Let that sit on the air for a moment while I enjoyed Jeff and Christopher’s totally shocked looks. They matched most of the rest of the room’s quite nicely. “I thought that the rules said that if someone said ‘no way, José’ that they were out of contention. And that Alfred, Stanley, and Terry being banished here removed them from the royal line.”
Alexander shook his head. “Per my great-uncle? Yes. Per Councilor Leonidas, who reviewed all of our royal history once I was put onto the throne, King Adolphus was a traitor to our people and our world, and therefore any decrees he made against another member of the Royal Family are null and void. The entire Martini, Gower, and White families, including the former and current Supreme Pontifexes, are all Alpha Four royalty of some kind, either by blood or by marriage. Alfred is the most direct descendant in the bloodline, but remains a Royal Prince since he officially abdicated once relations between Alpha Four and Earth were normalized. Therefore, Jeff, as his only son, has the strongest claim.”
“Ah, I refused the throne on Alpha Four,” Jeff pointed out. “We all did, me, Christopher, Paul, and Michael.”
Alexander smiled at us. A little nervously. “Yes, you did. However, that does not affect this situation, as it was interpreted by our laws as a specific refusal of the Alpha Four throne only. In other words, should you wish it or it becomes necessary, you actually can say you’re King Jeffrey and Queen Katherine of Earth.”
CHAPTER 47
THERE WAS UTTER QUIET in the room. Could understand that. Galactic royal politics was confusing as hell. And even more surprising. I was, frankly, almost as surprised by this as I’d been when I’d first discovered Jeff was royalty. Nice to know that I wasn’t so jaded that things like this still threw me. And everyone else, based on the expressions of most of the room.
Chose to be the one to break the shocked silence. “Wow. Well, that’s a handy thing to have in our back pockets should we need it. I’m saying these next words as the First Lady, though. Someone needs to call Congress into an immediate emergency session. Anyone not in town can be whisked here via a nice team of Field agents and the nearest gate. Anyone refusing to show up within the next, oh, let’s call it two hours, will be considered a traitor and tossed into jail.”
“That’s a tad extreme,” Antoinette said, voice loaded with disapproval.
“Is it? Oh, I’m sorry, I thought an absolute tonnage of aliens were arriving, with an armada of deadly killers right behind them. My bad. I’m sure we have all the time in the freaking world. Let’s all call it a night, sleep in, and hang by the pool tomorrow, what say?”
The room went still again. Quieter than it had been when Muddy had stomped his foot or Jeff had bellowed or Alexander had shared that the Royal Family was going strong on Earth. Apparently everyone was waiting to see if we were about to get into a Girl Fight. Wondered that myself.
Antoinette actually tried to stare me down. I was impressed. She folded fast, but still, gave her props for trying. “I apologize for speaking out of turn.”
“Whatever and as if I care. I do that all the time. It isn’t that you spoke, it’s what you were trying to say that was the issue. And, I’m going to channel Muddy and say that you need to listen, really listen, to what I’m about to say.”
She locked eyes with me again. “I’m listening.”
“You have no freaking idea of what’s coming. But I do. Many of us in this room do. And you will stop worrying about protocol right now. In what I’m going to bet is less than twelve hours, all of Earth’s precious protocols are going to be shattered, potentially forever.”
“You’re talking about our constitution, our laws,” Antoinette said.
“I’m talking about our survival. When the Themnir arrive, our world will be changed forever. Because, unlike the last couple of invasions, these aliens don’t plan to leave. We will either become a nation of aliens or we will likely perish. If we had the luxury of time, sure, we’d follow all the protocols. But we don’t.”
“You don’t know that.”
“Oh, but I do, I really and truly do. Unless we all work together, faster than we ever have before, what’s chasing the people fleeing here for protection will destroy us. Ergo, I’m going for more than a tad extreme—I’m going Full Monty Extreme, and if you don’t like it, then it point-blank sucks to be you, because I refuse to allow your clucking over meaningless crap to be the reason I, my husband, our nation, and our world aren’t ready for the biggest test we’ve ever had.”
“And in this test,” Jeff said, “failure means the death of every living soul on this planet. So, should anyone else feel that Kitty’s overstating things, you can feel free to get the hell out. I want solutions and actionable plans, not roadblocks.”
No one moved, no one spoke. Wondered if everyone was taking my sales wisdom to heart or if we’d just scared the crap out of them. Kind of hoped it was the latter, but was unwilling to bet on it.
McMillan cleared his throat, breaking the tense silence. “I’ll send out the call to the Senate.”
“And I will send the call to the House,” Nathalie Gagnon-Brewer added quickly. “I have more influence as Secretary of Transportation than I did as a Representative.” She looked at the other Cabinet members, who all nodded and said they’d help with calling all the various congresspeople.
“I’ll get the military on high alert, but with the admonition that we cannot fire on these people,” Uncle Mort said. “However, we’ll need to have Jeff involved in all of that, because we’re going to have a lot of pushback.”
“Tell them that it didn’t work when the Z’porrah invaded the last time, and it won’t work now,” I suggested. Of course, it hadn’t worked because of ACE. Had no idea if ACE could or should do that again—he’d been harmed by all he’d had to do, and I didn’t want him that near to his version of death again, let alone risking Jamie.
Jeff nodded. “Whatever we need to do, Mort, let’s make it happen, because I don’t want us firing on innocents.”
“I don’t want us wasting firepower we’re going to need the moment the Aicirtap arrive. With the Z’porrah fleet coming merrily behind them.”
“Kitty’s point is the key one,” Chuckie said to Uncle Mort. “Make sure you make it clear that we do have enemies arriving, they’re just coming a little later than the friendlies who are fleeing from them.”
“Guy, Thomas, and I will also make calls,” Lillian Culver said. “I can guarantee that you’ll have a full Congress before midnight.”
“We will contact the Cleophese,” Bettini, the Head Spokespenguin for the Shantanu, said. “If they are willing to come, they will make formidable shock troops. However, it will take them time to arrive as they cannot travel as the rest of us do.”
“Even one Cleophese would be a huge help. More would be wonderful.” Terrifying, since they looked like Cthulhu and his pals, but they’d helped us repel the Z’porrah from the Alpha Centauri system and that meant they could do it again.