Page 74 of Dark Destiny: The Turning Of The Loom

He also looked like he was about to keel over.

If Ogidu had not rushed over and helped him sit down, he might not have made it to the couch.

"Khiann, this is Aru," she said. "Aru, my mate."

Aru held out his hand, and Khiann took it.

"It is good to finally meet you," Aru said in Anumatian, and most of it sounded close enough to the old tongue that Annani and Khiann understood.

Aru tapped his earpiece to activate it. "I am switching to English. The devices do not know Anumatian, and the language of the gods drifted over time."

"Yes, it did." Annani gestured to an armchair. "Please, take a seat. Would you like coffee or lemonade?"

Aru glanced at the tall glass, then looked back at Annani. "Can I have both?"

"Of course." She waved Ogidu over and gave him the instruction.

"So, Khiann. Have you gotten your glow back?" Aru asked.

No one had asked him that, and it had not occurred to Annani either. Khiann's glow had not been very strong back in the day, and now that his body was still rebuilding itself, it could not waste resources on something so nonessential.

Khiann looked at Annani.

"I did not know that I was supposed to glow," he said.

"Some gods glow," she said. "You did, before. Not brightly, but it was there when your emotions ran high, or you just wanted to show off. You are not yet at full health. When you are, the glow will come."

Khiann contemplated that piece of information longer than it deserved. The glow was about vanity, and it was not important. In fact, Annani turned hers off most of the time, but there were times when it was not possible, and the glow leaked whether she wanted it or not.

"You said that some gods glow." Khiann leaned forward. "That implies not all gods do. Is it possible to lose the glow permanently?"

Aru glanced at Annani, and she nodded. "It is your story to tell."

"What do you know about genetics?" he asked Khiann.

"Nothing," Khiann said. "But if you can explain it like you would to a five-year-old, I will probably understand."

There was no sarcasm in his voice, just the frustration he had expressed earlier.

Ogidu arrived with a tray, giving Aru a moment to figure out how to explain things to Khiann.

“Coffee, lemonade, or cut fruit, Clan Mother?” Ogidu placed the tray on the coffee table. “Shall I serve?"

"I've got it," Aru said. "If that's okay with you."

Ogidu bowed. "As you wish, Master."

When each of them was holding a cup or a glass, Aru leaned back in the armchair. "The gods know how to manipulate the traits a baby will be born with. Let's say you want a child with blue eyes and red hair. They can make it happen even if neither parent has blue eyes or red hair. The same is true for other traits, and the glow is one of them. Not all traits are treated equally, and some are more costly to buy than others. The glow is restricted to the upper class of royal descendants. The aristocrats. The brighter the glow, the higher up the hierarchy you sit. It's a status marker, like a crown. I'm a commoner, so I don't glow at all."

"So, I am considered an aristocrat?" Khiann seemed to have no trouble understanding the explanation. "I thought I was a merchant's son."

"You were," Annani said. "But the gods who came to Earth were a special case. Those sent here were rebels, and they were all scions of aristocratic families. That is why we assumed all gods glowed. I did not know that was not the case until Aru told me." She leaned down and picked up a piece of melon. "I find it interesting that rebels are usually from the upper class, not those who actually need to rebel. I observed the same phenomenon among humans."

Khiann frowned at her. "So, this is why your glow is so bright. You are El's granddaughter."

She nodded and turned to Aru. "Speaking of El, what news do you have of my grandmother?"

"I try not to open a channel from my side unless it's absolutely necessary, and Aria only opens a channel when she has something to report. There hasn't been anything interesting since the beginning of the tour. The queen's tour is still being broadcast across Anumati. Ani in this colony, Ani in that one, waving from a balcony, touring a factory, making speeches. Unless the whole thing is being staged with a double, which would be a great deal of trouble even for El, your grandmother is alive and well, and her tour is public and documented."