by Mel Todd
"Wait," Blair blurted. "You've spoken to Earthlings before? When?"
"Oh, millennia by the way you tell time." He glanced at Toni then faced Blair again. "But that doesn't matter for the purpose of this conversation though it may explain some of your legends. You have figured out the Elentrin were here once before, right?"
"Yes. Around our Dark Ages we think. The languages provided to the kids and expectations of the population density implied that much. Plus it matches the time lines of stories about werewolves and whatnot." McKenna supplied. That much Charley had helped them figure out.
"Yes, the four-legged canine has always been one of their favorites. Though I have always thought the felines were more deadly." Rarz shrugged. "But that is getting us off topic. My people have had a way to travel to other planets for as long as we have had language that lets us communicate anything. There is a theory your people are calling Entanglement Theory. It has flaws, but the basics are correct. I can find an element of space here and a matching element somewhere else. Between those two parts I connect a path. A tunnel between the two, if you will. I can walk through that tunnel between one place and another."
"How far can you travel?" Roberts asked, making notes rapidly.
Rarz shrugged. "I don't know that there is a limit. The farthest I have personally done is about 250 of your light years."
The adults all froze, various degrees of shock on their faces.
Blair managed to squeak out a comment. "And how long does that take?"
Rarz shrugged, a movement that still needed wings. "About three to twenty steps. Less than five heartbeats for sure."
Everyone just looked at him until Burby shook his head. "While I want to dig into this, and the possibilities it opens up terrify and excite me, I’m not sure how this relates to the question at hand. How do we defeat the Elentrin? What does the way you travel have to do with this situation?"
"Ah yes. We tried a new strategy. The warrior that did it was killed quickly by Kaylid on the ship. But I believe it may work. We can open a portal from the ground here to one of their ships. Allowing people to go through from the planet to the ship. I can keep the portal open even as the ship and planet move with little effort. After two or more of your hours, it will need to be reset, but anyone can use it while it is open."
The sounds of the kids laughing and playing softly on the playset was the only noise as everyone else processed this information.
"I'm sorry. I know I'm not a shifter or anything, but what does that mean?" Carina was the one to break the silence as everyone sat there.
Gunny Roberts, with an odd tone in his voice replied. "It means we get to pull a Trojan horse maneuver, and they don't even need to open the gates to let us in."
Burby leaned back, a half-smile on his face then he frowned. "Roberts. Do you have the latest numbers for how many shifters have been taken?"
"U.S. or worldwide?" Roberts pulled out his phone as he asked that question.
"Worldwide."
A few taps and Roberts replied. "These numbers are very rough, but we think about 1.7 million so far. At least half of those are Chinese where at least a 100,000 just walked onto huge convoy shuttles. But new theories are rising that there are few shifters left that are easily available. The Elentrin are spreading out from the dense population centers of China. Many of the Chinese shifters were located in specific places, which were emptied in the first few shuttles. But the biggest issue is the military is under orders to help the invaders, so Korea and Taiwan look like they are about to be invaded." He paused for a moment looking thoughtful. "Given China's historical xenophobia this says a lot of about how powerful the pheromones work."
Burby leaned back nodding, a frown on his face.
Roberts shook his head dismissing the thought and continued. "Japan is actually pretty safe because outside of Tokyo they don't have a huge population base, though they have lots of fox shifters. Granted we are expecting Tokyo to fall fast. The Elentrin look too much like anime and if they walk in, with no shuttle, and no warning, they'll have them under their command before anyone knows how to stop it. Though more places are adopting shoot on sight orders for anyone in warrior form or an Elentrin. But people affected by the pheromones seem to carry the mesmerizing effect with them for a while. They can convince other people to aid them and the people they talk to can fall under the same spell. Even with distance the effect is hard to resist."
That was news to McKenna, but Rarz nodded. "Yes. It is a molecule that clings and will affect people for hours even after casual contact. It is one of the ways they have managed to influence so many planets. My people are immune; as our reproductive systems are not affected by pheromones, luckily. But if they continue to have issues with larger population planets they will figure out how to aerosol them or simply destroy the planets upon discovery."
"Are there that many worlds with life on them?" Blair's voice had a wistful tone to it and Rarz turned to look at her, his eye ridges raised.
"There are so many planets in this universe, your language does not have words to express the numbers. Of the small handful we have visited over my race's lifetime, which is," he paused for a minute as if trying to remember something or talk to an AI, "23,241 planets, 15,783 have had life above invertebrate level. Of those 354 have had sentient beings. The Elentrin have only managed to find about seventy-five of those planets. Of those, some were immune to their pheromones and the nanobots didn't work on them. Others they have used. But of the planets they are aware of, yours is the most technologically advanced, besides ours and their own."
The shocked stares were getting old, but McKenna felt like bombshells kept being dropped. "There are other species out there that have achieved space flight?" She had to ask. The old dreams of walking on another planet surfaced with a sudden pang.
"Yes. Some are very advanced. But those have been either extremely xenophobic or felt there was no reason to enter what they felt was a private dispute." An odd expression crossed his face. "Though we have noted in the seasons since we shared that information, they have all developed highly aggressive weapons platforms that the Elentrin would not be able to pass."
Burby snorted. "We know a few mindsets like that. So basically no one else is willing to help and you figure since we are involved with this fight, we lose if we don't."
Rarz tilted his head. "If you wish to look at it that way. But you are the first planet with any fission or fusion weaponry that the Elentrin have sent a swarm to. We hoped we might be beneficial to each other. None of the other planets are at a point where even trade for more than occasional food goods or luxury items would be welcome. But you? That is not my area, but I see many things we might be willing to trade, to help each other advance."
"No Prime Directive issues?" Blair asked, then rubbed her forehead. "Sorry, it's a human phrase."
Rarz made a warbling sound that must have been his laughter. "We did run across it. Your Wikipedia is useful. There are many that would pay for your fiction shows alone. No. While there are some in my government that might feel that way, the majority consensus is that all options are available when the Elentrin attack you, yet we can't manage to fight back in any way that has any measurable effect. While I do not have the mindset to be a city manager, I am a warrior. That means I will use any tool, any weapon I can to prevent my people from being killed." He touched his head. "From all beings being killed if possible."
"Be that as it may, the ambassadors and shit can deal with you about that later. Right now I'd like to get back to the plan. Which would be what?" Roberts asked, his entire body focused on the dragon.
"Well, understand I am not a tactician, that is not something Warriors lean towards. We tend more to hit hard then move on or what you call blitzkrieg actions." He bobbed his head and McKenna started to wonder if she was interpreting his body language incorrectly.
~Wefor, do you know how to read him?~
[Not at this time. Information is being collated.]
&n
bsp; Well, that's no help.
"Understood. Tell me what you tried, and quit trying to weasel out of it." Roberts’s voice snapped out and McKenna saw JD's spine straighten and had to fight back a grin.
In the space after the command JD’s and Perc's heads swiveled hard and sharp towards the fence.
"Incoming," JD said in a low deadly voice as he grabbed his gun.
Chapter 8 -Getting Personal
So far, no more news has come out about the US efforts to get weapons into space to disable or destroy the Elentrin ship. At this point we must give up all hope that those taken from us will ever be returned. If we do manage to get weapons up there, there will be no way to differentiate between the victims and the invaders. If we destroy that ship, we will kill our people too. What price to do we pay to end this threat? ~TNN News Op Ed
McKenna spun and ordered the nanobots to her ears, even as she tried to locate what they were referencing. Her ears sharpened and she could hear the sounds that indicated movement. Which meant invaders were close by.
"I can remove them?" Rarz offered, an odd tone to his voice, as he stood going to his full height at over seven feet.
"NO!" Burby's voice barked. "You and the kids inside and if you can get out of sight, do it. I don't want to take the risk of your existence being known."
To McKenna's surprise Rarz looked at him, then her. She made a shooing motion with her hands; his being here could cause issues. He gave a sharp brisk nod and strode towards the house. She felt something brush past her mind, and then the kids, who had frozen at the words, went tearing into the house—no panic, just speed.
Everyone else grabbed weapons as Toni said quietly, "I'll go in and react to any incursion on the inside. I'll yell if I need help." By the time the words finished leaving her mouth she was already inside. McKenna raised her weapon up and boosted the sensitivity of her ears a bit more, letting the bots shape them slightly to pull sound in better.
That's useful even in human form.
"The rest of you inside, too. Leave us out here to deal. You die too easily and are too important." She glanced at their visitors, but the agents were already chivying them back into the house. They'd make sure their charges stayed out of the way, probably in the same room with Rarz or with the kids. Christopher gave her a sharp nod and she realized she still hadn't told him. With a frustrated shake of her head, she moved her attention back to the fence. Now wasn't the time.
~We have to kill all of them, fast before they can communicate with anyone.~ Her mental voice was a sharp flat order. ~If we’re lucky, they weren't close enough to hear the words, just that we were talking.~
~They'll smell him. He doesn't smell human.~ JD was right. Rarz smelled like an odd spice with a touch of fire and lightning mixed in with it. It was a recognizable smell. If any of the Kaylid coming after him had ever done a landing on a Drakyn-controlled planet, they would recognize it in a second.
~All we can do is kill them fast. If they find out they’re here, they won't wait for that other ship to get here. I'm pretty sure it should be here in the next day or so.~ Her tone grim. ~Let's move toward them and see if we can eliminate them quickly.~
As one they moved out towards the sounds that were only audible with their enhanced ears. The tall fence had nice rails on the back and Perc took two running steps and smoothly landed on the rail of the fence, his clawed feet sinking into the wood a bit as he balanced. His whole body pivoted as he scanned the area, his AR-15 pointed in the direction he looked.
~Clear. Give yourself at least a foot on the other side to miss the bushes. That will put you in the neighbor's backyard. They’re coming around from the front of the house.~
That house was directly behind theirs and it made sense if they were trying to approach undercover.
~What did you hear that made you realize they were coming?~ The invaders moved quietly and she was surprised they weren't on top of them already. Over two minutes had passed since JD warned them.
JD turned his head to the side a bit, trapping the side fence in his gaze. ~One of them stepped on something, it broke and it cursed. No one human is going to curse in Elentrin.~
~That would do it. We ready for this?~ McKenna commented, amused that cursing seemed to be a constant among all species.
~Hard and fast,~ Perc affirmed.
McKenna let the men flow over the fence, as she perched on top of the playset scanning the area. While still in human form, she found it easier than ever to move like a Kaylid. Getting to the top and using the vantage point made so she could see the surrounding back yards and watch Perc and JD open fire as Kaylid came around the corners.
In many ways the fact they were so silent let them know they were invaders. Human Kaylid still tended to tromp through, unless they were out hunting like McKenna was or were hunters before they were changed.
Even as the furred head came around the corner, JD's M-16 exploded into sound and a rapid burst of three bullets, then another three, and the body lay on the ground, a mass of red where its head had been. That signified the end of anyone being quiet and the other two burst around the corner, firing as they went.
JD sprang from his location behind a tree even as Perc and McKenna both shot at the two figures coming in fast. The speed of Kaylid in battle could be breathtaking. Luckily McKenna and Perc were just as fast, and their weapons had a better range.
Perc's first shot missed as the Kaylid bobbed, his second caught it in the shoulder, and it fell. McKenna rose, standing up straight even as Perc had to jump to the ground to avoid being shot. From her angle she put two more three-round bursts into the thrashing Kaylid's body, aiming for the head. It fell still and she pivoted, tracking to where JD and the last Kaylid were fighting hand-to-hand.
She cringed. That was never good. The Kaylid had implanted memories and often had strength over the human shifters, as they weren't running into the calorie conservation issues. From what she had seen, they never left that form. While the last week had made them all good shots, shooting at two people in close proximity wasn't anything she was willing to risk.
~Perc, can you help?~ she asked, even as she tried to listen while pivoting on the top of the play structure in the backyard and trying to sense if anything else was headed their way, while using the noise as a cover.
~On it. Watch our backs.~
McKenna wanted to roll her eyes. If it hadn't been a literal life or death fight, she might have.
~Of course I'll watch your back. What? Like I'm willing to let any one of you get hurt?~
The Kaylid JD fought was one of the more lizardy ones that had been in some of the not-dreams. Not a scaled one like Rarz, but more leathery skin. Lizard probably wasn't the right word, but it reminded her of what they thought dinosaurs would look like at one point. Either way, it had a tail, and claws that made Cass's look almost boring, and it seemed to be vicious. Or desperate.
Maybe there isn't a difference anymore. They have as little choice in this as we do.
The thought hit her with a wave of guilt that she pushed aside. All they could do was their best and the fastest way to quit killing beings, people, who had no choice in this war, was to end it.
Perc had dropped his rifle on a table as he launched himself towards the back of the Kaylid, while at the same time saying in the mindspace. ~Coming in. Don't let him turn you.~
~Got it.~ JD pulled and the Kaylid fell off balance a bit. JD, even underweight, looked like he had twenty pounds on him and at this point it was all muscle and it made a difference. Perc slammed into the Kaylid with claws out, shoving them into its back where the heart would have been in a human.
It screamed. Before, most of the fight had been relatively silent, but now it screamed a high-pitched sound that hurt McKenna's ears and must have been torture on JD's and Perc's.
~Shit, it didn't kill it.~ Perc muttered as he fought to yank his claws back out of the being. JD roared and McKenna saw blood streaming from his side.
The Kaylid's tail whip
ped up and slammed into Perc from below, lifting him, and she heard him grunt in pain.
~Dammit, finish it guys. Before you get hurt or others come.~
JD growled mentally at her, but her stress and worry as she kept pivoting didn't allow her to feel guilty for the ridiculous order.
As she scanned back to their fight, she saw JD had sunk his huge jaws around the creature's neck, cutting off its airflow. Meanwhile Perc had slammed both sets of claws into the Kaylid's skull. The awful scream had stopped, and it slumped to the ground, a limp greenish-gray bag of flesh, bleeding from multiple wounds.
~You okay?~
~No. I have at least three broken bones and JD has some wicked cuts. But we'll live.~ Perc's mental voice felt gray and dank. It bugged her, but then this entire thing sucked.
A creak of sound had them looking up, muscles tensing, ready to attack again. The back door of the yard they were fighting in had creaked open a tiny bit and an elderly woman, her once black hair streaked with gray looked at them and nodded.
"Take them and dump them out front on the driveway. I'll call a pick-up." She started to close the door then paused, looking back at them, eyes magnified by thick lenses. "Good job." The door shut and it was all silent again.
~Hey, at least not everyone is against us,~ JD said as he stood, blood still leaking from wounds.
~They never were. We'll get the bodies moved, then we'll need some food. I've got my bot working overtime to fix this stuff. Remind me in the future to shoot them from a distance, this close up stuff is brutal and they’re better trained than we are.~ Perc sounded distracted as he looked around.
~What he said.~ JD's voice sounded exhausted and in pain, but McKenna stayed where she was, watching and listening as they moved the bodies out front. She didn't get down from her perch until she heard them go in the front door, at which point she dropped off the swing set and headed to the deck, not relaxing, but feeling a bit better. The back door opened before she got there and Doug and Philip walked out, their faces unreadable. They firmly shut the door before focusing on her.
