Unknotted

“You’re lucky you weren’t in uniform. We can spin the narrative, so it saves you from incrimination.”

“You are too kind, Ultra.”

Glark’s hand rested gently on my head, the touch so tender and paternal. “There must have been some reason for your actions, Rokan. How did you, my most controlled dominant, lose his senses so entirely?”

I flinched. My control had been a source of humble pride, until now. How foolish it had been to be so confident in my abilities. “There’s no excuse for it.”

“Yes, there is.” Tydeus stepped forward. “He was chasing his pragmora.”

“Pragmora?” Surprise colored Glark’s voice.

“Yes, he formed the knot tonight.”

“Well, he almost formed a knot.” Chet clicked his tongue several times in disappointment. “Poor guy couldn’t seal the deal.”

I glared at him from the corner of my eye.

“Is that true?” Glark’s hands on my shoulders pushed me to rise. “A pragmora?”

I shook my head. “I can’t be sure. She took off before I understood what was happening.”

Chet propped an arm on my shoulder. “More like he scared her off. Nearly killed her, he did.”

I pushed the arm off. “I’m telling you I don’t understand what came over me. But I’m not proud of how I handled the situation.” My hands shook as I ripped the rest of the cloth away and threw it in the trash bin.

A blurry picture from a surveillance camera replaced mine. Glark paused the news footage on an enlarged photo of a terrified woman inside the portal station. A red circle surrounded her with a caption below noting her as a person of interest.

“Is this your pragmora?” Glark asked.

I squinted at the photo. Without magic, it was black and white. Add in the blurriness, I couldn’t be sure. “I don’t know what she looks like exactly.”

“Mind if I take a look?” Chet took the remote from Glark, hit play, rewound it, hit play again before pausing. He zoomed in and pointed at the screen. “No, that’s not her. She’s not in the background either.”

“What do you remember about her?” Glark asked.

“Not much,” I whispered. “Except her eyes. They’re topaz.”

“That’s not much to go on, but I’ll have our security teams search for her,” Glark said.

My heart lurched at the idea of anyone running her down. I might not recall the color of her hair or how tall she was or anything else except her topaz-colored eyes, but I remembered, with pristine clarity, the absolute terror on her face when I had chased her into the capsule. It would be cruel, savage really, for me to hunt her. It would be best to forget the evening and hoped the effects of the pragmora knot didn’t return with the next tide.

“Forgive me, Ultra, but I rather we left her alone.”

Glark’s brows rose. “If that is what you want?”

I clicked off the screen. “It is.”

“And you’ll be able to continue your duties without her? Pragmoras can be…” He sighed heavily, the sound mournful. Not for the first time, I wondered if Glark’s pragmora knot was unraveling. Was that even possible? “They can be distracting, especially when you’re apart.”

I squared my shoulders and inhaled deeply. “I live to fulfill the prophecy. I hope my mishap won’t prevent me from following that destiny.”

Glark smiled, but more and more, his smiles held less warmth. “All is forgiven. Besides, I’ll need you tomorrow. The enchantress Caspella Broshot has requested a meeting with all the territories.”

That news perked me out of my melancholy. My attention was suddenly riveted on everything Glark was saying.

“I can’t impress how important it is we make a good impression on Caspella. It’s a shame Dariya is still busy with her mission on the southern border. We could use her for moments like this.”

I glared at the ground. Dariya could be at the meeting if she wanted. Her various missions were always an excuse to avoid certain conversations. Fine by me. At the moment, I wasn’t feeling stable enough to deal with that situation gracefully.

Glark continued. “The blasted dynamist has the ability to handicap our army if she chose to, by withholding equipment and supplies for the army. That she’s invited all the territories can’t be a good sign. I need my best officers”—he looked at each of us—“vigilant when you meet with her tomorrow. If the meeting is to decide which territory she favors, we need to do everything to ensure that favor falls with us. Get some rest now.”

We turned to the door when Glark called, “Rokan, one more minute.”

“Yes, Ultra.” I didn’t hesitate. I returned to stand before Glark, while Tydeus and Chet left.

“I am sorry for the tongue lashing my pragmora gave you,” Glark said.

I dropped my eyes to the ground. “It wasn’t undeserved.”

“But to berate you in public… It’s an insult to you. And to me.” Glark softly pounded his fist on the table, irritated. “You heard what she said to be before she left, didn’t you?”

“Not intentionally, Ultra.”

“Do you think she is right? Have I gone soft in my old age? Especially with you?”

I searched for the right answer. Had I been speaking to Metallia, I would have instantly answered in the way that would please and flatter her. But Glark, who I knew better, had always preferred the truth, even if it was hard to hear. “I wouldn’t call compassion or fairness soft. My mother used to say that earning respect without fear is what separates a good dominant from a bad one.”

“I used to earn that respect through fear. It’s exhausting work. Work that hasn’t seemed to tire Metallia.”

“And earning respect honorably, is that also exhausting?”

He rubbed his face, looking a decade older than he was. “I wouldn’t know, Rokan.”

I wasn’t certain what to make of that statement. Wetting my lips, I took a step forward. “We are sending a prisoner out there back into an abusive situation. She deserves the protection we offer to those we bring into Keadan. I couldn’t convince Metallia’s brutes to allow her to stay, but you could.”

He shook his head. “I’ve told you before, we only bring in the prisoners. Sorting them is Metallia’s work.”

“But why?” Pleading and confusion laced my words. “You have as much power as she does. You can save that woman and her son from returning to Namen. How many others, who would be better off in Keadan, has Metallia exchanged with Namen? Once you spoke of mercy to reunite families, but this? How is this mercy, Ultra?”

“There’s no mercy in any of this!” His hands slapped the table, making me flinch and draw back. His words came out fast in a harsh whisper. “We aren’t in the business of mercy, Rokan. We’re in the business of fulfilling a prophecy. Metallia and I do what must be done to ensure we have the resources we need to see it so.”

My anger flared, but as always, I bit it back before it overwhelmed me. I dropped my eyes so he would know I didn’t intend to challenge him, and whispered, “I just don’t understand how sending submissives back to their dominators helps that.”

Glark inhaled deeply and faced me. “You have always been loyal and trusting. I need you to hold to the faith that what I do is for the good of Keadan and Cenzia.”

My teeth clenched as I held my tongue. Every mission, every invasion, every capture of a sub-territory made it a little hard to hold back my doubts. I tried to swallow them now, but they lodged like a bone in my throat, sharp and painful. “Yes, Ultra,” I replied softly.

Glark interlaced his fingers behind his back. “You understand I must prove to Metallia that I’m not soft? That I haven’t gone easy on you?”

I cut my gaze to meet his. There was sadness in his color-muted eyes. I nodded once.

“You understand that you are more than just a soldier to me?”

Again, I nodded.

A sad smile touched Glark’s lips. “Good.”

Then, his fist slammed into my face.