Her smile faltered for a moment.
“Family?” she said.
The shuttlecraft set down smoothly and the thrum of the engines powered down.
“We’ve arrived, my lord,” the pilot said. “Lowering ramp now.”
“You will not!” Zes said, leaping up from his chair, his hair sticking up on end. “You know the security protocol!”
The pilot bristled.
He said, “The protocol stipulates that if there is no one present—”
“That doesn’t matter!” Zes said, jamming a finger in the pilot’s face. “These are difficult times. We have to follow the emergency protocols to the letter!”
The pilot opened his mouth to argue, but he knew better than that. No one ever won an argument with Zes—whether he was right or wrong.
“Yes, sir,” he said wisely.
“Damn right!”
Zes marched to the back of the craft. Within four strides, he was there. It was a small craft meant only for short distances and not intergalactic travel.
Sirena arched an eyebrow at me. What is going on? it asked.
“Just humor him,” I said. “I’ve found life is much easier that way.”
Sirena chuckled.
“Chief security officer in place!” Zes bellowed.
The pilot sighed and flicked a switch.
“Hatch lowering now,” he said.
The hatch whined as it lowered and touched down, forming a ramp for us to walk down. Zes hustled out first, hands perched above his blade and blaster in case he needed to draw at a moment’s notice.
“Okay,” he said, waving a hand for us to descend the ramp. “It’s clear.”
I rolled my eyes at Sirena and the pilot, who grinned. We followed Zes as he led us across the flat lawn and crested the hill.
The castle rose behind it. I positioned myself so I could see the expression on Sirena’s face as she laid eyes on it. It was the same expression most people wore when they saw it for the first time.
“It’s like a fairytale castle!” she said.
Titans had fairytales but few featured castles. Most were centered around honor and battle. But I understood what she meant. The main body was a solid square block. Tall towers protruded from each corner. It sat perched on a hill overlooking the town below, nestled in the valley. It was a perfect spring day with butterflies fluttering from one flower to another, chasing each other in an endless playful dance.
“I’ve only ever seen a castle like this in movies,” Sirena said.
‘Movies’ roughly translated to forms of entertainment we used to watch. Since then, we’d moved onto full emotion manipulation systems. But most of the storytelling techniques were the same.
I extended an elbow to Sirena. She smiled as she wove her arm through mine. I grinned like an idiot with this gorgeous woman striding alongside me. I felt like I was the emperor himself.
Niik sprinted across the flat grass at us. He yelped excitedly the way he always did when I returned home. He had two bulging eyes on stalks, antennae, a squat body, and the hind legs of a cricket.
Niik coiled his back legs and jumped as high as I was tall, licking my face with his yard-long tongue. He rolled over and I scratched his belly.
Then he approached Sirena, who shied back. Niik licked the bare toes of her feet and then rubbed himself against her leg.
“He likes you,” I said.
“Does he?” she said. “How can you tell?”
Niik coiled his large back legs and bounded up to head height. He slurped at her with his tongue.
Sirena wiped at her face and laughed.
“You know what?” she said. “I think you might be right.”
Pleased Sirena had passed the Niik test, I extended my elbow to her once more and led her across the long stretch of lawn to the castle’s main entrance.
The guards on duty straightened up and saluted at my approach. The salute consisted of a fist slamming the chest hard. I performed it back to them.
“What was that?” Sirena said.
“Our salute,” I said, performing it again. “It’s a symbol that shows they take me into their heart.”
“As in, they love you?” Sirena said uncertainly.
“A form of love, yes,” I said. “There are many different kinds of love.”
She nodded, understanding. She turned to the guards and copied the salute.
The guards shared a look.
“Did I do something wrong?” Sirena said.
I chuckled and lowered her fist from her chest.
“A female doesn’t perform the salute to a male, or a male to a female unless they’re in a relationship,” I said.
“Oh.” Sirena turned to the guards. “Sorry! I’m new here!”
They nodded respectfully and returned to their duty.
We crossed the castle’s threshold and were greeted with a dozen servants carrying items from one room to another. I stared at them in confusion.
I caught Aunzika’s arm. He was the head of the household and I had never once seen him look surprised.
“What’s going on here?” I said.
“Your sister’s idea, my lord,” he said in his deep voice. “I’m afraid there’s no stopping her when she’s on a roll.”
“My ears are burning!”
My baby sister, Emana, hurried down the stairs and threw herself at me, giving me a huge hug.
“Nice to see you’re still alive!” she said, before frowning. “Or maybe you’re dead and I just hugged a ghost?”
I ignored her. She could always be a little scatterbrained.
“What’s going on here?” I said. “Why are the servants rearranging the furniture? I liked everything where it was.”
“That’s because you don’t like anything to change,” Emana said, folding her arms. “It’s your birthday party today, remember?”
Oh, crap. Now I wished I hadn’t left the city until tomorrow. I cleared my throat.
“What’s the damage?” I said.
“The birthday party you agreed to,” Emana said. “And don’t give me that look.”
“Please tell me it’s a small party,” I whined.
“It’s a party that’s a fitting size for a lord of your stature.”
Emana’s smile faltered when she noticed Sirena. She recovered quickly but not fast enough for me to miss it. There was a flicker behind her eyes—from me to Sirena, and back again.
“And who’s this?” Emana said politely, extending her hand to Sirena.
“Sirena,” I said. “She’s a singer. She performed at the palace
