ROMULUS (The Innerworld Affairs Series, Book 1)

by Marilyn Campbell

  Aster fixed a smile on her face as Rom returned the maternal kisses and hugged his father. Rom's mother was attractive, in a mature way, and as tall as Aster, with brown hair and eyes. The man at her side was an older version of Romulus. The two men were clearly father and son.

  Rom stepped back beside Aster and put his arm around her waist. "Mother, Father, this is Aster Mackenzie. Aster, Yulan and Marcus."

  Yulan stepped forward first and embraced Aster, kissing her lightly on her cheek. "I'm so happy to meet you. Welcome to Norona. I've heard a lot of good things about you."

  Aster raised her eyebrows and glanced at Rom, who looked equally bewildered by his mother's comment.

  Yulan laughed. "After Marcus sent you his letter, we received a rather lengthy missive from Marya and Frank. You pleased her very much by visiting her that day, though you should do so more often. At any rate, they were both very impressed with Aster. Marya passed along the latest Innerworld gossip, so you've been spared a lot of time bringing us up to date."

  Rom's father stepped toward Aster and took her hand. "We're very glad you came to visit us, even if it took my practically having to order it to get you here." He smiled warmly at Aster then gave his son a look that blended fatherly approval with pure male admiration. "Let's go home."

  As they glided along, Marcus said, "We'll go straight to the farm. You've seen Car-Tem, Aster, so you already know what our city looks like. There it is on the horizon to your left."

  Aster leaned toward the window and saw the crystal prisms of the taller buildings reaching toward the lavender-blue sky with its large, ringed sun.

  "The air is cooler, though isn't it?" Aster asked.

  "That's because we have real seasons here, not prefabricated like that artificial environment in Innerworld," Marcus answered emotionally.

  Rom chuckled. "I told you he wasn't very fond of my adopted home."

  Yulan quickly changed the subject. "I thought you might prefer to stay in your sanctuary, so I had it cleaned up and installed a supply station for you."

  "That's terrific. Thank you. We'll appreciate the privacy." Rom pulled Aster toward him and kissed her softly.

  She blushed instantly. She was proud that he did not hesitate to be affectionate in front of Yulan and Marcus but, after all, they were his parents and it didn't seem right even to suggest that they needed privacy. "Did you say sanctuary?" Aster asked to hide her momentary embarrassment.

  Yulan smiled. "That's what we always called it. When Rom was a boy, he had one place on the farm where he went to be alone. He built himself a shelter there. He wasn't like other little boys. Little Romulus tended to be a bit stuffy and introverted. At least we always knew where to find him."

  "I was not stuffy! And I'd rather you didn't spend the rest of the day reminiscing about my childhood," Rom warned.

  "Well, now that I see that it bothers you, I'll make a point of remembering all the worst things you ever did, so that Aster knows all about you. Tell me the truth, Aster, didn't you think he was stuffy when you first met him?"

  Aster muffled a laugh. She already liked Rom's mother. "Very stuffy, and egotistical, and overbearing... and absolutely irresistible." She winked at her love.

  Marcus shook his head. "I can see you two are going to get along great. Here we are. Welcome home!"

  When Aster stepped out of the hauler, she gasped. "It's an exact duplicate of Marya and Frank's farm."

  "You're wrong there, Aster. My sister copied ours!" Yulan tucked her hand under Rom's free arm as they walked to the house. "My parents used to live here. They spend all their time traveling now. I doubt if there's a habitable planet in all the universe they haven't visited at least once."

  The day sped by as Yulan wanted details of the gossip Marya had written about and Rom and Aster filled them in on the events of the past weeks. His parents rode an emotional roller coaster while they alternated between laughter and sadness.

  Yulan prepared their meal from home-grown foods. She rarely used their supply station, she explained to Aster, since she liked to cook and Marcus preferred his food being prepared that way.

  "Everything's delicious," Aster complimented seriously. "I agree with Marcus about this homemade bread. The computer can't match it."

  "I'm glad to see that you're such an astute young woman," Marcus said, smiling at Aster. "Now, son, it seems to me that we've covered every subject except the reasons you're here. Are the two of you intending to join?"

  Yulan sent her mate a look of disapproval for his bluntness. Aster knew they did not have to speak to communicate but Yulan's face gave her thoughts away.

  Rom laughed. "I wondered how long you could wait." He reached over to take Aster's hand. "I never completely understood about finding one's soulmate... until Aster came into my life. She may not be Noronian by birth but that didn't prevent her from getting the mating fever. That alone is unheard of for a Terran. She also experienced the separation during her first visit to the pyramid. Long before she entered Innerworld, she had dreams of me. I felt her soul call to mine the first time I saw her and she wasn't even conscious. It seems impossible that I have lived all my life without her." His adoring gaze spoke even better than his words.

  Marcus and Yulan became serious as they pondered their next questions. Yulan looked to Aster. "Dear, you may be exceptional but you are still not of our race. Joining is not simply a legal bonding, like your marriage in Outerworld. Has Rom explained what is involved?"

  Marcus interrupted his mate. "Besides challenging the law, which is no small matter, there are possible complications, dangers to your sanity. Have you read the book?"

  Rom's impatience began to show as he opened his mouth to answer. Aster squeezed his hand firmly and replied confidently, "I have read the book. I understand the ritual and the consequences and I accept it. We've discussed the risks. At this point I believe the only threat to my sanity will be if we are not joined. We have almost lost each other twice and I thought I would lose my mind without him."

  "Aster's extremely intelligent, Father," Rom said more calmly than he felt. "On the way here, we started working on her mind control, using the homing devices. She's already able to receive and send clear thoughts. That part had me worried at first but not anymore. I'll bet by the time we get back she'll even be blocking out my thoughts." Rom stroked her cheek.

  Again Aster sensed the silent communication between Rom's parents and could see they harbored doubts.

  Rom was already feeling defensive and their extended silence provoked him to speak again. "I can assure you nothing you say will change our minds."

  Yulan looked surprised. "You've jumped to the wrong conclusion, Romulus. We are very pleased you have found your true mate. We don't doubt your sincerity or your love for one another. Any fool can see it. We want you to be as happy as we've been, to know the wonderful completeness of joining. It's only that—"

  "What your mother is slowly getting around to," interrupted Marcus, "is that in your particular case there is more involved than whether Aster will have difficulty with the mental union. Romulus, you are not one of the millions of people who go about their business with their personal affairs unnoticed. You are one of the selected. Up until now that knowledge fed your ambition. The governorship was the goal you've worked toward your whole adult life."

  The storm clouds gathered in Rom's eyes as he responded through tightly clenched jaws. "Was is the operative word. Not anymore. Aster and I will present our case tomorrow and—"

  "You can't take Aster!" Marcus burst out. "No alien has ever been permitted in the Tribunal's chambers."

  "Then this will be a first. How can she defend herself from whatever charges they've trumped up if she can't be present?" Rom pushed his chair back and got up from the table. His hands balled into fists as he paced back and forth across the room. "I don't even know why we're bothering. They've probably already made up their minds against us."

  "Sit down!" Marcus barked. "You don't know what they int
end. You'll have to answer their summons to find out. Your attitude is not going to sit favorably with them, I can tell you that much. You want them to accept Aster and grant you the governorship? You won't get it by shouting and telling them their opinion doesn't mean drek to you.

  "Where's the cool, efficient diplomat, son? Dig him out from this emotional avalanche you're buried under." Rom waved his arm at Marcus. "And don't give me that you-don't-understand-what-I'm-going-through look. You may only think of me as your aging father but I am no less a man than you. I am a Noronian. I burned with the same fires torturing you now. I know precisely how it feels to need a particular woman, to possess her and to give yourself to her completely. The difference is, I didn't have an entire colony depending on me to keep my head."

  Rom stopped his pacing but kept his back to the others.

  Yulan stopped Marcus so that she could continue in a quieter tone. "If the Tribunal decides you are the best choice to govern their most treasured colony, they will not accept a refusal from you. Your personal desires mean nothing compared to the good of Norona."

  "And when it comes to the good of Norona," Marcus cut in again, "the Tribunal is above the laws they've made. It sounds as though you've conveniently forgotten that they each possess powers far beyond the average Noronian and there is no one to stop them from using those powers to achieve what is necessary. If you try to tell them you'll give up the governorship before you'll give up joining with Aster, they could exile or even reprogram her and make you forget you ever knew her! I'm sorry, Aster. I'm not trying to frighten you. I just want to make sure this hotheaded son of mine realizes what he's up against."

  Aster stared at Marcus in stunned silence. It had not occurred to her that the peace-loving, honorable people of Norona would force their will upon her and Rom. Nothing she had learned in Innerworld had suggested such aggressive, unethical behavior.

  "Thank you very much, Father," Rom said sarcastically, when he noted Aster's sudden pale complexion. "For someone who is not trying to frighten her, I'd say you've done a great job. Now, I think we will retire. It doesn't sound like we're going to have a normal conversation in this house until the confrontation is over tomorrow." He held his hand out to Aster to leave.

  Like a sleepwalker, she moved through the departure amenities and went with Rom to the barn. Aster shook herself slightly when she saw Rom saddling two horses. "Is it far?" She glanced up at the darkening sky.

  "Far enough. Come here, love." He held his hands out to her. The moment their fingertips touched a spark kindled and a tiny charge ran up her arms. Rom pulled her closer, trapping her hands against his chest. His eyes were warm and brown and drew her into their depths. "You feel that, don't you, shalla? Nothing anyone says or does can change that between us. You must believe that above all else and we'll get through this just fine. I love you. It won't be long now." His head bent slowly down to hers for a light caress. He helped her into the saddle then mounted his own horse.

  Aster set aside her worries when her horse delivered her to the edge of their lagoon. "Oh, Rom! I should have known this is where you'd have built your sanctuary. What a wonderful surprise."

  Rom grinned from ear to ear, glad to have been able to keep this a surprise until the last minute. "This part you haven't seen." They dismounted and he led her along a narrow path to a clearing amidst the jungle foliage.

  There she saw a miniature stone castle, about twenty feet long on each side and ten feet high, with turrets at the corners. Ladders of light angled down from small square windows around the top. Rom stepped forward and yanked on a rope. The drawbridge creaked and yawned open for them to enter.

  "You made this yourself? It's fantastic! I guess your interest in medieval times goes back a ways."

  "I've often wondered if I was a knight in some previous life." He nudged her inside and let out a whistle. "Mother said she cleaned up. But it's more like she did a complete overhaul. Believe me, it did not look like this when I was a boy."

  On one wall was a modern supply station, a small table and two chairs. A partition in one corner concealed the bathroom facilities. Filling most of what was left of the room was a bed completely surrounded by rainbow sherbet-colored drapes hung from a point in the ceiling above the bed's center. Thick rugs and big, pastel pillows were scattered over the stone floor.

  "It's lovely, but I can't imagine you playing here as a little boy the way it's decorated tonight." Aster stroked the silky material at the foot of the bed.

  Rom moved behind her, nuzzling her neck. "Maybe not but the big boy can imagine it just fine."

  There was no more talk of fears or appearances before powerful people that night. Their loving was gentle and reassuring, making Aster recall the proverb about the calm before the storm.

  * * *

  "Step forward, please."

  Aster heard the voice in her ears and her mind almost simultaneously. She glanced around the small, vacant vestibule but could not identify where the voice had come from. Rom directed her to stand with him in the center of a black triangle embedded in the cold, gray stone floor. She was certain that, any second, her knees would give out and she would dissolve into a puddle at his feet. All of Marcus's warnings of the night before came flooding back to her. What was she doing here? How could she, a mere Terran female, hope to get through to the almighty Tribunal of Norona?

  A beam of light poured down, forming a bright three-sided wall encasing them. "State your business," the voice demanded in the same near-echo quality.

  Aster's nerves jangled uncontrollably but hearing Rom's voice, so strong and confident helped enormously.

  "I am Chief Administrator Romulus Locke, of the Innerworld Colony. She is Aster Mackenzie. We have been summoned."

  "That is incorrect. You, Chief Romulus, have been summoned. You may enter."

  "I beg the Tribunal's indulgence in this matter. We are as one. I do not wish to appear without her."

  Neither Aster nor Romulus took a breath as they waited in the silent moment that followed his defiance.

  "You, Chief Romulus, have been summoned. Only you may enter. She will wait."

  Rom gathered every ounce of self-control he possessed. He would use his logic not his roiling emotions to win this round. "I have a letter from Governor Elissa which is self-explanatory. I humbly request that the Tribunal read it before turning us away."

  Rom pulled the folded letter from his pocket and held it in front of him. One second it was in his hand. The next it was gone.

  Then they waited.

  Aster couldn't tell if an hour had passed or only a minute when their prison of light evaporated into the ceiling and two huge doors slid open in front of them. Aster was grateful for the courage, passing from Rom's hand to hers. Her shoulders back, her chin high, she walked proudly at his side and prayed the Tribunal would not read her cowardly thoughts.

  The chamber they entered was dimly lit and much too warm. Aster's eyes slowly adjusted to the light and focused on a raised triangular dais, approximately five feet long on each side. At each angle, a figure sat in a high, straight-backed chair. Rom and Aster stopped before the base of the triangle.

  The figures to their left and right were draped in dark purple robes and only their heads were visible. Aster assumed they were heads perched atop the yards of flowing fabric. The withered flesh of each figure looked like lizard skin pulled tautly over its skull, with two small holes for nostrils and a slash of a mouth. A snow-white beard hung straight and smooth until it curled into the figure's lap. Similar hair covered their scalps and disappeared below the shoulders in the back. But their round eyes were alive, dark and piercing from deep within sunken caverns as they examined their subjects. The figure at the third point, directly in front of them, could only be differentiated by a white robe and no beard. Perhaps it was female.

  "Out of respect for Governor Elissa..."

  "We will permit this breach of tradition."

  "Her letter is very complimentary. You may in
troduce us."

  Aster's gaze darted from one figure to the other. She had heard three voices, one definitely more feminine than the other two, but no mouths had moved. There was no way to tell who had said what or whether they had actually spoken aloud.

  Though it seemed impossible, Rom drew himself even taller as his deep voice rumbled throughout the chamber. "Members of the Tribunal, Lamed, Mem and Nun," he said, nodding to each in turn, "it is with great pleasure that I introduce Aster Mackenzie, of whom Governor Elissa has only written the truth. We are well aware of the rare privilege you grant us today and thank you for your consideration."

  Aster wished they could sit down. The room was claustrophic and she could not stop shaking. Please, Lord, don't let me faint and embarrass the both of us. As if sensing her discomfort, Rom squeezed her hand until it actually hurt. The pain stabilized her and she concentrated on his physical contact with her.

  The voices began their interview.

  "Romulus Locke, we summoned you here today..."

  "to announce our decision that you have been chosen..."

  "as the next Governor of Innerworld."

  "We received a communication..."

  "from Innerworld..."

  "warning us about this female's influence impairing your judgment."

  "We had intended to prohibit you..."

  "from further contact..."

  "with this alien."

  "In light of Elissa's report, we now believe..."

  "she has proven herself worthy of our consideration."

  "You may keep her by your side..."

  "for as long as you wish..."

  "but we cannot approve of her as a mate for you, our chosen, or as Co-Governor of Innerworld."

  Rom took a deep, controlling breath before speaking. "And I will not accept the governorship if it means that Aster and I cannot be joined. You will have to choose someone else." Rom's interruption was highly irregular but his refusal was unheard of. The three pair of eyes glared down at him.

  "Our second choice for governor does not have the assured support of the people as you do."