Dr Neeman Kran sat in his office waiting for his next appointment. He was a Berator for Tannhauser Gate University, a counsellor who provides advice, therapy and occasionally medication to those students who required it. Dr Kran flicked the screen of his pad to bring up the file of his next appointment who was due to arrive shortly.

He hummed with interest as he looked at the picture from the student record and read through the notes, records and teacher feedback for the student.

“A self-referral, don’t get many of those…” Dr Kran said to himself. He mostly spent his time dealing with students who were falling behind, had been caught cheating or had violated the rules of the University. Self-referrals were very rare.

“PHD student, class valedictorian 5 years running, on course for promising career, well-liked by professors…what reason could she possibly have for referring herself?” He pondered still flicking through the file.

After a few minutes there was a knock at the door and Dr Kran set his pad down and got up from behind his desk and opened the door. “Miss Bass?”

Naskia nodded nervously, she found her lips pressed tightly together and was unable to vocalise her reply.

“Please come in and have a seat in the chair over there. I’ll be with you in a moment.” Dr Kran said pointing to a red leather wingback.

Naskia winced as she took a seat in the chair, it was comfortable but its high sides made her feel hemmed in and only served to increase her anxiety. Her ribs were still quite sore and she had dark bruises all over her body. She had dressed modestly to ensure none were visible. She looked around the room, it was in one of the older buildings on campus and this room looked like it was one of the older rooms of the building. The walls were half panelled with aged, dark wood with red wallpaper rising to a sculpted ceiling. There were dusty shelves covered with a multitude of worn books. Naskia couldn’t recall seeing as many books in one place outside of her father’s study. She looked over at Dr Kran busying himself behind his desk, which sat in front of a very tall window looking out over the main green of the campus.

Dr Kran himself oddly seemed to belong here. He wasn’t an old man, somewhere in his late 30’s by Naskia’s estimation but he had the air of someone a lot older. He was a smartly dressed, thin man and his blonde hair was parted at the side and receding a little. He seemed very prim and proper and his voice had a well-practiced tone of charm and relaxation about it. He had a kind face and Naskia immediately felt she could trust him.

“So Miss Bass I see you referred yourself. How can I be of help?” Dr Kran said sitting in his chair and placing his pad in his lap.

Naskia shifted nervously in the chair. “I’d just like to check first of all that whatever we discuss in this room is private…”

Dr Kran smiled warmly to reassure her. “Of course, nothing you say will leave this room.”

Naskia toyed with the pleats in her skirt unsure of how to start while Dr Kran patiently waited for her to begin.

“I’ve never really had any problems…I’ve had a good life, I work hard and I do well…” Naskia said trailing off. Dr Kran just smiled at her to let her know she could go at her own pace. “Recently I’ve found myself having some difficulties with my temper…I’ve always been emotional, I cry quite easily and things get to me but I’ve never been like this before.”

Naskia paused; she was ashamed to go on.

“Our minds are complex, sometimes feelings can take time, decades in some cases to work their way to the surface. How has your temper been presenting?” Dr Kran asked.

“It’s very…strange. I’ve gotten mad before but nothing like this. It’s almost like I black out and don’t have any control over what’s happening. I do terrible, terrible things and sometimes I even enjoy it. Then when I calm down I feel awful about it, I honestly think I could be dangerous.” Naskia said breathing slowly to control herself.

Dr Kran smiled to himself as he thought about the absurdity of this small woman being dangerous. She was too weak to pose any danger to anyone bigger than a child. “Miss Bass, I can assure you that you are not dangerous.”

This didn’t help, Naskia found both his smile and his tone patronising. She stood up out of the chair quickly, no longer able to cope with feeling trapped by its high sides. “Oh yeah?! I near killed my boyfriend! I cracked a load of his ribs, he was in pain for weeks. One time I thought my friend had betrayed me and I threatened to kill her, I tortured her to the point she wet herself and then pinned her under my toes ready to crush her!”

Naskia was pacing backwards and forwards frantically half yelling. Her tone was frantic and her eyes wide. She wagged her finger at Dr Kran like she was trying to inform him of why he was wrong. Dr Kran was almost shocked by the outburst, she seemed so mild mannered and unassuming. He was momentarily confused when she stated she nearly crushed her friend to death before he realised exactly how that could happen.

“Your friend, your boyfriend….are they human?” Dr Kran asked.

“Yes…” Naskia said settling back into the chair. She felt better now she had got those revelations out in the open.

“If you don’t mind me asking, why do you call your human your boyfriend and not your pet?” Dr Kran asked making some notes on his pad.

Naskia sighed. She was worried Dr Kran was writing up her psych referral already. “I got him about 2 months ago on Titan station, he’s from Earth. At first I just thought he was a normal, simple pet but he’s not. He’s amazingly clever, smarter than me even….” Naskia allowed herself to smile and let out a small laugh. “In fact in comparison to him I’m pretty stupid.”

Dr Kran tapped some more and his pad before holding it up for Naskia to see. “I don’t mean to pry but is this about you and him?”

Naskia examined the pad and read the now very familiar article that had been published the day before. Almost everyone on campus had spent the last 84 hours discussing Loona’s article. Speculation was rife over just who was the owner of the Human and when they would make themselves known. Loona was keeping her word and hadn’t mentioned her by name, both Naskia and Niall wanted to test the waters before jumping in. Loona was spending the day visiting various talk shows and discussing the article, that should give plenty to chew over before going public.

“Yes…it’s about us. His name is Niall” Naskia swallowed.

“Wow that really is fascinating.” Dr Kran said reminding himself that he had a professional duty and he could not interrogate the girl to satisfy his own curiosities. “Given the size disparity between you and him it’s apparent that this change in your behaviour is down to power and control. You know you have the power in your relationship but the uncontrollable, violent reactions to him challenging that power suggests something repressed that you haven’t dealt with. I think this is something we can deal with, regular therapy to get to the root cause of the issue and some anger management techniques.”

Naskia sighed, relieved that Dr Kran believed he could help her and that he wasn’t going to judge her for her relationship with Niall.

“So how do we start?” Naskia asked.

Dr Kran started to type on his pad. “Tell me about your childhood…”

Loona was sitting nervously in the dark, there were a few red lights around her. She could feel her palms were clammy from the nerves. She was running through lines in her head, thinking of talking points, arguments that could be used against her and what she could respond with. She heard music and the lights came up revealing a small, modern looking studio. She was sitting around a table with one other woman and a well-dressed man.

“Good afternoon citizens of Tannhauser, today on Tannhauser Talk News we discuss plans for a new space port on the edge of the gardens district, allegations that a top restaurant in the city has been overrun by tupps and next month’s City Wardens elections. But first, an article published by the Tannhauser News Service has caused controversy by suggesting that Humans are just as intelligent and capable of Titans. With me in the studio to discuss this is the article’s author, Loona Armac and President of Tannhauser Gate’s Human Owners Society, Lyroo Prenn.” The Host said.

Loona looked over at her opponent nervously. She was slightly shorter than her, with neat blonde hair tied back in a ponytail, sharp facial features and large green eyes. Lyroo glanced over at Loona and Loona felt herself being judged by the very well dressed young woman. The Host was a man well turned out man in his 50s. Loona had seen him before on broadcasts many times and she knew he would pull no punches if he felt she was avoiding the issues.

The host turned to face Loona. “Miss Armac, a fascinating article certainly but don’t you think you’re going too far by stating that a species that has remained bound to their one world is as intelligent as us?”

“No not at all, people seem to judge Humans by the pets we see in our day to day lives but we forget there is a whole world out there full of billions of people. These Humans are now competent at orbital spaceflight, have split the atom, cured diseases and are on the verge of mastering fusion power. If we judge them by their technological sophistication then they’re only 20 years away from being a space faring civilisation which would grant them Imperial Citizenship. Though if we judge them by their capacity to learn we need to see just what happens if a Human baby is raised with a Titan level education. My Human, Nonah, learned to read and write in little over a week! Imagine what she would be like if she was taught that from birth.” Loona said following a prepared script in her mind.

The host did not show any emotional reaction but simply turned to Lyroo. “That’s a pretty strong statement, Humans ready to join the Empire within the next 20 years?”

Lyroo smiled and tucked a loose strand of shimmering, blonde hair behind her ear. “I think Miss Armac is allowing her imagination to run away with itself. It took centuries between the developments Miss Armac is referring to. I spend more time with Humans than anyone else in this room, they wonderful but simple creatures. They are happy to entertain and have fun, they don’t think of the bigger things, life’s mysteries. They are no more advanced than a shaar in this sense. Yes they can talk and some can sound quite clever but we cannot mistake that for intelligence.”

“You’re completely ignoring the fact. Observation on Human progress is a matter of public record. When I was born they were still travelling using ships pushed by the wind, now they have aircraft that can travel their planet in under a day. 20 years ago they had just discovered electricity and now they are about to harness the power of a star. I don’t think we can judge them based on our terms.” Loona cut in.

“Even if that is the case the Humans will never be able to do anything without our protection. Their ships would be picked off easily by marauders, all the space around their world is ours, there a few non colonized worlds for them to move to. Any interaction with people in the Empire would be virtually impossible, even the smaller member species still dwarf them. It would still take them centuries to even match us technologically. They can never be our equals and it would frankly be better for them to continue under our protection. ” Lyroo stated calmly. If she was rattled by Loona she wasn’t showing it.

Loona stared at Lyroo, her mouth hanging open somewhat. “If you said that to the Human I know he would verbally destroy you. You think an entire species would just give up their independence, their freedom because they face a challenging circumstance? This man alone has fought hard to be recognised by an equal by those around him and he is winning too. What do you think an entire world of Humans striving together would be like?”

“I think you’re overestimating the Human’s desire for freedom. Do our pets ask for freedom? Do they ever show any desire to learn or grow? No; they happy to let us provide for them, to protect them and to love them. I am sure the wild Humans of Earth are no different.” Lyroo said flatly.

Loona shook her head; it was like talking to a brick wall. “Again you ignore the facts. Bred Humans know no other life, no other world or the concept that they could be equal. The Human I wrote about met Nonah once and since then she has refused to accept her role as a pet, she want’s equality just like he has. She has worked hard to demonstrate she is not a simple creature and her progress has been immense.”

“You forget that the achievements of the Human are all down to his owner. How do we even know he achieved them? This could all well be an elaborate ruse. Even if he has it is only by her good graces that she allowed him to continue. She could have put a stop to it immediately if she had the sense, she could have started him on one of our well regarded training programmes and he would have been a normal pet within a few weeks. This is down to her and her alone.” Lyroo said starting to become a bit more animated.

Loona smiled ready to reveal her trump card. “Oh really? Well in that case why is he, right now, going before the Titan Institute of Physics to be assessed for a teaching and research position at Tannhauser Gate University? That is not just one young woman Miss Prenn, that is an large group of people recognising him and accepting him for what he is.”

Loona smiled further as she saw Lyroo was visibly shocked by this revelation. A Human was about to become a professor at the University where she was a student.

“Chew on that you prissy bitch….” Loona thought

“Well Mr Freeman, you’ll be pleased to hear you have successfully passed the equivalency tests. Our professors were most impressed with your performance.” The lead panel member said.

Niall exhaled a sigh of relief; the trials he had been through were daunting to say the least. He had to call on all of his learning since he arrived on Archavia and also some extrapolation to fill in the blanks. He did excel at the problem solving aspects of the tests. Niall was standing on a table in front of the panel. He was wearing a suit Naskia had made for him. Niall usually liked to wear crisp, designer suites but Naskia’s effort was somewhat unfashionable and did not fit overly well. He appreciated the effort she’d gone to for him and decided to wear it. It was better than cloth trousers and t-shirt any day.

“As I said previously, he is exceptionally talented.” Hussel said from his position a few steps behind Niall. He was there both for moral support and because Naskia was engaged elsewhere.

The head of the panel tapped at his pad looking serious before looking up to Niall again. “Obviously this is a unique situation. You have no formal standing in the Empire beyond the property of Miss Bass; you have no bank account, legal standing, employment rights or a work license.”

“I understand…” Niall sighed believing that all his efforts had come to nought.

“We believe the best way to get around this issue is to have you work as a researcher here at the department, Miss Bass would be paid for your services. If it as you say she respects you and treats you equally then I’m sure she will ensure you are given the money. She will also be required to sign all contracts and will be liable for your conduct.” One of the older looking women on the panel said.

Niall felt slightly sick at what he had just heard, he was under the impression that he would be getting treated as a full and equal member of staff. He wanted to lash out and berate them for being simple minded fools unable to see beyond prejudice. “I thank you for your kind and generous offer but I am unable to accept. To accept the offer would be to accept that I am not equal and with the greatest respect to yourselves I simply cannot do that.”

The Panel head tapped his pad some more and sighed. “That is a shame; you would have made a fine addition to our department. You understand that this offer is unprecedented given that no Human has ever achieved anything like this?”

“I do. I still cannot accept.” Niall stated flatly.

“I understand, our door will always be open to you should you reconsider.” The panel head said preparing to get up.

“This is outrageous!” Hussel said raising his voice. “This man has clearly proven he is our equal in every way. In some ways he is beyond a lot of you here and you would humiliate him like this?! It is totally unacceptable.”

“Dr Bass please control yourself! We agree that Mr Freeman deserves a full place in the department but the University will simply not allow it. The submission will be dismissed out of hand. He is not an Imperial Citizen and therefore cannot be a faculty member.” The older woman chimed in again.

“DOCTOR Freeman has proven himself already. We degrade ourselves as well as him by not allowing him to join us as an equal. I will not work in a department behaves in such a manner.” Hussel argued back.

There were murmurings from the panel as they discussed what Hussel said.

“What exactly do you mean?” The panel head asked.

“Unless Dr Freeman is admitted as a full member of this faculty I will resign from this University.” Hussel stated as he firmly tugged at the lapels on his blazer to show his determination.

There were further discussions amongst the panel as they weighed the revelation from Hussel. Niall felt his chest puff slightly as he felt as rush of pride run through him. Hussel was putting his neck on the line for him. His reputation could be ruined if people knew he had resigned for a Human.

The panel head eyed Hussel for a second. He looked reluctant to say what was on his mind. “Dr Bass, is this threat to resign in any way to do with Mr Freeman’s relationship with your daughter?”

“Not at, this is about principle. We are people of science. We deal in the facts and we act accordingly. Here we are seeing the facts and acting completely irrationally. We cannot just stand on ceremony and accept the status quo. This department is famed the Empire over for its ground breaking research and boundary breaking ideas. We must break another boundary here. If the department is unanimous in its support for Dr Freeman the University will have no choice but to accept our decision and Dr Freeman.” Hussel said pacing the floor. Unlike Naskia he seemed to be skilled orator and easily commanded the attention of the room.

“Very well, we shall adjourn for one hour to deliberate.” The panel head announced as he stood up.

Niall waited until the room was clear and turned to Hussel. “Thank you Hussel, you didn’t have to do that.”

“My boy, I did not do this for you or for Naskia but for myself. I meant what I said, this is about principle. You do not need to thank me.” Hussel replied, the anger on his face was still visible.

Niall and Hussel sat in tense silence for an hour waiting for the panel to return. Neither wanted to leave, the stakes were too high. Everything there was a noise in the corridor Niall would feel the hairs on his neck stand on end. There was a lot at stake here.

Niall and Hussel stood to attention as the panel filtered back in and sat behind their long table. They both waited tensely for the panel head to start talking.

“Dr Bass, we have discussed what you have said. We are indeed people who deal in reason and fact; we are also a department that prides itself on its reputation for pushing the limits of scientific knowledge and the accepted norms of society. “The panel head said.

Niall held his breath waiting for the “but”…

“Mr Freeman, we would like to offer you a full place in our faculty as a Senior Professor. We will certify you in all areas you have been tested in, give you access to research resources, staff and assign a suitable teaching post. Your salary will reflect your status as a Senior Professor. However, we do have conditions.” The panel head continued.

“Such as?” Niall replied eagerly.

“We have no way of paying you besides transferring the money to Miss Bass, you must agree to this. Secondly, you will be placed on a probation period of 6 months and your progress will be reviewed regularly. Should you fail to meet the high standards here at the University your employment will be terminated. This is not a special condition but one all staff go through. Do you accept?” The panel head finished.

Niall could barely contain himself. This was the moment he had dreamed of ever since he had realised Naskia was a physics student nearly a full Earth year ago. “Yes, I accept.”

“Welcome to Tannhauser Gate University Dr Freeman.” The panel head said.