Oryon (Tornians Book 3.5) (4 page)

“Yes. Apparently, he and his female had been plotting for years to become Emperor and Empress. Together they were responsible for the attack on King Grim and the deaths of King Rask, Empress Adana and Prince Van. Risa also attacked Empress Kim and tried to kill Princess Destiny. She severely injured the Earth female that was protecting the Princess. The female has made a full recovery,” he quickly reassured them knowing they would be concerned, “but Risa was killed during the confrontation by Queen Lisa.”

Silence greeted his statement as the Warriors considered what he had said. The loss of a female, any female, meant some male had lost the chance to receive offspring from her. Oryon truly believed that the madness that had affected Risa and her ancestor Emperor Berto would continue to affect any future offspring she produced.

“Then I hope Daco takes them all, for the Goddess would never welcome ones so unworthy,” Eike spit out.

Oryon nodded in agreement. “Because of these acts, the Emperor stripped House Reeve and House Bertos of all their power and named two new Lords. Lord Callen of Vesta and Lord Ynyr of Etruria. He also assigned each of us with the task of supporting them while they fix the harm caused, and to build honorable Houses. It is why I left half the warriors with us on Tornian to be split between Lord Callen and Lord Ynyr.” Oryon saw his Leads look at each other and ordered, “Speak.”

“Why were none of us allowed to assist Ynyr… Lord Ynyr or Lord Callen?” Huntley his youngest Lead asked. It would be a great honor for any warrior to be part of establishing a new house.

“I made that decision and not because I thought any less of those of you here, but because time was of the essence.” Oryon’s gaze traveled over all his Leads. “Lord Callen left for Vesta three days ago with warriors from the Emperor and every House.” Oryon looked at the time unit on his wrist. “They are only now arriving on Vesta. The Emperor charged Prince Tora, who is training on Vesta with controlling the House until Lord Callen arrives. If I were to have sent warriors from Betelgeuse instead of those with me, you would still be two days out because I had our fastest ship on Tornian. It is also why I sent none of you to assist one of our own. After the attack, the Emperor immediately dispatched his own specially trained warriors to Etruria to control Bertos’ remaining warriors until he named its new Lord. Ynyr and his Lady arrived in Etruria two days ago.”

“Lady!” Every male in the room straightened and leaned a little closer wanting to hear every word.

“Yes, an Earth female named Abby chose Ynyr as her male.” Oryon didn’t try to keep the pride out of his voice.

“Truly?”

“You did not know this?” Oryon looked at his warriors in surprise. “It happened days ago.”

“There were rumors that an Earth female had Joined with a male, my Lord, but we didn’t know to whom or if it was even true. We knew the Emperor had dissolved the Joining Ceremony so how could a female Join with a male?” They all looked at Oryon and waited for an explanation.

“That is true. The Emperor
has
done away with the Joining Ceremony. So when Queen Lisa became aware that one of the females under the King’s protection wished to Join with a male, they created a new ceremony, one that blended traditions from both worlds. King Grim’s ‘family’ and my family met on the Assembly floor where Abby presented herself to Ynyr.”

“Ynyr knew this?”

“No, he did not.” Oryon looked at his males and knew he needed to explain further and see if they would react as Ull had. “It seems that Ynyr had… contact with Abby before the Joining Ceremony.”

“What!” Every male in the room stood.

“Sit!” Oryon ordered, expecting such a reaction because Abby and Ynyr’s actions broke the Law. Slowly his Leads obeyed. “It is not as you think. Ynyr was walking by the walled garden of the female’s chamber when he heard a female crying.” Oryon saw several of his Leads frown. “He knew it was against the Law for him to approach any of the females before the Ceremony, but he found he couldn’t just walk by, and as there was a wall between them….”

“He… spoke to her?” Qays, Oryon’s Lead in hand-to-hand training and the quietest of his Leads, asked softly.

“Yes. He was able to calm her. He never told her his name and she never told him hers. They never saw each other, but they spoke through the wall almost daily, telling the other about themselves, about their worlds. It was during this time that Abby developed feelings for him.”

“Even though she didn’t know who he was? What he could offer?”

“Even though. It seems Earth females must have feelings for a male before they are willing to Join with him… They must have love…” Oryon’s use of the ancient word shocked many. “If they do, they will remain with that male.”

Stunned silence greeted Oryon.

“She would stay with a male… as Lady Isis has always stayed with you?” Eike asked, the slightest sliver of hope in his voice. “Be
his
?”

Oryon gave Eike a surprised look at what he heard in his voice. He had never considered that one of his Leads, that any other Tornian male might want what he and Isis had. They had always been thought of as the oddity of the universe.

“There is more,” Oryon told them. “No longer will a female be forced to choose only from those males that have reached a high status and accumulated enough to support her. From now on she may select
any
that
she
deems fit and worthy.”

“But my Lord, how can a male support her if he has no wealth, no status?” Huntley demanded.

“It is now the male’s, the female’s manno’s, and the Lord of the male’s House responsibility to make sure she is adequately cared for.”

“Their Lord… you would be willing to help us my Lord?” Huntley asked, shock flaring in his eyes.

“Of course!” Oryon looked from Huntley to his other males not understanding why they were so surprised. “You are some of the finest males I have ever had the privilege of knowing. Why would I not be willing to assist you in obtaining a female?”

“But Lady Isis…”

“Is looking forward to having more females on Betelgeuse.”

“But… it will take away from what
you
give her.”

Before Oryon could respond, a knock sounded on the door. Giving the door an irritated look Oryon, ordered. “Enter!”

Lajos entered, followed by several males carrying platters laden with food.

“What’s the meaning of this Lajos?” Oryon demanded.

“Apologies my Lord.” Lajos gestured to the males where to put the platters. “I know you prefer not to be disturbed when you are with your Leads, but I was ordered to bring you last meal.”

“Ordered? By whom?” Oryon surged from his chair. Only
he
could give that order.

“Lady Isis, my Lord,” Lajos told him quietly, his skin darkening in apparent embarrassment as he admitted he had followed a female’s order.

“Lady Isis ordered you to bring us a meal?” Oryon sat back down slowly.

“Yes, my Lord. She…” Lajos couldn’t keep eye contact with his Lord.

“She what, Lajos?” Oryon asked quietly.

“She threatened to come to the kitchen
herself
and make the meal if her orders weren’t followed,” Lajos told him, looking sheepish. “I know I shouldn’t have….”

“When your Lady gives you an order you will obey it, Warrior Lajos
,
” Oryon told him in a hard voice, “as long as it doesn’t endanger her safety.”

“Y… yes, my Lord.” Lajos gaze flew to the other males who appeared equally shocked.

“Go fill your plates,” Oryon ordered his Leads. “Once we have eaten, as my Lady has demanded, I will finish explaining to you more about how our universe has changed.

∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

Oryon watched as his Leads devoured the food Lajos had brought. Why had he ever insisted they not eat until they were finished? He now realized it might cause his males to rush through the meeting because their hunger distracted them from telling him all they should. How had Isis known this?

“Warriors, our universe has changed drastically since I left for the Joining Ceremony.” Oryon watched several Warriors put their plates aside. “Continue to eat, if my Isis discovers you left this meeting hungry she will have my head.” He didn’t miss the astonished looks on his Warrior's faces.

“You find it strange that I would speak this way to you, when before I left for Tornian, I wouldn’t have.” Oryon paused, trying to organize his thoughts. “Those of you in this room are among my most trusted Warriors and I consider you as close as brothers.” At his statement, every male’s chest puffed up. “Many of you, such as Captain Shen, have been at my side since my manno met the Goddess, and I know there have been many trying times. Less worthy males have left House Rigel, choosing to serve elsewhere because they believed my… situation reflected badly on them.”

“My Lord,” Shen tried to interrupt him, but Oryon waved a hand and Shen snapped his mouth shut.

“It is truth, Shen, and all of you know it. My Isis refused to leave me, even after she presented me with two fit males. Many found fault with me for not forcing her to leave,” Oryon let his gazes run over the males in the room. “So she could give her ‘gift’ to other males, males that could have been you.” Oryon’s chest tightened at the thought of one of these males he trusted, touching Isis.

“I tell you truth that I would have found myself hard pressed not to kill any male that tried to take my Isis from me
before
going to Tornian. Now, I
will
kill any male that even thinks to take her from me. She is mine!” No male doubted the truth in their Lord’s words.

Oryon sighed heavily and tried to calm. “What I need to explain to you is
why
my attitude has changed, and I hope it will explain to you how
your
universe has changed, and that the chance for you to have a female has also changed.”

 “When Empress Kim was first presented to the Assembly, we all dismissed her as not being a worthy female. Even though she was very similar to our females, she wasn’t
really
Tornian, even though the Emperor declared her so. She was just this small insignificant being to us…” Oryon saw his Leads nod in agreement. “Until she conceived… then we all took notice. We tried to force her to tell us where her planet was so we could acquire more like her, and she refused. She even refused to tell the Emperor. What Tornian female do you know brave enough to refuse her male?” Oryon asked as his eyes traveled over the males in the room.

“My brothers, our females fear us, and it is our fault for we have not given them what they
really
need, and I’m not talking of the ‘things' we give them now. The Empress doesn’t fear the Emperor because she knows he loves and cares for her as much as she does for him.”

“But my Lord,” Phong spoke. “They are female.”

“Yes, with thoughts, feelings and a mind all their own. That is what we have forgotten with our fear of extinction. Our females aren’t
breeders,
as Queen Lisa has accused us of treating them. We aren’t like the Ganglians, who just take and use females for their own release. I wish you all could have been there to witness the Queen at the Joining Ceremony, to see not only
how
she stood up to the entire Assembly but how she responded to
anything
she perceived as an insult to King Grim. She defended Grim even though she was attacked while under his protection. She does not view his scars as a sign of weakness but instead as a badge of courage, believing that if he was strong enough to survive that, then he will always be able to protect her and her offspring. It is something
we
should have realized.”

Oryon looked to the visual of his manno that still hung on the wall across from his desk. He kept it there to remind him of all his manno had taught him about being a fit and worthy male. Never had Oryon doubted his manno’s teachings… Now he did.

“I have never been ashamed to be a Tornian male, until I sat in that Assembly and listened to Queen Lisa. She stood before us, strong and proud and
forced
us to acknowledge that what we had done to them was
no
different than what the Ganglians had done to the Empress. That what
we
had done to our own females made them believe their only value to us
was
as breeders.”

“What?” Several males jumped to their feet just as those in the Assembly had, insulted.

“Sit!” Oryon ordered and waited until they did before continuing. “She was not wrong. Is that not why so many looked down on my Isis and her refusal to let herself be used in such a way? In the time since we have left here, I have come to realize that there is the strength of the body that we all hold to such a high standard, and then there is the strength of the spirit that we seem to have forgotten about. Of the two, I have come to believe that it is the strength of spirit that is strongest. It is what enabled the Empress to survive her time with the Ganglians. It was her
spirit
, not her physical strength, which stopped them from breaking her. It is what allowed King Grim to survive his attack when the majority of us would have given up.” He paused, looking back to his manno’s visual. “What does that say about us as warriors, that we would rather give up, than be judged harshly by others? That the way we
look
matters more than our
actions
?”