Chapter 27: What to do About Nothing
Jasmine turned the taps on the hot water in her ensuite.
Her clothes stank, it was a good excuse to give her the time she needed to decompress. The ‘argument’ she had with Ryo was replaying over and over in her mind, he had left an impression on her, for better and for worse.
Alien-freq’s constant interference was taxing on the human social battery. Every single one of them had a unique feeling, a signature to their presence which was simple and easy to pinpoint but draining knowing where everyone was at all times. The feeling of fresh paper, the burn after exercise, or the impact of metal crashing against each other, Alien-Freq was never more complicated than that. The Dogs, Nako and Xant were a little more complex, Sieglinde felt like a warm blanket and running through the grass in spring, Nako was like a wall of ice, sheer and imposing but only when he wanted to be, Xant…
When they first met, he was like trickling water, but he had since grown into a river, fresh, relaxing, and full of life, it was his presence that had cooled the anger that consumed her.
She didn't like being that angry, it didn't feel like her at all…
She didn't even realise she had become that angry, that she had given in to someone else's emotions.
Jasmine watched the tub fill with rose, vanilla-scented bubbles and checked the door was locked one last time before dipping herself in. The warm water was amazing on her skin, she sank in til the water rose just below her nostrils, one of the few joys aboard the luxury yacht was a bath big enough for an adult to actually submerge themselves in.
She savoured the alone time, not that she was ever truly alone now, if she closed her eyes and really concentrated, she could pinpoint certain people’s location by freq alone. It was both cool and terrifying at the same time, to what extent she could use these ‘new’ powers was still unknown since she had been trying hard to suppress them. She couldnt help but feel it was an invasion of privacy.
Xant often spoke to her about ‘Freq aggression’, Freq-bombs and Volatile Extreme Freq Syndrome, how the sudden changing of emotions was painful for citizen aliens to process, so much so that Citizens and Military aliens were separated by necessity. The power and ferocity of basic human emotions were considered deadly, they could unconsciously force their own emotions onto others, turning them to their will maliciously or benevolently.
It was what she could do to others.
And what Ryo had done to her.
He expected her to be angry, when he destroyed something of hers, the car window… triggering her own rage and it blew up from there.
She sighed.
Was there any point in fixing the back window? It's not like it was a proper mode of transportation… she shook her head. What's done is done, she could probably get the engineers to fix it for her later, it wasn't even that important in the grand scheme of things, it just hurt.
Ryo was unstable, that much was certain, he didn't trust her at all and it seemed like he actively hated being in the same room as her. He lashed out at her before she could really process what had happened, a major retaliation, overdone for sure, fury, fear?, a perceived attack, best defence is a first strike.
Ryo wanted her to hurt.
She remembered the burn of anger, the sudden sickness of regret for his actions, and the pain he thought he deserved. So many brash, powerful emotions conflicting inside of him, Jasmine could only imagine the kind of life that could cause such turbulence.
The strongest memories resonated with the freq you projected, she was so used to being the bright welcoming presence, having it thrown off so easily by another was harrowing.
Ryo wanted her to hurt, before she could hurt him?
Was there a way to avoid it in the future? Perhaps she needed to pull herself inward?
Control her freq like Xant kept telling her to do.
Jasmine dunked her head under the water and lingered submerged in the soothing depths.
She had been so happy to see another human being, to embrace another person, to see someone eye to eye. But… Ryo was repelled by her, and Beau despite being warm and friendly outwardly, it was like he was invisible without a presence. She didn’t know what his true intentions or impressions of her were at all...
She rose up for air, scrubbing her face with her hands and hiding behind her fingers.
Was she really going to be able to convince them she had only the best of intentions?
Did they trust her at all?
Jasmine pushed her hands over her head and through the still growing stubble of brown hair.
Despite whether they trusted her or not, she was still the de facto ambassador for the human race and she would keep her best foot forward.
The small moment of resolve eased her worries, allowing her to enjoy the rest of her bath.
-*-
Jasmine emerged from the bathroom with a fluffy robe and a towel on her head smothered in scented moisturizer of her namesake and other luscious potions that the yacht’s previous owner saw fit to fill the vanity with.
Xant sat on the end of her bed, snout buried in a dataslate.
“So..” Jasmine asked, leaning in the doorway “What's next?”
“We have to contact the lieutenant,” Xant replied factually and Jasmine's stomach began buzzing with butterflies.
“Oh right, what are we going to say?” She crossed the room to the wardrobe to pick out some fresh clothes.
“We tell him only what he needs to know,” came the definitive answer, clearly Xant wasn’t as happy with Nako as she was. She paused, flicking through blouses, had she been too hasty with her anger? Did Nako have an explanation for what happened with the pods? “Tell him that you're working on communication with your honourable counterparts but negotiations will need more time.” Xant continued, flicking through his dataslate with a determined purpose, Jasmine watched his actions and smiled.
“That is perfect corporate bullshit you just sprouted,”
“Having worked for a company nearly a [decade]” he reminded her, “the ‘bullshit’ is almost instinctual now,”
Jasmine laughed as she did the zip up on her shorts.
“Congratulations! You just used your first human curse word!”
“Actually it's my second,” he revealed.
Jasmine poked her head out of the walk-in robe in shock.
“What?”
“Yes,” Xant looked up from his dataslate, looking pleased with himself “I’ve said ‘Fuck’ before,”
“No way?! And I wasn't there?!” Jasmine exclaimed.
“Well, you were unconscious at the time…”
Jasmine walked out of the walk-in and plopped herself next to her friend.
“Well, lay it on me!” she insisted “I want to hear you say fuck!”
Xant placed down his dataslate on his lap, turned to the human beside him and in the most bored expression he could manage uttered the most versatile word of English language.
“Fuck.”
Jasmine giggled and fell back on the bed.
“Be careful, can’t go around blasting that alright? You’ll hurt someone...”
“No need for warnings, I am quite acquainted with its power Jasmine.” he retorted with a smile before returning to his dataslate.
Jasmine sat up and leaned over his shoulder, she had misjudged her movements and was closer to him than she intended. He wasn't as warm as she expected, his coat and suit were as if they had been placed over a chair, devoid of body heat.
“So we're just going to send him a text message right?”
“Aud-files are standard communication, so you won’t need to worry about your freq signals getting through,”
Because the last thing they needed was Nako worrying about them.
“That's a relief, so I just need to leave him a voicemail… I can do that.”
Xant set up the dataslate recording and point to the button.
“Just push this when you are ready to record the message,”
Jasmine took hold of the slate and took a deep breath.
Namegiver Jasmine: Hello Nako! Just Jasmine checking in, the company really did a number on the guys, it might take longer than I thought to get them on side, but nothing I can't handle, good luck with everything on your end! Live long and prosper!
She stopped the recording and gave another sigh of relief, “Ugh I hate making voice calls…”
Xant, however, was staring back at her.
“How… Did you do that?” he asked.
“What the phone call?”
“No… you sounded happy, but I could feel the pulses tensing in pain, your demeanour was completely different from your Freq signal…” he sounded so concerned.
Jasmine blinked,
“Oh right…” she handed the dataslate back, he hadn't seen her lie before, then again, she didn’t need to lie to him, “It's just an act, from back on Earth, without a freq signal, you can mask your true emotions, pretend to be courageous when you're scared, pretend to be pleasant when you're angry inside… It’s hard to get right.” the best way she knew how to explain it without scaring him, she had done enough of that already.
Xant ran a hand over his ears, deep in thought.
“You can mask your outward appearance, but not your internal thoughts,” he nodded to himself, “This is probably why it is so hard for you to control your freq presence since you’ve been taught by your own people to do the exact opposite all your life.”
Jasmine had never thought of it that way, of course, up until a few months ago Freq wasn't something she thought about at all.
“With this new insight, I might be able to further our meditation sessions.” Xant theorised.
“Hey, do you think we should invite Ryo in on a session?” she asked him “I mean, he needs to control his freq even more than I do…”
Xant’s ears flattened at the mention of the other human.
“I am willing to teach, do you think he is willing to listen?”
Jasmine rubbed her face.
“... I don’t know…”
Chapter 28: Consideration of Court
Lieutenant Commander Sir Tar Nako paced in his quarters, his pressed blue cape billowed behind him as he crossed the length of the room and his food was left untouched. His modest living quarters filled with treasures and achievements seemed all but paltry now that he knew what was before him. The grand visions he had for his future were tumbling down a dark hole and out of his grasp, it wasn’t supposed to be this way.
Things were not going to plan at all.
He had captured a Rajavan vessel and claimed it as his prize of acquisition, only for the short-sighted Knight Commander to scream that he did not chase after the pirates who were salvaging it. At the time he felt it was the right decision, a dozen pirate ships scattering in all directions of the void or an entire gene-harvester ship (mostly) intact and ripe for study? The reveal of the alien Creator level species onboard only confirmed his judgement correct, if he had chased after such pirates the creator would have slipped into the unknown, lost as so many other things in the painful dynasty. Nako thought such a precious find would have elevated his status to at least admirable, but it appeared the Councillor had an even lower opinion of him than Knight Commander Kotorn did.
Which shouldn’t have been possible really, unless sir Kotorn was whistling only the least flattering songs into the Councillors ear.
That was a possibility, Nako did prefer to lead by example and those below him were enamoured, while those above saw such fraternising as wasteful. Soldiers didnt need to be happy, they just needed to complete their orders.
Perhaps the Councillors opinion could be changed once Nako could explain his side of the argument. He had the audfiles of Kotorn demanding the selling of the Humans stasis pods and the humans themselves with his own voices of protest. Nako slowed his pacing, glancing over at the ‘Brazillian’ tapestry that hung alongside his others.
The Counsellor had not yet met the humans, wondrous creatures who could weave their emotions like music and who could not live without being surrounded by art.
Jasmine was a fine civilised maiden, while her looks were much to be desired for an insectoid such as himself, she could bring any sapient being into her fold with her mere presence and sincerity of empathy.
The counsellor, as powerful as he may be, probably couldn’t withstand such a charismatic Frequency. Nako chittered to himself, stroking his mandibles in thought.
Bring anyone into her fold, except him of course. While he was happy to stand by her side as an ally, he did not succumb to serve under her as most did.
Great allies they would be, with her burning song and his righteous strength they could bring in a new Dynasty to the Galactic Council. New Dynasties were always sworn in on the discovery of something monumental, his own people were the cause of the shift from Painful to Rejuvenation and now he would be responsible for the next shift.
Nako could feel his Calling beckoning him ever stronger and louder towards his fate.
His name alongside the Praetors and Princes of history, rescuing an alien maiden strong enough to invigorate a new crusade.
Now he was laughing to himself.
If Engine lord Viitoic was proposing was true, they would need all the help they could get.
The Rajava were returning, with all the power the humans have and probably more.
Now he just had to convince the Counsellor of that.
His spiralling visions of grandeur were interrupted by the comms device on his regalias collar, it blinked a pale blue as Tifera’s voice echoed through the translator.
Captain Tifera: Sire, permission to enter?
Nako looked over at his uneaten meal, and rolled his shoulders back, a hand over his collar button.
“Permission granted,” he replied and turned to face the door.
Captain Tifera was a hulking military-grade Zenthi model, a messenger class to be exact, so while she stood shorter than her infantry counterparts, there was no better match in Freq projection or speed. Perfect for serving side by side with a Lieutenant Commander.
She came carrying two large silver suitcases, one under each of her already hulking arms, she could barely fit through the already generously sized door. Tifera had smuggled out some of the many human weapons the engine lord had dismissed as inferior on his command. She placed them down before him and opened them for inspection.
“Are these to your liking, my lord?” Tifera asked stoically.
Nako gazed over the dazzling pieces of machinery, each one completely different to the other in size shape and colour. Their art even extended to weapons of war, a thrilling aspect to be sure, he nodded his head in approval.
“Its not a matter of if theyre to my liking, but if they are to his,” Nako replied, implicating the largest unknown factor of their current situation.
“Are you sure you want to gift a praetor inferior weaponry?” Tifera inquired, her long antennae-like ears upon her head flattening in concern.
“Inferior doesn’t mean less deadly,” Nako responded, picking up a piece of the brass-plated ammunition and weighing it between his fingers, “I’m sure a demonstration of the device in the hands of an experienced warrior could tell us otherwise,” Humans had surprised all of them in the most profound ways, Nako was willing to stake his life that there was more to the projectile weaponry that had simply been overlooked, “besides, it’s not power I’m gifting his Honour, its rarity…”
Nako gave a silent order to close the cases, Tifera bowed her head before acknowledging and fulfilling the request.
“I’m sure the praetor will appreciate your gift, Sire,” she complimented his forethought.
“Yes, my gift…” Nako returned his arm beneath his cape, passing the bullet between his fingers unseen as he returned to pace, “Any word on which Praetor requested my presence?”
“Not officially, no,” Tifera responded, “but I can tell you the closest Royal ship that requested gate access,”
Tifera was good at that, knowing what to look for outside the basic parameters, only an experienced and seasoned soldier was capable of such things, which is why Nako preferred to have those under him loyal.
“Proceed,” Nako replied as he paced.
“The ship’s name is ‘Star-Needle’. Registration number 0127538, the ship belonging to His esteemed Honour Sir Mal Karakt, first Praetor of her Imperial Grace Akkaritia,” Tifera answered solemnly, the gravitas of the name stopped Nako in his tracks.
A first Praetor, the favourite mate of an imperial queen, certainly not the usual ambassadors the imperium sent out to inspect novelties such as himself.
“And you are sure of this information?” Nako’s composure slipped as he asked for clarification.
Tifera bowed her head low as she confirmed her answer,
“Cross checked the logs myself, my lord,”
Praetors, those blessed individuals who sired the next generation of life within the imperium, most never left their queens’ side without express permission. First’s especially so, since they held such close and personal bonds with their queen. To have such a free reigning Praetor have heard his name? To have requested his audience specifically? Such events were, more than astronomical, they were downright mythical.
And the universe once again aligned the stars for him.
“Perhaps he was simply the closest ship in the area?” Nako rationalised out loud, trying to squash any hopes from burgeoning out of the darkness, but Tifera asked the unspoken.
“My lord…” The gruff captains voice was low, a rare moment of vulnerability as she asked, “If the Praetor offers you a chance at presenting yourself to court, would you take it?”
Nako paused, his back to her.
“If it were offered, yes,” he answered truthfully, of a thousand males born there was born but one maiden, Princes of far nobler a birth would throw themselves into gauntlets just to prove worthy of consideration, “but, my time with the rangers is not something I look at with scorn,” he returned to face her on his path, “but if I were to leave, I shall pay the credits necessary to balance your score,” Nako pulled back his cape and saluted his captain, “I would have no other as my attendant,”
Tifera bowed deeply, her cold exterior pulsing with waves of gratitude.
“You are far too generous my lord,”
“I am pragmatic captain, I’d rather be followed than feared,” he shook his head, and laughed “besides, I highly doubt the Praetor would present me at court, he’d have over a dozen sons at least! Far better candidates than I!”
The tension settled between the two, Tifera pushed the crates to one side while Nako took a seat at his terminal. There was one last matter they needed to deal with, although he had hoped the situation did not need his intervention.
A notification sat waiting for him. Nako sighed, never a moments peace or reflection these days, he tapped the screen and waited for the computer to relay the message.
The bubbly voice was a welcome sound.
Namegiver Jasmine: Hello Nako! Just Jasmine checking in, the company really did a number on the guys, it might take longer than I thought to get them on side, but nothing I can't handle, good luck with everything on your end! Live long and prosper!
Longer than she thought hmmm, Nako had planned to visit Jasmine and run her through more etiquette lessons, between the alien weapons and an alien maiden Nako wanted to put forth his best impression tp the Preator of their uniqueness.
“I suppose I shall give her the space she needs,” Nako muttered out loud for Tifera to hear, “What are the standing orders for interaction with the humans?”
“Currently Sire, they are no contact outside the Engine Lord, even you are barred from contact outside direct orders.” Came the reply, as though she had the answer prepared.
“Well then,” Nako relaxed his shoulders, “then I suppose I should abide protocols then,”
Nako pressed the terminal’s screen and recorded his reply.
LC Nako: Namegiver Jasmine, I want to thank you for the status report, while it is unfortunate that your progress is slow I have every confidence that you can undo the ill that has burrowed under their shell. Should you require my presence please do not hesitate to send a request, I shall answer once my duties allow me to do so.
May your calling be clear.