by Tasha Black
She smiled at him, looking overcome with happiness.
An idea occurred to him.
He took her hands.
“Please forgive the impertinence,” he said, hoping his voice sounded passionate and not desperate. “But the proper way for you to ally yourself with the cause of my people is to join our houses.”
“J-join our houses?” she echoed stupidly.
“Yes, my dear,” he said. “There will be a wedding tonight.”
He waited for her radiant smile.
Instead he saw what looked like pain twist her lovely features.
She smoothed out her expression before he could be sure.
“You wish to marry me?” she asked.
“If you will have me,” he said in his most debonair voice, waiting for her to squeal, and hoping she didn’t expect him to spend any of his newly acquired wealth on a ring.
She pressed her lips together and nodded.
It was insulting to see her looking determined rather than overjoyed, especially when she was so clearly smitten by him.
But a yes was a yes.
“Excellent,” he cried, giving her the wide smile she ought to have given to him. “Crex!”
Crex slithered over immediately. “Yes, your grace,” he trumpeted.
“Fetch the captain,” Cassius cried. “Tell him there will be a wedding tonight! Tell him to spread the word of our joy.”
Crex beamed and Cassius squelched the urge to kick him hard in the shin.
His own happiness was so great he could well afford to cut the beggar some slack.
“I should go,” Juno said suddenly. “To get ready.”
“Of course, my dear,” he replied. “You’ll want to visit the wardrobe station to see about a dress.”
“Yes, and I need to pack,” she said.
He blinked at her.
“Since I’m leaving with you,” she added.
“Of course,” he said, smiling broadly.
“See you later,” she said.
“See you tonight,” he replied, as he watched her scurry away.
And just like that, the perfect plan fell into place.
Tonight he would become a wildly wealthy man.
And soon enough, a wildly wealthy widower.
The universe would be wide enough to disappear into once he had the deep coffers of Adair open to him permanently.
19
Zane
Zane was roused from his torture by a knock on the door.
He slid his hand along the sensor, and it opened.
Juno.
Suddenly, all his doubts disappeared.
She stood before him looking miserable. Her carefully styled hair had fallen in front of her right eye.
Her luxuriant yet simple clothing made sense to him now. Even here, among the decadence, Juno was wholly herself, unwilling to lose the thread of her own history to her current surroundings.
She was determined to help her people, rather than simply improving her own fortunes. He wasn’t sure he knew anyone else with that much resolve.
She could have urged him to claim her, so she would be bound to him. Even the simple forest worker she thought him to be would be able to offer her a lifestyle unlike anything she could imagine on Terra-4.
But Juno was uncompromising. It was one of the reasons he loved her for herself, not just for the bond between them.
And that was why he would seal it now, and then do whatever he must to help her people.
“I’m leaving,” she said.
His brain couldn’t absorb the words.
“I just wanted to say good-bye,” she added, when it seemed clear he had gone mute.
“Where are you going?” he managed, trying to recover.
Don’t go…
“King Cassius has a place for me on his court,” she said with a strange expression. “His people have offered mine employment. It’s everything I hoped for when I won passage on this ship. It’s a dream come true.”
She was telling the truth.
While he sat in his room with his head in his hands she had gone to bat for her planet and won everything she ever wanted.
He loved her, but he could not stand in her way.
She had gotten truly lucky if Cassius was willing to absorb so many refugees. He knew the people of his own planet would not be so welcoming of the Terrans. If he claimed her and became king, he would only bring her sorrow.
“I’m happy for you, Juno,” he said gently. “I know you will make your people proud.”
She smiled, and it was so beautiful that it broke his heart.
He looked away, unable to meet her gaze.
“Thank you,” she replied.
When he looked up again, she was gone.
Zane was alone.
20
Juno
Juno left the wardrobe station with Vaxyn by her side.
S.A.C.A. was preparing a wedding gown of epic proportions for her, per Vaxyn’s instructions. Now it was time for another beauty session in Vaxyn’s many capable hands.
They entered the spa and Vaxyn indicated the door to the bathing chamber once more.
Juno entered the luxurious space, stripping off her clothing immediately, anticipating the scents of florifaua and honey and the interesting feel of the grass between her toes.
Could it really have been just a day ago that she stood shivering on the banks of this pond, wondering if she dared eat the cakes that floated on the table at its center?
It seemed like a lifetime had passed since then.
She had prayed for the strength and opportunity to make a place for her people in the universe. She thought it would be a long and arduous road, but she was ready for the challenge. It never occurred to her that she could secure a victory so quickly.
And the deal with King Cassius was definitely a huge win for her people.
So why was her heart heavy?
Why could she only think of Zane?
She lowered herself into the steamy water, sinking beneath the surface until the warmth soaked into her being.
This time tomorrow, she would be a married woman.
She wondered what it would be like to be with Cassius when her heart belonged to Zane.
She felt no spark at Cassius’s touch.
And he seemed singularly uninterested in touching her.
Perhaps it would be a marriage of political convenience and he would not invade her bed.
The thought was cheering.
She washed her hair and body, determined to do no shame to her people in this wedding.
She felt the dress was beyond ridiculous, and she expected Vaxyn would do something outrageous with her hair. But if that was the way it was done on wealthier planets, then she had to show the world that the citizens of Terra-4 could fit in wherever they found themselves.
Her efforts might ease migration for her people.
When she was squeaky clean, she slipped out of the water and wrapped herself in a fluffy bathrobe.
A chime sounded from the panel by the door.
“Ready,” she said, knowing now that this would be Vaxyn fetching her for the beautification process.
The door opened, and the midnight-hued alien led her back to the reclined chair-bed where Juno knew she would sleep as the alien worked.
Vaxyn cradled her gently in two appendages and eased her into the seat.
“Your expression is less that joyful,” Vaxyn noted in a warbling voice. “Is a wedding a time of solemn reflection among your people?”
Juno thought back to the wedding celebrations on Terra-4. They were wild parties, filled with noisy happiness, even when there were no credits for a cake.
She blinked back sudden tears.
“This wedding is,” she said simply.
Vaxyn nodded its shimmering dark head. “Rest then, princess.”
“We are friends now,” Juno said softly. “Let’s not play pretend anymore.”
“As you desire, Juno,”
Vaxyn said kindly. “Rest now, my friend.”
She drifted off to the sounds of Vaxyn’s preparations, thoughts of weddings and duty spinning in her head.
But when she awoke some time later, to the sound of the alien’s beautiful song, Juno felt decidedly more at peace.
“Are you ready to see my work?” Vaxyn asked proudly, offering her a mirror.
“Thank you,” Juno said, taking it.
She looked into the glass to see a more familiar version of herself.
Her hair was down in waves, in the style of her home.
Her make-up was subtle, just enough to put roses on her cheeks, as if she had enjoyed a day in Agro back on Terra-4.
“Sometimes it’s best to look backward as we leap forward,” Vaxyn said softly.
Juno wrapped her two arms around the beautiful alien and was grateful to feel several cool arms embracing her back.
“Are you ready?” Vaxyn asked at last.
Juno nodded.
“There is no shame in changing your mind,” Vaxyn said suddenly, its singsong voice suddenly strong and flat.
“I will never forget where I came from,” Juno said. “I have given my word.”
“So let it be,” Vaxyn said solemnly.
But Juno couldn’t help but notice the sorrowful way Vaxyn’s appendages floated behind the shimmering alien as they walked back to the wardrobe station to retrieve the wedding dress.
21
Zane
Zane found himself back in the forest, hacking away at the thick undergrowth, swinging the machete with abandon.
This was the only way he knew to fight off his despair.
But even though his muscles sang with pain, it was nothing compared to the pain of knowing his mate was leaving him.
He smashed his machete into the thick root of one of the crawling vines and pulled it out again with all his strength.
His t-shirt caught on one of the hanging branches, tearing a large hole in the shoulder. He sighed and pulled it off with his free hand. It was soaked through with sweat and leaf stains anyway.
“You could just talk to her,” a calm female voice said from the freshly cut trail behind him. “Instead of tearing apart my forest and your clothing.”
He spun around.
Anna Nilsson stood under the trees, looking even wiser than usual, as the light from above played around her like a halo.
“I can’t go back,” he said helplessly. “I can’t be king.”
“Did she ask you to go back?” Anna asked.
He shook his head.
“She doesn’t even know who you are, does she?” Anna asked.
He shook his head slowly.
“And you’re going to let her go without giving her a chance to know you?” Anna asked.
“She knows me,” he retorted. “She knows everything important about me. And she accepts me for who I am, or at least for who I want to be.”
“And what about you?” Anna asked. “What did you do when you learned who she really was?”
“Would you believe that I’m really happy about it?” he asked.
“I would,” Anna said. “Knowing what I know about you, that makes perfect sense. But does Juno believe you?”
“I-I didn’t tell her,” he said, realizing.
Anna nodded, her lips a thin line.
She was clearly trying not to scream at him. Zane had seen his mother make that exact expression whenever his step-father employed some cruelty against the peasants.
“It wouldn’t matter,” he said, thinking it over. “Cassius is a fool, but he will give her everything she wants. For me to do that, I’d have to become king. And even then, I can’t offer her all that he has.”
“Is being king so bad?” Anna asked.
“Power changes people,” Zane said.
“It didn’t change Juno,” Anna pointed out.
The words echoed in his head.
He pictured Juno in her Terran clothing, handing over her crown, speaking kindly to everyone she met.
He had the fleeting thought that he had grossly overvalued her crown. If it didn’t carry the weight of nobility, it was just jewelry, no matter how much it sparkled.
But that hardly mattered at this point.
Her fake position and her very real money had given her power, and that power hadn’t changed her. She was incorruptible.
“She could save me,” Zane murmured.
“No one needs to save you, Zane,” Anna said quietly. “You’re a decent man. But don’t let her marry someone she doesn’t love when you have everything she needs.”
“Marry?” he exploded. “What are you talking about?”
“She’s marrying Cassius,” Anna said slowly. “She’s marrying him so he will save her people.”
He only stared at her in stunned silence.
“And she’s doing it tonight,” Anna added.
“Like hell she is,” Zane bellowed, feeling his blood run silver.
He dashed down the trail as he burst into prime state, the rest of his clothes splitting and tearing away from him as he ran.
The last thing he heard as he smashed the sensor to open the glass doors was Anna Nilsson’s hearty belly laugh.
22
Juno
Juno stood frozen at the edge of the second level balcony looking out over the crowd of passengers who had gathered below.
The bodice of her dress was tight around her ribcage, but it was almost a blessing. She thought the binding death-grip of the dress might be the only thing keeping her on her feet.
King Cassius stood beside her. His aftershave smelled like a hundred gallons of citrus had been dumped in a vat of cinnamon, the scent was dizzying.
He caught her glancing at him and gave her a smile that seemed to show too many teeth.
“You’re excited, aren’t you, my dear?” he asked in a knowing tone.
She couldn’t nod. She just couldn’t.
“There are so many people here,” she said. “How did they even know?”
“They’re the witnesses,” he replied. “There cannot be a proper royal wedding without ample witnesses.”
Juno glanced out over the throng once more, wondering if Zane was among them.
She doubted it.
She tried to put him out of her thoughts, but she still felt a painful pull in her chest, as if she were turning inside out without him.
“Big crowd,” said an enormous, and objectively gorgeous, man in a captain’s hat as he strode up to them. “I’m Leo.”
King Cassius declined to take the big hand that was offered, so Juno leaned over and shook it.
“I thought Anna was the captain,” Juno said.
“She is my mate,” Leo informed her. “We share the duties. But King Cassius made it very clear that he expected a man to be the captain.”
“And she sent you, to please the King?” Juno asked.
“She sent me so that no one would get tossed out an airlock,” Leo corrected.
They all stared at each other for a moment.
“Magical day,” Leo said at last.
“Indeed,” Cassius replied.
“Do you two have any special vows?” Leo asked.
“We hadn’t really thought—” Juno began.
“None,” Cassius interrupted. “We just want to complete the ceremony in the most straightforward way possible. You’ll record a certified hologram, correct?”
“Sure,” Leo said, looking taken aback at the abrupt response.
“We’ll want to surprise our families with a recording of the blessed event,” Cassius said to Juno with a wink and another toothy grin.
“Have you been counseled before taking this step?” Leo asked, his brow furrowed.
Juno imagined the luxury cruiser probably got more than its share of half-baked proposals and impromptu weddings. It was certainly a romantic atmosphere.
At least it had seemed that way with Zane.
“We have no need of your counsel, I’m
sure,” Cassius said with a smirk.
Juno fought off a wave of nausea.
Think of Rose.
Think of everyone on Terra-4.
How much more than this would I willingly do to ensure their future? This is nothing - it’s only my mediocre life, traded to save everyone I’ve ever known.
“Very well,” Leo said with a frown.
He stepped up to the rail of the balcony and cleared his throat, then touched the silver bracelet that encircled his right arm.
Bright blue lights instantly illuminated the balcony, turning it almost into a stage.
Juno blinked, her eyes trying to get used to the light.
“Dearly beloved,” Leo said, his voice booming as it broadcast over the audio of the ship. “We have gathered here to witness the joining of two souls as one, the joining of two destinies, two hearts, two bodies.”
There was a murmur in the gallery and then a flash of movement.
“Get to the meat of it,” Cassius hissed to Leo.
But Juno had eyes only for the streak of silver that swept through the crowd.
It couldn’t be…
“Stop,” a deep voice shouted with great authority.
“Zane,” Juno murmured, stepping to the rail for a better look.
He strode toward her, his silver body gleaming so wildly in the cool blue light that it almost hurt to look at him.
“You can’t do this,” he said to her simply. “I love you. There is another way.”
Juno closed her eyes against the wave of love she felt in return. It didn’t matter. She could not turn her back on her people. Her own need was made to be crushed.
“King Cassius has pledged to employ my people,” she said. “He can do things for the citizens of Terra-4 that no one else can.”
“Terra-4?” Cassius spat.
“That’s not true,” Zane said. “I can help.”
“You’re from Terra-4?” Cassius sputtered. “You lying bitch!”
Juno felt a sudden breeze lift her hair just as a silver flash moved in front of her.
A second later, Zane was dangling Cassius over the balcony by his puffy collar.
