Page 34 of Jewel of the Alien Bandit
I didn’t know him.
And I had misinterpreted the energy my loh had given off. Now that the light of the moon’s radiation had left me I couldn’t be fooled again.
He was handsome, and there was something comforting about his presence but I was more clear-headed without the interference of my loh.
Vareo could tell I was all business and his seduction antics wouldn’t work this time. His jaw clenched as if holding back what he was about to say, in favor of a simple nod of agreement.
“Perfect, then we should figure this out before whatever distraction has the king and his henchmen occupied is resolved.”
It was Carmen who spoke next, “Fuck, why do you have to be so damn poised and admirable even while practically collapsing in front of my eyes?” She stared at me, and I tried to see what she had to gain from complimenting me, but she bit her lip, irritatedwith herself or me? It was difficult to figure her out. My loh was wrong about her too. I had felt too comfortable around her, and she had taken full advantage of my belief that she was good by nature despite her bark. I was mistaken then too.
“Worry about yourself,” Vareo gritted through his anger. He blamed her, when it was no one’s fault but my own that I was in this situation. If I had stayed on Estreldez, none of this would have happened.
Sure, they pulled me through the threshold, but I had been opening the door to that danger before they added their parts. King Sylve would still be surrounding my planet, but I would not have been aware of it.
On the other hand, there might have been so much more damage done if I hadn’t left my planet when I did. So, even if I had made a poor decision for myself and this situation was not ideal, this outcome was not the most devastating of the possibilities. Was it?
Vareo stepped toward Carmen with promises of retribution.
“Wait! Hold on. She was never supposed to get hurt.” She pleaded with me next. “You were never supposed to be harmed. The bindings are horrible, I get that, but that isn’t lasting harm compared to Krelin hoarding access to the jewels from Estreldez. King Sylve needs a strong queen to hold off Trillume forces from claiming this star system in more than just name. Do either of you know what kind of ruler the trill command is? This star system needs Necias.”
The trill forces were what the whole star system was named after. They were said to be a strong race that helped keep order and created the accord between space traveling species. They were who we’d try to contact if King Sylve crossed a line.
Like attacking Estreldez.
But there was no evidence of that yet.
And like Carmen, I had my reservations about asking for help from someone powerful enough to defeat an outlaw outpost without help, leery they might decide to stay and assert their power over this sector.
“What does Estreldez’s exports have to do with Trillume?” I took a step towards her, but mostly to prevent Vareo from doing something rash before hearing what she had to say.
“Tarnpul is a strong alloy used for many ships, but that’s not what they are after.” It was as if she read my mind that I had expected our most valuable rock to be what they were after, and to hear that it wasn’t… Well, that was a shock that I kept guarded under a mask of indifference.
I waited for her to continue. When I didn’t say anything she bit her lip and groaned.
“Your mineral deposit of Globin Flower has been found to be the most efficient fuel source for space travel, and fuck it… it’s basically the most sought after fuel source for the planet Trillume and any other dipshit that wants to upgrade their machinery.”
Globin Flower was a food source on our planet, we hadn’t even considered using it for fueling anything else other than living organisms. How it was hardy enough to fuel a ship, or machinery, was beyond my knowledge, but I wasn’t a scientific engineer.
This was troubling news.
“So, the trill wish to have the Globin Flower for themselves?” I contemplated how this changed King Sylve’s actions. Was he being pressured to take control of Estreldez or risk the trill invading? Or was I giving him too much credit?
“They call it Ordin Crystal,” she corrected.
“Does it matter what it’s called?” Vareo interrupted. “How does keeping Luan keep Trillume from taking the planet for themselves?”
“If you weren’t so cock struck then you’d see that joining the outlaws with Estreldez, and then striking up a deal with the krelin queen would protect this star system from going to war over the Ordin Deposits. If we don’t unite this system, we’re going to end up like the Shol.”
Carmen was glaring at Vareo, and as much as I wanted to stay angry with her, her words struck me.
Was she implying that the trill were responsible for destroying the shol?
And that we would end up like them if I didn’t stay with the necia to find a common ground?
King Sylve was trying to prevent an invasion by invading us first, and subjugating us onto his side. I shook my head.
This wasn’t the way.
