Daemon & Sunny Ch. 10

"Queen Astrida; you sought a marriage-alliance between our two kingdoms, to bring your people into the benefits of the Empire while there were rulers upon the Dragon Thrones. As you can see, those thrones have now been reclaimed...and you now have the opportunity to swear yourself and your nation directly into the service of the Pax Imperium, and thereby gain its protection." Daemon waited for his words to sink into her. She stared at him, eyes wide over the edge of her half-veil. He stared back, his smile still seemingly genial. For a moment, his voice dipped, speaking for her ears alone. "I already know what you have done; I am fully aware of the orders you gave, and the consequences thereof.

"I suggest you take thisgenerous offer, for the sake of your people, who shall be treated with as much consideration and care as any within the Empire." He paused, then spoke normally again, lifting his palms and offering them to her. "Astrida, ruler of the Ruyikan nation, you are offered this opportunity to swear yourself, your people, and your kingdom in fealty to the Pax Imperium; to abide by the laws of the Pax Imperium; to benefit from the Pax Imperium; to strengthen the Pax Imperium with your cultural diversity and your economic resources; to join your brothers and sisters in the harmony of the Pax Imperium. What say you to this?"

"We do not understand," the gold-clad queen whispered. "By your powers, we should be condemned, and dead."

"Accept, or decline," he murmured back. "Accept, and your people will be sheltered. Decline, and they will be outcast. Are you the leader of your people, concerned with what is best for them...or a leader of only yourself, focused only upon your own selfish ends?"

Brown eyes held blue, until she lowered her gaze. Sinking to one knee, she placed her hands on his. "...We pledge Ourselves, Our people, and Our nation unto the laws and protections of the Pax Imperium. So say I, Astrida...and so say We, Queen of all Ruyika."

"Your pledge is accepted. Be it known that all activities illegal within the Imperium are now banished from Ruyikan lands, including the custom of slavery. And be it known that, for the crime of ordering the deliberate murders of my father and elder brother, you are stripped of your titles, your powers, you wealth, your lands, and your possessions, including the clothes upon your back," Daemon asserted, gripping her hands tightly as she jerked in surprise and tried to withdraw. Black spun out from him, cloaking her body. When it faded, she was clad in the uniform of an Astorran servant. No veil covered her face, and no hint of gold graced her grey-clad body. "A Ruyikan regent of suitable ethics shall be selected to oversee the transition from Rimworld nation to Imperium state, taking your place in the leadership of your people.

"You shall be given enough mercy to be allowed to live; without your interference, the Matrix would not have chosen the circumstances that brought Sunny and myself together, when your ambassador bought her as a coronation gift for me, and the Empire might not have regained its leadership quite so quickly." The statement was an irony, of course, given it had been roughly forty years since the last Emperor and Empress had lived. Daemon's mouth twisted from a different source of irony, however. "But you shall not live unpunished."

Freeing his hands from hers, he clasped her temples between his palms; energy flared for a moment between them, then he released her.

"You are cursed to suffer the perspective of each of your victims in nightmares each night, until you have learned the error of your ways, and truly, sincerely repented all the harm you have ever done. Sweet dreams, Astrida." Lifting his hand, Daemon motioned for Armon to join them. "...See that she is taken down to the laundry facilities, and have them teach her the value of honest labor. We would not have her languishing without enough employment to pay for food, clothing, and shelter, after all."

"Yes, Your Majesty," Armon agreed, and clapped her hands in front of the stunned ex-queen's face. "Get up, girl! Your life has been spared, but if you make either of Their Majesties mad with any resentments or slothful ways, they might not be so merciful the next time they have to deal with you..."

Turning away from her, Daemon sought out the Queen of Chonbei, next. The tall blond was standing next to Princess Filini. Holding out his hands to her, he expected her to join him on the dance floor. Instead, she dropped to one knee.

"I pledge myself, my people, and my lands to the Pax Imperium, as Your Majesty's faithful servant."

"Your oath is accepted," Daemon returned, even as he absorbed the thoughts uppermost in her mind. His mouth twitched into a genuine smile. "And I thank you for the deception you tried to play upon me, though you can see it turned out to be unnecessary. May I congratulate you and Her Highness on your impending merger?"

Rising—almost threatening him with the crisp edge of her tall, stiff dress-collar—Nulkuta smiled smugly at him. "Yes, you may. And I will congratulate you upon your own choice of mate. You are a very smart man, to have ensnared the heart of such an intelligent, attractive woman. A pity the Matrix only takes on opposing genders."

Those thoughts in her mind, Daemon didn't want to sense. He danced with her, then moved to the né-princess. Irisia sighed as she knelt, offered him her fealty—on behalf of only herself and her family—and rose into his arms for the stylized dance. She sighed again, meeting his gaze. "I suppose I should dust off my degree in teaching, now that I'm no longer a political figure."

"Why don't you stay on for a little while longer, and your father as well?" Daemon asked her, watching as Sunny swept past in the arms of a visiting outworld duke. "After forty-plus years, I'd say he probably knows how to run the Empire very well. An experienced man such as himself would make an excellent Imperial Advisor, for a start. And I'm sure you know quite a lot of the rulers around the Empire. At least among the younger set. I doubt I'm the first one you were sent to meet like this."

"I suppose. But now that I've had a chance to think about being free from my dutiful-daughter responsibilities," Irisia returned, "I think I'll be happy, retiring from public life."

"Don't remind me," Daemon muttered. "I never wanted to be king in the first place, let alone Emperor..."

Princess Filini was next, and she looked relieved as she swore fealty on her father's and people's behalf before dancing with him. They exchanged a few words, he complimented her on her forthcoming marriage-alliance, she blushed and complimented him on his choice of life-partner, and they parted. That left him with Princess Shirra.

Being a Rimworlder, she didn't kneel and offer her fealty. She did let him lead her into the next dance, leather garments squeaking softly with each crisp move. Spinning her out, he brought her back into him...and found a mini-blaster pressed into his stomach. Her mouth curled in a half-smile, half-sneer.

"Let's see if you'rereally the frakkin' Emperor!"

Her finger jerked. She jumped, hissed in pain, and looked down at the...bundle of roses in her hand? Instead of squeezing the trigger of her weapon, she'd impaled her finger on one of the thorns. Daemon hadn't done that, though; he'd tensed himself to absorb and neutralize the energy weapon. Bemused, he looked up in time to see Sunny winking at him as she danced in the arms of one of his Council members.

"Suckin'craker!" the red-clad woman swore, staring at the posy.

"I suggest you quit the pirate's life and start looking for more honest, legal work," Daemon suggested. "Oh, and you can tell your father that the guns on his little fleet of ships orbiting my beloved homeworld will not work, not while they're still within Imperial Space. The Peace of the Empirewill be enforced, for as long as you choose to stay."

Breaking away from him, Shirra threw the roses on the floor and stomped one foot, hands fisting at her sides. "—But I wanted to be aprincess!"

"Princess is as princess does," Daemon quipped half to himself, watching her stomp away. Sunny's voice interjected her own comment into his thoughts, accompanied by shimmering light coalescing into six very stunned but formally dressed figures.

The only royal thing about her upbringing was the fact that her father raised her to be a royal brat. By the way, I've brought my family to the party. Go dance with my mother; she's the one with the dark hair, not red. Her name is Galatea Sharelle, and my father is Ordannon Jonsen. The other redheaded woman is my father's sister Haleea, and the three younger ones are my sister Faithen, and my brother Jacksen and Fellin.

Great; you pick the one thing even the Black Dragon himself would be nervous about: meeting his in-laws for the very first time.

I love you, she offered in compensation.

I love you, too. Don't forget to dance with Vizier Hopwitt. He's not going to be too happy that I didn't pick a nice, local Astorran for my wife...

...

The Black and the White nibbled each other's tails, content with the Choosing they had made...

...

Astorra Prime, 26 years later

Clad in the sun-changed black of her coronation robes, Daena Astorre eyed the man who approached. He was clad in a black tunic and trouser set, the rich satin highlighting his tanned kin, short-cropped black hair, and exotic, slanted eyes. Accompanying him was a man in the grey tunic of an Imperium servant, marked with the black-and-white ouroboros dragons of her parents. As the younger male knelt gracefully, the Imperial servant passed a letter to one of her servants.

Cracking the seal, Daena pulled out the sheet of paper, and unfolded it. Her mother's handwriting made her smile at first, then her eyes widen. A faint blush stole across her cheeks as she read the contents, between glancing at the man in his mid-twenties before her.

'Dearest Daena;

You know your father and I long to be there for you, proud as can be, but we didn't want to overshadow your ascension to authority, now that you're experienced enough to rule on your own. We're watching on the holovid, though! The rest of the Empire can sodding well wait—our little baby's all grown up!

Okay, now on to business. Since we couldn't be there for you, and because we wanted to get you something extra-special on your Coronation Day, your father and I stretched the rules just a teeny bit, and used the Matrix to find you your perfect mate. Having the right partner really, really helps when it comes to ruling a nation, however large or small. And by perfect partner, we made sure to set the search parameters for someone who's emotionally, physically, intellectually, and politically perfect for you. Well, maybe not politically perfect, given that he's not from some clout-riddled family, but he's not imperfect by any means. In fact, he's something of a scholar of leadership, like myself.

Anyway, his name is Liam Hawkwine, and he comes from Emon V. Yes, he's an Emo; according to my research, they make even better lovers than Astorran men do. Not in quantity, of course, but definitely in quality. Of course, you can refuse his suit, but I do ask that you allow him to clasp your hand, first. He's been searching for his own perfect mate, and your father and I have reassured him that yes, the Matrix is capable of playing matchmaker outside of the heirs to the Dragon Thrones.

Oh, and we've ennobled him, to get around that stupid royalty-only-marries-nobility clause your father and I never got around to throwing out. I think we made him a Count, or something...

Anyway, hugs and kisses, and do everything that I would do. Except hit him on the head with a silver carafe. (...It's an old joke between your father and I.)

Love,

Sundrea

P.S. Hugs from your father, too. We're very proud of you! ~Daemon'

Folding and tucking her mother's letter into a pocket on her coronation clothes, Daena rose from her throne and descended the steps, stopping in front of the supplicant her parents had sent. He was rather cute, from this angle. And those dark brown eyes were rich with emotions, almost like a visual caress.

"Rise, Count Liam," she murmured, offering her hand to help him stand. He slid his fingers around hers, both hands cupping her own from above and below...and sent a pulse of emotions through her. Hope, attraction, admiration... Daena shivered and wondered briefly if this was what her parents felt, whenever they wrapped themselves in each other through the Matrix.

Gaining his feet, Liam lifted her hand to his mouth, brushing his lips against her fingers. This time a pulse of desire rippled through her body. Daena wondered distractedly how many more of these presentations she would have to endure, and felt her knees tremble when he murmured in a soft baritone, "A pleasure to meet you, Your Majesty."

Damn. Even his voice was sexy! Licking her lips, she composed herself and replied, "The feeling is mutual. Will you be attending Our Formal Familial Ball, tomorrow night?"

"Most assuredly. I wouldn't miss it for the Imperium. Is there a place for me to stay, in your court?"

"Yes, there is." Lifting her free hand, Daena beckoned her chief euness to come forward from her post at the side of the room. She whispered in the muscular woman's ear as soon as the other woman was close, hiding the urge to tremble as Liam's fingers subtly massaged her hand. "Quarter His Excellency in thesaeda as an honored guest...and dismiss the others with severance pay. Somehow, I don't think their services will be needed, anymore."

One didn't argue with the judgment of one's Emperor and Empress, after all...

[The End]