@ElderGod-Icefire
So this is another short story I wrote at one point, that I'm debating using in a new story in some way…Also I'm super sorry for how fucking long it is lol
Good at Diplomacy
Prompt: https://i.pinimg.com/564x/b9/23/22/b923224b73f7c7d33f3dcdd7714c2c14.jpg
“Why do people think I’m good at diplomacy? Does no one remember that time I started a war? Or the other time I started a war?”
The other rolled their eyes. “Exactly. That’s why you will be good at negotiations with the Humans.”
“B-but, but…” he stammered, raising a finger.
"Ah ah ah, no ‘buts’. The Humans are a war race. We are not, so we need a show of strength.” replied the leader, their arms clasped behind their back.
"Sir, I…I don’t think that’s a good idea, we may not be a war race, but we are plenty strong enough, I don’t need to be the diplomat, sir…come on. You know I’ll fail…” he pleaded. He did not want to be the one to try and negotiate the peace treaty. “Do you not remember the Gronlogs? How well that went?”
The leader laughed, their face lighting up. “There! That prickly, quick spark of…anger! That’s why you’re perfect for negotiations with the Humans!”
He groaned, and slammed his head against the wall. “…yes sir. Whatever you say, sir.”
The leader smiled angelically. “Good, good. Now, off with you! You need to get dressed up, then on the shuttle.”
He sighed. “I’m going, I’m going.” heading from the command area of the ship, he made his way towards the dressing rooms, where the attendants would be waiting to strip him down, force him into the most horrendous bath of his life, and then dress him in stiff, frilly, decorative garments that pinched in all the wrong places.
"Zakten Amenare!” came a voice, and he turned slowly. Sighing internally, he smiled weakly.
"Hey, Jiam…” he greeted, allowing the other to hug him.
"I heard you are going to negotiate with the Human ambassadors!” Jiam said, overexcited as always.
He nodded. “Yes, I am.”
"That’s amazing!” she squealed, her long tail twitching as it twined around her legs.
Zakten nodded. “It is, isn’t it?” he said, as he began to walk. He was only 21 sun-cycles, roughly, which he believed, in Human years, was approximately 22 or 23. He wasn’t sure, though.
Jiam kept pace beside him. “It is! Such an honor for you and your family, since everyone knows how disgraced they were when-”
He rounded on her. “Shut up about my family, Jiam!”
She shrank back, her tail twitching. “B-but…I meant everything in a positive sense, because this could be the triumphant return of the Amenare’s.”
He shook his head. “Well, stop. Leave me be.”
Jiam stopped walking, and he could feel her eyes on him as he left her behind in the hallway.
Stalking into the dressing room, he barked, “Let’s get this over with!” he stood still in the center of the room, putting out his arms, as was the procedure.
The Lessers, as they were known, came silently to him, taking his clothes from his body, and then led him into the bath. This was not a normal bath, he knew, and grimaced as he felt the showers searing every bit of unnecessary hair from his body. He cleared his throat as razors scraped over his body, and as each little bit of dead skin was removed as well.
Then there was the feeling, his eyes still closed tightly, as clothes were pulled over his body. He heard one attendant’s startled exclamation of surprise as they saw the damaged, blackened stumps where his wings should have been, and clenched his jaw tightly. Finally, they were done, and he heard the rustling as they walked away. Opening his dark eyes, he looked at himself in the tall mirror.
Yes, as he had thought, the clothing was stiff and uncomfortable, pinching in all the wrong areas. Ah well. He would deal with it. He rubbed a hand over his hair. It had been gelled back, taming the normally unruly dark waves. His deep blue eyes, with their hints of red in the edges of the iris, had had a bit of touch up done to bring out the red lines.
Sighing, he straightened the collar of the shirt. “Zakten Amenare, last of the Amenare line, here to represent the Cosin.” he muttered, knowing that that would be the words he would have to use to introduce himself.
Walking back to the main area of the ship, he kept his eyes straight ahead, ignoring the way people’s eyes darted to his back as he walked. He knew what they were expecting to see, and knew they were startled when they didn’t see it, but he couldn’t care less. He didn’t need their pity, nor their startled exclamations of “what happened?”. No, he didn’t need it, nor want it.
"Sir.” he said, standing at attention before the leader.
They turned. “Ah, Zakten! Good, you’re ready?”
He nodded sharply, once. “Yes sir.”
The leader nodded. “Well, to the shuttle, then. We are meeting on the humans moon. It is the closest thing to neutral ground we could find, since the Human colonies there aren’t in current use.”
He logged the detail in his head, and nodded. “Yes sir. Anything I should know beforehand?” he asked as they began walking.
The leader sighed. “Well. First of all, if negotiations go sour, we may not be able to get you out of there. Secondly, negotiations should be easy, considering we aren’t technically at war with them, we just got off on the wrong foot.”
Zakten rolled his eyes. Yes, the “Wrong foot”. They hadn’t fired missiles at the Human’s or anything. The Humans hadn’t responded in kind, starting a 3 month war, or anything.
"Thirdly, you will have two advisors with you from some of the other, ah, older families.” the leader finished, giving him a glance.
Zakten nodded slowly. “Who?”
"Akanso Keram, and Salis Jor.” they replied.
He allowed a small smile to spread over his face. Akanso was a good person, with a solid personality and an easy-going demeanor. But… “No one from the Sayor family?”
The leader shook their head. “No. The Sayor family is, well. In even more disgrace than yours.”
He clenched his jaw. “I see.” was all he said, forcing the words out between his teeth.
The leader smiled as they arrived at the shuttle. It was one of the best the Cosin had, silvery metal and beautifully lined, with perfectly working machinery. And, of course, no iron.
"Well. I believe Akanso and Salis are already aboard, so you three will leave as soon as you are onboard. Good luck, and sun-speed.” the leader saluted to him.
He bowed. “Yes sir. Thank you, sir.” walking aboard, he could hear the heels of his shoes tapping loudly in the near-complete silence.
"Welcome aboard, boy!” greeted Akanso, slapping a hand on his back.
Zakten winced imperceptibly, and slowly stepped away from Akanso. “Thank you.” he said stiffly.
Salis, he noticed, was far less friendly, giving him only a nod in greeting.
"So, you’re the main spokesman?” Salis asked as they took off, giving Zakten a studying, critical look. “But your family is, well! Your family is disgraced! No more! Unless you decide to have children.” he scoffed, the look he gave Zakten seeming to indicate that he doubted it would ever happen.
Zakten lifted his chin. “Disgraced we may be, but that doesn’t mean we, or rather, I, as you pointed out, cannot earn redemption.”
Salis snorted. “You don’t even have your marks! They’ve been stripped from you! As your line deserves.”
Zakten’s eyes blurred, and he saw red. He slammed Salis against the wall, and snarled, “My marks have not been stripped, so shut your mouth about them! You know nothing!”
A large hand landed on his shoulder, and pulled him back. “Zakten. Leave him be. Salis, stop antagonizing him.” it was Akanso, acting, or trying to, as a diffuser.
He pulled against Akanso’s grip, still trying to get at Salis, who had started laughing. “You can’t even control yourself! No wonder your line is going extinct! No wonder! If you are a normal specimen of your line, no wonder! So quick to the attack!”
Zakten wrenched himself from Akanso’s grip, and stalked to the window to watch the stars go by. He was breathing hard, trying to rein himself and his emotions in.
He heard Akanso say something softly to Salis, and ignored them, swallowing hard as he felt the charred, damaged stumps under his clothing twitch pitifully. He leaned his arms on the window sill, staring out at the dark space, at the bright points of light that were the far away stars.
He rested his forehead on the window, breath fogging up the glass slightly. His eyelids fluttered shut over his telltale eyes. The eyes that everyone of the Amenare line had.
~
they had arrived at the Human’s moon, and he watched out the window as they landed. A hand landed on his shoulder, and he turned, lips pressed into a thin line.
"Time to go, kid.” Akanso, of course. Salis was standing at the door, glaring daggers at him.
Zakten adjusted his cloak with a sharp nod. “I know.” he took the lead as they exited the shuttle, blinking as lights flashed in his eyes. The Human reporters, of course.
He could hear the excited buzzing, then a roar of surprise as Akanso and Salis walked out, revealing their respective ‘marks’. Akanso’s long, lithe, prehensile tail, and Salis’s ears. He felt their eyes bore into him, wondering where his marks were, wondering why he wasn’t showing them off, why he wasn’t displaying them as proudly as Akanso and Salis. The stubs under his shirt twitched pitifully again, and he swallowed, pasting on a smile for the Human photographers.
They made their way to the large, dome-like building, and he put his hand to the knob and hissed softly, drawing back and clutching at his palm, staring at the knob.
"What’s wrong?” one of the Human’s accompanying them asked, and he pressed his lips together.
"We can’t touch iron. It burns us.” he replied, clenching his jaw as he stared down at his palm.
The male Human’s eyes went wide. “I’m so sorry! We didn’t mean to hurt you, we didn’t know! It will be replaced as soon as possible.”
He nodded. “It is alright.”
The male reached over, opening the door for them and holding it open until the three Cosin’s had all gone inside, then followed them. Inside, it opened up to a large, rather nicely decorated room. The Human representatives all sat facing an empty podium that he assumed was meant for the Cosin delegates, and he followed the Human guiding them into the three seats. He sat in the middle one, Akanso on his right and Salis on his left. He clasped his hands together, leaning on the table before him.
The first Human delegate stood, and said, “Welcome, Cosin’s! We are honored to extend the olive branch, or the dove, of peace, to you, the first we have met whose origin is not of Earth.”
He sighed inwardly. This speech was going to go on for a long, long while, he knew, and would be full of empty words and praise.
"-and so, this meeting shall begin!” the delegate, whose name he had learned was John Gates, announced, spreading his arms wide.
“Finally,” he heard Salis mutter from beside him, and couldn’t help but agree with the other male for once.
“Now, will the main delegate for the Cosin please rise?” said Gates.
Zakten rose. “I am the main spokesperson of the Cosin.” he heard the murmuring that spread through the audience, and knew that they hadn’t expected someone so young. “I am Zakten Amenare, last of the Amenare line, and I shall be representing the Cosin.” he gestured to Akanso and Salis to rise and introduce themselves.
“I am Akanso Keram, the head of the Keram line, and I shall be representing the Cosin.” said Akanso, in his rich, deep voice.
“I am Salis Jor, the second in command of the Jor line, and I shall be representing the Cosin.” said Salis from his other side. As one, they sat down, facing the Human delegation.
~
After long, long hours of talking and debating and listening to the other side talking, they were finally, finally done, and were being led to the rooms they would be staying in for as long as the talks went on.
“-now, after what you told us earlier, everything iron has been replaced with other materials, but if anything gives you a problem, just let us know and it will be replaced. You have top of the line, state of the art lodgings, the best out there.” the human opened one door. “For Mr. Akanso Keram.” Akanso went inside. After another minute of walking, he opened another. “For Mr. Salis Jor.” Salis went inside, shooting Zakten a scoffing look. “And last, but not least, for Mr. Zakten Amenare.”
Zakten nodded in gratitude. “Thank you.”
The male nodded. “Of course. I have a question for you, though, if you don’t mind.”
He shook his head. “I don’t mind. Go ahead.”
“Why do you look so human? I mean…” the man looked down at his feet. “Not that you look Human, per say, you just look…where’s your weird feature? I mean, like, the other two have tails and ears, and you’ve got…nothing.”
Zakten sighed. “Mine are less visible. For me to display them would be much more difficult than it is for Akanso and Salis.”
The male nodded. “Oh, okay. Well, have a good night.” he waved, and walked off.
He gave a small, huffing laugh, and went into his room. As soon as he closed the door he stripped off the clothing, taking a deep breath as he felt the stiff, heavy layers fall from his body. Going to the bag on the bed, that he knew was his, he pulled out looser, more comfortable clothes, slipping them on. He winced as the cloth tugged on the stubs on his back, then relaxed. Not yet tired, he decided to explore the Human’s moon. He headed out of the room, closing the door behind him, and walked the halls quickly, wanting to be outside, not inside.
As he walked outside, he took in a deep breath. Over the Human’s entire moon was a sort of shell, creating a sort of atmosphere to hold in air and warmth so that the Humans, and therefore the Cosin, could breathe.
He jumped lightly, feeling the way he drifted slightly in the moon’s rather low gravity, and smiled. It was almost like flying again, for a split second, until his feet touched the ground again, and he felt the gravity on his body. As he walked, he looked around, not paying any attention to where he was going.
He stumbled back after slamming into someone. “Sorry!” he blurted, looking at whoever he had slammed into.
It was a Human girl, with golden brown hair and freckles spattered lightly across her face. She smiled at him. “It’s fine!” she gave him a closer look, and said, “Oh! You’re one of the Cosin representers, aren’t you? Zakten Amenare, right?”
He nodded, smiling slightly. “Yes, I am. And you are?”
She smiled shyly, looking down at her feet. “I’m nobody, really.”
He smiled. “No one’s nobody. Just tell me your name. Unless it’s something really embarrassing, and then just give me a nickname or something.”
She looked up, laughing. “Fine, fine. I’m Scarlett Fardown. I’m from America, on Earth.”
He chuckled. “I wasn't asking for your exact origins, I figured you were from somewhere on Earth.”
Scarlett grinned. “Sorry. Just wanted to clarify I’m not from the colony here or on Mars. Where are you from?”
He paused, lips parted, then said, “Eyelaen, in Ghynin, on Cosina.” he replied, smiling slightly as he remembered his childhood home.
“Is Eyelaen a city?” she asked slowly.
He nodded. “Yes. Ghynin is the district. Similar to what you Humans would refer to as a country, and obviously Cosina is the planet.”
She glanced to the sky, and nodded slowly. “Oh, okay. That makes sense.”
He ran a hand through his hair. “Glad you think so, because some of us don’t.”
She chuckled, but said nothing.
He bit his lip, then said, “Tell you what. I want to get to know someone not a diplomat, and I want to learn more about Humans, and I’m sure you’re curious about us Cosin. So how about we go somewhere and talk? Even if that just means walking around.”
Scarlett lit up. “Sure! That sounds fun!”
He smiled, and they started walking together, side by side.
“So, what’s Earth like?” he questioned. Any information he could get would be helpful.
She grinned. “Oh, Earth is…diverse. Massively so. There are so many people and cultures and languages…”
“You don’t all speak English?” he said, startled. All Cosin spoke the same centralized language, and had done so for millenia.
She nodded. “Right. We don’t all speak the same language, although yes, most do speak English now.”
He nodded thoughtfully. “Should I learn one of your other languages too, then?”
She laughed. “No, you don’t need to, unless you’re planning on vacationing on Earth, and even then, you won’t need to speak anything other than English.”
He grinned, chuckling softly. “Alright then, I won’t.”
She grinned, her nose wrinkling slightly as she did so, and they kept talking together for the rest of the evening.
~
The talks ended up going on for months, moving from a discussion about peace to discussions of how the two species could get on, how they could trade and cooperate in the future. Zakten and Scarlett kept meeting up together to meet and talk, and slowly their friendship blossomed, turning into something more. They had to keep it secret, though, since no one was exactly sure what anyone would say about a relationship between a Cosin and a Human.
He met her in the park that night, under the stars that always lit this moon. He hugged her from behind, and she jumped, then spun around, kissing him on the cheek.
"Zak!” she greeted happily. She had taken to callen him Zak, instead of Zakten, and he didn’t really mind the nickname.
Zak smiled, running a hand through her golden brown hair. “Scarlett,” he greeted, rather solemnly.
She immediately seemed to wilt. “Is something wrong?”
He shook his head, then shrugged. “The talks are nearly over, and when they are, I will have to return to Cosina with the rest of my kind.”
Her shoulders slumped and her face fell. “What? Why? I mean…I know why, but…”
He smiled slightly, putting his arms around her and resting his head on hers. “I’m sorry. Perhaps I shall be able to return, but…probably not.”
She nodded, wrapping her arms around him tightly. He winced as her hands hit against those broken stubs on his back, and she drew back. “Zak? Is something wrong?”
He shook his head, stiffening as an electric bolt of pain shot through him. “No, I’m fine…what’s the date?”
She named the date slowly, and he tasted ash in his mouth.
"Why? What’s wrong?” she asked.
He shook his head, and hurriedly pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I have to go. I’m so sorry, it’s not your fault, but I…we can’t hang out tonight. I’m sorry.” he stumbled back, already heading back towards the path that would take him to his rooms.
"Wait, Zak! Zakten!” she called from behind him, but he was stumbling, nearly running, as he hurried back to his rooms. He couldn’t be outside, couldn’t be near people, not tonight of all nights.
The anniversary. The Alu save me, gods damned anniversary, and I forgot about it. He thought, pain shooting through his body, flowing from the pitiful little stubs on his back.
He could hear Scarlett’s footsteps from somewhere behind him, her voice calling to him dimly, but he didn’t hear. All he could think about was making it back to his rooms before he collapsed, before he started to bleed and shake and shout.
He slammed his shoulder into the door as his body started going numb, as his feet lost all feeling, and kicked it shut. He collapsed on the bed as his legs gave out, and he ripped off his shirt as his back began to bleed. He buried his face in the pillows as his head began to spin, and he closed his eyes as the tears began to flow.
~
A knock sounded on the door, one he barely heard through the slew of images assaulting his mind, a sound he barely registered beyond the blood leaking down his lithe body.
"Zak?” a dull, muffled voice from oh so very far away. Female. Did he know them? He felt he should…but he wasn’t sure.
He made a pitiful groaning noise as the wing stubs twitched wretchedly, their blackened and scarred ends still leaking blood down his body.
“Zakten Amenare?” came the voice again, still dim, still faint, still so very far away.
He pried his eyes open, the dim lights of the room seeming too bright for him, and the sheets of the bed seemed abrasive against his skin. “Don’t…come…in…” he rasped, not knowing exactly who this was wanting to come in, but knowing they couldn’t, they shouldn’t.
He heard the knob rattle faintly, and thrashed slightly, wanting to go and warn them off, but unable to stand on his shaking, numb legs. The door opened, and he heard a faint gasp.
"Zakten!” the female voice. The one who, through the haziness of his mind, that he wasn’t sure who they were. Cool hands touched his arms, pulled him to a sitting position, cupped his face and smoothed his hair back from his face. “My god, what happened?”
He leaned forward, his back feeling like it was being rent open. “Can’t…explain…now…” he rasped, each word feeling like an iron nail stabbed into him, over and over and over, the iron burning and searing his skin with each touch.
The hands touched his forehead gently. “You’re burning up…” they laid him back down again, helped him lay down. He could feel the mattress was dipped down beneath the weight of someone perched beside him.
The fingers of the hands laced with his fingers, and he hissed and pulled back. The fingers…one bore a ring, and the ring was iron, and the ring burned.
"I’m sorry, Zak! I forgot!” came the voice, and when the hands returned, the ring of iron was gone. The cool fingers lacing with his, the searing pain from the wretched stubs, and the forceful pain in his mind all combined in a melting pot, and he took a shuddering breath as he spun down into darkness.
~
He awoke, hours later, curled up with his hands tucked around his stomach. He sat up slowly, wincing as he felt the dried blood on his back crack and move. He took a deep, gasping breath and pried open his eyes. His eyes felt as if they had been weighed down with sandbags, and he looked around. Scarlett had fallen asleep, on her knees, beside his bed, her head pillowed on her hands, and he sighed, shoulders slumping.
"I never meant for you to see this,” he said softly, brushing her hair back from her forehead and kissing her forehead softly. “You were never supposed to know how damaged I am, why even my own kind rejects me.”
She shifted, her blue-grey eyes flicking open slowly. “Zakten,” she said quietly, sitting up. “Are you alright?”
He shrugged, quiet.
"What happened?” she asked, sitting on the bed beside him. Her eyes looked worriedly up at him, and he swallowed.
"Well…you saw my wing stubs.” he commented slowly.
"That’s what they are? What happened? Is that why you don’t have visible marks like Salis and Akanso?” she asked quickly.
He nodded. “I used to…all the high families of Cosina had specific traits, specific marks that were unique to them. The Keram family have long, prehensile tails. The Jor family have large, furry ears, and extremely good hearing. The Amenare family has-had, wings.” he was speaking slowly, looking down at the floor.
"Had?” she echoed quietly. “What happened?”
"I am the last of my family. All that remains. And I have been shorn of my marks, which means…the mark of the Amenare family line will most likely die with me.” he said softly, closing his eyes. “I lost my wings in the same month I lost the rest of my family. In your human timing, it was 4 years ago. My family was attacked, and they were…they were slowly killed off, in front of me. I was saved for last. I was bound with iron, and beaten with iron rods.” he showed her his wrists, which bore faint scars all around them from manacles. “They put…they put…they put iron rings around the base of my wings, and th-they…” he paused, swallowing, as he remembered vividly how it had felt for his wings, the wings that were such a big part of him, how it had felt for them to slowly tear away from his body, how they had begun to fall off.
She took his hands gently. He hadn’t even realized that he was digging his fingers into his palms. “You don’t have to tell me. I think I understand.”
He leaned his forehead against her shoulder. “They destroyed my wings and they destroyed my family…and when I was able to finally return home, I was half-mad, starving, and broken. My line has been disgraced, and we shall never recover, for it will die with me.”
She tightened her grip on his hands. “Why…why are you here, then? Why are you representing your kind?”
He shrugged. “Because the Leader wanted to give me an opportunity to redeem myself and my family? I don’t know. I just remember…when I first returned, everyone wanted to know what happened, and I…I could barely even tell them my own name, much less what happened. And…” he sighed. “I can’t…”
"Okay, you don’t have to.” she soothed, rubbing his lower back gently. “Just tell me one more thing? What happened last night?”
He swallowed thickly. “Yesterday was the anniversary of the day I lost my wings. And…that’s why.”
She nodded, resting her head on his shoulder and embracing him. “Okay. Okay. I’m here for you. You don’t have to do anything today, you’re okay.”
He shot upright. “No, but I do. Gods damn me, we have a meeting today.” he hauled himself upright, stumbling slightly as he made his way to the phone.
"We who?” she asked.
"The…the meetings, you know? The talks that have been going on for forever?” he replied dryly, then picked up the phone and dialed the number. It rang four times, and it was finally picked up by a rather grumpy sounding female voice.
"Zakten Amenare? Where are you?” the voice demanded.
He sighed. “I’m sorry. I’m not feeling well, and I can’t make it today.” his voice was slightly hoarse, with a gentle rasp in it.
"Oh. Do you need medical assistance? Anything?” the voice asked, and he heard, dimly, the scratchy sound of a pen on paper.
"No, thank you.” he replied, and cleared his throat. “I should be fine tomorrow.”
"Alright. Feel better soon,” there was a click as the line disconnected.
Zakten made his way back to his bed, sitting down beside Scarlett. “Well, I get the day off, I guess.” he said quietly.
~
A month later, the talks were over, and the Cosin and the Humans were at peace. Zakten, getting back on the shuttle with Salis and Akanso, waved to Scarlett. They had agreed that as soon as he could, he would come back. But for now, he was going to celebrate the fact that he had not, as he had predicted initially, started a war with the Humans.
