Page 5 of Summer

Gagos. Gagos. I hate this planet.

Since I was a child, our parents have dragged Aaoric and me here at least three times a year. For Aaoric, it was a way to learn how to conduct business on a trade planet. Everything you could ever need was here – servants, textiles, spaceships, legal, and illegal goods.

I was brought with for two purposes. First, so Mother could show me what would happen if I didn’t obey her and Father. We’d pass through the less desirable parts of the city, carriage closed tight against the offending smell. Mother would pull back the curtain and point. “You see that? Those are all female aliens who did not do as their parents told them.”

I have no doubt in my mind that if I disobey my parents, they will bring me to Gagos and throw me into the street.

Second, so Mother could show me off. While Father and Aaoric are off doing business, Mother frequents the local ladies’ clubs and tea houses. As soon as I was old enough, she brought me with, warning me of the rules. Speak only when spoken to, smile politely at all times, do not slouch, burp, or fart, and do not speak to anyone unless she was around as well.

The thought of another long afternoon stuck in a chair around the high society ladies of Gagos and the other planets of this galaxy makes me want to vomit. I wonder if I could feign illness. I could always cut myself on the cross stitch…

“Have the carriage prepared,” Father orders the attending. He stood the entire four-hour trip, never so much as slouching. The attending nods and disappears toward the pilot station.

“Just one carriage?” I ask. Father gives a gruff affirmation, which is more than I expected him to do.

The scene outside the ship changes drastically – from the star filled sky of space, to the wavy heat of the Gagos atmosphere. To my dismay we make it past the layer and into the foggy air of Gagos’s capital, Frega.

The ship is much too large to head to our normal docking station in the city, and we are relegated to the outskirts. I don’t mind, the air is crisper out here. When I was a child, I used to sputter and cough when we landed in Frega. I vomited one time, the fumes from the machines and the city too much for me.

After a serious punishment, I learned to swallow my nausea, even though the feel of the air still makes me want to rip my skin off.

The ship lands at long last, much smoother than docking in the city. I would expect nothing less of the monstrosity.

The carriage arrives and we pile inside – Mother and Father next to each other, Aaoric and me opposite of them. I curse myself for leaving my cross stitch on the ship; I have no choice but to engage with my parents.

“Where are we off to today?” Aaoric asks. His communication device buzzes softly against my thigh, and he shifts to hide the sound. Mother and Father would kill him if they knew he’d brought it to Gagos. Aaoric may have been twenty-seven years old and the only male heir, but to our parents he is still a child. Still needs molding, shining, buffing before he can fit in his position as the head of the household.

I don’t anticipate Father giving it up unless he’s cold and dead. He could suffer beheading, and he would use his last breath to claim he could remain Duke so long as he had arms to sign bills.

“A surprise,” Father replies, his eyes alight with glee. One cart, Father happy – this will not end well. Aaoric shrugs and settles into his seat, training his gaze to the road outside.

I do the same, trying to keep my face neutral. My mind races with the possibilities – surprise. I can’t think of a single time my parents’ surprises meant anything good. The last surprise…I don’t want to think on it.

The carriage continues along the outskirts of Frega, heading toward the auction site. Father loves a good deal; despite our enormous wealth, he refuses to pay full price for anything. He thinks paying full price means he loses the game, and the lower he can negotiate, the smarter he is.

This, of course, means he’s banned from doing business at several stores in the city. This leaves him with the auction or buying items through a proxy. Father doesn’t trust anyone but himself to get the job done.

What is Father going to bid on today? An armada of ships? A new racing animal? I tick off the possibilities, wondering which will be enough to classify as a “surprise”.

The carriage stops along the drive and the attendant opens the door for us. Mother sneers at the hand he offers, using the rails of the carriage to climb down instead. Father follows, nearly tripping over the bottom step. Aaoric is next, extending a hand to help me down. I take it, ignoring the attendant.

The auction is busy this time of day. Workers lead animals to the various platforms, others clean their refuse from the ground. Along the far side, vendors stand under umbrellas, selling cool drinks to combat the humid air.

Father bypasses the commotion, heading to the section of the auction set for the rich. This area has cool circulating air and is boxed off from the rest of the citizens. There are screens showing all the auctions, allowing the rich to bid on them without leaving the confines of the room. I’ve heard rumors of some boxes that served libations, with the sole purpose of getting those within to bid more.

Father moves through the boxes, heading deeper and deeper into the auction house. Aaoric’s steps slow as we approach the last one, his face greying.

“You can’t…” he begins, his jaw slack as he stares at the words along the side of the box. I trace my gaze over the words, which spells out the same thing in multiple languages.

The Protegre School for Human Women.

They wouldn’t dare.

One glimpse at Father’s pleased face and Mother’s barely concealed smile tells me that they would.

A human bride! Just another way to prove how rich our parents are, how great they are doing with the estate. A human wed to their eldest son is just another brag to the rest of the world.

Aaoric stands stock still, the heels of his boots digging into the ground.