Chapter 4: A Royal Pain

The Emperor jerked awake for the second time, unsure of where he was. Alatem helped him to his feet. “What happened?” he inquired.

Alatem was surprised that the device had worked as well as it had. “You passed out. I guess it was all the excitement of the past four days, what with the assassinations and finding out that Uncle was behind all the attempts.”

For some reason, the Emperor thought he was missing something. Knowing his daughter, he probably was, as sneaky as she was. Charles watched from a distance, monitoring his power levels. This shimmer shield he’d gotten from the last time he’d been forward was going to be a godsend—too bad it didn’t last long. He knew with the Emperor’s memory slightly wiped and reprogrammed, he had a much better chance now to complete the mission. Damn, each time they stopped one, another popped up. Shit! Was the man hated that much?

Charles moved out of the hall to another room and was just about to leave when Alatem’s mother walked in. Startled for only a moment, she quickly closed the doors and locked them.

“So, you are the one my daughter is in love with,” she said, holding up a hand to quiet him before continuing. “I can see why she does. Yes, you are perfect for her, as I assume she is for you.” Reaching out, she took his arm and led him deeper into the room to a nearby wall. Pressing three points near a picture, the wall opened. “In quickly!” she advised. Following him, she closed the door and lit a candle to reveal a small room with a table and chairs.

“Sit, sir. I want to personally thank you for saving all our lives,” she said, holding up a hand to quiet him again. “I know you are here to help our family. I am on your side. Seeing Alatem as happy as she is, is worth everything that we’ve been through. Now then, I know you are more than a little curious about the law that no royal can be touched by any but a royal.” Sighing, she took a big breath. “It started 100 years ago, well before Alatem was born. You see, others of the royal family, though not directly in line for the throne, had many ... trysts. These indiscretions produced many offspring that were ... simple and deformed. Many royals, thinking they were unable to have normal children, stopped trying, and the royal line almost died out. The Emperor, my father-in-law, thought differently and tested many of the royals, finding that the royal bloodline was pure but many of the ... others the royals liked to diddle with weren’t.”

Charles nodded his head. This made a lot of sense. “But to ban even touching? Why the no-touching rule, Empress? Was he afraid that the women from both castes were going to get impregnated just through touch?” Charles asked, a little incredulous.

She smiled; she liked this man, intelligent as well as handsome. “It is Mita, please. As for the touching, he decided that if the lower caste was afraid to touch the royals, then it would be the supreme deterrent to them having children. Though it isn’t that simple, that’s the deterrent of it.” Charles nodded again. This made a lot more sense now, but how was he to get past this?

“Ok, so if a non-royal got a royal pregnant, what would happen?” Charles asked, though he was afraid he already knew the answer.

Sighing and taking a deep breath, Mita thought a moment then answered, “The penalty would be most severe. Usually a long, drawn-out, and as painful a death as possible. And in the case of a royal getting pregnant by a non-royal then...” Mita’s mouth suddenly dropped agape. “I thought that she had put on a little weight! She is, isn’t she? You are the father, are you not?”

“Yes,” Charles answered proudly. “It happened when we were looking for an ancient time slip machine in my...” Charles stopped short, not sure just how much to tell Alatem’s mother. Though he was close to trusting her, he still wasn’t sure she wouldn’t turn him in at a moment’s notice.

“Ah! I see you ARE from the future, as I suspected,” Mita said, holding up her hand again to quiet him before continuing. “You are obviously an extremely brilliant man, and that in itself drives your chances up 50%. Saving all our lives adds at least another 25%, but the rules state that you have to be tested before you can be made a royal.”

Charles’s eyes grew wide. That was all? Hell, bring on the tests!

“Now don’t think it is all that simple. You have to prove you are royal material and undergo physical tests that can push a man to the brink. Also, all this has to be done publicly,” Mita watched as Charles’s face dropped.

Whispering, Charles said, “I can’t do that. It’s impossible. Even with me being removed from time, there are too many repercussions.” Mita could see the pain and agony that Charles was going through. Feeling for him, she knew there was nothing she could do for him.

“Why is that? If you’re removed from time, as I understand it, no mention of you in the past could change the future,” Mita said, now perplexed about the situation. Sighing, Charles wasn’t sure how he could explain the whole time paradox of repeat changes.

“It’s not the being mentioned; it’s the paradox of time correction and dilation.” Charles could see by the confused look on the Empress’s face that she didn’t understand what he was talking about. Sighing, Charles tried to wrap his own head around it in such a way that she might understand it. “Okay, although I have been removed from time, I am still connected to it. Everything I do affects everything past and future. I can only affect the past once publicly. After that, I have to be hidden. You’ve heard the theory that two like objects cannot occupy the same space at the same time. It’s somewhat like that. If I were to run into myself, the resulting destruction could destroy all time and space, and personally, I am not ready to go yet.”

Mita shook her head, almost getting the whole idea. “I would be so proud to call you son. You are beyond brilliant. So nothing public, or you might not be able to time slip, I see.”

“Yes, that plus the fact I have met many of the royals of this time, and I have to say that many are no better than common killers,” Charles said, almost afraid of how she might act.

Sighing, she nodded. “Yes, what you’ve said is very true. Unfortunately, too many of the royals are becoming power-hungry and only want the power.”

A moment later, his wrist comp began to beep faintly. Telling the Empress he had to go, she nodded. Charles blinked out, leaving the Empress alone with her thoughts. Little did she know that there were a small pair of childlike eyes that had been watching her in amazement, the realization hitting as the blocked memories flooded her mind. Quietly, she left the back of the room she called her playroom to look for her sister. She knew that Alatem had been with their father but wasn’t sure now. Alatem breathed a sigh of relief. Wiping all these memories was starting to wear her out—first her sister, then her father. At least his would stay permanent until the machine could reverse it. Her wrist comp softly beeped, alerting her to the fact that Charles was back on board the ship. Pressing a button after she made sure she was alone, she too blinked and was gone. Melina blinked hard. What was her sister? An alien? She knew almost everything that was secret in the palace, but this was something new she had to look into. Backing away, she turned and started to run when she nearly collided with her father.

Oh darn! Now what? Ah! She knew! “Whoa, little one, where are you off to?” her father asked.

“Oh hi, Papa. I thought I saw Alatem go this way. I wanted to show her my new dress I was thinking of having the seamstress make!” The little girl acted as excited as she could, hoping to convince her father.

“Ah! Another new dress, and what, pray tell, is the occasion this time? Your birthday? No, that’s months away. A ball coming up? No, I don’t recall any. Your Mother’s or my birthday? No, we’ve already had ours.” Melina was starting to panic. What if Papa guessed? She’d never be able to keep it a secret. She couldn’t lie to her father, the only person she loved as much as her Mama.

“No, Papa. I just want to look as pretty as I can for you and Mama,” Melina said, hoping it would fool her father. Gee, but the man had a way of ferreting out the truth from her. It was bad enough that her sister didn’t trust her.

Giving her a huge smile, he hugged her fiercely. “Thank you for that, little Mel. Ah, if only your sister was more like you,” shaking his head, he moved on to finish up the day.

Aboard the ship, Charles was pacing around the control room. How could he have been so damn stupid! Still muttering to himself, moments later when Alatem arrived, he drew a hard stare from her.

“Charles? What’s wrong?” she asked, the perplexed look on his face starting to worry her.

“It’s your mother,” Charles blurted out.

“My mother?” Alatem said, then a sudden look of horror. “How did she find out? What does she know?”

“Apparently a hell of a lot more than we at first thought. She also saw me the last time. She knows that you are in love with me and that I love you,” Charles said. Alatem’s eyes opened wide. Her mother knew she loved ... Charles loved her? He’d never spoken the words, and neither had she. Alatem’s heart began to beat faster. He loved her! A huge smile crossed her face, then was quickly hidden. He’d spoken out of anger and might possibly not remember later on.

Speaking up, Alatem asked, “So what are you going to do? We can’t erase Mother!”

“At present, I have no such intention. She is a very sly woman who is apparently on our side.”