“And you won’t, but you also need to keep in mind that you’ll be quite busy. As the Trade Emissary for Earth, you’ll be busy attending Trade Commission meetings and arranging trade relations with various worlds who wish to secure goods. There are already collectors clamouring to be allowed to buy and import art, for example, and you will need to ensure that items best left in museums on your world remain. Likewise, you will be in charge of facilitating travelling art exhibits between earth and various Mylos worlds, in a cultural exchange. That falls under your purview until earth is granted full member status, upon which time it will gain a Council seat and various Ministerial seats will also become available, including one specifically for culture.”
“And we’ll hopefully have kids, too. They take up a lot of time. My family will definitely need to visit then. My mum will need to see her grandchildren after they are born, maybe even be there for the birth. And my sister and brothers,” she said firmly.
“Of course. My own parents will be eager to hover and offer advice, as well,” he said, kissing away her tears.
She released him, suddenly aware of their fellow diners trying to not be caught watching them. She swiped off the remaining wetness and bent down to pick up the fallen pad. “Right, I think I rather like this four poster bed I saw on the second page. I thought it was too big for our quarters, but maybe it’d be suitable for at home?”
He looked carefully at the bed she indicated, taking note of the coordinating pieces. Mentally calculating the dimensions of the master suite, he quickly came to the conclusion that it would all fit and told her so. He sent a communication to his friend who was keeping an eye on his empty home and asked him to arrange disposal of the current bedroom furnishings and requested the dimensions of the windows as he noticed her eyeing up curtains and bedding. “I should hear back within a day, I think, so if you wait, we can sort the window coverings by size and see what will fit before making a choice,” he suggested once he was done.
“Good idea. I’ll wait to choose the bedding until then, as well. That way it will all match. What kind of furniture do you have in the rest of the house? I don’t want you to feel like you have to get rid of all your things.”
“Let me just ask if he would kindly send images of the rooms as well,” he replied, chagrined that he hadn’t thought of that earlier.
Laurel smiled and pulled her food back towards her. “This is really good,” she said. “Tastes kind of nutty, like it’s got pecans in it.”
“I’m glad you like it. It’s called julpril and is a staple morning food. You can find it on everyone of our worlds.”
“Julpril,” Laurel repeated, committing it to memory so she could replicate or buy more at one of their supermarkets or whatever it was they had. She supposed she’d better learn those things about where she would be making her home, before they left to go there. Yet another thing on her plate to do.
She turned to her mate in surprise when he asked, “Would you like a human wedding ceremony? I see a folder with wedding gowns something called ‘honeymoon packages’.”
Her thoughts flew immediately to her mother. “Oh, my mum would love to plan us a wedding! But they take a lot of time to plan, a lot of places have to be booked at least a year in advance.”
“What if it’s a ‘destination wedding’?” he asked. “These say they do it all, you merely handle your own invitations, they handle the food and everything. For example, this one offers a wedding luau experience, whatever that is.”
“Hawaii?” she squealed. “Oh my gosh, that’d be fab! Oh, but it’d be too expensive for my family and friends to all fly there and pay for a hotel and stuff.”
“The shuttle could do it for free and as for hotel stays, there are several offers for rooms. I can have my protocol officer contact the various hotels offering places and see if they can match up rooms to the dates desired.”
“Oh my gosh! Yes, can you do that, please, then have him send me a list of a block of dates that they can all do? I can talk to Mum and let her choose from the packages with the dates that suit. That way, I can just pick a dress, get it fitted, and everybody can get their outfits. Oh, my sister will kill me if she’s not my bridesmaid. My best friend from school, too, and Clarice from the restaurant. You have someone to be your best man? And can you get your parents to come?”
She watched him swallow and grinned. From the expression on his face, he hadn’t known what a large can of worms he was opening. She knew if he thought it was a large to do now, he'd soon find out what an even large uproar it would all be once it was all underway. The whole world would no doubt be watching.
Chapter Fifteen
Laurel frowned inwardly at the signs she could see peppering the crowd. Outwardly, she was smiling, her face fixed into an expression of happiness and goodwill. Tellan walked beside her, his hand on the small of her back, his eyes watchful and wary while his mouth, too, curled into a friendly smile. The mayor of D.C. and the president of the United States stood on the podium beside them. President Haruki Fujioka was still making his speech, rhapsodising about the forward thinking of the American people and their hopes of conquering the stars. She glanced at Tellan when she heard that unfortunate turn of phrase. The only indication he gave that it was unappreciated was a minute narrowing of his gaze and the sudden stiffening of his posture. She couldn’t help but notice several members of the press and Fujioka’s entourage wince at the terminology. That’s going to get blown out of proportion.
President Fujioka was winding down his speech at last. “And now, here’s Ambassador Tellan. I’m sure he has a few words to say, so I’m going to shut my yap now and let him get on with it.” Scattered laughter greeted his joke, Tellan stepped forward and shook the president’s hand as he took his place behind the podium.
“I’d say, ‘Take me to your leader’, but he’s already here,” he deadpanned. Louder laughter this time and Laurel marvelled at the way most of the tension melted off of the crowd. “I’d like to thank the people of the United States for welcoming mine to their wonderful country. I must say I have been most interested in the way your imaginations have portrayed people from other worlds. My lovely bride,” he turned to look at her briefly with adoration, “has had me sit down and watch a bit of an old TV show called Star Trek. I’ve also watched a bit of My Favorite Martian, Mork and Mindy, Battlestar Galactica, and a Star Wars film,” he arched a single eyebrow and regarded the crowd most seriously. “I must say I found them most fascinating.” More laughter.
“Now, this building we are opening is designated as an embassy. It is that, in so much as any of the properties that will conduct Mylos bride registries will be, whether it is a stand alone building such as this one where official ambassadors will also hold offices or a registry using space in one of your commercial shopping centres.”
“It’s a plot to enslave us!” a man shouted from somewhere in the far crowd.
“Oh goodness me, no. No enslaving. We don’t want to eat you either, nor do we wish to plunder the minerals or water from your planet. I know many find it too good to be true, that all we want is to find willing brides, share knowledge, and conduct beneficial trade. I suppose only time will be able to prove the veracity of this.”
“What about probing?” someone else called out, smirking.
Laurel stepped forward and leaned in front of Tellan to make use of the microphone. “I assure you, that the probing is utterly delightful. I won’t go into further details because a. this is being watched by my mother and b. some things are best left private.” Loud laughter at this, had her laughing along as she stepped back.
Tellan smirked. “All I have to add is she’s definitely been up to initiating a probing session.” The laughter grew in intensity. He waited for it to die down. “Tomorrow, this and the other designated bride registry offices will open for business. The Registry officers have all now arrived and are eager to begin. Likewise, the first of our scientists has arrived to begin designing the first cours
es that will be offered through the selected universities. That brings me to another important bit of news. I cannot take credit for this and indeed, it is the first arrangement of its kind. Not because we are opposed to the idea, but because among the worlds of the Mylos, upper education is already freely available to all. Here, many times there are financial barriers. Laurel knew this and so has instituted a new program, the Bride Scholarship. How it works is simple. Females interested in finding a possible mate among the Mylos come to one of our registry centres. If they wish to avail themselves of the scholarship, which covers one hundred percent of their tuition and provides a reasonable living and clothing allowance, they simply let the registry officer know.” He paused scanning the crowd’s rapt faces.
Members of the press were leaning forward in anticipation of his next words. “The algorithms that our A.I . uses to assess a perfect match means that odds are over a million to one that a match will be found from the eligible males present in the Bride Fleet currently on its way. As new males arrive due to Fleet turnover, they will be added to the database. Brides without matches will be given the opportunity to keep their data available for matching. Those who chose the scholarship program muse keep their file active for every school term they wish to acquire funding for.”
Hands shot up. Tellan looked puzzled as to what was happening, so Laurel stepped forward once more. “Yes, “ she said, pointing at the reporter from CNN.
“If a match is made, do the women lose their scholarships?”
“No,” Tellan replied. “The only change will be that they will be mated and have to continue their studies aboard ship,upon one of the Mylos home worlds ,or stations.”
“Think of it this way,” Laurel said. “If someone marries a service member, say, in the Army, they usually follow their partner from posting to posting. Any further education or employment they have is done wherever they happen to be stationed at.” More hands waved. “The gentleman from the BBC, go ahead,” Laurel called out.
“These Mylos males, how are we to know if they will treat the women fairly? And this matching business, what exactly do they mean, ‘make a perfect match’. How does the A.I. determine this? And can the women change their mind before marrying them?”
“This is not a dating agency. I cannot stress this enough,” Laurel said, her tone brooking no argument. Tellan stepped to the side to give her the podium. “I’m going to tell you that the rumours are true. The Mylos mate for life and the A.I. uses a sophisticated program. Forget Siri and Alexa, this is an entirely new level. The A.I. is fully sentient, so in addition to collating the responses to a very in-depth questionnaire, brides will give a DNA sample and environmental controls will be sifting the air to collect data on their pheromones, cameras will be monitoring their outward emotional signals, and more. When it says a perfect match, it means just that. They find their literal other half. I can’t think of anything more romantic. The one male in all the universe who matches to a lucky human woman will have traveled through the stars across vast distances, just to find her.” A chorus of ‘awwws’ met this proclamation. She felt satisfaction at the number of dreamy expressions that accompanies many of those. The bride registries that opened tomorrow would no doubt have a queue waiting for them to begin processing.
“Because of the nature of their biology, once a match has been made and they receive notification, complete with a picture, the Mylos male will find himself triggered into a mating display. They must then mate or die, as the progression becomes more pronounced over the days that pass without mating. Before the end of a week, madness followed by death is the usual outcome. So, please, ladies, do not register unless prepared to consummate as the treaty states that upon a match being made, you are legally married and a citizen of Mylos.” She held her hand up at the clamouring that began to swell. “As for the males, before being allowed to join their service and before being granted a slot within one of their Bride Fleet detachments, each mate undergoes an extremely thorough psych eval, physical, and so on. No male who has not been deemed capable of being a good husband and father is allowed to participate with any of the matching services.”
“So that’s it? Boom, you’re married and have to have sex? It’s a register, get matched, then wham, bam, thank you, ma’am?” a female reporter from a news outlet Laurel wasn’t familiar with shouted out indignantly.
“What part of ‘no male who has not been deemed capable of being a good husband and father is allowed to participate’, did you not understand?” Laurel asked her indignantly. “And to be fair, why sign up hoping to find a husband if you don’t actually want one? These are perfect matches, fated mates if you will. If you don’t like the terms, you can simply not participate. It’s not mandatory, and in fact, the Mylos will be keeping a close eye on things to ensure that no one is trying to force anyone into signing up. I’d also like to mention, that the program is open to women from aged eighteen and up, right on up to perimenopause, as it is intended for genetic exchange. To be clear, this means having children with one’s Mylos partner. Also, any children the woman may already have and that she has legal custody of, will also become citizens of Mylos upon the match occurring, and be considered the offspring of her Mylos mate.”
Stunned silence met this proclamation, then a loud hubbub. “Yes, the lady from Der Spiegel, go ahead and ask your question,” Laurel said.
“What about their human fathers? Many have shared custody arrangements, visitation, and so on.”
Tellan stepped forward. “If I may?” he murmured to his mate.
“By all means,” she replied softly, yielding the floor to him.
“Any such arrangements will be honoured. The terms of any such arrangements will be strictly enforced, however, legally, the young will count as having been blood born Mylos and of their Mylos’ father’s line. This is, I stress, from a legal standpoint. It gives the young the same rights, protection, and benefits that come with being a citizen of Mylos. Socially speaking is another matter. Family is family and as long as arrangements are being adhered to without notable issue, the arrangements will continue. We cherish all young and denying the emotional ties that bind them with joy would only bring harm. Such a thing is complete anathema to us.” He smiled. “No, I am closing the floor, I believe it is called, to any further questions. We will release a full statement and ensure it is sent out to all of your major news outlets and to the current affair blogs that requested it.” He turned and handed an over large pair of gold handled shears to the President Fujioka.
Fujioka moved to stand behind a large, bright red ribbon that was stretched between two posts in the ground. “It’s still an empty lot but they tell me this supermarket is going to be open tomorrow anyways, folks,” he joked before cutting the ribbon with a flourish. More laughter greeted the president's remarks and once more pictures had been posed for, the Secret Service and Mylos security led the official entourage away.
“See you at the dinner tomorrow,” Fujioka said, shaking Tellan’s hand before turning to climb into his limo.
“Yes, we shall be there. We look forward to it,” Tellan replied. The limo’s door closed and Tellan and Laurel walked the short distance to their shuttle. They seated themselves inside and quickly buckled themselves inside as their security checked the perimeter once more and the pilot completed pre-flight checks.
“I was surprised at how easily you told those jokes. You sounded like a native speaker,” Laurel told Tellan.
“Thank you. It helped that Fujioka had his speech writer help me,” he confessed. “To be honest, I had wanted to greet everyone with ‘nanoo, nanoo’ while wearing a red jumpsuit with a silver triangle on it, but he was aghast so I quickly dropped that idea.”
Laurel burst out laughing. “Oh my God,” she guffawed. “That would have been ace.”
“Really? Maybe next time, then.”
Laurel laughed harder as she knew he was perfectly serious.
Chapter Sixteen
Laurel glanced ar
ound the opulent surroundings, unable to believe she was actually here. Not even six weeks before, she’d been waitressing at the family restaurant for a living. Now here she was, the one being waited on while sitting at a table laid with elegant china and more silver cutlery than she was comfortable with. And speaking of discomfort, she thought, eyeing the former chief of staff turned lobbyist, who was also seated at their table. There’s something about that man that makes me uncomfortable. The way he keeps eyeing Tellan is quite unnerving.
“So, I hear you guys pop out scales and your eyes go all lizard-like,” the man was saying, not seeming to grasp that his question wasn’t the best topic for conversation over dinner.
Tellan looked startled then firmly settled a neutral mask over his face, complete with polite smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Ah, Mr. Ryker, you are asking about the mating display? Yes, our hormones surge and trigger the change. The change is not limited only to the mating display, however it is more dramatic at that time with unpleasant consequences if not fulfilled. During times of high emotion, our armouring comes to the fore and our eyes adapt for hunting.”
“Really?” Ryker leaned forward. “So, like, what, when you’re really angry?”
Tellan gave a small nod. “It will appear like a blush then, only. But, when we are in battle lust…” he allowed his voice to trail off meaningfully.
“Ambassador Tellan,” Ryker’s wife, Anne said, “I couldn’t help but notice your dress uniforms include swords. Do tell, are they only ceremonial?”
“Indeed not,” Tellan replied. “They are beautiful, but perfectly deadly. Never fear, milady. Should the need arise, I can defend you and my mate with ease with it.”
Tellan: Brides of the Mylos Page 6
