Chapter 199

Concessions

Two hours later, Alexander found himself a guest of Sheikha Khalida Al-Hashara, Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and ruler of Dubai.

Assuming one was still a guest even when there were a dozen armed guards in the form of superheroes escorting you whether you liked it or not.

Augustus and Annie stood behind him, both on high alert and positioned to react as quickly as superhumanly possible should things go sideways. Which, given the tension in the room, they very well could.

Felix sat by his chair in cat form, one paw pressed against his leg, slowly healing the damage he’d accumulated during the fight. He’d already done what he could for Annie’s eye, but unfortunately, he could not repair the eyeball back to function. That would require a trip to a specialized healer back on Astra Omnia.

Assuming they were able to leave Dubai. That was still very much up in the air.

To his left, Jasmine sat with her briefcase open on the table. Talia had insisted that he insist they pick up their legal representation.

It was probably the smart thing to do. And Alexander was known to listen to good advice.

On occasion.

Talia herself was present in digital spirit. Droney, floating just over his shoulder, was providing her with eyes and ears. And a mouth, courtesy of Droney’s speaker system, should it be needed.

Maximilian, Julia, and Raelene sat opposite Alexander, the long marble table stretching between them. They’d also brought along their legal representative, Brandt. Where the Dragon Lord had returned to his usual picture of a stoic leader, Julia had been fidgeting nonstop.

Unusual. But not undeserved, given the circumstances.

Even he was a bit worried. Grimnir was outnumbered three to one. Four to one if you counted the Throne of Scales.

The room itself was built to impress. Vaulted ceilings inlaid with gold and lapis lazuli. Floor-to-ceiling windows lined one wall, overlooking Dubai’s nighttime skyline. A single enormous rug, deep blue and cream, broke up the expansive marble floor. Carved wooden screens separated the main chamber from side rooms, their latticed patterns casting shadows in the light. It was the kind of room designed to make visitors feel small while pretending to make them feel welcome.

The guards were spread evenly along the walls. Relaxed in a way that meant they were anything but.

That made sense. Alexander wasn’t very relaxed either. He had one of his mental threads already inside the ring, ready to deploy everything in an instant. Augustus had standing instructions to tear open a portal the moment he thought it necessary, and damn the consequences.

A door opened at the far end of the chamber. Sheikha Khalida Al-Hashara entered without fanfare, flanked by a single aide carrying a tablet.

She was younger than he’d expected. Early forties, perhaps, though her sharp features made it difficult to guess. Dark hair pulled back from her face in a simple style that suggested she hadn’t had time for anything more elaborate. She wore a tailored charcoal suit over a high-collared blouse the color of ivory, no jewelry except for a single ring and a thin chain at her throat. No abaya, no headscarf.

A deliberate choice that said more about her politics than any speech could.

She moved with the unhurried pace of someone accustomed to rooms going quiet when she entered. Her eyes swept the table once, cataloguing everyone present, lingering briefly on Annie’s ruined eye before settling on Alexander.

He felt the faintest brush against his thoughts. Light. Almost polite. Testing whether he’d notice.

He noticed. And his Will responded, rebuffing the probe.

Her expression didn’t change, but something shifted behind her eyes. Acknowledgment, maybe. Or reassessment.

She took her seat at the head of the table and glanced at one of the guards along the wall. A small nod. The guard raised a hand, and the air around the table changed. The ambient hum of the city beyond the windows vanished.

A superpowered privacy field.

“My apologies for keeping you waiting,” she said. Her voice was low and measured. “As I’m sure you can appreciate, it has been a complicated evening.”

Alexander chuckled. It almost sounded inappropriate amongst all the marble. “AEGIS gets caught red-handed trafficking slaves on your soil, attacking registered international superheroes, and to top it off, you get to deal with a bunch of rogue supervillains that broke the law in the middle of sanctioned, galactic arbitration. Complicated is the perfect word to describe it.”

The Sheikha studied him for a long moment. “You… cut quite clearly to the heart of the matter, don’t you?”

He shrugged. “Better than ignoring the elephant in the room.”

Felix glanced up at him. “But I am a cat right now, Alex.”

Alexander glanced down and patted him on the head. “Not you, Felix. It’s a saying.”

“This is a serious problem, Alex,” Maximilian said.

He raised an eyebrow at the Dragon Lord. That was the first time the man had ever called him by his nickname. It was always Alexander this, Rooke that.

Maximilian continued. “Breaching the rules of arbitration means the revocation of your protected status while in Dubai. And that’s just the beginning.”

Jasmine cleared her throat. “That is only relevant if you, as the aggrieved party, press the matter, Mr. de Castillo.”

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“Actually, Ms. Sharp,” Brandt replied, “AEGIS representatives have already reported it directly to the ESA. They will also have submitted a complaint directly to the Galactic Council’s Arbitration Committee. It is out of our hands.”

Alexander pinched the bridge of his nose. That was problematic. Without a doubt, Grimnir had earned some goodwill with the Council during their time on the Nexus. But he doubted it would be enough to avoid repercussions in this case. Arbitration was not a game. It was the backbone upon which even entire species could negotiate terms in good faith. They wouldn’t, couldn’t abide having someone thumb their nose at it.

Talia’s voice came through Droney’s speaker. “Surely the circumstances cast AEGIS and any… accusations they make in an unreliable light?”

Sheikha Khalida glanced curiously at the drone. “Talia Kim, correct?”

“Yes, Sheikha. I apologize that I cannot be present in person.”

“Not at all. And you are quite correct that tonight’s circumstances will have far-reaching consequences for AEGIS.” Her eyes took on a dangerous glint. “Regardless of whatever else happens here, I will see to that personally. But it does not change the truth, nor erase the evidence of Grimnir’s actions.”

Khalida’s voice softened. “Even if they were honorable.”

Silence fell across the room.

Maximilian closed his eyes. “We have not always seen eye to eye, Alexander. Our disagreement is fundamental to our natures, but I genuinely believe that we agree on the end goal. The law matters.”

“Unless it gets in the way of what’s right.”

“And who decides that, Alex?” Maximilian opened his eyes and met Alexander’s gaze. “You? Me? What about the Sheikha here? Should she decide for both of us?” He sighed. “No. It cannot be any of us. We hold too much power at our fingertips, and we are destined to hold so much more that even our slightest whim might reshape the world for billions.”

Alexander paused. The man seated opposite him spoke with such conviction that it was easy to see the Dragon Lord beneath. And he couldn’t even disagree with what Maximilian was saying. He knew all too well how easily power swayed one’s thinking.

It was far too easy to look down on the world when you could soar to the heights they could.

Maximilian’s shoulders slumped. The shift was barely a fraction of an inch in the man’s posture, but it was there. “I hoped that if we could bring together even just a few of the divines in agreement, we might keep a semblance of order even against whatever the System might have planned.”

“It’s easy to think that the law is all that matters when your path to becoming a superhero is all but guaranteed, Max.” Alexander gave him a tired smile. “Some of us got thrown in prison and forced to see the world for what it is. And even after we escaped, all that’s left to us is to rail against the bars that keep us trapped.”

“That’s why I wanted you and Grimnir to be part of it,” Maximilian said. “Because you understand better than the rest of us why it matters so much.”

Alexander shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. You can’t build something good on top of a corrupt foundation, Max.”

Raelene spoke for the first time. “What if we helped you tear out the corruption, then, Alexander?”

Everyone turned in her direction.

“What do you mean?” Julia asked her friend.

Raelene glanced at her and shrugged. “I’ve been investigating Santiago Systems for months. Ever since you told me that there was no way your beloved, totally-ex-boyfriend could ever possibly have deserved to be thrown into prison.”

Julia gaped at her. “I didn’t say that. I might have been complaining—”

“Anyway,” Raelene said, cutting her off, “one thing led to another, and I uncovered a lot of circumstantial evidence against both them and AEGIS. Nothing damning by itself, but enough that we distanced ourselves. Not to mention our fearless leader over here has been clashing regularly with their representatives ever since they forced us to pull our press release admitting that Grimnir had taken out Mercy and Pandora’s crew. Add that to whatever intelligence Talia has, plus tonight’s incident, and I’m sure we can show where both guilds stand on this matter.”

“I would also be on board with such a plan of action,” Sheikha Khalida said. “Unfortunately, it does not solve the primary problem. I fear the conversation has gone astray.”

“Actually, it might,” Jasmine said suddenly. “The issue is a breach of contract between Grimnir and the ESA. However, the Emirates Superhuman Authority acts as arbitrators only as an extension of the United Arab Emirates.”

“Because they delegate it,” Brandt concluded. “But the actual authority rests with the nation. And its rulers.”

Jasmine nodded. “Exactly.”

Alexander turned to her. “How does that help us, though? Because I’d really like it if it did.”

“Well, if Sheikha Khalida or another high enough ranking leader within the country were to have sanctioned your… operation, perhaps even as part of an ongoing investigation into the theft of superhuman serum from the Ascension Oasis, along with possible AEGIS involvement, then Grimnir would not have been breaking the rules of arbitration at all.”

Annie leaned over his shoulder, almost causing him to jump. “That sounds perfect. Would that work?”

The Sheikha smiled, but shook her head. “It’s a plausible idea, but for one problem. Even if I were to create and backdate the paperwork, the truth would come out during the UEG’s subsequent investigation into the matter. Which would inevitably involve truth-seekers.”

“Unless…” Brandt paused, frowning, “such discussions were to have taken place during mediation. Because only the Galactic Council Arbitration Committee can demand the release of anything discussed or agreed upon as part of arbitration. And they would have no reason to if all parties involved were in agreement.”

“They also don’t have access to superpowers for detecting any deceit,” Jasmine added.

Maximilian crossed his arms. “It would be easily disproven. Sheikha Khalida was not involved in our arbitration discussion.”

“She was, actually,” Alexander said. “She involved herself telepathically during our first meeting. Spoke to us through the clone. We could use truth-seekers in our favor if we agreed to only answer the right questions.”

Brandt turned to Maximilian. “It is an elegant solution, assuming all parties were agreeable. The details of our conversations would be protected. It would only take a single statement from the Sheikha, declaring that both Grimnir and the Throne of Scales were engaged as… outside experts on superhuman matters.”

Alexander looked at Jasmine. “Aren’t you two not allowed to suggest we do something illegal?”

Her eyes met his. Calm. Sharp. “I am not at all advising you to do anything illegal, Mr. Rooke. I am merely explaining the complex interactions between UEG and galactic law, as well as hastily amended contracts by duly appointed arbitration authorities.”

Alexander blinked. Then he glanced between Khalida and Maximilian. “And you two would be okay with this…” He waved a hand in the air. “Legal fiction?”

The Sheikha leaned back in her chair, hands steepled in front of her face. “I would require concessions, of course. Namely, Dubai becomes an operational center for some major element of whatever the Machine God and the Dragon Lord are involved in.” She smiled. “There isn’t much I wouldn’t do to ensure my city’s future, and I can’t see any better way to accomplish that than having two of the prophesied Eight as beholden protectors.”

Alexander turned to Maximilian, whose expression had hardened. There was a long silence.

Then the other guild leader nodded. “I am…” Maximilian ground his teeth. “Willing to concede the necessity of this plan. Contingent upon finalizing negotiations between Grimnir and the Throne of Scales.”

Alexander stared at him. He hadn’t believed the man capable of bending, not where it really counted. Then again, he had once before, just a little, on the Nexus. When it meant choosing between protecting lives or keeping a top-secret piece of superhuman intelligence.

Perhaps they were more alike than either of them wanted to admit.

Alexander laughed as the tension drained away.

He hadn’t really wanted to be a galactic criminal, anyway.

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