We walk through the Grand Lobby and then take a private elevator that requires Lira's biometric scan. As we ascend beyond the public floors, the lighting shifts to a cooler spectrum that makes my skin look pallid and alien.
“Remember,” Lira says as the elevator slows, “bow from the waist and keep your eyes down. Don't speak until spoken to. And be sincere about everything. Nothing is private here, and you will be punishedif you’re not honest.”
The elevator doors open to reveal a corridor with nothing but massive doors emblazoned with the Celestial Spire's emblem at its other end. Two guards flank the entrance; their grey skin and uniforms markthem as members of the Umbral Cohort, Sovereign Lorian’s private military.
Lira stops several paces from the door. “This is as far as I go. When you're finished, they'll have someone escort you to High Table. You can’t be late as it’s always more formal in the evenings.”
I want to grab Lira's arm, to beg her not to leave, but I maintain my professional composure knowing they’re probably watching me even now. “Thank you.”
As Lira retreats, one of the guards presses his palm to a scanner beside the door. “Eve Eden. Receptionist and human liaison. Cleared for entry.”
The massive doors part silently, revealing a vast conference chamber. I fight the impulse to stop and push myself to keep walking in.
The Executive Conference Chamber looks like a conference room in space with wide floor-to-ceiling windows showcasing the cosmic expanse beyond. A massive conference table dominates the center of the room, its surface displaying real-time holographic data from across the galaxy, and at the head of the table sit two identical executive chairs, and in them, the legendary twins of the Ascendant Alliance.
I had seen images of the twin brothers, but those did not do them justice. The men in front of me almost seem godlike in an alien way that makes me feel simultaneously drawn to them and terrified at the same time. Their grey skin is luminous under the chamber's lights, and they’re wearing impeccably tailored suits. Rafe is in deep charcoal with silver accents, his mandarin collar done up to the top. Lorian is in midnight blue that seems to shift as he moves and is open to his navel, showing off his grey muscular chest.
After half a second of gawking at them, I remember to bow deeply, keeping my eyes on the polished floor. My heart is beating so fast and even faster when I remember they have access to all my body’s functions, including the Venus Lock between my thighs.
“Eve Eden from Earth,” Rafe's deep voice fills the chamber. “Welcome to the Celestial Spire. You may rise, approach, and speak.”
I straighten and walk forward, stopping at what feels like the appropriate distance.
“Thank you for this opportunity, Sovereign Directors.”
“Your records from Terra Sanctum are exemplary,” Rafe continues, studying holographic displays that materialize in the center of the table. “Particularly your attention to detail and discretion with high-profile guests.”
“Have you found your position here satisfactory so far?” Lorian asks, his voice carrying the warmth Rafe’s lacked.
“Yes, Sovereign. Everything has been…illuminating.” I didn’t expect them to ask me how I felt. No one has ever asked me how I felt about anything before.
Lorian's lips curve slightly. “Illuminating. An interesting choice of words.” His silver eyes focus on mine intensely, and I remember Lira’s warning not to lie. “What exactly hasilluminatedyou during your time in our paradise?”
The use of the word paradise stuns me for a second, and the memory of the dream I had last night resurfaces. My cheeks begin to burn.
Did they watch my dream?
I quickly tell myself it doesn’t matter, and I pull myself together and answer, “I've beenilluminatedby the diversity of life forms visiting the Celestial Spire, and by customs in the galaxy I wasn't familiar with on Earth.”
“Such as?” Lorian asks.
Images of mutilated humans on display for the Sapien Spectacle come to my mind, and I take a deep breath. “The human companions,” I say. “I’m not altogether sure they’re companions voluntarily.”
“Of course they're not voluntary,” Lorian replies. “They're property. Entertainment, status symbols for their owners.”
“By hiring you legally, we're trying to accelerate change in the galaxy,” Rafe adds. “You are aware of the law granting humans equal status in the galaxy?”
“Yes, Sovereigns.”
“Good. I know that when you first arrived, you were disturbed by what you saw. That’s fine. You can still have empathy and be our liaison. In fact, it’s better if you do have empathy,” Rafe says.
“But the humans I saw in the lobby…”
“It’s not uncommon for owned humans to seek the attention of free humans. It’s natural,” Rafe says, interrupting me. “Unfortunately, there’s nothing you can do for those humans now. Once they’ve been sold into the system, there’s too much bureaucracy, and it’s too lucrative of a market to get them out.”
I’m beginning to feel dizzy.I don't know if I can do this.
“Speaking of keepingyoufrom becoming a companion on the open market,” Lorian says, his gaze traveling down to where my uniform conceals the Venus Lock, “Dr. Veil reports you've been fitted with the appropriate safeguards. How are you finding the Venus Lock's effects?”
