Chosen Bride of the Seven Dark Princes

The Raptor 600 was mostly cruising in a small circle awaiting the word to pick up Dante. So far, they had received no word other than a 'stand by'.

Not knowing how long a 'stand by' order from the Emperor would take, Slate took Candi into his quarters to rest while he continued to work with his troops out in the command deck.

The Prime Warrior quarters was not something that most space warriors ever got a chance to experience.

There was a spacious set of suites for the Prime Warrior to use while he was onboard. Three full-sized rooms took up a fairly large amount of space on the Raptor 600.

Since it was a warship and not a luxury cruise ship, the luxurious touches within the Prime Warrior's room were most definitely not standard issue.

There was a king size bed by the window that looked out onto a field of stars, gleaming in the deep darkness.

The linens were of the finest fabrics that were reserved only for the royal family and the rugs were deep pile that made the room seem warm and comforting, even in the middle of deep space.

One side of the room had a seating area with cushioned seats surrounding a low table. There was a fully-stocked mini bar that had everything available to make any kind of drink imaginable.

There was also another room that opened up into a full-sized office where Slate could do his work without having to leave his quarters.

After taking a long hot bath in his bathroom, Candi emerged smelling like his normal woodsy verbena self from the soaps that he used.

She slipped into a set of standard issue female warrior bodysuit and crawled under the thick quilts, snuggling herself into the pillows.

And there she laid with her eyes closed and her mind exploding with thoughts.

After several hours of intense work with his troops scattered throughout hundreds of different Raptors, Slate returned to his quarters to rest for the night.

He found Candi in the bedroom sitting on the window bench staring out into the vast ocean of stars shining through the window.

Her honey blonde hair contrasting against the darkness of deep space beyond, turning her into a pale angel of light.

"Were you able to get any rest?" He asked as he entered the bedroom.

Candi turned to him with a smile that did not quite reach her eyes.

"I'm tired but I'm so anxious about Dante and Lucas and the twins. I know you're doing everything you can, but it's still nerve-wracking."

"I should leave so you can try to get some rest. Although out here in space there's no day or night, it's still the resting hours and it's fairly late."

"No. Don't go." She reached out her hand to him. She didn't want to admit it, but she did not want to be alone through all this crazy mess.

Slate came and sat down on the bed beside her and reached out for her hands.

Without saying a word, he leaned down and pressed his warm shapely lips to her cheek. His blue eyes were tender and without recrimination.

Candi bit her lips. She needed to say something to him, but she didn't know what to say, and the sweeter he was, the more difficult it was for her to say anything.

"You and I, we've been through so much together." She began haltingly. "I—I honestly don't know what to say."

She looked down at his large hands, holding hers. They were warm and strong, and capable, like tree trunks holding up her sky.

"There's no need to say anything, Candace." He sighed and held her hands even tighter. "I understand more than you think I do."

"I'm glad you understand because it's been very confusing for me." She admitted with a frown. "It's like, I'm flailing in the wind of turbulence and I'm being dragged under the waves crashing over me."

He leaned over and touched his forehead to hers.

"Let me see if I can clear things up a bit for you." He murmured gently. "It wasn't just my father who had told me not to touch you. All my brothers did as well."

Candi shook her head. Was she that 'untouchable'?

"We knew you were an Avgo Female which meant you were critical for the successful continuation of the Erenveil empire. We couldn't destroy your chance to be Prime Avgo Female by being selfish and claiming you for ourselves."

His eyes were bleak.

"You didn't belong to any one of us. If you turned into the Primary Avgo Female, your destiny was to be the Empress Mother of the Galaxy, regardless of who the Crown Prince was."

"As you can see, Crown Princes change with the winds of fate." He smiled a tiny bitter smile. "They are arbitrarily chosen by men, and they change with the direction of political winds."

"The Primary Avgo Female however, is always the Primary Avgo Female. Avgo Females are chosen by the sacred Avgo gemstones which cannot be stolen by any person, organization, or entity."

"But Empress Anastasia—"

"Abdicated her position to the next Avgo Female to protect her world. It was her choice. You do have a choice to take up the Empress throne or transfer it to the next Avgo Female. That's why there are more than one Avgo Female."

"But when you first met me, there was no way you could have known that I would become the Empress." She protested.

"It didn't matter, Love. The moment you jumped onto Leonardo's prized piano and waved around his antique crystal lamp and screaming at us, I knew."

"You knew what? That I was a good fighter?"

Slate laughed. "No silly. I knew for certain that one of my brothers would have grabbed you for his wife, even if you placed dead last in the Avgo ranking."

He shook his head with sad fondness.

"You were so adorable and full of spirit, we all fell just a little in love with you that day."

He laughed, but then sobered.

"I'm going to confess something that I did which I'm not particularly proud of."

Candi looked at him questioningly.

"Do you remember that noxious planet, Nirovium that I took you to when we were running from the Earth warship?"

Candi nodded, recalling the alien world with the swirling royal purple clouds over a liquid green ocean. It wasn't that long ago but it seemed like an eternity away.

"Nirovium is clear across the galaxy. Nobody goes there because it's just a noxious planet on the edge of nowhere, but it has three moons orbiting it."

"One of them is a habitable moon very similar to Dante's Moon." He gave her a proud smile, "It's my moon."

Candi's mouth opened with surprise.

"Do you call it Slate's Moon? "

Slate smiled. "I'm not that vain. Its catalogued name is N532SPR." His sparkling blue eyes turned misty, "but to me, it will always be Candi's Moon."

Tears sprang from Candi's eyes. He looked so forlorn and lost, it broke her heart.

"At that moment, I had the mad thought of taking you inside Nirovium and holding you hostage there for one full day. That would have caused you to miss the initial screening and you would have been disqualified."

"And then?"

"And then I could have just run away with you."

He shook his head, "I stalled for as long as I could but Father called and forced my hand to delivered you on time to the event. As it was, we barely made it and I had to fly you into the stadium."

"And after that, you kept winning event after event after event." He shook his head. "I always knew inside that I wouldn't have the chance to be with you for long."

"I knew that you were destined for something big…far bigger than I had the ability to give you."