Page 87 of I Married A Syllen

Mirella

As our mount took flight, I couldn’t help a glance at the man still bound by the vines on the forest floor. Although they had significantly loosened around him, he was seriously wounded. That he was now unconscious was a blessing. But what about when he awakened? The blood around his mouth hinted at potential internal injuries. I didn’t know the Syllen laws. While I agreed with the need for consequences—especially after recent events—this specific instance distressed me.

Condemning this man to a slow death and for his remains to be probably devoured by wildlife struck me as beyond cruel. Granted, had he gotten away with his mission here, the fallout would have been far more devastating for the Syllens. But I didn’t doubt that he truly didn’t know what the potential consequences were of completing that mission. That didn’t excuse him, but that also didn’t warrant an execution… in my humble opinion.

“Stop fretting, Mirella,” Taelen said, his voice devoid of its usual warmth when he addressed me. “As much as he deserves it, that human will not be left to rot in the forest. Ma is on her way to fetch him and will bring him to Procrea.”

“Your mother is coming?!” I exclaimed, relieved that the man would be rescued.

“Yes. And so is everyone else,” he said, the underlying menace in his voice sending a chill down my spine.

The cold fury that radiated from him scared me. I didn’t actually fear for myself. Even now, I held a bone deep conviction that my mate would never harm me, however angry he may get. But I feared how far he might take things once we arrived at Procrea. No one, least of all I, could forbid him and his people from seeking justice. The Syllens had clearly stated that anyone they found trespassing would be executed. But should violence break out, things would only get worse going forward. I needed to find a way to de-escalate the situation.

To my shock, mere minutes into our flight, countless silhouettes soared into the sky. At a glance, it appeared that every awakened Syllen was on the move. I didn’t doubt that Taelen had communicated Procrea’s location to his people.

Are we going there to confront Ludwig or to burn the entire place down?

I sent a message to Maeve, not only so that they could perform a more thorough analysis of the pinecone-looking sterilization pods, but also to warn them of the imminent shitshow. As soon as I began typing on my armband, Taelen stiffened behind me. I didn’t need to read minds or to be an empath to guess what he was thinking.

Merely sending this message made me feel like a traitor. At the same time, I would have felt the same if I didn’t. I had been thrown into this ‘ambassador’ role without any proper training. The fact that Taelen was my soulmate further complicated things. Who did I owe my loyalty to?

The Syllens…

It took me aback how loudly that resonated in my mind. Although I would never stop being human and an off-worlder, if I was to have any chance at a happy future with my soulmate, I needed to make my life here with my new people my priority. But that didn’t mean discarding where I came from. More importantly, that didn’t mean going apeshit on people who wronged us indiscriminately. We needed to avoid getting innocent people caught in the crossfire. And above all, we needed to ensure that the Syllens exacting justice didn’t make them come across as savages instead of victims dishing out a righteous punishment.

Maeve’s response came quickly. After confirming that she was forwarding the data to the lab, she asked for further details as to what went down. I hated typing on the small interface of my bracer instead of a proper keyboard where I could use all ten fingers. Better yet, I loved a vidcom chat. Not only was it faster, but a person’s expression and intonation as they spoke revealed so many subtleties that you missed or misinterpreted when simply reading a text.

With each message I received or sent out, Taelen grew even more tense behind me. I wished he would ask me what was going on, but he remained silent. Every time I tried to figure out a way to address it, my tongue turned to lead, and my mind went blank. Then I would get another message from Maeve and get distracted.

After ten minutes that felt like ten hours, Maeve added someone else to our chat. My heart leapt upon seeing the name Tedrik Wilson. He was one of the highest-ranking officers of the Enforcers.

My jaw dropped when she requested that I put the com on speaker. At the same time, I felt relieved that we could include Taelen in the conversation. I had prayed that Maeve would give me enough information that would help me navigate this sensitive situation. But this would hopefully be better.

“Maeve and her superior officer would like to speak with both of us,” I said carefully while glancing at him over my shoulder. “He requested that I put our conversation on speaker so that you can hear them, and they can hear us.”

The intensity with which he stared at me cut me deeply. I wouldn’t call it full on distrust, but there was definitely a mix of doubt and betrayal. This mess could define our relationship going forward. Normally, I had no problem speaking my mind. So why the fuck was I so damn tongue tied now that things were getting serious?

He gave me a stiff nod, and I put the communication on speaker.

“You’re on,” I said.

“Thank you, Mirella,” the man said. “Greetings, Taelen. My name is Tedrik, the Director of the Enforcers. Mirella gave us a brief summary of what happened. We are truly sorry for the trespass. I understand that you’re on your way to Procrea.”

“If you intend to interfere—” Taelen said in a frosty tone.

“We will not,” Tedrik said firmly, interrupting him. “These are your lands. Therefore, you set the rules, and we honor them. I merely ask that you please spare the innocent. The citizens of Mazeria aren’t your enemies. Most of them are completely clueless about what is happening.”

My heart leapt upon hearing him echo my sentiment. I dreaded the possibility that he might want to impose the UPO’s approach to diplomacy in this matter. But if we were to have any positive relationship with the natives going forward, showing that we would respect their sovereignty was essential.

“We want Ludwig and his accomplices,” Taelen said sharply.

“That’s fine,” Tedrik said carefully. “But please understand that there is something much bigger going on. Being able to arrest some of the people leading the repeated attacks on your lands would help us bring the entire thing down.”

“What do you mean by something much bigger,” Taelen asked, echoing my thoughts.

“The lab performed a quick test on the data that you provided,” Maeve replied. “The initial results infer that the Kalrins are their primary target. They are attempting to sterilize and neutralize them, and by extension, the Syllens as well.”

“WHAT?!” Taelan and I exclaimed simultaneously.