by Mel Todd
"Oh, we are very good at killing. Our history proves that, but this is a bit out of our tech levels. But maybe." She fell silent until the two men had entered, looking around the room with interest. With the three Kaylid, Drakyn, and two humans the room felt small.
"Okay everyone, listen up. We already know because of the time it takes to get people out of the storage pods that we have a major bottleneck. We don't have the portals to really take over all the ships and no way to get access into the various ships without Toni. And we really don't want to kill all the people that have been taken from Earth." She summed up and then looked at Ash. "Tell us about the small ship and anything you can think of. How do we get them to go away?"
Ash swirled his tail in a spiral then shrugged. "That is where the Ambassadors and important Elentrin are. Most of the transport ships hold the captain and his crew, plus the active Kaylid. The awake Elentrin are officers, engineers, or medical staff. The others are mostly aides like me. Because there is a collection going on, there are more Kaylid awake. But between the four ships, I don't think there are even a hundred Elentrin. But this is the only ship I know of for sure."
They fell silent all thinking it over until Roark spoke up. "I have a few questions." McKenna waved at him to go on. "These ships can land right? But we aren't sure if we know how to fly them?"
Toni shrugged and looked at Ash. "Do I know how to fly them?"
"I gave you the information, but the ships require an Elentrin to fly them. They will not respond to the commands or the bio-electric rhythms of anyone else."
McKenna snarled. "Fine, so we need an Elentrin on our side. We have Scilita, would that work."
Ash's tail cracked like a whip. "I would not trust that vilisp as far as I could throw her. She, like most of them, is self-absorbed and cares only for her own hide."
Roark waved his hand dismissively. "Getting people to help, if you have time, is not an issue. The issue is getting them to fear you. There are no captured on the small ship?"
"No. Maybe one or two Kaylid, but they are all but mindless at this point," Ash answered, watching them, his tail rigid and unmoving.
"Then make an example of the small ship. This isn't going to be bloodless. Take the portal and dump a small bomb on the ship and detonate it. We want the others to surrender and it will take a long time to release that many people. The best bet is to land these ships. That should cow the others into cooperating." Roark shrugged. "Brutal but effective. Prove you don't have an issue killing and people that are cowards will do anything to protect their own skin."
McKenna itched for something to do. At that moment she would have loved a fidget spinner to move through her fingers.
"But that still leaves us with three ships and someone we can almost trust to fly them and not crash it into the ground," she pointed out.
~Kenna. You'll want to see this. I think we have a problem.~ JD's voice sounded in her head and half the people in the room jerked their heads toward the doors.
~Do I want to know?~ she asked, already dreading the answer.
~No. But that doesn't change anything.~ His voice had the dry tone, but none of its normal humor.
She signed and looked around. "Might as well go see what the next issue is." With everyone straightening or starting to move, she headed back into the command deck.
The lone Elentrin sat in a corner, eyes wide, but not panicked. That made McKenna pause, something about her calmness bugged her, but she turned towards the viewscreen and froze. Both the window out here and the one in the office displayed a view of the planet. Where once had been a clear view of Earth, one that made her just want to stare for hours, now a long metallic ship hung.
"Please tell me one of the ships moved." She didn't beg, though if begging would have made the answer be the one she wanted, needed, she should would have.
JD's voice rumbled with a heaviness that pulled her heart down too. "No. It just appeared. It's coasting in now."
"The Silik has shown up." Ash's voice had her looking at him curiously. He elaborated. "That is the name of that ship. I knew it was coming, but had no exact timeline for it."
"And it’s here why?" She already knew the answer, but couldn't help herself from asking anyhow.
"To collect more Kaylid. The bounty of your planet was communicated and this ship was dispatched. It holds what two of our ships do." Ash's voice was uninflected, no emotions, no stress, just facts. The way he said the words ran chills up and down her spine.
"Any chance they’ll go away?"
He turned to give her a look, and even through the fur and strange animal features, she got the message he conveyed. She was being stupid and naive.
"Yeah. I know." She sighed and looked at the strange command area. She wanted to call it a bridge, but it felt foreign and not quite right. McKenna leaned against one of the control stations and tried to catalog their options. Three ships to free people from, another to scare off, another that they may have to blow up just to convince people to take them seriously, and major constraints around how fast they could get people off the ship.
One thing at a time, that's all you can do.
~Cass, you're still pushing people out as fast as you can, right?~
~Yes. Everyone has it down and the other room is walking them down here. Though there are more Kaylid from other worlds in that area. But so far no one has given us any problems. People are confused, but seeing mostly humans I think is keeping them calm. The kids are wonderful. Answering questions and making us seem like superheroes I expect, but no one has created any issues. Though a lot of them give the portal worried looks, it's still better than staying here.~ Her tone had satisfaction and amusement in it.
~Good. Any ETA on how long to empty out those two chambers?~
An odd hum filled the mindspace. ~The problem is they can put Kaylid in faster than we can get them out. Even at a minute per decant, they have a big processing facility in the hold where the shuttles go in. They basically dump them in and they are processed. Only the overflow is brought here. That runs through about 500 an hour. They have to decant more slowly to make sure the body is stable. I'm pushing it at a minute per, and really wish we could slow it down. Kenna, we’re looking at days just for what I have here and that doesn't even address the other ships. As far as I can see, we just need time or more help. If we had portals at all the decant rooms, we could do it faster, but then the resources on the ground would be stretched.~ Cass sighed in the mindscape. ~I'm trying but there isn't anything we can do. Their intake process is fast, storage removal slow.~ Her satisfaction had faded and the taste of apology had infused her words.
~Not your fault. Looks like we need to take over the ships and land them so we can do this slowly.~ McKenna reassured her. ~I had a thought though.~
She switched to speech and channeled all the words through. "Is there any reason we can't get the captured ones using that drop method the Kaylid are using to get to Earth? I mean I know we can't fly the shuttles, but they seemed to be able to land and gather people just fine."
Roark flashed her a half smile. "I could be wrong, but that usually requires special training and equipment. If you've ever seen them land, they look all silvery?"
McKenna thought back and slowly nodded. "I think so. Usually the shuttles were easier to see."
"We watched and managed to capture one. They have a specialized system that lets them get through the atmosphere without burning up. I suspect the training for that is intense and there is a limited number of suits." He glanced at Ash.
Ash answered the unspoken question. "Yes, there are loaded training programs and while the suits are plentiful, there aren't as many as you have people. In fact they are almost out on this ship and a resupply order was put in for more suits. That isn't something we can make here."
"What about just waking all of them up in all the chambers and let them wait?" McKenna hated how long this took, but the numbers didn't seem to change.
"Life support on this ship
is only set to support ten thousand for a short period of time. Normal crew is about twenty Elentrin and a hundred Kaylid. That is all the quarters and food that is allowed. Remember, this isn't an attack vessel but a transport ship. Normally after they were programmed, they would be sent to other ships to replenish their supplies. Those ships can support many more active bodies. This one will start failing quickly." He almost sounded apologetic.
"Well, so much for that idea." She stared out at the ship as a chime pinged in the room. "We keep going the way we are. How can we land this—"
JD interrupted her. "McKenna, we have another issue."
Deep breaths, you can't go insane now.
"Yes?"
"We're being hailed."
Chapter 29 - Heavy is the Head
I'm just saying, what if shifters are like vampires or something. I don't mean they suck our blood, but what if the person that they were is dead. They look and act like that person, but the real person, the soul is gone. What if this is step one in making sure all humans die out. That we have welcomed the wolves into the fold as they say? ~Caller on Harvey Klein show.
McKenna turned to look at him. "Hailed? Really? Your skirt isn't red."
JD flashed a grin at her, full of teeth. "I couldn't resist. Though I'm not wearing a skirt."
The banter helped to center her and she smiled. "So how do we pull open the communications or whatever?"
Ash moved over to a station and reached for controls on it when he paused and looked around. "If I answer they will see all of this. It might be best for the bodies to be removed and for Rarz to not be visible. Same with those of yours that are not Kaylid." His voice seemed almost deferential.
He has a point, no reason to tip our hand.
"Guys please, can we get the bodies and our prisoner moved. The rest of you into the room. Maybe just leave me standing here with an empty room? Might be the most impactive."
No one said anything they just leapt into action. Ash waved her over to the console and pointed out two buttons.
"Push this one, then type in the access code Ella, Vin, Cort, 4." He said the Elentrin words for the letters, but she looked at the buttons and knew what should be pushed.
"Got it." McKenna lifted her head and looked around. In the minute it had taken for him to show her what she needed to do, the bodies had been moved and most of them stood in the captain's room looking at her. The bloodstains were bright on the floor, but maybe that would make it look more impressive.
I'm suddenly wishing I had taken acting classes in college.
Ash headed that direction too. The chime went off again and she tried to figure out where to look. Giving up she clicked the buttons and the view screen lit up with the face of an Elentrin.
Hah, I knew that couldn't be a huge window.
The man looking at her seemed older than most she had met, though still beautiful with that smooth skin and sharp features. His hair called to mind the blue-white of an incandescent flame, but the blue of his eyes had no heat in them at all. He glanced past her and scanned the room.
"Who does Keric think he is, having a Kaylid take my call? Leave my sight and let me talk to the officer on duty." He spoke in Elentrin and dismissed her, looking at something off screen. She could see behind him and figured he had to be in his version of the captain's room, which meant probably no one was there to overhear this conversation.
I wonder if that’s a good or bad thing. Others might drive him to do something, but that could go either way.
McKenna stayed silent, watching him as he poked at something off-screen. She started counting the seconds, wondering how long it would take. Her pose of hands clasped behind her back and standing straight would make her seem confident. To pull this off he needed to believe that.
She made it to thirty before he looked back up, a frown creasing his perfect features.
"Well? Why are you not retrieving Keric as I ordered?" He didn't talk to her so much as at her, so she still waited, wanting to get a gauge of the person talking to her. This time he didn't look away and his gaze became much more intent. For the first time he looked around where she stood, and a change rippled over him. Before he had looked just like another Elentrin, nothing commanding about him, but now she could believe he ran a ship.
"Where is Keric?" His voice was slow and cold.
"Dead." She spoke in Elentrin, no need to confuse him by speaking in another language.
He surveyed behind her, his eyes catching on the streaks of blood still visible where the bodies had fallen.
"Interesting. Are you trying to tell me you have taken over the ship?"
"No. I'm not trying to tell you anything. The ship is mine. Your best bet would be to leave now. This planet is not your farm."
An elegant icy blue eyebrow rose as he looked at her. "Am I to assume you are from that planet hanging there?"
"I don't care what you assume. I just want you to go away or you won't like the consequences."
"And what could you do to me?" He leaned back, but he didn't smirk or smile. He asked with that look of concentration.
"I could do lots of things, but my friends could do even more." She bared her teeth and enjoyed his slight flinch. ~Rarz, could you please come out here?~
Out of her peripheral vision she saw him step forward. He really did look slightly odd without wings, but there was no denying he was Drakyn. As he drew near to her, she saw the man on the screen jerk his eyes to the side and freeze. His already pale skin went at least two shades lighter as he focused on Rarz.
"You have sided with the abominations? How could you? They are monsters and must be destroyed," he whispered. Watching him, she saw the tight jaw and rigid stance and she wanted to do a happy dance.
"No. You are more of a monster than they could ever be. Leave. Tell all your people to never come back here. We will destroy you if you come back."
Not that I know how we'll do that, but we will. Humans are nothing if not vicious when we get cornered.
"I'll order your planet destroyed. I'll bring every ship there is in to make sure nothing exists in this solar system but your sun."
"Try it and reap the consequences." She flicked off the signal and spun to face the others. "How fast can we do that bomb idea? Get a bomb into that small ship and blow it? I think we’re going to need to impress them and fast." She looked at Ash. "Can we land this ship? With it on the ground we could make sure it couldn't go back up."
JD and the soldiers were talking to the people at the decanting rooms, discussing things through the portal connection. McKenna tuned them out. She had no input on this idea.
"Not easily. All the controls are linked to the Elentrin biometrics. Kaylid are normally not allowed up here at all. The only reason I could pass on the access info is Keric provided my codes to the ship with an executive order. Even then I had to spend weeks to get an override to work."
[You? I think you mean I had to spend weeks to get it to work, and even then there was no guarantee of success.]
McKenna froze and noted the rest of the shifters freeze, too, and look at her. The voice had the same quality as Wefor's but it sounded different and spoke in a more relaxed manner. It had a more feminine and amused tone than Wefor ever managed.
"Who was that?" McKenna asked slowly, all too aware of the silence on the bridge. Even the soldiers' attention had been drawn to McKenna.
Ash shot her a look she couldn't read. With all these different body structures, she missed being able to read body language. It made life more difficult.
"My AI. Most of the Kaylid that are kept awake have them. The rest are short term assets or limited use."
McKenna couldn't prevent the growl that slipped past her about how he referred to people. Ash closed his eyes for a brief second then opened them.
"It is what they are, what I am, what I have been for a very, very long time. If I am extremely lucky, I might live to see a life where Kaylid can be other than that." The apology underlaid the words though
it wasn't spoken. His tail snapped and he continued. "My AI is part of the reason this worked at all, but that doesn't change the fact that we need an Elentrin to fly the ship."
McKenna blinked and wanted to ask more but again, not the time.
"Kenna, I think the shuttles are moving? Maybe?" JD spoke as he looked at a screen on one of the consoles, big hands pushing buttons gingerly.
Toni moved over, even as the soldiers and Perc went back to discussing things with people on the ground through Cass and Elaine Zimmer. "He's right. The shuttles are surrounding us. They don't have weapons, right?"
"No. Only tractor beams to move things." Tractor wasn't the word Ash used, it translated into a 'push pull beam' but her mind refused to let go of the word tractor, at least that she could conceptualize.
"So why would they be surrounding us?"
Ash's tail did a cracking whip that made her start as he stared at his own console. "All I can figure is the captain of the Silik has contacted the other ships and they are surrounding us to prevent a jump. With large objects this close, the ship can't jump."
I wonder if beating my head on the table would do any good. Everything is going wrong faster than I can make it go right.
"Well, we don't want to jump but we want to make sure they take us seriously. How can we land this ship?" That seemed to be the priority right now, so she focused on that. They had a strategy for taking over ships, maybe they could do it with the others.
Ash didn't say anything, thinking. She saw Toni ignoring Rarz while she focused on the console. McKenna assumed she was doing something necessary but still wanted to laugh at how much she didn't pay attention to the Drakyn.
When he finally spoke, each word sounded like it was pulled out of him, unwilling and resisting. "We need an Elentrin, one with ship training, and one that would help, not immediately act like all of us are traitors to their race."
McKenna flicked an ear forward watching him. He didn't speak or look at her. Her own patience level snapped and she gave in and asked.
