Chapter 12
CHAPTER TWELVE
Selena
Standing in the waiting room of the CEG Assembly, I watched the space station’s traffic through the glass wall.
I woke up this morning filled with the most energy I’d had in a long time. Odelm and Xylo were successful in carrying out Zirene’s plan and allowed me to have a full night’s sleep.
After we fed the cubs, Zirene had handed me an outfit to wear—a black fitted jacket with silver details and a royal purple hooded cape.
A dark violet undershirt peeked through the jacket’s silver crisscross ties.
It came with fitted black stretchy pants.
The black knee-high boots were the same style as the jacket with dark violet under silver laces.
Long fingerless gloves covered my hands.
The outfit made me feel confident and powerful—like I belonged—standing beside Zirene and the rest of the Aldawi.
I wasn’t a prototype anymore.
I was a mother. A lover.
A Nova and a nestqueen.
The owner of a moon to do whatever I wanted in the Aldawi Empire.
And I was about to confront a room full of politicians and scientists to earn my freedom and establish myself as a citizen.
There was no room for mistakes. I couldn’t feel panicked or worried.
I had to present myself with grace to make them believe I knew what I was doing. The Fates and the Stars blessed me with a connection to Zirene. I hoped using my connection with him would protect me from whatever they had planned for me.
“Selena?” Zirene whispered behind me, pulling me from my thoughts.
Turning, my gaze traced his elegant, decorated body. He wore a long, royal purple cape with silver clasps and details along the edges. There was a black bandolier styled with multiple pockets that were sealed with silver clasps that crisscrossed his chest and attached to his elegant black skirt.
His outfit wasn’t as fitted as the others he wore, but it still radiated elegance, power, and royalty. A smile crossed my face when I noticed his cape matched mine.
My gaze met his amethyst eyes—the ones I knew so well.
“Yes, Zirene?”
His soft paw carefully took my hand and opened it in his own. I watched as his other hand slowly lowered onto mine. Something fell onto my palm before he covered it and held it there.
“I want you to have this,” he said gently. Zirene slowly uncovered the object from our joined hands.
A gasp escaped my lips. It was perfect.
The necklace was a dark metallic chain with a jewel-like sphere attached to it. The sphere looked as if the galaxy lived within it. Colors and speckles swirled slowly, forever changing.
“This is gorgeous.”
“It fits you,” he breathed.
He picked up the necklace from my hand and dangled it between our faces.
“Turn around, and I can put it on you,” Zirene purred.
A giggle escaped my lips as I turned to face the glass wall, peering into space.
The necklace passed in front of my eyes before landing in the middle of my breastplate.
I studied our faint reflection in the glass wall as he carefully locked the clasp behind me.
The hardness of his claws grazed the back of my neck as his soft padded hands took care not to injure me.
His focused eyes observed his work as he lightly grabbed my hair and pulled it from the necklace.
I felt the cold clasp fall on my neck before I felt my hair fall between his fingers.
Grasping a few strands, he brought them to his nose, closed his eyes, and breathed in.
“I am at peace now that I know you are safe— now that you are with me. My mind will be at ease to know you will be protected in my star system while I am away serving the Aldawi Empire. My wish is for you to have the freedom to do whatever you want with your moon. My only request is for you to take Kaede whenever you travel throughout space. He will protect you from any trouble.”
“Should I be worried?”
“On your moon? No. Within my star system? Probably not. Throughout the Aldawi Empire? It shouldn’t be an issue unless you are near the border. We will soon see how much of an issue it will be for you to travel to other territories.”
I grabbed my necklace and turned to face him. “Do you truly believe others will be a problem?”
He pursed his lips. “I want to say no, but that would be a lie. There are others in the CEG whose moral compass is… different. They are the ones I want to protect you from.”
The swooshing sound of a pair of doors opening filled the room, bringing my attention to the messenger in its entrance.
“The Assembly is ready to see you,” a light feminine voice announced. She was a bipedal species that closely resembled a dragonfly from Earth—bright green skin, four iridescent clear wings, and a long thin torso, almost tail-like. She wore a flowy pale-yellow dress to cover her delicate body.
“She is an Euvrel. Her species strongly supports the Aldawi,” Xylo mentioned.
“Are they peaceful?”
“They like to keep to themselves—but aren’t against supporting something they believe in. They are one of the Aldawi’s greatest allies.”
“Thank you.”
I filed that information for later. A smile crossed my face at Xylo’s thoughtfulness, even though I was still battling nerves.
“It is time,” Zirene announced.
Our group followed the messenger in silence out of the waiting room and down a short metallic hall, decorated with memorabilia.
Zirene and Royak led us, their heads held high as their tails swished along with their strides.
The Circuli princes followed closely behind, and my nestmates and I trailed behind them.
As we walked up to the doors at the end, they automatically opened, revealing the Assembly beyond.
I gasped in awe at the room.
Dome-shaped and about the size of the terrarium on the Destiny, it contained four tiers of seating, filled with beings sorted and grouped by their species.
A hallway separated each species-assigned table, where either two or four members sat.
The larger species sat toward the back, needing more space than the bipedal species placed in front of them.
My gaze traveled along the occupants as I followed the princes to the center stage. They all wore similar robes or capes in a variety of colors—each species matched the others in their area.
Horns. Wings. Feathers. Scales. Tails. Stalks.
Bipedal. Quadrupedal. Even a few who had eight legs or more!
The wide variety of colors, features, and shapes assaulted my eyes.
I didn’t know where to look.
The Ulax and Wudox both had a pair of representatives in their designated area behind the Aldawi spot, which sat four of its own members.
Directly across the room sat the Quaww, members of the same avian species as Qraniebi, who dropped Kaede off on the Destiny.
I smiled at the memory of the brightly colored male and his ridiculous outfit.
Voices filled the room. Everyone seemed to have their eyes on us—well me specifically—as we came to a stop.
Above the four tiers of representatives was a stadium packed with an audience that covered the upper half of the dome. The only thing separating them from the Assembly below was the ledge and the glass wall they were enclosed in.
No one had mentioned the Assembly would have a live audience.
Directly in front of us stood a smiling male, his curved mouth revealed blinding white, sharp teeth. At least I thought he was a male—a sense of masculinity radiated from his agile body.
He had abyssal black skin that seemed darker than the black robe he wore, with a pair of crystalline lavender wings that reminded me of stained glass the way the light shone through them.
His skin glowed magenta—not like the patterns on my nestmates glowed—as if his body was somehow a source of light.
His magenta Mohawk hair and eyes glowed, too, but at a higher intensity between pointy ears.
The definition of the angles of his cheeks and the sharpness of his nose only made you focus on his eyes more.
“That is the Assembly’s Chamber Master. You can call him ‘Chamber Master,’ ‘Sir,’ or—”
Magenta eyes focused on Xylo, cutting him off.
A sudden wave passed over me. My head throbbed as nausea bubbled. The golden threads that bonded me to my nestmates felt dimmed—muted.
“I believe I am capable of doing introductions, sapling,” A deep voice boomed, echoing through me, cutting through my mental shields. I winced and took a step back in shock. His piercing eyes locked onto mine, halting my retreat. “No need to fear me, young one.”
He raised a hand high. “Silence! I demand order. Order!”
The room hushed, the only sounds from the Assembly members sitting down.
The Chamber Master remained standing, his eyes focused on me as the room fell silent.
“You can address me as Master Mwe. I am aware you had an… unpleasant upbringing. We asked you to come here for answers. It isn’t my intention to cause any distress, but I cannot allow your nestmates to interfere with this trial.”
Frantically, I searched my shields and found no holes; its golden sphere was solid. Reaching for my bond threads, I tried to grab them but failed. It was as if there was an invisible wall surrounding my shield, preventing me from touching them.
How did he get through? What did he do?
A jolt of fear cut through me, dimming my inner rage at the males standing near me.
Was this a set-up? A trap after all?
I opened my eyes. His stare captivated me, preventing me from pulling my eyes away from the depths of his magenta eyes.
“Calm yourself, young one,” he commanded, his voice laced with annoyance. “I am only dampening your connections to prevent them from aiding you. It isn’t permanent, but I will remain connected to you until this trial is over.”
My strong natural shields and all my lessons from Zirene hadn’t prepared me for this. Zirene always told me there were powerful species with indescribable mental abilities, but I didn’t think I would meet one so soon.