“So you are now an Imperial noble,” the prince said, the phrase more a statement than a question.
I did not like the tenor of this conversation. “The consortship grants no real Imperial authority. It’s not an official position…”
“Then explain how you are theofficialConsort of the Emperor?” the prince asked.
Frustrated, I ran my hand through my hair. “That only means I’m the one person always allowed into her bed. Demons don’t sleep around like we do – they take a spouse for marital alliances, and designate a consort to satisfy theirromantic urges. It’s all above-board and legal to prevent any unnecessary duels of honor.”
“So your consortship has legal backing?” Prince Aureli asked.
Warning bells ringing in my brain, I nodded.
Prince Aureli drew himself up, his grey eyes hard beneath his silvered hair. “This is precisely why I did not want you sleeping around and performing diplomatic reconnaissance. You were supposed to seduce our enemies to our cause, but it is you who has been seduced into the Emperor’s camp.”
“Just because I succeeded where you failed does not mean I’ve joined the Empire, just that the Emperor would rather make love to me than tolerate you.”
The assembled Commonwealth notables fell completely silent, but Prince Aureli himself smirked, his eyes twinkling victoriously.
“And now you disrespect your betters. Clearly, you cannot be trusted to negotiate for the Commonwealth in good faith. Even were it not against Commonwealth law for a Royal citizen to possess a foreign title of nobility, common sense would force me to banish you from my court. Until you formally renounce your Imperial office, you may not contribute to the Commonwealth’s diplomatic efforts, nor will you be allowed inside our national suite. Your commission shall be retired and your items gathered and sent to you, insofar as what items you have which were not issued by the state.” He gave me a haughty glare. “I bid you good day, Mister Boylan.”
HUNTING FOR CLUES
THE PRINCE DISMISSEDme with a wave. I stood, my joints locked in shock, as he turned away from me. Wiktor immediately stepped to the prince’s left shoulder, extolling my virtues and requesting His Highness to reconsider, but the prince ordered him silent. Colonel Boleslaw stepped in front of Prince Aureli, whispering furiously in his ear, but His Highness was unmoved. “My decision is final. Mister Boylan chose the Emperor’s bed over his duty to Queen and country. Let him lie in it.”
My lip curled in fury. That insufferable toad. I had done nothing but what he commanded me to do. Had he not urged the entire delegation to befriend the Imperial nobility? To grow intimate with the Empire’s decision makers? Yet when I stood before him, having succeeded beyond anyone’s wildest dreams, he as good as called me a traitor.
Damn the man. I would write to the high marshals and grand marshal who’d sent me here. I would write to the Queen herself if I had to. Her uncle’s prejudicial lunacy would not stop me from helping my country.
Setting my jaw, I pivoted on my heel. “Let’s get Tilly and get out of here.”
I pushed my way across the stable floor to Tilly’s stall, Ankhelina following behind. A Royal Commonwealth mechanic stood before it, holding a datascroll. “Excuse me. I need to get my steed.”
“Sorry. I’m afraid that won’t be possible,” the mechanic said.
“What?” was all I could think to reply, my anger growing into a burning sun of rage.
The mechanic gestured to her datascroll. “Just got notification you’re not allowed access to Royal Commonwealth property. Your hoversteed is Royal Commonwealth property, and as such—”
“Property?” I said, my voice echoing around the garage as my anger found a viable outlet. “Tilly is an independent, autonomous Synthetic Intelligence. She is a Royal Commonwealth citizen. You have no right to keep me from seeing her, and should she wish to fly off with me, you have no right to stop her from doing so.”
The mechanic took a step back in the face of my furious onslaught. “But, that could be considered treason…”
“We are at war!” I bellowed. “The acts which comprise treason include those which intend to aid the Commonwealth’s enemies, cause harm to the Commonwealth, or impede the Royal cause. Since the Emperor wishes to talk peace, and since I just saved her bloody life, and since the other Imperial nobles desire to glass our capital and parade our Queen in chains before striking her head from her shoulders, I think a Commonwealth hoversteed assisting me in preventing such a future would be far from treason. Or you could ignore all this, and in eight months’ time when the capital burns and Imperial jackboots tromp down the Auroral Lane, you canfeel happy that you denounced my steed as a traitor. Now get out of my way!”
The mechanic’s terrified eyes flicked up to Ankhelina, perhaps to seek support, but she found none there. “Move, little human,” the Emperor’s Champion growled, and the mechanic fled.
I watched the mechanic scurry off, nursing a combination of immense satisfaction and unresolved anger. I was still banished, still considered a turncoat by my prince, and still caught in the middle of machinations I barely comprehended. But I needed to see Tilly. I always felt better mounted on Tilly.
“You should wait out here,” I told Ankhelina. “Tilly isn’t fond of demons.”
“I should protect you, but if you get murdered by your pet fiend, that would solve two problems for me, and it will not be my fault,” Ankhelina grumbled.
“Well, good. I’m glad I can help,” I snapped sarcastically.
As I opened the stall door, a dreadful realization hit me like a boulder hitting an ant. What if Tilly chose not to come with me? It was a possibility almost too horrible to bear. Still, nothing would benefit from leaving the confrontation until later, so I stepped inside.
Tilly chirped happily when she saw me. I knelt down, placing one hand on her smooth, shining chassis. Someone had polished her since I’d last seen her. That was unusual. Tilly never let anyone polish her. Most mechanics satisfied themselves with a quick pressure wash and then turned her over to me. Who had Tilly decided was trustworthy enough to polish her and provide a fresh coat of wax?
That didn’t matter now. I needed to focus on the task at hand.
