak and not cut out for the throne. They posed him no threat.”

“But he still sent them away?”

I nodded, “My father did the same with his three siblings and now my brother has done the same. I don’t know why I struggle to go quietly into the night. My eldest brother is an adequate king I suppose.”

Jennifer arched her brow, “You don’t sound very sure of that.”

“No, I suppose I don’t,” I said absentmindedly. “I never doubted our traditions until I was older and I started to watch my eldest brother more carefully. He is a good man but he’s very easily persuaded. I worry about my people and his ability to rule with a clear mind.”

“And you had no say in leaving?”

“If I had spoken out against the tradition, I would have been sent to Muldoxi, a far worse fate than living my life in exile on an island catered to my needs.”

“What is Muldoxi? I don’t think I’ve ever heard of it before.”

“You wouldn’t. It’s not well known to outsiders. It’s a moon of my home planet that they turned into a prison for royalty and other high-ranking defectors. My brother, King Mulkaro is an arrogant man. If he heard a whisper of my resentment, he would have sent me there. I believe he thinks that I pose a threat to his rule.”

“Do you?” she asked quietly.

“I will share with you a story to answer your question but only if you answer one for me first.”

“Okay?” Jennifer asked cautiously. “What?”

“Why are you helping me? I am an outsider that is not to be trusted by your outsider standards.”

Her eyes locked onto mine, “Because I know that you are a good person. I can see it in your eyes.”

The air between us grew heavy with desire but Jennifer broke the spell when she looked away. She was fighting to keep her distance from me.

“Your turn,” she said. “Are you a threat to your brother?”

* * *

It was a question that I had often asked myself. I couldn’t stop my mind from wandering and thinking back to the last conversation that I’d had with Mulkaro. The night before my brothers and I left, I went to him in the cover of night. It was a conversation that I’d never shared with anyone. My brothers would have been furious if they’d known that I risked his wrath. My arrogance could have cost not only my freedom but theirs as well.

“Have you come to bid me farewell, brother?” Mulkaro had asked.

I kneeled before him as was the custom and waited for him to tap my shoulder before rising. He took his time, lording his power over me. Arrogance again. He always thought that his world was the only one that existed and it could ruin our entire planet.

“I’ve come to ask for your pardon. Please brother, I mean no threat to your rule. I only want to be here to aid you on your journey of life.”

“Do the others know you are here risking everything for your own personal gain?” he asked, a cold tone in his voice.

“I don’t do this for my own gain. I do this for the good of the people.”

“The good of the people? Then why don’t you renounce your royal lineage and come to me as a commoner and not a man of royal blood.”

I glared at him, “You know that is a death sentence. Our enemies sit in the darkness, waiting for one of us to defect.”

“Fear? From you Zaruv?” he smirked. “I would think that you of all people would appreciate the challenge.”

I took a deep breath, “I am not afraid of my own death, but for my brothers’ safety. The last time a royal defected, the entire house was wiped clean and sent away. I’ve never heard of a ship safely making it away from our planet when it carried defectors. You know the risk I run for our brothers.”

Mulkaro turned away from me and ascended to his throne, looking down at me as he sat. “Because of our old ties, I will overlook your transgressions this once. I will not be so forgiving a second time. I will not see you again, Zaruv. Go live your life in peace and let me do the same.”

“Mulkaro, our brothers,” I tried once again.

He glared down at me and tapped his staff on the floor. The guards that had been lurking in the shadows stepped forward, ready to remove me by force if needed.

“You and your brothers are no longer my concern. The day my father died, I became an only child. You and the others are nothing to me but a threat to my rule. I won’t tell you again, Zaruv.”

* * *

“There was nothing more to be said between the two of us. My brothers and I left the next day and started our journey into exile,” I finished softly. “So, to answer your question, yes. I was a threat to him and I am not sure that risk is entirely gone. I loved Mulkaro but the more time I’ve had to think about it, the more I see that he will be our end if someone doesn’t step in.”

“Won't that mean war?”

I shook my head, “I don’t want to start a war, but the time might come when I have to turn against my brother. That’s not something I look forward to contemplating.”

Jennifer looked at me in earnest for the first time, as if she was seeing something inside me that hadn’t been there before. She smiled and slid her hand across the seat. With a racing heart, I followed suit and our fingers brushed together. Jennifer leaned closer to me and I was unable to stop myself from playing into her hand.