The Donkamins faced the throne.
“Children of the Silver Star,” Kosandion said, his voice clear and strong. “You have honored us with your presence. We are grateful for the precious gift of your time and effort and for a chance to meet your civilization. What do you ask of the Dominion?”
Ah. The minor ask.
One of the Donkamins spoke. “The Silver Star wishes to exchange knowledge with the Dominion. We ask for the establishment of a scientific embassy on Teplaym.”
Teplaym was the Dominion’s most scientifically advanced planet.
“Granted,” the Sovereign said. “May the sharing of knowledge and exchange of ideas benefit both of our societies for centuries to come.”
He rose and bowed to the Donkamins. The Donkamins swiveled back. Their feet remained planted, but their heads, necks, and other parts twisted in weird directions. It was a display of respect that no Earthborn person could watch without flinching. I fought a shudder.
“A round of applause for our departing friends,” Gaston requested, and the arena obliged.
Twenty-one Donkamins turned, swiveled at everyone for the last time, and finally started across the bridge toward the portal.
Once this was over, I would expand the Donkamin entry in my innkeeper files. I had learned a lot about them, and any additional information about the guests benefited the inns. I had already started, and my contribution so far amounted to a single line in all caps: “DO NOT LIKE TO BE TOUCHED.”
The Donkamin delegation reached the doorway. The leading Donkamin’s neck spiraled out and paused six inches in front of me.
“Thank you for your hospitality, innkeeper. Be well.”
“Gertrude Hunt is honored by your presence. It was my privilege to host you.”
The Donkamins walked into the portal. As the last of them exited, I held the portal open, and a new group of visitors arrived—Vercia Denoma, flanked by four Capital Guards. She shot me an ugly look.
“And now for our final elimination of the day.” Gaston turned to the stone crag and held his hand out.
Orata rose and stepped forward. I lit the platform perimeter, and the massive screens zoomed in on the PR chief.
“My name is Orata Tavan. I serve the Dominion as the Sovereign’s Liaison. My left hand touches the Sovereign, my right touches the Dominion’s people, and it is my sacred duty to bring them together.”
Nicely put.
“When my office vetted the candidates for the selection, we discovered a terrible crime. One of the candidates was not who they claimed to be.”
The arena had gone completely quiet.
“Every delegation brought the best of the best, the exceptional, the honorable, the worthy. But this candidate was the worst of the worst. Dominion, what I’m about to show you is horrific. But you must see it for yourself, so you can do your civic duties and render your judgement.”
On the screens, Pivor of the Murder Beaks beheaded a child with a swing of his sword. His skin was a deep lavender, and his hair was long, straight, and dark, but it was unmistakably him. The smile was a dead giveaway.
“Behold, Cumbr Adgi ar’Muterzen,” Orata announced. “The third son of Gar Por ar’Muterzen, and fourth in line to lead the Vagabond pirate fleet. We know him as Pivor.”
In the Murder Beak section, Pivor tried to rise, but the floor swallowed his feet. I pulled the floor directly under him up, and his chair carried him fifty feet into the air, above the seats, leaving him trapped on top of a stone pillar. He gripped the armrest, trying to pull his feet free, but the inn held him tight.
The screens flashed with strategically selected shots, a gallery of Pivor’s atrocities.
The Murder Beaks screeched. I had interacted enough with them over the years to recognize the specific tone of their shrieks. It wasn’t a protest, it was surprise and outrage. They hadn’t known.
The morbid gallery kept rolling. Orata had removed the sound from the footage, and watching it in silence made it more horrifying somehow.
“When this vile deception was discovered, we faced the question of how to proceed. It would be a simple matter to reject his candidacy and expel the delegation sponsoring him.”
Technically nothing she said was a lie so far. She just didn’t specify when exactly the deception had been discovered.
Vercia was frowning. Yes, I had no idea where Orata was going with this either, but apparently this was a cue because the guards started marching down the bridge to the central section, Vercia between them.
“However, one courageous member of our team, the one who was responsible for vetting his candidacy, made the decision to permit him to continue. She felt she had a duty to take this chance to expose his atrocities to the entire galaxy at just the right time, when everyone’s attention would be on the event, so all would be aware of exactly what he has done.”
Again, not a lie.
“Dominion, that public servant is Vercia Denoma. She is our hero.”
I directed the nearest spotlight onto the platform. It caught Vercia in its radiance. I zoomed the screens on her face. She was doing a stunning impression of a deer in headlights. The guards around her snapped to attention. I had seen them do this exact move in Kosandion’s presence. They were her “honor guard.”
“It is thanks to her tireless efforts that we can now stand here, see these crimes for ourselves, and witness justice being done. I brought this to you today to remind you to be vigilant. Evil is insidious. It can worm its way into your inner circle and stab you in the back.”
Oh wow.
“If it wasn’t for Vercia’s efforts, we might have been unaware of the evil that is Cumbr Adgi. She is the reason he has reached this moment and the reason I can now expose him to all of you. Everything that follows is thanks to her. Today we honor you, Vercia Denoma. The Dominion owes you a great debt.”
Orata bowed. Behind her Resven and Miralitt bowed as well.
Pivor’s father indulged his children. He spoiled them, and he was in the business where a terrible reputation was an asset. He couldn’t afford to look weak or suffer disrespect. If anything happened to his offspring, he would retaliate. It was simply good business, and Orata had just told him exactly who was responsible for his son’s downfall. Orata hadn’t just thrown Vercia under the bus. She’d picked the bus up and dropped it on Vercia’s head.
The fear in Vercia’s wide-open eyes told me that she understood exactly what had happened.
Kosandion’s voice echoed through the arena. “Cumbr Adgi ar’Muterzen.”
I spun the stone pillar, so Pivor faced the throne.
“Do you have anything to say?” Kosandion asked.
Pivor grinned and this time it looked psychotic. “Fuck off, you dumb prick. You want a piece of me, be a man and get it yourself.”
Kosandion’s face was glacial, as if carved out of an iceberg. “Cumbr Adgi ar’Muterzen, you are hereby expelled from the selection. Your sponsor is disqualified. Their asks will not be honored.”
“I have something to say,” the largest Murder Beak shrieked.
Kosandion nodded.
I moved the lights onto the Murder Beak section and slid Pivor’s pillar toward it, far enough to stay out of reach. The largest bird rose. She was huge with rust and crimson plumage. Her enormous beak could crack a cow’s femur in half. I had seen it happen, because Orro served them bovine bones when they felt peckish and wanted a fun snack.