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“Let’s just say that she’s a very shrewd negotiator and leave it at that.” The price had been steep, but he had no regrets. Some of the fruits and flowers required to brew varyn were a luxury even within the Vardarian empire, many light years away.
“Thank you.” Tariq held out his arm to him in a gesture he hadn’t used for weeks.
Sulat reached out to touch the back of his wrist to his anrik’s so the scars from their blood-bonding ceremony touched. “Anything for you, my brother.”
“Rae, please engage the privacy protocol for this area. You know what to do if anyone drops by without an appointment.”
Rae’s hologram appeared near the door to the waiting room, somehow aware that she shouldn’t intrude on the moment. The AI was Raenia’s creation, and she had based the program on her appearance and personality. They were the same height and build, though Rae had altered her hairstyle after her creator’s death. Her hair was the same blonde shade as Vixi’s, and she had even been programmed with some of the same mannerisms as her creator. While their mahaya was alive, it hadn’t been an issue. Now she was gone, Rae was both a comfort and a reminder of what they’d lost.
“Of course. Shall I have the dispenser create the usual array of preferred snacks?”
“Please. I think we’d all enjoy that.” Vixi shot Tariq a look that was identical to the one Raenia used when she was making a point. “Won’t we.”
Tariq raised his wings and bowed his head in a gesture somewhere between surrender and a shrug. “I could eat. I meant to have lunch. I just got distracted.”
They moved to the room they’d designated as their break room. It had windows to the back garden, plenty of natural light, and space to stretch their wings. It also had a replicator that provided an array of hot and cold meals and beverages.
As they sat down at a table, he remembered his offer. “Rae, please send a droid to retrieve the black flask from my lab’s coolers. You know the one.”
“Of course.”
“You sneaky male. You’ve got it brewed and chilling already?” Tariq’s tone was light and friendly, but his gaze held a hint of wariness. “This talk really has been coming for a while if you’ve had time to organize all this.”
“The varyn was intended to be a surprise.” Sulat shrugged. “Now seemed a good moment for it, though.”
“He wanted to cheer you up.” Vixi smiled at them both. “We’re family. We’ll always worry about each other. I know the two of you don’t like it when I leave on my missions to Earth.”
“That planet is not safe,” Tariq stated.
“That entire sector isn’t safe,” Sulat said half a second later. He liked the humans he’d met well enough, but their home system had been stripped of resources and left to die along with an alarming number of beings who lacked the money or means to escape.
Vixi laughed at them. “Have you been rehearsing those lines?”
“No. But we’re your fathers. It’s our job to worry about you.” Tariq’s expression softened into one of fatherly pride. “Helping to save the females of Earth and bringing them here is admirable, but you have to admit, it’s not the safest of jobs.”
“And being a healer here is?” Her voice was edged with challenge. “This colony has dealt with spies and an AI assassin that took over Rae’s programming and nano-warfare. Not to mention the fact the entire Vardarian population here fell ill for the first time in their lives, including both of you.”
“I’ll admit that Haven isn’t as peaceful as we expected,” Sulat said.
“But we’re still going to worry about you when you go to Earth,” Tariq added.
“We won’t be going back until this new group of colonists has acclimated and we’ve identified anyone who is a potential problem. They can come with us back to Earth or arrange for transportation elsewhere.” She shook her head hard enough her jaw-length blonde hair bounced.
“Are there any in this new batch we should be concerned about?” Tariq asked.
“No. The new selection process worked. They’re all adjusting well. No suspicious behavior, no personality conflicts of note, but they’re being watched carefully, just in case.”
They paused to gather the snacks from the food dispenser while Sulat poured them all a glass of varyn.
Vixi took a sip of the fizzy mixture and then set her glass down, her gaze moving from him to Tariq and back. “Now, tell me what’s going on with the two of you. It feels like forever since we’ve had a chance to talk like this.”
Sulat thought about that and realized she was right. Apart from a family dinner to celebrate her return home and hear about her mission, they’d been too busy to talk. She had her work, and they had theirs.
They spent the next hour chatting, laughing, and even reminiscing about the past. By the end, Tariq seemed more himself, laughing and even speaking about Raenia without more than a brief flash of sadness.
Sulat had to wonder if a family meeting and a chance to reconnect were all Tariq needed. They had kept to themselves more of late. Maybe too much.
Vixi must have come to the same conclusion because as they were clearing the table she stopped and turned to look at them, but her comment was directed at their AI. “Rae, how many times have my dads had social visitors while at work?”
