"Tell me about these Houses. Humans don't have them and I want to understand," she said.
Graydon hesitated, struggling to put into words what most intuitively knew. "There are five Great Houses and countless smaller ones. Many small Houses pledge their allegiance and fealty to more powerful Houses in exchange for protection. These are considered branch Houses."
"Is everyone part of a House?" Kira asked.
"For the most part. There are exceptions. A very few elect to become wanderers, their allegiance to themselves. It is a very difficult path. The rest have been exiled from their Houses and are ostracized, deemed too untrustworthy to have dealings with."
Kira made a humming sound as she thought over his words.
"It's a system set in place a long time ago when Houses feuded with one another. Once your loyalty is given, it is nearly impossible to withdraw without your House's permission."
"Sounds restrictive," she observed dryly.
Graydon allowed himself a slight smile. She was not wrong. His people were slaves to tradition and exceptionally slow to change. It could make for a stifling environment at times.
He slid a sidelong look her way. He was curious to see what effect she would have on them. She didn't strike him as the type to bow to tradition for tradition's sake. He'd been named for his ability to see a storm coming before it arrived. Many in their society considered him a danger because of it. But he believed storms were necessary at times.
"Jin, stop playing with your friends. It's time to go," Kira called as the machine swooped and ducked among the chaterling, avoiding the young as they fought to land on his housing.
Kira dipped her chin in a nod before the two disappeared through the trees.
Graydon stayed where he was. Solal appeared beside him, his gaze on the flowers that had so fascinated Kira.
"Send Baran and a couple of our warriors into human space to find out everything they can on our Kira," Graydon said, his hands clasped behind him.
Solal turned toward him, a slight surprise on his face. "You would leave her with one guard?"
Graydon flicked an irritated glance at his second. "You know I wouldn’t."
Solal's cheeks creased with humor. "Who will you assign to her then? After her demonstration earlier and the way she gave Baran the slip, every one of the oshota would volunteer for the honor."
Graydon wasn't surprised. His warriors admired strength, and Kira had demonstrated she had that in spades.
"We need someone whose presence will not be questioned when she is within her House," Graydon said.
Solal's expression turned curious. "That will be difficult. Every one of us falls under the emperor's authority. Our loyalties are owned by him. They will not trust us and it might affect how they treat her."
"Finn will work," Graydon said.
Solal's eyebrows rose. "He's Roake. They won't let him past the front doors."
"His great-grandmother was of Luatha. His line has roots in that House. They’ll accept him if only for the chance to bring his bloodline back into alignment with theirs,” Graydon said.
“Why him though?”
“I suspect she's not just Luatha but Roake as well," Graydon said.
This time shock crossed Solal's face. "You think she's dual House? You think she's the missing heir for Roake?"
Graydon grunted, giving his second a long look. "Do you know any among the Luatha who could take down a Tsavitee the way she did?"
Solal's expression turned contemplative as he thought over Graydon's statement. "True. They aren't known for their warriors. But you're forgetting, there is no mark indicating Roake and without it you’ll have a battle on your hands to get Luatha to share her with those they consider enemy."
"The mark of their House rarely presents before they pass their adva ka. If she has one, it'll be hidden. Only another Roake elder would be able to reveal it until then," Graydon said.
Solal considered him, his second's gaze contemplative as he calculated the possibilities and their possible outcomes. "Of anyone, you would know given its your birth House. If you're right, House Roake must be informed. This could cause another war if not handled correctly."
Graydon grunted.
"How are you going to get Finn to agree?" Solal asked.
It was a legitimate question, given Finn's tendency to act as a wildcard. After the disaster with his last charge, he'd refused to take another. Convincing him to protect Kira wouldn't be easy.
"I'm going to appeal to his better nature," Graydon said.
Solal sighed. "You mean you're going to threaten him."
Graydon shrugged. Same difference.
CHAPTER NINE
Kira took a deep breath and released it, trying not to let the round blue orb floating outside the star deck intimidate her.
They were finally here. Only hours lay between her and meeting people who shared her blood.
No pressure or anything. Just a reunion with a long-lost child everyone assumed dead. Nothing major or anything.
"I thought it would be more impressive," Jin said, moving closer to the window.
"We're still thousands of miles away," Kira said in a distracted voice.
"You know what I mean," he rebuked. "I thought I'd feel different seeing it."
Kira made a wry expression. She'd forgotten. If this was her home, it was Jin's too. When he'd been alive in the traditional sense, he'd been like her, his abilities different but strange. Almost magical.
Her expression turned pensive as she returned to staring at the planet they were fast approaching.
She knew what Jin was trying to say. She felt the same.
There was none of that connection she thought she'd feel upon seeing the planet where she'd been born. She'd felt more nostalgia walking through the conservatory than what she felt for the approaching planet.
She searched her feelings. Still nothing besides a touch more nervousness than normal. That was it.
"Maybe they were wrong about us," she offered.
Jin blew a raspberry. "The chances of that are less than point zero five percent."
Kira raised an eyebrow in question before realization dawned. "You sneaky pile of bolts, you've been analyzing them, haven't you?"
Jin's voice was smug. "Of course, why do you think I insisted on playing with the chaterling for so long?"
Kira stuffed down her laugh, knowing her friend didn't need any encouragement. "You know Jace told you not to because of the treaty."
The sound Jin made was rude. "Since when do I take orders from him? Besides, the treaty doesn't apply to you because you're Tuann."
Kira was pretty sure it didn't work that way, especially given what Graydon had shared the last time they'd spoken. She'd done some digging courtesy of material they'd given her and found the Tuann were very odd in a universe filled with odd things.
They had an aversion to AIs. She hadn't gotten to the why of it yet, but their laws had seemed pretty definite. Couple that with a slightly feudal society, and they were a walking contradiction, possessing advanced technology with old values.
"Just make sure you're not caught, will you?" Kira said.