Kulthurack dismissed Julep before they finished setting up the meeting.

　　Her bodyguard had resisted until she politely, but firmly, demanded he leave. The last thing she needed was The Overseer, thinking she feared him. No. She would let him have his power games, as it wasn`t him she needed to impress.

　　Her attention flicked to the light that spread slowly across the wall as she forced herself to appear calm and think this through. It was harder than normal with the news of Erodicilee`s survival fresh in her mind. Her darling boy lived! He`d even somehow gained a healing power, which was both a blessing and a curse. It meant she could worry less about his safety, but it also proved he`d consumed the local wildlife.

　　A point the Galactic Government would use to compel her into this alternate plan. She cursed Kulthurack`s inability to emote. If he`d been smug, she might have gleaned something. However, all she`d gotten was annoyance that his own plan may not go through.

　　Still, her focus continued to slip back to the thought of how her baby lived. Guilt warred with joy at what she`d done. How dragging him along on one of her little adventures had nearly caused him to come to ruins. However, leaving him back home with a servant to care for him was unthinkable. She`d been by his side since he`d hatched from the tube.

　　Lecorondia tried to calm her churning emotions by switching between watching the spinning Galactic Government logo on screen and checking her clothes. She wished she could change. While the bloodstained blouse and leather skirt worked for the story that she`d previously tried to tell, the garment didn`t sell the competent movie star persona the Galactic Government would desire from her.

　　If they had an alternative plan, she`d need to convince them she was perfect for the job. No. She would convince them. Erodicilee needed her, which meant getting back planetside and not letting The Overseer nuke it. Her resolve hardened, and she did her best to sit up straight, forcing her training to keep her poised and proper.

　　While she got herself into position, her mind raced. While none of the Galactic Government senators were close friends, some were decent acquaintances. A party invitation here, a generous political donation there—all things that rewarded her with the correct people`s attention. Those would be the ones she`d focus on, as they already barely cared about her little jaunts across the universe.

　　The rest would be trickier, but hardly impossible.

　　A buzz sounded, and she put on her best camera-ready smile even as she heard her inner director calling for action. It was show time. One by one, boxes filled the screen, each displaying various members of the Galactic Government. Mute symbols filled their corners. Not a surprise. This matter wouldn`t require a full spread, and she would bet the extras turned up purely for the free show. It wasn`t often someone famous got called into a meeting such as this.

　　A smile tugged at her lips, but she pushed it away. If they wanted to give her a crowd to work with, she would. While they didn`t have to speak, any members who arrived would receive voting rights. It simply meant more options for people to sway.

　　Her focus drifted away from the collection of watchers and towards the four screens not displaying the muted symbol. Senator Myridil, a wrinkled, gray-skinned cyborg, winked at her with his remaining human eye. Lecorondia didn`t return the gesture, but she filed that away for later as she surveyed the others.

　　Senator Splouse, a goop creature called a Funglion, said nothing, while Senator Granite, a rock golem Gannite, rumbled a greeting to his fellow senators. The pink-furred humanoid Senator Fuzzball purred and waved to everyone, even those muted. Some waved back.

　　It didn`t surprise Lecorondia to see the senator`s exuberance. Fuzzyions were like that.

　　From Senator Myridil`s opening, she knew she had one on board already. Now it simply meant hearing out the request and twisting it in her favor to get away without jail time. That was a big one.

　　"Galactic Government," Kulthurack said. "Thank you for coming."

　　Senator Fuzzball purred, her voice vibrating. "We called this meeting Overseer. However, we appreciate you lending us your office to talk to Miss Lecorondia here."

　　Though polite, Lecorondia didn`t miss the smirk-filled glances from the watching members. Kulthurack didn`t appear embarrassed, either not noticing or not caring, but even having only met the man moments ago, she already understood emotions weren`t his strong suit.

　　Senator Splouse made a strange sound akin to a bubble popping, and it took a few seconds for the digital translator built into the projector to kick in.

　　"Yes. Miss Lecorondia. We have convened because you`ve gone too far this time."

　　Senator Myridil smirked, rubbing his fingers together as he nodded. "We will not consider this transgression lightly."

　　He needn`t have bothered. She understood his point. She sighed and made a mental note to call her accountant about her campaign donations. As she did, she pouted and looked askance while she twirled a finger around her hair.

　　"I know that I`ve made mistakes. But please, Senator, leave this for later. My poor baby, Erodicilee, remains planetside. An innocent creature lost and alone&"

　　She trailed off, sobbing. One or two members of the crowd leaned forward, and she saw lips moving even if she couldn`t hear the whispers. Stone grating on stone, Senator Granites` best approximation of a snort, cut off the whispering.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

　　He looked at her, the lack of true facial features making his expression unreadable.

　　"Erodicilee is the class three predator engineered for you, yes?" Each word sounded like a cracking stone, and she resisted the urge to wince.

　　She made a show of wiping her eyes before returning the senator`s stare with a glare of her own. A hunch to her shoulders and a flick of her tail showed her sadness and her defiance. "Yes, Senator. They designed my baby to protect me while acting as my companion."

　　Lecorondia stressed the word baby, doing her best to sound like an affronted mother. She knew some members had children of their own. It would be easy to appeal to them. From the murmurs she received, her ploy worked.

　　Senator Splouse popped bubbles in rapid succession. "From the schematics that we`ve obtained, he`s liable to kill all life on the planet to gain power. A super predator! You may have doomed an entire species."

　　More whispers arose, but now their expressions were far less sympathetic. Before she could try to sway them back, Overseer Kulthurack spoke. His monotone voice drew their attention.

　　"And that, Senators, is why I made my suggestion. I understand you have an alternative idea, but I don`t believe the risk is worth it. What do we do if it becomes powerful enough that stopping this beast becomes impossible?"

　　More of the muted senators joined in, and they hadn`t even mentioned their alternative option yet. That needed to change immediately. With a deep breath, she took drastic action.

　　"I can stop him, no matter his strength." Lecorondia jumped to her feet, tail swinging and knocking over her chair.

　　All eyes were on her, and she briefly reveled in it before continuing. "Erodicilee is a good boy. A well-behaved boy, Senators, when he`s not scared and alone. You`ve seen the photos?"

　　Her eyes met Senator Myridil`s, and his red robotic eye flashed as the picture of a dripping wet Erodicilee filled the screen. His evident fear tugged at her heart as he ran from something behind him. The image didn`t show a predator or a monster. It depicted a scared pet, and she would help him sell that role for everything she was worth.

　　"Does he seem like a monster to you?" Fear filled her words as she injected all the worry about Kulthurack`s plan into her voice. "A killer? My baby wants to come home. Please. I beg of you, let me bring him home. Tell me how to help you; help me."

　　Her gaze flicked across the watchers, and she didn`t bother to hold back the tears that flowed freely. This was her most important role to date, and she would give it her all. Senator Granite made a rumbling sound that she knew indicated discomfort. However, it was Senator Fluzzball who spoke.

　　"I do believe we should explain our plan. After all, I do not believe anyone here doubts your desire to aid us in this mess?"

　　Beings all signaled no in the ways they could, making Lecorondia`s stomach surge in delight at the unintentional praise. She was a star, and she would get Erodicilee back unharmed. This was all coming together.

　　"In that case, let me explain." Senator Myridil coughed. "We wish for you to speak to these humans. Convince them that it`s in their best interest to continue suppressing the story. Otherwise, if the backup plan becomes necessary? Well, we`d hate for this to spiral out of control."

　　His gaze flicked to Kulthurack as he spoke, and a shiver of icy fear raced up Lecorondia`s spine. An ambassador role would be perfect for her; if she could charm the Galactic Government, then the earth natives shouldn`t pose an issue. From the research she`d bothered with, they weren`t that different from everyone else.

　　No, the part that worried her was the natives desire for silence. It appeared their own government didn`t want this story spreading, and she didn`t know why. In the council`s case, it was deniability if they needed to nuke the place. For the humans? That was a mystery.

　　Even as she smiled at the senator`s statement, Lecorondia internally debated how to manipulate her current predicament. Her gaze shifted to the ripped poster she`d carried in as evidence while sitting on the desk. An idea hit her—a good one.

　　"I would be delighted to act in such a role for you, Senators." She beamed while dropping into a curtsey. "And all you require is for me to reacquire Fluffy and leave while causing minimal fuss?"

　　Senator Granite nodded. "Yes. Your presence would cause a stir, and we would rather not have every nation on the planet searching for us if things go poorly."

　　"Not that they will," Senator Splouse interjected.

　　"No," Lecorondia agreed, her insides twisting into knots.

　　"All in favor?" Senator Fuzzball asked, and a green light flicked on in the corner of her screen.

　　Lecorondia watched with bated breath, trying to signal her desperation with nothing more than her gaze as her attention fluttered across the other senators. Green and red lights flicked on in rapid succession until no more votes remained to count.

　　She resisted the urge to scream in frustration at the outcome—a draw. Ire filled her as she counted and recounted the lights. Overseer Kulthurack didn`t even make a worthwhile point, nor did Splouse with his insistence that her baby was a monster.

　　Before her ire could ruin her performance, Senator Myridil`s spoke.

　　"As it`s a tied vote, I believe we should have both sides make their case."

　　"Haven`t we already?" Senator Granite shrugged. "Miss Lecorondia has become distraught, and Overseer Kulthurack has spoken at length about his willingness for blatant destruction. No. We shall achieve this in a much simpler fashion."

　　Senator Fuzzball purred, but this time it was a darker sound. "Combat? A duel to the death?"

　　Lecorondia spotted the delight spreading throughout the watchers at that suggestion, as once again the Fuzzyions reminded her how delightfully vicious they were. Cute and deadly. It was one reason Erodicilee had come out the way he had.

　　Her gaze shifted to Overseer Kulthurack, her stomach churning as she seized him up. It wouldn`t be the first person she`d killed over Erodicilee, though it panged her not to be allowed to eat this one. Even if he wasn`t ancient prey, she had to admit it would be fascinating.

　　Then Senator Granite spoke and snapped her out of the pleasant daydream.

　　"What? No. A time limit. Miss Lecorondia and her bodyguard shall meet with this governmental agency and deal with them. A few words and a brief demonstration of our capabilities should make things easy. You can track your pet, correct?"

　　The icy shiver returned, her mind going to the leg on her ship. She couldn`t track him anymore. Perform a general area scan for him? Maybe. However, she didn`t have him implanted anymore. Still, they didn`t need to know.

　　"Of course." The words came out smoothly. "Provided I`m planetside."

　　Senator Myridil grinned. "Great. In that case, let us talk about your new liaison."