“Ahem. Pardon me, My Lord,” Su said from the doorway with a polite cough.

Rhia and I looked back from our embrace by the window. Su stood patiently with Hannah by her side, a loving smile on her lips as she watched us. I don’t know how long they’d been standing there, but Hannah looked like she was desperately holding back some tears. It was kind of cute.

“Is something the matter?” I asked. I didn’t think Su would interrupt us for anything mundane at this point, but she had a way of surprising me, which she did.

“Just letting you know that lunch will be ready soon. Would you care to take it in your residence, or the dining hall with our guests?”

“The dining hall for now. There’s something I’d like your help with in the residence first, if you don’t mind.”

Su quirked an eyebrow at me while Hannah suddenly straightened up, a hungry expression on her face. I felt Rhia chuckle silently at my side.

“Keep your clothes on, girls. It’s nothing like that,” I said, smiling as Hannah deflated a little. “I promise we can have fun later. Right now I’d like your experienced opinion on something Su. Your input is welcome as well, Hannah, my dear.” Purple eyes twinkled back at me.

“Shall I go keep our guests company then?” Rhia asked, but I shook my head.

“I’d like you to follow up on Persia’s behavior like you were talking about last night. In two days she went from being terrified of my very presence to overly aggressive against a woman because she was attracted to me. It’s too much of a shift in too short a time.” I smirked. “You were worried I wasn’t emotional enough. I’m worried that she’s too emotionally attached. You sure you want to be a part of this circus?”

Rhia leaned up and kissed my cheek. “Wouldn’t change it for the world, my love. I’ll go talk to her now. Meet you in the dining hall.” With that she left the ballroom, pausing to give Su and Hannah quick hugs as she passed them.

I motioned for my two beautiful maids slash fiancées to follow me as I started towards my residence.

“I’m guessing in your almost two million years you’ve found the time to study quite a bit, right?” I asked Su as we walked.

Su nodded at my side. “You could say that. I’ve had a LOT of free time.”

“What about art?”

“Does this have anything to do with the paintings that suddenly appeared in the second bedroom?”

“You already know about them?” I asked, slightly surprised.

Su and Hannah chuckled.

“Surprised the hell out of Linda and Shu, they did. We heard squeals that weren’t like their normal variety, so I investigated,” Hannah said.

I shook my head. “I told them to use the master bedroom.”

Su shrugged. “They like that room. They’ve pretty much made it theirs.”

“I guess that makes sense,” I allowed. “I know they both love me, but boy are they head over heels for each other.” I glanced at the two women flanking me and grinned. “And it’s not like they’re the only two of my soon-to-be brides that’ve pretty much moved in together.”

Hannah blushed while Su grinned widely, yet neither denied my statement as we entered my residence and made for the second bedroom. Linda and Shu’s room, I guess I should think of it as, I thought. I heard giggling and soft moans coming from the partially open door to mine and Rhia’s room. With a thought, I willed the door to close softly so I wouldn’t get distracted and not disturb the two ladies and their time together. Entering the other bedroom, I found the paintings laid out on the neatly made up bed. My maids up here didn’t slack off in the slightest.

“Okay,” I said. “Please take a look at these and tell me what you think.” Gesturing at the paintings, I noticed the kitten one was missing and probably already adorning a wall in Persia’s room. Su and Hannah approached the bed and started their appraisal. Su’s been around literally the entirety of human civilization and has seen the evolution of human art. Hannah, being a Dalayin, has a completely foreign outlook to Earthling art, so I was uniquely curious about her opinion. It didn’t take long for both of them to switch their attentions back and forth between two particular paintings, murmuring softly to each other as they discussed what I assumed to be the same thing that I noticed.

“You see what I saw, don’t you, ladies?” I asked as I joined them next to the bed.

“It doesn’t take a doctorate in art history to see this, My Lord,” Su responded with a teasing smirk. She held up the first painting. “This one shows the sword clearly piercing through your enemies, in this case the former US and Russian presidents and the former Saudi Arabian king, or at least representations of them.” She held up the second painting next to it. “Here we have the same sword, which is beautiful, by the way. You should make one. Anyway, this same sword is piercing the asteroid. We already see the asteroid as a threat. However, there are no bodies on the sword, representative or otherwise.” She looked over at me, Hannah bouncing on her toes next to her.

“Hannah?” I asked.

“Yes! I think that means no one dies!”

I frowned. “It’s not like I killed the presidents and king though.”

“You killed their ambitions,” Hannah said. “May as well have ended their lives, since they can’t do whatever they want anymore. No, what I think this means is that you stop the asteroid, but no one gets hurt.” Su nodded along.

“Okay,” I said thoughtfully. “That makes a certain amount of sense. Now, what if we combined that with Lily’s dream? She said she saw a flying mountain, and then she saw a world being overrun with cats. Your theory and her dream seem to be at odds with each other.”

“Not necessarily,” a voice said from the door. I looked over and saw Linda and Shu watching us, wearing robes and trying to straighten their tousled hair. Linda stepped forward to look at the paintings.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

She gave me a wry grin. “You’re not thinking like a geek, Johnny. You’re looking at these paintings and thinking about Lily’s dreams too literally. The two combined are not telling you that you win but you lose. They’re merely representations of possible futures. Now that you have an idea about what’s coming, you can take steps to prevent the worst possible outcomes. This isn’t 12 Monkeys, John. The future can be changed.”

“Wow,” I said. “You pulled that reference?”

She shrugged, then smiled. “I can’t let you forget your roots. You were a geek in love with pop culture before you were a god. I’m a geek too, remember? You see a doomsday scenario out there because you’re thinking of the worst. I see a rock full of cat people out there. Cat people, John!” Her eyes lit up. Remembering her reaction to Persia, it made sense that she’d think that way. It also made me resolve to not let her anywhere near that ship if I could help it.

I held her shoulders to calm her down. “Okay, okay. I get your point, babe. So, what are you trying to say? That you want me to pop over to a ship full of religious zealots solely dedicated to their own god and what? Offer them a chance to become sideshow attractions on Earth? Isn’t that a bit like inviting the fox into the henhouse? I get that you love the idea of an entire race of cat people taking up residence on Earth, but given what we’ve been told of their history, that doesn’t sound like the greatest of plans.”

Linda opened her mouth to respond, then shut it, clearly thinking over everything we’ve learned in the last couple days. I glanced at Shu behind her, who just gave me an apologetic shrug.

“Perhaps this is something we can discuss after lunch?” Su offered. “We still have five days until they’re supposed to be a threat, right?”

I reached out to the collection of gray energy approaching my homeworld and confirmed its position. “If nothing surprises us before then, yeah.”

“Then let’s go. I do have to warn you, however, that it might not be up to our chef’s usual standard.”

“Oh?” I asked. To hear that from Su was fairly shocking, since our chef devoted her whole being into preparing the best dishes she could.

“I’m afraid so. Someone failed to return this morning for a scheduled appointment with her and Hannah.”

My eyes went wide and stared at Hannah, who affected a pout and nodded at me. “She was devastated, My Lord. I was too, but unlike her, I get my hands on you quite frequently. She was so looking forward to it this morning, until she learned that you hadn’t returned from Earth yet.”

Linda smacked me on the back of my head. “You can be such an inconsiderate asshole sometimes, you know that?”

“Hey!” I exclaimed, rubbing the back of my head. “Aren’t you two the same ones who were ready to tear me limb from limb yesterday for sleeping with the help?”

“That’s not the issue at hand here, John!” Linda admonished. “You made a promise and didn’t follow through!”

“I didn’t make that promise! Everyone else did!”

*

Rhia knocked on Persia’s door before letting herself in. She found Persia sitting on her knees on her bed, staring up at Isabella’s kitten painting that now hung over the head of her bed. Persia looked over at Rhia’s entrance and smiled.

“Sister! Come in, please. Isn’t it beautiful? An Oracle’s painting, here in my room. I can’t believe it.”

Rhia made her way over to sit by Persia and looked at the painting with her. She was finding it difficult to equate the nervous kitten portrayed with the increasingly open Persia. She glanced at her friend and sister wife, watching her as she stared reverently at the painting.

“Persia,” she began. “How are you feeling?”

Persia looked at her in confusion. “I feel fine. Better than I ever have, in fact. Why? Is everything okay?”

“I’m not sure,” Rhia said honestly.

Persia turned to face her, reaching out to grab Rhia’s hands. “You can tell me, you know. We’re sisters now. If something is bothering you, I can listen. Is it that pink haired girl? Is she trying to take our husband away already?”

Rhia felt Persia’s grip on her hands tighten at the mention of Lily, and her voice took a bit of an edge. Rhia almost pulled her hands away in surprise.

“Do… do you hate her that much, Persia?”

Persia’s eyes widened. “Hate? Of course I don’t hate her. I don’t know her that well. But… but I can’t stop thinking of her as a threat. If she took our husband away, I don’t know what I’d do. I’ve finally found who I want to be after all these years…”

Rhia’s worries grew as Persia trailed off. “We talked about this last night, didn’t we? There are four other women engaged to John. Lily isn’t even sleeping with him, but she’s the one you’re focused on? You don’t feel this way about Isabella too, do you?”

Persia blinked, then thought. “No. No I don’t. That’s funny.” She sat back, glancing back at the painting.

Rhia leaned in, grabbing Persia’s attention. “Sister, I’m worried. Two days ago, you were terrified of him. Now you’re fiercely defensive of him. This is happening much too fast. You were climbing all over him in Linda’s apartment, and even hissed at me when I interrupted you. That’s why I asked you how you were feeling. You’re not at all acting like we thought you would.”

Realization dawned on Persia’s face. At first she looked conflicted, then fearful. “I’m acting like them,” she said. “Like her most devoted.”

“Them?” Rhia asked.

“Kamiki’s followers!” she wailed. “Absolute devotion! Must not upset the balance!”

Suddenly Rhia understood. She remembered Persia telling her about life on her world. Everything was to serve Kamiki. Anything else was a threat. It was something so ingrained in their culture for so long that it pretty much became a genetic trait. Persia was smuggled off the planet because she was too inquisitive, but that didn’t mean she still didn’t have the compulsion buried within her. When John helped her the other day and treated her kindly when so many others had abused her, she latched on to him. Everything programmed into her species for Kamiki’s benefit was now zeroed in on John. Rhia could see the benefits in having the unwavering loyalty and devotion of Persia, but she also knew that it could come back to bite them in the ass, like the case with Lily. Not to mention how horrified John would be when he learned of this. He’d view it as a form of slavery, since it wasn’t really something she could control.

Rhia sighed. The timing of this couldn’t be worse. John still had three more oracles to collect, and the pattern right now seemed to indicate they’d all be women. If Persia was acting like this with just Lily, what would happen if one or more of the others was attracted to him as well? Rhia didn’t know for sure, but she didn’t imagine it ending well, especially considering how Persia’s physical strength outclassed everyone here, save for John, and he couldn’t always be there. They’d be forced to take lethal action if Persia acted on her emotions while he was away. Rhia came to a decision she hated with all of her heart.

“Persia, my love, I’m afraid I can’t allow you to leave this room until we get this sorted out.”

Persia nodded in understanding, tears starting to fall as she did so. Her sobs also brought Rhia to tears as her regret overflowed. The two women held each other tightly, crying into each other’s shoulders until Rhia left, regretfully locking the door on her way out.

*

I sat in stunned silence as I listened to Rhia tell me what she and Persia had discovered. Su, Hannah, Linda, and Shu were equally as silent. Lily, Isabella and Petra were off somewhere with a maid escort and Ryo, presumably having fun while we discussed the pending mental collapse of one of my wives.

“… and it’s for those reasons that she and I agreed that it’s best that she be kept away from anyone that might disrupt her view of the balance,” Rhia concluded. Hannah, ever the one to wear her emotions on her sleeve, started quietly crying into Su’s shoulder. Linda and Shu, the more practical thinkers, clearly had the wheels turning in their heads.

“I’m guessing this isn’t something that can be beaten by strength of will alone, is it?” I asked, not expecting a positive answer. Rhia confirmed it with a shake of her head.

“This goes beyond that. It’s cultural conditioning that goes back millennia. Kamiki made them this way. Persia just happened to be one of the anomalies that pops up every so often, which is why she was forced to flee in the first place. The triggers for this abject devotion took longer to activate in her case, but they activated nonetheless. It’s just that when they did, she had nothing to believe in. She lived in a state of perpetual fear, so she never got close enough to anyone or anything that she could place her faith in. Not until you.”

I sighed. I never thought being nice to someone would cause me this much trouble. The timing couldn’t be worse, either. With a possible hostile species at our doorstep, and three more oracles to find, any one of which that might trigger her, my plate was already full for the week. I just couldn’t leave her locked up in her room though. Not after she’d placed herself in my care. She was my wife, after all. It was my job to make her happy. I swore to do so. I looked over at Su.

“I hate to bring up the subject of your age again, but have you seen anything like this before?”

She closed her eyes as she thought, then slowly shook her head. “Not like this. I’ve witnessed many cults rise and fall. I’ve seen groups indoctrinate their beliefs in kids until they grew up believing whatever they’d been told. But I’ve never seen anything like it on a genetic scale. Persia is aware that what she’s feeling is extreme and possibly harmful, but she can’t fight it. It’s instinctual at this point. Short of rewriting her DNA from the ground up, I’m not sure what can be done.”

Linda and Shu’s eyes both locked on to Su. ““What did you just say?”” they both asked simultaneously. Everyone jumped back at their sudden outburst, including Su and Rhia, the most unflappable women I’d ever met.

“I’m not sure what can be done?” she repeated hesitantly. Both human women shook their heads at the same time.

“Not that,” said Shu. “The part before that. About rewriting DNA.”

Linda stepped in. “This was built into her! It’s hardwired!”

I nodded, not sure where these ladies were going with this. “Yeah. That’s the problem we’re trying to figure out a solution to.”

Linda nearly stamped her feet in frustration. “Grrr! You idiot! You said you were an electrician on helicopters in the war, right?”

“Yeah…”

“So I’m going to assume you worked on aircraft that were shot?”

“Uh huh…”

“So what did you do then?”

“We fixed them, if they were salvageable. Spliced wires that were shot through, replaced any electrical components that needed it. What are you getting at?”

“What did you do with wires that were too damaged to repair?”

“We replaced them. Wait, are you suggesting I replace her wiring?”

Shu and Linda both yelled “YES!”

“I’ve never tried anything like that before. Body modification is one thing. It’s just reshaping what’s already there. You’re talking about the building blocks of life here. Any mistake I make could erase the Persia we know, if not destroy her completely.”

Rhia stood, finger tapping her chin as she started pacing. “Maybe you’re thinking about this too literally, John.”

“What?”

She looked at me. “You’re a GOD. Everything you’ve learned and put into practice so far has been physical in nature, but that’s not what deities are best known for, is it? If Hans were still with us, what do you think he’d tell you a god’s duty is?”

I didn’t have to think about it. He’d actually told me on more than a few occasions during our brief friendship after the dinner party and before his death.

“Spiritual salvation,” I said. “But how can I do that? I’ve learned how to see someone’s aura, but as far as manipulating their soul, I’m not sure I feel comfortable with that.”

“Not manipulate, My Lord,” said Hannah. “That would defeat the purpose, and what’s more, it’s what Kamiki’s already done to her.”

Rhia nodded. “She’s right. Manipulation is the worst possible solution. You’d be betraying the trust she’s placed in you. What you need to do is to have her willingly open every part of her being to you and allow you to make the changes that need to be made.”

I frowned. “I thought that was the source of the problem to begin with. The fact that she’s programmed to devote her entire being to me.”

“Yes and no,” said Linda. “The fact that she feels threatened by Lily proves there’s still a hang-up somewhere inside of her. A spouse that feels threatened by an outside force doesn’t completely trust their partner. It may be unconsciously, but somewhere in their soul there’s a doubt.” She stepped closer, looking me in the eye. “You can understand why she still has that hang-up, right? She’s been betrayed so many times in her past that she can’t bring herself to completely trust anyone. I don’t know her story, but I know the signs. I’ve been through it before, and so have you. Shu helped me get over my issues, and I love her with all my heart. Even more than I do you. Rhia helped you with yours, and I know you want to help Persia with hers.”

Shu stepped up next to Linda and held her hand, then turned a warm smile on me. “You need to go see her and speak with her. Not as Zekken. Not even as John 2.0 here,” she waved a hand, indicating my toned body. “She needs to see and speak to the real you. Nothing hidden. That’s your starting point.”

“Just my starting point? How are you ladies coming to this conclusion?”

“Woman’s intuition, John,” responded Su. I blinked. She never called me by my first name. Everyone around me smiled at that. “I sense this problem will resolve itself if we’re correct. Just… let things flow naturally, ok?”

Rhia walked up and took my hands in hers, then kissed my cheek. “Go to her, my love,” she whispered in my ear. “She needs you now more than ever.” She pulled her back and looked me in the eye. Behind her Hannah walked over and opened the door, motioning that I should leave the residency with a flourish. Looking at the five women around me, I made for the door, but stopped just after I crossed the threshold, still slightly confused.

“Are you su-“

“““““Go!””””” came the response from all of them, just before Hannah closed the door in my face. Stunned, I turned around and started walking down the hall, making my way towards Persia’s secluded room.