Chocolate Rewards: The Sweetness of Two Worlds Colliding Together (5 page)

“
Amber.”
He called out to her to get her attention. “When it is our turn, I
want you to be quiet. You may not speak to the King and Queen.”

Amber
nodded at him, thinking that if he didn't want her to talk to them it
could only be because he was doing something illegal.

She would
tattle. Perhaps they would bring her home. The feeling of hope
started to build in her chest.

It took
over an hour for it to be their turn. Amber's legs were sore from
standing so long. She was glad to step forward, away from the crowds
of creatures surrounding her.

These
were the creatures that made up children's nightmares as they slept
in their beds at night. If they hadn't been standing and waiting so
peacefully she would have clung to the Red Barbarian, begging him to
protect her.

Rokai and
Jamko stepped forward, both eager to tell the King about what they
had discovered on the planet, Earth.

They
bowed down on one knee with their heads down. “Your Majesties, we
are pleased to report that we were extremely successful on Earth. We
discovered a drug to control women. It's called chocolate.”

The crowd
gasped surprised, but impressed with the finding. Only two women
broke out laughing. One was Amber and the other was the Queen.

Rokai
peeked back at Amber, giving her a look of warning. He looked back at
the Queen who was covering her mouth.

Amber
couldn't believe what she was hearing. It was such silly nonsense.
Had that been why he was constantly shoving it into her mouth?

Then she
frowned. She didn't want to be controlled, or claimed. “I want to
go home. I have been kidnapped from my home planet, against my will.
These men have no right to have me here,” she called out clearly.

Rokai
stood up and grabbed onto her hand and jerked her down to the floor
next to him. “As you can see your Majesty, I have found a woman
while on the planet. I still need to claim her.”

“
Earthlings
are a fierce lot. I wish you much luck with her.” The King told
Rokai.

“
Hey,
Earthlings are wonderful people. Your life is better for knowing
one.” The Queen leaned over to the King and kissed him.

Amber
looked up at the King. She couldn't understand a thing he was saying
but the Queen she understood perfectly.

The Queen
looked like a normal person, but the King was larger than she was. He
was even larger than the men who had kidnapped her.

The Queen
was sitting on his lap as if she were a child. Several children were
standing around the throne. The Queen was clearly very pregnant. Some
of the children looked distinctly human while others were just too
large to be. Mostly the boys looked like their father and the girls
looked like their mother.

The King
mumbled something, making Rokai stand and approach the throne. He
reached into his bag and offered the King some chocolate.

Amber
watched in shock as the King fed the Queen. Her hands didn't move to
stop him, she wasn't afraid that he would put too much in, choking
her. She was relaxed. This appeared to be her normal way of eating.

Amber
felt a bit disgusted. Why would a woman let a man treat her like a
child? The sheer number of children that they had, made it clear that
he thought of his wife as a childish baby making machine. Amber swore
that she would never be like her.

Everyone
watched as the Queen closed her mouth around the brown substance. Her
eyes closed and she leaned back into the King's chest, making a sound
of pleasure.

Everyone
in the room started talking at once. They all sounded amazed with
what they were seeing. The men were demanding chocolates for their
women.

“
As you
can see, Your Majesty, chocolate is going to be in high demand. Jamko
and I have, not only, brought along finished chocolates, but we have
also brought along the plants that make the beans, which are then
turned into this wonder-drug. If it would please Your Majesty we
would like a home with fertile land to grow these plants, so we can
have a continuing supply.”

“
You
studied these plants and you can guarantee that you can personally
make the same quality as the chocolate which you have brought along.”

“
This
plant needs lots of starlight and just the right soil to grow. We
have to search the universe for just the right conditions, then we
should be able to produce the chocolate that will make our women more
manageable.”

Amber
rolled her eyes.

“
Aideyoung,
could I have some more?” the Queen asked her husband. “Like lots
more. I love chocolate.”

Amber
listened to the King go on and called other men to his side. They
discussed this and that; she could only understand the two men who
brought her here. They were discussing the perfect place to undertake
such an important job. This was obviously being treated as a major
discovery.

“
It's
just chocolate, not a wonder-drug,” Amber declared when she just
couldn't remain silent any more.

“
Forgive
her, your Majesty. She has no idea what the rules here are. I will
punish her, personally, for being so disrespectful to you, once I
have claimed her.”

“
Punish
me for what? I didn't do anything.”

“
Ask
her where she is from.” The Queen asked the King.

The King
babbled something at her.

Alright,
I'll play along, pretending that I didn't understand her
, Amber
thought. “I'm from Hilo, Hawaii.”

“
You
have a chocolate factory there?” the Queen asked her, like she was
surprised.

The King
spoke before Amber could answer, giving her the feeling that the
Queen wasn't allowed to speak directly with her.

“
After
the planet got hit by a meteorite storm a few decades ago lots of
factories came to Hawaii. My city got a chocolate factory. People
come from all around the world to see how it is made.”

“
Ask
her more about the storm.” The Queen was looking at the King,
begging him.

The King
scolded his wife.

“
I
learned about it at school. One day a meteorite shower pelted the
earth, destroying everything in its path. The area is slowly
regaining vegetation and animals are returning to the regions.”

“
Did
anyone survive?” the Queen asked.

“
No,
everyone died because the storm appeared out of nowhere. There was no
warning or chance of evacuation.”

The Queen
looked very sickened, she even began to cry.

The whole
room was upset. Some of the creatures even started crying along with
the Queen. Everyone looked ready to kill Amber.

Rokai
took hold of Amber, bending her over in the middle and wrapping his
arm across her back so she couldn't get away. He gave her several
stinging swats to her behind.

“
Stop
him. It's not her fault,” the Queen demanded.

“
Rokai,”
the King called out.

Amber was
left standing on her own. She sniffled and wondered what had gone
wrong.

“
Thank
her for telling me what happened to my family.” The Queen was
looking right at Amber as she spoke this time. “Tell her that that
was something that I have worried and wondered about for a very long
time.” The Queen stood up and reached out to the tallest of the
children standing behind the throne. “I'm not feeling very well.
Please, finish your business with these men. I understand that the
plants have to be returned to good soil as quickly as possible.
Seeker, bring me to my room.”

“
Of
course, mother,” the young man answered. He was about the same
height as his father but he wasn't as bulky. Amber figured that he
probably hadn't finished growing yet. The royal family was even
larger than the men who had brought her here.

The King
also stood up. “Melsa.” He gave her a loving smile before she
turned away. His face looked pained as the Queen left the room. He
turned his attention back to Amber's captures. They quickly spoke of
where the plants needed to go with help of an on board computer.

When they
were about to leave Amber looked at the Red Barbarian. “Tell him he
should bring her chocolate. It helps when someone is sad. She looked
like she will need lots.” She didn't want to talk to him but she
had liked the queen.

“
Excuse
me, Your Majesty. My slave just told me that chocolates are good to
alleviate sadness. I will be leaving a supply here, for you, as a
personal gift. Thank you so much for your kindness.” Rokai bowed
down and backed out of the room, dragging Amber along with him.

Once they
had left the throne room Rokai grabbed onto Amber's forearms. “What
did you think you were doing in there? You insulted them and because
of you the beloved Queen left the room in tears.” He flipped her
over his hip and spanked her several times before he lifted her back
so he could look in her eyes, which were full of tears.

“
Do you
have any idea what the King could have done to punish you for all
that?”

Amber
sniffled and shook her head.

“
He
could have had you killed. I warned you.” Once again he bent her
over and went at her backside. Only this time he lifted up her skirt.

All the
while Amber was telling herself that she needed to adapt to her new
surrounding. She was really a slave. Nobody was stepping forward to
help her, no one looked like they even cared. A man beating his slave
was obviously a normal happening here.

Once
again he was turning her upright to scold her. He was about to give
her a good talking to when a man approached them. He said something
that she couldn't understand.

“
We
need to see the doctor. I'm warning you.” He took off walking,
following the man.

Amber
whimpered as they walked. She rubbed her backside and wished that she
could finally wake up. They arrived in a medical area. There were
many bathtubs around the room.

The other
man, who had also been on the ship with them, was also there. He was
lying naked in one of the bathtubs while a doctor looked over him.

Amber
looked away. She was still upset about what had happened in the
throne room and just outside of it.

The Red
Barbarian was removing his clothes. She knew that he wasn't shy about
his body, but still seeing him undressing in front of her, wasn't a
cherished moment.

Amber
turned away and closed her eyes. She didn't want to se him or anyone
else. She wanted to be like Dorthy. If only she could click her ruby
red shoes together and go home, waking up in her own bed to hear that
this had all been a dream.

“
Amber,
look at me.”

She shook
her head. She had already seen him naked and didn't care to do so
again.

“
Amber!”

She
jumped, turning to look at him. She was afraid that he would hit her
again if she didn't obey him. He was already in the bathtub, sitting
up.

“
I need
you to stay close to me. You didn't make many friends just now. This
Queen is especially popular. Her people love her.”

“
Why?”
Amber asked. The queen was human, just like she was. Would anyone
ever love her?

“
Because
it is so obvious that she loves the king. She has given him many
children and much happiness. People love babies, especially princes
and princesses. There will come a moment when you don't understand
me. Don't be afraid. It will pass. Just stay by me.”