use to defend their systems. And they are fierce. They fight with even greater intensity than their warriors did. Many field commanders left the battle when they realized most of the enemy fleet is now staffed with females, but Elius’s hand-picked commanders shame themselves and our people by making war on women. Now, that terrible virus has mutated and come back to us. It kills our women, Tigh. The specific gene it targeted in humans was on the Y chromosome carried only by the males, but in our people, it targets something on both X chromosomes carried by all females. Males are spared, they believe, because we only have one X chromosome.” Torm’s old face grew pained in the hologram. “Tigh, my own daughter is gravely ill as I record this message. You’ve got to come back to the capital, as I have, to bring some order to the mess your brother left.”
Tigh felt heaviness in his heart. His brother was dead, and from what Torm said, his people were in serious trouble. He’d given up his claim to the seat of power in favor of his brother and Elius’s future children. He wasn’t sure where he stood legally, but he would act as an advisor, if necessary, or in any capacity where he could help set things right.
“Elius’s daughters are sick,” Torm went on. “They tell me the youngest girl is only hours from death. He had no son,” the holo continued. “You will be heir to the throne, once more, if things go as I fear and both princesses succumb to the virus.”
Tigh switched off the holo. He couldn’t bear to hear any more. The high priest stood silently at his side, watching him with troubled eyes.
“What should I do?”
The old man narrowed his eyes. “The Mother Goddess has seen all that has transpired. You already know your duty, Tigh. We’ve long suspected your path lay not with the priesthood. It’s why we have denied you the final vows and will continue to do so.”
Tigh felt defeat in his heart. It was not something a jit’suku warrior could stomach easily.
“Then, I must leave the Zenai and do what I can for the empire.”
The priest patted Tigh’s slumped shoulders. “You must follow where the Mother Goddess leads. There is much wrong to put right, and it seems you are the instrument to do it.”
“If I’d taken the throne, none of this would ever have happened.” Regret filled his heart. He’d loved his brother and thought to give Elius the one thing fate had denied him.
Tigh couldn’t believe Elius had released a bioweapon on the humans. It was an act abhorrent to their warrior nature. Tigh was amazed any of his people would have gone along with such a plan. Apparently, much had changed since he’d sought refuge on the Zenai mountain, years ago.
“Did you ever think that perhaps, She sent you here so that you could learn the right way to govern the empire? The Mother Goddess has plans far deeper than our small minds can comprehend, Tigh. Trust in Her, and all will come right, according to Her plan.”
CHAPTER ONE
One Standard Human Year Later
Emperor Tigh came as a supplicant before the humans’ Governing Council. Begging was not something a jit’suku warrior normally did, but dire circumstances called for drastic measures. Over the past year since he’d claimed the throne of his failing empire, almost all women of childbearing age and younger among the jit’suku had died.
But the humans had women. And Tigh had learned through his endless study of their peoples’ respective histories, some human women could, and had, bred with jit’suku males in the distant past.
The humans had few fertile men. Large numbers of human women had been sick with the virus, yet survived. As a result of the damage done to them on a genetic level, they would never be able to conceive from a human male, but some twist of fate would allow those same women to produce female children with more resilient double X chromosomes with jit’suku males.
The answer to both the human problem and the jit’suku problem was clear, though it would be difficult to carry out. Enemies must become not only friends, but lovers. Tigh knew, in order to show the way to his people, he must select a mate from among the humans—if any human female would have him.
He’d given up hope of finding his true mate and would settle for any woman that would at least be friendly towards him.