Page 58 of Alien Engineer's Mate

He stood perfectly still, calling on every scrap of warrior discipline he possessed. His world narrowed to the sound of his own breathing, to the steady burn of the marks he couldn'tacknowledge, and to the weight of chains that seemed heavier with each passing moment.

Light flooded the judge's booth.

Maax's heart almost stopped as he recognized the figure emerging from the shadows. Not a regional judge. Not even a high council member. Emperor Daaynal K'Saan himself sat in judgment, the ceremonial sash across his broad chest gleaming with sigils of the imperial house and two of hisdrakeenhunkered down in the shadows behind him. Maax heard his advocate's soft intake of breath. The emperor's presence changed everything... no emperor had personally presided over a trial in over three centuries.

"Well." Daaynal's voice filled the chamber with quiet authority. "This is an interesting situation."

Maax forced himself to breathe, to maintain his stance even as his mind raced. The emperor's expression gave nothing away as his gaze swept the courtroom. But he wasn't looking at Maax. His attention had fixed on something—someone—in the public gallery. Maax couldn't help glancing that way.

A tall warrior stood in the shadows at the back of the chamber. His bearing spoke of decades of combat, though he wore mercenary's garb rather than formal armor and he met the emperor's stare without flinching. The tension between them crackled like an overloaded power coupling. Maax had never seen him before, but there was something familiar about him that he couldn't put a finger on.

"Maax A'Taav." Daaynal's attention snapped back to Maax, his gaze as sharp as a combat blade. "Though I suppose that name no longer applies."

"Did you know?" Daaynal leaned forward slightly, his gaze boring into Maax. "About your heritage?"

"No, my emperor." The words emerged rough but steady. "I believed that Daar A'Taav was my father. As I believe he did. If this is true. It was unknown to both of us."

"And if you had known?" The emperor's voice remained neutral, but something in his posture suggested the weight of this question. "What would you have done with that knowledge?"

Maax didn't hesitate. "I would have turned myself in immediately." The marks on his wrists burned as he spoke, but he forced himself to continue. "No warrior can serve two masters. My loyalty has always been to the empire."

A subtle shift rippled through the gallery behind him. He could feel his fellow warriors' approval, their silent support. But it didn't matter. Nothing could change what his blood had wrought.

"The A'Taav clan has officially expelled you from their bloodline," Daaynal confirmed. "You understand what this means?"

"Yes, my emperor." Maax kept his voice steady through sheer force of will. No clan faithful to the empire would accept a warrior tainted by purist blood. No posting would open its doors to him. He would live and die nameless, clanless, alone. "I accept their judgment."

The silence that followed Maax's acceptance shattered as Kirr surged to his feet.

"I claim him!" Kirr's voice rang through the chamber with warrior's force. "I offer the M'Aab name, my clan's protection?—"

"As do I!" Aaran stood as well. Even though he was a second son, everyone knew his father would never deny him anything he wanted. "The T'Viis clan would be honored?—"

The wave of loyalty made him close his eyes. Even now, knowing what ran in his blood, they still stood with him.

Emperor Daaynal raised one hand and the chamber fell silent.

"Your loyalty to your brother warrior does you credit." A slight smile touched the emperor's face. "However, Maax, formerly of the A'Taav clan, has already been offered a new name."

Confusion rippled through the chamber. Maax's heart thundered against his ribs as Daaynal rose, the massive combat robots behind him altering position as well.

"The empire recognizes that the sins of the father cannot be visited upon the son." The emperor's voice carried across the court. "Your heritage has been examined, Warrior, and found irrelevant to your own proven loyalty." He paused, his next words falling like plasma fire. "From this moment forward, you will be known as Maax K'Saan, warrior of the imperial house."

K'Saan. The emperor's own name. Maax staggered slightly before he managed to right himself, his training kicking in. He hadn't just been saved from exile... instead, he'd been elevated to the highest clan in the empire.

"It is obvious that this was a long-running plot to install a plant in the heart of a clan loyal to the empire. But thanks to the heart of this warrior," Daaynal indicated Maax. "A heart loyal and true to the empire, this plot failed. The charges are dismissed." His tone brooked no argument. "Remove his restraints."

The guards scrambled to obey, their earlier suspicion replaced by reverence as they unlocked his chains. The metal fell away, leaving only the marks that had spread up his forearms. Marks that now, impossibly, he was free to acknowledge.

"Welcome to our clan, cousin." Daaynal's smile was warm and welcoming. "We have much to discuss. But… that will wait for another time. For now, you have a family to get back to.” He nodded toward Eira.

Maax bowed, relief washing through every cell in his body. “Thank you, my emperor.”

And with that, he turned to his mate.

17

The chains hit the floor with a sharp clang. Eira's heart stuttered, then slammed against her ribs as the guards stepped back from Maax. Time seemed to freeze, stretching like heated metal around this impossible moment.

---