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  Finally, the pilot responded, throwing a barely concealed glare at Emi. Then she pasted a fake smile on her face.

  The commander straightened. “My apologies, Doctor. I had forgotten to ask my pilot for some information before we left our ship.”

  Emi could play that game, too. “Oh, sure. Not a problem.” She flashed a smile at Rawin, pretending she hadn’t just heard the commander dress her pilot down in front of a member of a different species.

  Not that Emi had understood a word of it, but apparently the chastising tone was universal among spoken languages.

  She felt Rawin’s ire clouding her the rest of the visit to the station’s commander. Rawin excused herself for a few moments. When she returned, her ire had been replaced by a smugness Emi didn’t understand.

  As they were getting ready to leave the station commander’s office and Emi was hoping she’d get off the station scot-free, the station commander received a message.

  After conferring with the station commander, Commander Ren’yawlkin looked apologetic. “Our leader, Mauri Dob’antu, wishes to meet with you and your men.”

  “Me…and my men?”

  “Yes. She wishes to show you around our city and have dinner with you.”

  Emi grumbled inside. She’d been ordered by the DSMC to indulge the Kal’moran leader for the sake of diplomacy, and that meant she would have to accept the leader’s invitation to come down to the planet and meet with her and take the grand tour.

  “Sure. That sounds…great.”

  “Do you have collars for your men, or will you need some?”

  “Um, collars?” She feigned ignorance and hoped they’d buy the act.

  “No males on our planet may be uncollared. It is our law.”

  Shit. “No, I guess I’ll need some.”

  “Will they require modesty pouches?”

  “Eh, what?”

  The commander seemed stumped for the word. Out of the corner of Emi’s eye, she caught the pilot smirking.

  Emi couldn’t shake the certainty that the pilot was somehow behind the sudden invitation.

  Commander Ren’yawlkin finally figured the word out. “Covering. We do not allow males to be clothed, for security purposes, but we do allow modesty pouches. Our males do not use them but some males of other species seem to feel less threatened when allowed to do so.”

  Sigh. Despite how she’d teased Ford, she really didn’t want a bunch of strange females ogling her men. “Yeah, guess I’ll need some of those, too. No chance of getting a waiver on the outfits, huh?”

  “Sorry, it is how our laws are.”

  “I can’t just leave the guys in the ship?”

  “Mauri Dob’antu was very specific in asking that you and your entire crew come to the planet.”

  The station commander called her assistant in. Emi assumed she was being ordered to come up with the appropriate garb for Emi’s guys. She left and returned a few minutes later with three collars and three pouches that were little more than skimpy G-strings.

  “Will those be sufficient, Doctor?” Commander Ren’yawlkin asked.

  “I guess they’ll have to do.”

  Commander Ren’yawlkin received a page on her communicator and excused herself for a moment.

  Rawin smiled at Emi. “I think you will like our world. I have four household males, including two pleasure males. I would be willing to put mine to the test against any of yours.”

  Emi forced herself to smile and make it look real. “I appreciate the offer, Rawin, really I do. But it would be against our customs.” Hopefully that was a safe answer.

  “Oh, but I insist, Doctor Hypatia. My pleasure males are considered two of the best there are. It is common for us to trade or share males between friends on our world. Come, Doctor, there is no harm in sampling the pleasures of our world for the sake of diplomacy, is there? I certainly would like to sample a human male’s skills. I have yet to experience a human male.”

  Even if Emi hadn’t heard how this woman treated Aaron like shit, Emi wouldn’t have wanted anything to do with her scheme. “No, thank you. No offense, Rawin. It simply isn’t our custom. Now, if you’ll please excuse me, I need to get back to my ship and get my men.”

  She ran into Commander Ren’yawlkin in the outer office. “Heading back to my ship.” She held up the collars and G-strings. “Got men to dress.”

  “Would you like me to escort you back?”

  “No, thanks. I can find my way.”

  “Very well. I will be back to collect you in thirty minutes.”

  “Peachy.” Despite the commander’s questioning look, Emi forced herself not to bolt out of the office and run all the way back to the Bight.

  Aaron was waiting for her at the hatch when she returned. “Well? How’d it go?”

  “You ain’t gonna believe this shit.” She held up the items.

  His expression darkened. “What the hell are those? Or do I even want to know?”

  “Guess what? In the interest of indulging diplomacy, you all get to accompany me down to the planet’s surface.”

  “Dressed like that?”

  “Yeah. Dressed like this.” She handed him a collar and G-string. “Be glad you get that much. Where’s the twins?”

  He held up the G-string, staring at the tiny pouch in disbelief. “They wouldn’t make an exception for us, huh?”

  “Diplomatic indulgence. That’s what you said.”

  He scowled at her.

  “No, they won’t budge. It’s their laws. Next time, let’s tell the DSMC we aren’t a service giving free space tows for breakdowns.” She walked over to the com panel and hit the page button. “Caph and Ford, to the bridge. Now.” She stalked down the main corridor, leaving Aaron standing behind her and still contemplating the G-string.

  Caph and Ford were even less impressed than Aaron. Ford crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head. “Nope. Not going to do it.”

  Aaron let out an exasperated sigh. “You have to.”

  “Hey, one of us has to stay here with the ship. Ha!”

  Caph looked practically morose as he stared at the G-string Emi handed him. “Sorry, Ford. We have the new system, remember? We can set it to automated and leave it.”

  Ford’s triumphant expression crumbled. “Oh. Right. Dammit.”

  “Look,” Aaron said, “I’m not any happier about this than you are, but we’re under orders to indulge diplomatic relations. I think we can suck it up for a few hours and do this.”

  Ford glared at him. “Is that an order?”

  “If you want to make it one, damn right it is.” Aaron headed for the door. “I’m going to quarters to change. Main hatch, ten minutes.”

  Ford stuck his tongue out at Aaron behind his back as he left.

  Emi shook her head at him. “Don’t be like that. He’s only following orders. We all are.”

  Caph slid into the command chair and began setting up the automated system to take over during their absence. “Doesn’t seem right. We come to help them at their request. Now we have to be treated like animals.”

  “Hey, think of it this way, at least I’ll be enjoying the view.”

  A look of horror struck Caph. “What if I get a hard-on while wearing this thing?”

  Emi giggled. “Then I guess everyone will see it.”

  Chapter Ten

  They rode a shuttle down to the surface. The two-woman Moran flight crew only addressed Emi and paid no heed to Aaron, Caph, or Ford, as if the men were little more than cargo.

  Emi didn’t know if it irritated her or her men more.

  For their part, the men hadn’t enjoyed their walk through the space station to the shuttle port. The intense, appraising looks from Moran females and males alike disconcerted all of them. Emi felt their discomfort as keenly as her own.

  A Moran woman with reddish blonde hair met them at the shuttle port greeting center upon their arrival. “Captain Doctor Hypatia? I am Twren Klay’Baltin, but you may call me Baltin. I am
the assistant to Mauri Dob’antu. I was sent to greet you and take you to the Imperial Home to meet with our leader.”

  “Hi. Nice to meet you, but Doctor Hypatia is fine.”

  “Oh, all right. I have arranged for a kennel for your men.”

  That pulled Emi up short. “Kennel? They aren’t animals.”

  Baltin turned. Emi felt a wave of horror from her. “Oh, I am sorry, Doctor Hypatia. I meant no offense. That is simply what we call them.” She pointed over to a row of several rooms with observation windows on the front. Comfortable benches, and a sink and toilet, outfitted each room. “They can wait there until you return and will be safe.”

  Emi glanced at Aaron. She didn’t want to be separated from them. He tipped his head at her to agree to it.

  “Oh, okay. If you’re sure they will be safe.”

  “Absolutely.” Baltin led them over to one of the rooms. The other rooms were currently empty.

  Emi kissed each man as they walked in, Aaron going last. “It’s okay, Em,” he whispered in her ear. “We’ll be fine. Get this over with and we can go back to the Bight.” He brushed her cheek with his lips before going inside.

  Baltin locked the door and handed Emi the key. “Security, of course, has a key in case of an emergency, but they will be safe until your return.”

  “Thanks.” She pocketed it, smiling to herself when her fingers brushed against Bucky hiding in her trouser pocket.

  Emi followed Baltin from the greeting center to a tram. As they took a short ride from the greeting center, Emi looked around, amazed. The planet’s temperate climate made it the perfect resort planet. No wonder wealthy women enjoyed journeying here for their playground. “Is your entire planet like this?” Emi asked her, indicating the lush landscaping.

  “Mostly. There are polar ice caps, and around our oceans we have what I think are called beaches in standard. We have many plans for more resorts in those areas as our city expands.”

  “I’m sure those will be quite popular.”

  They debarked the tram at a station near a guarded entrance. Baltin showed her ID and introduced Emi to the guards, who allowed them to pass.

  Inside, Emi had to force herself to keep following Baltin and not stop and stare. She couldn’t get used to seeing the naked men working all around. In the gardens lining the paths leading to the ruling palace, they worked without making eye contact, like silent ghosts.

  She tried to keep her scientist’s hat firmly in place. “Is this all part of the Imperial Home?”

  “Oh, yes. It is the center of our city.” Emi didn’t notice any supervisors, male or female, overseeing the workers. Baltin noticed Emi’s blatant curiosity. “Only certain utility males are allowed access like this inside the grounds of the Imperial Home. Otherwise, only our trainers, breeders, and the Imperial pleasure males are allowed to come and go freely. Notice the utility males’ collars?”

  Emi had. Emerald green with what looked like a small gold crest in the front. “What does that mean?”

  “That is the Imperial Seal. It is every utility male’s wish to be accepted at the very least as an Imperial worker. It is a very high honor.”

  Another guard at the entrance to a huge home opened the door for them and bowed her head at Baltin as they passed. They climbed an ornate stairway, inlaid with gold, from the looks of it. The Imperial Home was lavishly decorated inside, and climate controlled. All the guards they encountered were women. They tipped their heads respectfully to Emi and Baltin as they passed.

  Emi saw no men working inside.

  They paused at a huge set of double doors, where Baltin spoke to a female guard in their native language. The guard nodded, then led the way as a small cadre of guards fell into step behind them.

  More long, twisting passages. I hope they don’t expect me to find my way out of this maze by myself. After what felt like minutes, the guards stopped before another large, ornate set of doors and opened them. They stepped out of the way and bowed to Emi and Baltin.

  “Come, Doctor,” Baltin said, leading the way.

  The middle-aged woman seated at a desk under the windows stood at their approach. Baltin bowed her head. “Mauri Dob’antu, this is Captain Doctor Emilia Hypatia, from the DSMC vessel Tamora Bight.”

  “Thank you, Baltin,” the woman said in rich, warm tone, her English standard only slightly more accented compared to Baltin’s. “You may wait for us outside.”

  “Thank you, Mauri.”

  When they were alone, the woman smiled. “So how did you like your preview of our society, Captain Doctor Hypatia?”

  “Just Doctor is fine.”

  “Very well. Your impressions, Doctor Hypatia?”

  “Very…interesting.”

  One of the woman’s eyebrows arched skyward as a slight smile curved her lips. “That is an unusual choice of words. I take it you do not approve?”

  “I never said that, ma’am.”

  The woman laughed. “Relax, Doctor. I am…how do you say? Teasing you. And you may call me Mauri.” She pointed to a large, comfy sofa along one wall. “Please, let us sit and talk.” She indicated the other end. Emi sat. As Mauri sat, she touched a button on a console on the coffee table in front of the sofa.

  Almost immediately, a man appeared through a small door Emi hadn’t noticed before. As naked as the other men, only his collar was of a rich purple, bearing the same gold seal.

  Mauri said something to him in Moran. He bowed and quickly left the room. “He will bring us some refreshments,” she explained as she settled back. “Now, please, may I ask you something?”

  “Of course.”

  “I am very intrigued. I heard from Commander Ren’yawlkin that you own not one, but three men. Is that correct? I was left puzzled by her explanation. I suspect I either misunderstood her or she was confused.”

  Emi blushed a little, but nodded. “I don’t own my men. They are my husbands.”

  Mauri looked puzzled. “Husbands?”

  “That’s right. On Earth, we allow plural marriages. They are married not just to me, but to each other as well.”

  “Oh, I do not doubt they are bonded to each other. Such is the nature of males. They seek their own. But how do you deal with them?”

  “I don’t understand the question.”

  “Commander Ren’yawlkin told me they are allowed to wear clothing and are not restrained or collared in any way. I am very interested in learning how you control them.”

  Emi wasn’t sure what Mauri wanted to hear. “Control?”

  “How do you correct them? Train them? Keep them in line?”

  “Our society is set up differently from yours. We are equal partners.”

  Mauri frowned. “Impossible. Males are not capable of that. They become violent and unmanageable when left to their own devices. I can see perhaps keeping one in line, but when they bond together as a pack, they are wont to get unruly.”

  Emi tried again. “We love each other. We don’t have a social structure like you do. I love them, and they love me.”

  She arched an eyebrow in apparent amusement. “Of course a well-trained male should love its owner.”

  “I’m not their owner. And they don’t own me, either. We’re equals.”

  Both of Mauri’s eyebrows launched skyward as Emi felt a wave of disbelief from the leader.

  Emi tread carefully. “Our societies are different, that’s all.”

  “Apparently quite different. I had never given much thought to the human male social structure before. The few I have encountered have come here with their female owners and were very docile and well-behaved. I do not have much contact with males from other races.”

  Emi chose to ignore the part about “owners” and hopefully change the subject. “You all speak English standard very well, it seems.”

  “Language courses. And we hired a tutor who spoke standard to come in and give our teachers lessons. But I have never been off the planet, personally. I could never leave my people withou
t a leader.”

  The servant returned with a gold tray on which he carried an ornate crystal pitcher and two cups. He poured them and offered them with a low bow.

  Mauri and Emi took the offered cups, and then Mauri dismissed the man. She held her cup up. “To differences, Doctor Hypatia,” Mauri toasted.

  Emi smiled and held her cup up as well. “To differences.”

  * * * *

  After chatting a few more minutes, the Moran leader wanted to take Emi on a personal tour of some of the Imperial Home’s facilities. Mauri called Baltin back into the room and the three of them set off through another vast series of corridors. They emerged at a different entrance to the Imperial Home than Baltin had brought Emi through.

  “I never pass up an opportunity to show off our facilities to others,” Mauri told Emi. “I would consider it an honor to take you on this tour personally.”

  Emi thought about her men sitting back in the “kennel” in the greeting center. “I’m not trying to rush you, but I really can’t spend a lot of time down here. I need to get back to our ship.”

  “Oh, this will not take long, Doctor Hypatia.”

  With four guards falling in line behind them, Mauri led Emi down perfectly manicured and shaded pathways that wound under lush trees. “I am very proud of the Imperial Stables,” Mauri said.

  “Stables?”

  “Yes. It is where we house the best of the breeders and feral males. Also, it is our largest training facility to break in males when they reach the proper age. We house our young males in separate dormitories on the other end of the Imperial grounds.”

  Emi was still a little confused, but let the leader speak without interruption. I can get out of here faster if I ask fewer questions.

  “We have a total of ten such stable and dormitory configurations around the city. We have five feral maintenance facilities as well.”

  She couldn’t help herself. “Why don’t you have other cities?”

  The leader frowned, confused. “Other cities?”

  “Yes. Besides this one.”

  “Oh, we would not have other cities. There is no need. We have some approved settlers and developers who are allowed to take up residence outside the city walls if need requires it, but they must go through extensive training and screening before we allow it.”