Chapter 40

As it turned out, it was not the family dinner with my Mum, bro and Gramps, along with Tillan, I expected. Mum had clearly been busy and invited Minno, who brought Kleevas. She also invited Flinn and Torun who had been given a clean bill of health. Amanda also turned up, having let Mum know she was coming and brought Truvia with her to keep an eye on things.

“It’s so good to meet up.” Mum beamed as we settled down. “Your Mum sends her love,” to Minno.

“Thank you, Aunt Kirim,” Minno smiled in return.

“Now, everyone relax and pretend we don’t have royalty with us,” Mum went on as it was clear that a few were a bit nervous of Amanda being with us.

“Just treat me as Dayyev’s girlfriend,” Amanda added with a friendly smile. “Oh, and call me Amanda, this isn’t an official function, so protocols aren’t necessary.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Amanda,” Torun replied. “I have to admit I never ever thought I would meet you, protocols or not.”

“They get in the way at times and my Mum hates them, though knows how to apply them if needed,” Amanda explained. “But a friend of Kiria’s is a friend of mine.”

“Just don’t ask for favours as she really can’t be seen to be doing any,”” Dayyev added, his eyes twinkling.

“Oh I wouldn’t...” Torun began only to stop and blush as she realised she was being teased.

“Don’t be a git, bro,” I chided him as the table erupted in laughter, including Torun.

“So, what’s it like being a Princess Royal?” Flinn asked.

“It’s a job. I’m mostly at school, though do the occasional state ceremony thing where my Mum’s too busy,” Amanda replied. “I realise it’s an odd-looking job for anyone who is outside the family, but I’ve kind of been training to do it since I learned to walk and talk.”

“Is Vicki taking over whilst you’re out here?” Minno asked.

“Kicking and screaming, yes,” Amanda giggled.

“Can’t imagine she’s enjoying herself,” I laughed.

“She isn’t, though anyone observing her would never know it,” Amanda confirmed.

“How’s Plenna managing?” Minno asked.

“She’s got his training well in hand. They’ll both be going Fleet, Vicki in Command, Plenna in Engineering.”

“No public gaffs?” I asked.

“No, the relationship hasn’t been announced yet, so he isn’t under pressure yet, unlike my Dayyev.”

“Pressure, what pressure,” Dayyev laughed. “Isn’t it normal for newsies to ask random strangers about their love life?”

“They didn’t, did they?” Mum asked wide eyed.

“That low life Vexxros did,” Amanda replied. “That’s why he got booted off the Royal Newsie Pack.”

“You kept that quiet, Dayyev,” Mum frowned.

“It was no biggie, Mum, he was trying it on to see how far he could push, even I could see that,” Dayyev replied.

“Not very far at all, as he discovered,” Amanda giggled. “Now, Tillan, why don’t you tell us how you lucked out with my bestie here?”

“Oh, I definitely lucked out alright. We got assigned together to check out the activities of the Kingdom before they reformed,” Tillan replied politely.

“So, you’re a super spy now, sis?” Dayyev asked, mirth showing in his eyes.

“I scrub up well, bro and can kick most people’s teeth out if I’m threatened,” I replied with a grin. “Made me a natural choice to be Tillan’s eye-candy bodyguard.”

“I did feel very safe with her,” Tillan added with a smile. “I checked out her records and saw what she did to any alien who got in her way.”

“I liked his style ... and his luxury yacht,” I giggled.

“Sadly, it belongs to the Imperial Investigators Office, but it does impress,” Tillan laughed, squeezing my hand.

“Things just went from there,” I added. “My meddling friends persuaded the AIs to check out our compatibility as I never thought of that and only knew what Tillan had told me as his records were sealed.”

“It was plain they both liked each other,” Flinn explained. “Only Kiria is shy and Tillan a gentleman.”

“Sis, shy?” Dayyev asked with a broad grin.

“I am not shy!” I contended. “We were working on a mission; it wouldn’t have been right.”

“I thought she was way too good for me, well out of my league,” Tillan explained.

“You are shy.” Flinn added to me. “She’s not out of your league,” to Tillan. “It was pretty obvious you two had chemistry.”

“I. Am. Not. Shy!” I grated out.

“So why didn’t you ask to see if you were compatible?” Mum asked looking puzzled. “It’s how everyone else does it.”

“Er...”

“I had,” Tillan grinned along with the rest of the table at seeing me so disconcerted ... for once.

“So, why didn’t you ask me out?”

“We were on a mission, as you said, it wouldn’t have been right.”

“I also couldn’t find out much about your history either,” I admitted.

“That’s to protect my family as you now know.”

“Yes ... damn, I made quite a hash of this, didn’t I?”

“We got there,” he replied with that smile that just melted my heart.

“So, tell us a little about yourself, Tillan?” Mum asked.

“Born on Talgard to Vrees and Kaoli; elder brother to two sisters, Miri and Loyota. Was headhunted by the Investigators due to my school results and activities and given neural learning in my final year,” he explained. “After that ... well a lot of it is classified, but I ended up being a protégé of Senior Imperial Investigator Vilgra and ran afoul of a very powerful crime syndicate, so ended up out here.”

“That Vilgra!” Mum groused. “She told me she’d never heard of you.”

“That’s policy with any Investigator whom you’ve never seen with another,” Tillan chuckled.

“Investigators are one of the most powerful and effective tools for dealing with corruption in the Empire,” Amanda explained. “We take their security and protection very seriously.”

“Yes, but Vilgra and I are on the Security Group?”

“Makes no difference, Mum” Amanda replied using her unofficial as yet engagement to Dayyev to use the ‘Mum’ term. “The AIs would have stepped in if she told you.”

“Ouch,” Mum winced. “But now?”

“Now you know and can ask ... though she won’t be able to discuss some of Tillan’s missions, unless you need to know.”

“Yes, I understand,” Mum nodded.

“You have had quite the exciting life though, Tillan, short though it’s been career-wise,” Amanda stated, looking at Tillan having presumably been informed by the AIs as she’s above security.

“I have a knack for being accepted by various ... miscreants and told things they probably shouldn’t,” he replied with a cheery smile. “That and pretty decent hacking skills via the AIs.”

“Yes, they appear to like you as well,” Amanda nodded.

“Wait ... what?” Torun asked confused.

“Haven’t you noticed, Kiria’s always unfailingly polite to the AIs?” Flinn asked.

“Well, yes. But I thought it was just her being her.”

“She treats the AIs as people and they offer her a greater level of response,” Tillan explained. “Same with me.”

“It’s a small, if growing, trend across the Empire,” Amanda went on. “You’ll often notice that those who do rise higher and get better results.”

“My Mum and Dad do, so I just picked it up, as did Dayyev,” I added.

“Hilli, Truna and Galh, have picked up on it too,” Mum also added. “I didn’t used to, but your Dad got me into it, it’s surprising the difference it makes.”

“I started doing it too when I observed Kiria doing it,” Flinn replied, “I’m not perfect at it, but when I do remember it’s surprising alright.”

“So, if I treat the AIs as people, rather than information tools, they’ll help me all the more?” Torun asked.

“Yes,” Amanda confirmed. “It’s all part of the very complex multiplexing algorithms that make up their personality matrix. Basically, we’ve made them as human as possible, gave them a ... conscience and so they respond well to those who are ... nice to them, whilst not killing off those who aren’t ... naturally.”

“Simplistically put,” the AI of the room interjected.

“Yes, though this is a party and I’m not going over basic programming protocols at a family party,” Amanda chuckled.

“Understandable,” the AI replied, and we all caught the hint of humour in the tones.

“Ah...” Torun nodded. “Thank you, AI.”

“You are most welcome, Torun.”

“Why don’t we teach kids this at school?”

“My Mum wants people to come by it naturally, rather than just doing it by rote and not actually meaning it,” Amanda replied.

“Yep, gotcha.”

“How are Hilli, Truna and Galh doing these days?” I asked Mum.

“Much, much better, they still miss their Mum and Dad, but it’s more sorrow than grief and it doesn’t affect them living their lives now.”

“I’m glad. It was truly a horrible thing that happened to them,” Torun replied.

“They enjoy your half binary calls,” Mum answered with a smile.

“It’s always great to chat to them too, such beautiful kids.”

“Their Mum was incredibly beautiful, but about as level-headed a woman as you could hope to meet. I didn’t know their Father too well, but enjoyed the occasional chat along with Dave when he spoke to them every so often to make sure they were doing all right.”

“I’m told she was a consort?”

“Yes, with the Perfumed Garden Guild, one of their best and most in demand,” Mum confirmed.

“Do the kids know?”

“Not yet, though I doubt it will bother them, not now. They meet the occasional one at the various functions Dave and I now attend as part of Manny’s entourage,” Mum chuckled.

“Ah, they see them as people?”

“Yes, good people at that,” Mum nodded. “I used to think it was an odd profession, to say the least, as the people who work in the lower level entertainment centres tend to be an odd lot, but having met many of them now, I came to realise that if anything they’re mostly nicer than their clientele.”

“So what do they think their Mum was?” I asked curiously.

“House Mum, their Father, Trenn was a system analysis technician for the AI network and earned a good wage.”

“Oh right.”

“Mikalie was a very intelligent woman in her own right, but found she could earn far more as a consort than what she was qualified for,” Mum chuckled. “She could have made Senior Bureaucrat easily.”

“That smart?” Amanda asked.

“Yes, your Mum liked her too and gave her a small title when she retired for another service she did for her to do with the Duvrach plot.”

“Oh right, oh my goodness, she was stunning,” Amanda breathed as the AIs updated her.

“She was and the girls are growing up to look just like her.”

“Their bigger big bro will make sure they aren’t pestered,” Dayyev chuckled.