What had she eaten? There was nothing unusual she could recall. She and Prax-Denay dined on a set menu that varied little from week to week. She’d had bean curd and fish for lunch, the mollusk in brown sauce for dinner. It tasted no differently than normal.
She climbed from the bed on tremulous legs and went to her bathroom. After rinsing her mouth she swallowed a few gulps of water. A robot was at her bedside cleaning up the vomit. She huddled back beneath her sheets once it rolled away. Something she’d eaten had been bad, or she’d caught some Dak-Hiliah flu from Jorenkis. She’d wait until morning to tell Prax-Denay.
Just when her thoughts were turning into the nonsense that came before sleep she leaned off the side of the bed again for another puke session. The water came up, then bile and spit. Her middle tightened with shocking pain. She balled up once again until it abated enough for her to move. This time she forced her unsteady legs to the door. Maybe Prax-Denay knew of some medicine that would relieve her suffering. She no longer felt capable of waiting until morning.
Her door led out to a lobby which separated her apartment from Prax-Denay’s. In the middle was a seating area beneath a skylight with several blue and green plants. She could see a figure lying on the long couch between two ferns. It appeared Prax-Denay couldn’t bear to sleep in his bed without her. She knelt beside him and nudged his side.
“Prax…I don’t feel good.”
Jorenkis rolled over and looked at her. “Huh?” He sat up and tapped on the lamp beside him.
Lisette wanted to retreat at the sight of her enemy, but her legs could only go so far as an armchair beside the couch. She hunched over with renewed agony.
“What? You’re sick?”
She began to nod, but stopped herself. “I threw up.”
“Why? Is this normal?”
“No. I’m sick.”
Jorenkis picked up his pants from the floor. Lisette averted her eyes as he donned them.
“Shit. I don’t know what to do. Do you have to go to the clinic or something? They don’t have any human cures there. You’re not supposed to get sick.”
Lisette’s annoyance got the better of her. “Why are you here?”
“Why am I here? Puh.” He leaned back in consideration. “Why am I here? Yeah. Exactly. Why?”
Prax-Denay would know how to help her. It was only a few more steps to his quarters. She tried to stand but her legs felt strained. She leaned back in the chair to recuperate.
“It’s your fault I’m here,” Jorenkis said at last. “You put the idea of happiness in my head and then fucked it all up. I wanted to be in love and have a wife and have heirs and a dynasty. Then you turned out to be defective—just great. Just what I wanted them to send me. So I thought about all the work I was going to have to do to make you right, all the shit I’d have to go through for my whole life. The misery you were going to cause me. I just gave up. I gave up on the whole idea. And then I thought, maybe I can still have love and happiness. Maybe I had to give up the dynasty—for now—but I could still be with someone. So I went to Tiltawhirl and I said let’s try. Let’s be together.”
You’re gay? She had to think this in English. Lisette realized there was no word for homosexuality in the Dak-Hiliah language.
“It was great in the beginning. He was already everything you weren’t, and besides that we came from the same world. We understood our culture. There was none of your stupidity with the head bobbing and mumbling. I kept telling him how happy I was that he wasn’t broken like you. But he was broken—even worse than you. He was selfish and full of himself and expected me to be the one to make all the sacrifices for our relationship. He wouldn’t give up his stupid Penstick game even though it was obviously ruining things for us. Why did he even agree to be with me if that was more important to him? I was so stupid I’d combined our housing. Now all my belongings are at his place and I have no intention of seeing him but the robots I sent were blocked out and he said if I want my stuff I have to come get it myself. And most of it is just junk, but my shintella crystals—gods, if he smashed them I will war with him for the rest of our lives. I don’t care who his father is. Also my red cloak and the medtanium armor. I need that stuff back. Though I guess I could go to Fenterill for another suit of armor, but who wants to go through hyperspace on the shit transports we have here? Besides, I have a perfectly good suit right at his place and he knows it’s mine, so—”
Lisetted doubled over in pain.
“Oh, gods, what’s wrong with you? There’s no human diseases here.”
“Something…I ate.”
“What? Do you do, eat off the floor of the lab? Actually, I bet Prax-Denay got you infected with some experimental garbage in there. That’s the only possibility. The food you eat here is sanitary. The robots test it.”
“It wasn’t…the lab. There’s containment for anything—”
He groaned. “What then? What makes human’s throw up?”
“Either…bad food, sickness…”
“Not possible. Not likely.”
“…pregnancy…”
Jorenkis froze with his mouth dropped open. Lisette leaned up. His shock was renewing her nausea.
“I can’t get…”
“Yes you can. I made sure a specialized surgical robot came with you from Earth so your reproductive organs could be altered during your language surgery. There was no way I was going to let them send me a woman who couldn’t breed with us.”
Lisette’s heart raced with instant panic. When was her last period? Not since…oh God.
Jorenkis’ face turned more somber than she’d ever seen before. “Listen to me. I need you to tell the truth. Have you and Prax-Denay slept together? Don’t bother lying. I’m going to have you tested no matter what you say.”
Lisette stared at him. She felt cold, as though ice were in her stomach. She drew her lips closed to swallow but there was no spittle. If she had a mirror she’d have no doubt her face was tinged green.
Jorenkis turned away from her and put his forehead in his hand. “I can’t believe I fell for it. All that self-righteous posturing—I really believed him.” He looked back toward her with a gleam in his eyes. “It was rape, right? He raped you?”
“No!”
Jorenkis frowned.
Tears welled in her eyes. “I love him.”
“Whatever. He still blasphemed against the druid.” Jorenkis stood on the couch and shrieked with laughter. “Yes! Oh, he’s going to crash down so hard! This makes up for everything. Fuck my armor! Now I can get a new set when we go to the capital for his trail. I’d give up the armor, the cloak, even the damn crystals in exchange for this! You’re ruined Prax!” He turned around and screamed at his door. “Hear that Prax-Denay! You’re ruined!”
Lisette rocked back and forth. No…no…please no. Let it be a nightmare.
Prax-Denay opened his door enough for one auburn eye to shot daggers at Jorenkis. Lisette felt like vomiting again.
“I know you’ve been fucking her!” Jorenkis said. He jumped off the couch and ran for the stairs. “I’m going to tell Lord Drathek. Oh, this is so rich! I’m waking him up. He won’t mind. Now this—this is happiness!”
He laughed all the way to the front doors. Lisette heard them chime open and then thud close. After that there was a silence so terrible it felt like she’d fallen into an abyss.
Prax-Denay emerged, gathered her in his arms, and held her.
***
The first thing he did was give Lisette a cure for her morning sickness. She protested that it might hurt the baby. He assured her it would not. It was always used with Dak-Hiliah women without consequences and her reproductive organs were the same as a Dak-Hiliah female now. She felt her nausea disappear after the first gulp.
Then that they sat together on his bed, facing each other but separate. Prax-Denay stared downward. She’d already told him of the horror that transpired. He held none of it against her. If Jorenkis hadn’t found out now he would have learned
later anyway. It was his fault for not making sure she hadn’t been altered. He was the one who’d made the assumption that damned them.
All Lisette wanted to know was, what now? She didn’t dare ask, and Prax-Denay wasn’t speaking. He must have feared the worse. She wanted, desperately, to know what that was. Especially when an unborn child was now involved.
“If there was none of this other trouble,” he said, “suppose I was of the same race and status as Jorenkis and our marriage was fine for all concerned, would you be happy you were pregnant?”
“Yes.” She said it with fervent passion. “I…want to have your children.”
He closed his eyes and tears streaked down his cheeks. Lisette began to cry also. Appalling thoughts came into her head: she was going to lose both him and her baby. They wouldn’t kill her—but Prax-Denay? He was probably going to be executed. She would have a forced abortion. Each horror snowballed in her mind. She covered her face to sob.
“Can we run away?” she said while snuffling.
Prax-Denay soothed her hand. “I can’t, Lisette. Even if a place for us existed—I can’t leave.”
The words were too resolute for her to argue. She only continued to sob. Prax-Denay wrapped an arm around her. His touch warmed her as always, but could not relieve the pain in her heart.
She left many things unspoken because they were so attuned not everything needed to be said. He had to know she would stand by him no matter what the cost. She didn’t want to fathom what that cost might be. Living with him in the slums was fine. It was actually her best case scenario. Getting forced to have an abortion, however—she couldn’t bear to think of it. This was an accident, yes, but it was with the man she loved and wanted to share her life with. She already cherished what grew inside her.
Please, oh please. Don’t make me abort.
And yet—if that’s what it took to make everything right? Abortion and then sterilization—wasn’t that better than Prax-Denay being executed?
She never wanted to have to make the choice, but she knew—she would do it for him. Even if broke her heart into a thousand pieces. She had to suffer now, too. She’d played her part in all of this. Lisette felt just as culpable as Prax-Denay.
They didn’t work that day. Prax-Denay forced them both to eat. After that he sat with her in front of a console. He showed her pictures of their High Council, the seven member body of government who ruled the Dak-Hiliah. They would be the judges at his trial.
“Matoranis,” he pointed to a lean pale blue man wearing something like a silk turban who looked to be in his 80s. “He’s my sponsor. He arranged for me to leave the slums on planet Fenterill, our capital, and work in this lab. That was nearly twenty years ago, and it wasn’t an act of charity. The last scientist working in this lab had retired. The facility and all its fine equipment was going to fall into disuse unless a scientist was installed here. None of the scientists from Fenterill wished to transfer since Paggellatin is practically a wasteland now. Fenterill is where most of our population resides. I proved my exceptional knowledge and skills at the Etiken school. Matoranis said I should be allowed to work in the Paggellatin lab since there aren’t any women left on this planet anyway. The rest of the council agreed. Usually Etikens have to be castrated in order to earn the right to leave the slums. I’d refused. Fortunately, our dwindling population made them desperate enough to make an exception for me. Matoranis was commended for this when I developed the Instajant vaccine. It was the ultimate vindication for both of us.”
Lisette stared at Matoranis hoping to see something in his face indicating compassion.
Prax-Denay pointed to Elentinus. “Here’s your Lord Elentinus. My brother, Hor-Denay, is his manservant. He accepted castration in order to work for him. It always made me sick that he had to endure that.”
Lisette bit her lower lip. Hor-Denay had encouraged her to marry Prax-Denay. She swallowed down this morsel of information. Why say something that might cause animosity between the brothers? Hor-Denay had obviously been naïve about the reality of the situation.
“Lord Elentinus is the acting Viceroy of planet Earth in addition to a High Council member. He’ll be the one who decides your fate. His authority over you Earthlings is absolute. No one can challenge whatever decision he makes.”
She felt a tiny swell of relief. “He…he’ll probably go easy on me.”
“Not probably. Definitely. He’s famous for being compassionate.”
Prax-Denay’s voice lacked all reassurance. Of course she wanted to know if the unborn child would be okay. Elentinus wouldn’t force her to abort if she didn’t want to, right?
But the baby’s not an Earthling. Lisette cringed.
“Um…Elentinus, I mean, if he knows I love you, won’t he go easy on you, too?”
“Call him ‘Lord Elentinus.’ Omitting the titles of your betters is almost as severe a crime as blasphemy in our shallow society. If Lord Elentinus was the only man on this council he’d find a way to absolve me of all wrongdoing and let us live together with our children in peace back in this lab.”
Lisette balled her hands against her chest. Her eyes welled with renewed tears.
“But there are six other council members to outvote him, and they all despise him. Why do you think he hides floating around Earth’s orbit rather than living on our home world? If he stands up for us the rest of the council will vote for the harshest punishment just to spite him.”
Her face crumbled.
“Lord Elentinus will assert his rights over you since none of them can challenge him on that. He won’t intervene on my behalf. He’ll vote in the most compassionate way, but what the rest of the council decides will be final.”
“Will Matoranis stand up for you?”
Prax-Denay grumbled in consideration. “I don’t know. When I do good, such as creating the Instajant vaccine, it reflects positively on him. The same goes for when I do bad. I may have humiliated him. I don’t know how bigoted he and the rest of the High Council really are. All of them have castrated Etikens as servants.”
Lisette felt stricken.
“In our ancient history Etikens were portrayed as beasts who couldn’t control their sexual urges. The truth is, no Dak-Hiliah man does well at controlling his urges. The higher castes strove to pretend they were above base desires. Etikens were traditionally poor and uneducated. They had no need to pretend they had more control than what was true. Etikens had sex freely and frequently. Few were married. Few were monogamous. But there were no more Etiken rapists than there were rapists in the higher castes. That was a monstrous rumor based on bigoted assumptions.
“The Etiken district was completely closed off from the rest of the planet. In ancient times, when communication was more difficult, that allowed the higher castes to imagine the worst kinds of monsters dwelling in the slums that their sewage and trash poured into. This was sensationalized by High Council hopefuls who wished to gain the public’s attention.
“When a labor shortage required tapping into the Etiken workforce the tradition of castration began. Only a castrated Etiken man could be trusted with women of the higher castes. It’s been so for an eon. Even now, when we’re at the height of our sophistication, this hideous tradition is still the norm.”
Lisette sighed.
“I’ll do my best for both of us, Lisette. I wish I could promise things will be fine.” He swallowed. “I can’t.”
“How long until they come for us?”
He frowned. “I’m surprised we haven’t been taken away already. They must be waiting for Lord Elentinus to arrive from Earth.”
Lisette placed her hand on his. “We have to…cherish…the time we have left.”
Prax-Denay brought her fingers to his lips and kissed.
He took her to bed and made love to her gently. Their bodies entwined and he kept his movements slow, savoring their connection. She was still wonderfully filled by his endowment. He gave her amnesia about their predicament by causing prickly twi
nges of ecstasy deep inside her. She stayed on the brink of orgasm while he caressed her and gave soft kisses to her neck. Her moan triggered him and he thrust with enough strength to bring them both to exquisite climaxes. After this he remained above her, still holding her with both arms.
She knew he never wished to let her go.
***
Armored robots, not unlike the Sentinel robots who would hunt escaped slaves back at her old colony, came into the building the next morning. The two were sharing a quiet breakfast in the kitchen. Neither gave signs of panic when they heard the loud clanging things enter. Lisette’s heart raced.
“Prax-Denay and Lisette Bellamy, come with us.”
They rose in unison to obey. The robots flanked them but did not touch them. Lisette thought their arrest would happen more dramatically. They were simply brought to a flying car and then switched into a larger craft at the space port. The three robots buckled them onto a bench seat, side by side, and sat across from them. Lisette looked at Prax-Denay. He wrapped an arm around her.
The flight lasted long enough for her to fall asleep several hours. Prax-Denay nudged her just as they approached planet Fenterill. As with her previous flight, the greatest bump in the trip was while entering the atmosphere, after that the landing was soft.
They disembarked in a spaceport far busier than the one she’d left. This time three dozen Dak-Hiliah men were intermixed with the hundreds of robots doing work. Lisette even believed she saw an elderly female.
They were brought to a flying car that looked newer and more ornate than the one on Paggellatin. Now Lisette could see out the windows. It was as if she were looking at the same landscape on Paggellatin, except populated. There was no unruly vegetation to conquer derelict roads, nor crumbling walls with shattered glass. A few other vehicles flew across or below them. On the sidewalks were swarms of robots and several Dak-Hiliah. She even saw new construction being done by giant mechanized vehicles. There were skyscrapers with rounded corners and gleaming edifices which came together to create a stunning skyline. Beneath this was a massive dome with a sign that read ‘Hall of Governance.’ Their car landed in the lot before it.
Alien's Bride: Lisette Page 7
