“It’s a deal,” Rive repeated. Releasing her hand, he rose. “I will go inform my colony-mates of our bargain and the three of us will get ready to go.”
“Oh, you don’t have to get ready yet,” Terra protested. “The wedding isn’t until the end of the week.”
“Yes, so we must hurry if we are to gain the Heart-finder from Mistress Bodikin on Yonnie Six so we can bring it back before attending the Joining Ceremony with you.”
“Wait…” Terra put up a hand. “Get the what from who on where?”
Rive frowned.
“The only way for the three of us to find the perfect Queen for our colony is to use a device called a “Heart-finder.” Unfortunately, the only one in this universe belongs to a female by the name of Mistress Bodikin. Up until now we have been unable to bargain with her for the use of it, due to the fact that she lives on a planet where females are supreme and males are considered lower life forms. But now that you have agreed to bargain for us, we can at last get the Heart-finder.”
“Wait—so you want me to go to a whole other planet with you to get this uh, ‘Heart-finder’ device? What does it do?” Terra protested.
“Why, it allows us to find our Queen, of course,” Rive said simply. “When the right female touches the device, an alarm will go off and the lights will flash—much like the archway Tem made on the Dark Side of the ship that you set off with your presence.”
“Well, what about that archway, then?” Terra asked desperately. “Why can’t we just bring likely, uh, Queen candidates up to the Monstrum Mother Ship and run them all through the arch to see which one makes the bells and whistles go off?”
“I am afraid that would be an impractical and lengthy process,” Rive said patiently. “You see, the odds for our colony finding the right female to be our Queen are five in five million—which is one reason we were all so surprised when Tem’s arch actually worked. The chance of just the right female—you— actually agreeing to come up to the Mother Ship and stepping through our arch, well…” He shook his head. “One is tempted to think it is not chance at all, but the work of the Goddess.”
Terra frowned.
“I thought you were a scientist. Do you really still believe in God—or the Goddess, I mean?”
Rive frowned.
“Why would I not? Science and faith can coexist, you know. In any case, I am not here to argue theology with you, Terra. The fact is, you made a deal to help us find a mate if we would accompany you to your ex-mate’s Joining Ceremony. And the only way to do that is for Tem and V’rone and myself to acquire the Heart-finder from Mistress Bodikin on Yonnie Six.”
“Yes, but…but that’s a whole other planet, right? I mean, how are we going to get there and back again in time?” Terra demanded.
Rive shrugged.
“It’s simple enough—we can fold space directly to an orbit around Yonnie Six. Then, with the three of us posing as your bodyslaves, you can get an audience with Mistress Bodikin and bargain to get the Heart-finder. After that, we can go back to Earth and attend the Joining ceremony of your ex-mate. If there is an appropriate Queen candidate, as you call it, at the ceremony, the Heart-finder will locate her. If not, we can travel the Earth, using it to try and track down another female who is suited to complete our colony and be our Heart and Queen.” He shrugged again. “It’s actually quite simple.”
“But is it safe?” Terra asked uncertainly. “I mean, I want to help you guys out, I just didn’t realize I was agreeing to go on an interplanetary mission with you.”
“It should be a hell of a lot safer than the planet I went to with Dra’vik.” Iyanna stepped out from the food prep area with a smile. “Sorry—I couldn’t help overhearing,” she said apologetically.
“No, no—please, come out here and let’s talk.” Terra beckoned to her. “You know more about this than I do—I definitely want your input.”
“Okay, well…” Iyanna came around and sat on a comfortable looking armchair across from the couch, which was also made entirely of tiny vines. “Dra’vik and I went on a mission to Lix’dor Prime where the men actually owned the women. As in, they bought and sold them and loaned them to their friends the same way guys on Earth loan power tools.”
“That’s horrible!” Terra shivered. “You must have felt so frightened!”
“I did have a few scares,” Iyanna said grimly. “But Dra’vik was by my side the whole time, protecting me.”
“No wonder the two of you are so close,” Terra remarked. “Talk about a trial by fire—it must have really brought you together.”