Their three escorts left them standing in the hallway and it wasn't long before the patriarch arrived with his own attendants in tow. He nodded to both of them. Tess bowed deeply, and elbowed Erik in the ribs to signal that he should do the same.
"Greetings Tess and Erik. I am Oro Ohtamacil, patriarch of the house of Ohtamacil. This meeting is an unexpected surprise for me, though not unpleasant. Please, come sit with me."
The old man's eyes were locked on Erik, who cringed under the tall formidable-looking old Eranae's scrutiny. One of the attendants suddenly pulled a hair from Erik's head as he walked past and found himself on his knees with Erik's lasso around his throat. Erik seemed mildly embarrassed at his actions and loosed the servant immediately.
"I apologize… sir. You startled me."
The Eranae glanced at Oro who gave him a warning look. Oro spoke in his place.
"Your apology is accepted, but I will not tolerate further violence under my roof. He took the sample from you under my orders, to have your genetic makeup compared to Ohte's to confirm your identity as my grandson. It is merely a formality without malicious intent. Now let us retire to the parlor to speak."
Tess gave Erik a cross look as though he were a misbehaving child and grabbed his hand, pulling him along behind Oro. They entered a small but lavishly furnished room and Oro waved off the servants, leaving the three of them alone.
"There now, calm down. Come here, child, and let me have a look at you."
Erik wasn't quite certain whether to be offended at being called a 'child' or not, but the decision was taken from him when Tess planted her fists firmly in the small of his back and shoved him forward. Oro placed his hands on Erik's arms and looked into his eyes for a long moment before scanning over Erik's whole face. Erik began to sweat under the close inspection of the glowing double-pupiled gaze and the fingers still holding his lasso twitched, but Oro didn't seem to notice his discomfort. He pulled Erik's chin to one side, then the other, and ran a palm over the smooth crown of his head before cupping it around the nape of his neck.
"You're rather a bit soft, aren't you? I suppose there's no hope of you growing your plating; you'd have gotten them ages ago if you were going to get them at all. Such thin skin, though. I wonder how Tellurians have managed to survive at all…"
Erik breathed an audible sigh of relief when Oro finally let go of him.
"And what is this nonsense?"
Oro laughed and fingered the tuft of black hair behind his left ear before glancing over at Tess.
"Well, I suppose you must take after your mother then. Well, do sit down."
Erik swallowed against the bile rising in his throat at the notion of resembling his once-beautiful mother in any capacity and sat beside Tess. Tess was tempted to take his hand in hers, but didn't think he'd care for the gesture in the current situation.
"Tess tells me this is the first time you've been off your planet of birth."
"Yes sir."
"I'm afraid I find myself yet again having to apologize for the actions of Ohte. I beg forgiveness on his behalf for his abandonment of you. He has committed many crimes in his life, though perhaps this is the most misfortunate of them. I don't suppose your mother ever said anything of him?"
"No, she did not. In fact she grew rather upset if I asked anything on the subject of my father. Until Tess told me otherwise, I had no reason to suspect I was anything but a Tellurian, albeit a deformed one."
"Oh dear… That is unfortunate. I'm afraid know little of the Tellurian system or its inhabitants, only that Telluria Prime is a class 3 planet."
Tess broke into the conversation to add her two cents.
"It's a fairly primitive backwater. A few nations are undergoing industrialization at the moment but it will be some centuries yet before they join galactic society. Erik has told me little of his personal history, but I doubt the natives were tolerant of him. Most of them are rather superstitious and they do not accept differences very well in general."
Oro looked at Erik, but the younger man conceded no further information on the subject.
"I'm afraid you may not find the Eranae much more accepting. I am embarrassed to admit that most of my peers are quite arrogant in their racial pride."
They were interrupted by a servant who bent to Oro and whispered something. The servant stood up and turned to leave, hesitating a second to tell him offhandedly that the genetic testing gave a positive result.
"Hmph. Well, speak the name of Evil and it appears. My son Endo, your uncle, has arrived. You'd best remain here until I've had time to explain the situation. I must warn you, I doubt he will be pleased with your presence."
Oro left the room and closed the door behind him. Loud footsteps quickly approached the room and stopped outside the door, followed by an angry voice. Tess walked over to listen against the carved wood and Erik soon followed.
"Father, don't tell me what the servants are saying is true. You can't bring some half-breed into our home-"
"That half-breed is my grandson and your nephew, whether you like it or not. His genetic makeup proves it."
"I fail to see how that makes any difference in the slightest. Even were he not some mixed-blooded mongrel, you disinherited Ohte over a two decades ago for a reason! Do you really want to reassociate our family with that murderer? The scandal could ruin us!"
"You exaggerate, Endo. The child never met Ohte anyway, thank the winds. He has no other family and we cannot send him back to Telluria Prime. It is a class 3 world."
"I don't care where you send him, just get him out of this house!"
"Endo, stop this! I was forced to disown a son, I will not throw away a grandson simply because of this world's backwards racism!"
"Your involvement in foreign charities has painted you as an eccentric already, and if the media catches wind of you taking in one of your precious off-worlders, the council will not be so tolerant. You'll be deemed a lunatic!"
"Endo, I will not turn out my own flesh and blood again and that is final! Do you hear me? I am still the head of this family and you will not second-guess me!"
The door opened again and Oro stepped inside. Erik backed away, suddenly feeling very very naked. Endo glared menacingly from behind his father at Erik.
"You'd best keep your head down, off-worlder. My father may be growing senile in his old age, but I am not so soft-headed. You will not ruin this family's valuable reputation!"
Oro simply slammed the door shut in the younger man's face.
"I apologize for that. Endo's ego and temper often get the better of him. He's a good man at heart, but a bit foolish."
Erik continued to stare at the closed door.
"Perhaps I should leave. I clearly do not belong here."
Erik attempted to step around Oro, but the old man grabbed his arm in a vice-like grip.
"Don't you dare let that old blowhard intimidate you. You belong here as much as he does."
Erik didn't seem convinced and Oro reached over to rub lightly at his throat with his fingers, an odd gesture of affection among the Eranae, being that the throat was one of the few patches of skin they had which was not covered by the distinctive bony armor. Erik backed away from the soft gesture quickly, eliciting a concerned look from the old man.
"I promise you no harm will come to you under this roof, no matter how soft your skin. Endo's temper will cool in time. I think I will keep him away from you for a few days, however."
Oro let go of Erik and turned to Tess.
"I thank you for returning my grandson to me. You are welcome in my home henceforth, should you wish to visit at any time. I simply ask that you contact me beforehand and I will arrange your transportation to the suface. Erik will remain in my care for the time being, so you need not worry for your friend. I'm sure you are normally quite busy as a Hunter and need to be getting back to your chase. I can't say I am comforted by how much the Civilian Security Agency has come to depend on the service of freelancers like yourself, but I'm sure your services have aided in the protection of this galaxy and for that I am grateful. Good hunting and may the North wind never abandon you."
Tess stood and grabbed her bag from the floor. She glanced from Oro to Erik and back.
"May the North wind never abandon you."
She hesitated at the door, looking back to Erik with longing.
"I suppose I'll see you around, Erik. Au revoir, I guess... or whatever it is you French types say…"
Tess left the two in the room and servants appeared to escort her back to her ship docked on the moon. She felt a numb shock at being so summarily dismissed and rode the transport back to the moon in dumb silence. Once back on the Stardust, she dropped her bag on the floor and slumped in the cockpit. Everything was completely quiet. She was alone again.
Tess started crying for the first time since becoming a Hunter. She punched in some mostly random coordinates. She piloted the ship away from the moon and out of the inner solar system before disappearing into subspace, leaving Erik lightyears behind her.