The Space Empress He Craved

Chapter 109

POV: Lyra

I felt Orion's panicked grip so I turned my attention away from Russell, who just came with Annie and Christian. I then stroked Orion's facial surface as I cooed, "Orion, everything is fine. Breathe. Everything is alright."

When his breathing steadied and I let go of his face, Christian came over to pat Orion on the shoulder and asked in concern, "You alright, cuz?"

"Y-Yeah. Just need to splash some solution on my face." He got up from his seat to press neural contact on my facial surface as he whispered, "I won't take long. I'll be right back."

To my surprise, my match ruffled Russell's cranial covering with a warm smile before he headed to the cleansing station to wash away the sleepiness. Orion listened to their conversation while he was at the station.

I was speaking to his four-cycle-old competitor now seated on my lap, "So, Russell. What were you building yesterday?"

After some rummaging sounds, he heard me gasping in astonishment and asked, "Is this a transport shuttle?" He saw the youngling nodding through the reflective surface before I exclaimed, "You're so clever, Russell!"

The youngling's smile was radiant for only a moment before he patted my left leg with his small hand and asked, "Are you okay, Aunt Lyra?"

I smiled and pressed neural contact to his cranial area before responding, "I'm okay now. Thank you for asking, Russell. You're so sweet."

"I care about Aunt Lyra." He said before leaning into my thoracic cavity and making my cardiac pump melt.

Annie then said, "Ellia and Benjamin wanted to come. But Christian and I said that it was too risky. We only brought Russell because Orion promised that he could come if he went to his habitat with us last night."

I stroked the youngling's cranial covering as I asked, "Are they okay? The families?"

Christian looked at me in disbelief, "My Empress, they're fine. Please, let's just worry about you first." He then locked eyes with his cousin when he exited the cleansing station, "She deserves to sit on the throne more than you do, cuz."

Orion smiled as he responded, "We're both on the same page on that point."

I rolled my optical organs and the alliance knocked on the portal before walking in. "Oh, thank the cosmos!" Toby exclaimed and came to give his best friend an embrace. "Do you know how void-scary it was for us yesterday, Lyra?"

I chuckled, "Not as scary as what I'm going to do to you in training when I'm back on my feet again."

Toby didn't look scared at all this time as he smiled radiantly and said, "I'm looking forward to that combat session, Lyra."

I looked at Toby in confusion but before I could assess my friend's sudden change in reaction to a combat challenge, he had already left my side to let Juan come next. Juan squeezed me a little before he asked, "Can you feel your lower limbs?"

"I can. Odd, isn't it? No Kaelari is known to survive Xytherium." I said.

Juan smiled and said in all seriousness, "It's not odd, Lyra. It's right. After everything you've done for everyone, losing you to poison would've been downright wrong." Murmurs of approval circulated the crowded chamber. Hale embraced me next. And one by one, the alliance came to embrace their smallest member.

When Tate held me in his arms, he whispered as softly as he could, "Don't do that to us again, Lyra. It's great to finally have you back."

"Thanks, Tate." I said gratefully.

The station leader released me as soon as Orion moved closer to my side. Russell, who was placed on the floor when the alliance came in, tried to get my attention again. I lifted him up and placed the youngling back on my lap before looking at everyone as I asked casually, "So, by any chance anyone can guess why someone was trying to use Xytherium on me? I'm still a little tired to think."

"Oh, right. I forgot." Orion said, drawing everyone's attention to him. He told them about the bio-fluid-stained message Dr. Karr got him to have a look while he caressed my shoulder in slow, soothing motions. When he explained that Russell was the actual target, all eyes fell on the youngling who was minding his own business with his self-built toy shuttle. And I reflexively held him closer to my thoracic cavity.

"They know." I muttered in dismay.

"What, Lyra?" Juan asked.

My hand reached for my vocal processor when I realized I uttered something that was supposed to be confidential. I really needed to recover faster. Fatigue always did this to me. Orion pressed neural contact to my cranial area as he uttered, "It's okay, star-heart. It was going to come out either way."

The Emperor faced the chamber and told them that Christian and Annie were housing three families who were helping them in a corruption case they have against a few beings. Lovelace muttered the thought that went through everyone's processors, "So it's one of the five who ordered the poison then."

Two doctors knocked on the portal before stepping in. Everyone stayed silent as Dr. Karr and the one who led the treatment the previous day, Dr. Gina, did their checks on me. When they were done, Dr. Gina said, "Well, everything seems to be fine, my Empress. If you don't mind, we'd like to see if you can walk on your own."

"Sure, okay." I said. Orion took Russell from me and pulled the covers away. I pushed myself off the platform a little too fast that it almost gave Orion a cardiac malfunction. His free hand held on to my right arm, thinking that I was about to fall. Even Tate exclaimed in panic, "Lyra, slow down!"

Orion loosened his grip on me when he realized that I was actually stable from the start. I narrowed my eyes at Tate and said, "I'm fine, Tate. I'm not made of transparisteel." The station leader sighed and shook his cranial area in frustration as Orion tried his best to control the jealousy building up in his thoracic cavity.

I took a few steps around the chamber with ease, walking around the small space in the loose medical garment. Dr. Gina then asked, "Do you feel any discomfort anywhere, my Empress?"

"No. But my lower limbs don't feel strong enough to kick yet." I said as I lifted each foot off the ground to feel their strength.

Dr. Karr scoffed, "My Empress, you just healed, by yourself, from a poison that even a Lyrokan didn't survive from. You're in better shape than anyone can expect. The strength in your lower limbs will return with enough rest and nourishment."

"How did I do it though? How did I heal?" I asked the doctors.

The two colleagues in white medical coats glanced at each other uneasily, and looked at me again as Dr. Karr sheepishly admitted, "We were hoping that you could tell us that, my Empress."

"Me?" My eyes widened in surprise as I sat back on the platform, much to Orion's relief. He didn't want me moving around too much yet.

"You don't know, Your Eminence?" Dr. Gina asked with eyebrows furrowed in disbelief. I shook my cranial area.

Dr. Karr then asked, "Do you remember anything when you were out, my Empress?"