Imperial Orders

♕The Grand Meetup♕

It wasn't a long walk to the back of the ship. Hugo and Tuofah followed a good several meters behind the Djareny guard, and while the hairs on Tuofah's skin stood on end, Hugo seemed quite relaxed. 

"I've dealt with Serpis before, I can deal with her again," he whispered confidently. "She's a control freak but she's not entirely unreasonable." 

"I seriously doubt that, considering the fact that she sent a guy to kill you not too long ago!" Tuofah hissed back. 

"We have an, er, love-hate relationship," Hugo retorted. 

"Your definition of 'love' worries me." 

"Your Majesty, Your Ladyship," the guard stopped in front of a tall, metal-framed door, turning around to face Hugo and Tuofah. "General Serpis is waiting inside. You mustn't be afraid. She only wishes to have a civil discussion with you... unless, of course, you become uncooperative." 

"Wait... you're still addressing us by our aristocratic titles..." Hugo trailed off, raising an eyebrow. 

"General Serpis explicitly said I was to treat Your Majesty with respect befitting your position," the guard shrugged, looking mildly annoyed. "I have no idea why- you're no different from the rest of the Hominan scum." 

For the first time that day, confusion and panic began to set in between Hugo's brows. It was clear he hadn't been expecting this. "So you mean, she thinks I'm really the... she doesn't know I'm just... " he sputtered, almost slipping back into his natural dialect. "Geez, this complicates things," he looked over at Tuofah. "A lot." 

"You politicians and your nonsensical words! Stop stalling and get in there!" the guard ordered crossly, pulling the door open and practically forcing Hugo and Tuofah inside. 

The room was much bigger than Tuofah expected it to be, but was meagerly decorated. Its only major furnishing was a towering, hollow glass cube containing a single swiveling leather chair. In the chair, with her back turned to Tuofah, was a tall woman dressed in a simple black leather jacket and thin white pants. She hummed nervously to herself, drumming her fingernails on the armrests of her chair. Her arms were extended just far enough back that Tuofah could see the pair of Armlets that hung around her bony wrists, almost identical to Tuofah's own. 

An ominously soft hissing noise echoed through the room. Tuofah glanced at the floor of the cube to see a long, green snake slithering around its perimeter. 

"What is it, Merede?" Nexetra Serpis spoke calmly, as if conversing with another person. "They have come, haven't they?" 

With this, she turned slowly around in her chair, appraising Hugo and Tuofah calmly. The Djareny leader was completely unlike anything Tuofah had previously imagined: her hair was styled immaculately around her ebony horns and her cherry-red lips stood out against her almost ashen skin. Tuofah was surprised to feel a pang of jealousy in her stomach- here she was, floundering about in expensive gowns while Nexetra Serpis looked a hundred times more sophisticated in everyday clothes. It made her feel almost ashamed. 

"Well, well, well. This is not at all how I imagined my first conversation with a Tyllanie. But all is well- I have learned my lesson. For years I tried to get ahold of the Hominan Emperor with no results. But now, mere days after separating myself from my coward of a father, I have you here on my ship. It still astounds me that I searched so long for enemies far away when my greatest weakness was by my side from the beginning." 

"A Tyllanie? Lady Serpis, it's me! It's Hugo Lennez Pearce, the Legion's favorite buffoon!" Hugo stomped his foot on the ground in desperation. Tuofah backed away in horror, unable to believe her eyes. So this was his great plan to negotiate with Serpis? He was tearing the Prime Minister's scheme to the ground! He wasn't just throwing away his crown, but Tuofah's college education, Aikoro's freedom, and Ben's new tongue... and had he asked any of their permission? 

For a moment, Nexetra narrowed her eyes as if in recognition, before her lips twisted into a smile. "You have a sense of humor... quite unlike your father. I like it, but unfortunately I am already aware of the capture and imprisonment of Hugo Lennez Pearce and Tuofah Lynnstrijker by your Imperial Army. You beat me to them on Old Earth thanks to my useless father, if you recall." 

"You do bear an uncanny resemblance to Pearce... I'll give you that," Nexetra added after a momentary pause, still studying Hugo's face. 

"Come on," Hugo huffed under his breath. "My acting isn't that good." 

He glared at Tuofah, who was smiling gratefully. By some miracle, Serpis hadn't recognized her former subordinate. The plan was safe... for now. But that didn't change the fact that they were still trapped on an enemy ship. 

"Now, let's get down to business," Nexetra folded her hands over her knee, leaning forward in anticipation. "The Prime Minister has been doing a very fine job of border patrol lately, which means fewer successful Djareny raids, which means less food for my people. And as you must know, my people are very dependent on fresh food and weaponry. They are quite restless at this moment, and do require an immediate replenishment of resources. So I thought to kill two birds with one stone and kidnap you: you will unlock the gates to Homina's wealthy port cities for me, and I will show you that we, the Djareny, are no mere bandits but an equal nation of intelligent beings. You will return to Homina acknowledging us as such." 

"Oh, it's the port cities you want," Hugo guffawed, seemingly unaware of the danger he was in. "You should've told me earlier! This is a very easy problem to solve. I won't unlock the gates for you for one simple reason- I have only been Emperor for a week and I have absolutely no idea how to unlock them. There." 

"That won't be an issue," Nexetra explained in a condescending tone. "Our labs on Khaas have almost completely hacked into the Prime Minister's system. All we need is your fingerprint, and we're good to go. While we've been speaking, the ship has already traveled a quarter of the distance from Celatys to Khaas- we will reach our destination in just a few hours. There, you will unlock the port cities for us, we will conduct the largest Djareny raid in recent history, and you will be sent right home. You mustn't worry- a few hundred tons of meat can't possibly mean anything to someone as wealthy and powerful as you, almighty Emperor Arafien." Her last few words dripped with sarcasm. 

Hugo's hands curled into fists and Tuofah silently wrapped her hand around his wrist, hoping she could somehow nonverbally defuse his anger. They were lucky that Nexetra only wanted supplies, and not their lives, and she could only hope that Hugo wouldn't do anything to change her mind.