A Free Excerpt from Chapter Five
Morning sunlight streamed in the window, making the wooden walls of the room look a cheerful yellow. The room was empty except for a round bed in the center. Eliza, queen of Planet Roo, was lying in bed and slowly awakening.
This is the kind of morning that Queen Eliza liked: waking up to bright sunshine, contemplating the busy day that lay before her, and no pain anywhere in her body. This kind of weather was so good to her aching joints. Eliza stretched out her back legs and fore paws while her tail thumped contentedly.
She looked similar to the rest of the Roonian males on her planet except for her size and her skin; she was six feet tall instead of the male four, and she had a scaly black exterior. An elaborate queen's design covered the center of her back. Her face was larger than the men's faces, but similar in every other way. She had a jutting triangular head that came to a point at the nose, tiny red eyes, and a mouth that was small in front but long on each side of the face. Roonian teeth were small and square, crooked, and packed around the tongue in two or three rows.
Eliza had always thought that Mother Nature was a strange god indeed. It made no sense to her that the Roonian males lived such painless and happy lives while she, the honored and respected queen of the planet, must suffer through so much physical pain -- pain that got worse, harshly and grindingly worse, as she aged. Part of the problem was the basic construction of her female body. Her two short bony legs were expected to hold up a thick trunk and a broad heavy back. Her short tail didn't help provide balance; it seemed to only add a heavy weight to the bottom of her back. Most likely Eliza's pain was due to aging. That was something she didn't like thinking about.
She stretched again and howled a typical Roonian howl, which sounded painful to aliens such as the Yadans, but was nothing more than an ancient and universal yawn. And the older one got, the worse the morning howling. She collapsed back on her bed and flexed her tiny feet, feeling content.
She thought about her fellow Roonian men, her seven husbands, her sons, and all the sons her mother and grandmother and all her queen ancestors bore before her. Lord, how Eliza loved these men! Her heart swelled with pride whenever she thought about them. That they took her love for granted showed their innocence. It would shock these guys if they knew that all queens did not love the job they were born into. Mother hadn't loved her life, but Grandma had, and Grandma was the one that Eliza had wanted to listen to and learn from. After all, Eliza had always reasoned, there was nothing a queen could do but accept the position she was born into, so she might as well find a way to enjoy it. She had been born to be queen, and on Planet Roo, a girl couldn't change that any more than she could change the intricate design on her back that designated her royal position.
Eliza was the most intelligent of the Roonian queens. Recorded history revealed that the Roonian species evolved so that each queen was smarter than her mother, but Roonian male intelligence remained unchanged. Male lives were governed by instinct, entrenched in routine, and innocent of any emotional pain. They led a simple, contented existence that remained unchanged for centuries.
In 5,000 years of Roo's recorded history, the species had remained isolated in the universe, but in Eliza's lifetime an unprecedented and historic event changed Roonian lives forever -- the planet was brought into the Universal Community. Eliza has since become the first queen to meet aliens, the first to travel off Planet Roo, and the first to try to learn another culture and language.
She traveled extensively. For the past ten years she has attended the annual Universal Community meeting. She'd also traveled to other planets for official visits, tours, and various international events. She interacted extensively with the Yadans, the most advanced aliens in the community. Eliza was always grateful to have lived through such an eventful, thrilling, though tiring life.
Through all of Eliza's travels, she learned one thing -- that Roonian culture was superior. In the 5,000 years of recorded Roonian history there had never been a single case of violence among Roonian citizens. Roo had no written laws, no crime, and no prisons. Most Roonians boys had no concept of such things. Eliza and the adult men were aware that such behavior existed in the universe, but Eliza had to travel to other planets in order to understand the impact that violent behavior had on a society. Although Eliza's travels had always been safe, she felt terrified when she thought about the violence that was out there. Eliza shuddered at the thought. Aliens could be so vicious. The Mytes, the Sitas, the recently discovered refugee Human Beings -- they all had long histories of violent behavior. It was so barbaric!
Eliza stretched and howled again. She didn't want to think of such unpleasant things as Sitas and Humans right now. A radiant morning like this one was cause for celebration. Eliza climbed out of bed, her scales flaking off of her body as she moved. She looked down and frowned at the flakes dirtying her bed. She was getting older, all right. But that couldn't change her good mood.
Procreation season was approaching soon; something that Eliza always anticipated with excitement. Maybe this season would be the one that would finally bring her daughter to the planet. Eliza felt ready to pass her responsibilities on to the next queen. She looked forward to the change her daughter would bring to her life. There would be the birth celebrations all over Roo, then the rearing of the girl, then Eliza's final retirement into a slower, quieter lifestyle.
This is the kind of morning that Queen Eliza liked: waking up to bright sunshine, contemplating the busy day that lay before her, and no pain anywhere in her body. This kind of weather was so good to her aching joints. Eliza stretched out her back legs and fore paws while her tail thumped contentedly.
She looked similar to the rest of the Roonian males on her planet except for her size and her skin; she was six feet tall instead of the male four, and she had a scaly black exterior. An elaborate queen's design covered the center of her back. Her face was larger than the men's faces, but similar in every other way. She had a jutting triangular head that came to a point at the nose, tiny red eyes, and a mouth that was small in front but long on each side of the face. Roonian teeth were small and square, crooked, and packed around the tongue in two or three rows.
Eliza had always thought that Mother Nature was a strange god indeed. It made no sense to her that the Roonian males lived such painless and happy lives while she, the honored and respected queen of the planet, must suffer through so much physical pain -- pain that got worse, harshly and grindingly worse, as she aged. Part of the problem was the basic construction of her female body. Her two short bony legs were expected to hold up a thick trunk and a broad heavy back. Her short tail didn't help provide balance; it seemed to only add a heavy weight to the bottom of her back. Most likely Eliza's pain was due to aging. That was something she didn't like thinking about.
She stretched again and howled a typical Roonian howl, which sounded painful to aliens such as the Yadans, but was nothing more than an ancient and universal yawn. And the older one got, the worse the morning howling. She collapsed back on her bed and flexed her tiny feet, feeling content.
She thought about her fellow Roonian men, her seven husbands, her sons, and all the sons her mother and grandmother and all her queen ancestors bore before her. Lord, how Eliza loved these men! Her heart swelled with pride whenever she thought about them. That they took her love for granted showed their innocence. It would shock these guys if they knew that all queens did not love the job they were born into. Mother hadn't loved her life, but Grandma had, and Grandma was the one that Eliza had wanted to listen to and learn from. After all, Eliza had always reasoned, there was nothing a queen could do but accept the position she was born into, so she might as well find a way to enjoy it. She had been born to be queen, and on Planet Roo, a girl couldn't change that any more than she could change the intricate design on her back that designated her royal position.
Eliza was the most intelligent of the Roonian queens. Recorded history revealed that the Roonian species evolved so that each queen was smarter than her mother, but Roonian male intelligence remained unchanged. Male lives were governed by instinct, entrenched in routine, and innocent of any emotional pain. They led a simple, contented existence that remained unchanged for centuries.
In 5,000 years of Roo's recorded history, the species had remained isolated in the universe, but in Eliza's lifetime an unprecedented and historic event changed Roonian lives forever -- the planet was brought into the Universal Community. Eliza has since become the first queen to meet aliens, the first to travel off Planet Roo, and the first to try to learn another culture and language.
She traveled extensively. For the past ten years she has attended the annual Universal Community meeting. She'd also traveled to other planets for official visits, tours, and various international events. She interacted extensively with the Yadans, the most advanced aliens in the community. Eliza was always grateful to have lived through such an eventful, thrilling, though tiring life.
Through all of Eliza's travels, she learned one thing -- that Roonian culture was superior. In the 5,000 years of recorded Roonian history there had never been a single case of violence among Roonian citizens. Roo had no written laws, no crime, and no prisons. Most Roonians boys had no concept of such things. Eliza and the adult men were aware that such behavior existed in the universe, but Eliza had to travel to other planets in order to understand the impact that violent behavior had on a society. Although Eliza's travels had always been safe, she felt terrified when she thought about the violence that was out there. Eliza shuddered at the thought. Aliens could be so vicious. The Mytes, the Sitas, the recently discovered refugee Human Beings -- they all had long histories of violent behavior. It was so barbaric!
Eliza stretched and howled again. She didn't want to think of such unpleasant things as Sitas and Humans right now. A radiant morning like this one was cause for celebration. Eliza climbed out of bed, her scales flaking off of her body as she moved. She looked down and frowned at the flakes dirtying her bed. She was getting older, all right. But that couldn't change her good mood.
Procreation season was approaching soon; something that Eliza always anticipated with excitement. Maybe this season would be the one that would finally bring her daughter to the planet. Eliza felt ready to pass her responsibilities on to the next queen. She looked forward to the change her daughter would bring to her life. There would be the birth celebrations all over Roo, then the rearing of the girl, then Eliza's final retirement into a slower, quieter lifestyle.
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