King and Consort

Science Fiction short story

(20,000 words)

Part 1 - Disharmony and Ambition

Despite what people said, Earth meant nothing to Alexey. 

Also, despite what people said, Jyzer meant everything to him. 

This is why Alexey found days like this so difficult. Sat up here with the sea of faces before them. All of them were ostensively loyal to the King of Zaaron, or at least professed diplomatic relationships from neighbouring countries and planets. Yet Alexey knew each and every one of them would stab the others in the back to further their own goals. 

And sitting beside him, on the High Throne of this ceremonial hall, sat Jyzer I, King of Zaaron. 

Alexey's husband. And the man he had never been able to admit he loved. 

Jyzer had almost come to the end of his speech. At times like this, dressed in the adapted military dress uniform he had worn since ascending to the throne, the King was nothing less than a sight to behold. His jet black skin contrasting perfectly with the light blue chzan-cloth. His ability to hold an audience's attention had been legendary since long before he became King. People still spoke on his broadcast when he took command from his father at the Battle of Perligond, and his speech the night before the Zyllo's attempted invasion. Right now, his luminous green eyes would be shining out across the assembled nobles and politicians, holding their attention however much they secretly despised him. 

Alexey wished he could turn and watch his husband speak. But he had his own role to play. To sit beside his husband, his King, to represent the support he provided. If he turned his head, it would be reported across the country as the Prince Consort displaying human weaknesses. The Zaaron's were as stuck up about etiquette as any of the old Earth nations. And on top of that, Jyzer expected military precision from those around him, especially at formal events. 

Alexey found it hard enough living with his husband's contempt as it was. Best not to make it any worse. 

He wished he could tug down his jacket. How did they make the collar so pointy? His outfit had been sewn to his exact measurements from the finest chzan-cloth, second in quality only to the King's. Yet, it still somehow rode up and pressed into his neck every time he sat down. 

Alexey hated these ceremonies. But then, to be fair, so did everyone else. These events didn't exist for anyone's benefit. They existed because of a mixture of convention and tradition. They showcased the power and spender of Zaaron to the whole of the planet Eden and beyond. 

Out in the silent crowd, Alexey saw his family. Or at least his mother, father, and brother. Their pale hair and complexion made it easy to spot them, standing out against the jet skin and bright eyes of the native people. They weren't the only humans attending, but Alexey's eyes always found them. So proud of their machinations that had brought their son to such high rank. So convinced it would only be a matter of time before Alexey would be able to wield enough influence to secure their political base, despite being human. 

But Alexey didn't want that. Alexey wanted to support his husband. He wanted to be with the man he had admired for over a decade. 

And above all, he wanted his husband to love him back. 

Jyzer continued to hold his poise as he made his way along the corridors from the ceremonial hall to his private chambers here in the government building. There was no risk of his posture slipping, of course. His martial and military training had begun as a child. During his days as Lord Commander, it had been affectionately rumoured that Jyzer was not even capable of slouching. But his face was another matter. It wouldn't do for the people to see how much all this ceremony and pomp disgusted him. 

Alexey walked next to him, his pale-skinned hand in Jyzer's dark one. The Prince Consort had played his role in the ceremony perfectly, of course. It had to be granted that Alexey worked hard never to upset or disappoint Jyzer in public. Yet Jyzer wished it wasn't necessary to have him there. He had felt his husband looking out across the audience the entire time. How many of them had he been speaking with? How many schemes had he embroiled himself in?  

Every guard they passed snapped to attention. Jyzer made sure to return each one. That was the life he missed. The simplicity of military command. That was real leadership. Not all this jockeying for position and snide, subtle manipulations. Soldiers followed orders because they were given, not because it benefitted them in some way. And Jyzer knew if a leader remained loyal to their men, making sure they knew they could trust his decisions, then they remained loyal to him. 

Jyzer had led his country through war, then led the defence of his planet from invasion. He had often led from the front lines, ensuring his command ship would be put in as much danger as those of his men. Yet, he'd never feared being stabbed in the back until the day of his coronation. 

Finally, they reached the royal apartments. The two of them stepped inside, and the doors closed behind them. Separated from the rest of the procession, Jyzer dropped both Alexey's hand and his own expression. 

"At last. Gods, can't they do without this ridiculous ceremony?"

"The people need to see you ruling," Alexey soothed, stepping aside and undoing his jacket. Jyzer frowned. Alexey was always so eager to get out of his formal uniform. While Jyzer wasn't particularly fond of these stiff, chzan-cloth outfits himself - little more than gaudy mockeries of a proper dress uniform - his consort should really be able to bare them longer than this. 

"Do you see any of my people in that room?" Jyzer barked. "All I saw was a collection of pompous nobles and scheming politicians. Put me in a room with any of my actual people, and you won't hear a single complaint from me."

"This is politics, sire." Jyzer frowned. Alexey only called him sire when he had managed to hurt his feelings. Humans were never as good at hiding their emotions as they thought. "Like it or not, these are the people who keep your country running." 

"Didn't your ancestors slaughter all your nobles?" Jyzer unbuttoned his collar and sat down at the main table. "Your country carried on without them."

"They were merely replaced by more politicians. Overall it made little difference to Russian history." 

A knock sounded at the door. Jyzer called for them to enter, and they opened to reveal a party of Zaaron in military uniform. They were led by one in full ceremonial dress, indicating he had been at the ceremony earlier. Stepping into the room, he stood to attention and saluted. 

"Sire." 

"Lord Commander," the King's voice brightened, gesturing the group inside. "Come in."

The new figure smiled, relaxing now the formalities were over. 

"We're not here too soon, sire?"

"Gods, no, Cassian. The sooner I can put that nonsense behind me, the better." 

Cassian strode in, followed by the small team of officers. Each of them carried at least one folder, from which they began to lay out papers across the table. 

Jyzer moved to the chair at the head of the table and sat ramrod straight as always. His brief moment of agitation gone now that others were here to see him. Alexey moved to stand at his shoulder. Cassian looked at him, then toward Jyzer. 

"Sire, this is your military readiness update." 

Alexey bristled. "Are you saying the Prince Consort can't be trusted?" 

"Alexey, go," the King snapped. 

There was a pause. Jyzer turned, expecting to see hurt on the Prince Consort's face, but instead, it was blank. He knew Jzyer expected his orders to be followed without question, but this time he had waited for him to turn to look at him. 

"As you command, sire." He spoke without emotion, then finally turned and left the room. 

"You looked good up there, brother."

"I can at least do that well."

Alexey kept his eyes ahead as the two of them made their way through the corridors of the palace's residential area. Here they could speak as openly as was ever possible in their world. While there was no risk of running into the public, you could never predict when you'd run into someone. It was amazing how many people just happened to find themselves working where the Prince Consort decided to go for a walk. And while it would always be someone junior, of no apparent importance, Alexey knew each of them would be reporting what they saw and heard. 

"Come now. You're up there, sat next to the King. Sometimes I think you forget exactly how powerful that makes you. You act like it's a punishment."

Feliks had come to see him alone, which had been some relief. Alexey had no excuse not to see his family when they visited the palace, but after being thrown out of the meeting, he'd been in no mood for his parents. 

Being summarily dismissed by Jyzer like that had been humiliating. The fact Cassian had been there only made it worse. The handsome Zaaran was not only the Lord Commander of the military, the position Jyzer himself had held until his ascension to the throne, but also his oldest friend. Not to mention former lover. 

That last part had never been officially confirmed, but no one bothered to deny it. Everyone had known about their relationship. And while they had never tried to do anything to formalise it, everyone who knew them knew their connection had never truly faded. 

Alexey hated Cassian. Even if there was nothing between him and Jyzer anymore, his existence constantly reminded Alexey of everything he didn't have from his husband. Trust. Affection. Desire. A shared history and heritage. 

Jyzer never made any effort to hide the fact that he preferred Cassian's company to Alexey's.  

"How are Mama and Papa?" Alexey supposed it best to get this out of the way first. They might not have come in person, but there was no way they had not sent him a message through his brother. 

"Both well. They apologise for not being able to see you, but an occasion such as the anniversary of the coronation allows them to speak with many people that would otherwise be time-consuming to see. Plus, they know your time is precious." 

So they wanted to keep a low profile today. Clearly, their current plans required subtlety. Being seen visiting their influential eldest son was a show of power. Today's work must have needed the scalpel rather than the mallet. 

"I see. Well, give them my love, as always."

Feliks raised an eyebrow ever so slightly. 

"You know, one could almost think you see being the King's Consort as a way out of politics rather than a way to advance themselves."

"It depends on the kind of politics, I suppose."

"Dedushka always said there is only one kind of politics…"

"…and those who think differently will always come second, or worse," Alexey finished his grandfather's familiar saying. "Yes, I remember. And remember all the stories of his Dedushka, back on Earth. The tzars. The Cold War. The New Tzars." 

Feliks slapped Alexey on the back, then draped his arm over his shoulders. "It's in your blood, Alexey. You were born for this life." 

"But not this. I was never meant to be Prince Consort. Husband of the Lord Commander was more than enough. Do you have any idea how much scrutiny I'm under every day being human and married to the King? How many people still think our family were somehow involved in getting him there?"

Feliks lowered his voice. "I understand. I'd suspect us myself if I hadn't seen Papa's face when Janizer died. A thought he was going to drop dead of shock at his good fortune."

Alexey said nothing. The death of Jyzer's elder brother had been completely out of the blue. Unlike Jyzer, he had been raised for the throne. While not as well-liked as Jyzer, he had been loved in his own way. And most of the population had been eager for him to take over from their father's less than successful reign. Kind Danizen's reputation had never recovered from his disastrous wars. In truth, Janizer had taken over many aspects of government from his father at the same time as Jyzer had taken command of the military. 

Then, after only three years on the throne, one short illness had elevated Jyzer, and his new husband, to the throne. 

"But it's been two years now," Feliks continued, keeping his voice low. Anyone watching would see they were whispering, but that was nothing unexpected. "Papa believes that's more than enough time to sit back. No one has come forward with any accusations about Janizer's death. We both know if there had been, the King would have been on them like that." He snapped his fingers.

"You know the Prince Consort has no actual power, right?

Feliks turned to look at him, this time letting disbelief come open to his face. "Really? If you want me to think you're that naive, you’re kidding yourself. You're married to the King. However political that marriage might have been, however much it wouldn't have happened had anyone thought he'd ever become King, you know how much influence that position comes with. Even politicians have limited political lives. Yours should last the rest of your life." 

Alexey said nothing. Feliks had been given all the same lessons Alexey had in childhood and had likewise inherited the family’s talent for politics. While he hadn’t had the luck to rise as notably as his brother, he had already gained a reputation as a subtle man, used to ensuring he never used a word that didn’t mean more than it would appear to the unobservant. 

So why had he said it should last the rest of Alexey’s life? 

“It’s a shame Mama and Papa could not join us,” he commented. “I wonder that they were unable to make time to visit me.” 

“Oh, you know Papa. He may have been head of the family for years, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t put his foot in his mouth sometimes. And when things seem to be going well, people can stop telling him the things that are going wrong. Sometimes Mama needs to take an opportunity when everyone is together to smooth things over for him without making a scene.” 

“Ah yes,” Alexey smiled as if it were little more than a comment about family relationships. “Sometimes I don’t think he would have gotten where he is in life without her.” 

“Well, Dedushka always said only those closest to us are able to cut through the govno and be truly honest, even when we don’t want to admit it.”

“Sometimes I think Mama was more like Dedushka than his own son.”

“It’s why they’re a good pair.”

They walked in silence for a few moments, and Alexey pondered what Felicks had just told him. He hadn’t really been talking about their parents, of course, but Alexey and Jyzer. Felicks was telling him that Jyzer was in trouble. Or was creating trouble for himself, and Alexey was the only one who would be able or willing to do something about it. 

The two of them turned the corner and came face to face with Jyzer himself. 

Not in person but a larger-than-life-size portrait. The portrait. Everyone knew this one. The iconic image of a war hero. The leader who had saved not only his country but also his planet. But while there were copies all over the world, none of them had the same raw power as the original. 

It had been commissioned fifteen years ago to celebrate Jyzer's appointment as Lord Commander. He stood, resplendent in a uniform cut to perfectly accentuate his muscular build. The soft grey of the material contrasted perfectly with his jet-black skin. Behind him, a vast expanse of ocean spread out under a rich blue sky, symbolising Zaaran's history and tradition as a seafaring nation. 

But it was the eyes that always caught Alexey's attention. He always found himself bewitched by those eyes in person, and there was something about this portrait that perfectly captured them. The artist had found a way to capture the feeling of actually being in Jyzer's presence in a way no other had ever managed. 

Feliks turned to him and lowered his voice. "You're only hurting yourself. It's time to let go of the thing you're never going to have and take hold of what's actually possible."

Alexey felt certain his brother was the only member of his family to have realised his feelings for Jyzer were real. The rest were so embroiled in the political world they didn't seem to realise that it was possible to actually love someone for who they were rather than their position and influence. And he also knew Feliks was right. The idea of Jyzer loving him was ridiculous. A foolish dream born of a childish fascination. 

But as little as Jyzer might think of him, Alexey couldn't face the idea of using their marriage for political influence. Anyone else in this position would have done so in a heartbeat, but to him, it felt like a betrayal. 

"Traitor!"

Strong hands shoved Alexey back, causing him to stumble and fall. His elbow impacted on the path, sending a burst of agony along his arm. He cried out, trying to cradle his arm while scrabbling away from the group of cadets gathered around him. 

"What do you think you're doing here, human?" 

There were four of them, each wearing the uniform of the navy cadets. Alexey knew it well. Since the end of the war five years ago, Lord Commander Jyzer and the Crown Prince had decided the country's military ability needed strengthening. All citizens of Zaaron between the ages of fifteen and eighteen had to spend a minimum of one year as a cadet. This ensured that the whole population would have a basic military understanding in the hopes of preventing the same near-disaster King Danzien had brought down on them by believing pure numbers alone were enough. 

Mama had been unhappy. She'd said that all it would lead to was bands of jingoist youths roaming the streets and causing trouble. Papa had been more optimistic. After how close Zaaron had come to being overrun, the people would be more civic-minded for the foreseeable future. All the same, Alexey and his brother had done their best to be careful. 

Now his luck had run out. 

The tallest of the group lent down and grabbed Alexey by his coat, lifting him and then pushing him back down against the wall. 

"Come on then, human," he jeered. "What do you think you're doing here?" 

"I'm here with my father."

Papa had been asked to come - summoned, in reality - to speak with the Earth delegation here in the palace. Not the palace proper, but one of the smaller barracks and government buildings on the grounds. Alexey knew the government was trying to downplay their fears. According to the news broadcasts, the issues with planet Zyllo were being steadily resolved. The truth, however, was that Zyllo were looking to take advantage of Eden's weakness after its recent wars, and diplomatic relations between the two planets grew worse every day. And as the nominal head of the biggest human immigrant communities, Alexey's father was often consulted when interplanetary matters were discussed. And right now, Zaaron needed to know where Earth stood on the matter. 

However, not everyone was pleased with foreign planets being included in internal problems. While Mama's fears of jingoistic mobs had yet to come true, that didn't mean there weren't xenophobic elements in society. 

"Your father a spy then? He can't be a very good one if you brought you here with him." 

Alexey managed to push himself up into a sitting position. The four cadets surrounded him. Even if he hadn't been maybe half their age, there was no way he could out-fight one trained cadet, let alone four. 

The truth was Papa had begun to bring Alexey with him on his trips to the palace. It was time, he said, that his son began to learn the strings of power. It was astonishing that a human family had so much influence in Zaaron politics. A testament to his Dedushka's and his Papa's political savvy. And now it was Alexey's time to learn. 

But today's talks were not for children, and Alexey had been told to wait outside. He had books to study, and so he'd found a desk and begun to read. 

That was when the four cadets had found him. 

The leader leant forward, his expression hard. "I want you to listen, human. I don't care what you think you and your kind are doing here, but you're not welcome. Zaaron looks after itself. Others might tolerate your kind, but some of us see what you're here to do. So if we see you on government grounds again, spying with your father, we will personally show you what happens to trespassers. You understand?" 

"Cadets, attention!"

His attention caught by his assailants, Alexey hadn't noticed the group of officers coming up behind them. The cadets flinched, looked guilty for a moment, and then turned with a slight smirk. Clearly, they thought they would get away lightly with tormenting a lone human. Cadets assigned in the palace itself were likely the children of someone with some power or influence. 

But when they saw who stood over them, even Alexey knew they were in real trouble. 

He had seen Lord Commander Jyzer on broadcasts, of course. Not only was he the second son of the King, but he was also the hero of Perligond. The man who had turned the tide of the war. But he had always seemed like a fictional character. To a child like Alexey, no one could be so spectacular, so handsome, so real. 

Yet there he was, in the flesh, with a face rigid with fury. For a second, Alexey thought it was directed at him. Then he realised it was exactly the opposite. 

"I said attention!" His voice filled the corridor. All four cadets shot up straight and saluted. If they had thought they would get away with what they had been doing, they now realised they had no hope whatsoever.  

"What in the hells do you think you are doing?" Jyzer's bright green eyes flamed with anger, pinning the four of them to the spot. "When you wear that uniform, you represent Zaaron, and its people. And if you think this is how Zaaron and its people act, then I'm afraid you are going to be very, very disappointed."

Then he looked down at Alexey. Only a brief look, checking to ensure he wasn't seriously hurt, and he said nothing. Yet the young human boy was mesmerised, unable to look away as his beautiful Zaaron saviour looked away to the officers behind him. 

"Dorlan," he snapped. One of the officers stepped forward with a salute. 

"Lord Commander?"

"Escort these four cadets to the barracks, and place them in the hands of the on-duty sergeant. Inform them that these four are to be put on punishment duty for the next twenty-four hours. Full punishment duty. I will be checking in personally later."

"Yes, sir." Dorlan shot a furious look at the four cadets, who immediately marched off in front of him without a word needing to be said. 

Jyzer looked down at Alexey again. His face was no longer full of fury. Alexey saw now that this was a man in complete control of his emotions. He had been furious at the four cadets, but now they were out of sight that emotion had been put aside. That didn't make his face any softer, though. And definitely not friendly. But Alexey knew that it was a face he would never, ever be able to forget. 

"It's all so infuriating!" 

Jyzer stood by the open fireplace. The fire itself was artificial. The palace didn't need anything as primitive as open flames for heating or light. But the aesthetic had been built into the rooms long ago, and the illumination it gave had a pleasing, primal quality.

He and Cassian were the only two left in the meeting room. The briefing had ended long ago, as had the three that had followed it, each more tedious than the other. At least a military briefing was something Jyzer found interesting. While he no longer had the hands-on role he longed for, it all made sense and had an obvious, immediate benefit. But the others had been updates on the country's economic progress, diplomatic relationships with friendly neighbours, and traffic problems. Traffic! You would have thought that there would be people in his government who dealt with that sort of thing, but apparently, there were problems the King needed to know about. 

"Heavy sits the crown, sire?"

Cassian lounged in his chair. He had a glass of brandy in his hand, and the top buttons of his uniform were open. He would never let himself be so casual in public. He knew the importance Jyzer put on appearance and had not allowed himself or his men even a little slack when appointed Lord Commander to replace him. But here, with the day's business done, the two of them were simply old friends. 

"Don't call me sire, Cass. Not now." 

"Sorry." Cassian stood, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder. "But you knew this was the life you were stepping into." 

Jyzer looked at him, then drank from his own glass. "It's days like this that are the worst. Ceremonies and reports of things that should be handled without my even knowing about them. It's not real government. Everything is ceremony and tradition and formality." 

"And our great leader wishes to sweep it all away? To make everything simple and streamlined?"

Jyzer sighed, before settling into one of the chairs placed by the fire. 

"Would it be so bad? To replace all these sycophantic nobles and posturing politicians and replace them with people who know what they have to do and just do it?" 

"I think I can imagine the response you'll get if you try."

"You know, Alexey's ancestors slaughtered all their nobles. Got rid of the whole mindless lot and formed a global power that dominated half their planet. I asked him about it, and he said nothing really changed. The dead nobles were simply replaced with more politicians." 

Cassian laughed. "You're listening to Alexey now? Are things that bad?"

Jyzer looked at the fire. He knew it had been a bad sign when he’d started looking into these Earth histories. But with the growing influence of Human factions in the court, along with the position Earth was taking in politics, in general, these days, he’d wanted to familiarise himself with their history. It had been depressing. While Humans had a strong military tradition, their politics were as convoluted and underhanded as any planet. Humans had written books about it. Studied it at universities. At least Zaaron politicians had ever thought to take it that far. 

"Other places have tried it,” he continued. “I looked into it. Not here. On Eden, we seem set on keeping hold of these vestiges of the old class system. But nations on other planets have done the same thing. Rising up and ridding themselves of the traditional nobility. Building new structures with new leaders. And you know what?"

Cassian shook his head.

"All of them fail. They either collapse into anarchy or simply fill the space with people just as useless. Nobility in all but name."

"Your point being?"

"I don't know." Jyzer slouched in his chair. "I just wish there was a way to have a government without all this infuriating bureaucracy." 

"So what?" Cassian to the chair next to his friend. "You take command of the military, swoop in and remove all the nobles and politicians, and replace them with soldiers?" 

"It worked before, didn't it?" Jyzer stared into the fire. "No one complained when I purged those idling layouts my father had appointed. I replaced them with officers who knew what they were doing, and not one person complained the old ways were better." 

"There's a slight difference. The people hated those old fools. So did everyone under their command. If the government was leading us into another losing war, then maybe. But the population are happy. They love their King. They feel safe. Politically and economically, Zaaran dominates Eden." 

He reached over and took Jyzer's hand in his own. Jyzer tensed but didn't pull away. 

"We both know this should have been your brother's role. But it's your responsibility now."

Jyzer didn't look at him, just continued to stare into the flames. 

"Have you found anything?" he asked, his voice quiet. 

"Nothing yet," Cassian remained silent for a moment. Only someone who knew him as well as Jyzer would have seen the thoughts playing over his face. When he next spoke, he stayed equally quiet. "But my people believe they have found something. New evidence overlooked by the official enquiry into your brother's death." 

Jzyer looked up. "Something significant?"

"Possibly. They have to move slowly. We could move faster if they could be more open…."

"No. I need this done quietly. Military resources only, you know that. Ones we can keep off the official radar until it's too late for anyone to hide anything. I can trust them. I can't trust the nobles. If they did have a hand in my brother's death…."

"Then we will find them. The official investigation exonerated them. Let them think for now that they are safe. We will discover the truth either way." 

Jyzer nodded, finished his drink, and stood. Cassian followed suit, stepping in close to his old friend and lover. He kept hold of Jyzers hand, raising it and softly pressing it to his lips. Jyzer looked at him, feeling an echo of an old, familiar longing. While there had never been anything formal between him and Cassian, their relationship had, in the past, been one where Jyzer could fully be himself. 

But that was the past. 

Cassian leant forward, but Jyzer stepped away. 

"Cass, no." 

Cassian frowned, then smiled in invitation. "Are you sure? You know we won't be disturbed."

"And you know I'm married."

"To that human?" Cassian scoffed. "No one believes he means anything to you." 

"That doesn't matter," Jyzer snapped, stepping away. "I may not care for my husband, but I am King, and I will hold to my vows. Even the rumour of such a thing would undermine me. I would be seen as nothing more than those political animals scrabbling for power simply to benefit their own desires." 

Cassian stepped back, knowing when he had crossed a line. Even Jyzer's oldest friends were not exempt from his rigid sense of duty. 

"As you say, sire." 

"Don't be an ass, Cass. You knew this. And I know you're not starving yourself of affection while you're here in the city." 

Cassian smiled. "A soldier must have his recreation while he can. Who knows when duty will call me away." 

"Goodnight, Cass." Jyzer didn't smile, just turned and walked out. The doors opened as he approached, and the two guards fell into place behind him as they shut again behind him. 

Cassian stood watching for a moment, then refilled his glass and took the chair Jyzer had vacated. According to protocol, he should leave straight away after the King had. But as Lord Commander, he had privileges in the palace. Technically, the Lord Commander had authority over the military and was therefore subservient to any civilian administration. However, as the last person to hold the role had been Jyzer himself, the position held an unofficial power Cassian had no desire to relinquish. So far, no one had questioned the small liberties he took around the palace. Eventually, that would change. 

If bigger things didn't change sooner. 

The morning sun bathed Jyzer's torso, the light casting highlights across every muscle. With each slow movement, the tendons and sinews played against each other beneath the beautiful, jet-black skin. His eyes remained closed throughout, lending his face a peace that Alexey rarely saw elsewhere, lost in his own mind as his body moved without thought. 

Stripped to the waist, wearing only a pair of tightly fitting leggings, the King moved through his akat, the string on martial forms practised by the Zaaran military. Learning the akat was a standard part of military training, teaching as it did balance, meditation, and the basic forms of combat. It was an old tradition dating back centuries of Zaaran culture. It had been adapted over the years as new weapons and fighting styles were developed, but the basic movements were always the same. The full flow took over fifteen minutes. 

Unless something prevented him, completing the full akat was the first thing Jyzer did upon waking each morning. Ideally outside, whatever the weather. His staff knew better than to disturb him unless absolutely necessary. 

It was also the one time of day when Alexy felt intimate with his husband. 

Alexey knew it was stupid, but he felt as if he and Jyzer shared these moments. Nonsense, of course, as Jyzer would be out there in their small, private courtyard whether Alexey was around or not. If he even knew that Alexey was watching, he neither commented nor acknowledged it. But to Alexey, it was the one time he got to revel in how beautiful his husband truly was. With his eyes closed, his face lost the stern focus it held at all other times. He seemed at peace, lost in the movements and free of the cares and worries of leadership. He wasn't the King. And he wasn't the Lord Commander of the military. For this short period each day, he was simply Jyzer. 

Alexey sipped his coffee. The staff had soon learned that he expected his breakfast ready as Jyzer walked out into the courtyard. At first, he had been self-conscious. Were they laughing at his foolish schoolboy lusts? But over time, he had learned that being royalty meant people knowing every detail of your life. All of his plans were approved in advance, and very few of his conversations were not overheard by at least one staff member or guard. 

And in the grand scheme of things, having everyone in the palace know he enjoyed watching his husband exercise was not such a big deal. 

Sometimes these mornings made him melancholy. Gazing at Jyzer's toned body, looking like it could have been sculpted from black marble, it was hard not to wonder what it would be like to let his hands run softly over those muscles. To feel how Jyzer's firm, muscular body would feel against his own slender frame. To see his pale skin contrasting against the midnight black of Jyzer's. To burrow into those strong, protective arms. To be held down and learn how his husband's lusts would cause his muscles to tremble and quiver. 

It had been three years since his family had managed to arrange Alexey's marriage to Jyzer - an astounding political coup on their part. In that time, Alexey had mostly come to terms with the fact that Jyzer would never love him back. He'd known it going in. He had thought that, over time, the feelings he had for the handsome Zaaran lord would fade, allowing him to find a way to be content. But that had yet to happen. Because however coldly Jyzer treated him, however much he despised anything and anyone political, Alexey would always remember their first meeting. The sight of Jyzer standing over those cadets, furious at the very idea of them sullying what the uniform they wore meant to him. He hadn't cared about whether Zaarans were better than humans, or any other race for that matter. All he had cared about was that all Zaarans acted with honour. 

The problem was, Alexey had become increasingly sure that not all Zaaran's aspired to be as honourable as their King. 

Out in the courtyard, Jyzer completed the akat and strode back to his room. Rooms that adjoined Alexey's but were painfully separate. Unless otherwise waylaid, once he had showered, he would come in for his own breakfast. And Alexey had still not figured out what he needed to say to him. 

After his brother's warning yesterday, Alexey had spent the day speaking to those in the palace he knew to be allies, at least partially, with his family or the Jyzer. Even with the ceremony over, the great and the good remained around the palace grounds the entire day. None of them would miss the chance to interact, officially or unofficially. As Prince Consort, Alexey was welcome in almost any conversation. Jyzer's indifference to such occasions was well known by now, and despite his being a human many in the Zaaran court came to Alexey assuming he had the ear of the King. 

He'd not been able to find out much. Not in a single afternoon. But after two years in his current position, Alexey had learnt who was best to talk to and when. With Felicks' warning as a guide, Alexey had a good idea where best to start looking. As he moved from person to person, he shared out titbits of information he knew each of them wanted and, in return, encouraged them to reveal snippets they thought unimportant enough to share. By the end of the day, he had begun to put things together. Things he had been told. Things he hadn't been told. And how people had told him. When you knew how to interpret everything, it was easy to create a fairly reliable tableau of the overall situation. 

Jyzer was making enemies. 

Not in the general population. He was still seen by the majority of his people as the saviour of the country. And definitely not in the military, where he held almost universal loyalty from those who had served under him. 

But in the political classes, it was a far different story. Whether he liked it or not, they had a power that Jyzer simply didn't understand. 

It had never been a secret that Jyzer had no respect for politics. Oh, he knew of its importance. He simply had no time for it. He was a straightforward man who had spent his entire life in the military. He believed in giving orders and having them followed. This had been why he had been such a successful soldier, but it was also why he had made enemies in the government. There were always going to be some, of course. Those whose families had been part of his purge of the old officer class during the Kaanon War fifteen years ago. Then there were those who thought he should be a figurehead and allow 'better minds' to actually make the decisions. And then there were those he had simply upset or insulted by his refusal to speak with any sense of diplomacy. Jyzer was a man who spoke his mind in a world where double, tripple, or even quadruple speak was the norm. 

And now, something had reached a head. 

Alexey didn't know what. He was certain that if anyone in his family knew, they would have come to him. With Alexey as Prince Consort, anything that damaged Jyzer would be a severe blow to their prospects as well. As much as Alexey knew they could never be fully trusted - his parents, as lifelong politicians, would have been ashamed if any son of their trusted anyone without question - in this, he knew they would be on his side. 

At that moment, Jyzer entered the room. He had showered and dressed in a simple shirt and trousers. Alexey's breath caught in his throat at the way Jyzer's wet hair clung to his neck as he sat across the table and spared him a nod. The two duty guard took their place at the door, and Jyzer's personal secretary marched over and handed him his schedule for the day. Jyzer always reviewed this at the start of the day in order to make any changes he felt were necessary. 

Once he had done so, he would finish his sparse breakfast and be off, and Alexey might very well not see him for the rest of the day. 

"Dannon," Alexy addressed the portly secretary. "Could you please give the King and me a moment?"

Dannon blinked, then glanced at Jyzer. Jyzer nodded without looking up, and the secretary limped out the door. He had been a soldier once; all of Jyzer's principal staff had been. His limp had been earned during the Zyllo conflict.

This was as alone as they ever were. The guards would go nowhere, of course. Alexey knew that. But he also knew they were loyal to a fault and wouldn't repeat anything unless Jyzer personally ordered them to. 

"Jyzer, I need to speak with you."

His husband didn't sigh. He would never let himself show such a sign of irritation to others. Yet Alexey could almost feel the absence of it, the space where it would have been with anyone else. 

"My brother visited me yesterday after the ceremony,' Alexey continued. 

"I know."

"We need to talk about how you are coming off to people."

Alexey winced at his own clumsy words. Speaking so openly about a political problem didn't come naturally to him. But he had learned early on in the marriage that the one way guaranteed to anger his husband was to use any kind of coded speak around him. Jyzer valued direct talk. 

Jyzer looked up, his green eyes hard. "You've been discussing me with others?"

"I've been discussing the politics of your government…."

"We've spoken about this," quiet anger showed on Jyzer's face, his voice low. Alexey could see this would not be easy, if possible at all. But he had begun now, and he needed to get Jyzer to see this was important. 

"Jyzer, this is important…."

"I have no time for politics," Jyzer spat the word. "It may be something I have to live with, but I will not participate in it." 

"You're the King."

"I'm a soldier. I will not lower myself to the grubby word of double-dealing and deal-making. That's what led my father to nearly losing everything. I will not let it happen again." 

"But you have no choice!" Alexey hadn't meant to shout, but this was too important to let go. "Something is coming. I don't know what yet, but there are people working against you, and they will outmanoeuvre you if you're not careful." 

"There are always people working against me. But that doesn't mean I stoop to your level."

"My level?" The words hit Alexey like a slap in the face. He'd heard all Jyzer's opinions about politics before. Hell, he'd never been particularly careful about excluding Alexey's family when he talked down about political groups. But he had never made it personal before. 

"Do you know how much you embarrassed me this morning?" Jyzer continued. His face might have been passive, but contempt filled his voice. "Hovering around me when I had actual business to attend to?"

"Embarrass you? I'm your husband. The Prince Consort. You don't need to throw me out of the room the moment your job comes up."

"I am fed up with your irritating jockeying for position. Don't think I haven't noticed you pushing your luck in recent weeks. Trying to sit in on meetings. Discussing my business behind my back. Undermining me." 

"Undermining?" Alexey fought to keep the hurt out of his voice. Hearing this from the man who, despite everything, he still idolised felt like a knife in his heart. "I'm trying to support you."

"I don't need your support. For better or for worse, you are my husband, and I will ensure you receive all the rights and privileges that position entails. But I will not allow you to drag me down into the gutter simply so you can grasp more power for your immigrant family." 

Alexey couldn't speak. He simply sat there, staring at the expressionless face opposite him. 

"I have no doubt of your political skills," Jyzer continued. The fury had gone from his voice. Now he sounded like he was simply stating facts not important enough to warrant significant emotion. "You did, after all, position yourself to achieve our marriage. And I do not begrudge you that. But do not mistake recognition for your skills as accepting them as worthwhile. I am King, and I will remain above the sordid political fray you dabble in."

His rebuke over, Jyzer simply picked up his briefing papers and began reading them as if Alexey were no longer there. 

Alexey walked aimlessly down the corridor, fighting to hold back tears. 

Jyzer had never made him cry before. Alexey was no child. He had known going into this marriage that he was destined never to have his love reciprocated. But he had hoped that over time he would at least find a place where his husband respected him. 

Now that delusion had been swept away. 

Why did this hurt so much? Alexey had always known how little Jyzer thought of politics and politicians. He had spent his life in the military. He had seen his father's disastrous attempts at political manipulation, his policy of patronage in the military, and how it had almost led to the county being destroyed. 

But he had never made it personal before. Alexey had always known that, technically, he was included in Jyzer's blanket statements about his disdain for politicians, but he had never personally attacked him for what he was good at. Never made it so abundantly clear that Alexey and his talents were nothing to him. 

After storming from their rooms, Alexey had walked with no real aim in mind. He realised that he had approached the Council Chamber, the grand room where the Council that oversaw the government met. 

But as he turned the corner, what he hadn't expected was to see what looked like the entire twelve-member Council walking into the Chamber, followed by Cassian. 

What was going on? There were no meetings scheduled today. And the Lord Commander had no official business being there without being summoned. Alexey couldn't think of a single reason this would be happening without it being general knowledge. 

Unless…

Whatever Felicks had warned him about, had it just begun? The Council meeting without the King. Cassian, the commander of the planet's entire military, with them? This had to mean something. 

Then Jyzer's words floated up in his memory. 

I am fed up with your irritating jockeying for position. Don't think I haven't noticed you pushing your luck in recent weeks. Trying to sit in on meetings. Discussing my business behind my back. Undermining me.

Alexey stood trembling in the hallway. No. Fuck him. Whatever was going on in there, Jyzer could deal with it on his own. If he didn't want Alexey's help, then Alexey was going to let him handle it on his own. 

Jyzer marched into the Council Room, his face deathly still. He was known for controlling his emotions in all situations, but now his expression was one being held in complete control. He was showing nothing of how he felt, and it was clear to all in the room that this was a conscious decision. 

Those who had known him longest recognised this was a sign Jyzer was truly angry. 

"What is the meaning of this summons?"

In front of him, the full Council were sitting in position. Of course, it required the full Council to issue a formal summons to the monarch. And even Jyzer knew it took a lot for all twelve of them to agree on anything. If nothing else, whenever anything looked like it would gain unanimous support, someone would usually vote against it just to annoy another Council Member. 

"Your majesty…." Cassian stood in the middle of the room, gesturing to the throne that stood empty at the top of the room. 

Jyzer stood his ground in the open doorway. "Cassian? What is all this?"

His friend's expression didn't change. Jyzer knew him well enough to recognise the look every soldier learned when delivering bad news to a superior officer. The fact that Cassian was using it on him was worrying. 

"Sire, the Lord Commander asked to address the Council, as is his right," Lord Manzir spoke. The eldest member on the Council, Manzir had held his seat for decades through a power base established by his father and grandfather before him. The kind of political dynasty that Jyzer despised. 

"And convinced you all to issue a formal summons to your King?"

"Sire, if you will take your place?" Manzir gestured to the throne. Officially, now Jyzer was here, nothing could be said until he had taken his place. It was all ceremony, of course. The monarch was officially the embodiment of the people of Zaaran. Therefore in this room, the Council Members were required to defer to him, as they theoretically did to the people. 

Jyzer stood where he was. Staring at each of the Council in turn. Used to wielding the ultimate political wheels of the most powerful nation on the planet, they were used to forceful personalities. Under the King's gaze, however, they sagged. Some held out for longer, but Jyzer held his gaze until they submitted to his suppressed fury. 

Slowly, Jyzer walked forward until he stood in the middle of the room. Here he stopped and looked into Cassian's eyes. Of all those in the room, his friend was the only one able to hold his gaze. Whatever was happening, Cassian had prepared himself. 

Taking the last few steps to the throne, Jyzer turned and lowered himself onto the seat. 

"I assume you are all aware," he began before any of them could speak, "That the last time the monarch was issued a formal summons was when my father was stripped of his military authority in the Kaanon War?"

"Indeed, sire," Manzir answered. "And decreed it to be handed to you, his son. I remember it well. An easy decision and a wise one. I only wish this time the decision had been as easy." 

Frowning, Jyzer leant back and looked out over them. "Well, what is the meaning of this… summons?" 

Without waiting for a sign, Cassian spoke. Normally none could speak here without permission, but no one raised an objection. Jyzer frowned. This had been planned. 

"Your majesty, I requested to address the Council in private session due to facts that have arisen in the course of a military investigation into the death of your brother and predecessor, King Janzier the Third." 

"An investigation," Lord Kyira added in her high, quivering voice, "That the Council were not aware of." 

Fire burned behind Jyzer's eyes as he stared down at Cassian. "Indeed. It being a secret military investigation, it would be solely under the Lord Commander's authority and purview. He was under no obligation to inform anyone of his investigation. I am curious as to why he has decided to do so." 

"Sire, I apologise for not coming to you first," Cassian's face remained emotionless. "However, the information my men have uncovered was of a nature that I felt needed communicating directly to the Council."

"And why was that?"

"Sire, as, of course, you know, after the initial investigation into the tragic death of your brother, you instructed me to begin a covert military investigation into the same."

"And action you had no authority to do, I might add."

"My Lord Carial," Cassian turned to the speaker, "I have informed you that there are no laws against the King instructing or recommending military action to the Lord Commander. While I was under no legal obligation to begin the investigation on his order alone, I saw no reason not to do so." 

Jyzer fought back a frown. Carial had been a troublemaker since joining the Council a year ago. And while Jyzer didn't actually disagree with many of the young Lord's views on reforming various aspects of government - including the role and power of the monarch - the way he went about it was underhand and grubby. The man had never said an honest word in his life. 

"Enough of all this," Jzyer barked. "I know all this, and it's obvious it has already been discussed between you, and you have reached your decisions. Out with it."

Cassian nodded as if he had expected the order. "My Lords, Sire, yesterday my operatives uncovered evidence that King Janzier's death was, in fact, murder. A subtle combination of poisons was used, all but untraceable in autopsy." 

"What?" Jyzer stood. "Why did you not come to me with this, Lord Commander?"

Jyzer's oldest friend looked up at his King. While his face remained still, his eyes betrayed signs of how little he wished to say these words if only his duty would allow him. 

"My operatives have uncovered and interviewed agents who were part of this conspiracy, some willingly and some unwittingly. From these, we have discovered that your brother's assassination was orchestrated with the sole intention of putting you on the throne."

Jyzer stood there. For a few moments, he was unable to speak. The Council Members shifted in their chairs, each trying to give the impression of being uncomfortable with the situation. 

"Are you accusing me, Cassian, of arranging to murder my own brother?"

"There is currently no direct evidence of your playing any part in this heinous act." 

That hadn't been a direct denial. 

"Then who are you saying did?"

"However," Lord Manzir interrupted before Cassian could answer. "Considering the implications this information raises, the Council has made the decision to take control of the new direction of this investigation." 

Jyzer stood for a moment, processing what he was being told. "You're investigating me?" 

"Unfortunately, Sire, you are now a... person of interest."

"This is nonsense. I will not have it!"

"I am afraid, Jyzer, the Council holds the authority to strip the monarch of any or all of their powers." 

"Strip…" Jyzer fumed. "On what grounds?"

Manzir looked to Cassian, trying very hard to keep the smile from his lips. "Lord Commander, if you will."

Cassian cleared his throat, then looked his old friend in the eyes. "We have been unable to ascertain at this time the key players. However, we believe that this was part of a larger scheme to overthrow the Council and install a military dictatorship in its place."

"What in the hells is this betrayal, Cassian?"

"I am sorry, Jyzer." The words were a whisper, but those that followed were not. "I came to the Council as I feared you intended to draw me into your scheme. I believe you felt I would never believe that you could have played any part in this and would allow you to use this as an excuse to conduct a military coup. I had my suspicions and was considering telling you what had been discovered. Then last night, you spoke of replacing the government with military officers loyal only to you."

Jyzer could only stare. "Cassian…."

"King Jyzer the First," Lord Manzir stood as he spoke, the others following suit. "I hereby inform you the Council rules you are to be stripped of your authority and restricted to your private residence until further investigation reveals the truth of your innocence or your guilt." 

Jyzer continued to stare at his friend. The man he had fought beside more times than he could count. The closest confidant he had ever had. His former lover. The one man he had known he could trust no matter what. 

"Cass," he whispered, "What are you doing?" 

Cassian said nothing. Instead, he nodded over Jyzer's shoulder, and two hands gently but firmly took hold of his arms as the guards - his guards! - marched him out of the Council Chamber. 

Suddenly, Jyzer realised that Alexey had been right. He had seen this coming. And Jyzer should have listened. 

Part 2 - Betrayal and Understanding

"Betrayal!"

Jyzer stormed across their rooms, his face rigid with fury. The composure he was famous for utterly discarded the moment the guards had shut the door behind him. 

Alexey said nothing. He sat in one of the luxurious armchairs that filled their residence, watching his husband and King rage. He'd said nothing when Jyzer had arrived, knowing there was little he could say or do at this point that wouldn't make things worse. 

"Cassian, of all people!" Jyzer continued. "I knew I could never trust that blasted Council, but Cassian?"

After he had seen Cassian and the Council members earlier in the day, Alexey had known something was happening. And then this afternoon, when a pair of guards had found him and instructed him to follow them back to the residential rooms, he had known that whoever had been moving against the King, they had made their move today. And for one of the only times in his life, Jyzer had found himself outmanoeuvred. 

To his surprise, Alexey didn't feel guilty. 

Maybe he should have, but he hadn't. Not that he felt smug that he had been right, it wasn't that. It was, he had realised, because even if he had told Jyzer, the King wouldn't have listened to him anyway. 

What Alexy needed to know now was precisely what had happened. Without knowing that, he had no way to begin planning some kind of fightback. But he had to pick the right time to ask. 

Jyzer had stopped ranting and now paced across the room, a thunderous expression on his face. Alexey knew this meant he would be formulating a plan. Figuring out all the possible strategies, both long and short-term, that he could put out into the field to blunt his enemy's strike. 

But the problem was, Jyzer didn't have the knowledge or the know-how to counter this kind of attack. And once he realised that, it was a matter of seeing how he would react.  

Eventually, he stopped pacing and threw himself into one of the chairs. 

"How can those traitors even think of doing this?"

This was Alexey's moment. 

"Well, what did you expect?"

Jyzer looked up. Alexey wasn't one hundred per cent certain whether the King was more shocked at being spoken to in such a derisive tone of voice or because he hadn't actually registered that Alexey was in the room. 

"I beg your pardon?" 

Alexey stood up. "I said, what did you expect?"

"Who do you think you are talking to?" Jyzer exclaimed, standing to face Alexey. 

Until this morning, Alexey would have found the idea of facing down that powerful gaze utterly impossible. Those luminous green eyes had always been enough to bring him to his knees. But after this morning, something in him had changed. 

Actually, no. It hadn't been this morning. At least, not on its own. It had been the moment when Jyzer had been escorted here and instructed by the guards not to leave without permission from the Council. He still held a vast amount of power, of course. Jyzer was the hero of Zaaron, for goodness sake. A man who could do no wrong. His abilities had saved both his country and his planet. To some elements of the population, he was seen as almost godlike in his abilities. 

But today, his aura of being invulnerable had been stripped away. Even if he were yet to realise it, he had been cut down by weapons he had been too proud to even admit were a danger to him. 

And now he found himself on Alexey's battlefield. And the weapons which had cut him down were ones Alexey knew how to wield. 

"Who am I talking to?" he asked. "I'm talking to a man who is on the verge of losing everything because he is too foolish to consider anything he can't fit on a battle-cruiser to be a valid threat. A man who thought himself impervious to being undercut or outflanked by those with tactics he couldn't recognise. A man who thought he was too good to play the game of politics."

Jyzer stared back at him. And while Alexey had become used to his husband looking at him in derision, boredom, or disinterest, now his expression showed something new. For the first time since they had been married, he saw Jyzer unable to think of anything to say. 

"Now, we need to look at what is happening," Alexey pushed on, seeing his advantage. "Whoever is behind this won't have moved against you unless they felt this was the right time to do so. That means they have to have something on you. Something big, which they believe will be enough to undercut your support in the military and the populace. I need you to swallow your pride, accept that you've put yourself in danger by not taking this seriously, and tell me what that is." 

Jyzer simply stared at Alexey. 

Despite what many people believed about him, he wasn't always certain about everything. But one of the first lessons about leadership he had been taught was the importance of always appearing confident. As long as you seemed to be certain in each of your decisions, those serving under you would feel confident in following them. Even if a decision didn't go the way you hoped, looking like you had always expected led people to believe you were in control of the situation.  

But now, his entire world had been flipped upside down. The Council moving against him he could have handled. That was the sort of thing he expected from those self-serving layabouts, and he could have brushed it off without a second thought. But Cassian? His oldest friend had stabbed him in the back, and Jyzer still couldn't process the emotions that had raised. 

And now Alexey, his effete, unimpressive husband, was standing up to him with a confidence he had never seen before. 

Jyzer needed to pull himself together. He had been pushed onto the back foot, and that was not something it could allow to happen. Tugging his jacket into place, he rose to his full height. 

"I refuse to sink to their level. Engaging with this foolish move will only give it credibility. The people will see what they are trying to do."

"Don't be a fool, Jyzer." 

Jyzer blinked. The Alexey he knew would have never spoken to him like that. 

"I beg your pardon?"

"I said you're being a fool," Alexey continued. There was genuine anger now on his husband's face. "You're being attacked with weapons you don't understand, and you're dismissing them rather than adapting to them. And that's no less stupid than thinking that fencing is the most elegant form of combat and so refusing to issue guns to your soldiers. These people know what they are doing. They're not like you. You were born into your position. Yes, you've earned the respect you hold, but you have never had to convince anyone to appoint you to any of your positions. The Council - or any of the politicians you so readily dismiss - have spent their entire lives learning how to convince people they are right. If they didn't know how to do that, they wouldn't be in the positions they hold. If they've moved against you, it means they think they can convince people they are doing the right thing." 

Jyzer looked at his husband. Something had changed about him. This wasn't the Alexey he knew. Alexey had never once spoken to him like this. Had the entire world flipped on its head? 

"Better men than you have regretted calling me a fool, Alexey."

"Well, maybe one day I'll regret it," Alexey countered, "But at least I'll be right. All these people need is a single crumb of doubt, and they can make the entire populace choke on it within a week. You can prove yourself innocent a hundred times over, but that doubt will follow you the rest of your life. People will wonder how much truth there was to the allegations, and it will come up with every decision you ever make for the rest of your reign."

Jyzer turned away from Alexey, stalked across the room, and poured himself a drink. He knew it was a sign he was rattled, but there was little he could do about that right now. He rarely drank, especially during the day. He hadn't actually been truly drunk in his entire life. The importance of being ready for anything had been instilled in him as a child. That you had been off duty when you were drinking didn't help anyone if you were drunk when your men needed you. But right now, he needed both a stiff drink and something to do with his hands. 

Alexey had stopped talking. Jyzer could tell he hadn't moved, but he had stopped pushing. Was he done? Or was he smart enough to give Jyzer time to process his thoughts? Jyzer was a little worried if his husband knew him that well, considering Jyzer himself had spent very little attention indeed to Alexey's habits and mannerisms. 

The infuriating thing was, of course, that Alexey was right. 

Jyzer counted himself an expert in all forms of warfare and combat. He had taken command of ill-prepared and undertrained troops and won victories where others saw no hope. He had revitalised the country's military into the planet's dominant force. Yet, now had to admit the fact he had wandered onto a new battlefield. And for no other reason than the fact it hadn't fit into his personal code of honour, he had dismissed the dangers it presented. He'd seen it as something beneath him. A world of backstabbing and double-dealing that sat well below his own. Something that, if ignored, could not touch him. 

Now he had to face up to the fact that he had been wrong. 

The words of his childhood teachers floated up into his mind. Being wrong is part of any campaign. The only mistake is dwelling on it rather than moving past and trying again to be right. 

Slowly, Jyzer straightened up to his full height and turned around. Alexey stood where he had been before, an expectant look on his face. 

"Alright," Jyszer said, "Tell me what our next steps are." 

Alexey's mind raced. 

Something had changed while at the same time remaining the same. Was it simply the fact that Jyzer had lost his unassailable authority? Had the invulnerable military leader been taken unawares? It felt ridiculous that such a small thing could have such a big knock-on effect. But the result was undeniable. 

Alexey no longer felt so inferior to his husband. 

He still felt disbelief at how quickly Jyzer had come around. Seeing him turn to Alexey and ask - ask! - what he should do next still didn't seem real, somehow. After three years of dismissing Alexey, Alexey's family, and everyone like them, now he actually wanted their help. 

It was Alexey's chance to prove to Jyzer what he had wanted him to see for so long. That they could be a team. 

It was true that yesterday Alexey had decided not to warn Jyzer that the Council were meeting. He had been upset, and the idea of seeing Jyzer blindsided as punishment for the way he had spoken to Alexey had been incredibly satisfying. But that hadn't meant he had been foolish enough not to see he needed to take steps to respond to whatever was coming. His parents had raised him better than that. 

In the end, he had the entire morning before the guards found him and escorted him back to the Royal Apartments, and in that time, he had been busy. Now it was time to assess what his efforts had unearthed. 

"How in the hells do you have this?" Jyzer demanded, looking down at the printout on the table. "It's classified information."

Alexey gave him a grim smile. "Until Cassian made his move, I wouldn't have had a chance. You were smart to conduct this investigation using military intelligence. That's the one place where you can all but guarantee full security." 

Alexey had been impressed when he'd learned about Jyzer's secret second investigation of his brother's death. Not trusting the official report was basic stuff, of course. But he would never have thought his husband capable of something so subtle. And managing to actually keep it a secret at that. 

"But as soon as this went to the Council," he continued, "It had to be opened up to all twelve Council Members. And that means it also gets opened up to whichever of their staff each Council Member trusts with their most sensitive information. And let's just say that not every Council Member knows how to tell who is completely trustworthy."

Jyzer looked disgusted. "A member of a Council Member's personal staff gave this to you?" 

"No. None of them are that disloyal. But there are people they do pass things on to, who in turn passed it on to others. And eventually, it comes to someone who owes me a favour. I'll admit, it wouldn't normally happen this quickly, but in a situation such as this, a little pressure in the right places speeds things up nicely." 

"And you got all of this done yesterday?" 

"No. I got all this done over the last three years."

Jyzer frowned. "What are you talking about?"

Alexey sighed. "Jyzer, I may have only been a child during the Kaanon War, but I've studied your tactics as much as any child on this planet. Probably more, considering the amount of time I've spent learning about my husband," he added, only a little bitterly. "Did you win the Battle of Perligond by waiting to see where the Kaanan navy would choose to attack and then responding? Or did you put your troops where you knew they might attack and so were ready when they did? And you didn't know that because you sent out intelligence operatives the morning before the battle. You had them in place years before you needed them. 

"That's what I've been doing since your coronation. Since I married you, in fact. I've been making connections. Building on those my family already had and adding new ones as my new position allowed me to. Friends, in some cases. Political allies in others. I tease out information they need, and in return, they slip me things I want to know. I've gathered favours. I've learned who is loyal to a fault and who can be encouraged to provide information occasionally if given an incentive to do so. I've found out who is most likely to slip up when drunk, or stressed, or flattered in the correct way. Who has a secret they cannot afford to come out? And above all, I've slowly learned when to approach the right people at the right time." 

A minute ago, Jyzer's expression had been one of irritation that Alexey had been able to procure such a sensitive report so quickly. Now another one had taken over. Admiration. For the first time in three years of marriage, Jyzer actually looked impressed at his husband. 

Alexey tried not to flush at the way those bright green eyes looked at him. They had things to do, and now was not the time to be distracted. But the power of Jyzer's approval gave Alexey a fresh insight into why the men who served under him had always been so loyal. 

He turned back to the papers on the desk. "Now, I'm assuming you've already seen the majority of this over the last year and a half. But there clearly must be something Cassian held back from you, or you'd have seen his move coming." 

Jyzer looked at the printout, his eyes roaming the pages. Finally, he pointed at one section. "Here. Summaries and conclusions from the interviews with agents discovered in my brother's staff. Cassian never once mentioned these." 

Alexey stepped closer and scanned the page Jyzer had indicated. Despite everything, being this close to his husband felt electric. Had they even been this close together in private before? They often were when in public. In this role as Prince Consort, Alexey would always be at the King's side, their hands clasped together to show their union. But those cold, formal occasions had meant nothing to either of them. All intimacy stripped away by ceremony and Jyzer's disinterest. But now they stood side by side, working together to solve a problem that could potentially bring everything down around them. Alexey felt as if electricity were fizzing over his skin. 

The section Jyzer had indicated was a substantive one. A collection of interviews with various different members of staff across the palace, government buildings, and even the guard. 

"These interviews date back months. Shouldn't he have mentioned them to you in that time?" 

Jyzer frowned. "I knew he was conducting interviews. They were included in each report he gave me, but nothing was ever printed out or left with me. Cassian took me through all the new evidence and connections himself."

"And so these summaries…".

"Were never mentioned." Jyzer finished. 

The summaries were convoluted and incredibly detailed. As he read, Alexey could see there was no surprise that the official investigation hadn't uncovered anything to indicate wrongdoing in King Janzier's death. The scheme this report laid out put most political schemes to absolute shame. There were dozens of people involved, all but a bare handful aware they were involved in anything underhanded. And only a tiny number of those knew the actual goal of the conspiracy that ensnared them all. Each of them had been given one task to complete, most of which had seemingly no connection to the King. A cleaner changing the scheduled rotation of staff. A guard nodding through someone without full clearance. A cook adding a new ingredient to the list of items permitted in the palace's kitchens. A supplier turning a blind eye to an unfamiliar delivery courier. Person after person, none of whom individually committing any crime worth reporting, if they committed a crime at all. 

Alexey and Jyzer stood side by side as they read in silence. Alexey couldn't help but be acutely aware of how Jyzer's arm touched his own. Where it did so, a strange warmth seemed to pass between them. Not something as simple as an actual change in physical temperature. Something else. A sense of presence. Maybe something any other married couple wouldn't give a second thought to such casual contact, but to Alexey, it felt like he was brushing against the forbidden. 

Did Jyzer feel the same? 

It took a while for them to make sense of the whole thing. Without Cassian or one of his intelligence officers to explain it all, following the thread took concentration and an intimate understanding of the palace buildings, internal politics of the government, and the inner workings of the former King's household. 

But at the end of it all was King Janzier ingesting five separate toxins. Each one at a different location and at different times, all seemingly unconnected, and each one harmless on its own. And yet, the series of reactions that occurred as the five met in his system began a process that ended with the creation of a compound that irrevocably damaged vital parts of Zaaran physiology.

The nasty part was how it then broke down to be completely untraceable within hours. Of course, if the victim was awake when the compound formed in their system, there would have been physical effects that would have made it possible for any doctor to recognise what had happened. Which meant the perfect timing needed for this to occur while the former King had been asleep could not possibly have been unplanned.  

Alexey had to give it to the military intelligence officers who had put together this report. This plot had been so incredibly intricate and subtle that the fact anyone had seen the pattern was a miracle. This should have been the perfect assassination. 

Actually, the longer he thought about it, the more Alexey realised it should have been impossible. Someone realising what had happened would have been an actual miracle. Unless that person had at least a vague idea of what to look for in advance. 

"This isn't right." Jyzer straightened up and began to pace. He had clearly come to the same conclusion. "This plot shouldn't have been uncovered. There's no way someone could have guessed the right people to be investigated unless they had an idea of where to look." 

"I agree," Alexey frowned at his husband. "But these are your best men, and they've been working on this for almost two years. Is it impossible they could have been this thorough?" 

Jyzer shook his head. "What I expected when I ordered this report was one of two things. Either it would reaffirm my brother's death was of natural causes, or it would uncover a plot that had been covered up by the political investigation. I did not expect anything like this." 

"So, considering he must have had these conclusions in advance and didn't tell you, and the fact someone involved in this investigation had to have had some clue where to look to find these answers…."

He stopped. This newfound closeness between him and his husband felt likely to shatter if he dared mention the conclusion he had come to regarding Jyzer oldest and most trusted friend. 

He needn't have worried. Jyzer looked up, his face grim, and finished the thought for him. 

"Cassian has been planning to betray me all along." 

Jyzer focused on the movements of his body, feeling the sensations in his muscles as his arms rotated around and locked into their new position. Now he let his feet move, shifting position to allow him to turn into the next. He hadn't needed to think about these movements for years. He had gone through them almost everything day of his life. Each movement was a memory so ingrained in his muscles that he did not even have to think. 

He rarely undertook the akat more than once per day. He didn't usually have the time. But what else did he have to do today? 

Besides, he did his best thinking here. Being able to conduct the akat each morning was a routine Jyzer treasured. Not only did it wake up the body and the mind, it was also the only time he was truly alone. He knew people saw it as a sign of his discipline and dedication, and if they wished to believe this was the case, it did no harm. But it was more than that. It had become a time to process his thoughts and review his plans for the day. Letting his body relax into the familiar forms, his mind could be free to wander. 

This afternoon, though, he found calming his mind a near-impossible task. 

How could Cassian have done this? Cassian! 

Being the second son of the King, Jyzer had been raised by military advisors determined to turn him into the soldier the country expected of him. This was a life that had permitted few friends, and Cassian had been one of those. Being the son of a high-ranking officer the same age as Jyzer, the two of them had bonded over the standards they were expected to meet. They had been lucky, in a way, that those expectations had ended up being precisely what suited them. Joining the Academy in the same class, they had taken to command like fish in water. 

It had been during those years they had first been intimate. The closeness they had developed in youth honed by the intense camaraderie their training entailed. There had never been any talk of anything formal. Both of them understood the nature of their relationship. Excitement, release, and no expectations. 

After graduation, they had gone separate ways. Some had thought they would be kept together. But there could be no suspicions that accommodations were being made for the Prince. In truth, Jyzer knew if he and Cassian had been assigned to the same ships, he would have had to speak to someone about it. He was in the military to serve. Some around him expected him to coast by on his rank and title, serving in purely ceremonial roles. But by then, he had seen the state his father had allowed the military to sink to. Promotions were based on family and influence rather than ability. Men and women were promoted again and again to appease their vanity, leaving units top-heavy with under-achieving officers leading under-trained soldiers. 

He and Cassian had not been the only ones to see this. During their time in the Academy, they have found other like-minded cadets. Either they were just as disgusted as the softness and corruption or resentful that their lack of influence meant they could never expect promotion. And over time, these men and women graduated and spread out into the fleet. There had been little they could actually do about the infuriating state of affairs at first. But then came the Battle of Perligond, when Jyzer took command of the military from his father and began his reforms. When she swept away the useless officer class, this new generation had formed the central pillar on which he could hang his reforms. Before those political appointees and comfortable old men had been able to organise any sort of counter-move, their replacements had turned the tide of the war and won the love of the people. 

This was when Cassian came back into his life. While they had been apart, Cassian had risen in the ranks almost as fast as Jyzer himself. As Lord Commander, Jyzer had felt no compunction in naming his friend as his second-in-command nor in welcoming him back to his bed. And then, when he was crowned King, Cassian had been the natural choice to replace him as head of the military. 

Not once had Jyzer ever doubted Cassian or regretted their relationship. 

Until today. 

The wind had built up since this morning. It caressed Jyzer's skin, sharpening his perceptions. He prided himself on the level of fitness he still maintained at his age, and breaking a sweat doing the akat would normally have been cause for alarm. Right now, however, the sweat of the day clung to his skin. Another reminder that all was not as it should have been. 

How had he let this happen? Betrayal by the very person he trusted the most. 

Jyzer wasn't going to waste time with denial. Another person might have insisted that their version of reality had to be correct, despite all the evidence. Jyzer didn't have the patience for that kind of thinking. He had all the evidence he needed. Cassian had undercut him in front of the Council without warning, twisting Jyzer's own words to use against him. There was no way Casssion would have brought anything like this into public view if his aims were to be beneficial to Jyzer. 

As his arms swung around, twisting to reposition his centre of balance as a correction to the position his feet had taken, Jyzer came to the resting position that marked the end of the akat. He stood there for a few moments, his eyes closed, probing each area of this body in turn. This was the final step in the full akat; assessing the body and self to note any problems you needed to address. Physically, there were none. But some problems weren't physical. 

Opening his eyes, Jyzer looked up to the window where Alexey would usually watch him every morning. Not now, though. His husband was elsewhere, working to do what he could to deflect this attack. 

Alexey. Jyzer was having to deal with the uncomfortable realisation that he had wronged his Prince Consort by dismissing him so readily. In three years of marriage, he had never once considered Alexey worth any of his time. He was a politician and a political husband. An outstanding diplomatic coup, of course. He had at least admired the way Alexey's family had managed to marry their son into the most powerful family on the planet. And then, through the fluke of Janzier's death, raised to a position at the right hand of the King. 

Or maybe not so much of a fluke. 

No. Not that. If he had been a lesser man, Jyzer would have considered suspecting Alexey's family, maybe even Alexey himself, to have had a hand in all this. But this was an idea easily dismissed. Firstly, it was far too obvious. The official enquiry had focused on Alexey's family and political allies to an almost insulting degree, and his own secret investigation had done the same. There had been no way they could have gotten away with anything. 

And on top of that, even Jyzer knew the idea of Alexey doing anything to hurt him was ludicrous. Alexey had been in love with Jyzer since the day of their marriage. It had been an acute embarrassment, at first. Jyzer had been prepared for an uncomfortable, loveless life with his husband. Instead, he'd been lumbered with a lovesick puppy. It had been unbearable at first, seeing the disappointment in his husband's eyes each time Jyzer failed to fawn all over his feeble achievements. To accept that he had no choice but to keep his vows and push any others from his bed. But over time, it had become little more than an annoyance. 

Now Jyzer had no choice but to look at things in a new light. He had come out of the meeting with the Council completely blindsided. Other than stew in righteous fury, he'd had no idea what to do next. On the other hand, Alexey had not only seen it coming but had been ready and able to take control of the situation to begin working on ways to turn it around.

Jyzer was finding himself thinking about his husband in a completely new light. 

Shutting his eyes again, Jyzer stood straight, arms by his sides. Then, bending his arms at the elbows in front of him to move into the first position, he began the akat anew. 

Jyzer wasn't a man for either idle speculation or dwelling on the past. The adage that mistakes were simply a part of life had been drilled into him throughout his entire childhood. No one, no matter how great they might be, will go without making mistakes. But mistakes are not failures. Failure only comes from ignoring your mistakes and refusing to see where they came from. 

And Jyzer had made a mistake. He'd allowed himself to believe politics was different to war, when in fact, it was simply a different kind of weapon. 

He'd told himself that he lived an honourable life and in doing so, elevated himself above the petty frays of the political arena. They were nothing to do with him. Power was for those who earned it by demonstrating their abilities and earning the respect of others. Those who sought it out only achieved a vulgar version of power. A mere shade in which they revelled and called themselves great men with no real claim to that ideal. 

Now he saw that his privilege had blinded him. As a cadet, he had been disgusted by officers who held their positions due to their family's influence or by currying favour. This had driven him to work as hard as possible to earn every promotion and command he had ever held. No one would ever have any basis to say he was not worthy of his command. He had earned the respect of his men. He had earned his place as Lord Commander. 

And now he saw he had allowed that fact to blind him to the fact they would have come to him anyway. 

If he had been uninterested in military life, he still would have been accepted into the Academy. Still would have graduated, been promoted, and eventually placed in command positions despite his lack of experience or interest. Likely he may well have even still risen to the rank of Lord Commander, although only as a sycophantic puppet of his father. Every ounce of work he put in had been technically pointless compared to those who had no choice but to meet Jyzer's own standards. 

Jyzer's eyes opened as he froze mid-movement. Stopping in the middle of the akat was an almost unheard-of event. But a realisation had come to him. Facts fell into place, and at last, he saw the next steps he needed to take. 

Taking a quick moment to ground himself, he hurried inside to speak to Alexey. 

Alexey sat back on the couch, rubbing his eyes with his spare hand. In the other, he held pages from the printout of Cassian's report. God, this thing was detailed. The amount of work that had gone into it was both impressive and slightly alarming. That the military could do this much surveillance on so many people over the course of only a couple of years, without being uncovered, no less, had disturbing implications. He made a note to raise this with Jyzer when this was all over. 

If Jyzer was even in power at that point. 

But it was all there. And every piece of information being used against Jyzer could be turned around and brought to bear to defend him. That was one of the secrets of politics many people didn't understand. Information wasn't a sword or a spear. Anyone who thought of it in that way never lasted long. Because a sword could only be held at one end, and once the blade had been plunged into your opponent's body, it was too late for them to do anything about it. No, information was a rope. If you had enough of it, you could loop it around your opponent to ensnare them and prevent them from manoeuvring. But if they knew what they were doing, there was nothing to stop them from taking hold of that same rope and yanking you off your feet with it. 

That was what Alexey intended to do. 

Cassian and the Council had made their attack and now hoped Jyzer would be tangled enough for them to make further moves. But they had underestimated one thing. Alexey had been beside Jyzer the whole time, ready to grab the rope before it tightened. And while they believed Jyzer unprepared, Alexey had his feet braced to pull that rope to tug them off their feet.

The report had two main points that could not be argued; King Janzier had been assassinated, and it had been done with the purpose of putting his brother, Jyzer, on the throne. 

What it didn't show was any evidence that Jyzer had been involved in any way. 

Here was the dangerous stroke. One that Jyzer himself, and many of his supporters, could be counted to underestimate. People didn't necessarily need evidence to believe something. All those behind this needed was a narrative, and the story of the second-in-line to the throne murdering their older sibling was a tale as old as time. Even without proof, people would believe it just enough to lose their trust in Jyzer. Add to that the fact that Jyzer had done something very similar in the past. He'd taken command of the military from his father against his father's wishes and summarily swept the navy clean of all officers he hadn't liked. Yes, he had the Council's approval, and the people loved him for it then, but this was now. If he'd done it once, he could do it again. 

Those who knew Jyzer personally knew that the very idea of him murdering his brother or planning to overthrow their democracy was absurd. But if enough of the public thought it had just enough likelihood of happening… 

The question now was working out how to turn this around. 

Alexey knew that at least some people on the Council had to be involved. The idea they wouldn't have been felt impossible. Not all of them. If that had been the case, they could have easily used the official investigation to set Jyzer up. But there had to be at least one person with influence and power of the Council involved for this to work. 

So the question was, who would have been the most likely to want Jyzer in power over his brother and would now have changed their mind and wanted Jyzer deposed? 

The problem was Alexey was finding it hard to concentrate. Every time he tried to focus, his mind kept coming back to the way he had felt when Jyzer had spoken to him that afternoon. As if he actually respected him! But that only meant that he could not allow himself to get distracted and ruin whatever admiration his husband all of a sudden had for him. 

No, he had to focus. Sitting up, he looked again at the list of Council Members he'd noted down. He knew them all off by heart, of course. But seeing it on the page freed up that part of this thinking. All twelve members had their own political allies and alliances, of course. Each of them spent just as much time jockeying for position as they did running the country. But they were pretty much in the highest positions of power there were. Getting rid of Jyzer wouldn't change that. Unless they tried to completely abolish the monarchy, and no matter how this played out, the Zaaran public was far too traditionalist to go for that. 

Okay, so what was their endgame? Say Jyzer was found guilty of these charges, what then? They would need a new King. Alexey wasn't aware of any way for the Council to allow Jyzer to stay on the throne with all his power stripped away. That would be too much like abolishing the monarchy altogether. Jyzer didn't have any children, of course. In fact, part of the reason he had been pushed into marrying Alexey had been to completely remove him from the question of succession. Jyzer had always been clear he had no interest in having children, but there had been some who worried that his popularity would be a threat to his brother. And so, marrying a human, even a third-generation human, took him completely off the table. Until his brother died without marrying and having his own children, of course. When that had happened, everything had been thrown into the air. 

Alexey stopped. Could that be it? Jyzer had never shown any interest in anything other than a career in the military. He'd loved his brother and had made it clear again and again that he had no interest in politics. Janzier had come to the throne determined to modernise. He had been no radical, but after their father's disastrous reign, he had come in hard and fast to ensure policies were put in place to prevent the same things from being allowed to happen again. 

Maybe, one faction had seen this as a threat to their power base. Plenty of people, especially in the nobility, owed their power and position to the corruption and laziness that thrived under Danzien. Had they thought that putting Janzier's brother in his place would give them a King uninterested in reform? One who would focus all his energy on the military he loved so much and leave those who had nearly brought the country to ruin time to lie low before stepping forward again once the public forgot about them? If so, they would have been disappointed. Jyzer, despite his disinterest, had been determined to be the King his brother would have been. He had doubled down on the reforms, and had a military style and discipline that regularly raised solid walls against those who tried to gain any kind of political influence. 

Had these same people now decided that Jyzer wasn't as compliant as they had hoped? Were they trying again? 

And then there was the military itself. Jyzer was far too honourable to try and use them to secure his position. But would they be likely to do anything themselves? The King was almost universally adored in both the army and the navy. Anyone of any senior rank could remember what things had been like before he had taken over. And anyone younger knew him only as the seemingly invincible war leader. The man who had led their country to victory after victory before leading the defence of the entire planet against the Zyllo Invasion. 

But if the military rose up in any way, it would only reinforce the accusations against him. 

So the conspirators, whoever they were, needed two things; a new monarch who would do as they were told - or at least be easier to manipulate - and someone who would placate the military. 

At that moment, the doors to their private courtyard burst open and Jyzer himself marched in. He had clearly come straight from doing his akat outside, wearing only his knee-length, skin-tight shorts. Alexey's eyes widened as he took in his husband's body. He had never been this close to Jyzer in such a state of undress before. Jet black and glistening with sweat, Jyzer looked like something out of a dream. He might have been two decades older than Alexey, but his was a body that had never been allowed an inch of leeway. Even after two years of ceremonial dinners, Jyzer had not put on a single gram of excess fat. In general, the Zaaron people weren't prone to getting fat in the same way humans were, but Jyzer was something else. If Alexey would have called anything physically perfect, it was the man standing in front of him right now. 

For a second, he was transported back ten years. In his mind, he saw himself as a child again, huddled in the corner as a younger Jyzer stood over him, an unsought protector, berating those four cadets with his words about honour and duty. 

The day, Alexey knew now, when he had first fallen in love with his future husband. 

"Alexey?" 

Alexey started. This was no time to dwell on childish daydreams. He looked up, then stood, pushing his papers aside. For a moment, the two of them simply looked at each other, neither saying a word. Was Jyzer looking at him… No. That wasn't possible. There was no way Jyzer was looking at him with any sort of attraction. 

"Sorry, I was miles away. I think I have an idea, but I can't put my finger on exactly what yet." 

"I've figured something out too. Sit down. Once I've told you, perhaps it will allow you to make those connections." 

Jyzer marched down the corridor, the two guards following behind. 

He wished he could be in uniform for this. He knew he didn't need it.  

He'd long ago learned it wasn't a military rank and uniform that gave the wearer their authority. And anyway, his current outfit was more than enough. Most of his clothing was cut in ways that reflected military uniform in some way. A homage to the life he had come from, but managing to keep him a step away from it. 

No, the reason he missed it now was the comfort it would have given him. Jyzer had never felt more comfortable than he did in uniform. Some complained about the fit or the stiffness of the material when correctly cared for, but Jyzer had never felt anything less than empowered. The rank on his sleeve had never mattered. From the plain cadet uniform of the Academy onward, any uniform had brought the same feeling of rightness. No other item of clothing ever managed to make him feel the same.

And he could do with that reassurance of the task he was on his way to complete.  

The guards on the door had half-heartedly called for him to stop. When he had simply swept between them, all they had been able to do was follow. Whatever political intrigue was being waged between him and the Council, he was still the King. Unless he had been severely out of touch, Jyzer remained confident that none of the guards would be comfortable laying hands on him within his own palace. 

Keep moving forward and look confident in your decisions. It had been one of the first lessons driven into him in his youth. When you did that, those around you would never doubt you. 

It also didn't hurt that he had a face like thunder. He had learned a long time ago that being known for having full control of his emotions meant deciding to show them could be a formidable tool. If you could see what the King was feeling, people believed, then something truly momentous had to be happening. 

In a way, they weren't wrong. Something momentous was happening today. 

Heads rose and turned as he marched along the corridors to the governmental offices. Jyzer gave no acknowledgement he noticed them. He had come here on business, and people needed to know he was focused on the task at hand. Jyzer doubted his removal from power had been openly announced to the world, but Alexey had made it clear that people seeing him this way would help dispel any rumours that might have begun to circulate. 

Knowing exactly where Cassian could be found involved some guesswork. It had been a few hours now since Jyzer had been escorted out of the Council Hall. As Lord Commander, Cassian had his own office in this building as well as a much grander one across the city in the Military's Headquarters. But Alexey didn't think he would have left the building. When you pulled something as serious as this, you didn't stop after the first step. The attack on Jyzer had been masterfully kept under wraps, but that meant the conspirators would not have been able to establish support beforehand. Their only hope was to move fast. They needed to convince, bribe, or blackmail enough people to go along with them until enough momentum built to the point that no one could stop it. 

The guard outside Lord Manzir's door looked astonished as the King rounded the corner and approached. At Jyzer's nod, he opened the door without thinking and closed it again once the King had stepped inside. 

He and Alexey had guessed correctly. Manzir was sitting behind his desk, looking up with an expression of mild annoyance combined with something approaching amusement. Sat opposite him, Lord Commander Cassian himself was doing a far worse job at hiding his reaction. 

"What in the hells, Jyzer?" he exclaimed, jumping to his feet. "Guards!" 

"Don't bother, Cassian," Jyzer frowned at his former friend. "Unless you're ready to denounce me to the people, you'll find it hard ordering the guards to lay hands on me in such a public area." 

"They did it before." 

"In the Council Hall, before the assembled Council. And I don't believe I tried to stop them." He paused for a moment, feeling his personality push against his friend's. Few people he had met had the force of will to match Cassian's. But he was at a disadvantage. Jyzer had a lifetime of experience being in command of the situation. And while Cassian had the same experience, the one thing he had very little experience with recently was coming up against anyone unwilling to back down from him. 

"Come, Cassian. Do you really want to call them? To make this a test of the military's loyalty?" 

"An interesting argument, Your Majesty," Manzir sounded almost amused, "Considering the accusations against you. One might think you are threatening to use your standing with the army and navy to enforce your position. Just as Lord Cassian reported you to be planning." 

Jyzer smiled inwardly. Without Alexey's advice, that might have been exactly the trap he would have stumbled into. 

"Not at all, Councilman." Jyzer kept his eyes on Cassian while he spoke. "I merely wish to spare our Lord Commander the embarrassment of an embarrassing public display. I can't imagine what rumours have already begun to spread, and I would not like for them to grow." 

"It was not me who stripped you of your authority, Jyzer." Cassian had never used Jyzer's name in public before. They had both known the importance of rank and title. Suddenly acknowledging Jyzer's position seemed less important to him. "It was the Council who did that, and I must insist you follow their instructions."

Jyzer paused, staring at Cassian. The stare he had used a thousand times on men and women of lower rank under his command when they had shirked a responsibility or refused to learn from a mistake. 

"Why, Cassian?" He kept his voice soft. "Was it so hard being in my shadow?"

Cassian blinked, betraying the fact that he had been prepared for one attack but found himself facing a different one. He knew Jyzer possibly better than anyone. But, like Jyzer, he had made the mistake of discounting Alexey. And Alexey's expertise had become Jyzer's secret weapon. 

"What are you talking about?" Cassian managed, looking at Manzir as if grasping for his support. Lord Manzir, however, simply sat back in his chair and allowed the two men before him to talk. 

Jyzer walked to the window, looking out across the view Manzir's office commanded. As the most senior member of the Council, his office surveys the grand courtyard, the jewel of the governmental buildings here in the city. Jyzer's own view didn't compare. 

"The son of Captain Callipon," he began, "One of the few survivors, and hero, of the Talahall Campaign. Recognised as one of the most promising cadets at the Academy, yet always outshone by your friendship with the young Prince." 

"Jyzer, what is all this?" Cassian began, but Jyzer simply continued to talk over him. 

"You rose through the ranks at a remarkable speed, yet people so often assumed it had to be due to our friendship. And who wouldn't assume that, the way things were back then? How many people were desperate to befriend me, or at least seem to, because they believed it would help their careers? Could you ever be certain your promotions were down to your ability or your connection to the royal family?" 

Cassian flushed, the jet-black of his face colouring with a sheen of anger. 

"I earned each and every promotion I was given, Jyzer." 

"You did. But didn't it pain you to have that doubted? Even your greatest moment was overshadowed. You were one of the few people who knew in advance I planned to take control of the military. When you removed that fool of a Captain and took command of your ship, turning the tide at Jadderline, you should have been the hero exalted by the entire country. Yet, the media called it merely part of my plan. They barely even mentioned you by name."

Cassian stood, staying silent. Jyzer could tell by his face that he knew something was coming, just not what. The attack he had expected had come far sooner, from a different direction, and with different weapons than he had prepared for. 

Jyzer stepped forward. "I'm sorry, Cass. I recognise now that I never saw any of this. I didn't need to work to get ahead. You did. And I should have ensured that you received the recognition you deserved. I've always told myself I worked to deserve every promotion I was given. But you had to work even harder, and still, people whisper your rank comes from our friendship rather than your ability." 

He placed a hand on Cassian's shoulder and felt him flinch. Alexey had been right; the last thing Cassian had been expecting was sympathy. Now to see if the next stage worked. 

"But how is them promising you to replace me any different? Do you think people will feel any different with you succeeding me as King?" 

Anger flared in Cassian's eyes. Jyzer had made a hit. 

"There won't be a King, Jyzer. You think you know everything, but you simply can't see past the chip on your shoulder about who you were born to. You don't have an heir. That was the entire reason you were married off to that human. And without a direct heir, the Council will vote to abolish the monarchy at last. And without a monarchy, the ridiculous idea of having nobility will be done away with. The people will come to see the need for it. They might love you," he spat, "But too many are fed up of knowing they'll never get the same opportunities as those in the best families. Those with relatives in high places, ready to hand out the plum positions to those they favour."

Jyzer blinked. He hadn't been expecting the sudden bile in Cassian's voice. 

"Cassian…" 

"Do you know what it's like?" Cassian hissed. "I've followed you your entire life. One step behind. Year, after year, after year. Always coming second. Do you understand?" He stepped forward, jabbing Jyzer in the chest with one finger. To Jyzer's shock, Cassian's eyes were moist. "Always. Coming. Second. In everything."

Jyzer stood, unable to think of what to say. He and Alexey had figured most of this out already. At least, Alexey had done, with some help from Jyzer. But standing in front of Cassian, his oldest friend and former lover, and hearing it from his own mouth was something different. 

"So Kyira and Carial came to you?" Manzir's question seemed to come from nowhere. Both men had almost forgotten he was there, still sitting behind his desk. "They offered you this plan?" 

Jyzer fought to keep his face still. The one thing Alexey had been unable to guess had been who on the Council could have been working with Cassian. Jyzer's first thought had been Manzir himself, but Alexey had insisted he was the least likely. As the longest-serving member of the Council, Manzir had grown far too comfortable in his position. He had all the power and influence he needed and was old and wise enough to recognise that the person at the very top of the pyramid was not always the most important. 

But it seems that Manzir had made his own connections. Lords Kyira and Carial were young and ambitious. They claimed to be reformers, but apparently, that meant pulling everything down around them until they were the ones at the top of the rubble, with Cassian as a useful scapegoat if things went wrong. 

"I don't take orders from those two. I went to them," Cassian spat. He had to know saying anything more would only incriminate him further, but he had reached the point where he could no longer bear to stand in the shadows of others. Even if it meant losing everything, he needed it to be known he had been his own man. "When my investigation uncovered they were behind Janzier's death, I saw how they must have been so disappointed with his replacement. When I approached them, they confessed they had hoped you would ignore your duties and allow the role of the King to atrophy and die. But you decided you would actually care. And that didn't make them very happy. Not everyone in the King's government," he sneered the phrase, "Puts value in this ridiculous system we have in place." 

Jyzer simply looked at his friend. Had there been any time in his life when keeping his emotions out of his face had been harder? He'd led men and women into seemingly hopeless battles, removed his father from command, and sat through his brother's assassination and funeral. And yet, none of those events had taxed him as much as Cassian's furious glare. Up until that last moment, he had allowed himself to believe that Cassian had been tricked. That the conspirators had needed to bribe or blackmail him somehow. 

But it had been his plan all along. 

What came next would be hard. The government would be in turmoil. Two Council members would be charged with treason and regicide, along with the Lord Commander of the military. Public opinion would plummet. Neighbouring countries, still harbouring grudges, would see this as an opportunity to strike at Zaaron while it was weak. But at that moment, Jyzer only felt sorrow that he had been too pigheaded to see it all before it had been too late. 

All he could do was look into his former friend's eyes and keep his emotions from showing. 

"I'm sorry, Cass. I really am. 

Alexey looked up as the doors to the royal apartments opened, and Jyzer stepped through. As usual, his face showed no emotion. However, this time Alexey thought he could sense something behind that carefully maintained facade. Maybe it was just his imagination, knowing the various possibilities that might have happened since he had left the apartments earlier that afternoon. Or maybe Jyzer had found himself holding back far stronger emotions than usual. 

"So…?" Alexey stood as the doors were closed, resisting the urge to run over. 

Jyzer looked at him as if seeing him for the first time. "You were correct. Cassian confessed. Manzier got him to name Kyira and Carial as the conspirators." 

Alexey nodded. That made sense. There was more he'd like to know about that, but it wasn't the time to ask those questions. There would be time for that later. 

Jyzer walked over to the ornate bar but didn't make himself a drink. He simply stood there, tension radiating from his body. Alexey slowly walked over to stand next to him. He could feel his husband's presence in the room. Jyzer's energy always filled whatever room he was in, but now it felt like he were ready to explode with all the emotions boiling inside him. 

"Jyzer…" he began, but Jyzer cut him off. 

"I've made too many misjudgements, Alexey. I've been so certain for so long. Certainty is the key to command. That was the first lesson I learned, and it's been true my entire life. As long as those around you feel you are certain in your decisions and choices, they will never question following you. But now I see I stopped questioning myself. I've convinced myself that the things around me, the people around me, must be who I think them to be. I've left no room to see new possibilities and truths." 

Alexey said nothing, simply gazed up at Jyzer's stony visage. His green eyes were dim, his expression still. Yet, an opening had appeared that hadn't been there before today. 

"I'm sorry, Alexey," Jyzer continued. "I dismissed you for too long. As I trusted Cassian for too long. I allowed myself to lock in my view of the world and blinded myself to the fact I might be wrong or any of it could have changed. You do not deserve the way I have treated you these last three years, and I have not deserved the way you have aided me today." 

He turned his head, and Alexey caught his breath. For the first time, he saw true emotion in his husband's eyes. The mask had come down. Perhaps Jyzer had realised that Alexey was the one person in the world he could let his guard down around. Or perhaps the day's events had simply been too much to maintain the control he usually held. Either way, it broke Alexey's heart. 

"I am sorry, Alexey. I hope you can forgive me." 

Alexey looked at the man in front of him. Tall, perfectly built, and the most handsome creature he had ever known. In many ways, Jyzer would forever be the saviour standing over young Alexey, stepping between him and his tormentors for no other reason than it being the right thing to do. But after today, he would also be the man who needed his husband to stand by him and protect him from those dangers he could not see coming. And now that had become clear to him, he had not hesitated in admitting fault and seeing things for what they truly were. 

Before he knew what he was doing, Alexey reached up and pulled Jyzer's face to his. Their lips met, and to his shock, where he expected hesitation found his eagerness met by an equally passionate enthusiasm. Sliding his hand into Jyzer's neatly cropped hair, he shut his eyes and let his mouth open. The feeling of Jyzer's hands taking hold of him felt almost unreal. At first, the hold was gentle, almost tender, but quickly the passion grew, and Alexey felt Jyzer gripping his thin body in what could only be described as hunger. 

His own lust flared in response, and he opened his mouth wide, wanting more. Needing more. He could not help the moans that escaped him as Jyzer leant forward, kissing the side of his neck. His fingers were fumbling with the buttons of Jyzer's uniform while Jyzer's hands were pulling Alexey's shirt up and over his head before sliding down his back and walking him back towards the living area. 

Blood raced in Alexey's head, his entire body suddenly on fire. He didn't waste time or thought on the unexpectedness of what was happening or wondering whether this was true desire or just a necessary release of emotion. They were caught in the moment, and whatever might come afterwards did not even register to either of them. 

Overcome with a need to show his desire for his husband after so long, Alexey pushed Jyzer into a chair. Dropping to his knees, he desperately undid Jyzer's trousers and reached inside. As his fingers wrapped around Jyzers strong, throbbing cock, Alexey let out a sigh of pleasure and hungrily wrapped his mouth around it. It tasted like the most perfect thing in the world. He closed his eyes and inhaled, taking in the scent of his husband's excitement. Jyzer had begun to grunt, clearly sensitive to Alexey's technique, and he placed his hands on the back of Alexey's head.  

As he ran his lips up and down Jyzer's shaft, Alexey pulled his trousers all the way down, then ran his hands up his husband's thighs, then on over the rockhard torso above. Slipping his hands under his shirt, he dragged his nails across Jyzer's skin. The answering hiss of pleasure came accompanied by a hand gripping and pulling his hair. The spike of pain burst and swirled into the tumult of sensations coursing through his body and mind. He did it again, harder his time, and felt an answering tug. For a while, the two of them repeated this process, scratch and pull, each of them grunting in turn as they wallowed in their shared pleasure. 

Then Jyzer stood, hurriedly removing his dress jacket and shirt and looking down at Alexey where he knelt before him. Without being asked, Alexey began to unbutton his husband's boots, helping him out of his bunched-up trousers until the King stood before him in all his glorious nudity. Alexey wanted to say something, but words would not come. There were surely none that could do this moment justice, in any case. 

He stood, and Jyzer took hold of him and spun him around. Then he pulled him back, wrapping his arms around him. Alexey shut his eyes again, feeling Jyzer's strong hands sliding down his body and grasping his own rock-hard erection. The sound that escaped him was half moan, half cry, as at the same time Jyzer's mouth found the side of this neck. 

He leant back, safe in his husband's arms, revelling in an experience he had dreamed of your years but never hoped would come. His hips moved in time with Jyzer's hands, pressing back against the perfect, rock-hard body. He was in heaven. 

He had no idea how long they stood like this before Jyzer raised his mouth to his ear and whispered the first words either of them had spoken since that first kiss. 

"Lead us to the bedroom. It's well past time the King finally fucked his Prince Consort." 

Despite what people said, Jyzer meant everything to Alexey. 

He knew that people still whispered behind their backs. Everyone knew that it was simply a marriage of political inconvenience. There were even those who had begun to whisper that the turmoil that currently engulfed the Zaaron government had been his doing. That it was all a part of a larger plot to destabilise the country for the benefit of the small human faction who sought further power and influence. Most claimed he had simply been an unnecessary distraction, while a small, far more paranoid number actually feared it was all part of an Earth invasion plan. 

This morning there had been a new rumour to add to the collection. Alexey had been passed a report that some people were claiming the rumoured coup had all been an attempt to rid the King of Alexey's corrupting influence. Clearly, Kyira and Carial's allies had gone to work. Alexey knew that this would not be the last they heard of this matter. No, this had simply been the first step. It was clear now there was a faction with the aim of bringing down the institution of the monarchy. And however hard they had been forced to go to ground, Alexey knew that ideologies like that never went away. 

But today, he was happy to let them whisper. Today, he didn't care. Because today he stood at the side of Jyzer I, King of Zaaron. Hand in hand with the man he loved. 

Beyond the door in front of them, the massed dignitaries of Zaaron waited. Most of them in the room already knew everything, of course. The entire establishment had been in an uproar for over a week now. But, as King, it fell to Jyzer to officially announce the investigations into the Council and the military leadership. And there was also the need to calm the populace. It was vital for people to see that the King still had his authority. While things may be shaken for some time to come, Jyzer would take up the reins and steer Zaaron safely through the crisis. As he had done so many times before. 

And while Alexey had with his husband at ceremonies like this more times than he could count, this time it felt different. No longer did he simply fill a ceremonial space. This time, he and Jyzer would be working together. Jyzer had learned Alexey's knowledge and experience had value. And with him at his side, Jyzer had no need to try and learn the games of politics himself. Alexey would be there to do that for him. 

Jyzer nodded to the guards, who reached forward and pulled the grand doors open. And as they did, Alexey felt Jyzer's hand clench around his own. Alexey didn't look at him. It would have appeared 'unseemly', for one thing. For another, he knew Jyzer's face would be steady as a rock. 

But with that simple squeeze, a moment of intimate communication known only by the two of them, Jyzer and Alexey stepped out together into the future of their country.