Chapter 12
After they dried off and dressed themselves in tense silence, they returned to the main room where a platter of roast chicken with grilled vegetables was waiting for them on a dining room table set to match the décor. The food was still steaming. They each had a glass of water and pale lavender liquid in a wine glass.
Charles was intrigued by where it had all come from and what the unknown beverage was, but he restrained his questions in order to hear Erik’s explanation of the more pressing questions he’d asked.
Charles tried to stay calm as Erik ushered him to his seat, ever the gentleman. He waited for Charles to take a bite and looked pleased at Charles’ approval of the dish and the wine. It was fruity and tart with a sweet after taste.
“This is good juice, what fruit is it from?” he asked to break the stiff silence that had fallen over them.
“It’s wine from another world. I’m glad you like it.” Erik said softly. “Please, eat and I’ll explain everything.”
Charles tucked into his meal, happy to have something to do with his hands to ward of the nervous tension that had been building in him since Erik’s announcement that he was his chosen mate.
Erik watched him thoughtfully for a long moment before speaking, “I come from a distant planet in another galaxy. It’s called Genosha. My people are an ancient race, older than any other species we’ve ever encountered.
Genosha is massive, several times larger than Jupiter. We have colonized our entire solar system which is comprised of seventeen planets and three suns. This colonization includes moons and even a few orbital asteroids.”
Charles was stunned by this information, he could hardly believe what Erik was telling him and he had no hope of imagining it. He bit his tongue to stave off the eager questions attempting to tumble out of his mouth.
Erik continued to watch him closely, unblinking in his regard.
“I believe you suspect that my men and I come from different planets and that’s why we all have such varying physical appearances and abilities.”
~Abilities?~ Charles wondered what he meant, but didn’t want to interrupt to ask.
Erik noticed his confusion and said, “Like my ability to control magnetic fields. We each have our own tricks.”
Charles nodded warily, unsure of where this was headed.
“In a way we do come from separate planets, but most of us were born on Genosha or on ships like this, which are considered Genoshian land. It’s rare for any of our young to be birthed on another world. It’s an important part of our culture.”
Charles swallowed thickly and took a nervous sip of wine to clear his throat, “So you all are from different worlds? Genetically speaking?”
He supposed with an empire as large as the Federation it would be like people being born in different countries.
Erik fell silent again still and unblinking for long moments before saying “Genetically speaking all Genoshians are male.”
Charles drew a blank.
“What?”
Hadn’t Erik said he had a mother?
“We are all male; no females are born to us. We take mates from our colonies and procreate with them.”
Charles felt sick. “And you all are always male?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
"You’ve seen. My body was able to change to match your reproductive system. The same can be said of my men. Our mainly “humanoid” appearance comes from our fathers, but our physical differences come from our mothers.
“So the blue furry guy?” Charles asked faintly.
“Yes, his mothers people are strong and agile and evolved on a dangerous fast growth jungle planet. It has one of the most bizarre eco systems we’ve ever encountered.”
Charles tried to take this all as best he could, “And the red man?”
“He’s something of an enter dimensional being. He can teleport. All his mothers people can.”
“And you? Your mother? Can she control magnetic fields as well?” he wondered aloud.
“No, she can control liquids, but water is the easiest for her. She’s from a waterlogged planet with even less visible land than Earth,” he said, a fond tinge to his voice.
~Then how had you never swum in water?~ he didn’t ask, not wanting to derail their conversation. Then it hit him.
“You all are here to take women from Earth?!” he shoved his chair back from the table with a start.
Erik thinned his lips and raised his eyebrows but Charles couldn’t be tasked with Erik’s feelings at the moment.
“You can’t do this! This is sick! You’re going to take them away from everything they’ve ever known and mate them and have them give birth to your young on another planet in another galaxy?! “
Erik was taken aback; he’d never seen Charles so upset. He looked lovely like this and he wondered if his biological changes were impacting the way he saw his mate’s upset. He tried to stay on track, he needed Charles to understand.
“You asked what Earth can do for the Federation. You all have slightly more women born than men. And you’re prolific breeders that remain fertile for many decades of your lives. Your species is a wonderful find. You may be the answer to our inability to produce daughters.”
“You can’t kidnap women and make them baby machines, Erik. That’s wrong.” Charles was livid.
Erik rose to his feet, palms outstretched and conciliatory, “They’ll have a choice. I told you we don’t force anyone to do anything.”
“I didn’t have a choice and now I’m your mate or so you tell me! So what does that mean? Can we undo this? Because I don’t want anything to do with you right now!” Charles declared bitterly, pacing away from the table to gaze out the picture window, unable to stomach being in Erik’s proximity just then.
Erik spoke up softly after a long while, “No. we mate once and for life. I’m sorry for the misunderstanding.”
He sounded so lost and defeated that Charles felt his impassioned resolve weaken in an instant. He didn’t trust himself not to cave if he looked back and saw Erik’s sad eyes, so he kept his gaze fixed on the moon.
“You used me. You’ve trapped me and now you’re going to do the same thing to the women of my planet and turn them into incubators. I can’t even look at you right now.” He said quietly before escaping back to the bedroom and sliding the panel shut.
Erik frowned, that could hardly have gone worse. But at least Charles hadn’t demanded to leave. He thought back over their conversation, frown deepening as Charles’ heated words replayed in his mind. He already had another misunderstanding on his hands and Charles had been his mate for less than twelve hours. And apparently he felt tricked into it.
Erik sighed and called for Azazel to come to his quarters immediately. While he’d messed up badly, he didn’t think they were beyond hope.
~Azazel to see you~ the door chimed after a brief wait.
They needed a new plan, and some more backup. That’s where his second in command came in.