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“My human wiles? With the power of my coochie?” Lenore laughed because that was ridiculous. The sex was good, but it wasn’t turn-you-into-a-minion good. “Are you implying that the king is so easily led astray? Is she even allowed to say something like that?” Lenore searched for Kenth, still in the shadows, to confirm.
“Insolent female.” Raelle raised the cane.
Lenore didn’t believe Raelle meant to strike her, but the karu with the white-feathered breast launched himself from the statue. It squawked harshly, beating its wings in Raelle’s face.
The karu on the woman’s shoulder dove for the other karu. There was a flurry of wings and squawks, and Raelle was caught in the middle. When the feathered fury subsided, Raelle had scratches on her arms.
Lenore guided the woman to a bench and inspected the injuries. Kenth magically appeared with an antiseptic wipe and a packet of gauze. She tore open the wipes and cleaned away the blood.
“The scratches are superficial, but you should clean them with soap and water,” Lenore said, covering the injury with gauze.
Raelle pulled her arm away. “How did you lure that karu here?”
“Now I seduce karu as well as kings?” Lenore asked, which was the opposite of what she should have said to de-escalate the situation.
“I would not put it past you.”
“It followed me here. I had nothing to do with it.”
“He.”
“Pardon?”
“That karu is male,” Raelle said.
“I’ll take your word for it.”
Raelle’s karu was standing on a nearby statue, tail fanned and on alert for the return of the feathered fiend.
The older woman pushed herself to her feet, leaning on her cane. “Think on what I have said.”
“I’ll be sure to do that,” Lenore answered, and it wasn’t a lie because of the obvious sarcasm.
BARIS
Baris paid for his brief holiday with endless meetings and audiences. Not a single councilor, administrator, or governor in the kingdom could make a decision without his approval, apparently. There were layers and layers of regulations and paperwork that kept him from the one person he wanted: Lenore.
Baris leaned back in the chair as his thoughts drifted during meetings. Meetings and briefings had always been tedious, but Baris had been able to focus on the work at hand. He felt well. His head was clear, his body did not ache, and exhaustion did not drag on his tail feathers. A brief exam by Harol confirmed that his body had cleared the dying symbiote and resulting toxins.
The first day back left him utterly exhausted. While he wanted nothing more than to walk with Lenore in the garden, he slept. Alone. The next day, he woke feeling restored, but his energy quickly flagged. By the evening, he dragged himself back to his chambers in a repeat of the previous day. He asked too much of his body too quickly, as Lenore warned. Now, several days into his recovery and feeling stronger, he did not trust it.
Not yet. This window of wellness felt like a gift, open for a brief time and in danger of rapidly closing. He wanted to spend that time with Lenore, not listening to the complaints of inner planet governors, jealous of the increase in the transportation budget to the districts in the outer planets.
“I understand the need for additional protection on trade routes, but the amount is staggering. Why can they not afford their own fleet? The governor built a lavish new sports complex complete with an anti-gravity arena. Anti-gravity? My district is taxed heavily, and we receive very little in return, but this ball of mud in the middle of nothing has plenty of money to spend on useless sports?—”
“Enough,” Baris said, muting the speaker. The governor’s image wavered on the screen. His mouth continued to move, unaware that he had been muted. Other meeting members on the screen were clearly not paying attention, either speaking with someone off-camera, reading from another device, or missing altogether.
This meeting was tedious, a waste of all of their time, and could have been handled by an administrator. Unfortunately, his schedule had mysteriously been filled with tedious, time-wasting meetings that did not require his presence.
Fortunately, Baris was the king, and he could cancel meetings as he saw fit.
“I believe we’ve gathered all we can from your feedback. The funding structure will not be changed,” Baris said.
The governor continued to flap his mouth, unaware that such effort was useless.
“How districts choose to spend their own funds is not your concern. What should be your concern is the safety of commercial routes. An increased fleet presence to decrease bandit and pirate activity in the outer districts means more cargo ships safely transporting taxable wares from your district,” Baris said in a patient tone that was anything but. “I am surprised that you require the obvious benefits to be spelled out. You have several years’ experience as governor. We are a unified kingdom, not an amalgamation of petty states competing for limited resources. We work together because we benefit together.”
It was a pretty sentiment but entirely true. Arcos was a kingdom that spanned several star systems. Noble houses held power, especially in the outer districts where the royal forces were stretched thin. Fighting between noble houses and planets was common. Baris could preach unity and mutual support, inspiring compliance with pretty words, but often, the will of the crown had to be enforced with a blunt instrument.
