An aranga soldier brought two large serpentine prisoners in retraining fields into the council room where Admiral Bethon waited with Colonel Munaci.

"The BakoNaat officers are here for you to interview, Admiral," Munaci said.

"Excellent," Bethon replied. He had assumed his full voldarkan form and the floor shook beneath his weight as he paced in front of the two BakoNaat officers, looking them over.

"You are guilty of an unprovoked attack on this battleship, an exceedingly unwise decision," Bethon said. "This was after your sister ship was caught in the business of pirating. What have you to say for this behavior?"

"They have requested their queen be present for negotiations," Munaci said.

"Their queen? Surely they did not bring a queen on such a mission." Bethon stopped and stroked a tusk as he considered this new piece of information. "Besides, I heard she died ages ago. They have no such queen."

"I was hoping the lieutenant would be here to explain, but he was not available," Munaci said. "It appears the empath, Etaine, has been adopted as their new queen. I have sent Lotee to fetch her."

"What sort of nonsense is this? Etaine, their queen? That's preposterous," Bethon said with a dismissive wave of an arm.

“When Etaine boarded the disabled pirate vessel, she changed.”

“Changed how?”

“See for yourself,” Munaci said.

Lotee entered the room escorting Etaine in her new finery. They were followed by several servants rushing to catch up and carrying an ornate throne. Bethon was momentarily speechless. He stopped pacing and stared at the entourage.

Etaine had always been an attractive woman, but now she glowed with her new inner beauty of strength and calmness. A shining green gown brought out the green in her new serpent eyes. She was strikingly larger in size with a more voluptuous figure. Other than her eyes, she was in human form, but had added curious tattoos until the expanse of exposed skin was now covered in them. They conformed to the perfect curves of her body, adding to her exotic appearance.

"Hello, Admiral," Etaine said as she took the liberty of sitting on her throne. Her servants fussed about her arranging little cushions to make her comfortable, a mixture of small lizards, snakes and salamanders.

"Etaine. You have no connection to the BakoNaat. What claim can you possibly have to their throne?"

"They chose me. I’m their Ghost Queen, Admiral. It's who I am now."

"And what, pray tell, will you decide to become tomorrow?" Bethon asked

"I'm eternally their queen from now on," Etaine answered. She arranged a tumble of curls around her shoulders. "Shall we continue with the negotiations?"

"There will be no negotiations," Bethon said. "They were caught in the act. They are guilty and I will deal with them as I please."

"They plead guilty to pirating on occasion," Etaine said, her voice was smooth and sweet as honey. "The attack on your battleship was a misunderstanding."

"Was it now?"

"Yes. They had reason to believe that you annihilated their sister ship. Since the Sora was not an official Tor vessel, they assumed it was fair game as you had left the area without securing it."

"Could they not communicate with us regarding these concerns in a civilized fashion? No, it's obvious they endeavored to take advantage of the situation," Bethon said. "They had determined our fuel was running low and proceeded to exploit that weakness. Tell me why I should spare their lives?"

"They admit that firing upon your vessel was a rash response in reaction to their loss, but deny any knowledge concerning your fuel supply." Etaine said. She rearranged her body on the throne and extended a naked leg, letting one ankle rest upon a jeweled pillow. She smiled at Bethon seductively before continuing, watching his eyes explore the slit in her gown.

"I suggest you form an alliance with the BakoNaat. They can assist you in fighting our common enemy, the devourer. Knowing the truth of what happened, they want revenge. You see, we’re on the same side now."

"We have executed our own plan to deal with him. What can the BakoNaat possibly offer?" Bethon countered. "We have gathered enough skulkers to attack and destroy the dark energy cloud. The situation will soon be under control."

"They believe they can reduce the demon cloud to a more manageable size."

"How?" Bethon asked.

"They're using technical terms I don't understand, Admiral. Something about generating a huge electrical field, then precipitating it with a voltage drop to form a plasma that could then be condensed. It's complicated."

"It sounds experimental." Bethon said and gave a derisive snort.

"Yes, it is. I would remind you that your plan to use skulkers is unproven as well," Etaine said. "We should work together, Admiral, until we are certain it has been destroyed." A sweet perfume drifted from her person.

Bethon was staring at Etaine, entranced. "Munaci," Bethon barked. "Where is that Beldorian engineer, Hal?"

"I believe he is attending a garwolven party at the moment, sir," Munaci replied.

"A garwolven party?" Bethon asked.

"Yes, he saved one of them when a pod was attacked by skulkers and drained dry of power. He's quite the hero now."

"Sounds like we're becoming one big happy family, Admiral," Etaine said, taking a delicate fruit offered to her from a gilded tray. She bit into it and tasted it, licking her lips seductively before popping it into her mouth."

"Are you trying to bewitch me, Etaine?" Bethon asked.

"She can't help it. They've changed her." Lotee spoke up in Etaine’s defense.

"Lotee darling, it's alright," Etaine cooed. "I think he understands me perfectly. You don't want a war with the BakoNaat do you, Admiral?"

"This meeting is adjourned. As an act of good faith I will release the BakoNaat officers on their own recognizance," Bethon ordered. "Munaci, find Lieutenant Cratus and Hal. Consult with the BakoNaat to coordinate our attacks immediately.

'Right away, sir," Munaci said and turned to leave.

“We are to meet with Balvendro before this day is out to present our final plan. Make it a good one.” He called after Munaci, then turned to Etaine. “I wish to see you in my quarters as soon as these slithering beasts can escort you there, Etaine.