Read The Pearl (Galactic Jewels Book 1) for Free Online Page A

sipped and waited, hoping Fransín might get up early today since this was one of our last mornings together. My favorite book rested in a wall cubby and I touched the jeweled bookmark resting between the aging pages. Fransín had given it to me as a festival gift years before and I treasured it. She’d saved a thousand pectagas to trade for it, a tidbit I’d learned well after she’d given me the gift. The rubies and sapphires and emeralds on the jewel-encrusted hilt glittered in the subdued light of the waterfall, winking and twinkling like a live creature beside me.
    I couldn’t shake the impending loss of her constant companionship.
    We didn’t   talk about that. Ever. Our separation was coming whether we discussed it or not, all part of the deal when she’d signed on as my companion, divested of choice and any real sort of future. We’d discussed all of our options, some that had included her being a pearl or ruby with her own consort, which would have afforded us the ability to see each other after our individual unions. She hadn’t wanted that, knowing that the decision left her forever a consort. We’d both walked into our decisions eyes wide open and it had taken me a few weeks to resign myself to what she’d given up for me.
    As for my union, political shuffling probably happened behind the scenes, but that was fine. You wanted to send up a General’s son because you owed him a favor? You risked your galaxy's representative not being chosen. I had full access to every detail about their representative, not only what he presented during the date.
    We called these presentations because it was a mere formality. By the time I met these representatives face to face I’d spent hours with their historical documentation from not only their existence, but my team went through generations of documentation, pulling out details I needed to be as informed as possible.
    I knew his likes, dislikes, preferences, pet peeves, decisions he’d made and how he’d weighted the details. Every predilection, bias, and fondness meant something; the reason he picked blue over green, took the subway instead of the motorcade, ate noodles instead of seafare, ran pattril instead of benwin. All those results went into my algorithm of which galaxies were allowed to send representatives.
    His history wasn’t the only factoring portion, I also had insight into his mother’s, father’s, grandfather’s, great auntie’s. I knew who his brother had chosen for his mate—and why. I knew his sister’s tastes and what she despised.
    Unions were a big deal. They had to be. Together we held the seams of the universe together, we ruled our utopian societies with firm but gentle hands, guiding them with ideas and cross-pollination between the species that kept everything running smoothly. As the pearl, I was the final decision on all things, and my mate was my best counsel. The algorithm accounted for my own weaknesses and rated candidates based on how their strengths matched up.
    Out of all the candidates I’d researched, the Hemperklu had quickly risen to the top three, then, the more discussions I’d had with him, earned the top spot where he’d remained for the last two and a half years. Based on the research and accompanying packet, the Spiznwix had been near the top as well, but he’d performed so poorly when we’d met in real life, I couldn’t imagine having to rule with him on a daily basis.
    Some times real life trumped what existed in databanks and algorithms.  

C HAPTER 7

    F RANSÍN CAME IN , gold skirt askew, green hair mussed and plastered to her cheek, weaving and fighting the grips of sleep. “Morning.” She rubbed her eyes. “How was it?”
    I tipped my cup, draining the last swallow of the warm nectar, buying me time to let the heaviness of the morning drain away while she came over. I grinned. “Best birthday yet.”
    After a lopsided sleepy hug, she wandered into the closet. I stood and shook my arms and