Chapter 7

I followed Myrialis as she led the way out of the market square. Her protection detail closed in around us. Rather than use a lift, she led me up some stairs to a roof garage and opened up an aircar large enough to fit us all. Though I did turn a warning eye to one of the detail who had his weapon out and not quite pointing at me.

“You either put that away or I’m going to stick it where the sun doesn’t shine,” I warned him.

“I don’t take orders from you,” he sneered, only to have me reach across, grab his collar and slam his body forward, causing his head to hit the restraining bar, knocking him unconscious.

I then took the gun from his nerveless fingers, detached the power cell (no, I don’t know how I know this, but I do and handed the disarmed pistol and cell to Myrialis.

“I did warn him,” I shrugged, ignoring the amazed and occasionally hostile looks from the rest of the detail.

“Yes, you did,” she nodded with a slight smile. “The rest of you, calm down. David is not an enemy and poses no danger to me.”

“He’s a lower class, gutterscum slave,” one of the scowling ones stated, only to start slightly when I detached my torc.

“You were saying?” I asked with a raised eyebrow. “And before any of you get all high and mighty, none of you realised you were surrounded in the market square either,” I chuckled, re-attaching the torc.

“Liar,” the guy snorted only to go silent as an AI put up a tri-dee of the square for me and marked every one of the people there who were armed with knives and waiting for something to happen.

“That’s why I told you to stay where you were. It was obvious he had us marked and surrounded,” Myrialis added.

“You wandered right into the middle of an ImpSec operation designed to flush out a group who had murdered a High Bureaucrat,” I shrugged, “If you had drawn a weapon it would have caused a serious diplomatic incident.”

“What are you?” the guy asked, now looking chagrined and confused.

“A Cure, but one with military and espionage experience,” I replied as I went through a few new memories that I’m sure had recently been implanted by ImpSec.

“We had heard you were different,” Myrialis added.

“I’m more compassionate and have a strong conscience,” I chuckled. “Other than that, I’m just a man.”

“A Cure with a conscience. How ... novel, you must be the only one in existence,” she said with a wry smile as the aircar arrived at what I presumed was the Celestion, an upper level hotel.

Myrialis and I were escorted to a conventional lift and left to our own devices as the security detail unhappily attended to their unconscious member. The lift took us down to a very luxurious set of rooms where we were met by some silent, if efficient, servants who escorted us to a room where a very healthy-looking young woman sat waiting for us.

“My Princess,” Myrialis announced us, giving a slight bow. “This is the Cure David. He has agreed to help.”

“Yes, I saw from the monitoring cams you activated. It is good to know that Empress Amantil is now in the loop as well,” she replied in a melodious voice.

“Salutations, Princess Royal,” I stated as her eyes turned to me.

“You can call me Jessin, when it’s just us three. I can’t abide all that protocol, unless I seriously dislike the person in front of me,” she replied with a smile. “You seriously offended my security detail though.”

“They shouldn’t play with guns in front of me. The only reason to pull a gun is to use it. Hopefully he will have learned from it, though you really need to put them through a refresher training matrix as they are clearly not suited to working in a public environment, not from what I could deduce anyway,” I shrugged, making Myrialis grin.

“I did warn you, Jessin,” she added.

“Yes, Gershon has not exactly covered itself in glory over this. Still, it’s the result that counts,” she smiled.

“For someone who is supposedly poisoned, you look remarkably well, Jessin.” I remarked.

“Disguise,” she sighed and touched her armband and a holographic image fell away to show the same woman only paler, thinner, with slightly blue lips and thinning hair.

“Let’s get this sorted, then.”

“Please,” she nodded as she held out her hand and led me to the room’s bed whilst Myrialis withdrew to the outer room and ensured we weren’t disturbed or observed.

Our lips met as we stood by the bed and she melded herself against my body as my ‘magic’ took over. Shrugging her shoulders her robe fell to the ground and she rapidly had my own clothing joining it.

“Oh, you’re nice,” she said as her eyes took in my body. “I suspect I’m going to enjoy the cure a lot.”

“It will be a pleasure for both of us, I’m sure,” I chuckled as I laid her down on the bed.

One thing I did notice on Jessin was that Gershon women had pubic hair, unlike Imperial subjects, which made her quite exotic in my eyes. This soon had my tongue exploring down there as she thrashed around the bed in ecstasy.

“Oh David, that’s so nice. I so rarely get treated to this,” she moaned as I reached up to caress a breast as I continued to eat her out.

Finally, she gave a soft moan and stiffened up as an orgasm washed over her and I moved up to place my cock at her entrance.

“Yes!” she moaned. She moved to receive me as I pushed into her.

Jessin was tight; no virgin though as I had half suspected she might have been, more to do with me having some weird, old-worldly views on princesses in general. She was also very enthusiastic about the act of intercourse as well. Moving in time with me and doing her best to climax again before I released my life-giving substance into her.

The sensations my gift invoked in women pushed her over the edge and she joined me in a massive double climax, moaning softly in bliss.

“Oh, I feel better already,” she sighed as we parted and she reached for her robe, indicating I should get dressed as well.

Already the effects of my cure were showing. Her colour had returned, her lips were a healthy pink and her hair now looked thicker and healthier too.

Myrialis returned to the room at some hidden signal and was caught up in a massive hug by the excited Jessin.

“Thank you, David,” Jessin finally said once the two women had separated.

“My pleasure, and trust me, your secret is safe with me, Jessin,” I replied.

“Good. This could have had serious implications for the realm of Gershon. We are a proud people and a coup by that dangerous fool Antis could have de-stabilised the entire sector and drawn the Empire in to restore order in the area as well as opening a front against the Vraik right in the middle of Gershon territory itself as many houses would have fought him.”

“Sadly I do not understand much of the politics of other places,” I admitted. “I’m still struggling to get my head around Vreekoos.”

“Ah,” Myrialis nodded. “Well, Gershon differs from the Empire as it’s not a bureaucracy, but an actual monarchy. The nobles run the planetary systems somewhat in a feudal manner, with the Royal House being in overall command both by tradition and obligation. Hence each planet is independent to a certain extent, which can leave an unscrupulous noble an opportunity to build alliances to topple the ruling house as Antis appears to be doing.”

“And the Vraik?”

“Non-human expansionist realm who have exhausted a lot their own resources and seek to conquer the border worlds of the Empire to gain more. Nasty fuckers too, but currently have a ceasefire with Gershon to prevent us from joining the Empire by opening a second front against them. They’re a minor annoyance to the Empire really, but Amantil doesn’t want to conquer them. What they have isn’t worth the bother or trouble of taking, hence she’s just wearing them down by destroying their fleets and infrastructure. Plus, the Empire, like Gershon is a mostly human realm and aliens have their own rules and ways of doing things which often cause tensions. So there are a number of alien worlds within the borders of the Empire and Gershon, but who aren’t part of our realms, if often enough having a treaty of some sort so as not to bother each other.”

“Take it they need different real estate, so to speak?”

“Yes, though most worlds have to be terraformed even if they’re in the sweet zone of human tolerance. The Empire are supreme in that, we ... Gershon that is, lease the units to do it from them, as and when we need them,” Jessin explained as the doors to her chamber swung open and a security detail entered, weapons drawn, followed by another person who looked both arrogant and cruel, if somewhat dull. I also noted that the comm channel to the AIs was down.

“What is the meaning of this?” a startled but angry Jessin demanded. “Lord Antis, what are you doing here?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” the man drawled. “I’m staging a coup. The Princess Royal has been cavorting with a slave and dishonouring her house, hence, she is unfit to rule. I simply wished to observe your fall from grace personally.”

“There are no slaves here!” Myrialis stated.

“That ... thing,” he pointed to me. “Is a slave. Your captain of your security detail confirmed it earlier!”

“Where’s my collar, Antis?” I chuckled, taking mine off and showing him my bare neck, as well as moving slightly to slightly obscure his view of Myrialis.

“You will address me as Lord Antis, slave. I’m sure a new collar can be procured, one that works, if needed for Jessin’s trial.”

I did note that all the communications that had been down were now up again and I frantically contacted the AIs as I suspected my collar security designation had simply been blocked. I was also sure Myrialis was now armed.

“No wonder Amantil has a poor view of you if you come to Vreekoos and threaten one of her Cures,” I chuckled, before hurling my torc directly at the lead guard, who was watching the Princess, not me. I’d been warned that all the security detail weapons had been disarmed.

The torc hit the man full on in his forehead and dropped him like a stone. A shot from Myrialis, using the gun I’d earlier disabled and given her, cut down his second. In the confusion caused by the distraction I was in amongst the remaining five of the detail dealing out blows and trying to avoid their attempts to get at me. Myrialis had in the meantime drawn another weapon and had shot Antis with it, dropping him to the ground, presumably stunned, as the Princess’ retainers rushed into the room to pile onto the now demoralised security detail.

“Is he some kind of idiot?” I asked, prodding the recumbent form of Antis with my boot.

“Arrogant, yes, idiot, not really, as this is the only place he had a shot at seizing the Princess and ImpSec would notice if he brought his army with him,” Myrialis chuckled. “Still it was extremely foolish of him. Does look as if he managed to corrupt your security details though, Jessin.”

“Yes, there will have to be an investigation into that,” Jessin nodded. “But for the moment, it looks like I’m safe. I’m fairly sure he will not have made any overt moves until he had me safe in his custody.”