Meeting Dragons
As Alexander promised, the rest of the voyage was uneventful. They arrived in the heart of the Drago-Katzov empire a week later. By now the Lady's glow was starting to fade again, but she put on a brave face for the crew. The crew itself was polite and respectful in that rough way of pirates. No one approached her in the uncouth manner that Gregory had. Tyr stayed locked in the brig. The Berserker passed the time exercising; his muscles were bursting with physical perfection even more than they were before.
"Allow me to present Lady Amara Anasazi out of… You know, I don't believe you've ever mentioned who your parents were, dear Lady."
"I got a head injury as a child on the Rape Planet," she said blandly, ignoring the gasps and murmuring that broke out around her at this declaration. "I don't know anything about myself."
"O-oh," Alexander said uncomfortably as she stared him down. "Well then, the Lady is obtained."
"Indeed she is," the Nietzschean he was addressing said, looking her over appreciatively. "Welcome, dear Lady. I am Reginald King out of Georgia by Hamilton, Alpha of the Drago-Katsov Pride. I know that the circumstances of your… detainment weren't ideal. But I believe that you will come to enjoy and appreciate the safety that our Pride provides."
"I doubt it," Ama shrugged. "I was quite happy where I was. I had friendship and love, I could come and go as I pleased. Your people decimated my home. They came in without warning and hardly a word was spoken before they slaughtered everyone I ever loved or cared about. They massacred without mercy; women and children were counted among the dead. It's my understanding that I am to be your slave now. I believe that I am also to be barred from my husband. So I don't see myself enjoying or appreciating your… hospitality."
The Alpha gawked openly at the Khaleesi as did most of his court. The murmurs were slightly louder and more insistent now and Reginald couldn't blame them. Usually the women presented before his court were humble and thoroughly cowed by the experience of their capture. Khaleesi as a rule were incapable of speaking of violence, much less performing it. He was used to his captives taking a 'make the best of it' attitude and allowing themselves to be molded into whatever he wanted them to be. It had gotten rather boring after five Khaleesi. Well, he certainly wasn't bored right now! Having a Khaleesi that could stomach the violence of conquest… He was almost giddy with the possibilities. His name would be legend as he conquered the rest of the galaxy with a Khaleesi at his side to heal his armies. His loud laughter quelled the gossip in the hall, calling attention back to him.
"You are nothing like the Khaleesi I've had the pleasure of sheltering within my Pride. Finally, here is a Lady with some fire in her blood! Take her to meet her sisters." He was still grinning foolishly, thinking of the possibilities.
"She's strong and strong-willed, Reginald," Alexander said once the woman was out of the chamber. "I would be careful with her. She has a plan. I don't know what it is, but whatever it is, she's likely powerful enough to carry it out."
"Strong or not, she's still a Khaleesi. She can't do anything to us as long as she is treated well. And all our Khaleesi are treated exceptionally well. Now, where is Gregory? I expected him to be at the-"
"He tried to rape the Khaleesi. Her mate disposed of him," the Nietzschean said in short order. The gasps of shock and disgust were loud and continuous.
"He tried to… violate a Khaleesi?" the Alpha said in disbelief and no small amount of anger. This would slow down his plans to break the newest strategic asset to his will.
"Before that, he struck her on multiple occasions. I believe that she will be slow to trust you or your people. She might be slow to trust your Khaleesi. I'm telling you, she has a plan. It might be in your best interest to-"
"No matter," Reginald said dismissively. He threw a large bag of currency at the Captain. "She is the property of the Drago-Katsov empire. She will adjust her plans accordingly. I take it that the Berserker has been put with his brethren?"
"Of course," the Captain said with a cruel smile.
"You are… Your mind is silent," LillyBeth said in wonder. She was standing before the latest Khaleesi. Amara looked her over and tried her hardest not to feel contempt. Small-boned and delicate, the girl reminded her of the fairies she'd read about in Starfleet Academy. There were four others around the room that seemed to be just as dainty and fragile. They were gathering around the newest arrival, eyeing her with interest. The room itself was lavish; if her quarters on Captain Smithy's ship were exquisite, then these quarters made those look like standard Cardassian architecture.
"You don't want to experience my thoughts," she said simply, moving further into the room and away from the five women.
"You can trust us, you know," another of the women said. Ama felt it, like butterfly wings against her mind. All five of them were trying to get into her head. The invasion was benevolent, but nonetheless unwelcome. She didn't want them privy to her plans for the Drago-Katsov. Hell, she didn't want them in her head with their pampered, sheltered lives. Next to these women, she was a jaded, hard-assed bitch. She didn't want to corrupt them.
"I grew up on a planet where men delighted in raping women and children. I lived there, with all its inherent dangers, for the first four years of my life that I remember. I don't want to expose you to that if I don't have to."
"I'm LillyBeth Spiner out of Harriet by Jackson," the first woman said suddenly, twirling a lock of her silver-blond hair around her finger. "That's Tracy Laughdon out of Teresa by Franklin, Jessica Broden out of Patricia by Quentin, Rebecca Dilodon out of Lacy by Trevor, and Isabella Swans out of Ginger by Robert." She pointed out a strawberry blond, a redhead, a brunette, and a black-haired beauty as she named them off.
"Pleasure to meet you all," the girl said automatically, remembering her manners. "I'm Amara Anasazi. I sustained a head injury before my first memory, so I don't know the rest of my introduction."
"Well, maybe we can help you regain your memories," Rebecca smiled eagerly.
"Yes, yes! Let us help you," Tracy bounced as if it were all a game.
"You don't know what you're in for. My memories are not a nice place for touring. They are too much for you!"
"I'm not afraid," Isabella said, pushing her waist-length black hair over her shoulder. "My father worked in the mines before I was taken. I can take it." The others likewise tittered that they wanted to see. Reluctantly, Ama lowered the iron grip she never even realized was on her mind.
All the occupants of the room were suddenly transported to a crashed starship, smoke and sparking panels everywhere. A little hand bisected the tiny perspective, blood on the fingertips. In the corner was a battered corpse bleeding freely. The man looked middle-aged, Caucasian, skin cut and bruised as the dead blue eyes stared into nothing...
Five different tones of retching sounded through the room. She stopped abruptly, shocked that these women were so very weak.
"What? We haven't even gotten to the part that turned my stomach yet. That's just a brutally beaten dead body."
"No more," Isabella whined, trembling as the tang of vomit in her mouth made her want to throw up again. "I was wrong; that was horrible!" She broke down sobbing, echoing the sounds of misery around the room. A part of her wanted to gloat, but mostly she just wanted the women to stop crying.
Hush now, my baby
Be still, love, don't cry
Sleep while you're rocked by the stream
Sleep and remember my last lullaby
And I'll be with you when you dream…
She blushed at how easy it was to put her fellow Khaleesi to sleep. They were like little kids, and like little kids, they went directly to sleep at her gentle insistence. The latest captive/'honored guest' of the Drago-Katsov went around to each of them, caressing and calming their fears as she settled them into their individual spaces for the night. When Reginald came to visit his little ones as he did nightly, it was to the five sound asleep and the sixth reading some of Tracy's material on Dylusions.
"What is this?" he asked gently.
"Your spies couldn't handle the beginnings of my memories," Ama said primly. "I had to put them to bed to realign their minds."
"They aren't spies, little one," the Nietzschean said just as gently as before. "These are your sisters, your-"
"-fellow prisoners," she said with a big, bright, fake smile on her face.
"-new confidants," he finished with a shake of his head. "You really are a stubborn one, aren't you?" He shook his head fondly. "Amara, you have to understand what we are trying to accomplish here. Nietzscheans are scattered right now, weak, divided. They need a strong hand, a firm direction. We are collecting Khaleesi from all the corners of the universe to share their gifts with everyone."
"What you're proposing will leave half of the universe dead before any of us are 'shared' with anyone," Ama huffed in annoyance. "Even you cannot want that much blood on your hands."
"I'll do whatever it takes to make Drago-Katsov Pride the dominant Pride in the universe."
"No matter how many children you orphan or grudges you foster?"
"That's right." He started to feel uncomfortable with the way she was staring at him; like he had become a monster before her very eyes.
"Interesting," she said at last, crawling into the lavish bed that had been provided for her. Reginald blinked and stared at her hard as she worked her way under the expensive covers.
"What? That's it? That's all the resistance you're going to put up?"
"What do you want from me, sir? I very obviously can't fight you. My husband could, and you've taken him away from me for that reason. I've resigned myself to the fact that I'm your slave. I-"
"You're not a slave here, dear Lady!"
"Then I may go? Me and my man? Without fear of your goons coming after us and dragging me back here by the hair, possibly killing my man in the process?" When Reginald only stared at her, she continued furiously. "Where I'm from, we are in the habit of calling a spade a spade. I was happy, I was glowing, and now I'm not. You took away my freedom and there's absolutely nothing I can do about it. So you continue with those flowery words and grand gestures. I'll simply continue stewing with impotent rage. My father is likely dead; the place I called home is decimated, all by your hand. I don't have the luxury of pretending that it didn't happen and 'moving on' like these girls obviously have. I hate you. If I were capable, I would kill you or myself just to spite you and thwart your plans for me. Goodnight." The now silently crying girl slid under the covers and closed her eyes. She was breathing hard; there would likely be no sleep for her tonight. With nothing left to say to stem the poison in her system, this hatred that wouldn't go away, the Alpha went away for the night.
Ama smiled coldly once the awful man was gone, sitting up once more. She had a plan, one that might actually kill her in the end. But she needed more intelligence before she could carry it out. This side of the universe was very dangerous, the beings were older and more powerful than anything she'd ever experienced on Sabra 6 or anywhere else she'd ever been back home. She would have to plan carefully; the statement she planned to send would rock the entire cosmos. If she did this right, no one would ever bother her again. The hatred was a red hot ball of malevolence stewing quietly inside, it had been there since the first casualty on Deep Space Nine. God, it hurt to think of that name. She'd met her husband there, she'd married there, she'd served with distinction there. And now it was all gone. But hatred wasn't something that a Khaleesi could live with. It was killing her, much like the shame of her past had been. The question was whether it would destroy her before she could wield it. High risk for high reward.
Settling in to watch for sexual predators, the haunted woman sat alert over her new charges.
I wonder what little Amara has in mind? ::grins:: It's so good to be able to write for you guys! I actually have a couple of stories on the go right now. I'll be posting them after this one is done. I don't want to overwhelm anyone ^_^ In the meantime, please look forward to the next chapter!
Prince of Egypt - Amy Grant - River Lullabye