CHAPTER 7
Andie
I was an empty shell. I felt numb. Lanicar brought some kind of food in a bowl, but I had no appetite and returned to staring blankly at the wall.
I had no desire to talk to him or anyone else on this stupid planet.
He took a sharp needle and inserted something behind my ear, explaining it was a translator so I wouldn’t need to carry around a tablet to understand people.
He tried to show me a few commands to turn it on and off, and switch languages, but my brain felt too full to even acknowledge his presence at that point.
Part of me knew I wasn’t being fair. Since arriving on this planet, Lanicar was the only person who had shown me any real kindness.
I was too overwhelmed to care about fairness right now.
I just wanted to be alone. I was cold, and the trembling wouldn’t stop, no matter how tightly I wrapped my arms around myself.
The investigators returned to the room. “The prince has pled guilty,” Shahar informed me. “The King reviewed the testimony and requires your presence in the throne room for the sentencing.”
I made no effort to move. My limbs felt heavy. A blanket weighed on my brain. At this point, I couldn’t form a coherent thought, much less meet anyone new. I just wanted to burrow into my parents’ bed and hug my mom. I had never missed her so much.
“We must go,” Morinar spoke. He tried to gently lift me to my feet, and something sparked.
“Don’t touch me!” I screamed at him. He backed off, startled. I couldn’t bring myself to feel guilty about it. Looming over me like that triggered the worst memory.
I stood up and nodded, but I couldn’t meet their eyes. I didn’t want to know what I would see there. I shuffled to the door and followed them down the hall. I was like a ghost. I didn’t look anywhere but at the floor. Everything had caught up with me that day, and I had nothing left to give.
At any other time, I’m sure I would have been fascinated by the architecture of this building.
The beautiful mosaics on the walls, the tiered archways, the elegant lights that lined the halls.
But today I saw none of it. I trudged along behind the investigators, wondering if I was going to be shoved into some other type of cell, and finding that I just didn’t care anymore.
They led me into a room that on another day would have left me in awe.
I just plopped down on the cushion they pointed to and sat with my legs together and shoulders hunched.
There were murmurs throughout the room when I entered.
None of them mattered to me. I saw no one, nothing. I stared straight ahead, unseeing.
Dakleth
She was beautiful, even in this unresponsive state.
So beautiful, my hearts ached, and I wanted to tear the throats out of all those who gawked at her.
Even in an ill-fitting jumpsuit, she was stunning.
Like me, they were entranced, exclaiming how lovely she was - speculating if she was a Lumanela come back to us.
Perhaps the legends were true, they wondered.
Their voices were said to contain magic, they reminded each other.
I saw no magic this time. I saw a female in despair. I longed to comfort her - to soothe her hurts, but I did not deserve even that much contact with her. I despised myself for destroying any part of her fragile beauty. Still, it was difficult to tear my eyes from her when I heard my father speak.
“I have reviewed the testimonies of both parties and found no contradiction of the facts. Earth female Andrea, was there anything you wished to add?”
My mate remained silent. I was unsure if she was aware of her surroundings.
Her refusal to answer my father could be viewed as disrespect, and I was afraid he would take offense.
His expression softened as he gazed upon her, perhaps understanding that she had reached the limit of what her mind could bear.
“Prince Dakleth, I am sure I do not have to tell you how disappointed I am to see you here.” His eyes glowed red with displeasure as he glared at me.
“No, Father, I understand,” I replied respectfully.
“Did you have anything you wish to add to the testimony?” he asked.
“No. But to my ma– to the Earth female Andrea, I express my deep and profound sorrow for the harm I caused her. I accept whatever punishment you deem fit.”
My mate did not acknowledge my words, nor my existence. The loss of her regard cut deeper than any disappointment my father might have in me.
“The crime of rape against this female has been admitted by the Prince. This crime carries a punishment minimum of one solar revolution of hard labor, or a maximum of death sentence. In this case, the crime is somewhat mitigated by the cultural misunderstanding of the Pteraxi mating ritual. The only reason you are not dying today, son, is that you truly believed at the time that she consented. This does not fully excuse your actions, however. You are hereby stripped of all titles and estates, and sentenced to eight solar revolutions of labor, to begin immediately after this hearing.”
I bowed my head. It was no less than I deserved. In truth, if I had been sentenced to death, I would have accepted it. I would have handed the sword to my mate myself.
“Andrea of Earth,” King Akapa continued.
“It pains me to see how poorly you were treated by one of my people, my own blood even, so soon after your already traumatic abduction from your home planet. We do not have the means to return you to Earth, but you shall become a ward of the kingdom, to be treated with all due respect and accorded all rights of a Pteraxi citizen. Your immigration paperwork will be processed immediately. Also, to provide for your continued well-being, all estates and assets formerly belonging to Prince Dakleth will be transferred to you in fee simple absolute. My chancellor is in process of preparing the necessary deeds for you.”
Clever father. As my mate, Andrea would be entitled to all of my estates and assets anyway.
By our laws, I had claimed her, and she was my mate, although she probably did not know this and would dispute it if she did.
It was a tricky legal question, given that she did initiate the ritual, but without the intent to mate.
There probably was no precedent for this case.
Transferring my estates to her directly sidestepped the question of matehood for now.
And it eased my mind to know that she would be financially cared for in my absence.
Unsurprisingly, Andrea did not respond. She made no sound as Shara led her from the room, presumably to take up residence at my main estate.
Andie
In the hall, outside the throne room, Lanicar waited with a female Ptexari I hadn’t met. Shara greeted them both and then gestured to the new person. “Andrea of Earth, this is Xomina, the steward of your new estate.”
“What an elegant creature!” exclaimed Xomina. “Surely we can see why the Prince agreed to be your mate!”
I found I had no capacity at that moment to explain the situation fully. I barely nodded, not even able to meet her eye.
“Come, come,” she clucked. I looked at Shara and Lanicar, unsure of what to do.
“Xomina will accompany you to your new home,” Lanicar said gently.
“She will introduce you to the staff, and they will take good care of you. The Prince, ah, the estate has its own medics. However, if you need anything, you can always reach me through the communications panels. Blessings upon your house, Andrea of Earth.” He held up three fingers in some sort of salute.
I nodded blankly and followed Xomina outside to a six-wheeled vehicle.
The seat was much too large for me, but Xomina showed me how to adjust the harness so it fit. Once I was strapped in, she said, “Vehicle, take us to Prince Dakleth’s estate.” The vehicle started to move forward. Unprepared for the sudden movement, I bucked forward and caught myself.
“I suppose we’ll have to update that to be Andrea of Earth’s estate,” she mused.
“They say the Prince assaulted you and mated you without your consent, but that cannot be true, can it? Why, I have known the Prince since he was a youngling, and he has always been an honorable lad. I cannot believe the things they are saying about him, although the court records are public, so we will all see soon enough.” My lack of response did not seem to faze her at all.
I stared out the window. At first, we were in a city, with Ptexari bustling about. I barely made note of the vehicles, homes, businesses, animals, and other aliens I saw as we made our way through the winding streets. Soon the buildings thinned, and we passed through a few smaller villages.
Between villages, the landscape was a mixture of red and orange sand and rocks, scattered with the ever-present purple and green moss. It made for a pleasant, blurry background as I zoned completely out for the next hour, ignoring Xomina’s constant chatter.
I just wanted to hole up somewhere and sleep. Maybe then I could wake from this nightmare.