Chapter 10
CHAPTER TEN
Xylo
Xylo walked over and sat down next to Odelm on the couch in Zirene’s office.
Odelm already had a glass of Xowyn—a silver, fruity, alcoholic drink—on the center table, waiting for him.
Both Odelm and Zirene were nursing their own.
Leaning forward, Xylo picked up the glass, sat back, and took a long sip, enjoying the drink’s flavor.
He still couldn’t believe Selena was the Nova to such a powerful male in the CEG. Selena being the nestqueen in their clan boosted Odelm’s importance and public presence. Their actions not only reflected on Selena but also on Zirene and the Aldawi Royal Family.
Zirene tilted his head toward the master bedroom. Xylo watched the ears on top of his head rotate the same direction before flicking back in their normal position. Swirling the Xowyn in his glass, Zirene turned toward Xylo and his nestbrother.
“She is finally in a deep sleep.”
Xylo could confirm his statement, for her thoughts had halted.
There was no void as if she shielded them—just a calm silence.
Selena promised Odelm and Xylo she wouldn’t shield herself from them as long as they gave her privacy when she asked for it.
He knew how to multi-task, and since their permanent bond wasn’t freshly new anymore, he could pull his attention from actively reading her thoughts.
“What we experienced earlier in the Dreamdome, is that how it is every time you visit Selena in your dreamscape world?” Xylo asked, eyeing the Aldawi prince.
“Yes and no,” Zirene continued to watch the swirling silver beverage in the glass in his hand.
“I always kept her outside on the porch of her property, or we took walks along the island. Mainly, I focused on teaching her basic subjects students would learn in the academy, like Galactic Common. I avoided history and anything that might cause her distress, like Biology, and I kept talks about was happening in the real world limited, but I never explained to her how to create. What she did today was something only experienced Aldawi are capable of.”
“Perhaps that is the skill she adopted from you?” Odelm stated, glancing at Xylo for confirmation.
“It would make sense. Selena’s spots started to glow in the dark after she mated with me, and they gained the ability to change color in response to extreme emotions from you, Odelm.
Other than her making similar sounds as an Aldawi, she showed no other signs of things she adopted from mating with you, Zirene. ”
Zirene stopped swirling his drink and looked up at Xylo.
“She didn’t want me to come to the dreamscape world while the Destiny was traveling here, and I never explained to her how to create. That would explain why she didn’t know she had the ability.”
“But what did she gain from Kaede?” Odelm asked.
A growl escaped Zirene as his ears pinned backward. He turned his focus on the drink in his hands and took long gulps until he finished his drink.
“He shouldn’t have needed to do it. No one knows what species he is a hybrid of and the effects it would have on both Selena and him. We failed Selena on that part.”
Zirene’s news about Kaede startled Xylo; the realization hit, causing him to gasp.
“Kaede is a trans-human like Selena, isn’t he? That is why he looks almost human.”
“They consider themselves demi-humans—a human with slightly altered forms. Agent Kaede and his half-sisters are the most advanced versions. They have numerous similarities to Selena since they were genetically altered and grown in a tube while being enhanced by mech technology.”
“They were also experiments of the Yaarkins, weren’t they?” Xylo demanded.
“Yes. Agent Kaede and his half-sisters were on the first Yaarkins ship we took over that had prisoners aboard. The rest only contained a multitude of non-sentient creatures, other than the Yaarkins themselves. I made a deal with them when I rescued them. They get the freedom they always dreamed of as citizens of the Aldawi Empire and would be under my protection as long as they reported to and worked for me.” Zirene eyed them both before he made his way to the drink dispenser.
This news about Kaede’s origins shocked Xylo. Why would Kaede keep who he was a secret from them? From Selena?
“Should we tell her?” Odelm mentally asked.
Xylo studied Zirene as he ordered another drink, wishing he was an Ulax for once so that he could sense his emotions.
“No. There has to be a reason. It is not our place.”
Zirene sat down across from him, his amethyst eyes locked on Xylo.
“I know you are having a silent discussion. The reason I told Kaede to keep his identity a secret from Selena was because I wanted to gauge how she was reacting to all the surrounding changes. I know she felt self-conscious about how she looked compared to the other females aboard the ship she was on. I plan to introduce her to the demi-human community living on Destima.”
“Exactly how large of a population are we talking about?” Odelm asked.
Zirene took a sip of his Xowyn.
“There are five hundred and thirty-seven second-generation trans-humans living on Destima. Kaede, his five half-sisters, and Selena are all prototypes of projects separate from the rest. The demi-human population lives in the walled building Selena helped create. Kaede and his half-sisters live in their base on the highest point of the moon, overlooking the clan’s property and the surrounding islands.
The academy houses over one hundred thousand Aldawi warriors being trained and updated for the fleet.
My goal was to make her moon a special military base to keep her protected while I am away. ”
Xylo couldn’t believe what Zirene told him. Everyone believed the human race was extinct due to the tragedy that happened to them. Now, Selena would have a small population of others similar to her. She would finally have a place to belong.
“What about Kaede? He shared his DNA with Selena through his semen when he helped her dilate when she was giving birth. With him not knowing what species he is spliced from, we won’t know what traits Selena adopted from him,” Odelm commented.
“It is something we need to monitor. Kaede has spent a lot of resources trying to figure out what the Yaarkins did to him. There are no creatures or species in the Euph Galaxy that share the same traits as him. I am assuming he is either a spliced combination of what is available in the Euph Galaxy or a species native to where the Yaarkins came from. No matter what, he is loyal to both the Aldawi Empire and to me. His instincts would drive him to be the perfect guard for Selena.”
Odelm sighed. “He has hurt Selena with his avoidance of her. I am afraid of what would happen between those two once he comes around. Part of me wishes he would stay away and guard her from afar, but I know that may not always be the case.”
Xylo nodded. “Her thoughts about him confirm what Odelm said. She feels betrayed and used by him because you ordered him to befriend her to keep tabs on her. Now that you are around, his friendship with her is no longer needed. Whenever those two meet, it will be a heated discussion.”
Zirene leaned back and took another sip of his drink, eyeing both Odelm and Xylo.
“Kaede has never strayed from his missions and is one of my best warriors. If he believes avoiding her is something he needs to do to keep himself from distraction, I will not interfere. He is in charge of keeping Selena and our cubs safe.” A growl escaped him.
“By taking in her blood when he bit her, he can now trace her location if they are on the same planet. He has always used this skill to hunt a target when he is on a mission. Even though I do not agree with what happened, I will overlook it if it will help keep her safe.”
“When are you going to explain all of this to Selena?” Xylo asked tightly.
“Leave that to me,” Zirene sighed and locked his eyes with Xylo.
“I know I messed up with Selena. It will take a while for her to fully trust me and be once again as comfortable with me as she is with the both of you. I kept my identity from her and forced her to become a mother, knowing everything would be hectic in her future.” He took in a deep breath, as his ears flicked back, before letting it out.
“How about I monitor the cubs at night in the spare bedroom so you both can comfort her and sleep through the night until we arrive at Destima? I know the three of you haven’t been able to spend time together as a clan at night because of the cubs.
Selena isn’t ready for me to join you guys in the same bed yet, and until she asks me, I won’t force myself in it.
I am hoping she will agree to spend some alone time with me to work things out while we are on Destima and explain everything we have discussed here during that time.
To that, our cubs will need to be taken care of and watched over so she won’t worry about them.
That is what I am hoping you two will agree to do.
Let me watch over the cubs at night while we are still here, and when we are on Destima, you will watch the cubs while I try to court her at night. ”
Xylo felt that Zirene’s offer was fair. They hadn’t been able to have any time to comfort Selena at night since the cubs were born. Trading the responsibility for the cubs would benefit everyone involved.
He kept his gaze on Zirene as he asked Odelm. “What do you think?”
“I believe it is a reasonable request. We’ve had the cubs in our bed with us, and our focus has been on making sure they are taken care of while Selena recovered.
Zirene is correct that by doing so, we haven’t been able to spend time sleeping with Selena.
It is an honor to do so, but I miss waking up entangled with both you and her.
Trading time with the cubs would allow us to treat each other as equals, regardless of our ranking or career.
Selena wants her clan to respect each other and get along, and this would add to it. ”
“Then it is settled. If Selena ends up sleeping with Zirene someplace without us on one of those outings, we need to make sure she knows it is fine. They need to rekindle what they originally had, and we should support them both in doing so.”
“Even though it would feel odd not sharing a bed with our nestqueen, I understand the reasoning and would rather have her happy. At least we will still be able to feel her.”
A smile crossed Xylo’s face as he nodded at the Aldawi prince. “We both agree to your terms. It is for the betterment of our clan for both of you to work out your differences. We hope one day soon, you will share the same clan bed with us where you belong.”
Zirene relaxed in his chair. “Thank you both. I will remember this.” He glanced at Xylo and his nestbrother. “It is getting late. How about you both help me move our cubs to my spare bedroom, and we all go to bed? Tomorrow is an important day for us all, and it will be here before we know it.”