Xalvoria froze. The color drained from her face as the true weight of his command registered. "I am the sovereign of the First Pillar. I bow to no man."
"You are a patient begging for a cure on my ship," Xavier corrected, his voice devoid of any mercy. "Kneel, Xalvoria. Drop the title, get on the floor, and ask for the data properly. Or I walk right out that door, take the ship to Tartarus, and let the decay finish the job."
The stone on the table cast long shadows against the walls. Xalvoria stared at him. She searched his star-forged eyes for a bluff and found only cold certainty. He would let her die. He would let the Sun's Moon turn to ash to prove a point.
A tremor shook her frame. Her knees bent. The ruler of the First Pillar sank to the deck. Her bare knees hit the cold metal. She looked up at the boy she despised and surrendered to the heavy gravity of his lineage.
"Please," Xalvoria whispered. "Give me your data."
