Bianca D'Arc by King of Cups Page B

of a future and of a child with him. All was
right with her world. Righter than it had ever been.
    “ Let’s get married.” Alex
surprised her with the wistful tone of his words. He rose on one
elbow so he could meet her gaze. “Let’s do it before we leave
Solaris Prime, here in the temple. I don’t want to wait, Della.
We’ve waited long enough already.” His fingers trailed over her
cheek, down to her shoulder and she felt the tenderness in his
every touch.
    “ All right. I think Theos would
like that too. His rituals are very important to him. We can marry
here in the jit’suku rite, then do it again when we get back to
human space with our families and friends.”
    Alex’s smile lit the entire room. “I love you,
Della. Now and forever.”
     
    * * *
     
    The High Priest performed the marriage rite in
private, with Theos and Tren as witness. The party that followed
was shared with the crew members from Theos’s ship and some of the
councilors and novitiates who had witnessed Della’s little
miracle.
    “ We hope you will consider making
your home here on Solaris Prime.” The High Priest surprised them
with the request. “You are one of us now, Alex, and your lady is a
miracle. An oracle of the Lady such as hasn’t been seen in
millennia.”
    Before Alex could come up with a polite answer,
Della stepped in. Her soft voice seemed to sooth anyone who heard
it and she used that gift now.
    “ We must return to the Milky Way,
but that doesn’t mean we will cut all ties with you and your
people.” The High Priest seemed disappointed, but handled it well.
“If it’s any consolation, I firmly believe that... visitation...”
she hesitated over the word, “...was a once in a lifetime
occurrence. I doubt I’ll ever be so blessed again.” Her eyes took
on a faraway look. “But our daughter might be another story. She
will come to you when it is time.”
    “ Something you’ve seen, love?”
Alex asked, concerned.
    “ A feeling. More like a
knowing.”
    Theos had joined the group as Della spoke. “You’ve
foreseen a daughter?” he asked, eagerness in his eyes.
    “ Even better than a vision. Doctor
Terva told us.” Della glowed with the joy of their news. “I’m
pregnant.”
    Theos beamed with happiness, hugging Della for a
long time. Congratulations were offered by the High Priest as well.
Before this news became any more public, Alex had one thing he
wanted to clear with Theos.
    “ Father, we were considering...
That is...” Now that the time had come, he didn’t quite know how to
put this.
    Once again, Della’s diplomatic skills saved him. She
took Theos’s hand and smiled one of those beatific smiles up at the
old man.
    “ If you don’t mind, we’d like to
name her Amalina in honor of your late wife.”
    Tears gathered in the old man’s eyes. “I can think
of nothing more perfect.” He wiped his eyes. “Emperor though I was,
no one has ever given me such a gift. Thank you both.” Theos kissed
Della’s cheek and gave Alex a back pounding hug. It was clear the
old man had been touched deeply by their gesture. He left
accompanied by the High Priest.
    “ I think we made the right
decision.” Alex put his arm around her as they shared a private
moment.
    “ I know we did.” She snuggled into
his side.
    “ You know, instead of cutting ties
with this galaxy and its people, we only seem to be creating
more.”
    “ In the long run, that will turn
out to be a good thing, I think. We’ll have to come back after
Amalina is born so she can meet her grandfather.”
    “ Not many humans ever venture into
jit’suku space and live to tell the tale, my love. Every time we
cross that boundary, we would be taking a massive risk. Are you
certain you want to expose our child to that?”
    She turned to look up at him, a light of amusement
in her eyes. “We are about to become frequent flyers of the
intergalactic lanes, Alex. You’d better get used to it.”
     
    And sure enough, Theos surprised