Chapter Seven
As Kason waited near the fake burned-out village from his first landing, he looked over at Taryn talking with her companion-slash-advisor. The other human female was apparently in charge of technology. Judging from her pale, slightly overweight frame, she wouldn’t be much of a guard. In fact, she might end up a liability.
However, no amount of reasoning had changed Taryn’s mind. No matter what he’d said, the human wasn’t going to allow Kason to be her only guard.
That irked him a bit.
If the situation were reversed, he would act the same way. However, prying her away from her female companion was one more obstacle he had to overcome in order to get her alone and naked.
Thorin’s words earlier, about merely taking the female prisoner and forcing her to agree to hand over her planet, still remained fresh in his mind. It only reminded him of how much he needed to keep the secret about Taryn being his bride from the crew. If Thorin took over the ship’s command, Kason might lose his bride and the diplomatic victory over Jasvar.
Not only that, he wanted to eventually reach out to the Earth Colony Alliance and to do that, he needed Taryn’s people. As it was, a large amount of Kelderans didn’t want anything to do with the ECA. But as the alliance continued to grow, Kason didn’t want his people to be on the opposing side. His warriors would fight until their last breath, but any good commander would know that one planet could rarely win against the might of dozens.
Taryn’s guard, a female named Evaine, spoke louder than before, garnering his attention. “This is a dream come true, Taryn. The knowledge I gain aboard this ship could help us long-term, even if the negotiations fail.”
Kason grunted. “If the treaty fails, your new knowledge won’t help you.”
Evaine raised her brows. “We’ll see about that. Some of our older technology has proven useful against other visitors.”
Taryn stepped between the pair. “Let’s not waste time arguing. Look, the shuttle has entered the atmosphere.”
Looking up, he watched the silver ship grow larger. “As much as it pains you to do so, let me do the talking.”
Taryn sighed. “I know, I know, it’ll take some time for them to grow accustomed to a female doing anything but batting her eyelashes.”
“Don’t underestimate a Kelderan female. Insulting one will bring its own troubles.”
His bride’s brows raised at that, but the shuttle landed and kept her from saying anything. Once the hatch opened and the stairs extended to the ground, Kason placed a hand on Taryn’s lower back. She tried to hide it, but he heard her intake of breath. Knowing his touch affected her gave him ideas of how to make her behave in public.
They met one of the pilots and a higher-ranked warrior at the bottom of the stairs. Kason nodded and spoke in Kelderan. “This is Taryn Demara, the leader of Jasvar, and her advisor, Evaine Benoit. They have the protection of the Royal House of Vallen. Ensure you don’t tread on that claim.”
“Yes, your highness,” they both murmured.
“Then let’s depart as soon as possible. Everyone file in ahead of us. I want to ensure no one breaks my word about leaving the planet peacefully.”
The warriors were trained and filed inside the ship. He switched languages and whispered to the two females, “Thank you for not defying me yet.”
“The day is still young,” Taryn murmured before ascending the stairs.
Once Evaine followed her leader, Kason entered the ship and sealed up the hatches. There was no turning back.
~~~
Taryn drank in the pink skies of Jasvar for as long as possible. Once the shuttle’s hatch sealed shut, she stood a little taller. No matter what may happen with the Kelderans, she would find a way back home.
She spotted Evaine examining a panel. Taking her head of technology might not seem like the most practical choice at first, but Jasvar needed to learn as much as they could about their possible cohabitants. Evaine was quick with patterns, electronics, and languages. She would probably pick up Kelderan before Taryn did. And judging from the recent conversation Kason had with his shipmates, the fluid, tonal language would take her some time.
Kason ran a finger down her arm, and she kept her face impassive. “Your highness had better be careful.”
“And I think the Jasvarian leader needs to follow my lead.”
If she gave in to his possessive touch now, Kason would keep doing it, so she stepped over to Evaine. “I think it’s time for you to give us a crash course in your ship’s computer systems.”
“For a society that lives mostly computer-free, I’m surprised at the request.”
Evaine scrunched up her nose. “I’ve taken apart and rebuilt every computer I could get my hands on over the years. I was seven at my first successful attempt. I’ll pick it up just fine.”
Taryn bit her lip to keep from smiling. After a few days, Evaine might know more about the Kelderan system than Kason. She repeated, “The computers?”
Kason grunted. “This way. The ride back to the ship won’t take long, so hurry up.”
He motioned for them to follow and Taryn fell in step next to him. She whispered, “Is there anyone I should watch out for?”
“Not on the shuttle, but on board the ship, yes.”
She nodded. “Point them out to me, if you can.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll protect you.”
Kason guided them into a small room and the door slid shut behind them. Not wanting to waste their precious time, Taryn avoided an argument about knowledge helping her to survive and sat down in front of a large panel, as did Evaine. Kason touched a few keys and spoke again in Kelderan. The computer answered in the same language. Kason looked to her. “State your name and rank.”
“Taryn Demara, leader of Jasvar.”
He motioned to Evaine. “The same.”
“Evaine Benoit, head of Jasvarian technology and advisor to Taryn Demara.”
The computer’s flat voice answer in CEL. “Access and language preference set.”
Kason said, “The AI system both here and onboard the main ship will answer your questions in your own language. Preference your request with ‘computer’ in your first string of requests and she’ll answer, provided you’re granted clearance.”
“We won’t have clearance?” Evaine asked.
Kason answered, “That depends on how things go.”
Taryn could tell Evaine was going to argue, so she changed the topic. “How does the computer know CEL?”
The corner of Kason’s mouth twitched. That was the closest thing to a smile she’d seen. “Ask the computer yourself.”
Taryn looked at the panel and felt strange talking to an inanimate object, but asked, “Computer, how do you know CEL?”
“I am programmed with all languages known to Keldera.”
Evaine leaned forward. “What is your processing capacity?”
As the computer listed off a bunch of words and numbers Taryn didn’t understand, she had time to note the pure joy in Evaine’s eyes. Taryn was glad she’d chosen her to come, even if Zorana and the others had suggested taking a male instead.
It wasn’t long before something clicked outside the ship. Kason interjected at the next pause in Evaine’s incessant questioning. “Computer, cease answering.”
“Acknowledged,” the computer stated.
Kason bowed toward the door. “We’re here, leader of Jasvar.” He glanced up. “Whatever you do, don’t lose your nerve. Weakness will only cause complications during the journey.”
Taryn stood tall and resisted the urge to palm the dagger under her dress. “Believe me, I know what’s at stake.”
“Good,” he said before leading them out of the room and to the same place where they’d entered before. Taking a deep breath, Taryn followed Kason down the stairs. When the giant cargo bay came into view, she nearly faltered.
The room was bigger than the largest cave in the entire Jasvarian settlement. The ceiling ran so high she could barely make out where it ended. Doors and walkways lined the outer edges, all leading to a few main tubes that carried people up and down.
The lights bounced off the metal-looking sides, but none of the people walking around seemed to notice. Although, people might not be the right word as all she saw were men. Did Kelderans really not allow their women to travel? That seemed problematic on many levels, unless the Kelderans had complete control over their sexual urges. Or, maybe they didn’t care about the gender of their partners. Something else she added to her list to find out.
A group of tall, shirtless men and one cloaked figure walked toward them. A quick glance at Kason’s face and she noticed the slightest frown between his brows. He barked something in Kelderan and the cloaked figure tossed back their hood. Or, rather, her hood.
While the young woman was clothed from toe to her neckline in a flowing white dress, a few dark blue markings peeked out around her neck. Her long, dark blue hair and golden skin tone reminded Taryn of Kason.
When the woman shrugged and rattled off what she assumed was an excuse, Kason fell silent. He finally muttered something and then switched to CEL. “Pardon the interruption. It seems my sister has been hiding aboard the ship since our departure and was only discovered whilst I was away.”
The female smiled at Taryn. “Forgive my brother’s manners. My name is Kalahn, the sole princess of Keldera.”
Interesting. Despite Kason’s expression, Taryn smiled at Kalahn. “I’m Taryn Demara, leader of Jasvar, and this is my advisor, Evaine.”
Kalahn’s eyes widened. “A female leader. I had heard they existed, but have never met one.”
Kason put out an arm. “Enough. Taryn didn’t come to our ship for your amusement, Kalahn. She is here on important business.”
The Kelderan male from the screen call earlier, Thorin, spoke up in broken CEL. “Take them to quarters and meet in one hour.”
Kason nodded. “Taryn, this is Thorin, my second-in-command.”
Taryn and Thorin nodded at each other, and Taryn carefully kept her expression neutral. However, Thorin’s clenched jaw and fierce gaze told her he didn’t want her aboard the ship.
While tempted to ask Thorin a question, Kason continued before she could say anything. “Thanks to my sister’s foibles, it looks as if you’ll be keeping Kalahn company as well. All three females will share a room. That way, it’ll be easier to protect you from the males.”
Eyeing Kason’s sister, Taryn decided she might be able to learn more information about both Keldera and Kason from the princess. “Good idea.”
Kason studied her before motioning to the door. “Come. We’ll be departing soon, and the speed of our ship may be disconcerting to one who hasn’t experienced space flight.”
Evaine rubbed her hands together. “I look forward to it. Maybe I can even watch the crew fly the ship.”
Thorin barked, “No. You guest, but with limits.”
Kason said something in Kelderan before placing a hand on Taryn’s back. “Come with me and remain silent.”
She was tempted to tell him to stuff it, but since she would have some time to talk with his sister at the end of it, she nodded. “Fine.”
As they made their way out of the large, cavernous cargo space, Taryn took in as many details as possible. It might take a few days, but she intended to learn the layout of the ship in case she needed to escape or hide. Kason may welcome her because he had to, but judging by Thorin and the other warriors’ looks of disdain, not everyone would do so.
Taryn wasn’t naïve. At the end of the day, she needed to be able to protect herself.
~~~
Kason left Taryn and Evaine with his sister and headed for the main conference room.
Kalahn sneaking aboard the ship was inexcusable. Once they were back home, Kason would speak to his father about keeping Kalahn in line. His father’s indulgence needed to stop. Kalahn was starting to think she could do whatever she wanted, which was dangerous.
Her sharing a room with Taryn probably wasn’t going to help matters, but any female aboard a warrior ship spelled trouble; only the Barren were allowed to do so to help with medical matters and sexual urges.
Most of the men were disciplined, but every once in a while, one tried to claim something that wasn’t theirs. Kalahn staying with the Jasvarian humans would help protect them. No male with a sound mind would dare attack a Kelderan royal.
He finally approached the conference room and pushed all thoughts of the females out of his head. Thorin had wanted to imprison Taryn and Evaine rather than treat them as guests. Kason needed to get control of his second straight away, which required a display of strength.
Once he entered and motioned for everyone to sit down, Kason took the chair at the head of the table and said without preamble, “Some of you may be wondering why I didn’t restrain the females by force. But there is a long-term goal here that requires their cooperation. If we secure a treaty and cohabit on Jasvar, we can reach out to the Earth Colony Alliance and finally form a partnership.”
Thorin shook his head. “We don’t need the ECA. Jasvar is the only human settlement within many light-years of Keldera. Reaching out to them would only curtail our own self-rule. We’d be at the mercy of their demands.”
“We won’t hand over all of our rights. We should be able to keep most of our ways, or even I will dismiss the alliance,” Kason stated.
Thorin shook his head. “We shouldn’t hand over any rights. We can take Jasvar in the blink of an eye.”
“This isn’t a matter for you to decide, Thorin. I am in charge of this mission and I vowed to take the females to Keldera. Unless you wish to face me in a public challenge, it will be as I say.” Thorin’s silence was his answer. Kason continued, “Good. We’ll meet again in twelve hours for the daily conference. That will give me time to settle our guests.”
One of the lower ranked warriors in the room, jumped in, “What about Ryven and the rest?”
“They are safe as long as the females are safe,” Kason answered.
The warrior pressed on. “How did weak females manage to capture you?”
Kason answered, “On their planet, women can be warriors. It’s another reason to keep your distance and leave them alone during the journey, unless you wish to be humiliated.”
“At the hands of a female?” someone scoffed.
“Yes,” Kason answered. “Their leader in particular is cunning.”
A few men murmured their surprise but didn’t ask any more questions. Kason stood. “Jerrick will take over classes in Ryven’s absence. I want to double everyone’s training regime. I will attend the sessions at random to ensure it happens. Dismissed.”
The warriors filed out until it was just Kason and Thorin in the room. Once they were alone, Thorin murmured, “I hope you know what you’re doing, your highness. This isn’t your usual style.”
“A new situation calls for a new approach. That is all.”
With a curt nod, Thorin exited the room.
Yes, Kason was going to have to keep tabs on Thorin and any other troublemakers. Since Ryven was trapped on Jasvar, Kason was going to have to reach out and test some of his most reliable warriors until he could find one to trust completely in Ryven’s stead.
In the meantime, he had a sister to question. While her presence was inexcusable, Kalahn might prove an asset in his quest to better understand and bed Taryn Demara. The only question was whether the human would keep her bargain to stay out of trouble or not.