Chapter 26

Chapter 26

Four days had passed since the fleet had arrived to rescue Ronan and his men, and in that time, a lot had been accomplished. The freed slaves comprised eight different races, some from planets that Ronan and his men had never heard of before. They would be taken home by various ships of the fleet as a measure of good faith. The groups had all agreed that, as a thank you for being rescued, their worlds should form alliances with Gilese in their conflict with the Reapers.

In addition, the groups had elected a leader to represent them, and then the leaders, with Ronan, had organized a tribunal to try Perion and the other pleasure center owners for their crimes. What had been interesting was that all the owners were Hyperion; apparently, all the owners had been shipmates on a small scout ship and discovered Zigma 845 and its ruined pleasure town by accident some twenty standard years ago. They had unanimously decided to walk away from their lives and set themselves up in business at the various domes.

When they had arrived, there had been a small independent mining consortium working the mines and a few inhabitants in the village that made a living selling salvaged technology from the abandoned cities and meat from the wild beasts that roamed the countryside to the ships that came to pick up the ore. They had used their superior weapons and might to take over the mine and take up residence in the pleasure centers; they’d then allied themselves with pirates and slave traders to provide them with workers for the pleasure centers.

After hearing everything, the tribunal had voted that their former owners all be sentenced to thirty standard years of hard labor in the mines. The funds secured from their labors were to be used to feed, clothe, and house them. The enforcers and overseers who ensured that the master’s wills were done were all sentenced to twenty years in the mines, to all of this Ronan thought they’d been given far too lenient sentences but the members of the tribunal just wanted to put the past behind them and go home.

The goods belonging to all the masters, overseers, and enforcers had been pooled and divided up among the freed slaves to help them start their new lives. Ronan, Lilly, and his men had all refused to take shares as they had not suffered some of the indignities the others had.

Tyrell and his men had been questioned by the tribunal, but when it became known that they too had been captured and forced to carry out their duties, and that they had fought to help free not only the Pleasure Dome but the other domes, they were all exonerated.

Perhaps a hundred of the ex-slaves had decided to stay behind on the planet and work running the Pleasure Hive as a casino and entertainment center, but there would be no brothel, no sex workers. Many of the ex-slaves were females, too embarrassed by what had happened to ever return home. They decided to stay on the planet and find honorable work, or return home with Tyrell and his men.

The day after the rescue fleet had arrived, four Gilesean officers had arrived at the request of Ronan to study the plants in the garden and the surrounding area, and then at Lilly’s direction, dig up her beloved plants. Captain Adalhard, who was in charge, was a botanist and was delighted to study the plants of the planet; his helpers, all ensigns were Bittan, Dicca, and Juku, were all biologists and equally happy to be on a new world and studying new plants.

Ronan had ordered that a survey be taken of the planet to determine if there were any other cities and perhaps determine what had caused the cities to be abandoned. Ronan and his uncle had also decided that two platoons be left behind on the planet and to keep the peace and see that the mine stayed open as well insuring a large quantity of the ore went to Gilese. The ore that came from the mine was needed to make more ships and would be a boon to not only the war effort but also the economy.

The second day after the rescue, two platoons had arrived to take up residence at the Dome billeting in the casino until the slaves’ chambers were vacated by the slaves leaving. Tyrell, Zach and Lilly, had shown the colonel in charge, named Tavish, as well as his senior officers, Captain Bram and Lieutenant Keithen, around the dome and the grounds and explained to them how the force dome worked. The arrogant officers hadn’t believed them about the importance of the force dome or the night beasts till after the suns had set and the beasts had attacked the dome still, drawn by the residual scents of blood and death.

Once morning had come, the officers had found Ronan, Lilly, Tyrell, Zach, and his men in the dining hall and apologized for not taking what they’d learned seriously, and asked if they and their men could be given another tour. Colonel Tavish, who’d offhandedly dismissed Lilly’s servos as nothing more than piles of scrap had seen several on guard duty during the night and been impressed. He asked if Lilly could instruct his men with engineering skills on not only how to maintain the servos, but to build more. Lilly and the others had readily agreed, and Lilly was pleased that her beloved mechanical friends would not be scrapped and would be honored for their usefulness.

Today was the last day on Zigma. By late afternoon, they would all be aboard ship and heading for Gilese. Lilly stood on the hard-packed gravel of the space port besides Ronan, watching as the transport ships ferried the last of the freed slaves off the planet and to their designated ships. Besides them stood Captain Tyrel and his men, Ronan had insisted that one of his ships accompany them home in case they were attacked by either ravagers or a ship from Carina. Tyrell had readily agreed on the condition that the Gilesean ship return with an ambassador to cement an ongoing relationship between Proxima and Gilese, and if Ronan discovered the location of Earth to share it with Proxima so that they might have the chance to obtain Earth brides as well.

Lilly watched with a bittersweet smile as Tyrell and Ronan said good bye. They had all become good friends in a very short time, and it would be hard not to see him every day. When Ronan was finished saying goodbye, Tyrell stepped up to Lilly and gave her a huge smile, then held a fist-sized blue sphere out to Lilly.

“I would hug you, but I don’t think Ronan would appreciate that, so instead I would like to give you this. It’s a viewing ball from my world; it was hidden in my inner pocket when I was taken prisoner, and I like to think it brought me luck. It shows various views of my world. Just shake it, and it will show you a random image. Since you can’t come to Proxima, I thought I would share some of it with you.” Tyrell said.

Lilly looked in wonder at the ball as she took it with both hands and gave it a quick shake to be rewarded with the view of snow-capped mountains. “It’s lovely, and I will treasure it.” Lilly threw her arms about Tyrell and gave him a quick hug, ignoring the growl that came from Ronan when she stepped back.

“It’s time to go then and remember this isn’t goodbye, it’s just till we meet again.” Tyrell gave Ronan and Lilly a quick smile, then turned to walk to his waiting transport flanked by Zach and his crew.

“It is time for us to go too.” Ronan held his hand out to Lilly who turned to look back towards the settlement one last time before taking his hand. Ronan saw tears glisten in Lilly’s eyes as he led her across the field and then up the ramp and onto their transport ship.

“I know it’s foolish, but I will miss this place.” Lilly let Ronan guide her to a seat inside the open area of the troop transport, then help her sit in the thickly padded black chair. Around them, Ronan’s guards and the last of the Gilesean troops took their seats for lift off.

Ronan dropped into a chair beside Lilly and, reaching around her, fastened her safety belt before settling back in his seat and fastening his own. “And why is that? It is a hot and hateful place.”

“Perhaps, but it is also the place I met you, and it has been my home these past years. I know where I can hide here, know what is expected of me.” Lilly fought back more tears as the enormity of the fact that she was settling on yet another new planet closed in.

Ronan gave her hand a squeeze. “You shall never need to hide again, but if having a hut or workshop makes you feel secure and happy, I will order one erected in the palace gardens, as for what is expected of you, nothing other than being my wife, unless you wish to study or train or invent. You have great skill with machines; I was going to suggest that once you are settled in that you continue your work on servos, though of course you will never again need to scour waste dumps for parts. If that doesn’t please you, you can work in the gardens all day or write papers and give lectures on Earth culture.”

Lilly felt more tears threaten before she could reply, there was a deep rumble, and a light flashed inside the cabin. A moment later, everyone was pressed into their seat as the ship blasted off. Lilly gave Ronan’s hand a squeeze that he returned as they hurdled skyward and towards their new lives.

The trip to Ronan’s command carrier was short, loud, and bumpy, and Lilly was glad for it to be over with for the ride had frightened her more than she’d liked to admit. She’d never liked amusement park rides, and the transport ship with its shaking, bumping, and rolling had been like some horrible rollercoaster ride. Luckily, her morning sickness had been so bad that morning that she’d not eaten; otherwise, she’d have embarrassed herself and Ronan. The ship came to a sudden lurching stop, followed by a soft clang, and the interior lights returned to normal. There was a hiss as the pressure in the cabin changed, and the large back door opened and the ramp was lowered.

“Your majesty, they are waiting for you.” The head of Ronan’s guard said, rising to stand a few feet from Ronan’s chair.

Ronan nodded as he undid his safety belt. He rose and waited while Lilly fumbled with her own belt. After a moment, Ronan leaned down, pressed the button to undo her belt, then took the viewing globe from her lap and placed it in his pocket.

Lilly gave him a fleeting smile of thanks, then took Ronan’s hand, letting him pull her to her feet. She had to lean against him for a moment as she fought down a wave of vertigo and took several deep breaths to settle her stomach.

“Are you well?” Ronan asked in concern.

“Just a little motion sick. I don’t think the babies liked all the shaking and bouncing. But I’m alright now.” Lilly replied, forcing herself to release Ronan so as not to embarrass him.

Ronan frowned and slipped his hand under her elbow, then stepped closer as if sensing her unease. Lilly gave him an appreciative smile, and it was all Ronan could do not to pull her into his arms and comfort her. He knew she was frightened; she’d told him as much more than once in the past few days. Ronan wished he could find a way to ease her fears, but he couldn’t not yet at least, but he hoped their upcoming wedding before the fleet would ease any remaining fears about their relationship and how much she meant to him.

Lilly was grateful for Ronan’s strong hand under her elbow as they descended the metal ramp and stepped onto the hangar deck of the massive command ship. Lilly staggered in surprise and if not for Ronan’s hand, would have tumbled headfirst down the ramp. The inside of the hangar deck was enormous, no it was beyond enormous, it was cavernous and seemed to stretch for at least a mile in every direction. Dark grey metal was broken up by red, yellow, and blue lines with numbers and symbols that seemed to demark separate sections of the hanger.

Lilly tried not to gawk, but she’d never imagined anything so enormous. She’d once visited an aircraft carrier on a high school trip and thought it massive; by her calculations, at least ten aircraft carriers could easily fill the space before her and still have room left over. Neatly parked grey space ships the size of a cruise ship sat between the colored lines with metal clamps the size of tanks anchoring them to the deck. Then there was the mass of assembled Gilesean males in dark grey uniforms who were standing stiffly at attention as far as she could see.

When they reached the bottom of the ramp and stepped onto the flight deck, Admiral Arik stepped forward, and his left hand snapped up in what was obviously a salute. An officer beside him blew a small whistle, and all the assembled males saluted at once. The admiral stepped forward, meeting Ronan and Lilly at the bottom of the ramp.

“Welcome aboard, your majesty, and may I be the first to formally welcome your princess aboard and to thank her for all that she has done for Gilese.” Admiral Arik turned and gave a half-bow to Lilly, who, after a moment of stunned shock, managed to give him a curtsey in return.

“No, my lady, the honor is truly mine,” Arik said with a smile, before stepping to one side. “I have the honor of presenting Lady MacTaggert of Earth, the female responsible for the rescue of our Prince and his officers, and the wife of our Prince.”

A shout went out among the assembled crew; the sound reverberating off the metal walls so that is was near deafening. It was all Lilly could do not to cover her ears at the deafening roar; she felt Ronan’s hand on her arm and gritted her teeth till it was over.

“Thank you for the wonderful greeting you honor me,” Lilly said as loudly as she could when the hanger was again silent.

“Yes, thank you all,” Ronan said more nonchalantly before turning to Arik. “Are things ready?”

“Yes, your majesty, the wedding ceremony shall take place in one hour. The other ships are holding in orbit till it is over and all the vid feeds are prepared. I have ordered several gowns for Lady Lilly’s inspection and she may select one of them.” Arik replied.

“What wedding ceremony?” Lilly stammered, looking from Ronan to Arik and back. “I know you mentioned we would be remarrying, but now?”

“It is for the best that we wed again and I want all to know that you are not only my mate but my wife and princess. I am sorry I should have told you earlier, but you were already nervous, and I did not want to add to your fears. It shall be all right.” Ronan turned to face her and gave her a reassuring smile.

Lilly wanted to punch him in the arm for surprising her, but instead she nodded and forced a smile. “Of course I understand.”

“Wonderful, my lady, your guard shall escort you to what shall be your quarters, where you may select one of the wedding gowns waiting for you. When you are ready, you shall be brought to the convocation chamber and the marriage ceremony performed.” Arik stated, and raising his left hand gave a small wave, and four large males stepped forward.

“Wait, Ronan isn’t going with me?” Lilly felt her panic rise; she didn’t want to be separated from Ronan. She knew she was being paranoid, but what if this was all some kind of trick to separate her from Ronan and they really planned to take her away?

“Yes, we must prepare separately, it is our custom as it is yours, all will be well.” Ronan saw Lilly blanche her eyes, widening in obvious fear. “You have nothing to fear.”

“But isn’t there some way we can stay together?” Lilly murmured softly.

“Lilly, it will be all right. Rugger, Lars, and I shall accompany you to your chamber, wait outside while you prepare, and then walk you to the chamber for the ceremony. You have nothing to fear.” Cahir said loudly from behind her, Lilly turned to see Cahir, Rugger, Eacha, and Lars standing a few feet behind them on the ramp.

“Thank you, I would like that,” Lilly replied, feeling more at ease at the sight of her friend and the others.

“I have also arranged for a female escort for my lady, as is tradition. May I present Captain Cara, and Lieutenants Indie and Lucia from the medical wing? They shall accompany you to your quarters and help you dress if you wish and ensure your safety. They are also all trained medics and will see to your every need.” Arik waved his hand again. Three tall Gilesean females with skin the color of a battleship stepped forward and gave her a polite bow. Lilly could only stare for a moment. Ronan had told her the females from his world were sickly. However, these females were built like overly muscled basketball players and towered above her.

Captain Cara, who was even taller than Ronan, stepped forward to bow; when she rose, she gave Lilly a nod. “Be at ease, all is well if you would like to come with us.”

Lilly forced down her nerves and queasy stomach and turned to Ronan, giving him an imploring look. Ronan squeezed her hand and then leaned down to kiss her on the forehead. “All will be well, and we shall be together in an hour. Be brave, Lilly, you are safe. you have my vow.”

“Of course, I’m being foolish. I would be happy to follow you. Captain Cara.” Lilly stated.

Captain Cara stepped back, making a sweeping gesture with her left hand for Lilly to accompany her. With a last squeeze of Ronan’s hand, Lilly followed the three Gilesean females down a dark blue carpet and through ranks of Gilesean troops who all were standing as still as statues, though Lilly could feel their eyes follow her, filing in behind her came Cahir, Lars, and Rugger as well as the members of her guard. Lilly and her guard exited through a large automatic sliding door into a tall wide corridor large enough to drive a semi-truck down. Lights similar to fluorescent lights were embedded into the ceiling, and every ten feet in the walls, roughly every twenty feet on the right-hand side was a door with numbers and symbols on it.

“This floor contains the armory, storage, and research labs. I was told that your plants have been set up in that chamber and your engineering research equipment in that one.” Cara said, slowing to point at two chambers side by side.

Lilly smiled, thinking that her engineering research equipment consisted of crates of tools she salvaged from the dump, the ruined city, or made herself. Ronan had insisted that the contents of her hut be packed up in its entirety and transported back to Gilese; he’d simply said that he wanted her to be happy, and if tinkering with her machines made her happy, then they would have to return with her.

“Thank you, that is good to know.” Lilly replied as the party came to a stop before a pair of towering double doors and lieutenant Indie pressed a recess button in the wall. A heartbeat later the doors slid open on an elevator large enough to comfortably fit fifty people. Along the back and sides of the elevator was dark grey padding and a thick black railing with orange stripes.

“My lady if you would please hold onto the railing the lift can be very fast and it stops abruptly we wouldn’t want you to be injured.” Captain Cara said.

“Thank you,” Lilly replied and took a firm hold of the bar a moment before the elevator began moving up at a rapid pace. “How many floors are we going up?”

“Fifty my lady, the superior officers’ quarters are located on the upper floor.” Captain Cara stated.

“Fifty, I did not know the ship was so large. The ship bringing us up from the surface didn’t have any viewing ports; I did not know a ship could be so large.” Lilly replied in awe.

“This is the command carrier, it is the largest ship in the fleet, and it is our honor to be bringing you and the prince home.” Captain Cara replied lifting her chin in the air in evident pride.

“No, I am the one who is honored by your consideration,” Lilly replied and heard Cahir chuckle.

Captain Cara sent him a dark look. “With respect, Major Chair, is there something you wish to say?”

“No, only that our new princess is not only brave and clever, but she is very self-effacing, and she never lies.” Cahir gave the Captain a twisted grin.

Before the captain could respond, the elevator came to an abrupt stop, and if Lilly hadn’t been holding on tightly she’d have been thrown into the wall. The door whished open, and Captain Cara stepped out first into a wide, brightly lit corridor. Lilly saw the other waiting for her to leave first and stepped out of the elevator into a corridor that was painted a cheery color of light blue with ornate lights fitted along the walls and ceiling. Obviously being an officer had its privileges on Gilese too judging by what she saw.

Lilly followed the Captain down the corridor that seemed to stretch in both directions for a good mile. After about two hundred feet, they stopped before a wide door with a golden sun painted on it.

“Your chambers, my lady.” Captain Cara stepped up to a pad beside the door and laid her palm against it, making a panel light up. “If you would lay your palm against the panel, my lady, I will register your biometrics so that the door will respond to you in the future.”

“Of course.” Lilly stepped forward and pressed her right palm against the panel. There was a barely audible hum, and the panel flashed brightly, a second latter there was a beep.

“It is done, my lady; the door will now react to your handprint.” Captain Cara said as the door opened with a whoosh, and she motioned for Lilly to step into the chamber before them.

“We will wait out here for you, Lilly,” Cahir said as Lilly gave him a nervous look over her shoulder. She nodded her thanks and stepped into the chamber beyond and gasped in amazement.

The chamber was enormous, a good thirty feet by fifty feet in size. It had an oval window along the far wall, the size of a dinner table, that looked out at the planet below and several enormous ships. Lily could have spent an hour staring out the window, but she knew she was to change and meet Ronan in an hour. What looked like sectional seating in light tan separated the room into three parts, with large, shining black coffee tables before them. Along the right wall were three floor-to-ceiling video screens with a low shelf and three shelves high running the length of the wall. On the left were two doors and Captain Cara motioned towards the one farthest away.

“That door leads to your bathing chamber, and your sleeping chamber is this way.” Captain Cara said. “The admiral ordered four gowns, and Lieutenant Lucia, after reading your medical information, took the liberty of ordering three others.”

“Thank you for your consideration. I’m sure one of them will be to my liking.” Lilly said as Captain Cara palmed open the door.

“If it isn’t too impertinent, may I ask you a question, my lady?” Lucia asked.

“Of course, ask anything I expect in the days to come we shall have many questions for each other.” Lilly stepped through the door into a room half the size of the other one. On her right was a canopy bed with light blue curtains large enough for eight people to comfortably roll around. On either side were nightstands with three drawers made of some shimmering light blue material, with small metal lamps on them. Inset in the wall directly before her were three doors with shelves in between. At the foot of the bed was a plump, padded bench of a darker shade of blue, and randomly thrown about the room were four overstuffed chairs of the same shade of blue.

“Are all the females on your planet as small as you, and do they all have your pale skin?” Lucia asked moving closer to Lilly, she lifted a hand as if she wanted to touch Lily’s hair then dropped it. “And your hair is it real?”

“No, not all the women, umm, females on my planet are my height; some are, taller though few are as tall as you, Lieutenant,” Lilly replied. “My hair is real, though the shade is uncommon on my world; women on Earth have many shades of hair color, black, brown, tan, blonde, white, grey, and red. They also have many shades of skin color, but mine is one of the palest. May I ask you a question now?”

“Of course, my lady.” Lucia exchanged a look with Captain Cara.

“I was told by Ronan and his men that the females of Gilese were weak and ill, that they were too sickly to have children. None of you looks weak or sickly to me. I don’t understand, not that I’m not delighted to see other females.” Lilly stated.

“You are kind, my lady; we three are fortunate enough to have survived the ravages of the disease, but it did stunt our growth and left us unable to bear children.” Captain Cara replied

“Your belongings are here, my lady, and this is your closet.” Lt. Indie hit a button on the wall and a door slid aside to reveal a large walk in closet.

Lilly stepped inside the extensive closet to see her and Ronan’s bags sitting along the near wall, while on her right seven dresses of light blue hung from the closet rod. Lilly stepped up to the gowns very conscious of three pairs of eyes on her.

“We will be happy to help you undress and dress.” Captain Cara said.

Lilly paused before she replied, not wanting to offend, but at the same time, she didn’t feel comfortable having three strange women watching her undress.

“That won’t be necessary, but thank you if you would wait outside. I’ll be ready in a few minutes.” Lilly replied and saw Captain Cara exchange looks with the two lieutenants.

“But we were assigned to take care of you.” Captain Cara protested.

“Yes, I understand that, but I’m a very private person and changing in front of three strangers would make me very uncomfortable,” Lilly replied, firmly folding her arms before her.

“But we are curious and want to know why Ronan chose you for his mate. Why are you so special? All of us offered ourselves to be his bedmate, and he turned us all down. You aren’t that beautiful. In fact you are rather ugly, your skin is too pale and your hair an odd color so why did he pick you?” Indie protested angrily taking a step towards Lilly.

Lilly took a nervous step backwards before she straightened to her full height and gave Indie a hard look. “Not that it is any of your business, but I saved his life, and then I helped him and his men. We were friends first, and from that love grew. Now please get out. I need to get ready.”

“My lady, we didn’t mean to give offense.” Cara protested with a thin lipped smile.

“Fine, just get out. I would like to be able to change in privacy.” Lilly stated firmly and wondered if she screamed, would Cahir be able to hear her?

Captain Cara gave her a nod after a few seconds and then motioned for the other two women to precede her out of the closet. Lilly followed them into the bedroom and watched till they left the room, then she stepped up to the door panel and hit the lock button. Only then did she breathe in relief.

Lilly took a deep, calming breath and then headed for the bathing chamber, planning a quick shower before she picked a dress to wear.

Thirty minutes later, washed, perfumed from scented soap, and wearing the most conservative of the dresses in the closet, she stepped into the outside corridor and found Cahir and Lars staring at Captain Cara and the three female lieutenants as if they had never seen such a thing before.

“Lilly, you look lovely, and you’re early,” Cahir said, coming towards her.

“I agree, you look beautiful, Ronan is a lucky male,” Lars added, giving her an appreciative look.

Lilly gave him a smile of thanks as she self-consciously smoothed down the front of the blue and silver gown, the clingy silk-like material momentarily clinging to her hands.

“Thank you, it was the least revealing of the gowns,” Lilly replied, thinking of the amount of cleavage the other gowns revealed.

“I’m sure Ronan will be grateful it is amazing how protective he has become of late,” Cahir replied, offering Lilly his left arm while Lars took her other side.

Captain Cara stepped forward with a scowl on her face. “We were assigned to escort the princess.”

“And you shall, Captain, but we are both personal friends with the princess, and Ronan personally asked us both to watch over her,” Cahir replied evenly before stepping past the Captain and towing Lilly with him down the corridor.

When they were several feet away from the Captain and the lieutenants, Cahir leaned closer to Lilly so he could whisper in her ear. “Are you all right? I sensed some animosity between you and them?”

“Yes, and you’re right, they don’t like me. They want to know why Ronan would pick someone as ugly as I am to be his mate. For a few minutes, I was afraid they were going to attack me.” Lilly whispered in reply.

“Ah, I thought it might be something like that. Be at ease, they are simply jealous that Ronan picked you. I know before we were captured, Lieutenant Indie had made it rather obvious that she wanted Ronan as her lover; it was something of a joke on the ship.” Cahir replied with a wink. “In a few minutes, you will be married before the whole fleet to Ronan, and everyone will have to pledge their fealty to you; no one will dare harm you after that.”

Before Lilly could press Cahir for answers, they stepped onto the elevator, and Lilly was forced to the back of the elevator, but she felt Cahir squeeze her hand a moment before the elevator began its descent.

Lilly had barely composed herself before the elevator door whished open, and Cahir and Lars helped her off the elevator and then escorted her down a short corridor that opened onto an expansive open area lined with trees in giant planters and baskets of hanging flowers. Before her, filling the vast open area were Gilesean warriors in dark blue uniforms. As they stepped into the open area, a piercing whistle split, the air and all the warriors snapped to attention.

Lilly reflectively grabbed Cahir’s arm for support as she took everything in and fought the urge to run.

“Lilly, you look amazing.” Ronan appeared beside Lilly, and she felt relief flood her as he took her hand and pulled her from Cahir’s side.

“Thank you.” Lilly stammered, thinking Ronan looked rather handsome in his dark blue uniform with silver trim.

“My lord, we are here to serve. Where would you have us?” Captain Cara, said stepping forward to salute Ronan while the Lieutenants stepped up behind her.

Lilly gave Ronan an imploring look as she subtly shook her head, trying to let Ronan know that the women’s presence wasn’t wanted.

“Thank you, Captain, but you are dismissed,” Ronan replied, sensing something was wrong.

“But, sir, we were assigned to escort Lady Lilly by the admiral. I need to be here.” Captain Cara protested.

“And I’m telling you you’re no longer needed, now resume your duties,” Ronan said firmly, then, placing Lilly’s hand on his forearm, turned and led her towards a large dais a few feet away.

“Thank you,” Lilly whispered before looking around the cavernous chamber. She was aware of thousands of pairs of eyes on her and tried not to fidget nervously.

“You can tell me later what was wrong, but I sensed you did not wish them around,” Ronan whispered as he led her up several steps and onto the dais where the admiral, an older male wearing long silver robes stood flanked by rows of officers.

Admiral Arik stepped forward to greet them with a warm smile on his face.

“Lilly, let me introduce you to high priest Aart, who shall perform your marriage and your coronation.” Admiral Arik said, indicating the male in the silver robes.

“A pleasure, but my what?” Lilly stammered as Ronan guided her to a spot before the priest.

“Your coronation,” Ronan said. “It will be all right; just breathe, and I will guide you through everything.”

Lilly felt Ronan squeeze her hand, and she took a deep breath as she forced a smile and went to her happy place while she tried not to think about the fact that she was about to get married before several thousand people and be crowned princess of a planet she’d never even seen.

Ronan squeezed her hand, and when she turned to look at him, he smiled, and she could see the love in his eyes, and she knew everything was going to be fine.