Chapter 192: Chapter 192: A Meeting That Can’t Be Avoided

Zaeryn arrived home to the low murmur of a holo-drama drifting from the living area. He didn’t call out. Didn’t stop to see who was watching. He took the stairs two at a time, his new uniform heavy and restrictive against his skin.

His room was dark and cool. He didn’t bother with the lights, just kicked off his boots and peeled away the uniform, letting it fall onto his desk chair.

Putting on some pants, he collapsed face-first onto his bed. The comforter smelled like home, like clean linen and safety. The silence wrapped around him, blotting out the chaotic buzz of the Lyceum, the spar, the judgment in every sideways glance.

Sleep took him before his next breath.

___

In the living room below, Ysmeine sat curled on the plush sofa, teacup balanced on her knee. The air before her shimmered with Athea’s holographic face, life-sized and unnervingly close.

Athea’s expression was serious as always, like it was carved from ice, but her eyes betrayed her. Tightness around the edges. A muscle jumping in her jaw.

"Three days," Athea said, her voice flat and controlled. "Viora gave me three days to arrange a meeting, or else. The worst is if she takes what she knows to the Matriarchal Council."

Ysmeine took a slow sip of tea. "Good. I already mentioned it to Zaeryn. He wants to meet her too."

The hologram flickered.

Athea’s cold expression shattered in an instant, "You what?" The word was louder than Athea usually spoke, cold fury bleeding through every syllable. "You told him? Without consulting me first?"

"Yes."Ysmeine blinked, genuinely taken aback. She set down her cup with deliberate care. "You called to tell me about Viora’s demand. I assumed you were preparing to agree. I thought I should prepare him as well."

"You assumed." Athea’s laugh was bitter, humorless. "I didn’t call to tell you I was agreeing, Ysmeine. I called to warn you. This is a threat, not an invitation."

"Then what’s your plan? Ignore her until she makes good on it?"

Athea pressed her fingers to her temple, breathing out slowly through her nose. "My plan was to buy time. To assess the situation before making any rash decisions."

"Rash?" Ysmeine’s tone sharpened. "She’s his sister, Athea. Your daughter. Why are you treating this like a hostage negotiation?"

"Because that’s exactly what it is." Athea’s voice dropped, cold and precise. "Viora isn’t some curious girl looking for family bonding. She’s a decorated Warlady. Her loyalty isn’t to me, it’s to the Matriarchal Order and its laws. Laws I broke when I hid him."

Ysmeine’s jaw tightened. "So you’re saying she’d turn him in? Her own brother?"

"I’m saying she’d see it as her duty." Athea leaned forward slightly, her holographic eyes burning. "Viora doesn’t know Zaeryn. She knows the idea of him, an illegal son, a male with abilities that violate every protocol we have. If she decides he’s a threat to the Queendom, she won’t hesitate. Her conscience won’t let her."

Silence stretched between them.

Ysmeine set her shoulders. "And you think avoiding the meeting will make her less suspicious? That keeping them apart will somehow satisfy her?"

"I think...."

"You’re wrong." Ysmeine’s cut her off, and her voice was quiet but unyielding. "You raised her to be a soldier, yes. But she’s still human. She’s still his sister, whether you like it or not. And Zaeryn just found out he has one. Do you really think you can keep them apart forever?"

Athea said nothing.

"Viora already uncovered your secret," Ysmeine continued, her intensity building. "She’s relentless. If you refuse her now, she’ll find another way, one you can’t control. But if you arrange the meeting yourself, you control the variables. You turn her from an investigator into a participant. She stops looking for evidence and starts looking for reasons to protect him."

Ysmeine leaned forward, her gaze sharp. "Let her see him, Athea. Not as a classified threat or a legal violation. Let her see her brother, a young man trying to survive in a world that wasn’t built for him. Her loyalty to the law is strong, but blood? Blood might be the only thing stronger."

Athea stared at the projection, her expression unreadable. The argument settled between them. And Athea was thinking about what Ysmeine had just said. No matter how she looked at it, she had to admit that Ysmeine had a point and right now Athea knew that her fear of being exposed might be hindering her judgement.

Finally, she spoke, her voice quiet and weary. "You’re asking me to gamble everything on sentiment. On an emotional response she may not even have."

"I’m asking you to trust your daughter."

Athea closed her eyes. The silence stretched long enough that Ysmeine wondered if the connection had dropped between them.

When Athea opened her eyes again, something in her had shifted. Not softened, never that—but... relented.

"I’ll consider it," she said, each word carefully measured. "I’ll assess potential locations. Security protocols. But I make no promises, Ysmeine. If this backfires, it won’t just be Zaeryn who pays the price."

The hologram dissolved.

___

In the palace.

Athea stood motionless in the center of her grand chamber, staring at the space where Ysmeine’s projection had been. The echo of her words still hung in the air.

"Well, well."

Athea’s head turned sharply towards the voice, and her eyes fixed on Calyra reclined on a nearby divan. Her smile was knowing, almost predatory. "It seems Ysmeine is the only person in the entire Queendom who can back you into a corner. I’d be offended if I didn’t agree with her, or it wasn’t so entertaining."

Athea’s eyes narrowed at her sister. "If you’re about to gloat...."

"I’m about to agree with her." Calyra said, and rose smoothly to her feet. "Viora needs to meet Zaeryn. Not because of Ysmeine’s charming idealism, but because it’s strategically sound."

Athea turned fully toward her sister, waiting for her to finish her preaching so they can move on from this subject and focus on something else.

"Right now, Viora’s loyalty is abstract," Calyra continued, her tone shedding its mockery. "She serves the Matriarchal Order because she has nothing else to serve. No family ties strong enough to compete. But if she meets him, if she knows him, everything changes. She can’t report a concept. She can only report her brother. And that’s a much harder line to cross."

Athea said nothing, but she didn’t look away.

Calyra stepped closer, her voice dropping. "And speaking of family I was denied..." She paused, letting the weight of it settle. "When you arrange this meeting, I’m coming. I’ll meet him alongside Viora."

"No." Athea didn’t even hesitate to turn her down and the word was immediate. Final.

Calyra’s eyebrows shot up. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me." Athea’s expression hardened. "This isn’t a reunion. It’s damage control. Adding you to the equation multiplies the risk exponentially."

"Risk?" Calyra’s voice rose with indignation. "I’m his aunt, Athea. I have just as much right...."

"You have no rights where operational security is concerned." Athea’s tone was cold, clinical. "Viora being seen with Zaeryn is already dangerous. If you’re spotted too? Two royal women, all meeting with an unknown male? We might as well broadcast his existence to the entire Queendom."

Calyra’s jaw clenched. "So I’m supposed to just... wait? While you decide if and when I’m allowed to meet my nephew?"

"Yes." Athea responded her decision final.

---

Back home.

Nearly an hour later, soft footsteps echoed in the upstairs hallway.

Aeris climbed the stairs with purpose, heading for Zaeryn’s room. But as she rounded the corner toward his room, she spotted Ravena approaching from the opposite direction, heading for the same door.

They both stopped when they reached the door and realized they are all going to see Zaeryn at the same time,

"Ravena?" Aeris kept her voice carefully neutral. "What are you doing?"

"Checking on Zaeryn." Ravena’s tone was equally measured. "What are you doing?"

"The same. But I’d like some time alone with him, so if you could come back later—"

"No." Ravena’s expression didn’t change. "I want to see him now. Why can’t we both spend time with him? I’m sure he wouldn’t mind the company."

Aeris’s patience snapped. Instead of arguing, she stepped past Ravena and pressed the door chime.

The insistent beep dragged Zaeryn from the depths of sleep. He groaned, swatting blindly at the air before his brain caught up enough to realize the sound was coming from his door console.

He squinted at the panel through bleary eyes. Two figures waited outside.

Of course.

He tapped the admit button.

The door slid open immediately. Aeris stepped inside without hesitation, Ravena right behind her.

They found him sprawled across his bed, shirtless in loose lounge pants, hair sticking up in every direction. His uniform lay in a crumpled heap on the desk chair.

He pushed himself up on his elbows, blinking against the dim light.

"Really?" His voice was rough with sleep. "Is the house on fire, or are you two just here to ruin my nap?"